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International Judo Federation Launches Investigation After Israeli Judokas Get Snubbed at Paris Olympics
An injured Nurali Emomali of Tajikistan being escorted off the mat after his match with Hifumi Abe of Japan at the Paris Olympic Games on July 28, 2024. Photo: Reuters/Arlette Bashizi
The International Judo Federation (IJF) said on Monday that it launched an investigation into an incident that happened a day earlier at the Paris Olympics with an Algerian judoka who was hailed for being unable to compete against an Israeli opponent, the same day that another Israeli judoka was snubbed at the Olympic Games by his competitor from Tajikistan.
Algerian judoka Messaoud Redouane Dris was disqualified from competing in an under 73 kg bout against Israel’s Tohar Butbul after he failed the official weigh-in on Sunday. The IJF said Dris arrived for the weigh-in session on Sunday 10 minutes before the deadline and was overweight by 400 grams, which made him ineligible to compete against Butbul in a match that was scheduled for Monday.
Algeria does not formally recognize the state of Israel and this is the second straight Olympics where an Algerian judoka voluntarily withdrew or was pulled out of the Olympic Games right before facing an opponent from Israel. There is speculation that Dris wanted to be pulled from the competition to avoid competing against an Israeli opponent, especially after Algerian media and a sponsor of the Algerian Olympic delegation praised Dris for not competing against Butbul, according to Reuters. The head of Israel’s Olympic Committee, Yael Arad, called Dris’ behavior a “disgrace” and called for the Algerian delegation to be penalized. The IJF said it will investigate the matter.
“Following the Olympic Games, a full review and investigation of the situation will be conducted and further action will be taken if needed,” the IJF said in the statement. “The IJF firmly upholds the principles of fair play, the Olympic spirit, and non-discrimination. We believe that sport should remain a realm of integrity and fairness, free from the influences of international conflicts. Unfortunately, athletes often become victims of broader political disputes which are against the values of sport.”
On Monday, Butbul showed up for his scheduled bout against Dris at the Champs de Mars Arena, stepped on the mat, and did the customary dojo bowing to where his opponent should have been standing, before leaving to prepare for another match.
Also on Sunday, Tajikistani judoka Nurali Emomali, 22, refused to shake hands with his Israeli counterpart Baruch Shmailov, 29, in round 16 of the men’s under 66 kg competition judo competition at the Paris Olympics. Emomali won the match and instead of shaking hands with Shmailov, which is customary to do at the end of a bout, he walked off the mat saying “Allah Akbar,” which is Arabic for “God is great.” Emomali also held up a raised index finger known as the “Finger of Tawheed,” which refers to the Islamic belief that “There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His prophet.”
Emomali won the match 1-0. However, his luck turned shortly after when he competed against Japanese Olympian Abe Hifumi in the 21st round, which was also the quarterfinals of the men’s under 66 kg competition. At the end of the match, Hifumi, 26, slammed Emomali to the ground and during the brutal fall, Emomali severely dislocated his shoulder. Hifumi won the bout 10-0.
Meanwhile, Jibril Rajoub, president of the Palestinian National Olympic Committee, told The Guardian that he will not shake hands with any member of Israel’s Olympic delegation at the Paris Games unless they recognize Palestinians and their right to independence.
“Before you ask me, ask them: do they recognize the very existence of the Palestinian people and our right to an independent state, next to Israel, according to UN legitimacy?” Rajoub said. “If they have this commitment, as a matter of principle I have no problem shaking hands with anyone who is recognizing my right to self-determination and our right to existence. But I will not shake hands as lip service with anyone who does not. It isn’t a matter of courtesy, it’s a matter of principle. They would have to be ready to fight to build bridges of peace by mutual recognition.”
Rajoub has called for Israeli athletes to be banned from international competitions and the Olympics because of Israel’s military actions in the Gaza Strip during the country’s ongoing war against Hamas terrorists responsible for the Oct. 7 massacre in southern Israel. The Palestinian delegation for the Olympic Games in Paris is comprised of eight athletes, one of whom wore to the opening ceremony on Friday a shirt that depicted airplanes dropping bombs onto civilians — an apparent nod to the Israel-Hamas war.
Rajoub said he and the Palestinian Olympic delegation will adhere to the International Olympic Committee’s code of conduct during their time in Paris, but “if we feel that there is any violation from our side, we have to fight against it,” he further told The Guardian. “The ball is in the other side’s court. Go and ask the president of the Israeli national Olympic committee how they can encourage their soldiers, how their judo champion can do this,” he added. “Don’t ask the victim, ask the criminal.”
Rajoub was referring to Peter Paltchik, an Israeli judoka and one of Israel’s flag bearers for the Olympic opening ceremony. After the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel, Paltchik shared on social media a photo of several missiles that were signed with messages — including one that compared Hamas to the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist organization and also said “Ippon,” which is the highest score achievable in judo and immediately ends a match. Paltchik wrote in the caption of the photo, “From me to you with pleasure #HamasisISIS #IsraelAtWar.”
