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A Nation Like No Other
Omer Adam standing in front of the Western Wall in a scene from his music video for “Jerusalem.” Photo: Screenshot.
JNS.org – As a rabbi, I’ve often had to juggle conflicting life-cycle events in a single day. I’ve gone from a funeral to a wedding, from a brit milah to an unveiling, and over the years, from happy occasions to cemeteries and back. This is precisely what is happening this week in Israel.
It is the annual season of emotional roller coasters in Israel and for Jews around the world. First, we had the festive celebrations of Passover, tempered by the Yizkor memorial service on the final day of the chag. Then it was Yom Hashoah, as we remembered the Holocaust and our 6 million martyrs. And now we have Yom Hazikaron, where we recall and pay tribute to Israel’s fallen heroes, a day which, in recent years, has included all the innocent victims of terror.
And this leads immediately to celebrations of Israel’s statehood and sovereignty, or, as some have cynically labeled it, Israel’s annual barbecue day.
Juggling contrary emotions and such powerful opposing feelings is never easy. If we Jews sometimes seem to be schizophrenic, well, now you know why.
But how do we manage? With all the wars, intifadas, never-ending terror attacks, and, most recently, the horrific Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, how have the people of Israel managed to retain their sanity and emotional equilibrium? Where does the now-renowned resilience of Israelis come from?
Of course, there is a sense of nationalism. Others talk of powerful feelings of peoplehood and shared destiny. I would suggest that for most Israelis, there is something much deeper: faith.
Since Oct. 7, in particular, we have witnessed completely secular soldiers and citizens shouting Shema Yisrael, “Hear, O Israel,” in moments of danger. We’ve seen nonreligious Israel Defense Forces heroes begging for tzitzit, tefillin, siddurim and tehillim, Psalms. Released hostages are sharing how, though they hardly went to synagogue, their faith kept them sane and hopeful, even in those dreadful underground circumstances. One recounted how she would repeat a single prayer—the only prayer she knew—day after day in those months of captivity, and how it never failed to strengthen her. Another shared how a little Torah booklet left behind by a chayal, an Israeli soldier, sustained her throughout his hundreds of days in captivity.
The phrase Am Yisrael Chai has become a cliché now, but its foundation is not only a sense of patriotism. It not only refers to the nation of Israel, the State of Israel, but the people of Israel, and it goes way beyond mere nationalism. It resonates with peoplehood, history and destiny—a higher calling that will never end.
We are not only the people of Israel. We are God’s people, and we have a mission to fulfill.
It never ceases to amaze me how Israel, with all its existential threats, surrounded by mortal enemies on every side that plot its destruction (and would repeat Oct. 7 again and again, if they only could), is ranked at No. 8 on the top 10 list of happiest countries in the world, according to the World Happiness Report 2025. Somehow, Finland always wins, but Israel is the happiest country in the Middle East and also ahead of the United States of America. And this is even after Oct. 7!
It’s quite unbelievable, but it tells a compelling story. Clearly, the people of Israel enjoy a sense of purpose and fulfillment that lifts them beyond the regular routines of running to bomb shelters. Happiness in life is not just measured by creature comforts or in living a sequestered life far from the madding crowd, like the people in the Nordic region. Israel possesses a higher calling, and a higher and deeper purpose in life. There is something eternal about our existence that brings both meaning and happiness.
This same faith is reflected in the story of the Haftarah we read this week in synagogues around the world. It comes from ll Kings (7:3-20) and tells the tale of a great miracle promised by the prophet Elisha. Samaria was under siege by Aram, a formidable enemy with a large army. The siege led to a terrible famine, and people were dying of starvation. The price of food had skyrocketed beyond affordability.
Elisha prophesized to the corrupt Jewish King Jehoram that a miracle would occur the very next day, and that food would be available in such abundance that the prices would drop to rock bottom. One of the king’s courtiers responded skeptically that God Himself could not perform such a miracle. It was impossible. Elisha said that the courtier would see it happen with his own eyes but would be unable to partake of it.
The Haftarah tells the story of how the miracle unfolded. Indeed, true to Elisha’s word, the Aramean army was suddenly seized by inexplicable fear and fled in terror. The siege was lifted, and food became plentiful. In the mad dash by the people to find the provisions left behind, the cynical courtier was trampled to death. He did, indeed, see the prophet’s word fulfilled, but sadly, he didn’t live to benefit from it.
The word of God mandating our people more than 3,000 years ago with a national mission and destiny in our promised land and beyond, continues to nurture and sustain us through all our traumas and tsuris. We have experienced shock and loss, with thousands of us bereaved, injured and traumatized. But we have also experienced many remarkable miracles. Slowly but surely, our enemies are being defeated.
We continue to believe in our mission and our mandate. We are still happy people. Please, God, we will remain happy, strong and faithful, and live to celebrate our complete victory very soon.
The post A Nation Like No Other first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Former Columbia University President Appointed as UK Economic Adviser
Columbia University administrators and faculty, led by President Minouche Shafik, testified before the US House Committee on Education and the Workforce on April 17, 2024. Photo: Jack Gruber/Reuters Connect
i24 News – British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has named Minouche Shafik, former president of Columbia University, as his chief economic adviser at Downing Street, a move aimed at stabilizing the country’s fragile economy and averting a potential budget crisis.
