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The Jewish Sport Report: Why the Von Erichs, wrestling family in the new movie ‘The Iron Claw,’ were so big in Israel

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(JTA) — Happy Friday, Jewish sports fans!

Before we get into the news, one quick pitch: JTA is hosting an end-of-year online benefit featuring die-hard Philly sports fan (and CNN anchor) Jake Tapper, who will be in conversation with JTA editor-in-chief Philissa Cramer. While they might not have time to discuss the Phillies bullpen, it’s sure to be an exciting evening. If you’d like to support JTA and the work we do, please check out the benefit page here for information and to make a donation. Thank you!

The Israeli angle to ‘The Iron Claw’

From left to right: Mike, Kerry, Fritz and Kevin Von Erich. (Wikimedia Commons and Getty Images; Design by Grace Yagel)

If you’re looking for a movie to see after having your Chinese food on Christmas, you may want to check out “The Iron Claw,” the wrestling movie that hits theaters next Friday.

The film — which has gotten strong reviews so far — features a star-studded cast including Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White (star of “The Bear”) and even the real Jewish wrestler Maxwell Jacob Friedman. The movie tells the tragic story of the Von Erich family, the first family of professional wrestling in Texas.

The Von Erichs weren’t just legends in the Lone Star state. At one time they were a super heavyweight-sized deal in the Jewish state as well.

“Anyone who grew up in Israel in the 1980s would be a major fan of the Von Erich brothers — David, Kevin, Kerry and Mike,” said one Jewish federation CEO. “They were icons in Israel as their faces were seen weekly on televisions across the Middle East on Saturday nights.”

Read more about the Von Erichs and their connections to Israel right here.

Halftime report

TAKING A STAND. When Jewish teenager David Teeger, the captain of South Africa’s under-19 cricket team, won a “rising star” award in October, he dedicated the honor to Israel and its soldiers. After a local Palestinian group filed a complaint, Teeger was briefly suspended from the sport and investigated for hate speech. The judge cleared him of any wrongdoing.

MAGIC CLEATS. Last week, we showed you the Israel-themed cleats Minnesota Vikings kicker Greg Joseph would wear on Sunday as part of the NFL’s “My Cleats, My Cause” program. We didn’t anticipate what would come next: the Vikings won 3-0 on a 36-yard field goal from Joseph.

FAR FROM HOME. The Forward profiles Israeli Ofri Naveh, a freshman forward who was recruited to play basketball at the University of West Virginia. Naveh shares his experience playing in the states while his country is at war.

BALLIN. As the Oakland Athletics prepare to move to Las Vegas, the city has a new independent baseball team to root for: the Oakland Ballers. Meet their new manager: Micah Franklin, a Jewish former big leaguer who also played professionally in Japan and Korea.

CHANGE OF PLANS. Starting in 2024, sportswear giant Puma will no longer sponsor Israel’s national soccer team. The decision was made in 2022 and is unrelated to the ongoing war.

AL IS OUT. Speaking of lineup changes, broadcasting legend Al Michaels is not included in NBC’s NFL Playoffs coverage plan, which reportedly came as a surprise to him. Michaels is tied with Pat Summerall with a record 11 Super Bowl TV broadcasts.

A JEWISH PIRATE. It’s been a slow MLB offseason for most players not named Shohei Ohtani, but one Jewish free agent is officially off the board: slugger Rowdy Tellez has signed a one-year, $3.2 million contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates — which, yes, means Tellez’s salary for the 2024 season is technically higher than Ohtani’s.

Jews in sports to watch this weekend

IN BASKETBALL…

Deni Avdija and the Washington Wizards host the Indiana Pacers tonight at 7 p.m. ET and face the Phoenix Suns Sunday at 8 p.m. ET. Domantas Sabonis (who is converting to Judaism) and the Sacramento Kings host the Utah Jazz tomorrow at 10 p.m. ET. In the G League, Ryan Turell and the Motor City Cruise play the Indiana Mad Ants (fantastic name, by the way) today at 12:30 p.m. ET and the Windy City Bulls Sunday at 6 p.m. ET. And across the pond in the British Women’s Basketball League, former WNBA player Abby Meyers and her London Lions host the Durham Palatinates tomorrow at 8 a.m. ET. Meyers enjoyed her best performance of the season so far last Sunday, dropping 28 points.

IN HOCKEY…

Adam Fox and the first-place New York Rangers host the last-place Anaheim Ducks tonight at 7 p.m. ET. Jason Zucker and the Arizona Coyotes host Luke Kunin and the San Jose Sharks tonight at 9 p.m. ET and Devon Levi’s Buffalo Sabres tomorrow at 8 p.m. ET. Cole Guttman and the Chicago Blackhawks host Quinn Hughes and the Vancouver Canucks Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.

IN FOOTBALL…

Greg Joseph and the Minnesota Vikings face the Cincinnati Bengals Saturday at 1 p.m. ET. On Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, catch Michael Dunn and the Cleveland Browns hosting the Chicago Bears, while A.J. Dillon and the Green Bay Packers host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jake Curhan and the Seattle Seahawks wrap up Week 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles Monday at 8:15 p.m. ET on “Monday Night Football.”

IN SOCCER…

Matt Turner and Nottingham Forest take on Tottenham today at 3 p.m. ET. Nottingham Forest haven’t won a match since Nov. 5, and Tottenham, who are currently fifth in the Premier League standings, are still without Israeli star Manor Solomon, who had knee surgery in October.

A hefty price tag

The news of two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani’s mind-boggling 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers elicited plenty of clever reactions to the historic amount of money involved. This was our favorite:

$700 million is nuts. That’s like almost enough to feed a family of four at the Yankee Stadium Kosher stand

— Max Mannis (@MaxMannis) December 9, 2023


The post The Jewish Sport Report: Why the Von Erichs, wrestling family in the new movie ‘The Iron Claw,’ were so big in Israel appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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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.”

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.

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