Israel Update July 4, 2025 - Close to a Deal with Hamas?

I arrived back in Israel last Friday, shortly after President Trump had declared a cease fire between Iran and Israel.  I had to scramble to find a ticket to Israel and wound up flying on Arkia Airlines from Athens.

Getting to and From Israel

In case you are thinking of flying Arkia - my suggestion would be to try to find something else if you can. 

I arrived in Athens via Air Canada and was supposed to have about four hours until my Arkia flight.  Of course there is no baggage transfer agreement so I had to go through Greek immigration (which had a long line-up but moved quickly), pick up my suitcase (which wasn't too bad) and then go check in for the Arkia flight.  Surprisingly, when I got to the Arkia counter, I was offered the chance to get on an earlier flight (almost 3 hours earlier than scheduled).  I asked if I would have enough time (only 45 minutes left according to the flight schedule).  I was assured I would be fine so I took the earlier flight - no extra charge.

From the check-in counter, I had to go through the Greek exit security (Immigration).  The line-up  was unbelievably long and very slow.  Pylons everywhere directing people to walk up and down temporary aisles.  Every few minutes, the authorities would call out an airline and destination and take people out of the line-up into an expedited process.  "Anyone on the Air Canada flight to Toronto? Come with me..."  As I was waiting in line, I noticed that we were only about 30 minutes before departure time, but nobody was calling out Arkia passengers to Tel-Aviv.

I finally got through this line up at 12:55, which was exactly the boarding time for the flight.  But still no call for Arkia passengers.  I still had to go through personal security (the x-ray machines etc.,).  By the time I left the whole area and headed towards the gate - it was about 1:15.  I got to the gate - and no worries - there was a whole line-up of Arkia passengers waiting in line.  Boarding was delayed.  We would still need to take a bus to the plane and then board.

Ultimately, the "earlier" flight that I was able to get on - left 1.5 hours after its revised scheduled time - which was about 4.5 hours after its original scheduled time.  So I actually wound up leaving about half an hour before my originally scheduled time even though I was put on an earlier flight.  Meanwhile the flight that I had been scheduled for originally wound up about two and a half hours late.

For this privilege, I had to spend about $600 - the only way available to get to Israel - during that period of time. (That was just the cost of a one way Arkia ticket from Athens to Tel-Aviv).

Since last week, several airlines have resumed flights to Israel but so far it is mainly the Israeli carriers and a handful of others - Arkia, Israir, Tus Airlines and of course El Al.  Several other airlines have announced that they will be resuming service but at all different dates. From my quick look at the Ben Gurion Arrivals board today - there are flights showing for Air France, Fly Dubai, Delta and some other airlines - though some of these may be code shares with El Al or other airlines.

Over the coming months, it certainly appears that more and more airlines will resume service as long as the security situation continues to improve.  I understand that British Airways, Wizz Air, Air Canada, American Airlines and several others have cancelled their service to Israel until well after September 2025.  If you are planning to come to Israel (let's say for a wedding and a Hina or something like that....), the only airline you are really going to be able to count on for the coming months is El Al, which has demonstrated that it will continue to fly to Israel even in the most difficult conditions - albeit at very exorbitant prices.

It is likely that Arkia, Israir, Tus Airways and Blue Bird airways will also continue to fly - especially from Cyprus or Athens - and maybe  from Rome. These may all be fine as long as you don't mind lengthy delays and sky high baggage charges. After that, some of the airlines that have been willing to bring back their service more quickly than others have been Aegean Airlines (Greece), Fly Dubai, Emirates, Ethiopian Air and Lufthansa.  Several other airlines have scheduled dates for return in August 2025 including United Airlines - but I think it is going to be questionable for now to rely on United.  For Canadians, we may well not see Air Canada resuming its Tel-Aviv service until deep into the fall or even sometime until 2026 but hopefully, with a pending cease fire, Air Canada will resume sooner rather than later.

Gaza War

As of the time I am writing this article, indications are that Hamas is prepared to accept or mostly accept - a cease fire deal for 60 days proposed by President Trump and his negotiators.  I am not going to get into all of the specifics here other than to say that the deal apparently calls for the immediate release of 8 live Israeli hostages by Hamas, followed by the release of 15 bodies.  2 more live Israeli hostages would be released 60 days later, with information provided about the remaining hostages at some point along the way. Estimates are that between 20 and 23 Israeli hostages are still alive and that Hamas is holding a total of approximately 50 hostages in total - including those who are no longer living.

Israel would release hundreds of Hamas prisoners, many of whom are facing lengthy prison sentences for violent terrorist attacks.  Negotiations would continue over the coming 60 days for a settlement of all outstanding issues.  If negotiations fail, hostilities could resume though President Trump is apparently providing "personal assurances" that the war will not restart.  Of course there is nothing more reliable than the word of President Trump - so the Hamas terrorists will certainly take comfort knowing that they have the President's promise.  (You can read this any way you like, depending on your politics).

