B’nai B’rith has issued the following statement:

B’nai B’rith International commends Moldova’s parliament for its recognition of the country’s Holocaust victims. A report, published in 2004, estimated that 45,000 to 60,000 Jews were killed in 1941, in what is now the country of Moldova. The report also stated that 105,000 to 120,000 Jews died after being sent to Trans-Dniester region. The compendium of Holocaust findings was overseen by the late Elie Wiesel, who chaired a commission of scholars and other experts, including B’nai B’rith International Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin. The commission focused on the Holocaust in wartime Romania and on territory that constitutes present day Moldova.

On July 22, the Moldova government denounced the “persecution and extermination of Jews.”

Shoah victims deserve the respect of being remembered and commemorated. With anti-Semitism on the rise, this is an important acknowledgement not only for the Jewish people in Moldova, but for Holocaust survivors and their families and for Jews around the world. 

Le B'nai Brith France meurtri et horrifié par l'assassinat d'un prêtre
 
Le B'nai B'rith France et son Président Serge Dahan ont été profondément choqués et bouleversés par l'assassinat du Père Jacques Hamel, 84 ans, à l'issue d'une prise d'otages pendant une messe à Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, au cours de laquelle trois paroissiens ont également été grièvement blessés.
 
Cette barbarie innommable est une nouvelle atteinte au peuple de France, blessé au plus profond par la terreur et la haine islamistes depuis de nombreux mois.
 
Une fois de plus, les valeurs de notre civilisation judéo-chrétienne sont attaquées par les ennemis djihadistes de l'humanité et nous sommes dans l'effroi et dans la colère.

Partout en Europe les libertés d'expression et aujourd'hui de culte sont visées par le terrorisme islamiste. Partout en Europe les valeurs de fraternité sont attaquées, partout en Europe l'islamisme fanatique s'attaque à notre existence

Aprés une école à Toulouse, après un musée à Bruxelles, après Charlie, après l’Hypercacher, après le Bataclan, après Nice, après Ansbach, c'est aujourd'hui à l'intérieur d'une église que ces barbares ont commis cet acte ignoble.

Le Président de la République l'a rappelé « nous devons mener une guerre par tous les moyens », le Bnai Brith France exprime par la voix de son Président son total soutien à l'action du gouvernement dans son combat difficile pour la défense de nos valeurs républicaines
Le B'nai Brith France présente à Monseigneur l'Archevêque de Rouen ainsi qu'à l'Eglise de France et à toute la communauté chrétienne de France ses plus profondes condoléances attristées, et souhaite le rétablissement des blessés. 

B’nai B’rith has issued the following statement:

​B’nai B’rith International welcomes the renewal of formal diplomatic ties between Israel and the Republic of Guinea. In 1967, Guinea, a predominantly Muslim country, cut formal relations with the Jewish state. Earlier today in Paris, Israel’s Foreign Ministry Director-General Dore Gold met with Guinea’s Ibrahim Khalil Kaba, chief of staff to President Alpha Condé, to sign a document reestablishing official ties between the two countries. 
 
Almost 50 years have passed since Israel has had diplomatic relations with Guinea, and we view this as an important development. B’nai B’rith hopes that this bilateral relationship will richly serve both nations, and their peoples, as it surely can.
 
We call on every country in Africa and beyond to cement ties with the Jewish state, in the interest of both vital communication and practical cooperation.

​B’nai B’rith International marks the 22nd anniversary of the bombing attack on the Argentine-Israelite Mutual Association (AMIA) building—the Jewish center—in Buenos Aires, Argentina. On July 18, 1994, a suicide bomber drove a truck filled with explosives into the AMIA building, collapsing it, killing 85 people and wounding 300. Iran has long been widely recognized as the perpetrator behind this heinous crime.
 
It wasn’t until 2005—when former President Néstor Kirchner acknowledged the state’s responsibility for the stagnant investigation and named Alberto Nisman to head-up a new investigative unit—that a serious investigation into the bombing finally started. Nisman eventually found that several top Iranian officials, including then-President Hashemi Rafsanjani and former Minister of Defense Ahmad Vahidi, as well as Iran’s terrorist proxy Hezbollah were all involved with the attack. Eventually, Interpol issued arrest warrants for a Lebanese national and five Iranians. To this day, none has been apprehended.
 
In 2013, despite the extensive evidence found by Nisman, Argentina and the regime in Tehran signed a “Memorandum of Understanding,” which created a "Commission of Truth" to jointly “investigate” the attack. The deal allowed Iranian officials full access to the case file. The agreement also stated that any interrogations of suspects would only take place in Iran. Disregarding the memorandum, Nisman continued to unearth new information. In January 2015, he filed a complaint against then-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, her Foreign Minister Héctor Timerman and other members and close allies of the government, for allegedly having negotiated the pact with Iran in order to give impunity to the accused, in exchange for a trade agreement that included oil.
 
