Watch this Week's Summary of Anti-Semitic Incidents Around the World.
Recent events show that more people around the world are empowered to espouse dangerous anti-Semitic rhetoric. The Iranian Supreme Leader’s latest anti-Semitic diatribe on Twitter reminds us that Iran is the largest state-sponsor of anti-Semitism and that social media is a critical frontier in the fight against anti-Semitism. Thankfully, TikTok recently took action to counter anti-Semitism on its platform.
THIS WEEK’S CONTENT
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“2 for Seder: In the Sukkah” – Safely Fight Anti-Semitism from Home
SOCIAL MEDIA SPOTLIGHT
SPECIAL FEATURE
THE IHRA DEFINITION OF ANTI-SEMITISM: ELEVEN EXAMPLES, ELEVEN STORIES
Join our live studio event on September 16, 2020 at 1:00 PM EDT: “The IHRA Definition of Anti-Semitism: Eleven Examples, Eleven Stories.” The event will feature the eleven examples of modern anti-Semitism under the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition alongside eleven corresponding real stories from victims of anti-Semitism, bringing the IHRA definition to life. Read Here
FROM BLOOD LIBEL TO FARRAKHAN: ANTISEMITISM THEN AND NOW
By CAM
Contemporary anti-Semitism is on the rise, no longer operating in the fringes. In a climate of anti-racist activism coupled with misinformation, International Voices for Change and the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement brought together leading experts and activists to hear about their efforts against anti-Semitism. Read Here
JEWISH ON CAMPUS: TELL YOUR STORY
By CAM
Imagine leaving for college and having to hide who you really are. The Combat Anti-Semitism Movement has partnered with “Jewish on Campus,” a grassroots organization giving a voice to thousands of Jewish students around the world who experience anti-Semitism on their college and university campuses. By amplifying Jewish voices on campus, we can strive for university action against anti-Semitism. Speak out. Your story matters. Read Here
UNITED STATES
US ARMY SUSPENDS OFFICER WITH 3 MILLION TIKTOK FOLLOWERS FOR HOLOCAUST JOKE CLIP
By JACOB MAGID
The US Army suspended a field artillery officer for joking about the Holocaust in a video he posted to TikTok, where he has nearly three million followers. “What’s a Jewish person’s favorite Pokémon?” 2nd Lt. Nathan Freihofer says in the clip. “Ash,” he responds, before breaking out into a cackle. The 23-year-old stationed at Fort Stewart in Georgia appeared to raise his arm in a Nazi salute. Read Here
ANTI-SEMITIC MURAL RESURFACES AT MARCH ON WASHINGTON 2020
By DONNA RACHEL EDMUNDS
A mural which gained prominence as the subject of a row over anti-semitism within the British Labour Party appeared at the March on Washington 2020. Two protesters were wearing t-shirts depicting the image first painted as a mural in London. The image depicts Jewish bankers playing monopoly on the backs of people of color, underneath the masonic Eye of Providence. Read Here
NYPD INVESTIGATING BROOKLYN HIT‐AND‐RUN IN WHICH TWO JEWISH MEN WERE STRUCK BY SPEEDING CAR
By Algemeiner Staff
Police are investigating a hit‐and‐run incident that took place in Brooklyn and has drawn some attention as a potential hate crime due to the visibly‐Jewish identities of the victims. Preliminary investigation reveals a dark colored sedan mounted a curb and collided with a 23-year-old male and a 47-year-old male pedestrian. Read Here
INCARCERATED ISLAMIST PREACHER WHO CALLED FOR MURDERING JEWS COMPLAINS ABOUT BEING FORCED TO EAT KOSHER FOOD
By Benjamin Kerstein
Notorious Islamist preacher, Abu Hamza, who was convicted of inciting the murder of Jews and is now incarcerated in a Colorado prison for supporting terrorism, has filed a lawsuit because, among other things, he is allegedly being forced to eat kosher food. Read Here
VANDAL SCRAWLS SWASTIKA, ’WHITE POWER’ ON JEWISH LAWYERS’ OFFICE IN THE BRONX
By ROCCO PARASCANDOLA and JOHN ANNESE
