Protesters decry Argentina-Iran bombing investigation
(JNS.org) A crowd of people came out to protest in front of the Argentinian Consulate General in midtown Manhattan on Monday against an agreement Argentina recently signed with Iran to create a “truth commission” investigating the 1994 Buenos Aires bombing of the AMIA Jewish communal building, in which 85 people were killed and 300 were injured.
Suspicion has been laid for years at Iran as the culprit behind that deadly terrorist attack, as well as the 1992 bombing of the Israeli Consulate in Buenos Aires, in which 29 people were killed and 250 were injured.
“The 1994 AMIA bombing was the worst attack on a Diaspora Jewish community since the Holocaust. The Argentinian government has covered up for the perpetrators since the beginning, including its then president Carlos Menem, who later was told he would stand trial for obstruction of justice… The Argentinian-Iranian memorandum is like the US signing an agreement with Al Qaeda to investigate the 9/11 attacks. It makes no sense. The cover up continues. It’s absolutely shameful,” said Rabbi Avi Weiss, national president of Amcha-Coalition for Jewish Concerns, at the demonstration.
“They’re spitting in our face and want us to believe it will be a sincere investigation. We call for an American Congressional resolution of disapproval of this agreement,” said Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis.
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Oscars host Macfarlane’s joke angers Jewish groups
(JNS.org) Jewish watchdog organizations have expressed anger at Seth Macfarlane, the host of Sunday night’s Academy Awards, for jokes regarding Jews in Hollywood. During the ceremony, MacFarlane brought a stuffed bear from his movie, “Ted,” who then stated that “I was born Theodore Shapiro and I would like to donate to Israel and continue to work in Hollywood forever.”
On Monday, the Simon Wiesenthal Center said “no one should get a free pass for helping to promote anti-Semitism,” and the Anti Defamation League (ADL) called the comments “offensive,” according to the New York Daily News.
“It is unfortunate that at a time when anti-Semitism is so prevalent throughout the world that Seth MacFarlane used the pulpit of the Oscars, before an audience of more than a billion people to contribute to the myth that Jews own Hollywood,” Rabbi Marvin Hier, head of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, said in a statement.
Members of the Jewish community were not the only ones offended by Macfarlane’s humor while hosting the Oscars. Macfarlane also caused outrage among women by showing a video montage of different actresses in films where they had to appear nude, titled “We Saw Your Boobs,” and by making fun of domestic violence. He also joked that the actor who best got into the head of Abraham Lincoln was John Wilkes Booth (who murdered Lincoln).
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Rumors circulate over Hezbollah leader’s health
(JNS.org) Rumors are circulating in the Lebanese media over the health status of long-time Hezbollah terror leader Hassan Nasrallah.
A report cited by Israel Hayom from a Lebanese radio station, Voice of Lebanon, said that Nasrallah had been flown to Iran for emergency medical treatment for severe cancer-related complications. Sources say that Nasrallah was recently diagnosed with cancer and that top Hezbollah leaders are considering elevating Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s deputy secretary-general, to its leader.
Hezbollah, however, has denied this claim, according to a report in the Lebanese French daily L’Oreint Le Jour cited by the Jerusalem Post.
Another report said Nasrallah was injured in an attack by Syrian rebels, according to Israel Hayom.
Born in 1960, Nasrallah took over as Hezbollah’s secretary-general after Israel assassinated the terror group’s previous leader in 1992. Under his leadership, Hezbollah has become one of the most powerful paramilitary terrorist organizations in the world through its alliance with Syria and Iran.
Condemned as a thuggish terror leader by Israel, the U.S. and many Western leaders, Nasrallah has also enjoyed considerable popularity on the Arab street for his populist anti-American and anti-Israel stances. But at the same time, he is despised by many in the Arab world, especially Sunni Arab leaders, for his refusal to disarm as well as involvement in assassination and suppression against political foes.
Last week, Syrian rebels threatened to attack Nasrallah if he continued to aid the government of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria. A message from the Joint Command of the Free Syrian Army called Nasrallah a “criminal” and said “anyone who dares to attack our people and our land will pay a hefty price.”
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NY assemblyman Hikind apologizes over controversial Purim costume
(JNS.org) New York State Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who initially defended himself, has now expressed regret over a Purim costume he wore Sunday that some called racist.
Hikind, a longtime Democratic assemblyman from Brooklyn and a leader in New York’s Orthodox Jewish community, dressed as a black basketball player for a party at his home. His outfit included an Afro wig, brown makeup, a basketball jersey and sunglasses, according to a photo posted on Facebook.
Amid an initial story about the costume in the New York Observer on Monday, Hikind at first dismissed the negative reaction to the outfit in his blog, saying the criticism was “political correctness to the absurd.”
But more negative reaction continued to pour in—including a statement by New York’s powerful assembly leader, Sheldon Silver, who called his actions “inappropriate and offensive,” and from Karim Camara, chairman of the New York State Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus, Karim Camara, who called the costume “callous and repugnant,” the Associated Press reported.
At a news conference outside his home on Tuesday, Hikind pledged to be “a little more careful, a little more sensitive.” According to the Associated Press, he added: “I repeat, it was not meant to in any way hurt anyone. And those that were? I’m sorry. That was not my intention.”
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Breaking ceasefire, Gaza terrorists launch rocket at Ashkelon
(JNS.org) For the first time since Operation Pillar of Defense in November, a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip struck Israel on Tuesday. There were no injuries.
The rocket fired at Ashkelon was of the advanced Grad type, which can reach up to 80 kilometers (50 miles). The rocket was fired from the Rafah area of the southern Gaza Strip.
It is the first time a rocket has been fired at Israel since the end of Operation Pillar of Defense three months ago. The Fatah military wing, the Al-Aqsa Brigades, claimed responsibility, saying the attack was a response to the “assassination” in prison of Arafat Jaradat. A top official in the Palestinian Authority security apparatus told Israel Hayom that a rocket launch from the Gaza Strip could only have taken place with a “green light” from Hamas.
“This was not normal,” Yair Farjoun, head of the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council, said about Tuesday’s rocket attack. “Since Pillar of Defense, there had been absolute quiet in the region.”
Referring to the rocket attack, Israeli President Shimon Peres said “Israel has an interest in preserving the quiet, and so does Hamas.”
Since the end of Operation Pillar of Defense, a number of rockets have been launched from Gaza, but all exploded inside Gaza without reaching Israel.
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Preceding provided by JNS.org