Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces located four kites over the weekend that crossed the border into Israel from the Gaza Strip. One of the kites was identified on Friday in the area of Kibbutz Nahal Oz, adjacent to the northern Gaza Strip. The other three were found the following morning, the IDF said. “No suspicious items were found on the kites,” the military noted, adding that at no stage did they pose a danger to the public. Terrorists in Gaza have used incendiary kites in the past to start fires in the northwestern Negev, resulting in se...
(JNS) - On Tuesday, Key West, Fla., elected Samuel Kaufman as the city's first Jewish mayor in its nearly-200-year history. A lawyer currently serving as a city commissioner, Kaufman told JNS that he is proud to continue the long tradition of Jewish contributions to the island community. "To carry that forward and to contribute in a positive way to the entire city as a Jewish person, given our values and given what it means to me to be a Jewish person, it's an incredible honor and...
By (JNS) — Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) won their House Democratic primaries in Florida on Tuesday. The pro-Israel incumbents, who are Jewish, both defeated challengers who have accused Israel of genocide in the Gaza Strip. After Republican-led redistricting earlier this year significantly altered the Florida congressional map, Moskowitz ran in the 25th Congressional District previously held by Wasserman Schultz, who opted to run in the plurality-black 20th Congressional District. That district has b...
(JNS) — A Bronx man faces federal hate crime charges after allegedly assaulting a Jewish congregant and a black security guard during Shabbat services at Central Synagogue in Manhattan, the U.S. Justice Department announced on Thursday. Larry Montes, 46, was charged with two hate crime counts and one count of damaging religious property resulting in bodily injury. According to a federal complaint, Montes began shouting during an Aug. 14 Shabbat service attended by about 375 people and damaged two ceremonial candlesticks. When security p...
(JNS) — Pro-Israel Republicans defeated a pair of alt-right candidates accused of antisemitism in Florida’s primary elections on Tuesday in races for the House and governor. Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) won the Republican gubernatorial primary to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican who is term-limited. With 87 percent of votes counted at press time, Donalds had 762,364 (48.3 percent), trouncing James Fishback, a 31-year-old investor who courted the “groyper” movement associated with the Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes, who came in third w...
(JNS) — In the days after the Michigan Democratic primary for Senate, Rabbi Asher Lopatin, director of community relations at the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor, hadn’t made up his mind if he would vote for former congressman Mike Rogers, the Republican nominee, or for the Democrat, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, former Detroit health director. “I’m going to vote for Mike Rogers,” the Orthodox rabbi, who typically votes Democrat, told JNS on Tuesday. Lopatin, who made clear that he was speaking personally, and not issuing a Federation endorseme...
(JNS) — Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Monday that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had instructed the Israel Defense Forces to adopt a “zero-tolerance” policy toward kites and balloons launched from Gaza into communities in the Negev. “If the launches continue — powerful actions will be taken to put an end to the phenomenon,” Katz said. “A balloon and kite shall be treated the same as a drone — with or without explosives.” He said Israel would not allow its security zone inside the Gaza border to be bypassed. Netanyahu and Kat...
(JNS) — In a meeting on Monday with Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law who advises the president on Middle East subjects, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made “very clear, and in no uncertain terms, that he is against a Palestinian state,” according to a senior Israeli official. Kushner and other visiting Americans didn’t press a Palestinian state, but the prime minister made it “abundantly clear that he is 100 percent firm on this,” the senior Israeli official told JNS. The Israeli prime minister made the stateme...
Where I live in the Judean mountains, Jewish Israeli communities exist alongside Palestinian Arab communities. Visually in some places, we coexist so close to one another it's as if clutching your own hands together as your fingers would be intertwined between one another. Driving where I live in the Judean mountains, as in Judea of Judea and Samaria, it's common to see red signs in Hebrew, Arabic, and English, warning Israelis that it is both illegal and unsafe for them to enter areas under...
(JNS) - KIBBUTZ NA'AN, Israel-The personal wartime diary, assiduously written by the young mother, detailed the infant's early development, from his first smile to his weight and even a curl of his hair. It was Jacqueline Meents-Lenstra's first experience of parenthood. Still, the baby whose milestones she so meticulously recorded was, in fact, not her own, even as the diary itself tells the story of her devotion to the child. It was 1943 in Nazi-occupied Holland, and the Jewish baby boy, Efraim...
(JNS) - The sound of construction in Kibbutz Yiftah travels across the border with Lebanon and echoes among the ruins of the Shi'ite village of Blida, which Hezbollah used as a stronghold before Israel destroyed much of it. "Blida is gone, and we are building new homes for new families who want to move here. That's the story this image tells," Annat Zisovich-Charrit, the head of civilian security at Kibbutz Yiftah and a mother of two, told JNS earlier this month near a construction site where...
(JNS) — Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said on Tuesday that he launched an investigation into whistleblower allegations that Trump administration officials manipulated federal Jew-hatred probes of several universities and withheld federal funding to pressure the schools into costly settlements. “Antisemitism at American universities and medical schools is real. It needs to be addressed seriously,” the Jewish congressman wrote to Harmeet Dhillon, assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights. “But your ‘investigation’ into antisemitis...
(JNS) — A group of American travel agents visited Israel this week in a push for postwar tourism following a period of regional turbulence that reduced travel to the Holy Land. The weeklong trip, sponsored by the Israeli Ministry of Tourism, comes as the number of visitors from the United States began to pick up this summer, just ahead of next month’s much-anticipated return to Tel Aviv by two major US legacy carriers. “People do want to come; it’s just the fear factor of ‘Oh my God, it’s the Middle East,’” said Sima Pagash, a Los Angeles tra...
