Page 34 – The Jewish Link

Pro-Israel rightist Javier Milei elected President of Argentina

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November 20, 2023

Pro-Israel rightist Javier Milei elected President of Argentina

President-elect Javier Milei, a self-declared philosemite and supporter of Israel has vowed to move Argentina’s embassy to Jerusalem.

By World Israel News Staff

In a development that has been called a “political earthquake,” the ardently pro-Israel libertarian economist Javier Milei has been elected president of Argentina.

Milei, who has claimed “my law is Torah” and studies with a rabbi regularly, has won close to 56% of the vote in the decisive run-off, compared to 44% for his center-left opponent Sergio Massa of the Union for the Homeland party.

Like Donald Trump, Milei (53) is considered a political outsider with a flamboyant personality, and similarly, he has vowed to move Argentina’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Milei has been outspoken in his support of Israel, particularly during the recent war with Hamas in the wake of the October 7th massacre during which over 1,200 were killed in Israel and 240 were taken as hostages.

Left-wing critics refer to Milei, with his bushy sideburns and radical policies as “El Loco.” He supports slashing funding for social programs, seeks to outlaw abortion, and relax gun-ownership laws.

Milei’s conservatism includes religiosity. In a candid conversation with a Spanish newspaper, Milei revealed contemplating conversion to Judaism, though he recognized potential challenges if he were to become president.

He explained, “If you’re Jewish by maternal lineage, there’s no obligation to adhere to Judaism’s tenets. However, upon conversion, that commitment becomes binding.”

“If I’m president, and it’s Shabbat, what am I supposed to do? Am I going to disconnect from the country from Friday to Saturday? There are some issues that would make [the religion] incompatible. The rabbi who helps me study says that I should read the Torah from the point of view of economic analysis.”

Milei, who became fascinated with Judaism after he taught economics to an observant Jew, expressed a desire to “travel to Jerusalem to delve deeper into his studies of the Torah, Talmud, and other Jewish scriptures.”

“My law is the Torah,” he said.

In July, Milei secretly visited the grave of the Lubavitcher rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, in New York, the Haaretz newspaper reported.

Source: World Israel News

Mayors from across US commit to unprecedented 10-point plan to combat Antisemitism

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November 19, 2023

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Mayors from across US commit to unprecedented 10-point plan to combat Antisemitism

Plan includes appointing liaisons to local Jewish communities and adopting and implementing the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism.

Representatives from over 50 municipalities from across the US came together last week to commit to a ten-step municipal action plan to help define and address Antisemitism in their cities.

The historic commitment was made at the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM)’s 2023 North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, called as Jew-hatred is rising across the continent to record levels, in order to address best practices and action steps for how cities can lead the fight against Antisemitism.

Some of the steps mayors committed to include appointing a coordinator responsible for liaising with the local Jewish community, adopting and implementing the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism, enforcing a zero-tolerance policy for Antisemitism, devising an education plan to train municipal employees on how to respond to modern-day Antisemitism and to work with educational institutions to protect Jewish students and faculty.

“Combatting antisemitism is deeply personal work that requires proximity,” said Mayor Stephen K. Benjamin, Assistant to the President, Senior Advisor to the President, and Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement. “Mayors know their communities and who they are, they have a convening authority that allows them to put certain structures in place such as local listening and educational sessions and to use data to drive policy changes.”

During the summit, mayors and representatives heard firsthand from three Israeli families directly impacted by the October 7 Hamas attacks, including Natalia Cassarotti, whose son, Keshet (21), was killed on October 7th by Hamas, and her daughter Shemesh, Diego Engelbert, whose sister Karina, her husband, and their two children are currently being held by Hamas and Maayan Sigal Koren, whose mother and four other family members are being held by Hamas.

Each family stressed the importance of the representatives sharing their loved ones’ stories with their respective communities to make it clear that rising Antisemitism requires action.

“Hamas tore apart my family,” said Maayan Sigal Koren. “I am afraid for my mother that she will lose her faith in humanity. I have two young boys, and they ask me about their grandmother. ‘Mommy, if grandma is in Gaza, why can’t we go get her?’ I want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to share my story. Please share my story; please help me bring my family home.”

Participants also heard from speakers including Van Jones, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and NBA all-star Alonzo Mourning about their commitment to standing with the Jewish community and the importance of allyship. Mayors and representatives also participated in panels on topics including implementing national strategies locally to combat Antisemitism in North America and bridging the divide through sportsmanship. Each panel stressed the power of fighting Antisemitism on the local level.

