A screen grab of the group page of “BoS anti-Israel League”, which was subsequently removed from the site, www.boredofstudies.org, last week.

CHANTAL ABITBOL

A POPULAR student website has banned an anti-Israel group from using its site after a spate of anti-Semitic postings were uncovered last week.

The comments were published under a group registered as “BoS anti-Israel League” on the Sydney-based site, www.boredofstudies.org, which in recent years has become a well-known resource hub for students sitting their HSC exams.

Among the threads was a post about finding synagogues in Sydney and featured information on how to make a Molotov cocktail. Another thread, titled “F—- Israel”, included a posting from a blogger, which read: “Kill all da f—-ing Jews … f—-ing hate every single one of them … I hope Iran nukes them big time.”

Deenu Rajaratnam, a spokesperson for the site, this week told The AJN he was alerted to the offensive material on December 16 and immediately moved to delete it and ban the group from its site. He has also spoken with moderators and taken steps to tighten their surveillance.
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Students from Gardenvale Primary school in the Chabad Youth mobile succah. Photo: Peter Haskin

IF you can’t come to the succah, the succah will come to you thanks to Chabad Youth’s mobile succah service.

The succah visited Gardenvale Primary School in Melbourne this week, where United Jewish Education Board students had the opportunity to sit inside and make the blessing on the lulav and etrog.

Succahs will be taken down at the end of this weekend with the completion of the seven-day festival. Succot is followed by Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah on Saturday and Sunday.

The King David School’s Adam Black blows the shofar.

AJN STAFF

MELBOURNE’S Jewish school students have welcomed Rosh Hashanah with much anticipation.

In recent days students have been learning about the festival, dressing up, practising blowing the shofar and dipping apples in lots of honey.

The Central Arava region in Israel. Photo: AJN file

DALIA SABLE

FIFTEEN Israeli students from the Arava region have arrived in Australia for a three-week visit as part of the Jewish Agency for Israel’s Partnership 2000 initiative.

The initiative is part of the global “living bridge” project aimed at connecting Israeli communities with Diaspora communities.

The Partnership 2000 initiative was adopted by Australia’s United Israel Appeal (UIA) 13 years ago and connects the local community with that of the Central Arava region in Israel.

UIA’s Arava Australia Partnership national coordinator Ilana Maizels said: “Such partnerships are designed to allow for the development of personal relationships between Diaspora Jews and Israeli people, to be an educational tool in informing Jews about Israeli life, people and places, and to assist in sharing expertise regarding community-building and community development.”

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Alexandra Merkrebs with her Premiers award for a perfect score in VCE business studies in 2008.

DALIA SABLE

THE highest achieving Victorian Curriculum of Education (VCE) students of 2008 were recognised with Premiers awards in a ceremony at the New Melbourne Convention Centre this week.

Among the top achievers were more than 10 Jewish students from Melbourne’s Jewish and non-Jewish schools. They received their awards from Victorian Premier John Brumby at the ceremony on Tuesday, July 21.

The Jewish schools were once again successful with Mount Scopus Memorial College leading the charge with five students — Gabrielle Debinski (English), Nadav Harel (religion and society), Daniel Nash (religion and society), Jake Newstadt (religion and society) and David Spicer (accounting).
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Photo: AUJS president Daniel Kitay. Photo by: AJN file

NAOMI LEVIN

JEWISH students have joined forces with an unlikely ally to create one of the largest campus-based campaigns against prejudice and intolerance ever held in Australia. The Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS), together with the National Union of Students (NUS), launched Students Against Racism And Hatred (SARAH) this week.

Within a few days, more than 600 students had signed up to be part of SARAH via the group’s page on the social networking site, Facebook. The group is the brainchild of AUJS political director Glen Falkenstein, who helped forge the links with the NUS, which has traditionally been more closely aligned with pro-Palestinian groups than the Jewish students. Read the full story

Dave Burnett with his sister Debbie in Eilat, one week before his death in January last year.

JOCELYN ROBUCK

A GROUP of Australian students travelled to Israel last month to visit a memorial for former Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS) vice-president Dave Burnett in Kiryat Shemona. The trip was organised by AUJS and included students on the Academy and Leadership Development Program.

The memorial, which is located near the Lebanon border, was created by the US-based Centre for Leadership Initiatives. The foundation presents the Charlie Awards annually in recognition of the achievements of leading participants in Taglit-Birthright Israel around the world. Read the full story