Tag: gaza

Rozana and Day 3. The hospitals

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

IsraAID is a wonderful organization that does great work on behalf of Israel and the Jewish people all over the world. When there is an emergency, they show up. Today I had the opportunity to go to their Tel Aviv offices and both learn about their work in Gaza.

What happened on October 7 is inexcusable. It’s unforgivable. Since then the people of Gaza have suffered a war their leaders, Hamas, lost at a high cost to the people. Most have had to move from their homes and continue moving because of Hamas continuing to fight.

It was amazing to see the statistics about the work of IsraAID in providing healthcare, medication, supplies, baby food, hygiene kits and more to the people in Gaza. I have complained about how the UN doesn’t do their job, how Hamas and various gangs steal food and supplies, reselling it at a premium. What is happening with IsraAID makes food, supplies and medical care get directly to the people.

Rozana also does work in Gaza the report from IsraAID was helpful and informing for our work.

This work in the medical clinics in Gaza is not only changing lives in Gaza, it is building bridges between the people of Gaza and Israel. While there, we heard a great story that exemplifies this, something you won’t hear anywhere else.

A key clinic coordinator broke his wrist and was unable to join an educational zoom. The people in Gaza heard about this and started calling him, reaching out to him, checking in on him, worried about him. Then they set up a zoom for him with a physiotherapist in Gaza so he could get exercises to help him recover. All this happened while he was sitting on his couch in Tel Aviv. The people of Gaza were taking care of him, not knowing he was already in good hands. He mattered to them. Hard to imagine but true.

There are plenty of employees in Gaza, all working in the clinics providing direct care to those in need. Not terrorists hiding behind medicine but real doctors and nurses working with orgs to help take care of the health needs of the people in Gaza.

IsraAID described the conditions in Gaza to us. The food remains expensive even with aid flowing in. We were told that one sheep is $8,000 in Gaza. It shouldn’t be that way but it is. Hamas continues to create problems for the people of Gaza and yet IsraAID and others are there as trusted partners, providing key humanitarian aid. There is a need for more and we talked about how to expand from two clinics to four. How to provide more trainings for the doctors and nurses in Gaza. You won’t read that in the papers or see it on the news.

We left IsraAID feeling inspired and headed to Sheba Hospital (Tel HaShomer). Sheba is a massive hospital. It is in Israel. Yet Rozana has partnered with them to create fellowships for Palestinian doctors. We had the privilege of meeting with Dr Reut who heads the Pediatric ICU and her fellow, Dr Ruba Rizik. We had a chance to learn about Ruba and the fellowship.

Ruba comes from a small village in East Jerusalem and graduated from Al Quds University. She got a job as a doctor at the Al Makassed hospital in the pediatric ICU. Al Makassed partnered with Sheba (yes, a Palestinian hospital partnered with an Israeli one) and prepared to send her for a three year fellowship at the Sheba Pediatric ICU. But there were many challenges along the way for Ruba. First she had to take the Israeli exams. It took her a year to study properly and then she took them and passed – just in time for Covid to hit.

In 2022 she applied to the fellowship again and was accepted. Now the challenge was getting a Rozana funded scholarship. She worked with Rozana for a year to get the funding and she started October 11, 2023. We all know what happened 4 days prior.

She was unsure if she would be safe in Israel or how her coworkers would treat her. Her parents were panicked. She told us how she would talk with her mom on the phone as she walked the 15 minutes to and from work to help them both feel safe and how she had multiple locks on her apartment door.

Her supervisor and coworkers accepted her. They welcomed her. She learned Hebrew – both conversational and medical terminology. She had to learn to do all things that doctors do in Israel, which included many things that nurses do in her Palestinian hospital.

When the recent Iran-Israel war started, she went home to her parent’s house. Nobody was sure how long she would stay there and her supervisor gave her as much time as she needed. Shockingly, only 10 days later she returned to work at Sheba because she missed her work family and she felt that they needed her. Palestinians and Israelis not just working together but being like a family. When will you see that on the news or read that story in the NY Times?

Reut and Ruba at Sheba Hospital

Ruba shared that Al Makassed, the hospital she is to return to in 6 months, just told her they closed their pediatric ICU. Now she needs to stay at Sheba two more years to do a fellowship in general ICU. Rozana will be there for her financially to continue the fellowship. This amazing Palestinian and doctor, who was terrified of living and working in Israel, is committing for another two years to live and work in Israel, apart from her family. She is amazing. The fellowship program is amazing. And Palestinians and Israelis are working together and are becoming colleagues and friends.

We left Sheba with huge smiles on our faces. What an incredible person, doctor and program. We were filled with pride for what Rozana accomplishes and the idea of growing the fellowship. How many more fellowships could we add at Sheba each year? 10? 20? More? Changing the world with each one.

We started our drive to Haifa so we could visit the Carmel Medical Center and get an update from them on our Shared Life Program that is partnered with Rozana.

Before October 7th, Carmel realized that they wanted to address Jewish-Arab relations in the workplace. It was important to them that every employee at Carmel felt safe, secure and a part of the community. They began in September 2023. After October 7 they weren’t sure if they could run the program but they knew they had to try, so they simply did it.

They knew they had to address the Arab, Jewish, Christian and Druze relationships in the hospital to not only ensure the best medical care for patients but also ensure a safe working space for every employee. The program worked. The response to it was overwhelming. Once again, the media wants to focus on the hate and ignore any instance of shared society, where Arabs, Palestinians and Jews work together, become colleagues and even friends. As we listened to the update we got more and more excited. We began discussing the next steps in the upcoming year. What did they imagine the next year would look like? What else can we do together to enhance the program? How can we help improve these relationships even more? Can we involve patients in this process since Carmel serves such a diverse population?

It was energizing. It was exciting. It was full of hope. Haifa is the epitome of shared society and the Carmel Medical Center is an example of why this is true.

As we were concluding our day, I began to realize how much I missed my colleagues and new friends from Rozana who live in the West Bank. They weren’t with us because some need permits to enter Israel and couldn’t get them while others had checkpoints closed which made it incredibly difficult to join us. It was a powerful feeling and realization. My Palestinian friends. They weren’t allowed to join us. Amazing people and professionals who couldn’t get a permit or who couldn’t travel easily because of blocked checkpoints weren’t able to participate in the joy of what they helped create. Despite the amazing day filled with hope, it made me realize just how much work there is to do and how far we still have to go. It showed me how important this work is – making it possible for Palestinians and Israelis to get to know each other as people and colleagues and maybe even friends. How this work can change the world and our reality.

From IsraAID to Sheba to Carmel it was a meaningful and impactful day of hope and excitement. I am lucky to have the opportunity to meet these people, work with and on behalf of everybody I met in these three days of site visits, and make a difference in the region and in the world. I talk with many friends in the United States who see no hope, who see no future. I’m here to tell them and you that isn’t true. I experienced it myself and sometime soon, you will be able to as well. If you are going to be in Israel and want to see the work in the West Bank, let me know and we will make it happen. If you want to come to Israel and travel to the West Bank to see it, we will make that happen too. It’s simply too important. As we finish our site visits I am filled with gratitude for being a part of the amazing work of Rozana.

Rozana Day 1 – Hebron and Hope

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I’m here in Israel with my client, Rozana. Founded in 2013, Rozana works with medical diplomacy, peace through healthcare. It’s an amazing organization that partners Israeli hospitals and medical related organizations with Palestinian hospitals and medical related organizations. As I reviewed their website and the programs they run, I became excited about the opportunity to work with them. I had many friends who shook their heads, wished me good luck, in what they thought was a hopeless effort.

This week Rozana brought members of their international board for site visits to see the work first hand. I was invited to join them and jumped at the chance to see the work in person and to meet the people doing the work and those impacted by it. The President of their American, Australian, UK, and Israeli branches all joined us along with the president of Rozana International and the CEO, CFO, and COO along with a few other members of team. It is an impressive group of people who I have gotten to know very quickly and really like.

Today we visited Hebron. I’ve been there before but only in the small, Jewish part. I loved the small Jewish part and the time I spent at the tombs of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs is indescribable. This was the Palestinian side. I didn’t know what to expect. Our first stop was in the village of Beit Oula, on the outskirts of Hebron. Rozana’s women4women mobile clinic was there. When we arrived, there was an educational session happening about menstrual health. We take for granted that women know about this but in remote areas of area C, that isn’t the case. I watched as these women listened intently to the doctor who was educating them. They do this type of education about women’s health every time the mobile clinic arrives. The clinic has everything needed for women’s health – all the equipment including sonograms, glucometers, fetal heart monitors, etc. This type of healthcare is not availble to the women in the remote areas the clinic serves and they wouldn’t have any access with Rozana. We heard from the woman who lets Rozana use her space for free about how important this was. We heard from the Program Manager about her experiences and the impact they are having. We heard from the head doctor, a midwife, and a phsychologist about the work they do and how impactful it is. They told us about a woman who was diagnosed at a regular clinic with ovarian cysts. It turned out she was 4 months pregnant. Another woman who was having a medical emergency that the clinic diagnosed quickly and was able to get her to an Israel hospital in time for her to deliver the baby and to save her life. Without Rozana and the women4women clinic, both these women would have died.

