Most native New Yorkers go to extreme lengths to avoid Times Square, but for one young Hasidic couple this weekend, the iconic tourist trap became the site of a dream come true. Both the bride and groom hail from prominent rabbinic dynasties — Hadassa Halperin of Toronto is a 20-year-old relative of the Lubavitcher Rebbe…
(JTA) — A former chief rabbi of Israel, Eliyahu Bakshi-Doron, was convicted of issuing fake rabbinic credentials to 1,500 police and security services employees, who used them to apply for pay raises. Bakshi-Doron was found guilty in Jerusalem District Court of fraud, falsifying documents and breach of trust on Monday. Sentencing has not yet been set. Bakshi-Doron, 76, was…
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman of Ukraine met with Israeli officials, including his counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, after an earlier visit was canceled over Ukraine’s support of a United Nations resolution condemning settlements. Groysman, his nation’s first Jewish prime minister, met Monday with Netanyahu in Jerusalem. They are the only Jewish prime ministers in the…
The recent dispute between the Israeli government and U.S. officials preparing President Trump’s upcoming foreign tour has irked even one of Trump’s staunchest supporters in the Jewish world. “I said a few weeks ago that we’ve gone from the most anti-Israeli president, Obama, to Donald Trump, the most pro-Israeli president, but I think I spoke…
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Reported remarks by a Trump administration official rejecting Israel’s claim to the Western Wall were “unauthorized” and do not represent the position of President Donald Trump, the White House said. “The comments about the Western Wall were not authorized communication and they do not represent the position of the United States and…
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Benjamin Netanyahu’s office responded to a tweet by a Fox News correspondent which asserted that the Israeli prime minister asked President Donald Trump not to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. “The claims posted by a Fox News correspondent are false,” read the statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, which then went on…
Surveillance video shows three young people running away from the area near Beth Hamedrash Hagodol synagogue around the time that the historic Manhattan building caught fire on Sunday night. In the footage, “We see kids running from the area — we don’t know if they were inside, we don’t know if they were responsible for…
White nationalist Richard Spencer led a large group of demonstrators carrying torches and chanting “You will not replace us” on Saturday in Charlottesville, Virginia, protesting plans to remove a Confederate monument in a city park. “I’m here to take part in this great celebration of our heritage and to say ‘no’ to the city of…
The Northwestern University chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine is hosting the Palestinian activist Rasmea Odeh — sparking a protest by Hillel that has been joined by the school’s J Street U chapter. The Monday SJP event in titled “When They Come for Rasmea Odeh, They Come for All of Us” and organizers say…
A small, spinning toy is currently stumping Israeli linguists. The fidget spinner, a three-pronged device that has captured the hearts — and hands — of children worldwide, has yet to be given a Hebrew name, The Times of Israel reports. Scholars at The Academy of the Hebrew Language have turned their puzzlement into a social…
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Clashes broke out near Ramallah between Palestinians marking Nakba Day, referring to their perception of Israel’s founding as a catastrophe, and Israeli troops. Eleven Palestinians were injured Monday in the fighting at a checkpoint near the seat of the Palestinian Authority after Israeli soldiers fired rubber bullets and used other riot control measures in response…
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