The war with Hamas will not go down in Israeli history as one of Israel's great victories.  Israel suffered tremendous losses initially - civilian and military losses - and whole villages were wiped out by Hamas even though they will now be rebuilt. While Israel was able to assassinate many Hamas leaders and destroy a significant part of Gaza, Israel was not able to recover the hostages militarily, defeat Hamas or end, definitively, its rule in Gaza.

881 Israeli soldiers have been killed since October 7, 2023 and close to 6,000 have been injured.

The war has also caused a high rate of casualties for Palestinians in Gaza, although the breakdown between military and civilian casualties is difficult to ascertain.  While the Hamas "Gaza Health Ministry" claims that more than 59,600 Palestinians have been killed, there is a great deal of uncertainty when examining any claims made by Hamas.  We do not know how many of these Palestinian casualties were Hamas fighters, though it is likely to be a fairly high number.

It does appear that as the war has progressed, the proportion of Palestinian civilians being killed relative to the total numbers of casualties has been growing -  even though the numbers are likely not as as high as those reported by Hamas.  We also know of several cases where Hamas claimed that Israeli troops opened fire on groups of civilians - and it turned out that the reports were completely false (even after they were reported as true by the BBC, for example).(The BBC later recanted and apologized).

Unquestionably this war has been a disaster for Hamas and for the Palestinians living in Gaza.  But it was also the culmination of several smaller wars started by Hamas over the past several years since Israel disengaged from Gaza in 2005 and Hamas took over the Gaza strip.

Ultimately the only long term solution for the Palestinians in Gaza is going to be having a government committed to resolving issues peacefully with Israel rather than militarily.  Hopefully that train has not left the station.  Continued Hamas rule will only lead to more violent confrontations with Israel.  President Trump's plan of "voluntary relocation" coupled with building a riviera in Gaza might be dismissed as a pipedream (or a war crime) but the geography, topography and location of Gaza does create endless economic possibilities if Gaza were to be run in a collaborative way with Israel.

Other Regional Developments

Israelis were hoping (and continue to hope) for a regime change in Iran and the emergence of a new Iranian government willing to make peace with Israel.  One of Israeli's leading Iranian experts, Benny Sabati, who was born in Iran and lived there for several years before emigrating to Israel, predicts that within 3 to 5 years, Iran will have diplomatic relations with Israel.  He believes that the current Iranian regime will fall during this period of time.  Let's hope that he is correct. A  change of regime in Iran could lead to very significant developments in the Middle East and a future with much more  stability.

President Trump and  Israeli officials are openly talking about trying to add Lebanon and  Syria to the Abraham Accords.  I think the talk about Syria is likely somewhat premature since it will be difficult to resolve the dispute over the Golan Heights.  During President Trump's first term, he recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan  Heights (which Israel first captured in the 1967 Six Day War).  Syria is not about to enter into a peace arrangement with Israel that sees Israel continuing to hold the Golan Heights - and Israel is  not about to give up the Golan  Heights to a Jihadi-led, ISIS inspired neighbour.  If Syria gives up its dream of taking back the Golan Heights - at least for now - perhaps a peace deal can be signed but I am not holding my breath on that one.

Now that Assad is out of the picture in Syria and Hezbollah has been weakened, there may be no impediment to Lebanon coming to a deal with Israel.  A stable Lebanon, with the restoration of Beirut as the "Paris of the Middle East" would be a very exciting development - not just for Lebanon and its people but for the whole of the Middle East.  It this were to happen, it would be a direct result of one of the clear victories in Israel's current war - the tremendous weakening of Hezbollah as a regional force, one which controlled and terrorized the people  of Lebanon for many years.

Meanwhile, if Iran sets out to rebuild its nuclear program as quickly as possible, there may be a second round of this war between Iran and Israel, though it may be a year or two down the road.  The alternative for Iran will be a negotiated solution with the United States and Israel - and perhaps the Iranian leadership will start to falter afterwards. In the short term, it  is hard to predict which way this will go.  In the long term, we have to be optimistic that the people of Iran will be able to shed themselves of this horrible dictatorship.

Bibi's Trial

One cannot overestimate the impact of Prime Minister Netanyahu's current criminal trial on all of  these matters. Bibi is currently in the midst of his cross examination, even though last week he asked the court for a two week hiatus to deal with "security affairs."  The court agreed so the cross-examinations will not resume until the week of July 14th, I believe.

We are clearly at the "meat" of the trial - the cross-examination, and Bibi has no interest in having this continue.  It is embarrassing, excruciating and by most analysts' accounts that I have read - unwinnable.  Accordingly, Bibi had his lawyers contact the state prosecutors last week to feel out the prosecution for a plea bargain deal. (His lawyers later issued a denial that they initiated the contacts).

