From Twain to Penitence

 

4^th of September 2026

22^nd of Elul 5786

 

Good morning! Shabbat Shalom! How are you? I’d love to hear from you so that I don’t need to worry about you…

 

Mark Twain, like Winston Churchill, wrote many things, mostly very positive, about the Jews. This one is fascinating.

“He has made a marvellous fight in this world, in all the ages; and has done it with his hands tied behind him. He could be vain of himself, and be excused for it. The Egyptian, the Babylonian, and the Persian rose, filled the planet with sound and splendor, then faded to dream-stuff and passed away; the Greek and the Roman followed, and made a vast noise, and they are gone; other peoples have sprung up and held their torch high for a time, but it burned out, and they sit in twilight now, or have vanished. The Jew saw them all, beat them all, and is now what he always was, exhibiting no decadence, no infirmities of age, no weakening of his parts, no slowing of his energies, no dulling of his alert and aggressive mind. All things are mortal but the Jew; all other forces pass, but he remains. What is the secret of his immortality?”

 

I want to tackle a very positive question about perception and truth, sometimes diametrically opposed. Perception can be very misleading, because the way we see life in general and politics in particular, depends entirely on the information we receive. For instance, the suggestion that Israel is an apartheid state, something oft repeated by people who have never actually been here, is a complete fallacy, or am I also adding to the disinformation? Let me take you into an Israeli hospital, where Jewish, Arab, Muslim and Christian doctors, nurses and patients work and are treated alongside one another every single day; to a law court where lawyers of every ilk, ethnic background, argue in one language, Hebrew; to the Supreme Court where an Arab Moslem is one to that rare group and finally, which Arab countries have Jews in their parliament? because we do! We argue, we disagree, sometimes get angry with each other like any family, but we also live together and share a thriving, exciting and wonderfully diverse country. Perhaps it is time the world came and saw that Israel and changed perception based on truth.

 

Another misconception based on misinformation is that all Arab/Palestinians are terrorists. Not only is that untrue, but Impact-se has made huge inroads into re-educating young students in East Jerusalem. The Impact of Impact-se’s work is exceptional. ”Eight years ago, IMPACT-se quietly undertook what many believed was an impossible task: a reformed curriculum for East Jerusalem schools that removed Palestinian textbook incitement, antisemitism, and glorification of violence, replacing it with tolerance, education about Jews, and recognition of Israel. “The real-world impact of this initiative has been extraordinary.

The program was implemented carefully and discreetly, in partnership with the Jerusalem Education Administration, a joint Jerusalem municipality-Israel governmental body responsible for operating Jerusalem’s public education system. Although strongly opposed by the Palestinian Authority and condemned by the Arab League on two occasions, today, approximately 93,500 Arab school students in East Jerusalem are learning through this revised curriculum.”  https://impact-se.org/

 

From the hope of re-education (thus changed perceptions) to a man who has always been a potential leader of the Palestinians from behind. He may just bring a glimmer of hope to Gaza. Mohammed Dahlan, the former Fatah leader who broke away from Abbas, is reorganising his Democratic Reform Bloc and seeking a larger role in Gaza ahead of the Palestinian legislative elections. Dahlan is educated, pragmatic and, during years in prison, learned to speak fluent Hebrew; he was involved in the negotiations for the Oslo peace process. Perhaps, after so many years of the same old, destructive, leadership, a different voice is exactly what is needed.

 

Another misconception is that Turkey is a stabilising element in the Middle East! Two consecutive headlines on the front page of one newspaper say that Huckabee hopes that Turkey can be as stabilising force and the other says that the Israeli Navy is acting to deter Turkish maritime aggression. How on earth are we supposed to know what's the truth when the same newspaper carries both headlines on their front page? Erdogan is taking Turkey to the brink of war with all its neighbours

 

Are you worried about your children/grandchildren’s education? 3 million children started school in Israel yesterday; including our grandchildren! The big question, is whether they're being taught or whether they're being educated. It's a question the parents all over the world are asking. Teachers are just not the powerful influencers on our children’s lives that they once were. Should they be paid more or are the teaching colleges not doing the job?

 

One direct diplomatic and military result of our changing relationship with Turkey is our much warmer relationship with Greece. Relations were once extremely poor, particularly under Andreas Papandreou in the 1980s. In fact, Greece helped evacuate Arafat and the PLO from Beirut in 1982 and Tripoli in 1983. How times change! As our relationship with Turkey has deteriorated, our ties with Greece have gone in the opposite direction. This week Israel and Greece signed the phenomenal $3.5 billion “Achilles Shield” defence agreement, for a multi-layered Greek air-defence system using Israeli technology. I find it quite extraordinary to think that a country that once helped Arafat leave Beirut is now turning to Israel to help protect itself. History really does have a funny way of turning full circle.

 

Rosh Hashana, literally the head of the year, is coming around again. Strange because it feels as though it was here last week!! Thousands gather each evening at the Kotel (Western Wall) for Selichot, Penitential Prayers, specific and heart wrenching prayers to clean one’s soul of former sins. The Sefarad (Spanish) tradition demands one whole month of atonement whereas Ashkenazi tradition demands just a week. This total period lasts for 40 days which directly mirror the 40 days that Moses spent on Mount Sinai pleading for God's forgiveness after the sin of the Golden Calf, a period that also ended on Yom Kippur. Fascinatingly, the same words are repeated every day. My prayer, every year, is that the penitential prayers are not simply repeated by rote but that hearts are opened, repentance is real and the schisms in society are healed. It is true that we may be a contentious people, but we are also a loving people.

