יום שישי, כ״ב אלול תשפ״וFriday, September 4, 2026
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Does the UN and its Human Rights Council still fulfill a useful purpose, and if so what?
By JNi.Media
Had the "Lamed Heh" (35 in Hebrew) made it to the Gush, the entire area south of Jerusalem that ended up under Jordanian occupation for 19 years could have remained intact as part of the new Jewish State.
By Hillel Neuer
The UN's obsession with Israel continues...
By Paula Stern
In my little country today, we were hit by a missile. The siren sounded; the red alert was announced. Children, panicked and frightened, were hurried into bomb shelters
By Henia
Traditional publishers are able to market and distribute your book to the widest audience.
By Paula Stern
Today's bus bombing in Jerusalem was not about the occupation nor supposed economic hardships. It is...it was...it always will be about hatred.
Rebbetzin, I have seen families where cousins, aunts and uncles are not even invited to one another’s weddings.
By Tzvi Fishman
The modern day Hellenists are the Jews of the Diaspora who have the ability to move to Israel, but prefer to identify with a foreign country and foreign culture.
More than 200 Grassroots Community Leaders Endorse Former Community Board 1 Chair and Downtown Leader.
Rescue teams released him completely free from injury.
"The response to the attack on Zionism and the State of Israel must reinforce and underscore the implementation of the settlement plan."
As reported in JewishPress.com, the process of exhuming Yasser Arafat's body is to be completed today. Palestinian's believe that Arafat was poisoned with radiation, by Israel. JewishPress.com is following the story, and will try to bring you photos.
The right-wing block would receive 70 seats, vs. 50 to the center-left, including the Arabs.
Few believe we won't be going back in to Gaza in the future to stop the missiles at our cities, the Fajir 5 and its next generations.
For the second time today, gunfire from Syria crossed the border into Israel on the Golan Heights. An IDF vehicle was nearly hit. No injuries were reported.
By Alti Bukalov
It’s the classic image - the pumpkins; the berries; the squash, the turkey. It’s the beginning of a season that brings with it a sudden, exciting feeling. It’s the crisp fall air turning to gray winter; the strings of perfect, colorful leaves decorating doors and houses, the bright hues of reds and oranges. It almost feels like the cinnamon in the pumpkin pie is somehow in the air.
By Sheni Leumi
I am not ashamed to say I am an Israeli Jew, I am a loser today in the war with Hamas.
What world do we live in that a 12-year old has to consider going into a bomb shelter alone?
By Chava Adams
The taxi driver was old and rather shriveled, with a crop of white hair fringing his head. Ah, I recognize this one, I thought with relief, hurrying to open the door. If I recall correctly, he knows Lakewood. You would think that a taxi driver, being that his/her job is, well, driving, and being that the town they are driving in is, well, Lakewood…
The IDF says no fewer than 99 such explosive devices have 'fallen short' in the last four days.
Keynes and Hayek were two of the most influential economists of modern times. But how did their economic philosophies and views affect the world today?
Chairman of the Knesset State Comptroller’s Committee MK Uri Ariel welcomes the new Bayit Yehudi list for Knesset: “I congratulate the contenders and those who were chosen in the Bayit Yehudi party. Now we are geared toward unifying the ranks and returning the National Orthodox camp to its historic influential position on the political map. […]
The Shabak (Israel's General Secret Service) just announced that Ahmed Jabari, the second in command of the Hamas military, was killed today by the IDF in a surgical strike.
By Moshe Herman
Yishai and Malkah read listener emails, talk about rain in Israel, attacks on southern Israel, and raising children in the Land.
This picture has criss-crossed the blogosphere and Twitter network like crazy last night. It pretends to be an image of children who, along with the man lying on a stretcher next to them, were allegedly targeted today by Israel's forces for being terrorists. In reality, the picture is four years old. It has nothing to do with anything that happened in Gaza last night.
The ritual of rockets that periodically pummel Israel’s southern communities includes numerous media interviews with the important people. The journalists attempt to extract from anybody who thinks he is somebody some piece of a resolution for this crazy situation that is unparalleled anywhere in the world.
Israel is a land that was, according to the Bible and logic, very fertile. I believe I read somewhere that when the Romans conquered Judea and sent the Jews into exile, they salted the earth to prevent our return. I googled it...yeah, google is now a verb... and there are more than 50,000,000 references to it. I didn't click on them to see if it was true or not. The bottom line is still the same.