Women at the educatinal training
Photo of the woman4woman team and Rozana by Dana Bar Simon Tov
Mobile women’s clinic
Inside the women’s mobile clinic
The mobile clinic

The clinic was donated by the Church of Latter Day Saints (Mormons) and is staffed by Palestinian women doctors, nurses, midwives, physical therapists, physchologists, and physiotherapists. It is a true multi-disciplanary team, all provided by Rozana. They visit 3 villages every week. They used to visit 5 villages a week, however the settler violence has made it unsafe for the Rozana staff to go to some of the places they used to go. One of the women who came for the clinic shared how the settlers attacked the 12 women coming the night before and as a result, she was the only one who was willing to walk there today. She had to go the long way and it took her 2 hours to get there and it would be two hours to walk home. She missed the educational part but was going to be able to get the medical care she needed. She told us how important this was to her and she wasn’t willing to miss it.

I was blown away by the work. Seeing the impace on these women, hearing their stories, and seeing the care, committment and passion of these doctors and nurses was inspiritng. I’ve written about my need for hope and the time spent in Beit Oula with the women4women mobile clinic did a lot to inspire me. It’s something the media never covers. Stories of Israeli and Palestinian partnership that you will never hear about. A possible future that the political leaders throughout the world say they want to see but I’m not sure they really do.

Our second stop was at Al Ahli hospital in Hebron. We met with the head of the hospital along with the board of directors, all men except for the board president, who was a woman. They were all successful businessmen who care about healthcare and want to make the hospital great. Al Ahli hospital partners with both Sheba hospital and Hadassah hospital. Once again, nothing you would hear in the news – Israeli hospitals partnering with Palestinian hospitals. But it is happening and in a very meaningful way. Rozana partnered with Al Ahli hospital to train 16 pediatric and adult ICU doctors. Those 16 were given the skills to both use and to teach others. Since that training by Rozana, Al Ahli hospital has trained more than 100 additional ICU doctors. Talk about a return on investment! The hospital provides more than 34 clinics to the people, including project smile where they repair things like cleft palates.

The hospital staff and board were amazing. Friendly. Kind. They had incredible fruit and juices out for us to eat. They brought us coffee (if you’ve never had the deep, dark, powerful Arab coffee you don’t know what you are missing). As we talked about opportunities, it was exciting to see how much they wanted our partnership and how important it is to the hospital and the key decision makers. Another story the media will never tell you. Another narrative blocked from the world view.

Al Ahli hospital
They welcomed us with incredible hospitality
Operation Smile clinic

Our final stop in Hebron was at the Al Rakma Rehabilitation hospital. This is a brand new rehabilitation hospital that is set to open in the next few weeks that will be operated by the Green Land Society for Health Development. It was still under construction when we visited today. This brand new, 7 story hospital is designed by Dr. Akram Amro with incredible foresight and thought. They will provide physical therapy, prosthetics, hydrotherapy, and trauma recovery for neurological, orthopedic, and pediatric patients. Partnering with Alyn Children’s Hospital to train their doctors, nurses, physical therapists, physiotherapists, and support staff how to work with children with disabilities, Al Rakma will be at the cutting edge of rehabilitation treatment.

Rozana has been working with them for years, starting with their Wheels of Hope program that helps ambulences get critically ill pacients out of the West Bank to Israeli hospitals. Often times the delay due to security or there being no ambulance to take them to an Israeli hospital has dire results. They then moved on to partnering on the women4women project. Next was the Day After project – the need for a rehabilitation hospital. Rozana was involved with funding the construction project, one of the very few capital projects the will do, because of how compelling the need is along with the power of Dr. Akram Amro’s vision. As part of this program, Al Rakma is copying the work done in Israel by Yad Sarah, in loaning out medical equipment. They started with wheelchairs and are growing and moving forward with other items. Ultimately, when the time is right, they want to bring 120 children from Gaza who need rehabilitation, prostetics, OT, PT, and/or mental health treatment. For children, who rapidly outgrow their prostetics, the plan is to 3-D print them so they are inexpensive and easily replaceable. Dr. Amro is brilliant and hearing him talk through his plans was exciting.

The therapy pool which will be fully functional in 2 weeks
View of Hebron from Al Rakma Hospitals 6th floor garden deck

Over lunch, I had a chance to spend some time in deep conversation with a few of the Palestinian doctors who are connected to Dr. Amro and the Al Rakma hospital. One of them, Muhammad, was beyond inspiring. He did his training outside the West Bank and finished his studies in Turkey. He chose to return to the West Bank to teach at the University. As we talked, I realized how much we had in common. He talked about the evil of Hamas and how if they were ever to take over in the West Bank how he would leave immediately. He complained about a lack of diversity in the medical school and his desire to have people from other countries; France, Spain, Germany, the US, and even Israel studying in the West Bank. The need for exposure to other cultures was critical to ensure a future with peace and harmony. It was inspiring to hear his passion about a better future. We scanned our WhatsApp codes to keep in touch and he invited me on my next visit to come visit the University. I plan to take him up on the offer.

Our final site visit was at Magen David Adom (MDA). What would MDA have to do with Palestinians? A new program created in partnership with Rozana is teaching Arabs and Jewish women how to be ambulance drivers. Along with regular driving, this 9 month program teaches them all Hebrew (many of the Israelis had made aliyah and struggled with Hebrew), phlebotomy, and how to be a first responder. Each of the women told their story and it was fascinating to hear what brought them to the program, what their desire was, and what they planned to do next. One woman came from a religious muslim family. Another came from a religious Jewish family that she had left behind. She talked about having never met a Palestinian before or eating their food, and then commented how delicious it was. All the women talked about how the program had brought them in touch with people different from them and how grateful they were they had this opportunity. They talked about how close they had gotten and how it felt like family. What incredible success. Learning skills to not only get a job but also to save lives all while breaking down barriers and creating real realtionships between Israelis and Palestinians.

The women at Magen David Adom invlved in the ambulance program

I wrote recently about my challenge in finding hope. Today was all about hope. Hope for a different and better future. Hope for a different and better today. Lots of people talk about potential peace between Israel and Palestine. Rozana is making it happen every single day. To hear about the partnerships between Israeli and Palestinian hospitals that is happening right now, every day, was inspiriing. Meeting the nurses and doctors trained in Israeli hospitals and then taking that knowledge to train their peers was inspiring. Hearing the gratitidue from Palestinian women about the opportunities that Rozana and their Israeli peers have given them was inspiring. Thee are real people, living every day with things we only read about in the newspaper or hear about on the news telling and showing us a different reality, a different today, and the possibility for a very different future. As somebody who believes the the Jews aren’t going anywhere and the Palestinians aren’t going anywhere either, so we have to find a way to live together, I saw that today in all four site visits. I saw a future that I struggled to hold on to before seeing it live today. I added a few new Palestinian friends today to those I met during my Encounter program. Real people who want to live their lives in peace. Who invited me to visit their homes, meeting their families, and into their lives. Tomorrow we are off to Ramallah to see and learn more.

I am not naive that this will be easy. I don’t believe it will be simple. I don’t believe this will be quick. But I do believe that it is possible and can happen. That’s a far cry from the hopelessness that you get from the media and that friends and I have discussed repeatedly over lunch.

Hope isn’t dead when you open your eyes and see what is happening. Today with Rozana popped my eyes wide open. Today opened my heart. I still have lots of conflicting emotions and there are challenges ahead, but I see a pathway happening in real time, today. As I looked out over Jerusalem from our Rozana dinner at the sun setting on Jerusalem and the beauty of the night looking out over Jerusalem, I couldn’t help but being overcome with hope. With the ability to dream. And the desire to continue to struggle with my own beliefs while supporting those who are actively making this hope and dreams into reality. I have a part to play in building a better future for the world and I couldn’t be more grateful to Rozana for showing it to me.

A better Israel – A better world

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

For the last few weeks, I have been focused on Israel in a different way. Rather than being focused on post October 7th, the war with Iran and with Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the cold ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza, I’ve been focused on a few NGOs that I work with that all are all dedicated, in one way or another to building a better Israel.

One of the reasons that I love the work I get to do is that I work with people and organizations that are committed to making the world a better place. The past few weeks and the upcoming 2 weeks are an example of that. I am lucky that I get to work with a few organizations in Israel and another one that works with Israeli’s in the United States. Each is working, in their own way, to make Israel, and the world, a better place. Each one inspires me on a daily basis with the work that they do. And the past few week, along with my upcoming trip to Israel for one of them, have been true inspirations at time where the world is deeply troubled and finding home can often be difficult.

