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Pittsburgh synagogue trial: Expert says antisemitism and white supremacism, not delusions, spurred shooter
PITTSBURGH (JTA) — The gunman who murdered 11 Jewish worshipers in a Pittsburgh synagogue did not suffer from delusions but was spurred by white supremacist radicalization, a storied forensic psychiatrist testified for the prosecution.
Park Dietz, who has for decades provided expert testimony in some of the highest profile insanity defense cases, was the final witness in the first part of the death penalty phase in the federal trial of Robert Bowers, who committed the deadliest attack on American Jews in history on Oct. 27, 2018.
Dietz, a witness for the prosecution, countered defense testimony that Bowers suffered from schizophrenia and delusions. Bowers got his ideas about Jews not from his twisted imagination but from the antisemitic writings online that radicalized him.
“The difference” between himself and experts brought forward by the defense is “whether we regard the defendant’s beliefs as delusions on the one hand or subcultural beliefs on the other,” Dietz said Monday on his second day of testimony. His testimony began last Thursday.
The defense experts, Dietz said Monday, “simply mistook every ordinary widespread white separatist beliefs as delusions because they were not familiar with them.”
Dietz placed Bowers’ crime in the context of decades of American right-wing extremism. “When you see this promoted for 20 years or 40 years promoted in books and online forums it is clear they are subcultural beliefs,” said Dietz, who in May examined Bowers for 15 hours.
Dietz, who has conducted substantial research on far-right extremism, said that Bowers’ thinking could be traced to a number of late 20th-century writings that have underpinned white supremacist ideology, including the “White Genocide Manifesto” authored in 1985 by David Lane — the leader of The Order who killed Jewish radio host Alan Berg.
“There were sources for all of this,” he said. “The ‘White Genocide Manifesto’ was the principal one from which much of this flows.” He also cited the “Great Replacement” theory which posits that Jews are organizing mass immigrations of immigrants of color into western nations to replace whites.
Replacement theory, which has gained significant traction in right-wing media and politics in recent years, has inspired multiple antisemitic and extremist attacks, including the 2019 attack on a New Zealand mosque that killed 51 and the 2019 massacre at a Texas Walmart that targeted Hispanic immigrants.
Dietz is the final witness in the first part of the death penalty phase, which mostly has focused on whether Bowers’ intent meets the requirement for the death penalty. If the jury determines that the crimes meet that threshold, the second phase will consider the defense’s arguments that mitigating factors in Bowers’ life make him ineligible for the death penalty. The prosecution would be expected to present victim impact statements in that phase.
The federal jury of five men and seven women found Bowers guilty of all 63 government charges on June 16, including 22 capital charges — two for each of the 11 slain at the Pittsburgh synagogue complex known as Tree of Life.
The Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, June 26, 2023. (Ron Kampeas)
The defense has sought since the launch of the death penalty phase on June 26 to show that Bowers’ beliefs about Jews were delusions caused by schizophrenia and epilepsy.
Dietz, under cross examination by defense lawyer Michael Burt, was immovable: Bowers did not have an original thought that would qualify as a delusion. “The entire area of disagreement in this case, is does he have delusions or not,” he said. “That’s the critical fulcrum in this case.”
Bowers did not have delusions, Dietz said. “I’m talking about his white supremacist and antisemitic beliefs — those are all fixed,” he said.
Bowers, Dietz said, remained unrepentant. His regrets included not bringing more ammunition into the building, calculating that he would head to another location after committing the massacre at Tree of Life. The second intended target is believed to be the Jewish Family and Community Services office, which was nearby.
Another regret, Bowers told Dietz, was that “there wasn’t dozens of dozens more in there” when he arrived at the synagogue that Saturday morning.
Bowers was proud nonetheless of the number of Jews he did kill, Dietz said. “They can kill me” with the death penalty, Dietz quoted Bowers as saying, “if they want but the score will still be 11-1. That’s not winning the war but I won that battle.”
Bowers was proud that his handling of the ammunition was “flawless” and said he remained focused throughout the shooting. He told Dietz one moment of near sympathy for his victims, a man who he shot in the head and who spoke as he lived on for a second or so.
“I never heard a single person say a word except for one man who was slumped over and said ‘I think I’ve been seriously injured,’” Dietz quoted Bowers as saying of that victim, who was not identified. “I almost felt sorry for him.”
Bowers, clad in a gray sweater and a collared shirt, did not look at Dietz, preoccupying himself as he has until now with writing notes.
