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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.
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The post The Jewish Sport Report: Your Jewish guide to the new NHL season appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Saudi Arabia Rejects Israel PM Netanyahu’s Remarks on Displacing Palestinians

US President Donald Trump and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu talk in the midst of a joint news conference in the White House in Washington, US, Jan. 28, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
Saudi Arabia affirmed its categorical rejection of remarks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about displacing Palestinians from their land, the foreign ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
Israeli officials have suggested the establishment of a Palestinian state on Saudi territory. Netanyahu appeared to be joking on Thursday when he responded to an interviewer on pro-Netanyahu Channel 14 who mistakenly said “Saudi state” instead of “Palestinian state,” before correcting himself.
While the Saudi statement mentioned Netanyahu’s name, it did not directly refer to the comments about establishing a Palestinian state in Saudi territory.
Egypt and Jordan also condemned the Israeli suggestions, with Cairo deeming the idea as a “direct infringement of Saudi sovereignty.”
The kingdom said it valued “brotherly” states’ rejection of Netanyahu’s remarks.
“This occupying extremist mindset does not comprehend what the Palestinian territory means for the brotherly people of Palestine and its conscientious, historical and legal association with that land,” it said.
Discussions of the fate of Palestinians in Gaza has been upended by Tuesday’s shock proposal from President Donald Trump that the U.S. would “take over the Gaza Strip” from Israel and create a “Riviera of the Middle East” after resettling Palestinians elsewhere.
Arab states have roundly condemned Trump’s comments, which came during a fragile ceasefire in the Gaza war that Israel has been waging against the terrorist group Hamas, which controls the narrow strip.
Trump has said Saudi Arabia was not demanding a Palestinian state as a condition for normalizing ties with Israel. But Riyadh rebuffed his statements, saying it would not establish ties with Israel without the creation of a Palestinian state.
The post Saudi Arabia Rejects Israel PM Netanyahu’s Remarks on Displacing Palestinians first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Egypt to Host Emergency Arab Summit on 27 February to Discuss ‘Serious’ Palestinian Developments

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meet at the White House in Washington, DC, US, Feb. 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
Egypt will host an emergency Arab summit on 27 February to discuss what it described as “serious” developments for Palestinians, according to a statement from the Egyptian foreign ministry on Sunday.
The summit comes amid regional and global condemnation of US President Donald Trump’s suggestion to “take over the Gaza Strip” from Israel and create a “Riviera of the Middle East” after resettling Palestinians elsewhere.
The post Egypt to Host Emergency Arab Summit on 27 February to Discuss ‘Serious’ Palestinian Developments first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Thai Nationals Held Captive by Hamas in Gaza Return Home

Relatives hug a released Thai hostage, who was kidnapped during the deadly October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas and held in Gaza, as the hostages arrive in Thailand following their release, at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport, in Samut Prakan, Thailand, February 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
When Surasak Rumnao, 31, left his home in Thailand’s rural Udon Thani province three years ago to go across the world to the southern Israeli town of Yesha for agriculture work, his family never imagined they would lose touch with him for over a year when he was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists in October 2023.
He and four others were reunited with their families this weekend after their release from captivity in Gaza.
Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists abducted more than 250 people, including Israelis and foreign nationals, in their October 2023 attack on Israel.
During the attack, Hamas terrorists killed more than 40 Thais and kidnapped 31 Thai laborers, some of whom died in captivity, according to the Thai government. Later that year, the first group of Thai hostages was returned.
Surasak’s mother, Khammee Rumnao, was relieved that her son was not mistreated and has returned to his home, about 620 km(385 miles) northeast of the capital, Bangkok.
“He mainly got to eat bread, he was looked after well and was fed all three meals (each day). He got to shower, he was looked after well,” Khammee said, and that he ate whatever his captors had.
Her son does not plan to go back and wants to use the knowledge he gained in his agricultural work in Israel at their home, she said.
His grandparents and other relatives came to their home to welcome him home.
His stepfather, Janda Prachanan, was elated.
“I couldn’t find the words to describe how happy I am, that my son is safe and finally home,” he said.
Earlier on Sunday, the other returnees, dressed in winter jackets, were met with tears of joy from their families who were waiting for their arrival at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport.
“We are all deeply touched to come back to our birthplace … to be standing here,” said Pongsak Thaenna, one of the returnees said. “I don’t know what else to say, we are all truly thankful.”
Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa, who met the hostages in Israel after their release last week, expressed relief.
“This is emotional … to come back to the embrace of their families,” he said. “We never gave up and this was the fruit of that.”
Before the conflict, approximately 30,000 Thai laborers worked in Israel’s agriculture sector, making them one of the largest migrant worker groups in the country. Nearly 9,000 Thais were repatriated following the October 7 attacks.
The workers primarily come from Thailand’s northeastern region, an area comprising villages and farming communities that is among the poorest in the country.
Thailand’s foreign ministry said a Thai national is still believed to be held captive by Hamas.
“We still have hope and continue to work to bring them back,” Maris said, adding that this includes the bodies of two deceased Thai nationals.
The post Thai Nationals Held Captive by Hamas in Gaza Return Home first appeared on Algemeiner.com.