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Anger As London Statue of Iconic Jewish Singer Amy Winehouse is Vandalized With Palestinian Symbol
The vandalized statue of singer Amy Winehouse at Camden Market in London. Photo: Screenshot
The authorities at one of London’s most popular open-air markets have confirmed that a sticker of a Palestinian flag placed over the Star of David necklace on a statue commemorating iconic singer Amy Winehouse has been removed.
The offending symbol was placed on the statue over the weekend, following the arrest of twelve people during pro-Hamas protests in central London. The statue of Winehouse is located in north London’s Camden Market, a popular destination for tourists and locals alike.
Winehouse, whose 2006 classic release “Back in Black” was one of the best-selling albums in UK history, was born into a Jewish family in London and regularly wore her Star of David necklace. She died tragically in 2011 after a long battle with substance abuse.
The first image of the defaced statue was published on X/Twitter by Etan Smallman, a London-based reporter.
“London 2024. Where a Star of David can’t be displayed (even on a statue of a dead singer) without being covered with a Palestinian flag,” he commented alongside.
When one respondent answered that “Amy would be happy with the Palestinian flag too,” Smallman retorted: “Do you make a habit of channelling the spirit of dead musicians? Or just Jewish ones?”
Other respondents described the vandalism as “gross” and “disgraceful,” with one person asking, “how low can people go?”
In a statement, the UK-based Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) argued that the vandalism was an accurate reflection of the adversarial atmosphere faced by British Jews since the Oct. 7 Hamas pogrom in Israel.
“So much for the “this is just criticism of Israel” excuse we hear so often from antisemites who are too cowardly or ignorant to admit what they are,” the CAA said in a statement.
“Right now, 69 percent of British Jews say that they are less likely to show visible signs of their Judaism. When even a statue of a Jewish person can’t get away with it, is that any surprise?” it asked.
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Trump Administration to Release Over $5 Billion School Funding That It Withheld
US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and President Donald Trump, in the East Room at the White House in Washington, DC, US, March 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
President Donald Trump’s administration will release more than $5 billion in previously approved funding for K-12 school programs that it froze over three weeks ago under a review, which had led to bipartisan condemnation.
“(The White House Office of Management and Budget) has completed its review … and has directed the Department to release all formula funds,” Madi Biedermann, deputy assistant secretary for communications at the U.S. Education Department, said in a statement, adding funds will be dispersed to states next week.
Further details on the review and what it found were not shared.
A senior administration official said “guardrails” would be in place for the amount being released, without giving details.
Early in July, the Trump administration said it would not release funding previously appropriated by Congress for schools and that an initial review found signs the money was misused to subsidize what it alleged was “a radical leftwing agenda.”
States say $6.8 billion in total was affected by the freeze. Last week, $1.3 billion was released.
After the freeze, a coalition of mostly Democratic-led states sued to challenge the move, and 10 Republican US senators wrote to the Republican Trump administration to reverse its decision.
The frozen money covered funding for education of migrant farm workers and their children; recruitment and training of teachers; English proficiency learning; academic enrichment and after-school and summer programs.
The Trump administration has threatened schools and colleges with withholding federal funds over issues like climate initiatives, transgender policies, pro-Palestinian protests against U.S. ally Israel’s war in Gaza and diversity, equity and inclusion practices.
Republican US lawmakers welcomed the move on Friday, while Democratic lawmakers said there was no need to disrupt funding in the first place.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon separately said she was satisfied with what was found in the review and released the money, adding she did not think there would be future freezes.
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Israel to Resume Airdrop Aid to Gaza on Saturday, Military Says
Palestinians carry aid supplies which they received from the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in the central Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed/File Photo
Israel will resume airdrop aid to Gaza on Saturday night, the Israeli military said, a few days after more than 100 aid agencies warned that mass starvation was spreading across the enclave.
“The airdrops will include seven pallets of aid containing flour, sugar, and canned food to be provided by international organizations,” the military added in a statement.
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Trump Says Hamas ‘Didn’t Want to Make a Deal,’ Now Likely to Get ‘Hunted Down’
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 8, 2025. Photo: Kevin Lamarque via Reuters Connect.
i24 News – US President Donald Trump on Friday said the Palestinian jihadists of Hamas did not want to make a deal on a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza.
“Now we’re down to the final hostages, and they know what happens after you get the final hostages. And basically because of that, they really didn’t want to make a deal,” Trump said.
The comments followed statements by Middle East peace envoy Steve Witkoff and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the effect that Israel was now considering “alternative” options to achieve its goals of bringing its hostages home from Gaza and ending the terror rule of Hamas in the coastal enclave.
Trump added he believed Hamas leaders would now be “hunted down.”
On Thursday, Witkoff said the Trump administration had decided to bring its negotiating team home for consultations following Hamas’s latest proposal. Witkoff said overnight that Hamas was to blame for the impasse, with Netanyahu concurring.
Trump also dismissed the significance of French President Emmanuel Macron’s announcement that Paris would become the first major Western power to recognize an independent Palestinian state.
Macron’s comments, “didn’t carry any weight,” the US leader said.
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