BREAKING:
RI Contributor Graham Phillips Arrested at Latvian SS March
16
March, 2016
‘Graham
Phillips, the popular blogger of the website The Truth Seeker and
former RT stringer known for his coverage of the Donbass conflict,
has been arrested at the annual march of Latvian Waffen SS veterans
in Riga.
Sputnik
reported that Phillips had attempted to place himself at the head of
the column of marchers when he was arrested. At the time of his
arrest he reportedly called out to police officers, "Why are you
glorifying fascism?"
UPDATE
16.03.16 18:55 Moscow -
Graham
Phillips has confimed his release on Twitter:
The question arises for me how these Nazi SS veterans made it through the post-war Soviet eэra. The answer would appear to be that it is impossible to punish a whole nation of collaborators.
Latvia’s Waffen-SS veterans march alongside far-right lawmakers (VIDEO)
Graham W Phillips
I was arrested by Latvian police while covering pro-Nazi demo in Riga today. Now released, and ill be doing my report soon from Latvia!
Latvia’s Waffen-SS veterans march alongside far-right lawmakers (VIDEO)
RT,
16
March, 2016
Latvian
veterans of Waffen-SS units and their supporters have celebrated
Legion Day, an unofficial holiday honoring Nazi collaborators during
WWII, with marches through downtown Riga, Latvia’s capital.
This
year the march attracted hundreds of participants. as seen in the
live footage by Ruptly video agency.
Those
taking part in the procession, some dressed in old Latvian military
outfits, were carrying the national flags of Latvia, Estonia and
Lithuania, reports RIA Novosti.
The
Latvian government officially opposes the event, but does not
prohibit it on the grounds of free speech.
Latvia’s
anti-fascist activists staged a small protest, as they do every year
when Latvian Waffen-SS veterans march in the capital Riga.
Latvians
who served in Waffen-SS not only fought against the Soviet Army, but
also were a part of the atrocities committed against European Jews.
Of
the 70,000 Jews that lived in Latvia when the Nazi Germany entered
its territory, it's estimated that 67,000 died in the Holocaust.
Russia
says the Nazi veterans’ march is a violation of international law.
Anti-fascist and Jewish human rights organizations, such as the Simon
Wiesenthal Center, believe such rallies glorify Nazism.
“Some
of the people prior to joining the [Latvian Waffen-SS] Legion served
in Latvian security forces, which played an active role in mass
murder of the Latvian Jews,” Dr. Efraim Zuroff, head of the Simon
Wiesenthal Center, told RT. “People who fought for victory over
Nazi Germany should be considered heroes.”
The
head of the Simon Wiesenthal Center called attention to the fact that
thousands of Jews from Eastern Europe were brought to Latvia and
exterminated in concentration camps by the German Nazis and their
Latvian collaborators.
Ahead
of the event, Latvia’s State Border Service was reported to be
operating on a robust security regime, officially to prevent radicals
from abroad from taking part in the Nazi procession.
Yet
instead of barring people praising neo-Nazi ideology from entering
the country, Latvian border protection refused to grant entry to
representatives of three German anti-fascist organizations, co-chair
of the Latvian Anti-Fascist Committee Joseph Koren said Tuesday.
Altogether,
six delegates from the Association of Victims of the Nazi Regime, an
organization of resistance veterans and Germany’s Anti-Nazi League
were turned away at Riga Airport and banned from entering Latvia.
The
border guards explained their actions by an order coming from the
Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs of Latvia.
Two
days ahead of the Nazi celebration, lawyers of the Russia’s Rossiya
Segodnya news agency (the parent organization of RT) were denied
entry to Latvia. The lawyers were to attend a court hearing following
the decision of the Latvian authorities to deny official registration
for Sputnik news agency (another part of Rossiya Segodnya) in Latvia
last August.
The
Latvian Legion of the Waffen-SS consisted of almost 150,000 Latvians
and was split into two divisions. The legion was created in 1943 on
the orders of Adolf Hitler. On March 16, 1944, the legion was
deployed against the Soviet Red Army near the town of Pskov. It was
among the last of the Nazi forces to surrender in 1945.
The
Waffen-SS march has been held annually on March 16 since 1998.
Heil mein Trumpenführer!
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