By Donald H. Harrison in San Diego
INTERNATIONAL
A day of national mourning for the 15 slain victims of the Bondi Beach massacre will be observed in Australia on Thursday, Jan. 22. The preceding Monday at 9:30 a.m. Australian time (2:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 21, San Diego time) the federal Parliament will consider a condolence motion. “The Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition and various members of parliament will all speak, honoring those who lost their lives, those who were injured or impacted, and those who have done their utmost to support and embrace the Jewish and broader community in the aftermath of the devastating attack in Bondi,” reports Daniel Aghion, President of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry. “Following Monday’s condolence motion, the Government will introduce its Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Bill 2026. You may watch the proceedings live via the Parliament of Australia website.
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eJewishPhilanthropy reports that Israel has denied Master Sgt. Josh David Boone recognition as a fallen soldier after serving 748 days of reserve duty as a sniper because he died two weeks after his last round of reserve service ended. The U.S-born “lone soldier” was found, lifeless, near his home. He was buried Wednesday in a civilian funeral in New Beersheba Cemetery with a large number of mourners wearing their IDF Reservists’ uniforms.
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U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) has introduced legislation condemning the Israeli government for withholding aid in Gaza. The bill specifies that government officials or their designees would be subject to U.S. financial and visa-blocking sanctions if they are found to be “restricting, diminishing, undermining the delivery and distribution of sufficient humanitarian assistance.”
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Rabbi Steven Burg, CEO of AISH, and senior leaders of the organization, met with Israel’s President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday in the President’s Residence in Jerusalem. They discussed the so-called “October 8th Jews” who emerged following the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas on southern Israel. There was a surge of Jews seeking connection, education, and community.
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NATIONAL
Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, president of Shurat HaDin, says the anti-Israel Lemkin Institute for the Prevention of Genocide, has “stolen” the name of Dr. Raphael Lemkin, the Jewish legal scholar who coined the term “genocide.” In an interview with Fox News, she stated, “This exploitation directly contradicts Lemkin’s documented Zionist beliefs, his advocacy for Jewish self-determination, and the very purpose for which he created the term genocide to prosecute the Nazi extermination of European Jewry. Shurat HaDin is working to expose and halt the Institute’s unauthorized use of his name and protect the integrity of Lemkin’s legacy, his intellectual heritage, and the rights of his surviving family.”
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STATE & LOCAL
California Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-San Ramon) told CalMatters that the social media site X has been transmitting fake images made with the help of Grok, an artificial intelligence service. “Real women are having their images manipulated without consent, and the psychological and reputational harm is devastating. Underage children are having their images used to create sexual abuse material, and these websites are knowingly facilitating it.” On Wednesday, California’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, said the state plans to investigate the AI chatbox Grok. He said, “This material, which depicts women and children in nude and sexually explicit situations, has been used to harass people across the internet.”
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Donald H. Harrison is editor and publisher of San Diego Jewish World.