Israel to authorize four West Bank settler outposts

Published on May 16, 2013

Israel plans to declare legal four unauthorized West Bank settler outposts, a court document showed on Thursday, days before U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry returns to the region to try to restart peace talks.

Knesset panel advances plan regulating Bedouin settlements

Published on May 6, 2013

A Knesset committee advanced a plan that would require the resettlement of some 30,000 Bedouin.

Murder of Jewish settler sparks West Bank clashes

Published on May 1, 2013

Israeli settlers and Palestinians clashed in the West Bank more than a day after the murder of a Jewish man by a Palestinian attacker.

Netanyahu responds to Obama: Israelis will determine country’s best interests

Published on January 17, 2013

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to comments attributed to President Obama, saying that Israelis will determine the country's best interests.

Legal treatment of alleged ‘price tag’ vandals reportedly akin to terror suspects

Published on December 6, 2012

Israel's Supreme Court upheld a police decision to prohibit three Jewish suspects in "price tag" attacks from meeting with their lawyer for three days after their arrest.

State Dept. warns ‘E-1’ construction would damage two-state prospects

Published on December 3, 2012

Building in the E-1 area between eastern Jerusalem and the West Bank settlement of Ma'ale Adumim would be "especially damaging" to efforts to reach a two-state solution, the State Department said.

U.S. rejects call for boycott by UN Rapporteur Falk

Published on October 26, 2012

The Obama administration slammed U.N. special rapporteur Richard Falk's call for a boycott of private companies that are profiting from the Israeli settlement enterprise.

Israel approves more expansion of settlement near Jerusalem

Published on October 18, 2012

Israel on Thursday issued a detailed plan for the building of some 800 new homes on annexed land in the West Bank that is certain to attract further international condemnation of its settlement policies.

United Church of Canada poised to approve settlement boycott

Published on August 16, 2012

Canada's largest Protestant church stands poised to approve a boycott of products made in Israeli settlements.

Bank reaches $340 million settlement after hiding business with Iran

Published on August 15, 2012

The British bank Standard Chartered has agreed to pay New York’s top banking regulator $340 million for covering up transactions with Iran in order to gain fees.

EU includes central Israel city on list of settlements

Published on August 15, 2012

The European Union has included parts of the central Israel municipality of Modi'in on its list of settlements.

Palestian power issues: The night that the lights went out?

Published on August 14, 2012

The Palestinian Authority (PA) owes more than $170 million to the Israel Electric Company, and Israel is threatening to cut off the flow unless the debt is paid. Palestinian officials say that could cause widespread blackouts throughout the West Bank.

New date set for Migron settlement evacuation

Published on July 27, 2012

Israel’s Supreme Court said that the evacuation of an illegal West Bank settlement must take place by Aug. 21.

Construction to resume on West Bank security fence

Published on July 5, 2012

Construction will resume on Israel's West Bank security fence, five years after it was halted due to budget shortfalls.

Evacuation of Ulpana neighborhood begins

Published on June 26, 2012

Residents and supporters of the Ulpana neighborhood in the West Bank held a morning prayer service as moving vans arrived to evacuate them from the disputed properties.

Activists attack contractors at Ulpana site

Published on June 13, 2012

Activists threw rocks at contractors inspecting the Ulpana neighborhood in preparation for the evacuation of five apartment buildings there.

Israel unmoved by U.S. criticism of settlement plans

Published on June 7, 2012

Israel shrugged off on Thursday U.S. criticism of its plans to erect 851 more settler homes in the occupied West Bank, projects that appeared aimed at placating settlers angry with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Ulpana activists begin march to Jerusalem

Published on June 4, 2012

Hundreds of settlement activists began marching Monday from the Ulpana neighborhood on the outskirts of the Beit El settlement in the West Bank toward Jerusalem.

Knesset passes bill giving tax breaks to settlement donors

Published on May 21, 2012

The Knesset passed a bill that provides tax benefits to Israelis who donate to West Bank settlements.

