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Wednesday, July 05, 2023

07/05 Links Pt2: When Freedom Began to Ring; UK Parliament Passes Anti-BDS Legislation; A two-state solution for terminally ill France?; ‘Exodus’ immigrant’s diary shows hardships of post-Shoah refugees

From Ian:

When Freedom Began to Ring
In his famous 1790 letter to the Jewish community of Newport, Rhode Island, George Washington wrote that “the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.” These words were not the kind of quid pro quo sometimes offered by European Enlightenment leaders of the time to Jews; it was not an implicit warning that they ought to behave themselves if they wanted to be tolerated.

President Washington, under whose leadership many Jews had fought during the Revolutionary War, was simply recognizing that America only required of its Jews what it required of all its citizens. At the founding, America was already not a Christian nation, and this was in large part because of its Jews.

Everywhere else in the world, prior to the American Revolution, Jews were disfranchised, politically isolated, and vulnerable. Even where they were relatively secure, such as in England, they were not full citizens. In 1775, on the eve of the Revolutionary War, English Jews could not vote, serve on juries, serve in Parliament, be military officers, attend a university, engage in some businesses, become barristers, or practice some other professions. Jewish immigrants had to pay special “alien” taxes forever, because they could not naturalize. And as aliens, immigrant Jews were prohibited from owning real estate or seagoing vessels, and from engaging in colonial or foreign trade.

Things had been somewhat better in England’s North American colonies, where momentum toward full equality built as the Revolution grew nearer, in part because of Jewish support for the patriot cause. In 1765, ten Jewish merchants in New York City, along with nearly two hundred Christian businessmen, signed a non-importation agreement to boycott British goods. Jewish merchants in Philadelphia and Newport, signed similar agreements. Others, most famously Haym Salomon, joined the Sons of Liberty. Gershom Mendes Seixas, the spiritual leader of New York’s Shearith Israel—the first synagogue in what became the United States —actively supported Independence. In 1774, Francis Salvador had won a seat in South Carolina’s Provincial Congress. He was reelected in 1776, thus becoming the first Jewish elected public official in the new United States. He served until he was killed in battle that August.

Most Jews in New York, Philadelphia, Newport, Charleston, and Savannah—where the Revolution was brewing—joined the cause early. In doing so, they staked their claim to political equality as a right, not a set of privileges to be granted.

As they did nowhere in Europe, Jews served as officers in the patriot armies. Mordecai Sheftall, a Savannah businessman, was a full colonel, then the third highest rank in the American army. David Salisbury Franks rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, served as a diplomat to France and Morocco during the war, and later became the assistant cashier of the Bank of the United States. Solomon Bush, whose father had signed a non-importation agreement, ended the war as a Lieutenant Colonel and the deputy adjutant-general of the Pennsylvania militia. His younger brother, Captain Lewis Bush, died in combat. There were no Jewish officers in the British army or among the Hessian mercenaries during the Revolutionary War. (However, Alexander Zuntz, a Hessian civilian commissary, served as the Hazzan of Shearith Israel congregation while the British occupied New York City. Impressed with American religious liberty, he stayed in New York after the war, and eventually became president of the synagogue.)
UK Parliament Passes Anti-BDS Legislation Following Debate Amid Israeli Counter-Terror Op in West Bank
British parliamentarians from all parties have voiced unease over new legislation that would impose fines on public bodies, such as local councils, for initiating boycotts of Israel in support of the “Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions” (BDS) campaign targeting the Jewish state for economic, political and cultural isolation.

As Israeli forces were in the midst of a counter-terror operation in the West Bank city of Jenin on Monday, members of parliament rounded on the legislation during a debate in the House of Commons. The operation, which wound down on Tuesday night, resulted in the deaths of at least 13 Palestinians, according to Palestinian sources, as well as an IDF officer, Sgt. First Class David Yehuda Yitzhak.

The legislation — formally titled the “Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill” — seeks to ban public bodies including local councils from supporting boycotts targeting foreign governments based on moral or political grounds. Speaking in support of the bill, the Conservative government’s Communities Secretary, Michael Gove, argued that the bill would guarantee that foreign policy remained a UK government matter.

