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Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
The Boulder Attack Didn't Come Out of Nowhere
Terrorism doesn't occur in a vacuum. It depends on the oxygen of rhetoric for sustenance and encouragement. Nearly two years after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, the cumulative effect of calls to 'Globalize the intifada' and 'End Zionists' perhaps inevitably led to the horrific attack yesterday in Boulder, Colorado, where a man yelled 'Free Palestine' as he threw an incendiary device at a Jewish gathering in support of the hostages. Words matter. The protester at Columbia University in 2024 holding a sign labeling Jewish demonstrators who were waving Israeli flags as Al-Qasam's next targets was dismissed as being hyperbolic. So were the By Any Means Necessary banners carried at demonstrations and the red inverted triangles, similar to those Hamas uses to mark Israeli targets, spray-painted on university buildings, a national monument, and even the apartment building of a museum director. When demonstrators wave the flags of terrorist organizations, wear headbands celebrating those same groups, and publicly commemorate the martyrdom of terrorist leaders such as Hamas's Yahya Sinwar and Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah, they're not throwing the bomb, but their message can light the fuse. [Iddo Gefen: What 'intifada revolution' looks like] In the past six weeks, that fuse has produced a succession of terrorist acts that have threatened the safety and security of America's Jewish community. That two of the incidents also occurred on Jewish holidays—the arson attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's official residence on the first night of Passover and yesterday's incident in Boulder on the eve of Shavuot—show that Jews in America are not only in some danger, but even more likely to be targeted on specific dates marking religious ritual and observance. And they won't be just singled out, but subjected to especially heinous acts of violence. The attacker in Boulder used a homemade flamethrower and Molotov cocktails, resulting in eight people being hospitalized with burns and other injuries. Tragically, among the eight victims, who ranged in age from 52 to 88, the eldest was reportedly a Holocaust survivor. Yet another example of an especially egregious act of violence was the shooting deaths last month of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim on the street outside a Jewish museum in Washington, D.C. One bullet from a powerful 9-mm handgun is often sufficient to kill. But police found 21 shell casings scattered around the two bodies. The murderer allegedly stalked Milgrim as she attempted to crawl away, shooting her repeatedly. This was an execution. For years, American Jews watched with horror the attacks on their European co-religionists. A young man kidnapped and tortured to death, an elderly lady beaten and thrown out the window of her home, and a teacher and three children murdered outside a Jewish day school are among a long list of violent anti-Semitic incidents in France alone—the country with the world's third-largest population of Jews after Israel and the United States. 'What history had taught him was Amazement,' Lion Feuchtwanger writes of the conclusion reached by one of the characters in his deeply prescient 1933 novel about Nazi Germany, The Oppermanns. 'A tremendous amazement that each time those in jeopardy had been so slow in thinking about their safety.' Despite the sharp increase in the number of anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. recorded over the past decade by the Anti-Defamation League, American Jews also once believed that the violence against Jews in France, Britain, Germany, and other European countries couldn't happen here. Many told themselves that this threat was unique to European Jewry, given the internal frictions within their own countries, which had absorbed large immigrant populations from former colonial possessions. But yesterday's attack, coming on the heels of the firebombing of Shapiro's residence and the D.C. murders, has proved otherwise. As Ian Fleming, the former spy and novelist who created James Bond, reportedly observed, 'Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action.' Arguably the system was already blinking red after the 2018 mass shooting at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue, where a gunman killed 11 people, and the near tragedy averted four years later, when an armed man took hostage the rabbi and worshippers at a Colleyville, Texas, synagogue. The October 7 attacks heightened that awareness and led Jews to emulate the security measures standard at synagogues, day schools, community centers, and senior residences in Europe. Private companies were hired to provide guards at the entrances to synagogues and schools. Volunteers were solicited, trained, and deployed by community-based security organizations. The positioning of at least one local police car and patrol officer in front of synagogues became commonplace. But in today's threat environment, the question for Jews everywhere is inevitably: How much security is enough? Shapiro's residence was not unprotected. Additional armed guards were deployed at the entrance to the Jewish museum for the event that Lischinsky and Milgrim attended. Jewish institutions, organizations, and agencies, moreover, are already burdened with rising security costs. A study of expenditures