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Tuesday, June 11, 2024

06/11 Links Pt2: When Jew Hate Doesn’t Count; Exposed: Albanese’s Global Influence Network Targeting Israel; The Washington Post goes post-reality

From Ian:

When Jew Hate Doesn’t Count
Over the weekend, thousands—not hundreds—of protesters encircled the White House waving Palestinian flags and accusing Israel of “genocide” and calling for the death of “Zionists,” which is what Jew-haters have taken to calling Jews to veil their hatred. “Stand with Hamas,” read one poster.

These are the people who dressed up as jihadists and defaced statues and screamed “Piggy! Piggy!” and “Fuck you, fascist” at the park rangers and held up a fake bloodied mask of Genocide Joe Biden. The New York Times, like CNN and The Washington Post and most every major outlet, made a big point of how the demonstrators really, really just want a cease-fire. There was no mention of Jews or antisemitism.

The Biden administration, to its credit, put out a statement saying it was against antisemitism. But that did not stop Biden campaign spokeswoman Adrienne Elrod from saying that Biden “supports the freedom of speech and the freedom of expression” and that the protesters “have a right to speak their mind.” (I could not agree more. Where were these champions of First Amendment rights at Charlottesville?)

Most everyone else stressed that the only people who detected any antisemitism were the Jews, and that that wasn’t the point, and that the anti-Zionists, the people screaming at the park rangers and defacing statues and LARPing around like wannabe terrorists—who specialize in murdering and raping Jews—don’t hate anyone. Except Israelis.

“Many protesters chanted slogans that some Jewish groups have said incite violence against Jews,” the Times explained. “That some Jewish groups have said.”

Because—remember!—it’s never, ever about whoever dies. On the contrary, it is always about who can be blamed for that death. That is how one furthers the agenda.
New Book by Daniel Pipes Challenges Conventional Wisdom about the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict
Renowned historian and Middle East expert Daniel Pipes announces the release of his latest book, Israel Victory: How Zionists Win Acceptance and Palestinians Get Liberated, published by Wicked Son, an imprint of Post Hill Press. Tracing the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to the 1880s, Pipes argues that the prolonged conflict between Palestinians and Israelis stems from two entrenched and opposing mentalities: Palestinian rejectionism and Israeli conciliation.

Palestinian rejectionism is characterized by the negation of Jews, Judaism, Zionism, and Israel. It explains the Palestinians' enduring goal of genocide, their refusal to take yes for an answer, their unwillingness to seek improved living circumstances, and their determination to defame the Jewish state.

Zionist conciliation is characterized by the attempt to win Palestinian acceptance not by defeating Israel's enemy, but by enriching and placating it. Pipes argues against this anomalous Zionist approach, advocating instead the traditional method of ending a war—through victory: Palestinians give up, Israel wins.

In a brilliant essay that brings surprisingly fresh insights and original policy recommendations to a well-worn topic, Pipes draws lessons from past "peace process" failures, delves into the universal nature of defeat and victory, and offers practical advice on how Israel can win through minimal violence and maximal messaging. Both sides need an Israel Victory to break with entrenched, outdated mentalities. For Israel, it means acceptance, especially among Muslims and on the global Left. For the Palestinians, Israel Victory means liberation from a destructive obsession, enabling them finally to build a polity, economy, society, and culture worthy of their skills and ambitions.
Gerald Steinberg: To combat UN hostility to Israel, Israel should bar UN officials from entering
One important policy tool is to immediately prevent the entry of all UN officials into Israel – meaning no new visas – and order the departure of officials already in the country.

This approach has been implemented on a limited scale – the visa of the head of the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) was not renewed and she left. However, her replacement – a Dutch politician with a history of hostility towards Israel – was admitted.

In addition, officials from the UN Human Rights Council were barred from entering after they led a series of blatantly biased “investigations” for the reports of the special rapporteur for Palestine.

With the hot war that fuels the waves of antisemitic attacks worldwide and the attempts to impose sanctions coming from Secretary General Guterres, the time has come for a total ban on all UN personnel seeking to enter Israel and the areas under Israeli control.

This will not change the UN’s automatic majority led by the 56-nation Islamic voting bloc and their allies, or end their control over appointments, budgets, and committees. It will also not lead to the dismantling of UNRWA, the removal of hate-filled antisemitic special rapporteurs, or the end of bogus “investigations.”

But for UN officials, a blanket prohibition from entering Israel poses a significant cost and creates a dangerous precedent. If for their own reasons, other countries follow by barring officials from specific agencies, the image (or myth) of an authoritative global framework encompassing all countries will be brought into question and begin to disintegrate.

UN agencies that operate from inside Israel (or in Gaza, which is now under IDF control) would be incapacitated and, as a result, could lose their large budgets, resulting in major staff reductions.

A clear Israeli policy move would also gain support from UN-skeptics in the US and some other countries and could lead to budget cuts and other actions to curtail the organization and its influence.

Although prohibiting the entry of all UN personnel until the policy changes fundamentally is a limited action, it sends an important message highlighting the absence of legitimacy. Given the stakes in this hot war being waged by the UN against Israel, the failure to take strong action could be very costly.


UN Watch: Exposed: Francesca Albanese’s Global Influence Network Targeting Israel
Francesca Albanese is well known as the Special Rapporteur appointed in 2022 by the UN Human Rights Council with the mandate to “investigate Israel’s violations of the bases and principles of international law.” Less well known is that Albanese has been running a global influence network of more than 100 individuals and NGOs to target Israel by orchestrating lawfare campaigns, whitewashing Hamas terrorism, and cynically manipulating governments into funding UNRWA.

Albanese’s network specifically advocated using overtly racist messaging about the threat of Arab “illegal migration” overwhelming Europe, and “association tensions,” as talking points to be made by network members “particularly to officials from right-wing, anti-immigration governments,” to scare them that failure to fund UNRWA (despite its terror ties) would mean “millions of Palestinians are forced to flee the Middle East.”

Incredibly, a member of the global lobbying network includes Kjersti G. Berg, whose CMI group helped run the Independent Review of UNRWA. In other words, the international lobbying network for UNRWA and the “independent” group auditing UNRWA are the same.

Albanese’s GNQP Network Includes UN, UNRWA, PLO Officials, Institutions in 22 Countries
Albanese is proud of co-founding and running the “Global Network on the Question of Palestine” (GNQP). She runs it under the auspices of the Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development (ARDD) in Amman, an organization she joined in November 2018 as a senior advisor.

No other co-founder is listed, however the other leading figures behind the network appears to be Lex Takkenberg, UNRWA’s former legal counsel and chief ethics inspector, who today lives in Vienna and Paris. Albanese was his colleague when she worked at UNRWA’s legal office in 2010-2012, and he likely was the one who hired her. Like Albanese, Takkenberg also works for ARDD, where he is the leader of its Question of Palestine Program, which “aims to to establish a platform in the Arab World for critical reflection with respect to the unresolved Israeli-Palestinian question and the Palestinian refugee issue.”

Global Network co-leader Lex Takkenberg has boasted that their group was a key player in spreading the “genocide” libel against Israel.

In 2020, Albanese and Takkenberg co-authored a book together, “Palestinian Refugees in International Law.” Albanese and Takkenberg are also close collaborators on numerous other projects, including their co-authoring in 2021 the working paper, “Rethinking solutions for Palestinian refugees: A much-needed paradigm shift and an opportunity towards its realization,” and a paper for ARDD, “The Actuality of the Palestinian Refugee Question: An International Law Perspective.”

Notably, the institute funding Albanese and Takkenberg, ARDD, is a listed partner of UNRWA, and its donors include not only UNHCR, UNOCHA, and UN Women, but also the European Union, United States, Germany, France, The Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland. It is unclear whether the citizens and lawmakers of these governments are aware that they are funding an organization that runs a global influence network which uses orchestrated messaging campaigns to manipulate decision-makers and public opinion.

Albanese appears to have created the “Global Network on the Question of Palestine,” which is described as constantly expanding, a year later, in 2021. Today, her Global Netowrk counts 100 individuals and institutions in 22 different countries, including former cabinet ministers, former senior UN, UNRWA, PLO and government officials, and a former member of the European Parliament.


EU's top diplomat obsessed with Israel: a policy fixation
The European Union's foreign policy chief, Spaniard Josep Borrell, has an obsession: the State of Israel. Despite Europe's own challenges, Borrell seems almost exclusively focused on Israel.

Since March of this year, Borrell has tweeted 127 times about the Israeli-Palestinian issue—twice as many as on the war in Ukraine (67), an issue directly affecting Europe. On the rise of the pro-Putin regime in Georgia, Borrell has tweeted only seven times. Concerning the rest of the world, he's posted 71 tweets—nearly as many as those on Israel alone.

A quick glance at his X (formerly Twitter) account Sunday shows his lack of engagement with European matters. While far-right parties in several countries made significant gains in the European Parliament, creating real upheaval in Europe, Borrell remained silent. Instead, he dedicated two separate tweets to the rescue operation and what he called "another massacre" in Gaza.

There is a consensus in Jerusalem that Borrell currently spearheads all anti-Israel decisions within the European Union and calls for sanctions against Israel. Nearly every day, he condemns Israel or attempts to pass resolutions against it in EU institutions. Without the opposition from Israel's friends in the EU, such as Hungary, the Czech Republic, Austria and Germany, the EU might have already passed sanctions against Israel. Foreign policy decisions in the EU require consensus, which Israel's allies prevent.