On Jan. 18, 2015, Nisman was found dead in his home, just one day before he was set to expand on his explosive allegations before the Argentine Congress. The causes of his death have still not been clarified.
 
“The fact that Argentina entered into a deal with Iran, which is widely believed to have planned the attack, has always been very disconcerting and appalling,” B’nai B’rith International President Gary P. Saltzman said. “Alberto Nisman’s valiant efforts to procure justice for victims of the AMIA building bombing will always be acknowledged by B’nai B’rith.”
 
When Argentine President Mauricio Macri was sworn into office this past December he decided not to appeal a federal court’s verdict that the “Memorandum of Understanding” was unconstitutional. While she was still president, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner had filed an appeal to keep it intact.
 
For more than two decades, B’nai B’rith, with its deep ties throughout Latin America, has pressed for those responsible to be brought to justice. We pledge to never forget the victims and their families, or Alberto Nisman, and what he has done for the Jewish community.
 
“There is no statute of limitations on bringing terrorists to justice. Macri’s decision to void the AMIA bombing pact with Iran was a major step in the right direction,” B’nai B’rith International Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin said. “B’nai B’rith will remain persistent in the fight for justice.”

B’nai B’rith International has issued the following statement:

B’nai B’rith International is appalled that a joint Palestinian-Jordanian draft of a resolution that questions Jewish historic ties to Temple Mount and the Old City of Jerusalem was presented to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Committee in Istanbul. The draft resolution that was submitted to the 21-member committee includes references to the Temple Mount solely by its Arabic name and describes it only as a Muslim holy site, thereby seeking to erase and supplant the fundamental history of Judaism. The resolution also refers disrespectfully to the Western Wall (the Kotel, in Hebrew) in quotes while claiming it as part of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Attempts to change the facts of Judeo-Christian history by relabeling universally established names for holy sites with only Arabic or Muslim names have been ongoing at UNESCO. Similar Palestinian-backed resolutions at UNESCO’s Executive Board over the past year have led to a public outcry over the blatant, frontal attack on Judaism and the Jewish people. In spite of the outrage, the Palestinians continue to put forward the same inflammatory language, hoping that the repetition will eventually become an accepted narrative.

The World Heritage Committee is tasked with preserving the common history of humanity and cannot allow itself to let the Palestinians pervert this goal for political ends. This resolution would do lasting damage to the reputation of UNESCO. 

​B’nai B’rith urges international leaders to strongly repudiate this outrageous resolution.

Awards conferred upon Amanda Borschel-Dan (The Times of Israel) and Allison Kaplan Sommer (Haaretz); Lifetime Achievement Award to Ya'akov Ahimeir (Israel Broadcasting Authority); Idan Raichel received special citation

Ron Dermer, ambassador of Israel to the United States, presented the keynote address at the B’nai B’rith World Center Award for Journalism Recognizing Excellence in Diaspora Reportage in Jerusalem. In his speech, Dermer spoke about the vital link between Israel and the United States. He said: “Beyond security and technology, my confidence in the future of the U.S.-Israel alliance also comes from my appreciation that our alliance is rooted in things that run much deeper. It is rooted in our most cherished values and in a shared sense of destiny. The idea that all are created equal in the image of God, that no one is above the law, that compassion for the most vulnerable is a sacred obligation — ideas which have been a moral compass for generations of Americans…”

Dermer has served in Washington, D.C. since October 2013, and from 2009-2013 he served as senior advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Click below to view the full speech, delivered on July 7, 2016.​
​


​Winners of the award which recognizes excellence in Diaspora reportage in Israel print, broadcast and digital media were Amanda Borschel-Dan, the Times of Israel’s Jewish World editor and Allison Kaplan Sommer, staff writer at Haaretz. Both journalists submitted an impressive array of articles on Diaspora communities and Israel-Diaspora relations published during 2015.

Additionally, a Lifetime Achievement Award in memory of Luis and Trudi Schydlowsky was conferred upon senior Israel Broadcasting Authority journalist Ya’akov Ahimeir, editor and presenter of the Saturday night foreign news and culture magazine show "Ro'im Olam" (Seeing the World), on Channel 1 Television. Ahimeir also appears on the Voice of Israel’s daily radio news program “HaBoker HaZeh” (This Morning).

In the course of the event a special citation for fostering Israel-Diaspora relations through the arts was presented to Idan Raichel. The special citation was established by the B'nai B'rith World Center in 2014. To date, citations were conferred upon Nurit Hirsh (2014) and David D'or (2015).

From the Jury considerations:

Amanda Borschel-Dan

Allison Kaplan-Sommer

Ya'akov Ahimeir

Idan Raichel

Since its establishment in 1992 to help strengthen the relationship between Israel and the Diaspora, the B’nai B’rith World Center Award for Journalism has recognized excellence in reporting on contemporary Diaspora-Jewish communities and on the State of Israel-Diaspora relations in Israeli media. The award is widely recognized as a prestigious prize by the Israeli media industry. 