Delta and United are returning to Israel in September By Etgar Lefkovits (JNS) — U.S. carriers, led by Delta and United, are resuming service to Israel next month, following summer suspensions driven by regional conflicts. The move, which comes just ahead of the Jewish High Holiday season, typically a busy travel time, follows the gradual resumption of service to Tel Aviv by most major European airlines and highlights the resilience of the Israeli tourism sector. Delta Air Lines is resuming service to Tel Aviv on Sept. 6 with a daily flight f...
(JNS) — At the University of California, Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine, Jews were labeled as oppressors. Patients were afraid to be identified as Jews at the University of California, San Francisco, and protesters targeted medical schools in New York City and demanded the destruction of the State of Israel. These are some of the antisemitic incidents that erupted in hospitals, dental schools, psychology conferences and elsewhere since Oct. 7, according to a new study published in the Rambam Maimonides Medical Journal. “After Oct...
(JNS) - Sen. Darline Graham (R-S.C.), whom South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster appointed to replace her late brother, Lindsey Graham, said on Thursday that she is backing measures that continue her brother's longstanding support for the Jewish state. "I stand with Israel," Graham stated. "These bills will help solidify the critical relationship between our two countries." "I truly believe we have a moral and religious duty to stand with the Jewish people and the nation of Israel to guard against...
(JNS) — The Saudi Arabian educational curriculum is now entirely free of antisemitic content, and promotes peace and coexistence, while openly presenting Islamic extremism as a threat, a study released on Monday found. The continued educational reform and unequivocal signs of moderation in the kingdom come amid a push to reach a peace deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel during the remaining years of the Trump administration and reflect the shifting alliances in the Middle East. They stand in sharp contrast with the ongoing antisemitic i...
Hadassah Orlando Chapter will host its September Luncheon on Tuesday, Sept. 1, at 11:30 a.m. in Maitland. The location will be available after registration. Cathy Swerdlow, Chapter president of Seminole County League of Women’s Voters will address those present on current issues related to the 2026 Election cycle. The presentation will focus on the three proposed amendments to the Florida Constitution, what they are and their implications for Florida. Swerdlow will also discuss important tips for voting, including timelines and protocols. T...
Are you grieving the loss of a spouse, partner, parent, child, sibling or other loved one? The Jewish Pavilion will host the 5-week Grief Support Group from Oct. 8 – Nov. 5, 10:30 a.m. – noon. Led by Jewish Pavilion Assistant Director Vanessa Stein, LCSW, this group explores bereavement and healing through the Jewish lens. The group will meet at Congregation Ohev Shalom, 613 Concourse Pkwy. S, Maitland. Please RSVP to the Jewish Pavilion at VanessaStein@jewishpavilion.org The is no cost for the program....
Rosh Hashanah cookie decorating Join cookie Girl Cass for a hands-on cookie decorating class where you can learn professional tips and tricks, decorating festive cookies and take home the recipe. There are two classes on Sept. 1: 10 a.m. – noon, and 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. The cost is $25 for JCC members and $36 for nonmembers. Jewish Film Festival Once again, the Jewish Film Festival will be here Nov. 7 – 9. Reviews of each film will be in the Heritage before the big event. Mahj & Mingle Come to the JCC for an evening of Mahjong and seeing frien...
S’Firot is hosting a community forum, “From Insight to Impact,” open to all members of the community. This forum is an opportunity for nonprofit leaders, healthcare providers, community organizations, funders, Jewish communal professionals, older adults, caregivers, and community members to come together to learn, connect, and discuss the future of Jewish aging in Greater Orlando. Be among the first to hear the findings from our Jewish older adults Needs Assessment and discover how these insights are informing S’firot Foundation’s grantmaki...
(JNS) — Milwaukee County executive David Crowley won an upset victory over state Assembly member Francesca Hong in the Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial primary after pre-election polling suggested that Hong, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, held a double-digit lead. Hong, 37, had accused Israel of “genocide” and appeared on podcasts with anti-Israel left-wing influencers, including Hasan Piker. As a state lawmaker, she introduced legislation to repeal Wisconsin’s law opposing the movement to boycott Israel and opposed...
(JNS) — A Jewish-owned Florida venue canceled a Democratic Socialists of America campaign event featuring Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) after learning the “full scope and nature” of the gathering, according to a statement from the venue. The Venue Fort Lauderdale stated on Thursday that it is “Jewish-owned and operated” and that its “values and commitment to the Jewish community are deeply important to us.” The Venue also cited “increased security concerns” and a review of promotional materials for the event, titled “Chomp the Oligarchy,” whi...
(JNS) — Jewish New Yorkers disapprove of Zohran Mamdani, mayor of New York City, 66 percent to 26 percent, and 75 percent of them don’t agree with the Democratic Socialists of America, compared to 17 percent who approve of it, according to a new Siena University Poll of 811 likely gubernatorial voters in New York. The poll, which was conducted between Aug. 3 and 6, found that 43 percent of likely N.Y. gubernatorial voters, including 67 percent of Democrats, think that the state is on the right track, compared to 47 percent, including 86 per...
(JNS) — A Chabad house in Colombia was damaged in the earthquake that struck the South American country this week. There were no injuries, but the roof and walls of the building in the town of Salento, located nearly 200 miles west of Bogota, were badly damaged by the tremor. “Thank God, we emerged unscathed from the earthquake, and that is the miracle for us,” Chabad Rabbi Shmuel Friedman told JNS Wednesday. “Now we are dealing with the damage and the repairs so that we continue to be an open house to Jewish visitors from around the world....
