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Responding With Hope After This Week’s Devastating News
A Torah scroll. Photo: RabbiSacks.org.
The devastating news out of Washington, DC, on Wednesday night was both shocking and heartbreaking. Two young Israeli Embassy staff members — Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim — were gunned down at point-blank range outside the Capital Jewish Museum.
They had just attended a peaceful event celebrating Jewish heritage and identity. As they exited the building, a gunman approached, drew a weapon, and murdered them in cold blood.
Yaron had recently purchased an engagement ring for Sarah. He was planning to propose in Jerusalem next week. But instead of celebrating their wedding, their families are now planning their funerals after they were slain on an American sidewalk — simply for the crime of being Jewish.
The killer, Elias Rodriguez of Chicago, calmly entered the building after the attack and handed himself over to police. As they handcuffed him, he chanted, “Free, Free Palestine,” and, chillingly, “There is only one solution — Intifada revolution.”
Let’s be clear: the First and Second Intifadas were violent Palestinian terror sprees in Israel, marked by the systematic targeting of Jews — who were shot, bombed, stabbed, and rammed to death in cafés, buses, bus stops, markets, and on the street.
This is what Rodriguez was invoking. He wasn’t a lone madman acting on delusion. He is part of a global movement that defines itself through the language of “intifada.” He knew exactly what he was doing — but even more disturbingly, he believed what he did was just, even noble.
And make no mistake: he wasn’t targeting Israelis. He was targeting Jews.
Pro-Palestinian thought leaders desperately want us to believe there’s a difference. They insist their opposition is to Zionists, not Jews. That when activists chant “From the river to the sea,” it’s about national aspirations — not exterminationist ideology. That the masked agitators swarming campuses and city halls in keffiyehs are just politically engaged students, not thugs brimming with unfiltered hatred for Jews.
But after the murder of Yaron and Sarah in Washington, they’re running out of excuses. Because when people chant that Israel must cease to exist — and that anyone who supports Israel deserves to die — they obviously mean it. And now, clearly, they are willing to act on it.
This week, it was Washington, DC. Next week, it could be Beverly Hills, or Brooklyn, or Miami. Or London. Or Paris. In fact, it already has been all of those. The common thread is blindingly obvious: the targets are always Jewish.
And yet, remarkably, there are still those who defend this madness — academics who parse words, pundits who moralize from behind microphones, self-appointed progressive ethicists who churn out free-speech justifications and convoluted evasions faster than the victims’ bodies can be removed from the crime scene.
“It’s complicated,” they say. “Context matters.” “Don’t conflate criticism of Israel with antisemitism.” But let’s not kid ourselves. Anyone still insisting that antisemitic violence, disguised as anti-Israel activism, is just a misunderstood form of political expression has blood on their hands. It really is that simple.
In this week’s Torah portion, Bechukotai, we read a long and difficult section known as the tochacha — a harrowing list of consequences that will befall the Jewish people if we forsake our covenant with God. The passage is devastating: famine, starvation, defeat, humiliation, exile, fear. It paints a portrait of a world turned upside down — where Jew-hating enemies roam freely, Jewish life is cheap, and our dignity is trampled underfoot.
One line from the passage leaps out with chilling clarity (Lev. 26:17): “Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee though no one pursues you.”
Truthfully, it’s starting to feel like that. No Jewish event takes place without security. We live with fear of real threats and anxiety over imagined ones. It’s become a world where those who hate us seem to have gained the upper hand. Mobs chant for our destruction in broad daylight, and public institutions still debate whether these chants even qualify as hate speech. And now, two Jews can be murdered in the heart of America’s capital — and while it’s shocking, it is no longer surprising.
What’s striking, though, is that the parsha doesn’t begin with curses — it starts with promise: אִם בְּחֻקֹּתַי תֵּלֵכוּ (Lev. 26:3). “If you walk in My statutes,” then God’s blessings will surround you from every side. The key word is teileichu — to walk. Not to sit, not to wait, not to retreat.
