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Jewish groups condemn Coast Guard for secret swastika policy change
(JTA) — After the Washington Post reported last month that the U.S. Coast Guard was reclassifying swastikas and nooses to no longer be considered hate symbols, Jewish leaders voiced their objections.
The Coast Guard’s acting commandant, claiming the report was inaccurate, sought to assure them. There would be no change to its categorization of the symbols, Admiral Kevin Lunday told Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner in emails with the head of the Union for Reform Judaism’s Religious Action Center. Lunday also issued a memo giving an explicit directive not to change them.
For a time, he seemed to put fears at ease. But this week, another Post report revealed that the Coast Guard had, indeed, quietly gone through with the change. The Nazi insignia and the noose, a symbol closely associated with lynchings, were now labeled as “potentially divisive,” downgraded from hate symbols. The policy had been codified in the Coast Guard’s updated workplace harassment manual on Monday.
Now, Jewish groups are sounding off again — and they’re furious.
“I am outraged and baffled as to how the policy change has, in fact, occurred on your watch,” Pesner wrote in an open letter to Lunday viewed by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
The rabbi said the admiral had assured him, “The swastika has always been and remains a prohibited symbol of hate in the Coast Guard.” Now, Pesner said, he was doubting the sincerity of the exchange.
“Was your initial reply an outright falsehood?” Pesner asked. “In the last month, has USGC suddenly discovered an affinity for symbols under which millions were murdered, enslaved, oppressed, or otherwise dehumanized? Is there another justification for this newly adopted policy?”
He concluded, “The damage the USGC has done to itself and the United States through this new policy is enormous.”
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington also expressed its outrage. “Labeling Nazi swastika symbols and nooses as ‘potentially divisive’ suggests there is some context in which their use is appropriate,” the group’s CEO, Ron Halber, said in a statement. “Nothing could be further from the truth; few symbols have ever conveyed such unambiguous hate.”
The Anti-Defamation League struck a tone of exhaustion, writing on X, “Here we go again.”
On the Senate floor, Chuck Schumer, the Jewish Senate minority leader, linked the Coast Guard’s actions to the Hanukkah terror attack in Australia over the weekend.
“Not four days ago, as I mentioned, 15 Jews were slaughtered in cold blood,” Schumer said Wednesday. “And a day later, the Trump administration chose to soften its stance against Nazis and swastikas. Can you believe it? Can it get any lower?”
Schumer also called the policy change “a ‘stand back and stand by’ in the form of an office memo,” referring to Trump’s remarks directed at the Proud Boys, a far-right group, during his 2020 reelection campaign.
Most significantly, one of Schumer’s Jewish colleagues has taken immediate action in an effort to discipline Lunday.
Late Wednesday, Sen. Jacky Rosen joined Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat and military veteran who is not Jewish, in putting Lunday’s nomination to lead the Coast Guard on hold, citing the swastika policy. Lunday’s bid to become its permanent commandant requires Senate confirmation, with a full vote having been scheduled for this week.
“According to this newest reporting, it seems that Admiral Lunday and the Coast Guard have gone back on their commitment to clearly stating what their policy towards swastikas and nooses is and, instead, have implemented a policy that downgrades the seriousness of these hate symbols,” Rosen wrote on X. She claimed that, after the latest Post story broke, the Coast Guard began to “evade our questions and refuse to give a straight answer.”
“As it appears that Admiral Lunday may have backtracked on his commitment to me to combat antisemitism and hate crimes and protect all members of the Coast Guard, I will be placing a hold on his nomination until the Coast Guard provides answers,” Rosen continued.
Some Republicans have also expressed concerns about Lunday’s nomination after the swastika stories.
Classifying swastikas and nooses as “potentially divisive,” rather than hate symbols, means that the Coast Guard may not remove them immediately if a service member was found to have used the signage. The Jewish War Veterans of America issued a statement last week thanking Lunday for his memo affirming them as hate speech. The group did not immediately respond to a Jewish Telegraphic Agency request for comment on the latest developments appearing to reverse the order.
The Coast Guard is overseen by the Department of Homeland Security, whose social media accounts in the Trump era have been accused of tweeting antisemitic dog whistles. A DHS spokesperson, while acknowledging rising antisemitism, accused Rosen and others of trying to score “cheap political points.”
“At a time when the threat of antisemitic violence is as widespread as it is right now, using this to politicize one of President Trump’s military nominations is simply disgusting,” spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told the Post.
Late Wednesday, the Coast Guard’s official X account again denied the Post’s reporting, stating, “The Coast Guard maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward hate symbols, extremist ideology, and any conduct that undermines our core values.”
The post Jewish groups condemn Coast Guard for secret swastika policy change appeared first on The Forward.
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‘For As Long As Necessary’: Katz Says Campaign Against Iran Entering Decisive Stage
Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz and his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias make statements to the press, at the Ministry of Defense in Athens Greece, Jan. 20, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki
i24 News – Israel Katz said Saturday that the confrontation with Iran had entered a “decisive phase,” as US and Israeli strikes on Iranian targets continued and regional tensions escalated.
Speaking after a security assessment at Israel’s defense headquarters alongside Eyal Zamir, chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces, and senior military and intelligence officials, the Israeli defense minister said the campaign against the Islamic Republic would continue “for as long as necessary.”
“The global and regional struggle against Iran, led by American President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is intensifying and entering its decisive phase,” Katz said.
