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NYC Mayor’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism Holds First Meeting With Reps From Nearly All City Agencies
The Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, led by Moshe Davis, held its first meeting on July 17, 2025, at City Hall in New York City. Photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office
New York City Mayor Eric Adams’s interagency task force to combat antisemitism held its inaugural meeting on Thursday at City Hall in Manhattan.
Adams signed Executive Order 51 in May that created the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism, the first office of its kind in a major city in the US. Moshe Davis is the executive director of the mayoral office and is also the head of the interagency task force. The task force’s main partners include the New York Police Department Hate Crimes Task Force, Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, and New York City Commission on Human Rights.
Representatives from nearly all New York City agencies attended the task force’s first meeting on Thursday, including members from the departments and offices of sanitation, education, family justice, environmental protection, small business services, health and mental hygiene, and correction. There were also representatives from the Fire Department and City Parks, and the Jewish community’s liaison for the city’s Commission on Human Rights attended as well.
During the meeting, the group collaborated and discussed ways to tackle antisemitism as it relates to their various fields, for example antisemitic crimes targeting small businesses, ensuring street entrances to synagogues are safe with the help of the Department of Transportation, and responding to hate crimes happening in parks such as antisemitic swastika graffiti. Around 4 percent of antisemitic hate crimes take place in the city’s parks, according to Davis.
“Our agencies are really excited to be doing this work,” Davis said. “They are saying, ‘Hey if there is a problem, we want to be a part of the solution. We are in. We want to do this.’ And there is really a diverse group of people.”
The Algemeiner sat in for the meeting’s opening remarks, but then members of the press were ushered out so representatives from the city agencies could speak openly and privately.
“We are all here to make sure that we become a shining example in city government of what to do, of what not to do, and of what will be tolerated,” First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro said at the start of the meeting. “We are a city that welcomes diversity – diversity of race, background, socio-economic status … [we have to make sure] that our brothers and sisters in every religious community feel embraced and safe … we will be a better city. A city with a bigger heart.”
After the meeting, Davis told The Algemeiner that similar meetings with all members of the task force will take place in-person at least quarterly, but he will also meet one-on-one with task force members and teams on a regular basis.
Davis shared that during the meeting, attendees discussed the mission of the task force, the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism – which New York City adopted in June – antisemitism training, how to keep synagogues safe, and other similar topics. He said the group also talked at length about specific measures that can be taken to combat antisemitism in “hot spots” throughout New York – most notably the Brooklyn areas of Crown Heights, Williamsburg and Midwood – where there are large Jewish populations and have been a number of recent hate crimes targeting Jews. Davis said the task force is focused on addressing antisemitism in these communities.
“Antisemitism is a pervasive, ugly disease that has sadly infiltrated so many sectors of our city, but we will never allow that to stand unanswered under our administration,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement shared with The Algemeiner. “Today, we continue to tackle this crisis head on by rooting out hateful rhetoric and ensuring it has no place in even the most remote corners of our city government. From schools to sanitation to police, our administration will never allow antisemitism — or any other form of hate — to persist. We will continue to build a future in which every New Yorker can live without any fear of hatred.”
After creating the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism in May, Adams signed Executive Order No. 52 in June officially recognizing the IHRA definition of antisemitism and encouraging all city agencies to use it as a tool to help identify and response to antisemitic behavior in New York.
The city’s mayoral election is in November, and Adams — a strong supporter of Israel and the Jewish community – is running for another term as an independent. New York City Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, a staunch advocate of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel and a fierce critic of the Jewish state, won the Democratic Party primary in June and is a frontrunner to win the general election.
Adams did not attend the task force meeting on Thursday and instead showed face at a reelection rally that took place outside City Hall at the same time. During the start of the meeting, participants could hear rally goers chanting “four more years” outside the building.
Davis told press on Thursday that any future administration that wants to disband the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism would need to create an executive order to rescind Executive Order 51.
