Wednesday, February 18, 2026
Mayor warns ultra-Orthodox mall owners against undermining city’s secular identity
The mayor of the southern city of Arad issued a formal warning to the new owners of the city's main shopping mall on Monday after reports that tenants were asked to remove images of women from storefronts and kiosks.
Mayor Yair Maayan sent a letter to members of the Ger Hasidic community — an ultra-Orthodox Jewish sect known for its strict religious observance — who recently purchased the mall.
In the letter, he said the municipality "views with severity the attempt by the buyers to change the character of a mall that serves a secular city, in an effort to alter the city's character. An attempt to exclude women from the public sphere in violation of the law."
For years, Arad, a small desert city in southern Israel, has been the site of tensions between members of the Ger community and longtime secular residents over the city's identity, land use and political influence.
Last month, the dispute intensified after Arad Mall was sold in a 40 million shekel (about $13 million) deal from the Ashtrom Group and a group of local shop owners to businessmen Menachem Kain and Simcha Greenboim, who are affiliated with Ger.
Soon after the sale, shop owners reported that images of women were removed, mannequins were dressed more modestly in line with ultra-Orthodox standards of dress and the background music was changed.
In a warning letter to mall management, the city's legal adviser, attorney Haim Shiman, wrote that any demand to remove images of women constitutes a "serious, improper and unlawful instruction."
"The municipality or anyone on its behalf will not ignore this," Shiman wrote. "This directive directly harms human dignity, gender equality and the fabric of public life in the State of Israel in general and in the city of Arad in particular, which is a secular and liberal city."
Shiman added that "systematic exclusion of women from the public sphere, whether under the guise of sensitivity, modesty or any other euphemism, is not an innocent cultural matter but severe discrimination." He said such actions normalize the erasure of women and subject public space to extremist interpretations that conflict with Israeli law and democratic values.
Under Israeli law, businesses that provide services to the public, including shopping malls, are prohibited from discriminating on the basis of gender. The municipality demanded that mall owners rescind any such instructions, restore any visual materials removed for those reasons and clarify that the new management does not promote gender-based exclusion.
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Monday, February 16, 2026
Suspect in mass shooting at Bondi Beach Jewish festival appears in court
A man accused of killing 15 people in a mass shooting at a Jewish festival on Sydney's Bondi Beach appeared in court Monday for the first time since his release from the hospital.
Naveed Akram appeared in Sydney's Downing Center Local Court via a video link from the maximum security Goulburn Correctional Center 200 kilometers (120 miles) away.
He did not enter pleas to the charges against him, including murder and committing a terrorist act. The brief court appearance focused on extending a gag order that suppresses the identities of victims and survivors of the attack who have not chosen to identify themselves publicly.
Defense lawyer Ben Archbold told reporters outside court that Akram was doing as well as could be expected and it was too early to indicate any intention of pleas.
Akram, 24, was wounded and his father Sajid Akram, 50, was killed in a gunbattle with police after the attack on a Hanukkah celebration at the beach Dec. 14.
The younger Akram is next scheduled to appear in court April 9.
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Holocaust survivor ordered to leave Spanish museum
Three elderly Israeli women, one of them a Holocaust survivor, were escorted out of Madrid's Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía on February 14 after other visitors verbally confronted them for visibly identifying as Jewish, according to the Spanish news outlet Okdiario.
Okdiario reported that tensions began when museumgoers noticed the women carrying a small Israeli flag and wearing a Star of David necklace.
Several visitors reacted angrily and shouted insults at the women, including accusations that they were "crazy child killers."
Rather than removing those who initiated the harassment, museum staff instructed security personnel to escort the Israeli women out of the building.
During the exchange, a security guard told the women they had to leave because "some visitors were disturbed that they are Jewish," according to accounts of the incident.
The guard also instructed them to hide their Jewish symbols, saying such items could not be displayed inside the museum.
The women were accompanied by a Spanish companion who disputed that claim.
She argued that Spanish law permits the wearing of religious symbols and the carrying of national flags in public institutions, and said the women had not violated any museum rules.
"It is unacceptable for someone to be punished in this way without having broken any law, in an official institution supported by the Spanish government," she later said.
The Reina Sofía operates under Spain's Culture Ministry and is one of the country's most prominent state-affiliated cultural institutions.
During the Israel-Hamas war, the museum presented an exhibition titled "From the River to the Sea" in solidarity with Palestinians and has also hosted anti-Israel demonstrations.
No action was reported against those who allegedly shouted insults or initiated the confrontation.
The museum has not publicly detailed any disciplinary measures taken against the visitors who allegedly shouted insults at the women.
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Thursday, February 12, 2026
Trump invited to Jerusalem to receive Israel Prize
Minister of Education Yoav Kisch on Tuesday invited U.S. President Donald Trump to attend the Israel Prize Award Ceremony in Jerusalem on April 22, at which he will be awarded the Israel Prize for Lifetime Special Contribution to the State of Israel and the Jewish people.
