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Monday, March 22, 2021

03/22 Links Pt2: ‘Who Needs the Daily Stormer When You’ve Got the New York Times?’; How "tamed"Jews deny what's all around them; London police probe assault, attempted suffocation of pregnant Jewish woman

From Ian:

‘Who Needs the Daily Stormer When You’ve Got the New York Times?’: An Excellent Question
A Jewish organization worked tirelessly with non-Jewish allies to help win clemency for indigent prisoners, including many non-Jews, who had been sentenced to excessive sentences.

Rather than praising it, the New York Times targeted it on the Sunday front page with what the paper itself described as “an investigation.” The Times inaccurately smeared the work as an effort for “wealthy or well-connected people,” the product of what the Times called a “network” of “influential” “Orthodox Jewish leaders” operating “behind-the-scenes.” As if anyone could miss the point, the Times illustrated the article with a Protocols-of-Elders-of-Zion diagram in light blue and mustard yellow showing how all these rabbis have their tentacles in President Trump.

A thread of tweets by Newsweek editor Batya Ungar-Sargon did a fine job of assessing the situation, likening the Times investigation to neo-Nazi propaganda. “Who needs the Daily Stormer when you’ve got the New York Times? An Orthodox Jew helps free more than 4,000 Black men from prison. NYT: A LOOSE ALLIANCE OF ORTHODOX JEWS USED THEIR MONEY TO UNDERMINE JUSTICE AND PUPPET MASTER THE PRESIDENT. Anyone else who had done as much to mitigate mass incarceration would be lauded as a hero. But when Orthodox Jews do it, the whole enterprise is tainted by their ‘lobbying,’ their ‘lawyers,’ their ‘loose network;’ and of course, the crime of being Orthodox Jews to begin with! You can’t bring yourself to write about the First Step Act? Fine. You can’t bring yourself to admit Kushner did something good? Fine. But you don’t get to use your institutional allergy to reporting the facts to spread disgusting anti-Semitism.”

Ironically, the same Times reporter responsible for Sunday’s embarrassment — Kenneth P. Vogel — was as recently as 2018 assailing another “loose network” that criticized George Soros. “Employing barely coded anti-Semitism, they have built a warped portrayal of him as the mastermind of a ‘globalist’ movement,” Vogel wrote for the Times of efforts to smear Soros, which he said included notions of a “shadowy Jewish cabal” and a “common anti-Semitic trope.”

Vogel has gone from reporting on barely coded antisemitism and antisemitic tropes to, as Ungar-Sargon accurately described it, himself perpetuating it.
Alan Dershowitz Talks Trump Pardons

Melanie Phillips: How "tamed"Jews deny what's all around them
Tuvia Tenenbom is perhaps the most successful author to experience extreme levels of difficulty in getting his books published in English.

I Slept in Hitler’s Room and Catch the Jew, his books about antisemitism in Germany and the Middle East, were published in Germany and Israel and became bestsellers. Despite this success, his subsequent book about American Jews and antisemitism couldn’t obtain a publisher in America. He was told that it would upset American Jews.

Now he has a new book out, The Taming of the Jew, a pointed, savage and often comic travelogue about attitudes in Britain and Ireland. And guess what? He couldn’t find a British publisher. So it’s been published in English by his Israeli publisher, Gefen.

The reason for Tenenbom’s difficulty is that he frightens people. He does so by lifting a curtain to expose not only antisemitism in places where people don’t want to admit it exists, but also the often craven attitudes towards it of some diaspora Jews.

The methods he uses also provoke unease. That’s because he often pretends to be something he is not, in order to lull people into speaking in an unguarded fashion. Think Sacha Baron-Cohen with blond hair, a large belly and a passing resemblance to Falstaff.

He gets people to say things which are so outrageous that readers sometimes can’t believe they really said it. In response, he maintains that he and his wife tape-record or video every encounter.

A former playwright and theatre director, he gets people to say these things through what some might call an act, and others might call a trick.

