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The Jewish Sport Report: Your Jewish guide to the new NHL season

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Hello, Jewish sports fans! It’s hard to believe, but we hit send on the very first edition of the Jewish Sport Report two years ago this week. Whether you’re an original fan or joined the team more recently — thanks for reading.

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Now, onto the news!

The NHL is more Jewish than you think

From left: Adam Fox, Jack Hughes, Zach Hyman, Devon Levi and Jason Zucker. (Getty Images; Design by Mollie Suss)

The NHL season is underway, and the league is chock full of Jewish players to watch.

You may know some of the stars, like Jack Hughes, Adam Fox and Zach Hyman. But there are actually 11 known Jewish players who started the season on an NHL roster, plus a few veterans and prospects currently vying for a spot, too.

Here are the Jewish players on NHL teams:

Jakob Chychrun, Ottawa Senators defenseman
Adam Fox, New York Rangers defenseman
Cole Guttman, Chicago Blackhawks center
Jack Hughes, New Jersey Devils center
Luke Hughes, New Jersey Devils defenseman
Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks defenseman
Zach Hyman, Edmonton Oilers left winger
Luke Kunin, San Jose Sharks center
Devon Levi, Buffalo Sabres goaltender
Jake Walman, Detroit Red Wings defenseman
Jason Zucker, Arizona Coyotes left winger

Read our full Jewish NHL season preview right here.

Halftime report

“I AM A JEW.” A group of 19 current and former Jewish MLB players — almost all of whom have played and/or coached for Team Israel — participated in a video the team shared yesterday, calling for fans to stand up against antisemitism and in support of Israel. The video features Alex Bregman, Ryan Braun, Shawn Green, Kevin Youkilis, Ian Kinsler and many others.

PROUD. Speaking of Team Israel, Kinsler, who has played for and managed Israel, donned his blue and white jersey this week when he threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Texas Rangers’ Game 3 ALCS matchup against the Houston Astros.

MAY HER MEMORY BE A BLESSING. Another Israeli star athlete has been identified among the more than 1,400 killed in the war. Karina Pritika, 23, a former rhythmic gymnast, was one of the more than 250 victims at the desert music festival where former soccer star Lior Asulin was also killed.

OFF-PITCH. Yeshiva University is known for its vaunted basketball program, but the Maccabees’ soccer team is also solid, starting the season with a 5-1-2 record. The New York Times looked at how the Orthodox school’s athletes are responding to the violence in Israel, on and off the pitch.

MARCHING ON. Following their matchup against the Brooklyn Nets last week, the Maccabi Raanana basketball team continued their U.S. tour in Cleveland, where they lost 120-89 to the Cavaliers. “The fact that we’re continuing to play these games, we’re representing Israel and we’re competing, I think it gives people hope,” said assistant coach Abe Kuhn. At the team’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Raanana players warmed up in shirts with the names and faces of Israeli hostages.

RED CARDS. Across European soccer, a few players have faced consequences for their reactions to the Israel-Hamas war. Dutch player Anwar El Ghazi was suspended by his Bundesliga club Mainz for a social media post about the conflict. In France, Nice defender Youcef Atal is being investigated on charges “of defending terrorism”after posting an allegedly antisemitic video.

NOT A FAN. The Tottenham Hotspur club is known for its strong Jewish ties. They also feature the Premier League’s only Israel player, Manor Solomon. So how has the club responded to the war in Israel? The Athletic spoke to Tottenham fans to find out. Spoiler alert: many are unhappy with their team.

SPEAKING OUT. New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, a longtime supporter of Israel, spoke with Jewish ESPN reporter Jeremy Schaap about the ongoing war. “I had the privilege to go there and to see what’s happened this week, and it’s just sad,” Kraft said in the clip.

ON THE RISE. MLB veteran and former Team Israel pitcher Craig Breslow has emerged as a leading candidate in the Boston Red Sox’s search for a new baseball boss, following last month’s firing of fellow Jewish Yale graduate Chaim Bloom. Breslow has worked for the Chicago Cubs since 2019 but still lives in the Boston area.

Jews in sports to watch this weekend

IN BASEBALL…

The Championship Series are nearing their end, as the World Series rapidly approaches. Catch Alex Bregman and the Houston Astros against the Texas Rangers in a pivotal Game 5 tonight at 5:07 p.m. ET and Garrett Stubbs and the Philadelphia Phillies against the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 4 tonight at 8:07 p.m. ET. The NLCS then continues Saturday at 8:07 p.m., and the ALCS continues on Sunday at 8:03 p.m. ET.