at Jewish day schools in four states found that the average cost for security had nearly doubled in 2024–25—to $339,000—compared with 2022–23. After the past six weeks, further increases can be expected. The same is true on university campuses across America, where Jewish- or Israeli-studies departments and centers, as well as similarly oriented student organizations and Jewish ministries, are themselves responsible for paying for the security now standard for all of their events. And there will be challenges in what can be done to prevent such tragedies in the future. For instance, although security was increased at the entrance to and inside the D.C. Jewish museum, Lischinsky and Milgrim were gunned down outside, on a street corner. Will security measures now require that a secure perimeter be established, or even concentric circles of security in front of every venue and surrounding any event? Will a phalanx of local police or community volunteers be required to box in and protect participants at any and every Jewish event? After yesterday's attack in Boulder, the answer, most likely, is yes. [From the April 2024 issue: The golden age of American Jews is ending] Security provisions are often likened to the proverbial length of a ball of string. In the case of American Jewry, however long that once was, it now needs to be lengthened. Whatever upgrades and increases have been implemented in the past will necessitate reassessment, further modification, and enhancements. More resources will need to be dedicated to ensure the protection of Jewish places of worship, clerics, and congregations. The same is true for other Jewish and Israel-related activities at schools, community centers, offices, and senior homes. The same goes for marches, parades, demonstrations, vigils, and other inherently public events. Strengthened physical, personal, and digital security measures will likely follow—especially during religious holidays and festivals. Even greater cooperation, coordination, and information sharing between law enforcement and Jewish institutions than already exists will be needed. Ultimately, however, physical security alone will not protect American Jewry. The prejudice and calumny directed against that community that have now become commonplace and have often been treated with indifference must change as well. And with this must come the recognition that violence threatens not just American Jews but all Americans. The Council on American-Islamic Relations cites record numbers of anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents; CatholicVote finds hundreds of instances of vandalism as well as more serious attacks on Catholic churches in the U.S. since 2020; and the Hindu American Foundation had to issue a 'Temple Safety & Security Guide' to its worshippers. Violence against all faiths is rising. To stop it, our society must take more seriously not just bomb throwing, but the messages that light the fuse. Article originally published at The Atlantic
Atlantic
a day ago
- Politics
- Atlantic
Terrorism Doesn't Occur in a Vacuum
Terrorism doesn't occur in a vacuum. It depends on the oxygen of rhetoric for sustenance and encouragement. Nearly two years after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, the cumulative effect of calls to 'Globalize the intifada' and 'End Zionists' perhaps inevitably led to the horrific attack yesterday in Boulder, Colorado, where a man yelled 'Free Palestine' as he threw an incendiary device at a Jewish gathering in support of the hostages. Words matter. The protester at Columbia University in 2024 holding a sign labeling Jewish demonstrators who were waving Israeli flags as Al-Qasam 's next targets was dismissed as being hyperbolic. So were the By Any Means Necessary banners carried at demonstrations and the red inverted triangles, similar to those Hamas uses to mark Israeli targets, spray-painted on university buildings, a national monument, and even the apartment building of a museum director. When demonstrators wave the flags of terrorist organizations, wear headbands celebrating those same groups, and publicly commemorate the martyrdom of terrorist leaders such as Hamas's Yahya Sinwar and Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah, they're not throwing the bomb, but their message can light the fuse. Iddo Gefen: What 'intifada revolution' looks like In the past six weeks, that fuse has produced a succession of terrorist acts that have threatened the safety and security of America's Jewish community. That two of the incidents also occurred on Jewish holidays—the arson attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's official residence on the first night of Passover and yesterday's incident in Boulder on the eve of Shavuot—show that Jews in America are not only in some danger, but even more likely to be targeted on specific dates marking religious ritual and observance. And they won't be just singled out, but subjected to especially heinous acts of violence. The attacker in Boulder used a homemade flamethrower and Molotov cocktails, resulting in eight people being hospitalized with burns and other injuries. Tragically, among the eight victims, who ranged in age from 52 to 88, the eldest was reportedly a Holocaust survivor. Yet another example of an especially egregious act of violence was the shooting deaths last month of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim on the street outside a Jewish museum in Washington, D.C. One bullet from a powerful 9-mm handgun is often sufficient to kill. But police found 21 shell casings scattered around the two bodies. The murderer allegedly stalked Milgrim as she attempted to crawl away, shooting her repeatedly. This was an execution. For years, American Jews watched with horror the attacks on their European co-religionists. A young man kidnapped and tortured to death, an elderly lady beaten and thrown out the window of her home, and a teacher and three children murdered outside a Jewish day school are among a long list of violent anti-Semitic incidents in France alone—the country with the world's third-largest population of Jews after Israel and the United States. 