This is designed to share the hope that I feel, the inspiration that I get, during these dark times. When a person running for the US House of Representatives talks about creating internment camps for Zionists, when the Mayor of our largest city celebrates Nakba Day, when a Nazi is running for the US House of Representatives, when the NY Times runs an absurd piece about Israel training dogs to rape male Palestinian prisoners, a sitting US Representative blames the Jews (.39% of the Kentucky population, less than 1% of his district’s population) for him losing big in the primary, the 1 year anniversary of the murder of Sarah Milgrim (z’l) and Yaron Lischinsky (z’l) as they left a Jewish event, the lies about how those arrested on the Flotilla were treated, the rise of settler violence that isn’t be prosecuted, and the horrible statements by Ben-Gvir, it’s easy to have no hope. I challenge that because there is so much good happening if you want to look. So I am going to share some of what that good is that inspires me on a daily bases, that gives me hope on a daily basis.

In May, I spent a week traveling with my friend Amit Shahar from Dror Israel. I’ve written about the work of Dror Israel before and it never ceases to amaze me. As we traveled the state, I got to hear him tell stories about the work that they do. The nearly 100,000 children in an Israeli Zionist Youth movement. The 58 Arab villages with more than 20,000 Arab children, actively participating in an Israeli, Zionist, youth movement. The new Urban Kibbutzim (city based where Dror Educators live together in an apartment building and work out in the community) in three (3) new communities. Their efforts to help bring young people back to the North and South of Israel since so few are returning after October 7th and the recent war with Iran.

The PR about Israel is horrible. The lies are told regularly on TikTok and through the media. Yet the stories of hope get no attention. The work Israel is doing to build a better society gets no attention. As we traveled the state, I loved the conversations we had with different people about the work of Dror. People were stunned. People were excited. I brought Amit to my Friday lunch group and we had an incredible conversation that went far beyond the meal. A group that typically talks about the challenges in the world and in Israel was inspired.

One of my favorite Dror programs is the stables they have at Kibbutz Eshbol in the north. The at risk children who attend the boarding school there work with the horses. The big, strong animals push back on them. The horses teach the children while the children are training the horses. It’s a beautiul thing to see. Amit sent me this picture when he returned to Israel because he knows how much I love Kibbutz Eshbol and the stables.

After finishing my week with Amit, I had one day of not traveling to catch up on other work and get a little rest. The next day, I returned to South Florida to discuss another client, The Israel Bridge. Most people have not heard of The Israel Bridge and don’t know what they do. It’s a fabulous organization that helps Israeli athletes come to the United States to play sports at Universities all over the country. They work with the Israeli student athletes to get them scholarships and help them plug in to their local Jewish and Israeli community. These student athletes serve as schlichim, emissaries, from Israel to their teammates and on campus. Many are active in their campus Hillel, Chabad, or Jewish campus organization, bringing Israel directly to both Jewish and non-Jewish students. Their status as scholarship athletes and IDF veterans give them an opportunity to engage students on campus about the realities on the ground, not the lies being told on TikTok, Facebook, X (Twitter), and other social media.

I had the opportunity last year to hear one of the athletes, Guy Finklestein, speak at an event here in Central Florida. He was incredibly inspiring. On their website, Guy is quoted saying:

“I served in Duvdevan, an elite IDF unit, and play college tennis. When war broke out after October 7th, I left a tournament in Indiana to return to Israel and serve two deployments in Gaza.
 
After months of combat, I came to Florida to reset, fell in love with Boca Raton’s Jewish community, and transferred to FAU to study computer science. I’m graduating in December 2025 and excited for what’s ahead while staying true to my roots and giving back.”

Guy Finklestein playing tennis while wearing his “Bring them home NOW” t-shirt, bringing awareness to the hostages that were held in Gaza.

The Israel Bridge supports more than 400 Israeli student athletes on more than 200 different Universities in the United States, and has helped secure more than $30 MILLION DOLLARS in scholarships for these Israeli athletes. At a time when so many people are concerned about the rise of antisemitism and the current campus climates, The Israel Bridge addresses it directly, bringing these amazing Israeli student athletes to so many campuses to be representatives of Israel and provide a peer to the students on campus to ask questions and learn from. At a time when it is easy to be pessimistic about the future in the United States for Jews, with the rise of antisemitism on the left and the right, The Israel Bridge is doing work that is impactful and provides me with hope for the future.

On Thursday of this week, I head to Israel. This will be my 26th trip and first since December 2025. For me, that’s a long time. Israel is in my heart and my soul. This trip is for yet another amazing organization, Rozana. Their mission is peacebuilding through health. They call it Healthcare Diplomacy. I’ll be spending 12 total days in Israel including 5 with Rozana, doing site visits in the West Bank along with some in Tel Aviv and Haifa. The work they do is amazing. At a time when a possible 2-state solution seems impossible, they are doing work on the ground that provides hope that perhaps it will be possible in the future.

From training Palestinian doctors and nurses in Israeli hospitals alongside Israeli doctors and nurses to providing women’s health in Area C where access to healthcare for women is challenging, Rozana is making a difference. Their mobile clinics in Gaza give hope that the people of Gaza will see the value in living side by side with Israel. The rehabilitation center in Hebron provides critical care for those Palestinians who need those services and otherwise wouldn’t get it. We all know the store of Yaya Sinwar and how Israel saved his life only for him to be the architect of October 7th. We can’t afford to let his story stop us from having hope for a future with peace. It’s easy to let his story deter us from doing what is necessary to create the opportunity for peace. Whether it takes 5, 10, 20, or 50 years, the work of Rozana provides hope for a brighter future.

Rozana’s Women4Women mobile clincs

I am excited to see the work of Rozana in person, to meet the Palestinians who are part of the work of Rozana making a difference and creating hope. If you believe, as I do, that the Jews are not going anywhere and that the Palestinians aren’t going anywhere, ultimately we have to find a way to live together. This isn’t me being naive, but rather being a realist. It won’t be easy and it won’t be fast, but if we don’t start now, it will never happen.

I’ll be writing a lot about what I see and experience during my time with Rozana and my time in Israel. From Shabbat in Jerusalem to the site visits with Rozana, to a few days in Tel Aviv before flying back, there is much to see and experience. I’m looking forward to sharing it.

I am very lucky. In a world where it is hard to find hope, to be inspired for a better future, I get to be inspired every single day. I get to work with people who are actively making the world a better place. I see it in person when I go to Israel or when I hear the student athletes talk about their experiences. I hope to inspire others as I share my experiences and the things that give me hope.

Friday I’ll be in Jerusalem. I’ll go to Machane Yehuda (the market) and feel the energy. I’ll join friends for Shabbat dinner at their home. Saturday I’ll go to the Kotel. I’ll wander the old city. I’ll relax while absorbing the specialness of Jerusalem. Sunday I get to start my Rozana journey and see their work in person. Thursday night I’ll be in Tel Aviv, staying at my favorite hotel right on the beach. Jewish history to Jewish future to the Jewish present. What an incredible 12 days I have ahead.

Talking about hope, a friend shared this video with me. With all the lies about Israel, it’s a beautiful and powerful way to combat them. It gives me hope that maybe Israel will improve their PR and move into the TikTok and Instagram world to share the truth in a compelling way. I hope you enjoy it.

The Jewish Problem of people like Bernie Sanders

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

US Senator Bernie Sanders likes to use his Jewish heritage as a way to defend himself as he attacks Jews and Israel. He uses his personal hatred of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a way to batter Israel and put Jews in the US and around the world in danger. He chooses to tell half truths and outright lies in his frantic, yelling style in an attempt to make them true.

Earlier this week, on December 16, 2025, he chose not to sign onto a joint statement issued Monday December 15, 2025, by Jewish Senate Democrats condemning the Sydney attack with a weak excuse about an earlier statement about antisemitism. This is the essence of Bernie Sanders. Lie, yell, deflect, and spew hatred against those you dislike, all while becoming wealthy while pretending to be one of the people.

This week he issued a very troubling statement, criticizing Netanyahu who linked the terror attack in Sydney, Australia, to Australian PM Canberra’s recognition for a Palestinian state. In the statement, he made four critical claims that need to be addressed. I’m sharing my thoughts on each of them.

DISCLAIMER: I am not going down the rabbit hole of ‘is there a Palestine or Palestinian people’? That is not a helpful or useful dialogue as the people exist and that’s how they are choosing to identify. That debate only creates division and doesn’t move us towards any hope for a better future.

Claim number 1: “No, Mr. Netanyahu. Speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people is not antisemitic.

