The Jewish Star 04-04-2025

‘My name is Eli Sharabi. I am not a diplomat. I am a surivor. ’

‘ I’m here before you now to give my testimony and to ask: Where was the United Nations? Where was the Red Cross? Where was the world?

‘491 days. That is how long I starved, how long I was chained, how long I begged for humanity. And in all that time, no one came.

‘ Now, I’m here before you at the United Nations to say: Bring them all home.

‘ No more excuses. No more delays. If you stand for humanity, prove it. Bring them home.’

In a 19-minute address to a hushed session of the United Nations Security Council, freed Israeli hostage Eli Sharabi recounted the murder of his wife and daughters and his harrowing 491 days of captivity in Hamas tunnels in Gaza where he endured physical and psychological abuse and starvation.

“I cannot begin to describe the agony. It was hell,” he said.

Sharabi criticized the UN and the Red Cross for their inaction.

“491 days. …In all that time, no one came,” he said.

“I know that you’ve discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza very often,” he continued. “But let me tell you, as an eyewitness, I saw what happened to that aid: Hamas stole it.”

He emphasized the urgent need to secure the release of remaining hostages.

This is the text of his address.

My name is Eli Sharabi. I am 53 years old. I’ve come back from hell. I’ve returned to tell my story.

I used to live in Kibbutz Be’eri with my British-born wife, Lianne, and my daughters, Noiya and Yahel. It was a beautiful community. We were all passionate about creating the best life for our children and for our neighbors.

At 16, I left Tel Aviv for Be’eri seeking a peaceful home, away from the concrete city. I found a loving community and knew I would raise my family there.

Many asked why we lived near Gaza, but to me, Be’eri was heaven. Lianne came from Bristol, UK, as a volunteer. She was meant to stay a few months, but she met me and we fell in love. We were married for 23 years and had two wonderful daughters and a dog, Mocha.

[Sharabi holds up a picture of his family.]

On October 7, my heaven turned to hell. Sirens began. Hamas terrorists invaded. And I was ripped away from my family, never to see them again.

For 491 days, I was kept mostly

underground in Hamas terror tunnels — chained, starved, beaten, and humiliated. I was held captive in the darkness, isolated from the world by Hamas terrorists. They took pleasure in our suffering.

I survived on scraps of food with no medical attention and no mercy. When I was released, I weighed just 44 kilos [97 pounds]. I had lost over 30 kilos, nearly half my body weight.

For 491 days, I held on to hope. I imagined the life we would rebuild. I dreamt of seeing my family again. Only when I returned home, I learned the truth. My wife and my daughters had been slaughtered by Hamas terrorists on October 7.

I’m here today, less than six weeks after my release, to speak for those still trapped in that nightmare. •For my brother Yossi, murdered in Hamas captivity, his body still held hostage.

See Stand for humanity on page 2

Eli Sharabi shares testimony of his captivity in Gaza at the UN Security Council on

Perry Bindelglass, Israeli

Stand for humanity? Prove it. Bring them home…

Continued from page 1

•For Alon Ohel, still 50 meters underground, I swore to him that I would tell his story.

•For Hersh, Ori, Eden, Carmel, Almog and Alexander, murdered in cold blood by their captors.

•For every hostage still in Hamas hands.

I’m here to tell you the whole truth.

On the morning of October 7, at 6:29 am, the red alerts began to come through on Lianne’s phone. I told her not to worry. It will be over soon, I said. Minutes later, we heard that terrorists were infiltrating our community. They were inside the kibbutz. Again, I reassured her, the army will come. They always come.

We heard gunfire, screaming, explosions. And then we heard the terrorists at our door. We had no weapons, no way to fight back.

Lianne and I made a decision we would not resist. We hoped we could save our daughter.

The door opened, our dog barked, the terrorists opened fire. Lianne and I threw ourselves over our daughters, screaming for the terrorists to stop. Suddenly, 10 terrorists were inside my home. They took our phones. Two of them grabbed me.

They took my wife and daughters to the kitchen. I couldn’t see them anymore. I didn’t know what was happening to them. I was screaming their names, and they were screaming mine. I told Lianne not to be afraid. But this was fear beyond anything I’ve ever felt.

Then, I knew I was being taken. As they dragged me out, I called out to my girls: “I will be back.” I had to believe that. But that was the last time I ever saw them. I didn’t know I should have said goodbye, forever.

Outside was like a war zone. My peaceful home, my slice of heaven was gone. I saw over a hundred terrorists filming themselves — celebrating, laughing, partying in our gardens as they massacred my friends and neighbors. They dragged me out, they dragged me to the door, to the border, beating me the whole way.

My face was swollen, my ribs bruised. When we arrived in Gaza, a mob of civilians tried to lynch me. They pulled me from the car, but the terrorists rushed me away into a mosque. I was their trophy.

I thought about Lianne, Noiya, and Yahel. Were they still alive?

For the first 52 days, I was held in an apartment. I was tied up with ropes. My arms and legs were tied so tightly, the ropes tore into my flesh. I was given almost no food, no water, and I couldn’t sleep. The pain was unbearable. Sometimes I would just faint from the pain, only to wake up to that pain again and again. Then, on November 27, 2023, Hamas took me into a tunnel, 50 meters [164 feet] underground.

Again, the chains were so tight, they ripped

my skin. They never took them off. Not for a single moment. Those chains tore at me until the day I was released. Every step I took was no more than 10 centimeters [4 inches]. Every walk to the bathroom took an eternity. I cannot begin to describe the agony. It was hell.

Iwas fed a piece of pita a day, maybe a sip of tea. Hunger consumed everything. They beat me, they broke my ribs. I didn’t care. I just wanted a piece of bread. There was never enough food.

Sometimes, if we begged enough, we would get something extra. We had to choose: an extra piece of pita or a cup of tea. Sometimes, they threw us dry dates, and it felt like the greatest gift in the world.

We had to beg for food, beg to use the bathroom. Begging was our existence.

We strategized over every meal. One day, I cut myself with a razor, just to make them believe I was injured. I collapsed on my way to the bathroom, so they would think I was too weak and encourage them to give us more food. It worked. They gave us more food. We survived of those small victories.

Do you know what it means to open a refrigerator? It is everything. To be able to reach and take a piece of fruit, an egg, a piece of bread. I dreamt of this simple act every day.

For months, we lived like this. I stopped counting the days.

Living as a hostage, you don’t know how the day will begin, nor how it will end, whether you’ll live or die. At any moment, they could beat you. At any moment, they could kill you.

You wake up every day and do not know when you will be able to eat. It could be 12 pm, 5 pm, 11 pm. This would be the only meal we would have. You hope and pray that there will be no surprises with the captors.

You think about how desperately you want to shower. We only got one bath a month, with half a bucket of cold water. Toothpaste, toilet paper — forget it.

Psychological terror was constant. Every day they told us: “The world has abandoned you. No one is coming.”

By the time I met Alon Ohel, who is now 24 years old, we had already endured terrible captivity. We relied on each other for survival. Alon is a very talented pianist. And I remember how we would pretend to play the piano on his body to keep himself sane.

[Sharabi holds up a poster of Alon.]

He doesn’t look any more like that.

One day, a terrorist took his anger out on me. He stormed in and beat me so badly that he broke my ribs. I couldn’t properly

breathe for months. Alon tried to protect me with his own body. You couldn’t believe how lucky I felt when Alon told me he had saved one painkiller pill. He gave it to me to get through the night.

Alon still has shrapnel in his right eye from the day he was kidnapped. He never received medical care. He never saw the Red Cross. To this day, he is blind in that eye. When I was released, he grabbed onto me, terrified to be left behind. He told me he was happy for me. I promised him it was just a matter of days before he would be home too. I was wrong.

Just before my release, Hamas took pleasure in showing me a picture of my brother Yossi.

[Sharabi raises a poster of his brother.]

This is my oldest brother. Husband for Nira, a father for Yuval, Ophir, and Oren. They told me he was dead. It was like they had brought a massive hammer down on me. I refused to believe it. My brother Yossi was all heart. Those with him in captivity told me that he gave his food to others.

On February 8, 2025, I was released. I weighed 44 kilograms. This is less than the body weight of my youngest daughter, Yahel, may her memory be a blessing. I was a shell of my former self. I still am.

[Sharabi raises photos of himself before he was abducted and on the day he was released, then a photo of himself surrounded by Hamas terrorists on the day of his release.]

I couldn’t believe how I looked.

I stood at that sick Hamas ceremony, surrounded by terrorists, and the crowd of socalled uninvolved civilians, hoping my wife and daughters were waiting for me.

At the end of the day, I met a representative from the Red Cross. She told me, “Don’t worry, you are safe now.” Safe? How could they feel safe surrounded by terrorist monsters? Where had the Red Cross been for the past 491 days?

Then I arrived home. They told me my mother and sister were waiting for me. I said, “Get me my wife and daughters.” And that was when I knew they were gone. They had been murdered.

[Sharabi raises a photo of his family’s graves.]

I’m here today because I survived and I prevailed. But that is not enough. Not when Alon Ohel is still there. Not when 59 hostages are still there.

Right now, Alon is trapped underground, alone, surrounded by terrorists who torment him. He doesn’t know if he will ever see his mother, father, his entire beloved family again. I will not leave him behind. I will not leave

anyone behind. Their time has almost run out.

I’m here before you now to give my testimony and to ask, where was the United Nations? Where was the Red Cross? Where was the world?

I know that you’ve discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza very often. But let me tell you, as an eyewitness, I saw what happened to that aid: Hamas stole it.

I saw Hamas terrorists carrying boxes with the UN and UNRWA emblems on them into the tunnel. Dozens and dozens of boxes paid by your governments. Feeding terrorists who tortured me and murdered my family. They would eat many meals a day from the UN aid in front of us and we never received any of it. When you speak of humanitarian aid, remember this: Hamas eats like kings while hostages starve. Hamas steals from civilians. Hamas blocks aid from reaching those who truly need it.

Four hundred and ninety-one days. That is how long I starved. How long I was chained. How long I begged for humanity. And in all that time, no one came. And no one in Gaza helped me. No one.

The civilians in Gaza saw us suffering. They cheered our kidnappers. They were definitely involved.

I was freed less than six weeks ago. I met President Trump at the White House and thanked him for securing my release and many others. I appreciate his efforts to free those still held hostage by Hamas. I told him, “Bring them all home.” I met with Prime Minister Starmer at 10 Downing Street. I told him, “Bring them all home.”

Now, I’m here before you at the United Nations to say: Bring them all home. No more excuses. No more delays. If you stand for humanity, prove it. Bring them home. My name is Eli Sharabi. I am not a diplomat. I am a survivor. Bring them all home. Now.

Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades parade captive Eli Sharabi in Deir al-Balah before handing him over to the International Red Cross on Feb 8. Abed Rahim Khatib, Flash90

Former

Turkey’s internal crisis and strategic expansion

Analysis By Oded Ailam Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs

What connects the demonstrators in Istanbul’s Sarachane Square with the quiet descent of Turkish submarines into the depths of the Eastern Mediterranean?

This connection, far from coincidental, encapsulates the essence of Turkey’s evolving geostrategic calculus under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. As domestic unrest grows, Erdogan is redirecting national tension outward — crafting an ambitious regional posture with significant implications for Israel, among others.

The recent wave of protests sparked by the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu — Erdogan’s most formidable political rival — has exposed the fragility of political stability in Turkey. Sarachane Square has become more than just a protest site; it is now a symbol of the growing tension between authoritarian consolidation and democratic resistance.

While the situation remains fluid and it is far too early to predict whether the crisis will topple Erdogan’s regime, one fact is clear: the indictment may paradoxically bolster Erdogan in the short term, serving as a tool to galvanize his base, suppress dissent and reassert control over strategic urban centers like Istanbul.

Erdogan, who still controls the military, judiciary and most of the media, has shown a remarkable capacity to outmaneuver his opponents. He has created private loyalist militias, purged state institutions and bent constitutional checks in his favor. But with legitimacy eroding, he now turns outward — seeking geopolitical gains to compensate for domestic fractures.

While Erdogan’s authoritarian slide has been well documented, Western responses have been notably restrained. The United States has avoided confrontation. Washington remains deeply concerned about Turkey’s potential pivot toward the Sino-Russian axis and seeks to keep Ankara loosely tethered to the NATO framework.

Europe, for its part, is even more constrained. Turkey is home to millions of migrant workers from the Middle East and North Africa, and has positioned itself as Europe’s buffer against mass migration. It holds substantial leverage over the European Union, including Germany and France, both of which maintain large Turkish diaspora populations and economic ties with Ankara. • • •

Erdogan’s outward pivot follows a clear strategy — securing dominance in two primary arenas: Syria and the Eastern Mediterranean.

