Tuesday, July 11, 2023

07/11 Links Pt2: Gove: 'There is significant overlap between antisemitism and conspiracy theories'; Tree of Life Murderer: ‘They Can Kill Me If They Want, But The Score Was 11-1:’

From Ian:

Michael Gove: 'There is significant overlap between antisemitism and conspiracy theories'
There is a "significant" overlap between antisemitism and conspiracy theories, Michael Gove has said.

The Communities Secretary made the point after King's College London undertook a study to find out if antisemitism was more common among those on the political left, or on the right.

The study concluded that “antisemitism may be less closely linked to political beliefs than has previously been implied, and more closely linked to opinions and views on other topics such as religion, ethnic nationalism, and conspiracy theories.”

The study also found those with a susceptibility to conspiracy theories were most likely to be antisemites.

Responding to a question from Labour MP Alex Sobel, Gove replied: "He is absolutely right. There is a significant overlap between antisemitism and conspiracy theories.

"And it is the case that many of the tricks that conspiracists use are drawn from the antisemitic library, but it is important with the Online Safety Bill to balance the right to free speech with vigilance in dealing with hate and this Government is absolutely committed to combating antisemitism wherever it rears its head."

The Leeds North West MP had asked him in the Commons: "Did the Secretary of State see the research from King's College showing that those who believe in conspiracies are most likely to be antisemitic.

“Much of this antisemitism takes place online, but is legal but harmful.

"What is the Secretary of State doing to tackle conspiracism, misinformation and fake news and why are the measures in the Online Safety Bill so weak and why have the Government removed the legal but harmful provision which protects so much of the Jewish community?"
‘Tragic error,’ 11 groups say of only partial White House IHRA embrace
Eleven U.S. Jewish organizations sent a letter on July 7 to the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, urging her to publicly embrace the leading definition of antisemitism.

The missive to Linda Thomas-Greenfield sought to counter a letter addressed to her in late June by left-wing Democrats which applauded the Biden administration for failing to codify the application of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism across the whole of government.

The White House “embraced” the IHRA definition in its national plan to fight antisemitism released last month, but did not fully endorse it to the exclusion of other definitions preferred by those who wish to be freer in singling Israel out for criticism and applying double standards.

Last week’s letter to Thomas-Greenfield calls the decision “a tragic error,” adding that “Jewish members of Congress should know better.”

Representatives of CASEPAC, StopAntisemitism, Israel Heritage Foundation, Club Z, The Endowment for Middle East Truth, Baltimore Zionist District, Coalition for Jewish Values, Republican Jewish Coalition, Students Supporting Israel, Jewish Policy Center and Jewish Leadership Project signed the letter.

It urges Thomas-Greenfield to publicly embrace the IHRA definition “as part of your previous commitments to combat the scourge of antisemitism at the United Nations and beyond.”

Thomas-Greenfield’s boss, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, claimed at the outset of the Biden administration that it “enthusiastically” embraced IHRA, and the United States is one of 36 IHRA member countries.

Thomas-Greenfield has largely lived up to promises to support Israel at the United Nations, leveraging Washington’s veto power on the U.N. Security Council and its influence in the General Assembly on a number of matters.
‘They Can Kill Me If They Want, But The Score Was 11-1:’ Pittsburgh Synagogue Killer’s Chilling Message to Psychiatrist
The neo-Nazi gunman who murdered 11 people and wounded six more in an attack on a synagogue in Pittsburgh in Oct. 2018 boasted that the death toll guarantees him a victory even if he is executed for his crime, a leading psychiatrist told a Pittsburgh jury on Monday.

“They can kill me if they want, but the score was 11-1,” the gunman, Robert Bowers, stated during an interview with the psychiatrist, Dr. Park Dietz, according to testimony given by Dietz at Bowers’ ongoing trial.

A forensic psychiatrist who has examined and testified about many high-profile defendants, including serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, Dietz interviewed Bowers at Butler County Prison over the course of three days.

While Bowers’ guilt for the atrocity — the worst antisemitic outrage in American history — is not in dispute, the jury is deliberating over his eligibility for the death penalty. Whether his action was driven by mental instability or ideological belief is a key consideration for the jurors in this regard.

