Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(JNS) - The Israel Defense Forces' "Operation Roaring Lion" against the Islamic Republic will continue "with full force, on all fronts," until all objectives are achieved, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday. The premier in his statement commented on the elimination of Brig. Gen. Majid Khademi, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' intelligence chief, and Asghar Bakri, who commanded Unit 840 of the IRGC's Quds Force. "Another central arm of the Iranian terror regime has been severe...
Fourteen years ago, Loren London envisioned creating a program that would empower adults with disabilities to find and maintain employment. That vision became RAISE, Recognizing Abilities and Inclusion of Special Employees. What began as a program to help prepare adults with disabilities for the workforce has evolved into much more than London, founder and director of Strategy & Development and Rachel Slavkin, RAISE Inclusion director, could ever have imagined. On April 7, 2014, the RAISE...
(JNS) - Eighteen-year-old S. lies in an underground hospital bed at Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya. An Arab citizen of Israel, he was in a car accident a week ago and brought here. Because of the frequent Hezbollah rocket attacks, virtually the entire hospital has moved underground. The wards are crowded, with beds separated only by curtains. There's a bit of a traffic jam as patients are moved to and from the wards. "It's a little hard being underground, but the doctors are great," S....
(JNS) - An Israeli university announced that archaeologists have uncovered the earliest known clay ornaments in Southwest Asia, dating back 15,000 years in modern-day Israel. The Hebrew University of Jerusalem said that 142 beads and pendants were created by Natufian hunter-gatherers. These ancient people lived by gathering wild food and hunting, rather than through agriculture or farming. The ornaments were found at four Natufian sites: el-Wad, Nahal Oren, Hayonim and Eynan-Mallaha, spanning mo...
Get a glimpse of what it’s like living in the biblical Heartland during the victorious Operation Roaring Lion (Israel) as Yonaton Behar, a resident of Har Bracha in the community on Mt. Gerizim, brings news and his personal insights to Fellowship Church in Winter Springs on Sunday, April 26 at 7 p.m. Behar is a rabbinic scholar and public relations director for Yeshivat Har Bracha, an Orthodox Hezder Yeshiva (one whose curriculum includes military service). He works closely with Eliezer Melamed, the Rosh Yeshiva (Head of the Yeshiva), t...
Comedy For Peace Arts at the J presents Comedy For Peace on Thursday, April 23, 7:30 p.m. Comedy for Peace is a live comedy experience on one stage to do what comedy does best, make us laugh, connect, and see each other differently. This is comedy that disarms, unites, and reminds us of our shared humanity. The show is joyful, accessible, and meaningful—bringing diverse and interfaith audiences together through the universal language of laughter. In a world full of tension and noise, Comedy For Peace offers a much-needed release, paired with a...
Yom HaShoah Commemoration On Sunday, April 19, the community is invited to the Yom HaShoah Commemoration at the Roth Family JCC, 2 p.m. This will be a powerful afternoon of remembrance and reflection as the community commemorates Yom HaShoah – Day of Remembrance of the Holocaust and the Heroism. Visit hmrec.org to learn more and reserve tickets. A Night at the Catskills variety show Wednesday, April 29, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Back by popular demand The Holocaust Center presents “A Night at the Catskills,” a nostalgic, retro-themed variety show...
The Jewish pavilion is hosting its annual charity golf tournament on April 27. The cost for a foursome is $700, individual, $175. Registration and range is a 8 a.m., shotgun start is at 9 a.m. Call 407-678-9363 for more information and to register....
(JNS) — House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) issued a joint statement on Wednesday that they would proceed with the Senate’s funding bill for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. U.S. President Donald Trump appears to have precipitated the move by demanding congressional action in a social media post earlier on Wednesday. “I am asking that the bill be on my desk no later than June 1,” Trump wrote. “We are going forward to fund our incredible Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and Borde...
Most American Jews oppose the U.S.-Israeli military operations against Iran, according to a poll released on Monday. The Jewish Electorate Institute found that 55 percent of Jewish respondents said that they opposed the war, 32 percent approved and 13 percent were undecided. When asked for a more detailed breakdown of their feelings about the stated objectives of the conflict, a similar number of Jews (31 percent) said that they supported action against Iran, because the Islamic Republic cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon, and 41...
(JNS) — The IDF attacked the largest petrochemical facility in Iran, located in Asaluyeh, Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on Monday. With that operation and another last week, Iran’s two major petrochemical facilities, together accounting for 85 percent of the country’s total petrochemical exports, are out of action. “The IDF has now aggressively attacked Iran’s largest petrochemical facility located in Asaluyeh—a major target responsible for about 50 percent of the country’s petrochemical production, after last week’s second major facil...
(JNS) — The U.S. Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service, an agency of the department, said that they will create and issue “additional guidance” for religious institutions on how to apply the Johnson Amendment, which bars houses of worship from endorsing political candidates. “Religious liberty is foundational to our Constitution, and the freedom to practice one’s faith openly and in community is central to the American story as we celebrate 250 years of independence as a nation this year,” stated Scott Bessent, U.S. treasury secr...
(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces killed Brig.-Gen. Majid Khademi, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ intelligence chief and one of the IRGC’s most senior operatives, Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed on Monday. “The terrorist regime in Iran continues to launch missiles at the Israeli home front, killing and harming Israeli civilians,” Katz said during a situational assessment with senior military officials. “I was updated by the chief of staff that, overnight in Tehran, the IDF eliminated Majid Khadami, head of the IRGC intelligenc...
