Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces killed Brig.-Gen. Majid Khademi, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ intelligence chief and one of the IRGC’s most senior operatives, Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed on Monday. “The terrorist regime in Iran continues to launch missiles at the Israeli home front, killing and harming Israeli civilians,” Katz said during a situational assessment with senior military officials. “I was updated by the chief of staff that, overnight in Tehran, the IDF eliminated Majid Khadami, head of the IRGC intelligenc...
(JNS) - One Israeli was kiled when Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorists struck his vehicle in the Galilee Panhandle on Sunday morning. "Medics and paramedics report a man trapped in a vehicle with no signs of life," the Magen David Adom emergency response group stated. The Israel Defense Forces confirmed that "fire from Lebanese territory toward a community on the northern border was identified." It added, "There is damage and there are casualties." The victim was later identified as Ofer...
Four bodies have been retrieved from under the rubble at the site of the Iranian ballistic missile impact in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, rescue services said on Monday afternoon. Following overnight efforts with the Israel Defense Forces' Home Front Command, "two trapped individuals who were found under the rubble without signs of life," the Israel Fire and Rescue Authority said early on Monday. "Rescue operations and attempts are still ongoing at this time in an effort to reach two...
(JNS, Dimona, Israel) - Amid the soot-covered ruins of a home in southern Israel demolished by an Iranian ballistic missile, the wedding ring was found. It was just a day earlier when Dorit Azran and her 29-year-old son, Dor, along with their two dogs-all sheltering in their safe room at the time of the missile impact-escaped unscathed from the home. "It was a visible miracle," Dor recounts of the harrowing ordeal when the missile, packed with half a ton of explosives, slammed into the yard...
(JNS) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared on Monday morning that he spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump and was "deeply proud" that Israel could "contribute to saving a brave American warrior," referring to the rescue mission of the downed pilot from Iranian territory. "I spoke earlier with President Donald Trump and personally congratulated him on his bold decision and a perfectly executed American mission to rescue the downed pilot from enemy territory," Netanyahu tweeted. He...
(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces has killed more than 1,000 Hezbollah operatives since the Iranian-backed terrorist group joined the war on March 2, “and that number will continue to rise,” IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said on Sunday. The military is striking Hezbollah “with determination, extensively and across multiple fronts,” Zamir said during a visit to Ras el-Bayada, a strategic coastal headland located near Tyre that is the northernmost point in Southern Lebanon where Israeli soldiers are currently operating on the ground. T...
El Al to launch direct flights to Argentina, starting this fall By Etgar Lefkovits (JNS) — Israel’s flag carrier El Al plans to launch direct flights from Tel Aviv to Buenos Aires this fall, marking a renewed push into the South American market. The nonstop service, which comes amid growing relations between the two countries, is expected to begin by November, JNS has learned. “Today, a dream I have pursued with all my effort since taking office as Ambassador begins to become a reality,” Argentinian Ambassador to Israel Axel Wahnish posted...
In a Passover eve address steeped in biblical imagery, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday framed Israel’s campaign against Iran and its proxies through the lens of the biblical Exodus, declaring that Israel had dealt its enemies “ten blows” echoing the Ten Plagues. Netanyahu listed strikes against Hamas, Hezbollah, Bashar Assad’s fallen regime in Syria, Palestinian terror groups and the Houthis in Yemen, alongside five direct blows to Iran — targeting its nuclear program, missile capabilities, regime infrastru...
In neighborhoods across Central Florida, a quiet crisis is unfolding—one that often goes unseen but is deeply felt at kitchen tables every day. Families are being forced to make impossible decisions: rent or groceries, medicine or meals, gas to get to work or food to feed their children. These are not distant realities—they are happening right here, in our own community. At the center of this urgent need is the Pearlman Food Pantry, a cornerstone of compassion operated by Jewish Family Ser...
The Jewish Heritage Festival, taking place April 12, is a phenomena in itself. Who knew it would be so successful from the get-go? What began in 2007 as a suggestion by 80-year-old Murray Steinberg to the Temple Presidents’ Council for Volusia and Flagler counties that Volusia County would become the largest Jewish heritage and cultural event in the state. Held in 2008, it had more than 10,000 visitors! Since its beginning, the event has been held every two years with a consistent attendance o...
(JNS) - The Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee approved on Wednesday the Cabinet's decision to extend the nationwide emergency situation until April 14 amid the ongoing war with Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah. The Israel Defense Forces' Home Front Command guidelines currently restrict educational and work activities, as well as gatherings of more than 50 people outdoors and 100 people indoors. National forests, parks, hiking trails and roadside recreation areas across the country have...
The JOIN Center in College Park was transformed Wednesday evening, March 25, into a vibrant hub of Torah study and connection. In a landmark collaboration, JOIN Orlando and the Orlando Community Kollel joined forces for an event that quite literally bridged the gap between North and South Orlando, bringing together Jews from across the city ahead of the Passover holiday. From the moment participants arrived, the atmosphere was electric. Tables filled quickly with community members eager to...
Southwest Orlando Jewish Congregation welcomes women to a special Rosh Chodesh women’s series. This online offering, titled “Sacred Cycles: Women, the Moon, and the Wisdom of Jewish Time,” is open to all women — SOJC members and nonmembers alike. The series will include three sessions, held on Zoom, presented by Na’amah, also known as Mama Mazel. Na’amah is a life coach, educator, and creator of the Mama Mazel framework. Her work focuses on helping women understand their natural rhythms — emotional, energetic, and spiritual — through the len...
