National News

Unlucky Arafat

03/26/1999 | James Besser | Washington Correspondent

Unlucky Arafat

Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat came to town this week seeking Washington’s blessing for Palestinian statehood in return for postponing a unilateral declaration on May 4, when the interim Oslo period expires. Despite the fears of some Jewish leaders, he didn’t get it.

Berenson Case Garners Attention

03/19/1999 | by Eric J. Greenberg | Staff Writer

The first time Rabbi Ronnie Greenwald visited Lori Berenson in her bare and frigid prison cell on a Peruvian mountaintop, he brought her a dozen New York bagels.
In his latest visit to the 29-year-old New York woman, serving a life sentence for treason for terrorist acts, Rabbi Greenwald brought her a book on Jewish thought.
He believes that shows progress, both in Berenson’s attitude, and her circumstances.
The details of Rabbi Greenwald’s trip emerge as Berenson’s case has gained support and publicity.

A Lesson In Giving

03/18/1999 | by Stewart Ain | Staff Writer

It was while Judith Stern Peck was thinking of a birthday gift for her first grandchild that she came upon an idea that promises to give her and her granddaughter enjoyment for years to come. “This child didn’t need another dress or another toy,” said Peck. “And I think it is very important to teach the value of giving back. That’s when I came up with the idea of creating a Children’s Gift Fund.”

No change in Israel aid policy

03/12/1999 | James Besser | Washington Correspondent

No Change In Aid Policy?

Israeli newspapers were in an uproar this week over reports that the Clinton administration is blocking Israel’s chunk of a big supplementary aid package now before Congress, while pushing the Palestinian appropriation. Not so, say numerous sources in Washington. The Israeli and Palestinian aid is still on the table, and there is almost no likelihood they will be split.

Proposed No-Building Zone Near Camps Stirs Protests

03/12/1999 | by Stewart Ain | Staff Writer

Despite a demonstration by hundreds of protesters, the Polish government Tuesday supported a proposal to establish a 100-yard no-development zone around nine former Nazi death camps, thereby thwarting plans to open a mini-mall adjacent to Auschwitz.

Israel Rapped On Sheinbein

03/05/1999 | James Besser | Washington Correspondent

The lead prosecutor in the strange case of Samuel Sheinbein — the man who would have prosecuted the Maryland teenager had he not fled to Israel after a horrific 1997 murder in an affluent Washington suburb — expressed frustration this week with what he termed a series of blunders by Israeli courts.
Maryland States Attorney Douglas Gansler, who is Jewish, also exhibited concern about the impact of the case on Israel’s image in this country. Gansler spent several weeks on a kibbutz as a teenager, and said his concern is both professional and personal.