Tuesday, June 20, 2023

06/20 Links Pt2: Glick: Biden is Back in Bed with UNESCO; Why I don’t love ‘Jew hate’ as a substitute for ‘antisemitism’; Glastonbury cancelling 'the Big lie' shows how far the far-left have fallen

From Ian:

Why I don’t love ‘Jew hate’ as a substitute for ‘antisemitism’
The term “antisemitism” — like the reality it describes — encompasses not only hate, but also fear and envy. People can fear or envy Jews without hating them. True, these biases can lead to stereotypes about Jews and the negative consequences of those stereotypes. People with preconceived notions about Jews are likely to notice and remember selectively or simply hear and believe whatever supports their biases while disregarding, disbelieving or downplaying information to the contrary. One Jewish head of a major newspaper or movie studio, according to this thinking, shows that Jews control the media. In this way, antisemitism can be self-perpetuating even when not powered by outright hatred.

“Jew hate” does not take into account apathy, the lack of concern that throughout history has allowed the actual haters to get away with much more than they would have otherwise. Nor does “Jew hate” take into account a dangerous kind of admiration. Well-meaning people may have positive stereotypes about Jews being intelligent and good in certain professions. These biases are not hateful, but they do reduce Jews to stereotypes.

“Jew hate” does not adequately capture antisemitism born of ignorance — not only of Jewish history and culture but also of the history and effects of antisemitism. Ignorance about Jewish culture, history and traditions can contribute to discrimination against Jews, thus perpetuating antisemitism even when there is no hate. The rising and amazing ignorance of the facts of the Holocaust, for example, sets the stage for more people to dismiss or downplay its severity. That, in turn, will breed resentment — or worse — toward Jews, who are increasingly being cast as obnoxious and self-pitying for insisting that the Shoah happened and seeking to remind the world how bad it was.

If it irritates people when a Jew doesn’t care to join them in singing Christmas carols or to buy the annual Christmas stamp, that’s not necessarily hatred. It’s probably just ignorance of what it means to be in the minority versus the majority. Nevertheless, such ignorance, like ignorance of the Holocaust, can have an antisemitic effect.

Most alarming, the concept of “Jew hate” undermines the fight against antisemitism by — and this was supposed to be a point in its favor — making antisemitism just one instance of a broader category: hate. It should go without saying that one should be against most forms of hate. “Hate has no home here” lawn signs are admirable. But there are essential differences between each form of hate. They are not simply flavors to be served up when the media or a corporation wants to take a popular position. Diseases of the society, like diseases of the body, need to be understood and combatted on their own specific terms. Antisemitism has its own distinct history and pathology. The fight against antisemitism is not just the fight against white supremacy or misogyny or Islamophobia with a different name on the tee shirt.

Ultimately, what worries me most is that the concept of “Jew hate” lets people off too easily. Most people aren’t going to defend hatred, but having disavowed hatred, there’s still a lot to answer for. Antisemitism is real and there seems to be no end in sight. The digital age has amplified the speed and spread of anti-Jewish tropes, extremist ideologies and antisemitic conspiracy theories.

Metal detectors and armed guards are now common at major Jewish gatherings. That’s a sign of real sickness in the culture, but rebranding antisemitism to fit more neatly into the “fight hate” agenda isn’t the cure.
The Caroline Glick Show: Biden is Back in Bed with UNESCO
The US is rejoining UNESCO and the UN Human Rights Council sets out on its most anti-Israel and anti-semitic inquiry yet.

To discuss this, Caroline’s guest on this week’s Caroline Glick Show is Prof. Anne Bayefsky. Prof. Bayefsky is the Director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust and President of Human Rights Voices. Bayefsky has an encyclopedic knowledge of the UN, its official bodies and agencies and their anti-Semitic campaigns.

They delve into
- how rejoining UNESCO is rewarding the Palestinians and an organization that works against US interests
- the antisemitic nature of the new inquiry by the UN Human Rights Council
- what the US Congress can do


Alex Soros: The Mirror Image of His Israel-Hating Father
Critics of Alex Soros view his efforts to undercut a popular and mainstream definition of antisemitism as turning back the clock on the fight against antisemitism in the name of a backward left-wing ideology.

Alex Soros wrote that "critics grew increasingly concerned that the definition had been 'hijacked' by some pro-Israeli groups to shield the government from accountability for its human rights policies, as a group of 100 scholars wrote in a statement urging the U.N. not to adopt the IHRA language."

