Sunday, January 12, 2025
Alan M. Dershowitz: Who Really Denied Statehood to the Palestinian People?
One of the most pervasive myths of the Palestinian protest movement is that Israel has denied statehood to the Palestinian people.Today’s Palestinian advocates should be ashamed of themselves
To the contrary, Israel agreed to Palestinian statehood in 1937-1938, 1947-1948, 1967, 2000-2001, and 2007.
In each case, it was the Palestinian leadership that refused to agree to the two-state solution that would have created a Palestinian state alongside a state for Jewish inhabitants.
Other stateless groups such as the Tibetans, the Kurds, and the Chechens have never even been offered statehood, let alone repeatedly turned it down.
It was the Palestinians themselves, through their anti-Jewish leadership, that has made the Palestinian people stateless.
The current anti-Israel protesters in the West are not calling for a Palestinian state living in peace alongside Israel. They just want to end Israel's existence.
It is not going to happen. Until the Palestinians recognize this reality, they will be denying themselves any possibility of statehood.
Palestinians and their advocates should be embarrassed by their conduct, not rationalizing it to the world. The Palestinian Authority (PA) is one of the most corrupt governing bodies in the world. It is ripe with graft and nepotism. Unlike the freedom-loving countries that support it, the PA and its president, Mahmoud Abbas, haven’t held an election in 20 years.Change the Map of Gaza to Signal that Terrorism Doesn't Pay
The PA hasn’t abandoned its terrorist past. Its “pay-to-slay” program costs $400 million a year and incentivizes its people to commit terrorist acts. The program is so dastardly, the United State Congress passed the Taylor Force Act that made it illegal for the US to provide any aid to the PA as long as it kept up its pay to slay program.
Israel’s Defense and Security Forum wrote, “Fatah’s own terror group, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, has also claimed that its fighters participated in October 7. Its spokesperson has released videos of terrorists abducting and taunting victims from Israel, wearing clearly recognizable yellow scarves associated with Fatah (as opposed to the green color associated with Hamas). The video says: First we “liberate the Gaza Strip,” then the rest of “Palestine” and “tomorrow [we will be] at the gates of Jerusalem.”
Instead of disavowing the attacks and demanding that Palestinians holding Israeli hostages release them, Hamas members and other Palestinian non-combatants have used Israeli hostages as pawns and bargaining chips to shame Israel and try to gain the release of other Palestinian terrorists from Israeli prisons.
Kidnapping is one of the most despicable acts, together with rape and murder. All three acts have been utilized, justified, and praised by Palestinians as policy since October 7. What kind of a people justify raping young women and holding a baby hostage?
Palestinian society has a problem today. Unlike Arab Israelis, their people are corrupt, anti-freedom, and antisemitic. They never call for peace alongside the Jewish State of Israel. They call for an independent Palestinian state to replace it. They maintain that they are justified in all acts of resistance against Israel’s Jews, including, and especially, violence and terrorism.
Palestinian leadership today falls into one of two camps, Hamas, a terror organization conducting regular terrorism, or the PA, a corrupt repressive institution that promotes terrorism. Anyone siding with Palestinians today, instead of calling for Palestinian reform, joins a culture of corruption, antisemitism, and violence and should be ashamed of themselves.
Anyone promoting a two-state solution that omits the transformative changes which must take place in Palestinian society should be ashamed.
It is time for the world to stop emboldening the Palestinians and further entrenching them in their self-destructive behavior and policies that have impeded their success for over a century.
Hamas sees the suffering of the Gazan people as a benefit, not a cost. Terrorists who locate their headquarters in hospitals, schools and kindergartens do so not only to protect themselves from possible attacks but also to exploit the inevitable killing of civilians for propaganda: More killing equals more world empathy.
In the Middle East, nothing hurts more than loss of territory. The worst outcome of a war meant to conquer Israel would be Israel's ending with more territory than when it began. The world demands that Israel withdraw to its original borders after every conflict it wins. Is it surprising that aggressors repeatedly try to destroy the Jewish state, knowing that they face little to no threat of loss of territory? This status quo must change.
There is nothing sacred about Gaza's borders, which were created in 1949 to mark the line of separation between Egypt and Israel. There is a clear security justification for shrinking Gaza's borders: Annexing a 1-mile perimeter around Gaza would create a buffer zone between Hamas-governed territory and the Israeli communities that Hamas brutally attacked on Oct. 7. The zone should also include a 3-mile stretch along the northern border of Gaza, an area Hamas converted into terrorist bases. Changing the map of Gaza would signal that terrorism doesn't pay, and could represent a significant advancement toward peace in the Middle East.
Eugene Kontorovich: Losing Their Religion
Elliott Abrams’s book If You Will It: Rebuilding Jewish Peoplehood for the 21st Century focuses on the great challenges facing American Jewry. Those challenges are not the acute ones—pro-Hamas protesters that make the already overpriced elite four-year college experience an ever worse deal, or the growing acceptance of anti-Semitic violence and vandalism. These are serious problems, but the United States today remains one of the safest, most conducive places for Jews, or anyone else, to live in the history of the world.Students who saw campuses devolve into anti-Israel chaos witness first-hand successes of Abraham Accords
Abrams addresses the chronic and worsening problems of assimilation and loss of religious and group identity and commitments, which he documents in depressing detail through the results of a 2020 Pew Survey. Among the non-Orthodox, intermarriage rates are above 70 percent. Most young Jews do not feel a deep attachment to Israel. As Abrams notes, the Jewish situation is not dissimilar to the decline of affiliation faced by other groups, such as Roman Catholics, and while his book is primarily aimed at a Jewish audience, it will be of interest to others interested in what it takes to maintain a distinct set of beliefs that is at odds with the dominant culture.
The decline of American Jewry is really just the story of the non-Orthodox movements. While Orthodoxy was largely written off as a withering relic some decades ago, its numbers are rapidly growing. Although only 10 percent of American Jews are Orthodox, they constitute 17 percent of those under 30. Orthodox schools and synagogues are growing rapidly. Orthodox Jews have become culturally and politically prominent, from Ben Shapiro and Jared Kushner to Jack Lew. The Reform movement has the opposite dynamic, with an aging membership and empty houses of worship. Orthodox Jews report very high levels of attachment to Jewish peoplehood and the State of Israel.
This data would suggest an obvious diagnosis: The problems of declining American Jewish identity can be traced to a break from its normative roots. The solution would be an attempt to increase traditional religious education and observance. Abrams puts the possibility of a revival to one side. He takes as a given that the overwhelming number of American Jews will not decide to practice in the traditional manner—and that is surely correct. For the remainder, some solution must be found that fosters their sense of Jewish peoplehood, taking advantage of Jewishness’s dual valence as a faith and people.
Abrams’s recommendations are eminently reasonable—they focus on increasing enrollment in Jewish day schools, particularly nondenominational or community schools that enroll primarily students from non-Orthodox homes, as well as Jewish camps and experiences in Israel. All these solutions have two features in common: They seek to solidify Jewish identity by creating particularistic social contexts—and they are very expensive.
Most of Abrams’s recommendations focus on creating islands of Jewish insularity within the highly pluralistic lives Jews live. Studying, playing, and traveling with other Jews in explicitly Jewish environments strengthens the communal—indeed the tribal—feeling among participants. As Abrams writes, previously such close community was achieved organically—prior to the 1960s, American Jews largely lived around and socialized with other Jews. Many also had recent immigrant backgrounds that kept them connected to a sense of identity. Today, such experiences must be cultivated.
Dozens of American college students visited Israel and the United Arab Emirates over the winter break, where they witnessed first-hand the successes of the historic Abraham Accords amid ongoing campus tensions at home as the war in Israel continues.Trump’s golden opportunity to checkmate Iran and stabilize the Middle East
Forty-three undergraduate students from across the country participated in a 10-day trip to Israel and the UAE over the winter semester break through the Israel on Campus Coalition’s Geller International Fellowship, Fox News Digital learned. The students met with business leaders, academics and political leaders to discuss and experience Middle East culture, as well as see first-hand the importance of the Abraham Accords, which were brokered under President-elect Donald Trump’s first administration in 2020.
"Witnessing the successes of the Abraham Accords first hand with a group of college students who are passionate about peace and coexistence, in an era where dialogue on American college campuses like my own is sparse, has been a poignant and critical reminder of what the future of the Middle East can hold," Columbia University senior studying the Middle East, Eden Yadegar said in comment to Fox News Digital.
