From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
John Kasich: NATO could play a role in transmitting Judeo-Christian values
Republican presidential candidate John Kasich addressing the annual policy conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee in Washington, D.C., March 21, 2016. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Making NATO a policing organization would play a role in transmitting what John Kasich has described as Judeo-Christian values, the Republican presidential candidate said.
“With Europe, I said that NATO needed to be transformed into a policing and intelligence organization,” Kasich, the governor of Ohio, said in an extensive interview with the New York Daily News editorial board posted Tuesday.
Kasich was referring – unprompted by his interviewers – to controversy he stirred last year when he proposed a U.S. Department of Judeo-Christian values that would promote Western ideas in the same way that U.S. State Department bodies have in the past promoted U.S. culture and values.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
In Ukraine, a Jewish wunderkind is tapped to be prime minister
Vlodymir Groysman would be Ukraine’s first openly Jewish prime minister and its youngest. (Wikimedia Commons)
VINNYTSIA, Ukraine (JTA) — Like many Ukrainian mayors, Vlodymir Groysman used to visit his local synagogue on Rosh Hashanah and Hanukkah.
But unlike most of them Groysman, the former mayor of Vinnytsia, did not visit the synagogue as a political gesture. He was going in his private capacity as a member of his central Ukraine city’s Jewish community.
Groysman’s Jewishness is not very unusual, even for a mayor and senior politician in Ukraine, where 360,000 Jews live. But his openness about it was not customary in a country where anti-Semitism and decades of Communist repression once made it undesirable for politicians to be seen as too Jewish, said the local rabbi, Shaul Horowitz.
Last year, his reputation as an honest and effective administrator earned Groysman the title of speaker of the Ukrainian parliament. This week, he emerged as President Petro Poroshenko’s pick for prime minister, which would make him the first openly Jewish person to hold the country’s second highest post and, at 38, the youngest person to have the job.
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From PressTV
Turkish army shells ‘Daesh positions’ in northern Syria
Turkish military forces have shelled northern Syria, claiming to have targeted positions of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in the war-torn Arab country.
The Wednesday shelling, according to the Turkish army, came after Daesh elements fired rockets into the southern Turkish border town of Kilis for the third straight day.
The mayor of Kilis, Hasan Kara, told Reuters that there were no casualties in the town after multiple rockets landed in an empty field.
“We go to sleep to the sounds of rockets and we wake up to the sound of rockets,” Kara said.
On Tuesday, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said 21 people had been injured this week in the shelling in Kilis.
Last month, two people, including a child, were killed by rocket fire into the Kilis.
From Russia Today
Merkel agreement with Turkish President Erdogan ‘real treason’ – Marine Le Pen
Published time: 13 Apr, 2016 16:50
Marine Le Pen, French National Front political party leader. © Jean-Pierre Amet / Reuters
Marine Le Pen, leader of the French National Front party, has called Angela Merkel’s talks with Turkey over the migrant deal “real treason,” saying Erdogan’s government shows “unacceptable leniency” towards Islamic State and “buys oil from terrorists.”
Le Pen has described the recent deal with Turkey as “a serious democratic problem.”
Last month, EU leaders and Turkey agreed a plan aimed at opening a “safe and legal” route to the EU for Syrian refugees. Under the deal, sealed on March 20, Ankara is to take back all migrants and refugees, including Syrians, who cross the Aegean Sea and enter Greece illegally. In return, the EU will take in thousands of Syrian refugees directly from Turkey, rewarding Ankara with a fast visa-free travel regime, advancement in EU membership talks and – last but not least – more money.
“First of all, Frau Merkel did not possess the necessary powers [to strike the deal]. Secondly, she went against the will of the majority of the people in Europe. She conducted talks with Erdogan on unacceptable conditions, such as the €6-billion subvention, visa-free travel for Turks, and even Turkey’s admission to the EU – something that France has been strongly against. This is real treason and betrayal of the people,” the far-right National Front (FN) leader said in an exclusive interview with LifeNews.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Amid rumors, White House rules out giving Iran access to US dollar
An Iranian police helicopter passes by portraits of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, and the former Ayatollah Khomeini, in Tehran, Iran, June 4, 2015. (John Moore/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The Obama administration will continue to block Iran’s access to the dollar or the U.S. financial system, its top sanctions official said amid speculation to the contrary.