For Tenenbom, who wrote a column for the German paper Die Zeit for many years, often introduces himself as a German or half-Jordanian reporter. When he does so, certain people assume he is an antisemite. So believing that they’re talking to a kindred spirit, they come out with ripe examples of antisemitism.


Media’s Hyper-Focus on Israel Shields World’s Worst Human Rights Abusers
Yet, for NBC and numerous other news organizations, this is a story that apparently warrants reams of breathless coverage. Why? Why is NBC (and most other Western news media) devoting far less virtual space and time reporting on the plight of the Uyghur Muslims in China? Why are they not discussing the starvation of children in Yemen? Why are they not focusing on the ongoing slave trade in Libya? Why are they spending far less time reporting on the ongoing slaughter and kidnapping of children in Nigeria by Boko Haram?

I think we all know the answer to these questions. These media organizations know they receive a lot more views promoting stories that bash the one Jewish state than those that focus on actually significant human rights stories around the world.

But while this hyper-focus on Israel certainly does do some harm to Israel, the people it harms the most are those who the media outlets largely ignore compared to how they cover Israel and the Palestinians. This media malpractice really hurts the Uyghurs, the imprisoned political dissidents in Hong Kong, those protesting another dictatorship in Myanmar, the Tigray civilians being slaughtered in Ethiopia, the gay people oppressed by Iran and the countless other actual human rights violations that barely get any attention.

In much the same way that the hyper-focus on Israel by so-called “human rights” organizations (such as the United Nations Human Rights Council) protects the world’s worst human rights abusers from answering for their crimes against humanity, the hyper-focus on Israel by the media prevents widespread coverage of the most heinous human rights abuses by the worst dictatorships and terror groups on earth.

In the first three months of 2021 alone, Boko Haram has kidnapped and murdered hundreds of people in Nigeria, many of them children. Yet a Google search for “NBC News Boko Haram” doesn’t come up with a single news story from 2020 or 2021. Not one.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Walter Lippman famously said, “There can be no higher law in journalism than to tell the truth and to shame the devil.” Well, if the “devil” is not those kidnapping and murdering thousands in Nigeria, putting hundreds of thousands in concentration camps in China, starving tens of thousands in Yemen, etc., then the “devil” doesn’t need shaming. Only then could dozens of international news stories about kids being detained for trying to steal parrots possibly make sense.


Holocaust denial was already taking root in Britain during WWII, says UK author
In the grim search by historians and academics to pinpoint the first examples of postwar Holocaust denial, the finger of blame is most often pointed at fascists, anti-Semites and far-right figures in France, Sweden and the United States.

However, argues a new book, this misses the pivotal role played by Nazi sympathizers in Britain, both during World War II and in its immediate aftermath, in developing a “blueprint” that has been drawn on ever since by those who seek to deny history’s greatest crime.

“The truth is that Holocaust denial in its traditional form began not in France or America, as most have argued, but actually in Britain,” says Dr. Joe Mulhall, author of “British Fascism After the Holocaust: From the Birth of Denial to the Notting Hill Riots 1939-1958.”

Mulhall, senior researcher at the UK anti-fascism campaign group Hope Not Hate, identifies the British fascist leader Oswald Mosley as a central player in the emergence of Holocaust denial in postwar Europe.

As the book details, the French fascist Maurice Bardèche, his compatriots Paul Rassinier and Prof. René Fabre, and the veteran Swedish anti-Semite Einar Åberg are among those who have been awarded “the ignoble distinction of being the first person to maliciously deny the validity and uniqueness of Nazi war crimes.” By contrast, in the words of one historian, early Holocaust denial in Britain is viewed as “a pale reflection” of that propagated in countries such as France.

“While there is no solid consensus among historians as to who was the first true Holocaust denier,” writes Mulhall, a common thread is to “ignore or overlook early British deniers.”
Go down an adventurous rabbit hole with an author seeking property taken in WWII
To read Menachem Kaiser‘s new memoir, “Plunder: A Memoir of Family Property and Nazi Treasure” is to go down a rabbit hole with him.