 

Elections never bring out the best in people and these particular elections have already brought out the less attractive side of the contenders. I don’t like extremes. I have never liked extremes and I particularly dislike extremes in politics. We need a party with a leader who is just that, a leader. I don’t care if his English is perfect, there are translators; I care that he/she will lead us down a secure path, without rhetoric, with policies that first and foremost draw us together and heal the wounds of the last too many years; policies to find a solution to the question of Haredi conscription;  policies to stop our constant warring factions; to find a solution to the wars on our borders; stopping the wasteful, extravagant, profligate overspending due to scopophobia and paranoia of our leaders and feeding the desperate situation of housing, food and education.

 

The supermarkets are overflowing with people shopping for Rosh Hashana, and prices are already creeping up. It is tempting to blame the retailers, but this time there is a much sadder story behind it. Israel’s remarkable agricultural water system has been hit by micro-algae, believed to have come from the Nile Delta, blocking the water our farmers desperately need. After everything they did to bring their farms back to life following the war, they are now watching their crops wither and die. It is heartbreaking and of course, that shortage reaches our pockets, really tough for families already struggling. Our drinking water is completely safe and potable however; this is a problem affecting agricultural water, not the water coming from our taps.

 

Actually, I love shopping before the festivals because the cornucopia, the vast selection of local produce is phenomenal! Not the shortage of tomatoes etc. but the mangos, big as footballs, pineapples, watermelons, cantaloupes, peaches, nectarines, grapes, kiwis……I could go on and on and there are pots of pomegranate seeds ready separated – those bright scarlet pomegranate seeds that represent everything good for the future on the Rosh Hashana table.

 

I hope to get to Rachel today, although I admit I’m a bit rushed, but just sitting around her table, listening to their incredibly fast speech in a mixture of English and Hebrew, and generally absorbing family that it is worth stopping everything and going. This afternoon our village has a street party! Lots of games for the children, food trucks, storytelling, generally lightening the mood and preparing us for a great Shabbat and Rosh Hashana. Zvi has gone off to his parliament in the Botanical Gardens where the main topic of conversation will be the upcoming elections. Tonight we are just the two of us, a rarely quiet Friday Night and then tomorrow evening we are going downstairs to our wonderful neighbours where they have invited friends to hear Zvi recount the story of the birth of the battle for Soviet Jewry.

 

I think we have covered almost everything, but I also know that your favourite part is the relaxation of great music!

Our first song is not only lively and fun but it is also highly appropriate. BaShana HaBa'a (Hebrew: בשנה הבאה, "Next Year") is a 1970 Israeli song with music by Nurit Hirsch and lyrics by Ehud Manor. “Wait and see how good it will be next year”  https://youtu.be/wb0Y8DSa3oU?si=eT5FwkTOguHPofhG

 

To ensure a sweet new year we not only eat those pomegranate seeds but the meal begins with the blessing over wine, then challah then we have an apple slice dipped in honey to ensure a sweet year. Actually, my family always dipped our Challah (bread) in honey too so our family had a wonderfully sweet year! https://youtu.be/FlcxEDy-lr0?si=4iupHbsGzd5hNrSc

 

Now to something entirely different.

Koolulam and the people of Be’eri, the kibbutz that suffered so desperately on October 7^th, 2023. Listen to the words, read them, understand the mentality of people, our people and the determination to survive and thrive. https://youtu.be/hptZdP_hulY?si=KAylWdz_zGNdddHL

 

Perhaps I should go back to the beginning of this letter and Mark Twain’s words. We will survive, we have survived worse, but this time it is not in jus tone country, not in just one continent and it is not really the simple folk who are the danger, it is the supposedly intellectual upper echelon who are the most gullible to the hate machine. Let’s change it! Stand tall. Be who you are, whatever your race or belief. Don’t bend you head in fear.

 

As you already know, it’s hard for me to leave you! One last word, honestly, but an important one. I feel more and more the importance it is to know the stories of our parents and grandparents, not only the stories of the Shoah, but what came before it, because this hatred did not suddenly begin in 1939. I had interviewed Zvi’s parents but was sadly lacking in knowledge about my own parents. I discovered so much about my own father through conversations with my siblings, especially my eldest sister Eddie. I learned that this quiet, remarkable man had escaped the pogroms of Poland and, while only a child, had crossed Europe alone in search of safety in Britain. Had we not talked about his life, his extraordinary story might have disappeared with him. We owe it to the generations who came before us, and to those who come after to keep their stories alive.

 

That’s it, honestly! I wish you a beautiful weekend with time to look at the beauty around us all, even in the middle of the city, but most beautiful of all “The View From Our Veranda” Thank you for being my friends for so long.

 

With much love from Jerusalem, from Israel but most of all from our home to yours

Sheila

 

 

 

Answers, Aliyah and Arguments

 

28^th August, 2026

 

Shabbat Shalom! How are you? I hope that you are well.

 

I have a strange question for you or perhaps it isn't so strange. When was the last time you sat down and had a quiet, honest conversation with someone whose political or religious beliefs were completely different from your own? Not an argument, not an attempt to change their mind, but simply a conversation in which you both listened. I honestly believe that until we can do that, disagree, listen, laugh, perhaps even learn something, and still walk away respecting one another, we are losing something very precious.

 

Here in Israel, we are getting closer and closer to the elections, and sadly the campaigns seem to be becoming more aggressive and less informative as we go along. I know it may sound terribly boring, but I want to hear the manifestos. What does each party actually intend doing? How will they improve Israel's image abroad? What will they do about the young hilltop bullies — indeed, terrorists — within our own society? How will they resolve the Haredi enlistment issue, which is tearing our society apart and, in my view, denigrating some of the very Jewish values we should be defending? What are their plans for improving our education system, and for teaching teachers how to educate rather than simply teach? How will they tackle violence within Arab society? These are the questions I want our politicians and potential politicians to answer. Instead, all we seem to hear is what is wrong with everyone else — and far too much of it is simply fake news. Finally, and maybe most importantly, we, the people who live and breathe here, want an official enquiry into the events that led up to the 7^th of October, 2023 and the subsequent war.

