Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
COVID-19
The Latest
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Opinion Yes, Israel should vaccinate all Palestinians. Here’s why.
Editor’s Note: Israel’s vaccination program for its citizens and residents does not discriminate based on ethnicity; Arab-Israelis and Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem are eligible along with Jews, as we reported in this Feb. 16 article, There is debate over Israel’s responsibility to vaccinate Palestinians under the Geneva Convention and the Oslo Accords, as we…
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Opinion A year into COVID, we must send kids back to shul
On the first night of Hanukkah, I went to downtown D.C. to witness the menorah lighting on the National Mall with my four kids. I’ve never been one for such Jewish spectacles. I’ve never even been much of a synagogue-goer. But I’ve long known that when it comes to building their Jewish identity, my kids…
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News The outbreak started in a New Rochelle shul. A year later, a look at that community.
I forgot to go outside at 7 p.m. on Wednesday to clap. Honestly, until I got the email from New Rochelle City Hall a few days earlier outlining plans to mark the one-year anniversary of COVID-19 arriving in our town, I had forgotten about the clapping altogether. It feels like it was all so long…
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News After year of isolation, fully vaccinated grandparents head to in-person Passover seders
Ruth and Jerry Kirschner haven’t seen four of their grandchildren, ages 7 through 12, since January 2020. “This is the age when you want to see them,” Ruth said. “They’re young. They understand we can’t be with them, but they’re always like, ‘How much longer? How much longer?’” Thanks to the COVID-19 vaccine, the Kirschners…
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Community A year into COVID, Zoom funerals are still surreal
I waited outside the main office building of Beth Moses Cemetery in Long Island. It was a bright, cold day. I’d been there many times before. Normally the spot is a swirl of activity, with cars snaking around every driveway, funeral directors talking shop in small clumps and crowds of mourners greeting one another with…
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Culture Meet the Orthodox therapist who says watching ‘Bridgerton’ could improve your sex life
If you visit Dr. Bat Sheva Marcus’s Instagram, which you absolutely should, you will find many informative videos. Videos about the challenges of having sex while breastfeeding. Videos explaining the various causes of pain during intercourse. Videos about the items you should include in your “sex basket.” (Options, among others, include “a vibrator” and “a…
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News Israel will vaccinate Palestinians who work in Israel or West Bank settlements
Israel’s cabinet has approved extending the country’s vaccination campaign to Palestinian laborers working in Israel and in West Bank settlements, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories said in a statement Sunday. Some 100,000 Palestinians are estimated to hold a permit allowing them to work inside Israel and the settlements. The inoculation campaign is…
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Opinion We asked 13 rabbis: How should we process 500,000 American COVID deaths?
This post is part of our Rabbi Roundtable series. This week, the United States recorded its 500,000th death from COVID-19. It’s a staggering number, one many of us have struggled to wrap our heads around. For thoughts on how to process the milestone we turned to rabbis across the country for their wisdom, both on…
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News Dutch Jews grapple with ‘weaponization’ of their fear following attack on Israelis
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News What a Secretary of State Marco Rubio would mean for American Jews and Israel
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Fast Forward Trump AG nominee Matt Gaetz has left a trail of antisemitic comments
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Fast Forward ‘Antisemitic hit-and-run squads’: Amsterdam temporarily bans demonstrations after Israeli soccer fans attacked by street mobs
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Opinion Mike Huckabee’s old-school Christian Zionism is bad news for anyone who wants Middle East peace
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Opinion Like our patriarch Abraham, American Jews face 10 post-election tests of our values
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Fast Forward Trump taps RFK Jr., whose anti-vaccine activism has included antisemitic comments, to lead Dept. of Health and Human Services
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Fast Forward A Ben & Jerry’s battle over Israel, long frozen, thaws anew amid Gaza war
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