Lag Ba’omer 5785: 200,000 Visitors in Meron
The prodigious efforts invested in the Lag Ba’omer festivities in Meron bore fruit. Almost 200,000 people visited the tziyun of Rabi Shimon bar Yochai on Thursday and Friday, with several thousand visitors remaining in Meron for Shabbos, and no mishaps were reported. Keeping the crowds safe was an extremely complicated operation due to the short window of time in which they would be coming and going, the narrow roads, and the general circumstances surrounding the hillula. Boruch Hashem, everything ran smoothly. There is a long list of individuals who deserve high praise for that, such as Motti Rabinowitz of Tip Productions and Yossi Deutsch, the project manager. The bottom line is that Meir Porush and Deputy Transportation Minister Uri Maklev deserve to be applauded for this year’s success. Maklev and Porush essentially took up residence in Meron in recent days, leaving their families behind in Yerushalayim (and coming home for Shabbos), as they worked hard to create the proper conditions for a successful Lag Ba’omer.
High praise must also be given to Maklev’s professional staff, including Yehuda Mendlowitz, Dovid Birnberg, and Dovid Wertzman. The public transportation system functioned like clockwork, and Maklev personally made the rounds of the various bus stops and train stations on Lag Ba’omer, making sure that everyone would make it home for Shabbos. Uri Maklev personally spent Shabbos this past week in a nearby vacation cottage (in Moshav Amirim, in case you wanted to know) to provide for the celebrants who had remained in the area for Shabbos. “On motzoei Shabbos, we brought 25,000 people home,” Mendlowitz informed me. In short, this year’s event in Meron was hailed as a success, in contrast to the events of recent years when the transportation system broke down, casting a pall over the festivities.
One major factor that fostered the success was that the police behaved with restraint, having learned to sit in silence rather than interfering and using brute force. As it turns out, the chareidi public knows how to take care of itself, provided that they do not encounter interference or violence. Most of the ushers in Meron were chareidim and the success of the event proved the wisdom of that decision.
The Lag Ba’omer bonfires began at 8:30, when the Boyaner Rebbe performed the traditional lighting, which was attended by thousands of spectators. The other hadlakos proceeded in an orderly fashion after that, based on a predetermined order. There were bonfires on the roof of the tziyun, in the moshav of Meron, in the Bnei Akiva compound near the tziyun, and, above all, in Area 89. The most popular hadlakos were those performed by the Toldos Avrohom Yitzchok Rebbe, the Rachmastrivka Rebbe, Rav Shlomo Amar, Rav Shalom Aroush, and, of course, Rav Elimelech Biderman. Rav Biderman’s hadlokah took place at 2:00 in the morning in Area 89. Many hadlakos took place across the country as well, some of which attracted crowds of thousands.
A memorial event was held for the 45 victims of the Meron tragedy of four years ago. Nosson Grossman, a grandson of Rav Yitzchok Dovid Grossman, wrote the following to me on Lag Ba’omer: “Yesterday, on Thursday evening, I accompanied by grandfather, Rav Yitzchok Dovid Grossman, the father of the kiruv movement, to a tefillah at the gravesite of Rabi Shimon bar Yochai in Meron. Shortly before approaching the tziyun, we participated in an emotional event in memory of the 45 victims of the terrible tragedy that occurred in Meron four years ago. My grandfather told the families that it is a privilege for them to know that they were chosen in Shomayim as those who would have the ability and the strength to cope with this painful and bitter nisayon. We will never understand the mystical reasons that these people were taken to Shomayim specifically in this holy place and on this holy day, but we have faith in Hashem, which has sustained us in golus for many years. My grandfather quoted the statement made by the Karliner Rebbe in his sefer, Bais Aharon, that just as Hashem is for everyone, Rabi Shimon bar Yochai is for everyone, even the lowliest among us.”
Will the Death of Sinwar’s Brother Impact the Talks?