For example, Borrell managed to pass a decision to impose sanctions on violent settlers after heavy pressure. He is now trying to convene the Association Council following proposals from several countries to suspend agreements with Israel due to human rights violations. Fortunately, Borrell stands no chance of overcoming the consensus barrier, as it requires unanimous agreement, and Israel has strong allies.

Borrell is pressing European countries to recognize a Palestinian state. To claim credit, he was the first to announce that Norway, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia would recognize a Palestinian state. This behavior has angered many EU countries that disapprove of his actions and his divergence from the Union's official stance. Reports in Europe indicate that Borrell was reprimanded by the German and Austrian chancellors for not representing the EU's position on Israel.

Israeli officials believe that the relationship with the EU is greater than the relationship with Borrell. Time and again, it has been shown that Borrell does not represent the EU's views. Often, the European official has had to issue statements in his own name, not the union's, as the EU does not endorse his positions.

A review of Borrell's recent post on X reveals an obsession with Israel: he seems to view it as the source of all global problems. Empathy for Israeli suffering is hardly present in his posts. The "nightmare" of Borrell's tenure is set to end this October when his term concludes.
Jake Sullivan affirms U.S. commitment to full removal of Hamas from power in Gaza
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that the administration remains committed to seeing Hamas removed from power in Gaza, a goal he said Washington aims to accomplish through a cease-fire agreement and new political arrangement in Gaza.

Asked at the American Jewish Committee Global Forum in Washington, D.C., whether the administration still seeks to remove Hamas fully from power, Sullivan answered in the affirmative. President Joe Biden “explicitly said that the path forward is a Gaza where Hamas is no longer in power,” Sullivan continued.

The administration’s views on the subject have become somewhat muddled after Biden declared that Israel had already largely accomplished its objectives by degrading Hamas’ ability to conduct another attack akin to the one that took place on Oct. 7, without fully addressing Hamas’ future in Gaza — ambiguity that other officials have echoed in recent days.

Sullivan said that, working through the three phases of a cease-fire deal that Biden laid out, “we can end up with an interim security enterprise and interim governance enterprise that can lead to a Gaza that is no longer a platform for terror.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel won’t agree to a permanent cease-fire prior to “the destruction of Hamas military and governing capabilities… and ensuring that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel.”

Sullivan further suggested that a cease-fire deal in Gaza could produce “calm in Lebanon” and a “diplomatic arrangement” that would allow the tens of thousands of Israelis evacuated from their homes in the northern part of the country to return home.

Sullivan also said that Arab states could be willing to play a “significant role in both stabilizing and reconstructing” Gaza and “begin down a pathway” of normalization with Israel.

“That work could begin in the days, literally, the days that followed that deal coming together,” Sullivan said.
House Republicans call on White House to revoke non-profit status of Palestine Chronicle
House Republicans are calling on the Biden administration to revoke the tax exempt status of the non-profit media organization that employed a Palestinian journalist who held three Israeli hostages captive in Gaza on behalf of Hamas.

Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, sent a letter to Daniel Werfel, the Internal Revenue Service commissioner, on Monday urging him to rescind the 501(c)3 non-profit status of the People Media Project. The non-profit is also known as The Palestine Chronicle, a news outlet that employed Abdallah Aljamal, who the Israeli Defense Forces accused of harboring Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov, and Shlomi Ziv following their rescue this weekend.

“The facts suggest that the People Media Project is not being operated exclusively for its charitable purpose, as required under section 501(c)(3) of the IRC and is instead circumventing its tax-exempt charitable purpose by supporting the terrorist organization, Hamas,” Smith wrote.

Smith referenced “reports from a hostage rescue mission carried out over the weekend by Israeli Defense Forces,” which he said “show that the People Media Project is not being operated exclusively for its charitable, tax-exempt purpose. The information obtained during the hostage rescue mission is shocking.”

Smith was joined by a number of his GOP colleagues in calling on the Biden administration and Congress to take action.
American Jews Widely Support Israel, Feel More Connected to Their Jewish Identity Since Oct. 7, New Survey Shows
Most American Jews have felt a stronger connection to Israel and their Jewish identity in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks, according to a new survey by the American Jewish Committee (AJC).

The AJC’s 2024 Survey of American Jewish Opinion, published on Monday, revealed that 85 percent of American Jewish adults believe it is important for the US to continue to support Israel following the Oct. 7 attacks, with 60 percent rating it as “very important.” Meanwhile, 57 percent of American Jews said they have felt more connected to Israel or their Jewish identity since the Hamas massacre, and when asked what they have done to feel more connected, 25 percent acknowledged donating to a Jewish and/or Israel-related cause. Seventy-eight percent of Jews also said they are paying more attention to news about Israel now than compared to before Oct. 7.

A total of 1,001 Jewish adults aged 18 or older were interviewed online for the survey by the research company SSRS from March 12-April 6, with a 3.9 percent margin of error.

“Despite rising antisemitism making Jews feel less safe, American Jews are defiantly proud about who they are and even more connected to Israel,” said AJC CEO Ted Deutch.

American Jews were also asked in the survey about the rise in antisemitism in the United States to record levels since the Oct. 7 attacks.

The survey found that 93 percent think antisemitism in the US is a problem and 87 percent agreed that it has increased since the Oct. 7 attacks, with 55 percent saying anti-Jewish hatred has increased “a lot” since then. Forty-five percent reported feeling unsafe expressing their views about Israel on social media, and 64 percent said discourse about the Israel-Hamas war has affected their personal or work relationships in at least one way.
Gil Troy: Fighting against antisemitism effectively: Non-Jews should engage too
Something fouling the west
But there’s something fouling the West today. Protesting for or against Israel’s actions is legitimate, reflecting democratic robustness. But harassing individuals for being Jewish or Zionist is unacceptable, un-American, un-Canadian, and anti-democratic. A California billboard warns that “rat poison poisons wildlife too.” Beware, Jew-hatred poisons democracies too.

This isn’t a fight about Israel and Palestinians; it’s about democratic values. Jews shouldn’t take on the burden of fighting antisemitism, nor should they pay for it. Jew hatred is the disease of Jew-haters, not Jews. Rather than another summit of Jewish organizations handwringing together, let each organization extend a hand to like-minded non-Jewish organizations, partnering with them against hate.

We must combat bigotry broadly, but this surge also should be targeted specifically because the bigots target the Jews.

Jewish organizations now speak about “hardening the target,” beefing up security at Jewish institutions. They’re hiring security guards, installing cameras, reinforcing doors. Some synagogues resemble walled compounds. These are warning signs of democratic decay.

Don’t harden targets – broaden them. If more citizens resisted this hatred, the haters would be intimidated, not the Jews. Every liberal-democrat should start wearing yellow hostage ribbons on their lapels, Jewish stars around their necks, or stickers denouncing Jew hatred. They should escort Jewish neighbors to synagogue or Zionist students to class. Everyone can join counter-demonstrations or sign petitions.

While remembering to “do unto others as you would want them to do unto you,” everyone should also do for others as you would want them to do for you – if hooligans threaten you.

Resisting constructively would revive the democratic spirit. Non-Jews should embrace their Jewish friends and neighbors. Even Israel’s critics should reassure Jews that the civilized world retains its commitment to peace, order, good government, and robust debate. We need righteous anger and effective police enforcement.

Every citizen should repudiate those who abuse free speech by harassing, threatening, intimidating, and trying to make Jews feel uncomfortable for being Jewish and pro-Israel.

Meanwhile, Jews should use this Shavuot holiday, celebrating the giving of the Torah, to remember that the Jew-hater doesn’t make the Jew. The Jew makes the Jew – and the Zionist too.
Jonathan Tobin: Notes from the safest place in Europe for Jews
This is a perilous time to be a Jew. The world responded to the greatest mass slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust with a surge of antisemitism and sympathy for those who committed the atrocities of Oct. 7, rather than its victims. Israel’s efforts to eradicate the genocidal terrorists of Hamas who launched that attack have not just been opposed but demonized in a way that enlightened liberal opinion did not condemn the orgy of murder, rape, torture, kidnapping and wanton destruction that occurred on that day.

And while Jews everywhere celebrated the heroic rescue of four hostages this past weekend by Israeli security forces, the same mainstream corporate media that has been acting as Hamas’s stenographers throughout the eight months of the current war reacted by emphasizing the deaths of the Palestinians holding them captive.

Yet as bad as the situation has become in the United States, where elite college campuses have become hotbeds of support for Hamas, it is arguably worse in Europe. It is not just a matter of the governments of Western Europe opposing Israel’s military campaign and seeking to prevent the defeat of Hamas in concert with the Biden administration. Spain, Norway and Ireland chose to reward the Palestinians for their terrorism by formally recognizing their fictional statehood. More than that, a sinister red-green alliance of leftists and supporters of political Islam has created a situation in which Jewish communities throughout the continent feel themselves under siege. Many are choosing not to wear religious markers such as kippahs and Stars of David, and still others have taken off the mezuzahs once affixed to their homes.

But not in Hungary.

Spend a week in that Eastern European country, as I just did, and the one thing you can count on is that you won’t see its landmarks being the site of mass demonstrations of supporters of jihad and Hamas terror, as is the case elsewhere, including the United States. That is something that would be unimaginable right now in America, but the reason is that the Hungarian government has banned pro-Hamas demonstrations. They’ve deemed it an open expression of antisemitism and a threat to public order. Their rationale is to treat pro-Hamas activism as morally equivalent to open advocacy for Nazism, which in Hungary and most other places in Europe is illegal.
Ex-Muslim: These are the DANGERS of Radicalism | The Quad
In this week’s episode, “The Quad” is joined by guest host Jewish-Muslim activist Chama Mechtaly and Luai Ahmed, a Yemen-born Swedish journalist, to discuss the dangers posed by radical Islam and the antisemitism emanating from sections of the Muslim world.

