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OUTRAGE AT YOUTH OFFENDER HOME IN GOLDERS GREEN END OF LEGAL ROAD FOR ALTA

BY ADAM MOSES Over 150 people have lodged objections at a planning scheme with London Borough of Barnet for a youth offender residential home in Golders Green.

The semi-detached six-bedroom property on Hamilton Road for five males aged 16 to 17 within the justice system will be staffed by a minimum of two LAP staff 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Kosher shops and Jewish Care on Golders Green Road are close by.

Youth Offending Services for each local authority will provide initial identification of teens who have committed, or are alleged to have committed, a criminal offence and face either remand or sentence to youth custody.

Occupants will be subject to an electronically monitored curfew.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

The property on Hamilton Road

The EU court of human rights has rejected an appeal to keep two-year old Alta Fixsler on life support.

Her parents called the ruling extremely disappointing, and said they hoped they could still reach an agreement to save their daughter’s life.

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CAA demand apology from talkSPORT presenters

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Pre-arranged visits will be allowed. The level of support and monitoring will be intense. Barnet Council working with London Accommodation Pathfinder are behind the project as an alternative to youth custody with provisionally an earliest start date of November 1st 2021.

Immediate neighbours will be provided with a 24-hour a day contact telephone number.

Among concerned comments by responders to the proposal are fears over security, vulnerability and pupil safety to two nearby primary schools in the heart of the Jewish community.

Michael, a father of three young children locally, is among outraged residents especially as HMO (House in Multiple Occupation) online details describes the offenders as “children”.

“This is an area dominated by young families with young children,” he told The Jewish Weekly. “Locals are furious. They feel this is a direct attack by our local authority who are acting against the interests of local residents.”

Michael added. “I am afraid for the safety of my children and family. The juveniles will have received sentences averaging 6-8 months. These are not sentences that get handed down for trivial offences. They are reserved only for serious crimes. The council wrote to us refusing to rule out violent offenders, weapons offenders and gang members. They have refused to listen to our concerns and are determined to push this

BY ADAM MOSES

Hamilton Road, NW11

ill-conceived scheme through planning. A terraced house is totally unsuitable to be used as a custody facility.”

Occupants will receive care equivalent to Centrepoint’s specialist approach offering wraparound provision. There will be access to physical activity, group workshops concentrating on interests, career aspirations and talents, and access to mental health services, life skills and legal support.

All staff will receive training in various areas including Child Sexual Exploitation and Child Criminal Exploitation, Gangs/Serious Youth Violence/County Lines, Managing conflict and challenging behaviour, drug and alcohol awareness and Mental Health.

Planning reference 21/4069/FUL for people wishing to register comments. Deadline is August 25th. https://publicaccess.barnet.gov.uk/ online-applications/applicationDetails. do?activeTab=neighbourComments&keyVal=QWMUQYJIIAI00

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Campaign Against Antisemitism have demanded an on-air apology from talkSPORT presenters Perry Groves and Jordan Jarrett-Bryan after an antisemitic comment about Tottenham Hotspur’s chairman, Daniel Levy was broadcast unchallenged on Tuesday night.

The Sports Bar segment, presented by the duo, included a discussion about Tottenham star striker Harry Kane. Jarrett-Bryan pondered what transfer fee Levy should demand for Kane. Referring to Levy, a caller responded, “He’s a Jew, he’s not going to let him go for nothing, is he?”

The shocked presenters cut off the caller then tried to move the conversation on without acknowledging the comment.

TalkSPORT have apologised but CAA want both presenters to take responsibility. Their actions have been condemned by both Tottenham and Jewish organisations.

A statement on the club’s website yesterday noted TalkSPORT’s apology.

Tottenham stated: “We were appalled that neither presenter addressed the comment, failing to call out the antisemitic trope. We are under no doubt that if an equivalent comment had been made regarding an individual’s race or other protected characteristic, the response would have been immediate and far-reaching. It cannot be acceptable that antisemitism does not receive the same level of condemnation as other forms of discrimination and efforts to tackle it should be no less rigorous.”

Lee Clayton, head of talkSPORT, was appalled and apologised earlier in the day.

The station suspended live broadcasting on YouTube until “protections in place” as for radio broadcasting.

He noted, “There is absolutely no room for discrimination of any kind in society.

We are deeply sorry to Tottenham and, especially, to chairman Daniel Levy, as well as their supporters and the Jewish community for the offence caused by this hateful comment, which should never have been broadcast.

“The comment was rightly dumped on our radio station, where we broadcast with a slight delay to ensure any unexpected and inappropriate comments don’t make it to air. It was, however, streamed live on the

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L-R: Perry Groves and Jordan Jarrett-Bryan

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talkSPORT YouTube channel, which we are currently testing and which awaits a similar profanity/offence delay.”

Clayton added, “Our team did not take our YouTube stream into consideration and therefore the comments were not challenged as they should have been for our viewers on YouTube. It is unacceptable that the comment appeared anywhere and as broadcast partners of the Premier League, we take our position very seriously. We are comprehensively reviewing all of our processes, involving our teams across programming, social media and compliance.”

Notwithstanding the comments, CAA called on Groves and Jarrett-Bryan to apologise as did Board of Deputies Vice President Amanda Bowman following “extremely disturbing” footage.

“We hope that TalkSPORT will give these presenters the opportunity to address this live on air, making clear that they should have confronted such blatant anti-Jewish racism and pledging to do better in future,” she noted.

Jonathan Metliss, Action Against Discrimination joined the furore, adding, “These comments should be resisted and challenged at all times and at all costs. Yet again, AAD calls upon the relevant authorities, social media platforms and all the other media to ensure that this behaviour is not accepted and is eradicated.”

Mike Bluestone, AJEX national chairman, commented, “In all walks of life AJEX stands strong whether it be education, Remembrance, welfare or speaking out on antisemitism. We will continue to share our voice when acts like this occur”.

WHAT’S INSIDE THIS WEEK 02 News 13 Opinion 15 Letters 17 Games 18 Community

21 Feature 22 Judaism 26 Kids 28 Youth 30 Sport

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Kisharon Yom CST records 49% increase in hate figures Tov gift pack

BY DAVID SAFFER

Community Security Trust has recorded 1,308 anti-Jewish hate incidents from January to June 2021.

The record high follows 875 (2020), 911 (2019), 810 (2018) and 786 (2017).

The 2021 six-month total is higher than every full-year total prior to 2016.

A further 396 potential incidents were received but not deemed to be antisemitic.

The record figures are due to the spike in anti-Jewish hate reported during and following the escalation in violence in Israel and Gaza. In May 2021, CST recorded 639 antisemitic incidents alone.

The most common type of language or imagery demonstrated was anti-Zionist political motivation, comparisons to Israel with Nazi Germany, terms “Zionism” or “Zionist”, euphemisms for “Jewishness” and “Jew”, and use of far right or Nazi-related discourse.

The pandemic led those wishing to spread anti-Jewish hate finding new ways of doing so.

CST received 13 reports of video conferencing events being hijacked with antisemitic material. ‘Zoombombings’ were unheard of prior to the Covid-19 outbreak.

CST recorded incidents containing antisemitic rhetoric alongside reference to the pandemic.

Conspiracy theories ranged from Jewish

involvement in creating and spreading Cov- on Antisemitism, Lord Mann, said, “The id-19 for malevolent and financial benefit scale and intensity of this rise in antisemto wishing Jewish people catch the virus itism will shock and abhor people across and die from it to misappropriating Holo- Britain. Many parents will worry about the dramatic increase in hate caust-era imagery.

There were 130 anin educational settings. ti-Jewish hate incidents My office will continue to involving schools, school work tirelessly to see antistudents and teachers. semitism more widely unCST recorded violent derstood and relentlessly opposed, be it on campus antisemitic incidents, damage and desecration or off.” of Jewish propert, abusive DCC Mark Hamilton, behaviour, direct antiseNational Policing Lead for mitic threats and cases of hate crime, noted, “A huge mass-mailed antisemitic rise in antisemitic hate crime in the UK at a time of leaflets or emails.

Online antisemitic inconflict in the Middle East cidents fell slightly from is shocking, but sadly not ANTISEMITIC INCIDENTS 364 incidents to 355. surprising. It was depressJanuary-June 2021 ing to hear of the incidents But these totals understate the scale of online of violence and the threats antisemitism. made to UK communities, who clearly have CST recorded 748 antisemitic incidents in no involvement in the events unfolding in Greater London, an increase of 51% and 181 another continent.” He added, “It should antisemitic incidents in Greater Manches- not be necessary for UK Jewish citizens to ter, an increase of 159%. Elsewhere in the demand that their security and peace is UK, there were 30 incidents in Leeds, 28 in protected, it is our collective responsibility.”

CST Chief Executive Mark Gardner comGateshead, 25 in Liverpool, 17 in Birmingham and 15 in Borehamwood and Elstree. mented, “This year British Jews have sufCST recorded an antisemitic incident fered levels of hatred that were worse than in all but four Police regions across the anything seen in recent decades. Some of country. the abuse and harassment targeting young HM Government’s Independent Adviser people in particular was disgraceful.”

• • EMBARGO UNTIL THURSDAY 5 AUGUST 2021 AT 00.01 • •

Over 4,000 families will be opening a Rosh Hashanah gift pack this year in Kisharon’s biggest social enterprise initiative to date.

Shuls, community groups and the Armed Forces have snapped up Yom Tov packs from Kisharon. Packing the gifts has provided paid work for people Kisharon supports, many shielding during the pandemic.

The venture raises awareness of the work Kisharon does with people of all ages with learning disabilities. Teams of volunteers have lent a hand.

Many shuls are using packs to welcome members back after community buildings shut Kisharon Gift and Homeware Store, Equal is fully stocked including personalised honey alongside gift sets including honey jars and dishes.

Personalised honey orders must be placed by August 29th Online orders: www.equal.kisharon.org.uk

LSJS agree transatlantic study deal Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies has signed a transatlantic agreement with London School of Jewish Studies.

UK-based LSJS students can study remotely for a graduate degree in Jewish Studies.

Revel began offering its Jewish philosophy master’s remotely three years ago.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led the school to promote its existing platform internationally.

Dr. Daniel Rynhold, Professor of modern Jewish philosophy and dean of Revel, enjoyed his first academic appointment at LSJS. “It gives me particular pleasure to have forged this relationship,” he noted. “It is an honour to be bringing the very best of

academic Jewish Studies to students in the UK via an institution with which I have a deep personal connection, and that is of such historic importance to Anglo Jewry.”

Joanne Greenaway, LSJS Chief Executive added, “We are delighted to be partnering with our friends at Yeshiva University to broaden the scope of our academic offering.”

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis is LSJS President. Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z”tl is a former president.

LSJS began life in 1855 as Jews’ College which became LSJS but maintained its 166-year-old mission of serving as a hub of academic study attracting world-class Rabbis and educators.

Details: Helena.miller@lsjs.ac.uk

Mitzvah Day launched Mitzvah Day has announced its theme for 2021.

‘This Mitzvah Day, Together’ reunites faith groups after more than 18 months of restrictions and isolation.

At an online launch event over 50 coordinators from the UK and around the world attended.

Panellists including the Area Dean

of Barnet Reverend Dr Julie Gittoes and Akeela Ahmed, Chair of the Government’s Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group, Marcia Dixon and interfaith specialist Rabbi Jeff Berger.

Mitzvah Day takes place on Sunday 21 November.

Details: www.mitzvahday.org.uk

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Construction of the UK’s Holocaust Memorial centre begins this year

JPR wants shared COVID-19 experiences

BY ADAM MOSES

BY SIMCHA ABIR

Construction of the UK’s first national Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens next to Parliament begins later this year.

The £100 million Learning Centre is expected to open in 2025 focusing on the Shoah and genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. A variety of mediums will include historic photographs, film footage and audio recordings. Free entry will be available in perpetuity.

The government announced the location in 2016 and has contributed £75 million towards costs backed by charitable donations.

The decision for the memorial followed a public inquiry into the project. The structure comprises 23 bronze sculptures and underground education centre. Plans were previously rejected by Westminster Council.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted, “We have a duty to ensure that the Holocaust is never forgotten and that it will continue to be taught to future generations”.

Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick recognised the importance of the moment for the country.

“This will be deeply appreciated by many including Holocaust survivors who can be assured that their stories and the history of the Holocaust will continue be told to future generations,” he said.

Ed Balls and Lord Pickles, UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation co-chairs, said in a statement, “This is an important milestone, bringing closer the day when we have a national memorial which properly commemorates the six million Jewish men, women and children and all others murdered by the Nazis.” They added, “Our responsibility now is to move as quickly as we can towards completion, creating a memorial that the whole nation can be proud of, and one which ensures that essential lessons are never forgotten.”

Holocaust survivor Sir Ben Helfgott noted,

An Institute for Jewish Policy Research survey has called on Jews across the UK to share experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new survey investigates the effects of the pandemic on people’s physical and mental health, jobs, finances, social relationships and Jewish lives.

Once analysed, up-to-date data will be shared with Jewish charities to ensure they are in the strongest position to rebuild Jewish life after a challenging time.

The current study determines support needed to provide guidance to synagogues, Jewish schools, care homes and other Jewish organisations in the coming months.

The study includes questions exploring Jewish people’s responses to the recent conflict in Gaza, social and political issues attitudes towards the European Union, immigration and climate change.

Understanding Jewish people’s perspectives on these questions is critical to ensuring communal views are represented in policy debates.

JPR Executive Director, Dr Jonathan Boyd said, “Community leaders urgently need these data to understand how the pandemic has affected Jews in the UK. The survey is a key opportunity for Jews to share their experiences and attitudes, and to make a real contribution to the post-pandemic recovery process. We encourage everyone to take part now.”

JPR conducted a study in the summer of 2020 examining the impact of pandemic in its early stages on the community. Results were shared with community leaders.

The Institute advances Jewish communities in the UK and across Europe by conducting research and informing policy development in dialogue with those who influence Jewish life.

The survey is open to Jews aged 16 or over living in the UK. To participate: www.jprpanel.org.uk

The UK National Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre

“I know that long after I, and the other survivors, are gone, the UK will continue to remember the Holocaust and learn what happened when hatred reigned.”

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis described the memorial as a significant moment.

“Now the sacred work to enshrine our country’s commitment to teaching the essential lessons of the Holocaust in a monument and learning centre beside parliament, can truly begin,” he said.

Board of Deputies President Marie van der Zyl welcomed the decision that planning permission for the memorial had been granted.

“There will be something uniquely powerful about locating a memorial to the Holocaust right next to the centre of the UK’s democracy,” she said. “Whilst the Holocaust was a particular crime against Jewish people, the Nazis also viciously persecuted Roma, gay and disabled people, and this memorial will speak to that. The messages and learnings that one should glean from its memorialisation are a powerful reminder of the universal values of fairness and justice that a democratic society has the

responsibility to bestow upon its citizens.”

She added, “We look forward to the time that our fellow citizens and guests from abroad will be able to visit the centre, to learn more about this dark period of genocidal intolerance and come away determined to play their part in a better, more peaceful and more inclusive future.”

Karen Pollock, Holocaust Educational Trust, said the memorial was a reminder of what happens when antisemitism and hatred were able to flourish.

“The Holocaust is part of our shared history that everyone should know about and remember,” she added.