In Syria, Turkey has moved to entrench its military presence, leveraging bases like Tiyas (T-4) and Menagh. The aim is not merely anti-Kurdish containment or border security, but to carve out a sphere of influence reaching toward the Israeli frontier — a neo-Ottoman corridor of Sunni control. In this, Erdogan sees an opportunity to assert Turkey’s claim to regional leadership.

An intriguing development is Ankara’s cautious warming of ties with Cairo. Despite years of friction, particularly after the 2013 ousting of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, recent diplomacy points toward normalization. However, Egypt is unlikely to join a formal alliance with Turkey. Rather, what we are likely to witness is incremental cooperation and improved dialogue, particularly in areas of mutual interest such as energy and maritime security. This trajectory must be closely monitored, as it could shift regional dynamics in unexpected ways.

Turkey’s maritime expansion is central to Erdogan’s vision. It is no longer about defense, but projection — of force, prestige and deterrence. The Turkish Navy is undergoing a transformation:

•Six AIP-enabled Type-214 submarines, coproduced with Germany, are scheduled to be fully operational by 2027.

•A domestically built light aircraft carrier, TCG Anadolu, is nearing completion and will

likely deploy UAVs such as the Bayraktar TB3.

•Enhanced electronic warfare, anti-ship missiles, and long-range surface assets are bolstering Ankara’s blue-water capabilities.

These advancements have serious implications for Israel. Submarines could loiter undetected near Israeli offshore gas rigs or communication cables, while surface vessels could disrupt shipping lanes, intimidate energy exploration efforts, or impede undersea infrastructure development.

This is not hypothetical. In 2019, Turkey sent warships to escort drilling vessels into Cyprus’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), prompting a diplomatic crisis with the European Union and Greece. In 2021, the Mavi Vatan (“Blue Homeland”) naval exercise simulated blockades and naval strikes across the Eastern Mediterranean — specifically near Israeli and Greek energy assets.

For Israel, Turkey’s naval assertiveness opens a new front. The Eastern Mediterranean has long been treated as a secure flank. That assumption no longer holds. As Erdogan tests boundaries — both literal and diplomatic — Israel faces increased risks to energy security, trade flows and maritime sovereignty. • • •

In this evolving reality, Israel must avoid overreaction — but equally, cannot afford complacency. A multi-pronged policy is required:

1. Upgrade Israeli naval capabilities, focusing on anti-submarine warfare, maritime cyber defense and undersea infrastructure protection.

2. Enhance trilateral cooperation with Greece and Cyprus, possibly formalizing a joint naval task force to deter Turkish encroachment.

3. Strengthen real-time intelligence sharing with NATO-aligned forces, especially the United States, France, and Italy, to monitor Turkish deployments.

4. Apply strategic leverage in Washington, especially in Congress and the Pentagon, to promote accountability in U.S.-Turkey defense relations.

5. Preserve quiet diplomatic backchannels with Ankara, to manage crises and prevent miscalculations.

6. Invest in regional economic diplomacy, tying Israel’s energy projects and shipping routes to broader multilateral frameworks that reinforce shared interests and mutual deterrence.

Critical weeks ahead

The coming weeks are critical in determining the trajectory of Turkish politics. While the current crisis exposes Erdogan’s vulnerability, if he weathers it — as he has others — he is likely to emerge emboldened, with even fewer internal constraints on his foreign policy ambitions. His naval strategy, far from a vanity project, is part of a long-term vision for regional preeminence — one that places Turkish submarines off Gaza and Turkish influence at the doorstep of Israeli strategic interests.

Israel must read this moment with clarity: The tides in the Eastern Mediterranean are shifting. It must steer with precision, fortify its deterrence posture and prepare for a maritime future where power, not proximity, dictates stability.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on April 24, 2018. Adem Altan, AFP via Getty Images via JNS

Car wash takes ‘dirtycar’ Jews to cleaners

By Vita Fellig, JNS

Super 4 Seasons, a car wash in Rockland County, must stop discriminatory business practices against Jewish customers preparing for Passover or face a fine of $75,000 dollars, the office of Letitia James, the New York state attorney general, stated on Monday.

An investigation by James’s office found that in the weeks leading up to the Jewish holiday, Super 4 Seasons advertised a “Passover special” cleaning promotion that cost more than three times its standard price for the same service. (JNS sought comment from the car wash and from the attorney general’s office.)

“Targeting Jewish New Yorkers with deceptive pricing around Passover is a clear act of religious discrimination and will not be tolerated,” James stated. “Every New Yorker, regardless of their faith, deserves to be treated fairly and equally. My office will not hesitate to hold businesses accountable when they exploit families’ religious observance.”

The state opened an investigation of the car wash in April 2024, after several Jewish customers filed complaints with the attorney general’s office alleging that the business was charging $169 for a cleaning service that typically costs $47.

Since at least 2018, the company has advertised its cleaning services specifically as a Passover holiday promotion, per James’s office.

Jewish customers reported that they were denied access to standard service packages and were instead steered toward the higher-priced Passover promotions, according to the state’s investigation.

In a sting operation, the state sent two investigators to the site — one dressed in a manner that suggested the person was an Orthodox Jew and the other in different attire. The investigator dressed as an Orthodox Jew was told that the company is “not doing anything except shampoos and Passover cleanings right now,”

and “we are doing this just for you guys,” per the attorney general’s office.

The other state investigator, who wasn’t dressed as an Orthodox Jews, asked for standard service and was given one at a regular price.

“When he inquired about the promotion, an employee responded that it was ‘for Jews,’ adding that they needed to pay more ‘because their cars are so dirty,’” per the attorney general’s office. The state “recovered sales records for this same period, confirming that regular services had in fact been provided throughout the holiday,” it added.

James issued a consumer alert last week warning Jewish New Yorkers to be cautious of illegal price gouging practices ahead of the upcoming Passover holiday.

“As Passover approaches, I urge Jewish New Yorkers who feel that they may have been a victim of discriminatory price gouging to contact my office,” she stated on March 27. “My office has zero tolerance for any discrimination and anyone who engages in practices to unfairly raise prices on the Jewish community as they prepare for Passover will be held accountable.”

“No New Yorker should be taken advantage of during a holiday season and forced to pay more for a service because of their religion,” she added.

Israeli toddler finds a 3,800-year-old amulet

By JNS Staff

During a family trip to Tel Azekah near Beit Shemesh, three-and-a-half-year-old Ziv Nitzan from Moshav Ramot Meir stumbled upon an extraordinary piece of history — an ancient scarab amulet dating back approximately 3,800 years.

The young girl’s discovery was purely accidental, according to her sister, Omer Nitzan.

“We were walking along the path when Ziv bent down and picked up a particular stone,” she said, according to a press release published by the Israel Antiquities Authority. “After rubbing off the sand, we saw something was different about it. We called our parents and realized we had found an archaeological artifact.”

Judah Region District Archaeologist Semyon Gendler commended the family for their prompt reporting and awarded Ziv a certificate of appreciation for her good citizenship. The amulet will now be displayed in a special Passover exhibition at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel, alongside other rare artifacts from the periods of Egypt and Canaan, many of which are being displayed publicly for the first time.

Daphna Ben-Tor, an expert in ancient amulets and seals, identified the object as a Canaanite scarab from the Middle Bronze Age.

“Scarabs were used during this period as seals and amulets, often found in graves, public buildings, and homes,” she said, according to the release. “Many feature symbols and messages

reflecting religious beliefs or social status,” she explained.

Scarabs are artifacts originating in ancient Egypt, shaped like a dung beetle. The beetle held religious significance in ancient Egypt as a symbol of creation and renewal, believed to represent the incarnation of the Creator G-d.

Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu emphasized the historical significance of Ziv’s discovery: “This seal connects us to the grand civilizations that lived on this land thousands of years ago. It is a reminder that even children can play a role in uncovering history.”

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The scarab seal from Tel Azekah. Emil Aladjem, Israel Antiquities Authority

By Emily Goldberg, JNS

Days after Yeshiva University announced that it would recognize an official LGBTQ student group, both the school’s president and one of its most senior rabbinic deans say that they have regrets, though it is not clear that each are apologetic for the same reasons.

YU and the students settled a five-year court case on March 20 and stated that the new club, Hareni, “will seek to support LGBTQ students and their allies and will operate in accordance with the approved guidelines of Yeshiva University’s senior rabbis.” Hayley Goldberg, co-president of the club, told JNS that “this victory is not just for our club” but is “for every student who deserves a safe space to be themselves.”

In a statement at the time, a YU spokesman said that the students had agreed to “the same club approved by our senior rabbis two and a half years ago.”

In an open letter dated 24 Adar, which began on Sunday night, Rabbi Hershel Schachter, a faculty member at the school who is one of the most prominent Modern Orthodox rabbis to issue religious rulings, wrote that “two and a half years ago, when I was last consulted, I gave my blessing to a Yeshiva University initiative to help students struggling with problems of same sex attraction and gender identity.”

“My position, then as now, emphatically rejects the ideology, lifestyle and behaviors which the LGBTQ term represents,” he wrote. (JNS verified the letter’s authenticity.)

His view remains that religious prohibitions, including on same-sex marriage, “obviously must be uncompromisingly upheld,” the rabbi added in the letter. “Simultaneously, all halachically legitimate means of support should be provided to struggling students to foster and sustain their uncompromising commitment to all of the above.”

“Experience has attested that allowing this initiative to take the form of a club has

and continues to create confusion,” Schachter wrote. “I very much regret that I did not previously recognize this factor. Establishing any additional club in any Orthodox institution will only add to that confusion and must be avoided.”

Ari Berman, a rabbi and YU’s president who, like Schachter, holds the title of rosh yeshiva at the school’s Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, wrote in his own statement to the YU community that he wanted to “deeply apologize.”

“Over the past few days there has been much confusion about YU’s policies following the announcement of Hareni as an undergraduate student club,” Berman stated in the letter sent on Tuesday.

“I deeply apologize to the members of our community — our students and parents, alumni and friends, faculty and rabbis — for

the way the news was rolled out,” Berman wrote. “Instead of clarity, it sowed confusion. Even more egregiously, misleading ‘news’ articles said that Yeshiva had reversed its position, which is absolutely untrue.” (It wasn’t clear why the statement put “news” in quotes or to which outlets the YU president referred. JNS sought comment from Yeshiva.)

Berman noted that undergraduates opt to come to Yeshiva, rather than other schools, due to its “religiously driven environment and curriculum.”

“The Yeshiva has always conveyed that what a Pride club represents is antithetical to the undergraduate program in which the traditional view of marriage and genders being determined at birth are transmitted,” Berman said. “The Yeshiva never could and never would sanction such an undergraduate club, and it is due to this that we entered litigation.”

The Yeshiva president stated that the plaintiffs in the lawsuit agreed to run the club Hareni, which Yeshiva has said is the same as a club launched by the university in 2022, and that the case has been dismissed.

“Last week, the plaintiffs in the lawsuit against YU accepted to run Hareni, instead of what they were originally suing us for, moved to end the case, and the case has been dismissed,” Berman said.

“For years, this has been a deeply painful episode for so many people in our Yeshiva family. I am pleased that at this time, it is drawing to a close,” he added.

Hareni has denied that the club is the same as the one Yeshiva proposed in 2022, which was to be called Kol Yisrael Areivim. JNS sought comment repeatedly from Yeshiva and from senior rabbis, including Schachter. It was not clear from the public materials if Schachter currently supports the new group, whether other senior rabbis at Yeshiva did or do or what exactly Berman was so deeply apologetic about.

YU created the club Kol Yisrael Areivim — which it said would be “for LGBTQ students striving to live authentic Torah lives” and was “approved by the administration, in partnership with lay leadership, and endorsed by senior roshei yeshiva” — in 2022, the year after the proposed student group YU Pride Alliance sued the university’s president and vice provost, alleging that Yeshiva denied the club official recognition.

YU calls itself “the world’s flagship Jewish university” and says that it is “rooted in Jewish thought and tradition.”

The Pride Alliance rejected Kol Yisrael Areivim, stating that the club did not meet its intended goals of creating a safe, supportive space for students. In 2022, the New York Supreme Court ruled that YU had to implement the Pride Alliance, to which the University responded by halting funding to all clubs on campus.

Rabbi Ari Berman. YU Rabbi Hershel Schach. YU

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To learn more visit www.mountsinai.org/feilpavilion

By Itay Ilnai, Israel Hayom

A few weeks ago, an envelope from the American embassy arrived in Meir’s (pseudonym) mailbox. “Inside were personal letters for me, my wife, and each of my children,” he recounts.

