Palestine
Kerry to visit Mideast in bid to calm Palestinian-Israeli tensions
By Reuters — October 14, 2015
BOSTON (Reuters) The trip would mark U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's most direct efforts to broker peace between the two sides since talks led by the United States failed last year.
Palestinian ‘Day of Rage’ attacks shake Jerusalem
By Reuters — October 13, 2015
JERUSALEM (Reuters) Recent violence has been stirred in part by Muslim anger over increasing Jewish visits to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem.
Muslim elected president of student wing of prominent pro-Israel group
By Lauren Markoe — August 25, 2015
WASHINGTON, D.C. (RNS) Amna Farooqi, 21, a Pakistani-American and a senior at the University of Maryland, says she loves Israel, cares deeply about Palestinians and sees nothing contradictory about it.
Attack that killed toddler prompts Israel to OK holding suspects without trial
By Reuters — August 2, 2015
No arrests have been made yet in the firebombing of two homes that killed a toddler but it bore the mark of other attacks by young Jewish zealots targeting Arabs, Christians, peace activists or Israeli army property.
Vatican and Palestinian leaders sign historic first legal treaty
By Rosie Scammell — June 26, 2015
VATICAN CITY (RNS) As part of the accord, the Vatican has thrown its support behind a peace deal based on the 1967 border, before Israel annexed large swaths of territory during the Six-Day War.
Supreme Court: US passports must say ‘Jerusalem,’ not ‘Israel’
By Richard Wolf — June 8, 2015
WASHINGTON -- The status of Jerusalem has been at the top of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict ever since Israel was recognized in 1948. The official U.S. policy is spelled out in a State Department manual: "For a person born in Jerusalem, write JERUSALEM as the place of birth in the passport. Do not write Israel, Jordan or West Bank."
Vatican decision to recognize Palestine upsets Israeli government, Jewish advocacy groups
By Michele Chabin — May 13, 2015
JERUSALEM (RNS) Israel's Foreign Ministry representative said the government was “disappointed by the decision."
BREAKING: Vatican recognizes State of Palestine
By Kim Hjelmgaard — May 13, 2015
The treaty, not yet signed, makes clear the Holy See has switched its diplomatic relations from the Palestinian Liberation Organization to the state of Palestine.
New Palestinian saints highlight region’s beleaguered Christians
By Rosie Scammell — May 11, 2015
VATICAN CITY (RNS) The two nuns offer a glimmer of hope for Middle Eastern Christians, beset by violence and recent targeting by militants from the Islamic State group.
On election’s eve, Netanyahu says no Palestinian state as long as he’s Israel’s PM
By Reuters — March 17, 2015
HAR HOMA, West Bank (Reuters) "Whoever moves to establish a Palestinian state or intends to withdraw from territory is simply yielding territory for radical Islamic terrorist attacks against Israel."
Détente on Christmas * Beard passes * Christ Bless Mississippi: Religious Freedom Recap
By Brian Pellot — December 4, 2014
This month's religious freedom news and views from around the world. Read with caution. Prozac optional.
Yale chaplain’s resignation reflects larger mainline tensions over Israel
By Sarah Pulliam Bailey — September 16, 2014
(RNS) The Rev. Bruce Shipman, an Episcopal chaplain at Yale, resigned last week after he wrote a controversial New York Times letter.
Father Knows Best: So many bad things are happening. Where has God gone?
By Martin Elfert — August 27, 2014
I’m so troubled by all that is happening in our world. The forest fires this summer, the airplanes being lost or shot down, the fighting in Gaza. Where has God gone?
Evangelical leaders will travel to Israel to signal their support
By Sarah Pulliam Bailey — August 12, 2014
(RNS) The trip will include Billy Graham's daughter Anne Graham Lotz, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins and former Southern Baptist ethics czar Richard Land.
Presbyterians remove controversial ‘Zionism Unsettled’ from denomination’s website
By Lauren Markoe — July 1, 2014
(RNS) The Presbyterian Church (USA) is no longer selling the controversial "Zionism Unsettled" on its website, to the relief of many Jewish organizations.
