Jcn 0215

Why Federation?

THE ANSWER IS SIMPLE.

JEWISH FEDERATION OF the desert 69-710 Highway 111 Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 (760) 324-4737

Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage Paid Permit #113 Santa Ana, CA

We help people. We strive to help every Jew, every day, in every way.

WE DELIVER INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO REAL PROBLEMS. With a network of partners and agencies, we can harness expertise across a range of disciplines in order to feed, clothe, comfort and inspire, educate and connect people to their Jewish identity.

OUR TRACK RECORD IS UNPARALLELED. We have a legacy of trust, investing in our community and raising and distributing accountability, and integrity.

WE’RE A ONE-STOP SHOP. With every gift, we address so many of the causes and issues that are important to our community.

Federation is the only place where you can care for Jews at home and around the world, and focus on urgent needs of today while building for the future.

Through your contribution to our annual campaign, you enhance Jewish life.

You enable us to respond to crises close to home and around the globe. Together our impact stretches from the Coachella Valley to Israel and 70 countries around the world.

DONATE. VOLUNTEER. MAKE A DIFFERENCE TODAY. OF PALM SPRINGS & DESERT AREA

On the cover....

Why Federation?

CElia Norian

THE ANSWER IS SIMPLE. We help people. We strive to help every Jew, every day, in every way.

WE DELIVER INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO REAL PROBLEMS. With a network of partners and agencies, we can harness expertise across a range of disciplines in order to feed, clothe, comfort and inspire, educate and connect people to their Jewish identity.

OUR TRACK RECORD IS UNPARALLELED. We have a legacy of trust, investing in our community and raising and distributing accountability, and integrity.

WE’RE A ONE-STOP SHOP. With every gift, we address so many of the causes and issues that are important to our community.

Federation is the only place where you can care for Jews at home and around the world, and focus on urgent needs of today while building for the future.

Through your contribution to our annual campaign, you enhance Jewish life.

You enable us to respond to crises close to home and around the globe. Together our impact stretches from the Coachella Valley to Israel and 70 countries around the world.

DONATE. VOLUNTEER. MAKE A DIFFERENCE TODAY. OF PALM SPRINGS & DESERT AREA

jewish federation BOARD OF DIRECTORS Celia Norian, Chairman of the Board Sondi Green, Co-chair, Campaign Libby Hoffman, Co-chair, Campaign Vernon Kozlen, Treasurer Bernard Reiter, Secretary Howard Levy, Immediate Past President Roberta Nyman, Immediate Past President

Chairman of the Board

000As I begin to write this article, the world has just witnessed another terror attack on innocent people. AntiSemitism is on the rise internationally.

Radical Islam is showing its ugly side all over the world. It’s not such a nice world out there. Do these acts make an impact on you? Are you affected as Jews across the ocean are murdered just because they are Jewish? Who comes to the aid of those victims’ families? Who is there to assure that the community is still secure and protected, as best as possible, from future incidents?

Board Joseph Bernstein William Chunowitz Elliott Cohen Nancy Ditlove Ellen Glass Phil Glass Marjorie Kulp Ron Langus

Allan Lehmann Allan Nyman Dr. Paul Ross Stephanie Ross Elisa Schwartz Sandy Seplow Andrew Teitel Lainie Weil

Bruce Landgarten, Chief Executive Officer

Table of Contents Vol. 40 • No. 7

Community Calendar 18, 19 Federation 2, 3, 12, 28 Israel Mission 6 Legacy 27 Women’s Philanthropy 4 Jewish Family Service 17 Schools 24 Simchas & Classifieds 26-27 Temples Listing 18 Tolerance Education Center 9, 13 Tributes 13 2 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

The Jewish Federation – and our partner Federations around North America, united under the umbrella of the Jewish Federations of North America - is there. We stood in solidarity with the masses at the demonstration in Paris. We were the first to ask the Jewish community “how can we help?” We sent a security representative (who just happened to be at a conference in Europe) to Paris to aid with evaluation and implementation of increased security so that the community will feel safe.

Jewish Federations are working with ADL and other organizations to combat the wave of anti-Semitism that is growing around the world. Our Jewish Federation has partnered with ADL's World of Difference Institute to offer assembly programs on antibullying to local school students. We

are the first to alert our agencies to be vigilant in times of increased terror activities. We support Hillel and its challenges on local college campuses against the rampant anti-Semitism.

How are you helping in these areas?

With your participation in the annual campaign of the Jewish Federation you are making sure that Jews around the world feel safe. You are there with JAFI (Jewish Agency for Israel) to assist those who want to make aliyah to Israel. You are there with Hillel on the campus of UC Riverside to stand in solidarity with the students to face the everyday issues of anti-Semitism on campus.

You can be a part of making the world a better place for the Jewish people. Make your contribution to Federation today.

From the Annual Campaign to National Community Engagement From the CEO Bruce Landgarten Jewish Federation Chief Executive Officer

000In most communities throughout North America, Federations hold the unique position of being the central umbrella organization of the local Jewish community. At the same time, many in the Federation system - as well as outside of it - talk of Federation as being primarily a fundraising organization and the annual campaign as being the highest priority. Being

the communal leader, advocate and facilitator is a tremendous organizational and political asset that many in the system fail to build upon, and failing to appreciate that significance means opportunities are lost. Our ultimate goal needs to be the building and sustaining of community, with fundraising the means to that end.

With community as its main theme, I would like to see our Federation system, and JFNA (Jewish Federations of North America) at its center, as the central platform for debate around such critical existential questions: • How do we ensure Jewish continuity for many generations to come?

• How do we conduct our commitment to Israel while recognizing that

younger Jews have less historical attachment?

• How can we make living a Jewish life more affordable and money not a barrier?

• What can we contribute to wider American society to make this country a more equitable, tolerant and supportive society?

• How can we, with our massive resources, leverage our funding and those of others to solving some of our major Jewish problem areas?

I believe that our Federation system, along with its fundraising role, could focus on its community building role, and would have a far wider reach and greater relevance.

I see the unique strength and assets of the Federation system. A

few decades ago, the system led the battle in supporting Israel after its independence, then during and after its many wars. The system led the battle to free Soviet Jewry. The reality is that the system comes together at times of crisis and, sadly, crises will continue to arise.

However, I believe the Federation system will need to refashion itself in order to rally American Jewry moving forward to a stronger Jewish future.

By focusing more on community it can become a more meaningful system. And by mobilizing additional resources and partners, whether other Jewish organizations or major philanthropists and foundations, it can make the Jewish world a much better place……a work in progress.

Angel View to Honor Jewish Federation at its Annual Luncheon Special Donor Appreciation Award Being Given to Tamarisk Country Club

By Miriam H. Bent, JCN

The Jewish Federation of the Desert is the 2015 “Angel of the Year” honoree of Angel View at its 61st Annual Benefit Luncheon, being held Monday, February 16th at the Agua Caliente Casino Ballroom in Rancho Mirage, with a special Donor Appreciation Award going to Tamarisk Country Club. Jewish Federation Chief Executive Officer Bruce Landgarten is representing the Jewish Federation in accepting this prestigious award.

Angel View has been dedicated to helping physically challenged young people since the early 1950s.

Starting with a 52-bed facility in Desert Hot Springs, Angel View began care services with a focus on children stricken with polio, taking advantage of the area’s natural hot mineral springs for hydrotherapy treatment. When that disease was eradicated with the discovery and application of the Salk vaccine, the Angel View Board embraced treating children and young adults with a wide variety of orthopedic

disabilities, often coupled with mental challenges. Today, Angel View treats children and younger adults from all over the country offering specialized care services for a full spectrum of orthopedic and neuromuscular disorders.

The Jewish Federation’s relationship with Angel View goes back almost 30 years.

From the beginning it has served as a liaison between Angel View and families from New York who turned to Angel View to care for their severely handicapped c h i l d r e n . N e w Yo r k e r Nuchem Friedman was a father struggling with his city’s bureaucracy to establish a Jewish religious care environment for his disabled son. Learning o f A n g e l V i e w ’s program, he saw the facility as a practical and compassionate solution for his son and underwrote the building of “Joel’s House” for Jewish children with disabilities. It was Angel View’s first small setting facility.

Later, the Friedman House, another six-person home, was built for Jewish residents.

Today, Angel View provides Ko s h e r f o o d a n d r e l i g i o u s observances for those children and young adults desiring to live in a Jewish environment. Overseen

by Rabbi Yonason Denebeim of Chabad of Palm Springs and Desert Communities, Rabbi Yankel Kreiman of Bikur Cholim visits regularly to make sure that Shabbat, holidays and a Jewish environment are observed and well-maintained.

Angel View receives funding annually from the Jewish Federation of the Desert, and has been one of the special projects underwritten by the Tamarisk Country Club’s annual fundraiser on behalf of the Jewish Federation. Almost $37,000 has been allocated to Angel View in the 2014-2015 budget.

Luncheon couvert is $85 per person. Persons interested in attending are invited to call Cynthia Buckner at 760-406-1016 or go online to www.angelview.org.

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 3

Women's Philanthropy Roar, Lions, Roar!

by Tina Friedman, Director Women's Philanthropy

You may have noticed many women in our community wearing their Lion pins. It is a visible demonstration of their passion for and commitment to strengthening Jewish identity and Jewish community. Women who give the minimum Lion giving level proudly wear our pins as an outward symbol of what is truly in their hearts. But being a Lion is more than just about the jewelry. Lions come from all walks of life and represent a broad demographic. What they have in common is the thread that runs through everything they do: Kol Yisrael Arevim Zeh L'Zeh – all Jews are responsible for each other.

Lions’ combined energy, compassion, commitment and financial strength give them a powerful voice to improve the world in which they live.

Susan Good, who is this year’s Lion of Judah Luncheon Co-chair, together with Barbara Weisberg, puts it well: “I feel pride in being part of the pride!”

She adds, “Together we can do so

Barbara and me for what is sure to be a powerful event.”

All women who make a financial commitment of Susan Good Barbara Weisberg Dr. Bernd at least $5,000 Wollschlaeger to the Jewish Federation of the much more.”

Being a Lion is also about friendship Desert’s Annual Campaign or at least and camaraderie. Locally here in our $1,100 to the Jewish Federation of the desert and nationally with Jewish Desert while giving at the Lion level to Federations of North America, her home community, is eligible to be programs are offered exclusively a Lion and invited to attend our annual for Lions each year. On February Lion event.

27, 2015, our annual Lion of Judah Women are invited to join Susan and Luncheon will take place at The Barbara and over 180 women of the Marriott Desert Springs Resort and Desert as proud members of the ‘pride’ Spa, featuring special guest speaker, and become a Lion of Judah. Call our Dr. Bernd Wollschlaeger, author of new Women’s Philanthropy Director, “A German Life. Against All Odds Tina Friedman for more information Change is Possible.” According to about becoming a Lion.

Susan Good, “His personal story about Lions should contact Women’s converting to Judaism and immigrating Philanthropy Administrative Assistant to Israel, after learning the truth about Linn Menne now to register for the his father’s Nazi history, is moving February 27th Lion of Judah luncheon, and inspiring. I invite you to join 760-324-4737.

