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| The St. Andrews Golf Hotel |
A hotel canceled an Israeli charity event because it feared it might face pro-Palestinian protests, according to a statement made by the St. Andrews hotel in Scotland.
The hotel has canceled a charity ball for Israel amid fears of a Palestinian protest outside and the possibility of violence against hotel members, employees and its property.
The St. Andrews Golf Hotel for Scores called off the St. Andrews Jewish Society event on Friday citing "health and safety reasons" after discussing the situation with the police.
The place had accepted a booking for the group among seven other charity events, including Friends of the Israel Defense Forces and the Jewish National Fund.
The hotel received emails and phone calls from an aggressive nature and also learned there would be a protest outside organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign in Scotland.
A hotel spokesperson said the event was canceled because it could not ensure the safety of customers and staff.
A spokesperson for Fife Police said: "The hotel discussed the situation with police and the decision to cancel was taken by the hotel."
The event was relocated elsewhere, Joel Salmon, president of the St. Andrews Jewish Society said. He refused to disclose the new location.
“It is very sad that the Jewish community must live under these conditions where hotels bow down to anti-Semitic threats and cancel Jewish events after they were already booked. It is also shameful that the police cannot guarantee the safety at these events,” Bertha Eleanor, 56, of Edinburgh, Scotland told YourJewishNews.com after learning about the cancellation of the event.
He said the protest was organized by people with little or no connection to St. Andrews, and added that the Jewish community "will not give in to intimidation or bullying".