"Peace, security, and coexistence are not distant ideals, but a reality on the ground thanks to the United States, Israel, and the UAE. The future of the Middle East is here and it’s bright, and I am incredibly grateful to the Israel on Campus Coalition for providing me with the opportunity to engage in these critical conversations and experiences."
The Abraham Accords are a historic peace agreement brokered by the U.S. in 2020 between Israel and the UAE. As part of the agreements, the UAE and Bahrain recognized Israel’s sovereignty and established full diplomatic relations. It marked the first time Israel had established peace with an Arab country since 1994 with the Israel-Jordan peace treaty.
"This historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region and is a testament to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the United Arab Emirates and Israel to chart a new path that will unlock the great potential in the region," Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed said in a joint statement at the time. "All three countries face many common challenges and will mutually benefit from today’s historic achievement."
Students who participated in the fellowship met with experts such as Israeli politician and diplomat Ruth Wasserman Lande and Middle East expert and lecturer Dan Feferman to discuss entrepreneurship and coexistence in the Middle East following the peace deal, as well as experts such as the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ senior fellow Jonathan Conricus and Saudi YouTuber Loay Alsharef to discuss diplomacy and peacebuilding under the accords.
The real tie-breaking Iranian gun on the table is the one with nuclear bullets. Especially now, as the Assad regime fell, Iran might conclude it has no other choice to secure its regime but to break out to a bomb, to compensate for its perceived weakness after all the blows it has suffered.Trump’s Ukraine envoy: World must return to policy of ‘maximum pressure’ on Iran
Trump, much like Reagan, despises the idea of nuclear proliferation. His continuous alerts again a possible Russian use of nukes against Ukraine and his graphic, somber descriptions of the terrible human tragedy that might ensue teaches that he considers global security much more ominous than the way he is usually described.
Removing the Iranian shady cloud over the Middle East will also obtain large-scale regional shifts: Saudi Arabia, and many other pragmatic countries in the Arab world, preferred to sit on the sidelines at best, or alienate themselves from the United States and warm up relations with Iran at worst.
Iran’s threats on their sovereignty were well received, and short of any meaningful support from Washington, they preferred to equip themselves with an insurance policy, and side with the regional bully. Without this threat, the path for Israeli-Arab normalization and for long-term stability in the Middle East will be wide-open.
On the global level, this heavy blow to Iran will also significantly weaken its superpower patrons, Russia and China. Those continue to support Iran, whether it's Russia’s continued purchasing of military equipment like drones and missiles that fuel the war in Ukraine or China’s circumvention of American sanctions in buying massive amounts of oil barrels from the Ayatollahs, saving the Iranian petro-state from economic collapse.
Only inches away from clinching nuclear weapons, Iran does not stop threatening the US and its allies. Especially since October 7, Israel and the world have learned the hard way that their enemies should be taken at their word. Should not be taken lightly. The disastrous results of allowing Iran to nuclearize cannot be overstressed.
Trump is now facing a golden opportunity to take the Iranian gun off the table, and deny Khamenei of his radical vision. The new reality in the Middle East renders limited pre-emptive military action – no boots on the ground – much more realistic. This option used to be considered risking regional war, yet the Iranian gates of hell have already broken on the region, and backfired. Iran’s newfound weakness invites American leadership, not against the regime – but against its capabilities to threaten the region and the world.
Recently Trump declared he was looking to establish “long-lasting peace” in the region. Now it is his time to greenlight the strike that will close the Iranian nuclear program and open the door for this very peace. Weakened proxies and air defenses, a readier-than-ever region, and gains that clearly trump the cost.
Checkmate.
The world must return to a policy of “maximum pressure” against Iran to turn it into a more democratic country, US President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg tells an Iranian opposition event in Paris.Vance: Allowing Israel to dismantle Hamas’s last battalions is what Trump means by ‘all hell’
Trump has vowed to return to the policy he pursued in his previous term that sought to wreck Iran’s economy to force the country to negotiate a deal on its nuclear program, ballistic missile program and regional activities.
“These pressures are not just kinetic, just not military force, but they must be economic and diplomatic as well,” Retired Lieutenant-General Kellogg, who is set to serve as Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, tells the audience at Paris-based Iranian opposition group National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).
He says there is an opportunity “to change Iran for the better” but that this opportunity would not last forever.
“We must exploit the weakness we now see. The hope is there, so must too be the action.”
Iran’s foreign ministry says, “The hosting of a terrorist group by France is a clear example of support for terrorism and a violation of the French government’s international legal obligation to combat terrorism.”
Kellogg has previously spoken at NCRI events, most recently in November, but his presence in Paris, even if in a personal capacity, suggests the group has the ear of the new US administration.
US Vice President-elect JD Vance appears to reveal the practical implication of Donald Trump’s threat that “all hell will break loose” if the hostages are not released by January 20.Amb. Alan Baker and Lt.-Col. (res.) Maurice Hirsch: The Republic of Yemen, the Houthi Terror Organization, and International Law
“It means enabling the Israelis to knock out the final couple of battalions of Hamas and their leadership. It means very aggressive sanctions and financial penalties on those who are supporting terrorist organizations in the Middle East. It means actually doing the job of American leadership,” Vance tells ‘FOX News Sunday.’
The IDF indeed states that it has yet to dismantle the final two of Hamas’s 24 battalions in Gaza, but that is because they are believed to be holding many of the remaining 98 hostages in central Gaza. Accordingly, the IDF has avoided operating there en masse, so as not to risk the lives of the hostages, given that a number of them have been accidentally killed in IDF operations or were executed by their Hamas captors when they feared Israeli troops were approaching.
Vance does not elaborate on the financial sanctions that the incoming Trump administration has planned against Hamas, but the Biden administration has already levied a host of sanctions against the terror group and has issued arrest warrants for several of its leaders.
The incoming vice president asserts Trump’s threat of “all hell to pay” in the Mideast if the hostages are not released is what sparked recent progress in the ongoing hostage talks.
“We’re hopeful there’s going to be a deal that struck toward the very end of Biden’s administration — maybe the last day or two,” Vance says. “But regardless of when that deal is struck, it will be because people are terrified that there are going to be consequences for Hamas.”
The Republic of Yemen is a fully-recognized sovereign state entity. It bears full state responsibility for any aggressive, offensive, and terrorist actions of the Houthis emanating from Yemen's sovereign territory, whether directed at Israel or the international community.Sen. Jon Ossoff's anti-Israel vote is a betrayal of the Georgian Jews who support him
Ongoing aggressive military actions against Israel, including the repeated firing of long-range ballistic missiles and drones targeting Israel's civilian population, constitute a plethora of crimes including the crime of aggression, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Yemen has obstructed international shipping for more than a year, in violation of international maritime law.
By turning a blind eye to such aggressive activity, the international community is, in effect, shamelessly indicating to the Houthi terror organization presently ruling Yemen that it remains indifferent to the illegal actions emanating from Yemen's territory. It is transmitting to the Houthi terrorists that they enjoy an evident carte blanche to continue blatantly and openly violating international law, without fear of any international response or reprisal.
While the Western world continues to adhere to accepted, and often archaic, diplomatic and political rules, the terrorists - Hamas, Hizbullah, and the Houthis - openly, and brazenly, flout international law, at the bidding, encouragement, and support of Iran.
When Jon Ossoff was elected to the US Senate in 2021, he became the first Jewish senator from Georgia, and the first from the Deep South since 1885. During his campaign, he declared himself “strongly committed to Israel’s security as a homeland for the Jewish people.” This commitment is in line with the overwhelming consensus of American Jews and is the majority opinion among Americans as a whole.Biden shifts $100m in military aid from Israel and Egypt to Lebanon
Ossoff’s recent vote to ban specific arms sales to Israel during its ongoing battle against the Iranian hegemony marks a disgraceful reversal of that promise. As Israel faces one of the most serious, multi-front threats in recent memory, the senator’s decision to vote against supporting Israeli military needs was not only a betrayal of his previous stance but also an affront to the Jewish community of Georgia.
The context of Ossoff’s vote cannot be overstated. Israel is currently engaged in one of its most critical and complex wars. While Israel has always faced threats from groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, the situation today is on a larger scale, and more complicated. Hamas continues to hold hostages, including American citizens. By failing to assist Israel in its battle to win the war, Sen. Ossoff is betraying those held captive.
Israel relies on the United States as a key ally to ensure it has the military resources to defend itself. The US has historically been Israel’s primary supplier of critical weaponry that helps safeguard Israeli civilians and defend its borders. Ossoff’s vote against such sales – especially while Israel is under attack – sends a disturbing message to both his Jewish constituents and to Israel’s enemies. It is not unpopular to want this war to end soon, but by attempting to kneecap Israel’s ability to buy arms from the United States, the senator is only prolonging the war. The end to the war comes when Israel wins it, when the hostages are released, and Hamas is no longer a functioning group in the region.
With the Republicans sweeping the November elections, and Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office, the votes against aiding Israel become a moot point. Trump has already threatened that there will be “hell to pay” if Hamas does not release the hostages soon.
As Trump puts together seemingly the most pro-Israel administration in recent years ahead of his inauguration on January 20, it becomes curious as to why Sen. Ossoff would cast a performative vote, knowing it would upset his Jewish constituents, the very people who supported him.
The Biden administration, in its final days, is reallocating more than $100 million in military aid from Israel and Egypt to Lebanon to reinforce a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.
This reallocation includes $95 million from Egypt and $7.5 million from Israel, the Associated Press reported last week.
Most of the money is designated to strengthen the Lebanese Armed Forces, enabling its deployment in Southern Lebanon and supporting the U.N. peacekeeping mission along the Blue Line—the de facto border with Israel, approximately 18 miles south of the Litani River.
An additional $15 million is earmarked for Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces— the country’s gendarmerie and national police—to upgrade police infrastructure and maintain control in the south. Smaller amounts include $3.06 million for Palestinian Authority police operations and $2.5 million for Jordan’s Public Security Directorate, to enhance responses to public demonstrations.
Under the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement that went into force on Nov. 27 and ended nearly 14 months of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah, Israeli forces are gradually withdrawing from Southern Lebanon over 60 days. Simultaneously, the Iranian terrorist proxy is to retreat north of the Litani, allowing LAF and U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) troops to assume control of areas previously patrolled by the IDF.
In Oct 2024 Hamas issued an updated “identified” fatality with age & sex detail. For age 45-59 it was 2,861 men & 1,557 women. So according to Lancet article that says overall Gaza deaths are 41% more than Hamas says, for this age range the undercount is 100% women, 0% males. 2/ pic.twitter.com/FMr5AyTZUs
— Aizenberg (@Aizenberg55) January 12, 2025
Also interesting is that the authors ran one analysis of the data using “Bayesian model averaging” which shows 50,663 deaths, much closer to published Hamas data. Authors don’t explain why they don’t use this model. Perhaps they did not like the result. 4/ pic.twitter.com/udellQx5oW
— Aizenberg (@Aizenberg55) January 12, 2025
More detail to come on deeply flawed Lancet piece which could have been subtitled: “Research shows the often cited prior claim of 186,000 deaths in Gaza published in the Lancet is wrong; it’s actually more than 60% lower according to our new methodology.” END
— Aizenberg (@Aizenberg55) January 12, 2025
In April 2024, Al-Hayya suggested Hamas might disarm for a Palestinian state. Fast-forward to December, and he’s leading their military wing. Negotiating peace? More like perfecting double-speak. pic.twitter.com/Wtq1SxN476
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 12, 2025
Iran and Hamas: A partnership that’s less about diplomacy and more about delivering terror. Al-Hayya openly boasts about this relationship—it’s not a secret, it’s a strategy. pic.twitter.com/2Cz3lkyBCH
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 12, 2025
Khalil Al-Hayya isn’t the diplomat he pretends to be. His actions and alliances paint the real picture: a refusal to lay down arms and a commitment to Hamas’ long-standing agenda of violence, not peace. pic.twitter.com/G7gVtXpROx
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 12, 2025
British Islamic org. calls for boycott of Holocaust Memorial Day
The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) wrote to 460 town halls and educational centers asking them to boycott the UK's Holocaust Memorial Day.
The IHRC, which British media has linked to Iran, said it was "morally unacceptable" that Gaza was not considered a "genocide" alongside the Holocaust.
The Holocaust Memorial Day this year - on January 27 - will commemorate 80 years since the liberation of Auschwitz.
IHRC also wrote a letter to the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust itself, imploring the body to include Gaza on the list of genocides.
The letter quotes the Holocaust Memorial Day's website, which states the aim of the day is to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, as well as victims of recent genocides in "Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur.”
IHRC said that the failure to include Gaza in commemorations undermines the aim of marking the Holocaust, which is to prevent further genocides from occurring.
"Failure to recognize Gaza as a site of genocide is to remain silent in the face of profound injustice," it said.
"We urge supporters to request HMD organizers to acknowledge the genocide in Gaza in their 2025 commemoration."
It added that if the organizers refuse, supporters should "publicize the event organizer’s refusal to recognize all genocides, including that of the Palestinians in Gaza" and "organize a boycott of their event until they commit to opposing and condemning all genocides universally."
The chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, Karen Pollock, told The Telegraph that the IHRC’s call to boycott the day was “shocking and disgraceful."
“This is a cynical attempt to denigrate and undermine the memory of the Holocaust by drawing false parallels between the Holocaust – a unique and unprecedented episode in history – and unrelated current events," she added.
“It is vital that commemorations maintain their focus on the Holocaust, that Jewish victims are properly honored, and that the central role of antisemitism in this genocide is unequivocally recognized," Pollock continued.
Iranian Regime Connections
— Jewish Onliner (@JewishOnliner) January 12, 2025
Saied Ameli, former IHRC director, has held roles on Ayatollah Khamenei’s "Supreme Council of Cyberspace" and "Cultural Revolution" and advanced Tehran's agenda in the UK, including advocating for compulsory hijab wearing. pic.twitter.com/kVsnYAjJAV
Anti-Semitism Cloaked as Activism
— Jewish Onliner (@JewishOnliner) January 12, 2025
IHRC routinely uses anti-Zionist rhetoric to mask anti-Semitism, likening Israel to Nazis and pushing conspiracies about Zionists controlling global affairs. pic.twitter.com/u4SVW6igep
Iranian Regime Media Links:
— Jewish Onliner (@JewishOnliner) January 12, 2025
IHRC has collaborated with Iran’s state-run PressTV, banned in the UK for rights abuses. They have used it to spread anti-Western propaganda and legitimize their extremist narratives. pic.twitter.com/lNotUGelMg
Read Emma Fox’s full report for the Henry Jackson Society here: https://t.co/Zc7ExWNbGD
— Jewish Onliner (@JewishOnliner) January 12, 2025
In the British government’s independent 2023 review of its Prevent counter-extremism programme, directed by William Shawcross, the final report described the organisation as "an Islamist group ideologically aligned with the Iranian regime, that has a history of ‘extremist links…
— Drew Pavlou 🇦🇺🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼 (@DrewPavlou) January 12, 2025
Newtown Synagogue vandalised; attackers were attempting to start a fire
The vandals who graffitied the exterior of Newtown Synagogue early on Saturday morning also attempted to set fire to the building, police have revealed.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday morning, Police Commissioner Karen Webb confirmed an accelerant was used in the attack, though the fire self-extinguished within minutes.
“An accelerant of some type has been used, and that is an escalation in the level of criminality as far as I’m concerned,” Webb said.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said the incident was “very concerning, not just for the Jewish community but for the wider community”.
“We are of course appalled to see antisemitic crime on the streets of Sydney, in NSW there is never any justification for this kind of racist, antisemitic targeted attack on members of our community,” he said.
“When we have incidents like this that are clearly racist, that are clearly designed to target one group over another, community knows no quarter will be given,” he said.
“There’s been a massive escalation in anti-Semitic hate crime in Australia over the last twelve months. This is not tolerable for anyone that lives in NSW.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also condemned the attack.
“The vile graffiti we’ve seen overnight, including at the Newtown Synagogue, is abhorrent and needs to stop immediately,” he posted on X on Saturday.
“Australia is a better place than this. We made it illegal to use Nazi and other hate symbols because there’s no place in Australia for antisemitism.
“The people that committed these crimes should face the full force of the law.”
Shocking
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) January 12, 2025
The attackers attempted to burn Newtown Synagogue. pic.twitter.com/sxQPX3HZvJ
Antisemitism building up, needs to stop, Sydney official says after synagogue attack
David Ossip, president of the New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies, says he welcomes extra resources promised by the government to probe recent incidents of antisemitism, indicating that security will be stepped up.Australian pro-Israel counter-protesters told ‘go back to Germany’
“The New South Wales government has also provided us with additional funding to enhance Jewish communal security,” Ossip says in a statement.
Reacting to a graffiti attack on a synagogue in the Sydney suburb of Newton on Saturday, Inner West mayor Darcy Byrne posts a video in which he says the building was also the subject of an attempted firebombing, expressing solidarity with the Jewish community “at such a difficult time.”
