THE JEWISH VOICE AND OPINION Promoting Classical Judaism
October 2014
Vol. 28 • No. 2
Cheshvan 5775
Shifting Alliances: European Boycotts and Washington’s Threats Bring Israel Closer to New Allies Although most supporters of
the Jewish state considered the closed-door discussion between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama to be the most important meeting during the Israeli delegation’s visit to the US last month, many analysts
consider the session between the Israeli leader and India’s new Prime Minister Narenda Modi to be much more significant. In light of boycotts and general growing hostility, often bordering on blatant antisemitism, from former friends in the European Union, and uncertainty,
including warnings and threats of withdrawal of support, from the Obama White House, Israel has increasingly been looking to establish trading partners and cohorts among countries never taken seriously before as potential allies. With growing regularity, Israeli delegations have visited
and received visits from officials in India, China, and Japan, and relations between Israel and Russia, itself the target of boycotts in the wake of turmoil in Ukraine, have made these two countries in the words of some business writers, “new best friends.”
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Bibi and Obama Turned the World “Upside Down;” Bibi with New Peace Partners; Obama with a Nuclear Iran Israeli Prime Minister Ben-
jamin Netanyahu “turned the world upside down” at the United Nations last month. He suggested that for Israel, peace with moderate Muslim-Sunni Arab states should precede a two-state solution with the Palestinians. Mark Langfan, a security analyst who is now national chairman of Americans for a Safe Israel, suggested exactly the same scenario more than six months ago. “At the UN, Netanyahu offered an historic reversal of the previous order of things. In his speech, he explicitly mentioned Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan as new Israeli
Jerusalem, Riyadh, and Cairo: New Middle East Allies allies. Instead of ‘peace with the Palestinians first,’ which is the Obama administration’s preferred order, Netanyahu announced a fundamentally
Protesting the Met......................................3 Mayanei Hayeshua.....................................5 Kol Ami: War on ISIS?............................ 6 The Current Crisis............................... 7 Israel and India..................................12 Israel and China.................................16
different approach, that is: Peace with these Arab allies first, and, after peace with them is established, peace with the Palestinians could
be pursued. It is clear that Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the UAE, and Egypt share underlying common enemies and dangers,” said Mr. Langfan. Mr. Langfan made his remarks after Mr. Netanyahu finished speaking at the UN on September 29. In Their Best Interests In his talk, Mr. Netanyahu distanced himself from Israel’s failed efforts with the Palestinian Authority to build peaceful relations between Israel and its neighbors. He stressed that the rise of Sunni extremist forces and the Iranian nuclear threat have persuaded the major moderate Sunni Arab states to work with
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Inside the Voice Israel and Japan.........................................18 Israel and Russia......................................19 The Log..........................................................20 School Open Houses.......................23 New Classes This Month................25 Mazal Tov.............................................26
Specials..........................................................27 Ess Gezint: Jazzy Vegetarian.................30 Index of Advertisers ........................33 Honor the Professional...................35 Letters to the Editor ........................36 Walk to Shul........................................39
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Mayanei Hayeshua: Good Medicine and Good Halacha By Anna Harwood and Daniela Berkowitz Consistent with the Jewish state’s national statistics, one in four Israelis, including members of the hareidi community will experience mental illness at one point or another over a lifetime. Psychologists agree that mental illness can strike anyone at any time. It can manifest as a period of bleak depression, unmanageable anxiety, or with symptoms of traumatic stress. According to Nechami Samuel, a hareidi psychotherapist affiliated with Mayanei Hayeshua Medical Center (MHMC) in Bnei Brak, the subject of men-
tal illness, which was once taboo in ultra-Orthodox circles, is now being discussed and debated by rabbis. Established in 1990, MHMC is now ranked 21st largest of Israel’s nearly 50 hospitals. Its policies are based on halacha, under guidance from leading rabbis and scholars on Jewish medical ethics. MHMC was recently designated by the Israeli Ministry of Health as an acute stress treatment center for Bnei Brak. Especially in times of national disaster, sites like MHMC keep those with emotional issues from rushing to regular emergency rooms. Working with Bnei Brak’s gedolim, the medical center is
leading what has been called a revolution in reducing the stigma of mental illness. “Illness of the Soul” The job has not been easy. According to Dr. Samuel, it doesn’t help that, in Hebrew, mental illness is called “machalat nefesh,” or “illness of the soul.” “This made our task even harder. We had to begin by redefining mental illness as a sickness to be treated by medical professionals, and not a defective neshomo, or soul,” he said. According to Dr. Samuel, in the hareidi community, sufferers often carry the burden of self-blame, failure, and deep shame.
“They hear loshon hara branding people as ‘mad’ or ‘crazy,’ and so, too, label themselves with these derogatory terms,” he said. Red-Alert Stress Yosef, an 18-year-old from Bnei Brak, is an example. During the recent conflict in Gaza, when sirens wailed across Bnei Brak and people rushed to shelters or safe rooms, Yosef stood paralyzed with anxiety, unable to run to the shelter or move from his parents’ apartment. He had not left his home since the military operation began. He refused to attend yeshiva, and it took him hours to fall asleep each night.
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zvilapian@gmail.com Tel. +972-2-624-0855 (office) Fax: +972-2-624-8818 Toll free UK: 0800-098-8428 US: 1-800-376-1803 • www.zvilapian.com THE JEWISH VOICE AND OPINION, Inc. © 2014; Publisher and Editor-in-Chief: Susan L. Rosenbluth Phone (201)569-2845 Managing Editor: Sharon Beck, Advertising: Rivkie Stern The Jewish Voice & Opinion (ISSN # 1527-3814), POB 8097, Englewood, NJ 07631, is published monthly in coordination with The Central Committee for Israel. A one-year subscription is $25. Periodicals postage is paid at Englewood, NJ and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the Jewish Voice and Opinion, POB 8097, Englewood, NJ 07631. All advertising in the Jewish Voice and Opinion must conform to the standards of the Orthodox Rabbinic kashruth. Editorial content reflects the views of the writer and not necessarily any other group. The Jewish Voice is not responsible for typographical errors.
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Kol Ami: War with ISIS? The latest confrontation between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu indicated that despite theUS’s new military confrontation with the Islamic State (others call it ISIS or ISIL), Washington has not yet recognized the similarity between its own situation and that faced by Israel. At
Obama has no vested interest in the welfare of Israel. He thinks he is doing what is good for America, but he doesn’t realize that means standing up for Israel. Gila Zelinger Monsey, NY
Obama’s position on ISIS will not affect the way he feels about Israel. If he were to need Israel for something, such as help with advanced technology or ground in order to wage more effective war against ISIS, he might change his tone, but this would not change his basic antagonism towards the Jewish state. Johanna Bitton Fort Lee, NJ
a recent One Family event in New York, held to raise awareness of the needs of victims of terrorism and their families in Israel, the question was: Do you think, over time, the war with ISIS will change the way the Obama administration views Israel and its struggle against Islamist extremism and violence? Y
It is hard for someone like Obama, who historically has shown a visceral dislike of American power to execute this war against ISIS correctly. This ambiguity means he won’t change his feelings for our one reliable ally in the Middle East. He is attacking ISIS for political reasons, not because he knows it’s the right thing to do. Bob Magee New York, NY
The fact that the US and Israel are now facing essentially the same enemy might open Obama’s eyes and persuade him to see the truth. Aviva Gottesman Herzliya, Israel
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The Current Crisis: “Even in Laughter, the Heart Can Ache” goods followed by a breakoff of diplomatic relations. We don’t know why al-Sisi is so upset. Being accused of a “war crime” may actually be a term of endearment in the Arab world. Last month, Jibril Rajoub, head of the PA Sports Authority and Deputy Speaker of the Fatah Central Committee, called a soccer game between Israelis and Palestinians, which was organized by the Shimon Peres Center for Peace, a “crime against humanity.” Before the game, Peres told the children, “Don’t play against each other, but with each other.” After the game, Rajoub declared that “any activity of normalization in sports with the Zionist enemy is a crime against humanity.” One would think Erdogan and al-Sisi could get together on at least one issue: They both dislike the “Islamic State.” AlSisi sees them as out-of-control hooligans bent on chaos. Erdogan doesn’t mind that aspect of IS (as long as they stay out of Turkey), nor is he chagrined at IS’s penchant for beheadings. Erdogan’s gripe is IS’s refusal to limit their head-severing activities to non-Muslims. In fact, some 49 Turkish nationals are currently in IS custody, and Erdogan has no idea if or when their severed heads will be sent back to Ankara. “These 49 Turkish citizens are all Muslims,” Erdogan whined last month. “An approach like this to these people has made us upset.” Now that’s a display of power against IS that his pal Mr. Obama envies, no doubt. Chag Sameach, everyone. SLR
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At the end of September, it was reported that one of the Turkish peace activists who attacked IDF soldiers onboard the Mavi Marmara flotilla in 2010 had been killed by troops as he fought alongside Islamist terrorists. It wasn’t an Israeli bullet that felled 40-year-old Bulent Alniak. He met his end during a US airstrike in Syria against the “Islamic State” terrorist group. Although Israel was found to have acted entirely legally in the Mavi Marmara incident, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan demands that the Jewish state fork over money and apologies, and stage a public disembowelment to atone for the episode. Now perhaps, Erdogan will make the same demands of President Barack Obama, who not so long ago announced that the Turkish president was his favorite foreign leader. Erdogan made clear last month he was seeking out new companions, and was especially interested in making friends with the seven top Muslim Brotherhood figures who were being evicted from Qatar under pressure from Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. You see, Erdogan kinda likes the brothers, which is just one more thing he has in common with his friend in the White House: Both Erdogan and Obama favored Mohammed Morsi, the Muslim Brotherhood representative who served as Egypt’s president until he was ousted by General al-Sisi. Now, Erdogan accuses al-Sisi of everything from “illegitimacy” to “terrorism” and “crimes against humanity.” Officials in Egypt are demanding an immediate, total boycott of Turkish
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Mayanei Hayeshua In the months leading up to the outbreak of Operation Protective Edge, Yosef experienced moments when his heart would race. He would feel his chest constricting, and he thought he was about to faint. He stopped eating lunch and dinner with his friends and classmates and mostly kept to himself until he could rush home and hide in his room. When sirens in Bnei Brak signaled rockets flying overhead, his symptoms worsened. Recognizing that the young man needed professional help urgently, his rebbe counseled his parents, but they feared seeking care from the nearby psychiatric hospitals which were a world away in secular Tel Aviv. Rabbinic Referrals Unlike Israel’s other communities, before MHMC took as its goal an effort to deal specifically with trauma in the case of national disasters, Torah-observant Israelis like
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Yosef and his family had nowhere to turn. “People in our community don’t turn to medical professionals in these situations. They turn to their rabbis for help with issues like shalom bayis,” said Dr. Samuel. However, he said, now that awareness of MHMC’s services is growing, rabbis have begun to refer families to the center. In fact, he said, the rabbis, too, are seeking professional guidance in matters concerning their communities. Huge Transformation According to Dr. Samuel, this is proof that MHMC’s hard work is making a difference. “The last few years have seen a huge transformation in our community’s approach to mental health,” said Dr. Samuel. And, he said, this revolution did not come a moment too soon. Within the first day of Operation Protective Edge, sirens began to wail in Bnei
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Brak, and MHMC saw an influx in cases. “For some, anxiety disorders get worse, and people who have had no prior anxiety issues may develop disorders because of the situation,” said Dr. Michael Bunzel, MHMC’s chief psychiatrist. Understanding the Patients While no one disputed the urgency of making mental-health care accessible to all Israelis, professionals at MHMC recognized this could be accomplished only by those who understand the recipients’ needs. Basing service on misguided assumptions and age-old stigmas would not suffice. It is generally recognized that there is a massive lack of information between secular and religious Israelis. For most secular Israelis, who constitute the majority of the population, encounters of any sort with religious Jews are few and far between. Those that do occur are generally steeped with unfounded, and often unfair, assumptions. Before assuming his current position as manager of MHMC’s Psychiatric Outpatient Clinics, Shimon Goloveizitz worked at a health center in central Israel. He recalled the disaster that ensued when his former center decided to hold an evening specifically for hareidim who, they had discovered, “never came to any of their health-promotion events.” “The center chose a night during Chanukah, brought in glatt kosher food, and entertained their ‘respected’ visitors with a female singer and an inappropriately dressed dancer. They simply did not understand,” he said. Frum Backgrounds MHMC offers child and adult outpatient and daycare psychiatric services, and it struggles to meet the high demands of the underserved hareidi population.
For starters, every member of the therapy staff has a frum background, which is compatible with the majority of MHMC’s patients who come from hareidi and religious-Zionist communities. “This permits a unique level of mutual understanding based on a shared language and knowledge of basic halacha,” said Mr. Goloveizitz. “There is an environment of religious respect which is unique to our institution.” He explained that without this respect and shared background, too many mistakes are possible. “Even in standard diagnostic tests, a child can be diagnosed with low intelligence because he doesn’t know answers associated with a secular education. A yeshiva student can be diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder because his observant lifestyle fits the criterion for this problem. We approach each patient with a unique understanding, which allows us to work with them to understand what is symptomatic of the disorder and which is not,” said Mr. Goloveizitz. New Center MHMC is currently halfway through construction of a state-of-the-art psychiatric facility, which will be the first in Israel dedicated solely to serving the religious population. Its goal is to increase greatly the available treatment options. The new facility will house both in- and outpatient services and expects to become a center of excellence for Israeli mental-health care. “There is no doubt that there is a need for an inpatient facility for when a person is a danger to himself or others, but our goal is not to be a sanitarium. We want to give people the tools to reintegrate back into society as speedily as possible,
http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com and, for that, we need to build a welcoming environment in which religious individuals, such as Yosef, will feel comfortable receiving treatment,” said Dr. Samuel. New Treatments In addition to offering a range of treatments never before available to the hareidi community, such as art therapy, psychodrama, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), psychodynamic therapy, and family therapy, MHMC is now adding cuttingedge treatment for serious mental
October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
illnesses, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. According to Dr. Samuel, the center’s mission is to help patients develop control over their disorders and illnesses to achieve individualized treatment goals. “We see patients coming to us so weak and worn down by self-stigma developed through years of secrecy and shame. It is amazing to see, through the questions, discussions, and debates that take place in groups, just how much these people have
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been through and how much of a relief it is for them to gain control and responsibility over their own conditions,” he said. Family Therapy British-born Rabbi Chaim Fachler, MHMC’s director of international fundraising, has a personal interest in seeing the new psychiatric facility reach completion. The facility’s Family Therapy Unit, which will help families deal with the impact of mental illness, will be dedicated to the memory of his brother, Rabbi Morde-
chai Fachler, z”l. Rabbi Chaim Fachler described his late brother as a communal rabbi, scholar, and teacher, as well as gifted counselor and therapist who worked on projects in South Africa and the UK that were specifically designed for families in the Jewish community who could not access national mental-health services. Therapists recognize that mental illness often affects several children in a single family. MHMC’s new Family Therapy
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Mayanei Hayeshua Unit will seek to halt familial breakdown in such cases. “The new Mordechai Fachler Family Therapy Unit will allow the religious community in Israel to receive the highest standard of mental-health care,” said Rabbi Chaim Fachler. The new unit will operate at no cost to the patient or the families, and no referral will be necessary. The goal, according to Rabbi Fachler, is to make it “the first port of call for families in distress.” Women’s Health Mental health is not the only area in which MHMC is impacting its community. It is also striving to serve as a lighthouse for educating the hareidi community about women’s preventive health needs, including pre-natal and maternity services, fertility issues, and cancer screening. Last year, because of its location in the middle of one of Israel’s densest hareidi communities, MHMC had the third highest number of births in the Jewish state. The hospital sees at least 1,000 births each month, nearly all of them to Jewish families. According to Dr. Benny Chayen, MHMC’s director of obstetrics and gynecology, the medical center’s commitment to the sanctity of Jewish life appeals to Bnei Brak’s residents. “It is very common for our staff to deliver women who have 10, 12, or even 14 children,” said Dr. Chayen.
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Recently, the hospital celebrated the birth of twins—the family’s 19th and 20th children. All the mother’s previous children were also born at MHMC. “This is what we mean by a family hospital,” said Shulamit Nahon, associate director of MHMC’s foreign relations and resource development. Warm and Proficient The hospital has worked hard to develop its reputation for patient-centered care, especially for expectant and new mothers. The hospital itself is light and airy, modest, quiet, and charming. Its two post-partum floors house 120 patients at any given time, while its high-risk unit holds 31. Its 13 delivery rooms were all recently renovated to include ceiling skylights and state-ofthe-art monitoring equipment. The hospital has a dedicated women’s health emergency room, neonatal unit, and neonatal intensive care unit for premature infants. There are currently plans to build a third maternity ward to meet the rising demand and rapid expansion of MHMC’s specialized services. Women’s Needs and Requests While most of its patients are religious, there is evidence that secular families from across central Israel are interested in MHMC’s quality care and comfortable environment. This past summer, Neta
Mali, a birthing coach from a nearby Tel Aviv suburb, wrote on a popular Israeli news blog about how the services at MHMC eased her worries prior to giving birth to her third baby. Ms. Mali said she was “devastated” when doctors at other hospitals told her she would need a caesarian section. Physicians at MHMC supported her wish to deliver her son vaginally. According to Dr. Chayen, Ms. Mali’s story was not unusual. “When suitable, using care and technique, we are able to carefully deliver many women naturally who have had one or two prior C-section deliveries. Not all women are able to do this, but our staff is dedicated to prioritizing women’s health needs and requests,” he said. In Israel, more than 20 percent of births are delivered by caesarean section as opposed MHMC, where only 9.5 percent of births are C-sections. Residents of Bnei Brak often celebrate MHMC’s “family feeling” and relaxed ambience. Chana Yair, 25, said giving birth to her first child at MHMC was “a heavenly experience.” Although she remembered “screaming in pain,” she said the staff was “patient and relaxed with me” and she felt she was “in good hands.” Education Additionally, the hospital offers pre-birth courses for women and separate sessions for men with doctors and rabbis. MHMC has a fertility clinic on site where families can receive counseling and support if treatment is suggested. This same dedication extends to other women’s health needs. Last May, MHMC held a free seminar which attracted some 40 local women to hear a panel of female doctors discuss cancer screenings, genetic testing, and other related topics.
