Pre-Shavuot 2026 - Eurovision, Pre-Election, Wars and More

Tori Avey's Blintzes

Hello from Ra'anana Israel on this very hot Monday.  It's a lukewarm 28c today (84F).  Lukewarm for late May in Israel.  It probably won't drop too much below this temperature after this week until sometime in October - though there are reports of only 23-25C (76-77F) for a couple of days this week.  I see from the weather reports that Toronto is supposed to enjoy a scorching 27C this afternoon but then cool off with a lovely 12-14C for the rest of the week. 

It is not a long weekend here in Israel.  In fact, Israel never really has long weekends unless they are part of Jewish religious holidays.  For that matter - Sunday was a normal work day (as it always is here in Israel). But since my work schedule is based in Canada - I get the day off today.  Can rest up a bit before watching the Montreal Canadiens play game 7 vs the Buffalo Sabres at 2:30 a.m. tonight. Hoping for the best - and that I will still have a Canadian hockey team to watch in these NHL playoffs even if that means a major disruption to my sleep patterns.

This blog may be a bit of a smorgasbord as there are so many topics to cover. So I will write about whatever I think might be interesting and leave you to decide whether my selections match up with your tastes.  

Eurovision

I have to start with Eurovision, the annual shlock fest in Europe.  As you might have heard, the Israeli singer Noam Bettan, finished in second place with his song Michelle, which he sang in French, Hebrew and English.

Bettan is 28 years old, the son of immigrants to Israel from France.  His family immigrated to Ra'anana (some people say that is only 15 minutes away from Israel - partially because of the high number of immigrants living in Ra'anana from western countries).

Bettan went to high school with a family member of ours - and was known to enjoy the famous chocolate chip cookies made by another family member.  (As they say in Hebrew, those who know, know). ("Hamevin yavin").

In any case, this was the 70th anniversary edition of Eurovision - the annual European song contest which also includes Israel and Australia. Eurovision has been using the motto "United by Music" since 2023 - but this year - the contest was definitely not united.

Despite pressure from anti-Israel activists, the contest rejected efforts to oust Israel from the contest, led by such moral luminaries as Spain (which still hasn't come to terms with its 1492 Inquisition and Expulsion of  its Jewish population).  When the efforts of the anti-Israel coalition failed, five of the protagonists boycotted the contest and withdrew over the issue - Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland and the Netherlands.  That left 35 countries participating in the contest, of which 25 made it to the final.

Israel's 2nd place finish was the second consecutive runner-up finish for Israel - and Israel's fourth time finishing in the top  5 in the past 5 years.  Israel last won the contest in 2018 with "Toy" sung by Netta Barzilai.  Over the 70 year history of the contest, Israel has won four times.

The contest is known for spring-boarding the careers of many musical artists including Abba, which sang Waterloo in 1974 and Celine Dione who successfully represented Switzerland in 1988 to capture first place.  Dione was not Swiss (she was Canadian of course) but at the time, as long as the composer and lyricist were from the country - the country could engage a performer from any foreign country. I have been waiting for my phone call with the opportunity to sing for Lithuania, Romania or maybe even Montenegro - but apparently Eurovision has since changed the rules and you have be a citizen of the country you wish to represent vocally.  I think it's too late for me to carry the flag for Israel - and the competition is too steep, but who knows, maybe one of our three kids? One day?

Over the past few years, the issue of Israel's participation has created dramatic tension inside and outside of the event venues.  It is true that Eurovision kicked out Russia in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine - which was an arguably unprovoked invasion.  One could argue about geopolitical reasons for Russia's actions but I think it is fairly difficult to argue that this was anything but unprovoked. Ukraine had not attacked or threatened to attack Russia in any way even though Ukraine was looking to join NATO.

On the other hand, Israel was attacked on October 7, 2023 by Hamas/Gaza - which Israel had left in 2005.  Israel was also attacked, simultaneously or shortly afterwards by Yemen, Hezbollah (Lebanon) and groups from Syria and  Iraq, all sponsored and trained by Iran, which ultimately entered the war directly.  More than 1000 Israelis were murdered in these initial attacks, many of whom were civilians and many of whom were tortured to death.  The idea that Israel should be ostracized and subject to bans and boycotts because it responded with strength to these massive attacks is really quite obnoxious. Thankfully, most European countries rejected this call and refused to boycott the contest over the issue.  In fact, the winner of the contest, a singer from Bulgaria, Dara, who sang "Bangaranga" spoke publicly in support of Israel just days before the final. Contrast this with "Nemo" the non-binary winner of Eurovision 2024 from Switzerland, who attacked Israel at every available opportunity.  Sadly, Nemo is probably unaware (or simply hypocritical) about the fact that Israel is probably one of the only countries in the Middle East (if not the  only country) in which they could freely celebrate their sexual identity. Nemo would probably be safer in Israel than many of the other European Eurovision contestants.  

There is much more than can be written about Eurovision - many Israelis are glued to their screens annually on the night of the finals, waiting to see if Israel will finish "on the map" and  demonstrate to the world that it has important cultural and musical contributions to make - even if they are being made as part of a shlocky contest.  

Just one final comment  about it - and that is about the judging.  In the finals, each country has a jury of "professional" judges that award points to 10 other countries - except  their own.  Historically, these professional juries are a cesspool of politics, deal making and shady exchanges.  For example, Cyprus and Greece almost always award each other the highest number of points.  (This year was no exception).  Likewise for the various Scandinavian countries - and Britain and France often enjoy the same arrangements.  Historically, the "professional" juries rarely provide high numbers of points to Israel, no matter who is singing.   But the the other half of the voting  comes from audience votes - phone  in and on-line voting.  There, Israel  has done exceptionally well, even in the countries that boycotted Israel this year.  

So after all of the judging this year, Israel was in 10th place or so after  all of the "jury votes" had been announced.  As the audience vote came in, Israel moved up higher and higher.  Six different countries awarded Israel the highest number of votes from audience voting (including France, Germany and Switzerland) but only one country's "professional jury" gave Israel the maximum votes - and that was Poland. After Israel's audience total was announced - Israel moved up to first place - and held on to that spot until the very last country's votes were announced - Bulgaria - which then overtook Israel by a significant number.

Going in to the contest, Finland had been the heavy favourite.  Voices in Finland were calling for Finland to bar Israel from participating next year if it had won (the winner hosts the following year's contest).  But Finland lost - and Bulgaria  has no stated intention of banning Israel.  It will be interesting to see if the five boycotters continue to boycott next year or they will re-join or try to re-join the contest.

For now, I have taken Spain, Iceland, Slovenia, Ireland and the Netherlands off my travel list.  I hear that Iceland is quite beautiful the right time of year and I enjoy Amsterdam.  Slovenia wasn't really on my list anyways and Ireland has been a bastion of anti-Israel hatred for some time now - so I wasn't planning to visit Ireland anytime soon either.

To conclude on Eurovision - (I have written much more than I intended to write), here are two more videos for your enjoyment.

First of all- here is Noam Bettan's song Michelle in Yiddish, with the name changed to

"Rachel". Thanks to some AI apparently.

Finally - this a version of "A New Day Will Rise," Israel's entry to last year's Eurovision sung by Yuval Raphael as a duet with Noam Bettan.  In other words - Israel's back to back 2nd place finishers at Eurovision - singing together. This was recorded in March 2026.  Enjoy.  

I particularly enjoy this duet - and I hope you are able to access these videos from wherever you are in the world.

Israeli Politics

As you might know, Israel must have elections before the end of October, 2026. This means the current Knesset will be dissolved shortly  and a date will be chosen.

The ultra-religious parties have indicated they would prefer a date two days before Rosh Hashanah - or in between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. They are betting that the highest number of their constituents will be available to vote those days.  Secular Israelis are often out of the country on those dates - since it is an extended three-week holiday break for many companies - or at least a period with a much lighter schedule.

Prime Minister Netanyahu is pushing for the latest possible date - at the end of October.  Supposedly, this would give him more time to try and improve his support (which has been fading) or to negotiate a plea bargain deal and leave office permanently, perhaps coupled with a pardon from the Israeli President.

As of now, Israeli parties are still putting together their final slates of candidates.  Prime Minister Netanyahu still seems to have a plurality of votes but not a majority. Predictions for Netanyahu seem to  range from 25 to 36 seats out of 120 Knesset seats. Right now, former Prime Minister Bennett and  former Prime Minister Lapid are running together as a joint slate and are polling in second place with 24 to 26 seats.  The key is that in almost all of the polls, Netanyahu's government seems  to be polling at between 49 and 52 seats out of 120 down from their current number of 68 seats. If these polling numbers turn out to be accurate, that would be a dramatic  loss of 16 seats for Netanyahu's ruling coalition.

On the other hand, the opposition parties, not including the Israeli Arab parties (which have usually avoided joining the government), seem to be polling the range of 56 to 59 seats.  According to these results, the opposition would need the support of either the ultra-religious parties or the Arab parties in order to form a government - unless the numbers move by a few seats.

We could well wind up with a stalemate but it is too early to make predictions.  The final slates have not even closed yet and there could be dramatic changes still to come in terms of the field of candidates.

