Articles written by Sam Sokol
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One of Ukraine's chief rabbis endorses siege of US Capitol by Trump supporters
(JTA) — Rabbi Moshe Azman, a prominent Ukrainian cleric with ties to several Trump associates at the heart of last year’s Ukrainegate scandal, endorsed Wednesday’s violent attempt to prevent the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s electio...
A bipartisan protest movement is rocking Israel and growing by the week
TEL AVIV (JTA) - Noam Ofer might have been an unlikely candidate to join Israel's burgeoning protest movement. At 76, he is older than most of the people who have taken to the streets in recent weeks...
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin takes a lead role in pushing back against Europe's Holocaust revisionism
JERUSALEM (JTA)-Israeli President Reuven Rivlin assailed Polish complicity in the murder of European Jews during the Holocaust during a visit to mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwit... Full story
Putin skews Holocaust history at global Auschwitz commemoration event in Jerusalem
JERUSALEM (JTA)-Russian President Vladimir Putin's prime speaking slot at a Holocaust commemoration event here was generating controversy even before the longtime leader took the podium. His remarks... Full story
Israel gets dragged into Europe's memory wars
JERUSALEM (JTA)—A major gathering of world leaders in Jerusalem meant to highlight the world’s determination to learn the lessons of the Holocaust has become mired in controversy, dragging Israel into a battle over history debates still raging in... Full story
Launch of Amazon's Hebrew storefront offers American expats a taste of home
(JTA)-Walk into an Israeli post office or one of the many local stores that have lately been serving as ad-hoc delivery centers and you'll be confronted by a jumble of boxes sealed with the telltale... Full story
Turkey allows Hamas to plan terror attacks against Israelis
JERUSALEM (JTA)—The Turkish government has allowed Hamas members to use the country as a safe haven from which to plan attacks against Israelis. The Daily Telegraph cited transcripts of Israeli interrogations of suspected Palestinian terrorists in i... Full story
Squeezed for burial space, Jerusalem prepares to open an underground city of the dead
JERUSALEM (JTA)-Carved into the rock on the side of a mountain directly under the Har HaMenuchot cemetery here lies the entrance to Jerusalem's newest necropolis, a city of the dead that its... Full story
Israeli lawmakers say 2-state solution is 'far more dangerous'
JERUSALEM (JTA)—Twenty-one right-wing Israeli lawmakers rebuffed a House bill that endorsed a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict while rejecting efforts to boycott the Jewish state. In a letter addressed to U.S. Reps. Brad S... Full story
Gaza battle 'not over'
JERUSALEM (JTA)—Despite Monday morning’s cease-fire, which ended two days of intense fighting between Israel and Hamas, the “campaign is not over,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. “Over the last two days we struck Hamas and... Full story
ACLU sues Texas over anti-boycott law meant to protect Israel
(JTA)—The American Civil Liberties Union announced that it is suing the state of Texas over a 2017 law prohibiting government contractors from engaging in boycotts of Israel, which is says is an unwarranted violation of Americans’ right to free spe... Full story
A soldier's death brings grief to Israeli army's fervently religious battalion
JERUSALEM (JTA)-"Yosef! Yosef!" wailed Rabbi Eliyahu Meirav, calling out the name of his stepson lying covered in a shroud on the marble slab before him. "You were righteous. I didn't want to believe... Full story
Haredi dropouts battle Orthodox extremists in a divided Israeli city
BEIT SHEMESH, Israel (JTA)-Built in the 1990s in part to ease crowding in haredi Orthodox neighborhoods elsewhere in Israel, Ramat Beit Shemesh Bet is both an Orthodox boom town and a site of ongoing... Full story
Settlers welcome Mike Huckabee
EFRAT, West Bank (JTA)-Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee laid bricks in a new neighborhood in this settlement in a ceremony Wednesday that took its language and cues from Donald Trump's "Make... Full story
These academics want to mend Israel-Diaspora relations-but can this marriage be saved?
JERUSALEM (JTA)-When Adam Ferziger wants to describe the "deteriorating" relationship between American and Israeli Jews, he reaches back to a 2,000-year-old divide. "To use a metaphor, we have a... Full story
Social media groups are helping new immigrants navigate life in Israel
JERUSALEM (JTA)-Vanessa, a Venezuelan-American olah, or immigrant, had experienced a hard landing in Israel. Faced with persistent financial problems, she had trouble holding on to an apartment.... Full story
'Terror kites' shake residents in southern Israel, but not their resolve to stay put
NAHAL OZ, Israel (JTA)-Dani Ben David fiddles with his radio, switching between it and his cell phone as he drives through the Beeri Forest, a nature reserve located on the border of Israel and the... Full story
For reporters covering Gaza, charges of bias overshadow the stories they witness and tell
JERUSALEM (JTA)-Of the more than 60 deaths that occurred during the recent clashes between Israel and Palestinians at the Gaza border, none was as divisive as that of Layla Ghandour. Ghandour, an 8-mo... Full story
At US embassy dedication, a day for marking history
JERUSALEM (JTA)-Israeli leaders and citizens responded with euphoria as the Trump administration moved the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem on Monday, designating a pre-existing consular building as the... Full story
Israel failed to mobilize Christians ahead of UNESCO vote
JERUSALEM—Israel could have done a better job of enlisting Christian allies in its efforts to prevent the United Nations from passing a resolution erasing the Jewish connection to the Temple Mount and Western Wall, one South African legislator c... Full story
Two killed in Jerusalem terrorist shooting
JERUSALEM-A police officer and a civilian were killed and six were wounded during a drive-by shooting in Jerusalem this weekend, raising concerns about the possible resumption of the wave of lone... Full story