An anti-Semitic vandal scrawled a swastika and the words “white power” on a Bronx criminal defense and civil rights lawyer’s office. The vile image and words in white paint were sprayed outside the offices of Getz & Braverman. Lawyer Mike Braverman said, “Well, I mean, Getz & Braverman, we are Jewish. We represent everybody…I’ve never experienced any anti-Semitism here in the Bronx.” Read Here
MORE US HEADLINES
WORLD NEWS
United Kingdom
DAVID ICKE, WHO CLAIMS ‘ROTHSCHILDS PLANNED VIRUS’, ADDRESSES ANTI-LOCKDOWN DEMO
By JEWISH NEWS REPORTER
Conspiracy theorist David Icke addressed hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters in Trafalgar Square. The former football commentator spreads “dangerous misinformation” about Covid-19, including the claim that “Sabbatian Frankists” and the Rothschilds are behind, or helped plan, the outbreak. He also believes Israel is using the pandemic to “test its technology”. Read Here
ANTI‐ISRAEL FIREBRAND ROGER WATERS CLAIMS HE HAS ‘NEVER SPOKEN A SINGLE ANTI-SEMITIC WORD’
By Shiryn Ghermezian
Ex-Pink Floyd frontman Roger Waters claimed in an interview with Al Jazeera that, “I’ve never done or spoken a single anti-Semitic word or act in my entire life.” While discussing UK politics, he denied that former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn promoted anti-Semitism, charging that such accusations were a “conspiracy” started by Israel. Read Here
SENIOR BBC JOURNALIST USED PSEUDONYM ACCOUNT TO BACK ATTACKS ON EMMA BARNETT AFTER SHOAH SPEECH
By Lee Harpin
A senior BBC journalist used an anonymous social media account to attack the organisation’s Jewish presenter Emma Barnett after she spoke out about the personal impact of anti-Semitism. Nimesh Thaker also used the Twitter account set up under a pseudonym to support posts written by Kerry-Anne Mendoza and Jackie Walker, both of whom have been at the centre of anti-Semitism allegations. Read Here
CONSERVATIVES SUSPEND CLLR JACQUI HARRIS FOR THE SECOND TIME AFTER CAA BRINGS HER SOCIAL MEDIA HISTORY TO THE PARTY’S ATTENTION
By CAA
Jacqui Harris, a Conservative councillor for Stratford-upon-Avon, has been suspended again from the Conservatives after Campaign Against Antisemitism brought her social media history to the Party’s attention. Councillor Jacqui Harris tweeted: “At this time when we are remembering the horror of Auschwitz – those who were treated so badly back then, seem to have a short memory and are now behaving badly against fellow human beings now!…” Read Here
GERMANY
HUNDREDS OF FAR-RIGHT, ANTI-SEMITIC PROTESTERS ATTEMPT TO STORM GERMAN PARLIAMENT
By CAM
Hundred of protesters, many affiliated with an anti-Semitic movement, stormed through a police line in Berlin to the doors of the Reichstag building. The demonstrators were from the Reichsburger movement, which counts about 16,500 members. Adherents of the group believe that the 1937 borders of Germany still exist, and many members are Holocaust deniers. Read Here
ANTI-SEMITISM IN GERMANY INCREASED DUE TO CORONAVIRUS PROTESTS
By DW
The Central Council of Jews in Germany warned of increased anti-Semitism due to the protests against coronavirus measures. “For months, conspiracy theories with anti-Semitic tendencies have been deliberately stirred up in the coronavirus debate,” Council President Josef Schuster said. “If, for example, the Rothschilds are blamed for the pandemic, then this is a synonym for Jews,” said Shuster. Read Here
THE MIDDLE EAST
NASRALLAH: WE’RE LOOKING TO KILL AN ISRAELI SOLDIER — AND AREN’T IN A HURRY
By AARON BOXERMAN
Hezbollah will only be satisfied when it has killed an Israeli soldier, thereby reestablishing “deterrence,” the Lebanon-based terror group’s Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised speech. “…We will kill one of your soldiers. Israel knows that we were not looking for some device to destroy. We were looking for a soldier to kill. So he hid all of his soldiers. Like mice, hiding.” Read Here
IRAN’S ALI KHAMENEI SLAMMED FOR ANTI-SEMITIC TWEETS AGAINST JARED KUSHNER
By SETH J. FRANTZMAN