They also discuss how both Europe and America are ignoring the problem for fear of being called racist. As Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre is being celebrated openly in the streets of New York, London and Molmo, is the West failing to combat the poison of Muslim extremism?

And, of course, the Scumbags and Heroes of the Week!

Chapters
00:00-11:47 Discussion: The Poison of Islamic Fundamentalism
11:47-25:05 Interview: Luai Ahmed
25:05 Scumbags of the week: Macklemore, Briahna Joy Gray, President of Maldives
35:16 Heroes of the Week: Charlie Weimers, Saudi Leadership, Jerry Seinfeld




NYC Exhibit Memorializing Oct. 7 Supernova Victims Gets Extended Following ‘Vile’ Anti-Israel Protest Outside Venue
An exhibition in downtown Manhattan that commemorates the victims of the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack at the Supernova music festival in southern Israel has been extended for a week in response to the mob of anti-Israel protesters who took to the streets outside the exhibit on Monday night.

Anti-Israel activists lit smoke bombs and red and green flares in the colors of the Palestinian flag — in addition to waving flags of the Iran-backed terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah, which both openly seek the Jewish state’s destruction — outside the exhibit “Nova: Oct. 7 6:29 AM, The Moment Music Stood Still.”

The protesters chanted “There is only one solution: intifada revolution,” “Long live the intifada,” and “Resistance is justified when people are occupied.” They also yelled “Israel go to hell,” burned images of the Israeli flag, and held a variety of anti-Israel signs, one of which read, “Long live October 7th.” Another sign said, “The Zionists are not Jews & not humans! They are the evil of the world!” Some protesters also reportedly verbally abused two people visiting the exhibit, calling them “dirty colonizer bi–h.”

Some anti-Israel demonstrators clashed with officers of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), and three people were reportedly arrested. Six people were issued summonses — three for disorderly conduct and three for jumping turnstiles — the NYPD said.

A call for intifada is advocating for indiscriminate violence against Israel and potentially Jews worldwide, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
NYC anti-Israel protesters unfurl ‘Long live October 7’ banner as mob harasses reporter
Anti-Israel protesters unfurled a disturbing “Long live October 7” banner as a group of agitators surrounded and shoved a reporter trying to cover the demonstration at Union Square on Monday.

A few protesters covered in a keffiyeh – traditional Palestinian headwear – waved the banner with the disturbing message celebrating last year’s Hamas attack on Israel, according to footage captured at the scene.

About 1,200 Israelis, including many civilians, were murdered by the terror group and more than 200 were abducted and taken back into Gaza, launching a military campaign in the Palestinian enclave.

One reporter attempting to cover the protest at Union Square was harassed and later filed a police report over the treatment.

Olivia Reingold, of The Free Press, took footage of her being encircled by demonstrators who wanted her to leave the area.

“For the last 10 minutes I’ve been surrounded,” she said on camera before a protester cut in and said, “You’re not being surrounded, you’re choosing not to leave.”

Protesters could also be heard saying she wasn’t welcomed and to “get out of here,” though Reingold noted she was on public property as she stood her ground.

Agitators shouted that Reingold had “blood on her hands” and was a “genocide supporter,” The Free Press said in a tweet Monday night.
Pro-Palestinian supporters demonstrate against ‘peace and love memorial’
Sky News host James Macpherson questions how pro-Palestinian supporters descending on an October 7 exhibition could harbour “so much hate” to demonstrate against a peace and love memorial.

“The deranged crowd chanted the October 7 massacre was justified,” Mr Macpherson said.

“That Israel could go to hell and ‘long live the intifada’ … Imagine having so much hate in your heart that you demonstrate even against a peace and love memorial to slaughtered civilians.”




Anti-Israel mob chanting ‘Long Live Intifada’ light flares outside NYC exhibit that memorializes Oct. 7 Nova Music Festival victims
A mob of anti-Israel protesters chanted “Long live the Intifada” during a depraved celebration Monday night outside a downtown Manhattan exhibit that memorializes the murder and rape victims of the Oct. 7 Nova Music Festival, where 364 people were killed by Hamas terrorists.

The deranged pro-terror crowd lit flares and waved a flag associated with the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah in front of the Nova Music Festival Exhibition on Wall Street during what was billed by organizers as a “citywide day of rage for Gaza,” according to video from the scene.

The protesters also yelled “Israel go to hell” and clashed with police during the gathering that drew swift backlash from Israel supporters.

The demonstration, organized by pro-Palestinian group Within Our Lifetime, began in Union Square, where some protesters unfurled a “Long live October 7th” banner, according to social media footage.

One of the exhibit’s organizers, music mogul Scooter Braun, condemned the demonstration in front of the venue late Monday in a social media post.

“I don’t understand why protesting a memorial for innocent music lovers who were raped and butchered and kidnapped helps,” he said in an Instagram Story. “Go see the @novaexhibition and see the truth instead of standing outside listening to yourself.”

Others offered sharper words for the protesters.

“How utterly evil do you have to be to protest outside a site that memorializes the 1,200 victims of October 7?” former speechwriter for the Israeli government Aviva Klompas tweeted.

“Tonight’s vicious targeting of the exhibition is not pro-peace. It is repulsive and vile,” added Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine in a post on X. “I condemn it in the strongest possible terms.”

US Rep. Michael Lawler (R-NY) also called the actions of the protesters “disgusting.”


Off the assembly line How Henry Ford’s fortune is being used to rip America apart
It’s November 2023 and, following the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas terrorists that killed some 1,200 Israelis and at least 31 Americans, thousands of demonstrators march through New York City, calling for the destruction of the Jewish state.

Chants of “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” echo through the streets, along with: “There is only one solution: intifada revolution.”

Among the crowd is the infamous Palestinian American activist Linda Sarsour, who warns through a megaphone that a cabal of wily Jews has conspired to place “their little posters” (of kidnapped Israeli civilians) across the city, seeking to entice people to rip them down.

While many onlookers might look like “ordinary people,” she says, the Jews have “their little people all around the city,” surveilling others.

Sarsour is there to deliver such rhetoric in part because she’s been paid to be there. Her nonprofit, MPower Change, has received $300,000 in grant funding from the Ford Foundation “to build grassroots Muslim power.”

It’s May 2023, and protesters have stormed the Capitol in Washington, DC, to demand that lawmakers not accept spending cuts during negotiations to lift the debt ceiling. Many are so disruptive that the police arrest them and drag them out.

These are activists of the Center for Popular Democracy, an extreme left-wing organization that has collected $35.2 million from the Ford Foundation since 2012.

Four months later, they will be imitated by 150 youth activists from “climate revolution” group the Sunrise Movement, 18 of whom will be arrested after occupying the House speaker’s office.

The Sunrise Movement also receives Ford Foundation money — $650,000 for “training and organizing.”
Patagonia funneled thousands to Palestinian terrorism-linked group, documents show
Patagonia, the outdoor apparel brand with offices across the world, granted tens of thousands of dollars to a group connected to Palestinian terrorism. Now the company says it has launched an internal review into the funding.

Through its tax-exempt private foundation in California, Patagonia has sent more than $139,000 since 2016 to Alliance for Global Justice, tax records show. That same progressive Arizona-based organization, a recent Washington Examiner investigation found, is linked to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terrorist group — a fact that prompted donors and payment processors such as PayPal to cut ties with AFGJ amid mounting scrutiny from Congress.

Patagonia’s funding of AFGJ is a window into how major corporations operating in the United States financially boost groups taking aim at the Jewish state of Israel, including AFGJ, which has said it sponsors 140 projects and reported holding $11 million in assets on its most recent tax forms filed with the IRS. One project under AFGJ is Samidoun, an Israeli-designated terrorist coalition that has shared staffers with the PFLP. AFGJ also fundraised in the past for the France-based Collectif Palestine Vaincra, a partner of the PFLP that, along with Samidoun, is protesting in support of Hamas after it killed 1,200 people last year in Israel on Oct. 7.

Patagonia’s 2023 grants to AFGJ, which totaled $30,000 combined, were to climate-focused projects under the charity working on “community cleanup around a defunct oil refinery site” and “building activism among Black TLGBQIA+ individuals through climate advocacy and community gardening,” Hans Cole, Patagonia’s vice president of environmental activism, said in a statement.

“Patagonia remains committed to rigorous stewardship of our philanthropic efforts and is evaluating continued funding of local efforts through AFGJ,” Cole told the Washington Examiner.


Horrifying video shows NYC anti-Israel protester telling Jewish people: ‘I wish Hitler was still here, he would’ve wiped all you out’
Horrifying video captured a vile anti-Israel protester telling Jews honoring hundreds of Israelis killed on Oct. 7 that he wished “Hitler was still here” because the Nazi leader would have “wiped all you out.”

The unidentified man’s hateful vitriol was filmed as a huge mob descended on Monday’s memorial in Union Square honoring those slain at the Nova Music Festival, with other protesters lighting flares and waving a banner celebrating the slaughter.

A 17-second clip shared on social media starts with the man bizarrely asking people off-camera, “Why y’all out there killing people?”

“I wish Hitler was still here,” he then says firmly yet calmly, waving his arms at those he is addressing.

“I wish Hitler was still here — he woulda wiped all you out,” he said.

“He woulda wiped all you out,” he repeated for emphasis.

The alarming clip was uploaded to X by reporter Luke Tress, who said it was filmed in Union Square during Monday’s exhibit honoring Oct. 7 victims.


NYC banker who slugged woman at Pride event lashed out after clash with anti-Israel group: source
An investment banker caught on video slugging a woman in the face during a Brooklyn Pride event lashed out during an argument about the war in Gaza, a source said.

Millionaire Jonathan Kaye had clashed with members of an anti-Israel LGBTQ group before he shockingly laid out the woman, a source close to Kaye with knowledge of the situation said Monday – as his Park Slope neighbors described him as a rude, antisocial curmudgeon.

“They were marching, they had a flag, and Jonathan simply said something along the lines of, ‘you guys are on the wrong side,'” the source told The Post.

“From there about four people from the group came up to him, they circled him and threw red liquid on him,” the source claimed. “He tried to back away, but he was either chest-bumped or fell to the ground, smashing his knee and slicing his leg.”

The source claimed that he got up and used only the amount of force that was necessary “to get out of there,” noting that Kaye has no history of violence and no criminal record.

“He sort of did what his body told him to do in the moment to get out of there.”

But the disturbing video had left neighbors of his $4 million Park Slope pad feeling unsafe.


Universities have lost control. Why are they so weak?
In the three-and-a-half months since I last visited the UCL library, much has happened in transatlantic campus life. Specifically, the introduction of a new paradigm of anti-Israel student shenanigans, following the widely-publicised and shocking scenes at Columbia, UCLA and other American universities in April, when protesters set up encampments on university property, took over buildings, heckled police, and refused to budge – all while waving antisemitic placards, yelling antisemitic slogans from loudhailers and defacing private property with an unholy melange of black, white, green and red.

Anti-Israel activism by students claiming to be invested in the Palestinian cause is hardly new. But the levels of organisation of this lot, their neat tents, their documents, their fans in mainstream politics, their smug relish at taunting police and, most sinister of all, their explicit endorsement of Hamas and Hezbollah, marked a new departure.

Institutional spinelessness before screaming students is not new either. But the complicity, or fear – or both – of universities in these occupations has been nothing short of spectacular.

All of which explains the scene that met me at the weekend. Unlike before, the university gates were closed, with all visitors having to pass through the office. Once in, all you can see in any direction are the feverish vandalisms of antisemitic anti-Zionism. There is a sea of tents, some draped in keffiyehs, and a forest of signs and banners done up in the garish green, black and red colours of today’s fashionable Jew-hating. “Killing the flowers will not delay spring, We will free Palestine in our lifetime”; “From the river to the sea, palestine will be free”. (On one sign, next to the ubiquitous watermelon symbol, I saw a picture of a tree, a possible reference to the widely-popularised Hadith that says: “Jews will hide behind a tree or a rock and the rock or the tree will say to the Muslim: There is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.”) There were leaflets vilifying Israeli ambassador Tzipi Hotovely and maps showing a fantasy history of “Palestine”.
Open Letter Against the Boycott of Israeli Universities
Universities across the world are facing pressure—from students but also from academic staff—to cut ties with Israeli institutions over the war in Gaza. In the US, a dozen universities have struck agreements with activists and partly conceded to their demands, including divestment from Israeli companies. In Europe, dozens of Spanish universities and five Norwegian universities have resolved to sever all ties with Israeli partners deemed “complicit” in the war in Gaza. Several Belgian universities have now suspended all collaborations with Israeli universities because of their collaborations with the IDF. Even without a formal boycott, pressure from anti-Israel protests and the BDS movement has already led to pervasive exclusion of Israeli scientists and students. In the liberal Israeli newspaper Haaretz, over 60 academics have testified what this amounts to: cancelled invitations to lectures and committees, desk rejections of papers on political grounds, freezing of ongoing collaborations, disrupted guest lectures, and withdrawn co-authorships.

What arguments are there for such a boycott? An open letter at Ghent University signed by more than 1500 students and staff, including dozens of professors (mainly from the humanities), denounces the stark “contrast” between the treatment of Israel and that of Russia in the wake of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, when many Western universities cut all ties with Russian universities. According to the signatories, Israel is currently committing a “genocide” in Gaza, and they demand that any cooperation with Israeli universities be suspended “as long as the current war continues.”

However, the “contrast” in reactions to both conflicts is perfectly defensible. Ukraine was brutally invaded by Russia without any prior provocation or military threat, simply because Putin imagines that Ukraine is a “fictional” nation that has no right to exist. If thousands of Ukrainian fighters had committed a gruesome massacre on Russian soil in January 2022, methodically slaughtering 1,200 innocent men, women, and children and taking another 250 hostages, only then would there be any semblance of similarity between both conflicts (as with many open letters from pro-Palestinian protestors, the letter completely ignores the terrorist attack of 7 October). It should also be noted that almost all Russian universities pledged their unequivocal support of the invasion of Ukraine, in a statement released by the Russian Union of Rectors and signed by more than 300 academic institutions.

As for the genocide charge, we believe it is as obscene as it is baseless. The tragic death of civilians as an unwanted side-effect of legitimate military objectives is completely different from the deliberate and methodical killing of civilians. It is perfectly reasonable to criticise Israel’s current military strategies and to question the sufficiency of measures taken to prevent civilian casualties, but it is absurd to pretend that the IDF is pursuing the opposite goal. The only genocidal party in this conflict is Hamas, which in its founding charter fantasises about the killing of the last Jew on earth.

In any event, a call for an “immediate and permanent ceasefire” and a boycott “as long as the war continues,” as the open letter demands, entails that no form of warfare against Hamas is deemed acceptable, which amounts to a de facto denial of Israel’s right to self-defence under the international law of war. No country would tolerate a terrorist group like Hamas at its border, least of all after a pogrom like that of 7 October.
Lawsuit: Jews endure ‘pervasive ostracization’ at California College of Arts
Soon after Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attacks in southern Israel, professors and students at California College of Arts trumpeted “Decolonization is not a dinner party,” alleges Karen Fiss, a professor at the San Francisco private school in a new lawsuit.

“They meant that any action needed to end Israel is morally justified, including the slaughter of innocents,” stated the professor, who teaches in the school’s art history and visual culture program.

The lawsuit, brought on Fiss’s behalf by the Deborah Project, alleges that the art school is guilty of “pervasive antisemitism,” violating Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The college, per the suit, aims to indoctrinate students in “an ideologically orthodox factory enforcing a single acceptable view—which is anathema to the plaintiff and a great many other Jews—on issues relating to the Jewish people, the State of Israel, the land of Israel and the history of the Middle East.”

“The Jewish state is consistently vilified and delegitimized” at the school, which means members of the school’s faculty and student body “are effectively forced into a position where they must either align with the prevailing narrative or risk ostracism,” the lawsuit alleges. It adds that the school’s “enforcement of the view that the Jewish state is genocidal and illegitimate, devoid of its inherent right to self-defense or existence, is a calculated assault on intellectual diversity and academic freedom.”

It adds that the college threatened to fire Fiss because she refused to “comply with student demands to contact her congressional representatives to pressure Israel—a sovereign nation—to cease its military response to an ongoing threat” and for “respectfully challenging this monopolization of discourse and reaffirming the principles of open dialogue and open debate within CCA.”


University of Minnesota pauses hiring of professor who called Israel’s war against Hamas ‘a textbook case of genocide’
The University of Minnesota paused the hiring of a professor who wrote that Israel’s military operation against Hamas in Gaza after Oct. 7 was “a textbook case of genocide” to head the school’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies (CHGS), Jewish Insider has learned.

The pause, which has not yet been publicly announced by the university, came on Monday evening after two members of the center’s advisory board resigned in protest on Friday.

“The assault on Gaza can also be understood in other terms: as a textbook case of genocide unfolding in front of our eyes,” Raz Segal, an Israeli associate professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Stockton University in New Jersey, wrote in the Jewish Currents on Oct. 13. “I say this as a scholar of genocide, who has spent many years writing about Israeli mass violence against Palestinians,” he wrote.

A spokesperson for the University of Minnesota told JI that the director selection process was put on hold “to allow an opportunity to determine next steps.”

“Members of the university community have come forward to express their interest in providing perspective on the hiring of the position of Director of the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies,” the spokesperson said. “Because of the community-facing and leadership role the director holds, it is important that these voices are heard.”

Segal, who was selected as the center’s new director by Ann Waltner, the interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts at University of Minnesota, also co-authored an Al-Jazeera article in January, in which he called Israel a “settler-colonial” power. Last month, Segal downplayed the illegal anti-Israel encampments that have engulfed campuses nationwide— many of which have turned violent (nine people were arrested at University of Minnesota’s encampment) — telling NJ Spotlight News that claims of antisemitism were “baseless.”

In 2022, he wrote about “the reality of the system of Israeli apartheid,” stating that “just as the Israeli apartheid system denies Palestinians’ past, it also seeks to deny their future through an assault against Palestinian children.”

The selection of Segal— which also includes a faculty position in the history department— prompted University of Minnesota professors Karen Painter and Bruno Chaouat to resign from the center’s advisory board.


Prosecutors may dismiss hate crimes charges for woman who hit Israeli Columbia student with stick
Prosecutors are moving to dismiss hate crimes charges against a woman charged with attacking an Israeli student on Columbia University’s campus in the aftermath of Hamas’s October 7 invasion of Israel.