To walk is to move forward, to stand tall, to keep going. The Torah’s message is clear: if you face the world with your head held high, with clarity, with courage, and with a deep commitment to who you are — then no matter what challenges come your way, you will be blessed. If we remain rooted in our identity, if we refuse to let fear or pressure compromise our values or our mission, then no hurdle will be too high and no distance too far.
It’s only when we compromise — when we stop standing tall, when we dilute the truth, when we choose comfort over conviction and convenience over heritage — that the protection which flows from moral clarity begins to fade. And into that vacuum come the haters, the chaos-makers, and the murderers.
The answer to the current surge in Jew-hatred and Judeophobia is threefold. First: clarity. The man who pulled the trigger wasn’t randomly attacking two innocent people — he was sending a message to every Jew: you are not safe. And to that, we must respond with moral ferocity. Not fear. Not appeasement. Not nuance. Ferocity.
Second: unity. The Jewish people cannot afford the luxury of internal fracture right now. Left, right, secular, religious, Zionist, anti-Zionist — none of that matters when we are all targets. We either stand together, or we collapse and fall.
And finally, faith. Because Bechukotai doesn’t end with the curses. It ends with a promise (Lev. 26:45): “I will remember My covenant with them… to be their God — I am God.” A remarkable statement that is not an empty platitude. On the contrary, it’s a guarantee, reminding us that we’ve been here before. We’ve been hated, we’ve been hunted, and we’ve been massacred. Not once, but many times. And yet the Jewish people always endures. Because that’s God’s promise, and He always keeps His word.
The couple murdered in Washington this week will never get to build a life together. But their memory must build something for us and within us: the courage to stand tall, the strength to speak truth, and the resolve to relentlessly fight back against the evil that masquerades as virtue. That’s the real lesson of Bechukotai: things may seem bleak — they may even be genuinely hard — but we can endure and get through it, because God is with us. Always.
The author is a rabbi in Beverly Hills, California.
The post Responding With Hope After This Week’s Devastating News first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Viral Video of Jewish Tourists Assaulted in Florence Sparks Outrage Amid Surge in Antisemitic Attacks in Italy
Demonstrators participate in a pro-Palestinian protest in Piazza Duomo in Milan, Italy, on Nov. 23, 2024. Photo: Alessandro Bremec/NurPhoto via Reuters Connect
A viral video of two Jewish American tourists being assaulted in Florence has sparked outrage and condemnation from Italy’s Jewish community — among the latest in a surge of antisemitic attacks targeting Jews in the country and reflecting rising anti-Israel sentiment.
In the video widely circulated on social media, two visibly Jewish men are seen walking down a street in Florence, a city in central Italy, when an unknown individual approaches them and asks where they are from.
After one of the men replies that they are from New York, the assailant begins shouting antisemitic insults — including “Free Palestine, f**ker” — before lashing his belt against the pavement.
The American tourist then tries to respond, but the man begins shouting “shut up!” and “no speaking, you f**ker!” before striking the pavement with his belt once more.
The video then captures the two men fleeing the scene as they try to escape the assailant.
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After the video went viral on Sunday on an Instagram page with nearly 300,000 followers, Italian authorities began efforts to track down the person who posted it.
Local police have launched an investigation and are reviewing CCTV footage in an effort to identify the assailant, Italian media reported.
The Italy-Israel Association of Florence (AIIF) strongly condemned the recent attack, urging authorities to act swiftly to protect the local Jewish community.
“These events cannot be downplayed or dismissed as isolated cases. Antisemitism has once again openly surfaced in our streets, and this should be a concern for all of civil society,” AIIF President Emanuele Cocollini said in a statement.
“City, regional, and police authorities have a duty to act firmly: ensure protection, issue an unequivocal political and cultural response, and isolate and stop those who spread hatred,” Cocollini continued.
