Murder-suicide by despondent senior reported in Sherman Oaks

By Tom Tugend
Published on April 25, 2013

Report: ‘Prisoner X’ spy Ben Zygier tipped off Hezbollah

Published on March 25, 2013

The man known as "Prisoner X" unwittingly caused the arrest of two Hezbollah supporters who were spying for Israel, a German magazine claims.

Aaron Swartz: martyr or meme?

By Jonah Lowenfeld
Published on March 4, 2013

Report: Israel informed Australia when Zygier was arrested

Published on February 22, 2013

Israeli intelligence services notified Australian officials of Ben Zygier’s arrest immediately after he was detained, an Australian news agency reported.

Prisoner X affair raises charges of dual loyalty for Australian Jews

Published on February 20, 2013

As more details have seeped out about the mysterious life and death of Israel’s Prisoner X -- identified last week by an Australian TV program as Ben Zygier -- the wall of silence surrounding those who knew him has begun to show some cracks.

Israel denies mystery 2010 detainee spied for Australia

Published on February 19, 2013

Israel denied on Tuesday that an Australian immigrant who committed suicide in 2010 while jailed for security offenses had spied for his native country.

More details trickle out about Israel’s Prisoner X, aka Ben Zygier, an Australian Jew

Published on February 13, 2013

More information has begun to trickle out about the mysterious man known as Prisoner X who hanged himself in Israel’s Ayalon Prison in 2010.

Israel struggles to keep cloak of secrecy over spy story

Published on February 13, 2013

The mysterious death of an Australian prisoner in Israel has put the spotlight on a military-run censorship system that is finding it harder to black out secret information often only a mouse click away on the Internet.

Hamas leader calls for third intifada

Published on December 26, 2012

A senior Hamas leader called for a third intifada, including suicide bus bombings in Israel.

On Chanukah, Hamsas, for love and tzedakah

Published on December 6, 2012

Meeting Rachelle Tratt, a yoga teacher with a warm smile and huge blue eyes, it’s hard to imagine that she was ever anything but the strong, spirited healer she is today. But Tratt, who grew up Modern Orthodox in the Catskill Mountains, has seen her fair share of tragedy.

Israeli doctor euthanizes daughter, takes own life

Published on November 30, 2012

A doctor in Israel euthanized his daughter and committed suicide.

Words can kill

By Noga Gur-Arieh
Published on November 8, 2012

Wife of Israeli celebrity rabbi attempts suicide as police question him

Published on October 15, 2012

The wife of Israeli kabbalist Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto tried to commit suicide as her husband was being questioned by police.

Ari Rubin suicide continues pattern of violent JDL deaths

By Tom Tugend
Published on August 22, 2012

Ari Ephraim Rubin, vice chairman of the Jewish Defense League long led by his father, Irving (Irv) Rubin, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on July 20. He was 30.

Report: Calls between Lebanon and Burgas increased before attack

Published on August 9, 2012

Israel has evidence of many telephone calls between Lebanon and Burgas in the two months before the bombing that killed six people, The New York Times reported.

San Francisco synagogue service to remember Golden Gate Bridge suicides

Published on August 3, 2012

A San Francisco synagogue will hold a memorial service for the 1,558 known suicide victims who have jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge.

Suicide bomber behind Bulgaria bus attack had help, Bulgarian prime minister says

Published on July 24, 2012

A suicide bomber who killed five Israeli tourists when he blew up a bus in Bulgaria last week was backed up by an organized group who helped him plan and carry out the attack, Boiko Borisov, the Bulgarian prime minister, said on Tuesday.

Hezbollah: Uncertain future, but still dangerous

Published on July 23, 2012

Hezbollah may have hurt Israel with last week’s bus bombing in Bulgaria, but the Lebanese terrorist faction faces an uncertain future as one of its main sponsors -- Syria’s Assad regime -- faces a serious revolt and weakening support from once Arab allies, according to analysts.

Strangers to hate crimes, Bulgarian Jews reeling from Burgas bombing

Published on July 19, 2012

Until this week, leaders of Bulgaria’s small, generally placid Jewish community said felt untouched by hate crimes or terrorism.

Suspected suicide bomber had fake U.S. I.D.; Surveillance camera captures image

Published on July 19, 2012

A suicide bomber carried out an attack that killed seven people in a bus transporting Israeli tourists in Bulgaria, the interior minister said on Thursday, and Israel said Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants were to blame.

WITNESS ACCOUNT: ‘We think that (it was a suicide bomber)’

Published on July 18, 2012

A suicide bomber probably caused an explosion on a bus at Bulgaria's Burgas airport which killed three people, an Israeli woman who was on the bus said.

