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.   

Travel Comments and Israel Update May 2024

I am writing this blog as I fly back to Toronto from Israel via a circuitous route of Amsterdam and Paris. A fairly crazy route but $1,500Cdn less in economy than flying any other available route (other than via Ethiopia which didn't interest me).  I thought I would write a bit about the routes I have been taking back and forth and then deal with some other issues.

Flights Between Tel-Aviv and Toronto these days - via KLM/Air France or El Al

It is a close competition between KLM and El Al as to which is the more unpalatable flight between Israel and Europe. KLM uses bare-bones Boeing 737 planes for the 4 hour 50 minute flight from Tel Aviv to Amsterdam. There are no entertainment screens or plugs for charging devices. No wi-fi available, even for texting. The airplane configuration is 3-3 and it's very cramped. The seats don't recline. The "meal service" is one sandwich (served warm) of kosher egg and vegan cheese with tomato - served to everyone. In fairness, slightly better than the El Al offering of a yam and gouda microwaved sandwich but only slightly.

There is also drink service so I was able to get a red wine - a South African Shiraz that was passable. That is one up on El Al which only distributes bottles of water.

This would be fine for a 2-3 hour flight - but for a five hour flight it is really unpleasant. Air France, by contrast, for flights between Tel Aviv and Paris - about 4 hours - uses beautiful new planes with wi-fi, entertainment systems, full meal service and full drink service - even cognac.

Given the circumstances in Israel these days, I am not about to complain too much. But there is a major difference among the airlines that are still flying between Europe and Tel Aviv.

I should mention that Air Canada recently cancelled all flights through August. United and Delta are scheduled to restart sooner. As far as I understand, ITA (Italy), Lufthansa, Austrian and Swiss are all flying to Israel - along with Lot Polish and Emirates/ Fly Dubai.  There may be others.

If you are planning to fly to Israel any time soon - and you want to be sure (or almost sure) that your flight will take place, a connection with El Al is probably the only itinerary you can really count on these days. (Though an economy ticket, if you can find one, might cost $2,500-$3,000). Other airlines are likely to be cheaper and more comfortable. But they may not actually fly.

Landing in Amsterdam is very inconvenient. The immigration area is understaffed and overcrowded. It can take 45-60 minutes to get through immigration. This is a huge contrast with Rome and London, both of which have reasonable immigration procedures in place.  I would strongly advise against any kind of short connection through Amsterdam.

For the rest of the route, I had a stopover in Paris. We were required to go through French exit customs before getting to the gate - which was almost as bad as Dutch immigration.  Long lineups, understaffed area and some out of order machines.  For all of those people who complain about Canadian airport immigration incompetence, try going through Amsterdam or Paris and then report back.

The Air France flight back from Paris to Toronto was incredibly crowded - one of those 3-4-3 configurations (in what felt like it was designed for a 3-3-3).  It was very uncomfortable.  The English version of the announcements was unintelligible.  The entertainment selection was lame and the wi-fi was spotty.  I guess you can tell that I miss being able to take direct Air Canada flights to Tel-Aviv on the 787 Dreamliners but, as I said, these are not the world's worst problems.

For my next trip back, I have booked a connection through Vienna using Air Canada and Austrian.  I was planning to come back on a direct Air Canada flight - but these have been postponed until late August at the earliest.  It seems like Air Canada is not likely to restart its flights to Tel-Aviv until the war is over.  And that does not look like it is going to be anytime soon.

April/May Holidays and Commemorations

We have completed observances of Pesach, Yom Hashoah, Yom Hazikaron and Yom Haatzmaut. I have written about these days in earlier blogs.

Yom Haatzmaut was the strangest national observance. The official government sponsored event was taped without an audience and broadcast on the evening of Yom Haatzmaut. It is usually held as a live event. The minister responsible, Miri Regev, one of Netanyahu's most reliable "yes people" announced that this was due to "security concerns.". Mainly that seems to mean the risk of Netanyahu getting booed at the ceremony.

In my view, however, there was one highlight. Israeli superstar Omer Adam, sang the song "One connected Human Tapestry" (my preferred translation). "If one of us dies, a part of all of us dies. And if one of us dies, that person takes a part of us with them." I have included the link - hopefully it works.  It begins with an interpretive dance, commemorating the October 7, 2023 massacres.  Midway through the song, families of victims of the Hamas massacres joined Omer Adam and sang with him. It was chilling, emotional and one of the most intense things I have seen in quite a while. The song was originally recorded by Chava Alberstein (one of my personal favourites) who included a version of the song on a commemorative album after the assassination of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Omer Adam's rendition was outstanding, though tear evoking for sure.

We also watched the annual event hosted by Eidan Raichel, which I have written about previously. Raichel travels around the country to army bases to pick 10 soldiers to sing with him on Yom Haatzmaut. The soldiers or their friends have submitted demo tapes in advance. Raichel surprises then at their bases and invites them to sing at the main event. He also invites their friends and family members to attend. At the end of the evening, he picks one winner to record a song with him. He introduces each soldier, shows a video clip about them and speaks to them in a way that exudes empathy and genuine appreciation. One of my favourite events of the year.

The Situation (in Hebrew "Hamatzav")

Israel remains at war on several fronts. I don't see any near term resolution to any of this.

The Gaza front remains the focus of attention. Israel is fighting to defeat the Hamas regime - and eliminate Hamas' military threat (by capturing or killing the Hamas leadership) while releasing as many living hostages as possible.

Hamas continues to hold 128 hostages (though some may no longer be alive). It also continues to fire rockets at Israel and has vowed to carry out more attacks like the October 7 massacres.

Israel simply cannot allow this to continue and cannot agree to a cease fire deal that does not ensure that this won't happen again. There is heavy fighting now in the last major Hamas stronghold of Rafah (Rafiah in Hebrew/Arabic). Deaths of Israeli soldiers are being reported every day - and there are also many Hamas casualties. There are also Palestinian civilian casualties.