What is certain is that Israel will not elect a "left" or "far left" government.  If Netanyahu loses, it will be something similar to Hungary - where we would see a change of leadership - and changes on some big issues, primarily domestic, I think - but not too many immediate dramatic shifts.

I do think that if the opposition were to win, we would be likely to see less corruption, a dramatic difference in the tone of public statements, and a reinvigorated respect for the judicial system in Israel.  It is too early to say what kind of policy changes we will see vis-a-vis the Palestinians, Lebanon, Syria and Iran.  But Bennett is campaigning on a variety of domestic policy changes including the availability of civil marriage in Israel, enlistment for all Israelis including the ultra-religious and respect for the judicial system.  So the public discourse would certainly be quite different with new leadership.

The War/s

Israel remains, unquestionably, in an ongoing state of war on several fronts, despite some different cease-fire agreements.

Israel is fighting most actively against Hezbollah and Lebanon. Lebanon has continued to send attack drones, missiles and rockets to Israel, with its most  potent weapon being drones that are not using gps systems.  Several Israeli soldiers were killed over the past two weeks fighting in or near Lebanon.

Captain Maoz Recanati z"l was killed on Friday.  He was a 24 year old Golani soldier due to marry his fiancee next month.  20 year old Staff Sargeant Negev Dagan Z"l, another Golani soldier, was also killed on Saturday in Southern Lebanon.  I picked these two only because they were the most recent fatalities.  In total, since October 7, 2023, more than 1,150 Israeli  soldiers have been killed and 850 civilians have also been killed.

Although Israel would love to have a peace deal with Lebanon and many Lebanese would like nothing more - Lebanon is effectively being held ransom by Hezbollah, an Iranian backed terror organization, that controls large swaths of Lebanese territory, including large sections of Beirut.  The Lebanese government needs to be able to control Hezbollah and prevent it from attacking Israel.  If it cannot do that, and Hezbollah continues to attack Israel, Israel has no choice but to continue to fight Hezbollah. Israelis are hoping that Israel will soon reach a real peace deal with Lebanon and  citizens of both countries will be able to tour each other's countries.  But for now, this still seems like a distant dream.

In Gaza, there continues to be some ongoing fighting, though access to news is somewhat limited.  Recently, the current commander of Hamas was killed in fighting.  Ultimately, Hamas continues to try to reassert its control over Gaza while Israel and some other partners seek to disarm Hamas and create the conditions for different leadership in Gaza.  It is unclear to me when or how an end to the fighting will be reached with Hamas / Gaza but I am hoping that someone will soon figure out a way to resolve this situation.

With Iran, Israelis seem to believe that a new round of fighting is imminent, possibly starting today, tomorrow or over the next few days. This was the view of a the Russian ambassador in a recent interview, apparently, and seems to be the view of many  commentators.  Although Trump has massive American military might in the region, he has been making threats for weeks and seems to have little domestic support for renewed hostilities with Iran. However, the Iranians do not seem to be interested in accepting the conditions that Trump is offering for a full permanent cease fire. Iran is acting as if it holds all of the cards - or most of them. As I write this, there was just an announcement that the U.S. has rejected Iran's latest "proposal" to end the war.

Both Trump and Iran seem to be playing chicken.  Most commentators that I have heard claim that neither Iran nor the U.S. is interested in renewed fighting.  However, the current state of affairs is nothing less than an embarrassing loss for the United States - with no significant, demonstrable gains other than a major degradation of the Iranian military forces.

Netanyahu is pushing for renewed hostilities because he understands that none of the war aims have been achieved. Iran still has its enriched uranium, its missile program and its proxies, even though some of the proxies have been degraded to an extent.  There has been no regime change and Iran continues to threaten several countries in the region - the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Israel and any countries relying on the use of the Hormuz Straits (other than Iranian allies). From the Israeli government's perspective, Israel and the U.S. should try to "finish the job" and achieve some or all of their war aims.

Trump is of course facing massive domestic pressure, a decrease in popularity, an increase in oil prices and a sense, I would say, that these "war aims" may not even be achievable.  Trump is concerned that renewing the fighting may not put the U.S. in a better position and he may simply wind up deeper in the quagmire.  For Netanyahu, he would prefer somewhat of a "Hail Mary" pass.  If the fighting can be renewed and completed before election time, he might be able to claim that the whole operation was victorious because of his leadership.  However, if things go awry, and that is at least reasonably likely, Netanyahu might slide even further in the Israeli polls and might need to consider taking a plea bargain deal rather than standing for re-election.

For now, there is a great deal of uncertainty here in Israel, since renewed fighting could break out at any time and throw the whole region into disarray.

Travelling to Israel

Most foreign airlines have still not resumed their normal service to Israel, though some are scheduled to do so at the end of May or the beginning of June.  El Al prices are very high and space is limited. Arkia, Air Haifa and Israir are also flying out of Ben Gurion airport, but let's just say that I am not that excited about flying on any of those airlines.

Last month I flew via London.  (El Al to London and Air Canada from London to Toronto).  The El Al planes were the very nice Dreamliner 787s with screens.    Similar to the planes that Air Canada uses.  Smooth, quiet and a bit more spacious than some other planes.  El Al even rolled out a proper boarding system this year, starting in January 1, 2026, replacing its chaotic "everyone can board now" with an orderly board by zone process.  And in London, yes, it worked.  Boarding was orderly, organized and reasonable. The food was decent, the entertainment screens had a wide variety and the flight was quite nice.  Too bad El Al is not a member of one of the major alliances as the "Matmid" program for frequent flyers is still horrible. But otherwise, this was quite a nice trip.

I should also note that the UK now uses pre-travel visas - ETAs - which you need to arrange before you fly.  But once you have done so, Border control processing is quick and  efficient. It was great.

Flying back, I flew via Zurich.  Zurich border control was less organized and took much longer.  I spent a day in Zurich (which is only a 10 minute train from the airport) but that is for another blog perhaps

From Zurich, I flew El Al.  This was the "good old-fashioned El Al."  No real boarding zones were used, the planes were older and noisier, the food was terrible and there were no personal screens.  Of course, it is the only show in town flying from Zurich to Tel-Aviv so I suppose El Al can afford to run whatever service it feels like running.  

A large contingent of Israelis held a prayer service just before take off - though it was around 6 p.m. and they were having a big fight trying to decide whether to pray Minchah (afternoon prayers) or Ma'ariv (evening prayers). In the end the Ma'ariv voices won out  - even though it was too early to count the Omer (Observant Jews count the Omer for 50 days starting on the second day of Pesach (Passover) after dark each day.)  You can't count the Omer until after the sun goes down.

In any event, surely with all of the daveners on the plane, I could take comfort in the enhanced safety of the plane, assuming that these prayers had reached the intended recipient.

Shavuot

I am going to wrap this up by noting that we are celebrating Shavuot on Thursday night May 21st and Friday May 22nd this year in Israel (it is only a one-day holiday here).

Following in the footsteps of my late grandmothers z"l and my dear mother (who hasn't made blintzes in a while), I will be making a decent sized batch of cheese blintzes to be served as part of a dairy meal, best eaten with sour cream. A shout out to Tori Avey's recipe site which has some excellent blintz recipes.  As well as all kinds of other recipes.  I have tried many of them and they are really terrific.  Her Rosh Hashanah honey cake, made with chopped granny smith apples, is excellent - but I digress.

Some Jews observe the tradition of eating dairy on Shavuot - and Israel's dairy industry loves that tradition.  We went  out to buy some cheeses today to fill the blintzes and it was a zoo in the dairy section of the supermarket.  But we went early.  I am sure it will be completely insane by Wednesday - if there is anything left on the shelves. A few years ago, we left things a bit late and had a very difficult time finding some cheese products that we needed.

There are others who maintain that you cannot properly celebrate a  Jewish holy day unless you actually eat meat on the holy day but we have always been part of the first school.  (Some extended family members of mine here in Israel are decidedly in the second group).

The tradition is to study Torah all night on Shavuot, which is after all, a holiday marking the receipt of the Torah  by the Jewish people.  What goes best with dairy and Torah studying?  Cheese cake and White or Rose wine of course - and both of those will be served at our Erev Shavuot dinner even though I am not a big cheesecake fan myself.

I have lots more  to write - perhaps I will do a bit of a travel blog about a number of sites we recently visited in Israel.  But for now,  I am going to call it a day.  This has taken quite a while to write and I am running out of gas (and we all know how expensive gas is these days).

Wishing everyone a Chag Shavuot Sameach and looking forward to seeing many of you soon in North America.

Israel Attack on Iran June 13 2025

Since my last post just before Shavuot (May 30, 2025), I have been accumulating material for my next blog.  I was planning to cover a number of topics including flights and various things going on in Israel.  Perhaps towards the end  of this blog, I can add in some of those items.  But given the events that have taken place since last night, I thought that there was a pretty compelling need to put this together as soon as possible.

Israel's Attack on Iran

As you know by know, Israel launched at major attack on Iran last night at approximately 2:30 a.m. last night (Israel time).  The attack is still ongoing so the results are not yet clear.  This appears to be the  start of a major war but it remains to be seen how Iran will respond and how long this will go on. I wanted to write about a few aspects of this.

