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WASHINGTON — Actor Sean Penn urged a congressional hearing to pressure Bolivia to release a haredi Orthodox father of five under house arrest in the country.
Penn appeared Monday, May 20, at a hearing on the case of Jacob Ostreicher of Brooklyn, who has been held nearly two years in Bolivia on accusations that he was in business with drug traffickers and money launderers. No proof has ever been provided in court.
US Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), who has gone to Bolivia in an effort to free Ostreicher, held the hearing.
Penn, an Academy Award winner well known for his social activism, told the hearing that he has spoken to Bolivian President Evo Morales and believes that although Morales has the best of intentions, the judiciary is so corrupt in his country that the president is powerless.
NEW YORK — Jewish groups are joining the effort to help those displaced by the tornado in suburban Oklahoma City.
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, announced Tuesday, May 21, that his organization will collect donations and distribute them to the American Red Cross and others on the ground in Oklahoma.
“We are numb with grief, and yet inspired by the heroic resilience of the people of Oklahoma,” Jacobs said. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those impa...
IN a significant expansion of its mission to make the community more aware of the threat of terrorism, the CELL — Counterterrorism Education Learning Lab — last week announced a joint initiative with Denver’s Transportation on Patrol program in which the CELL will train several new groups of professional drivers to be ever more vigilant.
At a May 14 press conference held at the CELL’s multi-media facility near the Denver Art Museum, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and developer-philanthrop...