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Harlem Hebrew, decade-old bilingual charter school in Manhattan, to shutter next month

(JTA) — A charter school in Manhattan that taught Hebrew to a diverse population of students will close at the end of the school year.

Families with children enrolled at the school learned in February that Harlem Hebrew Language Academy Charter School would close at the end of the academic year in June, and the school’s board of trustees finalized the plan during its April 26 meeting. The decision leaves families scrambling for new schools with just weeks before the start of the summer break.

The decision to close marks an abrupt fall for a school that was seen as a promising new model for language learning and racial integration when it opened in 2013. Its board and charter network, Hebrew Public, were so confident of its success that they undertook a costly building renovation several years ago.

Now, it’s unclear what will occupy the building where Harlem Hebrew has operated since 2013. The school, located in the historically Black uptown Manhattan neighborhood, and near the heavily Jewish Upper West Side, currently enrolls 370 students from kindergarten through eighth grade — about 70% of the total number of students it is permitted to enroll.

The school’s board of trustees cited low enrollment at the school and across New York City’s public schools when unanimously approving the closure resolution last month.

The decision to close was “difficult but necessary,” Jon Rosenberg, president and CEO of Hebrew Public, said in a statement to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Hebrew Public is a network of Hebrew-language charter schools with locations in Brooklyn, Staten Island and Philadelphia; there are also affiliated schools in several other cities, with efforts underway to open more.

“The combination of lower enrollment and high facilities costs has made the school’s future operation untenable, to the point where the [school] board, Hebrew Public, and school leadership all agreed that it would not be responsible to operate the school for another school year,” Rosenberg said. “Instead, we have prioritized using the school’s resources to give students and families a strong finish to the current school year.”

A representative from Harlem Hebrew declined to comment.

The school was founded in Harlem in order to attract a racially and socioeconomically diverse and inclusive student body. When it opened, it and other tuition-free Hebrew-language charter schools across the country were seen as an alternative of sorts for some Jewish families who sought to expose their kids to Hebrew without the price tag of a Jewish day school education. Hebrew Public has run trips to Israel for some of its eighth-graders, in which it aimed to show them the country while steering clear of religious education.

The Harlem school and its counterparts in New York City have experienced bumps in the road. The first Hebrew-language charter school, which opened in 2009 in Brooklyn, narrowly evaded closure early on because of low test scores. Harlem Hebrew, meanwhile, experienced its principal being charged in 2020 with assaulting a 7-year-old student with autism.

School staff will be paid through Aug. 15 and receive health care through the end of August, according to the meeting agenda. It said Harlem Hebrew is also helping its staff access job placements and opportunities at other charter school networks.

Harlem Hebrew is also scheduling two school fairs for families to meet with Manhattan and Bronx charter, city-run and private schools and created a database of school options for families to explore for the upcoming academic year.

“The teachers and leaders and social workers and culture and operations team members have been unbelievably dedicated,” Rosenberg said in the statement. “We are deeply saddened about the closure, but are grateful to all of the children and families and staff colleagues who have made the school such a special place.”


The post Harlem Hebrew, decade-old bilingual charter school in Manhattan, to shutter next month appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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Jon Stewart, Here Is Your Chance to Be a Mensch

Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show” on April 8, 2024. Photo: Screenshot

There is no doubt that Jon Stewart has great comedic ability and the gift of gab. In a sneak attack many years ago, he had a mic drop moment where he destroyed Tucker Carlson’s show CrossFire, telling him to stop hurting America. At that time, all Carlson did was have an aggressive political debate show — he wasn’t spewing Jew-hatred and conspiracy theories.

Stewart, who must know something about antisemitism because he felt a need to change his name from Leibowitz to Stewart, raised The Daily Show to great heights and came out of retirement ostensibly to try to make sure that President Trump is lampooned.

I know Jon Stewart is a person who cares about justice, because he fought very hard for the rights of 9/11 firefighters. The passion Stewart showed and his ability to speak truth to power was unrivaled. Some even thought he even had the potential to be a president one day. If Ukraine can have a president that was a comedian, why not America?

