Published in Dawn January 15th , 2015

JERUSALEM: A small Jewish newspaper in Israel is making waves internationally for removing German Chancellor Angela Merkel, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo from a photo of this week’s Paris march because ultra-Orthodox beliefs do not allow pictures of women in newspapers and magazines.

World leaders had linked arms to march in Paris on Sunday against terrorism after the attack on French magazine Charlie Hebdo last week. Angela Merkel stood in the front row between French President Francois Hollande and Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas.

But readers of Hamevaser newspaper’s Monday edition didn’t know as she had been digitally removed, leaving Abbas standing beside French President Francois Hollande.

Israeli media joked it was meant to bring Mahmud Abbas closer to Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu, who was standing nearby.

In Jerusalem, ultra-Orthodox Jews frequently deface buses and billboards bearing advertising carrying images of women. Visitors to the religious neighbourhood of Mea Shaarim are greeted with signs saying: “Please do not pass through our neighbourhood in immodest clothes.”

“A woman’s exterior should not be seen and photographed or paraded in front of men,” said Yosef Haim, a neighbourhood resident.

“I think it’s a very positive thing. Binyamin Lipkin, editor of Hamevaser, said the newspaper is a family publication that must be suitable for all audiences, including young children.

“The eight-year-old can’t see what I don’t want him to see,” he told Israel’s Channel 10 television station.

“True, a picture of Angela Merkel should not ruin the child, but if I draw a line, I have to put it there from the bottom all the way to the top.”

Shmuel Pappenhym, an ultra-Orthodox commentator, had another view. He said that while Jews must preserve their values, the newspaper had gone too far.

“The Hamevaser newspaper does a thing like this, tomorrow it appears in Germany, it appears all over Europe, the rest of the world.

“It mocks the Jewish Orthodox community. It makes us look narrow-minded. It makes us look obtuse,” he said.

what kind of negative side effect can possibly a photo of angela merkel impart on 8 year old.

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And Allah Knows, while you know not. (Al-Quran)

May be to avoid some sort of ram effect as seen in sheep for attaining precocious puberty.
It's quite absurd to see this facet of a society with technology and research at it's peak, in every field of life, putting sanctions on petty things in the name of values.
The term ultra-orthodox is used precisely.
It seems "History will never die" and the identities will prevail.
People try to modernize, become restless and then again find refuge in naturalism, conservatism and the most controversial of all, the religion.

When it's for Islam they say statements like

"When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." (Robert Pirsig, A Dawkin's Mentor)

And when it comes to other religions they say

Gam zu l'tova (This is for the good).

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If I am what I have and if I lose what I have, who then am I?

Exactly this misogynistic face of this already controversial state was unknown to many till yet.

The jewish morning prayer for a man and for a woman is different.
The men prays that"Blessed are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who has not made me a woman." Morning Blessings, Artscroll Siddur, p. 12. but no one questions there religion why is it that all the genius minds have diverted their whole energies at criticizing Islam only.

This is what an observing jewish woman prays in morning"Blessed are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, who has made me according to Your will."

Below are the words of a jewish blogger i found through a little googling around.
Written by male rabbis nearly 2,000 years ago, these words evoke for me the sexism too prevalent in the Orthodox world and beyond. These words have echoes of the religious misogynists who throw chairs at a woman for praying at the Western Wall or force women to sit at the back of Israeli buses. This blessing helps enable the religious sexism that silences women's voices, keeps them from positions of communal leadership, and denies them study of our sacred texts.

So, in some instances jewish women are thrown chair at religious places, not allowed to sit in front rows of buses and are denied to study sacred text.Why doesn't it bother anyone? and why doesn't it find any place in comic magazines,despite all its irrationality.

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And Allah Knows, while you know not. (Al-Quran)

If anyone mocks jews a bigger media apparatus will declare them villans. In today's world might is right and jews have that might.
In todays world if anyone speaks of right is branded as unrealistic.

The western world is powerful at the moment and going on a rampage of stupidity. Extremism which they intended to clean up has reached their own backyard. Fingering the hornet's nest was never considered a wise action. But now it has happened and things are moving .

Replying the cartoonists in kind is the answer I think but since when has drawing been encouraged here? And anyways caricqturing their political leaders won't do any good. And caricaturing their religious leaders is something we just can't do And shouldn't either.

The solution I guess is slapping the mimicry out of them but hum naukrion ke bhawandar mein phase huai hai. Eternal losers like us can't do anything.

But you know they have a strong and mandatory women army force plus this was the case of just ultra-orthodox jew not "in general".

Israel as a state, gives equal rights to women.

Exactly.
Dil ki Azadi Shehnshahi, Shikam samaan Maut
Faisla tera tere hathon men he, dil ya shikm.

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If I am what I have and if I lose what I have, who then am I?

@ rao rameez.
Please do translate shikam and the couplet that you qouted. I am lousy at poetry

exactly this point is what i want to raise, why comics about muslims are made keeping in veiw the ultra orthodox lot only, no one cares to differentiate between an ultra orthodox and general muslim. Only horrible practices are picked publicised and stereotyped. Even the social and local evils of muslim countries are so documented that it may prove some link with islam. For example the female circumcision is a regional practice of africa and mideast, but the general perception about it is that it has something to do with islam.

And please explain the poetry too it was really difficult even i could not understand it though i am not lousy at poetry.

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And Allah Knows, while you know not. (Al-Quran)

Well, this is called Propaganda, in which western media has mastered.

This circumcision thing is not restricted to women only, men are also accused of this thing. But now the recent research in high impact journals have shown that those with circumcision are less likely to develop AIDs and other venereal diseases and off course reduce the sensuality as well, which is the major cause of sub-Saharan AIDs epidemic.
So, soon they will be seen recommend this thing which was inhuman and will become a "western achievement" soon. And our people will start praising this even, without knowing that it was Islam which made it mandatory first.
Same what is happening to woman freedom. Islam coined the women freedom and after 1200 years when west adopted it, now the same Islam is backward.
Islam is not backward, Muslims are.

Shikam Means "Belly".
Shikam Saman "Ways to fill it" or simply filling it.
Shehnshahi means "Kingship"
You need to worry about your appetite or soul,
Choice is yours.
As the the worry for livelihood kills your soul and that of soul makes you king...Something like this.

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If I am what I have and if I lose what I have, who then am I?

Ustad e muhtaram jab something like this per baat khatam karni thi tou shuru hi kyun ki

Ab agar discuusion mein contribute nahi kia tou post bhi ghaib ho jai gi likn samajh nai aawat kei kia arz karein.
Albatta yei baat shayad Iqbal ki hai ke The one who conquers the self is the king.
Today the french embassy was given extra security. An interesting thing is that Europe does not have the stomach to bear armed conflicts. Such stupidities will only increase attacks in europe and expose their under belly. Their governments should take measures to stop caricatures of such sort. Else Musalman farigh betha hai. Grenade uchalnay mein farigh logon ko bara maza aata hai aaj kei daur mein.