Attacks in Australia…
Pro-Palestinian protesters in Melbourne chanted “Death to the IDF” at a Sunday rally, just two days after violent attacks on a synagogue and an Israeli restaurant. The Friday night attacks marked the latest in a pattern targeting Jewish sites across Australia. (JTA) In one incident, police arrested a man who set fire to the front door of East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation while around 20 people were inside. Everyone escaped safely through a back exit and the blaze, confined to the entrance, was quickly extinguished. It was the second arson attack at a Melbourne synagogue in seven months.
Around the same time, about 20 protesters stormed Miznon, a restaurant owned by Michelin starred-Israeli chef Eyal Shani, with some throwing chairs and shouting “Death to the IDF” as they disrupted diners.
Our senior columnist, Rob Eshman, visited Miznon’s Los Angeles outpost last month where customers seemed unfazed about geopolitics.
Shani’s business partner, Shahar Segal, said he is parting ways with the U.S.- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation after less than two months as its spokesperson. (Times of Israel)
And elsewhere…
🇮🇱 Israel’s governing coalition is weighing a bill, backed by far-right and Orthodox parties, that would block automatic citizenship for those with one Jewish grandparent and potentially reshape who qualifies as Jewish under Israeli law. (JTA)
🇦🇹 In Adolf Hitler’s hometown in Austria, two streets named after Nazi supporters will be renamed, affecting the addresses of about 200 households. (Euronews)
👶 New data from the New Jersey Department of Health shows that Lakewood — known for its large Orthodox community — had more births than any other town in the state last year, accounting for 5.3% of all babies born in New Jersey in 2024. (X)
Shiva call ► S. Daniel Abraham, who turned his small family business into the Slim-Fast weight-loss empire, died at 100. He donated millions of dollars to Israeli universities and Jewish schools in the U.S., and was a founding member of the New Synagogue in Palm Beach, Florida.
What else we’re reading ► “He wrote the book on American Jewish history. Stepping back from teaching, Jonathan Sarna says he has plenty of chapters still to go” (JTA) … Seven Kindertransport survivors share their stories (New York Times) … “A fragile ceasefire in the Israel-Iran war tests the harmony of Los Angeles’ huge Iranian community” (AP)
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