Trump’s “Peace” in the Middle East: 78 Hamas Violations and Counting (Judean Rose)

Disclaimer: the views expressed here are the sole responsibility of the author, weekly Judean Rose columnist Varda Meyers Epstein.

President Trump keeps touting the peace he brought to the Middle East. But if this is peace, I’d hate to see war. Though actually, I’ve seen war and I’m still seeing war—because we still have war. Since the ceasefire took effect on October 10, there have been 78 Hamas violations of the ceasefire.

Below are the president’s own “peace” claims—grouped by date—asserting or clearly implying that peace now exists in the Middle East.

• *October 13, 2025 (remarks released October 14): “At long last, we have peace in the Middle East. And now we’re there.” In the same remarks, Trump also declared, “After years of suffering and bloodshed, the war in Gaza is over.”
• *October 16, 2025 (Truth Social): Trump described what he called a “Great Accomplishment of Peace in the Middle East.”
• *October 25, 2025 (Truth Social and Air Force One press gaggle): “We have a very strong PEACE in the Middle East,” Trump wrote, adding that it had a good chance of being “EVERLASTING.” Speaking to reporters later that day, he said, “We have peace in the Middle East. That’s what we have. Great peace in the Middle East,” and insisted, “This is real peace.”
• *November 10, 2025 (Truth Social): Trump referred to “PEACE in the Middle East” and described it as “the Great Miracle that is taking place in the Middle East.”
• *December 1, 2025 (Truth Social): He claimed “SUCCESS, already attained, for PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST!”
• *December 11–12, 2025 (White House remarks): Trump stated, “We actually do have a real peace in the Middle East.”
• *December 16, 2025 (White House remarks): He said the administration’s goal was to ensure that there “remains … peace in the Middle East.”
• *December 18, 2025 (national address): In a national address, Trump said the Gaza truce had “brought peace to the Middle East for the first time in 3,000 years.”

You’d never know the reality on the ground if you tried to Google “Hamas ceasefire violations.” What you get instead is page after page of propaganda about Israel’s supposed violations—Israel’s “pretend” violations—while Hamas malfeasance disappears into a black hole. Seventy-eight instances of such malfeasance, ignored or downplayed, because the media (and apparently Google) are more comfortable amplifying accusations against Israel than confronting what Hamas actually does. They love anyone who murders, rapes, beheads, and burns Jews. Including babies.

So they cover up the truth and peddle lies. That we expect. What is galling is DJT’s continued claims that we have peace. But actually, this too is to be expected. The president wants to have accomplished peace—and yes, he’s a braggart—so he calls it peace even when it isn’t. Boy, would he like to earn that Nobel Peace Prize. Maybe he thinks if he says it enough—peace, peace, peace—the world will be convinced and he’ll get that prize. And if he doesn’t get that prize—which almost assuredly he will not—he’ll say that only because he’s Donald Trump, they won’t give him credit for bringing peace to the Middle East—which he assuredly did not.

Don’t get me wrong—Donald Trump got all but one of our remaining hostages out. For that, the Israeli people are hugely grateful. But this is not peace, and IDF soldiers have still been killed. For their families, there is no peace—also for the rest of Israel. We all know we’re still at war.

For anyone who wants specifics, below is what that “peace” has consisted of since October 10: 78 separate ceasefire violations and hostile incidents, in chronological order:

