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U.S. Won’t Participate in Durban III, State Dept. Says

06/02/2011

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- The United States will not participate in Durban III, this September, the State Department said.

In a letter to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Joseph E. Macmanus, acting assistant secretary for legislative affairs, confirmed the United States would not attend the conference, which in its previous iterations has been a forum for anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiment.

Israel Considers Options on Palestinian Statehood Bid

06/02/2011 | Linda Gradstein | JTA

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- While U.S. officials are running a full-court diplomatic press against the Palestinian bid for U.N. recognition of statehood this September and officials at international Jewish organizations are trying to convince foreign leaders to oppose statehood, the Israeli government appears to be taking a different approach: acceptance.

On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a Knesset committee that there is no way to stop the U.N. General Assembly from recognizing Palestinian statehood.

Rabbi Files Lawsuit Against D.C. Elections Board

05/31/2011

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- An Orthodox rabbi in Washington and two of his congregants have filed a class-action suit against the District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics.

The complaint, filed May 27, claims that the board placed an unconstitutional burden on observant Jews by scheduling a special election on the last day of Passover this year.

Battle Over Circumcision is Shaping Up in California

05/31/2011 | Sue Fishkoff | JTA

SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) -- In November, San Franciscans will vote on a ballot measure that would outlaw circumcision on boys under the age of 18.

Although experts say it is highly unlikely the measure will pass -- very few state propositions pass, much less one this controversial -- the mere fact that it reached the ballot, and in such a major city, has caused much concern for Jews and their allies.

Fischer Does Not Rule Out IMF Job

05/31/2011

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer did not rule out accepting the position of managing director of the International Monetary Fund should he win the election.

Fischer made the remarks Tuesday during an address at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev as part of its 41st Annual Board of Governors meeting.

"All of the press has been very nice to read compared to what is usually in the Israeli press, but, when I was job hunting at MIT, the professors there taught: 'Don't accept a nomination you haven't been offered yet,'" he said.

Olmert Takes Stand in Corruption Trial

05/31/2011

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert began testifying on his own behalf at his trial on corruption charges.

Olmert told judges in Jerusalem District Court Tuesday on the first day of the defense phase of the trial that "I am fighting for my life here and nothing else."

He spent most of the session telling his life story, though the judges tried to cut him off.