We never thought we'd see the day when there are attempts to firebomb places of worship in our multicultural, multi-faith local community.
— Darcy Byrne (@MayorDarcy) January 11, 2025
It’s shocking and appalling.
This antisemitism is growing in our community and we must be strong in opposing it and stamping it out.
“This antisemitism has been building up for some time now, there’s been increasing reports across the last year and it needs to stop,” he adds.
Amid a spate of antisemitic incidents in Australia, pro-Israel counterprotesters in Melbourne were told to go to Europe and had money thrown at them at a Sunday protest, according to activist groups.
The Lions of Zion Melbourne activist group published footage on Instagram of pro-Palestinian marchers hurling abuse at counterprotesters.
“Go back to Poland! Go back to Germany!” a woman shouted at pro-Israel activists at the Free Palestine rally in Melbourne’s central business district.
Lions of Zion also said that change was thrown and flashed at the counterprotesters, “an attempt to reinforce age-old antisemitic stereotypes.”
Counter-antisemitism activist group J-United published a video of the protest on social media in which anti-Israel protesters chanted “All Zionists are terrorists.”
J-United said that this slogan was targeted toward all Jews, “as 95% of us are Zionists.”
Escalation in antisemitic activity
The Australian Jewish Association wrote on X/Twitter on Sunday that the streets of Melbourne had been “abandoned to a hate mob for well over a year,” referencing the escalation in antisemitic activity in the city and country at large since the October 7 massacre.
The Free Palestine rally was organized and endorsed by dozens of groups, including Free Palestine Melbourne, as a joint “refugee and anti-war rally.”
"Go back to Germany" - Jews abused at antisemitic protest in Melbourne CBD.
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) January 12, 2025
The streets of Melbourne have been abandoned to a hate mob for well over a year.
Today a small group of Jews, organised by the Lions of Zion decided to show that Melbourne CBD will not be closed to… pic.twitter.com/ON6kiJGxUz
A group of Australian Jews demonstrating for the right of the Israeli state to self-defense was attacked in Melbourne today by the “Free Palestine' Rally” organized by Nasser Mashni and Hash Tayeh
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) January 12, 2025
Melbourne and Montreal are global hotspots of antisemitism pic.twitter.com/tIpp9D7qB1
Melbourne, Australia - anti-Israel protestors surround pro-Israel supporters in CBD chanting “All Zionists are Terrorists” whilst @VictoriaPolice watch on
— Menachem Vorchheimer (@MenachemV) January 12, 2025
If Australians chanted “All Muslims are Terrorists” they would be arrested; yet when Jews are targeted, no one is arrested ! pic.twitter.com/gY6N8ZDs6s
Katz: ‘Anyone who engages in terrorism like in Gaza will be treated like Gaza’
Israel will not allow Judea and Samaria to become like the Gaza Strip or Southern Lebanon, Defense Minister Israel Katz vowed on Sunday amid another uptick in Palestinian terrorism in the region.
“Anyone who engages in terrorism like in Gaza will be treated like Gaza,” the minister told soldiers during a visit to the headquarters of the Israel Defense Forces’ Judea and Samaria Division near Beit El in the Binyamin Region.
Katz said Israel would continue counter-terrorism operations to “cut off the arms of the Iranian octopus” and to maintain the security of Jewish communities in the region, according to a readout from his office.
In the wake of the Jan. 6 terrorist shooting that killed three Israelis in the Arab village of Al-Funduq, just west of Nablus, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had approved “a series of additional offensive and defensive actions in Judea and Samaria.”
The terrorists who carried out that attack, killing Rachel Cohen, 73, Aliza Rice, 70, and Israel Police Master Sgt. Elad Yaakov Winkelstein, 35, remain at large. Seven more people were wounded in the attack.
Katz condemned the attack, which was claimed by the Hamas terrorist group, as “an act of war” that would be “met with a decisive response.”
The Palestinian governing Fatah party blames Hamas for suffering in Gaza and says Hamas is an aid-stealing Iranian proxy. Hamas says hostages are "missing." Lebanon's army isn't stopping Hezbollah. Citizen Spokesman Stav Cohen with what you need to know. pic.twitter.com/uqJ2c0IICH
— Israeli Citizen Spox (@IsrCitizenSpox) January 12, 2025
Troops of the Nahal Brigade Continue Operations in the Beit Hanoun Area in the Gaza Strip
— Israel War Room (@IsraelWarRoom) January 12, 2025
The brigade's troops are engaging in close-quarters combat, conducting searches, and dismantling terror infrastructure. During operations weapons including explosives, RPG launchers, and… pic.twitter.com/DpSnlaM25J
Nahariya resident dies of wounds sustained in Nov. 26 Hezbollah attack
The Nahariya Municipality announced on Sunday night that a 75-year-old resident of the northern city died of wounds sustained in a Nov. 26 Hezbollah rocket attack on her home.
“With great sorrow, we were informed tonight of the death of Tamar Edri, a resident of the city, who was critically wounded when a rocket hit her home on Jabotinsky Street, in a barrage fired at the city during the Swords of Iron war some two months ago, and had been fighting for her life in the hospital ever since,” the municipality said in a statement.
Edri’s apartment was hit by a terrorist rocket fired from Lebanon around 11:30 p.m. on Nov. 26, mere hours before the ceasefire deal between the Israel Defense Forces and Iranian-backed Hezbollah went into effect. In addition to Edri, three other people were lightly wounded in the attack.
Edri was a mother of four daughters and nine grandchildren, Ynet said.
Nachum Rosenberg, Edri’s son-in-law, told the Israeli news outlet on Sunday evening that while she had not regained consciousness since Nov. 26, the family had expected her to recover from her wounds.
“We knew that her injury was not simple, but we expected that she would recover and we did not lose hope. Unfortunately, that did not happen,” Rosenberg told Ynet.
May her memory forever be a blessing. 🕯️ pic.twitter.com/VUop0fny7A
— StandWithUs (@StandWithUs) January 12, 2025
Islamic Jihad terrorists caught on way to shooting attack in Samaria
Israeli security forces arrested two Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists on Saturday evening who were on their way to carry out a shooting attack in the “immediate future.”
Islamic Jihad operatives Ahmad Zaqarna, 21, and Tariq Abu Zayd, 25, from Qabatiya in the Jenin area, were arrested in Nablus (Shechem) with two loaded M-16 rifles, ammunition and military gear in their possession by the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), the two organizations revealed in a joint statement with the Israel Police on Sunday.
Initial questioning by Shin Bet agents indicated that the terrorists left Jenin and were on their way to carry out a shooting attack, the statement noted, adding that their interrogation was “ongoing.”
In the wake of the Jan. 6 terrorist shooting that killed three Israelis in the Arab village of Al-Funduq, just west of Nablus, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that he had approved “a series of additional offensive and defensive actions in Judea and Samaria.”
The terrorists who carried out that attack, killing Rachel Cohen, 73, Aliza Rice, 70, and Israel Police Master Sgt. Elad Yaakov Winkelstein, 35, remain at large. Seven more people were wounded in the attack.
Medical transfers from Gaza 🧵
— COGAT (@cogatonline) January 12, 2025
Israel takes proactive steps to facilitate the departure of patients, especially children in critical conditions, for medical treatment outside Gaza. This is subject to a receiving country's consent and a security evaluation.
1/5》》》 pic.twitter.com/CzDEnW9Ae6
Israel is prepared to handle larger volumes of patients than those currently leaving. The scope of transfers is based on the capacity of international organizations and the willingness of third countries to accept patients, not on any limitation imposed by Israel.
— COGAT (@cogatonline) January 12, 2025
3/5》 pic.twitter.com/pCPOD5DbVV
COGAT works closely with international bodies to ensure transparency and improve workflows. We remain flexible and responsive to the urgency of requests, continuously seeking ways to streamline procedures while prioritizing the safety of all involved.
— COGAT (@cogatonline) January 12, 2025
5/5《》 pic.twitter.com/InotPPdtGS
Pro-Palestinian online campaign claims Hamas rapes did not happen
Palestinian propagandists distorted the words of an Israeli prosecutor, who was until recently a member of the team prosecuting Hamas sexual crimes on October 7, to claim there had been no rapes during the massacre.
Moran Gez said in an interview with Ynet's sister publication Yedioth Ahronoth that it was hard to prosecute the rapes and sexual assault committed by the terrorists because many of the victims of the atrocities did not survive and therefore could not come forward.
"Unfortunately, we have no victims. They were either murdered or some of those who were raped chose not to come forward to share what had happened," she said. She said women's groups also had few recorded testimonies although they were approached by parents asking what they can do when their daughter was a victim of those crimes.