Enrico Fink, president of the Jewish Community of Florence, also condemned the incident, describing the footage as “horrifying.”
“It is not only for us to express our outrage, but for those whose slogans and causes are being exploited to spread hatred, violence, and racism. I hope that even today, our voice of indignation will not be the only one heard,” Fink said in a statement.
The incident comes amid a surge in antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment across Europe and around the world since the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
In Italy, Jewish individuals have been facing a surge in hostility and targeted attacks, including vandalism of murals and businesses, as well as physical assaults. Community leaders have warned that such incidents are becoming more frequent amid growing tensions related to the war in Gaza.
According to a new survey by SWG, an Italian polling and research firm, about 15 percent of Italians believe that physical assaults on Jewish people are “entirely or fairly justifiable.”
Released on Tuesday, the poll also found that 18 percent of Italians consider antisemitic graffiti acceptable, while nearly 20 percent believe it is reasonable to attack pro-Israel professors or refuse service to Israeli customers.
Two weeks ago, an American Orthodox Jewish couple was physically assaulted in Venice by a group of anti-Israel agitators, who shouted “Free Palestine” among other intended insults.
Earlier this summer, a Jewish man from France and his child were verbally assaulted at a gas station near Milan by a group of pro-Palestinian activists who shouted antisemitic slurs after seeing the child wearing a kippah, yelling phrases such as “Free Palestine” and “murderers” as they passed by.
In a separate incident, a masked individual targeted a synagogue in Rome, spray-painting a swastika and antisemitic slogans — “Sieg Heil” (“Hail Victory”) and “Juden Raus” (“Jews Out”) — on a sign near the entrance.
In May, a restaurant in Naples forced an Israeli family to leave, telling them, “Zionists are not welcome here.”
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Trump Administration Sues Anti-Israel Activists, Organizations Over Protest Outside New Jersey Synagogue
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators protest near the Met Gala, an annual fundraising gala held for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, in New York City, US, May 5, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ryan Murphy
The Trump administration has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against several New Jersey activists and organizations, alleging they disrupted a synagogue service in West Orange during a heated protest last year.
The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the District of New Jersey, names members of American Muslims for Palestine–New Jersey, the Party for Socialism and Liberation–New Jersey, and individual activists as defendants. Prosecutors say the group violated the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act — a law usually applied to abortion clinics but that also protects houses of worship.
According to the complaint filed on Monday, the incident occurred on Nov. 13, 2024, at Congregation Ohr Torah. The synagogue was reportedly hosting a memorial and real estate presentation promoting the sale of property in Israeli communities in the West Bank originally scheduled take place at the home of organizer Moshe Glick. When protesters threatened to demonstrate outside his residence, the event was moved to the synagogue.
Federal prosecutors allege that demonstrators ignored police instructions, stormed synagogue property, and used vuvuzelas — long plastic horns — to drown out speakers. The complaint describes several confrontations, including one protester allegedly blowing a vuvuzela directly in Glick’s ear, sparking a physical clash. Another congregant, 65-year-old David Silberberg, was allegedly put in a chokehold and forced to the ground after intervening. A stink bomb was also reportedly thrown into the crowd.
The US Justice Department is seeking both monetary damages and a permanent injunction. Proposed restrictions would bar defendants from coming within 50 feet of the synagogue or Glick’s home and prohibit them from protesting within 500 feet of any place of worship during services. Civil penalties of more than $84,000 per defendant are also being pursued. Essex County prosecutors had previously suggested that pro-Israel counter-protesters instigated the violence, highlighting conflicting accounts of the chaotic scene.
“Those who target houses of worship and violate our federal laws protecting people of faith are on notice that they will face the consequences,” Justice Department Civil Rights Division head Harmeet Dhillon said in a statement.
