Press Releases and Statements

American Jewish Community (AJC) decries a report by Amnesty International that repackages and repeats the baseless and inflammatory charge of genocide that Israel’s enemies have made in the media and international forums for the past year. It not only egregiously distorts the reality of the conflict in Gaza and maligns the legal concept of genocide but will embolden terrorist organizations like Hamas to continue their tactics of exploiting civilians and violating international law.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) Philadelphia/Southern NJ today welcomed an agreement between Temple University and the U.S. Department of Education, which outlines how Temple can better address antisemitic and anti-Zionist incidents on campus.

Rabbi Andrew Baker, Director of Interreligious Affairs for American Jewish Committee, has written a letter to Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and Romanian Foreign Minister Luminita Odobescu expressing concern about the victory in the first round of the Romanian presidential election by Cailin Georgescu.

Since the Hamas terror attack on October 7, 2023 – the deadliest day for the Jewish community since the Holocaust – American Jewish Committee (AJC) has mobilized its global architecture, including 25 offices across the United States and 15 international postings, to support Israel in its hour of need. This week, AJC CEO Ted Deutch, Belfer Institute for Latino and Latin American Affairs (BILLA) Director Dina Siegel Vann, and BILLA Co-Chairs Margot Carter and Mario Fleck led a delegation to Brazil in support of this mission.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, welcomes today’s announcement of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah, and hopes its enforcement can lead to enduring security for both the Israeli and Lebanese people.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, is appalled by the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Pre-Trial Chamber to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. This reckless, irresponsible decision is a gross distortion of international law that harms the Court’s credibility, completely undermines its core mandate, and emboldens enemies of democracy around the world.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, is today calling for immediate action from European government ministers in response to surging and increasingly violent antisemitism on the continent. To protect Jews in Europe - and the European way of life - AJC is calling for an emergency high-level meeting of relevant ministers from across Europe and for these officials to implement new enforcement, protection, and justice-related actions in the fight against antisemitism.

American Jewish Committee Seattle Director Regina Sassoon Friedland issued a statement following word that the home of University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce was vandalized and damaged.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the nonpartisan global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, has urged the Lithuanian Social Democrats leader and likely next Prime Minister, Gintautas Paluckas, to reverse his plans to enter into a coalition with the antisemitic Dawn of the River Neman party.

Felice Gaer Baran, an internationally renowned human rights expert who for more than four decades brought life and practical significance to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international commitments to prevent grave human rights abuses around the world, died on November 9, 2024 in New York City, following a lengthy battle with metastatic breast cancer. She was 78. At the time of her death, she was the director of the American Jewish Committee’s Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights (JBI).

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, is horrified by the violent, antisemitic assaults on Israeli and Jewish fans of the Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer team that took place in Amsterdam. This modern-day pogrom reflects a broader rise in antisemitic violence across Europe since October 7 – fueled not only by an anti-Israel political ideology and extremist interpretations of Islam, but also by the rhetoric and complacency of some European leaders. Symbolically, the attacks were a chilling reminder of Europe’s darkest chapters on the very eve of the anniversary of Kristallnacht on November 9.

Marc D. Jaffe has been honored with American Jewish Committee’s Judge Learned Hand Award, AJC’s highest honor for members of the legal profession.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the nonpartisan global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, congratulates Donald J. Trump on his election as the 47th President of the United States and J.D. Vance as Vice President.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), on the eve of the 2024 election, calls for civility in the lead up to, and in the days after, Election Day. Our democracy is built on respect for and trust in our electoral process and a smooth transition of power. It is up to its citizens and political leaders to maintain this ideal.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) Chicago today welcomed a joint statement from a coalition of leaders representing wards from around Chicago calling on newly appointed Chicago Public School Board President Rev. Mitchell Ikenna Johnson to resign given past antisemitic statements.

AJC Statement on the Death of Hamas Head Yahya Sinwar

American Jewish Committee (AJC) strongly believes that it is harmful for disagreements between the United States and Israel, two close allies, to be discussed in the public eye, and is engaging with high-level officials in both governments regarding the humanitarian aid situation in the Gaza Strip. It is clear that Israel is facilitating humanitarian aid into Gaza. Ensuring that aid continues to reach Palestinian civilians is critical.

AJC Statement on UNIFIL and Current Situation in Lebanon

American Jewish Committee today expressed outrage at the irresponsible and profoundly biased report published by an independent UN panel that uncritically endorses defamatory claims that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza aims to deliberately harm the Palestinian people and largely ignores Hamas’ policy of recklessly and intentionally endangering civilians.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, today brought together diplomats from more than 45 countries for memorial events recognizing the one-year anniversary of the October 7 terror attack, during which Hamas terrorists massacred 1,200 Israelis and took 251 people from Israel and 25 other countries hostage. U.S. and Israeli officials that addressed the events included Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff; U.S. Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield; U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt; and Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Herzog.