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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

War In Israel

Joaquin Phoenix (left) and Ilana Glazer. (Getty Images)

Joaquin Phoenix, Ilana Glazer and hundreds of Jewish celebrities and rabbis ‘say no to ethnic cleansing’ in Gaza in full-page NYT ad

Ben Sales, JTAPublished February 13, 2025

Dozens of Jewish celebrities and artists, as well as hundreds of rabbis, took out a full-page ad in The New York Times Thursday to object to ethnic cleansing in Gaza. The ad is a response to President Donald Trump’s calls to permanently relocate...

Israelis protest for the release of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip, outside the prime minister's official residence in Jerusalem, Sept. 1, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Hamas says ceasefire deal is still on as negotiations continue

Ben Sales, JTAPublished February 13, 2025

Hamas said that it will release three more Israeli hostages on Saturday, a sign that the ceasefire in Gaza may hold despite a crisis earlier this week. Israel has not confirmed that its dispute with Hamas was resolved. But negotiations are ongoing,...

Bassem Eid

What’s next for Gaza? Palestinian political analyst to share insights at B’nai Amoona

Jordan Palmer, Chief Digital Content OfficerPublished February 12, 2025

As the conflict in Gaza continues to shape headlines and political discourse, Congregation B’nai Amoona is providing a space for critical discussion on the region’s future. The event, titled “What’s Next for Gaza,” will take place on Feb. 27...

Actions and images from Betar US and its allies since its formation in 2024 include (from top-left, clockwise): a button associated with the original Beitar group; messages on a truck driven outside Washington, D.C., during a visit by Benjamin Netanyahu; a masked Betar member planning to disrupt a pro-Palestinian protest; a brass-knuckle menorah shared on Betar social media; Betar former executive director Ross Glick knocking on Rep. Rashida Tlaib's office in Capitol Hill; Betar member Jakob Schanzer spraying over a pro-Palestinian mural in New Orleans; and singer Matisyahu endorsing Betar.

A century-old Zionist group is being rebooted — and wants Jews to ‘fight back’ on the street

Andrew Lapin, JTAPublished February 11, 2025

(JTA) — The video appeared on Instagram in October. A man, in the dark of night, is spray-painting over a mural in New Orleans depicting a large pair of eyes with the Palestinian flag incorporated into their pupils, paired with text reading “All Eyes...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress on July 24, 2024.

Netanyahu: ‘If Hamas does not return our hostages by Saturday noon, the ceasefire will end’

Ben Sales, JTAPublished February 11, 2025

Netanyahu threatens Hamas ceasefire, warning that if hostages are not released by Saturday at noon, Israel will resume fighting in Gaza. The statement adds more uncertainty to the three-week-long ceasefire, as tensions escalate over hostage negotiations. “If...

Israelis rally in Tel Aviv for the release of the remaining 76 hostages being held hostage by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, Feb. 8, 2025.

‘Hell’ to break out if Hamas won’t release all hostages on Feb. 15, warns Trump

Jonathan D. Salant, JNSPublished February 10, 2025

U.S. President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that “all hell is going to break out” if Hamas did not release the remaining hostages by Saturday. “As far as I’m concerned, if all of the hostages aren’t returned by Saturday at 12 o’clock—I...

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speaks to the media in Berlin, Aug. 16, 2022.

Mahmoud Abbas ends Palestinian Authority’s payments to families of terrorists

Published February 10, 2025

The Palestinian Authority will no longer pay stipends to the families of convicted terrorists and other prisoners, in a gesture to President Donald Trump. | RELATED: Hamas says that it will delay next hostage release The longstanding program determined...

Hamas delays release of hostages, alleging Israeli violations

Hamas delays release of hostages, alleging Israeli violations

JNS StaffPublished February 10, 2025

Hamas said it will delay an Israeli hostage release scheduled for Feb. 15 until further notice due to Israel’s alleged violations of the ceasefire agreement, a spokesman for the terror group stated. Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas’s Al-Qassam Brigades, posted...

Palestinians walk along destroyed houses at the Shaboura area in the center of Rafah, days into the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, Jan 24, 2025.

Hamas says that it will delay next hostage release

By Ben Sales, JTAPublished February 10, 2025

Hamas announced that it will delay its next release of Israeli hostages, claiming that Israel has violated the ceasefire agreement. The announcement came two days after the last hostage release sparked outrage in Israel and beyond, as the three released...

Steve Witkoff, businessman and developer, speaks during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum.

Witkoff: Gaza unfit to live in, Trump seeks long-term solutions

JNS StaffPublished February 5, 2025

U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday backed U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to relocate Palestinians from Gaza, arguing that a better life is not necessarily tied to a given piece of land. In an interview with Fox News, Witkoff emphasized...

May 16, 2023; Washington, DC, USA; Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., questions Samuel Altman, CEO, OpenAI, testifying before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law hearing on Artificial Intelligence in Washington. Mandatory Credit: Jack Gruber-USA TODAY

Josh Hawley and pro-Israel Dem group comment on Trump’s proposed Gaza plan

JNS StaffPublished February 5, 2025

U.S. President Donald Trump’s remarks on Tuesday evening that the United States “will take over the Gaza Strip” are “cruel, immoral and impractical,” Mark Mellman, the president and CEO of Democratic Majority for Israel, stated on Wednesday. “One...

US President Donald Trump listens to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speak during a press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, Feb. 4, 2025.

US Jewish groups respond to Trump’s Gaza comments

Philissa Cramer, JTAPublished February 5, 2025

(JTA) — Reactions from partisan American Jewish groups to President Donald Trump’s proposals for Gaza — that “all” Palestinians leave and the United States “take over” the territory — began flowing in just as soon as their leaders picked...

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