Rwanda genocide survivor Eric Murangwa Eugene added that it was a ground breaking moment, Nina Olshan, Micro Rainbow, noted, “It is essential that this memorial captures the diversity of the communities the Nazi’s murdered. This memorial can serve as a reminder of how far we still have to go.”

Conservative Friends of Israel and senior Conservatives backed the Centre in Westminster. Over 170 cross-party MPs and peers supported the memorial.

Netflix condemns antisemitism and Holocaust denial

BY ADAM MOSES Netflix has released a statement on Twitter condemning antisemitism and Holocaust denial following a surge in hate crimes across the United States.

A link to Oscar-winning documentary Last Days about five Hungarian Jews who survived the Holocaust and Hitler’s reign accompanied the announcement.

ADL research illustrated antisemitic incidents over 12-months had more than doubled in May 2021.

“Recent attacks on the Jewish community are despicable, and they must stop,” US President Joe Biden said. “I condemn this hateful behaviour at home and abroad, it’s up to all of us to give hate no safe harbour.”

Vice President Kamala Harris added, “that the surge in the US and around the world must be called out, condemned and stopped”.

“As a country, we must stand united against hate of any kind,’ she noted.

The Netflix tweet stated, “We stand united against antisemitism in all its forms, including the worrying increase in hate crimes and Holocaust denial. We must never forget that appalling chapter in human history.”

ADL’s extremism analysis came in the wake of the recent conflict between Israel and Hamas.

ADL recorded 251 incidents from May 11 to the end of the month, an 115% increase over the 12-month period. There were 305 incidents across harassment, vandalism and assault throughout May. Of these 47% included direct references to Israel and Zionism.

Diners at a Los Angeles restaurant were attacked by demonstrators in cars carrying Palestinian flags, in Manhattan a Jewish man wearing a Star of David was punched and another person in Las Vegas was assaulted after engaging in a conversation about the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Harassment cases included references

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to Israel or Zionism. This occurred in New Orleans involving a Jewish high school student wearing a yarmulke.

Over 400 anti-Israel rallies are not included in statistics. But antisemitism was observed including in Philadelphia where an activist claimed that Israel controlled the media.

There were also attempts to provoke anti-Zionist sentiments. A protestor in Chicago held a sign displaying a swastika inside of a Star of David with a message referencing “Nazi Zionist Jews” whilst a Washington speaker at a rally was reported to have said Zionists are like terrorists operating under the guise of being Jewish.

Many American Jews identify with Israel as essential to Jewish identity.

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Iran behind tanker attack say Israel, US & UK

MV Mercer Street tanker

BY DAVID SAFFER Israel, Britain and the US blame Iran for the deadly attack on an Israeli-operated oil tanker in international waters off Oman last week.

A British and Romanian crew member died in the incident believed to be by UAVstyle drones on the MV Mercer Street tanker that has seen global headlines.

Bennett has called for an international response but Israel will “act alone”, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab called on the United Nations Security Council to respond yesterday.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid yesterday reportedly named Saeed Ara Jani, head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps’ UAV Command, as being behind the strike in a briefing to the UN Security Council. Gantz said Jani was responsible for “many terrorist acts” in the region along with IRGC’s Air Force commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh.

Ambassadors heard that Israel had the freedom to respond to a threat on Israeli citizens.

The incident was an “attack on the entire world”, Gantz added, that demanded a response from the international community.

Bennett’s warning came on a visit to the IDF Northern Command with IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi on Tuesday. Israel has shared intelligence with allies including the US and UK. “There is no doubt as to who was behind the attack, but we provided hard evidence just in case,” he said.

Bennett condemned the European Union for sending an emissary to Iran for the swearing-in ceremony of President Ebrahim Raisi.

“You cannot talk about human rights and at the same time extend honours to a murderer of hundreds of dissidents,” he said. “Iran knows the heavy price we exact from anyone threatening our security,” Bennett added.

“They have to understand that they will not be able to sit peacefully in Tehran and set the Middle East on fire. Those days are over.”

“The Council must respond to Iran’s destabilising actions and lack of respect for international law,” Raab noted on Twitter.

NATO slammed the attack. “Freedom of navigation is vital for all NATO Allies, and

PHOTO: ZODIAC MARITIME

must be upheld in accordance with international law,” NATO said in a statement. “Allies remain concerned by Iran’s destabilising actions in the region.”

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for a “collective response” to the attack that was a “direct threat” to freedom of navigation and commerce.

“We have seen a series of actions taken by Iran over many months, including against shipping, so I’m not sure that this particular action is anything new or augurs anything one way or another for the new government,” he explained. “But what it does say is that Iran continues to act with tremendous irresponsibility.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Iran must “face up to the consequences” of its actions.

“This is clearly an unacceptable and outrageous attack on commercial shipping,” he said Monday.

The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office has summoned Iran’s Ambassador to Britain Mohsen Baharvand.

Minister for the Middle East James Cleverly told Baharvand that Iran must immediately cease actions that risk international peace and security.

“The UK is working with our international partners on a concerted response to this unacceptable attack,” Rabb said.

Gantz told the Knesset that Israel will act against Iran.

“Iran’s aggression in the region generally and on the maritime front in particular, is intensifying,” Gantz said. “This is the exact reason that we must act right now against Iran, which not only strives for a nuclear military (program) but is also leading to a dangerous arms race and threatening the stability in the Middle East.”

Gantz added that Iran had attacked international shipping five times in 12 months.

“Israel possesses a variety of tools and options to protect its citizens, and we will hold accountable anyone who seeks to harm us, in the time, place and methods that serve us and our security,” he said.

Bennett blamed “failed” policies of opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu’s government on Iran in a Knesset debate. “This is the legacy you have left for us,” Bennett noted.

Netanyahu blasted Bennett and Lapid for compromising Israel’s abilities to act by vowing to the US it would not take military action without informing Washington.

Lapid said the US and Israel was working to counter “Iranian terrorism”.

“Iran repeatedly errs in understanding our commitment to protecting ourselves and our interests,” Lapid made it clear to Rabb a tough response was required.

“Iran is not just an Israeli problem, but an exporter of terrorism, destruction and instability that harms us all,” he said in a statement.

“The world must not be silent in the face of Iranian terrorism that also harms freedom of shipping.”

The vessel was escorted by aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan, US Central Command to a safe location.

“US Navy explosives experts are aboard to ensure there is no additional danger to the crew, and are prepared to support an investigation into the attack,” noted a statement.

“Initial indications clearly point to a UAVstyle (drone) attack,” Central Command added.

UK Maritime Trade Operations described the incident as “suspected piracy” as it took place outside Omani territorial waters.

The vessel was 150 nautical miles northeast off the port of Duqm when attacked.

London-based Zodiac Maritime operates the Liberian-flagged oil tanker and announced the deaths of crew members with “profound sadness”.

Iran has denied involvement and warned it will respond to any threat against its security from the US, Israel or Britain.

In related news, Gantz warned that Iran was 10 weeks from being able to build a nuclear bomb.

“Iran has crossed all the lines set in the last nuclear deal and today is just ten weeks away from acquiring weapons-grade materials necessary for a nuclear weapon,” he explained. “That is why this is time for action.

The world must impose economic sanctions and bring operative action against the Revolutionary Guards. We have no conflict with the Iranian people but with the regime that could lead to a dangerous arms race in the entire Middle East.”

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Metliss re-elected to Board Jonathan Metliss has been re-elected to the Board of Deputies’ Defence Division.

An active member of the Division since 2018 to protest on issues of anti-Semitism, Metliss has been protecting Jewish communities since his days as Southamp- Jonathan Metliss ton University Jewish Society chairman n the late 1960’s.

Currently, he is combatting anti-Semitism in football through Action Against Antisemitism.

Metliss was also a Governor of the Technion in Haifa which he actively promoted in the UK. “The primary feature of the Board’s activities is the defence and protection of the UK Jewish community,” he said. “My re-election will also assist and support AAD activities which continues its fight against racism and anti-Semitism in UK sport.”

Metliss is a regular author of articles on the subject and appears in the media on the subject.

Ukraine plane victim buried

BY SIMCHA ABIR Hershy Weiss z”l of London has been laid to rest following the horrific tragic light aircraft crash in western Ukraine last week’ Amrom Fromowitz z”l of Monsey and Lazer Brill z”l of Williamsburg also died on impact when the aircraft crashed into a private house near the village of Sheparivtsi in the Kolomyia district.

It is believed the three yeshiva students were on a plane trip visiting the graves of famous Tzaddikim.

Hershy, 20, was the son of Reb Moshe Weiss of Golders Green. His grandfather is the ba’al chessed, Rav Nachman Reich of “Reich Catering.”

Heshy studied at Satmar mosdos before his studies at Mir yeshiva.

Ten firefighters and three fire engines of the State Emergency Services attended the blaze.

Investigations continue into the crash on July 28 at about 1:40 p.m. The pilot also died.

Local authorities cooperated with Misaskim to ensure a quick release of the victims from the crash scene for burial.

Sheparivtsi is near the border of Romania, Moldova, Slovakia and Hungary.

Ukraine has tragically witnessed a number of air crashes since 2002.

Eleven Ukrainians were killed in Ukraine International Airlines flight 752 over Iran last year. There were also 22 fatalities in a Ukraine air force plane crash last September.

In 2014, 283 passengers and 15 crew members died when Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over Ukraine in 2014.

And 19 years ago, 77 people died when a Ukrainian Air Force Sukhoi Su-27 crashed at Sknyliv Airfield near Lviv.

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CAA-Twitter partnership over

BY DAVID SAFFER Campaign Against Antisemitism has ended its partnership with Twitter to combat anti-Jewish hatred on its platform.

Twitter had invited CAA to become partners and hold monthly meetings but ceased the relationship due to the social media giant’s response to hate posts alerts.

A selection of 1,000 tweets were sent of antisemitic tropes, Holocaust denial and anti-Jewish incitement. Numerous tweets contained the hashtag #HitlerWasRight or phrase “Holohoax” and references to “fake Jewish Holocaust”. There were also conspiracies about Jewish power and control, blood libels against Jews, calls to “Gas the Jews” and extreme hate speech and abuse.

Stephen Silverman, CAA Director of Investigations and Enforcement explained the decision had not been made lightly.

“We do not have confidence in Twitter’s capacity to address the rampant antisemitism on its platform,” he noted. “The opacity of Twitter’s parameters, its inconsistent implementation of its own policies, its lack

of interest in our offers of training for its personnel, and its decision ultimately to stop engaging with us at all, are not the actions of a company that takes antisemitism seriously.”

Silverman added, “If Twitter brought us on as a partner as some sort of fig leaf for its inaction, we are now laying bare the true picture of the company.

Having cut off contact with us after we provided clear evidence that Twitter’s policies on hateful material are failing, it is clear that the company is neither capable nor interested in tackling antisemitism, and it must now fall to an independent regulator to assume that role instead.”

CAA submitted material in monthly reports to Twitter. The degree of anti-Jewish racist vitriol increased during the pandemic and was brought to Twitter’s attention, but CAA note, posts were deemed acceptable.

“Astonishingly, about 60 percent of the tweets that we submitted were not deemed to have breached Twitter’s policies on hate,” CAA confirmed.

CAA were shocked at the number of tweets not violating rules and questioned

why some were removed while others incorporating the same antisemitic content remained.

“At no time has Twitter adequately explained to us the parameters for removing or permitting tweets or who is reviewing hateful material or how they have been trained,” CAA noted.

CAA offered training for Twitter staff but it was ignored.

In related news, a Center for Countering Digital Hate study has revealed 90% of antisemitic social media posts remain on Facebook and Twitter after being reported.

CCDH conducted a study of 714 antisemitic posts across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok. Research found 84% of posts remained, 90% stayed on Facebook and Twitter specifically.

Imran Ahmed, CCDH Chief Executive, said the study showed social media was a “safe space” for racists to normalise conspiracies and hateful rhetoric without fear of consequences.

He added, “This is not about algorithms or automation. Our research shows that

social media companies allow bigots to keep their accounts open and their hate to remain online, even when human moderators are notified.”

Only one in 20 posts that attacked Jewish people directly were removed, where a post had clear links to violence or neo-Nazism, 30% of posts were removed.

A Facebook spokesman said reports did not take into account action was taken on 15 times the amount of hate speech since 2017.

“The prevalence of hate speech is decreasing on our platform and, of the hate speech we remove, 97 percent was found before someone reported it,” they added.

A Twitter spokesman added, “We strongly condemn antisemitism.

We’re working to make Twitter a safer place, and improving the speed and scale of our rule enforcement is a top priority. We recognise that there’s more to do.”

TikTok reportedly said in a statement it “condemns antisemitism” and proactively removes accounts and content that violate policies. YouTube have reportedly “made significant progress” in removing hate speech in recent years.

Learning disability services United front to Nationality and Borders Bill

Kisharon, Langdon and Norwood are exploring areas for co-operation following the publication of the 2020 Cordis Bright report on the learning disability community.

For the foreseeable future the needs of the community will outstrip available resources.

The three organisations are identifying solutions so available resources can be sustainably applied and remain committed to collaborate in the future, pooling areas of expertise.

One example is demonstrated by jointly running te JWEB, an online portal for the community.

Kisharon and Langdon have decided to conduct in-depth research to compare provision of supported living facilities and adult services, staff training and head office functions.

This work will be supported by independent consultants Mobilise Public Ltd with Natalie Grazin Consulting.

It is anticipated this work will take 6 to12 months.

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BY SIMCHA ABIR The Board of Deputies, Jewish Council for Racial Equality, René Cassin and World Jewish Relief have provided a united front to the Government’s Nationality and Borders Bill.

The quartet share a common desire that the UK supports those in need of asylum.

To that end they have released a joint statement.

They wrote, “Many people in the Jewish community originally came to the UK as frightened and vulnerable refugees, some on the Kindertransport, and were welcomed into this country.

“We share the Government’s desire to reform the asylum system. We would want the UK to demonstrate being a proud and principled sanctuary for the relatively small number of people who seek safety here from persecution and war. Like others in the refugee and asylum sector, we want to see a fair and effective asylum system that treats people with compassion, dignity and respect.

“There are few safe routes for those seeking asylum to get to the UK and for those that are here, decision making is slow and accommodation conditions are unsavoury limiting the support that those most in need require. Reform should focus on greater investment in the capability and capacity

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to assess and make decisions on asylum claims in a humane and informed way and be part of a greater global effort around resettlement.”

The group are concerned legislation assesses those seeking asylum differently based on their means of arriving in the UK rather than what they fled from and protection needs.

“How by restricting the rights and entitlement of those seeking asylum here will reduce the scale of people smuggling is not clear,” they noted. “This attempt at deterrence will not protect those fleeing persecution, oppression or tyranny. It will do little to prevent dangerous Channel crossings nor undermine the efforts of people smugglers.”

There are concerns proposals will limit access to family reunion for those granted refugee status because of how they arrived in the UK. There is also increased risk that families will take dangerous journeys.

The group acknowledge the Bill celebrates the UK’s resettlement success but there are no targets to expand resettled numbers.

And there is concern over a suggestion to expand the UK’s “indefinite immigration detention system” into offshore facilities.

The charities want the Government to consider proven community-based alternatives to detention alongside all concerns as the bill goes through Parliament.