Although there is evidence of rapes and sexual assaults, the difficulty in trial is attributing the atrocity to a particular perpetrator. "I would lower expectations," Gez said. "I know there is a desire in the public and I understand the need when dealing with such heinous crimes, but most of the cases may not meet the standards of the courts for convictions.
Soon after the interview was published, posts appeared on social media claiming the accusations of rape were a "mistake," or a "joke." A journalist who has hundreds of thousands of followers led a campaign of denial of the rape accusations, using the interview and the fact that no charges were filed, as "evidence" that no such crimes were committed.
Gez said she was astounded at the post. "Hamas terrorists raped young Israelis and murdered them, even while the rape was still going on," she said. "Amid such trauma, women who were raped by the terrorists and residents of Gaza who followed them across the border, could not muster the courage to report the ordeal. Any other interpretation of my words is nothing more that cheap propaganda that ignores the fact that Hamas terrorists committed war crimes. The only appropriate punishment for them, in my view, is death."
The former prosecutor said that pro-Palestinian groups have distorted her comments and have taken them out of context. "Hamas operatives and others who took part in the October 7 massacre committed war crimes that include all kinds of sexual offenses, most of which resulted in the murder of their victims."
A small police force is needed to protect one brave woman who silently holds a sign that reads "Rape is Not Resistance" pic.twitter.com/QzTm3K1zLQ
— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) January 12, 2025
Hundreds gather in NYC’s Central Park to mourn slain Hamas hostages Youssef and Hamza Ziyadne
Hundreds of people gather in New York City’s Central Park to mourn Youssef Ziyadne, 53, and his son Hamza Ziyadne, 22, who were kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, 2023, and killed in captivity.Mother of British hostage accuses UK government of failing to secure release of daughter
The IDF recovered the hostage’s remains from a tunnel in southern Gaza’s Rafah on Tuesday night.
The demonstration, organized by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, also calls for the release of the remaining 94 Israeli hostages held by terrorists in Gaza.
Jordan Sheff, whose cousins Gali and Ziv Berman were seized from their home on Kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7, addresses the crowd: “We are now in critical days. Every moment matters. 98 hostages remain in Hamas’s hands. Their conditions are dire and every single one of them is in desperate need of urgent humanitarian relief. We know that the negotiations team has traveled to Doha. We call on them to do everything possible to sign a deal that will bring Gali, Ziv, and all 98 hostages home.”
Among the hostages Hamas is holding are two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014.
The mother of a British hostage being held in Gaza has criticised the UK government of failing to deliver “action or results” in securing the release of her daughter.
Mandy Damari, the mother of Emily, 28, the only British hostage still being held in Gaza, said the time for sympathy was over and that “now is the time for solutions”.
Damari made the comments at a rally at Sha'ar HaNegev in the north-western Negev, at one of many of the nationwide demonstrations held across Israel by relatives of hostages on Saturday night.
Last night I told fellow hostage families that @realDonaldTrump is the best hope to bring our loved ones home. But I also spoke about Emily's new family - all of you. The people sharing her story online and on the streets. Thank you. 464 days🎗️ pic.twitter.com/SKVLvatEgU
— Mandy Damari 🎗 (@DamariMandy) January 12, 2025
She made reference to her trip to London in December, where she met with senior politicians including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy, to plead for help in bringing her daughter and the other remaining hostages home.
“I left London with more sympathy than I knew what to do with, but not anything in the way of action or results,” she said.
While Damari was grateful that the UK government had raised the profile of Emily’s plight in public and private meetings, she said her calls to action had been ignored.
She said she asked Britain to publicly call for humanitarian aid to be delivered to the hostages, and to use its influence over Qatar and Turkey to change Hamas’ policies, but that she received no answers.
“I did not ask for the moon. I simply asked that someone show up and stand up for my daughter, as any mother would,” she said.
Shlomo Mansour is the eldest hostage held captive by Hamas terrorists in Gaza. He was cruelly abducted from his home at the age of 86. As a child he survived the Farhud pogroms against Baghdad's Jewish community in 1941. Later he immigrated to Israel from Iraq, was one of the… pic.twitter.com/kchMBye1LJ
— יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog) January 12, 2025
Erin Molan: Imagine... if it was your child... what would you do?
Austrailian TV presenter Erin Molan delivers a poignant emotional plea for the hostages in Gaza and the suffering of innocent children, urging you to imagine your child in their shoes. A mother's cry for empathy and action.
And the Scumbags of the Week Are.. | The Quad Clips
A lot happened last week: Israel fights on in Gaza; Trump was declared President by Congress as he issued another ultimatum on the hostages; an Israeli soldier was almost arrested in Brazil and Houthis shot more missiles.
US anti-Israel activists blame Jewish state for Los Angeles wildfire crisis
US Jewish groups condemned anti-Israel activists on Thursday for blaming the Los Angeles wildfire crisis on Israel.
Several anti-Israel groups and commentators linked the war in Gaza and US military spending on Israel to the catastrophic fires.
Code Pink, a far-left activist group, said on Instagram, “When US taxes go to burning people alive in Gaza, we can’t be surprised when those fires come home.”
The group also said it was pressuring California Senator Alex Padilla at his Washington, DC office, tying the war to climate change.
California sees blazes most years, with the wildfire season typically beginning in June or July and running through October, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association. But CalFire says January wildfires are not unprecedented; there was one in 2022 and 10 in 2021.
The season is beginning earlier and ending later due to rising temperatures and decreased rainfall tied to climate change, according to recent data. Rains that usually end fire season are often delayed, meaning fires can burn through the winter months, the association said.
The New York branch of the anti-Zionist Jewish Voice for Peace, in an Instagram post about the fires, said, “Instead of putting resources toward making our country livable, our government is putting billions toward Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.”
Fatima Mohammed, a leader of New York’s hardline anti-Israel group Within Our Lifetime, posted an image of the fires and said, “The flames of Gaza will not stop there.”
Deputy Israeli fire chief, Itzik Oz, says Israel offered to send a team to help Los Angeles with the wildfires – as Israel did for Florida – but was turned down.
— Chaya Eitan (@ChayaEitan) January 12, 2025
Did Israel Cause the California Fires? 🔥 EXPLAINED
AI is getting better - But it's still visible. https://t.co/SbVUJXMB5Q pic.twitter.com/vN3jpCO2gt
— Tal Hagin (@talhagin) January 12, 2025
PMW: Palestinian Authority's ruling party: California fires are Allah’s punishment of Trump
An official Fatah website published a cartoon depicting the California fires as punishment for Trump and the United States.
The cartoon shows President-elect Donald Trump warning that "I will open the gates of hell on the Middle East" as the California fires burn behind him. A verse from the Quran appears below the cartoon insinuating that the fires are Divine punishment for Trump's threats. The verse states that people believe they are in control of their beautiful world, but Allah will "mow it down as if it never flourished," serving as a sign that humanity should learn its lesson.
Text on cartoon:
Upper right – "California fires"
Upper left – Trump: "I will open the gates of hell on the Middle East"
Quran 10:24 – "Then just as the earth looks its best, perfectly beautified, and its people think they have full control over it, there comes to it Our command by night or by day, so We mow it down as if it never flourished yesterday! This is how We make the signs clear for people who reflect" [Translation by: Dr. Mustafa Khattab, The Clear Quran].
[Falestinona, Fatah's Information and Culture Commission in Lebanon, Jan. 10, 2025]
It should be noted that Trump had warned that if the hostages are not released by his inauguration, then "all hell will break out in the Middle East."
The United Nations 🇺🇳 apparently supports the view that Israel lit the fires in Los Angeles.
— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) January 12, 2025
How long are countries going to keep supporting a body that clearly values antisemitism over their alleged humanitarian mission? pic.twitter.com/YAz2vHx4Bj
Disgusting: The Iranian Regime Rejoices At American Suffering
— Shelley G (@ShelleyGldschmt) January 11, 2025
This Iranian state news flyer reads: "God's revenge for Gaza: The angel flapped its wings and the devil got burned."
"The destruction of at least 10,000 homes with damage of at least $150 billion are among the losses… pic.twitter.com/SwyFv4lRPv
A screen recording of Dr. Rizvi’s IG stories: pic.twitter.com/ifEuCeiJO1
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) January 12, 2025
This is what mob rule looks like. Hundreds of thousands of California s are currently under siege by massive fires.
— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) January 11, 2025
DJ Khaled posting “sending prayers” is making the pro-Hamas mob go crazy. Then these people wonder why nobody likes them. pic.twitter.com/aKP3aAV6BU
Another heartwarming sight for all the Parliamentarians who back the “Palestine Solidarity Campaign”. Ever faithful, the Leeds branch marched through the city chanting for terrorism yesterday, as they do every week. "Long live the intifada!" 1/5 pic.twitter.com/DlwGfJyAUH
— habibi (@habibi_uk) January 12, 2025
Don't forget to make the triangle gesture. It shows you back Hamas.
— habibi (@habibi_uk) January 12, 2025
Stand proud for abductions, rape, torture, and mass murder. 3/5 pic.twitter.com/UDKwbEjzD7
The Green Party too are regulars. The party is joyfully toxic these days.
— habibi (@habibi_uk) January 12, 2025
So there it is. This is what Parliamentarians who undoubtedly claim they are "anti-racists" are backing. Some of the most foul hatred ever seen in the UK in our times. 5/5 pic.twitter.com/uCXxMENnLH
'Justice for Gaza': Rioters vandalize synagogue in Bologna
Rioters in Bologna vandalized the local synagogue with graffiti reading “Justice for Gaza,” as well as other slogans, and caused damage to the property, including removing doors from their frames and other light structural damage.
The vandalism was denounced by Bologna Mayor Matteo Lepore, who expressed solidarity with the Jewish community and stated that vandalism occurred across the city.
Israeli Ambassador to Italy Jonathan Peled posted on X/Twitter that this was a serious antisemitic attack that must be condemned.
The Saturday night riot was originally anti-police and anti-authority, given its denouncement of the death of an Egyptian dual citizen, but spread towards wider vandalism across the city.
This was part of the larger and more violent concurrent riots in Rome, which were triggered by the same anti-police sentiments.
During these Rome protests, at least eight police officers were injured. There have been no reports of vandalism at any synagogues in Rome.
Statements from Italian politicians
President of the Senate Ignazio La Russa expressed firm and total condemnation of both riots, highlighting the attack on Bologna’s synagogue, stating there is “no justification and no tolerance.”
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also condemned the violence in Rome but did not refer to Bologna or the vandalism of the synagogue in her statements.
The riot was about the death of someone involved in a police chase and the complaint was about the authorities. And yet, the rioters went straight for the local synagogue. Pure, vile antisemitism. https://t.co/XT94pYABhD
— Heidi Bachram 🎗️ (@HeidiBachram) January 12, 2025
'Free Palestine' costs every single Australian taxpayer
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) January 12, 2025
Many of the antisemites are likely receiving welfare but for Australian taxpayers, the cost of the 'Free Palestine' movement has been astronomical.
Incidents of vandalism of public and private property would be in the… pic.twitter.com/Yyun2BlPN8
Nearly 1,000 sign petition calling on Brooklyn cinema to ban ‘Zionist propaganda’ film about 1972 Munich massacre
Nearly 1,000 people have signed an online petition calling on a cinema in Brooklyn to stop screening a film about the Munich massacre during the 1972 Summer Olympics.UKLFI: Student Unions accused of illegally backing Palestine Action
September 5, directed by Tim Fehlbaum, follows the terrorist attack carried out by the Palestinian militant organisation Black September, which saw two members of the Israeli Olympic team killed and nine taken hostage. Those kidnapped were later killed.
The film, which premiered at the 81st Venice International Film Festival on August 29, 2024, is screening this January at the Alamo Drafthouse in Downtown Brooklyn.
A petition organised by a group of New York cinema workers is calling on the cinema to stop platforming the film and has amassed more than 1,000 signatures.
The workers describe the film as “Zionist propaganda”, which misrepresents the militants who carried out the massacre as “antisemitic terrorists”.
The film is told from the perspective of an ABC Sports broadcasting team, whose coverage quickly adapted from the Olympic Games to the Israeli athletes being taken hostage.
“The film is an ahistorical and dehumanising dramatisation of Operation Iqrit and Biram, undertaken by the Black September Organisation at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich in the name of the liberation of 200+ Palestinian prisoners,” the petition said.
“Echoing the well-worn pattern seen since 9/11, September 5 is yet another attempt by the Western media to push its imperialist and racist agenda, manufacturing consent for the continued genocide and cultural decimation of Palestine and its peoples.
“It is quintessential Orientalism: Depicting Arabs and brown people as evil, antisemitic terrorists, while lionising the very newsrooms that provide political cover and, in many cases, cheer for endless wars and genocide.”
After the Munich massacre, Israeli initiated an assassination campaign to avenge the kidnapping and murder of the Olympic athletes.
The cinema workers dubbed the operation as the “wanton assassination of Palestinian activists throughout Europe and the Levant, some of whom had nothing to do with the planning of the operation”.
They object to serving “food and drink while audiences relive the bloodletting of 1972, and as Palestinians face constant bombardment, starvation, and sexual violence at the hands of the Israeli army in 2025”.
Several Student Unions are likely to be in breach of charity law by their affiliation with pro-Palestine groups who have backed the organization “Palestine Action” and encouraged its illegal actions.Young Jews working in theatre are being subjected to ‘loyalty tests’ over Israel
65 Student groups, some of whom are affiliated with Student Unions, have signed up to a statement saying that they stand in “unwavering solidarity with the Palestine Actionists who have taken action against Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest weapons manufacturer.”
UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has written to 20 Student Unions, affiliated with groups who have signed the statement, pointing out that they are acting illegally by helping the groups who back Palestine Action. UKLFI has explained that it is a breach of the charitable purpose of the Student Union to provide these groups with student union facilities and possibly funding.
All the student unions have charitable purposes which limit their activities to promoting the education and welfare of students at the university. Being affiliated with and assisting an organisation that encourages and promotes illegal activities is not an activity that promotes the education or welfare of students and would therefore be outside the charitable objects of the Student Union, and not allowed.
The student groups involved are affiliated with Student Unions at Universities including Manchester, Dundee, Strathclyde, Brunel, Imperial College, Birkbeck, Swansea, Kings College London, Essex, and SOAS.
The statement, published on Instagram, refers to the criminal damage of factories as “crucial work” and says that they will “stand in the way of anyone seeking to halt their fast-spreading success.”
Many of Palestine Action’s supporters have been arrested and imprisoned for criminal damage, and a number are being investigated for acts of terrorism. Palestine Action aligns itself with the core beliefs of Hamas, a proscribed terrorist organisation. It has been described in a report by Lord Walney, as “a Far Left, anarchist, anti-Israel activist group founded in 2020 that engages in law breaking and business disruption in order to “take direct action against Israel’s arms trade in Britain” and, more broadly, to “end Israeli apartheid””.
In its campaigns, Palestine Action has used illegal occupation of premises and destruction of property and vandalism. Their actions include destroying property at Elbit factories, spraying red paint and smashing windows of Government buildings and Barclays Banks across the UK.
Acclaimed theatre and film producer Sir Nicholas Hytner has said young Jewish workers in the industry are being subjected unsettling “loyalty tests” over their views on Israel.
Appearing at the Jewish Labour Movement’s annual conference in north London, where he was quizzed by JW3 chief executive Raymond Simonson, the former artistic director of London’s National Theatre said he was frequently asked himself what it was like being a Jewish theatre worker at the moment.
Hytner, 68, who grew up in what he previously described as being “a typical Jewish, cultured family” in south Manchester, explained that as a result of his own status within the theatre world today he was personally not subjected to the same treatment as those who were from a younger generation than him in the industry.
“I’m often asked what it’s like being a Jewish theatre worker at the moment,” he revealed. “Personally I don’t know, for not particularly reputable reasons.
“Because I am who I am nobody would dare do to me… I’m sorry I’m just being honest.
“What I know they do to younger Jews in the theatre, which is ask them where they stand. (on Israel),” he observed.
“That’s the thing that really unsettles young Jewish theatre workers.
“‘Where do you stand?’ The loyalty test.”
Raymond Simonson and Sir Nicholas Hytner at JLM conference
Hytner, a Tony and Olivier winner in the past, also made that observation that “around” London’s Royal Court theatre, dogged with allegations around antisemitism, “there are quite a lot of the people who demand the loyalty test”.
Explaining how he reached this observation he said he knew some at the Royal Court found the character of Jesse Stone – a Jewish book publisher in the play Giant he directs – “very irritating”.
Discipline finally caught up with @ColumbiaLaw professor Katherine Franke, an egregious antisemite and anti-Israel force on campus. Franke was booted out (or “accelerating her planned retirement” according to the administration) and left her job on Friday.
