Daily Kickoff
Good Wednesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we look at the tensions surrounding yesterday’s strategic dialogue between Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Qatari PM and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, and report on the behind-the-scenes collaboration between Indonesia and Israel to rescue Indonesian nationals in Gaza. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Mia Schem, Victoria Nuland and Rep. Mike Collins.
Former President Donald Trump dominated in the GOP’s Super Tuesday slate of primary contests, winning 14 of the 15 states over Nikki Haley — with only Vermont giving a narrow victory to the former U.N. ambassador. His comfortable victories, from California to Texas to Virginia, all but guarantee him the Republican nomination.
Haley will be suspending her presidential campaign in a speech in Charleston, S.C., this morning, but won’t yet be endorsing Trump. Instead, she will encourage the former president to win the support of Republican voters who backed her.
In Minnesota, a push for Democrats to vote “uncommitted” against President Joe Biden garnered 19% of the primary vote.
Pro-Israel candidates tallied a series of victories in congressional primaries on Super Tuesday. In California, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who was endorsed by AIPAC and DMFI, finished in first place in the California all-party primary — easily outdistancing Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) and Barbara Lee (D-CA) — and will face Republican Steve Garvey in the general election.
Given California’s solidly Democratic orientation, Schiff is heavily favored to win the Senate seat in November. Anti-Israel protesters attempted to disrupt his victory speech last night before being escorted out by security.
In Texas, AIPAC-endorsed state Rep. Craig Goldman comfortably outdistanced his rivals in the Republican primary. He will be favored in a runoff for the GOP nomination over real estate developer John O’Shea in the solidly Republican House seat of retiring Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX).
Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX) easily dispatched her anti-Israel opponent, Pervez Agwan, in the Democratic primary. Agwan ran on an anti-AIPAC platform, and raised over $1 million for his campaign, but is losing by a whopping 46-point margin (73%-27%).
But in California’s 47th Congressional District, where pro-Israel groups spent millions to boost Democratic attorney Joanna Weiss over Democratic state senator Dave Min, the efforts are looking unsuccessful. With 60% of the vote in, Min leads Weiss by about six points — in second place behind Republican Scott Baugh. If the results hold, Min would face Baugh in the swing Orange County-based district.
Some news from the next round of primaries: United Democracy Project, the super PAC affiliated with AIPAC, is spending nearly $44,000 on mailers to oppose Kina Collins, a progressive primary challenger to Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL) in Chicago, according to a new filing. Collins, who failed to defeat Davis in 2022 with backing from Justice Democrats, is among several Democrats preparing to take on incumbents in the March 19 primary. Davis, who has had a strained relationship with the local pro-Israel community, has not been endorsed by AIPAC’s political action committee.
And in Missouri, three dozen rabbis and cantors from the St. Louis area have signed on to an open letter endorsing Wesley Bell, a Democrat, in his campaign to unseat Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), one of the most vulnerable Squad members facing a primary threat this cycle.
“Wesley immediately reached out to console us following October 7th, committed to being a voice for our community and made clear he was our much needed ally,” the clergy members write in their letter, shared exclusively with JI. “His words have not only been comforting,” the letter adds, “but were also a stark departure from the ongoing caustic, offensive, and — yes — antisemitic rhetoric from the current representative in Washington D.C.”
Their new statement underscores how Bush’s hostile approach to Israel has driven the clergy members to take the rare step of publicly choosing a side in what is expected to be a close race. Most of the clergy members who signed the letter “have not been politically active until the last few months,” said Rabbi Jeffrey Abraham of Congregation B’nai Amoona, a Conservative synagogue in St. Louis, who is among the signatories.
“We urgently need representation in Congress by one who listens, cares, and represents the values of our collective community,” the authors stress. “We believe that must be Wesley Bell and are proud to support him.”
diplomatic dance
U.S. ties to Qatar in spotlight, and under scrutiny, following strategic dialogue
Secretary of State Tony Blinken feted the Qatari prime minister in Washington on Tuesday, hosting the Gulf leader for a daylong meeting discussing the countries’ close partnership. Blinken’s warm embrace of Qatar comes as the country has in recent weeks begun to face increasing pressure from Israeli leaders and some American Jewish activists due to its close ties to Hamas, and its inability to reach a second hostage deal as the Israelis held in Gaza approach their 150th day in captivity, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Tense times: This year’s strategic dialogue with Qatar comes at a tense moment in the Middle East. But in remarks before the event and a summary issued by the State Department afterward, Blinken spoke highly of his Qatari counterpart, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who is also Qatar’s prime minister.