5 AUGUST 2021

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Hundreds attend veteran correspondent’s funeral

BY ADAM MOSES Hundreds of mourners have attended the funeral of military correspondent Roni Daniel at Tel Aviv’s Kiryat Shaul Cemetery.

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, Defense Minister Benny Gantz, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi, former President Reuven Rivlin, military officials and journalists attended.

The Iraqi-born veteran correspondent, 73, started out with Kol Yisrael radio then Army Radio before cementing his reputation with Channel 2 and Channel 12. Daniel died of a heart attack.

“I have tried to remember the first time I met him and failed,” said Gantz. “It seemed like he was always there. We haven’t gathered here just because Roni broke stories, and he did many. We’re here because Roni Roni Daniel z”l PHOTO: WIKIMEDIA was the most Israeli journalist there is. And this has pierced through all our hearts and always being there.” not only made us in the army and the politiPrime Minister Naftali Bennett led tribcal system talk to him but also listen to him.” utes following the announcement of his Gantz added, “When he saw the values he death. held so dear to his heart getting trampled “Roni was not just a military correspondover, he did not care what others would ent,” Israel’s leader said. “He was the voice say. When he hurt, he spoke out, he acted. of a different era, of the good land of Israel, I thank you on behalf of the citizens of Is- of loving the state and safeguarding its serael for journalism that cares, thank you for curity, of the kibbutz and the city together.

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Rockets land in Israel

He had criticism when needed, always had a good word when deserved. He will be missed by all of us on our screens and in our hearts.”

Lapid added, “We’ve worked together for many years,” he recalled. “You were the most professional, most diligent, and most importantly, a friend and a human being.

A man who was all heart.”

Kochavi said Daniel, as a journalist, was committed to criticise, support and sympathise in his reports. “He above all loved the IDF, its soldiers and commanders,” Kachavi said.

Born in 1947, Daniel’s dad died when he was two months old. lmmigrating to Israel with his mother in 1950, he grew up on Kibbutz Maoz Haim in the Beit She’an Valley.

Enlisting in the IDF in the 906th Battalion of the Nahal Brigade, he became a platoon commander.

During the Six Day War he fought at the Battle of Abu-Ageila on the Egyptian front, was wounded but returned to action. During the Yom Kippur War, as a reporter for Kol Yisrael, he accompanied the 51st Battalion. Appointed Commander of the Golani Reserve Battalion, he served in the Negev Brigade and held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the reserves.

Three rockets launched from Lebanon were targeted at northern Israel yesterday.

Israel Defence Forces confirmed two landed in Israeli territory including one in Kiryat Shmona. Air raid sirens sounded in Tel Hai, Kfar Giladi and Kiryat Shmona, but there were no injuries reported although bomb shelters were opened. Galilee residents reportedly heard blasts.

The IDF responded with artillery fire and have begun investigations into the air strike.

Defense Minister Benny Gantz and IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi held a situation assessment into the attack regarding a more intense IDF response.

Security officials believe the strike was carried out by Palestinian groups, not Hezbollah, although the terror group controls the border area so are implicated.

Kiryat Shmona Mayor Avichai Stern visited the area and instructed residents to remain in protected areas.

“Luckily there are no casualties,” a spokesman said. “The mayor has ordered bomb shelters to be opened in the city.”

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon reportedly said Head of Mission and Force Commander, Major General Stefano Del Col, was “in contact with both parties”.

Del Col in a statement called for a cease fire to hold and avoid an escalation in hostilities.

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5 AUGUST 2021

Israel rolls our third booster jab

BY DAVID SAFFER Israel’s coronavirus cabinet has approved new restrictions to help curb the spread of COVID-19 infections.

Health Ministry officials have warned around 500 patients could be seriously ill by next week. Sheba Medical Center, Israel’s largest hospital, has reopened its coronavirus intensive care ward.

Health officials, meantime, have instigated a booster vaccination for over 60s and are considering expanding it to 40s.

However, the Education Ministry and Federation of Local Authorities have rejected postponing the start of the school year on September 1.

The latest surge has seen 3,269 new cases reported earlier this week. Of 449 hospitalised patients, 237 are in serious condition, 48 are on ventilators.

The death toll since the start of the pandemic is approaching 6,500.

“The Delta pandemic is much more infectious and is leaping ahead around the

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world,” The Prime Minister’s Office noted in a statement.

Bennett and cabinet members have appealed to the public to get vaccinated and comply with directives to save lives and avert more severe restrictions including a lockdown.

Defence Minister Benny Gantz warned of a High Holy Days lockdown if daily infection rates do not drop.

Among restrictions is an expansion of the ‘Green Badge’ plan to places with gatherings of under 100 people. Children under 12 are exempt, but this is likely to change. Masks are required in open spaces with gatherings of over 100 people. Private sector staff have recommended to work from home.

Vaccinated adults caring for under 12s testing positive are required to quarantine even if vaccinated.

More travel restrictions are expected.

Indeed, the Knesset has backed the Health Ministry placing 18 countries under severe travel warnings from August 11. All travellers must quarantine for seven days whether vaccinated or recovered from the deadly virus. The list of nations includes Ukraine, Italy, Iceland, Eswatini, US, Botswana, Bulgaria, Germany, Netherlands, Tanzania, Greece, Malawi, Egypt, Czech Republic, France, Cuba, Rwanda and Tunisia.

Countries under severe travel warnings includes Cambodia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Fiji, Georgia, UK, Guatemala, Honduras, Kenya, Liberia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Namibia, Panama, Paraguay, Seychelles, Turkey, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Lists are constantly being changed.

In related news, the cabinet has backed a budget that includes an extra 2 billion shekels to the Health Ministry to boost its 43 billion shekels budget.

Israel operated without an approved budget throughout the pandemic. There

Israelis over the age of 60, meanwhile, have started to receive a booster as part of the latest national vaccination campaign. Bennett announced the third dose campaign in a press conference last Friday. has been no approved budget since March 2018. The new budget is subject to change if there is a lockdown.

Israelis over the age of 60, meanwhile, have started to receive a booster as part of the latest national vaccination campaign.

Bennett announced the third dose campaign in a press conference last Friday.

President Isaac Herzog received the first shot. Health Ministry Director General Prof. Nachman Ash said it was an “important step” due to the Delta variant.

“I call on all those who are part of this age group to go and get the booster shot,” said Ash. Ash has publicly disagreed with Israelis taking a serological test to discover antibody level before a third jab.

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“I would like to emphasise that this is not necessary,” he explained. “There is no medical justification in making the decision of whether to get vaccinated based on the result of a serological test. I repeat, take a first, second or third jab, go get vaccinated.”

Magen David Adom are facilitating the vaccination campaign in nursing homes for residents and staff.

“Nearly 8% of the target audience suitable for a third job has already made an appointment,” noted the Health Ministry in a statement. “Over the weekend, we have already vaccinated more than 3,000 Maccabi members with a third dose.”

Over 57% of Israelis have received both doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, over 80% of over 40 have now been vaccinated.

“Israel is a pioneer in going ahead with the third dose,” Bennett said. “The only way we can defeat COVID-19 is together. Together means sharing information. Together means sharing methods, technologies, insights and actionable steps.”

Bennett added, “Our goal is to keep the State of Israel open. But we must understand that there is a race between the vaccine campaign and the pandemic. We must make sure the vaccinations rate beats the pandemic’s spread. We all have the shared obligation to protect one another. Go get vaccinated.”

In other related news, a Midgam poll on Channel 12 News, illustrated a dip in how the government has handled the Coronavirus pandemic with 52 % noting a bad job and 39 % an adequate job.

Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu drew 43 % approval rating compared to Bennett on 21%.

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United Hatzalah ordered to pay 250,000 ILS for a plan to defame and libel Magen David Adom In a scathing 42-page ruling, a court called United Hatzalah’s violation of a Ministry of Health order to cease advertising its phone number as a number to call in medical emergencies “dangerous and harms public safety” United Hatzalah, the best known of more than a dozen independent first-aid organisations operating in Israel, was ordered by an Israeli District Court to pay 250,000 shekels for defaming Magen David Adom, Israel’s national emergency medical service.

In a ruling that was extraordinary in its severity, the court also ruled that United Hatzalah acted in violation of Health Ministry guidelines, harming public safety in the process.

The court found that United Hatzalah and its leaders ran an orderly and deliberately planned campaign in which they slandered Magen David Adom through false statements made in the media.

“Freedom of expression is not freedom of contempt, and the right to have a voice is not the right to humiliate,” Justice Naftali Shilo said in the ruling.

In the 42-page ruling, Judge Shilo criticised United Hatzalah for continuing to publicise its own 1221 phone number and encouraging the public to call it during

medical emergencies, rather than 101, Israel’s official medical emergency number run by Magen David Adom.

“It has been proven that United Hatzalah ignored the directive of the Ministry of Health and continued to publish its emergency number, 1221,” the ruling said.

“This action is dangerous and harms public safety, as stated in the State Comptroller’s report.”

The ruling singled out the behaviour of three of United Hatzalah’s leaders, Founder and President Eli Beer, Spokesman Moti Elmaleh, and Chief Executive Officer Moshe Teitelbaum for engaging in a campaign of defamation. The court ordered that part of the settlement be paid out of the trio’s own pockets for acting in bad faith by promulgating false statements.

In a countersuit, United Hatzalah was awarded 25,000 shekels for a statement made by MDA, in which the organisation said United Hatzalah was running more of a profit-making business than a first-aid service, although the court conceded those statements were made in anger after a series of provocative acts by United Hatzalah.

The ruling also addressed allegations made by United Hatzalah that MDA had not acted properly in several medical

emergencies. However, the court said just the opposite was true, and that the failures cited were on the part of United Hatzalah.

In particular, in an incident in which a preschool student died after ingesting sand, the court noted that it took three minutes for United Hatzalah’s call centre to notify MDA of the emergency and that United Hatzalah’s responding EMT didn’t have a child’s oxygen mask among his equipment.

The court also emphasised the extent of United Hatzalah’s false statements made to major media outlets and the potential damage those falsehoods caused to MDA’s reputation.

“The defendant must be held accountable for the fact that these are eight very widespread publications and various media outlets, made with the intent to harm the plaintiff, and without the defendants seeking MDA’s response to the serious allegations before publication,” the ruling said. “The defendants also refused to apologise for these publications despite MDA’s request to them in a letter that was not answered at all. The defendants did not express any remorse for their publications.”

Magen David Adom said the court ruling was just and necessary.

“The ruling speaks for itself and we

welcome the court’s decision and are happy the truth is finally coming out,” said Eli Bin, Magen David Adom’s director-general.

“We are so sorry we had to go to court, but we were not able to bear the damage to the good name of Magen David Adom and the good name of thousands of our employees and our volunteers who work day and night to save lives.

“There are more than a dozen hatzalah [first aid] organisations in Israel, and we have a collaborative relationship with virtually all of them,” Bin said. “With one exception, as cited by the court in this case, they’ve all operated under the Ministry of Health’s protocol, been dispatched by MDA, and have worked with us to save lives throughout the country. People in Israel and throughout the world have benefited from this mutual cooperation.”

Daniel Burger, Chief Executive of Magen David Adom UK commented, “Magen David Adom UK has always looked to collaborate with our colleagues from United Hatzalah in much the same way we would with any of the 12 volunteer organisations that support the work of MDA in Israel. I hope that we can put this unsavoury episode behind us and continue to work together to save more lives.”

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5 AUGUST 2021

ISRAEL POLITICS FROM THE KNESSET with political analyst JAMES J. MARLOW

QUESTIONS TO THE CORRESPONDENT Alan Neuer asks: JAMES, The Health Minister from the Meretz party threatened last week to bring down the government, if his demands for more funding to his ministry were not met.

Can you bring us up to speed, as you so eloquently do each week?

Hello Alan: Health Minister Nitsan Horowitz insisted on an increase of 3 billion shekels and told news networks that he would vote against the budget, if he did not receive it.

This would have brought the government down as it only has a one seat majority and Meretz has 6 seats. But Horowitz in the end, settled for an additional 2 billion increase, on top of the automatic annual growth and last Monday morning, the cabinet approved the spending bill for 2021 and 2022.

The budget still needs to be approved in the Knesset plenum, by the first week of November and prior to that, must pass in several Knesset committees. So there are still several hurdles to go and no doubt, changes will be made to the budget, due to government disagreements.

If you are interested in the numbers, 432 billion shekels will be spent in 2021 and the

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deficit will stand at 6.8%, while 452 billion shekels will be spent in 2022 with a projected deficit of 3.9%.

So how did Horowitz get what he wanted, minus of course one billion shekels? Party heads voted in favour of cutting all the other ministry budgets by 1.5% with the exception of the defence budget, in order to pay for the cost of increasing the health ministry.

Later on Monday during a plenum debate, Bennett pointed to Netanyahu and said “We

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did in 36 hours what you failed to do in 36 months”.

Of course, with the exception of a brief government led by Netanyahu with Benny Gantz as Defence Minister, from April 2020 until November 2020, there has not been a government to pass a budget since the end of 2018. So Bennett’s words were just the usual Knesset political banter between party leaders.

For his part, Netanyahu addressed his party faction earlier in the day and said, “The government lied to its citizens in order to form a coalition and continues to lie in order to survive. “I passed many budgets and this is the worst budget I have ever seen” said Netanyahu in true opposition form.

So let’s briefly look at the budget which focuses on lowering taxes and duties for imported agricultural produce, although famers are furious because they believe cheaper competition from outside the country will destroy Israeli farming.

But the agricultural industry in Israel is fairly unproductive in relation to the international market. Prices in Israel are much higher than on the international market. So opening up the market to international trade will likely lower store prices, but it will harm the farmers.

So the best solution would be for the government to assist the approximate 15,000 registered farmers (and only half are actual farmers) by paying them subsidies for the losses they will incur and in return, benefit the economy with lower prices and help the people.

The budget also includes a gradual rise in the retirement age for women, from 62 to 65-years-old over the next decade. Men receive social security pensions at 68 years-old.

There will be 1100 new police officers over the next 2 years in the Arab sector, to combat violence and protection rackets in Arab society. This was a budget demand by the Arab Ra’am party. The increase of police officers will also be based at station houses in Arab

cities, including Bedouin rural communities.

So what do independent analysts believe is bad with the budget? Much needed infrastructure connected with the transportation ministry is missing along with repairs to public transport.

Training people for new markets as unemployment is not decreasing as fast as it should be. And from 2024 a new tax levy will be required for entry into crowded metropolitan areas.

Jeff Scott asks: JAMES, Gidon Sa’ar’s party, now wants to halve the minimum percentage in order for a party to get into the Knesset. Do you agree with me that this is not reforming the Israeli electoral system as he promised, but making it worse?

Hello Jeff: The minimum percentage to get into the Knesset is currently 3.25% or a minimum of 4 seats. Gideon Sa’ar who bolted from the Likud to form New Hope, which received 6 seats last March, campaigned for electoral reform with one purpose – to stop Netanyahu from running again.

Too many people, including myself, underestimated Sa’ar’s hatred for Netanyahu. Sa’ar campaigned for a Prime Minister to run for only two terms and if under indictment, to be prevented from forming a government.

Now his New Hope party is showing, it won’t cross the threshold if an election is held soon. So Sa’ar is proposing the government pass legislation to lower the threshold to 1.6%.

