Parasha Behaalotecha By Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D. SAN DIEGO — This week’s Torah reading, Behaalotecha, appears to be the basis of one of my mother’s oft-repeated sayings, “Keep complaining and I’ll really give you something to complain about.” Seems the Israelites grew tired of their monotonous diet of manna, pining for the fish and other […]
Appreciating the Non-Material Treasures Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
By Laurie Baron, Ph.D SAN DIEGO — Where there’s woke, there’s ire. What do James Bond and police officers with qualified immunity have in common? A license to kill. If someone likens something to the Holocaust to condemn it, then their reasons for condemning it are probably unconvincing. If Republican senators invoke the filibuster to
Satire: A Pax on Both Your Houses Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire
By Alon Ben-Meir, Ph.D NEW YORK — Now that a third Israeli-Hamas war has ended as inconclusively as the two previous wars, will both sides prepare for the next one, or let sanity sink in and chart a dramatically new course that will end the vicious cycle from which neither side can ever escape? Righting
A Third Israeli-Hamas War—What’s Next Read More »
Alon Ben-Meir, Middle East, USA
Published by Reuters By Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Maha El Dahan AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad voted on Wednesday in an election certain to extend his rule over a country ruined by war, casting his ballot in the former rebel stronghold of Douma where a suspected chemical weapons attack in 2018 prompted Western air
Syria’s Assad votes in former rebel town, site of chemical attack Read More »
Middle East
Published by Al-Araby Israeli centrist party Yesh Atid has reached a coalition deal with the far-right Yisrael Beytenu, pushing the proposed ‘government of change’ one step closer to power. The Jerusalem Post reported that the agreement was made on Monday night. The Israeli paper said the deal would see Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman as
Israel’s ‘government of change’ edges closer with coalition deal Read More »
Middle East
By Jacob Kamaras SAN DIEGO — How do you connect with Judaism? According to a comprehensive survey of Jewish Americans that the Pew Research Center released earlier in May, “Majorities of U.S. Jews engage in cultural activities like cooking Jewish food (72%), sharing holidays with non-Jewish friends (62%) and visiting historical Jewish sites (57%). Many
Jewish news is Jewish community Read More »
Jacob Kamaras, USA
NEW YORK (Press Release) — The Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA), the national network hub of 125 Jewish Community Relations Councils and 16 national Jewish agencies, on Monday expressed its deep concern with the alarming rise in antisemitic incidents in the United States. The JCPA urged civic, political, and faith leaders to denounce these
Published by Reuters DUBAi (Reuters) – Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei said on Tuesday he was optimistic over Tehran reaching an agreement soon at talks with world powers to revive a 2015 nuclear deal, although Iran’s top negotiator cautioned that serious issues remained. Iran and global powers have held several rounds ofnegotiations since April in
Iran official upbeat over nuclear talks, top delegate cautious Read More »
USA
Published by Reuters By Hams Rabah and Dominic Evans AMMAN (Reuters) – When Syrian refugee Lara Shahin fled Damascus at the start of Syria’s conflict she thought her family would be back within months to help rebuild the country. Nine years later, an election dismissed as a sham by refugees across the region is set
As Assad tightens grip on Syria, many refugees lose hope Read More »
Middle East
Published by Reuters By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) -U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged on a Middle East mission on Tuesday that Washington would rally support to rebuild Gaza as part of efforts to bolster a ceasefire between its Hamas Islamist rulers and Israel. But Blinken made clear that the United States intended to
Blinken pledges U.S. support to rebuild Gaza, prevent return to war Read More »
Middle East
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) and a group of like-minded colleagues wanted to sink the proposed $735-million sale of a Boeing-built arms guidance kit to Israel. The Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) kit converts unguided or “dumb” bombs into precision-guided munitions. The goal, according to Politico, is “leverage to push the Israelis to drop their resistance to a ceasefire.” [Shoshana Bryen]
Withholding Weapons from Israel Makes the US Weak Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USA
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) on Thursday released preliminary data from its Center on Extremism revealing an increase in online and real-world incidents of antisemitism in the United States since the most recent outbreak of violence between Israel and Hamas. [ADL Press Release]
ADL: Antisemitic Incidents Linked to Recent Mideast Violence Read More »
Middle East, USA
More than a thousand Californians, including nearly 70 rabbis, today petitioned the California Legislative Jewish Caucus to oppose AB 101, a bill to make ethnic studies courses a high school graduation requirement. The California Assembly is likely to debate AB 101 next week. [AMCHA Initiative Press Release]
Advocates Petition Against California Ethnic Studies Bill Read More »
Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA