Mideast War blowback

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When police searched the home of two Students for Justice in Palestine leaders, a pair of sisters at George Mason University, their allies painted a sympathetic picture.

The students were targeted, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), for engaging in "anti-genocide events on campus."The Intercept reported that police found "antique firearms" registered to the students' brother and brought gun-related charges as a result of his family's "pro-Palestine activism."

Excluded from those descriptions was the crime the sisters are suspected of committing. A group of student radicals defaced George Mason’s student center in August, spray painting messages that warned of a "student intifada." In its coverage of the incident, the Washington Post wrote that "activists spray-painted words on Wilkins Plaza outside the university’s Johnson Center."

Those activists caused thousands of dollars in damage, a felony in the state of Virginia, and police suspect the SJP leaders, sisters Jena and Noor Chanaa, led the group of vandals. Weeks after the incident, in November, a county judge granted a warrant—which is under seal until February, according to a Fairfax County court representative—allowing police to seize electronics from the Chanaa family home.

When officers entered the Chanaa family home, they found firearms—modern weapons, not antiques—as well as scores of ammunition and foreign passports, all of which sat in plain view, according to court documents obtained by the Free Beacon and sources familiar with the investigation.

They also found pro-terror materials, including Hamas and Hezbollah flags and signs that read "death to America" and "death to Jews," according to court documents and sources familiar.

Police seized the weapons under Virginia's red flag law, arguing that Mohammad Chanaa, the students' brother and a George Mason alumnus, was "linked to destruction of property in connection with a large group of people with like-minded rhetoric" and posed a danger to others given his possession of "terroristic" materials.

On the day of the search, Nov. 7, law enforcement officials removed "long guns" from the residence, sources say. A day later, Mohammad Chanaa voluntarily relinquished his 9mm handgun and concealed carry permit, according to court records. He was not charged with a crime—Virginia's red flag law gives gun owners 14 days to petition a judge to return their firearms, and Mohammad Chanaa did so on Nov. 21. A Fairfax County circuit court judge granted his request as part of the civil case.

CAIR has denounced the "draconian measures used by law enforcement authorities" to "silence or intimidate those who seek to end the Israeli genocide in Gaza." A faculty group at George Mason, meanwhile, released a statement expressing "deep concern about the apparent targeting of two George Mason students for their advocacy for Palestinian human rights."

The ongoing ordeal—local police are investigating the incident with the FBI's assistance, sources familiar with that investigation tell the Free Beacon—reflects CAIR and SJP's status as driving forces behind the anti-Semitic activism that has plagued college campuses in the wake of Hamas's Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel. It also reflects the radical, pro-terror views that have become synonymous with that activism.

Both Jena and Noor Chanaa have been deeply involved with George Mason's SJP chapter. Jena, a master's student studying civil and infrastructure engineering, served as the chapter's president last school year. Noor, an undergraduate student, took over as co-president this year. Their brother, Mohammad, is a recent George Mason graduate who served in the Springfield, Va., volunteer fire department as recently as Sept. 2023, records show. The three siblings hail from the area and live together in their parents' home.

George Mason did not respond to a request for comment. The FBI declined to comment. A spokeswoman for the Fairfax County commonwealth attorney's office, Laura Birnbaum, confirmed that officers found guns, ammunition, and pro-terror materials during their search and declined to comment further.

The Chanaa family attorney, Abdel-Rahman Hamed, did not respond to a request for comment. In a statement provided to the Washington Post, Hamed said the case marks "yet another example of the police state targeting American Muslims without cause." An "about" section on his LinkedIn page states, "I deny, defy, and defeat Zionists, antisemites, and White Supremacists."

Under Jena and Noor's leadership, George Mason’s chapter of SJP has endorsed Hamas and its "martyrs." In a statement issued two days after the Oct. 7 attack, the group lauded the "liberation of the Palestinian people" and endorsed "the right to resist for Palestinians living under the zionist occupation." It said "Palestinian resistance fighters" mobilized "into surrounding occupied areas" on Oct. 7, "reclaiming land and settlements considered illegal" in the name of "decolonization."

"Decolonization entails the struggle for liberation of a colonized people from the grasp of their colonizers," the statement read. "This struggle for the much-sought after liberation from the colonizer is not meant to be metaphysical—but material."

Months earlier, in a pair of Instagram posts, she wrote that her family comes from "Taytaba in North Palestine" and expressed a willingness to "die in my homeland."

"76 years have passed since the forced expulsion of my family," she said. "76 years of resistance to the occupation. 76 years of steadfastness and determination. 76 years of the complete belief that we will inevitably return."