Dietz was in no doubt that “Bowers had the capacity to form the intent to kill.” Dietz cited Bowers’ “organized, goal-directed thoughts and behavior before, during and after the attack,” local broadcaster WTAE reported. Asked by a prosecuting attorney whether Bowers believed his murder of Jews was justified, Dietz replied in the affirmative, arguing that the atrocity was the consequence of a “cultural white supremacist belief system he shares with others.”

According to Dietz’s diagnosis, Bowers does not suffer from psychosis, schizophrenia or any form of mental delusion. He noted that Bowers started planning the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting six months in advance and quoted the killer’s regret that “there wasn’t dozens and dozens more” potential victims at the synagogue. He testified that Bowers told him he had aimed at “the best target I had available” and that he had selected the Tree of Life Synagogue to “get the most bang for his buck.”


The lessons of Israel’s 1956 war
As the modern State of Israel celebrates its 75th year, it is always important to review aspects of the past to learn lessons for the future.

Israel has never wanted to go to war. The Jewish people despise war. It is against our character. As Golda Meir said, “It will be harder for us to forgive [the Arabs] for having forced us to kill their sons. Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us.”

Just as in 1948, when Israel was forced to defend itself against an invasion by five Arab countries, in 1956 Israel had to defend itself against constant infiltrations and the closure of the Suez Canal and the Straits of Tiran by Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser.

The president of the United States at the time was Dwight D. Eisenhower, who had been a great general in World War II. He famously said when visiting the Ohrdruf Concentration Camp near Buchenwald, “We continue to uncover German concentration camps for political prisoners in which conditions of indescribable horror prevail. I have visited one of these myself and I assure you that whatever has been printed on them has been an understatement.” He said that the “evidence of bestiality and cruelty” was “overpowering.”

Despite his great World War II legacy, Eisenhower did not join Israel in the fight against Egypt and Nasser. It is possible that Eisenhower was swayed by his Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, who was no friend of Israel. The French and the British, however, who had a vested interest in the Suez Canal, joined Israel in the war with Egypt.

During the war, Israel was able to conquer the Sinai all the way to Sharm El Sheikh, as well as the Gaza Strip. Nasser’s “fedayeen” terrorists had been using Gaza as a launching pad to attack Israel on a daily basis.

Israel stayed in the Sinai until March 1957, when Eisenhower and the United Nations pressured Israel into leaving. Promises were made that were not kept, which eventually led to the Six-Day War of 1967.
PragerU: Israel: Who Are the Indigenous People?
The Land of Israel has changed hands many times over the centuries. But it has always been the homeland of one particular people. Noa Tishby, author of Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country on Earth, explains. (h/t MtB)


Eugene Volokh: The First Amendment and Refusals to Deal Here's a draft of my article, on the constitutionality of anti-BDS laws and other related matters, forthcoming in a symposium at The University of the Pacific Law Review.

It's based on amicus briefs that Michael Dorf (Cornell), Andrew Koppelman (Northwestern), and I filed in past cases (and that I blogged about before), but it elaborates somewhat further on that argument. There's still time to make changes, so I'd love to hear people's responses; you can also read it in PDF.

Anti-BDS laws, which bar government contractors from boycotting Israel, are generally constitutional—for the same reason that anti-discrimination laws are generally constitutional: Refusals to deal are, outside some narrow situations, generally unprotected by the First Amendment.

Introduction
Decisions not to buy or sell goods or services are generally not protected by the First Amendment. That is the necessary implication of Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic & Institutional Rights,[1] and it is the foundation of the wide range of antidiscrimination laws, public accommodation laws, and common carrier laws throughout the nation.

Conclusion
Banning discrimination against Israel and Israeli companies—whether in general, or just for government contractors—is a controversial policy. Perhaps it is unwise, especially when applied to small service providers. Perhaps people should be generally free to choose whom they will do business with, unless such choice risks creating a truly pressing social problem.

But such decisions are a matter for the political process, not for courts. So long as a law leaves people free to say what they want, it may generally restrict people's decisions about whom to do business with—which are generally regulable conduct, not constitutionally protected speech. Fifth Circuit Court dismisses anti-BDS lawsuit, upholding Texas' stand against discrimination
The Israeli-American Coalition for Action on Monday celebrated a victory against the BDS movement, after the federal Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a lawsuit challenging a Texas law targeting the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.

The decision, based on jurisdictional grounds, reinforces Texas’s stance against national origin-based discrimination and upholds the state’s refusal to contract or invest with entities engaged in such practices.

The dismissed challenge was brought by A&R Engineering, which sought to overturn a law prohibiting businesses with state contracts from participating in the anti-Israel BDS movement. The ruling, which removes an injunction imposed by the lower court, affirms the constitutionality of anti-BDS laws in 37 states aimed at curbing discriminatory practices against Israel and safeguarding US-based companies conducting business with or in the country.

IAC For Action chairman Shawn Evenhaim expressed his appreciation for the efforts of Texas citizens and the government in “upholding the state’s commitment to combatting commercial discrimination against Israel.” He commended the Texas Attorney-General’s Office, Solicitor-General Judd Stone, and Solicitor Eric Hamilton for their dedication and hard work throughout the case.

A&R Engineering had argued that they had a First Amendment right to receive state contracts while refusing to comply with a state non-discrimination certification requirement. The certification aims to ensure that local businesses do not engage in economic discrimination against Israel or companies associated with it. This nondiscrimination clause aligns with various state contract clauses that promote equal treatment based on characteristics such as gender, race, religion, national origin, and veteran status.

Joseph Sabag, executive director of IAC for Action and one of the key figures involved in drafting the Texas law, expressed satisfaction with the Fifth Circuit’s ruling. He highlighted the fact that every state that has adopted an anti-BDS law currently has it in full effect, and challenges to these laws have consistently failed in court. Sabag stated, “The forces of BDS are running out of plaintiffs, and their legal arguments have proven lacking through every case they’ve lost.”
100 Human Rights Activists Urge UN Probe of Top Official For Harassing Watchdog
A cross-regional coalition of 100 human rights activists and UN-accredited civil society organizations today called on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk to investigate Eric Tistounet, the powerful head of the UN Human Rights Council staff for the past two decades, for his campaign of “harassment and gross misconduct” targeting a human rights group that has been recognized for giving a global platform to dissidents of authoritarian regimes.

In the current 4-week session of the Human Rights Council that concludes on July 14, Mr. Tistounet blocked UN Watch from testifying in debates concerning abuses in Iran, Syria, Pakistan, Venezuela and Russia, said Hillel Neuer, an international human rights lawyer who directs the Geneva-based non-governmental organization.

“The numbers are astonishing: while groups friendly to Mr. Tistounet were allowed to speak in more than 20 debates in the current session, we have been prohibited from speaking more than once. And we know exactly what’s going on because Mr. Tistounet’s former employee revealed that he is close with China and other dictatorships that seek to silence UN Watch, and that he actually orders his UNHRC staff to tamper with speakers’ lists to prevent us from speaking.”

“What is shocking is that nine months ago, a senior aide to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres promised that they would review our Legal Complaint, which details how Mr. Tistounet wilfully and systematically rigs the system to block us from speaking. In the June 2021 session, we registered for 31 debates and were denied 30 out of 31 slots, and in June 2022 he barred us from all 36 debates. Only 10 NGOs get to speak in each debate, so he maliciously moves UN Watch down the list so that we are silenced. Coming from a UN human rights officer, this kind of unethical conduct is disgraceful,” said Neuer.

“According to leaked emails, Mr. Tistounet also engages in wilful and illegal harassment by instructing his Human Rights Council staff to go to internet cafés to anonymously spread false information about me online, and he told his employees to think of ways to have me physically detained by UN security, in order to block me from entering the Council chamber in Geneva.” (See pp. 18-24 of the Complaint.)


CUNY activists add ‘dehumanization’ to Sharansky’s ‘3 Ds of antisemitism’
Many faculty and student groups on American campuses prove their commitment to social justice, anti-racism, and international solidarity by their hostility towards Israel and the singular call for its boycott. Traditional liberal norms of respect for the truth, the free exchange of ideas, academic freedom, civility, and empathy are casualties of this effort. Those with the most credibility within the present moment’s most radical movements are those most committed to Israel’s destruction. For these activists, the trashing of liberal values is not collateral damage, but the very purpose of their activism, which aims to take down civil society.

This is demonstrated over and over again at the City University of New York (CUNY), where I am employed. Activists are able to leverage deeply rooted notions of a struggle for salvation against an ostracized, but still powerful, grasping demonic force. Historically, it was various aspects of Judaism or the role of Jews in the world that were the rallying point for justice and salvation. This call for uprooting primal evil is now directed at isolating Israel. But anti-Israel activists are caught in a web of contradictions by simultaneously professing the goal of radically transforming society to achieve social justice and their uncritical support for conservative autocratic regimes bent on eradicating Israel. Tragically, this support only entrenches forces that will not accept any agreement that leaves Israel standing. Peace can only be achieved in any conflict once the two sides believe it is possible. But this requires that people engage and see that there are people of good will on the other side.

A faculty group at CUNY, the CUNY Alliance for Inclusion (CAFI), has taken up the challenge by presenting the facts about Israel and its conflicts in seminars and on its website, and in responses to distortions and subterfuge by opponents of Israel. The response below to the PSC’s protest to the Board of CUNY for its statement distancing CUNY from the remarks of the student representative at the commencement of the CUNY School of Law, which it called “hate-speech,” exposes the fractured logic of the union and its misunderstanding of the guarantee of free speech in the First Amendment. The union argues that any criticism of the student is a violation of the First Amendment.

The union and the student speaker present the perfect storm embodying what former Soviet dissident, Israeli politician, and human rights activist Natan Sharansky’s coined as the “three D’s of antisemitism”: Demonization, Double standards, and Delegitimization. The response below suggests that the work of the 3Ds over time has been so successful that a fourth dimension of antisemitism, the fourth D, comes to the fore — Dehumanization. Dehumanization of Israelis by denying them the right to self-defense, and of victims of oppression around the world, whose suffering must be ignored so as not to blur the focus on Israel. Shakespeare used the three Ds to set up Shylock as a villain, but he did not deprive Shylock of his humanity. As Shylock exclaims, “If you prick us, do we not bleed?” Granting humanity to Israelis is beyond the grasp of those attempting to demonize Israel.


Sweden must prevent public burnings of religious books
The great German writer Heinrich Heine famously observed in his 1821 stage play “Almansor,” set in Spain during the Inquisition, that “wherever books are burned, they will ultimately burn people.” Nearly a century after his death, the Nazis apparently took Heine’s dictum to heart, staging public book-burning ceremonies that were accompanied by the arrest, brutalization, deportation, and finally, extermination of the regime’s enemies, foremost among them the Jews of Germany.

Both Heine’s insight and the range of books burned by the Nazis—children’s titles like the wonderful Emil and the Detectives by Erich Kastner, Erich Maria Remarque’s World War I classic All Quiet on the Western Front, novels by Jewish writers like Franz Kafka and Max Brod, works by proscribed thinkers such as Karl Marx, Sigmund Freud, and, of course, Heine himself—cemented the notion in liberal minds that restrictions upon freedom of speech and conscience are inextricably tied to the most grotesque abuses of human rights. Anyone who has seen the hundreds of titles set aflame by the Nazis that are on display at Yad Vashem, Israel’s national memorial to the Holocaust, cannot but come away convinced that Heine was absolutely, perilously correct.

In our century, however, that logic has been turned on its head. Now, the burning of books has become a symbol of freedom of speech. For those who engage in it, the act of setting the printed word on fire is an affirmation of one’s freedom of conscience, as well as a statement that no book—and therefore no creed or belief system—is too sacred to escape this fate.

In Sweden, it is the religious books regarded as sacred by their followers that are being lined up for the bonfires of activists who insist that in setting them alight, they are acting in defense of fundamental freedoms. In January, a provocateur named Rasmus Paludan burned a copy of the Quran, Islam’s holy book, outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm, resulting in fury across the Muslim world and potentially jeopardizing Sweden’s bid to join the NATO defense alliance, of which Turkey is also a member. Earlier this month, the act was repeated by Salwan Momika, a 37-year-old Christian refugee from Iraq, who burned the Quran and then stomped on its smoldering pages for good measure.

