Francais | English | Espanõl

Jewish Defense League

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
Image:JDLlogo.jpg

The Jewish Defense League (JDL) is a militant Jewish organization whose purported goal is to protect Jewish people and property from anti-Semitism. The FBI considers the organization to be a "right-wing terrorist group." [1] Mainstream Jewish groups oppose the JDL in some form, and do not associate.

Contents

[edit] Founding

The JDL was founded in 1968 by Rabbi Meir Kahane. Its goal was to protect Jews, initially in New York City, and to protest local manifestations of anti-Semitism. [2]

[edit] History

[edit] JDL Chairmen

1968-71- Rabbi Meir Kahane.

1971-73- David Fisch, a religious Columbia University student, who later wrote articles for Jewish magazines, and who wrote at least one book, "Jews for Nothing."

1973-74- No Chairman. There was infighting and chaos until Rabbi Kahane returned in August 1974 to straighten things out.

1974-76- Russell Kellner, originally from Philadelphia. He moved to New York to run the national office as chairman.

1976-78- Bonnie Pechter.

September 1978- December 1978- Chaim Ben Pesach, then known by his his English name Victor Vancier. He had to step down when he went to jail for bombing Egyptian targets in a failed effort to stop Israel's withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula.

1979-81- Brett Becker, originally from South Florida. He came to New York to become Chairman.

1981-83- Meir Jolowitz, originally from Arizona. He also came to New York.

1983-84- Fern Sidman.

1984-1987- Chaim Ben Pesach. Starting in 1985, Irv Rubin also claimed to be Chairman but none of the JDL chapters outside of Los Angeles supported him.

After Chaim went to prison, and Rabbi Kahane was assassinated, Irv Rubin took full control of the Jewish Defense League until his death in 2002.

[edit] Imprisonment and deaths of Irv Rubin and Earl Krugel

On December 12, 2001, Irv Rubin, JDL International Chairman, and Earl Krugel, a member of the organization, were charged with conspiracy to commit acts of terrorism. Authorities claimed that the two planned attacks on Arab-American Congressman Darrell Issa's office, and on the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City, California.

Rubin maintained that he was innocent, and was reportedly eager to wage a vigorous court battle in his defense. On November 4, 2002, at the federal Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles, California, Rubin fell 18 feet to the concrete floor below. He was in a coma for 10 days before dying on November 13. The prison's official report was that he slashed his own neck before throwing himself over the railing, which would seem an odd suicide attempt to say the least[3]. The incident has been ruled a suicide, though some of Rubin's supporters have alleged murder.

On February 4, 2003, Earl Krugel pled guilty to conspiracy and weapons charges stemming from the terrorist plot, and was expected to serve up to 20 years in prison. He was murdered by another inmate while at the Federal Correctional Institution in north Phoenix, Arizona on November 4, 2005.

[edit] Schism, and its immediate aftermath

The Jewish Defense League became mired in a state of modest upheaval a couple of years after Rubin's death. After Rubin's death, Bill Maniaci became Chairman. When Maniaci retired, Matt Finberg took his place. After Finberg resigned, Ian Sigel took his place.

In October 2004, the JDL split into two separate factions, each vying for legal control of the associated "intellectual property". During that period the sides operated as separate organizations with the same name, while a lengthy legal battle ensued.

In April 2005 the original domain name of the organization, jdl.org, was suspended by Network Solutions due to allegation of infringement; the organization went back online soon thereafter at domain name jewishdefenseleague.org.

In April 2006 news of a settlement was announced in which signatories agreed to not object to "Shelley Rubin's titles of permanent chairman and CEO of JDL." The agreement also confirmed that "the name 'Jewish Defense League,' the acronym 'JDL,' and the 'Fist and Star]' logo are the exclusive intellectual property of JDL." Opponents of both groups claim that these symbols are Kahanist symbols and not the exclusive property of JDL. The agreement also states: "Domain names registered on behalf of JDL, including but not limited to jdl.org and jewishdefenseleague.org, are owned and operated by JDL." Meanwhile, the opposing group has formed B'nai Elim. Most members of the former JDL under Irv Rubin now support B'nai Elim. Other former JDL members now support Chaim Ben Pesach's Jewish Task Force. JTF is against both B'nai Elim and Rubin's organization.

In France there exists an organization, Ligue de Défense Juive (LDJ), that is similar to the originial JDL. It is not connected in any way to the current JDL organization. [citation needed]

[edit] JDL activities

[edit] Anti-Soviet activities

The Jewish Defense League during the early seventies campaigned to allow the emigration of Soviet Jews from the Soviet Union. The organization was linked with a 1970 bomb explosion outside of Aeroflot's New York City office, and a 1971 detonation outside of Soviet cultural offices in Washington, D.C. Also in 1971, a JDL member allegedly fired a rifle into the Soviet Union's mission office at the United Nations. In 1972 two JDL members were arrested and charged with bomb possession and burglary in a conspiracy to blow up the Long Island residence of the Soviet Mission to the UN. The two JDL members pleaded guilty and were sentenced to serve 3 years in prison for one, and a year and a day for the other.

