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What It Really Means to Be the ‘People of the Book’
The room full of Torah scrolls in Miami. Photo: Pini Dunner.
This week, Jewish communities worldwide will read Parshat Yitro, which recounts one of the most defining moments in Jewish history — God’s giving of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. These directives weren’t just words; they were the first written texts of Jewish tradition, forming the foundation of the Five Books of Moses, known as the Torah — the cornerstone of the Jewish faith. It was this moment that earned the Jews the title “People of the Book.”
But what does being “the People of the Book” really mean? It’s a title we’ve embraced for centuries, and it carries more than one meaning. We’re the people who received the book — the Torah, a divine blueprint for life. We’re also the people whose story is told in the book — the Bible is our collective narrative.
And perhaps most importantly, we’re the ones who’ve placed books at the center of our culture and identity — studying them, teaching from them, and passing their wisdom down through generations. Books aren’t just tools for us — they’re at the heart of what it means to be Jewish.
Clearly, books have always been at the core of Jewish life, tools to uplift and guide. But this week, books hit the headlines for a very different reason. In East Jerusalem, two booksellers, Mahmoud Muna and Munir Muna, were arrested at their widely known bookselling establishment, Educational Bookshop.
Israeli police claim the shop was selling books containing incitement and support for terrorism, and the two owners are being held on charges of disrupting public order. Cue the predictable global outrage: protests, op-eds, and online campaigns demanding the release of these “innocent booksellers.” The shop, after all, is described by its supporters as a “place of coexistence” and “a cultural hub.” But, as it turns out, that is not quite the whole story.
A post by my friend Saul Sadka on X (formerly Twitter) really made me stop and think. Saul met Mahmoud Muna five years ago when he joined a delegation from a center-left American Jewish group visiting the bookstore. The goal of the visit was dialogue, to create an atmosphere of understanding by “hearing the other side.”
But what Saul experienced was something else entirely. Instead of a pleasant bridge-building conversation, he and the group got an hour-long lecture dripping with thinly veiled antisemitism. Mahmoud sneered at the group’s efforts at coexistence and peppered his talk with tropes about Jewish power and “oblique references to their lack of connection to the land.”
Most of the delegation nodded along, possibly because they didn’t detect the malice in the subtext. But Saul and a few others left feeling sick to their stomachs.
“It wasn’t just antisemitic,” Saul wrote. “It reeked of genuine animus. He really enjoyed watching the Jews nodding along, completely unaware they were being mocked.” What struck me most was not only that this wasn’t dialogue but that it was derision disguised as intellectualism — because it took place in a bookshop and was delivered by a supposedly well-educated bookshop proprietor.
And this brings us to the heart of the matter. For Jews, books are sacred not simply because they exist, but because of what they contain and how they’re used. From the moment we received the Torah at Mount Sinai, books have been tools to build a better world — guiding us to live with purpose and integrity.
Contrast that with people like the Munas, who use books to spread hate, justify violence, and incite division. In their hands, books become weapons. That’s what the police claim was happening at the Educational Bookshop, and Saul’s experience suggests those claims are far from baseless. It makes you wonder — not just about the books they were selling but also about the books they chose not to sell.
Of course, the world’s reaction has been as predictable as ever. Mahmoud and Munir Muna have been cast as martyrs of free speech, celebrated as cultural icons targeted by an oppressive regime. No one seems to care about the content of the books they’re accused of selling. No one considers the harm such incitement can cause. The narrative is already fixed: Israel is the villain, and the booksellers are the victims.
But here’s the thing: not all books are created equal. And not everyone who champions books is a true “person of the book.” Being “people of the book” isn’t about celebrating any book just because it has words on a page. Like anything good, books can also be misused for bad.
The Torah, given at Sinai, is the original good book. It’s not just a collection of opinions or ideas — it’s a guide for living, a set of timeless truths meant to ground us and elevate us. That’s why Jews have spent millennia studying it, debating it, and teaching it — not to tear others down, but to build ourselves and the world up.