I have no idea, quite frankly, whether a ,"victory" is actually achievable - and if so, what the cost will be - in terms of the number of Israeli soldiers, civilians, Hamas fighters and Palestinian civilians. Israel likens this to the fight to rid Germany of the Nazis. The idea is that total victory is the only option when dealing with a genocidal, dictatorial regime.

Perhaps this is a proper analogy if the Palestinians can be left with a new leadership committed to resolving things peacefully with Israel coupled with a rebuilding and education plan. But so far, there is no such emerging Palestinian leadership option. And, the current Israeli government does not seem to be Interested in backing or bolstering such a government.

Contrary to the South African allegations, bolstered by Ireland, Norway, Turkey and some other countries, there is no genocide. Israel is not massacring civilians. (If you want to discuss genocide - check out what is going on currently in Sudan).

Moreover, Israel did not start this war (unlike Russia which launched an unprovoked invasion of the Ukraine).

It was Hamas that attacked Israel - murdering, raping, and torturing civilians on Oct 7, 2023. No country in the world would allow this to occur without taking every possible action in response to ensure that it does not happen again. (Hamas spokespeople have vowed that they will do the same thing over and over again).

Gaza is not an enormous area though it is a very densely populated place. I do not think this can continue indefinitely. I would imagine that Israel will soon conquer the area and take control or reach some kind of brokered agreement. But this may still take several months. And there needs to be some kind of plan for what happens next.

Who will actually govern Gaza? Who will rebuild it? Who will fund it? Who will ensure that it is demilitarized? Clearly it can't be Hamas. And it can't be UNRWA, which is essentially Hamas. At this point, I really have no idea.  

Waiting in the wings, Israel is on the precipice of a massive war with Hezbollah, Lebanon, Syria and perhaps Iran. There is a very active war taking place right now, as we speak.  Northern Israel has been evacuated and many of the border towns (like Kiryat Shemona) are ghost towns, filled only with army personnel.  Hezbollah continues to attack Israel with drones, rpgs, rockets, and all sorts of other weaponry.  Israel continues to fight back. But Hezbollah has not yet started using its medium and long range missiles - and Israel has not launched an all out attack against Hezbollah.  Most Israeli commentators seem to feel that this war is inevitable.  The only way out is some sort of agreement whereby Hezbollah agrees to move its forces well back from the Israeli border (which was part of a previous cease fire agreement).  But so far Hezbollah has shown no inclination to do so.

The latest "front" is the growing publicity and public opinion front being fought by Israel against an increasingly large number of countries.  The latest salvo as you know, came from Ireland, Norway and Spain, which decided to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian State.  I really don't think that this decision is likely to assist anyone.  It will bolster supporters of Hamas and and other violent Palestinian groups - who will view this decision as a "win" emanating from the Hamas massacres. That will obviously encourage more violence.  It will also antagonize Israel and diminish the credibility of these countries as partners in any negotiation.  I saw one commentary that suggested that Israel should recognize the Catalan Independence movement or the Basque separatist movement in response to Spain's decision.  

This new front that Israel is facing - worldwide pressure - is in the arenas of political, economic and public opinion.  Backers of Hamas have used social media to circulate fake videos, disinformation, TikTok clips and all means of other trickery to distort the events that took place on October 7, 2023 and that have taken place since then.

You may have read one of the most recent examples - that some people - as a joke - put up a post that the Iranian leader was killed by an Israeli Mossad agent named "Eli Copter."  Apparently, this spun out of control and Israel was being accused on all sorts of channels (including some mainstream news media) of having assassinated the Iranian leader.  Yes, the crash was caused by "Eli Copter" - or in English, Helicopter - as in a Helicopter failure.  But there is nothing to suggest the Mossad was in any way involved - and I doubt there is an Israeli agent named "Eli Copter" - though there are probably lots of "Elis".  

Although the current Israeli leadership is not helping the situation, there is a clear worldwide current of outrageous and ridiculous anti-Israel activity.  The proposed criminal charges against Israeli leaders are a massive overreach - and seem to create a new standard of allegedly criminal activity - just for Israel and its leaders - even while there are so many worse conflicts taking place throughout the world - and many in situations in which civilians are being actively targeted and murdered. (That is clearly not happening in Gaza). 

There have also been waves of anti-Semitic incidents throughout the world including firebombs thrown at synagogues, physical attacks against Jews, and of course, anti-Israel (and often, quite clearly, anti-Jewish) encampments with Nazi symbolism and rhetoric calling for Jews to be murdered.  It's a crazy world out there for sure.  For those who might attack Israel and say that Zionism is a racist ideology or that Zionism (and the Jewish State) is unnecessary - that the Jewish people do not need a homeland - the events since October 7, 2023, throughout the world, have demonstrated that Israel is, right now, one of the only places that is really willing to defend its Jewish population.  

At the same time, to ensure its long-term survival, Israel will need to resolve many outstanding issues.  It will need to come up with some kind of long-term peaceful solution with the Palestinians.  It will need to resolve its own internal issues, that were raging before the war and continue to simmer on a back-burner even while the war continues on.  How to reconcile being a "Jewish State" and a "Democratic State."  How to ensure equality for all of its citizens. Whether to finally put a constitution in place.  How the powers of the Israeli Supreme Court should be delineated - and what the boundaries of the Court's jurisdiction should be.  How to manage anticipated demographic changes.  These are all incredibly complex challenges facing the country - but they are also challenges that the country will only be able to address once this war has ended.

Sports and other Competitions

To end on a positive note, I wanted to mention that a high school team from Binyamina, Israel, recently won an international robotics competition in Houston, Texas.  This was Israel's first win in that particular competition in 20 years.  

Israel also recently won a gold medal in its division in ice hockey at the international ice hockey Federation's U20 World Championship - division III group A.  Israel will now move up to Division II, Group B for next year's tournament.

Israel's Eden Golan finished in 5th place in the Eurovision signing competition.  She was able to do so by winning a massive share of the audience vote - even while the anti-Israel judging panel gave Golan miserably low scores.  This all came after the judging panel insisted that Israel change the lyrics and title of its song from "October Rain" to "Hurricane" to make the song "less political."  And of course, the Eurovision committee held its ground and refused to give in to public pressure from Ireland and other anti-Israel countries to oust Israel from the competition because of the war in Gaza. The Irish performer at the actual competition performed some kind of dark simulated satanic ritual on stage marked with violence, nastiness and, in my view, horrible "music."  It was comforting to see that the worldwide audiences weren't buying it and heavily supported Israel over Ireland.