Fox News Digital has reported over the years on alleged anti-Israel and antsemitism scandals that have plagued the world body.

Alex Soros added in his article that "It is essential that the tools used to combat antisemitism cannot be repurposed to target academics, activists, students and advocacy groups that voice support for Palestinian human rights."

Chikli fired back: "Shamefully, his son is fighting the International Holocaust Remember Alliance."

Alex Soros and the Open Society Foundations did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital press queries.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the associate dean of the Los Angeles-based human rights organization Simon Wiesenthal Center, told Fox News Digital, "If I had $25 billion to put in play, I would stay far from politically linked institutions and instead focus on helping to transform societies by helping guarantee universal education and health care for billions of people who currently do not have full access to these fundamentals. In the Gulf and Maghreb, I would invest in projects that would give young people jobs and with it hope for a brighter future; environmental projects that would provide clean water, air and energy – would benefit all people."

Cooper continued "If Soros Junior wants to make a long-lasting contribution to transforming the world, he would also do well to roll up his sleeves and personally help the poor and indigent. Money alone will never guarantee results – not in parts of the world where billions in aid have poured into countries, some of which are failed states."

The prominent rabbi added, "And as for Israel and Jewish people the world over, remember Jews also have needs and also have rights. Show respect to the lone Jewish state, which had it existed in 1939, the Nazi Holocaust, the murder of 6 million Jews and the disastrous impact on children, like his father, would never had happened."

George Soros survived the Holocaust in Hungary. Rachel Ehrenfeld, who published "The Soros Agenda" in April, told Fox News Digital that she expects "Alexander to increase his funding of progressive left, globalized and woke agendas and support anti-U.S. and anti-Israel organizations."

Her book devotes a chapter to Soros-funded organizations that "criminalize the state of Israel," she said.




Cyprus-Greece-Israel ties are a ‘strategic partnership’
The relationship between Cyprus, Greece and Israel has developed into a strategic one, based on a shared common vision for a thriving eastern Mediterranean, the President of the Republic of Cyprus said on Monday.

The remarks, made at the Israel Hellenic Forum underway in Nicosia, come amid burgeoning relations between Israel and both Cyprus and Greece in a variety of fields including energy, defense, tourism, hi-tech and cybersecurity.

“Our trilateral cooperation has evolved considerably since its inception and we can proudly say that it is nothing else but a strategic partnership,” said President Nikos Christodoulides.

“For the Republic of Cyprus, the strengthening and deepening of our already excellent relations with Israel, always in cooperation with Greece of course, is part of a holistic strategy with regards to our foreign policy, which has high on the agenda the cooperation with all like-minded countries in the region,” he added.

The three-day conference, which is being organized by the B’nai B’rith World Center in cooperation with the Cyprus Center for European and International Affairs, the University of Nicosia and the Institute of International Relations (IDIS) at Panteion University in Athens, comes as cooperation between the three eastern Mediterranean countries has reached an all-time high.

“The fact that we are speaking today of this trilateral relationship in terms of a strategic partnership speaks volumes and was simply inconceivable just 20 years ago,” Israel’s Ambassador to Cyprus Oren Anolik told JNS.

“We share the same vision of regional cooperation via the creation of many linkages on different levels,” added Cypriot Justice Minister Anna Koukkides-Procopiou, a founding member of the Israel-Hellenic Forum. “Our plans on energy will only further deepen our ties over time.”


Islamist Charity Uses Lawfare to Silence Critics in Canada
Islamic Relief Canada (IRC), a steady contributor of funds to the Islamist charity, Islamic Worldwide Relief (IRW), scored a victory in its ongoing effort to protect itself and its UK-based affiliate from legitimate scrutiny and criticism. The victory comes in the form of a settlement with prominent counter-Islamists in Canada who had previously warned government officials of IRC's support for IRW, which in turn gave money to Palestinian organizations that appeared to serve as Hamas proxies.

In light of IRC's victory, Canadians who write or talk about the problem of charitable donations being used to fund terrorism overseas could very well lose their homes — not because the problem doesn't exist — but because speaking about the problem is "Islamophobic."

As part of the settlement announced on June 9, prominent counter Islamists in Canada including Raheel Raza, her husband Syed Sohail Raza, and researcher Tom Quiggin signed a "clarification" admitting that they did not exercise sufficient due diligence in their writings about IRC, further declaring that it was not their intention to suggest that IRC "supports terrorist groups, has an Islamist agenda, or is a 'front' or 'sham' organization." The remaining signatories included Tahir Aslam Gora who immigrated to Canada from Pakistan in 1999 after receiving death threats from Islamists for his criticism of the Taliban, YouTuber Joe Hazelton who had interviewed Quiggin in 2018 and Benjamin Dichter, a colleague of Quiggin's.

