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Jewish groups mobilize amid growing migrant crisis in NYC
(New York Jewish Week) — Outside a recently opened shelter meant to house some 2,000 migrants at Brooklyn’s Navy Yard, two modest tents are set up where volunteers hand out essentials like food, towels and toiletries, as well as provide items to pass the time, like cards, chess sets and books.
One tent is adorned with an American flag and a sign that reads “Welcome to NYC,” “Bienvenidos” and “Shalom Aleichem.” The other has two lines from “The New Colossus,” the famous poem by Sephardic Jew Emma Lazarus that’s etched into the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty (“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free”).
The tents and the free products inside are courtesy of Masbia Relief, a Jewish communal disaster relief team that is an offshoot of the Masbia kosher pantry network founded by Alex Rapaport, an Orthodox Jew in Brooklyn.
“I was raised in a home where all four of my grandparents were Holocaust survivors,” Rapaport told the New York Jewish Week. “There was always that thought: Where was everybody else? Where was the rest of the world when all this was happening? To me, you cannot ignore a situation like this.”
Alex Rapaport, the executive director of Masbia, has been stocking tents with toiletries, clothes and food outside of the city’s migrant shelters. (Julia Gergely)
Rapaport and his team have been on the ground welcoming new arrivals to New York City since last August, when Texas Gov. Greg Abbott sent his first busload of migrants to Manhattan’s Port Authority Bus Terminal and Masbia greeted them with gifts of free shoes.
Since last spring, more than 100,000 asylum seekers have arrived in New York City, putting a strain on the city’s resources and space. Earlier this summer, the breaking point became visible as hundreds of migrants were forced to sleep on the sidewalk outside the Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown, a makeshift city intake center that had reached capacity.
In response, several emergency housing centers have opened in recent weeks, including large, tent-style shelters set up on soccer fields at Randall’s Island in the East River and in the parking lot at the state-owned Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in Queens. A number of these facilities have opened in Brooklyn, too, including at the Sunset Park Recreation Center, the McCarren Park Play Center and previously vacant space at a block-sized building called The Hall at 47 Hall Street in the Navy Yard.
Mayor Eric Adams has estimated that the influx of migrants will cost the city $12 billion. Over the weekend, pro- and anti-migrant protesters clashed outside Gracie Mansion, and another protest by those opposing the shelter in their neighborhood is planned Monday evening at a former Catholic school on Staten Island.
Yet many New Yorkers remain committed to welcoming the new arrivals. The Synagogue Coalition on the Refugee and Immigration Crisis is a group of 36 synagogues and Jewish non-profit organizations that have come together to present a united front in advocacy efforts, education campaigns and direct volunteer service on behalf of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in New York. Participating institutions include synagogues B’nai Jeshurun and Ansche Chesed, T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights and the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan.
The coalition, said co-chair Judith Bass, “gives us, as part of the Jewish community, a voice and a presence to express our support for the asylum seekers and the migrants.”
The group was initially formed in 2016 with the support of HIAS, the Jewish immigrant aid society, in response to the Syrian refugee crisis. In addition to traditional resettlement practices — such as aiding refugees in finding apartments and jobs, and helping them fill out government paperwork — coalition members participate in volunteer efforts like greeting migrants and holding food and clothing drives.
“We used to do it because the people who needed help were Jewish and now we do it simply because we are Jewish,” Bass said, referring to how, over the years, HIAS’s mission has shifted from Jews helping Jews to a “multi-continent, multi-pronged humanitarian aid and advocacy organization” according to its website.
“There is a ton of activity that’s going on and there is not one single way of helping,” Charlie Davidson, the coalition’s other co-chair, told the New York Jewish Week. One such example is happening Monday afternoon: Volunteers, including former Manhattan borough president and SCRIC co-founder Ruth Messinger, will join Team TLC NYC, another volunteer group, to fill backpacks with school supplies for children of asylum-seekers ahead of the new school year. The initiative will take place at a donation-based, volunteer-run “store” on West 40th Street called the Little Shop of Kindness.
Referencing the Jewish tenet of “welcoming the stranger,” Davidson said that aiding New York’s refugee community is a particularly Jewish issue. “I can’t think of anything that’s more fundamental to who we are than recognizing that these people are in the same place that our grandparents were in when they got here,” he said. “These people are deserving of help and we’re required to provide them help.”
Rapaport said Masbia’s first supplies initiative was put into place on Aug. 5 outside the Sunset Park shelter.
“When we learned that they will be housing migrants in Brooklyn, we wanted to nurture a communal sense of sharing,” he said. “We coordinated with the powers that be to bring two tents outside, where people can pass by and see that we’re collecting personal hygiene and clothing for the people inside [the shelters], and people can express welcoming and good vibes for their new neighbors while they’re here.”
Last Thursday, on an overcast morning, Rapaport and two Masbia volunteers staffed the tents outside The Hall, the new Navy Yard shelter. The trio offered smiles and supplies to dozens of men who came to collect things they needed.