Jena and Noor Chanaa and their associates appear to have leveled more aggressive threats toward their school through a pseudonym, using an Instagram account, "gmuintifada." The account posted a video of the Aug. 30 vandalism the sisters are suspected of leading with the caption:

We, the George Mason University students of conscience, bear witness to the atrocities funded and supplied by our university, and we have chosen to retaliate. During the early hours of Wednesday morning, autonomous students left the imperial George Mason University a message: that the student intifada has been reignited, and that we will honor all the Gazan martyrs who did not live to witness this academic year. University administrations across the nation have convinced themselves that they can suffocate the flames of resistance that have been unleashed since the inception of this genocide. Yet, what they fail to realize is that their every effort to stifle our voices and eradicate our movement for liberation has only provoked an inferno that will engulf all systems of oppression that are upholding the genocide of the steadfast and honorable Palestinians. George Mason University, you will NEVER be able to escape accountability for your role in this genocide. Gaza is our compass and the heart of our noble struggle and the Student Intifada will confront every dousing of our eternal flame of resistance with precision. We will never be extinguished. Resistance until victory, GMU Intifada #escalate4gaza #studentintifada.

Shortly thereafter, George Mason police offered a $2,000 reward "for information leading to the successful arrests of the persons involved in the criminal vandalism incident." The "gmuintifada" account has since been deleted from Instagram.

In the wake of the November search on the Chanaa home, George Mason slapped its SJP chapter with an interim suspension, according to a coalition of student groups affiliated with the chapter. University police also served Jena and Noor Chanaa "with criminal trespass notices barring them from campus for four years," according to the Intercept.

CAIR has called on George Mason to rescind those disciplinary measures.

University leaders see the case differently, with George Mason president Gregory Washington calling the school's actions "justified based on the information available" in a Nov. 20 faculty senate meeting. So do state and local law enforcement officials.

"For us at the state and local level, you know, we're concerned," one official told the Free Beacon, noting CAIR's ties to illicit fundraising efforts for Hamas as well as recent revelations that Iran has bankrolled anti-Israel campus protests in the United States.

Adas Israel, Washington, D.C.’s most prominent synagogue, abruptly canceled a Monday evening event with former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant following objections from congregants.

People who had registered to attend the moderated conversation with Gallant, which was announced on Thursday as an “exclusive conversation on Israel’s multi-front security challenges,” received an email Sunday evening announcing that it would no longer take place.

“We regret to inform you that the Monday night event with Yoav Gallant must be canceled,” the synagogue wrote in a brief email.

Protesters gathered outside Gallant’s New York City hotel last week and Beth Heifetz, president of the synagogue, said in a statement Monday afternoon that the event was canceled “due to specific security concerns” and not due to “the event’s subject matter.”

“Open dialogue is key to our commitment to Jewish values,” Heifetz said. “While we regret this cancellation, safety remains our highest priority.”

Multiple congregants said that the event had originally been organized by Robert Satloff, director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and that it would now take place at the pro-Israel think tank’s downtown offices. WINEP did not respond to a request for comment.

Adas Israel, which is affiliated with the Conservative movement, is one of the largest synagogues in D.C. and regularly hosts presidents and Supreme Court justices for services and speeches.

Benjamin Temchine, a member of Adas Israel, said that he met with one of the synagogue’s rabbis on Friday to object to the event with Gallant, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes related to Israel’s attacks on Hamas in Gaza, which have killed at least 44,000 Palestinians. The ICC issued an arrest warrant for Gallant and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in November.

“I don’t see Adas opening the door to Smotrich, I don’t see them opening the door to Ben-Gvir,” Temchine said in an interview Friday, referring to two far-right Israeli ministers. “How is Gallant different?”

Temchine, 50, said that he knew of at least 10 other members who had also complained to the synagogue’s leadership.

Gallant directed the Israeli military’s response to the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel, sometimes clashing with Netanyahu over strategy after the two had previously split over the planned judicial overhaul announced before the current war.

Reaction to the event’s cancelation was mixed. Michael Oren, the former Israeli ambassador to the United States, said on the social platform X (formerly Twitter) that he was “appalled.”

“Yoav has spent his entire life fighting tirelessly for Israel and the Jewish people,” Oren wrote. “The Adas leadership should be deeply ashamed of this ungrateful decision and reverse it immediately.”

Netanyahu fired Gallant in November, but the former defense minister has continued to defend Israel’s activity in Gaza. Shortly after the Oct. 7 attack, Gallant announced a “complete siege” of Gaza, including a ban on electricity, food and fuel. “We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly,” he said.