The bill was eventually passed after a Labour Party amendment was defeated, with 268 MPs voting in favor and 70 voting against. A significant number of MPs abstained from the vote, including 80 representatives from the ruling Conservative Party.

Addressing the chamber, Gove said there had been an “increase in antisemitic events following on from the activities of the BDS movement.” He said that although there were “legitimate reasons to criticize the Israeli government”, the BDS movement was asking councils to “treat Israel differently from any other nation on the globe”.

“Nothing in this bill prevents or impedes the loudest of criticisms of Israel’s government and leaders,” Gove added.
"Calls to Boycott Ben & Jerry’s Over Claims US Exists on Stolen Land"
It was just in time for the Fourth of July: Ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s called on the United States to return what it called “stolen land” to its original owners, the Native Americans.

The call by the company, tweeted on America’s Independence Day, stated bluntly, “The United States was founded on stolen indigenous land. This Fourth of July, let’s commit to returning it.”

The company suggested the move begin with Mount Rushmore.

“What is the meaning of Independence Day for those whose land this country stole, those who were murdered and forced with brutal violence on to reservations, those who were pushed from their holy places and denied their freedom.

“The faces on Mount Rushmore are the faces of men who actively worked to destroy Indigenous cultures and ways of life, to deny Indigenous people their basic rights,” the company declared.

Users on the social media site responded by calling for Ben & Jerry’s to give all of its property and land back to the Native Americans “right now,” with several writers urging the company to return its corporate office to the Abenaki people “who have lived in Vermont for 10,000 years.”

“Lead by example,” wrote another. “What locations are you going to give back to the rightful owners of our land?”

Another urged users on the social media site to “Boycott them till they give back the stolen land.”

“Lucky we Jews are indigenous to Israel,” Israeli historian, media analyst and author Yisrael Medad commented. “I wonder to where you guys will have to move.”




How ESG ratings break the economy
Blackrock CEO backs off 'politicized' ESG.
i24NEWS Correspondent Ariel Levin Waldman has the latest and breaks down the information.


Indonesia won’t host beach games, months after losing soccer event over Israel ban
Indonesia pulled out of hosting a global sports event at short notice Tuesday, three months after refusing to welcome Israel’s team for soccer’s Under-20 World Cup.

The World Beach Games had been set to be staged in Bali from August 5-15 but were canceled after the Indonesian government pulled the budget, the global group of national Olympic bodies known as ANOC said Tuesday.

ANOC said it had no option but to cancel the 14-sport championships — including beach versions of soccer, tennis and volleyball, plus surfing and open water swimming — because it was unable to find a replacement host with so little time.

About 1,500 athletes from 100 nations, including Israel, were expected to compete in Bali across 41 medal events.

In May, the UK’s Sunday Times newspaper reported that senior Indonesian officials were worried about the fate of the beach games tournament as Bali Governor Wayan Koster was determined to maintain his boycott of Israel.

At the time, ANOC reportedly still expected Indonesia to allow Israel to participate.

Indonesia and Israel do not have formal diplomatic relations and support for the Palestinian cause is high in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation. But Israeli delegations have been to Indonesia for sporting and diplomatic events before, including four Israelis who competed in the World Cycling Championship in Jakarta in February.

“The KOI [Indonesian Olympic Committee] stated the decision was taken after the budget was not released by the government of the country and there is now not time to deliver the games,” Lausanne-based ANOC said in a statement, noting its “great surprise and extreme disappointment.”

“ANOC and the KOI met for weekly coordination meetings, as recently as last week, and at no point did the KOI indicate there were any issues that would lead to such an outcome,” the umbrella group said.
Switzerland, Austria to join European air defense project using Israel’s Arrow 3
Germany — Switzerland plans to take part in a Europe-wide air defense project initiated in response to Russia’s attack on Ukraine, officials said Tuesday.

The Alpine country is the second neutral nation after Austria to signal its intention to join the European Sky Shield Initiative launched by Germany last year.

Swiss Defense Minister Viola Amherd and her Austrian counterpart will sign a memorandum of understanding at a meeting Friday in Bern with Germany’s Boris Pistorius.

