It’s rare for Israel’s presidents and past presidents to participate in demonstrations. As apolitical figures, they must be careful when accepting invitations. But when it’s a strong humanitarian issue, such as the return of the hostages in Hamas captivity, there is no way that President Isaac Herzog or former president Reuven Rivlin would remain uninvolved.
Herzog has met on several occasions with representatives of the families of the hostages, and he raises the matter in his meetings and telephone conversations with foreign counterparts. Last week, while in Tel Aviv, he visited the tent of the families of the hostages. Last Saturday night at a “Bring Them Home” demonstration, the largest demonstration that Tel Aviv has witnessed since the days of the protests against judicial reform, Rivlin was among the speakers. “I am with you in this uncompromising situation. Humanity does not accept keeping children in captivity,” he said.
Hostage's mother prays for 'Pharaoh's daughter' to rescue her child
■ A STRONG believer in the power of words, Rabbanit Yemima Mizrachi, who inter alia has been working with women from among the families of the hostages, and is conscious of the fact that they come from different traditions and backgrounds, suggested that each write a prayer including something from her own traditional prayers.
A woman who is not religious asked her whether it would be permissible in her prayer to request that some compassionate woman find her child and follow the example of Pharaoh’s daughter, who defied the edict of her father when she found the infant Moses in a basket of bulrushes. Mizrachi was almost moved to tears, as she spoke to Liat Regev on KAN Reshet Bet. She had given the woman a heart-wrenching affirmative reply, but has not been able to put the question out of her mind. It haunts her wherever she goes, because it applies not only to one child, but to every child in Hamas and other terrorist captivity.
Sara Netanyahu speaks with families of hostages
■ IT IS difficult for any decent individual to remain indifferent to the anguish of the families of the hostages. In addition to the support that they are receiving from the wider community, many therapists have offered their services in helping people to cope with emotional trauma.
Although she did not meet representatives of the hostages in her professional capacity, Sara Netanyahu, who is a qualified psychologist, could not put her training on the back burner, when she hosted some of the representatives last Thursday. Such meetings are exceedingly painful. The families are no wiser after their conversations than they were before, and officials who meet with them cannot tell them anything to boost their hopes and to alleviate their anxiety. Basically, such meetings are meant as an assurance that neither the hostages nor their families have been forgotten.
Realizing how important it was to each family to tell their story about their loved ones, Netanyahu listened intently as relatives unburdened themselves and shared the pain and uncertainty they have endured for a month and a half. They also reiterated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had made it clear that there will be no ceasefire without the release of the hostages.
After hearing each family’s story, Sara Netanyahu spoke to each of them at length, and embraced them. In thanking them for coming to meet with her, she said: “I know that you have not had a moment’s rest. Every day that goes by without your loved ones is an endless pain. My heart is with you; all of our hearts are with you. I promise you that I will convey your feelings and your requests to the prime minister, and I guarantee that he will do everything to bring our hostages, your loved ones, safely back home.”
Neo-Nazism on the rise in Germany
■ THERE’S A big difference between what goes on in the corridors of power, and the power at ground level. While the German government is a staunch friend of Israel and is more than ashamed of its country’s Nazi past, antisemitism, not only in the form of neo-Nazism, is on the rise.
For Germans with a sense of history, a conscience that prompts them to oppose antisemitism and all forms of racism, what is happening in Germany today makes them both angry and ashamed.
Such people include German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who was pictured in last Friday’s Jerusalem Post cleaning the “stumbling stones,” which are small engraved metal plaques fitted into the sidewalk opposite the apartments of deported and murdered Jews. The “stumbling stones” serve as a reminder of Germany’s ugly past. Scholz was also the keynote speaker in a Berlin synagogue at a ceremony commemorating Kristallnacht, and he also spoke to President Herzog, linking Kristallnacht with the Hamas murderous incursion into Israel.
German Ambassador Steffen Seibert, in a Kristallnacht tweet, wrote: “As we remember the November pogroms 85 years ago today, I cannot help but think about what Jews are facing today. We must fight antisemitism, old and new, everywhere. #OnThisDay #NeverAgain.”
