WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Justice will launch a 14-city nationwide initiative aimed at combating antisemitism, Task Force on Antisemitism Chair Leo Terrell announced Monday evening during an address to hundreds of delegates of the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) gathered ahead of the organization’s annual advocacy mission in the nation’s capital. Speaking with unmistakable urgency, Terrell declared that federal enforcement of civil rights protections for Jewish Americans would be direct, sustained, and — where local authorities fail — legally compelled.

Terrell said the Justice Department intends to increase enforcement efforts across communities where antisemitic incidents continue to rise, focusing on ensuring that local governments, prosecutors, schools, and public institutions fulfill their legal responsibilities to protect Jewish Americans. His remarks before the ZOA delegation — one of America’s oldest and most prominent pro-Israel organizations — underscored a sharp pivot toward aggressive federal intervention wherever local enforcement has been found wanting.

Terrell was emphatic that the new initiative represents a sustained, structural commitment rather than a temporary response. He described the 14-city effort as a comprehensive program of direct engagement with local jurisdictions where concerns about antisemitism have emerged — examining whether existing civil rights statutes are being fully and consistently enforced against those who harass, threaten, vandalize, or discriminate against Jewish Americans.

“Fighting antisemitism is a 24/7 commitment,” Terrell told delegates. “I am there for you, the Justice Department is there for you, and President Trump is there for you.” The framing was deliberate: Terrell positioned the initiative not as a bureaucratic program but as a personal and presidential guarantee to Jewish communities across the United States that the federal government stands prepared to act where state and local authorities have not.

Federal officials have increasingly focused on allegations involving universities, K-12 schools, municipalities, and public institutions where Jewish students and community members have reported discrimination, intimidation, or unequal treatment since the Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023. Terrell’s remarks reflected broader frustration among Jewish organizations that criminal conduct targeting Jewish Americans has not always been prosecuted with the same urgency as other hate-motivated offenses — a disparity he said the DOJ initiative is designed to correct.

Terrell’s announcement came during the gathering of delegates participating in the Zionist Organization of America’s annual Washington advocacy mission — an event that brings ZOA members to the nation’s capital each year to meet with members of Congress, administration officials, and policymakers on issues affecting Israel, U.S. foreign policy, and the security of Jewish communities. Founded in 1897, ZOA is the oldest pro-Israel organization in the United States, and its annual mission represents one of the most significant concentrations of pro-Israel advocacy in Washington each year.

ZOA National President Morton A. Klein praised Terrell’s address and his commitment to confronting antisemitism with the full force of federal authority.

The announcement comes as antisemitism continues to be a major concern across the United States in the wake of the Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023. Since then, Jewish organizations have documented significant increases in antisemitic incidents, including harassment, vandalism, assaults, threats against Jewish institutions, and systematic discrimination on university campuses. Federal agencies have correspondingly increased investigations involving allegations of discrimination on campuses and violations of civil rights protections.

The Justice Department’s Task Force on Antisemitism was established to coordinate federal efforts addressing antisemitic discrimination and ensure consistent enforcement of federal civil rights laws. Supporters argue that greater federal involvement is necessary precisely because responses to antisemitic incidents vary significantly between local jurisdictions — a patchwork of enforcement that Terrell said has allowed antisemitism to grow in some communities without meaningful consequence.

For the hundreds of ZOA delegates gathering in Washington, Terrell’s announcement was both a reassurance and a call to sustained vigilance. As antisemitism continues to affect Jewish institutions, schools, synagogues, and communities across the United States, organizers underscored that stronger enforcement of existing laws — not new legislation — remains the central and most immediate priority for protecting the civil rights and physical security of Jewish Americans.

While specific cities included in the initiative have not yet been announced, the launch of the 14-city enforcement campaign signals a clear and consequential expansion of federal engagement on antisemitism at the local level — one that the DOJ has indicated will be proactive rather than reactive, and sustained rather than episodic.