Time is running out. Demand that the September 5 performance be called off!

Imagine taking a small child to a family-friendly show and being bombarded by hate.

The Cardboard Pizza Puppet Circus, created and performed by the Boxcutter Collective puppet troupe, was billed as a “family show” suitable for ages 4 and up.

The show, part of the fourth International Puppet Fringe Festival, a multi-day celebration of New York City Aug. 12-16 on the city’s Lower East Side, was sponsored in part by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York State Council on the Arts.

According to the show’s description, it featured “dancing skyscrapers, giant rats, fossil-fuel-fighting flowers, a live brass band, and Lady Liberty herself.”

But about 15 minutes into the show, it reportedly turned into an anti-Israel hate fest.

“The anti-Israel stuff came out of nowhere,” a self-described “proud Zionist” woman who took her 4-year-old child to the show told the New York Post.

“It went from pizza rat and parallel parking to accusations of Israel bombing hospitals,” she said.

The show, attended by approximately 200 people, included a scene in which eight performers reenacted a flotilla, prompting enthusiastic boos against Israel from members of the audience, she told the Post. Another segment addressed U.S. taxpayer money going to Israel.

“What does anti-Israel propaganda have to do with a show that is entirely about New York?” she asked. “Is hatred of Israel an integral part of the city’s brand?”

The mother said her “heart was racing” as many in the crowd appeared to agree with “the litany of accusations” against Israel.

“(I was) feeling like I was surrounded by my ideological enemies,” she said.

“My generation is now experiencing a new version of antisemitism here in New York, exactly what my family fled from in the Soviet Union,” she said, adding that she was too afraid to voice her objection during the show, considering the anti-Israel animosity as well as having her child with her.

“A mom took her four-year-old to a publicly funded, family-friendly puppet festival in NYC. Instead, the performance reportedly veered into highly critical and offensive messaging about Israel, the world’s only Jewish state,” Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, said in a statement.

“This is an inappropriate use of public resources,” he added. “Publicly funded cultural programming should never contribute to an environment in which Jewish New Yorkers feel unsafe.”

Diya Vij, the commissioner for NYC’s Department of Cultural Affairs, was appointed to the position by Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Vij has collaborated with outspoken anti-Zionist artist Morgan Bassichis and published a poem in 2016 describing the desire for a president who will end the U.S.-Israel relationship.

The next performance of The Cardboard Pizza Puppet Circus by the Boxcutter Collective is scheduled for September 5, 2026, at Governors Island (DuYe Moves at Colonels Row) in New York City. This must be stopped!

Jewish children – as well as adults – should be able to enjoy a truly family-friendly show rather than being exposed to hate and antisemitism.

Please demand that the show be canceled! This matter is urgent – we have only a few days left!

Write to: Karen Welch, deputy director of programs, New York State Council on the Arts, at Karen.Welch@arts.ny.gov

You can write to more council staff members by visiting https://arts.ny.gov/contact

To contact Gov. Hochul, go to https://fightantisemitism.live/nygov-contact

Suggested text:

Dear…,

“The Cardboard Pizza Puppet Circus,” advertised as a “family-friendly” show celebrating New York City, was in fact an Israel-bashing event that shocked Jewish parents and children.

Part of the fourth International Puppet Fringe Festival, it was created and performed by the Boxcutter Collective puppet troupe, which describes its work as having a political, anti-capitalist, environmental and social focus.

As reported in the New York Post, a mother took her 4-year-old child to the show, and she was left feeling shocked and afraid. The child could not understand what was happening.

About 15 minutes into the show, “it went from pizza rat and parallel parking to accusations of Israel bombing hospitals,” she said.

“It felt like a mob. The hairs on the back of my neck just stood up,” she said.

“This is an inappropriate use of public resources,” said Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League. “Publicly funded cultural programming should never contribute to an environment in which Jewish New Yorkers feel unsafe.”

Indeed, Jewish families have the same right to enjoy cultural outings as do others, especially in New York City, a major global center for theater and the arts.

As concerning as the deluge of anti-Israel and antisemitic propaganda is today, there must be a red line drawn when it comes to entertainment for children.

No parent or child deserves to experience hatred and fear when attending what is billed as a family-friendly show! 

Last month, New York Governor Kathy Hochul urged Mayor Zohran Mamdani to spend less time attacking Israel and more time governing New York City, as his rhetoric continues to alarm Jewish residents amid elevated levels of antisemitic hate crime.

“Let’s focus on blocking and tackling of city government,” Hochul told The New York Times. She also vowed to “throw my body against any antisemitism.”

In that vein, what does the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have to do with celebrating New York City?

I demand that you make every effort to ensure that the next performance of The Cardboard Pizza Puppet Circus, scheduled for this coming Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026, at Governors Island (DuYe Moves at Colonels Row) in New York City, be canceled immediately and that future shows for children be vetted. 

Respectfully,

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Meanwhile, student enrollment in the Gaza-border Tkuma region is about 9% higher than on the eve of the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, according to the Tkuma Directorate.

By Joshua Marks, JNS

Around 2.6 million Israeli students are set to return to schools and preschools across the country on Tuesday as the 5786/87 academic year gets underway on Sept. 1, the Education Ministry said on Monday.

Among those attending classes, roughly 180,000 children are entering the first grade, while around 143,000 12th graders will begin their final year in high school.

The curriculum includes the introduction of financial education studies for ninth-grade pupils, as well as an expanded focus on STEM and artificial intelligence across educational programs.

More than 1.1 million children participated in educational programming during the summer months.

The ministry said the first week of the school year would focus on strengthening students’ sense of belonging, resilience, and social ties, including the prevention of violence, social exclusion, and bullying in physical and digital settings.

The Education Ministry said its “Israel Realia” STEM reform, launched in the previous school year with an investment of approximately 500 million shekels ($137 million), aims to return Israel to the top 10 in the TIMSS (International Mathematics and Science Study) international assessments by 2029.

TIMSS’s Program 720, which adapts instruction to the AI era, will operate in English classes in all middle schools and expand to approximately 140 STEM schools.

More than 12,000 English and STEM teachers will undergo AI training, while eighth and ninth graders will take a 20-hour program on informed and creative AI use, critical thinking, identifying false information, and responsible and ethical conduct.

Education Minister Yoav Kisch said, “We are opening the year with great responsibility and with a clear direction: to strengthen Israeli students’ sense of belonging and resilience; deepen identity, values, and heritage; and, at the same time, provide them with the knowledge and tools that will enable them to lead and succeed in a rapidly changing world.”

Thousands of Israel Police and Border Police officers, volunteers, and civilian security squad members will deploy around educational institutions nationwide early Tuesday for the start of the academic year, the Israel Police said on Monday.

Police Commissioner Danny Levi approved the deployment and instructed all police districts and divisions to operate at full readiness, with forces tasked with securing students and parents, maintaining public order, and directing increased traffic around schools.

Growth in Gaza-border communities

Meanwhile, student enrollment in the Gaza-border Tkuma region is about 9% higher than on the eve of the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, according to the Tkuma Directorate.

A total of 22,233 students are enrolled for the 5786/87 school year in the Tkuma region’s five local authorities: the city of Sderot and the regional councils of Eshkol, Hof Ashkelon, Sdot Negev, and Sha’ar Hanegev.

That is an increase of 1,802 students, or about 9%, compared with the eve of the Oct. 7 attacks.

Enrollment in Sderot has risen by about 16% from its prewar level, while enrollment in Sdot Negev and Hof Ashkelon is also higher than it was before the war.

Of the pupils counted across the Tkuma region, 4,553 are children from birth to age 3, 3,965 are in kindergarten and 13,715 are in grades one through 12. The enrollment growth aligns with community returns over the summer, including more than 95% of residents returning to Kibbutz Kissufim, the return of residents to Holit and Kfar Aza, and the youth cohort from Kibbutz Be’eri returning to study in the Eshkol region.

“The increase in the number of students in all the region’s local authorities compared with last year is far more than a numerical figure; it reflects the return home, the strengthening of the communities and the Tkuma region’s transition from recovery to growth,” Tkuma Directorate head Aviad Friedman said.

“The education system is one of the most important pillars in building the region’s future, and therefore we are investing in it not only to meet today’s needs but also with an eye toward the years ahead.”

The Tkuma Directorate said it is investing 364 million shekels (about $100 million) in eight education projects in 2026 to strengthen the region’s education system, community resilience, and long-term growth.

The funding includes 184 million shekels for a local-needs education basket, 103 million shekels for additional educational facilities and 54 million shekels for informal education programs, with an emphasis on English and technology studies, recruitment and retention of education personnel, and developing future school administrators.

As students across the United Arab Emirates returned to classrooms on Monday and Israeli pupils prepared for their first day on Tuesday, the Israeli embassy in Abu Dhabi sent “its warmest wishes for a productive, enjoyable, and brilliant academic year ahead!”

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According to Sánchez, the false narrative was amplified online by networks he associated with Israel and Russia.

By United with Israel Staff

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Monday accused social media networks linked to Israel and Russia of helping spread false information that he said contributed to a massive influx of migrants from Morocco into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in late July.

Speaking to Spanish radio station Cadena SER, Sánchez was asked whether authorities had determined what prompted more than 70,000 people to enter Ceuta over the course of just two days.