— Canary Mission (@canarymission) January 12, 2025
Former @Columbia… pic.twitter.com/D3eE1pvaws
Note to @nytimes: Discriminating against Israeli students isn't "activism."
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 12, 2025
When Katherine Franke says Columbia has become a “toxic and hostile environment,” she shouldn't be referring to pro-Palestinian advocates.
It has become toxic -- for Jewish and Israeli students. pic.twitter.com/2QBT0ovRGh
HARVARD REWARDS ANTISEMITIC STUDENTS, PLEASE SHARE:
— Shabbos Kestenbaum (@ShabbosK) January 12, 2025
1. Meet Harvard student Rameen A. Javadian
2. Shortly after October 7th, Rameen was caught on video physically accosting a Jewish student on Harvard’s campus during a “globalize the intifada” rally that was organized to… pic.twitter.com/YWD8IoU7dt
Barrister reprimanded after AJA makes complaint about antisemitic posts.
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) January 12, 2025
Reported by @ElizaJBarr in today's Sunday Telegraph
A high-flying barrister has received a rap on the knuckles after praising Hamas as “absolute heroes” of the Israel-Palestine war.
Nicholas Poynder was… pic.twitter.com/NJYuFsXbZZ
UPDATE - DISMISSED FROM EMPLOYMENT
— GnasherJew®גנאשר (@GnasherJew) January 12, 2025
A representative of the International Centre for Parliamentary Studies (ICPS)/Government Exchange (GE) confirmed to us that Naveed Ahmed Chaudhuri’s employment has been terminated.
We commend ICPS/GE for their prompt intervention and… https://t.co/yuE4KUjK3K pic.twitter.com/DXKBpquqGs
UPDATE
— GnasherJew®גנאשר (@GnasherJew) January 12, 2025
Munder Shuhumi's X account has been recently deactivated. We believe that this is the outcome of a complaint by @UKLFI and others about his conduct online to @lavenpartners and @TheFCA.
Mr. Shuhumi, who is an approved representative of Laven, and his brother, Osama,… https://t.co/vNv6pa2Iuk pic.twitter.com/oc1aXHj0cf
Tyrone Collins, who oversees security for @DineamicGroup in Chicago, spreads vile antisemitic rhetoric, labeling Jews as pedophiles and terrorists.
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) January 12, 2025
How can @DineamicGroup defend this?
ACT NOW: https://t.co/xtlBpppQFa https://t.co/aAkRXJgK6O
Update: antisemite Tom Scheu III is no longer employed by @VTA. https://t.co/lL34E25oWT
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) January 12, 2025
🎥 Al Jazeera: News or Propaganda?
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 12, 2025
Behind its “progressive” brand, Al Jazeera pushes Qatar’s anti-Israel agenda. Owned by a regime that funds Hamas and restricts freedoms, it’s time to stop treating it as unbiased—it’s state-sponsored propaganda. pic.twitter.com/5GA4tUCNiK
In the same article, @nytimes says the IDF has entered villages, meeting with local leaders to gather up any weaponry in their towns. These are not acts of aggression.
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) January 12, 2025
But this is what constitutes "raiding" Syrian border villages for The New York Times?! pic.twitter.com/rUEzvOmKpu
Anti-Israel politicians and journos jumped on it. For example Alex Crawford from Sky spoke about how let down Gazan journalists feel and said it was impossible to feel anything but shame. pic.twitter.com/JzHMAuc9kR
— David Collier (@mishtal) January 12, 2025
But all this does is show up western media for being foolish and naive - and highlights how these ridiculously shallow and ignorant people have been turned into pro-Hamas puppets.... because of course the 'hero' of the piece - Abubaker Abed supported the Oct 7 atrocities... pic.twitter.com/eH79Hz2zfh
— David Collier (@mishtal) January 12, 2025
Any western journo that supported this terrorist should hang their heads in shame.
— David Collier (@mishtal) January 12, 2025
5 MILLION VIEWS. 32000 LIKES. Top journos from outlets like @skynews praising these terrorists as 'heroes'... How stupid and foolish they all are. They've been turned into Hamas puppets.
Houston we have a major problem. Google AI thinks Kabbalah "originated in Palestine in the 1st century CE."
— John Spencer (@SpencerGuard) January 12, 2025
The term Kabbalah originates from Hebrew קַבָּלָה (Qabbālāh), meaning "received tradition" or "that which is received." It refers to a mystical and esoteric system of… pic.twitter.com/VFXprEP64Z
Israel seizing $310m from PA to settle 15-year debt
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is moving to collect a debt that the Palestinian Authority has refused to pay for 15 years, amounting to 1.9 billion shekels ($515 million).IDF arrest over 25 terrorists in multiple West Bank counterterrorism raids
Smotrich informed the Cabinet on Sunday that the outstanding payments, which include 1.1 billion shekels ($310 million) owed to the Israel Electric Corporation, as well as debts with Israeli companies that supply fuel to the P.A., will be transferred in full, , Israel Hayom reported on Sunday.
The Norwegian trust that has served as an intermediary to transfer funds earmarked for the P.A. which were frozen in the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre in the northwestern Negev has been asked to release some 1.4 billion shekels ($379 million) that accumulated in the account between February and May 2024.
Smotrich nixed the U.S.-brokered deal with Norway in May after Oslo declared its unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, and the funds have been accumulating in an Israeli bank account in recent months.
Ramallah’s debt to the Israel Electric Corporation has been an issue for Jerusalem for 15 years. Former Finance Ministry Director-General Shai Babad reached two agreements in 2016 and 2020 with the Palestinian Authority in an attempt to collect the payments, but the P.A. repeatedly violated these.
According to Israel Hayom, Smotrich rejected U.S. demands for the P.A. to receive discounted interest rates, noting that Israeli citizens are not entitled to such discounts. The daily said that the Biden administration’s decision to boycott Smotrich helped bring about the move, as the lack of ties “meant the absence of an obligation to respond to their demands.”
A 2021 report from Israel’s State Comptroller’s Office warned that Ramallah’s outstanding electricity bill was the main reason for the persisting financial struggles of the Israel Electric Corporation.
The IDF arrested over 25 people during raids in the West Bank over the past week, including 16 people from the village of Burka outside of Ramallah last Monday (Jan. 6), the IDF announced in a Sunday statement.Hamas, Palestinian Authority trade blows over human shields, West Bank operations
The IDF also arrested a further eight people from Kabatiya on Saturday and another two in Nablus on Sunday.
The uptick in raids was triggered by a terror attack that killed three Israelis and injured seven others near the Palestinian village of al-Funduq on January 6. The three terrorists were affiliated with Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Jewish extremists burned cars and ransacked the village of Haja, near al-Funduq, on the night of January 6.
Following the attack, members of the Shahar Battalion raided the village of Burka and arrested 16 suspects involved in terrorist incidents on the same night.
A member of the unit explained part of their preparations before the raid: "An hour before we leave, each member of the force already knows exactly who the targets are that they are required to arrest and why. For an entire day, we memorize their facial features and study them in-depth, as well as the incidents in which they are suspected of involvement."
Raids across the West Bank
Eight more wanted people were arrested in a joint counterterrorism operation by the IDF, Border Police, and the Shin Bet in the Palestinian city Kabatiya in the northern West Bank on Friday. The operation reportedly took 12 hours.
During the raids, two terrorists were killed in close-quarter combat, while simultaneously, in the Jordan Valley area, an IAF aircraft killed two terrorists.
Two more terrorists from Kabatiya were arrested in Nablus on Sunday as they planned an imminent terror attack; they were also affiliated with Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Hamas and the Palestinian Authority took jabs at each other in official statements, with Hamas accusing the PA of trying to kill its members and the PA stressing it would not allow the terror group to “reproduce its activities in the West Bank.”
Hamas leader Abdul Rahman Shadid condemned the PA for attempting to “assassinate” members of the terror group in a statement on its official Telegram channel.
Shadid claimed, “What happened in Tulkarm Governorate, where the PA’s security forces directly shot at a resistance vehicle in an attempt to kill them for the second time in a few days, confirms that officials in the PA issued instructions to liquidate and kill resistance fighters in the West Bank.”
The first alleged attempt to kill the Hamas terrorists was reported by Al Jazeera earlier in the week, which said that PA forces opened fire on a vehicle carrying three men near Tulkarm, leaving one in critical condition.
Shadid added that the PA leadership and security apparatus have grown “increasingly willing to shed Palestinian blood, as evidenced by the events in [the] Jenin refugee camp over the past 38 days, during which nine Palestinians, including women and children, have been killed.”