“In times like these, it is essential for leaders to come together, to stand united against prejudice, and to reaffirm our commitment to the principles of democracy, tolerance, and inclusion,” said Dean Trantalis, Mayor of Fort Lauderdale and chair of the summit. “It is within our cities, on the streets of our communities, that we can make a tangible difference in the fight against the world’s oldest forms of hatred.”

Other notable participants in the summit included Justin Bibb, Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio; Edward A. Caban, New York Police Department Commissioner; Daniella Levine Cava, Mayor of Miami-Dade County; Frank Scott Jr., Mayor of Little Rock, Arkansas; Brett Smiley, Mayor of Providence, Rhode Island; Levar Stoney, Mayor of Richmond, Virginia; and Francis X. Suarez, Mayor of Miami, Florida.

“Mayors have a unique ability to confront antisemitism at the local level, where it is most directly felt,” said Sacha Roytman-Dratwa, CEO of the Combat Antisemitism Movement. “At a time when antisemitism is at an all-time high following the October 7 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel, we are proud of these leaders for joining us to make the commitment that Antisemitism has no place in their cities.”

Source: Arutz 7

Speaker Johnson Says He’ll Make 44,000 Hours of Jan. 6 Footage Available to the General Public

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November 19, 2023

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Speaker Johnson Says He’ll Make 44,000 Hours of Jan. 6 Footage Available to the General Public

House Speaker Mike Johnson said Friday he plans to publicly release thousands of hours of footage from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, making good on a promise he made to far-right members of his party when he was campaigning for the job.

“This decision will provide millions of Americans, criminal defendants, public interest organizations, and the media an ability to see for themselves what happened that day, rather than having to rely upon the interpretation of a small group of government officials,” Johnson said in a statement.

The newly elected speaker said the first tranche of security footage, around 90 hours, will be released on a public committee website Friday, with the rest of the 44,000 hours expected to be posted over the next several months. In the meantime, a public viewing room will also be set up in the Capitol for viewing the footage.

For the last several months, the GOP-led House Administration Committee has made the video available by appointment only to members of the media, criminal defendants and a limited number of other people. The video shows some of the fighting up close and gives a bird’s eye view of the Capitol complex — one that visitors rarely see — as hundreds of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the building, violently attacking police officers and breaking in through windows and doors.

By expanding this access to the general public, Johnson is fulfilling one of the pledges he made last month to the most conservative members of his party, including Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who orchestrated the ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Both Gaetz and Trump — who is currently running for reelection as he faces federal charges for his role in the Jan. 6 attack — applauded Johnson’s decision.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump congratulated the speaker “for having the courage and fortitude” to release the footage.

The move by Johnson will grant the general public a stunning level of access to sensitive and explicit Jan. 6 security footage, which many critics have warned could endanger the safety of staff and members in the Capitol complex if it gets into the wrong hands. The hours of footage detail not only the shocking assault rioters made on U.S. Capitol Police as they breached the building but also how the rioters accessed the building and the routes lawmakers used to flee to safety.

A request for comment from Capitol Police was declined.

Johnson said Friday that the committee is processing the footage to blur the faces of individuals “to avoid any persons from being targeted for retaliation of any kind.” He added that an estimated 5% of the footage will not be publicly released as it ”may involve sensitive security information related to the building architecture.”

Gripping images and videos from the Capitol attack by Trump supporters have been widely circulated by documentarians, news organizations and even the rioters themselves. But until this year, officials held back much of the surveillance video from hundreds of security cameras stationed in and around the Capitol.

In February, McCarthy gave then-Fox News host Tucker Carlson exclusive access to the footage, a move that Democrats swiftly condemned as a “grave” breach of security with potentially far-reaching consequences.

The conservative commentator aired a first installment to millions of viewers on his prime-time show in the spring, working to bend perceptions of the violent, grueling siege that played out for the world to see into a narrative favorable to Trump.

It is all part of a larger effort by Republicans to redefine the narrative around the deadly insurrection after the findings of the House Jan. 6 committee last year. The select committee of seven Democrats and two Republicans spent months painstakingly documenting, with testimony and video evidence, how Trump rallied his supporters to head to the Capitol and “fight like hell” as Congress was certifying his loss to Democrat Joe Biden.