Sánchez said the investigation remains ongoing but claimed that one factor was the deliberate distortion of a ruling issued by Spain’s Supreme Court.

“We are continuing to investigate the causes,” Sánchez said. “The Spanish government has to act based on data and established facts. What we know so far is that a Supreme Court ruling was distorted.”

According to Sánchez, the false narrative was then amplified online by networks he associated with Israel and Russia.

“The hoax was spread on social media networks associated both with Russia and Israel and with a far-right international movement that always uses migration not only to attack Spain, but also to attack Europe,” he said.

The Spanish premier did not identify the Israeli networks he was referring to or publicly present evidence during the interview linking Israeli actors to the campaign.

He also stopped short of accusing the Israeli government of involvement, stressing that the activity did not necessarily originate with a state actor.

“The reality we are facing does not mean that it has to come from a state actor,” Sánchez said. “Unfortunately, we do not have complete knowledge of what happened and we are continuing to investigate, but the government has to work based on certainties.”

Sánchez also linked the alleged disinformation campaign to international far-right groups, accusing them of exploiting migration to attack Spain, undermine Europe and sow division across the continent.

“In any case, this falsehood was exploited and spread through social media,” Sánchez concluded. “That is what we know.”

Sánchez said roughly 70,000 migrants entered Ceuta during the crisis, with approximately nine out of 10 subsequently returning. About 5,000 migrants remained in the Spanish enclave, including some 1,200 minors, he said.

Despite the scale of the influx from Morocco, Sánchez said Spanish security services and the country’s National Intelligence Center had found no information raising doubts about the role of Moroccan authorities.

“Cooperation with Morocco is frankly positive,” he said.

Sánchez’s allegations against Israel come against the backdrop of deeply strained relations between Jerusalem and Madrid. His government has emerged as one of Israel’s harshest critics in Europe, repeatedly clashing with Jerusalem over the war in Gaza and Spain’s policies toward the Jewish state.

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Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 requires schools to disclose publicly certain gifts and contracts of $250,000 or more in a calendar year.

By Aaron Bandler, JNS

The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law is urging the U.S. Department of Education to stop delaying release of documents showing foreign sources of funding to colleges and universities.

In a letter to the department on Monday, the center, which is representing the Louis D. Brandeis Center Coalition to Combat Antisemitism, a separate entity, states that Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 requires schools to disclose publicly certain gifts and contracts of $250,000 or more in a calendar year.

The department said on July 6 that it would release a report on July 15 that would feature “the names of all foreign sources from prior reporting cycles” but postponed releasing the report four times in the past two months. The current release date is now said to be Sept. 11, according to the Brandeis Center.

“These repeated postponements are increasingly difficult to reconcile with the transparency objectives of Section 117 and the department’s own stated commitment to publishing this information,” the center wrote. “Moreover, the department has not publicly identified the legal basis for continuing to withhold information that it has repeatedly announced would be released.” (JNS sought comment from the Education Department.)

Karen Paikin Barall, chief policy officer of the center, told JNS that “the data being withheld includes historical and current records dating back to when the law was enacted in 1986, including information about foreign entities and individuals.”

The center is calling on the department to release the information by Sept. 11 at latest. It also filed a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain the information as part of the letter.

“It’s important to stress that the American public has a right to know who is funding our universities, particularly when that funding may influence academic programs, what is taught and who is teaching it,” Paikin Barall told JNS. “Congress also has a right to this information in order to conduct meaningful oversight.”

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One potential obstacle is the political climate in Australia, where local Jews have reported feeling increasingly uncomfortable.

By Shula Rosen

Australian investors are being encouraged to look beyond Israel’s better-known cyber and defense industries, with climate technology, energy transition and agritech emerging as possible areas for greater cooperation between the two countries.

Helping make that connection is Next76, a venture created two years ago by Bandera Capital and Foxglove Capital specifically to invest in Israeli companies.

Its backers see Australian demand in areas where Israeli companies are developing technology, particularly energy, food and agriculture.

“Agritech has a big role in biofuels and the emerging low-carbon liquid fuel sector,” David Solsky, an operating partner at Bandera, told The Jerusalem Post. “I think those kinds of companies would be interesting for Australians to explore.”

On November 19, Israeli companies will have an opportunity to test that interest at the first-ever Jerusalem Post Australia Summit in Sydney, where businesses and investors will meet to explore potential partnerships.

Behind Next76 is also a desire to support Israel through investment. Following October 7, Australian Jews responded through philanthropy, rebuilding projects and advocacy, while Solsky and his partners began considering how their own professional experience could be put to use.

“We started to look at how we could ultimately invest in Israel, and we think climate and energy transition are particularly relevant verticals,” Solsky said.

Israel’s ability to weather recent challenges has added to their confidence. “Despite the war and some of the challenges that Israelis face, the economy has continued to be strong,” he said.

One potential obstacle is the political climate in Australia, where local Jews have reported feeling increasingly uncomfortable, particularly following the Bondi Beach massacre.

Solsky said the hostility receiving attention does not represent the broader country, where many businesses and investors remain open to working with Israelis.

For Israeli companies, Australia could offer more than investment. Solsky sees it as a market in its own right and potentially a stepping-stone for businesses ultimately seeking to expand into the United States.

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Netanyahu thanked the Slovenian PM for refusing to condemn Israel’s planned E1 construction plans.

By Canaan Lidor, JNS

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday backed his Slovenian counterpart, Janez Janša, amid a public row between Janša and Slovenia’s president over the E.U. position on Israeli construction east of Jerusalem.

Netanyahu thanked Janša on X for his “courage and clarity amidst E.U. hypocrisy.” This was after Janša, who is a right-wing politician supportive of Israel, clashed publicly with Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar, a left-wing critic of the Jewish state, over Ljubljana’s refusal to join other E.U. member states in condemning construction plans in the E1 area, an undeveloped part of the Jerusalem suburb of Ma’aleh Adumim.

The clash began last week, when Pirc Musar published a statement that criticized the decision by Janša’s government to refrain from supporting a draft condemnation by all 27 members of the European Union against the Israeli plan. Slovenia’s stance prevented a united position by member states, according to the EUobserver news site.

The European Commission’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, issued a condemnation of the plans.

Pirc Musar “emphasizes that Slovenia must support the joint statement of the European Union regarding the further expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank,” her office wrote. “International law is not a matter of political choice and there must be no double standards in its respect. It applies equally to everyone,” the statement also read.

The presidential statement followed an unusual defense by Janša of the decision not to join the other 26 member states. On Aug. 27, he wrote: “In truth, we have merely extricated Slovenia from the vicious cycle of losing credibility through the incessant, disproportionate condemnations of Israel for every move it makes.”

Janša responded on Friday to Pirc Musar’s criticism, disputing the framing of Slovenia as an entity that is forced to follow a group position.

“Slovenia is a sovereign state and an equal member of the E.U., and without our consent (or the consent of any other member state), there is no ‘European foreign policy position’ that we would be obliged to support. We are co-decision makers, not servants,” Janša wrote on X.

He also said there was a discrepancy between Pirc Musar’s declared adherence to international law, and the fact that she publicly accused Israel of perpetrating genocide—including at a 2025 European Parliament speech—despite the absence of a ruling on the matter by international law bodies.

“Swearing allegiance to international law while at the same time speaking of genocide in Gaza or in Judea and Samaria (aka the West Bank), which no competent institution has determined under international law—this is a political choice of a special kind,” Janša said.

On X, Netanyahu’s official account featured a statement by him on Sunday, thanking Janša and backing his position in the argument with Pirc Musar.

The E.U., Netanyahu wrote, “remains silent when Turkey, a NATO member, illegally occupies half of Cyprus—an E.U. member! Yet when the Jewish people want to exercise their historic right to build and live in their ancestral homeland, the E.U. is outraged. You reminded everyone that Slovenia is a sovereign state and an equal member of the E.U. That is not a provocation. It is a right that some wish to deny. Thank you, Janez, for your conviction and leadership.”

Under Janša, the government dropped all the anti-Israel sanctions adopted by his predecessor, Robert Golob of the left-wing Freedom Movement. Pirc Musar ran for president as an independent but had the support of the Freedom Movement and another left-wing party. Janša’s party, SDS, supported her opponent.

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Three men suffered stab wounds that were not considered life-threatening.

By Shula Rosen

A 43-year-old TikTok streamer and fitness influencer allegedly stabbed three men outside Amsterdam Centraal railway station on Saturday evening during a confrontation that was partially livestreamed on TikTok, according to media reports. Authorities have not publicly identified a motive.

Dutch media identified the suspect as Angelo Bryson, known online as “Superhuman Unchained,” a personal trainer and fitness influencer originally from the Dutch Caribbean.

Media reports described Bryson as a recent convert to Islam who had become increasingly outspoken in support of the Palestinians and had attended pro-Palestinian demonstrations.

His social media activity had also increasingly focused on Islamic and pro-Palestinian subjects.

Bryson was allegedly involved in an argument with a group of six or seven men before the stabbing. During the TikTok livestream, he could be heard saying, “I’m not afraid of six, seven men” and “they’re all going to fall.”

Bryson then positioned his phone so that the group was visible before the livestream abruptly ended as the confrontation became physical, reports said.

