With antisemitism surging on college campuses across the Western world, Hillel International and the Matanel Foundation have selected 15 Jewish students for a spot in the inaugural year of the Matanel Fellowship for Global Jewish Leadership, a 12-month program which aims to foster their “sense of responsibility” for the worldwide Jewish community.

The program is at its half-life, having started in January. For the past six months, the students have participated in online lectures, solidarity building exercises, and a “Shabbat Retreat” to Budapest for the purpose of experiencing the Hungarian city’s rich Jewish life and culture, which has been sustained there for over a millennium.

They have already created memories that will last a lifetime, Matanel Fellow and Barnard College student Yakira Galler told The Algemeiner during an interview.

“So far, it’s been amazing. We’ve had three or four Zoom sessions and then we had our midway trip to Budapest,” Galler said. “In our first day in Budapest, we explored both the history of the community, before the war and also under communism, and that was really interesting both because there is a specific type of Jewish sect in Hungary — the Neolog sect — which I had never heard of before. It was also really interesting because Theodor Herzl was born and raised in Budapest, which prompted me to reflect on what that means for this community and the immensity of the intellectual life within it.”

The Matanel Fellows are convening amid a moment of rampant antisemitism not seen in the world since World War II. Following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel, colleges across the US and the world erupted with effusions of antisemitic activity, which included calling for the destruction of Israel, cheering Hamas’s sexual assaulting of women as an instrument of war, and several incidents of assault and harassment targeting Jews on campus.

In 2025, the American Jewish community continues to be battered by antisemitic hate incidents, forcing law enforcement to stay hot on the trails of those who perpetrate them amid a wave of recent outrages. Earlier this month, for example in the Highland Park suburb of Chicago, an antisemitic letter threatening violence was mailed to a resident’s home. So severe were its contents that the FBI and the Illinois Terrorism and Intelligence Center were called to the scene to establish that there was no imminent danger, according to local news outlets. Later, the local government shuttered all religious institutions as a precautionary measure.

Another recent antisemitic incident occurred in San Francisco, where an assailant identified by law enforcement as Juan Diaz-Rivas and others allegedly beat up a Jewish victim in the middle of the night. Diaz-Rivas and his friends approached the victim while shouting “F—ck the Jews, Free Palestine,” according to local prosecutors.

“The group then came after them, and one of them punched the victim, who fell to the ground, hit his head and lost consciousness,” the district attorney’s office said in a statement. “Allegedly, Mr. Diaz-Rivas and others in the group continued to punch and kick the victim while he was down. A worker at a nearby business heard the altercation and antisemitic language and attempted to intervene. While trying to help the victim, he was kicked and punched.”

Now, the world’s only Jewish state is fighting an existential conflict against Iran and its proxies, including Hamas, that will determine its viability as a refuge for the Jewish people, as well as the regional order of the Middle East.

Last week, the Israel Defense Forces carried out preemptive strikes on Iran’s military installations and nuclear facilities to neutralize top military leaders and quell the country’s efforts to enrich weapons-grade uranium, the key ingredient of their nuclear program. The move prompted retaliatory ballistic missile assaults, placing all of the country on high alert.

Forging ties between Jews around the globe has never been more important, said another Matanel Fellow, Avihu Sela of Tel-Hai College, located in northern Israel.

“For me, connecting Jewish people around the world is something we need right now. I’m so happy that they did it, and now I have connections with Jewish people from an array of countries and cultures,” Sela said. “When we all flew out Budapest, it allowed us to have the really deep talk, and to be honest I went in with some deep concerns because I did not know how it would be there. When I arrived, and we did all the tours, exploring everything and seeing Jewish culture and learning about historic events, I felt deep inside that I am part of something so much bigger than myself.”

He added, “I’m so proud that I’m Jewish because of this trip. It really opened my heart.”

Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.

The post New Fellowship Connects Jewish Students Across the World first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

As Israel wages a high-stakes campaign to stop Iran — long identified by the US as the world’s top state sponsor of terrorism — from obtaining nuclear weapons, some of its harshest critics in Europe are intensifying their condemnation of the Jewish state.

