As part of Argentina’s presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), the Argentine Embassy, led by Ambassador Raúl Ailán and embassy staff, hosted a roundtable on the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism at the offices of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies. SAJBD representatives from across the country attended the event, which included presentations by Dr Ariel Gelblung, Director for Latin America at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, and Prof.

September 17, 2026 A shana tova once again to our community. As we stand in the early days of 5787, it is worth pausing to consider what the year ahead is likely to ask of us. It looks set to be a significant one politically, with important elections in Israel, South Africa, and the United States in the coming months. Each of these has the potential to affect our community in ways large and small, and each is of real interest to us. In two of them, though, we are spectators.

Jewish or September 10, 2026 In July, a political commentator on Power FM stated that the Democratic Alliance had chosen Johannesburg mayoral candidate Helen Zille because “the Jews” were unhappy with Johannesburg. The assertion that we Jews are a secret controlling power, manipulating local politics for our benefit, is obviously false and blatantly antisemitic. Unfortunately, the interviewer didn’t challenge the guest on this bigoted conspiracy theory. The SA Jewish Board of

Danny Mofsowitz and Wendy Kahn attended an event paying tribute to Rabbi Dovid and Feigie Hazdan. We add our own accolades, having had the privilege of Rabbi Hazdan’s presence on our SAJBD Gauteng Council since 2020, bringing his unique insights to our table. He has represented the SAJBD at pivotal government and university engagements, and we’ve loved being part of his phenomenal Cycalive initiatives — sending off riders in Johannesburg and welcoming them in Durban. We look

It was an honour to help facilitate Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton Mckenzie’s visit to King David High School ahead of the launch of their Cultural Festival Thank you, Minister Gayton, for your time and words of inspiration and wisdom.

Leaders of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) are reassured that the police are taking antisemitic incidents seriously and want the local Jewish community to feel safe. They met with South African Police Service (SAPS) top brass in Pretoria on 27 August to discuss security and specific incidents. But the Board was disheartened to hear that there are no new leads in the investigation into the improvised explosive device (IED) thrown at the Jewish communal headq

September 3, 2026 It has been a week in which the South African Jewish community has stood in full view of the country, in the courts, on the street, and around the Shabbat table. Looking over last week’s events, what struck me most wasn’t any single story but the pattern running beneath all of them: a community increasingly comfortable being seen. In Cape Town, the South African Jewish Board of Deputies’ Equality Court case against Turkish-born politician Mehmet Vefa Dag re

“More than 60 observant Jews, kippahs on the men’s heads and Springbok scarves around our necks, set off on foot down Louis Botha Avenue, one of the busiest roads in Johannesburg, and into the historic Yeoville neighbourhood on a three-hour walk to watch the match. By the time we arrived, we hadn’t just covered a few kilometres (10, to be precise); we’d taken a walk through decades of memory, identity and unmistakable pride. Nobody tucked their kippah into a pocket. Nobody he

August 27, 2026 I was in my happy place last weekend. Together with hundreds of fellow participants, I attended the annual Limmud event in Johannesburg, following on from the Cape Town gathering a week earlier. We are blessed with a heterogeneous community, one that holds a wide diversity of political, religious, cultural, and social views, and nowhere is this better celebrated than at Limmud. Over the years it has become a cornerstone of our communal calendar. It is a rare s

August 20, 2026 The South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) is a national body with a presence around the country. The majority of South African Jews live in Johannesburg and Cape Town, but we are also present in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), Gqeberha, and Pretoria. These smaller communities are often key in representing our voice and protecting our rights. That is true nowhere more than in KZN, where I joined National Director Wendy Kahn last week for the annual general meetin

August 13, 2026 By Karen Milner This weekend, we witnessed a momentous moment for our community. Rabbi Doron and Mrs Shelly Perez met President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Union Buildings to express their appreciation for the government’s tireless efforts to facilitate the return of their son Daniel’s body, allowing him to be brought home to Israel and laid to rest with dignity. Daniel was one of our own. He and his family were born and raised among us, and they have remained an

August 6, 2026 By Karen Milner Every so often, we get to open our doors and show gratitude to the people who have stood beside us. On Shabbat, the Board hosted an extraordinary evening in honour of US Ambassador Leo Brent Bozell III, the US embassy, and the members of his diplomatic team who have supported us through some of the most difficult years our community has known. The evening began with us walking together to a Friday-night shul service. From there, the ambassador

July 30, 2026 By Karen Milner On Sunday 26 July, more than a hundred members of our community pulled on shirts that proudly declared “Jews 4 Jozi” and joined the tens of thousands who took part in Walk the Talk. What made it especially poignant is that, for the first time ever, the walk moved through the city itself, through the central business district, the streets of Doornfontein, Bertrams, and Troyeville. A geography that is precious to so many of us and yet has come to

July 23, 2026 By Karen Milner Last Friday, the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) had a rare and important opportunity. We sat down with the heads and commissioners of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), an institution with which we share a long and storied history. The SAHRC and the SAJBD have worked together on a number of significant cases over the years, none more so than the Masuku hate speech matter, which the commission took all the way to t

July 16, 2026 By Karen Milner This week, alongside our incredible community volunteers, we packed and delivered hundreds of food parcels to members of the Congolese community in Johannesburg who are facing severe humanitarian hardship. This is a community with almost nowhere to turn. There is no citizen registry, little support from their official representatives, and precious few safety nets. We were alerted to their plight by a trusted partner with whom we have worked sinc