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Daily Briefing

Monday, February 13, 2012 Donate Now | Share This Email

FEATURED STORY After New Delhi attack, fears that Iran-Israel attacks could escalate If Iran manages to kill Israelis in an attack overseas, it could invite an escalated response from Israel. Read more » EDITORS' PICKS Threats on Egyptian aid have implications for Israel Some members of Congress are threatening to cut off aid to Egypt after the country filed charges against several American pro-democracy activists. If it happens, it could undermine U.S. influence in the region and the stability of Egypt's peace treaty with Israel, JTA's Ron Kampeas reports. Sarkozy pitches the Jews With elections just weeks away and polls showing him trailing his opponents, Nicolas Sarkozy sought to solidify support from French Jews. Devorah Lauter reports for JTA. Stop reacting to BDS In a JTA Op-Ed, The David Project's David Bernstein writes that the intense Jewish reaction to the BDS movement, exemplified by the recent fracas at the University of Pennsylvania, does a great service to Israel's opponents. Avoiding war with Iran, and justifying it (Weekly Standard, Wall Street Journal) James Kirchick argues that those worried about a possible strike on Iran should be celebrating the covert campaign to eliminate the country's nuclear scientists, while Alan Dershowitz argues for the legal justification for a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. The recovery rabbi (New York Times) Shais Taub is a Chabad rabbi who has become a nationally recognized leader in efforts to wean people from substance abuse. Obama and Iran (Newsweek) In a lengthy treatment, Newsweek explores the evolution of the Obama administration's posture toward Iran. Another trial for Shylock (New York Times) Stephen Marche takes aim at the hypocrisy of those who would deny Israel's Habima Theater from performing "The Merchant of Venice" in Hebrew in London this spring. Oprah in the Chasidic bedroom (OWN) Part one of Oprah's much-hyped visit to a Chasidic home in Brooklyn aired last night. In this clip, a Chabad couple invite her into their bedroom and explain why they have separate beds. Was Alan Gross a spy? (Associated Press) An Associated Press investigation finds that Alan Gross, the Jewish American imprisoned in Cuba, was helping the U.S. government break an information blockade by providing covert Internet access. When Syrians attack (State Department) The U.S. State Department has released declassified satellite images showing Syrian troop movements in the embattled city of Homs. Crisis of Zionism (International Herald Tribune) Roger Cohen approvingly cites Peter Beinart's new book, which argues that Israel doesn't have a public relations problem but a policy problem. BREAKING NEWS Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed Iran for a terrorist attack and an attempted attack on Israeli Embassy employees in India and Georgia. Jewish groups on both sides of a contraceptives controversy praised President Obama's compromise allowing religious institutions to direct staff to alternative health care plans funding such services. Non-Muslims were barred from visiting the Temple Mount following Muslim agitation over inflammatory flyers. Israeli airstrikes hit four targets in Gaza in response to rocket fire from the coastal strip that injured an Israeli woman. An Obama administration official said the United States urged Israel not to free Palestinian terrorists in the Gilad Shalit exchange deal who killed Americans. A community in Maryland has suspended negotiations over a sister-city agreement with Beit Shemesh following violence in the Israeli city against women by haredi Orthodox residents. Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles Radonski, the grandson of Holocaust survivors, will challenge President Hugo Chavez in upcoming elections. Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said in Iran that armed resistance is the only way to fight against Israel. Hackers threatened to remove all traces of Israel from the Internet on the same day that they crashed the CIA's website. A federal judge in Nevada has ordered the state's Department of Corrections to refrain from serving a new menu to inmates who keep kosher. Polish Jewish groups are opposing their government's decision to change Polish law for the restitution of confiscated Jewish property. A conference in South Africa brought together young Jewish innovators from across the country. Residents of Migron say they have reached an agreement with the Israeli government on relocating the illegal West Bank outpost. A Knesset committee unanimously approved a bill that would levy severe punishment on consumers of sexual services in Israel. A Maryland high school that came under fire for asking a student to prove he wore a head covering for religious reasons has changed its policy. Washington's state Senate approved a bill that would allow families to prevent autopsies for religious reasons. Israel's largest labor federation ended its general strike after five days.