Palestinian leaders reject Netanyahu letter to Abbas

Published on May 14, 2012

Palestinian leaders reportedly have rejected the contents of a letter delivered by Benjamin Netanyahu's personal envoy Isaac Molho to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah.

Israel’s Cabinet to discuss legalizing Ulpana outpost

Published on May 10, 2012

Israel's Cabinet will meet in a special session to discuss legalizing the Ulpana outpost in the West Bank, despite a Supreme Court ruling calling for its demolition.

Israeli court orders removal of settlement houses

Published on May 7, 2012

Israel's Supreme Court rejected on Monday a government request to delay the demolition of five apartment buildings in a Jewish settlement in the West Bank, ruling the houses must be removed by July 1.

Netanyahu wants postponement of settlement dismantling ruling

Published on April 27, 2012

The Israeli government plans to request that an Israeli Supreme Court order to dismantle part of a West Bank settlement be postponed for 90 days.

Israeli government committee legalizes three outposts

Published on April 24, 2012

A special Israeli government committee legalized three West Bank outposts and will seek a delay in the evacuation of a neighborhood in a Jewish settlement there.

Palestinians protest Israeli settlement building to Security Council

Published on April 10, 2012

The Palestinians have sent a letter of protest against Israeli settlements to the United Nations Security Council.

Netanyahu seeks delay in Hebron home eviction

Published on April 3, 2012

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu requested a delay in the eviction of Jewish settlers who moved into an Arab-owned home near the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron.

EU ministers express concerns about Israel’s settlement building

Published on January 24, 2012

European Union foreign ministers called Israeli settlement building "worrying" as its foreign policy chief left for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders In a statement released Monday in Brussels, foreign ministers from the EU's 27 member countries said that "Against the backdrop of worrying developments on the ground in 2011, particularly with regards to settlements, the EU reaffirms its commitment to a two-state solution."

Settlers, officers hurt in outpost demolition

Published on January 19, 2012

Six West Bank settlers and three police officers were hurt during the demolition of an illegal outpost near Jericho.

Second Fogel family killer sentenced to five life sentences

Published on January 16, 2012

A second Palestinian man was sentenced to five consecutive life sentences for the murder of five members of the Fogel family in a West Bank Jewish settlement.

Jordan’s king backs Palestinian leader

Published on November 21, 2011

King Abdullah of Jordan made a rare trip to the West Bank on Monday to display support for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who is seeking to make peace with his Islamist rivals Hamas, and push for a resumption of peace talks with Israel.

Israel to speed up settlement building in West Bank

Published on November 1, 2011

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for the accelerated construction of some 2,000 housing units in areas in the West Bank and around Jerusalem, an official statement said on Tuesday.

Netanyahu rejects widespread criticism of homes plan

Published on September 28, 2011

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday rejected Western and Arab complaints that the planned construction of 1,100 new homes in Gilo on annexed land close to Jerusalem would complicate Middle East peace efforts.

US against settlement halt as precondition for talks

Published on September 27, 2011

The U.S. ambassador to Israel reaffirmed on Tuesday Washington's opposition to a Palestinian call to halt Israeli settlement building before peace negotiations can resume.

Settler leader’s son sentenced to prison for kidnapping Palestinian teen

Published on March 28, 2011

The son of a leader of a West Bank Jewish human rights group was sentenced to prison for the kidnapping and assaulting of a Palestinian teen. Zvi Struk, 28, of the Esh Kodesh outpost near Shiloh, was sentenced Sunday in Jerusalem District Court to 18 months in prison. He also was sentenced to one year of probation and ordered to pay the victim more than $14,000. Struk, whose mother, Orit, heads the Yesha Human Rights Organization, was convicted in November of three counts of assault, battery under aggravated circumstances and kidnapping for the purpose of causing grave bodily injury, as well as one count of animal abuse for killing a lamb.