But when books are turned into tools of destruction — when they’re filled with hate and used to justify violence — even the staunchest advocates of free speech have the right to stand up and say, “Not on our watch.” And that’s exactly what’s happening here.
The Educational Bookshop, far from being a “center of coexistence,” appears to have been a hub for something far more sinister. Mahmoud and Munir Muna are not champions of free speech; they seem to be peddlers of incitement, hiding in plain sight behind the veneer of intellectualism.
The story of receiving the Torah at Mount Sinai reminds us that being “people of the book” is a mission, not merely a title. It’s about holding the written word to the highest standard — using it to enlighten, not to inflame.
Each year, as we read the Ten Commandments in synagogues around the world, we are reminded of our sacred duty to recommit to that mission. We must stand against those who twist the power of books, making it clear that the book is not a prop for the basest human instincts. Books are tools — and how we choose to use them defines who we are.
Mahmoud and Munir Muna may run a bookstore, but that doesn’t make them “people of the book.” For them, books appear to have become weapons — tools to ensnare others in pseudo-intellectual justifications for hatred and violence.
We can never accept such a betrayal of the written word. For us Jews, books are sacred tools to enhance life, uplift society, and bring light to the world. And that’ s a difference worth standing up for — and fighting for.
The post What It Really Means to Be the ‘People of the Book’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Continues to Praise Western Countries for Recognizing Palestinian State
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at a Labor party election night event, after local media projected the Labor Party’s victory, on the day of the Australian federal election, in Sydney, Australia, May 3, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hollie Adams
The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas is once again praising Western countries for recognizing a Palestinian state, most recently commending Australia for its decision to do so at the United Nations General Assembly next month.
“We welcome Australia’s decision to recognize the state of Palestine, and consider it an important step towards achieving justice for our people and securing their legitimate rights,” Hamas senior leader Sheikh Hassan Yousef said in a statement on Wednesday.
“This position reflects political courage and a commitment to the values of justice and the right of peoples to self-determination,” he said, urging the Australian government to turn this recognition into concrete action “by exerting diplomatic pressure to end the Israeli occupation.”
“We call on all countries, especially those that believe in freedom and human dignity, to follow Australia’s example and translate their positions into practical steps to support the Palestinian people and end their suffering under occupation,” the statement continued.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his government’s decision earlier this week, joining France, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other nations in pledging to recognize a Palestinian state next month.
Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad previously praised Canadian, British, and French plans to recognize a Palestinian state as “the fruits of Oct. 7,” citing the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, as the reason for increasing Western support.
“The fruits of Oct. 7 are what caused the entire world to open its eyes to the Palestinian issue,” the terror leader said in an interview with Al Jazeera.
Israeli officials and opponents of such recognition argue that Hamad’s remarks demonstrate that these countries are, in effect, rewarding acts of terrorism.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for Albanese’s government dismissed such accusations, arguing that Hamas would in fact oppose the recognition of a Palestinian state, since the terrorist group would have no role in its future governance.
The spokesperson even condemned Hamas for attempting to “manipulate facts for their own propaganda” after the group hailed his decision as an “important step towards achieving justice.”
Albanese echoed those sentiments in a media interview with “Today,” saying, “Hamas is opposed to two states. This is the opposite of what Hamas wants. Hamas wants one state.”
US and Israeli officials criticized Australia’s latest decision, arguing that the recognition effectively “rewards” Palestinian terrorists.
Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel accused Albanese of being “detached from reality.”
In an interview with “Sid & Friends In The Morning,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday dismissed Western plans to recognize a Palestinian state next month, calling the move “”meaningless.”
“It’s symbolic, and they’re doing it primarily for one reason, and that is their internal politics, their domestic politics,” Rubio said.
“In the UK, in France, in many parts of Europe and Ireland, for a long time their domestic politics have turned anti-Israel or whatever it may be, and they’re getting a lot of domestic pressure to do something,” he continued.
