by Rabbi Alan Silverstein, PhD Among the false accusations leveled against the IDF is that of imposing “collective punishment,” which is a violation of international law governing humanitarian treatment of civilian populations. Collective punishment means penalizing an entire group for deeds carried out by someone else. Israel detractors are drawn to this canard because it […]
Antisemitic Wildfire: Violence Rapidly Spreads Worldwide BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS – VOICES – STORIES Increasingly vicious assaults on Jews around the world are forcing Jews to question their place in local communities. Anti-Jewish hatred knows no borders. From the rape of a 12-year-old Jewish girl in France to attacks on synagogues in Russia […]
June 24, 2024 Wikimedia Foundation 1 Montgomery Street Suite 1600 San Francisco, CA 94104 Dear Members of the Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees: As leading Jewish communal organizations, we express our concern and dismay by Wikipedia’s attack on ADL’s reliability on the topic of antisemitism and other issues of central concern to the Jewish community. […]
In Parashat Beha‘alotekha, the seven-branched menorah is lit for the first time. Note the directions: “When you raise up the lamps, toward the front of the lampstand let the seven lamps give light.” Only when we lift up the lamps, which are the receptacles of the light, will “the seven lamps give light.” The menorah […]
June 18, 2024 His Excellency Mr. Antonio Guterres Secretary General of the United Nations 760 United Nations Plaza New York, NY 10017 Cc: Ms. Pramila Patten Special Representative of the Secretary General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Cc: Ms. Sima Sami Bahous Executive Director, UN Women Dear Secretary Guterres: The undersigned 54 organizations are writing […]
‘Open Season’ on Jews – Threats, Vandalism, Protests and Attacks BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – DISPELLING MYTHS – ACTIONS – VOICES – STORIES Anti-Israel and anti-Jewish hatred have reached a fever pitch in the U.S. as attacks become increasingly aggressive and openly violent. Hatred and bigotry are moving out of the shadows and into the daylight […]
This week we celebrate Shavuot and we read Parashat Naso, the weekly reading with the largest number of verses. Despite its considerable length, it teaches us what it means to be “short and to the point” and to practice humility. How so? Parashat Naso includes that threefold benediction, the Priestly Blessing. Why does the blessing […]
Israel Rescues Hostages but World Blames Rescuers BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – DISPELLING MYTHS – ACTIONS – VOICES – STORIES For rescuing its own hostages, Israel is now under attack by the United Nations, international leaders and many anti-Israel voices in America. Israeli commandos launched a meticulously planned operation to free four hostages held by […]
by Rabbi Alan Silverstein, PhD In the spring of 2021, following 11 days of violence between Hamas in Gaza and Israel, President Joe Biden, when asked at a White House press conference if there had been a change in the Democratic Party’s position on Israel, Biden replied, “There is no shift in my commitment to […]
Wars Against Evil are Necessary – from D-Day to 10/7 BACKGROUND – TALKING POINTS – ACTIONS – VOICES – STORIES 80th Anniversary of D-Day: ‘Into the jaws of death’ Allied forces launched Operation Overlord, a daring and pivotal assault on Nazi-occupied France, known as D-Day, which was June 6, 1944. As dawn broke over the Normandy […]