JEWISH COMMUNITY NEWS A Publication of the Jewish Federation of the Desert VOL. 40, No. 7

EDITORIAL Bruce Landgarten, Chief Executive Officer Miriam H. Bent, Editor Bailey & Co., Layout & Design JCN STATEMENT The Jewish Community News seeks to provide news and feature material of special interest to its readership, and to create a heightened sense of Jewish identity through the dissemination of information about people, events and issues at home and abroad. The JCN seeks to serve as a forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions in the Jewish community.

The JCN is published monthly, ten months a year by the Jewish Federation of the Desert, 69-710 Highway 111, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270, 760-324-4737, fax 760-324-3154.

Articles & Advertising, Miriam H. Bent, Editor 760-323-0255 e-mail-mhbentjcn@earthlink.net ADVERTISING The JCN does not endorse the goods or services advertised in its pages and makes no representation as to the kashrut of food products and services in such advertising.

The publisher shall not be liable for damages if, for any reason whatsoever, it fails to publish an advertisement or for any error in an advertisement. Acceptance of advertisers and of advertising copy is subject to the publisher’s approval.

The JCN is not responsible if ads violate applicable laws and the advertiser will indemnify, hold harmless and defend the JCN from all claims made by government agencies and consumers for any reason based on ads carried in the JCN.

4 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

Hero from Kosher Supermarket Terror Attack Granted French Citizenship

By Gal Cohen, Arutz Sheva

Lassana Bathily, who saved Jews during the terror attack targeting the kosher supermarket in Paris received French citizenship January 20th from France’s Prime Minister Manuel Valls.

The young man, 24, who is a citizen of Mali, saved five customers at the supermarket by showing them the door to the refrigeration room, where the terrorist would not see them. After hours of anxiety, they were released unharmed and rushed to tell about the Muslim worker from Africa who

Lassana Bathily and French Interior Minister Bernard Cassanova

saved their lives.

“I am very proud and excited.

I want to thank those who always trusted me and supported me,” he said. “I think about my parents, my family in France and in Mali, and in the whole world. I also want to thank my friends.” In addition to receiving his citizenship, he received a medal of honor for his actions and a personal letter from French President Francois Hollande.

Interior Minister Bernard Cassanova said: “You said that when you were a boy, you dreamed of being a French

citizen and you requested citizenship last July. Today that dream came true, a little quicker than expected. The nation loves and welcomes you, and welcomes citizens like you, who express the desire to embrace French values.”

Bathily arrived in France from Mali in 2006 and received a work visa after five years, before now receiving citizenship.

Georgia Plans Solar Field to be Built by Israel’s Energiya

By David Shamah, The Times of Israel

The southeast of the United States is set to get a taste of Israeli-style solar energy technology with the construction of a 17.68 megawatt solar project in Georgia. It’s the first utility scale solar project in the southeastern U.S.. The project will be built by the U.S. affiliate of Israeli solar company Energiya, and will be funded by Energiya Global Capital, an international solar development firm headed by solar energy pioneer Yosef Abramowitz. The project is worth $30 million, Energiya Global Capital said.

The project, called Project Glynn, will be built on 79 acres in Glynn County, Georgia. The field will be built and ready to deliver electricity by December 31, 2015. In addition to building the solar field, Energiya USA is also creating a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) initiative program in conjunction with its partners for the local Glynn County school system.

The program will include after-school enrichment programs with an emphasis on renewable energy.

Abramowitz has worked for years to promote the use of solar energy in Israel and around the world. Along with partners David Rosenblatt and Ed Hofland, he established Israel’s largest solar field to generate electricity in Kibbutz Ketura, and was the first to sign a deal with the Israeli government for commercial production of solargenerated electricity.

More recently, Abramowitz has set his sights on Africa, hoping to electrify far-flung villages where power cables are unlikely to ever reach. He established, along with partners David Rosenblatt and Howie Rodenstein, a new company called Energiya Global Capital to help develop projects in Rwanda and other African countries, along with partner Chaim Motzen.

The company’s first project, an 8.5 megawatt solar field in Rwanda, has been completed, and a ribbon-cutting is set for later this month.

“Georgia Power is pleased to work with Energiya Global, and its U.S. affiliate, Energiya USA, as part of the Advanced Solar Initiative,” said Norrie McKenzie, vice president of Renewable Development, at the Georgia Power Company. “With a shared commitment to innovative, clean energy solutions, our customers will benefit from this partnership today and in the future.”

Besides being a “green” project, the new field is another example that showcases a flourishing AmericanIsraeli business and technology

partnership, said Opher Aviran, Consul General of Israel to the Southeast. “At a time when there is volatility in the world’s oil producing regions, Israel is proud to be on the forefront of the renewable energy revolution. The Consulate General of Israel to the Southeast is proud to be able to bring great partners like Energiya Global and Georgia Power together. This solar deal is a significant milestone in the longstanding, close relationship between Israel and the Southeast U.S..”

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 5

$500K Allocated to Fortify Synagogues Against Rocket Fire

by Tova Dvorin, Arutz Sheva

Deputy Religious Affairs Minister Rabbi Eli Ben Dahan (Jewish Home) has transferred 2 million shekels ($507,895) to synagogues in southern Israel and Gaza Belt communities in order to shield religious buildings in the region from incoming rocket fire.

While touring the front-line communities, Ben Dahan criticized the negligence of his predecessors in fortifying religious buildings. His findings on the ground prompted the change, after he presented his findings

to the government.

Ben Dayan stated that "the lack of religious services in a time of emergency is unacceptable, and I have decided to correct the injustice that had been imposed on worshipers because of the connivance of Shas."

Shas controlled the Religious Services Ministry until Jewish Home Chairman Naftali Bennett became Minister of Religious Affairs in 2013.

The process of shielding religious buildings is to occur in cities, local councils, and regional councils,

including Petah Tikva, Kiryat Gat, Sderot, Sdot Negev regional council, Hof Ashkelon regional council and Beer Tuvia regional council. This process will end the struggle for safe religious services during a national state of emergency, and follows at least one rocket attack which directly struck a synagogue in Ashdod in August 2014 during Operation Protective Edge in Gaza.

Following the war, several programs were undertaken to strengthen communities in the hardest-hit areas,

including the Gaza Belt and the Eshkol region. One 1.3 Billion shekel ($328 million) program was instituted in August as part of a five-year plan to strengthen the communities economically. Another plan saw 13.5 million shekel ($3.4 million) allocated to build fortified public buildings - particularly educational and municipal centers - in those areas.

However, neither program covered synagogues and religious centers.

Life is Like a Box of Chocolates, But This One Has Cocaine Inside Cocaine hidden in chocolate sweets found at Ben Gurion Airport

By Ben Hartman, Israel News

A very expensive and highly illegal box of chocolates was recently seized by customs officials at Ben-Gurion International Airport, after it was found to contain 166 grams of cocaine. A single gram of cocaine can sell for 500 shekels or more in Israel, and can be cut with other materials to make a higher amount of powder, depending on the purity.

The chocolates’ luxurious cocaine filling was found by drug-sniffing dogs which zeroed in on the package, addressed to a man in Kfar Saba. Police officers dressed as couriers went to the man’s house and when he claimed the package, they arrested him. The man later told the investigators that he ordered the cocaine on the “Dark Net”, the online network popular for illegal activities, where IP addresses aren’t shared.

Last July, customs officials found a kilo of cocaine hidden inside a handicapped sign. The sign had been shipped from South America and was on its way to Mitzpe Ramon.

6 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

Former U.S. Negotiator: Stop Giving PA Free Rein

By Tova Dvorin, Arutz Sheva

The European Union (EU) and others in the international community need to stop enabling the Palestinian Arabs to make demands without making concessions, Dennis Ross, U.S. peace talks mediator from 1993 to 2001, stated in an Op/Ed in the New York Times Sunday, January 4, 2015.

Ross, who resigned from his post as Middle East adviser in 2011, relates that he met with a European official recently who praised the Palestinian Authority (PA)'s unilateral moves against Israel in international agencies and organizations, specifically the draft resolution PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas submitted to the United Nations (UN) Security Council last week.

But Ross countered that a true Palestinian state depends, in his words, on the global community "giving Palestinians a pass" - and noted that the PA has rejected three separate peace deals, in 2000, in 2008, and in 2014.

"Palestinian political culture is rooted in a narrative of injustice; its anticolonialist [sic] bent and its deep sense of grievance treats concessions to Israel as illegitimate," Ross explained.

"Compromise is portrayed as betrayal, and negotiations - which are by definition about mutual concessions - will inevitably force any Palestinian leader to challenge his people by making a politically costly decision."

"But going to the United Nations

typically about what Israel must do and what Palestinians should get."

"If saying yes is costly and doing nothing isn’t, why should we expect the Palestinians to change course?"

Ross urged European leaders to "raise the cost of saying 'no' or doing nothing at all" for the PA in future Dennis Ross negotiations - and, at the very least, does no such thing," he argued. "It puts to offer a "balanced" proposal for a pressure on Israel and requires nothing peace deal which included land of the Palestinians. Resolutions are swaps, but also allowing "security

arrangements that leave Israel able to defend itself by itself" and a resolution concretizing Israel's own character as a Jewish state.

Ross added that he believes that the PA would nonetheless reject such a proposal, and demanded that it bear consequences in terms of international support after so many failed attempts to bring peace.

To apply for Emergency Funds from the

TZEDAKAH FUND call the Jewish Federation 760-324-4737 JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 7

Congregation Beth Shalom Scholar-in-Residence Weekend February 13-15, 2015 Rabbi Dr. J.B. Sacks will be this year’s scholar-in-residence at Congregation Beth Shalom, February 13-15, 2015, made possible by a grant from Jewish Federation of the Desert. Rabbi Sacks is Co-Director of Jewish Life at New Community Jewish High School in Los Angeles and Spiritual Leader of Congregation Am HaYam, a Conservative synagogue in Ventura, California.

Rabbi Sacks received his Doctor of Ministry degree at the Claremont School of Theology; his Rabbinic Ordination and Master of Arts degree

from Jewish Theological Seminary; and undergraduate degrees from Ohio University, summa cum laude, and American Jewish University.

Rabbi Sacks will make three presentations over the course of the weekend, all at the synagogue located at 79733 Country Club Drive in Bermuda Dunes. An openly gay Conservative rabbi, Rabbi Sacks has

long been involved in promoting discussion of gender and sexual orientation, particularly in the Conservative movement. As a social justice advocate, he founded the AIDS Interfaith Network of New Jersey and participated in the establishment of the World AIDS Day commemoration at the Jewish Museum in New York City. His opening presentation: “My Odyssey as a Gay Conservative Rabbi,” will be delivered during Erev Shabbat Services, which begin at 7:45 p.m.

