Then-US Reps. Cori Bush (left), Jamaal Bowman (right), and Rashida Tlaib (center). Tlaib is still in office. Photo: Reuters

Former US Democratic Reps. Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman praised anti-Israel organizations and encouraged left-wing activists to continue speaking up in favor of “Palestinian liberation” and against the so-called “genocide” in Gaza during the latest episode of their new show.

“I want to especially appreciate all of the organizations that are out, and when you protest you also protest to save lives in Gaza. You also are standing for Palestinian liberation; you’re also speaking up against the genocide,” Bush said on a new episode of their show, “Bowman & Bush,” on the Zeteo network.

Bush added that “what we need right now” is a mass mobilization effort behind the pro-Palestinian cause. She encouraged activists to become engaged in foreign affairs, comparing the war in Gaza to the ongoing crises in Haiti and Congo. 

In the 19 months following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel, in which Palestinian terrorists murdered 1,200 people and kidnapped 251 hostages, left-wing activists across the US have organized an unremitting barrage of demonstrations condemning the Jewish state for its military response in Hamas-ruled Gaza.

US federal agencies have established a link between domestic anti-Israel protests and adversarial foreign actors such as Iran. Then-Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said in July, for example, that the Iranian regime has organized “influence efforts” to undermine trust in American institutions, adding that “actors tied to Iran’s government” encouraged and provided financial support to rampant protests opposing Israel’s defensive military operations against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza.

Bowman also took shots at Israel during his show, saying that liberals need to “fight for democracy everywhere,” including within the Jewish state. He slammed progressive American groups for refusing to speak up about the supposed “apartheid” to which he claimed Israel subjects Palestinians.

“If you’re fighting for American democracy you have to fight for democracy everywhere. You can’t support apartheid in one country, but American democracy here,” Bowman said. “That’s not how that works, and there’s a lot of people and a lot of organizations who are completely silent on apartheid in Israel.”

The former congressman lamented America’s close ties with Israel, accusing the Jewish state of perpetuating “white supremacy” and being an outpost of “Western imperialism.” He argued that Israel misuses American tax dollars to advance “apartheid, repression, and oppression.”

Following Hamas’s Oct. 7 invasion of and massacre across southern Israel, both Bush and Bowman issued intense criticism of the Jewish state’s defensive military efforts in Gaza.

The progressive former lawmakers called for a ‘ceasefire” between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group less than a month removed from the Oct. 7 massacre. They each falsely accused Israel of engaging in an array of war crimes in Gaza, including “genocide,” “ethnic cleansing,” and imposing a “famine.” The duo also dismissed Israel’s counterterrorism initiatives in the West Bank as “apartheid.”

Bowman specifically declared the mass rapes of Israeli women on Oct. 7 a “hoax,” before walking back his comments following widespread backlash. He has accused Israel of advancing “white nationalism” and “settler colonialism” and also suggested he may no longer support Israel’s unequivocal right to exist or defend itself. Bowman also later expressed remorse for voting in favor of Iron Dome funding, claiming that Israel weaponizes its air defense system to “continue apartheid, oppression, open-air prison, occupation, and now the genocide.”

Bush ultimately lost her reelection campaign to St. Louis attorney Wesley Bell in August while making her opposition to Israel a key talking point of the race. Bowman came up short against Westchester County executive George Latimer. 

Zeteo, the network on which “Bowman & Bush” airs, has positioned itself as a major source of anti-Israel content creation. Mehdi Hasan, the network’s founder and main host, has declared the ongoing war in Gaza a “genocide” and repeatedly pressured US lawmakers to implement an arms embargo against the Jewish state. Hosts on Zeteo have also downplayed Hamas’s attacks against Israel, oftentimes referring to the terrorist group as a “resistance.”

The post Former US Reps. Cori Bush, Jamaal Bowman Encourage Left-Wing Organizations to Push for ‘Palestinian Liberation’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepts rockets, as seen from Ashkelon, Israel, Oct. 1, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Dr. Maya Wind is a researcher in the Department of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia and holds a PhD in Social and Cultural Analysis from New York University.

