This is the Forward’s coverage of Jewish life in Australia.
Australia
The Latest
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Community I Never Imagined Seeing My Religious Former Principal In Handcuffs
A version of this article originally appeared in +61J, an Australian Jewish publication. As a former teacher at the Adass Israel school in Melbourne, Australia, I never imagined that a day would come when I would be sitting in a Jerusalem courtroom a meter away from the principal of the school with handcuffs around her…
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Fast Forward Ex-Principal Of Jewish School Who Fled Sexual Abuse Charges Arrested In Israel
(JTA) — The former principal of a Jewish girls’ school in Melbourne who fled Australia for Israel amid allegations that she sexually abused students has been arrested in Israel following a police undercover operation to investigate her claim that she is mentally unfit to appear in court. Malka Leifer, who is wanted on 74 charges…
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Culture WATCH: Yosl Birstein Gave A Yiddish Voice To Israel’s Charms And Foibles
This article originally appeared in the Yiddish Forverts. Yosl Birstein was such a terrific storyteller, both in Yiddish and in Hebrew, that he eventually became a legendary figure on the Israeli radio. In this video filmed in 1994, Birstein portrays with authentic Yiddish charm and humor the various characters he met after settling in Israel:…
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Community Israel’s Most Controversial Journalist Isn’t Finished Fighting The Occupation
A version of this piece originally appeared in Plus61J, an Australian Jewish publication. It’s hard to imagine a more controversial Israeli journalist than Gideon Levy. The Tel Aviv native began his career in journalism as a soldier in 1971, reporting for Army Radio on Israeli politics. In 1978, at the age of 26, he joined…
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Fast Forward Jewish Sky News Reporter Faced Anti-Semitic Harassment At Australian TV Station
(JTA) — A Jewish television reporter for British news station Sky News said that harassment by a former colleague escalated into “brazen anti-Semitism. Caroline Marcus wrote in a column published Tuesday by the Australian edition of Daily Telegraph that the colleague plastered his work station, situated next to hers, with “vile cartoons depicting Jews as…
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Fast Forward Australian State Media Explains Why It Left Israel Off The Map
SYDNEY (JTA) — Australia’s national news service defended its decision to broadcast a graphic showing a map of the Middle East that included Palestine but not Israel. Shown during an Aug. 17 segment on ABC News, the map illustrated a story about how laws in 11 Muslim-majority countries and the Palestinian territories treat rape victims. “The…
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Fast Forward Australian Municipality: Don’t Blame Us For Banning Sydney Synagogue
A municipal council in a Sydney suburb said it shouldn't be blamed for a decision to ban a synagogue because it could become a terror target
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Fast Forward Australian City Bans New Synagogue Over Possible Terror Threats
(JTA) — An Australian court has upheld a municipal council’s decision to ban the construction of a synagogue in suburban Sydney because it could become the target of a terrorist attack. The group that wants to build the synagogue near Bondi Beach called Wednesday’s ruling by the Land and Environment Court “rewarding terrorism.” The Waverley…
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