The European Sky Shield Initiative, or ESSI, was proposed by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in August of last year as a means of bundling the continent’s efforts to defend against possible aircraft or missile attacks.

It will complement existing air defense systems established by the NATO alliance, which Austria and Switzerland aren’t members of.

The two countries have made clear that joining the initiative won’t entail any participation in international military conflicts.

So far, 17 other nations, including Germany, Britain and Sweden, have signed up.

France has criticized the project because key elements — the Israeli Arrow 3 system and the US Patriot system — originate outside Europe.
A two-state solution for terminally ill France?
France lost the chance to treat the cancer when it first appeared and now it has metastasized and is terminal.

“France is going through a perpetual crisis,” Algerian Boualem Sansal explains to Atlantico. “It has entered the thunderstorm zone: the crises follow one another and resemble each other, in almost all zones. There are those who say that France is collapsing: this is the opinion of Michel Onfray, or Eric Zemmour for example. As former Interior Minister Gérard Collomb said, we are sliding towards confrontation. At the moment we are side by side, tomorrow we may come face to face and throw bombs and grenades at each other."

"When the damage is done, when it goes back this far, it's comparable to a cancer that has set in and metastasizes. It was necessary to react earlier, at the moment of the first signs. At the time, to stick with the medical metaphor, the treatment could have been relatively simple to administer. There is a desire to break with France and its culture. All this generates hatred, which then leads to violence. There will be no going back to what France was like in the 1960s. It's over, water has flowed under the bridge and France itself has changed a lot: it has given up entire sectors of its sovereignty in favor of the EU, a bureaucratic and apolitical organization.

"Everything is falling apart everywhere. Yet, on the side of Islamism (in the generic sense of the term), you will find people who know where they are going, organized and motivated: they are conquering hearts and territories, but also economic spaces, industries, religion… It is a true global octopus, which is advancing strategically”.

“France is doomed at worst to civil war, at best to partition,” Pierre Brochand, the former director of France's external intelligence service (DGSE), told a Senate hearing.

Two states for two peoples could be the solution with a divided capital in Paris.
4 countries take Iran to top UN court over 2020 downing of Ukrainian passenger jet
The United Kingdom, Canada, Sweden and Ukraine launched a case against Iran at the United Nations’ highest court Wednesday over the downing in 2020 of a Ukrainian passenger jet and the deaths of all 176 passengers and crew.

The four countries want the International Court of Justice to rule that Iran illegally shot down the Ukraine International Airlines plane and to order Tehran to apologize and pay compensation to the families of the victims.

Flight PS752 was traveling from Tehran to Kyiv on January 8, 2020, when it was shot down soon after takeoff. The people killed included nationals and residents of Canada, Sweden, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, as well as Afghanistan and Iran. Their ages ranged from 1 year to 74 years old.

“Today’s legal action reflects our unwavering commitment to achieving transparency, justice and accountability for the families of the victims,” the countries said in a joint statement Wednesday. They said they filed the case after Iran failed to respond to a December request for arbitration.

Following three days of denials in January 2020, Iran said its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard mistakenly downed the Ukrainian plane with two surface-to-air missiles. Iranian authorities blamed an air defense operator who they said mistook the Boeing 737-800 for an American cruise missile.

An Iranian court this year sentenced an air defense commander allegedly responsible for the downing to 13 years imprisonment, according to the country’s official judiciary news outlet.

But the countries that filed the case with the world court in The Hague called the prosecution “a sham and opaque trial.”

According to the court filing published Wednesday, the UK, Canada, Sweden and Ukraine argue that Iran “failed to take all practicable measures to prevent the unlawful and intentional commission of an offense” and “failed to conduct an impartial, transparent, and fair criminal investigation and prosecution consistent with international law.”
Europe not planning to ‘snapback’ Iran sanctions despite continued violations
The European parties to the Iran nuclear deal do not plan to invoke snapback sanctions on Tehran ahead of the expiration of a ban on Iranian ballistic missiles and drone exports set to expire in October, a foreign diplomatic source said on Wednesday.

The E3 - UK, France and Germany – plan to institute their own sanctions related to Iranian ballistic missiles “and other coercive measures” beyond UN sanctions expiration date on October 18, the source stated.