On Friday, Hamas accused the PA of “shedding Palestinian blood” and claimed it was responsible for the deaths of 19 Palestinian “martyrs” since the initiation of the “Battle of the Flood of Al-Aqsa,” the Hamas name for the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel.
Fatah: Hamas not welcome in West Bank
Fatah, the governing party of the PA, said it “will not allow Hamas, which has jeopardized the interests and resources of the Palestinian people in favor of Iran and caused the destruction of Gaza, to reproduce its activities in the West Bank.”
Fatah said Hamas “provided free pretexts” for Israel to “carry out the largest campaign of extermination against our people in Gaza since October 7, 2023.”
Fatah also condemned Hamas’s use of Gazan civilians “as human shields instead of protecting them and their homes.”
It added that Hamas was responsible for the “catastrophic” humanitarian situation in Gaza, “characterized by the spread of hunger, poverty, and deprivation of basic humanitarian needs.”
“Hamas should not be allowed to reproduce such reckless actions in the West Bank,” it continued.
Fatah also warned of “Iran’s expansionist ambitions to turn Palestine into an area of influence, even at the cost of the blood of Palestinian children.”
The Palestinian Authority asserted last week that armed groups in the West Bank used mosques to store weapons. Effectively, Israeli and Palestinian authorities agree that terrorist groups like Islamic Jihad and Hamas use civilian infrastructure. https://t.co/nYAkufb2ln https://t.co/8FvePPJToL
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) January 12, 2025
Palestinian children of Jenin pic.twitter.com/0bkyFMSw93
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) January 12, 2025
Iran: Fitting Pieces of the Wrong-existent Puzzle
Henry Kissinger took a walk up the garden path with his naïve understanding of détente that implied equivalence between the Soviet Union and the "Free World" led by the United States, and arguably helped prolong the life of the Evil Empire.Turkish media linked to Erdogan claims Iran will send drones to Kurds in Syria - report
[T]he question that Obama and Kerry didn't tackle was why the mullahs might want to build a bomb and that, if they did, what they might do with it.
Here is what ["Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei] says: "The assumption that the country's problems can be solved through talks or even relations with America, is a manifest error. America has fundamental problems with the very nature of our regime.... In other words, they want us to become an ordinary country, something that a system created by Imam Khomeini can never be!"
Accept Iran on its own terms, warts and all, and do not fall for the fetishistic diplomatic claptrap peddled by Obama, Malley and Kerry.
Iran has reportedly agreed to supply 1,500 suicide drones to the Kurdish YPG/PKK group in Syria to counter Turkey’s military operations, a journalist of conservative Turkish newspaper Yeni Şafak, known for its support for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erodgan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP), reported on Sunday.Sister of Israeli captive in Iraq hopeful Trump will help free her
The PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) is a left-wing militia fighting for Kurdish independence in northeast Syria, northern Iraq, and southeastern Turkey, historically areas populated by ethnic Kurds.
The YPG (People's Defense Units) is a US-backed militia that controls areas of northeast Syria under the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES).
Turkey's AKP views both groups as "terror" organizations.
An alleged meeting between Iranian representatives and the Kurdish organization reportedly took place in a market in Iraq, where the Kurds reportedly requested 2,000 drones. According to the unverified report, Iran clarified it could only provide 1,500 units.
Despite claims of an agreement being reached, the shipment was reportedly delayed due to Turkey’s close monitoring and its threat to intercept any drone transfers into Syria. Determined to block the deal, Turkey’s reported efforts have brought cooperation between Iran and the YPG/PKK to a standstill, as per the report.
The report further claimed that, under Turkish pressure, the YPG/PKK has shifted to an alternative strategy - transporting drones in separate parts to avoid detection. However, the success of this strategy remains in doubt due to Turkey’s continued operations along the border.
“We are very hopeful that the incoming [U.S.] administration will put an end to the lack of accountability and lawlessness that the Iraqi government is allowed to get away with,” Emma Tsurkov told JNS on Saturday.
Emma’s sister Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Princeton University researcher, has been held captive in Iraq by Iranian-backed Shi’ite militia Kata’ib Hezbollah (“The Battalions of the Party of God”) since 2023. Washington has designated the group (a separate and distinct organization from the Lebanese Hezbollah) as a terrorist organization.
Last week, Emma Tsurkov took part in a meeting with senior Israeli officials and international mediators in a bid to secure her sister’s release.
The meeting followed a report by United Arab Emirates outlet Aram News earlier that week which revealed that a Western diplomatic team had been engaging with Iraqi factions to negotiate Elizabeth’s release.
However, Tsurkov said, the meeting was more of an act of empathy than a strategic gathering.
“My sister will come home when there is enough pressure applied to the Iraqi government by the U.S. government to release her,” she said.
“Our main focus currently is on the change of administration. We are really hoping that there will be more willingness to hold the Iraqi government accountable as they receive a lot of military and financial assistance from the U.S. government,” she continued.
“The terrorists holding my sister are on the payroll of the Iraqi government, who currently have it both ways—they have terrorists on their payroll but continue receiving money from the United States,” she added.
Last week’s gathering was orchestrated by Israel Defense Forces Brig. Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch, Jerusalem’s coordinator for prisoners and missing persons, and brought together foreign counterparts from nations who maintain a diplomatic presence in Iraq.
Under Obama and Biden, the Iranian regime routinized hostage-taking as a tool of statecraft. After Biden was elected, an IRGC commander said they could solve their economic problems by seizing 1,000 Americans for ransom. Now it's just a thing they casually do across the board. https://t.co/l9qzoXlTLn
— Omri Ceren (@omriceren) January 12, 2025
Two Belgian schools refuse to commemorate Shoah because of Gaza war
Two schools in Anderlecht—one of the 19 municipalities that make up Belgium’s Brussels–Capital Region—have refused to take part in a ceremony marking the laying of Stolpersteine, or Memory Stones, for Belgian Jews murdered during the Holocaust.
The schools said that they “do not wish to impose the children any discussion on the Holocaust given the current conditions in the Middle East.”
The gold-colored paving stones, known as “Stolpersteine’’ and created by German artist Gunter Demnig in 1992, are placed in front of the last places where victims of Nazi extermination or persecution, mostly Jews, chose freely to live, work or study. More than 100,000 have been laid across Europe.
The Association for the Memory of the Shoah is working in Brussels to install these stones in public spaces, in collaboration with local authorities. The next installation was due to take place on Friday in Anderlecht, where many Jews lived in the 1930s.
The ceremony is usually attended by schools located close to where the cobblestones are laid. With a survivor’s testimony and preparatory work, this participation is accompanied by an educational project.
Two schools in Anderlecht, however, declined invitations to attend the ceremony.
“The schools didn’t want us to come and talk about the Holocaust with the pupils, given the current conditions in the Middle East,’’ Bella Swiatlowski, treasurer of the Association of the Memory of the Shoah, who had invited the two schools, told Belgian daily La Dernière Heure.
“We don’t talk about the current conflict when we visit schools with Holocaust survivors. We’re there to promote a duty to remember. These are two separate elements,’’ she explained.
The refusal came in particular from some parents in the schools. One of the schools involved recently removed an Israeli flag that was part of a “Flags of the World” event, according to reports that sought to explain the decision, at the behest of a parent who had complained about the flag in the school playground.
European Jewish Association Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin expressed shock and anger at the decision by these schools, saying that such an ignorant approach to what happened is precisely why the two schools must attend.
“Get 10% Jewier!”
— Arsen Ostrovsky 🎗️ (@Ostrov_A) January 11, 2025
This is great advice by Bret Stephens, on how to respond to antisemitism! pic.twitter.com/etsNB07iQY
If you’re on X and are seeing this post you probably know @KassyAkiva
— Nachi Gordon (@gordon770) January 11, 2025
Well here is her full story told over on @MeaningfuPplPod https://t.co/z0w9l7xYbw pic.twitter.com/uw32frcJqr
Here’s the complete story of why I converted to Judaism.
— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) January 12, 2025
Thanks @gordon770 for interviewing me!https://t.co/znmKwqCRMS
Melbourne - Book: https://t.co/dVKutR8uQL
— Australian Jewish Association (@AustralianJA) January 12, 2025
"Hassan Nasrallah? In hell!
— Hamas Atrocities (@HamasAtrocities) January 12, 2025
Ismail Hanyieh? In hell!
Yahya Sinwar? In hell!
In the face of all our enemies, Am Yisrael Chai!"
עם ישראל חי! pic.twitter.com/ttzxbaUHnQ
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"He's an Anti-Zionist Too!" cartoon book (December 2024) PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022) |
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