Thursday, July 09, 2026

07/08 Links Pt2: Foreign donors ‘funding hate on Britain’s streets’; Platner suspends campaign; The Democrats’ Real Red Line; Israel extends Venezuela aid mission after request from interim president

From Ian:

Top New York Times Editor Joe Kahn Distances Newsroom From Kristof Dog-Rape Column—‘Wouldn’t Have’ Run It
The highest-ranking news editor at the New York Times, executive editor Joe Kahn, is publicly distancing himself and the paper’s 2,200-person newsroom from a May 11 Times opinion column that accused Israel of using dogs and carrots to rape Palestinian prisoners.

The article, by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, whose father served on the Nazi side during World War II, was denounced by the Israeli foreign ministry as "Hamas propaganda," "fabricated," and a "baseless blood libel." It also generated a legal threat from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a formal condemnation from the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. The piece relied largely on anonymous or Hamas-affiliated sources.

"It wasn’t edited by the newsroom," Kahn said in a podcast interview with the media and technology journalist Peter Kafka released Wednesday, July 8. Asked whether he would have published the article in the news pages, Kahn first replied, "we probably wouldn’t have." Then he provided a more definitive answer: "No, we wouldn’t have done that exact piece."

Kahn’s statement seems to put him publicly at odds with—and certainly struck a different tone from—Times opinion editor Kathleen Kingsbury, who, in a May question-and-answer-format column, defended the article. Asked, "Given the volume of the critical response, do you stand by this column?" she answered, "Yes. … Before publication, Nick’s reporting underwent a rigorous vetting process by Opinion’s fact-checking department to ensure that every testimony and anecdote he personally reported was supported by independent sources, as is the case with all sensitive pieces. The Times’s standards and legal teams also reviewed the column and offered feedback. After publication, we reviewed the factual challenges that readers and others raised, as is standard practice with any published piece. Editors found no errors."

Kingsbury did also make the point that "The Times’s news staff in the Middle East played no role in Nick’s column."
Federal judge rejects CAIR bid to block Florida terror designation
A federal judge declined on Monday to block Florida’s planned designation of the Council on American-Islamic Relations as a domestic terrorist organization.

CAIR and its Florida chapter sued last week after Gov. Ron DeSantis announced plans to designate the organization under the statute, arguing the law violates the First Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The plaintiffs also sought a temporary restraining order to prevent enforcement pending the outcome of the case.

U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker denied the request, writing that he was “not persuaded that relief must be afforded before defendants are heard.”

On Tuesday, CAIR and CAIR-Florida asked Walker to reconsider, arguing the designation could take effect as early as July 8 and would force the organizations to “shut down their operations in Florida and will substantially impair CAIR’s ability to pursue its mission nationwide.”

CAIR is represented by attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation and the Southern Poverty Law Center, which was recently indicted on charges including wire fraud, false statements to a bank and conspiracy to commit money laundering over its alleged use of donor funds to pay informants embedded in extremist groups.
UK group hosts speakers who celebrated October 7 attacks
The UK’s largest Palestinian cultural centre hosted two speakers who have openly celebrated the October 7th terror attacks, Metro can reveal.

Palestine House in central London platformed Latifa Abouchakra and Batool Subeiti at a ‘Lessons of Resistance’ panel event last week.

The controversial activists have both praised the deadly October 7th attacks on Israel by Hamas in 2023, calling it a ‘moment of triumph’ and ‘unprecedented revenge’.

Subeiti, a pro-Iranian political commentator, was also given a central role in Palestine House’s educational programme for children on ‘resistance’ and history.

During the event last Thursday, panellists appeared to defend a Palestine Action activist convicted of criminal damage, while Subeiti spoke about ‘martrydom’ as a form of ‘victory’.

The Community Security Trust (CST) called Abouchakra and Subeiti’s role in the evening ‘deeply troubling’ while a representative of October 7th victims said it was ‘heartbreaking’ they were given a platform.

Palestine House is a six-storey building in Holborn, central London, which opened in 2025 as a ‘cultural embassy’ and ‘gathering hub’ for Palestinian identity.

