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Jewish security group credited with averting NY attack says an antisemitic murder in Arizona could have been prevented
(JTA) — A top Jewish community security consultant accused the University of Arizona of ignoring antisemitism as a warning sign in a case that culminated in the shooting death of a professor.
“Professor Thomas Meixner lost his life because antisemitism is not being taken seriously enough,” Michael Masters, the CEO of the Secure Community Network, wrote in an op-ed published Tuesday in the Arizona Republic.
Masters said the alleged assailant’s explicitly antisemitic threats should have been a red flag for the campus police, which, Masters said did not aggressively pursue criminal charges, and the Pima County Attorney’s Office, which did not file charges. The assailant in one text to a teacher wished “death to all Jews.”
“Too often reported violent antisemitic threats like these are dismissed as a byproduct of poor mental health and are not treated with necessary precautions,” Masters wrote. “More could and should have been done to prevent a senseless murder.”
Masters’ group coordinates security for Jewish organizations across the country. Last week, it alerted authorities in New York City to an online post by someone who said he would “shoot up a synagogue”; police apprehended the man alleged to have made the post, who had a gun, ammunition and a Nazi armband. Previously, people who have received Security Community Network training have credited it with mitigating attacks, including during the hostage situation at a Texas synagogue last January.
Murad Dervish, the suspect in the Oct. 5 slaying on the Tucson campus of the University of Arizona, believed Meixner was Jewish and was targeting Dervish because he was a Muslim, according to Meixner’s colleagues.
Dervish, a graduate student in the department of hydrology and atmospheric sciences, had received a poor grade and was fired last semester as a teaching assistant, although he was allowed to stay on at the school as a student.
Meixner, the department head, was a Roman Catholic, but, according to Eyad Atallah, another teacher whom Dervish threatened, Dervish refused to believe it.
“You’re a filthy kike lover who’s been deceived by them, but I really can’t blame you, they’re very deceptive,” Dervish said in a text to Atallah, who had for a time befriended him.
In a text message to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Masters said the Meixner killing showed how antisemitic violence accrues collateral damage.
“We must take threats seriously — no matter their motivation — and work to address them in a comprehensive, coordinated manner,” he said. “Had that been the case, one has to wonder if the victim, in this case, would still be alive and whether we’ll learn the lesson to keep the next potential victims safe and alive.”
The university expelled Dervish and barred him from campus but did not have mechanisms in place to keep him from entering the building.
The county attorney’s office said Dervish’s texts did not rise to the level of an actionable threat. His threats did not “meet the evidentiary requirements for charging him with the crime of Threats and Intimidation,” the office said in a statement.
Atallah told the Arizona Daily Star that he believed Dervish carefully phrased his texts so he could plausibly claim he was not directly threatening the person they were addressed to. In one text to Atallah, Dervish said, “I hope somebody blows your f****** brains out.” Atallah, who acquired a bulletproof vest and limited his time on campus after the threats, believes Dervish would have killed him too had they encountered one another on the day of the shooting.
It’s not clear how Dervish, who had been charged and sentenced to prison in other states for violent acts, was able to purchase a gun. He has pleaded not guilty.
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The post Jewish security group credited with averting NY attack says an antisemitic murder in Arizona could have been prevented appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Trump Curious Why Iran Has Not ‘Capitulated’ Amid US Military Buildup, Says Witkoff
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff delivers a press conference upon the signing of the declaration on deploying post-ceasefire force in Ukraine, during the so-called ‘Coalition of the Willing’ summit, at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Jan. 6, 2026. Photo: Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS
US President Donald Trump is curious as to why Iran has not yet “capitulated” and agreed to curb its nuclear program, as Washington builds up its military capability in the Middle East, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said.
“I don’t want to use the word ‘frustrated,’ because he understands he has plenty of alternatives, but he’s curious as to why they haven’t… I don’t want to use the word ‘capitulated,’ but why they haven’t capitulated,” Witkoff said during an interview on Saturday with Fox News’ “My View with Lara Trump,” hosted by the president’s daughter-in-law.