Attorneys for Glick and other attendees have defended their actions as self-defense and criticized local prosecutors’ handling of the case. Representatives for the defendants and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The case marks one of the Trump administration’s most aggressive uses of the FACE Act against activists in a religious context, setting the stage for a legal fight over the limits of protest and the protection of worshippers.
In recent years, New Jersey has witnessed a striking uptick in antisemitic incidents, sparking alarm in Jewish and civil-rights communities statewide. According to data from the Anti-Defamation League, 2024 saw 719 reported acts in the state, the third highest total in the nation, including harassment, vandalism, and assaults. Even though the number represents a modest drop from 2023’s peak of 830, the figures remain historically elevated and far above pre-2022 levels. In 2023 alone, New Jersey recorded a 22 percent increase in bias incidents, with anti-Jewish bias making up more than one-fifth of all reports to law enforcement. State legislators have responded by pushing for a formal, statewide definition of antisemitism to better guide law enforcement and educational institutions in identifying and prosecuting such acts.
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Charlie Kirk’s Words Crush the Conspiracy: Private Letter to Netanyahu Reveals a Steadfast Supporter of Israel
Charlie Kirk speaking at the inauguration of Donald Trump in January 2025. Photo: Brian Snyder via Reuters Connect
A newly published letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist assassinated earlier this month, offers a potent rebuttal to conspiracy theories alleging that the prominent podcaster had turned against the Jewish state in the months before his death.
Far from drifting away from his long record of support for the Jewish state, Kirk’s own words show him urging Netanyahu to develop a stronger social media defense of Israel in what he described as a deteriorating “information war” online and in universities. However, Kirk did also offer distinct notes of criticism in his correspondence.
“One of my greatest joys as a Christian is advocating for Israel and forming alliances with Jews in the fight to protect Judeo-Christian civilization,” Kirk wrote at the top of his letter, which the New York Post reported on Monday. Addressing Netanyahu directly, Kirk said he sought “to lay out our concerns and outline potential remedies. Everything written here is from a place of deep love for Israel and the Jewish people.” He warned that “as Muhammadism spreads into Western societies, it’s critical that Jews and Christians stay united in the effort to contain and roll back radical Islam and Sharia law.”
Kirk lamented that “Israel is losing the information war and needs a ‘communications intervention.” He described how anti-Israel invective infects the questions he receives on his campus tours and has infiltrated “young MAGA circles.” He called the situation “a five-alarm fire,” warning that anti-Israel narratives — ranging from “apartheid state” claims to conspiracy theories about Jews orchestrating US foreign policy — had shattered support among the young political right.
Describing his engagement with Jewish ideas, Kirk wrote that “I spent endless hours with Dennis Prager over the years studying the Torah.”
The letter, written earlier this year and running seven pages, mixes personal testimony with detailed social media messaging recommendations. Kirk recounted how, on Easter, he felt “bombarded with messages about the Israeli army making it difficult for Christians to access church in Jerusalem” and frustrated that no official response came quickly from Jerusalem. “Pro-Israel surrogates like me should not be in charge of fact checking every piece of anti-Israel misinformation that pours into social media,” he wrote, adding that “sometimes, it feels like I’m defending Israel in public more than your own government.”
Kirk decried a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t dynamic in online pro-Israel advocacy.
“I’m accused of being a paid apologist for Israel when I defend her; however, if I don’t defend Israel strongly enough, I’m accused of being antisemitic,” he wrote. “I know you’ve got a seven-front war and my kvetching pales in comparison. But I’m trying to convey to you that Israel is losing support even in conservative circles.”
Kirk described how even at events put on by his organization Turning Point USA that draw thousands of students, he faced constant hostile questioning about Israel. “On my recent campus tours, half the questions I get are about Israel and they’re all negative,” Kirk said. He stressed that his commitment was unwavering: “I often spend half my time on these campus tours defending Jews and Israel which I’m proud to do because I love Israel and love the Jewish faith.”
