March 6, 2026 | 17 Adar 5786
Candlelighting 5:59 p.m. | Havdalah 6:59 p.m. | Vol. 69, No. 10 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
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American Jewish establishment Pittsburgh backs Iran strikes while political Presbyterian divides emerge churches advance BDS policy
NOTEWORTHY LOCAL Talking about Israel
By David Rullo | Senior Staff Writer
New initiative at Hillel JUC
P protests in Iran in January over its economic crisis and widespread calls for political change, which were met by a violent government crackdown. The World Jewish Congress also came out in support of the strikes, calling on the international community to “stand behind this historic effort and support further measures that end the ability of theocratic tyrants to inflict harm on the Iranian people and the world at large any longer.” The Jewish Federations of North America wrote that it will “pray for the success of the joint United States and Israeli actions in Iran,” simultaneously urging Jewish communities in the United States to maintain security protocols. “All security protocols in North America should be fully observed. May this moment bring a renewed understanding of our shared responsibility for the future of the Jewish people and the free world,” Eric Fingerhut, the CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America, said in a statement. Likewise, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh stressed in a statement that it “stands with the people of Israel at this critical moment. We are working closely with our partners to provide emergency support where it is most needed.” As the holiday of Purim approached, the Federation assured Pittsburgh’s Jewish community that its security team was “coordinating
ittsburgh Presbyterian churches have approved motions demanding the United States enact a “full trade embargo on Israel.” The overture, approved at a Feb. 12 Pittsburgh Presbytery meeting, now goes to a vote at the church’s General Assembly meeting this summer. Sixth Presbyterian Church in Squirrel Hill and Valley View Presbyterian Church in Garfield introduced the overture titled “Recognition that Israel has Violated the International Law Prohibiting Genocide.” Comprised of two motions, the overture seeks to: “1. Direct the PC(USA) Stated Clerk and Office of Public Witness to demand the US Congress and the President to enact a full trade embargo on Israel until the United Nations determines the following conditions are met: (a) the Israeli military occupation of Palestinian territory has ended, (b) Israel’s apartheid policies are abolished, (c) Israel’s illegal separation barrier is demolished, and (d) Palestinian refugees are granted the right to return to their homeland. 2. Encourage Presbyteries, congregations, and individual clergy and laypeople to call upon their Congressmembers and President to impose a full trade embargo on Israel until the United Nations determines the conditions listed above are met.” According to The Pittsburgh Presbytery general minister, the Rev. Jessica McClure Archer, the two motions will be presented to the General Assembly by the Presbytery of the Redwoods, in Northern California, and the Presbytery of San Francisco. Pittsburgh’s presbytery will “concur” with those two presbyteries, meaning it will sign on to but won’t present the overture. The rationale for the overture, as presented to The Pittsburgh Presbytery, is the PCUSA’s commitment “to non-violent solutions to internal conflicts, including that between Israel and Palestine.”
Please see Iran, page 10
Please see Presbyterian, page 10
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LOCAL CMU and Qatar
p A plume of smoke rises after an explosion on Feb. 28, 2026, in Tehran as U.S. and Israeli forces launch a strike on Iran. Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images
A closer look
By Grace Gilson| JTA Page 3
LOCAL Bringing teens together
JCC’s She’elot Fellowship Page 4
LOCAL Call to teach still resonates
Chabad’s Shnas HaChinuch at 50 Page 5
Toby Tabachnick | Editor
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ajor American Jewish groups quickly backed the U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran Saturday morning, while urging heightened security at Jewish institutions amid fears of retaliation. The strikes, which were billed by both President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an effort to topple the Islamic Republic regime that has long targeted Israel, follow weeks of stalled diplomacy between the United States and Iran over its nuclear program that failed to produce an agreement. The American Jewish Committee quickly threw its support behind the United States and Israel Saturday morning, writing in a statement that the “responsibility for this crisis lies entirely with Tehran.” “The world will be a safer place when the threat of the Iranian regime’s illicit nuclear and missile programs, along with the IRGC, is dismantled once and for all,” the AJC said. “We hope today’s military action is a decisive step toward fulfilling that vital mission.” In a post on X, the Anti-Defamation League wrote that it “stands with the United States, Israel and the Iranian people, who deserve dignity and freedom from a regime that murders its own citizens.” The strikes also follow large-scale nationwide
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13 john1179 & stockshoppe/ Adobe Stock