IfNotNow, a group that is opposed to the Israeli occupation, planned to project the “human animals” quote on the facade of Adas Israel on Sunday night but called off the action after the event was canceled.

“The way this played out says a lot about where the center of gravity within the mainstream Jewish community is,” said Josh Burg, an organizer with IfNotNow’s local chapter. “A conservative faction in the shul thought they could host this event with Yoav Gallant, but the internal pushback was so intense that just wasn’t possible.”

Ask Jewish doctors in North America about their work and they’ll likely tell you about the antisemitism they have faced since the beginning of Israel’s war in Gaza last October 7.

“There was a nurse in the OB/GYN my hospital in Philadelphia spreading terrible antisemitic lies around the hospital,” said one physician, who requested to hide his name for fear of retribution. “People in the office were afraid of giving her Jewish patients for fear something bad might happen. A number of staff members complained about her to HR, and we brought it up to the highest levels of the hospital, but nothing was done.”

Things only changed when she waded into American politics. “After the elections, she posted on social media that she hoped everyone who voted for Donald Trump has a miscarriage,” the doctor continued. “Six hours later, she was removed from her position. That was good, but many of the Jewish faculty were upset that the same standard wasn’t applied for what she was saying about Israel.”

These types of incidents are increasingly common in North American medicine. A study published Wednesday by Israel advocacy organization StandWithUs found that 39% of self-identifying Jewish healthcare professionals reported direct exposure to antisemitism within their professional or academic environments. More than a quarter of the 645 respondents reported feeling unsafe or threatened due to antisemitic incidents.

That survey was published just several days after a similar study was released by the Jewish Medical Association of Ontario (JMAO). Its survey of 1,000 medical professionals across Canada found that, while virtually no Jewish doctors experienced severe antisemitism at work before October 7, 39% say they have experienced it in hospitals, and 43% in academic settings.

More than 98% of Canadian Jewish doctors surveyed said they are very worried about the impact of antisemitism on healthcare in the country, and 80% say it has harmed their wellbeing.

Significantly, the study found that many of Canada’s Jewish doctors are reconsidering their futures, with 31% of Jewish doctors in Ontario strongly considering or considering leaving the country.

The problem is similar on both sides of the border, noted Michelle Stravitz, CEO of the American Jewish Medical Association (AJMA), which was formed last year in response to growing antisemitism after October 7.

“We’re seeing antisemitism in all spheres, in relationships with colleagues, patients, and medical students,” Stravitz said. “We see repeated patterns of healthcare platforms being hijacked by anti-Israel agenda and medical students ready to abandon the Hippocratic Oath to advance an anti-Zionist agenda. It’s creating fear and harming trust for Jews across the medical field.”

Jews enjoy an outsized representation in the medical field. A 2005 study published on the US National Library of Medicine website found that Jews, who comprise about 2% of the country’s general population, account for 14% of the nation’s physicians. In Canada, a 1991 census indicated that four out of ten doctors and dentists in Toronto were Jewish.

Now, however, many Jewish medical professionals say antisemitism in the workplace is a constant threat. “I was ⁠in the operating room during a time where there was an incursion into Gaza, and during the procedure, the surgeon started talking to me about why the Jews invaded Palestine,” one doctor said in a testimony compiled by the JMAO.

“A patient left me offensive messages and voicemails, telling me that he wouldn’t see me because I was a Jew,” said another. Another said, “A patient tried to force me to agree with their anti-Zionist views while I was trying to do my work.” “Our annual Chanukah lighting ceremony was canceled,” said another.

A separate report published last week in the Journal of Religion and Health found that more than 75% of Jewish-identifying medical students and professionals in the United States reported exposure to antisemitism. The survey, spearheaded by Dr. Daniella Schwartz of the University of Pittsburgh, found that references to antisemitism in US medical publications and social media accounts increased five-fold since October 7, while the use of antisemitic stereotypes increased 2-4-fold.

Some are concerned about the damage a sustained environment of antisemitism could do to the future of medicine.

“Everyone is talking about the 31% that are considering leaving Canada, but just as concerning are the 46% of physicians who have said they are considering, or have already, decreased their teaching roles,” said Dr. Barry Pakes, a physician and professor at the University of Toronto. “Jewish doctors are afraid to teach students and Jewish students are afraid to be in class with their colleagues and antisemitic teachers”. Pakes said. “Canada has a shortage of doctors, and we are opening up new medical schools around the country. If Jewish doctors feel uncomfortable supervising students, that can have an impact on the entire medical system.

While antisemitism has been rearing its ugly head in virtually every profession, Pakes said there is something uniquely offensive about its appearance in the medical sphere. “We doctors pride ourselves on being evidence-based, science-oriented people. Many of us are also social justice leaders attuned to the needs of vulnerable minority groups,” he explained. “It is particularly hurtful that we are no longer welcome in those spaces.”

