November 2012

Friends killed during Sandy remembered for kindness

Longtime friends Jessie Streich-Kest and Jacob Vogelman, two Brooklyn Jews in their 20s, were killed by a tree uprooted during the height of Hurricane Sandy. JNS.org interviews Vogelman’s father Lawrence and New York Congressman Jerrold Nadler, a friend of Streich-Kest’s family. By Maxine Dovere/JNS.org Jessie Streich-Kest and Jacob Vogelman, two Brooklyn Jews and friends from childhood who […]

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USA

Jihadists’ rise in Syria complicates options for West

By Sean Savage/JNS.org As the conflict in Syria continues to escalate, there are growing fears of an increasing radical jihadist role in the rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad’s government—complicating options for the West and presenting new threats for Israel. Syria’s beleaguered Christian community, which comprises 10 percent of the population, is witnessing the growth of

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Middle East

Refugee-turned-activist seeks attention for plight of Egyptian Jews

  By Maxine Dovere/JNS.org NEW YORK—For Levana Vidal Zamir, it was a “good childhood”—until May 14, 1948. At midnight, she recalls, Egyptian officers rampaged through her family’s house and destroyed everything.  They denounced her uncle as a “Zionist,” arrested him, and held him in jail for almost two years. The Egyptian government confiscated the family’s business—the

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Middle East

George Burns lives on in one-man show

Alan Safier’s one-man show perpetuates the legend of comics George Burns (born Naftaly Birnbaum) and Gracie Allen (Burns’s wife). JNS.org interviewed Safier on his play and author Lawrence Epstein on Burns’s Jewish background. By Robert Gluck/JNS.org  Born in Cleveland—where George Burns and Gracie Allen were married—Alan Safier keeps the legendary comedy duo alive. Made up

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Travel and Food

JNS news briefs: November 5, 2012

Abbas ignites controversy over ‘right of return’ remarks (JNS.org) Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas ignited a firestorm of controversy over the weekend, stemming from remarks that he made on an Israeli television interview that seemingly conceded the Palestinian “right of return.” In an English language one-on-one interview with Israel’s Channel 2, Abbas was asked

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International

Abbas interview praised by Israeli left, dismissed by right

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Imagine a dance highly formalized, without emotion, between partners who don’t even like one another, never mind pleasure or lust. That’s what we’ve been seeing the last few days around an interview given by Mahmoud Abbas, a.k.a. Abu Mazan, a.k.a. President of the Palestine National Authority, but not recognized as such

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Ira Sharkansky, Middle East

Recapping SDJW’s political endorsements for Nov. 6

By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO –Here is a  recap of our bipartisan endorsements for national, state and local offices. In making our independent evaluations, we paid particular attention to American Jewish community concerns, both foreign and domestic. President — Mitt Romney U.S. Senator — Dianne Feinstein Congress, 51st District — Juan Vargas Congress, 52nd District

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Donald H. Harrison, USA