[Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News] 03/25 Links Pt2: Anti-Semitism in Europe akin to 1930s; Tuvia Tenenborm: Ramallah's Most Wanted ~ EoZ

From Ian:

Ron Lauder: Anti-Semitism in Europe akin to 1930s

A prominent Jewish figure urged the United States on Tuesday to beware of surging anti-Semitism in Europe and warned that seven decades after World War II Jews on the continent are having to look over their shoulders once more.
World Jewish Congress (WJC) president Ronald Lauder told a congressional committee in Washington that the United States could not sit by quietly, with events such as the recent attack in France underlining the growing threat.
“Once again, like the 1930s, European Jews live in fear,” said Lauder, a billionaire businessman who inherited a fortune from his mother Estee Lauder’s cosmetics empire.
“The United States can and must speak loudly and clearly to condemn this evil for what it is –- the radical Islamic hatred of Jews.”
“To defeat this new flame of radical Islamic terror and survive… the United States must lead,” stressed Lauder, whose mother was Jewish and in whose faith he was raised.

Tuvia Tenenborm: Jew, Undercover German Journalist, Ramallah’s Most Wanted

While visiting Israel in March to speak at Hebrew University’s conference marking 50 years of German-Israeli diplomatic relations, Tuvia Tenenbom, author of Catch the Jew! (Gefen Publishing), stayed clear of Ramallah. But Jibril Rajoub—the former head of the Palestinian Authority’s Preventative Security Force—had welcomed him as a VIP when Tenenbom arrived as “Tobi the German journalist.”
Tuvia is now a wanted man.
“I hurt [Rajoub’s] honor because he believed that I’m German,” Tenenbom told JNS.org at the seaside Fitzroy Lounge in Tel Aviv, his bright red glasses adding the intellectual flair to his self-described “fat and jolly” countenance, and a pack of cigarettes—a character in his recently published book—within close reach. “He did not for a second suspect me of being a Jew. It’s not nice for his self-respect.”
Rajoub and Tenenbom are featured embracing on the cover of the Hebrew version of the book. Rajoub, who once sat in Israeli jails for terrorism, bonded with “Tobi” as Rajoub presented himself as a proud Palestinian patriot, an expert on Zionism, and a fiery Israel-basher who deplores the Jewish homeland as “racist, fascist, and expansionist.” Now, fully aware of Tenenbom’s identity, Rajoub still invited him to attend a dubious media event in Ramallah.
“I’ll get in a car accident,” Tenenbom said, fearing a trap.
This is Tenenbom’s first interview with an American Jewish publication. Most have not yet caught up with “Catch the Jew!”—arguably because Tenenbom’s story of his “undercover” foray into the disputed Palestinian territories breaks rank with politically correct, mainstream media-compliant analysis of Mideast politics. At the same time, Tenenbom’s approach employs the secular, irreverent sassiness that is typical of the left.

Assange: Argentine Prosecutor Investigating Iran 'Should Have Been Disciplined'

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has decided to jump into the fray of the Alberto Nisman murder mystery, telling an Argentine news outlet that the high-ranking prosecutor– found dead hours before he was scheduled to accuse the Argentine president of aiding Hezbollah– should have been “disciplined” for cooperating in his investigations with the United States.
“Nisman made himself very dependent on the United States to receive intelligence reports,” Assange alleges in an interview with Argentina’s Página 12. Nisman had been working for years on finding the culprits responsible for the 1994 bombing of the Argentine Israeli Mutual Association (AMIA), the deadliest attack in that nation’s history, leaving 85 dead and dozens of others wounded. The nearly 300-page report he was to present the Argentine Congress on January 19, the day after his death, suggests that Iranian terrorists associated with the Shiite terrorist group Hezbollah were responsible for the attack, and that President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner negotiated with Iran to help keep the suspects hidden from Interpol. No suspects have been arrested in relation to the bombing in 21 years.
Assange argues that the real problem in the AMIA case is not the links Nisman offered to prove existed between the Fernández de Kirchner administration and Hezbollah, but that Nisman’s intelligence may have been aided by American operatives. According to Assange, Jaime Stiuso, one of Nisman’s main intelligence sources in writing the report, received much of his intelligence from “the United States and Israel.”

David Brooks: How to Fight Anti-Semitism

On college campuses, many young people have been raised in a climate of moral relativism and have no experience with those with virulent evil beliefs. They sometimes assume that if Israel is hated, then it must be because of its cruel and colonial policies in the West Bank.
In the Obama administration, there are people who know that the Iranians are anti-Semitic, but they don’t know what to do with that fact and put this mental derangement on a distant shelf. They negotiate with the Iranian leaders, as if anti-Semitism was some odd quirk, instead of what it is, a core element of their mental architecture.
There are others who see anti-Semitism as another form of bigotry. But these are different evils. Most bigotry is an assertion of inferiority and speaks the language of oppression. Anti-Semitism is an assertion of impurity and speaks the language of extermination. Anti-Semitism’s logical endpoint is violence.
Groups fighting anti-Semitism sponsor educational campaigns and do a lot of consciousness-raising. I doubt these things do anything to reduce active anti-Semitism. But they can help non-anti-Semites understand the different forms of the cancer in our midst. That’s a start.

Phyllis Chesler: A New War Against the “Oldest Hatred”

Anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism — two sides of the same coin — are raging anew. They are brutally alive in the Middle East, Europe and even here in America.
Yet now, at long last, there is some pushback, at least on the “battlefield of ideas.” It comes in the form of a new academic institute championed by a hardened veteran of this war, and its presence at universities throughout the world is blossoming.
In this country, we hear shouts of Jew-hatred at every pro-Palestinian demonstration. We read all about it in the biased left-liberal, anti-Israel media and see it in President Obama’s overt hostility to Israel and its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
Perhaps most troubling, though, is its presence on the American campus, where it simmers at full boil. There, Israel-bashing is embraced as an expression of politically correct, divine truth — rather than called out for what it often really is: unadulterated racism. Professors disguise their hatred of Jews by presenting it as a “politically righteous” stand against Israel, since the Jewish state is, in their portrayal, a colonialist, apartheid nation. A 2015 report by the National Demographic Survey of American Jewish College Students found 54 percent of 1,157 college students polled at 55 American campuses have experienced and/or witnessed anti-Semitic incidents.

A Journey Through French Anti-Semitism

Over the years, we saw a legion of intellectuals, who had always been far removed from Jewish life and Jewish thought, rise to denounce Israel and the Jewish community in the name of Jewish morality, or, rather, “another Judaism,” or else “the memory of the Holocaust.” This invocation often depicted Israel as a Nazi state, radically misinterpreting both the one and the other. Not even the spectacle of Muslim Brotherhood–led protests in all French cities in 2014—complete with cries of “Death to the Jews”—has brought these people to their senses. Behind the pretext of Palestine, the religious motivations of the anti-Jewish violence remain misunderstood. It would cost French elites too much doctrinal and psychological effort to accept this fact, after such a long period of denial, for it overturns their erroneous prism of interpretation. The thesis that France faces an “imported conflict” still reigns today—and it remains as false now as it was 14 years ago at the time of the Second Intifada. We are in the same place. There has been no improvement.
The political impasse for the Jews in France today is still almost total. President Hollande and, especially, Prime Minister Valls both now speak far more frankly and openly of anti-Semitism and its sources and even of vigorous new policies in security and education, but it is hard to believe that the left will not continue to flatter the Muslim electorate with multicultural promises. The right, whose pro-Arab tilt goes all the way back to Charles de Gaulle, is unlikely to provide a significant alternative in this regard. Meanwhile, the extreme right maintains an ominous silence about its relations to Jews, letting others do their work. Finally, the foreign policy establishment remains fundamentally and historically hostile to Israel. Will the political courage and new frankness exemplified by the prime minister be sufficient to alter the historical course on which the Jews of France seem to be headed? It is too early to say. For myself, I cannot help but feel that the decades, events, and attitudes whose story I have briefly told here are all stages on a long journey for which Jerusalem is the ultimate goal.

Danon takes lawmakers to task for slamming Netanyahu at J Street conference

Likud MK Danny Danon criticized a group of Meretz and Zionist Union MKs on Tuesday for slamming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a Washington conference sponsored by the leftwing lobby J Street.
There is an often-violated tradition in the Knesset that MKs refrain from criticizing their leaders when abroad.
On a panel that Haaretz editor Aluf Benn hosted, Meretz MK Tamar Zandberg said Netanyahu had won last week’s election by making “racist comments” about Israeli Arab voter turnout.
Zionist Union MK Hilik Bar, meanwhile, said the Right “lies to the people of Israel,” and that Netanyahu could not be changed or trusted to bring about a two-state solution.

