THE TERRORIST WHO MURDERED DUTCH FILM DIRECTOR THEO VAN GOGH left a five-page letter fixed to Van Gogh's corpse with one of the murder weapons. The letter includes Talmud libels, the like of which we have encountered before. The translation below is from the Dutch blog Zacht Ei. The relevant passage, addressed to (former Muslim) Dutch M.P. Ayaan Hirshi Ali, reads:

I would like to ask you the following questions:

How do you feel about the fact that Van Aartsen (leader of the VVD) subscribes to an ideology where non-Jews are considered as non-humans?

Baba Mezie 114a-114b: Only Jews are people ("Only you are called people"). Also see Kerlthoth 6b under subtitle ("Oil of anointing") and Barakath 56a, where gentile (non-Jews) females are called animals ("female-donkeys")

Yebamoth 92a: All Gentile children are animals.

How do you feel about the fact that a mayor is leading Amsterdam, whom subscribes to an ideology where Jews can lie to non-Jews?

Baba Kamma 113a: Jews may lie ("listen") to mislead a Gentile.

How do you feel about the fact that you are part of a government that supports the state with an ideology that proposes genocide?

Sofarim 15, line 10 (Minor Tarcctates): These are the words by rabbi Simom ben Yohai: Tod shebe goyyim herog ("Even the best of the Gentiles should be killed").

Since you are a fighter for equal rights, you will probably (after learning this knowledge) ask with your Jewish masters in chambers to reject the teachings of the Talmud. You will also probably make work of asking the Jewish community in Holland to reject it.

I'm familiar with most of these accusations and proof-texts; you can find the same claims on various anti-Semitic websites. I noted similar and partly overlapping material last year in an Al Jazeerah article. Obviously the murderer had been steeped in such sources. These Talmudic etc. passages are taken out of context � often grossly so � or otherwise twisted to get these bizarre results. For example, sometimes the passage is rejecting the quoted view and other times the quoted phrases are scriptural allusions in detailed halakhic discussions that have very different points than implied here. You can find full analysis of all these passages at David Maddison's website and "Gil Student"'s Real Truth about the Talmud page.

If you're ever tempted to think that ancient history isn't "relevant," think again. These lies about ancient Judaism are being put to the very modern, practical use of inciting Islamist terrorists to murder people in Western Europe.