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New York Times Kids Section Insists Hamas Wants a Two-State Solution, Blames Israel for ‘Crime’ of Starving Gaza

Palestinian terrorists ride an Israeli military vehicle that was seized by gunmen who infiltrated areas of southern Israel, in the northern Gaza Strip, Oct. 7, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Ahmed Zakot

It’s terrible enough when the New York Times inflicts biased, factually inaccurate coverage of Israel on its adult readers, who are presumably able to see the nonsense for what it is.

It’s a whole new — and worse — level of depravity for the Times to inflict that bias and inaccuracy on children, poisoning impressionable young minds with falsehoods.

Yet that is precisely what the New York Times did in its Sunday, Nov. 26 newspaper, which includes a full page in the “New York Times for Kids” section (“Editor’s Note: This Section Should Not Be Read by Grown-Ups”) offering a slanted and false account of what is happening in Israel and Gaza.

New York Times Kids Section, Nov. 26, 2023 edition. Photo: Ira Stoll

The one-sidedness is clear from the photo selection. The article is illustrated with a single large image of a Palestinian woman fleeing with a child in her arms and another alongside her, labeled “Palestinians fleeing after an Israeli attack in Gaza City on October 23.” The visual impression that “New York Times for Kids” readers will remember is not of armed-to-the-teeth Hamas terrorists kidnapping Israeli civilians, nor of Israeli civilians sheltering from Hamas missile attacks, but rather the one of “Palestinians fleeing after an Israeli attack.”

New York Times Kids Section, Nov. 26, 2023 edition. Photo: Ira Stoll

Under the headline “5 things to know about the Israel-Hamas War,” the Times tries to provide enough context to understand the conflict. But it fails miserably. It doesn’t mention the Bible or the Holocaust or antisemitism, all of which are essential to understanding the situation. It doesn’t mention Iran or Hezbollah, which are essential to understanding the situation. It doesn’t mention that Hamas is an Islamist extremist group that oppresses women and executes gays.

The Times blames Israel for Palestinian suffering. The paper tells its child readers, “Palestinian civilians are trapped in Gaza. Since Oct. 7, Israel has blocked most food, water, medicine and fuel from entering Gaza. Many experts have said that this is a crime.” The Times doesn’t explain that Hamas is using the fuel to shoot rockets at Israel. In fact, the Times article doesn’t mention the ongoing Hamas and Hezbollah rocket attacks on Israel at all, falsely making it sound as if the Hamas violence against Israel ended on Oct. 7, when the Palestinian terror group led a deadly rampage of rape, murder, and kidnapping across southern Israeli communities. The Times also doesn’t mention that Egypt has been blocking goods from entering Gaza, and refugees from leaving. It doesn’t mention that Hamas has prevented Palestinians civilians from fleeing southward.

While demonizing Israel, the Times sanitizes and whitewashes Hamas. It doesn’t mention the extraordinary brutality of Hamas’ onslaught, with its rapes, beheadings, and burning of people. You could say that’s just to protect the child readers from the gory details, but the Times displays no such reluctance when it comes to dwelling on the details of Palestinian suffering, for which the Times blames Israel: “Some people are drinking dirty water, which makes them very sick. Food supplies are running low. Some hospitals have had to close down, even though people are wounded and sick. And because Gaza’s borders are closed, people cannot escape.”

The article mischaracterizes Israel’s military actions in Gaza. Indeed, the Times writes that “Israel’s military began heavily bombing cities and towns in Gaza to try to destroy Hamas. Many buildings have been completely flattened. That also killed a lot of civilians. According to the Gaza Health Ministry in mid-November, more than 11,000 people had been killed, most of them women and children.”

The Times doesn’t say that in addition to the bombing campaign, Israel has sent ground troops into Gaza, exposing Israeli soldiers to deadly risks to go block by block and house by house rather than leveling the whole place. The Times doesn’t say that the Gaza health ministry is controlled by Hamas; or that it has a history of exaggerating casualties; or that it doesn’t distinguish between civilian deaths and those of terrorist combatants; or that Hamas is deliberately using the civilians as shields by hiding military installations within schools, mosques, and hospitals; or that many of the deaths are caused by misfires of Hamas and Islamic Jihad rockets aimed at Israeli civilians.

Most astonishingly of all, the Times whitewashes Hamas’ war aims. Rather than telling the truth, which is that Hamas wants to kill all Jews, the Times tells the child readers, “For many years, Hamas called for Israel to be destroyed, but in 2017 it said it would accept a smaller, independent Palestinian country alongside it.”

