Italian Meloni meets Jewish groups and denounces anti-Semitism

ROME — Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stressed the “essential importance” of Italy’s Jewish community for the nation and Europe during a meeting Wednesday with the head of the World Jewish Congress and Italian Jewish groups.

Meloni’s office released a reading of the meeting as the prime minister seeks to steer his far-right Brethren of Italy party, which has its roots in a neo-fascist movement after World War II, away from anti-race racial laws. Italian Jews and the suppression of democracy under Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.

The statement said that during the meeting “a complete agreement was reached on the need for a strong and more incisive common commitment to fight against all forms of anti-Semitism, a worryingly growing phenomenon, including on the web. and social media”.

He said Meloni “highlighted the essential importance of Jewish communities for Italian and European national identity.”

The Brothers of Italy have their origins in the Italian Social Movement, or MSI, which was founded in 1946 by former Mussolini officials and attracted fascist sympathizers to its ranks. It remained a small far-right party until the 1990s, when it became the National Alliance and tried to break away from its neo-fascist past.

Meloni was a member of the MSI and National Alliance youth wings, and founded Brothers of Italy in 2012, retaining the MSI tricolor flame symbol in his party logo.

During the campaign, amid warnings from the Democratic Party that she posed a danger to democracy, Meloni insisted that the Italian right had ‘put fascism back in history for decades’ and condemned race laws and the suppression of democracy.

The World Jewish Congress did not respond when asked to comment on the meeting with Meloni. In addition to WJC President Ronald Lauder, attendees also included Union of Italian Jewish Communities leader Noemi Di Segni and Rome Jewish Community leader Ruth Dureghello.