Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister whose views on Israel and Jew-hatred have left Canadian Jewish leaders in the dark, won the Canadian election on Monday, although his Liberal Party failed to secure a majority of seats in Parliament. 

Pierre Poilievre, the opposition leader, lost his seat after a 20-year run, but the pro-Israel politician’s Conservative Party gained seats overall in the federal election. Analysts have suggested that Poilievre, who seemed poised to win by a long shot at times, lost ground due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff war on Canada and talk of making the country the 51st U.S. state.

“The United States extends its congratulations to Prime Minister Mark Carney and his party on their win in Canada’s recent federal elections. The U.S.-Canada relationship remains one of the most extensive in the world,” Tammy Bruce, the U.S. State Department spokeswoman, stated at the department’s press briefing on Tuesday.

“We look forward to working with Prime Minister Carney’s government, particularly on key issues such as trade fairness, combating illegal immigration, halting the flow of fentanyl and other dangerous drugs and countering the Chinese Communist Party influence in our hemisphere,” she stated.

Rabbi Ilana Krygier Lapides, assistant rabbi of Beth Tzedec Congregation, a Conservative synagogue in Calgary, told JNS that Jews have a “general state of apprehension” about the results.

Carney “hasn’t turned his attention towards the problem of antisemitism and made a strong case for protecting Jews in this country,” the rabbi said. “I think there’s a sense of, well, Jews generally like to vote Liberal, because that’s where their values lie.”

“On the one hand, we’re relieved,” she said. “But on the other hand, we’re very scared.”

The results are a “push me, pull you” sort of thing, since “maybe Conservative values don’t line up directly with Jewish values, but we can’t deny how supportive the Conservative Party has been,” the rabbi told JNS.

“It’s a little bit challenging,” she said.

Calgary’s some 8,500 Jews have become increasingly involved since Oct. 7, and the rabbi hopes that major Jewish groups “reach out to the Liberal government and mend some bridges and create some relationships, so that our community feels supported.”

“That’s what we want and that’s what is good for everybody,” she told JNS. “We can’t ally with just one party.”

B’nai Brith Canada congratulated Carney and the Liberal Party on their victory. “We look forward to engaging with the new government to advance the safety, rights and well-being of all Canadians,” B’nai Brith Canada stated. The group called for immediate “robust enforcement of hate crime laws, enhanced protection for Jewish institutions and communities and serious educational initiatives to counter hatred and extremism.”

“B’nai Brith Canada stands ready to work with the new government to ensure that Jewish life in Canada can flourish in safety, dignity and peace,” it stated.

Noah Shack, the interim president of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, the advocacy arm of the Jewish Federations of Canada-UIA, stated that Canadian Jews “showed up in a big way” in the election as candidates, volunteers and voters and “made an outsized contribution to our democracy.”

CIJA congratulated Carney on his victory and Poilievre for “a hard-fought campaign,” Shack stated. “The challenges facing our community are immense. We have a clear expectation that the next Parliament will urgently advance serious and impactful solutions.”

“While Canadian Jews are politically diverse, there is broad consensus that Canada stands at a crossroads regarding the future of our community. Over the course of the campaign, tens of thousands of Jewish voters directly engaged with local candidates on core issues of concern—from antisemitism and public safety to Canada’s relationship with our ally, Israel,” the group stated. 

“In the months ahead, CIJA will work with both government and opposition, community members, partner organizations and friends from all backgrounds to double down on this democratic activism,” it added.

Mixed reactions

The Jewish parliamentarian Anthony Housefather, a Liberal of the Jewish-heavy Montreal riding (district) of Mount Royal, won a fourth term over Neil Oberman, who is also Jewish.

The Toronto riding of York Centre, which has a large Jewish population, shifted colors, from Ya’ara Saks, a Liberal, to Roman Baber, a Conservative. The last time the riding was Conservative was about a decade ago, but it had been Liberal for 50 years prior. (Saks drew ire from many local Jews for a photo, in which she posed in Ramallah with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.)

Aviva Klompas, a former speechwriter for the Israeli mission to the United Nations and native of Toronto, told JNS that she has seen terror supporters enjoy “free license” in Canada in recent years to march in the streets, glorify violence and threaten Jews “with impunity.”

“I’m deeply disappointed by the election results. This is personal for me,” she said. “The synagogue I grew up in, in Toronto, has been vandalized eight times. The first time was horrifying. But times two through eight? That reflects a political leadership that has chosen indifference.”

“They’ve turned their backs on Canadian Jews, and the entire country will pay the price,” she told JNS.