Seibert’s remarks did not go over well with certain Palestinians who posted some very unsavory responses on social media platforms and accused him of being a Nazi. They also transposed some of the horrific details of the suffering of Jewish children under the Nazis to the plight of Gazan children, and sometimes included an image of an Israeli flag with a swastika superimposed on the Star of David.
The Reuters report that was published with the photo of Scholz included a warning by German Economy Minister Robert Habeck to the effect that Germans would have to answer for antisemitism in court, while anyone who is not German would risk their residency status and would not receive German citizenship..
It may not be the best deterrent, but it’s a start, and hopefully all EU member states will follow suit.
Meanwhile, Germany, France, the UAE and Egypt are reportedly in talks with Israel about setting up field hospitals in Gaza to aid the civilian population.
French Embassy cleans up mess of Macron's BBC interview
■ EVEN BEFORE President Emmanuel Macron of France called Herzog on Sunday to clarify comments he made in the course of an interview to the BBC on Friday when calling for a ceasefire, saying that there was no reason for women and children in Gaza to be killed, the French Embassy in Tel Aviv was busy smoothing ruffled feathers. It reminded irate Israelis that Macron had condemned Hamas, had been among the first world leaders to visit Israel last month, and has been actively fighting antisemitism in France.
The problem is that neither Israel nor the Palestinians recognize the fact that leaders of countries outside the Middle East view conflicts in the region differently than do the citizens of the combating countries. The concerns of Europeans, Americans, Asians, and Australians are more on a humanitarian level, and when they appear to take sides, their attitudes are often based on the numbers of innocent civilians killed, injured and displaced – especially when there are high ratios of children.
Antisemitic venom from protestors in Australia
■ AFTER THE Second World War, Australia opened its gates wide to Holocaust survivors, many of whom did extremely well for themselves in business and community leadership. They were also generous philanthropists, giving large donations to social welfare causes, the arts, education, sport, and, of course, Israel. There had been a price to pay for their entry to the southernmost continent, and the person who can be credited as being the most influential facilitator on that score was the late Leo Fink, whose grandson Mark Regev, is currently a senior adviser to the prime minister and a former Israel ambassador to the UK. Jews have been decorated in the annual Australia Day honors; they have been prominent in politics, law, and medicine; and two Jews have served as governor-general of Australia. Yet for all that, antisemitism is as prevalent in Australia as it is anywhere else in the world. It would be a lie to pretend that it never existed. It was always there, but it was more sporadic than ongoing.
In addition to admitting the Jews of Europe, Australia, once it abolished the White Australia policy, welcomed immigrants from Asia and Arab lands, who have established replicas of the places from where they came in the outer suburbs of the capital cities of the different states. During my last sojourn in my hometown of Melbourne, I went to visit my father’s grave and traveled through a series of neighborhoods that, when I was a child, were largely occupied by Jews. Now they look like Arab villages, with signs in Arabic on all the shops; women attired in traditional embroidered Arab dresses, with hijabs; and most of the men sporting keffiyehs. This did not bother me, because I remembered the days when Jewish butcher shops, grocers, and bakers huddled close to each other and were surrounded by Jewish customers – both religious and secular, with the religious easily identifiable by their mode of dress.
But what does bother me is the venom of the pro-Palestinian demonstrations, especially the one held in Caulfield Park close to the Caulfield synagogue. Caulfield is a very Jewish neighborhood, and the park is a popular meeting spot as well as a venue for outdoor Jewish events. My best friend and one of my cousins live on the edge of the park, as do several of my acquaintances. Now they’re all scared, as they never were before.
But it’s not all bad news. Most material of Jewish content coming out of Australia is from Melbourne or Sydney, and if it’s related to Israel, then Canberra also enters the equation.
But then there’s Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, the northernmost state on the Island continent, where it’s warm and sunny for most of the year, and whose Gold Coast can best be compared to Eilat.
An email sent by Libby Burke, who comes to Israel annually and stays for a month, reports that on Sunday of this week. Israelis living in Brisbane, together with the rest of the city’s Jewish community, were joined by representatives from Indigenous Friends for Israel, who specially flew from Cairns in North Queensland specifically to attend a peaceful gathering, to say “No to antisemitism!”
