JNS.org – Rep. Mike Flood (R-Neb.) invited Rabbi Steven Abraham of Beth El Synagogue, a Conservative congregation in Omaha, to join him for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to a joint session of Congress on July 24.

“The majesty of the event was greater than the speech itself, though it got the job done,” Abraham told JNS. “The prime minister may be a controversial figure both inside the beltway as well as in his own country, but to witness bipartisan support for the Jewish state and its right to defend itself was deeply moving.”

Flood said it was “an honor to host Rabbi Abraham” and that “Congress will continue to do the important work needed to support Israel in the ongoing fight and to protect the freedom and safety of Jewish people here at home and around the world.”

Abraham told JNS: “As I sat watching, taking it all in, to see so many individuals wearing kippot, in the room that serves as the crown jewel of our democracy, will stay with me forever.”

The post Omaha Rabbi who Attended Netanyahu Speech ‘Deeply Moved’ by Bipartisan Support first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

JNS.org – Four Republican senators introduced the Restoring Civility on Campus Act, which calls on the U.S. Department of Education to immediately investigate alleged school violations of Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act barring discrimination based on shared ancestry, including religion.

Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) introduced the bill.

It would require the department to update complainants and the public every 30 days about open cases, raise fines temporarily from $69,733 to $1 million per violation for schools that do not disclose antisemitic crimes on annual security reports and investigate schools in person.

“Six million Jews were tragically murdered during the Holocaust. It’s unfathomable to think, even after the horrific events during World War II, antisemitism is still happening in the United States,” Grassley said. “Frankly, our academic leaders shouldn’t need direction from Congress to protect students and take swift action against civil-rights violations—but, evidently, they do. Our universities and education officials must do more to combat antisemitism.”

The post Senate Bill Would Beef Up Title VI Probes of Alleged School Biases first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Six US senators sent a letter to US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas this week requesting that he increase security measures along the northern border in response to Canada accepting an influx of refugees from Gaza, the Palestinian enclave ruled by the terrorist group Hamas.

The six Republican lawmakers — Sens. Marco Rubio (FL), Ted Cruz (TX), Joni Ernst (IA), Tom Cotton (AK), Mike Braun (IN), and Josh Hawley (MO) — said they were “deeply concerned” that refugees from Gaza could sneak into the United States. The senators warned that allowing unvetted Palestinian refugees to cross the border poses a serious national security threat. 

“On May 27, 2024, the Government of Canada announced its intent to increase the number of Gazans who will be allowed into their country under temporary special measures,” the senators wrote. “We are deeply concerned and request heightened scrutiny by the US Department of Homeland Security should any of them attempt to enter the United States at ports of entry as well as between ports of entry.”

After arriving in Canada, the Palestinian refugees will be given a “Refugee Travel Document,” which serves as a valid form of identification, the letter claimed, adding that US Citizenship and Immigration Services recognizes these documents as a valid substitute for a passport. The senators warned that “individuals with ties to terrorist groups” could potentially enter into the United States. 

The letter argued that the US should maintain “common-sense terrorist screening and vetting” for any individual attempting to enter its borders from a foreign country. The lawmakers lamented that the Biden administration’s “”ax border enforcement” has rendered the country vulnerable to potential terrorist attacks. From April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024, the US Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations intercepted over 233 suspected terrorists at the northern border, according to the letter.

“[T]he possibility of terrorists crossing the US-Canada border is deeply concerning given the deep penetration of Gazan society by Hamas,” the senators wrote. “It would be irresponsible for the US to not take necessary heightened precautions when foreigners attempt to enter the United States.”

On Oct. 7, Hamas launched the ongoing war in Gaza with its Oct. 7 invasion of and massacre of 1,200 people across southern Israel. The Palestinian terrorist group also kidnapped over 250 hostages.

In response, Israel launched defensive military operations in Gaza with the aim of freeing the hostages and permanently dislodging Hamas from the neighboring enclave.

The vast majority of Palestinians in Gaza, as well as the West Bank, still support Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel that started the ongoing war, and they would prefer a “day after” scenario in which Hamas remains in control of Gaza rather than the Palestinian Authority, which governs in the West Bank, or other Arab countries, according to recent Palestinian polling. The same polling found that, when asked about support for Palestinian political parties and movements, a plurality chose Hamas.

US lawmakers are split along party lines as to whether the United States should accept refugees from Gaza. Republicans are largely opposed to importing refugees from  Gaza, arguing that individuals from the war-torn enclave present “a national security risk” to the United States.” In May, Ernst and Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) sent US President Joe Biden a letter, urging him not to accept any refugees from Gaza.

In June, however, a group of 70 Democratic lawmakers sent Mayorkas a letter, requesting he create “pathways” for more refugees of the Israel-Hamas war to resettle in America.

The post US Senators Urge Secretary of Homeland Security to Secure Northern Border From Gaza Refugees first appeared on Algemeiner.com.