{"id":32212,"date":"2016-10-02T15:11:18","date_gmt":"2016-10-02T21:11:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/?p=32212"},"modified":"2016-10-03T08:27:09","modified_gmt":"2016-10-03T14:27:09","slug":"5776-the-year-in-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/5776-the-year-in-review\/","title":{"rendered":"5776: The year in review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By BEN HARRIS<\/p>\n<p>(JTA) &#8212; A\u00a0stabbing and car-ramming epidemic in Israel that some called a third intifada was among the most dominant Jewish stories of\u00a0the\u00a0past\u00a0year.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_32323\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/bernie-sanders-3.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32323\" class=\"wp-image-32323 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/bernie-sanders-3-300x178.jpg\" alt=\"CLEAR LAKE, IA - AUGUST 14: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks at the Iowa Democratic Wing Ding August 14, 2015 in Clear Lake, Iowa. The Wing Ding is held at the historic Surf Ballroom, where Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens played their final concert, and featured Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Martin O\u00d5Malley and Lincoln Chaffee. (Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images)\" width=\"300\" height=\"178\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/bernie-sanders-3-300x178.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/bernie-sanders-3-1024x607.jpg 1024w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/178;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32323\" class=\"wp-image-32323 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/bernie-sanders-3-300x178.jpg\" alt=\"CLEAR LAKE, IA - AUGUST 14: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks at the Iowa Democratic Wing Ding August 14, 2015 in Clear Lake, Iowa. The Wing Ding is held at the historic Surf Ballroom, where Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens played their final concert, and featured Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Martin O\u00d5Malley and Lincoln Chaffee. (Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images)\" width=\"300\" height=\"178\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/bernie-sanders-3-300x178.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/bernie-sanders-3-1024x607.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-32323\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sen. Bernie Sanders speaking at the Iowa Democratic Wing Ding in Clear Lake, Aug. 14, 2015. (Win McNamee\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>But 5776 was also notable for the release of spy Jonathan Pollard after 30 years in prison, the communal fallout from the Iran nuclear deal, a historic (and unfinished) agreement on egalitarian worship at the Western Wall\u00a0and continuing clashes between pro-Israel students and the BDS movement on college campuses. Lastly, it meant saying goodbye to the last founding father of Israel, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/israeli-world-leaders-gather-to-bid-farewell-to-peres\/\" target=\"_blank\">Shimon Peres<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Below is a timeline of the Jewish year&#8217;s major events &#8212; the good, the bad and, in the case of the deaths of some Jewish giants, the very sad.<\/p>\n<p><strong>September 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Some 53 major American Jewish groups <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/09\/24\/news-opinion\/politics\/53-jewish-organizations-say-community-is-unified-after-iran-deal-battle\" target=\"_blank\">issue a call for unity<\/a> and recommitment to American and Israeli security following the Sept. 17 deadline for Congress to reject the Iran nuclear deal. Overall, 19 of 28 Jewish members of Congress <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/09\/09\/news-opinion\/politics\/final-tally-19-of-28-jewish-lawmakers-back-the-iran-nuclear-deal\" target=\"_blank\">support the deal<\/a>, which is vigorously opposed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.<\/p>\n<p>The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/01\/news-opinion\/united-states\/reconstructionists-to-accept-rabbinical-applicants-with-non-jewish-partners\" target=\"_blank\">reverses a longstanding ban<\/a> on accepting rabbinical students with non-Jewish partners.\u00a0 The move proves to be controversial, leading\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/10\/news-opinion\/united-states\/report-7-rabbis-quit-reconstructionist-movement-over-non-jewish-partners-policy\" target=\"_blank\">seven rabbis<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/20\/news-opinion\/united-states\/florida-shul-leaves-reconstructionism-over-intermarried-rabbis-policy\" target=\"_blank\">one Florida synagogue<\/a> to quit the movement in January in response.<\/p>\n<p>The Palestinian flag is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/09\/30\/news-opinion\/united-states\/palestinian-flag-raised-at-un-headquarters-for-first-time\" target=\"_blank\">raised<\/a> at U.N. headquarters in New York for the first time. The move follows a 119-8 vote of the General Assembly on Sept. 10 to allow the flag at the headquarters. Israel and the United States are among the dissenters, along with Canada and Australia.<\/p>\n<p><strong>October 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Jewish Council for Public Affairs <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/21\/news-opinion\/united-states\/jewish-public-policy-umbrella-calls-armenian-massacres-genocide\" target=\"_blank\">calls on Jewish groups<\/a> to lobby for official American recognition of the Armenian genocide. Though most historians say the killing or deportation of 1.5 million Armenians by Turkish forces during World War I constitutes a genocide, many American Jewish groups \u2013 including the Anti-Defamation League and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee \u2013 had previously\u00a0declined to do so for fear of harming Israel&#8217;s alliance with Turkey. In May, the ADL&#8217;s new chief, Jonathan Greenblatt, <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/05\/16\/news-opinion\/united-states\/adl-to-recognize-ottoman-empires-massacre-of-armenians-as-genocide\" target=\"_blank\">writes in a blog post<\/a> that the massacre of Armenians was \u201cunequivocally genocide.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_26645\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/MDAparamedics.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-26645\" class=\"wp-image-26645 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/MDAparamedics-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"MDAparamedics\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/MDAparamedics-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/MDAparamedics.jpg 500w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/225;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-26645\" class=\"wp-image-26645 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/MDAparamedics-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"MDAparamedics\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/MDAparamedics-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/MDAparamedics.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-26645\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Israeli Magen David Adom (MDA) paramedics provide medical treatment to four adults and two children after stones were thrown at their car on Oct. 9. (Photo courtesy MDA.