It appears that all of the lawyers, on both sides of this trial, recognize that Netanyahu is highly likely to be  convicted on at least some counts if this ever gets to a verdict. As  I have said previously, I do not believe we will ever see a verdict in this case.

If a conviction,  as part of a verdict or a plea bargain deal, carries with it the designation of "Kahlon" or "moral turpitude," Netanyahu, under Israeli law, would be barred from running for office for several years.  He is not prepared to agree to that.

On the other hand, the state is not prepared to agree to a guilty plea to only more minor offences, especially since the prosecution feels very confident that it can get a conviction with "Kahlon."

One way of trying to change this reality for Bibi has been a campaign to oust the current Attorney General, replace her with someone more "Bibi-friendly" and then negotiate a deal that is more palatable.  Bibi and his Likud party  have been trying to do this - but they face several legal hurdles and conflict of  interest allegations that are making it difficult to replace the AG.

A second alternative, floated by some of Bibi's Likud party members just last week, would be to legislate an end to the trial.  This would be shocking.  Even some Likud members have indicated that they would not support it  And the Israeli Supreme Court would surely strike it down.  I am hopeful that this idea is a non-starter. Netanyahu would need an even more right-wing government to have a chance at pulling this off.

A third idea, and I think one that is most likely at this point, is a negotiated plea-bargain deal combined with a pardon from President Herzog.  This type of  deal might allow Bibi to plead guilty to more serious offences (which would save face for the prosecution) but with a pardon, he would still be able to run again.  The issue is that this could cause somewhat of a crisis for the justice system.  The State would have to demonstrate that it obtained some concessions from Bibi in exchange for the pardon, even though the pardon would be coming from the President rather  than the State.  So Bibi will have to give something to get this type of deal - and I am not really sure what that could be.

There is another alternative.  The current Israeli government might fall, even without a plea bargain deal in place  for Bibi and he may hope that an election will give him a government more willing to help him deal with his criminal challenges. In my view, that is probably a risky strategy.  I think we are more likely to see  a deal in place before an election is called.

I am not going to spend much time dealing with President Trump's tweets calling for Israel to "free Bibi from his trial" as if this were a purely political trial. Fortunately, Israel is not a banana republic (not yet anyways) and none of the actors involved in Bibi's trial (the judges, the prosecutors etc.,) are going to be moved by Trump's calls.  It is more likely that Trump's tweets show a certain desperation on Bibi's part as he tries to enlist the help of Trump to get him out of his legal predicament.  In fact, a number of Israeli commentators speculated that the tweets were written by Bibi himself based on the language used. I am not in a position to comment one way or other but it is an extraordinary level of interference by President Trump into Israel's domestic affairs.  Then again, Bibi himself did everything he could to help the Republicans defeat Obama, Biden and Harris - so interference in domestic political affairs for Bibi and for Trump are par for the course.

Mood in Israel

Israelis are a resilient lot - they have to be to survive in this area of the world.  The 12 day war with Iran was quite frightening.  Many buildings were destroyed. 29 people were killed and more than 3,200 were injured.  But the war was perceived as a major military victory for Israel - perhaps one  of  historic proportions.

The war with Hamas has been going on since October 7, 2023  and over the past few weeks, Israelis have been receiving reports of soldiers dying in battle almost daily.  I believe that the majority of Israelis are hoping that this war with Hamas will end as soon as possible and that things will start to improve.  In other words, I think there is a combination of despair over how things have gone in Gaza but cautious optimism about the future.

Concerts and events have reopened. The airport is gradually increasing its capacity.  I am hopeful that by the end of August (big event time for us...), things will be even better than they are now.

Sports News

I do not have too much to write about sports as the moment.  But I thought I would mention a couple of things quickly.

The Israeli men's national football (soccer) team is trying to qualify for the 2026 world cup.  Israel is in a group with Norway, Estonia, Italy and  Moldova.  On June 6, 2025, Israel beat Estonia for the second time.  Israel will play Moldova on September 5th in Moldova and it will play Italy on September 8, 2025 in Hungary.  It will also play Norway  on October 11, 2025 in Oslo.  Israel lost its first game to Norway but as of now, still has a chance to make it into the 2026 World Cup.  It looks like the road will go through Rome - (Israel will have to beat Italy) but stay tuned.

Israeli TV does not broadcast very many baseball games - but I couldn't resist streaming last night's Blue Jay game.  The Blue Jays swept the New York Yankees in a four game series, featuring a gazillion runs, which moved the Blue Jays into first place in their division.  Even if that is only temporary and even though it is only July, it was still pretty exciting. There may be some very meaningful baseball games for Toronto fans to watch in October.

I think that is about it for now - but I wanted to share these thoughts and wish everyone  a Shabbat Shalom, a happy Fourth of July, a belated Happy Canada Day - and a celebration of all the great events that our family has in July - birthdays, an anniversary etc., Hoping for some good news in the coming days including the return of our  hostages, the cessation of hostilities and maybe even an Israeli election call.