The centre regularly speaks out on political issues, with founder Osama Qashoo erecting a ‘Stop the Genocide’ flag at the building earlier this year.

Last Thursday, Palestine House and Shia student society Absoc for Justice held an event exploring how the death of Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Imam Hussain, in 680CE ‘continue[s] to inspire resistance to injustice today, including in the context of Palestine’.

However the decision to invite Abouchakra and Subeiti to the event has sparked outrage from antisemitism campaigners because of their history of support for October 7th.

On that day in 2023, Hamas killed 1,200 people in Israel and took more than 250 hostage, sparking years of conflict in the Middle east.

To get the latest news from the capital, visit Metro's London news hub.

Abouchakra, a presenter at the banned Iran-backed channel PressTV, told viewers on the day of the attacks that the violence was ‘the homecoming of at least 1,000 Palestinians from the resistance factions into the fragile Zionist entity’.

In an Instagram post on the same day, she said: ‘Nothing will ever be able to take back this moment, this moment of triumph, this moment of resistance, this moment of surprise, this moment of humiliation on behalf of the Zionist entity.’

ITV News was forced to apologise later that month after they platformed Abouchakr as British Palestinian concerned about prejudice without explaining her background.


AppLovin’s Revenge
One of the most consequential groups behind the surge of radical leftist candidates in New York’s and Colorado’s congressional primaries was a super PAC formed earlier this year, calling itself American Priorities. After filing with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in February of this year, the group pledged to spend more than $10 million during the 2026 midterms and declared that its goal, according to founder Hannah Fertig, was “to make sure that someone’s there to protect candidates who question these [pro-Israel] policies,” countering the influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

The group invested about $2 million in supporting Adam Hamawy, an Egyptian-born physician who has testified on behalf of Omar Abdel-Rahman, the blind sheikh convicted of seditious conspiracy for his part in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Thanks in part to the group’s generous contributions, Hamawy handily won the Democratic primary in New Jersey’s 12th District.

American Priorities then spent an additional $2 million across the river in New York, contributing to the successful campaigns of Brad Lander, who unseated the incumbent, Congressman Dan Goldman, in a campaign focused largely on vilifying Israel, and Darializa Avila Chevalier, who unseated Adriano Espaillat in New York’s 13th District while doubling down on a host of controversial statements, from using the American flag as a napkin to supporting Hamas in the immediate aftermath of Oct. 7, 2023. The super PAC also spent $150,000 on TV ads to help democratic socialist Melat Kiros win Colorado’s 1st District primary.

Who, then, is behind American Priorities?

Public reports reveal that the group’s two largest donors, by far, are Omer Hasan and Mohammad Waqas Javed, who were described in the press as former Silicon Valley executives who recently became involved in politics and about whom “little is publicly known.”

But Hasan and Javed, as a simple web search reveals, are both alums of the same company, the mobile advertising and data company AppLovin, founded in 2012.

The company’s path to becoming one of the world’s most highly valued ad tech companies is highly unorthodox. According to The Economist, for example, the company’s share price has climbed more than 30-fold between 2022 and 2025, an astonishing feat for any company but particularly for one that, for years, wallowed in obscurity in the murky waters of app-monetization solutions.
Foreign donors ‘funding hate on Britain’s streets’
Pro-Palestine marches are being funded by a complex web of foreign donors and state actors, a report reveals.

The report by the US charity watchdog NGO Monitor found examples of Iranian and American far-Left groups bankrolling anti-Israel groups in the UK, creating an “ecosystem” of disruption.

It also found cryptocurrency was increasingly being used to hide funding sources for organisations accused of anti-Semitism, with gift aid also being used by these organisations.

The report’s authors also accuse organisations of deliberately targeting young people with anti-Israel material.

Lord Walney, a former government extremism tsar, will release the report in the House of Commons later on Wednesday.

He will say: “A phenomenon widely portrayed as spontaneous and grassroots is, in significant part, the product of a coordinated and internationally financed network” and “a troubling number of the organisations within it either fall outside any meaningful regulatory framework or maintain connections to actors that no democratic state should tolerate”.

The report calls for a wholesale reform of Britain’s regulatory system to improve transparency over how the groups and charities behind pro-Palestine marches are funded.

While a few of them are charities and businesses, others are completely opaque, the report claims, even hiding how many members they have.
Imported Influence: Foreign Funding, Regulatory Black Holes and Extremist Connections of the Post-October 7 UK Protest Infrastructure
At least 11 of the 40 organisations either have links to extremist organisations and/or have officials that have met with or cooperated with extremist actors, including the Iranian regime and its Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Hamas, Hezbollah, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the Muslim Brotherhood.

There is significant leadership overlap amongst the six primary coordinating groups. For instance, Jeremy Corbyn serves as a Vice President of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Deputy President of Stop the War Coalition and a Patron of Palestine Solidarity Campaign. Funding of his group the People’s Forum UK is also unknown.

Targeting UK youth is a core activity. For instance, Amnesty International UK is running a programme for anti-Israel activism training hundreds of UK youth in protest rights, media engagement and campaign strategy. Friends of Al-Aqsa also emphasises youth mobilisation ‘to get active for Palestine’

Much of the post-October 7th protest network operates in regulatory chaos and beyond transparency. Out of the 40 organisations, 10 are charities, 8 are companies, 9 are hybrid entities and 13 operate outside of any formal UK regulatory framework, despite soliciting significant funds from the public.

Millions of pounds are flowing into the post-October 7th UK protest network via memberships and donations, including transnational funding networks via individuals, foundations, extremist religious- political organisations, cryptocurrency and global activist platforms. Yet, due to the secrecy surrounding much of the network, it is not possible to fully identify the sources and amounts of money provided to these organisations, nor are the full sums spent on the demonstrations publicly known.

Nineteen of these organisations get UK government funding either via the FCDO or by Gift Aid. At least 11 are receiving taxpayer funding from countries such as the United States, Belgium, European Commission, Ireland, Norway, Scotland, Sweden and Switzerland.

US-based progressive foundations and far-left activist groups, such as Open Society Foundation, Action Network, Cultures of Resistance and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund are providing significant funding and organising support, facilitating donations and participating in the protests.

At least two organisations, CAGE and Palestine Action, are raising funding via cryptocurrency. This is highly concerning given CAGE’s connections to extremist actors and Palestine Action’s proscription. On 15 June 2026, the Court of Appeal upheld the proscription finding that Palestine Action ‘overtly promotes unlawful violence amounting to terrorism’

It appears that current UK regulations are inadequate to address the transparency deficit and the political implications and destabilisation of British society created by these campaigns.

Key questions include whether existing Charity Commission and Companies House disclosure regimes are sufficient; and whether a new approach is required for organisations that are tapped into extremist networks, raise substantial public funding for activities, but appear not to operate under any formal structure.

The UK government should take a closer look at foreign funding to domestic advocacy networks and whether current mechanisms, such as FCDO oversight regulations and the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme, are sufficient to address gaps in transparency.
Ireland approves bill banning imports from Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria
Ireland’s parliament on Tuesday approved legislation banning the import of goods produced in Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, marking one of the most far-reaching trade measures adopted by a European country.

The Israeli Settlements (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill prohibits imports from Israeli residential, agricultural and commercial enterprises located outside Israel’s internationally recognized borders.

The center-right coalition government said the legislation was drafted in response to the 2024 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, which declared Israel’s presence in Judea and Samaria, eastern Jerusalem and Gaza illegal under international law.

Ireland has been among Israel’s most vocal European critics since the Hamas massacre on Oct. 7, 2023. Dublin recognized a Palestinian state in 2024, prompting Israel to close its embassy in the Irish capital. In June, Ireland barred Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich from entering the country.

The measure is expected to have limited direct economic impact. Irish imports from Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria—including products such as fruit, vegetables and timber—totaled less than €1 million between 2020 and 2024.

The legislation nevertheless carries broader diplomatic significance, as Ireland becomes the first European Union member state to enact a comprehensive import ban specifically targeting Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

Israel has sharply opposed the legislation throughout its passage. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar previously described the measure as “antisemitic” and warned that Ireland would “pay a price” if it became law, arguing that it unfairly targets Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria.

