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Fighting Hatred at the United Nations, One Person at a Time
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks at the UN headquarters in New York City, US, before a meeting about the conflict in Gaza, Nov. 6, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs
This week I met one of my heroes. What was even nicer is that this hero didn’t turn out to be a disappointment. On the contrary, after meeting him, I am more convinced than ever of what a hero he is. I am talking about Hillel Neuer.
Hillel Neuer is a Canadian-born international lawyer and human rights activist, best known for his role as the Executive Director of UN Watch, a human rights NGO based in Geneva, Switzerland. UN Watch, as its name suggests, focuses on monitoring the performance of the United Nations using the yardstick of its own Charter.
UN Watch also advocates for genuine human rights and equality, particularly in contexts where these ideals are threatened by rogue agencies or individuals within the UN, who have a political or ideological agenda that conflicts with the original aspirations of the United Nations.
Over the years, Neuer has been a vocal critic of various UN bodies, including the Human Rights Council, for their failure to effectively address or even acknowledge human rights abuses around the world, even as they obsessively focus their attention on Israel to the exclusion of countless other pressing global human rights issues.
Neuer argues that this preoccupation with Israel undermines the UN’s credibility and compromises its mission to uphold human rights around the world.
As Neuer has proven time and again, UN officials, such as Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), and Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories, are emblematic of this endemic and blatant bias.
Albanese is particularly egregious. In 2022, she controversially suggested that America is controlled “by the Jewish lobby.” And a few weeks ago, she contested French President Emmanuel Macron’s description of the October 7th Hamas massacre as the “largest antisemitic massacre of our century.” In Albanese’s opinion, the Hamas-perpetrated pogrom was an understandable response to “Israel’s oppression” and had nothing to do with the fact that the victims were Jewish.
According to Neuer, the UN stance vis-à-vis Israel not only diverts attention from widespread human rights violations in other countries, but also detracts from the UN’s ability to serve as an impartial arbiter of international human rights standards. Neuer is known for his fearless speeches and presentations at UN meetings, where he frequently calls out member states and UN bodies for their hypocrisy or for their failure to live up to the UN’s self-proclaimed standards.
In a 2016 interview, Neuer noted that in that year, the World Health Organization had condemned just one country for violating people’s health rights — Israel, due to its “treatment” of Syrians in the Golan Heights. Neuer called this anti-Israel bias “Orwellian, paradoxical, and absurd.” As he pointed out, “Israel should be singled out — but for their incredible medical treatment of refugees from Syria’s war.”
Truthfully, George Orwell’s 1984 offers a powerful analogy for the UN’s absurd emphasis on Israel, while ignoring rogue states that continue their misconduct unchecked.
In the topsy-turvy UN world, where truth is manipulated and the narrative controlled, Neuer’s work at UN Watch echoes the efforts of Winston Smith against the omnipotent Party in 1984. Smith sought to uncover and preserve truth in a society dominated by doublethink and subversive revisionism; Neuer endeavors to hold the UN accountable, challenging its prejudiced and inaccurate narratives, and calling for a return to its foundational principles of impartiality and universal human rights.
In Orwell’s dystopian Oceania, reality is whatever the Party deems it to be, and dissenting voices are systematically silenced. The UN, through its various bodies, has become a real-life version of Oceania. Its official view of Israel is negative, and that’s all that matters. Meanwhile no other country is subjected to anything close to the disapproval Israel is forced to suffer. UN bodies and UN resolutions are riddled with anti-Israel bias, and the inevitable result is that the UN’s humanitarian and ethical compass have been irreparably skewed.
Orwell’s protagonist in 1984 ultimately pays a heavy price for his defiance. But Neuer is undeterred, despite facing formidable opposition in his quest to ensure that the UN remains true to its charter and its commitment to human rights for all, free from any political or ideological bias. This week, he addressed a packed event in Los Angeles. His detailed presentation followed an enthusiastic introduction by comedian Elon Gold.
You’d think that after so many years of battling wolves presenting themselves as sheep, that Neuer would be disheartened and downbeat. But he isn’t — he is buoyant and battle-ready for the next fight. And no matter how overwhelming the challenge, Neuer sees his role as crucial for the international community. Even if he is unable to effect meaningful change, he is the voice of record — a voice that will continue to reverberate down the years. No one will ever be able to say in years to come: “We didn’t know!” They knew – because Hillel Neuer told them countless times and in countless ways.
In Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch’s commentary on Parshat Shemini, he delves into the tragic episode of Nadav and Avihu, the sons of Aaron the High Priest who were punished for offering “strange fire” before God. Rav Hirsch interprets the fate of Nadav and Avihu as a profound admonition about the sanctity of adhering strictly to doing what is right, particularly for those in positions of leadership and service. He posits that every action, particularly for those in the service of the community at large, must be approached with honesty, integrity, and a deep commitment to the principles they purport and are expected to uphold.