'What history had taught him was Amazement,' Lion Feuchtwanger writes of the conclusion reached by one of the characters in his deeply prescient 1933 novel about Nazi Germany, The Oppermanns. 'A tremendous amazement that each time those in jeopardy had been so slow in thinking about their safety.' Despite the sharp increase in the number of anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. recorded over the past decade by the Anti-Defamation League, American Jews also once believed that the violence against Jews in France, Britain, Germany, and other European countries couldn't happen here. Many told themselves that this threat was unique to European Jewry, given the internal frictions within their own countries, which had absorbed large immigrant populations from former colonial possessions. But yesterday's attack, coming on the heels of the firebombing of Shapiro's residence and the D.C. murders, has proved otherwise. As Ian Fleming, the former spy and novelist who created James Bond, reportedly observed, 'Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action.' Arguably the system was already blinking red after the 2018 mass shooting at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue, where a gunman killed 11 people, and the near tragedy averted four years later, when an armed man took hostage the rabbi and worshippers at a Colleyville, Texas, synagogue. The October 7 attacks heightened that awareness and led Jews to emulate the security measures standard at synagogues, day schools, community centers, and senior residences in Europe. Private companies were hired to provide guards at the entrances to synagogues and schools. Volunteers were solicited, trained, and deployed by community-based security organizations. The positioning of at least one local police car and patrol officer in front of synagogues became commonplace. But in today's threat environment, the question for Jews everywhere is inevitably: How much security is enough? Shapiro's residence was not unprotected. Additional armed guards were deployed at the entrance to the Jewish museum for the event that Lischinsky and Milgrim attended. Jewish institutions, organizations, and agencies, moreover, are already burdened with rising security costs. A study of expenditures at Jewish day schools in four states found that the average cost for security had nearly doubled in 2024–25—to $339,000—compared with 2022–23. After the past six weeks, further increases can be expected. The same is true on university campuses across America, where Jewish- or Israeli-studies departments and centers, as well as similarly oriented student organizations and Jewish ministries, are themselves responsible for paying for the security now standard for all of their events. And there will be challenges in what can be done to prevent such tragedies in the future. For instance, although security was increased at the entrance to and inside the D.C. Jewish museum, Lischinsky and Milgrim were gunned down outside, on a street corner. Will security measures now require that a secure perimeter be established, or even concentric circles of security in front of every venue and surrounding any event? Will a phalanx of local police or community volunteers be required to box in and protect participants at any and every Jewish event? After yesterday's attack in Boulder, the answer, most likely, is yes. From the April 2024 issue: The golden age of American Jews is ending Security provisions are often likened to the proverbial length of a ball of string. In the case of American Jewry, however long that once was, it now needs to be lengthened. Whatever upgrades and increases have been implemented in the past will necessitate reassessment, further modification, and enhancements. More resources will need to be dedicated to ensure the protection of Jewish places of worship, clerics, and congregations. The same is true for other Jewish and Israel-related activities at schools, community centers, offices, and senior homes. The same goes for marches, parades, demonstrations, vigils, and other inherently public events. Strengthened physical, personal, and digital security measures will likely follow—especially during religious holidays and festivals. Even greater cooperation, coordination, and information sharing between law enforcement and Jewish institutions than already exists will be needed. Ultimately, however, physical security alone will not protect American Jewry. The prejudice and calumny directed against that community that have now become commonplace and have often been treated with indifference must change as well. And with this must come the recognition that violence threatens not just American Jews but all Americans. The Council on American-Islamic Relations cites record numbers of anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents; CatholicVote finds hundreds of instances of vandalism as well as more serious attacks on Catholic churches in the U.S. since 2020; and the Hindu American Foundation had to issue a 'Temple Safety & Security Guide' to its worshippers. Violence against all faiths is rising. To stop it, our society must take more seriously not just bomb throwing, but the messages that light the fuse.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