Igal Hecht, a Toronto filmmaker who directed the documentary Killing Roads (2024) about Oct. 7, told JNS that he is convinced nothing will change. “We’re going to see a Liberal government that has no concern for the Jewish community and turns a blind eye,” he said. (Hecht is encouraged by the pro-Israel Jewish Liberals, Rachel Bendayan and Anthony Housefather.)

If the Liberals carry on as they have for the last 19 months and don’t issue legislation countering violent, antisemitic protests, Canada will see “the exact same patterns” as Europe, Hecht told JNS, “a massively radicalized Muslim community that resorts to violence and intimidation to terrorize the Jewish community.”

“That’s something we have to reckon with as Jews. We are no longer a voting bloc that is counted by the Liberal Party,” he said. “That’s what it seems like.” 

Hecht figures that the Liberal government will “fund Shoah education, this or that building, but how does that help the everyday Jew who hides his kippah or Star of David?” he said. “How does that help any of the businesses with their windows smashed?”

Sidura Ludwig, a writer who lives in Thornhill, the riding of Deputy Conservative leader Melissa Lantsman, told JNS that the election results don’t surprise her.

“Being a Liberal-leaning person, if you had spoken to me back in January, I might have told you then that I might have voted Conservative,” she said.

Ludwig is pleased with Lantsman, who is Jewish, she told JNS. But she changed her mind about voting Conservative after Trump “really changed the narrative.”

“I’m very, very concerned about tariffs, the 51st state and Canadian identity,” she said. “Carney is the right leader, for right now.”

Ludwig isn’t sure if Carney will support Israel, but she hopes he will. “I’m not sure we’ve seen enough of him on that platform,” she said. “There are people in Parliament who hopefully will influence him in a way that’s going to help the Jewish community.”

“I think the jury is still out on Carney and how or if he’s going to handle it,” she said.

Avrum Rosensweig, a podcaster and former head of a charity, told JNS that he has positive feelings about Carney. He grew up with Conservative values, but as an adult, he feels differently and has always voted Liberal. 

“I was open to changing this year based on perhaps the Conservative outlook. That was what I initially felt, as it was more protective of the Jewish community,” he said. “As things went on, I actually didn’t see Pierre’s platform as being a strong one for the Jewish people in the Jewish community.”

Rosensweig didn’t think Liberals would be that different from Conservatives “on the ground,” and he thinks Carney is “an upstanding man, a decent human being, extraordinarily successful and bright.”

“I don’t think the sky is falling,” he said. “I think we’ll be okay.”

Some 100 anti-Israel protesters who set out to march into Crown Heights, a heavily Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, N.Y., were rerouted by New York City police on Monday evening during a protest that stretched more than three hours.

The demonstration came days after hundreds gathered outside 770 Eastern Parkway, the world headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, on the evening of April 24 to protest the presence of Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who was attending a Jewish celebration.

The New York City Police Department told JNS that at about 8 p.m., it “responded to a scheduled demonstration at the Barclays Center, within the confines of the 78th Precinct.”

Robert Mills, 40, of Brooklyn, was arrested and charged with obstructing governmental administration, and Kirin Lawrence, 20, of Manhattan, was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, according to the NYPD.

A flier for the Monday evening protest circulated online stating that organizers intended to “flood the streets of Crown Heights” and informing residents that “Zionism is not welcome.” The Crown Heights Community Council warned residents to avoid the protest. 

“The Vaad Hakohol is fully updated on the situation and has been in direct contact with the relevant law enforcement and security agencies, including senior officials of the NYPD,” the council stated. “We have confirmed to our satisfaction that a comprehensive security plan is in place, and the protesters will not be permitted to come into direct contact with the Crown Heights Jewish community.”

“We strongly urge community members not to engage with the protesters,” it stated. “Their goal is to provoke a response that could bring negative consequences to our community.”

‘Breakaway group’

At last Thursday’s protest outside 770 Eastern Parkway, two women—an anti-Israel protester and a bystander—were assaulted during the demonstration, New York City Mayor Eric Adams stated on Sunday. Both incidents remain under investigation.

The bystander, a woman in her 30s and a neighborhood resident, initially came to witness the demonstration but alleged that she was later chased, spat upon and kicked by a group of Orthodox Jewish men, the Associated Press reported.

Motti Seligson, director of media at Chabad, condemned both the antisemitic protesters who targeted the Jewish neighborhood and those who carried out assaults. 

“The violent provocateurs, who called for the genocide of Jews in support of terrorists and terrorism outside a synagogue in a Jewish neighborhood, where some of the worst antisemitic violence in American history was perpetrated and where many residents share deep bonds with the victims of Oct 7, did so in order to intimidate, provoke and instill fear,” he stated.

