Author: David Isaac/jns.org

David Isaac/JNS.org Israel’s Embassy in Canberra on Tuesday criticized a draft of the National Platform of Australia’s ruling Labor Party, calling it one-sided and saying it risked “placing responsibility for the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict on one party.” The National Platform draft, first released to party delegates in early July but whose contents were only publicly reported this week, reaffirms Labor’s recognition of a Palestinian state, demands an end to “illegal settlement activity and the occupation” and supports the International Criminal Court, which in 2024 issued an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. It also…

David Isaac/jns.org Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday spotlighted a report describing a pandemic of antisemitic behavior by Australian healthcare workers against Jewish patients. It called the investigation by The Australian a “deeply troubling picture and should serve as a wake-up call.” “We call upon The Australian government to confront antisemitism forcefully,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry posted to social media. “No Jew should ever feel compelled to hide their identity to receive medical care in an Australian hospital.” The ministry included a link to The Wentworth Report, which quoted large sections of an article by Megan Goldin in The Australian detailing numerous examples of antisemitic behavior by…

David Isaac/jns.org A Melbourne court ruled against pianist Jayson Gillham on Friday, who had claimed he was unlawfully fired after making pro-Palestinian statements from the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) stage during a concert in August 2024. Gillham sued the MSO when it canceled one of his scheduled performances after comments he made before a piece he performed, titled Witness. Gillham had not informed the MSO that he would play the piece because he worried the orchestra “would not allow the performance,” according to testimony he gave to the court, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported. “I find that there is a custom or…

by David Isaac/JNS.org The Islamic Republic refuses to resume talks with the United States so long as the latter continues its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, senior Iranian leadership said on Sunday. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a call that the U.S. “must first remove operational obstacles, including the blockade,” as a condition for “resolving issues.” The U.S. Navy has redirected 37 vessels since April 13, the day its blockade of Iranian ports went into effect. On Saturday, a U.S. Navy helicopter from the guided-missile destroyer USS Pinckney intercepted the M/V Sevan in the Arabian Sea. The…

By David Isaac/JNS.org Canada’s Jewish community faces a “realistic possibility” of a “violent extremist attack” within the next six months, according to a Canadian federal intelligence organization assessment obtained by JNS. “The most likely scenario of an attack targeting the Jewish community is a lone actor using unsophisticated methods against easily accessible targets,” according to a March 18 report by the Integrated Threat Assessment Centre. ITAC, a specialized organization in the Canadian intelligence community, provides threat assessments for decision-makers and security partners. Hosted at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Canada’s equivalent to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, ITAC answers to the…

Ali Shaath, who has been tasked to head the Gaza administration reconstruction of the Strip, was praised by the White House last month as “a widely respected technocratic leader.” But an Israeli watchdog group said Shaath shares the radical anti-Israel ideology one would expect from a former Palestinian Authority functionary. “His ideology is taken directly from the Palestinian Authority’s playbook of hate and terror promotion,” said Palestinian Media Watch in a statement on Sunday. Before U.S. President Donald Trump tapped Shaath to lead the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), Shaath shared his views about Israel and terrorism…