By Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — Israel’s largest political block (the unholy alliance between Netanyahu’s Likud and Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu) appears to believe what voters abroad have known for a long time: women can make a difference to the outcome of elections. That’s why it’s accusing its serious rival on the right, Naftali Bennet’s Habayit Heyehudi […]
What role will women play in Israel’s election? Read More »
Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The election is boring, but the formation of the next government may be more exciting. Voters are shifting a bit between parties, mostly on account of two new parties in the center and a newly energized party on the right. What is boring is that the major blocs made up
Israel’s election math Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastYemen reportedly detains Israeli man accused of spying (Israel Hayom/Exclusive to JNS.org) Arab media outlets reported on Wednesday that Yemeni security forces recently arrested a man with both Israeli and Yemeni citizenship on suspicion of spying for the Mossad. According to reports from Yemen, the man, known as Ali Abdullah Muhsin Al-Haimi Al-Sayaghi or Ibrahim
JNS news briefs: January 3, 2013 Read More »
InternationalReport: Arabs could outnumber Jews in Israel and Palestinian territories by 2020 (JNS.org) On top of Hamas terrorism, the Iranian nuclear program, the implications of unrest in Syria and the rise of an Islamist government in Egypt, another growing challenge Israel faces in 2013 and beyond is a demographic one. The Jewish state could lose
JNS news briefs: January 2, 2013 Read More »
InternationalBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Turning on the radio and opening my browser early in the morning of January 1 in Jerusalem, the news from the world capital, where it was still yesterday, was that the White House and Congress were close, but not yet there with legislation that would keep the American economy–and most
United States a nation of high contrasts Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, USABy JNS.org After President Barack Obama nominated U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) for Secretary of State, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that Kerry “has considerable experience and is a known supporter of the security of the State of Israel.” At the same time, Kerry has been a frequent critic of
Kerry not Israel’s most dependable ally Read More »
USAIsrael’s population now at 8 million (JNS.org) Israel’s central bureau of statistics has released figures showing that the total population of the country has reached 7.98 million. Of those citizens, 75.4 percent are Jewish, 20 percent are Arab and four percent are defined as “other.” According to Yedioth Ahronoth, the population of Israel increased by 145,000
JNS news briefs: January 1, 2013 Read More »
InternationalBy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. –Author Lela Gilbert, a Christian who lived for years in Israel, spoke for many of Israel’s supporters when she said she finds the international community’s attacks on the Jewish State “puzzling, especially when atrocities are taking place every day in Syria” and elsewhere in the Middle East. In an interview
World stands silently by in face of Islamist outrages Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana BryenPalestinian Authority accused of human rights abuses by Arab watchdog (JNS.org) The Palestinian Authority (PA) and its president, Mahmoud Abbas, have been accused of inhumane practices and human rights abuses, according to a report from the UK-based Arab Organization for Human Rights (AOHR). The group monitored the practices of the PA’s security forces from January
JNS news briefs: December 31, 2012 Read More »
InternationalBy David P. Goldman “The country is on the verge of bankruptcy,” Egyptian opposition leader and Nobel Laureate Mohamed ElBaradei told the newspaper al-Arabiya Dec. 23. Unable to reduce subsidies that account for most of a budget deficit that now exceeds 14 percent of GDP, and unwilling to raises taxes, it seems
Is Egypt teetering on bankruptcy? Read More »
Middle EastBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — It didn’t come as a surprise to those who’ve faith in Israel’s Supreme Court as the guarantor of Israel’s democracy, but it came as an expected shock to its right-wing detractors: last Sunday the Supreme Court overruled the decision taken earlier this month by the political Central Elections Committee
Israeli Supreme Court lets controversial MK run for reelection Read More »
Middle EastBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — The received wisdom in Israel’s right-wing circles and among their supporters abroad is that, if Israel could only get its hasbarah (information/propaganda) right, the world would understand that what the Government of Israel under Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is doing is morally beyond criticism and politically justified. Many of
Policies, not the p-r, cause Israel’s problems Read More »
Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM– Even in the best of times, voting is something of a crap shoot for citizens who wish to influence what their government does. Candidates speak in general terms in order to appeal as widely as possible and to give themselves room to maneuver in the face of conditions bound to change.
Israeli voter’s task complicated by coalition politics Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Alan Eisner WASHINGTON, D.C. – There’s an old Israeli song by Matti Caspi, sung memorably by Yehudit Ravitz, that sums up exactly my view of the upcoming Israeli election: “You took my hand in your hand and said to me, ‘Let’s go down to the garden.’ You took my hand in your hand and said
An outsider’s perspective on Israel’s elections Read More »
Middle East