Jewish News

Safety still an issue at Meron

The State Comptroller’s Report released on Monday pointed to ongoing safety concerns at the tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai on Mount Meron, but also noted that some improvements had been made.The Tourism Ministry stated that it acknowledges that problems at the site need to be addressed but that improvements had been made in the last three years. It further ...

Sabbath-observant Jew named Obama’s new White House chief of staff

A Sabbath-observant Jew was named on Monday as President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, one of the most pivotal jobs in U.S. politics.Jacob (Jack) Lew, who last served as the White House budget director, will be replacing William Daley, who resigned just one year into the job. The change will take effect at the end of the month.Daley’s predecessor was ...

Sabbath in the Sky in Tel Aviv

The Chabad-Lubavitch movement has unveiled a new project in Tel Aviv that will have beachgoers seeing the Sabbath in the sky.The group’s Tel Aviv-Yafo branch has prepared a special glider that will hover over the coastline with the pre-Sabbath candle lighting times printed on its underside, allowing passersby to see when the holy day begins.The new project is part of ...

Ruti Fogel blurred in act of respect

Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, one of the most prominent Religious Zionism leaders, has justified the decision to blur a picture of Ruti Fogel, who was brutally murdered in the settlement of Itamar along with her husband and three of their children, in a weekly bulleting published by the Meir Institute.The rabbi addressed the incident in a video response to a reader’s ...

Ruth Reichl: Food lover turned gourmet revolutionary

Ruth Reichl, iconic Jewish American food critic and bestselling author has captivated readers with her frank, down-to-earth approach to cooking, and her insatiable love and enthusiasm for cuisine.She is the author of four best-selling memoirs: “Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table”; “Comfort Me with Apples: More Adventures at the Table”; “Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of ...

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Oscar Winner and Novelist, Dies Aged 85

Award-winning novelist and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, author of “Heat and Dust” and many other books set in India, died on Wednesday at the age of 85, her Los Angeles agent said.Jhabvala died at her home in New York City, a spokesman for Hollywood agency Paradigm told Reuters. The spokesman did not give the cause of her death but said ...

Russian neo-Nazis rally in Moscow against Caucasus

Hundreds of neo-Nazis rallied in Moscow against the Kremlin’s policies in the violence-plagued Caucasus region.About 300 protesters, including activists from banned or unregistered neo-Nazi groups, called on the Kremlin on Saturday to stop feeding the Caucasus.The predominantly Muslim region hosts at least 100 ethnicities including Chechens, who have waged two separatist wars against Moscow after the 1991 Soviet collapse.Read more : ...

Russian Billionaire wants Jewish al-Jazeera

Russian billionaire Alexander Mashkevich plans to establish a Jewish version of al-Jazeera to combat the negative image of Israel portrayed in the media.“Every day and every hour people get negative information about Israel. Therefore, the most important thing is to represent Israel on an international level, with real information,” The Jerusalem Post quoted Mashkevich saying at a conference of the ...

Russian billionaire to found ‘Jewish Al-Jazeera’

Russian “oligarch” and Jewish philanthropist Alexander Mashkevich announced on Wednesday his intention to found a Jewish version of Al-Jazeera.“Every day and every hour people get negative information about Israel,” Mashkevich said at the Keren Hayesod – United Israel Appeal conference in Washington D.C. “Therefore, the most important thing is to represent Israel on an international level, with real information.”Mashkevich plans ...

Russia says may sell more arms to Syria

Russia will complete the delivery of anti-ship missiles to Syria this year and may sell more weapons to Israel’s neighbor after assessing the impact on the regional balance of power, Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov was quoted as saying by the Bloomberg news agency Tuesday night.Serdyukov returned to Moscow from meetings with US Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Both the US and ...

Russia says in talks with Iran on new nuclear plants

Russia said on Thursday it was in discussions with Iran on possible new nuclear power plants in the Islamic state, the country’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters.“We are discussing these [new plants] with our Iranian partners, we are practically discussing this now,” Lavrov said.Read More: @ haaretz.comYou might also like:Ehud Barak: History Will Judge Obama on Nuclear IranNetanyahu to Russia: ...

Russia ordered to return documents to Chabad

WASHINGTON (JTA) — A U.S. court ruled that the Russian Federation must return sacred documents to the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.Last week’s ruling by the Washington, D.C., District Court, which was filed Wednesday, came after over 5 1/2 years of legal proceedings to recover documents seized by the Russian government during World War II.The Russian government was ordered to hand over the ...