Things are not easy in the Middle East. The negotiations for the release of the hostages have gone through ups and downs—more of the latter than the former—and people are suffering from the nail-biting tension. Everyone rejoiced over the recent releases of hostages, but each time, after a day or two passed and the stories emerged of the terrible torments they endured, our fears for those who remained in Gaza mounted even further. Israel’s goal is to secure the release of the remaining hostages all at once; the major question is what sort of concessions will have to be made to achieve that. At this time, it seems that Mohammed Sinwar was either killed or mortally wounded in the IDF attack on the European Hospital in Khan Yunis, which may explain Hamas’s sudden flexibility.
On October 16, 2024, IDF soldiers managed to kill Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas and mastermind of the slaughter on October 7, 2023. Putting aside the question of whether Sinwar’s death was accidental or the result of precise intelligence, it was certainly a major blow to Hamas. The Israelis were certain that the negotiations for the hostages’ release would be accelerated after his death, but then Sinwar was succeeded by his brother, who turned out to be even more rigid and barbaric. Last week, Mohammed Sinwar was apparently eliminated as well. There is very little clear information or evidence of his death, but it seems likely that he was killed. On Sunday, an Arab media outlet reported that his body was found, although others claimed that he was still alive but in critical condition. Either way, the Israelis believe that progress can take place now that he is out of the picture. Furthermore, a few high-ranking Hamas terrorists were together with Sinwar during the strike, and it seems that the entire Hamas leadership has therefore been eliminated. When the Hezbollah leadership was eliminated, the threat from the north crumbled; we all hope that the same will happen now in the south.
It is widely believed in Israel that Hamas is ready to disarm and leave Gaza. In fact, leading Hamas terrorists are even seeking refuge in various Arab states today. This is likely due to the deaths of the two Sinwar brothers. Incidentally, there is a third brother, Zakariya Sinwar, who is a professor of modern history and is rumored to have been eliminated at the beginning of this week as well. In short, we are davening to Hashem to put an end to the hostages’ suffering and to bring them home, and we all hope that these developments will accelerate that process.
Edan Alexander Was Held in Inhuman Conditions
All were excited when Edan Alexander returned from Hamas captivity last Monday. He was initially scheduled to fly to Qatar to meet with President Trump and extend his thanks, but the plan was scrapped due to his severely weakened physical state. When he was released, his strength was found to be completely depleted. He was brought directly to a hospital for examination, and the doctors found that his health was very poor, in addition to the fact that he lost 20 kilograms in captivity. At this point, only a small portion of his experiences have been publicized.
An American Israeli soldier born in New Jersey, he was kidnapped from his army base during the Hamas onslaught on October 7, 2023. Like other released hostages, Edan described a number of moments of emunah during the course of his nightmarish ordeal.
During his captivity, Edan was moved repeatedly from one hiding place to another. He was alternately held in subterranean tunnels, secret apartments, mosques, schools, and even tents for displaced persons, facing exceptionally difficult conditions in each hiding place. Edan related that he was forced to drink seawater and to eat soiled bread, and he described his experience as a year of Gehinnom. He also related that he had been held together with Matan Zangkauer, who he said was still alive. Surprisingly, Edan was exposed to the news while in captivity, and he related that it was a special experience for him when the terrorists showed him a picture of his parents and President Trump at the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s ohel on the first anniversary of October 7. That picture clued Edan in to the fact that his family was waging a global fight for his release. As for why he was released, there is no doubt that Hamas intended it to be a gesture to Trump with the goal of restarting negotiations over a potential ceasefire, the release of additional hostages, and renewed humanitarian aid to Gaza before Israel could carry out its threat of a full takeover of the Gaza Strip.
Netanyahu is certain that Hamas is showing flexibility because Gaza has ceased receiving humanitarian aid and because the IDF has ramped up the military pressure in the strip with Operation Gideon’s Chariots. Hamas lacks leadership, and with the people of Gaza suffering because of its actions, the terror group is losing its grip on power. Netanyahu is also threatening to intensify the IDF’s operations and bring even more destruction to Gaza. On Sunday evening, the media reported that the IDF had entered Gaza in large numbers, a move designed to force Hamas to buckle further. We all believe that this will be a breaking point for Hamas and that the hostages will return home soon, with Hashem’s help.