Here his claim in correct. Speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people is certainly not antisemitic. Ignoring how they are damaged by the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Hamas while putting all the blame on Israel is 100% antisemitic. When I visited and met with leaders of Palestinian civil society in 2019, there were a number of things that were very clear. First, they had some major issues with the Israeli government and government policies. Many of their issues I agree with. Secondly, they had no use for the PA. The corruption of the PA, the lack of elections had the people I met with who were not on the PA’s payroll united that they were useless and harmful to the Palestinian people. Endorsing a Palestinian state that wants to eliminate Israel, that doesn’t hold elections, that has a government that rewards violence and the murder of Jews, is problematic. There is a very big difference between speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people and blaming Israel for everything. Senator Sanders blames Israel for everything.

When I ran Hillel at UF, I used to publicly wonder why I was more pro-Palestinian than those in Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). I wanted there to be a Palestinian state with free elections. A place with a thriving Palestinian economy, Palestinian universities staffed with Palestinian professors, meeting in buildings built by Palestinian construction companies. Places that turned out Palestinian doctors and nurses that worked in Palestinian hospitals that were built by those Palestinian construction companies. And most importantly, one that lived in peace with their neighbor, Israel. People like Bernie Sanders simply want no Israel. They don’t care when Hamas murders the civilians in Gaza. They don’t care when Hamas starves the people of Gaza. They only want to blame Israel. So yes, Senator Sanders, speaking out on behalf of the Palestinian people is not antisemitic but when you do so only to blame and vilify Israel, it certainly is.

Claim Number 2: Opposing the disgraceful policies of your extremist government is not antisemitic.

Senator Sanders claims that opposing the policies of a government is not antisemitic. He is 100% correct. There is nothing wrong with opposing the policies of a government. Even in thinking and staying that they are ‘disgraceful’ or calling the government ‘extremist’. That’s the beauty of a democracy. The protests in Israel against the current government have been massive. I was able to watch one outside my hotel in Jerusalem last year. It was amazing to see. The protests were non-violent. There is absolutely nothing wrong with opposing the policies of a duly elected, democratic government. The problem is that Senator Sanders doesn’t oppose the brutal government of Hamas in Gaza. He doesn’t speak out against the government of the Palestinian Authority, elected to a 4-year term on January 9, 2005! For all of Senator Sanders outspoken worries about President Trump not leaving after his term, he supports and doesn’t criticize Mahmoud Abbas, now finishing year 20 of a 4-year term! What hypocrisy!

People like Bernie Sanders hide behind their claims of criticizing the government while actually criticizing the legitimacy of the State of Israel. All they have to do is watch as hundreds of thousands of Israelis protest against the government, peacefully. They can watch disagreements in the Knesset, read the Israeli papers that criticize the government. Instead, they allow their hatred of Bibi Netanyahu to put all Jews around the world at risk.

Claim Number 3: Condemning your genocidal war, which has killed more than 70,000 people — mostly women and children — is not antisemitic.

The facts prove that there is no genocide in Gaza. According to a recent report by President Trump, there have been 67,000 deaths in Gaza with 58,000 of them being Hamas fighters. The 67,000 number comes directly from the Gaza Ministry of Health (Hamas). This means that the civilian to combatant ratio is 0.16 to 1. Israel has consistently reported the ratio in the 1:1 or 1.5:1 ratio. The UN average, or what is permissible in every war that doesn’t involve Israel, is 9 to 1. Facts matter except when it comes to Bernie Sanders and Israel. The data also shows that most of those killed in Gaza are not women and children but are men. Once again, Bernie lies.

Hamas uses women and children as human shields. They use the sick and the elderly as human shields. None of that matters to Bernie Sanders. His hatred for Netanyahu and his hatred of Israel means that he spreads the lies about genocide, putting all Jews at risk. That is antisemitic. Spreading the genocide libel is antisemitic.

Ignoring the actual genocides ongoing in the world while lying about a fake one is antisemitic. Christians are being massacred in Nigeria for the crime of being Christian. Sudan is experiencing the world’s worst displacement crisis and one of the world’s worst hunger crises with nearly 25 million people in need of assistance. No Jews, No News.

As for the fake genocide, the population in Gaza has actually INCREASED since the start of the war. If this was a genocide, it would make it the worst attempt at genocide in history.

Claim Number 4: Demanding that your government stop bombing hospitals and starving children is not antisemitic.”

Allowing Hamas to use hospitals as military bases while condemning Israel for attacking the sites that are firing rockets and missiles at them is antisemitic. The demand should be that Hamas stop using hospitals as military sites. Their use of hospitals as military sites is a war crime. No questions about it. Except that they are doing it against Jews, which is always the exception to a crime. Bernie and his crew totally miss the target here. Hamas digs tunnels under hospitals to use them as military sites. That’s the outrage. Hamas hid hostages in hospitals, that’s the outrage. Claiming Israel and the Jews are randomly bombing hospitals is not only wrong, it puts Jews at risk around the world.

The claim of starving children is yet another lie. There are plenty of images of literal tons of food and aid being delivered to Gaza and sitting there, being undelivered, by UNRWA and the Red Cross. They refused Israel’s support in delivering the food, demanding that Hamas help them deliver the food and aid. The same Hamas that was stealing the food. The same Hamas that was selling the food on the black market. When the complaint from the people of Gaza is that the free food is too expensive, the problem is easy to see. Yet Bernie and his crew ignore the facts to once again blame the Jews.

Earlier this month, it was discovered that Hamas hid tons of baby formula to damage Israel with starvation claims. The images are damning. Yet the media ignores the truth and runs with the lies. People like Bernie run with the lies because it gets them time on TV, headlines in the paper, and helps make them rich. They don’t care about the people in Gaza, those in the hospitals being used as military bases, or the mothers who can’t feed their babies. They only care about blaming the Jews. The facts bear this out.

This isn’t to claim that Israel is blameless or perfect. This isn’t to say that criticism of Israel is automatically antisemitism. When it’s clear that Israel is being singled out, held to a different standard, the lies are getting the headlines while the truth gets buried, that is antisemitism.

People like Bernie Sanders put my life and my family’s life at risk. What happened at Bondi Beach on the first night of Hanukkah could have happened at any Hanukkah celebration around the world. It could happen at one that my family is attending. If you doubt that, read these accountings from the past WEEK in New York, published in this NY Post article.

In just the last few days, multiple alarming episodes of open Jew-hatred have shocked New York City.

Saturday night in a tony West Village eatery, a Jewish woman asked a bigot to cool it with his noisy antisemitic language. He screamed filthy slurs at her, calling her an “ugly f–king Zionist,” insisting, “we will rid this country of f–king you.”

Monday night in Brooklyn, a pair of nasty bigots harassed Hanukkah celebrants, and yelled “F–k the Jews” on a subway platform.

Once on the train, one thug grabbed a visibly Jewish man by the throat and threatened to kill him.

Then, Tuesday afternoon in Crown Heights, an unhinged pedestrian shouted antisemitic remarks at passersby and stabbed one in the chest.

This is New York. The United States of America. 2025. I’m afraid of what 2026 will bring with people like Bernie Sanders making outlandish and false claims against Israel and the Jews. We must stop the lies now. We must hold the liars accountable for their lies that incite violence. Freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences. Inciting violence is a crime and that’s what Bernie Sanders continues to do. He can hate Benjamin Netanyahu all he wants. He can hate Israel all he wants. He can even hate his Jewish heritage if he wants. He isn’t entitled to incite violence against people like me and my family.

It’s time to put an end to the hate. It’s time to demand more from people like Bernie Sanders.

A day down south

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I’ve been close to the Gaza border twice, In May 2024 I visited both Kfar Aza and the Nova site and in July 2024 I returned to both Kfar Aza and Nova along with Kibbutz Alumim. I was about a mile from Gaza on both occasions, heard and saw the drones and jets fly over Jabalya, and saw and heard bombs drop, gunfire, explosions and building collapse. Both were intense experiences as it felt strange to be so close to an active war zone.

Google Maps view from my May 2024 visit to Kfar Aza

Today I got even closer. We had the opportunity to go to Shlomi’s Food Truck, right outside Kibbutz Be’eri, and make sandwiches to feed soldiers fighting in Gaza and on the border. We cut vegetables, stuffed pita with schnitzel, salad, hummus and tahini, bagged them and filled up box after box after box, then loaded them into a truck and van, and left for the border.

Shlomi showed up outside Kibbutz Be’eri on October 8, 2023 and began making sandwiches for the soliders. Every Sunday to Thursday since then, he shows up, makes sandwiches and gives them to soldiers on the border. Volunteers, like us, began coming to help him. He has paid for this out of his own pocket for more than two years. It costs about $5,000 a week to do this. You can do the math on how much of his own money he has spent over the past more than two years feeding soldiers. It’s a passion, a mission, and an obligation for him.

