Participants with signs that read “A Jewish Voice Against Annexation”. Click here for more pictures
This week:
Rabbis for Human Rights and Oz VeShalom Hold Public Protest Vigil and Prayer for Peace: A Religious Jewish Voice Against Annexation. At the Vigil Rabbis for Human Rights Releases Rabbinic Letter Against the Annexation with 140 Signatures of Israeli Rabbis from a Variety of Denominations. Continue reading
As the holiday approaches, Rabbis for Human Rights share a special Shavuot edition of their newsletter.
The Calling of Shavuot: Standing Again at Sinai & Standing for Justice
Rabbi Michael Marmur, Chairperson, Rabbis for Human Rights
Shavuot Sameach! This year the festival of Shavuot will be experienced in a different way than usual. In various stages of post-lockdown, puzzling over the cultural, institutional and economic impact of this global crisis, Continue reading
An open letter from Rabbi Michael Marmur, Chair, Rabbi for Human Rights and an appeal for donations to help create an Israel of equals, with democracy and human rights and where all Israelis and Palestinians are treated with dignity and respect.
Avi Dabush, director of Rabbis for Human Rights, talks about life under constant rocket fire in Sderot and the need for peace with Gaza in an interview with the Jewish Chronicle on 22 March 2020: Continue reading
With an expired “closed military zone” order the Israeli Army prohibited 200 Rabbis for Human Rights (RHR) activists from planting olive trees together with Palestinian farmers, in the Yaasuf village olive groves, some of which had previously been damaged by settlers.
RHR’s Executive Director, Avi Dabush: “It is incomprehensible why the army interprets planting olive trees and eating dried fruit as ‘an attempt to disturb the public order’. It is clear that the only “order” that has been interfered with was to plant trees in accordance with the traditions of the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shvat.” Continue reading
Avi Dabush, Executive Director of Rabbis for Human Rights, spoke at the British Friends of Rabbis for Human Rights AGM last December. This speech, discussing peacefully bringing together the different cultures and peoples of Israel, is reproduced here with his kind permission.
Avi also wrote a reflective piece on Human Rights, on the occasion of Tu B’Shvat this year, before RHR went out to plant olive trees in the West Bank where they had previously been burnt and uprooted. Read In the Shadow of an Uprooted Olive Tree here. Continue reading
At the British Friends of Rabbis for Human Rights’ AGM on 9 December 2019, Rabbi Michael Marmur delivered the below speech, reproduced here with his permission.
At this time of year we read the Torah passage relating Jacob’s dream and try to interpret what it means. There are three clues as to what it is about:-
The President of Rabbis for Human Rights, Rabbi Levi Weiman-Kelman, the Board of directors, and the professional staff are pleased to announce the appointment of Avi Dabush— a well-known environmental, social, and political activist— to the position of Executive Director of Rabbis for Human Rights. Over recent months this position was held by Advocate Becky Keshet, who will now direct the organization’s social justice and public policy projects. Continue reading
Rabbi Levi Weiman-Kelman
Rabbis for Human Rights have announced their new president, Rabbi Levi Weiman-Kelman. Founder of Congregation Kol Haneshama, a centre for progressive Jewish life in Jerusalem, he has also previously served RHR as Chair. Rabbi Weiman-Kelman teaches at the Hebrew Union College Jerusalem, and frequently lectures in Israel and abroad on Jewish spirituality and prayer.
We hope to bring Rabbi Weiman-Kalman to the UK after the chagim. Read the full statement from RHR here.
Dear Ambassador Taub
We are writing to you out of deep commitment to Israel and to Judaism.
The Torah teaches us that ‘the stranger who lives with you shall be as a native from among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt’ (Vayikra 19:34).
Today, the Palestinian residents of Susiya face the imminent destruction of their village, the place they call home. This is scheduled to take place between now and August 3rd. The courts have ruled that 37 structures in the village are due for demolition because they were built without permits, despite the fact the land on which they stand belongs to the Palestinian villagers of Susiya.