A large swastika and the word \”Nazi\” were spray-painted on a Connecticut synagogue. The graffiti on the B\’nai Shalom synagogue in Waterbury was discovered Tuesday morning by worshipers. Police are investigating the vandalism, which has been classified as a hate crime, according to reports.
Violence erupted during a demonstration by anti-racist groups opposing an alliance between the Jewish Defense League and the Britain-based English Defense League. Four protesters were arrested and a police officer was injured in Tuesday night\’s violence. Demonstrators representing several anti-racism and social action groups shouted slogans and taunts at members of the JDL, whose Canadian leader, Meir Weinstein, announced recently that his group would ally with the British organization, which is known for violence and extremism. Police on foot and horseback managed to control the protest, but not before one officer reportedly suffered a broken rib.
Two Israeli brothers suspected of involvement in organized crime were extradited to the United States. Meir and Yitzhak Abergil boarded a U.S. government plane Wednesday afternoon accompanied by American federal marshals. The United States requested their extradition more than two years ago on charges of money laundering, extortion and drug trafficking. They also are accused of killing a drug dealer. Three other Israelis also were extradited Wednesday on the same charges. They were indicted in 2008 by a California court following a six-year police investigation in several countries.
A Ukrainian court reportedly has annulled a decree that posthumously granted nationalist leader Stepan Bandera the Hero of Ukraine award. The announcement of the decree\’s annullment was released Wednesday by the office of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. Former President Viktor Yuschenko last year granted the prestigious award to Bandera, the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, shortly before national elections, which he lost. The award recognizes either heroism or achievement in labor.
Sarah Palin did not shoot Rep. Gabriella Giffords. Neither did Glenn Beck. Or Rush Limbaugh. Or even Giffords\’ opponent in the 2010 campaign, Jesse Kelly. Giffords was shot by a mentally unstable terrorist, who after attempting to assassinate Giffords, kept shooting into the crowd that had gathered outside a supermarket in Tuscon, Ariz. Americans reacted with shock and horror, which should tell us something about our expectations. In a world rife with political carnage, in a country whose history is laden with ideological bloodshed, it matters greatly that in 21st century America, political violence is rejected wholesale. Now we have to start rejecting rhetorical violence.
Since the notorious NGO Forum of the 2001 Durban conference, nongovernmental organizations have implemented a coordinated strategy against Israel — isolation and demonization in the international arena. Influential Israeli and Palestinian NGOs are very active in this strategy, and their claims and agendas should not be immune to criticism and debate in the democratic process. However, the Israeli Knesset vote to open an official inquiry into the funding of virulent political NGOs involved in delegitimization is more likely to polarize than to shed light or encourage informed criticism. The Knesset debate demonstrated the intense political nature of this initiative, as both ends of the ideological spectrum ignored the complex and substantive issues.
A strike by Israeli Foreign Ministry employees has broadened, halting defense-related exports and freezing assistance for Israelis abroad. The strike, which began several weeks ago and has added sanctions on a weekly and now daily basis, has included refusing to cooperate with other ministries such as the Prime Minister\’s Office, the Mossad and the army; disrupting diplomatic mail service; and refusing to cooperate on visits of dignitaries and state delegations. Earlier this month, a delegation of 500 that included business leaders and was led by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had to be canceled due to a lack of cooperation from Foreign Ministry personnel. A visit scheduled for next month by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and several of her Cabinet ministers to attend the annual joint Israel-Germany Cabinet session is in danger of cancellation.
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