The countries do not plan to add new sanctions or to activate the snapback mechanism, a veto-proof move that would reinstate all UN sanctions on Iran that were in place before the Iran nuclear deal was reached in 2015.

In that way, the E3 views itself as remaining within the framework of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, as the Iran deal is known, and the accompanying UN Security Council Resolution 2231.

Allowing Iran to develop nuclear weaponry
According to the JCPOA, the UN is meant to lift a ban on Iran's development and production of ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, and on its import and export of missile-related technology, including missiles and drones with a range of 300 km or more. In addition, Iran's parliament is meant to grant the International Atomic Energy Agency more access to its nuclear facilities and the EU is required to lift remaining sanctions on Iran's nuclear program.

The ”other coercive measures” the source said will be maintained in October are likely the EU sanctions.

Iran has violated the sanctions set to expire in October by developing and testing ballistic missiles, as well as exporting drones to Russia, which it has used against Ukraine.
IRGC Quds Force commander Qaani says Jenin proves Israel can be beaten -
Iran’s Quds Force commander, Esmael Qaani, said that the battle in Jenin this week shows that Palestinian young men are able to confront Israel’s army, even when Israel deploys its best units. He made the comments in a statement that was posted on pro-regime Tasnim News online on Wednesday.

"Today, we are witnessing that the Zionist regime brought all its forces to the field in the Jenin camp, but the Palestinian youth hit him in the mouth." He claims that Palestinians are able to carry out numerous operations against Israel.

Qaani took over the Quds Force, a part of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, in January 2020 after the US killed Qasem Soleimani with a drone strike. He made the comments during the opening of a project in Iran and initially he slammed the US and praised the late commander Soleimani.

Then he turned his attention to Israel. "The children of Palestine have never been as powerful and strong as today, and on the other hand, the criminal Israelis have never been like today." He implied Israel was divided internally by protests, while Palestinians are unified. Iran’s goal in the last years has been to entrench in Syria and then unify various Iranian-backed groups against Israel, including militias in Iraq and Syria, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas.

The changing world order allegedly favors Iran
Qaani pointed out that Iran is not only able to back the Palestinians, but also said that Syria has returned to the Arab League, basically asserting that Iran has been successful in diplomacy in the region, and in threatening Israel via proxies.

"Resistance has shown itself in the political, security, and economic arenas. These are the lessons that the Islamic Republic has learned within itself and is teaching to other countries, so the enemies are upset about this issue, and then they become so helpless that they die,” he said, according to Tasnim News.

He said that Iran-backed “resistance,” which is a euphemism for the IRGC and various terror groups, are transforming the region and that the US is declining. He marked 9/11 as an example of the beginning of an era of US decline after the US entered various wars in the region.
Iran tried to seize 2 oil tankers near Strait of Hormuz and fired shots at one of them, US Navy says
Iran tried to seize two oil tankers near the strategic Strait of Hormuz early Wednesday, firing shots at one of them, the U.S. Navy said.

It said that in both cases, the Iranian naval vessels backed off after the U.S. Navy responded, and that both commercial ships continued their voyages.

“The Iranian navy did make attempts to seize commercial tankers lawfully transiting international waters,” said Cmdr. Tim Hawkins, spokesman for the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet. “The U.S. Navy responded immediately and prevented those seizures.”

He said the gunfire directed at the second vessel did not cause casualties or major damage.

There was no immediate Iranian comment on the incidents.

Ambrey, a maritime intelligence service, said the tanker that was fired upon was a Bahamas-flagged, Greek-owned, U.S. managed crude oil tanker transiting from the United Arab Emirates to Singapore. It said the firing of shots happened 28 nautical miles northeast of Muscat, the capital of Oman.

The U.S. Navy says Iran has seized at least five commercial vessels in the last two years and has harassed several others. Many of the incidents have occurred in and around the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which 20% of all crude oil passes.