Edge of War with Hezbollah? July 2024 Update

Majdal Shams

I was planning another pot pourri blog touching on a  range of topics - including some distractions - like a visit to a winery - but, as you might know, circumstances have changed quite a bit here now since yesterday. I will still add in a few other topics - but I start with what is most urgent.

Hezbollah Attack on Majdal Shams

Hezbollah launched a rocket attack yesterday on the Golan Heights town of Majdal Shams, which is populated by Druze Israelis.  As you might know, the Druze are Arab Israelis, but not Muslims.  They serve in the Israeli army, speak Hebrew and actively support the State of Israel, while maintaining their own closely knit communities and religious practises.

The rocket attack from Hezbollah yesterday was an Iranian made rocket, carrying more than 50kg of explosives.  It slammed into a soccer field where a group of children were playing soccer - and killed at least 11 kids (several more are still in critical condition) and injured more than 30 others.  The soccer field was right next to a playground.  Almost all of the injured were kids between the ages of 10 and 20. One family lost four of their children in this attack.

Murdered Children of Majdal Shams

Since October 7, 2023, Hezbollah has been attacking northern Israel in all kinds of ways - using rocket attacks, RPGs, drones and other weapons.  Israel has responded but in a relatively restrained way.  There have been several reasons for the restraint.  Israel has, of course, been concerned about opening an all out war with Hezbollah which has tens of thousands of Iranian-made rockets, and thousands of drones - ready to be fired at Israel.  The U.S. has been pressuring Israel to avoid escalation.  Israel has been trying to focus on the war with Hamas first.  And Israel and the U.S. have been trying to avoid an all out war with Iran (the main sponsor and supporter of Hezbollah), which could drag  in several other parties -  and spiral out of hand, throughout the region and other areas.

The residents of northern Israel, including the Druze and other communities, have all been clamouring for Israel to take decisive action in the north, even at the risk of further escalation.  Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from the north and are living in the centre of Israel and other areas.  Hundreds of homes have been destroyed as well as all kinds of other buildings, businesses, agricultural areas and other sites.  Yet, the Israeli government has kept the military action to a relatively restrained level even in the face of all of these attacks.  For Israel's northern residents, the situation is outrageous. They wonder what would happen if even one of these types of attacks targeted Tel-Aviv.  They feel that they have been treated as second class citizens and abandoned by the the government and the army.

But this massive and murderous attack on a large group of children is likely to be seen as the last straw by the Israeli government.  Hezbollah has tried to deny that they fired the rocket - but the Israeli military has identified the type of rocket and noted that only Hezbollah has this type of  ammunition. I don't know what would happen if Hezbollah were to issue an apology and state that the rocket missed its target and that they regret the loss of life. (Spoiler - highly unlikely). Perhaps that could lead to some type of negotiations. But so far, Hezbollah has doubled down and is warning Israel of even more attacks. Hezbollah is not the type of group to apologize and back down even after attacking a large group of children.

The Israeli war cabinet is meeting at 4 p.m. today (Israel time) and then there will be a larger cabinet meeting at 6 p.m.  I expect that the Israeli response will be significant though I have no idea, of course, exactly what targets they will attack in Lebanon and/or Syria (where Hezbollah also has a large number of bases).  It remains to be seen whether Hezbollah will absorb the Israeli response without a major escalation - or whether this will quickly escalate.  Israelis are being told to get their shelters ready, to stock up on water and other provisions and to prepare for a major war. Canada and other countries are warning people to leave Lebanon as soon as possible. Hard to say how long the Beirut airport will be fully functional.

Israel at the Olympics

Israel has sent 88 delegates to the Paris Olympics, its second largest delegation ever.  The athletes have been subjected to all kinds of threats - including death threats, fake funeral notices and boos when competing.  There is extensive security - far more than at any other Olympic games - it seems - and we are hoping that all of the athletes will be safe.  The Israeli under-23 Men's' soccer team drew a difficult group - with three games to play against Mali, Paraguay and  Japan.  In the first game, Israel jumped out to a 1-0 lead but wound up in a 1-1 draw.  In the second game, played last night, Israel fell behind  twice but came back to tie the score.  The Israeli side was heavily outplayed by Paraguay but managed to keep the game close until the end.  However, over the last few minutes, Paraguay scored twice and went on to win the match 4-2.  Even if Israel were to beat Japan in a major surprise on Tuesday night, it appears that the Israeli soccer team will be leaving the tournament without advancing.  This is only Israel's third appearance at the Olympic soccer tournament in its history, so just being in the tournament has been a major accomplishment.  But the Israeli side was hoping for better results. Israel has some very accomplished athletes competing in judo, swimming, sailing and other sports and we hope that Israel will be able to bring home some medals.

Netanyahu Visits the U.S.