“Why, under this pressure, with the amount of seapower and naval power over there, why haven’t they come to us and said, ‘We profess we don’t want a weapon, so here’s what we’re prepared to do’? And yet it’s sort of hard to get them to that place.”
Trump has ordered a huge buildup of forces in the Middle East and preparations for a potential multi-week air attack on Iran. Iran has threatened to strike US bases if it is attacked.
IRAN DENIES SEEKING NUCLEAR WEAPONS
The United States wants Iran to give up enriched uranium which Washington says can potentially be used to make a bomb, as well as stop supporting terrorists in the Middle East and accept limits to its missile program.
Tehran says its nuclear program is peaceful but it is willing to accept some curbs on it in return for the lifting of financial sanctions. It rejects tying this to other issues such as missiles and support for armed groups.
“They’ve been enriching well beyond the number that you need for civil nuclear. It’s up to 60 percent [fissile purity],” Witkoff said. “They’re probably a week away from having industrial, industrial-grade bomb-making material, and that’s really dangerous.”
A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Sunday that Iran and the United States still have differing views over sanctions relief in talks.
Witkoff also said he has met at Trump’s direction with Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi, son of the shah ousted in Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution. He did not provide further details of the meeting.
Pahlavi, who lives in exile, served as a rallying figure for some of Iran’s opposition during anti-government demonstrations last month in which thousands of people are believed to have been killed, the worst domestic unrest since the revolution era.
Earlier in February, Pahlavi said US military intervention in Iran could save lives, and urged Washington not to spend too long negotiating with Tehran’s clerical rulers on a nuclear deal.
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US-Iran Talks Expected Friday if Iran Sends Nuclear Proposal Soon, Axios Reports
Atomic symbol and USA and Iranian flags are seen in this illustration taken, September 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
United States negotiators are ready to hold another round of talks with Iran on Friday in Geneva if they receive a detailed Iranian proposal for a nuclear deal in the next 48 hours, Axios reported on Sunday, citing a senior US official.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report.
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Khamenei Designates Larijani to Lead Iran’s Affairs During Protests, Military Threats
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani speaks after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, Aug. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Aziz Taher
i24 News – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has reportedly assigned significant authority to former Revolutionary Guards commander and longtime political figure Ali Larijani in response to rising US and Israeli military threats, as well as nationwide unrest, according to a report by The New York Times.
The newspaper cites Iranian officials, members of the Revolutionary Guards, and former diplomats, noting that Khamenei has issued detailed instructions on succession and emergency decision-making should he be targeted in a potential strike.
Larijani, currently a top national security official, has been tasked with managing state affairs, overseeing the crackdown on protests, coordinating sensitive nuclear discussions with Washington, and liaising with allied nations including Russia, Qatar, and Oman.
“Larijani has been entrusted with responsibilities that cover both domestic security and international relations, effectively acting as Khamenei’s right-hand man during this period of heightened tension,” the report states.
Officials say Khamenei has prepared multiple layers of succession for key political and military positions and delegated powers to a close circle of confidants. While Larijani is not considered a likely successor to the Supreme Leader due to insufficient religious credentials, he is described as one of the regime’s most trusted crisis managers.
Iran has reportedly placed its armed forces on high alert, deployed missile systems near Iraq and in the Persian Gulf, and intensified military exercises. Special forces, intelligence units, and Basij militia battalions are prepared to deploy to major cities to suppress unrest and monitor suspected foreign operatives if conflict escalates.
The move comes amid continued diplomatic engagement over Tehran’s nuclear program. Despite ongoing negotiations, officials say Iran is operating under the assumption that a U.S. military strike is “inevitable and imminent.”
According to the report, Larijani tops the list of emergency successors, followed by Parliament Speaker General Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, with former president Hassan Rouhani also named as a potential fallback in extraordinary circumstances.