Israel – Hamodia To Start Edition in French

Israel – A new player is planning to enter to scene of the Jewish press in France, bringing with it a new set of rules: Israel's Orthodox daily Hamodia is planning to start a French edition.

Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Alter, the leader of the Gerrer Hasidic movement in Israel and a key figure in the Orthodox Hasidic community, has instructed Hamodia's publishers to begin work on the new francophone edition. The Rabbi enjoys a great deal of influence over the newspaper.

"On his recent trip to Europe, Rabbi Alter was impressed by the huge potential ultra-Orthodox readership among the Jewish communities of Marseille, Lyon and Paris. As soon as he returned, he instructed us to begin putting together a French edition," sources in Hamodia said.

Hamodia's management is confident the paper will appeal to French readers, most of whom are Sephardi and members of the Misnagdim sect, which used to oppose the Hasidic movement.

"These definitions are a thing of the past, they no longer apply," Hamodia's management said. [Haaretz]