“In the letters, we were notified that all our US visas had been confiscated, and that we shouldn’t dare try to enter America. The letter also ‘strongly recommended’ that we bring our passports to the American embassy so they could physically remove the visas. My son was supposed to study for a semester at an American university, which won’t happen now, and my wife works for an American company. How can I explain to them that she is not approved to enter the US?”

Meir wasn’t given an official reason for revoking his and his family members’ visas, but he doesn’t need one. Meir is a senior executive at an Israeli offensive cyber company, and he’s far from the only one in this industry whose US visa has

As we are revealing for the first time, recently more and more employees at Israeli offensive cyber companies have been receiving letters from the American embassy with similar notifications about the cancellation of their visas and those of their family members, according to senior sources in the industry.

This phenomenon, which threatens the future of an industry already in crisis, has remained below the radar until now because most workers whose visas have been canceled prefer not to

disclose the matter, fearing they will be fired or struggle to find work in the field.

“Do you know what it means for a high-tech worker to have their American visa taken away?” says an industry source. “It’s a death blow and grounds for dismissal.”

In the past two and a half years, the Americans have taken a series of steps that have caused companies like NSO and Candiru to lose customers and employees, and other companies in the industry, such as Quadream, to shut down completely.

According to testimonies received by Israel Hayom, dozens of industry employees, including “vulnerability” researchers who form the spearhead of offensive cyber, have recently decided to move abroad, where they work for foreign companies.

National interests and commercial struggles involving technology giants are intertwined. According to several Israeli sources we spoke with, there are also antisemitic and anti-Israeli tendencies among senior officials in Washington.

According to several senior executives in the local offensive cyber industry, the State of Israel has not done enough to protect it and has abandoned it to American interests.

“We have an entire industry that’s simply collapsing,” says one of them. “We’re businesspeople, but we’re not just losing money. Israel is losing an incredible security capability here, and the state is doing nothing to prevent it.”

US visa revocation hits Israeli cyber industry Columbia Jew-haters are sued for aiding Hamas

By Vita Fellig, JNS

Relatives of Oct. 7 victims and hostages held in Gaza sued Mahmoud Khalil, a recent Columbia University graduate whom the Trump administration is seeking to deport, and anti-Israel student groups at Columbia on Monday, alleging that they are “accountable for aiding and abetting Hamas’s continuing acts of international terrorism and violations of the law of nations.”

The plaintiffs — 10 of them named, and five anonymous — are seeking punitive damages under federal anti-terrorism laws in the suit, which they filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

“Defendants in this case are Hamas’s propaganda arm in New York City and on the Columbia University campus,” per the complaint. “We know this, because they advertise themselves as such and their self-described acts in furtherance of their goals to assist Hamas have included terrorizing and assaulting Jewish students, unlawfully taking over and damaging public and university property on Columbia’s campus and physically assaulting Columbia University employees.”

Anti-Israel student activists don scarves to hide their identities, per the lawsuit.

“This case will pull down those scarves and unveil acts that violate this country’s antiterrorism laws,” the plaintiffs state. “This case will finally hold these admitted terrorists accountable for their actions. It is time for American campuses to return to being centers for learning and to be saved from the relentless occupation by Hamas’s tragically misguided cohorts.”

Arsen Ostrovsky, CEO of The International Legal Forum and one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs, told JNS that Khalil, a recent Columbia graduate who was a leader of anti-Israel protests on campus, is not being targeted for deportation due to his speech.

“Enough is enough. We must bring to justice not only the perpetrators of the Oct. 7 massacre but hold accountable all those who support, enable and collaborate with them in the United States, like Mr. Khalil and the defendants in this

case,” Ostrovsky said.

“In Khalil’s case, he has gone outside the realm of the First Amendment in providing material support for a U.S. designated terror group and incitement to violence, which is prohibited and outlawed,” he said. “In its deportation proceedings against Khalil, the Department of Homeland Security has also charged him with leading activities aligned to Hamas.”

Mark Goldfeder, CEO and director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center and another attorney for the plaintiffs, stated that anti-Israel student activists have contributed to supporting terrorism.

“The right to advocate and even to propagandize is broadly construed in the United States, on college campuses and in a vast array of fora,” he stated. “It is not, however, unfettered and certainly does not encompass acts of violence, vandalism, physical intimidation, trespassing and breach of university rules that ensure student safety.”

“Nor does it support the provision of material support for terror,” Goldfeder added.

Beyond Khalil, the federal lawsuit also names Within Our Lifetime, Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine, Columbia-Barnard Jewish Voice for Peace and Columbia University Apartheid Divest, as well as some of their representatives.

Protesters demonstrating outside Columbia University on April 22, 2024. Evan Schneider, UN

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Pleasantville theater bars ‘Oct. 8’ documentary, shows ‘No Other Land’

Rep. Mike Lawler demanded answers from a cinema in his Westchester district after it refused to screen “October 8,” a documentary about the rise of antisemitism in the United States after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

The Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville declined to screen the film, according to a spokesperson for the film’s studio, but is screening “No Other Land,” a controversial, Oscar-winning film co-directed by an IsraeliPalestinian collective showing Palestinian activists protecting their homes from demolition by the Israeli military.

While Lawler expressed his disappointment in the choice, he specifically questioned the center’s recent hiring of Eric Hynes — who holds anti-Israel views and accused the Jewish

State of genocide, according to Lawler — as its director of film curation and programming. The congressman called the decision “a complete slap in the face to the Jewish community in the Hudson Valley.”

“Unfortunately, this hiring decision has reared its ugly head in the biased choice to refuse screening of ‘October 8,’ a critical film that highlights the challenges faced by Jews in the US following the horrific Oct. 7 attacks,” Lawler stated. “Given Mr. Hynes’ praise for the antisemitic protests at Columbia University and at CUNY, one doesn’t have to wonder if his personal anti-Israel bias factored into his decision to refuse screening this important film.”

“The choice to screen ‘No Other Land,’ while simultaneously denying screening of ‘October 8,’ calls directly into question Mr.

Hynes’ intent, and given his long track record of being anti-Israel and supporting antisemitic protests, I fear the worst,” he continued.

“The Jacob Burns Film Center should reflect

on its choices and step in to ensure that there is a balanced set of films,” rather than “one worldview pushed by someone with an axe to grind.” JNS

To explain Zionism, you need to explain P’stinians

The Zionist story has many details, but the basic outlines are the amazing storyline from ancient emancipation to modern rejuvenation.

•To understand Zionism, one needs to be familiar with its history, leaders and philosophy.

•To understand the State of Israel, its history, leaders and policies need to be studied. However, to understand both, one must also understand the Palestinian people.

The foundation of all Zionist thought is that the Land of Israel is the homeland of the Jewish people, and they alone have the right to govern it. Yet, a student of Zionism should ask, “How did Zionist leaders relate to the other people on their land?” “How should Zionists deal with the Palestinians?” and “How will Zionists deal with the Palestinians in the future?” Ignoring these questions leaves a gaping hole in Zionist philosophy.

The United Nations adopted Resolution

3379 in November 1975, which “Determines that Zionism is a form of racism and racial discrimination.”

This resolution effectively had the international community officially denouncing Zionism and the values of the State of Israel as racist. This resolution and its accompanying libel of Zionism as a racist ideology lasted for 16 years until the UN revoked the resolution in December 1991.

To fully understand that Zionism isn’t racism, one must understand why Palestinians mistakenly thought Zionism discriminated against them, and why they are wrong.

Early Zionists were willing to share the land of Israel with the Arabs who lived there.

Before Israel was established, early Zionist leaders accepted the suggestions of both the British Peel Commission and the United Nations Partition Plan that the Jewish people and the Palestinian people split the land. At Israel’s seminal moments, Israel’s leaders reached out to the Arabs and offered peace.

Only an understanding of Arabs who lived both inside and outside of British Mandatory Palestine’s refusal to talk to the Peel Commission, their rejection of the UN Partition Plan and their continued intransigence in the face of numerous Israeli peace proposals can explain why there hasn’t been a Palestinian state.

It is only by researching and understanding the Palestinians, their demands and their culture of violence that one can explain that it isn’t the responsibility of Zionists to satisfy Palestinian demands. Palestinian demonization of Israel instead of Palestinian progress is the cause of their unhappiness. Misunderstanding Zionism by conflating it with Palestinian destiny and desires can only happen when the student misunderstands the Palestinians.

Palestinians accuse Israel of stealing land from the native Palestinians. If educators don’t

teach that Palestinians aren’t indigenous to the land of Israel, that the Palestinians weren’t colonized and that Zionism isn’t immoral for returning the Jewish people to live in their historic homeland, then they aren’t fully explaining Zionism.

Considering Palestinian demands and culture of violence, it isn’t our responsibility to satisfy their demands.

Although the study of Zionism is a study of objective facts, history and philosophy, it also contains a narrative. Every people has a story and every nation has its legends. In any good story, there is a “good guy” and a “bad guy.” For over a century, the Palestinians have tried to portray the Zionists as the bad guy.

To teach the Zionist narrative properly, people must clearly explain why Zionists aren’t the “bad guys” in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is only by familiarizing oneself with the Palestinian admiration of violence and terrorism in response to Zionist offers of peace that Zionists can understand their narrative.

It isn’t enough for Zionist leaders, educators, advocates and influencers to talk about the virtues of Zionism. To fully explain Zionism, the views of the other side, the anti-Zionists, must be explained as well.

Rabbi Uri Pilichowski is the author of three books and teaches Torah, Zionism and Israel studies. To reach him, write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

Image from the documentary film, “October 8.”

The UN General Assembly repealed a 1975 resolution that equated Zionism with Racism. Milton Grant, UN

WINE

AND DINE

In Pesach’s dishes, let’s stress the seasonings

As we prepare our Passover meals, traditional dishes can be flavored and spiked with once unavailable kosher-for-Passover dried spices and herbs. Many of them, such as za’atar, shawarma and hawaij, are combination spices — three or more in one.

Although labels may advertise their products as soup seasoning or meatball spice, these combos add zing to other dishes as well. The hawaij label promotes it as soup seasoning, but besides soups, use it as a rub for chicken or in stews and fish dishes, even sprinkled over roasted vegetables (it’s a blend of cumin, coriander, turmeric and cardamom).

On Saturday night, April 12 (as the 15th day of Nisan begins), it’s estimated that more than 80% of Jews, no matter how observant, will travel near and far to attend a Passover seder and celebrate the Jewish festival of freedom,

Besides reading the Haggadah, which retells the story of the Exodus from Egypt 3,500 years ago; singing songs and searching for the afikomen, the festive meal is the highlight of the evening’s proceedings.

The eight-day celebration in the Jewish Diaspora revolves around the prohibition of chametz, leavened foods.

Originally, in the Ashkenazi community in Eastern Europe, only five grains were considered chametz: wheat, barley, spelt, rye and oats. Post-Talmudic authorities added rice and legumes, such as peas and beans.

But for Sephardim living in Spain, Portugal and North Africa, the main foods available were rice and legumes, so contemporary Sephardic Jews eat both during Passover.

In the Hofman house, the first seder is traditional Ashkenazi. The second, a Sephardic meal, is lightened with fruits, vegetables and an array of different spices.

Charoset, essential on the seder plate, is symbolic of the mortar the Jews worked with during their seemingly endless years of slavery. Ashkenazi-style, the mixture is mainly apples and nuts. For Sephardim, there’s nary an apple in sight. Ingredients are exotic, using fruits and spices that grew abundantly in the Mediterranean area and Africa (recipe below).

Sephardic eggs are slow-cooked so that whites become a creamy brown color.

Besides the traditional brisket, serve fish (in this case, easily available flounder) seasoned with za’atar and lemon, and then baked on a bed of cherry tomatoes, celery and onions. Roasted vegetables are drizzled with date tahini and a sesame paste to become mellower.

For a light dessert, poached pears are best made ahead of time and chilled. And there’s sure to be at least one vegan in the gathering, so I had my niece test the Chocolate Whip, and it was a winner.

Chag Pesach Sameach!

Sephardic Eggs (Pareve)

Makes 12

Cook’s Tips: •May use a crockpot. Cover the eggs with at least 2 inches of water. Eggs are pasteurized by cooking at 140 degrees for 30 minutes starting off at high. After 1 hour, reduce heat to low. Cook 4 hours longer. •After the eggs have been cooking for 3 hours, gently tap the shells with a spoon to show the marbling color on the egg whites.

Ingredients:

• Brown skins of 2 to 3 onions

• 12 eggs in shells

• 1 tsp. instant coffee

• 2 tsp. turmeric

Directions:

Spread the onion skins over the bottom of a large pot. Gently place eggs on top. Sprinkle the coffee and turmeric over top.