My last sports note is that the Israeli men's soccer team is scheduled to participate in this year's Paris Olympics.   Israel last participated in this tournament in 1976.  Israel will be in Group D with games against Japan, Paraguay and Mali with the first matches schedule for July 25, 2024.  I have to say that I am quite looking forward to watching these games.  Of course some countries are lobbying FIFA to kick Israel out of the tournament.  Hopefully, they will not succeed.  Although one of my close family members routinely complains that watching soccer is about as exciting as "watching paint dry" - I actually quite enjoy international football (soccer) tournaments.  Granted these games are not as exciting as the Stanley Cup playoffs (which the Toronto Maple Leaf exited so unceremoniously) but seeing Israel compete in the Olympic soccer tournament on the world stage will be fun.  Hopefully the French security will be up to the challenge to provide proper protection for the athletes.

Until that starts, I'll be cheering for the Edmonton Oilers, the last standing Canadian hockey team in the final four - hoping that a Canadian team can finally win the Cup and bring it back to Canada. In Israel those games start at about 4 a.m. and run until around 7 a.m. (without overtime).  But here in Canada for a bit, I will get to watch some games at reasonable times.

Blog from Israel - March 2024

I have had a look and it has been about three months since  I have written a blog.  So I thought it was time for an update.  I plan to cover a range of topics - not necessarily with significant depth - but there are so many things going on here that I thought it would be worthwhile covering a few of them.  Things are quite busy at work (my day job) so it is hard to devote a great deal of time to an unpaid hobby - as important as my updates might be.  I will try to include some headings so you can skip to whatever you might find interesting....

1. Getting to and from Israel

I thought I would start with this one - since some of you might be planning or thinking about planning trips to Israel in the coming months.  Since October, 2023, "commuting" has become extremely challenging.  As you might know, Air Canada suspended its service to Israel on October 7, 2023 as did many other airlines.  Only El Al continued its service to Israel uninterrupted as did a handful of other airlines - including Emirates Airlines.  (Though has you know, El Al had cancelled its direct Toronto service more than a year ago in any case).

Air Canada has announced that it will be resuming service effective April 8, 2024, but there is still no end to the war in sight - so I guess what I would say is "I'll believe it when I see it."  

Over the years, as you may know, I have been doing my best to fly Air Canada as often as I can.  The Aeroplan program is better than the available alternatives and Air Canada has been the only airline with direct service since El Al cancelled its direct service to Toronto.

So since October, I have tried to find ways to get to Israel from Toronto by combining Air Canada and El Al.  I have flown through Rome, Amsterdam and London with these combinations.  These were challenging connections to say the least, especially if you have luggage.  Since there is no sharing agreement between airlines, you have to land, exit the airport, collect your baggage and then check in again.  I would say that the Rome airport was reasonably efficient - especially for Canadian passport holders - as they have a quick line for holders of passports from certain countries, including the EU, U.S. and Canada.  Amsterdam was a disaster.  The immigration line alone there took more than an hour.  

In London, the exit was almost as quick as Rome - but then I had to take a train - (way, way, way down) to switch terminals.  The whole process  took forever.

Considering everything, I was prepared to make the best of it and arrange a few more flights via Rome.  The problem is that the connection is great leaving Israel going back to Toronto.  But from Toronto - you have to plan on spending a day in Rome.  

Okay - things could be worse.  For one of my flights, I locked up my baggage and spent a day in Rome.  I went for lunch at a Kosher Tunisian restaurant -  (which was interesting - but I probably should have gone with the Kosher Italian food instead....) and walked around the city for several hours.  I managed to visit the Trevi Fountain, several other sites and, ultimately, a great gelato place.

But more recently, all of the airlines have upped their fares considerably.  To fly via Rome this time, the fares were over $3,000 Canadian for economy class, with a lengthy delay.   I couldn't find any other reasonable alternatives.

So I wound up trying Air France via Paris - with a 1.5 hour connection in Paris.  It sounded questionably optimistic but it was less than 1/2 the price of other alternatives.  The flight itself from Toronto to Paris on Air France was fine.  Reasonably comfortable seats, decent entertainment system and fairly good service.  We arrived in Paris a bit early - but... sat on the tarmac for almost an hour and  missed the connection.  So me and seven other Israelis - my "lonsmen" (actually there were no women in the group so it was really only lonsmen) were put on an alternate flight - the next day.  We were given vouchers for a hotel near the airport, vouchers for food at the hotel and at the airport - and instructions for a free shuttle to and from the hotel.  

I suppose things could be worse than an overnight in Paris. After resting for a while in the hotel (a medium end airport Moxy Hotel), I shared an Uber ride with some of my fellow Israelis and headed off to the Eiffel Tower. From there, we walked over to the Left Bank area, taking in the sights and sounds of Paris along the way.  It was quite an inconvenient stopover but we made the best of it.  I have applied for the EU compensation (which is supposed to be 600 Euros for the missed connection, at the fault of the airline) but let's see if that arrives.

On the way back to Toronto - I am travelling through Amsterdam with one of my family members and we have an overnight there.  The alternative is paying 3-4 times as much.  So we will see how that goes.  

For now, all of this has meant fewer  Aeroplan points, travelling without any benefits - and very inconvenient connections.  There are El Al flights through New York and other cities in the U.S., though the prices have also increased dramatically.  I am also not a big fan of transiting through the U.S. if I an avoid it - due to the incredibly long and inefficient security (especially compared  to most of the big European airports).  As well, the El Al loyalty program is terrible comparatively.  