Abbas rejects U.S. request to withdraw UN settlement resolution

Published on February 18, 2011

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is expected to turn down Washington's request to withdraw a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding Israel halt settlement expansion on occupied land.

Palestinians say U.N. resolution will get vote

Published on February 17, 2011

Backed by Arab states, the Palestinians are pressing ahead with a United Nations Security Council resolution that slams Israel for settlement building. The Palestinian delegation said Thursday that it had the votes to bring the resolution to the U.N. Security Council for a vote the next day.

Judge approves $7.2-billion Madoff settlement

By JewishJournal.com
Published on January 13, 2011

The largest settlement to date in the Bernard Madoff multi-billion dollar Ponzi scandal has been approved by a U.S. judge today, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Palestinians reject offer of recognition in exchange for freeze

Published on October 11, 2010

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would reinstate a West Bank construction freeze if the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

Netanyahu’s choice

Published on September 21, 2010

The State of Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are fast approaching a fork in the road.

iPhone app explores, reveals Israeli settlements

By Jonah Lowenfeld
Published on September 20, 2010

Want to know exactly where in the West Bank the city-sized settlement of oft-discussed Ariel is located? How about when it was established, or how many Israelis live there? There’s an app for that.

Ehud Barak: Settlement freeze is a national necessity

Published on September 8, 2009

Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Tuesday called a freeze in West Bank settlements a 'national necessity,' a day after he approved building permits for nearly 500 new housing units in six separate blocs.

Iranian Jews struggle with segregation, presumption and assimilation -- how the stranger became the Angeleno

By Tom Tugend
Published on February 22, 2007

There is no demographic study of the Iranian Jewish community in Los Angeles, although its size is generally given as 30,000, including the American-born children of the original immigrants.

UCLA Hillel rabbi apologizes, settles 2003 case with woman journalist

By Gaby Friedman
Published on February 15, 2007

A UCLA Hillel rabbi accused of accosting a freelance journalist in October 2003 has sent the writer a letter of apology as part of a court settlement. Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller, UCLA Hillel director, was accused by Rachel Neuwirth of verbally and physically assaulting her outside Royce Hall, on the UCLA campus, during a speech by Alan Dershowitz more than four years ago.

The Unsettling Struggle

By Gershom Gorenberg
Published on April 13, 2006

Who is responsible for Israel's settlements in the territories? Gershom Gorenberg's just released history, "The Accidental Empire: Israel and the Birth of the Settlements, 1967-1977," explores in gripping narrative the original interweave of political ambition, religious entitlement and military strategy that led to today's continuing conflicts with both the settlers and the Palestinians.

‘Empire’ Conquers Monstrous Task

By Howard Kaplan
Published on April 13, 2006

It is not accidental that Gershom Gorenberg limited his substantial study, "The Accidental Empire: Israel and the Birth of the Settlements, 1967-1977," to the first decade of the settler movement, for by 1977, when Menachem Begin and the right gained power for the first time in Israeli history, 80 settlements housing more than 11,000 Israelis already dotted the territories captured in the 1967 Six-Day War.

Qumran Offers Look at Legacy of Scrolls

By Lisa Alcalay Klug
Published on November 17, 2005

Archaeologists believe the Essenes were highly concerned with maintaining their ritual purity and bathed at least twice a day. An aqueduct system caught water from the hills above and channeled it into an elaborate series of mikvahs, or ritual baths.

Nation and World Briefs

Published on August 25, 2005

nation and world briefs

Evicted, Angry and Worried

By Yaakov Katz
Published on August 25, 2005

There is no place like home, and no one knows it better than the former Jewish settlers of the Gaza Strip. Evicted from their beachside villages on the shores of the lapping Mediterranean Sea, they are living this week out of hotel rooms, high school dormitories or in refugee-like tent camps.

