News

Secular protesters march against Islamism in Tunis ahead of the Oct. 24 elections in Tunisia, Oct. 14, 2011. The placard reads "Free to speak to say nothing." (Houda Trablesi for Maghrebia, via Creative Commons)

WASHINGTON (JTA) — It was an orderly, peaceful election — a rarity in the Arab world. And it was won by Islamists. How observers view the Tunisian elections and what they mean for the West, Israel and the North African country’s tiny Jewish community depends in part on which… Read more »

Untitled 1968 lithograph by Marc Chagall

“Flight: Mid-Century Masters Interpret the Escape for Survival,” an art exhibit that includes pieces by Marc Chagall and Joan Miró, is on display at the Tucson Jewish Community Center until Dec. 4. The exhibit is presented by the International Rescue Committee in Tucson, in partnership with the JCC. The… Read more »

Richard H. Carmona, M.D., the 17th surgeon general of the United States, will be the keynote speaker at the seventh annual CHAI Circle (Cancer, Healing and Inspiration) retreat. The retreat will take place on Sunday, Nov. 6, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Canyon Ranch, 8600 E. Rockcliff… Read more »

Temple Emanu-El Women of Reform Judaism will present an evening with comedian Keith Barany on Saturday, Nov. 5. Barany calls himself a “clean comic” who proves that comedians can be tasteful and hilarious without being corny; his website is pg-comedy.com. He currently contributes to “The Jimmy Kimmel Show,” was… Read more »

The Young Women’s Cabinet of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona will present “Hot Looks for Hanukkah” at Fringe at La Encantada on Thursday, Nov. 17, from 7 to 9 p.m. Fringe managing director Jessica Baylon and staff will share make-up application tips and hairstyle techniques. The event will… Read more »

The Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona will present a “Medicare, Social Security and Disability Seminar” on Thursday, Nov. 3, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Speakers are Janet Davis, an income, estate and gift tax financial planner; Brian Clymer, an attorney who represents… Read more »

Nan Rubin

The Secular Humanist Jewish Circle will sponsor a lecture by Nan Rubin on “Mussar, an Ethical Approach to Daily Life” on Saturday, Nov. 19, from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at the Dusenberry-River Library, 5605 East River Road (Craycroft and River). Rubin, a licensed clinical social worker, has been engaged… Read more »

Nancy Mellan

As Jewish wom­en, we come from a tradition that honors our role in home, family and community. In the Eshet Chayil Shabbat blessing recited by husbands to their wives, we are honored: “A good woman, who can find. She reaches her hand out to those in need. She is… Read more »

The Arizona Center for Judaic Studies at the University of Arizona will present a symposium on “The U.S.-Israel Relationship: On the Verge of a Paradigmatic Shift?” on Wednesday, Nov. 9, from 1 to 9 p.m. The event, with experts from the East and West Coasts and the UA, will… Read more »

U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Cecil D. Haney (left) presents U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Jonathan E. Lowe with the Lance P. Sijan Leadership Senior Officer of the Year Award for all of Strategic Command on Sept. 18, 2011. Haney is deputy commander for U.S. Strategic Command, encompassing army, navy, air force and marines, at Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha, Neb. (Courtesy Anne Lowe)

Even if some Jewish servicemen and women haven’t celebrated Passover in years, attending a Seder thousands of miles from home can be a source of comfort. Several Tucson mothers of Jewish servicemen have found their own ways to honor their offspring, while extending tzedakah to other Jewish members of… Read more »

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (P.K.Weis/southwest photobank.com)

Tucson Hebrew Academy will honor Rep. Gabrielle Giffords with its 2011 Tikkun Olam Award on Sunday, Nov. 6. The Jewish concept of tikkun olam (repairing the world) is a call for all to do their part to make the world a better place, both through public service and by… Read more »

Regina Gutman and Sam Spiegel wed under a chuppah at the Foehrenwald displaced persons camp in 1946. (Courtesy United States Holocaust Memorial Museum)

Regina Spiegel, a Holocaust survivor from Radom, Poland, currently living in Washington, D.C., will discuss her experiences in ghettos, forced labor and concentration camps, including Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen, on Sunday, Oct. 30, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. The program, “Literature and Testimony,” presented by the Coalition for Jewish Education… Read more »

Unveiling of the monument on Chaplains Hill in Arlington National Cemetary to 14 Jewish chaplains who died in service to the United States during World War II, the early years of the Cold War and in Southeast Asia. (Karen Wendkos)

ARLINGTON, Va. (JTA) — Fourteen Jewish military chaplains who gave their lives in service to their country finally have a place of honor in Arlington National Cemetery. Family members of the fallen chaplains were joined Monday by community leaders, politicians, and current and retired military personnel for a ceremony… Read more »

In this undated photo David Gerbi poses in front of Sla dar Bishi, the synagogue in Tripoli that he hopes to renovate. Gerbi, an Italian Jew born in Libya, played a central role in 2002 in the rapprochement between Moammar Gadhafi and Libyan Jews. (Courtesy David Gerbi)

WASHINGTON (JTA) – Now it can be told: For the last decade or so, the Jews had secret back channels to Moammar Gadhafi. What led the pro-Israel community into a careful relationship with Gadhafi 10 years ago were considerations of U.S. national interests, Israel’s security needs and the claims… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — In her final months as a political science major at the University of Pittsburgh, Susanna Zlotnikov had a positive outlook about landing a job. But as the months passed and her network of contacts led only to dead ends, Zlotnikov decided she needed a backup.… Read more »

Israeli President Shimon Peres visiting Gilad Shalit at the Shalit family home in the northern Israeli town of Mitzpe Hila, Oct. 24, 2011. (Ziv Binyonski/Flash 90)

JERUSALEM (JTA) — A week after Gilad Shalit returned to Israel after being held in captivity for more than five years in Gaza, things were getting back to normal at the Shalit family home — sort of. The Israel Police said they would remove a barrier placed in front… Read more »

ROME (JTA) — Auschwitz,  the most notorious camp in the Nazi killing machine, may soon claim success in its campaign to preserve the legacy of the Holocaust. The foundation supporting the site in southern Poland has attracted tens of millions of dollars from donor countries, and the camp’s barracks… Read more »

An Occupy Wall Street protestor who says his name is David Smith holds a sign in Zuccotti Park in New York that offers an overtly anti-Jewish message, Oct. 11­. (neolibertariannet via YouTube)

NEW YORK (JTA) — The most unloved man in Zuccotti Park, the epicenter of the Occupy Wall Street protests, isn’t a Wall Street banker but a fellow who wears a baseball cap and carries signs denouncing “Jewish bankers.” The man, who told Slate his name is David Smith, comes… Read more »

Rep. Kay granger, the chairwoman of the foreign operations subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, greets Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at a subcommittee hearing while Rep. Nita Lowey, the subcommittee's senior Democrat, looks on, March 11, 2011. (Courtesy office of rep. Kay Granger)

WASHINGTON (JTA) — In any other town at any other time they would be a boring, if worthy, pair: Wonkish grandmothers sorting through nitty-gritty foreign policy and budgetary details to keep their country influential and safe. But in Washington at a time of intense partisan rancor, the friendly and… Read more »

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Iran watchers say the revelation of an alleged plot to hire Mexican contract killers to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to Washington signals the Iranian regime’s deepening radicalization. It also underscores the urgency of the threat posed by Tehran’s nuclear plans, they say. “We need to… Read more »