Among the proposals Kirk advanced was the creation of an “Israel Truth Network,” a one-stop information hub and social media presence that could debunk common accusations and showcase the decency of Israeli society. He urged Netanyahu to establish a rapid response media team, to send former hostages on US speaking tours, and to highlight stories of ordinary Israelis through campaigns like “Dude, you got us wrong!” He pressed Israel to generate original, English-language content for TikTok, podcasts, and other platforms rather than depending on American allies, stressing that “Israel needs to learn to fish (i.e. create your own content) and be more self-reliant when it comes to your communications strategy.”
Kirk urged Netanyahu to model his own communications team on that of US President Donald Trump. He wrote that “the [resident has strong fighters like Stephen Miller and Karoline Leavitt who battle the press every day. Honestly, I don’t even know if you have a press secretary. You are an eloquent defender of Israel, but you need a team of information warriors out there pushing back every day in real time.” At the time Kirk wrote his letter on May 2, Omer Dostri served as Netanyahu’s press secretary.
Kirk also warned that young people on the right remain deeply skeptical of intelligence assessments after the Iraq war and COVID-19, making it essential that Israelis themselves — not just Americans — make the case against Iran’s nuclear ambitions. He emphasized that Netanyahu should think of Israel’s public diplomacy like a political campaign: “Right now, there’s essentially a massive negative ad campaign spreading on social media. These negative ads are defining this candidate. Like any campaign, the first task is to define the candidate.”
While most of the letter offered praise of Israel, on the subject of COVID-19 vaccines and other topics, Kirk did present criticisms and skepticism.
“Our generation was also lied to by the governments of Israel and the US that COVID vaccines were safe and effective,” he wrote. “Israel intelligence missed the boat on Oct. 7, but we’re asked to trust Israeli intelligence 100 percent that Iran is on the cusp of obtaining nuclear weapons. Young conservatives are very skeptical of government proclamations.”
Kirk stated that he understood social media “as well as anyone in the world” and that “from my vantage point, Israel has retreated from social media without a fight. How are you going to win over younger generations if you’re starting out in retreat on social media?”
He advised filling communications staffs with people in their twenties and thirties who “grew up with cell phones and social media — not pay phones and TV news,” and implored Netanyahu to stop treating TikTok as a sideshow. “My campus tour last fall and this spring have received approximately five billion impressions,” Kirk noted, adding that Israel should take advantage of platforms like X, where Elon Musk is “a good friend to Israel.”
The Turning Point USA leader suggested a campaign model for the Jewish state. “You should perhaps consider reshaping your Hasbara Department into more of a political campaign headquarters with campaign narrative experts,” he wrote. “Hasbara could be the mothership hosting ITN where the messaging campaign can be created and then distributed to all the pro-Israel groups and thought leaders.”
In his conclusion, Kirk told the prime minister that “the status quo is not working. Israel is getting crushed on social media and you are losing younger generations of Americans, even among MAGA conservatives.” He stressed that his concerns stemmed from his faith: “The Holy Land is so important to my life, and it pains me to see support for Israel slip away.”
The letter countered claims from some of Kirk’s erstwhile allies that he started drifting away from the Jewish state. As The Algemeiner reported on Sept. 17, Grayzone editor Max Blumenthal, a pro-Iran journalist and fierce critic of Israel, published a story alleging that pro-Israel figures — including billionaire investor Bill Ackman — had staged an “intervention” to pressure Kirk over his views. That report, denied by Ackman and Kirk’s own producer Andrew Kolvet, was nevertheless taken up by far-right podcaster Candace Owens and US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), who have previously promoted antisemitic tropes and accused Israel of genocide.
Days later, as The Algemeiner reported on Sept. 22, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson used his eulogy for Kirk to weave antisemitic innuendo, appearing to blame Jews for both the crucifixion of Jesus and Kirk’s murder.
Carlson’s comments drew condemnation from prominent conservative and pro-Israel voices, who warned that such rhetoric threatened to poison the Republican Party.