A native of Monroe, Michigan, Rabbi Sacks descends from seventeen generations of rabbis. A brilliant scholar, his talk during Shabbat morning services, “The Bible as a Human Rights Document,” will

include Biblical examples of Jewish tradition’s acceptance of people of color and all ethnicities and cultures; women; and gays and lesbians.

Services begin at 9:15 a.m.

On Sunday afternoon, following a brunch, Rabbi Sacks will discuss “Islam: What Every Jew Should Know,” teaching about the faith of Islam, from a theological perspective. The brunch begins at 12:30 p.m.

Friday and Saturday programs are free of charge and open to the entire community. The Sunday brunch program is also open to the community, with a charge of $22 per person. Reservations for the brunch program must be made by February 10th, by calling 760-200-3636.

Leading Publishing House Wipes Israel Off Its Map

by Ari Soffer, Ari Yashar, Arutz Sheva

One of the world's largest publishing houses is distributing school Atlases in Middle Eastern countries which totally erase any reference to the State of Israel, it has been revealed.

HarperCollins' subsidiary Collins Bartholomew, which specializes in maps, are selling "Collins Middle East Atlases" to English-speaking schools in the Gulf states which depict Jordan and Syria extending all the way to the Mediterranean Sea. Collins Bartholomew told The Tablet that the reason they wiped Israel off their maps was that including the Jewish state would be "unacceptable" to their customers in the Gulf states.

They added that the change to remove Israel was meant to incorporate "local preferences" - apparently the local preference that Israel not exist.

The Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales condemned HarperCollins for the move, with Bishop Declan Lang of the Conference's Department of International Affairs telling the paper "the publication of this atlas will confirm Israel’s belief that there exists a hostility towards their country 8 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

from parts of the Arab world." "It will not help to build up a spirit of trust leading to peaceful co-existence," added Lang.

Dr. Jane Clements, director of the Council of Christians and Jews, also spoke to The Tablet about the maps, saying they delegitimize Israel for the students who use them. "Maps can be a very powerful tool in terms of delegitimizing ‘the other’ and can lead to confusion rather than clarity. We would be keen to see relevant bodies ensure that all atlases anywhere reflect the official UN position on nations, boundaries and all political features," said Clements.

Saudi Arabian Airlines Flights to be Gender Segregated

Only first degree family members will be allowed to sit in mixed seating.

By Rachel Avraham, Jerusalem Online

Saudi Arabian Airlines has presented a policy that segregates men and women on their flights, implementing the conservative laws related to gender implemented within the Saudi Kingdom. Media outlets in the Persian Gulf noted that they allotted separate seats for men and women, permitting them to sit together only if they are immediate family members.

According to the reports, the men were sitting together with their wives, daughters, sons and parents, as well as brothers beside sisters. Everyone else was separated. The reason for the segregation is that there were complaints by the men that their wives, daughters and sisters were sitting next to strange men, who were not relatives.

“There is a solution to this problem,” the Airline’s Assistant Manager Abdul

Rahman Al Fahd told the Saudi Daily.

“We shall soon enforce the laws to the satisfaction of all passengers.”

The Saudi airline, even before displaying these latest regulations, forbade alcoholic beverages on flights, refused to serve pig products, read verses of the Quran over the loudspeaker, and had a special area of the airplane designed for prayer, including an electric screen directing the worshippers towards Mecca.

While these regulations may appear strange to westerners, such a policy is considered common within Saudi Arabia, where women are forbidden from traveling or working outside the home without a man’s permission and women have separate entrances in public areas. Additionally, women are forbidden to drive and must wear a full head covering outside the home.

To apply for Emergency Funds from the

TZEDAKAH FUND Call the Jewish Federation 760-324-4737

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 9

Three Arabs Planned Terror Attack Disguised as Hareidim

by Tova Dvorin, Arutz Sheva

The Jerusalem District Court convicted three Arab residents of Jerusalem of conspiring to carry out a terror attack January 6th, after they were found to have planned an attack on a wedding hall in the Bayit Vegan neighborhood.

The three, named as Anas Awisat, Basel Abidat and Ahmed Sorour, were arrested in late December following a joint operation by the Israel Security Agency (ISA or Shin Bet) and the Israel police. According to Channel 10, the

three had been planning on dressing up as hareidi Jews before entering the hall, disguised as guests, and then shooting everyone inside.

Planning for the attack began last December, when two of the defendants decided to carry out the attack, and choose the Nof event hall in the neighborhood because Awisat worked there in the past and said that events there usually include over 1,000 people, allowing them to maim or kill a large number of Jewish

Israelis.

They became interested in the purchase of weapons and made contact with a Palestinian Arab arms dealer, who sold them two small machine guns and an Uzi for 50,000 dollars after they raised the necessary funds.

During the month of December 2014 the three traveled with their vehicle to the hall and looked at the building. They examined where the main entrance and where the staff

entrance were and what would be the most convenient way to enter the hall, eventually choosing the main entrance, but they were caught before they could carry out the attack.

The conviction highlights an upswing in attacks on Jewish Israelis recently by Arabs who work near major social venues, such as the Har Nof massacre - carried out by terrorists who worked at a nearby grocery and convenience store - and the attempted assassination of Yehuda Glick, which was carried out by a terrorist who worked at the event hall where he was shot.

IDF Breaks Record in Charitable Food Contributions

By Rachel Avraham, Jerusalem Online

In a project that began eight months ago, the IDF contributed food to charities that assist the less fortunate members of Israeli society.

Their charitable work is now gaining momentum. Today, about 100,000 meals were delivered to hungry Israeli families, which were brought to them by the NGO Leket Israel, whose goal is to expand the project. The IDF gathered 12,500 meals from 25 bases across the country.

10 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

Aliyah Figures at Highest in a Decade; France Leads the Way

by Arutz Sheva Staff

Year-end figures released by The Jewish Agency for Israel and Ministry of Aliyah and Immigrant Absorption show it has been a record year for Aliyah (immigration).

Around 26,500 new immigrants arrived in Israel in 2014 marking a 32% increase over last year and a ten-year high - all this despite Hamas's summer terror war against the Jewish state.

France led the list of countries of origin for the first time ever, with almost 7,000 new French immigrants, more than double the 3,400 who came last year. The sudden increase comes partially as a response to the skyrocketing of violent anti-Semitism in the country, and has led the Jewish Agency to advance programs encouraging and facilitating aliyah for French citizens.

While France may top the list, Ukraine saw the largest increase in immigrants, with numbers shooting up by 190% compared to last year and reaching 5,840. There too the increase is partially explainable by the ongoing instability and conflict in the country. However, the majority of immigrants came from stable, advanced nations.

Historic Shift "2014 was a year of recordbreaking Aliyah. This year also saw a historic shift: for the first time in Israel's history, the number of immigrants who came to Israel from the free world is greater than that of immigrants fleeing countries in distress," said Chairman of the Executive of The Jewish Agency Natan Sharansky.

Sharansky continued "this trend is evidence of Israel's attractiveness as a place where it's good to live, as well as of the success of our joint efforts to promote aliyah and strengthen connections between

Sofa Landver

Natan Sharansky

Jews around the world and the State of Israel. As we forecast further increases in aliyah from around the world, I very much hope the next government continues to join The Jewish Agency in maintaining aliyah encouragement and immigrant absorption as top priorities."

the United States remained strong reaching 3,470, an 8% increase from last year.

Over half of the immigrants in 2014 were under the age of 35, with 5,300 of them being children. The oldest immigrant made aliyah at the

age of 104 from France, while the youngest was a 20-day-old infant from the U.S..

Around 2,500 of the immigrants work in engineering and technological fields, and over 1,000 doctors and health professionals made aliyah, along with roughly 600 artists and athletes.

French aliyah - 10,000 next year?

Minister of Aliyah and Immigrant Absorption Sofa Landver (Yisrael Beytenu) joined in praising the figures, saying "this year we mark a ten-year record of aliyah and a 32% increase over last year in the number of Jews who reached the conclusion that they have no other country."

"I am excited to see the fruits of our many efforts to encourage aliyah, but we have not yet reached our goal. Our ministry continues to work together with all relevant parties to promote the ingathering of the exiles, a vision that has accompanied the people of Israel since the state's establishment," said Landver. “We expect that some 10,000 new immigrants will come from France alone next year, and we will surpass 30,000 immigrants from around the world – and even more," predicted the minister.

The year-end statistics revealed that aliyah from Western Europe, driven by the sharp rise from France, rose by 88% to a total of 8,640 immigrants. Aliyah from the former Soviet Union rose by 50%, reaching 11,430 with the notable increase from Ukraine. Likewise, aliyah from

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 11

UK Charity Loses Government Funding Over Alleged Links to Hamas, Brotherhood The Muslim Charities Forum has been stripped of £250,000

($380,000) funding by Britain’s Communities Secretary Eric Pickles

12 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

after its alleged links with extremist organizations were discovered.

The UK charity had been given the funds for running a major faith project, but when P i ck l e s wa s a dv i s e d o f i t s alleged involvement with Islamic extremism, including Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, initially uncovered by the Daily Telegraph, further government investigations followed. This triggered wider concerns and criticism of its links, including the use of extremist speakers around the UK. Pickles told the Sunday Telegraph he was determined to cut off funding to any group that is linked to “individuals who fuel hatred, division and violence.”

Established in 2007, the Muslim Charities Forum has acted as an umbrella group for Muslim aid organizations that operate in 71 countries, with a combined income of £108 million. It supports member groups by acting as a voice for the sector and by providing training, research and a central point of contact for other Muslim organizations.

Following the terrorist murder of British soldier Lee Rigby, killed in a frenzied stabbing attack in broad daylight in a South London street in May 2013, the MCF was awarded a contract to run a government scheme intended to foster integration among minority faiths, improve the treatment of women and reduce youth crime as part of the government’s response to that cold-blooded killing.

Pickles said that a Whitehall review of the MCF found that besides a record of poor performance, it was unable to provide assurances about the activities of its member charities and that it had previously been warned over concerns about its links to unnamed radical

speakers.

The Telegraph disclosed last September that several member charities of the MCF were early members of a group called the Union of Good, a fund-raising body with close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, which was created to raise money for Hamas. The United States has designated the union a sponsor of terrorism, saying it is an “organization created by the Hamas leadership to transfer funds to the terrorist organization.”

Last year, Prime Minister David Cameron launched an inquiry into the Muslim Brotherhood, prompted by concerns it was stoking Islamism that had encouraged British jihadists to fight in Syria and Iraq. The Brotherhood insists it is nonviolent and seeks to impose Islamic rule only through democratic change. But the Whitehall investigation identified “an incredibly complex web” of up to 60 organizations in Britain, including charities, think tanks and even television channels, with links to the Brotherhood, all of which will now come under intense scrutiny.

The MCF’s spokesman rejected the criticism, saying the group was “considering all options available to contest the government’s decision and allegations” adding they were also “extremely disappointed.”

Mark Gardner, communications director at the Community Security Trust told The Jerusalem Post they welcomed the government’s determination to ensure that it only gives funding to the correct groups. “They have clearly investigated this Muslim Charities Forum and have found it not to meet the required standard. It is an important statement of intent,” he said.

