Three rallies scheduled for today (Thursday): Against Israel's relations with Iran-supporting Russia, in favor of Jewish rights in Hevron, and in favor of increased awareness of the Iranian nuclear danger.



The Israel-Russia-Iran Triangle

In Jerusalem this afternoon (Thursday), Magshimey Herut Yisrael (Zionist Freedom Alliance) demonstrated at Paris Square against the State of Israel's continued diplomatic relations with Russia - even as Russia continues to assist Iran’s nuclear program. “There are issues more important than diplomacy or financial gain," said protestor Yehuda HaKohen. "This is a moral and Zionist issue. If Israel wishes to be taken seriously by the international community, it must sever all ties with the government of Russia."  For more information on this issue, click here.



The Iranian Menace

In New York at noon on Thursday, several Jewish organizations sponsored a prayer vigil rally outside the Iranian Mission to the United Nations. AMCHA Coalition for Jewish Concerns, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Hadassah, the World Jewish Congress, the ZOA, the New York Board of Rabbis, and a number of other organizations and schools banded together to raise awareness of the threat Iran poses to Israel and the world. The timing is meant to coincide with the Purim-related Fast of Esther, commemorating the Jewish awakening in the face of Persian threats to the Jewish People 2500 years ago.

"And now an evil leader named Ahmadinejad wants to do the same," the organizers warn. "This is the moment when Jews - indeed, all people who believe in justice - must come together in solidarity. Queen Esther declared, 'Gather all the Jews in this city' for fasting and prayer (Esther 4:16). We've been celebrating Purim ever since. Please give up your lunch hour and join our solidarity prayer vigil. What worked then can work now. We dare not be silent."



Hevron's Jews

In the southern Judea holy city of Hevron this afternoon, some 400 Jews gathered to protest the lack of equal rights granted by Israeli authorities to Arabs and Jews. The protestors, including MKs Uri Ariel and Aryeh Eldad and survivors of the 1929 pogrom, railed against the theft of Jewish-owned property going back 80 years and before, the lack of building permits granted to Jews in the city, and discrimination against Hevron's Jews on the part of the Attorney General.

Just last week, graves in the city's ancient Jewish cemetery were desecrated, other Jewish sites were vandalized, and Arabs infiltrated into Hevron's Jewish neighborhoods, causing property damage.  Despite this, spokesman David Wilder wrote, the police and army were "negligent" in investigating and pursing the criminals. "Especially noticeable," he added, "is the gap between the police action against Jews and their lack of response at Arab crime." The issue was discussed in the Knesset Law Committee this month.

[See photos from Hevron rally in album in left column. Photos by David M. Cohen]