Jacob Kessler

Jewish Telegraphic Agency • 20th December 2023

A Chilean-Jewish artist strives to capture the entire Torah in massive murals

As a child, Mauricio Avayu wasn’t allowed to pursue art — his father thought he should study something more practical, like math or engineering. But by now, Avayu has seen his paintings — many of them Jewish-themed — shown in galleries around the globe, put on the walls in the homes of former presidents around the world and presented to Pope Francis. Today he’s working on his most ambitious project yet: capturing the key moments of the Torah in 40 large murals.

Al Jazeera • 14th December 2023

‘Regime of impunity’: Victims react to Fujimori’s prison release in Peru

The ex-president had been convicted of crimes against humanity after his government ordered the massacre of 25 people.

Jewish Telegraphic Agency • 20th September 2023

Claudia Sheinbaum is on track to become Mexico’s first Jewish and woman president

(JTA) — The way things stand now, Mexico is headed to elect its first woman president next year. The two leading candidates in the polls for the 2024 election are Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico City’s former mayor, and Xóchitl Gálvez, a senator representing the center-right opposition bloc.

The polls point to another first: Sheinbaum, currently the frontrunner, could become the country’s first Jewish president, too.

Earlier this month, Sheinbaum, 61, was announced as the candidate for the left-wing

CBC - World Report • 20th August 2023

Ecuador Heads to the Polls

Millions of Ecuadorians are voting today to elect a new president. Less than two weeks after one presidential candidate was assassinated, the increasing crime rate and the worsening security situation in the country are at the forefront of everyone’s minds.

Jewish Telegraphic Agency • 17th August 2023

Paraguay moves its embassy back to Jerusalem

(JTA) — Paraguay’s newly-elected president, Santiago Peña, announced Wednesday that he is moving his country’s embassy back to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. The move is expected to take place by the end of this year.

Peña, a conservative, had promised the relocation during his campaign earlier this year.

In response, Israel’s foreign ministry announced that it will reopen its embassy in Asunción, Paraguay’s capital.

Under a former president, Horacio Cortes, Paraguay had previously moved its embass

Al Jazeera • 10th August 2023

Mass arrest at LGBTQ club in Venezuela prompts outcry over discrimination

It was an otherwise ordinary night at the Avalon Club, a bar and sauna popular with the LGBTQ community in Valencia, Venezuela’s third-largest city. Music was playing, drinks were flowing and guests were enjoying the accommodations, which included a restaurant, smoking room and massage parlour. But that evening, on July 23, police would burst into the club, propelling the venue and its patrons into the national spotlight — and sparking questions about LGBTQ discrimination in Venezuela.

INTO • 28th July 2023

Peruvian TV Producer Ricardo Morán and His Fight to Register His Children

Ricardo Morán has played many parts over the years on his way to becoming a household name in Peru: television producer, presenter, theater director, artist, and author. But now, he is perhaps playing his most challenging role yet: that of being a gay father in one of South America’s most conservative countries.

“I have never had a moment in my life when I didn’t wish to be a parent,” said Morán for INTO in a video call from the Peruvian capital, Lima.

“I have this vivid memory of my father te

The China Project • 14th July 2023

The Brazil-China relationship, as seen through the BRICS bank

A lot of the controversy surrounding Jabbour’s hiring initially focused on an interview he did on Inteligência Ltda, a popular Brazilian podcast. “During the entire Bolsonaro administration and last election [in 2022], [Jabbour] shared his opinions against the administration by participating in a lot of podcasts, including some that are very conservative,” Rafael Abrão, a Brazilian researcher with the International Institute for Asian Studies, told The China Project. Former president Jair Bolson

Jewish Telegraphic Agency • 31st May 2023

Israelis flock to this tiny town in Peru for vacation — and psychedelic spirituality

PISAC, Peru (JTA) — About 20 miles northeast of the tourist capital of Cusco, the small Peruvian town of Pisac sits nestled among the verdant Andes Mountains. Lined with cobblestone streets and two-story adobe houses, the town offers a distinct blend of ancient Incan culture and breathtaking landscapes.

Pisac’s main square, Plaza de Armas, is often filled with Indigenous women pulling alpacas, local art dealers selling their handmade artisanal wares and kids playing soccer — nothing out of the

The China Project • 31st May 2023

An embattled Chinese mine in Peru faces its latest challenge

On April 20, the widows and children of five deceased miners in Peru gathered in front of the Chinese Embassy in Lima. “Murderer Shougang: pay reparations to the widows,” they chanted.

Their husbands had worked at the Chinese state-owned Shougang Hierro Mine in Marcona, a city about 520 kilometers southeast of Lima. During the COVID-19 pandemic, at least 20 workers died from the virus, and now the wives of these workers are demanding compensation, arguing that Shougang’s inadequate safety protocols make them responsible for their late husbands’ deaths.

Jewish Telegraphic Agency • 12th May 2023

Former Jewish first lady of Peru flees to Israel

LIMA, Peru (JTA) — Eliane Karp, Peru’s former Jewish first lady, has flown from the United States to Israel in an attempt to avoid extradition to Peru in a money laundering case.

Peruvian Prime Minister Alberto Otárola announced the news on Wednesday at a press conference in Lima.

“The United States Department of Justice has informed the Peruvian embassy in the U.S. that Mrs. Eliane Karp has taken a flight to Israel using her Israeli passport,” he said.

Peru does not have an extradition treat

CBC - World Report • 8th May 2023

27 Killed at Peru Gold Mine

At least 27 miners were killed over the weekend after a fire broke out at a gold mine in southern Peru. Prosecutors have begun an investigation into what exactly caused the deadly blaze This accident is the worst mining disaster in Peru since 2002.

Jewish Telegraphic Agency • 28th April 2023

Paraguay’s election has implications for its Israeli embassy — and its relationship with Jerusalem

The question of where countries keep their embassies in Israel has become a debate that perpetually attracts controversy around the globe. In Paraguay, ahead of a national election on Sunday, the question is far from decided.

Since former President Donald Trump moved the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018, a few other countries have followed suit, agreeing with much of Israel’s political establishment that the latter city, despite international and Palestinian opp

Al Jazeera • 26th April 2023

Rights group denounces ‘brutal’ protest crackdown in Peru

Human Rights Watch has issued a report condemning Peru’s reaction to protests that erupted after a presidential impeachment.

CBC - The World This Hour • 23rd April 2023

Toledo Extradited to Peru

Escorted by police and surrounded by reporters, former president Alejandro Toledo arrived at Lima's airport this morning. His extradition comes after a years-long process, which began when a Peruvian judge ordered Toledo’s arrest in 2017.

Al Jazeera • 17th April 2023

Taiwan in the hot seat during Paraguay presidential elections

Paraguay’s presidential election features opposing views about whether to maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

Honduras announced that, after decades of having diplomatic relations with Taiwan, its government would switch to recognising the People’s Republic of China as the “only legitimate government that represents all of China”.

CBC - The World This Hour • 15th April 2023

Chinese Company May Control 100% of Lima Electricity

A state-owned Chinese enterprise has signed a billion-dollar deal with the Italian energy group Enel. If the deal gets regulatory approval, China will control the supply of all power in Lima

CBC - World Report • 8th April 2023

Alejandro Toledo Faces Extradition

Peru’s former president, Alejandro Toledo, is facing extradition from the US over charges that he received more than $25 million from a Brazilian construction company in exchange for receiving public works contracts.

Photo Credit: Andino