Taking advantage: “I understand the diplomatic language that was used in the document that was put out by the State Department, talking about the vital commercial, economic, military and political ties. And I’m sure all that is true,” said Ron Halber, the executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington. “But underneath that, we have Qatar that dupes the United States and takes advantage of our friendship.” Since January, the JCRC has hosted semi-regular gatherings outside the Qatari Embassy demanding that its leaders do more to pressure Hamas.
Bad behavior: The timing of this year’s meeting — while the Biden administration is urging Hamas to accept a deal — raised flags for some critics of Washington’s ties to Qatar. “The Biden administration appears to be rewarding Qatar for bad behavior, giving them tremendous benefits that the Qataris have not yet earned. I could imagine postponing this summit until there is another agreement that delivers all the hostages or as many hostages as possible, including all the American hostages,” said Richard Goldberg, a senior advisor at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a former national security official in the Trump administration.
Close partner: Strategic dialogues are a frequent occurrence at the State Department, and not just for Qatar. Washington hosts similar annual events between top diplomats from the U.S. and scores of other allies, many of which are much less geostrategically significant than Qatar. “It’s an important partner in many regards, and one that we’ve depended on for years to mediate our relations with some of the more unsavory groups in the region,” David Schenker, a former senior State Department official who attended one of the dialogues during the Trump administration, said of Qatar, which President Joe Biden designated as a “major non-NATO ally” in 2022.
In Doha: Iran unveiled a new UAV dubbed the “Gaza” at the Doha International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference earlier this week. In 2022, the State Department condemned the presence of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps at the annual event in Qatar.
gaza rescue
The rescue mission that tested burgeoning Israel-Indonesia relations
On Oct. 6, 2023, Abdillah “Bang” Onim, the Indonesian founder of Nusantara Palestina Center, an organization providing humanitarian aid, distributed new sneakers to boys and girls dressed in school uniforms in Gaza. On Oct. 14, Onim published a selfie video from Gaza after an Israeli Air Force strike. “NEED ACCESS AND HUMANITARIAN ACTION!! HUMANITY APPEAL,” the video’s title states. Onim posted that video one day after what had been the target date for Israel and Indonesia to announce diplomatic relations. Over several months, Jerusalem and Jakarta had been working on a normalization agreement, culminating with a visit to Jerusalem by Andi Widjajanto, an adviser to Indonesia’s president. Just over two weeks after the sides agreed on a text for the MOU, Israel-Indonesia normalization was shelved and that back channel was set to be used for a new purpose: to rescue Indonesians trapped in Gaza, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports.
Making the list: In WhatsApp messages obtained by JI from Oct. 12, Judha Nugraha, director for the Protection of Citizens at the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, sent businessman Joey Allaham, an intermediary who had been involved in normalization efforts, a list of Indonesians seeking to evacuate Gaza, including Onim, his wife, his 12-year-old daughter, 10-year-old son and 7-year-old son, and two of his wife’s relatives, on the instructions of Widjajanto. The list also included Muhamad Husein, the founder of an NGO International Networking for Humanitarian, who runs a YouTube channel called “Muhammad Husein Gaza” with over 1.2 million followers, who sought to leave Gaza with his wife and two children, ages 9 and 4. Another three volunteers at the NGO-run Indonesian Hospital in Gaza were on the list, though they decided to stay.
Israeli involvement: Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), a civilian-military body that, among other things, coordinates the humanitarian aid in Gaza, was going to be involved in helping the Indonesians leave Gaza, but Nugraha asked that any Israelis in contact with Indonesians identify themselves as U.N. staff because the matter is “politically sensitive.” COGAT declined to comment on its role in the matter, but a senior Israeli diplomatic source confirmed Israel’s involvement in evacuating Indonesians from Gaza.