Tribute Card Donations Sending tributes and memorials is a meaningful way to honor loved ones.

Honorarium Tributes –

In Appreciation For:

•

Irving Becker, Happy birthday from Diane and Hal Gershowitz.

•

Judith Cohen, Happy birthday from Susan and Burt Sunkin.

•

Peggy Epand, Happy 90th birthday, from Cora and Ted Ginsberg, Sanford and Rosemary Hertz.

•

Margie Kulp, Happy birthday from Merle Arenson, Kathi Balaban, Ruth and Morrie Beschloss, Lilo and Leslie Cooper, Jane Effress, Wendy Goodfriend, Donna Levitas, Phyllis Schahet, Elaine and Ted Stein and Linda Zuker.

All contributions received by the Jewish Federation for Tribute Cards are placed in our special Tzedakah Fund, which provides direct monetary intervention for needy Jews living in the Coachella Valley.

Refuah Shleimah –

Get Well Wishes To:

Memoriam Tributes –

Condolences Sent To:

•

Ellen Agresta, My heart hurts with yours, from Barbara Fuller.

•

Bruce Cohen and Family, In memory of your beloved wife Inez, from Susie and Joel Cohen.

• Jeanne Himy, We hope your recovery is almost complete from Judith and Elliott Cohen.

•

• Phil Hixon, Wishing you a speedy recovery from Ellen and Phil Glass.

Barbara Feldman and Family, In memory of your beloved husband Lenny, from Donna and Jim Levitas, Gail and Bob Scadron.

•

• Frances Horwich, Wishing a speedy recovery from Judith and Elliott Cohen.

Ira and JoAnn Heiman, In memory of your beloved son-in-law, from Melanie Miller and Joe Noren, Miriam and Harold Paley, and Barbara Platt.

•

Faye Sarkowsky, In memory of your beloved husband Herman, from Susie and Bob Diamond.

• Sandy Goldman, Refuah Shleimah and best wishes from the Jewish Family Service of the Desert Board and Staff.

•

Jo Ellen Leifer, Happy birthday from Frances Horwich.

• Marcia Plonsker, Have an easy recovery from Marnie Miller and Joe Noren.

•

•

Eddie and Trudy Schwartz, Thank you and happy birthday Eddie from Sanford and Rosemary Hertz.

• Rhoda Samuels, We hope your recovery is almost complete from Judith and Elliott Cohen.

Trudy and Edward Schwartz, In memory of your beloved mother, from Margot and Jerry Halperin, and Jerry Weinstein.

•

•

Dr. Alvin Star, Mazel tov on your 90th birthday from Bonnie Carmell, Marnie Miller and Joe Noren.

• Walter Schoenfeld, Wishing you a speedy recovery from Sanford and Rosemary Hertz.

Joan Sharfstein and Family, In memory of your beloved husband Richard, from Kathi and Dick Balaban, Richard and Barbara Rosenfield, Eddie and Trudy Schwartz.

•

Bobbie Stern, Thank you and Happy New Year from Margot and Jerry Halperin, Sanford and Rosemary Hertz, Susan and Burt Sunkin.

• Allan Steinberg, Wishing you a speedy recovery from Sanford and Rosemary Hertz.

•

Lillian Weiss and Family, In memory of your beloved husband Harold, from Miriam and Kup Mankoff.

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 13

New Innovation Will Revolutionize Night Driving

Night driving is about to become a great deal safer thanks to a new solution by BrightWay Vision.

By Ruthie Blum December 28, 2014, Israel 21c

Anyone who has driven at night, squinting in the glare of oncoming headlights — or who has struggled to see out the windshield during stormy weather — is familiar with the anxietyproducing and dangerous situation of poor visibility while handling a vehicle.

An Israeli startup has set out to eliminate this problem. Though it is not the only company in the world with night-vision solutions, BrightWay Vision is taking existing platforms and technologies to the next level.

“The proof is in the pudding,” CEO and co-founder Ofer David tells ISRAEL21c at the company’s offices in Haifa, before handing over the wheel of his car for a long test drive at night, over highways and through dark paths leading to the coast. “Hearing about the technology is not the same as seeing it in action.”

It is an “enlightening” experience, both literally and figuratively. The screen on the dashboard provides a clear, panoramic view of the road,

similar to that achieved when turning on one’s bright beams, without actually doing so.

In addition, the headlights of the cars coming in the opposite direction appear as small dots, with none of the blinding glare. And the entire area around the dirt roads we traverse can be seen with no effort, in spite of the absence of street lamps.

It is for this innovation that BrightWay Vision was awarded an honorable mention in Tech Briefs magazine’s “2013 Create the Future Design: Transportation & Automotive Category: Making Night Time Driving Safe and Automated.”

Spinoff of Elbit BrightWay Vision was established

14 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

in 2011 by David, the head of electrooptics at the Israel-based international defense electronics company Elbit Systems. Together with other members of the Elbit staff – such as Yoav Grauer, who now heads BrightWay Vision’s business development and technology, and Eyal Levi, the startup’s engineering manager – he came up with the idea to expand on certain aspects of the industry for the civilian market.

Night-vision devices may be crucial for soldiers in battle, but the concept need not be exclusive to the military.

In fact, says David, “Our technology cannot work for the army, because the system on the front of the car exhibits a reddish light. It’s something the enemy would be able to see, if it were on a tank.”

Persuading their bosses at Elbit to forfeit some of their most talented employees for the spin-off venture was “not at all easy,” say David and Grauer. “Getting them to invest money in it was even harder.”

Elbit agreed, on condition that

David and his team get investors from the automotive industry. After all, the device – called BrightEye — is designed to be built into cars. The Lubinsky Group was the first investor.

After others soon followed, Elbit gave the “green light” to the project.

The prototype they created for the purpose of explaining their idea was built from components that David, Grauer and Levi had developed during their work at Elbit. But its infrared detector was not right for the final product. This led them to develop a gated sensor chip – “like the one you have in your cell phone” – that can be incorporated into the device effectively and cheaply.

They are at an advanced stage of hardware development, suited for mass production.

Available within four years BrightWay Vision’s innovation lies in what is called “active-gated imaging technology.” This is different from the more commonly used thermal imaging, which relies on temperature differences to form a picture. It combines a camera that opens and closes at high speeds, and a pulsed-light illuminator beam.

The camera and illuminator are synchronized, so that the images (pedestrians, trees, animals, lane markings, traffic signs, etc.) are projected onto the driver’s screen in their proper depths of field and real-time computer vision alert functions.

David and his team are aiming at two markets: original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) — like GM, Ford and Chrysler; and after-market dealerships, which would add the system to cars already purchased. A number of OEMs have bought the BrightEye prototype.

Within about four years, we can expect to see the Israeli invention built in to various car models. In a shorter time, we will have the option of asking dealers to install it on our cars.

Swiss Banks Tracking Down Israeli Tax Evaders

By Omri Ariel, Jerusalem Online

Jewish Business News reports that UBS and other Swiss banks have begun demanding that their Israeli clients sign forms confirming their assets have been reported to the Israeli Tax Authority.

This is done as part of an effort to track down tax evaders who use foreign banks to avoid having to report their assets in their country of residence. Leor Nouman, head of the Tax Group at S. Horowitz & Co., told Globes that "after dealing with their clients from the U.S. and Europe, the banks in Switzerland have moved on to their Israeli clients." Nouman also stated that the Swiss banks are

encouraging their Israeli clients to join the Israeli Tax Authority's anonymous voluntary disclosure program.

The decision to target Israelis may have to do with Haifa District Court Judge Moshe Gilad being questioned by the police recently on suspicion

of tax evasion. Gilad and his wife allegedly held a secret bank account in UBS. For the time being, no bank has imposed any further sanctions on clients' accounts, but according to Nouman this is likely to happen at some point, should the banks not receive the required confirmation within a certain time frame. Clients who fail to produce such confirmation

will probably be "put on a list of problem clients", Nouman said. "In the case of U.S. clients, we have also seen accounts blocked."

Although obtaining the necessary documentation may be a bureaucratic burden, Nouman stated it will ultimately improve the clients' terms at the bank.

Synagogue Killers Glorified as Islamic Martyrs by PA Official News Agency WAFA and Fatah

By Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik, Palestinian Media Watch

Posting a picture of the graves of the two terrorists who murdered 5 Israelis in a synagogue in West Jerusalem, Abbas' Fatah movement glorified them with the supreme Islamic status of Shahids - "Martyrs... who ascended (to heaven)”: "This is the place of eternal rest of Martyrs (Shahids) Ghassan and Uday Abu Jamal of Jabel Mukaber [neighborhood] in occupied Jerusalem, who ascended [to heaven] a month and a half ago during an operation (i.e., terror attack) at an occupation synagogue in occupied Jerusalem.

Early morning today, they were escorted to their graves at Al-Sawahreh Al- Sharqiyeh."

Fatah called the terror attack "an operation at an occupation synagogue in occupied Jerusalem." On Nov. 18,

2014, the two Arab terrorists from East Jerusalem entered a synagogue in Jerusalem and attacked worshippers with guns, knives and axes, killing 4 worshippers and a police officer.

7 people were injured, 3 of them seriously. The terrorists were killed in an exchange of fire with Israeli police that arrived on the scene.

The Palestinian Authority's official news agency WAFA likewise honored the murderers with the supreme Islamic status of "Shahids" who were "escorted... to the place of their final rest": "Yesterday the citizens of Jerusalem escorted the bodies of Martyrs (Shahids) Ghassan and Uday Abu Jamal, from the Jabel Mukaber neighborhood of south-east Jerusalem, to the place of their final rest in the Al-Sawahreh Al-Sharqiyeh cemetery, after they were held by the occupation for 37 days, and transferred to their relatives after midnight." [From WAFA, official PA news agency, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Dec. 26, 2014].

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 15

Jewish Nonprofits Still Seen Struggling Long After Recession ‘The Jewish GDP’ Down 11 percent from 2007 to 2012; $1 billion in losses for range of causes

By Seth Chalmer, Special to The Jewish Week

One billion dollars lost. With the U.S. economy digging itself out of a deep hole, the $1 billion figure represents the collective revenue loss to Jewish nonprofits from 2007, the start of the Great Recession, to 2012, according to a new study. That’s an 11 percent drop in money that could have gone to care for the Jewish elderly in nursing homes, combat anti-Israel activity on college campuses, seed Jewish startups, curate cultural programs and help parents of day school students facing rising tuitions.

The wallop taken by the Jewish nonprofit economy — one that has reached into every corner of the Jewish community — was worse than the one absorbed by American nonprofits overall during the Great Recession and its aftermath, the study suggests. And the economic hit to the Jewish community was far worse than that to the American economy as a whole.

“We might try to forget the fiscal trauma,” said business strategist and report co-author Mark Pearlman, “but the full force of this economic crisis still affects the American Jewish community every day. We have not yet fully recovered from the economic fallout.”

The figures about the community’s financial health are part of an in-depth analysis, a collaborative effort of Pearlman and Yale management professor Edieal Pinker supported

by The Jewish Week Investigative Journalism Fund.