The committee’s final report released last December concluded that Trump criminally engaged in a “multi-part conspiracy” to overturn the lawful results of the 2020 presidential election and failed to act to stop his supporters from attacking the Capitol.

The panel passed their investigation to the Justice Department, recommending federal prosecutors investigate the former president on four crimes, including aiding an insurrection. And in August, Trump was indicted on four felony counts for his role in the attack as the Justice Department accused him of assaulting the “bedrock function” of democracy.

(AP)

Source: The Yeshiva World

British lawmakers horrified by footage of October 7th massacres

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November 19, 2023

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British lawmakers horrified by footage of October 7th massacres

47-minute video of footage from Hamas invasion screened at UK Parliament.

By Susan Tawil, World Israel News

A now infamous video documenting the October 7th Hamas invasion of southern Israel and subsequent massacres was screened for members of Britain’s Parliament last Wednesday.

The graphic 47-minute video presents evidence of the atrocities committed by Gazans on Israeli civilians and soldiers during the surprise terror attack on October 7th.

The film was compiled by the Israel Defense Force (IDF) from security footage, body-cam evidence, and the boastful social media postings of the Muslim terrorists.

The documentary has been shown selectively to various groups, including the Israeli Knesset, the U.S. House of Representatives, groups of foreign journalists operating in Israel, and Hollywood celebrities, among others.

Over 1,200 Israelis, most of them civilians, were slaughtered after Gaza terrorists breached the border fence in more than 30 places, overrunning IDF positions and seizing control of frontier towns.

More than 240 were taken hostage into Gaza for use as bargaining chips and human shields in the conflict, their fate still unknown, with, as yet, no investigation by the International Red Cross, the UN, or any other humanitarian agency.

Only some 70 British parliamentarians were present at the screening, a small percentage of the House of Common’s 650 MPs and over 800 Peers of the House of Lords. Those who watched were visibly affected.

“It’s horrible to witness what happened. The barbarism, the cruelty… this is real terrorism,” said MP Bob Blackman of the Conservative Party.

“The horrors cannot be described in words – but it will stay with me for the rest of my life,” said Labor Party MP Preet Gill. “What I saw was extremely difficult. People were… slaughtered and murdered in cold blood in front of their families. Also, the glorification of the murder (by the Palestinian terrorists) – and the celebrations following it – were very difficult to watch.”

Oren Marmorstein, Israel’s Deputy Ambassador to Great Britain, also present, commented: “It is our duty to testify about the brutal crimes committed by the terrorist organization Hamas. This is not a war for land, this is a war for humanity.”

The screening was organized by the London Israeli Embassy, together with the Britain-Israel Parliamentary Group.

Source: World Israel News

IBM, EU, Disney and Others Pull Ads From Elon Musk’s X as Concerns About Antisemitism Fuel Backlash

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November 19, 2023

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IBM, EU, Disney and Others Pull Ads From Elon Musk’s X as Concerns About Antisemitism Fuel Backlash

The liberal advocacy group Media Matters said in a report Thursday that ads from Apple and Oracle also were placed next to antisemitic material on X. On Friday it said it also found ads from Amazon, NBA Mexico, NBCUniversal and others next to white nationalist hashtags.

“IBM has zero tolerance for hate speech and discrimination and we have immediately suspended all advertising on X while we investigate this entirely unacceptable situation,” the company said in a statement.

Spokespeople for Comcast and NBCUniversal confirmed on Saturday that the companies had “paused” their advertising on X but did not provide additional details on the decision. Media Matters said it found ads for NBCUniversal’s Bravo network and its brand agency Catalyst next to antisemitic or white nationalist content.

Apple, Oracle and Amazon did not immediately respond to requests seeking comment.

The European Union’s executive branch said separately Friday it was pausing advertising on X and other social media platforms, in part because of a surge in hate speech. Later in the day, Disney, Lionsgate and Paramount Global also said they were suspending or pausing advertising on X.

Musk sparked outcry this week with his own tweets responding to a user who accused Jews of hating white people and professing indifference to antisemitism. “You have said the actual truth,” Musk tweeted in a reply Wednesday.

Musk has faced accusations of tolerating antisemitic messages on the platform since purchasing it last year, and the content on X has gained increased scrutiny since the war between Israel and Hamas began.

“We condemn this abhorrent promotion of Antisemitic and racist hate in the strongest terms, which runs against our core values as Americans,” White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said Friday in response to Musk’s tweet.