What’s next: In December, Israel blocked Indonesia from joining the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the organization of the world’s wealthiest countries, citing that there was “no precedent within the OECD for members who do not have full diplomatic relations with any of the other members.” Indonesia held its presidential election in mid-February, electing Prabowo Subianto, the country’s defense minister, to the presidency. Subianto has quietly supported normalization with Israel and met with Israeli officials. The following week, Israel removed its veto on Indonesia after OECD Secretary-General Matthias Cormann said that the OECD would only allow the Southeast Asian archipelago state to join once it recognizes Israel, a diplomatic source confirmed to JI, saying that the solution was Jerusalem’s suggestion.
exclusive
Rubio, Rosen push House-passed Hamas sanctions bill in the Senate
Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) on Tuesday are set to reintroduce the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad International Terrorism Support Prevention Act in the Senate, seeking to expand the U.S.’ sanctions regime on foreign backers of Palestinian terrorist groups, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Passing the House: The bill passed the House by a strong bipartisan margin, 363-46, in November. Rubio had introduced a version of the bill last year but, at the time, it lacked Democratic co-sponsors in the Senate. Rosen’s support makes this latest version of the bill a bipartisan effort.
Making changes: Unlike another version of the bill Rubio introduced with Republican support in 2023, the new legislation contains language specifically exempting humanitarian aid to Gaza and the West Bank from the sanctions, as long as it complies with other U.S. law. Some opponents of the bill in the House had raised concerns that it contained insufficient carve outs for humanitarian aid. The Hamas-targeted bill has been introduced in the Senate multiple times, but lacked Democratic support in recent years. The legislation has floundered for years, despite some forward momentum.
Elsewhere on the Hill: Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Mike Braun (R-IN), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Rick Scott (R-FL), Steve Daines (R-MT) and John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced a bill that would allow American terror victims to sue international organizations including the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for allegedly providing resources and support for terror groups. It’s the latest bid by Cruz and other lawmakers to hold UNRWA legally and criminally culpable for Hamas’ attack on Israel.
sotu preview
Freed Hamas hostage to attend State of the Union as guest of House Speaker Johnson
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has invited Mia Schem, a freed Hamas hostage, as a guest to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address on Thursday, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. She’ll be joined at the speech by at least 17 family members of current hostages who are still being held, were recently freed or have died as guests of various members of Congress.
Quotable: “At the State of the Union, I will be honored to host Mia Schem, who experienced the terrors of Hamas firsthand,” Johnson said in a statement to JI. “Mia spent more than 50 days in captivity after being kidnapped on October 7th. I’m proud to stand with Mia and join her in demanding the release [of] all the hostages still held captive by Hamas. We must continue to fight to get them home.”
Honored guest: Schem said in a statement she was “deeply honored to have been invited” to the address. “While my thoughts and prayers are constantly with my friends who are still being held hostage by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, I am grateful to the Speaker for allowing me to show my gratitude for all the United States Government has done to assist the people of Israel in their time of need,” she said. “The bond between our countries is more important than ever and cannot be broken. As believers in God, we continue to pray together for peace.” Schem will join family members of at least 17 hostages who are still being held, were recently freed or have died as guests of various members of Congress at the president’s address and will be meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Thursday.
‘Counterweight’: Johnson also partnered with Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) to invite Orna and Daniel Neutra, the mother and brother of hostage Omer Neutra. Lawler said that inviting the Neutra family will serve as a counterweight to those seeking to redefine or obscure the origins of the current war. “As Hamas’ propagandists and unwitting accomplices seek to turn the world against Israel, it’s crucial that we remain steadfast, remember who started this war, and not forget the hostages and their loved ones,” Lawler told JI. “When President Biden delivers his State of the Union on Thursday, I hope he will look at the faces of the Neutras and other family members of hostages and reaffirm America’s commitment to bring their sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, grandparents, and grandchildren home safely.”
troublesome tweet
Rep. Mike Collins doubles down on post supporting antisemitic, racist social media account
Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) has continued to defend his social media comment endorsing a post by an antisemitic, racist account that was attacking a reporter for being Jewish, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Background: On Sunday, an account called “Garbage Human” retweeted a New York Post story about a Washington Post reporter, commenting, “In case you were wondering, yes she is.” Collins responded, “Never was a second thought.” Garbage Human’s initial post was widely interpreted — by both critics and supporters — as referring to the fact that the reporter, Maura Judkis, is Jewish. The “Garbage Human” account later confirmed as much, and posts almost exclusively posts blatantly antisemitic, racist and homophobic content.
