By Donald H. Harrison in San Diego
We encourage our readers to follow the links below to the stories that attract their interest.
INTERNATIONAL
Jewish Insider – U.S. Ambassador to Turkiye Tom Barrack last Sunday made two controversial assertions at the Doha Forum in Qatar: 1) Israel is not a real democracy, and 2) Turkiye belongs in the U.S.-led International Stabilization Force that will patrol Gaza and quell Hamas. Daniel Shapiro, U.S. Ambassador to Israel during Barack Obama’s administration, said ““There’s no cause for calling into question Israel’s status as a democracy. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt that that was simply a misstatement that he probably will think better of.” Michael Makovsky, president of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, commented: “That happens sometimes with ambassadors, they sometimes strongly reflect the views of the countries to which they’re posted, but he’s really been out there on this. Personally, that is concerning to me.”
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The Times of Israel – U.S. President Donald J. Trump has delayed his announcement of members of the Gaza-supervising Board of Peace from before Christmas to “early next year.” It may be a sign that the Board, to be headed by him and made up of leaders of other countries, is stalling.
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Press Release – Rachel Goldberg-Polin and Jon Polin, parents of murdered hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin told a meeting of The Jewish Education Project in New York City that an emphasis on Jewish education is essential. “We’re in a real Chanukah moment, because today, like in the story of Chanukah, asking ourselves who we are, who we want to be, what we want to project to the world, and our why, are the most important questions. The real message of Chanukah is when you have darkness, just know that light exists, and each day that light intensifies. It’s up to us to add to the miracle.” David Bryfman, CEO of the Jewish Education Project, responded, “We’re committed to using education as a vehicle for hope and inspiration, and to helping every Jewish educator and person who cares deeply about the Jewish future to do the same.” [Source: The Jewish Education Project]
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ejewishphilanthropy – A proposed Vivian Silver Center for Shared Society to be located in Beersheva, Israel, has attracted a $1 million donation from UJA-Federation of New York. Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7, 2023, murdered Kibbutz Be’eri resident Vivian Silver, a Canadian-Israeli who had worked for peace between Israeli Jews and Arabs. The Center will serve as headquarters for the Arab-Jewish Center for Empowerment, Equality, and Cooperation and the Negev Institute for Strategies of Peace and Economic Development.
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Jewish News Syndicate – Congressman Brad Sherman (D-California) said at a subcommittee hearing of the House Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday that he doesn’t put much store in the claims of either side that historic ownership of territory should determine rights to that land now. The Los Angeles-area Democrat said: “If we turn to any nationality and say, ‘You define your borders based on the maximum you ever controlled in history,’ then Mongolia would control half of the world, the Greeks would control Anatolia, the Germans would be restored to East Prussia and the Chumash [Native Americans] would own my condo in the San Fernando Valley.”
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Press Release – This year marks the 50th anniversary of the passage of the infamous “Zionism=Racism” resolution by the United Nations General Assembly. Although the resolution was repealed 16 years later, Israel’s President Isaac Herzog, in a recorded message, told a gathering at the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center on Tuesday: “Repealing a lie does not erase its echo…(T)he dangerous falsehood suggesting that Zionism is Racism reverberates to this very day – especially in the wake of the brutal Oct. 7 massacre on Israel.” Herzog’s father, Israel’s U.N. Ambassador (and later Israel’s President) Chaim Herzog, memorably ripped up the resolution while addressing the General Assembly. U.S. Rep. Randy Fine (R-Florida) commented on Tuesday: “Every people deserve to have a place they can feel safe in the world.” The event was hosted by the American Jewish International Relations Institute-B’nai B’rith International (AJIRI-BBI), whose executive director Gil Kapen said: November 10, 1975, was indeed ground zero for anti-Israel extremism and anti-Semitism. And it was an iconic moment of hypocrisy and cynicism.” [Source: B’nai B’rith International]
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Haaretz — Iceland’s national broadcaster joined a boycott of the Eurovision 2026 song contest because of Israel’s continued inclusion in the annual competition. The decision brought to five the number of national broadcasters saying they won’t compete next May in Vienna because of the way Israel has been conducting the war in Gaza. Previously announced boycotters were the broadcasters of Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Slovenia.
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Mexico News Daily — Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum, who was named to The New York Times list of 67 Most Stylish People of 2025, told reporters on Wednesday that full credit should go to Mexico’s Indigenous artisans “for what they give to Mexico, for their creativity, for the beauty with which they embroider.” Sheinbaum, who favors embroidered clothing, said that in each garment not only is there a lot of work bit also “tradition, history [and] legacy.”
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Ukrainska Pravda — Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday that he met with representatives of the Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) to solicit their opinions about holding elections while the country is at war. He said: “If our partners—including our key partner in Washington-are speaking so much and so concretely about elections in Ukraine, about elections under martial law, we must provide legal Ukrainian responses to every question and every doubt. This is not easy, but we definitely do not need any pressure regarding this. I expect that the People’s Deputies of Ukraine will present their perspective.”