Family murder-suicide devastates Arizona Jewish community

Published on June 12, 2012

Following a businessman’s destruction of his family, the Jewish community of Tempe, Ariz., has “no answers,” according to a local rabbi.

Tempe family died of gunshot wounds, medical examiner determines

Published on June 11, 2012

The Tempe, Ariz., family found burned to death in the family's SUV died of gunshot wounds.

Case of murder-suicide of Jewish Phoenix family develops

Published on June 8, 2012

While it has not been officially determined as such, police are convinced the case of James Butwin and his family was a carefully planned murder-suicide, the Tucson Citizen reported.

The battle to get ‘Bully’ seen by those who need it most

By Danielle Berrin
Published on March 21, 2012

At Sioux City Middle School in Iowa, 12-year-old Alex Libby is the odd-man-out. Seen by his peers as different, he has golden hair, gentle eyes, a wide, flat nose and permanently puckered lips. Together, they might seem to express something both pouty and vulnerable, sweet and sad. Kids are not so kind. “People call me fish face,” he blankly tells the camera in the new documentary “Bully” by filmmaker Lee Hirsch. “I don’t mind.”

Q&A with an expert on bullying

By Danielle Berrin
Published on March 21, 2012

Ron Avi Astor, the Richard M. and Ann L. Thor Professor in Urban Social Development at USC, has been studying the epidemiology of school violence for nearly 30 years. In 1997, he moved his family to Jerusalem for one year to run the first-ever large-scale comprehensive school violence survey in Israel, with his partner, Hebrew University of Jerusalem professor Rami Benbenishty.

I LOVE YOU JONAH

By Ilana Angel
Published on December 4, 2011

Real Housewives of Beverly Hills:  Spitting on Russell Armstrong’s Grave

By Ilana Angel
Published on November 15, 2011

Ruth Madoff says she and Bernie attempted suicide in 2008 [VIDEO]

Published on October 27, 2011

Ruth Madoff said in an interview that she and her husband, Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff, attempted to commit suicide in 2008.

National Coming Out Day: Be Brave, Be Strong, Be Yourself, Be Happy

By Ilana Angel
Published on October 11, 2011

Real Housewives of Beverly Hills are Back and Completely Disgusting

By Ilana Angel
Published on September 6, 2011

A Teenager Drives, A Teenager Dies & a Mother Cries

By Ilana Angel
Published on August 25, 2011

Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Husband Russell Armstrong Found Dead

By Ilana Angel
Published on August 16, 2011

Iran army general: Attacking us would be suicidal

Published on April 20, 2011

The Iranian army's ground force commander warned that attacking Iran would be suicidal, the semi-official Iranian Fars News Agency reported on Wednesday.

Bombing at Moscow airport seen as terrorism [VIDEO]

Published on January 24, 2011

A bombing at the busiest airport in Moscow that killed at least 31 and injured 130 is being called a terrorist attack by Russian officials. "From the preliminary information we have, it was a terror attack," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said of Monday's attack on the Domodedovo Airport in a televised briefing. Medvedev also said that those responsible for the attack would be "tracked down and punished." All Moscow transportation services went on high alert following the attack. Israel canceled all flights to Moscow.

Matthew Mezza, Santa Monica High School Freshman, dies at 14

By Ryan Torok
Published on January 19, 2011

Santa Monica High School freshman Matthew Mezza, 14, died on Friday, Jan. 14, when he jumped to his death from the 10th floor of the Sheraton Delfina hotel in Santa Monica.

The Madoff tragedy and personal legacy

Published on December 14, 2010

With Mark Madoff’s suicide over the weekend, we witnessed the burden of a father’s sins. The Madoff Family’s tragic narrative reinforces why a person’s legacy truly matters. To expand on this teachable moment, JInsider looked to better understand personal legacy through the perspective of Jewish wisdom. (See full video discussions on www.jinsider.com)

Madoff’s eldest son, Mark, found dead in suicide

Published on December 11, 2010

Mark Madoff, the older of Bernard L. Madoff’s two sons, was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on Saturday, the second anniversary of the day his father was arrested for running a gigantic Ponzi scheme that shattered thousands of lives around the world.

Ronni Chasen update: Gun is a match in ‘person of interest’ suicide

Published on December 8, 2010

The Beverly Hills Courier has learned exclusively that preliminary ballistics analysis of the bullets that killed famed Hollywood publicist Ronnie Chasen

Did Former JDL Boss Confess to Bomb Plots?