Bowers targeted Tree of Life because one of three congregations in it, Dor Hadash, partnered with HIAS, the Jewish immigration advocacy group, in sponsoring refugee families. Dietz testified that Bowers at first intended to target only Dor Hadash but after hearing newscasters whom he believed to be Jewish express sympathy for immigrants, he decided “a Jew is a Jew.”
Dietz, a forensic psychiatrist at UCLA’s medical school, has evaluated defendants including John Hinckley, who attempted to kill President Ronald Reagan; mass murderer Jeffrey Dahmer and Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, among many others. He also is listed on the Internet Movie Database as a consultant on hundreds of episodes of “Law and Order” and its franchises.
Burt, in his cross examination, appeared to anticipate arguments the defense will bring should the trial continue to the second death penalty phase. He asked Dietz to assess Bowers’ likelihood of suffering mental illness because of trauma. Dietz agreed with Burt that Bowers had suffered some of the requisite traumas, including losing his father to suicide and being raised by an alcoholic and neglectful mother.
This story is part of ongoing coverage of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial. Parts of the story are based on reporting by the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and the Pittsburgh Union Progress in a collaboration supported by funding from the Pittsburgh Media Partnership.
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The post Pittsburgh synagogue trial: Expert says antisemitism and white supremacism, not delusions, spurred shooter appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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World Largely Rejects Trump’s Relocation Plan for Gaza, Demands Two-State Solution
A general view shows destroyed buildings in northern Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, near the Israel-Gaza border, Nov. 11, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
JNS.org — Global reaction came swiftly on Wednesday to US President Donald Trump’s call for Gazans to be relocated out of the Strip, which he described as a “demolition site” — with most, if not all, countries panning the idea.
Trump proposed that ownership of the Strip be transferred to the United States, which would rebuild it.
“This was not a decision made lightly,” he said. “Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs with something that will be magnificent in a really magnificent area that nobody would know.”
Palestinians could be located to various locales. “It could be numerous sites or it could be one large site, but the people will be able to live in comfort and peace,” Trump said. “We’ll make sure something really spectacular is done.”
Most countries, which have embraced a two-state solution whereby a Palestinian state would be established adjoining the Jewish state in territories liberated by Israel in the 1967 Six Day War, expressed a mixture of incredulity and indignation.
“They [Palestinians] must be allowed home, they must be allowed to rebuild, and we should be with them in that rebuild on the way to a two-state solution,” said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock released a statement insisting that a negotiated two-state solution is the only path forward, not only rejecting Trump’s relocation plan but calling for Israel’s capital to be divided.
“It is clear that Gaza — like the West Bank and East Jerusalem — belongs to the Palestinians. They form the starting point for a future state of Palestine,” Baerbock said.
“The expulsion of the Palestinian civilian population from Gaza would not only be unacceptable and contrary to international law. It would also lead to new suffering and new hatred,” she added.
France also rejected the proposal, with Foreign Ministry spokesman Christophe Lemoine saying, “France reiterates its opposition to any forced displacement of the Palestinian population of Gaza, which would constitute a serious violation of international law, an attack on the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians, but also a major obstacle to the two-state solution and a major destabilizing factor for our close partners Egypt and Jordan as well as for the entire region.”
Spain, which recognized a State of Palestine together with Norway and Ireland on May 28, 2024, also criticized the plan.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said, “I want to be very clear on this: Gaza is the land of Gazan Palestinians and they must stay in Gaza. Gaza is part of the future Palestinian state Spain supports and has to coexist guaranteeing the Israeli state’s prosperity and safety.”
Ireland, whose leadership’s allegedly antisemitic “actions and rhetoric” recently led Israel to close its Dublin embassy, also panned the idea.
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Harris said, “It’s very clear the direction of travel here: We need a two-state solution, and the people of Palestine and the people of Israel both have a right to live in states safely side by side, and that’s where the focus has to be.”
“Any idea of displacing the people of Gaza anywhere else would be in clear contradiction with UN Security Council resolutions,” he added.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, “Australia’s position is the same as it was this morning, as it was last year. The Australian government supports on a bipartisan basis a two-state solution.”
Russia, which greeted a Hamas delegation in Moscow as recently as Monday, said a settlement is only possible in the framework of the two-state solution.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, “This is the thesis that is enshrined in the relevant UN Security Council resolution. This is the thesis that is shared by the overwhelming majority of countries involved in this problem. We proceed from it. We support it and believe that this is the only possible option.”
Beijing’s Foreign Ministry said, “China hopes all parties will take ceasefire and post-conflict governance as an opportunity to bring the Palestinian issue back on the right track of political settlement based on the two-state solution.”
Do what is necessary
During his 40-minute press conference on Tuesday night with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said, “We’ll own it [Gaza] and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous, unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings.”
