M E N O R A H

Torah portion this Sabbath: Abraham's purchase of the Machpelah Cave (Tomb of the Patriarchs)

2009-11-13T11:52:34-06:00

This Sabbath, Jews will read the Torah portion “Chayei Sarah,” which describes the biblical patriarch Abraham's purchase of the Machpelah Cave (Tomb of the Patriarchs) following the death of his beloved wife Sarah. The holy site, in Hevron, is now a thriving site of Torah study and prayer that draws visitors from around the world.

Many thousands of visitors began arriving in Hevron and the nearby city of Kiryat Arba on Friday, and plan to spend the Sabbath in the area in honor of Abraham's purchase, which according to Jewish tradition forged an eternal connection to the city of Hevron. More

Your patriotic president?

2009-11-13T05:16:08-06:00

Menorah

Israel Poll: Religious and Secular Right Continue to Gain Support

2009-11-13T04:56:10-06:00

(IsraelNN.com) A survey conducted by the Dialog polling institute on behalf of Haaretz revealed this week that support for the political right has continued to grow since the election of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

Sixty-five of the Knesset's 120 seats are currently held by politicians considered to be on the right of the political spectrum. If elections were held today, that number would rise to 72, pollsters found. More

PA Elections to be Postponed, Abbas to Remain in Power

2009-11-12T12:12:47-06:00

Abbas (Arafat in a suit) knew this would happen. He never intended for elections to be held. He will remain PA Chairman for years.

(IsraelNN.com) The chairman of the Palestinian Authority central elections committee has officially informed PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas that elections cannot be held for a new chairman and legislature on January 24, as scheduled, possibly giving him an escape route from an impulsive decision to abandon his post as PA chairman. More

Why did a top Israeli intelligence officer join the KGB?

2009-11-12T04:48:49-06:00

"The nightmare of every intelligence organization is to find an enemy agent at the heart of its own intelligence community, inside the working environment of the highest-ranking decision-makers in the country," the Shin Bet site says. "Such an agent has access to extremely sensitive information, including strategic plans, to which he is liable to cause damage. The affair of Shimon Levinson - a retired army intelligence colonel, a former member of the Shin Bet and the Mossad, and a chief of security in the Prime Minister's Office - was a case of this nightmare coming true." More

Lou Dobbs Quits CNN

2009-11-11T19:44:04-06:00

This will be my last broadcast here on CNN, where I’ve worked for most of the past 30 years, and where I have many friends and colleagues whom I admire deeply and respect greatly.

I’m the last of the original anchors here on CNN and I’m proud to have had the privilege to helping to build the world’s first news network. More

Arab-Affairs Expert: ‘Syria Wants Water, Not Peace'

2009-11-11T10:39:56-06:00

(IsraelNN.com) “The Syrians want us to sign a peace agreement with them so that they can draw Sea of Galilee (Kinneret) water from us,” Sharon told Arutz-7’s Hebrew newsmagazine. “They don’t want peace; they want water.”

“We need not take seriously [Syrian President Bashar] Assad’s threats to ‘resume resistance’ in the Golan,” Sharon said. “He wants to sound good for Hamas, Hizbullah and Fatah. It doesn’t mean all-out war, but just terrorist attacks in what they call the ‘occupied territories,’ and in this way to take back the Golan.” More

The New Iran Man at the State Department's Iran Desk

2009-11-11T10:34:52-06:00

John Limbert is not a neutral arbiter; he serves on the advisory board of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC).

What is the National Iranian American Council?

The Council is widely considered the de facto lobby for the Iranian regime in America. It opposes sanctions on Iran, soft-pedals any controversial events in Iran, and counsels "patience" regarding Iran's stance towards its nuclear program. The NIAC has been at the forefront of lobbying against continued congressional funding of the Voice of America Persia service, Radio Farad, and grants for Iranian civil society. To top it off, the NIAC has reportedly received funding from anti-Israel advocate George Soros, who at the very least was an honored guest and speaker at one of its symposiums. (He called for a more equitable Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and advocated for America to renounce regime-change as a goal). More

US officials: We punished Netanyahu with media blackout

2009-11-11T05:05:34-06:00

Senior US diplomatic sources have confirmed that the media blackout and shroud of secrecy surrounding Monday's meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama was the result of strained relations between the two leaders.

Speaking to Israel's Army Radio on Wednesday morning, one unnamed US diplomat said the Obama Administration had become unhappy with what is viewed as Netanyahu's efforts to manipulate its policies during press briefings, and imposed the media blackout on Monday's meeting as a means of bringing the Israeli leader back in line. More

State Dept: US Goal to Expel Jews in 'Occupied' Post-67 Lands

2009-11-11T04:56:44-06:00

(IsraelNN.com) A top State Department official spelled out on Tuesday that the goal of the United States in its negotiations in the Middle East is to pressure Israel into expelling Jews from Judea and Samaria in order to "end the occupation that began in 1967."

William J. Burns, Under Secretary for Political Affairs, said in his address to the Middle East Institute Tuesday that he sees the U.S.mandate as one of "determined leadership" and that American must be straightforward about its intentions. More