“Because we are located in an insular place, we feel obligated to educate the community and provide as many resources as possible to women who have never been taught about health and wellness issues,” said Ms. Nahon, who also coordinates the hospital’s free women’s screening and wellness programs. She stressed that even advertising for these programs is conducted discreetly, often depending solely on word of mouth so as not to offend Bnei Brak’s cultural sensitivities. For example, a free cancer-screening program to promote early detection is held in an inconspicuous building near MHMC in order to protect the modesty of patients. If the results of the quick, cutting-edge tests reveal anything questionable, the patient is called to undergo a biopsy at MHMC. Patients who need further care are referred to one of Israel’s oncology centers. To date, hundreds of Bnei Brak women have participated in these screenings. “Sanctity of Life” Despite its efforts to reach out to leading rabbis for support and approval for its programs, MHMC has faced some resistance. “We take great care to show women that necessary and potentially life-saving tests are allowed and recommended by community leaders. We educate and hope that this spreads from mother to daughter and to neighbors and friends,” said Ms. Nahon. MHMC’s staff believes its unique “sanctity of life” model has produced positive results, both in terms of medical care and health education. “The philosophy of good medicine and good halacha go hand-in-hand beautifully at Mayanei Hayeshua,” said Dr. Chayen. Y
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India: The New Prime Minister Is “Israel’s best friend in South Asia.” When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu and Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi met during the opening session of the UN last month, it was the first such encounter between Israeli and Indian premiers in more than a decade, and it paved the way for a more detailed discussion between India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Israeli counterpart, Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman. In 2003, while serving as Chief Minister of Gurajat Province, a highly industrialized region of northwest India with a population of about 60 million, Mr. Modi visited Israel. The trip offered him “a special first-hand insight into Israel’s security situation,” he said. Ms. Swaraj visited Israel in 2008 and has served as chairwoman of the Indo-Israeli Parliamentary Friendship Group.
Israel’s Partners
The issues that were discussed by the Israeli and Indian leaders are considered key in building a bilateral relationship: trade and greater military cooperation against the joint security threat posed by growing militant Islam; the need for India to reduce its oil dependence on Iran, thereby removing an important source of revenue that Iran uses to fund worldwide terror operations; the hope that the two countries will become sources of support for one another in international arenas, most notably at the UN, where Israel has already called for India to become a member of the Security Council; and an increase in the number of high-level meetings in Jerusalem and New Delhi. Iranian Oil Despite Israel’s lobbying efforts with many countries to isolate Tehran, in an effort
to force Iran to curb its nuclear program, India has remained one of the largest importers of Iranian oil. In 2013, under pressure from the US and other Western countries, India cut crude imports from Iran by 40 percent. When Iran began negotiating on the nuclear issue with the US and other Western countries last year and an interim deal easing financial restrictions on Iran was signed, trade between Iran and India increased again. Despite their differences on Iran, India has become one of Israel’s most important trade partners in the defense sector. In August, a report listed Israel as India’s fourth-largest supplier of arms. According to Globes, the Israeli economic news site, New Delhi spent $533 million on Israeli arms over the last three years, making India the top export target of Israel’s defense industries.
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In all these countries, Israel is finding supporters not only from officials, but from ordinary citizens, especially those who have begun to benefit from relations between their own governments and the Jewish state. Friends on the Street For example, many observers say there are growing positive feelings towards Israel on the Indian street. Indians are said to admire Israel’s successful entrepreneurial and innovative breakthroughs. While Israel is a miniscule fraction of India’s size and population, Indians increasingly
view Israel as an ally in their own battle against Islamist extremism. In mainland China, so-called netizens—citizens who frequently use the Internet—seem inclined to support Israel as opposed to the Palestinians. Comments on websites emphasize the Chinese deep disgust for extremism and terrorism. Some of these comments attack those who oppose Israel’s military operations as terrorist sympathizers. For the most part, it appears that those who oppose Israel on Chinese websites are Muslims. The situation with Russia is more
complex. Despite Moscow’s support for Iran and the Islamic Republic’s Syrian ally, President Bashar Assad, the solidity of the relationship between Israel and Russia has resulted in an expansion of trade and support between two countries as well as an abundance of constructive dialogue. Shifting Alliances While Israel has traditionally been very Euro- and US-centric in terms of its trade and foreign concerns, the Netanyahu government recognizes that, in a global world in which alliances are constantly shifting, there is reason for Israel to seek out opportunities in Asia, which, for many years, were either neglected or under-appreciated. “Today, Jerusalem understands and fully appreciates that there is increasing demand and admiration for the Jewish state’s technology and innovation, and it is keen to capitalize on that,” said Arsen Ostrovsky, an Israeli journalist who specializes in West Asia policy issues. According to Mr. Arsen, the India-Israel relationship is based on mutual interest and benefit, especially in the field of technology, “where Israeli high-tech and innovation meets India’s vast labor force of highly educated, tech-savvy, Englishspeaking workers.” “It is, quite literally, a high-tech marriage made in heaven,” he said. S.L.R.
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
The Jewish Voice and Opinion
In fact, just as Messrs Netanyahu and Modi were meeting in New York, a $143 million deal was finalized for the Indian Navy to purchase an advanced Israeli missile from the Jewish state’s leading defense company, Rafael. Security and Defense The key to the growing India-Israel relationship lies in security and defense. In the early 2000s, the Indian government allocated tens of billions of dollars to its army in order to implement a modernization program. As part of that program, Israel has sold India radar and surveillance systems as well as electronic components for military aircraft. The Jewish state has also helped India defend itself through counter-terrorism training. In November 2011, India’s elite Cobra Commando unit bought more than 1,000 Israeli X-95 assault rifles for use in counter-insurgency operations. That year, India also placed orders for four advanced Israeli Phalcon AWACS (airborne warning and control systems) planes which are capable of detecting hostile aircraft, cruise missiles, and other incoming aerial threats far earlier than ground-based radar can. In 2012, in the wake of then-Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna’s visit to Israel, New Delhi and Jerusalem stepped up their counter-terrorism coordination strategy. Mr. Krishna met with top Israeli government and defense leaders and agreed to boost the two countries’ counter-terrorism cooperation, which led to their signing an Extradition Treaty and a pact on Transfer of Sentenced Prisoners. Billions of Dollars in Trade During a trip to Israel this past summer, Indian Defense Secretary Radha Krishna Kathur outlined his goals for Indo-Israeli defense cooperation. He ordered a number of Israeli Sword Fish ground radar trackers, precision-guided artillery, missiles, and two more AWACS units. He said he wanted to learn as much as possible about the delivery of longrange anti-missile defense batteries for deployment aboard Indian naval ships. Bilateral trade between India and Israel stood at $15.25 billion in 2013-2014, according to the Mumbai-based Economic Times. This year alone it is more than $6 billion, up from just $200 million in 1992, when India first formally recognized the Jewish state. If the current trajectory continues, two-way trade between Israel
and India by 2020 will surpass $10 bilon the other hand, linked itself to the US lion annually. and Western Europe. Years without Relations Despite India’s public coolness toAlthough India and Israel gained their inwards Israel until the late 1980s, there dependence from the United Kingdom within were always bilateral activities between months of each other in 1948, India did not the two countries. For example, as early establish relations with Israel until 1992. Most as 1950, India extended de-jure recognianalysts blame the delay on India’s concerns tion to Israel, allowing the Jewish state about its significant Muslim minority and its to maintain a consulate in Mumbai to need as a developing nation to preserve relafacilitate the voluntary immigration of tions with wealthy Arab states. There were thousands of Indian Jews to Israel. fears that building a relationship with Israel Over the years, thousands of Indians might somehow radicalize India’s more than have traveled to Israel for special programs 100 million Muslim citizens. and training in agricultural technology As a leader for nearly 40 years in and community development. ZIONIST ORGANIZATION the so-called Non-Aligned Movement, When necessary, Israel provided OFwith AMERICA India maintained close relations the humanitarian relief for India. Following FOUNDED 1897 continued on page 14 Arab world and the Soviet Union. Israel, JACOB AND LIBBY GOODMAN ZOA HOUSE 4 EAST 34TH STREET NEW YORK, NY 10016 ZIONIST ORGANIZATION OF AMERICA
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
Israel’s Partners: India a devastating earthquake in 2001, Israel sent an IDF emergency-response team to India for two weeks to provide humanitarian relief and treatment for victims. Bulwark against Terrorism Positive relations between Israel and India began blossoming in earnest in 1999, when Mr. Modi’s faction, the politically conservative pro-Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), won leadership of the government. BJP repeatedly praised Israel as a bulwark against Islamist terrorism. When then-Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon visited India in 2003, he was greeted by a statement from the Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh movement: “The entire world acknowledges that Israel has effectively and ruthlessly countered terror in the Middle East. Since India and Israel are both fighting a war against terrorism, we should learn a lesson or two from them.” In 2001, when Mr. Modi was elected chief minister of India’s Gurajat Province, he undertook to follow his party’s policy of courting political and trade links with Israel. The International Business Times said this policy “turned into a financial bonanza for Gujarat” as Israel poured billions of investment dollars into the province. As a result, Mr. Modi earned the
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reputation as “Israel’s best friend in South Asia.” In 2002, an anti-Muslim riot in the area resulted in the death of 1,000 people. Although Mr. Modi was never charged with any wrongdoing, the US denied him a visa in 2005. His visit to Israel came one year later. Frequent Visits During Mr. Modi’s tenure as chief minister, delegations from Israel and Gujarat became frequent visitors in each other’s countries and cooperative efforts expanded in the fields of agriculture, industrial research and development (R&D), solar and thermal power, pharmaceuticals, water recycling, and water desalination. In 2002, the head of Israel’s space research program, Col. Avi Hareven, and the head of the Indian Space Research Organization, Dr. K. Kasturirangan, signed an agreement on space cooperation between the two countries. In 2006, Israeli and Indian ministers of agriculture signed a long-term cooperation and training deal. This led in 2008 to a $50 million shared agriculture fund and the IsraeliIndian Agriculture Cooperation Agreement, which focuses on dairy, farming technology, and micro-irrigation. In 2011, after more than
a decade of joint research, development, and shared investment in the countries’ respective water technologies, the two countries signed an agreement to foster cooperation on urban water systems. Centers of Excellence In May 2013, Israel announced a new initiative to help India diversify and increase its yield of fruit and vegetable crops. Offering India advanced technology and expertise, Israel is helping India establish Centers of Excellence across the country, focusing on specific fruit and vegetable crops. By March 2014, ten such Centers of Excellence were operating throughout India, offering free training for farmers in efficient agricultural techniques using Israeli technological proficiency in practices like vertical farming, drip irrigation, and soil solarization. The centers focus on growing mangoes, pomegranates, and citrus fruits, and there are plans to expand to include flowers, bee keeping, and dairy farming. There are expected to be 28 Centers of Excellence throughout India by 2015. Water Management In June 2013, a delegation of 16 high-ranking Indian officials of the water authorities of Rajasthan, Karnataka, Goa, and Haryana came to Israel to learn about the Jewish state’s wastewater treatment plants, meet with Israel’s leading environmentalists and agronomists, and listen to explanations of some of the newest technologies for water management. Rajeev Jain, an assistant engineer in Rajasthan’s water department, recognized that the “major crisis of water” faced by India was almost identical to the one overcome by Israel. “Israel is an expert at successfully implementing tech-
nologies that we aren’t able to implement. So we came here to understand which technologies they use and how they manage these things,” said Mr. Jain. Conservative Victory In 2004, Israeli-Indian relations experienced a blip when a left-leaning Congress was elected in India, and the government began distancing itself from the Jewish state and supporting pro-Palestinian policies. This past May, Mr. Modi swept into power by convincing voters that he was the one leader capable of waking the nation of 1.2 billion people from its economic doldrums. One of his first congratulatory calls upon winning office came from Mr. Netanyahu who used the opportunity to express his admiration for Indian democracy. It was during that phone call that the two leaders agreed to deepen cooperation between their two countries. Turn-Around on the PA Asked by reporters in New York if he had met with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, Mr. Modi said no and added that he had no plans to do so. This seems to represent a complete turn-about from India’s previous pro-Palestinian positions to a more nuanced stance. For example, while India voted against Israel this past summer at the UN Human Rights Council during the conflict in Gaza, the Indian government refused to condemn Israel’s actions, stressing that the Jewish state had a right to defend itself against Hamas’s rockets. In previous years, Indian prime ministers used their opening speeches to the UN General Assembly to
http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com refer sympathetically to the “Palestinian struggle.” Even in 2013, when India’s shift in public statements was already apparent, former Prime Minister Mahmohan Singh referred positively to the Palestinians’ claim to eastern Jerusalem as their capital. This year, however, Mr. Modi said nothing about the Palestinians. Cyber-Defense Mr. Netanyahu began the meeting in New York with Mr. Modi by suggesting that the two countries cooperate in technological innovations, with an emphasis on developments in the fields of agriculture and water desalination. Mr. Netanyahu then updated Mr. Modi about his decision to establish an Israeli national cyber authority. India is building its own cyber-defense system in collaboration with the US and UK. After the premiers’ meeting, it was announced that Is-
October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
rael and India intend to hold joint meetings on the issue. The joint Israel-India cyber-defense initiative would work alongside the Israel National Cyber Bureau, a unit of the Prime Minister’s Office established in 2012 and charged with analyzing cyber attacks or potential threats. Two Democracies Inviting Mr. Modi to visit the Jewish state once again, Mr. Netanyahu welcomed the “opportunity for Israel and India to expand further our relationship.” “We represent two old peoples, among the oldest civilizations on earth, but we’re also two democracies, proud of our rich traditions and eager to seize the future. I believe that if we work together, we can do so with benefits to both our peoples and well beyond. We’re very excited about greater and greater ties with India. The sky’s the limit,” said Mr. Netanyahu.
The Jewish Voice and Opinion
Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. India is the world’s largest democracy. Mr. Modi, who invited Mr. Netanyahu to visit India, agreed with his Israeli counterpart, saying that the two countries “have great relations historically.” When Mr. Modi comes to Israel again, it will be a first for a sitting Indian prime minister. No Antisemitism During the meeting, Mr. Modi called India “the only country in which antisemitism has never been allowed to come up.” “In India, Jews have never suffered and have lived as an integral part of our society,” said Mr. Modi, adding that at times Hebrew was taught in the universities in Mumbai and one of the mayors of the city, Elijah Moses Raspurkat, who served in the 1930s, was Jewish. Although neither Mr. Netanyahu nor Mr. Modi mentioned it, both were keenly
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aware of the episode in 2008 when Mumbai’s Chabad Center, among other sites in the city, was targeted by Muslim extremists. Since that attack, India’s handful of Jewish institutions are guarded by armed troops. Before 1948, Mumbai was home to a bustling Jewish community, most of whom had antecedents in Baghdad. When Israel was founded in 1948, most left for the new Jewish state. Today, there are still a few thousand Jews in Mumbai. Arsen Ostrovsky, an Israeli journalist who specializes in West Asia policy issues, said it is important to remember that India “has not been immune to terror attacks by Islamic extremists.” Mr. Ostrovsky predicted that Mr. Modi, who “understands only too well the dangers posed by militant Islam, will appreciate the security threat experienced by Israel.” S.L.R.