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>An Israeli couple is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/01\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/israeli-married-couple-killed-in-west-bank-drive-by-shooting\" target=\"_blank\">killed<\/a> in the West Bank while driving with four of their six children. Eitam and Naama Henkin, both in their 30s, are killed while returning to their home settlement of Neria. Their children are unharmed. In June, four Palestinians are <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/06\/22\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/4-palestinians-get-life-sentences-in-murder-of-israeli-jewish-couple-in-front-of-their-kids\" target=\"_blank\">sentenced<\/a> to life in prison for the killings.<\/p>\n<p>Pope Francis <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/28\/news-opinion\/world\/pope-francis-meets-with-jewish-leaders-on-50th-anniversary-of-nostra-aetate\" target=\"_blank\">meets<\/a> Jewish leaders in Rome to mark\u00a0the 50th anniversary of the Nostra Aetate, the landmark declaration that rejected collective Jewish guilt for the killing of Christ and paved the way for improved Jewish-Catholic relations. In the meeting in St. Peter&#8217;s Square, Francis declares:\u00a0&#8220;Yes to the rediscovery of the Jewish roots of Christianity. No to\u00a0anti-Semitism.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/21\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/netanyahu-blaming-mufti-of-jerusalem-for-final-solution-prompting-outcry\" target=\"_blank\">draws fire<\/a> for claiming\u00a0the mufti of Jerusalem gave Hitler the idea to exterminate the Jews at a 1941 meeting.\u00a0&#8220;Hitler didn\u2019t want to exterminate the Jews at the time; he wanted to expel the Jews. And Haj Amin al-Husseini went to Hitler and said, &#8216;If you expel them, they&#8217;ll all come here,'&#8221; Netanyahu said. Amid an outcry, Netanyahu modifies his statement, emphasizing that Hitler bore responsibility for the Holocaust.<\/p>\n<p>Palestinian rioters <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/16\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/josephs-tomb-set-on-fire-ahead-of-palestinian-day-of-rage\" target=\"_blank\">set fire<\/a> to Joseph&#8217;s Tomb, a Jewish holy site in the West Bank, amid continuing Israeli-Palestinian unrest. The violence began in September following an Israeli raid on the Temple Mount that uncovered a cache of weapons, which led to clashes that spread to the West Bank.<\/p>\n<p>Portuguese officials\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/14\/news-opinion\/world\/portugal-issues-1st-passport-under-new-law-for-descendant-of-sephardic-jews\" target=\"_blank\">approve<\/a> the naturalization of a Panamanian descendant of Sephardic Jews, the first individual to receive Portuguese citizenship under a 2013 law that entitled such individuals to repatriation. Days earlier, Spain <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/10\/04\/news-opinion\/world\/spain-grants-citizenship-to-4302-descendants-of-sephardic-jews\" target=\"_blank\">approved<\/a> the granting of citizenship to 4,302 descendants of Spanish Jews exiled during the Spanish Inquisition under a similar law.<\/p>\n<p><strong>November 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_27071\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Jonathan-pollard.png\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27071\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-27071 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Jonathan-pollard-150x150.png\" alt=\"Jonathan Pollard (YouTube)\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Jonathan-pollard-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Jonathan-pollard-350x350.png 350w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 150px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 150\/150;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-27071\" class=\"size-thumbnail wp-image-27071\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Jonathan-pollard-150x150.png\" alt=\"Jonathan Pollard (YouTube)\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Jonathan-pollard-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Jonathan-pollard-350x350.png 350w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-27071\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jonathan Pollard (YouTube)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Jonathan Pollard, the former American Naval intelligence analyst convicted of spying for Israel, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/20\/news-opinion\/united-states\/jonathan-pollard-freed-after-30-years\" target=\"_blank\">is freed<\/a> from federal prison after 30 years. Under the terms of his parole, Pollard is prohibited from traveling to Israel, though he offers to renounce his American citizenship in order to live there.<\/p>\n<p>New York State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/30\/news-opinion\/united-states\/sheldon-silver-ex-ny-assembly-speaker-found-guilty-of-all-7-corruption-charges\" target=\"_blank\">found guilty<\/a> of corruption. An Orthodox Jew who wielded vast power as one of the New York state government&#8217;s proverbial \u201cthree men in a room,\u201d Silver was convicted of using his position to win millions through various kickback schemes and no-show jobs. Silver is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/05\/03\/news-opinion\/united-states\/sheldon-silver-ny-power-broker-sentenced-to-12-years-for-corruption\" target=\"_blank\">sentenced to 12 years<\/a> in jail in May.<\/p>\n<p>Two Jewish teens <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/30\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/jewish-teens-found-guilty-in-murder-of-palestinian-teen-who-was-burned-to-death\" target=\"_blank\">are\u00a0found guilty<\/a> of the murder of Mohammad Abu Khdeir, a Palestinian teenager who was abducted and burned to death in the Jerusalem Forest in 2014. The teens are not identified because they were minors at the time of the crime.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_32324\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Israel-service-for-Ezra.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32324\" class=\"wp-image-32324 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Israel-service-for-Ezra-300x224.jpg\" alt=\"Israel service for Ezra\" width=\"300\" height=\"224\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Israel-service-for-Ezra-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Israel-service-for-Ezra-1024x765.jpg 1024w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/224;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32324\" class=\"wp-image-32324 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Israel-service-for-Ezra-300x224.jpg\" alt=\"Israel service for Ezra\" width=\"300\" height=\"224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Israel-service-for-Ezra-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Israel-service-for-Ezra-1024x765.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-32324\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Friends of Ezra Schwartz grieving over the coffin of the American terror victim at a service at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel before the body was repatriated to Boston for his funeral the following day, Nov. 21, 2015. (Ben Sales)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>American yeshiva student Ezra Schwartz, 18, is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/19\/default\/american-yeshiva-student-killed-in-west-bank-identified-as-mass-18-year-old\" target=\"_blank\">killed<\/a> in a shooting in the West Bank. Schwartz, of Sharon, Massachusetts, is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/24\/news-opinion\/united-states\/new-england-patriots-hold-moment-of-silence-for-ezra-schwartz\" target=\"_blank\">memorialized<\/a> by the New England Patriots, his favorite team, with a moment of silence prior to their Nov. 23 game against the Buffalo Bills.<\/p>\n<p>F. Glenn Miller Jr., the white supremacist found guilty of killing three people\u00a0at two suburban Kansas City Jewish institutions, is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/10\/default\/kansas-city-jcc-shooter-sentenced-to-death\" target=\"_blank\">sentenced to death<\/a>. Miller was convicted\u00a0of capital murder in September.