“We work in close collaboration with colleagues from all walks of life, and we expect that they care about us as individuals, even if antisemitism in general doesn’t concern them,” Pakes continued. “It is shocking to be spurned by colleagues who have shown themselves to be so passionately antisemitic and disconnected from the facts.”

Pakes, who wears his kippah publicly at work, said he gets mixed reactions from patients and colleagues. “The response I get is usually positive, but many of my colleagues have differing experiences,” he said. “The importance of surveys like these is that instead of highlighting individual incidents, they help quantify the collective trauma that thousands of doctors are experiencing.”

A Jewish Columbia University student was punched in the face by an anti-Israel activist during a protest against Barnard College on Monday, according to New York officials and local Jewish groups.

Columbia University Public Safety Department said that the New York Police Department informed them of a robbery and hate crime in which an anti-Israel activist stole a student's Israeli flag. When the student pursued the suspect, the thief punched the victim in the face. The crime is being investigated by the NYPD Hate Crime Task Force, and the university said that there was no indication that the suspect was affiliated with the university.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said on Tuesday that she was outrage by the "antisemitic attack" and announced that the New York State Hate Crime Task Force would aid in the investigation.

"We will make sure the assailant is held accountable and that all New Yorkers are protected," Hochul said on social media.

Congressman Ritchie Torres on Wednesday described the university as "ground zero" for campus antisemitism in New York.

And the implying of people carrying on here,such as ,"Doing so"might cause a certain amount of a person getting Testy .
or terms such as "jew-hating" Mona Pereth , Which might not be considered helpful either .
Some inflammitory terms in any context can feel poorly or be misconstrued ....rather easily in the printed word.

A leading private schools organization has apologized for antisemitic rhetoric at a conference it held in Colorado.

The National Association of Independent Schools event, called the “People of Color Conference,” came under harsh criticism for anti-Israel rhetoric that Jewish groups said veered into antisemitism and made Jewish students feel unsafe.

“There is no place for antisemitism at NAIS events, in our member schools, or in society,” the president of the association, Debra Wilson, wrote in a letter Thursday to Jewish leaders expressing “profound remorse” over the event.

The apology was a response to criticism from the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, the Jewish Federations of North America, and Prizmah, an association of Jewish day schools.

Last week, the leaders of those groups wrote to Wilson expressing “deep concern” about the conference, saying some of the rhetoric “normalized antisemitism.”

The event’s keynote speaker, Dr. Suzanne Barakat, a physician, called Israel a “racist” endeavor, accused Israel of genocide and downplayed the October 7, 2023, Hamas invasion, the letter said.

A Jewish student said he and his classmates felt “targeted” and “unsafe” at the conference, compelling them to conceal their Stars of David under their shirts and exit the event, the letter said.

“That any student would feel the need to conceal their identity at our conference is antithetical to our mission and our values,” Wilson said in her response.

She pledged to implement “meaningful changes” ahead of future events, such as requiring speakers to submit their presentations in advance.

The National Association of Independent Schools is a nonprofit based in Washington, DC, that provides services to more than 2,000 schools in the US and abroad. It had a budget of around $23 million last year.

The People of Color Conference was held in Denver, Colorado, from December 4 to 7. The event was advertised as part of the association’s “commitment to equity and justice in teaching, learning, and sustainability for independent schools.”

David Bernstein, the founder of the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values advocacy group and a critic of progressive antisemitism in schools, said the event’s anti-Israel rhetoric was an outgrowth of NAIS’s embrace of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) ideology. The progressive framework promulgates a binary worldview that often casts Israel as an oppressor, Bernstein told The Times of Israel.

“They’ve adopted a very specific worldview and we make a mistake to treat this as if it’s a one-off event, rather than emerging directly out of NAIS’s basic ideological framework,” he said.

The issue here is not merely people getting "testy."

The issue is that too many (though not all) Jews believe that anti-Zionism has no legitimate basis but is motivated purely by an irrational, categorical hatred of Jews.

They believe this partly because, in Nazi Germany, and for nearly two millennia before that, Jews were in fact the targets of irrational, categorical hatred, varying in intensity but always there to one degree or another, especially in Europe. And, to this day, there still exist neo-Nazis and others with an irrational, categorical hatred of Jews.

Therefore, when criticizing Israel, it is important to avoid saying things that sound like the anti-Jewish tropes that are commonly used by people with an irrational, categorical hatred of Jews.