 

What concerns me more than anything else, as Zvi just pointed out, is the fact that none of the 7 conflicts in our region, yes 7 not only ours, have not reached a solution, in fact a solution is not in sight. The Trump, Netanyahu coalition has not borne fruit.

 

Hamas is recovering and perhaps even thriving, despite everything we have tried to achieve in a war that has already cost us far too many young lives. Young soldiers leave home, kiss their babies goodbye, not knowing whether they will return — and, if they do, whether they will come home as the same people who left. And now it has started again: kites being flown from Gaza over the very kibbutzim that suffered horrors beyond description. The Board of Peace has banned such actions, but we know where this can lead. First the kites, then the incendiary kites and balloons. We have been here before. We know exactly how it ended. We want a government for whom the priority is ending the constant round of wars, both without and within.

 

And then there is Marwan Barghouti, leader of the Tanzim terror movement, who was sentenced by an Israeli court on June 6, 2004, to five cumulative life sentences plus 40 additional years in prison for his role in deadly attacks during the Second Intifada. He is now being presented by some in Hollywood as a Palestinian Nelson Mandela a political prisoner who should be released to become the successor to Mahmoud Abbas. Mark Ruffalo is among those calling for his release. The comparison is extraordinary. Barghouti was not imprisoned for expressing an opinion; he was convicted for his role in organising attacks in which 5 people were murdered including my son-in-law’s aunt. To turn him into a romantic symbol of peace, without understanding the history, the terrorism or the reasons for his imprisonment, demonstrates just how little some of his most enthusiastic Western admirers understand about Israel and the conflict. Or is it more ominous?

 

That provides a rather poignant segue. The situation in North America is becoming increasingly distressing, with antisemitism and antisemitic attacks making many Jews feel less secure and less comfortable simply being who they are. Yet out of that sad situation we see something wonderfully positive: the decision by so many to make Israel their home. More than 1,100 North Americans have already begun the process of making Aliyah this month, and around 2,200 are expected to do so over the summer, arriving on nearly 100 group flights or completing the process from within Israel. It is both sobering and uplifting — and, for us Israelis, there is something extraordinarily joyful about welcoming people who have decided that they want to come home.

 

One of Zvi’s earliest memories was standing, holding his Mother’s hand, of a ship just off the coast of Tel Aviv. This week, when the ship the Altalena was found some 500 metres deep and 20 kilometres off the coast, so close to where it was sunk the memory came rushing back. The story is one of political confusion, ideological rifts and factionalism. Does that sound familiar? Anyway the story is fascinating. The Altalena Affair was a violent June 1948 confrontation between the newly formed Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Irgun (IZL), a right wing Jewish paramilitary group, just weeks after Israel declared independence. The Altalena was a cargo ship purchased by the Irgun. It arrived in Israel carrying over 900 Jewish immigrants and a massive cache of weapons purchased by Ben Zion Netanyahu. Ben-Gurion demanded all weapons be handed to the state to establish a single national army. Someone shot at soldiers on the beach, angering Ben Gurion. As a result, on Ben-Gurion's orders, the IDF fired one warning shell at the ship, unintentionally setting it on fire and forcing those on board to swim ashore. 16 Irgun fighters and 3 IDF soldiers were killed. Civil War Averted: Despite the bloodshed, Begin ordered his men not to fire back in full force, famously declaring "there will be no civil war." The event cemented Ben-Gurion's principle of "one state, one army," successfully dissolving independent militias into the IDF. Simultaneously, Ben Gurion dissolved both the Hagana and Palmach (left and right) absorbing them into the IDF.

 

Talk about factionalism, Member of Knesset Zvi Sukkot decided to smash memorials to shahids in the PA. The IDF confirmed that it had diverted troops from standard operational duties to guard Sukkot and his aides on what he called a 'memorial tour' in several villages in Areas A and B in the West Bank. That troops were diverted from regular duty and that this idiot doesn’t understand the repercussions of pictures and videos of him with a huge mallet distress beyond belief.

 

Former hostages are doing their best to live normal lives; they find solace in their families or in telling their stories, among them, one very special young woman who’s tortured hand became a symbol recognised around the world. She came home after 471 days of captivity, after she was taken hostage from Kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7th.  Yesterday, in Tel Aviv, Emily Damari married the love of her life, Danielle Amit. The headlines read “From Captivity to Chuppah” Mazal Tov Emily and Danielle. PG her nightmares will finally end.

 

As always there is so much good news that never reaches you! This week in sport was spectacular for us. Israel won 3 medals in European Judo Championships, including gold for Raz Hershko. In Artistic Gymnastics: Artium Dolgopyat, an Olympic medallist, is The European Champion for the 3^rd time in the Floor Exercise. Our marathon team won gold at the European Athletics Championships. Shahar Tibi won gold in the women's iQFoil category at the Sailing World Championships in the Netherlands. Rotem Gafinovitz won gold in the cycling 19–34 Time Trial at the Gran Fondo World Championships in Japan. Ella Bar Lev won the world title and gold medal in the under 48 kg category at the World Cadets Judo Championships in Ecuador.  Once the world laughed at the supposed fact that we are not a sporting people. Ha!!!

