Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday he hoped peace talks with Israel would restart this year although the chances of a resumption seemed slim. Abbas made his comments during a meeting in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said Russia would do all it could to promote peace in the region. “We… hope…
Pope Francis returned on Thursday to the Church-run residence where he was staying before becoming pontiff, and insisted on paying the bill, despite now effectively being in charge of the business, the Vatican said. The morning after his election, Francis asked a driver to take him to the clerics’ hotel, the Domus Internationalis Paulus VI,…
After nearly four years of often testy relations with Benjamin Netanyahu, President Barack Obama is about to try a different tack – going over the head of Israel’s prime minister and appealing directly to the Israeli people. Obama’s first presidential visit to Israel next week, while certainly including meetings with Netanyahu, will focus heavily on…
Yityish Aynaw, the first Miss Israel of Ethiopian descent, has been invited to meet President Obama at a dinner hosted by President Shimon Peres. Aynaw, 21, who was crowned two weeks ago, reportedly was invited at the behest of Obama’s advance team, which is currently in Israel putting the finishing touches on plans for next…
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu clinched deals for a coalition government on Thursday reflecting a shift to the centre in Israel and a domestic agenda that has shunted peacemaking with Palestinians to the sidelines. In control of 68 of parliament’s 120 seats, the right-wing leader’s new administration is expected to take office next week, just days…
World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder congratulated Cardinal Jorge María Bergoglio, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, on his election as Pope Francis I on Wednesday. “Pope Francis I is no stranger to us. In recent years he attended many inter-faith events co-organized by the WJC and our regional affiliate, the Latin American Jewish Congress,” he…
Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the Argentinian cardinal who was elected pope late Wednesday and will take the name Francis I, is said to have a good relationship with Argentinian Jews. Bergoglio, 76, a Jesuit, was the choice of the College of Cardinals following two days of voting in Vatican City. He is the first pope to…
Cigarette in one hand and cup of tea in the other, Matisyahu sat down with JTA in his closet-sized dressing room during his European tour to talk about his life, his music, how he’s raising his kids, and the recent changes in his religious outlook and physical appearance. The beatboxing reggae star once known for…
The first Latin American pope, Argentina’s Jorge Bergoglio is a moderate known for his strong negotiating skills as well as a readiness to challenge powerful interests. He is a modest man from a middle class family who is content to travel by bus. Described by his biographer as a balancing force, Bergoglio, 76, has monk-like…
The hunt is on for a rabbi to lead one of the Reform movement’s most prominent congregations. Rabbi Peter Rubinstein informed congregants of Manhattan’s Central Synagogue that he will step down from his post as senior rabbi at the end of June, 2014. “What will be a 23-year season of my rabbinate at Central Synagogue…
Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina was elected in a surprise choice to be the new leader of the troubled Roman Catholic Church on Wednesday, the first non-European pontiff in nearly 1,300 years, and said he would take the name Francis I. Pope Francis, 76, appeared on the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica just over…