As part of the settlement to a $2.5 million lawsuit filed by IRC in 2018, the defendants affirmed that "it was NEVER their intention to claim or assert Islamic Relief Canada, in any way, engaged in nefarious or improper conduct." They also agreed to remove— and ask others to remove —the "defamatory statements" from the internet. (Full Disclosure: The Middle East Forum, FWI's parent organization, was a recipient of a letter asking that an interview with Mr. Quiggin be removed from its website. The Forum has not complied with the request.)

IRC declared that it was the target of an "Islamophobic" misinformation campaign in a press release announcing its victory and that the IRC is "a respected, purely humanitarian Canadian organization" with "a track record of delivering aid in some of the most difficult and dangerous contexts across the world."

Canada's public broadcaster, CBC, amplified this message in its coverage of the settlement, portraying Quiggin as beyond the pale of legitimate discourse in Canada by highlighting his involvement in "truck convoy" protests against the policies of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. No mention was made of the well-respected work the Razas – both Muslims – have done in the efforts to promote women's rights and reform in Muslim-majority environments. The implication of CBC's coverage was clear — the IRC gave a bunch of right-wing kooks the drubbing they deserved, good riddance to them.


MEMRI: Kuwaiti Journalist: Violence Against Women Is Entrenched In Arab, Muslim Society; A Comprehensive Plan Is Needed To Create Profound Cultural Change
In her column in the daily Al-Rai, Kuwaiti media figure Sahar Bin 'Ali, who often writes about feminist and women's issues, decried the situation of women in the Arab world, many of whom suffer violence and are deprived of basic rights. Moreover, she noted, this often happens with the support of the official authorities and under the pretext of following the dictates of religion and custom, as in the theocracies of Iran and Afghanistan. Bin 'Ali also came out against the phenomena of underage marriage and "honor killings," and called to stop ignoring them and start protecting women and their rights.

In an earlier column, she wrote that violence against women – including domestic violence – is part of Arab culture and is regarded as legitimate. She called for legislation to protect women and for a comprehensive cultural and educational campaign to change their condition.

The following are translated excerpts from these two columns: Women In The Arab And Muslim World Suffer Violence And Discrimination With The Support Of The Authorities, Under Pretext Of Following Tradition

In a March 28, 2023 column, Sahar Bin 'Ali wrote: "The downplaying of the importance of feminist issues, society's attempts to malign [feminists] and what happens to women and even men who try to promote them – [all this] must stop. Women's experiences must be viewed from a human perspective, free of racism, of social baggage and of obsolete stereotypes. We must awaken our conscience, so as to defend the humanity and the rights of every individual in the world. [Our shared] humanity compels us to defend the rights of women throughout the world and to highlight the injustice they suffer in various aspects of their lives…

"The women of Afghanistan suffer violence and the denial of their most basic rights under the Taliban government, which justifies this by saying it is implementing the laws of religion and morality. It deprives the Afghan women of the right to study, work and frequent public places, thus flagrantly violating the [norms] of human [decency]… According to the UN, 87% of Afghan women suffer violence of some kind, physical, sexual or psychological, under the sponsorship of the Taliban government.

"The Iranian women have provided a glimmer of hope for the women of the region with their revolution against the tyrannical regime and their struggle to gain their freedoms and rights… This is a historic event in which [women] from various ethnicities and regions are participating, [including] members of minorities [who are protesting] against the denial of all their civil rights. The participation of women from various sectors [in this protest], as well as men, strengthens this revolution.

"We, the women of the Arab region, feel the violence and the discrimination suffered [by our sisters] in Afghanistan and Iran – the denial of their rights with the support of the [official] institutions… under the pretext of custom and social tradition – [because] the same happens [to us] in the Arab region. The Middle Eastern societies and their components are different, but [all these societies] share the patriarchal system and the various types of violence directed at women.