The compilation of “The Jewish GDP” (Gross Domestic Product) aims to track the financial health of the Jewish nonprofit sector over time, and to foster productive discussions about transparency, efficiency and accountability. The total revenue that all those Jewish organizations collected is “The Jewish GDP.” Pearlman and Pinker analyzed financial data from the years 2007 and 2012 (the latest data available at the time of the analysis), from

Jewish nonprofit organizations, using the GuideStar database of public financial disclosure forms that nonprofit organizations are legally required to file. Since synagogues and other organizations with primarily religious missions are exempt from the legal requirement to file IRS Form 990 (the nonprofit financial public disclosure form that was the source of Pearlman and Pinker’s data), the current Jewish GDP numbers fail to reflect synagogues altogether.

They focused on revenues rather than expenditures, Pinker noted, because “the revenues better reflected the amount of money going in to the Jewish community, the resources available to the institutions in a particular year.”

Pearlman and Pinker split the revenue total into two separate numbers — one for “service providers” (which are most Jewish organizations) and one for “financial intermediaries” (Jewish foundations and federations) — in order to avoid double-counting any dollars that were first raised by the foundations and federations and then given out as grants to the service providers, thus counting toward the total revenues of both.

The results show an American Jewish communal sector still struggling to recover from the recession, three years after the downturn officially ended.

The Jewish GDP for service providers dropped by over $1 billion, a setback in income equivalent to losing more than one dollar in every 10. As for financial intermediaries — the Jewish federations and foundations that fund so much of the work performed by the Jewish service providers — revenues fell by a larger amount and in larger proportion: a $1.29 billion difference equal to almost one-third of 2007 revenues. (For clarity all dollar amounts are adjusted for inflation and expressed in 2012 dollars.)

That drop in Jewish GDP between 2007 and 2012 represents missing social services that might have helped

16 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

people in need, missing cultural and educational programs that might have enriched lives, and missing endowment income that might have grown the capacity of American Jewish organizations to sustain their work in the future.

The broader economic context does not paint an encouraging picture of how the Jewish nonprofit sector weathered the Great Recession and the first years of the subsequent recovery.

The overall American economy (as measured by GDP) stopped declining in June 2009, and by December 2012 it was 3 percent higher than it had been in December 2007. Revenues for American nonprofits still hadn’t recovered by that time; according to Giving USA Foundation, charitable revenues in 2012 were 8 percent lower than they had been five years before.

But those overall nonprofit revenues were still in better shape than Jewish service provider revenues, which remained 11 percent lower than their pre-recession levels. Investors were also still playing catch-up in 2012; the S&P 500 index, a broadbased measure of stock prices, was 1.5 percent lower than its 2007 value (adjusted for dividends and splits).

Revenues for the big institutional investors in Jewish communal life — that is, Jewish federations and foundations — lagged far behind, proportionally, with revenues still almost one-third lower than their 2007 levels, even after three years of economic recovery.

Biggest Hits

Which Jewish organizations took the biggest hit? To find out, Pearlman and Pinker separated Jewish organizations that operate primarily in the U.S. into six categories, by mission: Advocacy, Art/Culture, Communal (JCCs, Camps, etc.), Education, Religious and Social Welfare. They found that Communal, Social Welfare, and Education organizations suffered modestly in

proportion to their share of the total Jewish GDP, with drops in revenue of less than 5 percent.

Religiously oriented organizations didn’t seem to suffer at all, collecting 3 percent more in 2012 than they had in 2007, but since this category is exempt from legal disclosure requirements, this category’s numbers are less reliable than others.

Advocacy organization revenues fell by one-fifth, and Art/Culture organization revenues dropped by more than one-third.

Damaging as those large-percentage drops in revenue must have been for American Jewish advocacy, arts, and cultural organizations, the setbacks were only large as percentages of relatively low amounts to begin with; those categories account for less than 14 percent of the billion-dollar drop in Jewish GDP from 2012 to 2007.

Indeed, drops in revenue for all U.S.focused organizations, of all mission categories, accounted for less than one-third of that gap.

The more severe blow fell on American Jewish organizations whose programs operate primarily in Israel and other foreign countries. (“American Friends of” various Israeli organizations are a primary example.)

Revenues for those organizations dropped by nearly $700 million between 2007 and 2012. The difference is even starker considering that the harder-hit foreign category receives a much smaller share of the total Jewish GDP than domestically oriented organizations do. The $326 million shortfall for U.S.-focused organizations in 2012 amounts to just a 5 percent drop from their 2007 levels, while the $700 million gap for foreign-focused organizations amounts to a 28 percent drop.

Seth Chalmer is assistant director at the Berman Jewish Policy Archive at NYU Wagner. This article was made possible by a grant from The Jewish Week Investigative Journalism Fund, a tax-deductible fund that supports enterprise reporting on issues of vital Jewish interest.

Jewish Family Service of the Desert “Count on us… for life”

801 East Tahquitz Canyon Way, Suite 202 Palm Springs, CA 92262 73750 Catalina Way, Ste. A, Palm Desert, CA 92260 (760) 325-4088 • www.jfsdesert.org

Jewish Family Service of the Desert is Pleased to Announce Our Exciting Upcoming Events: “Lucy & Desi: A Home Movie.”

Hosted by Lucie Arnaz March 2, 2015 – Annenberg Theater, Palm Springs Art Museum Michael Childers Presents “One Night Only” April 22, 2015 – McCallum Theatre Contact JFS at 760-325-4088 for more information

PROGRAMS & SERVICES For further information about these services and others, please call the JFS office, 760-325-4088.

COUNSELING & FAMILY SUPPORT: Experienced therapists help individuals, couples, and families address life's challenges.

DESERT HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL

SCHOOL COUNSELING PROGRAM: JFS counselors serve elementary school children in Palm Springs Unified School District with on-site counseling and now with a new 5th grade curriculum to teach drug refusal and interpersonal skills to prepare them for success in middle school.

SOLUTIONS FOR SENIORS: Serves older adults to maintain independence and help them enjoy a higher quality of life.

BEREAVEMENT GROUP: Free to the local community. This group meets every Wednesday at the JFS Palm Springs office, 3.30-5.00 p.m.

FRIENDLYVISITORS: JFS volunteers visit home bound seniors to provide companionship and support. For more information please call 760-779-9400 Ext. 204.

SHABBAT- IN- A- BAG: JFS volunteers provide companionship and celebration during the Shabbat observance to home bound seniors.

For more information please call 760-7799400 Ext. 204.

CAFÉ EUROPA GROUP: Social programming for holocaust survivors. Transportation available, for dates, times & more information please call 760-779-9400 Ext. 204.

The Desert Holocaust Memorial is located in the Palm Desert Civic Center Park at San Pablo Avenue & Fred Waring Drive.

Residents and visitors are encouraged to visit this moving memorial, a place of remembrance and monument of hope.

LET’S DO LUNCH! PROGRAM: Bimonthly activity program for homebound or isolated seniors. Participants take part in social activities; transportation and lunch are provided. Some restrictions apply. Please call Lisa Schmid for further information and to register 760-779-9400 Ext. 205.

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 17

Shabbat and Weekday Service Information Check the websites or call for times of services.

BETH SHALOM (Member, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism) Ken Hailpern, Spiritual Leader 79-733 Country Club Drive, Bermuda Dunes, CA 92203, 760-200-3636 bethshalom18.wordpress.com, 8 pm Friday/9:30 am Saturday Shabbat Services.

8:30 am Monday & Thursday Morning Minyan, followed by light breakfast.

February 13-15: Scholar in Residence Weekend with Rabbi Dr. J.B. Sacks.

See article and ad page 8.

CENTRO CULTURAL HEBREO DE MEXICALI (Conservative) Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico Contact: Ron Cohen, 760-960-3392 US (686) 216-7152 Mexico www.judiosdemexicali.com CHABAD OF PALM SPRINGS & DESERT COMMUNITIES Rabbi Yonason Denebeim 425 Ortega, Palm Springs, CA 92264 760-325-0774

www.chabadpalmsprings.com, Shabbat services Friday/Saturday; daily morning and evening minyan.

CHABAD OF PALM DESERT A project of Chabad of Palm Springs & Desert Communities Rabbi Mendy Friedman, 760-9692153 / 760-969-2158 www.chabadpd.com CHABAD OF RANCHO MIRAGE A project of Chabad of Palm Springs & Desert Communities Rabbi Shimon Posner 72295 Via Marta, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270, 760-770-7785 www.chabadrm.com, Shabbat services Friday/10 am Saturday; daily morning and evening minyan. Check website for service times.

CONGREGATION HAR-EL (Member, Union for Reform Judaism) Rabbi Richard Zionts

47-535 Hwy 74, Palm Desert, CA 92260, 760-779-1691 harelurj@aol.com 5 pm Friday evening Shabbat Service, followed by speaker or discussion.

February 27: Rabbinic/Cantorial Colloquium. Presenter: Matt Friedman, ADL, followed by pre-Purim Shabbat Reception. Guests welcome.

CONGREGATION SHALOM BAYIT (Reform) Rabbis Larry and Linda Seidman 1320 Williams Ave., Banning 951-769-3678/769-7514 Shabbat Service 3rd Friday/ Havdallah 1st Saturday evening.

Desert Hot Springs Monthly Friday Shabbat Service with Rabbi Faith Tessler September through May. Contact 760-324-4737 for more information.

TEMPLE ISAIAH (Conservative) Rabbi Sally Olins

332 West Alejo Road, Palm Springs, CA 92262, 760-325-2281 www.templeisaiahps.com, 7:30 pm Friday/10 am Saturday Shabbat Services; morning minyan Mondays & Thursdays - 8:30 am.

TEMPLE SINAI (Reform) Rabbi Andrew Bentley 73-251 Hovley Lane West, Palm Desert, 760-568-9699 www.templesinaipd.org, 7:30 pm Friday/10 am Saturday Shabbat Services February 7: Bar Mitzvah of Dr. Sidney Sharzer; February 21: Bat Mitzvah of Gracie Novack.

BIKUR CHOLIM A project of Chabad of Palm Springs & Desert Communities (Community Outreach), 760-325-8076 Rabbi Yankel Kreiman www.BikurCholimPS.com

February Community Calendar Monday, February 2 10:00 am Tamar Hadassah continental breakfast meeting.

Program: Anne Rowe, Director of Collections & Exhibitions, Annenberg Foundation: “Treasures of Sunnylands.” $7.

Reservations required. Call 760321-9941.

Monday, February 2, 9, 16, 23 3:45 pm Four part series with community Rabbis: “Acceptance & Assimilation: Jews in America” held at the Jewish Federation. $18 for series. RSVP to the Jewish Federation, 760-324-4737.

See ad page 5.

Monday, February 2, 9, 16, 23 7:00 pm Chabad of Rancho Mirage Men’s Torah Class with Rabbi Benny Lew. For more

information call 760-6362897 or email rabbibenny@ chabadrm,com.

