RSS
Matisyahu Says Oct. 7 Hamas Attack Made Him Reconnect With His Jewish Identity
Matisyahu speaking at The Algemeiner’s 11th annual “J100” Gala in New York City on Jan. 14, 2025. Photo: FotoBuddy
Jewish singer-songwriter Matisyahu spoke at The Algemeiner‘s 11th annual “J100” Gala in New York City on Tuesday night about reexamining his Jewish identity and faith following the deadly Hamas-orchestrated terrorist attack in Israel that took place on Oct. 7, 2023.
The “Fireproof” singer, whose real name is Matthew Miller, was honored with the “Warrior For Truth” award at The Algemeiner gala for his avid support for Israel and the Jewish people. He accepted the award on stage while wearing a pin with a yellow ribbon, which calls for the immediate return of the remaining 98 hostages who were abducted from Israel on Oct. 7 by Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists.
In his acceptance speech, he began by talking about being in Las Vegas, preparing to perform at a reggae festival, when news broke of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre in southern Israel. He told the audience at the gala that shortly afterward, when he walked on stage to perform, “I immediately felt a gut response. One that I’m familiar but hadn’t felt in a long time. And the words of my songs began to morph into a new context.”
“‘Lord raise me up’ was no longer about God pulling us up from our limitations, but literally about God raising up our hostages from the tunnels,” he explained. “‘Warrior fighting for your soul’ was now speaking literally to an entire generation of Israelis fighting to find and return our children to safety. I began, without hesitation or question, to step into something that I know and trust deeper than anything else in my life.”
“There is an holy fire that burns forever,” he added. “A fire that many had tried to stomp out had miraculously survived as a testament to the Jewish people; my people.” He also called the land of Israel and its people “the shining star built out of the ashes of thousands of years of persecution.”
Matisyahu said that since his teenage years, his Jewish identity has been “at the center of my journey.” He added: “As I stepped further into self-discovery, deeper into the Jewish religion and being a Jew became the core of my existence.”
The “Jerusalem” singer explained how that changed when he went on a religious and musical transformation years later – moving away from his Hassidic upbringing and lifestyle, and making changes to his appearance like shaving his beard and no longer sporting a yarmulke. “My love for Israel and Judaism was always there, but burning at a lower flame,” he noted.
The Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack again changed his outlook on and connection to his Jewish identity, he said.
“After Oct. 7 I believe there is a paradigm shift. I was immediately forced to ask myself the question of what it means to be Jewish again and how important it is to be,” he noted. “What does it mean to be a Jew now after Oct 7? Prior, the main division, seemingly, religion. But it seems that we elevated above that in a need to find each other. We are forced again to look inward. To ask ourself: What does it mean to be a Jew? What does Israel have to do with being a Jew? If you don’t find the answer, the rest of the world will gladly find it for you and whatever story they choose to make up — it’s not our story. The story of Moses and the Jews.”
“May we continue to look within to find the answers we hold and may the shinning star of Israel blaze forever,” he concluded.
The post Matisyahu Says Oct. 7 Hamas Attack Made Him Reconnect With His Jewish Identity first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
RSS
Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
RSS
Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.