1. Oct 13 — Arrow Unit killed 32 Gazans accused of collaborating with Israel (incl. Doghmush clan members).
2. Oct 14 — Hamas failed to return over half the remaining slain hostages within the required 72 hours (hostage-return breach).
3. Oct 14 — “Suspects” crossed the Yellow Line (Incident A); IDF opened fire; Gaza health ministry claimed fatalities.
4. Oct 14 — “Suspects” crossed the Yellow Line (Incident B); IDF opened fire; Gaza health ministry claimed fatalities.
5. Oct 15 — Hamas returned a body that did not match any hostage (forensics mismatch).
6. Oct 15 — Hamas publicly executed 8 captives (incl. Doghmush clan members).
7. Oct 18 — “Suspicious vehicle” crossed the Yellow Line and approached troops; IDF fire; Hamas claimed 11 family members killed.
8. Oct 19 — Tunnel ambush in Rafah: 2 IDF killed, 3 wounded (Israel called blatant ceasefire violation; Hamas denied responsibility).
9. Oct 27 — Hamas returned partial remains of a hostage already recovered by IDF (Netanyahu office: “clear violation”).
10. Oct 28 — Sniper/RPG attack killed 1 IDF soldier in Rafah area (Hamas denied responsibility).
11. Nov 1 — Hamas handed over 3 bodies claimed as hostages; Israel said none matched any hostage.
12. Nov 2 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached troops (north Gaza); IAF struck.
13. Nov 3 — Multiple individuals crossed Yellow Line and advanced toward troops (south Gaza); troops fired.
14. Nov 3 — Israel assessed ~200 Hamas fighters remained in tunnels within Israeli-controlled southern Gaza (non-withdrawal breach).
15. Nov 4 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached troops; eliminated.
16. Nov 5 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and advanced toward troops (central Gaza) (Incident A); eliminated.
17. Nov 5 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and advanced toward troops (central Gaza) (Incident B); eliminated.
18. Nov 8 — Two terrorists crossed/approached troops (north Gaza); one eliminated.
19. Nov 8 — Additional terrorist crossed/approached troops; eliminated.
20. Nov 10 — Two terrorists crossed/approached troops (south Gaza); eliminated.
21. Nov 11 — Terrorist crossed/approached troops (south Gaza); eliminated.
22. Nov 12 — Four terrorists identified east of Yellow Line (Rafah); 3 killed.
23. Nov 12 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached troops (Khan Younis area); eliminated.
24. Nov 16 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached troops (north Gaza); eliminated.
25. Nov 17 — Several crossed Yellow Line and buried suspicious objects near IDF forces; one eliminated, others retreated.
26. Nov 17 — Individual crossed Yellow Line and approached troops; eliminated.
27. Nov 18 — Two terrorists crossed/approached forces (south Gaza); both eliminated.
28. Nov 19 — Several terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (north Gaza); at least one eliminated.
29. Nov 19 — Terrorists opened fire toward IDF in Khan Younis; IDF called it a ceasefire violation.
30. Nov 20 — Two terrorists crossed/approached troops (south Gaza); “hit identified,” outcome unspecified.
31. Nov 21 — ~15 terrorists emerged from underground infrastructure east of Yellow Line in eastern Rafah; later 6 killed, 5 apprehended.
32. Nov 22 — Armed terrorist fired from a humanitarian access road (IDF video); attacker eliminated.
33. Nov 22 — IDF said it eliminated 3 terrorists likely linked to prior Rafah tunnel escape attempt.
34. Nov 22 — IDF said 2 other militants were eliminated in a separate strike (total in that episode reported as five).
35. Nov 22 — IDF: 2 terrorists crossed Yellow Line and advanced toward troops; eliminated.
36. Nov 24 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached IDF in Khan Younis; struck by IAF.
37. Nov 24 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached IDF near Khan Younis; struck by IAF.
38. Nov 24 — Several terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached troops (north Gaza); threatened forces.
39. Nov 24 — Additional terrorists attempted to approach troops in same area; IDF said 2 eliminated total across both Nov 24 northern incidents.
40. Nov 25 — PIJ delay in transfer of hostage remains (Netanyahu: “additional violation”); body later returned and identified as Dror Or.
41. Nov 25 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (north Strip); eliminated.
42. Nov 25 — Nahal Brigade: 5 armed individuals emerged from tunnels in “Rafah Pocket”; eliminated.
43. Nov 26 — 6 terrorists emerged from tunnels in Rafah; 2 captured, 4 eliminated.
44. Nov 26 — IDF struck Hamas operative planning an imminent sniper plot in northern Gaza.
45. Nov 26 — PIJ member approached IDF in southern Gaza (immediate threat); eliminated.
46. Nov 26 — Individual crossed Yellow Line and approached IDF; eliminated.
47. Nov 28 — Terrorist approached troops near Yellow Line (south Gaza); eliminated by IAF.
48. Nov 29 — Two suspects crossed Yellow Line, did “suspicious activities,” and approached troops (south Gaza); eliminated by IAF.
49. Nov 29 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached troops later same day; eliminated.
50. Dec 1 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line (north Gaza) (Incident A); eliminated.
51. Dec 1 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line (north Gaza) (Incident B); eliminated.
52. Dec 1 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (central Gaza); eliminated with air support.
53. Dec 3 — Tunnel ambush in eastern Rafah: Sayeret Golani engaged attackers; 4 IDF injured.
54. Dec 4 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached IDF (south Gaza); hit/eliminated per IDF.
55. Dec 5 — Two terrorists with suspicious items approached IDF (north Gaza); struck by IAF; one confirmed eliminated.
56. Dec 6 — Multiple terrorists crossed Yellow Line (Incident A); IDF reported eliminations (part of three total across day).
57. Dec 6 — Multiple terrorists crossed Yellow Line (Incident B); IDF reported eliminations (part of three total across day).
58. Dec 7 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (south Gaza); eliminated.
59. Dec 10 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (north Gaza); one eliminated.
60. Dec 11 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (south Gaza); one eliminated.
61. Dec 13 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (north Gaza); eliminated.
62. Dec 14 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (north Gaza); eliminated.
63. Dec 15 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces; eliminated.
64. Dec 16 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line carrying a suspicious object; eliminated.
65. Dec 18 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces; eliminated by IAF.
66. Dec 19 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (central Gaza); eliminated by IAF.
67. Dec 20 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (north Gaza); killed by IAF.
68. Dec 21 — Suspects gathered near Yellow Line; warning fire; 3 crossed and approached forces; IAF struck (outcome unclear).
69. Dec 21 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (Incident A); IAF struck (outcome unclear).
70. Dec 21 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (Incident B); IAF struck (outcome unclear).
71. Dec 24 — Charge detonated on armored vehicle during Rafah clearing; 1 IDF soldier lightly wounded.
72. Dec 25 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (north Gaza); eliminated.
73. Dec 25 — Two terrorists crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (south Gaza); eliminated by IAF.
74. Jan 2 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (south Gaza); killed.
75. Jan 3 — IDF destroyed shaft with loaded rocket launcher ready to fire at southern Israel, deployed after ceasefire (explicit violation).
76. Jan 5 — Terrorist crossed Yellow Line and approached forces (south Gaza); eliminated by IAF.
77. Jan 7 — Hamas fired into an area where IDF forces were operating (north Gaza); IDF called it a blatant violation.
78. Jan 8 — Failed launch from Gaza City toward Israel; projectile fell near a hospital; IDF struck launch point.

