Jewish & World News

A Belgian court convicted a man who intentionally drove his car into a group of Jews of intimidation but cleared him of attempted murder. According to the Belga news agency, the court on Friday sentenced the 42-year-old man from Beveren to 12 months in jail and a $780 fine for driving his car while under the influence of alcohol into a group of Jews in Antwerp during the Passover holiday last year. On April 12 2012, the man drove his car onto the sidewalk and into a group of five young Orthodox Jews, who jumped out of the way before he could hit them. The man, who was not named in the Belga report and in other Belgian media, was charged with attempted murder but the judge determined he only wanted to “intimidate” the group. Just before the incident, he made an obscene gesture at an Orthodox Jew he passed by on the street and cursed a number of other Jews, Belga reported. The man’s lawyer said in court that he had “a serious drinking problem.” JTA

Jewish emergency workers in Antwerp held a drill simulating a deadly bombing at a Jewish school.  The drill was held on Sunday at a building in the city’s center. Participants included emergency response teams from Hatzolah, the local Jewish ambulance service; Zaka, an Israel-based victim identification group; and Shmira, the community’s security service. Chaverim, whose members provide non-medical assistance, was in charge of logistics.

Antwerp Mayor Patrick Janssens announced plans to build a monument to commemorate the Belgian city's Jews murdered in the Holocaust. "It is unacceptable that unlike other European cities, the municipality of Antwerp has never erected a single monument in memory of the history" of the Holocaust, Janssens said Wednesday at a City Hall ceremony commemorating the 70th anniversary of the first deportation of Antwerp's Jews.

Antwerp, Belgium - Terrorist suspects arrested two weeks ago in Belgium and Holland  planned to target the Jewish community with a major terror attack, a Jewish magazine said, quoting information obtained by a Dutch newspaper from judicial sources.