You might be conflating a over reactive Judiac mindset possibly. You write and make comparisons of other times , long ago , the concept that needs to be kept in mind .

That this is A active 21st century Warzone. Not historical .19 or 20th

...21st century was suppose to be one of recognizing differences ,( remember the WOKE demostrations.). And seemingly , You seem to want me to change my observations.99% of which are drawn from reports on this site ! But you have chosen me.
PERHAPS your opinion and my opinion might not see eye to eye .But you have chosen my opinions to write about .

People of the Jewish faith have NO monopoly on recieving hatred.

In fact most all comparitively have NO place to act the way they do based on that circumstance . So making a justification for Genocide,of any group of peoples .
Should be met with equal responses perhaps .

Obvious not all Members of the Judaic faith are Israeli,incase that comes up .
We need to consider predjudice against armenians , ethiopians,Rwandans.
All past history . But yet you bring up
N A z i s fom WW2..this is the 21 st century now. Israel was a model of a civilized nation in the middle East but so is Iran .

Now they are using methods and tactics worse than those that were developed in WW2 against the JewsAnd others.

but NOT against Israel ....( there was no Israel then ,i think)

And Israels methods of War are significantly worse than Germanys.
At least the high ranking officers at the time of the camps and political partys gave warning .People had to wear triangles and Stars,before the camps were established by the Germans .And freely walked into the showers or go on the rails cars.At the point of a gun.They then could go or be shot,if they hadnt ,the sense to leave,right away.And so you say ,they did not want to be shot! but yet they did not try to run away.They had that choice,( albeit not good).

Where as the Palestinians were bombed in their homes and streets,schools hospitals.Getting food etc.

Now you or others single out jews , like they were the only ones in the death camps .not the gays not the disabled
or other groups chosen by the SS at the time....

This current middleeast War by all appearances is now a War on Jews ??

?? So people are trying to convey ..This WAR has been put way over the top ." THINK this through" the activities
of the Israeli Nation are the issue at hand and the CURRENT genocide.

It is in Israels best interest to conflate Judaism with being a Israeli . Provides money from all around the world to support a Putin type / Netenyahu type dictator.

What do you believe in as a member of the Judiac faith

....as a supporter of genocide,or as a supporter of peace. t

it is not my intent to use anti judaic tropss ,but am not able to help your ways you care to interpet things, I respond to in this thread .

Almost three weeks after the November 28 debate, the fallout continues, with reports that counterterrorism police are investigating complaints about remarks made by a pro-Palestinian speaker, accusations of antisemitism, and calls from one of Britain’s top academics for the government to cut funding to universities that fail to protect their Jewish students.

Founded over two centuries ago, the Oxford Union is the political finishing school in which future prime ministers, cabinet ministers, and journalists hone their skills and cut their teeth. Although not formally part of the university itself, almost all of its members and officers are Oxford students, and two academics sit on its governing committee.

As well as attracting top-shelf speakers, including former US presidents, Hollywood actors, and leading cultural figures, the Union is renowned for hitting the headlines. Appearances by Oswald Mosley, head of the UK’s pre-World War II fascist Blackshirts, David Irving, the discredited Holocaust-denying historian, and Nick Griffin, the former leader of the far-right British National party, have long led to accusations that the Union is overstepping the boundaries of free speech.

According to the Sunday Telegraph, Miko Peled, a pro-Palestinian Israeli-American activist and author, is now under investigation by specialist counterterror police following complaints about remarks he made during the debate. “What we saw on October 7 was not terrorism,” Peled argued. “These were acts of heroism of a people who have been oppressed.”

Jonathan Turner, executive director of UK Lawyers for Israel, says he believes Peled’s remarks breach section 12 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

“In saying this, he expressed an opinion or belief supportive of Hamas, a proscribed terrorist organization,” Turner told The Times of Israel. “Moreover, given the cheers he had already received, he was reckless as to whether members of the audience would be encouraged by his words to support Hamas.”

Turner suspects Peled has now left the UK and returned to the US. British police are unlikely to seek his extradition, due to the costly process and possible refusal on the grounds of freedom of speech.

“However, if Peled returns to the UK, he should be arrested and tried,” Turner said.

An open letter, organized by the Pinsker Center, a campus-based foreign policy think tank, and signed by over 300 academics, has similarly raised concerns about law-breaking at the event.

“We unequivocally condemn the incendiary remarks made by some speakers in support of Hamas and terrorist violence. Such statements are not only morally reprehensible, but also in clear violation of the law,” said the letter, whose signatories included Baroness Ruth Deech, Prof. Sir Vernon Bogdanor, acting principal of Oxford’s Brasenose College, and University of Haifa history professor Dr. Fania Oz-Salzberger. “Glorifying acts of violence under the guise of advocating for Palestinian rights serves neither justice nor peace.”

