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Action Comes on Day U.N. Sets Aside to Promote Palestinian Narrative
B’nai B’rith International condemns the United Nations General Assembly for a series of annual resolutions singling out Israel for condemnation and utterly disregarding Arabs’ fueling of a continued conflict in the Middle East. One resolution calls for Israeli relinquishment of the strategically vital Golan Heights to Syria at a time when that country is the site of unimaginable bloodletting between the regime of Bashar al-Assad, Hezbollah and other groups including ISIS. Another resolution continues to whitewash the Jewish identity of Jerusalem, effectively rebranding the Temple Mount, Judaism's single holiest site, as purely an Islamic site. The majority of European democracies that voted in favor of such historical revisionism—even Germany and the United Kingdom, which recently voted "no" on similar language at UNESCO; France, which recently abstained there; and Italy, which pledged to vote "no" moving forward—deserve special censure for this shameful and irresponsible act. At the same time, B’nai B’rith commends the United States, Canada, Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau for joining with Israel in voting against all six of today’s distorted resolutions. Australia also voted against several of the resolutions. Cameroon, Honduras, Vanuatu and Tonga abstained on all or most of the motions. The U.N. shows no self-awareness in demonstrating its relentless bias towards Israel—a country that stands out in the Middle East with its democracy, diversity and commitment to coexistence. B’nai B’rith stands with Israel, and we will continue to combat the anti-Israel and even anti-Semitic prejudice on display at the U.N. During the proceedings, General Assembly President Peter Thomson chose to wear a scarf marked “Palestine” with a kaffiyeh and Palestinian flag design. Thomson has showed no comparable solidarity—this week or otherwise—with all the Israeli victims of extremist Palestinian rejectionism and ongoing terror. The U.N.'s “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinians”—redundant, as so much of the U.N. system is hijacked year-round for that purpose—remains a tragic irony, as it falls on the anniversary of the day in 1947 when the body endorsed the establishment of neighboring Jewish and Arab states in the Middle East, a vision rejected by key Palestinian leaders both then and today. “These measures adopted today are just part of the singular group of ritualistic resolutions targeting Israel but not its violent adversaries each year. These resolutions squander badly needed millions of dollars of global taxpayer resources to perpetuate a one-sided, defamatory narrative of the conflict, rather than helping to actually end it,” B’nai B’rith International CEO Daniel S. Mariaschin said. B’nai B’rith International has issued the following statement:
B’nai B’rith International commends the U.S. House of Representatives for unanimously passing bipartisan legislation that urges President Barack Obama “oppose and veto United Nations Security Council resolutions that seek to impose solutions to final status issues, or are one-sided and anti-Israel.” The legislation also states that any acknowledgment “of a unilateral declaration of Palestinian statehood outside of the context of a peace agreement with Israel would cause severe harm to the peace process…” The United Nations’ deeply-seated bias against Israel has been an ongoing problem—one that B’nai B’rith actively combats—and we applaud the House for recognizing that the U.N.’s impending involvement would not only be unfair, but would also sabotage any type of peace developments in the region. B’nai B’rith agrees with Congress that only direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority will resolve this conflict.  President of the Supreme Court of Justice Ricardo Perez Manrique addresses the audience during B’nai B’rith Uruguay's commemoration.  Throughout November, B’nai B’rith International held commemorations across Latin America to remember Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass. In Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama and Uruguay, B’nai B’rith held remembrance programs marking the 78th anniversary of Kristallnacht. In 1938, on Nov. 9 and 10, Nazis terrorized Jewish neighborhoods throughout Germany, Austria and parts of Czechoslovakia by vandalizing thousands of Jewish businesses, and burning and destroying more than a thousand synagogues. For the last 22 years, B’nai B’rith Argentina has organized Kristallnacht memorial ceremonies, and this year’s event took place in Shoah Square. Argentina’s Jewish community, Human Rights office and Ministry of Culture office co-sponsored the event. Argentine Human Rights Secretary Claudio Avruj; Chief of Staff to President Macri Marcos Peña; Minister of Culture Pablo Avelluto and the famous writer Federico Andahazi all spoke at the event. Peña said: “Our government, we value symbols, history and the culture of the Jewish people, beyond circumstantial situations that some international offices may try to impose.” This is in reference to UNESCO voting on