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Jewish Groups Lambast Wikipedia for Its ‘Attack on ADL’s Credibility’ About Antisemitism, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Anti-Defamation League (ADL) CEO Jonathan Greenblatt speaks during the organization’s “Never Is Now” summit at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan in New York City, US, Nov. 10, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Jeenah Moon
A total of 43 Jewish organizations signed a letter sent to the Wikimedia Foundation on Monday night that criticized Wikipedia’s conclusion last week that the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is not a credible source for information about antisemitism and the Israel-Palestinian conflict.
The Jewish groups — which include B’nai B’rith International, the American Jewish Committee, and American Jewish Congress — expressed concerns regarding Wikipedia’s “attack on ADL’s credibility” and accused the free online encyclopedia of “stripping the Jewish community of the right to defend itself from the hatred that targets our community.”
“We urge you to immediately launch an investigation into this decision and the motivations behind it, and to start the process for administrative reconsideration” stated the letter, which was spearheaded by the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations and sent to the Wikimedia Foundation board of trustees. “We hope that you will simultaneously speak out clearly and unequivocally in support of the Jewish community’s right to defend against antisemitism.”
Wikipedia’s editors, who are a group of volunteer moderators, voted last week in support of labeling the ADL as a “generally unreliable” source on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Other “generally unreliable” sources, according to Wikipedia’s editors, include Amazon reviews, Russian state media, the National Inquirer, and Newsmax.
The editors also overwhelmingly agreed that the ADL is unreliable on the topic of antisemitism, but a formal declaration on that matter has not been made as of yet. The Wikipedia editors said in an online forum that the ADL’s role as both a pro-Israel advocacy and research organization prevents it from being able to provide unbiased information about Israel or antisemitism.
In their letter to the Wikimedia Foundation, the Jewish organizations — including the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA) and Hillel International — said antisemitism is not only “one of the oldest and most pernicious forms of hate,” but also “in many ways, one of the most often misunderstood.” They said they are worried that Wikipedia’s decision about the ADL “will enable others to undermine our community’s claims or charges of antisemitism and simultaneously use Wikipedia’s decision as cover to perpetuate antisemitism.”
“At a time when antisemitic attitudes are increasing, and antisemitic incidents are skyrocketing, this is simply unacceptable, and it puts our entire community at risk,” they added.
The Jewish groups additionally noted that they, as well as the ADL, rely on the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism — which is the world’s most widely accepted definition of antisemitism. It has been adopted or endorsed by more than half of the United States and the District of Columbia, and is also used by over 1,000 global entities, including governments, universities, institutions, and other organizations.
“We are firmly united in the belief that an attack on ADL’s reliability over its use of the IHRA definition and advocacy on behalf of the Jewish people weakens us all,” the letter stated in conclusion. “Again, we urge the reconsideration of these actions and encourage Wikipedia to join us in combating antisemitism, rather than acting as a cover for those who seek to perpetuate the scourge of Jew hatred.”
The signatories included the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, American Sephardi Federation, Hadassah, Maccabi USA, Rabbinical Council of America, Iranian American Jewish Federation, and JCC Association of North America, among others.
The ADL criticized Wikipedia’s decision regarding its credibility when it was first announced last week. The civil rights organization called the decision “a sad development for research and education” and “devastating for the Jewish community and society.”
“It is deeply disturbing that the many editors who flagged the severe flaws and inaccuracies in both the reasoning and sources being used in this campaign to delegitimize ADL are being ignored,” an ADL spokesman said in a statement. “They have provided point by point refutations, grounded in factual citations, to every claim made, but apparently facts no longer matter.”
“Who made Wikipedia the arbiters of truth?” asked ADL Director Emeritus Abraham Foxman. “For over 110 years the ADL has jealously guarded its credibility — gaining the respect of the public, media, and government. Who evaluates Wikipedias’ credibility?”
Wikipedia “only discredits its own site when it tries to bar ADL from pages on Israel or antisemitism,” said B’nai B’rith International, which founded the ADL in 1913, in a post on X/Twitter. B’nai B’rith added that it “proudly stands” with the ADL “against all attempts to stifle Jewish perspectives on issues affecting the Jewish people first and foremost.”
The post Jewish Groups Lambast Wikipedia for Its ‘Attack on ADL’s Credibility’ About Antisemitism, Israeli-Palestinian Conflict first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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The post Montreal’s Dawson College shut down by student strike in solidarity with Palestine; Concordia remains open despite protests appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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US ‘Rejects’ ICC Arrest Warrants for Israeli Officials, Lawmakers Vow to Retaliate With Sanctions
The International Criminal Court, The Hague, Netherlands. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
The US castigated the International Criminal Court (ICC) over its decision on Thursday to issue arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, with lawmakers in Congress promising to seek retribution against the court once President-elect Donald Trump retakes the White House in January.
The ICC rejected an appeal by Israel to dismiss the warrants, instead charging Netanyahu and Gallant with “crimes against humanity and war crimes” in the Gaza conflict. The international body accused the Israeli officials of using “starvation as a method of warfare,” as well as “murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.” The court also claimed it discovered “reasonable grounds” to slap Netanyahu and Gallant with charges of “intentionally directing an attack against the civilian population.”
Israeli officials vehemently denied the charges, denouncing the ICC’s decision as politically motivated and based on false allegations.
The White House issued a statement condemning the ICC’s announcement.
“The United States fundamentally rejects the court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials. We remain deeply concerned by the prosecutor’s rush to seek arrest warrants and the troubling process errors that led to this decision,” White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters.
The ICC’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, has come under fire for initially making his surprise demand for arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant on the same day in May that he suddenly canceled a long-planned visit to both Gaza and Israel to collect evidence of alleged war crimes. The last-second cancellation infuriated US and British leaders, according to Reuters, which reported that the trip would have offered Israeli leaders a first opportunity to present their position and outline any action they were taking to respond to the war crime allegations.
Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL), Trump[s pick to serve as his incoming national security adviser, wrote on X/Twitter that the ICC will face a “strong response” when the next administration takes office in January.
“These allegations have been refuted by the US government,” Waltz wrote in a post on X. “Israel has lawfully defended its people & borders from genocidal terrorists. You can expect a strong response to the antisemitic bias of the ICC & UN come January.”
In May, the ICC chief prosecutor officially requested arrest warrants for the Israeli premier, Gallant, and three Hamas terrorist leaders — Yahya Sinwar, Ibrahim al-Masri (better known as Mohammed Deif), and Ismail Haniyeh — accusing all five men of “bearing criminal responsibility” for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Israel or the Gaza Strip. The three Hamas leaders have since been killed, and Gallant was recently fired as Israel’s defense minister.
US and Israeli officials subsequently issued blistering condemnations of the ICC move, decrying the court for drawing a moral equivalence between Israel’s democratically elected leaders and the heads of Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group that launched the ongoing war in Gaza with its massacre across southern Israel last Oct. 7.
A flood of prominent Republican lawmakers repudiated the decision by the ICC and have vowed to sanction the organization.
“The Court is a dangerous joke. It is now time for the US Senate to act and sanction this irresponsible body. The Court defied every concept of fundamental fairness and legitimized a corrupt prosecutor’s actions,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) wrote on social media.
Graham also called on Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), the current Senate majority leader, to advance bipartisan legislation that would sanction the ICC over its targeting of Israeli officials.
Sen. John Thune (R-SD), the Senate Republican Leader-elect, lambasted the ICC’s arrest warrants as “outrageous.” He vowed to place legislation on the floor to sanction the international court next year if the current Senate does not take action.
“The ICC’s arrest warrant against Prime Minister Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Gallant is outrageous, unlawful, and dangerous. Leader Schumer should bring a bill to the floor sanctioning the ICC. If he chooses not to act, the new Senate Republican majority next year will,” Thune wrote on X/Twitter.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) wrote a statement in agreement with Thune, calling on the ICC to “abandon its unlawful pursuit of arrest warrants against Israeli officials.” Collins added that if the court refuses to drop the sanctions, “the Senate should immediately consider the bipartisan legislation passed by the House to sanction the ICC.”
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) demanded the ICC reverse course on the warrants or risk being sanctioned by the United States.
“The ICC has lost all credibility. Instead of being an anti-Israel propaganda machine, it must reverse its unlawful arrest warrants against Israeli officials, or face sanctions,” Ernst wrote.
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) wrote that “it’s past time to sanction the ICC.”
Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC) lambasted the court as “illegitimate” and called on Congress to punish the international organization.
“Congress should immediately pass the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act so that President Trump can sanction ICC officials on day one,” Budd posted on X/Twitter.
Some Democratic lawmakers also bashed the ICC, calling on the Biden administration to take swift action against the international court.
“I’m outraged by the ICC’s politically motivated efforts to target Israel and equate it to the Hamas terrorists who intentionally murdered, raped, and kidnapped civilians on October 7. I’m once again calling on [President Joe Biden] to use his authority to swiftly respond to this overreach,” Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) wrote.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), a lawmaker who has positioned himself as a stalwart ally of Israel in the year following the Oct. 7 slaughters, dismissed the ICC’s warrants as having “no standing, relevance, or path.”
Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY), arguably the most vocal Democratic supporter of Israel in the House of Representatives, wrote that the ICC decision “represents the weaponization of international law at its most egregious.” He added that the ICC “has set a precedent for criminalizing self-defense.”
“The ICC ignores the cause and context of the war. Israel did not initiate the war,” Torres wrote in a statement.
“None of that context seems to matter to the kangaroo court of the ICC, which cannot let facts get in the way of its ideological crusade against the Jewish State. The ICC should be sanctioned not for enforcing the law but for distorting it beyond recognition,” he added.
In May, the House passed the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act, which would place sanctions on the ICC for “any effort to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute any protected person of the United States and its allies.” In October, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) urged Schumer to bring the bill to the Senate floor for a vote.
The post US ‘Rejects’ ICC Arrest Warrants for Israeli Officials, Lawmakers Vow to Retaliate With Sanctions first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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