The academics also targeted the tenor of the debate. “While discussing issues like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is vital, dangerous rhetoric, provocative behavior, and acts of intimidation have no place in such forums,” they wrote. “Reports that Jewish students felt threatened or intimidated during and after the debate are deeply disturbing. The university and the Union have a duty to ensure that Jewish students — and all minority groups — feel safe, respected, and protected from hate and harassment.”

Both pro-Israel speakers and Jewish students at the debate have since reported they felt anything but.

“It was terrifying being Jewish in that room. I don’t think any of them would have actually attacked us, but it certainly felt like that in the moment. None of us [Jewish students] left alone,” Boruch Epstein, a postgraduate student, told the Sunday Telegraph last weekend.

“I have been a member of the Oxford Union for three years,” he added. “I have never witnessed a debate like this.”

‘Hideous, sinister and suffused with tension’
Writer and broadcaster Jonathan Sacerdoti, one of the four pro-Israeli speakers opposing the motion that Israel is an apartheid state promoting genocide, likewise said that “the atmosphere in the chamber was hideous, sinister, and suffused with tension.”

“Jews who might have attended were clearly too afraid to show up: many had written to me privately to tell me of their fears,” he wrote in The Spectator magazine. “From the moment the debate began, the crowd displayed its unbridled hatred towards us.”

During his speech, Sacerdoti was interrupted by a young woman screaming: “Liar! F– you, the genocidal motherf–er!”

And Hassan Yousef, the son of a Hamas co-founder who renounced the terror group and became a pro-Israel activist, was labeled a “traitor” and a “prostitute” (in Arabic). When he asked the audience to raise their hands if they would have reported Hamas’s plans to the Israeli authorities if they had prior knowledge of the October 7 massacre, few did so.

In a statement, the Oxford Union has strongly defended itself against critics. “As a Union, we are unwavering in our commitment to free speech. This means difficult or controversial views can be expressed and challenged,” it said. “The Oxford Union has a proud tradition of hosting debates on the most challenging issues of the day, and it is this commitment to open discourse that sets us apart. The Union does not endorse the views expressed by any of the speakers.”

Saceredoti has accused the Union of withholding and editing video of the debate to remove abusive heckling of pro-Israel speakers, including himself, and statements supporting the October 7 Hamas atrocities by anti-Israel speaker Miko Peled. The Union said that not publishing and editing video was consistent with its existing practices.

Lord William Hague, a former Conservative Foreign Secretary who was last month elected Chancellor of Oxford University, has indicated his unhappiness about the debate.

“I have seen the open letter and, from what I have heard of last week’s debate … share the concerns of the signatories,” he told The Times. “When I take office as chancellor … I will do my utmost to encourage a culture of debate that will at times be fierce and strongly felt but should always be respectful and never intimidating.”

William Hague in 2010. (By Rob Hunt / Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, OGL 3)
But Hague’s role is largely symbolic and Jewish students at the university suggest the Oxford Union debate was not an isolated incident.

“For over a year, Jewish students at Oxford have faced a torrent of hatred on our campus,” the Oxford Jewish Society and the Union of Jewish Students said in a joint statement after the debate. They cited slogans such as “Globalize the intifada,” “There is only one solution — intifada revolution,” and “Zionists are not welcome at Oxford,” and attacked the Oxford Union’s debate. “Inflammatory speakers were invited not in the spirit of free speech, but instead to spark division, alienating Jewish — and all — students.”

A fire hose of hatred
An open letter sent to the university authorities in May cataloged over 100 antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents that had occurred at the university in the previous six months. One instance concerned an Israeli student, whose family members were murdered, with one taken hostage, on October 7. They shared their experiences with their college welfare officer a few days later and were told: “Oxford is often not a nice place for Israelis and Jews, and there is nothing we can do about it.”

The open letter said that displays for the hostages and vigils for the massacre’s victims were constantly “vandalized by both individual students and some university groups,” while those who organized events for the hostages often had “derogatory and violent comments” shouted at them.

Other incidents included: an Israeli fellow told by a colleague that “Jews run all the banks in the world”; an Israeli student was told by a number of students from their college, “You guys control the American government”; and a Jewish student told by another student that they “wouldn’t date a Jew.” A Jewish student who told their director of studies about the hostile environment at the university was told to “get over antisemitism.”

New figures from the Community Security Trust, which monitors antisemitism and protects Jewish institutions in the UK, released this week show the experience of Jewish and Israeli students at Oxford is not unique. In the 2023/24 campus year, there were 272 university-related antisemitic incidents recorded by CST — the highest total ever recorded for a single academic year and a jump of 117 percent on the 2020-22 reporting period.

