---
category: Paramilitary
location: New York City, New York
start: 1968
summary: The Jewish Defense League (JDL) is a New York-based extreme right-wing organization
  associated with Meir Kahane.[^1]
tags:
- Organization
- Paramilitary
- USA
- Israel
---

The [Jewish Defense League](/organizations/jewish-defense-league/) (JDL) is a [New York City](/places/new-york-city/)-based extreme right-wing organization associated with Rabbi Meir Kahane.[^1]

The JDL was implicated in the 1969 arson attack on the [El Aqsa Mosque](/places/el-aqsa-mosque/) in [Jerusalem](/places/jerusalem/), carried out by [Michael Dennis Rohan](/people/michael-dennis-rohan/). [Rohan](/people/michael-dennis-rohan/) claimed to have coordinated the deed with the JDL. [Israeli](/places/israel/) interrogators, including those who questioned [Ari Ben-Menashe](/people/ari-ben-menashe/), emphasized the importance of not revealing the JDL's involvement to avoid any "traces of Jewish hands" in the incident.[^1]

[^1]: Ben-Menashe, Ari. *Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network*. TrineDay, 1992.