In the interim, Swedish police have been fielding further requests to burn copies of the Quran in public “as soon as possible,” one applicant demanded. Now, a 34-year-old man who holds both Egyptian and Swedish citizenship is seeking permission to burn the Torah—the five books of Moses that reside at the heart of the Jewish religion—outside the Israeli Embassy in Stockholm, as well as a Christian Bible in the Swedish capital’s Sergels Torg (“Sergel’s Square”). “Burning holy books is somewhat disgusting, but I am angry and I want to have a debate,” he told the Swedish news outlet Dagens Nyheter.


Disgraced academic David Miller threatens to sue Bristol uni over sacking
An anti-Zionist professor fired by the University of Bristol over comments he made about Israel and Jewish student groups has said he plans to sue the institution.

David Miller referred to the university’s Jewish society as “political pawns [used] by a violent, racist foreign regime”, and claimed that Jewish students’ security concerns were “propaganda which they have been schooled with”. He has also accused Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer of taking “Zionist money” and said Israel “is trying to exert its will all over the world”.

Miller was sacked in October 2021 following an investigation that found his actions, while not unlawful, “did not meet the standards of behaviour expected” from university staff.

The academic, however, claims his firing was a result of a “years-long campaign of intimidation” against him by “the Israel lobby in Britain”.

Miller claimed this so-called campaign began in April 2019 after he gave a lecture on Islamophobia which included a section on “Zionist Islamophobia”.

He said he will challenge his dismissal at an employment tribunal, due to begin on October 16, and in a video posted to Twitter, he asked for donations to help cover his legal costs.

Miller has received the backing of former MP Chris Williamson, who himself denied allegations of antisemitism. Williamson asked his Twitter followers to support Miller’s “attempt to ensure that opposition to Zionism (a racist settler-colonial political ideology) is protected”.


Open letter to journalists who cover Israel
Operation Home and Garden was difficult as the IDF faced 300 militant fighters dispersed in the crowded city among civilians. Jenin terrorists hid improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in populated areas to target the IDF and endangered the lives of innocent Palestinians. The D9 armored bulldozers that the IDF sent into Jenin were there to detonate the IEDs and clear the streets of landmines.

Yet in the endless media coverage of this operation, several news outlets ignored the context of Jenin and terrorism, the numerous murders of Israeli civilians by Jenin terrorists and the dangers of the IEDs in a civilian-populated area. Instead of explaining all this, you broadcast devastating footage of Jenin and said we were using the vehicles to prevent ambulances from reaching civilians.

The Washington Post published a headline, “Israel invades West Bank city, killing at least eight Palestinians.” There was no mention of this being a counter-terror operation and that all eight Palestinians killed were armed militants.

The next day, while interviewing former prime minister Naftali Bennett, BBC news anchor Anjana Gadgil stated, “Israeli forces are happy to kill children.” Such a statement pushes the same blood libel of Jews being ruthless and bloodthirsty that has been repeated for centuries.

For a member of the journalistic community to use a platform like BBC’s to spread such a vile accusation is outrageous and puts us Israelis in danger. It minimizes that a significant portion of Palestinian terrorists who have attempted to murder Israelis have been as young as 13 years old, and that ignoring the terror activity in Jenin would have led to more murders of Israeli citizens.

Do you honestly think that Israelis want war? Do you think we want to send our 18-year-old teenagers to battle? Our army is made up of young boys and girls who are risking their lives and are often killed on duty as part of revenge attacks by Palestinians. Do you think that if our lives were not at stake, we would encourage an operation like this? Have Israelis not proven that we know right from wrong by protesting and rising against our government?

Any journalist who thinks we are “happy” about these deaths has clearly never lived in a war zone and is unfit to be a journalist.

The Israeli army reported that they confiscated 1,000 weapons, destroyed six explosives-manufacturing facilities and arrested 30 suspects. Anyone with a brain can see that this operation had nothing to do with harming civilians.

As journalists, you don’t need to advocate for us; you just need to tell the truth and report the whole story. You collectively failed to do so, and instead, you, once again, contributed to the conflict by pitting Israelis and Palestinians against each other.