“We will not provide Iran access to the U.S. financial system, and we will not restore the ‘U-turn’ authorization,” Adam Szubin, the acting undersecretary of the Treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence said Wednesday at a conference of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
Until 2008, the U.S. allowed Iran to make U-turn transactions, or offshore-to-offshore payments that crossed the U.S. banking sector for just a second. There has been speculation in the media and among pro-Israel groups that the Obama administration was planning to ease sanctions on Iran beyond what was agreed in the Iran nuclear deal, including possibly allowing U-turn transactions again.
President Barack Obama said earlier this month that such an allowance was not necessary, but Szubin’s statement, made to a think tank that has been highly critical of the Iran nuclear deal, was the first time the administration unequivocally ruled it out.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Teaneck rabbi downplays campus rape problem, prompting anger
Weighing in on the debate about rape culture on college campuses, an Orthodox rabbi from New Jersey prompted controversy with commentary suggesting women are to blame and are exaggerating the problem. (Jay Paul/Getty Images)
NEW YORK (JTA) – An Orthodox women’s group is calling for the ouster of a Teaneck rabbi from a synagogue conference after he penned a blog post dismissive of the problem of rape on college campuses.
Last week, Rabbi Steven Pruzansky of Bnai Yeshurun, a large Orthodox synagogue in the northern New Jersey township, suggested on his blog that many campus encounters characterized as rapes more likely were consensual sexual encounters in which the woman decided to call it rape only later because the man subsequently decided he wasn’t interested in an ongoing romantic relationship.
“There have even been occasions when the woman who later claimed she was ‘raped’ spent the night, or several nights thereafter, with her beau, only to realize weeks later after their breakup that she had been assaulted,” Pruzansky wrote. “If indeed there was a ‘rape culture’ on American campuses, no intelligent woman would want to attend college. The fact that more women attend college today than men itself belies the accusation.”
The blog post is raising hackles on social media and has prompted several angry columns in response.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Watch
John Kasich to Orthodox Jews: Abraham, not Moses, the star of the Torah
WASHINGTON (JTA) — John Kasich bantered with haredi Orthodox Jews about which biblical figure was most significant and other lessons from the Jewish Bible.
The Ohio governor and one of three Republicans left vying for the party’s presidential nomination toured a Jewish book store in Borough Park, a Brooklyn neighborhood, Tuesday, Jewish Insider reported. New York State’s primary is next Tuesday.
“The story of the people are Abraham and God made a covenant with Abraham — not Moses!” Kasich told Ezra Friedlander, a Haredi lobbyist who was escorting Kasich through the heavily Haredi neighborhood.
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From PressTV
Transitional government nothing short of coup d’etat: Syria
A top Syrian official has rejected the “dream” of a transitional government without President Bashar al-Assad, saying that such ideas are nothing short of a “coup d’etat.”
“This will not happen, not now, nor tomorrow nor ever,” Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad was quoted as saying by The Associated Press on Wednesday.
“We believe such an idea has failed, it is outdated, it will never be acceptable. This amounts in fact to a coup d’etat. People organize a certain rebellion and then they get power. This will never happen in Syria,” he added.
He went on to note that for the peace talks to proceed, “factual, actual solutions” most be reached.
“This includes the possibility of establishing a national unity government or a broad government that includes members of the opposition,” he said.
Assad recently offered the notion of a unity government conclusive of both government and opposition while rejecting a “transitional body with full executive powers.”
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From Russia Today
Turkey’s ‘irrational opposition’ to Kurdish participation in Syria peace ignored by West – Churkin
Published time: 14 Apr, 2016 05:44
Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin © Mike Segar / Reuters
The Russian Ambassador to the UN has called on members of the Security Council to exert influence on Turkey so that Kurds be included in the Syria peace process. Vitaly Churkin also warned against any “secret agenda” and further unilateral endeavors in Libya. TrendsLibyan conflict, Russian anti-terror op in Syria, Syria unrest
Speaking to Izvestiya daily on US-Russian interactions in Syria, Churkin said that Pentagon officials tend to underestimate the much needed cooperation with Moscow, as the Russian success in fighting Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorists took them by surprise.
