( Russia in Global Affairs ) – Modern Israel attracts much attention from analysts and the public but our ability to understand it is hindered by ideology, prejudice, and myth. Many tread carefully when discussing Israel lest they be accused of antisemitism. In an earlier article, I explained what distinguishes anti-Zionism from antisemitism. However, the […]
What Hannukah Teaches us about Violence and Peace
( The Times of israel ) – Biblical accounts teem with violent episodes. Just a few days ago, we read in the synagogue the story of Jacob’s two sons, Levi and Simeon, massacring the entire male population of a city in a devious scheme using a religious pretext. (Genesis 34) Their father was so aggrieved […]
War on Gaza Crystalizes Israel’s Image
( Russia in Global Affairs ) – Modern Israel attracts much attention from analysts and the public but our ability to understand it is hindered by ideology, prejudice, and myth. Many tread carefully when discussing Israel lest they be accused of antisemitism. In an earlier article, I explained what distinguishes anti-Zionism from antisemitism. However, the […]
Ascending the Temple Mount: Political Act in a Site of Holiness
Montréal (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – Every year, Jews recite the entire Pentateuch aloud in synagogues. It is divided in weekly portions. This week’s one (Vaet’hanan, Deuteronomy 3 :23 – 7 :11) contains passages that are central to Jewish liturgy, including the Shema, a declaration of loyalty to God, or more precisely, a declaration […]
Antisemitism and Antizionism: A Dangerous Conflation
Montréal (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – Antisemitism is making the headlines. The Israeli Prime Minister describes as antisemitic the accusation that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and even American students who are calling for a ceasefire. What Israel is doing does in fact provoke antisemitic acts against synagogues, Jewish schools and even individual […]
The Story of Arab-Jews Instills Hope
Reflections on Avi Shlaim, Three Worlds : Memoirs of an Arab-Jew, London: Oneworld, 2023, 324 pp. During my stay in Iran in 2016, I heard from several Muslims that Jews are good businessmen because they are trustworthy, and their word weighs more than a notarized contract. I recalled these comments when I read about Yusef, […]
Purim at the Time of Genocide
Montréal (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – The Jewish holiday of Purim, related in the Book of Esther, celebrates deliverance from a genocide. How to celebrate it when death and starvation kill thousands in Gaza, and the holiday’s rhetoric, namely the memory of the archenemy Amalek, is being used by Israeli politicians responsible for it? […]
From the Siege of Leningrad to the Siege of Gaza: Colonialist Mentality
Montréal (Special to Informed Comment) – Eighty years ago, on January 27, 1944, people in the street were hugging each other and weeping with joy. They were celebrating the end of a nearly 900 days brutal siege. Soviet forces lifted the siege of Leningrad after ferocious battles. Exactly a year later they liberated Auschwitz. Even […]
How Long can Israel Defy the World?
Montréal (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – Palestinians in Gaza are being decimated. Over 20 000 have been killed, mostly women and children. Three times more have been wounded. Some experts qualify it as genocide, others as massacre. Two million people have been displaced, many more than during the entire history of displacement of the […]
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