Ayatollah Khamenei promotes anti-Semitic conspiracy
(JNS.org) On the eve of Iran’s June 14 presidential elections, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s promoted an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory on his Facebook profile by featuring the logo of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee accompanied by text reading “the U.S. president is being elected from only two parties while Zionist regime is controlling everything behind the scenes.”
Additionally, Khamenei’s Facebook page said, “In Iran, there have been many presidents being elected in a pure democratic process from ordinary people even without any affiliation to a party.”
Anti-Defamation League National Director Abraham Foxman said in a statement, “Shame on the Ayatollah for yet again giving voice to raw, full-throated and unadulterated anti-Semitism, this time in a forum where millions of ordinary Iranians see and share his message on the eve of national elections.”
Formula 1 Road Show thrills Jerusalem
(JNS.org) Some 100,000 people attended Israel’s first-ever Formula 1 Road Show in Jerusalem on Thursday and Friday.
For several hours, the controversies that normally characterize Jerusalem were put aside, and a diverse mosaic of Israelis watched up close as the motor-sport stars temporarily conquered the city.
“It was an amazing experience, the most fast and furious thing I have seen,” spectator Masada Porat told Israel Hayom. “It was a rare, extreme event that explodes in your face.”
Spectator Irena Fakula said, “We saw and heard the motorcycles up close, we saw the beautiful cars and we also saw lots of happy people. There should be more events like this in Jerusalem; people are starved for this kind of culture.”
Syrian civil war death toll approaches 93,000
(JNS.org) The death toll from the Syrian civil war continues to rise with no end in sight, with 92,901 killings documented through the end of April.
“The constant flow of killings continues at shockingly high levels,” U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said in a statement, the New York Times reported.
There have been “more than 5,000 killings documented every month since last July, including a total of just under 27,000 new killings since Dec. 1,” Pillay’s statement added.
Pillay also said that her estimates are conservative and that the number of deaths from the Syrian civil war “is potentially much higher.”
The Syrian civil war, which began as peaceful protests against the government of President Bashar al-Assad more than 26 months ago, has largely spiraled into a widespread sectarian conflict between the Shi’a-aligned Syrian government, aided by Iran and Hezbollah, and the Sunni-aligned Syrian opposition, aided by Turkey, Arab Gulf states and Islamic extremists.
Concerns grow over Egypt’s blasphemy cases
(JNS.org) The human rights organization Amnesty International is deeply concerned about the increase in criminal blasphemy cases in Egypt, especially those brought against Coptic Christians.
“Slapping criminal charges with steep fines and, in most cases, prison sentences against people for simply speaking their mind or holding different religious beliefs is simply outrageous,” Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Director, said in a statement.
Most of the blasphemy cases in Egypt have been directed against Coptic Christians.
According to Amnesty International, “Bloggers and media professionals whose ideas are ‘deemed offensive’ as well as Coptic Christians—particularly in Upper Egypt—make up the majority of those targeted.”
A court in Upper Egypt recently convicted and fined Coptic Christian teacher Dimyana Obeid Abd Al Nour $14,000 for allegedly insulting the Prophet Muhammad in class.
Stanley Fischer eyes U.S. Federal Reserve
(JNS.org) Governor of the Bank of Israel Prof. Stanley Fischer, who will step down later this month, is not denying the possibility of vying for the top post at the U.S. Federal Reserve after the position becomes vacant in January.
Fischer did not confirm or deny it the possibility when he was asked about the it in London on Wednesday, saying only that it was unwise to “accept a job offer that no one has made to you” and that he “did not want to get into whether or not he would accept an offer,” the Financial Times reported.
Fischer is a well-known figure in global central banking circles and was a professor for the current head of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, at the the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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