Posted on 02/09/2009 8:01:58 AM PST by Nachum
A top UK Foreign Office official has been arrested on suspicion of an anti-Semitic outburst at a gym, the Daily Mail reported Monday.
Rowan Laxton, who is head of the South Asia Group at the Foreign Office, was watching TV reports of the IDF offensive in Gaza while on an exercise bike at a gym when he was allegedly heard shouting: "F**king Israelis, f**king Jews," and saying that IDF soldiers should be wiped off the face of the earth, the UK newspaper reported.
His tirade reportedly continued even after he was approached by other exercisers at the London Business School's gym in Regent's Park.
After a police complaint was filed, Laxton was arrested on suspicion of inciting religious hatred through threatening words and behavior. He was bailed until late March, said the Mail.
Laxton has worked extensively in the Middle East and has been deputy ambassador to Afghanistan.
"I was in the gym around 9pm and I heard this guy shouting something about "f**king Israelis," the paper quoted one witness as saying. "This bald guy was cycling away on his machine in the middle of the exercise room. When another guy approached him he shouted "f**king Jews, f**king Israelis."
"The gym was pretty full and everyone looked totally shocked," he continued. "That sort of racist language is totally unacceptable. The gym staff called security and I think the guy was asked to leave."
The Mail quoted Mark Gardner, deputy director of the Community Security Trust which monitors anti-Semitism, as saying that "we must not allow an overseas conflict to cause racism here in Britain and especially not among civil servants."
"We hope that the appropriate disciplinary actions will be taken forthwith, as they would be if these comments had been made against any other section of society," continued Gardner.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: "It is too early to comment in detail on a matter that is currently the subject of police inquiries. But we take extremely seriously any allegation of inappropriate conduct on the part of our staff and continue to follow developments closely," the Mail reported.
When contacted by the British newspaper, Laxton denied his remarks were anti-Semitic but declined comment when asked if they were anti-Israeli
This man’s remarks were truly vile.
But what a scary thing it is to live in a country without the First Amendment where you are — literally — arrested and jailed for an unacceptable utterance.
If you'd like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
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Scary law. They should have thrown him out of the club. Probably can't be fired, but he should be moved from the middle east to the Iceland desk.
I am European too and I am a strong defender of Israel and Jews. I also have seen a lot of people who agree with me (on the right-wing forums mostly I have to admit). This guy is a dhimmi and a left-wing nutjob, that’s why he hates Jews.
Knighthawk, thank you for being a strong defender of Israel and Jews. It is appreciated.
Just wait, he’ll probably be transferred to another government agency... and then, immediately promoted.
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