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Elizabeth Warren to Speak at Anti-Israel Conference Hosted by Group Accused of Promoting Terrorism
US Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) asks questions during a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, June 13, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Leah Millis
US Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is set to speak at an anti-Israel conference hosted by a group accused of promoting terrorism next Tuesday, raising questions about the lawmaker’s stance on the Jewish state.
The Palestine Digital Activism Forum, which will feature Warren as a keynote speaker, is an annual event run by 7amleh – The Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media. According to the conference itinerary, Warren’s speech will be on “how to protect the public and develop ethical AI [artificial intelligence].”
NGO Monitor, a Jerusalem-based research institute, has tracked 7amleh’s activities for several years, finding that the organization has celebrated terrorism, promoted the demonization of Israel, and supported the rollback of social media efforts to combat antisemitism.
In the wake of the Palestinian terror group Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel, several high-profile members of 7amleh expressed support for Hamas, whose fighters murdered 1,200 people and abducted over 250 others as hostages during their onslaught.
On Oct. 7, 7amleh board member Neveen Abu Rahmoun endorsed Hamas’ violent acts of murder and abduction as legitimate “resistance” on Facebook.
“The Palestinian resistance is imposing a new stage since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa flood operation [Hamas’ name for the Oct. 7 attacks] by resistance fighters infiltrating into numerous Israeli neighborhoods in the settlements, by creating points of contact, and by firing rockets of the resistance,” Rahmoun posted. “Israel, in its turn, is constrained by this and has announced a state of high mobilization for war. The message of the resistance is clear, it has started and it shall escalate and shall impose a new reality.”
On Oct. 9, the organization’s project coordinator, Mohammad Badarneh, expressed approval of the Hamas massacre on Facebook, seemingly encouraging more Palestinians to participate in terrorism against Israel.
“The ‘only important’ value of a human being living under occupation is the extent of his resistance to that occupation, in all possible means,” Badarneh said.
On Oct. 12, Jalal Abukhater, 7amleh’s Advocacy Manager, lambasted Zionism as an inherently racist and genocidal ideology.
“Europe exported an ideology of ethnic-supremacy prone to commit genocidal violence.. all the way to our blessed little land. They called it Zionism, and it is ceaseless,” Abukhater posted on X/Twitter.
Roughly 45 percent of Israeli Jews are Mizrahi — Jews who trace their ethnic origins to the Middle East and North Africa. Meanwhile, 21 percent of Israel’s population identifies as Arab. Conversely, Arab and Muslim countries in the region expelled roughly 900,000 Jews between 1920-1970.
Prior to the Oct. 7 massacre, Ahmad Qadi, 7amleh’s “monitoring and documentation officer,” voiced public approval of violence against Israeli Jews.
In response to a Jan. 2023 terror attack against a Jerusalem synagogue which left seven Israeli civilians dead, Qadi posted on Facebook, “For decades, the Israeli criminal entity has been… sowing seeds of despair and doubt in the effectiveness of resistance. Even until now, the Israeli war machine has not been able to see the truth — that every Israeli crime is met with greater determination for sacrifice, broader resistance, and an untamed determination to victory.”
Qadi also posted pictures from the 2014 Jerusalem synagogue attack in which four Jews were murdered. Glorifying the attacks, Qadi wrote, “I have been wishing for pictures like these for a while, and I still wonder — of what these men are made of?! #deeply_exciting.” He then added, “‘Heroes,’ ‘Men of Palestine,’ Congratulations and mercy for all the resistance fighters and martyrs. Our loyalty is to whomever resists and to all who defend the honor of the Palestinian people and its nation.”
On Nov. 1 of last year, 7amleh released a 13-page report downplaying the proliferation of antisemitism online following the Oct. 7 terror attacks against Israel. Critics argued the report was a veiled attempt to thwart efforts to remove antisemitic and pro-terrorism material on social media under the guise of “protecting the human rights of Palestinians in the online space.”
“We are also gravely concerned about the significant and disproportionate censorship of Palestinian voices, which severely restricts freedom of expression and access to information, more direly so with journalists and human rights defenders. This is compounded by the one-sided and context-lacking portrayal of the region’s situation by mainstream media,” the report read.
Warren’s decision to speak at an anti-Israel conference could indicate a broader shift in the lawmaker’s views on Israel. In March, the progressive senator called for a “ceasefire” between Israel and Hamas, an act that would leave the terror group in control of Gaza. That same month, she joined a letter urging US President Joe Biden to stop arms shipments to Israel.
While speaking at the Islamic Center of Boston in April, Warren suggested that Israel’s military response targeting Hamas in Gaza could be tantamount to a “genocide.” On Monday, she referred to the Israeli military operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, Hamas’ last major stronghold in the Palestinian enclave, as an “assault.”
Warren did not respond to a request for comment for this story.
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Syrian Christian Leader Chides President Over Deadly Church Bombing
People attend the funeral of victims of a suicide bombing at the Mar Elias Church on Sunday, in Damascus, Syria, June 24, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
Syria’s top Christian leader said on Tuesday at the funeral for victims of a deadly church bombing that President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government bore responsibility for not protecting minorities and his condolences were insufficient.
