Jesse Orine -

Lost Holocaust music, nearly erased by Stalin, goes on tour in Asia

July 17, 2026July 17, 2026Jesse Orine

In the midst of the Holocaust, a child sang a song about his mother’s death in the Bershad ghetto, a pocket of current-day Ukraine that was occupied by Romania and Nazi Germany. In the song, the child watches strangers come and pray for his mother, and other strangers carry her away to be buried, but […]

Colombia and Slovenia recently recognized a Palestinian state. Now they’re moving their embassies to Jerusalem.

July 17, 2026July 17, 2026Jesse Orine

JERUSALEM — Colombia, the world’s second most populous Spanish-speaking nation after Mexico, has little in common with landlocked Slovenia, the second-smallest of the six republics that once comprised Yugoslavia. But when it comes to their stance on Israel, the parallels are hard to ignore. Within one month of each other, leftist, pro-Palestine governments in both […]

Inside America’s first prison synagogue, a new exhibit tells the story of Jewish inmates who built it

July 16, 2026July 16, 2026Jesse Orine

Behind the imposing stone walls of Eastern State Penitentiary — the Philadelphia prison that once held Al Capone — sits a small, unlikely sanctuary: a synagogue built by inmates, for inmates, nearly a century ago. Now, a new exhibition is telling its story. Eastern State Penitentiary, in Philadelphia’s Fairmount neighborhood, was an active prison from […]

Michael Solomonov’s restaurant group says anti-Israel boycott did not cause closure of 6 locations

July 14, 2026July 14, 2026Jesse Orine

CookNSolo, the Philadelphia restaurant group co-founded by the Israeli-American celebrity chef Michael Solomonov, announced this week that it would close six locations across two of its fast-casual chains. In an interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, owner Steve Cook blamed the closures on inflation, declining lunch traffic and an oversaturated market for fast-casual dining. But pro-Palestinian […]

Five countries over four days: How Cuba’s Maccabiah Games delegation made it to Israel

July 14, 2026July 14, 2026Jesse Orine

Nearly three decades after Hella Eskenazi’s first trip from her home in Cuba to the Maccabiah Games in Israel, the journey hasn’t gotten much easier. This time, she was joined by dozens of athletes who had to travel through five countries over more than four days to reach Israel — a consequence of both the turmoil […]

UK lawmakers press government on why West Bank imports haven’t yet been banned

July 14, 2026July 14, 2026Jesse Orine

British lawmakers from across the political spectrum are pressing the government to ban imports from Israeli settlements in the West Bank, saying that explanations for why such a ban has not yet been imposed were inadequate. During a three-hour House of Commons debate on Thursday, lawmakers argued that Britain’s long-standing position that the settlements are […]

EU seeks to advance trade ban on Israeli settlements

July 14, 2026July 14, 2026Jesse Orine

The European Union could be leaning toward banning trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Foreign ministers debated various tactics to respond to the settlements on Monday at their monthly council meeting in Brussels, against the backdrop of rising violence by settlers and efforts by the Israeli government to expand settlements in Palestinian territories. […]

Church of England backs study of Palestinian Christian document accusing Israel of genocide

July 13, 2026July 13, 2026Jesse Orine

The Church of England’s legislative body voted Monday to encourage churches across England to engage with a document produced by Palestinian Christians that accuses Israel of genocide despite requests from Jewish organizations and Britain’s chief rabbi to reject it. The document is titled “Moment of Truth: Faith in a Time of Genocide” and is also […]

Clavicular cuts a path across Tel Aviv, dividing pro-Israel influencers over his record of antisemitism

July 12, 2026July 12, 2026Jesse Orine

TEL AVIV — When Israeli influencer Aaron Morali realized that the celebrity drawing a crowd at the Loullie beach club on Saturday night was Braden Peters — better known as Clavicular — he alerted staff. He knew that in addition to being a prominent “looksmaxxing” influencer, Peters had appeared alongside the white supremacist Nick Fuentes […]

UK Jewish groups express concern as the likely next PM criticizes Israel over Gaza

July 10, 2026July 10, 2026Jesse Orine

Andy Burnham, who is on track to become Britain’s next prime minister following Keir Starmer’s resignation last month, apologized for his party’s handling of the aftermath of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas mass killings in Israel, saying that it should have done more to push for a ceasefire and called for exerting greater pressure on […]