Posts in Israel
Is The Michigan Campaign To Protest Biden’s Gaza Policy At The Polls Gaining Steam?

In a new poll, less than a third of Michigan voters said they supported a continuation in the fighting to eliminate Hamas in the ongoing war with Israel. How that will impact President Joe Biden’s chances in the Great Lake State remains to be seen.

Read More
The Curious Case Of Javier Milei’s Catholic Faith And Love Of Judaism

It was quite a week for Javier Milei. Not only did he visit Israel in a show of support; the recently-elected Argentine president then flew to Vatican City, where he made peace with Pope Francis. While Milei is a Catholic, he hasn’t been shy about criticizing the pontiff in the past while also flirting with the idea of converting to Judaism.

Read More
A Different Campus Story: Jewish-Palestinian Cooperation

The Jewish and Palestinian American pair are the force behind Atidna, a student organization of Jews and Palestinians that began at the university’s Austin campus two years ago. Initially, it focussed on similarities between Jewish and Palestinian culture, Kahlenberg said on a call shared with Hashem, stressing “that Jews and Arabs are cousins in one family and we’re not inherent enemies.”

Read More
Amid Ongoing War In Gaza, Palestinians Find Joy In Their Soccer Team

Palestinians celebrated the country’s national team after qualifying for the knockout stage at the AFC Asian Cup. The historic win, a 3-0 victory against Hong Kong to close out the group stage, allowed Palestine to reach the round of 16 for the first time in the tournament’s 68-year history.  It also brought some comfort amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

Read More
Death Toll Nears 25,000 As Israel-Hamas War Marks 100 days

In the face of the vast human suffering, staggering damage to infrastructure and environmental catastrophe caused by the conflict — which marks its 100th day on Sunday — another controversial post-war scenario is for Israel to rebuild some of the post-1967 Gaza Strip settlements from which it unilaterally withdrew in 2005.

Read More
St. Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church Struck In Deadly Gaza Attack

A blast went off at a building located on the campus of St. Porphyrius Greek Orthodox Church in Gaza City, a place where scores of Palestinians had been sheltering from Israeli air strikes. Some 500 Muslims and Christians had been staying on the church grounds following the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israeli civilians.

Read More
Gaza Hospital Bombing Highlights ‘Blood Libel’ And Other Antisemitic Tropes

The heated discourse about the deadly rocket explosion at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza is rooted in the centuries-old religious hatred underlying the current war in Gaza. Immediately after the blast, journalists accepted Hamas’ account blaming the Israel Defense Forces for the deadly attack.

Read More
Should Hamas Members Be Called ‘Terrorists’ Or ‘Fighters’?

(ANALYSIS) Many in the media continue to get this story wrong. For many, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is treated like a political story. It was a story about land. It was about colonization. It was about human rights. It may be about all those things, depending on whom you ask, but it’s also a story about Jews, Muslims and sacred sites in the Holy Lands. In other words, it’s a religion story.

Read More
Christian Leaders Call For ‘End To Cycle Of Violence’ Between Jews and Muslims

As Israeli forces mount a ground invasion of Gaza following last week’s Hamas attack on thousands of civilians, Christians across the Holy Land called for both sides to “de-escalate this war” and end this “new cycle of violence.” Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant leaders said the violence following Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 8 that killed 1,300 Israelis should come to an end.

Read More
‘Miracle We Got Out Alive’: Jews Recall Horror of Hamas Attacks

A week after the attacks and the number of dead Israelis has topped 1,300, making it the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. In response, Israel has been bombing Hamas targets and directed the evacuation of northern Gaza, a region that is home to 1.1 million people, in anticipation of a possible ground assault.

Read More
Islamic World Divided Over Hamas Massacres

Less than a week after Hamas attacked Israel, there is a debate in the Arab world as to whether the war crimes carried out by the terror group — including raping girls and abducting elderly women — should be condemned by practicing Muslims.

Read More
Africa’s Religious Leaders Take Sides In Israel-Hamas War

Over the past few days, the Israeli war against Hamas has dominated conversations. Although this debate is going on practically everywhere in the world, for Kenyans it is a bit more personal since the country has been the target of militant Islamists. In addition, the East African nation was once proposed as a possible settlement for the then-stateless Jews.

Read More
Gaza City’s Greek Orthodox Church Left Undamaged By Israeli Bombs

While tensions over Jewish and Muslim holy sites remain a contentious part of the war, Christians who live and work throughout the the Holy Land are also under attack. Amid all the destruction has been some positive news. Contrary to reports, Gaza City’s Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius, built in the 12th century, was not destroyed in the bombings.

Read More
How the Israeli-Palestinian conflict Escalated Into A Full-Blown War

(EXPLAINER) Two days after Hamas launched an unprecedented attack against Israel, fighting across the country and in Gaza continued. Some 900 Israelis have been killed since Saturday and more than 2,600 others have been wounded. How Israelis and Palestinians got here has been years in the making.

Read More
Hamas Assault On Israel Echoes 1973 Yom Kippur War: A Shock Attack With Lots Of Questions

(ANALYSIS) The parallels were striking — and surely not coincidental. Exactly 50 years and a day after being taken completely off guard by a coordinated military attack by its neighbors — Egypt and Syria — Israel was again caught by surprise.

Read More
Israel Under Attack: Day Of Rejoicing Turns to Horror  

(OPINION) Heartbreak. Shock. Agony. Devastation. Confusion. Rage. These are just a few of the emotions flooding the hearts of millions of Israelis in the midst of an unprecedented terrorist attack by Hamas. This is a time to stop and pray for the merciful intervention of God.

Read More
First Swimming Pool Opens in the Old City Of Jerusalem With an Interfaith Splash

After four years of excavation, archaeological preservation, extensive engineering work and construction — and just in time for the sweltering heat wave now baking Jerusalem — an indoor swimming pool was inaugurated July 3 at the Terra Sancta School in the Old City’s Christian Quarter.

Read More
Bethlehem Icon Centre Keeps Alive An Ancient Artistic Tradition

Tourists and pilgrims despairing about finding a genuine souvenir of their visit to the Holy Land that wasn’t mass-manufactured in China, India, Turkey or Egypt might wish to consider visiting the Bethlehem Icon Centre — perhaps the only school in the Middle East that teaches the ancient Christian tradition of iconography.

Read More
Should Israel Outlaw The Antiquities Trade?

JERUSALEM — Israel’s central — and arguably shameful — role in the global antiquities business was the subject of a Zoom lecture on May 2 sponsored by the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem and the Palestine Exploration Fund headquartered in London.

Read More