The distinguished members of the award jury are: Asher Weill, chair, publisher and editor of ARIEL- The Israel Review of Arts and Letters from 1981-2003; Yehudith Auerbach, professor in the School of Communication at Bar Ilan University; Gabriela Shalev, former Israel ambassador to the United Nations and professor at Ono Academic College; Bambi Sheleg, founder of Eretz Acheret, a staff member at Mandel School for Educational Leadership and a 2011 award winner; Shalom Kital, former general director for News Company, Channel 2; and Eytan Bentsur, former Ministry of Foreign Affairs director general.

The B’nai B’rith World Center Award for Journalism is named for the late Wolf Matsdorf and his wife Hilda. Wolf was an editor of the B’nai B’rith World Center Journal “Leadership Briefing” and a journalist in Israel and Australia. Hilda was a pioneer in social work in both Australia and Israel.

The award is made possible through donations from Daniel Schydlowsky, a professor and a member of the B’nai B’rith World Center International Board of Governors (Lima, Peru and Washington D.C.), and the Matsdorf family. 

For further information:
Alan Schneider, director, B’nai B’rith World Center
aschneider@bnaibrith.org
tel. 02-6251743,
fax. 02-6258097; 052-5536-441; 


Gallery:

Amanda Borschel-Dan (The Times of Israel), Allison Kaplan Sommer (Haaretz) Selected as Winners; Lifetime Achievement Award to Ya'akov Ahimeir (Israel Broadcasting Authority); Idan Raichel to receive special citation

Ron Dermer, ambassador of Israel to the United States, will address the B’nai B’rith World Center Award for Journalism Recognizing Excellence in Diaspora Reportage on July 7. Dermer has served in Washington, D.C. since October 2013, and from 2009-2013 he served as senior advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Winners of the award are Amanda Borschel-Dan, the Times of Israel’s Jewish World editor and Allison Kaplan Sommer, staff writer at Haaretz. Both journalists submitted an impressive array of articles on Diaspora communities and Israel-Diaspora relations published during 2015.
​
Additionally, a Lifetime Achievement Award in memory of Luis and Trudi Schydlowsky will be awarded to senior Israel Broadcasting Authority journalist Ya’akov Ahimeir, editor and presenter of the Saturday night foreign news and culture magazine show "Ro'im Olam" (Seeing the World), on Channel 1 Television. Ahimeir also appears on the Voice of Israel’s daily radio news program “HaBoker HaZeh” (This Morning).

In the course of the event a special citation for fostering Israel-Diaspora relations through the arts will be conferred upon Idan Raichel. The special citation was established by the B'nai B'rith World Center in 2014. To date, citations were conferred upon Nurit Hirsh (2014) and David D'or (2015).

The event will take place on Thursday, July 7, at 6:30 p.m. Israel time (reception and light refreshments begin at 6:00 p.m.) at Gilbert de Botton Auditorium, Konrad Adenauer Conference Center, Mishkenot Sha'ananim, Yemin Moshe, Jerusalem.

Since its establishment in 1992, the B’nai B’rith World Center Award for Journalism has recognized excellence in reporting on contemporary Diaspora-Jewish communities and on the State of Israel-Diaspora relations in Israeli print and electronic media. The award is widely recognized as a prestigious prize in the Israeli media industry and was established to help strengthen the relationship between Israel and the Diaspora. It also highlights the important contributions the media can make toward strengthening the relationship between Israel and world Jewry—so essential for the resilience of both—by encouraging quality reporting on Diaspora communities and Israel-Diaspora relations. 

The distinguished members of the award jury are: Asher Weill, chair, publisher and editor of ARIEL- The Israel Review of Arts and Letters from 1981-2003; Yehudith Auerbach, professor in the School of Communication at Bar Ilan University; Gabriela Shalev, former Israel ambassador to the United Nations and professor at Ono Academic College; Bambi Sheleg, founder of Eretz Acheret, a staff member at Mandel School for Educational Leadership and a 2011 award winner; Shalom Kital, former general director for News Company, Channel 2; and Eytan Bentsur, former Ministry of Foreign Affairs director general.

The B’nai B’rith World Center Award for Journalism is named for the late Wolf Matsdorf and his wife Hilda. Wolf was an editor of the B’nai B’rith World Center Journal “Leadership Briefing” and a journalist in Israel and Australia. Hilda was a pioneer in social work in both Australia and Israel.

The award is made possible through donations from Daniel Schydlowsky, a professor and a member of the B’nai B’rith World Center International Board of Governors (Lima, Peru and Washington D.C.), and the Matsdorf family. 

For further information:
Golan Yossifon, spokesperson 052-5625135, Alan Schneider, director, B’nai B’rith World Center, tel. 02-6251743, fax. 02-6258097; 052-5536-441; aschneider@bnaibrith.org