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Democratic Socialists of America Makes Support for Israel’s Right to Self-Defense an ‘Expellable Offense’
A protester holds a sign that reads, ”From the river to the sea Palestine will be free” during a pro-Palestinian emergency demonstration outside the Consulate General of Israel in Houston, Texas, on March 19, 2025. Photo: Reginald Mathalone via Reuters Connect
At its 2025 National Convention this past weekend, the Democratic Socialists of America adopted a contentious resolution titled “For a Fighting Anti-Zionist DSA,” further crystallizing the far-left organization’s anti-Israel views.
The measure, which passed by a margin of 56 percent to 43 percent, “unequivocally affirms” the DSA’s “commitment” to the Thawabit, a Palestinian nationalist framework that includes the so-called “right of return” for millions of Palestinians and their descendants, claims to Jerusalem as a Palestinian capital, and explicit support for so-called “resistance” against Israel. Palestinian leaders and activists have described the Thawabit as a set of principles aimed at eliminating Israel and establishing a Palestinian state in its place.
The DSA, the largest socialist organization in the US which counts members of the US Congress among its ranks, has previously opposed US military aid to Israel and supported the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement against the Jewish state. However, the resolution passed on Sunday marks an escalation.
According to the resolution, various actions in support of Israel, such as “making statements that ‘Israel has a right to defend itself’” and “endorsing statements equating anti-Zionism with antisemitism,” will now be considered an “expellable offense,” subject to a vote by the DSA’s National Political Committee.
The resolution’s passage underscores the widening gulf in the US between far-left activists and mainstream Democrats, who have generally supported Israel’s right to self-defense and to live in security even if they’ve been critical of the Israeli war effort in Gaza. DSA members celebrated the vote as a bold stand for Palestinian liberation, but some observers have suggested that it could alienate allies and normalize extremist rhetoric.
With roughly 78,000 members nationwide, the DSA represents a small fraction of the Democratic Party’s base. But its convention votes often reverberate in progressive political spaces.
DSA has ramped up its anti-Israel rhetoric during the Gaza war. On Oct. 7, 2023, the organization issued a statement saying that Hamas’s massacre across southern Israel that day was “a direct result of Israel’s apartheid regime.” The organization also encouraged its followers to attend an Oct. 8 “All Out for Palestine” event in Manhattan.
In January 2024, DSA issued a statement calling for an “end to diplomatic and military support of Israel.” Then in April, the organization’s international committee, DSA IC, issued a missive defending Iran’s right to “self-defense” against Israel. Iranian leaders regularly call for the Jewish state’s destruction, and Tehran has long provided Hamas with weapons and funding.
The vote also comes amid the political ascendence of New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, a high-profile DSA member and outspoken critic of Israel. Mamdani, who has called Israel an “apartheid state” and endorsed boycotts of Israeli institutions, has established himself as a leading voice for the party’s anti-Zionist wing.
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New York Man Sentenced for Firing Shotgun Outside Synagogue
Mufid Fawaz Alkhader. Photo: Screenshot.
US federal law officials on Tuesday announced the sentencing of a man who fired a pump-action shotgun outside the Temple Israel synagogue in Albany, New York to express his anti-Israel views and intimidate Jewish community members.
The perpetrator, 29-year-old Mufid Fawaz Alkhader, committed the offense on Dec. 7, 2023, exactly two months after the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel, amid preparations for the observance of Hanukkah. According to the US Justice Department, he commuted there via Uber from his residence in Schenectady, a city of the Capital Region that once possessed a thriving manufacturing sector and large middle class. Positioning himself in the front entrance, Alkhader discharged his firearm, purchased illegally, twice “into the air” as he bellowed “Free Palestine.”
His gun jammed on the third attempt, after which he turned his frustration on an Israeli flag pitched in front of the institution, the Justice Department said in a press release announcing the sentencing on Tuesday. Local law enforcement later apprehended Alkhader, but the security incident he precipitated frightened the congregation, causing it to “cancel a planned concert and candle lighting ceremony to celebrate Hanukkah that evening.”