Ottawa Educator Glorifies Palestinian Terrorism On Social Media
HonestReporting Canada is raising the alarm following its discovery that an Ottawa educator has posted what we contend is extensive anti-Israel propaganda on her Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Abeer Mousa, who is listed as an Educational Assistant at General Vanier Public School in Ottawa on the institution’s website, has published scores of anti-Israel posts on her Facebook and Twitter account over the last five years, ranging from content that we feel demonizes Israel and which appears to extol the virtues of Palestinian terrorist murderers.

Please note: At the time of publication, Ms. Abeer Mousa has deactivated her Twitter account and removed all posts from her Facebook account.

In a post on May 15, 2023, Ms. Mousa wrote that “75 years ago, the #Nakba took place in Palestine in which 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes.” The ‘nakba,’ is an Arabic word for catastrophe, which refers to Israel’s independence in 1948 and is a term used to delegitimize the country’s right to exist.

As pointed out previously by HonestReporting Canada, the oft-cited claim that 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes (by Israel) is false; while that is a rough approximation of the number of Arabs who were displaced at the time, many did so as a result of strong coercion from Arab leaders, not Israel.

Writing in Arabic in the same post, Ms. Mousa commented that “(Palestinian) women cultivate within their children that the usurped right cannot be returned except through resistance (struggle/ fight), as it is the only way to liberate the land and get rid of the enemies.”


Omission and addition in BBC reports on a Jerusalem property deal
Unfortunately for BBC audiences trying to understand this story and others, there is nothing at all novel about the BBC’s unquestioning promotion of the politically motivated narrative whereby the presence of Jews in parts of Jerusalem in which they lived for centuries before being ethnically cleansed by the Jordanian armed forces is ‘illegal’.

Clearly members of the BBC’s audience who encountered either or both of these reports by Yolande Knell would receive the impression that on some level this story is connected to “Israeli settlers” or “radical Jewish settlers”.

Two weeks prior to the appearance of Knell’s written and audio reports, the Times of Israel (based on AP reporting) provided background information on the same story which – remarkably – is completely absent from Knell’s accounts.

“There is very little information available about Rothman, who also has used the last name Rubinstein, according to a 2016 Cyprus regulatory decision fining him for falsifying his academic background.

His LinkedIn page describes him as chairman of a hotel company called Xana Capital. Records show the firm — formed in the United Arab Emirates — was registered in Israel in July 2021. Weeks later, a dozen Armenian priests raised the first alarm about a property deal being struck without their consent.

A sign recently popped up marking the Armenian parking lot as the property of Xana Capital.

Rothman, who is based in London, declined to comment when reached by The Associated Press. […]

The self-exiled priest, Yeretsian, said that Rothman plans to develop a high-end resort in the Armenian Quarter. The project, he added, would be managed by the One&Only hotel company based in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, which established diplomatic relations with Israel in 2020. […]

Kerzner International, owner of One&Only Resorts, also declined to comment. The Dubai-based company said only that it is “always exploring opportunities to grow its portfolio of ultra-luxury resorts.”

Renowned Israeli architect Moshe Safdie told the AP that Rothman would fund the project and that he would design it. Construction, he said, would start following excavations at the parking lot.”

Interestingly, that reported connection of UAE based companies in the hospitality industry to this story is completely absent from Knell’s account. Instead, not for the first time, a story related to Christian churches in Jerusalem has been exploited for the purpose of promotion of a blatantly political narrative concerning “settlers”.


Theatre ridiculed for issuing Nazi trigger warnings for the Sound of Music
A new theatre production of The Sound of Music has come under fire after a trigger warning was issued that the musical touches on 'Nazi Germany and the annexation of Austria'.

Chichester Festival Theatre, where the revival of the stage show is due to open next week, is warning ticket buyers that some of them may find Nazis "distressing".

Chichester Festival Theatre's production will run from July 10 to September 3, with the West End actress Gina Beck starring in the role of Maria.

In a statement, the theatre said the play contained themes of "music; family; romance; the threat of Nazi Germany and the annexation of Austria".

Rabbi Jonathan Romain, who leads Maidenhead Synagogue in Berkshire, described such warnings as "incredibly patronising" and said they did a "disservice" to the audience.

He added: "They are almost warning them off from learning about things that may be unpleasant but are certainly real and make up the world.

“They also seem to be incredibly patronising and sort of dismissing the resilience that people have.

