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Political Inaction Fuels Rising Antisemitism
U.S. Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff listens during a panel discussion with women entrepreneurs during his visit to Mi Casa Resource Center in Denver, Colorado, U.S., March 11, 2022. Jason Connolly/Pool via REUTERS/Pool via REUTERS
JNS.org – As second gentleman Douglas Emhoff joined the groundbreaking ceremony for the Tree of Life Synagogue memorial in Pittsburgh, his presence highlighted a stark contradiction: While government officials pay lip service to combating antisemitism, their actions—or lack thereof—tell a different story.
The same day as this solemn event, antisemitic violence struck the Adas Torah synagogue in Los Angeles. This juxtaposition encapsulates a troubling reality: While we commemorate past tragedies, new ones unfold before our eyes, often met with political indifference or inadequate response.
The surge in antisemitism across North America is not merely anecdotal; it is a statistical fact.
In Montreal, police reports show a dramatic rise in antisemitic incidents throughout 2023, with a further spike following Oct. 7. Toronto has witnessed a staggering 93% increase in reported hate crimes since the Israel-Hamas war began, with Jewish people being the target of 56% of all reported hate crimes in 2024.
Statistics in the United States are similar. The ADL tracked a reported 3,283 antisemitic incidents between Oct. 7, 2023 and Jan. 7, 2024, marking a 361% increase in reported antisemitic incidents when compared to the 712 incidents the organization said were reported during the same period the year before.
Yet despite this overwhelming evidence, there seems to be a systemic failure to address these crimes with the seriousness they deserve. Time and again, we witness acts of violence against Jews being downplayed, charges dropped and the “hate crime” designation avoided.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office, led by Alvin Bragg, recently dropped charges against most pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at Columbia University. This decision sent shockwaves through the Jewish community, effectively signaling that there are no consequences for the relentless persecution of Jews on campus.
Adding insult to injury, leaked text messages from Columbia University deans revealed a dismissive and sarcastic attitude towards the concerns of Jewish students and staff. Some of the deans mockingly referred to the Hillel director who had attempted to raise an alarm against antisemitism on campus, his warnings falling on deaf and mocking ears. These messages expose a deeply troubling bias within the very institutions meant to protect and educate our youth.
This pattern of leniency and indifference extends beyond academia. In Los Angeles, Paul Kessler was killed by a pro-Hamas professor during a protest, yet the attacker wasn’t charged with a hate crime due to an alleged “lack of evidence.” In New York, when a Jewish family was physically assaulted by Arabic-speaking attackers during a public school graduation ceremony in Brooklyn, police refused to classify it as a hate crime.
The political response to these incidents has been woefully inadequate. While we hear condemnations from both sides of the aisle, concrete action is conspicuously absent. The reluctance to prosecute antisemitic acts as hate crimes stands in stark contrast to how other forms of bigotry are treated. It’s a painful irony that in a society that prides itself on protecting minorities, Jews find themselves increasingly vulnerable and unprotected.
The roots of this problem run deep. There’s a growing trend of minimizing or outright denying the reality of antisemitism. Some journalists such as Talia Jane from The New Republic go so far as to suggest that what we’re witnessing isn’t really antisemitism at all. This gaslighting of the Jewish community only adds insult to injury and emboldens those who seek to harm us.
We must recognize that rhetoric has consequences. Dehumanization of a people is where it starts but it rarely ends there. The relentless anti-Jewish and anti-Israel rhetoric we’re seeing in political discourse is not harmless debate—it’s fueling real-world violence against Jews.
What’s particularly alarming is how our cherished democratic values are being weaponized against us. Free speech, a cornerstone of our democracy, is being twisted to shield those who spread hatred and incite violence against Jews. Our political leaders seem paralyzed, unable or unwilling to confront this perversion of our ideals.
The situation at Columbia University serves as a microcosm of this larger political problem. Despite pleas from major donors and clear evidence of a hostile environment for Jewish students, the administration has failed to take meaningful action. The leaked text messages reveal a level of institutional antisemitism that demands immediate political intervention.
As a community, Jews have contributed immensely to the fabric of American society. We have thrived here, believing in the promise of equality and justice for all. But today, that promise rings hollow. It seems that despite all our contributions and our deep roots in this nation, we cannot get justice when we need it most.
The time has come for a serious political reckoning. We need more than just memorials and words of condemnation from political figures. We need action.
Law enforcement must be empowered and directed to treat antisemitic crimes with the full weight of the law. Educational institutions must be held accountable for fostering environments where Jewish students feel unsafe.
