Half of US voters think Israel is committing ‘genocide’ in Gaza, per Quinnipiac poll
(JNS) — Half of U.S. voters say the Jewish state is committing “genocide” in Gaza, according to a poll released on Wednesday, which at the same time shows that American sympathies are now divided between Israelis and Palestinians.
In the Quinnipiac University poll, 50% of registered voters said that Israel is committing genocide, while 35% disagreed, and 15% had no opinion.
Voters were evenly divided when asked where their sympathies lie during the current conflict that erupted after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. In the poll, 37% said the Palestinians and 36% named Israelis. The other 27% had no opinion.
Some 60% of voters opposed sending more U.S. military aid to Israel, while 32% supported it — the lowest level of support and highest level of opposition in Quinnipiac polls since the war began nearly two years ago.
“Support for the Palestinians grows while the appetite for funding Israel militarily dips sharply,’’ stated Tim Malloy, a Quinnipiac University polling analyst.
Support for Israel broke down along party lines, with 75% of Democrats backing the claims of “genocide” and the same percentage opposing more military aid. By contrast, 64% of Republicans opposed the claim of “genocide,” and 56% backed continued aid.
Independents said Israel was committing genocide 51% to 34%, and opposed more aid, 66% to 27%.
Trump signs and NYC candidates opine on cash bail
(JTA) — The candidates are reacting to Trump’s executive order on Monday that could cut federal funding to New York. The order threatened states that limit the use of cash bail in lower-level criminal cases.
The White House is likely to target New York, citing cases in the city when suspects were released without bail and subsequently accused of committing another crime.
If Trump decides to revoke federal grants, the NYPD could lose $200 million. Jessica Tisch, the Jewish NYPD Commissioner who has won praise from across the political spectrum, met with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi yesterday afternoon. She reportedly told Bondi that violent crimes in New York are at a record low and the city does not need National Guard troops, which Trump sent into Washington, D.C. and is threatening to send to other cities.
As governor, Andrew Cuomo eliminated cash bail for misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies in 2019. While many progressive Jewish groups have stood by bail reform, we covered debates over the law among New York Jews after a suspect in a series of synagogue attacks was released without bail in 2021.
Minnesota man who beat Jewish inmate to death sentenced to life in prison
(JNS) — A U.S. district court judge sentenced Brandon Simonson, 41, of Moorhead, Minn., to life in federal prison on Friday for beating a fellow inmate, who was Jewish, to death on March 2, 2020. Matthew Phillips died from his injuries three days later.
“Antisemitic violence has no place in our society,” stated Andrew Boutros, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. “Violence against people of faith is illegal and unacceptable and will not be tolerated anywhere in our district, including in our prison system.”
A jury convicted Simonson, who was incarcerated at Thomson Penitentiary in Thomson, Ill., of murder and a hate crime in May.
Simonson and Kristopher Martin beat Phillips because the latter was Jewish, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. “Simonson and Martin assaulted Phillips to gain recognition and membership into a white supremacist, antisemitic prison gang called the Valhalla Bound Skinheads,” the department stated.
“Simonson punched and kicked Phillips in the face and head, despite Phillips being knocked unconscious and unable to defend himself,” it said.
Martin, 43, of Brazil, Ind., pleaded guilty earlier this year and is slated to be sentenced on Oct. 9, according to the Justice Department.
California school district passes resolution to designate Oct 7 as day of remembrance
(JNS) — The Board of Education of the Beverly Hills Unified School District approved on Tuesday a resolution to combat antisemitism in the California district’s public schools through “education, awareness, remembrance and support.”
The resolution recognizes May as Jewish American Heritage Month and requires each school to display the Israeli flag throughout the month. It also establishes Oct. 7 as a day of remembrance and commits to educating “students and staff of the factual events that have occurred on Oct. 7, 2023.”
It will also commemorate the annually recognized Holocaust Remembrance Day and International Holocaust Remembrance Day through age-appropriate instruction and reflection at all schools in the district.
Through the resolution, the district also commits to providing professional development for staff and education opportunities for students to not only learn Jewish history, but be equipped to prevent and respond to antisemitism and hate-based behavior through the adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism.
Former US federal contractor charged as Iran agent, gets year in jail
(JNS) — A U.S. district court judge sentenced Abouzar Rahmati, 43, of Great Falls, Va., to a year in prison and three subsequent years of supervised release for spying for Iran, the U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday.
Rahmati, who was a contractor for the Federal Aviation Administration, pleaded guilty in April to providing at least 172 gigabytes of classified information about U.S. solar energy to Iranian regime officials in 2022. A U.S. citizen, he had faced up to 15 years in prison.
“By secretly doing the bidding of the Iranian government, Mr. Rahmati violated the trust placed in him as a U.S. citizen and as a federal contractor with access to sensitive information,” stated Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.
“Ensuring that sensitive U.S. information does not fall into the hands of hostile foreign intelligence services remains one of our highest priorities,” she stated.