By Hadar Sela
The picturesque Nachlaot neighbourhood in Jerusalem started out as what we might call today ‘social housing’. From 1875 onwards benefactors such as Moses Montefiore began building new neighbourhoods outside the walls of the Old City to house the growing Jewish population and relieve some of the overcrowding and squalor of the Jewish Quarter. Thus, Nachlaot is in fact a cluster of fused neighbourhoods, with each one originally having a specific ethnic character and its own synagogue.
The city Be'er Sheva announced that schools will be closed today after Gazan launched 2 rockets at the city at 5:28 AM Sunday morning. The rockets landed in an open area and caused no damage or injuries. Be'er Sheva Univervity will hold classes as usual. Following an earlier Saturday night mortar attack at 12:30 AM, […]
There's a superstitious thought that when you invite tragedy, it happily walks through the door. A second, more pragmatic view, is that when you prepare for it, you are better able to cope. Israel takes the second view as today we once again take part in the Turning Point 6 nation-wide exercise preparing us not only for earthquakes, but several other disasters.
Every year Palestinians and foreign activists try to blame Settlers for cutting down olive trees. But once again Settlers have caught the Palestinians and the activists on film cutting down trees, presumably to then blame the Jews.
IDF on high alert along Egyptian border as reports of a new attack on the Egyptian military surface.
Ben Ari attacked his current party, noting that "they know that the brand 'Ben Ari' is worth more than the two or three votes that each one of them would bring."
The IAF Air Control unit identified on early Wednesday morning a suspicious object in the sky above Ben Gurion Airport, alerting fighter jets to rush to the site. Shortly after the jets were scrambled, it turned out to have been a false alarm. An IDF source commented to Walla that protocol requires quick response to […]
Residents of the town of Ginot Shomron (in the Shomron) are excited today as the Google Earth Camera Car has been driving around their neighborhood taking photos for Google Street View. (Picture coming soon)
Dear Dr. Yael: I am a 20 years old and dating. While I know that people consider me to be an attractive young woman, I have been getting rejected – quite a lot. This might be happening because I am painfully shy. For the most part I clam up while on a date; I become […]
By Sandy Eller
Netanel Hershtik wears many hats but perhaps the one he is best known for is a soft, puffy headpiece known as a mitre, traditionally worn by chazzanim.
By Chabad.org
More than 280 graduates, their family members and friends joined together at the Rabbinical College of America in New Jersey to celebrate the hard work and dedication of a group of rising young Jewish leaders. Some 14 countries were represented in the student body of newly-minted rabbis, who over the last few years have been […]
Israeli newspaper staff have gone on strike today due to the staffing cuts that are expected to hit many of the papers. Maariv employees are burning tires in the street.
By Orat@Muqata
The ancient synagogue in Meron is located on a hill above the grave of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. Like other Galilean synagogues from the Byzantine era, its entrance faces south, towards Jerusalem. But what makes this synagogue special is a story from its later history.
Israel's cabinet approved today the appointment of Shai Nitzan to the position of Deputy Attorney General for Special Assignments. Nationalist activists and politicians say that as Deputy State Prosecutor for eight years Nitzan had a left-wing, anti-settlement, anti-nationalist agenda.
By JTA
A Maryland congressman apologized for referring to the Holocaust as he discussed his opposition to federal involvement in providing student loans.
After more than 100 years of archeological research in Israel, I'm always surprised there's still so much more to discover. Sadly, today most such discoveries are driven by construction work. The Israeli Antiquities Authority announced today that a 6th century Jewish town was discovered north of Beersheba, during work on the southern extension of Route 6. The […]
Judge Gershon of Haifa District Court ruled today that the death of Rachel Corrie was an accident. In a 62 page court document, the judge stated there was no fault in the military investigation which the Israeli military undertake immediately after Corrie's death. The Israel Defense Force has been cleared of responsibility.
Cabinet Secretary Zvi Hauser arrived in the last hour to visit the new neighborhood established to accommodate the residents of Migron who are slated to be evicted from their homes today following a Supreme Court hearing.
The center of Jewish culture — spiritual, scientific, entrepreneurial, artistic — is today, as it should be, Israel. This was not the case in 1948 or 1967, but it is true now, and I can only expect it to become more true as time goes by.
By dvora
As a teenager, I suffered from occasional panic attacks, social anxiety, and more than the usual amount of teenage angst. In today’s drug-obsessed society, I would certainly have been given psych meds; thankfully, back then, it was expected that maturity would bring greater resilience and awareness. And so it was.
How the Sages of the Talmud used to honor Shabbos! Each day of the week was only an introduction to the coming Shabbos and everything was done with an eye towards Shabbos.