Three men suffered stab wounds that were not considered life-threatening.

They were hospitalized along with Bryson, who was also injured and was arrested by Dutch police.

Amsterdam investigators, however, have not officially confirmed Bryson’s identity or announced evidence that the stabbing was motivated by political or religious beliefs. The investigation remains ongoing.

Initial accounts circulating after the incident said four people had been stabbed, but reports identified three men as stabbing victims.

Bryson’s injuries brought the total number of people injured in the confrontation to four.

The incident attracted attention in part because portions of the confrontation were broadcast live to Bryson’s TikTok audience before the stream ended.

Police have not publicly linked Bryson’s reported religious conversion or pro-Palestinian activity to the attack.

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“Iran created the threat and the U.S. military eliminated it to protect civilian mariners, commercial shipping, and the free flow of global commerce,” CENTCOM said.

By United with Israel Staff

U.S. forces struck two Iranian missile launchers on Larak Island on Sunday after intelligence indicated that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was preparing to fire missiles carrying naval mines toward the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first reported U.S. strike on Iranian targets in weeks.

A senior U.S. official told Al Jazeera that the launchers were preparing to deploy the mines into the strategically vital waterway. U.S. Central Command later described the operation as “limited, precise action” against IRGC minelaying forces that posed an imminent threat to civilian mariners, commercial shipping and global commerce.

The IRGC said the attack killed and wounded several Iranian fighters and civilians and vowed retaliation.

“The terrorist enemy’s aggression on Larak Island will be met with punishment for the aggressor,” the IRGC said in a statement carried by Iranian state media.

CENTCOM rejected Tehran’s characterization of the operation as an act of aggression.

“In essence, Iran created the threat and the U.S. military eliminated it to protect civilian mariners, commercial shipping, and the free flow of global commerce,” CENTCOM said.

Hours later, Iran launched fresh attacks across the region, firing missiles that entered Jordanian airspace and sending a drone toward the United Arab Emirates.

Jordan’s Armed Forces said it intercepted eight Iranian missiles that entered the kingdom’s airspace Sunday, according to state media cited by Reuters.

The UAE separately announced that its air defenses had intercepted an Iranian drone over the country’s territorial waters, condemning the incident as a “hostile Iranian attack” and a “flagrant violation” of its sovereignty, security and stability.

The UAE Foreign Ministry said it would “not tolerate any threat to its security and sovereignty under any circumstances” and reserved its right to respond in a manner necessary to protect the country and its citizens.

Abu Dhabi also accused Tehran of violating the cessation of hostilities and said it held Iran “fully responsible for these attacks and their repercussions.”

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints, making any attempt to mine the waterway a potentially significant threat to commercial shipping and global energy markets.

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“Israel and Greece share common strategic interests and face common regional challenges,” Katz said.

By United with Israel Staff

Israel and Greece signed a landmark defense agreement Monday worth approximately €3 billion ($3.5 billion), under which Israeli defense companies will build a comprehensive, multilayered air defense network for Greece.

The deal, dubbed “Achilles Shield,” is the largest defense export agreement ever signed between Israel and Greece and one of the largest in Israel’s history, according to the Israeli Defense Ministry.

Defense Ministry Director General Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram and Greek procurement chief Ioannis Bouras signed the agreement at the Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv, alongside senior Israeli defense officials and executives from Rafael and Israel Aerospace Industries.

Under the agreement, Greece will receive an integrated Israeli-built air defense architecture designed to counter threats ranging from ballistic missiles and aircraft to drones.

The system will incorporate Rafael’s David’s Sling and SPYDER air defense systems, Israel Aerospace Industries’ BARAK MX system and IAI’s ELTA-made MMR multimission radars. Rafael will also lead the development of a new national command-and-control system integrating the various air defense capabilities.

The agreement marks the first time Israel’s Defense Ministry will provide another country with such a comprehensive air defense network, drawing heavily on technology and operational experience accumulated by Israel during recent conflicts.

A separate €26 million agreement was also signed for Rafael’s Drone Dome counter-drone systems, which will be used to protect strategic sites and bolster Greece’s defenses against unmanned aerial threats.

Israel will also expand industrial defense cooperation with Greece, including the transfer of knowledge and technology to Greek industry.

Defense Minister Israel Katz hailed the agreement as a major step in the growing strategic partnership between Jerusalem and Athens, pointing to his visit to Greece several months ago as evidence of the increasingly close ties.

“My visit to Greece several months ago as the guest of Greek Defense Minister Dendias was another expression of the depth of the strategic relationship between Israel and Greece and our shared determination to continue strengthening it,” Katz said. “During the meeting, we agreed to deepen defense cooperation between our countries.”

“Israel and Greece share common strategic interests and face common regional challenges,” he continued.

“At a time when actors with hegemonic ambitions seek to expand their influence and undermine regional stability, Israel and Greece will continue to deepen their defense and strategic cooperation and act decisively to preserve stability and safeguard their security and shared interests.”

Katz did not name Turkey, but his reference to “actors with hegemonic ambitions” comes amid sharply escalating tensions between Israel and Turkey over Ankara’s regional ambitions, particularly in Syria.

Israel has repeatedly warned that it will not tolerate a Turkish military buildup in Syria that could threaten the Jewish state. Israeli officials have also accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of seeking to expand Ankara’s influence across the region, while relations between Israel and Greece have grown increasingly close.

The strengthening Israel-Greece defense relationship has taken on added strategic significance as both countries navigate their complicated relationships with Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean.

Baram said the Achilles Shield agreement reflected international confidence in Israeli technology and in air defense systems that have accumulated extensive combat experience.

“The Achilles Shield deal is a strategic milestone in Israel-Greece defense relations and reflects the deep trust our partners around the world place in Israeli technological superiority and the proven operational experience of our defense systems,” he said.

Baram added that major government-to-government defense agreements help expand Israeli production lines, increase weapons stockpiles and strengthen Israel’s ability to manufacture critical defense systems domestically.

Rafael Chairman Yuval Steinitz noted that Greece will become the second European country to acquire David’s Sling, calling the agreement a major vote of confidence in Israeli defense technology.

IAI Chairman Boaz Levy similarly pointed to the combat record of Israeli air defense systems, saying they had demonstrated their capabilities against Iran and its proxies, including by intercepting ballistic threats.

The Defense Ministry said the massive agreement reflects a broader strategy of expanding Israeli defense exports while simultaneously strengthening the IDF and Israel’s domestic defense industry.

Demand for Israeli defense technology has grown as Israeli-developed systems have accumulated extensive operational experience against missiles, drones and other aerial threats during the country’s recent wars.

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In an ever-intensifying effort to save even more lives, United Hatzalah is launching a two-year academy program aimed at providing top-notch medical training for paramedics.

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Neither side is under sufficient pressure to force the other to retreat.

By Jonathan Spyer, Middle East Forum

The standoff between Iran and the United States has currently reached a stalemate. Iranians hope to use control of the Strait of Hormuz as a lever to force an American climb-down but show no sign of realization.

The IRGC’s extension of its methods of asymmetrical warfare to the Strait was a creative and bold move.

In the same way that terrorist movements seek to offset military inferiority by striking directly at an adversary’s civilian population, Iran tried to raise the costs for civilian ships seeking to transit the Strait to a level that companies and shipowners would find intolerable.

In this way, Iran hoped to render US conventional naval ascendancy meaningless.

Faced with skyrocketing oil prices as midterm elections loomed, the US would be forced to concede the issue, Iran’s new Persian Gulf Strait Authority would become the accepted custodian of the strait and victory could be declared.

It hasn’t worked. Rather, the limitations of Tehran’s capacities for disruption have been exposed.

Firstly, it turns out that conventional naval superiority is not an advantage that can so easily be neutralized.

US maritime patrols and capacity to escort ships via the southern Omani corridor through the Strait are proving somewhat effective.

The volume of oil passing through the Strait this way is disputed. Many observers consider that the US claim of 8 to 10 million barrels per day is exaggerated (and even this figure would represent less than half of the amount transiting the Strait prior to the war).

But even the more modest and generally accepted figure of 5 to 6 million barrels per day represents a major and growing dent in Iranian claims of control over the Strait.

Major oil-producing states, meanwhile, are finding alternative routes. Saudi Arabia is using its East-West crude oil pipeline to bring roughly 7 million barrels of oil per day to its terminal at the Red Sea port of Yanbu.

Ships exiting from Yanbu still have to go through the Bab el Mandeb Strait on the way to Suez. But as of now, Iran’s Houthi allies appear reluctant to go all in on behalf of Tehran.

The United Arab Emirates, meanwhile, is using its Habshan-Fujaira pipeline, dubbed the Abu Dhabi crude oil pipeline (ADCOP), to transport crude oil across the desert to the port of Fujaira on the Gulf of Oman, once more bypassing Hormuz.

Up to 1.8 million barrels of oil are exiting the Gulf per day via that route. In partnership with Total Energies, the Emiratis are currently fast-tracking a parallel pipeline project intended to double capacity along this route.

The result: Iran’s hopes of generating a global economic crisis by choking off Hormuz have not been realized.

Current trends indicate that the effects of their efforts to disrupt passage through the Strait will decline still further in the period ahead, as states and private companies adjust to the threat and either bypass it or find and develop alternative routes.