The small parties will of course be in favour of such a motion, but it will just encourage many more, smaller parties to run. We need to raise the minimum threshold to 5%, not lower it to 1.6%.

So YES, it will make the electoral system worse not better. Sa’ar demonstrates that he is thinking about himself and not the good of the country, just like he claimed Netanyahu was doing, when he was in power for the last 12 years. Funny what being in the Knesset can do to some isn’t it?

Ask your Israeli political question to James J. Marlow by email: James@TheCommunicationBureau.com or Twitter @James_J_Marlow

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5 AUGUST 2021

OPINION 13

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OPINION

The opinions on this page do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper

Time for another demo?

OPINION PIECE

BY ROBERT FESTENSTEIN On the 26 March 2018 one of the major Jewish communal organisations held a demonstration outside Parliament against the anti-Semitism in Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party. The reports around the world talked of over two thousand people protesting in an unprecedented way against the Jew-hate which was flourishing in the Labour Party. I remember at the time being disappointed at not being able to attend. Not because of work, but because those who organised it were unable to think beyond the M25. A few hours notice was certainly good enough for those living in Hendon or Golders Green but not those outside London. I was never able to understand why another 24 hours notice was not given to those keen to attend.

What I was also not able to understand was why there wasn’t a follow up demonstration. The Jew-hate in the Labour Party only got worse, and it wasn’t until December of the following year – almost 2 years

later - that Labour lost the general election so badly, partly due to their attitude towards the Jews. The latest conflict in Israel saw a massive spike in anti-Semitism and despite the usual comments made by the communal leaders, there has been no demonstration or formal campaign calling for action.

It is well documented that the attacks on Jews in social media are not only rising, but are largely unchecked by those in control of these platforms. A recent survey has found that social media companies have failed to take action—by either removing posts or closing accounts—in 84 per cent of cases. It is also well known that social media attacks where other minorities are targeted are subject to much greater scrutiny and attention. In other words, the

Jews don’t matter as much.

This much I can understand. What I cannot understand is why, by and large, we – by which I mean the communal leaders – are doing so little about this. Those organisations with an informal structure such as the Campaign Against Antisemitism and the various Friends of Israel groups around the UK have no problem in standing up to the increase in online abuse. Yet those with a more formal structure content themselves by issuing the odd press release and statements expressing concern. It is as if for these groups that fighting Jew-hate is not such a high priority.

We need to be more robust about the attacks on our community, yet despite the increase in social media hate crimes

A recent survey has found that social media companies have failed to take action—by either removing posts or closing accounts—in 84 per cent of cases.

and the increasing lies told about Israel there is no visible sign of any push back, other than the informal groups already mentioned. Perhaps that is the way forward. Allow the larger organisations to talk amongst themselves and let the real work be undertaken by smaller groups whose commitment and determination is clear and certain. It is not ideal, since as a community we have always achieved more when working co-operatively, though as matters stand that is just a goal to aim towards.

Whoever takes up the baton in the necessary fight against the rising anti-Israel and anti-Semitic activity should now give some thought to a more proactive high profile approach so that the wider society knows that the Jews in the UK will not take the attacks on their community lying down.

Robert Festenstein is a practising solicitor and has been the principal of his Salford based firm for over 20 years. He has fought BDS motions to the Court of Appeal and is President of the Zionist Central Council in Manchester which serves to protect and defend the democratic State of Israel.

CST six-monthly antisemitic incidents report OPINION PIECE

BY YONI GORDON-TELLER CST’s latest report shows a record number of anti-Jewish hate incidents in first six months of this year: 1,308 antisemitic incidents recorded between January and June 2021, almost half of which happened just in the month of May. The spike in antisemitism reported that resulted from reactions to the escalation of violence in the Middle East is a significant reason for the 49% rise in incidents compared to the first six months of 2020.

More than half of these 1,308 reports referenced the recent conflict in Israel and Gaza, demonstrated anti-Zionist motivation, or a combination of the two, alongside antisemitism. When so much antisemitism occurs, and when it is so mixed up with extreme hatred of Israel, it is clear that Jew-hatred and Israel-hatred become much the same thing in the minds of the perpetrators. They direct their anger randomly, but also in a way that is deliberately targeted at Jews. Their abuse is directed at Jews they know, Jews they don’t, orthodox Jews, secular Jews, Jewish children, adults, organisations, schools, synagogues: there is no single victim profile, and no single avenue for the expression of anti-Jewish sentiment.

Antisemitism can be intellectualised, its

meaning and definitions debated at length.

But when levels of antisemitism rise to such an extent, when ordinary Jewish people and institutions face such a considerable backlash, academic debates over whether

something crosses a supposed line between hatred of Israel and hatred of Jews ceases to have any practical meaning.

In this context, antisemitism is ultimately defined by the lived experiences

When so much antisemitism occurs, and when it is so mixed up with extreme hatred of Israel, it is clear that Jew-hatred and Israel-hatred become much the same thing in the minds of the perpetrators.

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of its victims. They are the ones who call CST, scared to go into their workplace for fear that comments of “Free Palestine” will continue to be directed at them, just because they are Jewish; worried that they cannot escape their next-door neighbour’s sustained campaign of harassment; nervous to freely express their identity in light of abusive, threatening shouts from a car convoy.

CST supports them, reassures them and protects them: that is why we are here. However, support, reassurance and protection are collective, societal responsibilities: they are far more meaningful and effective when the effort is united.

Where culprits of antisemitic hate crime are identified, arrests must be made and prosecutions delivered. Where antisemitic threats and abuse are written online, social media platforms must take stronger action that aligns with their professed – if limited – commitment to tackling hate. Where Jewish people share their experiences of antisemitism, everyone who truly wants to build a fair, inclusive, anti-racist society must stand in solidarity.

CST urges all readers to be vigilant, to report antisemitism to CST and police, and to support all of our communal efforts against the danger.

Visit www.cst.org.uk. In an emergency, call the police and then call our 24-hour emergency number, 0800 032 3263.

14 OPINION

5 AUGUST 2021

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OPINION

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It’s now an official maritime war OPINION PIECE

BY JAMES J MARLOW According to Reserve Major General Amos Yadlin, former executive director of the institute for national security studies and former head of IDF military intelligence, Iran recognises it made a mistake when it attacked the commercial “Mercer Street” petroleum tanker last Thursday.

Tehran have no problem killing Israelis, but the deadly drone attack in the Gulf, murdered two crew members from Britain and Romania.

Intelligence gathered by Britain, United States and Israel all point to Iran being directly responsible, which prompted Boris Johnson to describe the attack as “outrageous”.

The Romanian foreign minister also said that Bucharest would work with international partners on an appropriate response.

Here is the “thing”. The Mercer Street tanker is Japanese owned, with a Liberian flag, operated by a British company, but managed by an Israeli owned Zodiac

It is true there has been many actions and reactions between Iran and Israel but until now, all maritime attacks were without fatalities.

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Maritime, (aka prominent Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer). So you have to go through three nations, before you reach Israel.

Defence Minister Benny Gantz made all the usual “hard-hitting” threats in the Knesset plenum like “Israel must act against the growing Iranian aggression in the region” and “The Mercer Ship attack is a clear violation of international law.”

But why does Israel have to retaliate?

Israel was not attacked. It was Britain and Romania who bore the brunt of the two Iranian drones, which slammed into the vessel off the coast of Oman.

Drones can fly for more than 1500 kilometres and we now know they were launched from either an Iranian vessel or from Iran itself.

It was relatively easy for British, American and Israeli intelligence to ascertain that this was an Iranian attack on a civilian, not military target and Israel should take advantage of the Iranian miscalculation and pursue strong diplomatic, not military steps.

Israeli Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan wrote in a letter to Security Council President T. S. Tirumurti of India, “The Security Council should not sit idly by in the face of such violations by Iran or by the terrorist organizations throughout the region that serve as its proxies.”

Iran strives for nuclear capabilities and is sparking a dangerous arms race. It sows instability through its terrorist militias in Iran, Yemen, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq and with hundreds of UAV’s, is a major threat to Israel.

The attack on the Mercer Street should be another opportunity for the international community to call out the role that Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) play in destabilising the Middle East.

THEJEWISHWEEKLY.COM

And all this is happening even before the new Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, known as the hang-man and butcher for sentencing thousands of “dissidents” to death, has even taken office.

Reserve Major General Amos Yadlin called last week’s attack, an “ongoing shadow war” between Iran and Israel. “We don’t know if this attack or that attack is an initiative or a response” he said. “A retaliation – TIC for TAC or TAC for TIC” is how Yadlin described the event at a briefing this week.

It is true there has been many actions and reactions between Iran and Israel but until now, all maritime attacks were without fatalities. This latest move is a game changer, in an all dimensional maritime war that consists of missiles, drones and cyber-warfare. It has been ongoing for several years and is increasing throughout the Middle East.

Tehran realises that the attack was a mistake and they are now denying their involvement. They are also likely to downgrade their “overseas activities” as they seek to re-enter the JCPOA agreement.

But what will not help Iran is Britain’s military “United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations” warning of a “potential hijack” on Tuesday night. According to Reuters who quoted two security maritime sources, Iranian-backed forces were believed to have seized a Panama-flagged asphalt tanker, Asphalt Princess.

Earlier in the day, at least six ships off the coast of the UAE announced around the same time, through their Automatic Identification System trackers, that they had lost control of their steering and all power.

Again Iran was quick to deny any involvement. The British navy confirmed on Wednesday that the hijackers who boarded the vessel had left the ship on Wednesday morning, without elaborating.

My assessment is the Iranian Supreme Leader ordered the militia to stand down as Tehran were unaware their Shia backed militia group would take such drastic action after last week’s drone attack.

But despite all of this, America and Britain are still hopeful that Iran will “be reasonable” and negotiate a JCPOA agreement.

As far as the west are concerned, Iranian nuclear ambitions, entrenchment in Syria, the transfer of weapons and ballistic missiles, the collapse of the Lebanese state and maritime wars are further down the list of priorities. Let’s just get Iran back in the fold again and we can take it from there. Well good luck with that policy is what I say.

James J. Marlow is a broadcast journalist previously working for ITN, EuroNews, LBC Radio, Daily Express and a number of Jewish publications. In addition, he runs a Media and Communications / Public Speaking Training Operation and was a consultant at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem. Email: James@TheCommunicationBureau.com

5 AUGUST 2021

LETTERS 15

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Please note: The views of the letters do not necessarily reflect the views of this newspaper. Letters may be edited and publication is at the discretion of the editor.

JAMES MARLOW’S RESPONSE Dear Editor As for passing legislation to allow only Brenda Solomon very kind5 parties to run, that would The nonsense they spurt is ridiculous ly complimented my two be wholly undemocratic and columns in last week’s letter close to the Syrian system of section, which doesn’t happen only one party and one Presivery often. As someone dential candidate. Around 40 who mostly receives abuse, parties run each time in Israel celebration condemnation and even and if they can afford to do so, death threats on social media, why not? But remember they Brenda’s letter is a welcomed have to secure 3.75% of the change. Brenda, my cheque is vote if they wish to enter the in the mail to you.

Knesset.

On Brenda’s points, I am sorry that However in my Knesset column this Israel’s electoral system does things to her week, one party head who believes he “goat”, but if I may, Israel’s population is will NOT pass the threshold is fighting to now more than 9.3 million. The minimum lower that percentage. Read my answer to number of seats a party can hold in the the question in this week’s “Questions to Knesset is 4 as below that, fails to cross the Correspondent.” And best regards to the threshold. Only Ra’am received 4 seats the goat. last March and the rest began with 6 seats and upwards.

James Marlow 12 OPINION

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OPINION

29 JULY 2021

The opinions on this page do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper

OPINION PIECE

BY JAMES J MARLOW

For many years the Palestinian Authority, which falls under the umbrella organisation of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, has put forward several spokespeople claiming that the Jews of today, have absolutely no connection to the Jews of 2000 years ago.

They have also regularly claimed that the main founder of Christianity (The Jewish Weekly prevents me from actually writing his name, for fear of upsetting some loyal weekly readers) was a Palestinian. Actually he was a Jew, but let’s leave that topic for another day.

And according to PA leaders, Palestinian history goes back more than 6000 years.

Funny thing is, if we count our Jewish years from the beginning of creation, Palestinians were around at least 219 years before creation.

Perhaps they witnessed the great historic dinosaurs and sea monsters after creation.

So far, nothing new in their public relations strategy, as sadly a great deal of it

But now PA Prime Minister Mohammad Ibrahim Shtayyeh becomes the latest high profile Palestinian figure to say, that there is no connection between Israel and the Jewish people.

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is filled with misinformation, half-truths, distortions, and in the above case, outright lies.

But now PA Prime Minister Mohammad Ibrahim Shtayyeh becomes the latest high profile Palestinian figure to say, that there is no connection between Israel and the Jewish people.

Speaking to an audience which was aired on Palestine TV on June 29, 2021, Shtayyeh, who apparently is an economics “expert”, in case you mistakenly believed, he was some grand historian with a respected track record, announced “The Hebrews, the Jews and Israelites are not the same thing”.

He added, “The Israelis... Israel is Jacob.

“The Israelites are the sons of Jacob. “1,300 years separated between Jacob and Prophet Moses. “Therefore, 1,300 years separated between the Israelis and Judaism. “So there is no connection between the Israelis and the Jews.”

What a genius eh? And they made him Palestinian Prime Minister.

In case you are wondering, Shtayyeh went on to say that we are “Khazar Jews” who converted to Judaism in the sixth century CE and that Israel constitutes “A function rather than a State”. Moreover the “evidence” is that Oliver Cromwell, Napoleon Bonaparte and Balfour all back this up.

Let’s leave his speech for now and talk about the Palestinian Authority. It was founded in 1993 after Israel found it painful to deal directly with the PLO when it signed the Oslo Accords. The PLO was created by Yassar Arafat in 1964 next to the graves of Jews at a hotel on the Mount of the Olives.

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When British troops were in the land in the thirties and forties, they referred to the Jews as Palestinians whilst the Arabs were Palestinian Arabs. In fact the UN partition plan of November 1947 was based on the question on whether “Palestine” should be divided into two independent states – Arab Palestine and Jewish Palestine.

Today, the PA President Mahmoud Abbas is in his 17th year of a 4-year-term.

He openly boasts about being proud that the PA pay Palestinians who murder Jews, a handsome monthly amount.

But more importantly, the PA teach their people hatred and lies, steeped in classic anti-Semitic rhetoric such as “Khazar Jews”, in order to delegitimise and demonise the Jewish people and sever that connection with the Land of Israel.

Palestinian Media Watch and MEMRI in Jerusalem, who do fantastic work, constantly report on the Palestinians claiming in news interviews and speeches that almost every Jewish city in Israel, is really a Palestinian city.

Historic coins found in Israel are really Palestinian coins. Several biblical stories are altered to make into their own Palestinian stories and that there was never a Jewish Temple.

It’s not just misinformation, half-truths, distortions and lies, its genuine theft of our history, heritage, culture and land.

I don’t wish to make fun of Palestinian Arab identity. But I regret to tell you, that you have no ancient history in the Land of Israel or anywhere for that matter. You have no tombs of ancient Palestinians, except of course Arafat.