"This evening I sent a formal invitation to the President of the United States, Donald Trump, to participate in the Israel Prize ceremony," Kisch posted to X.
He included a copy of the letter in his post.
Kisch's ministry oversees the prizes, which are awarded annually on Israel's Independence Day.
On Dec. 29, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Trump would receive the Israel Prize in the category of "Unique Contribution to the Jewish People."
It is the first time a foreign leader will receive the award.
"[It was] a historic decision that expresses recognition of his extraordinary contribution and its lasting impact on the Jewish people in Israel and around the world," Kisch posted.
"Your presence in Jerusalem to personally receive the Israel Prize would be a moment of profound significance for the people of Israel and a powerful expression of the deep and enduring friendship between our two nations," Kisch wrote in the letter.
"On behalf of the Government of Israel and the citizens of the State of Israel, I would be deeply honored if you would accept this invitation," he continued.
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Monday, February 09, 2026
ADL Rebukes Dr. Oz Over Claims Tying Hasidic Jews to Health Fraud
The ADL is sharply criticizing Dr. Mehmet Oz after comments he made about New York State's Chasidic community in a recent television interview, saying his remarks reinforce classic antisemitic themes at a time of rising hate crimes.
In a discussion about health care fraud investigations, Oz, who currently leads the federal agency overseeing Medicare and Medicaid, cited cases in Minnesota and then pointed to Hasidic Jews in New York as an additional example. The comparison was framed as an effort to show that fraud is not limited to one state. However, the group says the way he singled out a visible religious minority effectively cast Hasidic Jews as uniquely tied to criminal schemes rather than as full and ordinary participants in American life.
Advocates argue that portraying Hasidic communities as foreign, suspect, or collectively responsible for wrongdoing mirrors long-standing antisemitic narratives. They warn that such messaging can fuel bias and harassment, especially against visibly Orthodox Jews who already face elevated levels of street harassment and violence.
The organization linked Oz's comments to a broader climate in New York City, where police data for January show a dramatic year-over-year rise in reported antisemitic incidents. Jewish community leaders contend that when public figures highlight specific Jewish groups in the context of crime, it can help normalize hostility and make members of those communities feel less safe in their own neighborhoods.
Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon and former Republican Senate candidate, has increasingly used his platform to weigh in on political issues. His critics say that taking on a senior federal health role brings added responsibility to speak carefully about vulnerable populations, particularly when discussing law enforcement and fraud. They are calling on him to clarify or retract his remarks and urging other officials to avoid broad generalizations about religious or ethnic communities when debating policy.
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Wednesday, February 04, 2026
Haredi Jew assaulted in Zurich
A 26-year-old Haredi man was the victim of an antisemitic attack in Zurich on Monday night. Around 8:15 PM, Zurich city police received a report that a Haredi man had been attacked by another individual.
Officers who arrived at the scene found several people preventing a man from fleeing. The detained man had attacked the 26-year-old Haredi Jew with his fists without any provocation from the victim. Thanks to the help of several passersby – including a Hasidic man and another non-Jewish individual – the attacker was held until Zurich police arrived. The attacker repeatedly shouted offensive and antisemitic remarks, even in the presence of police officers. The Haredi victim sustained minor injuries in the incident.
The 40-year-old Muslim man from Kosovo, known to police and without a permanent address in Switzerland, was arrested. Additional police investigations are currently underway. After an initial investigation, the suspect was transferred to the Zurich Public Prosecutor's Office.
In a police statement, officials said, "The attack was not random but specifically targeted a Jewish person." This incident is part of a series of antisemitic attacks that have increased in Switzerland since October 2023. Jews are suffering from insults and physical violence solely because of their Jewish identity.
According to a report by the Swiss Federation of Jewish Communities (SIG), the victim suffered abrasions on his body and neck.
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Monday, February 02, 2026
Hasidic World Mourns as Lelov-Piotrkow Rabbi Yissachar Dov Biderman Dies Suddenly in Mikvah
Shock and grief swept through the Hasidic community on Sunday following the sudden passing of Rabbi Yissachar Dov Biderman, the Lelov Rebbe, who collapsed inside a mikveh in Jerusalem and could not be revived. He was 84.
The incident occurred at a mikveh in Jerusalem, where concerns were raised after the Rebbe remained inside longer than usual. Community members entered and found him unresponsive. Emergency medical teams from Magen David Adom rushed to the scene and carried out prolonged resuscitation efforts, but he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter.
Rabbi Biderman was born in Tel Aviv and was the son of Rabbi Moshe Mordechai Biderman of Lelov. After the passing of his brother, Rabbi Avraham Shlomo Biderman, he assumed leadership of the Lelov Hasidic dynasty, heading the Kedushat Mordechai Lelov beit midrash on Bar Ilan Street in Jerusalem.
Known for his quiet devotion, humility, and steadfast leadership, Rabbi Biderman was regarded as a central spiritual figure within the Lelov community. Tributes and condolences have continued to pour in as preparations for his funeral and succession arrangements move forward.
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