Israeli pleads guilty to smuggling man across US-Canada border
(JNS) — An Israeli citizen arrested earlier this year at the U.S.-Canada border after a man was found hidden in his vehicle has pleaded guilty to a federal immigration charge, authorities said Apr 22.
Israel Enden, 46, admitted to transporting an unauthorized individual into the United States after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered a man concealed in his vehicle at the Rainbow Bridge crossing in Niagara Falls, N.Y., according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York.
Officials said Enden drove a Canadian-plated rental car into the United States on Jan. 8, a day after traveling from Poland to Canada. During a secondary inspection, officers found Elazar Wigdorowitz hiding beneath luggage in the rear of the vehicle.
Wigdorowitz was previously convicted of improper entry by an alien. He was sentenced to time served and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Prosecutors said Enden knew that Wigdorowitz lacked authorization to enter the United States. Subsequent investigation found that the two had traveled together from Warsaw to Toronto before the attempted crossing.
Enden faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for September.
Alan Dershowitz quits Democratic Party, calling it ‘most anti-Israel party in U.S. history’
(JTA) — Alan Dershowitz, the prominent pro-Israel attorney whose clients have included Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein, announced on Apr 20 that he was leaving the Democratic party and registering as a Republican.
Describing himself as a “lifelong Democrat,” Dershowitz wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed that he had decided to “bite the bullet and register as a Republican,” citing Democratic support for an arms embargo on Israel last week and the Michigan Senate candidate Abdul el-Sayed’s anti-Israel rhetoric.
“There is no denying that the hard left, anti-Israel wing of the Democratic Party has moved from the fringe to the mainstream,” Dershowitz wrote, adding that “Republicans have their own antisemitic fringe, but for now it remains a fringe.”
The announcement formalized a political evolution for Dershowitz, who defended Trump during his first impeachment and has increasingly broken with Democrats over Israel in recent years.
In 2021, Dershowitz nominated Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, and Avi Berkowitz, Trump’s top Middle Eastern envoy during his first administration, for the Nobel Peace Prize over their hand in shaping the Abraham Accords.
Dershowitz — who has recently faced scrutiny over his ties to Epstein, and previously denied allegations of sexual misconduct made by one of Epstein’s accusers — panned the Democratic Party as the “most anti-Israel party in U.S. history” in the op-ed.
Houston synagogue and Jewish day school closed temporarily due to threats
(JTA) — A Houston synagogue and Jewish day school closed Apr 22 after receiving threats to their shared campus.
The threats to Congregation Beth Israel, a Reform synagogue, and the Shlenker School, a preschool and elementary school, were communicated to the Houston Police Department, which informed the Jewish institutions.
The Shlenker School said on its website that it had closed “out of an abundance of caution,” and the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston said it did not believe there was a risk to the broader Jewish community.
“This situation is fluid, ongoing, and under investigation,” the federation said in a statement. “After significant discussions with both the FBI and HPD, we have been advised that it is safe for other local Jewish institutions to remain open. Local law enforcement agencies are increasing patrols around Houston-area Jewish institutions.”
The federation did not immediately describe the nature of the threats. The Houston Police Department did not respond to a request for comment.
The incident comes as security experts have warned of continued elevation of threats to global Jewish communities amid the Iran war, and it follows an attack on a Detroit-area synagogue last month by a man who had expressed sympathy for Hezbollah.
UCLA student government ‘anti-Jewish’ in condemning event with former Israeli hostage, Hillel says
(JNS) — The University of California, Los Angeles student government’s condemnation of a recent event featuring a former Israeli hostage shows how “anti-Jewish” members of the organization are, UCLA Hillel told JNS.
The Undergraduate Students Association Council stated in a letter to the university that it condemned an April 14 event featuring Omer Shem Tov, which UCLA Hillel organized. The event was titled “505 Days in Captivity: Omer Shem Tov’s Testimony of Resilience.”
Shem Tov, 23, was abducted by Hamas from the Nova music festival during the attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, and held for 505 days before his release.
“While we affirm the humanity of all people impacted by violence, we reject the selective platforming of narratives that obscure the broader reality of ongoing state violence,” the USAC wrote. The council added that presenting Shem Tov’s story without a broader political context “serves to legitimize and normalize these ongoing atrocities.”
The campus Hillel told JNS that the council members have “once again shown they are anti-dialogue, anti-learning, anti-truth, anti-student and anti-Jewish in condemning our beautiful event last week with Omer Shem Tov, a young man kidnapped from a music festival and held, tortured and treated inhumanely as a hostage and human slave by Hamas in Gaza for over 500 days.”
Ohio senator who filled JD Vance’s seat joins antisemitism task force
(JNS) — Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio), who was appointed to the Senate on Jan. 21, 2025, to replace U.S. Vice President JD Vance, said on Apr 21 he has joined the Senate Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Antisemitism.
“With violence against Jewish communities on the rise, Sen. Husted joined the task force to support the 177,000 Jewish Ohioans, strengthen education efforts and work with his colleagues on both sides of the aisle to combat antisemitism nationwide,” Olivia Tripodi, the senator’s press secretary, told JNS.
“As a new member of the U.S. Senate and the task force, he looks forward to listening, learning and continuing to be a strong voice against violence and hate,” Tripodi told JNS.
Husted, who has been outspoken in support of Israel and against antisemitism, joined the task force, which now includes 52 senators from both parties.
He is currently running in the 2026 special election to retain his seat and fulfill the remainder of the term. A recent Echelon Insights poll has Husted ahead at 51%, with his Democratic challenger Sherrod Brown, a former senator, at 45%.