The Brisbane Jewish community is very small and, with the Surfers Paradise resort area, numbers less than 2,000. Yet more than 400 people gathered in the heart of Brisbane, including a group of Iranian Australians who attended to show solidarity with Israel. Among the speakers was an Australian Israeli originally from Kibbutz Be’eri, a granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor, and a speaker whose cousin was murdered at the Supernova music festival. The gathering was organized by the Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies and the State Zionist Council of Queensland. A rally in October also attracted a relatively large attendance.
In interviews with various media outlets, Jason Steinberg, the president of the Queensland Jewish Board of Deputies, said that the Jewish community is fearful for its safety. Prior to Sunday’s peaceful rally, organizers were afraid that it might turn violent like those in Melbourne and Sydney, but the situation in Queensland was far less volatile.
When terrorists found an Arab-Israeli on Oct 7, they used him as a human shield
■ IN ISRAEL, Australian expatriate Danny Hakim, who hails from Sydney, is among the many Ozzies engaged in helping residents of the South who have been dispersed and temporarily accommodated in hotels, guesthouses, student dormitories, and apartments elsewhere in the country. Among the many organizations and institutions that he and his wife, leading businesswoman and philanthropist Danna Azrieli, support is United Hatzalah. At a UH event in Ashkelon, Hakim met Bedouin physician Dr. Tarek Abu Arar, who works at Barzilai Medical Center.
As Abu Arar was on his way to his shift at the hospital on October 7, he encountered an injured man in the middle of the street. At first it seemed like a regular accident. Then, a person whom Abu Arar thought to be a soldier called out for help. When he approached, the caller shot him in the chest. He wasn’t a soldier; he was a terrorist, and Abu Arar was wearing his United Hatzalah vest. Believing he was dying, he prayed to Allah.
Suddenly, 11 more terrorists emerged. They stripped him of his belongings, and upon realizing that he was an Arab, they changed their approach. Initially mistaking him for a Jew who could speak Arabic, they demanded that he recite the Koran. After he recited a few verses, they decided to use him as a human shield, preventing Israeli forces from striking them.
Still not entirely satisfied about his identity, they questioned the doctor about the wives of Muhammad. When he couldn’t answer, they tied him to an electric pole, and he witnessed them murdering Jewish civilians.
For what seemed like an eternity Abu Arar remained tied and helpless. Finally, after one and a half to two hours, Israeli soldiers arrived, fought the terrorists, apprehended them, and freed him.
Maccabi World Union launches project for Nova survivors with PTSD
■ TOGETHER WITH two nonprofit organizations, Maccabi World Union has launched a national project in its recently erected glamping tent complex in Kfar Maccabiah – for PTSD survivors of the October 7 Hamas massacre at the Supernova music festival. The Balance – A Place to Breathe program was enabled by Glow Glamping with generous funding from the Chicago Jewish Federation.
The two nonprofits partnering with MWU are Safe Heart, which includes some 400 psychologists, psychiatrists and certified clinical instructors with experience in working with traumatic experiences; and Brothers in Yoga, which was established to treat people coping with post-traumatic stress disorder resulting from security situations, through yoga classes.
Maccabi World Union has opened its doors to almost 1,000 evacuated residents who have been staying at the Kfar Maccabiah Hotel since October 8. Together they represent a small town with an array of cultural, educational, and sports activities, said Roy Hessing, Maccabi World Union VP and Maccabiah CEO.
The project will run together with the Maccabiah campaign for the return of the hostages taken by Hamas, which calls for the mobilization of the sports world and international athletes to make their voices heard for the safety and return of the hostages.
The Jewish community of Chicago sees special importance in standing with Maccabi World Union these days. Supporting the evacuees as a result of the war is a national mission of the first order, said Ofer Bavli, director of the Chicago Jewish Federation office in Israel.
The fully subsidized project is free of charge. Registration is through https://forms.gle/gx7cKiwNBgW1mamx7
Douglas Murray talks Israel, Hamas with Piers Morgan
■ LAST WEEK he interviewed President Herzog, but Piers Morgan was himself interviewed by fellow British journalist and author Douglas Murray at the Gaza border.
As neither of the two is Jewish or Palestinian, neither has an ax to grind, and their views, though different, are not based on emotion or loyalty to one side or the other. Morgan is not concerned about Israeli efforts to get rid of Hamas, but what does concern him is the massive number of civilian casualties, and the realization that the figure will inevitably grow.
