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The Hamas attack wasn’t the Holocaust. But it must be understood in terms of Jewish trauma.
(JTA) — When unspeakable tragedy hits the Jewish people, we turn to memory — we ask not just, “what happened?” We also ask: “What does this remind us of?”
Maybe refusing to heal from the tragedies of the past is pathological; maybe we are holding on too tight. Maybe it is epigenetic. Mostly, however, I see it as a coping mechanism developed over time, an interpretive strategy we use both to preserve our past and to create continuity. It makes it possible for a persecuted people to promise themselves they will survive whatever they face in the moment. “Never forget” is not merely a slogan to preserve the past; it is also a means of trying to ensure a future.
And, sometimes, I think that our insistence on seeing the past reawakened in the present is a right that we have earned in blood. We are entitled to use our suffering however we would like, and if we find it helpful to keep it close, to use it as a means of understanding and thus surviving the present, we can and should do so.
Throughout the last week, Jews have responded to the violent atrocities in Israel by analogizing Hamas’ horrific attacks to stories seared in our memories. I am sure you heard at least one version of the statistic that on Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas carried out the deadliest one-day attack on Jews since the Holocaust. The more liturgically oriented are reading from the biblical books of Lamentations and Job. Some have described the burned bodies strewn across southern Israel with the single word “pogrom,” evoking the sorrows of the Eastern European Jewish experience.
Throughout the week, I felt — and I continue to feel — that it is our right to see this story through the prism of our particularistic collective experience. Gideon Hausner, the prosecutor at Adolf Eichmann’s trial, called this “a historical principle stretching from Pharaoh to Haman.”
Jewish tradition reserves the name “Amalek” for the worst of our enemies, suggesting that they share a lineage back to the biblical Amalekites whose unforgivable sin was to attack the Israelites from the rear, picking off the most vulnerable, refusing to spare the weakest and most weary. I do not need Hamas to be Amalek; our post-biblical sages tell us not to draw straight lines when it comes to connecting the dots between the historical Amalekites and contemporary villains. But the callous murder of infants, the snatching of Holocaust survivors, the vicious murder of young people dancing — all of this is Amalekite behavior. This theological vocabulary allows us to name and understand the depths of the depravity that are facing, and then to marshal our resolve to face it for what it is. Our Jewish souls demand it.
I know that this sort of rhetoric is loaded and risky. I am writing this now precisely because I am seeing pushback online against it — suggestions that comparing this week’s events to the Holocaust distort the political realities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or create permission for Israel to attack Gaza without constraint. My colleague, historian James Loeffler, cautions that constant analogies of present politics to history can become “willful weaponizations” to be used towards political ends. I’ve also written about these risks, which I worry about in particular when memory is marshaled for the sake of partisan politics. The greatest risk may be the temptation to weaponize our trauma by acting violently toward others. After all, after many of the tragedies of the Jewish past, the Jewish people had little of the power and military resources that Israel has today to respond in kind to our oppressors.
The vocabulary of the Jewish past is rich and evocative, and there is always risk that it will be misused, that it will be mapped inappropriately in light of the agency we now wield.
But sometimes, we need to take these risks. Sometimes, being a Jew in the world requires sustaining a relationship between our past, our present and our future. We are bidden to live in the present and feel burdened by the past. I want us right now to forgive our imperfect analogies, to lean into the instinct. I refuse to let anyone deprive us of the few interpretive tools we must make sense of what has befallen us. The fact that there was more talk on X about the prospect of Israel committing “genocide” in a military campaign that hadn’t started, than about the actual atrocities committed by Hamas which started this war, is an example of antisemitic gaslighting. The bodies lie before us, and we are bereft; will our memory be taken from us, too?
And I also feel that it is entirely possible to turn to these stories and to assert our own humanity without also dehumanizing the other. There are safeguards in place to help us. The State of Israel holds itself to the moral standards of modern warfare and its rule of law, and it knows it must — as in the stunted career of Gen. Ofer Winter, passed over for promotion because he cast the fight against Hamas as a “holy war” — constrain the application of theological paradigms to the practice of warcraft. The IDF knows the difference between error and intent in the killing of civilians in wartime, and it abides to the principles of proportionality. We can trust ourselves to do this, more than we think.
More importantly, however, our victimhood has also been and can be a catalyst for our own self-reflection and growth. A small number of Jews have and always will turn outwards and turn their rage into fantasies for revenge. These people need to be stopped. Most of us know, however, that the lachrymosity of our history has been material for the refinement of our moral sensibilities. The traumatic memories of our ancestors that we carry in our stories fuels our prayers and shapes our moral imagination.
