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The Kosher Restaurant I Work at Was Attacked; America Is Not Safe for Jews
Pro-Hamas activists gather in Washington Square Park for a rally following a protest march held in response to an NYPD sweep of an anti-Israel encampment at New York University in Manhattan, May 3, 2024. Photo: Matthew Rodier/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
In the past eight months, I’ve personally experienced what we’ve all come to know: Jews in America are no longer safe.
Of course, this story has repeated itself countless times over the generations. In every era, in different parts of the world, Jewish communities have faced persecution, discrimination, and violence. Around the world, since the Holocaust, diaspora Jewry continued to face persecution. From the persecution of Soviet Jewry to the Kielce Pogrom in Poland, from the AMIA bombing in Buenos Aires to the expulsion and persecution of nearly all the entire Jewish communities of the Middle East outside Israel, it never really went away.
In recent years, this hatred surged again in Europe, with Jews widely being afraid to wear a kippah or a Jewish star. But America always stood as a beacon of hope amidst the darkness of the diaspora.
In the words of the renowned late Rabbi Moshe Feinstein, America was a “country of kindness.” Despite the occasional attacks and bouts of antisemitism cropping up in America, from the Klu Klux Klan to Henry Ford to Charldes Lindbergh, America has always had a good relationship with its Jews.
No more. The current climate in America, post-Oct. 7, is a chilling echo of the past. Hate crimes against Jews have surged, and the sense of security that once existed is rapidly eroding. The rise of antisemitic rhetoric and actions are no longer confined to the fringes, but have permeated mainstream discourse.
Many of the students and faculty at elite universities, America’s staging ground for the future leaders in politics, industry, and thought, have expressed support for Hamas, a terrorist organization. In a recent poll of college students, 40 percent say they sympathize with Hamas, compared to only 33 percent who don’t. Students call for the death of Jews, make them scared to be on their own campuses, and celebrate terrorism.
I have friends at these universities, including the world-famous ones with billion-dollar endowments. They are scared to walk around on their own campuses, attacked by radicals who see a Jewish star and lash out. One friend had a flag violently taken from him, another was assaulted by several protesters, and others were harassed and made to fear for their safety.
This is not just happening on campuses, either. Swastikas have been spotted popping up outside of stores in New York, and an ever-growing group of online Neo-Nazis and antisemites harass Jewish people constantly.
A kosher restaurant that I work in recently had its door shattered, one of two such incidents to occur in a single day. I have spent countless evenings in that restaurant, watching Jewish customers comfortably eating their dinners and enjoying time with family and friends. I have sat there myself, and walked through that very door hundreds of times without a care. Now that comfort and security that we took for granted are threatened. The door is shattered. Shades of Kristallnacht cannot but appear before our eyes.
And, of course, this ideology has infiltrated the halls of Congress. From accusations of “genocide” because Israel wants to stop future Hamas massacres, to lies that Israel is an apartheid state or committing war crimes, members of the far-left have used their platforms to promote hate against Israel and Jews. And — partly due to the indoctrination on campuses — the numbers of those in power who call for the eradication of the Jewish state only continue to grow, as younger and more radical activists take their places as staffers, legislative aides, and Members of Congress.
Jews in America must continue to advocate for Israel and the Jewish community, but a glance at the age-segmented opinion polling shows that the future looks bleak. We must find a way to change the conversation, and interact with these future leaders in a way that can change their minds.
A few years ago, I asked a prominent rabbi with knowledge of the topic how long he thought America would remain safe for Jews. He said it would be just 10 or 15 years. At the time, I thought that was pessimistic. I was wrong. America — Di Goldene Medine (the Golden Land) — has been tarnished at last. America is no longer safe for Jews.
The author is a 2023-2024 CAMERA On Campus Fellow and a graduate of Yeshiva University.
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Antisemitic Incidents at Argentina Local Soccer Match Spark Official Investigations, Condemnations
Fans of Argentinian soccer club All Boys marched through the streets before their match against Atlanta soccer club, carrying a coffin draped with an Israeli flag alongside Iranian and Palestinian flags. Photo: Screenshot
Argentinian authorities and soccer officials have launched investigations following antisemitic incidents by Club Atlético All Boys fans during Sunday’s local match against Atlanta.
Atlanta, a soccer team based in the Villa Crespo neighborhood of Buenos Aires, has deep historical ties to Argentina’s Jewish community, which has long been a significant presence in the area.
This latest antisemitic incident took place outside the stadium before the game had even started.
All Boys fans were seen waving Palestinian and Iranian flags, carrying a coffin draped with an Israeli flag, and handing out flyers bearing messages like “Free Palestine” and “Israel and Atlanta are the same crap.”
Before a football match today against the Argentine sports club Atlanta, which is closely associated with the Jewish community, fans of the opposing team, All Boys, waved Islamic Republic and Palestinian flags while parading a coffin draped in an Israeli flag through the streets.… pic.twitter.com/IQs4v6eoFz
— Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) June 29, 2025
Then, during the match — which ended in a 0-0 draw — a drone carrying a Palestinian flag flew over the stadium, while some fans reportedly chanted anti-Israel slogans.
Local police confirmed they have issued citations to individuals accused of inciting public disorder and related offenses.
On Monday, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) condemned the incidents as “abhorrent” and confirmed the organization has opened a formal inquiry into the events.
“This is not folklore. This is discrimination,” the statement reads.
Argentina’s Security Minister Patricia Bullrich also announced that a criminal complaint has been filed, citing “acts of violence, expressions of racial and religious hatred, and public intimidation.”
