International Left Rooting for Barghouti

By Larry Derfner
Published on December 30, 2004

Progressives of the world, including those in Israel, have a thing about Marwan Barghouti and with good reason: He's so cool. He's the coolest

Palestinian since Yasser Arafat first turned up in a keffiyeh and Ray Bans.

Journalist Patrick Bishop put it just right recently in England's Daily Telegraph, writing Barghouti up as a celebrity revolutionary:

Islamic Group Uses Jewish Sect as Tool

By Kevin O’Grady
Published on July 1, 2004

In fact, CAIR's sponsorship of the tour, which occurred last month, had nothing to do with improving dialogue or facilitating understanding -- just the opposite.

A Concert of Conscience

By Naomi Pfefferman
Published on June 17, 2004

In choreographer Roni Kosmal-Wernik's piece about the aftermath of a suicide bombing, a dancer prowls the stage as if searching for a lost loved one. Her movements become heavy, brooding, as if she is burdened by an invisible weight.

Inspired by a family friend's death in a 2001 attack, Kosmal-Wernik's work will help kick off a June 20 event at Temple Emanuel to support other victims of terror. Performers such as pianist Sha-Rone Kushnir will appear to benefit ATZUM, a Jerusalem-based charity that provides necessities for families not covered by Israel's overburdened welfare system.

"Artists for ATZUM," is the latest Los Angeles response to Israel-based violence.

Community Briefs

Published on December 11, 2003

In a 40-minute private audience Monday, Dec. 1 with Pope John Paul II, a Simon Wiesenthal Center delegation appealed to the pontiff to condemn suicide bombings and international terrorism as "crimes against God and crimes against humanity."

Attack Forces Israel to Strike at Syria

By Dan Baron
Published on October 9, 2003

This week's Israeli airstrike on an Islamic Jihad training camp near Damascus, which followed the group's deadly suicide bombing in Haifa on Saturday, was a sign to the Arab world that Israel will not be constrained by borders when it comes to the war on terrorism.

The attack came hours before the 30th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, when Israel was blindsided by Syria and Egypt.

Fervid Moderation

By Stuart Schoffman
Published on October 9, 2003

The horrifying images on Israel's Channel 10 were probably the most graphic I had ever seen on television. A suicide bomber, a Muslim religious teacher from Hebron -- himself the father of young children, had blown up a Jerusalem bus filled with ultra-Orthodox men, women and children on their way home from worship at the Western Wall. Twenty-one innocent people were murdered, scores were wounded and maimed, many of them -- so many of them -- children. The following morning, the mass-circulation Yediot newspaper ran front-page photos of some of the victims, a heart-breaking picture of a 5-month-old baby girl in intensive care and the opening paragraphs of four Op-Ed pieces, including one by Israel's most famous author, Amos Oz.

No Response at All

By Rabbi Ron Shulman
Published on September 4, 2003

A rabbi's voice must often give expression to the feelings of those with whom he or she worships on Shabbat.

Palestinians Show Iraq Support With Bombing

By Naomi Segal
Published on April 3, 2003

Palestinian support for Iraq took on a new dimension this week with a suicide bombing in Israel that Islamic Jihad said was aimed at showing solidarity with Baghdad.

Dozens of people were wounded, six seriously, when a suicide bomber blew himself up March 30 next to a crowded restaurant in the coastal city of Netanya. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility and identified the bomber as a resident of Tulkarm.

The group's secretary, Ramadan Shalakh, said the attack commemorated Land Day, which itself marks the deaths of six Israeli Arabs during protests in 1976 against state confiscation of Arab lands in the Galilee. Shalakh also said the bombing was a show of solidarity with the Iraqi people.

Mixed Message

By Leslie Susser
Published on March 6, 2003

As the Israeli army mounted a major operation in the Gaza Strip this week, questions were being asked about the ability of Israel's new, right-wing government to advance the peace process with the Palestinians.

Israel Stands Firm on IDF Campaign

By Naomi Segal
Published on April 11, 2002

In the Byzantine politics of the Middle East, even a suicide bombing is subject to differing interpretations.

After a suicide bomber detonated his explosives aboard a bus near Haifa on Wednesday, killing eight Israelis and wounding 14, Palestinian officials said the attack proved that Israel's military operation in the West Bank was ineffective in halting terror. The Bush administration said the attack reinforced the need for Israel to withdraw its forces. Yet, Israeli officials countered that the attack proved the necessity of continuing the operation until the entire network of Palestinian terror is eradicated.

Sunday Mourning

By Rabbi Daniel Gordis
Published on December 6, 2001

It had been quiet for a while. Shootings every day, of course, and a couple of people killed every week, but nothing "major."

Community Briefs

Published on August 23, 2001

Last week was particularly bad for local Milken Community High School teacher Etel Guy, whose brother was injured in the Aug. 9 Sbarro suicide bombing that killed 15 Jews.

Remembering Terrorism’s Victims

By David Margolis
Published on September 23, 1999

On this bright September afternoon, Zion Square, at the bottom of Jerusalem's downtown Ben Yehuda outdoor mall, is the usual confusion of pedestrian traffic -- shoppers, students, soldiers, tourists, all hurrying about their business in every direction. A few minutes after 1 p.m., a small group of men and women joins the throng, bringing a little flock of children and strollers into the middle of the square. One of the men somewhat uncertainly unrolls a hand-lettered sign that says, in Hebrew, "Prayer Vigil," and the group stands in a tight circle, reading psalms from prayer books in low voices.

A Brave Show of

By Eric Silver
Published on September 11, 1997

"When's our luck going to run out?" my wife asked after last week's triple suicide bombing on Jerusalem's Ben-Yehuda shopping street. "They're getting nearer every time." It was one of those days when people phone around to count their friends.

Guilt and Responsibility

By Yoram Ben Ze
Published on August 14, 1997

Since the barbarous July 30 bombings that claimed the lives of 13innocent Israelis, we have heard and read the following claim: Notonly was the atrocity predictable, but it was also a direct result ofIsrael's recent actions. I strongly take issue with this.

Coping

By Naomi Pfefferman
Published on August 7, 1997

En route home were Alice and Leo Howard and their 14-year-old grandsons, Yoni Howard and Adam Blitz, all of whom had survived the July 30 suicide bombings in Jerusalem's crowded Mahane Yehuda.

After the El Al jet landed, the relatives greeted each other with hugs and tears and counted themselves lucky. The bombs that killed 13 bystanders (as well as the two Hamas terrorists) and wounded nearly 170 people, had left the Howards relatively unscathed. Leo incurred whiplash, Yoni had glass shards embedded in one leg, and most had painful ringing in their ears. But the close family friends who had been with them at Mahane Yehuda were seriously injured and remained hospitalized.