The suspect, Maxwell Friedman, who also goes by Malaika, was charged with four counts of assault and other offenses for allegedly striking the Israeli student with a stick on October 11 during a dispute over Israeli hostage posters.

On Monday, the Manhattan district attorney’s office told the New York Jewish Week that Friedman accepted an offer to dismiss the case. As part of the agreement, Friedman has completed three sessions with Manhattan Justice Opportunities, a social services group that provides counseling and other services in place of incarceration for certain crimes. She also made a public apology during a court appearance.

If she is not arrested again within the next six months, the case will be dismissed, according to the legal agreement, known as an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal. The agreement, which Friedman accepted last month, includes an order of protection for the victim.

The D.A.’s office said Friedman’s age — 19 at the time — lack of criminal history and willingness to learn through the social services classes factored into the decision. At the time of the incident, the victim was 24.

Victim says Friedman also tore fliers
The incident took place outside Columbia’s Butler Library. The Israeli man who was hit with the stick told the D.A.’s office in October that he and others had printed fliers with information about the number of deaths in Israel, along with a photograph of a kidnapped Israeli family, and posted the fliers on designated news bulletins on campus.

The victim said he saw Friedman take down and rip up several fliers. He said Friedman told him and others, “F— you. F— all of you prick crackers.”

She also said, “I disrespected you. What are you going to do about it?” according to a complaint filed with the district attorney’s office.

Friedman then shoved the victim and struck him in the hands with a dowel, slicing and fracturing his finger, the initial complaint said.
University axes prof over 'Gaza genocide' homework
A part-time biology professor at DePaul University in Chicago has been fired after giving students an optional assignment that sparked concerns over its political nature. The assignment, issued by Professor Anne d'Aquino last month, asked students to write about the impact of "genocide in Gaza on human health and biology."

DePaul stated that an investigation revealed the assignment had a negative impact on the learning environment by introducing political content unrelated to the course curriculum. Some students reportedly expressed discomfort with the injection of political topics into a science class focused on how microorganisms cause disease.

In a statement, the university said, "The class was provided a new instructor, and the faculty member has been released from their appointment as a part-time faculty member." DePaul also mentioned that an email with the assignment appeared to support those "resisting the normalization of ethnic cleansing."

D'Aquino, however, is appealing the decision, arguing that her termination infringed upon her academic freedom. At a student demonstration last week, she accused the administration of falsely labeling discussions about Palestine and Palestinian liberation as antisemitic.

The course in question, Health 194: Human Pathogens and Defense, covers microorganisms that cause significant diseases and explores the biological basis of infectious diseases and methods to combat them, according to DePaul's course catalog.

D'Aquino defended the assignment's relevance, stating, "For months, scientists and physicians have been warning about the spread of infectious disease in Gaza – due to starvation, malnutrition, overcrowding, destruction of critical water and sanitation infrastructure."
Manhattan prep school leader resigns after calling task force ‘power play by
A Manhattan private school that charges a yearly tuition of $63,400 has seen a change in leadership following overt efforts to fight antisemitism.

On Monday, head of school David Lourie announced plans to step down from his top position at the Collegiate School, a private K-12 boys’ institution on New York City’s Upper West Side. He has held the job since 2020.

Lourie called the school’s newly formed antisemitism task force “a joke,” labeling the initiative a “power play by Jewish families.”

He had responded to a task force created by the school’s board of trustees following complaints from more than 100 Jewish parents. A report found that some faculty had blamed “wealthy and influential” Jews for creating the hostile environment at the school after the Hamas terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7 and the start of Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip.

Still, he did not mention steps to counter anti-Jewish sentiment on campus upon his leaving.

“We are, of course, living in a time when so many decisions are fraught with uncertainty, disagreement and dissension,” Lourie wrote in his announcement. “With every decision then [and] through every decision now, that has been my lodestar: what is best for the boys and their learning and well-being.”


'Pedophile rabbi': UCLA Chabad rabbi assaulted, told to go back to Poland
A University of California, Los Angeles Chabad rabbi was assaulted and harried with antisemitic statements and death threats on Monday night.

Rabbi Dovid Gurevich was called a "Pedophile rabbi" and had his phone smacked out of his hand as he recorded an anti-Israel protest at the campus.

"Israel is full of pedophiles," said a masked protester in a video posted by the rabbi on Instagram. Another man could be heard accusing the rabbi of seeking to sexually assault children.

Masked activists threatened to beat the rabbi unconscious, and when Gurevich asked one why he concealed his face, the activist responded, "If I show my face, I'll have to fucking kill you."

Other masked activists told Gurevich and other Jewish students to "Go back to Poland or Ukraine" and "go back to Europe."

"Death to f**king Zionism," said a protester.

They explained that Israelis were actually all native to Europe and that while they liked Jews, they hated Zionists, who are "fake Jews."

"Okay, Jewsplaining," the rabbi laughed. "you're telling the rabbi who the real Jews are...stop gaslighting."


The Washington Post goes post-reality
How many Washington Post journalists does it take to get a story right? At least 12, but don’t stop there.

Eleven authors were credited on the Post’s story of June 8 headlined “More than 200 Palestinians killed in Israeli hostage raid in Gaza”. None of them thought it worth mentioning that the four Israeli hostages had not been kept in tunnels by Hamas, but in private homes in crowded apartment blocks.

As Robert Satloff of the Washington Institute observed, this raises “disturbing questions about broad complicity in their captivity”. That raises a couple of other disturbing questions.

One is the notion, popular in the White House and the foreign ministries of every Western government, that the Gazan Palestinians should not be confused with Hamas.

This is confusing. The same Gazans joined with Hamas in its rampage on October 7 and danced in the streets as Israeli captives were paraded. In early December, according to the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, 82 per cent of Gazans believed that Hamas was correct in launching the October 7 attack.

Another disturbing question is the broad complicity of most American media in Hamas’ information war. I exempt from this the Wall Street Journal (for which I write). The Journal is the last serious paper in America. The rest have shown themselves to be little more than hostile propaganda when it comes to anything to do with Israel.


CNN Equates IDF With Dishonest Terror Group
Social media has been buzzing with rumors since Sunday about journalist and former Hamas Labor Ministry Spokesperson Abdallah Aljamal’s role in holding three of the since-rescued hostages – Almog Meir-Jan, Shlomi Ziv, and Andrey Kozlov – in his family’s apartment in Gaza.

Sure enough, several media outlets have spun this story to fit their narrative – including a CNN article published on Monday titled “Israel Alleges Journalist Held Hostages in Gaza, Without Providing Evidence.” When compared to how CNN covers Gaza’s side of the story, the contrast is night and day.



The article suggests that Israel makes claims with zero accountability. “Three hostages rescued during a deadly Israeli military operation on the Nuseirat camp,” it writes, “were held captive by a journalist…” saying that the IDF “alleged” this information, “without providing evidence to support their claim.”

In this case, a military must provide “evidence” of its intelligence to the public, whereas the Hamas-run Health Ministry does not have to provide evidence of their numbers or how their civilians were killed. Perhaps it is driven by the fact that Aljamal was a journalist, or by the fact that he was Palestinian, or maybe it is because the IDF is involved. It could be all three.

However, calling CNN’s work here unbiased journalism is incorrect. If the IDF has intelligence about where hostages are located, one could only assume intelligence would indicate who is holding the hostages.

As it turns out, Aljamal was a past contributor for Al Jazeera and regularly wrote for the Palestine Chronicle – a US-registered non-profit organization based in Washington State. Further, it has links with both Hamas and the Islamic regime of Iran, according to an investigation done by the Washington Free Beacon.


BBC defends interviewing retired general who called Oct 7 attacks ‘month of victory’
The BBC has defended giving airtime to a retired Egyptian army general who hailed the Oct 7 Hamas attacks on Israel as a “month of victory”.

Samir Ragheb has been interviewed by BBC News Arabic nine times since the war in Gaza began, despite sharing anti-Semitic material and pro-Palestinian posts online, analysis by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (Camera) claimed.

They included mocking Israeli civilians for seeking shelter during Hamas rocket attacks and claiming that Sinai returning to Egypt in 1982 was an act of “purifying it from the Jews’ filth”.

Critics accused the BBC of becoming a “propaganda outlet”, but on Saturday the broadcaster defended its decision to host the retired general, insisting that it challenged the views of contributors.

A spokesman said: “BBC News Arabic is committed to hearing from a range of contributors to offer a variety of views and perspectives across our output.

“Samir Ragheb is a retired senior officer in the Egyptian army and has previously been interviewed as a military expert across media including on BBC News Arabic. As with all our interviews, we challenge the views provided by contributors on air, as our audiences would expect.”

Of the nine times Mr Ragheb was hosted by the broadcaster, eight were on “strictly Israel-related issues”, according to the Camera analysis. The ninth appearance was “a broader overview on Egypt’s strategy, which is also about its other neighbours”, it said.

Camera, which lobbies for “accurate and balanced” coverage of Israel, analysed Facebook posts made by the retired general.

On Facebook on Oct 7, Mr Ragheb wrote: “For the first time in half a century, the legend of the military that is never defeated is shattered – it is defeated in six hours. A new military miracle by all criteria – strategic, operational and tactical. October is the month of victory.”


Recognizing a Palestinian state sends powerful message, unlikely to impact trade
In the theater of international relations, symbolism often takes center stage, casting shadows on the pragmatic ties that bind nations. The recent recognition of a Palestinian state by Spain, Norway, and Ireland exemplifies this dynamic – a significant political gesture, but one that remains largely symbolic with minimal immediate economic repercussions.

Israel’s economic interdependencies with these nations are robust. Spain, for instance, imports vital technological and chemical products from Israel, including cyclic hydrocarbons and refined petroleum, amounting to $1.2 billion in exports from Israel in 2022.

On the flip side, Spain exports cars, ceramics, and pharmaceuticals to Israel, contributing to a dynamic trade relationship worth $2.32 billion annually. Similarly, Ireland depends heavily on Israeli hi-tech components and pharmaceuticals, reflecting a bilateral trade that reached $3.86 billion last year.

However, political landscapes are as fluid as the markets they influence. A shift toward right-wing governments could alter the diplomatic equations, potentially recalibrating these nations’ stances towards Israel and Palestine.

This is not unprecedented. Take the Netherlands, where political shifts have previously impacted its foreign policy toward Israel. Such changes underscore the fragility and variability of political alliances. Moreover, the backdrop of this recognition is colored by preexisting social movements.

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund has divested from Israeli companies, reflecting a broader trend of boycotts by academics, artists, and trade unions – an indicator of deeper, longstanding societal sentiments rather than reactions to recent events alone.
Anti-Israel Belgian PM Trounced in Election
Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, one of Europe’s staunchest critics of Israeli policy, resigned from office on Monday after suffering a crushing blow in this week’s European Parliament election.

De Croo’s Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats party suffered heavy defeats in Sunday’s general election.

“For us, it’s a particularly difficult evening. We lost. As of tomorrow, I will resign as prime minister,” a visibly emotional De Croo told supporters on Sunday.

Israeli Foreign Ministry officials had been worried that De Croo would lead Belgium to officially recognize a Palestinian state, following in the footsteps of Spain, Ireland, Norway, and Slovenia, according to a report in Haaretz.

Last November, De Croo, along with Spanish premier Pedro Sanchez, held a press conference at the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt where they strongly condemned Israel’s military response to the Hamas terror group’s Oct. 7 invasion of southern Israel.

De Croo complained that “too many civilians have been killed in this conflict,” adding: “We cannot accept a society is destroyed the way the society of Gaza is being destroyed.”

In response, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen summoned the Spanish and Belgian ambassadors for a strong reprimand.

“We condemn the false claims of the prime ministers of Spain and Belgium who give support to terrorism,” Cohen said. “Israel is acting according to international law and fighting a murderous terrorist organization worse than ISIS that commits war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

De Croo had also sought for Belgium’s European Union allies to join in his push to ban imports on products from the West Bank.
Thomas Massie Peddles "Secret Conspiracy"
Kentucky Congressman Thomas Massie revealed in a recent interview that Republican lawmakers all have their own handler from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. “It’s like your babysitter,” said Massie. “Your AIPAC babysitter who is always talking to you for AIPAC. They’re probably a constituent in your district, but they are, you know, firmly embedded in AIPAC.”

That sounds scary — a Washington lobby wrangling votes to win its policy preferences. What makes it even more suspicious is that even though AIPAC members across America are, as Massie explained, in touch with every GOP lawmaker, no one outside of the Beltway seems to know about it. “Why,” asks the congressman, “would [Republican House members] want to tell their constituents that they’ve basically got a buddy system with somebody who’s representing a foreign country? It doesn’t benefit the congressman for people to know that. So they’re not going to tell you that.”

Massie is understandably mad at AIPAC. The pro-Israel outfit backed his primary candidate largely because he’s against sending military aid to Israel. Good on Massie for voting his conscience, but that doesn’t change the fact he’s also voting against the Republican base and the leader of the party. Donald Trump says that Israel should have everything it needs to destroy Hamas, and quickly. If you’re a Republican and you want to cut off aid to Israel at present, you’re taking sides against the leader of your party.

Going against AIPAC, of course, is something else. Lots of senior Republican officials have challenged AIPAC of late because over the last few years it’s essentially become a Democratic Party shop. That wasn’t always the case.

Contrary to what anti-Israel conspiracy theorists say, AIPAC doesn’t drive US Middle East policy, US policymakers do. Insofar as AIPAC is powerful, it drafts on a relationship that was conceived to augment American power and is supported by the voting public.


Jamaal Bowman Suggests Israel Responsible for Hamas’ Oct. 7 Attack in Latest Salvo Against Jewish State
US Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), a prominent progressive in Congress and outspoken critic of Israel, suggested in a new interview that the Jewish state is responsible for the Hamas terrorist group’s Oct. 7 attacks, which resulted in the biggest single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.

Bowman on Monday chatted with left-wing political pundit Olayemi Olurin about his views on the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. The congressman stated that Israel’s alleged oppressive treatment of Palestinians might have spurred Hamas, which rules Gaza, to lash out.

The New York Democrat said that he declined the opportunity to sign a so-called “AIPAC-written” resolution that backed Israel, stating that he “stopped reading” the document when it referred to Oct. 7 as an “unprovoked attack.”

On Oct. 7, Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists invaded southern Israel from Gaza. During the onslaught, they murdered 1,200 people and kidnapped over 250 hostages. In the months since then, mounting evidence has revealed that the terrorists perpetrated systematic sexual violence, including mass gang rape and torture, against the Israeli people.

In the weeks after the onslaught, Bowman publicly cast doubt on reports that Israeli women were raped and called such accusations “propaganda.” He walked both those comments earlier this year, however, after receiving widespread scrutiny and condemned Hamas’ actions on Oct. 7.

During Monday’s interview, Bowman asserted that to end the “extremism” of Hamas, there needs to be a “free Palestine.”

“Well, if we’re calling this an unprovoked attack, that means we’re going to ignore 18 human rights organizations calling Israel an apartheid state, and we’re going to ignore 75 years of military occupation, which is illegal, or 700,000 settlers expanding into the West Bank, which is also illegal,” Bowman said. He did note mention that Israel fully withdrew all its soldiers and civilian population from Gaza in 2005.


AOC slams antisemitism on left, says when Jews threatened progressives are undermined
Squad Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez calls out antisemitism in her own political camp, saying it is “an assault on our values as Americans and especially as progressives.”

“When the Jewish community is threatened, the progressive movement is undermined,” Ocasio-Cortez says during a webinar with Jewish Council for Public Affairs CEO Amy Spitalnick and former Anti-Defamation League staffer Stacy Burdett.

Ocasio-Cortez asserts that charges of antisemitism have sometimes been weaponized to silence progressive critics of Israel, particularly women of color.

“Criticism of the Israeli government is not inherently antisemitic and criticism of Zionism is not automatically antisemitic. That being true does not mean that we should not recognize criticism and when that criticism crosses a line into real harms against our Jewish community,” Ocasio-Cortez adds, in a rare event bringing together leaders from legacy Jewish American organizations with one of the most prominent progressive lawmakers in Congress.

“When it comes to the current conflict: it is possible to recognize Jewish pain, fear and grief in this moment. It does not take away from our grief and pain for families in Gaza,” she asserts.


Shvut Rachel arsonist was Hamas officer
Border Police officers eliminated one of the armed terrorists who infiltrated the Shvut Rachel farm in Binyamin and set fire to a residential trailer, along with three other terrorists who were with him and tried to escape.

The terrorist, Muhammad Jaber Abdu from the nearby village of Naama, is a released security prisoner and a senior Hamas operative who sat in Israeli prison for 20 years after being involved in a suicide bombing in Jerusalem in 2001 that included planting mortar bombs in a vehicle placed near the Russian Compound.

Upon his release from prison in 2021, Abdu received the title "Commander" in the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas's military wing. He received the title from Hamas leaders in Judea and Samaria - Hassan Yousef and Hussein Abu Kwik.

In addition to the recognition ceremony, Jaber received a personal call from Ismail Haniyeh who congratulated him on his release and praised him for the "resilience and steadfast spirit" he demonstrated in prison.
In first meeting with new Palestinian Authority leader, Blinken welcomes plans to reform the PA
In his first meeting with the new Palestinian Authority prime minister on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the PA’s plans to pass a series of administrative reforms.

Blinken stressed “the need for full and consistent implementation of those reforms to achieve the aspirations of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza” in his meeting in Sweimeh, Jordan, with Mohammad Mustafa, the P.A. prime minister, per a U.S. readout of the meeting.

The U.S. secretary also reaffirmed the Biden administration’s “support for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with security guarantees for Israel,” stated Matthew Miller, spokesman for the U.S. State Department, who accompanied Blinken on his overseas trip.

Blinken traveled to the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea on Tuesday to attend a Gaza aid summit hosted by Jordan, Egypt and the United Nations. It was part of the senior U.S. official’s regional tour, which included prior stops in Egypt and Israel.

Blinken also discussed the Gaza truce deal that U.S. President Joe Biden outlined on May 31 during his tête-à-tête with Mustafa, whom Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas appointed in March. (Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security advisor, met with Mustafa and other Palestinian officials on May 19.)

“The secretary underscored that the proposal would greatly benefit both Palestinians and Israelis,” per the Foggy Bottom readout. “He reiterated that Hamas should accept the proposal without further delay.”


PreOccupiedTerritory: Restaurant Review: Propaganda Photo Dining In Gaza Rubble by Saleh Aljafaforawi, culture critic, The Times of Gaza (satire)
Al-Ruween Restaurant
Between the remains of the fashion shop called Hitler 2 and Al-Bassam’s tunnel-smuggling service (site of a former plumbing supply business), Gaza City
Chef: Ful Farradoun

Dir-al-Balah, June 11 – The first impression a visitor gets upon walking into Al-Ruween is that he’s not walking “into” anything at all – and that is precisely the point: there barely exists a structure anymore, just the tastefully-appointed remains of a home or office destroyed in an Israeli bombing.

