Yearly Archives 2019

(JTA) — Alan Dershowitz is at the ready for more writing — and he already knows what he writes is flying off the virtual bookshelves. Dershowitz is selling special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on his investigation with an introduction by, you guessed it, the outspoken Harvard law professor himself.… Read more »

(JTA) — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas arrived in New York City to assume the chairmanship of a major bloc of developing countries at the United Nations. Abbas on Tuesday will succeed Egypt as the leader of the Group of 77. He is scheduled to address the General Assembly,… Read more »

(JTA) — The Vatican secret archive relating to controversial Holocaust-era Pope Pius XII will be opened next year. Pope Francis made the announcement at an audience with managers and staff of the Vatican Archives. In a decision made public Monday, he said the archives would be opened on March… Read more »

WASHINGTON (JTA) — A resolution advanced by the Democratic leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives condemns anti-Semitism in the wake of controversial remarks by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., who has said that domestic support for Israel amounts to “allegiance to a foreign country.” It does not name her,… Read more »

(JTA) — John Hickenlooper is the latest Democrat who thinks he can win back the White House in 2020. The former Colorado governor and self-described “extreme moderate” announced his candidacy on Monday and is holding his first campaign rally this week. “Ultimately I’m running for president because I believe… Read more »

(JTA) — The mayor of the Belgian city whose annual parade featured puppets of Jews and a rat atop money bags defended the display, telling the local media that “In Aalst it should be allowed.” Mayor Christoph D’Haese defended Sunday’s float at the Aalst Carnaval from passionate condemnations by… Read more »

(JTA) — Jews are rarely central to peacetime domestic British politics. But on Feb. 18, Jewishness appeared front and center at Westminster when seven members of Parliament left the Labour Party, citing its inability to effectively oppose an unworkable Brexit and its apparent unwillingness to confront anti-Semitism. Some of… Read more »

(JTA) — It is jarring to see a Star of David placed between the Hebrew transliteration of the words Bergen-Belsen, the notorious Nazi concentration camp where 37,000 Jews, including Anne Frank, were murdered – and on a marriage contract, no less. But there it was, a small bureaucratic form,… Read more »

(JTA) — U.S. President Donald Trump, who left Vietnam Thursday after failing to reach a deal on denuclearization with North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un, said he believes Kim was not aware that American Jewish college student Otto Warmbier was in such bad shape. Warmbier was detained in the country… Read more »

(JTA) — A French rabbi says half of his regular congregants have left his city because of anti-Semitism. “It’s a troubling phenomenon that began about 15 years ago,” Rabbi Nissim Sultan of Grenoble said in an interview Tuesday with the France Bleu Isère radio station. “I mean the departure… Read more »

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (JTA) — Argentina’s chief rabbi says he isn’t sure if the violent attack on him in his home was anti-Semitic. “It could have been a robbery or a political issue … I do not know if it was an anti-Semitic attack,” Gabriel Davidovich said Tuesday evening… Read more »

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be indicted for bribery, fraud and breach of trust in three separate cases, the first time a sitting prime minister will face criminal charges. Israel’s Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit announced on Thursday that he has decided to indict Prime Minister… Read more »

(JTA) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel told Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Wednesday that Israel will continue to act against Iran’s attempts to entrench militarily in Syria. Netanyahu shortened his trip and planned to return Wednesday night, the day of his meeting with Putin, reportedly… Read more »

LOS ANGELES (JTA) – It’s a story that would not sound too out of place in 2019: New York’s leading newspaper accuses the president of the United States of corruption and the latter sues the paper’s publisher for libel. Striking back, the publisher declares in an editorial that his… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — While looking at family photos, historian Pamela Nadell noticed how female relatives dressed differently with each generation. Her great-grandmother wore a high lace collar and covered her hair with a wig, like some Orthodox Jews. Her daughter’s go-to is a pair of skinny jeans. Nadell,… Read more »

(JTA) — Israel is the 10th healthiest country in the world — 54 spots ahead of the United States. The Bloomberg Healthiest Country Index, published Sunday, ranked 169 nations based on factors such as life expectancy and access to sanitation and medical care. Countries were penalized for tobacco use… Read more »

Learn more about what’s happening along the Arizona border with an informative trip south. The Ruth and Irving Olson Center for Jewish Life in the Northwest and Hadassah Southern Arizona will sponsor a bus journey to the border Tuesday, March 12. Stops will include Humane Border’s water station in… Read more »

The Special Abilities and Inclusion Initiative, in partnership with the Tucson Jewish Community Center, is offering a free daylong professional development opportunity next month through Matan, a New York-based organization. Matan advocates for the inclusion of diverse learners and educates Jewish leaders, educators, and communities, empowering them to create… Read more »

Not too long ago I was at Tucson Hebrew Academy doing a couple of guest presentations for the third, fourth, and fifth graders, and what unfolded while doing so was rather exciting. The topic was the Jewish view regarding the Moshiach (Messiah) and the Messianic era. Essentially, my goal… Read more »

Purim, which falls this year on March 21, is one of the most exciting holidays on the Jewish calendar, yet its signature food, hamantaschen, can be bland and disappointing. Pastry chef Paula Shoyer is on a mission to transform these triangle-shaped pastries from boring to tantalizing. The author of… Read more »