'Science and Jihad': How Houthi 'summer schools' indoctrinate Yemen's youth
'Houthi summer indoctrination camps are a catastrophic project that's been ongoing for a decade. Boys as young as 7 are taught war slogans, political loyalty, and martyrdom," Fatima Alasrar posted. The Houthi media armAl-Masirah posted a video on May 27 showing what it described as a 'scout show and closing events for summer schools.' The hashtag for the event on Telegram was 'science and jihad' and 'summer courses.' The scenes appear to be part of the larger Houthi indoctrination campaign aimed at children. These types of 'summer camps' have taken place for years. However, the role of the Houthis is increasingly in the spotlight because of the increasing threat they pose to the region. In the video report posted by Al-Masirah young children who appear to be between age 9 and 12, are seen marching in formation and holding images of the Houthi leader. In another part of the video, a room full of armed men is seen apparently celebrating the children 'completing' their courses. Whether the men needed to all bring AK-47s and other weapons to the event was unclear. The men don't appear to be soldiers, but rather supporters of the Houthis or parents. In another scene in the video, an image of the late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is seen in the background, and in other scenes, the children carry Palestinian flags. In a video posted on May 28, the Houthis also claim that 6,000 people graduated from 'al-Aqsa flood courses' in Hajjah governorate. This video is hashtagged 'you are not alone' and 'the battle of the promised conquest and holy jihad.' This video is filmed in a mountainous region called the Kushar district, northwest of Sana'a. In this video, the 'graduates' of the course are grown men, many of them who seem to be approaching their forties. The poverty is clear in both videos of the children and the grown men being pressed into service of the Houthis. The cult of the Houthi leader is also increasingly on display, with trucks displaying his image, and children made to worship him. Clearly, this movement is aiming to completely indoctrinate everyone in its clutches. In 2021, DW noted that 'the recruitment of child soldiers is without a doubt one of the most upsetting of the many human rights violations that have been documented during Yemen's civil war.' This report focused on one 15-year-old recruit who had gone off to a Houthi training camp in the summer. He was trained to fight the Yemeni government at the time. This is in the days before the Houthis had as large regional ambitions aimed at cutting off trade in the Red Sea and attacking Israel. In those days, the Houthis were fighting a Saudi-backed Yemeni government. 'Religious teachers had imparted the ideology behind what they saw as a holy mission, or jihad, and talked about why they were fighting to protect their homeland. God approved of their fight against the internationally recognized Yemeni government, they said,' DW noted, about the training. The summer camps for children appear to be held most years in April and stretch into May. This isn't exactly summer, it's more like spring. Reports in 2024 noted that Abdul Malik al-Houthi had praised these camps in April 2024. It is believed that hundreds of thousands of children and teens under age 18 attend these camps every year. Clearly, some of the kids will go through multiple times. In June 2024, the Middle East Media Research Institute described a graduation event for 4,000 students from 16 schools. The youths, 'showcased their combat skills, which included simulated rifle exercises and military stepping. The students also displayed the Yemeni and Palestinian flags alongside the slogans 'boycott American and Israeli products' and 'Gaza, you are not alone.'' The report noted that 'the official website of the Ansar Allah Houthi Movement noted about the event: 'The demonstration which was presented by the students of the summer courses embodied the fact that the next generation is coming with the weapons of knowledge, an identity of faith, and a Qur'anic culture.'' In a post on X, researcher Fatima Alasrar noted that 'Houthi summer indoctrination camps are a catastrophic project that's been ongoing for a decade. Boys as young as 7 are taught war slogans, political loyalty, and martyrdom. A generation now molded by a dangerous ideology that rejects peace. This is Yemen's real disaster.' She noted the recent Al-Masirah videos of the children marching. She went on to add that 'the footage comes straight from Houthi media. It's staged, choreographed, and broadcast today as part of a broader strategy to project strength within Iran's regional axis. It's a bid for ideological legitimacy and leadership in the so-called Axis of Resistance front.' Alasrar went on to note that 'I've seen a lot in Yemen's conflict, but this is unsettling. The Houthis' graduation ceremony for their summer indoctrination camp: rows of boys in uniform, chanting, holding portraits of Soleimani, vowing to liberate Gaza. This is how Iran's proxies prepare the next generation.'