The move follows months of criticism from Washington. In June, the U.S. State Department warned that the proposed legislation amounted to “unhelpful virtue-signaling” that “does not serve the cause of peace in the Middle East, help feed Gazans or work toward the outcomes Ireland says it seeks.”
The Democrats’ Real Red Line By Abe Greenwald
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We’ve focused a lot on how Democrats have normalized the pro-Hamas left’s anti-Semitism. But it’s hardly beside the point that the anti-Jewish left’s affection for the Iranian regime and its terror proxies is also a concession to savage abusers of women. Every protester wearing Hamas gear or waving a Hamas flag is implicitly going to bat for the jihadist subjugation of females. Compared to the left’s terrorist heroes, Platner is a piker in the abuse department. Which means the Democrats who defend DSA radicals should be doubly ashamed.

Of course, they’re not. Ro Khanna, who has backed the Hamas fan club to the hilt, withdrew his endorsement of Platner yesterday and posted on X: “I’ve been very clear that sexual assault or violence against women is a red line.” Same goes for Elizabeth Warren, who said: “There can be no tolerance for sexual assault.” The pattern has been nearly universal among Democratic leaders.

Over the past 24 hours, conservatives have adopted a line on Democrats that goes like this: Platner’s Nazi tattoo was okay, his interest in Communism was just fine, and his vicious disparagement of American soldiers was no big deal—but an allegation of rape was one step too far.

That’s still too generous a reading of the Democrats’ moral stance. Violence against women isn’t their red line. The prospect of losing an election is.

Platner had already faced credible accusations of violence against women a month ago, and Democrats went into overdrive to defend him. But since then, the accumulation of negative stories on Platner began to take a toll, and his campaign started struggling to raise funds. Yesterday, Democrats decided to stop covering for the creep because they lost confidence in their ability to get him over the finish line. Meanwhile, their support for all the other candidates who cheer on terrorist misogyny endures.
Platner suspends campaign, blaming organized conspiracy to force him out
Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, the scandal-plagued progressive insurgent, announced on Wednesday evening that he plans to drop out of the race amid intense pressure, two days after a former romantic partner accused him of rape.

Even as he announced his withdrawal, Platner remained defiant, claiming that the allegations against him were a conspiracy aimed at forcing him out of the race.

The sexual assault allegation by Jenny Racicot, who shared the details of the incident with Politico, followed months of controversies — including allegations of domestic abuse — that Platner withstood with the backing of top Democrats, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and, after the primary, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). He lost the support of his political allies after the report was published on Monday.

Even before that, Platner had been dogged by controversy for months. Last October, Platner acknowledged that he had a tattoo of a Nazi symbol known as a Totenkopf for nearly two decades.

He denied knowing what the symbol meant, but a past acquaintance told Jewish Insider that Platner was aware of its Nazi association. Another former romantic partner, Lyndsey Fifield, who accused Platner of domestic violence, shared text messages with the New York Times showing she had informed friends of the Nazi symbol months before it became public knowledge and said he and his Marine colleagues had chosen the symbol deliberately.

In Reddit posts, Platner regularly used slurs, criticized sexual assault victims and praised Hamas’ tactics during the terror group’s 2014 war against Israel.


From AI Policy to the National Debt To Chuck Schumer, El-Sayed Blames Problems on Israel in Michigan Senate Debate
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed spent most of his primary debate against Rep. Haley Stevens railing against Israel. He blamed the Jewish state for problems ranging from U.S. artificial intelligence policy to the national debt to the state of the Democratic Party under Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer.

Asked whether "we need to regulate AI," El-Sayed claimed he was "being outspent 30-to-1 in this race" and "that money is coming in from the [American Israel Public Affairs Committee]."

"That money is coming in from AIPAC. Their goal is to make sure that our money is sent abroad to kill other people rather than kept here to invest here," said El-Sayed. "Now, the question you might be asking is, what does it have to do with a question about AI? Government will continue to work for the people who buy off government, so long as we allow people to buy off government. It is that simple."

In response to another question about the national debt, El-Sayed said the United States needs to "end stupid wars we shouldn't be fighting at the behest of foreign governments."

