Jewish Home ministers meets US Jewish leaders over conversion, Western Wall

Ministers from the Jewish Home party are meeting with American Jewish leaders to look for ways to address their concerns over the conversion bill and the cancellation of the Western Wall framework that have sparked anger and frustration among liberal Jewish streams.

Education Minister Naftali Bennett, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and Deputy Defense Minister Eli Ben-Dahan all attended the lunch meeting in Jerusalem. On the other side of the table sat Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky, the agency’s director general Alan Hoffmann, Union for Reform Judaism chief Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the Jewish Federations of North America’s top official in Israel Rebecca Caspi and others.

American Jewish leaders say the latest measures threaten to fracture the relationship between Israeli Jews and those in the Diaspora.