You have no historic Palestinian cities, temples or mosques. (The Jerusalem mosques belong to the religion of Islam, not the Palestinians). You have no archaeological evidence, no historical books, no currency, no national anthem, no songs or no literature.

You may have just built (with outside help) a brand new Palestinian museum with few artefacts inside. And you may have members of world bodies regurgitating your historical inaccuracies. But you will never succeed in stealing a 3500-yearold history of the Jewish nation that was born out of slavery in Egypt, eventually arriving in the Land of Canaan (not the land of Palestine) in the Jewish year 2489, (1272 BCE).

James J. Marlow is a broadcast journalist previously working for ITN, EuroNews, LBC Radio, Daily Express and a number of Jewish publications. In addition, he runs a Media and Communications / Public Speaking Training Operation and was a consultant at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem. Email: James@TheCommunicationBureau.com

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EE

Send in your comments to letters@thejewishweekly.com

Dear Editor I refer to the front-page headline, “UK-ISRAEL TRAVEL BAN CAUSES CHAOES AND HEARTACHE,” and the article’s contents, together with the piece, “Hashem’s voice,” which was part of, “From the editor’s desk,” in last week’s edition (THE JEWISH WEEKLY, 29 JULY). I consider that these two items could be conflated.

All country’s governments (not just those of Israel and the UK), have rightly made it patently clear, that there could be sudden changes to travel restrictions contingent upon the content of up-to-date data about COVID-19 and the ongoing pandemic. This scenario unfortunately does cause travellers, as David Saffer said, “Chaos and heartache,” but is intended to reduce the number of pandemic casualties as best it can in the circumstances.

The volatile situation is all the more difficult to live with, given that many people who are planning to visit, or are already in, Israel (as well as other worldwide destinations), are to meet up with family and friends that they haven’t seen for a long time. In addition, many people are hoping to attend simchas and lifestyle events (good and bad ones), not just holidays.

In these circumstances, people are often more than, (and have to be), prepared to endure whatever is necessary to be with

FR

Letters to the Editor

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29 JULY 2021/20 AV 5781

@TheJewishWeekly 201

UK-ISRAEL TRAVEL BAN CAUSES CHAOS AND HEARTACHE

BY DAVID SAFFER

Hershy Weiss Z”L of London (pictured), was tragically killed along with two friends in an aircraft crash in Ukraine yesterday.

Holidaymakers plans to Israel are in chaos due to latest travel restrictions that come into force on Sunday.

Fully vaccinated tourists from the UK are unable to enter Israel from August 1.

Devastated families have had to cancel once-in-a-lifetime trips for simchas and visits to loved ones.

Among those to make heartbreaking decisions are Mark and

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Welcome to Israel?

Tanya Duman from Manchester who were looking ahead to their elder daughter Malka’s wedding in Jerusalem on August 24th.

The family has rearranged the simcha in Manchester for next Sunday.

Malka made Aliyah only last week but is returning for her marriage to Chatan-to-be Aidan, who has made Aliyah from Australia.

“With Israel changing the rules we can no longer get there,” said Mark. “It reinforces the lesson again that we are not in charge of very much at all.”

The Jewish Weekly are aware of other disappointed families that have had to shelve plans including Chayelle and Adam Cohen who had to cut their British holiday short.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

The Israeli embassy has been inundated with requests and have worked around the clock to facilitate relevant documentation. And there has been some joy. Patricia Davila was desperate to visit family in Israel and gained confirmation yesterday of being able to fly out today on compassionate grounds.

Overall though the picture is gloomy with rising COVID-19 cases and concern over variants.

Travel restrictions come as the Israeli government is deciding whether to offer a third COVID-19 vaccine. It’s not clear whether they will recommend the injection or make it available to the elderly.

The aftermath of the crash PHOTO: TAMMY KAZHDAN - MART PHOTOGRAPHY

PHOTO: YWN

SEE PAGE 8

LSJS 2021 GRADUATION TAKES PLACE IN PERSON SEE PAGE 15

CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

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PARASHAT EIKEV BEGINS 20:38 20:53 20:48 20:52 20:37 21:14 20:44 20:54

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them in Israel.

Maybe, as the editor said, “Hashem is indeed speaking to us in a mighty powerful voice.” He is perhaps testing us to the limit, our determination to travel to the Jewish Homeland as we near the end of this year, 5781.

If it is your want, may Hashem grant you the opportunity to get to and return from, Israel safely and healthily. May this come to pass within the next month or so, or early in the New Year, 5782.

J D Milaric

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RHF Solicitors The Law Is here to help The law is often seen as dull, obstructive and often unnecessary. Sadly, the events of the last few weeks have shown that people and businesses need legal help and structures and without them there can be very serious and upsetting consequences. My firm is here to advise and sometimes that advice will be simply do not panic and just keep an eye on what is happening and only take action when you need to.

These are some of the areas we have identified as may be giving concern: Daily cashflow. Always lurking below the surface and rises up when cashflow is affected. Credit cards, loans, mortgage payment can easily get out of control.

Your estate. Without a will your dependents could be neglected and not receive the support they need. Intestacy often means that those you love can miss out, particularly if you have re-married or are not married.

Your business. Either in partnership or in a limited company, you need a formal agreement to protect everyone if someone becomes ill.

Your business income. Suppliers are being squeezed by customers and legal intervention on your behalf may allow you to trade on instead of closing down

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Insurmountable debt. We have been advising people and businesses about insolvency for 20 years. It may not be as bad as you think, or it might be worse. We will give you options.

If you need advice about any of these issues, e-mail your query to Response@RHFSolicitors.co.uk We will analyse your circumstance and provide sensible recommendations, then if you wish us to act for you, we will work precisely and thoroughly upon your instruction. Fees are agreed in advance.

5 AUGUST 2021

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West was not amused by this feeble effort. “You should have shifted to a club at trick two,” he said. “You can see one heart and one diamond trick for our side. The only way to score two more tricks is to hope that I have a trump trick and something that allows us to develop a trick in clubs. If you shift to a low club at trick two, declarer will probably insert the eight of clubs, hoping that this will force an honour from me but I will cover this with the nine. Dummy wins the queen of clubs and plays the ace and king of trumps, finding that he has a loser in the suit.

“When the diamond finesse fails, you play a second club and my king will force dummy’s ace loose. When declarer eventually plays on diamonds, hoping to discard his club loser, I ruff the third round and play a club to your jack to defeat the contract.”

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5 AUGUST 2021

Bursary Fund can help you train to change careers As we emerge blinking into the sun from the restrictions and uncertainties of the coronavirus pandemic, many people have seized the moment and decided to make a change in their working lives.

At Work Avenue, the Jewish community’s leading employment and business support organisation, we are seeing an increasing number of people coming to us looking to change roles or careers.

Some are doing it because they want a job they feel is more meaningful to them, while others recognise that the choices they made years or even decades ago don’t match the person they are today.

There are also those who were forced to reassess due to the redundancies and job losses we saw during the pandemic. And, of course, there is a financial aspect and changes that can lead to increased earning potential.

However, taking this step is expensive.

The costs of certified training courses can run into thousands and are unaffordable for many in the community, especially during a time of transition.

That’s why Work Avenue launched the Richard Mintz Bursary Fund (RMBF) in honour of their late trustee.

For those looking to train, or retrain, for a new occupational pathway, the RMBF will pay up to 80% of the course cost, subject to a few conditions.

As Work Avenue’s Interim CEO Emma May explains: “The pandemic has changed so many aspects of life for so many people, and not necessarily in a good way. That’s why it continues to be very gratifying to help our clients make such positive and meaningful changes to their working lives at such an important time.

“We have been amazed and delighted by the range of training courses that Work

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Avenue clients have registered for using the Richard Mintz Bursary Fund.

“Our training bursaries are supported by our professional, confidential and practical employment and business advice. This in turn enables more people in our community to earn a living with dignity to support themselves and their family.”

One person who has benefited from the RMBF is Adam, a Jewish labourer who knew

that to improve his prospects he needed to learn a trade.

Adam said: “I was stuck in dead-end jobs with no chance to get my career off the ground. Nobody gave me the chance to formally learn the skills I needed to improve my prospects and I couldn’t afford to do it myself.

“Thanks to the Richard Mintz Bursary Fund I now have a real chance… and I am seizing it with both hands. The Fund is paying for my plastering and tiling course, which I am really enjoying.

“Thanks to the course I have loads of new practical skills – such as preparing to lay down new floor, tiling buildings and plastering walls inside and out – that make me more attractive to potential employers and clients. I can’t wait to use what I am learning at work.

“I already have a few new private jobs lined up with some local businesses. Eventually I hope to work on my own.

“The Fund is so unique; there is nothing else like it anywhere and I did look around.

It gives you hope and is opening up opportunities for me and my family that I couldn’t access before.

“Things look more optimistic for me than they have for a while. I am so grateful.”

For more information about the Richard Mintz Bursary Fund, and to apply, please visit www.theworkavenue.org.uk/rmbf/

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45 girls aged 8-11 participated this month in the fourth GIFT summer camp, which proved once again to be a fun yet meaningful experience.

The week was jam-packed with outings and sessions focused on chessed, acts of kindness & giving. Activities included making bath bombs for new mums, making chocolate treats and delivering them to Hendon Fire Station, completing a kindness challenge in a shopping centre, cleaning up local parks, packing fruit & vegetable bags in the GIFT Hub and creating healthy

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recipe boxes for families in need. Led by an experienced team of madrichot, the GIFT Summer Camp was a summer the girls will not forget in a hurry.

Hayley Phillips whose daughter Michalle participated in the camp said; “I loved the fact that the girls were having fun but also doing something productive and helping the community through acts of kindness.”

GIFT’s mission is to inspire & enable lifelong giving.

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5 AUGUST 2021

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COMMUNITY 19

BA beats the Israel deadline! Pinner summer social

was a sizzling success!

Bnei Akiva members at the airport leaving for Israel

Last week Bnei Akiva UK succeeded in getting their Hachshara Gap Year programmes to Israel in the nick of time before Britain was added to Israel’s travel Red-List.

36 young students from Manchester and London had been preparing to join their Bnei Akiva Gap Year programmes in mid-August before the announcement last Thursday that travel would be restricted. Some hastily reorganised flights thanks to West End Travel, and a frenzied weekend of work led to a new departure date, a new programme for quarantine, multiple forms filled out, some expedited entry permits and lots of happy students getting onto the plane to Israel!

Rebecca Taub, mother of Yona who is heading on the Bnei Akiva Kivun Programme said “Bnei Akiva acted so quickly and decisively, thank you so much for getting the kids to Israel”.

Andrea and Neil have two daughters spending a year with Bnei Akiva, and praised the youth group for “getting the group safely to Israel amidst huge unexpected challenges. Your support, great communication and clear instructions meant we were confident just to follow your instructions and all would be ok. And it was!

Joel Ohrenstein (Israel Worker 5781) speaking on behalf of Bnei Akiva said “we want to say a big thank you to all our partners at World Bnei Akiva for helping make this possible, and we look forward to another cohort of Bnei Akiva leaders having a successful and transformative year in Israel!”

For more information about Bnei Akiva’s gap year programmes, you can visit www. bauk.org/hachshara

Rabbi and Rebbetzen Kurzer (right) and guests

Pinner Shul’s New Generation committee and its Community Directors, Sara and Yonatan Levin, held a Summer Social on Sunday 1st August. New Generation’s traditional focus is on children aged 0-11, this time it was the adults’ turn! It was a real celebration marking the end of lockdown - an evening of reconnecting with Pinner friends, enjoying drinks and a tasty BBQ.

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The shul was decorated in a tropical summer theme and the atmosphere was buzzing as around 45 people in the 30ish to 50ish age group chatted late into the evening, catching up with familiar faces and getting to know new ones. It was a warm, friendly and wonderfully relaxed evening, all carefully planned with covid compliant precautions.

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5 AUGUST 2021

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Charlie Harris’ Bar Mitzvah Challenge raised £2,566 for Chai

End of term fun for these Manchester King David Primary School year 5 children getting soaking wet and having fun during a water fight.

Mazal Tov to Chaya and Uriel

PHOTO: DAVID SAFFER.

King David Primary School end of term fun

PHOTO: LAWRENCE PURCELL.

Family and friends celebrated the marriage of Chaya Ibgui and Uriel Behar at the Cotswolds Hotel, Chipping Norton on Tuesday. Guests came from around the UK, America, Israel and France.

Charlie Harris

Charlie Harris, took part in the Bnei Mitzvah Challenge to climb two mountains in the Lake District in aid of Chai. He has so far raised £2,566!

Charlie said, “I took part in the Bnei Mitzvah Challenge to climb two mountains in the Lake District including one of highest peaks in the UK - Helvellyn. It was tough...and very hot, but I was really proud of myself and the whole group that we managed to do it!

I participated in the challenge with my Dad as part of my Barmitzvah learning and raised money for Chai Cancer as it is a special charity for my family. They helped my auntie and her family when she had cancer.

They were a great support.

I would encourage any other boys or girls of bar / bat mitzvah age to take part in this challenge and raise money for a charity that means a lot to them.”

Instructor Mr John Cheng giving Tai Chi exercises to some elderly members of the Nicky Alliance centre members. Tai Chi is a regular and popular activity.

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5 AUGUST 2021

FEATURE 21

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From the front line…

If we feel unsafe in hospital, we may not go there when really necessary.

BY JACQUELINE CURZON Goldman Sachs, the investment bank, has agreed to pay first year recruits $110,000 after Gen-Z graduates complained they were suffering from pandemic burnout, working up to 100 hours a week. Their pay jump of $24,000 does not include bonuses. Morgan Stanley announced last week they would pay their junior analysts $100,000, a raise of $15,000. The FT reported that Goldman senior staff said this starter salary was ‘setting a dangerous precedent.’ Hmm, I know it’s not at all similar, but our NHS staff are looking for an uplift. Anyone in the investment industry care to invest in them?

Up north the SNP are pressing for a four day week for civil servants after a survey found comprehensive support for this. Well, who wouldn’t want a shorter working week for the same money? This could bring the Scottish economy to an all-time low, with a projected £2 billion cost.

Mr Johnson announced he is going to Scotland for a wee break, in his effort to strengthen the Union. A counter invitation was then made by Ms Sturgeon, inviting him for showdown talks in Edinburgh, as part of her drive to relaunch IndyRef2. The SNP draft agenda for their conference leaked plans to persuade Scots that separation was ‘essential’ to their recovery from covid. Now that’s a bit rich, we bankroll their furlough programme and she says breaking up the Union is vital. Okay, I have a little solution for that Nicola, just repay what you took from central government. If she honestly can’t deal with Scotland’s epidemic drug problems, massive unemployment and a failing economy, I would suggest she wholly divert her focus to severing ties with the UK, as she is doing. When the PM arrived last time at her Bute House residence, he was greeted with a hail of boos from a congregation of fully paid-up Nationalists. Presumably La Sturgeon will not be issuing a similar invite to the ‘hecklers’… we wait and watch.

The flooding in western Europe reached a critical point, with exponential numbers still missing. We have experienced heavy flooding here in the UK as well, although on a lesser scale. More than 22,000 volunteers, military and emergency service personnel were working across the North Rhine Westphalia, where at least 46 have been confirmed dead, with 117 deaths in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate and dozens of people still missing.