They are known as the Greatest Generation, and for good reason. As children of the Depression, they learned to make do with little, and lacked, most significantly, a sense of entitlement. As they came of age, they were called upon to serve and defend their country, and they did so magnificently, many with their very lives. They then went on to raise families and build the country into the superpower it has become – all with little noise and fanfare; continuing, through it all, to quietly do their duty.
By Alan Magill
I was preparing a shiur to honor the memory of my father, Paul Magill, a”h, on the 20th anniversary of his passing, and I was looking at that week’s sedrah, Parshas Re’eh. I was struck by the words, “See, I present before you today a blessing and a curse. The blessing: that you hearken to the commandments of Hashem, your God, that I command you today. And the curse: if you do not hearken to the commandments of Hashem, your God, and you stray from the path that I command you today, to follow gods of others, that you did not know.”
I never watched “Candid Camera” when I was a kid. We only watched The Wonderful World of Disney” and “Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom.” My parents enforced strict TV rules. But as an adult, when I can watch whatever I please, I really enjoy those old shows and have made up for lost time when it comes to shows like “Candid Camera.”
The Tel Aviv District Attorney's offices today submitted to the magistrate court an indictment and an arrest order against Shay Cohen and Simon Soriano, on charges of attempting to blackmail a Rabbi in a New York Jewish congregation. The name of the Rabbi has not been released for publication. The two are charged with conspiracy […]
I recently saw a picture of the first Agudah convention taken almost 100 years ago. There were people in all manner of dress: light suits, dark suits, vests… some had hats, some caps, some just plain Kipot. Many clean shaven, few with peyos… All were there and all were the equivalent of the Charedi world we have today. This was the Agudah of Yesteryear.
How to lighten the load in the case of disaster.
This week I will share some of my own thoughts on the subject.
By Goel Jasper
As a child in the 1970s and ‘80s in the United States, I used to define Zionism in blunt, simple terms. If you wore a white shirt with blue pants on Yom Ha’atzmaut, you were behaving like a Zionist. If you had pictures hanging in your home with Israel themes, such as the famous June 1967 photo of the three soldiers standing by the Western Wall or the one of Begin, Carter and Sadat shaking hands at Camp David, that made you a Zionist.
I read an article today. My emotions went up and down as I read it, ending with the thought that the man in the story was about to embark on a journey of a thousand steps and that somewhere along that journey, his grandparents would smile.
By Tzvi Fishman
If Moshe were alive today, I’m certain he would prefer living in the Land of Israel rather than living in Brooklyn. What do you think?
In the days of Shmuel Hakatan a terrible drought held the land in its deadly grip. The wheat withered in the field and the grass dried and died. Day after day, the skies remained leaden and no clouds appeared to bring rain and salvation to the parched land.
A renewed outcry for “Temple consciousness” has arisen with a flurry of political, religious, and social activity.
By Barry Rubin
There is no political ideology, government program, or redistribution of wealth that is going to cure humanity’s ills. In today’s secular, even anti-religious, Western society, religious people are seen as aggressive, intolerant, and foolish. But there are two things a decent religious person possesses that others don’t: A belief that there is a divine judge, which may make them curb their behavior; and a desire for self-improvement, to reduce their sins and strive for something higher.
I have said this before. The previous generation of Gedolim, of which Rav Elyashiv was a member, were in a class by themselves. They had continued a tradition of Gadlus that existed in pre-Holocaust times. They were ‘old school’ in the best sense of the word. With Rav Elyashiv’s passing that generation is almost gone.
My stomach is tied in knots. I'm tense and I can feel my heart racing. It's been so long since I had this sense of dread choking my throat. A terrorist has blown up a bus of Israelis. Not in Israel - in Bulgaria. I'm following the news. Three dead. Five dead. At least seven dead.
By Steven Plaut
He was having trouble getting up from the platform and into the cattle car. After all, he was only twelve years old and there was no ramp leading inside. An SS thug saw him “dawdling” in front of the car and aimed a boot at the boy’s posterior. The boy jumped out of the way just in time and the SS man fell to his face from the violence of his own kick.
Baseless Hatred: What It Is and What You Can Do About It, a new book by Dr. Rene Levy, tackles a problem that has plagued the Jewish people from very early on in their history; the destructive aspects of which have been responsible for some of their greatest historical calamities and continue to threaten the unity of the Jewish people today.
Chief Rabbi Amar and President Peres met today and discussed the draft issue. They concluded that the debate must continue, but without extremism from any side. Peres restated that everyone must bear the burden. Prime Minister Netanyahu announced at the weekly cabinet meeting that drafting every 18 year old makes for a good headline, but […]
Should you sell out of your portfolio now?
