New York shuts down pro-Israel fascist group Betar

New York state’s Attorney General Letitia James has shut down notorious pro-Israel fascist group Betar’s operations in the state. James and her office targeted Betar for its campaigns to intimidate pro-Palestinian voices and activism.

The group has supported Zionist terrorism and ‘Kahanist’ racist supremacism. It also has strong links to Benjamin Netanyahu’s extremist ‘Likud’ party. Its views are so extreme that even Israel lobby group ADL has listed it as a terrorist group. In 2025, it threatened the UN’s outstanding human rights expert Francesca Albanese. Then went into meltdown over Zohran Mamdani’s New York City mayoral win. Betar has also fed lists of victims to the Trump administration to be targeted for deportation.

A statement from James’s office says that its investigation found that Betar:

repeatedly targeted individuals based on religion and national origin.

The settlement requires Betar to immediately cease instigating or encouraging violence against individuals, threatening protesters, and harassing individuals exercising their civil rights, and subjects the organization to a suspended $50,000 penalty that will be enforced if Betar violates the agreement.

In a statement, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) welcomed James’s move:

We applaud New York State Attorney General Letitia James for holding this racist, pro-Israel militant group accountable for its campaign of terror against New Yorkers opposed to Israel’s genocide in Gaza. The shutdown of Betar’s operations in New York is a historic and positive step toward protecting both free speech and human rights.

From Betar to Canary Mission to AIPAC to the ADL to various anti-Palestinian politicians, the Israeli government’s enablers have spent two years using different tactics to achieve the same goal: silencing Americans who dared to oppose the genocide in Gaza.

The collapse of Betar is the latest sign that the Israel lobby has failed to achieve its goal and a reminder that we must all continue to stand strong for justice here and abroad.

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