With a coronavirus calamity just receding into the distance, it’s distressing to witness yet another disaster on our neighbour’s doorstep.

German opposition parties have called for Horst Seehofer, the Interior Minister, to resign, following his (mis)handling of the disaster. In the district of Ahrweiler, council leader Jürgen Pföhler was castigated for ignoring several Category 5 alerts and having failed to issue

Jacqueline Curzon PHOTO: LARA MINSKY PHOTOGRAPHY

an evacuation order, despite e-mails warning him the River Ahr had swollen to flood level.

Thus his delay of 12 hours cost the lives of 12 care home residents who drowned in the subsequent flood. A total of 135 people have now drowned in the Ahr Valley, which was the worst area hit by flooding, and the worst disaster since 1962.

I reported some while back, issues of trans-women being placed on women only wards, and it’s back in the news once again.

Hospital trusts have issued guidance saying that male-born sex offenders who self identify as female, can be placed on female only wards. Hey, I get they don’t want to be on male wards, because they are likely to be vulnerable there, a potential target for male abuse. The problem with placing them on female wards is that whilst they feel safe, they put all the women on their adopted ward at risk. The hospitals surely have a duty to protect the female-born inpatients on those wards: the young, the vulnerable and the elderly.

Medical staff have warned that this ‘guidance’ puts them in breach of their code of conduct, leaving the most vulnerable at risk. Imagine your Great-Auntie Dot (78) is on that ward, she’s had a neurological accident, can’t speak or write and Ms Once-was-a-man [or still-isa-man] is one bed away. He might also be a predator, she wouldn’t know, but his 12 o’clock shadow and prominent Adam’s apple puts the fear of G-d into her, especially as they have shared bathrooms and s/he seems physically quite strong. Now, I don’t think a trans-man would pose the same level of perceived threat to other men. Perhaps it’s a simple matter of anatomic difference or perceived vulnerability. Dr Jane Hamlin, president of the Beaumont Society (a trans support group) said, ‘if anyone starts off with an assumption that a trans person is a (potential) sex offender, that is discrimination and transphobia.’ Baroness Nicholson, chair of Children and Women First, spoke up for the rights of women, saying

that by ‘manipulating and distorting’ equality laws the NHS was denying women the right to ‘dignity and privacy’ in their treatment. The Daily Telegraph has sifted through 20 Hospital Trust policies and reports the following: a number of trusts will order medics to call police and report a hate crime if patients do not accept another’s gender identity; another adds that treatment may be withheld from the aggressor; another said patients will be admitted based on the gender they identify at on admission and NOT based on physical characteristics or the person proving they have legally changed their gender or name.

Wow. So you can still be Mr Adrian Duke, but state on arrival you identify as a female {Ms Adrienne Duke}, and hey presto, you’re in the woman’s ward. This is nonsense. I remember being on a mixed children’s ward a lifetime ago, and feeling unsettled with a couple of boys/ young men who walked around, shall we say, incompletely dressed: I was not happy.

Given that most violence is male-on-male, and most sexual violence or predatory behaviour is male-on-female, it would be sensible for the health department to get its act together. I would not happily use a unisex toilet in public spaces, not because I hate or dislike men, but because in an environment such as this, I would feel extremely vulnerable, and frankly, its not worth the risk. Similarly with changing rooms. What the solution is I simply don’t know, when the rights of the ‘very few’ are put ahead of the rights of the ‘many.’ Skipping nicely over to the Olympics, trans athlete Laurel Hubbard (43) took part in the women’s weightlifting. She did not win a medal, but by her inclusion in the games, de facto she put another (biological) woman out of the competition. Is it fair that Laurel, who was a man until her 30s, and having gone through male puberty with an adult male’s muscle mass and bone density, competed against ladies half her age? And still she couldn’t beat them? Why - when you want to be a woman - choose a sport where strength rather than skill is the arbiter of feminine success ? Laurel failed to win a medal, but could beat younger females because of her biological advantage.

No such swing for trans-men would work this way, I doubt.

Book fans will be interested to hear that Sarah Ferguson’s recent foray into adult fiction has been somewhat a flop. But then, stepping into Mills & Boon waters was never going to be an easy ride. ‘Her Heart for a Compass’ will be taking a back seat to my latest reading material - ‘Cause of Death’ (Dr Geoffrey Garrett), which is a truly fascinating account of forensic medicine, from a Home Office pathologist’s viewpoint. On my desk also lies Clinical Cases, co-authored by Dr Andrew Solomon, a parent in our community. It is a truly fascinating read. Sarah might be counselled to stick with writing Budgie the Helicopter sequels, as

children generally are less discerning.

The Army has decided that female soldiers will no longer be obligated to have their long hair in a bun. Instead they may have ponytails, plaits and cornrows. When I was a member of the Officer Training Corps back in 1988 the rule was definitely ‘hair up.’ Now they might have another problem - male recruits citing inequality by not being allowed long hair, trans women demanding equality or lastly, a harassment or assault suit levied against those who yank their ponytails etc.

Yup, I see that one coming.

And finally, Warrant Officer Eric Carter (101) has died, the last surviving pilot who flew RAF Hurricane fighters that operated with the Russians to defend the Arctic port of Murmansk. After the German invasion of the Soviet Union, PM Winston Churchill promised assistance and on July 12 1941 an Anglo-Soviet agreement was signed in Moscow. Carter - who had joined the RAF in 1940 - was on leave when he was recalled and sent to join 84 Squadron. Together with 134 Squadron they made up number 151 Wing and were deployed as the 1st example of British aid to the Russians. The Wing was deployed to the naval airfield at Vaenga, 10 miles from Murmansk, the Russian port closest to the Germans advancing front line. With 550 men and 15 (crated) Hurricanes, they made up the principal cargo of the 1st Arctic Convoy, sailing on the former Union Castle liner Llanstephan Castle bound for Archangel. Thereafter they were flown to Vaenga where they joined 24 more Hurricanes. Their primary role was to provide defence for the crucial port and also to escort Soviet bombers on raids over Finnmark and northern Norway. Carter flew patrols, trained Russian pilots and engaged Messerschmitt aircraft on a number of occasions. Later he said, ‘I took potshots at several Messerschmitts but couldn’t claim any kills.’ However to his credit he did train up Boris Safonov, fighter ace and ‘Hero of the Soviet Union.’ He left the Army in 1946 and after studying for a degree in electrical engineering, became an engineer for Associated Electrical Industries, where he continued to support the 151 Wing association and received numerous anniversary medals from the Russians. He visited Russia in the 1990s with his fellow veterans, including a visit to Moscow when the Queen was making a state visit. In 2013 he joined his surviving colleagues at 10 Downing street when the then Prime Minister David Cameron presented them with the Arctic Star. A year later he received the Russian Ushakov medal in a ceremony at the Russian Embassy.

That’s it for now. We’re having a paper break next week. Keep safe.

Love Jacqueline x

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ASK THE RABBI

Looking for answers? Send your question to Rabbi@RabbiSchochet.com THERE’S NOTHING ORIGINAL ABOUT SIN

Dear Martha You’d think if you asked any Jewish mother she’ll tell you so, especially when having a moan about her kids. But in Judaism we do not believe that we are born bad; rather simply go through life looking to do good.

Sure we fall prey to the evil inclination but our main objective is not to turn men into angels, rather bring some G-dliness into man.

without the other leaves neither of them complete.

The observant Jewish woman has a sense of her own being.

She has a long tradition that’s been passed down to her of how she could be with G-d. She has a sense of her own purpose, and she doesn’t ever seem to need to do what her husband is doing.

Is there really such a thing as a gendered equality when it comes to spiritual work? Does taking the man’s role really serve women? When a husband and wife are one entity, there is no hierarchy, no inequality, no friction; only harmonious sharing of roles, abilities and talents, to create a single healthy entity.

WHO’S THE BOSS?

COUNTING KIDS?

Dear Rabbi My Muslim friend insists that Muslims are very patriarchy and that in Judaism we are no different. Are men considered the “head of the family” in Judaism?

Justin

Dear Rabbi How many children should a person have and is there a finite amount of souls in heaven?

Dear Rabbi Do Jews believe in original sin?

Martha

Dear Justin What is more important, your ears or your mouth? One speaks and one hears, they can’t both speak, and they can’t both listen.

But a person is not healthy if he is missing either one - because they are both important and vital for proper human functioning.

A husband and wife are a single entity according to the Torah and in a single entity everything has its value. A husband and wife each have their own roles, distinct but of equal importance to the organism of the family and overall Jewish stability. One

Dear Roberta As many as you can have - and then have one more! Thing is, success, affluence and lifestyles encourage sophisticated selfishness – why spend money on kids when we can enjoy it ourselves?

It’s encouraged overzealous adherences to Zero Population Growth. In fact, at 1.8 children per Jewish family we aren’t even replacing ourselves.

There is a suggestion by our ancient sages that Moshiach will come when all souls will have found their place in physical bodies. In other words every time you bring a new soul into the world you bring redemption one step closer. Start now!

Pirkei Avot ‫ ו ְּמצו ָּדה‬,‫ ַהכּ ֹל נָ תוּן ְּב ֵע ָרבוֹ ן‬,‫הוּא ָהיָ ה אוֹ ֵמר‬ ‫ וְ ַה ֶח־‬,‫ ַה ֲחנוּת ּ ְפתו ָּחה‬.‫ְפרו ָּסה ַעל ָּכל ַה ַח ִ ּיים‬ ‫ וְ כָ ל‬,‫ וְ ַה ָ ּיד כּ וֹ ֶתבֶ ת‬,‫ וְ ַה ּ ִפנְ ָקס ּ ָפתו ַּח‬,‫נְ וָ נִ י ֵמ ִקיף‬ ‫ וְ ַה ַּג ָּב ִאים ַמ ֲחזִ ִירים‬,‫ָהרוֹ צֶ ה לִ לְ ווֹ ת יָ בֹא וְ יִ לְ וֶ ה‬ ֹ‫ וְ נִ ְפ ָר ִעין ִמן ָה ָא ָדם ִמדַּ ְע ּתו‬,‫ָּת ִדיר ְּבכָ ל יוֹ ם‬ ,ּ‫ וְ יֵ ׁש לָ ֶהם ַעל ַמה ּׁ ֶש ִ ּי ְסמֹכו‬, ֹ‫וְ ׁ ֶשלּ ֹא ִמדַּ ְע ּתו‬ :‫ וְ ַהכּ ֹל ְמ ֻת ָּקן לַ ְּסעו ָּדה‬,‫וְ ַהדִּ ין דִּ ין ֱא ֶמת‬ He used to say: everything is given against a pledge, and a net is spread out over all the living; the store is open and the storekeeper allows

FINDING FAITH AGAIN Dear Rabbi I am 18 years old and already my life has not been an easy one.

My parents are both alcoholics only one of which has been through recovery. They are now divorced. I cannot hold down a decent relationship. I have no self esteem which causes me to lie to others so I can feel accepted. And while I would never take my own life there are times where I hope someone or something will take it for me. I have always tried to take comfort in my relationship with G-d. Now it seems as though I have lost my faith. I want to have G-d back in my life but so much has happened. I know G-d is all powerful and knows what is best for us but somewhere along the way I have stumbled and fallen and I don’t know how to get back up. Please help guide me back to a path with G-d, I really miss having him in my life.

Gregory Dear Gregory Your immediate reference to your parents, suggests that you are a victim of your upbringing.

It must have been terribly painful coping with all that childhood trauma. The question you need to ask yourself is, are you going to let that get the better of you, or are you going to prove yourself bigger and better than anything life throws at you? I can only imagine how you might have been put down all the time by your parents or possibly sought to escape their inebriated rows. I would urge you not to hate them for it. Alcoholism is a sickness.

You were exposed to that sickness, and now it is a question of whether you will allow yourself to be victimised by it or immunise yourself against the consequences. You know that deep down you are well. You know that you are special. I suggest that you didn’t lose faith rather abandoned it because perhaps you are angry with G-d and the world. Ask yourself what led

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For Refuah Shalema for ‫דוד הכהן בן מרים‬

credit, but the ledger is open and the hand writes, and whoever wishes to borrow may come and borrow; but the collectors go round regularly every day and exact dues from man, either with his consent or without his consent, and they have that on which they [can] rely [in their claims], seeing that the judgment is a righteous judgment, and everything is prepared for the banquet.

Hashem has given people many different types of abilities, talents and processions, which are meant

to be used to benefit the world to the fullest extent. In the same way that we can have credit in a shop but will ultimately have to pay our bills, Hashem has loaned us our bodies complete with various different talents but ultimately we will have to give a reckoning. Everything must tally up in the end and the Master of the World is most precise.

Did we use our clever minds to study enough Torah? Were our mouths used to teach Torah, to discuss learning with friends and

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you to believe in Him in the first instance then go rediscover that.

Because faith is not a pill your swallow rather a muscle you flex.

In other words it is innate and you just have to allow for it to reemerge. I think it is imperative that you seek urgent professional help. You owe that to yourself.

With the right help you will be able to emerge stronger for the experience.

Perek 3: Mishna 16 families and to say nice things about people?

Or do we chas veshalom misuse our bodies? Do we say nasty things about people behind their back? Do we fail to use our eyes properly?

Each and every person must take time to deeply think about how careful we must be with our bodies and may we all merit to be on the level to answer Hashem in the affirmative in the Afterlife when asked if we utilised everything He gave to glorify His name.

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Torah from Israel

JUDAISM 23

Re’eh: The Gift of Free Will

BY RABBI MOSHE TARAGIN Parashat Re’eh challenges us to shoulder the great burden of human free will: “Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; a blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord... and a curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord.” We sometimes take the concept of human free will for granted, but for the ancients, it was anything but obvious. A fearsome and intimidating world appeared to toy with our fate, and our destiny seemed to lie beyond our control. Humans were gifted with free will, but the harsh world they inhabited mocked that freedom.

Currently, as the Jews assemble to enter the Land of Israel and attend to their historical mission, the great gift of free will is explicitly enunciated.

It has been a long journey to this decisive moment. Imprisoned and enslaved in Egypt, the Jews had little free choice. Even after their liberation from their Egyptian masters, the Jews of the desert had limited free will. For 40 years they benefited from overwhelming Divine provision and providence.

Often, experiences are so staggering and overpowering that our free will disappears.

We are sometimes left without choice, voluntarily abdicating choice in the face of forceful experiences. We feel so “taken” by an experience that we feel morally compelled toward a particular decision.

It is hard to imagine the desert Jews enjoying absolute free will. They saw too many grand miracles and witnessed too many divine decrees. If the Jews in Egypt were imprisoned as slaves, the Jews of the desert were captivated by miracles and held captive by the Divine will.

All this is about to change: the Jews are now transitioning from a world of supernatural miracles into a more pedestrian and ordinary condition.

The celestial clouds which protected them had dissipated, while the desert well which provided water had run dry.

Shortly, the daily manna fall would cease, and they will be forced to fend entirely for themselves.

Currently, they face the full effect of human free will – in all of its glory, but with all of its consequences. Man is born free and must bear the brunt of his freedom.

With free will comes responsibility and culpability.

To be human is to be gifted with free will and with endless potential for glory.

Squandering that immense potential is a colossal tragedy.

Free will can be emboldening, but it can also be frightening. Free will demands strength of character.