This message resonates precisely with the ethos behind Hillel Neuer’s superlative advocacy work. Neuer’s dedication to truth and justice, challenging bias and dishonesty at the United Nations, mirrors this integral Jewish imperative to uphold truth and righteousness. Rav Hirsch emphasizes how critical it is to adhere to ethical standards, and notes the consequences of deviating from divinely ordained paths, underscoring the importance of Neuer’s mission.
Just as Nadav and Avihu’s story serves as a caution against the perils of overstepping bounds without proper authority or intent, the UN needs to be conscious of the path it continues to travel, and the ultimate result of deviating from its original lofty and worthy goals. In the meantime, Hillel Neuer will continue to chart the UN’s voyage into the dark abyss — although, hopefully, his relentless advocacy can avert that tragedy from happening.
The author is a rabbi in Beverly Hills, California.
The post Fighting Hatred at the United Nations, One Person at a Time first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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‘Fine Scholar’: UC Berkeley Chancellor Praises Professor Who Expressed Solidarity With Oct. 7 Attacks
University of California, Berkeley chancellor Dr. Rich Lyons, testifies at a Congressional hearing on antisemitism, in Washington, D.C., U.S., on July 15, 2025. Photo: Allison Bailey via Reuters Connect.
The chancellor of University of California, Berkeley described a professor who cheered the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre across southern Israel a “fine scholar” during a congressional hearing held at Capitol Hill on Tuesday.
Richard K. Lyons, who assumed the chancellorship in July 2024 issued the unmitigated praise while being questioned by members of the House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce, which summoned him and the chief administrators of two other major universities to interrogate their handling of the campus antisemitism crisis.
Lyons stumbled into the statement while being questioned by Rep. Lisa McClain (R-MI), who asked Lyons to describe the extent of his relationship and correspondence with Professor Ussama Makdisi, who tweeted in Feb. 2024 that he “could have been one of those who broke through the siege on October 7.”
“What do you think the professor meant,” McClain asked Lyons, to which the chancellor responded, “I believe it was a celebration of the terrorist attack on October 7.” McClain proceeded to ask if Lyons discussed the tweet with Makdisi or personally reprimanded him, prompting an exchange of remarks which concluded with Lyons’s saying, “He is a fine scholar.”
Lyon’s comment came after nearly three hours in which the group of university leaders — which included Dr. Robert Groves, president of Georgetown University, and Dr. Felix V. Matos Rodriguez, chancellor of the City University of New York (CUNY) — offered gaffe-free, deliberately worded answers to the members’ questions to avoid eliciting the kind of public relations ordeal which prematurely ended the tenures of two Ivy League presidents in 2024 following an education committee held in Dec. 2023.
Rep. McClain later criticized Lyons on social media, calling his comment “totally disgraceful.” She added, “Faculty must be held accountable and Jewish students deserve better.”
CUNY chancellor Rodriguez also triggered a rebuke from the committee members in which he was also described as a “disgrace.”
As previously reported by The Algemeiner, CUNY campuses have been lambasted by critics as some of the most antisemitic institutions of higher education in the United States. Last year, the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) resolved half a dozen investigations of antisemitism on CUNY campuses, one of which involved Jewish students who were pressured into saying that Jews are White people who should be excluded from discussions about social justice.
During Tuesday’s hearing Rodriguez acknowledged that antisemitic incidents continue to disrupt Jewish academic life, disclosing that 84 complaints of antisemitism have been formally reported to CUNY administrators since 2024. 15 were filed in 2025 alone, but CUNY, he said, has published only 18 students for antisemitic conduct. Rodriguez went on to denounce efforts to pressure CUNY into adopting the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, saying, “I have repudiated BDS and I have said there’s no place for BDS at the City University of New York.”
Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC) remarked, however, that Rodriguez has allegedly done little to address antisemitism in the CUNY faculty union, the Professional Staff Congress (PSC), which has passed several resolutions endorsing BDS and whose members, according to 2021 ruling rendered by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), discriminated against Professor Jeffrey Lax by holding meetings on Shabbat to prevent him and other Jews from attending them.
“The PSC does not speak for the City University of New York,” Rodriquez protested. “We’ve been clear on our commitment against antisemitism and against BDS.”
Later, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), whose grilling of higher education officials who appear before the committee has created several viral moments, rejected Rodriguez’s responses as disingenuous.
“It’s all words, no action. You have failed the people of New York,” she told the chancellor. “You have failed Jewish students in New York State, and it is a disgrace.”
Following the hearing, The Lawfare Project, legal nonprofit which provides legal services free of charge to Jewish victims of civil rights violations, applauded the education committee for publicizing antisemitism at CUNY.
“I am thankful for the many members of Congress who worked with us to ensure that the deeply disturbing facts about antisemitism at CUNY were brought forward in this hearing,” Lawfare Project litigation director Zipora Reich said in a press release. “While it is deeply frustrating to hear more platitudes and vague promises from CUNY’s leadership, we are encouraged to see federal lawmakers demanding accountability.”