Sirens During the Lag Ba’omer Bonfires
Meanwhile, Israelis are going about their routines, and we are even growing used to sporadic missile fire. As bizarre as it sounds, it seems to have become a matter of routine. On an ordinary day, a group of people might be sitting in a business meeting or, l’havdil, in a bais medrash, and someone will say, “Just a minute; I think there is an air raid siren.” And then they will find out that he was correct. On Thursday night, the night of Lag Ba’omer, there was an air raid siren during the bonfires.
We are growing accustomed to hearing that the Israeli air force attacked Yemen in response to the missile fire, and I am beginning to wonder if it has become a matter of routine in Yemen as well. And we have also grown used to hearing that the IDF is stepping up the offensive in Gaza. This week, it was reported that IDF soldiers destroyed a tunnel in the northern Gaza Strip that was two kilometers in length. This is actually quite a peculiar phenomenon: While the government keeps telling us that the entirety of Gaza is in ruins, we also keep hearing about more tunnels and more terrorists being discovered. We are certainly davening for this war to come to an end.
There is no question that President Trump and his staff are key players in all the events in this region—the dealings with Yemen and Iran and, of course, the efforts to secure the freedom of the hostages. All eyes have been focused on Trump during his visit to the Middle East, and one of the most significant events in that visit was the ultimatum that he handed to Iran in the presence of Arab leaders surrounding him. Also significant was the fact that Syria’s new leader was invited to his meetings. Rumor has it that the new Syrian leader is interested in joining the Abraham Accords, as are the rulers of other countries, such as Azerbaijan. Historic events seem to be unfolding before our eyes.
Woman Murdered En Route to the Delivery Room
Israelis have grown accustomed to many things, but we can never get used to murderous terror attacks. The Arabs are constantly trying to murder Jews, and this past week, unfortunately, they were successful. Tzeela Gez was murdered while on her way to the hospital to give birth; her husband, Chananel, was wounded, and the baby is fighting for his life. On Wednesday, Chananel and Tzeela set out from their home in Shomron to a hospital for the birth of their child; during the drive, near Peduel and Bruchin, they were ambushed by terrorists who opened fire on their car and on two other vehicles traveling on Route 446. The IDF launched a manhunt for the terrorists and blocked all roads leading out of the village of Bruqin, from which the terrorists had emerged. Special forces, including the paratroopers’ brigade, the Shaldag brigade, and commando units, were rushed to the area to join the manhunt, while air force planes contributed to the effort as well. Yaakov Zeligman, a volunteer medic with United Hatzolah, told the news shortly after the incident, “I arrived on the scene relatively quickly, and many more forces came as well. When we arrived, we saw that the car was on the side of the road, riddled with bullets. There are still many forces in the area now, and the road has been closed.”
Tzeela Gez’s funeral was held on Thursday on Har Hamenuchos and attended by thousands of grief-stricken participants. During that time, the doctors in Schneider Hospital fought for the life of her newborn son, who was delivered in an emergency operation and was listed in serious yet stable condition. The next day, the doctors reported that there had been a slight improvement in his condition. Chananel Gez stirred the emotions of the nation when he declared, “I am thankful to Hashem for giving me eleven years with my wife.” The hesped he delivered at his wife’s funeral was stirring.
The murder evoked outrage in Tzeela Gez’s community. Shai Alon, head of the Beit El Regional Council, expressed frustration over the government’s inadequate response to terror. “There needs to be a price for attacking Jews in the State of Israel,” he declared. “We have been crying out for all the weapons to be confiscated, for the refugee camps to be eliminated and the terrorists deported from the country, but the political leadership does not want to change its approach. But they no longer have an excuse. It’s time to get to work!”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called for a dramatic change in policy and blamed the IDF brass for the situation. “I call on the prime minister to instruct the IDF to restore all the checkpoints in Yehuda and Shomron immediately and permanently, and to live up to his commitment to advance the death penalty for terrorists,” he declared.