Tuesdays, February 3, 10, 17, 24 10:00 am Temple Sinai Yiddish Club Tuesdays, February 3, 10, 17, 24 1:00 pm Temple Sinai Adult Education “The Wisdom of the Talmud” led by Rabbi Andrew Bentley. Course: February – June. $36 members/$72 non-members. Drop in fee for individual session $5 members/$7 non-members.

Call 760-568-9699.

Tuesdays, February 3 4:00 pm Tolerance Education Center program: Richard Byford in “The Heart of a Gypsy Troubadour”.” $15. Space limited. RSVP to 760-328-

18 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

8252. See ad page 11 for more information.

Tuesdays, February 3, 10, 17, 24 5:00-7:00 pm Chabad Rancho Mirage’s weekly BBQ. Reservations not required, but helpful: 760-770-7785.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 10:00 am and 1:30 pm Tolerance Education Center free movies.

See page 11 for February movie schedule.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 9:00 am Temple Sinai Introduction to Judaism.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 10:30-11:30 am and 6:30-7:30 pm Chabad of Rancho Mirage Torah and Tea. A weekly journey into the soul of Torah.

Call 760-770-7785.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 12 Noon Temple Sinai Lunch and Limud.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 1:30 pm Temple Sinai Bereavement Group.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 3:30-5:00 pm Jewish Family Service Jewish Bereavement Group. Meets weekly at the JFS Palm Springs Office, 801 East Tahquitz Canyon. Free to local community and reservations not required.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 4:00 pm Temple Isaiah Adult Education Class “Ecclesiastes” led by Rabbi Sally Olins.

Call 760-844-7302 for more information.

February Community Calendar Continued Wednesday, February 4, 11, 18 4:00-5:30 pm Har-El Galen Trimester Course “And the World Changed Again.”

Presenter February 4: Professor Penny Rivin; Presenter February 11, 18: Rabbi Richard Zionts.

Fee. See “The Sage” cartoon ad, page 22 for registration information.

Wednesdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 5:30 pm Temple Isaiah Beginning Hebrew. Instructor: Rabbi Sally Olins. Call 760-844-7302 for more information.

Wednesday, February 4 7:00 pm Jewish Federation Informational Meeting for November 2015 Israel Mission.

At Jewish Federation building.

See ad page 6.

Thursday, February 5, 12, 19, 26 1:00 pm Temple Sinai Adult Education: “Kabbalah” led by Rabbi Andrew Bentley.

Course: February – June. $36 members/$72 non-members.

Drop in fee for individual session $5 members/$7 nonmembers. Call 760-568-9699.

Thursday, February 5 4:00 pm Beth Shalom Book Club Discussion: “Acts of Faith” by Erich Segal. Discussion led by Ken Hailpern. Call 760-2003636 for information.

Thursday, February 5 4:00 pm and 6:30 pm Tolerance Education Center screening of “The Prime Ministers.” $10.

RSVP to 760-328-8252. See ad page 9.

Friday, February 6 Follows 5 pm service: Har-El

Discussion Series: Dr. Fred Abramson, “How Do Drugs Work and Sometimes Why Not.” Monday, February 9 6:00 pm Temple Sinai lecture Dr. Mordechai Kedar, Israeli scholar of Arab literature/25 years in IDF Military Intelligence. See ad page 7.

Thursday, February 12 5:30 pm Temple Sinai Brotherhood Dinner and Movie: Dinner $15; movie and popcorn only $5.

RSVP to 760-568-9699.

Friday, February 13 9:30 am Mensch International Foundation program: Steven Geiger “Jews in Europe Today, a Personal Perspective” and Dr. Jonathan Petropoulos “Recent Developments Concerning the Restitution of Nazi Looted Art” At UCR Palm Desert Campus Auditorium. $15. See ad page 9 for more information and to RSVP. Friday, February 13 6:00 pm Tolerance Education Center program: Sharon L. Graines’ “Benches,” saluting the first African American Opera Singer. $20. Space limited.

RSVP to 760-328-8252. See ad page 11 for more information.

Sunday, February 15 12:30 pm Beth Shalom Brunch with Rabbi Dr. J.B. Sacks, “Islam: What Every Jew Should Know.” $18 members; $22 non-members. Reservation deadline February 10. Call 760-200-3636 for information.

See ad and article, page 8.

Monday, February 16 10:30-11:45 am Har-El Galen Monthly Book Course. “The Invisible City” by Julia Dahl, reviewed by Doree Goldstein.

Registration required.

Call 760-779-1691 or email harelurj@gmail.com.

Monday, February 16 11:00 am Angel View 61st Annual Benefit Luncheon at Agua Caliente Casino Resort, Rancho Mirage. 2015 Honoree: Jewish Federation of the Desert. See page 3 for more information.

Tuesday, February 17 11:00 am Temple Sinai Sisterhood Book Club Wednesday, February 18 6:00 pm Tolerance Education Center program: F Michael Higginbotham reads excerpts from his book, “Ghosts of Jim Crow: Ending Racism in PostRacial America.” Admission free. Space limited. RSVP to 760-328-8252. See ad page 11 for more information.

Sunday, February 22 2:00 pm Temple Sinai Town Hall: State Senator Jeff Stone “AntiSemitism Worldwide.” Q&A follows. Refreshments.

No charge.

OF THE DESERT

Monday, February 23 6:00 pm Jewish Federation/ America-Israel Cultural Foundation event, featuring Asi Matathias and Victor Stanislavsky. See page 2 for more information.

Tuesday, February 24 11:00 am Temple Sinai Sisterhood luncheon.

Tuesday, February 24 6:00 pm Tolerance Education Center program: Screening of “Skokie: Invaded But Not Conquered.” Q&A follows, conducted by Philip & Ellen Glass. $10. Space limited.

RSVP to 760-328-8252. See ad page 11 for more information.

Wednesday, February 25 6:00 pm Tolerance Education Center program: The Secret Pursuits of Angela Bowen” film screening, followed by Q&A. Admission free. Space limited.

RSVP to 760-328-8252. See ad page 11 for more information.

Friday, February 27 11:30 am Jewish Federation Women’s Philanthropy Lion of Judah Luncheon.

See page 4 for details.

Email (preferred) Miriam Bent at mhbentjcn@earthlink. net or call 760-323-0255 to have your events included in the community calendar.

Deadline is February 9th.

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 19

Ramat HaNegev Cultural Exchange

By Leslie Pepper, Director of Education, Temple Sinai

Eighteen months after Temple Sinai teens were welcomed to home hospitality in the Ramat HaNegev Region in Israel's desert, we had the pleasure to host 17 Israeli teens in our community over the winter holidays. This cultural exchange between the two desert communities is part of the continued efforts of our Jewish Federation of the Desert and Temple Sinai community to foster a deeper connection between the teens of both countries.

In addition to the 17 Israeli teens, we had 15 local teens joining us on any given activity, which ranged from a day spent at our Tolerance Education Center and then seeing our Holocaust Memorial at the Palm Desert Civic Park, to a day exploring Jewish LA, to a guided nature hike at the Indian Canyons. Another experience for the Israeli teens was joining Sinai teens and religious

these meaningful connections many years ago to foster a deeper understanding between our youth here and in Israel. Our week hosting the Ramat HaNegev Teens was another success, thanks to their continued support of Jewish youth.

At the Indian Canyons

s c h o o l students in volunteering to feed the hungry on Christmas D ay a t t h e Palm Springs Convention C e n t e r. We shared our At the Convention Center to feed the hungry Christmas Day Masada (the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway) with the group on u s u p a t t h e c ra ck o f d aw n a bitter cold day and showed them a and to bed past midnight. Old mini Ein Gedi (at Tahquitz Canyon) friendships were shared and new ones forged. We thank the leadership after an invigorating hike.

This fast paced week had of our Jewish Federation, who forged

Dear Bruce and Celia, Attached is a photo of our youth delegation. Mayor Rifman and I met with the teens and talked with them about their amazing experience. Thank you for the great hospitality! The kids were just overwhelmed from Palm Springs. We would like to host every family that will come to Israel. So if there are visits planned, just let us know. Take care and talk to you soon.

Eran

Nasrallah: Hezbollah Prepared for War Deep into Israel, Beyond the Galilee The Jerusalem Post

Hezbollah is prepared for military intervention in Israel's Galilee and beyond, deeper into Israeli territory, the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah said in an interview with Lebanon's Al-Mayadeen TV, aired January 15th.

"We have made all necessary preparations for a future war with Israel," Nasrallah said.

0He vowed that the group would not stay quiet in the face of attacks attributed to Israel in Syria. "We will 20 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah

provide an answer for every attack against Syria," he said.

"We have military abilities that will deliver us the victory against Israel,"

Nasrallah threatened. "The military capability of the resistance has not been damaged, and if Israel thinks differently, it is wrong … Hezbollah has more types of weapons than Israel can imagine.”

According to the Hezbollah leader, Israel is interested in a conflict that would be a landslide victory for it, however he claims that such a win is completely unrealistic. "If Israel attacks Lebanon, our resistance is strong and our ability to win is great."

Norwegian NGO Funds Exhibit of Kids' Maps in Lebanon Presenting "Palestine" as Replacing Israel

Norwegian People's Aid's "development cooperation in Lebanon" is funded by Norwegian Foreign Ministry and Canadian International Development Agency

by Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik, Palestinian Media Watch

Colorful paintings of maps that erase Israel and label it "Palestine" were recently displayed at an exhibition funded by Norwegian Pe o p l e ' s A i d , a N o r w e g i a n NGO, whose funders include the Norwegian government and other international donors.

The map is entitled, "This is the area of Palestine," and text on the map says the area of "Palestine" is "27,009 square kilometers," a figure that includes all of Israel.

Another map shows "The borders of Palestine," listing the Mediterranean Sea, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Egypt. In this map, Israel is also turned into "Palestine." A third map displays "the cities of Palestine," and includes the Israeli cities and towns Beer Sheva, Jaffa, Acre, Haifa and Safed.

Norwegian People's Aid lists the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) as donors for its "development cooperation in Lebanon."

But the funding of the exhibition of Palestinian maps that erase the existence of Israel may involve even more international donors.

Norwegian People's Aid stated in its annual account from 2012 that it was also supported by the U.S. State Department, USAID - US Agency for International Development, the EU and UN, the Dutch and Swedish ministries of foreign affairs, Germany and other governments, in addition to the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and NORAD - the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation.

Norway, Canada, the US, and all those mentioned as funders

are active partners in the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. However, the maps of "Palestine" they helped fund, which present a world without Israel, are significant impediments to reaching a permanent agreement and lasting peace.

Last year, Palestinian Media Watch reported that a UN official in Lebanon posed with a "map of Palestine" that erased Israel. At the time, the UN responded to PMW's report claiming that the map was

pre-1948. PMW explained that this was a poor excuse as the map clearly included a large flag of the Palestinian Authority (which was founded in 1994), indicating PA sovereignty over Israel at the present time or in the future.

