Uncategorized
As a child of survivors, I see my parents in every Ethiopian immigrant to Israel
(JTA) — Recently, I watched a mother reunite with her son for the first time in 41 years.
On May 9, I was part of a delegation of the Jewish Agency for Israel that accompanied Ethiopian olim (immigrants) from Addis Ababa to Ben Gurion Airport and new lives in Israel. The mother had made aliyah in 1982 as part of Operation Moses, when Ethiopian Jewish immigrants trekked for weeks through the Sudan, hiding out from authorities in the daytime and walking by moonlight, to reach Israeli Mossad agents, who were secretly facilitating their transport to Israel.
But the son, due to family circumstances, was left behind. And here she was on the tarmac, praying and crying, and the embrace they had when the now grown man walked down the stairs, that depth of emotion after decades of waiting and yearning, was something that I will never forget.
The Ethiopian Jewish community dates back some 2,500 years, from around the time of the destruction of the First Temple. We know that they have always yearned, from generation to generation, to be in Jerusalem. Most of the Ethiopian Jews emigrated to Israel during the 1970s and 1980s and in one weekend in May 1992, a covert Israeli operation, dubbed Operation Solomon, airlifted more than 14,325 Ethiopian Jews to Israel over 36 hours. Those coming today are being reunited with family members who came during one of these earlier operations.
On my four-day trip from Addis Ababa to Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, I listened to the stories of incredible perseverance, and of heartrending suffering, among Ethiopian Jews — our brothers and sisters. Close to 100,000 of them have made their way to Israel over the past 40-plus years, fulfilling this community’s centuries-long quest to come to Israel.
I heard about the Ethiopian Israeli who, as a 15-year-old, marched through Sudan with his family and lost three of his siblings to starvation. I heard the stories of families waiting, for months or years, for that moment of aliyah, as clandestine negotiations among government negotiators dragged on. It was so powerful to hear of the sacrifices they made and how strong the dream was, and is today, of coming to Jerusalem, to Israel.
RELATED: How Israel’s Falash Mura immigration from Ethiopia became a painful 30-year saga
And I thought of my own family’s journey — a different time, under different circumstances. But also a Jewish journey of perseverance, suffering and, for the fortunate among us, survival.
My parents were born in Poland in the 1930s. During World War II, my father and his family survived in a Siberian labor camp and then in a remote part of Poland. My mother’s family managed to get work papers, but her father did not have them. He survived the war by hiding under the floorboards of a barn on a farm where they were living. The woman who owned the farm did not know they were Jewish, so it was a harrowing day-to-day existence.
But my mother and father survived, managed to make it to liberation, and eventually came to the United States. They were first sponsored by the Birmingham, Alabama, Jewish community, and then made their way to New York and New Jersey, where our family has built a new life. We now have fourth-generation children growing up here in New Jersey, and we feel so fortunate for the lives we have.
Here is the essential difference from their story and mine: For my family, there was no state of Israel. Many members of my family perished in the Holocaust. There was nowhere for them to go.
This drives what I do. Today, everything has changed because we have a state of Israel, and we have a Jewish Agency that ensures that Jews can make aliyah and helps them make new lives in Israel.
Last year, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I traveled to Poland and stood at the border as thousands of Ukrainian refugees streamed across. I was standing only a few miles from where my grandfather hid under the floorboards of that barn about 80 years earlier. Back then, there was no one there to protect my family, no one to do anything for them. And here I was in 2022 standing amid a massive array of aid agencies, and the very first thing these refugees saw — whether they were Jewish or not — were signs with the Star of David, marking the Jewish Agency, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee and other Jewish groups.
While there has been significant hardship and struggle for the first generation of Ethiopian Jews in Israel, it was incredibly inspiring for me to meet members of the second generation — those who made the trek as children or teenagers in the 1980s and ’90s — who are now Israeli adults in positions of leadership and significant responsibilities. We heard from Havtamo Yosef, who immigrated as a young child from Ethiopia with his parents, and then watched his father become a street sweeper and his mother a housecleaner while he was growing up. Now he heads up the entire Ethiopian Aliyah and Absorption services for the Jewish Agency, ensuring that there are stronger absorption procedures, better education and firmer foundations for better lives for these new immigrants than there ever was for his family.
While there was no Israel for my family when we were refugees, there were — in Birmingham, Alabama; in Hillside, New Jersey; and everywhere along the way of my family’s journey — people who thought outside of themselves, who cared and took care of my relatives. This is my legacy and what motivates me today.
So when I stood on the tarmac at Ben Gurion earlier this month, I cried tears of sadness at the long family separations and tears of joy that today this Jewish journey continues, from Ukraine and Russia and Ethiopia to Israel. Today, there is a place to go and a people to welcome Jews on that tarmac, with an Israeli flag, a smile and a warm embrace, and a promise of better lives in freedom.