Graham: WH Chief Of Staff Speaks Like Terrorists

South Carolina GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham blasted White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough’s statements at a conference held by the anti-Israel group J Street, calling them the same language used by terrorists. McDonough told the gleeful crowd, "An occupation that has lasted more—almost 50 years must end."
Graham ripped McDonough, saying on the Senate floor on Monday, "The language used by the chief of staff of the president of the United States is exactly what Hamas uses … Today, the chief of staff of the president of the United States used language that has been reserved for terrorist organizations."
Graham asked rhetorically, "Is your country occupying the West Bank or are you there to make sure the West Bank doesn't turn into Gaza? The chief of the staff of the president of the United States is looking at a world completely different than the one I am viewing."
Graham said of McDonough’s remarks, "All I can say is, when I thought it couldn't get worse, it has … Wake up and change your policies before you set the whole world on fire. Please watch your language. ...You're making everything worse, and now you've added fuel to the fire."

Jewish Group Calls Out Illinois Congresswoman’s ‘Pejorative’ Use of ‘Orthodox’

The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America (OU) criticized U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky’s (D-Ill.) ”pejorative” use of the word “Orthodox” in remarks at the annual conference of the left-wing J Street lobby on Monday, and welcomed the lawmaker’s subsequent apology.
Schakowsky had thanked J Street for supporting her in an election campaign against Joel Pollak, who is currently the senior editor-at-large for Breitbart News. The Illinois congresswoman said in videotaped comments, “In 2010, I had an election… an election within our community. That is, I ran against a Jewish-Orthodox, Tea Party Republican (Pollak) who made it very clear that actually Jan Schakowsky was anti-Israel because of the positions that she took. J Street came to my rescue.”

Jan Schakowsky Apologizes to Orthodox Jews for Targeting Breitbart Editor’s Faith

The Illinois Congresswoman continued, thanking the far-left J Street organization for supporting her “not just with money,” but “moral support that was able to assure a substantial victory in that election.” She also thanked J Street for giving her the “courage” to “expand political discussion about the State of Israel and our relationship to it.”
“It was correctly noted that my description of my 2010 opponent in the congressional race irrelevantly noted that in addition to being a Tea Party Republican, he is an Orthodox Jew,” Schakowsky said in a statement. “I understand how this was heard, by extension, as an affront to the Orthodox community. I regret that and unequivocally apologize for it,” she added.
In the apology letter, Schakowsky continued to attack Pollak, who she believed had “irresponsibly attempted to divide the Jewish community and 9th District voters.”
Schakowsky has not yet apologized to Pollak for her incendiary remarks.

Why J Street loves Jim Baker

J Street longs to be associated with the word “bipartisan” the way white wants to join with bread in Baker’s home state of Texas, and yet the lobby remains overwhelmingly Democratic. Rep. Walter Jones (R-N.C.) — he of Freedom Fries fame — a southern Republican whose eccentric conspiracy thinking seem drawn from all-caps newsletters, was one of only two Republicans J Street’s PAC endorsed last year, a match made for buffs of political exotica — the excitable embracing the eccentric.
Baker and the younger Bush represent a different universe entirely — the GOP establishment defined. An alliance with the Bush campaign would go some distance to erasing J Street founder Jeremy Ben-Ami’s famous quote in 2009 about being President Barack Obama’s “blocking back” in Congress, a comment that still haunts the group like a bad date who fell asleep on the couch.
The more obvious reason Baker got the room for an hour was his style: He and Bush stood up to Israel and the pro-Israel lobby and were proud of it.

Presidential hopeful Jeb Bush disagrees with critique of Israel, Netanyahu

In response, a spokeswoman for Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor and a potential Republican presidential candidate in 2016, said in an email on Tuesday, “While [Bush] respects Secretary Baker, he disagrees with the sentiments he expressed last night and opposes J Street’s advocacy.”
“Governor Bush’s support for Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is unwavering,” the email from Kristy Campbell continued, “and he believes it’s critically important our two nations work seamlessly to achieve peace in the region.”
Baker reportedly said “f*** the Jews” in a private conversation while serving as secretary of state for Bush’s father, George H.W. Bush.
US Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas said in a speech on Monday announcing his bid for the Republican presidential nomination that he would stand “unapologetically with Israel.” Cruz is the first to declare his candidacy for 2016.