It is to take a six-year-long “wild goose chase” through the Polish legal system as Kaiser attempts to reclaim ownership of the apartment building in Sosnowiec, Poland, that belonged to his great-grandparents before they were murdered in the Holocaust.

It is also to literally go deep underground with Kaiser as he falls in with a group of Nazi treasure hunters and explores a series of mysterious World War II-era tunnels hewn into the mountains of Lower Silesia in southwestern Poland.

Finally, it is to be taken through the twists and turns of the author’s mind as he tries to make meaning of all the discoveries, experiences and interactions along the way.

By the end of the book, which was published on March 16, Kaiser is far from having all the answers. He still doesn’t know how his grandfather (whom he never knew) survived the Holocaust. He also doesn’t have a satisfactory explanation for why his family was not in touch after the war with a survivor relative whose amazing story Kaiser improbably learns from Nazi treasure hunters.

Kaiser, 35, is also unsure when exactly his restitution claim will be settled, but it seems as though it may be soon.

“We’re waiting for word that should come any day about when the final legal proceeding will be scheduled. That step will supposedly be just a formality,” Kaiser told The Times of Israel in a recent interview from his home in Brooklyn, New York.
Israeli company claims oral COVID-19 vaccine on its way
An Israeli-American pharmaceutical company is preparing to launch a Phase I clinical trial for what could become the world’s first oral COVID-19 vaccine.

Oramed Pharmaceuticals Inc., a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company based on technology developed by Hadassah-University Medical Center, announced over the weekend a joint venture with India-based Premas Biotech to develop a novel oral vaccine. Together they formed the company Oravax Medical Inc. The vaccine is based on Oramed’s “POD” oral delivery technology and Premas’s vaccine technology.

Oramed’s technology can be used to orally administer a number of protein-based therapies, which would otherwise be delivered by injection. Oramed is in the midst of a Phase III clinical trial through the US Food and Drug Administration of an oral insulin capsule for Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

Premas has been working on developing a vaccine against the novel coronavirus since March.

The companies connected earlier this year and quickly realized they could revolutionize the marketplace, according to Oramed CEO Nadav Kidron. “An oral COVID-19 vaccine would eliminate several barriers to rapid, wide-scale distribution, potentially enabling people to take the vaccine themselves at home,” he told The Jerusalem Post. “While ease of administration is critical today to accelerate inoculation rates, an oral vaccine could become even more valuable in the case that a COVID-19 vaccine may be recommended annually like the standard flu shot.”
‘Life-saving’ nose spray that kills 99.9% of viruses begins production in Israel
A nasal spray that will be marketed as capable of killing 99.9 percent of virus particles has started rolling off production lines in an Israeli factory.

The spray could have prevented much of the world’s COVID-19 infection, its inventor, Dr. Gilly Regev, told The Times of Israel.

“We are hoping that our nasal spray will now save many lives of people in countries that are waiting for the vaccine,” said Regev, an Israeli-raised biochemist who co-founded the company SaNOtize and developed the spray in Canada. “This will be affordable and can be used for prevention, to protect from any respiratory viral infection.”

She said that it has been shown to be effective in the lab against a wide range of viruses, and said that new variants of the coronavirus won’t interfere with its effectiveness, emphasizing: “It contains a broad spectrum antiviral which kills all viruses and all variants.”

Regev called Enovid a “hand sanitizer equivalent for the nose,” and said that it creates a physical barrier in the nasal passages to stop viruses along with a “chemical barrier” of nitric oxide, which is known for its antimicrobial qualities. “The nitric oxide means this is a special spray that doesn’t just block viruses but actually kills them,” she said.