<\/p>\n<p>The European Union <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/11\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/european-union-adopts-settlement-labeling-guidelines\" target=\"_blank\">approves\u00a0guidelines<\/a> for\u00a0the\u00a0labeling of products from West Bank settlements. Under the guidelines, goods produced in the West Bank, eastern Jerusalem or the Golan Heights must be labeled. Israel&#8217;s Foreign Ministry condemns the move.<\/p>\n<p>The Anti-Defamation League <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/20\/news-opinion\/united-states\/adl-reports-jump-in-anti-israel-campus-activity\" target=\"_blank\">reports<\/a> a 30 percent jump in anti-Israel activity on American college campuses. According to the report, over 150 \u201cexplicitly anti-Israel programs\u201d have either taken place or are scheduled to take place on American campuses, an increase from 105 the year before.<\/p>\n<p>The Rabbinical Council of America <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/11\/01\/news-opinion\/united-states\/rabbinical-council-of-america-officially-bans-ordination-and-hiring-of-women-rabbis\" target=\"_blank\">adopts a policy<\/a> prohibiting the ordination or hiring of women rabbis. The policy, the result of a vote of the main Orthodox rabbinical group&#8217;s membership, proscribes the usage of any title implying rabbinic status, specifically naming \u201cmaharat\u201d \u2013 an acronym meaning &#8220;female spiritual, legal and Torah leader&#8221; used by Yeshivat Maharat, a New York school ordaining Orthodox women as clergy.<\/p>\n<p>Six men are sentenced for their roles in a plot to violently coerce a man to grant his wife a religious divorce; most are given prison terms. In December, two rabbis involved in the scheme are sentenced to jail time, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/15\/news-opinion\/united-states\/nj-rabbi-who-led-divorce-ring-sentenced-to-10-years,\" target=\"_blank\">including 70-year-old Mendel Epstein<\/a>, who receives a 10-year term. In all, 10\u00a0people, three of them rabbis, are convicted for their roles in kidnapping and torturing recalcitrant husbands for a fee.<\/p>\n<p><strong>December 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Israel <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/03\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/several-jewish-youths-arrested-in-connection-with-duma-firebomb-attack\" target=\"_blank\">arrests<\/a> several suspects in connection with a July firebombing in the West Bank town of Duma that killed three members of a Palestinian family, including an 18-month-old baby. The suspects <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/22\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/jewish-suspects-in-duma-attack-allege-torture-at-the-hands-of-shin-bet\" target=\"_blank\">later allege<\/a> they were tortured by the Israeli security agency Shin Bet, which denies the claim. Weeks later, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/23\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/israeli-tv-footage-shows-friends-of-duma-suspects-celebrating-deaths-of-palestinians\" target=\"_blank\">video emerges<\/a> showing friends of the suspects celebrating the killings at a wedding in Jerusalem, drawing condemnations from across the political spectrum.<\/p>\n<p>The United Nations <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/18\/news-opinion\/united-states\/un-to-recognize-yom-kippur-as-official-holiday\" target=\"_blank\">recognizes<\/a>\u00a0Yom Kippur as an official holiday.\u00a0Starting in 2016, no official meetings will take place on the Jewish Day of Atonement at the international body&#8217;s New York headquarters, and Jewish employees there will be able to miss work without using vacation hours. Other religious holidays that enjoy the same status are Christmas, Good Friday, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.<\/p>\n<p>An Orthodox gay conversion group is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/21\/news-opinion\/united-states\/jewish-orthodox-gay-conversion-therapy-group-ordered-to-close\" target=\"_blank\">ordered<\/a> by a New Jersey court to cease operations. Jews Offering New Alternatives for Healing, or JONAH, must cease operations within 30 days, the state Superior Court rules. In a lawsuit filed in 2012, the group, which claims to be able to eliminate homosexual urges, was found to be in violation of New Jersey&#8217;s Consumer Fraud Act.<\/p>\n<p>Violinist Itzhak Perlman is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/14\/news-opinion\/united-states\/itzhak-perlman-named-winner-of-2016-genesis-prize\" target=\"_blank\">named<\/a> the third recipient of the Genesis Prize. The annual $1 million prize, dubbed the \u201cJewish Nobel,\u201d is funded by a group of Russian philanthropists to honor individuals who have achieved international renown in their professional fields and serve as role models through their commitment to Jewish values.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28020\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Dayan_Dani-e1452598042776.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-28020\" class=\"wp-image-28020 size-thumbnail lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Dayan_Dani-e1452598042776-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Dayan_Dani\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Dayan_Dani-e1452598042776-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Dayan_Dani-e1452598042776-350x350.jpg 350w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 150px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 150\/150;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-28020\" class=\"wp-image-28020 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Dayan_Dani-e1452598042776-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Dayan_Dani\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Dayan_Dani-e1452598042776-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Dayan_Dani-e1452598042776-350x350.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-28020\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dani Dayan (Photo by Alan Smason)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Brazil <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/17\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/brazil-refuses-to-confirm-israeli-settler-leader-as-ambassador\" target=\"_blank\">refuses<\/a> to\u00a0confirm Dani Dayan, a former West Bank settler leader, as Israeli ambassador to the country because of his support for the settlements. Following a months-long standoff Dayan, a native of Argentina, is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/28\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/ex-settler-leader-dani-dayan-rebuffed-in-brazil-appointed-consul-general-in-ny\" target=\"_blank\">reassigned<\/a> as consul general in New York.<\/p>\n<p>Samuel \u201cSandy\u201d Berger, who served as President Bill Clinton\u2019s national security adviser, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/12\/02\/news-opinion\/politics\/sandy-berger-clinton-national-security-adviser-dies-at-70\" target=\"_blank\">dies at 70<\/a>, succumbing to cancer. Berger was a prominent player at the 2000 Camp David summit.<\/p>\n<p><strong>January 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In response to unspecified complaints that products produced in the West Bank are mislabeled as originating in Israel, the U.S. customs agency<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/28\/news-opinion\/politics\/obama-administration-reissues-labeling-order-on-west-bank-products\" target=\"_blank\">reiterates<\/a> its policy that any goods originating in the West Bank or Gaza Strip be labeled as such.