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attacked the Israel-UAE agreement, and called Jared Kushner as well as pro-Israel Americans – “filthy Zionist agents.” Khamenei referred to him as “the Jewish member of Trump’s family,” in a series of tweets. Khamenei’s use of the word “filthy” and also singling out “Jewish” members of the US government, as well as calling them “cruel” were all used in his English language tweets. Read Here
‘ONLY MIZRAHI JEWS HAVE THE RIGHT TO LIVE IN PALESTINE,’ SAYS PALESTINIAN ISLAMIC SCHOLAR
By Memri
The Jewish state aspires to establish a “Greater Israel” stretching from the Nile to the Euphrates, and will eventually demand lands in Medina and other regions, according to Palestinian Islamic scholar Omar Fora. Speaking with Palestinian Islamic Jihad-affiliated television, Fora warned that Israel “does not endanger the Palestinian people alone.” Read Here
TOP PALESTINIAN OFFICIAL: ‘ALL TYPES OF RESISTANCE’ POSSIBLE
By JNS
Following the signing of the peace agreement between the UAE and Israel, top Palestinian Authority official Jibril Rajoub announced that terror is an option in “the struggle” against Israel. Rajoub’s statement followed the stabbing of an Israeli man in Rosh Ha’ayin and preceded the slaying of Rabbi Shay Ohayon in Petach Tikvah. Read Here
OTHER WORLD NEWS
HASSID HURT IN APPARENT ANTI-SEMITIC ATTACK IN UKRAINE
By Shimon Yaish
A Hassidic Jew who arrived in the Ukrainian town of Uman was the subject of an anti-Semitic attack. Other Hassids in the group, who like the victim were on the annual pilgrim to the grave site of the Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, were unhurt. Read Here
SWEDISH MUSLIMS CHANT ABOUT KILLING JEWS AT MALMO PROTEST
By CNAAN LIPHSHIZ
Demonstrations by Muslims in the Swedish city of Malmo against a far-right lawmaker turned violent and included chants in Arabic about killing Jews. Some protesters attending the rallies staged against a plan by Rasmus Paludan, the leader of Denmark’s far-right anti-immigration Hard Line party, to burn a copy of the Quran in Malmo chanted “Khaybar Khaybar oh, Jews, Muhammad’s army will return.” Read Here
QUAKER PUBLICATION SPREADS BLOOD LIBEL BLAMING ISRAEL FOR US POLICE VIOLENCE
By Benjamin Kerstein
A Canadian Quaker publication claims that Israel was responsible for US police violence against minorities. The article in the publication Quaker Concern, asserted that the “racism that pervades our society” was revealed by the “increasing militarization of the police,” which was a result of “exchange visits and joint training between Israeli personnel and North American law enforcement.” Read Here
CHARGES AGAINST PROMINENT CANADIAN NEO-NAZI PROPAGANDIST
By Benjamin Kerstein 
A prominent Canadian neo-Nazi will face hate-crimes charges. Gabriel Sohier Chaput was represented by a lawyer in a Montreal court this month to face charges of willfully promoting hatred against an identifiable group. He will be tried in November and if found guilty could face two years in prison. Read Here
ON CAMPUS
‘HITLER WAS RIGHT’ NEO-NAZI POSTERS FOUND HANGING AT ARIZONA UNIVERSITY
By EWAN PALMER
Anti-Semitic posters from a neo-Nazi group, including one reading reading “Hitler was right,” have once again being placed around the Arizona State University campus in Tempe. The fliers also say “unity of our blood” and other far-right slogans. A website on the posters links to a far-right group called Folks Front. Read Here
MORE ACADEMICS ANNOUNCE SUPPORT FOR JEWISH USC STUDENT LEADER WHO QUIT OVER ANTI-ZIONIST HARASSMENT
By Algemeiner Staff
A group of faculty at the University of Southern California (USC) lined up in support of a Jewish student whose experience of anti-Semitism led to her resignation as USC student vice president. In an “open letter to the USC community on supporting Zionist students,” the scholars emphasized that Rose Ritch was “subjected to vicious online harassment, and her qualification to hold elected office was questioned on the basis of her professed Zionism.” Read Here
