In Azerbaijan as in the United States, synagogues have been largely closed for months due to the coronavirus. Last week, however, one synagogue received special permission to open their doors — to pray for their country’s victory in its latest bloody conflict with Armenia over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. “We prayed that there will be…
(JTA) – Israel reportedly blocked the extradition of one of its citizens from Belarus to Azerbaijan, where he is wanted for political crimes. Blogger Alexander Lapshin, who is a dual citizen of Russia and Israel, was arrested in the Belarusian capital Minsk Thursday, the Belarusian news website Telegraf reported. Authorities in Belarus, which is often referred…
JERUSALEM (JTA) — An Israeli blogger who was sentenced to three years in prison in Azerbaijan for illegally entering Nagorno-Karabakh has asked to be extradited to Israel. Alexander Lapshin, who also holds Russian and Ukrainian citizenship, appealed to Israel to extradite him from Azerbaijan, Haaretz reported, citing Lapshin’s attorney. He said he did not want…
JERUSALEM (JTA) — An Israeli blogger who also holds Russian and Ukrainian citizenship was sentenced to three years in prison in Azerbaijan for illegally entering Nagorno-Karabakh, which is disputed territory with Armenia. Alexander Lapshin, 40, of Haifa, writes a Russian-language travel blog called Life Adventures that chronicles his trips to 122 countries, as well as…
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Three Democratic U.S. senators are calling for a federal investigation into allegations that President Donald Trump did business with an Azerbaijani family alleged to have busted Iran sanctions. The letter Thursday from Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Dianne Feinstein of California and Ben Cardin of Maryland is based on reporting earlier this…
(JTA) – Elin Suleymanov likes Jews, but can’t figure them out: What was all that noise about when his embassy hosted a Hanukkah party at the Trump International Hotel? “That exposed some strange divisions” in the Jewish community, the Azerbaijani ambassador said in an interview Sunday at this year’s AIPAC policy conference. Memories of the Dec….
On December 14, 2016, the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations (the Presidents Conference) in concert with the Embassy of Azerbaijan held a historic Chanukah party in Washington, D.C. that will be talked about for some time. Controversy continues to swirl over not only who attended the party, but who did not; how many…
On December 14th, the Embassy of Azerbaijan will co-host a Hanukkah party at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, DC, with the Conference of President of Major American Jewish Organizations. This celebration of “religious freedom and diversity” is another transparent attempt by Azerbaijan to portray itself as a stable, Western-facing democracy, an image designed to…
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