<\/p>\n<p>After decades of squabbling, the Israeli government <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/31\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/western-wall-prayer-fight-ends-with-historic-compromise\" target=\"_blank\">approves<\/a> a compromise to expand\u00a0the non-Orthodox Jewish prayer section of the Western Wall. Under terms of the deal, the size of the non-Orthodox section of the Western Wall will double\u00a0to nearly 10,000 square feet and both areas will be accessible by a single entrance.<\/p>\n<p>The Brown University chapter of the historically Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/27\/news-opinion\/united-states\/brown-university-aepi-disaffiliates-over-alleged-bias-against-non-jewish-frat-brothers\" target=\"_blank\">separates<\/a> from the international organization over biases against non-Jewish members as well as its handling of sexual assault. In an op-ed in the Brown student newspaper, chapter president Ben Owens says the group objected to the \u201cdemeaning way that some representatives of AEPi National treated our non-Jewish brothers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Cleveland Cavaliers <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/22\/arts-entertainment\/david-blatt-legendary-israeli-basketball-coach-fired-by-cleveland-cavaliers\" target=\"_blank\">fire<\/a> Israeli-American head coach David Blatt, who led the team to the NBA Finals in 2015. Blatt releases a statement saying he was \u201cgrateful\u201d for the chance to serve as coach. Led by LeBron James, the Cavaliers go on to win their first NBA championship under Blatt&#8217;s successor, Tyronn Lue.<\/p>\n<p>Rabbi Eugene Borowitz, an influential thinker in Reform Judaism, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/22\/news-opinion\/united-states\/rabbi-eugene-borowitz-leading-reform-thinker-and-teacher-dies-at-91\" target=\"_blank\">dies at 91<\/a>. A longtime faculty member at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Borowitz was the author of 19 books and hundreds of articles on Jewish thought.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7204\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/Kagedan3.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7204\" class=\"wp-image-7204 size-thumbnail lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/Kagedan3-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Second year Yeshiva Maharat student will be part of the panel of women clergy leaders at Beth Israel tonight. (Courtesy Lila Kagedan)\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 150px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 150\/150;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7204\" class=\"wp-image-7204 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/Kagedan3-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Second year Yeshiva Maharat student will be part of the panel of women clergy leaders at Beth Israel tonight. (Courtesy Lila Kagedan)\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7204\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Lila Kagedan is the first graduate of Yeshivat Maharat to use the title rabbi. (Courtesy Lila Kagedan)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Mount Freedom Jewish Center in New Jersey <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/11\/news-opinion\/united-states\/nj-orthodox-shul-announces-hire-of-woman-using-rabbi-title\" target=\"_blank\">announces<\/a> it has hired a woman using the title &#8220;rabbi.&#8221; Lila Kagedan, a graduate of New York&#8217;s Yeshivat Maharat, was ordained in June as an Orthodox clergywoman. The school permits graduates to choose their title; Kagedan is the first to choose rabbi.<\/p>\n<p>Hundreds of protesters at a gay conference in Chicago, charging &#8220;pinkwashing&#8221; of Israeli misdeeds,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/23\/news-opinion\/united-states\/protestors-disrupt-jewish-reception-at-chicago-gay-conference\" target=\"_blank\">disrupt<\/a> a reception \u00a0for Israeli LGBT activists, forcing the event to shut down. The disruption is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/01\/27\/news-opinion\/united-states\/90-lgbt-activists-call-anti-israel-behavior-at-conference-dangerous-and-deeply-disturbing\" target=\"_blank\">strongly condemned<\/a> days later by several leading gay activists, including former Rep. Barney Frank and Edie Windsor, the plaintiff in the Supreme Court case that led to the legalization of gay marriage.<\/p>\n<p><strong>February 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Sen. Bernie Sanders wins the New Hampshire primary, becoming the first Jewish candidate in American history to win a presidential primary. The Vermont Independent, seeking the Democratic nomination, handily defeats former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, commanding 60 percent of the vote to Clinton&#8217;s 38 percent.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_32330\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Son-of-Saul.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32330\" class=\"wp-image-32330 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Son-of-Saul-300x228.jpg\" alt=\"Son of Saul\" width=\"300\" height=\"228\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Son-of-Saul-300x228.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Son-of-Saul-1024x778.jpg 1024w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/228;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32330\" class=\"wp-image-32330 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Son-of-Saul-300x228.jpg\" alt=\"Son of Saul\" width=\"300\" height=\"228\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Son-of-Saul-300x228.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Son-of-Saul-1024x778.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-32330\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">G\u00e9za R\u00f6hrig as Saul in &#8220;Son of Saul&#8221; (Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The\u00a0Hungarian Holocaust drama &#8220;Son of Saul&#8221; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/02\/28\/arts-entertainment\/son-of-saul-wins-oscar-for-best-foreign-film\" target=\"_blank\">wins<\/a> an\u00a0Oscar for\u00a0best foreign language film. Other Jewish winners at the 2016 Academy Awards are\u00a0\u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2015\/07\/02\/default\/amy-winehouse-through-the-lens-and-the-bottom-of-a-bottle\" target=\"_blank\">Amy<\/a>,\u201d the documentary about the late Jewish\u00a0singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse, and Michael Sugar, who\u00a0wins for best picture as co-producer of \u201cSpotlight,\u201d the story of the Boston Globe investigative team\u00a0led by Jewish editor Marty Baron that exposed sex scandals in the Catholic Church.<\/p>\n<p>The Canadian Parliament formally <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/02\/22\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/canadian-parliament-officially-condemns-bds\" target=\"_blank\">condemns<\/a>\u00a0the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement,\u00a0saying it \u201cpromotes the demonization and delegitimization of the State of Israel.\u201d\u00a0Passed by a vote of\u00a0229-51, the motion was introduced by\u00a0the opposition Conservative Party but won support from the ruling Liberal Party as well.<\/p>\n<p>The Jewish Theological Seminary <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/02\/01\/news-opinion\/united-states\/jts-sells-96-million-in-real-estate-will-use-proceeds-to-finance-redevelopment\" target=\"_blank\">announces<\/a> the sale of $96 million worth of real estate assets and its intention to use the funds to upgrade its New York facility. The seminary, considered the flagship institution of the Conservative movement, says it intends to build a state-of-the-art library, auditorium and conference facilities, and a new 150-bed residence hall on its main campus.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_30649\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30649\" class=\"wp-image-30649 size-thumbnail lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"David-Duke\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-350x350.