—
The post As a child of survivors, I see my parents in every Ethiopian immigrant to Israel appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
Uncategorized
US Military: ‘Locked and Loaded’ to Strike Iran’s Power Plants, Energy Industry if Ordered
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a briefing on the Iran war, at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, US, April 16, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Nathan Howard
The US naval blockade of Iran is just an example of “polite” behavior during the ongoing ceasefire and US forces are ready to strike Iran’s power plants and energy industry if ordered, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday.
Standing alongside two of the US military‘s most senior officers, Hegseth said Iran needs to choose wisely as it prepares for negotiations with the United States.
“We are reloading with more power than ever before, and better intelligence,” Hegseth said at a Pentagon news briefing. “We are locked and loaded on your critical dual-use infrastructure, on your remaining power generation, and on your energy industry. We’d rather not have to do it.”
President Donald Trump’s administration expressed optimism on Wednesday about reaching a deal to end the Iran war, while also warning of increasing economic pressure against Iran if it remains defiant.
That has included a blockade of Iran that went into effect on Monday, with the US military forcing 14 ships to turn around. Dozens of US warships and aircraft, including about 10,000 military personnel, are enforcing the blockade.
Trump is hoping the effort will force Iran to accept US terms for ending the war, which was launched by the US and Israel on Feb. 28, including opening up the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which roughly one fifth of global oil and gas exports ordinarily transits. Trump has said that was also a condition of the ceasefire due to expire next week.
The war has resulted in a major disruption of global oil and gas supplies.
Analysts have said that Iran can withstand a complete halt in oil exports of up to two months before being forced to curb production.
Hegseth, in comments aimed at the Iranian leadership, said that the blockade “is the polite way that this can go.”
READY TO RESUME OPERATIONS
Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, said the military was adjusting tactics, techniques, and procedures, but he did not provide any details.
During the same briefing, General Dan Caine, chairman of the US military‘s Joint Chiefs of Staff, added that American forces are “ready to resume major combat operations at literally a moment’s notice.”
US Navy ships would pursue any Iranian-flagged vessel or any vessel attempting to provide material support to Iran, Caine told the briefing. He added that could take place not just in the region, but also the Indo-Pacific.
Ships trying to break the blockade would be intercepted and warned that “if you do not comply with this blockade, we will use force,” and enforcement would occur inside Iran’s territorial seas and in international waters, Caine said.
No ships have been boarded so far, Caine said.
The US military has widened its blockade to include cargoes deemed contraband, and any vessels suspected of trying to reach Iranian territory will be “subject to belligerent right to visit and search,” the US Navy said in an advisory on Thursday.
“These vessels, regardless of location, are subject to visit, board, search, and seizure,” the Navy said in an updated advisory.
Contraband items listed included weapons, weapons systems, ammunition, nuclear materials, crude, and refined oil products as well as iron, steel and aluminum.
Sources briefed by Tehran have told Reuters that Iran could let ships sail freely through the Omani side of the Strait of Hormuz without risk of attack under proposals it has offered in talks with the US, providing a deal is clinched to prevent renewed conflict.
Uncategorized
Trump Says Lebanon and Israel Have Reached 10-Day Ceasefire
Smoke rises following an airstrike in Lebanon, as seen from Israeli side of the border, April 11, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to begin a 10-day ceasefire at 5 pm EST (2100 GMT), signaling a pause in Israel‘s conflict with Iran-backed terrorist group Hezbollah that has raged in parallel to the war with Iran.
A US official said the ceasefire would start on Thursday.
After announcing the deal on social media, Trump told reporters that leaders of the two countries could meet at the White House over the next week or two.
“It’s very exciting. I think we’re going to have a deal where we’re going to have a meeting, first time in 44 years, and Lebanon will be meeting with Israel, and they’re probably going to do it at the White House over the next week or two,” Trump said, adding that he spoke with both leaders as the ceasefire was announced and was working on a longer term deal.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry had earlier said that peace in Lebanon was essential for talks it is mediating to end the war between the United States and Iran.
Trump said he had held excellent conversations with both Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
An Israeli cabinet source said Netanyahu’s security cabinet had convened for an urgent discussion on the Lebanon ceasefire.
An Israeli security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the Israeli military had no plans to withdraw forces from southern Lebanon during a ceasefire.
In its first comment after Trump‘s announcement, Hezbollah said any ceasefire must not allow Israel freedom of movement within Lebanon. In a statement issued by its media office, the terrorist group said the presence of Israeli troops on Lebanese territory granted Lebanon and its people the “right to resist.”
‘BUFFER ZONE’
Lebanon was dragged into the war in the Middle East on March 2, when Hezbollah opened fire in support of Tehran, prompting an Israeli offensive in Lebanon just 15 months after the last major conflict between the Shi’ite Islamist group and Israel.
