Opinion

• Opinion

  A Worthy Leap of Faith

  The interim agreement reached between the United States, five world powers and the Islamic Republic of Iran is not, as some commentators have said, a “historic deal.” Nor, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated, is it a “historic mistake.” Its historical significance will only be known in six months or, perhaps, six years. Instead,…

  3 min read
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  Opinion

  Israeli Intel: Kvetching Aside, Iran Deal ‘Pretty Good’

  We’ve noted before that the assessments of Israel’s security needs we hear from Israel’s elected leadership, starting with the prime minister, are not always identical — to put in mildly — to the assessments the leadership gets from its own intelligence and security professionals. On the surface, that dissonance appears to be recurring in spades…

  By J.J. Goldberg Nov 24, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  News Quiz: Katz’s Deli, Silvio Berlusconi and Lyndon Johnson

  A knish, a salami and Natalie Portman walk into a Jewish News Quiz. What happens next? Take the quiz!

  By Lenore Skenazy Nov 22, 2013 | < 1 min read

Columnists View All

• Jodi Rudoren This is my last column as editor of the Forward

  

• Jay Michaelson American Jews were played — now what?

  

• Rob Eshman A new humanitarian outrage is unfolding in the Middle East. It’s not in Gaza

  

• Nora Berman The left is turning on AOC over Israel — and imperiling its own agenda

  

• Dan Perry What exactly is going on between Israel and Syria — and is the prospect of peace dead?

  

• Emily Tamkin Zohran Mamdani’s victory proves it: The ‘gotcha’ mode of fighting antisemitism has to go

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  A Tough Slog Facing New Israeli Opposition Leader

  To understand why Shelly Yachimovich was booted out as head of the Israel Labor Party after just two years on the job, it helps to note that Labor has had a bad habit, ever since Yitzhak Rabin’s assassination in 1995, of changing leaders every time it holds a primary. But this time was different. Previous…

  By J.J. Goldberg Nov 22, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Right-Wing Dead Enders Block Peoples Business — in D.C. and Jerusalem

  This November found lawmakers in Washington and Jerusalem caught up in a matched pair of high-profile disputes, unrelated but remarkably similar, that showcase the sort of right-wing extremism snarling the people’s business in the two capitals. In both cases, conservative lawmakers were out to block high-level appointments in the justice system. In both cases, conservatives…

  By J.J. Goldberg Nov 22, 2013 | 5 min read
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  Opinion

  Editor’s Choice: The Question of Loyalty and Iran

  The Forward is partnering with other Jewish newspapers to offer our readers a peek at some of the best stories from around the country, as selected by the editors at those papers. We will offer a selection of unedited links with brief introductions from the editors of the papers. Barack or Bibi? Trust, Loyalty and…

  By Forward Staff Nov 21, 2013 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Fall of Mizrachi Singing Sensation Eyal Golan

  Eyal Golan, one of Israel’s most famous singers, is under house arrest, suspected of having sex with underage girls. Golan is a bestselling artist from the mizrachi or Eastern music genre, as well as being a television star. He has his own show, and serves as a judge on the talent show Rising Star. The…

  By Nathan Jeffay Nov 21, 2013 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  American Tax Dollars Help Fund Hefty ‘Salaries’ for Jailed Palestinian Killers

  At a time of endless budget crises, the sequester, bursting debt ceilings, government shutdowns, and a default averted at the eleventh hour, it may astound many that American taxpayers are deploying their precious dollars in Israel not to pay for peace but to support terrorists and their families. Each year, American aid and financial programs…

  By Edwin Black Nov 21, 2013 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Housewife From Cleveland Who Stole GA Show

  (JTA) — It was, perhaps, not the most auspicious setting for Ronit Peskin’s first-ever public speech. The 25-year-old self-described housewife stood in front of a crowded room at the biggest Jewish conference of the year, the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly in Jerusalem. She was about to verbally assail Women of the Wall…

  By Ben Sales Nov 20, 2013 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Millennials Must Grab Keys to Jewish ‘Car’

  As a first-year rabbinical student at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR), I read a lot about the challenges facing “millennials.” With the recent outpouring of analysis relating to the Pew report on American Jewry, the amount of content may have quadrupled, but the number of young voices has not. I’m often frustrated…

  By Juliana Schnur Nov 20, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Stunning Nazi-Looted Art Find Reignites Question of German Restitution

  The recent revelation that German authorities discovered a treasure trove of presumed-lost masterpieces of art in the dingy apartment of a Nazi art dealer’s son has reignited the complicated issue of reparations almost 50 years after Germany declared its job of restitution complete. Though the legal ramifications are byzantine, it appears that officials have a…

  By Allison Amend Nov 20, 2013 | 2 min read