“Generally speaking, close Russia-US interaction at various levels – political, diplomatic and military – is the backbone of the crisis settlement efforts. Everyone understands that. And the fact that the Americans, especially Pentagon representatives, are underestimating it may probably mean that they are still at a loss over Russia’s energetic actions in Syria in the last six months,” he said.
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From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton in statistical dead heat as most pro-Israel candidate, poll of Israelis finds
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton finished in a statistical dead heat as the most pro-Israel U.S. presidential candidate, according to a poll of Israelis.
Some 33 percent of respondents picked Trump, the Republican Party’s front-runner, as the most pro-Israel among the candidates, and 31 percent chose Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, according to the findings released Wednesday by the Ruderman Family Foundation.
But the margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points, making for the statistical tie.
Ted Cruz, who trails Trump among the Republicans, garnered 6 percent, while Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders was the choice of 5 percent.
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From Russia Today
‘Aggressive simulated attack’: Pentagon decries Russian jets zooming over USS Donald Cook (VIDEO)
Published time: 14 Apr, 2016 02:06
A Sukhoi Su-24 jet makes a low altitude pass by the USS Donald Cook (DDG 75) April 12, 2016. © US Navy / Reuters
The aerobatics skills of Russian pilots over the US destroyer Donald Cook in the Baltic Sea left the Pentagon and other US official running for cover in Washington over “aggressive close interactions” with Russian fighters jets.
Releasing the footage of Russian jet flybys in the vicinity of the destroyer, the US Navy said that its vessel has encountered multiple “aggressive flight maneuvers …within close proximity of the ship,” some as close as 30 feet (10 meters) on Monday and Tuesday.
The set of incidents took place as the US ship, which had sailed from the Polish port of Gdynia, was conducting exercises with its NATO ally Poland in the Baltic Sea. The Navy announced that the SU-24 first flew over Donald Cook on Monday as US sailors were rehearsing “deck landing drills with an allied [Polish] military helicopter”. The numerous close-range, low altitude encounters were witnessed at 3:00pm local time, forcing the commander of the ship to suspend helicopter refueling on the deck until the Russian jets departed the area.
The next day, the Navy said, Russia caused concern among US sailors when a Russian KA-27 Helix helicopter flew seven times over the ship at low altitude in international waters at around 5:00pm. Some 40 minutes later, two Russian SU-24 jets allegedly made a further 11 “close-range and low altitude passes”.
“The Russian aircraft flew in a simulated attack profile and failed to respond to repeated safety advisories in both English and Russian. USS Donald Cook’s commanding officer deemed several of these maneuvers as unsafe and unprofessional,” the Navy said.
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From Russia Today
5 Putin’s LOL quotes during annual Q&As
Published time: 13 Apr, 2016 22:48
© Alexei Druzhinin / Sputnik
During his hours-long customary interactions with the public, Russian President Vladimir Putin has not only commented on the pressing issues of the day, but has also enjoyed inserting jokes in his well-known manner. Here are just some from his Q&As in recent years.
When asked a philosophical question about when everything will be well in Russia, Putin’s reply was no less philosophical: “You can’t drink all the vodka. But you should aim to do so.”
© Aleksey Nikolskyi / Sputnik
Raising a question about wealth taxes in the country, communist activist and writer Aleksey Prokhanov told Putin that it was probably time to impose more, as the “wives and loved ones of Russian oligarchs cover themselves with diamonds from head to toe.”
READ MORE: Top 10 memorable moments from Putin’s marathon LIVE Q&As
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From Russia Today
ISIS destroys 2,000-year-old legendary ‘Gate of God’ in Iraq
Published time: 13 Apr, 2016 18:10
© lachicaphoto / Flickr
The IS has destroyed a 2,000-year-old gate near the Iraqi city of Mosul. The structure is known as the Gate of God, and used to guard the ancient Assyrian city Nineveh.
The destruction of the ancient structure, also called the Mashqi Gate, has been confirmed by the British Institute for the Study of Iraq, and the Antiquities Department in Baghdad hasn’t denied the demolition, The Independent reported.
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