When I say “first,” that also requires explanation: the actual first impression involves the difficulty of securing a reservation to this exclusive venue, in-demand as it is from journalists hoping to snag a heartstring-tugging image to share with the international media. But this writer has a connection or two who bumped him up the waiting list.

If the decor and the setting invoke despair and death, then the menu itself offers a welcome contrast. No lack of dead flesh, but all of it, thankfully, of the animal variety, and all of it, thankfully, genuinely dead. Some recent fogginess of who is or is not dead, and who existed in the first place to become dead, and who said they were dead anyway, and how many times did Israel make them dead… that can put a damper on an establishment’s welcoming vibe. Rest assured, Al-Ruween diners, the flesh is dead in the Hassan Rouhani sense, not in the 30,000 Gazan children sense.

And what dead flesh it is! The makeshift kitchen equipment Chef Farradoun sets up just off camera reproduces the quality and flavor of a gourmet kitchen. I had the lamb and vegetable skewers with rice and asparagus; my partner dined on a zesty tomato soup, followed by a heaping chicken salad. The fresh bread, baked in the cavities of the collapsed building, and drizzled with olive oil, completed the setting.

We had some difficulty with the Yves Saint-Laurent table linens, which the producers of the event did not want to stain, but that did not affect the taste of the food.
US intelligence assesses Houthis in Yemen in talks to provide weapons to al-Shabaab in Somalia, officials say
US intelligence has learned of discussions between Houthis in Yemen to provide weapons to the Somali militant group al-Shabaab, in what three American officials described to CNN as a worrying development that threatens to further destabilize an already violent region.

Officials are now searching for evidence that Houthi weapons have been delivered to Somalia, and are trying to work out whether Iran, which provides some military and financial support to the Houthis, is involved in the agreement.

The US has been warning countries in the region about this possible cooperation in recent weeks, according to a senior administration official, and African countries have also begun to proactively bring it up with the US to raise their concerns and get more information.

“This is a pretty active area of conversation that we’re having with countries on both sides of the Red Sea,” this person said. “And it’s being viewed with a considerable seriousness.”

It’s not a natural alliance for the two groups, which are divided by sectarianismand are not known to have had a relationship in the past. The Houthis are Zaydi Shiites, and al-Shabaab traditionally has been deeply ideologically opposed to Shiism. But they are separated by only a single body of water — the strategically significant Gulf of Aden — and they both count the United States as a top enemy.

The intelligence raises the alarming possibility that a marriage of convenience could make things worse both in Somalia and in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, where the Houthis have launched regular attacks on commercial shipping and US military assets since the war in Gaza began.

A potential deal could offer a new stream of financing for the Houthis, at a time when US officials say there are signs that the group’s primary patron, Iran, has some concerns about the group’s attack strategy. “Being able to sell some weapons would bring them much needed income,” the senior administration official said.
Seth Frantzman: Lessons, 10 years after ISIS took over Mosul
This week marks the ten-year anniversary of the extremist group ISIS taking over Mosul.

ISIS swept into Mosul and took over the large Iraqi city on June 10, 2014. The conquest of Mosul followed the dramatic rise of ISIS in the spring of 2014. The group had its roots in extremists in Iraq and Syria who had grown out of the Sunni Arab insurgent groups that were fighting the US, and had been boosted by the chaos of the Syrian civil war.

ISIS was able to build upon the framework that existed in Iraq and Syria to construct itself as a war machine. It wasn’t just a terrorist group or a bunch of terrorist cells like Al Qaeda. It wasn’t an insurgency, either. ISIS thrived because of the breakdown of the state in Syria and Iraq.

In Syria, the Syrian civil war had been growing since 2011. Syria truly began to break apart in 2012 and 2013, such that many local groups assumed control of certain areas. The Syrian regime likely had an interest in fueling the disintegration and factionalism within the Syrian rebel groups by encouraging extremists to grow.

It's important to understand that the Syrian regime had long tolerated extremists, such as jihadist types, flowing into Iraq via the Euphrates river valley during the period of the US conquest of Iraq after 2003. When the US left Iraq in 2011 these groups were able to consolidate their influence in marginal desert regions. The era of the Sunni “awakening” in Iraq had been pushed aside by the authoritarian Shi’ite prime minister Nour al-Malaki. This created a toxic vacuum in Syria and Iraq in 2013-2014 because both the Syrian regime and the Iraqi regime were letting groups seep into the periphery.

ISIS burst onto the scene due to its brutality and zealous cohesion. It promised a new Islamic era, free from the infighting of Syrian rebel groups in Syria and free from what many Sunni Arabs in Iraq saw as oppression by the Iranian-backed Malaki regime. ISIS also benefited from the fact that Kurdish groups were creating a form of autonomy in eastern Syria, and the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq had no love for Malaki either.
World Plays 'Pretend' as Iran Burns Down Middle East
Recently, French President Emmanuel Macron came to Jerusalem, where he told Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war in Gaza. "The ordeal of the Palestinians in Gaza must end," Macron said, without even bothering to demand the release of the remaining hostages as a precondition for his fever-dream of a ceasefire. So far, Hamas has rejected all proposals but one, and that came only after extreme military, not diplomatic, persuasion.

World leaders like Macron play a game of "pretend." According to it, the situation in the Middle East is an issue between Israel and the Palestinians; and if just that is resolved by establishing of a new Palestinian terrorist state, "peace" will drift down upon the region. Of course, the idea is demented, as the world leaders are undoubtedly aware, but they continue to propose it – but only to the victim, Israel, which was attacked without provocation and is still being attacked; never to Hamas, Qatar or Iran, the parties that ignited the war. The ceasefire that the world claims it wants could be delivered this week if Iran and Qatar seriously ordered their proxies to stop, and Hamas and Hezbollah laid down their weapons.

Clearly Iran and Qatar have no intention of doing any such thing: they undoubtedly see their job as keeping their proxies in power to be able to strike again.

World leaders, however, are not demanding that Iran or its proxies stand down. The main reason Ireland, Norway and Spain have recognized a borderless Palestinian terrorist state is that they do not have to live with the consequences. Maybe Spain would also like to recognize a State of Catalonia? Ireland, even at the height of the "Troubles" in Northern Ireland, never demanded that all the Welsh, Scots and English leave Britain, to have it peopled only by Irish Catholics.

Conspicuously, the same Macron who is ordering Israel to lay down its weapons in Gaza has been silent when it comes to asking that of Hamas and Iran.

Iran's proxy Hezbollah already is the main power inside Lebanon; a new ineffectual border agreement will not change that. Furthermore, a border agreement is not what Biden wants. Biden's policies, like Obama's, are all about strengthening Iran in every way, including allowing it to fully realize its nuclear ambitions.

"Most importantly, these profits have enabled Iran to accelerate completing its nuclear weapons program, if it has not already done so and is not just being paid to stay quiet before the US presidential election this November." — Majid Rafizadeh, Gatestone Institute, June 1, 2024.
Los Angeles man sentenced to 43 months for stalking Jewish woman
Andre Morrow Lackner, 35, was sentenced to more than three and a half years in prison for stalking a Jewish woman and making antisemitic and anti-Asian threats, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California stated on Monday.

“Hate and intolerance, including antisemitism, is both wrong and anti-American,” said Martin Estrada, U.S. attorney for the Central District of California. “Our nation is one of inclusion, not exclusion, and through this case, we send a strong message that we will not tolerate attempts to divide us.”

Lackner, of the Northridge neighborhood in Los Angeles’s San Fernando Valley, has been in federal custody since December 2022 and pleaded guilty on Jan. 29 to stalking, per the U.S. Justice Department.

He wrote a “series of abusive text messages” to the Jewish victim between June 2021 and October 2022, including “Hitler was right about you people,” “I want to see every single Jew exterminated from this earth,” “Would you like to celebrate the next synagogue shooting?” and “I will make sure I kill a Jew before I leave this Earth,” according to the Justice Department.

It added that Lackner also wrote anti-Asian racist messages to the victim. “The text messages Lackner sent the victim placed her in reasonable fear of death and serious bodily injury to herself or one of her immediate family members,” the Justice Department said.

The FBI assisted in the investigation.


Tel Aviv moves up to 4th place in annual ranking of global tech ecosystems
Tel Aviv moved up one spot to fourth place in an annual survey ranking the world’s most attractive ecosystems for startups and innovation by US research firm Startup Genome.

The study ranks the top 40 tech startup hubs across more than 300 ecosystems worldwide, collating data on 4.5 million startups. According to Startup Genome’s model, the higher the ranking of the ecosystem, the better the shot an early-stage startup has at building global success.

Tel Aviv rose from fifth place last time and now shares the fourth spot with Los Angeles. California’s Silicon Valley maintained its first-place position in this year’s report, followed by New York City and London, which were tied once again in second place. Tokyo entered the top 10 for the first time, moving up five places to number 10, and Seoul moved up three spots and is now ranked at number 9.

The top five global ecosystems are worth a collective $4.4 trillion – based on exits and startup valuations – or 54% of the total of the top 40 hubs. The remaining 35 ecosystems are collectively worth $4 trillion. The Tel Aviv tech ecosystem was valued at $235 billion, compared to a global average of $29.4 billion.

