Headlines

Manchester Synagogue Targeted: Two Arrested in Alleged Yom Kippur Terror Plot
FBI Foils Synagogue Attack Threat in New York
NSW Teacher Banned From Public Schools Over Social Media Criticism of Israel

🎧 Click Here to Listen & Subscribe

Transcript

You're listening to Antisemitism Watch, I'm Rachel Adler. This week, we track foiled terror plots, institutional responses to perceived antisemitism, and ongoing campus discussions about legal precedents.

We begin with heightened security measures at Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester, following the arrest of two men over an alleged terror plot targeting the Jewish community during Yom Kippur. Greater Manchester Police arrested the men in their 30s as part of an investigation into what officers believe was a planned attack. Chief Superintendent Dave Meeney acknowledged the anxiety this has caused, stating the police are providing additional visibility and security. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans described the arrests as the disruption of a plot targeting the Jewish community. The Community Security Trust called the alleged plot "utterly chilling," noting it emerged close to the first anniversary of a deadly terror attack at the same synagogue last October. The organization urged vigilance and thanked police.

Closer to home, the FBI New York has foiled an individual's threat to attack a synagogue. The security agency tweeted about the incident, also noting concerns about threats to synagogues in New Jersey.

In Australia, the New South Wales Department of Education has banned teacher John Morris from public schools. Sydney teacher Morris was suspended, reportedly without pay, after the Daily Telegraph notified the department of social media posts he allegedly made over two years ago. The posts included condemning Israel as a "murderous Zionist state" and expressing solidarity with Palestinian resistance. While an investigation is said to be ongoing, the department acted swiftly to bar him from schools. The reporting from outlets like the Daily Telegraph characterizes this action as an attack on democratic rights and an attempt to intimidate educators, suggesting it equates political opposition to the war in Gaza with antisemitism. The report notes that the NSW government amended its teacher conduct code earlier this year to prohibit conduct, including social media posts, that "would incite hatred towards a person or a group of persons on the grounds of race."

On campuses, a community discussion at the University of Pennsylvania on September 22nd addressed the lingering impacts of a federal antisemitism lawsuit resolved in July. The event, hosted by Penn’s Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies and the Andrea Mitchell Center for the Study of Democracy, featured speakers examining legal and ethical questions. In his introduction, Katz Center Director Steven Weitzman explained the event's purpose was to explore "constitutional, legal, and ethical questions, along with questions about the future of higher education and the struggle against antisemitism." Wharton School and Penn Carey Law School professor Amanda Shanor, who represented campus groups involved in the suit, described the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's prior demand for personal information about Jewish employees as "unconstitutional 87 ways to Sunday," warning it could set a precedent for government demands based on religious affiliation. First-year sociology Ph.D. candidate Olivia Haynie, a Jewish student whose information would have been on such a list, stated the University’s Jewish community "can handle itself and have no trouble speaking up for itself."

These incidents underscore the persistent and evolving nature of antisemitism. I'm Rachel Adler, thank you for listening to Antisemitism Watch.

Follow Antisemitism Watch in your podcast app so you don’t miss the next update.
This report was generated with AI assistance and may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important details with primary sources.

🎧 Click Here to Listen & Subscribe

Sources:
- facebook.com: https://www.facebook.com/NewYorkFBI/posts/fbi-new-york-alerted-our-international-partners-after-identifying-social-media-t/122322758462024474/
- thedp.com: https://www.thedp.com/article/2026/09/penn-eeoc-antisemitism-lawsuit-subpeona-trump-meeting
- wsws.org: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2026/09/24/zrxl-s24.html
- youtube.com: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLs-q1UHMkc
- uk.news.yahoo.com: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/heightened-security-presence-heaton-park-040000102.html