“We condemn the crude language and violence of the small breakaway group of young people,” he said. “Such actions are entirely unacceptable and wholly antithetical to the Torah’s values.”

“The fact that a possibly uninvolved bystander got pulled into the melee further underscores the point,” he added.

Harvard University released a pair of reports on Tuesday describing the state of antisemitic and Islamophobic discrimination at the Ivy League school and making recommendations to combat bigotry on campus.

The reports, which run more than 500 pages combined, give what is likely the most detailed account to date of how anti-Israel protests have roiled the Cambridge, Mass., college since Oct. 7.

“For many students, including Jewish ones, sympathy with the Palestinians was a natural response to Israel’s massive military response to the Oct. 7 attacks and a rapidly mounting toll of death and destruction,” the report on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias states. “This sympathy did not mean that each and every participating student was calling for Israel’s violent downfall or hatred of Jews worldwide.” 

“Yet for some protestors, at times the anti-Zionism enunciated in the student protests crossed a line from a call for freedom and security for Palestinians and Jews alike to a stereotyped notion,” it states, “that Israel is not a state but rather a ‘settler colony’ of white Europeans, who have no real connection with the land they had stolen, that epitomized aggression and was bereft of virtues.”

The report also notes that Jews and Israelis have long been uniquely singled out at Harvard in polemical and biased academic courses.

“Some Jewish students in programs at the Harvard schools ostensibly most committed to social justice seemed to struggle to navigate environments they perceived as systemically antisemitic,” per the report. “This struggle appeared particularly acute when they encountered what they believed to be one-sided programming that portrayed Israelis as uniquely villainous.”

“We are not aware of any other group on campus that is subject to social exclusion as part of an intentional campaign by political organizers,” it adds.

In his statement releasing the reports, Harvard president Alan Garber, who is Jewish, apologized for “the moments when we failed to meet the high expectations we rightfully set for our community.”

“Harvard cannot—and will not—abide bigotry,” Garber stated. “We will continue to provide for the safety and security of all members of our community and safeguard their freedom from harassment.”

Republicans, who have been investigating antisemitism at Harvard and other universities in Congress, called the reports “scathing.”

“Harvard’s president said the school will not abide bigotry, yet that’s exactly what the school’s feckless leadership did,” stated Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), chair of the House Education and the Workforce Committee. “This report shows what committee Republicans have highlighted for years: antisemitism is running rampant on Harvard’s campus.”

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), whose questioning of Claudine Gay at a hearing on antisemitism contributed to Gay being ousted as Harvard’s president in 2024, stated on Tuesday that Harvard’s task force had revealed “longtime, deep-rooted, dangerous and rampant antisemitism” at the school.

“This is further confirmation of the significant moral crisis facing higher education that I have sounded the alarm on in Congress,” Stefanik stated. “There must be accountability and real reform to save American higher education—not just reports.”

Rabbi Jason Rubenstein, executive director of Harvard Hillel, stated that the report “marks a critical step in Harvard’s long, and long overdue, reckoning with antisemitism.”

“Two things are clear. For years, Jewish and Israeli students at Harvard have been the victims of a social, political and intellectual campaign of delegitimization and stigmatization supported by many members of the student body and faculty,” Rubenstein stated.

Garber is also “committed to addressing the deeper causes of this intolerable state of affairs and not merely their headline-grabbing manifestations over the past 19 months,” per the Conservative rabbi.

Canadian comic Nathan Fielder accused the film studio Paramount of erasing Jewish content from its streaming services over German “sensitivities” about antisemitism after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7.

During Sunday’s episode of his HBO show “The Rehearsal,” Fielder, who is Jewish, recounts how he discovered that Paramount removed a 2015 episode of his show “Nathan for You” in which he created a clothing brand that raises money for Holocaust awareness.

“The email said in late 2023, a decision was made by Paramount+ Germany to remove the episode in their region after they became uncomfortable with what they called ‘anything that touches on antisemitism’ in the aftermath of the ‘Israel/Hamas attacks,’” Fielder said. “This act by Germany triggered the attention of other European Paramount branches, and they, in turn, pulled the episode, too.”

“Before long, the ideology of Paramount+ Germany had spread to the entire globe, eliminating all Jewish content that made them uncomfortable,” he added.

Fielder noted that his searches for “Nazi” and “Hitler” on the streaming app returned dozens of results, while “Judaism” produced zero.

“We’ve been erased,” Fielder said.