“There are many terrible tragedies, but human endurance and resilience is actually quite remarkable."
Ruins found of Munich synagogue destroyed by Hitler
Eighty-five years after Adolf Hitler ordered the destruction of Munich's main synagogue, construction workers have found rubble from the building in a nearby river.

They uncovered columns from the synagogue and a stone tablet showing some of the Ten Commandments.

The Jewish community and local figures are delighted with the discovery.

"We never thought we would find anything from it," said Bernhard Purin, head of Munich's Jewish museum.

There had been no sign of the building since it was torn down in June 1938, after Hitler demanded its removal as an "eyesore". Five months later, Jews, synagogues and Jewish-run businesses were attacked across Nazi Germany in the deadly November pogrom widely known as Kristallnacht.

"Yesterday I saw [the remains] for the first time and it was one of the most moving moments in 30 years of working in Jewish museums, especially seeing the plaque of the Ten Commandments not seen since 1938," Mr Purin told the BBC.

Rubble from the historic building is thought to have been submerged in the River Isar since it was used to rebuild a weir 11 years after World War Two. Tablet showing the Ten CommandmentsImage source, Jewish Museum Munich


The stone tablet originally came from above the Ark (containing the Torah) on the eastern wall of the synagogue, which was one of Munich's most famous pre-war landmarks. The old site is now covered by a Karstadt department store.

Mr Purin said a little less than a quarter of the tablet was missing and it was the most significant discovery so far.
Anglican Church of Canada finalizes removal of prayer wishing for conversion of Jews
The Anglican Church of Canada has voted to remove from its prayer books a prayer calling for the conversion of the Jews.

The decision, made Friday during a church convening in Calgary, ratifies a move first announced three years ago to replace the prayer with one calling for reconciliation with the Jews. At the time, the Anglican bishop of Quebec said the change would help the church “acknowledge and repent” its “participation in antisemitism” and help it to “stop singling out Jews as a target for our evangelistic efforts, and to assume a humble and reconciliatory stance with our Jewish elders in the faith.”

The conference last week was the first time the church’s General Synod, its official governing conference, met since the 2019 resolution.

“We commend the General Synod for this important decision,” said Rabbi Adam Stein of Congregation Beth Israel in Vancouver, in a statement on behalf of the Canadian Rabbinic Caucus and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.

“Authentic interfaith dialogue requires respect,” said Stein, who presented to church leaders in 2019. “Any attempt by one to convert the other is the antithesis of respect. Changing this prayer represents a milestone in Anglican-Jewish relations and invites Anglicans to assume a reconciliatory stance with the Jewish community.”

The decision comes amid a spate of efforts to strip antisemitic elements from Christian liturgy and practices. In December, citing a rise in antisemitism including among self-described Christian nationalists, the Council of Centers on Jewish-Christian Relations urged Christian churches to scrutinize their own practices and change those that can fuel hatred against Jews.
Swedish police receive application to burn Torah, other holy scriptures
Three new applications to burn religious scriptures have been submitted to the Swedish police, of the Koran, the Torah and the New Testament - raising concerns and sparking condemnation, according to reports in Swedish media. The applications include two in Stockholm and one in Helsingborg. One of the applications pertains to a Koran burning outside a mosque in Stockholm and the organizer intends for it to happen "as soon as possible."

The recent burning of a Koran outside a mosque in Stockholm caused widespread anger and criticism. The police have confirmed the receipt of the applications and are evaluating them individually to determine if they meet the necessary conditions. The previous Koran burnings in Sweden have had political ramifications and have been described as detrimental to Sweden's NATO process.

One of the applications was a request to burn a Torah book outside the Israeli Embassy in Stockholm on July 15th.

Reports in Sweden claim that political figures have expressed shock and horror over the new applications, emphasizing the need to address such hateful acts. The potential demonstrations raise questions about the legal implications and incitement against specific religious groups.

The Jewish communities in Sweden express shock
"The Jewish community in Sweden is shocked," Rabbi Moshe David HaCohen told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday. HaCohen is the co-founder and project director of Amanah, a Swedish organization that promotes dialogue and connections between religious minorities, mainly Muslims and Jews.