LBCI
25-05-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
A quarter-century later: Two wars, two realities for Hezbollah
Report by Wissam Nasrallah, English adaptation by Karine Keuchkerian A quarter-century has passed since Israeli forces withdrew from Lebanese territory—reluctantly, not voluntarily—under the pressure of persistent resistance operations. That remains a fact. Since then, Israel has launched two wars on Lebanon. In the first, the July 2006 war, Hezbollah emerged victorious. Few can deny the footage showing Merkava tanks hit by Kornet missiles in Wadi al-Hujeir—missiles that Israel was unaware Hezbollah even possessed at the time. Nor can anyone claim Israel succeeded in assassinating any top Hezbollah leader during that war. The prisoner exchange that followed revealed the fate of two captured Israeli soldiers—returned in coffins in exchange for five living Lebanese detainees and the remains of nearly 200 others. The second war, however, told a different story. That is also a fact. Just as it is difficult to dismiss Hezbollah's battlefield accomplishments in 2006, it is harder to overlook the scale of Israeli strikes since the September 2024 offensive. From the operation involving pager explosions to thousands of airstrikes over a short period, the toll includes thousands of casualties, the assassination of much of Hezbollah's command-and-control unit—including Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah—and the destruction of southern villages during the ceasefire, followed by Israeli incursions into Lebanese territory. Still, Hezbollah and its ally, the Amal Movement, have reasserted their local support, winning a majority of municipal councils in Shiite-majority areas of the south and the Bekaa. The question remains: how much does the win matter to Washington, especially following a war that shifted the balance of power and intensified U.S. calls for Hezbollah's disarmament? Hezbollah, for its part, maintains that the issue of disarmament applies only to the area south of the Litani River. The reality after 2006 is not the same as the one after 2024. Simply put, the outcomes of the two wars are not just different—they are contradictory. The question now is how Hezbollah will navigate this new phase—and, more critically, what timeline Washington has set for achieving its stated goals.
Toronto Sun
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Toronto Sun
Jewish groups call on BC crown to take action against Canadian terror leader
Samidoun Leader Charlotte Kates used the D.C. murders of two Israeli embassy workers as a call for action against supporters of Israel Charlotte Kates, leader of Canada-based terror group Samidoun, attends the funeral of liquidated Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, Lebanon on Sunday, Feb. 23 2025 Photo by X OTTAWA — Canadian Jewish groups are calling on the B.C. Prosecution Service to follow through with charges against a Canadian terrorist group leader, particularly after recent social media posts glorifying the gunman who killed two Israeli embassy workers. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Charlotte Kates, a leader of Vancouver-based terror group for Samidoun, was arrested last year for openly lauding the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas terror attacks during a downtown Vancouver anti-Israel protest. The Crown has yet to lay charges. 'Long Live Oct. 7!' she shouted during the protest last April, of the terror attack that saw scores of Palestinian terrorists storm Israeli towns to conduct a campaign of murder, kidnapping and sexual assault against Israeli men, women and children. Vancouver police executed a search warrant at Kates' home last November in connection with that investigation. Shortly after last week's murder of two Israeli embassy staffers outside of the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., Kates allegedly took to social media to praise the murders, and called on her supporters to follow in his example. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. What's the purpose of anti-terrorism laws if there are no consequences? Despite being arrested just over a year ago for openly praising the terrorists behind the October 7th massacre, Charlotte Kates -- the international coordinator for Samidoun, a designated terrorist group --… — CIJA (@CIJAinfo) May 25, 2025 'All those who want to end the genocide who have come out to condemn, speculate about and degrade Elias Rodriguez (accused of murdering the Israeli embassy staffers) would be well served to think about instead how they can escalate meaningful consequences on the war criminals through organized mass action,' she allegedly wrote on X. 'This should be a moment for self-criticism and deepened action, not for arrogant musings over the rage of many put into action.' Also attributed to her is a social media post which said those 'whose conscience is tormented' by Israel's operations in Gaza 'will find ways to impose accountability.' The Toronto Sun reached out to both Kates and the BC Prosecution Service for comment. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Despite her leadership of a proscribed terrorist organization, Kates freely travels to spread her message — most notably, she was an invited guest at February's funeral of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, where she praised the dead terrorist as a heroic martyr. The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) is calling on the Crown to proceed with charges against Kates and to consider her words as an incitement of terror against Canada's Jewish community. 'Despite being arrested just over a year ago for openly praising the terrorists behind the Oct. 7th massacre, Charlotte Kates — the international coordinator for Samidoun, a designated terrorist group — has yet to be charged,' read a statement. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Meanwhile, she has travelled the world to receive an award from the Iranian regime, attend the funeral in Beirut of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and advocate on behalf of Hamas in the United Kingdom.' CIJA says the B.C. Prosecution Service must act without further delay, and as Parliament resumes, are calling on the government to close loopholes in the Criminal Code. 'Now here in Canada she has taken to social media to defend the perpetrator of the antisemitic attack in Washington — calling for escalation and urging others to follow the murderer's example,' the statement read. 'This is no longer just about glorifying terrorists — it's about incitement that puts the safety and well-being of all Canadians at risk.' bpassifiume@ X: @bryanpassifiume Read More Toronto Blue Jays Columnists Sunshine Girls Toronto & GTA Ontario
