28th
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 7th
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 3rd 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
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