Latest news with #Jew
Fox News
23 minutes ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Jon Stewart argues Netanyahu would have to 'bomb himself' for endangering Jewish people
Jon Stewart blasted Israel's current policy towards Gaza on "The Daily Show" Monday, calling its actions "self-evidently inhumane and horrific." With "Jewish Currents" editor-at-large Peter Beinart, Stewart reflected on how he is condemned by other Jewish people as a "bad Jew" for speaking out about the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Stewart said Jewish people often think of themselves as the underdog, but, "What happens when David becomes Goliath?" He derided pro-Israeli commentators for denying the conflict is a genocide, arguing it is "purposeful starvation." "I feel like a crazy person. I feel like I'm watching something that is so self-evidently inhumane and horrific," he added. Stewart argued that the ongoing conflict is not only a moral hazard, but hazardous to the existence of Israel itself. "And to be told that I have to shut up because I risk the Jewish state by speaking out? I would say the opposite," he said. "I think they're putting the likelihood of a surviving Jewish state much more at risk with this type of action." "I think they're the ones that are being anti - if you want to define - [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, with that definition of antisemitism, would probably have to bomb himself," he added. Beinart, for his part, claimed that Palestinians "behaved like Gandhi" by participating in "overwhelmingly non-violent" marches in Gaza seven years ago, alleging that the U.S. supports Israel shutting down peaceful protests. "When they do non-violent boycotts, we criminalize the boycotts. When they go to the International Criminal Court, we sanction the International Criminal Court," he added, referencing the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement and President Donald Trump's sanctions against the ICC for issuing an arrest warrant for Netanyahu. Beinart appeared to insinuate Hamas' October 7 terror attacks were understandable in light of all this. "We essentially send the message to Palestinians that non-violent protests, that ethical protest resistance, doesn't work. And that makes it easier for Hamas to commit the crimes that they did on October 7," he said.
Fox News
2 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Regina Spektor show interrupted by anti-Israel protesters screaming, ‘Free f------ Palestine!'
Singer Regina Spektor had to pause her concert on Saturday thanks to raucous anti-Israel protesters in the crowd. During Spektor's performance in Portland, Oregon, multiple people in the audience began yelling "Free Palestine," prompting the musician to pause her set and get security to escort them out. "You're just yelling at a Jew," she told the hecklers before they were directed to leave the premises. Video footage captured by a fan, and reshared on TikTok by music outlet Stereogum, showed the moment one member of the audience began yelling, "Free f------ Palestine!" at the singer inside Portland's Revolution Hall. The protesters' outburst was met by cries from fed-up concertgoers, one of whom chanted, "Am Yisrael Chai" – or "The people of Israel live" – in response. The footage showed Spektor, a Jewish woman who immigrated to New York from the Soviet Union when she was a child, appearing to communicate with someone offstage to get security involved. "I don't know what he thinks he's doing," the singer told the crowd, referencing the outburst. Some in the crowd responded by applauding Spektor, and apologizing for the interruption. "I really appreciate the security," she added in a soft tone, prompting laughter from the crowd. Some yelled, "We love you!" Still, the outbursts weren't over. Another individual started screaming, "Free, free Palestine! Say it! Say it!" Again, someone responded, "Am Yisrael Chai!" By the time the lights turned on in the venue, revealing the crowd, Spektor quipped, "I thought this was different than the internet. This is real life." The crowd applauded again. Still another protester spoke up, saying, "There's a genocide happening." Spektor addressed the heckler, saying, "You can leave the show if you want. This is not an internet comment section. I know that you are mistaking my show for a YouTube video––" "I'm not," the heckler replied. "You are," Spektor shot back. "I'm watching children dying. That hurts," the anti-Israel agitator added. "Yeah, I think you should go because this is not the place for that conversation," the singer said. Elsewhere, Spektor told the crowd, "The only reason I even speak English is because I came here to escape this s---. I only speak English because I came from a country where people treated Jews as othered, and I'm being othered here, and it sucks." Spektor has publicly spoken out about the Israel-Hamas conflict in the past. Just days after the October 7 Hamas massacre, she mourned for Israelis and Palestinians alike in an Instagram post. "My tears are endless but my heart has enough room… Room for murdered, raped, and kidnapped innocent Jews. Room for bombed innocent Palestinians suffering and dying in Gaza. Fury at Hamas whose mission is exterminating Jews while hiding behind Palestinian human shields." As the post went on, Spektor criticized Israel's government, but defended the nation and its people. "Israeli government is NOT its people, like any other government on earth. Netanyahu does NOT speak for all Israelis, or all Jews living across the world. In the Middle East – Israel is the ONLY democracy with a chance to vote/protest/change its government. The ONLY land where LGBTQ people are able to live safely. The ONLY land which doesn't mandate women's dress or behavior." Reps for Spektor and Revolution Hall did not immediately reply to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