Disruption to Hormuz was a tactic that needed to reach maximum effect quickly, forcing a political result. It failed to achieve this, and its impact, while considerable, is now diminishing.

Iran is also facing the impact of the war and the US economic blockade.

Its economy is set to contract by 5.4 percent in the year ahead, inflation is approaching 90 percent, oil exports from Kharg Island have effectively ceased due to the US blockade and there are widespread petrol shortages.

That is in addition to the infrastructural damage inflicted during the fighting between February and April.

But while Iran’s efforts to force a US climbdown appear to have failed, the Americans have similarly not succeeded in exerting sufficient pressure on their opponents to force the regime to abandon its ongoing disruption of Hormuz.

Hence the stalemate. Neither side is under sufficient pressure to force the other to retreat.

The result: both sides are trying to find ways to escalate. The Iranians, in this case and more generally, have only one real tool in their box—disruption by military means, conventional and asymmetrical.

Sure enough, a series of statements from Iranian officials in recent days have threatened a return to war.

Iranian Defence Minister Majid Ebn Alreza asserted this week that in response to increased US sanctions, ‘To protect our people, we too have no choice but to expand the battlefield.’

Mohen Rezai, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, said on Iranian state television that ‘any country participating in America’s economic war will be regarded as an enemy.’ And so on.

It is questionable as to whether Iran will in fact seek to return to war, but the possibility of isolated strikes against US regional allies in the Gulf or US installations is distinctly possible in the period ahead.

The US, for its part, wants to now increase the pressure on Iran by closing off its remaining economic partnerships via secondary sanctions against countries doing business with Tehran.

This is what Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent referred to as an ‘economic D-Day,’ an ‘onslaught against Iran’s financial connections around the globe.’

Again, it’s not yet clear if anything very substantial will emerge from this.

Over the last decade, it has been Iran’s relationship with China that has enabled it to ride out periods of pressure from the US. China has already announced that it opposes the new sanctions on Iran and regards them as illegal.

It remains to be seen if Washington will begin to target Chinese companies. Past form in any case suggests that Chinese concessions in this area are unlikely.

What all this means in practice is that, despite the rhetoric on both sides, major escalation currently appears unlikely, and the stalemate looks set to limp on for the immediate future.

Iran failed to turn its seizure of Hormuz into the knife to the global economy’s throat that it had hoped for.

On the other hand, the US has not yet found a way to force the Iranians back from their efforts to disrupt and hence control passage over the strait. President Trump told Al Jazeera yesterday that he is in ‘no rush.’

Amid all this, it is worth remembering that the very fact that the entire dispute now centers around Hormuz represents a significant gain for Iran.

Prior to 28 February, there was free passage through the Strait. By seizing it, Teheran succeeded in changing the subject and terms of the dispute.

The Memorandum of Understanding that was meant to end the fighting in April is a dead letter.

But the US is no longer using Iran’s ballistic missiles or nuclear programs or its support of proxies as potential reasons for a return to fighting.

Regime change too is off the table. Iran succeeded by surviving but has failed to impose its own terms. The contest, as a result, grinds on.

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Former hostage Omer Shem Tov published his new book, “Meeting Myself in Hell,” revealing how he fought every day to survive in Hamas’ tunnels and found faith and himself amid the horror and darkness.

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The Cabinet Office condemned the employee’s actions and confirmed that disciplinary steps were being taken.

By United with Israel Staff

A senior British civil servant is facing disciplinary action after sharing a social media post saying Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should have died instead of country music star Dolly Parton.

The Cabinet Office employee reposted an image of Parton on Instagram following the singer’s death at age 80 on Tuesday. The image carried the caption: “It should have been Netanyahu.”

The post sparked scrutiny over the conduct of a government employee holding a senior position within the Cabinet Office, which supports the British prime minister and coordinates work across the government.

The Cabinet Office condemned the employee’s actions and confirmed that disciplinary steps were being taken.

“All civil servants are bound by the Civil Service Code and social media rules which set out clear guidelines for appropriate communications on personal accounts,” a Cabinet Office spokesman said.

“This post is clearly unacceptable and appropriate steps are being taken.”

According to The Telegraph, the employee has acknowledged responsibility for reposting the message and is expected to be called to a formal meeting in the coming weeks as part of the disciplinary process.

The woman serves as a senior executive officer, the highest of the executive officer grades, a position associated with an average annual salary of approximately £50,000.

She subsequently made her Instagram account private.

The original post that she shared, however, remained publicly available as of Friday evening and had attracted more than 25,000 likes.

The incident comes amid increasingly strained relations between Israel and Britain and heightened concern over anti-Israel and antisemitic rhetoric in the UK since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 massacre in southern Israel.

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The commander was hiding adjacent to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital complex while working to rebuild Hamas’ capabilities.

By United with Israel Staff

The IDF eliminated at least seven Hamas terrorists in a series of strikes across the Gaza Strip over the weekend, including three Nukhba terrorists, an Oct. 7 invader and a Hamas sniper, the military announced.

In a strike Saturday in the Jabalia area of northern Gaza, the IDF killed Abd al-Fattah Abu al-Aish, a commander in Hamas’ elite Nukhba force who invaded Israel during the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.

Raed Adel Mohammed Alyan, another terrorist in Hamas’ military wing, was killed in the same strike.

According to the IDF, the two terrorists had recently been advancing attacks against Israeli troops and civilians and working to rebuild Hamas’ capabilities in  systematic violation of the ceasefire.

In another strike in northern Gaza, the IDF eliminated Hani Abd al-Hai Fakhri Mazloum, a Nukhba platoon commander, and Hassan Zidan Hassan Deiri, a sniper in Hamas’ military wing.

The military said Mazloum and Deiri were also involved in trafficking and supplying weapons to Hamas terrorists. Both had recently been working to advance attacks and restore the terrorist organization’s capabilities.

In Khan Yunis in southern Gaza, Israeli forces eliminated two additional Nukhba terrorists, identified as Yasser Abu al-Khair and Mohammed al-Din. The IDF said the pair had recently been advancing attacks against Israeli forces and civilians and working to rebuild Hamas’ capabilities.

The IDF also said it targeted a Hamas military-wing commander in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza who had been planning attacks against Israeli troops and civilians.

According to the military, the commander was hiding adjacent to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital complex while working to rebuild Hamas’ capabilities. The IDF accused Hamas of once again exploiting humanitarian infrastructure and systematically embedding its operatives near medical facilities to plan and carry out terrorist activity.

The military said it took precautions before the strike to reduce the risk to civilians, including using precise munitions and aerial surveillance.

On Sunday, the IDF announced that another Hamas military-wing terrorist, Hussam Osama Hussein Nazir, had been eliminated in Deir al-Balah. The military said Nazir had been advancing attacks against Israeli troops and civilians and was targeted to remove an immediate threat.

The strikes came days after IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir vowed that Israel would continue systematically targeting Hamas and preventing the terrorist group from rebuilding its capabilities. During a visit to Gaza last week, Zamir said every terrorist who participated in the Oct. 7 massacre would “live on the run until they are eliminated.”

Israeli forces under the Southern Command remain deployed in the Gaza Strip in accordance with the ceasefire agreement and will continue operating to eliminate immediate threats, the IDF said.

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“I felt like I was surrounded by ideological enemies,” the Brooklyn mother said.

By United with Israel Staff

A Jewish mother who took her 4-year-old son to a family-friendly puppet show in Lower Manhattan was shocked when the performance abruptly shifted into anti-Israel political messaging, according to the New York Post.

The Brooklyn mother, 43, said she attended the Aug. 13 performance expecting a lighthearted show about New York City. Promotional material advertised “dancing skyscrapers, giant rats, fossil-fuel-fighting flowers, a live brass band, and Lady Liberty herself.”

But roughly 15 minutes into the hour-long performance, the tone changed.

“The anti-Israel stuff came out of nowhere,” said the mother, who asked not to be identified and described herself as a “proud Zionist.”

According to the mother, the show, attended by approximately 200 people, included a scene in which eight performers reenacted a flotilla, prompting enthusiastic boos against Israel from members of the audience. Another segment addressed U.S. taxpayer money going to Israel.

“What does anti-Israel propaganda have to do with a show that is entirely about New York?” she asked. “Is hatred of Israel an integral part of the city’s brand?”

The mother said her 4-year-old son repeatedly asked what was happening after noticing her stunned reaction.

She described her heart pounding as people around her appeared to agree with a series of accusations against Israel, including claims about Israel bombing hospitals.

“I felt like I was surrounded by ideological enemies,” she said. “This particular group held very antisemitic views. It felt like a mob. The hairs on the back of my neck just stood up.”

She said she remained silent because she feared the crowd would turn against her if she spoke out in opposition to Hamas.

“My generation is now experiencing a new version of antisemitism here in New York, exactly what my family fled from in the Soviet Union,” she said.

The performance was produced by Boxcutter Collective, a Brooklyn-based theater group whose members met while working with Vermont’s longtime political puppet company Bread & Puppet Theater. The collective describes its work as having a political, anti-capitalist, environmental and social focus.

In November 2023, roughly a month after the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, Boxcutter participated in a performance of “The Gaza Monologues,” presented in response to what organizers described as the “horrific war taking place in Gaza.”

Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt also condemned the performance, arguing that anti-Israel messaging had no place at a publicly funded event intended for families.

“A mom took her four-year-old to a publicly funded, family-friendly puppet festival in NYC. Instead, the performance reportedly veered into highly critical and offensive messaging about Israel, the world’s only Jewish state,” Greenblatt wrote.

“This is an inappropriate use of public resources. Publicly funded cultural programming should never contribute to an environment in which Jewish New Yorkers feel unsafe,” he added.

A mom took her four-year-old to a publicly funded, family-friendly puppet festival in NYC. Instead, the performance reportedly veered into highly critical and offensive messaging about Israel, the world’s only Jewish state.

This is an inappropriate use of public resources.…

— Jonathan Greenblatt (@JGreenblattADL) August 28, 2026

The incident also comes as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has brought his staunchly anti-Israel politics into City Hall. A longtime supporter of the BDS movement, Mamdani has repeatedly accused Israel of committing “genocide” in Gaza and has refused to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.

After taking office, Mamdani revoked several executive orders issued by former Mayor Eric Adams, including measures directing city agencies to use the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism and opposing efforts to boycott Israel.

Mamdani has also directed fierce rhetoric at Netanyahu, calling the Israeli leader a “war criminal” and the “architect of a horrific genocide,” and has called for his arrest if he visits New York.

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“Other than the murderous evil of the two gunmen, where was the antisemitism to be found at Bondi on that terrible day? Nowhere. Nowhere. Nowhere,” Flanagan said.

By Shiryn Ghermezian, The Algemeiner

Award-winning Australian novelist Richard Flanagan claimed at a festival in Sydney recently that the deadly ISIS-inspired terrorist attack on a Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach last year was not antisemitic and that the “Israel lobby” could be fueling antisemitism in the country.

“Other than the murderous evil of the two gunmen, where was the antisemitism to be found at Bondi on that terrible day? Nowhere. Nowhere. Nowhere,” Flanagan said while presenting a new essay inspired by his book Heresies at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas. He then condemned “the immediate politicization of the massacre by the Israel lobby.” Saying the terrorist attack was a result of Australian antisemitism is a “destructive myth built around the Bondi massacre,” he alleged.

Flanagan, who is the first and only author to have ever won both the Booker and the Baillie Gifford coveted literary awards, read from a new essay that focused primarily on Israel, Zionism, and antisemitism. He claimed the Bondi terrorist attack against Jewish Australians showcased multiculturalism in the country because Australians from “every creed, color, and background” rushed to the scene to help, and that “far from being a culmination of a wave of national antisemitism, [the attack] was a refutation of antisemitism.”

“Freedom of speech and expression are now endangered in Australia by the politicization and weaponization of the Bondi massacre,” the author said. He also made allegations about the “renewed attempt by the Israel lobby to use that tragedy to silence discussion around Israel and Gaza, accusing Israel of “seeking to silence” Australians with the “slur” of antisemitism.

“This massacre [at Bondi Beach], it was argued, was a consequence of a government that had done nothing and ignored all warnings about antisemitism … To what extend has the Israel lobby itself contributed to antisemitism in Australia by consistently advocating for Israel’s war in Gaza in a highly aggressive fashion, always seeking to identify all Australian Jewish people with Israel’s actions and with the lobby’s own heavy-handed attempts to silence Australians,” he stated. “Could it be the lobby’s own acts fueling antisemitism?”

”But if you wish to create a machine to destroy social cohesion in this country, a machine to create hatred of Jews such as this country has never known, then endorse the ambitions of the special envoy for antisemitism,” Flanagan added. “Because although this will be the work of the Israel lobby on behalf of Israel, it will be Australian Jews who will be blamed and scapegoated for it.”

Flanagan further claimed that incidents categorized as antisemitic in Australia after the deadly Hamas-led terrorist attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, were in fact “legitimate acts of protest by Australians about the horror of the emerging genocide in Gaza,” including the pro-Palestinian march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge in 2025, where some attendees waved flags in support of the designed terrorist organizations Al Qaeda and ISIS.

Despite Flanagan’s comments, Australia has seen a historic surge in antisemitic incidents in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack, according to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry. Meanwhile, Australian intelligence has warned the threat of antisemitism across the country has escalated from harassment and intimidation to physical attacks.

Flanagan’s speech was overflowing with anti-Israel and anti-Zionist rhetoric and conspiracy theories. He accused Israel and the “Israel lobby” of “threatening to pervert” democracy in Australia and control the country, and claimed Israel is “seeking to silence us here in Australia” when it comes to discussions about the Jewish state. “From public broadcasting, to libraries, schools, university, to sports, to medicine, grotesque demands to control every aspect of Australian public life,” he stated.

The author further claimed that Australia as a whole cannot stand up against the “Israel lobby” because Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s government has the “spine of a licorice stick.”

He additionally criticized the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism — claiming that it “conflates criticism of Israel and criticism of Zionism with antisemitism” — and repeatedly compared Zionism with Nazism. He said at one point that Zionism “arose out of the same ethno-nationalist ferment of the late 19th and early 20th century Europe that also gave the world Nazism, fascism, extreme nationalism, and authoritarianism. Its model of society building was that of 19th century imperialism, conquest and violence to create ethnically pure countries.”

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HoudiniBio takes its name from Jewish escapologist Harry Houdini, born Erik Weisz.

By Shula Rosen

London-based startup HoudiniBio has raised £1.5 million to advance an AI-powered technology designed to make gene therapies more effective and less expensive by preventing patients’ cells from shutting down therapeutic genes.

HoudiniBio takes its name from Jewish escapologist Harry Houdini, born Erik Weisz. Cohen-Gold and Lehner are both members of Beth Shalom Reform Synagogue in Cambridge, according to the Jewish Chronicle.

The company, which recently emerged from stealth, was co-founded in 2025 by CEO Jonathan Cohen-Gold and chief business officer Lee Dunham.

Cohen-Gold, 32, developed the scientific foundation for the technology while completing his PhD in molecular medicine at the University of Cambridge.

Gene therapies are being developed to treat conditions including hemophilia, cystic fibrosis, dementia, inherited blindness and cancer, but producing them can be prohibitively expensive. A single dose for one patient can cost the NHS £3 million.

HoudiniBio is targeting a cellular defense mechanism known as the Human Silencing Hub, or Hush, complex.

The system, discovered by Cohen-Gold’s Cambridge supervisor, professor of immunology Paul Lehner, protects DNA by shutting down genetic material that appears to come from a virus. However, it can also suppress therapeutic genes introduced to treat disease.

During his doctoral research, Cohen-Gold studied how some DNA sequences escape detection by Hush. HoudiniBio now uses an AI-powered DNA design engine to apply those findings to gene therapies.

A gene can be encoded in billions of different ways while retaining its therapeutic function. HoudiniBio’s models analyze DNA sequences, identify sections likely to trigger Hush and redesign the sequence to make it more resistant to the cellular defense system.

Pharmaceutical companies can bring gene therapies to HoudiniBio for the process, which Cohen-Gold describes as providing genetic “camouflage.”

The approach could allow treatments to work with smaller doses, reducing costs and potential side effects while improving their effectiveness over time, Cohen-Gold said.

The company has demonstrated the technology in laboratory testing and has begun trials in mice. Human clinical trials could begin in three to five years.

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Freed hostage Evyatar David recalled the torture he endured at the hands of Hamas, saying the brutality and cruelty inflicted on him during captivity still linger and continue to affect his daily life.

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A new film was released of former Hamas hostage Alon Ohel joining American musician John Ondrasik to perform “Superman” aboard the USS Nimitz during America’s 250th anniversary celebrations last month.

On July 4th, for freedom 250, I was honored to perform Superman with former hostage Alon Ohel on the historic USS Nimitz. Pls watch this beautiful short by Roy Berkovich of our 24 hours of squalls, laughs, happy, if salty, tears…and a miracle only America can deliver. … pic.twitter.com/KWw2PywC3Z

— John Ondrasik (@johnondrasik) August 27, 2026

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A regime whose voices openly discuss building and “firing” nuclear weapons, with scenarios of tsunamis against America, cannot be trusted with such capability.

By Majid Rafizadeh, Gatestone Institute

For anyone who has ever harbored doubts—and for those who still do—that Iran’s regime stands against humanity, peace, and the basic norms of civilization, the latest remarks from hard-line Iranian cleric Mohammad Bagher Kharrazi, who is closely tied to the current Supreme Leader, should be impossible to ignore.

“The only way to save the country… is building an atomic bomb and firing it,” Kharrazi recently declared, “no other way is left for us…. We should create a tsunami whose waves hit the American coasts.”

In the ideology of Iran’s ruling establishment, nuclear weapons are still openly contemplated not just as a deterrent but as instruments of mass destruction.

If an extremist regime acquires a nuclear weapon, the question is, what happens afterwards?

Iran’s primary target, of course, remains Israel. Iranian leaders and their proxies have long framed the Jewish state’s destruction as a religious and strategic mission, if not obligation.

Israel’s compact size, roughly the same as New Jersey (22,000 sq. km.), means that even a single nuclear weapon would cause catastrophic destruction.

