1336 - 12th Oct 2023

MESSAGE TO THE HUMANE WORLD

H

amas has raped to death the young and livestreamed the murder of the old. Hamas has cut the heads off babies. Hamas has kidnapped tiny children. Don’t you dare look away. Don’t. You. Dare.

Now Hamas boasts it will publicly execute the kidnapped. Yet some people who consider themselves moral still think Israel is the bad guy? Some people who have spent their lives imagining they’d have been on the right side of the Holocaust.

But where are they now when our children are being slaughtered in numbers not seen since the Nazis?

Where are the celebrities who love to jump on the bandwagon on every fashionable cause? Where is the music industry’s reaction to the horrors at a music festival that became a slaughterhouse? Why are media outlets using the word ‘militant’ to describe baby killers?

And where the hell is the clear revulsion from other faith groups?

As London Mayor Sadiq Khan told us this week, it shouldn’t be difficult for anyone, anyone at all, to condemn medieval, subhuman barbarism – not even inflicted by ISIS – while still supporting the Palestinian cause.

Hamas is not representative of Muslims or Islam. Speak out, publicly, and urge others to. Now. For the sake of your own humanity.

British Jews will be forever grateful that the prime minister and senior politicians have stood with us in this darkest hour. We will forever recall how iconic buildings were lit up in the colours of the Israeli flag and the Archbishop of Canterbury spoke in such clear terms. We will forever remember the uncompromising stance of some of the media’s biggest household names. But… To all who have stayed silent – or sought to draw loathsome false equivalence – as marauding psychopaths butcher Jews, ask yourself: Who are you? Who are you?

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Jewish News 12 October 2023

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ISRAEL AT WAR

The missing and the dead

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ISRAEL AT WAR

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ISRAEL IS AT WAR.

OUR PEOPLE ARE UNDER ATTACK.

We are grateful to the Jewish News for providing this advertising space free of charge to ensure as much support as possible reaches people in need in Israel

ujia.org 6972 UJIA Emergency Briefing 2023 JN DPS v1.indd 1

United Jewish Israel Appeal is a registered charity no. 1060078 (England & Wales) and SC 039181 (Scotland).

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WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT. TO DONATE NOW TO THE COMMUNITY APPEAL, VISIT UJIA.ORG OR SCAN THE QR CODE BELOW. The UJIA Israel at War Community Appeal is raising funds to provide an immediate response to the terrorist massacre and ongoing war in Israel.

Our focus right now is to support the thousands of victims of terror and trauma in the affected communities. Over the coming days, weeks and months we will continue to work with our partners on the ground to do all that we can for the people of Israel in these tragic times.

11/10/2023 14:16

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Jewish News 12 October 2023

ISRAEL AT WAR

‘Our Nathanel was a her Family of 20-year-old former JFS student killed by Hamas on Saturday want him remembered for his love of Israel and commitment to its defence, writes Sandy Rashty

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he oldest sister of former JFS student Nathanel Young has described him as a “a hero of the Jewish people” in her first full interview since he was killed. Aged just 20, Nathanel died during a raid by terrorist group Hamas in the early hours of Saturday. Only seven members of his 30-strong Golan 13 Brigade are said to have survived.

More than 1,200 Israelis are confirmed dead, with many injured and hundreds more missing, killed or kidnapped into Gaza, including 17 British nationals. But for the Young family, there is a commitment to calling on the British Jewish community to remember Nathanel’s love for Israel, and to do what they can to support IDF soldiers and civilians who are deeply affected by the ongoing crisis.

Gaby, who spoke to her brother Nathanel, minutes before he died, wants him to be remembered for what he is: “A hero of the Jewish people.”

Born in Southgate into an observant Jewish family, Nathanel always has a strong relationship with the community and Israel.

He attended Wolfson Hillel Primary School, had his barmitzvah at Cockfosters and North Southgate Synagogue and went to JFS, the largest Jewish school in Europe.

He loved his family, friends, pet dog Oreo and was determined to pursue a career in music. Hence his nickname, DJ. Gaby, the eldest of the five Young siblings, remembers playing garage music to her baby brother, 18 years her junior. It clearly had an impact, because later on he would host large gatherings of JFS students and play the 90s dance music.

“I would play garage music when he was a baby,” she laughs. “That’s how he knew it and he revived it at these JFS parties. There are five of us children, I’m the eldest and he’s the youngest. There are 18 years between us

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HE LOVED HIS DOG, MUSIC AND FASHION – HE HAD A MASSIVE COLLECTION OF TRAINERS. BUT HE LEFT IT ALL BEHIND TO MOVE TO ISRAEL – HIS PASSION

but we were always still close, despite the age gap.” She says that as a young child he was always a cheeky monkey. “A lobbus,” says Gaby. “That’s the word that comes to mind.

Nathanel studied music at a college in London after leaving JFS, but the pull to make aliyah was strong.

Gaby recalls: “He had a passion for so many things. He loved his dog, music and fashion, he had a massive trainer collection.

He had more shoes than me, and I have a lot.

But he left it all behind to move to Israel.

“That was his real passion, he wanted to be in Israel. So he left everything, his career, his [DJ] decks, everything. He was only going to live in Israel for one year, but once he was there, he just didn’t want to come back to England.”

He moved to Israel in 2021, officially making aliyah last year. He worked at the Hilton Tel Aviv, was a dog walker by day and by night, a DJ at popular Tel Aviv nightclubs.

His Hebrew was fluent, better even than Gaby’s, who has lived in Israel for a decade.

“He would laugh at how I still spoke Hebrew with an English accent,” she recalls.

“He was speaking with an Israeli accent after no time.

“He managed to pursue all his passions in Israel,” she says. “He was doing everything he could to make aliyah and join the army as a lone soldier. He wanted to fight for Israel and protect the people of Israel. He was passionate about so many things, but more than anything he was passionate about defending Israel.”

She recalls visiting him at his IDF base.

“He was so proud to show me around. Every single person who saw Nat would shout: ‘Hi DJ’ when he would walk past. People were just always so excited to see him.”

After joining the IDF in July, Nathanel, known as Uncle Nat Nat to his nieces, spent a month in London catching up with family and friends, instead of using the last period before his expected three-year service to travel the world.

“He wanted to spend the summer with our family and his friends. There’s such a special connection between Nathanel and my mum, he wanted to be with her.”

After being in the IDF for just one month and completing his training, Nathanel was killed during a raid on his base.

Gaby, who is six months pregnant with twins, is still processing the news.

At around 6:30am on Saturday, she heard the siren go off from her home in Tel Aviv.

She thought it was a mistake, because it came out of nowhere.

Nathanel Young with sister Gaby, who says he was ‘so proud to show me round his IDF base’

‘He was passionate about many things but more than anything he wanted to defend Israel’

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ISRAEL AT WAR

ro to the Jewish people’

Nathanel with Gaby, their brother and their mother on his last day of army training

Within two minutes, her little brother phoned her as she ran to the shelter with her young family. “Nat called to ask if we were okay,” she says. “He told me he was at his base on the border with Gaza and that he was being told to get his stuff. We couldn’t really hear each other so we started sending messages on WhatsApp. I sent him messages telling him to be strong, with ‘muscle’ emojis. I told him to put his extra gear on and that God would protect him. He said they might have to go into Gaza.”

By 7am, Gaby’s messages had stopped going through “There were no blue ticks after 7am,” she says. “I was optimistic, I thought the unit had been told to turn their phones off.

I was trying to find out where he was, I saw the news about infiltration into Israel, but I didn’t really know how bad the situation was.

“Later, someone told me he had been taken to a hospital. I was kind of relieved, because he was in the hospital. I thought he was being treated for an injury or something.”

Gaby and Nathanel’s brother Eliot, who also lives in Israel, tried to speak to a hospital they were told he had been taken to.

Eliot, who has two daughters, searched the hospital for Nathanel for four hours.

Soon, Gaby knew something was wrong and spent the evening working at her marketing job as a form of distraction.

Early on Sunday, at around 1am, she received a knock on the door from IDF officers, and it was then that she knew what had happened. “They told us he didn’t make it,” she says, going silent.

Before the attack on Israel, Nathanel’s parents, who were observant, had been on holiday in France. By Sunday evening, the family were all in Israel, planning the funeral at the airport.

This week, more than 2,000 people gathered at the military cemetery on Mount Herzl to pay their respects to Nathanel.

In the middle of Gaby’s eulogy, the rocket warning siren went off and the family had to cower on the ground as terrorist rockets were aimed at Israeli civilians.

“I said something about it being a rude

interruption,” Gaby recalls. “It sounds weird to say, but it felt like an inconvenience – like a rocket is nothing compared to everything else going on.

“After the siren, we carried on. I said: ‘I am going to finish my speech and give Nat the honour he deserves.’”

She added: “So many of his friends have spoken to us, they’re falling to pieces. We have heard so many stories about how Nat would go out of his way for other people. He would pay the equivalent of a £50 cab ride to see a friend at a gig.

“He would use every spare moment to see his four nieces, two are my daughters and two are my brother Eliot’s. Even if he was only off the base for 36 hours, he would come and see us.

“He would walk through the door, lift up the girls and bring them loads of presents.

He was so much fun. He would tell all his friends about his nieces.

“Last week, he received a gift card for the chagim for around £100, and he asked me what shoe size my five and three-year-old daughters were. That’s the person he was.

“His main aim in life was to one day get a lot of money, so he could buy a house with a pool for my mum. He would read books on how to be successful financially. He wanted money, to give it to other people.”

Now, the parents of Nathanel Young, Chantel and Nicky Young, are moving to Israel next month, permanently.

And Gaby says the support of the British Jewish community has made its mark.

“The support is really felt and has given us a lot of comfort. We are managing to pull through with the support of people from Israel, England, from olim, from messages we are seeing, from people saying we can use holiday homes that aren’t being lived in. We have messages from Israel’s music community who knew Nat.” And whilst she cannot speak for Nathanel anymore, Gaby does have a call.

“We are urging British Jews to be united with Israel.

“This has nothing to do with politics. The situation in Israel is now beyond politics, it’s about humanity and it’s about people.”

COMFORT OF NETANEL

Nathanel was a former pupil at JFS. His brother searched the hospital for him for four hours

A husband and wife living in Israel have named their baby boy after Nathanel Young,.

In a post on social media, Yehudis Kalish Sanders, who did not know Nathanel personally, posted: “Welcome to the world, Netanel Eitan. We feel so blessed to be your parents.

“I felt strongly about this name for a few months due to its beautiful meaning but was hesitant until yesterday when we heard about Nathanel Young, a lone soldier from the UK who died serving our country.

“Once I heard his name, I knew for sure that this name was meant for our son. We pray that our Netanel will preserve his memory and comfort his family and Am Yisrael.”

A former pupil at JFS, Corporal Nathanel Young died on Saturday, the first day of the war, which is now on its fifth day.

Yehudish and husband with baby Netanel

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ISRAEL AT WAR

Bernard, from Glasgow was killed on his kibbutz

Bernard Cowan was shot dead at his kibbutz, Sufa

The heartbroken brother of former Glaswegian Bernard Cowan, shot dead by Hamas terrorists at his kibbutz on Saturday, has spoken of his “generous, hospitable” nature with an overwhelming love for Israel, writes Jenni Frazer.

Colin Cowan, speaking from his home in East Kilbride, Renfrewshire, told Jewish News that the surviving residents of Bernard Cowan’s kibbutz, Sufa, had been moved to Eilat and that, contrary to earlier reports, his brother’s funeral had not yet taken place “because it is still too dangerous”.

The family — he, his mother and elder sister, Laura — had been given permission by the rabbi of Giffnock and Newton Mearns Synagogue, Rabbi Moshe Rubin, to sit shiva this week.

More than 150 members of the community turned out to wish the family long life and to hear Colin Cowan make an emotional tribute to his brother.

Bernard would have been 58 this Shabbat, his brother said, remembering that the parsha of the week had been Bernard’s barmitzvah portion.

The middle of the three siblings, Bernard Cowan had left his Glasgow home aged 17 for a six-month tour of Israel.

“He loved it. He came back to Glasgow and because he wasn’t very academic, and

didn’t want to join our father’s business, he went back and made aliyah.”

During his army training, he was posted to Sufa, just eight kilometres from the Gaza border, and it was there that he settled in his early twenties.

Bernard, 57, met his wife, Margaret, who comes from a Ukrainian family who had emigrated years ago, when she was working as an English teacher in the area. Married for more than 30 years, together they had three children and two grandchildren.

Colin described his brother as someone who was “passionate” — about Israel, diving, travelling and coffee. He boasted a huge collection of Starbucks coffee mugs from all over the world, and was famous in the area for his barbecues.

“We knew Israel had been attacked early on Saturday and we tried to get hold of him,” Colin said. “We spoke to his son.

“Apart from Margaret, his wife, fortunately none of his children or grandchildren were on the kibbutz. We sent messages to Margaret but we couldn’t reach her. They had a safe room in their house on the kibbutz. Then we got a message from Margaret to say she hadn’t seen him, he’d gone missing.”

His brother, Colin said, “was one of those people who, whenever there was

an air raid siren [frequent because of the kibbutz’s proximity to the Gaza border], would say, oh, it’s not going to affect me, and wouldn’t go to the safe room. But when [the terrorists] originally attacked, he went into the safe room with Margaret.”

Bernard, however, was also known for not being able to sit still. He decided to leave the shelter, and went into his house’s kitchen. “Two terrorists were walking by and they saw him and shot him dead.” Two other kibbutzniks were also killed.

On the kibbutz, Bernard had worked in Sufa’s factory, producing bromide chemicals, and had taken a second job as a gardener in the region. “He was a grafter, a really hard worker.”

Colin recalled a visit with Bernard to Jerusalem when he was in his early twenties, to see their cousin.

“Our cousin was doing his army training at the time and he didn’t agree with being sent to places on the Gaza border or the West Bank, because of the risk. And Bernard turned round and said, you come to this country, you love this country, you live in this country and you are willing to die for it.”