ANALYSIS
WITH THE UAE DEAL, THE BDS MOVEMENT IS OVER
By EMILY SCHRADER
With the recent developments between Israel and the UAE, it’s become clear that there’s no future for the discriminatory Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. When the agreement was announced, the BDS movement issued a statement not only condemning peace, but aggressively attacking the UAE. It’s clear that the Arab world is fed up with the rejectionist policies. The UAE-Israel peace deal was merely a symbolic nail in the coffin of an already dead movement that ought to fade into oblivion. Read Here
FEATURED PARTNER
The JCC Association of North America (JCCA) leads and connects the JCC Movement, advancing and enriching North American Jewish life. With 1.5 million people walking through the doors of JCCs (Jewish Community Centers and Jewish Community Camps) each week, the JCC Movement represents the largest platform of Jewish engagement on the continent.
JRESPONSE: ADAPTING TO SUPPORT THE JCC MOVEMENT IN A PANDEMIC
By Mark S. Young
JResponse, a signature program of the JCCA, is no stranger to adapting. Originally formed to respond solely to natural disasters, they have expanded their scope and, increasingly, began to emphasize both emotional and physical support after the Tree of Life shooting in Pittsburgh. As the ground shifted due to the multi-faceted nature of the COVID-19 crisis, JResponse adapted by adhering to four guidelines, and refocusing their efforts to respond effectively to scenarios created by the pandemic. Read Here
CAM PARTNERS CONTENT
THE LESSONS OF THE HOLOCAUST ARE BEING FORGOTTEN
By SHMUEL ROSENMAN, CHAIRMAN OF THE INTERNATIONAL MARCH OF THE LIVING
As economies around the world tremble under the weight of the pandemic and protest and anti-government sentiment become endemic, extremism, hatred and antisemitism are only likely to increase, providing fertile ground for the spread of extremism just as they did some 80 years ago. Before war broke out in 1939, no one could have imagined the horrors that would emerge, but today we cannot say that we do not know what happens when hatred in all its forms rears its head. Read Here
FIRST RESPONDER ACTS QUICKLY TO SAVE A LIFE IN EAST JERUSALEM
By Devo Klein
Mohammed Ahbeed is a Muslim volunteer EMT living in East Jerusalem who joined United Hatzalah last year. He has quickly proven himself as a dedicated volunteer who selflessly gives of his time, saving both Jewish and Muslim lives. “People in my community are not so familiar with United Hatzalah yet. Receiving medical service for free is not something that is common here. I feel honored to represent an organization whose sole purpose is to help others at no charge and with no strings attached.” Read Here
GOVERNMENT & POLICY
AUSTRIA REVEALS ROADMAP TO COMBAT ANTI-SEMITISM AFTER ASSAULT ON GRAZ JEWISH COMMUNITY
By CAM
The government of Austria announced a new plan for combating rising anti-Semitism in the nation after a Syrian asylum seeker was arrested for assaulting the Jewish community leader of Graz and vandalizing the community’s synagogue. New measures will include creating a department in the Chancellor’s office focused on anti-Semitism. Read Here
WEST MIDLANDS REGION OF ENGLAND ADOPTS THE IHRA DEFINITION
By CAM
The West Midlands Combined Authority, representing the entire West Midlands region of England, unanimously decided to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism. The West Midlands region includes Birmingham, the second most populous city in England and home to one of largest Jewish communities in the country. Read Here
NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER ROBERT O’BRIEN: TRUMP FIGHTING ANTI-SEMITISM, HERE AND ABROAD
By Robert C. O’Brien
