Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Chloe` Valdary – “Forever” – An ode to the people of Israel
Jerusalem U proudly presents “Forever” – a powerful new video about Jewish pride from African-American poet Chloé Valdary; a leading new voice in the pro-Israel movement, a Tikvah fellow under Pulitzer Prize-winner Bret Stephens at the Wall Street Journal, and one of Algemeiner’s top 100 people positively affecting Jewish life today.“Forever” – An ode to the people of Israel
Chloé is the new Director of Partnerships & Outreach for Jerusalem U. www.JerusalemU.org
This film was made possible thanks to the generous support of Sam & Meryl Solomon
Anti-Semitism and the British Left
For many British Jews and others, Mr. Corbyn thus personifies a tolerance among parts of the left for reactionary Islamists that is at best naïve, at worst malign — not least because it overlooks Islamism’s history of murderous repression toward democratic socialists in Muslim-majority countries.BDS Exploits Artists Like Brian Eno
Labour had once been Britain’s most pro-Zionist party. This began to change when support for Palestinian statehood entered party policy. Mr. Corbyn arrived as a new member of Parliament in 1983 as a sponsor of the Labour Movement Campaign for Palestine, a new group that was pledged to “eradicate Zionism” from the party and saw Israel as a colonial implant in the Middle East. Rather than being a legitimate expression of Jewish national longing, Zionism was then labeled a racist ideology akin to apartheid.
At the same time, Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government included a record number of Jewish ministers. Most British Jews had long since moved on from their origins in a prewar immigrant working class, and many among the new suburban Jewish middle class were attracted to Mrs. Thatcher’s entrepreneurial capitalism. According to the historian Geoffrey Alderman, “Anglo-Jewish political attitudes and loyalties, which were substantially Liberal for much of the 19th century and substantially Labour in the mid-20th, are now substantially Conservative.”
This may be of little electoral consequence to Labour, since Jewish voters influence the outcome in only a handful of parliamentary seats. In any case, the Corbyn project seems more directed at molding an ideologically pure movement than winning power at the next general election in 2020.
Yet there remains a strong progressive tradition among Jews that now has no political home. Their alienation from Labour is an ill omen: Whether British Jews ever feel they can return to Labour will give a strong indication about the future direction and character of the party as a whole.
Thankfully, major artists supporting BDS are few and far between. Hundreds of international artists, including Sia, Justin Timberlake, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Elton John, Alicia Keys, One Republic, Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Madonna, Dionne Warwick, The Black Eyed Peas, Justin Bieber, and many, many others have and will continue to perform in Israel and raise their voices loudly for peace.
In response to Mr. Eno, Batsheva's artistic director and frequent critic of the Israeli government, Ohad Naharin, wrote: “If boycotting my company would help the Palestinian people, then I would boycott my own show. If the boycott of my work could bring a peace treaty, I would be the happiest person in the world. But I know it would be useless."
We, and the more than 30,000 people who have signed our anti-boycott petition, could not agree more. BDS does not help Palestinians and will not bring peace.
The BDS movement is anti-peace and anti-coexistence. Through its anti-normalization campaign, it aims to keep Israelis and Palestinians apart, never giving them the chance to gain understanding of and empathy for one another, though both are crucial requirements for realizing true peace based on justice.
We believe art and music, through their ability to unite, can help bring this true peace to fruition. We are deeply saddened to see an artist such as Brian Eno support the BDS movement and deny his music to Batsheva.
We hope Mr. Eno will reflect on the fact that the Israeli government would fund a dance company led by a fierce critic of its policies, that the company would then choose to use music created by a fierce opponent of Israel, and then just maybe come to the conclusion that Israel is an imperfect but strong democracy worthy of engagement rather than boycotts.
Peace depends on it.
Major Jewish Group: Newsweek Must Take Action to Save Its ‘Hard-Earned Journalist Brand From Bigots and Propagandists’
Newsweek must take action to “save the integrity of its hard-earned journalist brand from bigots and propagandists,” an official with a leading US-based Jewish human rights organization told The Algemeiner on Monday following a string of recent incidents that revealed an apparent animus by the magazine’s Middle East edition toward Israel.Three Lessons World Vision Needs to Learn
Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, was referring to Leila Hatoum — the senior deputy editor for Newsweek Middle East, which is based in Dubai — and Ben White — a British freelance journalist known for his vehement anti-Israel views.
In a series of tweets late last week that were first reported on by the Israellycool blog, Hatoum — whose Twitter tagline says in Hebrew “Occupation = Ongoing terrorism” — repeatedly used the phrase “Zionist trolls” and made a number of eye-brow raising statements, including, among others, “zionists are not Jews. Stay in urdark corner trying achieve ur monthly goals set to u by the mossad” and “zionist troll # 100 something .. jealous much? U can’t shame me like u do to western media. Go cry in the corner.”
Hatoum also called the late Zionist visionary Theodore Herzl and his followers a “malicious gang of land thieves [who] decided on stealing Palestine from its people with the aid of the British…much like what settlers did to N. America’s indians.”
The twitter rampage by Hatoum came after the publication of a tendentious video by Newsweek Middle East that claimed a Palestinian state existed before the founding of Israel in 1948. As evidence, the video cited Ottoman-era maps that used the word “Palestine” to describe lands that are now known as Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
It gets more interesting. On August 29, 2016, The Wall Street Journal reported that in an interview, Jenkins “said a former World Vision employee made an internal complaint of financial impropriety against Mr. Halabi before his detention, but a subsequent internal investigation found no evidence to substantiate the charge.” Jenkins' admission leads to more questions about who conducted the investigation and how thorough it was.On the Avenue: Jewish Voice for Peace at the Solano Stroll
Most of the public statements about the controversy have come from World Vision International (WVI). World Vision's affiliate in the United States (WVUSA), which is the source of at least a third of World Vision's total revenue, has been silent about the controversy. Aside from reposting statements from WVI president Kevin Jenkins about the arrest, WVUSA has said very little about Halabi's arrest or the charges against him.
Throughout the controversy, WVI has, with good reason, expressed concerns that the negative publicity will harm its ability to provide services to children in other parts of the world. On this score, it is important to remember that the ultimate responsibility for the theft of World Vision funds and resources lies with Hamas itself, which is already guilty of great crimes against children on both sides of the Gaza Strip's boundary with Israel.
Nevertheless, a large measure of responsibility for the damage to World Vision's reputation lies with the actions of leaders and staffers of the charity itself. These leaders and staffers have some crucial lessons they need to learn – and soon – if World Vision is to regain the trust of its donors in the U.S. and elsewhere in the world.
Here are three.
Lesson One: World Vision has a limited reservoir of trust it can use to weather this storm. Previous World Vision staffers have behaved in a manner that makes it difficult, if not impossible, to give World Vision the benefit of the doubt.
One of the worst offenders is Tom Getman, who during the First Intifada, used his position as WV director in Jerusalem to attack the legitimacy of the Jewish state.
For example, at a conference in Seattle in 1998, Getman lambasted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the absence of peace between Israelis and Palestinians. The Washington Report for Middle East Affairs reported that “Getman said it is Netanyahu's ‘intractable short vision' and his practice of ‘calling every act of opposition terrorism' and ‘calling people to the barricades for a vision that is the local common denominator' that makes it hard for Dennis Ross or Madeleine Albright to make any difference.” Getman also “urged his audience to help by rooting out Zionism in American churches, and to investigate before investing in Israeli organizations or development projects.”
Lesson Two: If World Vision cannot, or will not, confront Hamas over its crimes against children in the Gaza Strip, the organization really is not living up to its charter as a child-advocacy organization.
Lesson Three: World Vision owes its donors greater transparency over its operations than it has given them.
At the Jewish Voice for Peace booth the usual variety of widely debunked anti-Israel propaganda was distributed.Policy Director of group holding Congressional pro-BDS forum used anti-Semitic “Israel Firster” slur against Chuck Schumer
In addition to the “Maps of Disappearing Palestine”, distributed OUTSIDE the booth in direct violation of the festival guidelines, JVP distributed a newsprint propaganda piece,
made up to look like a copy of the New York Times.
This is in a clear violation of the New York Times Trademark
This isn’t the first time JVP has tried this stunt. According to Times spokesperson Eileen Murphy, in February, the Times shut down online versions of the fake paper because it was “deliberately designed to trade on our name and mislead users.....We are extremely protective of our brand and other intellectual property and object to these two groups - or any other groups - attempting to cloak their political views under the banner of The New York Times... It is our firm belief that those advocating for political positions are best served by speaking openly, in their own voice.”
The New York Times has tolerated this repeated disregard for their trademark, and allowed the dilution of their brand for over half the year. In spite of their words, the print copies are still being distributed with impunity.
When I saw the Free Beacon story, I wondered if whoever in Congress sanctioned this event is aware of the U.S. Campaign’s background, and also that it’s most visible spokesman used the anti-Semitic “Israel-firster” slur against Senator Chuck Schumer.Major UK Jewish Student Group Decries, Condemns ‘Hitler Was Right’ Sign Plastered on U of Leicester Campus by Pro-Nazi Activists
We reported on that slur when Josh Ruebner, Policy Director for the U.S. Campaign, came to Cornell for a training session for local BDS activists, GreenStar boycott group trainer hurls “Israel-firster” slur at Schumer
Josh Ruebner, whose father was Israeli but who was born and grew up in the U.S., was one of the founders of the group that eventually became the nationwide Jewish Voice for Peace.
Ruebner now is the policy director for the U.S. Campaign to End the Occupation, whose website provides training materials and advice for anti-Israel boycotts….
Ruebner, however, uses terminology that alleges supporters of Israel are not loyal to the United States.
In a column in The Hill in 2013, Ruebner described attendees at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference, as “thousands of ‘Israel-first’ citizen lobbyists…”
More recently, Ruebner called Chuck Schumer, United States Senator from NY, an “Israel-firster.”
The appearance last Tuesday of a sticker promoting Nazism at the University of Leicester is “extremely concerning,” a major UK student group told The Algemeiner on Monday.Linguists Abandon Noam Chomsky’s ‘Universal Grammar’ Theory
Referring to a meme reading: “One day the world will know that Adolf Hitler was right!” — which was plastered on campus by the far-right National Action group — a spokesperson for the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) said, “There is absolutely no place for fascism on campus.”
Such antisemitic material, the spokesperson said, “shows the need to stand together against such hate,” adding that the UJS is working with campus security, the Leicester Students Union (ULSU) and the Community Security Trust “to ensure that Jewish students’ safety is protected.”
ULSU President Rachel Holland — who was one of the first students to call attention to the sign on Twitter — told The Algemeiner that the student government and the university became aware of its existence after receiving tweets about it from National Action Midlands. The sticker was quickly taken down by security, she said.
The following is a sample of Holland’s Twitter exchanges:
Scientific American – The idea that we have brains hardwired with a mental template for learning grammar — famously espoused by Noam Chomsky of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology — has dominated linguistics for almost half a century. Recently, though, cognitive scientists and linguists have abandoned Chomsky’s “universal grammar” theory in droves because of new research examining many different languages — and the way young children learn to understand and speak the tongues of their communities. That work fails to support Chomsky’s assertions.NYC Council Testimony: Israel Only ME Country That Protects Zoroastrians, Other Minorities
The research suggests a radically different view, in which learning of a child’s first language does not rely on an innate grammar module. Instead the new research shows that young children use various types of thinking that may not be specific to language at all — such as the ability to classify the world into categories (people or objects, for instance) and to understand the relations among things. These capabilities, coupled with a unique human ability to grasp what others intend to communicate, allow language to happen. The new findings indicate that if researchers truly want to understand how children, and others, learn languages, they need to look outside of Chomsky’s theory for guidance.
Israel is the only country in the Middle East “where Zoroastrians and other religious minorities could peacefully and openly practice their religion,” Tower contributing editor Zenobia Ravji testified at a New York City Council hearing on Thursday.Lawyer Suing Facebook Scoffs at Purportedly Fruitful Anti-Incitement Meeting Between Israeli Ministers, Social Media Execs
Testimonies at the hearing, which debated a resolution condemning efforts to boycott Israel, were frequently interrupted by protesters who shouted “Zionism is racism,” “F#$k Israel,” and “Free Palestine” until they were removed by security.
Among those testifying was Zenobia Ravji, the associate director of coalitions at The Israel Project (which publishes The Tower). Ravji, a Zoroastrian, pointed out the strong similarities between her coreligionists and Jews, both of whem have been “persecuted for millennia” and “forced to preserve their identity in the diaspora.”
Ravji, who spent two years in Israel, noted that “it was evident that Israel was the only country in the Middle East, where Zoroastrians and other religious minorities could peacefully and openly practice their religion.”
The head of the organization behind a billion-dollar lawsuit against Facebook for its alleged enabling of incitement to terrorism on its pages told The Algemeiner that she was “not impressed” by Monday’s purportedly fruitful meeting between Israeli ministers and executives of the social-media giant.Haj, Saudi PR and media failure
“It is nothing more than the usual public-relations stunt,” said attorney Nitsana Darshan-Leitner — founder of Shurat HaDin-The Israel Law Center, an NGO whose mission is to combat terrorism through lawfare — in reference to the get-together of a visiting Facebook delegation with Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan to discuss methods for putting a stop to the incitement phenomenon. Following the meeting, all in attendance announced they would work together to fight the spread of hate-filled material that leads to physical violence.
“Even as they spoke, Facebook was proving a platform to terrorist incitement and recruitment,” Darshan-Leitner said. “And all it would have to do to — if it so decided — is press a button and remove the content in question.”
Nor is this the first time Facebook has agreed to cooperate with Israel in the effort to combat incitement, she added. “But all that happens as a result is some grandiose joint announcement, while the dangerous activity itself continues unabated on the site,” she said.
That’s a unique fact, unlike the “unique” diversity CNN talks about. Almost solely among world pilgrimages and religions, this is the one place media cannot report on and which is not open to outsiders. That, in itself, is reason to be critical, for while Ali in the Times can celebrate “loud and proud” in America, other religions cannot celebrate “loud and proud” in Mecca.Al Jazeera’s Jerusalem website takes an activist tone on behalf of city’s Palestinian residents
For this reason it would be preferable for media to stop feeding us propaganda regarding holidays in Saudi Arabia, and start giving us stories about other places that speak to a more open-minded tradition.
For instance the beautiful Sufi mosque in Ladysmith, South Africa, where the local imams are welcoming to outsiders, could be a place to start.
We all know that if Western media was required to have as many stories celebrating other religions, or even different Islamic traditions, as it has on the haj in Mecca, it would grind to a halt. Of course it won’t hire a Sikh reporter to provide days of coverage of his life, of course it won’t be hiring devout Buddhists every year for a trip to Lumbini, Nepal.
In the end, it’s preferable to remember that the Kurdish woman who donated her savings to help those who stand against ISIS is more inspiring than listening to Westerners give us yet another cliché-ridden, banal, orientalist “introduction” to the haj.
On Monday, the site posted a report about an 18-year-old Palestinian girl, Yara Sharabati, who it said has seen her father Ayman, who is serving a life sentence in Gilboa Prison, only twice in her life.NYT's Peter Baker: Word Choices and Attitudes
The first time, according to the site, was when she was six, and the second a few days ago when prison guards allowed her to see her father, embrace him and have a picture taken with him.
“In those moments, I felt as if I was soaring in the sky because the tenderness of my father penetrated my heart,” she told Al Jazeera al Quds.
“The scene remains suspended in my mind ever since I said goodbye to him. My dad is a detainee behind bars, and I felt so close to him that I, too, was like a hostage but without bars.
“Growing up, I felt he was missing when my classmates would mention their dads,’’ she continued.
“Despite this pain, I never felt such freedom as during my three minutes with dad,’’ she said, adding that she stares at her picture with him “dozens of times every day without getting bored.’’ It is only toward the end of the article that it is mentioned that her father was given the life sentence “after being accused of killing two settlers’’ at Jerusalem’s Damascus Gate in 1998.
NYT Jerusalem Bureau Chief Peter BakerStopping the crackdown on China’s Jews
Following Peter Baker's debut as the New York Times Jerusalem bureau chief, CAMERA noted that his first article was disappointing to readers looking for informative and balanced pieces from the region.
His article in today's print edition of the Times is about Soviet documents that indicate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was once a KGB agent in Damascus, known as “Krotov,” meaning 'the mole". Informative and interesting, but Baker injects a note of unjournalistic snarkiness directed at Israel as he introduces the story:
The possibility [of Abbas' role as a KGB agent], trumpeted by the Israeli media on Wednesday night and just as quickly dismissed by Palestinian officials, emerged from a document in a British archive listing Soviet agents from 1983.
When does reporting a story become "trumpeting"? And what does this word choice imply, if anything, about Baker's attitude toward his subject matter?
Over the past two years, a series of disturbing developments has taken place in Kaifeng, China, one that threatens the future of the city’s tiny Chinese Jewish community. Inexplicably, certain local authorities have launched what can only be described as a crackdown on any expression of Jewish life in Kaifeng, and it is time for Israel and world Jewry to speak out and raise this issue with Beijing.Jerusalem Synagogue Vandalized With Crosses
For more than a decade, Shavei Israel, the organization that I chair, has been working to assist the Kaifeng Jews, as a growing number have sought to learn more about their ancestral heritage and return to our people. We have brought some 20 Chinese Jews on aliya, published books and other materials on Jewish topics in Chinese and conducted classes via Skype for community members.
After years in which the Kaifeng Jews were being targeted by foreign Christian missionaries for conversion I felt that I could not sit idly by, so in 2010, Shavei Israel opened its own competing center in Kaifeng to provide an authentically Jewish environment where the Chinese Jews could learn about Jewish history, culture and values. Activities ranged from studying Hebrew to Jewish cooking classes to learning about ancient Jewish texts and traditions. Some drew dozens of people, and Jewish holiday celebrations proved to be especially popular.
A Jerusalem synagogue was defaced with black crosses spray-painted on an outside wall, according to the Israel Police.StandWithUs+: Latin American Antisemitism
A forensic team and detectives were called to the scene and an investigation has been launched into the September 11 incident, according to police spokesperson Luba Samri.
Samir said neither a clear motive nor suspects have been identified.
Wadie Abunassar, an adviser to the Catholic church in Israel, condemned the incident on his Facebook page.
“All peoples should respect each other, especially the others’ holy sites,” he wrote.
Jewish religious buildings around Israel have been targeted in similar hate crimes recently.
World’s Largest Regional Security Group Turns to Israel in Fight Against Cyber Terror
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), an umbrella body for 57 European, North American, and Central Asian nations in the security field, has chosen Prof. Gabi Weimann of the University of Haifa to plan and establish a new teaching and research framework concerning online terror.Burkini-Gate Bolsters Modest Swimsuit Sales In Israel Among Jewish And Muslim Women
“Online incitement, radicalization, and recruitment have had a significant impact on the recent waves of terror around the world,” Weimann said. “This has raised awareness of the importance of research and academic knowledge in this field.”
OSCE — the largest intergovernmental organization of its kind — enables member countries to facilitate cooperation and information sharing with various bodies on security-related issues, including Interpol and Europol. Israel is an OECD “partner for cooperation.”
Weimann, author of Terrorism in Cyberspace, was chosen following an international tender.
“In a few days I will travel to Vienna to sign the agreement and launch the program,” Weimann said. “The program will be based in the OSCE headquarters at Hofburg Palace – the site where Hitler declared the German annexation of Austria. Both of my parents were Holocaust survivors, so this will be a historical and a personal closing of a circle for me.”
While France’s burkini controversy continues to spark fiery debates all over the world, there’s one stretch of coast in the Middle East where people don’t seem to care what women choose to wear (or not to wear) while lounging on the beach, and that place is Israel.After 40 years: World's 3rd-largest synagogue returns to Jews
On Israeli beaches, it’s quite common to see religious women covered up in modest swimsuits next to their counterparts in string bikinis. The difference is, however, that those who choose to cover up might well be religious Jewish women or can just as easily be religious Muslims.
According to Anat Yahav, a Jewish designer of modest swimsuits, wearing a bikini is just as arbitrary as wearing a burkini – though Yahav refuses to call them that.
“Who decided that women should go to the beach in a bra and panties?” Yahav told the Washington Post from SunWay’s offices in Hod Hasharon, a town just outside of Tel Aviv.
Yahav says that since burkini-gate last month, orders for her line of modest swimwear have been on the rise.
She says that women of any religion, shape, age or size order SunWay swimsuits, which are marketed at home and abroad through local distributors in Miami and Greece as well as online.
The city fathers of Pilsen, Czech Republic, have agreed to close the museum and concert hall that have operated in the city's famous synagogue, and to restore the structure to the Jewish community. The decision follows more than ten years of lobbying efforts by representatives of the dwindling Jewish community.Luxembourg PM visits Israel, lauds excellent bilateral ties
The Great Synagogue is known as the second-largest in Europe and the third-largest in the world. It stands in the fourth-largest Czech city, population 170,000.
The structure – an interesting mix of Russian, Arabic and Indian styles, with impressive sculpted art on the Holy Ark – was completed in 1893. The Jewish community in Pilsen at the time numbered approximately 2,000. The synagogue was in continuous use until 1973, except for the Holocaust years.
Its original construction plan called for two flanking 65-meter towers – but the city rejected it, most likely due to the fact that the nearby Cathedral of St. Bartholomew was of that approximate height. Another plan with towers only 45 meters high was quickly accepted and executed in its place.
The synagogue was closed down by the Communist rulers in 1973, and fell into disrepair. Restoration was undertaken from 1995–98, and the building was reopened as a concert hall and art museum.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Luxembourg Prime Minster Xavier Bettel Monday in Jerusalem. This was the first visit by a Luxembourgish prime minister to Israel. The Prime Minister's Office described the leaders' meeting as "very good."US House passes bipartisan resolution honoring Elie Wiesel
Bettel invited Netanyahu to visit Luxembourg, and the two discussed increasing bilateral trade ties, as well as various regional issues.
"You come obviously at a time of great turmoil in the Middle East, the world looks on with horror as hundreds of thousands are slaughtered in Syria and millions stream to Europe, fleeing for their lives, but I think this is a time of great opportunity as well," Netanyahu told Bettel. "It gives me a great deal of hope. Israel's partnerships and alliances around the world and in the region are growing broader and deeper. We stand together with many countries to defend civilization against the forces of militant Islamic barbarism, and we stand together in the face of resurgent anti-Semitism."
Referring to Luxembourg's first-ever apology for the suffering of its Jewish community during World War II, issued in June, Netanyahu expressed his appreciation for "the forthright position that you took in Luxembourg regarding the events there during World War II and your apology to the Jewish community was deeply appreciated."
The House of Representatives unanimously passed a bipartisan resolution honoring the life and work of Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Elie Wiesel, who passed away in July.Queen rocks it out in Tel Aviv
The resolution, passed by voice vote, states that the House of Representatives “honors the life, work, and legacy of Elie Wiesel”; “extends its deepest sympathies to the members of Elie Wiesel’s family”; and “reaffirms Elie Wiesel’s efforts to preserve the memory of those who perished and prevent the recurrence of another Holocaust, to combat hate and intolerance in any manifestation, and to never forget and also learn from the lessons of history".
The bill was originally introduced on July 7th, a few days after Wiesel’s passing, by Congressman Steve Israel of New York, Congressman Patrick Meehan of Pennsylvania and Congressman Ted Deutch of Florida. All three are appointed members of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council.
“Elie Wiesel’s tremendous impact has reached millions across the globe, and I believe he is truly one of the most influential and important figures of our time,” Steve Israel said. “He educated the world about the atrocities of the Holocaust and engraved the meaning of ‘never again’ in our hearts and minds.
Lambert called for the Tel Aviv crowd to get its “buts on bicycles,” preparing those in attendance to hear a performance of Bicycle Race, but instead pivoted to sing Don’t Stop Me Now, another one of the band’s greatest hits.IsraellyCool: Queen Rocks Israel
Then, a giant chair was placed on stage, and the band went on to sing Killer Queen. Lambert then showed some Hebrew knowledge, saying “Lechaim” (cheers) to the crowd before taking a drink of water. “Erev tov” and “Toda raba” (“Good evening, and “thanks very much”), he continued.
Lambert continued to hold the crowd in the palm of his hand, asking how many of them were in love. He then said he had no life partner, asking if anyone could find him ‘Somebody to Love.’ Guitarist Brian May then gave some affection to the Israeli audience, crying out “Shalom” and ” Salam alaikum ” (“Hello” in Hebrew and “peace be upon you” in Arabic). He even took photos with some excited fans.
He then said he heard that Israelis were quite good at singing, and began a solo rendition of the ballad Love of My Life.
Tonight, Queen rocked it in front of over 50,000 adoring fans (not including me, unfortunately, since I had a prior engagement).Queen hava nagila Tel Aviv
But Brian was there, and he captured this great video of a certain band’s song being played before Queen came on stage..and after the Arab winner of the Voice performed!
That certainly set the scene for a great night, which also contained the songs we know and love, enhanced by Adam Lambert wowing the audience with his personality….and Hebrew.