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
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The Top Foreign Investor in Israel’s Economy Is…China Today, the top foreign in-
vestor in Israel’s economy is no longer North America or Europe, but China—a development that does not bother Israelis one bit. “For the Chinese, Israel is a great source of technology to help them develop their economy, while for us in Israel, it’s a fantastic opportunity to gain entry into the biggest market in the world,” said Edouard Cukierman, an Israeli businessman involved in the bilateral commerce between Israel and China. He said many Israelis— private citizens and politicians alike—tend to regard the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as a sort of “big brother,” a partner with a burgeoning economy and great prospects for growth. Terror Attacks Like Israel, China, too, has suffered terror attacks by Muslim extremists, leading to a greater awareness and appreciation throughout the country of the struggle faced by the Jewish state, according to Mu Chunshan, a Beijing-based journalist who has investigated the influence of foreign media in shaping China’s image. According to Mr. Mu, many Chinese leaders, as well as ordinary citizens, are concerned about Chinese Muslims becoming “Middle Easternized,” adopting extremist
ideology and believing that the Middle East is their true home. For decades, China made no secret of its position in the Middle East conflict. It sided with the Palestinians. Former Chinese leaders, such as Mao Zedong and Deng Ziaoping, threw their unconditional support behind the late PLO leader Yasir Arafat, going so far as to call the terrorist “an old friend of the Chinese people.” China was a source of funds and weapons for the PLO. Despite the fact that Israel was the first country in the Middle East to recognize the PRC, there were no diplomatic relations between Israel and China until 1992. Defense Technology The seeds for rapprochement with Israel were sown in the 1980s, when China began to abandon its ideologically driven diplomacy as part of the process to reform and open the government and society. As a result, China drew closer to Israel. According to Mr. Mu, the reason was simple: “Israel’s defense technology was attractive to China. Israel’s advanced technology and investments were a good match with China’s developmental needs.” Today, Chinese-Israeli military exchanges and economic cooperation have become pillars of the countries’ bilateral relations. And, on the issue of
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the Palestinians’ conflict with Israel, China has become neutral. “The Palestinians were not happy, but they had no choice,” said Mr. Mu. 1,000 Chinese in Israel Last May, during a confluence of trade shows and government-sponsored events, there were nearly 1,000 Chinese business people in Israel at the same time. Among the meetings was a first-ever Israel-China Economic Summit. For nearly all the Chinese participants, it represented a first visit to the Jewish state. They not only took time to sightsee, but shopped for technologies they could take home to help solve China’s many problems. According to Chen Gang, mayor of Xiang He City, a summit participant located just outside Beijing, a great deal of the technology needed by China revolves around environmental issues, an area in which Israel excels. “I knew Israel was a leader in technology, and I also knew its accomplishments were out of character for a nation of its size—with the kind of technology you would expect to find only in bigger countries— but you have to come to Israel to understand what the term ‘Start-Up Nation’ really means. Words alone cannot express the level and entrepreneurship in Israel,” he said. Two-Way Street According to Mr. Cukierman, Israelis are thrilled with being able to export technology and systems to China. “It’s a two-way street. As much as we are helping them, they are helping us,” he said. Mr. Cukierman is chairman of Cukierman and Co. Investment House and managing partner of the Catalyst Investment Funds, a joint fund
managed by Israel’s Catalyst Equity Management and Hong Kong-based China Everbright Ltd. The fund focuses on investments in agriculture, industrials/manufacture, health care, water, energy, technology, media, and telecommunication, all chosen for their potential success in the Chinese market. The fund secured more than $100 million at its first closing in March 2014 and is targeting $200-$300 million for its final closing. Similarities Nathan Low, an IsraeliAmerican investment banker whose ZionTech Angels group has paired dozens of Israeli companies with foreign investors, appreciates the benefits of doing business with China. An observant Jew, Mr. Low sees many similarities between Chinese and Jewish culture and traditions. Both are 5,000 years old, venerate elders, love books, and consider the family as a central value. Mr. Low, who has been studying things Chinese since he was a child, has engaged a Mandarin-language tutor to teach his eight children twice a week. He sees Israeli technology as a way to ameliorate China’s problems, particularly food and water shortages, freight logistics, bus schedules, pollution, and health care. “China and Israel are destined for partnership,” said Mr. Low. “China has the money and the markets. Israel has the products to solve problems and address opportunities.” “Fertigation” Just last month, the Israeli company, AutoAgronom, announced it had been bought by the Chinese conglomerate Yuanda Enterprise Group for about $20 million. AutoAgronom, based on Kibbutz
http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com Ramat Hashofet in northern Israel, will continue its product development in the Jewish state while Yuanda will market the products and services in China and beyond. AutoAgronom is likely to open a facility in China also. Among AutoAgronom’s innovations is combining drip irrigation—Israel’s water saving technology—and fertilization. The process, called “fertigation,” uses sensors attached to plant roots and embedded in the ground to examine and optimize soil conditions, water and nutrient levels, pest conditions, and more. For China, with almost 1.5 billion mouths to feed, AutoAgronom’s ability to save water is worth its weight in gold. Known for wasting water and relying on surface irrigation for crops, China is currently experiencing its worst draught in 60 years. But agriculture is not the only field in which Israelis and Chinese have found common ground. In early September, health officials
October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
in China approved a spine surgery system developed in Israel by Mazor Robotics, a Caesareabased company that develops technology to help surgeons perform spine surgery with greater accuracy. Mazor Robotics’ Renaissance 3D, an imaging robotic surgery system, was introduced in the US three years ago, and now will be installed in hundreds of hospitals in China. Majority Supports Israel These Israeli innovations have made a huge impact on the Chinese people. According to Mr. Mu, while the Chinese government stayed mute on the violence in Gaza last summer, the Chinese people took to online forums to voice their opinions. On one side, he said, there was the minority opinion, made up mostly of Muslims, who condemned Israel. But they were vastly outnumbered by Chinese who support Israel, he said. “The online debate suggests that China has a vested interest in the Israel-Palestinian
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conflict,” he said, explaining that the pro-Israel majority argues that the terrorist threats faced by China are controlled and implemented by extremist groups like Hamas. “These Chinese supporters of the Jewish state argue that Israel’s intense attack on [Hamas] will help China’s own fight against terrorism,” he said. Although the Chinese government tried to stay out of the conflict, it could not deny the pro-Israel Chinese argument that their country, like Israel, faces threats from terrorism and extremism. According to Mr. Mu, the online comments from the netizens “are more than just idle talk.” “They represent different expectations and hopes for China’s social governance and diplomatic policies,” he said. Online Support According to prominent Chinese blogger Michael Anti, there is a difference between the netizens on mainland China and those in Taiwan.
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He pointed out that whereas the government in Taipei is generally considered sympathetic to Israel, Taiwanese social media users are generally supportive of the Palestinians. In mainline China, the situation is reversed. While the government has tried to remain neutral, most mainline Chinese, it seems, are rooting for the State of Israel. The Israeli Embassy in Beijing maintains one of the most popular social media accounts among diplomatic missions in China. It has close to 850,000 followers. By comparison, the US embassy has 890,000 followers. Former Israeli President Shimon Peres is one of the few Western leaders to maintain a social media presence in China. He has more than 450,000 followers. Advice Observers found that official Israeli posts generally attract a tremendous number of sympathetic comments. For
continued on page 18
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
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Japan: “Late to the Party,” but Still Interested Japan, which boasts the world’s third
highest Gross Domestic Product (GDP), is currently forging new initiatives with Israel. While ties with Japan have not been as close or plentiful as those Israel has enjoyed with China and India, many experts believe things are changing. This month, Toyota’s InfoTechnology Center (ITC), the R&D arm of the Japanese car giant, will hold the first ever tech event in Israel for a large Japanese corporation. Billed as a “hackathon,” it will give Israeli programmers and entrepreneurs a venue to present their ideas on improving car safety and performance.
In July, Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry, Toshimitsu Motegi, arrived in Jerusalem to sign an Industrial R&D Collaboration Agreement with the Jewish state. Israel is the first country with which Japan has signed such an agreement. Breakthrough Achievement The new landmark agreement is expected to pave the way for reciprocal support in joint industrial R&D projects between Israeli and Japanese companies and organizations. Israeli Economics Minister Naftali Bennett, who hosted Mr. Motegi, called it “a breakthrough achievement.”
Mr. Motegi’s visit was at the invitation of Mr. Netanyahu, who visited Japan last May to encourage bilateral cooperation. While he was there, the Israeli Prime Minister highlighted the mutual benefits of Japanese-Israeli cooperation, explaining that the Jewish state is “a world center of cyber-security and we’re seeking to cooperate with other countries, and certainly with Japan.” Locked in the 1970s But the relationship between Israel and Japan has a problematic history, and, according to Kazunari Okada, director of the Japan Innovation Center (JIC), many Japanese businesspeople are nervous about creating relationships with the Jewish state. Mr. Okada, whose center organizes seminars and events in Israel and Japan to introduce Japanese businesspeople to Israeli companies, explained that Japan is still heavily reliant on imported Arab oil and business ties with Arab countries. Although the secondary Arab boycott in which Arab countries shunned compa-
China
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example, a recent Israeli Embassy post comparing Hamas to the notorious IS terrorist organization drew comments such as: “Israel, you must control the population of Gaza, otherwise it is impossible for you to win. You should ditch your humanitarian principles and the only hope for you is to fight evil with evil.” Pro-Israel stories have also been popular in the Chinese social media, such as the belief that Israel has been secretly transferring military technology to China in gratitude for China’s having sheltered Jewish refugees during World War II. Mr. Anti is convinced social media in China is playing an increasingly important role in shaping public opinion in the PRC. Further, he said, authoritarian though it may be, the government in Beijing is not immune to public opinion. “In some circumstances, China’s leadership faces pressures comparable to democratic national leaders who seek re-election,” he said. Favorable public opinion coupled with strong, successful business ties would seem to augur well for continued growth of the Israeli-Chinese relationship. S.L.R.
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
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Russia and Israel: Close Friends with a Problem Named Iran Of all the countries developing grow-
ing ties with Israel, Russia remains the most complex. In the wake of turmoil—Russia’s conflict in Ukraine and Is-
Israel and Japan
rael’s conflict with Palestinians in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza—both countries face boycotts and sanctions from Europe. Increasingly, both see each other as a way
to offset the financial fallout. But for Israel there is another problem. While claiming friendship with Israel, Rus-
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nies that did business with Israel is largely a thing of the past, the very conservative Japanese have found it hard to drop habits formed in the 1970s, when Saudidominated OPEC was able to dictate the terms of oil delivery. In addition, said Mr. Okada, the Japanese simply “don’t get” Israel. For one thing, most Japanese are not risk takers. In Japan, university graduates generally prefer the safety of large corporations to risking the possibility of failure in business. Typical Israelis, on the other hand, say they would not consider themselves successes until they had experienced a few “learning process” failures. This fear-of-failure affects Japanese investors as well. According to Mr. Okada, they prefer the safety of companies with strong records and minimal possibilities of loss. Israelis often prefer taking higher risks in hopes of earning greater gains. Change Is a Must Mr. Okada acknowledged that if Japan wants to create a “start-up ecosystem,” its attitudes are going to have to change, or at least soften. “Corporate Japan knows it has a problem and has been searching high and low for solutions,” he said. He believes creating a dialogue with Israelis is the best place to start. “There is a new awareness of Israel’s success among many key people, and companies are seeking a path to connect with Israeli start-ups and veteran firms,” he said. “Late to the Party” He explained that JIC has a database of about 6,000 Israeli companies chosen for compatibility with Japanese industries and businesses. “We have been introducing Japanese companies to these Israeli firms, and already some promising relationships have developed,” he said. He said Japanese executives, who are generally savvy businesspeople, have increasingly been looking at what Israel has to offer in the area of high-technology. So far, however, only one fair-sized Japanese company has an R&D center in Israel, and that belongs to the Tokyo
firm’s German subsidiary. “And they have begun to realize that they are late to the party,” said Mr. Okada. “While Intel, Samsung, Microsoft, Deutsche Telekom and all the other European and American giants have large R&D facilities in Israel—and while Chinese companies increasingly hook up with Israeli start-
ups—Japan has been left behind.” Mr. Bennett said he hopes the new R&D agreement between the two countries will prompt not only greater trade and business relationships between Israelis and the Japanese, but also personal ones that will translate to greater mutual support in all arenas. S.L.R.
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
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The Log: Motzei Shabbat, Oct 11
Simchas Bais Hashoeva, with Rav Hershel Schacter, singing with Simcha Leiner, and music with Dov Katz, Binyomin Ginzberg, and Matt Silverman, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 8:15pm, 201-384-0434 Sukkot Party Trip to Crown Heights, bus leaves Chabad, West Orange, 8:3pm, 973-325-6311
Sun., Oct 12, Chol HaMoed
Bergen County Friendship Circle Sukkot Festival, for specialneeds children and teens, East Hill Synagogue, Englewood, 10am, 201-262-7172 Odessa Klezmer Band in the Sukkah, includes brunch, Cong Sons of Israel, Manalapan, 10am, 732-446-3000 Shakes in the Sukkah, includes fruitshake bar, pizza and fries, Sukkot carnival booths and Torah crafts, Chabad of Cherry Hill, 11am, 856-874-1500 ext 302 Beyond Bar Mitzvah Club, for boys in grade 8, Rabbi Yitzchok Kahan, Chabad Center, Cherry Hill, 12 noon, 856-874-1500 East Brunswick Chapter of Hadassah Sukkot Celebration, private home in East Brunswick, 12-3pm, 732-718-3259 “The Wandering Que,” popup smokehouse BBQ, Cong Rinat Yisrael, 12:15-9pm, 201-837-2795 Grand Sukkot Dance Festival, featuring Yoel Sharabi in concert and dinner in the sukkah, Chabad Center of Northwest NJ, Rockaway, 4:45pm, 973-625-1525 ext 202 Sukkah BBQ, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West
Orange, 5:30pm, 973- 736-1407 Simchat Beit Hashoeva, for all ages, Rabbi Shmulie Greene, coordinated by the Mekor Chaim/ Steinsaltz Ambassadors, Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva, Edison, 6-9pm, rabbishmulie@steinsaltz.org Simchat Beit HaShoeva, featuring music, dinner, dancing, and Kulanu Chaverim (special-needs friends), Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 6-8pm, 718-796-4730 Simchat Beit Hashoeva, in honor of Rabbi Shmuel Goldin’s completion of “Unlocking the Torah Text,” includes music, dancing, refreshments, at Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 7-9pm, 201-568-1315 “Talmud as a Bridge between Secular and Religious Israelis”, MK Ruth Calderon, Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 8pm, 201-837-2795
Mon, Oct 13, Chol HaMoed
Trip to Hershey Park Amusement Park, for grades 5 and up, includes sukkah and kosher food, spons by Young Israel of Teaneck, bus leaves from the shul, 7:30am, youthyiot@gmail.com Exhibit: “Waldsee: 1944, Artistic Renderings of Postcards Germans Forced Jewish Deportees to Send to Their Families to Deceive Them Regarding Their Living Conditions” and Raoul Wallenberg Poster Exhibit, Life Hall, Montclair State University, 8:30am-4:30pm, through Thurs, Dec 18, 973-655-4185 AMIT Englewood Sukkah Hop, for parents and children, private home sukkahs in Englewood, ending at the East Hill Synagogue Sukkah with pizza and ice cream, 10am, 212-792-5690
Sukkot Carnival, to benefit at-risk youth in Israel, includes games, arts and crafts, pony rides, petting zoo, face-painting, jugglers, food, and music, JCC, Tenafly, 11am-4pm, 201-538-1955 Lunch in the Sukkah, Wilf Campus for Senior Living, Somerset, 12 noon, 732-568-1155 Sukkot Lunch and Learn, for SAR 8th graders and retired adults, food, dancing, studying, and sharing, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, noon, 718-796-4730 Karaoke in the Sukkah, loaded with Israeli tunes, Riverdale YMHA, 5:30pm, 718-548-8200 “Under a Sukkot Sky,” community celebration, with the Avi Maza Orchestra, JCC, Edison, 6:30pm, 732-494-3232 Simchat Beit Hashoeva, Young Israel of Monsey, 6:45pm, djacobson@ashar.org “Sukkot under the Stars,” adults only, includes dinner and drinks, Chabad of Cherry Hill, 7pm, 856-874-1500 Simchat Beit Hashoeva, includes music by Dr. Benjy Rosenbluth, dancing, and food, Cong Arzei Darom, Teaneck, 7:45pm, zevdarack@gmail.com Sushi in the Sukkah, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8pm, 732-545-2407 Beer Tasting in the Sukkah, Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 8pm, 973-994-2620
Tues., Oct 14, Chol HaMoed
NJ Deadline to Register to Vote in the Nov 4 General Election, download registration application and absentee ballots at www.njelections.org “Echoes and Reflections: Leaders in Holocaust Education,” includes lunch, Kean University, Union, 8:30am-4pm, 908-737-4664 Café Europa, for Holocaust survivors, featuring “A Different Perspective on the High Holy Days,” Rabbi Alberto Zeilicovich, includes lunch, spons by the Jewish Family Services of North Jersey, at the Fair Lawn Jewish Center, 11am, 973-595-0111 Lunch in the Sukkah, for seniors, includes lunch by Tokyo Hibachi Glatt Kosher restaurant,
with singer Rob Taube, JCC, Edison, 11:30am, 732-494-3232 Sukkah Party, includes magic show, face-painting, and treats, Care One, Teaneck, 1pm, 973-908-3420 “Jewish History through Art: Recreate the Jewish Past by Looking at the Material and Intellectual Culture Left Behind,” Eitan Kastner, JCC, Tenafly, 1pm, 201-408-1418 Sukkot Celebration: How Many Edible Things Come from the Lulav?” JCC, Tenafly, 3pm, 201-408-1418 Bereavement Support Group, Rabbi Bryan Kinzbrunner, Stein Hospice, Somerset, 4pm, 732-227-1212 Sisterhood Program in the Sukkah, Cong Sons of Israel, Manalapan, 7:30pm, 732-446-3000 Graduate Student Wineand-Cheese Tasting in the Sukkah, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8-10pm, 732-545-2407 Israeli and Jewish Persian Music, Galeet Dardashti, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8pm, 732-545-2407
Wed., Oct 15, Hoshana Raba
Hoshana Rabba Live, Rabbi Steven Exler and the Bayit Band, includes musical hallel and instruments for children, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 8:15am, 718-796-4730 Hakafot and Hot Kiddush in the Sukkah, Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 7pm, 973-994-2620
Thurs., Oct 16 Shemini Atzeret/ Simchat Torah
Women’s Simchat Torah Tefillah, with small, light-weight Torah from the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance, 7:30pm, 973-856-2263 “Who Are the Women behind Aishet Chayil: Those Who Have Served as Our Role Models,” for women, Janice Michaelis, Cong Ohr Torah, West Orange, 7:30pm, 973-669-7320
Fri., Oct 17, Simchat Torah
Women’s Simchat Torah Tefillah, with small, light-weight Torah from the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance, private home in Teaneck, 8:45am, 973-856-2263 or landafa@aol.com
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“Separate Yourself Not from the Community” Simchat Torah Women’s Torah Reading, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 10:30am, 201-833-0515 ext 200 Women’s Learning Siyum, Young Israel of East Brunswick, 10:30am, 732-254-1860 Tefillat Esther Women’s Tefillah, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 10:30am, 718-796-4730 Simchat Torah Celebration, spons by the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, at Atria Senior Residence, Riverdale, 10:30am, 718-796-4730 Women-Only Hakafot, for women and children, private home in West Orange, 9:30am; Torah reading, 10:45am, pam. greewood@gmail.com AMIT Shiur, for women, at Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob, and David, West Orange, 10:45am, 973-736-1407 “Made in G-d’s Image: Exploring Tzelem Elokim in a Teenage World,” for teenage girls, includes an ice-cream sundae Kiddush, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, 10:30am, 201-384-0434 Carlebach Davening: Musical Kabbalat Shabbat, Jewish Center of Teaneck, 6pm, 201-833-0515