(JNS) - One Israeli was kiled when Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorists struck his vehicle in the Galilee Panhandle on Sunday morning. "Medics and paramedics report a man trapped in a vehicle with no signs of life," the Magen David Adom emergency response group stated. The Israel Defense Forces confirmed that "fire from Lebanese territory toward a community on the northern border was identified." It added, "There is damage and there are casualties." The victim was later identified as Ofer...
Four bodies have been retrieved from under the rubble at the site of the Iranian ballistic missile impact in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, rescue services said on Monday afternoon. Following overnight efforts with the Israel Defense Forces' Home Front Command, "two trapped individuals who were found under the rubble without signs of life," the Israel Fire and Rescue Authority said early on Monday. "Rescue operations and attempts are still ongoing at this time in an effort to reach two...
(JNS, Dimona, Israel) - Amid the soot-covered ruins of a home in southern Israel demolished by an Iranian ballistic missile, the wedding ring was found. It was just a day earlier when Dorit Azran and her 29-year-old son, Dor, along with their two dogs-all sheltering in their safe room at the time of the missile impact-escaped unscathed from the home. "It was a visible miracle," Dor recounts of the harrowing ordeal when the missile, packed with half a ton of explosives, slammed into the yard...
(JNS) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared on Monday morning that he spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump and was "deeply proud" that Israel could "contribute to saving a brave American warrior," referring to the rescue mission of the downed pilot from Iranian territory. "I spoke earlier with President Donald Trump and personally congratulated him on his bold decision and a perfectly executed American mission to rescue the downed pilot from enemy territory," Netanyahu tweeted. He...
(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces has killed more than 1,000 Hezbollah operatives since the Iranian-backed terrorist group joined the war on March 2, “and that number will continue to rise,” IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said on Sunday. The military is striking Hezbollah “with determination, extensively and across multiple fronts,” Zamir said during a visit to Ras el-Bayada, a strategic coastal headland located near Tyre that is the northernmost point in Southern Lebanon where Israeli soldiers are currently operating on the ground. T...
El Al to launch direct flights to Argentina, starting this fall By Etgar Lefkovits (JNS) — Israel’s flag carrier El Al plans to launch direct flights from Tel Aviv to Buenos Aires this fall, marking a renewed push into the South American market. The nonstop service, which comes amid growing relations between the two countries, is expected to begin by November, JNS has learned. “Today, a dream I have pursued with all my effort since taking office as Ambassador begins to become a reality,” Argentinian Ambassador to Israel Axel Wahnish posted...
In a Passover eve address steeped in biblical imagery, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday framed Israel’s campaign against Iran and its proxies through the lens of the biblical Exodus, declaring that Israel had dealt its enemies “ten blows” echoing the Ten Plagues. Netanyahu listed strikes against Hamas, Hezbollah, Bashar Assad’s fallen regime in Syria, Palestinian terror groups and the Houthis in Yemen, alongside five direct blows to Iran — targeting its nuclear program, missile capabilities, regime infrastru...
In neighborhoods across Central Florida, a quiet crisis is unfolding—one that often goes unseen but is deeply felt at kitchen tables every day. Families are being forced to make impossible decisions: rent or groceries, medicine or meals, gas to get to work or food to feed their children. These are not distant realities—they are happening right here, in our own community. At the center of this urgent need is the Pearlman Food Pantry, a cornerstone of compassion operated by Jewish Family Ser...
The Jewish Heritage Festival, taking place April 12, is a phenomena in itself. Who knew it would be so successful from the get-go? What began in 2007 as a suggestion by 80-year-old Murray Steinberg to the Temple Presidents’ Council for Volusia and Flagler counties that Volusia County would become the largest Jewish heritage and cultural event in the state. Held in 2008, it had more than 10,000 visitors! Since its beginning, the event has been held every two years with a consistent attendance o...
(JNS) - The Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee approved on Wednesday the Cabinet's decision to extend the nationwide emergency situation until April 14 amid the ongoing war with Iran and Lebanon's Hezbollah. The Israel Defense Forces' Home Front Command guidelines currently restrict educational and work activities, as well as gatherings of more than 50 people outdoors and 100 people indoors. National forests, parks, hiking trails and roadside recreation areas across the country have...
The JOIN Center in College Park was transformed Wednesday evening, March 25, into a vibrant hub of Torah study and connection. In a landmark collaboration, JOIN Orlando and the Orlando Community Kollel joined forces for an event that quite literally bridged the gap between North and South Orlando, bringing together Jews from across the city ahead of the Passover holiday. From the moment participants arrived, the atmosphere was electric. Tables filled quickly with community members eager to...
Southwest Orlando Jewish Congregation welcomes women to a special Rosh Chodesh women’s series. This online offering, titled “Sacred Cycles: Women, the Moon, and the Wisdom of Jewish Time,” is open to all women — SOJC members and nonmembers alike. The series will include three sessions, held on Zoom, presented by Na’amah, also known as Mama Mazel. Na’amah is a life coach, educator, and creator of the Mama Mazel framework. Her work focuses on helping women understand their natural rhythms — emotional, energetic, and spiritual — through the len...