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke.jpg 500w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 150px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 150\/150;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30649\" class=\"wp-image-30649 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"David-Duke\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke-350x350.jpg 350w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/David-Duke.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-30649\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">White supremacist, Nazi supporter and former KKK leader David Duke.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/02\/28\/news-opinion\/politics\/trump-disavows-ex-kkk-head-david-duke-for-2nd-time-following-refusal\" target=\"_blank\">disavows<\/a>\u00a0the support of David Duke after earlier claiming he knew nothing about the former Ku Klux Klan leader&#8217;s views. In response, the Anti-Defamation League <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/02\/28\/news-opinion\/politics\/adl-to-provide-donald-trump-all-presidential-candidates-info-on-extremists-like-duke\" target=\"_blank\">announces<\/a> it will be providing all presidential candidates with information about hate groups so they can better determine which endorsements to accept and reject.<\/p>\n<p><strong>March 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Jewish comedian Garry Shandling <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/24\/news-opinion\/united-states\/garry-shandling-comic-star-of-larry-sanders-show-dies-at-66\" target=\"_blank\">dies<\/a> in Los Angeles at 66. Shandling wrote for several sitcoms before starring in his own shows, including \u201cThe Larry Sanders Show,\u201d which aired on HBO in the 1990s and earned Shandling 18 Emmy Award nominations.<\/p>\n<p>Venice <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/30\/news-opinion\/world\/venice-marks-500th-anniversary-of-1st-jewish-ghetto\" target=\"_blank\">launches<\/a> a yearlong commemoration of the\u00a0500th anniversary of the world\u2019s first official Jewish ghetto. Among the many events scheduled\u00a0for the anniversary is an appearance by Jewish U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/07\/27\/news-opinion\/world\/ruth-bader-ginsburg-attends-premiere-of-merchant-of-venice-in-citys-ghetto\" target=\"_blank\">presides over<\/a>\u00a0a mock trial of Shylock, the Jewish moneylender character from Shakespeare&#8217;s &#8220;The Merchant of Venice.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Microsoft <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/24\/news-opinion\/united-states\/microsoft-pulls-tweeting-robot-after-it-expresses-admiration-for-hitler\" target=\"_blank\">pulls<\/a> its artificial intelligence tweeting robot after it posts several anti-Semitic comments. The software company had launched the so-called chatbot as an experiment but quickly paused the endeavor after the controversial tweets, several of which expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler.<\/p>\n<p>A Pew study of Israelis <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/08\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/six-surprising-findings-from-pews-study-of-israelis\" target=\"_blank\">finds<\/a> that 48 percent\u00a0of the country&#8217;s Jews agree that\u00a0Arabs should be &#8220;expelled or transferred&#8221; out\u00a0of the country. The finding, the most shocking in a wide-ranging study of Israeli attitudes, is\u00a0based on interviews with 5,600 Israelis conducted between October 2014 and May 2015.<\/p>\n<p>Israeli leaders <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/28\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/why-3-videos-of-a-west-bank-shooting-are-roiling-israel\" target=\"_blank\">condemn<\/a> the actions of a solider caught on video shooting an apparently incapacitated Palestinian lying on the ground.\u00a0\u201cWhat happened today in Hebron does not represent the values of the IDF,\u201d Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says following the release of the video, shot by the human rights group B&#8217;Tselem. The soldier is charged with manslaughter in May and later goes on trial.<\/p>\n<p>Thousands of delegates attend the American Israel Public Affairs Committee&#8217;s annual policy conference in Washington featuring appearances by most contenders for the presidency &#8212; most controversially Donald Trump, who sparks much talk of protests and walkouts in the days leading up to the conclave. Speaking the morning after Trump&#8217;s address to the gathering, AIPAC President Lillian Pinkus\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/22\/news-opinion\/politics\/aipac-apologizes-for-trumps-cheering-obamas-departure\" target=\"_blank\">issues a rare apology<\/a>\u00a0for Trump&#8217;s attacks on President Barack Obama, saying the group is \u201cdeeply disappointed that so many people applauded a sentiment that we neither agree with or condone.\u201d\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/21\/news-opinion\/politics\/hillary-clinton-to-aipac-donalds-trumps-foreign-policy-dangerously-wrong\" target=\"_blank\">Hillary Clinton<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/21\/news-opinion\/politics\/cruz-takes-aim-at-trump-and-obama-in-aipac-speech\" target=\"_blank\">Ted Cruz<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/21\/news-opinion\/united-states\/kasich-vows-not-to-be-neutral-in-defending-israel\" target=\"_blank\">John Kasich<\/a> also address the conference, while Bernie Sanders <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/21\/news-opinion\/united-states\/bernie-sanders-all-options-on-table-if-iran-cheats-on-nuclear-deal\" target=\"_blank\">issues a written statement<\/a> to the group from the campaign trail.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_29029\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Merrick_Garland.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-29029\" class=\"wp-image-29029 size-thumbnail lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Merrick_Garland-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Merrick_Garland\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 150px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 150\/150;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-29029\" class=\"wp-image-29029 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Merrick_Garland-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Merrick_Garland\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-29029\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">U.S. Circuit Judge Merrick Garland. (Photo by Merrick Garland)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Merrick Garland, the chief of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, is nominated to replace Antonin Scalia, who died in February, on the Supreme Court. In his acceptance speech, Garland <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/16\/news-opinion\/united-states\/merrick-garland-emotionally-recalls-jewish-roots-in-accepting-supreme-court-nomination\" target=\"_blank\">emotionally recalls<\/a> his grandparents who had fled anti-Semitism for better lives in the United States. Republicans vow not to consider his nomination during President Obama&#8217;s last year in office.<\/p>\n<p>Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder and CEO of Facebook, is the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/03\/02\/news-opinion\/united-states\/mark-zuckerberg-is-the-worlds-richest-jew-according-to-forbes-billionaire-list\" target=\"_blank\">world&#8217;s richest Jew<\/a>, according to Forbes. The magazine&#8217;s annual list of the world&#8217;s billionaires shows Zuckerberg surpassing Oracle CEO Larry Ellison to claim the top spot among Jews.<\/p>\n<p><strong>April 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Days ahead of the New York primary, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton engage in a <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/04\/14\/news-opinion\/politics\/bernie-sanders-and-hillary-clinton-spar-over-israel-in-ny-debate\" target=\"_blank\">heated exchange<\/a> over Israel at a debate in Brooklyn, with the Vermont senator accusing the former secretary of state of neglecting the Palestinians and reiterating his charge that Israel used disproportionate force in Gaza in 2014. Clinton says she worked hard to bring peace to the region as secretary of state. Clinton won the primary in New York, home to the country&#8217;s largest Jewish population, 58-42 percent.<\/p>\n<p>A majority of professors at Oberlin College <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/04\/12\/news-opinion\/united-states\/174-oberlin-profs-sign-letter-condemning-colleagues-anti-semitic-posts\" target=\"_blank\">sign<\/a> a letter condemning the \u201canti-Semitic Facebook posts\u201d by a fellow faculty member. The letter, signed by 174 professors, does not name Joy Karega, the rhetoric and composition professor whose posts, including one accusing Israel and \u201cRothschild-led bankers\u201d of responsibility for downing an airliner over Ukraine in 2014, drew widespread attention.<\/p>\n<p>Bernie Sanders <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/04\/14\/news-opinion\/united-states\/abe-foxman-bernie-sanders-head-of-jewish-outreach-should-be-fired-for-israel-criticism\" target=\"_blank\">suspends<\/a> his Jewish outreach director after revelations of social media posts that used profanity to describe Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Simone Zimmerman, a former activist with J Street, reportedly called Netanyahu a \u201cmanipulative asshole,\u201d though she later changed the\u00a0expletive to \u201cpolitician.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/04\/11\/news-opinion\/world\/first-jewish-gay-marriage-in-latin-america-held-at-argentine-synagogue\" target=\"_blank\">first same-sex Jewish wedding ceremony in Latin America<\/a> is held at a synagogue in Argentina.\u00a0Some 300 guests attend the wedding of Victoria Escobar and Romina Charur at the NCI Emanu El Temple in Buenos Aires.<\/p>\n<p><strong>May 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Bernie Sanders <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/05\/23\/news-opinion\/politics\/dems-panel-drafting-platform-includes-critics-of-israel-friends-of-israel-and-a-bds-backer\" target=\"_blank\">names<\/a> three prominent critics of Israel to the committee charged with formulating the Democratic Party platform: Rep. Keith Ellison, D-MN., the first Muslim elected to Congress; James Zogby, the president of the Arab American Institute; and Cornel West, a philosopher and supporter of the BDS movement. Days later, Sanders <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/05\/26\/news-opinion\/politics\/bernie-sanders-expects-consensus-on-palestinian-rights-at-democratic-convention\" target=\"_blank\">releases<\/a> a statement emphasizing that while he supports Israel&#8217;s right to live in peace, lasting peace will not come without \u201cfair and respectful treatment of the Palestinian people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In an <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/05\/10\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/israeli-population-10-times-larger-than-at-states-founding\" target=\"_blank\">announcement<\/a> timed to the annual independence celebrations in Israel, the nation&#8217;s Central Bureau of Statistics reports the population has risen to 8.52 million residents, a tenfold increase over the 806,000 in 1948 at the time of Israel&#8217;s founding.<\/p>\n<p>Britain&#8217;s Labour Party <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/05\/01\/news-opinion\/world\/britains-labour-launches-investigation-into-partys-anti-semitism\" target=\"_blank\">launches<\/a>\u00a0an investigation into anti-Semitism within the party one day after the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/04\/28\/news-opinion\/world\/labours-ex-mayor-of-london-hitler-was-a-zionist\" target=\"_blank\">suspension<\/a>\u00a0of\u00a0former London Mayor Ken Livingstone, who said Adolf Hitler was a Zionist because he advocated moving\u00a0Europe&#8217;s Jews to Israel.<\/p>\n<p>Morley Safer, a 46-year veteran of the CBS newsmagazine \u201c60 Minutes,\u201d <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/05\/19\/news-opinion\/united-states\/morley-safer-of-60-minutes-dies-at-84\" target=\"_blank\">dies at 84<\/a> a week after retiring from the show. Safer, the winner of 12 Emmy Awards, helped turn American public opinion against the Vietnam War with his coverage of U.S. atrocities.<\/p>\n<p>Sheldon Adelson, the casino magnate and major backer of Republican candidates, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/05\/13\/news-opinion\/politics\/donald-trump-gets-endorsement-of-sheldon-adelson-jewish-gop-kingmaker\" target=\"_blank\">endorses<\/a> Donald Trump for the presidency. In an op-ed in The Washington Post, Adelson cites Trump&#8217;s executive experience and the threat of a \u201cthird term\u201d for President Obama if Hillary Clinton is elected. Adelson <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/05\/14\/news-opinion\/politics\/donald-trump-reportedly-to-get-big-financial-boost-from-sheldon-adelson\" target=\"_blank\">plans<\/a> to spend more than ever on the 2016 presidential election, even in excess of $100 million, The New York Times reports.<\/p>\n<p>Julia Ioffe, a reporter who wrote a critical profile of Donald Trump&#8217;s wife, Melania, is <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/05\/01\/news-opinion\/politics\/critical-profile-of-melania-trump-unleashes-flood-of-anti-semitic-abuse-on-reporter\" target=\"_blank\">deluged<\/a> with anti-Semitic phone calls and messages on social media, including a cartoon of a Jew being executed. Ioffe <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/05\/10\/news-opinion\/politics\/author-of-melania-trump-profile-files-police-complaint-after-deluge-of-anti-semitic-abuse\" target=\"_blank\">files<\/a> a police complaint about the threats.<\/p>\n<p>An <a href=\"http:\/\/jta.org\/2016\/05\/03\/news-opinion\/united-states\/undercover-video-of-hasidic-principal-handling-boy-prompts-sex-abuse-probe\" target=\"_blank\">11-minute video<\/a> showing what appears to be a Hasidic school principal sexually abusing a young boy refocuses attention on sex abuse in the haredi Orthodox community. The video, which prompts an investigation by state police, was filmed secretly from an overhead camera and posted on social media before being removed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>June 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Rabbi Maurice Lamm, the author of &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/293otgB\" target=\"_blank\">The Jewish Way in Death and Mourning<\/a>&#8221; and several other notable Jewish books, dies. First issued in 1969, the book is considered a seminal work on the topic of Jewish death and mourning rituals.<\/p>\n<p>British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, already under fire over allegations of rampant anti-Semitism in his party, draws more criticism\u00a0for seeming\u00a0to compare Israel and the Islamic State terrorist group.\u00a0\u201cOur Jewish friends are no more responsible for the actions of Israel or the Netanyahu government than our Muslim friends are for those of various self-styled Islamic states or organizations,\u201d Corbyn said in remarks following the release of a report on anti-Semitism within Labour. The report\u00a0found\u00a0the party is not overrun by anti-Semitism but that there is an \u201coccasionally toxic atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p>Hallel Yaffa Ariel, 13, is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/06\/30\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/israeli-girl-13-stabbed-to-death-in-her-bedroom-by-palestinian-assailant\" target=\"_blank\">stabbed to death<\/a> while sleeping in her bed in the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba by a Palestinian teenager. The attacker, Muhammad Nasser Tarayrah, had jumped the settlement fence and entered the sleeping girl&#8217;s bedroom. He later is shot and killed by civilian guards.