"Sadly, the women of my country [Kuwait] still suffer discrimination and oppression [as well]. [Prevented from] expressing their opinion and excluded from decision-making, they are not free to determine their own fate. Underage marriage is still legal. A girl is married off at 15. [That is], she is married to the one who rapes her, instead of the rapist being punished. [Women] are still murdered in the name of [family] honor and suffer violence even in their homes, which are supposed to be the safest place for them. They are harassed on the street, at home and at the workplace, and are still crying out for equality with men, in marriage, housing… and many other domains." [1]


Why did Glastonbury only pull controversial Corbyn film after backlash?
What a turn of events. Yesterday morning LabourList published a review of Oh Jeremy Corbyn: The Big Lie, including a call by author Paul Mason for the Glastonbury Festival not to screen the controversial film this week. Within 24 hours, it had been cancelled. The festival told us it had “become clear that it is not appropriate to screen”, as Glastonbury is about “unity and not division”.

What is not clear is why Glastonbury did not take this stance in the first place. Many venues had already previously been “reluctant to show the film”, according to producers, the TUC had banned it from a festival and the Campaign Against Antisemitism had warned it would “alienate Jewish ticket-holders” – organisers at Glastonbury of all places can hardly argue they lacked the knowledge or resources to know what they were dealing with. Instead, their cinema team initially appeared to revel in the controversy, their website reportedly noting this “might even be a rare opportunity to watch…’the banned Corbyn documentary'”.

All that changed on Monday was the issue being picked up more widely in the media and the scale of the backlash, with the Board of Deputies of British Jewswriting to organisers highlighting Mason’s review and their “deep concern” at a film portraying them as having helped to “orchestrate” Corbyn’s downfall. Mason had argued the film’s presentation and conflation of Jews, Jewish groups, Zionists and Israel as part of a co-ordinated force which brought down Corbyn “appears to match” examples included in the IHRA definition of antisemitism – such as the “myth about a world Jewish conspiracy”. Security minister Tom Tugenhadt spoke out too, saying it was “not often I find myself agreeing” with Mason.

You could be forgiven for hoping the left could unite in condemnation in response, whatever one’s views on the Corbyn project. Corbyn himself did not tweet about it yesterday (and did not appear in the film). But the level of bile and denial directed online yesterday at Mason – a one-time Corbyn ally, rather than a right-wing critic – signals once again how far there is to go in rooting out antisemitism on the left. LabourList has approached the filmmakers for comment. Dorset Eye quotes film producer Norman Thomas calling allegations of antisemitism “without any foundation… a total lie” and noting some interviewees were Jewish. He also claimed the film’s withdrawal amounted to “rank censorship”..
Glastonbury cancelling 'the Big lie' shows how far the far-left have fallen
If you weren’t, well…stupid, you really would not have called it ‘Oh Jeremy Corbyn: the Big Lie.’ In fact it’s difficult to imagine a more stupid title. ‘Oh Jeremy Corbyn’ refers, of course, to the Glastonbury chanting in 2017. Nostalgia has its uses, but when it serves only to highlight your utter irrelevance six years on, it’s not so great an idea.

All those three words serve to illustrate is how far the world has left the cult behind. In 2023, far from singing along, Glastonbury has pulled the film.

Those poor Corbynites; they don’t even have a field in Somerset any more.

But not content with the stupidity of reminding people of their irrelevance, the final three words of the title are epically stupid. The Big Lie was first used by Hitler in Mein Kampf, to describe what he called the use by Jews of a lie so huge that no one would believe someone "could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously". He was referring to what he said was Jews blaming German general Erich Ludendorff for defeat in World War One - a lie designed to remove “the weapon of moral right from the only adversary dangerous enough to be likely to succeed in bringing the betrayers of the Fatherland [the Jews] to Justice.”

The phrase was subsequently widely used to describe the Nazis’ propaganda technique to poison Germany against “international Jewry”, the real holders of power in the world.

In other words, the title ‘The Big Lie’ reminds people that the Corbynites share with the Nazis an obsession with Jews.

So while the first three words of the title remind people of the cult’s irrelevance, the last three words remind people why.

Stupid, or what?


Anti-Israel CUNY graduation speakers led 2022 rally linked to antisemitic assault
At a pro-Palestinian rally in midtown Manhattan last year, several activists broke off from the demonstration to pursue a Jewish counter-protester down a street.

As the man, wearing an Israeli flag and holding a crutch, walked away from the protest, the activists jogged to catch up, shouting obscenities in his direction.

“Yo, that dirty fucking flag, yeah,” a masked man can be heard yelling in video footage from the incident.

The ensuing assault, also caught on video, would leave Matt Greenman bloody and bruised after being knocked to the ground and repeatedly punched in the face in front of shocked bystanders, his flag ripped away in a beating for which at least one attacker, Saadah Masoud, has been imprisoned on federal hate crime charges.