As you know from reading my blog (hopefully), it is not my goal to write "propaganda" or "hasbara."  I try to sift through news that I pick up from various sources and use that to discuss particular situations.  I do pick up quite a bit of information from Israeli sources since I regularly watch and listen to Israeli news and radio channels.  But I do also pick up news from a variety of other sources on different ends of the spectrum so I try to provide some amount of balance.

I want to tackle a few issues.

Why Attack Iran?

There are several reasons for this attack.  The Israeli government has also announced a series of war "objectives" and then there are other speculated reasons.  I will try to cover some of this.

1. Historical Threats from Nuclear Program

The Iranian Ayatollah regime has been explicitly threatening Israel with destruction for many years.  Iran has been building a nuclear bomb program and indicating in no uncertain terms that the plan is to attack and destroy Israel with it.  Israel has been facing this clouded existential threat.  Prime Minister Netanyahu has been warning for years that Israel would not permit Iran to develop a nuclear weapon and attack Israel with it.  U.S. Presidents, including Obama, Biden and Trump have all stated that they would not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.  Obama sought a diplomatic route.  Trump, in his first term, dismantled the diplomatic route.  On this file, Biden did nothing.  The result was that Iran has been racing towards finalizing its nuclear program - and according to the IAEA, just this week (the world's nuclear watchdog), Iran was not complying with its commitment to nuclear safeguards and was on the verge of producing nuclear weapons.  Given Iran's repeated threats, Israel had to view this as a real, existential threat.

2. Iran has been fighting Israel since October 7, 2023

It is quite clear that the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023 including the Hamas massacres of civilians, kidnapping of hostages and destruction of homes and business was supported and funded by the Iranian regime.  The Iranians trained the Hamas terrorists, in many cases at training camps in Iran and funded them.  But Iran also armed and activated the Hezbollah forces in Lebanon and Syria on Israel's borders, who have also been fighting with Israel since October 7, 2023.  Further, as you know, Iran has been supplying the Houthis in Yemen with long range ballistic missiles to fire at Israel regularly.   Although Iran has only attacked Israel "directly" twice since October 7, it fired hundreds of ballistic missiles, drones and cruise missiles on both of those occasions.  So although Iran has not been directly involved since Oct 7 with attacks from its own territory, it has been running a four-front war against Israel and Israel's response, until now, has been relatively minimal as against Iran itself.

3. Perceived Opportunity

The success of Israeli operations against Hezbollah, a key proxy of Iran, has left Iran with a vastly reduced proxy threat to  Israel from the north.  Moreover, Israel's responding attacks on Iran in April 2024 apparently caused significant damage to Iran's defence forces.  The political situation in Syria has minimized the perceived threat of Syria  becoming involved in the  conflict. Given  the combination of these factors, the Iranian closeness to completing its nuclear program and a more sympathetic U.S.  government, Israeli government officials determined that a narrow window was open for this attack.

Israeli Statements and U.S. Position

Prime Minister Netanyahu stated today that he gave the order to carry out the attack in November 2024.  He stated that the original date was supposed to be in April 2025, but the operation was pushed back.  According to Netanyahu, with the collapse of Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Iranian leadership redoubled its efforts to complete the nuclear bomb program and were threatening to use it.  Netanyahu claimed that he has been trying to get support for this type of attack since 2012 but did not have the political support, either domestically or from the U.S.  Implicitly, he has suggested that the "green light" only came after Trump's election in November 2024.

President Trump and other U.S. leaders have stated that the U.S. was not involved in these attacks - but knew about them. First of all, I don't really believe that Israel went ahead with this operation without active support, approval and encouragement of President Trump.  It seems likely that President Biden was not willing to authorize this type of operation.  Secondly, President Trump's tweets have underscored the message that he was threatening Iran that something "terrible" would happen if Iran did not agree to a nuclear deal that was acceptable to the U.S. Thirdly, the U.S. is still calling on Iran to drop its nuclear program, come to the table and reach an agreement.  But for Iran, it is hard to  imagine that this looks like an inviting offer at this point. Prime Minister Netanyahu stated that the date, June 13, 2025, was selected months ago and that President Trump was kept fully apprised.

Preliminary Reports

From reports to date, from across the world, the Israeli operation to this point, has been devastating.  A large number of senior Iranian military and political leaders have been eliminated including the head of the army, the head of the air force, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and others.  Estimates are that more than 30 military and political leaders were targeted and killed.

Israel has been attacking Iranian nuclear facilities, missile depots and other military operations.

Just now, Israeli news is reporting that Iranian missiles are "self-destructing" all over the country - and that is being compared to the "beeper" operation with Hezbollah. I have no way of verifying these reports at this point, but they are fascinating.

It is unclear how long this operation will take but Israel appears to be targeting all of the different Iranian nuclear facilities including those that are deep underground.

Stated Objectives

The Israeli government has claimed that the war has several objectives.  First of all to significantly degrade the Iranian nuclear  program and set it back several years.  Secondly, to destroy much of the  Iranian ballistic program to minimize Iran's ability to attack Israel (itself or by using the Houthis).  Thirdly, to target the Iranian military leadership to force Iran into a change of position with respect to its ongoing war against Israel.  

Other Objectives

The Israeli government has stated that it is not attempting regime change in Iran.  However, Israel has targeted as wide range of Iranian political and military leaders.  Moreover, the current regime, much like Hamas, has stated that its long range goal is the  destruction of Israel.  Israelis do not believe that to be the general sentiment of  the Iranian people and generally believe that if there were a regime change in Iran,  Iran and Israel could have a peace deal in place.  Israelis point to the fact that under the Iranian Shah, Israel had peaceful relations with Iran. It seems to me that Israel (perhaps with the help of the  U.S.) will do everything possible to enable the Iran people to rid themselves of this oppressive regime.  A stable, free, more secular Iran would create a dramatic opportunity for long term middle eastern stability.  It remains to be seen  whether this is realistic or possible.

Cynical Objectives

While I did suggest in a previous blog that Netanyahu would do everything possible to avoid his ongoing trial (and current cross-examination). there does seem to be fairly wide bi-partisan (or multi-partisan) support in Israel at this time for this attack - especially with the latest reports of how close Iran was getting to deploying nuclear bombs to be used for offensive purposes. Israel has been fighting Iran now indirectly since October 7, 2023 with Iran paying a very small price for all of the destruction and damage that it has caused to Israel. I think the Israeli leadership came to a determination that the only way to end the war with Hamas and Hezbollah, and the Houthis, was to get "behind the curtain" to the real decision maker and orchestrator of the war against Israel.

What's Next

Israel is continuing its attacks across Iran as I write but is also now anticipating a massive Iranian response.  I guess we will have to stay tuned and see what happens.  Hopefully, Israeli defences, supported by the Americans, will be able to repel any counter attacks with minimum casualties and damage.

Other

The Israeli national airport, Ben Gurion Airport is currently closed to all traffic.  The civilian authority  has ordered all schools, restaurants, clubs, concert venues and other public places of large gatherings closed including synagogues and other places of worship. Airlines from across the world have announced indefinite cancellations of flights to and from Israel.  

I am currently in Toronto with a flight scheduled for the 22nd of June, via Athens.  It remains to be seen whether that will be possible. I have real concerns that anti-Israeli sympathizers, including protestors, rabble rousers and terrorists, will target Jewish institutions across the world - even here in Toronto and I hope that the police and security forces will stop up the level of security for these places.

I am going to leave my discussions of other issues for future blogs.  For now, I hope that this situation is resolved as quickly as possible - hopefully with a stable end to the entire war, a return of the hostages, a peace deal with a new Iranian regime - and a completely changed Middle East.  Okay, it's okay to hope for a lot.  But  given the changes in Syria and Lebanon, we have every reason to believe that change is possible and within reach.

Shabbat Shalom

Israel Update March 2025

Israel AG Baharav-Miara

I had a look and noticed that I hadn't written a blog since mid-January.  Is it because there is simply nothing going on Israel that is worth writing about?  Well, I probably can't say that.  So I guess I will either have to attribute it to laziness on my part - or an extremely high workload in my day job, coupled with all kinds of other things going on.  I'll leave it for the readers to decide.

In case, I will try to cover a range of topics in a pot pourri style in no particular order, other than whatever might pop into my head.

Getting To and From Israel

I might as well start with this since I have still been flying back and forth - even though that is much more difficult (and expensive) than it used to be.  As you may know, Air Canada is still not flying to Israel. The airline has set a restart date of June 8, 2025.  I think it's fair to say that one cannot count on this date as "Torah mi'Sinai," to put it mildly, especially since Air Canada had previously set restart dates of April 1, May 1 and then June 1.  There are probably many considerations including insurance, regional stability and yes, political considerations.  I'll venture to say that if the Liberals win the election, Air Canada will be unlikely to start flying again to Israel any time soon. If the Conservatives win and Pollievre becomes the Prime Minister of Canada - I think there is a greater likelihood of Air Canada restarting its service at an earlier date.  That is not, by the way, intended to be a comment one way or the other on whether Pollievre would be a good Prime Minister - it is simply my prediction of what would happen on this issue.  But let's just stay that the resumption of Air Canada's direct service to Israel is still very much up in the air.

