French far right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen convicted over Nazi remark
The founder of France's far right National Front party has been convicted of contesting crimes against humanity for saying the Nazi occupation wasn't "particularly inhumane." A French appeals court sentenced Jean-Marie Le Pen to a three-month suspended prison sentence on Thursday and a $13,000 fine. Le Pen made the comments in a magazine in 2005. France has strict laws against anti-Semitic speech and denying the Holocaust, and Le Pen was originally convicted for the remarks in 2009. A higher court annulled the decision and sent it back to the Paris appeals court, which ruled on Thursday. (AP )
Report: Guns N' Roses to perform in Israel
American hard-rock legends Guns N' Roses will arrive in Israel for a one-off performance this summer, sources among the show's producers told Haaretz on Thursday. The location and date have not been confirmed. If the L.A.-based group performs in Israel this year, it will be a different bunch than the band that rocked Hayakon Park in 1993, with only front man Axl Rose and keyboardist Dizzy Reed remaining. GNR is missing its other big star - guitarist Slash - who has been feuding with Rose ever since he left the band in 1996. (Uri Zer-Aviv )
Russian rabbi shortage keeps foreign teachers in place
Foreigners will continue teaching Torah to Russian Jews because there are not enough native-born rabbis. The decision was announced by the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia at its congress in Moscow this week and was reported on the Novosti website. FEOR has provided rabbinical training to more than 200 Russians since the end of the Soviet Union but this number is insufficient. A 2010 census put the number of ethnic Jews in Russia at 233,500, but the real figure is close to 1 million, FEOR representatives said at the (Haaretz Staff )