Shabbat, Oct 18
Carlebach Minyan, Cong Darchei Noam, Fair Lawn, 8:45am, rabbidonath@gmail.com Tefilat Shlomo: The Carlebach Tefila of Riverdale, includes light and healthy Kiddush, at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 9am, 718-796-4730 Parsha and Popsicles, Rabbi Aharon Ciment, spons by Cong Arzei Darom, at Herrick Park, Teaneck, 4pm, yorothstein@gmail.com
Motzei Shabbat, Oct 18
“Golda’s Balcony,” starring Tovah Feldshuh, NJ Performing Arts Center, Newark, 8pm, 888-466-5722
Sun., Oct 19
Fair Lawn Gown Gemach, by appointment, 9:30-11:30am, 201-797-1770 “What Is Being Done to Curb Antisemitism on College Campuses: What Parents of CollegeBound Teens Need to Know,” at Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls, Teaneck, 9:45am, 201-488-0834 “Golda’s Balcony,” starring Tovah Feldshuh, NJ Performing
Arts Center, Newark 2pm and 7pm, 888-466-5722 Jewish-Russian Cultural Club, Jewish Federation of Greater Middlesex County, South River, 3:30pm, 732-698-9213 Hadassah Book Club: “No Joke: Making Jewish Humor” by Ruth Wisse, private home in Highland Park, 7:30pm, 732545-3147 Salon Minyan Tiferet: Rabbi Dr. Tsvi Blanchard, a private home in Englewood, 8pm, 201567-3323
Mon, Oct 20
“A Legacy of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption: Margit: A Teenager’s Journey through the Holocaust,” for high school students, Margit Feldman, includes performance by Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company, Institute for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Raritan Valley Community College, Bridgewater, 9am, 908-526-1200 ext 8524 Comedienne Robin Fox, includes dairy dinner and vendor tables, Cong Sons of Israel, Manalapan, 7pm, 732-446-3000 Touched by Drama,” Marlene Greenspan,coping and relaxing skills to strengthen resilience to the trauma of war (personal experience or having close relatives in dangerous places), diagnoses of devastating illnesses, and bullying, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-836-8916 or CounselingForBetterLiving@gmail.com Middlesex Yachad Parent Support Group, for parents of special-needs children, Jeremy Lichtman, private home in Edison, 8pm, 973-986-6644
Tues., Oct 21
Film: “The Jewish Cardinal,” JCC, Edison, 1:15pm, 732-494-3232 Andrew Gross, Political Advisor to the Deputy Consul General of Israel in New York, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8pm, 732-545-2407 “We Are Your Children,” for Israeli parents raising children in the US, JCC, Tenafly, 8:30pm, 201-408-1427
Wed., Oct 22
Yiddish Concert, JCC, Tenafly,
11:30am, 201-408-1450 Fair Lawn Gown Gemach, by appointment, 1-2:30pm and 7-8:30pm, 201-797-1770 Falafel and Fun, includes falafel meal and several short films from Jerusalem’s Ma’aleh Film School, JCC, Margate, 5:30pm, 609-822-1167 ext 138 Second Generation, for children of Holocaust Survivors, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7pm, 201-837-9090 Dr. Ruth Westheimer: Refugee, spons by the Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life, at the Douglass Campus Center, New Brunswick, 7pm, 848-932-2033 Abused Women’s Confidential Support Group, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-837-9090 Program for Women: Chumash, Rachel Frazer; Nevi’im, Rita-Rivka Lewy-Neuman; Ketuvim, Annette Feldman; Kumsitz, Sharon Kintslinger, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201-836-6210 Makhela: An Israeli-Style Choir, for those who can read and sing in Hebrew, Zvi Klein, JCC, Tenafly, 8pm, 201-408-1427 Tehillim Group, Cong Shaare Tefillah, Teaneck, 8:15pm, 201-2895474, 917-902-9303, or 201-836-3431
Thurs., Oct 23
Shiur, for women, Tzippy Staum, spons by Cong Beth Aaron, private home in Teaneck, 9:15am, 201-836-5738 Friends and Torah, for retired adults, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 1pm, 718-796-4730 Bat Mitzvah: Powerful Women in the Torah, for retired adults, Hebrew Institute
of Riverdale, 2pm, 718-796-4730 Friendship Circle of Bergen County Jewish-Themed Program, for special-needs adults, private location in Paramus, 6pm, 201-262-7172 Kulanu Chaverim, for special-needs individuals, includes pizza, art, music, and conversation, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 6:30pm, 718-796-4730 Kickoff for the International Shabbos Project: Mother-Daughter Challah Baking, The Friendship Circle, Livingston, 7pm, ShabbatWO@gmail. com, ibloom6@gmail.com, or mglickus@gmail.com “Raoul Wallenberg: His Life and Rescue Mission,” Alex Kershaw, University Hall, Montclair State University, 7pm, 973-655-4185 “Dancing with the Enemy: Secret Jewish Roots and Betrayal during the Holocaust,” Paul Glasser, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4200 Make Your Own Challah, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 8pm, 732-247-0532 Russian-Jewish Club: Durak Card Game and Pilimeni, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8pm, 732-545-2407
Fri., Oct 24
“Teaching about Holocaust and Genocide in NJ,” “Learning from Survivors,” and “Global Perspectives on Holocaust Education,” Montclair State University, Upper Montclair, 9am, 609-292-9274 or 609-273-2944 NJ Jewish Film Festival Reel Film Series: “Israel in Short,” discussion with Isaac Zablocki, JCC,
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West Orange. 10am, 973-530-3417 “Missing Hero: The Disappearance of Raoul Wallenberg,” Alex Kershaw, Montclair Public Library, 2pm, 973-744-0500 Shabbat Celebration with Grandparents or Other Special People, for preschoolers with a senior adult, making challah, JCC, Tenafly, 3:15pm, 201-408-1418 Shabbos Project, invite individuals and/or families who do not celebrate Shabbos, spons by the Orthodox Union and the Rabbinical Council of America, http://www.theshabbosproject. org/about/#shabbos Shabbos Project: CandleLighting, Shabbat Services, and Dinner, Cong Ahawas Achim Bnai Jacob and David, West Orange, 5:45pm; dinner, 6:45pm, ShabbatWO@gmail.com, ibloom6@ gmail.com, or mglickus@gmail.com Rabbi Yom Tov Glaser, scholar-in-residence, Young Israel of East Brunswick, Oneg, private home in East Brunswick, 8:30pm, 732-254-1860
Shabbat, Oct 25
Educational Prayer Service, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, includes discussions and commentary, prayers in English and Hebrew transliteration, at Cong Zichron Mordechai, Teaneck, 9:45am, 201-966-4498 or 201-836-4334 Scholar in Residence, Rabbi Yom Tov Glaser, Young Israel of East Brunswick, “From California to Jerusalem,” 10:30am; “Mastering Free Will,” seudah shlishit, 732-254-1860 Rabbi’s Tish: “Crafting a Solution to the Religious Wars over the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in the Aftermath of the Hobby Lobby Decision,” Rabbi Lawrence Zierler, Jewish Center of Teaneck, noon, 201-833-0515
Shabbos Project: Shabbat Lunch, with host families in West Orange, noon, ShabbatWO@ gmail.com, ibloom6@gmail.com, or mglickus@gmail.com Cong Beth Aaron Men’s Club Book Club: “The Right and the Good” by Rabbi Daniel Feldman, with Rabbi Feldman, at the shul, Teaneck, 4pm, 201-833-4432 or 201-907-0343 Study Group: “Zohar as Midrash,” Prof Alan Brill, private home in Teaneck, 5:30pm, safek7@gmail. com or shalomk@hotmail.com
Motzei Shabbat, Oct 25
Shabbos Project: Family Havdalah Ceremony and Concert with Noah Solomon of Soul Farm, Cong Beth Shalom, West Orange, 7:45pm, ShabbatWO@ gmail.com, ibloom6@gmail.com, or mglickus@gmail.com Cong Beth Aaron Sisterhood Book Club: “The Brothers Ashkenazi” by I.J. Singer, private home in Teaneck, 8pm, 201-837-0651 The Israeli Business Circle, for Israeli professionals, with Gideon Amichai, includes refreshments and wine, JCC, Tenafly, 8:30pm, 201-408-1427 Rabbi Yom Tov Glaser and Pei Dalid, in concert, Young Israel of East Brunswick, 8:30pm, 732-254-1860
Sun., Oct 26
Last Day to See Exhibit: ““Berlin-Shanghai-America: The Multiple Lives of John H. Less” JCC, West Orange, 973-530-3421 Davening and Bikur Cholim at Daughters of Miriam in Clifton, meet at Cong Shomrei Torah, Fair Lawn, 8:15am; davening, followed by breakfast and bikur cholim, 8:45am, samapprais@aim.com Shiur, Rabbi Yonason Sacks, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck,
The Log is a free service provided to the Jewish community in northern and central New Jersey, Rockland County and Riverdale. Events that we list include special and guest lectures, concerts, boutiques, dinners, open houses, club meetings, and new classes. Announcements are requested by the 25th of the month prior to the month of the event. Due to space and editorial constraints, we cannot guarantee publication of any announcement. Please email them to : susan@jewishvoiceandopinion.com
8:30am, 201-836-8916 Jewish Association for Developmental Disabilities (JADD) Walk-a-Thon, for Jews with developmental and intellectual disabilities and their families, Englewood Boat Basin, Englewood, 9am, 201-457-0058 ext 13 Post-Yom Tov Shaimot Collection, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 9am-1pm, 732-843-5239 NJ Yachad Breakfast, honoring Joy and Barry Sklar, Bruce Prince, and Amy and Yoav Citron, private home in Teaneck, 9:15am, herrmann@ou.org MaTaN Mother-Daughter Bat Mitzvah Program, for 6th grade girls and their mothers, Rebbetzin Sharon Weinstein, includes delving into the lives of Jewish role models from Tanach to modernday leaders, using texts, drama, art, and music, Young Israel of East Brunswick, 9:30am, 732-354-5913 Fair Lawn Gown Gemach, by appointment, 9:30-11:30am, 201-797-1770 Honoring Alumni of Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva Who Have Served or Are Serving in the IDF and Sherut Leumi, at Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva, Edison, 9:30am, 732-572-5052 ext 207 Gift of Life Bone Marrow Foundation 5K Walk for Life, at Saddle River County Park, Paramus, 10am; 5K walk and run, 11am; celebration with food, music, and children’s activities, 12:30pm, 1-800-962-7769 Ben Porat Yosef Family Carnival, at the school, Paramus, 11am-2pm, 201-845-5007 Yachad Shake-It Up, for special-needs adults 18 and up, includes pizza party and boat tour, transportation provided from Teaneck, 11am, 201-833-1349 Bergen County Friendship Circle Sunday Circle, for specialneeds children, Rosenbaum Yeshiva of North Jersey, River Edge, 12 noon, 201-262-7172 Sifriyat Pjama Be’america: Story Time in Hebrew, for children and parents, bring old books to swap after the event, JCC, Tenafly, 4pm, 201-408-1427 “An Intimate Conversation with Anne Frank’s Stepsister,” Eva Schloss, suitable for teenag-
ers and families, spons by Chabad of Suffern, at Lafayette Theater, Suffern, 4:30pm, 845-368-1889 Cong Arzei Darom Dinner, honoring Rebecca and Bruno Segal, at the shul, Teaneck, 5:30pm, 201-530-0043 Cong Ohr Torah Dinner, honoring Ed and Marilyn Croman, at the shul, West Orange, 6pm, 973-669-7320 or 973-983-3331 JACS Meeting, 12-steps meeting for Jews in recovery, Rabbi Steven Bayar, Cong B’nai Israel, Millburn, 6pm, 973-379-3811 Film: “Above and Beyond: The Story of the Birth of the Israeli Air Force,” Rutgers Cinemas, Livingston Campus, New Brunswick, 7pm, 732-545-2407 Bonei Olam: Aiding Families Navigating the Challenges of Infertility, for women, includes speakers, refreshments, vendors, and Chinese auction, Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 8pm, 908-227-3155
Mon, Oct 27
“From Museum to Classroom: The Use of Artifacts to Enhance Teaching and Enrich Learning” a workshop for teachers, Moriah School of Englewood, 9:15am, prism@yu.edu Smile on Seniors, for senior men and women, includes brunch, Chabad House, Wayne, 11:30am, 973-694-6274 “The Legacy of the ‘Martians of Science’: Five JewishHungarian Scientists Who Reshaped the 20th Century,” Prof Laurel Leff, Michael Gordin, Tibor Frank, and Alex Wellerstein, Cohen Lounge Dickson Hall, Montclair State University, 7pm, 973-655-4185 Sisterhood Dinner, Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 7pm, 973-994-2620
Tues., Oct 28
Exhibit: “From Kristallnacht to Carnegie Hall: The Life and Painting of Fred S. Boyko,” Gaelen Gallery, Lautenberg Center, Whippany, through Sun, Nov 23, Mon-Thurs, 8am-6pm; Fri, 8am4pm; 973-929-3167 Jewish Historical Society, JCC, Bridgewater, noon, 908-7256994 x210 Bergen County Friendship Circle Volunteer Orien-
http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com tation Seminar, for teens who want to work with special-needs children and teens, a parent must attend, Cong Beth Tefillah, Paramus, 8pm, 201-262-7172 Cong Ahavas Achim Sisterhood Book Club: “The Last Chinese Chef” by Nicole Mones, private home in Highland Park, 8:30pm, 732-247-0532
Wed., Oct 29
Fair Lawn Gown Gemach, by appointment, 1-2:30pm and 7-8:30pm, 201-797-1770 “Jews in the Arab Countries,” Shlomo Levy, spons by the JCC, Edison, at the Community Room at River Ridge, Highland Park, 1pm, 732-494-3232 “A Night with Susie Fishbein,” three-course cooking demonstration and tasting, Riverdale Jewish Center, 6:30pm, 718-548-1850 “The Holocaust as Seen through Film,” Rabbi Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg, Edison Library, 7pm, www.edisonpubliclibrary.net Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Above and Beyond,” with producer Nancy Spielberg, Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:30pm, 848-932-4166 “Between the Lines: The New York Jewish Week,” Gary Rosenblatt, JCC, Tenafly, 7:30pm, 201-569-7900
Thurs., Oct 30
Trip to the NYC Jewish Museum, leave JCC, Bridgewater, 9am, 908-725-6994 x210 “Yesterday’s Nightmares, Tomorrow’s Dreams: Anne Frank and Me,” Prof Franz Vintschger, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 9:45am, 973-290-4000 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “No Place on Earth,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 10:15am, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “The Outrageous Sophie Tucker,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 1pm, 848-932-4166 Jewish Genealogy, Avrum Geller, JCC, Tenafly, 1pm, 201-408-1418 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Aftermath,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 3:30pm, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “24 Days,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:30pm, 848-932-4166
October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775 Fri., Oct 31
NJ Jewish Film Festival Reel Film Series: “The Jazz Singer,” discussion with Dr. Andrew Kaye , JCC, West Orange, 10am, 973-530-3417 Chai Lifeline Shabbaton, will include three dozen children with lifethreatening illnesses, Raritan Valley Community, Highland Park-EdisonEast Brunswick, through Shabbat, Nov 1, barbaraedery@gmail.com
Shabbat, Nov 1
Tefillat Esther Women’s Tefillah, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 9am, 718-796-4730 “Cairo Geniza Research,” Stefan Reif, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 10:30am, 718-796-4730 EMUNAH Shabbaton Tea, honoring all present and past IDF soldiers and Sherut Leumi volunteers from Teaneck, Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 4pm, faberronniw4@gmail.com Motzei Shabbat, Nov 1 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Quality Balls: The David Steinberg Story,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:45pm, 848-932-4166 Dessert Reception for Shalva, the Association for Mentally and Physically Challenged Children in Israel, private home in Teaneck, 8pm, 212-725-0900 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Magic Men,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 9:30pm, 848-932-4166
Sun., Nov 2
Davening and Bikur Cholim at Daughters of Miriam in Clifton, meet at Cong Shomrei Torah, Fair Lawn, 8:15am; davening, followed by breakfast and bikur cholim, 8:45am, samapprais@aim.com Central NJ Kehillot Investing in Day Schools (CNJKids) Breakfast, featuring “Findings from the Pew Research Center’s Survey of US Jews,” Alan Cooperman, and honoring Abe Schwartzbard, Cong Ohr Torah, Edison, 9:30am, cnjkids@gmail.com Bergen County Friendship Circle, for special-needs children, Rosenbaum Yeshiva of North Jersey, 12 noon, 201-262-7172 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Joachim Prinz: I Shall Not Be Silent,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater A, North
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School Open Houses Wed., Oct 22
Yavneh Academy, grades preK-8, Paramus, 7:30pm, judy. friedman@yavnehacademy.org
Sun, Oct 26
Salanter Akiba Riverdale (SAR) High School, for 8th graders and their parents, Riverdale, 9:30am, 718-548-2727 Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls, for 8th grade girls and their parents, Teaneck, 12:30pm, 201-833-4307
Tues., Oct 28
Salanter Akiba Riverdale (SAR) Academy, grades preK-8, Riverdale, 7pm, 718-548-1717 Yeshivat Noam, grades preK8, Paramus, 7:30pm, 201-261-1919
Wed., Oct 29
Moriah School of Englewood, grades preK-8, 8pm, 201567-0208 ext 376
Sun, Nov 2
Bruriah Yeshiva High School for Girls, for 8th grade girls and their parents, Elizabeth, 9:30am, 908-355-4850 Brunswick, 1pm, 848-932-4166 Meet-the-Artist Reception: “Visualizing the Essence of the Human Condition: How Jews around the World Struggled against Antisemitism,” Jack Goresko, JCC, Tenafly, 1-3pm, 201-569-7900 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “The Sturgeon Queens,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater B, North Brunswick, 2:30pm, 848-932-4166 Film: “Follow Me: The Yoni Netanyahu Story,” spons by Friends of the IDF, JCC, Edison, 3:30pm, 732-494-3232 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “The Art Dealer,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater A, North Brunswick, 4pm, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Little White Lie,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater B, North Brunswick, 4:30pm, 848-932-4166 Bat Mitzvah Club, for girls in grades 5-6, Shterna Kaminker, Chabad of Cherry Hill, 5pm, 856874-1500 Jewish Girls Club, for 8th grade girls, Mussie Mangel, includes crafts, food, and relevant Jewish themes, Chabad of Cherry
Torah Academy of Bergen County, for 8th grade boys and their parents, Teaneck, 10am, 201-837-7696 Rosenbaum Yeshiva of North Jersey, pre-K-grade 8, includes academic fair and interactive presentations, River Edge, 7pm, 201-986-1414 ext 338
Wed., Nov 5
Ben Porat Yosef, ages 2½ (toddler) through grade 8, Paramus, 8pm, 201-845-5007
Sun, Nov 9
Frisch Yeshiva High School, for 8th graders and their parents, Paramus, 9am, 201-267-9100
Tues., Nov 11
Rabbi Teitz Mesivta Academy, Jewish Educational Center High School for Boys, for 8th grade boys and their parents, Elizabeth, 7pm, 908-355-4850 Yeshivat He’Atid, for prospective parents of students in grades K-3, at Cong Rinat Yisrael, Teaneck, 8pm, 201-374-2272 Hill, 5pm, 856-874-1500 Beyond Bat Mitzvah Club, for girls in grade 7 and up who have recently celebrated their bat mitzvahs, Shterna Kaminker, Chabad of Cherry Hill, 6:30pm, 856-874-1500 “Why I Love Israel: Why Does the World Care? and A Divine Home in the Holy Land,” for high school students, includes dinner, Chabad of Cherry, Hill, 6:30pm, 856-874-1500 Book Discussion: “The Silence,” Monty Helgott and “The Fixer: The Notorious Life of a FrontPage Bail Bondsman,” Ira Judelson, moderated by Barry Kantrowitz, includes tapas and whisky tasting, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, reception, 6:45pm; program, 7:30pm, 845-362-4200 or 845-358-0977 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater A, North Brunswick, 7pm, 848-932-4166 “Tuning in without Taking over: Parenting Strategies That Empower Our Children,” for women, Mirel Goldstein LPC and Deborah Weinstock LCSW, private home in Clifton, 8pm, 303-204-7039
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Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice and Opinion”
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Mon, Nov 3
MaTaN Bat Mitzvah Program Father-Daughter Session, for 6th grade girls, Rebbetzin Sharon Weinstein, includes delving into the lives of Jewish role models from Tanach to modern-day leaders, using texts, drama, art, and music, Young Israel of East Brunswick, 7:30pm, 732-354-5913 Mom’s Night Out, for mothers of special-needs children, spons by the Friendship Circle, private location in Paramus, 8pm, 201-262-7172
Tues., Nov 4, Election Day
Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Above and Beyond,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 12 noon, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Joachim Prinz: I Shall Not Be Silent,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 2:30pm, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Little White Lie,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 4:30pm, 848-932-4166 “Who was Hannah Senesh and What Was Her Mission?” Louis Levine, includes film “Blessed is the Match: The Life and Death of Hannah Senesh,” University Hall, Montclair State University, 7pm, 973-655-4185 “Jewish History through Art: Recreate the Jewish Past by Looking at the Material and Intellectual Culture Left Behind,” Eitan Kastner, JCC, Tenafly, 1pm, 201-408-1418 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Before the Revolution,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:30pm, 848-932-4166 A Conversation with Nachama Price, Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 8pm, 973-994-2620
Wed. Nov 5
Bar Mitzvah Club, for boys in
grades 6-7, Rabbi Yitzchok Kahan, includes light dinner, Chabad Center, Cherry Hill, 6pm, 856-874-1500 “Antisemitism in Prewar Hungary,” Peter Pastor, Cohen Lounge Dickson Hall, Montclair State University, 6:15pm, 973-655-4185 Contemporary Israeli Poetry Group, in the original with English translation and discussion, Atara Fobar, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 7pm, 718-796-4730 Abused Women’s Confidential Support Group, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:15pm, 201-837-9090 Beyond Bar Mitzvah Club, for boys who have recently celebrated their bar mitzvahs, Rabbi Yitzchok Kahan, includes light dinner, Chabad of Cherry Hill, 7:30pm, 856-874-1500 Jewish 12-Step Meeting, JACS—Jewish Alcoholics, Chemically Dependent Persons, and Significant Others, Jewish Family Service, Teaneck, 7:30pm, 201837-9090, ask for IRA (Information and Referral) or 201-981-1071 Shomer Shabbos Boy Scout Meeting, for boys in 6th grade or 11 years old and up, Bais Medrash L’Torah, Rabbi Davis’s shul, Passaic, 8pm, HFishman@rafterpllc.com Makhela: An Israeli-Style Choir, for those who can read and sing in Hebrew, Zvi Klein, JCC, Tenafly, 8pm, 201-408-1427 Tehillim Group, Cong Shaare Tefillah, Teaneck, 8:15pm, 201-2895474, 917-902-9303, or 201-836-3431
Thurs., Nov 6
Ben Porat Yosef Talmideinu Program, for children with special needs who are not in a yeshiva, at BPY, Paramus, through Fri., Nov 7, Neshama@ENKutin.com “Fifty Children: One Ordinary American Couple’s Extraordinary Rescue Mission into the Heart of Nazi Germany,” Steven Pressman,
There Is Always Something Happening in the Jewish Community! Check our website http://www.JewishVoiceAndOpinion.Com for classes, shiurim, lectures, and events that came in after issue went to print!
JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 12 noon, 845-362-4200 or 845-358-0977 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Quality Balls: The David Steinberg Story,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 12:30pm, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “24 Days,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 3pm, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Aftermath,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7:30pm, 848-932-4166 Holocaust Heroism: Film: “50 Children: The Rescue Mission of Mr. and Mrs. Kraus,” discussed by Dr. Cliff Wood and Steven Pressman, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4200 or 845-358-0977
Fri., Nov 7
Lunch and Learn: Rabbi Chaim Ehrenreich, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 12:30pm, 856-362-4400 Bim Bam Shabbat, for toddlers through age 7, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 1:45pm, 845-362-4200 Carlebach Shabbat Dinner, in commemoration of the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, z”l, Cong Ohav Emeth, Highland Park, 5:30pm, 732-247-3038
Shabbat, Nov 8
Educational Prayer Service, spons by the Jewish Learning Experience, includes discussions and commentary, prayers in English and Hebrew transliteration, at Cong Zichron Mordechai, Teaneck, 9:45am, 201-966-4498 or 201-836-4334 Newcomers Luncheon, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, noon, 718-796-4730 Study Group: “Zohar as Midrash,” Prof Alan Brill, private home in Teaneck, 5:30pm, safek7@gmail. com or shalomk@hotmail.com
Motzei Shabbat, Nov 8
Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Hunting Elephants,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 7pm, 848-932-4166 Shiur, Rabbi Mordechai Willig, Young Israel of Riverdale, 7:30pm, 718-548-4765 Fun for Foodies: “From Scratch: The Uncensored History of the Food Network,” Allen Salkin; “Kosher Revolution,” Chef Geila Hocherman; and Chef
Peter Kelly,” includes cocktails, appetizers, cooking demonstration, and Slovenia Vodka tasting, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4200 or 845-358-0977 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “The Art Dealer,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center, North Brunswick, 9:30pm, 848-932-4166
Sun., Nov 9
Davening and Bikur Cholim at Daughters of Miriam in Clifton, meet at Cong Shomrei Torah, Fair Lawn, 8:15am; davening, followed by breakfast and bikur cholim, 8:45am, samapprais@aim.com Shiur, Rabbi Yonason Sacks, Cong Bnai Yeshurun, Teaneck, 8:30am, 201-836-8916 MaTaN Mother-Daughter Bat Mitzvah Program, for 6th grade girls and their mothers, Rebbetzin Sharon Weinstein, includes delving into the lives of Jewish role models from Tanach to modern-day leaders, using texts, drama, art, and music, Young Israel of East Brunswick, 9:30am, 732-354-5913 Hadassah of Raritan Valley Mitzvah of Love Brunch, honoring Rebbetzin Devorah Hilsenrath, Martha Rotter, and Carol Levin, z”l, at Cong Ahavas Achim, Highland Park, 11:30am, Rachel@weintraubworld.net Beyond Bar Mitzvah Club, for boys in grade 8, Rabbi Yitzchok Kahan, Chabad Center, Cherry Hill, 12 noon, 856-874-1500 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Sneak Preview,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater A, North Brunswick, 12 noon, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Hunting Elephants,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater B, North Brunswick, 2pm, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “The Outrageous Sophie Tucker,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater A, North Brunswick, 2:30pm, 848-932-4166 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “Magic Men,” Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater B, North Brunswick, 4:45pm, 848-932-4166 “Why I Love Israel: Whose Land Is It Anyway? and Is Peace Possible?” for high school students, includes dinner, Chabad of Cherry, Hill, 6:30pm, 856-874-1500
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
The Jewish Voice and Opinion
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New Classes This Month Sundays
Choshen Mishpat Chaburah: The Laws of Verbal Abuse,” Cong Bais Torah U’Tefilah, Passaic, 9am, 917-510-6006 or 973-470-8888 “8 Nights of Chanukah, 8 Weeks to Get Ready,” Rabbi Elie Mischel, includes breakfast, Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 9am, 973-994-2620, begins Nov 2 Art Classes, for children over the age of 6, Dorya Barth, Cong Shomrei Torah, Fair Lawn, 9am, djerusalem25@gmail.com, begins Nov 2 Simcha Dancing, for girls, Jodi Senter, Cong Beth Abraham, Bergenfield, grades 3-4, 9am; grades 1-2, 10am, 201-384-0434 Halacha, Rabbi Gershon West, Yeshiva Ner Boruch-Passaic Torah Institute, Passaic, 9:20am, 973-594-4774 Intermediate Israeli and Simcha Dance with Dassie, for girls in grades 5 and up, Dassie Schuster, Rodda Community Center, Teaneck, 9:30am, 201-836-3383 or 201-993-9411, begins Oct 26 Bar Mitzvah Club, for boys ages 11-13, Chabad of Riverdale, 9:45am, 718-549-1100 Gemara Kiddushin, Rabbi Shlomo Singer, Yeshiva Ner BoruchPassaic Torah Institute, Passaic, 9:50am, 973-594-4774 Beginners Israeli and Simcha Dance with Dassie, for girls in grades 5 and up, Dassie Schuster, Rodda Community Center, Teaneck, 10:35am, 201-836-3383 or 201-993-9411, begins Oct 26 Beginners Israeli and Simcha Dance with Dassie, for girls in grade 4, Dassie Schuster, Rodda Community Center, Teaneck, 11:40am, 201-836-3383 or 201-993-9411, begins Oct 26 Friendship Circle 7-11, for children ages 7-11 who have difficulties reading social cues or navigating social situations, Adina Lederer, Kids Therapy Place, Bogota, 4pm, 201-262-7172, begins Nov 2 “How Happiness Thinks,” Chabad of Riverdale, 9:45am, 718-549-1100; Valley Chabad, Park Ridge High School, 10am, 201-476-0157; Cong Anshe Lubavitch, Fair Lawn, 8pm, 718-839-5296, begins Nov 2 Rutgers Jewish Film Festival: “The Green Prince,” with director Nadav Schirman, Regal Cinema Commerce Center Theater B, North Brunswick, 7pm, 848-932-4166 Kristallnacht Commemoration: “Return of the Violin,” JCC, Tenafly, 7pm, 201-408-1418 Rockland and Bergen County Kristallnacht Commemoration, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 7:30pm, 718-796-4730 718-796-4730 Sequoia Benefit Concert: Soul Farm, to benefit Jewish Family Service and Children’s Center of Clifton-Passaic, honoring Joan and Leo Gottlieb, at Yeshivat Beit Hillel (YBH), Passaic, 8pm, 973-777-7638
Mon, Nov 10
Film: “The Last Survivor: Four Tragedies, Four Journeys, One Purpose,” Dr. David Tataw, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 11am, 973-290-4000 Caregivers Support Group, for those caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease, JCC, Tenafly, 7pm, 201-569-7900
“The Fate of Hungarian Jewry, 1939-1944,” Peter Pastor, Cohen Lounge Dickson Hall, Montclair State University, 7pm, 973-655-4185 “Survivor Testimonies: Remembering Kristallnacht and Beyond,” Dr. Norbert and Gerda Bikales, includes dessert reception in honor of survivors, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 7:30pm, 973-290-4000
Tues., Nov 11
Film: “The German Doctor: Dr. Josef Mengele,” Prof Chantal Berthet, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 8am, 973-290-4000 Café Europa, for Holocaust survivors, includes lunch, Fair Lawn Jewish Center, 11am, 973-595-0111 “1934: A Year in the Life of the Jewish Community in Palestine (the Yishuv),” for faculty and graduate students, Aviva Halamish, includes lunch, Bildner Center for the Study of Jewish Life, Rutgers, New Brunswick, 11:30am, 848-932-2033 “Persons of Conscience: Case Studies of Persons Who Dared
Shiur in Mishnayos Shvi’is, Rabbi Gershon West, Yeshiva Ner Boruch-Passaic Torah Institute, 8:15pm, 973-594-4774 Sukkah Chaburah, Binyomin Halberstam, Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic, 9pm, 862-686-6748
Mondays
“Understanding the Language of the Torah: The Tabernacle and Laws in the Book of Exodus,” Etia Segall, JCC, Tenafly, 9:30am, 201-408-1418, begins Oct 20 Beginners Ulpan Aleph, for those with no previous knowledge, Drora Arussy, JCC, Tenafly, 9:30am, 201-820-3907, begins Oct 20 Beginners Ulpan Bet, for those with some letter and word recognition, Zahava Gall, JCC, Tenafly, 9:30am, 201-820-3907,begins Oct 20 Intermediate Ulpan Hey, for those who can express themselves in simple and compound Hebrew sentences, Orna Green, JCC, Tenafly, 9:30am, 201-820-3907, begins Oct 20 Beginners Ulpan Gimmel, for those with some reading, writing, and comprehension skills, Zahava Gall, JCC, Tenafly, 11:15am, 201820-3907, begins Oct 20 Intermediate Ulpan Daled, for those who can read and write short paragraphs, Drora Arussy, JCC, Tenafly, 11:15am, 201-820-3907, begins Oct 20 Advanced Ulpan Conversation, for those who have advanced oral and written expression skills and who can read a Hebrew-language newspaper, Orna Green, JCC, Tenafly, 11:15am, 201-820-3907, begins Oct 20 “Hebrew Reading: The Books of Jonah and Esther in Hebrew,” Etia Segall, JCC, Tenafly, 11:30am, 201-408-1418, begins Oct 20 Jewish Story Time, for children ages 3-5, Chabad of Riverdale, 3pm, 718-549-1100 Free Hebrew Crash Course, Sara Kinberg, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 6:30pm, 718-548-2461, begins Nov 3 Beginners Tai Chi/Karate, for children, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 7pm, 201-568-1315
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to Care and Act during the Holocaust,” Sister Diane Collesano, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 12:30pm and 6pm, 973-290-4000 Second Generation Testimony: “My Parents’ Experiences during the Holocaust,” Allen Zaks and Dr. Catherine Martin, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 1pm, 973-290-4000 Bereavement Support Group, Rabbi Bryan Kinzbrunner, Stein Hospice, Somerset, 4pm, 732-227-1212 “Remembering and Listening as Moral Activities: Spiritual and Ethical Aspects of the Virtues for Reflecting on the Holocaust,” Dr. Ellen Ehrlich, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 6pm, 973-290-4000 “How Happiness Thinks: The“Intimacy behind Closed Doors,” for women, Yoetzet Halacha Nechama Price, Cong Ohr Torah, West Orange, 8pm, 201-888-6999
Wed., Nov 12
“Music of the Holocaust,” violinist Dr. Tamara Freeman and Dr. Vin-
cent Rufino, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 11am, 973-290-4000 “How America and the World Dealt with Socialism, Communism, Fascism, and Nationalism,” Marty Cohen, JCC Rockland, noon, 845-362-4400 Polish Holocaust Film: “IDA,” discussion with Prof Beatrice Kingston and Dr. Laura Winters, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 12:30pm, 973-290-4000 “Margit: A Teenager’s Journey through the Holocaust and Beyond,” Margit Feldman and Dr. Chloe Bland, College of Saint Elizabeth, Morristown, 1:50pm, 973-290-4000 Sisterhood Book Chat: “The Invention of Wings” by Sue Monk Kidd, discussion led by Jayne Goldstein, Cong Sons of Israel, Manalapan, 7:15pm, 732-446-3000 “Social Justice Maven: “An American Bride in Kabul,” Phyllis Chesler, with Dr. Robert Brannon, includes dessert reception, JCC Rockland, West Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-362-4200 or 845-358-0977Y
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
New Classes
Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice and Opinion”
continued from page 25
Beginners Tai Chi/Karate, for adults, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 7:30pm, 201-568-1315 Beginners Ulpan Gimmel, for those with some reading, writing, and comprehension skills, Zahava Gall, Jewish Federation, Paramus, 7:30pm, 201-820-3907, begins Oct 20 Advanced Ulpan Conversation, for those who have advanced oral and written expression skills and who can read a Hebrew-language newspaper, Pirhia Rozman, Jewish Federation, Paramus, 7:30pm, 201820-3907, begins Oct 20 The Book of Jeremiah, Rabbi Avi Weiss, private home in Riverdale, 7:30pm, 718-796-4730 JRecovery Anonymous, peer support group and 12-step program for Jewish alcoholics, addicts, and anyone affected by addiction, including family members and friends, Jewish Family Services, Milltown, 7:30pm, 732-777-1940 Crash Course in Hebrew Reading, Cong Sons of Israel, Manalapan, 8pm, 732-446-3000, begins Oct 27 Advanced Hebrew Ulpan, Sara Kinberg, Atria Senior Residence, Riverdale, 8pm, 718-796-4730 Pirkei Avos: Ethics of Our Fathers, Debra Korman, spons by Cong Ahavath Torah, private home in Englewood, 8pm, 201-568-1315 The Orthodox Union’s Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus Women’s Shiur and Dinner, Sara Frieberg, private home in New Brunswick, 8pm, sara@rutgershillel.org “How Happiness Thinks,” Chabad of Mountain Lakes, 7:30pm, 973-551-1898; Chabad of Suffern, 7:30pm, 845-368-1889; Valley Chabad, Woodcliff Lake, 7:45pm, 201-476-0157; Chabad of West Orange, 8pm, 973-325-6311, begins Nov 3 Advanced Tai Chi/Karate, Cong Ahavath Torah, Englewood, 8:30pm, 201-568-1315
Tuesdays
“Digger Deeper: The Aggadic Teachings of Talmud Brachot,” Rabbi Elie Mischel, Synagogue of the Suburban Torah Center, Livingston, 8:45am, 973-994-2620 “The Exodus Narrative: A Microcosm of Spiraling ModernDay Antisemitism,” Rabbi Avi Weiss, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 10am, 718-796-4730 “Meeting the Tannaim: The Heroes of the Talmud,” Rabbi Ari Hart, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 11am, 718-796-4730 “Foundations of Judaism,” Rabbi Ari Hart, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 7:30pm, 718-796-4730, begins Oct 21
Mazal Tov Mazal Tov to the Bat Mitzvah Girls: Sara Tehila Cohen, Esti Fields, Amanda Hanauer, Abigail Klein, Ilana Knoll, Michal Mermelstein, Yael Mermelstein, Dina Rothwachs, Nili Scharf, Grace Shapiro, Samara Taubenfeld, Kayla Waizer, Tamar Waltuch, Atara Weil, and Molly Weisbrot; and the Bar Mitzvah Boys: Yonatan Chudnoff, Yisrael Cohen, Max Dickman, Joshua Goldman, Sammy Greenberg, Mark Grossman, Yonah Hook, Jason Karger, Yechiel Keiser, Shalom Korn, Yonatan Kosowsky, Avi Lebovic, Danny Lundner, Joshua Matthew, Benji Meiner, Mikey Nadritch, Mendy Newmark, Michael Pedeeom, Gabriel Plotsker, Matthew Plotsker, Ariel Retter, Ari Rosenberg, Benjamin Rudoy, Yoni Safier, Aaron Shamsian, and Noam Troodler Mazal Tov to Rabbi Steven Pruzansky on the release of his new book, “Tzadka Mimeni: The Jewish Ethic of Personal Responsibility.” Y
Intermediate Hebrew Ulpan, Sara Kinberg, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 7:30pm, 718-796-4730 Parshat HaShavua, for men and women, Rachel Friedman, spons by Lamdeinu, at Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 8pm, info@lamdeinu. org, begins Oct 21 “How Happiness Thinks,” Chabad of Basking Ridge, 7:30pm, 908-604-8844; Chabad of Nyack, 7:30pm, 845-356-6686; Chabad of North Brunswick, 7:45pm, 732-398-9492;Chabad of Teaneck, 8pm, 201-907-0686, begins Nov 4 Gemara Kiddushin, Rabbi Shlomo Singer, Yeshiva Ner BoruchPassaic Torah Institute, Passaic, 8:30pm, 973-594-4774 The Orthodox Union’s Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus Gentlemen’s Club (Chinese Food and Shiur), Rabbi Adam Frieberg, private home in New Brunswick, 8:30pm, rabbiadam@rutgershillel.org
Wednesdays
Yoga with Shifra, for women, spons by Lamdeinu, at Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 9am, info@lamdeinu.org, begins Oct 29 Shiur, Rabbi Robert Pilavin, spons by Cong Sons of Israel, at Levy’s Kosher Italian Restaurant, Manalapan, 10am, 732-446-3000 or 732-683-9978 Parshat HaShavua, for men and women, Rachel Friedman, spons by Lamdeinu, at Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 10:15am, info@lamdeinu. org, begins Oct 22 Women’s Torah Class, Rebetzin Tova Rapoport, Chabad of Margate, 11am, 609-822-8500 “What Does It Mean to be Chosen: Perspectives in Jewish Philosophy—Why Would G-d Choose a Particular People and Why Did He Choose the Jews?” for men and women, Rabbi Dr; Aaron Segal, spons by Lamdeinu, at Cong Beth Aaron, Teaneck, 11:40am, info@lamdeinu.org, begins Oct 22 Free Tutoring and Homework Help, for children in grades 1-5 by Ma’ayanot students, at the school, Teaneck, 4:40pm, begins Oct 22, 201-833-4307 ext 237 Friendship Circle of Bergen County Teen Scene, for specialneeds teens ages 13-21 with normally developing teens, Frisch Yeshiva High School, Paramus, or Torah Academy of Bergen County, Teaneck, 6pm, 201-262-7172 Advanced Beginners Hebrew, JCC, West Orange, 6pm, begins Oct 22, 973-530-3400 Intermediate Hebrew, JCC, West Orange, 7:15pm, begins Oct 22, 973-530-3400 Beginners Ulpan Aleph, for those with no previous knowledge, Zahava Gall, Jewish Federation, Paramus, 7:30pm, begins Oct 22, 201-820-3907 Beginners Ulpan Bet, for those with some letter and word recognition, Pirhia Rozman, Jewish Federation, Paramus, 7:30pm, begins Oct 22, 201-820-3907 “How Happiness Thinks,” Chabad of Cherry Hill, 7:30pm, 856-8741500; Chabad of Franklin Lakes, 7:30pm, 201-848-0449, begins Nov 5 Chassidus Class, for men and women, Rabbi Chaim Dalfin, Chabad of Clifton-Passaic, 8:45pm, 973-246-5251