For once, Colin said, his normally argumentative cousin had no answer.

Marlowe family confirm Jake among dead at music festival

After five days of agonising wait, the Marlowe family in London got the news they were dreading, that their beloved son, Jake, was confirmed as one of the deaths at the Supernova music festival in Kibbutz Re’im.

Jake, who was 26, had been working as a carpenter in Israel when he was asked to help with security at the southern Israel kibbutz.

As his mother, Lisa, told Jewish News on Sunday, Jake signed off his last message to her, telling her that he loved her.

Speaking to this newspaper, Jake’s mother said: “He was doing security at this rave yesterday and called me at 4.30am to say all these rockets were flying over.

“Then, at about 5.30am, he texted to say, ‘signal very bad, everything OK, will keep you updated I promise you,’ and that he loved me”.

A former pupil of JFS in Kenton and a member of BBYO, Jake Marlowe lived in Ma’alot in the north of Israel, and had made aliyah two years ago.

His friends posted his Israeli ID card online in order to raise awareness of the fact that he was missing after armed terrorists

Jake Marlowe, 26, had been asked to help with security at Kibbutz Re’im in southern Israel

began indiscriminately shooting at the partygoers.

Early on Saturday morning he was sending messages to friends in the UK, telling them that he was doing whatever he could to take people to safety as rockets begin to fall.

He was believed to have been trying to evacuate people on a quad bike.

One of his close friends, Londoner Daniel Aboudy, told media outlets that Jake had called his mother at 4.30am UK time, telling her “that he had seen rockets fired from Gaza and that he had even filmed [the raid]”.

Around 45 minutes later, Jake and his mother spoke briefly, but there was no communication after that.

He was reported missing, and feared to be among the 260 killed at the festival site.

The family said they were “heartbroken at the crushing news”.

A spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in London said that Jake Marlowe’s death had been confirmed, and that repatriation plans were in place so that a funeral and shiva could be held.

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

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ISRAEL AT WAR

At least 17 Britons believed murdered or kidnapped Dan Darlington with Carolin

Dor Shafir and Savion Kiper

Carolin Bohl

Ditza Heiman

ISRAEL EMERGENCY APPEAL FOOD FOR SOLDIERS AND PEOPLE IN NEED AS THE SIRENS SOUND, OUR FOOD CENTRES ACROSS ISRAEL ARE WORKING OVERTIME TO PROVIDE FOR THOSE WHOSE LIVES HAVE BEEN TURNED UPSIDE DOWN BY THE WAR, WE WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE ESSENTIAL FOOD, SHELTER, AND SUPPORT TO THOSE WHO NEED IT MOST. HOWEVER, THE ESCALATING CRISIS WILL STRETCH RESOURCES TO THE LIMIT, AND WE URGENTLY NEED YOUR HELP TO CONTINUE OUR VITAL MISSION. IN ADDITION, WITH AN ARMY OF VOLUNTEERS WE ARE NOW PREPARING THOUSANDS OF HOT MEALS AND CARE PACKAGES FOR SOLDIERS IN SOUTHERN ISRAEL. YOUR CONTRIBUTION, NO MATTER THE SIZE, CAN GO A LONG WAY IN STANDING WITH ISRAEL AT THIS TIME. TO DONATE PLEASE VISIT: WWW.MANNAUK.ORG MANNA UK Branch of Meir Panim. Charity Number: 1129738 | gaby@mannauk.org

In total at least 17 British nationals are believed to have been killed or been kidnapped, with the number expected to rise.

Among the dead is the photographer Dan Darlington, who came from Manchester.

His sister, Shelley, wrote on social media:“My baby brother, Dan, was murdered by terrorists on Saturday morning on our kibbutz, Nir Oz, alongside his beautiful friend Carolin [Bohl].

“Only days before he was riding his bike, laughing, taking photos of sunsets and enjoying life’s simple pleasures in our beautiful kibbutz.

“He was meant to leave for Tel Aviv the night before but decided to stay one more day to explore the kibbutz with his friend — a decision that irrevocably changed all our lives forever, and one that cost him his life.”

Fears are growing for Dor Shafir, 30, who held British-Irish citizenship, after the body of his fiancee, Savion Kiper, 31, was found among the 260 people murdered at the Supernova music festival at Kibbutz Re’im.

His family say there has been no trace of him. The couple were due to marry next year and were last seen running for their car as the terrorists began shooting indiscriminately at the party-goers.

Missing, too, is Ditza Heiman, 84, snatched from her home at kibbutz Nir Oz by Hamas terrorists on Saturday morning. Calls to her phone were answered by men shouting in Arabic that they were Hamas. Mrs Heiman, who has family in Hertfordshire, is said to be among 50 people kidnapped from the kibbutz, including a number of elderly people and several children.

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Hundreds of Israelis line up to donate blood at the MDA UK sponsored bloodmobiles in Israel.

October 2023

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

OPERATION SWORDS OF IRON

The people of Israel are giving their blood.

Please will you give generously.

Since the massacre in southern Israel last weekend, Magen David Adom has been stretched to full capacity. Whilst our teams of paramedics and volunteers have been on the front line saving lives, Israelis of all backgrounds have queued to give their blood, as levels run perilously low.

For every day the country is at war, we need an additional ONE MILLION SHEKELS to operate.

Magen David Adom UK is leading the global fundraising effort to raise these funds – and to do this we need your urgent and ongoing support.

Please give now and give generously.

Donate now at www.mdauk.org

Registered Charity No. 1113409

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UNITED HATZALAH OF ISRAEL

ISRAEL IS AT WAR

HELP US BUY VITAL MEDICAL EQUIPMENT, TREAT THE INJURED AND SAVE LIVES DONATE TO

UNITED HATZALAH OF ISRAEL

Israelrescue.org/en_GB/donate/

BRITISH FRIENDS OF UNITED HATZALAH ISRAEL Suite 12 – The Brentano Suite First Floor, Lyttelton House, 2 Lyttelton Road, London, N2 0EF Phone. 020 3823 4650 I Email. uk@israelrescue.org

Charity no. 1101329

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ISRAEL AT WAR

‘What happened on my kibbutz was apocalyptic’ Itzik Ribak speaks to Jewish News from his London home. Beside him, anxiously watching the news from Israel, is his wife Ronit, writes Michelle Rosenberg.

Ronit had messaged Jewish News, wanting to “share with you one story of many that sadly takes place now in our beloved country”.

Ribak, 58, is from the Ein Hashlosha kibbutz, very close to Gaza. It was one of an estimated 22 kibbutzim and moshavim infiltrated and seized by the Hamas terrorists.

An initial email before we speak talks of “looting, burning houses, taking hostages and murdering indiscriminately. Sadly, four members of the kibbutz have been killed, defending the community. One of them was Rami Nrgbi, one of my husband’s best friends from childhood. May they all rest in peace.”

Ribak tells Jewish News: “Our kibbutz is only two kilometres from Gaza; the gap between the fence of our kibbutz and Gaza is just fields. As soon as they got through the fence, they came into our kibbutz, without much difficulty.”

He says the Palestinians had shot a lot of the cameras securing the fence, depriving the kibbutz security forces of live information.

Meanwhile, “they were infiltrating through the fence with motorbikes in the hundreds and just started walking into the kibbutz”.

He explains as soon as the rockets had landed and the alarms sounded, residents rushed to their shelters, leaving behind a small group of armed adults on guard.

Ribak says an incident of this magnitude had

Itzik Ribak and (left) smoke over the kibbutz

never happened in Israel since 1948. “You can handle one or two terrorists, not scores of them,” he says. “One of my closest friends was one of those on guard trying to fight them. And then of course, they were gunned down. That’s how all these places have got taken over, literally taken over by the terrorists. Because once you get rid of the settlers with guns, the place is yours and you are roaming free. They loot whatever they can and kill whoever they can.

“Most importantly, if you kidnap someone it’s only a couple of kilometres with a motorbike or pickup truck to take as many as they can”, either he says grimly, as hostages or kill them.

“They were burning houses in order to get them to come out of the shelter. That was hor-

rific for people. Hours and hours and it took forever for the Israeli army to get their act together because it was a complete shock in the middle of Sabbath and a big holiday. And because of very little intelligence, a lot of soldiers had gone home for the weekend. The army base near our kibbutz was taken over.”

He describes what happened as “inconceivable. Apocalyptic. The biggest shock is the intelligence. The second shock is people are locked in places on telephones begging for help and there is no one to be seen. There is a big gap between what you see on TV and the reality from actual people on the ground I was in touch with. The might of Israel, the big high tech, and then flipping idiotic terrorists on motoribikes and bloody parachutes managing to get in.”

Ribak recounts another story from a kibbutz where the terrorists entered a house, found an 81-year old woman not in the shelter and asked if she had a gun: “They took her mobile phone, tablet and then left her. She could smell petrol.

They were pouring petrol over the house.

“She later told her son ‘I don’t know where I got the courage to do what I did’, but she opened the metal window, which is extremely heavy, jumped through it in her pyjamas and ran through the kibbutz. Her house was on fire and she saw her friend’s house on fire. She knew the person inside it was dead. Burnt alive.”

Ribak says this type of story was “multiplied several times across other kibbutzim. Everyone has their stories. Our hearts are with all the families of the dead, injured and kidnapped.”

LONDONER RECALLS SDEROT HORROR An former Londoner who went to stay with his wife’s family over the Shabbat and Simchat Torah weekend has described finding himself caught up in the horror, writes Jenni Frazer.

Clive Hart and his wife live on one side of Sderot in the area closer to the Gaza Strip, while her sister and brother-in-law live on the other side of the community.

As Hart explained, the family had gathered in two apartments in one building.

“There were other relatives from outside the area — there were around a dozen in all.”

When the sirens sounded early on Saturday morning, Hart said it was decided most people “should hole up in the upstairs, second-floor flat.

A couple of brave souls stayed on the ground floor, in the garden flat, but we thought it was too easy for people to enter over the fence and get in to the ground floor”.

Hart and his wife were among 10 family members in the upstairs apartment. From its windows, he said, they could see “lots of rockets” and hear gunfire. They also spotted men “piling in [to Sderot] in jeeps”, vehicles which he said were typical of the white backless jeeps driven in Gaza.

On both Saturday and Sunday, the

Clive Hart and his wife. ‘We just have to hunker down and wait it out,’ he said

family could see “lots of soldiers and police searching through scrubs and fields. There’s a building site opposite the apartment block and they were obviously trying to see if anyone [from Hamas] was hiding there”. At

least one of the jeeps was tracked down by Israeli army and police and its driver and passengers were, Hart assumed, killed.

He said communication — including instructions to citizens to stay at home — had

not been a problem until Sunday morning, when half of Sderot’s power was cut. It meant that there was no internet and no TV news,.

Crucially, is also meant there was no possibility of being able to charge mobile phones, so the family were running out of phone contact one by one.

By late afternoon on Sunday, a cousin of Hart’s wife, who is a serving police officer in Tel Aviv but lives in an apartment building next to the Harts, was helping out in Sderot.

He offered “an armed escort” if the couple wanted to return home, which they accepted.

Clive Hart was brought up in Wembley, made aliyah after university and served in the army many years ago, and then returned to Britain for work purposes.

He and his wife went back to Israel just over a year ago and settled in Sderot. She is a primary school teacher while he works in the sports industry in both Britain and Israel, Both now face an uncertain future, as all schools in Israel have been closed for the time being and all the various sporting European qualifying matches due to be played in the country have been cancelled.

“We’re just going to have to hunker down and wait it out. I can’t picture anything of any normality for the next while”, Hart said.

14 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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POLICE & GOVERNMENT CST is working with the highest levels of police and government to keep our community safe.

COMMUNAL SAFETY CST has provided security briefings to communal organisations and extensive support across Shabbat, Yom Tov and at communal events.

SCHOOLS CST has enhanced security at Jewish schools to ensure they are protected to the highest levels, using the latest security technology.

REALTIME MONITORING CST’s experts are monitoring social media, internet forums and the dark web for extremist reactions in the UK to the Hamas terror attack.

Thank you to our dedicated security volunteers.

Sign up now cst.org.uk/join-us CST’s work is all provided free of charge. Every pound you give enables CST to do its work for the benefit of the Jewish community and wider society.

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ISRAEL AT WAR

‘I’m being shot at, you have to help me’ The sister of a teenager who was at the music festival in southern Israel where Hamas killed 260 people texts a friend her chilling, almost unbearable account of what happened

“

My brother was in the attack.

In the party. At 6.30 in the morning – there is an alarm and my mother wakes me up to enter the shelter.

My little brother is at the party in the south that he has been waiting for a long time with a few other friends.

An hour before the party he told me: “I haven’t been this excited in a long time! All the friends are going to have fun! We call him while the alarm goes off, he says the missiles are on them and he sees all the missiles.

He entered a protected space with all his friends.

A few minutes later he calls us

A terrorist drags a young man away at gunpoint

screaming as he runs for his life, “Im running under missiles, fire, people being shot at, you don’t understand falling besides him, screaming what’s going on here... you have to without water for several hours he help me.” I hear the shots on the hides with seven other good young men of the country. They manage phone!

Trying to calm him down to under- to get out of there using a rescue stand why but he is running hysteri- vehicle.

All this time he talks or cally screaming without air that corresponds with me on he is in a field running the phone. In comaway, that they threw plete shock, with grenades and shot gunshots in the at them and all his background friends, and they and with lots of are probably no roadblocks and longer with us. fear for fear of I was begmore terrorists ging him to send on the way. me a location It tuns out this so I’ll bring the attack was very whole army to him well planned. The and I will physically terrorists came from arrive to rescue him but he couldn’t stop Another partygoer, Shani both sides, dozens them because he was run- Louk, was seized by Hamas surrounded as everyone tried to ning for his life, literdisperse or enter protected bunkers. ally.

After several long kilometres of Bunkers that became a death trap.

They threw in two grenades that blew up everyone in front. Anyone who survived or suffocated and tried to get out was sprayed to death.

