“The emotions tied to reclaiming something taken so brutally can’t be measured in dollars—it’s priceless,” said James Dennehy, assistant director in charge of the FBI in New York City, after the organisation helped bring back Nazi-looted Monet painting after 80 years.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Art Crime Team, the New York and New Orleans Field Offices, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana Wednesday announced the repatriation of a Claude Monet pastel on paper, “Bord de Mer.”

“The emotions tied to reclaiming something taken so brutally can’t be measured in dollars—it’s priceless.”

Discover how the #FBI helped return a Nazi-Looted Monet, missing for over 80 years, to the heirs of original owners: https://t.co/wL66ULxImd pic.twitter.com/zZIzOtHcWq

— FBI (@FBI) October 9, 2024

The painting, created around 1865, was purchased by the Parlagi family at an Austrian art auction in 1936. A few years later, in 1940, during World War II, the pastel was seized by Gestapo, the Nazis’ secret police force.

Eventually, the Monet was purchased at an auction by a Nazi art dealer and disappeared in 1941.

The Parlagi family has spent decades looking for the painting.

Also Read: After Mona Lisa, Climate Protesters Throw Soup at Monet Painting

In 2023, the FBI got a lead when the artwork was listed for sale at a Houston art gallery. The team contacted Dr. and Mrs. Kevin Schlamp, the owners of the artwork, and explained its looted history. Schlamps voluntarily surrendered the piece.

Following this, with the help of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana, a consent judgment was secured in May 2024. The judgment awarded full ownership of the Monet to the Parlagi heirs.

“We are honored to have played a role in returning this stolen artwork to its rightful owners,” said James Dennehy. “While this Monet is undoubtedly valuable, its true worth lies in what it represents to the Parlagi family. It’s a connection to their history, their loved ones, and a legacy that was nearly erased,” he added.

The FBI’s work on this case is ongoing. Several other pieces of artwork were stolen from the Parlagi family in 1940 and the search is on.

Video: Environment Activists Smear Paint On Monet Artwork In Stockholm

New Delhi:

Israel’s United Nations ambassador displayed a yellow star on his chest Monday as he addressed the Security Council, provocatively pledging to wear the badge until members of the body condemn Hamas “atrocities.”

“Some of you have learned nothing in the past 80 years. Some of you have forgotten why this body was established,” envoy Gilad Erdan said, as he denounced the Security Council for “staying silent” over the unprecedented deadly attacks by Hamas operatives against Israel on October 7.

The deeply divided 15-member council has not adopted a single resolution on the three-week-long war between Israel and Hamas.

“So, I will remind you. From this day on, each time you look at me you will remember what staying silent in the face of evil means,” the ambassador said.

“Just like my grandparents, and the grandparents of millions of Jews, from now on my team and I will wear yellow stars,” he said, standing up to affix one on the breast of his suit inscribed with the words “Never Again,” in reference to the yellow stars Jews were forced to wear by the Nazis.

But Erdan will wear it “as a symbol of pride,” he said.

“We will wear this star until you wake up and condemn the atrocities of Hamas.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called the October 7 attacks the worst against the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

For weeks the Security Council has been riven by divisions over the war and its impact, rejecting four draft resolutions about the conflict.

Some texts were blocked by the United States, a close Israel ally, because they did not mention Israel’s right to defend itself.

Another presented by the Americans was stymied by Russia and China in particular because it did not clearly call for a ceasefire.

In light of the impasse, the UN General Assembly last Friday adopted by a large majority a nonbinding resolution requesting an “immediate humanitarian truce,” but not mentioning Hamas. 

Israel, through Erdan, blasted the text, saying it will “go down as infamy.”

During Monday’s Security Council meeting, several speakers, while denouncing the Hamas attacks, highlighted the price paid by inhabitants of Gaza, where health officials say more than 8,300 people have been killed in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory.

Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA, said the siege of Gaza amounts to collective punishment of its residents.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)