"Monopoly was created for a summer Shabbat and Fast Days…"! So I heard, time and again, in my early years. Years later, I know rather too well that while "Monopoly" has a place in the Jewish home, I am not sure about it's appropriateness to either Shabbat or a Fast-Day.
My oldest son, Elie, spent today in the Reserves and will be in for a few weeks later this summer. It is what happens when they finish their service in the standing army – a yearly commitment to stay ready; to be prepared.
Young woman and her dog out shopping in the Florentin neighborhood in South Tel-Aviv. The Florentine neighborhood in south Tel-Aviv was established years ago by the newcomers from Greece and Turkey. It was planned as a simple and pretty neighborhood, but it quickly sank into poverty and neglect. Today the neighborhood attracts many foreign workers, […]
I call on the President of the United States to employ his considerable mastery of words to take up the mantle of Martin Luther King and be a drum major for justice, a beacon for freedom. Sound the clarion call for liberty, Mr. President. Get off the damn fence and stand up for Arab life and liberty. Stop the slaughter in Syria.
By Alex Abel
Despite President Peres’ pleas to continue the pursuit of peace, people are beginning to say out loud that it is implausible. After assessing the situation with greater depth, I realize that I have a better chance of becoming Miss America than the Middle East does at achieving peace. Still, David Ben-Gurion made a good point when he said: “In Israel, in order to be a realist, you must believe in miracles.” Miss America or not, let’s keep that positivity coming.
Keren Leibovitch is an inspiration because, as she said, she has learned that failure is only a step towards success. She asked everyone, "please do not be afraid of failing. it is the step you take to success. I am the best in the world for what I do." And for who she is - a true inspiration.
Speaking at a discussion of the Knesset Education Committee on the changing status-quo of religious and ultra-Orthodox education, committee member and chairman of the National Union MK Ya'akov Katz (Ketzaleh) said: It's all about the numbers. The change in the status-quo stems from demographic change. When I was in an officer training course 40 years […]
By Moshe Herman
Yishai and Malkah talk about their recent trip to the Jerusalem Light Festival and the lack of Jewish themes that were presented throughout the festival.
The Combat Engineering Corps is greeted by a jubilant little fellow after completing their treacherous trek for their gray berets. The Combat Engineering Corps symbol features a sword on a defensive tower with a blast halo on the background. The Combat Engineering Corps official motto is "Rishonim Tamid" ("Always First"). Its unofficial motto is "We'll […]
Notice that in every culture a cheated husband is a laughing-stock. This attitude to a cuckold shows not only a nasty cruelty towards weakness, but also a reasonable contempt to a voluntary blindness, a reluctance to see what is going on under one’s own nose.
23 students from America and Canada just graduated from the Technion American Medical School in Haifa.
If your main reason to buy an investment is that you think someone else will buy it from you at a higher price, you may be sorely mistaken.
By J. E. Dyer
Ideological statism is not a mere cultural alternative, it is absolutely evil. Reagan had no doubt of what was right and wrong in this regard: “It would be cultural condescension, or worse, to say that any people prefer dictatorship to democracy.” But Reagan’s refusal to gloss over evil never produced discouraging rhetoric. It was always accompanied by a hard-nosed optimism about what was good in the Western culture of freedom and restraints on the state.
By Tzvi Fishman
Rabbi Yisachar Shlomo Teichtal was one of the respected leaders of Orthodox European Jewry before World War II, the head of the Beit Din in Budapest. Witnessing the horrors of the Holocaust, he discarded his fierce anti-Zionist ideology, and wrote a brilliant scholarly treatise on the vital necessity for Aliyah, titled "Eim HaBanim Semeichah."
By JTA
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Iran and Hezbollah of being involved in the slaughter of civilians in Syria. "We [see] what is happening in Syria where civilians are simply being slaughtered," Netanyahu said during Sunday's regular Cabinet meeting. "We see the horrifying pictures of children and the elderly. This is a slaughter that is […]
The past decade saw the privatization of El Al and today the airline is more dedicated to keeping public shareholders happy than she is to fulfilling any sort of national mission. A perfect case in point happened recently when a profit-motivated El Al attempted to charge the President of the State of Israel an exorbitant $4,700 to haul a security mandated oxygen tank.
By JTA
Evidence found in an underground bunker in Iran could signal the country’s having moved one step closer toward the uranium threshold needed to make nuclear arms, International Atomic Energy Agency diplomats said today. IAEA inspectors found traces of uranium enriched up to 27 percent at Iran's Fordo enrichment plant.
