Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(JNS) — The war against Hamas “will not end with hostages in Gaza, period,” Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, told the inaugural JNS International Policy Summit in Jerusalem on April 27. “We haven’t finished the job,” declared Danon, a senior member of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud Party. The Israeli diplomat addressed the JNS summit just hours after touring the sites of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas massacre with a group of approximately 30 fellow U.N. ambassadors, he revealed. “Once people ar...
(JNS) — Israeli authorities were working on Sunday afternoon (April 27) to rescue around 100 teenagers who were trapped in the Ein Prat Nature Reserve in the Judean Desert after a fire broke out on a popular hiking trail. “Firefighters from the Binyamin Regional Station are currently working on a fire in Nahal Prat,” the Israel Fire and Rescue Services said in a statement. “According to reports, many hikers remain in the stream, and it is difficult to rescue them. In addition, there is a topographical challenge, making it difficult to reach the...
(JTA) — Jewish stars are condemning Kneecap after the Irish band delivered an anti-Israel performance during its set at Coachella. At least one is calling for the Trump administration to revoke the band’s work visas in advance of its upcoming — and nearly sold-out — U.S. tour. “Their actions included projections of anti-Israel messages and hate speech, and this band openly support terrorist organizations,” wrote Sharon Osbourne on Instagram. “This behavior raises concerns about the appropriateness of their participation in such a festival and...
(JNS)- Massive wildfires sweeping through central Israel have triggered widespread evacuations, road closures, and a full-scale emergency response as flames threaten residential areas near Jerusalem. The evacuated communities include three moshavs: Eshtaol, Mesilat Zion and Beit Meir and initial estimates speak of at least 3,500 evacuees. The Fire and Rescue Authority has declared a general mobilization across six districts, deploying more than 110 teams, eight firefighting planes and a...
(JNS) — Politicians, intellectuals and activists agreed on Sunday that applying Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria is the only viable path to securing Jewish rights and safety in Israel. At the inaugural JNS International Policy Summit in Jerusalem, panelists said the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023 signaled the dangers of allowing a Palestinian state to be established in Israel’s biblical heartland. Such a development, they warned, would expose Jewish communities to even greater threats. Knesset Member Ohad Tal (Religious Zionism Par...
(JTA) - Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro revealed on Thursday that investigators had managed to retrieve ritual Passover items from the dining room that was heavily damaged by an arsonist's fire shortly after his family's seder on Saturday night. "Some just required a dusting and a cleaning," he said outside a Harrisburg firehouse where he and his wife Lori were serving lunch to first responders who rescued his family and doused the flames early Sunday morning. "Others are destroyed." Shapiro,...
(JNS) — Renowned filmmaker Quentin Tarantino and his spouse, Israeli singer Daniella Pick, recently bought property in Tel Aviv for an estimated 50 million shekels (~$13.8 million), Hebrew media reported on April 27. The nearly half an acre of land currently has two old buildings on it, according to Israeli business daily Globes. The couple plans to demolish the two adjacent houses and erect one large home instead, according to the report. The property is situated in the northern Tel Aviv neighborhood of Tel Baruch, at the corner of Yaakov a...
(JNS) — Tal Shoham, who was freed from Gaza as part of the hostage deal with Hamas on Feb. 22, revealed that the terrorists had called his wife, freed during previous ceasefire, and threatened to kill him if she talked about her own experiences in captivity. Adi Shoham was taken hostage during the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre alongside her two young children. They were released after 50 days in captivity as part of the first ceasefire agreement with the terrorist group. Tal Shoham, a 40-year-old Israeli with dual Austrian citizenship, was abducted f...
(JNS) — The Hamas terrorist group released a propaganda video on Wednesday showing a sign of life from Israeli hostage Omri Miran, who was taken captive from his home in Kibbutz Nahal Oz 565 days ago. Miran was abducted during the Hamas-led terrorist attacks on Oct. 7, 2023. Gunmen invaded the home that he shared with his wife, Lishay, and their two daughters. They moved the family to an adjacent house and then decided to abduct Omri, leaving his family behind. “Hello, my name is Omri Miran. Today, I am 48 years old. This is the second bir...
Freed Hamas hostage dons tefillin in ‘death shelter’ (JNS) — In an emotional full circle, former Hamas captive Eliya Cohen returned on Sunday for the first time to the shelter from which he was kidnapped and donned tefillin. Cohen was abducted on Oct. 7, 2023, by Hamas terrorists while attending the Nova music festival with his girlfriend, Ziv Abud. When the rocket fire began, they fled to a shelter that later became known as the “death shelter.” With them were Ziv’s nephew, Amit Ben Avida, and his girlfriend Karin Schwartzman, who were both k...
(JNS) — A clay jug estimated to be 1,200 years old, bearing distinctive camel decorations, has been unearthed at the archaeological site of Horvat ‘Anim in the Yatir Forest, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Thursday. The discovery was made during excavations carried out in cooperation with Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael–Jewish National Fund as part of a broader initiative to improve public access to the site. Yatir Forest is located on the southern slopes of the Hebron Hills, near the edge...
(Israel Hayom via JNS) — Israeli President Isaac Herzog believes the 2005 disengagement from the Gaza Strip was a strategic error, he told Israel Hayom in an interview, an excerpt from which was published on April 28. “It is clear to me now that the disengagement was a mistake. Not the desire to separate from two million Palestinians — that was logical — but the act itself, which, due to the Palestinian Authority’s weakness, led to a Hamas takeover in Gaza,” said the president. Ahead of Israel’s 77th Independence Day, Herzog finds himself...
