Press Releases and Statements

American Jewish Committee (AJC) Berlin welcomes FC Bayern Munich’s adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism. Today’s announcement coincides with International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

“The new pop-up treatment is a proactive step by Facebook for truthful Holocaust education. But the priority remains ensuring that Holocaust denial is entirely taken down from Facebook,” said AJC CEO David Harris. Facebook cited AJC as a partner in creating this critical resource.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) and the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) announced today the launch of a national effort to combat antisemitism. The two organizations, which have partnered on other projects, are calling on mayors across the country to sign a statement declaring that antisemitism is incompatible with fundamental democratic values.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) Berlin welcomes the joint declaration of five major German corporations to combat antisemitism. Daimler, Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Bank, Volkswagen, and Borussia Dortmund published a statement today endorsing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism. Germany’s Friends of Yad Vashem joined in the statement, issued on the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) mourns the passing of Howard Friedman, who served as president of the premier global Jewish advocacy organization from 1983 to 1986. He was 92 years old.

“Antisemitism fundamentally is not only a Jewish problem; it is a societal one. It is a reflection on the declining health of our society,” Holly Huffnagle, AJC’s U.S. Director for Combating Antisemitism, told the FBI officials on a video conference briefing. “Education is essential, to clarify what constitutes antisemitism, the various sources of this hatred, and what effective tools are available for law enforcement to fight antisemitism.”

American Jewish Committee (AJC) welcomes today’s House passage of the impeachment resolution and reiterates our unqualified condemnation of the actions of President Donald J. Trump, which, by any measure, run counter to the democratic values we hold dear, and disqualify him from continuing to occupy the highest office in the land.

AJC Europe welcomes the European Commission’s publication of the Handbook for the Practical Use of the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism. This new publication offers clear guidance and examples of how the definition is already being used throughout Europe by law enforcement, the judiciary, educational institutions, and civil society.

AJC was appalled and deeply saddened by the events of January 6, which brought bloodshed, mayhem, and dishonor to the temple of American democracy. Those who committed crimes must be held accountable – as must those who encouraged and hoped to benefit from them.

AJC CEO David Harris issued a tweet on today's situation in Washington, DC.

American Jewish Committee's young professionals network, and the Mimouna Association, an organization of young Moroccan Muslim leaders, are partnering to educate and build ties among their American, Israeli, and Moroccan peers. The two organizations have signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

“We are shocked by the EU Court of Justice decision, which is nothing less than a frontal assault on the basic rights and religious freedoms of Jews and Muslims in Europe. Within living memory of the Holocaust, a European court not only bans a core Jewish ritual but potentially Jewish life altogether in Europe, ” said Daniel Schwammenthal, Director of the AJC Transatlantic Institute.

European countries, in cooperation with the United States, must stand firm in their opposition and take an approach that reflects our strategic interests, convictions, and values.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) applauded Morocco for its decision to establish full diplomatic relations with Israel. The North African country, a close ally of the United States and home to a Jewish community for more than 2,000 years, becomes the sixth Arab state to normalize relations with Israel – and the fourth since August.

Colombian President Ivan Duque, appearing today on an American Jewish Committee (AJC) Advocacy Anywhere program, declared that his country is “the number one ally” of Israel and the United States in Latin America. In a 30-minute conversation with Dina Siegel Vann, Director of AJC’s Belfer Institute for Latino and Latin American Affairs (BILLA), President Duque discussed Colombia’s relations with Israel and the United States, the Jewish community in Colombia, Hezbollah, and the crisis in Venezuela.

“Bravo to Lord John Mann and all of those involved in this landmark decision,” said AJC CEO David Harris. Mann is the British government’s top advisor on antisemitism and a leading proponent of the IHRA working definition. “The importance of the British Premier League recognizing the most widely used definition of antisemitism cannot be overstated,” said Harris. “Hundreds of millions of people around the world follow closely the Premier League’s teams and players. The impact of today’s decision and its implementation can be extraordinarily helpful in the battle against rising antisemitism.”

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the leading global Jewish advocacy organization, has appointed Myra Clark-Siegel Director of American Jewish Committee Westchester/Fairfield.

American Jewish Committee applauded the Slovenian government for recognizing Hezbollah in its entirety as a terrorist organization. The government announced today that it “adopted a decision on treating the Hezbollah Group as a criminal and terrorist organization posing a threat to peace and security.”

Next month the United Nations General Assembly will pass a litany of one-sided resolutions against Israel. Europe, for the most part, supported in committee a whopping eleven texts lambasting the Middle East’s lone democracy. Six more resolutions are headed straight to the world body’s plenary.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) welcomed the selection by President-elect Biden of Antony Blinken, his longtime national security advisor and a former Deputy Secretary of State, as the nation’s 71st Secretary of State.