IN HOCKEY…

Jakob Chychrun and the Ottawa Senators play Jake Walman and the Detroit Red Wings Saturday at 1 p.m. ET, while Adam Fox and the New York Rangers face the Seattle Kraken Saturday at 10 p.m. ET.

IN FOOTBALL…

It’s Week 7 in the NFL — wow that was fast — and all four Jewish players are in action.

Sunday at 1 p.m. ET: Michael Dunn and the Cleveland Browns face the Indianapolis Colts.
Sunday at 4:05 p.m. ET: Jake Curhan and the Seattle Seahawks host the Arizona Cardinals.
Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET: A.J. Dillon and the Green Bay Packers play the Denver Broncos.
Monday at 8:15 p.m. ET: Greg Joseph and the Minnesota Vikings host the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football.

IN BASKETBALL…

The NBA Preseason is wrapping up, with the regular season set to tip off next week. Catch Deni Avdija and the Washington Wizards in their final tune-up tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET against the Toronto Raptors.

IN GOLF…

David Lipsky is in action at the Zozo Championship in Japan this weekend.

IN RACING…

If the all-Texas ALCS isn’t enough, the Formula One United States Grand Prix is this weekend in Austin. Watch Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll on the grid Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.

New kits

Ethan Zohn in a new Maccabi USA soccer jersey. (Courtesy of Ethan Zohn)

Friend of the Jewish Sport Report Ethan Zohn, the former “Survivor” winner and longtime Maccabi USA soccer player, is leading an effort to raise $100,000 to support Maccabi USA to help support young athletes competing in this year’s Pan Am Maccabi Games in Argentina. Zohn helped design this new Maccabi soccer jersey that will be at the centerpiece of the fundraiser — with all the money being raised through sponsorships.


The post The Jewish Sport Report: Your Jewish guide to the new NHL season appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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Antisemitic Incidents at Argentina Local Soccer Match Spark Official Investigations, Condemnations

Fans of Argentinian soccer club All Boys marched through the streets before their match against Atlanta soccer club, carrying a coffin draped with an Israeli flag alongside Iranian and Palestinian flags. Photo: Screenshot

Argentinian authorities and soccer officials have launched investigations following antisemitic incidents by Club Atlético All Boys fans during Sunday’s local match against Atlanta.

Atlanta, a soccer team based in the Villa Crespo neighborhood of Buenos Aires, has deep historical ties to Argentina’s Jewish community, which has long been a significant presence in the area.

This latest antisemitic incident took place outside the stadium before the game had even started.

All Boys fans were seen waving Palestinian and Iranian flags, carrying a coffin draped with an Israeli flag, and handing out flyers bearing messages like “Free Palestine” and “Israel and Atlanta are the same crap.”

Then, during the match — which ended in a 0-0 draw — a drone carrying a Palestinian flag flew over the stadium, while some fans reportedly chanted anti-Israel slogans.

Local police confirmed they have issued citations to individuals accused of inciting public disorder and related offenses.

On Monday, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) condemned the incidents as “abhorrent” and confirmed the organization has opened a formal inquiry into the events.

“This is not folklore. This is discrimination,” the statement reads.

Argentina’s Security Minister Patricia Bullrich also announced that a criminal complaint has been filed, citing “acts of violence, expressions of racial and religious hatred, and public intimidation.”

In a post on X, the Delegation of Argentine Israelite Associations (DAIA), the country’s Jewish umbrella organization, condemned the incidents and called on both local authorities and the soccer officials to “take firm action against these acts of hatred.”

“We urge the authorities to take all necessary actions and apply the full force of the law,” the statement reads. “Violence and discrimination must have no place in our society.”

Since the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Argentina has experienced a surge in antisemitic incidents and anti-Jewish hate crimes.

According to a recent report by DAIA, Argentina experienced a 15 percent increase in antisemitic activity last year, with 687 anti-Jewish hate crimes recorded — up from 598 incidents in 2023 — marking a significant rise nationwide.

The study indicates that 66 percent of the antisemitic incidents originated in the digital realm, with a significant rise in Nazi symbols and conspiracy theories, but there was also a 34 percent increase in reported physical assaults, with such hate crimes rising in schools and neighborhoods.

The post Antisemitic Incidents at Argentina Local Soccer Match Spark Official Investigations, Condemnations first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Iranian nuclear program degraded by up to two years, Pentagon says

A satellite image of Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility. Photo: File.