Moreover, nuclear weapons capability—or the materials and know-how—could be easily transferred to proxies such as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, or others.

These groups have already attacked civilians, shipping, and their neighboring states not even involved in a dispute.

A nuclear-armed Iranian regime, or one that arms its network, also assures a regional arms race—already begun by Saudi Arabia trying to build the infrastructure for uranium enrichment, for “peaceful purposes,” of course—at least until they are not.

US President Donald J. Trump has not treated Iran’s nuclear ambitions as an ordinary diplomatic disagreement.

He has repeated that “Iran Cannot Have a Nuclear Weapon.” A regime whose voices openly discuss building and “firing” nuclear weapons, with scenarios of tsunamis against America, cannot be trusted with such capability.

This is the language of ideological fanaticism from a theocracy that has spent nearly half a century exporting its revolution, funding terrorism, and crushing dissent at home, complete with the slaughter of “at least 42,000” of its own citizens in just two days, on January 8 and 9, 2026.

The problem is compounded by the fact that Iran’s brutal Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) regime itself remains firmly in place.

Iran’s new leadership structure has continued to elevate hard-line figures with deep IRGC backgrounds.

Under Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, key security and military posts have been filled with veteran IRGC hardliners — the old guard of anti-American, anti-Israeli ideologues associated with the era of Qasem Soleimani.

Appointments of men such as Mohsen Rezaei to the Supreme National Security Council and Ahmad Vahidi to lead the IRGC, rather than signaling any pragmatic shift, instead point to the commitment of Iran’s current leaders to outlast Trump’s term of office.

The real question needs to be, “What happens after Trump leaves office?”

Meanwhile, repression inside Iran continues. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk reported that at least 56 people had been executed on national-security charges since March 19, including 27 allegedly involved in the protests earlier this year.

Human rights organizations have also documented expedited trials and death sentences against protesters.

The regime’s character—Islamist, anti-Western, anti-American, and expansionist—has not changed. If Western powers are truly serious, they must work to completely eliminate Iran’s present regime.

Recent developments show the danger of permitting recovery. Iran’s army is claiming that weapons systems damaged in the 2026 war have already been “rebuilt”—either domestically or after having been imported, and with a shift toward offensive capabilities.

Satellite imagery and intelligence assessments reveal rapid reconstruction of missile bases, tunnel entrances, production facilities, and infrastructure—faster than many anticipated. Israeli officials have expressed surprise at the speed of recovery in ballistic missile capabilities.

Leaving these arsenals in place would simply make further military efforts more dangerous both for US bases and allies in the Gulf.

Any rebuilding of Iran’s military infrastructure must be disrupted; leaders driving this belligerency need to be removed from power.

Economic isolation also remains critical, as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has laid out, complete with universally enforced secondary sanctions.

The European Union should close remaining diplomatic and commercial channels that provide legitimacy or revenue.

The West should not have to wait for Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon—when it would be impossible to stop, which is why the regime wants one—before taking Iran’s threats seriously.

The war with the Iranian regime—to contradict those who claim it was a war of choice—is anything but that.

Iran, China, and Russia have been trying to take down Western civilization for decades. Only Trump had the vision and the determination to take on these threats.

For both US and international security, it is obligatory for the world’s leading superpower, the United States of America, to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and to protect countless lives.

Iran’s regime must not be allowed to rebuild its military or remain in power. Every available measure needs to be pursued until the Islamic Republic of Iran is totally dismantled. For decades, half-measures have failed.

The alternative is for the West’s nuclear-capable adversaries—whose “only solution” will assuredly put the world at risk—to succeed in their mission.

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The Druze, a small and secretive religious community of about two million people, trace their origins to Jethro the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, and live mostly in Syria, Lebanon, and northern Israel.

The Druze are one of the most interesting minorities in the world. There’s only 2 million of them yet they are model citizens and neighbors in the four countries they live in. pic.twitter.com/sfYn5yMX1X

— Nuseir Yassin (@nasdaily) August 29, 2026

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At the time, El-Sayed said that “violence is a cycle” and that “hurt people hurt people.”

By JNS Staff

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, a former Detroit health director and the Democratic nominee for Senate in Michigan, apologized on Saturday for his response to the March 12 attack on Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich.

The attacker, who rammed the synagogue with a car and shot at it, reportedly lost relatives in Israeli strikes in Lebanon. The Israeli military said that two of his brothers, who were killed in the strikes, were members of Hezbollah.

El-Sayed decried the attack at the time and said that “violence is a cycle” and that “hurt people hurt people,” CNN reported.

“My comments might have been misconstrued to be justifying something I did not intend to justify,” El-Sayed told reporters on Saturday, according to the outlet. “To anybody who feels like my comments might have been hurtful, I’m really sorry. That was not my intention.”

“We condemned that terrorist attack. We condemned it outright,” he said, according to CNN. “What I was trying to do is offer context for why it happened, but it wasn’t the time for context, and you don’t ever want to trample somebody’s pain.”

CNN reported that “notably absent from El-Sayed’s remarks onstage Saturday was an attack on one of his most frequent targets during the primary: AIPAC” and that “he pointed to more than $60 million spent against him during that race, but did not mention the group responsible for that spending by name.”

Former congressman Mike Rogers, the Republican running against El-Sayed, stated that “after relying on his long-held antisemitic beliefs to win the primary, Abdul El-Sayed is trying to con Michiganders into thinking his beliefs have changed.”

“Let me be clear: they have not. Abdul has had six months to apologize for his incredibly horrific remarks regarding the Temple Israel attack,” Rogers stated. “Instead, he chose to surround himself with terrorist sympathizers and some of the most notable antisemites in the country. It’s too little, too late, Abdul. Michiganders see you for exactly who you are: A conman.”

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He said hummus was the only food he could eat, without explaining why.

By Shula Rosen

A British man drew attention online after saying he confronted the Jewish owners of his favorite hummus truck and asked them to disavow Zionism before he would continue buying their food.

The man, identified as Alex, said in a video that he had heard from another person that the owners were “massive Zionists,” leaving him conflicted about continuing to patronize the business.

He described himself as “heartbroken” by the allegation and said hummus was the only food he could eat, without explaining why.

Alex said he encountered the allegation while waiting at the hummus truck during a festival.

“I was at a festival recently, and some person came up to me in the crowd, and it was like, ‘Alex, I follow you on Instagram,’ because obviously I do these posts, right, about Palestine,” he said.

The person then told him, “‘You know that hummus truck that you’re queuing up for? Hummus, like, that’s owned by massive Zionists,’ and it was my favorite hummus truck.”

Rather than accept the claim, Alex said he decided to verify it himself by speaking with the owners.

Despite seeing small Palestinian flags displayed on the truck, he asked them directly about their views on Zionism.

The owners told him they were Jewish but were not Zionists, Alex said, allowing him to continue purchasing food from the business.

Alex framed the incident as an example of why people should distinguish between Jews who support Zionism and those who do not when advocating for Palestinian causes.

“Some Jewish people in the U.K. are being discriminated against and being falsely accused of being massive Zionists, as in big supporters of the Israeli ethno project out there and the genocide,” he said.

The incident also illustrates concerns about Jews being asked to publicly distance themselves from Zionism to avoid exclusion from professional, commercial or social settings.

Alex urged viewers not to discriminate against Jews who are not Zionists and argued that Palestinians remain the primary victims of discrimination.

Critics dispute that characterization, pointing to growing international support for Palestinians alongside what they describe as increasing isolation of Israel and Jewish communities.

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“Israel’s war-addicted current government is trying every kind of provocation to drag our entire region into instability,” Erdogan said.

By United with Israel Staff

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched a blistering attack on Israel on Friday, accusing the Jewish state of seeking to destabilize the Middle East and denouncing Zionism as a “radical, occupying, genocidal ideology.”

Speaking at a Muslim religious event in Istanbul, Erdogan accused Israel’s government of deliberately provoking conflict throughout the region.

“Israel’s war-addicted current government is trying every kind of provocation to drag our entire region into instability, starting with its neighbors,” Erdogan said.

The Turkish leader claimed that Israel’s actions threatened not only neighboring countries but anyone who supports regional peace and humanitarian values.

Erdogan also accused Israel of turning Gaza into “the world’s largest children’s cemetery” and invoked some of history’s worst atrocities while condemning the international community’s response to the war.

Drawing comparisons to the failure to confront Adolf Hitler and Khmer Rouge dictator Pol Pot, Erdogan claimed the world was repeating the same mistake in Gaza, Judea and Samaria, and Lebanon.

He called on Muslim-majority countries to strengthen their alliances and become increasingly self-reliant, saying the Islamic world should stand together like “bricks in a wall.”

Israel’s Foreign Ministry responded sharply to Erdogan’s remarks, accusing the Turkish president of antisemitic incitement and attempting to distract from his own record.

“The antisemitic Erdogan seeks, every few days, to reach new heights of wild incitement against the Jewish state in an attempt to divert attention from his actions against his own people and across the region,” the ministry said.

“Erdogan has destroyed Turkish democracy, imprisoned his political opponents, hosted and supported the Hamas terrorist organization and invaded neighboring countries,” it continued.

The Foreign Ministry compared Erdogan’s rhetoric to historical antisemitic propaganda, accusing him of spreading “false blood libels” against Israel.

