Famously, the slogan “All the News That’s Fit to Print” graces the front page of every New York Times edition. The slogan was coined at the end of the 19th century by the paper’s publisher, Adolph Ochs. Of course, in today’s hyper-globalized world, the slogan is wishful thinking. No paper could realistically cover all the important news stories of the day.
Still, it would be hard to argue that outlets like The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN and others adequately cover even those stories they do print. They often devote precious space to emotive or opinionated claims, while omitting highly material and relevant information that sheds important new light.
Provided below are three important, but underreported, stories bearing on Israel and the Middle East that media consumers should know this week.
1) Family of American Terror Victim Sues Terrorist Living in Jordan After 25 Years
In August 2001, then 15-year-old American Malki Roth was among 16 killed at the Jerusalem Sbarro pizzeria by a suicide bomber. This month, twenty-five years later, Jerusalem News Syndicate (JNS) reported that her parents sued Ahlam Tamimi, co-conspirator to, and facilitator of, the attack, seeking damages under the Anti-Terrorism Act in a Washington D.C. federal court.
Tamimi personally planned the operation, selected the crowded restaurant, helped arrange for the concealment of explosives and escorted the suicide bomber there from Ramallah. She pleaded guilty to an Israeli court in 2003 and was sentenced to 16 life terms, but only served about eight years, as she was released in the Gilad Shalit deal.
The convicted terrorist moved to Jordan, and in 2013, the United States charged her with “conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction against U.S. nationals abroad, resulting in death.” In 2017, the U.S. Department of Justice sought to extradite her from Jordan, but the Jordanians have refused, in breach of the 1995 bilateral treaty between Jordan and the United States.
However, a civil suit against a foreign terrorist can proceed in the United States even without her presence. If, as the Roths’ attorney Mark Goldfeder believes, Tamimi defaults, damages can be proven through affidavits and expert testimony, and a judgment against her personally can be executed against any assets the U.S. can reach.
2) New Website Uses AI to Help Jewish Travelers Avoid Harassment or Violence
This week, The Times of Israel reported on a year-old website called Safe for Jews, in Hebrew and English, which uses AI, governmental travel advisories and community reporting in order to provide Jewish travelers with a gauge on the relative safety of cities and countries they might like to visit. It was developed by 34-year-old Israeli Shay Yaish.
Israeli and Jewish travelers have been harassed and assaulted in numerous countries since Oct. 7, 2023. Several weeks ago, this column reported harassment and assault on Israeli travelers in Crete. Other examples include a pogrom in Amsterdam, one Israeli had part of his ear bitten off in Athens, an Israeli couple’s reservation was rejected in northern Italy as the hotel manager accused Israelis of genocide, and also this week, an Irish man threatened to shoot Australian Jews in France.
According to the website, the list of safe spots for Jews to visit has decreased in recent years. Currently, the countries rated most safe are the Czech Republic, Albania, Lithuania and Belarus, Bolivia, Paraguay, Ecuador, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Nepal, Iceland, Cyprus, and other exotic destinations.
Less safe countries are marked with a “warning,” like Spain, Canada, the UK, South Africa and Russia, whereas countries like Iran, Afghanistan and even Egypt (which has a peace treaty with Israel) are labeled “dangerous.”
Yaish hopes to expand the website’s offerings to include Jewish-friendly hotels, kosher restaurants and other resources.
3) Grave of Soldier Shlomo Haimson, Killed in Cyprus, Located After 78 Years
Ynet and other Israeli and Jewish outlets reported this week that the IDF identified the grave of fallen Israeli soldier Shlomo Haimson, almost 78 years after he was killed.
Haimson was in a British detention camp in Cyprus and killed the night of September 29 – 30, 1948, after trying to escape to Israel when he learned his daughter had been born days earlier. He was initially buried in a Jewish cemetery in Cyprus, but in 1970, the remains of those buried there were brought to Israel and buried in Haifa. Around 120 of the 163 transferred were unidentified, including Haimson.
In 2023, a special team was established in the IDF’s EITAN unit, which is responsible for searching and locating missing soldiers. The investigation finally led to the understanding that he was one of those buried in the Cyprus Detainees section of the Haifa cemetery.
Chief Human Resources Officer and head of IDF Personnel and Casualty Affairs Directorate Brig. Gen. Edna Ilya said in a statement that this was “living proof that the IDF never abandons its soldiers, even after decades have passed.”