As you know, El Al ceased flying directly to Canada long before the war started in October 2023.  As a result, there are currently no direct flights to Canada.  So for people looking to travel back and forth between Toronto and Israel - there are a range of options - but none of them are great.

The "easiest" and "smoothest" option is to book  on the El Al site or with El Al using an agent, and to take a connecting flight through somewhere in the U.S.  El Al still has some code share arrangements with flights to Toronto, Montreal etc.,  However, these flights can easily sell for $3,000 or $4,000 or more - just for economy seats.  Since the war  began with the massive Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, El Al has had a virtual monopoly on flights to Israel for extended periods of time.  As a result, it has increased its prices dramatically, generated massive profits for itself, and cut favourable tax deals with the Israeli government.  

I have not flown from the U.S. on El Al since October 7th, primarily because of the high prices.  I also find it more convenient and more relaxing to transfer in many European cities rather than transferring in the U.S.  

On the other hand, flying from Europe on any carrier that is not El Al can be very risky if you have to arrive in Israel for any specific event. You just do not know when one of these carriers might suspend its service in these uncertain times and El Al is the only airline that continues to fly back and forth to Israel no matter what.  As I result, I have flown through Paris, Rome, London and Frankfurt all on El Al.  None of these flights have been with a code share so I have had to retrieve my suitcase/s if I was flying with checked baggage and re-check in - which means that you have to allow at least 4-5 hours to this.  If you fly without checked baggage, which I have done a few times, then I would say that 1-2 hours is sufficient.

I prefer transferring through Rome or Zurich if I have to do this.  I find both airports to be reasonably user friendly and easy enough to navigate.  London and Frankfurt involve quite a bit of walking and are more awkward to transfer through.  Paris can also be quite challenging.  Zurich is probably the easiest as the airport size seems quite manageable.  The airport is efficiently run and the Star Alliance lounge is great (with a full whisky tasting bar included).

I have flown with Lot Polish airlines once or twice through Warsaw and I understand that is somewhat cheaper than many of the other options.  If the connection is with El Al, that might be something that I would try.  If it is all Lot Polish  - I don't think there is any certainty that Lot will continue to fly at any given time. I have not flown Lot since well before October 7, 2023.

For my flight back to Israel just before Pesach (Passover), I am flying Air Canada to Athens and then El Al from Athens.  On one leg of the flight, the connection is great - but the other way I think I have 8 hours or so at the Athens Airport.

So for those of you who might be looking at how best to fly to an upcoming wedding in late August / early September, those are my comments.  Best to try to find a  connecting flight with an El Al leg to Israel if you want to be assured that you will arrive in time for the festivities.

The War in Israel

As you know, Israel has been involved in a multi-front war since October 2023.  Up until recently, we had a form  of ceasefire with Hezbollah in the north and  with Hamas in the southwest.  After the completion of stage 1 of the ceasefire with Hamas, the negotiations fell apart and Israel and Hamas have resumed hostilities.  It is unclear whether Israel is about to use massive force in Gaza in an effort to extract a surrender or whether Israel is hoping that the threat of the use of massive force will accomplish the same goal. I am really not sure. Israel has called up quite a large number of reservists and  the army certainly seems poised for a major ramp-up in fighting if Hamas does not release the remaining hostages (approximately 59, of whom approximately 25 are believed to be alive).  Of course, on a cynical note, as you might know, Israeli cabinet minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and his far right party left the Israeli government in protest when Israel agreed to a cease-fire with Hamas.  Ben-Gvir said he would only rejoin  the government if the government fired the Attorney General, fired the head of the Shabak (Israel's secret service) and resumed the war in Gaza.  Netanyahu needs Ben-Gvir's support to avoid a non-confidence motion - especially with an upcoming budget vote.  So, the cynics among us have argued that the war was restarted just in time to get Ben-Gvir back into the government and ensure the continuity of the fragile government.  I'll come back to politics shortly.

Early this morning, we were woken up  by an alarm as a result of a missile fired by the Houthis in Yemen at Israel.  Now as you know, the Houthis are thousands of miles away, have no direct border with Israel and no real basis for ongoing conflict with Israel, other than their stated intention to support their Palestinian cousins and portray themselves as champions of the Palestinian cause.  As a result, they have been using Iran-supplied armaments to disrupt international shipping by attacking ships in the Red Sea (more than 145 commercial ships according to U.S. Defence Department - along with more than 170 attacks on U.S. military vessels).  The Houthis have also fired more than 40 ballistic missiles at Israel including four this week (three of which caused us to have to go to our safe room and halted air traffic to Israel temporarily).  All of the Houthi missiles this week were shot down by Israel and/or the U.S. On this front, the U.S. has shown a refreshing resolve to hit the Houthis with a full show of force in an effort to dismantle their arsenal.  This is one of the benefits of the change of administration in the U.S. If the previous administration had been willing to show this type of resolve against the Houthis, that may have hastened the end to the war. (This is not global commentary about the current U.S. administration, just a comment about this particular issue).

We have also had to head to the safe room on one occasion as a result of a Hamas attack over the past week.  It is  unclear whether Hamas is holding back in an effort to negotiate a new deal, or whether its capabilities are more limited now.  I think it is more likely that they still have the capabilities but are saving them for whatever reason.

I also note that the front with Iran has not yet started up again, though the U.S.  appears to be making major threats of an attack on the Iranian nuclear sites if an agreement is not reached with Iran.  

Overall, much like the airline situation, though these issues go hand in hand, there is a great deal of uncertainty over what is likely to happen.  Hopefully, Israel can reach some kind of deal to release the remaining hostages and bring about some type of end of  hostilities, even for a few years, with the various surrounding neighbours.  Hard to be optimistic that this is likely to happen soon - especially with an Israeli government that now seems intent on conquering all of Gaza (and perhaps handing it over to Trump to build his "Riviera").

I don't know what this means for the people of Gaza - though I understand that Egypt has apparently told Trump that it would take 500,000 Gazans to live "temporarily" in the northern Sinai (on Israel's border).  If the people of Gaza are still considered "refugees" by U.N. definitions, then it makes sense that they should be settled somewhere and  no longer treated as refugees.  I would suggest that all of those countries that have been most strident in their anti-Israel campaigns including Ireland, Spain, South Africa and others, should all agree to make  a show of their benevolence and Palestinian support and absorb at least 200-300,000.  It will be interesting to see if these countries remain as stridently anti-Israel after 3 or 4 years. Unfortunately, this also includes Canada - especially  under the leadership of the current government.  Given that Mark Carney (the current Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal party) has apparently pledged some $100 million in support for the Palestinians in Gaza (i.e. Hamas), it may not be surprising if the Liberals are also among those countries that would accept a few hundred thousand Gazan refugees.  This would, of course, be a disaster for the Canadian  Jewish community which has seen a massive rise in antisemitic attacks - on synagogues, schools, Jewish-owned stores and institutions etc., since October 7, 2023.

The only alternative to all of this that would make sense would be the kind of plan that the Allies imposed on Japan and Germany after World War II - governance of Gaza and the people of Gaza by leadership with a completely different mindset - intended to reeducate the population, demilitarize it and develop a population that can live alongside Israel.  I'm not not saying that this is realistic or likely but it seems like the only alternative to a major population transfer.  The other  alternatives, including continued or ongoing Hamas rule, will simply lead to further cycles of fighting with Israel for the foreseeable future.

Israeli Politics

The Israeli political situation is at, perhaps, the  lowest point that it has been at since the founding of the country in 1948.  Prime Minister Netanyahu is leading a far-right government that, boosted by the election of Trump, seems intent on eviscerating all of the democratic institutions in Israel and centralizing as much power as possible in Netanyahu's hands.

As you know, Prime Minister Netanyahu is in the midst of a criminal trial that is still ongoing.  There is little reason to believe Netanyahu's supporters who claim that the case has "fallen apart" or is "all about nothing."  Netanyahu is still facing very serious corruption charges.  He has currently been giving his testimony in chief and will shortly be cross-examined (if there is no plea bargain before that starts).

It was a condition of his trial, while continuing to serve as Prime Minister, that he recuse himself from any involvement in issues that could affect his trial.  But Prime Minister Netanyahu has long since abandoned any pretense of following those rules.  His government is now actively engaged in a process to fire the current Attorney General, Gali Baharav-Miara and replace her with someone more sympathetic to Netanyahu.  In Israel, the AG role is an independent position.  Although appointed by the government in power, the AG ("Legal Advisor to the Government") is intended to act independently to ensure that the government acts in accordance with the law.  It is obviously problematic if the government is actively trying to act contrary to the law in a wide range of situations - since the AG has a duty to restrain the government, uphold the rule of law and call out any infringements.

Of course Netanyahu and others on the far right, in Israel and the U.S., have called out these types of checks and balances as the operation of the "Deep State" - which in their world view means anyone who opposes what they seek to do.  In fact, Netanyahu himself and his son Yair (living in Florida), both fired off a bunch of tweets on X this week - and posted on Instagram - arguing that the "Deep State" was running the country and trying to thwart Netanyahu from carrying out certain actions.  According to Netanyahu and his supporters, since his party won the election, they were "democratically elected" and can therefore do anything they want. 

But that is not really the way things are intended to work.  Countries that operate on the basis of the rule of law have laws, rules and conventions in place that restrain certain governmental activity.  Some actions  of government officials can be challenged in the courts which act as an arbiter and are charged with upholding the rule of the law.  This is not the "deep state" - it is rules that were put in place and agreed upon by the people and their representatives (often including right wing parties and politicians) as boundaries for acceptable conduct.

It is true that democracies can be fragile.  As soon as leaders show a reluctance to abide by and honour the laws, rules and conventions that serve as the bullwork of the democracy, things can slide quickly into different forms of rule.  We have witnessed this historically on many occasions.

One of the current issues that the Israel government was recently facing was the termination of the head of the Shabak (the Israeli secret service).  One the one hand, the Shabak is one of the groups that apparently made significant errors leading up to the October 7 attacks.  (We would know a lot more if we were able to have a full National, Independent  Inquiry into these events - but so far Netanyahu has opposed and resisted any such inquiry).  The head of the Shabak, Ronen Bar, has publicly acknowledged that his agency made serious mistakes and he has pledged to resign once this war is completed.  So I am not really passing any judgment on whether or not Bar should continue to be the head of the Shabak.

However, Israeli news stations recently uncovered a  major scandal where two of Netanyahu's closest advisors were being paid by agents of the Qatari government on an ongoing basis.  Qatar is a hostile state to Israel with no diplomatic relations.  So just as the Shabak, under Bar, opened a major investigation into this issue (now being called "Qatargate"), Netanyahu pulled out all the stops to hold urgent, emergency meetings and fire Ronen Bar. (Netanyahu gave an urgent political address last night trying to present his own version of the timeline - but it was quickly shown to have been riddled with holes).

Netanyahu's supporters say that since he is the Prime Minister, he can do anything he likes, including firing anyone he wants to fire.  But there are procedures in place in Israel for this type of dismissal, that can involve a hearing, an oversight committee etc., as well as rules about conflicts of interest. So the Netanyahu government voted (with no dissenting voices) to dismiss Bar.  But now a range of groups brought petitions to the Supreme Court of Israel arguing that the proper process (which Netanyahu had put into place himself years ago) for the dismissal the head of Shabak was not followed and there was also a violation of conflict of interest rules.  The Court granted an injunction preventing Bar's dismissal until a full hearing can be conducted, which is expected in April.  Netanyahu and his cabinet ministers all responded promptly that they would not follow the rulings of the Supreme Court.  As you might imagine, an announcement by the Prime Minister and his cabinet that they will not abide by rulings of the Supreme Court is shocking, dangerous and threatening to the foundations of Israel as a democratic state that adheres to the rule of law.

Again, this is not a "deep state" issue.  The Supreme Court does not have the power to say "we don't like this head of Shabak - pick another one" or "you must keep this person in power no matter what." But the Court does have the power to hear petitions that are brought that allege that legal processes in Israel were not followed and that laws were broken in the course of firing someone or appointing someone.  In other words, there are some limits on what the Prime Minister and the current government can do (call them "checks and balances") and this is normal in a rule of law country.  Netanyahu would like to eliminate any such checks and balances which is what his whole program of "legal revolution" has been about.  That is why so many Israelis have taken to the streets in protest.

Once the government dismissed Ronen Bar, it turned its attention to the current AG, Baharav-Miara, who was, herself, originally appointed by Gideon Saar, a fairly right wing Likud member.  Netanyahu and the ruling coalition are having all sorts of problems with the current AG because she seems intent on upholding the law, much to their dismay.  This is a  real problem for the current cast of characters.  Netanyahu himself is in the throes of a criminal trial where he is facing prison time.  He is supposed to be recusing himself from making decisions that could impact his trial - but he is not even making a pretense of doing that.  He is intent on bringing back Ben-Gvir as the head of the police - and Ben-Gvir himself is a convicted criminal.  He is also looking to make this new "Qatar-gate" scandal go away as quickly as possible.

So earlier today, the Likud government voted, with no dissenting  voices, to dismiss the AG.   There are more procedural hurdles in place for the dismissal of the AG and this cannot be done by a simple cabinet vote. None of these procedural hurdles have been followed so far.  So you can be assured that there will be more petitions to the Supreme Court seeking to freeze the dismissal of the AG.  And you can also be assured that Netanyahu will double down on his pledge not to abide by the Supreme Court's rulings.

For Netanyahu himself, the stakes are obvious. For one thing, he wanted to bring back Ben-Gvir to bolster the stability of his government.  Ben Gvir's demands for rejoining included the resumption of the war in Gaza and  the dismissal of the head of Shabak and the AG (and presumably anyone else who would raise obstacles to potential governmental action that may or may not be legal). Secondly, the dismissal of Bar allows Netanyahu to claim that he has fired  or replaced almost all of the key people who were at the heads of different governmental institutions that were in place on October 7, 2023. (Though he remains in charge and was in charge on October 7, 2023). But most importantly, in my view - there is another key point.  Netanyahu's cross-examination is coming up in his trial.

In his examination in chief, some of Netanyahu's key evidence was that he routinely signs all kinds of documents all the time, has no idea what he is signing and does not even understand many of the key documents that he signs.  (These were all documents that relate to the serious criminal charges against Netanyahu). This was his evidence in chief.  There is little doubt that the state's prosecution attorneys are salivating at their chance to cross-examine Netanyahu on this evidence.  Netanyahu is, of course, known for his incredible attention to detail, his amazing memory and his high level of intelligence.  It is hard to imagine that any of Netanyahu's evidence will be considered believable once his cross-examination is concluded. 

This is a pressing reason for a change in AG.  If Netanyahu and  his cronies can install a friendlier AG - perhaps he can get a much better plea bargain deal - before he ever has to appear for cross-examination.  Call that cynical if you will, but given the testimony in chief, I find it highly unlikely that Netanyahu is looking forward to his cross-examination.  And if it does actually take place, it will undoubtedly be quite the judicial spectacle - entertaining, at times comedic, bombastic (on Netanyahu's part) and almost certainly - unwinnable for Netanyahu.  Better to cut a deal with a friendly AG as soon as possible if only one can be installed - quickly.

As a result of this government's statements calling for refusing to follow rulings of the Supreme Court, several prominent Israelis, including the former Supreme Court head Aharon Barak, the current head of the Labour Party (Yair Golan) and others have openly ruminated about the dangers of a possible civil war.  To me that seems extreme for sure and  I would not even want to entertain that type of vocabulary - but we are in the midst of a very dangerous constitutional crisis.  The long-term solution for Israel, ultimately, will need to be a constitution that spells out in detail, the limits of power for each branch of the government.  (Israel does not currently have a  written constitution in place).

U.S. - Israel Relations

For some countries, Canada included, President Trump has been a major and immediate threat. Declaring a trade war against one of the U.S.'s best friends and closest partners seems like an awfully strange strategy (unless you are working for the Russians) but I digress.

But for Israel, and the Jewish community, even though many Jewish Americans did not and do not support Trump, some of Trump's policies have been a breath of fresh air.

It is likely that it was Trump's arm-twisting of both sides that brought about the second hostage deal and cease-fire arrangement with Hamas. President Trump has made it clear that the Houthis will suffer serious consequences for their actions in attacking the U.S. and  Israel.  Trump's willingness to support Israel in a big way in the region seems to have acted as a deterrent to Hezbollah and to Iran.  

It remains to be seen what will happen with Gaza.  On the one hand, standing up for Israel unconditionally vis-a-vis Hamas seems much more likely to bring about a deal than the policies of the former administration.  Although President Biden showed more support for Israel right after October 7th than any president in history, the support slid over time and was accompanied by threats of arms delays or bans towards the end of Biden's administration.  This probably lead to the prolongation of the war. If the U.S. had continued with a policy of "all-in" support for Israel - this may have left Hamas feeling more isolated and may have brought about an earlier cease-fire deal.

It seems to me that many Israelis and Jews around the world are also quite happy to see actions that Trump has taken against Columbia University and other institutions.  It is inconceivable that, under the guise of "freedom of expression," masked demonstrators were allowed to terrorize Jewish students and others on the campus of Columbia.  People have a right to demonstrate and to freedom of  expression.  But that surely doesn't include masked, violent encampments that occupy university property, threaten other students and create an intolerant and threatening atmosphere on campus. I'm very sorry but I have little sympathy for foreign students who lose their visas or even their green cards and are deported for  these kind of activities.  

As Toronto faces massive pro-Hamas demonstrations marking "al-Quds Day" on March 23, 2025, this is one area where Toronto and its pro-Hamas Mayor Olivia Chow, would be much better off moving closer to a U.S. model - banning masked demonstrations, arresting those who advocate violence and taking appropriate steps to censure and  stop  anti-Semitic activity.  Both York University and the University of Toronto have been hotbeds for this conduct.  A Trump-like approach to York and U of T would make Toronto a much safer place for everyone.  And kudos to the Mayor of Vaughan, Steven Del Duca, who recently thwarted these types of protests outside of a Thornhill synagogue by providing proper security and perimeter protection, thereby protecting the synagogue and its attendees.

