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Across the US, Simchat Torah festivities are muted by anxiety about Israel at war

(JTA) — For the last dozen years, an array of synagogues from multiple denominations have gathered together in a central location in Brooklyn to sing and dance with the Torah, the centerpiece of Simchat Torah celebrations.

But in advance of the holiday’s onset Saturday night, the organizers of Simchat Torah Across Brooklyn announced that the day’s unprecedented violence in Israel had caused a change of plans.

“Tonight will be different,” the organizers wrote on the event’s Facebook page on Saturday afternoon. “In response to the horrific war on Israel today, our joy will become a vigil and our prayers will turn to solidarity with our Israeli family. We will demonstrate the unity of the Jewish people and that Americans and American Jews stand with Israel.”

It was a transformation that unfolded again and again across the United States as Simchat Torah, celebrated as one of the most joyous days of the Jewish calendar, began under the shadow of catastrophe.

Hamas sent thousands of rockets into the country while also invading by land, killing 300 people, wounding more than 1,500 and taking hostages in one of the grimmest days in Israeli history. Questions about how the country could have been so surprised simmered beneath a mounting death toll, ongoing fighting and hours-long hostage situations, and declarations by Israel’s leadership that Saturday’s bloodshed marked the beginning of a long and painful war.

In Israel, the holiday ended on Saturday night, though it was interrupted across the country by gunfire, sirens and call-ups of military reservists. In the United States, where the holiday is celebrated over two days — with the dancing held on the second — rabbis anguished over how and whether to celebrate in the face of the ongoing tragedy.

“I apologize for posting on Shabbat/Chag,” a rabbi wrote in a private Facebook group for Jewish clergy on Saturday, using the Hebrew word for holiday and requesting advice. “I’m struggling to find balance between observing Simchat Torah and respecting the tragedy that is happening.”

On the Upper West Side of Manhattan, Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky sent his congregants at Congregation Ansche Chesed, a Conservative synagogue, a rare message on Saturday afternoon saying that he had decided to scale back the night’s festivities.

“You know I would not typically send out a message on Shabbat and Hag,” he wrote. “But given the terrible events today in Israel — with hundreds dead, thousands wounded, and some, as yet unknown, number held hostage in Gaza — I feel it is impossible to celebrate Simchat Torah as usual.”

Ansche Chesed held a children’s event as scheduled but did not call for dancing. Dozens of adults then gathered for a prayer service and to read the end and the beginning of the Torah, but without the festive cheer that typically accompanies the reading. Instead, Kalmanofsky shared reflections from congregants about their fear and concern for those they knew in Israel.

At Anshe Emet Synagogue in Chicago, Rabbi Michael Siegel discussed the day’s violence before moving into the holiday service.

“Today is Israel’s 9/11. All of us know people in Israel. All of us have spent the day thinking and praying for them. All of us. And it’s Simchat Torah,” he said. “How do you bridge that? How do we find our way from tears to joy? How is that even possible?”

Siegel said he had spoken to a congregant whose relative in Israel had urged her to attend the holiday service because so many Israelis could not. He led the Conservative congregation in a traditional prayer for peace, which Siegel noted includes wishes for all of Israel and Jerusalem to lie under a canopy of peace.

“How those words speak to us tonight,” he said. “Hundreds, thousands of Israelis, thousands of our brothers and sisters are not sleeping tonight. We stand with them.”

At IKAR in Los Angeles, Rabbi Sharon Brous cautioned that the evening would not be the dance party that usually takes place on the holiday.

“Anybody who has celebrated Simchat Torah at IKAR before knows that this is a night of incredibly overflowing joy,” she said. “Very obviously tonight, given everything that’s happened in Israel today, it’s very hard if not impossible to experience that kind of joy.”

Brous announced a modified, subdued version of the typical Torah-dancing but said the congregation would neither “overcome our impulse to cry and instead bring the dance out” nor “sit on the floor and weep all night and not experience any of the joy. Because we know that part of the great challenge of being alive and being human in the world is to actually experience both.”