Katz also praised US strikes on Kharg Island, a key Iranian oil hub, describing them as a “severe blow” to the Iranian regime. He said the attacks were an appropriate response to Iranian threats against the strategic Strait of Hormuz and to what he called Tehran’s attempts to pressure the international community.
At the same time, Katz said the Israeli Air Force was continuing a “powerful wave of attacks” against targets in Tehran and other parts of Iran.
He accused the Iranian leadership of using “regional and global terrorism” and strategic blackmail in an effort to deter Israel and the United States from pursuing their military campaign, warning that such actions would be met with a “strong and uncompromising response.”
Katz added that the outcome of the conflict would ultimately depend on the Iranian population. “Only the Iranian people can put an end to this situation through a determined struggle, until the overthrow of the terrorist regime and the salvation of Iran,” he said.
According to the minister, the confrontation now pits the Iranian regime’s determination to survive against growing military pressure from Israel and its allies.
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Trump Rejects Efforts to Launch Iran Ceasefire Talks, Sources Say
US President Donald Trump speaks on the day he honors reigning Major League Soccer (MLS) champion Inter Miami CF players and team officials with an event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, March 5, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
President Donald Trump’s administration has rebuffed efforts by Middle Eastern allies to start diplomatic negotiations aimed at ending the Iran war that started two weeks ago with a massive US-Israeli air assault, according to three sources familiar with the efforts.
Iran, for its part, has rejected the possibility of any ceasefire until US and Israeli strikes end, two senior Iranian sources told Reuters, adding that several countries had been trying to mediate an end to the conflict.
The lack of interest from Washington and Tehran suggests both sides are digging in for an extended conflict, even as the widening war inflicts civilian casualties and Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz sends oil prices soaring.
US strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island, the country’s main oil export hub, on Friday night underscored Trump’s determination to press ahead with his military assault. Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has vowed to keep the Strait of Hormuz shut and threatened to step up attacks on neighboring countries.
The war has killed more than 2,000 people, mostly in Iran, and created the biggest-ever oil supply disruption as maritime traffic has halted in the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported.
ATTEMPTS TO OPEN LINES OF COMMUNICATION
Oman, which mediated talks before the war, has tried multiple times to open a line of communication, but the White House has made clear it is not interested, according to two sources, who like others in this story were granted anonymity in order to speak freely about diplomatic matters.
A senior White House official confirmed Trump has rebuffed those efforts to start talks and is focused on pressing ahead with the war to further weaken Tehran’s military capabilities.
“He’s not interested in that right now, and we’re going to continue with the mission unabated. Maybe there’s a day, but not right now,” the official said.
During the first week of the war, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that Iran’s leadership and military were so battered by US-Israeli strikes that they wanted to talk, but that it was “Too Late!” He has a history of shifting foreign policy stances without warning, making it hard to rule out that he might test the waters for restarting diplomacy.
“President Trump said new potential leadership in Iran has indicated they want to talk and eventually will talk. For now, Operation Epic Fury continues unabated,” a second senior White House official said when asked to comment on this story.
The Iranian sources said Tehran has rejected efforts by several countries to negotiate a ceasefire until the US and Israel end their airstrikes and meet Iran’s demands, which include a permanent end to US and Israeli attacks and compensation as part of a ceasefire.
Egypt, which was involved in mediation before the war, has also tried to reopen communications, according to three security and diplomatic sources. While the efforts do not appear to have made progress, they have secured some military restraint from neighboring countries hit by Iran, according to one of the sources.
Egypt’s foreign ministry, the government of Oman and the Iranian government did not respond to requests for comment.
POSITIONS HARDEN ON ALL SIDES
The war’s impact on global oil markets has significantly increased the cost for the United States.
Some US officials and advisers to Trump urge a quick end to the war, warning that surging gasoline prices could exact a high political price from the president’s Republican Party, with US midterm elections looming.
Others are pressing Trump to maintain the offensive against the Islamic Republic to destroy its missile program and prevent it from obtaining a nuclear weapon, according to Reuters reporting.
Trump’s rejection of diplomatic efforts could indicate that, for now, the administration has no plans for a quick end to the war.
Indeed, both the United States and Iran appear even less willing to engage than during the opening days of the war, when senior US officials reached out to Oman to discuss de-escalating, according to several sources.
One source said Iran’s top security official, Ali Larijani, and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had also sought to use Oman as a conduit for ceasefire discussions that would have involved U.S. Vice President JD Vance.
But those discussions have not materialized.
Instead, Iran’s position has hardened, said a third senior Iranian source.
“Whatever was communicated previously through the diplomatic channels is irrelevant now,” said the source.
“The Guards strongly believe that if they lose control over the Strait of Hormuz, Iran will lose the war,” the source added, referring to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, an elite paramilitary force that controls large parts of the economy.
“Therefore, the Guards will not accept any ceasefire, ceasefire talks, or diplomatic efforts, and Iran’s political leaders will not engage in such talks despite attempts by several countries.”
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US Strikes More Than 90 Iranian Military Targets on Kharg Island, CENTCOM Says
A satellite image shows an oil terminal at Kharg Island, Iran, February 25, 2026. Photo: 2026 Planet Labs PBC/Handout via REUTERS
United States forces executed a large-scale precision strike on Kharg Island in Iran on Friday night, the US Central Command said on Saturday.
“US forces successfully struck more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg Island, while preserving the oil infrastructure,” CENTCOM said.
The strike destroyed naval mine storage facilities, missile storage bunkers, and multiple other military sites, the US military said in a post on X.
President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to strike the oil infrastructure of Iran’s Kharg Island hub, unless Tehran stopped attacking vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.