Pour enough lukewarm water over to cover eggs by at least 2 inches. Bring water to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a slow boil. Cook for 1 hour. Reduce heat to simmer. Cook for at least 3 hours. (The water may evaporate, so add more warm water as needed.)

Serve at room temperature, arranged on drained onion skins.

Moroccan Charoset Truffles (Pareve)

Makes 12 to 15

Cook’s Tips: •Substitute allspice (a combination of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg) for Moroccan spice. •Substitute dried cranberries for expensive dried cherries. •Place each truffle in paper candy cups.

Ingredients:

• 14 pitted dates

• 1 cup dried apricots, halved

• 1/2 cup pitted dried cherries

• 1/4 cup walnuts

• 1 seedless mandarin orange, peeled and cut into chunks

• 1 tsp. Moroccan spice

• 2 Tbsp. sweet wine

• 2 Tbsp. honey or to taste

• 1/3 cup ground almonds

Directions:

In a food processor, place the dates, apricots, cherries, walnuts, orange and Moroccan spice. Pulse to chop coarsely. Add wine and honey. Pulse to process to a coarse paste. Chill for 1 to 2 hours.

Roll into small balls, about 1 inch in diameter. Roll in ground almonds. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Flounder Roll-Ups on Braised Vegetables (Pareve)

Serves 6

Cook’s Tips: •Tilapia fillets or other flat white fish may be used. •Za’atar is a mixture of herbs that includes toasted sesame seeds and sumac.

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided

• 3 ribs celery, sliced about 1/4 inch thick

• 1 medium onion, sliced thinly

• 2 pints cherry tomatoes

• 1-1/2 tsp. cumin

• 3 (about 2-1/2 lbs.) flounder fillets

• Za’atar to sprinkle

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

• 6 thin lemon wedges

• Olive oil

• Dried parsley

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet or pot. Add the celery, onion and tomatoes. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until tomatoes are beginning to soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a large (9x13 inch) baking dish.

See Let seasonings add punch on page 14

EthEl G. hoFmAN

Hadas Parush, Flash90

Brown eggs. Pixabay

Za’atar and other spices.

Pixabay

Let seasonings add punch to Pesach dishes…

from page 11

Sprinkle with cumin. Set aside. Cut flounder fillets in half lengthwise. Lightly sprinkle each half with za’atar, salt and pepper. Top with a lemon wedge. Roll up beginning at the thin end. Place on top of the tomato mixture. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with parsley. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes until the flounder begins to brown and has lost its opaque appearance. Serve hot.

Golden Veggie Kugel (Pareve)

Serves 8 to 10

Cook’s Tips: •Use store-bought grated carrots in a bag. •Chop apples and potatoes in a food processor.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup matzah meal

• Scant 1/2 cup sugar

• 1 tsp. nutmeg

• 1 tsp. cinnamon

• 1 tsp. ginger

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 1/2 tsp. red-pepper flakes

• 2 large apples, unpeeled, coarsely chopped

• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped

• 1 large baking potato, peeled and coarsely chopped

• 1/2 cup grated carrots

• 1 cup golden raisins

• 2 Tbsp. frozen orange-juice concentrate, thawed

• Grated zest and juice of 1 large lemon

• 1 stick (8 oz.) margarine, melted

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13inch baking dish with nonstick vegetable baking spray.

In a large bowl, combine matzo meal, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, salt and red-pepper flakes. Add the remaining ingredients. Mix well. Transfer to the prepared baking dish.

Bake in preheated oven until firm and nicely browned, about 1 to 1-1/4 hours. If browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil. Cool slightly, cut into squares and serve warm.

Roasted Broccoli and Squash Drizzled with Date Tahini (Pareve)

Serves 6 to 8

Cook’s Tips: •Use store-bought broccoli florets and cubed squash. •Roast broccoli and squash separately to tenderize. •Heat through in microwave before serving if needed.

Ingredients:

• 1 bag (12 to 14 oz.) broccoli florets

• 2 boxes (12 oz. each) of cubed squash

• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Ingredients for the Date Tahini:

• 4 pitted dates

• Hot water to cover

• 1/4 cup tahini

• 1 tsp. sumac

• Water as needed

Directions: Prepare the Date Tahini: Place dates in a cup and cover with hot water. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes to soften. Transfer the date and water mixture to a blender or food processor. Add tahini, sumac and 1/4 cup water. Pulse 3 to 4 times to chop dates finely. Pour into a bowl. Add enough water to make a pouring consistency. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Toss the broccoli with olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread on a baking sheet.

Roast in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until beginning to brown. Set aside.

Repeat with squash. Roast in preheated oven

for 20 minutes or until beginning to brown and tender when pierced with a sharp knife.

Arrange broccoli and squash in a serving dish. Drizzle with date tahini and serve.

Poached Pale Pears (Pareve)

Serves 4

Cook’s Tips: •For delicate pink, use a red wine such as Merlot. •For a dairy meal, pour melted vanilla yogurt or ice-cream over top.

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe, firm pears, peeled and cored

• 12 to 16 whole cloves

• 1 seedless medium orange, unpeeled and sliced

• 1 cup white wine such as Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio

• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice

• 2 Tbsp. honey

• 1 Tbsp. sugar

• 1 tsp. cardamom

• 1/2 tsp. turmeric

Directions:

Cut cored pears into wedges about 1/2-inch thick. Insert a clove into each wedge. Set aside. In a medium pot, place the remaining ingredients. Over medium-high heat, bring the mix-

Traditional holiday dishes can be flavored with never-before available dried spices and herbs, many of them mixed medleys like za’atar, shawarma and hawaij.

ture to a rolling boil. Reduce heat and add the pears. Spoon some of the liquid over top. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the pears are soft. A sharp knife inserted should slip out easily.

Transfer pears to a serving dish. Uncover and simmer the remaining liquid for 10 minutes until syrupy. Spoon over the pears.

Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Vegan Chocolate Whip (Pareve)

Serves 3 to 4

Cook’s Tips: •One-third cup of dairy-free chocolate chips or chopped chocolate equals 2 ounces of chocolate. •May substitute granulated sugar for coconut sugar. Adjust to taste. •Make sure dark chocolate is dairy-free. •Very rich so serve in demitasse cups or small wine glasses.

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe, medium avocados, peeled and pitted

• 1 soft, ripe banana, sliced thinly

• 1/4 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened

• 2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice

• 1 tsp. cinnamon

• 1/8 tsp. salt

• 1/4 cup coconut sugar

• 2 oz. of dark chocolate, melted

• Raspberries or mint leaves to garnish (optional)

Directions:

Slice the avocados and place them in the food processor. Add all remaining ingredients except the garnish.

Process, pulsing, until smooth. Spoon into small glasses. Garnish as desired.

Dried apricots. Pixabay

Broccoli florets. Pixabay

Poached Pale Pears.

Ethel G. Hofman

Chunks of chocolate. Pixabay

Flounder Roll-Ups on Braised Vegetables.

Ethel G. Hofman

Grated carrots. Pixabay

Jewish Star Torah columnists:

•Rabbi Avi Billet of Anshei Chesed, Boynton Beach, FL, mohel and Five Towns native •Rabbi David Etengoff of Magen David Yeshivah, Brooklyn

•Rabbi Binny Freedman, rosh yeshiva of Orayta, Jerusalem

Contributing writers:

•Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks zt”l,

former chief rabbi of United Hebrew Congregations of the British Commonwealth •Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh

Weinreb, OU executive VP emeritus •Rabbi Raymond Apple, emeritus rabbi, Great Synagogue of Sydney •Rabbi Yossy Goldman, life rabbi emeritus, Sydenham Shul, Johannesburg and president of the South African Rabbinical Association.

Contact our columnists at: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

Five Towns Candlelighting: From the White Shul, Far Rockaway, NY

תבש לש בכוכ

Fri April 4 / Nissan 6

Vayikra Candles: 7:04 • Havdalah: 8:14

Fri April 11 / Nissan 13

Shabbos HaGadol • Tzav Candles: 7:11

Sat April 12 / Nissan 14

Erev Pesach • First Seder Candles: 8:13

Sun April 13 / Nissan 15

Second Seder Candles: 8:14 • Havdalah: Monday 8:23

Fri April 18 / Nissan 20 Candles: 7:19

Sat April 19 / Nissan 21 Candles: 8:20

Sun April 20 / Nissan 22 Havadalah: 8;30

Question after 2,000 years: Why sacrifices?

rabbi Sir

The laws of sacrifices that dominate the early chapters of the Book of Leviticus are among the hardest in the Torah to relate to in the present.

It has been almost two thousand years since the Temple was destroyed and the sacrificial system came to an end. But Jewish thinkers, especially the more mystical among them, strove to understand the inner significance of the sacrifices and the statement they made about the relationship between humanity and G-d. They were thus able to rescue their spirit even if their physical enactment was no longer possible. Among the simplest yet most profound was the comment made by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the first Rebbe of Lubavitch. He noticed a grammatical oddity about the second line of this Parsha:

Speak to the Children of Israel and say to them: “When one of you offers a sacrifice to the L-rd, the sacrifice must be taken from the cattle, sheep, or goats.” Lev. 1:2

Or so the verse would read if it were constructed according to the normal rules of grammar. However, the word order of the sentence in Hebrew is strange and unexpected. We would expect to read: adam mikem ki yakriv (when one of you offers a sacrifice).” Instead, what it says is adam ki yakriv mikem (when one offers a sacrifice of you).”

The essence of sacrifice, said Rabbi Shneur Zalman, is that we offer ourselves. We bring to G-d our faculties, our energies, our thoughts and emotions. The physical form of sacrifice — an animal offered on the altar — is only an external manifestation of an inner act. The real sacrifice is mikem, “of you.” We give G-d something of ourselves.

What exactly is it that we give G-d when we offer a sacrifice?

The Jewish mystics, among them Rabbi Shneur Zalman, spoke about two souls that each of us has within us — the animal soul (nefesh habeheimit) and the G-dly soul.

On the one hand we are physical beings. We are part of nature. We have physical needs: food, drink, shelter. We are born, we live, we die. As Ecclesiastes puts it:

Man’s fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: as one dies, so dies

The essence of sacrifice, said Rabbi Shneur Zalman, is that we offer ourselves.

the other. Both have the same breath; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is a mere fleeting breath. Eccl. 3:19

Yet we are not simply animals. We have within us immortal longings. We can think, speak, and communicate. We can, by acts of speaking and listening, reach out to others. We are the one life-form known to us in the universe that can ask the question “why?” We can formulate ideas and be moved by high ideals. We are not governed by biological drives alone. Psalm 8 is a hymn of wonder on this theme:

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him, the son of man that You care for him?

Yet You made him a little lower than the angels and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of Your hands; You put everything under his feet.

Ps. 8:4–7

Physically, we are almost nothing; spiritually, we are brushed by the wings of eternity.

We have a G-dly soul. The nature of sacrifice, understood psychologically, is thus clear. What we offer G-d is (not just an animal but) the nefesh habeheimit (the animal soul within us).

How does this work out in detail? A hint is given by the three types of animal mentioned in the verse in the second line of Parshat Vayikra (see Lev. 1:2): beheimah (animal), bakar (cattle), and tzon (flock). Each represents a separate animal-like feature of the human personality.

Beheimah represents the animal instinct itself. The word refers to domesticated animals. It does not imply the savage instincts of the predator. What it means is something more tame. Animals spend their time searching for food. Their lives are bounded by the struggle to survive. To sacrifice the animal within us is to be moved by something more than mere survival.

Wittgenstein, when asked what was the task of philosophy, answered, “To show the fly the way out of the fly-bottle.” The fly, trapped in the bottle, bangs its head against the glass, trying to find a way out. The one thing it fails to do is to look up. The G-dly soul within us is the force that makes us look up, beyond the physical world, beyond mere survival, in search of meaning, purpose, goal.

The Hebrew word bakar, cattle, reminds us of the word boker, dawn, literally to “break through,” as the first rays of sunlight break through the darkness of night.

Cattle, stampeding, break through barriers. Unless constrained by fences, cattle are no respecters of boundaries. To sacrifice the bakar is to learn to recognize and respect boundaries — between holy and profane, pure and impure, permitted and forbidden. Barriers of the mind can sometimes be stronger than walls.

Finally, the word tzon, flocks, represents the

herd instinct — the powerful drive to move in a given direction because others are doing likewise.

The great figures of Judaism — Abraham, Moses, the Prophets — were distinguished precisely by their ability to stand apart from the herd; to be different, to challenge the idols of the age, to refuse to capitulate to the intellectual fashions of the moment. That, ultimately, is the meaning of holiness in Judaism. Kadosh, the holy, is something set apart, different, separate, distinctive. Jews were the only minority in history consistently to refuse to assimilate to the dominant culture or convert to the dominant faith.