‘You have to know your place’

As of Tuesday, a search for “Judaism” on Paramount+ now shows results including the Oct. 7 documentary “We Will Dance Again” and Quentin Tarantino’s film “Inglourious Basterds.” The season 3 episode of “Nathan for You” about the clothing company remains unavailable on Paramount+, though it continues to stream on HBO Max.

A spokesperson for Paramount confirmed to JNS that the episode “is not streaming on Paramount+ following a standards review.”

Fielder said that his apparel brand, Summit Ice, has raised millions of dollars for Holocaust awareness. The company’s website says that 100% of its profits have been donated to the Vancouver Holocaust Education Center and “other organizations that work to fight intolerance.”

The outerwear company’s newly updated “about” page jokes in Fielder’s deadpan comedic style about the apparent decline in sales after Paramount pulled the episode.

“In October of 2023, our sales plummeted by nearly 90%, and we couldn’t figure out why,” it says. “After extensive market research, only one answer made sense: Consumers had suddenly become more savvy about the quality of softshell jackets.”

Fielder concludes Sunday’s episode of “The Rehearsal” by confronting an actor whom he paid to improvise the role of a Paramount+ Germany executive depicted in Nazi-era clothing while a platoon of actors in SS uniforms wearing Paramount’s logo as armbands marched outside.

“I know you guys probably feel a lot of shame about what you did in the past, and now you’re trying to overcompensate by being the world leaders in fighting antisemitism,” the comedian said. “But when it comes to art, I think you have to know your place, and you have to let us Jews express ourselves because honestly, the way you’re approaching this whole thing, people might get the wrong idea about what you actually stand for.”

In honor of Yom Hazikaron—Israel’s Remembrance Day for the Fallen Soldiers of the Wars of Israel and Victims of Actions of Terrorism—and Yom Ha’aztmaut—the country’s 77th Independence Day—the Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael–Jewish National Fund (KKL-JNF) Archive is unveiling a collection of historic photographs from its extensive holdings.

Captured during the War of Independence in 1948 and the early years of statehood (1949-1967), the images offer a window into moments of courage, sacrifice, hope and national pride.

The collection includes photographs of soldiers in battle positions, children waving flags, parades marching through cities and towns, and crowds celebrating the spirit of independence.

Each black-and-white image reflects the resilience and determination that shaped Israel’s earliest years, documenting both the struggle to establish a nation and the enduring spirit with which generations of Israelis have marked their independence, even in times of hardship and uncertainty.

Efrat Sinai, director of archives at KKL-JNF, stated that “during these days, as we honor the memory of the fallen and navigate the emotional transition from remembrance to celebration, these photographs reconnect us with some of Israel’s defining moments. They are not just historical records; they tell the story of a people who built a country out of faith, sacrifice and deep love for this land.”

She continued, saying that “over 120 years of Zionist endeavor—building, planting, settling and reviving the land—are preserved in KKL-JNF’s archives. We are proud to safeguard these memories and to make them accessible, strengthening the living connection between Israel’s past, present and future.”

I am writing from Jerusalem, the eternal capital of the Jewish people, having just attended the inaugural JNS International Policy Summit at the Waldorf Astoria—a landmark event that convened some of the most influential leaders and decision-makers to address critical issues shaping Israel’s future and its role in the global arena.

This extraordinary two-day summit on April 27-28, hosted by the Jewish News Syndicate wire service, provided a powerful platform for thought leaders to chart a path forward for Israel as a military, economic and moral superpower.

It was here that Mike Huckabee, the new U.S. ambassador to Israel, addressed an overflow crowd of Zionists from around the world, delivering an inspiring speech filled with steadfast support for Israel. His words coincided with a historic moment: Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, his daughter, signed a groundbreaking law on April 27—the first of its kind in the United States—requiring state authorities to refer to the biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria by its rightful name, rather than the term “West Bank.”

This decision affirms the deep historical and spiritual connection of the Jewish people to this land and sends a clear message: Judea and Samaria is an inseparable part of Israel, where Jews have an inalienable right to live securely.

The image of Sanders holding the signed legislation, surrounded by her team with the American and Arkansas flags in the background, reflects her commitment to truth and justice. As executive vice president of One Israel Fund, which supports Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, I applaud her bold leadership. Her actions resonate deeply in Israel.

Judea and Samaria is the cradle of Jewish civilization, where sacred biblical stories unfolded—from Hebron, the burial place of our patriarchs and matriarchs, to Shiloh, where the Tabernacle stood for 369 years. The term “West Bank,” coined after Jordan’s illegal occupation in 1948, erases this history and diminishes the Jewish claim to the land. By mandating the use of “Judea and Samaria,” Arkansas has taken a stand for historical accuracy, rejecting politically motivated narratives that delegitimize Israel’s presence in its ancestral homeland.