Thursdays
Bugles Babies Music Class, for children ages 6-24 months and a parent, Keli Teichman, Lubavitch on the Palisades, Tenafly, 9:30am, 201-871-1152, begins Oct 23 “Ezra, Nechemya, Chagai & Zecharya: The Forgotten Neviim,” Elana Flaumenhaft, Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls, Teaneck, 10am, 201-833-4307, begins Oct 23 “The Book of Shmuel,” Rabbi Steven Exler, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 10am, 718-796-4730 First Taste of Jewish Learning, for children ages 3-5, Chabad of Riverdale, 3:15pm, 718-549-1100 “American Abstract Art and the Jewish Connection,” Stephen
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Israel’s Partner: Russia sia’s President Vladimir Putin has championed the extremist Muslim government in Iran, which has threatened the Jewish state with annihilation and is trying to develop a nuclear bomb to carry it out. To a great extent, the good relations between Israel and Russia are based on the socalled “human bridge.” Almost a million Israelis still have familial ties to Russia; those with dual citizenship make up 15 percent of the Jewish state’s population. Russian President Vladimir Putin has called Israel “a Russian-speaking country.” Tourism and Trade Russian tourism in Israel is booming. Over the past decade, the number of Russian tourists in Israel has been second only to the number coming from the US. Bilateral trade between Israel and Russia, which amounted to just $12 million in 1991, reached $3.5 billion in 2013, up 20 percent from the previous year. Israel sends Russia $2 billion worth of agricultural products, electrical goods, and
October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
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medical equipment, and Russia sends Israel $1.5 billion in uncut diamonds and hydrocarbons. To advance trade between them, Israel and Russia agreed to establish a free-trade zone during the World Trade Organization talks in Bali in 2013. EU Boycott For Israeli farmers, increasing exports to Russia is a way to counter expected market losses as Europe continues to shy away from Israeli agricultural products. As of this past September 1, in an effort to pressure Israel into vacating Judea, Samaria, and all of eastern Jerusalem, the EU has banned entry of all dairy, meat, poultry, and egg products from those areas plus the Golan Heights. This is on top of an already existing ban on produce from these areas. In addition, there are constant reports that the ban will soon include all food products, even from within the Israeli Green Line, unless producers can prove they did not use ingredients from the banned regions. At the same time, the US
Epstein, Riverdale YMHA, 7pm, 718-548-8200, begins Oct 23 Advanced Yiddish, JCC, Whippany, 7pm, 973-428-9300, begins Oct 23 Latte and Learning, spons by NCSY, at the Nosh-Pit, West Orange, 7:30pm, aabjdyouthdirectors@gmail.com “Biblical Hebrew and Siddur Study,” Sara Kinberg, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 7:30pm, 718-796-4730 Kol Dodi: The MetroWest Jewish Community Chorale, Erica Lippitz, JCC, West Orange, 8pm, begins Oct 23, msolkoffe@prodigy.net Mishmar and Study with a Group (SWAG), Rabbi Adam Frieberg, includes shiur and pizza, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 8pm, 732-545-2407 Chaburah, Rabbi Pesach Skulnic, Cong Ohr Hatorah, Bergenfield, 8:45pm
Fridays
Challah-Baking Workshop, for children and families, Rebbetzin Tova Rapoport, spons by Chabad at the Shore, at Burger.com, Margate, 10am, 609-822-8500
Shabbat
The Jewish Voice and Opinion
Hashkama Minyan, Cong Ahavas Yisrael, Edison, 6:45am, info@ AYEdison.org, begins Oct 18 Tefillat Shalom Bayis, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, 7am, 718796-4730 Parsha Class, Rabi Adam Frieberg, Rutgers Hillel, New Brunswick, 11:30am, rabbiadam@rutgershillel.org Shabbat Lunch, spons by the Orthodox Union’s Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus, private home in New Brunswick, 12:30pm, sara@rutgershillel.org
is applying sanctions to Russia to pressure Moscow to relinquish all claims and moves against Ukraine. Mr. Putin responded by banning imports of agricultural products from all countries boycotting Russian goods. This includes the US and most of Western Europe. To compensate, Russia is now importing fruits and vegetables from other countries, including Israel. Unintended Consequence Israel’s Agricultural Minister Yair Shamir believes the action by the US will benefit Israel in the Russian market. “Even if the sanctions are reduced, I believe our products will continue to flow into Russia. It will be easier to deal with us; it will be cheaper and more stable, with no political price tag for what you do and don’t do,” Mr. Shamir told Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency. According to Mr. Shamir, neither the US nor the EU asked Israel to avoid exporting goods to Russia. Given the policies of the EU, it is unlikely Israel would
agree even if asked, he said. “Take into account that lately the Europeans have been putting some boycotts on our products. The Europeans boycott us and then tell us we can’t help somebody else? They can’t do that. They can’t on the one hand stop Israeli sales to Europe and on the other hand stop sales to Russia,” he said. Tenfold Increase In fact, Israel had been a major supplier of vegetables to Russia even before Moscow’s ban on EU growers. In 2012, Israel was Russia’s third largest supplier, just behind Turkey and China. Other countries that are now selling fruits and vegetables to Russia include Argentina, Chile, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, South Africa, Morocco, and Egypt. In 2012, 67 percent of Israeli agricultural exports, worth about $961 million, were shipped to Europe, while 16 percent of agricultural exports, worth about $226 million, were sent to Russia. Over the past decade, Israel’s
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Specials Sundays-Thursdays
Chabura Learning Later Perakim of Bava Metzia, beginning with Ha’socheir Es Ha’umnin, Rav Yaakov Werblowsky and Rav Pesach Skulnick, Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic, 9pm, 973-773-2552 “Breakfast with the Bible: An In-Depth View of Different Biblical Figures,” Steinsaltz Ambassadors, Cong Ahavas Yisrael, Edison, info@AYEdison.org, begins Oct 26 Retired Men’s Morning Kollel, Rabbi Berg’s Shul, Monsey, Mesechet Sukkah, 10am; practical halacha, 11:14am; Navi (Mon and Tues), Pirkei Avos (Wed), Parsha (Thurs), 12:20pm; Chizuk Tefilla, 1:10pm; mincha, 1:30pm; 718-984-0280 Mishna Berurah Shiur, Rabbi Gershon West, Yeshiva Ner BoruchPassaic Torah Institute, 8:15pm, 862-371-3186 Gemara Brachos, Rabbi Gershon West, Yeshiva Ner BoruchPassaic Torah Institute, 8:45pm, 862-371-3186 Amud Yomi Shiur on Meseches Kiddushin, Rabbi Aaron Cohen, Cong Tifereth Israel, Passaic, 9:45pm, 862-686-6748
Mondays-Fridays
The Early Bird Gets the Schar for Learning: Gemara Sanhedrin, Rabbi Moshe Silverstein, Yeshiva Ner Boruch-Passaic Torah Institute, 6:15am, 973-594-4774 Morning Mishna Berurah Shiur: Dirshu Mishna Berurah, Rabbi Chaim Krause, spons by the Passaic Clifton Kollel, at Agudas Yisroel Bircas Yaakov, Passaic, 6:45am, 845-709-9340 Y
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
Israel’s Partners: Russia
fresh produce exports doubled overall, but exports to Russia increased nearly tenfold. That growth is expected to continue and even accelerate. The Russian-imposed ban on EU food products is supposed to last only until next August, but the increased presence of nonEuropean produce in Russian stores may be self-perpetuating. Technology and Energy In addition to agricultural cooperation, Russia and Israel have collaborated effectively on a military program to create drones. “Russia is catching up in technology, whereas Israel is a sophisticated player,” said Igor Delanoë , a French journalist with expertise on Russian security and defense issues. Relations between the two countries have benefitted greatly from the discovery of vast gas reserves off Israel’s coast. Until 2010, only US companies were allowed to exploit these reserves, but when Israel sought to diversify its sources of funding and avoid over-reliance on the US, the Russian energy company, Gazprom, was happy to oblige. In 2013, a Gazprom subsidiary signed a contract with Israel’s Levant LNG Marketing Corporation, granting the Russian company exclusive 20-year rights for the Tamar gas field off Haifa. On June 1, Israel and Russia announced they were establishing a permanent encrypted communication system, enabling their leaders to “discuss
Tell Our Advertisers “I Saw It in The Jewish Voice and Opinion”
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various issues concerning the major interests of both nations without direct intervention from the US.” Previously, Israel had such a communication channel only with the US. Iran and Syria “These developments attest to a firewall separating economic relations from the crises in Syria, Ukraine, and Iran, which do not seem to have damaged a potentially long-term partnership between Russia and Israel,” said Mr. Delanoë. Russia’s own relationship with Iran and Syria is complicated. On one hand, Moscow’s support for Mr. Assad pleased neither Israel nor the US, but Jerusalem did appreciate Russia’s supervision of the removal of Syria’s chemical weapons, which were in danger of falling into the hands of extremist terrorist groups. Russia’s selling highly sophisticated equipment to Syria and Iran could result in weapons being given to Hezbollah terrorists who are supported by the Islamic Republic and fight for Mr. Assad. But, according to Mr. Delanoë, Russia views its arms sales to Syria simply as a means of “exerting influence on the US” and not as a reliable source of revenue. For example, in 2009, after pressure from Israel and the US, Russia froze the sale of eight MiG 31E interceptors to Syria, which would have earned Moscow $500 million. Then, in 2012, it negotiated with the Assad regime a $550 million contract for 36 Yak-130 jet training aircraft. Shortly afterwards, it was an-
nounced that the deal had been suspended, but it now might be back on the table. In 2010, then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev cancelled the sale to Iran of S-300 anti-air defense systems worth $1 billion. Russia also voted in favor of four anti-Iranian UN Security Council resolutions requiring the Islamic Republic to comply with the demands of the International Atomic Energy Agency. “Russia alters its arms sales policy to Syria and Iran when it wants room to maneuver on key issues. The Yak-130 deal is unlikely to have resurfaced by coincidence at the same time as the Ukrainian crisis and the Russian presidential election in May,” said Mr. Delanoë. Bargaining Chip Nevertheless, Iran’s nuclear program remains a problem. Clearly, neither Russia nor Israel wants the mullahs in Iran to gain nuclear weapons, but Russia has maintained cooperation with the Iranians in civil nuclear energy and uses this as a bargaining chip when dealing with the West. Mr. Delanoë said he believes Israel is aware that Russia uses its “critical role over Iran only when it has problems with the former Soviet republics.” According to Mr. Delanoë, this explains Israel’s silent neutrality on the issue of Russia’s incursion into Ukraine. Most Russian Jews in Israel, especially those who emigrated from Ukraine, remember the rampant rabid antisemitism they experienced there. Many are deeply concerned about the 200,000 Jews still living in Kiev. Mr. Putin returned the favor to Israel during Operation Protective Edge in Gaza last summer. He called for a cessation of hostilities in order to avoid a worsening humanitarian situation, and simultaneously dubbed Russia “a true friend
of Israel” and said his government supported Israel’s right to fight to protect its citizens. Counterbalancing US Policy According to Mr. Delanoë, Israel is hoping to find in Russia a partnership that serves the Jewish state’s “strategic objective of diversification.” “Israel is looking for a way to counterbalance the inflexible aspects of US policy in the Middle East and to end its own relative diplomatic isolation,” said Mr. Delanoë. Israel’s sources of discord with Washington include the Obama administration’s insistence on restarting the “peace process” with demands for unilateral concessions from Israel; the 2013 US-sponsored accord allowing Iran to continue its nuclear program; and US support for Islamists in Egypt and Syria at the expense of moderate Sunnis. “Competition between Russia and the US may bring welcome developments for Israel,” said Mr. Delanoë. An example, he said, is the 2013 agreement between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry on the issue of Syria’s chemical arsenal, which both countries said had to be destroyed. “Israel would like to see similar US-Russian cooperation and agreement on Iran’s nuclear program,” said Mr. Delanoë. Pragmatism He said he believes the pragmatism exhibited by both Israel and Russia indicates their rapprochement is likely to continue growing. According to Mr. Shamir, the fact that the two countries often literally speak the same language does not hurt. “Most of the Israelis dealing in this process either speak Russian or at least have a Rus-
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World Turned Upside Down Israel to meet and surmount the growing dangers. “This new regional landscape in turn can provide a means of resolving the Palestinian conflict with Israel in a manner that will not endanger Israel,” said Carolyn Glick, managing editor of The Jerusalem Post. She pointed out that Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE gave
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Israel quiet diplomatic support during Operation Protective Edge against Hamas in Gaza. Palestinian State in Sinai? Egypt may have gone even further. At the beginning of September, while Egypt was conducting ceasefire talks between Israel and the Palestinians, there were reports that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi offered to
cede 62 square miles in Sinai, adjacent to Gaza, for the Palestinians to establish a viable state without needing sovereignty over Judea, Samaria, and Jerusalem. This would give the Palestinians a state five times the present size of Gaza. According to the reports, Mr. el-Sisi suggested Palestinian “refugees” would be allowed to
settle in the new, much enlarged Gaza, which would be demilitarized. According to his plan, Palestinians living in Judea and Samaria would enjoy autonomy under the auspices of the PA. Although the reports of this offer were quickly denied by both Egypt and the PA, there are still discussions based on the pos-
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Ess Gezint: Jazzy Vegetarian in the Sukkah Laura Theodore, a jazz singer and the on-camera host and writer of PBS’s Jazzy Vegetarian program, recently penned her own cookbook, called Jazzy Vegetarian Classics: Vegan Twists on American Family Favorites. The recipes are by definition kosher,
parve, and delightful for Sukkoth or any time. She uses the nut “parmesan” for “wheatballs,” but they’re great on meatballs, too. Chag Sameach, everyone. Y
Nut Parmesan
Banana-Raspberry Breakfast Smoothie
½ cup raw almonds, cashews, ¼ tsp (or more) sea salt walnuts, or pumpkin seeds Put the nuts and salt in a blender and process until the consistency of crumbled Parmesan cheese is achieved. Don’t over-process. Taste and add more salt, if desired. Store tightly in the refrigerator for up to two days.
