World News
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Staying up all night on Shavuot is about going all in
This story originally appeared on My Jewish Learning. (JTA) — The holiday of Shavuot, which begins at sundown this year on Thursday, May 25, is understood by Jewish tradition to be the time when God gave the Israelites the Torah at Mount Sinai. It is traditionally celebrated with dairy foods and intensive Torah study, with some…
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‘The Sims’ video game adds Jewish foods, a longtime request of Jewish players
(JTA) — Players of the video game “The Sims” can now bake a challah or dish up a bowl of matzo ball soup, after updates made by the game’s creator that are designed to increase Jewish representation. The new updates add traditional Jewish foods to the expansive menu available to users of “The Sims,” a…
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‘An affront to Holocaust victims’: Deborah Lipstadt slams Mahmoud Abbas for likening Israel to Joseph Goebbels
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Deborah Lipstadt, the State Department’s top envoy combating antisemitism, condemned Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for comparing Israel to Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi propaganda chief. “PA President Abbas’s equating Israel with the lies of top Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels is an affront to Holocaust victims and survivors,” Lipstadt wrote Wednesday on Twitter.…
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Codex Sassoon acquired for ANU Museum of the Jewish People for $38.1 million
(JTA) – A 1,100-year-old Hebrew Bible became the most expensive book ever sold Wednesday when it drew a price of $38.1 million at auction at Sotheby’s in New York City. The buyer of the item, known as the Codex Sassoon, was revealed to be the Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv. The museum…
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For 5 days, an endangered seal became a celebrity on an Israeli beach. Locals want her back.
JAFFA, Israel (JTA) — For most of the past week, Israel’s latest unlikely celebrity lounged on the Jaffa beach, drawing throngs of onlookers, constant media attention and round-the-clock protection from the government as she sunbathed and slept the day away. Then early on Tuesday afternoon, the unwitting star named Yulia — a rare 6-foot species…
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Sophie is 85 and survived the Holocaust. Caroline is 29 and new to NYC. Here’s how they became fast friends.
(New York Jewish Week) – It’s a sunny Wednesday afternoon, and Sophie Turner Zaretsky has laid out a tray of fruit and cookies, eagerly awaiting her friend Caroline Crandell. When Crandell arrives at Zaretsky’s Upper West Side apartment, just a few minutes after their scheduled meeting time of 3 p.m., the two break into smiles and…
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Meet the New York Jewish Week’s ’36 to Watch’ 2023
Every year, the New York Jewish Week honors remarkable New Yorkers for their contributions in the arts, religion, culture, business, politics and philanthropy. Our goal is to identify innovators who are remaking the Jewish community, or contributing to society in ways that draw upon their diverse Jewish identities and sensibilities. This year’s class of “36ers”…
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Israel looks to make history at under-20 men’s World Cup
BUENOS AIRES (JTA) — Israel’s under-20 men’s national soccer team has arrived in Argentina and is preparing for its first-ever appearance in FIFA’s under-20 World Cup, which begins this weekend. Israel has only made the general World Cup one time, in 1970. “I’m 48, and coming to Argentina to play soccer was my dream since…
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An airplane encounter between Noa Kirel, Israel’s Eurovision finalist, and a top Orthodox rabbi has gone viral
(JTA) — A selfie taken on a flight to Tel Aviv has gone viral this week, serving as a symbol of unity in an increasingly divided Israel The photo was taken by Noa Kirel, the pop star who came in third in this year’s Eurovision competition over the weekend, and was headed home from the…
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Elon Musk takes aim at the Anti-Defamation League after its CEO says his tweets ‘will embolden extremists’
(JTA) — Hours after tweeting that George Soros “hates humanity,” Elon Musk bashed the Anti-Defamation League, appearing to draw praise from a series of white supremacist accounts on Twitter, which he owns. On Tuesday afternoon, Musk tweeted, “ADL should just drop the ‘A.’” The tweet implied that the group, which is the most prominent antisemitism…
