‘The time has come’ for official Israel-Indonesia relations, Netanyahu says (JNS.org) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Monday in Jerusalem with a delegation of senior Indonesian journalists who visited Israel as guests of the Israeli Foreign Ministry. Israel and Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, do not have formal diplomatic relations, but there […]
Middle East Roundup: March 29, 2016 Read More »
Middle East
Story by Donald H. Harrison; photos by Shor Masori SAN DIEGO — Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman said she has asked Taser International, which provides body cameras, to develop a system by which a police officer’s body camera automatically will turn on whenever he or she draws a gun from a holster. “They are working on
By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Jewish Family Service, Mazon (The Jewish Response to Hunger) and now Democratic U.S. Rep. Susan Davis, ranking member of the Military Personnel Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee, are teaming up to help alleviate food insecurity among the families of the lower enlisted ranks of the military.
Military families sacrifice for us; can’t we feed them? Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, San Diego County, USA
By Gerald M. Steinberg JERUSALEM — The revelations that the Israeli political organization Breaking the Silence (BTS) was gathering sensitive or potentially classified information on the IDF caught many Israelis – including me, a long-time critic of this fringe NGO – off guard. Like others, I knew that the handful of activists in this group
‘Breaking The Silence’ probe fuels NGO reporting bid Read More »
Middle EastBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — I don’t write about every concert I attend, or even every book I read, for that matter. That would be boring and repetitive. However, there are some concerts (and some books) that I feel I really must share with anyone out there who might be slightly interested in
Bach’s ‘St. Matthew Passion’ stirs Jerusalem audience Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Middle East, Music, Dance, and Visual ArtsGaps remain between U.S. and Israel in security aid talks (JNS.org) Gaps remain between Israel and the U.S. in negotiations on a new 10-year memorandum of understanding for security assistance. America is offering annual aid of $3.4 billion, up from the current level of $3.1 billion. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, has asked
Middle East Roundup: Mach 28, 2016 Read More »
Middle EastBy Dan Bloom CHIAYI CITY, Taiwan — For Lee Schnaiberg in Montreal, global warming is no laughing matter, although the Canadian artist has a good sense of humor and the odd Yiddish phrase to make a point. I chatted with him the other day via email when he had just returned home from from his
Artist Schnaiberg focuses art on climate change Read More »
International, The World We ShareBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — A recent visit with a young Japanese friend, a paratrooper in the IDF, provided an insight into the nature of Israel and other places. He said that fellow soldiers take him for Chinese or Korean, even though he explains that he comes from Japan. Israelis do a lot of traveling
To know Israel is to know the ethnic players Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — A few days ago a human rights organization made public a video after a terrorist attack on soldiers in Hebron that shows one of the soldiers shooting to kill a terrorist who had already been injured and “neutralized” (as the official term has it). The prime minister and the
Polarized reaction to shooting incident in Hebron Read More »
Middle EastAn Improbable Friendship: The Remarkable Lives of Israeli Ruth Dayan and Palestinian Raymonda Tawil and Their Forty Year Peace Mission, by Anthony David, Arcade Publishing, 2015 By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — Ruth Dayan was married to and then divorced from Israel’s General Moshe Dayan. Raymonda Tawil was the mother-in-law of Palestinian Fatah Chairman Yasser
From the Jewish library: ‘An Improbable Friendship’ Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Middle EastBy Rabbi Ben Kamin OCEANSIDE, California — They call themselves “a synagogue without walls,” which was especially ironic and heartening when I first was interviewed by the leadership ten years ago. My pastoral institute is called Reconciliation: The Synagogue Without Walls and—once the meeting warmed into a promising new relationship—one of the officers teased me: “We
A shul of elders who have witnessed so much Read More »
USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Once again a high profile Islamic attack raises some crucial questions about Europe.. Key to understanding what is happening, and what is not happening, is a critical issue in the whole question of what has become of Europe since World War II. As a result of US encouragement, and European
EU must weigh openness vs. security Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky
By Chris Jennewein SAN DIEGO — In this ugly political season, with insurgent politicians on both sides talking barriers — from walls to tariffs — San Diego has an opportunity to show the rest of America how to succeed by building bridges. With Republican Donald Trump calling for a mighty wall along the Mexican border, and Democrat
Hey, Donald, Bernie! In San Diego we build bridges! Read More »
Chris Jennewein, International, San Diego County, USAArgentine Jews ask for Netanyahu’s help with rampant assimilation (Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Leaders of Argentina’s Jewish community have warned that accelerated assimilation by Jews in the South American nation and worldwide is “placing the Jewish people’s future at risk.” The phenomenon, they said, is akin to “quiet terrorism.” Buenos Aires is home to one
Middle East Roundup: March 25, 2016 Read More »
Middle East