1½ cups frozen raspberries 1 cup water, plus more 2 fresh or frozen bananas as needed 2 pitted Medjool dates 1 Tbsp maple syrup If starting with fresh raspberries, wash them well and dry on a clean kitchen towel. Put them in a re-sealable freezer bag. Seal bag well and freeze for at least 12 hours. If you want frozen bananas, break each one into 3-4 pieces and put in a re-sealable freezer bag. Seal and freeze for at least 12 hours. For the smoothie, put all the ingredients in a blender. Process until smooth, adding more water if necessary. Serve immediately. Serves 2.
Tortilla “Fried” Mushrooms 4-5 cups tortilla chips vegan yogurt) 1⁄8 tsp cayenne pepper 16 oz cremini or button 4 Tbs mayonnaise (can use mushrooms, cleaned vegan mayonnaise or and stemmed. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Put tortilla chips and pepper in a blender and process into coarse crumbs. Put the tortilla crumbs in a medium-size bowl. Put mayonnaise or yogurt in another small bowl. Dip each mushroom into the mayonnaise to coat it liberally, and then dip the mushroom into the tortilla mixture to coat with crumbs. Place each mushroom, round-side up, on the prepared baking sheet. Tent the mushrooms with foil and bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, until mushrooms are golden on top. Serves 4.
Black Bean Casserole 2 cans (15 oz. each) black 1 medium sweet onion, beans, drained and rinsed chopped 1 cup marinara sauce (can ½ tsp garlic powder be low-fat or no-oil), plus 2 heaping Tbsp maple syrup more as needed Preheat the oven to 375°. Put all ingredients in a large bowl and stir gently to combine. Pour the mixture into a medium casserole dish. Cover and bake for 50 minutes to one hour. Serves 4-6 with a green salad and crusty whole-grain bread.
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World Turned Upside Down sibility. PA leaders have said they will not consider anything less than a full Israeli withdrawal from every inch of Judea, Samaria, and the eastern neighborhoods of Jerusalem. This would include the Jewish quarter of the Old City and the Kotel. In addition, the PA insists on the “right of return” for all Arabs who fled Israel during the 1948 and 1967 wars, and their descendants; this would result in millions of Arabs flooding into Israel, demographically destroying the Jewish state. Accusing Israel While President Barack Obama has maintained that these issues need to be negotiated, he has blasted Israel every time the Jewish state allows building in these contested areas. In so doing, the administration is acquiescing to the PA’s demand that any land relinquished to them must be free of Jews. Nevertheless, Mr. Obama told the UN General Assembly he was chagrined that violence engulfing the Middle East has made “too many Israelis ready to abandon the hard work of peace.” “That’s something worthy of reflection, within Israel,” he said, adding that it was now painfully obvious that the IsraeliPalestinian issue is not the heart of the Middle East’s problems. The President’s remark was answered by Mort Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America, who said it was “remarkable” that Mr. Obama “can deduce from current Middle Eastern developments and realities that Israel is to be chided for not pursuing peace.” “In fact, it is the PA which has not made a single concession, while continuing unabated with its glorification of terrorists, incitement to hatred and murder, denial of Jewish history in
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Israel, non-acceptance of Israel as a Jewish state, and publicly stating that a future Palestinian state will never allow Jews,” he said. He noted that the PA has also concluded a unity pact with Hamas, a US-and European Union-listed terrorist organization, whose charter calls for the destruction of Israel and the murder of Jews. “And Israel is the one who doesn’t want peace?” said Mr. Klein. Shared Disquiet Such rhetoric and policies in the Obama administration constitute one of the roots of the distrust which has prompted Israel and the moderate Arab states to seek each other out. Mr. Langfan explained that Israel and the governments of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, UAE, and Egypt share disquiet not only over the Obama administration’s seeming predisposition towards Iran’s nuclear program, but also the administration’s approval of the Muslim Brotherhood, whose cause the Obama administration seemed to favor when the Islamist extremists were overthrown by Mr. el-Sisi, “Netanyahu sees a burgeoning alliance between Israel and the more moderate Sunni states forming to face and defeat the radical elements in the Sunni and Shiite worlds,” said Mr. Langfan. There is reason to believe Mr. Obama is less than pleased by this development. Several months ago, General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters, “There’s a convergence of agreement between [Israel and Saudi Arabia] and in opposition to what we [the Obama administration] are doing.” MEATO According to Mr. Langfan, “tectonic shifts in alliances” now taking place could position Israel’s military might as “the cornerstone in a new Middle East-Mediterranean alliance” that would ex-
tend from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia to Athens, Greece. This new Pan-Greek-Israel-Saudi alliance could be called MEATO, he said, an acronym for the Middle East Alliance Treaty Organization.” MEATO, Mr. Langfan said, could be based on facts already taking place on the ground. Last spring, according to press reports, General Dempsey emerged from meetings with his Israeli counterparts to say that their discussions included “an outreach to other partners who may not have been willing to be partners in the past.” Genera Dempsey said he was specifically referring to Gulf states which “heretofore may not have been as open-minded to the potential for cooperation with Israel, in any way.” Other American military officials told journalists that possibilities between these Arab states and Israel included intelligencesharing, joint counter-terrorism exercises, and “perhaps looking for how Israeli and Saudi troops could jointly work on the training of Syrian opposition fighters.” War Crimes During his speech at the UN, Mr. Netanyahu referred to a talk delivered a week earlier by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, in which he accused the Jewish state of “war crimes” and “genocide,” during this past summer’s Operation Protective Edge in Gaza.
Mr. Netanyahu stressed that rather than charging Israel with war crimes, the world body and its constituents should be looking at Hamas’s record. The prime minister said that while Israel used its missiles to protect its citizens, Hamas placed its weaponry in the midst of dense civilian populations and called on civilians to act as human shields. Thus, Hamas protected its missiles with civilians, “making sure that many of them were killed for the cameras,” said Mr. Langfan. Mr. Netanyahu said the deranged moral universe in which Israel can be accused of genocide “is the same moral universe where a man [Mr. Abbas] who wrote a dissertation of lies about the Holocaust, and who insists on a Palestine free of Jews, Judenrein, can stand at the podium and shamelessly accuse Israel of genocide and ethnic cleansing.” “But that wasn’t the guts of the talk,” said Mr. Langfan. “The meat was that Netanyahu has a diplomatic initiative in which he will be working with moderate Sunni-Arab states to form a coalition against the Islamic State (IS, ISIS or ISIL) and the possibility of a waxing nuclear-armed Iran.” Softening on Iran While Mr. Obama has indicated he would welcome moderate Arabs’ support in
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World Turned Upside Down the US fight against IS, he has made no secret of his administration’s softening on the issue of Iran’s being allowed to develop nuclear weapons. Just days before Mr. Netanyahu arrived in New York to address the UN, Phillip Gordon, the White House’s coordinator for the Middle East, told the National Iranian-American Council (NIAC) that if the US-Iranian talks on Iran’s nuclear-weapons program lead to an agreement, they can pave the way for the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. “A nuclear agreement could begin a multi-generational process that could lead to a new relationship between our countries,” said Mr. Gordon. The NIAC is generally viewed as the unofficial American lobby of the Iranian regime. Initially, the goal of the international talks was to convince Iran to dismantle its nuclear program in exchange for the Washington’s lifting harsh sanctions against the Islamic State. From the beginning, Iran said it would never give up its nuclear program, and intimated it was using the talks simply to buy time so it could work on the program while insisting the sanctions had to be eased. Blunt Departure Ms. Glick saw Mr. Gordon’s talk as “a blunt departure from the White House’s previous position.” In the past, the US had made clear that if Iran obeyed binding UN Security Council resolutions prohibiting the Islamic
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Republic from enriching uranium, the US would abrogate the economic sanctions that had been adopted to force Iran to end its illicit nuclear activities. According to US law, the diplomatic relations Mr. Gordon was discussing are contingent on Iran’s cessation of support for terrorist organizations, such as Hamas and Hezbollah, and other unlawful activities. Iran is generally recognized as the foremost state supporter of terrorism in the world. But Mr. Gordon told the NIAC that because the nuclear issue is so important, the US is willing to ignore Iran’s support for terrorism and other crimes, provided there is progress in nuclear talks. “The nuclear issue is too important to subordinate to a complete transformation of Iran internally,” Mr. Gordon told the NIAC. Iranian Threats The interim deal between the US and Iran was due to expire on July 20, but after being unable to reach a satisfactory conclusion, the sides committed to a four-month extension, to November 24. While the US has made it clear it is eager for a deal, Iran is not making it easy. Last month, Washington announced it would penalize a number of Iranian and other foreign companies, banks, and airlines for violating the still existing sanctions against Tehran. Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif responded with threats. “We can take actions that would be unpleasant to the other side,” he said, with-
out elaborating what the measures might be. He added that the sanctions had been imposed to appease “pressure groups in the US that are against any nuclear deal.” The phrase is often used by Iranian officials to refer to Israeli or Jewish interest groups. Nevertheless, Mr. Zarif said he is optimistic a deal can be reached. Many observers are not surprised by his reaction. There is no indication the US will insist that Iran destroy all its centrifuges, thus allowing it to continue enriching uranium. The question will be: how much? “Bad Deal” According to Israeli Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz, Iran is approaching nuclear capability. He was in the United States at the beginning of September to see the results of the last round of negotiations with Iran. The picture was “troubling,” he said. “Iran has agreed only to several small concessions. On all the issues touching the heart of the nuclear program, like uranium enrichment in the centrifuges, Iran hasn’t agreed to budge even a millimeter,” he said, adding that if a “bad agreement is reached, this will be unacceptable for us.” He said Israel opposes not only the possibility that Iran will be a nuclear-armed military state, but even the chance that it will be “a nuclear-threshold state.” According to Mr. Steinitz, Israel estimates that Iran has directly invested about $50 billion in its nuclear program. In addition, the sanctions it has absorbed have cost an additional $150 billion. When Iran reached a controversial interim deal with the US leading to the current negotiations, it agreed to limit some of its nuclear activities, in order to receive some sanction relief. Reinstate Relations with Iran According to Ms. Glick, Mr. Netanyahu arrived in New York just after Mr. Gordon made “this boldfaced US declaration that it will not only do nothing to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power, but is also endorsing continued Iranian sponsorship of Hezbollah.” Mr. Langfan agreed with Ms. Glick that Mr. Obama’s goal is not to prevent Iran from being able to manufacture nuclear bombs. They said that the President’s goal is to reinstate US-Iranian relations. “Obama doesn’t mind if Iran has a bomb in the basement so long as he can drink tea with Iranian President Hassan Rou-
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hani in the drawing room,” said Ms. Glick. Given this reality, Mr. Netanyahu spent most of his time in New York addressing the issue of Iran, to make his point to the American people, if not to convince the American President. Israel’s Enemy Few would deny the fact that the Iranian regime sees Israel as its enemy. The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas had barely gone into effect when Iranian military leaders began openly boasting of sending weapons to Palestinian Arabs in Judea and Samaria and elsewhere in the region. “Arming the West Bank has started and weapons will be supplied to the people of this region,” Brig-Gen Mohammed Reza Naqdi, commander of Iran’s volunteer Basij force, told the state-run Fars news agency at the end of August. The announcement was made after weeks of inflammatory statements from Iranian leaders, threatening war on Israel and promising to rearm groups such as Hamas so that they can continue their war on the Jewish state. In the past, Iran has threatened to annihilate Israel entirely. Mr. Naqdi confirmed what has long been known by Israeli Intelligence agencies: that Iran is responsible for training and arming Hamas with advanced rockets used to penetrate deep into Israeli terri-
tory during the recent conflict. He said Iran is arming terrorists in Judea and Samaria because attacks on Israel from these areas will ensure “the annihilation of the Zionist regime.” Losing the War Speaking to American groups and media, Mr. Netanyahu stressed that he agreed with the US about the importance of defeating IS. But if Iran as a result is left with the capacity to manufacture enough material for a nuclear bomb, “that would be to win the battle and lose the war,” he said. “You have to do both, defeat IS and prevent Iran from having the nuclear weapon,” he told Greta Van Susteren on Fox News He dismissed the notion that Iran should be rewarded for helping the US fight IS. “When both of your enemies are fighting one another, you don’t support one or the other. You look to weaken both,” he said. Further, he said, there is no need to reward Iran for actions they are going to take in any case, like fighting IS. “If [Syrian President Bashar] Assad said, ‘I’ll fight IS if you give me back my chemical weapons,’ you’d laugh him out of court. Rewarding Iran for this is the same absurdity,” he said. How Many Centrifuges? Asked how many centrifuges Iran might reasonably need for peaceful civilian nuclear energy, Mr. Netanyahu said, “None.”
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He explained that major countries, including Mexico, Canada, Indonesia, and others, have civilian nuclear energy without a single centrifuge. “Centrifuges are needed for only one thing, not for civilian nuclear energy, but for making a bomb. What peaceful purposes do the Iranians have in mind? Putting radio isotopes on one of their intercontinental ballistic missiles to shoot out to Iranian patients orbiting the earth? That’s absurd. They’re making bombs. That’s what they’re trying to do. That’s what the whole program is about. Everybody knows that,” he said. If Iran is allowed a few hundred or a few thousand centrifuges, they will have the capacity to produce a nuclear bomb in weeks or months, he said. “Veering Away” Mr. Netanyahu reluctantly admitted that the US had begun “veering away” from its initial position of no enrichment and no centrifuges. Whether it will finally be a bad deal or a very bad deal depends on “where Iran ends up on the spectrum, from just a few centrifuges to many of them,” he said. He told Ms. Van Susteren the Iranians’ goal is to secure a deal with the US that would lift all the sanctions against Tehran while still allowing them to enrich sufficient uranium to make a bomb. “They shouldn’t get it,” Mr. Netan-
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World Turned Upside Down yahu told. Single Goal He explained that all militant Islamists, including Iran and the Sunni extremists IS and Hamas, are trying “to dominate the Middle East so that they can take over the world.” “Their number one target ultimately is the United States. All these branches of Islamists see you as The Great Satan. They call us ‘the small Satan’ because we’re just a forward position of the US. They want to destroy us so they can get to you,” he said. If anyone of these groups secures a nuclear weapon, the threat would be “tremendous,” he said. “They all have a fanatic ideology. They want to have their domains expanded, and ultimately they want to change history. They want to bring us back to the early medieval period when women
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were chattel and minorities were subjugated, and everyone they considered an infidel was given the choice: convert or die,” he said. He agreed the very thought was “insane,” but he said, “This insanity, coupled with weapons of mass destruction, could lead to catastrophe.” It happened before in the last century, he pointed out, when “another mad ideology sought to conquer the world.” “When they thought they had enough power, the Nazis wrought horrible devastation and 60 million people died, including one-third of my people. Well, we can’t let that happen again,” he said. Hamas Is ISIS While Mr. Netanyahu would have preferred to focus his discussions with Mr. Obama on Iran, the President made clear he wanted to focus on the Palestinians. The Obama White
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House was one place where the idea of a regional Middle East coalition between Israel and the moderate Sunni Arab states replacing negotiations with the Palestinians was not well received. While the Obama administration said Mr. Abbas’s antiIsrael tirade at the UN “included offensive characterizations that were deeply disappointing and which we reject” and that “such provocative statements are counterproductive and undermine efforts to create a positive atmosphere and restore trust between the parties,” the White House was equally harsh on Mr. Netanyahu for suggesting that “Hamas is ISIS and ISIS is Hamas” and that they share a common Islamist ideology. “They all seek to establish a global militant Islam where there is no freedom,” Mr. Netanyahu told the UN General Assembly. He compared them also to the Nazis who “believe in a master race; Islamists believe in a master faith.” “The question before us is whether militant Islam will have the power to realize their unbridled ambition,” he said. Some Differences On some talk shows, Mr. Netanyahu confessed there were differences between IS and Hamas. “They’re not twins, but brothers, branches of the same poison tree,” he said. “They are radical Islamist movements, and they use some of the same methods.” He brought a photo with him to many of the venues he visited, a picture of a blindfolded man in an orange jumpsuit about to be executed. Most Americans, now familiar with IS videos of Westerners about to beheaded, suspected the photo was of IS. Rather, it was a photo of a member of Hamas about to execute another Palestinian, probably a member
of Hamas’s rival faction, Fatah. According to press reports, Hamas executed dozens of Palestinians in what Mr. Netanyahu called “actions to instill their campaign of fear over the population of Gaza.” He admitted there are differences between IS and Hamas. For example, he said, while IS beheads its victims, Hamas puts bullets through their heads. “But if you’re the victim or the family of a victim, the horror is the same,” he said. Iran Is ISIS He noted that while Israel fought Hamas and the US is now fighting IS, it is important not to allow Iran “to get lost in the cracks.” “We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that Iran, the ultimate Islamist extremist power, must not receive the ultimate nuclear power,” he said. “Don’t be fooled by Iran’s manipulative ‘charm offensive,’ Mr. Netanyahu said. “It’s for one reason only: to remove sanctions and to lift obstacles from the path to power.” He suggested that if the West would not allow IS to build a water reactor or have access to nuclear weapons, it should show the same caution with Iran. No Human Rights Addressing the General Assembly, Mr. Netanyahu sharply disparaged the UN Human Rights Council, which has been hypercritical of Israel, dedicating over half its resolutions to rhetoric against the Jewish state, the single democracy in the Middle East. Mr. Netanyahu pointed out that the UNHRC has not said anything about Hamas’s use of civilians as human shields. “The UNHRC is sending a clear message to terrorists everywhere: use civilians as human shields. Use them again and again and again. You know why? Because, sadly, it works,” he said. He called the UNHRC “an
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“Honor the Professional According to Your Need”
oxymoron” and “a terrorists’ human rights council” with blatant bias and prejudice. “Its policies are an extension of the oldest prejudice in the world. It’s a function of diseased minds; it’s called antisemitism, which is spreading in polite society, which is being legitimized as a form of criticism against Israel,” he said. Criticizing the Speech According to surveys, most supporters of Israel in the Jewish state and abroad felt Mr. Netanyahu accomplished at the UN what he had set out to do: fight back against the “lies and slander” leveled against the Jewish state. PLO leader and former negotiator for the PA Hanan Ashrawi, however, called Mr. Netanyahu’s speech “a blatant manipulation of facts and an attempt at misleading the audience through a combination of hate language, slander, and argument of obfuscation.”