By Tom Tugend
Published on March 17, 2009

Paul McCartney is ‘shocked but not intimidated’  by jihadi threats re Israel concert [VIDEO]

Published on September 14, 2008

Suicide bombers will target Paul McCartney unless he cancels his concert in Tel Aviv, a Muslim cleric said

Scientist accused of anthrax killings was a religious man

By Brad A. Greenberg
Published on August 9, 2008

Iranian Jews grapple with tragic death and violence in the community

By Karmel Melamed
Published on June 12, 2008

Bianca Khalili's death is just one of the recent incidents of community distress that have left many local Iranian Jews speculating among themselves, unsure of how to address violence

A Persian tragedy

By David Suissa
Published on June 12, 2008

The most important thing I can say to all my Persian friends is that before we are anything, we are all Jews. What binds us together is not just our humanity, but the collective Jewish identity we forged at Sinai some 3,300 years ago.

Films: Suicide victims seek love in limbo

By Susan Karlin
Published on October 25, 2007

Despite their focus on death and suicide, Etgar Keret's stories keep finding new life after publication -- from foreign reprints to re-imaginings as graphic novels and films. The latest of those incarnations, the award-winning independent film, "Wristcutters: A Love Story," has finally landed U.S. distribution with After Dark Films's sister distributor, Autonomous Films, and is in limited release -- opening today in Los Angeles. The debut feature film from Los Angeles-based Croatian director Goran Dukic is based on Keret's 1998 short story, "Kneller's Happy Campers," a surrealist road story following three suicide victims searching limbo for a lost love.

Family Feud—with my family, it’s no game

By Teresa Strasser
Published on March 22, 2007

I would take my mom against Clint Eastwood in any movie. Sure, he usually plays a grizzled, gunslinger with cat-like reflexes and something to prove, but if you cross my mother, you will find yourself, like the title of Clint's greatest Western, "Unforgiven."

Palestinian terror reaches Eilat

By Dina Kraft
Published on February 1, 2007

Eilat generally has escaped the violence of the six-year Palestinian intifada, but even its remote setting couldn't forever insulate the Red Sea resort city from the region's tensions.

Oprah ... Shoah ... Shoah ... Oprah

By Rob Eshman
Published on January 26, 2006

This is how naive I am: I never understood why Primo Levi killed himself. I'd long admired and devoured the works of the Italian chemist who wrote of his experiences surviving the Holocaust.

Nation & World Briefs

By Tom Tugend
Published on January 19, 2006

World

Briefs

Published on May 12, 2005

President Bush is expected to sign legislation that gives $200 million in aid to support the Palestinians.

Israel Buries Beersheba Bombing Victims

By Dina Kraft
Published on September 2, 2004

Again Israel turns to mourning the dead, but this time the list of those killed has been slow in coming. As the bombs used in suicide bombings become more sophisticated, producing deadlier and deadlier blasts, it takes more time to identify the remains of the dead.

Fence Offensive

By Steve North
Published on July 22, 2004

"People don't become suicide bombers for the fun of it, you know. They have grievances."

Morocco Bombings Shock Emigres

By Philip Carmel
Published on May 22, 2003

"We are deeply shocked, but we are not afraid," Serge Berdugo said. "People here know it is a global fight against the terrorists, the same for Muslims as for Jews. There were no victims from our own community, but this has come like a bolt from the blue."

A Real ‘Baby Boomer’

By JTA Staff
Published on July 4, 2002

Israelis are outraged by a picture of a Palestinian baby dressed as a suicide bomber.

Spartacus’

By Tom Tugend
Published on February 7, 2002

"My Stroke of Luck" by Kirk Douglas (William Morrow, $22.95)

Five years ago, Kirk Douglas, the legendary tough guy of 84 movies, decided to end his life.

Sharon: No More Words

By David Landau
Published on December 20, 2001

Trick or treat? That slightly out-of-season challenge reflects Israeli reaction to Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat's dramatic call on his people for "a complete stop to all armed activities, especially the suicide attacks."

Armageddon

By Rob Eshman
Published on September 13, 2001

Early Tuesday morning, my wife and I stared dumbly at the television, mumbling words like hijacked, explosion, collapse. My daughter, 5, looked up from her cereal, confused and frustrated. What language are you speaking? she asked. They were words almost unspoken in American living rooms. But no longer.

River of Life

By Naomi Pfefferman
Published on July 26, 2001

On Jan. 12, 1995, Valerie Sobel's 19-year-old son, Andre, died of a brain tumor. Exactly one year later, her husband shot himself. His suicide note stated that he did not wish to live past his son's tombstone unveiling. Three months later, Sobel's mother died of a stroke.

Abbie Hoffman’s America

By Naomi Pfefferman
Published on August 10, 2000

In the late 1970s, Robert Greenwald met a vibrant neighbor named Anita at a volleyball game near his home in Venice Beach.