ISSUES

At CUFI, we are focused on several key issues with the goal of defending Israel’s strength, security, and sovereignty.

If you want to keep up with all things Israel, sign up for CUFI’s Daily Briefing – our daily news roundup created exclusively for CUFI members. Every morning, Monday through Friday, receive an email with some of the top headlines in the news so you are always informed and ready to debunk lies with the truth.

Iran

Father of Son Killed by Iran: Sanctions-Lift Will Aid Regime, Not People

BERLIN – Manouchehr Bakhtiari, whose son Pouya was gunned down by the security of forces of the Islamic Republic for his protest against rising gasoline prices, urged on Friday that sanctions relief not be provided to Tehran’s rulers.

“If sanctions are lifted, the regime will sell oil and other natural resources of Iran to buy guns to kill our...

Israeli Technology

A Robot to Replace Staff Treating Coronavirus Designed by Israeli Experts

A robot has been designed by Israeli engineering and health experts to replace some of the tasks of medical staff treating coronavirus patients, in order to help reduce their risk of infection. Dubbed COROBOT, the platform will initially be used in Rambam Health Care Campus’s new Coronavirus Department.

“If the robot will successfully pass its...

ISIS

Germany Arrests Five Suspected ISIS Members For Planned Attack Vs. US

BERLIN — The federal German prosecutor's agency announced on Wednesday that five alleged Islamic State members were arrested in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia for planning terrorism attacks against US forces.

“They jointly founded a so-called cell in Germany. They initially planned to travel to Tajikistan to take part in fighting against the...

Iran

Iranian Health Ministry Holds Antisemitic Coronavirus Cartoon Contest

BERLIN — The senior vice president for international affairs for the Anti-Defamation League, Sharon S. Nazarian, blasted Iran’s health ministry for squandering time on stoking antisemitism instead of combating the massive outbreak of the deadly coronavirus disease.

Sharon S. Nazarian tweeted on Monday: “At a time when it should be focused on...

Antisemitism

Estonian Teen ‘Commander’ of Global Neo-Nazi Group Behind Threats to US Synagogue

A 13-year-old boy in Estonia was a key figure in an international neo-Nazi group that has been linked to plots to attack a Las Vegas synagogue and detonate a car bomb at a major U.S. news network, the Associated Press reported.

The boy, who called himself “Commander” online, was a leader of Feuerkrieg Division, though severed ties with the...

Hamas

Hamas Said Demanding Release of 250 Prisoners For Info on Missing Israelis

The Hamas terror group is demanding that Israel release 250 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for information on two Israeli captives in the Gaza Strip and on the remains of two IDF soldiers killed in the 2014 Gaza war, according to a Lebanese news report on Tuesday.

According to the Al-Akhbar daily, Hamas officials in Israeli prisons have drawn...

Medical Advancement

Hebrew University Gets $4.2 Million From Rothschild Foundation For Coronavirus Fight

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem has received a $4.2 million donation from the Edmond de Rothschild Foundation to fund coronavirus research.

The money will be used to fund 60 Hebrew University research teams that are “working to find a vaccine, produce faster and cheaper testing methods, and develop targeted treatments for those afflicted by...

Israeli Technology

Israeli Startup Protects Intubated COVID-19 Patients From Complications

An Israeli startup is helping protect coronavirus intubate patients from further complications that often appear when a person is on a ventilator for a prolonged time.

The coronavirus outbreak has created a spike in patients who need to be intubated. However, as this has become the standard for those who are critically ill, being on ventilators...

Antisemitism

Second Synagogue Vandalized in Huntsville, Alabama, Days After the First

JTA — A second US synagogue has been vandalized in Huntsville, Alabama, days after another one was plastered with anti-Semitic slurs.

The Chabad of Huntsville was spray-painted with swastikas and what local media described as anti-Semitic graffiti and racial slurs on Thursday night.
Surveillance video showed an unidentified suspect painting on...

Antisemitism

Owner of Edinburgh Bagel Store Chain Accused by Landlord of ‘Typical Jewish Behavior’ After Asking to Defer Rent Payment Amid Coronavirus

The owner of a chain of bagel stores in Edinburgh, Scotland, was told by her landlord that she was exhibiting “typical Jewish behavior” when she asked him for a rearrangement of her rent payments due to the coronavirus crisis.

