Category Archives: Israeli Society

Occupation Shmoccupation

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

The Yesha Council, the voice of Israelis living beyond the Green Line, published a little pamphlet called “kibush kishkush,” which one could translate as “occupation shmoccupation” (in Hebrew, here). The booklet refutes some of the common misconceptions about the communities … Continue reading →

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Jewish terrorism? Maybe — or maybe not

Posted on August 24, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

Minister of Defense Moshe Ya’alon justified the recent ‘administrative detentions’ of several young Jewish ‘extremists’ in a TV interview last week: In such situations, any country — most certainly a democracy– must defend itself, including the taking of extreme measures,” … Continue reading →

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Accusations of Jewish terrorism are unfounded and dangerous

Posted on August 8, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

The arson attack at the Arab village of Duma, near Shechem (Nablus) has so far taken two lives, including that of an 18-month old child. Two other members of the same family are in the hospital with severe burns. The … Continue reading →

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The Jewish Sickness

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

Israel’s Cabinet has authorized security officials to use “administrative detention” and “aggressive questioning” against suspected “Jewish terrorists,” following the arson attack at Duma that left an Arab baby dead and other family members in the hospital. This was done against … Continue reading →

Posted in Duma arson-murder, Israeli Society | 6 Comments

Sinat hinam

Posted on July 27, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

A lot of things have come together for me in the past few days. Yesterday we observed Tisha b’Av, which brought to mind the sinat hinam, pointless hatred among Jews, that Jewish tradition blames for the destruction of the Temple … Continue reading →

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Is Israel a democracy?

Posted on June 12, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

Israel’s Declaration of Independence calls for a Jewish and democratic state. This is creatively ambiguous because very few people agree on precisely what each of these characteristics entails, although they have very strong opinions. This isn’t a theoretical discussion; both … Continue reading →

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Jerusalem Day: exercise sovereignty or lose it

Posted on May 18, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

Yesterday was Jerusalem Day. One of the events was a march through the city to the Western Wall, including the Muslim quarter of the Old City. Most of the participants are teenagers from nationalist-religious schools. There have been complaints from … Continue reading →

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Ethiopian-Israelis are fed up

Posted on May 5, 2015 by Victor Rosenthal

We have long been the punching bag and scapegoat for everything in this country. People say that they’re with us, that they brought us here. They didn’t bring us here. We came because of Zionism, not like others who came … Continue reading →

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