The US takeover of Gaza could involve the deployment of American troops, according to Trump. “We’ll do what is necessary,” he said. “If it’s necessary, we’ll do that.”
Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and the Palestinian Authority wrote to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday to reject the idea of resettling Palestinians outside of the Strip. But Trump said on Tuesday that “neighboring countries of great wealth” could pay for the relocation of Gazans.
Trump suggested that under US ownership and development, Palestinians could return to Gaza but that it would become an international zone.
“This is not for Israel,” Trump said. “This is for everybody in the Middle East — Arabs, Muslims, this is for everybody.
“I think you’ll make that into an international, unbelievable place,” he said. “Palestinians will live there. Many people will live there.”
Elements of what Trump described were redolent of the so-called “Trump Mideast peace plan” that he unveiled in 2020, which included developing Gaza’s waterfront into a tourism destination.
“I don’t want to be cute. I don’t want to be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East,” the hotel magnate and president said Tuesday. “This could be so magnificent.”
Trump said that his Gaza development plan did not rule out a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“It doesn’t mean anything about a two-state or one-state or any other state,” he said. “It means that we want to give people a chance at life. They have never had a chance at life because the Gaza Strip has been a hell hole.”
He added that he intends to visit the enclave, which Hamas has controlled, as part of a regional tour.
“I’ll visit Gaza,” the American leader said. “I’ll visit Saudi Arabia, and I’ll visit other places all over the Middle East. The Middle East is an incredible place.”
Netanyahu said Trump’s vision is in line with his war goal of ensuring that Gaza can never pose a threat to Israel again.
“President Trump is taking it to a much higher level,” Netanyahu said. “I think it’s worth paying attention to this. We’re talking about it. He’s exploring it with his people, with his staff. I think it’s something that could change history, and it’s worthwhile, really pursuing this avenue.”
Trump said that he had not yet made a decision about the United States recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank, but that there will “probably” be a decision on the question “over the next four weeks.”
Netanyahu called Trump the “greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, all this in just two weeks,” Netanyahu said of Trump’s executive actions since the start of his second term. “Can we imagine where we’ll be in four years? I can.”
The post World Largely Rejects Trump’s Relocation Plan for Gaza, Demands Two-State Solution first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Saudi Arabia, in Swift Response to Trump, Says No Ties With Israel Without Palestinian State
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends the 45th Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit in Kuwait city, Kuwait, Dec. 1, 2024. Photo: Bandar Algaloud/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/Handout via REUTERS
Saudi Arabia said it would not establish ties with Israel without the creation of a Palestinian state, contradicting President Donald Trump‘s claim that Riyadh was not demanding a Palestinian homeland when he said the US wants to take over the Gaza Strip.
In a shocking announcement, Trump said on Tuesday the United States would take over the war-ravaged enclave after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere and develop it economically. He was speaking at a joint press conference with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Saudi Arabia rejects any attempts to displace the Palestinians from their land, Saudi Arabia‘s foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday, adding that its stance towards the Palestinians is not negotiable.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has affirmed the kingdom’s position in “a clear and explicit manner” that does not allow for any interpretation under any circumstances, the statement said.
When it comes to Saudi policy in the Middle East, the stakes are high for both Trump and Israel.
The United States had led months of diplomacy to get Saudi Arabia, one of the most powerful and influential Arab states, to normalize ties with Israel and recognize the country. But the Gaza war, which began in October 2023, led Riyadh to shelve the matter in the face of Arab anger over Israel‘s offensive.
Trump would like Saudi Arabia to follow in the footsteps of countries like the United Arab Emirates, a Middle East trade and business hub, and Bahrain which signed the so-called Abraham Accords in 2020 and normalized ties with Israel.
In doing so, they became the first Arab states in a quarter century to break a longstanding taboo.
Establishing ties with Saudi Arabia would be a grand prize for Israel because the kingdom has vast influence in the Middle East, the wider Muslim world, and it is the world’s biggest oil exporter.
The post Saudi Arabia, in Swift Response to Trump, Says No Ties With Israel Without Palestinian State first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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‘We’ll Own It’: Trump Says US Wants to Take Over Gaza Strip
US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hold a joint press conference in the East Room at the White House in Washington, US, Feb/ 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Leah Millis
President Donald Trump said the US would take over the war-torn Gaza Strip and develop it economically after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere, actions that would upend decades of US policy toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Trump unveiled his surprise plan, without providing specifics, at a joint press conference on Tuesday with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The announcement followed Trump‘s shock proposal earlier on Tuesday for the permanent resettlement of the more than two million Palestinians from Gaza to neighboring countries, calling the enclave — where the first phase of a fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release deal is in effect — a “demolition site.”
