(JTA) — Did we need the Pew Research Center to tell us American haredim are different than other Jews? It’s no surprise that American haredi Orthodox Jews marry young, have big families, care more about religion and skew further right politically than the rest of the American Jewish community. But when compared with similar data from…
Poland appealed to World War Two buffs and rail enthusiasts on Thursday to stop searching for a Nazi German train believed to have lain undiscovered for 70 years in the southwest of the country and rumored to carry valuable treasures. Authorities say they believe they have located the train in the county of Walbrzych, tipped…
Rejecting the Iran nuclear deal would lead to diplomatic isolation for the United States and significantly undermine Washington’s ability to achieve other foreign policy goals, the U.S. envoy to the United Nations said on Thursday. In an article published on the Politico website, U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said diplomats from the 193 member states of…
A cafe in Shanghai that was a popular meeting place for Jewish refugees during World War II has reopened. The Zum Weissag Rossi’l Cafe, or White Horse Cafe, originally opened in 1939. It opened again in a ceremony Wednesday after being rebuilt, according to the news website Shanghaiist. “A lot of people visited, Jewish people…
Israeli-Argentinean conductor Daniel Barenboim is negotiating with Iran to conduct a concert of a top German orchestra in the Iranian capital of Tehran. Barenboim conducts the Staatskapelle Berlin at the Berlin State Opera, and has the State Opera’s endorsement to negotiate the concert, as well as that of German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, according to…
Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush is reportedly gathering a group of Jewish leaders to support his campaign. According to the website Jewish Insider, the so-called “National Jewish Leadership Team” will comprise Jewish leaders and prominent donors who have endorsed the former Florida governor. The team is being put together by Republican fundraiser Lisa Spies, who…
Eleven former Democratic Jewish congressmen signed a letter supporting the agreement over Iran’s nuclear program. The letter backing the deal, released Thursday, touted the signers’ pro-Israel bona fides, and said the agreement “halts the immediate threat of a nuclear-armed Iran.” Congressional rejection of the deal, the letter warned, would “put Iran back on the path…
Nepal’s Supreme Court has issued an injunction to stop women from carrying surrogate pregnancies, depriving Israel same-sex couples of the option to begin the pregnancies there. The injunction, issued this week, came as the court will rule on a petition to ban the process outright in Nepal. The petition argues that surrogacy exploits poor women’s…
Vice President Joe Biden will meet with American Jewish leaders in Florida to make the case for the Iran nuclear deal. Biden, who is pondering a campaign for the Democratic nomination in the 2016 presidential election, will appear at a small roundtable event in Miami on Sept. 3, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. Florida…
President Mahmoud Abbas is acting to shake up Palestinian politics with peace talks with Israel in deep freeze and unity efforts with Hamas Islamists who run the Gaza Strip stalled. In power for more than a decade, and facing a mounting challenge to his stewardship, Abbas, 80, resigned last week as chairman of the Palestine…
A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip struck southern Israel on Thursday, causing no casualties, the Israeli army said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the nighttime attack. Salafi Jihadist groups that are proponents of global holy war endorsed by al Qaeda have claimed most of the sporadic rocket strikes on Israel from…
