A federal judge ruled that a majority-Orthodox school board in the suburbs of New York City violated the Voting Rights Act and ordered it to adopt a new voting system before its next election in order to foster more equitable representation of the community’s Jewish, Black and Latino populations. In an almost total defeat for…
A judge in an Israeli court has ruled that Malka Leifer, a former school principal who has been accused of sexual abuse by former students, is fit to be extradited from Israel to Australia, where the alleged abuses occurred, after six years of extradition hearings. Leifer, 53, is set to stand trial in Australia on…
A vendor on the e-commerce site Etsy wanted to sell facemasks that said “NYC Strong” in Yiddish – but the final product said “NYC Crotch” instead. The vendor Tees Go Bling, based in Wyoming, offers dozens of glittery facemask designs for sale, including images of the American flag and the Disney logo, as well as…
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Commercial flights will not resume to Israel until mid-July at the earliest, according to the head of Ben Gurion Airport. Shmuel Zakaim, the airport’s managing director, told the Israeli news website Ynet that even when the flights eventually restart, the number of departing planes will remain low for now. “Social distancing regulations at…
(JTA) — Lawmakers from two House committees used Memorial Day weekend to call for the removal of gravestones from a military cemetery that are inscribed with Nazi symbols and sentiments. The four lawmakers sent the bipartisan request to Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie in a letter Sunday. Two tombstones among 140 for World War II…
The World Health Organization announced Monday that it was pausing studies in multiple countries of hydroxychloroquine after an analysis of thousands of Covid-19 patients treated with the drug found that it was associated with a higher risk of death. The drug — an antimalarial that is also used routinely to treat rheumatoid arthritis — has…
(JTA) — A school in the Hasidic village of Kiryas Joel in New York was ordered to close after it was found operating with hundreds of students in its building. Orange County said in a statement that officials visiting the school last week “found what appeared to be hundreds of students inside, not wearing personal…
RIO DE JANEIRO (JTA) — Brazilian Jewish groups slammed a German standup comedian who made a Holocaust joke followed by a Nazi salute during a performance in Sao Paulo in February. “On Christmas, we ask for a friend as a gift. Once I got it, but it only lasted a day. He escaped. He was…
(JTA) — About a dozen windows were smashed last week at a synagogue in Peoria, Illinois. The damage to Congregation Anshai Emeth, a Reform synagogue, took place between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning, local CBS affiliate WMBD reported. Many of the smashed windows were in the part of the building that houses the Peoria Hebrew…
(JTA) — A New York City lawmaker told a Jewish audience that she knows what it was like for Israeli soldiers to fight in the Six Day War because she’s “a Republican in New York City.” Nicole Malliotakis, who represents Staten Island in New York’s state Assembly, made the comments on Thursday night during a…
In a surprise announcement Friday afternoon President Donald Trump said he was deeming houses of worship “essential,” and said he would “override” governors if they push back on the designation — echoing a prior claim about his “total authority” over states that he abandoned. Trump can try to use political persuasion to sway the states,…