On Thursday, Belgium and eight other EU member states — Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden — urged the European Commission to examine how trade “linked to illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” can be aligned with international law, the latest effort by the countries to block trading with Israeli communities in the West Bank.

In a post on X, Belgium’s Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot said the decision came after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that third countries must avoid trade or investment that supports “the illegal situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”

“Upholding international law is a shared responsibility. In a rules-based international order, legal clarity must guide political choices,” Prevot said in a statement. “A united European approach can help ensure that our policies reflect our values.”

Foreign ministers of the nine European countries also sent a letter to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas calling for the bloc to come up with proposals on how to discontinue trade with Israeli communities in the West Bank.

The letter came ahead of a meeting in Brussels on Monday when EU foreign ministers are set to discuss the bloc’s relationship with Israel.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the latest move by European countries, calling it “shameful” and a misguided attempt to undermine Israel while it faces “existential” threats from Iran.

“It is regrettable that even when Israel is fighting an existential threat which is in Europe’s vital interest — there are those who can’t resist their anti-Israeli obsession,” the top Israeli diplomat said in a post on X.

It is regrettable that even when Israel fighting an existential threat which is in Europe vital interest – there are those who can’t resist their anti-Israeli obsession.
Shameful! https://t.co/lxm9qm8sM1

— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) June 19, 2025

On Wednesday, meanwhile, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares called on the EU to impose an arms embargo on Israel in a bid to end the ongoing war in Gaza — another attempt by one of Jerusalem’s fiercest critics to undermine its defensive campaign against Hamas following the Palestinian terrorist group’s invasion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

In the wake of Hamas’s onslaught, Albares has intensified his push for anti-Israel measures on the international stage, while positioning himself as a staunch advocate for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

The top Spanish diplomat also called for de-escalation in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, urging both sides to refrain from further provocations and to pursue diplomatic channels to address Tehran’s nuclear program.

“Right now, we need to de-escalate this exchange of missiles and bombs between Israel and Iran, and ensure that everything related to Iran’s nuclear program is properly resolved and that Iran moves away from having nuclear weapons through diplomatic negotiations,” Albares said in a statement.

Separately, Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister Simon Harris said he was “deeply concerned” by Israel’s strikes on Iranian nuclear and military targets, warning of a “very real risk of regional spillover.”

The Irish leader said he believed a “negotiated solution” was needed to address Israeli concerns over Iran’s nuclear program.

My statement on reports of extensive military airstrikes by Israel on Iran overnight. pic.twitter.com/vSYQmfzY8o

— Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) June 13, 2025

Responding to the government’s comments, Israeli Ambassador to Ireland Dana Erlich said in an interview on “The Pat Kenny Show” that those who equate Iran’s actions with those of the Israel Defense Forces in Gaza don’t “understand international law, the rules of war and what is going on.”

“They [the Islamic regime] are deliberately, indiscriminately targeting civilians, while we target their nuclear program, their ballistic program,” the Israeli diplomat said.

“I didn’t hear any Irish condemnation when Iran violated the UN Charter and called repeatedly for the destruction of another UN member state — Israel,” Erlich continued. “So, it’s not that a threat that has come up just now … It has been going on for decades.”

She also cautioned that Iran’s ballistic missile program could eventually be used against European nations, emphasizing that the threat posed by Tehran extends far beyond Israel and endangers global security.

“Europe is concerned about it [and] so should Ireland,” Erlich said.

Spain and Ireland have been among the world’s leading critics of Israel during the Gaza war.

Other European leaders have expressed more support, however, especially following Israel’s preemptive strikes last week targeting Iran’s nuclear and missile programs.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday endorsed Israel’s airstrikes on Iran, saying the Jewish state was doing the “dirty work” for other countries.

“This is the dirty work that Israel is doing for all of us,” Merz told the ZDF broadcaster during an interview on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Alberta, Canada. “We are also affected by this regime. This mullah regime has brought death and destruction to the world.”

