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A pop-up exhibit about Shanghai’s surprising Jewish history is on display in Lower Manhattan
(New York Jewish Week) — Visitors to a Lower Manhattan office building renamed to reflect a lucky number in Chinese tradition can, for the next few weeks, get a firsthand look at how China was once a fortunate destination for tens of thousands of Jews.
A temporary exhibit at 28 Liberty Street’s Fosun Plaza showcases the 20,000 Jews who took refuge in Shanghai between 1938 and 1941 to escape Nazi persecution. China was the only country with an open-door policy at the time, allowing Jews without an entry visa to settle there.
Family portraits of milestones and the mundane, candid shots of the Jewish Joint Distribution Committee handing out clothing, birth certificates, boat tickets, letters and more line colorful display walls at the exhibit, a pop-up satellite of the Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum.
Jerry Lindenstraus, 94, fled to Shanghai with his family following Kristallnacht, and settled in Hongkew, one of the poorer areas near the port. He credits the Chinese people for the existence of his large family.
“If it wasn’t for Shanghai I wouldn’t be here and neither would they,” Lindenstraus said during an event this week kicking off the exhibit, which will be in place until Aug. 14.
The Shanghai museum was founded in 2007 and completed a major expansion in 2020. The new exhibit, titled “Shanghai, Homeland Once Upon a Time – Jewish Refugees and Shanghai,” draws on its collections to pull together more than 200 photographs and 30 pieces of replica memorabilia to tell the story of the brief period when the Chinese coastal city was a significant Jewish population center.
The exhibit features six sections: “Fleeing to Shanghai,” “Starting a New Life,” “Bittersweet Memories,” “After the War” and “New Look of the Homeland.”
Each section highlights excerpts from different refugees and or their descendants giving insight into their lives and experiences. In “Starting a New Life,” the exhibit highlights work in a tailor shop, the types of food eaten, arts, sports, music and Jewish education.
“Bitter Sweet Memories” includes reflections from life in the Shanghai ghetto, where the Jewish immigrants were forced to move in 1943, after the Nazis pressured the Japanese military, which had occupied Shanghai since 1937, to act against the Jews. Conditions and treatment in the ghetto were poor; the refugees could not come and go freely and had to carry resident certificates that identified them as Jewish.
“I must point out that the Chinese around us never called us dirty Jews or made antisemitic remarks. They just accepted us without question,” Elizabeth Grebenschikoff read from a speech at the event kickoff that her mother Betty, who died in February at 93, had written about her time living in Shanghai as a girl.
“After the War” shows Jewish people moving from China, and their reflections on Shanghai later in life are represented in “A New Look of the Homeland.” The exhibit also features a replica of “The Wall of Names of Jewish Refugees in Shanghai” found in the museum.
The exhibit features six sections that highlight different points in Jewish refugees’ lives in Shanghai. (Photo by Leah Breakstone)
The exhibit is situated in a private plaza that is part of a building owned by a Chinese investment company. Known for half a century as One Chase Manhattan Plaza, the building was renamed 28 Liberty Street after Fosun, the investment company, purchased it. The name, company officials explained at the time, is meant to conjure a double portion of luck, as represented in Chinese culture by the number eight.
A foundation associated with Fosun contributed to the costs of mounting the new exhibit, along with the Shanghai Diamond Exchange. Huang Ping, the Chinese consul general in New York; Chen Jian, director of the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum, and Jing Ying, vice president of Shanghai People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, gave speeches.
Other initiatives are underway or planned to “seek to keep alive the unique stories of the Jewish refugees,” according to a press release announcing the exhibit. They include the Chinese-Jewish Cultural Connection Center, a non-profit based in Shanghai that aims to connect remaining Jewish refugees and their descendents; a documentary; a collaboration between the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic, and a musical titled “Shanghai Sonatas,” about the music that helped Jewish refugees survive the war.
The exhibit is free and open to the public daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. It closes Aug. 14.
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The post A pop-up exhibit about Shanghai’s surprising Jewish history is on display in Lower Manhattan appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Israeli Foreign Minister Says ‘No Place’ for Macron Visit if France Continues With Palestinian State Recognition
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar attends a press conference with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (not pictured) in Berlin, Germany, June 5, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Mang
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar on Thursday urged his French counterpart to drop France’s plan to recognize a Palestinian state, saying that French President Emmanuel Macron is not welcome to visit the Jewish state if Paris “persists in its initiative and in efforts that harm Israel’s interests.”