(JTA) — The Irish band Kneecap displayed a large anti-Israel message during its set Friday at Coachella, a music festival held in the California desert. A series of messages projected behind the band accused Israel of genocide in Gaza and condemned the United States for its support for Israel’s military. The messages concluded with a small phrase on top of a larger one: “F–k Israel. Free Palestine.” The progressive Twitch streamer Hasan Piker beamed the performance to his millions of followers, widening Kneecap’s reach beyond the estimated 125,...
(JNS) — Some 130 Palestinians left the Gaza Strip through Ramon Airport in southern Israel. Around 110 Gazans flew to France, while the remainder will settle in Bosnia and Chile, according to Channel 12 News, which cited Israeli officials. On April 1, Interior Minister Moshe Arbel visited Ramon Airport to inspect “the voluntary departure process” of Palestinians from Gaza. “Dozens of Gazans were flown to Leipzig, Germany, on a designated flight accompanied by German diplomats today,” said the Population and Immigration Authority, part of t...
(JNS) - Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died on Monday morning at the Vatican at the age of 88. He passed away at 7:35 a.m. local time, according to the Vatican. Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Francis became the first Jesuit pope and the first from the Americas when elected in 2013. His papacy was marked by reform efforts, calls for social justice and outreach to marginalized communities. He also faced mounting criticism over...
(JNS) - Some 100 people, ranging in age from about 8 to 102, huddled for warmth as they braved 40-degree temperatures on a damp day at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday to watch, as speaker after speaker put it, Pfc. Adolph Hanf and Pvt. David Moser "come home." Neither of the Jewish soldiers, who served in World War I and who have been dead for more than 100 years, underwent a geographic relocation. But with the help of Operation Benjamin, a donor-supported nonprofit, Moser (1898-1919) and...
(JNS)- U.S. President Donald Trump named an Orthodox Jewish judge, whose official bio notes his penchant for studying the Talmud, chief judge of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. Per his official biography, Matthew H. Solomson, of Silver Spring, Md., "enjoys studying Talmud, playing tennis and spending time at the beach with his family." "It's notable that Judge Solomson is the first Orthodox Jew to be appointed as chief judge of the federal court he is serving on," Nathan Diament, executive dir...
Temple Israel is offering a brand-new, half-day camp running June 9-13 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. It will be packed with traditional camp activities and hands-on fun all through the lens of Judaism and Israeli culture. The camp is for kids entering kindergarten through fifth grade. Groups will be grades K-1, 2-3, and 4-5, with a minimum of six kids per group. If less than six children per age group register, Temple Israel staff will contact you to see if you would prefer your child join another age...
Enjoy a live music performance and inspirational talk by Israeli musician and public speaker Tal Ramon. Thursday, May 1, from 7 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. in the Shalom Orlando Auditorium. Admission is free, though an $18 donation at the door is greatly appreciated. Registration is required, operations.daxko.com. Celebrate Yom Ha’Atzmaut — Israel’s Independence Day — at the Dr. Bernard and Samra Gotlib Yom Ha’Atzmaut festival on May 4. The event will be held at the Roth Family JCC outside Pavilion from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. There will be games, tradition...
The Rosen JCC is hosting a celebration of Israeli culture for the whole family on May 4 from 3:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. at their campus. In celebration of Israel’s Independence Day, enjoy Israeli food tastings, donkey rides in the Negev, a petting zoo in the Kibbutz, a wine tasting in the Galilee, art in Tzfat, dancing in Tel Aviv, Shopping in the Shuk, western wall experience in Jerusale, rock climbing in Mitzpe Ramon, kite flying Eilat and Israeli bingo. Entry is free. Please RSVP at www.rosenjcc.org/israel....
Formerly known as the J Ball, Shalom Orlando invites the community to a J Soiree, themed “Through the Looking Glass.” This grand event takes place May 8 from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Great Southern Box Company, 2105 N. Orange Blossom Trail, Orlando. This year, the Legacy of Leadership honoree is Dick Appelbaum and Judith Arieli will be the recipient of the Harriet Weiss JCC Legacy Award. Visit ShalomOrlando.org/gala to register....
On May 13, 7 p.m. The Congregation of Reform Judaism, in partnership with Congregation Ohev Shalom, Shalom Oralndo, the Israeli American Council and the Jewish National Fund, will present the Tel Aviv String Trio & Special guests. The concert will be held at CRJ, 928 Malone Dr., Orlando. Tickets are available at https://bit.ly/ISOinOrlando....
(JTA) — At a time of heightened antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment, American Jews have been voting in record numbers in an election that will help determine how billions of dollars in Israel-related funding will be spent. The election for the World Zionist Congress, held every five years, provides the only democratic mechanism that gives Diaspora Jews a voice in determining the leadership and priorities of four main Zionist entities: the World Zionist Organization, the Jewish National Fund-Keren Kayemet åLeIsrael, The Jewish Agency for Is...
(JTA) — A Jewish family was killed Saturday when their private plane crashed en route to upstate New York to celebrate Passover. Among those lost in Sunday’s crash were siblings Karenna Groff, 25, and Jared Groff, 26, and their parents, surgeons Michael Groff and Joy Saini. Karenna’s boyfriend James Santoro and Jared’s girlfriend Alexia Couyutas Duarte, 24, were also on board. Both couples planned to get engaged in the coming months, according to the Associated Press. Michael Groff piloted the twin-engine plane which crashed in Copake, New Yor...
(JTA) — As Donald Trump took office in January, many who have kept a close eye on Israel’s efforts to blunt Iran’s nuclear ambitions believed the timing was ripe for a decisive strike. Iran had been deeply weakened by Israel’s direct attacks and wars with its proxies, and Trump was seen as open to being convinced to provide the crucial U.S. support that would be needed to pull off an attack on Iran’s fortified nuclear sites. But ultimately Trump batted away a specific Israeli plan for a strike in May, the New York Times reported on Thursday....
