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Jewish Orgs to Receive $94 Million from DHS to Harden Defenses Against ‘the Deeply Disturbing Rise in Antisemitic Attacks’
US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar stand next to a memorial honoring Yaron Lishinsky and Sarah Milgrom in Jerusalem on Monday, May 26, 2025. Photo: Alex Brandon/Pool via REUTERS
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Friday it would supply 512 Jewish faith organizations with $94,416,838 to strengthen their security measures following a recent spike in antisemitic violence across the US.
The funds will be allocated via a National Security Supplemental through the Nonprofit Security Grant Program and implemented by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
In a release, DHS cited the June 1 attack with Molotov cocktails and a makeshift flamethrower against Jewish demonstrators in Boulder, Colorado at a “Run for Their Lives” event, the killing of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, DC on May 21 and figures from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) showing a 344 percent increase in antisemitic incidents over the last five years as justifications for the funding surge, saying the money “will be used to help these organizations harden their defenses against attacks.”
“DHS is working to put a stop to the deeply disturbing rise in antisemitic attacks across the United States,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, noting, “that this money is necessary at all is tragic.”
“[A]ntisemitic violence has no place in this country,” said McLaughlin. “However, under President Trump and Secretary Noem’s leadership, we are going to do everything in our power to make sure that Jewish people in the United States can live free of the threat of violence and terrorism.”
All faith-based institutions — including schools, houses of worship, medical facilities, and career centers — are eligible to apply for funding through the Security Grant program, which recently received a funding boost from Congress.
The increase in funding comes following a Wednesday gathering in Washington D.C. organized by Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. Almost 400 people representing 100 Jewish groups joined together in calling for more federal protection.
Bob Milgrim, father of Israeli Embassy employee Sarah Milgrim, who was killed outside of a Jewish gathering, told attendees that “had there been more security at the event where Sarah and Yaron [Lischinsky] were tragically murdered, had there been more security outside, watching the crowd, I feel that it possibly could have identified the shooter pacing back and forth and possibly disarmed him.”
Police arrested Elias Rodriguez, 30, and charged him with two counts of first degree murder for the May shootings. He allegedly chanted “Free, free Palestine” after the attack.
Eric Fingerhut, president and CEO of JFNA, said “we know there are many things on the nation’s agenda, but we must insist that the safety and security of the Jewish community and the battle against domestic terror be at the very top.”
William Daroff, CEO of the Conference of Presidents said that “Jewish safety in America is not optional, and the silence in the face of antisemitic incitement, whether it comes from Iran’s Ayatollahs or American campuses, is unacceptable.”
Following the June 25 death of 82-year-old Karen Diamond from burn injuries, prosecutors have now added a first degree murder charge against Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, the man alleged to have attacked her and other Jewish demonstrators in Boulder.
Diamond was a Holocaust survivor.
Rabbi Marc Soloway, who leads synagogue Bonai Shalom, where Diamond worshipped, wrote in a statement Monday that “this event and the tragic loss of someone who has given so much of herself over the years to the Bonai community and beyond, has impacted us all and we are sad and horrified. We will need to support each other as we process this loss.”
District Attorney Michael Dougherty released a statement in which he said that “this horrific attack has now claimed the life of an innocent person who was beloved by her family and friends. Our hearts are with the Diamond family during this incredibly difficult time. Our office will fight for justice for the victims, their loved ones, and the community. Part of what makes Colorado special is that people come together in response to a tragedy; I know that the community will continue to unite in supporting the Diamond family and all the victims of this attack.”
Soliman, an Egyptian national living in the United States illegally, also yelled “Free Palestine” during the attack and reportedly told investigators that he had wanted to kill as many as 20 people. His attorney David Kraut argued to Magistrate Judge Kathryn Starnella that the attack was motivated by anti-Zionism rather than antisemitism and thus should not be prosecuted as a hate crime.
Colorado’s Fox 31 reports that the full list of charges against Soliman includes two counts of first-degree murder, 52 counts of attempted first-degree murder, eight counts of first-degree assault, 18 counts of attempted first-degree assault, two counts of third-degree assault, two counts of using an incendiary device, 16 counts of attempted use of an incendiary device and one count of animal cruelty (a dog was also injured in the attack).
The post Jewish Orgs to Receive $94 Million from DHS to Harden Defenses Against ‘the Deeply Disturbing Rise in Antisemitic Attacks’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel’s Supreme Court Orders Improved Food for Security Prisoners
Israel’s Supreme Court. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
i24 News – Israel’s Supreme Court on Sunday instructed the Prison Service (Shabas) to guarantee adequate food supplies for security prisoners, ruling that current conditions fall short of minimum legal standards. The decision followed an appeal filed by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel.
In a 2–1 ruling, the court found that the food situation posed “a risk of non-compliance with legal standards.” Justice Dafna Barak-Erez stressed that the matter concerned “basic conditions necessary for survival, as required by law,” not comfort or privilege. Justice Ofer Grosskopf agreed, noting the state had not shown the policy was consistently applied to all inmates.
Justice David Mintz dissented, maintaining that the existing policy already met legal requirements.