All ceasefire violations listed above are drawn from reporting by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Long War Journal (longwarjournal.org), which has provided detailed, day-by-day tracking of militant activity in Gaza since the ceasefire.

I’m not surprised at the president’s braggadocio in the least, but I wish he would be honest about what is actually happening in Gaza. About the fact that not only has Hamas violated the ceasefire 78 times as of this writing, but that the war is not over. I wish the president would admit that Hamas is reorganizing, rearming, repairing and reopening tunnels, and reasserting its full control over the parts of Gaza still under its authority.

🚨Hamas has been violating the ceasefire since the beginning.

Video: @HonestReporting pic.twitter.com/7aQTetBPmz

— Israel War Room (@IsraelWarRoom) November 28, 2025

Since the U.S.-mediated ceasefire in October 2025, Hamas has used the lull to regroup: reconstituting command and policing structures, replenishing weapons stocks, restoring damaged tunnel routes, and tightening its grip over the parts of western Gaza it controls.

Much of this has unfolded out of the Western spotlight. The tunnels did not vanish; they went back underground—literally and politically—while Gaza’s civilians were pushed into ever tighter spaces above them. In that crowded terrain, Hamas can rebuild with more cover and less room for anyone to separate fighters from families. Israeli assessments say the group is returning to a familiar method: tucking command posts, weapons caches, and staging areas into the seams of civilian life—near hospitals, UN-linked compounds, and schools—locations Israel argues have repeatedly been used as shields for military activity.

Meanwhile, the president keeps saying that Hamas will disarm the easy way or the hard way, but it never ever happens. He doesn’t push it. Instead, he’s trying to shove Qatar and Turkey down our throats as if they were good actors, for his Board of Peace (of which there is not).

We deserve safety and peace. But this is not peace and Israel and the Israeli people are not safe. This is not what we bargained for when we agreed to this ceasefire. Or maybe we did. The more things change, the more they stay the same. We are told again and again that Trump is the most pro-Israel president ever, and we are actually giving him the Israel Prize, but unfortunately, the peace that’s breaking out all over, is not peace, and is not breaking out all over.

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Is Hamas Amalek? Restoring the Missing Element (Judean Rose)

Esther Denouncing Haman, Ernest Normand

I’m no rabbi, but the level of depravity exhibited by Hamas, the things they did on October 7, the horrors inflicted on hostages—were so creatively cruel that they can’t, to my mind, be anything but Amalek. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if the “innocent people of Gaza” are also Amalek, along with those under the Palestinian Authority. The greatest achievement of these people seems to be taking depravity to new heights.

The October 7 massacre—1,200 Israelis slaughtered, women raped, babies burned, genital mutilation, starvation, mental and physical abuse, families torn apart in an agony for years. Even now, over two years since that black day, I’m still learning about fresh atrocities. The way they behaved is inhuman.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu invoked Amalek twice in the weeks following the attack, as did Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. In fact, the *cough cough* International Court of Justice (ICJ) seized on any and all references to Amalek they could find to help South Africa “prove” that Israel harbors genocidal intent in its war against Hamas. As we find ourselves once again in a ceasefire that isn’t, it’s time to think about this: If Hamas is Amalek, doesn’t Jewish law demand its obliteration? And doesn’t that indeed equate to genocide?

I’ll leave these questions to the rabbis and philosophers—because I’m definitely not leaving it up to the ICJ to decide. Not that it matters, because despite Netanyahu calling Hamas “Amalek” twice, he has ruled over this war with restraint in the face of existential threat. We did not wipe out the people of Gaza. And we did not wipe out Hamas. This was the choice our leaders made. A choice that says we DON’T see them as Amalek, either that, or we don’t care about God’s directive to wipe out Amalek. Or maybe we’re too cowardly to do what needs to be done. Too afraid of what all the other countries will do if we do what we should.

Primer: What is Amalek?  

Hindy Gross wrote a great condensed story of Amalek for Jewish Resources. Read the whole thing, but here are a few excerpts:

King Agag was the sole survivor of the battle. Hashem had instructed Shaul to leave no trace of the Amalekite race, however Agag was left alive, spared by Shaul. As a result of this tragic mistake, Haman, the descendant of Agag, was born, and went on to persecute the Jews. Had King Shaul killed Agag as he had been commanded to do, the nation of Amalek would not exist today. . .

 . . . Haman, as an Amaleki himself, would stop at nothing to see the Jews fall. He pursued this task with the same sinas chinam (baseless or pointless hatred) that we sadly see in our own communities. There was no point to Haman’s demands, yet Achashverosh went along with it all, even to stamping the Amalekite’s plan with his royal signet. The way of the Amalekim is to unjustly pursue the death of the Jews without purpose, and without logic. So too, our love for God must be pursued without logic, to dispel all doubt. . .