This is unbelievable. No wonder the Times says the kids section “should not be read by grown-ups.” If any grown-up read it, they’d throw the paper down in disgust and cancel their subscription. The idea that Hamas merely wants a small Palestinian country “alongside” Israel is a lie. US Sen. Chuck Schumer, Democrat from New York, calls Hamas “a terrorist group that is not shy about their goal to eradicate the Jewish people, in Israel and around the globe.” Star New York Times columnist Tom Friedman writes on the opinion page for grownups that Hamas is “a militant Islamist organization dedicated to eradicating any Jewish state … the only maps it carried were not of a two-state solution but of how to find the most people in the Israeli kibbutzim and kill or kidnap as many of them as possible.”

Friedman writes, “Hamas argues that this is an ethnic-religious war between primarily Muslim Palestinians and Jews, and its goal is an Islamic state in all of Palestine, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. For Hamas, it’s winner take all.” In contrast, the Times kids’ section doesn’t describe Hamas as “Islamist” but simply as “a group that governs inside the Gaza strip.”

I took the kids section away to my office before anyone young could see it. Exposing children to this sort of thing — indoctrinating them in antisemitism, skewing their view of the world in a way that is biased against Israel, and giving them a warped, incomplete account of reality — is a kind of child abuse.

Ira Stoll was managing editor of The Forward and North American editor of The Jerusalem Post. His media critique, a regular Algemeiner feature, can be found here.

The post New York Times Kids Section Insists Hamas Wants a Two-State Solution, Blames Israel for ‘Crime’ of Starving Gaza first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Anti-Zionists Are Excluding LGBTQ+ Jews From Pride Spaces, New Report Says

Jews of Pride members are seen marching in the Pride parade 2025, part of LGBTQ+ community’s Midsumma Festival. Photo: Alexander Bogatyrev / SOPA Images via Reuters Connect.

Anti-Israel activists in the LGBTQ+ community are subjecting Zionist Jews to extreme levels of discrimination, including expulsions from major progressive groups and even physical assault, according to a new report by the nonprofit A Wider Bridge.

The release of the report — titled “Unsafe Spaces: Addressing Antisemitism Against LGBTQ+ Jews and Ensuring Pride Safety” — comes as LGBTQ community members across the Western world observe Pride Month, a period of festivities which celebrate the expansion of social and legal rights that have allowed gays to live more freely and authentically than ever in human history. For pro-Israel Jews, however, Pride Month 2025 is a challenging moment, as anti-Zionism has creeped into and crowded out many queer spaces which once welcomed them with open arms.

From online forums to the streets, the maltreatment and “erasure” of Jewish queer identity is severe, the report explains. Eighty-two percent of LGBTQ Jews have reported being expelled from social media channels or harassed on them, A Wider Bridge noted.

Earlier this year, NYC Dyke March, a public demonstration held by members of the lesbian community in New York City, banned self-proclaimed “Zionists” from its annual event, citing a desire to stand against the so-called “genocide” occurring in Gaza. Last year, the NYC Dyke March came under scrutiny after organizers settled on “genocide” as the theme of its 2024 event. In a statement, decrying “ethnic cleansing, violence, and dehumanization,” the organization compared the ongoing war in Gaza, to mass killings occurring in Ethiopia, Myanmar, and Sudan.

Also in 2024, the Dyke March Committee formally barred “Zionists” from participating in the Pride March, and during the event Jews were attacked and heckled after being seen wearing the Star of David on their clothing. That same year, an LGBTQ-friendly bar in the Brooklyn borough of New York City refused to hold a screening party for the Eurovision talent competition due to the participation of an Israeli contestant.

Forced, mass exiles are taking place in response to this new reality, the report added. Forty-three percent of queer Jews say they are leaving online forums; 40 percent abstain from participating in LGBTQ social events; and 30 percent said their decision was driven by precipitous deterioration of the manner in which they are treated. The only conclusion to draw, the report said, is that the Pride movement is “no longer universally safe or inclusive.”

“What we have found since Oct. 7 and what the report points to is that the explosion of antisemitism that the whole Jewish community has experienced has in some ways grown even more exponentially in the LGBTQ community,” Rabbi Denise Eger, interim executive director of A Wider Bridge and former president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, told The Algemeiner during an interview on Friday. “What we’re seeing around now as Pride marches and organizations put on their celebration s is institutional discrimination and outright boycotts.”

Eger went on to note that antisemitism in LGBTQ communities is all the more distressing due to the outsized contributions, legal and political, which Jewish gays and lesbians have made towards fostering a society that is more inclusive of non-heteronormative identities and relationships.