Many Jewish community members have expressed concern that antisemitism might increase under Mandani if he is elected in November because of his anti-Israel views. The Algemeiner asked Mastro about those concerns on Thursday, and in his response, he turned the focus to Adams, describing him as a uniter. “This mayor unites. He brings people from all races, background and faiths together,” Mastro said. “He stands up for all of that.”
Earlier this month, Mastro sent a letter to New York City Comptroller Brad Lander demanding documentation that explains the latter’s decision to withdraw tens of millions of dollars in city pension funds from bonds issued by Israel. Mastro’s deadline for Lander was Thursday. The deputy mayor told The Algemeiner he has yet to receive the requested documentation and does not expect to. He also hinted that he might be pursing legal action against the comptroller.
Lander “made a conscious decision to allow investments in Israel Bonds to run their course and not reinvest at all,” Mastro said. “He is the first comptroller in 50 years [ to do so]. But he said it’s not divesting … Today I do not expect to get any documentation from the comptroller … In the bond portfolio, Israel Bonds have performed better than the rest of the bonds. So why would you get rid of Israel Bonds? You have a fiduciary duty to maximum the return for the city … and certainly you have an obligation to provide documentation to show how this decision was made.”
The post NYC Mayor’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism Holds First Meeting With Reps From Nearly All City Agencies first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US House Members Ask Marco Rubio to Bar Turkey From Rejoining F-35 Program
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio attends a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, US, April 10, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Nathan Howard
A bipartisan coalition of more than 40 US lawmakers is pressing Secretary of State Marco Rubio to prevent Turkey from rejoining the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, citing ongoing national security concerns and violations of US law.
Members of Congress on Thursday warned that lifting existing sanctions or readmitting Turkey to the US F-35 fifth-generation fighter program would “jeopardize the integrity of F-35 systems” and risk exposing sensitive US military technology to Russia. The letter pointed to Ankara’s 2017 purchase of the Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile system, despite repeated US warnings, as the central reason Turkey was expelled from the multibillion-dollar fighter jet program in 2019.
“The S-400 poses a direct threat to US aircraft, including the F-16 and F-35,” the lawmakers wrote. “If operated alongside these platforms, it risks exposing sensitive military technology to Russian intelligence.”
The group of signatories, spanning both parties, stressed that Turkey still possesses the Russian weapons systems and has shown “no willingness to comply with US law.” They urged Rubio and the Trump administration to uphold the Countering American Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) and maintain Ankara’s exclusion from the F-35 program until the S-400s are fully removed.
The letter comes after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed during a NATO summit in June that Ankara and Washington have begun discussing Turkey’s readmission into the program.
Lawmakers argued that reversing course now would undermine both US credibility and allied confidence in American defense commitments. They also warned it could disrupt development of the next-generation fighter jet announced by the administration earlier this year.
“This is not a partisan issue,” the letter emphasized. “We must continue to hold allies and adversaries alike accountable when their actions threaten US interests.”
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US Lawmakers Urge Treasury to Investigate Whether Irish Bill Targeting Israel Violates Anti-Boycott Law
A pro-Hamas demonstration in Ireland led by nationalist party Sinn Fein. Photo: Reuters/Clodagh Kilcoyne
A group of US lawmakers is calling on the Treasury Department to investigate and potentially penalize Ireland over proposed legislation targeting Israeli goods, warning that the move could trigger sanctions under longstanding US anti-boycott laws.
In a letter sent on Thursday to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, 16 Republican members of Congress expressed “serious concerns” about Ireland’s recent legislative push to ban trade with territories under Israeli administration, including the West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights.
The letter, spearheaded by Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY), called for the US to “send a clear signal” that any attempts to economically isolate Israel will “carry consequences.”
The Irish measure, introduced by Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Simon Harris, seeks to prohibit the import of goods and services originating from what the legislation refers to as “occupied Palestinian territories,” including Israeli communities in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Supporters say the bill aligns with international law and human rights principles, while opponents, including the signatories of the letter, characterize it as a direct extension of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks to isolate Israel as a step toward the destruction of the world’s lone Jewish state.
