Radicalization in Jewish schools

First broadcast PressTV on Saturday, 28 December 2024 1:07 PM

There is a Jewish school in Birmingham, where more than 80% of the pupils are Muslim. At this school the pupils sing Hatikvah - the Israeli national anthem - and celebrate the anniversary of the creation of the Zionist entity each year with Israeli flags. Only 8.85% of the pupils at the school are actually Jewish.

In Glasgow, Calderwood is the only Jewish school in Scotland. It was first set up in 1962 by the Zionist Federation. In 1998 it was reported that “approximately 10 per cent” of the students were not Jewish. By 2017 a sharp decline in the number of Jewish pupils to 52% was reported. This school also celebrates Israeli independence day, including with a “Happy Birthday Israel” banner.

In Liverpool's King David High School as of January 2023, it was reported that only 11% of pupils are Jewish, whilst the majority are Christian or Muslim. Yet the school insists on ramming the racist ideology of Zionism down the throats of all the pupils Jewish and non Jewish alike.

Until the genocide in Gaza hardly anyone even noticed that there were Zionist schools in the UK, never mind said that it was a problem.

But how widespread is the problem of Zionist schools?

There are around 140 Jewish schools in the UK and almost all appear to promote Zionism either openly or - in many ultra orthodox schools - teaching versions of religious Zionism.

The King David Primary in Manchester says explicitly it is a “Zionist school”

The Simon Marks Primary is too. It is “proud” to celebrate the genocidal ethnic cleansing of the Nakba that led to “Israel’s independence”.

JFS in London says it too is “proud” of its “long standing and deep connections to the State of Israel. For over 40 years the school has offered a bespoke residential programme in Israel to provide an opportunity for students to immerse themselves in life in Israel... The JFS programme [in Israel] promotes the values and ethos of JFS including the ideals of Zionist Modern Orthodoxy.”

In October 2023 the school revealed that pupils had been encouraged to write letters to IDF soldiers to support them. And had received thanks in reply. In November 2023 Students had what the school described as “the rare privilege of an audience with Aviv Kochavi, the former General Chief of Staff of the Israel Defence Forces”. This was posted under the headline “IDF the Moral Army”.

There is a serious problem of radicalisation in Jewish schools in Britain. Urgent action needs to be taken to stop the abuse of young school students Jews and non Jews alike, by Zionist schools

The Zionist movement is strongly involved in radicalising Jewish youth. The effort starts early and continues throughout the life of their targets. Primary schools declare that they are “Zionist” and there are even Zionist nursery schools.

But the radicalisation moves up a gear once young Jews reach secondary school. The Zionist movement invests heavily in Jewish schools but also in mainstream schools with significant numbers of Jewish kids on the school roll.

Jewish Activities in Mainstream Schools is the main programme used by the Zionists to infiltrate mainstream schools and radicalise Jewish pupils.

It is run by the largest Zionist fundraising charity in the UK, the United Jewish Israel Appeal the UK branch of one of the four core institutions of the Zionist movement, collectively termed the “National Institutions”. As well as working in Schools the UJIA continues to indoctrinate young Jews in a variety of ways such as funding Youth Movements and the Union of Jewish Students.

They also take thousands of Young Jews on propaganda trips:

We have decades of experience in sending young Jews in the UK to Israel on rite of passage programmes, such as Israel Tour, Gap Years and Birthright Israel. These experiences … are instrumental in strengthening a relationship with Israel.

UJIA runs “Jewish activities” in around 35 English and Scottish schools, mainly in London, Manchester and Glasgow. They create “JSocs” (or Jewish Societies) at these schools. These are a vehicle for radicalisation and indoctrination of Jewish pupils into the Zionist movement. Among the largest JSocs, according to the UJIA, are those at Haberdashers’ School in London. This school provides a hothouse environment for recruiting lifelong Zionist activists, particularly into the racist Zionist youth group Habonim Dror. Amongst alumni from the entertainment industry are: Matt Lucas, Ashley Blaker, Robert Popper, David Baddiel and Sacha Baron-Cohen.

“Jewish activities” sessions can be booked through the UJIA website, with a range of hardline Zionist groups. The inclusion of Zionist regime assets like StandWithUs and the absurd Campaign Against Antisemitism, is an indication of the political orientation. The involvement of Zionist youth groups like Tribe, Noam and Habonim Dror, is a clear signal of the attempt to recruit vulnerable young students to the racist Zionist movement. It is apparent that there are absolutely no non or anti-Zionist Jewish groups and certainly not a single pro-Palestinian group.

This kind of radicalisation and grooming activity must be urgently stopped.