Iran-backed terror groups have launched 19,000 rockets at Israel over the last eight months. Hezbollah has launched thousands of rockets directly into homes and communities in Israel's north, setting it ablaze and displacing over 70,000 people. Ridiculously referred to as 'tit-for-tat" by the NYT. Recall that Israel withdrew from Lebanon after attacks by Hezbollah more than 20 yrs ago and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was supposed to help maintain peace and security at the border. During the 8 months of these increasing attacks from Lebanon into Israel, UNIFIL "peacekeepers" have been on the seen.

June 11-13 was the Jewish festival of Shavuoth, which celebrates the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. Did the difficulty of celebrating it in wartime get any mention? This week we returned to see numerous articles about the difficulties of celebrating Eid and headlines about hunger in Gaza.   Nothing about how children are celebrating in West Bank. This report was released June 4th: Expert Panel Rejects Claims of Famine in Northern Gaza - have you seen any coverage?

On June 8, four Israelis: Noa Argamani (25), Almog Meir Jan (21), Andrey Kozlov (27), Shlomi Ziv (40), were rescued from an apartment complex in the United Nations run-Nuseirat "refugee" camp in central Gaza. The camp is right next to the Izz ad Deen al-Qassam Mosque, named for a Syrian terrorist who hunted the British and Jews in Palestine in the 1920s and 1930s. Three of the rescued hostages were being held in the house of Al Jazeera and Palestinian Chronicle "journalist" Abdallah Aljamal and his physician father. Many media outlets tainted the operation's morality by emphasizing the unverifiable Palestinian death toll figures touted by Hamas and whitewashed the terrorists’ use of civilians as human shields. They Criticized the Entebbe Rescue, Too - (Los Angeles Jewish Journal) Note: Ada Sagi, 75,, who was rescued in November, explained she was also held in "civilian homes" and a hospital; she describes how Hamas paid Gaza University students 70 shekels (~15 USD) per day to guard her and other hostages. She was held in different “civilian” houses in Khan Younis before being taken to Nasser Hospital with other hostages. almost a dozen hostages confirm they were held at Nasser Hospital. But the press continues to regularly cite hospital officials who were clearly complicit in such activities despite them clearly lying about it.

On June 3, we learned of the deaths of 4 hostages: Chaim Peri, 79, Amiram Cooper, 84, Yoram Metzger, 80, and Nadav Popplewell, 51, who were held captive together in Khan Younis and were likely killed together in Khan Yunis several months ago by Hamas terrorists.  A propaganda video released by terrorists weeks ago showed Nadav Popplewell  had been abused. https://x.com/AdamAlbilya/status/1797676908735566168

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CHINA

After Oct. 7, Antisemitism in China Reached Shocking Levels (Ha'aretz)

INDIA

India Is Providing Military Assistance to Israel  (Ynet News)

IRAN

About 40 House members signed a bipartisan letter calling on the Biden administration to implement new sanctions on Iranian petroleum and to fully implement the SHIP Act and the Iran-China Energy Sanctions Act. This as Washington Post reports, Iran is significantly expanding its nuclear enrichment capabilities.

ISRAEL

Just a reminder,  Israel is not a colonial state. If anything, it’s the reverse

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/06/15/israel-is-not-a-colonial-state-if-anything-its-the-reverse/

Israel's Response to UN Report on War Crimes in Gaza

https://mem.ai/p/nN7HDXFyYTB4zohu6Jj8

LEBANON

Hezbollah threatens Cyprus and Israel

https://www.cnn.com/2024/06/18/middleeast/hezbollah-drone-video-israel-haifa-intl-latam/index.html and https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/head-lebanons-hezbollah-threatens-israel-cyprus-televised-address-2024-06-19/ and https://gem.godaddy.com/p/0bcbd91

Lebanon is the host of the highest per capita population of refugees in the world https://apnews.com/article/lebanon-syria-idlib-refugees-returns-smuggling-migration-4a7f0bc8bb1e3c39f8e7e92589b5733c

Lebanese Journalist: Shiites of South Lebanon Will Welcome Israeli Forces that Rid Them of Hizbullah (MEMRI-TV)

PALESTINIANS/GAZA/PA

Just a reminder, there is no genocide in Gaza. 

https://x.com/SpencerGuard/status/1785153068964692424 see also Genocide and Hamas Go Hand in Hand https://www.ajc.org/news/genocide-and-hamas-go-hand-in-hand

How Israel Renewed Gaza's Water Supply amid War  (Times of Israel)

Last week, Hamas' leader Yahya Sinwar was quoted admitting that civilian bloodshed is a "necessary sacrifice" that benefits the terror group more than a ceasefire or a deal to free the hostages.

PA repays US generosity with hatred, says port for humanitarian aid is “plot to expel Gazans” https://palwatch.org/page/35143

2/3 of Palestinians Still Think Hamas's Oct. 7 Attack on Israel Was Correct Because It "Revived International Attention" to the Conflict  (PSR-PA)

PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah Movement has been promoting a video showing a boy from the Gaza Strip demonstrating the way children in Gaza are brainwashed. https://palwatch.org/page/35163

QATAR

Hamas political leaders are planning to leave Qatar and move to Iraq where the Islamic Republic of Iran promised to guarantee their safety.

RUSSIA

Russian rights commissioner calls for swift release of Russians held by Hamas

https://www.reuters.com/world/russian-rights-commissioner-calls-swift-release-russians-held-by-hamas-2024-06-11/

Whilst in the UK

On same day Imperial College was announced to be the best college in the UK, we were on campus and saw a small "Free Palestine" encampment. The setup with tents was exactly the same as we've seen across the US, though it was small and easy to avoid. 