And he repeatedly blamed Israel for luring the United States into war in Iran. "I think it's worth asking why we got into this war in the first place. There is one man who's been wanting this war fought, and that is the prime minister of Israel," he said. "Why is it that we are paying $5 gas? Why is it that we can't seem to get out of this quagmire? It's because for too long our foreign policy has been handed to us by the likes of the State of Israel and AIPAC, who has made sure that Democrats and Republicans are doing their bidding," he added.

The debate was the first one-on-one faceoff between El-Sayed and Stevens since Democratic state senator Mallory McMorrow dropped out of the race earlier this week. The primary is scheduled for Aug. 4, and the winner will take on Republican Mike Rogers in the general election this fall. El-Sayed leads Stevens by 20 points, according to a poll conducted by a super PAC supporting him.

The debate highlighted El-Sayed’s efforts to center the race on Israeli and U.S. foreign policy. He has spent much of the campaign thus far slamming AIPAC and accusing the organization of buying off politicians. He has also made campaign appearances with the antisemitic influencer Hasan Piker and joined the Holocaust-denying Shiite cleric Fadhel Al-Sahlani on stage last month to celebrate the opening of a new mosque, the Washington Free Beacon reported.


Mixed reactions to Mamdani admin map of NYC immigrant areas excluding Jews
A New York City “neighborhood passport,” which the city’s official marketing group created and which is on hand at libraries in the Big Apple for tourists coming for the World Cup, includes a “cultural map” of the city detailing “thriving international communities and cultures.”

The map identifies 30 neighborhoods associated with immigrant populations, including “Little Palestine” (Bay Ridge, Brooklyn), “Little Egypt” (Astoria, Queens), “Little Pakistan” (Newkirk Plaza, Brooklyn) and multiple Chinatowns.

The map, which is sourced from the New York City Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, does not note any Jewish neighborhoods. (The immigrant affairs office doesn’t include posters for “Little Palestine” or “Little Egypt.”)

Reactions were mixed to the lack of depiction of Jewish neighborhoods, as well as Irish and Italian ones.

“They just couldn’t figure out how to represent 11% of the city,” stated Avital Chizik-Goldschmidt, a writer. “Couldn’t decipher where the Jews are from. Asked everyone. Huge riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.”

The map was intended to show parts of the city that have “substantial foreign-born populations from regions and countries around the world,” according to City Hall. “It does not highlight religious groups.”

It added that a map of Little Odessa depicts a neighborhood with a substantial Jewish population.

“Also no Italian or Irish enclaves in New York City? Interesting,” stated Karol Markowicz, a prominent, Jewish conservative columnist. “The two Staten Island flags look funnier the longer I look at this. Two small ethnic populations and absolutely no others in the whole of Staten Island.”

“The major Sephardi corridor of South Brooklyn, Syrian, Egyptian, Lebanese and others, from the East side of Ave. J down toward Ave. V, gets left out completely,” stated


‘This is a misstep’: Board criticises Prince Harry over appearance with controversial Misan Harriman
The Board of Deputies of British Jews has described it as a "misstep" for Prince Harry to appear alongside controversial Southbank Centre chair Misan Harriman during his visit to the UK this week.

The Duke of Sussex, who travelled from the US for engagements linked to the 2027 Invictus Games in Birmingham, spent his first evening back in the country attending the premiere of Harriman’s film Shoot the People.

Photographs showed Harry alongside Harriman at Picturehouse Central in Piccadilly Circus.

Harriman, a long-time friend of Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, who took the couple's engagement photographs, was wearing an Anti-Apartheid Club T-shirt.

The Southbank Centre boss, who last month announced he was stepping down from the role, has been embroiled in allegations of insensitivity towards the Jewish community.

Among them is a claim he compared the rise of Reform UK to the conditions present in the run-up tothe Holocaust.

Critics have also argued that Harriman's frequent interventions on political issues, particularly the Israel-Gaza conflict and UK politics, risked undermining the political neutrality expected of charity trustees. Charity Commission guidance states that trustees must act solely in their charity's interests and avoid exposing it to undue political controversy.