New Orleans Student Group Launches Petition to Divest From Palestinian Authority

A group of students at the University of New Orleans has launched an initiative to both combat the Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment (BDS) movement against Israel and call on the U.S. government to stop funding the Palestinian Authority (PA).
The “Allies of Israel” group, which calls itself a “grassroots college organization dedicated to the promotion of the Jewish state of Israel as a sovereign nation rooted in Jewish principles, and serving as a haven for Jews all over the globe,” issued a petition intended “to raise awareness about the human rights abuses perpetrated by the Palestinian Authority against the Palestinians and Israelis in the West Bank; to call for accountability in the foreign aid given to the Palestinian Authority and ensure it is not used to persecute Palestinians or Israelis.”
The campaign was organized by pro-Israel student activist Chloe Valdary, who told the Haym Salomon Center that “in order to give expression to the Jewish struggle for freedom, my organization ‘Allies of Israel’ has launched a campaign to symbolically divest from the Palestinian Authority.”

British activists step up efforts to oppose BDS

Some 1,500 supporters of Israel from virtually all major UK-based lobbying organizations concerned with the Jewish state participated in a day-long conference Sunday, aimed at equipping them to deal with increased campaigning for BDS on social media, as well as tackling the more traditional areas of political, campus, media and interfaith challenges.
The gathering was superbly organized by Luke Akehurst, who runs the “We believe in Israel” grassroots network within BICOM, the organization that handles mainstream media and community activity for Israel in the UK. Those attending heard from a wealth of guest speakers and seasoned campaigners intermingled with politicians from across the UK political spectrum, who gave briefings, advice, and suggestions to deal with the ongoing anti-Israel campaigning as part of 70 break-out sessions offered to participants.
The UK’s pro-Palestinian lobby was given a substantial boost when, last October, the House of Commons voted for a non-binding motion calling for early recognition of a Palestinian state, but despite attempts to advance the BDS campaign both in local authorities and on university campuses, their success rate has been somewhat limited, with pro-Israel activists launching counter campaigns that registered some positive results.
However, Akehurst noted that, after last summer’s Gaza conflict, an opinion poll disclosed that most of the UK took no view between the protagonists, and that support for Israel and the Palestinians was evenly divided at 20 percent each.

BDS Money Trail: Taxpayers Funding Anti-Israel Hate on Campus, Experts Say

The sources of monetary funding for anti-Israel propaganda and movements such as boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) on college campuses can be linked to taxpayer dollars, according to experts at the StandWithUs conference, a gathering of pro-Israel activists.
“The most important thing to know is Students for Justice in Palestine are highly decentralized and, in large measure, are being funded through taxpayer funding of university funds,” New York Times-bestselling author Edwin Black said in an interview with Breitbart News.
Black spoke on a panel titled “Money Trail” during StandWithUs’s anti-BDS conference in Los Angeles on Monday.
His book, Fanning the Flames, describes how jailed Palestinian terrorists were being paid salaries based on the number of people with they had killed. Essentially, the higher the number in some cases, the higher the paycheck. Black argues that the money being paid to these terrorists “comes from U.S. and European taxpayer funds. Similarly, the funding for the BDS movements on campus is hidden.”
Black notes that “many of these SJP chapters work hard to become recognized as student organizations” which allows for a certain amount of the student budget to be allocated to them as a result. “And when you’re talking about university budget, you’re talking about taxpayer money.”

Jewish Voice for Peace Values. Supporting Terror

Jewish Voice for Peace claims: If you want to act on your values and not just talk about them, Jewish Voice for Peace is for you
Is promoting terror one of your values? Apparently it is for JVP, who proudly proclaim in the same handout that they “organized a solidarity fast for Khader Adnan”
Khader Adnan is a leader of Islamic Jihad widely recognized as a terrorist organization by the EU, US, UK, Israel, Australia, Canada, and Japan.
Check out Adnan’s terrorist ideology and his extremist rhetoric as he solicits suicide bombers at a 2007 event, urging “Who among you will carry the next explosive belt? “Who among you will fire the next bullets? Who among you will have his body parts blown all over?”