According to a statement from his office, Saar spoke with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, calling on him to reconsider France’s initiative to recognize a Palestinian state.
He warned that such a move would “undermine stability in the Middle East and harm Israel’s national and security interests.”
As long as France proceeds with its planned unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state this month, Saar said that there would be “no place” for Macron to visit Israel.
“Israel seeks good relations with France, but France must respect Israel’s position when it comes to matters essential to its security and future,” the top Israeli diplomat said during their conversation.
Macron plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the United Nations General Assembly this month as part of its “commitment to a just and lasting peace in the Middle East,” even though nearly 80 percent of French citizens reject the move.
Israeli officials have condemned the initiative, calling it a “reward for terrorism” and warning that it would undermine future diplomatic talks.
Saar has criticized France’s recent actions, accusing it of consistently undermining Israel on the international stage.
More recently, tensions escalated after his French counterpart asserted the Palestinian Authority (PA) had ended its “pay-for-slay” program — a claim the Israeli diplomat firmly rejects as false.
The PA, which has long been riddled with accusations of corruption, has also maintained for years a so-called “pay-for-slay” program, which rewards terrorists and their families for carrying out attacks against Israelis.
Under the policy, the Palestinian Authority Martyr’s Fund makes official payments to Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, the families of “martyrs” killed in attacks on Israelis, and injured Palestinian terrorists. Reports estimate that approximately 8 percent of the PA’s budget is allocated to paying stipends to convicted terrorists and their families.
Abbas had announced plans to reform the system earlier this year, but the PA has continued to issue payments, with top officials saying they will not deduct any of the funds.
“You speak of the war, but your moves against the State of Israel not only undermine stability and will not bring peace — they prolong the war. And it is no coincidence that Hamas praised them,” Saar said in a post on X, responding to Barrot in a heated public exchange.
“The rest is empty words and illusions. Back in Paris and at conferences, you may believe and promote these illusions. Here, we will not buy them,” the Israeli diplomat continued.
Dear Jean Noël,
I was astonished to read your claim that the Palestinian Authority allegedly “ended” the pay-for-slay payments. The facts on this matter are clear and unequivocal (and I am sure they are also known to French intelligence): The PA simply replaced the old system… https://t.co/r1sxS9nf55
— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) September 3, 2025
During his conversation with Barrot, Saar also argued that PA President Mahmoud Abbas has avoided holding elections for nearly 20 years due to his limited support among Palestinians, making him an unreliable interlocutor.
Western powers have been negotiating with the PA on conditions for Gaza governance after Hamas is removed from power, while the PA continues to pledge reforms — a strategy experts say is unlikely to succeed given its lack of credibility and ongoing support for terrorism against Israel.
According to a poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR), if an agreement is reached to end the war in Gaza, only 40 percent of Palestinians “support the return of the PA to managing the affairs of the Gaza Strip,” while 56 percent oppose it.
US officials have also condemned France’s initiative to recognize a Palestinian state, arguing that the move would do little to advance peace.
On Thursday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington has warned other countries that recognizing a Palestinian state would only create more problems.
“We told all these countries, we told them all, we said if you guys do this recognition stuff it’s all fake, it’s not even real, if you do it you’re going to create problems,” Rubio said during a press conference in Ecuador.
“There’s going to be a response, it’s going to make it harder to get a ceasefire and it may even trigger these sorts of actions that you’ve seen, or at least these attempts at these actions,” the US official continued, referring to Israel’s plans to consider annexation in the West Bank.
Dear @jnbarrot,
Listen to @SecRubio words.
You know it’s true.
Don’t whitewash “pay for slay”.
Don’t whitewash PA crimes! pic.twitter.com/EMJeGDZivE— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) September 4, 2025
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Sen. Tom Cotton Urges FBI to Investigate Palestinian Youth Movement Leader Who Called for Targeting F-35 Program
US Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AK) speaks during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, March 11, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Julia Nikhinson
US Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) has called on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to investigate a pro-Hamas activist who urged supporters to sabotage the US supply chain for the F-35 fighter jet, one of America’s most advanced military assets and a critical component of Israel’s defense.
