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News Norway Nurses Back Ban on Ritual Circumcision
The Norwegian Nurses Organization reported the plea in an interview with its director, Astrid Grydeland Ersvik, which was posted Tuesday on the organization’s website. “We need to gain acceptance for setting a minimum age limit of 15-16 years for circumcision, so that the boy himself can decide,” Grydeland Ersvik said, outlining a presentation she made…
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Breaking News European Jews Fret About Rising Populist Far Right
The European Jewish Congress fears far-right gains in upcoming European elections and believes a grouping presenting itself as simply populist and eurosceptical is just as dangerous as out-and-out extremists, the EJC’s president said. Some analysts forecast that a group of anti-euro parties could capture 20 percent of seats in May’s European parliament elections as high…
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Opinion Ukraine’s Reform Rabbi Cheers Protest’s Victory
A man stands beside a military oven in Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. / Getty Images Over the weekend, the Forward contacted Ukraine’s chief Reform rabbi, Alexander Dukhovny, to ask him about how he felt seeing the months of protests on Kiev’s central square lead to a clear resolution in the president’s ouster. This is…
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Breaking News British Orthodox Candidate Refuses To Shake Hands
An Orthodox Jewish candidate for the European Parliament has caused a stir by refusing to shake women’s hands. Shneur Odze told the members of the right-wing populist UK Independence Party, or UKIP, that he will not shake women’s hands due to his religious beliefs, which proscribe physical contact with any woman other than his wife,…
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Opinion Anti-Semitism? Self-Segregation Isn’t the Answer
Anti-Semitism in Europe is, once again, making headlines. In Paris, crowds sang, “Jews, France is not yours” at an anti-government protest last month. In Rome, a right-wing extremist mailed three pig heads to major Jewish sites, and Italy had its own anti-government protest — complete with anti-Semitic slogans — a couple of months ago. Plus,…
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Opinion Academic Freedom — Not Boycotts — Should Be Focus of Israel Academia Debate
The uproar in the Jewish community over the American Studies Association’s vote to boycott Israeli universities has largely overlooked one point: Are we, who oppose these sorts of boycotts, truly committed to academic freedom for people of all views on the Israel-Palestine conflict? Of course there are reasons, aside from academic freedom, to oppose the…
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Opinion Europe Still Needs Holocaust Remembrance Day
Milan — Today, many European countries — including Germany, Italy and the UK — are observing the annual International Holocaust Remembrance Day. What makes this particular Holocaust Remembrance Day peculiar in Italy is the fact that quite a few public intellectuals, both Jewish and non-Jewish, have called for its abolition. Well, that and the fact…
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Israel News Israel Wades Into Europe Circumcision Debate — and Reaction Is Mixed
(JTA) — The Israeli government is wading into the burgeoning European debate over circumcision and receiving a mixed reception from the continent’s Jews. On Dec. 11, Israel initiated a motion in defense of circumcision at the Council of Europe, an intergovernmental organization devoted to enhancing cooperation among its 47 member states. Intended to offset a…
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Culture Why saying ‘L’shana Tova’ on Rosh Hashanah may not be the correct phrase
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Culture A Jewish prophet of the 1980s would be horrified to see that we didn’t heed his warnings
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Opinion This is the most disorienting Rosh Hashanah in memory
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Fast Forward Meet Lev Kreitman, who brought down Tel Aviv shooter and survived Nova music festival on Oct. 7
In Case You Missed It
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Oct. 7: One Year Later On the eve of this grim anniversary, what we can — and cannot — control
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Fast Forward Antisemitism hits record high in the U.S.; new report shows most-ever incidents in single year
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Culture He founded the Harlem Globetrotters and is the shortest man in the basketball hall of fame. A new book tells his story.
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Oct. 7: One Year Later One year after Oct. 7, a Yom Kippur ritual of communal mourning takes on fresh meaning
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