Earlier on Saturday, congregations recited the Yizkor prayer, a service held four times a year in memory of loved ones who have died. Faced with the attack on Israel, synagogues turned to that and other age-old Jewish responses to tragedy and death. Some recited psalms beseeching God for help, and prayers on behalf of Jewish captives. Some also added communal singing of “Hatikvah,” Israel’s national anthem. In at least one synagogue in Washington, D.C. the dancing proceeded but all the songs were about Israel or a hope for peace.

And some rabbis innovated new rituals for a situation without precedent. Rabbi Rachel Barenblat of Congregation Beth Israel of the Berkshires, a Reform synagogue, wrote a prayer on Saturday morning that her congregation recited at Yizkor and again before Simchat Torah festivities.

“The words are simple, maybe facile. But they are the most genuine prayer of my heart,” Barenblat wrote on Facebook.

The prayer expressed solidarity with the people of Israel and hoped for peace with the Palestinians. It concluded: “God, with all the desperation of our hearts we plead: may it be true that peace will yet come.”

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The post Across the US, Simchat Torah festivities are muted by anxiety about Israel at war appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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The BBC Documentary That Paints Every Israeli as an Extremist

The Jewish community of Beit El in Judea and Samaria. Photo: Yaakov via Wikimedia Commons.

Louis Theroux first visited the West Bank in 2011 to film a documentary titled Louis and the Ultra-Zionists, part of his long-running series for the BBC. Back then, he at least seemed to possess a trace of journalistic curiosity. Even the title signaled a degree of editorial caution — framing his subjects as a small, ideological fringe rather than representative of Israeli society as a whole.

At the time, Theroux made an effort to clarify that he was profiling a narrow segment of Israelis. He showed legally purchased Jewish homes (sold by Arab landowners, no less) and acknowledged the regular — and at times deadly — terror attacks faced by Israeli civilians living in the area, often requiring military protection. There was condescension, certainly. But there was also context.

Fast-forward to 2024, and the curiosity is gone — though the bemused, slightly smug expression remains. His new BBC documentary, Louis and the Settlers, drops even the soft qualifiers. No “ultra.” No nuance. Just “settlers.” And with that, Theroux makes it clear: half a million Israelis living in the West Bank are one and the same — extremists who, we’re told, want every last Palestinian removed from the land.

This time, the documentary doesn’t begin with questions. It begins with conclusions. And Theroux uses a brief, unrepresentative snapshot of life in the West Bank to draw sweeping indictments of the entire Israeli state.

The message is unmistakable: Israel is the problem. Settlers are the villains. And Palestinians are passive, blameless victims of a colonial project.

Within the opening minutes, Theroux plants his ideological flag. He refers to the West Bank as “Palestinian territory” and describes every Israeli community within it as illegal under international law — a sharp departure from his more qualified approach 14 years earlier.

And while his personal views seep in throughout the film, they become crystal clear during one exchange at a checkpoint, where an Israeli soldier casually refers to their location as “Israel.” Theroux shoots back: “We’re not in Israel, are we?”

And just like that, the BBC and Louis Theroux have redrawn Israel’s borders. No Knesset debate needed.

Erasing History to Blame the Massacre

The timing of this return trip is no accident. The film comes in the shadow of the October 7 Hamas massacres — the day 1,200 Israelis were slaughtered, families were burned alive in their homes, and children were dragged into Gaza. And yet, Theroux barely mentions it.

The few passing references to October 7 serve not to inform the audience — but to imply that Israel may be exploiting its own dead to justify further expansion. It’s not an investigation. It’s an accusation. And it allows him to skip over thousands of years of Jewish history in order to frame the current war in Gaza as a convenient cover story for Israeli “aggression.”

Take Hebron, for example. Theroux tells viewers that “in 1968, the year after [the West Bank] was occupied by Israel, a community of Jewish settlers moved in illegally. They now number some 700.” He fails to mention that in 1895 — decades before the modern state of Israel existed — Hebron had a Jewish population of 1,429.

Jews have lived in Hebron since antiquity — it’s where, according to Jewish tradition, Abraham purchased the Cave of the Patriarchs. Modern records date the community back centuries, despite discrimination under Ottoman rule and bans on Jewish prayer at holy sites. In 1929, Arab rioters carried out a massacre, wiping out Hebron’s Jewish population. Dozens were murdered; the rest were expelled. Under Jordanian rule from 1948 to 1967, Jews were banned from the city entirely. When they returned after the Six-Day War — not as colonists, but as a displaced community coming home — Theroux picks up the story there and calls it “illegal.”

On the Six-Day War itself, Theroux offers no context. No mention of the Arab armies preparing to destroy Israel. No mention of Israel’s preemptive strike against an existential threat.

According to The Settlers, Israel simply “occupied” — full stop.

Palestinian Terrorism? Not Even a Footnote.

Theroux visits Evyatar, a small Jewish community near the Palestinian town of Beita, and uses it as a stand-in for the entire West Bank. Beita is depicted as a symbol of peaceful resistance: a proud, ancient Palestinian village standing firm against violent settlers backed by IDF soldiers.

It’s a neat story. Too neat. Because missing from the story are years of organized, violent riots from Beita — complete with Molotov cocktails, burning Stars of David, and Nazi swastikas. All carefully omitted to preserve the narrative: Palestinians peaceful, settlers aggressive. Facts that don’t fit? Left on the cutting room floor.

Meanwhile, Israeli nationalism is treated as something sinister and unsettling — a moral aberration to be examined. The notion that Jews might want sovereignty or security is met with thinly veiled suspicion. Yet Hamas’ goal of a Jew-free Palestine, explicitly laid out in its charter, is never mentioned. Nor is the Palestinian Authority’s “pay-for-slay” policy, which literally incentivizes terrorism by rewarding those who murder Israelis — including women and children.

These aren’t fringe details. They’re central to understanding the region. And Theroux knows it. He just doesn’t care.

The BBC’s Complicity

That The Settlers aired on the BBC — a publicly funded broadcaster once seen as a gold standard of global journalism — says plenty. Not just about Louis Theroux’s agenda, but about the institutional direction of the BBC itself. This wasn’t a rogue filmmaker sneaking bias past the editors. This was bias built into the foundation — signed off, packaged, and broadcast under the banner of credibility.

There is, of course, no problem with scrutinizing Israeli policy, and no issue with questioning the settlement enterprise or highlighting the tensions in the West Bank. But journalism — real journalism — demands context. It demands precision. It demands at least a passing familiarity with the full scope of the story.

Theroux offers none of that. He arrives with a predetermined script and casts his roles accordingly: Hero. Villain. Victim. Oppressor. And when reality refuses to cooperate? It’s left out.

Louis Theroux didn’t return to Israel to understand it. He returned to flatten it. To reduce its complexity to a morality play — and to ensure everyone knows the antagonist is.

The Settlers isn’t a documentary. It’s a hit piece. And the BBC handed him the camera — then applauded the performance.

The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.

The post The BBC Documentary That Paints Every Israeli as an Extremist first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Indian Army Kills Islamist Terrorist Linked to 2002 Murder of Jewish-American Journalist Daniel Pearl

Jewish-American Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and murdered by Islamist terrorists in Pakistan in 2002. Photo: Screenshot

The Indian government announced on Thursday that its military forces had killed “Pakistan’s most wanted terrorist,” who was connected to the 2002 murder of Jewish-American Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl.

On Wednesday, India launched “Operation Sindoor,” which the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claims is targeted at dismantling “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

The operation came after Pakistani terrorists killed 26 Hindu tourists in Kashmir last month amid escalating tensions between the two countries.

In a post on X, the BJP confirmed that during this week’s operation, the Indian army killed Islamist terrorist Abdul Rauf Azhar, who was involved in numerous terrorism plots, including the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight, the 2001 terror attack on the Indian Parliament, and the 2016 Pathankot Air Force base attack.

Azhar’s involvement in the 1999 hijacking led to the release of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, a British-born al-Qaeda member with close ties to Pakistan’s intelligence services, who later was involved in the kidnapping and subsequent murder of 38-year-old Pearl, who was covering the war on terror as a journalist when he was abducted.

In a statement on X, Pearl’s father, Judea, addressed initial reports regarding Azhar’s death and his connection to his son’s murder.

“I want to clarify: Azhar was a Pakistani extremist and leader of the terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed. While his group was not directly involved in the plot to abduct Danny, it was indirectly responsible. Azhar orchestrated the hijacking that led to the release of Omar Sheikh — the man who lured Danny into captivity,” he said.

In 2002, the Jewish-American journalist was abducted and killed by a group of Islamist terrorists connected to Azhar’s militant network, which had ties to al-Qaeda and Jaish-e-Mohammed, a terror group aiming to separate Kashmir from India and incorporate it into Pakistan.

On Jan. 27, 2002, an email was sent to several Pakistani and US media organizations, which included several photos, stating that Pearl was being held in “inhumane” conditions to protest the US treatment of Taliban and al Qaeda prisoners in Cuba. Photo: Screenshot

Originally stationed in New Delhi as the South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, Pearl later moved to Pakistan to investigate terrorism following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City.

After kidnapping Pearl at a restaurant in Karachi, southern Pakistan, the Islamist terrorists, who identified themselves as the National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty, accused him of being an Israeli spy and sent the United States a list of demands for his release.

However, Washington did not meet their demands, and Pearl was ultimately executed after being held captive for five weeks.

His wife, Mariane Pearl, gave birth to a baby boy, Adam D. Pearl, in Paris later that year. On the Daniel Pearl Foundation website, she said, “Adam’s birth rekindles the joy, love, and humanity that Danny radiated wherever he went.”

The post Indian Army Kills Islamist Terrorist Linked to 2002 Murder of Jewish-American Journalist Daniel Pearl first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Jewish Jewelry Shop Owners Brutally Assaulted in Tunisia Days Before Annual Pilgrimage

A Jewish jewelry shop owner in Djerba, Tunisia, was brutally attacked by a man wielding a machete. Photo: Screenshot

A Jewish jewelry shop owner in Djerba, Tunisia, was brutally attacked by a man wielding a machete just days before the Tunisian island was set to host its annual Jewish pilgrimage, which is expected to draw thousands of visitors.

On Wednesday morning, two Jewish men — owners of a jewelry shop in the center of the island, located off Tunisia’s southeast coast — were physically assaulted by a man carrying a large knife.

Although the attack was halted when one of them screamed — alerting members of the local Jewish community who subdued the assailant — one of them was left severely injured.

According to local media reports, the attacker had surveyed the island the day before, visiting several stores to identify those owned by Jews. Local police arrested him shortly following the assault.

After the attack, one of the owners was admitted to the hospital with severe injuries. The 50-year-old Jewish man had his fingers severed during the assault and underwent surgery to reattach them.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the attack and expressed his wishes for a swift recovery to the victims.

“This attack comes two years after the previous deadly assault that claimed Jewish lives and the lives of security personnel during the Lag BaOmer celebration,” the top Israeli diplomat wrote in a post on X.

“I call on the Tunisian authorities to take all necessary measures to protect the Jewish community,” Saar continued.

Djerba is home to the majority of Tunisia’s Jewish community, numbering about 2,000 people, and is also where the renowned El Ghriba Synagogue, one of North Africa’s oldest synagogues, is located.

The attack comes just a week before Jewish pilgrims are expected to arrive on the island for the Lag B’Omer holiday, when thousands gather annually for three days of festivities. The annual pilgrimage to El Ghriba Synagogue, scheduled for May 15 and 16 this year, draws visitors from around the world.

The synagogue has been targeted in multiple terrorist attacks over the years, including in 1985, 2002, and 2023.

Two years ago, a shooting at the synagogue claimed the lives of two Jewish cousins and three police officers. Aviel Hadad, a 30-year-old Israeli goldsmith, and Ben Hadad, a 42-year-old Frenchman who had traveled to join the festivities, were among the victims.

The post Jewish Jewelry Shop Owners Brutally Assaulted in Tunisia Days Before Annual Pilgrimage first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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