All of this is not, as I mentioned earlier, a general statement in favour of the current U.S. President.  For certain Israel-related issues, his policies have been better than those of his predecessor.  But it is easy to imagine that Trump could  turn on any particular Israeli leader just as easily as the U.S. flipped on the Ukraine.  And in the long run, a U.S. realignment with  Russia and away from the EU and  Canada (and other democratic countries) would not be in Israel's interests if Israel hopes to remain, itself, a free and democratic country.

The disdain shown by Trump for the  rule of law and the courts is a theme that is currently being echoed by Netanyahu here in Israel.  As a lawyer and  someone who greatly prioritizes the rule of  law, I cannot possibly countenance governmental actions that weaken and detract from the rule of law whether they are here in Israel or in the U.S.  In both countries, there are procedures in place  for laws that need to be followed - and there are judicial constraints on the exercise of power.  These constraints help ensure the paramountcy of the rule of  law and we know what happens when that breaks down.

Weather Update

After arriving back here in early March, it seemed that winter was gone, that we had skipped spring and that we were right into summer temperatures of  close to 30c.  We enjoyed several days of those temperatures before getting another taste of "winter," which meant 15-20 C and heavy rain.  Today we were  back to sunny skies and had the chance to enjoy brunch at an outdoor restaurant listening to hundreds of birds, mostly green parrots, singing and  squawking. We are probably close the end of the days of "moderate temperatures" and will soon need to have the AC going non-stop.  No doubt that  it will be quite hot at the end of August/ early September - but the good  news is that it does sometimes cool down in the evenings in Jerusalem for those of you who will be visiting that time of year.

Sports

I would call this time of year a bit of a black hole for sports viewership - (as a hockey and NFL fan) where I don't have too much to get excited about.  I enjoyed the "Four Nations Challenge" that the NHL put on in Mid-February - which was surprisingly competitive and  energetic. I'm not really a huge basketball fan - so the different March tournaments don't really attract my interest.

Now I am awaiting the NHL playoffs though I am very concerned that the  Toronto Maple Leafs may be escorted out the door by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round. 

I am not that optimistic about baseball season and don't really have much hope for the Toronto Blue Jays who appear to be managed incompetently.

There is not much to watch here in the way of sports.  Now I suppose all of this is good because it provides me with fewer distractions. Between political news (which is 24/7 in Israel), work and event planning, I have more than enough going on already. So I can happily do without the added distraction of compelling sporting events - at least for a couple of months.

There are many other topics to cover but I think I am done for now.  Even though it is a Sunday, Sunday is regular work day in Israel.  So I intend to use the time to try and catch up on all of my work.  

Until the next blog, I wish everyone all best.  As usual, I am always happy to discuss and debate these ideas with anyone who might like to have some fun.   

Oct 7 Anniversary and Other thoughts

One Year Anniversary of October 7, 2023

It is the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel, which began at 6:28 a.m. on October 7, 2023.  That day, more than 3,000 armed Hamas terrorists crossed into Israel in 4x4s and on motorcycles and went on a murderous killing spree.  They attacked the nearby communities, murdering and raping residents, burning down homes and businesses, and taking hostages back to Gaza.  They also attacked a music festival - the Nova Festival at which more than 4,500 participants from around the world were attending a trance music festival.  They murdered more than 400 concertgoers and injured hundreds more.  In total, more than 1,200 Israelis were murdered and more than 250 were taken to Gaza as hostages.  It was the worst single day for the loss of Jewish lives since the Holocaust.  There are still 101 Israeli hostages being held in Gaza, though we do not know how many are still alive.

To commemorate this day, there are many events scheduled across Israel, including two different commemorative events this evening.  One is being organized and run by the government, specifically Minister Miri Regev.  Another event is being run by the families of the hostages and families of the victims.  Perhaps not surprisingly, it is the second event that will have the star-studded line up of Israeli performers, volunteering their time, to lead mournful songs for the Israeli public, though their event will take place starting at 7:15 p.m., followed by the "official" Israel event at 9:30 p.m. (Israel time).

Last night, we went to a special event at the Peres Center in Yafo, Tel-Aviv.  There is a huge photographic exhibition of photos by photographer Ziv Koren, aimed at memorializing and preserving the memory of one of the greatest disasters in Israel's history. We walked around looking at the exhibit and then went upstairs to see a special screening of the movie "We Will Dance Again" - a documentary about the massacres at the Nova festival - as told through the words and experiences of some of the survivors.  It was chilling and powerful.  Numbing and paralyzing, in fact.  The movie was fairly graphic and does feature footage, in some cases taken  by Hamas terrorists on their cell phones - and in other cases by victims or witnesses on cell phones that were recovered - of brutal murders of defenseless victims.

The evil displayed in the film is simply boundless and frightening.  There were some incredible stories of bravery and heroism.  For example, Aner Shapira, who was a member of the Nahal military unit.  He was attending the Nova Festival as a civilian.  He and a whole group of others hid in a protective shelter.  Hamas found the shelter and began throwing grenades into the shelter.  Shapira grabbed and threw back 7 live grenades before they could explode in the shelter.  The 8th one exploded and Shapira was killed. But 7 of the people in the shelter managed to survive and they believe that this was at least, in part, due to the heroic actions of Shapira.

One year later, there are still more than 100 hostages being held by Hamas, dead or alive. The war with Hamas is still raging, though Hamas has suffered enormous damage.  Israeli estimates that at the start of the war, Hamas had approximately 40,000 fighters spread among its various units.  Hamas has not differentiated in its reports of casualties between fighters and civilians but Israeli officials maintain that a significant number of those 40,000 fighters have been killed.  In other words, any  publicized Hamas numbers of casualties, which are  from the "Hamas Health Ministry" include large numbers of fighters, though we do not know exact percentages.

Israel has destroyed many of the Hamas-built tunnels in Gaza and has severely damaged the Hamas forces.  But the hostages have still not been returned and the fighting still continues. Hamas has not yet surrendered or been defeated - and the hostages have not yet been freed.  But Israel is hopeful that this will happen soon.

Lebanon and Iran

Meanwhile, fighting in Israel's north has now become the main focal point for the Israeli army.  After all, Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon began firing rockets at Israel on October 7, 2023, at the start of the attack - in "sympathy" with Hamas.  This was a concerted and deliberate attack, orchestrated by Iran.  Unfortunately for Hamas and fortunately for Israel, this did not turn out the way that Hamas had planned it.  Hamas was apparently aiming to take over several Israel towns and cities including Ashkelon and Ashdod. Hamas was also hoping that Hezbollah and Iran would join the war fully at the outset.  

As you might recall, the United States sent immediate and massive military reinforcements, which undoubtedly helped deter Hezbollah and Iran from widening the war at the outset.  But although that may have deterred Hezbollah and Iran from widening the war at that point, it did not deter Hezbollah from firing rockets, sending drones, firing RPGs and other forms of attack at Israel.  Since October 7, 2023, tens of thousands of Israelis have been evacuated from their homes in the north and have not been able to return.  Israel has absorbed massive damage throughout the north - in cities like Kiryat Shemona - all the way to Safed and Tiberias.  Homes, businesses, vineyards and other agricultural areas have been attacked, burned and destroyed.

For many residents of Israel's north, the recent start of the counterattack against Hezbollah  in the north was long overdue.  Northerners have felt abandoned.  Unable to return home, to their businesses, their lives in the north - they have begged the Israeli government to take action.  The government and the army seem to have made a strategic decision to try and fight one major front at a time - and have only now turned to dealing with Hezbollah in the north.

As you may know, the fighting is now raging in Lebanon between the Israeli army and  Hezbollah.  The main goal is to reach some  kind of agreement whereby Hezbollah will agree to move its forces away  from the border  - and there will be some mechanism for enforcing that deal.  The hope is that Israel's northern residents will be able to return to their homes. In 2006, a deal like that was reached - but it was not followed by Hezbollah - which built tunnels and stationed troops on Israel's border starting just after that deal. So far, Hezbollah is not wavering - and is indicating that it will not agree to such a deal - even though much of its leadership has been destroyed in attacks  by Israeli forces.  

So Israeli forces may well be in for a lengthy and  difficult battle with Hezbollah in Lebanon until a deal can be reached that will allow residents on both sides of the Israeli-Lebanese border to live in peace.

Of course, in the midst of all of this, we are waiting to see how and when Israel will respond to the massive Iranian attack - during which more than 180 ballistic missiles were fired at Israel.  Although many were shot down by Israeli defence systems, it is apparent that many landed - although we do  not know the details of the damage that was caused.  

There are discussions of which targets Israel will go after in Iran - missile storage silos, the Iranian nuclear program - the oil fields.....or the political leadership.  And when this response will occur.  We have heard President Biden ruminating about which targets Israel should not hit (though who knows whether this is all part of some kind of deception) and we have heard French President Macron warning Israel about responsive actions that it might take.  Perhaps Israel has already decided - and put together a plan - or perhaps they are still working with the U.S.  and other countries to decide on the right  approach.  I have no idea but it seems all but certain that there will be a significant retaliation by Israel in the coming days.  Perhaps, this will help nudge the Iranian people towards changing their leadership and freeing themselves from the fanatical ultra-religious government that controls their lives.  