Today as yesterday, we are commanded to blot out the blood of Amalek. Rashi explains this as a missing element in the world. Hashem’s name will not be complete (ושמו אחד) until Amalek’s presence and name is gone. Just as Haman called for the complete eradication of the Jews, so too we must remove the name of Amalek from the world in order to restore this missing element.

“Restore this missing element.” Lyrical, but easy to misconstrue. Still, Netanyahu said it, Hamas is Amalek, “You must remember what Amalek has done to you, says our Holy Bible. And we do remember.”

Smotrich, as previously mentioned, also said the “A” word—Amalek—demanding stronger, more decisive action against a horrible enemy. The concept of “Hamas is Amalek” even wound its way into Israeli pop culture. The 2023 hip-hop track Harbu Darbu by Ness Ve Stilla, went viral with over 4.5 million Spotify streams and 16 million YouTube views.

Harbu Darbu is powerful and it names names, such as Dua Lipa and Bella Hadid, along with now-eliminated bad guys, Haniyeh, Mohammed Deif, and Nasrallah and takes them to task. The lyrics offer some catharsis to young Israelis in this tragic time. It expresses what they feel.

Can anyone say definitively that Hamas is Amalek? No. But in the end, we do have the Vehi Sheamda verse that we've read at every Passover seder:

And it is this (the promise) that has stood by our ancestors and for us. For not only one (enemy) has risen up against us to destroy us, but in every generation they rise up to destroy us.

But the Holy One, Blessed be He, delivers us from their hands.

The Jews have read those words, wherever they were, for thousands of years. They serve as a guide: When they rise up to destroy you, that's how you know they're bad guys. Hamas is just one among many evil entities who just really, really want to k*ll Jews.

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Harmful Rabbinic Statement: When Leadership Fails in the Name of Morality (Judean Rose)

Disclaimer: the views expressed here are solely those of the author, weekly Judean Rose columnist Varda Meyers Epstein.

When more than 80 self-described Modern Orthodox rabbis signed a public letter accusing Israel of failing to prevent starvation in Gaza, the result was not “moral clarity,” as the document’s title claimed. Instead, it provided a dangerous boost to Hamas propaganda at a time of unprecedented hostility toward the Jewish state.

The statement, “A Call for Moral Clarity, Responsibility, and a Jewish Orthodox Response in the Face of the Gaza Humanitarian Crisis,” insists that while Hamas is guilty of heinous crimes, Israel bears responsibility for preventing hunger in Gaza. Cloaked in the language of compassion, the letter distorts reality, undermines Israel, and arms its enemies with new talking points.

Jewish law holds leaders to the highest standards of truth in speech. Yet this letter repeats claims that collapse under scrutiny. Though it does not have to, since May, Israel has facilitated the entry of nearly 183,000 tons of humanitarian aid into Gaza. The United Nations, by contrast, reports just 67,000 tons—a discrepancy of more than 115,000 tons. The explanation is simple: Hamas steals, hoards, and diverts supplies, while the UN amplifies those manipulated figures. In fact, since the start of the war, Israel has facilitated the entry into Gaza of almost 2 million tons of aid.

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A post shared by Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs (@israelmfa)

Instead of consulting Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), which publishes daily data on aid deliveries, the signatories embraced Hamas-tainted statistics and then presented them as an Orthodox moral imperative. This feels more like moral confusion and cluelessness than moral clarity.

Aid entry data is published regularly on a dedicated website.

It provides a daily breakdown of the number of trucks entering Gaza, categorized by crossing point and type of goods.

The data presented on the site reflects the full and accurate picture of the aid that Israel… pic.twitter.com/UwGattKdbK

— COGAT (@cogatonline) August 19, 2025

The harm goes far beyond numbers. Anti-Israel media outlets in Turkey and the Arab world immediately broadcast the rabbis’ statement as proof that even Orthodox leaders accuse Israel of starving Gaza. The familiar weapon of “even Jews say” has now been upgraded: even Orthodox rabbis say.

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A post shared by Low Effort Zionist Memes (@loweffortzionistmemes_)

Such messaging hands Hamas and its allies exactly what they need—Jewish voices validating their narrative—while antisemitism continues to surge globally.

Those who hold the title of rabbi carry an obligation to weigh the impact of their words. Their statements reverberate far beyond their intended audience, particularly in times of war and rising antisemitism. To sign one’s name to a letter that repeats propaganda is not an act of conscience but a failure of responsibility.

Rabbis are expected to serve as witnesses for the Jewish people, not to echo the accusations of those who seek the destruction of the Jewish state. At a minimum, Jewish leaders must confirm the facts before attaching their authority to public pronouncements.

The rabbis who signed this letter may not intend to harm Israel. But intentions do not negate consequences. By repeating distorted figures and equating Israel with Hamas, they have lent credibility to falsehoods that endanger Jews everywhere.

This is not moral clarity, nor is it an Orthodox response. It is, at best, naïve—and at worst, a dangerous gift to Israel’s enemies.

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Why I Don’t Care About the Suffering in Gaza (Judean Rose)

Disclaimer: the views expressed here are solely those of the author, weekly Judean Rose columnist Varda Meyers Epstein.

