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Every Young Person Can Be a Building Block for Peace in Israel and Beyond
Antisemitism is rising in America, both in our everyday interactions and online. The anti-Jewish discourse and violent incidents we have witnessed have been horrifying, and I, for my part, refuse to sit on the sidelines.
I am a senior at The Dalton School in New York City, where I lead the Jewish Culture Club. After October 7th, I was determined to prevent the events in Israel and Gaza from stoking tensions at my school. I reached out to my Muslim peers and had meaningful conversations to foster the need for interfaith coexistence.
It worked.
Every participant was able to share something that they learned from the interfaith session, and Dalton has so far been spared the violence and animosity that have characterized too many disagreements about the conflict in New York City and across the country.
My commitment to civil discourse led me to join the American Jewish Committee (AJC)’s Leaders for Tomorrow (LFT) program and participate in its advocacy summit. Last month, I traveled to Washington, D.C., with 180 high school students from all over the country who are passionate about supporting Israel and combating antisemitism.
During the summit, I attended a panel on Muslim-Jewish dialogue and coexistence that mirrored the dialogue at my high school, which reinforced my conviction that these conversations are the building blocks of peace. Israel isn’t going anywhere, and neither are the Palestinians. Dialogue and coexistence are the only way forward for our two peoples — in the Middle East and around the world.
We also discussed the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The key word here is future. Patience, dialogue, intercommunal respect, empathy, and education are how we can create a positive, peaceful future for Israelis and Palestinians alike.
I want to elaborate more on one of those tenets: education.
A common denominator of much, though not all, antisemitism is misinformation and ignorance — whether willful or unintentional. For example, many of those who chant “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free,” are doing so in support of Palestinian statehood without realizing that they are calling for the elimination of Israel, or echoing a rallying cry of terrorist groups like Hamas. Many of these people can’t name what river or sea they are referring to. But, one study showed that once some protesters learned more about the region and what this chant really meant, they regretted saying it.
We hear from many of those who are taking Hamas’ side in this conflict that they are doing so because they believe they are standing for the “little guy,” when in fact they are signaling their support for an internationally recognized terror organization that wants to destroy the world’s one Jewish state and calls explicitly for the murder of the world’s Jews.
These troubling assertions and attitudes, and so much contemporary antisemitism, are manifestations of ignorance not only about Israel, Hamas, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but fundamentally about Jews and our history, traditions, and beliefs.
There is no silver bullet to rid the world of antisemitism completely, but education can go a long way towards its diminishment.
There is so much that we can do. I want to encourage fellow high schoolers to engage in difficult conversations and to reach out across communities and partisan lines. Yes, it is challenging, but I cannot emphasize enough the importance of advocacy.
According to AJC’s recently released State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report, 36% of young American Jews (between 18 and 29) said they were the personal target of antisemitism last year (compared to 22% over age 30). Standing up for ourselves — including by reaching out to our elected representatives and voicing our concerns — is not just imperative but our right and duty. Every voice matters, and these officials are meant to represent all of us, even young people not eligible to vote.
Reflecting on my experiences, I am reminded of the importance of empathy, understanding, and dialogue in fostering peace. There is so much work ahead, but armed with knowledge, compassion, and patience I am ready to embrace the journey — and I hope you are too.
Rex Popick is a senior at The Dalton School, an independent, co-educational day school (K-12) located in New York City.
The post Every Young Person Can Be a Building Block for Peace in Israel and Beyond first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel to Issue 54,000 Call-Up Notices to Ultra-Orthodox Students
Haredi Jewish men look at the scene of an explosion at a bus stop in Jerusalem, Israel, on Nov. 23, 2022. Photo: Reuters/Ammar Awad
Israel’s military said it would issue 54,000 call-up notices to ultra-Orthodox Jewish seminary students following a Supreme Court ruling mandating their conscription and amid growing pressure from reservists stretched by extended deployments.
The Supreme Court ruling last year overturned a decades-old exemption for ultra-Orthodox students, a policy established when the community comprised a far smaller segment of the population than the 13 percent it represents today.
Military service is compulsory for most Israeli Jews from the age of 18, lasting 24-32 months, with additional reserve duty in subsequent years. Members of Israel’s 21 percent Arab population are mostly exempt, though some do serve.
A statement by the military spokesperson confirmed the orders on Sunday just as local media reported legislative efforts by two ultra-Orthodox parties in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition to craft a compromise.
The exemption issue has grown more contentious as Israel’s armed forces in recent years have faced strains from simultaneous engagements with Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthis in Yemen, and Iran.
Ultra-Orthodox leaders in Netanyahu’s brittle coalition have voiced concerns that integrating seminary students into military units alongside secular Israelis, including women, could jeopardize their religious identity.