The Challenge of Lone Wolf Terrorists
The murder of Tzeela Gez is an example of a problem that we have previously discussed: It is very difficult for the IDF and the Shin Bet to stop a lone wolf terrorist before he commits an attack. When a terrorist acts as a member of a cell or organized group, the Shin Bet often has advance information about his plans from collaborators, which gives them the ability to send the police or the army to stop the terrorist in his tracks. But when the terrorist acts independently, especially when he is a citizen of Israel, the likelihood of obtaining advance warning of an attack is nil.
The army is well aware of Israeli settlers’ outrage over their sense that they have been abandoned by the defense establishment. After the murder of Tzeela Gez, the IDF chief of staff, Major General Eyal Zamir, carried out an initial assessment at the scene of the attack, along with Major General Avi Bluth, head of the Central Command. Zamir instructed the IDF forces to continue enforcing the closure and curfew in the Arab village while tracking down the terrorists. “This is a very painful attack,” he said. “We are fighting a broad battle against terror in Yehuda and Shomron, and we will continue doing so. We will use all of the tools at our disposal to find the murderers and bring them to justice.” Nevertheless, the defense establishment struggles to find a solution for the phenomenon of lone wolf terrorists—that is, terrorists who pick up their weapons and set out to attack Israeli citizens with the support of the local populace but without coordinating their actions in advance with a terror organization. One possible strategy is to limit access to the roads to Israelis by blocking the exits from Arab villages to the highways; however, both the defense establishment and the local Israeli communities agree that it will not be possible to seal off the roads hermetically, and that such a measure would also reduce contact between security forces and the Palestinian populace, which would potentially allow terror to grow unchecked.
President Yitzchok Herzog reacted publicly to the murder of Tzeela Gez: “The murder of the late Tzeela Gez, on her way to the delivery room, is a criminal act of terror that chills every heart…. Terrorism will not defeat the Israeli spirit. We will pursue terrorism everywhere, and we will not be silent.”
Benny Gantz likewise reacted sharply: “Only monsters in the guise of human beings would be capable of shooting an expectant mother on the verge of giving birth. This is the face of the evil with which we are contending. We must act with power and determination against this murderous terror, everywhere and at all times.”
The murderous attack also reignited the settlers’ anger against the IDF. They are furious with Major General Bluth, who wears a yarmulke but, as far as they are concerned, has his sympathies in the wrong place. They pointed out that after the murderous attack, Bluth gave orders to the soldiers of the IDF to prevent Israeli settlers from taking revenge. Instead of seeking to capture the murderers, he was more concerned about preventing Israelis from taking the law into their own hands.
Mossad Finds Eli Cohen’s Archive in Syria
Israeli intelligence can at least take credit for one recent accomplishment: In a complex clandestine operation, Mossad operatives managed to procure the official Syrian archive on the late Israeli spy Eli Cohen, which contains thousands of items that were held by Syrian security forces for decades. On Sunday, the Mossad and the Prime Minister’s Office issued a joint statement announcing their achievement, which they credited partly to the collaboration of “another intelligence organization.” If I had to guess, I would assume that the other partner in the operation was an American intelligence agency.
