Some U.S. counties late in sending ballots to voters in Israel
(JNS.org) Several U.S. counties are planning to send out absentee ballots to registered voters living abroad later than is required by federal law, essentially rendering these votes irrelevant, Israel Hayom reported.
In a statement issued by iVoteIsrael— a group of American expats living in Israel spearheading a registration drive for citizens to be able to cast their ballot in the November elections—the organization cites data that explains low cooperation rates of overseas U.S. citizens in the general elections process.
“According to the Overseas Vote Foundation, the primary reason why Americans living abroad do not vote more frequently is due to their failure to return their ballot to their local board of election on time,” the group said. “In this regard, the local boards of elections that mail out the ballots to the voters bear much of the responsibility for the paltry 6.8 percent overseas voter participation.”
Attempting to prevent such a situation from happening, iVoteIsrael has been contacting counties within the U.S., to make sure they mail their absentee ballots by Sept. 22—45 days prior to the elections, as is mandated by U.S. federal law.
“A number of counties were either not aware of the law, or were planning to ignore the law until iVoteIsrael representatives inquired about their compliance,” iVoteIsrael said in a statement.
The group said that despite their efforts to inform the different counties of their obligations toward their overseas voters, several counties still plan on sending out ballots after the specified date.
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Netanyahu asks: What if the U.S. does not intervene on Iran?
(JNS.org) Israel must ask itself what will happen if the U.S. fails to take action to stop Iran’s nuclear program, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Israel Hayom in an interview for Rosh Hashanah.
In the interview, Netanyahu addressed recent assessments by top defense officials, who suggested that there is still time before action against Iran becomes necessary. “I hear all those people who say that we should wait until the very last minute. But what if the U.S. doesn’t intervene? That is a question we have to ask,” he said.
Netanyahu also dismissed allegations that his insistence on red lines, beyond which the U.S. would commit to taking military action against Iran, was impacting the presidential race currently underway in the U.S., saying, “This is nonsense because the issue that is guiding me is not the U.S. elections, but the centrifuges in Iran, and what can I do if the centrifuges in Iran are inconsiderate of the U.S. political timetable? If the Iranians were to hit the ‘pause’ button and halt their uranium enrichment and bomb preparation until after the elections, I would be able to wait.”
In addition, the prime minister explained that the gaps between Washington’s and Jerusalem’s stances on the Iranian issue revolve “not on a question of dates, but rather on a question of process.” Referring to homefront preparedness, Netanyahu said, “You can protect the country from missiles, in one way or another. But there is no protection against atomic bombs. The only way to protect against this is to prevent the creation of such a reality by the enemy, and of course, make it clear to anyone who would ever consider attacking Israel with weapons of mass destruction—do it at your own peril.”
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NYC to regulate oral suction practice for brit milah
(JNS.org) New York City’s Board of Health voted Thursday to approve a regulation that bans the practice of oral suction of a baby boy’s wound during a brit milah unless his parents submit a written consent form allowing the mohel to do so.
The ritual—called metzitzah b’peh—is only common in haredi Jewish communities, and has been linked to some cases of oral herpes. Agudath Israel of America is looking to sue New York because it believes the city’s ban violates the U.S. Constitution, The Jewish Week reported.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been a vocal opponent of metzizah b’peh. State Assemblyman Dov Hikind, however, issued a statement criticizing the policing of religious rites that the mayor objects to. Hikind said the new regulation “thrusts the city deeper into a nanny-ocracy that has dubious implications.”
“This is a deliberate insult to the intelligence and dignity of Orthodox Jews who live in this city,” the assemblyman said.
New York’s decision comes after a German court (in Cologne) ruled in June that circumcision should be considered illegal. In August, prosecutors were petitioned to bring charges against a rabbi in Bavaria, Germany, for performing brit milah.
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Palestinian activists criticize PA leadership, call for end of Oslo Accords
(JNS.org) Palestinians are expressing increasing frustration at their leaders, with the latest example being a call by Palestinian activists for mass demonstrations in the West Bank to demand an end to the Oslo Accords, the Jerusalem Post reported.
The call for demonstrations comes amid nearly 10 days of protests throughout the West Bank. While the protests were initially only directed against Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and his economic policies, in the past few days Palestinians have also started demanding the resignation of PA President Mahmoud Abbas and the cancellation of the Oslo Accords (which established the PA).
Palestinians “need to liberate ourselves from the terrible conditions of the agreement” through popular resistance, national unity and boycott, divestment and sanctions, Palestinian National Initiative leader Mustafa Barghouti told the Ma’an news agency.
On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu transferred NIS 250 million to the PA in order to help stabilize the situation and end the protests. Fayyad also announced a package of subsidies and tax cuts.
In his weekly radio address to Palestinians, Fayyad renewed his appeal to Arab countries and Western donors to provide the PA with financial aid to ease the economic hardships.
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Israel attracts record number of tourists during the past year
(JNS.org) The Israeli Tourism Ministry announced a record number of visitors and revenue over the past year, Israel Hayom reported.
According to the ministry, 3.5 million tourists visited Israel, up 3 percent from last year, while revenue from the tourism reached $4.5 billion, up 10 percent or $500,000 from last year. The greatest growth came from the record number of cruise ship visitors, which increased 24 percent.
The record increase comes despite rising violence and uncertainty in the region due to the Arab Spring uprisings and global recession. “Against the background of the geopolitical challenges and the global economic crisis, the achievements are even greater,” Israeli Tourism Minister Stas Misezhnikov said.
As a result of the record growth the Tourism Ministry has allocated grants for the construction of 18 new hotels in Israel, which will add 2,119 rooms throughout the country.
More than 300,000 tourists are expected to visit Israel during the upcoming Jewish holidays.
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Israeli Jewish Congress launched to strengthen Israel-Diaspora ties
(JNS.org) The Israeli Jewish Congress (IJC), a new organization working to strengthen ties between Israel and the Diaspora, opened its inaugural conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday.
Russian-Jewish businessman and community activist Vladimir Moshe Sloutsker, who founded the group, told attendees that anti-Semitism “is not disappearing, unfortunately it’s increasing, and so it’s important that all Jews know they have their own country.”
“Israel is at the heart of the Jewish world and it is our duty to deliver this message,” Sloutsker told the attendees, which included Israeli Public Diplomacy and Diaspora Affairs Minister Yuli Edelstein and Vice Premier and Regional Development Minister Silvan Shalom, according to the Jerusalem Post.
IJC hopes to address a variety of issues, including Holocaust denial in Europe, the building of a stronger relationship between Diaspora Jews and Israel, and the “strengthening of Israel’s Jewish and democratic foundations.”
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Preceding provided by JNS.org and reprinted with permission