Following the stabbing attack in Golders Green in April, Harriman was further criticised for sharing material suggesting there had been a media "conspiracy" to focus on the two Jewish victims, while giving less attention to an earlier stabbing of a Muslim man by the same alleged attacker.


Kneecap sues indigenous leader over allegedly defamatory statement opposing Canada gigs
The High Court has granted permission to members of Irish-language rap group Kneecap to serve defamation proceedings on an indigenous leader based in Canada.

Harvey Yesno, a political figure from the Eabametoong First Nation, was a signatory to an online statement published last July opposing scheduled Kneecap performances at venues located on indigenous ancestral lands in Canada.

Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, Naoise Ó Cairealláin and JJ Ó Dochartaigh – known by their respective stages names as Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí – say the statement contained false allegations, including claims that they support the political and militant groups Hamas and Hizbullah, and condone anti-Semitism and genocide.

The group strongly deny those claims.

The complained-of publication followed significant publicity garnered by the group last year on foot of statements denouncing Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip.

Judge Cian Ferriter on Wednesday gave permission to Tom Hogan, counsel for the trio with Peter Girvan, instructed by Phoenix Law’s Darragh Mackin, to serve notice of the proceedings – in both Irish and English – on Yesno at an address in Ontario, Canada.

The group are suing for damages, claiming the statement caused damage to their reputations as professional artists and public figures.

The complained-of statement first appeared on the website of Indigenous Embassy Jerusalem, a pro-Israel organisation. It was later republished to other platforms and picked up by media outlets, the band says.

The rap group allege Yesno has advocated publicly in support of the State of Israel. The Israeli state, the group notes, is actively engaged in campaigning against them and their art.

Several other indigenous leaders were signatories to the complained-of statement.


Picture Day at Harvard
It’s hard to smile when your heart is breaking.

I got a taste of this painful truth last month at my 40th business school reunion, seeing just how much Harvard had changed. In the 1980s, faculty and students like me were free to be Jewish without a second thought. Today, many Jews on its campus are busy hiding, downplaying who they are and what they think, to survive the experience.

Harvard had rolled out the red carpet for those of us making the return pilgrimage on June 5, even tossing in complimentary headshots by a professional photographer for the alumni directory that we could download for later use.

Never having mastered the ins and outs of makeup, I don’t always photograph well, especially as I get older. And my kids are always saying “Smile” when I am smiling. But I was wearing one of my smarter pantsuits, so I gave the offer a try.

The photographer and his assistants tried to put me at ease. They handed me a mirror and gently suggested I wipe away some of the Blistex I had just smeared across my mouth.

Now stand here, they said. Face this way. Tilt your head like this. Tug your blouse down to get the crease out. Perfect. You’re doing great.

Then, as the photographer moved in to get the shot, he asked, “Do you want to tuck that in?”

For one head-splitting moment, I was not sure what he was referring to. Lettuce between my teeth from lunch? Oh, no. He meant the small Star of David dangling from my neck. The one I had been wearing regularly since Oct. 7, 2023.

I have no doubt the photographer meant well. And maybe he was right. Part of me considered tucking the pendant under my collar for a quick second, as advised.

But was it really that conspicuous? It was barely three-quarters of an inch wide. Was it that big a deal if someone spotted it in my official photo? Or was there just some concern, heaven forbid, about offending the people who might have to look at it?

My head raced as I had to ponder whether other alumni sporting crosses or turbans got similar nudges to simplify their look. I suspect not.

It did not matter. I know what felt right in my case, and my case only.

I told him the necklace was fine. It could stay in the picture.

Harvard has no shortage of boosters these days braying that “antisemitism has no place at Harvard.” And if there ever was a problem, it is officially over. So, please, let’s all move on.


Thousands of cigarettes found hidden inside Gaza pineapple shipment
Israeli authorities uncovered a large-scale smuggling attempt on Wednesday when thousands of cigarettes were found concealed inside a shipment of pineapples intended for entry into the Gaza Strip.