You have to do better.
Writer Justifies Palestinian Terror Attacks in Sickening New York Times Op-Ed
Baconi also misrepresents the nature of Israeli counterterrorism operations to suggest they are part of a larger plan to “periodically weaken Palestinian resistance and manage a restive population chafing against Israeli control” using tactics like the deliberate destruction of water and electricity supplies “as a form of collective punishment.”

First, Israel targets terrorists — combatants from Islamic Jihad and Hamas — who comprised all the casualties of the Jenin raid. Israel does not seek to hurt innocent Palestinian civilians.

Second, the claim that the IDF deliberately damaged crucial utilities is pure fiction. Unfortunately, water and electricity supplies were affected when the military swept roads for IEDs that were planted by Palestinian terrorists in civilian areas.

The most galling aspect of the piece, however, is Baconi’s comparison of Palestinians to Ukrainians, who are currently defending their country against an invasion by Russian forces. Of course, the two are incomparable for the primary reason that Ukrainians did not fire rockets at Russia, launch suicide attacks on civilians in Moscow, or enter a St Petersburg restaurant and start firing bullets at the patrons inside.

While the piece has been filed in the opinion section, NYT editors might want to consider placing it in the “fiction review” next time because Baconi’s writing is straight-up fantasy.


ADL offers $50,000 for info on 1994 antisemitic murder co-conspirators
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) announced on Monday that it is offering a $50,000 reward for tips that lead to the arrest and conviction of those who were part of a 1994 attack on Jewish students.

Rashid Baz, who killed Ari Halberstam and fired upon 14 other Jewish teens on the Brooklyn Bridge in 1994, died in prison last year.

The students were returning from a prayer vigil for the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who was in the hospital. Some have said that Baz’s intended target was not the boys but the Rebbe himself.

“At the time, investigators, as in other areas of law enforcement, focused on just gathering adequate evidence to gain a conviction,” Motti Seligson, director of media relations at Chabad.org, told JNS. “This was a pre-9/11 time. America did not understand how to investigate terror cases and the nature of terrorist networks and cells and how they operate.”

“The case was not adequately investigated, and all leads were not exhausted in 1994, leaving many questions unanswered,” Seligson added. “Many feel that the shooter was covering for co-conspirators that he did not name.”

For years, the FBI had classified the shooting as road rage. “I only shot them because they were Jewish,” Baz later said of the attack.

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the ADL, stated that it was “indisputably an antisemitic terrorist attack and a hate crime that sent shock waves through the Jewish community and the entire country.”

“The question remains: Were others involved as part of a larger conspiracy? We hope that this new reward will incentivize anyone who has any information in this case to step forward,” he added.
Jewish, Roma Coalition Calls for Cancelation of Concert by ‘Antisemitic’ Ska Band at Festival in Germany
A coalition of Jewish, Roma and left-wing groups has issued a call for a the cancelation concert by a popular Spanish ska band who are scheduled to play at a music festival in Munich on Friday.

The group want festival organizers to cancel the appearance of Ska-P, a Madrid-based band that plays ska and punk songs with a left-wing orientation. The band is accused of both antisemitism and anti-Gypsyism.

The coalition — comprised of the Left Alliance against Antisemitism Munich (LBGA), the Association of Jewish Students in Bavaria (VJSB), the Association of German Sinti and Roma in Bavaria and the Youth Forum of the German-Israeli Society Munich — pointed to one of the band’s songs as well as as it stage act as problematic.

Ska-P’s track “intifada” — a tribute to the Palestinian struggle against Israel — was cited as unacceptable because of a line which asserts that Israelis have become like Nazis.

“The victims have become executioners, they turn their insides out,” the song proclaims.

The coalition’s letter argued that the song turned the “Jewish victims of the Shoah into perpetrators” and consequently “held responsible for the ‘colonization’ of Palestine.”

“This is completely unacceptable, especially in Munich, 50 years after the Olympic attack,” a spokesman for the LBGA told broadcaster BR24.
Arsenal supporter who shouted “Hitler should have finished the job” sentenced
An Arsenal Football Club supporter who shouted “Hitler should have finished the job” was sentenced today at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court.

Daniel Down, 39, pleaded guilty and was sentenced for using threatening, abusive, distressing words at a football match on 15th January 2023 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The charges, which were racially or religiously aggravated, were brought against him by the Crown Prosecution Service after he shouted “Hitler should have finished the job” at a match between Arsenal Football Club and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.