Last week, when I wrote about the return of Tzvi Feldman’s remains to Israel, I expressed hope that Eli Cohen’s remains might be brought home as well. For the time being, Israel has retrieved his archive but not his body. Eli Cohen, who was dubbed “our man in Damascus,” was executed in Syria exactly 60 years ago as discussed in a great Yated feature article two weeks ago.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu and Mossad director Dadi Barnea presented several original documents and personal effects retrieved from Syria to Eli Cohen’s widow, Mrs. Nadia Cohen. The documents include an original will written by Eli Cohen just a few hours before his execution; until this time, only a copy of the will had been revealed. The archive contains about 2500 documents, pictures, and personal belongings, most of which have been exposed for the first time. These items were collected by Syrian intelligence after Cohen was arrested in January 1965 and include recordings and documentation from the interrogations of Eli Cohen himself and of other individuals with whom he was in contact. The archive also contains handwritten letters to his family in Israel, pictures taken during his clandestine operations in Syria, and personal items that were confiscated from his home after his arrest.
Cohen’s personal effects include the keys to his apartment in Damascus, passports and false identity papers that he used, and many pictures from the period of his espionage activities in Syria, which include photographs of Cohen together with high-ranking officials in the Syrian army and government. The notebooks and journals collected from his apartment by Syrian intelligence also include records of instructions that he received from the Mossad, including a request to monitor a specific target and an assignment to collect intelligence on Syrian army bases. The original document containing Cohen’s conviction and death sentence was likewise located in the archive; this document shows that the court permitted the chief rabbi of the Jewish community in Damascus, Rav Nissim Indibo, to accompany Eli Cohen as he was led to the gallows.
“Eli Cohen is a legend,” Netanyahu said. “He has withstood the test of time and retained his reputation as the greatest intelligence agent in Israeli history. His heroism and activities contributed to our historic victory in the Six Day War. The Eli Cohen archive, which was acquired through special effort, will be a source of knowledge for future generations and demonstrates our unflagging commitment to bring home all Israeli captives, hostages, and other missing people.”
Standing Up for a Siddur
We are constantly hearing new stories about the emunah demonstrated by the hostages returning from Gaza. Liri Albag, one of the IDF lookouts from Nachal Oz who were taken captive by Hamas terrorists, recently participated in a special project in which she told the story of her ordeal, which was published with illustrations. Several of her fellow former hostages took part in the same project. It was chilling to read about the horror that the girls felt when they realized that their military outpost had been taken over by terrorists. Albag and the other soldiers took cover in a small bomb shelter and soon realized that the terrorists who had infiltrated the base were approaching them. “Grenades exploded near us, and then there was a sudden silence,” she said. “The shooting stopped, and the terrorists entered the room and began taking everyone who was still alive. First they took Noa Marciano and then Ori Megidish, then Naama [Levi] and then Agam [Berger, Albag’s close friend who spent most of the time with her in captivity] and me. Then they took Daniella [Gilboa] and Karina [Ariev]. I remember that Naama said to Agam and me, ‘Are we alive?’ And I replied, ‘Yes. I think so.’ The terrorists bound us and said, ‘We aren’t going to kill you. We are taking you to Gaza.’”
Albag related that the girls were disguised as Arabs and shuffled from one location in Gaza to another, and that they were sustained by each other’s company. From time to time, when they were briefly separated from each other, they were devastated. She spoke about the hunger and suffering they experienced, about their fears and hopes, about the candles they lit and the food they cooked. One paragraph in her account was about a siddur.
“The terrorists constantly tried to convert us to Islam,” she related. “They told us that the Jews would be in Gehinnom, but that even a person who converts to Islam on the last day of his life will be sent to heaven. They had a siddur, which Agam often used, and one of the terrorists suddenly said to her, ‘From now on, you are not allowed to touch that siddur.’ The next morning, I woke up and Agam asked me, ‘What should I do?’ I replied, ‘He told you not to touch it; he didn’t say that you couldn’t read it.’ I held the siddur, and she read from it. Then the terrorist came and demanded, ‘Why did you let her read from the siddur?’
“I replied, ‘You told her not to touch it, but you didn’t say she couldn’t read it.’
“He responded, ‘You are a snake. You think you are so smart?’ And then he instructed her not to read from it.
“I turned to her and said, ‘Agam Berger, today you are telling him no. You love to argue; now is the time to argue.’ And that is what happened. She argued with him until he relented.”