For years, she has often ignored Palestinian terrorism against Israel, spreading anti-Israel rhetoric and enthusiastically supporting the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. BDS, which undermines the Jewish people’s right to self-determination and calls for the destruction of the world’s only Jewish state, is widely regarded as antisemitic. Like Wind’s book Towers of Ivory and Steel, BDS does not offer sustainable solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Towers of Ivory and Steel is described as exposing Israeli universities as “pillars of Israel’s system of oppression against Palestinians,” and it portrays Israeli academia as an active collaborator in Israel’s “colonial-settlement project.”

Wind’s Key Claims

In Towers of Ivory and Steel, Wind presents three main arguments accusing Israeli universities of aiding apartheid and colonialism.

1. Archaeology Departments and the “Colonial Project”

Wind alleges that Israeli universities’ archaeology departments collaborate with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the Israel Antiquities Authority, and settlement organizations to further Israel’s colonial ambitions in Judea and Samaria.

However, Wind ignores the extensive historical and archaeological evidence of Jewish presence in the Land of Israel, documented in ancient synagogues and Hebrew writings completed thousands of years before the modern state’s establishment.

Additionally, as an anthropologist, Wind should acknowledge the ongoing destruction and looting of Jewish antiquities by Palestinians, often with the involvement of the Palestinian Authority. UNESCO considers such actions the erasure of cultural heritage and a violation of human rights.

2. Middle Eastern Studies and Military Collaboration

Wind claims that Israel’s Middle Eastern Studies departments support the IDF, citing the Havatzalot Program at Hebrew University, which provides military intelligence training alongside academic studies. She criticizes the university for allocating facilities to this program.

Yet, similar programs exist in democratic countries like the US, UK, France, and Japan, where academic institutions collaborate with military establishments to address national security needs. The Havatzalot Program helps the IDF recruit and train top talent to protect Israel, including Arab citizens. Notably, no Arab students have been displaced from dormitories or denied access to university resources because of the program.

3. Defense Industry Partnerships

Wind argues that Israeli universities collaborate with defense companies like Rafael and Elbit to develop technology and weapons that harm Palestinians.

While such collaborations exist, they aim to enhance precision and minimize civilian casualties. For example, Rafael’s Iron Dome system protects Israeli civilians — both Jews and Arabs — by intercepting rockets from Gaza, often preventing broader military conflicts. This technology has saved countless lives, reducing the need for ground invasions during operations like Pillar of Defense (2012) and Guardian of the Walls (2021).

Israel’s defense innovations address regional security threats beyond the Palestinian arena, including Hezbollah, Syria, and Iran. These technologies also enable the IDF to distinguish between combatants and civilians, using tools like precision missiles and early-warning systems to minimize collateral damage. 

The Reality on the Ground

Despite Wind’s portrayal, the IDF’s military ethos prioritizes minimizing civilian harm. In the first year of the recent Iron Swords War, approximately 40,000 targets in Gaza were struck. Even if we would accept Hamas’ heavily manipulated casualty figures for this period (and it has since been proven those figures are inaccurate and manipulated, that indicates an average of one casualty per strike — an unprecedented ratio for a conflict of this scale.

Furthermore, the civilian-to-combatant casualty ratio is one of the most favorable in modern warfare history. This ratio stands out given Hamas’ practice of embedding terrorists within civilian populations.

Notably, independent analysts have raised concerns about the reliability of casualty reports from Hamas. And this report, for example, “reveals how Hamas distorted fatality statistics to shape international opinion and legal narratives against Israel.”

Ignoring Terrorism in Palestinian Universities

While Wind focuses solely on alleged Israeli transgressions, she overlooks the role of Palestinian universities in fostering terrorism. After Hamas took control of Gaza, universities there were used as hubs for weapons research, intelligence gathering, and terrorist training.

A striking example is the Islamic University of Gaza, which has long served as a center for Hamas’ military operations. The university, established in 1978, has trained operatives in weapons development and intelligence. It also hosts conferences to raise funds for terrorism and disseminates anti-Israel propaganda.

