World News

(JTA) — Israel’s defense minister called for a pause on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to overhaul the country’s court system,  dealing a potentially debilitating blow to proposals that have brought hundreds of thousands of Israeli protesters into the streets and have drawn international criticism, including from President Joe Biden and other world leaders. Yoav…

(JTA) — The most notable message Melissa Klapper got during her four-night run this week on “Jeopardy!” didn’t come because the Jewish studies scholar was unable to answer a question about Yom Kippur. It also wasn’t an unkind note from a game-show stickler who believed she’d gotten credit for a wrong response. Instead, it was an…

(JTA) — When Deborah Koenigsberger Gutierrez attended a small cocktail reception  with the celebrated Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro last December, she didn’t expect to leave with an idea for a synagogue fundraiser.  But in a conversation with del Toro and a few other guests at the event, which was in honor of the premiere…

This article was sent as a newsletter. Sign up for our weekly Jewish sports newsletter here.  Good morning!  The men’s and women’s March Madness tournaments are both in the Sweet 16 round, and there’s one Jewish star on each side that you should know about. Abby Meyers, who I profiled earlier this month, is a…

(JTA) — A year and a half after representatives of 37 European nations made commitments to combat antisemitism, only 16% of European Jewish leaders said they felt their countries had fully implemented those promises, a report released by the World Jewish Congress revealed on Tuesday. The pledges were made at the Malmö International Forum on…

(JTA) — A number of major American Jewish organizations are urging a California-based professional rugby team to pull out of an international competition that disinvited an Israeli team. In a letter sent to the San Clemente Rhinos, the groups called on the team to “tackle this alarming problem by speaking out against this discrimination and…

(JTA) – The president of Connecticut College has announced she will step down at the end of the semester, following weeks of student protests stemming from a fundraiser she had planned to attend at a golf club with a reportedly racist and antisemitic history. Katherine Bergeron’s announcement Friday capped a saga that saw mounting backlash…

This article was produced as part of JTA’s Teen Journalism Fellowship, a program that works with Jewish teens around the world to report on issues that affect their lives. (JTA) — When the Long Island Lutheran Crusaders boys’ golf team begins their 2023 season against oher private, mostly Christian schools, they’ll boast a not-so-secret weapon: Boaz…

(JTA) — The 2023 MLB season is almost upon us, and it has the potential to be a historic year for Jews in professional baseball. Last year, 17 Jewish players appeared in a game — a likely record. This season, the number could be even higher. The slate of Jewish players in the game this…

(JTA) — Twenty-seven years have passed since Benjamin Netanyahu was first elected as Israel’s prime minister. Since 1996, he has headed six governments over a period of more than 15 years, more than any other prime minister. Unfortunately, his current coalition is one of the most radical-populist governments in Israel’s history. This government seeks to…