Only the one who was behind and pretended to be dead survived but was also injured.

My brother was one of the first in the bunker, he felt that something was wrong, he heard gunshot from the terrorists who were shooting at everyone on the road approaching them.

He tells the only armed security guard with them to get ready and be ready. He tried to tell his friends that he has a bad feeling and they have to fly away now.

And immediately from God he got the strength and courage (it should be noted) and flew away while shooting at him.

You will understand, for a second of hesitation he was no longer with us today.

Some of the friends survived and managed to escape injured to the

hospital.

After a few hours, my brother also arrived home safely.

Wounded all over without a shirt, scratches all over his body, shoes with holes, in complete shock. He hears from the other friends how some of those who celebrated with him a second ago will never back.

Tells about the voices and the horrors that were there. The strongest, most connected, most accurate boy I know is broken to pieces.

We will get out of this, and we will recover and learn to get up and live after this traumatic experience.

But what about the families and those around them? Of the missing, abducted, murdered and thousands more families of the seriously injured.

I will never forget this day.

I thank God and those who took care of my brother and acknowledge that he is physically here by my side a little longer in this crazy world.

” AN ATROCITY, YET THE ENEMIES WITHIN GLOAT

BY ALEX BRUMMER CITY EDITOR, DAILY MAIL

Israel itself has labelled the murderous Hamas incursion into southern Israel the nation’s 9/11 moment. In the numbers killed, injured and brutally kidnapped as a proportion of Israel’s population, it is much worse.

Israel is a geographically small country and close-knit society: everyone will know someone caught up in this drama.

Indeed, the same applies to the UK Jewish community. There are intimate family or friendship connections between almost all British Jews and their Israeli counterparts.

Much of the analysis of the deadly events on Shabbat/Shemini Atzeret Tishri 22 or 7/10 has referenced the Yom Kippur War of 1973.

The invasion by Arab armies then on the most solemn day of the Jewish calendar caught Israel by surprise, evaded the attention of the intelligence services and required emergency airlift of arms from the

United States to ensure eventual victory.

It took an audacious tank strategy commanded by the late Ariel Sharon, using tactics he had absorbed at staff college in Britain, to cross the Suez Canal, encircle the Egyptian army and secure eventual victory.

It took much longer on Yom Kippur in 1973 for the details of what was happening in Israel to filter through to communities deep in prayer in Britain, than it did last Shabbat.

In our own community in Richmond, in south-west London, where young Israelis living and working in and around the area were to join the shul for Simchat Torah celebrations, dancing turned to tears. Joyous, uncontrolled singing was replaced by psalms and the Hatikvah.

The sheer scale of the devastation, loss of life and kidnappings was unknown at that point. But there was an awareness that something terrible had happened and the fate of hostages, including elderly women, mothers and young children, in the hands of barbarians was too awful even to contemplate.

It has been axiomatic since the foundation of Israel, and before, that even if the cost is high – in terms of dangerous rescue missions or prisoner exchanges – Israel always brings

back its own. There is paradox in this in that the £6bn of Iranian cash which the Biden White House recently released as part of a prisoner exchange with Tehran may well have been used to help finance Hamas’s remarkably sophisticated incursion.

We won’t know (or may never know) until official inquiries are completed. But the possibility that the attacks were made possible by cyber-warfare, which disabled Israel’s electronic defences, cannot be ruled out.

Iran and its Russian friends have developed expertise in what has become a devastating new weapon in all conflicts.

As I contemplated events during prayer last Shabbat, it took me back not to 1973 but to 1967 and what became known as the Six Day War. There was no feeling of helplessness then among British Jews.

I remember queuing at Hove town hall with my older brother, Martin, to join hundreds of British volunteers heading to Israel to fill vacancies around the country from postmen to kibbutz workers as Israelis were mobilised to defend their homeland.

My parents, ardent Zionists, opposed my signing up in the midst of my A-Level exams.

After much debate it was agreed that I could join Martin and the other volunteers after my last economics paper, a week away. Martin was airborne and spent more than a year in various jobs, mainly on kibbutzim. By the time exams were over, Moshe Dayan was at the Western Wall and the shofar sounded.

The reassuring voice of BBC broadcaster Michael Elkins, all-out support for Israel and the queues of volunteers determined to come to the aid of their Israeli brethren was a stark contrast to the very mixed reaction in the UK in the past several days.

The disgraceful demos by socialists and by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign on the fringes of the Labour Party conference, with the Hamas incursion hailed as a victory against occupation, were deeply uncomfortable.

The lack of recognition of how the killing and kidnapping of innocent citizens and festival-goers contravenes the Geneva Convention and is therefore by definition a war crime is truly shocking.

Israel has achieved so much scientifically, technologically and economically since the dark days of 1967. Yet the enemies within in Britain are now incapable of recognising a new and terrible atrocity.

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

They were our mothers and fathers, our sisters and brothers, our sons and daughters, our grandparents and grandchildren. Our family. Our friends.

No words can easily describe this loss, but we mourn those brutally murdered, pray for those taken hostage, and wish a speedy recovery to those injured.

We will do all we can to help.

The Board of Deputies, and the British Jewish community, stand with Israel.

‫עם ישראל חי‬

19

20 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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ISRAEL AT WAR

Unity government formed as Israel lays Gaza to waste

By Jotam Confino in Israel jotam@jewishnews.co.uk @mrconfino

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and National Unity party leader Benny Gantz agreed to establish an emergency government on Wednesday, as the war between Hamas and Israel continued to rage.

A small war cabinet will be formed to deal with the war against Hamas, and will only include Netanyahu, Gantz and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.

Most party leaders across the political spectrum have called on an emergency government to handle the unprecedented security situation.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) pounded Hamas in Gaza, hitting nearly 3,000 targets since Saturday, while rockets were fired across southern Israel throughout the day.

At least 1,200 Israelis have been killed in Hamas’ coordinated terror attack since Saturday morning and Israeli authorities fear the death toll will rise in the coming days because not all missing people have been located.

Israel finally secured the border on Monday, after hundreds of Hamas members infiltrated dozens of points since Saturday morning, terrorising kibbutzim and smaller cities near Gaza.

Hamas’ atrocities were revealed on Tuesday as the army allowed foreign press into Kibbutz Kfar Azza, where at least 100 people were slaughtered. Foreign media reported that women, elderly people and children were killed, with some having been burned and decapitated.

The IDF told Jewish News it could not give an estimate of the number of people who had been beheaded, but what happened in Kfar Azza was, it said, a “massacre, in which women, children, toddlers and elderly were brutally butchered in an ISIS way of action”.

As he visited the Be’eri Kibbutz, and met with soldiers in the Shaldag Special Forces Unit, Paratroopers Unit and additional IDF units, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said: “We will not allow a reality in which Israeli children are murdered.

“I have removed every restriction – we will

Above: IDF soldiers remove bodies from Kfar Azza. Right: Strikes on Gaza

eliminate anyone who fights us and use every measure at our disposal.”

He continued: “Anyone who decapitates citizens or murders women and Holocaust survivors will be eliminated.

“We will use all our force and make no compromises [on this issue].

Gallant, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden all compared Hamas to Islamic State.

Israel has said that some 1,500 Hamas members have been killed since Saturday morning.

Nearly 1,000 Palestinians were killed in

Gaza, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Israel ordered a complete siege on Gaza on Tuesday in response to the terrorist attacks, blocking electricity, water and food in to the Hamas-run enclave.

Gaza reported that it had run out of electricity on Wednesday at 2pm local time.

Meanwhile, Israel struck Hezbollah military positions in Lebanon in response to the terror group launching anti-tank fire at Israel.

At least four members of Hezbollah have

been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon since Saturday, while three members of Islamic Jihad were killed as they infiltrated the LebaneseIsraeli border. One Israeli senior commander was killed in the gunfight.

Sending a strong message to Hezbollah on Tuesday evening, Biden warned those thinking of taking advantage of the situation: “Don’t.”

Above: A barrage of rockets fired from Gaza heading towards southern Israel. Right: Israeli soldiers carry a coffin draped in the country’s flag

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

‫نعمل من أجل مستقبل آمن جلميع مواطني إسرائيل‬

The New Israel Fund stands for a just, safe and equal Israel.

Our Crisis Appeal will:

• Provide urgent care for the people of the south, including the most vulnerable groups and Bedouin communities.

• Prevent violence in mixed cities by working with Jewish and Arab leaders.

• Fund mental health and trauma counselling.

Support safety for all Israelis today at

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22 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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ISRAEL AT WAR

‘You are not alone, Israel.

We are crying with you’ The prime minister attended a moving prayer evening at Kinloss, where he pledged UK support and condemned ‘an abhorrent act of terror’

by Michelle Rosenberg michelle@jewishnews.co.uk

At a prayer evening at a north London synagogue 1,700 gathered in solidarity with the people of Israel.

Finchley United shul (Kinloss) filled its main hall and overflow to capacity for the event with addresses by Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

The event was livestreamed to more than 16,000 viewers.

Those attending included Israel ambassador Tzipi Hotovely, United Synagogue president Michael Goldstein, Jewish Leadership Council chairman Keith Black and representatives from the main political parties.

The Chief Rabbi said: “Hardly a single Jewish family in the UK doesn’t have a direct connection to Israel at this time. Israel is the very heart not just of the Jewish people but the Jewish faith.”

We send, he added, “a strong message” to our “brethren and our friends in Israel this evening.

You are not alone. We share your pain.

We are crying with you.

“We share your anguish.

We share your fate and your destiny and we will always stand shoulder to shoulder with you.”

He added that he had been “flooded” Sir Ephraim Mirvis welcomes Rishi Sunak to the bimah at the prayer evening at Kinloss in Finchley on Monday with messages from peace may feel further away than it has in a very haps above all, I wanted rorism, today, tomorrow and always.” “so many treasured The prime minister continued: “Let me also long time. But I know this too: the hope of Israel to come here tonight to friends” since the stand with you in solidarity say this to you as the Jewish community here in is built on the very best of humanity. events in Israel on Sat“This extraordinary land, this democracy, Britain. I know that in moments like this, when in Israel’s hour of need. urday. That is because “These barbaric acts are the Jewish people are under attack in their the only one in the Middle East where you can “no civilised person can be acts of evil. There is no other homeland, Jewish people everywhere can feel vote, where you can be gay, this technological unmoved. No civilised person word to describe what we have less safe. We’ve already seen vile words on our superpower which delivers breakthroughs in cannot be deeply shocked having seen the sights that have unfolded Sunak: ‘I will stand seen. Teenagers at a festival of streets and attempts to stir up community ten- science and medicine that are a gift to the world. peace gunned down in cold blood. sions. I say: not here. Not in Britain. Not in our This promised homeland of the Jewish people. during the past few days.” with you, always’ “In the words of the Hatikvah, that hope is Innocent men, women and chil- country. Not in this century.”

Speaking amid bouts of applause, He added: “My first duty is to protect you. We not lost. Even in these darkest of days, perhaps the prime minister called the murder of at least dren, abducted, raped and slaughtered. Even 900 Israelis, kidnap of 150 and wounding of a Holocaust survivor taken away. And much of will not tolerate this hate. We will not tolerate especially in these darkest of days. Together we this antisemitism. And I promise you, I will stop hold fast to that hope of 2,000 years. this sickening evidence posted online. least 2,000 an “abhorrent act of terror”.

“When we say we stand with Israel, we mean “There are not two sides to these events. at nothing to keep you safe.

He said: “We stand with you in this hour “Let me just conclude with this thought. it. I will stand with you, the British Jewish comof prayer as we think of those who are hostage There is no question of balance. I stand with and your friends and loved ones taking refuge Israel. We stand with Israel. The United In the last few days we have seen heinous acts, munity, not just today, not just tomorrow, but in bomb shelters or risking their lives. And per- Kingdom stands with Israel against this ter- reminiscent of the worst of humanity. And always. Am Y’Israel Chai.”

PEACE ACTIVIST, 74, AMONG THE MISSING A revered 74-year-old peace activist who came to Israel just after the Yom Kippur war and dedicated her life to trying to resolve the conflict is among those missing after sending a text message to a friend about Hamas terrorists on her kibbutz, writes Lee Harpin.

Vivian Silver is among those now feared to have been taken to Gaza by the group and kept hostage.

Palestinian friends are among those to confirm they are absolutely devastated by the news that she is now missing.

Yonatan Zeigen says he last spoke

to his mother, Vivian, on Saturday.

She was on the Be’eri kibbutz as it was being attacked by Hamas militants.

“Vivian Silver is my mother and … she’s a woman of small stature, but in spirit she’s a giant,” he said from Tel Aviv in an interview with The National’s Adrienne Arsenault.

“She dedicated her life to peace work.

“She came to Israel 50 years ago and just after the [Yom Kippur War], which is kind of ironic, and since then she was just involved in activities to end the occupation and to solve the conflict.”

Yachad’s Hannah Weisfeld tweeted: “Vivian is now confirmed kidnapped and in Gaza. No words.

A woman who has dedicated her life to the pursuit of peace and justice.”

Avital Brown sent a WhatsApp message to her friend Silver, who lived near the Gaza Strip.

12 October 2023 Jewish News 23

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ISRAEL AT WAR

5,000 stand as one at Jewish community vigil

Around 5,000 people gathered in Whitehall opposite Downing Street this week for a vigil, attended by the Chief Rabbi and many senior politicians

Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick pulled no punches when he told a London crowd demonstrating solidarity with Israel: “Let me be clear. Valorising the terrorism of Hamas is a serious criminal offence. Those who engage in it, or indeed any other form of antisemitic attack must be hunted down, arrested and prosecuted. There can be no tolerance of this hatred in our country,” writes Michelle Rosenberg.

And Jenrick pledged that Britain stood with Israel. “Israel will prevail,” he said. “And the UK will do all in its power to ensure that it does.” The “miracle of Israel stands as a shining beacon of hope in a region marked by fundamentalism.”