Despite a plethora of photographic and journalistic proof showing Hamas terrorists setting up rocket launchers and firing missiles at Israel from areas containing civilians, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu-Zuhri said the group “would never place rocket launchers next to children.” “Obviously, it’s a lie,” he said. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki agreed that ISIS and Hamas are terrorist organizations. However, “certainly we see differences—in terms of the threat and otherwise,” she said. She distanced the US from Mr. Netanyahu’s characterization of the UNHRC as a “terrorists’ commission,” although she acknowledged that Washington has also had issues with some of UNHRC’s actions. Daring to Build But harsher condemnation of Israel from the Obama administration was coming. Shortly after Mr. Netan-
yahu concluded his meeting with the President, the administration leaked reports suggesting that most of their time together was spent discussing Israel’s planned construction of more than 2,600 homes for Jews and Arabs in the southern neighborhoods of Jerusalem. According to the reports, Mr. Obama threatened Mr. Netanyahu that the construction would draw international condemnation, distance Israel from “even its closet allies,” “poison the atmosphere” with the Palestinians as well as with other Arab governments, and call into question Israel’s “ultimate commitment to a peaceful negotiated settlement.” The announcement of the impending building surfaced just hours after the Housing Ministry released figures showing that the housing crisis in Israel was getting worse. Some say this is due to a Washington-pressured, quiet building freeze that has continued in Judea, Samaria, and Jerusalem. Jews Permitted Mr. Netanyahu’s response to Washington’s threats was that he would not tell Jews they are forbidden to reside in Jerusalem. “I cannot tell a Jew that he is forbidden to purchase a home in Jerusalem,” he said, adding that, as Prime Minister of Israel, “I do not understand the criticism.” “Arabs in Jerusalem buy
apartments, and no one bothers them or rules them out. By the same token, I’m not going to say to Jews don’t buy in Jerusalem, including in Silwan. We cannot have discrimination. This approach is unacceptable to me. It is the right of Jews to buy apartments in Jerusalem,” he said. Only in Jerusalem When reporters asked him about the criticism from the White House, Mr. Netanyahu said no one would broach the subject in any other city in the world. “If you said to me that, in some city in the US or in Mexico or anywhere else, Jews cannot buy apartments, there would be an uproar. You know, there’s not only the freedom of property, but the right of individuals to live where they want, as long as they purchase the apartment legally and don’t expropriate, don’t take over, which isn’t the case here. So I just want to understand this policy. It flies in the face of American values, and it flies in the face of common sense,” he said. He stressed that a substantial number of the proposed apartments are being set aside for purchase by Arabs. Nevertheless, Ms. Ashrawi accused the Israeli government of being “more interested in stealing land than in making peace.” Deadline It is an argument that Mr.
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
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Letters to the Editor Defending Bill Pascrell
We would like to set the record straight regarding Bill Pascrell at the Clifton City Hall meeting in late August [“Bill Pascrell Equates Israelis and Palestinians,” Letters, Sept 2014]. The congressman traveled to Israel this summer, in the midst of the war with Hamas on an AIPAC-sponsored trip. Unlike other members of Congress who initially agreed to go and then cancelled their trips because of the war, Pascrell did not cancel. Upon his return to America, he met with several Jewish leaders from diverse organizations in Tenafly at the JCC. He said that the time to be politically correct has passed. He said that he says the same thing to Jewish and Arab audiences. He then said that Hamas is a terrorist organization, period. He said that Israel has a right to defend itself. He said that while he was in Israel, he tried to get a meeting with Abbas. He called his contacts in the PA three times, and his calls were not returned. He then said “to hell with Abbas.” At that open forum at Clifton City Hall attended by several Arabs and Palestinian sympathizers and only a handful of Jews, he repeated those same statements he made in Tenafly. Considering the audience and the fact that the congressman represents the City of Paterson with most likely the largest concentration of Palestinians in America, we think making those statements took a lots of guts. We can repeat these statements accurately as we attended both meetings and were present for all of the congressman’s remarks about Israel. There may be some people who wish to defame him, but the congressman is a very strong supporter of Israel. He has an excellent voting record on Israel. We believe we are lucky to have him represent us in Congress. Dr. Jonathan Gold and Robert Rogoff Passaic, NJ SLR responds: Relying entirely on your eye-witness account, we understand you are saying we should thank our lucky stars that this US Congressman actually agreed to go on an all-expensespaid AIPAC trip, says the same things to Arab and Jewish audiences, and thinks Hamas is a terrorist group. He is ready to send Abbas to Hades, not because the PA leader foments violence, praises terrorists, makes inappropriate and outlandish demands on Israel, or denies the Holocaust. Pascrell knew all that and still tried—three times—to get a meeting with Abbas. Pascrell is furious at him only because the PA leader blew him off. As we all know, Hell hath no fury like a macher scorned.
A Spurious, Egregious Ad
On Saturday, August 23, the New York Times published an ad signed by about 300 Holocaust survivors, their direct descendants, and some relatives, condemning Israel’s military operation in Gaza and accusing the Jewish state of “ongoing genocide.” Forgetting for a moment the background of the people involved in this group, I believe it is irresponsible, insensitive, and reckless to use the crime of the Holocaust in this way. How can one compare a nation’s right to defend its citizens with the systematic, targeted, wholesale murder of an innocent people?
As it has been said many times, if the Palestinians put down their weapons, there would be peace, but if the Israelis put down their weapons, there would be wholesale slaughter. The people in Gaza elected Hamas so they are, at least, tacitly behind the rocket attacks that precipitated the recent war. To come out as a group of Holocaust survivors and thus dilute the immense tragedy of that time with twisted moral equivalency, somehow comparing what happened to my innocent relatives who were demeaned, brutally abused, and annihilated, with a legitimate duly elected government simply trying to protect its citizens, is not only spurious, but really egregious. This is especially true in light of the fact that Palestinian children in PA-run schools are taught that the Holocaust never happened. Their supposedly “moderate” leader, Mahmoud Abbas, has a Ph.D. in Holocaust denial. Ironically, we are now facing a war against the new Nazis: murderous, barbaric radical Islamists. We dare not wallow in complacency, in misguided tolerance, or a naïve sense of security. We must not be lulled into inaction for fear of offending the offenders. We must face the truth: Radical Islam is the scourge of the world. This must be cried out in every synagogue. ISIS must be destroyed. Iran is our enemy. Rabbi Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg Edison, NJ
Near Tragedy Averted
Last month, while driving down from Shaarei Chesed to the Old City Parking Lot on Har Zion, I used the Waze GPS system on my phone. Waze routed me into an Arab neighborhood in eastern Jerusalem near the Mount of Olives. As I turned into a narrow street, I realized where I was, but I could not leave the area because the street was too narrow to navigate. An older man in a white pickup truck suddenly pulled out of his curbside parking spot and stopped his vehicle directly in front of me to block my escape. As he did this, an Arab teenager knocked on my window and looked at me. When he saw my kippah, he realized I was Jewish. Within seconds, I was attacked by a mob of teenagers with boulders the size of bricks. I’m not sure how it happened, but suddenly the path opened up around the pickup truck and, Baruch Hashem, I managed to escape without injury. I drove frantically until I saw the walls of Har Zion. I called the police who took pictures, filed a report, and fingerprinted the entire vehicle. I have no doubt that if my attackers had succeeded in breaking the front window of the car, they would have pounded me with stones. In the coming weeks and months, there will be many people traveling to Israel. We need to publicize incidents like this and advise people not to rely on GPS systems in Jerusalem as it presents a clear danger of pikuach nefesh. Gamliel Danziger Passaic, NJ
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October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
The Jewish Voice and Opinion
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“Thought Is the World of Freedom” (R’ Dov Ber of Mazeritch) Forgive Me for Voting for Our Current President
Last month, we marked the Ten Days of Repentance between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, a time for the Jewish people to repent for their sins and ask others for forgiveness for any wrongdoing. In that spirit, please accept my open apology to my fellow Jews. I have truly put you all in danger. On November 6, 2012, I took part in an historic event of which I am very ashamed. In fact, I am quite embarrassed. I helped put into the White House an imposter and a fervent enemy of the Jewish people, Barack Hussein Obama. Maybe my wrongdoing is more forgivable because I am not alone. I am part of the 70 percent of Jews who put an enemy of the Jewish people into the highest office in the world. Was I just a follower? Was I misled? It seems that Jews on a whole tend to vote for people who don’t like them, who side with their enemies. Maybe it’s some weird Stockholm syndrome. On social issues, I have liberal views and have consistently voted Democrat. But I stand with my people. I stand with the truth. I stand with patriotism. I stand with America. I stand with Israel. I stand against terrorism at all costs. And that’s why I no longer stand with Obama. I’m not sure what the defining moment was—the moment that changed me, when I saw the light, when I recognized Obama for who he really is. I can’t pinpoint a single episode because there are just too many. Maybe it was last June when our three beautiful teenage boys with bright futures ahead of them were kidnapped and murdered by Palestinian-Arab terrorists. Maybe it was when Obama did not condemn that kidnapping but quickly condemned the attack on that poor Palestinian boy who was murdered. Maybe it was when a Chabad rabbi—a husband, father, and grandfather—was shot and killed by a young black man in Miami while walking to synagogue, and Obama did not utter a word. Would you expect him to grab the mic if it were a rabbi who shot a young black man? You betcha! Obama has yet to condemn the horrid and heinous beheading of that poor woman in Oklahoma by a Muslim, but he was so quick to send his aides to attend the funeral of the
black man shot by a police officer in Ferguson and to compare Trayvon Martin, who a court later ruled had been shot in selfdefense, to his own fictitious son. Terrorism is happening on our soil, and Obama has yet to speak up. This man is scary. Unpredictable. So, on this Yom Kippur, I beat my chest asking G-d to forgive me for putting a traitor in the White House. It has been a difficult year not only for the Jewish people but for the entire world, and it has physically and mentally shaken me to the core. Mankind has lost grip with humanity. The people who call themselves humanists are now siding with murderers and barbarians. Entire peoples have been wiped out in the Middle East: Christians in Mosul, Iraq—gone. The Yazidi people—killed, sold into slavery, raped, and maimed. ISIS, with its cruel and barbaric hands, is beheading journalists and aid workers, trying to intimidate the world. Never in a million years would I have dreamed that my people would be subject to such grave danger in my lifetime, even after all we’ve learned from all the atrocities committed against the Jews, from the Crusades, to the Spanish Inquisition, to the Holocaust. So I beat my chest this Yom Kippur. I asked G-d for happiness and health for my loving husband and my two beautiful boys, and for peace for the Jewish people and Israel. I know that I will do my part on November 8, 2016. Lisa Surany-Cyrulnik Los Angeles, CA
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World Turned Upside Down Abbas is also trying to make. Several weeks before arriving at the UN, Mr. Abbas said he would lobby members of the General Assembly to set a three-year deadline for Israel to withdraw from Judea and Samaria. The idea was seen as a way for Mr. Abbas to refocus international attention on his demands for a state after efforts to reach a negotiated peace deal with Israel failed. The effort, which gained the automatic approval of the Arab League, is a unilateral move and, thus a direct violation of the Oslo Accords. Mr. Abbas said his plan was to ap-
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proach the Security Council, where under normal circumstances the proposal presumably would be vetoed by the US as a “unilateral move.” But many supporters of Israel are fearful that Mr. Obama, with two years left before leaving office, might just turn on the Jewish state and allow, or even support, Mr. Abbas’s “deadline” idea. “After the 2016 elections, Obama will be unconstrained by concerns for Democratic candidates. Most of the Security Council resolutions against Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria were passed after the 1980 presidential elec-
tions when the then-lame duck Jimmy Carter felt free to attack Israel at will,” said Ms. Glick. Not a Peace Partner Israelis across the political spectrum reacted similarly to the threat of a deadline and to Mr. Abbas’s “war crimes-andgenocide” speech. Communications Minister Gilad Erdan, of Likud, said the speech proved that Mr. Abbas’s “only expertise is spreading lies and incitement against Israel.” “He has denied the Holocaust in the past and now, in this surreal speech at the UN, he has accused us of ‘genocide,’” said Mr. Erdan, noting that this is “not how a ‘peace partner’ talks and certainly not anyone who wants ‘reconciliation between peoples.’” Jewish Home Chairman and Israeli Economics Minister Naftali Bennett said the speech shows Israel must “find new and creative ways to allow us just to survive here.” “A Palestinian state west of the Jordan River is not one of them,” he said. No Support from the Left Even the Israeli Left took exception to Mr. Abbas’s speech. Meretz Chairman Zahava GalOn called his words “serious and grave.” “While Israel has acted harshly in Gaza and made things difficult [for the Palestinians], you cannot call it ‘genocide,’” she said. Labor MK Eitan Cabel called Mr. Abbas’s statements “false and outrageous” and “worthy of condemnation from all who truly love peace.” “Even if Abbas has domestic needs which require him to wink at Hamas, there is no justification for such statements. The people of Israel who aspire to peace cannot accept them,” he said. Ignored In a sentiment that echoed Mr. Netanyahu’s decision to pursue the moderate Arab states as partners rather than the PA, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said the accusations in Mr. Abbas’s speech had “finally pushed the PA’s bid for independence off the international community’s agenda.” “Even the Arab world is sick of Abbas,” he said, explaining that he had been following the agenda for the General Assembly and could “never remember the Palestinian issue being pushed so far down the agenda.” “They’re talking about everything—Ebola and Iraq, Islamic State and Ukraine. The Palestinian issue almost doesn’t exist,” he said.
http://jewishvoiceandopinion.com Mr. Abbas’s speech had rendered the PA leader “irrelevant with regard to any attempts to reach an agreement between Israel and the Palestinians,” said Mr. Lieberman. No Withdrawal from Judea and Samaria In remarks that some say hint at the veracity of the reports concerning the Egyptian offer of the Sinai to the Palestinians, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon endorsed Mr. Netanyahu’s idea of a regional alliance that could perhaps help resolve the Palestinians’ conflict with Israel. Mr. Ya’alon said that it was “irrational” even to consider an Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria after seeing what Hamas was capable of in Gaza. Mr. Ya’alon insisted Mr. Abbas has “never really come to terms with Israel’s existence.” “He is not a man of peace and is not really interested in an agreement with Israel, which means recognition of the Jewish national homeland,” he said. The ICC What was not heard at the UN this time were the usual PA threats to take action against Israel at the International Criminal Court. The PA has been threatening for years to sue Israel at the ICC. Recently, the PA’s Foreign Affairs Minister Riyad alMaliki met with ICC officials to inquire about the legal procedures necessary for the PA to join the ICC and take action against “war crimes” the Palestinians say Israel has committed. Some PA officials have recognized that joining the ICC is a calculated risk. It would also give Israel a forum to pursue war crimes charges against the PA, and especially against Hamas. In a recent interview, Ibrahim Khreisheh, the PA’s envoy to the UN Human Rights Council, admitted the PA has “no hope” of pressing charges against Israel in international courts, because the Palestinian terror groups are
October 2014 / Cheshvan 5775
far worse violators of international law themselves. Cases against Hamas In an interview on official PA television last July, which was translated by MEMRI, Mr. Khreisheh said Israel could launch legal offensives of its own, especially against Hamas, if the PA joins the ICC. “The missiles now being launched against Israel from Gaza—each and every missile—constitutes a crime against humanity, whether it hits or misses, because it is directed at civilian targets,” he said. He agreed with the program’s host that Israel was also “guilty of war crimes”; but he said that the human rights abuses by Palestinian terrorist groups were far worse, particularly when it came to harming civilians. Admitting to Warnings To launch an appeal to the ICC, “all Palestinian factions would need to commit, in writing, to refrain from targeting Israeli civilians—something none of them are likely to do,” said Mr. Khreisheh. In contrast, he noted that “many of our people in Gaza appeared on TV and said the Israeli army warned them to evacuate their homes before bombardment.” “In such a case, if someone is killed, [international] law considers it a mistake rather than an intentional killing, because [the Israelis] followed the legal procedures. As for the missiles launched from our side, we never warn anyone about where these missiles are about to fall or about operations we carry out,” Mr. Khreisheh said. Rivalry In addition, last month, Mr. Abbas boasted that his Fatah faction of the PLO had lost 17 times more members than had Hamas during the recent Operation Protective Edge in Gaza. He said that while Hamas had “only lost 50 fighters, 861 martyrs fell from Fatah.”
The Jewish Voice and Opinion
In a video aired on the official Fatah Facebook page, the faction praised its rocket commander, Mohammed ‘Al-Za’anin, of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza. According to the video, which was translated by Palestinian Media Watch (PMW), he was killed by an IAF airstrike “one hour” before the ceasefire agreement “as he was preparing to launch his final rocket barrage” on Israeli civilian centers. “While many world leaders have related to Abbas and his Fatah faction as a ‘moderate’ alternative to Hamas, the new boastful video and claims by Abbas of inflated losses in Gaza reflect the ideology of terror held by the party,” said Ari Yashar of Arutz Sheva. Political Decision to Slaughter During Operation Protective Edge, senior PA official Jibril Rajoub announced that the PA had reached a “political decision” to support Arab terrorists “slaughtering” Jews living in Ju-
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dea, Samaria, and the eastern neighborhoods of Jerusalem. The PA, he said, called for a full return to terrorism and declared “open war” on the Jewish state. Early last month, official PA television aired a “poetry session” in which the poet, called simply “Ahmad” referred to Jews as “the most evil among creations” who “were brought up on spilling blood” and had “murdered Allah’s pious prophets.” He calls Jews “barbaric monkeys” and “wretched pigs,” and ends the poem with the warning that [my suicide] “belt is around my waist and my rifle is on my shoulder.” For perhaps these reasons, Hasan Khreisha, the second-deputy speaker of the Palestinian parliament, told the Ma’an news agency last month that Mr. Abbas had halted the decision to join the ICC in favor of a push for the UN to declare a deadline for the declaration of a Palestinian state. S.L.R.
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