During the waning hours of 2015, the Israeli government made one of its most important decisions of the year, belatedly approving an ambitious development plan to close the lamentable and inexcusable economic gap between Jews and Arabs in Israel. It was long overdue, to say the least. If fully implemented, the five-year plan will upgrade the […]
As pro-Palestinian groups proliferate at American colleges, student protesters have taken to shouting down invited Israeli guest lecturers at various campuses and disrupting other events organized by Jewish students. Late last year, Assi Azar, an Israeli television personality and LGBT rights advocate, was interrupted during a discussion of his film, Mom, Dad, I have […]
I did not learn about the July 10, 1941 pogrom in the small town of Jedwabne, in northeast Poland, until I read Jan Tomasz Gross’ explosive and path-breaking book, Neighbors, which was published in the spring of 2000. The Polish American historian’s work, based on a variety of sources, caused an uproar because it went against […]
On my last visit to Egypt, in 1999, I spent several days in one of my favorite places, the Sinai Peninsula, a 61,000 square kilometer desert of spectacular Red Sea coast lines, undulating sand dunes, shady oases and craggy mountains. I was truly in my element as I explored this pristine region, which on a […]
Michael Kirk’s Frontline documentary on the dysfunctional relationship between U.S. President Barack Hussein Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu at War, will be aired by the PBS network on January 5 at 9 p.m. (check local listings). It’s a timely, hard-hitting and important film about two leaders whose personal philosophies and world views diverge […]
On Dec. 25, the Malaysian government announced it had accepted the withdrawal of two Israeli windsurfers from the International Sailing Federation world youth sailing championships, which was due to begin on Dec. 27. Malaysia’s Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin told the Malay Mail Online website that Malaysia, which does not have diplomatic relations […]
Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon has disclosed that Israel’s security services have adopted stringent measures to ensure that a despicable incident like last summer’s firebombing of a Palestinian family’s home in the West Bank village of Duma will never happen again. “We have taken draconian steps to prevent another terror attack,” he said on December 26 […]
Is war-torn Syria finally on the cusp of peace? That’s the burning question following the unanimous passage of a United Nations Security Council resolution supporting a political solution of the nearly five-year-old civil war in Syria, which has claimed the lives of more than 250,000 civilians and soldiers. The resolution, adopted by a 15-0 margin […]
It’s the end of another year and the dawn before a new one. You’re off from work and you’ve got some spare time on your hands. What better way to relax than to immerse yourself in some books. Here are a few newly-published books you may enjoy over the holiday season. On my first trip […]
Like a snowball rolling downhill, the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement aimed at Israel keeps growing — especially among those who teach at universities. That doesn’t bode well for future support for the Jewish state, since a whole generation of students — tomorrow’s politically-active citizens and voters — are increasingly exposed to the dogma of […]