Middle East

ZOA endorses economic sanctions against Palestinian Authority

Boycott Israel Ad On Palestinian TV Backed By Spain * NEW YORK (Press Release)–The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) is supporting the call of Israel’s Minister of National Infrastructure, Uzi Landau, for a review of past Israeli agreements signed with Mahmoud Abbas’ Palestinian Authority (PA) as a result of recent PA efforts promoting foreign economic […]

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Middle East

Remembering the Exodus and the American Civil Rights struggle

By Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal SAN DIEGO–Wednesday night Judy, Margalit, and I watched The Secret Life of Bees. The movie, produced in 2008, is based on the book by the same name by Sue Monk Kidd. The story takes place in Southern Carolina in 1964 in the midst of racial turmoil. The Civil Rights Act had

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International, Jewish History, Middle East, USA

Thoughts on seeing a grandson sworn into the IDF at the Kotel

By Rabbi Dow Marmur  JERUSALEM –The only reason that takes me to the shrine of the Western Wall is the company of tourists and the occasional Bar/Bat Mitzvah. Unlike some Jews who profess piety, the place doesn’t move me to prayer. In fact, the ostensibly religious hustlers who exploit it for blatantly irreligious, even discriminatory,

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Middle East

The battle for Jerusalem is being fought by real estate investors

By Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM–You don’t have to have inside information or be blessed with special analytical talents to realize that there’re currently systematic efforts in Israel to make any division of Jerusalem in a future peace deal increasingly impossible. The fact that this is happening nominally outside government control – e.g., through legal purchase

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Middle East

Hillary Clinton betrays a misunderstanding of Muslim audiences

By Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s remark about how the Arizona shooting is just like September 11 is such a superb example of everything wrong with Western policy toward the Middle East. Let’s summarize the issue by coining a phrase which sounds a bit Zen but has a very practical meaning:

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Middle East, USA

EU document calls for intervention in Jerusalem against Israelis

JERUSALEM (WJC)–A leaked report has revealed that that  the 25 European Union missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah are urging Brussels to treat East Jerusalem as the future capital of a Palestinian state. The report also calls for an EU presence at the demolitions of Palestinian homes, and intervention when peaceful protesters face arrest. The confidential

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Middle East

Palestinian entrepreneur seeking new road angers Israelis with refusal to use West Bank Jewish goods

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The city of Rawabi has not made it to conventional atlases or a prominent mention in international media, but it is shaping up as a point of tension between Israel and the Palestine Authority. Last evening it was the center piece in a discussion on prime time television. The guest

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Ira Sharkansky, Middle East

Clinton: Israelis and Palestinians want the same things, but can’t find way to trust each other

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (Press Release)–U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in an interview with Taher Barake of Al Arabiya said Israelis and Palestinians want the same thing, but can’t find a way to trust each other.  Here is a transcript of that interview: QUESTION: (In Arabic.) We are honored, Madam Secretary, to have you

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Middle East

Union for Reform Judaism says Knesset investigatory panels undermine Israel’s democracy

NEW YORK (Press Release)– In response to the Knesset’s decision last week to form a parliamentary committee investigating Israeli groups critical of the Israel Defense Forces, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, President of the Union for Reform Judaism, and Rabbi David Saperstein, Director of the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism issued the following statement:   “We

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Middle East