The noun korban, “sacrifice,” and the verb lehakriv, “to offer something as a sacrifice,” actually mean “that which is brought close” and “the act of bringing close.” The key element is not so much giving something up (the usual meaning of sacrifice), but rather bringing something close to G-d. Lehakriv is to bring the animal element within us to be transformed through the Divine fire that once burned on the altar, and still burns at the heart of prayer if we truly seek closeness to G-d.

By one of the ironies of history, this ancient idea has become suddenly contemporary. Darwinism, the decoding of the human genome, and scientific materialism (the idea that the material is all there is) have led to the widespread conclusion that we are all animals, nothing more, nothing less. We share 98 per cent of our genes with the primates.

We are, as Desmond Morris used to put it,

“the naked ape.” On this view, Homo sapiens exist by mere accident. We are the result of a random series of genetic mutations and just happen to be more adapted to survival than other species. The nefesh habeheimit, the animal soul, is all there is.

The refutation of this idea — and it is surely among the most reductive ever to be held by intelligent minds — lies in the very act of sacrifice itself as the mystics understood it.

We can redirect our animal instincts. We can rise above mere survival. We are capable of honoring boundaries. We can step outside our environment. As Harvard neuroscientist Steven Pinker put it: “Nature does not dictate what we should accept or how we should live,” adding, “and if my genes don’t like it they can go jump in the lake.”

Or, as Katharine Hepburn majestically said to Humphrey Bogart in “The African Queen,” “Nature, Mr Allnut, is what we were put on earth to rise above.”

We can transcend the beheimah, the bakar, and the tzon. No animal is capable of self-transformation, but we are.

Poetry, music, love, wonder — the things that have no survival value but which speak to our deepest sense of being — all tell us that we are not mere animals, assemblages of selfish genes. By bringing that which is animal within us close to G-d, we allow the material to be suffused with the spiritual and we become something else: no longer slaves of nature but servants of the living G-d.

‘My brothers I seek … they saw him from afar’

Those of us who have been learning Daf Yomi have been consumed with the fascinating and perplexing discussions of Yemot HaMoshiach, the anticipated Days of the Messiah, may he come speedily in our day, that fill the final chapter in tractate Sanhedrin, Perek Hachelek.

I intended to write about this topic and its absolutely critical relevance to our day, but I cannot. That is because the Jewish people are under threat of destruction once again. Not from with-

out, but ominously from within. Once again as so many times in the past, our disunity, our needless, brotherly hatred (sinat chinam, sinat achim) threatens to tear us apart. And as has been pointed out over the last year and half by so many observers, that is what brought upon us October 7, 2023.

I vividly remember in those months preceding that fateful day. I was in Israel, observing and attending (some) protests, mostly about judicial reform. I saw how the country was being torn apart, with the political differences devolving into religious differences, ideological differences, and then into irrepressible anger and real hate. Brother and sister against brother and sister, Jew against Jew.

What broke me and so many others was the vicious spectacle in Tel Aviv on Yom Kippur. There,

radical anti-religious leftists took out their frustration and anger and attacked fellow Jews who were praying in an open-air minyan that had been held in Tel Aviv for over 20 years. To accommodate all, there was separate seating for men and women; individuals of any Jewish background, or no background at all, were encouraged and free to come and pray on Judaism’s holiest day.

This peaceful, voluntary gathering was disrupted by other Jews who taunted them, spit on them, struck them with sticks and even ate sandwiches in front of them, in an act of contempt for those Jews who were fasting and contempt for Yom Kippur itself. It was a shocking display of Jew hatred committed not by non-Jews and not in Nazi Germany, but by fellow Jews in the Land of Israel.

There was outrage at first, but nothing changed, and in fact the municipal government of Tel Aviv doubled down by banning the outdoor minyan in the future, siding with the haters. Twelve days later, on Shmini Atzeret, the holiday dedicated to the camaraderie of the Jewish people, we got the Hamas attack on October 7.

We had violated that camaraderie and Hashem had no desire to have a seuda ketana, a small intimate dinner, with us and He allowed the attack upon us to occur.

Immediately after October 7, as if prompted by an instinctual signal, the Jewish people came together. The amount of ahavat achim and unity was an incredible, miraculous sight to behold, especially after a year of fighting and rancor.

Perplexing parshiyot, ethics of animal sacrifice

Rabbi DR. tzvi

heRsh weinReb

Orthodox Union

Last week, we finished the Chumash of Shemos and learned about the construction of the Mishkan. We were able to appreciate the ethical and spiritual benefits of giving, of the importance of the participation of every individual if a community, however large and gifted, is to achieve its goals.

It is not naïve to assume that even the contemporary phenomenon of Jewish generosity and our people’s enthusiastic involvement in charitable causes has its roots in the degree

to which we all contributed to the sacred task of building the Mishkan. The successful completion of this task is even more remarkable when one realizes that it was achieved by a mass of “homeless” people wandering through an arid and untamed wilderness.

This week, we begin the Chumash of Vayikra and for several weeks will read about the animal sacrifices that were offered in the Mishkan, and continued to be offered in the Holy Temple of Jerusalem (with some disruptions) for many centuries.

Many people find themselves perplexed by these upcoming readings. For one thing, they find the very notion of animal sacrifices disturbing. They associate such sacrifices with primitive societies and consider them totally alien to modern sensitivities. They even have difficulties with

the fact that we include pleas for the imminent restoration of such sacrifices in our daily prayers and even more so in our prayers during the Sabbath and Festivals.

Some of those who are troubled by sacrificial rites are aware of Maimonides’s suggestion that these rites were only temporarily necessary for an ancient people that was accustomed to, if not steeped in, such practices and had to be gradually weaned from them. The fact that Maimonides himself devoted major sections of his major work to a detailed explication of sacrificial procedures seems to indicate that his suggestion that they were impermanent was just that, a suggestion.

Others, less concerned with animal sacrifices per se, ask this question: “The Torah is meant to be a guide to our ethical behavior and soulful spirituality. How does this week’s parsha, and

the next several parshiyot, guide us ethically or inspire us spiritually?”

Our commentaries throughout the ages have taken these concerns seriously and addressed them in ways that were consistent with the cultural backgrounds of their audiences. This week, and for the next several weekly Torah portions, I will attempt to present approaches to this topic, some classic and some quite recent. To begin with a truly classic commentator, I’ll share Rashi’s concern with one word in the opening verses of our parsha. The verses read: The L-rd called to Moshe. From the Tent of Meeting, He spoke to him and said, “Speak to the Israelites. Say: When one of you [adam mikem] brings an animal offering to the L-rd, you may bring it either from the herd [cattle] or from the flock [sheep or goats].”

See Weinreb on page 22

Hearing, and answering, our calling as Jews

Ireceived this story via email:

A lady passing a young boy on the street noticed he was entranced by a pair of shoes in a store window. “You’re in such deep thought staring in that window!” she said.

“I was asking G-d to give me a pair of shoes,” was the boy’s reply.

The lady took him by the hand, went into the store, and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water and a towel. When

he brought them to her, she took the little fellow to the back part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed his little feet and dried them with the towel.

By this time, the clerk had returned with the socks. Placing a pair upon the boy’s feet, she purchased him a pair of shoes.

She tied up the remaining pairs of socks and gave them to him. Patting him on the head she said: “No doubt, you will be more comfortable now.”

As she turned to go, the astonished kid caught her by the hand and, looking up with tears in his eyes, asked her: “Are you G-d’s wife?”

This week we begin the book of Vayikra (Leviticus), whose name, which means “And He [G-d] called,” is taken from the first word of the first verse in the book: “And He called

to Moshe, and G-d spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting” (1:1).

Rashi points out that this is an unusual turn of phrase; normally G-d speaks to Moshe, whereas here G-d calls him. Indeed Rashi notes that when Balaam (the Gentile Prophet viewed by Jewish tradition as being a wicked personality) speaks with G-d, the word used is “vayaker,” meaning “G-d happened upon him.” The difference in these two Hebrew words is simply the letter Aleph. In a traditional Torah scroll, the Aleph appears as a smaller letter, suggesting a difference between experiencing something as a coincidence and as a calling.

Rashi also notes (1:1) that when Hashem called Moshe, only Moshe could hear Hashem’s voice and other people were unaware of G-d’s calling. Why does this unique calling of Moshe

(as opposed to the more frequent description of G-d speaking to Moshe) occur here at the beginning of Vayikra?

Vayikra is also known as Torat Kohanim, the book of the kohanim, because much of it involves the laws and obligations particular to the priestly service in the Temple. Considering that the Jewish people are called a Mamlechet Kohanim (a priestly nation), we can view the underlying message of Vayikra as an allegory of our responsibility to the world. Just as the kohanim are meant to serve, teach and model for the Jewish people, we as a Jewish people are meant to serve, teach and model for the world, to lead as a light unto the nations.

Leaders respond to a calling that, most often, no one else hears. What most people often pass

See Freedman on page 22

Vayikra begins and the sacrificial order returns

As we begin Vayikra, the third book in the Torah, we are once again introduced to the sacrificial order. Beyond the reminders of proper behavior that accompany the depiction of sacrifices, what else can we learn from how the sacrifices described, particularly in a world in which we do not have the Temple?

The final passages of chapter 5 speak of offerings for dishonesty. In addition to returing stolen items and paying an additional fifth, the person who was irresponsible with the property of others would have to bring a sacrifice.

“He must bring his guilt offering to G-d. An unblemished ram, worth the prescribed amount, as

a guilt offering through the kohen. The priest shall make atonement for him before G-d, and he will then be forgiven for any commitment of crime for which he is guilty.” (5:25-26)

Rabbi Mendele of Rimanov recounted a custom that when the reader would conclude the Torah reading with the words l’ashmah va (he is guilty), in order for the reading to not end on such a sour note the congregation would rise and chant a phrase whose words begin with the letters that spell l’ashmah va — “L’el Asher SHavat Mikol Hama’asim Bayom Hashvii.” This phrase means, “to G-d who rested on the seventh day from all that He did.”

In the book Otzar HaChaim, the author suggests that the significance of this phrase being utilized here might be that the observance of Shabbos is a way in which people return the idea of creation to the Master of Creation. He created for six days. We honor that through working six days. He rested on the seventh day. We honor that gift

to the world by giving it back to its Master through our rest on the Sabbath. This is significant at the end of the passage describing returning lost items.

Some conversations are difficult and they might leave someone with a sour feeling unless a positive note is spun into the message; we should be positive whenever we can.

The second lesson is a dual one of honesty and Sabbath observance. I have heard it noted in anger that people who are not observant of the Sabbath are not fit to serve as witnesses on religious documents. But a different response, of understanding, might be helpful, rather than questioning the honesty, or the capabilities, of a person who is not Sabbath-observant.

Consider this perspective: There is an inherent contradiction in attesting to a document that only has value because of the religion, while living a life that, in a sense, takes away from the G-d who rested on the seventh day and made it holy.

Do these Jews deny G-d? Do they not believe in

Him? I think, on the contrary, that they believe in G-d and honor Him in the manner they can. And I hope they’re always striving to rise and always aim to get closer to Him.

Until that time, however, halakha does not allow that person to serve as a witness for religious events, such as for a wedding or the signing of the ketubah

What’s the positive spin? Non-Sabbath-observant Jews can pray, lead davening, say Kaddish, recite blessings, and we all respond. Non-observant Jews count for a minyan

We must love all of our fellow Jews even as we hope and encourage them (and all of us) to grow in our Jewish connections and religious responsibilities.

Avi Billet, who grew up in the Five Towns, is a South Florida-based mohel and rabbi of Anshei Chesed Congregation in Boynton Beach. This column was previously published. To reach Rabbi Billet, write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

See Mazurek on page 22

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In Dresden, Tokyo, Hiroshima, Gaza, this is war

As the Gaza situation receives renewed attention, it’s an appropriate time to acquaint many readers with events that took place 80 years ago.

On Feb. 13-14, 1945, three months before the end of World War II in Europe, British and American air forces carried out a massive bombing of Dresden, a German city known as a center of art and culture, museums and beautiful architecture but lacking in military significance. The enormity of this operation can be appreciated by sheer numbers: 1,250 British and American bomber airplanes and 4,000 tons of explosives and incendiaries (700,000 phosphorus bombs) were released onto the city, which lacked minimal protection.

The British and American forces did not provide advance warnings, nor did they aim the bombing at potential military targets. On the contrary, all efforts and planning were made to maximize human death and structural ruin, not sparing hospitals or schools. Numerous incendiary bombs were dropped at the city center in a designed plan to create a huge firestorm that reached 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. The melting roads burned the fleeing people’s feet. As planned, when the fire grew, more oxygen was sucked in, creating updrafts of “hurricane-like speed” that blew super-heated, poisonous air. The very strong vacuum created sucked people, cars and other heavy objects into the fire. Those hiding in cellars suffocated to death.

