News

Proteins, diseases and current research topic for Brandeis

Melissa Kosinski-Collins, Ph.D.Melissa Kosinski-Collins, Ph.D.

Melissa Kosinski-Collins, Ph.D., associate professor of biology at Brandeis University, will speak on “When Good Proteins Go Bad” at a University on Wheels break­fast cosponsored by the Tucson Chapter of the Brandeis National Committee and the Tucson Jewish Community Center on Jan. 8 from 9 to 11 a.m. at… Read more »

Young leaders’ party to sparkle, benefit teens

Adam and Dana Goldstein at Hava Tequila 2014Adam and Dana Goldstein at Hava Tequila 2014

“Sequins & Bowties” will be the theme for Hava Tequila, the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona Young Leadership’s annual party. The Jan. 10 event, for ages 21 and over, will include a DJ, dancing, photo booth, dessert bar and signature drinks. “We are building on last year’s success while… Read more »

Foundation grant applications now online

The Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona has made its three 2015 requests for proposals open to the public. Visit www.jcftucson.org/grant-opportunities to learn about what grants are available, eligibility, funding priorities, and documentation and submission instructions. The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is partnering with the Foundation to fund… Read more »

Young artists portray Joseph’s ‘Dreamcoat,’ win tickets

“Joseph and His Coat of Many Colors” by Haya Gibly, age 9"Joseph and His Coat of Many Colors" by Haya Gibly, age 9

An independent panel of judges has chosen the winners of the Arizona Jewish Post’s “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” art contest, in partnership with Broadway in Tucson. The winners each receive a pair of tickets to the show’s opening night on Jan. 7 at UA Centennial Hall. The… Read more »

Issues of identity at forefront in Tucson Jewish film festival

Lacey Schwart’z film “Little White Lie” tells of her discovery in adulthood that her father was black. (JTA)Lacey Schwart'z film "Little White Lie" tells of her discovery in adulthood that her father was black. (JTA)

The Tucson International Jewish Film Festival, featuring several international award-winning films, Arizona premieres, and special guests, will run Jan. 15-24, 2015. Now in its 24th year, the TIJFF is one of the longest running Jewish film festivals in the country. This year, it will include 19 films over nine… Read more »

Tucson doctor’s specialty is a global calling

Tucsonan Kenneth V. Iserson. M.D., a specialist in emergency medicine, with a newborn under an improvised inclubator in Zambia.Tucsonan Kenneth V. Iserson. M.D., a specialist in emergency medicine, with a newborn under an improvised inclubator in Zambia.

Kenneth V. Iserson, M.D., is a doctor, so he’s expected to help people — but he’s also a humanitarian pioneer. “I’m one of the grandfathers of emergency medicine,” Iserson, home from a two-month stint teaching doctors in Argentina, told the AJP. “I completed the first residency in emergency medicine… Read more »

Gross’ release, and changes in diplomatic ties, signals new day for Cuban Jews

Alan Gross, freed from a Cuban prison earlier in the day, waves after concluding his remarks with his wife, Judy, at a news conference in Washington shortly after arriving in the United States, Dec. 1Alan Gross, freed from a Cuban prison earlier in the day, waves after concluding his remarks with his wife, Judy, at a news conference in Washington shortly after arriving in the United States, Dec. 17, 2014. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON (JTA) – Alan Gross was imprisoned while trying to connect Cuba’s isolated Jewish community to the wider world. The deal that got him released five years later may do just that and much more. Gross’ flight home to suburban Washington on Wednesday with his wife, Judy, was part… Read more »

Will U.S. Jewish groups pivot left if Herzog wins?

Labor Party leader Isaac Herzog speaking in the Knesset in Jerusalem at a memorial ceremony for Yitzhak Rabin, Nov. 5, 2014. Herzog is faring well in the polls since new elections were called in DecemLabor Party leader Isaac Herzog speaking in the Knesset in Jerusalem at a memorial ceremony for Yitzhak Rabin, Nov. 5, 2014. Herzog is faring well in the polls since new elections were called in December. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

WASHINGTON (JTA) – Come early next year, there might be yet another world capital that opposes Israeli settlement expansion and sees Benjamin Netanyahu as principally responsible for Israel’s isolation: Jerusalem. Isaac Herzog, the Labor Party leader, is faring well in the polls since Netanyahu called for new elections earlier… Read more »

Highlighting campus sexual assault, Jewish groups have taken a lead

Jake Rubin, the director of the University of Virginia Hillel, on Dec. 4, 2014 in front of the Hillel building in the vRugby Road neighborhood of Charlottesville, Va. (Ron Kampeas)Jake Rubin, the director of the University of Virginia Hillel, on Dec. 4, 2014 in front of the Hillel building in the vRugby Road neighborhood of Charlottesville, Va. (Ron Kampeas)

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (JTA) – Jewish campus groups were ready for the painful national dialogue that took place in the wake of murky rape allegations at the University of Virginia. That’s because organizations like Hillel and historically Jewish Greek houses such as Alpha Epsilon Pi, Zeta Beta Tau and Sigma… Read more »