the Temple Mount resolutions, and was an important message in a very solemn commemoration. B’nai B’rith Uruguay hosted 600 people on Nov. 9 for its memorial ceremony. Several key governmental officials attended the event, including President of Uruguay Tabare Vazquez. President of the Supreme Court of Justice Ricardo Perez Manrique gave the keynote address. Manrique spoke of how judges during the Nazi era violated all rules of law. He also talked about the importance of an independent judiciary in a democratic society. The event was broadcasted on seven television stations. B’nai B’rith Chile and The Jewish Christian Confraternity organized a ceremony at a Lutheran church in Chile. Another commemoration was held at a local Hebrew school, with several diplomats in attendance. In Cali, Colombia, B’nai B’rith and the Jewish community hosted a memorial event. An exhibit on the horrors of the Holocaust was on display, and Karen Kadoch, international law expert and professor, was the keynote speaker. B’nai B’rith Costa Rica held a Kristallnacht commemoration ceremony at the synagogue of Centro Israelita Sionista, the largest Jewish communal institution in Costa Rica, on Nov. 23. The keynote speaker was Sonia Picado, chair of the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights. The Yad Vashem Office in Panama and B´nai B´rith Panama presented a week of movies on the Shoah as a commemoration of Kristallnacht.  B’nai B’rith has issued the following statement:
B’nai B’rith International is opening its Israel Emergency Fund to provide aid to the victims of the devastating fires raging in Israel. The fires began last week and spread throughout northern Israel, and especially in and around Haifa. Other fires have also reached cities near Jerusalem. Tens of thousands of people were forced to evacuate, and many of them have lost their homes and businesses. At this time, no loss of life is reported. Several countries, including the United States, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Romania, Russia, Turkey and the Ukraine, have sent firefighters and equipment to Israel’s aid, and B’nai B’rith thanks them for their efforts to fight these fires. The Palestinian Authority has also contributed firefighters in the effort to combat the fires. According to the Israel Defense Forces and the Israeli government, some of these fires are believed to have been arson. The IDF has arrested about 25 suspects. Incitement on social media in relation to these fires is particularly disturbing, with some supporting these so-called “pyro-terrorists” using the hashtag #israelisburning to take glee in the fires and their destruction. The B’nai B’rith World Center in Jerusalem will use its vast resources and contacts to determine the greatest need for relief efforts. The Israel Emergency Fund most recently opened in 2014 following renewed Hamas rocket attacks. The fund was opened to help in the wake of the devastating Mt. Carmel fires. In other cases, funds were used to buy computers, electronic equipment and inflatable playgrounds to help improve the lives of those confined in bomb shelters during Hamas rocket offensives, and to purchase upgraded communications equipment for firefighters. To donate, please click here. Donations can be received by mail at: B’nai B’rith Israel Emergency Fund B’nai B’rith International 1120 20th St. NW, Suite 300 North Washington, D.C. 20036 B’nai B’rith International has issued the following statement:
B’nai B’rith International denounces the overt bigotry and use of Nazi tropes by Richard Spencer, a man often described as the leader of the self-proscribed “alt-right” movement. At a rally in Washington, D.C., Spencer delivered a speech in which he implied that Jews have infiltrated the media. Spencer punctuated his speech with the phrase “Hail victory!,” which is a literal translation of the Nazi chant “Sieg Heil!,” as some in the audience responded with Nazi salutes. Spencer preaches a crude form of ethnic nationalism, based on his vision of “a new society, an ethno-state that would be a gathering point for all Europeans.” He has bolstered his xenophobic message by calling for “peaceful ethnic cleansing” and labeling America “a white country.” This comes at a time when the Southern Poverty Law Center has tallied more than 700 hate-based incidents in the past two weeks. Such hateful acts have targeted Jews, Muslims, African-Americans, immigrants, women and the LGBT community. At least 60 of the incidents have featured Nazi swastikas. B’nai B’rith calls on leaders of both political parties to publicly and unequivocally condemn violence and ethnic hatred. We also reiterate our ongoing concern about the appropriation of Nazi imagery, as it leads to the mainstreaming of such symbols and messages, with often pernicious results. The normalization of hate speech is a direct threat to our democracy and the preeminent ideals of tolerance and diversity on which this nation was founded. We hope that every appointment by President-elect Donald J. Trump will assist the president in important domestic and international decisions that the country faces in order to end divisiveness, and promote unity and real consensus in our society.
We recognize this is a complex feat. Any president faces a daunting array of complicated issues. And as the long campaign season proved, this presidential administration faces a deeply divided and conflicted electorate. No matter their specific portfolio of duties, we urge all of the president-elect’s staffing appointments to begin their jobs from a place of listening, caring and respect for those with similar views, and perhaps more especially, for those with a different viewpoint. Going forward, we encourage leadership of each party to find common ground in working to tackle such important issues as immigration, health care, affordable housing for seniors and other issues affecting seniors. We need to forge consensus to produce legislation that addresses these and so many other important matters. More than 10 years ago, B’nai B’rith created the Diverse Minds Writing Challenge, which aims to educate young people about tolerance, inclusiveness and mutual respect. Read about this unique program here: http://www.bnaibrith.org/diverse-minds.html B’nai B’rith International has issued the following statement:
B’nai B’rith International commends the House of Representatives for approving a 10-year extension of the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA). The bill was passed by a majority of 419-1 on Nov. 15. These sanctions target Iran’s support of terrorism and its nuclear activities. Tehran is the largest state-sponsor of terror and is known for inciting violence and hate around the world, including calling for the destruction of Israel. We strongly urge the Senate to pass the same legislation. We are also pleased that the House passed another measure that would apply new sanctions on any person or country that enables Syria’s war crimes. B’nai B’rith International has issued the following statement:
B’nai B’rith International commends the Central Student Government (CSG) of the University of Michigan for its rejection of a resolution in support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. The anti-Semitic resolution was presented to the university’s students by the pro-BDS campus organization Students Allied for Freedom and Equality. About 200 students attended the vote and listened to presentations from both sides on the issue. The CSG voted 34-13 against the resolution, while three members abstained. We are appreciative of those members of the student government who worked to combat BDS and we urge students at other universities to reject the anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic BDS movement. B’nai B’rith has issued the following statement:
B’nai B’rith International decries the United Nations for moving to adopt yet another ten resolutions against Israel. Members of the U.N. General Assembly met yesterday at the committee level to vote on several partisan resolutions claiming that the State of Israel violates the human rights of Palestinians. One resolution mirrors two that UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) passed in October. This motion ignores Jewish ties to the Temple Mount and refers to the historic holy site by its Arabic name, “Haram Al-Sharif.” Using Arabic names, while omitting traditional Jewish ones, is an attempt to reclassify the Temple Mount as a primarily Islamic site and to erase the historical Jewish connection to it. B’nai B’rith has actively advocated against such offensive politicization as the United Nations and its various offshoots have been exploited to deny Jewish historical ties to holy sites in Jerusalem and elsewhere in Jews’ ancestral homeland. The U.N., once again, has singled out the only democratic nation in the Middle East for vilification, and these resolutions are part of a larger movement to delegitimize or isolate the Jewish state. B’nai B’rith International has sent a letter to President-elect Donald J. Trump congratulating him on his election as the 45th president of the United States.
On behalf of B’nai B’rith International, President Gary P. Saltzman and Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin wrote: Dear Mr. President-elect: On behalf of B’nai B’rith International’s members and supporters around the world, we congratulate you on your historic victory in the presidential election. We commend you on your momentous achievement and promise our active support as you lead our nation through the urgent difficulties that confront us. We warmly welcome your election night pledge to help the country “bind the wounds of division” and “come together as one people.” Among the pressing issues we know you will face in the coming months are domestic concerns such as the economy, health care, our immigration system, and the needs of America’s seniors. The challenges abroad are no less imposing, as an unsettled Middle East, the threat of terrorism, and an aggressively hostile Iran will surely command the concerted attention of your administration. B’nai B’rith applauds your stated commitment to Israel’s security and your pledge to do everything in your power to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. We recognize that American leadership—and America’s crucial partnership with its democratic ally Israel—are essential to our shared goal of a peaceful and stable Middle East. It greatly reassures us, therefore, to know that Israel, the Middle East’s only democracy and a country that has battled terror and aggression since its independence, will have a staunch ally in the president of the United States. Mr. President-elect, please accept our heartfelt wishes for your success and wellbeing as you assume our nation’s highest office and go, in the words of the Bible, “from strength to strength.” We look forward to working with your administration on issues of mutual concern over the next four years as you strive to achieve your vision, and ours, of a safer and more prosperous nation and a more secure world. Respectfully, Gary P. Saltzman Daniel S. Mariaschin B’nai B’rith International President B’nai B’rith International Executive Vice President |
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