Free will also serves as the foundation for human change. Our lives and our world are not static, but are constantly affected by

our decisions, large and small. Annually, we read parashat Re’eh and its bold announcement of free will, just as the season of Elul and of personal transformation commences.

To highlight the relationship between free will and personal change, Maimonides, who championed unlimited free will, embedded the discussion of free will within the section describing the experience of teshuva (repentance). Teshuva is the boldest implementation of human free will and would be inconceivable without unqualified belief in absolute free will. This is the season of human free will.

It would be fair to expect that in the modern world we more deeply appreciate and more fully employ the gift of free will.

We occupy a world of political, economic and religious freedom. Repressive social hierarchies have been removed, abolishing the restraints upon human imagination and unleashing human potential. Ironically, it sometimes feels as though we exercise less free will than our ancestors did. What cultural forces interfere with human free will?

A LARGE AND DEPERSONALIZED WORLD

The modern world has become large and looming. Everything in our world feels towering. Mammoth corporations, massive governments and outsized institutions have all created an oversized world which feels fixed and immutable. Living in a “canyon of towers,” we feel small and overmatched, and our sense of free will decreases.

Of greater irony is the effect of the Internet. Conceivably, the Internet should make the world smaller and more connected.

Yet, somehow, as the distance between us contracts, the space we inhabit expands, and we shrink. Greater information flow expands our vistas but narrows the horizons of free will. As continents shrink together, we no longer live in space cut to human size.

Finally, the dominion of statistics strips us of free will. Statistics promises to predict human trends while convincing us that we exist on the curve of a graph rather than in free space. If we are just part of a larger trend, how free are we to render our own decisions? Are we individuals or depersonalized numbers of cold statistical analysis?

The corona epidemic and our reliance upon statistical models has exacerbated this condition. Human beings exercise free will; numbers have no fate or choice. They merely serve larger numbers and broader calculus.

FREEDOM VS FREE WILL

Never before have we enjoyed greater political and economic freedom. The repressive systems and stifling social orders that hindered the freedom of past generations have been removed. Yet, as our freedom has expanded, free will has diminished.

Freedom is a state, but free will is a Divine gift, endowed uniquely to man among all creatures. Fashioning us in His image, G-d granted us consciousness, creativity and endless possibility. Free will is a sacred right of humanity, and signals the grandeur of man.

In the modern world the grandeur of man has become effaced. We have witnessed evolution replacing creation, democracy displacing G-d or at least pushing Him to the margins, and capitalism supplanting altruism.

Darwin reduced man from a Divine masterpiece into an amalgam of genes, positioned randomly on an evolutionary timeline of billions of years, commencing well before Homo sapiens arrived. In place of a Divine grand mission, man is locked in an evolutionary survival of the fittest with the animals of the jungle.

As the splendor of man fades, and as his distinctive calling is blurred, the power of free will dwindles. We have greater freedom but less gravitas. Man has become more independent but less sovereign. We possess more freedom of choice but less free will. In our rush to become voters and consumers, we have forgotten how to be authors and artists.

ISN’T HISTORY PREDETERMINED?

For Jews, the concept of free will is even more complex, given our belief in redemptive history. There is a pivotal difference between the Jewish view of history and the Western view of history. Western civilization views history as evolutionary and open-ended. The future is completely unknown and is solely a product of human decision. Judaism views history very

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differently: It is predetermined and cyclical.

History is constantly surging toward a terminus which resembles the origin: a perfect world in which the Divine presence is uncontested by man.

If history is cyclical and predetermined, how free are we to impose our will or author our future? It is crucial to delicately calibrate between free will and historical redemption: While history constantly surges toward a predetermined conclusion, individuals still possess complete control over their actions and decisions. G-d steers the world toward its end point, but the pace and texture of that journey is very much a product of human behavior.

Our return to the modern state and the redemptive era has reminded us of what we believed for centuries: Despite the improbability of Jewish redemption, it is inexorable. Historical inevitability doesn’t mitigate free will, nor does it relieve us of the responsibilities of free will. Our lives are part of a larger arc, but we musn’t allow historical predetermination to exempt us from personal free will.

By gifting free will, G-d endowed humans with power and glory. By delivering His will to His chosen people, He tasked Jews with a great mission and responsibility. Free will grants potential but carries consequences.

In a world which feels deterministic we must choose free will.

The writer is a rabbi at Yeshivat Har Etzion/ Gush, a hesder yeshiva. He has smicha and a BA in computer science from Yeshiva University as well as a masters degree in English literature from the City University of New York.

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Re’eh: Is the Jewish New Year Obsessed with the Old, Past Year?

BY GAVRIEL COHN On the Japanese New Year, the nation partakes of a buckwheat noodle dish. The thin, soft noodles, which cut seamlessly when bitten, symbolise a clean break with the previous year and a new beginning.

In contrast, the Jewish New Year seems fixated on the past. We stand in Shul confessing the sins we have committed months ago, and beg to be forgiven. Why this obsession with the past, resurrecting the memory of long-forgotten misdeeds?

Surely, like the Japanese, we too should instead completely cut ourselves off from our past and enter the New Year with our eyes forward rather than backwards.

Shouldn’t we use the New Year to just move on, focusing on a fresh, dawning year to come?

In truth, however, such is an entirely mistaken view of Rosh Hashanah and of Teshuvah. Our New Year is not filled with an unhealthy, inappropriate obsession with the past; rather it is firmly focused on the present and the future. Teshuvah, primarily, is the act of making a firm resolution today to improve oneself, to wake oneself up from the apathy and bad

habits one may have fallen into over the course of the past year, and resolve to act better. Only through recognising where one has strayed is one able to re-orientate oneself. Delving into and regretting one’s past is simply a means to achieve this resolution for the future, forcing us to actively choose a better path for the next, new year. As the Rambam so clearly delineates: “What constitutes Teshuvah? That a sinner should abandon his sins and remove them from his thoughts, resolving in his heart never to commit them again. As the verse states, ‘May the wicked abandon his ways’… The Shofar’s call is saying: ‘Wake up you sleepy ones from your sleep and you who slumber, arise; inspect your deeds… those who forget the truth in the vanities of time throughout the year, look to your souls, improve your ways and your deeds, and let every one of you abandon

his evil path and thoughts...’” (Hilchot Teshuvah, chapters 1 and 2; see further Guide for the Perplexed, 3:36 and Rabbi Joseph B Soloveitchik, Halakhic Man, pp.110-117) This, in fact, is Moshe’s very message to the people in the Book of Devarim. Moshe dedicates the beginning of the book of Devarim to reminding the people of their past, the sins they committed during their desert travels. Moshe was reflecting upon their earlier days purely in order to motivate them to redirect their future, to spur them to choose a more positive life hereon in (Hilchot Teshuvah, 4:2). Thus, after retelling their rebellious history, Moshe then, in our Torah portion, stresses to the people that they have a choice today – here-and-now – to redirect their futures onto a better path: “Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse” – ‘Wake up! Look at your past mistakes; resolve

Only through recognising where one has strayed is one able to re-orientate oneself.

Delving into and regretting one’s past is simply a means to achieve this resolution…

not to repeat them; you have the freewill to redirect yourselves and change!’

(Devarim, chapter 11; Hilchot Teshuvah, chapter 5). That too is why Moshe then commands the people to completely eradicate the Canaanite sites of pagan worship when they enter the Land. Such is not an unhealthy obsession with the past, but rather is entirely forward-looking. He told them to rid the Land of any traces of idolatry in order to ensure that the people remain dedicated exclusively to God and His Temple in times to come, and do not turn to other, foreign deities.

So, this preoccupation with our past wrongdoings during the month of Elul and the Jewish New Year is, nevertheless, a future-orientated endeavour. Like the symbolism of the Japanese noodle dish, we too are focused on the future, doing so by examining our past year and resolving to redirect ourselves onto a more positive path, as Moshe urges in Sefer Devarim.

On Rosh Hashanah, “auld lang syne” [“old times”] do indeed matter, but only to help us achieve a better, sweeter year ahead!

Gavriel Cohn is an informal educator at Immanuel College, Bushey. He has written a number of Torah articles for various publications. If you have any questions or comments, please get in touch! gavcohn@ gmail.com.

Chovat Halevavot Hilchot Shabbat In contrast with one who trusts in Hashem that engages in earning a living, a person who does not trust Hashem will find themselves stressed at not having enough of a social network, of not reaching their financial “targets” and hoards money and possessions as if there is no end to their sojourn on this world. In short, the head and heart are fully immersed in this temporary existence. Were a person to be aware that our time on Earth is limited, they would prepare “food for the journey” out of this world – i.e. plenty of Torah and Mitzvot.

Misplaced security in this world can rob a person of their enthusiasm to properly prepare for the Next World.

Often, otherwise sincere people also find themselves trapped in the rat race of earning increased money. When challenged – “Do you not think it is worthwhile to pause and instead engage in more spiritual pursuits?” the person replies – “Sure I do. As soon as I have

enough money for all my needs, for my wife and children’s needs until we die”. This relentless sense of lack and of urgency to secure one’s livelihood forever, is mis placed and must not come at the expense of spiritual fulfilment.

In the author’s inimitable manner, he proceeds to list the seven falsehoods of this otherwise sincere person. He compares such a person to one who takes a collateral from Hashem, as it were. If one is approached by a less-than-financially-secure individual for a loan, it was common practice to take a tangible possession from the debtor as a security. People unfortunately treat Hashem this way too. They refuse to fully engage themselves in serving Hashem because they think that it is not safe to “spend” their “precious” time serving Hashem without being 100% clear of how they will feed their family by only working 8 hours a day instead of 14 (for example).

Continuing on from permissible manners in which Muktzah may be moved.

A common example is a bin bag which contains waste. Generally speaking, a bin or bin bag which contains waste may not be moved on Shabbat unless its presence disturbs one’s peace of mind. Another way in which it may become permitted to move a bin bag is if one ensures that there is an item of some value in it as well. For example, if one places edible food (even a small amount and preferably not a significant piece of bread) in a bin bag then places used disposables in it, the edible food may outvalue the disposables and they will the bag will thereby be permitted to move in order to clear away the next course.

There are further types of Muktzah, though they may not be of practical relevance each Shabbat. A Shofar on Rosh Hashanah should only be used for its intended purpose. If Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat, one may only move the Shofar if one needs the space, it is occupying

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or if one finds a permitted use for it (as sounding it on Shabbat is prohibited).

When one builds a Sukkah and places Sechach on top of it, the Sechach may not be used for any other purpose during Sukkot. On Shabbat and Yom Tov of Sukkot therefore, the Sechach is “Muktzah Machamat Mitzvah” and may not be moved. The same applies to Sukkot decorations. (On Chol Hamoed one may move these items but cannot benefit from them, so one would not be allowed to eat from decorative fruit.) Three of the “Arba Minim” – all besides the Etrog, may not be moved on Sukkot; an Etrog permitted due to the possibility of smelling it (although it is actually preferable not to smell an Etrog on Sukkot).

5 AUGUST 2021

JUDAISM 25

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Weekly Dvar Torah F R O M E R E TZ Y I S R A E L

On Decisions

BY RABBI BINNY FREEDMAN Thousands of feet up in freefall, travelling over 100 miles an hour, Yosef Goodman had only seconds to make a decision.

His parachute had become tangled in his commander’s chute above him, preventing both of their parachutes from opening. They were probably twenty seconds away from certain death, and none of the backup measures were working. On a training jump in the IDF’s elite Maglan paratrooper unit, they were testing a new form of gliding parachute, but something had gone terribly wrong. With such a short timeframe, and no other possible solution, Yosef, over the protesting screams of his commander, calmly pulled out his army knife and sliced through the parachute chords connecting their chutes, saving the life of his commander but dooming himself to certain death as he hurtled towards the ground at close to 130 miles per hour.

A subsequent investigation determined

that his decision was the correct one, and the only way to allow at least one of them to survive. But the ability to make such a decision, in such a short amount of time buffeted by the winds at such high speeds, is nothing short of incredible. His commander, breaking down as he eulogized Yosef at his funeral the next day, recognized both the incredible bravery it took to make such a decision as well as the inspiring ability to make the decision under such enormous pressure.

This week in the portion of Re’eh, Moshe exhorts the Jewish people to ‘see the blessing and the curse placed before them’ (Devarim 11: 15-19) and he describes to them the exact place to which they must journey when they enter the Land of Israel in order to receive these blessings and curses which will be given to them.

What does it mean to be given blessings and curses? And how can blessings and curses be placed upon a mountain? And why are the Jewish people told to see

Re’eh

one may slaughter and eat kosher (unconsecrated) meat anywhere that one desires, though it is prohibited to consume the blood. Keeping to the general directives that Moshe has outlined will guarantee prosperity for generations to come.

3RD ALIYA (SHLISHI) – 12:29-13:19

Moshe tells the nation to “see” that they have the choice between “a blessing and a curse”, which will be determined by whether or not they hearken to G-d’s commandments. After entering the Land, the nation will come to Mount Gerizim and to Mount Eival, where various blessings and curses (respectively) will be pronounced in the presence of the entire nation (see Devarim 21:11-26). Moshe instructs the Israelites to destroy the idols and altars that they will find in the Land.

2ND ALIYA (LEVI) – 12:11-28

Moshe relates the prohibition to erect and offer sacrifices on private altars. However,

Here are a few points to consider when confronted by the need to make a decision: 1. You will for sure not know what the right decision is if you never make it.

2. Trying to figure out what the perfect choice is (the best airfare, the perfect hotel, the perfect marriage partner…) is what will paralyze a person. Good enough

really is ‘good enough’. So look for the ‘good enough’ option…

3. Whatever decision you make; you can make it be the right one; at that point it’s all about attitude.

4. Eventually we have to decide our dreams are more important than our excuses. The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.

As we approach the New Year, Hashem should bless us all with the courage to take on life’s difficult decisions, along with the wisdom to make the right ones.

Rabbi Binny Freedman is Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Orayta. He is a member of the Mizrachi Speakers Bureau (www.mizrachi.org/speakers).

“This you may eat of everything that is in the water: anything that has fins and scales you may eat” (Devarim 14:9)

Sidra Summary

1ST ALIYA (KOHEN) – DEVARIM 11:26-12:10

these blessings and curses? Should they not be commanded to hear them?

The Ramban (Deuteronomy 11:29) explains that what is being set before the Jewish people is the path to blessings and the path to curses. A slave does not really have the freedom to choose; he must do whatever his Master commands. At long last, the Jewish people will be coming home, regaining the ability and privilege of making their own decisions.

So… how do we know what the right decision is in any given situation?

When the Israelites come into the Land, they must resist following the idolatrous practices of the Cana’anites. One is not allowed to add to nor subtract from any mitzvah, such as taking five (instead of four) species on Succot (Rashi). A false prophet who tries to turn the nation away from G-d should be rejected and is subject to capital punishment. The same applies to someone who tries secretly to entice others to worship idols. Moshe details the severe punishment for a city whose inhabitants turn to idolatry.

4TH ALIYA (REVI’I) – 14:1-21

There is a prohibition against cutting one’s skin or making a bald patch on one’s head as a sign of mourning over a lost relative, which was an ancient Emorite custom (Rashi). Some of the laws of kashrut are listed. Only an animal with

completely split hooves and which chews the cud is kosher. Therefore, animals like the camel and pig, which have only one of these characteristics, are forbidden. Fish are only kosher if they have both fins and scales. The Torah lists forbidden birds by name. It is prohibited to mix meat and milk.

