by: Jonathan A. Greenblatt | September 23, 2016 JTA Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ statement before the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday revived old hatreds more than it broke new ground. It was little more than a rote diatribe against Israel and a call for international pressure to coerce the Jewish state in place of the hard give and take that happens at the negotiating table. It shed light on why the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has endured so long through…
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September 23, 2016 Benjamin Netanyahu
Office of the Prime Minister
Jerusalem, Israel
Dear Mr. Prime Minister:
We are writing to congratulate you on your stirring and effective address to the United Nations General Assembly.
Your call to President Mahmoud Abbas to meet you in person and to address the Knesset, your condemnation of the heinous terrorist attack in Duma and your words of empathy for the Dawabsha family, along with your expression of hope for peace,…
by: Jonathan A. Greenblatt | September 13, 2016 Foreign Policy If Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s purpose was to criticize the Palestinian leadership, there are many issues he could have raised in his latest short video posted on Sept. 9. He could have spoken about their celebration of terrorists, or he could have raised their demonization of Israel through anti-Semitic conspiracy theories or their repeated rejection of any Jewish connection to the Land of Israel. He could…
New York, NY, September 13, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today hailed the announcement of a military aid agreement between Israel and the United States, calling it “a resounding and tangible” demonstration of the enduring U.S.-Israel relationship. The new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) provides Israel with the largest defense aid package in American history - $38 billion over the next decade. The existing aid agreement expires in 2018. The agreement…
Jerusalem, July 27, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today strongly condemned passage in the Knesset of the “mikvah law,” which bars the ritual immersion of converts by non-Orthodox rabbis in public mikvahs (ritual baths), saying that it is using a state-funded facilities to discriminate. Immersion in the mikvah is the final step in the process of converting to Judaism. The law, initiated by MK Moshe Gafni, strives to override the Israeli Supreme Court…
New York, NY, July 15, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) welcomed today’s statement by UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova, who condemned attempts to deny the Jewish connection to Jerusalem.
At UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee, currently meeting in Istanbul, a draft resolution on the Old City of Jerusalem is being negotiated. A similar resolution in April by UNESCO’s Executive Board condemned Israel for alleged “Jewish fake graves” on the Temple…
July 14, 2016
It has been a rough summer as the topic of guns, violence, police and bias scream across the news headlines and our smart phones.
Still reeling from the June 12 massacre of 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando, a few short weeks later we watched on video the back-to-back shooting deaths by police of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, LA and Philando Castile in Falcon Heights, MN. Just a day later, as cities across the country engaged in protests over these…
New York, NY, July 14, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today strongly condemned the decision by Israel’s Supreme Rabbinical court to reject the authority of prominent New York Orthodox Rabbi Haskel Lookstein by invalidating his conversion of an American woman to Judaism. ADL called the court’s decision a “slap in the face” to American Jewry, including those who have chosen to join the Jewish people, and said it highlights just how extreme the Israeli…
by: Jonathan Greenblatt July 07, 2016 This blog originally appeared in Medium.
As we approach the first anniversary of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) it is an appropriate time to reassess the merits of the deal. ADL was among the nuclear deal’s critics.
Beyond the nuclear restraints it would impose on Iran, our concern is that it would normalize an expansionist, militant regime whose unrepentant and fundamentalist ideology was not tamed by the deal.
Unlike…
New York, NY, June 30, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today expressed horror and outrage over the brutal murder of a 13-year-old Israeli girl by a 17-year-old Palestinian terrorist.
Hallel Ariel was stabbed to death by the terrorist, who entered her bedroom in the settlement of Kiryat Arba earlier today. The attacker, who was shot and killed by a security guard, had reportedly posted on social media of his intentions to be a martyr.
“This tragic attack on an…
New York, NY, June 29, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today praised the Democratic National Committee’s (DNC) draft platform for affirming America’s “longstanding commitment to Israel’s security, to Israel’s existence as a Jewish, democratic state,” the pursuit of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and for breaking new ground in opposing the BDS movement.
The platform draft breaks important new ground in…
New York, NY, June 27, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today welcomed the announcement of an agreement between Israel and Turkey that will restore full diplomatic relations and renew the economic, military and political cooperation the two countries have long enjoyed. “The restoration of Israeli-Turkish relations is a significant and welcome achievement, not just for these two long-time allies, but as a marker of regional cooperation and stability,” said Jonathan A…
Expresses Disappointment for Church’s Endorsement of Report Calling for Alternatives to Two State Solution New York, NY, June 27, 2016 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) expressed disappointment at a number of problematic Israel-focused motions endorsed last week by the Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly, including a report calling on the church to explore alternatives to the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and an overture advocating the church study…
June 20, 2016
This is not the first presidential election where candidates have engaged in name-calling and put-downs. Throughout history, name-calling has been used on the campaign trail to label, define and control the public’s perception of rivals.
However, this year’s campaign is widely regarded as unparalleled in the degree and regularity of the put-downs. From “Low Energy Jeb” to “Crooked Hillary,” “Crazy Bernie,” “Insecure…
by: Jinnie Array June 14, 2016
The unspeakable tragedy that took place at the Pulse Club in Orlando, FL in the early morning of June 12 brings with it a wide range of emotions for people across the country and world. Those feelings include anger, sorrow, loss, hopelessness, horror, fear, rage and also—a sense of powerlessness. It is easy to feel powerless when you think there is nothing you can do: nothing you can do about the hate, the gun violence, the terrorism and the extremist…
by: Jinnie Array June 01, 2016
Beginning on Memorial Day and for four consecutive evenings this week, the History Channel will air its 2016 version of ‘Roots,’ a remake of the 1977 television miniseries based on Alex Haley’s classic novel Roots: The Saga of An American Family. The book is an historical portrait of American slavery based on Haley’s heritage dating back to 1750 in the West African village of Juffure and how his family’s saga unfolded over…
May 27, 2016 In April, ADL sent a letter to G4S recognizing its public statement that its decision to sell its business in Israel was unrelated to pressures from BDS campaigns. In the public statement, G4S said it “reiterates that it does not support the anti-Israel boycott by BDS or any other group.”
This letter was sent following consultation with sources, including in Israel, who indicated that BDS has not been a motivating factor in G4S’s decision. Our…
by: Jinnie Spiegler | May 13, 2016 Education Week How is social and emotional learning (SEL)--which is now an established and critical part of the school experience--connected with anti-bias education? If we want to help young people understand bias and work on social justice, what does SEL bring to the table?
According to Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL), social and emotional learning is "the process through which children and adults acquire…
by: David Robbins May 11, 2016
Ed Blumenthal is fighting anti-Semitism and hate with everything he’s got—including his legs.
His late father, Ernie Blumenthal, escaped from Nazi Vienna in 1938, but luckily found a home in Philadelphia. His grandfather barely escaped some time later.
To honor the memory of his father, who died recently from pancreatic cancer, and to raise awareness of that illness and of anti-Semitism and hate, Ed rode his bike from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, a…
Jerusalem, May 4, 2016 … On the occasion of the publication of the Hebrew version of former Israeli Ambassador and current Knesset Member Michael Oren’s book, “Ally: My Journey Across the American Israeli Divide,” the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) congratulated Mr. Oren on this milestone and took the opportunity to put to rest a controversy that arose surrounding the book’s original publication last year.
Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO, issued the…