Simon Burnton

Cricket and football writer for the Guardian, semi-dormant wine blogger and human with conscience

[David Baddiel @Baddiel]

Wondering if the hearts of those frustrated by small acts of petty symbolism, by the feeling that smashed windows and graffiti on bakeries are simply not enough, are cheered by the upgrade to burning ambulances this morning.

[CAMERA UK @CAMERAorgUK]

We complained to @guardian about Jonathan Liew's column, asking them if his support of a spate of vandalism targeting Gail's Cafe due to its Jewish/Israeli roots, which the Met Police are investigating as hate crimes, is in line with their "editorial standards".

We know the answer, but are nonetheless hoping to see how they justify Liew's latest defence of antisemitism.

[Amit Segal @AmitSegal]

Nova Festival, Simchat Torah 2023
Bondi Beach, Hanukkah 2025

The victims are the same victims, the murderers the same murderers, the motive the same motive, and the hatred the same hatred.

[Dave Rich @daverich1]

The slogan on their banner - “there is only one solution intifada revolution” - is what Elias Rodriguez shouted after shooting Sarah Yilgrim and Yaron Lischinsky at the Washington DC Jewish Museum in May. Complete with the Hamas red triangle. This ought to be illegal.

[Dave Rich @daverich1]

Some irony: the Guardian has miscaptioned a photo of a 4th century Galilee synagogue as "ruins of... a Palestinian village", and then complained that in Israel "Everywhere, history is distorted or obliterated."

[Daniel Sugarman @Daniel_Sugarman]

The thing about Jones at Buttmitzvah? For many months his YouTube channel has been responsible for content which (whether he intends it or not) has led to Zionists being alienated and ostracised.

And then he decides to go to one of the few places Zionists can still feel welcome.

[Dave Rich @daverich1]

Good old @guardian, urging Jews to celebrate Purim by reflecting on "the evil that Jews commit" and "the danger we pose" to non-Jews... "With the blood of their foes barely dry, the Jews feast and make merry." Happy Purim!
https://t.co/GYPt04eQDb

[spiked @spikedonline]

Owen Jones has gone off the rails. His hatred for Israel is a kind of mania. He rages against Israel constantly, damning it as “genocidal” and “uniquely murderous”. Hating Israel has become a lethal obsession of the bourgeois left, says Brendan O’Neill
https://t.co/HrsJWAoyc8

[Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר امیلی شریدر @emilykschrader]

I appreciate the solidarity but I have to emphasize that never in my lifetime have I seen such appalling mob-incited unbridled Jew hatred being endorsed and emboldened by one of the most respected institutions in academia. The entire debate was a type of Dreyfus trial and it was rigged to intentionally make Jewish students unwelcome. The courage exemplified by @jonsac opening the debate almost brought me to tears. In the face of snickering and mocking at mentions of antisemitism — the constant interruptions, insults, racism, cursing and screaming, all in an attempt to silence a proud Jew…who refused to be silenced. 💪 One of the ugliest scenes I have ever witnessed. We should not need 7 security guards with us to be proud of who we are. We should not have to scream over bloodthirsty lunatics to have our voices heard on a forum like the Oxford Union.

If that’s not enough, when @YosephHaddad spoke, they did worse, with more disruptions and insults in Arabic from the audience. When he raised awareness for the hostages — Arab Muslim hostages — the Arab Muslims in the Oxford Union insulted them, grabbed the photo and stomped on it. The woman behind me who had been cursing “Zionists” the entire time, did so proudly right in front of me while the chair, the president of the Oxford Union who ARGUED ON THE SIDE OF THE PROPOSITION HIMSELF, refused to kick out the woman cursing us.

Meanwhile, when @MosabHasanYOSEF stated the Palestinians are pathetic in their behavior during his speech, that same chair tried to kick him out of the debate as well for “insulting Palestinians.” So you see, they have the right to insult Jews and Zionists, but they also have a right to not be insulted. All the while, they are gaslighting and claiming that what they seek is simply “equality.”

This is a bald faced lie. What they are advocating for is Islamic supremacy.

Mosab was also attacked by the President of the Union (incidentally an Egyptian), the other speakers, and the audience for being a “collaborator”. Yet when he revealed what his “crime” was, giving information on an imminent suicide bombing targeting civilians, and asked the audience who would come forward to the police if they were in the same position, only about 25% of the students raised their hands. That means 75% of the audience would not tell the police if they had knowledge of an imminent terror attack that will kill civilians. Can you imagine!? This is not pro-Palestinian, it’s Islamist terrorism.

Thank God for people like @HausdorffMedia who spoke with courage, facts, and fearlessness in the face of unbelievable harassment and threats, to close the shameful debate with dignity.