Jenrick’s impassioned speech — he said he spoke not just as a government minister but “as the father of a Jewish family” — was greeted with cheers by the crowd, gathered opposite 10 Downing Street and estimated by the police to number around 5,000 strong.

He was just one of an array of politicians across the spectrum — Tom Tugendhat, the Security Minister, the former Conservative leader Sir Ian Duncan Smith, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey and Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who had left Labour’s conference in Liverpool to add his voice to the united condemnation of Hamas brutality.

The event, co-ordinated by the Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council, was opened by Board president and closed by JLC chair Keith Black, who thanked the MPs and noted: “We do not take your presence for granted.”

Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis and Progressive Rabbi Charley Baginsky, former community leader Sir Mick Davis and Israel’s ambassador to the UK Tzipi Hotovely were also on the platform, together with a young Federation of Zionist Youth emissary, Ofri Gubber.

The hour-long rally featured some populist

comments, not least condemnation of media outlets, particularly the BBC, which continued to call the Hamas murderers “militants”, rather than “terrorists”.

Ambassador Hotovely praised the “fantastic Zionist Jewish community” of the UK, and laid out the situation in stark terms: “This is a fight between good and evil”, she declared. “And good will prevail.”

Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said he had spoken on Monday to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. “After his call with Prime Minister Netanyahu, his commitment has only doubled. The United Kingdom has stood against hatred, evil and antisemitism before. We will always stand against hatred, evil and antisemitism.”

Like the other speakers, Tugendhat pledged solidarity with Israel and said he mourned the loss of so many lives in the Hamas attacks.

Labour’s David Lammy told the rally that “there was nothing more important” than

showing solidarity with Israel. “In this country, it doesn’t matter whether you are Conservative, Liberal Democrat or Labour — we stand with Israel.” And he, like other speakers, called for the immediate release of hostages taken by Hamas.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, perhaps seeking to re-balance his party’s message of moral equivalence between Israel and Hamas, as expressed on social media by Lib Dem MP Layla Moran, offered unexpected congratulations to Home Secretary Suella Braverman and London mayor Sadiq Khan for their fight against antisemitism.

And Sir Ian Duncan Smith raised the rhetoric even further when he told the crowd — “we here today are all Jewish, we are all Israelis. We stand with you, because there is no other way.”

A rally also took place on Monday in Brighton while others took place in Manchester and also in Scotland.

26 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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One of the chief tasks of any dialogue with the Gentile world is to prove that the distinction between anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism is not a distinction at all.

"

ABBA EBAN (1915 – 2002)

"

Yad Vashem has been shedding tears for the victims of history’s greatest atrocity for over 70 years. We are devastated to see those tears have fallen on barren earth. How can the Jewish People find yet more tears to show our pain and let the world know that the evil of antisemitism is still with us?

OUR HEARTS ARE BROKEN FOR THE MOTHERS AND FATHERS, THE SISTERS AND BROTHERS AND THE CHILDREN WHOSE LIVES HAVE BEEN SO BARBARICALLY ENDED

IT HAS HAPPENED AGAIN….

We stand together with all the citizens of Israel.

We stand together with all the bereaved.

‫עם ישראל חי‬ The Trustees, staff and everyone associated with Yad Vashem UK www.yadvashem.org.uk

|

Charity No. 1099659

12 October 2023 Jewish News 27

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TRA_MA WE CAN’T OFFER ENOUGH HELP WITHOUT U The Emunah Sarah Ronson Crisis and Intervention Centre, located in Sderot near the border of Gaza, is an ongoing beacon of hope and healing for a devastated community. The centre is providing vital care for those grieving the loss of loved ones or dealing with the heart-wrenching pain of missing family members.

We urgently need your support to help us provide critical therapy sessions, crisis interventions, and a safe haven for children and families who have been displaced or traumatised by the attacks.

Please donate now at www.emunah.org.uk, scan the code or call 020 8203 6066 British Emunah: Registered charity no. 215398

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Dear Friends, We pen this heartfelt letter in the wake of the recent attack on Israel, an event of unprecedented magnitude not witnessed in the last half-century. Over the past week, we have been witnesses to unimaginable horrors, affecting both military personnel and innocent civilians. We share in your shock and disbelief at the sheer brutality inflicted upon the State of Israel by the Hamas terrorists.

During these dark hours, we have also borne witness to remarkable acts of bravery. Parents shielding their children, community leaders confronting terror head-on to protect their communities, and our courageous members of the IDF, who continue to risk their lives to safeguard the land we hold dear. These acts of courage will not be forgotten; they will be recounted through the ages to inspire future generations.

Since 2012, our dedicated friends and donors have steadfastly stood by our side, ensuring our ability to provide crucial financial support for the daily operations at the state-of-the-art Beit Halochem facilities across Israel. Now, more than ever, the services we offer to those who have sacrificed so much for our nation are critically needed.

Even as we pen this letter, our 51,000 members and their families continue to receive the vital support they so desperately require. The management team in Israel, under the steadfast leadership of Chairman Edan Kleiman, has shared the following updates: • • • •

The establishment of a 24-hour helpline Personal check-in calls to 10,700 of our most vulnerable members living in the South and lowland regions of the country.

Active involvement in evacuating families from their homes along the Gaza border.

The broadcasting of messages of solidarity to our members through Beit Halochem’s online digital platform.

We also acknowledge that this conflict is regrettably likely to expand our membership. We have already received reports of numerous soldiers injured in the line of duty, and over time, they, along with many others, including victims of terror will require the services of Beit Halochem. Please rest assured that our facilities will be prepared to look after these new casualties of terror. Our older members will be there to lend a helping hand and reassure them that, regardless of their injuries, with the support of Beit Halochem, they can rebuild their lives.

These are undoubtedly challenging times, but it is imperative that we maintain our optimism, believing that the sun will shine once more over the State of Israel, and peace will ultimately prevail.

With profound gratitude for your unwavering support,

Andrew Wolfson BHUK Chairman

Spencer Gelding BHUK Chief Executive

For more information about Beit Halochem UK, how to get involved or to make a donation, visit our website www.bhuk.org, email info@bhuk.org or call us on 020 8458 2455

12 October 2023 Jewish News

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29

ISRAEL AT WAR

SOCIAL MEDIA DISPARITY IN Remove TikTok, ISRAEL-HAMAS NARRATIVES parents are told

BY JOEL MACADAR

FOUNDER OF 8ORIGINAL We find ourselves confronted with a pressing issue: the significant disparity in social media engagement between different narratives surrounding the Israel-Hamas conflict. As the CEO and founder of 8original, an award-winning social media agency, I believe it is imperative that we address this issue head-on.

The issue is especially pronounced when comparing the engagement levels of the Jewish community, where social media numbers are comparatively low, to the widespread and high engagement seen within the ‘Free Palestine’ movement. It’s not even close.

Despite our best intentions, the sheer volume of Jewish and Israeli content struggles to reach even a tenth of the audience that the ‘Free Palestine’ narrative garners.

This may appear paradoxical:

recognising the echo chamber that social media creates, how can we be exposed primarily to pro-Israel content, yet the level of engagement remains so low? The answer is simple: not enough people are on our side and there aren’t enough of us. We need to do some convincing.

The solution, I believe, lies in education and creating more original video content that is human-centric and verified, appealing not just to Jewish audiences but to a global population.

Unlike calculus, Jewish history was one of the classes you should have paid attention to. It is absolutely not about attacking the other side on social media but extending a genuine invitation to engage in constructive conversations. This may include sending a message to your non-Jewish friend, and taking the initiative and signposting them to a resource that may be helpful to them to further their understanding of the background to and challenges of the conflict.

Education is the cornerstone upon which informed and empathetic dialogue can thrive. However

a pivotal aspect of this dialogue is clarifying terms and narratives. For example, referring to Hamas’ attacks on Israel as a “response” to Israeli actions should not be openly accepted.

Terrorism is a boundary that we, as decent individuals, should unequivocally condemn, while being able to discuss the historical and literal reasons why.

To bridge these divides and foster understanding, we must communicate with one another, Jew to non-Jew, and sometimes even Jew to Jew. This means at times, crucially, acknowledging areas of agreement or disagreement. We must be flexible in our conversations, recognising that we are all human beings with unique perspectives.

Yes, it’s easier to tell someone to f**k off when they put something up on their Instagram story that you don’t like. Consider that they may be uneducated. Equip yourself with education, be brave and send them a message. Find and create new resources that you’d want to share.

We’d all benefit from that.

Let’s see how you get on.

The executive headteacher at Yavneh College has written to parents advising them to ensure their children remove TikTok from their phones.

In an email seen by Jewish News, Lewis, Spencer Lewis writes: “I have been informed of some extremely distressing videos that might be released on TikTok regarding the war in Israel.

“I would advise removing that app from your children’s phones and/or talking to them to make sure they do

not watch them. The task of shielding our children from what is happening is difficult and delicate, we need them to be educated and aware but not traumatised and scared.

Not an easy task.”

At JCoSS, Dr Melanie Lee has written to parents to say that pupils who need personal support will be looked after.

A dedicated, staffed space would be available throughout the day where students and staff can talk to someone, the headteacher said.

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ISRAAID HAS BROUGHT ISRAELI EXPERTISE TO OVER 100 HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCIES AROUND THE WORLD.

NOW, WE’RE BRINGING IT HOME. As Israel’s leading international humanitarian aid charity, IsraAID has been at the forefront of responding to conflict and crisis in the world’s most complex and challenging settings for over 22 years.

So when the current crisis broke out, our responsibility was clear.

We’ve turned Israeli expertise and innovation into powerful impact in over 60 countries. Now, we’re using these tools to support Israel’s southern communities facing unprecedented challenges.

We are already working in evacuation centres to meet the most urgent mental health needs of vulnerable families. Long term, we will accompany them to rebuild their communities and their lives.

VISIT WWW.ISRAAID.ORG TO DONATE IsraAID is a registered non-profit organization in Israel (580472959) and in the United States as a 501(c)3 (462118225). To receive a tax-eligible receipt in the UK, please donate via our partner, Israel Gives: israelgives.org/amuta/580472959

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32 Jewish News 12 October 2023

Shaare Zedek Medical Centre is working to support those in Israel that have been affected by the war.

Charity Number 1143272

www.jewishnews.co.uk

We are treating a number of victims evacuated to us from the south of Israel and those injured in rocket attacks in the Jerusalem area.

Staff have lost loved ones, our doctors and nurses have been called up to defend Israel.

These are very difficult days, but our work must continue.

Please support where you can.

020 8201 8933 shaarezedek.org.uk

Hope for Israel

12 October 2023 Jewish News

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33

ISRAEL AT WAR

Police urged to prosecute those who ‘stir up hatred’

A protester holds a Palestinian flag and releases a red flare at a pro-Palestinian rally near the Israeli embassy in Kensington, west London. Two people have been arrested since the protest

A call for zero tolerance on any incitement against Jews from the Community Security Trust (CST) has been backed by the Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, writes James Martin.

In a statement released by the Home Office, Braverman said: “There can be no place for antisemitism or glorification of terrorism on the streets of Britain. I therefore expect the police to use the full force of the law against displays of support for Hamas, other proscribed terrorist groups or attempts to harass and intimidate British Jews.”

The statement came after three people were arrested on Monday night during protests and vigils over the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Thousands of Hamas supporters, many in jubilant mood, were cheering ‘From the river to the sea’ at a gathering outside the Israeli embassy that was organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

At the event, Israel was branded an ‘apartheid murderous regime’, without any mention of the atrocities inflicted on many hundreds of Jews. There were also banners held by International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network and Jewish Voice for Labour as well as placards, among them one with the message ‘For a socialist intifada’, a slogan coined by the Socialist Party.

One speaker told the crowd: “As this situation inevitably escalates, a coalition of anti-racist and anti-war groups will be leading public

demonstrations of solidarity with the people of Palestine.

“We do this because of our dedication to the application of international law. And for the basic principle of human rights and dignity.”

In her statement, which expresses her disgust at the “barbaric terrorist attacks” committed against Israel, the Home Secretary said: “Sadly, experience indicates that whenever Israel is attacked, Islamists and other racists seek to use legitimate Israeli defensive measures as a pretext to stir up hatred against British Jews.”

Referencing examples such as vandalism of Jewish businesses and the desecration of memorials and religious sites, Braverman stressed that Hamas was a proscribed terrorist organisation in the UK and it was therefore “a criminal offence for a person in the UK to belong to Hamas; express support for Hamas or wear clothing in public which arouses reasonable suspicion that an individual is a supporter of Hamas”.

She continued: “At a time when Hamas terrorists are massacring civilians and taking the most vulnerable (including the elderly, women, and children) hostage, we can all recognise the harrowing effect that displays of their logos and flags can have on communities.

“I therefore ask that your police forces are alert and ready to respond to any potential offences.”

Braverman added: “It is not just explicit

pro-Hamas symbols and chants that are cause for concern. I would encourage police to consider whether chants such as ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ should be understood as an expression of a violent desire to see Israel erased from the world.”

Other behaviour that could amount to a racially-aggravated public order offence includes the presence of swastikas at anti-Israel demonstrations, the waving of a Palestinian flag when intended to glorify acts of terrorism and driving through Jewish neighbourhoods, aggressively chanting or waving pro-Palestinian symbols.

“Where harassment is identified, I would encourage the police to take swift and appropriate enforcement action,” said Braverman, who also included antisemitic hate online as criminal behaviour.

“We have robust legislation in place to deal with threatening and abusive behaviour intended to stir up hatred and the perpetrators of any online content that contravenes legislation can be brought to justice.”

Dave Rich, CST’s director of policy, told Jewish News: “There is a right to free speech, but there are also laws against incitement and glorification of terrorism. When there is, there should be arrests.

“We can’t influence what happens in the Middle East. We just protect Jewish people feeling the backlash.”

ARRESTS AFTER RALLIES British Transport Police arrested a 15-yearold boy in Kensington High Street on suspicion of assault on an emergency worker, racially-motivated criminal damage and possessing an offensive weapon.