 

I love Nas Daily! Nuseir Yassin, known professionally as Nas Daily, is an Israeli-Palestinian vlogger, entrepreneur and media personality. He started by travelling the world but came home and began creating positive reports from Israel. I particularly enjoyed this report from his home town of Arabe, near Nazareth where almost all of the residents’ study medicine in some form! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DBw--ovFqPA

 

Steve Ornstein reports a great deal more than my weekly newsletters on Substack! This report is especially important because it concerns a new and important medical discovery that affects us all. Technion researchers have uncovered a hidden mechanism that enables bacteria to rapidly develop antibiotic resistance; disrupting this mechanism could improve the effectiveness of antibiotic treatments. The dangers of antibiotic overuse have become increasingly clear in recent decades. Excessive use accelerates the evolution of bacterial resistance to antibiotics, raising the alarming prospect of infections that no longer respond to existing drugs and pose a serious threat to public health.

 

This has been a busy but delightful week, starting on Sunday when I went to my Club (Moadon) for those who speak Yiddish my AK club; Zvi went to all his rehearsals this week, from light music to liturgical; only two parliaments this week because one was cancelled. On Shabbat friends are coming for lunch, which is my favourite activity. When I finish writing to you I will take Zvi to his parliament in the Botanical Gardens and then take the road to Givat Zeev, to Rachel and hope that the children (they really aren’t children any more) will be there to tell me of the exciting week. Yosef of his and Tsofia’s wedding plans and his new job, Talia of starting to study in the Hebrew University and Ayala beginning her Sherut Leumi (National Service) in the Foreign Ministry. Talking to my grandchildren is such a joy! It’s irrelevant if they are mine or Zvi’s we love them.

 

I haven’t set the table yet, far more important to see Rachel and the children, but I will come home and begin the Shabbat preparations. As always I haven’t decided on the menu, but will create food as I go along! My thoughts are with the people of Nepal and Tibet and the horrific floods that killed so many people and left even more homeless. It takes my thoughts to how fragile life is and how precious every moment. Time spent in anger is time lost and we do not know how much time we have. I don’t say that as a pessimist but rather as an optimist who loves to love and hates to fight. As I stand in the kitchen I will remember those who left us and those who are with us, I will think of the sweet memories and as I get older I am thrilled that the hard-earned wrinkles on my face are laughter lines, there are none between my brows!

 

I wish you a Shabbat Shalom as I look over at the outline of Jerusalem against a blue sky.

 

With love

Sheila

 

 

 

London and Jerusalem

 

21^st of August, 2026

8^th of Elul 5786

 

Shabbat Shalom from sunny Jerusalem! Yes I’m back from equally sunny London. I really wanted to write to you last week but unfortunately nobody’s computer is working. I really must get myself a laptop or Android tablet so that I can type and write to you when I am away

 

Walking through central London with our family, I kept wondering where this supposed invasion of hijabs was. I certainly didn't see it. What I saw was a wonderfully clean, busy and friendly city, full of people going about their daily lives. From shop assistants to people sitting beside us in the parks, everyone we met was warm and welcoming, and not once did we encounter the antipathy towards Israel that we have been told is everywhere. In fact, the staff at our hotel were talking enthusiastically about coming to Israel to see the country for themselves. Perhaps there is a difference between what we are told about London and what ordinary people actually think. I’m not suggesting that there is not a problem with anti-Israel extremists, but not more than anywhere else.

 

Most importantly, however, this was a family visit, and wherever we went we had something far more precious than sightseeing: real time together. I see my UK grandchildren, Sammy, Liv and Zac, only twice a year, and my New York grandchildren, Joshua and Callie, just once a year, so every moment together is precious. My sister Doreen travelled all the way from Wales while Claire went to CST to receive important materials for her and Steve’s work for the community and I loved my time with my friend Valerie (we grew our children together), Judith and old friend and star of TV, stage and cinema Rudolph Walker. Stephanie and Gideon were exceptional hosts, somehow making room for all of us, while my grandson Zac became the family's unofficial Uber, patiently driving everyone wherever they needed to go. With Sheli travelling with me and so much of the family gathered around us, it was the kind of time that doesn't need an itinerary. We talked, laughed, ate, wandered and simply enjoyed being together. Those are the memories I brought home with me.

 

We went to see Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, a production I had been looking forward to after seeing the film many years ago. Nothing prepared me for the difference between the two. What was suggested through innuendo in the film was presented here with extraordinarily overt sexuality, and several scenes made my skin crawl. The gorilla scene, disturbing enough in itself, was made even more uncomfortable by the way the antisemitic implications were presented and by the nervous laughter from parts of the audience when the love song ended with “She’s a Jew”. The performances were brilliant, but I left deeply disturbed by what I had watched. When we met outside afterwards, our family talked about the production and discovered that we had all reacted in much the same way. Then something happened that restored a little of my faith in people. I noticed two young women taking photographs and offered to take one of them together. We started talking and discovered that their feelings were exactly the same as ours. Neither was Jewish, but one had visited Dachau only weeks earlier and both were involved with the Holocaust Trust. They reminded me that however disturbing what we see on a stage may be, there are still young people who recognise hatred for what it is. I left feeling that perhaps the human race is not quite as lost as it sometimes appears.

 

Shelley and I are so lucky that we made it home before the supposed strike in Ben Gurion airport! Today was even more chaotic than our trip. We arrived back in Israel an exhausting 5 hours late and leaving the baggage claims area to go out of the airport was like everyone leaving a pop concert in Wembley Stadium simultaneously, with luggage! Insane!!! Yesterday it really happened, the non-strike caused absolute chaos with people needing to fly without their luggage, those who actually got away after waiting 4 hours to find out if they were flying at all. The crazy thing is that Transportation Minister Miri Regev took the PM to see how amazingly the airport worked before heading off for yet another visit to Morocco with her entire staff!!

 

The Israeli election campaign has barely begun and already some of the far right seem to have abandoned any sense of proportion. There is a legitimate debate to be had about the death penalty for terrorists, although I do not support it; reasonable people can disagree, and the legislation has already passed the current Knesset. But celebrating executions, proposing viewing booths for the families of terror victims and circulating videos of gallows being built is not responsible leadership. It is political theatre at its ugliest. AI has certainly changed facts into fake. As for my vote, I know exactly what I am looking for: facts rather than slogans, a reasonable and inclusive list, and people who genuinely serve the country rather than their own political interests. Too far right, too far left, or those who do not support the extraordinary country they have been elected to serve will not get my vote — or Zvi's.

 

On the international front, Erdogan's determination to recreate the glory of the Ottoman Empire is becoming increasingly evident in Syria. Many hoped that the fall of Assad might open the door to a new understanding with Israel. Instead, Turkey seems determined to stand in the way. Erdogan's folie de grandeur is winning through once again.

 

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation project was buried in the sands of Gaza, and now another Israeli concept appears to be heading toward the same fate: the network of local militias Israel established and cultivated as a counterweight to Hamas has failed. We have short memories if we forget that Hamas was created and encouraged in order to replace Fatah in Gaza, the idea of Benjamin Netanyahu. As a result, Hamas slaughtered all and any Fatah supporters. Disarmament doesn't work if we remember that the October 7th attack used rifles and guns, hatchets and bare hands.

 

The latest Impact-se report on Saudi schoolbooks is outstanding. Our work in the entire area is showing a desire to improve their learning, reduce the previous extremist teachings, the whole purpose of the work of Impact-se under the lead of our CEO Marcus Sheff. I’m so proud of the staff, Directorship and my position of Chair. This has been an exceptional year in which Indonesia has changed its school books to be more inclusive, greater tolerance with our guidance, that’s 60 million schoolchildren! Back to Saudi Arabia. Here’s the report https://impact-se.org/publication/review-of-saudi-textbooks-2024-2026/

 

Galei Zahal, aka Galgalatz, Israel's army radio station, is far more than a military broadcasting station. For decades it has been a hugely influential source of news, information and music, and has helped launch the careers of many of Israel's leading broadcasters. It became, however, a serious bee in this government's bonnet, and the decision was taken to close it down. The Supreme Court has now reversed that decision, warning that it appeared to have been driven by "the dissatisfaction of the decision-makers with the fact that the broadcasts, in their view, contradicted their positions." Quite apart from politics, surely this comes down to a very simple question: what happened to freedom of the press?

 

Last night we went to a Yehoram Gaon concert at the Mevasseret Amphitheatre, and once again we were amazed by the power of his voice not bad for a man of 87! Yehoram, the legendary Israeli singer, actor and radio personality, still has a weekly programme on Galei Zahal, which perhaps explains why the station has been such an important launching pad for so many of Israel's stars, including those who continue to appear on it today.

 

He began the evening by thanking the miluimnikim and their wives in the audience for their service, and then launched into the songs we all know and love. One particularly magical moment came when he introduced a little girl, perhaps six years old, whose special request to her mother had been to sing with Yehoram Gaon. He placed her on a high chair beside him and, without a hint of self-consciousness, she sang along with him. At the end of the two-hour performance, the audience, which had sung every word with him throughout, demanded one more song. The musicians and backing singers stood at the front of the stage and sang Al Kol Eleh with the audience joining in. That introduction was not for Al Kol Eleh but rather for another wonderfully Israeli song “Shalom Lach Eretz Nehederet” Hello Wonderful Country. https://youtu.be/__oEmwpEmTc?si=BgnNAf7BbeYxitbr

 

Another exceptional man Zvi and I have known for over 30 years is Dr Mike Evans. Together with his son Michael, he created the Friends of Zion (FOZ) Museum in Jerusalem, celebrating Israel and the contribution of Christians who have stood beside her. Mike had a dream for this year: bringing 1,800 Christian leaders to Jerusalem for a summit on 7th October. Mike created a song, wrote the lyrics and asked Zvi and his exceptional musical director Ronit Banit, to help bring together the voices from every continent and create something very special, reaching hundreds of millions people. Prepare yourselves for a beautiful, emotional experience! If you like it, as I do, please send it on.

https://youtu.be/Az9n4X5w72o?si=RVOu6Ug85EW_3sAw

 

Arik Einstein, the late great Israeli singer/songwriter creates an impression of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza as he sings his song “Ani ve Ata” You and Me. You and me we will change the world. You never know, after all, as I always say, it only takes one, one person, to start a revolution of truth and honesty, THE POWER OF ONE. Ani ve Ata. https://youtu.be/iOv9wSI8Qe4?si=rGq_2TXVWXK2a8rv

 

As beautiful as it was last Friday night with all my family around the table at Gideon and Stephanie’s home, to light the candles with everyone around me, to hear Gideon’s clear and confident voice singing the kiddush, the blessing over the wine, as my grandchildren mouthed the words along with him, but it is also so good to come home, to hear Zvi sing the kiddush with the same words as every Jew around the world stands before the Shabbat Table.

 

Zvi will miss his parliament today and I won’t go to Rachel to hear all the latest news of my Israeli grandchildren because we are going to Tel Aviv to see Zvi’s boys and their families instead. They came home from Greece in time before the travel chaos! I’m rather disappointed that Zvi managed perfectly well without me! He was very busy with his various choirs and of course his interest in the Jerusalem Dance Troupe, Hora Yerushalyim at the Efron Centre. Most other organisations are on summer break.

 

As I look over our beautiful veranda, that breathtaking view of Jerusalem on the horizon, I wish you a Shabbat Shalom, with love from Jerusalem.

 

Sheila

 

A recipe for peace

 

7^th August 2026

 

 

Shabbat Shalom, dear friends. As we wish one another Shalom, peace, let’s join Yarden Bibas in remembering the seventh birthday his son Ariel which should have celebrated this week. Instead, we remember that wonderful, cheeky red-headed little boy, his mother, Shiri, and baby brother, Kfir, after being taken hostage on 7th October 2023 and murdered by his captors. May we never forget the Bibas family, nor any of those whose lives were stolen through hatred.