Whatever Israel does chose to do, it is clear that it will not be targeting civilians.  There is no equivalence between the Hamas attacks on Israel and the responses from Israel.  Israel will pursue military targets, those responsible and facilities used for supporting the attacks against Israel.  Even though this has meant many civilian casualties in Gaza, Israel has not targeted civilians deliberately. Civilian casualties in a war always occur - and especially where the fighting forces are embedded in schools, hospitals and religious institutions.  But there is a massive difference between civilian deaths that occur during fighting between military forces - and terrorists that run around shooting unarmed civilians, burning down houses, raping and dismembering victims.  I haven't seen any credible suggestions that Israeli forces have been involved in  this type of activity.

So Israel is not about to attack Iranian civilians.  In fact, in the long run - I believe that one day, when Iran unshackles itself, Israelis believe that we will have good relations with Iran and the Iranian people - perhaps even the Lebanese as well - if Lebanon and Iran can succeed in changing their governments.

For now, however, we are sitting somewhat on edge, waiting to see what type of action Israel will take, how successful it will be and what will happen afterwards.  

Yesterday, there were reports of an earthquake in Iran.  I couldn't help but wonder - can Israel create an earthquake?  Was this the famous Israeli agent "Rita Tadama?" (like the agent "Eli Copter" who was alleged to have killed the Iranian leader or the agent "Moti Rola" responsible for the beeper attacks). Another theory, that I am writing in an updated version of this article, is that Iran was testing nuclear weapons.  But I digress. 

Something is likely to happen soon and we will have to hope that it leads to worldwide pressure (on all of the players, not just Israel) for a full, global deal - one that returns the hostages, moves the Hezbollah forces back from Israel's border, ends all of the fighting and leads to a broader discussion of how to deal with Gaza and the West Bank in the long range. Stay tuned.

Getting to Israel

As you may know, there are now very limited options for getting to Israel.  El Al, Israel's national (though private) airline, continues to fly and earn record profits.  Israeli carriers Israir and Arkia are also flying and a handful of foreign carriers.  This morning's paper reported that there are flights available to Romania - but that flights to closer destinations - such has Athens and Cyprus are now costing upwards of $700 for a one-way flight.

Most other airlines have cancelled or postponed their service.  All of the Star Alliance carriers have stopped flying as have the carriers of the other major world alliances.  

To get here this time, I flew to Rome on Air Canada and then took an El Al flight from Rome - one day later.  So I had to "suffer" in Rome for a day.  I visited "Flour, Farina e Cucina" a Kosher dairy restaurant in Rome - wandered the city and had some delicious gelato.  The next morning, I got on the flight from Rome to Israel with one of the few remaining "reasonable priced" tickets.  Somehow, I was chosen for an upgrade to business class on this three-hour flight.  So I enjoyed a full Israeli breakfast and a cappuccino on the flight - even though there was no entertainment system or trappings of business class that you might get on other airlines.  

One of our family members travelling to the U.S. was supposed to fly on Austrian Airlines shortly before the holidays.  The flight was cancelled at the last minute and he was offered his money back.  But he needed to get to the U.S.  So we pushed and pushed and they put him on a route via Athens on Aegean Airlines.  Just days after he left, Aegean Airlines cancelled all flights to Tel-Aviv.  So we are not sure how he will get back after the holidays but perhaps things will change for the better by then.  We have other friends who have had to cancel flights - or are hoping to get back to Israel somehow.  The only reliable option right now is El Al - from somewhere in the world.  Everything else is questionable.

Diversions

Through all of this, we managed to watch the much discussed Netflix Romcom - "Nobody Wants This" about an interfaith romance between a rabbi and a non Jewish woman.  The main characters are outstanding - compelling, empathetic and interesting.  But, on reflection, the show is somewhat problematic.  I have read many of the different reviews about it and I would agree with two of the primary criticisms.

First of  all, the rabbi in the show is depicted as an incredibly empathetic, decent person - but not really committed to any  Jewish practices or rituals.  He is probably an outstanding family counselor, teacher and listener - all of which are important traits for a rabbi.  Yet, even though everyone knows he is a rabbi - he doesn't seem to follow anything.  He  drives and goes out to restaurants and pubs on Friday nights, leaves his congregation in the middle of services to pursue romantic interests - and eats just about anything - so it seems.  Those around him, including his mother, are portrayed as equally blasé and hypocritical about religious practices.  So perhaps it is not a surprise that he is so attracted to someone outside of his faith. Sure he makes some nice speeches about the importance of religion and his culture and heritage - and his chosen career and calling - and perhaps - he really is reflective of many Reform and Conservative rabbis, especially in the U.S.  But mostly, I tend to doubt it (even though I know of at least two real life stories that seem fairly close to this one).  I would think that if his religious devotion was really that important to him, he would behave differently.

Another major criticism that has been levelled at the show is the way that the Jewish women  are portrayed.  Almost universally - domineering, sexless, controlling, and boring. In contrast with the fun, exciting, non-Jewish, mostly blonde women.  In this repressed world - it is easy  enough to see why the rabbi would be so drawn to the world of excitement.  But it is a very negative portrayal of Jewish women.  One critic suggested that it channeled Woody Allen's Annie Hall in that respect - and there is something to that.  The repressed nerdy Jewish male character looking for excitement by finding the blonde, exciting, non-Jewish, sexually liberated character.   

Perhaps this is how the writer Erin Foster - views her experience as someone who converted to Judaism and married a Jewish person.  Foster had been writing scripts with her sister - much like the protagonist in the film - and may view the Jewish community through the lens of Reform practice.  

Overall, I would say that I quite enjoyed much of this show - though there was a fair bit of cringe - and, ultimately, I am just not convinced about many of the scenes or about the show's ultimate message.  But that may be because I might be considered a bit more to the traditional side of the spectrum.  (Though not too far over).  But it is quite a bit of food for thought in my view, even if there is also quite a bit of fluff and some distastefulness.

The other diversion I wanted to mention is that I recently acquired a board game (one of my major hobbies as you might know) called "Ezra and Nehemiah."  Over the course of the game, players are trying to rebuilt the second Temple in Jerusalem, teach Torah lessons, bring sacrifices to the Cohanim - and take other actions to acquire the most points.  I have been trying to convince my board game group in Israel to try it but we haven't managed to play it yet.  Hopefully we  will get to it shortly.  In case you are wondering what we have been playing - I will mention a few - though it is unlikely you will have heard of them unless you are really interested in the "Euro Board Game" industry.  Brass Birmingham, Trickerion, Ark Nova, Lisboa, Scythe, Kanban.  These are a few of our favourites.  You can read all about them on the site BoardGameGeek.com.  I believe that Brass Birmingham is currently rated as the most popular game in the world on that site.  Most of these games (if not all of them) can be played on Shabbat and are fairly challenging.  But they can take several hours to learn - and several hours to play in many cases.

Rosh Hashanah and  Yom Kippur

We are now in the midst of the "Awesome Days" - the 10 days of Penitence in between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.  On Rosh Hashanah, which we observed on Thursday and Friday - we heard the Shofar and reflected on our past year and on the coming year.  This Friday night and Saturday we will observe Yom Kippur - where I will lead our local Kol Nidrei service - and the next day - the closing Neilah service - at a friend's backyard  with about 50 of our nearest and dearest.  As an aside, I should mention that I am blessed and proud to have a family member leading Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services at Hillel houses in the U.S. this year - and that is pretty exciting.

One of the most poignant prayers it the centrepiece of both the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services - the "Unetaneh Tokef" prayer - in which we actually recite, explicitly, the various ways that people might die in the coming year.  And we hope that through prayer, repentance and good deeds, we will somehow change our fate. Reading that prayer - while considering what happened to so many of our people over the past year - is chilling and difficult.  

And following Yom Kippur - we will be  approaching the holiday  of Sukkot  - which is known as the "time of our happiness." It ends with the festival of Simchat Torah (the day of Rejoicing of the Torah) - which is usually marked by dancing, drinking, singing - and all manners of festivity.  But the Hamas attacks were carried out, quite deliberately, on Simchat Torah last year.  

How do we deal with this?  How can we be "happy" on such a terrible anniversary?

I attended a lecture by Rabbi Shai Held recently - who has written a book called "Judaism Is About Love."  He spoke, in part, about this very challenge.  And he noted that the Jewish people have faced so many horrific events over the years - the destruction of both of our Temples in Jerusalem and our exile from Israel, other exiles and massacres throughout the centuries - including the Spanish Inquisition and Exile, the pogroms in Europe, the Holocaust and so many other tragedies.  And yet, we have, over the years, exhibited a special resilience.  A will to live - and a will to live in a way that emphasizes love rather than hatred - music, togetherness, family.  Rabbi Held noted that only 6 days after Tisha B'Av - the most solemn day of the Jewish calendar on which we commemorate the destruction of the Temples - we mark "Tu B'Av" the day of romance - and the Jewish equivalent of "Valentine's Day" - or something close to it.