A 70-year-old man was also arrested in Kensington on suspicion of racially-motivated criminal damage and a 29-year-old man was arrested in Oxford Street on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon.

A Metropolitan Police statement said the force was “balancing the right to lawful protest against any disruption to Londoners, while ensuring all communities are supported and reassured”.

MP for Finchley and Golders Green Mike Freer, also under-secretary of state for Justice, told Jewish News: “Anyone who openly supports Hamas should feel the full weight of the law. Our concern is that people who incite hatred get charged.”

34 Jewish News 12 October 2023

www.jewishnews.co.uk

www.thejlc.org/israel

For the latest updates on events in Israel and to learn how YOU can assist, refer to our comprehensive resource hub for the UK's Jewish Community.

The Jewish Leadership Council is actively collaborating with our members across the community to provide robust support and address the evolving situation in Israel and its significant ripple effects within the UK Jewish community.

The JLC stands ready to support the Jewish community and all those impacted by the horrifying attack on Israel.

Am Yisrael Chai.

12 October 2023 Jewish News

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35

ISRAEL AT WAR

‘We are in mourning but are inspired into action’

United Hatzalah volunteer teams take cover after rockets exploded all around them

Leading Israel charities in the UK this week launched emergency campaigning to support the victims of Hamas terror in Israel.

As news of the violence broke on Saturday, Magen David Adom (MDA) UK, the UK arm of Israel’s medical emergency service, took the unprecedented step of launching its Operations Swords of Iron appeal during Shabbat.

In Israel, MDA is now operating at full capacity at a cost of one million shekels a day to provide 96 percent of Israel’s blood supplies.

MDA UK CEO Daniel Burger told Jewish News: “I am bowled over by the love and support of the community, who rightly so are rallying around to support Israel.”

“Magen David Adom is putting itself on the front line 24/7 at an additional daily cost of £250,000 to run at full operational capacity.

“We are also looking to replace the ambulances which have been destroyed in these disgusting acts of terrorism, including the murder of one of our medics while on a shift.

“MDA UK stands firm with the people of Israel and I cannot express enough my gratitude to all our supporters during this horrific time.”

To support MDAUK’s campaign, go to https://donate. mdauk.org

UJIA CEO Mandie Winston told

HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

BY RICHARD PATER BICOM

I have been a regular visitor to the communities in the Gaza Strip periphery for over 20 years. I have long admired the residents rugged stoicism and their spirit and values, which most closely resemble the mythology of the early Zionist pioneers who built the young state a hundred years ago. Never did we conceive that pogroms, as were suffered by stateless Jews in exile, would revisit this generation of high-tech-savvy Jews living in a sovereign Jewish State.

Up until last week the conventional wisdom held that Hamas was not seeking a confrontation. It sat out the last two rounds of fighting and let the much smaller Islamic Jihad take the lead on rocket fire. It had benefited from the Qatari cash injection, and subsidised fuel to which Israel and Egypt had acquiesced. Hamas, we would say, wants to prove their governance credentials and deliver economic improvements.

As such, Israeli officials were considering expanding work permits, easing on importexport restrictions. Just this summer, this ‘full-on‘ right wing Israeli government even approved exploration of off-shore gas off the Gaza coast! With hindsight, it appears we were duped and the Israeli leadership were complacently lulled into hubris.

Right now, there are far more questions than answers. But even now, beyond the shock, this event changes the paradigm.

Compounding the disgrace, it now appears to be accurate that Egyptian intelligence had warned Israel two weeks ago something big was being planned; but they had said this before, so why listen this time?

What Israeli intelligence apparently failed to pick up on was a sophisticated and detailed invasion plan. The initial stage included a massive barrage of rockets – as a decoy. This coincided with coordinated drone strikes (a familiar Russian / Iranian playbook) on strategic targets including tanks, surveillance camaras, and military communications antennae. In certain places it also included a cyber-attack that took down electricity and cellular coverage. They were not able to call in support.

The next stage of the plan included twoseater motorised paragliders. For example, in Netiv Haasara, where at least 21 people died, the surviving security coordinator described three paragliders crossing the fence. They were well prepared, and split up knowing exactly where there were landing spots in the north, centre and south of the community, which allowed them to take control and commit the massacre. Of his group of emergency volunteers, only he survived – the other five all died fighting the intruders.

They lay dying and no one could reach them for four hours. Hamas were able to breach the barrier, possibly with pre laid explosives, but once in control on the Israeli side were also able to open gates allowing truckloads of terrorists to enter. It took over 48 hours for Israel to re-establish control and find temporary solutions to plug the holes with tanks and drones. Recriminations will follow. For now, Israel is grieving.

Jewish News: “We are in mourning but our tradition inspires us to action.”

She said UJIA’s teams in the UK and Israel “have been working non-stop to meet critical needs in Israel: financial support for those whose homes have been destroyed, trauma relief for those families who have witnessed unspeakable atrocities and we are now providing protective equipment for communities in the north in anticipation of further attacks from Hezbollah”.

She added that they are “getting in requests the length and breadth of Israel every hour.

“We are pushing money to Israel as it comes in, but to meet the most vital of these calls for help, we need to send £1 million before Shabbat.”

To support UJIA’s campaign go to https://ujia.org/#donate

Assaf Admoni, chief executive of British friends of United Hatzalah, told Jewish News the organisation “is a vital part of the war effort in Israel and as an international charity it is the closest and most effective way that the diaspora can support Israel’s efforts”.

To date, United Hatzalah has raised around $15 million (£12 million)globally, of which an estimated $1 million has come from the UK. A spokesperson said the charity desperately needs the funds for “medical supplies, bulletproof vests and helmets and emergency and logistic vehicles”.

To donate, go to https://israel rescue.org/en_GB

How my family survived

BY BRADLEY LANGER

Kinloss on Shabbat and yom tov morning was heaving as normal. Walking in, I made my way to my friends to greet them. However, instead of Shabbat Shalom, I was greeted with news of an escalation in Israel. Details were few, just vague rumours of rockets being fired from Gaza. Though a surprise, rockets stopped being shocking years ago, Then I overheard something new: “They’ve gotten in, they’re in all the border kibbutzim.” It shocked me to the core.

Anyone with family in or around southern Israel knows the worry and anxiety which shot up through our spines at this moment.

Racing home to turn on my phone, I saw the message I was dreading: “We are stuck.

They came in and burnt our house.”

My aunt Deborah (born and raised in Romford, Essex), my cousin Aimee, her husband Uriel and their 10-day-old baby Kai were in a shelter in the kibbutz of Nirim, surrounded by terrorists who were trying everything to get to them, and murder them.

It would be hours before we would receive another message from them. This time was hell for me and my family, I do not wish to imagine what it was like for them.

They were in that shelter for nine hours.

Nine hours surrounded by terrorist on the hunt for Jews. Eventually, and by the grace of God, we heard the news that the IDF had reached them and taken them to safety.

These safe rooms were not built to keep invaders out. They have no lock on the inside.

With all their might my cousin Aimee and her husband Uriel made sure that that door handle did not turn. The terrorist tried shooting the door but could not enter.

They were undeterred in their attempts to kill. They set fire to the house with them inside. The safe room started filling with black smoke and my aunt speaks of coming to terms with death, hers and her family’s.

Whenever they believed the terrorists had moved away, onto other houses, my family would open the small window in an attempt to get some fresh air. They would place Kai, their 10-day old baby, on the windowsill.

Whenever they heard the terrorists return, they would throw Kai on the bed, shut the window, and squeeze that door handle with all their might. This was repeated for six hours, during which they heard the screams of the family dog as he burnt to death.

Once the IDF arrived they were transferred to an underground shelter where they started to hear the horror stories of others, many who were murdered. From there they were taken to a hospital where they were all treated for smoke inhalation.

As time passes and the terrorist atrocities continue to come to light, it is strange to think of my family as the lucky ones. Deborah keeps coming back to the same question: if the terrorists had got in, would they have been murdered straight away or taken as hostages?

As the horror stories of babies being massacred are shared, I dread to think of what would have happened to baby Kai. As Kai grows up, I pray that he knows a world of peace and not war and terror.

36 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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LANIADO HOSPITAL HAS BEEN ACTIVELY PROVIDING CARE AND TREATMENT TO CASUALTIES AND VICTIMS OF TERROR FOLLOWING THE HEINOUS ATTACK CARRIED OUT BY THE TERRORIST ORGANIZATION HAMAS Over 50 individuals so far with a range of injuries have been admitted. Many of these patients needed surgery to remove bullets after being shot by Hamas terrorists.

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With Israel at war, BICOM and its journal Fathom keep readers up to date with reliable news and expert analysis.

12 October 2023 Jewish News 37

Sign up for BICOM news at bicom.org.uk

BICOM’s regular Morning Briefs, News Updates, and podcasts bring you the latest news and analysis from its team and from renowned outside analysts.

Each issue of Fathom features expert voices on Israel, on the region, and on antisemitism. In this week’s issue you can read former director general of the Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs Yossi Kuperwasser on how Hamas caught Israel by surprise and what Israel must do in response. You can also read Fathom editor Alan Johnson’s ‘“Progressives” and the Hamas Pogrom: An A-Z Guide’.

Sign up for the Fathom email list at fathomjournal.org

SUPPORTING ISRAEL FOR LIFE

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KKL Executor and Trustee Company Ltd (a Company registered in England No. 453042) is a subsidiary of JNF Charitable Trust (Charity No. 225910) and a registered Trust Corporation (authorised capital £250,000).

38 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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ISRAEL AT WAR

Pupil cornered and Shoah IRAN DENIES HAVING A HAND IN ATTACKS survivor called ‘Jew pig’ of pro-Palestinian The charity protecting politics as rhetorical British Jews from antiweapons with which semitism and related to threaten and abuse threats recorded 89 antiJewish people.” semitic incidents in just An Orthodox Jewish four days. man on a London bus For comparison, Comwas approached by a munity Security Trust man in his forties who (CST) recorded 21 antisehit him in the face and mitic incidents over the tried to take his relisame four days in 2022. gious hat.

It represents an increase A Jewish person of 324 percent this year There has been a substantial rise in antisemitic incidents walking to synagogue compared to the same in London on Sunday ments all in the same thread or conperiod last year.

The incidents break down into versation; CST records these as a got called “dirty Jew” by a stranger, who said: “No wonder you’re all 66 reports of abusive behaviour, 14 single incident.

CST says the numbers are only getting raped.” direct threats, three incidents of A Jewish person was on Oxford provisional and are likely to increase property damage and six assaults.

The reports were made between once all reports have been verified Street in London and the occupant of a passing van shouted “you 7 and 10 October 2023, from the and logged.

It said: “These are anti-Jewish f**king Jew I will kill you whole”. beginning of the Hamas terror attack A group of children in school coron Israel on Saturday morning to racist incidents and hate crimes in which Jewish people, property and nered a Jewish pupil, said they were the end of Tuesday.

Sixty-seven of the 89 antisemitic institutions are singled out for hate, “Jewphobic” and blamed him for the killings of Palestinians. A Holoincidents occurred offline and 22 including death threats and abuse.

“In many cases, the perpetra- caust survivor posted on X, formerly were online. Many of the online incidents were ‘pile-ons’ involving tors of these disgraceful incidents Twitter, about Israel and somebody multiple antisemitic posts and com- are using the symbols and language replied “F**k you jew pig”.

Iran has denied any involvement in the terror attacks launched by Hamas against Israeli civilians.

However, the country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei praised the slaughtering of Israeli civilians.

He said: “We kiss the hands of those who planned the attack on the Zionist regime. This destructive earthquake has destroyed some critical structures [in Israel], which will not be repaired easily … The Zionist regime’s own actions are to blame for this disaster.”

Khamenei’s statement came after foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said Iran does not intervene in the “decision-making of other countries, including Palestine. The accusations linked to an Iranian role… are based on political reasons”.

Hamas also said it was not acting on orders from Iran. “It was a surprise to everyone, including Iran. We

did not inform them that there was an operation that would happen at dawn on 7 October. After the operation began, we informed Iran.”

Israeli experts have debated since Saturday about whether Iran was behind the attack, with some saying that Iran’s many meetings with Hamas leaders, as well as its financial and military backing, are proof that Tehran is really behind this.

The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) has denied this theory. In an IDF briefing with international journalists earlier this week, where Jewish News participated, spokesperson Richard Hecht said that while Iran’s fingerprints might be on the attack, the IDF did not think the order was given directly by Iran.

Israel has long said that Iran is supplying arms and money to terrorist organisations such as Islamic Jihad in the West Bank.

King Charles condemns ‘barbaric acts of terrorism’ • Buckingham Palace has said King Charles, along with the Prince and Princess of Wales, condemns the barbaric acts of terrorism in Israel. “His thoughts and prayers are with all of those suffering, particularly those who have lost loved ones,

but also those actively involved as we speak,” said a spokesperson. “His majesty is appalled by and condemns the barbaric acts of terrorism in Israel.”

• British Airways diverted a flight from London to Tel Aviv back to the UK yesterday after security

concerns and has now suspended flights to and from Israel.

• Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has been following events in Israel with “intense horror” and expressed “sympathies and concerns for British Jews”.

• Golda Meir’s great-great

nephew Hadar Kamah, 24, was killed at Kibbutz Nahal Oz on Sunday. Gideon Meir, grandson of Golda – Israel’s prime minister from 1969 to 1974 – received news of his cousin’s death in London, where he had been staying since attending the Jewish News screening of Golda.

A woman holds an image of Ali Khamenei of Iran in front of a Qiam missile

REMOVING HAMAS IS A NATIONAL IMPERATIVE

BY JEREMY HAVARDI

JOURNALIST & AUTHOR

Make no mistake, this was Israel’s 9/11.

Hamas terrorists have carried out a carefully planned, strategically co-ordinated strike against the heart of Israel’s civilian communities in the south, butchering people at will, torching houses and kidnapping citizens, including the very young and the elderly. This bestial bloodbath was nothing less than an act of war, and it is one that necessitates a devastating response.