For the annual ranking, the research firm measured five success factors: performance, which takes into account the number and growth of exits and how many startups succeed; access to and quality of funding; market reach, or the ability to tap global markets; how easy it is to recruit top talent; and knowledge, a measure of publication impact and patents.
Intel suspends planned $15 billion expansion of southern Israel chip plant
Intel is halting the expansion of a major factory project in Israel, which was slated to pump an extra $15 billion toward a chip plant.

The chip giant in December said it would expand plans for a chip manufacturing plant in Kiryat Gat, in the south of the country, currently under construction, upping its investment from $10 billion to $25 billion to secure a $3.2 billion grant from the Israeli government.

Solicited by AFP, Intel on Monday gave no reason for the pause for the next phase and made no link to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

“Israel continues to be one of our key global manufacturing and R&D sites and we remain fully committed to the region,” the company said in a statement.

It added that “managing large-scale projects, especially in our industry, often involves adapting to changing timelines.”

“Decisions are based on business conditions, market dynamics and responsible capital management.”

The expanded Kiryat Gat facility is expected to open by 2028 and remain in operation until at least 2035. Intel said in December that construction work had already started, including clean rooms and support buildings. A significant portion of the buildings, including the casting of piles and first floors, have been completed, the chipmaker added at the time.
Academy Museum of Motion Pictures ‘Immediately’ Revises Controversial Exhibit on Jewish Founders of Hollywood
The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles announced on Monday that it will make changes to its new exhibit about the Jewish roots of the Hollywood film industry after it was criticized by Jewish activists and members of the entertainment industry.

The museum said in a statement to the The Hollywood Reporter that it “heard the concerns from members of the Jewish community,” takes the concerns “seriously,” and is ”committed to making changes to the exhibition to address them.”

“We will be implementing the first set of changes immediately — they will allow us to tell these important stories without using phrasing that may unintentionally reinforce stereotypes. This will also help to eliminate any ambiguities,” the museum added, before stating that it is “convening an advisory group of experts from leading museums focused on the Jewish community, civil rights, and the history of other marginalized groups to advise us on complex questions about context and any necessary additions to the exhibition’s narrative.”

“We are deeply committed to telling these important stories in an honest, respectful, and impactful way,” the museum said in conclusion.

The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures opened on May 19 its first permanent exhibition, titled “Hollywoodland: Jewish Founders and the Making of a Movie Capital.” The exhibit highlights the “Jewish founders of the Hollywood studio system” and “tells the origin story of filmmaking in early 20th-century Los Angeles, spotlighting the impact of the predominately Jewish filmmakers whose establishment of the American film studio system transformed Los Angeles into a global epicenter of cinema.”

Jewish activists and members of the film and television industry criticized the exhibit for its negative portrayal of Jewish studio founders and filmmakers, claiming that the exhibit focused more on their flaws than their achievements. The critics accused the exhibit of promoting “antisemitic tropes” and attacked the museum for describing the Jewish filmmakers with words like “oppressive,” “harmful,” “predator,” and “tyrant.”
A Filipino singer’s journey to Judaism in Israel
He had grown up in a swanky northern Tel Aviv home adopted by a secular Israeli family, alongside his Filipino single mother who is a foreign worker.

Fluent in Hebrew, he was a semifinalist in a top Israeli reality-show competition when in high school with the future winner of the Eurovision contest, having started writing and composing songs as a lonely kid of 8.

He went on to serve in the Israel Defense Forces even before he even became an Israeli citizen.

But it was only when Howie Danao, 23, took part in a Jewish-identity program for Israeli soldiers who are disconnected from their heritage at the tail end of his military service that he started questioning life (“Why I am here? Why was I adopted?”), which led him on a spiritual journey to Judaism.

“The only answer that felt right to all the questions is that there is no reasonable answer,” he told JNS in an interview in Tel Aviv. “I was chosen into that reality, and the only thing for me to do was to choose that which chose me.”
First Israeli to win Grand Slam wheelchair title celebrates victory and hostages return
When Guy Sasson took to Court 13 in Saturday’s French Open Quad Wheelchair finals tennis match – and almost three hours later became the first Israeli player to win a Grand Slam wheelchair singles title – he had no idea that another big Israel story had just taken place.

The 44-year-old Sasson, the tournament’s No. 3 seed, had lost four of five previous matches against 22-year-old Sam Schroder of the Netherlands, the No. 2 seed and winner of six Grand Slam titles.

Sasson took the first set 6-2, lost the second set 3-6, and was down two match points in the super tiebreaker. Sasson let out a victory cheer when he got to seven – only to find out from the chair umpire of the need to win 10 points in a Grand Slam event.

Sasson and his coach, Ofri Lankry, had a good laugh and the Israeli went on to win the tiebreaker and the singles title. When he left the court, he learned of the thrilling rescue of four hostages in Gaza and of the unfortunate loss of Chief Inspector Arnon Zamora.

“After the match, I hugged my coach and psychologist and they told me four were brought back alive,” Sasson reported in a phone interview with The Jerusalem Post after arriving in Nice, France where he will begin his next tournament this week. “I’m in shock – right after my huge thriller with ups and downs and I pulled it off – it was as if all the stars were aligned at the same moment.

“Some people who were watching said that I was down 5-3 and when the message of the hostages being freed got out, I got back in!”
Rafah's Jewish Past
Jewish presence in Rafah dates back to the Hasmonean era (167-63 BCE) when King Yannai Alexander of Judea conquered the town, which remained under Jewish control until the Roman general Pompey the Great captured it in 63 BCE.

The period of 600-1050 CE saw a flourishing Jewish community in Rafah, particularly prominent in the 9th and 10th centuries, and the community experienced a resurgence in the 12th century.

During the medieval period, the Jewish community in Rafah was part of a broader network of Jewish communities in the region. Historical records from the Cairo Geniza, a trove of Jewish manuscript fragments, provide evidence of correspondence and legal disputes involving the Jewish community in Rafah.

In the early 20th century, Zionist groups and the Jewish community in the Land of Israel attempted to settle in Rafah, highlighting the enduring connection of Jews to the region.

During the British Mandate period, Jewish leaders and community members were confined in British detention camps in Rafah.
Special Shavuot cookbook seeks to keep hostages top of mind
Flipping through the new cookbook released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum ahead of Shavuot, one can get no further than the second recipe without receiving a gut punch — when the book was published, Amit Buskila, the author of the recipe for the Moroccan tomato-based condiment matbucha, was still presumed alive. But on May 17, the IDF announced that her body had been recovered from Gaza.

Each recipe in the cookbook features a picture of a hostage and a short description of them provided by their relatives. Buskila is described as “an accomplished stylist living in Ashdod” who is “resilient, joyful, beautiful and radiates positivity.” Buskila, who grew up in a Moroccan household, participated in the last season of the competitive culinary show “MasterChef Israel.”

The 75 recipes spread across 180 pages comprise a combination of the favorite dishes of both living and deceased hostages — those who were known to be dead at the time of the book’s release have “z”l” (an abbreviation for zichrono livracha, or “blessed be their memory”) printed next to their name.

Leading off the collection is a note of hope from Luis Har, who was rescued from Gaza by Israeli forces after 128 days in captivity. “Food is something optimistic, but only when we will be able to sit together around the table. When we will enjoy the recipes we’ve created, it will provide me with closure. I’m already looking forward to the day I will be cooking with everyone,” the message from Har, alongside his recipe for “Grandpa Luis’ Pizza,” says.

The book, titled Shavuot of Longing: Their Recipes on Our Tables, was printed at the Be’eri printshop, the main source of income of the kibbutz, which was one of the communities hardest hit in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, with 101 people killed and another 31 taken hostage — 11 of whom are still in captivity, seven of whom are known to be dead.

Itay Shenberger, who initiated the book on behalf of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, told JI the project seeks to keep hostages top of mind by increasing the sense of connection between members of the public and the hostages.

“Our call to action for all the public is to choose one recipe or one of the hostages that they can feel super connected to, and make the recipe and dedicate the food to the hostage. I think it’s a way for people to bond with the hostages,” Shenberger explained.

As of this week, 75,000 copies of the book had been sold worldwide, mostly in Israel but also in the U.S., Canada, Australia and the U.K. A digital version is also available for purchase, and influencers have taken part in the initiative to help raise awareness of the cause. Funds raised from the book will go to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, to support hostages’ families and to help fund the organization’s operations and media campaigns. At the Israeli Embassy’s Yom Haatzmaut gathering in Washington last month, attendees were gifted copies of the book.
Rare KKL-JNF Archival Photos Illuminate Shavuot Celebrations in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s
As the holiday of Shavuot approaches, KKL-JNF is proud to unveil a collection of rare archival photographs capturing the spirit of celebration during the days of the British Mandate. These remarkable images offer a glimpse into the festivities surrounding the Bikkurim celebrations that marked the landscape of Mandatory Palestine in the 1930s and 1940s.

Shavuot holds a special place in the rich tapestry of KKL-JNF’s photo archives. The preserved photographs provide a captivating window into the revival of holiday traditions across the Land of Israel during the formative years of the state, spanning cities, kibbutzim, and towns nationwide.

This unique documentation offers a vivid portrayal of the Shavuot celebrations in Jerusalem, Kibbutz Gan Shmuel, and Kibbutz Sarid during the British Mandate era. Witness the vibrant spectacle of individuals adorned in elaborate costumes, partaking in parades and lively dance circles that animated the streets of these historic locales.





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