Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - October 3, 2026, 01 PM Eastern

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Antisemitism Watch - October 3, 2026, 01 PM Eastern · Antisemitism Watch

• 0:06
  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch. I'm Rachel Adler. We begin
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  Speaker 1: with a significant development in the UK, where two Iranian
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  Speaker 1: nationals have been charged with preparing a terrorist act. Rahman Salehi, 34,
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  Speaker 1: and Salim Ahmadian, 36, appeared in a London court after
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  Speaker 1: being arrested on September 20. Prosecutors allege they conducted hostile
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  Speaker 1: reconnaissance on Jewish targets in Manchester, including the Manchester Jewish
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  Speaker 1: Museum and the Heaton Park Synagogue. the court heard they
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  Speaker 1: planned to use a homemade explosive device, with instructions allegedly
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  Speaker 1: provided by a third party believed to be in Iran.
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  Speaker 1: This plot is particularly concerning given that the Heaton Park
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  Speaker 1: Synagogue was the site of a deadly attack on Yom
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  Speaker 1: Kippur in 2025, where two worshippers were killed. Counter-terrorism police, however,
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  Speaker 1: stated that the plot is believed to have been disrupted
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  Speaker 1: and there is no ongoing public threat linked to this case.
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  Speaker 1: both men were remanded in custody pending further hearings. The
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  Speaker 1: alleged acts of surveillance and planning for a bomb attack
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  Speaker 1: highlight the continued threats faced by the Jewish community, especially
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  Speaker 1: in the context of recent years seeing a sharp rise
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  Speaker 1: in antisemitic incidents. Turning to campuses in Ontario, Canada, 12
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  Speaker 1: Jewish teachers have filed human rights claims against four school
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  Speaker 1: boards and two teachers' unions. As reported by the National Post,
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  Speaker 1: The teachers allege they face discrimination amid ongoing antisemitism within
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  Speaker 1: their workplaces. They claim institutions failed to act on incidents or,
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  Speaker 1: in some cases, penalized them for reporting antisemitic conduct. The
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  Speaker 1: applicants are seeking substantial damages for discrimination and psychological counseling.
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  Speaker 1: Their allegations include incidents such as students drawing swastikas, playing
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  Speaker 1: Nazi anthems, defacing maps with Israeli flags, and chanting, free Palestine,
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  Speaker 1: while pressuring classmates. The teachers are asking the Ontario Human
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  Speaker 1: Rights Tribunal to order the respondents to develop transparent processes
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  Speaker 1: to combat discrimination, including adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance
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  Speaker 1: working definition of antisemitism and ceasing to spread antisemitic misinformation.
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  Speaker 1: In the UK's political sphere, the Green Party is facing
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  Speaker 1: internal debate over a motion to classify Zionism as racism.
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  Speaker 1: The Guardian reports that the motion, set for debate at
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  Speaker 1: the party conference, argues Zionism should be treated as any
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  Speaker 1: other form of racism. Critics within and outside the party
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  Speaker 1: contend this demonstrates a profound ignorance of Zionism, Jewish identity,
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  Speaker 1: and how antisemitism operates, warning that such a classification could
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  Speaker 1: lead to the expulsion of many Jewish members. Zionism is
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  Speaker 1: described as a movement for Jewish self-determination and statehood. with
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  Speaker 1: diverse historical interpretations. While critics of the motion acknowledge it
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  Speaker 1: may stem from horror over the war in Gaza, they
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  Speaker 1: argue it goes too far by attacking Israel's very existence
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  Speaker 1: and the underlying movement. The debate highlights a complex intersection
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  Speaker 1: of anti-Israel sentiment and the core tenets of Jewish identity
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  Speaker 1: and collective rights. In Italy, hundreds of people protested in
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  Speaker 1: Milan against a controversial bill aimed at combating antisemitism. According
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  Speaker 1: to reporting from IQNA, the bill, known as DDL 1004,
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  Speaker 1: proposes adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's working definition of antisemitism. Protesters,
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  Speaker 1: including Jewish groups, voiced concerns that the legislation could stifle
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  Speaker 1: criticism of Israel and lead to what they termed the
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  Speaker 1: Zionization of society. The bill, introduced by the right-wing League Party,
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  Speaker 1: has already passed the Senate and awaits final approval from
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  Speaker 1: the Chamber of Deputies. The UN's special rapporteur on Palestinian territories,
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  Speaker 1: Francesca Albanese, has also publicly urged Italians to oppose the measure,
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  Speaker 1: calling it an embarrassment and part of a process of
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  Speaker 1: Israelization of society. Closer to home, a long-standing relationship between
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  Speaker 1: a New York City public school and a local synagogue
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  Speaker 1: has been abruptly ended. JNS reports that PS321 in Brooklyn
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  Speaker 1: has stopped holding its graduation ceremonies at Congregation Beit Elohim.
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  Speaker 1: a reform synagogue with which it had a 50-year rental agreement.
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  Speaker 1: While the official reason cited by the principal was that
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  Speaker 1: a public school should not hold events in a religious building,
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  Speaker 1: the synagogue's rabbi, Rachel Timener, reported that the principal also
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  Speaker 1: stated the decision stemmed from discomfort about Israel and therefore
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  Speaker 1: about us. Rabbi Timener expressed that this felt like a
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  Speaker 1: double gut punch, leading to feelings of loneliness and misunderstanding
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  Speaker 1: within the congregation, especially as this occurred around the same
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  Speaker 1: time as a local food co-op banned Israeli products. Plans
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  Speaker 1: for a joint statement between the school and synagogue are
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  Speaker 1: underway to address the issue. Threat intelligence analyst Alex Goldenberg
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  Speaker 1: has warned that online hate, including antisemitism, is no longer
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  Speaker 1: confined to the fringes of the internet. As detailed by J-Post,
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  Speaker 1: Goldenberg observes that extremist subcultures and foreign influence operations have
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  Speaker 1: infiltrated mainstream social media platforms, reaching millions. He notes that
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  Speaker 1: radicalized online communities have inspired real-world violence against Jews globally,
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  Speaker 1: and that the prevalence of online antisemitism has accelerated significantly
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  Speaker 1: over the past 15 years. This evolution, from early antisemitic
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  Speaker 1: forums to modern image boards and social media, underscores the
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  Speaker 1: pervasive and adaptive nature of online extremism. Finally, filmmaker Roman
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  Speaker 1: Polanski has made controversial claims alleging that Israel has conducted
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  Speaker 1: false flag operations. The Telegraph reports these comments were made
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  Speaker 1: in the context of recent attacks on synagogues and Jewish
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  Speaker 1: community ambulances in Golders Green, London. Such rhetoric, particularly when
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  Speaker 1: voiced against the backdrop of heightened antisemitic incidents, can contribute
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  Speaker 1: to conspiratorial narratives. I'm Rachel Adler. Thank you for listening
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  Speaker 1: to Antisemitism Watch. Follow Antisemitism Watch in your podcast app
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: so you don't miss the next update. This report was
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: generated with AI assistance and may contain inaccuracies. Please verify
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: important details with primary sources.