After conflict erupted between Iran and Israel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed support in a statement for “Israel’s right to defend itself and protect its people.”

According to Euronews, however, some EU officials opposed that choice of language.

“There was no consensus on saying Israel has a right to defend itself but Von der Leyen said it anyway,” one diplomatic source told the outlet.

The post Israeli Gov’t Slams EU Critics as Belgium, Spain, Ireland Push Anti-Israel Measures Amid Iran War first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Several far-left groups are organizing pro-Iran rallies to signal their support for Tehran amid Israel’s ongoing efforts to dismantle the regime’s nuclear program and ballistic missile capabilities. 

The groups, which largely support the Palestinian cause, hastily organized the demonstrations in the immediate aftermath of Israel launching “Operation Rising Lion” last week. The demonstrations have been held in cities across the US in an attempt to dissuade the federal government from joining the Jewish state’s military operations against the Iranian regime. 

The groups which organized the demonstrations include ANSWER Coalition, Palestinian American League, Jewish Voice for Peace, Code Pink, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Peace and Freedom Party, and Democratic Socialists of America.

In New York City’s Manhattan borough, protesters on Friday gathered for a “No War on Iran” rally in which participants waved both Iranian and Palestinian flags. Police blocked the protesters’ access to the Israeli consulate.

NYC: “HANDS OFF IRAN NOW!” Protesters chant in Times Square, as group of counter protesters faces off with a man shouting pic.twitter.com/2RIZwRLD4W

— Oliya Scootercaster (@ScooterCasterNY) June 19, 2025

Earlier in the week, demonstrators organized a “Solidarity With Iran” rally in which activists called on ideological allies to “support the brave Iranian and Palestinian people fighting for all free people worldwide.”

“Iran, Iran makes us proud! Burn Tel Aviv to the ground!” participants chanted. 

“Iran is defending itself against terrorist aggression from the US and Zionist regimes,” the Bronx Anti-War coalition, which helped organize the event, said in a statement. 

Scenes from today’s Solidarity with Iran rally in NYC.

Chants heard at the rally:

“Iran, Iran makes us proud! Burn Tel Aviv to the ground!”

“US drones in the sky, Iran’s missiles will reply!”

“Courts and talks won’t set us free, resistance brings victory!” pic.twitter.com/rQDyGn5BD7

— Bronx Anti-War (@BXAntiWar) June 17, 2025

In Washington, DC, meanwhile, another pro-Iran gathering assembled at Lafayette Park to lend support to Tehran. Participants in the demonstration were seen holding signs reading “Hands Off Iran!” and “Money for people’s needs, not war w/ Iran!” Despite the blistering summer heat, the demonstration marched from the park to the front of the White House. 

On the other side of the country, in Sacramento, California, a group of anti-Israel activists organized a “No War on Iran” demonstration to condemn Israel’s preemptive strikes against Iran’s nuclear program. 

Organizers have linked the demonstrations to a broader resistance against what they view as the Trump administration’s reckless foreign policy and disregard for constitutional limits on presidential war powers. 

“Millions of people across this country have had enough of endless war,” one protester said in San Francisco. “This is not just about Iran. This is about standing up to a government that keeps dragging us into conflicts without our consent.”

Protesters carried signs reading “No War on Iran,” “Stop US-Israeli Aggression,” and “Honor the War Powers Act,” calling for Congress to assert its constitutional authority to determine if the US goes to war.

At the heart of the mobilization is a push from some Democrats and isolationist Republicans in Congress to pass a War Powers Act resolution set for debate in the coming days. The measure would prohibit US President Donald Trump from launching military strikes against Iran without explicit congressional approval.

Though Trump has not indicated whether he plans on approving an American strike against Iranian nuclear facilities, the president has suggested that he might green-light military operations if the regime does not strike an agreement to rein in its uranium enrichment activities.

The post Far-Left Groups Organize Pro-Iran Rallies Across US Amid Middle East Conflict first appeared on Algemeiner.com.