“Like the worst antisemites in history, Erdogan seeks to deflect attention from his own disgraceful actions by spreading false blood libels,” the ministry said.

Relations between Israel and Turkey have deteriorated sharply in recent years, with Erdogan repeatedly directing fierce rhetoric at Israel while maintaining close ties with Hamas.

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Weeks after the Oct. 7 massacre, a Palestinian Authority elementary school showcased young students delivering speeches celebrating violence against Israelis and then shared the performances on Facebook.

The footage offers a disturbing glimpse into how Palestinian children are taught to glorify terror and hatred under the guise of education.

Less than a month after the October 7 massacre, a Palestinian Authority elementary school was giving children a stage to glorify violence against Israelis – and publishing the speeches on its own Facebook page.

This is terror grooming: teaching children hatred and calling it… pic.twitter.com/SbL1W8jzvv

— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) August 28, 2026

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“Your facts are wrong, you are supporting an organization that is a hotbed of terrorism,” the ministry said.

By United with Israel Staff

The Israeli Foreign Ministry on Thursday sharply rejected a joint statement by 14 countries and the European Union condemning Israel’s takeover of a UNRWA compound in northern Jerusalem.

Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, along with the European Union, accused Israel of an “unlawful entry” into UNRWA’s Kalandia Training Centre and the seizure of UNRWA installations in eastern Jerusalem.

The countries, all members of the UNRWA Advisory Commission, called on Israel to “halt all disruptions to UNRWA’s activities and operations without delay,” arguing that UN premises are protected under international law.

Joint local statement of the diplomatic representations of Advisory Commission on the unlawful entry into UNRWA’s Kalandia Training Centre on 25 August. pic.twitter.com/3N0LiQA0ca

— Consulate General of Belgium in Jerusalem (@BelgiumJRS) August 27, 2026

Israel’s Foreign Ministry fired back, accusing the governments of getting their facts wrong and defending an organization deeply compromised by terrorism.

“Your facts are wrong, you are supporting an organization that is a hotbed of terrorism, and you would rather make baseless attacks against Israel than act in the best interests of the Arab children of Kafr Aqab. It’s a shame,” the ministry said.

The ministry said UNRWA never held property rights to the facility and had occupied it unlawfully. It added that the site is slated to become a school and community center serving children in the Kafr Aqab neighborhood.

Israel also pointed to evidence of UNRWA employees’ involvement with Hamas, citing a U.S. government report that found more than 100 agency employees participated in the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre.

“UNRWA employees have served as terrorist operatives, and UNRWA facilities have been systematically used for terrorist purposes,” the ministry said, adding that Israel’s actions were carried out in accordance with Israeli and international law.

Israeli security forces moved Tuesday to take control of the Kafr Aqab compound, beginning the process of removing UNRWA from the site and replacing it with a municipal education and community complex for local Arab residents.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the operation was carried out at his direction and under legislation passed by the Knesset prohibiting UNRWA activity on Israeli territory.

“The State of Israel will not allow an organization whose employees were involved in terrorism and in the October 7 massacre to operate in its territory, and will act against it with every tool at its disposal,” Netanyahu said.

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The teenager intended to carry out an attack targeting Jewish police officers and soldiers at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

By United with Israel Staff

Israeli security forces arrested two suspects who allegedly pledged allegiance to ISIS and planned attacks against security forces at the Temple Mount and an IDF base in northern Israel, the Shin Bet and Israel Police announced Friday.

The investigation began after authorities arrested a 16-year-old resident of the Galilee on Aug. 4 on suspicion of establishing contact with and pledging allegiance to the Islamic State terrorist organization.

Investigators found that in addition to pledging allegiance to ISIS, the teenager had begun viewing and searching online for material containing instructions on how to prepare explosive belts.

According to authorities, the teenager intended to carry out an attack targeting Jewish police officers and soldiers at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

Several days after the teenager’s arrest, investigators detained a second suspect as the investigation expanded.

The second suspect, identified as 19-year-old Haifa resident Ibrahim Ka’abia, was also suspected of pledging allegiance to ISIS.

During questioning, investigators determined that Ka’abia had planned an attack against an IDF base in northern Israel, according to the statement.

The arrests were carried out as part of a joint investigation by the Shin Bet and Israel Police’s Northern District Central Investigations Unit.

Following the completion of the investigation, the Haifa District Attorney’s Office is expected to file indictments against both suspects Friday and request that they remain in custody until the conclusion of legal proceedings.

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The SS later adapted the pesticide Haber’s own institute developed to murder members of his own family at Auschwitz.

By Micha Danzig, The Algemeiner

Fritz Haber believed he’d made the trade that Jews in Germany had been taught, since the Enlightenment, would buy their acceptance. In 1892, fresh from his doctorate, he was baptized a Lutheran, not from faith but ambition: Prussian universities and the officer corps were effectively closed to Jews, and baptism was the toll many Jewish academics paid.

Haber paid it, then spent four decades proving it had bought him something real. He developed the process that pulls nitrogen from air and turns it into synthetic ammonia, the fertilizer breakthrough credited with sustaining roughly half of humanity alive today and won the Nobel Prize for it.

When war came in 1914, he ran Germany’s chemical weapons program himself. A scientist, he said, belongs to his country in wartime. Germany never agreed to belong to him. In 1933, Haber learned what his service was worth. Ordered to purge his Jewish staff, he resigned instead, and died four months later in Swiss exile, still searching for refuge and work in British-controlled Palestine.

His grandson, historian Fritz Stern, called it the tragedy of the German Jew who loved a country that tolerated him only if he served it and never loved him back. The SS later adapted the pesticide his own institute developed to murder members of Haber’s family at Auschwitz. His story is not a metaphor. It is a verdict, an extreme case of a pattern that recurs wherever Jews decide the way to survive inside a movement hostile to their own people is to become that movement’s most useful validator.

The pattern survived Haber. The question is how to recognize it today. Start with Natan Sharansky’s 3D test: a double standard applied to no other nation; demonization of Israel as uniquely evil; and delegitimization of its right to exist. One yes, and you’ve left policy debate for something uglier. Run the past year’s Jewish validators through it, and the verdict isn’t close.

Take Jon Stewart. In July 2025 he hosted Peter Beinart on The Daily Show for 18 minutes in which both agreed Israel bore near-exclusive blame for Gaza’s suffering. Beinart, plugging a book urging American Jews to abandon their supposed addiction to victimhood, cited the 2018 Gaza border marches, organized by Hamas and involving firebombs and arson kites, as a rejected Gandhian olive branch.

Neither man said “October 7.” That is delegitimization by omission, erasing what preceded any Israeli soldier too: the 1921 Jaffa riots and 1929 Hebron massacre, pogroms where Arab mobs murdered and raped Jewish civilians for the crime of Jewish presence in the land. October 7 was not a rupture but the same violent demand for Jewish submission, updated with modern weapons.

On his own podcast barely two weeks ago, Stewart pressed Senator John Fetterman (D-PA), who argued Israel’s comparatively restrained pace of casualties undercut any genocide claim. Stewart insisted a slower killing pace doesn’t mean something isn’t legally genocide. When Fetterman said Israel is a line he won’t cross even with allies he otherwise agrees with, Stewart told him flatly Israel “is not our country.”

Both claims collapse under the facts. Genocide, by design, moves a targeted population toward its killers, with no escape corridors, no warnings, no strikes paused for nearby civilians. Neither Auschwitz nor Babi Yar offered humanitarian corridors.

Israel, across two years of war against an enemy that embeds itself among civilians by design, repeatedly did what no genocide in history has done: opened evacuation corridors, dropped warning leaflets, placed warning calls, and aborted strikes when civilians entered the target zone. Those are simply not remotely the actions of a military trying to commit genocide.

Then there’s the “Jewish community” moment. When Fetterman explained his support for Israel partly through the Jewish community, Stewart cut him off: “Jewish community and Israel are not the same thing, brother man.” True enough but deployed for one purpose: to police who gets to speak for Jewish concern, all while Stewart spent the conversation treating Israel’s conduct, not Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, or their ideological allies, as the threat to Jewish safety.

Both conversations leaned on a story that has since collapsed. Stewart accused Israel of purposeful starvation. A UNICEF-coordinated nutrition survey released in July 2026, using standard WHO measurements, found acute child malnutrition in Gaza ranging from 0.2% to 0.8% across its regions, at or below Gaza’s own prewar rate, far below Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and Sudan, and even below Finland’s. The starvation charge, however, was never about facts. It was a verdict delivered before evidence arrived, the way blood libels always work.

Beinart deserves more than a mention, because he isn’t incidental to Stewart’s platform; he’s its more sophisticated engine. A self-described observant Jew, he’s built a career arguing that Jewish self-protection and sovereignty are themselves moral failures. Where Haber tried to escape his Jewishness to earn a place in a hostile system, Beinart puts his front and center, and the effect is the same: His Jewish identity becomes a credential, certifying the case against Israel from within and making him invaluable to a movement that seeks not merely Israel-haters, but Jewish Israel-haters.