Israel will become the first country where the spray is sold. The Health Ministry has given interim approval for its sale as a medical device suitable for people age 12 and up — meaning it could be used by many who aren’t yet approved for coronavirus vaccines — with packaging stating: “Scientifically tested to kill 99.9% of viruses within 2 minutes.”
Man arrested for selling fake COVID vaccination certificates
Israel Police arrested a man from Tiberias suspected of making and selling fake coronavirus vaccination certificates and green passes on Sunday.

An investigation was opened after information reached the police about a Telegram group with tens of thousands of members which focused on the forgery and sale of vaccination certificates and green pass.

Police searched the man's home and seized digital storage devices that were allegedly used to commit the suspected crimes.

"Israel Police, which is at the forefront of the fight against the spread of the coronavirus, will continue to expose crimes that could harm public health," sit said.

The green pass and vaccination certificates allow fully vaccinated Israelis to enter restaurants, cafes, bars, clubs, theaters and more. Those who have recovered from the virus or have undergone a rapid coronavirus test are also able to enter these venues.
In precedent, court rules school can bar unvaccinated, untested worker
In a landmark ruling, a Tel Aviv labor court ruled Sunday that a school can prevent unvaccinated employees who refuse to have regular COVID-19 tests from coming to work, determining that the children’s safety takes precedence over staff’s rights.

The ruling came in the case of a teaching assistant at a school in the town of Tzur Yigal in central Israel, who appealed against the local council’s decision to demand that all education staff members either get vaccinated or take regular coronavirus tests as a condition for coming to work.

The court ruled that the teaching assistant, Sigal Avishai, will not go back to work and won’t receive payment.

Judge Meirav Kleiman ruled that in weighing Avishai’s right to privacy and personal autonomy against the right of students, parents and staff to avoid the risk of getting COVID-19, the balance “tips clearly” in favor of the latter.

Kleiman said her decision stemmed from “the existing information on the vaccine’s efficiency in preventing infections, and after weighing the obvious and immediate harm that could be done to the students — kids with special needs who cannot adhere to distancing rules — and many third parties including parents and school employees, if they get infected.”

She said that while requiring the COVID-19 tests from the employee was unpleasant, the harm done is “relatively low,” as is the violation of her privacy in that she has to disclose personal medical information.


Canadian Jewish Groups Urge Political Party to Reject Push to Overturn IHRA Definition
Canadian Jewish groups are urging the New Democratic Party (NDP) to reject a push by members to overturn the party’s support for the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism.

In a letter spearheaded by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), dozens of Jewish organizations across Canada called on NDP to uphold the IHRA definition.

“We write to you today on behalf of many Jewish organizations in Canada—community centres, synagogues, youth groups, social-service providers, and educational institutions—who believe that the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism is an important tool in the fight against this worrisome trend,” they said. “We are concerned about the recent efforts of fringe organizations to delegitimize this definition, distort its intent, and scaremonger about its reach and its impact.”

A motion is slated to be brought to the floor at its upcoming policy convention by some members who seek to overturn the Party Leader’s support for the IHRA definition.

Founded in 1961, the NDP is a progressive party that is led by Jagmeet Singh. It currently holds 24 seats out of 338 in Canada’s House of Commons.

B’nai Brith Canada is also urging Singh to reject the motion.

“We urge Mr. Singh to ensure that resolutions rejecting the IHRA definition of antisemitism are, themselves, rejected. This definition is critical for addressing the growing antisemitism in our midst,” said Michael Mostyn, chief executive officer of B’nai Brith Canada. “Indeed, it should be forthrightly accepted by the New Democratic Party as a signal of reassurance to Canadians generally and to Canada’s Jewish community in particular.”
UK University Launches Investigation Into Educator Targeting Jewish Students
Bristol University in the United Kingdom has launched an investigation into a professor who made comments targeting Jewish students at the university.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the university said: “We can confirm that the university has already initiated an investigation into this matter. The investigation is being carried out in accordance with the university’s internal process and, as we have explained in a previous statement, that process is confidential.”