Digging in: Collins has spent days refusing calls to apologize. Amid early criticism, he posted, “Some of y’all having a rough time wanting to see something that ain’t there,” accusing his critics of “grasping at straws.” Responding to a Georgia state Senate speech by Democratic legislator Josh McLaurin, Collins again defended his post. “I guess pointing out that a Washington Post journo excusing crime because she believes USA is on ‘stolen land’ makes her a garbage human is anti-Semitic?,” he said. “Y’all just see stuff that ain’t there.”
In-state opposition: McLaurin, a Democrat, told JI on Tuesday he delivered the speech to emphasize the need for his colleagues to confront antisemitism even when it comes from elected officials, noting that they had come together to condemn other antisemitic incidents and pass antisemitism legislation last year. “If it’s antisemitism, and it’s overt, and it is dealing with the same type of extreme elements that we have been condemning all session, it doesn’t matter that the person doing it is a sitting congressman,” McLaurin said. “And in fact, that just makes it even more important for all of my colleagues to use their connections and their platform to draw a hard line and let him know that it’s unacceptable.”
state of hate
Anti-Defamation League holding its annual Never Is Now summit to fight antisemitism
With nearly 4,000 attendees set to pack the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan today and tomorrow for the Anti-Defamation League’s Never Is Now summit — the largest gathering worldwide on antisemitism and hate — the group’s signature event comes at a particularly critical and fraught time, eJewishPhilanthropy’s Haley Cohen reports.
Preview: The summit will kick off with the group’s CEO, Jonathan Greenblatt, delivering the keynote “State of Hate” speech, excerpts of which were shared in advance exclusively with eJP. “Today, in our Oct. 8 world, American Jews – and Americans of all kinds – are hearing with their own ears and seeing with their own eyes the hollow claim of those who purport to be anti-Zionists but not antisemites,” Greenblatt is expected to say. “That’s rich. It’s like saying in 1964, I don’t hate Black Americans, but I just don’t think we need to pass the Civil Rights Act or end Jim Crow…the time for complacency is over.”
What to expect: Throughout the two-day gathering, dozens of high-profile speakers — global experts, advocates and leaders in the fight against antisemitism — will take the stage and lead panels, including Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt, the State Department’s special envoy to combat and monitor antisemitism; Marc Rowan; CEO of Apollo Management and UJA-Federation of New York chair; and Rabbi David Wolpe, the ADL’s inaugural rabbinic fellow. For the first time, the summit will also feature college and high school tracks geared toward students, who are facing some of the most egregious antisemitic episodes in recent months.
Read more here and sign up for eJewishPhilanthropy’s Your Daily Phil newsletter here.