X CEO Linda Yaccarino said X’s “point of view has always been very clear that discrimination by everyone should STOP across the board.”

“I think that’s something we can and should all agree on,” she tweeted Thursday.

Yaccarino, a former NBCUniversal executive, was hired by Musk to rebuild ties with advertisers who fled after he took over, concerned that his easing of content restrictions was allowing hateful and toxic speech to flourish and that would harm their brands.

“When it comes to this platform — X has also been extremely clear about our efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination. There’s no place for it anywhere in the world — it’s ugly and wrong. Full stop,” Yaccarino said.

The accounts that Media Matters found posting antisemitic material will no longer be monetizable and the specific posts will be labeled “sensitive media,” according to a statement from X. Still, Musk decried Media Matters as “an evil organization.”

The head of the Anti-Defamation League also hit back at Musk’s tweets this week, in the latest clash between the prominent Jewish civil-rights organization and the billionaire businessman.

“At a time when antisemitism is exploding in America and surging around the world, it is indisputably dangerous to use one’s influence to validate and promote antisemitic theories,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said on X.

Musk also tweeted this week that he was “deeply offended by ADL’s messaging and any other groups who push de facto anti-white racism or anti-Asian racism or racism of any kind.”

The group has previously accused Musk of allowing antisemitism and hate speech to spread on the platform and amplifying the messages of neo-Nazis and white supremacists who want to ban the ADL.

The European Commission, meanwhile, said it’s putting all of its social media ad efforts on hold because of an “alarming increase in disinformation and hate speech” on platforms in recent weeks.

The commission, the 27-nation EU’s executive arm, said it is advising its services to “refrain from advertising at this stage on social media platforms where such content is present,” adding that the freeze doesn’t affect its official accounts on X.

The EU has taken a tough stance with new rules to clean up social media platforms, and last month it made a formal request to X for information about its handling of hate speech, misinformation and violent terrorist content related to the Israel-Hamas war.

X isn’t alone in dealing with problematic content since the conflict.

On Thursday, TikTok removed the hashtag #lettertoamerica after users on the app posted sympathetic videos about Osama bin Laden’s 2002 letter justifying the terrorist attacks against Americans on 9/11 and criticizing U.S. support for Israel. The Guardian news outlet, which published the transcript of the letter that was being shared, took it down and replaced it with a statement that directed readers to a news article from 2002 that it said provided more context.

The videos garnered widespread attention among X users critical of TikTok, which is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance. TikTok said the letter was not a trend on its platform and blamed an X post by journalist Yashar Ali and media coverage for drawing more engagement to the hashtag.

The short-form video app has faced criticism from Republicans and others who say the platform has been failing to protect Jewish users from harassment and pushing pro-Palestinian content to viewers.

TikTok has aggressively pushed back, saying it’s been taking down antisemitic content and doesn’t manipulate its algorithm to take sides.

Source: VosIzNeias

Yemeni Houthi Rebels Seize Israeli-Owned Cargo Ship

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November 19, 2023

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Yemeni Houthi Rebels Seize Israeli-Owned Cargo Ship

Saudi media outlets reported on Sunday that Yemeni Houthi rebels in the Red Sea have reportedly gained control over a cargo ship, partially owned by an Israeli businessman, holding captive its crew.

The ship was identified as the Galaxy Leader, transporting cars in the Red Sea. It sails under Bahama’s flag and is has its home port in Nassau.

Israel denied that any of its nationals were aboard the cargo ship. Officials accused Iran of being behind the action.

“We strongly condemn the Iranian attack against an international ship. The ship, owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese company, was hijacked on Iranian instructions by the Houthi militia in Yemen,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.

“On board the ship are 25 crew members of different nationalities, including: Ukrainians, Bulgarians, Filipinos and Mexicans. No Israelis were present on the ship. This is another act of Iranian terrorism that expresses a leap forward in Iran’s aggression against the citizens of the free world, and creates international implications regarding the security of global shipping lanes.”

The IDF said that the ship had departed Turkey and was on its way to India with an international crew.

“It is not an Israeli ship,” the IDF said.

Israeli media reports said the ship was partially owned by Israeli businessman Rami Unger.

Saudi media reports quoting the Iran-backed Houthis said the ship was seized in an area of the Red Sea between Saudi Arabia and Sudan. The Houthis claimed the crew were Israeli.

Israel has bolstered its naval presence in the Red Sea area following repeated missile and drone attacks from Yemen.