Her principled stance is no surprise. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, as her father, also once the governor, has long been a steadfast advocate for Israel.

His speech at the JNS summit underscored his deep love for Israel, rooted in his evangelical Christian faith and his belief in the Jewish people’s return to their homeland. Together, the Huckabees embody faith, courage and moral clarity in a complex geopolitical landscape.

The new law in Arkansas sets a precedent for others to follow, challenging the international community to rethink terminology that undermines Israel’s legitimacy. It also supports the more than 500,000 Jewish Israelis in Judea and Samaria, affirming their right to live in their ancestral homeland.

For One Israel Fund, which provides security and infrastructure support to these communities, this decision is a morale boost amid ongoing threats from terrorism and political pressure.

This law aligns with the Trump administration’s legacy of supporting Israel, from moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018 to recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights in 2019.

From Jerusalem, I am filled with hope. The partnership between the United States and Israel is stronger than ever, thanks to leaders like the Huckabees. May their leadership inspire others to stand with Israel and uphold the truth of our shared history.

The House Committee on Education and the Workforce has requested that Michael Schill, the president of Northwestern University, sit down for a “transcribed interview about steps being taken to combat the antisemitic threats and harassment occurring” on campus.

“The committee seeks to understand both this disturbing climate of antisemitism at Northwestern as well as the University’s apparent failure to protect Jewish students,” stated the letter sent by Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), chairman of the committee, on Monday. 

The letter also raised questions about whether Northwestern had taken sufficient steps to address hatred since Schill and leaders from other universities appeared at a congressional hearing in May 2024.

“Since your testimony at the committee’s May 23, 2024, hearing, despite Northwestern’s claims to the contrary, the committee has not seen your commitments to discipline, enforcement and security come to satisfactory fruition,” stated the letter.

Walberg then highlighted multiple incidents of reported antisemitism, including Jewish students being harassed and stalked, spat on for wearing a yarmulke, and being told to “go back to Germany and get gassed.” Another instance included several buildings being vandalized during Passover with what the university described as “antisemitic slogans and hate-filled language.” 

“It remains unclear whether any students or faculty have been meaningfully disciplined in response to the repeated incidents of antisemitism at Northwestern, including the harassment and violence against Jewish students at Northwestern’s 2024 encampment,” the letter continued.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration froze roughly $790 million in federal funding to Northwestern.

Steven Thrasher, an associate professor of journalism who participated in the encampments at Northwestern in April 2024 and compared Israel to the Nazis, said he has been denied tenure and will not have his position renewed.

An alleged ISIS terrorist has been arrested in connection with the car-ramming attack on Jan. 1 that killed 14 people in New Orleans, Iraqi officials stated, according to the New York Post.

The alleged terrorist is accused of inciting Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a U.S. Army veteran believed to be radicalized by ISIS, into ramming his car into a New Year’s Day crowd of celebrants on Bourbon Street in the city’s historic French Quarter. Officials initially said Jabbar acted alone.

“After hitting the crowd, he exited the vehicle and fired upon local law enforcement. Law enforcement returned fire, and the subject was pronounced deceased at the scene,” the FBI stated after the incident. “Two law-enforcement officers were injured and transported to a local hospital.”

Two Israelis were among those injured.

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a Republican, signed legislation on Monday to prohibit the state’s agencies from using the term “West Bank.”

The bill, which passed in the Arkansas General Assembly earlier this month, is considered to be the first time that a U.S. state has required its documents to call the area that Israel captured from Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War by the biblical names of Judea and Samaria.

“It is the intent of the General Assembly to: (1) Refer to the land controlled by Israel from Jordan during the 1967 Six-Day War by its historical name of ‘Judea and Samaria’, with the land south of Jerusalem being considered ‘Judea’ and the land north of Jerusalem being considered ‘Samaria’; and (2) No longer use the term ‘West Bank’ in official government materials.”

Proponents of the phrasing contend that the names better reflect Israeli terminology. They also say the use recognizes the historic and biblical connection of Jews to the kingdoms of Judea and Samaria, while the phrase “West Bank” was popularized by Jordan after it occupied the area in 1948 to imply continuity between the east and west banks of the Jordan River.

Sanders’s father, Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel and a former governor of Arkansas, has previously argued that the Jewish state has a biblical “title deed” to Judea and Samaria.

“There are certain words I refuse to use,” Huckabee said in 2017. “There is no such thing as a ‘West Bank.’ It’s Judea and Samaria.”

Similar legislation, which has been proposed at the federal level, is pending in the House and Senate.