Throughout their forty years in the desert, the Jewish nation had to be prepared to travel at a moment’s notice. At any time the Divine clouds could suddenly rise and proceed further into the desert. As soon as that occurred the entire nation had to immediately dismantle their camps, gather their children and belongings, and begin to travel in perfect formation along with their tribe.
European Turkey in its present form consists of the small region around Istanbul, Adrianopolis, Kirkilisse, and Rodosto. For the history of the Jews, the cities Adrianopolis – today’s Edirne, and the capital from 1361 – 1453 – and Constantinople – today’s Istanbul, capital since 1453 – come into consideration. Both cities once had thriving Jewish communities, but show signs of going under today.
By Tibbi Singer
My top pick for today is The Lid's fascinating entry titled: Convicted Terrorist Tries To Intimidate Blogger Stacy McCain Away From The Truth It's got everything, and if it's real, then it's pretty scary. So, let's get scared together: If you don't know Robert Stacy McCain you are really missing something. As the saying goes, […]
Animosity toward Israel is playing a significant role in the Egyptian presidential race, according to a report by Reuters.
By J. E. Dyer
If a civic or political group, meeting publicly, is not willing to have its activities and statements recorded truthfully by critics, its purpose is suspect. There can be no good purpose for preventing third parties – i.e., the whole of society, whether friendly or critical – from seeing what is said and done at a public event sponsored by the Palestine Society.
By Pnina Baim
It’s tough to catch some glam in an otherwise pretty non-glamorous life. In the 21st century, who isn’t overstressed, overwhelmed and overbooked? The roles of today’s women today has multiplied to the point where even the strongest of us has stretched her limits, leaving her without any time or energy for herself. Which woman hasn’t […]
By Barry Rubin
O’Donnell says that “liberal” should not be a dirty word but a badge of honor. I agree. It should be, but it has been tarnished far less by conservatives’ attacks than by radicals who have hijacked that word and use it for an agenda that is bankrupting the United States, reducing liberties, and making a mess of U.S. foreign policy.
By Tibbi Singer
Not related to the image above which is just my treat to you, the same-sex story reminds me of the joke about a guy sitting in the park, starting a light chat with a young woman. After a while, the conversation kind of dies down and the two drift into silence. So the young woman […]
By Tibbi Singer
It's my second batch so far, and all I can say is I'm frustrated beyond belief, because there's so much good, zesty stuff out there in Jewblogia, and I only get an hour or two to look for the best. For sure I missed great pearls today, and if you want to help me correct this inequity, a.) start a new blog against me, and, 2.) send me da links. I want my links to your work. Trip well, cruise safely, it should all be G rated, maybe PG-13, max.
By DovBear
DovBear Blog: Huge argument are raging right now on Twitter about the next big Internet Asifa scheduled for the end of May in Citi Field. DovBear briefly summarize the positions, and refutes them.
The trial of the brothers Eliyahu and Avraham Werdesheim, who are accused of beating a black 15-year-old on November 19, 2010 as they were patrolling an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood of Baltimore, is scheduled to start today, Tuesday. In a case disturbingly reminiscent of the Trayvon Martin shooting in Florida, the brothers are charged with assault, false imprisonment and carrying a deadly weapon, and could face 13 years in prison.
The Mehr news agency reports that Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader, has said that Iran and Egypt are the major countries of the Muslim world, so their unity will form the core of a great Islamic power in today’s world. Velayati made the remarks during a meeting with a number […]
Based on data released today by the Central Bureau of Statistics, the first quarter of 2012 registered an all-time record high for incoming tourism to Israel. During the months of January through March, 2012, there has been an increase of 2% compared with the same period last year, and an increase of 1% compared with […]
As a vascular surgeon for over 20 years I care for wounds daily. As an occasional mohel for 30 years I am familiar with all aspects of milah. I thus feel obligated to share my perspective on this most important topic. If I don't, who will? In order to decide halachic matters, rabbis need accurate and representative medical input. This is my only goal.
Former Senator Rick Santorum, who was trailing Candidate Mitt Romney in delegates and had very little hope of catching up to him in the race for the GOP nomination, announced Tuesday that he was quitting. This is a victory to the Republican establishment, as Santorum represented the conservative—some say principled—wing of the party. “We made […]
The question today is not whether Abbas is a peace partner or not. Rather, what Olmert needs to ask is whether the Abbas can deliver or not. The answer is very simple and clear: even if Abbas wanted to deliver a peace deal, he cannot. His term in office expired in January 2009, but he remained at the behest of the Obama administration. The result is that he is seen by many Palestinians as an illegitimate leader.
September 4, 2026 