Late last week, post-eviction, Ruth Etzion found herself wandering the streets of the Samaria settlement of Ofra, the home of her in-laws. Walking under tall pine trees in an almost trance-like state, Etzion, her husband Yaacov, and their three children reside in a two-room dormitory "suite" in the local religious girls school. It's a step down from their two-story home on the sandy streets of the isolated Gush Katif settlement of Morag.

But Etzion was content in some ways. For her, moving into the girls' school in August brought closure. Exactly four years ago that is where she and Yaacov got married.

Evacuees Face Life of Uncertainties

By Gil Sedan
Published on August 18, 2005

The Tabach family left the settlement of Gadid last week, ahead of the Israeli withdrawal. Settlers who hadn't evacuated as of Monday were given 48-hours notice to leave, on threat of eviction.

Gaza Protests in L.A., N.Y. Prove Mild

By David Finnigan
Published on August 18, 2005

A rally planned for last weekend outside the Los Angeles Israeli consulate to protest this week's Gaza settler pullout was canceled, but in its place arose a somber gathering of about 70 people.

Goodbye Morag

By Yaakov Katz
Published on August 18, 2005

An Israeli army officer gives an evacuation order to Yuval and Michal Unterman and their 5-year-old daughter, Aviel, at the Morag settlement in the Gaza Strip.

The Disengagement Summer

By Barbara Opall-Rome
Published on August 4, 2005

The column of armored SUVs waited, engines humming, as a phalanx of bodyguards ushered Prime Minister Ariel Sharon into the third truck from the end. As the convoy cleared the main gate of the Israeli government head's residence, a set of decoy vehicles turned north, toward Jerusalem, while the remaining units proceeded south toward the Negev, where Sharon planned to tour absorption sites being built for hundreds of Israeli families soon to be evacuated from their Gaza Strip homes.

For Sharon, the site inspections this spring were a welcome excursion beyond his Jerusalem office compound or his Negev ranch. But for officers charged with protective security, the outing rivaled an elite combat operation.

U.S. Acts Cautiously on Mideast Issues

By James D. Besser
Published on June 16, 2005

It may be the most ideological presidency in recent memory, but on at least one issue, the Bush administration is pure pragmatism.

Grim Faces, Tense Words at Summit

By Ron Kampeas
Published on April 14, 2005

The meeting Monday between Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and President Bush at Bush's vast Texas ranch was to have affirmed the special U.S.-Israel relationship and paved the way forward in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process -- a triumphant summit between two friends, farmers and statesmen.

One People, One Vote

By Rob Eshman
Published on January 13, 2005

Anyone hungry for good news in the world could have sat down to a full meal this week on word of the Palestinian election.

Insurance Claim Debate Heats Up

By Tom Tugend
Published on June 17, 2004

Two antagonists in a long-simmering dispute about the handling of life insurance claims stemming from the Holocaust era took off their gloves last week in a bitter exchange of letters.

Gaza Plan Foes Face Evangelical Aid Loss

By James D. Besser
Published on April 8, 2004

With the Gaza disengagement plan picking up momentum and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon getting set to pitch the proposal to the Bush administration at Camp David next week, right-wing Jewish groups are counterattacking, hoping to forestall U.S. support for the plan. Their partners in this fight: Christian Zionists.

Settlers Struggle to Hold Biblical Israel

By Dina Kraft
Published on January 8, 2004

Migron, the largest and most established of the 100 or so illegal Jewish outposts set up across the West Bank, is on the front lines of a looming showdown between the settler movement and the Israeli government. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon recently pledged to dismantle such settlements in accordance with the U.S.-led "road map" peace plan.

World Briefs

Published on December 4, 2003

World Briefs

Sharon Loses Some Influence With Bush

By Leslie Susser
Published on July 31, 2003

After President Bush's late July meetings with the Israeli and Palestinian prime ministers, one thing is clear: Ariel Sharon no longer will have things all his own way in Washington.