The university’s ties to senior Hamas officials, such as Jamal Zabda — who was killed in Operation Guardian of the Walls — underscore its role in supporting terrorism. Zabda, a former head of Hamas’ research and development division, held a prominent position at the Islamic University, illustrating the direct link between academic institutions and militant activities. 

Conclusion

Maya Wind’s Towers of Ivory and Steel presents a distorted, one-sided narrative that ignores key facts and realities. Israeli universities are not pillars of oppression, but essential contributors to national security, scientific advancement, and the protection of civilians — both Jewish and Arab.

By turning a blind eye to Palestinian terrorism and the militarization of Gaza’s universities, Wind fails to offer a balanced perspective. Instead of fostering understanding or proposing viable solutions, her work perpetuates divisive rhetoric that undermines efforts toward peace and coexistence.

Tom Yohay is the campus advisor in Israel for CAMERA on Campus.

The post A New Book Twists What Happens at Israeli Universities first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

At an anti-Israel demonstration in Germany in February 2025, protesters chanted antisemitic slogans and called for violence against Jews. Photo: Foto: picture alliance / Anadolu

I am in Berlin today as a proud Jew with a stark warning: 80 years after the bloodiest war in history — and the systematic genocide of six million Jewish people and millions of others — the promise of “never again” is being severely tested. 

This city, steeped in both unimaginable horror and the commitment to remembrance, is home to the echoes of my family’s memory and those of so many in our community. Their stories are commemorated in memorials, museums, and official German statements of responsibility.  

Yet, in recent years, an unprecedented tsunami of antisemitism has surged across Europe and around the world, threatening to pull us back into our collective past. We cannot — and will not — allow it to happen. In response, the leaders of the seven largest Jewish communities outside Israel: Argentina, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States formed the J7 –The Large Communities’ Task Force Against Antisemitism.

The complacency we’re witnessing today has dangerous historical parallels. Antisemitism has always been an early warning sign for broader democratic backsliding. This isn’t just a Jewish problem — it’s a threat to Europe as a whole and the values established in the aftermath of the Holocaust. 

Our latest findings confirm what we’ve experienced firsthand: dramatic increases in both total antisemitic incidents and incidents per Jewish capita. This surge accelerated after the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack in Israel. 

The numbers are stark. Violent incidents against Jews increased 185% in France between 2021 and 2023, 82% in the UK, and 75% in Germany. Most recently, 2024 marked a staggering 317% increase in antisemitic incidents in Australia, while the United States reached another all-time record since we began recording antisemitic incidents at ADL, with a total tabulated 9,354 antisemitic incidents across the country. 

Perhaps most alarming is the rate of incidents per the number of Jewish residents.

In Germany, there were more than 38 antisemitic incidents for every 1,000 Jewish residents in 2023. The UK followed with 13 incidents per 1,000 Jewish residents. These figures reveal the growing vulnerability of Jewish communities worldwide. 

What’s particularly disturbing about this moment is how antisemitism has become normalized in public discourse. Jewish students face harassment on university campuses and schools. Synagogues require armed guards. Many think twice before wearing visibly Jewish symbols. These aren’t isolated incidents, but symptoms of a broader societal failure. When hatred against Jews becomes acceptable, it undermines the very foundations of democratic societies that Europe rebuilt after World War II. 

This crisis demands concrete action. The J7 Task Force is calling on all countries to adopt and implement common sense policies and programs such as those outlined in the Global Guidelines for Countering Antisemitism. These guidelines will help governments, institutions, and civil society partners develop practical policies to ensure the safety, inclusion, and dignity of Jewish communities worldwide. 

We once thought we had reached — or were at least close to reaching — the stage of remembering antisemitism as opposed to living it. Instead, today our communities are forced to rebuild our security and defenses against an age-old hatred that has found its way back into the mainstream. But despite this challenge, Jewish communities remain resilient. 

The most meaningful tribute to Holocaust victims isn’t found in monuments, but in ensuring that Jewish communities can thrive without fear in every society. Eighty years after liberation, our reality requires more than commemorations — it demands action. 

The choice is clear. Eighty years later, the time to act is now. 

Ambassador Marina Rosenberg is the Senior Vice President of International Affairs at the Anti-Defamation League.

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