“The university’s clear and consistently held position is that bullying, harassment and discrimination are never acceptable,” the statement continued. “We remain committed to providing a positive experience for all our students and staff, including by providing a welcoming environment for Jewish students, and to fostering good relations and an inclusive university community.

Sociology professor David Miller has called for “the end” of Zionism and claimed that “it’s fundamental to Zionism to encourage Islamophobia and anti-Arab racism, too,” according to the student-run publication The Bristol Tab. He also accused Jewish students of being “directed by the State of Israel” to pursue a “campaign of censorship” that endangers Muslim and Arab students.

On Feb. 18, Miller said the attacks on him are “directed by the State of Israel.”

He previously described the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and Bristol Jewish Society (J-Soc) as “formally members of the Zionist movement” and described the “movement” as “an ‘enemy’ to be ‘targeted.’ ”

(UJS) and (JSoc) issued a joint saying that, as far as they know, Miller has not been suspended pending the outcome of this investigation “and we still do not understand why.”
Middlesex University and Students’ Union adopt International Definition of Antisemitism
It was announced today by the University that “the Middlesex University Board of Governors has unanimously agreed that the institution will adopt in full the International [D]efinition of Antisemitism with immediate effect. The decision has the full support of the Students’ Union.”

In a statement, Vice-Chancellor Prof. Nic Beech, said: “Middlesex is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and has a long history of promoting anti-racism. We are proud to be one of the most diverse universities in the UK and to be situated in the heart of the largest Jewish population in Europe. I am extremely grateful to local and national Jewish groups who have spent time with me and colleagues to increase our understanding of the Definition. While there have been criticisms that adopting the Definition could limit academic freedom, our view is that the Definition can be applied in a way which enables dialogue and discussion within and between faiths. Our commitment to anti-racism is equalled by our defence of academic free speech.

“Racism in all its forms is wrong. We strive to be a place where everyone is safe and free to flourish without fear of discrimination. In order to maximise the value of the [D]efinition we will need to embed it meaningfully across the University. This is not the end point but rather the beginning in how we hope to continue working with the Jewish community as well as other communities across our diverse and deep global network for the benefit of all.”

The Vice President of the University’s Students’ Union, Tahmina Choudhury, said: “Whilst this Definition is not without criticism or universal, we accept that it is the most accepted definition of antisemitism within the Jewish community. We also believe that in order to tackle an issue you need to be able to define it and we therefore support this decision. We are proud to represent students from many faith backgrounds as one of the most diverse universities in the world. We would therefore welcome the University committing to positive action to tackle all forms of faith-based prejudice.”
Austria police files charges vs. Jewish students for anti-BDS protest
The Austrian Union of Jewish Students on Saturday slammed the Vienna police for a heavy-handed crackdown on 15 Jewish students who protested against an organization that advocates a boycott of Israel.

While the Austrian federal interior ministry and the Austrian Jewish community issue “warnings for synagogues because right-wing extremists are marching, 15 Jewish university students are surrounded by 100 police officers and criminal complaints filed because they are demonstrating against the antisemitic organization BDS,” tweeted the Austrian Union of Jewish Students.

The Vienna Police Department responded on Twitter that “An attempt was made to disrupt a properly registered rally. As a result, the participants were stopped, as can be seen in the picture, and a person responsible for violating the obligation to notify and disregarding the protected area was charged.”


BBC audiences still in the dark on domestic Palestinian politics
Another name touted as a potential runner in the July presidential election has been that of Mohammed Dahlan who was expelled from Fatah a decade ago and has since resided in the UAE, from where he has of late sent 60,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines to the Gaza Strip. As reported at the Jerusalem Post:
“Hamas in recent weeks has allowed scores of Dahlan loyalists who fled the Gaza Strip in the past decade to return to the coastal enclave. In the past week, two leading Dahlan loyalists, Rashid Abu Shbak and Majed Abu Shamaleh, returned to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.”