Alkhader ultimately faced several criminal charges — for purchasing an illegal firearm, violating the religious rights of Temple Israel’s worshippers, and wielding a weapon while committing a violent crime. He will serve ten years in lockup and five years of supervised release.
“This shooting, outside of a synagogue on the eve of a Hanukkah celebration, was unfortunately emblematic of the antisemitic violence, rhetoric, and practices that have swept this country over the last few years,” acting US attorney John Sarcone for the Northern District of New York said in a statement. “This year, the Justice Department has emphatically said — through its words and actions — no more. My office, with our law enforcement partners, will do everything within our powers to make sure everyone in the Northern District of New York can exercise their right to practice their religion without fear and violence and hatred.”
Alkhader’s assault on Temple Israel occurred during an unrelenting wave of over 10,000 antisemitic incidents that hit the American Jewish community in the first year after Oct. 7. According to a 2024 report published by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Center on Extremism on the first anniversary of Hamas’s massacre across southern Israel, antisemitic incidents in the US increased 200 percent. Thirty percent of the incidents recorded took place on college campuses and another 12 percent happened during anti-Israel protests. Another 20 percent targeted Jewish institutions, including nonprofit organizations and houses of worship. Of these, 50 percent were bomb threats.
The hatred has carried into 2025.
In June, a gunman murdered two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington, DC, while they exited an event at the Capital Jewish Museum hosted by a major Jewish organization. The suspect charged for the double murder, 31-year-old Elias Rodriguez from Chicago, yelled “Free Palestine” while being arrested by police after the shooting, according to video of the incident. The FBI affidavit supporting the criminal charges against Rodriguez stated that he told law enforcement he “did it for Gaza.”
Less than two weeks later, a man firebombed a crowd of people who were participating in a demonstration to raise awareness of the Israeli hostages who remain imprisoned by Hamas in Gaza. A victim of the attack, Karen Diamond, 82, later died, having sustained severe, fatal injuries.
Another antisemitic incident motivated by anti-Zionism occurred in San Francisco, where an assailant identified by law enforcement as Juan Diaz-Rivas and others allegedly beat up a Jewish victim in the middle of the night. Diaz-Rivas and his friends approached the victim while shouting “F—k the Jews, Free Palestine,” according to local prosecutors.
“[O]ne of them punched the victim, who fell to the ground, hit his head and lost consciousness,” the San Francisco district attorney’s office said in a statement. “Allegedly, Mr. Diaz-Rivas and others in the group continued to punch and kick the victim while he was down. A worker at a nearby business heard the altercation and antisemitic language and attempted to intervene. While trying to help the victim, he was kicked and punched.”
According to the latest data released by the FBI earlier this month, antisemitic hate crimes in the US have been tallying to break all previous statistical records. In 2024, even as hate crimes decreased overall, those perpetrated against Jews increased by 5.8 percent in 2024 to 1,938, the largest total recorded in over 30 years of the FBI’s counting them. Jewish American groups have noted that this surge, which included 178 assaults, is being experienced by a demographic group which constitutes just 2 percent of the US population.
A striking 69 percent of all religion-based hate crimes that were reported to the FBI in 2024 targeted Jews, with 2,041 out of 2,942 total such incidents being antisemitic in nature. Muslims were targeted the next highest amount as the victims of 256 offenses, or about 9 percent of the total.
“As the Jewish community is still reeling from two deadly antisemitic attacks in the past few months, the record-high number of anti-Jewish hate crime incidents tracked by the FBI in 2024 is consistent with ADL’s reporting and, more importantly, with the Jewish community’s current lived experience,” ADL chief executive officer Jonathan Greenblatt said at the time. “Since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, Jewish Americans have not had a moment of respite and have experienced antisemitism at K-12 school, on college campuses, in the public square, at work, and Jewish institutions.”
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.