AJC Dispatch

Spotlight

As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) sweeps the globe, Israeli doctors, researchers, and entrepreneurs are working diligently to help find a cure and improve treatment options. Joining us to discuss these efforts, as well as Israel's own strategies to prevent the spread of the virus, are Dr. Daniel Landsberg, who serves as Regional Medical Director of Maccabi Health Services, and Dr. Kira Radinsky, Chair and Chief Technology Officer of Diagnostic Robotics. Then, staying in Israel, we speak to Joyce Franco and Stephanie Graber, the creators of the Instagram account, Creatively Quarantined, which has become an incubator for those searching for inspiration in isolation. Listen now

Must-reads

AJC Launches #BeAMensch Campaign to Encourage Good Deeds in Pandemic
AJC / 1-minute read
As the novel coronavirus tears through the world sowing chaos and uncertainty, AJC is launching a brand-new campaign to encourage and recognize acts of kindness around the world. #BeAMensch will shine a light on good deeds at a time we must draw more than ever on our Jewish and universal values and the relationships we have cultivated in our communities. Mensch is Yiddish for “a person of integrity and honor,” or, put simply, a good person. Earlier in the week, AJC called on governments at all levels to affirm the core principles of informed leadership, global cooperation, and openness. “In the face of the unique adversity of COVID-19, everyday acts of kindness to others becomes particularly vital. Anyone can be a mensch by helping a family member, a neighbor, a stranger, an elderly person, by confronting Coronavirus pandemic despair, or in so many other ways. The important thing is to extend oneself on behalf of others,” said AJC CEO David Harris. Learn more

Stay Informed with Advocacy Anywhere, Powered by AJC
AJC / 1-minute read
AJC has launched a new free online resource, Advocacy Anywhere: Powered by AJC, a hub for expert briefings, hard-hitting analysis, and advocacy opportunities that will enable you to engage with leading experts, unique content, and exciting advocacy opportunities from wherever you are, using cutting-edge technology. Throughout the coming weeks, we will be offering you carefully curated content including exclusive video and phone briefings featuring leading figures, audio segments on the issues of the day, and ways you can take action from your computer, tablet, or smartphone. On Tuesday, AJC hosted Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) and Haipei Shue, President of United Chinese Americans, to discuss rising racism and xenophobia targeting Chinese Americans and other Asian Americans during the current crisis. On Thursday, AJC hosted a conversation with Israeli doctors on the frontlines against the pandemic. Learn more

Knesset Adjourned, Gantz Vows to Petition High Court
The Times of Israel / 5-minute read
As Israel heads toward what might be a total shutdown over the coronavirus pandemic, Knesset speaker Yuli Edelstein on Wednesday adjourned the Israeli parliament until next week, citing the need for talks on a national unity government. The announcement, which has sparked widespread criticism, came after Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party and the Blue and White alliance headed by Benny Gantz were unable to reach a compromise on the formation of Knesset committees. Israeli President Reuven Rivlin called Edelstein and urged him to reopen the parliament, saying: “We must not let this crisis, as serious as it is, harm our democratic system.” Gantz, who has been tasked with forming a new government following elections earlier this month, said his party would petition the High Court over the recent events in the Knesset. Read more

Good to Know

Political Prisoners Among 85,000 Temporarily Released in Iran Due to Coronavirus Spread
Reuters / 4-minute read
Iran has temporarily released about 85,000 prisoners over fears the novel coronavirus could sweep through the Islamic Republic’s overcrowded and disease-riddled prisons, where thousands of political activists are being illegally detained. Iran has reported 16,169 coronavirus cases and 988 deaths in one of the worst national outbreaks outside China. The U.N. Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Javaid Rehman, said he had urged Iranian authorities to free all political prisoners. The U.S. said it had informed the regime that it would hold Tehran directly responsible for any American deaths. The husband of British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe confirmed that she had been temporarily released from prison for two weeks. Dual nationals — citizens of both Iran and another country — are the target of arbitrary arrests and are used by Iran as bargaining chips in international negotiations. Read more

Sudan Opens Airspace to Allow Direct Flights to Israel
The Jerusalem Post / 2-minute read
Sudan has for the first time opened its airspace to direct flights to Israel, in a move that signals warming ties between Jerusalem and Muslim-majority countries in Africa. The historic decision was announced after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Sudanese leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in February to discuss normalization between the two states. The permit will allow Latin America's largest airline, LATAM, to fly over Sudan in its direct flights between South America and Israel. Last month also saw the first flight of an Israeli carrier into Sudanese airspace. The plane, which took off in Tel Aviv for Congo’s capital of Kinshasa, passed through Egypt, Eritrea, Kenya, and Uganda before making its way back to Israel via the Central African Republic, Sudan, and Egypt. Read more

Amazon Bans Most Editions of Hitler’s Manifesto
The Guardian / 3-minute read
Amazon has implemented a ban on most editions of Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” along with other Nazi themed books, after a decades-long campaign by Holocaust education organizations and Jewish groups. The Guardian reported that booksellers had been informed in recent days that they could no longer sell Hitler’s manifesto on the platform. Dozens of Kindle eBook editions and second-hand copies were also removed, as was Hitler’s Amazon author page. “As a bookseller, we provide customers with access to a variety of viewpoints, including titles that serve an important educational role in understanding and preventing antisemitism,” a spokesperson for the company said. The New York Times reported, however, that copies of the book are once again available on Amazon, though only through the world’s largest internet-based retailer directly. Read more

Tidings

Daily distraction: 92nd Street Y online, free yoga, Jewish Museum audio tour (The Forward/2-minute read)
Can’t visit Israel? Come on a gorgeous virtual tour instead (Israel21c/2-minute read)
Their gigs canceled by the coronavirus, Jewish performers and educators innovate online (JTA/3-minute read)

The articles featured here do not necessarily reflect AJC’s positions.

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