The IDF said that missile boats were deployed “in accordance with the assessment of the situation, and as part of the increased defense efforts in the region.”

A spokesman for Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi military, Yahya Sarea, said earlier Sunday the group will target all ships owned or operated by Israeli companies or carrying the Israeli flag, according to the group’s social media channel.

The spokesman called on all countries to withdraw their citizens working on the crews of any such ships.

Source: Hamodia

Soldiers Discover 35 Gaza Tunnel Shafts, Seize Weapons

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November 19, 2023

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Soldiers Discover 35 Gaza Tunnel Shafts, Seize Weapons

By Pesach Benson • 19 November, 2023

Jerusalem, 19 November, 2023 (TPS) — Israeli soldiers discovered 35 tunnel shafts and seized weapons in northern Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces announced on Sunday.The shafts and tunnels were discovered during raids on the homes of Hamas officials in Gaza’s upscale Rimal and Sheikh Ejalin neighborhoods. A number of Hamas terrorists were killed in the fighting.

Israeli forces also raided a Hamas military camp where ammunition depots and seven rocket launchers were uncovered.

The army reported on Sunday morning that over the past 24 hours, soldiers engaged Hamas terrorists on the outskirts of Jabaliya.

A terror cell preparing to fire on troops from the roof of a residential building was eliminated in an air strike, according to the IDF. Weapons and military equipment were also found in residential buildings in the neighborhood.

Israeli Navy commandos assisted ground forces from their position off the Gaza coast, attacking Hamas targets “using thousands of munitions from the sea” and assisting ground forces “with fire and observation by opening axes, escorting with fire, thwarting land threats against our forces and providing cover for land missions from the sea,” according to the IDF.

Zera Shimshon – Toldos

Parsha of the Week

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November 17, 2023

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TikTok Is ‘Aggressively’ Scrubbing Videos Praising Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’

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November 17, 2023

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TikTok Is ‘Aggressively’ Scrubbing Videos Praising Bin Laden’s ‘Letter to America’

TikTok is in the process of taking down videos on its platform that promote Osama Bin Laden’s letter justifying the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States, with the tech company saying that the content “clearly violates” platform rules against “supporting any form of terrorism.”

In a statement to X on Thursday, TikTok said it was “proactively and aggressively removing this content and investigating how it got onto our platform.” The company also disputed earlier reports that the letter had become a viral trend on the platform, saying that the actual number of videos made about it on TikTok had been “small,” though it did not provide specific data.

The abrupt surge of interest in the letter, which was also discussed this week by users on other social media platforms, including Instagram and X, led The Guardian to yank a copy of the full translated letter it published in 2002. The British newspaper said that the decision had been made “to take it down and direct readers to the news article that originally contextualized it instead.” Read more at Semafor.

Source: Matzav

World’s Largest Journalism Organization Slammed as ‘Hamas Propaganda Tool’

Hamas
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November 17, 2023

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World’s Largest Journalism Organization Slammed as ‘Hamas Propaganda Tool’

By TPS • 17 November, 2023

Jerusalem, 17 November, 2023 (TPS) — The Jerusalem Association of Journalists on Thursday called on the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) to “cease being a propaganda tool” for Hamas, in particular accusing Israel of targeting reporters in the Gaza Strip.

The Jerusalem journalists group said that the IFJ, along with the Palestinian Journalists Association, “without any investigation and without any checking of the facts,” is blaming Israel for the death of at least 35 reporters and journalistic staff covering the Hamas war.

“It is sad to witness an international journalist organization ignoring a basic rule of journalism: to avoid turning the press into a propaganda tool for one side, during this battle against the terror group Hamas, whose total lack of moral scruples is crystal clear for all to see,” the Jerusalem Association of Journalists said.

The group noted it had proposed a hotline for Israeli and Palestinian journalists facing difficulty in the field, but it failed to get off the ground due to Palestinian non-participation.

“We are not members of the IFJ and will not participate in future events. Recent anti-Israel statements from the IFJ are further proof that the organization has turned into a propaganda tool and vindicates our stand,” the Jerusalem Association of Journalists said.

“Furthermore, we condemn the fact that the IFJ ignores the restrictions Hamas imposes on journalists and the way the terror group blocks freedom of expression for the residents of Gaza,” it continued.

According to its website, the IFJ is the world’s largest organization of journalists, representing 600,000 media professionals from 187 trade unions and associations in more than 140 countries.