Yasmin's got lots of Jewish friends, so that's ok.

Julian Snowdon

You missed a vital clue in Yazzer's piece: '..handed to him by his tennis partner, Tony Blair.' Tennis is the secret. See 'The Protocols of the Elders of Wimbledon' where all is revealed. How come more people don't know this?

Joshua

The editor of the Independent suggested recently that he would never publish an anti-Semitic article because he is Jewish. I have heard this individual referred to on a number of occasions as a "Kapo". I think this is most unfair as the Kapos in virtually all cases worked under terrible duress ("Do what we say or we'll kill your wife and children."). Individuals like this editor of course suffer no duress whatsoever. What motivates them is a hatred of self and their own people. We need a new word to describe such individuals. I've got it! We should call them "Kellners".

Lee Jakeman

Yes - we could tell that you were a yid from your vigorous defence of Abrahams ...

MA

Your Speccy colleague Fraser was also front and centre on this, Stephen. He gave as his number one Westminster rumour about the affair the canard that Abrahams was funnelling cash from the Israelis as a "thank you" to Blair from the International Zionist Conspiracy. Interesting to see that the Telegraph Group is inching back towards its High Tory, country house anti-semite roots. Have you and Mel talked about this?

Joshua

"Interesting to see that the Telegraph Group is inching back towards its High Tory, country house anti-semite roots." -- The Daily Telegraph's descent into the anti-Semitic mire has been gathering pace for the last few years. It could be observed in both the type of stories that have been covered and also the particular slant those stories have been given. One of the very worst examples was Andrew O'Hagan's now infamous "Mel Gibson deserves pity, not pillory" back in August of 2006. Ms. Phillips and Mr. Pollard dealt with it at the time in their usual brilliant fashion. However, I believe the very best response came from Daniel Johnson in the New York Sun. Here is a link to that piece -- http://tinyurl.com/32xh5a -- A final note: O'Hagan is a contributing editor at the London Review of Books, the magazine that originally published Mearsheimer and Walt's "The Israel Lobby".

C U Vaird

Both the erudite Stephen Pollard and the hysterical ‘Mad Mel’ are somewhat confused. They know full well, as I do, that whilst the majority of Israelis are Jewish the vast majority of Jews are no way Israeli! Nor would want to be. The issue is that the British electorate is increasingly concerned about undue Israeli influence on our parliamentary democracy – not Jewish influence – of which there is none. It is not the Chief Rabbi who has the ear of the Prime Minister, (both current and previous), but the Israeli ambassador. It is time that we put a stop to the interference in our (and the EU’s) domestic and foreign policy affairs by a small Middle Eastern state that is not even in Europe – and never will be.

Joshua

"It is time that we put a stop to the interference in our (and the EU’s) domestic and foreign policy affairs by a small Middle Eastern state that is not even in Europe – and never will be." Thank God for that. We Jews really couldn't afford for another six million Jews to be murdered by the gentiles of Europe. And you are quite wrong about the Jews of Britain. The vast majority are incredibly proud of Israel and many would lay down their lives for her. They are also increasingly concerned by the levels of anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism in Britain (The Israeli ambassador controls Britain? That must be in some alternative universe). Indeed, there are a large number of Jews who feel very alienated from mainstream society. Dr. Irene Lancaster has suggested elsewhere that Britain is the new Germany. I believe that Britain has always been the new Germany. Now that over sixty years have passed since Auschwitz was "liberated" and the shame has dissipated, the vicious anti-Semitism which was always part and parcel of British life has re-emerged from the shadows. I believe that the gentiles of Europe are the eternal enemy of the Jewish people (not because we wish it, but because they make it so) and long after we Jews have made peace with the Arabs, the greatest danger to our survival will come from the Europeans. At the heart of that danger, Britain will lie, perfidious, Jew-hating, amoral and vicious. For now, it is obvious that Britain has once again abandoned the Jews in favour of the Muslims. It is therefore high time that the Jews of Britain abandon any loyalty they once had to that realm and leave, before it is too late.