Of course, Stewart would be good if his focus was justice. It isn’t always. Sometimes, it’s only about haranguing Trump, no matter what. How about a few shows against antisemitism. He took on Tucker Carlson once. Why not do it again? While Tucker’s no longer wearing a bowtie, he’s saying he was attacked by a demon and Candace Owens is making claims about time machines. What about a one-hour Netflix or Apple TV+ show lambasting them both. It would be monumental.

But Stewart is hoping that Carlson and Owens continue to wreak havoc, and benefit the Democratic Party. And with only a few more years of Trump, those who want to vilify him want to get their last shots in and may not want to divert to something else. I believe that Stewart is against antisemitism. But he should call it out on all sides, and not mock Israel, a country that faced genocidal terrorists who would kill every Jew if they had the weapons to do so.

Jon Stewart is 63 and mentally sharp. He is capable of much better jokes than about physical appearance, which he recently used to attack Sid Rosenberg. Stewart would be better off criticizing Rosenberg’s positions, or perhaps that’s a bit more difficult these days.

If Stewart really wants to advance justice, he could start by attacking antisemites and racists, on both the right and left. He has the rare talent to do it in an impressive way.

Jon Stewart was the greatest mensch when he fought for firefighters. This is his time to do it again.

The author is a writer based in New York.

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Fatah Glorified Munich Olympics Massacre Ahead of 2026 Winter Olympics

An image of one of the Palestinian terrorists who took part in the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

While the world was preparing to celebrate the Olympic Games in Italy, Fatah celebrated Olympic blood in Munich.

Just two weeks before the opening of this year’s Winter Olympics, Fatah — the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s ruling party — chose to revive and celebrate the most infamous act of Olympic terrorism in history: the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre, in which 11 Israeli athletes and coaches were murdered.

On its Facebook page, Fatah’s Commission of Information and Culture posted a segment from its Awdah TV channel, glorifying the massacre as “a surprise Israel had not experienced before” and recounting how terrorists, whom she called “self-sacrificing fighters,” infiltrated the Olympic Village, seized Israeli hostages, and issued demands.

Responsibility for the murders was subtly shifted away from the terrorists, while the operation was presented as daring and historic:

Fatah-run Awdah TV host:“In September 1972, Israel was about to receive a surprise it had not experienced before. Eight self-sacrificing fighters [i.e., terrorists] invaded the quarters of the Israeli sports delegation that was participating in the Olympic Games in the German city of Munich. They captured nine Israelis and demanded to release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners [i.e., terrorists] who were in the Israeli prisons in exchange for the release of the hostages. Israel refused to negotiate, and the hostages were killed.”

[Fatah Commission of Information and Culture, Facebook page, Jan. 22, 2026]

On the same day, Fatah’s Commission of Information and Culture also lionized the architect of the Munich massacre, Ali Hassan Salameh, as “The Red Prince.”

Fatah described him as a brilliant “security mind” and strategic genius whose operations allegedly “embarrassed Israel:”

Text on screen: “The Red Prince, the commander whom the Mossad pursued for years. Ali Hassan Salameh was not a shadowy figure, but rather a security mind who created a secret battle …

He joined Fatah in the mid-1960s and was among its first security personnel. He quickly stood out for his organizational wisdom and ability, and sensitive missions were entrusted to him … He led the security activity of the revolution outside Palestine and built a complex defense network that embarrassed Israel. He became a central target of the Mossad, and his name topped the assassination lists.

[Then Israeli Prime Minister] Golda Meir gave the order to eliminate him, and the pursuit after him crossed continents … On Jan. 22, 1979, the Mossad assassinated him in Beirut using a car bomb. His assassination did not put an end to his presence, rather it established his status as one of the most dangerous minds of the revolution. Ali Hassan Salameh, a security commander and one of the symbols of the hidden strugglewith the occupation.” [emphasis added]

Posted text:“The Red Prince Ali Hassan Salameh, the commander whom the Mossad pursued for years”

[Fatah Commission of Information and Culture, Facebook page, Jan. 22, 2026]

Even more than 54 years later, the PA’s ruling party still treats the Munich Olympics massacre as a legacy to be celebrated.