Leading the march were two protesters studying law at the City University of New York’s law school, Nerdeen Kiswani and Fatima Mohammed, members of an activist group connected to other antisemitic attacks in New York.

Three weeks after the assault, Kiswani would deliver the commencement speech at CUNY Law, and last month, Mohammed delivered the 2023 commencement address for the graduating class, filled with much of the same anti-Israel invective used at the rally, and sparking a fresh outcry that has rocked the city’s massive public college system as it grapples with allegations of widespread antisemitism on its campuses.

In her commencement address last month, Mohammed repeatedly lashed Israel, accusing the Jewish state of “indiscriminate” murder, encouraging “lynch mobs” and lauding resistance to “Zionism around the world.” She said “donors” and “investors” stifled criticism of Israel in comments leading Jewish groups said leaned into antisemitic tropes.

Last year, Kiswani also focused her speech on the Palestinian cause. Among other things, she alleged that she was the target of “Zionist harassment” by groups with ties to the Israeli government.
Guardian comes to the defence of terror-supporter Lara Sheehi
While some accuse the Guardian of institutional antisemitism, our research over the years has certainly demonstrated that the outlet is, at the very least, institutionally sympathetic to anti-Semites whose racism is cloaked behind an anti-Zionist veneer.

The latest example is a 4,200 word profile of Lara Sheehi, a Lebanese-born psychoanalytic therapist and George Washington University psychology professor who’s the target of a civil rights complaint by Stand With US, on behalf of several female students, accusing her of discrimination.

The piece (“Inside the war tearing psychoanalysis apart: ‘The most hatred I’ve ever witnessed'”, June 16) was written by Guardian contributor J Oliver Conroy.

Sheehi, who’s also president of the Society for Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychology, Division 39 of the American Psychological Association and chair of the Teachers’ Academy of the American Psychoanalytic Association, was already the subject of a sympathetic Guardian article earlier in the year.

In the current piece, we’re told that she’s influenced by the likes of Che Guevara and Franz Fannon, which is telling. While Guevara was a Marxist, terrorist revolutionary, the latter was a psychiatrist and Marxist, who favoured violence against both military and civilian targets within ‘anti-colonial’ struggles.
BBC AGAIN VISITS TERRORISTS IN JENIN, PROMOTES ONE-STATERS – PART TWO
Previously we discussed one point arising from written and filmed reports by the BBC World Service’s Yousef Eldin which were published and aired on June 13th:

As noted, the basic premise promoted by Eldin in those reports is that young Palestinians reject the concept of the two-state solution and that their frustration with their own political leaders and processes has led to support for armed confrontation with Israel:
“Palestinians under the age of 30 have never had a chance to vote in an election and many say they have little faith in the Palestinian leadership. Exclusive data shared with the BBC suggests they are increasingly rejecting the idea of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”

In line with BBC editorial policy, Eldin’s portrayal of relatively recently formed groups such as the Jenin Battalion and the Lions’ Den does not include the word terror. Moreover, he repeatedly promotes the inaccurate notion that they are “independent of known militant groups” which hampers audience understanding of the inaccuracy of his additional claim that members of such terror groups “have publicly rejected links to political parties in their country [sic]”.

In other words, Eldin focuses audience attentions on the discontent of Palestinian youth with the Palestinian Authority but fails to clarify that some, including those who have joined the new terror groups, clearly do not have issues with no less authoritarian and undemocratic factions such as Hamas and the PIJ and that support for terrorism has been evident among Palestinians for many years, regardless of the leadership at the time.

In addition to terror groups, Eldin’s reports also showcase several young Palestinians. Perhaps not surprisingly given his encounter with the Tamimi clan while filming a previous parachuted report in 2019, one of his interveiwees is Jana Tamimi, otherwise known as ‘Jana Jihad’.

“Janna says she is one of the youngest accredited journalists in the world. At the age of seven she began borrowing her mother’s phone and covering protests in her hometown of Nabi Salah in the occupied West Bank.”

In the filmed version, Eldin allows Tamimi to promote the risible claim that when she began her activities ten years ago there “weren’t enough journalists covering what was happening in Nabi Saleh”, as well as the ‘apartheid’ smear.
Fake News: The Top 5 Anti-Israel Alternative News Sources
With the rise of the Internet and the proliferation of personal computers, the media landscape has vastly expanded from traditional news sources to include a wide variety of alternative and independent news outlets.