A Symbolic Kabbolas Shabbos
Agam Berger recently visited New York, where she delivered a stirring speech to an audience of hundreds at an event organized by the Israeli consul general, Ofir Akunis. I quote a portion of her account.
“When the terrorists broke into the bomb shelter,” Agam Berger said, “I whispered the words of Shema countless times. I fasted all the fasts in captivity—Yom Kippur, Tisha b’Av, and Taanis Esther—even when it wasn’t clear when I would receive my next meal. I refused to cook for my captors on Shabbos, and I refused to eat meat because of the laws of kashrus. When I knew that it was Pesach, I refused to eat chometz, even though our main food was pita.”
Of course, Berger spoke about the siddur as well. “Reading the davening every day kept me strong and protected me and Liri Albag, who was with me in captivity. We made sure to observe Jewish holidays to the best of our ability. We performed a symbolic Kabbolas Shabbos, sometimes with the candles that served us for illumination. On Yom Hazikaron, we lit a candle and stood in silence for a minute in memory of Israel’s heroes. There were times when we listened to the radio and we were able to keep track of the dates and the Jewish holidays, and it was important to us to observe them. We knew the date of the memorial day for fallen IDF soldiers and the victims of terror….
“When I was left alone, I strengthened my emunah further,” Agam added. “That is the way of the Jewish people. The more they are afflicted, they more they grow. That is the spiritual resilience of Am Yisroel. We have the inner fortitude to survive and flourish in the midst of oppression and hardship. I was abducted because I am Jewish. I made major sacrifices to preserve my character, and I did not give up my Jewish identity. My freedom of choice cannot be taken away from me, nor can my Jewishness.”
Inspiration for All
It was moving to see Varda Ben-Baruch (nee Chaimov), the grandmother of Edan Alexander, withdrawing a copy of Tehillim from her purse and reciting kappitel 100, “Mizmor L’Sodah,” on the occasion of her grandson’s release. “I am thankful to Hashem, and I have no question that Edan was sustained in captivity by his emunah,” she said. The emunah displayed by many of the former captives, both during their ordeals and after their return, has left the people of Israel profoundly moved.
A spiritual awakening is underway in Israel. This was evident on the legal holiday of Yom Haatzmaut, which became a day dedicated completely to Torah learning in hundreds of locations throughout the country, with the participation of tens of thousands of people. By way of example, someone sent me a copy of the schedule of Rav Yaakov Sinai, a grandson of Rav Ovadiah Yosef, who spoke in numerous locations over the course of the day. On Wednesday evening, he delivered shiurim in Kollel Chazon Yaakov in Netivot, the Yismach Chaim shul in Kiryat Malachi, and the Chasdei Ovadiah shul in Bnei Brak. On Thursday, the list of locations included Tiferes Ovadiah in Netanya (at 9:30 in the morning), Pnei Meir in Kfar Yonah, Maor Rachamim in Ramat Hasharon, Sudai in Cholon, Heichal Hakodesh in Petach Tikvah, Tzeirei Bnei Binyomin in Tel Aviv, Beit Yosef in Lod, Ezra HaSofer in Rechovot, Banim Shel Melech in Ashkelon, Shaarei Rachamim in Kiryat Malachi, and finally, at 10:15 p.m., the Chida shul in Ashdod. And if the number of shiurim alone is staggering, consider the fact that there were hundreds of listeners at each event. While some people in this country devoted the day to barbecues, thousands took advantage of it to dedicate their time to learning Torah. Lev L’Achim reported that their midrashiot were packed as well. There is no question about it: A wave of inspiration and awakening is sweeping through the country, and that means that all of us have a duty to help our fellow Jews find their way back to their Father in Heaven.