As for the ongoing question of whether a newly-elected PLC will honour existing agreements with Israel, MEMRI reports that:
“Hamas political bureau member Salah Bardawil clarified on March 2, 2021 that Hamas’s participation in the PLC elections does not indicate any change in its positions: “We will not recognize the occupation or the Oslo [Accords] after all the sacrifices we have made as part of resisting the occupation… Our resistance weapons are not [subject to] debate with anyone.” He added that Hamas would not relinquish its principles despite regional and international pressures, hinting at the conditions set out by the Quartet…”

Another meeting of Palestinian factions in Cairo earlier this month resulted in an agreement to abide by an ‘honour code’.

“The Palestinian factions, which included the rival Fatah and Hamas movements, pledged not to incite “religious, sectarian, tribal, regional, familial or racial sentiments” and to refrain from violent intimidation.

The agreement, as circulated in Palestinian media, also contained a clause forbidding open displays of weaponry at rallies. Gunmen can occasionally be seen at Palestinian political gatherings, as many of the main parties have armed wings.”

While some observers are still sceptical as to whether often promised and long delayed elections will actually take place, it is nonetheless remarkable that the BBC, with its offices in Jerusalem, Gaza City and Ramallah, continues to maintain radio silence on the topic of such significant developments in domestic Palestinian politics.
CBC Twists in Pretzels Over Dead Sea Scrolls Found in Israel (Not West Bank)
The Cave of Horror is located within Israel’s pre-1967 armistice lines. In 1961, Israeli researchers published about their survey of the site located in Israel’s Nahal Hever, years before the West Bank changed hands from Jordan to Israel in 1967.

On March 16, CBC began with a truthful news account, publishing an Associated Press article which accurately reported:
The roughly 80 new pieces are believed to belong to a set of parchment fragments found in a site in southern Israel known as the “Cave of Horror” — named for the 40 human skeletons found there during excavations in the 1960s — that also bear a Greek rendition of the Twelve Minor Prophets, a book in the Hebrew Bible. The cave is located in a remote canyon around 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of Jerusalem. That initial post carried the straightforward and accurate headline: “New Dead Sea scrolls found hidden in desert cave in Israel.” (Emphases added.)

The next day, however, the CBC changed the accurate headline to falsely state that the scrolls were found in the West Bank. CBC’s March 17 headline erred: “New Dead Sea scrolls found in desert cave in West Bank.” In addition, editors removed the information from the article itself that the Cave of Horror is “in southern Israel.” Moreover, at the same time, most egregiously, editors published the appended the following “correction,” which was nothing but a falsehood:
A previous version of this story incorrectly said the new fragments had been found in Israel. In fact they were found in a cave in the West Bank.
Mar 17, 2021 10:54 AM ET

Similarly, on March 17 CBC also posted this erroneous correction on its correction page:
We amended this story, posted on March 16, about the discovery of new Dead Sea scrolls. A previous version said the new fragments had been found in Israel. In fact, the archeological site was located in the West Bank, a territory occupied by Israel.


PreOccupiedTerritory: Caged Children At Mexico Border Relieved At Least World Hasn’t Forgotten Palestinians (satire)
Minors detained in over-capacity holding facilities after crossing into the country from Mexico voiced the sentiment this week that at least American progressives and the international community at large have not neglected the world’s real problem, which is the ongoing tragedy of Palestinian Arabs suffering the consequences of successive Arab failures to ethnically cleanse Palestine of sovereign Jews.

Thousands of children from Mexico and Central America remain incarcerated in structures that the Biden administration insists must not be called cages, while a pliant media downplays the increase in the numbers of such detainees since the new administration took office in January, but those children also downplayed their misfortune in patches of conversation with journalists, noting that they are happy to sacrifice their liberty and human rights on the altar of Palestinians getting attention.

