Britannia Radio

Daily Briefing

Monday, November 28, 2011

FEATURED STORY Israelis seeking alternatives to traditional wedding ceremonies Israeli couples increasingly are seeking to create weddings that are more reflective of their own lifestyles. But because Israel has no civil marriage, this puts many couples on a collision course with the Orthodox-controlled Rabbinate.Read more » EDITORS' PICKS Gimme shelter (New York Times) Ronald Lauder, the president of the World Jewish Congress, has used aggressive strategies to shelter his family's billions from the tax man, The New York Times reports. Standing with Israel (Forward) The Forward profiles a Los Angeles pro-Israel group that in the space of a decade has grown into a major force in advocacy circles. Israel's other occupation ... (New York Times) Veteran journalist Gershom Gorenberg writes that some Israeli settlers are adapting their tactics to Israel proper by establishing a Jewish presence in Arab-Israeli communities. ... and what it says about liberal Zionists (Commentary) Jonathan Tobin writes that left-wing Israel's discomfort with bolstering the Jewish presence even within the pre-1967 borders betrays a fundamental opposition to the essence of the Zionist project. Survival at Auschwitz (Los Angeles Times) What enabled 49 non-Jewish French women to survive the horrors of Auschwitz? Their commitment to a cause -- communism -- and their mutual support and friendship, Caroline Moorehead writes. Chuppahs for goyim (Washington Post) Chuppahs and ketubahs aren't just for Jewish nuptials anymore. A growing number of non-Jewish couples are embracing these ancient traditions. BREAKING NEWS Longtime U.S. Rep. Barney Frank will not run again for his Massachusetts seat in 2012. Thousands of emissaries from the Chabad-Lubavitch movement gathered for their annual banquet in Brooklyn. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a Knesset committee that he could release frozen Palestinian Authority funds soon. The Muslim Brotherhood held an anti-Israel rally in a Cairo mosque that reportedly called to "one day kill all Jews." Israeli President Shimon Peres met in Amman with Jordan's King Abdullah, the President's Office confirmed. A swastika was etched inside an elevator in a Brooklyn building for the second time in recent days. Germany will double its funding to the Central Council of Jews in Germany to about $13 million. Alice Herz-Sommer, the oldest known survivor of the Holocaust, celebrated her 108th birthday. The first mainstream Jewish rabbinical seminary in Canada held its official launching. Anti-Semitic incidents in Australia have risen more than 30 percent in the past year, according to a new report, with more than half the incidents hate e-mails. John Key, the son of a Jewish refugee who escaped Austria on the eve of the Holocaust, was re-elected prime minister of New Zealand. Israel has postponed the demolition of an access ramp to the Temple Mount following concerns expressed by Egypt and Jordan. Egypt's gas pipeline to Israel was blown up for the ninth time in less than a year. An Israel-themed book was chosen as one of Russia's top books of the year for the first time in an annual book conference's history. Iran critics are calling on a German foundation to cut ties with board of trustees member Mostafa Dolatya, Iran's acting vice minister, who has called for Israel's destruction. For the first time, some survivors of Nazi-era ghettos are eligible for a one-time payment from the so-called "ghetto fund" in addition to the pensions they receive from the German government.