Antisemitism is not just a Jewish problem—it’s a societal one. When the rights and safety of any minority group are threatened, the very foundations of our democratic society are at risk.
The post Political Inaction Fuels Rising Antisemitism first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Says No Interim Hostage Deal Possible Without Work Toward Permanent Ceasefire
Explosions send smoke into the air in Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, July 17, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
The spokesperson for Hamas’s armed wing said on Friday that while the Palestinian terrorist group favors reaching an interim truce in the Gaza war, if such an agreement is not reached in current negotiations it could revert to insisting on a full package deal to end the conflict.
Hamas has previously offered to release all the hostages held in Gaza and conclude a permanent ceasefire agreement, and Israel has refused, Abu Ubaida added in a televised speech.
Arab mediators Qatar and Egypt, backed by the United States, have hosted more than 10 days of talks on a US-backed proposal for a 60-day truce in the war.
Israeli officials were not immediately available for comment on the eve of the Jewish Sabbath.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement on a call he had with Pope Leo on Friday that Israel‘s efforts to secure a hostage release deal and 60-day ceasefire “have so far not been reciprocated by Hamas.”
As part of the potential deal, 10 hostages held in Gaza would be returned along with the bodies of 18 others, spread out over 60 days. In exchange, Israel would release a number of detained Palestinians.
“If the enemy remains obstinate and evades this round as it has done every time before, we cannot guarantee a return to partial deals or the proposal of the 10 captives,” said Abu Ubaida.
Disputes remain over maps of Israeli army withdrawals, aid delivery mechanisms into Gaza, and guarantees that any eventual truce would lead to ending the war, said two Hamas officials who spoke to Reuters on Friday.
The officials said the talks have not reached a breakthrough on the issues under discussion.
Hamas says any agreement must lead to ending the war, while Netanyahu says the war will only end once Hamas is disarmed and its leaders expelled from Gaza.
Almost 1,650 Israelis and foreign nationals have been killed as a result of the conflict, including 1,200 killed in the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel, according to Israeli tallies. Over 250 hostages were kidnapped during Hamas’s Oct. 7 onslaught.
Israel responded with an ongoing military campaign aimed at freeing the hostages and dismantling Hamas’s military and governing capabilities in neighboring Gaza.
The post Hamas Says No Interim Hostage Deal Possible Without Work Toward Permanent Ceasefire first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran Marks 31st Anniversary of AMIA Bombing by Slamming Argentina’s ‘Baseless’ Accusations, Blaming Israel
People hold images of the victims of the 1994 bombing attack on the Argentine Israeli Mutual Association (AMIA) community center, marking the 30th anniversary of the attack, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, July 18, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Irina Dambrauskas
Iran on Friday marked the 31st anniversary of the 1994 bombing of the Argentine Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) Jewish community center in Buenos Aires by slamming Argentina for what it called “baseless” accusations over Tehran’s alleged role in the terrorist attack and accusing Israel of politicizing the atrocity to influence the investigation and judicial process.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on the anniversary of Argentina’s deadliest terrorist attack, which killed 85 people and wounded more than 300.
“While completely rejecting the accusations against Iranian citizens, the Islamic Republic of Iran condemns attempts by certain Argentine factions to pressure the judiciary into issuing baseless charges and politically motivated rulings,” the statement read.
“Reaffirming that the charges against its citizens are unfounded, the Islamic Republic of Iran insists on restoring their reputation and calls for an end to this staged legal proceeding,” it continued.
Last month, a federal judge in Argentina ordered the trial in absentia of 10 Iranian and Lebanese nationals suspected of orchestrating the attack in Buenos Aires.
The ten suspects set to stand trial include former Iranian and Lebanese ministers and diplomats, all of whom are subject to international arrest warrants issued by Argentina for their alleged roles in the terrorist attack.
In its statement on Friday, Iran also accused Israel of influencing the investigation to advance a political campaign against the Islamist regime in Tehran, claiming the case has been used to serve Israeli interests and hinder efforts to uncover the truth.
“From the outset, elements and entities linked to the Zionist regime [Israel] exploited this suspicious explosion, pushing the investigation down a false and misleading path, among whose consequences was to disrupt the long‑standing relations between the people of Iran and Argentina,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said.
“Clear, undeniable evidence now shows the Zionist regime and its affiliates exerting influence on the Argentine judiciary to frame Iranian nationals,” the statement continued.