Going to the border was an unbelievable experience. We drove right along it, went into the area where the soldiers were working, offering them lunch. The smiles on their faces, the thank you’s that we received are priceless. I kept thanking them. It is them who are risking their lives, going into Gaza, keeping Israel and the world safe. All we did was make and deliver some sandwiches. We walked all through the area as they worked on their tanks, handing out lunch. We met soldier and soldier after soldier. Being right there on the border with Gaza and getting to make sandwiches and then feed the soldiers was an incredible experience. It’s not something I will ever forget.

As we prepared to finish our work, we ran into a bunch of soldiers from the Carmeli unit, about to go into Gaza. Watching these brave soldiers load up into the truck, smiling, laughing, and prepared to do whatever it takes to keep Israel and the world safe, was incredibly powerful. I lifted a box of sandwiches to them in the truck so they could take them into Gaza and give them to soldiers who couldn’t come back across the border. This picture of them in the truck was possible because they all had their backs to the camera at that moment. The hate for Israel and Jews around the world means we can’t take pictures of their faces. The flag is their unit’s flag. It’s something I will always remember.

After lunch at Kibbutz Alumim, we headed to Kfar Aza. As I said, I’ve been there before. In May 2024, the devastation was incredible. The blatent brutality was in my face. By July 2024 they had begun to make some changes. This time the changes were incredible. The burned and shot up homes had been demolished and new construction was in place. Most of the kibbutz was no longer witness to the devastation of October 7th, it was a sign of life and the resilience of the Jewish people. This house is an example. In May and July of 2024 it was a symbol of the savagery of Hamas. In December 2025 it is a symbol of life, a beautiful new house in a beautiful area of the Kibbutz. As I looked at it, I could imagine myself living there. The dichotomy of my visits in 2024 and 2025 are symbolic of the Jewish people. We face many challenges and get repeatedly knocked down. But like the beautiful new house in 2025, we always get up. We look to the future with hope and with dreams. We won’t stay down, we won’t allow others to defeat us.

We met with Schacher, a resident of Kfar Aza. He told me his story and gave us the tour of Kfar Aza in July 2024. As we sat on the deck of his house, he told us what it was like on October 7th, hiding in his safe room as those around him were murdered and kidnapped. Why the terrorists didn’t come into his safe room we will never know. They came into his house, ate his food, and used his deck, the same deck and chairs we were sitting at, as their headquarters for the attack. It was surreal to be sitting in the same place that the terrorists were on October 7th.

Schacher’s table and deck, where the terrorists sat and planned their attack on October 7th at Kfar Aza.

Schacher took us around Kfar Aza, showing us where terrorists murdered people, where they kidnapped people, and told us stories of those who died and those who survived. It was incredibly powerful to experience. It was also a bit surreal as the changes since my last visit in July 2024 were obvious. While people haven’t moved back en masse yet, it was still a place of life now, not of death. Until we got to the young people’s section of the kibbutz. This area was targeted by Hamas for kidnapping and murder. The devastation remained. There are two homes we can walk in, one because the family gave permission as they want people to see the brutality of Hamas and how their daughter was murdered, the other because it was empty on October 7th. I also saw the home of Netta Epstein. I met Netta’s mother in November 2025 and her story and how Netta died was powerful and painful. Netta and his fiance were at home when Hamas stormed Kfar Aza. Hamas began throwing grenades into their small home and Netta threw them out. Until he couldn’t get to one fast enough. He jumped on the grenade to save his fiance, sacrificing his life. She was taken hostage and ultimately released. When I look at his picture, I see somebdy like my kids, with a bright future ahead. Hamas stole that from Netta, from his family, and from the world.

I wasn’t as angry at Kfar Aza this time because it was clear life was returning. It is a good lesson for us all and perhaps the true secret of why the Jewish people have continued to survive for thousands of years. We focus on life, not on death. We can grieve those who were murdered but we can’t bring them back. What we can do is live fully in their memory. We can make sure that their being murdered for the crime of being Jewish doesn’t become meaningless.

Our final stop in the south was the Nova festival site. I had heard from others how it had changed and been built up since my last visit but I wasn’t prepared for what I saw. Two new forests were built by Jewish National Fund (JNF) to honor those murdered there. There was a new area for the main stage and for the big yellow dumpsters. Seating areas had been built and real bathrooms now existed. The dirt road was replaced with paved road. Even the pictures in the field to memorialize the victims had been upgraded. It left me with conflicted feelings

The updated and upgraded Nova memorial

Part of me appreciated the need to make this into a true memorial for the country. To add exhibits and make it look more professional. Yet another part of me really appreciated the simplicity and raw emotion that the earlier version offered. Change is difficult and for me, the impact of the first two times I visited the Nova site was strong. This is a different version of the site. Yet when I watched how it impacted those on the trip who had never been to Nova before, I saw them having the same experience I had my first time. Perhaps it really is just me and what I wanted to see rather than the impact that it had. I enjoyed the main stage exhibit and the big yellow dumpsters exhibit. They were new and really added something to the experience.

The Main Stage exhibit
A part of the Main Stage exhibit

We finished out time at Nova by gathering in a circle and singing. All three times I have visited Nova, we have sung. As the memorial site to those brutally murdered at a music festival, I think it is important to bring music, even if just one song, to the visit. This time we gathered together and sang Hatikvah. Not only is it the Israeli National Anthem, it means “The Hope.” On a day that involved being on the border with Gaza, visiting Kibbutz Alumim, Kibbutz Kfar Aza, and the Nova Site, hope is essential and fitting. Yet after we finished singing, we discussed the lyrics.

The song begins, “As long as the heart within the Jewish soul yearns, and towards the eastern edge, onward, and eye gazes to Zion.” The hope for the Jewish State of Israel in this song is not unconditional. In fact, it is very conditional. Our hearts must yearn towards Zion, towards Israel, in order to have a Jewish state. It has to be within us, a part of our being. That’s what makes Israel so special – the longing we have for her. The deep within us passion and love for our Jewish homeland. Without that passion and love, deep within our heart exists, so will Israel. I don’t know about you, but I know that I have that deep yearning of my soul, in my heart, for Israel, our Jewish homeland. I gaze towards Israel often, come visit whenever and as often as I can, and love being here. I hope that you do as well. It is a remarkable country on so many levels.

Where to do we go from here?

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I spent the beginning of the week in Washington DC at the Jewish Federation of North America’s (JFNA) General Assembly (GA). The GA is a gathering of 2,000 Jewish communal professionals and volunteer leaders, networking and addressing the challenges facing the Jewish world. I’ve been to more than I can count and find them both energizing and exhausting. This year’s GA is no exception.

With the ‘end of the war’ and the return of the living hostages, this year has focused on rebuilding and resilence, two key factors not just for Israel but for those of us living in the diaspora. The past two years, since October 7, 2023, have been incredibly challenging, painful, and filled with far too many ups and downs both in Israel and the diaspora.

Having just been in Israel and seeing the difference in the country with the return of the living hostages and the hope that perhaps there will remain a cessession of the war, if not an opportunity for peace, I began to feel some hope for Israel and Israelis. I haven’t felt that way about the diaspora and particularly in America. Here at the GA, I have begun to get a little bit of that. So what is that began to give me this hope?

On Sunday night, at the beginning of the first main session, four former hostages spoke to us. Noa Argamani, Avinatan Or, Evyatar David and Guy Gilboa-Dalal shared not just some of what happened to them but also their incredible gratitude to the IDF soldiers who fought for their freedom. They recognized the soldiers who paid the ultimate sacrifice in order to rescue them and to defend Israel. They recognized the spouses and children of the soldiers who returned to milium (reserves) time after time after time, all to free the hostages and defend Israel. The incredible grace these four people showed was inspiring. I don’t know that I would be filled with gratitude after being held hostage as long as each of them were. I don’t know that I would be able to show grace instead of anger if I went through what they went through. It was an incredible lesson of humanity and I found it inspirational for me to be a better person, a better friend, a better member of society, and somebody who wants to continue to work to do my part in making this a better world for everybody.

Former hostages Noa Argamani, Avinatan Or, Evyatar David and Guy Gilboa-Dalal 

I was especially struck by Avinatan as he shared his story. Kept underground, by himself, in the tunnels, for 738 days, more than 2 years. Two years of no sunlight. Two years of no fresh air. Two years of no human companionship, only terrorists beating and harrassing him. He lived in his mind. He told us the story of his escape attempt, digging through the dirt day after day after day. When one day he hit the roots of tree, it was his first proof of life outside the tunnel and the entire audience could imagine that moment. He shared about finally breaking through into the outside and his first breaths of fresh air in well over a year, looking at the stars in the sky at night, and feeling alive, just for a moment, before he was caught and taken back to the tunnels. Bound to a chair and beaten for a week. Yet he wouldn’t lose hope. He wouldn’t lose faith.