Brad Lander should worry people more, because he isn’t selling books; he’s holding office. A former self-described liberal Zionist, he spent the past year campaigning with Zohran Mamdani, an anti-Zionist who says he cannot support Israel as a Jewish state. Mamdani skipped New York’s Israel Day Parade while attending Pakistan’s Independence Day celebration, despite Pakistan’s explicit constitutional preferences for Islam and Muslims, and he has called AIPAC supporters “monsters,” a charge even sympathetic rabbis condemned as dehumanizing.

Asked directly, Lander wouldn’t break with Mamdani and has treated the genocide libel as settled fact. His usefulness is that he’s Jewish: the answer the regressive left gives when accused of antisemitism. That isn’t solidarity. It’s Haber’s role in 1914, minus the uniform.

Hopefully, none of these men pays Haber’s price. That isn’t the point. All three are running his play, betting, consciously or not, that enough service to a hostile movement eventually converts into belonging. Haber proved it doesn’t, because the terms were never his to set.

The DSA orbit Lander depends on amplified a rally celebrating October 7 within hours of the massacre, an action so grotesque Lander quit the organization over it, only to spend two years rebuilding his career alongside people who never disavowed that macabre celebration. Movements built on demonizing Jews don’t stop needing a demon because a validator is Jewish. They redraw the line around him for as long as he’s useful, exactly as German nationalism redrew the line around Haber for as long as they needed his chemistry.

None of this requires Stewart, Beinart, or Lander to be personally antisemitic. The lesson is simpler: When a Jew spends his credibility helping a movement demonize and delegitimize the Jewish collective, he isn’t judged on the merits. He’s being used, precisely because he’s Jewish. Haber learned that the hard way. He gave Germany a Nobel Prize and a war machine and received an unmarked grave in Basel that no country he served would claim.

The lesson wasn’t that he should have converted more sincerely or served more zealously. It was that the bargain itself was the mistake, that no usefulness buys Jews safety from movements that require “the Jew” as their enemy. Every generation relearns this. But the tuition isn’t typically paid by the ones who taught the lesson.

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In June, Israel and Greece signed a $750 million agreement signed in June for Elbit Systems’ PULS precision rocket artillery system.

By Ailin Vilches Arguello, The Algemeiner

With Israel and Greece moving toward increasingly close military cooperation, Turkey is preparing for scenarios ranging from escalating confrontation to outright war, as Ankara assesses the partnership’s growing strategic implications and its potential to dramatically reshape the balance of power in the region, according to an official Turkish government document.

Turkish Defense Minister Yaşar Güler said in a letter to a lawmaker in the country’s parliament dated Aug. 10 that preparations for “possible crisis, tension, and war” in the surrounding region are continuing in close coordination among all relevant state institutions.

The letter was first reported by Nordic Monitor, a news site run by the Stockholm-based Nordic Research and Monitoring Network.

In a striking shift in Ankara’s strategic planning, Güler linked Turkey’s preparations for a potential war to growing concerns over Greece’s expanding military ties with Israel, which Turkish officials are closely watching as a challenge to the country’s security and interests in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean.

Even without identifying specific agencies or resources, Güler’s language suggests that the preparations extend beyond the military, with multiple state institutions involved in planning for a potentially broad national response to what Ankara appears to view as an increasingly challenging security environment.

The escalation in Ankara’s rhetoric comes amid growing Turkish concern over Greece’s rapid military modernization, including its acquisition of Israeli weapons and air defense systems.

In recent years, Israel and Greece have significantly expanded their defense cooperation through joint military exercises, training, defense technology, and industrial partnerships, with Turkish officials warning that the deepening ties warrant close scrutiny as Ankara assesses their potential impact on its security and regional interests.

According to Güler, Turkey continuously monitors Greek activities in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean that, according to Turkish officials, violate the country’s “rights, interests, and concerns” as well as international law, and will swiftly take whatever steps it deems necessary in response.

At the same time, Turkey is rapidly expanding its naval capabilities, with 47 warships under construction as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pushes to transform the country into a major regional maritime power — a buildup that is drawing close attention from both Israeli and Greek officials.

In his letter, Güler also noted that shifting dynamics in Turkey’s neighborhood could create new opportunities to advance Ankara’s national interests, though he offered no details on what those opportunities might involve.

On Wednesday, Erdoğan said Turkey must remain strong and united in the face of mounting challenges in the region, warning that Ankara would not be swayed from its course by outside provocations.

“When necessary, we can put everything else aside. But when it comes to our homeland and the future of our state and nation, we bow to no one,” the Turkish leader said in a statement. “In this region, we have no choice but to remain strong, united, and standing together.”

“Those who believe they can halt the progress of Turkey and the Turkish nation through provocations and schemes will be disappointed,” he continued. “We will not change our course or be diverted by the provocations of others.”

Earlier this year, Israel and Greece signed a defense cooperation agreement spanning counter-drone and underwater systems, cyber threats, joint exercises, research, and defense technology, with officials describing the growing partnership as part of a wider Greece-Cyprus-Israel-US security network aimed at strengthening their position in the eastern Mediterranean.

The deepening Jerusalem-Athens defense partnership has led to major arms deals, including a roughly $750 million agreement signed in June for Elbit Systems’ PULS precision rocket artillery system. At the time, Israeli officials described the agreement as a milestone, saying the strategic security partnership between the two countries had reached its “highest point.”

Then, last month, Greece approved the acquisition of an Israeli multilayered air defense system worth up to roughly $4.1 billion, which will form the backbone of its “Achilles Shield” and integrate Israeli radar and missile systems designed to counter ballistic missiles, aircraft, and drones.

All of these acquisitions are part of the Greek government’s broader $32 billion military modernization program through 2036, which will also include up to 40 US-made F-35 fighter jets, new frigates, drones, and other advanced weapons systems.

Turkish officials have repeatedly accused Greece of violating agreements governing the demilitarization of Aegean islands. Athens, however, has dismissed the allegations as unfounded, arguing that its military buildup is driven by legitimate self-defense needs and growing regional instability, as well as what it views as persistent threats from Turkey.

Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis has even warned Turkey that the era of what he called Greece’s “passive diplomatic stagnation” is over, saying Athens is “fully prepared for any scenario” while continuing to pursue peace.

“Any attempt to violate our sovereign rights will be met with every means at our disposal,” Gerapetritis said in a statement. “We will do whatever is necessary. We will respond to provocations, and we will respond from a position of strength.”

For Turkey, the growing Greek-Israeli military partnership is transforming the Aegean dispute into part of a much broader regional security realignment, as Israeli weapons, technology, and strategic cooperation become increasingly embedded in Greece’s military posture while the Turkish-Israeli rivalry intensifies from the eastern Mediterranean to Syria.

According to a recent report by Greek media outlet Pro News, Israel may be even considering scenarios in which a potential confrontation with Turkey could spill into the eastern Mediterranean and involve Cyprus. The report alleges that Israel is weighing possible strikes against Turkish military targets in northern Cyprus if Jerusalem determines that Ankara’s military presence on the island poses a threat to the country’s interests.

Meanwhile, tensions between Israel and Turkey have continued to escalate, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week lambasting Erdogan as an “antisemitic dictator” after Turkey said it would seek an international arrest warrant for the Israeli leader.

The latest developments further escalated already high tensions between the two countries following Israel’s strike on a Syrian airbase over concerns regarding the potential deployment of Turkish troops there.

“Erdogan is an antisemitic dictator who has massacred Kurds, harbors Hamas terrorists, occupies half of Cyprus, and jails record numbers of journalists and politicians who oppose him,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement. “He now seeks to extend his aggression against Israel into Syria. Israel will not tolerate it.”

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Authorities cited public safety concerns and assessed the fixture as presenting a high risk.

By Shula Rosen

Britain’s police watchdog has opened a gross misconduct investigation into former West Midlands Police Chief Constable Craig Guildford over the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from a November 2025 match against Aston Villa, after inquiries found serious flaws in the intelligence, including that derived from “AI hallucinations” used to justify the restriction.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct also opened a gross misconduct investigation into a police staff member and misconduct investigations involving three other officers.

Birmingham’s Safety Advisory Group, supported by West Midlands Police, barred Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from attending the Europa League match at Villa Park on November 6, 2025.

Authorities cited public safety concerns and assessed the fixture as presenting a high risk.

Subsequent independent inquiries and policing inspectorates identified at least eight significant errors and exaggerations in the police risk assessment used in connection with the decision.

Among the inaccurate information was a reference to a match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and West Ham United that never took place.

Reports linked the false information to the use of artificial intelligence search results, or what is often referred to as AI hallucinations.

West Midlands Police also inaccurately characterized intelligence surrounding previous clashes involving Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam, exaggerating threats and misrepresenting the conduct of visiting supporters.

The IOPC said evidence gathered in its investigation indicated that some officers may have failed to exercise appropriate due diligence and impartiality and may have improperly handled sensitive intelligence.

Guildford stepped down as chief constable in January 2026 after the interior minister and Downing Street said they had lost confidence in his leadership.

The decision to exclude the Israeli club’s supporters drew condemnation from government officials, opposition MPs and Jewish community organizations.
Critics accused authorities of failing to properly address threats while instead imposing restrictions on a group facing security concerns.

The misconduct investigations will examine the actions of Guildford, the staff member and the three officers involved in the handling of the intelligence and the decision-making surrounding the ban.

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