NBC News
4 hours ago
- Politics
- NBC News
UCLA to pay over $6 million to settle lawsuit over pro-Palestinian protests
The University of California, Los Angeles announced Tuesday that it has reached a settlement in a discrimination lawsuit brought by Jewish students and a faculty member, agreeing to pay more than $6 million. The plaintiffs, who brought the lawsuit in June 2024, accused the university of failing to take action when pro-Palestinian protesters set up encampments last spring. They claimed that the protest areas were inaccessible to Jewish students and amounted to what plaintiffs referred to as 'Jew exclusion zones.' While UCLA has denied any wrongdoing, it agreed to settle fully, with $50,000 payments to each of the plaintiffs in addition to $2.33 million in donations to organizations that combat antisemitism. 'We are pleased with the terms of today's settlement. The injunction and other terms UCLA has agreed to demonstrate real progress in the fight against antisemitism,' the parties said in a joint statement. In the settlement, UCLA agreed to ensure that Jewish students and faculty would not be excluded from any programs, activities or campus areas. The eight organizations to which the school agreed to donate include Hillel at UCLA, the Academic Engagement Network and the Anti-Defamation League, the settlement said. Additionally, the school said it will allocate $320,000 for its Initiative to Combat Antisemitism, according to a press release about the settlement. 'Antisemitism, harassment, and other forms of intimidation are antithetical to our values and have no place at the University of California,' UC Board of Regents Chair Janet Reilly said. 'We have been clear about where we have fallen short, and we are committed to doing better moving forward.' Yitzchok Frankel, a UCLA student and plaintiff in the case, said in a statement that though he was disappointed in the school's initial actions, the settlement was a positive development. 'Today's court judgment brings justice back to our campus and ensures Jews will be safe and be treated equally once again,' he said. The settlement comes more than a year after students staged pro-Palestinian protests at universities across the country, with tent encampments established at many campuses. At UCLA, protesters called on the school to divest from companies that have ties to Israel with an encampment of their own in late April 2024. Counterprotesters attacked the encampment, leading to violent clashes. Police were eventually called and more than 200 people were arrested. Months later, the school implemented a 'zero tolerance' policy, banning encampments, masks that hide identities and any protests that block pathways. Lawsuits have also been filed by Pro-Palestinian protestors and supporters as well. UCLA was hit with a lawsuit in October, accusing it of suppressing antiwar voices and ordering students and faculty protesters to be arrested unlawfully. The suit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, also accused the school of violating free speech rights. The case is still being litigated. Columbia University last week said it will pay $200 million to the Trump administration to restore funding that had been cut over allegations it violated anti-discrimination laws. In March, the administration said it was canceling $400 million in grants to the Ivy League institution, accusing it of 'inaction in the face of persistent harassment of Jewish students.' Earlier this month, Barnard College in Manhattan, an all-women's affiliate of Columbia University, also settled a lawsuit that accused the school of failing to sufficiently combat antisemitism on campus. Among the terms it had agreed to, the school said it would ban masks at protests and that it would refuse to meet or negotiate with a coalition of pro-Palestinian student groups. The settlement immediately drew criticism from its students and faculty. Nara Milanich, a Barnard history professor who is Jewish, told CNN that the settlement appears to 'equate criticism of Israel with antisemitism.' 'That is a problem for critical thought and academic freedom,' she said.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Netherlands bans entry for Ben-Gvir, Smotrich on settlement expansion, Gaza comments
The Israeli ambassador was summoned and requested to tell the Israeli government to change its current course in Gaza. The Netherlands announced on Monday night that National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich would be banned from entering the country. "The cabinet has therefore decided to declare Israeli ministers Smotrich and Ben-Gvir persona non grata and is committed to registering them as undesirable aliens in the Schengen registration system," Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp said. "This is because they have repeatedly incited settler violence against the Palestinian population, persistently advocated the expansion of illegal settlements, and called for ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip." Veldkamp added that Israel's ambassador to the Netherlands would be summoned and requested to 'call on the Netanyahu government to change course…The current situation is intolerable and indefensible. Furthermore, it has been agreed to continue to increase pressure on Hamas to achieve a ceasefire." Ben-Gvir responded to the Netherlands' decision