World News
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Meet Amichai Chikli, Israel’s new Diaspora minister, who opposes BDS and Reform Judaism
(JTA) – The Israeli ministry responsible for engaging with the half of the world’s Jews who don’t live in Israel has gotten a new name — and a leader who disdains the values of many American Jews. Amichai Chikli announced during his swearing-in ceremony Monday that his ministry was changing its name from the Ministry of…
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In Netflix’s ‘You People,’ Jonah Hill is a Jewish guy who finds love with a Farrakhan follower’s daughter
(JTA) – Were Jews the “OG slaves”? Can American slavery be compared to the Holocaust? And who gets the last word on Louis Farrakhan? These questions have spurred very serious debates over time — and now will be getting a raunchier take in the new Netflix comedy “You People” that hits streaming Jan. 27. Starring…
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A new mural in Nolita celebrates a Holocaust rescuer
(New York Jewish Week) — In the heavily trafficked neighborhood of Nolita, a larger-than-life mural has popped up on the corner of Spring St. and Elizabeth St. Bright orange and pink paint spell out the words “Saved 3,000 Jewish Lives” next to a black and white portrait of Holocaust rescuer Tibor Baranski. The mural, an…
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Making good on campaign vow, Netanyahu government introduces bill to diminish Israel’s top court
(JTA) — Israel’s new government is wasting little time before following through on a central promise made by its leading politicians: to reshape the country’s judiciary and give lawmakers more power over it. Yariv Levin, the newly appointed justice minister, on Wednesday announced planned legislation that would severely limit the Israeli Supreme Court’s ability to…
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Rabbi Abraham Levy, influential leader among Britain’s Sephardic Jews, dies at 83
(JTA) — British Jews are mourning Rabbi Abraham Levy, who led London’s historic Spanish and Portuguese community for decades, building up multiple institutions serving Sephardic Jews in the process. Levy died Dec. 24 at age 83, a decade after becoming emeritus spiritual head of the S&P Sephardi Community in London, following a 32-year period serving…
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In Turkey, a festival revives a jewel of the Sephardic world and aims to break stereotypes
IZMIR, Turkey (JTA) — Prague has the dubious honor of being chosen by Adolf Hitler to be a record of what he hoped would be the vanquished Jews of Europe. The Nazis left many of the city’s synagogues and Jewish sites relatively intact, intending to showcase them as the remnants of an extinct culture. That…
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Jewish extremists appear to vandalize Christian graves in Jerusalem’s Old City
(JTA) – A pair of what appeared to be Jews were captured on camera vandalizing dozens of Christian graves in Jerusalem’s historic Old City on Jan. 1, drawing condemnation from church officials and the United Kingdom. The video shows the vandals making a beeline for a large masonry cross inside the Protestant Mount Zion Cemetery,…
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Robert Kraft’s $18,003 donation to fundraiser for NFL player who suffered cardiac arrest has symbolic meaning
(JTA) — As the sports world continues to react to NFL player Damar Hamlin’s sudden cardiac arrest during a game on Monday night, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft is pitching into a fundraiser campaign — with a donation inspired by his Jewish identity. Kraft and the Patriots donated $18,003 to an online fundraiser Hamlin…
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On stage and in the classroom, Mikhl Yashinsky is stoking the flame of the Yiddish revival
(New York Jewish Week) — In the Yiddish classes Mikhl Yashinsky teaches for the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research and the Workers Circle, he begins by asking students to explain why they decided to learn the language. Often, a student will describe attending a performance of “Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish,” the smash hit…
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Oman, once thought to be next Abraham Accords signer, criminalizes relations with Israel
(JTA) — Just a few years ago, Oman was expected to be next in line after Morocco, Sudan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates to sign onto the Abraham Accords normalization agreements with Israel. On Friday, the country’s parliament voted to criminalize any relations or interactions with “the Zionist entity.” While the exact details have…