We live in a world today that is lacking that hope and that faith. Listening to Avinatan, Noa, Eyatar and Guy was a powerful reminder of community. Of faith. Of hope. These four amazing people somehow managed to keep their faith and hope alive in horrifying circumstances. Just a few days ago, Guy publicly stated that he was sexually abused by Hamas while being held as a hostage. This could break a person’s soul, ruin their faith, and strip hope from them. Yet somehow Guy held on to hope and to faith.

My hope and faith get tested every day. At Park East synagogue in New York, protestors this week chanted antisemitic slogans such as “Death to the IDF” and “Globalize the intifada,” things Mayor-Elect Mamdani has failed to condemn. His spokesperson, Dora Pekec, issued the following statement to the online publication  Jewish Insider:

“The mayor-elect has discouraged the language used at last night’s protest and will continue to do so. He believes every New Yorker should be free to enter a house of worship without intimidation, and that these sacred spaces should not be used to promote activities in violation of international law.”   

So according to Mayor-elect Mamdani, promoting Aliyah (moving to Israel) at a synagogue is a violation of International Law. He doesn’t condemn those who advocate violence against Jews in other houses of worship. He doesn’t want to crack down on those who plan violence against Jews, those who hurl hate messages outside a house of worship, only those who want to talk about emigrating to Israel. It’s hard not to see the antisemitism and Jew hatred in his statement. I wonder what those in the Jewish community who voted for and support him will say and do if he begins to crack down on anything Israel related in a synagogueor in New York. Will there still be an Israel parade? Will Israeli flags be banned in synagogues in New York? Will we see extra taxes and fees place on flights leaving New York to Israel? How far will it go? He hasn’t even been inaugrated and the concern continues to mount.

Yet I remain hopeful. I won’t lose faith. For the last four days I have been in Seattle with Noam from Dror Israel. We spent a lot of time talking with each other. One of the things that he said repeatedly that stuck with me is that he can’t worry about changing the rest of the world. He can only worry about changing Israel. In this crazy world that we live in, it can be overwhelming to think that we have to change the entire world. Instead, if I focus on changing my world, I can have a real impact. Change my community, my city, maybe even my state. I am not responsible for the entire world or even my entire country. But I can work to change my community. That is my responsibility.

I have been on the road for the past week and have heard from a number of people how I have the best job in the world. I agree with them. I have the privilige of working with amazing nonprofit organizations that are changing their communities. They are changing the world by doing so. I get inspired by them every single day. Every day when I wake up, I know that in my small way, I am helping them to change the world. Because of the work that I do, these organizations are improving the lives of people. It fills me with gratitude. It gives me hope and restores my faith. With Thanksgiving just a few days away, there is so much I have to be thankful for. My family. My health. And the fact that every single day, it this crazy and often absurd world that we live in, I get to do my part to make it a little bit better. I don’t have to be the type of heroes that the IDF soldiers have been, risking their lives to save the hostages. All I have to do is my part to make the world a better place. I know when I wake up tomorrow, that’s exactly what I will do. Will you?

Our world and our country is lost

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I think today is when I finally acknowledge the reality we are all seeing and none of us want to admit. Our world is lost. We have reached the tipping point from which I am no longer sure we can recover. Today we had both a school shooting outside of Denver as well as the assasination of Charlie Kirk. I was no fan of Charlie Kirk. I didn’t agree with much of anything that Charlie Kirk said. Yet his assasination is the type of behavior that shows our country has no moral conscience. It shows how lost we are. We don’t shoot people we don’t agree with or don’t like. We don’t condone murder. This isn’t a left/right issue. If you haven’t seen the video of his murder, here it is. It’s something that is unforgettable once you see it.

We have already seen the efforts to blame him for his own murder. The media isn’t holding themselves accountable for promoting hate and divisiveness. They aren’t blaming the person who murdered him. They are blaming him. Matthew Dowd says it publicly on MSNBC. He won’t hold people like Francesca Albanese accountable for her lies about Israel. He won’t hold Hamas accountable for their actual genocide. But he will blame somebody he disagrees with their own murder.

We are seeing things like this all over the place. No outrage at murder. No outrage at the taking of a life. Because they disagree with Charlie Kirk, they celebrate his death and his murdered. We saw this with the shooting and murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024 by Luigi Mangione (who has not yet been officially convicted) and the way Magnione has been celebrated and become a hero to many. With Charlie Kirk is now dropping to a new low.

Charlie Kirk’s murder has overshadowed the school shooting in Evergreen, Colorado. Think about how insane a statement that is. A person took a gun and shot up a school and it’s not the lead story. It’s not even the lead story related to gun violence. It’s not even the lead story about a shooting that occurred at an educational facility.

Three high school students were shot in Evergreen, one of them the suspected shooter. They are in critical condition. A fourth is also in the hospital. Students went to high school today to learn. Instead four are in the hospital, three in critical condition (including the suspected shooter). A community is traumatized. The country? Not so much. Only three, including the shooter, were shot. In today’s world, that’s barely noticable. Insanity. School shootings should NEVER occur let alone not be newsworthy. It’s far beyond reasonable gun laws. We have a crisis on our hands. A crisis of the soul.

The Spanish Prime Minister says that unfortunately Spain doesn’t have nuclear weapons to stop the Israeli offensive in Gaza. Nothing about the hostages. Nothing about October 7th. Instead, he regrets they don’t have nuclear weapons to stop Israel fighting the terrorists. There is a reason they don’t and shoudn’t ever have nuclear weapons.

A European elected leaders expresses remorse for his inability to use a nuclear weapon on Israel to stop them from fighting an existential threat to their own survival. Fighting an enemy that tried actual genocide on October 7, 2023, that celebrated their horrific actions by recording and publishing them for the world to see. Yet no outrage is shown by the media or the world. Imagine a world leader saying that about any other country and what would happen. But nuking the Jewish state? Totally ok.

Canada continues to sink into its antisemitism and Jew hatred. Israel has provided more humanitarian aid to the enemy than any country in history. They do all they can to notify civilians ahead of time to evacuate an area before they attack. They target the leaders and put their own soldiers at risk. This isn’t about whether you like or hate Bibi Netanyahu. This isn’t about whether Israel is fighting a perfect war (not so subtle hint – they are not). This is about the existence of Jews and of the State of Israel.

These same people applauded when the US invaded Pakistan to eliminate Osama Bin-Laden. They are pure hypocrites and Jew haters. As Hen Mazzig points out in the post below, President Macron of France, who criticized Israel for their action to target Hamas leadership, ignores the fact that France has bombed FIVE countries because of terrorism. What type of world do we live in when this is not only happening but encouraged.

What used to infuriate me the most, until today when a school shooting wasn’t really news and the murder of somebody was celebrated by many who disagree with his views, was the way the world leaders don’t care about the truth and continue their lies. Their demand that Israel make peace, when Israel accepted the most recent plan to end the war and it was Hamas who rejected it, is beyond insanity. Their demand for humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza when it’s documented that approximately 700 trucks of aid are coming into Gaza DAILY is beyond ignoring the truth. The following was the announcement and report from September 9, 2025 from the IDF and COGAT:

Humanitarian Aid Data and Efforts on September 9:

Over the past day, more than 280 humanitarian aid trucks entered Gaza through the Kerem Shalom and Zikim crossings.

Additionally, 400 trucks were collected and distributed by the UN and international organizations, while the contents of several hundred more remain on the Gazan side of the crossings, awaiting collection.

We have facilitated the entry of tankers of UN fuel for the operation of essential humanitarian systems.

In addition, a rotation coordination of humanitarian personnel has been successful completed.

We will continue expanding our efforts to facilitate humanitarian aid for the civilian population of Gaza.

There is no criticism of the United Nations who doesn’t deliver the aid when it comes into Gaza. There is no celebrating the efforts of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation that is getting food directly to the people. There is only the lie that food and aid isn’t getting into Gaza. It is getting in. The UN makes sure it doesn’t get to the people, only to Hamas or that it sits out in the sun. It is Hamas that is starving the people with the assistance of the United Nations. Our world leaders don’t even attempt to pretend they are telling the truth. They just out and out lie because the world hates the Jews and is willing to believe anything they are told. The media helps them.

Our world is broken. I’m not sure that it can be fixed. For the first time in my life, I understand the story of Noah, the ark, and the flood in a way I never have before. I understand the story of Sodom and Gemorrah like I never have before. Tikkun Olam means something different that it ever has before. Today, I question if our world is even worth saving. Yet despite my questions and my misgivings, I won’t give up the fight. I won’t stop trying to do my part to make it a world filled with kindness, love, and care for each other. I don’t have another choice. None of us do. The future of the world literally depends on us to confront the evil, the lies, and the hate. We can’t sit by idly. We can’t bury our heads in the sand. We can’t stand by quietly.

