Middle East

Orthodox rabbi, education pioneer appointed advisor to Friedman

Rabbi Aryeh Lightstone, an Orthodox rabbi from New York who works in various capacities in Jewish education, has been appointed to serve in an advisory role in the U.S. Embassy in Israel. He will work alongside newly-appointed Ambassador David Friedman, a State Department official confirmed this week. Rabbi Lightstone is currently the Chief Creative Officer […]

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Middle East, USA

3 cruise ships with 6,000 on board drop anchor in Aqaba

By Ahmed Bani Mustafa – Apr 06,2017 – Last updated at Apr 06,2017 AMMAN — Three cruise ships carrying around 6,000 European tourists docked in Aqaba port on Wednesday, according to an official from Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA). As well as spending time in Aqaba, the tourists’ itinerary included other destinations in the

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Middle East, Travel and Food

US Secretary of State Tillerson blames Assad forces for Syria gas deaths

Some of the 72 victims of the recent suspected gas attack in northern Syrian were buried on Wednesday as their families grieved. One man lost his twin daughters and his wife. “It was an airstrike by the criminal air force. I took my wife and children out of the house. Five minutes later, we started

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International, Middle East, USA

Turkish – Western alliance seriously fraying

By Alon Ben-Meir NEW YORK — The growing tension between Turkey and its Western allies, which was further heightened during the Obama administration, is narrowing the space for cooperation between the two sides and in fact is progressively worsening. Erdogan’s hope that he and President Trump would improve their ties as members of NATO has dramatically

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Alon Ben-Meir, International, Middle East, USA

MK knocks lack of civil marriage after Seychelles wedding

Zionist Union lawmaker Ksenia Svetlova gets hitched on Indian Ocean island, criticizes Rabbinate’s ‘monopoly on marriage’ By Times of Israel staff Activists, among them Zionist Union MK Ksenia Svetlova (second from right), holding signs and wearing wedding veils as they protest for the right to civil marriage in front of the Knesset in Jeruslaem on

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International, Middle East

Holocaust survivor who burned nurse to death charged with murder

Asher Faraj’s attorneys expected to employ insanity defense to defend the 77-year-old in court By Jacob Magid Asher Faraj seen in the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court on March 15, 2017. (Flash90) An elderly Holocaust survivor accused of burning a nurse to death at a Holon clinic was indicted on murder charges at the Tel Aviv

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Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education

Palestinian shot during IDF arrest sweep near Bethlehem

Rioters attack forces with Molotov cocktails and rocks during operation to detain three terror suspects By Stuart Winer Illustrative. IDF soldiers during an arrest raid in the Deheishe refugee camp, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem, on December 8, 2015. (Nati Shohat/Flash90) A Palestinian man was shot overnight Tuesday during an Israeli operation to

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Middle East

Federations donate to Israel, but most of their investments go anywhere but

With $90 billion at their discretion, why are the majority of Jewish funds and federations not only skipping Israel, but investing in ‘enemy’ countries? By Cathryn J. Prince NEW YORK — For the first time in its history the Jewish Federation of Greater Metro West New Jersey will make a dedicated allocation to Israel equities.

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Middle East, USA

Israel appoints its first female Muslim diplomat

Rasha Atamny, 31, from Baqa al-Gharbiya, will be heading to Ankara, Turkey By Dov Lieber Rasha Atamny, 31, from Baqa al-Gharbiyye, is Israel’s first female Arab-Muslim diplomat. (Twitter) The Foreign Ministry on Wednesday appointed Rasha Atamny, 31, to represent the Jewish state in Ankara, Turkey, making her Israel’s first female Muslim diplomat. Atamny, who is

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Middle East

Passover Seder at United Nations

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, held a Passover Seder at the UN with the participation of dozens of ambassadors from various countries. Danon told the ambassadors about the meaning of the Passover holiday and explained to them the holiday’s customs. Afterwards, ambassadors read excerpts from the Haggadah and ate the traditional holiday

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International, Jewish Religion, Middle East