Rapaport plays chess with some of the men who are living at the The Hall in Brooklyn Navy Yard. (Julia Gergely)
Carlos, a 30-something man who declined to give his last name, had arrived from Venezuela six months ago. He took a towel, soap, deodorant and some peaches from the tents. “It hasn’t been going very well at the moment,” he told the New York Jewish Week in Spanish. “I can’t say we’re doing great, but we can’t blame New York for what’s happening. We’re thankful because they help us.”
Like many of his fellow migrants, Carlos said he came to New York seeking asylum from the economic and human rights crisis in Venezuela. He had served nearly two years in jail there for attending a protest against the government. While he was grateful for the toiletries, he said what he most needs is work. Once he gets papers, he hopes to bring his mother and his three kids to the United States as well. “I will do any type of work — whatever is available,” he said. “What I don’t know I will learn quickly. I have no choice.”
“These are people running away from horrors and persecution,” said Rapaport, noting that that fact can get lost in the standoff between the city, state and federal governments over responsibility for alleviating the crisis. “When that happens, it’s very hard to see the human side of the story. It’s very hard for people to understand that there is a real historic thing happening here. It’s a human issue and it’s a New York issue. And we can be welcoming towards new immigrants.”
Bass concurs. “This is a humanitarian crisis, this is not a political issue,” she said. “We need to respond as Jews, as New Yorkers and as concerned individuals.”
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The post Jewish groups mobilize amid growing migrant crisis in NYC appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Hamas Says No Interim Hostage Deal Possible Without Work Toward Permanent Ceasefire
Explosions send smoke into the air in Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, July 17, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
The spokesperson for Hamas’s armed wing said on Friday that while the Palestinian terrorist group favors reaching an interim truce in the Gaza war, if such an agreement is not reached in current negotiations it could revert to insisting on a full package deal to end the conflict.
Hamas has previously offered to release all the hostages held in Gaza and conclude a permanent ceasefire agreement, and Israel has refused, Abu Ubaida added in a televised speech.
Arab mediators Qatar and Egypt, backed by the United States, have hosted more than 10 days of talks on a US-backed proposal for a 60-day truce in the war.
Israeli officials were not immediately available for comment on the eve of the Jewish Sabbath.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on a call he had with Pope Leo on Friday that Israel‘s efforts to secure a hostage release deal and 60-day ceasefire “have so far not been reciprocated by Hamas.”
As part of the potential deal, 10 hostages held in Gaza would be returned along with the bodies of 18 others, spread out over 60 days. In exchange, Israel would release a number of detained Palestinians.
“If the enemy remains obstinate and evades this round as it has done every time before, we cannot guarantee a return to partial deals or the proposal of the 10 captives,” said Abu Ubaida.
Disputes remain over maps of Israeli army withdrawals, aid delivery mechanisms into Gaza, and guarantees that any eventual truce would lead to ending the war, said two Hamas officials who spoke to Reuters on Friday.
The officials said the talks have not reached a breakthrough on the issues under discussion.
Hamas says any agreement must lead to ending the war, while Netanyahu says the war will only end once Hamas is disarmed and its leaders expelled from Gaza.
Almost 1,650 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed as a result of the conflict, including 1,200 killed in the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel, according to Israeli tallies. Over 250 hostages were kidnapped during Hamas’s Oct. 7 onslaught.
Israel responded with an ongoing military campaign aimed at freeing the hostages and dismantling Hamas’s military and governing capabilities in neighboring Gaza.
The post Hamas Says No Interim Hostage Deal Possible Without Work Toward Permanent Ceasefire first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran Marks 31st Anniversary of AMIA Bombing by Slamming Argentina’s ‘Baseless’ Accusations, Blaming Israel
People hold images of the victims of the 1994 bombing attack on the Argentine Israeli Mutual Association (AMIA) community center, marking the 30th anniversary of the attack, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, July 18, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Irina Dambrauskas
Iran on Friday marked the 31st anniversary of the 1994 bombing of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) Jewish community center in Buenos Aires by slamming Argentina for what it called “baseless” accusations over Tehran’s alleged role in the terrorist attack and accusing Israel of politicizing the atrocity to influence the investigation and judicial process.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on the anniversary of Argentina’s deadliest terrorist attack, which killed 85 people and wounded more than 300.
“While completely rejecting the accusations against Iranian citizens, the Islamic Republic of Iran condemns attempts by certain Argentine factions to pressure the judiciary into issuing baseless charges and politically motivated rulings,” the statement read.
“Reaffirming that the charges against its citizens are unfounded, the Islamic Republic of Iran insists on restoring their reputation and calls for an end to this staged legal proceeding,” it continued.
Last month, a federal judge in Argentina ordered the trial in absentia of 10 Iranian and Lebanese nationals suspected of orchestrating the attack in Buenos Aires.
The ten suspects set to stand trial include former Iranian and Lebanese ministers and diplomats, all of whom are subject to international arrest warrants issued by Argentina for their alleged roles in the terrorist attack.