I am  not going to write extensively about Prime Minister Netanyahu's trip to the U.S. or his speech in Congress. There is no shortage of criticism on the Israeli side - that the Prime Minister's timing was suspect and he did not really delivery any accomplishments from this trip.  Some Israelis were hoping that he would use the trip to negotiate and/or announce some kind of deal to bring home the hostages but this was not on the agenda.  Netanyahu flew to the U.S on the newly commissioned "Wing  of Zion" plane that he had ordered a few governments ago.  In the intervening period, Prime Ministers Lapid and Bennett had cancelled the plane order, arguing that it was an unnecessary and excessive expense.  But Netanyahu, travelling in the middle of a war, happily circulated photos of himself and his wife Sara, sitting comfortably at a desk on the plane, all smiles, with a hat next to the Prime Minister saying "Total Victory" in English. This was the first official flight for this plane - a project of Netanyahu's.

While in the U.S., Prime Minister Netanyahu seemed to have some fairly uncomfortable meetings with President Biden and Vice-President Harris.  He thanked Biden for his 50 years of support of Israel.  Of course Biden seems very fragile right now and, unfortunately, it is not clear that he was all there to accept these compliments.  Vice President Harris took a different approach. She greeted Netanyahu in a much more "down to business" manner and told him that they had lots to talk about.  She then held a press-conference after the meeting, without Netanyahu, and gave a unilateral statement.  On the one hand, support for Israel does not mean blind support for Netanyahu and his policies.  I can certainly accept that.  On the other hand, the tone was somewhat condescending, sharp and somewhat reminiscent of President Obama's dealings with Israel towards the end of his Presidency.

It may well be that Harris is trying to demonstrate daylight between her policies and Netanyahu's, to shore up her base.  This may be an adroit political move for her in some states.  On the other hand, it may provide fodder for centrists in other states - who may become alarmed that Harris will move the needle too far to the left on Israel issues.  To be more specific, it might help her in Michigan but hurt her in Pennsylvania. There are probably other examples.

Netanyahu's meeting with Trump, of course, was quite different. The greetings did not appear to be super warm - but there was certainly a great deal of political maneuvering both ways.  Trump announced that he couldn't imagine how any Jewish American could vote for Harris in light of her Israel policies.  Netanyahu's plan seems to have been to visit Trump and try to bolster Trump with his implicit, if not explicit, support.  However, this plan took shape before President Biden announced his decision not to run - and before Harris began to close the gap in U.S. polling numbers.  

If the gap starts to decrease further - and if Harris wins the election - Netanyahu may well be in for a very rocky relationship with Harris, perhaps even rockier than his relationship with Obama.  (Assuming that Netanyahu is still the Prime Minister by the time of the election).  At the same time, notwithstanding the support the Trump is receiving from the observant Jewish community - there is no guarantee that Trump's policies will be particularly supportive of Israel.  Trump is very unstable and prone to change his mind about any given policies at any time. If Trump damages the democratic nature of the U.S. (he has already promised to "rip up the Constitution" and this past week told a group of Christian voters that "after they vote in this election, they wouldn't need to worry about voting again."), this will certainly harm Israel and its perceived legitimacy in the long run.  It is in Israel's long term interests that the U.S. continue to be a vibrant, liberal democracy - and that Israel continue to be one as well.  Both Netanyahu and Trump would prefer to take control of their respective supreme courts, have all charges against them thrown out and advance laws and policies that allow themselves to govern unhindered.  Sorry to get too political here - and many of you may disagree with me - but I am trying to blend a variety of voices that I hear speaking in Israel, from both sides - and give a sense of what the Israeli public is thinking.  I think there is quite a split.  Supporters of Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir, Smotrich and their parties are clearly rooting for and supporting Trump. Many Israelis in the centre and left have very different views. A significant number of Israelis, according to recent polls, thought Biden was a good friend of  Israel's and was very supportive and empathetic towards Israel, though the most recent polls show that Jewish Israelis, overall, have a preference for Trump - by about 48 to 35% according to one recent Jerusalem Post poll. 

Brain Eating Amoeba in the Kinneret

Here is something totally different.  A swimmer in his 20s died last week - as a result of a brain eating amoeba attacking him in the Sea of Galilea - the Kinneret.  This has now, of course, put the fear of God into swimmers in Israel's only freshwater lake.  As if the possibility of a missile attack in the area wasn't bad enough - we now have brain eating amoebae.  Fortunately, only one other case has been discovered - and the victim seems to have survived.  I have no idea what steps the government or health authorities can take to ensure the safety of this lake - but many Israelis are now thinking twice about cooling off in the Kinneret during these prime time swimming conditions. Even some of my family members, who were up near the Kinneret and are not scared of anything (having been through military service) decided not to go into the water (or so they tell us).