on Tuesday morning, where he said he would continue to act for Israel. "Even if I'm banned from entering all of Europe, I will continue to fight for our country and demand that we dismantle Hamas and support our fighters. The violent, the murderers, and the rapists are our enemies, but in Europe, as is often the case, the victim is blamed." "In a place where terrorism is tolerated and terrorists are welcomed, a Jewish minister from Israel is unwelcome, terrorists are free, and Jews are boycotted," Ben-Gvir wrote. Smotrich says Netherlands, European states 'fail to understand,' comments on rising antisemitism Smotrich wrote in a post to X/Twitter that "every Jew in the world should be able to live in the State of Israel safely for generations to come." "What those in the Netherlands and other European countries fail to understand is that, more than my desire to enter the Netherlands, what matters most to me is that my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren—and every Jew in the world—should be able to live in the State of Israel safely for generations to come." The finance minister commented on rising antisemitism in Europe, writing, "In the Netherlands and in Europe more broadly, Jews did not live in safety at the beginning of the last century. And if we judge by European hypocrisy, the surrender of its leaders to the lies of radical Islam that is taking over and the rising antisemitism, Jews will not be able to live there safely in the future either." "I dedicate my life to the future and security of Israel, and I will continue to do so, according to my best judgment, even if it means standing firm against the entire world. And as the late prime minister Menachem Begin said, if someone in the world turns up their nose, let them have a crooked nose." Tensions between Herzog, Dutch PM On Monday, tensions erupted between Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Dutch Prime Minister , following a sharply worded statement from the Netherlands suggesting punitive European measures against Israel due to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. In a social media post, Schoof said he had convened an emergency meeting with his deputy prime ministers, foreign minister, and defense minister to address what he described as 'the catastrophic situation in Gaza.' Schoof emphasized the Netherlands' support for immediate and unrestricted humanitarian aid to the enclave and warned that if the European Union finds Israel in violation of humanitarian agreements, The Hague would support suspending Israel's participation in the EU's Horizon Europe research and innovation program. Schoof went further, stating that if the EU takes action, the Netherlands would advocate additional measures—potentially in the trade sphere—and may also take national steps to 'increase the pressure.' Herzog tweeted in response, writing, 'Sorry, Prime Minister, with all due respect—this tweet does not reflect the spirit or the details of our phone call." 'Nor does it reflect my crystal-clear position: it will be a huge mistake if the EU takes such steps, especially in light of Israel's ongoing and upgraded humanitarian efforts.' Amichai Stein contributed to this report. This is a developing story. Solve the daily Crossword
Hans India
7 hours ago
- Business
- Hans India
Death of Blackstone's Wesley LePatner in Midtown Shooting Sparks Investigation
The Blackstone executive shot in the shooting spree by 27-year-old Shane Tamura was a Jewish leader in the philanthropic world. In 2023, LePatner was honored by a Jewish group for her work as a philanthropist. With the revelation of the Wesley LePatner identity, the Midtown Manhattan shooting-turned-to-targeted-killing with the discovery of the victim's identity as a Jew makes a lot of the earlier comments linking Tamura's manifesto that blamed the NFL all make less sense. Who was Wesley LePatner? Blackstone's Wesley LePatner is the Senior Managing Director of the firm. She was hired by the company in 2014. LePatner currently heads up Blackstone's Core+ Real Estate business globally and is also CEO of Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, a company with $53 billion under management, Bloomberg reports. She is an alumna of Yale University and worked at Goldman Sachs for more than 10 years. She also sits on the boards of a number of big-name New York institutions including the Metropolitan Museum of Art. 'It is with great sadness that we confirm that our colleague, Wesley LePartner, was one of the victims in the tragic incident at 345 Park Avenue,' Blackstone said in a statement to The New York Post. 'She was an exceptional human being—dedicated, caring and beloved by all who knew her at Blackstone and across the industry. She made significant contributions to the firm and our sector, and personified the very best of Blackstone. Our hearts go out to her husband, her children and her extended family.' 'This has nothing to do with targeted shooting NYC' Right-wing commentator and former President Donald Trump's aide Laura Loomer trained the gun at New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani and alleged that NYC gun violence was the same group that Mamdani was photographed with. 'Blackstone Building had been one of the sites identified by activist group Within Our Lifetime (@WOLPalestine) for the use of slogans such as 'Globalize the Intifada'. Politicians seen in public records and photographs at rallies have included @ZohranKMamdani. The shooter is reported to have said 'Free Palestine' according to witnesses. The victim was Jewish executive at Blackstone. The local Jewish community concerns was on edge.'