At times like this I find myself thinking back to the three times that I had the opportunity to meet and talk with the great Elie Weisel. I think of the last time, when I brought my children, then both young, and what he said. How it was our responsibility to build the world we want. How much our actions mattered and that it was up to us to build the world we wanted for them. The world we have today is NOT the world i want for my children. So I fight the evil. I speak out. I write. I have tattoos to commorate October 7th. I proudly wear my Star of David with Israel in the middle of it. I have a Florida Stands with Israel license plate on my car. I have a big mezzuzah on my front door. I won’t hide. I won’t be silent. And I won’t accept evil.

As Elie Weisel said, we need to be held accountable. God will always do God’s part but we must do ours. Will you join me in the fight against evil?

They no longer even try to hide their Jew hatred

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

It is official. AP has gone into business with Hezbollah and the terrorists. They have quietly defended the terrorists through inaccurate reporting and lies but no longer feel the need to do it under any pretense. They just released what used to be considered an unpublishable and unforgiveable article about how life has been difficult for terrorists who were targeted in a strategic and surgical attack to eliminate them or at least stop them from being able to be active terrorists. To AP, they are now tragic figures who’s only crime was that they wanted to murder, rape, decapitate, and ensure the genocide of the Jews. And honestly, they are only Jews so to AP, they don’t really count. After all, what is thousands of dead Jews compared to a terrorist who can’t be a terrorist to kill more Jews with his buddies or one who can’t play football any longer.  

Here was this incredible report by the Associated Press. The didn’t even try to hide their support of the terrorists.

So AP wants us to have sympathy for people like the terrorist Mahdi Sheri, who can’t play football and can’t fight for Hezbollah anymore, but writes nothing about what should have been Ariel Bibas (z’l) 6th birthday on August 6th. Somebody dedicated to murder, rape, torture, kidnapping, and real genocide gets a sympatheic piece while the brutal kidnapping and murder of a 4 year old child is ignored. Pathetic. Horrific. The American media no longer needs to hide its antisemitism and Jew hatred.

In the article, it cites that Human rights and United Nations reports say the attack may have violated international law, calling it indiscriminate. Using the pagers assigned by a terrorists group to their terrorist members to stop the terrorists is called ‘indiscriminate’. You couldn’t make this type of stuff up. It’s time to close the UN, no longer anything close to what it was designed to be. If we, as a country, want to really believe in our ideals of humanity, we have no place for the Jew hating UN.

Then there is Mahmoud Khalil, a terrorist who led the Columbia antisemistism and Jew hatred efforts. Amazingly he says publicly that October 7th was necessary because Israel was making peace with other Arab countries and the Palestinians were being ‘left behind’. If being left behind means their rejection of every peace offer since 1948, then yes, they were left behind. Accepting a deal that acknowledges the right of Israel to exist that would create a Palestinian state isn’t acceptable so instead, their decision is to murder, rape, kidnap, and decapitate as many Jews as they possibly can. Khalil all but says that publicly and yet the world stays silent. It’s beyond obscene.

Then there is Linda Sarsour, one of the most vile antisemites around. She completely ignores the oppression of Hamas, completely ignores the freedoms of muslims who are Israeli citizens, and instead, chooses to to advocate that all Muslims must hate all Jews. According to her, the official position of the entire muslim community needs to be Jew hatred. Once again, the world stays silent. Their silence is their tacit approval of what she advocates. It’s their way to encourage Jew hatred without having to directly say it.

It’s hard to find things that go beyond those, however in today’s world, that is not only possible but probably. Amazingly, an Austrian heiress to the industrial dynasty whose company manufactured Zyklon B—the chemical used to gas Jews during the Holocaust—is set to sail on a “Freedom Flotilla” to Gaza. Her family wasn’t able to eliminate all the Jews so she is going to do her part in carrying on the family tradition of demonizing and attempting to murder the Jews. The world sees no irony. The world sees nothing wrong with this.

The UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) came out with an incredible report that explains the food shortages in Gaza. They found that between May 19 and August 5, 2025, 88% of aid trucks collected by the UN in Gaza did not reach their intended destinations. This means that of the 2,604 trucks with food and humanitarian aid that entered Gaza, 2,309 of them were intercepted and didn’t reach the people of Gaza. In some months, the percentage of stolen aid was even higher, reaching 94% in July 2025. The report is even more damning of the UN and Hamas. Data shows that 85% of aid pallets sent to Gaza did not reach their intended recipients, with 28,000 out of 33,000 pallets looted. The more food and aid given to the UN to distribute, the more food and aid ends up with Hamas for them to feed their terrorist agenda and for them to sell on the black market to fund their terror operations.

Yet it is Israel that is blamed. Hamas is absolved of any responsibility. The UN, charged with delivering the food and aid to the people are given a free pass from their role in the lack of food for the people of Gaza. Israel, who sent the food in, who turned it over to the UN, is the who the world blames for the lack of food. It’s beyond absurd.

What makes it even worse? The Jews who side with the UN and Hamas. The Jews who use terms like genocide and war crimes when talking about Israel. The Jews who will be shocked when the Jew haters come for them because they were on the side of Hamas. This image and post on X (Twitter) puts it best, using Bernie Sanders, the ultimate Jewish Jew hater (Peter Beinart is a very close second) as the example.

If Jew haters like Bernie Sanders really cared about starving children in Gaza they would hold Hamas and the UN accountable for allowing the food and aid to be stolen and looted and not given to the people. They would hold Egypt accountable for not allowing ANY aid through their border and for not allowing the civilians (i.e. not Hamas) of Gaza to move into the Sinai where they could be safe, have plenty of food, water, medicine, and a life while Israel eliminates Hamas. The reality is they don’t care about anything other than hating Jews.

No longer can we allow this blatent Jew hatred to go unchallenged. No longer can we excuse it, especially when it comes from other Jews. It’s bad enough when the rest of the world hates us but when we decide to hate ourselves, thinking the world will love us because we helped rid the world of Jews, we are delusional. At times like this, we need to listen to Winston Churchill.

Don’t be an appeaser. Don’t allow those you know to be appeasers. When you do, in the end, we all get eaten.

Free Palestine

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

We have heard this chant for years. Since October 7th, the cries have come more frequently, louder, and in many places. It has become the calling card for antisemitism and Jew hatred. “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free.” A chant that is saying, “From the River to the Sea, the middle east will be Jew free.” It is cute, clever, rhymes and is easy to say. It’s also racist and bigoted. But because it’s a chant against the Jews, it’s accepted and defended.

Since October 7th, it has caught on like wildfire. It’s an easy way to terrorize Jews and attack Jews in a now socially accepted manner. Jewish passengers on an Iberia flight had to deal with it. What will be the consequences for this blatent Jew hatred? Nothing.

As Jews, we have allowed this to happen. We have tolerated it, excused it, minimized it, and allowed the Jew hatred to grow. Even today, we continue to find ways to excuse Jew hatred and do things to make the Jewish community responsible for others behavior. The claims that Israel is committing genocide is a perfect example. They are fighting a war. Innocent people are dying. They are not fighting a perfect war and have made many mistakes. Just like every other country in the history of war. It doesn’t matter that the data doesn’t support this claim. It doesn’t matter that it clearly doesn’t meet the definition of genocide while Hamas’s attack on October 7th fully does. It doesn’t matter that just a few weeks ago, in Syria, the Syrian army were ordered to kill every Druze and to eliminate the entire population, a clear genocidal intent, which the world didn’t care about. Every time I see a Jewish person make the claim of genocide my stomache turns. When it is a Jewish leader, especially a Rabbi, my heart breaks. Once again, we are helping our abusers destroy us. Once again we are complicit. In his article in the Free Press, Coleman Hughes addresses the simple truth about the war.

Yahyah Sinwar knew this about the world and about the Jews. In his article, The Wisdom of Yahyah Sinwar, Oren states clearly that, “The leader of Hamas bet that the West’s oldest hatred would obscure Hamas’s atrocities. He was right.” The world hates Jews. We are th oldest scapegoat, easy to blame for anything and everything. Easy to hate because we help those who hate us. Oren points out the many lies that have been told, the way the truth has been proven and yet it is the lies that remain what the public remembers and believes. And we help them.

There are many people who have been very critical of our major Jewish organizations and our Rabbinic leadership for their failure to speak out fast enough, powerfully enough, clearly enough, and with a strong moral clarity. It is easy to miss those who speak out clearly and powerfully, with moral clarity and no ambiguity. My friend Rabbi Jeremy Barras is one of them. Rabbi of one of the largest reform synagogue in Miami, Temple Beth Am, Rabbi Barras is an unabashed Zionist and speaks with incredible passion and moral clarity. His comments below are powerful, clear, and come with moral clarity. Listen to what he says and understand.