The war in Gaza rages on, and the images of destruction and suffering are inescapable. Yet, if truth be told, I feel a profound apathy toward the plight of Gaza’s civilians. My emotions are reserved for the suffering of my own people—Israelis, Jews, soldiers, survivors, hostages, and hostage families. The events of October 7, 2023, and their aftermath, consume all my energy, leaving me unable to muster sympathy for those who, in my view, have aligned themselves with terror.

My feelings are instead completely taken up with the hostages and the 895 IDF soldiers who have died trying to free them. Each soldier’s death ripples through our communities—friends, neighbors, or children of friends. We exchange pained messages on WhatsApp: “Another soldier.” These are not faceless numbers; they are our boys, some barely out of high school, others young fathers or newlyweds. Their sacrifice haunts me, as does the moral calculus: is it right that so many die to save so few?

The hostages, too, consume my thoughts. I can’t linger on the horrors they’ve endured—starvation, beatings, confinement in dank tunnels—without risking my own ability to function. I push away intrusive images of October 7, when Hamas and Gaza’s civilians breached our borders, murdered, raped, and kidnapped. Civilians bragged about their atrocities, spat on our dead, and hid hostages in their homes. They voted for Hamas, an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, in UN-overseen elections. They allowed tunnels and weapons under their children’s bedrooms. They are absolutely, 100 percent complicit.

You often hear people say things like, “the majority of Muslims are peaceful” and this always makes me roll my eyes. With what authority do people say this? If such a thing could be quantified, one would have to consider the ample evidence that shows the children of Gaza to be indoctrinated with Jew-hate from birth. They imbibe it with their mothers’ milk.

Do I believe every Gazan is evil? They’re complicit! How can they not be? Maybe some woman whose husband will beat her if she doesn’t vote for Hamas is innocent. I have no clue. But unfortunately, people get killed in war. And this war was started by Gaza. Not only by Hamas, but the people of Gaza, headed by Hamas. And it is definitely the people of Gaza who crowd the streets when there’s going to be a hostage release ceremony. They love to see Jews in captivity. They love to watch them be ridiculed. They love to jeer and spit and grab at them. They love to hate them.

So no. I do not believe that most Gazans are peaceful and neither do any of the polls I’ve seen on the topic. The people of Gaza continue to support Hamas and participate in the atrocities.

Now Gaza is rubble, its people hungry and desperate. Hamas shoots those who seek food or escape. Neither Egypt nor Jordan will take them in. No one will. But my focus must be with my own. My people, our soldiers, my son in the reserves, who leaves his wife and three young children to serve, again and again.

I asked my Facebook friends why they do or don’t care about Gaza’s suffering. Their responses were like an echo of my own thoughts, but perhaps offer greater nuance as well as important context I might have missed.

Avi Perez, 57, who made Aliyah from South Africa and lives in Ramat Beit Shemesh, pulls no punches:

“When a potential Middle Eastern Singapore chooses murder, terror, missiles, and more over prosperity and possibility ... mercy for monsters has left the store.”

Tehilla O., 60, living outside Israel, is uncompromising:

“They aren’t suffering. If they are, it’s self-inflicted. All the hostages are released at the same time, it ends. Simple. They know where they are. Even as ‘civilians,’ they are Hamas. And quite frankly, after 7 October and since and what has and is still being done, they can cry me a river.”

Elihu D. Stone, 67, a religiously observant Zionist in Judea, expresses sorrow but places blame squarely on Hamas:

“I care deeply about innocents suffering the ravages of war in Gaza. The agonies wrought upon families who must endure the predictable and anticipated consequences of Hamas’s savagery of October 7th is absolutely heartbreaking. I wish that the global community would back Israel’s war effort against Hamas whole-heartedly and bring immense pressure to bear… to return all those whom Hamas kidnapped.”

Yael Pedhatzur, 76, from Meitar, Israel, sees Gaza’s suffering as their own doing:

“I have very little empathy for the plight of Gaza and the Gazans as I believe their situation is of their own making. No other country has been made to aid their enemy during wartime. As one who wants complete surrender of Hamas, I know it can’t happen as long as we provide them with food and supplies.”

“Hamas obviously doesn’t care about them either as they shoot their people who take the aid.

“I have been saying this for the last several campaigns in Gaza over the past 15-20 years. No electricity, no water, no food. That’s how you end a war.”

Mark Isser Coopersmith, reflecting on past expulsions, is direct:

“We should be starving them until they let the hostages go.”

Toby Dachs from Jerusalem focuses on Israel’s losses:

“My concern and pain is for the hostages and all the families who lost their sons in this horrific war.”

Batsheva Gladstone, a longtime friend, differs from me in that she makes the effort—she actively struggles to find compassion:

“I have to fight to care in the slightest about any palestinians. I have to remind myself almost daily that G-d doesn’t want us to turn off our humanity. And, if there are indeed any innocents in all this horror inflicted upon the Jewish nation we should try to muster up the decency to differentiate between the terrorists, the terrorist sympathizers, and the victims of circumstance. It’s admittedly a tall order, and sometimes I fail, but I try, and sometimes I can…

“Do I think the war is justified? Yes, sadly, 100%, and necessary. ”

Iris Breidbord Langman questions the existence of innocent Gazans:

“My only concern is for our hostages. The perpetual ‘victims’ joined Hamas in brutalizing our people. Is there a difference between them and Hamas? Show me one ‘civilian’ who came forward to help a hostage and I will care about that person.”