The discovery was made at the Lachish Crossing in southern Israel during a routine inspection conducted by the Land Crossings Authority, a unit of the Ministry of Defense. Inspectors identified irregularities in a truck carrying hundreds of pineapples and uncovered cigarettes hidden inside the fruit.

The shipment had been purchased by an Israeli company authorized to transfer goods into Gaza under the private-sector humanitarian aid mechanism. It was scheduled to continue to the Kerem Shalom Crossing for delivery as part of the approved aid supply process.

Following the discovery, Israeli authorities confiscated the truck and its cargo and transferred the materials for examination. The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories suspended the company’s authorization to bring goods into Gaza.

Israel and Egypt have maintained restrictions on Gaza to prevent weapons smuggling since Hamas seized control of the territory in 2007.


Italy advances legislation on Holocaust-era art restitution
The Italian parliament has initiated legislation to establish a formal restitution process for looted art, a Jewish organization said on Tuesday.

The bill put forward last month, more than eight decades after the Holocaust, would empower the Italian government to create a restitution process for art and cultural property seized, looted, or lost due to antisemitic racial persecution under Italian Fascist racial laws beginning in 1938 through 1945.

“The bill offers a historic opportunity to finally deliver justice to victims of Nazi and fascist persecution and their heirs,” said Gideon Taylor, president of the World Jewish Restitution Organization (WJRO), a Jerusalem-based nonprofit which works for the recovery of Jewish property in Europe.

“While operational and legal details remain to be resolved as the bill moves forward, this is a vital step toward creating a framework for restitution,“ he said.

A 2024 report found that Italy had made only “some progress” on looted cultural property over the past 25 years.

The study, authored by the WJRO and the Claims Conference, found that Italy had not yet established a clear procedure for restitution despite having endorsed the 1998 Washington Conference Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art and the 2009 Terezin Declaration.

“With the bill under discussion, Italy is finally taking steps... to fill a gap aimed at clearly establishing, in our country as well, right to redress, certainly not for the lives lost and the suffering endured, but for the dispossession of artistic heritage—which a legal system that respects fundamental human rights must, in any case, ensure,” said Livia Ottolenghi, president of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities (UCEI), at the June 24 parliamentary hearing.

During World War II, Italy was a founding member of the Axis Powers and officially allied with Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany under dictator Benito Mussolini. The Allies landed in Sicily in June 1943, and a month later, Mussolini was removed from power. His successor signed an armistice with the Allies in September 1943. In response, the Germans occupied Italy and its territories, restoring Mussolini as head of a radical Fascist regime.
Princeton police seek suspect accused of placing antisemitic stickers across multiple properties
Police in Princeton, N.J., are asking for the public’s help identifying a man suspected of placing antisemitic propaganda stickers on properties across the municipality.

“The individual is suspected of placing stickers containing antisemitic propaganda on select properties throughout Princeton,” the Princeton Police Department stated in a release, which included a photo of the suspect riding a bicycle. “The materials appear to target specific locations and contain messaging intended to intimidate, harass, or promote hatred toward members of the Jewish community.”

The department stated that it is treating the investigation “with the utmost seriousness due to the nature of the materials and their potential impact on our community.”

The suspect is described as a “middle-aged white male, pepper-gray hair, wearing glasses, tan shirt, gray shorts, black sneakers, riding a light-colored mountain bike.” Investigators asked anyone with information, surveillance footage or photographs related to the incidents to contact the department.

It is unclear whether the case is connected to a June bias-intimidation investigation, in which antisemitic stickers were found on traffic signs on Linden Lane. That incident was also reported to the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice.

A police spokesman told JNS that the officials “are currently conducting an active investigation and are unable to provide any additional information at this time.”


Nvidia opens new R&D center in Beersheva, plans hundreds of hires
U.S. chipmaker Nvidia on Tuesday inaugurated a new research and development center in Beersheva, tripling its office space in the Negev city.

The new site, located in the Gav-Yam Negev advanced technologies park, spans some 3,000 square meters (32,300 square feet). The facility already accommodates more than 150 employees and features hundreds more workstations, financial outlet Globes reported.

The Beersheva site develops hardware and software technologies used in Nvidia’s artificial intelligence infrastructure, including systems that connect thousands of chips and processors, enable high-speed data transfers and support the operation of AI data centers.