“We know what the truly important causes are,” acknowledged Manuel, 15, originally from Honduras, who crossed the border with a smuggler last week and has remained not-caged in his cell far beyond the three-day legal limit for minors. “Sure, I suffer, and my very humanity gets called into question by those who otherwise think of themselves as morally superior to the previous administration, about whom the media and progressives made all sorts of noise on this subject, but let’s be honest: really it’s Palestine that matters. I’m fine with the existence of a caged rat as long as progressives are making noise about how awful Israeli Jews are.”
London police probe assault, attempted suffocation of pregnant Jewish woman
UK police on Sunday opened an investigation into the assault of a pregnant Jewish woman in London’s predominantly Haredi neighborhood of Stamford Hill.

Footage of the Thursday incident distributed by the Shomrim local patrol force shows the assailant following the victim through a gated alley before throwing a black bag over her head.

The man managed to deliver three punches to the woman’s torso and arm before fleeing the scene.

The woman in her 20s was 27 weeks pregnant, according to Shomrim. She was taken to a nearby hospital where she was treated for light injuries.

The Orthodox volunteer patrol service said Jewish women in the community have experienced an uptick in such attacks, with five taking place in the last month alone, though Thursday’s assault was the most severe.

Police have not yet arrested anyone in connection with the attack.
Pregnant Jewish Woman Brutally Beaten on London Street

Swiss agency says antisemitic COVID conspiracy theories on the rise
The Swiss Federal Commission against Racism (FCR) has said that hate speech and intolerance are on the rise in the country, including antisemitic conspiracy theories often surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a statement on Sunday to mark International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination the commission said that the pandemic had given rise to a general increase in efforts to scapegoat different communities and led to “a wave of hatred, racial prejudice, and discriminatory rhetoric fueled by rumors and disinformation.”

It noted in particular the rise of antisemitic conspiracy theories about the coronavirus crisis and an alleged Jewish conspiracy related to the pandemic.

“The fact shows the smoldering antisemitism in Switzerland as elsewhere, and that in times of crisis quickly flares up again,” said the commission.

In referencing antisemitic conspiracy theories, the commission pointed to the annual report on antisemitism in Switzerland ffor 2020 published by the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities and the Foundation against Racism and Anti-Semitism in February which also highlighted this troubling phenomenon.
Australia lists neo-Nazi Sonnenkrieg Division as terrorist group
Australia on Monday made the neo-Nazi group Sonnenkrieg Division, also known as SKD, the only right-wing outfit designated by the government as a terrorist organization.

SKD joins 26 Islamic militant groups designated under Australian criminal law as outlawed terrorist organizations.

SKD members have been convicted in Britain for plotting to attack the British royal family, as well as disseminating terrorist material.

Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said SKD’s listing as a terrorist organization reflected the government’s commitment to stamping out violence and extremism of all kinds, regardless of ideology or motivation.

“SKD adheres to an abhorrent, violent ideology that encourages lone-wolf terrorist actors who would seek to cause significant harm to our way of life and our country,” Dutton said in a statement.

The listing enables all available terrorist offenses and penalties to apply to SKD, including up to 25 years in prison for some offenses.

Until Monday, Australia was the only country inside the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing network — which includes the United States, Britain, Canada and New Zealand — not to have labeled any right-wing extremist organization as terrorists.
Outrage After Man Photographed Wearing Swastika Hat in Melbourne, Australia
One of Australia’s top Jewish organizations expressed shock and anger on Sunday after a man was spotted wearing a hat emblazoned with the Nazi swastika symbol in Melbourne.

The man was photographed by a 23-year-old Jewish man who is a descendant of Holocaust victims.

It is believed that the man wearing the hat may have been heading home from an Australian football game that had finished that evening.

A three-year campaign has been underway in Australia to ban the swastika by law, with the support of the Anti-Defamation Commission (ADC), a leading Jewish-Australian group. A parliamentary committee from the state of Victoria issued a report this month recommending such a ban, and the government appears to be leaning toward enacting one.

ADC Chairman Dvir Abramovich, said of the incident in Melbourne, “If the Victorian state government does not put an end to this sickening and escalating crisis right now, Victoria may become known as the Swastika state instead of the Garden State.”