The Edinburgh Evening News reported that Larah Bross, the owner of the Bross Bagels chain in Portobello, a suburb of...

Palestinian Authority

PA Rebuffs Call to Stop ‘Incitement’ Campaign Blaming Israel For its Virus Cases

Senior Palestinian officials refused on Monday to back down on accusations that Israel has been responsible for intentionally spreading the coronavirus in the West Bank, after Jerusalem called such claims “incitement” and warned of significant consequences for repeating them.

“We will not bow to blackmail in any form,” Palestinian Authority Prime...

Iran

Iran’s Hidden Coronavirus Victims: Prisoners, Migrants, And the Poor

Iranian security forces killed thirty-five prisoners during a riot over coronavirus, Amnesty International reported.

The novel coronavirus has spread through Iran amid an economic meltdown, leaving the poor and vulnerable segments of society more at risk. Reports have emerged of violence in prisons—particularly in ethnic minority regions—as well...

In The News

Israeli Couple Aged 90, 87 Recover From COVID -19 in Ashkelon

Happy scenes unfolded Sunday at Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon, as an elderly couple was sent home after both recovered from COVID-19.

Rahamim Bracha, 90, and his wife of 69 years, Shoshana, 87, thanked doctors as well as God as they were released.

“Goodbye and may we not come here again,” said Rahamim, who had been in serious condition and...

Hamas

Amnesty International Employee Denounced For Getting Gaza Peace Activists Arrested by Hamas For Virtual Meeting With Israelis

An employee of Amnesty International has been denounced for getting a Gaza peace activist arrested by Hamas authorities for holding a virtual meeting with Israeli counterparts.

Journalist Rami Aman of the Gaza Youth Committee held the conference with the Israelis via the Zoom app, which has become popular as a means of maintaining social ties...

Israel Defense Force (IDF)

IDF Naval Commandos Give Israeli Coronavirus Patients a Hand

Israel’s elite Shayetet 13 naval commandos are doing their bit to contribute to the country’s battle against the coronavirus pandemic: Aside from sending some of its personnel to help distribute food and medicine at nursing homes in northern Israel, the commandos are now making medical oxygen tanks out of their own diving equipment.

Shayetet 13...

Medical Advancement

Israeli Researchers at Hebrew U Develop Faster, Cheaper COVID-19 Test

Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem announced on Sunday that they have developed a new method of testing for COVID-19 which is not only 4-10 times faster than the tests most commonly used today, but also significantly cheaper, while supplying the same level of accuracy.

Moreover, most of the materials required to perform the new...

Antisemitism

Germany Imposes Four-Year Travel Ban on Senior Palestinian Terrorist

BERLIN - The German government has issued a four-year travel ban against a senior member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) who allegedly supports terrorism and Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against the Jewish state.

The Palestinian journalist and alleged PFLP terrorist Khaled Barakat, who is based in...

Iran

Threat From Iran to US Forces Remains ‘Significant’

Iranian-backed militia pose a "significant" threat to US forces in Iraq, the State Department's top diplomat for the Middle East said on Thursday, about a week after U.S. President Donald Trump warned of an attack by Iran or its proxies.

David Schenker, assistant secretary of Near Eastern Affairs, did not give details about the threat, but told...

Iran

Iran Murdered 36 Prisoners Over Coronavirus Protest

BERLIN — Security forces for the Islamic Republic of Iran murdered 36 prisoners who rebelled in connection with coronavirus safety.

The human rights organization Amnesty International tweeted on Thursday: “We have learned that around 36 prisoners in Iran are feared to have been killed by security forces after use of lethal force to control...

In The News

US Government Agency Calls For Release of Baha’i Falsely Accused as Israeli Spy

BERLIN — The Washington-based United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) urged on Thursday that the Iranian regime allied Houthi authorities in Yemen comply with their March 25 public commitment to release Baha’i religious prisoner of conscience Hamid bin Haydara, along with 24 other detained Baha’is.

“Enough of the...