However, while these outlets may provide their audience with a variety of opinions and news stories that are not covered by the mainstream media, they can also be sources of misinformation and deceptive news coverage.

This is particularly true when it comes to reporting on Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The following are the top five (in no particular order) alternative news sources that have a particularly egregious record when it comes to their coverage of the Jewish state, the Palestinians, and the Middle East:

1. Mondoweiss
Mondoweiss is an American news site dedicated to “news & opinion about Palestine, Israel & the United States.”

Headed by Philip Weiss, it began as a general-interest blog on the website of the New York Observer. In 2007, when the blog started to take an unhealthy focus on Israel and the Jewish community, Weiss left the Observer and turned the blog into a stand-alone news source.

According to its four principal aims, Mondoweiss seeks to “offer alternatives to pro-Zionist ideology as a basis for American Jewish identity” while also fostering “the movement for greater fairness and justice for Palestinians in American foreign policy.”

As noted by David Bernstein in a 2015 profile for The Washington Post, Mondoweiss is “one-stop shopping for anti-Israel news. Anything bad that goes on in Israel will be publicized and exaggerated at Mondoweiss.” In addition, Bernstein deems Mondoweiss to be a “hate site” due to its inability to “preserve a fine line between hostility to Jews and hostility to Israel.”

As a case in point, one of Mondoweiss’ journalists is Mariam Barghouti, who has been called out by HonestReporting in the past for her comparison of Israelis to Nazis, her claim that Zionism exploits the Holocaust, and her defense of journalists who express support for Hitler.

Along with its anti-Israel news coverage that dips into anti-Jewish rhetoric (such as the continued use of the term “Talmudic rituals” to refer to Jewish religious rites), Mondoweiss also features an opinion section, where some of the most outlandish claims and allegations can be found. Some notable opinions expressed on Mondoweiss include:
The opinion that the Palestinians should refuse to recognize Israel as a “Jewish state.”
A piece by disgraced former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn that perpetuates the Nakba narrative.
The claim that Iran does not pose a threat to Israel.
The allegation against the Jewish people that “When it comes to the Palestinian people, the Holocaust has hardened our hearts and closed our minds.”
The opinion that Judaism has become “violent and unethical.”
The claim that Jews “no longer deserve Passover” since they are responsible for “injustice” and enslaving others.
The allegation that the Exodus story is a “tragic” one and should be viewed through the lens of the Canaanite tribes.

Despite its extreme ideological bent and biased reporting, Mondoweiss has been cited by a number of mainstream news organizations over the years. In 2012, the Associated Press used Mondoweiss as a source for an Israel-related story while it was cited by Vox News in early 2023. In addition, in 2012, Salon.com announced a content-sharing partnership with Mondoweiss.


Uruguay’s president scuttles plan to turn giant Nazi eagle into a peace dove after criticism
Uruguay’s president has withdrawn a proposal to transform a swastika-emblazoned 800-pound bronze eagle from a sunken Nazi ship into an artistic display of peace, following criticism that the plan devalued history.

The question of what to do with the eagle, which sits in a naval warehouse, has vexed Uruguay since private explorers recovered it from the wreckage of the Admiral Graf Spee in 2006. The country briefly displayed it as a historical artifact but retracted the display after facing charges that it was glorifying Nazism.

In 2019, a Uruguayan court ruled that the government must auction the crest and give the proceeds to the investors who paid for the recovery mission. It was pulled off the auction block amid protests by Jewish groups and the German government; last year, a Jewish businessman offered to buy it and destroy it.

President Luis Lacalle Pou offered another idea on Friday: let the Uruguayan sculpture artist Pablo Atchugarry melt down the relic, refashioning the Nazi eagle into a dove of peace.

Local Jewish leaders initially applauded the presidential announcement. But soon voices emerged to criticize the plan.

Turning a Nazi artifact into a peace dove would be like if “Mexico turned its Aztec sacrificial stones into camping tables,” Uruguayan historian and humorist Diego Delgrossi argued. A former parliamentarian, Anibal Gloodtdofsky, likened it to “transforming Auschwitz into a nude camp.”
Jewish teacher resigns after student made Nazi jokes and sent Hitler drawing
A Jewish school teacher has resigned after facing months of antisemitic harassment by one of his grade six (year seven) students who made Nazi jokes and sent him drawings of Hitler.