The Pentagon said on Wednesday that US strikes 10 days ago had degraded Iran’s nuclear program by up to two years, suggesting the U.S. military operation likely achieved its goals despite a far more cautious initial assessment that leaked to the public.

Sean Parnell, a Pentagon spokesman, offered the figure at a briefing to reporters, adding that the official estimate was “probably closer to two years.” Parnell did not provide evidence to back up his assessment.

“We have degraded their program by one to two years, at least intel assessments inside the Department [of Defense] assess that,” Parnell told a news briefing.

U.S. military bombers carried out strikes against three Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22 using more than a dozen 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs and more than two dozen Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles.

The evolving U.S. intelligence about the impact of the strikes is being closely watched, after President Donald Trump said almost immediately after they took place that Iran’s program had been obliterated, language echoed by Parnell at Wednesday’s briefing.

Such conclusions often take the U.S. intelligence community weeks or more to determine.

“All of the intelligence that we’ve seen [has] led us to believe that Iran’s — those facilities especially, have been completely obliterated,” Parnell said.

Over the weekend, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi, said that Iran could be producing enriched uranium in a few months, raising doubts about how effective US strikes to destroy Tehran’s nuclear program have been.

Several experts have also cautioned that Iran likely moved a stockpile of near weapons-grade highly enriched uranium out of the deeply buried Fordow site before the strikes and could be hiding it.

But US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last week he was unaware of intelligence suggesting Iran had moved its highly enriched uranium to shield it from US strikes.

A preliminary assessment last week from the Defense Intelligence Agency suggested that the strikes may have only set back Iran’s nuclear program by months. But Trump administration officials said that assessment was low confidence and had been overtaken by intelligence showing Iran’s nuclear program was severely damaged.

According to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, the strikes on the Fordow nuclear site caused severe damage.

“No one exactly knows what has transpired in Fordow. That being said, what we know so far is that the facilities have been seriously and heavily damaged,” Araqchi said in the interview broadcast by CBS News on Tuesday.

The post Iranian nuclear program degraded by up to two years, Pentagon says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Switzerland Moves to Close Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s Geneva Office Over Legal Irregularities

Palestinians carry aid supplies received from the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in the central Gaza Strip, May 29, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ramadan Abed/File Photo

Switzerland has moved to shut down the Geneva office of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a US- and Israeli-backed aid group, citing legal irregularities in its establishment.

The GHF began distributing food packages in Gaza in late May, implementing a new aid delivery model aimed at preventing the diversion of supplies by Hamas, as Israel continues its defensive military campaign against the Palestinian terrorist group.

The initiative has drawn criticism from the UN and international organizations, some of which have claimed that Jerusalem is causing starvation in the war-torn enclave.

Israel has vehemently denied such accusations, noting that, until its recently imposed blockade, it had provided significant humanitarian aid in the enclave throughout the war.

Israeli officials have also said much of the aid that flows into Gaza is stolen by Hamas, which uses it for terrorist operations and sells the rest at high prices to Gazan civilians.

With a subsidiary registered in Geneva, the GHF — headquartered in Delaware — reports having delivered over 56 million meals to Palestinians in just one month.

According to a regulatory announcement published Wednesday in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce, the Federal Supervisory Authority for Foundations (ESA) may order the dissolution of the GHF if no creditors come forward within the legal 30-day period.

The Trump administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Swiss decision to shut down its Geneva office.

“The GHF confirmed to the ESA that it had never carried out activities in Switzerland … and that it intends to dissolve the Geneva-registered branch,” the ESA said in a statement.

Last week, Geneva authorities gave the GHF a 30-day deadline to address legal shortcomings or risk facing enforcement measures.

Under local laws and regulations, the foundation failed to meet several requirements: it did not appoint a board member authorized to sign documents domiciled in Switzerland, did not have the minimum three board members, lacked a Swiss bank account and valid address, and operated without an auditing body.

The GHF operates independently from UN-backed mechanisms, which Hamas has sought to reinstate, arguing that these vehicles are more neutral.

Israeli and American officials have rejected those calls, saying Hamas previously exploited UN-run systems to siphon aid for its war effort.

The UN has denied those allegations while expressing concerns that the GHF’s approach forces civilians to risk their safety by traveling long distances across active conflict zones to reach food distribution points.

The post Switzerland Moves to Close Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s Geneva Office Over Legal Irregularities first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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