To inflict maximum casualties, the air raids were executed in three waves — one of which was a daytime operation so pilots could easily machine-gun people running in the streets, including evacuating hospital patients. Weeks later, the streets were still covered with bodies. Human death toll estimates range from 25,000 to 35,000 in a single day. Approximately 28,000 houses were destroyed.

What has made the Dresden bombing so infamous was the fact that it was specifically intended to inflict maximum death and destruction

What is the meaning of proportional response to the terrorist murderers who use their civilian population as cover?

on a crowded civilian population, including the choice of killing methods: burning alive, carbon monoxide poisoning and asphyxiation. These were selected after observing the effects of a 1943 bombing of the city of Hamburg that killed an estimated 40,000 Germans. (In comparison, a total of 60,000 British civilians were killed during the entire war.)

Richard Crossman, then-assistant chief of the British Psychological Warfare, stated that all consequences of the Dresden bombing were “foreseen and planned with meticulous care,” noting that British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was very receptive to the plan. Crossman also said it was not a one-man decision, and “ … Churchill accepted the advice with the backing of his whole cabinet.” Consequently, priority was given to the production of a large number of bombers.

Still, the Allies’ strategy — to kill as many enemy civilians and destroy as many cities as possible while minimizing its own casualties — did not begin or end with Dresden. The cities of Cologne, Essen, Bremen, Kassel, Darmstadt, Pforzheim and Swinemünde were bombed from 1941 onward, resulting in civilian death tolls of between 15,000 and 30,000 per city Only days after the Dresden operation, the bombing of Tokyo began, resulting in more than 250,000 buildings destroyed and between 80,000 to 100,000 civilians killed

Next came the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which also left the world a moral controversy. Western conduct in more recent wars has not been decidedly affected.

Achieving military objectives through damaging the civilian population was employed again in 1999 by NATO forces in a prolonged bombing campaign of Serbia. More than 2,000 missiles and 10,000 bombs were dropped over areas that included cities. In addition to military installations, power plants and factories were bombed, resulting in the deaths of 500 civilians, including 100 children. Thousands were seriously injured. Schools, libraries, hospitals and historic monuments, as well as thousands of homes, were destroyed.

Only a dozen years ago, former President Barack Obama authorized drone attacks in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen and other areas that claimed hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of civilian lives.

All of which brings us to today. On Oct. 7, 2023, in a brutally planned attack, Hamas, an internationally designated terrorist organization controlling the Gaza Strip, crossed the border into Israel and butchered with knives or burned alive more than 1,200 people. Many of these were youth attending an outdoor music concert, but there were also families in their homes, women and children, deliberately murdered in front of relatives or taken hostage. Hun-

dreds of young women were savagely raped and then killed or dragged away into captivity.

Initially, Hamas’s attack was well-covered by the international press, but soon thereafter, mostly in passing, as the focus shifted to allegations against Israel and the destruction in Gaza. What is barely covered is the fact that the Gaza Strip was controlled by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023; Israel had withdrawn its soldiers and civilians 20 years earlier.

What is also not covered by the media is that in the years since Hamas took control of the coastal enclave, it has committed thousands of acts of terrorism against Israelis and other civilians, and has continuously launched rockets into civilian populations in Israel. On Oct. 7, in particular, Hamas showered thousands of deadly rockets over the most populated areas of Israel.

Barely mentioned is that in sharp contrast to the historic events described above, the Israeli Defense Forces has gone out of its way to minimize civilian casualties while attempting to eliminate enemy positions from where rockets were being launched. These sites were mostly schools, hospitals and apartment buildings, making avoiding civilians impossible.

Long before the bombings, the IDF made warning telephone calls directly to Palestinian homes notifying them to leave. They also dropped printed messages by airplane, advising people which buildings to evacuate, and even often dropped “cold bombs” as the last warning. Moreover, wounded Palestinian terrorists who were caught by the IDF were treated in Israeli medical facilities.

Israel has also erected special medical facili-

ties at its northern border with Syria, where they treat Syrians wounded by their own government. Such efforts to protect civilians are unheard of in the history of wars of other nations. There were certainly no warnings for the residents of Hiroshima or Nagasaki.

Although this is all well-documented, what has the world’s response been? False accusations of genocide with barely any attention to the IDF’s behavior as compared to other militaries in recent history.

One might ask: What is the meaning of proportional response to the terrorist murderers who use their population as cover? What have we heard about the UN documentation of the deaths of more than 350,000 Syrians killed by their government, including using poisonous gas? Have there been widespread voices of rage from governments, local or national organizations — the very ones that go out of their way to condemn Israel?

The current civil war in Sudan has killed 150,000 people and forced more than 11 million from their homes, prompting the US government to declare a genocide — this one perpetrated by the ethnic Arab militia known as the Rapid Support Forces against non-Arab Sudanese. Nevertheless, organizations and groups focused on the alleged wrongs of Israel have been conspicuously silent. Even the pope, who has been outspoken about the Gaza conflict, has remained fairly quiet regarding the brutal persecution of Christians and Uyghurs in China.

Perhaps, what I have described can be best explained by the words of two European diplomats.

See Yairi on page 22

A statue of Protestant Reformation Martin Luther in the Ruins of Dresden, Germany, in the aftermath of World War II. Giso Löwe, German Federal Archives via WikiCommons

EHuD YAiri

It’s been a bad week for the Muslim Brotherhood

GLOBAL FOCUS

COHEN

It’s not been a good week for two of the Muslim Brotherhood’s most prominent affiliates. In Gaza and in Turkey, the final days of the holy month of Ramadan have been marked by angry demonstrations calling for an end to the rule of, respectively, Hamas and the Justice and Development (AKP) Party.

The demonstrations are not connected and are not referencing each other. Their targets, however, are intimately connected — through their ideological fealty to the Muslim Brotherhood, a pan-Islamist movement that emerged nearly a century ago seeking to impose Sharia law, and, more immediately, through the energetic backing for Hamas provided by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s regime.

In the Turkish case, the protests were sparked by the regime’s arrest of Ekrem Imamoglu — the mayor of Istanbul who had planned to challenge Erdoğan for the presidency — on fabricated charges of corruption.

A member of the secular Republican People’s Party who has said that he considers Hamas to be a terrorist organization, Imamoglu has been vilified by the regime, to the point of having his Istanbul University degree annulled. Under Turkey’s constitution, presidential candidates must possess a college degree, so Erdoğan’s move was an effective if slimy way of shifting his most credible opponent out of the running — for now, at least.

Protests against Hamas and Turkey’s president are roiling the Middle East.

The Turkish authorities have responded violently to the protests, arresting nearly 2,000 people. Such behavior is consistent with Erdoğan’s record, particularly since he overcame an alleged coup attempt a decade ago. According to the US State Department’s most recent report on the woeful state of human rights in Turkey, Erdoğan’s regime is guilty of such crimes as torture, enforced disappearance, pursuing and harassing opponents based abroad, gender-based violence and persecution of the Kurdish minority. Media freedom is heavily restricted, with Turkey prominently listed among those countries where journalists are routinely imprisoned.

Despite its dreadful domestic record, its support for terrorist proxies in neighboring Syria and its lionizing of Hamas, Turkey remains a member of NATO and a candidate member of the European Union. Should the threat posed by Iran to the Middle East eventually be neutralized, Turkey stands ready to assume Tehran’s

mantle, with the notable advantage that, unlike Iran’s rulers, Erdoğan shamelessly participates in the institutions created by Western democracies while decrying and undermining the values and policies these same institutions represent.

Over in Gaza, Hamas — lauded by Erdoğan as a “resistance organization that strives to protect its lands” — is separately facing the wrath of its own people. During its long reign in Gaza since 2007, Hamas has periodically faced local opposition over its corruption and the brutal character of its rule.

Yet the current demonstrations, which began after Israel issued evacuation orders for the northern part of the enclave following the resumption of rocket attacks against Israeli communities adjacent to the Gaza border, are unprecedented. Protestors are calling for an end to Hamas rule during a time of war no less. Their chants include “Out, out Hamas,” “Our children’s blood is not cheap” and the simple “Stop the war.”

As I noted on the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas pogrom in southern Israel, a distinct sense of war fatigue was already settling in among many ordinary Palestinians. Even so, fatigue at being relentlessly bombed by Israel has not translated into serious regret for the Oct. 7 atrocities, during which thousands of Palestinian civilians crossed the border alongside Hamas to take part in the slaughter and the mass rapes.

Quite a few commentators have pointed out that, even under Nazi rule, there were many Europeans who risked their lives to save beleaguered Jews, yet in Gaza — as borne out in the testimonies of some of the freed hostages — not a single Palestinian has done the same on behalf of the abducted Israelis. Even now, as the current wave of protests highlights widespread dissatisfaction with their Hamas rulers, Palestinians have refrained from demanding the release of the remaining hostages and a definitive end to terrorist provocations and attacks upon Israel. Doing so would, of course, secure an end to the war that has destroyed their homes and livelihoods.

Even at this stage, it’s possible to draw two conclusions from the Gaza protests.

First, the very fact that they are taking place at all demonstrates the degree to which Israel’s military campaign has degraded Hamas’s enforcement capabilities. As a result, Hamas has been compelled to issue contradictory messages regarding its view of the protests.

On the one hand, Hamas spokesman Bassem Naim tried to spin them as demonstrations of anger against Israel.

But on the other — and perhaps this is a more truthful reflection of the terror group’s view — a statement issued by the “Factions of Resistance,” which includes Hamas, claimed that the protests “persist in blaming the resistance and absolving the occupation, ignoring that the Zionist extermination machine operates nonstop,” threatening that “these suspicious individuals are as responsible as the occupation for the bloodshed of our people and will be treated accordingly.”

Second, the protests are an acknowledgment by the exhausted Gazans that Israel cannot be

Cohen on page 22

And you thought we were hopelessly divided!

At a time when extreme political partisanship threatens to divide our nation, it is reassuring to realize that there are those who can engage people across the political aisle without sacrificing or surrendering their principles.

The classic example of working to find solutions to serious issues while disagreeing amicably was the storied relationship between President Ronald Reagan and House Speaker Tip O’Neill in the 1980s.

Reagan was the most staunchly conservative president of the past 80 years, and O’Neill as liberal as any speaker ever. I use the term “relationship” rather than “friendship” because people who worked for O’Neill didn’t share the genuinely warm feelings Reagan had for him. But that didn’t prevent these two larger-thanlife, strong-minded leaders of their respective political parties from respecting the office the other held and accepting their joint responsibility to find ways to get things done.

At King Umberto in Elmont, diners show a high-profile Democrat some love.

Probably the best-known example of this cooperation was their agreement on Social Security, the “third rail” of politics, which saved the system and strengthened it for another 40 years.

Though not as cordial, President Bill Clinton and House Speaker Newt Gingrich found ways to work together in the mid-1990s, achieving successes for the country on such critical issues as welfare reform and the only balanced budget in a half-century. But that didn’t come easily.

For the first two years of Gingrich’s speakership, after leading Republicans in 1994 to their first control of Congress in 40 years, he and Clinton were bitter, partisan rivals.

Then, when Clinton stalemated Gingrich by being re-elected in 1996, both realized that it made more sense governmentally — and politically — to find common ground. And they did.

It wasn’t anywhere near the same magnitude, but a similar bipartisan spirit prevailed last week, when my wife, Rosemary, and I had dinner with former Gov. David Paterson and his wife, Mary, at King Umberto in Elmont. Paterson is a lifelong Democrat whose father was a well-known state senator and Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor. Despite our party differences, David and I have been friends over the years, and we can talk calmly about politics and serious issues, including the direction of the country.

Adding to the bipartisanship, Nassau County Republican Chairman Joe Cairo came by to say hello and exchange words of friendship and respect with Paterson. So here you had Cairo, the most successful political chairman in the country, having led the Republicans to more victories throughout Nassau than at any time since 1971, and Paterson, a former Democratic governor, dis-

playing friendship and respect to each other in full view of a restaurant full of diners.

As we got up to leave, I was stopped by a number of customers who said hello and wished me well. I appreciated their kind words but wasn’t that surprised — not because I’m universally acclaimed, but because they were Republicans, and I’d been in elective office for 45 years. In fact,

all told me they had voted for President Trump. What did surprise me were the universal expressions of friendship and support for Paterson:

“We need more Democrats like you.”

“Is there any way you could run for mayor this year?”

“I always respected you as governor.”

That’s how it went, from table to table, as we made our way to the door. I realize that was only a snapshot in time, and not a scientific survey. But as a political practitioner for all these years, I was pleasantly surprised that in these extraordinarily partisan times, a lifelong Democrat would receive such a warm response from a strong Republican crowd.