The prosecution noted that the victim, who reported the incident to the police, had immediately told Mr Down that he took “great offence” at what Mr Down said and explained that members of his family had died in the Holocaust.

The prosecution also noted that Mr Down had apologised to the victim immediately and had attended a police interview without legal counsel.

Upon sentencing, the Judge said: “Mr Down, what you did was egregious in the extreme…You are a young man of 29, you ought to have known better.”

In light of his plea and apology to the victim, the Judge gave Mr Downs a court order that bans him from attending football matches in the UK for three years. He was also ordered to pay a total of £471 in fines, which includes a victim surcharge of £110.
Holocaust centre condemned for 'curb your inner Hitler' workshop
A training course run by the Holocaust Centre North has been described as “breathtakingly insulting and historically ignorant” over its suggestion that managers “curb their inner Hitler” in the workplace.

Earlier this month, the Huddersfield-based charity launched a programme designed to teach “modern leaders” to learn from 20th-century dictators how to improve inclusion in the office.

A press release published by the HCN said: “Exploring the leadership traits of Hitler, Stalin and others, as well as the dangers of being a bystander, the half-day course highlights the dangers of ignoring inclusion.

“It offers a challenging look at equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) at a time when cases of toxic workplace culture are rarely out of the headlines.”

According to the press release, Hannah Randall, head of learning at HCN,said: “Participants are shocked to see that some of their leadership traits are similar to dictators.

“Stalin was an extreme micro-manager and this style is familiar to a lot of people. So too is Hitler’s hands-off and unaccountable approach that relies on his force of personality to get things done. It’s very much the blueprint of populism.”

The workshop, she claimed, “gets people thinking”.


Robotic deliveries, 3D-printed organs: Israel seeks to bring the future closer
In the future, walking robots will deliver same-day orders to your doorstep, 3D-printed organs will become a reality and children and youth will be kept safe at schools and campuses, according to a vision being advanced by the Israel Innovation Authority.

The IIA, the body that is responsible for the country’s innovation policy and that provides the majority of state grants to companies involved in research and development, is pushing a new initiative to help startups develop disruptive technologies in three areas: autonomous home deliveries, bio-convergence and education.

A NIS 40 million ($11 million) program was announced this month by the IIA to fund tech solutions in these three areas, while helping create the necessary regulatory framework.

“The program is designed to propel Israeli technological leadership in the selected sectors,” said IIA’s CEO Dror Bin. “We are focusing on areas that we believe have tremendous growth potential, and in which Israeli technology companies have a relative advantage as well as the possibility of leading the development of innovative products that will change the world.”

The idea of the program is to foster synergy among different companies and technologies that will work together with regulators creating what the IIA calls a “regulatory sandbox” of trial and error for demonstrating the technology and proving its feasibility, and creating a business model for the products.

“We are funding experiments in tech fields with a huge market potential that do not have regulation, or full regulation, or regulatory processes for approval,” Sagi Dagan, vice president of the IIA’s strategy division, told The Times of Israel. “We are establishing regulatory sandboxes with local companies that do not exist globally to provide the Israeli high-tech sector with a promising way to create competitive advantages over its global competitors.”

As part of the initiative, the IIA is calling on Israeli startups to submit proposals to get funding to develop solutions for solving pressing technological challenges in fields including home or “last mile” delivery, AI-powered clinical trials combining biology and engineering, and motion analysis-based security for educational institutions such as schools and campuses.
Elbit systems' cyber division unveils new military tech
Elbit systems' cyber division unveils Legion-X, a new military tech that enables tactical superiority, enhancing efficiency and transforming capabilities in multi-domain warfare


Lost Between Recognition and Rejection: Tunisia’s Relations with Israel
Tunisia has much in common with the nearby countries of Egypt and Morocco, both of which have made peace with Israel. And unlike most Arab countries, it is home to a small but vibrant Jewish community. Yet it has thus far avoided joining the Abraham Accords in part because of an Islamist government and in part because it tends to side with Algeria—and thus with Iran—in the conflict between Algiers and Rabat. David Levy explains:

Despite Algeria’s concerns, economic desperation might force Tunisia to consider joining the Abraham Accords. Plagued as it is by severe economic problems, Tunisia needs foreign aid, and joining the Accords might attract loans from the U.S., the Gulf States, or others. However, such a move could have serious internal and regional implications. For now, the potential political costs and risks seem to outweigh the perceived benefits of normalization, leading Tunisian officials to deny claims that Tunisia is on the verge of joining the Abraham Accords.