Cheryl Mallenbaum-Ninyo would care about the innocent, but finds none to care about:

“I care about the suffering of innocent people in Gaza. But where are they? (That’s a genuine question.) I can’t help but remember that when Israel offered immunity, safety, and a CEO added financial incentive for anyone in Gaza who helps return a captive, not one single Gazan came forward. So I genuinely wonder: Where ARE these ‘good, innocent people’? (Possibly the exception being newborns who have not yet been indoctrinated to needlessly hate and seek destruction.)

“Those in Gaza (or elsewhere) who support Hamas or who raise their children with blind hatred or who think murder, rape, burning, beheading, kidnapping, mutilation, etc. is justified to “bring attention to a cause” or who hold innocent civilians (and dead bodies) for psychological torture? They don’t have my sympathy.

“If the only way to spread your ‘message’ is to harm others, the ‘message’ isn’t worth spreading.”

Alisa Chessler dismisses the notion of civilian innocence:

“I only care about ‘innocent civilians’ and since we are nearly 2 years with NOT ONE person coming forward to identify the location of our hostages, I don’t believe there are any ‘innocent civilians’ in that sh*thole. So therefore, they can turn the place into a parking lot for all I care.

“My only concern is the environmental impact of the garbage there. It needs to be removed to restore the land back to something livable for Israelis.”

Jan Poller contrasts the lack of Gazan compassion with Israel’s pain:

“We care about a lot more than they cared about the men, women, and children they raped and beheaded.”

Deborah K., a 70-year-old Jew from Scotland, feels torn by guilt but still unmoved about the Gazan people:

“I don’t care about the Gazans… but feel guilty because ‘I’m supposed to/I ought to.’ They’ve been offered various options several times over the years to live there peacefully, refused every time, voted in Hamas, and as long as Hamas are around, Israel is in danger. And Israel has to exist.”

Hinda Rochel Anolick-Rachel Ann prioritizes her people:

“I care about the people in Gaza. I care more about my people in Gaza. And I care more about my people period. They come first. However terrible it is there, it is worse for my people who are being held hostage, and to give in to terrorists will result in greater harm to my people. It isn't a matter of caring, it is who I care more about.”

These voices, varied in tone and perspective, reflect a shared sentiment: Gaza’s suffering feels self-inflicted—and distant—when weighed against Israel’s personal, uninvited tragedy. We didn’t choose this war. They did.

So when the sound of planes overhead draws my attention away from work, my thoughts are on the men in those planes—not the hunger in Gaza. I pause and say a few psalms.

The moral weight of this war rests not in Gaza’s ruins, but in the lives of our soldiers and hostages. My heart holds only so much—and its space is reserved for my own suffering people: those who are chained, those who are fighting, those who are grieving, and those still waiting for their loved ones to come home.

One name in this piece has been changed at the request of the contributor.

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Buy EoZ's books  on Amazon! "He's an Anti-Zionist Too!" cartoon book (December 2024) PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022)

 

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Youth Organizations Have Picked a Side—And It’s Not the Jews (Judean Rose)

Disclaimer: the views expressed here are solely those of the author, weekly Judean Rose columnist Varda Meyers Epstein.

Youth organizations or organizations actively involved with or concerned with youth. When you hear of them, you think of forces for good. You think of mentors giving guidance, steering kids on the skids back on track.

But today, that’s not necessarily the case.

Too many youth organizations or those actively involved with youth—whose stated missions have nothing to do with politics—global or otherwise, are taking a position on the war in Gaza, and it’s not a position that favors the Jews.

We know this because they’ve issued statements to that effect—statements that appear not to recognize that the war that has decimated Gaza, began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas, the democratically elected government of Gaza, launched the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. “Ordinary” Gazans, too, took part in the slaughter, pouring right through that fence alongside Hamas, to take advantage of the opportunity to rape and kill the yahud.

Jewish suffering continues deep underground in Gaza, as the last 20 hostages still languish in captivity, chained, caged, and starved, almost two years on. In spite of this, youth organizations nowhere near the Middle East—organizations charged with molding young minds—have decided to ignore Jewish suffering in favor of the people who gang-rape Jewish women tied to trees.

They claim to be nonpartisan, these organizations, but their statements say otherwise. Some downplay or omit the horrors of October 7. Others have issued proclamations of “solidarity” with Gaza endorsing antisemitic violence as legitimate “resistance.” Still a third group engages in what I call “both siding” it, pretending that violence is violence no matter who suffers, that all are exactly the same, which is just as bad. If you can’t decry what happened on October 7, and understand why Israel fought back, you should stay out of it, instead of poisoning young peoples’ minds.

One has to wonder: what is the atmosphere like at meetings or events for Jewish participants? How does it feel to belong to a group that seems to regard your people’s suffering as inconvenient or deserved? And what will become of the next generation—shaped by organizations that ask them to champion the cause of people who eviscerate pregnant women and burn babies and small children alive?

Here are a few examples of supposedly nonpartisan organizations that have issued statements on the war in Gaza:

1. National Education Association (NEA)

The NEA is not exactly a youth organization, but as the largest teachers' union in the U.S., it certainly has the potential to influence America’s children. Only yesterday, on July 8, the NEA voted to sever ties with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

From the NY Post:

The largest teachers union in America has voted to cut all ties with the Anti-Defamation League — which called the move “profoundly disturbing” as antisemitic attacks in the US are at a record high.