Kosher Cell Phone Bills

This is not an April fool's joke.  It is July.  The Israeli Knesset is scheduled to complete its sitting today and go on a break until after Simchat Torah - i.e. until the end of October.  So the governing coalition has been  scrambling to try and pass a range of bills intended to placate Netanyahu's coalition partners.  One of the bills that was passed into law last week - is in this category.  The bill passed was called the Kosher cellphone bill.  It included the creation of a Cellphone Kashrut Committee to oversee the issuance and control of kosher cell phones.  What are "kosher cellphones"?  They are cellphones used by some ultra-orthodox Israelis that do not have internet access and can only be used for phone calls and text messages.  God forbid the ultra-orthodox should carry a device that would allow them to view inappropriate pictures or videos on their cell phones.  They might even see Israeli Knesset members speaking (including some women) or, even worse - they might be tempted to watch videos of women singing.  So the Israeli Knesset has officially handed over control over a large bloc of phone numbers that will be designated as available for "kosher  phones only."  This will prevent wayward Haredim from secretly switching their phones to a smart phone.  Instead they will have to duck into a different store in Tel-Aviv (or elsewhere in Israel) and simply buy a second phone with a new number that they can keep in a an inside suit pocket (which is what most of them apparently do anyways).  Ultimately, this bill is a money making bill for a group of rabbis who will have economic control over a large number of phone numbers.  I am not sure whether, for example, these certified "Kosher" phones will require a special Passover certification - which could mean an additional hefty fee.  In the midst of an ongoing war, a hostage crisis, huge challenges in the north and all over the country, this is evidently a matter of prime urgency for the current government.  As they say in Israel - this is a sign that someone is "disconnected."  I might add that there were plans to try and pass other bills by tonight - including the "Rabbi corruption bill" (as it has been referred to pejoratively) and some other bills that Simcha Rotman has been trying to pass as part of his judicial revolution.  Some of these bills may now be delayed as a result of the security situation with Lebanon.

Canadian Passport Holder Attempts Knife Attack - Shot and Killed by Israeli Forces

As you might have read, a Canadian passport holder, Qawarshi Zakaria Adam, showed up at the Israeli town of Netiv HaAsara not far from the Gaza border.  He had apparently arrived at the Tel-Aviv airport using a Canadian passport, rented a car and headed south.  When he arrived at Netiv HaAsara, he got out of his car with a knife and moved towards some members of the community's rapid response team - saying "you're murdering people in Gaza.."  As he got closer, he was shot and killed by the security personnel.  There is a video of the incident. I saw a range of different captions for the incident - including some of the Canadian media that are happy to  turn this type of incident on its head and somehow accuse the Israelis of doing something nefarious. For the benefit of those considering similar actions, I would strongly suggest that brandishing a knife and threatening Israeli police or other military personnel - in the midst of a war zone - is not a recommended course of action - it is not likely to end well.

I was planning to write about a recent trip that we took to the Clos de Gat winery, which was quite an exceptional  experience. But I am going to save that for another blog.  

Let's hope that a major regional war and crisis will be averted and that this whole war will end soon - with the return of the hostages, an enforceable agreement in the north and some type of stable  agreement that brings many years of peace.  I am not particularly hopeful at this point, but we can always hope.

Wishing everyone the best of health.

October 2020 Update

We are now in the midst of the holiday of Sukkot - also known as "the time of our  happiness," the "holiday of  booths," and the time for travelling and trips abroad for many Israelis.  Not this year, generally.  At least not the travelling part.  Israel is in the midst of a nation-wide shut-down of sorts so travelling is fairly limited.  But Sukkot (booths) are still everywhere - and people are celebrating the holiday.  

It has been a very strange and unusual holiday season though that is certainly  not unique to Israel, unfortunately.   The interesting question is how this will change things in a long term way.  In so many respects.  But that could  really be the subject of a very long blog.  Maybe the next one.  This one will be a bit more anecdotal I think.  I'll cover some personal reflections about the holidays, Israel's current Covid-19 situation, the Israeli government and anything else that springs to mind before the end of these comments.

The Holy Days - Some Personal Reflections

Rosh Hashana came and went.  One initiative in Israel was to have people with Shofars walking  around (on the  second day of Rosh Hashanah, the Sunday) and blowing their shofars so that people could get the chance to hear them.  In Ra'anana, the City set up various points around the city where there would be shofar blowing at different times.  Another  initiative was to tell people to go out onto their front lawns, their balconies or their backyards and blow  their shofars at 11 a.m.  I took part in this one - and noticed at least one neighbour enjoying my attempts to sound like a real shofar blower.  I guess I have another year to practice.   Makes me wish that I had learned to play the trumpet in school instead of the saxophone.  

In any event, it was just our immediate family and we opted for a service  in the house rather than joining the various zoom options or finding an outdoor service that was following the rules.  But we were lucky to have each other and although we missed the rest of our families, it was still a meaningful New Year commemoration.