The post International Judo Federation Launches Investigation After Israeli Judokas Get Snubbed at Paris Olympics first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Bryan Singer Secretly Filmed Period Drama With Jon Voight Critical of Israel for Lebanon War: Report
Jon Voight at the opening night of the 2023 Beverly Hills Film Festival held at TCL Chinese 6 Theatres in Hollywood, California, on April 19, 2023. Photo: FS//AdMedia/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
Jewish-American filmmaker Bryan Singer has returned to the director’s chair after a long hiatus with a film starring Oscar winner Jon Voight that is set in the Middle East and critical of Israel, Variety revealed on Wednesday.
Singer secretly filmed the period drama and one source who saw the final cut, but is not involved with the production, thinks the feature is “going to be a huge hotbed of controversy” because of its attention on the Middle East. “It makes Israel look really bad and could be polarizing,” the insider told Variety.
The source said the film is set in late 1970s or early 1980s. On June 6, 1982, Israel launched the First Lebanon War against Palestinian terrorists based in southern Lebanon following the attempted assassination of Israeli Ambassador to the United Kingdom Shlomo Argov by a terrorist cell.
The “Superman Returns” director shot the new film in Greece in 2023, and it focuses on the relationship between a father and son, Variety added. Israeli filmmaker Yariv Horovoitz is also reportedly collaborating on the project. There are no details about a release date.
Voight is a longtime supporter of Israel and said in 2018 that he feels an obligation to combat antisemitism. Last year, he was critical of his daughter, actress and filmmaker Angelina Jolie, when she slammed Israel’s defensive military campaign against Hamas in Gaza following the Palestinian terrorist group’s Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel.
Singer – who was raised Jewish in suburban New Jersey – has not directed in mainstream Hollywood since he was infamously fired by 20th Century Fox from “Bohemian Rhapsody” in 2017 and replaced during shooting, after several absences during the film’s production. He was signed on to direct a remake of the action film “Red Sonja,” but was reportedly fired from the project amid allegations in 2019 of sexual misconduct involving minors, which he denied.
The director’s past credits include four films in the “X-Men” franchise, “Valkyrie,” and the Oscar-winning film “The Usual Suspects.”
Singer faced sexual misconduct allegations starting in 1997, when two teenage boys claimed the director ordered them to strip naked for a scene in his film “Apt Pupil.” The filmmaker has never faced criminal charges for the sexual misconduct allegations made against him in 1997 or in later years.
Singer has been living in Israel for several years and Variety reported in 2023 that he was looking to make a comeback into the mainstream Hollywood film industry with features set in and around Israel.
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Italian Law Professor Faces Backlash Over Viral Antisemitic Social Media Posts
An Italian law professor is facing mounting backlash after past antisemitic social media posts went viral, sparking outrage among the local Jewish community and public officials.
Professor Luca Nivarra, who teaches in the Faculty of Law at the University of Palermo in Sicily, has come under scrutiny after several of his social media posts went viral, spreading antisemitic and hateful content.
“I don’t want to meddle in matters that don’t concern me directly, but, having very few tools at our disposal to oppose the Palestinian Holocaust, a signal, however modest, could be to unfriend your Jewish ‘friends’ on Facebook, even the ‘good’ ones, who declare themselves disgusted by what the Israeli government and the IDF are doing,” Nivarra wrote in one of his posts.
“They lie, and with their lies, they help cover up the horror: it’s a small, tiny thing, but let’s start making them feel alone, face to face with the monstrosity to which they are complicit,” he continued.
On Tuesday, the university issued a public statement distancing itself from Nivarra’s antisemitic remarks. Despite mounting public outrage, Nivarra has not faced any disciplinary action yet.
Massimo Midiri, Dean of the University of Palermo, condemned such hateful rhetoric, calling it “a personal and culturally dangerous initiative, far removed from our academic principles.”
“Nivarra’s statements risk fueling the very dynamics he claims to oppose. Complex issues like the Middle East conflict require dialogue and critical engagement, not exclusion or ideological censorship,” Midiri said in a statement.
Italy’s Minister of University and Research, Anna Maria Bernini, also denounced Nivarra’s remarks, saying they “not only offend the Jewish people but also all who uphold the values of respect and civil coexistence.”
“Conflicts are overcome through dialogue, not isolation and it is only through this path that an authentic journey toward peace can be built, an objective to which Italy and the international community continue to dedicate their efforts,” the Italian diplomat wrote in a post on X.
This is not the first time Nivarra has made public antisemitic statements and spread anti-Jewish hateful rhetoric. In his previous Facebook posts, he also wrote that “there are no good Israelis” and that “Israeli society is morally rotten.”