The National Education Association, which is also the US’s largest union with more than 3 million members, approved a proposal Sunday to drop the ADL as an education partner, accusing the New York-based Jewish civil rights group of using the term antisemitism to punish any and all criticisms of Israel. . .

. . . The group has found its relationship waning with the NEA since the start of the war in Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, when the Jewish state was attacked by Palestinian Hamas terrorists and retaliated in a conflict that is still ongoing.

Tensions between the NEA and ADL came to a head earlier this year when the Jewish group slammed the former president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) over a presentation on Islamophobia and attacks against Palestinians.

Merrie Najimy, the former president of the union, was one of four speakers at the controversial presentation, which made headlines and was even discussed in the state’s Special Commission on Combating Antisemitism in February. The Massachusetts Educators Against Antisemitism and American Jewish Committee (AJC) New England ultimately accused the MTA leadership of demonizing Israel and spreading “anti-Zionist propaganda” in the classrooms. . .

. . . Liora Rez, the founder of StopAntisemitism, said, “The most radical fringe has taken over the NEA and they actively promote bigotry against Jews and lies about the Jewish state.

“Rather than trying to educate our children, they want to indoctrinate them to hate each other.”

According to Axios, “The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, said it welcomed the NEA vote due to concerns over ADL's "anti-Palestinian bias."

2. Save the Children

Save the Children bills itself as “the world’s first and leading independent children’s organisation – transforming lives and the future we share. We’re proud to work with children, their communities, and our partners worldwide, discovering new solutions to help ensure that the world's most vulnerable children survive, learn and are protected,” but apparently that doesn’t include vulnerable Israeli children, such as those slaughtered on October 7.

Save the Children says it reaches tens of millions of children in more than 110 countries through its “life-changing work,” but based on its statement on Gaza, none of those tens of millions of children are Jews. On a slickly designed webpage titled War in Gaza, the (very long) statement makes offhand mention of October 7, neglecting to mention the slaughter of Israeli Jews or the Jewish hostages still in captivity. The statement cites all the exaggerated Hamas death statistics, and of course, in a breathtaking display of what it means to blame the victim, everything that has happened is the fault of Israel:

Children are paying the heaviest price of this war.

In 2024, the occupied Palestinian territory, specifically Gaza, became the deadliest place on earth to be a child.

Since the beginning of the war, over 18,000 children have been killed, while over 14,000 more children are at risk of dying from severe malnutrition in the coming weeks and months if the conditions imposed by the Government of Israel don't drastically improve. After 19 months of war, children's lives continue to hang in the balance.

Since 2 March 2025, absolutely no humanitarian aid or commercial goods have entered Gaza, putting all 1 million of Gaza’s children at risk of famine and creating conditions incompatible with life.

Children will continue to suffer day after day until the bombing stops, the siege ends and meaningful amounts of humanitarian aid are able to enter Gaza again.

Denying humanitarian aid is a crime under international law and a grave violation against children. The international community must not allow the war to continue and the halt on aid must be immediately reversed.

A definitive ceasefire is the only way to save lives in Gaza and end grave violations of children’s rights. There is no alternative.

The lives of Gaza's 1.1 million children depend on it.

Our response.

Amidst extremely challenging conditions, we’ve been working around the clock to find ways to deliver aid to children.

Save the Children has been supporting Palestinian children since 1953 and has maintained a permanent presence in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) since 1973. Our response has significantly scaled up since October 2023, leveraging our existing footprint, technical expertise, and partnerships to address the evolving humanitarian crisis.

As of 11th March 2025, Save the Children and its partners have reached more than 1.5 million people across the occupied Palestinian territory, including over 1.4 million people in Gaza.

During the pause in hostilities from the 19th January to the 18th March, we provided essential lifesaving aid to over 51,000 people. This included distributing winter clothing to over 15,000 children in Gaza, and food parcels to over 23,000 people. In February, a total of 1,341 children, were vaccinated in our Primary Healthcare Centre in Deir Al-Balah and Khan Younis as part of the third polio vaccination campaign.

We have also distributed essential items such as mattresses, pillows, blankets and plastic tarps to families that have returned to northern Gaza, while continuing to provide healthcare services at our two primary healthcare centres and mental health support at our child friendly spaces. Despite this, the needs are vast and ever-growing.

Alongside local partners, we’re distributing vital supplies to families across shelters and households – drinking water, food, hygiene products, mattresses, blankets, learning materials, toys, and games.

We are prepared to scale up further in Gaza to respond to the spiralling needs. But the basic conditions to reach families need to be established by the Government of Israel by lifting the siege and facilitating the safe, unobstructed delivery of aid across Gaza.

Since the pause in Gaza collapsed and the Government of Israel re-imposed a total siege on the entry of aid and goods into Gaza, all that has entered Gaza are bombs and bullets. This complete siege is the longest the Israeli Government has blocked all aid and commercial goods from entering Gaza. Instead of much needed food, clothing or tents to help Gaza’s children survive, airstrikes are being launched into Gaza, killing, maiming, and destroying the lives of children and families.