Students at Canadian University Vote in Favor of BDS

The student union at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, has voted in support of the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, the CBC reported on Tuesday.
Students at the student union’s annual general assembly voted to endorse the BDS campaign, with 622 people voting for the resolution and 28 voting against.
According to a BDS committee press release, some pro-Israel students walked out of the meeting just before the vote to “try to reduce the attendance at the general assembly below the 632-member quorum.”
A similar vote happened in March of last year, but the assembly didn’t have quorum, making it a non-binding vote, noted the CBC.

REDS RATTLED

Marrickville’s Red Rattler theatre recently rejected a proposed series of Holocaust-themed performances by a not-for-profit Jewish educational and cultural organisation:
"Our policy does not support colonialism/Zionism.
Therefore we do not host groups that support the colonisation and occupation of Palestine."
But look at who the theatre did host last year:
"2014 Greece’s grassroots nationalist movement in the Golden Dawn has just held a pre-emptive meeting downunder in Sydney to formally establish a supportive splinter group …
Thanks go out to Jamie at The Red Rattler in Marrickville …"

Anti-Islamist Talk Cancelled at Trinity College Over Fear of 'Antagonising' Muslim Students

An Iranian human rights activist who has described Islam as a “totalitarian global threat” has had her speaking engagement at Trinity College, Dublin (TCD) cancelled. Refusal to comply with a unique set of restrictions not placed on other speakers, including proponents of Sharia law, was the reason given.
Maryam Namazie, who regularly receives death threats for speaking out against Islamists, was due to give a talk to the university’s Society for International Affairs (SOFIA) on Monday titled: Apostasy and the Rise of Islamism. But the event was cancelled when she refused to comply with last minute restrictions, including limiting the audience to Trinity College students who are also members of the society and the addition of a moderator to add “balance” to the proceedings.

Author ambushed after pro-Rushdie remarks

Following an authors’ seminar in which she expressed admiration for the work of Salman Rushdie, a South African writer’s car was forced off the road by a gang of men who then held a knife to her throat before smashing her face with a brick, shattering her cheek bone. The men shouted that Zainub Priya Dala was “Rushdie’s bitch”, reports The Telegraph.
It goes without saying that violent tantrums and murderous sprees by Islamic extremists are growing in frequency, emboldened by the Internet and a globalised sense of grievance. It is increasingly hard to miss the chilling effects it is having on free speech and the increasing cultural and academic impoverishment of liberal societies.

ISIS Club at Cornell?

The latest undercover video from James O’Keefe’s organization shows Joseph Scaffido, Assistant Dean for Students at Cornell, answering a series of questions on setting up a club supporting terrorist groups and even terrorist training. He never raises problems with such a club on campus.
“I think programs like that really do have a place here at Cornell,” Scaffido said in response to a question on sending care packages to ISIS “freedom fighters.”
The Project Veritas undercover reporter posed as a Mororccan student looking to study at Cornell next semester. As he asks a series of questions it is clear the “student” wants to set up a club that would support terrorists but the school official never bats an eye.
“The freedom fighters and their families in particular. I think it would be important to educate, but to maybe send them care packages be it food, water, electronics,” the reporter said.
“There are a lot of our student organizations that do things like that all over the world,” Scaffido said.
The reporter asked point blank about supporting Hamas or bringing in a “freedom fighter” to speak on campus and was told both would be allowed.

Pakistani Daily: 'Modi [Going] In The Footprints Of Yehudi [Jew]'

An article titled "Modi in the Footprints of Yehudi [Jew]" in the mainstream Pakistani Urdu-language daily Roznama Pakistan argued that a Zionist-Hindu alliance is threatening Muslims, and therefore a Muslim-Christian understanding is currently needed.
The article was written by Dr. Zahoor Ahmad Azhar, who argued that the Zionists and Hindus will prove to be more racist in coming years. He went on to praise Pope Francis for his visit to Turkey to promote world peace.