In a post on X, the Delegation of Argentine Israelite Associations (DAIA), the country’s Jewish umbrella organization, condemned the incidents and called on both local authorities and the soccer officials to “take firm action against these acts of hatred.”
“We urge the authorities to take all necessary actions and apply the full force of the law,” the statement reads. “Violence and discrimination must have no place in our society.”
Repudiamos enérgicamente las expresiones antisemitas ocurridas hoy en las inmediaciones del estadio Malvinas Argentinas.
Exigimos a las autoridades correspondientes, a la AFA y al Club All Boys que actúen con firmeza ante estos hechos de odio.
La violencia y la discriminación no… pic.twitter.com/3AmY7IQscY— DAIA (@DAIAArgentina) June 29, 2025
Since the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Argentina has experienced a surge in antisemitic incidents and anti-Jewish hate crimes.
According to a recent report by DAIA, Argentina experienced a 15 percent increase in antisemitic activity last year, with 687 anti-Jewish hate crimes recorded — up from 598 incidents in 2023 — marking a significant rise nationwide.
The study indicates that 66 percent of the antisemitic incidents originated in the digital realm, with a significant rise in Nazi symbols and conspiracy theories, but there was also a 34 percent increase in reported physical assaults, with such hate crimes rising in schools and neighborhoods.
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Iranian nuclear program degraded by up to two years, Pentagon says
A satellite image of Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility. Photo: File.
The Pentagon said on Wednesday that US strikes 10 days ago had degraded Iran’s nuclear program by up to two years, suggesting the U.S. military operation likely achieved its goals despite a far more cautious initial assessment that leaked to the public.
Sean Parnell, a Pentagon spokesman, offered the figure at a briefing to reporters, adding that the official estimate was “probably closer to two years.” Parnell did not provide evidence to back up his assessment.
“We have degraded their program by one to two years, at least intel assessments inside the Department [of Defense] assess that,” Parnell told a news briefing.
U.S. military bombers carried out strikes against three Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22 using more than a dozen 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs and more than two dozen Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles.
The evolving U.S. intelligence about the impact of the strikes is being closely watched, after President Donald Trump said almost immediately after they took place that Iran’s program had been obliterated, language echoed by Parnell at Wednesday’s briefing.
Such conclusions often take the U.S. intelligence community weeks or more to determine.
“All of the intelligence that we’ve seen [has] led us to believe that Iran’s — those facilities especially, have been completely obliterated,” Parnell said.
Over the weekend, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi, said that Iran could be producing enriched uranium in a few months, raising doubts about how effective US strikes to destroy Tehran’s nuclear program have been.
Several experts have also cautioned that Iran likely moved a stockpile of near weapons-grade highly enriched uranium out of the deeply buried Fordow site before the strikes and could be hiding it.
But US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last week he was unaware of intelligence suggesting Iran had moved its highly enriched uranium to shield it from US strikes.
A preliminary assessment last week from the Defense Intelligence Agency suggested that the strikes may have only set back Iran’s nuclear program by months. But Trump administration officials said that assessment was low confidence and had been overtaken by intelligence showing Iran’s nuclear program was severely damaged.
According to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, the strikes on the Fordow nuclear site caused severe damage.
“No one exactly knows what has transpired in Fordow. That being said, what we know so far is that the facilities have been seriously and heavily damaged,” Araqchi said in the interview broadcast by CBS News on Tuesday.
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Switzerland Moves to Close Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s Geneva Office Over Legal Irregularities
Palestinians carry aid supplies received from the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the central Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed/File Photo
Switzerland has moved to shut down the Geneva office of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US- and Israeli-backed aid group, citing legal irregularities in its establishment.
The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza in late May, implementing a new aid delivery model aimed at preventing the diversion of supplies by Hamas, as Israel continues its defensive military campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group.
The initiative has drawn criticism from the UN and international organizations, some of which have claimed that Jerusalem is causing starvation in the war-torn enclave.
Israel has vehemently denied such accusations, noting that, until its recently imposed blockade, it had provided significant humanitarian aid in the enclave throughout the war.
Israeli officials have also said much of the aid that flows into Gaza is stolen by Hamas, which uses it for terrorist operations and sells the rest at high prices to Gazan civilians.
With a subsidiary registered in Geneva, the GHF — headquartered in Delaware — reports having delivered over 56 million meals to Palestinians in just one month.
According to a regulatory announcement published Wednesday in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce, the Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations (ESA) may order the dissolution of the GHF if no creditors come forward within the legal 30-day period.
The Trump administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Swiss decision to shut down its Geneva office.
“The GHF confirmed to the ESA that it had never carried out activities in Switzerland … and that it intends to dissolve the Geneva-registered branch,” the ESA said in a statement.
Last week, Geneva authorities gave the GHF a 30-day deadline to address legal shortcomings or risk facing enforcement measures.
Under local laws and regulations, the foundation failed to meet several requirements: it did not appoint a board member authorized to sign documents domiciled in Switzerland, did not have the minimum three board members, lacked a Swiss bank account and valid address, and operated without an auditing body.
The GHF operates independently from UN-backed mechanisms, which Hamas has sought to reinstate, arguing that these vehicles are more neutral.
Israeli and American officials have rejected those calls, saying Hamas previously exploited UN-run systems to siphon aid for its war effort.
The UN has denied those allegations while expressing concerns that the GHF’s approach forces civilians to risk their safety by traveling long distances across active conflict zones to reach food distribution points.
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