Williamsburg, NY – Despite some community unhappiness over the relatively few units of affordable housing it will offer, a big mixed-use development on the Williamsburg waterfront called Rose Plaza moved one step closer to becoming a reality. It came when the city Planning Department, in a narrow 7-5 vote, approved the rezoning necessary for the three-building [...]

Cairo, Egypt – Egypt will shoulder the costs of restoring the country’s Jewish houses of worship said the culture minister Tuesday, two days after a historic synagogue in Cairo’s ancient Jewish quarter was rededicated in a private ceremony. Farouk Hosny said in a statement that his ministry views Jewish sites as much a part of Egypt’s [...]

Cairo, Egypt – Egypt will shoulder the costs of restoring the country’s Jewish houses of worship said the culture minister Tuesday, two days after a historic synagogue in Cairo’s ancient Jewish quarter was rededicated in a private ceremony. Farouk Hosny said in a statement that his ministry views Jewish sites as much a part of Egypt’s [...]

New York, NY – Continental Airlines Inc., the fourth-biggest U.S. carrier, expects to collect $350 million in checked bag fees this year. Continental Chief Executive Officer Jeff Smisek disclosed the figure during remarks today at a J.P. Morgan aviation conference in New York. Houston-based Continental is working on “many, many” additional products and services that it may [...]

New York, NY – New Yorkers can smell a con from a mile away. Federal statistics show city residents are among the least likely to fall victim to fraud. Scammers successfully ripped off more than 1.3 million consumers across the U.S., but the city didn’t even make the list of the top 50 complaint centers. The most vulnerable? [...]

Manhattan, NY – The city’s infrastructure is crumbling, and there are few funds for repairs, but one artist may have a solution: Legos. Two weeks ago, German artist Jan Vormann and a team of volunteers began filling in cracks in city buildings with the plastic building blocks. The repairs across the city were done as part of [...]

Washington, DC – Step right up folks, for “The Worst Shiva on Earth!” What was supposed to be a fond remembrance of a beloved aunt turned into a three-ring rumble when the man who runs the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus had his sister forcibly tossed out of the memorial like a Flying Wallenda, [...]

Caracas – A report by the human rights watchdog of the Organization of American States warns of a possible “threat to the life and physical integrity of the Jewish community in Venezuela” due to the Chavez regime’s violations of the political and human rights of its citizens. In a lengthy report, the Inter-American Commission on Human [...]

Israel – Obedient to intensifying U.S. government pressure to crack down on offshore tax evaders, Israeli banks began ordering clients they identify as “Americans” or “U.S. tax residents” to close investment accounts they hold in Israel. It is apparently an anticipatory measure, ahead of changes in U.S. law. Local banks are apparently responding to changes [...]

Jersey City, NJ – A third New York City police officer has been charged in the robbery of $1 million worth of perfume from a northern New Jersey warehouse. Federal authorities arrested Kelvin Jones of Yonkers, N.Y., on Monday. The 28-year-old is accused of renting a truck in Jersey City last month that was used to [...]