 

I was horrified to read this week that antisemitism has become what one report describes as a "normalised and systemic feature of campus life" at Canadian universities. According to the newly released Campus Antisemitism and Student Experiences (CASE) report, commissioned by the Canadian Government, an astonishing 96% of Jewish students said they had either experienced or witnessed at least one antisemitic incident during the past year. Sadly, although I have given you the Canadian example, it is the experience of Jewish students all over the world. How did we reach the point where young Jews go to university to learn, yet instead find themselves having to defend who they are?

 

One of the saddest sights on Israeli television today is seeing young soldiers interviewed with their faces hidden behind balaclavas. Not because they are engaged in secret operations, but because they fear being identified when travelling abroad. Only recently, a young Israeli who had completed his military service was reportedly attacked while on holiday in Greece after being recognised by a group of pro-Palestinian “activists”. Imagine that for a moment. Young men and women who served their country now feel compelled to hide their faces, not from terrorists, but from those who seek them out simply because they wore the uniform of the IDF.

 

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani appears deeply offended that Israel defines itself as the nation-state of the Jewish people. Yet I have heard no similar criticism from him of other countries that define themselves by religion, where citizenship, public life or family law are shaped by religious identity. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain, Yemen, Mauritania and the Maldives allow citizenship to Muslims only. Liberia, by contrast, has long maintained constitutional provisions restricting citizenship to those of "Negro descent." The double standard is difficult to ignore. Israel is repeatedly singled out simply because it is the Jewish state, while countries that define themselves by religion or ethnicity rarely provoke the same level of outrage. Ironically, Mayor Mamdani himself is the son of a Muslim father and a Hindu mother—a marriage that would face significant legal and religious obstacles in the countries listed above, yet it is Israel that attracts his particular condemnation.

 

The grandparents of Theodore Herzl, the man whose dream became a Jewish State, were brought to Israel from Serbia and re-interred on Mount Herzl, bringing the last remains of the Herzl family home to rest.

 

Dr Mike Evans is an exceptional man. His determined love of Israel and the Jewish people is legendary. He is a prolific author on the subject and has now proven himself as a fine poet too. I’m not going to tell you his secret but an incredible music video is on its way. Mike, with his son Michael, created the Friends of Zion Museum which details the closeness of Christians to this little country. This week he published an article in the Jerusalem Post and these words caught my eye:- “I will never forget sitting with Mother Teresa. During our conversation she shared the truth that has stayed with me for decades. She said, “You cannot love Jesus without loving the Jewish people because Jesus was Jewish”.

These words were not political. They were biblical. They reflected an understanding that Christianity did not replace Judaism; rather Christianity was born from God's covenant relationship with the Jewish people. Jesus was born a Jew, lived as a Jew, worshipped in the Temple, celebrated the biblical feasts, and fulfilled the promises God gave through the prophets of Israel.” That simple conversation captures the heart of Christian Zionism. Mike, who Zvi and I have known for 30 years, lifted my spirits in this otherwise cruel world.

 

I have to tell you a short Mike Evans story. In 2002 he asked us if he could come with us to see Kinneret Chaya who was home from the rehabilitation centre for the first weekend since the terror attack which changed her life. We all went together with Martin Lindenfeld and Mike uttered these words which Kinneret Chaya lives by until today “Turn your scars into stars and bitter into better” Words we can all live by Mike.

 

One piece of genuinely encouraging news comes from IMPACT-se, the educational research organisation I am proud to serve as Chair of the Board. Its latest review of Saudi Arabia's school textbooks reveals that, after years of steady reform encouraged by Impact-se’s activities, antisemitic content has now been removed from the curriculum and attitudes towards Israel continue to moderate. At a time when hatred has intensified across much of the region, this is a reminder that education can still build bridges and that real change is possible.

 

Maybe there is a recipe for peace after all. At the “Cooking Peace” culinary camp here in Israel, Jewish and Arab teenagers from across Israel spent their time cooking, laughing, listening to music and discovering they had far more in common than they had imagined. Sometimes the shortest journey between two people begins with sharing a meal rather than sharing an argument.

 

Zvi’s week has been full of rehearsals for various concerts with his two choirs, but one event made me smile and burst with pride. Zvi was presented with the Pioneers Award in Yad Ben Zvi, Jerusalem. The award, which I hinted at last week, is for his pioneering the world battle to free Soviet Jewry, amongst many other achievements including establishing Keren Hayesod Young Leadership around the world. Well deserved recognition for a lifetime of work for the Jewish community worldwide and establishing strong ties with the Christians for Israel.

 

I loved the fact that a very few close friends and our neighbours Yael and Naftali came to the ceremony.

 

Here I paraphrase the weekly explanation of the Torah reading by my friend and mentor Rabbi Jeremy Rosen. His words are of ultimate importance to our understanding of life’s moral code. “This week’s Torah reading starts off with the themes of Blessing and Curse. In Hebrew bracha and klala. It has always bothered me that the Torah talks repeatedly as if some malignant force is punishing us, or that some benevolent force is rewarding us. Growing up in a Christian world which proclaims love even if it has not always lived up to that ideal, we Jews were often accused of being overly concerned with laws. Moses is indeed descried as the lawgiver, as if the obligation to love is not constantly reiterated in the Torah, which introduced the command to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Consider the line in the 10 commandments that we repeated a couple of weeks ago, that talks about visiting the sins of the fathers onto their sons. It is describing the impact that one generation can have on the next. For better and for worse. Life is made-up of consequences, which affect our children. And the way we educate them and set examples. Instead of punishing or rewarding, we are being asked to remember the impact one generation can have on the next for better or worse. It is up to us. Instead of thinking of God as a superhero dishing out rewards or punishing us for our errors, we should rather think of the mystical force behind the universe, our relation to it and our responsibility for the consequences of our actions.”

