Israhell ceremony killed because of Palestinian killings

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Genesis Prize cancels ceremony after 2018 winner Natalie Portman said she won't visit Israel
https://www.jta.org/2018/04/19/news-opinion/genesis-prize-cancels-ceremony-2018-winner-natalie-portman-said-wont-visit-israel?utm_source=JTA+Maropost&utm_campaign=JTA&utm_medium=email&mpweb=1161-3930-23381

This is a developing story.

(JTA) — The Genesis Prize announced it was canceling its prize ceremony in Israel in June after 2018 recipient Natalie Portman said she would not take part in light of "recent events."

On Thursday, the Genesis Prize Foundation, which awards what it calls the "Jewish Nobel," said it was "very saddened" that the Israeli-American actress would not take part in the ceremony. The foundation said that Portman's representative notified it that "[r]ecent events in Israel have been extremely distressing to her and she does not feel comfortable participating in any public events in Israel" and that "she cannot in good conscience move forward with the ceremony."

The Genesis Prize Foundation cancelled the prize ceremony, saying in a statement that its organizers "fear that Ms. Portman's decision will cause our philanthropic initiative to be politicized, something we have worked hard for the past five years to avoid."

Portman did not specify which events caused her distress, although the United Nations and the European Union recently called for investigations into the use of live ammunition by Israel's military following clashes along the border with Gaza that have left dozens of Palestinians dead and hundreds wounded. Israel celebrated the 70th anniversary of its independence on Thursday.

In November, the Genesis Prize announced that Portman would receive its 2018 award, which comes with a cash prize that recipients may direct toward causes of their choice. She joins artist Anish Kapoor, violinist Itzhak Perlman, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and actor-director Michael Douglas as winners of the $1 million prize, which "honors individuals who serve as an inspiration to the next generation of Jews through their outstanding professional achievement along with their commitment to Jewish values and the Jewish people."

Genesis said in December Portman's prize money had been doubled to $2 million by a donation by Israeli philanthropist Morris Kahn. The foundation did not indicate whether Portman would still receive the prize money in light of her announcement.

The Genesis Prize was established by Mikhail Fridman and other wealthy Russian-Jewish businessmen and operates in a partnership with Israel's Prime Minister's Office and the Jewish Agency for Israel.

In 2009, Portman joined other Hollywood stars in protesting calls for a boycott against the Toronto International Film Festival for its staging of a Tel Aviv-themed event. She also directed and starred in a Hebrew-language adaptation of Israeli novelist Amos Oz's memoir, "A Tale of Love and Darkness." In a statement following the Genesis Prize announcement in November, Portman said she is "proud of my Israeli roots and Jewish heritage."

In 2015, following the re-election of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, she said she was "very, very upset and disappointed."

"I find his racist comments horrific," she told The Hollywood Reporter. "However, I don't — what I want to make sure is, I don't want to use my platform [the wrong way]. I feel like there's some people who become prominent, and then it's out in the foreign press. You know, shit on Israel. I do not. I don't want to do that."

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Kikes going crazy over Natalie Portman's protest.

Natalie Portman 'unworthy of any honor' says Israeli politician
https://www.rt.com/news/424742-natalie-portman-genesis-prize-snub/?utm_source=browser&utm_medium=aplication_chrome&utm_campaign=chrome

An Israeli government minister has called for actress Natalie Portman to be stripped of her Israeli citizenship, after she refused to attend the Genesis Award ceremony, citing "extremely distressing" recent events.

"From the outset, the idea of granting the Genesis Prize to Natalie Portman was complete craziness," Member of Knesset (MK) Oren Hazan said, as cited by Arutz Sheva. "She's an actress, but she is unworthy of any honor in the State of Israel."

He called Portman a Jewish Israeli who "cynically uses her birthplace to advance her career" while expressing pride in the fact that she never served in the Israeli military.

"I call on Interior Minister Aryeh Deri (Shas) to rescind Portman's Israeli citizenship. She left Israel at age four, and has no real connection to the state," added Hazan, a member of the ruling Likud party.

Portman declined an invitation to collect the Genesis Prize following unspecified "recent events" that she found "extremely distressing." The actress added that she "does not feel comfortable participating in any public events in Israel" and "cannot in good conscience move forward with the ceremony," according to a statement published online by the Genesis Foundation. The ceremony was scheduled to take place on June 28 but has now been cancelled entirely as a result of Portman's withdrawal.

"In addition to honoring Ms. Portman, the ceremony in Jerusalem was intended to highlight the work of women's rights NGOs working on women's equality and empowerment issues," the Foundation said, in the statement published Friday.

"The staff of the Foundation enjoyed getting to know her over the past six months, admires her humanity, and respects her right to publicly disagree with the policies of the government of Israel. However, we are very saddened that she has decided not to attend the Genesis Prize Ceremony in Jerusalem for political reasons," the statement said. "We fear that Ms. Portman's decision will cause our philanthropic initiative to be politicized, something we have worked hard for the past five years to avoid."

Portman was nominated to receive the prize, often called the 'Jewish Nobel,' last November for "outstanding professional achievement and commitment to the Jewish people and Jewish values, such as social justice, tolerance and charity." Upon her nomination, Portman reportedly vowed to donate half of the $1 million prize money to women's rights charities.

"I was very sorry to hear that Portman fell like a ripe fruit into the hands of BDS supporters," Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev said, according to Arutz Sheva. "A Jewish actress, who was born in Israel, has joined those who see the miraculous success story of Israel's creation as a 'story of darkness'."

Regev was referring to the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement arguing for punishing Israel over the treatment of Palestinians, especially in the West Bank and Gaza.

The Genesis Award was established by Mikhail Fridman and other wealthy Russian-Jewish businessmen in 2012. According to Haaretz, Israeli philanthropist Morris Kahn promised to double Portman's $1 million grant, bringing the total prize money to $2 million, on condition that it also be "re-gifted" to charities, as is customary with recipients of the award.

"What I want to make sure is, I don't want to use my platform [the wrong way]," Portman told The Hollywood Reporter in 2015. "I feel like there's some people who become prominent, and then it's out in the foreign press. You know, shit on Israel. I do not. I don't want to do that."