Morrison Robblee, 25, a humanities teacher at Nessacus Regional Middle School in Dalton, Massachusetts, started getting harassed in February 2023. It started after he revealed to his class that he was Jewish.

School officials had an intervention with Robblee, the boy, and an administrator, when the 12-year-old’s behaviour became more problematic. However, the verbal abuse continued.

In April, during Passover, the boy reportedly spouted more hatred when Robblee wore a kippah to class. He was sent to detention but once released he sent the teacher drawings of swastikas and canisters labelled "gas."

One picture he sent was a drawing of Hitler standing over a dead person labelled "Jew." Robblee also claimed the student emailed him insults about his teaching.

The child, who cannot be named because of his age, is now facing a misdemeanour charge of criminal harassment.
French far-right suspects on trial over alleged terror plot on Jewish and Muslim targets
One of the accused was a teenager when police arrested the suspects in 2018 and 2019, making a closed-door trial for all four men likely under French law.

But presiding judge Christophe Petiteau said given the seriousness of the allegations, “the court considers it important to lift the restricted publicity”.

France has uncovered several violent plots by far-right extremists in recent years, including one in 2018 suspected of preparing an attempt on President Emmanuel Macron’s life.

“We’re talking about a new and growing threat—mass killings inspired by English-speaking countries that are being imported into our territory,” said prosecution lawyer Olivier Dabin.

Prosecutors say the four men, now aged between 22 and 28, joined a private internet chat group called “Operation WaffenKraft”, where talks “very quickly turned to the preparation of terrorist projects”.

The Waffen-SS was the military branch of the Nazi’s elite SS corps, which was founded by Adolf Hitler.

The chat group discussed targets, including mosques as well as the headquarters of the Jewish council (CRIF) and the office of the anti-Jewish discrimination league (LICRA).

The group’s alleged leader was Alexandre Gilet, at the time a volunteer deputy police officer in the southeastern department of Isere.


Israel inaugurates national pavilion at Paris Air Show
Seventeen Israeli defense firms participated in the inauguration of the national pavilion at the 2023 Paris Air Show on Monday.

The event follows a banner year for Israeli defense exports, which hit an all-time high of $12.5 billion in 2022. Israeli defense exports have doubled in less than a decade and increased by 50% over the past three years.

The Israeli delegation is being led by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and includes the ministry's Director General Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir and other senior officials.

"Israel's ability to face threats is determined by the dedicated individuals who tirelessly work to develop state-of-the-art technology. This ongoing and highly challenging battle of intellect mostly takes place behind the scenes," said Gallant on Monday.

"Iran is closer than ever to gaining military-nuclear capabilities, and it is conducting a war of attrition against us by engaging in proxy terrorism. This clear strategy aims to destabilize not only the region but also the world. In response to Iran's efforts, the Israeli defense establishment is working to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power, utilizing all the resources at our disposal," he added.

The Israeli leaders will "engage in discussions and foster collaborations with global counterparts to further advance Israeli defense industries and strengthen official partnerships," according to a government statement.

Held every two years, the world's largest air and aerospace defense exhibition attracts a diverse range of exhibitors, official delegations, professionals and audiences. Some 150,000 professionals and more than 2,500 defense industries are participating in this year's event, showcasing cutting-edge technological solutions in the aerospace, civilian and defense sectors.

"Defense industrial cooperation stands as a vital cornerstone of our strategic defense alliances with partners worldwide. Israel's defense establishment and industries have long been at the forefront of pioneering defense technology and solutions, earning international recognition and trust in our technological capabilities," said Brig. Gen. (res.) Yair Kulas, head of the Defense Ministry's International Defense Cooperation Directorate (SIBAT).

"We are honored to participate in this esteemed exhibition and look forward to further fruitful collaborations with our counterparts," Kulas added.

The Israeli companies will present a wide array of technological solutions at the national pavilion including air defense systems, unmanned aerial systems, radar and laser technologies, missile warning systems, and advanced command and control solutions.
Actress Bel Powley Talks About Antisemitism at Celebrity Screening for Holocaust Series ‘A Small Light’
During a screening party for the National Geographic miniseries A Small Light last week in West Hollywood, California, the show’s lead star, British actress Bel Powley, spoke to a celebrity-studded audience about her character’s heroism and the timeliness of the show amid the current rise in antisemitism, she revealed in an Instagram post.

The limited series from National Geographic, Disney+ and Hulu — which premiered in May — focuses on Bel‘s character Miep Gies and tells the true story of how the Dutch woman risked her life to help Anne Frank, her family and other Jews hide in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam during the Holocaust. Gies was the secretary of Frank’s father Otto Frank, who is played in the show by Liev Schreiber.

