Best wishes for 2025 …

Dry Bones

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Macquarie University probes academic’s extremist anti-Israel comments

Macquarie University has launched an investigation into Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah, a sociology academic, following a series of incendiary social media posts that have prompted widespread condemnation and made students feel unsafe. Read more

Antisemitic graffiti attack on home of former president of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies

When Lesli Berger, a former president of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, returned recently from a family vacation, he was horrified to find antisemitic graffiti defacing the back wall of his property in Sydney’s Bellevue Hill. Read more

Israel gives Houthis ‘final warning’ to stop attacks

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations has issued what he called a final warning to Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants to halt their missile attacks on Israel, saying they risked the same “miserable fate” as Hamas, Hezbollah and Syria’s Bashar al-Assad if they persisted. Read more

Israel uninvited

Israeli lawn bowlers have been uninvited to participate in next month’s World Indoor Championships in England. Read more

Chanukah without Omri

Omri is not just my husband; he is a devoted father, a talented 47-year-old shiatzu therapist, and a piece of our nation’s heart…writes Lishay Miran-Lavi. Read more

Jimmy Carter: A Jewish Tragedy

Among many other time-tested attributes, the Jewish people have a long memory. Read more

Archaeologists discover largest Hasmonean coin hoard in Israel

An archaeological find has brought new light to the Hasmonean era, with researchers discovering a hoard of 160 coins over 1,900 years old during Chanukah, the University of Haifa announced. Read more

Israel blasts UN chief for comments on Yemen strikes

Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Friday lambasted U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres for his criticism of IDF’s retaliatory airstrikes against Yemen’s Houthi terrorists. Read more

Former President Jimmy Carter, peace advocate, humanitarian and Israel critic, dead at 100

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter died “peacefully” at his home in Plains, Ga., surrounded by family on Sunday at the age of 100, the Carter Centre announced. Read more

Jimmy Carter’s personal virtue didn’t ensure a virtuous or successful presidency

The stock of historical figures rises and falls with the changing times that follow them. Read more

Netanyahu in ‘good condition’ after surgery to remove prostate

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underwent successful surgery on Sunday night to remove his prostate, according to a statement from his office. Read more

Alex First names the best of Melbourne theatre in 2024 but a Sydney production tops the list

The world of creative theatre is one of many hues. As a Melbourne-based reviewer, naturally I see most productions in that city. Read more

Alex First names his best movies of 2024

Top of the list is Zone of Interest. Read more

Feintooner

This week’s cartoon:  Poles put out  Jewish welcome mat at Auschwitz memorial Read more

Eradicating Jew-hatred at United Nations is long overdue

Ongoing attempts at the United Nations (UN) to denigrate, delegitimise and isolate Israel continue to give the UN the dishonour of being designated the epicentre of the worlds current Jew-hatred. Read more

Syria’s Jewish community: $10 billion lost to persecution and confiscation, report says

A new report detailing the financial losses of Jewish refugees from Syria estimates that the community lost $10 billion, driven out of the country by state-sponsored discrimination and persecution. Read more

Israeli hostages branded, sexually assaulted and starved

Israel’s Health Ministry finalized a report detailing severe physical and psychological abuse suffered by hostages in Gaza, including children, who were released during a November 2023 temporary ceasefire. The report — the first comprehensive account of hostages’ experiences — will be submitted to the United Nations. Read more

A changing of the guard at the Triguboff Institute

As he approaches his 90th birthday, Efraim Halevy will retire as chairperson of the Triguboff Institute in Israel. Read more

“The 2,000 Kidnapped Spanish Jewish Children”

A film dedicated to the families of October 7 hostages Read more

A real Chanukah gift? The release of the hostages

My younger brother Evyatar turns 24 on Dec. 28. His Hebrew birthday falls on the eighth night of Chanukah, the second of Tevet. I should be planning his celebration…writes Ilay David. Read more

Dry Bones

2025

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Netanyahu trial delayed for medical procedure, Justice Minister acting Prime Minister

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s lawyers requested that this week’s testimony at his corruption trial be cancelled due to a medical procedure he is due to undergo on Sunday to remove an enlarged prostate. Read more

On the other hand

You know that it is that time of the year when sufganiyot (donuts) appear in the shops and chanukiyot (menorot) are erected on streets. Read more

Gaza hostage deal ‘very, very close,’ White House says

The Biden administration believes that a ceasefire agreement in Gaza is “very, very close,” despite a recent impasse in negotiations due to Hamas stalling tactics, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said on Friday. Read more

IDF detains hundreds of terrorists at Hamas hospital base

Security forces apprehended more than 240 terrorists in a targeted operation against a Hamas command centre in Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, the Israel Defence Forces and the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) said in a joint statement on Saturday. Read more

International Holocaust Survivors Night

The 8th annual International Holocaust Survivors Night (IHSN) will be held globally – and virtually – on the fifth night of Chanukah, Sunday, December 29, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. in New York. Read more

‘Military base disguised as a village’: IDF uncovers Hezbollah’s hidden arsenal amid fragile ceasefire

As the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah holds, the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) keep uncovering a significant cache of weapons hidden within civilian infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Read more

INTO THE FRAY: Gaza—A sense of Déjà vu

All the current “mainstream” proposals for the “Day After” in Gaza represent the triumph of misguided hope—or at least, misconceived correctness—over bitter experience. Read more

Sydney’s Giant Menorah

For yet another year. Chabad Youth NSW’s Rabbi Elimelech Levy lit the iconic Giant Menorah in Martin Place, celebrating Chanukah in the City of 2024. Read more

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