It is time for us to stop helping those who want to kill us to succeed. It is time for us to stand up for who we are and what we believe. It is time to call the world out on their Jew hatred and not allow it. The NY Times knowingly ran a picture that was altered and of a child with Cerebral Palsy and lied about it, staying it was starvation. There are rumors that Irael is going to sue the NY Times for $10 billion dollars for this. I hope they do. They must be held accountable. It isn’t just the NY Times. Today it came out that TIme Magazine staged a photo of people in Gaza starving. They did this for the cover of their magazine!

It doesn’t matter to the world that the pictures are altered or staged. It doesn’t matter to the world that these ‘news’ organizations knowingly lie about the story. It fits the narrative that the world wants of the Jews. Michael Oren wrote in his article about how the world holds, “the 2,000-year belief that Jews were inherently vengeful, greedy, and lustful for the blood of innocents and children.”

This is the reality that we face today. Hamas lies. The media intentionally believes the lies and helps facilitate the lies to generate Jew hatred. People believe it. Jew hatred grows. A good example of how this happens and the impact is Sam Rasoul of the Virginia House of Delegates. He is a Democrat who chairs the Education Committee in the state’s House of Delegates and has used his social media accounts to attack Israel and America’s support for Israel. Recently, he has gone even more offensive in his posting, slandering Zionism and putting Jews in danger. On July 26, 2025, he posted on Instagram that Zionism is a “supremist ideology created to destroy and conquer everything and everyone in its way.”. He then accused Zionists of “making the world less safe for my Jewish friends.”

He starts with a lie about Zionism – simply the belief that Jews should have their own homeland. A homeland that continues to offer peace to the Palestinians that they have continued to reject. If there is any supremist ideology, it is the Palestinian leadership that demands everything and rejects peace. But the truth doesn’ tmatter. He then accuses Zionists of making the world less safe for Jews, another lie, as it is people like him who are making it less safe. Maybe he has some Jewish friends but I doubt they more than tokens designed to provide some cover to his Jew hatred.

This is the person who chairs the Education Committee in the Virginia legislature. Is it reasonable to assume he’ll provide real information and educational guidance about Jews and Israel? Should we expect that he will do everything required to protect Jewish students, especially if they are Zionists? Will a student wearing a Jewish star or any visible support of Israel be deemed a fair target for abuse under his leadership? All good questions and concerns yet the silence of the leadership of the House of Delegates is frightening.

We can’t be silent especially when leadership is silent in the face of Jew hatred. We cannot allow the lies to grow. When we hear the words, “Free Palestine” we must ensure that it includes “From Hamas”.

Are you going to be part of the silence and the problem or be vocal and part of the solution? Our silence allows the lies to grow unchallenged. That is no longer an option. Be like Rabbi Barras and speak out. Be like John Spencer, Michael Oren, Coleman Hughes, Erin Moran, Michael Rappaport, Brianna Wu, and the others who are willing to speak out, to take risks, and fight the lies. Otherwise the effort to make the work Juden-frei (Jew free) will grow and one day, it may succeed.

The horrors of the media

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

I have written a lot about the media and the problems that they create. It is no longer about the news or about facts. It is about agendas, clicks, advertising dollars, and being first with a story even when it is wrong. The media has created and continues to create incredible division and hatred. The NY Times running the lies about the child from Gaza who has Cerebral Palsy is a perfect example from just this week. The lie has gone around the world while their pathetic small appending of the article is missed by most. The lame correction wasn’t put on the front page, like the lie. It wasn’t put on their big social media accounts.

We continue to allow the media to say whatever they want, regardless of the truth. They provide no context. A friend at lunch told me he listened to NPR talk about the food crisis in Gaza is a fifteen minute segment. Not once, in the entire segment, did they mention Hamas. Not once did they address the hoarding of food by Hamas and their selling of food on the black market. Not once did they address the complaints of the Gazan people that the food was too expensive. Free food was too expensive. Not to NPR who chose to make it an anti-Israel narrative.

The media loves to show anything that makes Israel look bad. Even when it’s not true. Especially when it’s not true. Anthony Aguilar is a perfect example. As you will see in the video below, it didn’t take much effort to understand that he is lying. What his motivation to lie was and plenty of documentation to back it up. Yet the media is making him a star. Why? Because his lies make Israel look bad. Because his lies paint a picture that they want to sell. It creates and reinforces the narrative that makes them money and makes those who hate Jews love them. Eventually there may be a retraction or an apology. But like the NY Times, it’ll be buried where nobody will see it or care about it.

Getting real information isn’t always easy. It’s also time consuming. I was recently introduced to Triggernometry, a podcast that takes its time to delve deep into issues. I was sent this one as my introduction and the interview of Andrew Fox, a British military veteran is spectacular. When he says, “There have been more bombs dropped in Gaza than people have been killed so either the IDF are the worst shots in history or they are actually taken care of civilian lives,” you hear a clear statement about the war in Gaza. In this 1 hour and 15 minute interview, they delve deep into various, difficult topics. The answers aren’t always pretty. They don’t whitewash Israel’s decisions and actions in the war. They are honest. They are based on facts. They paint a very different picture than the mass media. They make countries like Canada, the UK, and France, ready to recognize a Palestinian State that doesn’t meet any of the requirements to be a State, look like Jew hating fools. The conversation you will listen to gives the information that makes what US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says about recognizing a Palestinian State clear and obvious.

To be educated and to know what you are talking about takes time and effort. Listen to this – you will be armed with information and facts so that you can speak intelligently about what’s happening.

I like listening to Chris Cuomo on his podcast. He will have anybody on his podcast and he will ask any question. He will push hard and not let people off the hook. This week, he spent 12 minutes discussing “What is the truth about aid in Gaza? The answer people don’t seem to want to accept:” He doesn’t let Israel off the hook for stopping the aid when they did. He does hold Hamas accountable. He demands the return of the ‘people that they stole‘, powerful words that I wish the mass media would use. Take 12 minutes and listen to him.

While the media will show and publicize the lies about the child from Gaza, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, promote the lies of Anthony Aguilar, what they won’t do is put any focus on the hostages, still held captive in inhuman conditions in Gaza. This week, Hamas publicized a video of Rom Braslavski, a hostage taken on October 7th and held in captivity until today. Look at the image on the left, released this week, and you see somebody who has been tortured, starved, and abused. They feed him one-half a piece of pita to eat each day and give him dirty water to drink. Enough to keep him barely alive. Look at the picture on the right – of Rom before being taken hostage. It is one of the most haunting images I have seen – my heart breaks every time that I look at it.

The day after they released the video and images of Rom, Hamas released images of Evyatar David, another person taken hostage by Hamas and kept in brutal conditions in the tunnels under Gaza. Evyatar looks happy and filled with life and a bright future in the image on the right. The image on the left is skin and bones, barely alive, with no spark or spirit.

This is what war crimes look like. This is Hamas. This is what our media and countries like Canada, the UK, and France are defending. Imagine either one of these two people were your child, your grandchild, your sibling, your friend. I have been outraged by Hamas even before October 7th and even more since then. As I look at the media coverage of Gaza, I am disgusted by their failure to report on the hostages. Failure to report on their captivity of almost 2 years. Their failure to keep them in the news and their failure to prioritize their health. Where is the media outrage at the UN and the Red Cross for not visiting a single hostage in captivity for nearly 2 years? All they have been is a glorified taxis service. Where is the outrage from the media when these pictures are shared? This is what starvation and captivity looks like. This is what war crimes look like. Don’t turn away. Share the images. Force people to see the reality.

Rom Bravlasvski starved as a hostage
Rom Bravlavski before October 7th
Evyatar David – still held hostage in Gaza by Hamas. This is what starvation and war crimes look like.

It gets worse. Hamas released this video of a captive, starving, Evyatar David being forced to dig his own grave. They don’t hide their war crimes, their crimes against humanity, they celebrate them. The world allows them to celebrate them because they don’t hold them accountable. Our US policiticans scream to flood Gaza with food but they neglect the starving hostages. They willingly ignore the 2 million meals per day being provided by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and the UN’s failure to deliver food and to ensure the food goes to the people instead of Hamas. They willingly ignore the images of starving hostages and the video of one being forced to dig his own grave.

I refuse to stand by idly and allow this to continue. I reach out to elected officials. I write and speak out. I educate friends and others. People must see the reality. We can’t give up and we can’t surrender. We can’t accept the reality being pushed on us because of the lies. It doesn’t matter who we are talking to, the facts matter. The truth matters. I won’t be silenced because the cost of silence is the cost of our lives. Canada, the UK, France, elected officials, the media – they may all be against us and support Jew hatred and the lies but they won’t do it without me fighting back. Will you join me or will you be part of the problem? The choice is yours.