More than 1,000 Diaspora rabbis called on Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat to withdraw his support for Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, known for his anti-Arab stances, as chief rabbi of the city. The rabbis, including the leaders of the major non-Orthodox Jewish movements and the head of the New Israel Fund, sent the letter to Barkat on…
Getty Images Yesterday in these pages Mira Sucharov explored the concept of qualified Diaspora Jewish citizenship in Israel. She was responding to Naftali Bennett’s floating of the idea (he called it “semi-citizenship”), but she seems open to the notion. However vague, both Bennett and Sucharov meant more than just the ability of ex-pats to vote…
Supporters of Naftali Bennett celebrate in Tel Aviv in 2013. / Getty Images When I heard that the Israeli government and the Jewish Agency were spearheading a three-day “Online Brainstorming Marathon to Plan the Future of the Jewish People,” the international crowdsourcing initiative instantly grabbed my attention. Partly, it was because I’d heard that Israel’s…
(JTA) Israeli Jerusalem and Diaspora Affairs Minister Naftali Bennett said that Jews outside Israel “should have some sort of say” in the Israeli government’s affairs, and even suggested offering “semi-citizenship” to Diaspora Jews. The vague concept is related to the so far somewhat undefined $1 billion-plus project that has been picking up steam this week….
Israeli Minister of Jerusalem and Diaspora Affairs Naftali Bennett / Getty Images The Israeli minister with the Diaspora portfolio believes that “what used to work as the Israel-Diaspora relationship doesn’t work,” he told the Forward. Minister of Jerusalem and Diaspora Affairs Naftali Bennett said that Israelis need to start deferring to Diaspora Jews regarding their…
Back in 1977, a young writer published a bold book that tried to propel aliyah, or emigration to Israel, to the heart of the American Jewish agenda. Hillel Halkin, who had made the move himself from New York seven years earlier, didn’t mince his words, and declared the Diaspora “doomed.” The future of the Jewish…
The Israeli government plans to invest more than $1 billion over the next 20 years to strengthen the Jewish identity of Diaspora Jews. The Jerusalem Post reported Monday that the initiative, to be developed and implemented jointly with overseas Jewish communities, was first announced in November, but government officials did not share dollar amounts or…
Ariel Sharon in death, as in life, presents a challenge for us. By advocating a bold, self-asserting Jewish settlement movement, with or without a peace agreement, Sharon shattered the image of Israel as a country that places the achievement of peace with its neighbors above all other national goals. This triggered a long-term rift with…
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