As we mourn this week — a Jewish people missing their children and forced to send others into battle, a Jewish people whose clothes are rent and whose faces are wet with tears, a nation that cannot sleep — we must allow ourselves the right to comfort ourselves with the bitter salve that our people has seen pieces of this story before.
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American Jewish Tourists Attacked and Robbed in Venice, Authorities Investigate Possible Hate Crime
An Italian flag on display in Rome. Photo: Reuters/Guglielmo Mangiapane.
An American Jewish couple visiting Venice was violently attacked and robbed by three unidentified suspects, prompting authorities to investigate if the crime was fueled by religious hatred or a random act of violence.
According to initial Italian reports, the two Orthodox Jewish tourists were sprayed with water while one of the attackers used a dog on a leash to intimidate them. As they were distracted, another assailant grabbed their cell phones, and they fled the scene.
This latest incident near the Rialto Bridge, one of the busiest areas in the city, was reported by the local Jewish community and is now under investigation by Italian police.
Authorities say it is unclear whether the attack was motivated by antisemitism, robbery, or another reason, especially since the victims, who do not speak Italian, returned to the US without filing a formal complaint, according to Italian media reports.
State police are now trying to contact the two victims to get their account of the incident, while reviewing nearby surveillance footage to clarify the circumstances of the attack and identify the three suspects, who remain at large.
Even without a formal complaint, if the incident is determined to be a robbery or an antisemitic attack, authorities can pursue the case ex officio, and the investigation will continue regardless of the victims’ involvement.
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 warn that such incidents are becoming more frequent amid growing tensions related to the war in Gaza.
Last month, a Jewish man from France and his child were verbally assaulted at a gas station near Milan by a group of pro-Palestinian supporters 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.”
Earlier this year, a homeless Egyptian man in Rome attacked a Jewish boy and injured a shopkeeper who tried to intervene. In a separate incident, anti-Israel protesters defaced a synagogue with graffiti reading “Justice for a Free Gaza.”
Last year, a hotel manager in Rome canceled an Israeli couple’s reservation just one day before their trip, accusing them of genocide and telling them the hotel would “be happy to grant free cancellation.”
“We inform you that the Israeli people as those responsible for genocide are not welcome customers in our structure,” the hotel manager told the Israeli couple.
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JetBlue Kosher Meal Incident Sparks Outrage Amid Rising Antisemitic Incidents on Airlines
A kosher meal served on a JetBlue flight was defaced with the slur “Zionazi,” sparking widespread outrage and prompting an ongoing investigation. Photo: Screenshot
A Jewish passenger aboard a JetBlue flight was reportedly served a kosher meal labeled with the slur “Zionazi,” sparking widespread outrage as the latest in a wave of recent antisemitic incidents across multiple airlines.
The incident was first reported by the US-based group StopAntisemitism, which published an image of the defaced meal on social media.
“Whoever is responsible for this must be immediately fired,” the statement read. “This is 1941 and Jews will NOT put up with this hate.”
StopAntisemitism is sickened to see a @JetBlue passenger receive his kosher meal with “zionazi” written on it.
Whomever is responsible for this must be immediately fired – this is 1941 and Jews will NOT put up with this hate. pic.twitter.com/HNr0hVrhgD
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) August 8, 2025
In a press release, JetBlue confirmed it has launched an ongoing investigation to determine which flight was involved, emphasizing that no complaints or reports have been filed by customers so far.
“We have zero tolerance for hate, bias, or discrimination,” the statement read. “If we determine that any individual associated with JetBlue or our catering partners was involved, we will take swift and appropriate action.”
This latest incident came after a similar report days earlier on an Iberia Airlines flight from Buenos Aires to Madrid, where a Jewish passenger found “Free Palestine” written on their kosher meal tray, prompting the Spanish airline to launch an investigation.
“Iberia is conducting a comprehensive investigation, involving both its internal teams and external catering suppliers, to fully understand the incident and implement all necessary corrective actions,” the airline told The Algemeiner.
“We unequivocally condemn all forms of discrimination, hate speech, and any behavior that violates the dignity of individuals,” the statement said. “These actions are completely unacceptable and contradict the core values of respect and inclusion that define our company’s identity.”
In a separate incident, Spanish airline Vueling faced backlash after forcibly removing a group of French Jewish teenagers from a flight from Valencia to Paris, allegedly for singing in Hebrew.
