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A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

A nonprofit, independent news source to inform, inspire, educate and connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

St. Louis Jewish Light

Israel News

Then Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee speaks during a press conference at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Jerusalem, August 19, 2015.

Trump nominates Huckabee to be next ambassador to Israel

JNS StaffPublished November 12, 2024

President-elect Donald Trump announced that the “great public servant, governor, and leader in faith for many years” and “highly respected” Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, will be the U.S. ambassador to Israel during the next administration. Huckabee...

LEKET ISRAEL volunteers pick produce for the needy.
(photo credit: COURTESY LEKET ISRAEL)

A food insecurity crisis is deepening in Israel: How a St. Louis connection is making a difference

By Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished November 1, 2024

Food insecurity affects millions of people worldwide. It is especially significant in Israel, where relief often comes from Leket Israel, the national food bank. Translated from Hebrew, leket means “gleanings.” The concept of sharing a portion...

Tal Schneider

“Where was the military?” Israeli journalist answers St. Louisans’ questions about Oct. 7

Bill Motchan, Special to the Jewish LightPublished October 22, 2024

Tal Schneider is an Israeli mom with a son and daughter serving in the Israel Defense Forces. She also happens to be a noted journalist, the political and diplomatic correspondent for the Times of Israel. On Oct. 17, Schneider shared her perspective on...

Israeli security forces at the scene where a drone fired from Lebanon caused damage in Caesarea, Oct. 19, 2024.

Assassination attempt on Netanyahu—Israel vows massive retaliation!

JNS Staff ReportPublished October 20, 2024

New Hope Party leader Gideon Sa’ar said on Sunday that the state of Lebanon should be held responsible for the Hezbollah drone attack on the Caesarea residence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday. “From the territory of a U.N....

Why discussing Israel has become challenging for some St. Louisans

Why discussing Israel has become challenging for some St. Louisans

Shula Neuman, Special To The Jewish LightPublished September 25, 2024

Here’s a recipe for strife: Start with a population that suffers from two millennia of discrimination and violence. Add a big dash of land that many in this population feel represents their homeland, and then mix in a healthy dose of a politically...

Ami Dadaon competes in the men's 100-meter freestyle S4 heat at the Paris 2024 Summer Paralympic Games, Aug. 30, 2024, in Nanterre, France. (Adam Pretty/Getty Images)

Ami Dadaon wins Israel’s second Paralympics gold medal after setting new record in 100m freestyle

Jacob Gurvis, JTAPublished August 30, 2024

(JTA) — Israeli swimmer Ami Dadaon won a gold medal Friday in the men’s 100-meter freestyle S4, his third career Paralympic gold medal and Israel’s second in as many days in Paris. Dadaon, 23, finished the race with a time of 1:20.25, finishing...

Asaf Yasur celebrates victory against Ali Can Ozcan of Turkey in the men's K44 - 58-kilogram gold medal contest at the 2024 Paris Summer Paralympic Games, Aug. 29, 2024, in Paris. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Asaf Yasur wins gold in taekwondo, Israel’s first Paris Paralympics medal

Jacob Gurvis, JTAPublished August 30, 2024

(JTA) — Israeli Asaf Yasur won a gold medal Thursday in taekwondo, Israel’s first medal at the Paris Paralympics. Yasur defeated Turkish opponent Ali Can Ozcan by a score of 19-12 in the gold medal match for the 58-kilogram weight class in the...

Or Garti takes a selfie with her campers at Camp Ben Frankel.

An ‘American Dream’: How 18 Israeli kids spent their summer at Camp Ben Frankel

BY MOLLY LEVINE, JEWISH LIGHT INTERNPublished July 24, 2024

MAKANDA, Ill. – For the past month, 18 Israeli children have explored the ins and outs of something foreign to them: Jewish sleepaway summer camp.  “I was nervous but more happy because I [knew] that I was going to meet tons of friends,” said...

Netanyahu meets with hostage families in DC as pressure mounts for a deal

Philissa Cramer, JTAPublished July 23, 2024

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Washington, D.C. with families of Israeli hostages, one of his first stops on a highly anticipated trip to the United States and a sign of how much focus is being placed on talks over a hostage release...

Stella Levy, shown in 1970, commanded the IDF Women’s Corps for six years. Photo by Fritz Cohen, Israeli National Photo Collection, CC BY-SA 3.0

This week in Israeli history: July 18-24

CENTER FOR ISRAEL EDUCATION, ISRAELED.ORGPublished July 18, 2024

July 18, 1290 — England Expels Its Jews King Edward I orders the expulsion of the Jews from England, where they had settled in significant numbers only in the 11th century. Despite gaining legal protections early in the 12th century, Jews suffer massacres...

Israeli and Palestinian Jerusalem Youth Chorus advances on ‘America’s Got Talent’ with performance of ‘Home’

Israeli and Palestinian Jerusalem Youth Chorus advances on ‘America’s Got Talent’ with performance of ‘Home’

PHILISSA CRAMER, JTAPublished July 17, 2024

(JTA) — A chorus of Israeli and Palestinian teens won hearts, applause and a chance at $1 million with a successful “America’s Got Talent” audition that aired on Tuesday night. The Jerusalem Youth Chorus performed Phillip Phillips’ “Home,”...

Yitzhak Yifat (center) and other Israeli paratroopers reach the Western Wall in Jerusalem, June 7, 1967. Photo by David Rubinger/GPO.

Paratrooper at center of iconic Six-Day War photo dead at 81

David Issac, JNSPublished July 7, 2024

The central figure in an iconic 1967 photograph of three paratroopers at the liberated Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem died on Saturday. Yitzhak Yifat was 81. Yifat, 24 at the time the photo was taken, can be seen in the center of the...

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