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Must-reads
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Crises and Conspiracies
The Times of Israel / 4-minute read
It is almost a law of nature: in any crisis, financial or otherwise, people will share dangerous misinformation and wild conspiracy theories to satisfy their desire to blame someone for the emergency. The novel coronavirus is no exception. For antisemites, the unprecedented global health crisis, “presents an opportunity to pin the blame on, who else, the Jews, even as the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, where, incidentally, no Jewish community exists,” AJC CEO David Harris wrote in an op-ed published in The Times of Israel. Warning against an attitude of complacency, Harris stressed the importance of rigorously confronting the threat posed by antisemitism. “In the past, such conspiracy theories have too often had real-life consequences for Jews, from ostracism to pogroms,” he said. Read more |
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AJC Supports Worldwide Efforts to Combat Coronavirus
AJC / 2-minute read
In a press release on April 1, AJC announced a $150,000 donation in support of efforts to aid victims of the coronavirus pandemic and to support medical teams and critical research. The recipients of the AJC donation include Health Research, Inc., affiliated with the New York State Department of Health; Elmhurst Hospital, in Queens, New York, for purchasing life-saving equipment; MIGAL Galilee Research Institute, located in Kiryat Shmona, Israel; as well as the hard-hit Jewish community and government of Italy. “As the pandemic spreads, straining precious medical resources, assisting those on the frontlines of care and research is imperative,” said AJC CEO David Harris. “To save a life, a core Jewish value, is critically important in this time of a global health crisis. Each of us must do whatever we can. I only wish we could do more at the present time.” The support is made possible by AJC’s Robert and Harriet Heilbrunn Humanitarian Fund, as well as Stephne and Kerrin Behrend. Read more |
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Gov. Cuomo Renames State Hate-Crime Bill to Honor Monsey Stabbing Victim
JNS / 2-minute read
The governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, announced on March 30 that he will rename the state’s Domestic Terrorism Act in memory of Rabbi Yosef Neumann, who was brutally stabbed in his home along with several other Jews during a Hanukkah lighting celebration in Monsey in December 2019. Neumann had been in a coma from the time of the attack and succumbed to his injuries on March 29. Cuomo said in a statement, “We owe it to Mr. Neumann, his family and the entire family of New York to get it done now.” On April 2, New York state legislators passed a package of legislative measures to combat antisemitism and domestic terrorism, including the “Josef Neumann Hate Crimes Domestic Terrorism Act.” The assailant, Thomas Grafton, has pleaded not guilty to ten federal hate crime charges, along with six counts of attempted murder and assault. AJC expressed its condolences on the death of Neumann. Read more |
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COVID-19: UN Secretary General Hails Strong Israel-PA Cooperation
The Times of Israel / 6-minute read
In a rare move, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has praised the close cooperation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) in fighting the coronavirus. “The Palestinian Authority and Israel have been able to work together, even if we know the extreme division that exists politically between the two,” noted Guterres. The Palestinian branch of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs also acknowledged the “unprecedented cooperation on efforts aimed at containing the epidemic” in an emergency briefing on March 31. The Times of Israel reported that a senior Palestinian government official confirmed that Israel and the PA have set up a special mechanism to share “moment by moment” information on all issues related to the pandemic. Israel recently transferred 3,000 coronavirus test kits and 50,000 protective masks that had been donated by the World Health Organization to the PA. AJC started the #BeAMensch campaign to share and honor these acts of courage and decency and even inspire more of them. Read more |
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A Rabbi in Riyadh
Tablet Magazine / 5-minute read
AJC has been at the forefront of building bridges between Israel and the Arab Muslim world. In February, AJC’s Jerusalem-based International Interreligious Director Rabbi David Rosen became the first rabbi to be received by King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in Saudi Arabia. Recalling the unprecedent and historic visit in an article published in Tablet Magazine, Rosen said: “The most amazing moment for me was when one of the young women, completely covered except for her eyes, approached me and said in hesitant Hebrew “Shmi Reem. Ani rotzah lvaker b’yisrael”—“My name is Reem, I want to visit Israel.” This, Rosen argued, is powerful testimony to the “internal transformation that is meant to change mindsets within the Kingdom, in order to prepare it for a new era.” In January, Muslim World League Secretary General Dr. Mohammad bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa and AJC CEO David Harris led a groundbreaking joint visit of Muslims and Jews to Auschwitz. In addition, AJC launched a new series of Arabic-language video explainers about Jews and Judaism, called An al-Yahud or “About the Jews.” Read more |
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