The screening event on June 15 — hosted by Powley and the show’s executive music producer Este Haim, from the Jewish rock band Haim — was attended by celebrities that included Elle Fanning, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Kaia Gerber, Jenna Dewan, Busy Philipps, Sasha Alexander, Edoardo Ponti and Hilary Shor.

Attendees saw the show’s first episode and during the event, Powley and the show’s creators engaged in a conversation moderated by actress and comedian Hannah Einbinder. Einbinder also took off her Star of David necklace and gave it to Powley when the latter said she stopped wearing one after she and her sister experienced antisemitic bullying at school, according to Variety. Powley later thanked Einbinder in an Instagram post for the kind gesture and said, “I will wear it with pride!”
Unconventional Holocaust survivor photo exhibit launches near Nazi German concentration camp
In a striking photograph, an elderly man emerges, his head encircled by a powerful symbol of destruction - a ring of bullets, creating an image akin to swimming in a pool of ammunition. However, this man's story goes beyond the haunting image. Meet Michael Sidko, the last surviving witness of the harrowing Babyn Yar massacre.

His remarkable journey and resilience make him one of the central figures in the Humans of the Holocaust exhibit, which was launched last week, just a few minutes away from where the original Nazi Dachau concentration camp existed while killing tens of thousands of Jews.

The Humans of the Holocaust photo exhibit will be on display at the Max Mannheimer Haus in Dachau Germany until the beginning of August and is open to the public. Afterward, the exhibition will tour the seven Bavarian administrative districts this year and next year.

For this purpose, the Foundation for International Youth Exchange Bavaria selects secondary schools, high schools, vocational schools, youth education centers, and other public places that have a connection to the topic.

"Our goal is to inform young people about the Holocaust and to raise awareness for tolerance and respect, said Melanie Huml, Bavarian State Minister for European Affairs and International Affairs and chair of the board of Trustees of the Foundation for International Youth Exchange Bavaria last week at the opening of an exhibition about Holocaust survivors in Dachau.

Past, present, and future
Huml added at the event that “With the connection between the exhibition and youth exchange, we are building a bridge between the past, the present, and the future. We encourage young people to actively stand up against antisemitism, racism, and all forms of intolerance. Getting to know each other and the culture of remembrance strengthens mutual understanding.”

She shared that during her trip to Israel at the end of last year, she understood that “due to Shoa we have the responsibility and obligation to keep the memory alive, especially for future generations, so that this never happens again."

Dachau, one of the earliest concentration camps established by the Nazis in 1933, stands as a chilling testament to the horrors of the Holocaust. Initially designed to imprison Hitler's political opponents, the camp expanded its scope to include forced labor and the incarceration of various groups, including Jews and Romani.


Ukraine's first lady Zelenska visits Israel's Sheba hospital
Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska joined Israeli President Isaac Herzog and his wife, Michal, for breakfast in Tel Aviv on Monday.

The visit comes against the backdrop of Israel providing humanitarian aid to the people of Ukraine suffering under the Russian invasion. Israel has also taken in refugees and provided medical treatment to the wounded.

Later on Monday, Zelenska toured the Safra Children's Hospital at Sheba Tel-HaShomer Medical Center in Ramat Gan. She then proceeded to a professional discussion with the National Coalition for Trauma and NATAL – The Israel Trauma and Resiliency Center together with senior representatives from Israel's Foreign Ministry and the European Union.

In May 2022, Zelenska initiated the creation of the National Program of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, to help Ukrainians overcome trauma caused by the war.

"Mrs. Zelensky's visit is the result of a collaboration that took place over the past year to strengthen therapists in the field of mental health and trauma care in Ukraine, and as a result of the relationship formed between the wife of the country's president, Michal Herzog, and the first lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, in these fields," said the President's Office.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.


StandWithUs: How Israel’s Paramedics Save Lives Inside and Outside of Israel
Erinn Alcabes, Executive Director of StandWithUs LA, met with Felix Lotan from Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel's emergency medical service, to discuss the organization's incredible life-saving work in the Jewish state and across the globe.

Thank you, MDA, for embodying the Jewish principle of 'Tikkun Olam' ('repairing the world')!




Buy the EoZ book, PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism  today at Amazon!

Or order from your favorite bookseller, using ISBN 9798985708424. 

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This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For over 19 years and 40,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.

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