In addition to signing the JUST Act into law, President Trump signed a historic executive order ensuring that Jewish-Americans enjoy protection under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. He also appointed a strong State Department special envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism, Elan Carr, and signed the bipartisan “Never Again Education Act” into law. President Trump has also taken unprecedented action against Iran, the number one state sponsor of anti-Semitism and the greatest threat to the State of Israel. Read Here
COVID-19 ‘BECAME OPPORTUNITY FOR HATEMONGERS’ – DEPUTY ANTI-SEMITISM ENVOY
By OMRI NAHMIAS
Ellie Cohanim, US assistant special envoy to monitor and combat anti-Semitism, said that COVID-19 “became an opportunity for the hatemongers.” In a webinar hosted by the Hudson Institute, Cohanim said, “when the virus came we saw forces spreading conspiracy theories that Israel or the Jews created the virus or that they were going to profit from it.” She noted that a lot of these conspiracy theories emanated from government officials including from the Palestinian Authority, Turkey, and Iran. Read Here
US STATE DEPARTMENT ENVOY WORKS TO SECURE COMPENSATION FOR NAZI-ERA WRONGS
By JACKSON RICHMAN
Cherrie Daniels was tapped last year as the U.S. State Department’s Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues. Her office “develops and implements U.S. policy to return Holocaust-era assets to their rightful owners, secure compensation for Nazi-era wrongs, and ensure that the Holocaust is remembered appropriately.” Last month, Daniels’s office released a report about the status of countries over their handling of restitution to survivors and their relatives. Read Here
JOE BIDEN CALLS DELAWARE CHABAD TORCHING ‘DEEPLY DISTURBING’
By JTA
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden condemned the torching of the Chabad center at the University of Delaware. The incident “is deeply disturbing — as an alum of @UDelaware and as an American,” read a tweet from Biden. “We need a full and swift investigation into what happened…With anti-Semitism on the rise across the country, we all have a moral obligation to speak out and give hate no safe harbor.” Read Here
HUMANITY
EL AL FLIGHT LANDS IN UAE AFTER BECOMING 1ST ISRAELI PLANE TO CROSS SAUDI ARABIA
By RAPHAEL AHREN and TOI STAFF
In a historic milestone, an Israeli passenger plane flew through Saudi Arabian airspace on the first direct non-cargo flight between Israel and the UAE. El Al Flight 971, carrying high-level Israeli and US delegations, flew southeast down almost the entire length of Saudi Arabia to reach its destination in Abu Dhabi. It was the first time an Israeli plane was given permission by the kingdom to use its airspace. Read More
ISRAELI FIRE AND RESCUE EXPERTS FLY TO AID CALIFORNIA
By ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN
An Israeli delegation departed for California to assist in managing a massive wave of wildfires. The delegation includes 10 officers and firefighters from Israel’s Fire and Rescue Authority, along with rescue and forest-fire experts, and a Foreign Ministry official. Read Here
TIKTOK ANNOUNCES ‘ZERO TOLERANCE’ FOR ANTI-SEMITISM, HATE SPEECH, BIGOTRY
By JACKSON RICHMAN
The video-sharing social-networking service TikTok has expressed that it has “a zero tolerance stance” on accounts linked to anti-Semitism and other forms of bigotry. “We have a zero tolerance stance on organized hate groups and those associated with them, like accounts that spread white supremacy…anti-Semitism and other hate-based ideologies,” said the company in an Aug. 20 blog post on its website. Read Here
The Combat Anti-Semitism Movement is a non-partisan, global grassroots movement of individuals and organizations, across all religions and faiths, united around the goal of ending anti-Semitism in all its forms. Since its launching in February 2019, 265 organizations and 280,000 individuals have joined the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement by signing the campaign’s pledge. The CAM Pledge draws upon the IHRA international definition of anti- Semitism and its list of specific behaviors used to discriminate against the Jewish people and the Jewish State of Israel.
