Is Ivanka Trump Jewish? Her conversion raises doubts
Is Ivanka Trump Really Jewish?
Last year the Jewish religious authorities issued an opinion that cast doubt on her conversion to Judaism. But after the election of her father Donald Trump as president, a new interpretation of religious laws emerged that has generated suspicion among sectors that pressed for greater tolerance of converts.
Trump's daughter converted to Judaism under the tutelage of a prominent Manhattan Orthodox rabbi before marrying Jared Kushner, a practicing Jew, in 2009.
In its ruling last July, the government court for religious affairs rejected the legitimacy of another conversion made by the same rabbi. While that ruling did not directly affect Ivanka Trump, some questions arose as to whether that powerful Israeli religious institution would accept Trump's daughter as a Jew.
Until in December, a few weeks after Trump's electoral victory, Israel's top rabbis said they would change the rules to recognize conversions made abroad and specifically mentioned the case of Ivanka Trump.
"Under the proposal ... her conversion will be confirmed without the need for further investigation," they said in a statement.
Israeli activists believe the sudden policy change looks like an attempt to ingratiate themselves with the new US president. Ivanka Trump's husband has been appointed Trump's adviser and he is expected to focus on efforts to seal peace between Israel and the Palestinians.
A commission of Israeli rabbis has met several times to discuss ways to speed up conversions, according to activists.
"The timing of all of this is certainly a source of suspicion," said Rabbi Seth Farber, director of ITIM, an organization that represents converted Jews who want to be recognized by the Jewish hierarchy. "My main concern is that the rabbis find a way to certify that Mrs. Trump is kosher, to acknowledge her conversion, by putting aside thousands of converts, simply saying that they are not Jewish enough for us."
The New York Jewish community newspaper Jewish Week credited unidentified sources from Trump's transition team with saying that senior US government figures had expressed concerns to Israel about the legitimacy of Ivanka Trump's conversion and that Israel's efforts by acknowledging their conversion they could encourage a closer relationship between the Trump family and Israel.
A Trump spokeswoman did not respond to calls seeking confirmation, and Washington Rabbi Levi Shemtov, who is close to Ivanka Trump, declined to comment.
