Israel plays a prominent role in the charges of money laundering and human organ black marketing that have swept five rabbis into a New Jersey federal corruption investigation. Among other things, Israeli banks were allegedly key transit points for the money laundering operation. The rabbis accused of laundering money were allegedly told that it came…
With prospects for diplomatic engagement between the United States and Iran dimming, congressional leaders have set September as the deadline after which harsh sanctions against the Islamic Republic will be rolled out. Jewish groups have made tough sanctions against Iran a top priority and have been urging Congress to take on legislation targeting Iran’s soft…
Among the first sites that tourists visit during a tour of Jerusalem is the Wailing Wall, whose name stems from the old Jewish practice of coming to the site to mourn the destruction of the Temple. Even non-Jews place notes in the wall’s crevices to express their respect and awe for the Jewish holy site….
At the Deal Synagogue on the final Saturday afternoon of July, congregants were treated to the spectacle of a revered rabbi of the Syrian community disavowing his son. “It was at the Seudat Shlishit,” one community leader said, referring to the third meal of the Sabbath, when many observant Jews in the community join their…
A “wake-up call” is how a number of ultra-Orthodox Jewish leaders are describing the recent arrest of several New York-area rabbis on federal money laundering charges. The clearest indication of the newly awakened state came at a public symposium on business ethics held in the middle of ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn just a few days after the…
Seven North Carolina residents were charged with plotting to commit terrorist attacks around the world, including in Israel. Federal prosecutors charged six American citizens and one foreign national in an indictment unsealed Monday. The group’s leader, Daniel Boyd, a convert to Islam, reportedly trained in terrorist camps in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Three years ago he…
The last time I went to Melo Hatene to stock up on tahina, I ran into my friend and fellow kibbutz member, David Leishman. David was there for tahina, too: He occasionally makes tahina ice cream for Melo Hatene’s restaurant in exchange for raw tahina and other yummy things from the shop. Intrigued by the…
MAX FAERBERBOCK, FILM DIRECTOR OF ‘A WOMAN IN BERLIN,’ AN ISAAC B. SINGER FAN During my July 15 telephone interview with Max Faerberbock, who wrote and directed the riveting new film, “A Woman in Berlin,” starring the amazing Nina Hoss, he mentioned he was a fan of Isaac Bashevis Singer. “I read him when I…
Evangelical Christian supporters of Israel are taking on the Netanyahu government’s fight to ease mounting pressure from the Obama administration on the settlement issue. A three-day conference of Christians United For Israel (CUFI) held in Washington this week mobilized supporters, who according to organizers represent millions of followers throughout the country, to push back against…
Freezing the expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank was once seen as a unilateral Israeli obligation. But the Obama administration is now treating this as part of a package that will require concessions from Arab states, as well. An intensified and more public focus on this principle appears to be one of…
In a concerted campaign targeting the credibility of Human Rights Watch, Israel and some of its supporters are charging the group sought to raise funds from wealthy Saudis in part by highlighting its criticisms of Israel and the group’s resistance to pro-Israel forces in Washington. This funding appeal to an audience likely to be hostile…