“From the special spot in hell reserved for such monsters, Hitler must be smiling, knowing that his followers are continuing his destructive legacy,” he asserted.
Antisemitic Graffiti Spray-Painted on Synagogue, JCC in Belarus
A swastika and the letters “SS” in the shape of lightning bolts were spray-painted on the building of a synagogue and Jewish community center in Gomel, Belarus, the European Jewish Congress (EJC) announced on Monday.

According to the Union of Belarusian Jewish Public Associations and Communities, the country’s EJC affiliate, in the back of the building on Krasnoarmeyskaya Street, an unidentified person had drawn a swastika about a meter tall and two more “SS” signs near a staircase.

EJC said that unlike in many other countries in Eastern Europe, the glorification of Nazism and antisemitic rhetoric is rarely seen in Belarus.

During the Nazi occupation of Belarus from 1941 to 1944, a quarter of the population died, including almost the entire Jewish population, the BBC reported last year.

Gomel is the second-most populous city in Belarus. About 25,000 Jews returned to Gomel after World War II, though only a few hundred Jews are reportedly living there today.
The Ari Fuld Project Donates Tactical Helmets to Efrat’s Counter-Terrorist Unit
The Ari Fuld Project continued to keep Ari’s memory and mission alive with a special ceremony on Sunday night in the Gush Etzion Jewish community of Efrat, where Ari lived and served in the local counter-terrorist unit (Kitat Konenut).

The ceremony was held in Ari’s shul, Zayit Ra’anan.

The Ari Fuld Project distributed the new tactical ballistic helmets to the unit thanks to generous donations from people all over the world.

Miriam Fuld, Ari’s wife, spoke at the ceremony, recalling an emergency call-out that happened one Friday night when they had guests for Shabbat. Ari ran out of the house to deal with the terrorists and when he came back an hour or so later, he just picked up the discussion at the Shabbat meal right where he left off, as if nothing happened. That was the quintessential Ari.

The Project honored two members of the team, Menachem Katz and Rafi Grabin, for the work they did on behalf of the Kita in selecting and acquiring the helmets.

After Pesach, The Ari Fuld Project will hold a ceremony with United Hatzalah for defibrillators that were donated to Hatzalah Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) in Efrat and Gush Etzion.
First investments by VC funds in Israeli tech soar to 7-year high in 2020
The number of first investments by VC funds in Israeli technology firms soared to a seven-year high in 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic pushed businesses and households online and gave the technology sector a boost.

The number of first investments — when a VC fund adds a company for the first time to its investment portfolio — totaled 620, an increase from 470 in 2019; 579 in 2018; and 439 in 2014, according to data published by IVC Research and law firm APM & Co., which have been analyzing first investments activity in Israeli tech firms since 2014.

The number of first investments by foreign VC funds was the highest in seven years, the data showed, totaling 339 deals. The number of Israeli VC first investments in 2020 was also the highest in seven years, totaling 281 deals. On average, in 2020, Israeli VC firms invested in three new companies, compared to an average of 1.6 companies per foreign fund.

In 2020, the two most active Israeli venture capital funds were Entrée Capital, with $345 million under management, and F2 Venture Capital, with $140 million under management. Both were equally active, with 14 first investments each.

American private equity and venture capital fund Insight Partners, with $5.8 billion under management, and Israel’s Peregrine Ventures, with $333 million under management, came in joint second with 13 first investments each in 2020.

“In 2020, we saw an increase in VC funds activity, despite the restrictions and difficulties during the epidemic,” said Marianna Shapira, research manager at IVC. “This increase reflects the resilience of the Israeli tech ecosystem as a leading sector in the Israeli economy.”
StandWithUs: Israeli archeologists just made an amazing discovery!
Israeli archeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority made the most fascinating archeological discoveries in the Judean Desert. For the first time in 60 years, biblical scrolls were found along with a 6,000-year-old skeleton and the oldest-known basket in the world, which dates back 10,500 years. Wow!



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