Some US lawmakers have also described the Irish bill as an example of “antisemitic hate” that could risk hurting relations between Dublin and Washington.
“Such policies not only promote economic discrimination but also create legal uncertainty for US companies operating in Ireland,” the lawmakers wrote in this week’s letter, urging Bessent to determine whether Ireland’s actions qualify as participation in an “unsanctioned international boycott” under Section 999 of the Internal Revenue Code, also known as the Ribicoff Amendment.
Under that statute, the Treasury Department is required to maintain a list of countries that pressure companies to comply with international boycotts not sanctioned by the US. Inclusion on the list carries tax-reporting burdens and possible penalties for American firms and individuals doing business in those nations.
“If the criteria are met, Ireland should be added to the boycott list,” the letter said, arguing that such a step would help protect US companies from legal exposure and reaffirm American opposition to economic efforts aimed at isolating Israel.
Legal experts have argued that if the Irish bill becomes law, it could chase American capital out of the country while also hurting companies that do business with Ireland. Under US law, it is illegal for American companies to participate in boycotts of Israel backed by foreign governments. Several US states have also gone beyond federal restrictions to pass separate measures that bar companies from receiving state contracts if they boycott Israel.
Ireland has been one of the fiercest critics of Israel on the international stage since the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel, amid the ensuing war in Gaza, leading the Jewish state to shutter its embassy in Dublin.
Last year, Ireland officially recognized a Palestinian state, a decision that Israel described as a “reward for terrorism.”
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US Families File Lawsuit Accusing UNRWA of Supporting Hamas, Hezbollah
A truck, marked with United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) logo, crosses into Egypt from Gaza, at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, during a temporary truce between Hamas and Israel, in Rafah, Egypt, Nov. 27, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
American families of victims of Hamas and Hezbollah attacks have filed a lawsuit against the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, accusing the organization of violating US antiterrorism laws by providing material support to the Islamist terror groups behind the deadly assaults.
Last week, more than 200 families filed a lawsuit in a Washington, DC district court accusing the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) of violating US antiterrorism laws by providing funding and support to Hamas and Hezbollah, both designated as foreign terrorist organizations.
The lawsuit alleges that UNRWA employs staff with direct ties to the Iran-backed terror group, including individuals allegedly involved in carrying out attacks against the Jewish state.
However, UNRWA has firmly denied the allegations, labeling them as “baseless” and condemning the lawsuit as “meritless, absurd, dangerous, and morally reprehensible.”
According to the organization, the lawsuit is part of a wider campaign of “misinformation and lawfare” targeting its work in the Gaza Strip, where it says Palestinians are enduring “mass, deliberate and forced starvation.”
The UN agency reports that more than 150,000 donors across the United States have supported its programs providing food, medical aid, education, and trauma assistance in the war-torn enclave amid the ongoing conflict.
In a press release, UNRWA USA affirmed that it will continue its humanitarian efforts despite facing legal challenges aimed at undermining its work.
“Starvation does not pause for politics. Neither will we,” the statement read.
Last year, Israeli security documents revealed that of UNRWA’s 13,000 employees in Gaza, 440 were actively involved in Hamas’s military operations, with 2,000 registered as Hamas operatives.
According to these documents, at least nine UNRWA employees took part directly in the terror group’s Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel.
Israeli officials also uncovered a large Hamas data center beneath UNRWA headquarters, with cables running through the facility above, and found that Hamas also stored weapons in other UNRWA sites.
The UN agency has also aligned with Hamas in efforts against the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), an Israeli and US-backed program that delivers aid directly to Palestinians, blocking Hamas from diverting supplies for terror activities and selling them at inflated prices.
These Israeli intelligence documents also revealed that a senior Hamas leader, killed in an Israeli strike in September 2024, had served as the head of the UNRWA teachers’ union in Lebanon, where Lebanon is based,
UNRWA’s education programs have been found by IMPACT-se, an international organization that monitors global education, to contribute to the radicalization of younger generations of Palestinians.