In a letter sent to FBI Director Kash Patel on Wednesday, Cotton warned that Aisha Nizar, a leader and organizer of the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), “directly endangered US national security” when she addressed a Palestinian conference in Detroit last week. Durin the event, Nizar told attendees that targeting “nodes” in the F-35 production process could have “a huge impact” on the program.
“We need to be surgical. We need to be strategic … Because there are many different points of these supply chains of death that we can intervene in and we must intervene in,” Nizar said at the People’s Conference for Palestine.
The F-35 program is widely regarded as a cornerstone of US and allied air power, and Israel is the only country in the Middle East authorized to operate the jets. Cotton argued that calls to undermine the program represent not just anti-Israel activism, but also a direct assault on American workers and defense readiness.
“Nizar’s statements constitute direct incitement of violence against US national security interests by advocating for actions against the men and women who build the F-35,” Cotton wrote. He urged the FBI to “immediately examine Nizar’s actions and take any necessary actions to mitigate the threat.”
PYM has emerged as one of the most radical anti-Israel, pro-Hamas groups in the US since the war in Gaza started, organizing raucous protests targeting Jewish and pro-Israel events across the country.
Nizar has previously faced legal trouble over her role in disruptive protests amid the Israel-Hamas war, including a demonstration that shut down the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Cotton, an outspoken supporter of the US-Israel strategic alliance, said her ties to PYM, which he has accused of harboring antisemitic views and benefiting from questionable tax-exempt donations, warrant closer scrutiny.
“The defense supply chain is a key to our military’s ability to fight and win wars. We must protect that supply chain from all enemies, foreign and domestic,” he concluded in his letter.
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Israeli Military Says It Controls 40% of Gaza City, Plans to Expand Operation in Coming Days
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a tent, outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, Sept. 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khamis Al-Rifi
Israel controls 40 percent of Gaza City, a military spokesperson said on Thursday, as thousands of residents defied Israeli orders to leave in order for soldiers to target Hamas terrorists without civilians in harm’s way.
In Gaza City, Israeli forces have advanced through the outer suburbs and are now a few kilometers (miles) from the city center.
“We continue to damage Hamas’s infrastructure. Today we hold 40 percent of the territory of Gaza City,” Israeli military spokesperson Brigadier General Effie Defrin told a news conference, naming the Zeitoun and Sheikh Radwan neighborhoods. “The operation will continue to expand and intensify in the coming days.”
“We will continue to pursue Hamas everywhere,” he said, adding that the mission will only end when Israel‘s remaining hostages are returned and Hamas’s rule ends.
Defrin confirmed that army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir told cabinet ministers that without a day-after plan, they would have to impose military rule in Gaza. Far-right members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government have been pushing for Israel to impose military rule in Gaza and establish settlements there, which Netanyahu has so far ruled out.
Israel launched the offensive in Gaza City on Aug. 10, in what Netanyahu says is a plan to defeat Hamas terrorists in the part of Gaza where Israeli troops fought most heavily in the war’s initial phase.
The campaign has prompted international criticism because of the humanitarian crisis in the area and has provoked unusual levels of concern within Israel, including accounts of tension over strategy between some military commanders and political leaders.
The Israeli military has said it is operating on the outskirts of Gaza City to dismantle terrorists’ tunnels and locate weapons.
Much of Gaza City was laid to waste in the war’s initial weeks in October-November 2023. About a million people lived there before the war, and hundreds of thousands are believed to have returned to live among the ruins, especially since Israel ordered people out of other areas and launched offensives elsewhere.
Israel, which has now told civilians to leave Gaza City again for their safety, says 70,000 have done so, heading south. Palestinian officials say less than half that number have left and many thousands still lie in the path of Israel‘s advance.
The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Palestinian terrorists led by Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking 251 hostages into Gaza.
Israel responded with a military campaign aimed at freeing the hostages and dismantling Hamas’s military capabilities and political rule in neighboring Gaza.
Prospects for a ceasefire and a deal to release the remaining 48 hostages, 20 of whom are thought to still be alive, appear dim.