COMMUNITY MAGAZINE May 2008

48 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE Israeli Court Allows Hamess on Passover The court ruling by Judge Tamar Bar Asher Zaban allowing the sale of Hamess by restaurants and groceries in Israel during Passover for the first time has created “anger and tension that has damaged the Jewish identity of the country,” according to one member of Israel’s parliament. Shas Chairman Eli Yishai drafted legislation on the issue to counter the opinion of the judge that the Passover law was “largely symbolic.” Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupoliansky and rabbinic s leaders appealed to store owners to ignore the court ruling and continue adhering to the Passover laws, explaining to store-owners that selling hamess on Passover will not bring them any true profit. Meanwhile, Israel’s Army Radio reported that a 27-year-old ultra-orthodox man was arrested for beginning to disrobe in a supermarket which was selling hamess on Passover in Bat Yam. The man explained to authorities that he should not have been arrested for his symbolic stunt to disrobe in a public place since Israeli courts ruled that a supermarket is not a public place with respect to selling hamess . Prime Minister Ehud Olmert declared that the court ruling “should not be turned into the basis of a culture war.” Market research reveals that 60 percent of adult Israelis who define themselves as not religious keep to basic kosher dietary laws anyway, separating milk from meat and refraining from eating prohibited seafood or pig products. – CM Staff Dozens ‘Killed’ in Israeli War Simulation Israel went to virtual “war” with Syria, Hizbullah and Hamas last month, with a five-day drill. The simulated conflict quickly escalated, with Israel being hit by Syrian missiles and Hamas- fired Kassams and Katyushas. A defense official involved in the exercise said that according to the National Emergency Authority, in charge of the drill, by the fourth day of the war several dozen civilians had been killed by the missiles. The official said that it was possible Israel would also start getting hit by Iranian Shihab-3 ballistic missiles. The drill had citizens running to their local bomb shelters, as practice for a real attack. – CM Staff Carter Embraces Hamas Terrorist Continuing to undermine US foreign policy and following a pattern of inept international blunders, former President Jimmy Carter was harshly criticized by Republican and Democrats alike for meeting with Khaled Meshal, the leader of Hamas which the U.S. government considers one of the leading terrorist threats in the world. Fellow Democrat Rep. Howard Berman, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee said Carter holds “warped” views on the Middle East. Carter was the first Western leader to meet with Hamas, a move which was also condemned by presi- dential candidate John McCain – but notably, not by Democratic candidate Barack Obama. Carter also made a point to lay a wreath on the grave of terrorist leader Yassar Arafat during his trip. One foreign policy observer noted that the incompetence that doomed Carter’s presidency has been repeated in his efforts in personal diplomacy. In 1991 he appealed to governments to not join the coalition to drive Saddam out of Kuwait. In 1994, he orchestrated a farcical deal with North Korea to halt its nuclear program. The North Koreans used Carter’s ineptitude to their advantage taking the negotiated incentives while brazenly building a dozen nukes. In the most recent example, by coddling Hamas, Carter has lent legitimacy, prestige and negotiating power to a despicable group the Bush administration has sought to isolate until its leaders recognize Israel and abandon terror. – CM Staff Belarus Jewish cemetery moved to dump Workers rebuilding a sports stadium on the site of an 18th century Jewish cemetery in Belarus have begun digging up bones and moving them to the city dump. According to a report in the international community