As former US president Barack Obama warned, Morgan questions whether the war may be creating an opportunity for far greater radicalization of young Palestinians who have watched their loved ones get killed. “Why would we imagine that at the end of this they would want to do anything other than to become a new version of Hamas, wanting to exact revenge for what happened to their families?” he queried.
Murray’s reaction was: “If you follow the logic of what Barack Obama said, that you just shouldn’t do anything, if you’re Israel and attacked, you should just sit back and wait for the next one. Your question supposes that there is a peaceful population in Gaza who would love a two-state solution, and that there are a few bad apples in Hamas. That’s not true.”
Murray cited the German Jewish girl who was raped, brutally murdered and dragged naked through the street in Gaza. A crowd of ordinary Gazans was videotaped spitting, mutilating and hitting her body. “Does that strike you as peacenik types who are desperately waiting for a two-state solution to be put back on the table?” asked Murray
Morgan countered with “You’re endorsing collective punishment. You’re holding all the Gazan people responsible.”
According to Murray: “There is some responsibility if you elect Hamas.”
Comparison between Hamas and the Nazis is insufficient, he continued. Even the Nazis were ashamed of what they did. After they shot Jews in the head in the daytime, they got drunk in the evening to forget. But the Gazans did what they did with glee. The Nazis were genocidal but tried to cover up their crimes. Hamas boasts of its crimes.
Koren provides sacred books to reservists on the front
■ FOLLOWING THE sudden call-up of reservists to the front lines on Simchat Torah, many religiously observant soldiers began to realize that, in their haste to answer emergency call-up orders, they forgot to take the equipment to ensure they were armed spiritually.
Step in Koren Jerusalem, one of the Jewish world’s major publishing houses, proudly based here in Jerusalem and well known to state institutions, as many IDF soldiers, together with presidents of the state, have been sworn in on a Koren Bible.
Led by publisher Matthew Miller, whose son Yehoshua is one of the 25% of the regular Koren team currently serving on the front lines, Koren quickly set about ensuring that those who needed were provided with prayer books and other religious texts, enabled through a fundraising campaign with donors from across the Jewish world.
At the same time, as if this commitment to prayer under such difficult circumstances wasn’t enough, another need became clear. As the prayer book campaign progressed, it became clear that many soldiers were also looking for a Bible with Rashi’s commentary. Many soldiers felt disheartened that they had fallen behind in learning the weekly Torah portion.
With further help from a generous small group of donors, Koren was able to quickly produce a compact version of its Israel Humash with Rashi and Onkelos, especially geared to soldiers. In under a week, Koren was able to format, print, and distribute the first 15,000 copies to soldiers in the field, with the vast majority of copies making their way into the hands of soldiers who wanted them in under 24 hours.
Aryeh Grossman, director of development at Koren, who spearheaded the project, said: “While we were trying to give strength to our soldiers by sending them books, they gave us strength by inspiring us with their amazing commitment to prayer and Torah study even while on the front lines.”
Hebrew Union College president visits Israel
■ IN WHAT is believed to be the first visit to Israel by the head of an American academic institution since the start of the war against Hamas, Andrew Rehfeld, PhD, president of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, on Sunday visited the campus of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
Rehfeld met with BGU president Prof. Daniel Chamovitz, who described the visit as “a poignant demonstration of solidarity.” Among the stops on his tour of the BGU campus, Rehfeld visited an exhibit within the university center that features images of the 240 hostages held in Gaza – including Noa Argamani, a third-year student at BGU whose “absence resonated strongly,” according to Chamovitz.
In expressing appreciation for Rehfeld’s visit, Chamovitz said: “I am reminded of the broader significance of such exchanges between campus leaders globally. These acts of solidarity serve as beacons of support, fostering connections that transcend borders and reinforcing the idea that our shared goals in education can be a powerful force for positive transformation on a global scale.”
In response, Rehfeld said: “It was a great honor to visit Ben-Gurion University. I think it’s particularly important for presidents of universities around the world to show solidarity by coming, by visiting, by messaging, and saying that Israel does not stand alone.
“The work that BGU is doing to promote shared society is aligned with the work that Hebrew Union College is doing to build shared society in America and in Jerusalem, where we have a campus. And we look forward to building stronger partnerships after the war and during the war, but especially with an eye to what happens next.”
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