It could well have been that Paterson reminded them of a time that was more civil, that he was never known to be an extreme partisan or maybe just that he seemed so comfortable spending an evening with Republicans. Whatever the reasons, it was a signal to me that there’s still a place for bipartisanship.

Nassau is in many ways the ultimate politically competitive county. There are 100,000 more registered Democrats here, but Trump carried Nassau by 30,000 votes, and Republicans hold every county office and control all three towns and two cities. At the same time, Democrats hold the majority of the state legislative districts. But with all the political infighting and the close balance of power, Joe Cairo and I are proud to show our friendship with and respect for a prominent Democrat like Paterson. Could be a good model for the country.

Peter King is a former LI congressman and former chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security. This column first appeared in LI Herald.

Former Rep. Peter King at King Umberto in Elmont, flanked by former Gov. David Paterson and Nassau County Republican Chairman Joe Cairo. Peter King Facebook page

Palestinians in northern Gaza take part in an anti-Hamas protest on March 26. Flash90

See

PETER KING

Retired Congressman

Can great art transcend political disgrace?

JoNAthAN S. tobiN

JNS Editor-in-Chief

Ours is an era when canceling people for dissenting against fashionable woke shibboleths has become an inevitable and often lamentable aspect of contemporary culture. That’s true not just in politics, but also in the arts, where virtue-signaling about various causes is commonplace.

But, while the practice of shunning those whose beliefs run afoul of prevailing orthodoxies is considered abhorrent when it involves people we agree with, most are not so broadminded when it comes to those with whom they disagree.

Though positions on this issue often hinge on partisan differences, they also raise the age-old debate about whether great art, however entertaining, profound or enlightening, can justify the bad or even criminal behavior of the artist.

That is the context for a new Off-Broadway play by Peter Danish that premiered earlier this month at New World Stages. The work attempts, among other things, to explore how we should think about the life of one of the giants of 20thcentury classical music: German conductor Herbert von Karajan.

The conceit of the play is the supposed meeting between von Karajan and fellow musical superstar Leonard Berstein late in their lives at the bar of the famed Sacher Hotel in Vienna. The encounter between a former member of the Nazi Party and a proud American Jew is an opportunity for the two characters to hash out what we should think not only of von Karajan but of a rivalry that was also an unlikely collegial friendship.

Jew and ex-Nazi as pals?

The answers that Danish provides to those questions in approximately 90 minutes of sometimes tedious dialogue — punctuated by histrionics, a musical soundtrack and the occasional intervention of the waiter serving the duo — are far from satisfactory. The fact that the two main characters are portrayed by female performers in drag (with actress Lucca Zuchner’s von Karajan far more convincing than Helen Schneider’s Bernstein) is, though described in the program as German director Gil Mehmert’s attempt at “impressionist fantasy,” both pointless and mostly distracting.

Still, the discussion this play addresses is nevertheless important. That’s not just because the controversy that surrounded von Karajan is interesting in and of itself. It’s also due to the discussion it engenders has some bearing on contemporary arguments about how to think about the past and the intersection between art and politics.

When it comes to our favorite artists, musicians, actors or athletes, the less we know about their personal lives, foibles and politics, the better off we usually are. That’s as true for those who are no longer with us as it is for contemporary stars.

Once the fourth wall between performers and their audiences is broken, and we discover

Think what you like of Bernstein’s personal life and his political follies, but he was no Nazi, and the effort to pretend that he was no better than von Karajan is dishonest.

that their personal lives are disreputable or their views reprehensible, continuing to enjoy their work requires a certain degree of obliviousness that not all of us are capable of or willing to undertake.

The fascinating thing about von Karajan was that his artistry and appeal as a musician were such that over the course of a career that began in 1929 until his death in 1989, he was able to transcend a past that ought to have rendered him a pariah.

An Austrian musical wunderkind who made his debut at the prestigious Salzburg Festival at the age of only 21, von Karajan rose in his career like a rocket during Germany’s Nazi era. He joined the Nazi Party twice, once in a still-independent Austria in 1933 (it would be annexed to Germany in the 1938 Anschluss), and again in 1935, while he was serving as director of the opera in the German city of Aachen.

A regime supporter

He would later assert that he only did so to advance his career. An Allied denazification tribunal declared him as merely a Nazi sympathizer and innocent of personal involvement in atrocities. But it’s also true that throughout the period of Nazi rule, he was, to all outward appearances, an enthusiastic supporter of the Adolf Hitler regime.

Many other musical stars of that period, nonJews as well as Jews, left both Nazi Germany and fascist Italy, rather than be compromised or be used by those tyrannical governments.

But von Karajan stayed and prospered, becoming a favorite of Nazi propaganda minister and war criminal Josef Goebbels (though von Karajan claimed that Hitler was not one of his fans), who installed him as the head of the Berlin Opera in competition with the older Wilhelm Furtwangler, the head of the Berlin Philharmonic in that era.

Though the latter chose not to leave Germany (allegedly because he feared that von Karajan, whom he despised, would replace him), he was a public critic of Hitler and the Nazis. Unlike von Karajan, he never joined the party and helped Jews escape the Holocaust.

Furtwangler also refused to begin performances with a Nazi salute and the playing of the vile Nazi anthem, the Horst Wessel song, as his younger rival did. His status as a preeminent artist in a country that venerated classical music served to protect him against retaliation by the regime. But that was not the path von Karajan chose.

Following the end of the war and after a relatively brief period when he was unemployable due to his status as an ex-Nazi, von Karajan’s career was soon back on track. A brilliant and charismatic musician with a style unlike other conductors, by the 1950s he was an international

star rather than just a German celebrity.

Not everyone was initially on board with his transformation. His concerts were picketed in New York and canceled in Detroit.

Eugene Ormandy, a Hungarian-born Jew who emigrated to the United States in 1937 — and who, by the 1950s, was music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra — had a reputation as a musician equal to von Karajan. He famously refused to shake the ex-Nazi’s hand.

American-Jewish superstar tenor Richard Tucker went even further. Contracted to record Verdi’s opera “Aida” in 1955 alongside Maria Callas with von Karajan conducting, Tucker said he wouldn’t sing if the German were involved. Such was Tucker’s fame at the time that the recording company fired von Karajan.

Star power

Nevertheless, von Karajan’s star power soon overwhelmed the misgivings of other performers, as well as that of those who run the business side of the classical-music world. His recordings with the Berlin Philharmonic, which named him “conductor for life” in 1956, and the Vienna State Opera and Philharmonic, where he also performed, were bestsellers.

By the late 1960s, his performances in New York and everywhere else were no longer considered controversial. Though he had rivals with reputations and followings that were equal to, if not greater than, his — such as the Hungarianborn Jew Sir Georg Solti, whose recordings often outsold those of von Karajan — he reigned as one of the demigods of classical music for the rest of his life.

A flamboyant Boston-born Jew, Bernstein was nothing like the rigid von Karajan who, though his father’s family had immigrated to Germany from Greece in the 18th century, affected a Prussian mien along with the aristocratic “von” in his name.

Bernstein was the composer of Broadway musicals like “On the Town,” “Candide” and the immortal “West Side Story,” as well as film scores such as that of “On the Waterfront” and a great body of classical music that never achieved the same distinction. He was also a leading conductor and piano soloist.

During his long tenure as the music director of the New York Philharmonic, he became America’s music educator-in-chief, appearing on television to brilliantly explain the subject to a vast popular audience in a way that is unimaginable today, given the enormous gap that currently exists between popular and classical art.

Proudly Jewish, as well as a supporter of the Jewish state, he conducted in Israel during its War of Independence and composed a musical tribute called Halil (Hebrew for “flute”) to a young Israeli flutist killed in the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

A pair of frenemies

He and von Karajan were what might be termed “frenemies,” in that they were outwardly cordial while occasionally engaging in one-upmanship. But it’s possible the story that Danish tells of their meeting, which he claims was told to him by a bartender at the Sacher decades after both died, is true.

The lengthy debate between the two in the play covers a lot of territory Von Karajan mocks Bernstein’s desire to be universally loved and the way he spread himself so thin among his various endeavors, often to the detriment of all of them. Bernstein mocks von Karajan’s sometimes mannered conducting style, leading orchestras with his eyes closed and, of course, his Nazi ties. That is, of course, of far greater interest to posterity than either musician’s style.

Both could be extremely eccentric, with Bernstein often playing familiar music like the operas “Carmen” or “Tristan und Isolde” at tempi so slow as to be at times almost unrecognizable. Anyone who listens to von Karajan’s recordings often needs to adjust the volume, since his approach involved frequently changing the sound dynamic in an annoying way that no other musician ever tried. Yet they were both supremely talented individuals in a field that nowadays is mostly made up of stars who embrace conformity.

For the playwright, as well as music fans during their lifetimes and even long afterward, the idea that we should shun von Karajan because of his sins is simply too much of a sacrifice. His portrayal of the conductor involves his eventually admitting both regret and shame over his unwillingness to question authority and be used by the Nazis. And the substance of the play involves a great deal of rationalizing and excusing the inexcusable.

Worse is the attempt to draw moral equivalence between von Karajan’s mistakes and those of Bernstein. In this way, Bernstein is forced to admit his guilt in not seeking to prevent protests of von Karajan’s 1955 New York performance at Carnegie Hall as a similar failure, which is as appalling as it is misleading.

Bernstein did plenty of foolish and even bad things in his life. As Bradley Cooper’s awful portrayal of Bernstein in the 2023 Netflix movie “Maestro” — which the actor also produced, wrote and directed — showed, he was serially unfaithful to his wife, largely because he was determined to engage in gay affairs even as he played the family man to the public.

His inane dabbling in far-left politics, such as the 1970 fundraiser he hosted at his New York apartment for the terrorist street thugs of the Black Panthers, inspired one of the most scathing takedowns in the history of journalism: Tom Wolfe’s epic New York magazine piece, “Radical Chic,” which skewered Bernstein and his wealthy liberal friends.

It’s also true that, as von Karajan’s character notes, Bernstein dodged the draft when the majority of American men his age were fighting in the war to save civilization from the German conductor’s patrons and their allies.

But the moment when von Karajan accuses Bernstein of being a “Jewish nationalist” and somehow like the Nazi variety during the 1930s and 40s, that goes too far. Despite the response from Bernstein about his pride in being Jewish and claim to be a “citizen of the world,” it is utterly appalling. That such a line is heard on a New York stage, at a time when antisemitism is on the rise and often supported by the city’s artistic elites, constitutes a red line the playwright should never have crossed.

Think what you like of Bernstein’s personal life and his political follies, but he was no Nazi, and the effort to pretend that he was no better than von Karajan is dishonest.

The play does better when it sticks to questions about music. When the two conductors’ mutual admiration for Callas is discussed, it is noted by the actor playing the bartender donning a dress and singing an excerpt from “Lucia di Lammermoor” in a passable counter-tenor’s soprano. This moment of high camp is the only

‘Last Call,’ a new play about an alleged late-life meeting between Leonard Bernstein and ex-Nazi Herbert von Karajan, attempts to answer a difficult question. Adobe

Proudly Jewish. Proudly Zionist.

Mazurek…

Continued from page 17

But over the last few months, that unity has been fraying. We saw mounds of trash thrown on the steps of a synagogue in Tel Aviv by anti-religious protesters. And we saw out of control Charedi protesters in Jerusalem pelting police with bottles and debris, setting fires, protesting efforts to institute a much needed draft of their young men. The recent Knesset vote on judicial reform brought out the usual masses of protesters nationwide. All this while a war on multiple fronts goes on, the nuclear threat from Iran looms, and the national government seems incapable of getting all our remaining hostages back after more than 530 days.

As stated at the outset, we believe in the coming of Moshiach and the ushering in of the ultimate redemption, the Geula Shelaima Tradition tells us that the time for this is now.

As the Talmud tells us (Rosh Hashanah 10b): “b’Nisan nigalu, u’b’nisan atidin ligael (in the month of) Nisan, the Jewish people were redeemed, and in Nisan they are destined to be redeemed.” But unlike the Exodus, the redemption from Egypt, it will not happen passively. We must DO something to make it happen.

What must we do?

The most important thing is for the Jewish people to come together. You don’t have to agree on everything or even anything. After all, we were once composed of 12 different tribes. We can disagree, argue, protest (even vehemently). But we must do so while treating one another with dignity and respect, displaying ahavat achim, not sinat achim (brotherly love, not brotherly hatred), even if perhaps we don’t feel the other side deserves it.

Throughout our history our internecine strife has been more dangerous to our survival than any outside force. If we are to survive as a people, as a nation, we MUST make this happen.