At least 25 worshippers died on Sunday when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the Mar Elias Church in Damascus, the first such attack since Sharaa’s Islamist-led government seized power in December after the Assad family dynasty’s toppling.
The attack, which the government blamed on the Islamic State terrorist group, reinforced doubts among minorities about whether they can rely on government assurances of protection.
“With love and with all due respect Mr. President, you spoke yesterday by phone … to express your condolences. That is not enough for us,” the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, John (X) Yazigi, said at the funeral, drawing applause.
“We are grateful for the phone call. But the crime that took place is a little bigger than that.”
Christians made up around 10 percent of Syria’s pre-war population of 22 million, but their numbers shrunk significantly during the 14-year conflict, mainly through emigration. Only a few hundred thousand are now estimated to be living in Syria.
Yazigi said the government must prioritize protection for all. “What is important to me – and I will say it – is that the government bears responsibility in full,” Yazigi said of the church attack.
Hundreds were at the service in the nearby Church of the Holy Cross to bury nine of the victims, whose bodies were placed in simple white coffins adorned with white flowers.
Social affairs minister Hind Kabawat – the only Christian and only woman in Syria’s new government – attended.
On Monday, Sharaa said the attack was a crime hurting all Syrians but did not use the word “Christians” or “church.”
The government said security forces raided hideouts used by Islamic State, killing two of its members including one who facilitated the suicide bomber’s entry into Mar Elias Church.
IS did not issue a statement of responsibility.
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Montana Tucker Honors Israeli Courage, Resilience in New Dance Video Filmed on Masada
Montana Tucker at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024. Photo: Dan MacMedan / USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters Connect
Jewish-American activist, dancer, and social media influencer Montana Tucker released on Monday a dance video filmed at Masada that honors the bravery and resilience of Jewish people throughout history and Israelis amid the Israel-Iran war.
The video, produced by the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM), was filmed during Tucker’s solidarity trip to Israel in May, which was her sixth visit to the Jewish state since the deadly Hamas terrorist attack more than a year and a half ago on Oct. 7, 2023. Tucker shared the dance video on social media.
“From the Romans and Persians, to the Nazis, Hamas, Hezbollah, and now the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Jewish people have faced countless enemies. And yet, we endure. We rise,” she wrote in the caption. “Today, I dance at Masada — a symbol of Jewish courage and defiance. I dedicate this moment to the heroes of Israel: the pilots defending the skies, the soldiers guarding the borders, and the millions standing strong in bomb shelters. Am Yisrael Chai. We WILL rise again.”
Masada was a mountain-top fortress complex in the Judaean Desert in southeastern Israel. It became a final holdout of Jewish rebels standing against the Roman Empire following the destruction of Jerusalem
Tucker and a group of dancers from the Lilach Friedman Dance Center in Israel danced on Masada to a track that included lyrics of “Rise Again” by EV!
“Break down my walls/but I will rise again. Cuz I stand tall/ in my environment,” the artist sings. “How could I ever close my eyes/ and stay silent since/they tried to take me down/with their violence.”
Tucker and CAM have collaborated on a number of projects since the Oct. 7 attacks, including the video “We Can Dance Again,” filmed at the site of the Nova music festival massacre in memory of the 364 music lovers murdered at the event, “I’m a Survivor,” drawing awareness to hostages still held in Gaza by Hamas, “Woman, Life, Freedom,” about Iranian women resisting oppression, and “The Music Never Stopped,” which marked Israel’s 77th Independence Day.
During her most recent trip to Israel, Tucker met with former Hamas hostages Emily Damari and Romi Gonen, who each spent 471 days in captivity after being abducted on Oct. 7, 2023.
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Yemen’s Houthis Likely to Be Persistent Problem for US, Senior Military Official Says
Houthi policemen ride on the back of a patrol pick-up truck during the funeral of Houthi terrorists killed by recent US-led strikes, in Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 10, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement will likely be a persistent problem for the US in the future, a senior US military official said on Tuesday, even after Washington and the Houthis reached an agreement last month that ended a US air campaign against the terrorist group.
“The Houthis are likely to be a persistent problem … that we’ll be dealing with in the future a few times again,” Air Force Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich, director for operations of the Joint Staff, told lawmakers. Grynkewich has been nominated to lead the US military‘s European Command.
Last month, President Donald Trump announced the US would stop bombing the Houthis, who had been firing at US warships and commercial vessels off Yemen’s coast. The group, which had said it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians during Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, stopped firing at US ships under the agreement.
Rights groups had voiced concerns about civilian casualties during the nearly two-month-old US bombing campaign in Yemen.
Last week, the Houthis said they would again target US ships in the Red Sea if Washington became involved in Israeli attacks on Iran. Still, they have not resumed attacks after the US struck three Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend.
On Monday, Trump announced an Israel-Iran ceasefire deal.
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