C U Vaird

Joshua, Joshua, what a paranoiac prat you are! You may endeavor to obscure the issue - but you cannot succeed because the public is not naive. The Labour Friends of Israel is what it says and what it means. You may speak for yourself but no other. The Jewish community in Britain is well respected and well established and you do them no service with your nonsensical charges of antisemitism.

Paul

You're too sensitive. Grower a thicker skin and stop having a persecution complex.

Jeremy Jacobs

What paper should I start reading Stephen?

BDK

.."undue Israeli influence on our parliamentary democracy.." Yes of course it was Israel that was responsible for that sick making, grovelling display by Britain's monarch and government to the king of that great democracy known as Saudi Arabia. The only influence on our parliamentary democracy that the electorate cares about in the Middle East is the same one that it has always been - OIL.

Julian Snowdon

You still don't get it. Only 1.8% of the membership of my tennis club is jewish, yet I have NEVER WON A GAME. What more do you need?

Maizy Doats

I'm no supporter of Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, but is it or is it not legimitate to ask what role Labour (and Conservative) Friends of Israel play in British politics? If it is, trying to frighten off scrutiny with cries of "Antisemitism!" gives support to those who say LFI and CFI are up to no good. It's not as though they're weak and powerless organizations.

RHK

@Joshua "I believe that the gentiles of Europe are the eternal enemy of the Jewish people (not because we wish it, but because they make it so) and long after we Jews have made peace with the Arabs, the greatest danger to our survival will come from the Europeans. At the heart of that danger, Britain will lie, perfidious, Jew-hating, amoral and vicious." and more in the same vein. Do I even need to comment?

RHK

At least Yasmin Alibhai Brown's article was for the most part (not the stupid "shape-shifter" bit" calmly and reasonably argued. In contrast this article is nothing but a rant. Address the issue Stephen Pollard and less of this emotional ad hominem.

Dinah

I have no idea who Yasmin is, but I read her piece and thought I was reading something from 1933 Germany...and I am about the least paranoid Jewish person you will ever meet. Thanks for this..it mad me laugh.

Mike

Dear oh dear Melanie. I'm not Jewish so I couldn't possibly know how you feel about these things, but you really haven't done yourself any favours on this one. For the life of me I can never understand why it is that you make so much sense on so many topics, yet when it comes to Israel you lose it! If you had set about forensically taking Yasmin apart, that would have been one thing, but to rant on about anti-Semitism and all that stuff is simply not acceptable. Look at what you've done to poor Joshua - right now he's running around like a headless chicken! Do you really get a kick out of winding people up like that? Frankly I think you should be ashamed of yourself - you are capable of so much better, not only for the benefit of folk like me, who normally would be hanging on every word of your insight, but the Jewish community wherever they may be.

Mike

My sincere apologies Melanie for misreading the byline. My problem with you is that you always seem to get me going especially early in the morning before I've even got out of bed. I would never feel like this over Stephen Pollard.

stephen hoffman

look anti semitism is a serious issue in Britian the last all party parliamentary report showed that Anti Semitism in Britain is at it's highest for the last ten years and a lot of anti semites hide under the cloak of Anti zionism . Now both the labour and conservatives friends of Israel are not in the pocket of the likud party --both friends of Israel group support the two state solution , they just think as many people think that the BBC places israel as evil and the Palestinians as innocent and there is a lot of bias against Israel in Britain's newspapers . What the point of having Heifetz in a front page picture i have no idea. Alibhai brown's article sounded like the findings of the protocols of elders of zion , just replace the word zionist or israeli for jew and you get my drift -- i dont here here having a go at the sudanese government for the massacres at darfur , or the Iranians for the supression of woman -- i suppose she only really sees Israel ever in the wrong .to conclude at the start of the article she says some of my best friends are jews , that's like racists saying some of my best friend's are blacks -- the standard excuse to cover racism