In Israel - we commemorate Yom Hazikaron one day - Israel's day of remembrance for soldiers and victims of terror - and the very next day - starting at sunset - we celebrate Yom Haatzmaut - Israel's Independence Day. So the need to find a way to commemorate the very difficult days but still celebrate and rejoice in life - is one of the key messages of Judaism - as explained by Rabbi Held.  And it is something that I have heard from many soldiers and civilians in Israel over the past year - even those who have lost love ones.

As I mentioned at the outset - I saw the movie "We Will Dance Again" last night - and it was this topic that was raised with the survivors at the end of the movie.  And almost all of them said quite clearly - "I will  dance again."  That theme has been engraved on necklaces that many in Israel are wearing - "We will Dance Again."

And so with that, I hope that this Jewish New Year will bring a year in which the war ends, the hostages are returned to their homes safely, Israelis are able to return to their homes in the south and the north, our soldiers can return home safely and we are able to implement some sort of lasting peace deal.  And that Israelis and our neighbours, who want peace - will have many opportunities to dance again. Shana Tova.

Yom Hazikaron - Israel Remembrance Day - 2024

The Jewish /Israeli calendar has several difficult days.  We have fast days, days of mourning and days of remembrance.  On Yom Kippur, we fast for 26 hours, without even water, while contemplating how we will improve our lives in the coming year and what lies in store for us and those near to us.  On Tisha B'Av, another long fast day, in the middle of the summer, we commemorate the destruction of the Temples in Jerusalem and all those who lost their lives more than 2000 years ago.  On Yom Hashoah v'Hagvurah, Holocaust and Bravery Remembrance Day, we remember the 6 million victims of the Holocaust and all those who fought bravely against the Nazi regime.  Yom Hashoah v'Hagvurah was commemorated last week.

But perhaps the most difficult day of all is Yom Hazikaron - Remembrance Day for Israeli soldiers, security personnel and victims of terror.  Especially this year, while Israel is still in the midst of  a war on several fronts. 

I think there are several reasons why the day is even more difficult than other days.  For one thing, the Israeli Army is very much a people's army. With mandatory conscription, the vast majority of Israelis serve in the army in some capacity.  This means that almost everyone we know in Israel has either served in the army or has one or more family members who have served.  We have four in our immediate family and too many to count in our extended family.

It also means that when there is a war or a military operation, people that we know are putting themselves at risk.  Family members, friends, neighbours, classmates, fellow soldiers.  Since the army is universal, this can also include Israeli celebrities - popular singers, accomplished athletes, politicians and so many other categories.  And unfortunately, people from among all of these groups are included in those who have lost their lives fighting for the country.

Another reason is the immediacy and contemporaneousness of the losses.  On Tisha B'Av, we mourn events that took place more than 2000 years ago.  On Yom Hashoah, we mourn the victims of the Holocaust that ended almost 80 years ago.  But on Yom Hazikaron, we may be remembering people who died over the past few months, over the past few weeks - or this year, at yesterday's ceremony, we spoke about one soldier who was killed on Saturday, just one day before Erev Yom Hazikaron.

A third reason, which is particularly poignant this year, is that the losses continue.  Israel continues to be engaged in a multi-front war.  Soldiers are being killed.  Rockets are being fired at civilian targets and civilians are being killed, especially  in the North of Israel and in the areas surrounding Gaza. And there is a great deal of uncertainty over how and when this war might end, whether the more than 130 hostages will return home - and what condition they will be in, and what will happen here in the long term. Right now, there are no easy answers.  

Ra'anana Commemoration

We walked over to the main Ra'anana ceremony at Yad L'Banim, the city centre, where all of the city's ceremonies and commemorations take place.  The event  was scheduled for 8 p.m., with thousands of seats set up, many reserved for bereaved families.  We decided to go early and we got there for 7:15 p.m.  Too late.  All of the seats were already full.  There were thousands more behind the seating, standing.  There were multiple screens set up to the sides of and behind the main stage.

We found a place to sit on the grass way off to the side.  During the ceremony this year, there was a focus on the stories of the 24 Ra'anana residents who have died since the October 7 attacks by Hamas.  Some were killed at the Nova Music festival massacre, where Hamas terrorists killed everyone in sight.  Several concert goers hid in a bomb shelter.  The Hamas terrorists opened the door and threw grenades inside.  One brave off duty soldier picked up the grenades and threw them back outside.  He managed to throw 9 grenades back out of the shelter.  The 10th  one blew up killing him and several others in the shelter. The other Ra'anana residents included soldiers and security personnel, many of whom fought bravely on October 7, 2024 against the thousands of terrorists that had entered Israel.  The list also included other civilians.

In between the stories of the fallen, there were musical performances.  These were moving, mournful, expressive performances.  The thousands and thousands of people at the ceremony were silent and there were few dry eyes. During the ceremony, they also read out the names of the more than 200 Ra'anana residents who have been killed since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 - while showing on screen information about each person, the date the person died and their age at the time of death.  They divide this reading into two parts since there are so many names to read.

After the ceremony concluded with the "El Male Rachamim" prayer and a very powerful singing of Hatikvah (Israel's national anthem) by the entire audience, we walked back home in a sea of white shirt wearing Ra'anana residents.  Stores and restaurants were all closed, the roads were closed off to traffic in major parts of the city and it seemed like the whole city had come to this commemoration.

The evening of Yom Hazikaron is also one of the most compelling evenings of TV.  There is a national ceremony that is broadcast, though that is at the same time as the ceremonies across the country.  After that, there is a musical event called "Songs in the Square."  This event was broadcast live from the Sultan's Pool in Jerusalem, a huge amphitheatre outside the walls of the Old City.  A massive stage was set up with enough room for the full Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra.  A who's who of the Israeli music scene took turns taking the stage and singing sorrowful songs.  In between the musical performances, there were stories about different soldiers, their lives, their families and what happened.  Many of these performances were simply amazing.  We heard Tamir Greenberg, Keren Peles, Shiri Maimon, Hanan Ben Ari and many others.  Unlike other musical performances on other days, the audience was silent.  No clapping or other noise.  Just silence and tears.  

The event ended at around midnight.  After that Israeli stations continued to broadcast music, documentaries, movies, interviews and other Yom Hazikaron appropriate programming.

This morning, we went to the nearby military cemetery in Ra'anana - which is only a few blocks away.  There  were so many people that we could not get anywhere near the cemetery - we had to watch and listen from across the street.  This was a much shorter commemoration.  

At 11 a.m., there is a one minute siren all across the country.  Everyone stops what they are doing and stands silently for the full minute.  The ceremony also included a number of speeches, the laying of wreaths, a gun salute, prayers and another  moving rendition of Hatikvah sung by many people trying to manage unfathomable grief.

As you might know, Israel's Independence Day is celebrated the very next day after Yom Hazikaron.  Many places, including our Synagogue in K'far Saba hold commemorative events to mark the closing of Yom Hazikaron and the transition to the joy of Yom Haatzmaut.  It its always incredible difficult to make that transition - but there is a sense that it is extremely important to do so - to celebrate all of the achievements of the State of Israel - even after remembering so many terrible losses.

This year, I sense a much more subdued attitude.  How can people truly celebrate while there are so many soldiers still in harm's way?  And so many hostages still being held and brutalized by Hamas.  And no clear idea for how and when this war might end.  

Some young soldiers we spoke to - urged people to celebrate.  They said that they fight to defend the country so that people in Israel can have a life -and can embrace the festive occasions.  For them, that is what makes it all worthwhile.   I appreciate that perspective.  But it is so hard with so many losses in such a small country.

We have been invited to barbecues, there are people still planning to go to parks and nature reserves across the country and there are many major events planned across the country to mark Israel's 76th birthday.   I'm still not sure what will do.  There is also a great deal to watch on TV including Idan Raichel's annual program (Raichel is one of Israel's most popular recording artists)  - where he  selects 10 soldiers from across the country to sing for a national audience - and then picks one of them to record a special duet with him.  It is an incredible evening.  He surprises each solder that he has selected by showing up at their base (after arranging it in advance with their commander) and tells them in front of their fellow soldiers that they have been selected.  They then have the chance to rehearse with Raichel and his band before the big day.

And has you might know, it is also a family member's birthday today - though we will move that celebration until after these two days of commemoration and celebration.

I have more to write about several topics - Eurovision, President Biden's decision to halt certain arms shipments to Israel (and his apparent walkback of at least some  of that), the ongoing negotiations with Hamas, the disheartening events at university campuses across the United States and Canada and other topics, but I felt that I should limit my discussion today to these two powerful days on our calendar.

On this Yom Hazikaron, we have no alternative but to hope and pray for an end to the wars that we are fighting, that no more soldiers or civilians will lose their lives, that our hostages being held by Hamas will all be returned safely, that we will come up with some kind of long term plan to bring peace and stability to the region and that our neighbours will all want  to live in peace with us and repair their own societies and rid themselves of oppressive, extremist dictatorships.  We hope for all of this so that we can have a truly meaningful  and complete celebration of Israel's Independence Day.  These are dreams for sure, and perhaps they are elusive, but hopefully, one day, they will come true.