The Senate passed a bill that could disrupt morning prayers. Orthodox groups are fighting back.

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Zelenskyy invoked 'final solution' in speech to Knesset, why Jared Kushner is headed to Israel, and which member of Congress used his bar mitzvah photo in a new fundraising email?

THE WEEK IN POLITICS

Our senior political correspondent, Jacob Kornbluh, on what to expect this week in Washington, New York and Jerusalem…

Exclusive | Orthodox groups launch belated battle against permanent daylight saving time: Caught by surprise when the Senate unanimously passed a bill last week to stop springing forward and falling back, the Orthodox Union plans to send a letter to congressional leaders today warning that the change will “interfere with the ability of members of our community to engage in congregational prayers and get to their places of work on time.” Some cities would have winter sunrises after 9 a.m. under the new law.

Issue worth fighting for: Rabbi Abba Cohen of the Agudath Israel of America said his group is now scrambling to lobby House members to reject the bill when it comes to them for a vote. “Our immediate goal is to at least slow it down,” Cohen said in an interview, “so that we have an opportunity to have our views known and, frankly, have an opportunity to join with allies in trying to fight the bill,” he said. Read the story ➤

The Iran deal

Israeli leaders issued a rare public rebuke of the Biden administration as talks about a renewed Iran nuclear deal moved toward a conclusion. “Unfortunately, there is determination to sign a nuclear agreement with Iran at almost any price,” Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said at his weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday. On Friday, Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid issued a statement warning against removing the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps from the U.S. blacklist of foreign terrorist organizations. Benjamin Netanyahu, Bennett’s predecessor, joined the criticism in an interview with Fox News Sunday evening.

Plus: Nir Barkat, a Likud member of Knesset who is in the U.S. to lobby against concessions to Iran, said in an interview that Israel should take a strong stand against the Russian assault on Ukraine. Read the story ➤

In Washington, all but one of the Senate’s 50 Republicans have already expressed firm opposition to the deal. Some senior Democrats have also raised concerns about concessions the U.S. has reportedly made to bring Iran back in compliance with the terms of the previous deal, signed in 2015.

Reps. Josh Gottheimer, a Democrat from New Jersey, and Brian Mast, a Republican from Florida, introduced legislation on Friday that would authorize the president to provide Israel with bunker-buster munitions capable of taking out Iranian nuclear infrastructure. Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, both Republicans, also introduced a bill to bar the Biden administration from waiving sanctions related to Iran’s civil nuclear program.

And more…

THE WAR IN UKRAINE

Arsen Revzov left Russia with his startup's two cofounders and all three have relocated to Israel. (Hadas Prosh)

For Russians in tech, Israeli passport is a golden parachute: A week before Russia invaded Ukraine, Arsen Revzov, an artist and technology entrepreneur, decided to pack his bags and leave Russia for Israel. He was not alone. Hundreds are making a similar move. Along with the stipends, Hebrew immersion and other benefits available to every Jew who makes aliyah, entrepreneurs also receive special advice on the tech scene, grants and loans. Read the story ➤

Jewish leaders are flocking to Ukraine’s border. Some question the trips.With rabbis and organization heads trekking to the region to bring supplies and bear witness to the fastest-growing refugee crisis since World War II, debate has emerged over the ethics. Critics say the visitors, however well-intentioned, inevitably commandeer scarce resources like hotel rooms and translators better used by relief workers and refugees themselves. Those organizing the trips say they’re important both to show support for those relief workers and to help rally their communities behind the effort once they return home. “We will not stand on the sidelines while this tragedy unfolds,” said David Harris, chief of the American Jewish Committee. Read the story ➤

And more…

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

📸 Take a look at the bar mitzvah photo above: See if you can guess which member of Congress it is. Yep, it’s Rep. Adam Schiff, Democrat from California, who sent out a fundraising email to his supporters with the picture attached. “I’ll admit, it’s easy to chuckle at this photo,” Schiff wrote. “The classic 1970s bow tie, the braces, the yarmulke, the looks — but it reminded me about something much more important: my faith.” He went on to explain how the Jewish concept of repairing the world animates his political career. (Forward)

😷 Daily COVID cases are on the rise in Israel, reaching their highest levels in a month. According to new Health Ministry data, Israel recorded 12,869 new cases on Monday, an increase of 5,070 from the previous day. The infectious BA.2 variant has replaced Omicron as the dominant strain in the country, amid concerns of a new wave. (Haaretz)

✍️ More than 500 current and former employees of the Union for Reform Judaism have signed a letter criticizing the organization’s response to a February report detailing a history of sexual harassment at its summer camps and other programs. “We await – with high expectations and limited patience – a concrete plan and public timeline for institutional review and reform,” said the letter. (Forward)

💰 Jared Kushner is scheduled to visit Israel this week in search of tech investments. In addition to funding, Kushner plans to offer Israeli companies contacts to senior executives in Arab countries that are part of the Abraham Accords, including Morocco and the United Arab Emirates. (Calcalist)

🥐 Zak Stern, the owner of the popular Miami eatery “Zak the Baker,” was named a finalist for a James Beard Award, aka the Oscars of the food industry. The winners will be announced in Chicago on June 13. (Eater)

📺 Maury Povich, 83, announced that he will retire after more than 30 years on television. The last episode of his syndicated talk show will air later this year. (Deadline)

Shiva call ➤ Younes Nazarian, an Iranian Jewish philanthropist who galvanized support for Israel, died at 91. Nazarian came from humble beginnings: as a boy he sold light bulbs in the alleys and bazaars of Tehran. After Israel became a state in 1948, he moved there with his mother, but later returned to Iran with his brother to start a construction business. The family fled during the 1979 Islamic Revolution and settled in Los Angeles, where they started from scratch. “He lost everything when he came to America,” said his son, Sam. But Nazarian rebounded: An early technology investment turned him into a billionaire. Read his obituary ➤

What else we’re reading ➤ Artem Dolgopyat, an Israeli Olympian, won a gold medal at the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup in Cairo on Saturday … Surfside, Florida – site of a 2021 building collapse that killed dozens of Jewish people – elected its first Orthodox mayor ... New reforms look to chip away Israeli chief rabbis’ power.

ON THE CALENDAR

On this day in history: Pope John Paul II traveled to Israel on March 21, 2000, visiting sites holy to Christians, Muslims and Jews. He placed a note into the cracks of the Western Wall that asked for forgiveness for centuries of Jewish persecution. Upon his death in 2005, the Anti-Defamation League said that “more change for the better took place in his 27-year papacy than in the nearly 2,000 years before.” Our predecessors echoed that sentiment in an unsigned editorial in the Forward: “More than any pope before him, he made Christian-Jewish reconciliation a personal mission and imposed it on his church.”

Last year on this day, we speculated on four scenarios for Israel’s unprecedented fourth election.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Close to 1 million people crowded into the Israeli town of Bnei Brak on Sunday to join the funeral procession of Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky. It was one of the largest funerals since the establishment of the Jewish State. Kanievsky, an influential Haredi leader known as the “Prince of Torah,” died on Friday at 94. Read his obituary ➤

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Thanks to Rob Eshman and Jacob Kornbluh for contributing to today’s newsletter. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com.

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