An organization called Fossil Free Books, which is against Fossil fuels and Israel, managed to scare off authors from participating in book festivals and Baillie Gifford being forced from sponsoring festivals. https://www.thebookseller.com/news/stratford-also-loses-baillie-gifford-funding-as-group-mulls-pulling-out

5 Security Staff at Heathrow were removed.  The people responsible for making sure terrorists don’t blow up the airport were wearing badges that identify with terrorists and harassing passengers departing for Israel.

UK pop star working with Dudu Tassa hits back against cultural boycott (Point of No Return)

Catching the BBC Pushing Fake News (David Collier) see also https://camera-uk.org/2024/06/19/bbc-news-continues-to-promote-a-narrative-on-famine-in-gaza/

UN/UNRWA

 “I was held hostage by an UNRWA teacher” Over 100 Victims of Hamas’ October 7th Massacre File Major Lawsuit Against UNRWA 

https://ccrjustice.org/sites/default/files/attach/2024/05/UNRWA_Complaint_w.pdf

Hillel Neuer Addresses the Dutch Parliament on UNRWA https://unwatch.org/hillel-neuer-addresses-the-dutch-parliament-on-unrwa/

The UN Commission of Inquiry (COI) issued an appalling report that baselessly asserts Israel’s defensive military campaign in Gaza against Hamas violates international law, and turns a blind eye to the terror group’s continued flouting of that law and disregard for civilian lives

Australia, Canada, Sweden, Germany, Japan and others have resumed funding UNRWA

Israel, Jews and Peace in Schoolbooks and Teachers'  Guides Used in UNRWA Schools in Judea,  Samaria, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip - Here is what is in all Palestinian school books. https://www.terrorism-info.org.il/app/uploads/2024/05/E_114_24.pdf and Israel, Jews and Peace in Schoolbooks Used in UNRWA Schools 

The UN figures not only inconsistently record humanitarian trucks from the private sector and other NGO trucks, but is also missing data on UN aid entering Gaza. These gaps have become extreme in April and May 2024 - underreporting of over 8,000 trucks since Oct. 7, 2023, with 4,880 "missing" trucks in May 2024 alone.

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres took to social media today to issue "profound concerns about escalation between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line." There was no condemnation of the Iran-backed terror army for starting a war against Israel on October 8. No call for the terrorists to stop launching rockets, missiles, and drones indiscriminately at Israeli towns. No demand that Israel's 70,000 residents be allowed to return home, or No insistence that U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 -- which called for the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon -- be enforced.

UNITED STATES

Bill Maher Calls Out Campus Protesters for Ignoring the Oppression of Women in Muslim Countries

https://legalinsurrection.com/2024/06/bill-maher-calls-out-campus-protesters-for-ignoring-the-oppression-of-women-in-muslim-countries/

Biden's "Peace Now" Plan  (Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs)

The ongoing U.S. policy of slow-walking munitions deliveries to Israel isn’t about Rafah  https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/israel-middle-east/articles/biden-italian-strike-israel-arms-shipments

Looking for allies against antisemitism.  

Some friends have started a movement to highlight allies, using the hashtags #AlliesAgainstAntisemitism and #UnitedAgainstHate. Please review the checklist in the graphic below. Join others, including Council of Muslims Against Antisemitism, Artists Against Antisemitism, Liberate Art, and more and stand against hate.

Private and public antisemitic and often violent incidents are rippling through our communities. Jews are being banned from events just like in Nazi Germany. This should never be acceptable, but it's happening too often. 

The events described below must not be normalized. Everyone concerned about equality and justice should object when and wherever you see this type of discrimination.

Vancouver Comics Festival Bans Jewish Artist over Past IDF Service - Sam Margolis (Canadian Jewish News)

Michael Rapaport Comedy Show Cancelled Again https://wgntv.com/western-suburbs/the-comedy-vault-in-batavia-cancels-shows-of-outspoken-comedian-michael-rapaport-citing-safety-concerns

Maldives bans Jewish Israeli passport holders

 President of Brooklyn’s CEC 14 (a public school), Tajh Sutton, banned Jewish parents from meetings and organized pro-Palestine student walkouts. (And has since been fired)

France banned Israeli defense companies and Israelis from Eurosatory,  and yet uses the Israel manufactured SkyShield anti-missile defense system on board of Macron’s Presidential plane. Note: President of Paris Commercial Court ruled that excluding Israeli companies from Eurosatory is discriminatory

Belgium has refused  to host the upcoming Belgium/Israel soccer match, out of security concerns.

The Toronto School Board accepted a new anti-racism strategy that allows for anything perceived as anti-Palestinian to be defined as hate. To many of us, this is reminiscent of the precursor attitude to the anti-Jewish laws introduced by the Nazis in the 1930s. The board would not listen to valid concerns and even rejected a motion to equalize the playing field by including anti-Israeli racism in the strategy.

In Los Angeles on June 22nd, protesters holding "Free Palestine" signage in front of a Jewish day school in LA, while shouting for Jewish families to “Go back to Germany,” does not resemble anything CLOSE to activism. It’s antisemitism in its purest form.

Locast Art Center in Buffalo, NY refused to work with a children's Jewish day school because Israel and then apologized.

In Belgium, city of Antwerp cancelled a Jewish day school from using public facilities because Israel and then apologized.

US Dept of Ed ruled on Title VI cases: University of Michigan and the City University of New York (CUNY) failed to protect Jewish students from discrimination

This thread documents the celebrations of Hamas supporters in western countries on October 8 https://x.com/visegrad24/status/1711036550165696939

In Los Angeles, this week: Five Takeaways from The Adas Debacle 

https://jewishjournal.com/commentary/opinion/372550/five-takeaways-from-the-adas-debacle/