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NATIONAL
ABC News — Democratic Senators Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and nine other Democrats serving on the Senate Armed Services Committee wrote a letter to Navy Secretary John Phelan expressing concern about the pending “review” of their committee colleague, Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona. Kelly, who retired as an astronaut and a Navy captain, refrained from signing the letter written in his behalf.
The letter stated: “We believe this ‘review’ along with the Department of Defense’s social media post announcing a ‘thorough review’ of Senator Kelly’s actions, ‘which may include recall to active duty for court-martial proceedings’ is inappropriate, threaten the separation of powers established by our Founding Fathers, amount to a purely political exercise seeking to threaten legitimate and lawful actions by a duly elected Senator, and politicize our military justice system.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had instructed Phelan to conduct the review after Kelly and Slotkin, along with four House Democrats, reminded service personnel on a video that they must not follow illegal orders, a video which President Trump promptly labeled as seditious.
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New York Times – Rather than acquiesce to a Democratic proposal to extend the Affordable Care Act (Obama Care) by three years, Republican senators are cobbling together a proposal to provide for two years direct payments into health savings accounts. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) said the GOP proposal is “junk insurance. It’s been repudiated in the past. The American people will repudiate it once again.”
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Jewish Telegraphic Agency – Conservative Rabbi Stephanie Ruskay, if elected from a Manhattan district to the New York State Assembly, would be the first female rabbi to hold elected state office in American history.
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Secure Community Network – The Jewish Federations of North America and the Secure Community Network have partnered in publishing guides for the community and for security professionals to protecting Jewish events and venues. Eric Fingerhut, President and CEO of Jewish Federations of North America, commented “With antisemitism at historically alarming levels, we know there is always more work to be done, and these guides are an important tool for both security professionals and Jewish organizers to ensure we can allow our communities to flourish in safety and security.” Michael Masters, President and CEO of the Secure Community Network, commented: “These resources, developed with security professionals and community leaders, provide practical, low- and no-cost solutions helping faith-based organizations of all sizes ask the right questions to plan safe and welcoming events.”
Press Release – New York City Controller Brad Lander, a “Progressive Democrat” is campaigning in the 10th Congressional District against incumbent Democrat Dan Goldman, a “Moderate Democrat.” Endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (Ind-Vermont), Lander said “I’m running for Congress because the challenges we face can’t be solved with strongly worded letters or high-dollar fundraisers or by doing AIPAC’s bidding. In this district, we know our safety, our freedom, our thriving is bound up together. And with my campaign, we know our new mayor [Zohran Mamdani, who takes office Jan. 1] can have an ally in Washington, not an adversary in his own backyard.” [Source: Brad Lander]
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Press Release — U.S. Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-California) is among six bipartisan members of the House and Senate who have introduced legislation to enable the federal government to recruit and retain AI talent. Among provisions of the proposed AI Talent Act is one to enable agencies to share qualified candidate pools, reducing hiring cycles and speeding placement. Senate co-sponsors are Jon Husted (R-Ohio) and Andy Kim (D-Ohio). Jacobs’ House colleagues who helped her introduce the bill are Shontel Brown (D-Ohio), Pat Fallon (R-Texas), and Jay Obernolte (R-California). [Source: Sara Jacobs]
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Press Release – Pastor John Hagee, founder and chair of Christians United for Israel, denounced increased antisemitism at a forum hosted by The Jerusalem Post at Israel’s Embassy in Washington D.C “Those in this country who have monetized Jew-hatred and are actively turning antisemitism into clicks and cash—they are both biblically ignorant and morally bankrupt,” Hagee said. [Source: Christians United for Israel]
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STATE & LOCAL
Times of San Diego: County Supervisors Terra Lawson-Remer and Paloma Aguirre persuaded their colleagues in a 4-1 vote, with Supervisor Joel Anderson in opposition, to support a bill by U.S. Rep Mike Levin (D-California) to ban oil or natural gas exploration off the shores of Southern California. President Trump has proposed to reopen U.S. coastal waters to offshore drilling.
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San Diego Union-Tribune –The San Diego City Council unanimously approved a $30 million settlement with the family of 16-year-old Konoa Wilson who, while fleeing civilian gunfire, was shot by Police Officer Daniel Gold. Councilman Sean Elo-Rivera commented: “I’m expressing my most sincere and deepest apologies for what is the deepest nightmare for any parent. There’s no amount of money that can ever replace a child.
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Press Release – Sharon and David Wax have pledged their support for a campaign to raise $500,000 for Jewish college students by December 31, with the first $50,000 to be matched dollar for dollar.
Their son and daughter-in-law, Bryan and Sheava Wax, preceded them in the campaign sponsored by Hillel.
The parents commented: “Our journey with Hillel of San Diego began from a deep-seated desire to support students grappling with the challenges posed by campus protests following the events of October 7th. We watched Hillel become a safe haven for Jewish students, as they responded to rising antisemitism with a new initiative that manages incidents and builds coalitions to educate and advocate for Jewish students and faculty. We also applauded their commitment to safety through full-time security at Hillel buildings and events, a costly but essential measure. This refuge is why our commitment has only strengthened.” [Source: Hillel of San Diego]
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Donald H. Harrison is publisher and editor of San Diego Jewish World