The attack represented a catastrophic failure of Israeli intelligence. While all eyes were on containing threats from the West Bank, there was a prevalent belief Hamas had neither the will nor the capability to launch a major offensive. This was a strategic blunder with dire consequences.

The sight of marauding terrorist squads taking over entire villages and kibbutzim for many hours, recording their atrocities for

public dissemination and celebrating their deeds with impunity, will leave deep psychological scars for many years. This was surely the blackest day in Israel’s history.

The inquest into how this disaster could have unfolded will have to wait. First off, Israel faced a number of imperatives, the first of which was to remove terrorists embedded within Israeli communities. It swiftly regained control of all border towns near Gaza, though there were fears some terrorists might have remained.

There is also talk of forming a government of national emergency, a move which would surely be welcome in present circumstances.

Israel in recent months has become a deeply fractured society with a seismic split between supporters and opponents of the coalition. Israel’s deterrent posture has arguably been undermined by these developments and, to restore it, a sense of unity is vital. All parties should heed the president’s call for ‘togetherness’.

The country will also be desperate to avoid this conflict spreading, either to towns in the West Bank or to Lebanon. While Israel and Hezbollah traded fire over the weekend, it

was over a small, disputed territory rather than a full-scale exchange. Were Hezbollah to join the fray, desperate to be part of the ‘resistance’, the conflict would escalate dramatically. But the Lebanese group may be too fearful of the repercussions to offer more than token support to the Palestinian cause.

Israel’s government will also feel an imperative to rescue the dozens of civilians and soldiers taken hostage by Hamas terrorists and reportedly dispersed among different locations in Gaza.

Doubtless, they will be used to ‘trade’ for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, as well as being used as human shields to deter a major Israeli offensive in the territory.

But here, one can argue Hamas has miscalculated. For the final imperative may be to do what no previous Israeli government has done in all the rounds of fighting since 2005, and that is to terminate the terror threat once and for all from Gaza.

Given the scale of the bloodshed unleased on 7 October and the depravity with which the terrorists behaved, the sense is Hamas must be removed from power.

Netanyahu leads a right-wing coalition,

some elements of which have called repeatedly for the toughest measures against the Islamist hardliners.

Yet it is hard to believe such sentiments will be confined merely to the right wing.

The removal of Hamas is surely a national imperative commanding massive support within Israel’s population.

Realistically, this requires not just an air assault on Hamas’ terrorist infrastructure but also a full-scale ground invasion, one that could prove immensely costly in human life.

The presence of so many Israeli hostages scattered through the enclave makes such a task far more complicated and perilous than it would otherwise have been. But an overwhelming response is surely coming, with Hamas unlikely to survive it.

At this moment, Israel has the support and goodwill of many in the international community, including the UK, the US and various European states.

If the government really intends to remove Hamas from power, will that support remain steadfast or start to unravel under public pressure? Right now, that is perhaps the least of Israel’s concerns.

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12 October 2023 Jewish News 39

ISRAEL IS AT WAR

The world’s largest fortified underground hospital is being prepared at Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa.

As the only Level 1 Trauma Centre in Northern Israel, Rambam is now treating wounded IDF soldiers and civilians.

We need your support to maintain medical supplies and equipment for the people of Israel.

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To donate: Rambamuk.co.uk/donations/

40 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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4 ISRAEL

GIFT put out a call to help the people of Israel and in less than 24 hours the community responded…

THANK YOU TO THE 1,200 230 ALL

people who dropped off essential items (including Manchester and Yavneh school)

volunteers who packed and sorted items

generous vendors who have supported us with this initiative

GIFT is praying for a swift end to the war and for peace in Israel. Should the need for additional support arise, GIFT and its incredible group of volunteers are ready to respond with ways for the community to get involved in helping people affected by the current situation in Israel.

jgift.org info@jgift.org | 020 8457 4429

@giftcharity

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

ISRAEL’S SHIELD EMERGENCY APPEAL UNITE TO PROTECT LIVES We urgently need your support for our emergency relief effort, called “Israel’s Shield.” This initiative represents our significant commitment to relocate nearly 1,500 people, including families, babies, children, and the elderly who have survived the recent massacres.

Donate now and stand with us in defending Israel’s Shield, and together we will confront these formidable challenges with unwavering determination.

Your support and solidarity are the bedrock upon which we will build a safer, stronger Israel for all.

DONATE NOW

Charity number: 290371 www.migdalohr.org.uk/israels-shield IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO VOLUNTEER PLEASE CONTACT US contact@migdalohr.org.uk Follow us at @migdalohruk Migdal Ohr is Israel’s largest welfare non-profit educational network providing critical services and life-changing programmes to nearly 12,000 vulnerable Israeli children annually since 1972.

41

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Israel is in crisis Help us respond The Shalva National Crisis Response Center is open and caring for hundreds of evacuees from Israel's South.

To Donate:

www.shalva.org

12 October 2023 Jewish News

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43

ISRAEL AT WAR

‘Israel must always have the right to defend her people’

by Lee Harpin in Liverpool lee@jewishnews.co.uk @lmharpin

Sir Keir Starmer drew sustained applause and two standing ovations from the floor at his party’s conference as he delivered a speech that included the statement: “Israel must always have the right to defend her people.”

Members also rose to their feet again as the Labour leader reiterated his attempts to rip “antisemitism out by the roots” of the party.

In a keynote speech seen as critical to sealing the deal with the electorate, Starmer concentrated mainly on his ambitions to transform the country for working people if elected to No 10.

But in a carefully worded section, he said: “I am shocked and appalled by events in Israel.

I utterly condemn the senseless murder of men, women and children, including British citizens, in cold blood by the terrorists of Hamas.”

He then added: “This party believes in a two-state solution – a Palestinian state alongside a safe and secure Israel. But this action by Hamas does nothing for Palestinians.

“And Israel must always have the right to defend her people.”

Earlier, speaking of his attempts to change the party from that under Jeremy Corbyn, Starmer said this was why he had “ripped antisemitism out by the roots”.

At the end of his lengthy address, Starmer

Sir Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria are greeted by crowds at the Labour Party conference

was joined on stage by his wife Victoria. After the speech, Labour’s shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, highlighted the significance of both the party leader’s speech and his message on Israel.

Speaking to Jewish News, Streeting said: “This is a party under leadership which not only stands against antisemitism, but stands with Israel against terrorism and gives unequivocal support for Israel’s freedom and Israel’s right to defend itself.”

He added: “This is a changed Labour Party

and Keir deserves so much credit for the leadership, which he has shown to give people their party back, and to be in a position to give Britain its future back.

“It was a remarkable moment that I hope is seen by everyone in Israel who is fearing for their security knowing that in Britain, however divided our politics have been, we have got political parties that are standing with Israel at this time of such horrendous events.”

The speech began with an ugly moment when a protester emerged from behind

the stage and manhandled Starmer before throwing glitter into the air.

After taking off his jacket and composing himself, Starmer said actions like that would never stop him from speaking. On Tuesday evening, he attended a Labour Friends of Israel reception along with many of the party’s shadow Cabinet.

Earlier at the conference, in Liverpool, Sarah Sackman, Labour’s parliamentary candidate in Finchley and Golders Green, was applauded from the floor of the main arena as she said: “Conference, for me and others here, the last few days and this incredible atmosphere has also felt unreal and difficult.

“We have watched in horror at the events unfolding in the Middle East.

“Our news feeds and family WhatsApp groups are full of painful stories of women and children crouched in their homes in fear, hostages taken and some killed. Young people who went to a music festival and never came back.

“I welcome and reaffirm the words of Keir Starmer and David Lammy, standing firmly in support of Israel and being unequivocal in their condemnation of Hamas.

“I am proud that today the Labour Party stands with the Jewish community. We should all recognise the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people but make no mistake: no one watching those images should do anything other than condemn these vile acts of terrorism.”

MPS PLEDGE SUPPORT FOR BRITISH JEWS Sir Keir Starmer, along with senior members of his shadow cabinet, gave speeches at an emotional vigil for Israel organised by the Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) group at the party’s conference, writes Lee Harpin.

At an event for which conference attendees queued around the block to be present on Tuesday night, the Labour leader expanded on the condemnation of Hamas as a terrorist organisation, made in his leader’s speech that same day, adding he “condemned any act of violence here towards the Jewish community in Britain”.

He added: “This action by Hamas does nothing for Palestine. And in this dark hour Labour stands with Israel. Britain stands with Israel.

And Israel must always have the right to defend her people.”

Speaking to an audience that included representatives from the Board of Deputies and Jewish Leadership Council, along with Baroness Merron, Dame Margaret Hodge, Baroness Anderson, Luciana Berger and Dame Louise Ellman, Starmer continued: “Our message is clear, the terrorists of Hamas and those

states who back them are determined to destroy any hope of peace…. We cannot, we must not let them. As we come to terms with this attack, I urge all responsible partners in the Middle East to speak out against terror.”

More than 1,000 people had packed into the room, where lay LFI chair, Adrian Cohen, began proceedings with a rendition of Kel Maleh Rachamim and the Chief Rabbi’s prayer, before concluding with Oseh Shalom Bimromav. Memorial candles to mark the slaughter of more than 1,000 Israelis were placed on an Israeli flag and lit.

In her speech, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves praised Michael Rubin, LFI’s chair for organising the event, and said: “Thirteen years I’ve been vice chair of LFI, but never have I stood here with such pride and emotion... I know many of you are not able to account for all your friends and family. I know some of you have loved ones who’ve been taken hostage. I grieve with you.”

Reeves said of the reports of the slaughter of Israelis: “We should call it out for what it is – it is barbaric, it is terrorism. We will condemn it and

we will do everything we can to stand alongside you and hunt down the people responsible for all this. This is our pledge to you.”

Reflecting on the rise of incidents against the UK Jewish community, Reeves said: “The antisemitism, the anti-Zionism and anti-Israel feeling that is allowed to flourish in communities in Britain... we stand alongside you at home as well and will ensure the police do everything within their powers to hold responsible those who behave that way here at home.

“We stand in solidarity with the Jewish community here in Britain, not just today, but every day.”

Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy addressed the event saying: “We stand here as Labour Friends of Israel – but I have to say I am proud to live in a country were it doesn’t matter if you are Labour, Liberal Democrat or you are Conservative to stand with the people of Israel.”

The Tottenham MP referred to the guidance given to children at some Jewish schools not to wear their blazers so as to not identify their religion. He said: “We as a movement play our part to make sure no one

MPs and conference attendees at Tuesday’s Labour Friends of Israel event

can make us live in a country where people have to not wear their own school uniforms.”

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “I wanted to reiterate our solidarity with British Jews and our commitment to work with the Community Security Trust.”

In his speech, LFI parliamentary

chair Steve McCabe said: “The world has failed the Jewish people for centuries. When we look at the images and reports, it’s easy to feel helpless.

Expressing our solidarity and offering our thoughts and prayers somehow seems inadequate. For many of you – with friends and family in Israel – this will be very painfully personal.”

44 Jewish News 12 October 2023

YOUNG HEARTS ED IT N U OUR CHILDREN SHOW LET ISRAEL’S SOLDIERS WE CARE

Calling all children across the community to express love and solidarity through heartfelt letters or a piece of art, showing global unity and empathy.

Share a letter, or a drawing, of support to soldiers currently in Israel. Let them know they’re not alone during this difficult time.

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the warehouse Due to the current situation in israel and the rise in anti-semetism in the uk, the warehouse is providing intensive self-defence training and mental wellbeing support for the community. kids & adults men & women whatsapp 0204 599 8309 4 brampton grove nw4 9hg

If you would like your school to be involved please email Natasha at Care4Idf@gmail.com #AmYisraelChai Meretz UK joins other Jews in the UK and around the world in unreservedly condemning the Hamas and Islamic Jihad murderous attacks on Israeli citizens.

This was an attack directed against Israeli civilians in their homes, in the streets and at a music festival. The Kibbutzim have suffered devastating consequences.

We send our solidarity to the people of Israel and extend our condolences to the thousands of families who lost loved ones. We send our solidarity to relatives of those taken hostage.

We support the creation of an emergency government without the extremist and

inexperienced Smotrich and Ben-Gvir who undermine Israel’s security.

We know that restoring security for the state of Israel in order to protect its citizens is a priority. We stand by Israel at this difficult time and know that in the longer term a just peace for Israel and the Palestinians will only come through political negotiations.

Meretz UK is supporting a Hashomer HaTzair appeal for immediate relief to residents of the frontline. Please consider donating via https://bit.ly/46EzbHe

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12 October 2023 Jewish News 45

46 Jewish News 12 October 2023

www.jewishnews.co.uk ‫בס״ד‬

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BRISTOL & WESTERN Rabbi Michael Rosenfeld-Schueler

BRIGHTON & SOUTH COAST Rabbi Matt & Sheerelle Marks

NORTH EAST Rabbi Aaron Lipsey

LEEDS & YORKSHIRE Rabbi Zecharia & Nava Deutsch

NOTTINGHAM & EAST MIDLANDS Rabbi Uriya & Shima Dvir

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ISRAEL AT WAR

Israelis are in our hearts and prayers, says Khan

by Lee Harpin and Jenni Frazer lee@jewishnews.co.uk @lmharpin

The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has told Jewish News it is “possible to be both pro-Palestinian rights, and to be appalled at the actions of Hamas”. He said: “Even if you are pro-Palestinian rights, there can be no justification for what happened –there just can’t be.”

Khan said that he felt the pain of bereaved parents in the Middle East, and added that he particularly did so as a father. “I left the Labour Party conference a day early, because I missed my daughters, and I think that any parent will hug their kids extra hard after this weekend’s terrible events”.

The mayor said he understood how the community in London had been left feeling “petrified” of further attacks here, in the aftermath of the Hamas atrocities in Israel.

He came specifically to a restaurant in Golders Green in north west London on Tuesday to talk to Progressive rabbis Charley Baginsky and Josh Levy, and to pledge his support for the Jewish community.