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.
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Huckabee Calls for Israeli Investigation Into ‘Criminal and Terrorist’ Killing of Palestinian-American in West Bank
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee looks on during the day he visits the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem’s Old City, April 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee on Monday urged Israeli officials to swiftly investigate the killing of Saif Musallet, a 20-year-old American citizen who was allegedly beaten to death by Israeli settlers while he was visiting family in the West Bank town of Sinjil.
“There must be accountability for this criminal and terrorist act,” Huckabee wrote on social media, in what is one of his strongest condemnations of Israeli settler violence since he was appointed by President Donald Trump in November 2024. “Saif was just 20 yrs old.”
Musallet, a Florida native, was reportedly attacked on July 11 by a group of Israelis while accompanying relatives on family-owned farmland near Ramallah. His family says he was severely beaten and denied medical attention for nearly three hours before succumbing to his injuries. Another Palestinian man, 23-year-old Mohammad al-Shalabi, was shot and killed during the same incident, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Israeli authorities said the violence followed an alleged rock-throwing incident that left two Israelis lightly wounded, a common occurrence in the West Bank which las left scores of Israelis civilians wounded and some killed. The Israel Defense Forces stated they used non-lethal crowd dispersal methods during the clash. The IDF says the incident is under investigation. Two Israeli minors were arrested following the attack, though according to Israeli media reports, neither of them is a murder suspect, and they were subsequently released to house arrest.
Musallet had traveled to the West Bank in early June to visit relatives and potentially meet a bride. Raised in Port Charlotte, Florida, he had recently co-founded an ice cream business in Tampa with his family. His death comes amid an escalation in settler-related violence across the West Bank, which has intensified since the October 2023 Hamas-led attack on southern Israel and the Israeli military’s ongoing campaign in Gaza.
Huckabee has historically defended Israeli settlement activity and has vowed to serve as an unwavering defender of the Jewish state.
Human rights groups and local activists say Musallet’s killing is part of a growing pattern of impunity for attacks on Palestinians, including American citizens. No Israeli suspects have been indicted in several high-profile deaths of Palestinian Americans in recent years, including journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and teenager Omar Mohammad Rabea.
U.S. lawmakers, including Representative Kathy Castor (D-FL), who represents Tampa, joined calls for an investigation. The State Department said it is aware of the incident and is providing consular support to the family but deferred further comment to Israeli authorities.
Musallet’s funeral was held Sunday in his family’s hometown of al-Mazra’a ash-Sharqiya. His relatives say they are demanding justice not only for Saif, but for all Americans caught in what they describe as an increasingly lawless situation in the occupied West Bank.
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Scandal-Plagued UN Commission Disbands Amid Increasing US Pressure Against Anti-Israel International Organizations
Miloon Kothari, member of the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, briefs reporters on the first report of the Commission. UN Photo/Jean Marc Ferré
The Commission of Inquiry (COI), a controversial United Nations commission investigating Israel for nearly five years, has collapsed after all three of its members abruptly resigned days after the United States sanctioned a senior UN official over antisemitism.
Commission chair Navi Pillay resigned on July 8, citing health concerns and scheduling conflicts. Her fellow commissioners, Chris Sidoti and Miloon Kothari, followed suit days later. While none of the commissioners directly linked their resignations to the U.S. sanctions, the timing suggests mounting American pressure played a decisive role.
The resignations came just one day before the Trump administration announced sanctions on Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian territories. Albanese was sanctioned over what the State Department called a “pattern of antisemitic and inflammatory rhetoric.” She had previously claimed that the U.S. was controlled by a “Jewish lobby” and questioned Israel’s right to self-defense. The sanctions bar her from entering the U.S. and freeze any assets under American jurisdiction.
The resignations mark a major victory for critics who have long viewed the inquiry as biased and politically motivated.
Watchdog groups, including Geneva-based UN Watch, celebrated the swift collapse of the Commission of Inquiry (COI), which they say had long operated with an open mandate to target Israel. “This is a watershed moment of accountability,” said UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer. “The COI was built on bias and sustained by hatred. Its fall is a victory for human rights, not a defeat.”
The COI had faced heavy criticism since its formation in 2021. In July 2022, Commissioner Miloon Kothari, made comments about the undue influence of a so-called “Jewish lobby” on the media, said the COI would “have to look at issues of settler colonialism.”
“Apartheid itself is a very useful paradigm, so we have a slightly different approach, but we will definitely get to it,” he added.
The Commission was established in 2021 year following the 11-day war between Israel and Gaza’s ruling Hamas group in May. COI is the first UN commission to ever be granted an indefinite period of investigation, which has drawn criticism from the US State Department, members of US Congress, and Jewish leaders across the world.
Following the resignations, Council President Jürg Lauber invited member states to nominate replacements by August 31. However, it is unclear whether the commission will be reconstituted or quietly shelved. UN Watch and other groups have urged the council to disband the COI entirely, calling it irreparably biased.
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