Daily Kickoff
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026
Good Tuesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we cover yesterday’s Israeli Embassy commemoration of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks, report on new Department of Justice charges against a Gaza-based Hamas commander accused of funneling money from the U.S. to the terror group, and report on State Department antisemitism envoy Yehuda Kaploun’s announcement that more Latin American countries are set to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: David Zini, Jonathan Powell and Zach Kessel.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss, with assists from Danielle Cohen-Kanik and Tamara Zieve.
Today's Agenda
The Israeli military is on high alert ahead of the anniversary tomorrow of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led terror attacks, the country’s defense minister, Israel Katz, said this morning. Katz cited intelligence that suggested that Hamas was planning to carry out attacks on IDF forces operating in Gaza.
Shin Bet officials are in the United Arab Emirates today and participating in the interrogation of the FlyDubai co-pilot who attacked the aircraft’s captain and planned to crash the plane.
The three-day National Conservatism Conference kicks off today in Jerusalem. Speakers include the White House’s Seb Gorka, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli, former Polish President Andrzej Duda and former Israeli National Security Advisor Meir Ben-Shabbat. Smotrich spoke this morning on the topic of U.S.-Israel relations, calling for a transition from “a relationship of dependence to a partnership between two independent nations.”
Former White House coordinator for the Middle East Brett McGurk is out today with Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7th Hostages, about his efforts while serving in the Biden administration, where he held a number of counterterror and national security roles, to secure the release of the hostages held in Gaza.
One Thing to Know
By Marc Rod
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) has made a name for himself as a progressive leader on the national stage who has often spoken out against Middle East allies — including Israel, over its war against Hamas in Gaza, and Saudi Arabia, over its human rights record.
But Murphy, in the middle of a trip across the Middle East that included meetings in Qatar earlier this week, made no mention of Doha’s checkered human rights record — never mind its role, in the eyes of its detractors, as a leading backer of anti-Israel propaganda, funder of antisemitic activity on college campuses and a supporter of terrorism — even as he offered criticisms of Saudi Arabia on a later leg of the same trip.
Murphy instead spent his trip lavishing praise on the gas-rich country, speaking of Qatar as an essential ally of the United States.
The Big Reads
embassy commemoration
Deputy national security advisor emphasizes shared civilizational fight at Oct. 7 anniversary event
Michael Needham, the deputy U.S. national security advisor, said on Monday that the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on Israel and their aftermath are part of a shared civilizational war pitting the United States, Israel and other allies against enemies of the West. The Oct. 7 attacks were met with praise and “gleeful celebration of inhuman barbarism, savagery and death” both in Gaza and around the world, Needham said in remarks at an event organized by the Israeli Embassy in Washington to commemorate the third anniversary of the attack, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. “What was clear then is that each of our countries is locked in a battle between civilization and barbarism,” Needham said. “That the war between the people of Israel and the terrorists of Hamas is a war that is playing out in various forms, here in the United States and in Europe and across the whole of the Western world.”
gaza grift?
Department of Justice operation targets Hamas network of fake charities
The Department of Justice on Friday announced charges against a Gaza-based Hamas commander as well as the arrests of three U.S.-based affiliates for allegedly funneling money from the U.S. to Hamas, under the guise of charitable humanitarian fundraising. Three others were also arrested in France as part of the investigation, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. The lynchpin of the alleged conspiracy is Gaza-based Hamas official Saleem Alzaq, a member of Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades and one of its propaganda offices, who promotes the terror group’s fighters on various social media platforms. According to the indictment, Alzaq operated an international fundraising network for Hamas, which he promoted through social media campaigns under the guise of humanitarian aid to people in Gaza.
regional shift
Amb. Kaploun: More Latin American countries plan to adopt IHRA definition of antisemitism
Ambassador Yehuda Kaploun, the State Department’s antisemitism envoy, revealed on Monday that the U.S. expects several Latin American countries to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism in the coming months, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports. Kaploun made the comments at a press conference about the Trump administration’s efforts to combat antisemitism ahead of the third anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, after being asked to analyze how regional leaders have responded to the rise in anti-Jewish hate. “There’s a conference in November where we expect to have more Latin American countries to join the IHRA Accords,” Kaploun said. “The Dominican Republic just announced that they’re joining the IHRA Accords. Colombia is revisiting that. Guatemala, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Chile are all in discussions.”
The Rundown
The rest of today’s original stories from Jewish Insider — full stories, all published on the site.
On Our Radar
● The Live Briefing. Word on the street, clips, podcasts and quick updates — the items we’re tracking all day in our Live Briefing on our app (on Apple and Android) and website.
The U.S.’ weekend withdrawal of a dozen B-1 bomber jets from the U.K.’s RAF Fairford base was prompted by concerns of a potential Iranian drone attack on the facility and the servicemembers based there…
The U.S., Argentina, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru and Trinidad and Tobago condemned Iranian and Iran-backed terrorist activity in the Western Hemisphere on Monday, citing lethal plots, illicit fundraising, political interference and efforts to bolster terrorist networks…
Israeli officials told CBS News that Israel had temporarily closed its airspace, scrambled fighter jets and was prepared to shoot down the FlyDubai plane had passengers not retaken control of the cockpit minutes after the flight’s Omani co-pilot attempted to incapacitate his captain.
