Bette Midler Among ‘Haters Of Israel’ Blacklisted From Jerusalem Hostel

Image by Getty Images
JERUSALEM (JTA) — A hostel in Jerusalem’s Old City has published a list of “haters of Israel” who have been “banned…because of crimes committed against the Jewish people,” drawing derision and ridicule from those blacklisted.
The Jerusalem Heritage House describes itself as an institution which provides “warm and comfortable accommodations for Jewish travelers in the heart of the Old City for a nominal fee.” It boasts of having hosted more than 60,000 guests since 1985.
Posted on Twitter by journalist Jacob Kornbluh, the list includes figures such as comedian Jon Stewart, politician Bernie Sanders, former Obama administration ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro and actress Bette Midler. Also banned are members of the media including the staffs of the Times of Israel, Haaretz, CNN and the New York Times as well as the heads of the Anti-Defamation League and the Reform Movement.
The Jerusalem Heritage House hung up when contacted by a Jerusalem Post reporter.
Members of the Israeli press corp responded with sarcasm, with the Times of Israel’s Judah Ari Gross tweeting “Shucks, no Jerusalem Heritage House for me” and the Jerusalem Post’s Amy Spiro joking that “Bette Midler has been banging on the doors of the Jerusalem Heritage House for hours begging to be let inside.”
In response, Daniel Sugarman of the Jewish Chronicle tweeted at Spiro to be quiet, jokingly inquiring if she wanted “to get the Jerusalem Post on the list too.”
Finding that his outlet was listed above other organizations on the list, Times of Israel Deputy Editor Joshua Davidovich sarcastically tweeted “We’re #8 Wooooh! Suck it, @haaretzcom and @ADL_National.”
Alyssa Fisher is a news writer at the Forward. Email her at [email protected], or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Most Popular
- 1
News Student protesters being deported are not ‘martyrs and heroes,’ says former antisemitism envoy
- 2
News Who is Alan Garber, the Jewish Harvard president who stood up to Trump over antisemitism?
- 3
Fast Forward Suspected arsonist intended to beat Gov. Josh Shapiro with a sledgehammer, investigators say
- 4
Opinion What Jewish university presidents say: Trump is exploiting campus antisemitism, not fighting it
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward ‘F–k Israel’ message displayed at Coachella music festival and streamed to millions
-
Fast Forward Jewish students, alumni decry ‘weaponization of antisemitism’ across country
-
Opinion I first met Netanyahu in 1988. Here’s how he became the most destructive leader in Israel’s history
-
Opinion Why can Harvard stand up to Trump? Because it didn’t give in to pro-Palestinian student protests
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.