By deliberately highlighting this massacre just before the Milano Winter Olympics, Fatah yet again shows how it is proud to promote terrorists and terrorism.

Ephraim D. Tepler is a researcher at Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), where a version of this article first appeared.

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How NPR Whitewashes the Palestinian Authority’s ‘Pay-for-Slay’ Program

Stuart and Robbi Force (left), parents of Taylor Force, with Reps. Doug Lamborn and Lee Zeldin. Taylor Force was killed by a Palestinian terrorist while visiting Israel. Photo: Algemeiner.

Even for NPR, the latest segment on its popular “All Things Considered” program crossed the line.

Headlined “Palestinian Authority tries to reform, but one measure is sparking a backlash,” the segment focused on the Palestinian Authority (PA)’s controversial “pay-for-slay” program, where imprisoned Palestinian terrorists and their families, or the families of Palestinians who were killed while committing acts of terrorism or trying to harm Israeli security forces, receive financial stipends.

However, instead of taking a critical look at “pay-for-slay,” NPR provided cover for the insidious PA program.

To begin, NPR immediately whitewashed the program in the subheading, referring to it merely as “payments to families whose relatives are killed or jailed by Israel.”

There was zero mention of the fact that this program incentivizes violence and terrorism by paying out more to families of terrorists than the PA’s regular social welfare pay-outs. In addition, there was no mention that these payments are based on the length of prison sentences rather than actual financial need.

And that was just the tip of the iceberg.

Throughout the story, NPR’s Emily Feng downplayed the vile nature of “pay-for-slay.”

“Pay-for-slay” wasn’t presented as a dangerous incentive for the murder of innocent Israelis, which was the target of American legislation (The Taylor Force Act).

Instead, the program was merely characterized as “controversial.” But using public funds to incentivize terrorism is something much more grave and consequential.

Along with this false characterization, NPR also portrayed the truth about the program as Israeli criticisms that “the PA pushes back against.”

It would be hard to find a more watered-down depiction of “pay-for-slay.”

Further on in the segment, Feng interviewed a Palestinian woman named Inaan who was receiving a monthly payment of 1,400 shekels ($440) since her son had been killed by the IDF.

This doesn’t seem like a lot of money. However, Feng failed to inform her audience that this is only the payment for family members of those killed by Israeli security forces (after a one-time payment of 6,000 shekels).

Terrorists in Israeli prisons can receive up to 12,000 shekels (roughly $3,900) per month.

This presentation of the monthly payments being inconsequential and of limited value is further emphasized by Feng’s next interviewee, Qadura Fares, who is quoted as saying, “The money — it’s mean [sic] nothing for those have believed [sic] that this occupation should be ended and to fight the occupation.”

Fares is the former head of the PA’s prisoners’ affairs commission. In passing, NPR also informed its audience that Fares served time in Israeli prison for “trying to kill Israeli soldiers.”

That’s right, NPR platformed a convicted terrorist.

Perhaps the words of someone who used to target Israelis should be taken with a grain of salt when discussing payments for imprisoned terrorists.

Fares resigned from his position after PA President Mahmoud Abbas announced an end to the “pay-for-slay” policy, stating that the only recipients would now be those who require economic assistance. Many groups, including Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), have provided documentation that the PA is still continuing “pay-for-slay” — though the PA is trying to hide the payments.

Along with Fares, Feng interviewed a couple of other Palestinians who were upset with this alleged reform and complained that the new system is not working properly.

What Feng failed to inform her audience is that this “reform” is alleged by analysts like PMW to be a ruse, with Abbas promising a Palestinian audience that imprisoned terrorists and the families of “martyrs” would continue to receive funds, and that the “reform” is more of a restructuring than an outright end to “pay-for-slay.”

Nearly a year after this “reform” was announced, many beneficiaries were still reportedly receiving their payments.

Perhaps the cherry on top is when Feng referred to the alleged reform as “trying to please outside powers.” As if the program didn’t require serious reform, but rather that the PA capitulated to foreign interference.

A whitewash indeed.

The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.

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