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Could poetry revive Yitzhak Rabin’s legacy among young American Jews?
Perhaps the most enduring phrase from the period following Yitzhak Rabin’s assassination, 30 years ago this week, was then-President Bill Clinton’s valediction for his slain friend: “Shalom, haver” — goodbye, friend. It exemplified not just the genuine kinship between Clinton and Rabin, one amiable and telegenic, the other awkward and camera-shy, but also the ironclad bond between Israel and the United States.
Today, however, the so-called special relationship is under considerable duress — not least because generations of younger American Jews are increasingly suspicious of Zionism. And Rabin? He’s at risk of being forgotten altogether in the US, said Barak Sella, editor of Class of 95, a new English translation of an Israeli poetry anthology about Rabin’s murder and legacy.
Sella, who was born in Texas but came to Israel in 1994 when he was 10, was part of a generation of Israeli schoolchildren for whom Rabin’s death in November 1995 loomed impossibly large. “It was my moment of political awakening,” he said. “The first event I went to at my youth movement was a Rabin memorial ceremony. So for me, the assassination ran parallel to my socialization into Israeli society.”
In 2013, Dror L’Nefesh, the printing press of the Habonim Dror Youth movement to which Sella belonged — he was by this point also a well-established activist and community organizer — published the anthology in Hebrew under the title ‘Machzor 95’. Its publication was something of a happy accident: The movement had wanted to do something literary to mark the 18th anniversary of Rabin’s passing, Sella recalled, “but we couldn’t find any poetry or literature about it — only op-eds and articles.” When they put out an open call for contributors, the response was so overwhelming they had enough material to produce Israel’s first poetry anthology dedicated to Rabin’s passing.
The title, Machzor 95, was a pun of sorts, for in Hebrew Machzor has both a colloquial meaning — class, or generation — and a liturgical one: a Machzor is a prayer book for Jewish holidays. The aim was “to create a tradition of memory that was cyclical,” Sella said, “to create an artifact you can return to year after year.”
By 2022, when a second Hebrew-language edition was published, Sella was already toying with the idea of putting together an English version, as he’d always seen Rabin’s assassination “not as an Israeli event, but as a Jewish event.” Indeed, in 1995, much of American Jewry had mourned Rabin intensely. “It was everything American Jews talked about,” Sella said. “One of the largest ever Jewish gatherings was for Rabin’s shloshim in Madison Square Garden.” (On Dec. 11, 1995, a crowd of more than 15,000 packed the New York arena to mark thirty days, shloshim in Hebrew, since Rabin’s death.)
But Rabin’s legacy faded from view, Sella believed, because Israel itself could not agree on what he represented. “Israel is still so deeply divided about this,” he said. “So it’s very hard to expect American Jews to create some kind of shared culture around Rabin’s memory.”
That’s where the translated anthology comes in, which Sella hopes will serve “as an education tool,” something “teachers and rabbis who want to talk to their community about the assassination can pick up, choose a poem or two, and invite people into a conversation.”
The anthology is at once a guide to the assassination and a window into how Israeli society responded. One poem, Shachar-Mario Mordechai’s ‘Before the Government of Israel Announces With Astonishment’, invokes the official announcement of Rabin’s death. Another, ‘Blank’, by Raanan Ben Tovim, explores the claim, never substantiated, that immediately after the shots rang out somebody shouted “srak, srak” (in English, blank) a phrase that, among Israelis, has become a shorthand for Rabin’s murder — and has fueled conspiracy theories ever since.
Sella’s vision for the anthology is decidedly long-term. “This translation is not only for the thirty-year anniversary,” he said. “I’m thinking about, you know, in 50 years, in 100 years, what are the artifacts of our time that will assist not only the current generation, but also future ones, to build a story, to understand, and to reflect?”
The translation is therefore aimed especially at younger American Jews. “The people who will carry this memory forward are not going to be those who were at the square,” Sella said. He still firmly believes Rabin can be a “symbol for overcoming our differences, for shared destiny and democracy.” In short, American Jews would do well to recall not simply that Yitzhak Rabin was killed, but, no less important, the ideals he died for.
The post Could poetry revive Yitzhak Rabin’s legacy among young American Jews? appeared first on The Forward.
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Nigeria Seeks French Help to Combat Insecurity, Macron Says
French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Sept. 15, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/Pool
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has sought more help from France to fight widespread violence in the north of the country, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday, weeks after the United States threatened to intervene to protect Nigeria’s Christians.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, has witnessed an upsurge in attacks in volatile northern areas in the past month, including mass kidnappings from schools and a church.