"We spoke out against the burning of the Koran in recent months and we now condemn the will of local Swedes to burn holy scriptures of Jews, Muslims and Christians. The Swedish government does not understand that this is a hate crime with a threat to religious life in our country," he said.

HaCohen added that following the burning of the Koran, there were several requests to burn Torah scrolls, "but they did not take place because the Muslim leadership prevented it."
Security fears at Sussex synagogue after teenager charged with terrorism offences
Security fears have intensified at an East Sussex synagogue after a teenager was charged with terrorism offences.

The Community Security Trust (CST) said counter-terror police had informed the group that an individual had been researching Holland Road synagogue in Hove.

Mason Reynolds, 18, from Brighton, was arrested on June 27 and charged with 11 terrorism-related offences. The charges against him are linked to an "extreme right-wing ideology", police said.

Among the charges are five counts of collecting information which could be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.

He is also charged with five counts of dissemination of terrorist publications, and a further count of possessing an article for the purpose of terrorism.

Reynolds appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, and will next appear at the Old Bailey on July 21.

A spokesperson for Counter Terrorism Policing Southeast said the charges against Reynolds were linked to an "extreme right-wing ideology".

In a statement, the CST said: “After his arrest this week, we were informed by the police that the defendant had allegedly conducted online research into Hove Hebrew Congregation (Holland Road Synagogue).


Kosher food maker sparks concern and outrage by announcing gefilte fish ice cream
An American kosher food manufacturer has sparked concern online after mocking up a range of Jewish ice cream flavours including gefilte fish, matzoh ball soup and black and white cookies.

Manischewitz, a kosher brand that makes a wide range of traditional Jewish products including whitefish, matzah balls and almond macarons have developed a reputation online for Jewish-inspired 'Frankenstein foods.'

Last year the company made headlines with its gefilte fish hot dogs and have now sparked even more outrage from Jews after their latest concoctions.

When asked why they picked gefilte fish and matzah balls over more traditional sweet flavours like hamantaschen or babka, the company said: "gefilte scored higher on the research."

Twitter users couldn't decide what to make of the freak ice creams with some saying they'd be more than happy to indulge, but others said it made them "side with antisemitism."

Last year, when the company announced the gefilte dogs, Twitter user Annika Rothstein said: "NONE OF US ASKED FOR THIS. This is a hate crime and a monstrosity and it should be tried at The Hague".
Israel to send largest-ever team to UN climate forum in Dubai
Israel plans to send a 1,000-strong delegation to the United Nations climate conference in Dubai later this year, its largest ever, including representatives of more than 100 climate tech companies, the country’s foreign and environmental protection ministries announced Monday.

The Israeli delegation to the annual COP28 Climate Conference, which is scheduled to take place between Nov. 30 and Dec. 12 at Dubai’s Expo City complex, will be headed by Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will attend the two-day leadership conference at the start of the event.

“The climate crisis is a global crisis which requires the enlistment of the entire international community,” said Foreign Minister Eli Cohen at a preparatory meeting held at his ministry in Jerusalem. “We intend to share the vast knowledge and ability of Israel in this field in order to find solutions to the crisis.”

Israel is home to around 700 climate-tech companies, and one in seven new Israeli startups deals with climate technology, said Cohen.

He noted that cooperation projects in the fields of energy, water and food security are already underway between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan.
UAE's free-trade zone inks cooperation deal with Israel's industrial sectors
The UAE and Israel will look to expand mutual investment and manufacturing under a deal signed on Wednesday between the Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone (RAKEZ) and the Israeli Manufacturers Association (IMA), the WAM state news agency reported.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) calls for the two sides to collaborate to create investment opportunities and expand the operations of industrial companies, the UAE's WAM reported.

UAE-Israel relations
The United Arab Emirates and Israel agreed to normalize relations in August 2020 with each ratifying the plan in October of that year.

"It is imperative that we move forward towards enhancing the level of cooperation between the UAE and Israel," said RAKEZ CEO Rami Jallad.