Israel will close its embassy in Dublin over "the extreme anti-Israel policies of the Irish government", its foreign minister has said.

Gideon Saar said the Republic of Ireland had crossed "every red line".

In a statement, he said Israel's ambassador to Dublin had been recalled in the past following what it called Ireland's "unilateral decision to recognise a Palestinian state".

He added that the decision followed Ireland's announcement of its support for South Africa's legal action against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing the country of "genocide".

Mr Saar said: "The actions and anti-Semitic rhetoric used by Ireland against Israel are rooted in the de-legitimisation and demonisation of the Jewish state, along with double standards.

"Israel will invest its resources in advancing bilateral relations with countries worldwide according to priorities that also take into account the attitudes and actions of these states toward Israel."

'Ireland is pro-peace'
Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) Simon Harris said the decision by Israel to close its Irish embassy is "deeply regrettable".

He also rejected that Ireland is anti-Israel.

'Regret that decison'
Tánaiste (Irish deputy prime minister) Micheál Martin said there are no plans to close its embassy in Israel.

Martin said he had been informed by the government of Israel of its decision to close its embassy in Dublin.

He said: "I believe firmly in the importance of maintaining diplomatic channels of communication and regret that this decision has been taken".

"Ireland's position on the conflict in the Middle East has always been guided by the principles of international law and the obligation on all states to adhere to international humanitarian law."

He said the continuation of the war in Gaza and the "loss of innocent lives is simply unacceptable and contravenes international law.

He added: "It represents the collective punishment of the Palestinian people in Gaza. We need an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages and a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza."

Mr Martin said Ireland and Israel will continue to maintain diplomatic relations, adding: "Inherent in that is the right to agree and disagree on fundamental points.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar castigates comments made today by Ireland’s president, who accused Israel of breaching Lebanon’s and Syria’s sovereignty and charged, without evidence, that Jerusalem is seeking to establish settlements in Egypt.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar yesterday defended his decision to close Israel’s embassy in Ireland, saying that Dublin “encouraged” antisemitism under a prime minister he accused of hating Jews.

Responding earlier today, Irish President Michael Higgins said that “it is a very serious business to actually brand a people because in fact they disagree with Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu, who is in breach of so many bits of international law, and who has beached the sovereignty of three of his neighbors, in relation to Lebanon, Syria, and would like in fact actually to have a settlement into Egypt.”

“I think to suggest that because one criticized Prime Minister Netanyahu that one is antisemitic is such a gross defamation and slander,” Higgins added during a ceremony where Palestinian Authority envoy Jilan Abdalmajid presented her letter of credence.

In a new English-language statement, Sa’ar says: “Once an antisemitic liar — always an antisemitic liar,” going on to defend Israel’s actions on all three fronts.

And regarding the Egypt settlement claim, he says: “Higgins invented the claim that Israel seeks to form settlements there. In the context of our peace agreement with Egypt, Israel withdrew from a huge area — all of the Sinai desert, and uprooted all of its communities there. This peace agreement has been maintained since 1979.”

Concluding his combative statement, Sa’ar brings up Ireland’s failure to join the Allies in fighting Nazi Germany in World War II.

“Let us not forget that Ireland was at best neutral during World War II.
At that time, the free world was fighting Hitler’s axis while Ireland sat on the side and did nothing.”

Palestinian families sued the U.S. State Department on Tuesday over Washington's support for Israel's military amid its war in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands and caused a humanitarian crisis, a court filing showed.

The lawsuit, opens new tab filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia alleged that the State Department under Secretary of State Antony Blinken has deliberately circumvented a U.S. human rights law to continue funding and supporting Israeli military units accused of atrocities in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The Leahy Laws prohibit providing U.S. military assistance to individuals or security force units that commit gross violations of human rights and have not been brought to justice. Both South Africa at the World Court and Amnesty International have accused Israel of committing genocide and war crimes. Israel has denied the charges.

"The State Department's calculated failure to apply the Leahy Law is particularly shocking in the face of the unprecedented escalation of Israeli gross violations of human rights since the Gaza War erupted on October 7, 2023," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit was filed by five Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and the United States. The lead plaintiff was a Gaza teacher who has been displaced seven times in the current war and lost 20 family members, the lawsuit says.

Several hundred demonstrators gathered in the biting cold in Central Park on Sunday, bearing Israeli flags, images of the hostages held in Gaza and a black banner reading “Bring them home.”