The Wall Street Journal does a deep dive into the security failures that led to the in-flight attack, finding that co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami had been previously assigned to a desk job and banned from flying at Oman Air over concerns about his extremist beliefs, which had prompted the airline to send him to a deradicalization program…
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said there was “no clear path forward or consensus” on a bill that would establish permanent daylight saving time; the legislation, which has been strongly opposed by Orthodox Jewish groups, has been the subject of clashes between some GOP senators, including Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and President Donald Trump, the latter of whom supports the change…
The Senate Leadership Fund super PAC is putting $5 million into Sen. Darline Graham’s (R-SC) bid for a full term as an “insurance policy” amid polls that show Democratic Senate candidates gaining ground in a number of red-state races…
The U.K. chair of Amnesty International resigned from the country’s Green Party over its vote this week to adopt a resolution equating Zionism and racism, alleging that the party is “failing to confront prejudice” in its ranks…
U.K. National Security Advisor Jonathan Powell quietly visited Israel last week in an effort to intercede in the planned Israeli closure of the U.K. consulate in east Jerusalem, which had been prompted by London’s decision last month to block the sale of West Bank settlement products…
A Kuwaiti man who attempted to attack the Israeli Embassy in London last year was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 20 years after being convicted of preparing a terrorist act…
Shin Bet head David Zini threatened during this week’s Israeli Cabinet meeting to seek administrative detention for Jewish extremists who engage in settler violence in the West Bank; Zini reportedly clashed with Orit Strock, the country’s settlements and national projects minister, over the uptick in violence…
Yemeni forces backed by Saudi Arabia on Monday recaptured several areas near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait from the Iran-backed Houthis, including the Red Sea city of Mocha, while a Houthi official claimed that the terror group attacked a Saudi oil refinery…
Arielle Pardes is joining Business Insider’s Discourse team as a senior correspondent…
Zach Kessel is joining The Wall Street Journal’s opinion desk as the assistant editor of the publication’s “Free Expression” newsletter…
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The Choice Israelis Face: The New York Times’ Bret Stephens considers how Israelis can address the challenges of the current domestic political situation as well as the country’s global standing. “For Israelis to surmount the formidable challenges they face, in pursuit of both victory and peace, the spirit of service — of giving yourself, doing it yourself, taking possession of your destiny against daunting odds — must win out over the spirit of entitlement. And for Israel’s genuine well-wishers, including the good-faith critics, to push that spirit forward, they need to draw a firm moral line against those who simply want Israel gone.” [NYTimes]
Pod Squad: In The Free Press, Peter Savodnik argues that the hosts of “Pod Save America” — former Obama aides Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor and their Crooked Media network — have used their platform to boost the far left of the party, becoming unofficial kingmakers of a largely leaderless Democratic Party. “There was a new rage on the left [after President Donald Trump 2024 election win], and it built on the old rage, and it was fueled by Harris’s loss and the perceived haplessness and venality and limp-wristedness of whatever was left of the Democratic establishment. The Pod Bros were quick to tap into that — weaving together their frustrations with the old guard and their mounting anger with Israel over Gaza, an anger that now felt more justified, more white-hot with the pro-Israel Trump returning to the White House.” [FreePress]
Picture of the Day
On behalf of herself and Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) accepted the Anti-Defamation League’s Levenson Family Defender of Democracy Award from CEO Jonathan Greenblatt at the group’s Spotlight on Hope event in Washington this week, in honor of their work combating antisemitism, including their leadership of the Senate antisemitism task force and leadership on the Jewish American Security Act. Courtesy
Birthdays
Brett Gelman, actor and comedian, turns 50
RICH POLK/GETTY IMAGES FOR UNIVERSAL STUDIOS HOLLYWOOD
Rosanne Selfon, owner of Lancaster, Pa.-based industrial supplier Samuel Miller & Son, she is a past president of Women of Reform Judaism
Leslie Moonves, former chairman and CEO of CBS, he is a great-nephew of David Ben-Gurion, turns 77
David Brin, awarded a Ph.D. at UCSD in space science, consultant to NASA and author of many science fiction novels, turns 76
Uzi Vogelman, retired justice of the Supreme Court of Israel, turns 72
Elliot Karp, former director of philanthropy at Temple Emanu-El of Westfield (N.J.)
Jan Kanas, Bexley, Ohio-based real estate agent
Jonathan Alter, correspondent on the networks of NBC and author of best-selling books on Presidents Obama, FDR and Jimmy Carter, turns 69
Sanford Akselrad, spiritual leader emeritus of Congregation Ner Tamid in the Las Vegas suburbs since 1988
Joel Weingarten, former member of the New Jersey General Assembly, he is now the managing director of Quest Associates, turns 67
Moshe Lion, mayor of Jerusalem since 2018, turns 65
Jeffrey Mendelsohn, founder and CEO of Coalition Strategy Group and associate VP of advocacy and civic engagement at the Jewish Federations of North America
Samuel Zev Brown, attorney in Lakewood, N.J., where he is active on the boards of many local businesses, civic organizations and charitable institutions
Rabbi Raymond Jasen, board member and lecturer at the Museum at Eldridge Street, board chair of the Queens Botanical Garden, and former partner-in-charge of KPMG LLP's NY Financial Services Tax Practice, turns 60...
Julie Menin, speaker of the New York City Council, the first Jewish person to hold that role, turns 59
Kevin Rader, member of the Florida Senate until 2020, now an insurance agent, turns 58
Aaron Lieberman, former member of the Arizona House of Representatives, now founder and CEO of Buzze, turns 55
Sean “Shmop” Weisbord, director of sales at Convergence Workforce
Evan R. Bernstein, newly minted CEO of B’nai B’rith International after serving as VP of community relations at JFNA and CEO of Community Security Service, turns 52
Hindy Poupko Galena, EVP of community strategy and external relations at UJA-Federation of New York
Deena Eisenberg Pulitzer, Jerusalem-based senior advisor for Israel Strategies at the William Davidson Foundation
And her twin sister, Elisheva Goldman, global event planner
Olivia Thirlby, actor best known for her role in “Juno” and more recently in “Oppenheimer,” turns 40
Madeline Burak, legislative director for the governor of Nevada
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