Israeli attacks have killed more than 2,100 people in Lebanon since March 2 and forced more than 1.2 million to flee, Lebanese authorities say. Most of those killed have been Hezbollah terrorists, according to Israeli tallies. Hezbollah attacks have killed two Israeli civilians, while 13 Israeli soldiers have died in Lebanon since March 2, Israel says.
Israeli forces have entered areas of southern Lebanon and vowed to maintain control over territory extending all the way to the Litani River, which meets the Mediterranean some 30 km (20 miles) north of Israel‘s border. Israel ordered residents out of the area south of the Litani during the war.
Israeli troops have since destroyed Lebanese villages in the area, saying their aim is to create a “buffer zone” to protect northern Israeli towns from Hezbollah attacks.
Senior Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah, speaking to Reuters minutes before Trump‘s announcement, said the group had been informed by Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon that a ceasefire could begin on Thursday evening. After the announcement, he said it would be for 10 days.
Asked if Hezbollah would commit to the truce, Fadlallah said everything depended on Israel halting all forms of hostilities, and credited Iran’s diplomatic efforts for the possible ceasefire.
BEIRUT AT ODDS WITH HEZBOLLAH
The Lebanese government has been sharply at odds with Hezbollah over its decision to enter the war, having spent the last year seeking to secure the peaceful disarmament of the group founded by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in 1982.
Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors held rare talks in Washington on Tuesday, despite objections from Hezbollah.
Trump said he had directed US Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine to work with the two countries to achieve lasting peace. “Both sides want to see PEACE, and I believe that will happen, quickly!” he said in a post on Truth Social.
In another social media post, Trump said he would be inviting Netanyahu and Aoun to the White House for “meaningful talks” between the two countries, which have remained in an official state of war since Israel was established in 1948.
Trump had earlier said that Lebanese and Israeli leaders would speak on Thursday for the first time in decades. However, Lebanese officials said Aoun did not speak with Netanyahu on Thursday, and that Lebanon‘s US embassy had informed Washington he would not speak to him in the near future.
BATTLE FOR BORDER TOWN
Speaking to Reuters again after Trump‘s announcement, Hezbollah lawmaker Fadlallah said Lebanese displaced from the south should wait for the ceasefire to take hold and be extremely cautious in villages occupied by Israeli troops.
Fighting continued to rage in south Lebanon on Thursday, notably in the border town of Bint Jbeil, a Hezbollah stronghold and strategic prize. A senior Lebanese official said Lebanon believed Israel wanted to secure a victory in Bint Jbeil before diplomatic progress could be made.
An Israeli strike destroyed the last bridge over the Litani River into the south, a senior Lebanese security source said, fully severing the area from the rest of the country after Israel destroyed other crossings during the war.
Uncategorized
Three Arrested After Attempted Arson at Persian-Language Media Office in London
A Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) car. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
British police said on Thursday they had arrested three people in connection with an attempted arson attack on the offices of a Persian-language media organization in northwest London, which followed two similar incidents in the British capital.
An ignited container was thrown toward the premises of the parent company of Iran International, Volant Media, on Wednesday evening, landing in a car park where the fire extinguished itself. No damage was reported and there were no injuries, the police said.
Two men, aged 19 and 21, and a 16-year-old boy were arrested on suspicion of arson endangering life. The arson attempt was not being treated as terrorism, but counterterrorism officers were involved in the investigation, police said.
Iran International said a suspicious vehicle was denied entry to its London site shortly before incendiary devices were thrown into a nearby car park.
It said it viewed the incident in the context of “growing threats and intimidation” directed at the organization and its journalists.
The incident comes a day after police arrested two suspects following an attempted arson attack on a synagogue, also in north London.
JEWISH COMMUNITIES AND IRANIAN DIASPORA INCREASINGLY TARGETED, POLICE SAY
Last month, several ambulances belonging to the Jewish volunteer emergency service Hatzola were set alight while parked near a synagogue in the Golders Green area of north London.
Matt Jukes, a deputy commissioner for London’s Metropolitan Police, said in a statement on Thursday he understood why conflict overseas and heightened tensions in Britain would be “deeply worrying.”
“London’s Jewish communities and the Iranian diaspora in London have, in recent years, been increasingly targeted by individuals, groups, and hostile states intent on spreading fear, hate, and harm,” Jukes said.
British authorities have previously warned that there is a threat to journalists working for Persian-language outlets that are critical of Iran’s government. In 2024, a journalist working for the television news network Iran International was stabbed in the leg near his home in south London.
Britain’s MI5 spy boss said last October that his agency and British police had tracked more than 20 Iranian-backed plots to kidnap or kill British nationals or individuals based in Britain who were regarded by Tehran as a threat.
“We are dealing with an unprecedented level of national security investigations, some with suspected links to foreign states and many of those have dangerous and often reckless intentions,” Vicki Evans, senior national coordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing, told reporters on Thursday.
She added that the incidents had taken place against a backdrop of “global instability within which we’re seeing sustained and increasing aggressive and hostile activity.”