“Look at who were the early leaders of the LGBTQ civil rights movement — Harvey Milk, one of the first openly gay elected officials in the US, was a Jewish man. Edith Windsor, who brought one of the first marriage equality cases that we won at the Supreme Court, and her attorney, Roberta Kaplan, who won it — these are LGBTQ heroes, not just LGBTQ ‘Jewish’ heroes and heroines,” Eger continued. “So, for LGBTQ Jews to be continually shut out of these spaces is paralyzing, shocking, and horrifying, and LGBTQ Jews are asking where is their home.”

She added, “These are difficult times, but together, the whole Jewish community, including the LGBTQ part of the Jewish community, can stand strong and be resilient in the face of all this, just as the Jewish people have done throughout our history. We have the tools within our tradition to keep us strong and to help us educate. And yes, I believe so much, as a rabbi, that we can and must help change the world for the better. That’s what we are called to do as the Jewish people.”

As previously reported by The Algemeiner, recorded incidents of antisemitism in the US continue to increase year over year, breaking all previous annual records.

In 2024, as reported by the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) annual audit, there were 9,354 antisemitic incidents — an average of 25.6 a day — across the US, creating an atmosphere of hate not experienced in the nearly thirty years since the ADL began tracking such data in 1979. Incidents of harassment, vandalism, and assault all increased by double digits, and for the first time ever a majority of outrages — 58 percent — were related to the existence of Israel as the world’s only Jewish state.

The Algemeiner parsed the ADL’s data, finding dramatic rises in incidents on college campuses, which saw the largest growth in 2024. The 1,694 incidents tallied by the ADL amounted to an 84 percent increase over the previous year. Additionally, antisemites were emboldened to commit more offenses in public in 2024 than they did in 2023, perpetrating 19 percent more attacks on Jewish people, pro-Israel demonstrators, and businesses perceived as being Jewish-owned or affiliated with Jews.

“Hatred toward Israel was a driving force behind antisemitism across the US, with more than half of all antisemitic incidents referencing Israel or Zionism,” said Oren Segal, ADL senior vice president for counter-extremism and intelligence. “These incidents, along with all those documented in the audit, serve as a clear reminder that silence is not an option. Good people must stand up, push back, and confront antisemitism wherever it appears. And that starts with understanding what fuels it and learning to recognize it in all its forms.”

Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.

The post Anti-Zionists Are Excluding LGBTQ+ Jews From Pride Spaces, New Report Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Two UK Men Convicted, Jailed Following November Antisemitic Harassment

Illustrative: A pro-Hamas march in London, United Kingdom, Feb. 17, 2024. Photo: Chrissa Giannakoudi via Reuters Connect

A court in the United Kingdom on Thursday sentenced Hussein Altamimi, 22, and Ali Alanzi, 30, to prison sentences of eight months and seven months respectively, for charges stemming from an incident at London’s Western Marble Arch Synagogue in November 2024, according to British media.

The two men received convictions for yelling at four Jewish worshipers such phrases as “Jews aren’t welcome here,” “you don’t belong here,” and “f—king Jew.” They also repeatedly screamed “free Palestine.”

The incident grew violent when Altamimi hit one victim’s arm to try and prevent her from filming the abuse. Alanzi also hurled liquid from an alcoholic drink toward one person. When police arrived to arrest the pair, he assaulted one of the officers.

The court convicted both men of four counts of religiously aggravated public order offenses and religiously aggravated assault. Alanzi also received a conviction for attacking the officer and will endure an additional 12 weeks’ incarceration due to a previous suspended sentence.

On Friday, the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) described its reaction to the hate crime prosecutions on X in one word: “Vindicated.”

Altamimi also faced additional charges and guilty verdicts related to a July 2023 incident which included racial abuse and striking a police officer.

“The CPS is working closely with the police to tackle hate crime, making sure that perpetrators who target victims because of their religion, race, sexuality, gender identity, or disability are brought to justice,” Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) lawyer Anna Hindmarsh said following the trial. “We know that hate crimes have a significant impact on victims and the wider community, and we will continue to support victims and witnesses who come forward to report any examples of hate crime they have experienced.”

The convictions against Altamimi and Alanzi are part of a historic surge in antisemitic acts in the United Kingdom.

The UK experienced its second-worst year for antisemitism in 2024, despite recording an 18 percent drop in antisemitic incidents from the previous year’s all-time high, according to a report released in February.

The Community Security Trust (CST), a nonprofit charity that advises Britain’s Jewish community on security matters, released data showing it recorded 3,528 antisemitic incidents for 2024, a drop of 18 percent from the 4,296 in 2023. These numbers compare to 1,662 antisemitic incidents in 2022, 2,261 in 2021, and 1,684 in 2020.

In the 12 months following Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel, CST counted 5,583 antisemitic incidents in the UK, an increase from 204 percent from the same period the previous year.

Many of the incidents involved violence targeting the Jewish community.