The Beersheva site is Nvidia’s southernmost research and development site in Israel, complementing operations in Tel Aviv and Ra’anana, as well as in Yokneam and Tel Hai in the north.

Sources cited by Globes said the southern expansion required an investment of tens of millions of shekels. The company reportedly signed a 10-year lease with annual rent of about 2.5 million shekels ($820,000).

“The Beersheva R&D center was founded over a decade ago out of a deep belief in local talent and the connection between academia, innovation and industry,” Nvidia Senior Vice President Amit Krig, who heads the company’s Israel operations, said at the inauguration ceremony.

“The new site emphasizes our commitment to the technological ecosystem in the south, to strengthen young students, to continue nurturing the next generation of engineers and to develop groundbreaking technologies that place Nvidia’s activities in Israel at the heart of the AI revolution,” he added.
Black pro-Israel leaders unite for major “Unfinished Business” pastors’ trip to Israel
With the Jewish community looking for allies in the face of surging antisemitism and anti-Israel activism, a group of Black pastors with long track records in Israel advocacy and Black-Jewish relations has joined forces to establish the Black Christian Leaders Council on Israel Relations.

A major part of the June 25 announcement at the National Press Club in Washington focused on a planned Israel trip in November involving 500 Black pastors and Christian leaders, titled “Unfinished Business.” In 1966, Martin Luther King Jr. was working with former Israeli Prime Minister David Ben Gurion to bring several thousand Black pastors to Israel in November 1967. The Six-Day War led to a postponement to 1968, but with King’s assassination in April 1968, the trip never happened.

It was another trip to Israel by a group of pastors that led to the formation of this new organization. Pastor Michael Stevens explained that he and Pastor Dumisani Washington, founder of the Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel, were part of last December’s delegation of 1100 pastors organized by Friends of Zion founder Mike Evans. Stevens said that the trip was “beautiful, it’s historic,” but only 40 of the 1100 pastors were Black.

Back home, Stevens and Washington coordinated with Pastors Roger Cheeks, senior director of outreach at the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews; Valerie Washington of IBSI; and Pastors Reginald and Brandy Gibson of Birmingham, to establish the council “to help ensure that the essential Black American voice defending Israel and the Jewish people is clearly heard.”

Washington said, “There needs to be a more concerted effort in the black community, and we decide to take on that mantle,” and this is their “hineni moment” to say “here I am.”

“We’re not new to this; we’re true to this,” Stevens said, with participants averaging 25 years of experience in Black-Jewish relations.
Israel extends Venezuela aid mission after request from interim president
Israel will extend the deployment of its humanitarian aid delegation in Venezuela for another two weeks after Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez asked Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar to keep the team in the country, Israel’s Foreign Ministry confirmed on Wednesday.

The extension follows a meeting in Caracas between the Israeli delegation and Rodríguez, which came after a direct phone call between Sa’ar and the interim president. During the call, Rodríguez requested that the delegation remain so it could begin implementing a national reconstruction plan drawn up by Israeli experts. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the extension in coordination with Sa’ar.

The mission is notable because Israel and Venezuela have had no diplomatic relations since Caracas severed ties with Jerusalem in 2009 following the Gaza war of 2008 and 2009 (“Operation Cast Lead”). Despite the absence of formal relations, Venezuelan authorities requested additional assistance, with Israeli experts contributing to a recovery strategy for regions devastated by the recent earthquakes. The Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that the relief operation was entering a new phase, and the effort has drawn attention from senior Venezuelan officials as well as extensive local media coverage.

Venezuela is home to a small Jewish community estimated at between 3,000 and 5,000 people, although the Israeli delegation’s mission is focused on humanitarian assistance for the broader population.

In addition to the dozens of personnel already on the ground, about 20 specialists are assisting remotely from Israel, analyzing field data and helping refine long-term recommendations for rebuilding. The plan has been presented to Venezuela’s infrastructure minister and is expected to be submitted to Rodríguez in the coming days.





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Elder of Ziyon - حـكـيـم صـهـيـون



This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For 20 years and 40,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.

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