Jordan, Russia sign $10 billion deal on nuclear power plant

Jordan signed a $10 billion deal with Russia on Tuesday to build the kingdom’s first nuclear power plant, with two 1,000-megawatt reactors in the country’s north.
The deal, signed in the Jordanian capital, Amman, with Russia’s state-owned Rosatom company caps efforts of the energy-poor kingdom to increase energy sufficiency and reduce imports.
Jordan lacks any local energy sources and imports 96 percent of its electricity. The violence in neighboring Iraq and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula has threatened and in many cases, completely cut off supplies.
The kingdom’s Petra news agency said Jordan plans to finish construction of the plant in Amra in the country’s north by 2022. There are also hopes it will be fueled with uranium mined in Jordan.

Pears Institute for the Study of Anti-Semitism is a Study in Itself

London-based Pears Institute for the Study of Anti-Semitism claims its founding principle is that the study of anti-Semitism is vital to understanding all forms of racism, prejudice and xenophobia. Strange then that both the institute and its partners have misunderstood the nature of contemporary anti-Semitism (i.e. anti-Zionism) and aligned themselves with organizations and academics that are hostile to the State of Israel.
In 2013, Pears Institute organized a conference on boycotts. According to the organizers, the conference was “an academic forum to better comprehend the causes and content of boycott movements and to advance understanding of whether and how BDS [boycotts, divestments and sanctions] sits within the debate on contemporary anti-Semitism.”
Instead, the conference was an opportunity for professional Israel haters to air their views, namely London School of Economics’ Dr John Chalcraft, who refers to Israel as an apartheid state, and Philip Marfleet, of University of East London, who characterizes Zionism as imperialism.
Moreover, as Jonathan Hoffman, writing in The Jewish Chronicle, has pointed out, Pears Institute “sees nothing wrong with hosting Israel traducers such as Jacqueline Rose who makes anti-Semitic comparisons between Jews and Nazis.”

Congress announces launch of task-force to combat anti-Semitism

Eight members of the House of Representatives announced the formation of a task-force Tuesday aimed with the challenge of combating anti-Semitism. The forming members will serve as co-chairs of the force and work to minimize the proliferation of anti-Semitic acts across the globe.
"Around the world, we are witnessing an alarming rise of anti-Semitism that is dangerous and complex. Over the past few years, Jewish schools, synagogues, and even homes and property have been targets of anti-Semitic violence. Jewish populations are facing increased levels of hatred, frequently under the guise of political differences or other alibis, but in reality it is solely because of their faith," the members said in a statement.
The committee, coined "The Bipartisan Taskforce for Combating anti-Semitism," will work to educate Congress members on this particular form of prejudice and will seek to share solutions that could minimize the phenomenon with the Executive Branch of the government, foreign leaders and civil society organizations.
The task-force hopes to integrate Congress into the fight against anti-Semitism and promote tolerance on an international level.

Ukrainian Jews Fleeing War Arrive in Israel in Time for Passover

The family and the rest of the refugees came in a special flight sponsored by the IFCJ, which has decided to increase its efforts in bringing thousands of Jews to Israel from countries in distress. In the past three months alone, the IFJC has managed to rescue 560 newcomers from Ukraine. This was the organization’s third special flight since December.
Many of the newcomers are battle refuges from the Ukraine, while others have been harshly affected by the economic state of the country from the beginning of the revolution.
Consequently, the IFCJ decided that the newcomers will receive additional monetary aid in addition to the regular absorption pack and the benefits newcomers are entitled to by the Israeli Ministry of Immigrant Absorption.
The IFCJ also contacted mayors across Israel who happily recruited themselves to the mission of helping the newcomers adapt into their cities.

900,000 people take part in Good Deeds Day

A record-breaking number of volunteers took time to take part in the Israeli initiative known as Good Deeds Day. Some 900,000 people from across the globe devoted millions of hours of volunteering in a single day to help clean up nature reserves and beaches, run activities for special needs communities, spruce up neighborhoods, distribute food to the needy and partake in other positive projects.
The ninth annual Good Deeds Day, a project encouraging people to volunteer and give back to the community, took place on March 15 around the world and on March 24 in Israel.
“I believe that if people will think good, speak good and do good, the circles of goodness will grow in the world. Good Deeds Day has become the leading day of giving and this year individuals, school children, students, soldiers and employees from many businesses are joining in for the annual Good Deeds Day with the aim of doing a good deed for others,” said Israeli businesswoman and philanthropist, Shari Arison, who devised the idea for Good Deeds Day.
“Good Deeds Day is an annual celebration of good deeds. All over the world, hundreds of thousands choose to volunteer and help others, putting into practice the simple idea that every single person can do something good, be it large or small, to improve the lives of others and positively change the world,” reads the mission statement.