The current exhibition was named "This is Palestine" and the maps were painted by Palestinian children from Lebanon. The exhibition marked the 50th anniversary of "the outbreak of the 'Palestinian revolution,'" reported the official PA daily, referring to the first terror attack that Fatah, headed by Yasser Arafat, carried out against Israel in 1965 - an attempt to blow up Israel's National Water Carrier.

Norwegian People's Aid describes the goal of its work with Palestinian refugees: "Important struggles are the struggle to have recognition of the rights of the refugees to eventually return to their homeland after more than 60 years, and while they are staying in Lebanon the struggle for their basic civil rights and rights to basic services, to work and housing."

In 2013, Palestinian Media Watch's reports on the PA practice of rewarding imprisoned terrorists with salaries led to significant Norwegian criticism of the PA, and demands that the PA stop paying salaries to terrorists.

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 21

For New Saudi King, Overt Iranian Hostility, Covert Israeli Contacts

Israel should not expect a royal visit, but Salman recognizes that Jerusalem plays an important part in battles against Tehran, radical Sunnis

By Avi Issacharoff, Times of Israel

Meet Salman bin Abdulaziz, the new king of Saudi Arabia. As heir to the throne, the 79-year-old was already the nation’s de-facto ruler in recent weeks, as his brother Abdullah’s condition worsened and prevented him from carrying out his royal duties.

Most recently Salman served as defense minister, but he is best known in the kingdom as the governor of Riyadh province, a position he held for 40 years. He is one of the 45 sons of the kingdom’s founder, Abdulaziz Ibn Saud, and the sixth son to inherit the throne following the deaths of his predecessors. His brother Crown Prince Moqren, next in the line, is ten years younger.

Salman also served as a secretarygeneral of sorts to the royal family – the man who was responsible for handling its affairs quietly and discretely, away from the media and the public.

King Salman is not expected to make dramatic changes to Saudi Arabia’s foreign and defense policies. He was a central decision-maker in the kingdom since being appointed as heir to the throne in 2012. He held high-level meetings with Arab leaders such as Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi during that time, and has been involved

south of the kingdom on the day that King Salman takes the throne. It’s safe to assume that the coming days and weeks will have some challenges in store for the new king. The Iranians are likely to do everything possible to make it difficult for him to run the kingdom.

Even if a new regime rises in Yemen that includes Sunnis and Houthis, the King Salman bin Abdulaziz latter are likely to run the show and in shaping the Middle East’s moderate are expected to allow the Iranian Revolutionary Guards to operate in Sunni camp.

Together with el-Sissi, Jordan’s King the country.

This will make the lives of all the Abdullah II and even the Palestinian Authority’s Mahmoud Abbas, Salman countries in the moderate camp — is likely to try to block the advancing and especially the UAE emirates — radical Sunni camp on the one hand much more difficult. The ouster of (the Islamic State, al-Qaeda) and the Yemeni president Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi raises the fear of chaos in south Shiite camp, on the other.

Neither task will be easy. A day Yemen; four southern provinces have before Abdullah passed away, the announced they will not surrender, Houthis in Yemen completed their despite a new regime in Sanaa. de-facto takeover of most of the Although they are in an area further country. This move signifies a Shi’ite from the Saudi border, this will have presence (even though the Houthis consequences for the traffic of goods are Zaidiyyah Shittes, different from in the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea the Shiites in Iran) on Saudi Arabia’s and has already opened the door for southern border with clear economic increased al-Qaeda activity in half of the country. and military support from Tehran.

The outgoing president also allowed Iran, Saudi Arabia’s biggest enemy, is thus setting up a base of support the U.S. to operate against al-Qaeda

in Yemen, and it is far from certain that the new regime led by the Houthis will continue that policy. This is very bad news, especially for Saudi Arabia.

Another matter that King Salman will have to address is the price of oil. Riyadh has refused to raise prices over the past few months; indeed, it has actually driven prices down. The kingdom wanted to prevent competition in the energy field from American companies that specialize in gas oil separation.

This had the added result of dealing a blow to the Iranian economy even without additional Western sanctions.

The question is whether Salman will change policy on oil production; hours after the death of King Adbullah, the price of oil surged.

And what about Israel? Jerusalem should not expect a royal visit anytime soon. King Salman is likely to continue advancing the policy that has prevailed over the past two years — that is, the recognition that Israel is an important part of the war against the radical Sunni axis and the Shiite camp. From time to time, we hear of covert meetings between Israeli and Saudi officials and those from the Gulf. It’s safe to assume that Salman will keep that channel open and perhaps even expand it.

Palestinians Burn French Flag on Temple Mount

By Gal Cohen, Jerusalem Online

Palestinians set fire to a French flag during a demonstration on the Temple Mount. The Islamic movements demonstrated on the Temple Mount January 16th following the wave of terror in France the week earlier, but the demonstration was not protesting

the attacks themselves, rather the Western world, who according to them, has started an attack on Islam.

During the protest, which was organized by Hamas and another movement called Hizb-a-Tahrir, protestors burnt the French flag,

22 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

and waved green Hamas flags and other flags of the Islamic movement.

Hundreds of protestors arrived and called the Palestinian Authority “the authority of spies”, and yelled vulgar insults about the chairman of the Authority, Mahmoud Abbas,

because of his participation, along with 40 other world leaders, in the protest march in Paris at the beginning of the week. This is the first time that such activity protesting the Palestinian Authority has taken place on the Temple Mount.

Iran Building Missile Sites in Syria

By Adam Kredo, Honest Reporting

On January 13th Iranian military leaders admitted building and operating missile-manufacturing plants in Syria, and also that Tehran is helping to build a secret nuclear facility.

An Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander stated that the country’s Supreme Leader ordered forces to build and operate missile plants in Syria, where Iran continues to fight on behalf of embattled leader Bashar al-Assad, according to regional media reports.

IRGC Aerospace Commander Haji Zadeh touted Iran’s capabilities and bragged that Iran has gone from importing most of its military hardware to producing it domestically, as well as for regional partners such as Assad.

“A country such as Syria which used

actions in Syria could constitute a gross violation of sanctions on the regime enacted by the United Nations and Western powers.

Zadeh also bragged about Tehran’s ability to build missiles capable of travelling at least 2,000 kilometers, far enough to reach into Israel and other Middle Eastern countries, according Haji Zadeh to the report. Iranian Supreme Leader to sell us arms, was later on to buy our Ayatollah Khamenei has made it missiles,” Zadeh was quoted as saying. a priority for Tehran to produce “Right now the missile manufacturing advanced missiles, Zadeh said. firms in Syria are built by Iran.”

Meanwhile, Germany’s Der Spiegel It has long been suspected that reported over the weekend, based on Iranian forces operating in Syria are leaked intelligence and other sources, providing weaponry to Assad’s forces. that Iran has been helping to build a Zadeh’s remarks confirm that Tehran secret nuclear facility in Syria. Western is committed to a long fight in Syria sources fear that Tehran is attempting and hopes to turn the country into to continue its controversial and an Iranian proxy state. Iran’s military clandestine nuclear work in Syria,

where it does not have to battle against international nuclear inspectors and Western powers seeking to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

Obama administration officials have sought to downplay the developments and said that they will not raise the issue with Iran during an upcoming round of talks over its program.

“Will you discuss this issue with the Iranians in the upcoming talks?” a reporter asked State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf. “No,” Harf replied. “The upcoming talks are about the Iranian nuclear program.”

When pressed on the issue, Harf said that nuclear talks only focus on Iran’s domestic program and nothing else.

“We don’t discuss other issues with them at those talks, as you all know,” she said.

ISIS Cell Busted in Israel

Seven Israeli Arabs arrested for forming ISIS affiliate in the north, prepared terror attack in ISIS's name against IDF, Druze.

By Uzi Baruch and Tova Dvorin, Arutz Sheva

On January 18th the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) cleared for publication that they had arrested seven Israeli Arabs, residents of the Galilee, for setting up an official Islamic State (ISIS) affiliate branch in Israel. The Shin Bet said that the seven admitted that over the last year they had formed a Salafi jihadi group, which they later aligned with ISIS. One of them also admitted to purchasing weapons to commit terror attacks on Israelis, specifically against the security establishment and the Druze community, in ISIS's name. Several more Galilee residents were arrested in this context.

The seven include a 40 year old lawyer from Nazareth, a 30 year old past terrorist prisoner from Deir Hanna, and five men from Sakhnin (one of whom is currently living in Be’er Sheva), ages 22, 27, 27, 29 and 30. All seven met with a senior Sheikh running anti-Israel terror groups in the north, who was not named in the report. The Sheikh encouraged them to form the jihadist

group and carry out terror attacks. The group’s preparations in anticipation of joining ISIS in Syria included tutorials on how to make Molotov cocktails, and animal slaughter as "training" to slaughter "infidels" in jihadist attacks.

In addition, the group was in touch with ISIS terrorists via social media, including with other Israeli Arabs who have left for Syria to join the group.

In October, sources revealed that no fewer than 30 Arab citizens of Israel have joined ISIS; there is a move in the Knesset to revoke their citizenship. The 40 year old lawyer, Adnan Jameel Said Al-A-Din, presented himself as an "ISIS representative in Palestine," according to the Bet Shin, and operated as the ringleader of the group. He preached terror attacks against Jews specifically and ran much of the activities during meetings. The 22 year old actually attempted to leave for Syria in July 2014 to join the jihad forces fighting there, but was turned away at the last minute by security forces after intelligence came in on his intentions.

He then turned to Al-A-Din to make contact with ISIS in Syria and raise money for his departure.

An indictment has been filed against all seven in the Haifa District Court, on suspicion of membership and activity in an unlawful association, supporting a terrorist organization and attempted contact with a foreign agent.

An additional man, age 28, was also arrested in connection to the case. He recently completed his medical studies

at the University of Jordan Science and Technology (JUST). He was arrested in November for attempting to join the Galilee cell; he admitted under interrogation that he supported ISIS and met with members of the organization in Jordan to discuss going to fight there.

The indictment follows news earlier in January that an ISIS-inspired terror cell was broken up by the IDF in Hevron.

Representing Buyers and Sellers throughout the desert for more than 27 years When you think of real estate, "Just Ring a Bell"

760.902.9206 rng.bell@aol.com/www.beverlybell.com JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 23

Community Schools

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NURSERY SCHOOL

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24 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

German Companies ‘Helped Build Syria’s Chemical Stockpile’ Berlin has hushed up attempts to investigate and ignored warnings by partners, including Israel, Der Spiegel reports

By Times of Israel Staff

German companies were likely instrumental in building Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal, and the German government has endeavored to prevent these companies’ dealings from coming to light, according to a damning report in German newspaper Der Spiegel.

On January 23rd the German daily that Berlin has had for the past 16 months a list of companies provided by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical We a p o n s ( O P C W ) , w h i c h allegedly supplied the Syrian regime with technology and materials used to develop and build up its chemical weapons stockpile.

But instead of investigating those companies, the government has classified the document and refused to give any details on its contents, saying releasing the information would “significantly impair foreign policy interests” as well as violate the companies’ constitutional rights to trade secrecy.