Before he left Liverpool, the mayor spoke at an interfaith event at Prince’s Road Synagogue. He told those present that he was “proud” that London’s City Hall had lit up with the colours of the Israeli flag on Monday night, adding:”It’s really important we show solidarity to Israelis who have lost their lives.

I am hoping that people in Israel know that there is love for them around the world, know that there are people thinking of them, and who have them in their hearts and prayers”.

The mayor, a practising Muslim, also issued his strongest condemnation of those attempting to justify the Hamas terrorists’ barbaric attack on the Jewish state, quoting a verse from the Koran that says: “If you kill one innocent person, it’s as if you have killed all mankind.”

Khan said the actions of Hamas had made the possibility of peace with Israel “much harder.”

The Labour mayor said:”I cannot understand how anybody does not think this leads to escalation of violence, what they did.

“I am afraid peace is now further away than it has been for a long, long time.”

He later said he wished to send a personal message of “support, sympathy and solidarity” to all Jewish News readers in the aftermath of the devastating terrorists.

In London, the mayor said that “within an hour of Hamas’s barbaric actions in Israel the deputy commissioner [of the Metropolitan Police] was on the phone to me, because we both know that when there is a rise in tensions in the Middle East it often leads to antisemitic hate crimes going up, like night follows day.

“Even before we knew how bad Hamas’ actions were, the police had organised for more police officers to be present in those

Reassuring young community members

Rabbi Josh Levy embraces London mayor Sadiq Khan

Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was proud London’s City Hall was lit up to honour Israel and commemorate victims of the Hamas attacks

communities where we know there were concerns, and my office reached out to the rabbis, the Board and other community leaders, to make sure we were in touch. What we don’t want is Jewish people cowering in their homes, not going to places of worship or school.”

He said there would be “a visible” and strengthened police presence, not just this week and next, “and potentially for the next few months as well”. And he urged people to report any instances of antisemitism, whether physical or verbal attacks. “One of the reasons I am here [in Golders Green] is that these

kinds of attacks can lead to a chilling effect in the Jewish community. It is a tiny community and we have to show ally-ship and support the Jewish community, be seen at Jewish businesses and with our Jewish friends”.

The mayor dismissed “whataboutery” narrative surrounding the conflict and pledged that where people were clearly breaking the law — for example in expressing support for Hamas, which is a proscribed organisation in Britain — then “it is very important for the police to enforce the law. In the past there have been concerns from the community about the police not being pro-active. [I believe] that the Metropolitan Police Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner want to be more pro-active and take action. We want to make sure that anyone involved in criminal activities knows there are consequences”.

Referencing his own position on the attacks

by Hamas, and the failure of some politicians to be clear, Khan said: “The first point of any conversation is you have got to call out wrong when you see wrong.”

His comments seemed to be an attack on the failure of politicians such as Jeremy Corbyn to condemn the Hamas terrorists.

Khan praised current Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer for his strong stance in support of Israel this week, adding that “this would not have been the case” in recent years.

The mayor said he could not see how Hamas’ strategy would achieve anything other than an “escalation of violence.”

He said: “It’s difficult to comprehend. How does that [Hamas strategy] not lead to another generation living in fear and suspicion?”

Mr Khan said it was “important” that politicians elsewhere “showed leadership at such times.”

He said the lack of a Middle East peace process was now “so big” an issue, that “we need the US to now play a huge role.”

Monday morning’s Jewish Labour Movement event at Prince’s Road synagogue was organised in conjunction with Laura Marks, co-founder of the Nisa Nashim organisation, which works to strengthen bonds between the Jewish and Muslim communities.

48 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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SAVING LIVES:

HADASSAH UK EMERGENCY APPEAL At this critical time, we urge our supporters to stand with Israel and Hadassah Hospital. Make a gift today to urgently help heal the people of Israel.

Following the unprecedented attack on Israel’s southern border with Gaza, hundreds of casualties, many of whom are the most challenging cases, are being evacuated by helicopter to Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem. Our experts, experienced in mass casualty response, are doing whatever it takes to save the lives of the critically injured.

In this ongoing emergency crisis, we are urgently calling on your support, as Hadassah Hospital desperately fights to save lives amid a surge of casualties. Your immediate support will provide life-saving equipment, vital for patients in this dire situation.

Please make a donation today to support the Hadassah UK Emergency Appeal to help heal the people of Israel.

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EMERGENCY APPEAL • EMERGENCY APPEAL • EMERGENCY APPEAL • EMERGENCY APPEAL

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

A message of solidarity from Jewish Child’s Day Since its establishment in 1947, Jewish Child’s Day’s mission has been unwavering: To support Jewish children in need wherever they are.

We will always be there for the children of Israel.

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52 Jewish News 12 October 2023

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53

ISRAEL AT WAR

What do we tell the children?

The murders of Israeli citizens and outbreak of war are dominating headlines and our lives – and our kids are anxiously watching too. Sarah Miller looks at how we handle their emotions THE HEAD ‘It’s a delicate balancing act’ Spencer Lewis, executive head of Yavneh Primary and Yavneh College, Borehamwood “The current situation is distressing for us all and it is a delicate balancing act for us as education professionals to ensure our pupils are properly educated, but at the same time not traumatised or frightened.

“Like teaching the Holocaust, age-appropriate exposure is the key. I have, over many years of headship, had to deal with a variety of difficult, traumatic situations. [It’s important] to be sensitive and even honest with your own feelings so that pupils and staff feel at ease to do the same, within reason.

“We have a number of pastoral and wellbeing professionals who, together with our professionally-trained teachers, are there to support pupils with their worries and anxieties. This has become more and more part of the role of all teachers across the country in recent years.

“I would advise parents to talk to their children, to check out what they are watching online and to allow them to be exactly what they are – kids.”

THE PARENT ‘My 12-year-old daughter keeps crying’ Based in Cockfosters, Sarah Sherman is married to Gavin. They have three children, and close relatives living in Israel “We were due to fly to Tel Aviv on Monday for a stone-setting. Delaying our visit because of the horrific situation is surreal and terrifying.

My nephew made aliyah and we have so many cousins it was impossible to keep this from our children – and we wouldn’t. So, we talk about it.

Aaron is 13 and keeps his feelings to himself, but Annie, 12, has constantly been in the support room set up at school. Meanwhile the youngest Aden, 10, is writing letters to the soldiers each night. Allowing them to deal with how they feel individually is how we are handling it, while we explain what’s happening by following the news.

“We have tried to keep them off their phones

Many news images coming out are distressing for adults and will be for children too

more, but they come across posts with swastikas and hate in the comments. As a parent it’s impossible to mute the hate. Stopping them from seeing the brutality is a different matter, but I also think they need to know without seeing it.”

THE MENTAL HEALTH EXPERT ‘Check in

with your child, little and often’ Dr Naomi Coleman, who works as a child clinical psychologist “When speaking to your child about what has been going on, it’s important to begin with finding out exactly what your child knows and what they’ve heard, because then you can deal straightaway if there’s any misinformation or confusion. This is especially true among young children.

“Be curious with them and be child-led in your conversations. As their parent, you will probably know what they can handle. Think about their age, their sensitivity and their maturity and be guided by what they want to talk about.

“I would recommend shielding them

from too much news, so limit the exposure when you are watching TV or listening to the radio. Certainly, the images coming out are extremely distressing, harrowing and traumatising. They are for adults – so they will be for children.

“It’s important to normalise any emotions that are coming out. Help them express whatever it is that’s going on for them and help

Sarah Sherman’s children, from Cockfosters

them find a safe way of processing and managing the emotion.

“You can only do that if you’re strong in yourself, which is pretty much near impossible if you’ve been subjecting yourself to harrowing content or you have family or friends who are going through it. So when you speak to your child, find a time when you yourself are feeling calm and able to talk about it.

“Another factor to think about is whether the children have been through previous trauma, but that’s the same for adults. If this is bringing up a lot for you as well, think about having another parent or family member to help your child think through these issues.

“It’s also good to consider wider circles of support. Is there a teacher they can identify at school that they can ask questions to?

“I would encourage checking in with them, little and often, because this is an ongoing situation. Opening these conversations every now and then can be a huge help.

“Earlier this week we received verified advice from the Israeli government to delete social media apps, including Instagram and Tik Tok, to protect our children. But I think that we as adults should also not be seeing these things to protect our mental health.

“When material is so graphic, you can’t unsee it and it can be traumatising. For children this is especially so because their brains are less developed and they just won’t be able to process it, organise it or make sense of what they are seeing.

“For many teenagers, social media is their life, so it will be difficult to enforce this, but do encourage them to delete the apps and do keep checking in and asking them to share how they are feeling.

“Many might find comfort in a committed action, putting all those feelings into doing something that’s in line with you as a person and what you want out of life. For some, that might be reaching out to people, writing a letter, spreading kindness, doing a fundraiser or giving donations.

“It’s a way of helping children feel their contribution is valued.”

COLLECTIVE TRAUMA AT THE SCHOOL GATES

BY ADAM CALLIER JOURNALIST

The term ‘collective trauma’ never really meant much to me until this morning.

On a normal day, I wouldn’t go on the school run. I’m normally working from 7am, so that is very much my wife’s job.

However, last night I could see she was not at all comfortable taking our daughter, aged four, to school by herself.

Over the weekend, WhatsApp groups were filled with scared parents debating pulling their children out of the school, a large Jewish one, altogether owing to legitimate security fears.

This could just be me, but having worked

in the Jewish community for the vast majority of my life, I was until two years ago a bit less concerned about it because I’ve seen and dealt with these issues for years. Also, having covered Russia since Vladimir Putin launched his invasion last year, I might also be slightly desensitised to some of what is going on.

However, this morning, having taken time off work specifically to make sure my daughter got to school OK and to see for myself that everything was safe outside the building, the term ‘collective trauma’ became a whole lot more real for me and snapped me out of the desensitisation I was feeling.

There was an eerie quiet outside the gates, with visibly fewer parents and children around, a silence that was broken by the mother of my wife’s friend approaching us almost on the verge of tears because they have relatives in

Israel. I tried (pretty much in vain) to keep our daughter away from the conversation, as I’m adamant that at her age she does not need to be dealing with what we’re all going through.

Having finally got through the heavilyguarded gates – which had three security guards and, later, a police presence – several parents walked past us either with their children or without them, having dropped them off at breakfast club. We all gave each other a very nervous and very much of a “yeah, this is uncomfortable” head nod or “morning” without any real conversation.

It was, in reality, a quick dash inside because we all wanted to get this over with and back to relative safety as quickly as possible.

The phrase “you all right?”, with which many Brits greet each other, was not uttered this morning . . . we all know we aren’t “all right”.

Inside the school, the staff and teachers we came across were noticeably nice to our daughter and to others in an attempt to keep some sense of happiness for their sake, while looking concerned and on edge when turning to us. Kudos to the school – which I’m not naming, for security reasons – for keeping parents up to date over the weekend and yesterday morning about the latest security measures.

But no matter how much added security the schools have, we will never feel safe.

The collective trauma we as a community and as parents at the school gates are now feeling will take a long time to get over . . . and I highly doubt many of us ever will.

I just hope for everyone’s sake we can shield our children from it in some way, because they do not need to be part of this deep anxiety, no matter what age they are.

54 Jewish News 12 October 2023

CAMPAIGN AGAINST ANTISEMITISM IS MOBILISING. BUT WE NEED YOUR HELP. Please help to ensure our team has the resources we need to bring Hamas supporters and antisemites to justice. We are holding an urgent appeal. You can donate now at antisemitism.org/crisis.

Already so many of you have volunteered to help us monitor rallies and bring cases. To join them, visit antisemitism.org/mobilise.

This is not ten years ago.

This time, our community can fight back.

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12 October 2023 Jewish News 55

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PLEASE STEP UP FOR AT RISK CHILDREN IN ISRAEL As the atrocities and depravity continue to emerge, Israel is mobilised to defend herself.

Among those called up to serve are more than half of the staff of our Youth Villages, almost all our male graduates and many of the females. Those that remain are not only caring for their own traumatised families, but also for Israel’s most vulnerable children.

Many of our graduates and current students do not have families to check in on them and make sure they are safe. This responsibility falls to our dedicated staff. The Youth Villages are the only family that they have.

One of our graduates has lost his life. May his memory be a blessing. Another is among the missing from the desert dance party. May he be found and returned safely. One more graduate is one of only two survivors in his entire army unit.

So many of the children we care for come to us with trauma. Whether from violent homes or as recent refugees from war zones in Ukraine, we are working hard to provide them with therapeutic support while maintaining some semblance of a normal childhood.

Our Youth Villages are also hosting over 200 displaced families from the south.

We desperately need your help. Your donation will help us fund therapists, activities and security guards for the children living in our Youth Villages and will provide emotional and practical support for our graduates who are fighting to defend Israel.

‫ֲחזַ ק ֲחזַ ק וְ נִ ְת ַּחזֵ ּק‬ CHAZAK, CHAZAK, V’NITCHAZEK BE STRONG, BE STRONG, AND WE WILL BE STRENGTHENED youthaliyah.org.uk/donate info@youthaliyah.org.uk 020 8371 1580

Charity No: 1077913

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-Light for IsraelFriday Night 13th October 2023 #lightforisrael This Friday night we’re asking all households around the world to light an extra candle alongside their Shabbat candles.

- To honour the massacred - To pray for those taken hostage and the injured - To thank our IDF soldiers - In solidarity with Israel -

@albychait

12 October 2023 Jewish News 57

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Dear friends Due to the horrific ongoing events in Israel, we have made the decision to postpone the Parenting & Family Show this weekend.

We look forward to seeing you in happier times.

Jewish News

KOL CHAI Hatch End Reform Jewish Community

Kol Chai is a vibrant Reform Jewish Community based in Hatch End, Pinner in NW London.

We are all about “Community” and our teams of dedicated volunteers provide many levels of care and activities which benefit all our members.

We are truly multi-generational and have a special warm-welcome for our new members.

We would love you to have a look at our website (www.kolchai.org) and maybe attend one of our special activities!