Shafik, an economist of Egyptian origin with dual British and American nationality, has held senior roles at the Bank of England, the IMF, and the World Bank.
She later led the London School of Economics and was elevated to the House of Lords in 2020.
Her tenure in the United States was more turbulent. Shafik stepped down as president of Columbia University in 2024 after just a year in office, amid fierce criticism over her handling of pro-Palestinian protests following the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023, and the subsequent war in Gaza.
US officials accused her of failing to confront antisemitism on campus, while students and faculty condemned her decision to call in police to dismantle protest encampments.
Since returning to Britain, Shafik has played an active role in policy and cultural institutions. She advised Foreign Secretary David Lammy on international aid reform, has chaired the Victoria & Albert Museum since January, and led the “Economy 2030” inquiry for the Resolution Foundation, where she argued for reforms to the UK’s system of wealth taxation.
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Israel Mulls West Bank Annexation in Response to Moves to Recognize Palestine
The Jordan Valley. Photo: Юкатан via Wikimedia Commons.
Israel is considering annexation in the West Bank as a possible response to France and other countries recognizing a Palestinian state, according to three Israeli officials and the idea will be discussed further on Sunday, another official said.
Extension of Israeli sovereignty to the West Bank – de facto annexation of land captured in the 1967 Middle East war – was on the agenda for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet meeting late on Sunday that is expected to focus on the Gaza war, a member of the small circle of ministers said.
It is unclear where precisely any such measure would be applied and when, whether only in Israeli settlements or some of them, or in specific areas of the West Bank like the Jordan Valley and whether any concrete steps, which would likely entail a lengthy legislative process, would follow discussions.
Any step toward annexation in the West Bank would likely draw widespread condemnation from the Palestinians, who seek the territory for a future state, as well as Arab and Western countries. It is unclear where US President Donald Trump stands on the matter. The White House and State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A spokesperson for Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar did not respond to a request for comment on whether Saar had discussed the move with his US counterpart Marco Rubio during his visit to Washington last week.
Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether the prime minister supports annexation and if so, where.
A past pledge by Netanyahu to annex Jewish settlements and the Jordan Valley was scrapped in 2020 in favor of normalizing ties with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in the Abraham Accords brokered by Trump in his first term in office.
The office of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The United States said on Friday it would not allow Abbas to travel to New York for the United Nations gathering of world leaders, where several US allies are set to recognize Palestine as a state.
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Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to the press on Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, July 8, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein
Israeli forces pounded the suburbs of Gaza City overnight from the air and ground, destroying homes and driving more families out of the area as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet was set on Sunday to discuss a plan to seize the city.
Residents of Sheikh Radwan, one of the largest neighborhoods of Gaza City, said the territory had been under Israeli tank shelling and airstrikes throughout Saturday and on Sunday, forcing families to seek shelter in the western parts of the city.
The Israeli military has gradually escalated its operations around Gaza City over the past three weeks, and on Friday it ended temporary pauses in the area that had allowed for aid deliveries, designating it a “dangerous combat zone.”
“They are crawling into the heart of the city where hundreds of thousands are sheltering, from the east, north, and south, while bombing those areas from the air and ground to scare people to leave,” said Rezik Salah, a father of two, from Sheikh Radwan.
An Israeli official said Netanyahu’s security cabinet will convene on Sunday evening to discuss the next stages of the planned offensive to seize Gaza City, which he has described as Hamas’ last bastion.
A full-scale offensive is not expected to start for weeks. Israel says it wants to evacuate the civilian population before moving more ground forces in.
HAMAS SPOKESPERSON TARGETED
Netanyahu confirmed on Sunday that Israeli forces had targeted Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson of Hamas’ armed wing. Defense Minister Israel Katz said that Abu Ubaida was killed. Two Hamas officials contacted by Reuters did not respond to requests for comment.
Gaza health authorities said 15 people, including five children, were killed in the attack on a residential building in the heart of Gaza City.
Abu Ubaida, also known as Hozayfa Al-Khalout, is a well-known figure to Palestinians and Israelis alike, close to Hamas’ top military leaders and in charge of delivering the group’s messages, often via video, for around two decades, delivering statements while wearing a red keffiyeh that concealed his face.
The US targeted him with sanctions in April 2024, accusing him of leading the “cyber influence department” of al-Qassam Brigades.
In his last statement on Friday, he warned that the planned Israeli offensive on Gaza City would endanger the hostages.
On Saturday, Red Cross head Mirjana Spoljaric said an evacuation from the city would provoke a massive population displacement that no other area in the enclave is equipped to absorb, with shortages of food, shelter and medical supplies.
“People who have relatives in the south left to stay with them. Others, including myself, didn’t find a space as Deir Al-Balah and Mawasi are overcrowded,” said Ghada, a mother of five from the city’s Sabra neighborhood.
Around half of the enclave’s more than 2 million people are presently in Gaza City. Several thousand were estimated to have left the city for central and southern areas of the enclave.
Israel’s military has warned its political leaders that the offensive is endangering hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza. Protests in Israel calling for an end to the war and the release of the hostages have intensified in the past few weeks.