<\/p>\n<p>Israel and Turkey <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/06\/28\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/israel-turkey-sign-reconciliation-deal\" target=\"_blank\">sign<\/a> a reconciliation agreement six years after relations were cut off following an Israeli raid on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish ship attempting to break Israel&#8217;s blockade of Gaza. Nine Turkish citizens were killed in the raid. Under the agreement, Israel will create a $20 million humanitarian fund as compensation to the families of the Mavi Marmara victims, which would not be released until Turkey passes legislation closing claims against the Israeli military for the deaths.<\/p>\n<p>Anti-Semitic incidents on American college campuses <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/06\/22\/news-opinion\/united-states\/anti-semitic-incidents-on-us-college-campuses-doubled-in-2015-adl-reports\" target=\"_blank\">nearly doubled<\/a> in 2015, the\u00a0Anti-Defamation League reports.\u00a0A total of\u00a090 incidents\u00a0were reported on 60 college campuses in 2015, compared with 47 incidents on 43 campuses in 2014. The ADL audit records a total of 941 anti-Semitic incidents in the United States in 2015, an increase of 3 percent over the previous year.<\/p>\n<p><strong>July 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Pope Francis <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/07\/29\/news-opinion\/world\/pope-pays-silent-but-important-visit-to-auschwitz\" target=\"_blank\">visits\u00a0Auschwitz<\/a>, where he prays in silent contemplation and meets with Holocaust survivors. Francis also visits the cell of Polish priest and saint Maximilian Kolbe, who died at Auschwitz after taking the place of a condemned man. Francis is the third pope to visit the camp, following the Polish-born John Paul II in 1979 and Pope Benedict XVI in 2006.<\/p>\n<p>Debbie Wasserman Schultz <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/07\/24\/news-opinion\/politics\/under-pressure-after-emails-leak-wasserman-schultz-to-quit-as-party-head\" target=\"_blank\">steps down<\/a> as leader of the Democratic National Committee following the emergence of emails showing senior DNC staffers sought to undercut the campaign of Jewish presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders. One email, from Chief Financial Officer Brad Marshall, alleges that\u00a0Sanders is an atheist and that it could be used against him. Marshall <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/02\/news-opinion\/politics\/3-dnc-staffers-in-leaked-bernie-exchange-resign\" target=\"_blank\">resigns<\/a> in August.<\/p>\n<p>Bernie Sanders, the first Jew to win a major party presidential primary, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/07\/12\/news-opinion\/politics\/bernie-sanders-endorses-hillary-clinton-donald-trump-blasts-bernie-for-selling-out\" target=\"_blank\">endorses<\/a> Hillary Clinton for president. At a rally in New Hampshire, Sanders said he would work with Clinton\u00a0to keep Donald Trump from being elected.<\/p>\n<p>Goldie Michelson of Worcester, Massachusetts, the oldest living American, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/07\/10\/news-opinion\/united-states\/oldest-american-goldie-michelson-dies-at-113-a-month-away-from-birthday\" target=\"_blank\">dies<\/a> at home at the age of 113 and 11 months.\u00a0Michelson, the daughter of Russian Jewish parents,<a href=\"http:\/\/www.telegram.com\/article\/20120518\/townnews\/120519467\" target=\"_blank\"> immigrated with her family<\/a> to Worcester when she was 2.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_32326\" style=\"width: 295px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Jared-Kushner1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32326\" class=\"wp-image-32326 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Jared-Kushner1-285x300.jpg\" alt=\"&lt;&gt; at Trump National Golf Club Westchester on September 21, 2015 in Briarcliff Manor City.\" width=\"285\" height=\"300\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Jared-Kushner1-285x300.jpg 285w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Jared-Kushner1-974x1024.jpg 974w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 285px) 100vw, 285px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 285px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 285\/300;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32326\" class=\"wp-image-32326 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Jared-Kushner1-285x300.jpg\" alt=\"&lt;&gt; at Trump National Golf Club Westchester on September 21, 2015 in Briarcliff Manor City.\" width=\"285\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Jared-Kushner1-285x300.jpg 285w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/Jared-Kushner1-974x1024.jpg 974w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 285px) 100vw, 285px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-32326\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jared Kushner and his wife, Ivanka Trump, at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.Y., Sept. 21, 2015. (Bobby Bank\/Wire Image\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Jared Kushner <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/07\/06\/news-opinion\/politics\/kushner-responds-to-open-letter-trump-is-not-an-anti-semite\" target=\"_blank\">defends<\/a>\u00a0his father-in-law, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, from charges of anti-Semitism following the elder Trump&#8217;s tweeting of an image\u00a0of Hillary Clinton with a six-pointed star reminiscent of a Star of David over a background of dollar bills. The tweet is later deleted.\u00a0&#8220;I know that Donald does not at all subscribe to any racist or anti-Semitic thinking,&#8221; Kushner said.<\/p>\n<p>Elie Wiesel, the\u00a0Nobel Peace Prize laureate, author, activist and Holocaust survivor, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/07\/02\/news-opinion\/world\/nobel-peace-prize-laureate-elie-wiesel-died\" target=\"_blank\">dies at 87<\/a> of natural causes. Wiesel, who wrote &#8220;Night&#8221; and &#8220;The Jews of Silence,&#8221; was well-known internationally for his books and as a leading voice of conscience.<\/p>\n<p>Israel&#8217;s highest rabbinical court rejects\u00a0a conversion performed by a prominent American rabbi, Haskel Lookstein. The conversion had been rejected originally in April by a court in the Tel Aviv suburb of Petach Tikvah. Lookstein, the former rabbi of Kehilath Jeshurun, a tony modern Orthodox synagogue on Manhattan\u2019s Upper East Side, performed the conversion of Ivanka Trump, the daughter of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p><strong>August 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Esther Jungreis,\u00a0a pioneer in the Jewish outreach movement and founder of the organization Hineni, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/23\/news-opinion\/united-states\/esther-jungreis-orthodox-jewish-outreach-pioneer-dies\" target=\"_blank\">dies at 80<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_32327\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/aly-raisman.