Proposed Law Would Protect Public Religious Practice
As the Knesset returned to work, new laws were placed on the Knesset table once again, and I found it interesting and entertaining as usual to examine them. One of the bills proposes penalties for deliberately positioning a car to block traffic, presumably due to the actions of the Kaplan protestors. Another bill would prohibit the Knesset from convening without a minimum of 24 members present in the chamber and would require the chairman of a session to declare a recess if the number of participants drops below that quorum at any point. This law would make it possible for anyone to shut down the Knesset by organizing a mass walkout.
Another bill, sponsored by Galit Distal and Eliyohu Bruchi, is deserving of praise. This bill is titled “Proposed Law for the Manifestation of Jewish Identity in the Public Sphere” and identifies its goals as “guaranteeing the ability of an Israeli person to express his national and religious identity in his sovereign state in the ways that the Creator of the world commanded us.” The explanatory notes expound on this idea: “The State of Israel does not have the right to exist if it does not allow Jews to carry out their duties to the Creator of the world and to live by their faith openly and without fear.” I would guess that Galit Distal was responsible for authoring the text of the bill and the explanatory notes; she is known for her eloquence and her admiration for Torah learning. The notes mention the ban on davening in public in Tel Aviv and the confiscation of a tefillin stand in a school in Ramat Gan, which was the subject of a previous article in which I interviewed Orel Malik, the young man at the center of the storm. Orel is still fighting for the right to practice Yiddishkeit in his school, and we hope that he will be successful. His aim is to persuade the education minister to issue an unequivocal directive for students to be permitted to open tefillin stands in any school in the country. This week, Orel met with the Rishon Letzion, Rav Yitzchok Yosef, who expressed enthusiastic support for his efforts.
The French President’s Hypocrisy
Last Friday, the Anti-Defamation League released a new report that paints a bleak picture of global anti-Semitism. The report, which focuses on seven countries (America, Canada, England, France, Germany, Australia, and Brazil) reveals that there has been a sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents throughout the world. The spike in anti-Semitism is particularly severe in Germany (with a 75 percent increase) and England (an 82 percent rise), but above all in France, which registered a whopping 185 percent increase in anti-Semitic activity. Jews are fearful of walking in the street with yarmulkes, and certainly while wearing tzitzis or a tallis. MK Yossi Taieb is an expert on France, and he is very worried; Taieb is an immigrant from France who has maintained ties with his fellow immigrants and his former community in France. Last week, even before the ADL published its report, Taieb submitted an urgent motion for the agenda in the Knesset, in which he wrote, “The French president’s position on Israel has had ups and downs; recently, it has mainly declined. Of course, this affects relations between Israel and France, but from our perspective, what is much more important is the impact on the Jews of France, who experience displays of hatred and harassment directed especially toward visible signs of Judaism, and sometimes outright anti-Semitism.” The urgent motion was not approved.
The behavior of President Emmanuel Macron of France is very strange. He spoke with Mahmoud Abbas, who insisted that there can be no solution to the conflict without an end to the occupation and the recognition of a Palestinian state, and Macron agreed with him. This is a blatantly anti-Semitic position, which is all the more offensive after the dreadful massacre of October 7th and in the middle of a grueling war. It is also pure hypocrisy, since France is a conquering state; it took over Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco and implemented racist policies against the weaker populations. Even now, France continues to hold eleven colonies. They are certainly not in a position to preach to Israel about its “occupation.”
The official reason given for the rejection of Taieb’s motion was that he filed it without the participation of other members of the Knesset, a weak justification that did not really hold water. Nevertheless, Avi Amram, Taieb’s aide and another French immigrant, rose to the challenge and saw to it that the motion was resubmitted with another five Knesset members backing it: Ohad Tal, Galit Distal, Avi Maoz, Eliyohu Bruchi, and Idan Roll. Nevertheless, it was rejected once again, on various pretexts. Not only did the Jews of France fail to receive any encouragement or solidarity from the Knesset in Yerushalayim, they also observed that a parliamentary initiative to protest the anti-Semitism in their country was shot down. The motion was filed for the third time this week, after its authors were assured that it would be approved if they did not mention Macron in the title.