Nivarra also compared the Israeli Defense Forces’ defensive campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas to the actions of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann during the Holocaust.
“The only difference between Adolf Eichmann and the IDF is that Eichmann defended himself by saying he was following orders, while Israeli soldiers happily do what they do,” he wrote in another social media post.
Since his posts went viral, Nivarra has faced mounting criticism on social media, but he has denied any accusations of antisemitism.
“You can call me an anti-Semite when I am not one at all. There is an insurmountable distance between me and the perpetrators of these horrors,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
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‘Six Million Not Enough’: Minneapolis School Shooter Scrawled Antisemitic, Anti-Israel Messages on Guns
Law enforcement officers set up barriers after a shooting at Annunciation Church, which is also home to an elementary school, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US, Aug. 27, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ben Brewer
The lone suspect in Wednesday’s mass shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, Minnesota, scrawled antisemitic and anti-Israel messages across his weapons and allegedly shared his desire to kill “filthy Zionist Jews” in a notebook before unleashing a barrage of gunfire on students and parishioners.
Law enforcement officials identified the shooter as Robin Westman, 23, who died by suicide at the scene. According to police, Westman opened fire during morning Mass in the school’s adjoining church, killing two children (aged 8 and 10) and injuring 17 others.
Witnesses said the church erupted in chaos as stained-glass windows shattered and gunfire ripped through pews filled with children. Teachers and staff rushed to shield students, with some ushering them outside the building.
The shooting is being investigated as both a domestic terrorism case and a hate crime against Catholics, according to FBI Director Kash Patel.
However, the assailant also appeared to endorse antisemitic conspiracies and express a desire to kill Jews and Israelis.
Researchers at the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reported they found videos believed to be from Westman showing firearms and ammunition magazines marked with the antisemitic messages. Investigators are also reviewing the now-deleted YouTube channel allegedly linked to Westman that featured disturbing videos uploaded before the attack.
“Israel must fall and “Burn Israel” were among the writings on the weapons, as seen in the video. In addition, the messages on the guns included “6 million wasn’t enough” — an apparent reference to the 6 million Jews killed during the Holocaust, and “Burn HIAS” — an apparent reference to a Jewish organization which helps settle refugees.
Westman also allegedly wrote “kill Donald Trump” on a gun magazine as well as anti-black and anti-Latino racist messaging.
The videos also included images of a notebook with writing in the Cyrillic alphabet.
“If I will carry out a racially motivated attack, it would be most likely against filthy Zionist jews,” the notebook said, according to a translation by the New York Post. Westman also allegedly wrote slogans such as “Free Palestine.”
Images of the content has been widely circulated on social media.
Robin Westman, the suspected shooter in today’s mass shooting at the Annunciation Catholic Church and School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, appears to have had a YouTube Channel named “Robin W” which has since been deleted, that contained several video consisting of guns, a manifesto… pic.twitter.com/B3JJUOIGJp
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) August 27, 2025
Shocking antisemitic messages spotted on the Minneapolis shooter’s gun including:
– “Israel must fall,”
– “Burn Israel”
– “6 million wasn’t enough.”
– “ Burn HIAS (originally a Jewish resettlement org for refugees)Via our colleague @RealSaavedra pic.twitter.com/NFUnkRNlDs
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) August 27, 2025
An analysis of the shooter’s apparent manifesto by the ADL found no singular political motive. The assailant “scrawled numerous references and symbols on their weapons linked to a broad range of mass attackers, mimicking the 2019 Christchurch, 2022 Buffalo, and 2025 Antioch shooters, among others, who marked their weapons before launching their attacks,” the ADL wrote.
“The references found on the attacker’s weapons do not suggest a deep knowledge of white supremacy. Instead, the references point to a broader fixation on mass violence,” the group concluded.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who is Jewish, spoke with raw emotion after visiting the scene. “There are no words that can capture the horror and the evil of this unspeakable act,” he said.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said the students “were met with evil and horror and death.”
“We often come to these and say these unspeakable tragedies or there’s no words for this. There shouldn’t be words for these types of incidents because they should not happen and there’s no words that are going to ease the pain of the families today,” Walz added.
The suspect was reportedly a transgender woman who changed her name from Robert to Robin in 2020. Westman’s mother worked as a secretary at Annunciation until 2021, according to news reports, and authorities are still examining whether that connection influenced the target.
The tragedy adds to a growing list of school and faith-based shootings in the United States this year. Experts warn that antisemitic conspiracy theories, spread widely online, can inspire such violent attacks.
The tragedy came a week after the ADL released a new report highlighting how extremist online spaces are fueling not only school shootings but also a broader rise in antisemitism across the US. According to the report, many websites containing violent and gruesome material have pulled young people into white supremacist propaganda and conspiracy theories, inspiring them to commit deadly attacks.