The forced removal of the group has triggered political outrage in France, after their group leader was handcuffed by Spanish police and a government minister insulted the teens as “Israeli brats.”
The Spanish low-cost airline denied the allegations, insisting the incident was not related to religion but rather that the group was removed because of its members’ “highly combative attitude that was putting the safety of the flight at risk.”
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‘This Is Outrageous’: Netanyahu Repeats Threat to Sue NYT for Defamation Over Skeletal Child Photo
The New York Times newspaper. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday repeated his interest in filing a lawsuit against The New York Times, following the newspaper’s misleading use of a photo depicting an emaciated Palestinian child in Gaza.
In a press conference, Netanyahu noted the historical pattern of Jewish demonization before mass violence, including through Medieval blood libels which crescendoed with the Holocaust.
“Today the Jewish state is being maligned in a similar way,” Netanyahu said. “And the international press has bought hook, line, and sinker Hamas statistics, Hamas claims, Hamas forgeries, and Hamas photographs. For example, these three children.” He pointed to a screen which featured images of tiny, skeletal bodies, allegedly the result of an Israel-enabled famine in pursuit of a genocide against the Palestinian people.
Netanyahu identified the first one as Osama Al-Rakab and said, “He is in Italy getting treatment because Israel got him out. That’s what he looks like today. He has a genetic disease that damages the lung and digestive system and makes it hard to absorb nutrients and gain weight. So Israel facilitated Osama’s travel to Italy where he got the medical aid that transformed his position.”
Continuing explaining the stories behind the photographs, Netanyahu named the second child featured, Abdul Qader al-Fayoumi, and said, “He suffers from a genetic neurological disorder, spinal muscular atrophy, a degenerative condition that causes muscle wasting, weakness, and severe weight loss. Unrelated to nutrition, this was the real cause of his frail appearance, not starvation. In fact, he was treated in Israel in 2018, but it doesn’t help because it’s a congenital disease and it defies most treatment.”
Gesturing to the screen again toward a logo of The New York Times, Netanyahu said, “The third one is the most celebrated one. This is a New York Times cover photo on the front page of Mohammed Zakaria Ayoub and his mother.”
The image appeared in the July 30 article “Young, Old and Sick Starve to Death in Gaza: ‘There Is Nothing.’” After the initial story went viral, The Times had to add an editors’ note revealing that the 18-month-old boy maintained pre-existing health issues that contributed to his current condition.
The prime minister explained that the child “is suffering from a genetic illness you’re familiar with. It’s called cerebral palsy. His mother is well-fed and his brother is healthy.”
Netanyahu walked back to the podium and said, “I’m looking right now into the possibility of a governmental suit against the New York Times because this is outrageous.” He held up his fingers to indicate a tiny square and added, “Of course a correction was postage size, I don’t know where it was buried. But this is outrageous; these are the three most celebrated photos, and they’re all fake.”
Israel’s prime minister then returned to his introductory point about medieval blood libels, saying, “It’s the kind of malignant lies that were leveled at the Jewish people in the Middle Ages, and we won’t suffer, we won’t allow it to go unchallenged, and this is the purpose of this press conference. I hope you will open your eyes to a simple fact: Hamas lies.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he is looking to sue the New York Times for spreading ‘malignant lies’ about the starvation of Gazan civilians. pic.twitter.com/lnl7L5oGkr
— Adam Milstein (@AdamMilstein) August 10, 2025
Netanyahu had previously declared his support for filing a lawsuit against the New York Times in a Thursday interview with Bill Hemmer on Fox News.
“I’m actually looking at whether a country can sue The New York Times,” Netanyahu said. “And I’m looking into it right now, because I think it’s such a … it’s such clear defamation.”
Referencing Ayoub, Netanyahu told Hemmer that the image was “supposed to then represent all these supposedly starving children” but that “they put in this picture of a child who has cerebral palsy.”
In a statement to Fox News, a spokesperson for the Times pushed back against Netanyahu’s threats of a lawsuit, saying, “Children in Gaza are malnourished and starving, as New York Times reporters and others have documented. Mr. Netanyahu is referring to an update we made to a story about how the food crisis is affecting the civilian population. After publication, we learned that a child shown in that story — in addition to being severely malnourished — also had pre-existing health problems. That additional information gave readers a greater understanding of his situation.”
The spokesperson added that “attempts to threaten independent media providing vital information and accountability to the public are unfortunately an increasingly common playbook, but journalists continue to report from Gaza for The Times, bravely, sensitively, and at personal risk, so that readers can see firsthand the consequences of the war.”