The Management Team and Community of Kol-Chai pledge our support for Israel in their hour of need. Our Members are encouraged to support MAGEN DAVID ADOM UK and MYISRAEL in whatever way they can. May peace and tranquillity soon return to the people of Israel.

We will be holding a special Shabbat Service on Saturday 14th October at 10:30am, 434 Uxbridge Road, Hatch End HA5 4RG. All are welcome!

Kol Chai Hatch End Reform Jewish Community - www.kolchai.org

12 October 2023 Jewish News

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59

ISRAEL AT WAR

Chief Rabbi leads campaign against media referring to Hamas ‘militants’ The BBC has rejected criticism of its decision to call Hamas fighters “militants” rather than “terrorists”, a decision the defence secretary labelled “disgraceful”, writes Joy Falk.

It is a long-standing editorial position of the broadcaster to use the word “terrorist” carefully, with its editorial guidelines describing such language as potentially a “barrier rather than an aid to understanding”.

The comments by Grant Shapps come after several Conservative ministers hit out at the BBC over its editorial position. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has also joined calls for the BBC to explain its position.

The BBC’s broadcast channels and online site have been dominated by the conflict in Israel and Gaza since the attack by Hamas over the weekend.

The terror group is a proscribed organisation in the UK, meaning the government sees it as a terrorist organisation.

Shapps suggested the broadcaster needed to fix its “moral compass”, as he urged it to revise its editorial position.

He told LBC: “It is verging on disgraceful, this idea that there is some sort of equivalence, and they’ll always say, ‘Well, there’s two sides…’ what Hamas have done, as a proscribed terrorist organisation – meaning they are illegal in Britain, it’s illegal to support them – is to have gone out and slaughtered innocent people, babies, festival-goers, pensioners.

“They are not freedom fighters, they are not militants, they are pure and simple terrorists and it’s remarkable to go to the BBC website and still see them talking about gunmen and militants and not calling them terrorists. I don’t know what’s going on there, but I think it’s time to get the moral compass out at the BBC.”

Several Conservative ministers criticised the BBC and Keir Starmer questioned its position

Starmer told the same station yesterday: “I think the BBC needs to explain why it isn’t.

“I said ‘terrorism’ and ‘terrorist’, and to me that’s obviously what we are witnessing. I think other channels may not be either, but I’m not across all the detail of that.”

Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis tweeted: “The murder of babies where they sleep is not the act of a ‘freedom fighter’. The performative desecration of dead bodies for the benefit of social media, the rape of women and the beheading of civilians in their homes, are not the acts of ‘militants’. [Hamas] seeks the murder of

Jews and the annihilation of the Jewish state.

Their charter says as much.

“We must all be unequivocal that the loss of any innocent life is a tragedy, and that the barbaric, murderous terrorism of Hamas cannot be denied or obfuscated. This is not ‘resistance’ or ‘struggle’. It is terrorism. To purposefully avoid that word is to wilfully mislead.

A BBC spokesperson said: “We always take our use of language very seriously. Anyone watching or listening to our coverage will hear the word ‘terrorist’ used many times – we attribute it to those who are using it, for example,

the UK government. This is an approach that has been used for decades and is in line with that of other broadcasters. The BBC is an editorially independent broadcaster whose job is to explain precisely what is happening ‘on the ground’ so our audiences can make their own judgeent.”

Other senior ministers, including foreign secretary James Cleverly and culture secretary Lucy Frazer, have expressed concern about the BBC’s position. Similar criticism does not appear to have been targeted at other broadcasters or news organisations.

The BBC’s editorial guidelines on terrorism tell reporters and editors: “The word ‘terrorist’ itself can be a barrier rather than an aid to understanding. We should convey to our audience the full consequences of the act by describing what happened.

“We should use words which specifically describe the perpetrator such as ‘bomber’, ‘attacker’, ‘gunman’, ‘kidnapper’, ‘insurgent’ and ‘militant’.

“We should not adopt other people’s language as our own; our responsibility is to remain objective and report in ways that enable our audiences to make their own assessments about who is doing what to whom.”

Senior BBC foreign and world affairs correspondent John Simpson hit out at politicians urging the broadcaster to reform its language.

He tweeted: “British politicians know perfectly well why the BBC avoids the word ‘terrorist’, and over the years plenty of them have privately agreed with it.

“Calling someone a terrorist means you’re taking sides and ceasing to treat the situation with due impartiality. The BBC’s job is to place the facts before its audience and let them decide what they think, honestly and without ranting.”

OUTLETS OPERATING IN PARALLEL UNIVERSE

BY CHARLOTTE HENRY JOURNALIST

Like many Jews not strictly keeping to the laws of Shabbat and yom tov, I awoke to reporting of the events in Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proclamation that the country was at war. Things only got increasingly shocking as we learned more about what was happening on the ground – the murder and kidnap of civilians and soldiers by Hamas terrorists.

Making it all the more difficult was the predictable determination of the media here in the UK to try to “balance” their coverage.

That first radio news bulletin I heard on the BBC included a clip of its television breakfast show and language about “both sides” and the “ratcheting up” of their “rhetoric”.

Then there is this headline tweeted by the BBC Breaking News account: “Israel launches airstrikes on Gaza Strip and calls up reservists after Palestinian gunmen infiltrate its territory.”

This kind of language, which downgrades those who entered Israel by foot, motorbike, paraglider and sea, is a recurring theme. They are not “fighters”, with the sense of righteousness that label can bring with it. Nor are they “gunmen”, which invokes images of a small groups operating independently. They are terrorists carrying out a co-ordinated operation and should be referred to as such.

At least Sky News had the decency to put “Israel Under Attack” as its on-screen headline.

The coverage was in contrast to what we could see on social media (when you managed to navigate through all the stomach-churning whataboutery). There were videos of heavily armed attackers systematically going through kibbutzim, looking for people to kill.

It is right and proper that mainstream broadcasters do not refer to or play every video going around the web. Verification and fact checking really matter. But it also cannot operate in an almost parallel universe.

When discussing the Middle East, nuance and attempts to explain the perceptions of all parties is often necessary and important. In a situation where terrorists are conducting a multi-pronged attack with the intention of killing as many Jews as possible, it is almost

irrelevant. Outlets cannot hide behind the regulations as the reason for this kind of coverage. Ofcom is very clear.

When describing “due impartiality”, the regulator states: “‘Impartiality’ itself means not favouring one side over another. ‘Due’ means adequate or appropriate to the subject and nature of the programme. So ‘due impartiality’ does not mean an equal division of time has to be given to every view, or that every argument and every facet of every argument has to be represented.”

There is absolutely no need to fill up airtime with people seeking to justify these grotesque assaults, yet it happened.

I also heard radio phone-in shows where both caller and presenter were trying to be reasonable by providing wider context about the situation with Israel and the Palestinians. Rattling off history and referring to past conflicts. (I don’t just mean the Yom Kippur War, with which there is an obvious comparison to be made.) Almost all of it was irrelevant to the unprecedented and unjustifiable assault that was taking place in Israel at the same time.

We can, should and inevitably will discuss the Netanyahu crank coalition’s policies on settlers, Gaza and much else in the days

A victim of Hamas’ murderous rampage

and weeks to come. We will also unpack the massive security failure for which they are ultimately responsible.

Furthermore, things are undoubtedly going to be very distressing as Israel responds to the actions of Hamas. We all hope it is able to protect Palestinian civilians as it reacts to the kidnap and murder of its own.

All of this will play out in due course.

When reporting on it, the media must not lose sight of what triggered Israeli operations, of what started this conflict this time. And it must be prepared to call out Hamas for what it is – a murderous terrorist organisation killing those in the region’s only true democracy.

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12 October 2023 Jewish News

“In the midst of sorrow, let us remember the redemptive power of love and hope.”

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis

For Boys & Girls, 4 - 18

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ISRAEL AT WAR

Life for us all has plunged into unspeakable darkness VOICE OF THE JEWISH NEWS Not since the Holocaust have Jews been slaughtered in such number.

It was Shabbat morning on a Jewish religious holiday. Most residents in places like Sderot, Kibbutz Nirim, Kibbutz Alumim, Sha’ar Hanegev, Kfar Aza and Ashkelon were either still in bed, having breakfast or out for an early morning jog or bike ride. In a field at Kibbutz Re’im, some 2,000 youngsters were ending an all-night party.

When it became clear what was happening, those at home locked their doors and hid, in their safe rooms if they had one.

But they weren’t safe. With no police or IDF on the scene for hours, they were hunted, shot and killed, their houses set ablaze, their homes, lawns and paths booby-trapped. This happened across 22 communities.

The description of the Hamas savages as a ‘swarm’ is correct both metaphorically and tactically. Their subhuman brutality, on the other hand, defies description. What Israelis see as terrorism, Hamas sees as success.

It is being called a ‘pogrom’ (a Russian word meaning ‘to wreak havoc, to demolish violently’) and is being likened to the Yom Kippur War, 9/11 and Pearl Harbour, in terms of scale, surprise and shock.

Hamas appeared to know about the music festival and directed significant forces there, killing no fewer than 260 young people and kidnapping many more.

Knowing that partygoers had nowhere to run to except their cars, that’s where they waited. It wasn’t over quickly, either. The killing went on for hours, gunmen scouring the terrain for survivors to execute.

This is uncharted territory for Israel. Life have changed forever. It certainly has for those who lived through this. The world now seems back-to-front. IsraAID, for instance, an Israeli charity that normally sends emergency response squads and mental health teams around the world in the immediate aftermath of natural disasters, has deployed its teams on home soil.

There are up to 150 hostages, according to a senior Israeli diplomat. Brig Gen (res) Gal Hirsch, who is co-ordinating the return of the captives, was on Monday given a list of more than 350 missing people. Accurate lists are hard to come by, in part because some victims’ bodies have been burned beyond recognition.

There are no words in the English language to describe such scenes.

There are plenty of organisations – including the UN – who were quick to call on Israel to adhere to international humanitarian law in its military response in Gaza.

“Civilians must be respected and protected,” they say. That is absolutely true, but still, what a moment to make the demand.

Were Israeli civilians protected and respected when 40 babies were murdered, or when three generations of a family were

A woman at a memorial event this week

slaughtered, or when Holocaust survivors were once again being marched at gunpoint?

When young Israeli women were paraded naked on trucks through Gaza’s streets, or raped at the festival before being shot? Where, exactly, were the UN’s must-be-adhered-to international humanitarian laws for them?

Enough with the apologists. Enough with the yeah-buts, the what-ifs, the both-sideists and the what-about-isms. And enough with these woke ‘celebs’ and ‘influencers’ who seem permanently shocked and appalled, except when it comes to Israel.

Biden has shown he’s there. He called it what it is, “an act of sheer evil”, and told Bibi that, if this had happened in the US, the response would be “swift and overwhelming”.

He also ordered a naval strike group, led by the aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford, to the east Mediterranean. That’s back-up.

Not surprisingly, comparisons with 9/11 abound. On 11 September 2001, the United States lost 3,000 people. Its population at the time was 285 million. Israel, population 9.3 million, lost more than 1,000 in a day. As a proportion, its number dead is 10 times higher.

What now? For a start, Israel’s policy on Hamas will surely move from ‘containment and deterrence’ to ‘total defeat’.

❝

ENOUGH WITH THE APOLOGISTS AND WHAT-ABOUTS; EVIL IS EVIL IS EVIL Whether that’s even possible depends on the analyst you listen to. Trying to eradicate Hamas while getting the hostages out will be immensely difficult, if not impossible, but most IDF soldiers want to go in. “We’re ready,” they say. The worry is that this is precisely what Hamas wants.

More widely, there are fears that tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of Palestinians will die before the end, of thirst and hunger if nothing else. Yet for the Israeli soldiers still discovering new atrocities, like the babies killed in their beds, the idea of restraint suddenly feels alien.

Having already dropped “hundreds of tons of bombs”, the IDF said on Tuesday that “the emphasis is on damage, not on accuracy”. While Israel never wants to target Gaza’s civilians, the think-tank BICOM said

“it could be argued that the scale of [Hamas’s] attacks is such that the traditional rules of engagement have shifted”.

Back home, we looking on helplessly.

But even tiny things make a difference. As readers will have noticed, Jewish News has pulled all non-Israel coverage from this week’s paper and given space free of charge to Israel-supporting adverts.

As a community, we thank Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer for their support, in particular the prime minister saying at a London shul this week he would “encourage police to consider whether chants such as ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ should be understood as an expression of a violent desire to see Israel erased from the world”.

To many in our community, it has long been clear that its use in certain contexts amounts to a racially aggravated section 5 public order offence. Maybe, after this week, those silent celebs will feel compelled to comment on Hamas’s barbarism. Maybe.

One thing is more certain: when Israel gives warning that its response to these atrocities will “change the Middle East”, it isn’t exaggerating. The subhuman bastards of Hamas are about to be consigned to the dustbin of history. Whatever the awful cost.

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Tel Aviv University Emergency Fund Please help our brave student reservist soldiers to support their critical needs, to alleviate sudden and undue financial burdens, to help with psychological services, and more.

TAU Emergency Fund will support: • Funding for psychological services for students and members of the community suffering from panic, anxiety, and depression due to the war.

• Financial aid for students from Israel's periphery areas whose lives are being upended by constant rocket attacks and whose family members may have been killed, injured, or abducted.

• Combat soldier scholarships for our brave reservist students who were called to active duty and may miss months of studies and work.

• Funding for academic tutoring for both returning combat soldiers and students who have missed important classes and who might otherwise have to retake an entire semester or academic year.

With your gift, Tel Aviv University will be able to provide its students with urgent assistance during this extremely difficult and uncertain time.

TEL AVIV UNIVERSITY TRUST

For more information: Cara Case, Chief Executive I Email: cara.case@tau-trust.co.uk Tel: 020 7446 8790 | www.tautrust.org | Registered Charity No: 314179

Pursuing the Unknown

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12 October 2023 • 27 Tishrei 5784 • I ssue No.1336

The missing and the dead