The court underscored that Israel’s legal obligations remain binding, even in light of the ongoing hostage crisis in Gaza and the fact that many of the prisoners include Hamas members involved in the October 7, 2023 attack.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir condemned the ruling, arguing that while hostages in Gaza lack protection, “terrorist murderers, kidnappers, and rapists in prison” benefit from the Court’s intervention. He added that prisoners would continue receiving only the minimum conditions required by law.
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Ukrainian Government Building Set Ablaze in Record Russian Airstrike
Illustrative. More damage caused by the Russian drone that hit the Perlina school in Kyiv, Ukraine, Oct. 30, 2024. Photo: Jewish community JCC in Kyiv, Kyiv municipality, and Yan Dobronosov
i24 News – The Ukrainian government’s main building in Kyiv was hit overnight Saturday by Russian airstrikes for the first time since the war, igniting a fire in the building, authorities said. Firefighters are working to put out the flames.
“The government building was damaged by an enemy attack — the roof and upper floors,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko said. The blaze is is burning in the area of the office of the prime minister.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched a total of 805 drones and 13 missiles overnight on Ukraine — a record number since the start of the war.
Also as a result of the strike, a baby and a young woman were killed after a nine-story residential building was hit in the Svyatoshynsky district, also in Kyiv. Rescuers are still looking for a third body, authorities said. A woman was also reported killed in the strike in Novopavlivka village.
“The world must respond to this destruction not only with words, but also with actions. We need to increase sanctions pressure – primarily against Russian oil and gas. We need new restrictions that will hit the Kremlin’s military machine. And most importantly, Ukraine needs weapons. Something that will stop the terror and prevent Russia from trying to kill Ukrainians every day,” wrote Sviridenko after the attack.
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‘Trump’s Legacy Crumbles’: Israelis Call on US President to End Gaza War
Israeli protestors take part in a rally demanding the immediate release of the hostages kidnapped during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, and the end of war in Gaza, in Jerusalem September 6, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Thousands of Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday night, issuing direct appeals to US President Donald Trump to force an end to the Gaza war and secure the release of the hostages.
Protesters packed a public square outside the military headquarters, waving Israeli flags and holding placards with images of the hostages. Some carried signs, including one that read: ‘Trump’s legacy crumbles as the Gaza war persists.’
Another said: “PRESIDENT TRUMP, SAVE THE HOSTAGES NOW!”
“We think that Trump is the only man in the world who has authority over Bibi, that can force Bibi to do this,” said Tel Aviv resident Boaz, 40, referring to the Israeli prime minister.
There is growing despair among many Israelis at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has ordered the military to capture a major urban center where hostages may be held.
Families of the hostages and their supporters fear the assault on Gaza City could endanger their loved ones, a concern the military leadership shares, according to Israeli officials.
Orna Neutra, the mother of an Israeli soldier who was killed on October 7, 2023 and whose body is being held in Gaza by militants, accused the government of abandoning its citizens.
“We truly hope that the United States will push both sides to finally reach a comprehensive deal that will bring them home,” she told the rally. Her son, Omer, is also American.
Tel Aviv has witnessed weekly demonstrations that have grown in size, with protesters demanding that the government secure a ceasefire with Hamas to obtain the release of hostages. Organizers said Saturday night’s rally was attended by tens of thousands. A large demonstration was also held in Jerusalem.
There are 48 hostages held in Gaza. Israeli officials believe that around 20 are still alive. Palestinian terrorists abducted 251 people from Israel on October 7, 2023, when Hamas led its attack. Most of the hostages who have been released were freed after indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
NO PURPOSE
Trump had pledged a swift end to the war in Gaza during his presidential campaign, but nearly eight months into his second term, a resolution has remained elusive. On Friday, he said that Washington was engaged in “very deep” negotiations with Hamas.
Israeli forces have carried out heavy strikes on the suburbs of Gaza City, where, according to a global hunger monitor, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are facing famine. Israeli officials acknowledge that hunger exists in Gaza but deny that the territory is facing famine. On Saturday, the military warned civilians in Gaza City to leave and move to southern Gaza.
There are hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sheltering in the city that was home to around a million before the war.
A video released by Hamas on Friday featured Israeli hostage Guy Gilboa-Dalal, 24, saying that he was being held in Gaza City and feared being killed by the military’s assault on the city. Rights groups have condemned such videos of hostages as inhumane. Israel says that it is psychological warfare.
The war has become unpopular among some segments of Israeli society, and opinion polls show that most Israelis want Netanyahu’s right-wing government to negotiate a permanent ceasefire with Hamas that secures the release of the hostages.
“The war has no purpose at all, except for violence and death,” said Boaz from Tel Aviv. Adam, 48, said it had become obvious that soldiers were being sent to war for “nothing.”
Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military since it launched its retaliatory war after Hamas fighters attacked Israel from Gaza in October 2023. Around 1,200 people were killed in that attack on southern Israel.
The terrorist group, which has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades but today controls only parts of the enclave, on Saturday once again said that it would release all hostages if Israel agreed to end the war and withdraw its forces from Gaza.
Netanyahu is pushing for an all-or-nothing deal that would see all of the hostages released at once and Hamas surrendering.
The prime minister has said Gaza City is a Hamas stronghold and capturing it is necessary to defeat the Palestinian militant group, whose October 2023 attack on Israel led to the war.
Hamas has acknowledged it would no longer govern Gaza once the war ends but has refused to discuss laying down its weapons.