Jewish Group's Anti-Netanyahu Billboards in NYC Spark Global Media Storm

A large-scale billboard campaign targeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has generated significant international media attention, including in Muslim countries. The campaign, organized by the group 'Neturei Karta,' featured prominent billboards in New York City's Times Square with messages such as "Netanyahu does not represent American Jews," "Zionism is not Judaism," and "Not in our name." The initiative was reportedly launched in response to Netanyahu's recent speech at the UN, where he criticized New York City's Muslim Mayor Eric Adams and claimed that New York's Jews do not feel safe.

The billboards, displayed on Broadway, were funded by thousands of dollars raised from New York-based Jews who, according to the organizers, feel frustrated by Netanyahu's alleged use of Jewish communities for his political battles. Rabbi Moshe David Katz, founder of 'Jews Upholding Torah' and chairman of Neturei Karta, stated that the funds were collected dollar by dollar from community members who feel silenced and unrepresented.

Katz further claimed that the group aims to express deep pain over the exploitation of their religion for foreign government interests, asserting that Jews are not emissaries of Israel and that Zionism is distinct from Judaism. He emphasized a desire for peaceful coexistence with neighbors, free from political conflicts that do not concern them.

Neturei Karta argues that portraying all Jews as representatives of Israel does not combat antisemitism but rather redirects anger over Israeli policy towards innocent Jewish communities, damaging their peaceful relationships with neighbors. The campaign quickly became an international news story, covered extensively by global media outlets and news organizations in the Arab world, Turkey, and Pakistan.