5TH ALIYA (CHAMISHI) – 14:22-29

There is a mitzvah to tithe produce grown in the Land of Israel, including ma’aser sheni, the ‘second tithe’, which is taken to Jerusalem to eat. However, one who is unable to carry the produce can redeem its value, add an extra fifth, then take the money to Jerusalem to purchase and consume food there.

6TH ALIYA (SHISHI) – 15:1-18

Every seventh year is shemita (the sabbatical year), whose agricultural laws were detailed in parashat Behar (Vayikra 25:1-24).

Existing loans are cancelled, yet the Torah warns against withholding a loan from a pauper before the shemita year out of fear that it will not be paid back in time. A Jewish servant works for six years, after which he can go free. When he leaves, his master must give him significant farewell gifts.

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7TH ALIYA (SHEVI’I) – 15:19-16:17

One is not allowed to work a first born male animal from the flock or herd; rather it must be brought as an offering and its meat then consumed by its owner. The nation is to celebrate Pesach in the ‘spring month’. Some laws of the festival and the special Pesach offering are listed. Shavuot comes after the seven-week counting of the Omer. Succot is celebrated at the time of year when crops are gathered in from the threshing floors and vineyards.

On each of these three festivals, one has to bring special festive offerings to the Temple.

Point to Consider: Which feature of the Jewish calendar ensures that Pesach will always be in the spring? (16:1)

HAFTARAH

Taken from the book of Yeshaya, this is the third of the seven ‘haftarot of consolation’ read after Tisha B’Av. Yeshaya prophesies about a messianic future in which “all of G-d’s children will be His students” and the Jews will be protected from any harm.

Re’eh

Re’eh Word Search

This week is another rich Sidra filled with Mitzvot and methods of earning blessing in life. Moshe tells the Jewish people to ensure to follow the Word of Hashem, to destroy idols and to remember that we are an “Am Kadosh” – a holy nation, chosen by Hashem. We can only offer up Korbanot in the Beit Hamikdash, not wherever we desire, and we also must ensure not to eat non-Kosher meat, poultry, fish, birds or insects. We are taught many aspects of Tzeddaka and how to support the Levi tribe. We learn once again about the festivals and how to be happy on them, recognising that all the things we enjoy in this world are from Hashem!

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BLESSING • CURSE • IDOLS • KASHRUT • LOANS • SERVANT • SHEMITA • TITHE

Tangram Challenge!

Using all the shapes on the left can you make the teapot on the right?

I

t was the next day and Rivki was feeling much better now that she had a new bunk with Yaeli.

After davening and breakfast, it was the first tochnit in one of the activity rooms. Rivki sat with her dorm in a circle around a group of tables. The tables were filled with paper, coloured pens and envelopes.

When they had all sat down, Rachel stood in front of the group and asked for examples of kibbud av va’em, honouring your parents.

Ruti suggested helping to tidy for Shabbos. Chavi mentioned going to bed when your parents ask you. Naomi reminded everyone about helping to look after their younger brothers and sisters.

“So, how can we do kibbud av va’em when we are at camp if our mummies and daddies aren’t here?” Rachel asked the girls.

The girls looked at one another. They couldn’t think of anything.

“How about writing letters to your mummies and daddies?” said Rachel.

“They would love to hear about your journey to camp and later on, about all the activities you have been doing. You can also ask them how they and your siblings are and what they have been doing. So girls please take the papers and pens in front of you and let’s start writing to our parents.”

Summer camp pt.2 The girls were excited to tell their families about their long coach journey, the camp food they had eaten and who they were sharing a bunk with. Everyone was noisily grabbing pens and papers and getting started.

“How do you spell ‘activity’?” called

Chavi.

“This pen is broken” Yaeli pointed out to Debbie, one of the other madrichot for their group.

Rivki was very excited to write home to her parents. She was still feeling a bit homesick so it was nice to be able to still

‘talk’ to them. She drew them a picture of her room and of the cheder ochel (dining hall). She told them all about the bunk bed incident and her new friend Yaeli.

Rivki wished there was some other way she could feel like her parents were always with her at camp. She wanted them to see what a nice time she was starting to have. She raised her hand in the air.

“Yes, Rivki?” Rachel said.

“I have an idea….” Rivki was a bit shy and found it hard to continue.

Rachel came over to her and said “Please go ahead.”

“Well, I just thought, could we do a video for our mummies and daddies? We could make a short message for them every day, in the middle of one of our activities and send it to them so that they can see what we are doing and then they won’t be worried about us.”

Everyone looked from Rivki to Rachel to see what she would say.

“That is an excellent idea! Well done Rivki! What a mitzvah! And at the end of camp we could put all the messages together to make a CD of memories for each of you to take home with you.”

All the girls cheered, they could have fun and do the mitzvah of kibbud av va’em at the same time!

To be continued…

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Re’eh

In a nutshell Parshat Re’eh is a nice and long Sidra packed full of Mitzvot some of which we came across previously but each time we learn about them we can gain new insights.

At the opening Moshe tells the Jewish people that life is about one of two options - Blessings or the opposite of blessings! If one keeps Mitzvot they Merit to see blessing and if not they see to the contrary. So much so that when they were to cross over into the Promised Land they were to hold a public event of announcing which type of behaviour brings blessing and which not, but more about that in a couple of week’s time. Moshe teaches them yet again about the crucial matter of destroying all types of idols wherever they may be found.

We are told instead to bring our sacrifices to the Holy Beit Hamikdash.

We are reminded to only bring sacrifices to Hashem in permissible places and when eating meat (or chicken, for that matter) to ensure not to eat blood.

We are introduced to the concept of false prophets

and how they are to be punished especially if they guide a person to worship idols. We also learn of a rare case of an entire city which worships idols and how they are penalised. Besides the execution of its inhabitants, all the city and its contents must be completely burned.

We are taught later on that this Mitzvah was never of practical relevance and it was there for its moral lessons only.

The Torah continues by reminding us that we are Hashem’s children and therefore must not act like foreign nations did when bereaved (G-d forbid). We are a holy nation and have been chosen by G-d to be a treasured nation.

This leads on to the Mitzvot of Kashrut. We learn again of the kosher and non-Kosher animals, fish and birds.

We are to be extremely careful not to eat insects and therefore we check many types of vegetables before eating them lest they have bugs.

We are taught the Mitzvah of giving a percentage of our crop to the poor which, by extension, means to give

Word Wheel The goal of a word wheel puzzle is to create as many words possible with the letters in the word wheel.

Each word must contain at least three letters. You can only use each letter once and every word must have the letter in the centre of the wheel.

Use this area to write the words you have found.

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a percentage of our earnings to charity.

We learn of the gifts that are given to the Levi from our crop and what we must do with Maaser Sheni.

We learn another aspect of Shmitta - to release all loans and not chase them up after.

There is also a Mitzvah to grant gifts to a Hebrew slave once they are set free. They may stay longer than six years should they request to do so.

We learn of the Mitzvah of Bechor - giving the firstborn animal as a Korban and how we must ensure to only offer up an unblemished Bechor.

The Torah then teaches us about the Yamim Tovim, Pesach, Sefirat Ha’Omer, Shavuot, Sukkot.

We are reminded to be happy on the festival’s and to recognise all the bounty and goodness which Hashem bestows upon us constantly. It is especially important to help others to enjoy Yom Tov, so if one knows of less fortunate individuals it is a wonderful idea to think ahead of the festival’s to consider how we can shine some light in their lives too!

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Last week’s words: Here are some words you may have found from last week - you may have found more! die dig din gin nit rid rig tie

tin diet dine ding dint dire dirt edit

gird grid grin grit rein ride rind ring

rite ruin tide tied tier tine ting tire

trig unit digit diner grind guide inter inuit

reign ridge rigid ruing tiger tinge tired tried

unite untie during guider ignite indite riding ringed

ruined tidier tiding tinged tinier tiring united untied

dieting dingier editing ignited igniter intrude nitride untried

intrigue untidier intrigued

Q: What is fast, loud and crunchy?

A: A rocket chip!

Q: How do you make a lemon drop?

A: Push it off the table!

Q: How do we know that the ocean is friendly?

A: It waves!

(Answers at the bottom of page upside down)

1. A dog has three puppies named Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. What was the mother’s name?

3. What bank never has any money?

2. How does a dog cross a river without getting wet?

Q: What is worse than raining cats and dogs?

A: Hailing taxis!

3) A river bank!

1. The mother’s name is “What”.

2) The river is frozen!

1. No turning back 2. Break even 3. A drop in the ocean

4. Half baked 5. All overboard 6. Pace up and down

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5 AUGUST 2021

SPORTS WEEKLY SPECIAL

TOKYO 2020

Dolgopyat strikes historic gold in gymnastics

BY DAVID SAFFER

unprecedented success, we will be able to further develop the sport and its athletes in Israel,” Tropper added.

Dolgopyat, 24, qualified for men’s floor exercise with a first place ranking after a 15.20 score.

Artem started gymnastics at six years of age at a local club in Dnipro, Ukraine, following in his father’s footsteps. Dolgopyat’s family moved to Israel and settled in Tel Aviv in 2009 where he stood out at Maccabi Sports Club.

Dolgopyat first showed his elite potential with a silver floor medal at the 2017 World Championships in Montreal, Canada.

The same year he was a star at the Maccabiah Games and followed up with floor medals in 2018 and 2019 at the European Championships. A silver came at the 2019 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany ensuring an Olympics spot before gold in floor and bronze in vault at the 2020 European Championships in Turkey.

PHOTOS: WIKIMEDIA Israel’s first medal came courtesy of Avishag Semberg with a historic taekwondo bronze in the women’s 49kg category.

Herzog congratulated Semberg, 19, for “making history” and “being an inspiration to many children in Israel”, described her achievement as a “prime example of determination”.

Semberg defeated Rokia Yildirim of Turkey 27-22 in the bronze medal winner-taker-all-clash.

“I have an Olympic medal at 19,” said a stunned Semberg. “I worked so hard all the

Israeli gymnast Artem Dolgopyat struck gold in the men’s floor exercise at the 2020 Tokyo Games.

The first ever gymnastics medal, Dolgopyat is the second Israeli athlete to win an Olympic gold medal. Gal Friedman won windsurfing gold at the 2004 Athens Games.

Dolgopyat finished ahead of Spain’s Rayderley Miguel Zapata, who took silver, China’s Xiao Ruoteng won bronze.

Both Dolgopyat, who was Israel’s best pre-Olympic hope, and Zapata had an execution score of 14.933, but the Israeli held a higher difficulty level, so took the Olympic title.

Speaking to reporters after the medal ceremony, Dolgopyat said he was “speechless”.

“I’m still in the sky and it’s hard to come down,” he said, thanking supporters in Israel. “I didn’t do my best routine and I was worried it wouldn’t be Artem Dolgopyat enough for a medal but everyone else was nervous and made source of pride to many children who will mistakes and it was enough.” surely follow in your footsteps.”

Asked how an athlete celebrates winning Dolgopyat told Herzog he did it for the a gold medal, he replied, “It’s my first so I people of Israel and expressed happiness the nation watched him in the final. don’t know yet!”

Dolgopyat, who scoops NIS 500,000 prize Foreign Minister Yair Lapid added that money for his efforts, later added, “I didn’t the win was “history in Tokyo!” in a tweet. watch the three gymnasts who came before.

Culture and Sports Minister Chili Tropper I tried to concentrate and not think about was “full of appreciation” for “an unpreceanything, I just wanted to do (my routine).” dented achievement. “Israel’s first medal Prime Minister Naftali Bennett led trib- in the sport and not just any medal, a gold utes, interrupting a cabinet meeting to medal!” he said. speak with Dolgopyat as ministers applaud“Hopefully for all of us, through Artem’s ed the gold medallist.

“Thank you, Artem! You’ve made Blue and White history,” said Bennett. “The win has caused great pride and excitement to Yael Arad....................(Judo SILVER Barcelona 1992) all Israelis.” He added, “On behalf of the Oren Smadja...............(Judo BRONZE Barcelona 1992) government of Israel and on behalf of the Gal Fridman................(Sailing BRONZE Atlanta 1996) citizens of Israel, we are all proud of you and Michael Kolganov.......(Canoeist BRONZE Sydney 2000) look forward to your return to Israel for the Gal Fridman................(Sailing GOLD Athens 2004) celebrations.”

Ariel Ze’evi..................(Judo BRONZE Athens 2004) “Artem, you champion, you made history Shahar Zubari.............(Sailing BRONZE Beijing 2008) today!” tweeted President Isaac Herzog.

Yarden Gerbi...............(Judo BRONZE Rio 2016) After his victory, Dolgopyat spoke with Ori Sasson..................(Judo BRONZE Rio 2016) Herzog on his triumph.

Artem Dolgopyat.........(Gymnastics GOLD Tokyo 2020) “We are all very excited and I congratulate Avishag Semberg........(Taekwondo GOLD Tokyo 2020) you,” he said. “We are all looking forward Team Israel.................(Judo BRONZE Tokyo 2020) to seeing you in Jerusalem soon. You are a

ISRAEL’S OLYMPIC ROLL OF HONOUR

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way. I withstood the pressure, I believed it would happen.”

“I knew the draw was very difficult,” she added, noting that she “looked (Yildirim) in the eyes and did it. I said to myself, ‘so what if I’m the youngest?’ I will give everything I have. Hope this is not my last medal. It feels like a dream to me.” “I think I should have fun,” Semberg continued, “I worked hard enough all the way and it’s my time to show what I worked so hard on in training and around. Happy I was able to bring it on and withstood the pressure.”

Tropper said Semberg had made the dream a reality in an amazing opening to the Olympics.

“When I met Avishag before the Olympics I saw a modest, ambitious athlete who is willing to do anything to achieve,” Tropper added. “Avishag, we are proud of you.”

Lapid tweeted, “Medal for Avishag! Honour to Israel!!!”

Herzog congratulated Avishag for “making history” and “being an inspiration” to children in Israel.

Bennett said the achievement was a “prime example of determination and the power of will”.

The Israeli mixed judo team also triumphed when they came from behind to defeat Russia 4-1 in the bronze medal bout.

Timna Nelson-Levy, Ori Sasson, Li Kochman, Gili Sharir, Tohar Butbul, Peter Paltchik, Sagi Muki and Raz Hershko ensured Israel have now won a total of 11 medals in its Olympic history.

Sharir lost the opening bout before Muki levelled the tile. Hershko and Paltchik edged the Israelis ahead 3-1 before Nelson-Levy settled the podium spot.

“Everyone here gave their heart and soul and together we did it,” said Muki. “Everyone had a week that was very disappointing on a personal level, but something about this special day led to everyone giving a little more for the team, and that’s what made the difference.”

The judo team made the bronze clash with a 4-2 victory over Brazil in the repechage.

Butbul won only for Sharir to lose to her opponent, Kochman won but Hershko also lost. Paltchik and Nelson-Levy claimed the win.

Israel lost 4-3 to France in the quarter-finals leading 3-1. France eventually took gold.

In the round of 16, Israel defeated Italy 4-3, Sharir winning two bouts, Hershko and Paltchik also won.

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