All in all, these are small problems compared to challenges that Israel is facing with an ongoing war. Our soldiers are in constant danger including our standing army and our reserve soldiers.  The civilian population is also under threat of terrorist attacks, missile attacks, and other threats.  The Northern border is in a state of all out war - or close to it.  And of course all of the  areas surrounding Gaza have been devastated.  So my concerns about getting to and from Israel - are minor in comparison to everything else.  But for people considering coming here, I thought it might be worth writing about the options.

I have also seen available flights on Ethiopian Airways, Emirates/Air Dubai and Lot Polish.  Some of these flights can include total flying time of 30-40 hours with lengthy stopovers in different places - sometimes with two or three connections.

So I have joined the Air France loyalty program and used the opportunity to practice my French a bit.  "Un vin rouge s'il vous plait"....and "Un  autre vin rouge s'il vous plait...".  Merci.  Actually there was more - "un cognac s'il vous plait" - Air France is well stocked with beverage options.

2. The Government

The current Israeli government is facing a wide range of challenges and grappling with many different fault lines.   As you may know, it still has a 64-56 coalition majority. None of the coalition partners have anywhere else to go, ideologically, so I would be surprised if the government were to collapse any time soon notwithstanding the apparently vast unpopularity of the current leadership.

One of the most interesting issues - is the enlistment of the Ultra-Orthodox (the "Haredim").  A whole megillah could be written about this issue.  The short version is that the first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben Gurion, agreed to a "compromise" with the ultra-religious community back in 1948 whereby a relatively small number of yeshiva students would be exempt from military service to be able to continue their religious studies full-time.

Over the years since 1948, through various coalition deals, the number of exempt ultra-orthodox has ballooned greatly -  to the point where the entire community of ultra-orthodox Jews have been granted exemptions from the army, provided that they study in yeshivahs.  

Various court challenges were brought by different groups - and the Israeli Supreme Court decided, on several instances, that these arrangements were not fair - since different classes of citizens were being treated differently.  The Court gave the government time to negotiate and enact a law to address the situation.  But the ultra-religious have been having none of it and have been demanding a blanket override law - a "notwithstanding clause" if you will - that exempts all of them permanently - even while their population is growing at a dramatic rate relative to the non-haredi population.

This current government is made up of close to 25% ultra-orthodox members - which demanded support for this exemption as a term of supporting Netanyahu.

Now the Supreme Court had given the government until April 1, 2024 to enact a law to address the situation.  While there have been negotiations - there is no law - and nothing close to a law.  So the Court has stated that effective April 1, 2024, the government will need to cease funding any yeshivas that are not sending their students to the army.

Needless to say the Haredim are promising full civil disobedience.

The ultra-religious parties are threatening to quit the government but they have nowhere to go.  No other party will give them a better deal.  Causing an election now is almost certainly a recipe for disaster for the ultra-religious (and perhaps for the rest of the extreme right wing).  So it seems like they are going to huff and puff quite a  bit - but it is hard to imagine that they will actually blow the house down (i.e. cause the government to fall).

Even so, this promises to be a fascinating issue to watch in the coming weeks.

3. The War

It is hard to know what is really going on with respect to the progress of the war.  There are reports across world wide media - and there are daily reports from the Israeli military spokesperson and various Israeli media outlets.

According to one report I read yesterday, that seemed reasonably reliable, Israeli intelligence had estimated that there were about 30,000 Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters before the war.  Revised estimates seem to put the numbers closer to 40,000-45,000.

Israeli reports of dead, injured and captured Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters total between 25,000 and 30,000.  So Israel seems to believe that it has immobilized approximately 3/4 of the fighting forces that it was facing.  It seems that the majority of the remaining forces are in Rafiah -which is likely to be the final area of fighting - even as other fighting continues across Gaza.

Note that the Hamas "Health Ministry" claims that the number of dead Gazans is around 30,000.  That number includes civilians and fighters.  In other words, if Israel's numbers are correct and the number of dead fighters in the range of 20,000-25,000 - the number of dead civilians is actually quite low for a conflict of this scope and nature, which includes urban fighting with Hamas using its people as human shields.

That is not to say that anyone feels good about dead Gazan civilians.  But this is hardly a "genocide" or the intentional killing of civilians.  Gaza has a population of approximately two million.  If Israel was setting out to kill civilians intentionally, the numbers would be in the hundreds of thousands.  But Israel is not Russia - or Syria - or other constituent member countries of the UN that routinely carry out those types of massacres but only vote to sanction Israel.

While Israel is fighting a messy campaign in Gaza against a ruthless terrorist army, it is also fighting a major war with Hezbollah on Israel's northern border with Lebanon.  This war has been escalating constantly since October 7, 2024.  As of today, Hezbollah and Lebanon have not decided to unleash a full scale war with Israel - which would involve sending thousands of rockets all over Israel.  In response, Israel would almost certainly flatten Beirut and many other Lebanese cities.  So far, Hezbollah has been fighting an aggressive war, launching RPGs and killing many Israelis - while shelling a range of northern Israeli cities.  In response, Israel has been shelling Hezbollah locations, launching air raids and attacking Hezbollah locations across Lebanon.  But it has not launched a full out attack on Beirut or turned the fighting into a "full-scale war."  But effectively, there is a very dangerous war going on in the north and thousands of Israelis have been displaced from their homes and cannot return.  

Cities like Kiryat Shemona are ghost towns - with only solders and various armored units in place.

Many Israelis believe that Israel will need to launch a full out war with Hezbollah before this all ends - to push Hezbollah back from the Israeli border to where it should be (in line with UN resolutions).  The only other alternative is a negotiated arrangement with Hezbollah whereby Hezbollah would agree to move back from the border.  This does not seem to be close.

4. The Hostages

As you know, it is believed that Hamas is continuing to hold approximately 130 Israeli hostages.  Some reports have indicated that anywhere from 30 to 50 of these hostages have been reported dead.  But the family members of these hostages - and indeed - all Israelis - continue to hope that all of the hostages will return to Israel alive.

Some of the released hostages have provided detailed reports of the atrocities they faced while in Hamas captivity - including sexual violence  - which is still being denied in some circles of pro-Hamas supporters.  The New York Times, to its credit, has recently published extensive details of many of these atrocities.

Many Israelis are calling on the government to do everything it can to win the release of the hostages - even if that means making an unpalatable deal with Hamas.  But the Hamas demands are not just unreasonable - there are completely unacceptable - not just to Netanyahu but across most of the Israeli spectrum of opinion.  Hamas has stated quite publicly that it would like to take a "pause" and then do this again - on an even bigger scale.

So is is unclear what kind of deal, if any, can be made with Hamas.  In my view, Israel will need to launch a full scale operation in Rafiah and destroy the remaining Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighting forces.  There really aren't many other choices.

5.  World Response

At the outset of the war, President Biden visited Israel, sent aircraft carriers and demonstrated complete support for Israel and its response.  It is hard to imagine that any President (including the orange headed guy) would have demonstrated such significant support for Israel at a time of crisis.

But as the war has progressed, the relationship with the United States has unquestionably deteriorated.  For one thing, Biden has been losing support to Trump.  Some commentators have claimed that this is because  of the Israel-Gaza file.  I'm actually not convinced - since it is hard to imagine that the Republicans would be better for the pro-Gaza crowd.  But the perception seems to be that Biden needs to shore up his left, "progressive" wing - which means putting more distance between his government and the Israeli leadership.

President Biden now seems to be intent on "rewarding" the Palestinians for this massive terror operation by setting up a Palestinian State, perhaps even unilaterally.  While this is  not yet official U.S. policy - there is a definite sense that this is emerging as a U.S. option.

Granted, Prime Minister Netanyahu is part of a very extreme government that has no interest (and probably never has had any interest) in reaching any kind of agreement with any Palestinians.  So that does not make things easy for Biden or anyone else.

But the real narrative here  -  is that Israel is dealing with a very extreme, radical, movement, intent only on Israel's destruction, that launched an all out war on October 7, 2023.  There is no proposal by Hamas or by the Islamic Jihad for peace or anything close to it.  Historically, we know what must be done to fight these types of regimes. They must be defeated completely.  It doesn't seem to me that this war  will end until Yihyah Sinwar and his henchmen are caught, dead or alive and until Hamas effectively surrenders.

I believe that President Biden would get much more traction pushing for that result - even as a negotiating tactic.  If Hamas understands that the U.S. will support Israel in finishing off the Hamas military, whatever the cost - for Israel and for Gazan civilians - Hamas will lessen its demands dramatically and perhaps even surrender.  But failing to veto a UN resolution calling for an "immediate cease fire" is a completely unhelpful move.  Just imagine  supporting a call for a U.S. cease fire while the U.S. was fighting the Nazis.  

As for Canada - the situation is completely embarrassing, ridiculous and at all odds with any reasonable morally supportable position.  Perhaps that is where the Canadian leadership figures it will obtain its votes or perhaps they have simply shown their true colours.  But joining the company of Ireland, Turkey, Iceland and  other anti-Israel protagonists is just not a well thought out position for Canada - which may well face its own security challenges down the road as the numbers of extremist Muslims  in Canada continue to rise.  So far, Canada has seen a massive growth in anti-Semitic activity - which has included blockading bridges in Jewish neighbourhoods, demonstrating outside synagogues, attacking Jewish owned stores and businesses and a whole host of other activities.

Instead of unequivocally condemning these incidents - the Federal government has used some very questionable language and has exacerbated the situation.  For the Jewish community at least, it is quite clear that Canada is in drastic need of a change of leadership.

All of this aside, Israel drastically needs its own  change  of government though that is unlikely to happen any time soon.  Nevertheless, the response from this current Israeli government to the October 7th attacks by Hamas would have been pretty much the same from any Israeli government that might have been in power, in my view.  Israel needs to destroy the threat from Hamas, find a way to return the hostages, or as many of them  as possible - and only then move to considering a long term solution for the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza.

6. The Holidays

On a lighter note (in some ways), Israel celebrated the holiday of Purim last week.  Unfortunately, I picked up a case of Covid while visiting the City of Lights - and had to skip my usual Megillah reading.  I usually read chapter 8 - and sometimes 9 and 10 here at our shul in Israel.  

We still received a few nice mishloach manot (Purim gift baskets) including one really interesting one.  Friends of ours gave us a "do-it-yourself" Tabouleh kit - with fresh vegetables from Israeli farms in the vicinity of Gaza.  It was quite a fun and thoughtful idea and we enjoyed putting it together.

I ate my share of hamentaschen, even  while under the weather.  There was definitely a subdued feel to Purim in Israel this year as I am sure there was in the Jewish community throughout the world.

It is  now time to start getting ready for Pesach though we still have a few weeks.  Enough time for a trip back to Toronto before the holiday and maybe a chance to get some  work done. 

I think that is about all I am going to cover for now.  I know there is lots more to say and hopefully I will have the chance to write another blog shortly.  

We are continuing to hope and pray for some good news here in Israel. We have lost so many of our soldiers - 598 as of the time of writing of this blog - and so many more have been injured (more than 3,100).  Since this is a people's army - that means that we all know someone who was injured or killed in the fighting.  We know of friends and neighbours and their children who are now stationed in Gaza or  on Israel's northern or eastern borders. And unfortunately, we know of people from our city, our synagogue, our children's schools and other places that have been killed or injured since October 7, 2023.

At this time, I think the best we can do is hope that the Israeli army can win a decisive victory or otherwise cause Hamas to surrender as soon as possible and we can then look to how to deal with the broader conflict with a long term view.

On a final note - I have to point out that Israeli clocks are officially moving ahead by one hour tonight - yes we are finally "springing ahead" - a few weeks after North America.  So as I finish off this blog - and perhaps watch a bit of the Leafs-Capitals game before going to sleep - it is with the unfortunate knowledge that I will be losing an hour of sleep tonight.

Shabbat Shalom and best regards from Israel.