Is she Jewish? Rabbinate says yes, Israel says no

TEL AVIV (JTA) — In 2012, Anna Varsanyi was married in an Orthodox Jewish ceremony conducted through Israel’s Chief Rabbinate. Two years later, the Hungarian immigrant has made a life in Israel, settling with her husband in the central city of Modiin and working a desk job in a… Read more »

For Americans aiding Israeli soldiers, rules of engagement vary

Yashar Lachayal’s Leon Blankrot, in black, handing out aid packages with cold-weather gear to an all-Druze Israeli army unit, Nov. 28, 2014. (Courtesy Yashar Lachayal)Yashar Lachayal's Leon Blankrot, in black, handing out aid packages with cold-weather gear to an all-Druze Israeli army unit, Nov. 28, 2014. (Courtesy Yashar Lachayal)

(JTA) — When the season’s first snowstorm descended on Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights a few weeks ago, it didn’t take long before M, a career sergeant in the Israel Defense Forces, received a phone call from Leon Blankrot. “What do you need to keep warm?” asked Blankrot,… Read more »

Is Livni’s move to team with Labor one of principle or opportunism?

Hatnua leader Tzipi Livni has joined forces with Isaac Herzog of Labor to form a joint slate in the upcoming Israeli elections. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)Hatnua leader Tzipi Livni has joined forces with Isaac Herzog of Labor to form a joint slate in the upcoming Israeli elections. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

TEL AVIV (JTA) — In the latest episode of the satirical show “State of the Nation,” the zingers aimed at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu weren’t coming from the comedians. Tzipi Livni, who until last month was Netanyahu’s justice minister, called the prime minister a “zero” on the program… Read more »

In Lugansk, an icy Ukraine winter tests a war-torn community

Members of the Lugansk Jewish community standing in front of their synagogue’s Torah ark, Dec. 11, 2014. (Cnaan Liphshiz)Members of the Lugansk Jewish community standing in front of their synagogue's Torah ark, Dec. 11, 2014. (Cnaan Liphshiz)

LUGANSK, Ukraine (JTA) — In an unheated synagogue with no running water, a dozen Jews are trying to keep warm as temperatures here veer toward the single digits. Not moving too much helps keep the warmth under their thick coats, they say, a technique developed as the group gathered… Read more »

Female rabbis at forefront of pioneering prayer communities

Rabbi Rachel Nussbaum, Kavana (Andy Ahlstrom)Rabbi Rachel Nussbaum, Kavana (Andy Ahlstrom)

LOS ANGELES (JTA) — A decade ago in Los Angeles, two organizations opened their doors with a call to prayer — or they would have if they had any doors to open. Ikar, led by Rabbi Sharon Brous, and Nashuva, led by Rabbi Naomi Levy, were conceived separately. But… Read more »

Knife attack at Chabad headquarters in New York raises security questions

Chabad-Lubavitch Jewish men during prayer at 770 Eastern Parkway, the headquarters of Chabad in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, N.Y., Sept. 24, 2013. (Mendy Hechtman/FLASH90)Chabad-Lubavitch Jewish men during prayer at 770 Eastern Parkway, the headquarters of Chabad in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, N.Y., Sept. 24, 2013. (Mendy Hechtman/FLASH90)

NEW YORK (The Jewish Week via JTA) — Just three weeks after terrorists killed four worshippers in a Jerusalem synagogue, a man entered a Brooklyn shul and stabbed a 22-year-old Israeli student. New York police officers fatally shot the 49-year-old assailant, who reportedly shouted “Kill the Jews.” At a… Read more »

Op-Ed: Heaven save us from a holy war

This week we have learned that Adam Everett Livvix, a 30-year-old from Texas, was arrested in Israel for allegedly plotting to attack the Dome of the Rock with explosives. Thanks to the collaboration between Israeli security agencies and the FBI, an incident of colossal implications was prevented. The Palestinians,… Read more »

Israeli group aims to help Arabs — and contain them

LOD, Israel (JTA) — He says he’s a leader of a “Zionist settlement” movement, but Raz Sofer’s home is no West Bank outpost. Sofer, 25, is the manager of a 100-member student village in this mixed Jewish-Arab city in central Israel. The village, comprised of several apartment complexes, offers… Read more »

Under Israel-friendly Ashton Carter, no major shift expected at Pentagon

Ashton Carter, at podium, delivering remarks at the White House after being nominated by President Barack Obama to be the next defense secretary, Dec. 5, 2014. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)Ashton Carter, at podium, delivering remarks at the White House after being nominated by President Barack Obama to be the next defense secretary, Dec. 5, 2014. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON (JTA) – Ashton Carter has championed the sale to Israel of state-of-the-art combat aircraft, has aligned himself with Iran hawks and was observed becoming misty-eyed when serenaded by Israeli soldiers. Carter, 60, President Obama’s secretary of defense nominee, has been depicted in the media as the un-Chuck Hagel:… Read more »

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