Opinion

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is talking tough. And Israel and the United States don’t seem to mind too much — or else think their best option at this point is to grin and bear it. Abbas used his Sept. 26 speech to the United Nations… Read more »

The good news is that Israelis are still willing to sit down and talk with the Palestinians. The Peace Index, a monthly survey run by the Israel Democracy Institute and Tel Aviv University, has just found out that “the rate of those who favor renewing the talks (50 percent)… Read more »

Lora Stern Druker wrote this essay in August 2014. I live in Israel. I’ve lived here for over 30 years. I first set foot in Israel when, as a teenager, I joined with a group of Jewish youth from all over the United States to visit Israel. Our journey of… Read more »

SALEM, Mass. (JTA) — Every fall, Jewish teens arrive on college campuses unprepared, uninformed and unable to cope with the hostility and antagonism against Israel and Jews that they find there. While Birthright Israel does a commendable job of bolstering Jewish student pride and community, the program could have… Read more »

In situations as complex as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which often seem insoluble, one sometimes envies the ancient Greeks, who invented deus ex machina — that artificial device that solved the entanglement of the dramatic plot. No wonder, then, that many in Israel cheered recently when Israel Army Radio announced… Read more »

I very much enjoyed the special supplement about past, present and future perspectives from members of our Southern Arizona Jewish community in the Sept. 12 edition. All were interesting, but more importantly, reassuring about our community’s future. However, my favorite was Roberta Bracker’s story. Much has to do with… Read more »

Submerged cars on a Manhattan street following a tidal surge caused by Hurricane Sandy, Oct. 30, 2012. (Christos Pathiakis/Getty Images)

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Two days before the U.N. Climate Summit, demonstrators, including a large multi-faith contingent — will descend on New York City to demand urgent action on climate change. The People’s Climate March, which coincided with the week of the U.N. General Assembly, was billed as the largest climate march in history. Sunday’s event notably took place in… Read more »

(JTA) — I recently attended a farewell party for someone switching jobs from one Jewish organization to another. Among many accolades, one person giving a toast said, “While we are sorry to lose him, at least he is still committed to working in the Jewish world.” While I appreciate… Read more »

Iranian President Hassab Rouhani, left, meeting with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 26, 2013. (Andrew Burton/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (JTA) — The circus is coming to town. No, there won’t be marching elephants, lion tamers or motorcycles jumping through rings of fire. But there may be wolves in sheep’s clothing, tightrope walking and motorcades blocking traffic. We’re talking, of course, about the United Nations General Assembly,… Read more »

For the past several years, and again this year, I have been honored to be chosen to read the Torah in my synagogue on the first day of Rosh Hashanah – and each year I struggle with the troubling text and try to figure out what it is saying… Read more »

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and President Barack Obama meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., March 3, 2014. (Andrew Harper-Pool/Getty Images)

(JTA) – All is not well in the U.S.-Israel relationship. Somehow, the 50 days of fighting between Israel and Hamas frayed ties between Washington and Jerusalem. How did this happen? In part, the contretemps stems from the divergent ways that the Israeli and U.S. administrations view the Gaza war.… Read more »

Now that the guns have fallen silent, leaders of Israel and Hamas are busy trying to convince their respective peoples that they emerged victorious from this 50-day war. On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon and Chief of Staff of the IDF Gen. Benny Ganz… Read more »

Regarding “Tucsonans of many faiths join in prayers for Mideast peace at Temple Emanu-El” (AJP 8/15/14), I, too was stunned by the imam’s tirade. Had I been there, I would have also walked out in protest. Calling Gaza a concentration camp before people who knew a lot better than… Read more »

Regarding “Tucsonans of many faiths join in prayers for Mideast peace at Temple Emanu-El” (AJP, 8/15/14), I read with attention this important article, and Oshrat Barel’s feelings of empathy and compassion toward all victims, and her statement about “blind hatred.” I wrote the following: Anguish. I just feel anguish.… Read more »

There is much craziness revolving around the war between Israel and Hamas. It appears that one of the key strategic objectives of Hamas is to grow anti-Semitism worldwide … and they are succeeding. And it is a shame as more and more wrongly informed Americans, as well as citizens… Read more »

For years, Israel has been trying to convince the West that it is the first line of defense against radical Islam, and that if Muslim extremists are not checked in their home territory, they might sooner or later export their brutality. These arguments were usually dismissed, with the UK… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — With the new school year nearly upon us, Jewish educational leaders are scrambling to prepare their teachers to discuss this summer’s Gaza War. The most pressing challenge is to design age-appropriate conversations: At which grade level might classroom discussions include potentially frightening topics, such as… Read more »

“Right now, the peace talks are based on only one thing, only on peace talks. It makes no sense at this point to talk about the most contractible issue. It’s Jerusalem or bust, or right of return or bust. That has led to failure and is likely to lead… Read more »

In the Paris suburb of Sarcelles, pro-Palestinian rioters broke shope windows and set fires, July 20, 2014. (Cnaan Lihpshiz)

NEW YORK (JTA) — The conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza is spilling over into Europe, where in the past several weeks, Jewish communities have witnessed a chilling display of anti-Semitism, the likes of which has not been seen in many years. European governments need to act decisively… Read more »

Lisa Silverman with her chiildren (L-R), Yael, Jonah, Talia and Ruth Levin, in Modi'in, Israel (Ingrid Muller)

“Some days will be hard, but hope will prevail” were the words to a song on the radio as I headed home to Modi’in on July 17. So many thoughts, feelings, associations have been cascading through me ...… Read more »