Israel Wrap Up Update 2023

Fallen Soldiers

Captain Shaul Greenglick z"l was killed this week in northern Gaza.  He was 26 years old.  He was an officer in the Nahal brigades, unit 931.  He was from Ra'anana.  Just a few weeks ago, he participated, in uniform, in Israel's reality singing contest "Kochav Nolad" ("A Star is Born") and passed into the next round. He impressed the panel of four judges with his rendition of a Hanan Ben Ari song, "Blind Bat."  After performing, he returned to Gaza to fight with his unit.  He was killed along with 26 year old Captain Shay Shamriz. In total, six soldiers were killed on Monday.  The IDF has just announced three more names of soldiers killed yesterday, including Eliezer Chitiz z"l, who was also from Ra'anana.   In total, 164 Israeli soldiers have been killed since the start of the ground operation in Gaza and a total of 498 soldiers have been killed since the start of the war on October 7, 2023.

Captain Greenglick's funeral was today in Ra'anana.  We joined thousands of Ra'anana residents to line the streets and wave Israeli flags as the military hearse drove by, escorted by several security vehicles.  I would think the same scene will take place again tomorrow in Ra'anana for the funeral of Eliezer Chitiz, who will also be laid to rest in the military cemetery in Ra'anana, which is two blocks away from our home.

Military Situation - State of the War

Israel is in a very dangerous phase of the war now.  The country's military forces are fighting actively (to different degrees) on seven different fronts.  One area of heavy fighting is in Gaza, where thousands of Israeli troops are fighting Hamas guerillas in many different locations.  The Israeli army has gone into the tunnel network in various locations and has been fighting in many different areas in northern and southern areas of Gaza.  Since the temporary cease fire deal ended, the casualty rate for Israeli soldiers has spiked dramatically.  I have not heard any reports to suggest that the fighting is close to a conclusion.

In the north, Israel is fighting on two fronts.  On the Lebanon border, from Israel's west coast to the point where Lebanon, Syria and Israel all meet, Israel is fighting a very active and very difficult war against Hezbollah.  Hezbollah is stationed right at Israel's border and has been launching anti-tank missiles against civilian and military targets, unmanned suicide drone attacks, weaponized, controlled drone attacks and other military and terrorist campaigns.  Israel has been defending against these attacks and launching its own counter-offensive measures on an ongoing basis.  Many Israeli soldiers have fallen in these northern battles.

In the northeast, Israel is fighting against Syria and Iraq, with Hezbollah and other Iranian backed military groups launching attacks from Syrian territory.  Israeli has responded to these attacks in many different ways, some  of which have been reported in the media - reaching as far as the Damascus area.

Israel is also fighting against Hamas-backed groups of terrorists in areas of Judea and Samaria (the "West Bank").  Some areas have seen particularly heavy fighting including Jenin and the Tulkarem area.

In the south, Israel has had to deal with proxy attacks from the Houthi rebels, an Iranian-sponsored military organization situated in Yemen that has vowed to attack any and all ships travelling through the Red Sea Strait en route to or from Israel.  The Houthis have fired several long-range, Iranian-supplied missiles at Eilat and other places in Israel.  To date, these missiles have been shot down by U.S. or Israeli defence forces using anti-missile systems.

The big "mastermind" behind all of this - and the main enemy is, of course, the Republic of Iran, which has armed, trained, sponsored and, largely, controlled all of these forces.  Iran is using Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and other groups as proxies to attack Israeli while, to date, avoiding any direct attacks on Israel.  As recently as yesterday, Iran threatened to begin direct attacks against Israel soon. Iran has, for several years, called for the destruction of Israel and is certainly the most hostile country in the region towards the State of  Israel.  Iran has also been the sponsor of virulent anti-Semitic propaganda including Holocaust denial and other poisonous forms of anti-Jewish bigotry.

To get to seven fronts, you can separate the Syrian forces from the Iraqi forces - though attacks and activity from these two groups are largely originating from the same place.

Now with that all in mind, calling for an "unconditional cease fire" is tantamount to calling for Israel to surrender to these various enemies, which Israel certainly will not do.  The Hamas leadership, in interviews since October 7, 2023, has stated that they plan to carry out the same types of attacks "over and over again" until "Israel is destroyed."  Iran has made similar threats. Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah started this war and they have not offered any proposals or concessions that would form the basis for a short or long term cease fire.

For now, the prospects of all of this ending any time soon seem bleak.  At this point, it seems unfathomable that Israel will conclude the war in Gaza without destroying the Hamas leadership or coming to a deal whereby the Hamas leadership leaves Gaza (like the Lebanon war deal in the 1980s in which Arafat and the PLO left Beirut and went to Tunisia).  Israel will also need to insist on a deal whereby Hezbollah moves back, several kilometres, from the Israeli-Lebanon border and the Israeli-Syrian border.  If there is no deal with Hezbollah, there may will be a full-blown war with Lebanon, that could start any time now.

As for Iran, I don't believe that Israel is about to launch a major attack on Iran, though there are certainly scenarios in which Iran could draw the U.S. into the conflict and provoke U.S. operations against Iran.  This does not seem too likely as of now, but the Middle East is quite unpredictable.

Israeli Appreciation towards Soldiers

One of our family members was home for a break from reserve duty in Gaza.  We went to grab breakfast before he had to return.  He was in uniform.  As we were sitting in the cafe, some Ra'anana residents came over to talk to him.  They thanked him for his service and insisted on paying for whatever he wanted to order (as well as anything his friend and fellow soldier ordered).  Of course we would have been happy to pay the bill but this was such a nice gesture.  It is something that happens all  over Israel wherever civilians see soldiers in uniform, especially these days.

Hostages

According to current reports, there are still about 133 hostages being held by Hamas who were taken into captivity on October 7, 2023.  Some were soldiers, some were residents of the various Kibbutzim and communities near Gaza that were attacked and some were concert-goers attending the Nova music festival. Some very young children are still in captivity, assuming they are alive.  No list has been provided by Hamas or the International Red Cross - or anyone else.  We really don't know how many of  these hostages are still alive, what condition they are in or where they are being held.  

Based on information we have received from released hostages, we know that the hostages were being held in very difficult conditions with very little food  and water provided each day.  Some of the women were separated out and kept in different areas.  There are reports (from the released hostages and others) about widespread sexual abuse.  Some of the other hostages were quite elderly, in their 80s, with various medical conditions.  