The paper speculated that the

Syria's President Bashar Assad

government had several reasons to do so: Besides embarrassing Germany on the global stage, releasing the report would cause internal strife on issues of government regulation of trade, as well as reflect badly on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s own ruling party and its former leader, ex-chancellor Helmut Kohl.

Der Spiegel alleged that German businesses’ complicity in chemical weapons manufacturing — whether knowingly or otherwise — goes back decades, with historical government documents indicating heavy involvement by German companies in building up Saddam Hussein’s stash during the Iraq-Iran war of the 1980s.

These weapons were used by

Hussein to kill many thousands of Iranians as well as Iraqi Kurds.

One document from 1984 details a visit to the Foreign Ministry by then-Israeli Ambassador to West Germany Yitzhak Ben-Ari, who warned the government that Syria was being aided by European companies, possibly German ones as well, in developing it chemical arsenal.

Israel has over the years had particular concern over Syria’s development of chemical agents, with Damascus’s enormous stockpile considered a strategic threat in any future war.

Though the government, under Kohl, promised to investigate, it is doubtful that serious action was ever taken. When pressed on such issues, Der Spiegel stated, the implicated German companies have either claimed ignorance, insisted that their services were used to develop pesticides and other peaceful applications only, or — in the case of decades-old allegations — maintained that records no longer exist.

In the past year the UN and

the OPCW have overseen the removal and destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons cache. The UN Security Council last year reached a rare agreement by Syria to eliminate the government’s chemical weapons program. The deal was reached under threat of US airstrikes after images of civilian victims laid out after an attack on a Damascus suburb as part of Syria’s civil war shocked the world. President Bashar Assad’s government denied involvement and blamed rebel groups.

The organizations have said all 1,300 tons (1,200 metric tons) of Syria’s declared chemical weapons have been removed, and 97 percent have been destroyed.

Earlier this month UN diplomats said the destruction of 12 chemical weapons facilities in Syria is expected to start later January, and the work should be complete by the end of June 2015.

IDF Doctor Saves Palestinian Baby

By Ami Streit, Jerusalem Online

An IDF helicopter evacuated a sixmonth-old baby to Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem after the child suffered an apparent heart attack while on the way to Jordan for medical care. The baby had stopped breathing and lost vital signs.

Israeli border officials saw the baby collapse and called paramedics, who in turn sent an urgent call for a military helicopter. Magen David medics arrived at the scene and, along with IDF doctors, worked to resuscitate the child. A second MDA medic crew

MDA paramedics prepare baby for airlift

arrived on the scene and continued resuscitation efforts until an Israel Air Force helicopter arrived and airlifted the baby.

Transportation was coordinated with the IDF’s COGAT (Coordination

Father thanks IDF General in Hadassah Hospital

of Government Activities in the Territories) unit, and the baby now is under care at Hadassah Medical Center Ein Kerem in Jerusalem.

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 25

Simchas Congratulations to Lynda Bailey on completing her Bachelor of Science in Business A d m i n i s t ra t i o n Magna Cum Laude i n D e c e m b e r, while working full Lynda Bailey time as Custom Publishing Sales & Development Director for the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, assisting Miriam Bent for the last 17+ years doing the beautiful layout work for the Jewish Community News, doing the layout work for Rabbi Yankel Kreiman’s “Let My People Know” and, just recently, helping develop a new community service/television series “American Spirit.” Clearly her days must have more than 24 hours ... Mazel tov to Linda and Dr. David Morrow on the December 28 th

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Danielle & Barak Kamelgard

marriage of their daughter Danielle to Barak Kamelgard. Danielle and Barak live in Beverly Hills, where Danielle is finishing her degree in Communications at USC and Barak just joined the firm of Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP in their litigation department ... Mazel tov to Melisse Banwer, Managing Director of the Tolerance Education Center, on being named 2015 Humanitarian of the Year by the Palm Springs B l a ck H i s t o r y Committee...

Melisse Banwer Mazel tov to

CAREGIVER AVAILABLE. Let me give you a helping hand at a reasonable rate. Experienced in personal care. Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Stroke cases.

Cooking, errands and light housekeeping. Strong. Reliable.

References and background check available. 760-668-6764.

TEMPLE SINAI GIFT SHOP: One of a kind and largest Judaica shop here in the desert. For all your traditional needs and unique gift items. Special orders available.

For information call the Temple office, 760-568-9699.

JFS VOLUNTEERS WELCOME: JFS has rewarding volunteer opportunities available and is now accepting applications for the following positions: Let’s Do Lunch! Program Driver, Let’s Do Lunch! Program Volunteer, Friendly Visitor, JFS Express Senior Ride Transportation driver, Front Office Assistant. For more information contact 760-779-9400 Ext. 204.

26 • JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org

Tiffany Campbell, daughter of Annemarie Campbell, who will celebrate her B a t M i t z va h a t Chabad of Rancho Mirage on February 7th. That Shabbat Tiffany Campbell was chosen as it is the 94 th birthday of her grandfather, Alex Iser Reifer, who will be reading the Torah for her Bat Mitzvah ... February 7th will be a special Bar Dr. Sidney Sharzer Mitzvah at Temple Sinai as well. Dr. Sidney Sharzer will be celebrating the 75th anniversary of his Bar Mitzvah.

Mazel tov and yasher koach! ... Mazel tov to Gracie Novack, Gracie Novack

daughter of Diane and Jason Novack, granddaughter of Annette and Larry Novack, who will be called to the Torah as a Bat Mitzvah at Temple Sinai on February 21 ... Mazel Tov to Spencer Eldred, son of Ken and Elaine Eldred of Palm Desert, brother of Laura and Natalie, grandson of Esther Spencer Eldred Crayton of Palm Desert and grandson of Dorothy and the late Harvey Antflick of Las Vegas, who was sworn in as an attorney for the State of California on Thursday, December 4. Spencer graduated from the University of Chicago Law School in June 2014. He was a 2006 graduate of Palm Desert High School and a 2010 graduate of Duke University. Share your Simchas with us. Call Miriam Bent at 760-323-0255 or email her at mhbentjcn@earthlink.net.

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San Franciscan Joshua Raoul Brody, coach 10 am - 1 pm. Palm Springs Animal Shelter Community Room: direct street access. $45 registration.

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IMPROV THEATER FUN AND GAMES WORKSHOPS from Th e I m p r ov O a s i s a t Je w i s h Community Center/Temple Isaiah.

Wednesdays 7 - 9 pm, February 11, 25; March 11, 25. Saturdays 2 - 4 pm February 21, March 21. $15/class. Questions/Registration 760-656-8338 or jongold4@ gmail.com. Like us on Facebook.

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C O N G R E G AT I O N H A R - E L WELCOMES YOU to their 25th Shabbat Eve Lecture Series coordinated by Dr. Harold Linstone.

Lectures follow 5 PM Shabbat Eve services. Friday, February 6, 2015: Dr. Fred Abramson on “How Do Drugs Work and Sometimes Why Not.” Friday, March 6, 2015: Len Kapner on “Making Something Out of Nothing: Creating a Hi Tech Hub in the California Desert.”

Friday, April 17, 2015: Joel Kocen on “Bringing a New Technology to the World.” Shabbat Services 5 PM followed by lecture, discussion and Oneg. No registration required.

For information pertaining to Galen Trimester Courses, Special Events, Passover Seder and Guest Speakers call: 760-779-1691 or E-mail: harelurj@gmail.com.

We Mourn the Passing of...

Frank Handler, Myles Jarrow, Joseph S. Scher and Jerome Stone. Our deepest sympathies to their families and friends. May their memories endure as a blessing.

Shabbat Yitro Shabbat Mishpatim Shabbat Terumah Shabbat Tetzaveh

Stories in the news that bring a smile!

A Jew in the Harry Potter Series?

By Rachel Avraham, Jerusalem Online

Candle Lighting Times Friday, February 6 Friday, February 13 Friday, February 20 Friday, February 27

Laugh out Loud

4:39 pm 4:46 pm 4:52 pm 4:59 pm

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR WELCOMED The Jewish Community News welcomes letters to the editor Publication will be based on appropriateness of material and available space, at the discretion of the editorial staff. We reserve the right to edit submissions.

Submit letters of 250 words or less by e-mail to: mhbentjcn@earthlink. net, fax to 760-320-6085 or mail to the Jewish Federation, 69-710 Hwy. 111, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270, attn: Editor, JCN.

CREATING

a Jewish legacy empowers you to support the Jewish causes you care about. Because all of us, regardless of age, wealth, or affiliation, have the ability to secure our people’s traditions, promote Jewish values, and create a strong future for generations to come.

To learn more about Legacy Giving, contact Bruce Landgarten, Jewish Federation Chief Executive Off icer, at 760-324-4737.

OF PALM SPRINGS & DESERT AREA

69-710 Highway 111, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 760-324-4737

The Strength of a People.

The Power of Community.

Fans of Harry Potter can now rejoice. J.K. Rowling has finally announced that the series of books also has Jews hidden inside it. When the author was asked on twitter if there would ever be Jews in her series, she answered, “Anthony Goldstein, Ravenclaw, is Jewish.” She then proceeded to tell her followers: “To everyone asking whether their religion/belief/ non-belief system is represented at Hogwarts: the only people I never imagined there are Wiccans.”

People are asking who Goldstein is. Goldstein ate his holiday’s sufganiyot far away from the center of the plot layout, despite the fact that he was a member of Dumbledore’s Army. He is one of the six members of Dumbledore’s Army that protects Harry from Draco Malfoy. According to the Daily Mail, he also took part in the Battle of Hogwarts.

FAST FOOD PICK-UP

Desperate to save his corner grocery from going broke after 40 years behind the cash register, an aging Bnei Brak merchant named Yoav applied his noodle: Closing early one Friday afternoon, the grocer went to check out the competition – the major chain stores eating away at his business base like an army of termites.

No, he couldn’t beat their prices. Nor their wide selection. The place was mobbed, with plenty of familiar faces of former clientele in the check-out lines, but not one happy camper could be found - not even in the so-called ‘express line’.

YES! Time was on his side! Delivering fliers throughout the neighbourhood, Yoav the grocer announced he would be taking orders by e-mail by Thursday evenings for any amount of groceries – large or small – which could be picked up, like piping hot take-away pizzas, early Friday morning after dropping the kids off at school – already bagged and tallied up. The unique ‘beat-the-system system’ has been such a hit the ‘arrangement’ now operates on weekdays, as well.

DEBATING SOLO?

A 21 year-old first-year student at the Hebrew University found herself in a unique bind when it turned out she was the only student registered to major in the University’s undergraduate Talmud program that semester. The ten other students who had registered all decided to major in something else. What made her plight particularly difficult was not just that there was no one to copy notes from if she skipped a class. Talmud study is based on a chevruta – or studying and arguing in groups. Luckily, there are a few ‘Talmud groupies’ who show up to sit in on her classes without paying tuition or enrolling in the courses.

JCN • February 2015 • Shevat/Adar 5775 • www.jfedps.org • 27

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