The literary writers’ group PEN American Center is refusing to drop Israeli government sponsorship from its annual festival, despite calls by dozens of members to do so. According to a news release issued Tuesday by Adalah-NY, a group that supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel, more than 100 writers signed onto a…
(JTA) — Here’s a riddle: If a transgender Jew shows up at an Orthodox synagogue, on which side of the mechitzah barrier separating the sexes should the person be seated? That’s an easy one compared to more complex Jewish legal questions raised by people who don’t identify as the gender suggested by their physical anatomy…
Bernie Sanders says he is an ardent supporter of Israel but if he becomes President of the United States, he would demand the Jewish state stop the expansion of settlements in the West Bank, halt “indiscriminate” attacks on Palestinian civilians — and strive for peace. Sanders’ remarks came in a wide-ranging talk with the pro-Israel…
WASHINGTON – The ethics committee of the U.S. House of Representatives said on Tuesday it would continue to investigate possible conflicts of interest by Representative Alan Grayson, a Florida Democrat and liberal firebrand running for the Senate seat soon to be vacated by Marco Rubio. The possible conflicts of interest relate to Grayson’s roles as…
WASHINGTON – A moderate Republican senator heaped praise on President Barack Obama’s U.S. Supreme Court nominee on Tuesday, bucking Senate Republican leaders who promptly dismissed her call for confirmation hearings. Susan Collins of Maine became only the second Republican senator to meet with Merrick Garland since Obama nominated the centrist appellate judge last month to…
A Florida teenager of killing a Brooklyn rabbi in Florida can remain out of jail on bail through the end of his murder trial, a judge ruled. Prosecutors did not provide enough evidence to keep Deandre Edwin Charles, 15, behind bars before the start of his trial, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Jason Bloch ruled last week….
WASHINGTON – Casino magnate Sheldon Adelson’s bid to reinstate a defamation lawsuit against the National Jewish Democratic Council and two of its formal principals had a hearing in Nevada Supreme Court. The hearing Monday was the third legal venue for the case since Adelson first sued the NJDC in 2012. A federal appeals court directed the…
JERUSALEM — The Israeli soldier who shot and killed a downed Palestinian assailant reportedly told a military appeals court that he could have been dead rather than in court if the attacker had been wired with explosives. “My hands were full of my comrade’s blood. I was enraged. In a split second I decided to…
An American writer’s group will keep the Israeli embassy as a sponsor of its literature festival, despite calls by writers to drop the endorsement. Over 100 writers, including Pulitzer Prize winners Junot Díaz, Richard Ford, and Alice Walker, were among those who signed the message, sent last week to PEN American Center by pro-BDS organization…
The Edinburgh University Students’ Association passed a motion backing a Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions resolution against Israel. The nonbinding motion passed Thursday by a vote of 249 to 153, with 22 abstentions, the London-based Jewish Chronicle reported. It calls on the university “to target products, companies and institutions that profit from or are implicated in,…
A state-funded Russian television network pulled offline a video that ridiculed the air travel restrictions of some Orthodox Jews. On Tuesday, Russia Today, or RT, removed the 44-second video it produced following critical questions by the Hebrew-language news website nrg.co.il, the site reported. The video featured a slideshow of images and newspaper articles from recent…
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