Israelis have been demonstrating in support of the families of these hostages and demanding that the government take all appropriate steps to return the hostages home.  But so far, there is no available deal on the table that would bring this about.  There are rumours of different negotiations taking place, brokered by Egypt, Qatar or others - but I have not heard any reports that a deal is close.

Civilian Deaths

Israel is obviously facing a difficult situation trying to extricate Hamas from Gaza while they have embedded their fighters in civilian populations and launched attacks from schools, mosques, hospitals and other crowded areas.  Even the Hamas leadership is apparently now using groups of hostages as human shields to avoid being killed or captured.

The Hamas Health Ministry has been reporting more than 20,000 Gazans as having been killed.  But there are a few things to remember.

First of all, the numbers are not verified and Hamas has notoriously exaggerated or fabricated numbers of casualties (remember the hospital incident early this year).  

Secondly, Hamas does not announce the numbers of fighters who are killed.  By Israel estimates, the numbers of Hamas fighters killed are 1/2 to 2/3 of the total number killed.  In other words - the actual Hamas numbers of total casualties my be anywhere from 10,000 to 20,000 - we just don't know.

Of those, the number of Hamas fighters killed is between 8,000 and 12,000, according to different Israeli sources.

Suffice it to say that the civilian casualty numbers are therefore much lower than the numbers that are simply accepted and printed by publications and news media around the world.

This is not to say that anyone in Israel is happy to see high numbers of civilian casualties in Gaza.

But at the same time - we are dealing with an enemy that is trying to kill as many of us as possible- civilians and military personnel.  In that circumstance - Israelis feel that we are better off killing our enemies than being killed ourselves.  This is the same type of reaction that the Allies had when dealing with Germany - or Japan in World War II - or that any nation has when confronted with an armed conflict started by an enemy.

The Israeli army would rather protect the lives of as many Israelis (soldiers and civilians) as possible, even if that means that there are civilian casualties while fighting Hamas. That's unfortunate but it is a by-product of war.  Certainly the civilian casualties in Gaza or far lower than the casualty numbers in conflicts involving Russia, Syria or even the United States (see Afghanistan, Iraq or other places).

To call the Israeli war against Hamas a "genocide" is  nothing less than a morally vacuous blood libel.  Yet that is the language coming from Turkey, Iran, Hamas-sponsored university groups across the United States and Canada and other places.

Volunteers and Visitors

Amidst all of this, people are still visiting Israel, as difficult as it might be to get here (with El Al and Emirates being the only airlines that are currently flying to Israel).  One of our friends arrived last week and is volunteering with "Sar-El" a group that stations volunteers for two-week periods at army bases around Israel to help pack supplies, equipment, food and assist in other ways.  Another friend has been visiting and volunteering to pick fruit and vegetables at various sites around the country.  Israel normally relies on labour from Thailand, Judea and Samaria, some Gazans and other foreign workers for much of the seasonal agricultural work.  Very few workers from any of these places are available.  Farmers around the country have been begging Israelis and others to come help  out - sometimes on a paid basis and sometimes as volunteers.  Israelis and people from all over the world have been answering the call.

Many synagogues from across  North America and other places have been bringing "missions" to Israel.  A group from the Park Avenue Synagogue in New York came earlier this month.  In mid-January, a group will be visiting Israel from Beth Tikvah Synagogue in Toronto.  Just today, some friends told us that they will be arriving in mid-January for a 10 day trip - including some time volunteering in different places.

In short, there are lots of volunteer opportunities and I think Israelis are very grateful for the help - both from non-Israelis - who have shown up to volunteer - and from Israelis - many of whom are volunteering in different ways.

Of course, many other tours have been cancelled - including the various birthright groups. Some friends who were planning to come cancelled - and others postponed their trips. I think the short term future of tourism to Israel is very much up in the air - like so many other things for Israelis now including academic programs, social events, work and so many other parts of a normal routine. So many of our young people are cancelling all of these events to serve in life and death missions in Gaza, Israel's north, or wherever else they might be stationed.

Getting Here

As I mentioned above, only El Al and Emirates (as well as the Emirates subsidiary "Fly Dubai") are flying to Tel-Aviv now.  El Al is flying to several cities in the U.S. - so if you are flying from New York, Boston, Chicago, Miami or some other cities - and don't mind flying El Al - there are still available flights.

In my case, as I have written in different articles in the past, I tend to stick with Star Alliance airlines,  flying  Air Canada as often as I can.  So I have been joining Air Canada flights with El Al flights.  They don't have a baggage sharing arrangement - so I have had to collect my bags, go through immigration and then re-check-in to drop off my bag.  It is very cumbersome.  If you are doing this, you need to allow about four hours for a transfer.

For my flight back to Toronto, I flew through Amsterdam without a checked bag.  This was much better than flying with a bag since I did not have to go through immigration, security or anything else.  I was just able to make my way over to the Air Canada gate with lots of time to spare and even managed to spend time in the lounge in Amsterdam (which was nothing exciting).

On my way back to Israel, I flew Air Canada to London.  That part of the flight was fine.  I then had to collect my bags and walk quite a long distance to the subway system to take a train to terminal 4.  This took quite a while and was a bit of a pain since I had a suitcase with me - along with a carry on bag and a knapsack.  There were lots of escalators, moving walkways, corridors and other parts to this journey - which took close to an hour in total.

Once I arrived at terminal 4 - things were fine - though the El Al gate was not even open yet.  So I wound up sitting around in a coffee bar waiting for the El Al desk to open.

Overall, it was certainly better than Amsterdam but it was not fun. At least the immigration line was efficient.

I haven't found the ideal arrangement yet though I will have to go back to Toronto in mid-January.  My current plan is to travel again through Rome.  (El Al to Rome and then Air Canada to Toronto).

Although some airlines have announced a resumption of service to Israel, scheduled for mid-January, I don't believe that these flights will begin again until there is a cease fire of some sort. I guess we will have to see.