For  Yom Kippur, we spent a fair bit of time discussing what to do.  We usually run  a small service in Ra'anana, a satellite service for Kehilla Hod v'Hadar (which is in K'far Saba).   In the past, we have not held Kol Nidrei here but have walked to K'far Saba.  We usually then have Shacharit, Mussaf, Minhah and  Neilah in Ra'anana.  

This year, we decided to hold the tefillot outdoors in one of the member family's backyard.  It was too hot to hold a morning service there but we ran a Kol Nidrei service and Minhah/Neilah outside.  We  were all spaced apart, wearing masks and outside.  Just between 11-13 of us.  I think it was my first time leading Kol Nidrei in about 35 years.  So there was a fair bit to prepare.  Neilah was a bit easier since I have been leading it for the past 6 or 7 years I think.  But it worked out  nicely and I am glad we were able to hold this service.

Next up came Sukkot.  We put up our Sukkah - and once again - it was just our immediate family  having meals inside.  The Israeli government has imposed a 500 shekel fine for "attending a meal in a non-family member's sukkah" (defined as someone who doesn't live in the same home).  But I think the fine is really viewed as a 500 shekel fine for those who weren't quick enough (or pre-organized enough) to have a reasonable excuse, when asked, to avoid the fine.  In any case, we have waved the lulav (the palm branch) and the Etrog (the Citron), sat in the Sukkah and enjoyed some nice wine.  After all, it is still the time of "our happiness" and the wine helps.  

The Closure, Covid-19 and Israel

Back to the closure.  The Israeli government has instituted a form of closure - but it is certainly not "hermetic."  In fact, it probably has more holes than a  hunk of swiss cheese.  So police have set  up road blocks all over the place.  But they are only stopping random cars - and then there is a very long list of exceptions to the closure.  The exceptions include:

- going out to buy a lulav and etrog

-going out to perform the mitzvah of Kapparot (until the end of Sukkot) (i.e. swinging a chicken over your head to get rid of your sins;

-buying groceries, essential household goods, medicine etc.,

-exercising (on your own or with a family member from the same house);

- demonstrating (against or for) the government (within 1 km of your house) (I haven't seen too many demonstrating in favour of the current government);

- attending a synagogue service (outdoors, with less than 25 people, within 1 km of your home);

The list goes on and on.  This is just to provide a bit of flavour.  

Overall, there is a sense here in Israel that Covid-19 is really out of control.  We reached close to 10,000 new cases a day last week, in the aftermath of Rosh Hashanah.  We have seen an increasingly high number of seriously ill patients and  a growing number  of fatalities.  Although the government has now imposed a closure as a way to try to deal with it - it is not a well- planned or well thought out response to the pandemic.  It is not being accompanied by steps to assist businesses, business owners and workers that will enable them to manage the economic side of the crisis.  It is being applied universally, all over the country, even though there are clearly pockets of high infection rate areas that probably warrant a different approach from those areas in which the infection rate is low.  It is unclear how this will all play out or what steps the  government will take to try and address the situation.  But we know that the virus can spread at exponential rates.  10,000 new infections per day is quite frightening and is  bound to lead to a great deal of stress on the health care system in Israel, the hospitals and support  systems across the country.  

The Current Israeli Government   

As you may know, the current Israeli government is a coalition government made up of opposing parties, generally quite hostile to each other,  who have been unable to follow the coalition agreement that they put  together themselves.  So, for example, the parties signed an agreement that they would pass a two year budget as one of the first items of business.  But Netanyahu reneged and insisted on a one-year budget only (which would be a budget for the period Jan 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020).  Blue and White continued to insist on a two year  budget.  A stalemate resulted and the decision was put off for two or three months.  As a result, there is no budget for the current year in place.  The government is running on "interim budget measures."  

Netanyahu is looking for an opportunity to pull the plug on this current government and  call an election.  He is hoping that he will be able to piece together a 61+ seat right wing government and get retroactive immunity for himself to clear him of the various criminal charges that he is now facing.  But polls have shown that Netanyahu is losing some support - to the "Yamina" (Real Right) party of Naftali Bennett.  Netanyahu is concerned that he will lose negotiating power and that he may not be able to get the immunity bill or the government that he wants.  So he has now become hesitant to call an election. We therefore have somewhat of a stalemated government that cannot agree on steps to take but is also reluctant to call another election.  This cannot continue for too long.  It is likely that the government will soon crumble and a new election will be announced - perhaps in December or January.

Meanwhile, there are protesters across Israel, spread out and following the new rules of protesting within  1 km of  their  homes.  For the most part, these protests have not been violent and have simply been made up of a wide range of citizens protesting against various aspects  of the operation of this current government under Netanyahu's stewardship.  That was  not  entirely the case on Saturday night in Tel-Aviv, where police on horses and in full riot gear used quite a bit of force to disperse a largely non-violent group of protesters.  