US President Donald Trump has raised the prospect of possible military action in Nigeria, accusing it of mistreating Christians. The government says the allegations misrepresent a complex security situation in which armed groups target both faith groups.
Macron said he had a phone call with Tinubu on Sunday, where he conveyed France’s support to Nigeria as it grapples with several security challenges, “particularly the terrorist threat in the North.”
“At his request, we will strengthen our partnership with the authorities and our support for the affected populations. We call on all our partners to step up their engagement,” Macron said in a post on X.
Macron did not say what help would be offered by France, which has withdrawn its troops from West and Central Africa and plans to focus on training, intelligence sharing and responding to requests from countries for assistance.
Nigeria is grappling with a long-running Islamist insurgency in the northeast, armed kidnapping gangs in the northwest and deadly clashes between largely Muslim cattle herders and mostly Christian farmers in the central parts of the country, stretching its security forces.
Washington said last month that it was considering actions such as sanctions and Pentagon engagement on counterterrorism as part of a plan to compel Nigeria to better protect its Christian communities.
The Nigerian government has said it welcomes help to fight insecurity as long as its sovereignty is respected. France has previously supported efforts to curtail the actions of armed groups, the US has shared intelligence and sold arms, including fighter jets, and Britain has trained Nigerian troops.
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Netanyahu Says He Will Not Quit Politics if He Receives a Pardon
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participates in the state memorial ceremony for the fallen of the Iron Swords War on Mount Herzl, Jerusalem on Oct. 16, 2025. Photo: Alex Kolomoisky/POOL/Pool via REUTERS
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that he would not retire from politics if he receives a pardon from the country’s president in his years-long corruption trial.
Asked by a reporter if planned on retiring from political life if he receives a pardon, Netanyahu replied: “no”.
Netanyahu last month asked President Isaac Herzog for a pardon, with lawyers for the prime minister arguing that frequent court appearances were hindering Netanyahu’s ability to govern and that a pardon would be good for the country.
Pardons in Israel have typically been granted only after legal proceedings have concluded and the accused has been convicted. There is no precedent for issuing a pardon mid-trial.
Netanyahu has repeatedly denied wrongdoing in response to the charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust, and his lawyers have said that the prime minister still believes the legal proceedings, if concluded, would result in a complete acquittal.
US President Donald Trump wrote to Herzog, before Netanyahu made his request, urging the Israeli president to consider granting the prime minister a pardon.
Some Israeli opposition politicians have argued that any pardon should be conditional on Netanyahu retiring from politics and admitting guilt. Others have said the prime minister must first call national elections, which are due by October 2026.
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Report: Washington Hosts Trilateral Talks Between Israel and Qatar After Doha Strike
A Qatari flag is seen at a park near the Doha Corniche, in Doha, Qatar, Feb. 17, 2018. Photo: Reuters / Ibraheem al Omari.
i24 News – The United States, Israel, and Qatar convened a high-level trilateral meeting in New York on Sunday aimed at restoring strained relations following a controversial Israeli strike in Doha, Axios reports.
The meeting marks the highest-level engagement between the three nations since Qatar helped mediate the ceasefire that ended the war in Gaza. The talks coincide with the Trump administration’s plans to announce a new phase of the Gaza peace initiative.
The meeting is being chaired by White House envoy Steve Witkoff, with Israel represented by Mossad chief David Barnea and a senior Qatari official also participating, according to sources cited by Axios.
Tensions between the countries escalated after Israeli jets struck Hamas leaders in Doha on September 9. While the top Hamas figures survived, a Qatari security guard was killed, prompting Qatar to temporarily step back from its mediating role. The incident drew widespread Arab criticism of Israel and pressure on the United States to intervene. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later apologized to Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani at President Trump’s urging, allowing Qatar to resume its mediation role, though mistrust has persisted.
The New York talks are part of a US-proposed trilateral framework designed to improve coordination, resolve disputes, and strengthen joint security efforts. Sources indicate that Netanyahu is expected to raise concerns over Qatar’s alleged support for the Muslim Brotherhood, critical coverage of Israel by Al Jazeera, and Qatari influence on American university campuses.
Despite these issues, the core focus of the discussions is expected to be the implementation of the Gaza peace agreement, including the disarmament of Hamas — a key element of the second phase of the plan.