International

Ukraine: Can We Detach the Present From the Past?

By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — One’s heart goes out to the Ukrainian men, women, and children caught up in the devastating and unprovoked attack on their country by their powerful and greedy neighbor, Russia. The sight of women carrying children as they tramp along frozen roads and fields in an attempt to find […]

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Holocaust, International, Opinion

Teacher Training on Antisemitism? How About Common Sense

By Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — Kevin Kline’s character Otto from A Fish Called Wanda was outdone by Alabama high school officials who demanded that a Jewish student apologize for something he did not do and disregarded any thought of apologizing for his teacher’s action — leading his class in a Nazi-like salute. Unlike the

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Bruce Ticker, Opinion, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

First Flights of Ukrainian Jewish Immigrants to Arrive in Israel on Sunday

JERUSALEM (Press Release) — Over 300 Jewish olim (immigrants) fleeing Ukraine will arrive in Israel on Sunday, March 6 in a joint operation led by the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, The Jewish Agency for Israel and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ). Their arrival is made possible by donations from the Jewish

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International, Middle East

UN General Assembly, With Israel Joining, Overwhelmingly Votes to Reprimand Russia

(JNS) The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly voted in favor of a resolution to reprimand Russia for its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The resolution, supported by 141 of the assembly’s 193 members, demanded that Moscow end the fighting immediately and withdraw its military forces. Five countries – Russia, North Korea, Syria, Belarus and Eritrea –

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International, Middle East, USA

Jewish Reaction to Biden’s State of the Union Focuses on Ukraine, Inflation

By Dmitriy Shapiro (JNS) Jewish groups and leaders adhered to partisan lines in their responses to President Joe Biden’s first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, a speech that mainly focused on domestic policy but began with a rebuke of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Jewish community’s praise for the

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International, Middle East, USA

Israel Takes Nuanced Approach to UN Emergency Session on Ukraine

By Mike Wagenheim (JNS) “We should take a picture together.” Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan strolled across the General Assembly floor on Monday morning, making a direct line for his counterpart from Ukraine. Six months earlier, Sergiy Kyslytsya had visited Israel as part of a delegation invited by Erdan. On this morning,

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International, Middle East, USA

Ukraine Synagogues Prepare for Tense Shabbat Under Heavy Security

By Hanan Greenwood (Israel Hayom via JNS) Ukraine’s Jewish communities are preparing for an unusually tense Shabbat, without knowing if they will be under Russian or Ukrainian rule when the Sabbath is over, or what the war will bring. Synagogues in the country were under heavy security for fear of looting and anti-Semitic attacks. “I

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International

Former Israeli Envoy: Russia Could Be Preparing New Challenge for West in Mediterranean

By Yaakov Lappin (JNS) Russia could be preparing an option to challenge the West and NATO in the Mediterranean and Middle East as a means of opening a new global hotspot, former Israeli Ambassador to Russia and Ukraine Zvi Magen has told JNS. Magen noted a large-scale naval and air exercise held by the Russian

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International, Middle East

‘The Voice of Silence:’ Captivating and Timely Reading on the Jewish Underground in the USSR

The Voice of Silence, The Story of the Jewish Underground in the USSR, Ephraim Kholmyansky, Boston: Academic Studies Press, 2021 284 pages; $22.63 (Paperback) By Toby Klein Greenwald In a frosty February of 1988, I took a short drive from my home in Efrat to Kibbutz Rosh Tzurim, in Gush Etzion. There was a special

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Toby Klein Greenwald

Jewish Federation Provides Update on Russian Invasion of Ukraine

SAN DIEGO — On Thursday, Heidi Gantwerk, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of San Diego County, and Jack Maizel, the Federation’s board chair, released the following update on the Russian invasion of Ukraine: “Through our global partners, Jewish Federation of San Diego County is closely monitoring the Russian invasion of Ukraine. We are

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International, San Diego County