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Ontario Court Convicts Youth in Jewish Terror Plot · Antisemitism Watch

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch, I'm Rachel Adler. And we're
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  Speaker 1: launching Antisemitism Watch, Mid-Atlantic, which provides focused coverage from New York,
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  Speaker 1: New Jersey, Connecticut, and the Philadelphia region. You can find
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  Speaker 1: more at clockworkmedia.org slash ma this week. A significant development
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  Speaker 1: in Canada, where an Ontario court has convicted a youth
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  Speaker 1: on terrorism charges. Justice Kerry McVeigh delivered a guilty verdict
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  Speaker 1: on two counts, including conspiracy to commit murder and facilitating
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  Speaker 1: terrorist activity, for involvement in a 2023 plot to target
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  Speaker 1: Jews in Ottawa. The plan involved seeking firearms for a
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  Speaker 1: mass casualty attack intended to intimidate the Jewish community. This
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  Speaker 1: follows a separate proceeding where a co-accused youth was found guilty.
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  Speaker 1: BNI Brith Canada welcomed the outcome, stating the youth was
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  Speaker 1: convicted because of his actions, not just his beliefs. In
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  Speaker 1: the United States, federal authorities arrested 51-year-old Stephen Carlos Dunas
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  Speaker 1: in Los Angeles. According to reports, Dunas allegedly threatened JEMS Preschool,
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  Speaker 1: a Jewish early childhood education center, and investigators found components
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  Speaker 1: they said were intended for an incendiary device. Social media
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  Speaker 1: posts attributed to Dunas reportedly included antisemitic statements and references
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  Speaker 1: to attacking the preschool. The allegations have not been proven
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  Speaker 1: in court. Internationally, a synagogue in Paris' 19th arrondissement was
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  Speaker 1: vandalized amidst nationwide riots. Footage circulated by the combat antisemitism
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  Speaker 1: movement showed holy books and religious items strewn across the floor,
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  Speaker 1: the Torah Ark opened, and furniture overturned. Satcher Reutemann, the
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  Speaker 1: movement's CEO, called the desecration a clear warning sign. No
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  Speaker 1: injuries were reported, and it is unclear if anyone was
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  Speaker 1: inside at the time. On campuses, Criticism is mounting over
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  Speaker 1: the University of Pittsburgh's July report on campus antisemitism. The
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  Speaker 1: working group's chair, Catherine Blee, confirmed to the Jewish Telegraphic
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  Speaker 1: Agency that the report intentionally did not solicit or include
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  Speaker 1: the perspectives of the school's Jewish students. This omission has
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  Speaker 1: divided the campus, especially following a violent off-campus attack on
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  Speaker 1: two Jewish students wearing kippahs earlier this year. At Citi,
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  Speaker 1: University of London, pro-Palestinian student activists disrupted a lecture by
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  Speaker 1: human rights barrister Adam Wagner, who represented families of British
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  Speaker 1: hostages taken by Hamas. Protesters chanted slogans, filmed attendees and shouted,
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  Speaker 1: war criminal, you should be disbarred, and the Zionist hostages
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  Speaker 1: were killed by the Zionists. Wagner described the disruption as
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  Speaker 1: an attempt to intimidate him. The Union of Jewish Students president,
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  Speaker 1: Raphael Leon, called the behavior astounding. In politics and media,
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  Speaker 1: an associated press review of thousands of posts on Nevada
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  Speaker 1: Republican House candidate Marty O'Donnell's online forum. The Marty Army
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  Speaker 1: revealed racial slurs, minimizations of Nazi Germany, and defenses of
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  Speaker 1: white nationalist conspiracy theories. O'Donnell's campaign stated they have zero
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  Speaker 1: tolerance for hate and have dedicated a staffer to monitor
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  Speaker 1: and remove such content, though some posts were missed over
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  Speaker 1: the years. Musician Macklemore is facing criticism as proceeds from
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  Speaker 1: his upcoming UK tour will benefit the Palestine youth movement.
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  Speaker 1: The group's spokesperson reportedly defended Hamas's October 7 hostage-taking as legitimate.
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  Speaker 1: And the group itself characterized the massacres as a prison break.
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  Speaker 1: The Jewish Leadership Council warned that funding the group risks
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  Speaker 1: legitimizing violence. Online, a new study by the Antisemitism Research Center,
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  Speaker 1: or ARC, tracked over 10,000 ex-accounts for 45 days. The
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  Speaker 1: study found that 40.5% of these accounts were inauthentic, identified
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  Speaker 1: as bots or fake profiles. These coordinated networks are actively
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  Speaker 1: used to spread conspiracy theories, incite hate, and sow social discord,
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  Speaker 1: often driven by hostile anti-Western regimes. Watchdog organizations continue to
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  Speaker 1: document rising antisemitism. The Combat Antisemitism Movement's latest global antisemitism report,
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  Speaker 1: documented 231 new incidents worldwide over the past week, a
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  Speaker 1: nearly 75% spike from the 2026 weekly average. The report
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  Speaker 1: shows far-left ideologies as the leading motivational driver, accounting for
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  Speaker 1: over 65% of recorded incidents. Separately, a report by the
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  Speaker 1: Simon Wiesenthal Center details Iran's 30-year campaign to divide the West,
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  Speaker 1: using antisemitism as a strategic tool in its soft war.
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  Speaker 1: against democracies. Internationally, rising antisemitism in Britain is prompting Jewish
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  Speaker 1: families to consider relocating. Adam Jacobs, a relocation specialist, reports
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  Speaker 1: hearing from increasing numbers of families weighing a move to
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  Speaker 1: South Florida. Adam Rejev, who recently relocated his family from London,
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  Speaker 1: cited unbearable antisemitism as a major factor in their decision.
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  Speaker 1: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commented on Russia's actions against Israel,
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  Speaker 1: noting that Moscow has taken steps against the Jewish state,
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  Speaker 1: including its cooperation with Iran and the operation of antisemitic
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  Speaker 1: bot networks. Netanyahu stated that Israel raises these issues directly
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  Speaker 1: with Russian leadership. I'm Rachel Adler, thank you for listening
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  Speaker 1: to Antisemitism Watch. For focused coverage from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut,
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  Speaker 1: and the Philadelphia region, listen to Antisemitism Watch. Follow Antisemitism
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  Speaker 1: next update. This report was generated with AI assistance and
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  Speaker 1: may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important details with primary sources.