Kais Saied, a political outsider, was elected president of Tunisia in a landslide in 2019. He proceeded to suspend parliament and dismiss the prime minister on the claim that he was saving the country from a corrupt and incompetent political elite. However, his detractors have denounced his actions as a coup that violated the democratically adopted constitution. Since then, Saied has consolidated his one-man rule. In early 2022, he dissolved the Supreme Judicial Council, ending judicial independence, and imposed a new constitution that gave him absolute authority. Saied has succeeded in strangling the Arab world’s only democracy.

As president, Saied has regularly made inflammatory statements about Jews and Israel, such as blaming them for the country’s economic and social problems, calling for a boycott of Israeli products, and praising Palestinian “resistance.”

Tunisia . . . is a Sunni, moderate, Western-allied state with a long and storied Jewish community, and it could benefit from the trade and tourism normalization would provide. However, deeper scrutiny reveals that an adverse public, a dependence on the Algerian relationship, and a president hostile to Israel make any near-term normalization doubtful.
Built by conversos fleeing Spain, Amsterdam’s ancient Ets Haim library gets an update
Massive Encyclopedia of Jewish Book Cultures also underway by Dutch publisher Brill, who says 31 institutions already purchased access to the compilation to be complete in 3 years

Two hugely significant, little-known projects centered on the long, rich legacy of Hebrew books are now underway, with vast implications for scholars and anyone who aspires to delve into the treasures of Jewish tradition.

Both center on Emile Schrijver, a 60-year-old ruffled academic who heads the Jewish Cultural Quarter in Amsterdam, which includes the Portuguese Synagogue.

The synagogue is home to the world’s oldest continuously operating Jewish library, the Ets Haim Library, which has just kicked off a campaign to raise $1 million worldwide.

The over 400-year-old library was set up by conversos — Jews who had converted to Catholicism, often by force, and their descendants. After fleeing Catholic persecution on the Iberian Peninsula in the early 17th century, they founded the library to begin the process of familiarizing themselves with the basics of Judaism.

Raised funds will go to complete the cataloging of its many holdings and upgrade the environment and conditions in which the ancient pages are housed near central Amsterdam, close to where Rembrandt once painted and Anne Frank penned her diary.

Ets Haim has a staggering 23,000 books, only half of which have been cataloged. Those uncataloged works may not be fully on the radar of scholars worldwide eager to consider in depth how they can elucidate and advance our understanding of Jewish thought, prayer, history and culture. Also to be better understood is how the vast body of Jewish books relates to the broad body of all other books, and the relationship between the Jewish world and historically often hostile Christian and Muslim host societies.
One million Israelis have visited UAE since the Abraham Accords
One million Israelis have visited the United Arab Emirates since the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020.

Speaking to Jewish News in Jerusalem about the social and economic benefits of the historic normalisation treaty between the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, Morocco and Israel, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lior Haiat said: “Almost one-in-10 Israelis has visited the UAE since the end of 2020.”

There are currently more than 200 weekly flights between the counties, with 88 from Ben Gurion to Dubai and 22 to Abu Dhabi, operated by Emirates, flydubai and EL AL.

Haiat, who is also head of the National Public Diplomacy Directorate at Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said: “Part of the UAE’s popularity is due to the absence of antisemitism on the scale we have witnessed in other Arab states. It is one of the few countries in the Middle East that had no historical Jewish presence. The locals in Dubai and Abu Dhabi don’t harbour entrenched feelings of hostility towards Jews. They don’t see Israel as their enemy.”

Asked if the Saudis could be poised to become the next Arab state to sign the accords, Haiat said: “Any agreement with the Saudis will probably be separate to the Abraham Accords and much bigger in terms of importance. That agreement is not a question of if but when.




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