Last month, On May 26, a group of six or seven men attacked three Jewish boys at the Hampstead Underground Station in North London, requiring hospitalization for one. CAA said that “this report is yet another stark reminder of the growing threat facing Jewish communities, including children.”

Another antisemitic assault occurred in Manchester in February, when an unidentified individual hit a Jewish man with what was believed to be a bottle, shattering the victim’s glasses.

The heavily Orthodox Jewish neighborhood of Stamford Hill in Hackney saw an antisemitic act last week when vandals targeted a Jewish-owned investment firm, smashing its windows and splashing red paint. The group Palestine Action claimed responsibility for the crime, as it had done previously for similar acts at the University of Cambridge’s endowment fund headquarters and the BBC’s New Broadcasting House.

“This should be treated as [an] antisemitic incident without any doubt. [The owners] are visibly Jewish people; the people who run the business and this business itself have nothing to do with Israel,” said Rabbi Herschel Gluck, president of Jewish security service Shomrim’s branch in Stamford Hill.

Days earlier, residents of Brighton in southeastern England discovered antisemitic vandalism at a memorial created to honor the victims of the Hamas-led Oct. 7 terror attacks.

“There have been over 40 attacks on the site including vandalism, theft, and graffiti. The abuse has been relentless,” Heidi Bachram, who volunteers to maintain the memorial, told The Jewish Chronicle at the time. “It’s shocking that grief for innocents is met with such violence. The hate won’t stop us, and every night, a different victim’s story will be told [at the memorial]. We will never let them be forgotten.”

In April, according to prosecutors, Abdullah Sabah Albadri, 33, attempted to climb a wall outside of the Israeli embassy in London while carrying a “martyrdom note.”

Prosecutor Kristel Pous said that Albadri told police that he wanted to “do something to send a message to the Israeli government to stop the war.”

The Israeli embassy stated in response to the foiled attack that “we thank the British security forces for their immediate response and ongoing efforts to secure the embassy.” It vowed that “the embassy of Israel will not be deterred by any terror threat and will continue to represent Israel with pride in the UK.”

The post Two UK Men Convicted, Jailed Following November Antisemitic Harassment first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Large Pro-Israel Event in Texas ‘Indefinitely Postponed’ Due to Threats of Terrorism

A protester holds a sign that reads, ”From the river to the sea Palestine will be free” during a pro-Palestinian emergency demonstration outside the Consulate General of Israel in Houston, Texas, on March 19, 2025. Photo: Reginald Mathalone via Reuters Connect

The 2025 Israel Summit in Dallas, Texas has been indefinitely postponed in response to what organizers described as intensifying threats of terrorism. 

Prior to the cancellation, the event was expecting over 1,000 attendees. The Israel Summit had already undergone a last-minute venue change due to mounting safety concerns. The gathering, scheduled for June 9–11, was set to feature prominent voices from both the Jewish and Christian pro-Israel communities.

Former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, who had been scheduled to speak at the event, commented on the cancellation on social media: “This is what America looks like in 2025. A peaceful pro-Israel gathering with more than a thousand participants had to be scrapped because of threats from violent extremists.”

Ten days prior to this year’s event, local police and intelligence officials in Dallas alerted organizers that the gathering had been upgraded to a “high-threat event.” 

According to Josiah Hilton, host of the Israel Guys show, which was scheduled to co-host the event with HaYovel, the organizers had to produce “a mandatory security plan with a substantial budget estimated in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

The organizers then moved the Israel Summit to a facility in an isolated area of Kenneth, Texas. However, the event was forced to cancel after the Palestinian Youth Movement Dallas and Jewish Voice for Peace, a pair of anti-Israel, pro-Hamas organizations, revealed its location to their followers. 

[T]he Genocide Summit had to change plans last minute in desperation due to them claiming to be ‘under attack.’ The reality is they understand DFW’s commitment to confronting the extremist ideology that is Zionism,” Palestinian Youth Movement Dallas wrote on Instagram. 

However, the organizers stated that they are going to hold the pro-Israel event “in the near future,” and vowed to “come back bigger and stronger, with more people.”

Hilton said that the cancellation reflects “the growing normalization of antisemitic threats and anti-Israel extremists, which are fueling intimidation and silencing voices of support for Israel across the United States.”

The cancellation of the Israel Summit also reflects growing concern regarding potential violence against supporters of the Jewish state. Last month, two Israeli embassy staffers, Yaron Lipschinsky and Sarah Milgrim, were murdered while exiting an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee (AJC) at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC. Then this past Sunday, an assailant firebombed a pro-Israel rally in Boulder, Colorado, injuring 15 people and a dog.

The post Large Pro-Israel Event in Texas ‘Indefinitely Postponed’ Due to Threats of Terrorism first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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