Chabad of Orlando is hosting Jewish Heritage Night at the Orlando Magic game for the local Greater Orlando community on Monday, April 6. Watch the Orlando Magic play the Detroit Pistons and enjoy entertainment by Howie Mandel and singer Nissim Black. Throughout Jewish Heritage Night, everyone will experience many Jewish moments throughout the game such as: • At 6:20 p.m. – pre-game show with artist Nissim Black • National Anthem performed by the Jewish Day School • Sponsors of Jewish Heritage Night will present the ball to the players • Comed...
(JNS) — Israel has once again ranked among the world’s happiest countries, placing eighth in the 2026 World Happiness Report, even as the country continues to grapple with war, instability and national trauma. The data, published on March 19, highlight a striking paradox: While Israelis face ongoing emotional strain, trauma and uncertainty, overall life satisfaction remains among the highest globally. One of the most notable findings is the strong showing among young Israelis. Those under 25 rank as the happiest age group within the cou...
Several people were lightly wounded in an Iranian missile barrage on Tuesday morning, Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency service was cited as saying, as local media reported damage to buildings at impact sites in the Tel Aviv area. MDA said its teams were dispatched to search several locations in the central region following the barrage and that further updates would be issued. Police said Tel Aviv District officers, Border Police and bomb disposal experts were handling “several scenes of falling munitions parts,” and urged the public to fo...
(JNS) — Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister said on Thursday that his country reserves the right to act militarily after Iran launched an attack against a Saudi oil installation. Speaking after a meeting in Riyadh which brought together the foreign ministers of 12 Arab and Muslim countries, Saudi Prince Faisal bin Farhan said Iran “doesn’t believe in talking to its neighbors. It tries to pressure its neighbors.” Iran’s tactics won’t work, he said. “The kingdom is not going to succumb to pressure. On the contrary, this pressure will backfire.” The...
(JNS) — At the 14th annual commemoration ceremony on Thursday for the murder of four French Jews at a Jewish school in Toulouse, participants booed representatives of the far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party, forcing them to leave. The incident occurred at the city’s Capitole square, where hundreds had gathered for speeches and a wreath-laying tribute, Sud Radio reported. When LFI lawmakers François Piquemal and Hadrien Clouet laid their wreath, dozens of people began booing them, calling them “far-left fascists” and “antisemites,” and shouting...
On March 19, 2026, Iran’s regime publicly hanged 19-year-old Saleh Mohammadi, a rising wrestler on Iran’s national team and a bronze medalist at the 2024 Saitiev Cup in Russia. He was accused by Iranian authorities of killing two police officers during the January anti-government protests in Qom. Mohammadi was charged with moharebeh (waging war against God), and executed with two other young men, Mehdi Ghasemi and Saeed Davoudi. Human rights groups say the proceedings were grossly unfair, mar...
Homecomings are always meaningful. Some are ancient, even biblical. It is the theme of modern films and music, depicting the draw we all have and feel towards home. Until this week, I was caught up in my own attempts to come home, stranded in the United States amid the unfolding war against the Islamic Republic of Iran. My trip started surpassing one million miles on United, and ended after six canceled and changed flights, finally arriving home, one of hundreds of thousands doing so amid the wa...
(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces should establish the Litani River as the Jewish state’s “new border with the Lebanese state,” Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich declared on Monday. The ongoing campaign against Hezbollah “must end with a radical change” beyond the vanquishing of the Iranian-backed terror group, the senior Cabinet minister told reporters during a faction meeting of his Religious Zionism Party at the Knesset in Jerusalem. “The Litani [River] must be our new border with the Lebanese state, just like the Yellow Line i...
(JNS) — The University of Washington is reviewing and revising its student conduct code amid rising Jew-hatred on campus since Oct. 7, Robert J. Jones, president of the Seattle public university, said at a town hall at an Orthodox synagogue on Sunday. “Our student conduct code was not written for this moment in time,” Jones said at Bikur Cholim Machzikay Hadath in Seattle. “It just absolutely was not written to deal with the contemporary issues.” “We don’t have to wait for a mandate from the Department of Justice or the Department of...
Sara Netanyahu calls for stronger child protections online at global summit (JNS) — Sara Netanyahu called for stronger safeguards for children navigating the digital world on Tuesday, speaking at Fostering the Future Together, an international summit organized by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump. According to the White House, 45 member nations and tech entities gathered at the U.S. Department of State to “collaborate on practical solutions that expand access to educational tools while strengthening protections for children in digital env...
(JNS) - The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday night struck regime sites in northern Iran for the first time since the start of "Operation Roaring Lion" against the Islamic Republic on Feb. 28, according to the Israeli military. Strikes were carried out by the Israeli Air Force, at the guidance of the Israeli Navy and IDF Military Intelligence Directorate, according to an initial statement, which did not include additional details. The IDF also struck over 200 regime targets in central and...
(JNS) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday wished the “brave people of Iran” a Happy Nowruz, the Persian new year, which falls on the March equinox, the first day of Spring. “To the brave people of Iran, I wish you, as I do every year, a happy holiday season, beginning with the Festival of Lights. It signifies the age old belief of the Iranian people that light will triumph over darkness, that good will triumph over evil,” Netanyahu said, referring to the Festival of Fire, which falls on the Wednesday before the Persian n...