Worthy Reads
Houthis’ Power: In The Atlantic, Robert Worth chronicles the rise of the Houthis, as the Iran-backed group in Yemen disrupts a key commercial maritime route and sows discord around the regime. “The consequences of the Houthis’ Red Sea attacks are still hard to fathom. Almost overnight, a militant movement in the remote badlands of Yemen has found a terrifying new relevance: It has choked off the waterway that carries about 15 percent of the world’s trade. The U.S. Navy began firing back at Houthi launch sites in January — its most intense exchange of the 21st century to date — but even then, the Houthis did not back down. One measure of the Houthis’ new power is that the proud Arab autocrats who hate them hardly dare to criticize them. They fear drawing more attention to the gap between their own tepid statements of support for Palestinians and the Houthis’ brazen defiance. Some are afraid that they, too, will become targets for Houthi missiles. The Arab leaders have long seen the Houthis as dangerous proxies for Iran, the group’s main military supplier, but some observers now say the truth may be even worse: that the Houthis are fanatics who answer to no one.” [TheAtlantic]
Denying Rape: The New York Times’ Bret Stephens considers the motives of those who deny Hamas’ use of sexual violence on Oct. 7. “Wasn’t it progressives who, during the Brett Kavanaugh saga, stressed that occasional discrepancies in the memory of traumatic events are absolutely normal? And since when have progressives insisted that the burden of proof for demonstrating a pattern of sexual assault lies with the victims, most of whose voices have, in this case, been silenced forever? How quickly the far left pivots from ‘believe women’ to ‘believe Hamas’ when the identity of the victim changes. If, God forbid, a gang of Proud Boys were to descend on Los Angeles to carry out the kinds of atrocities Hamas carried out in Israeli communities, I’m pretty sure no one on the left would devote any energy trying to poke holes in who got raped, much less how or when. … Honest critics of Israel’s policies can raise serious objections while also candidly acknowledging the horrific circumstances that set those policies in motion. What we are seeing instead are dishonest critics, dishonestly disputing those circumstances so they can take aim at the existence of Israel itself.” [NYTimes]
No to ‘Uncommitted’: The Liberal Patriot’s Brian Katulis and John Halpin suggest that President Joe Biden not acquiesce to the demands of voters who cast ballots for “uncommitted” in the Democratic primaries. “With these demands, the uncommitted bloc has made clear that they aren’t anti-war — they’re anti-peace. A permanent ceasefire in Gaza prior to the dismantling and elimination of the security threat posed by Hamas is merely a call for Israel to accept defeat in its war against the terrorists that attacked its people on October 7. Ordinary Israelis will never agree to this outcome, and America cannot impose it on them. Even more extreme, these same groups also want the U.S. to abandon its military support for Israel at a time when both the United States and Israel face myriad threats from groups backed by Iran including Yemen’s Houthis, Lebanon’s Hezbollah, and a collection of militias in Syria and Iraq. Acceding to these demands would leave Hamas in power with hostages unjustly detained in Gaza and take away Israel’s ability to defend itself, putting the Middle East even further away from peace than it is now. That’s quite a set of demands, one that President Biden should reject outright.” [LiberalPatriot]
Iran’s Arsenal: In The Wall Street Journal, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Behnam Ben Taleblu cautions that Iran’s efforts to build up its ballistic missile system could change how and where wars are fought across the region. “While the world focuses on the threat posed by Iran’s growing nuclear program and its terror proxies, Iran’s ballistic-missile program is underwriting the expansion of both. Over the past decade, Iran has transformed much of its ballistic-missile arsenal, the largest in the Middle East, from mere tools of terror to battlefield-ready systems. Iranian missiles are more precise, mobile, lethal and abundant than ever before — giving the regime more dangerous options when it wants to throw its weight around. Iran spent decades mastering the art of covert and deniable military action by using proxies. It still does that, as we’ve seen since Oct. 7, but Iran also has a newfound confidence, which has reduced its threshold for the use of overt and attributable force.” [WSJ]
Around the Web
Nuland Retiring: Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland, who served as acting deputy secretary of state for seven months last year, is retiring in the coming weeks.
No Breakthrough: Egyptian officials said that talks aimed at reaching a cease-fire ahead of Ramadan have not made a breakthrough, as differences remain between Israel and Hamas, and Hamas continues to refuse to provide a list of the surviving hostages, believed to number around 100.
Media Suit: The families of five Israelis killed at the Nova music festival on Oct. 7 filed suit in a Jerusalem court against the Associated Press and Reuters, alleging that photojournalists used by both media companies participated in the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks.
Gaza Aid: The Biden administration is exploring avenues to deliver aid to Gaza by sea, to bring more aid than can be delivered via airdrop.
New Charges: Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) was indicted on a dozen new federal charges, including public official acting as a foreign agent, bribery and extortion.
Not Running: Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) announced she will not run for reelection, clearing the path for a November matchup between former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, a Republican, and Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ).
Harvard Gets an F: House Education and Workforce Committee Chair Virginia Foxx (R-NC) said that Harvard had failed to properly respond to her committee’s subpoena for documents related to campus antisemitism, providing duplicative and highly redacted documents. She said the committee will be “weighing an appropriate response.”