In its statement on Friday, Iran also accused Israel of influencing the investigation to advance a political campaign against the Islamist regime in Tehran, claiming the case has been used to serve Israeli interests and hinder efforts to uncover the truth.
“From the outset, elements and entities linked to the Zionist regime [Israel] exploited this suspicious explosion, pushing the investigation down a false and misleading path, among whose consequences was to disrupt the long‑standing relations between the people of Iran and Argentina,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said.
“Clear, undeniable evidence now shows the Zionist regime and its affiliates exerting influence on the Argentine judiciary to frame Iranian nationals,” the statement continued.
In April, lead prosecutor Sebastián Basso — who took over the case after the 2015 murder of his predecessor, Alberto Nisman — requested that federal Judge Daniel Rafecas issue national and international arrest warrants for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei over his alleged involvement in the attack.
Since 2006, Argentine authorities have sought the arrest of eight Iranians — including former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who died in 2017 — yet more than three decades after the deadly bombing, all suspects remain still at large.
In a post on X, the Delegation of Argentine Israelite Associations (DAIA), the country’s Jewish umbrella organization, released a statement commemorating the 31st anniversary of the bombing.
“It was a brutal attack on Argentina, its democracy, and its rule of law,” the group said. “At DAIA, we continue to demand truth and justice — because impunity is painful, and memory is a commitment to both the present and the future.”
31 años del atentado a la AMIA – DAIA. 31 años sin justicia.
El 18 de julio de 1994, un atentado terrorista dejó 85 personas muertas y más de 300 heridas. Fue un ataque brutal contra la Argentina, su democracia y su Estado de derecho.
Desde la DAIA, seguimos exigiendo verdad y… pic.twitter.com/kV2ReGNTIk
— DAIA (@DAIAArgentina) July 18, 2025
Despite Argentina’s longstanding belief that Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah terrorist group carried out the devastating attack at Iran’s request, the 1994 bombing has never been claimed or officially solved.
Meanwhile, Tehran has consistently denied any involvement and refused to arrest or extradite any suspects.
To this day, the decades-long investigation into the terrorist attack has been plagued by allegations of witness tampering, evidence manipulation, cover-ups, and annulled trials.
In 2006, former prosecutor Nisman formally charged Iran for orchestrating the attack and Hezbollah for carrying it out.
Nine years later, he accused former Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner — currently under house arrest on corruption charges — of attempting to cover up the crime and block efforts to extradite the suspects behind the AMIA atrocity in return for Iranian oil.
Nisman was killed later that year, and to this day, both his case and murder remain unresolved and under ongoing investigation.
The alleged cover-up was reportedly formalized through the memorandum of understanding signed in 2013 between Kirchner’s government and Iranian authorities, with the stated goal of cooperating to investigate the AMIA bombing.
The post Iran Marks 31st Anniversary of AMIA Bombing by Slamming Argentina’s ‘Baseless’ Accusations, Blaming Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Jordan Reveals Muslim Brotherhood Operating Vast Illegal Funding Network Tied to Gaza Donations, Political Campaigns
Murad Adailah, the head of Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood, attends an interview with Reuters in Amman, Jordan, Sept. 7, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Jehad Shelbak
The Muslim Brotherhood, one of the Arab world’s oldest and most influential Islamist movements, has been implicated in a wide-ranging network of illegal financial activities in Jordan and abroad, according to a new investigative report.
Investigations conducted by Jordanian authorities — along with evidence gathered from seized materials — revealed that the Muslim Brotherhood raised tens of millions of Jordanian dinars through various illegal activities, the Jordan news agency (Petra) reported this week.
With operations intensifying over the past eight years, the report showed that the group’s complex financial network was funded through various sources, including illegal donations, profits from investments in Jordan and abroad, and monthly fees paid by members inside and outside the country.
The report also indicated that the Muslim Brotherhood has taken advantage of the war in Gaza to raise donations illegally.
Out of all donations meant for Gaza, the group provided no information on where the funds came from, how much was collected, or how they were distributed, and failed to work with any international or relief organizations to manage the transfers properly.
Rather, the investigations revealed that the Islamist network used illicit financial mechanisms to transfer funds abroad.
According to Jordanian authorities, the group gathered more than JD 30 million (around $42 million) over recent years.
With funds transferred to several Arab, regional, and foreign countries, part of the money was allegedly used to finance domestic political campaigns in 2024, as well as illegal activities and cells.
In April, Jordan outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood, the country’s most vocal opposition group, and confiscated its assets after members of the Islamist movement were found to be linked to a sabotage plot.
The movement’s political arm in Jordan, the Islamic Action Front, became the largest political grouping in parliament after elections last September, although most seats are still held by supporters of the government.
Opponents of the group, which is banned in most Arab countries, label it a terrorist organization. However, the movement claims it renounced violence decades ago and now promotes its Islamist agenda through peaceful means.
The post Jordan Reveals Muslim Brotherhood Operating Vast Illegal Funding Network Tied to Gaza Donations, Political Campaigns first appeared on Algemeiner.com.