Jewish History

Amazonian Jews thrive in the depths of the rainforest

Unreachable by road, the city of Iquitos must be accessed by air or boat — yet the tiny Jewish community still imports clergy and exports a love of Israel By Rich Tenorio After their ancestors journeyed across an ocean from the edge of the Sahara to the center of the Amazon, their current numbers have

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International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Travel and Food

Chief Rabbinate and Vatican: reverse UNESCO decision

The annual meeting between the Chief Rabbinate of Israel and the Vatican ended Wednesday. This year’s meeting was focused on efforts to achieve peace in light of the rising amount of violence committed in the name of religion. The statement of the ‘Joint Commission of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel’s Delegation for Relations with the

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International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East

German court upholds “bookkeeper of Auschwitz” conviction

Karlsruhe, Germany (dpa) – A German federal court upheld on Monday the conviction of a 95-year-old man known as the “bookkeeper of Auschwitz” for being an accessory to the murder of 300,000 people, clearing the way for the trials of other elderly people who served at Nazi death camps. Oskar Groening had appealed his four-year

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International, Jewish History

Bnei Menashe teens visit Auschwitz

OSWIECIM, Poland (Press Release)– For the first time, five members of the northeastern Indian Bnei Menashe Jewish community, which claims descent from one of Israel’s lost tribes, visited Auschwitz last week as part of a trip for 12th-graders aimed at educating them about the horrors of the Nazi genocide against the Jewish people. “I feel more connected

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International, Jewish History, Middle East

Ice skater performance in Holocaust garb sparks social media outrage

Tel Aviv (dpa) – A video showing Russian ice skaters performing in concentration camp prisoner outfits was slammed as “grotesque” and “offensive” on various social media platforms on Sunday. Tatyana Navka, who’s married to Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, performed the piece based on the Italian movie Life is Beautiful on Saturday night on the

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International, Jewish History

Handwritten Anne Frank Poem Auctioned for $148,000

A poem handwritten by one of the Holocaust’s most famous victims, diarist Anne Frank, sold for 140,000 euros (roughly $148,000) on Wednesday at a Dutch auction house. The sum, which doesn’t include the auctioneer’s commission, greatly exceeded the expected sale price of 30,000 to 50,000 euros. Thijs Blankevoort, director of the Bubb Kuyper auction house

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Jewish History

‘Hugs and Knishes’ premieres on KPBS Dec. 4

SAN DIEGO (Press Release) — Hugs and Knishes: A Celebration of Our Jewish Foods and Traditions explores the rich history of Jewish food and its cultural impact on the community. The film visits a variety of Jewish homes, Ashkenazic and Sephardic, for anecdotes of Jewish life that represent a diverse cultural experience and demonstrate the

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Jewish History, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Akko Tower Wreck probably dates to early 19th century

AKKO, Israel (Press Release) — The Akko Tower Wreck has been playing tricks with researchers for over 50 years. The shipwreck was discovered during the first maritime archaeological survey conducted in Israel using remote sensing technology, in 1966, and bears the distinction of being the first shipwreck identified off the coast of Israel. But the

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International, Jewish History, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education

Peace in Palestine: Balfour Apology Is a Distraction

If love means never having to say you are sorry, then the renewed push for the U.K. to “atone” for the 1917 Balfour Declaration is yet another reminder of the bad blood between Israelis and Palestinians—and of how elusive peace remains. Today, on 99th anniversary of the letter, which endorsed “the establishment in Palestine of

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International, Jewish History, Middle East

Hamburg, in Germany, Celebrates a Somber, Progressive Jewish First

November 1, 2016: The Reform congregation in Hamburg of Germany has dedicated its very first Jewish Cemetery. The community’s section of the Ohlsdorf cemetery was inaugurated by Rabbi Moshe Navon, head of the Liberal Congregation in Bad Pyrmont, earlier this month. The inauguration was supported with $3,280 worth of gift for plantings at the area

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International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion