If Israeli men are released in a continuation of the hostage release, it is possible that Alex Dancyg, who remains in Hamas captivity, may be present at an event that Yad Vashem intends to hold in his honor on Monday, in recognition of his substantial contribution to Holocaust remembrance, education, and Polish-Israeli relations.
Yad Vashem guide and Holocaust educator Liat Atzili Benin was released from Gaza on Wednesday night but her husband, Aviv Atzili, has been declared as killed on Oct. 7.
In Israel, journalists have become therapists
■ WHILE CONDUCTING interviews is part of a journalist’s role, psychotherapy is not. Yet that is what radio and television journalists have been practicing for almost two months as they provide platforms for the relatives of hostages of survivors of the October 7 massacre; and parents, wives, and siblings of soldiers who fell in battle. Even the most acerbic of interviewers have been empathetic, sympathetic, and gentle, often allowing the interviewee to speak longer than usual with minimal interruption. The attitude has been appreciated, especially by those who were interviewed again and again – often by the same journalists. It was important for them to get their appeals to as wide an audience as possible, and after complaining of receiving no information or little information from officialdom, they were extremely grateful for the opportunity afforded them to tell their stories on electronic media.
Among the first was Yoni Asher, whose wife Doron and their two infant daughters Aviv, aged 2, and Raz, 5, were released after being held for 49 days. Asher called everyone possible during those seven weeks but learned very little. He was frustrated and desperate. He wasn’t even sure whether his wife and children were still alive. Television viewers who witnessed his reunion with his family were delighted that his ordeal was over and could only hope that any trauma suffered by his children would be soon behind them since they are still so young and now enveloped in love and kindness.
Paying attention to the IDF soldiers held hostage by Hamas
■ MORE ATTENTION is now being paid to the soldiers in captivity whose parents and siblings complain that the frantic phone calls they made to the army and the police on October 7 went unheeded. In addition, the families of women soldiers trained to observe suspicious activities in the border area between Gaza and Israel are furious that the advance warnings issued by the soldiers about significant amassing of men and arms on the Gaza side of the border were ignored. Had someone in authority taken notice, they say, the tragedies of October 7 could have been avoided.
Representatives of the families of hostages have done a lot of traveling inside and outside Israel to meetings and rallies. They’ve spoken to presidents and prime ministers and have met with other people of influence. Israeli diplomats around the world have arranged press conferences for them and some have visited more countries in the last month and a half than in the past 10 years, focused on increasing awareness of the plight of their loved ones – and the need to bring all the hijacked Israelis back home.
In London, Israel’s ambassador to the Court of St James, Tzipi Hotovely, hosted a press conference for Orit and Aviram Meir, the mother and uncle of Almog Meir Jan who was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7. While some children up to the age of 19, along with mothers and older women have been released, all the men, both young and old, remain captive. Almog’s mother and uncle also met with some of the members of the House of Lords.
Israel, Gaza, and the complex character of Elon Musk
■ CONTROVERSIAL BILLIONAIRE Elon Musk who has come in for widespread censure for allowing antisemitic and other racist posts on X, his social media platform, is a complex character. Opposed to curbing freedom of speech, he is simultaneously ill-disposed to hate-filled propaganda. With much criticism leveled at him personally and hate messages about Israel and Jews continuing, Musk decided to come to Israel to see for himself the aftermath of the destruction wrought by Hamas.
When taken on tour by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Musk took many photos and heard chilling details from survivors. At his meeting with President Isaac Herzog, they discussed Hamas and antisemitism. Also present were representatives of the families of the hostages being held in Gaza. Musk was given the symbolic dog tag, which is worn by everyone who has a relative who was abducted by Hamas. Musk immediately slipped it around his neck, saying: “We have to do whatever is necessary to stop the hate. Essentially, these people have been fed propaganda since they were children, and it’s remarkable what humans are capable of when they are fed falsehoods from when they are children. They will think that the murder of innocent people is a good thing. That is how propaganda can affect people’s minds.” Even though Musk appeared to be moved and influenced by what he had seen and heard, this did not satisfy numerous Diaspora Jews who lambasted Israel for having hosted him.
Why did Hamas take so long to release Thai hostages?
■ IT IS somewhat strange that it took so long for Hamas to release any Thai hostages, considering that Thailand has had diplomatic relations with the Palestinians for more than a decade. The “State of Palestine” was recognized by the Kingdom of Thailand in January 2012. Orna Sagiv, Israel’s ambassador to Thailand, accompanied Thai Foreign Minister Pampree Bahiddha-Nukara to Israel this week and to Assaf Harofe Hospital to visit the two Thai hostages released on Tuesday night, Sagiv said in media interviews that the minister, the newly freed Thai citizens, the hospital staff, and Sagiv herself all wept when Bahiddha-Nukara told them how glad he was that they were alive and free and that he had come to take them home.
The abduction of Thais working in Israel caused great consternation in Thailand, said Sagiv, because Thailand does not play any part in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and it was quite obvious from their appearance that the Thai hostages were not Israelis. Thailand has good relations with many countries which do not necessarily have good relations with each other, such as Israel and Iran, and appealed to all the countries with which it has diplomatic ties to help secure the release of Thai prisoners. There are still many Thais in Gaza awaiting freedom.
A joint drill between the IDF and United Hatzalah
■ LAST SUNDAY evening, United Hatzalah volunteers from the Kafr Kasem-Kafr Bara-Jaljulia branch conducted a comprehensive joint drill in collaboration with the IDF Home Front Command and local security forces. The exercise, held in Kafr Kasem, was designed to simulate a missile attack, aiming to enhance the preparedness of both citizens and security personnel to effectively respond to emergency situations tailored to the unique challenges of the city and the war with Hamas.
The multifaceted drill incorporated a variety of scenarios to ensure a thorough and realistic training experience. The volunteers were divided into five teams and received four reports of rocket hits, including some that turned out to be incorrect or inaccurate. One part of the simulated drill focused on a school that was damaged by shrapnel; the volunteers treated three witnesses for emotional shock in a second location; the main scene of the drill was a simulation of a three-floor house suffering a direct hit and collapsing, trapping five people under the debris. The IDF Home Front Command extricated them, after which four of them received initial medical treatment in the field and were transported to the hospital for definitive care. One of the simulated victims was to be pronounced dead, thus elevating the severity and urgency of the training scenario for the volunteers and soldiers participating.
Mohamad Amer the head of the Kafr Kasem-Kafr Bara-Jaljulia branch of United Hatzalah, said, “Dozens of doctors, paramedics, and EMTs from our branch participated in the drill conducted on Sunday night. Utilizing ambulances, off-road vehicles, ambu-cycles, and other resources, our volunteers delivered a prompt medical response to numerous emergency calls received during the simulated missile attack and the exercise was deemed a huge success.”
Dovie Maisel, vice president of operations at United Hatzalah, reflected on the importance of such training exercises, especially in light of recent events. “Unfortunately, October 7 has shown us the wide range of scenarios for which first responders need to be trained in this country. We engage in various types of Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) training year-round, and we need to maintain readiness for all of our volunteers. Often these training exercises are held in partnership with the IDF, and their effectiveness paid off in how closely the two entities worked together on October 7, which resulted in many lives being saved. During this time of conflict on a national scale, we have intensified the frequency of these training exercises to ensure our readiness for every conceivable eventuality as the war continues and develops.”
A Chabad festival before Hanukkah
■ YUD TET Kislev is an annual Chabad festival, celebrated a few days before Hanukka in remembrance of the release of Chabad founder Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi from a Russian prison. It also commemorates the anniversary of the death of Rabbi Dov Ber, the Maggid of Mezeritch, who died in 1772. Dov Ber was a disciple of the Baal Shem Tov (the founder of Hassidism) and his immediate successor.
Chabad Talbiya organizes an annual Yud Tet Kislev event for English speakers, which this year will be held at the Jerusalem Great Synagogue on Sunday, December 3 at 8 p.m. with former chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau as guest of honor, and internationally renowned orator, broadcaster and writer Rabbi YY Schochet, widely regarded as the most influential rabbi in the United Kingdom, as keynote speaker.
There will also be a live musical performance of Chabad melodies by three generations of the Hershtik Family Singers, and refreshments will be served.
For student and group discounts, email chabadtalbiya@gmail.com.
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