The siblings of four hostages addressed the crowd, telling the audience about their captive family members, thanking them for support and expressing hope that a deal to release the hostages was imminent.

“I’m so, so hopeful that maybe Naama sees some of these pictures, sees her posters and the others and the Israeli flags and understands that we’re all fighting for her,” said Amit Levy, the older brother of hostage Naama Levy, one of the most well-known captives.

The event has become a ritual for the demonstrators who attend the weekly rally on the Upper West Side on Sunday mornings. The event still draws crowds after 14 months of war and demonstrates the staying power of the hostage issue for Jewish New Yorkers and the community that has formed around their plight.

“I come there very week and I see people that I like spending time with,” said Liri Agami, an Israeli photographer living in the city. “Even though it’s pretty depressing hearing the speeches every week and hearing family members crying about their loved ones, it still makes you feel good showing up and being with this group.”

The demonstrators led by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum advocacy group gather in the park every Sunday morning near 90th st. Many in the crowd have gotten to know each other and chat in English and Hebrew. The attendees are adorned with symbols of the hostage effort — yellow ribbons on hats and necklaces, dog tags reading “My heart is captive in Gaza” in Hebrew, T-shirts bearing the faces of the captives.

They chant “Bring them home,” listen to speakers and close each meeting by reading out the first name of every captive, and singing Israel’s anthem, “Hatikva,” or “The hope.” The attendees then march or jog together through the park.

Hostages’ family members, both Israeli and American, regularly attend the rallies, which has become a meeting point where they help each other.

The attendees keep coming because of their connection to the hostage families and to each other, said Agami, who has attended the rallies since they started in the weeks after October 7, 2023. Many of the attendees have gotten to know each other and have found a community in the weekly rallies.

“In the cold, in the rain, no matter the weather, people are still showing up,” she said. “It makes you feel like you’re doing something, and I think having the feeling that you’re helping also helps you feel better.”

Etched into their souls
Ruthie Liebowitz, 82, started attending the rallies immediately after the October 7 attack and comes to the events every weekend.

“It’s the same people every week. I don’t see numbers going down,” she said, adding that the crowd has remained unified and has been emotionally consistent in its attachment to the hostages since the start.

Liebowitz was born to Jewish parents in New York, lived in Israel for five years in the 1960s, and speaks fluent Hebrew. She has three tattoos commemorating the October 7 attack, including the date tattooed on her forearm and an illustration of the Nova Music Festival.

Dana Cwaigrach, the head of the Hostages Forum branch in New York, said the rallies regularly draw several hundred people, while special events can bring up to 1,000 people. The emotions vary week to week, depending on the news, said Cwaigrach, who is from Tel Aviv and moved to New York to study at Columbia University two-and-a-half years ago.

Cwaigrach said she was “shocked” that so many people still attend.

“I thought the one-year anniversary would be a pivotal point, people would stop showing up. I was really worried,” she said. “I think people are genuinely heartbroken by what’s happening and it’s their way of sort of navigating their emotions and feel like they’re doing something.”

The increase in antisemitism in the city has also led attendees to bond together as a source of support, she said. Many at the rallies have taken specific roles upon themselves, such as distributing posters or hoisting a banner.

The weekly rallies follow a formula, but organizers deliberate and plan out each event to keep things interesting. Many of the marches take on a specific theme, such as celebrating the birthday of a hostage.

Weekly protest pushes for immediate ceasefire
Separately, a leftist protest group called “Israelis for Peace NYC” has also held weekly rallies on Sundays in Manhattan’s Union Square. On Sunday, the weekly event drew around two dozen demonstrators, who held signs saying “War has no winners” and “Israelis say: There is no military solution.”

“You either support a shared future of liberty and dignity for all from the river to the sea or you’re standing in the way,” organizer Tamar Glezerman told the crowd.

Glezerman said in an interview that the protest group is different from the Hostages Forum rallies because it is focused on both a ceasefire and hostage deal and is led by anti-occupation activists. The Hostages Forum has sought to avoid politics to maintain a more inclusive atmosphere. Glezerman stressed that her group fully supports the Central Park demonstrators and hostage families.

Glezerman, a filmmaker from Tel Aviv who moved to New York in 2010, experienced personal tragedy in the war, like many Israelis. Her aunt, Hannah Kritzman, 88, was shot in Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7 and died of her injuries two weeks later.

Her group started its events with a vigil in November 2023, and began the weekly rallies in January. Glezerman said the protests typically draw about 70 demonstrators, but Sunday’s turnout was diminished by the cold and rain. The numbers have steadily grown over the past year, she said. Around half of the regular attendees are Israeli, and the other half are mostly American Jews, she said.