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32327\" class=\"wp-image-32327 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/aly-raisman-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - AUGUST 11:  Silver medalist Alexandra Raisman of the United States poses for photographs after the medal ceremony for the Women's Individual All Around on Day 6 of the 2016 Rio Olympics at Rio Olympic Arena on August 11, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  (Photo by Elsa\/Getty Images)\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/aly-raisman-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/aly-raisman-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/200;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32327\" class=\"wp-image-32327 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/aly-raisman-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - AUGUST 11:  Silver medalist Alexandra Raisman of the United States poses for photographs after the medal ceremony for the Women's Individual All Around on Day 6 of the 2016 Rio Olympics at Rio Olympic Arena on August 11, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  (Photo by Elsa\/Getty Images)\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/aly-raisman-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/aly-raisman-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-32327\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aly Raisman posing after winning a silver medal in the women&#8217;s individual all-around competition at the Rio Olympics, Aug. 11, 2016. (Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>American gymnast Aly\u00a0Raisman <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/16\/arts-entertainment\/aly-raisman-wins-third-medal-at-rio-olympics\" target=\"_blank\">wins three medals<\/a> at the Rio\u00a0Olympics, a gold for the overall U.S. women&#8217;s team and two individual silvers. Israel takes home <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/14\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/israels-second-medal-in-rio-comes-again-from-judo\" target=\"_blank\">two medals<\/a> at the games, both bronze in judo, while American Jewish swimmer <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/15\/arts-entertainment\/jewish-swimmer-anthony-ervin-becomes-oldest-individual-swimming-gold-medalist\" target=\"_blank\">Anthony Ervin<\/a> at 35 becomes the oldest person to win a gold medal in an\u00a0individual swimming event. The Rio games also <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/15\/news-opinion\/world\/rio-pays-tribute-to-11-israeli-victims-of-72-munich-olympic-massacre\" target=\"_blank\">pay tribute<\/a> to the 11 Israelis killed at the Munich Olympics in 1972.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/15\/arts-entertainment\/fyvush-finkel-veteran-actor-with-roots-in-yiddish-theater-dies-at-93\" target=\"_blank\">Fyvush Finkel<\/a>, an Emmy Award-winning actor who began his career performing in the Yiddish theater, dies\u00a0at 93.<\/p>\n<p>The Movement for Black Lives <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/03\/default\/black-lives-matter-platform-says-israel-an-apartheid-state-committing-genocide\" target=\"_blank\">adopts<\/a> a platform\u00a0describing Israel\u00a0as an \u201capartheid state\u201d and claims it\u00a0perpetrates \u201cgenocide\u201d against the Palestinian people. The group, a coalition of 50 organizations that emerged from the Black Lives Matter movement, is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/04\/news-opinion\/united-states\/rabbis-human-rights-group-criticizes-black-lives-matter-for-israel-genocide-accusation\" target=\"_blank\">harshly criticized <\/a>by Jewish organizations.<\/p>\n<p>Gene Wilder, a comedic actor who played the title characters in the films &#8220;Young Frankenstein&#8221; and &#8220;Willy Wonka &amp; the Chocolate Factory,&#8221; and also starred in the Mel Brooks&#8217; Western spoof &#8220;Blazing Saddles,&#8221; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/08\/29\/arts-entertainment\/gene-wilder-comic-actor-who-played-willy-wonka-dies-at-83\" target=\"_blank\">dies<\/a> at 83.<\/p>\n<p><strong>September 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_32217\" style=\"width: 160px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Shimon_Peres_edit.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32217\" class=\"wp-image-32217 size-thumbnail lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Shimon_Peres_edit-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Shimon_Peres_edit\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Shimon_Peres_edit-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Shimon_Peres_edit-350x350.jpg 350w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 150px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 150\/150;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-32217\" class=\"wp-image-32217 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Shimon_Peres_edit-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Shimon_Peres_edit\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Shimon_Peres_edit-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Shimon_Peres_edit-350x350.jpg 350w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-32217\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Israel&#8217;s Shimon Peres. (Photo by Alan Smason)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Former Israeli President Shimon Peres, 93,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/09\/13\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/shimon-peres-suffers-stroke-stable-and-fully-conscious\" target=\"_blank\">suffers<\/a>\u00a0a massive stroke, prompting celebrities and politicians from all over the world to\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/09\/14\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/bill-clinton-amare-stoudemire-and-many-more-wish-shimon-peres-well-after-stroke\" target=\"_blank\">offer<\/a>\u00a0well wishes. A week later, Peres is\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/09\/21\/news-opinion\/israel-middle-east\/shimon-peres-condition-remains-unchanged-a-week-after-stroke\" target=\"_blank\">said<\/a>\u00a0to be in serious but stable condition.<\/p>\n<p>In New York\u00a0for the U.N. General Assembly,\u00a0Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/09\/26\/news-opinion\/politics\/clinton-and-trump-meeting-with-netanyahu-share-commitment-to-us-israel-alliance\" target=\"_blank\">meets<\/a>\u00a0with Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Both presidential candidates pledge\u00a0close defense cooperation with Israel, but Clinton lauds\u00a0the Jewish state\u00a0for serving as a model for pluralism, while\u00a0Trump praises\u00a0its erection of a separation wall from the Palestinians.<\/p>\n<p>An Orthodox group, the Rabbinical Council of America,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jta.org\/2016\/09\/23\/news-opinion\/united-states\/orthodox-rabbis-group-mandates-prenup-to-prevent-chained-wives\" target=\"_blank\">mandates<\/a>\u00a0that its member rabbis require couples\u00a0to sign a prenuptial agreement ensuring that husbands will not withhold\u00a0a &#8220;get,&#8221; or Jewish writ of divorce, from their wives.<\/p>\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:20px; padding-top:10px;\" class=\"hupso-share-buttons\"><!-- Hupso Share Buttons - https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/ --><a class=\"hupso_toolbar\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\"\/><\/noscript><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\">var hupso_services_t=new Array(\"Twitter\",\"Facebook\",\"Google Plus\",\"Pinterest\",\"Linkedin\",\"Tumblr\",\"Email\");var hupso_background_t=\"#EAF4FF\";var hupso_border_t=\"#66CCFF\";var hupso_toolbar_size_t=\"medium\";var hupso_image_folder_url = \"\";var hupso_url_t=\"\";var hupso_title_t=\"5776%3A%20The%20year%20in%20review\";<\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/js\/share_toolbar.js\"><\/script><!-- Hupso Share Buttons --><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":32323,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,641],"tags":[8105,8790,8795,8788],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32212"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32212"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32212\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32332,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32212\/revisions\/32332"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32323"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}