Entertainment

Throughout all of this, Israeli TV has continued to broadcast episodes of "Eretz Nehederet" ("It's a Wonderful Country") which is the closest thing Israel has to Saturday Night Live. The show is replete with satirical sketches involving impersonators of many of Israel's political leaders and other public figures.  Eretz Nehederet has aired some sketches in English poking fun at the BBC's coverage of the war, the U.S. college campus situation and other world events.  Much of the humour is very dark - but they are trying to bring a bit of levity to a very difficult situation.  The skits are hit or miss.  Some are extremely funny, some not so much.  Isn't that the case with any satirical show?

Last week's show included an impersonation of Tzvi Yehezkeli - an Israeli commentator who is fluent in Arabic and has been on Israeli TV continuously, providing interpretations of Arabic news releases and statements.  The Eretz Nehederet version was quite spot-on, making fun of Yehezkeli's  explanation of Arabic phrases and idioms.  At one point - the impersonator provided a sentence in Arabic - and then offered the translation - "The world is like a cucumber....one day you are holding it in your hand - and the next day it is stuck up your butt."  I'm not here to interpret these things - I am just passing on what I heard (and laughed at, I have to say).

Last  night, Eretz Nehederet aired a very serious sketch involving a traumatized soldier showing up to watch his family arguing about politics as usual. This one was tear-inducing and difficult to watch. The skit was done with an overlay of the song "Kama Tov She'bata Habayta" - ("How great it is that you have come home") - sung originally in 1971 by the late Israeli singer Arik Einstein. The song was originally written as a group effort by Yankele Rotblitt, Shalom Hanoch and Itzkhak Klapter.  The original version was written welcoming someone back after returning from a long trip abroad. Eretz Nehederet changed the words somewhat. Not sure if there is a translation available yet - but if your Hebrew is up to it - and the link works wherever you are - you can use the link above to watch it. Even without the Hebrew translation, you can probably get the mood from the sombre tone and the scene itself.

The other Israeli show that has been airing twice a week is "Zehu Zeh"  ("That's that") which is also a satirical show but a very different format. I think I have written about it in the past. They have also been airing skits making fun of the Houthis - implying that they are launching rockets at Israel from Yemen because they are bored. Zehu Zeh usually features two songs each episode, one with a guest singer.  Over the past few weeks - many different guests have appeared including Eidan Reichel, Chava Alberstein, and others.  The music has generally been excellent.  The comedy sketches - hit or miss.

Israeli singers have continued to travel the country performing for soldiers all over - whether in bases near Gaza, Gaza itself - or in different places in the north.  Some stand-up comedians have also been entertaining soldiers.  As you might have seen, Jerry Seinfeld showed up in Israel last week as a gesture of support - though I am not sure that he entertained troops anywhere.

December Holidays in Israeli

As you might know, Christmas is largely a non-event in Israel, outside of pockets of Christian communities.  It is a regular workday, everything is open.  It is quite something to see - for someone who is used to being bombarded with Christmas music in restaurants, shopping malls and everywhere else for two months before the holiday in Canada.

I have nothing against people celebrating Christmas - I wish all of my friends the very best in enjoying their celebrations. And if I am in Toronto and invited to a party or a dinner, I am certainly happy to join them.

At the same time, it is a season where, when I am in Toronto, I am constantly reminded how I differ from everyone else - how I stick out as a minority - and how I don't belong.  

Even though Israel is a majority Jewish state, the malls are not generally decorated with any particular holiday's decorations - and there is no time of the year where Jewish holiday-themed music is on the radio 24/7.  On the actual holidays, everything is closed. But it seems to me it would be a lot less "in your face" than the way Christmas is celebrated in North America - even though Canada is not supposed to be a "religious" country by definition.

In Toronto this year, the local Second Cup starting playing Christmas music right after Canadian Thanksgiving ended (in October). I would have thought that even people who celebrate Christmas would be happy with two to three weeks of Christmas music at most.  But maybe I'm wrong.

Anti-Semitism Around the World

One of the major effects of this war has been a massive ramp up in anti-Semitism around the world.  The U.S. Ivy League schools (many of which receive huge donations from Qatar) have been at the forefront of anti-Israel demonstrations - many of which have blended into anti-Jewish hatefests.  

In Canada, the universities have not been much better.  Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson) has been the source of some of the most vitriolic anti-Israel - and anti-Jewish hate speech.  York University has not been far behind. University of Toronto's "Varsity" publication has been spewing repugnant disinformation. CUPE (the Canadian Union of Public Employees) has a leader who "rejoiced" the day after the October 7th massacres and has engaged in an outrageous smear campaign against Israel.

Through all of this, Canada's Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, was the proud recipient of thank you video put out by one of the Hamas leaders - obviously an ignominious and dubious honour.  I think that Australia and New Zealand also received this fine mention from Hamas - and perhaps Ireland as well.

There have also been demonstrations across Europe and around the world, chanting "from the River to the Sea..." which is a call for the destruction of Israel. As a result, there is quite a feeling of isolation here right now. Israel seems to have very few real friends - the United States, Germany - and some days Britain  Maybe a handful of others.

Interestingly, there was a poll published last week in Israel - in which Israelis were asked "who is a better friend of Israel - Trump or Biden?" Far more Israelis went with Biden - which was a new phenomenon for Israelis, many of whom had viewed Trump as one of the best U.S. Presidents that Israel ever had as a friend in the White House.

But really - aside from all of this - for those European Countries that are wavering, and others, the situation is not that complicated.  You have on the one hand an axis of Russia, Hamas, Turkey, Qatar, Hezbollah, Iran and a handful of others. On the other hand - Israel, the U.S., Germany, Great Britain and some others.  I don't even think one needs to say more than that. For the countries supporting the Hamas-Qatar-Iran group - unfortunately, they will probably wind up next on the list soon enough.  And frankly, this is probably a very real warning to Trudeau and his government who want to bring hundreds of thousands of Hamas sympathizers to Canada. All I can do here is quote President Biden - "Don't!....just don't!..."

And I think that is about it for now.  I wish everyone a happy and healthy 2024 and hope that it will be a much more peaceful year.  Best regards from Israel.