In April, lead prosecutor Sebastián Basso — who took over the case after the 2015 murder of his predecessor, Alberto Nisman — requested that federal Judge Daniel Rafecas issue national and international arrest warrants for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei over his alleged involvement in the attack.
Since 2006, Argentine authorities have sought the arrest of eight Iranians — including former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who died in 2017 — yet more than three decades after the deadly bombing, all suspects remain still at large.
In a post on X, the Delegation of Argentine Israelite Associations (DAIA), the country’s Jewish umbrella organization, released a statement commemorating the 31st anniversary of the bombing.
“It was a brutal attack on Argentina, its democracy, and its rule of law,” the group said. “At DAIA, we continue to demand truth and justice — because impunity is painful, and memory is a commitment to both the present and the future.”
31 años del atentado a la AMIA – DAIA. 31 años sin justicia.
El 18 de julio de 1994, un atentado terrorista dejó 85 personas muertas y más de 300 heridas. Fue un ataque brutal contra la Argentina, su democracia y su Estado de derecho.
Desde la DAIA, seguimos exigiendo verdad y… pic.twitter.com/kV2ReGNTIk
— DAIA (@DAIAArgentina) July 18, 2025
Despite Argentina’s longstanding belief that Lebanon’s Shiite Hezbollah terrorist group carried out the devastating attack at Iran’s request, the 1994 bombing has never been claimed or officially solved.
Meanwhile, Tehran has consistently denied any involvement and refused to arrest or extradite any suspects.
To this day, the decades-long investigation into the terrorist attack has been plagued by allegations of witness tampering, evidence manipulation, cover-ups, and annulled trials.
In 2006, former prosecutor Nisman formally charged Iran for orchestrating the attack and Hezbollah for carrying it out.
Nine years later, he accused former Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner — currently under house arrest on corruption charges — of attempting to cover up the crime and block efforts to extradite the suspects behind the AMIA atrocity in return for Iranian oil.
Nisman was killed later that year, and to this day, both his case and murder remain unresolved and under ongoing investigation.
The alleged cover-up was reportedly formalized through the memorandum of understanding signed in 2013 between Kirchner’s government and Iranian authorities, with the stated goal of cooperating to investigate the AMIA bombing.
The post Iran Marks 31st Anniversary of AMIA Bombing by Slamming Argentina’s ‘Baseless’ Accusations, Blaming Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Jordan Reveals Muslim Brotherhood Operating Vast Illegal Funding Network Tied to Gaza Donations, Political Campaigns
Murad Adailah, the head of Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood, attends an interview with Reuters in Amman, Jordan, Sept. 7, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Jehad Shelbak
The Muslim Brotherhood, one of the Arab world’s oldest and most influential Islamist movements, has been implicated in a wide-ranging network of illegal financial activities in Jordan and abroad, according to a new investigative report.
Investigations conducted by Jordanian authorities — along with evidence gathered from seized materials — revealed that the Muslim Brotherhood raised tens of millions of Jordanian dinars through various illegal activities, the Jordan news agency (Petra) reported this week.
With operations intensifying over the past eight years, the report showed that the group’s complex financial network was funded through various sources, including illegal donations, profits from investments in Jordan and abroad, and monthly fees paid by members inside and outside the country.
The report also indicated that the Muslim Brotherhood has taken advantage of the war in Gaza to raise donations illegally.
Out of all donations meant for Gaza, the group provided no information on where the funds came from, how much was collected, or how they were distributed, and failed to work with any international or relief organizations to manage the transfers properly.
Rather, the investigations revealed that the Islamist network used illicit financial mechanisms to transfer funds abroad.
According to Jordanian authorities, the group gathered more than JD 30 million (around $42 million) over recent years.
With funds transferred to several Arab, regional, and foreign countries, part of the money was allegedly used to finance domestic political campaigns in 2024, as well as illegal activities and cells.
In April, Jordan outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood, the country’s most vocal opposition group, and confiscated its assets after members of the Islamist movement were found to be linked to a sabotage plot.
The movement’s political arm in Jordan, the Islamic Action Front, became the largest political grouping in parliament after elections last September, although most seats are still held by supporters of the government.
Opponents of the group, which is banned in most Arab countries, label it a terrorist organization. However, the movement claims it renounced violence decades ago and now promotes its Islamist agenda through peaceful means.
The post Jordan Reveals Muslim Brotherhood Operating Vast Illegal Funding Network Tied to Gaza Donations, Political Campaigns first appeared on Algemeiner.com.