A primary concern is that a Prime Minister facing a range of criminal charges, is trying to make various decisions that could directly impact on his own situation.  For example, which judges to appoint in the courts, which civilian appointments (chief of police) and what to  close versus what to leave open across the country.  During the first closure, in March/April, one of Netanyahu's first steps was to close the courts while leaving many other places open - ostensibly so that he would not have to show up for an impending court appearance.

Many  other  people are protesting the lack of an economic plan, the impact of a closure on so many people without proper support and  the general perception that decisions are being made for political reasons  primarily rather than reasons based on epidemiological necessity or medical and scientific evidence and requirements.

At the same time and to be fair, it is unclear that this large number of protesters will be able to change the political results at the ballot box whenever the next election is held.  In other words, it may well be that they are made up of a large and  vocal minority.  That remains to be seen.

Schadenfreude

I must conclude this post with a comment on Schadenfreude.  

In Israel, I would not say that mask wearing and physical distancing has been viewed as a "left-wing plot" or confined to left segments of society.  In fact, Netanyahu himself has been very clear about wearing a mask,   proper steps to distance himself from others and urging Israelis to follow suggested steps to deal with the virus.  Of course some  of his ministers have not always gone along and  have viewed themselves having a special exemption from the rules that everyone else is urged to follow.  But it is not necessarily a "right-left" fault line. 

In fact one of his ministers is  now the subject of a great deal of press coverage.  Minister Gila Gamliel went to a shul  for Yom Kippur with her father in law - who was under a quarantine order due to exposure to the virus.  Some 28 people who attended services at that shul have now been diagnosed as having the virus.  There are many other similar stories.

As the virus spread in Israel, many in the ultra-Orthodox community refused to close synagogues, wear masks, follow physical distancing guidelines or close learning institutions.  One of the leading ultra-Orthodox rabbis of the Lithuanian ultra-orthodox community, Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky had insisted back in March that synagogues and yeshivas remain open since "cancelling Torah study is more dangerous than the virus."  He is later reported to have told his followers  not to get tested - since positive results would lead to a shut down of their institutions.  In any event, at age 92, he has now been diagnosed with Covid-19 although his condition is apparently improving.   According  to at least one report last week,  more than 40% of all cases of covid-19 are in the ultra-orthodox community.   Rabbi Kanievsky eventually agreed to issue a press release urging followers to adhere to guidelines.  But the virus is rampant  now in his community.

Likewise, of course, it is perhaps not surprising that President Trump has also contracted the virus.  He has held countless rallies  with unmasked supporters, refused (for the most part) to wear a mask himself and belittled those  who are taking the virus seriously.  When the Israeli  delegation flew to Washington to sign a peace deal with the UAE, Trump insisted that the delegation members not wear masks at the ceremony.  There was a heated negotiation but the Israelis largely gave in with some exceptions.  

Similarly, at Trump's Supreme Court nomination announcement last Saturday, the attendees did not wear masks or follow any physical distancing guidelines.  Is it at all surprising that Trump and  so many of his colleagues have been infected?  While we can all hope for the complete and  full recovery of the  President, I think we can also all hope (and pray) that the President will change his tune and start urging Americans to follow some common sense guidelines to minimize their chances of getting infected.  Maybe instead of attacking Biden for wearing a "huge mask," he'll decide to start wearing one  himself.  Regularly.  Assuming he recovers.

Sports Comment

September began with some  cautious optimism on my part cheering for some Toronto  teams.  The Raptors, Maple Leafs and Blue  Jays all had a shot to the make the playoffs and I was hoping for an interesting playoff season.   The Maple Leafs and Blue Jays exited with barely a whimper.  This was especially disappointing for the hockey team which had so much talent and so much promise.  But another year is in the books, which means that Toronto has  now gone 53  years without winning a hockey championship.  Ouch.

The Raptors were hoping to repeat their feat of  winning the NBA championship but without their superstar from last year Kawhi Leonard.  For the Raptors, it was also a premature and disappointing exit.

So what is a Toronto sports fan to do?  Well, the remaining team of interest - which has never one a championship - is the Buffalo Bills (okay, not Toronto but close  enough).   The  Bills are off to a 4-0 start this year and have an excellent young quarterback.  So that is very exciting.  Worth staying up for here in Israel.

Finally - and I think I got this wrong in an earlier blog - the Israel national soccer (football) team will play Scotland on October 8th for a chance to get to the delayed 2020 Euro championship.  If Israel beats Scotland, it will have to play the winner of a Norway-Serbia match on November 12th.  So that match will be this coming Thursday - and it really will be one of the biggest soccer matches for the Israeli side in many years.  I am not normally a huge soccer fan - but this will be an exciting event to watch.

I wish everyone a Chag Sameach (Happy holiday) and Mo'adim L'Simchah (Enjoy these times joy) and a home that the coming year brings us much better news from all across the world.  Keep in touch!