World

As Oklahomans begin to dig out from the damage of one of the devastating tornadoes in memory, Jewish groups near and far are joining in to help people who have lost loved ones or property, or have been displaced from their homes.

Senior Fatah diplomat Saeb Erekat has told a UN committee in New York that a settlement freeze and the release of Palestinian prisoners – long sticking points in the Israel-Palestine peace process – are not pre-conditions for returning to negotiations, but rather obligations that Israel must fulfill, and that Fatah wants to restart talks with Israel “without conditions”.

Klezmer music experienced something of a revival in the 1970s and 80s. Meaning an entire generation of young jews have grown up listening to and some even playing those classic tunes – and a group of them has gone to Eastern Europe, where tradition was born, and in some ways still thrives. Twenty-nine year old Jake Shulman-Ment has been playing klezmer since he was twelve.

Secretary Kerry travels May 21 to Muscat, where he will meet with senior Omani officials to discuss a range of bilateral and regional issues.

The U.S. government funds non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that operate in Israel and the Palestinian Authority whose activities contribute to the political campaigns designed to demonize and delegitimize Israel.

Qatar has been trying to lure the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) away from its headquarters in Montreal, where it has been since 1946, as a means of punishing Canada for its pro-Israel policy.

Germany has proposed a two-year ban on EU citizens returning to the EU from Syria after fighting against the forces of embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper issued a ringing indictment of what he described as the West’s “softening support” for the Jewish State Thursday, as he insisted that “the worst possible thing we could do in the long term for any of our governments is to be anything less than fully supportive of Israel”.

We wish you warm a peaceful Shabbat, dear friends! 

Raoul Wallenberg has been honored time and again for his efforts to save thousands of Jewish lives during the Holocaust. Now the design for the unique gold medal, awarded by the U.S. Congress, is being unveiled here at the US Treasury. U.S. President Barack Obama first announced the special award last year.