The IMA includes firms in sectors such as advanced technology, textiles, fashion, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, environment, food, metals, electricity, infrastructure and consumer products.
Israeli NGO gives clean water to villages in Cameroon

‘Exodus’ immigrant’s diary shows hardships of post-Shoah refugees
Dozens of personal diaries from people living through the early years of the Jewish state have been handed over to the National Library of Israel as part of the Operation Diary project.

One presented recently describes the life of the immigrants on the Exodus 1947 ship.

“September 1, 1947—one person died on one of the ships today,” Miriam Sternberg Wechsler wrote. “In the presence of all the ships that stood still for a short while, he was lowered for burial in the Atlantic Ocean. The fourth victim, this time not from an English bullet, but by normal death. Is this normal? At the same time, about 10 babies were born on these ships. If we stay on the water for another two weeks, there will be several more births.”

“We were like animals?”
Sternberg Wechsler’s diary, part of the project initiated by the library and Israel Hayom, contains chilling testimonies about the lives of the 4,500 Jews who survived the Holocaust and left France in July 1947, heading for the Land of Israel.

The ship arrived in Israel, but the British refused to allow them to disembark. After a fight inside the ship in which three passengers were killed and dozens injured, the immigrants were forcibly transported to deportation ships that brought them back to the shores of France.

The event received enormous media coverage all over the world and the British were condemned. Nevertheless, the ships continued from the French coast to the displaced persons camps in Germany. About one year later the immigrants arrived in the newly-independent State of Israel.

Sternberg Wechsler was 19 years old when she boarded the ship alone after her family was murdered in the Holocaust, and her diary provides a glimpse into the daily life of those on board. It was designed for 600 passengers but carried 4,515 women, men and children.

In another passage, she describes the difficult conditions: “19.8.1947—These bodies, lying in terrible disarray … the hall at night looks like after a real pogrom. Legs lying over each other, feet dirty with mud, because almost everyone is walking barefoot all day long; women, men, old people, youngsters and children. One on top of the other, one against the other, and it often happens that you wake up at night and find your neighbor’s dirty feet on your stomach, or on your chest … and no one even notices it. As if this is how it should be. As if this is such a normal thing.


1st-century coins from Jewish revolt against the Romans discovered near the Black Sea
Decades after fighting Jewish rebels in the Holy Land, a Roman military unit traveled to what is now the country of Georgia, leaving coins minted in what is now Israel at one of their camps there, new research reveals.

Archaeologists discovered the Roman-era coins at Colchis, in western Georgia near the Black Sea. An analysis revealed that some of the coins were brought to the site by Legio X Fretensis, a military unit that took part in fighting Jewish rebels during the first Jewish revolt. However, it's unlikely that the Roman soldiers who fought the Jews were the same ones who left the coins at Colchis. Instead, the coins likely stayed in the unit as new soldiers joined it.

The first Jewish revolt against the Romans started around A.D. 66 and saw the Roman sack of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Second Temple in A.D. 70. The revolt continued until the Roman siege of Masada, which ended with many of the nearly 1,000 remaining Jewish defenders taking their own lives around A.D. 73 or 74, to avoid enslavement or death at the hands of the Romans.

Most of the coins used in the analysis were discovered between 2014 and 2022 by a Polish-Georgian team at the fort of Apsaros at Colchis, Piotr Jaworski, an archaeologist at the University of Warsaw who is a coin expert on the team, told Live Science in an email. The researchers found that a few of the coins were actually minted by Jewish rebels and that the Romans continued to use the currency. During the revolt, the Jewish rebels minted coins of their own that were inscribed with a variety of images, including pomegranates and chalices.

The legion would have brought the coins to the site around A.D. 115, when the Roman emperor Trajan (who reigned from 98 to 117) launched an initially successful invasion of the Parthian Empire — an action that pushed the Roman Empire's borders deep into the Middle East. Historical records and archaeological remains indicate that Legio X Fretensis was used in this invasion and spent time in Colchis. The site was "a good logistical base for military operations in the region," Jaworski said.

While research into the site is ongoing, Jaworksi published a paper discussing some of the coin finds in 2021 in the journal Notae Numismaticae. The team found that, in addition to the Roman coins brought by Legio X Fretensis, large numbers of Roman coins were brought to the site in the first and third centuries A.D, likely by Roman soldiers.




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