August 6, 2012 | 3:01 am

August 6, 2012

Posted by Shmuel Rosner

The Agam room at the Pompidou Centre in Paris.

In-depth

Whither Syria? Recommendations for Israeli Policy
Fears that Syria’s stockpile of chemical weapons could fall into the wrong hands is changing Israel’s approach to its war-torn neighbor, writes Udi Dekel for the Institute for National Security Studies.

Israel’s interests regarding the Syrian crisis include quiet and a stable security situation; a new Syrian regime that is responsible, stable, functional, and not hostile to Israel; Syria’s removal from the Iranian camp and increased Western influence in the country; reduced negative consequences for Syria’s neighbors, particularly Jordan and Lebanon, and for the region at large; prevention of leakage of strategic weapons to hostile elements likely to use them against Israel.

Educate Israeli leaders on the nuances of Diaspora life

Israel’s leaders must appreciate the realities of Jewish life around the world to better strengthen Jewish ties to the country, writes MK Faina Kirshenbaum of Yisrael Beiteinu in an opinion piece for JTA.

Among the most difficult questions is the very future of those Jewish communities—their ability to withstand assimilation and intermarriage; the strength to maintain the Jewish identity of the next generation. Perhaps the strict legal standards that we apply in Israel regarding who is a Jew are problematic and serve to create a wider gap between Israel and the Diaspora. Out of pain and concern, I believe we must strive not to become the enemy, not to alienate or reject the rainbow of Jews who today make up our multicultural Jewish world.

Secret Iranian Art Collection Features Work from Iconic Israeli Artist

There are up to 10 pieces by Yaacov Agam in an exhibit on partial display at Tehran’s Museum of Contemporary Art, the artist’s son tells the Algemeiner.

The modern art collection which is considered to be the finest of its kind anywhere outside of Europe and the US, boasts works by Francis Bacon, David Hockney, Roy Lichtenstein, Mark Rothko, Andy Warhol, Edvard Munch and others, and was brought before the revolution by the late Shah’s wife, Empress Farah Pahlavi.

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