In 1975, JDL leader Meir Kahane was accused of conspiring to kidnap a Soviet diplomat, to bomb the Iraqi Embassy in Washington, and to ship arms abroad from Israel. A hearing was held to revoke Kahane's probation for a 1971 firebomb-making incident. He was found guilty of violating probation and served a one year prison sentence. JDL activities were condemned by Moscow refuseniks who felt that the group's actions were making it less likely that the Soviet Union would relax restrictions on Jewish emigration. On April 6, 1976, six prominent refuseniks, Vladimir Slepak, Alexander Lerner, Anatoly Shcharansky, and Iosif Begun condemned the JDL's activities as "terrorist acts," stating "Such actions constitute a danger for Soviet Jews... as they might be used by the authorities as a pretext for new repressions and for instigating anti-Semitic hostilities." [4]

During the 1980s, the then JDL Chairman and current Jewish Task Force Chairman Chaim Ben Pesach led a campaign of bombing Soviet targets which he credits as the reason for the complete removal of the ban of Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union and as well as the reason for the fall of the Soviet Union. He has said that the bombings brought strains in US-Soviet relations which he says helped the cause.

[edit] Controversies

[edit] Terrorism

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has described the Jewish Defense League in Congressional testimony as a "violent" and "extremist" group. In a sidebar in its "Terrorism 2000/2001" report, the Bureau said, "The Jewish Defense League has been deemed a right-wing terrorist group." It identified the group in a 1999 terrorism report as the perpetrator of several bombing and arson incidents that took place between 1980 and 1989. Mary Doran, an FBI street agent, described the JDL in 2004 Congressional testimony as "a proscribed terrorist group," though Doran also acknowledged that she is not involved in "policy and administrative decision-making processes." In 2001 JDL leaders Irv Rubin and Earl Krugel were charged with planning a terror attack against the office of Arab-American Congressman Darrell Issa. [5].

The Jewish Defense League denies that it is a terrorist organization or a sponsor of terror. Its website states: "The Jewish Defense League unconditionally condemns terrorism of all forms. Terrorism is never a legitimate means to the furtherance of political goals."[6]

Nevertheless, on a number of occasions the JDL has expressed support for acts of vengeance in reprisal to Arab terrorist attacks on Jews. On October 26, 1981 after two firebombs damaged the Egyptian Tourist Office] at Rockefeller Center, JDL Chairman Meir Kahane said at a press conference: "I'm not going to say that the JDL bombed that office. There are laws against that in this country. But I'm not going to say I mourn for it either." The next day, an anonymous caller claimed responsibility on behalf of the JDL. A JDL spokesman later denied his group's involvement, but said "We support the act."[7]

[edit] Hebron massacre

On 25 February 1994, a JDL member opened fire on Palestinian Muslims kneeling in prayer at mosque in the West Bank city of Hebron, killing 29. The incident is sometimes referred to as the Cave of the Patriarchs massacre. A statement on the official website of the JDL glorifies the terrorist Baruch Goldstein and his crime, claiming him as one of their own:

"Dr. Goldstein was a brilliant surgeon, a mild-mannered Yeshiva-educated man who was promoted to the rank of major in the IDF. He was warned by his superiors in the military to prepare an open field hospital in anticipation of another murderous attack by the hostile Arab population of Hevron during the Jewish festival of Purim. Many of these Arabs were standing outside Goldstein's synagogue in the Cave of the Patriarchs and yelling "Slaughter the Jew." Goldstein had lost 30 close friends in the last few years; they were murdered by Arabs in the Hevron-Kiryat Arba area. One of those was the son of his best friend, Mordechai Lapid; as Goldstein rushed to give the young man medical aid, he was held back by the Arabs on the scene and the young man died. Additionally, as there is proof that the Arabs were hoarding food and supplies in response to a Muslim call for a massacre on the Jewish holiday of Purim, we feel that Goldstein took a preventative measure against yet another Arab attack on Jews. We understand his motivation, his grief and his actions. And we are not ashamed to say that Goldstein was a charter member of the Jewish Defense League." [8]

Goldstein is revered as a saint by extremist Zionists and his tomb was converted into a shrine by his supporters until its dismantlement by the Israeli authorities in 1999. [9]

[edit] Reactions to the JDL

The JDL has been criticized by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for presenting a "gross distortion" of the real situation of American Jews. The ADL also states that JDL's founder, Meir Kahane, "preached a radical form of Jewish nationalism which reflected racism, violence and political extremism" and that those attitudes "were replicated" by Irv Rubin, the successor to Kahane [10] [11].

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has added the JDL to its list of watched "hate groups".

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

fr:Ligue de défense juive ja:ユダヤ防衛同盟 no:Jewish Defence League sv:Jewish Defense League

Retrieved from "http://en.wikivisual.com/index.php/Jewish_Defense_League"
Personal tools