Yes, it is a tall order, one that will define our collective past history. But we are the Am Segula (usually translated as “treasured people.” The word segulah also has the same root as mesugal, meaning able or capable. We are capable — we are able — to make this happen.

And the way to start is by noting the title of this piece, excerpted from two verses in Sefer Bereishit: “My brothers do I seek”(37:16), when young Yosef is looking for his brothers at his father Yaakov’s request, and “And they saw him from afar”(37:18), Yosef‘s brother‘s saw him from the distance and “conspired to kill him.”

We must seek out our brothers and sisters and see them up close, as part of us, as our kin, to avoid the terrible sin of our forefathers, Yosef’s brothers, the sin of brotherly hatred, and all its consequences.

I know from personal experience that the best way to defuse a confrontation in Israel is to address your fellow Jew as “achi,” my brother. Say it with feeling and warmth and you’ll see the tension visibly ease. We must take that first step if we are to bring about the Geula, and the time is now. Shabbat shalom, Chodesh Tov, v’Chag kasher v’Sameach!

Dr. Alan A. Mazurek is a retired neurologist, living in Great Neck, Jerusalem and Florida. He is a former chairman of the ZOA. To reach him, write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

Weinreb…

Continued from page 17

Rashi quickly picks up on the extraordinary use of the word adam instead of “one of you” or “man” or “person”. After all, adam is the name of one specific man, namely Adam, the first man created. Rashi answers:

Just as Adam did not bring an offering from a stolen animal, for — as the only human then alive — everything was his, so too should none of you offer a stolen animal.

Rabbi Avigdor HaLevi Nebenzahl, Chief Rabbi of the Old City of Jerusalem, used this comment of Rashi in an informal lecture to his students. He was particularly disturbed by the assumption that everything on earth “belonged” to Adam in

that primeval setting. After all, the L-rd is described as the Koneh HaKol, the owner of everything, including Adam himself. Did Adam indeed “own” every living creature, every plant and tree, mountain and river? Of course not.

Rabbi Nebenzahl proceeds to analyze the nature of the prohibition of offering sacrifices from stolen animals.

One of his helpful insights is the distinction he makes between two purposes for the prohibition. One is a social purpose: Positive relationships among the component members of society require trust and interdependence. Without rules and regulations, life in a society would be unbearable.

The second is a spiritual purpose: The cultivation of spirit and soul in this mundane world requires rules governing monetary matters. Only with such rules can the soul advance from “earth to heaven.”

Rabbi Nebenzahl is astonished by the brazenness of a person who steals an animal and offers it to G-d. What can he be thinking? Can a Divine Being be duped or bribed? Or can G-d be so needy that He would ignore the egregious sin of theft just to, so to speak, satisfy his needs? Has the good L-rd no compassion for the poor victim of the theft?

One who offers stolen animals is either blasphemous, or has a self-centered motivation so consuming that he develops a perverse theology, or is just plain stupid.

The use of the term adam provides Rashi with the opportunity to demonstrate the most fundamental aspects of an authentic theology, namely that worship and blatant sin cannot go hand in hand. The L-rd despises theft, just as He despises all human behaviors that harm other humans. Legitimate acts of worship must be free of wrongdoing. This is a concept that Talmudic sages formulated long ago — nothing is a mitzvah if it comes about through an averah

How apt are the following prophetic teachings of Micah, and how useful are his words as a framework for gaining perspective on the entire concept of sacrificial ritual as we soon confront the entire Chumash Vayikra:

What then can I offer the L-rd when I bow low to the G-d Most High? Should I come before Him with burnt offerings, with year-old calves? Would the L-rd want a thousand rams, untold rivulets of oil? Should I offer my firstborn as payment for my crimes, the fruit of my womb for the sins of my being? Man, G-d has told you what is good and what the L-rd seeks from you: only to do justice, love goodness, and walk modestly with your G-d.

(Micah 6:6-8)

Write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

Freedman…

Continued from page 17

off as the events of the moment, leaders perceive as challenge of the day.

When my children were little as we visited Washington, the place we found most meaningful was the Lincoln Memorial, particularly the words of his Gettysburg address reproduced on the memorial’s wall.

“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

“Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure.”

Had Abraham Lincoln not been president, there might never have been a civil war, and America, and with it the western world, might still be wallowing in the miseries of slavery. How different such a world would be! One man, in the right place, at the right time, heard a calling, and understood what needed to be done.

Indeed, the first time the phrase Vayikra appears in the Torah as a calling (as opposed to naming something such as when G-d calls the light “day” (Bereishit 1:5 ) is when G-d calls to Adam (Bereishit 3:9) and says “ayekah?” (“where are you?”). Obviously G-d is not trying to find Adam; rather G-d is asking Adam, who had just eaten from the Tree, where he has allowed himself to go; yesterday Adam was so close to G-d,

and now he is do distant he has to hide in the garden.

The paradigm of being called, and hearing that calling, is knowing where I am.

Reading this vignette of the boy looking longingly through a window at a pair of shoes, I wonder how many people passed by without even noticing that boy’s bare feet, much less feeling his struggle. But one woman was not seeing a boy with bare feet, she was hearing a calling to do something about it.

This is perhaps our greatest challenge: to determine our calling — each of us as individuals, and all of us as a collective. Do we hear that small voice, and will we rise to the challenge to do what it calls us to do? That is the challenge of the book of Vayikra.

Shabbat Shalom from Jerusalem.

Rabbi Freedman is rosh yeshiva at Yeshivat Orayta in Jerusalem.

Write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

Yairi…

Continued from page 18

In 2013, then-Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans, who, obviously forgetting about Dresden and the long history of European atrocities against Jews, said:

Even if Europeans do not say so, they judge Israel by different standards than they would judge other (Arab) countries in this area. Why? Because deep down, Europeans see Israel as a European country. So, they judge Israel in the same way they would judge other European countries. … It means you are part of a community of values, whether you like it or not.

Similarly, Jesper Vahr, the former Danish Ambassador to Israel, had the temerity to advocate a European double standard applied to Israel when judging its actions against Palestinian terrorists. As he said: I think you have the right to insist that we apply double standards and put you to the same standards as all the rest of the countries in the European context. … You are one of us.

Keeping in mind Nazi atrocities, Russian pogroms against Jews, the bombings of Dresden and Hiroshima, and Western countries’ campaigns against civilians in Africa and elsewhere, it is difficult to come up with greater duplicity.

One wonders if it has occurred to these two hypocritical gentlemen and their likes in Europe and the United States that after observing the “lofty” standards demonstrated by Western nations in Dresden, Hamburg, Hiroshima, Tokyo, Serbia and elsewhere around the world, Israelis lack the enthusiasm to become “one of them” or to rise to their “standards.”

We might argue that Israelis — and Jews, in general — are better off sticking to the values of their ancient Bible.

Ehud Yairi is a professor emeritus at the University of Illinois, College of Applied Health Sciences, Speech and Hearing and Tel Aviv University, faculty of Medicine, Communication Disorders. Write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

Cohen…

Continued from page 19

defeated militarily and that any future attempts at a pogrom will be met with a similarly devastating response.

If Israel cannot be defeated on the battlefield, then how will Hamas fulfill its goal of eliminating the Jewish state as a sovereign entity? Through democratic means? It’s hard to see many Israelis voting for the dissolution of their own state to live under the rule of those who would rape their daughters and murder their babies.

The realization is dawning among Palestinians that the Oct. 7 pogrom was a tactical success but a long-term failure. Israel isn’t disappearing. And maybe that’s the best we can hope for at this juncture — a peace based on grudging acceptance of Israel’s reality, combined with the fear that any attempt to undo that reality will result in the kind of military

campaign that we have witnessed over the last 17 months.

In a Middle East without Hamas and without Erdoğan — neither an easily attainable prospect, but far more so than the aim of wiping Israel from the map — that cold peace could blossom into something with more meaningful value.

Ben Cohen is a senior analyst with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Tobin…

Continued from page 20

Write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com time when the otherwise silly cross-dressing can be forgiven.

But it doesn’t answer the question of where to draw the line between art and politics.

Whom do we boycott?

The music of the arch antisemite, Richard Wagner, which was loved by both von Karajan and Bernstein, continues to hold the stage throughout the world, despite the composer’s terrible opinions and prejudices. That’s because music is, in and of itself, not inherently political, let alone racist or antisemitic, regardless of its source. And though they remain the subject of an ongoing informal ban in Israel, Wagner’s operas aren’t themselves antisemitic.

The association of that music with the Holocaust is inherently subjective. Eight decades after the liberation of Auschwitz, few think to link those music dramas written in the 19th century before Hitler’s birth with what the Nazis did, or even the Jew-hatred of Wagner’s era. And if we are to judge and condemn all works of art created by those with antisemitic views throughout the history of the last millennia, we’d have to abandon most of the masterpieces of Western literature, art and music. Should the same principle apply to efforts to shun those performers who might support causes or political parties and leaders some of us despise? Again, the question is inherently subjective.

For example, many Jews might support a boycott of those artists who support boycotts of Israel. But it’s likely that the Jews who love film adaptations of Jane Austen novels, like the 1995 “Sense and Sensibility,” might find it hard to give it up. Actors Emma Thompson and the late Alan Rickman both engaged in vicious attacks on the Jewish state that arguably crossed over into antisemitism. But it’s not clear how shunning a movie set in the Regency era, in which, as is the case with Wagner’s operas, Jews and antisemitism are entirely absent, does anything to help Israel. And when some on the left engage in efforts to boycott supporters of President Donald Trump, or when the right seeks to do it to those on the left, that is turning political differences into a culture war from which there may be no exit ramp. Such behavior only exacerbates existing divisions to a point where, like the post-Oct. 7 pro-Hamas demonstrations on college campuses, violence is not only imaginable but inevitable.

As much as possible, those who care about the arts as well as the preservation of civil discourse in democracies, should try to keep them out of our partisan debates. Weaponizing differences to the point at which political factions become warring tribes incapable of listening to or understanding each other does far more harm than any possible good that can come from any political boycott.

But excusing those who served the actual Nazi regime and acquiesced to discrimination against Jewish colleagues, and profiting from their being fired, as von Karajan did, is an entirely different matter from that involving how we might feel about contemporary leftwing actors or those rare artists who might be Trump-supporters.

Seen from that perspective, “Last Call” fails to shed much light on the subject. It’s possible to assert that art transcends politics, but not membership in the Nazi Party.

Write: Columnist@TheJewishStar.com

Great Neckers resume weekly march

Weekly walks are resuming in Great Neck, to raise awareness about the hostages still held in Gaza.

Run for Their Lives is a movement founded by a group of Israelis in California, in collaboration with the Hostage and Missing Families Forum. The Great Neck effort was organized by Michael Reznik and Irina Amir.

The walks, which began in October 2023, were relaunched on Sunday, March 30, by Great Neck residents, including members of the New York Hindu community.

Among those participating on Sunday were Pankaj Mehta from Americans 4 Hindus; Nassau County Legislator Mazi Pilip; Assemblyman Daniel Norber; and activists Andrew Zeidman and Dr. Paul Brody.

The marchers walked from the gazebo in the Village Green down Middle Neck Road, to raise consciousness about the hostages among myriad onlookers.

Similar displays of solidarity are taking place in communities around the country, with several in the New York area including one in Riverdale. One of the largest gatherings occurs each week in Central Park.

Nassau Legislator Mazi Pilip joined community members at the Gazebo in Great Neck’s Village Green on Sunday for a Run For Their Lives. Among those pictured: Dr. Andrew Zeidman, holding the Omer Neutra HYD sign, and Dr. Paul Brody, LI and Queens president of the.ZOA.

Members of the Great Neck community and friends from around Long Island area are urged to join when the weekly marches re-

sume after Passover, on Sundays at 10:30 am. More information is available from Irina on WhatsApp, 347-461-7699.

Protesters not really pro-Pals

Protesters purportedly in support of Palestinians have largely tipped their hands, showing that they are really antiIsrael rather than pro-Palestinian, due to their silence as Gazans risk their lives protesting Hamas in the streets.

“A 22-year-old Gazan was tortured and brutally murdered for protesting Hamas rule in Gaza,” wrote Sen. Bill Hagerty (RTenn.). “No outrage from the pro-Hamas radical left in the United States and no reporting from mainstream media because it doesn’t fit their narrative.”

David May, research manager and a senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told JNS that the silence of activists on the Gaza protests “confirmed that the pro-Palestine movement in the West is little more than cheerleaders for Hamas.”

“Many Palestinians oppose the Iranbacked terrorist group that has repeatedly brought devastation upon Gaza,” May said. “But the complex reality … does not fit neatly into their oppressor-oppressed narrative.” JNS