For example, in Cyprus (which I have been reading up on and will co9mment later):-
Extremists shame at memorial - Sacrilege at Afxentiou’s memorial denounced
Only two days after taking office leftist President Demetris Christofias came across his first unpleasantness when he was jeered and booed by a handful of nationalist extremists at the annual memorial service of EOKA hero Gregoris Afxentiou near Machairas Monastery.
The group, mainly composed of teenagers organised under the Efen school movement, turned their backs to the President as he arrived at the site of the memorial last Sunday. They also hissed and chanted anti-federation slogans when he laid a wreath at the hideout of the hero.
Keeping his cool, Christofias later said that he was interested in the unity of sensible people, whether they belonged to the right, the left or the centre.
"I believe that acts such as these do not bestow honour on a hero like Gregoris Afxentiou, who would have worked for unity had he been alive," he noted.
Diko deputy leader George Colokasides praised Christofias’ move to attend the memorial as the elected representative of the people and slammed the demonstrators saying that heroes like Afxentiou belonged to all and no group could claim him as their own.
Gregoris Afxentiou, regarded as second in command of EOKA, held out in his hideout in the Machairas mountains for 11 hours against overwhelming British forces, who finally poured petrol on him and burnt him alive on March 3, 1957.
Hissing and booing is not out-of-the-ordinary and is not a sign of madness, as it is portrayed here in Israel.
If Christofias would have been an Israeli politician, like, say, Shimon Peres, or Ofer Pines or Yuli Tamir, he would have been expected to rocket off against the 'fascists', etc. Haaretz would be denouncing the back-turners as 'terrorists'.
Oh well, at least secular Israelis go to Cyprus to get married.
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