The military statement promised to ensure conditions that respect the ultra-Orthodox way of life and to develop additional programs to support their integration into the military. It said the notices would go out this month.
The post Israel to Issue 54,000 Call-Up Notices to Ultra-Orthodox Students first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Influential Far-Right Minister Lashes out at Netanyahu Over Gaza War Policy
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attends an inauguration event for Israel’s new light rail line for the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, in Petah Tikva, Israel, Aug. 17, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich sharply criticized on Sunday a cabinet decision to allow some aid into Gaza as a “grave mistake” that he said would benefit the terrorist group Hamas.
Smotrich also accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of failing to ensure that Israel’s military is following government directives in prosecuting the war against Hamas in Gaza. He said he was considering his “next steps” but stopped short of explicitly threatening to quit the coalition.
Smotrich’s comments come a day before Netanyahu is due to hold talks in Washington with President Donald Trump on a US-backed proposal for a 60-day Gaza ceasefire.
“… the cabinet and the Prime Minister made a grave mistake yesterday in approving the entry of aid through a route that also benefits Hamas,” Smotrich said on X, arguing that the aid would ultimately reach the Islamist group and serve as “logistical support for the enemy during wartime”.
The Israeli government has not announced any changes to its aid policy in Gaza. Israeli media reported that the government had voted to allow additional aid to enter northern Gaza.
The prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The military declined to comment.
Israel accuses Hamas of stealing aid for its own fighters or to sell to finance its operations, an accusation Hamas denies. Gaza is in the grip of a humanitarian catastrophe, with conditions threatening to push nearly a half a million people into famine within months, according to U.N. estimates.
Israel in May partially lifted a nearly three-month blockade on aid. Two Israeli officials said on June 27 the government had temporarily stopped aid from entering north Gaza.
PRESSURE
Public pressure in Israel is mounting on Netanyahu to secure a permanent ceasefire, a move opposed by some hardline members of his right-wing coalition. An Israeli team left for Qatar on Sunday for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal.
Smotrich, who in January threatened to withdraw his Religious Zionism party from the government if Israel agreed to a complete end to the war before having achieved its objectives, did not mention the ceasefire in his criticism of Netanyahu.
The right-wing coalition holds a slim parliamentary majority, although some opposition lawmakers have offered to support the government from collapsing if a ceasefire is agreed.
The post Influential Far-Right Minister Lashes out at Netanyahu Over Gaza War Policy first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Australia Police Charge Man Over Alleged Arson on Melbourne Synagogue
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks to the media during a press conference with New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, Aug. 16, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Tracey Nearmy
Australian police have charged a man in connection with an alleged arson attack on a Melbourne synagogue with worshippers in the building, the latest in a series of incidents targeting the nation’s Jewish community.
There were no injuries to the 20 people inside the East Melbourne Synagogue, who fled from the fire on Friday night. Firefighters extinguished the blaze in the capital of Victoria state.
Australia has experienced several antisemitic incidents since the start of the Israel-Gaza war in October 2023.
Counter-terrorism detectives late on Saturday arrested the 34-year-old resident of Sydney, capital of neighboring New South Wales, charging him with offenses including criminal damage by fire, police said.
“The man allegedly poured a flammable liquid on the front door of the building and set it on fire before fleeing the scene,” police said in a statement.
The suspect, whom the authorities declined to identify, was remanded in custody after his case was heard at Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday and no application was made for bail, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported.
Authorities are investigating whether the synagogue fire was linked to a disturbance on Friday night at an Israeli restaurant in Melbourne, in which one person was arrested for hindering police.
The restaurant was extensively damaged, according to the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, an umbrella group for Australia’s Jews.
It said the fire at the synagogue, one of Melbourne’s oldest, was set as those inside sat down to Sabbath dinner.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog went on X to “condemn outright the vile arson attack targeting Jews in Melbourne’s historic and oldest synagogue on the Sabbath, and on an Israeli restaurant where people had come to enjoy a meal together”.
“This is not the first such attack in Australia in recent months. But it must be the last,” Herzog said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the incidents as “severe hate crimes” that he viewed “with utmost gravity.” “The State of Israel will continue to stand alongside the Australian Jewish community,” Netanyahu said on X.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese late on Saturday described the alleged arson, which comes seven months after another synagogue in Melbourne was targeted by arsonists, as shocking and said those responsible should face the law’s full force.
“My Government will provide all necessary support toward this effort,” Albanese posted on X.
Homes, schools, synagogues and vehicles in Australia have been targeted by antisemitic vandalism and arson. The incidents included a fake plan by organized crime to attack a Sydney synagogue using a caravan of explosives in order to divert police resources, police said in March.
The post Australia Police Charge Man Over Alleged Arson on Melbourne Synagogue first appeared on Algemeiner.com.