 

I haven’t been particularly busy this week. Well, we were 14 for Friday night dinner, and apart from my oven baked salmon, roast potatoes, plain rice and various salads I created the simplest dish imaginable which everyone loved. Sea Bream fillets and put my own charred peppers on top! That’s it apart from salt and pepper! I managed to see friends but generally at home which I love. I picked the apples from our little apple tree and gave half of the crop to our upstairs neighbours because each week, after the 7^th of October, Yoram used to drive south to help pick crops and bring me some of the rewards.

 

On Monday I will be back on an aeroplane, this time with our grand-daughter Shelly. I am flying to London to meet up with all my non-Israeli grandchildren, all 5 of them and of course my son Gideon and daughters in law Stephanie and Karen. Hopefully I will also get to see 2 of my 3 siblings who will come to London. Shelly, whose parents made Aliya just one year after I did, is an incredible companion and I really want her to meet all the family. I wanted to write from London but Stephanie explained that their computer is more of a statue than a useable means of communication!

 

So now we can move on to music and I promise to choose carefully.

 

I dedicate this song to Yarden Bibas who returned from his tortured captivity by Hamas to discover that his wife and babies had been slaughtered in captivity. Mishehu – Someone. https://youtu.be/BcjLIACFiXM?si=8Yyc_U_JajB5Ix8z

 

The late Matti Caspi sang from the heart but also sang about life in Israel This song is about warm summer evenings https://youtu.be/PNOn-7m-O24?si=p9_XR08BFO_FBOKY

 

I know how much you love Koolulam as do I! In this song they have outdone themselves. Honouring eight brave and exceptional women who have proven their exceptional bravery in many spheres are honoured in this song. I wish you could understand their names and achievements but their pictures tell their stories. A perfect way to end this missive. https://youtu.be/pB8LhGTvI5c?si=H5Qst1wjmCnaXoV5

 

I wish you all a Shabbat Shalom. I will miss you but I am so thrilled to see my grandchildren from both NYC and London.

With love from Jerusalem

Sheila

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A,B,C and Operation Agatha

 

31^st July 2026

 

Shabbat Shalom to you one and all. I wish you a peaceful weekend

 

The "settlements" have been in the news a great deal this week, even more than usual. One would think that Israel is the only country in the world with disputed borders, yet once again the media has chosen to focus on one tiny corner of the globe while paying far less attention to countless other territorial disputes and occupations.

 

If, like me, you have occasionally found yourself confused about what is "ours", "theirs" and somewhere in between, a little explanation may help. Under the Oslo II Accord of 1995, the West Bank was divided into Areas A, B and C. Area A, which includes the major Palestinian cities such as Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin and Bethlehem, is under full Palestinian Authority civil and security control. Area B consists mainly of smaller Palestinian towns and villages, with Palestinian civil administration but shared Israeli-Palestinian security responsibility. Area C, which remains under full Israeli civil and security control, includes the Israeli communities often referred to as "settlements", together with large areas of open countryside, agricultural land, nature reserves and strategic road networks.

 

Part of the confusion is geographical. When people hear terms such as "West Bank", "occupied territories" or "settlements", they often imagine vast tracts of land with clear and obvious borders. In reality, the entire area is remarkably small, only about 130 kilometres from north to south and around 65 kilometres at its widest point. The landscape is a complex patchwork of Israeli communities, Palestinian cities, villages, farms, roads and hillsides, often lying only minutes apart.

 

Too often, the politics are reported without explaining the geography. Readers and viewers are presented with conclusions before they are given context. Whatever one's political views, understanding the map is essential before attempting to understand the dispute itself.

 

Having said that, there is no place for extremism in a country fighting for its survival. The actions of a small minority of violent settlers are not acts of patriotism; they are acts of lawlessness. At a time when Israel faces enemies on multiple fronts, IDF soldiers are being pulled away from vital missions to deal with incidents that should have been prevented. The responsibility does not rest solely with the perpetrators. When Ministers excuse violence, remain silent in the face of it or treat criminals as political allies, they become part of the problem. A government that cannot enforce the law equally weakens both the state and the society it is meant to protect.

 

Perhaps one of the qualities that distinguish Israel from its neighbours, indeed from most of this region, is our determined respect for other religions and faiths. As I have told you many times, Jerusalem, our capital city, houses places of worship of all the widely diverse religious groups, irrespective of the form of prayer. We not only respect but recognise, by law, each and every one, but, and here’s the rub, we expect that respect to be returned.

 

On Friday 24^th of July Guatemala became the 3^rd country to recognise the City of David National Park, as a Jewish Heritage, joining the USA and Argentina. The Park is the historical site of King David’s Jerusalem. Whatever the modern political arguments, the archaeological evidence beneath the surface remains unchanged. The existence of a contemporary community does not erase the history that came before it. Recognising the City of David as part of the Jewish heritage of Jerusalem is not a denial of anyone else's presence; it is an acknowledgement of historical fact.

 

Have you ever heard of Operation Agatha? Most people have heard of the bombing of Jerusalem's King David Hotel by the Irgun, led by Menachem Begin, on 22nd July 1946. Far fewer know what came before it. Three weeks earlier, British Mandate forces arrested around 2,700 members of the Jewish Agency and Haganah, raiding offices and seizing vast quantities of documents in an attempt to cripple the leadership of the Yishuv. Believing some of these papers had been transferred to the King David Hotel, the HQ of the Mandate administration, the Irgun planted explosives in the building. Warning calls were made urging evacuation, although historians still debate how those warnings were handled. The explosion killed 91 people — Britons, Arabs and Jews alike — and remains one of the most controversial events of the Mandate period.