While all of this was happening, anti-Israel protesters were screaming for the end of the Jewish state outside the debate hall. And that doesn’t even get into what happened on the lead up to the debate where Oxford Union staff gave the pro-Israel side almost no information and refused to speak to the pro-Israel side even about logistics. At the beginning of the debate, Miko Peled and Mohammed El Kurd refused to shake hands with their opponents and all 4 of them refused take the traditional photo. El Kurd also stormed out of the debate after he spoke like the petulant little coward he is, despite the fact this is totally unacceptable conduct in this forum. Yet the President did nothing. At the dinner, they refused to sit with the opposition debaters. Pathetic, racist, childish, and empowered by the institution that is Oxford Union.

The entitled zombies who debated in favor of the proposition aren’t angry at injustice for Palestinians, they are angry that a Jewish and Democratic state exists.

Well we aren’t going anywhere, so I got one word for them: Cope ✌️ 🇮🇱

[The Telegraph @Telegraph]

🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Jay Rayner has accused The Guardian of employing anti-Semites and its editor of lacking the courage to take them on – turning up the heat on the identity crisis gripping the Left-wing news organisation

More details here ⤵️
https://t.co/1PvU4McXPJ

[Simon Burnton @Simon_Burnton]

I did some Watford and Plymouth chat with @LovellLowdown for his podcast, and you can find it here:

[Pilgrims Podcast @podforpilgrims]

🚨 New Pod 🚨

Mark Lovell Previews: Watford ft. Simon Burnton

🟡 Watford’s contrasting home vs. away form
⚫ Special focus: Andre Gray and Watford’s key threats
🟡 Insight into HC Tom Cleverley
⚫ Remembering #pafc FA Cup heartbreak in '84 & '07

🔗 https://t.co/ySZz3Kl1wA

[Giles Coren @gilescoren]

You go ahead and boycott whatever you want to for whatever reasons you think make it right. This is a free country after all. Meanwhile, I’ve reviewed an Israeli restaurant. Israeli food, Israeli culture, Israeli owned. And it was marvellous.

https://t.co/CEvISOS2RW

[Josh Glancy @joshglancy]

In terms of the rather crass “did they deserve it” debate, I think the key point is this: on the day after October 7, hundreds celebrated outside the Israeli embassy in London.

British Jews did not organise masked gangs to put them in hospital

https://t.co/msErQlZjTn

[Hadley Freeman @HadleyFreeman]

Today’s @thetimes column is about the self-defeating madness of authors encouraging the boycott of other authors - about Israel, gender, anything

Authors are now having their own proxy war

https://t.co/ybnYfhrnVi

[Simon Burnton @Simon_Burnton]

They've got a particularly clever system here in Multan for holding up the advertising boards during the post-match presentations

[Kwadwo Baah @kbaah22]

Foul?🤣🤣

[Azeem Rafiq @AzeemRafiq30]

Collateral damage

This should not just make people sad but actually angry - everyone was warned but chose to ignore

Here is the result

[Hussain Abdul-Hussain @hahussain]

Since at least 2005, Hezbollah fighters have assassinated a Lebanese prime minister (per a UN Tribunal) and two dozen Lebanese lawmakers, ministers, army and police officers, journalists and activists.

In 2008, Hezbollah fighters swept Beirut and Mount Lebanon to punish the Lebanese who demanded that the militia fold and join state agencies (in accordance with UN resolutions 1559 and 1701), terrorizing the Lebanese.

Starting in 2012, Hezbollah deployed its fighters in Syria, helping in killing half a million Syrians and displacing millions.

On October 8, Hezbollah launched its war on Israel.

Every time Hezbollah killed other Lebanese, militia accused these Lebanese of treason, made fun of them as they licked their wounds.

Then when Hezbollah thugs, who lived by the sword, died by the sword, the Lebanese were suddenly expected to show solidarity and sympathy with their compatriots?

All of a sudden the world described death of Hezbollah thugs as “violation of laws,” terrorism and escalation?

Where was I when Hezbollah, a killing machine, was ever not escalating or killing others?

I’ll stop here because if I write one more line it’ll have to be a profanity, a language that I don’t use.

[Rugby World Cup @rugbyworldcup]

Serving cold looks before the #RWC2021 final 🥶

[Simon Burnton @Simon_Burnton]

Really enjoyed this

[James Dart @James_Dart]

‘I want it to be a testament to others, that any dream is possible. I mean, here I am at the Olympics. I’m here. That’s what matters.’

These are the slowest fastest women on Earth. And they all have a story to tell. By @jonathanliew https://t.co/tM5hr8VPdi