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West set to visit Israel

One of the most famous couples in the world is expected to touch down in Israel soon.
Reality television star Kim Kardashian and rapper Kanye West will be arriving in Israel on a personal visit for a couple of days. The famous couple reserved rooms at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Jerusalem around the dates of April 12 and 13.
They also hired, among other things, the services of a personal security company that specializes in celebrity visits in Israel.
The couple's representatives made sure to make everyone involved in the plans sign a confidentiality agreement to prevent leaks to the media on their dream vacation.
The pair are planning to visit the Western Wall and other holy sites in Jerusalem.

'Everyone in Vanuatu Loves Israel'

An IsraAID disaster assistance team recently ended its first visit to the remote islands of Vanuatu in the South Pacific Ocean, where they helped locals recover from the massive damage caused by Cyclone Pam. While there they learned something surprising - the islanders love Israel.
The Israeli team, together with Tongoa parliament representative MP John Amos and a team of local volunteers, distributed over 40 tons of rice, flour and drinking water to residents of the Tongoa and Mataso islands in Vanuatu.
Members of the team found that "everyone here loves Israel," noting that the reaction they got from locals learning they were from Israel was a pleasant surprise.
In one island village they met David, a man who lost his entire house and had his water tank polluted by the storm damage, who was moved upon learning the team was from Israel.

Morocco to Renew Casablanca’s Synagogues

Casablanca will restore the Temple Beth El synagogue, the most famous Jewish place of worship in the city, according to the Italian news agency ANSAmed. The renovation of the Jewish synagogue is part of large scale project to renovate and restore the old medina of Casablanca.
Home to a sizable and centuries-old Jewish community, the kingdom aims to renew their places of worship where most of the Jewish celebrations are held.
“The inclusion of the synagogues in the medina restoration is a strong sign that Morocco wants to make itself even more visible with initiatives that elsewhere would cause alarm, but that in Morocco is simply the continuation of a decades-long tolerance policy,” the Italian agency said.
With its spiritual wealth and cultural diversity, the kingdom is deeply permeated with the values of coexistence, tolerance and harmony between the different components of its social fabric.

Boca Synagogue Wins Guinness World Record

First there was the world’s largest chicken nugget, a 50-lb kosher masterpiece unveiled in 2013. Then there was the world’s largest Shabbat dinner, which drew 2,226 people to Tel Aviv in 2014. The latest Jewish creation to be anointed with a Guinness Book of World Records certification is a prayer shawl, or tallis, from Boca Raton, FL, that clocks in at a whopping 1,471.74 square feet.
The prayer shawl at Boca Raton Synagogue, a modern Orthodox congregation in South Florida, appears to stretch across a large sanctuary in photographs. The tallis was measured by officials from Guinness Book of World Records on Feb. 12, and as of yesterday, when the synagogue’s rabbi Efrem Goldberg posted the news on Facebook, appears to have been confirmed by the record-keeping authority.
I called my grandparents sources in Boca, who hadn’t heard the news yet, and weren’t sure which of the synagogues that was, but offered to drive over there today and try to see it. (Love you Grandma!)

'Choose Life Every Day' - Synagogue Dedicated for Fallen Soldier

A new synagogue for the Ethiopian Jewish community was inaugurated on Tuesday in the Katamon neighborhood of Jerusalem, in memory of IDF soldier First Sgt. Moshe Malko (20), who fell in combat fighting Hamas terrorists in Gaza last summer during Operation Protective Edge.
Moshe's sister Ester Malko told Arutz Sheva about the decision to inaugurate the synagogue precisely on "Good Deeds Day," a global initiative encouraging volunteerism.
"It's really unifying and makes one happy to see giving, to see things passed from one to the other," she said. "It really connects me to what my brother said in the last phone call: 'one for all and all for one.'"
The grieving sister added "I hope with G-d's help that the scriptural verse 'make for Me a sanctuary and I will dwell among them' will be fulfilled here in the synagogue."
When asked how the family is coping with the loss of Moshe, she explained "we live with the pain and the difficulty and find happiness even in the small things that the Holy One Blessed be He leads to us to each day."