 

Escaping the heat yesterday, we took our favourite short walk through Motza Illit and stopped for coffee after meeting a delightful couple, Ilana and Adam. As we chatted, Adam mentioned that he had come to Israel from Poland in 1956 as part of the Gomułka Aliyah, one of some 50,000 Polish Jews who arrived during that period. I found myself fascinated. Just when I think I know the story of Israel's many waves of  Aliyah -immigration, someone appears with a piece of history I had never heard before. That is one of the joys of life here; every conversation has the potential to teach you something new.

 

I didn’t know Nancy Hartevelt Kobrin although she knew my newsletters. Nancy is a writer, an historian, a psychoanalyst and an expert on Soviet Jewry and she contacted me to learn more about Zvi’s involvement in the student demonstrations that began the world struggle to free Soviet Jewry in 1969. There’s a Hebrew saying “Success has many fathers whereas failure is an orphan” and the Aliya from the FSU has been the most successful ever through science, culture and work ethic.

 

Based on his incredible work toward the freedom of Soviet Jewry, his work throughout the years for the good of Israel and the world Jewish community and for creating Young Leadership throughout the Keren Hayesod world many years ago, Zvi will be receiving a special Pioneers Award on Sunday. I’m so proud of him. Perhaps I am most proud of the fact that those young leaders have gone on to take major roles in their communities and the world and are still his (our) close friends today.

 

“Apartheid Israel” is an oxymoron.  Last night I was watching the news and after Lucy Aharish hosted a serious discussion programme (Lucy is Israeli Moslem) I watched the major news broadcast with the political and diplomatic expert Suleiman Maswadeh; the Northern correspondent Ali Mugrabi; equally the political correspondent is Haredi and the military and war correspondents are secular. In fact all the channels follow the same pattern. Our medical services couldn’t survive without our Arab doctors, nurses and dentists to say nothing of the numbers of university graduates and of course Members of Knesset. I could go on but I think that’s enough.

 

So you already know that we went for a lovely walk through the village, a village in every way. On our way down the path next to Sheva Achiot one sees the view over to Ein Kerem and the five Golden Onion Domes of the Cathedral of All Russian Saints and Gornensky Convent, above the Church of the Visitation. When we reach the top we can see the Calatrava Bridge at the entrance to town. In the village itself we have kindergartens, a small library in a pretty reading garden, lanes called for the fruits that used to grow here and the homes of people whose parents and grandparents were born here; two community centres, and as one comes into the estate, playgrounds, an area for fetes and musical events, and, in the gorgeous big house, an auditorium and coffee shop.

 

I love Boy George! Always have always will. He is not just a singer, an excellent one by the way, he is a bright human being who thinks out of the box, a trend setter not a trend follower. If you haven’t heard his latest release, you should!! Raised a Catholic he has openly supported Israel when his fellow musicians fear doing so. As a Gay man he mocks the stupidity of supporting Palestine. Here are the lyrics

We Will Dance Again. You say genocide / I say war / When you’re attacked / That’s what the army is for / “Does it get ugly? / You bet it does / When I know you want to kill / Every last one of us. You never mention October 7

Young girls raped against trees / Murdered brutally / For the crime of dancing / You condemn the Jews /With selective memory / Musicians holding flags / Mouthing like sheep / Propaganda fueled by the internet / Feels so weak.

But trust me, we will dance again / We will dance again / We will dance again / And there will be no war / But if you’re ever confused / I stand with the Jews / I don’t feel brave / I just need to behave like a human.” https://youtu.be/B8OVEI0FfWU?si=wF2XPt1I_0r5vSio

 

Tu B'Av is the Jewish holiday of love, joy, and matchmaking that falls on the 15th day of the Hebrew month of Av. This year that was the 29^th of July. Traditionally, unmarried young women in ancient Jerusalem wore borrowed white dresses so rich and poor looked alike, and danced in the fields to find partners. Of course, today that is probably non-woke today! Known as Chag HaAhava, or the Festival of Love, it is widely celebrated in Israel with romantic dinners, concerts, parties, and giving flowers and of course proposals of marriage. Here Yonina, husband and wife, sing of their love for one another. https://youtu.be/iaGQAy3rCI0?si=gR5Abb3-lm-YmAIT

 

“Together throughout, we’ve been through it all and we’ll get through this too” the words of Katan Aleinu. Liraz Russo, known as Static and Eden Ben Zaken are famous Israeli stars yet when necessary, they donned their uniforms. This is Israel.  https://youtu.be/M8Nz-wBEf7o?si=4Rj-NnVqdiO9XEBx  

 

It's time to extend our dining table since we will be 15 for Shabbat dinner and I want to get the table set. Everyone laughs because I like to get the table perfectly set well in advance and then I feel that the rest is easy. I can decide what I’m giving everyone with their particular culinary foibles, prepare, cook and get the bowls ready, lined up like soldiers to receive the salads or vegetables. Maybe, if it’s not too hot, I’ll go for a stroll around the veranda, checking out the fruit trees, in awe at the unbelievable hibiscus smothered in peachy/orange flowers and then standing, just standing very still so that the tiny sunbirds can dart from flower to flower then take a drink of sugary water from the special feeder, stopping to see Jerusalem on the horizon.

 

This week’s Torah reading talks of gratitude, of the lack of gratitude of the Children of Israel’s first generation out of slavery. Moses reminds them of the things they should be grateful for and perhaps that’s a lesson we should learn. We are often so busy complaining that we forget how lucky we are. Just a thought!!

 

Shabbat Shalom lovely people. Shabbat Shalom to you all, wherever you are in this crazy world.

Sheila