Genocide Case: House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul (R-TX) called on the U.S. to formally intervene in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
Campus Beat: Tufts University is investigating after Jewish students attending a student government vote on an anti-Israel measure were spat and jeered at by others in attendance, who shouted antisemitic tropes.
Brooklyn Bias: A Jewish teacher at a New York City high school already under fire for not addressing anti-Israel and antisemitic sentiment among its students received an email calling for the extermination of Jews on Tuesday.
North of the Border: Canada is resuming payments to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, a month and a half after it paused funding to the group over its employees’ ties to Hamas and the Oct. 7 terror attacks.
Fever Pitch: Arsenal’s refusal to tamp down an anti-Israel protest outside of its stadium before a match on Sunday resulted in a number of Jewish fans refusing to enter the stadium for the soccer club’s game against Tottenham.
Across the Pond: U.K. Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said London believes that Iran has supplied Russia with ballistic missiles for use in Moscow’s war against Ukraine.
Looted Art: Twenty-two countries, led by the U.S., signed on to a new agreement on Nazi-looted art that clarifies ambiguities in a 1998 agreement on works that had been confiscated during WWII.
Art of the Steal: A French court found art collector Guy Wildenstein guilty of tax fraud and money laundering; Wildenstein was sentenced to four years, two of which to be served under house arrest, and two as part of a suspended sentence.
Struggling With Israel: The Washington Post published an excerpt of Noah Feldman’s upcoming book To Be a Jew Today: A New Guide to God, Israel, and the Jewish People.
Purple Reign: Archeologists in Israel discovered a major ancient production facility for Tyrian (royal) purple pigment near present-day Haifa.
Sea Scare: The Wall Street Journalpublished a play-by-play of the sinking of a Belizean-flagged ship by Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen, based on the recollections of the vessel’s chief mate.
Daily Grind (of War): Starbucks coffee shops across the Mideast and North Africa will lay off 2,000 employees, with a Kuwait-based franchise operator citing “continually challenging trading conditions over the last six months.”
Remembering: Rabbi Ellen Burstein, who founded the Shomrei Adamah environmental group, died at 70.
Pic of the Day
Demonstrators call for the hostages’ release outside the U.S. Embassy Branch Office in Tel Aviv on Tuesday.
Birthdays
Actor, comedian and sports show host, he converted to Judaism in 1990, Tom Arnold turns 65…
Former chair of the Federal Reserve of the United States for 18 years, Alan Greenspan turns 98… Writer, lecturer and professor emeritus of Jewish communal service at HUC-JIR, Steven Windmueller turns 82… Actor, writer, director, producer and political activist, he directed “When Harry Met Sally” and “A Few Good Men,” Rob Reiner turns 77… Television personality, author and pundit, John Stossel turns 77… Award-winning musical theater lyricist and composer, Stephen Schwartz turns 76… Member of the New York State Senate, Shelley Mayer turns 72… Aliza Tendler… Senior leadership development manager at Momentum Unlimited, Judy Victor… Israeli swimmer who competed in the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Summer Olympics, he is the founder of a sports ticketing and travel company, Yoav Bruck turns 52… Founder of Talenti Gelato & Sorbetto which he sold to Unilever in 2014, he has since co-founded Iris Brands, Joshua Hochschuler turns 51… Head of innovation communication at Bloomberg LP, Chaim Haas turns 49… VP of philanthropic services at NYC-based Jewish Communal Fund, Michelle Lebowits… Former football quarterback who played on six NFL teams, he is member of the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, Sage Rosenfels turns 46… Israeli journalist and author of the book Revolt: The Worldwide Uprising Against Globalization, Nadav Asher Eyal turns 45… Managing director at Berkshire Partners, Blake L. Gottesman turns 44… Fourth-generation developer, owner, and operator of commercial real estate throughout the Eastern U.S., Daniel Klein turns 43… Natalie Lazaroff… Israeli fashion model, Esti Ginzburg turns 34… Artist Tova Suissa… Associate at Williams & Connolly, Riley Clafton… Film actor, he finished in second place on season 27 of “Dancing with the Stars,” Milo Manheim turns 23… Sandra Brown…
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