Trump can expect allies and foes alike to strongly oppose any US takeover of Gaza, and his proposal raises questions whether Middle East power Saudi Arabia would be willing to join a renewed US-brokered push for a historic normalization of relations with US ally Israel.
The US taking a direct stake in Gaza would run counter to longtime policy in Washington and for much of the international community, which has held that Gaza would be part of a future Palestinian state that includes the West Bank.
“The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too,” Trump told reporters. “We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.”
“We’re going to develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it’ll be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of,” Trump said. “I do see a long-term ownership position and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East.”
Asked who would live there, Trump said it could become a home to “the world’s people.” Trump touted the narrow strip — where, until the recently implemented ceasefire went into effect, Israel had been waging a military campaign in response to Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border invasion and massacre across southern Israeli communities — as having the potential to be “The Riviera of the Middle East.”
Trump did not directly respond to a question of how and under what authority the US can take over and occupy Gaza, a coastal strip 25 miles (45 km) long and at most 6 miles (10 km) wide, with a violent history. Successive US administrations, including Trump in his first term, had avoided deploying US troops there.
Several Democratic lawmakers quickly condemned the Republican president’s Gaza proposals.
Netanyahu, referred to a few times by Trump by his nickname, “Bibi,” would not be drawn into discussing the proposal in depth other than to praise Trump for trying a new approach.
The Israeli leader, whose military had engaged in more than a year of fierce fighting with Hamas terrorists in Gaza, said Trump was “thinking outside the box with fresh ideas” and was “showing willingness to puncture conventional thinking.”
Netanyahu may have been relieved that Trump, who forged close ties with the Israeli leader during his first term in the White House, did not pressure him publicly to maintain the ceasefire. He faces threats from far-right members of his coalition to topple his government unless he restarts the fighting in Gaza to destroy Iran-backed Hamas.
Some experts have suggested Trump sometimes takes an extreme position internationally to set the parameters for future negotiations. In his first term, Trump at times issued what were seen as over-the-top foreign policy pronouncements, many of which he never implemented.
A UN damage assessment released in January showed that clearing over 50 million tonnes of rubble left in Gaza in the aftermath of the Israel-Hamas war could take 21 years and cost up to $1.2 billion.
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump repeated his call for Jordan, Egypt, and other Arab states to take in Gazans, saying Palestinians there had no alternative but to abandon the coastal strip, which must be rebuilt after nearly 16 months of a devastating war between Israel and Hamas terrorists.
But this time Trump said he would support resettling Palestinians “permanently,” going beyond his previous suggestions that Arab leaders had already steadfastly rejected.
Trump offered no specifics on how a resettlement process could be implemented but his proposal echoed the wishes of Israel’s far right and contradicted Democratic former President Joe Biden’s commitment against mass displacement of Palestinians.
The Saudi government, in a statement, stressed its rejection of any attempt to displace Palestinians from their land and said it would not establish relations with Israel without establishment of a Palestinian state.
Just two weeks into his second term, Trump was hosting Netanyahu at the White House to discuss the future of the Gaza ceasefire, strategies to counter Iran, and hopes for a renewed push for an Israeli-Saudi normalization deal.
Trump described the Gaza Strip as a longtime “symbol of death and destruction” and said Palestinians there should be housed in “various domains” in other countries. He said the US will take over the Gaza Strip, “level the site,” and create economic development but did not say how.
Trump, who had a career of developing real estate before getting into politics, cast a broad-brush, optimistic vision of a US takeover of Gaza while skirting details on how the United States would go about possessing the enclave and securing it.
He was also vague on where the Palestinian inhabitants of Gaza would go, saying he was confident Egypt and Jordan would take many of them, despite those governments already rejecting the idea.
What impact Trump‘s proposals have on negotiations over the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal was unclear, as Hamas has adamantly insisted it wants to remain in Gaza while Netanyahu has vowed to destroy the group and never allow it to again rule the territory.
Trump‘s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, played a key role in helping the Biden administration secure the long-sought Gaza deal before the Jan. 20 transfer of power in the US. The first phase has led to Hamas’s release of 18 hostages and Israel’s release of hundreds of jailed Palestinians.
“We’re in Phase 2 now,” Witkoff told reporters earlier. He said he met Netanyahu on Monday to discuss parameters for the policy negotiations and would meet the prime minister of Qatar, a mediator in the negotiations, in the US on Thursday.
The post ‘We’ll Own It’: Trump Says US Wants to Take Over Gaza Strip first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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