We are by children’s sides in Gaza and we’ll keep calling for a world that respects their right to survive and be protected. But we can’t do it without your support.

They may be by the side of the children in Gaza, but I’m pretty sure they wish the children of Israel would drop off the edge of the earth.

3. Rotary International

Rotary International is not primarily a youth organization, but it does have several programs focused on youth development and leadership. Rotary International actively engages young people through initiatives like Rotary Youth Exchange, Interact clubs, and Rotaract clubs, aiming to foster leadership skills, promote service, and cultivate global citizenship. The organization says it is nonpartisan: “Rotary is a non-political and non-religious organization open to all people regardless of race, colour, religion, gender, or political preference.”

Its statement on Israel and Gaza tries very hard to be fair to all, but ends up not being very fair to Israel, urging “all parties to seek avenues to peace.” Should the rape victim make up with her rapist? Should the Yarden Bibas shake hands with the people who murdered his wife and children, in the name of peace? Should Israel agree that Rotary’s support for upholding international law is a good thing, fair and balanced, when the ICC calls for the arrest of Israel’s leaders?

Israel and Gaza

Recognizing there has been protracted suffering in the long history of conflict between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza, Rotary International urges all parties to seek avenues to peace.

At the same time, we unequivocally condemn the horrific attack by Hamas on Israeli civilians and are appalled at the number of people who have been injured, killed, and kidnapped.

As the war between Israel and Hamas intensifies, we remain deeply concerned about the potential for further escalation as well as the loss of life and the humanitarian crisis that is occurring in Gaza. We denounce the violence against innocent civilians and support upholding international humanitarian law.

Peacebuilding is both a cornerstone of Rotary’s mission and one of our areas of focus. At our core, Rotary is a common ground for people to come together – across nationalities and religions, cultures and histories – and connect around their shared belief in a better tomorrow. That connection is what humanizes us in times of conflict and builds a foundation for lasting peace.

Rotary remains committed to working with our members, partners, and communities to find long-term, sustainable solutions that support peace and development in the region and elsewhere.

All that talk of peace with the people who rape my people makes me totally sick to my stomach. It’s not possible to be balanced on this subject. It’s just not. There’s a good side and an evil side. You wipe out the evil to protect the good. Hamas is evil.

4. United Way of King County

United Way has a strong focus on youth development and opportunity. The organization says it “works to support young people from early childhood through career readiness, aiming to help them succeed in education, build financial stability, and become engaged community members.”

The organization says it is nonpartisan, and “represents a neutral ground where people can join together for the greater good of the community.” But the King County, Washington branch of the organization which includes the city of Seattle, decided to issue a statement on the war in Gaza on October 11, that is so neutral as to exclude the issues of right and wrong, good and evil, terrorism and those who defend against it. With Israel still reeling from the attack, United Way of King County sidelined what actually happened, and more than hints that Israel shouldn’t respond. Sure. As if us Israelis should just leave our hostages there in Gaza, stay home, and lick our wounds. Like Rotary International, in bending over backward to be fair, United Way of King County is fair to no one, and especially not to the Jews who were massacred so brutally on October 7:

United Way of King County’s Response to the Israel-Hamas War

United Way of King County mourns with others around the world the unspeakable violence and loss of life from the Israel-Hamas War.

We work side by side with communities to build an equitable future for everyone. There are far too many examples—locally, nationally, and globally—that demonstrate we are losing sight of that shared humanity and the common needs and dreams we all share.

We join our local community members who are grieving.

5. Boston CASA

Sometimes a gala speaks a thousand words. At its 13th annual gala event, Transforming Lives, Boston CASA, whose mission is to advocate for abused and neglected children, honored infamous antisemite Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley with the 2025 Susan J. Ganz Award. The event announcement called Pressley “an activist, a legislator, a survivor, and the first woman of color elected to Congress from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Throughout her career, Congresswoman Pressley has fought to ensure that those closest to the pain or the closest to the power – driving and informing policy making,” whatever that means.

As far as I’m concerned, the only thing Ayanna Pressley has fought for is to demonize Israel. She boycotted Bibi’s address to Congress, speaking of Israel bombing “innocent civilians” with no mention whatsoever of October 7 or Hamas.

She speaks of an ongoing “genocide” when the only genocide is the purposeful antisemitic slaughter that occurred on October 7.

 

The fact is, that in honoring Ayanna Pressley, this organization that is meant to advocate for Boston children, fails to advocate for the child victims of October 7. And so I return to my original thought: youth organizations—or those entrusted with shaping young minds—are meant to be forces for good. They are meant to protect the vulnerable, guide the impressionable, and foster moral clarity. But today, too many are doing the opposite. They are modeling moral confusion, justifying barbarity, and embracing those who would see the Jewish people wiped from the face of the earth.

If your mission is to shape children into decent human beings, start by telling the truth. Tell them what happened on October 7. Tell them that Hamas didn’t just kill Jews—they butchered them, raped them, beheaded them, burned their children alive. And if you can’t bring yourself to say that much—if your instinct is to “both sides” it or to preach peace with those who take toddlers hostage—then do us all a favor and get out of the business of working with youth.

Because this generation deserves better. And so do the dead.

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Buy EoZ's books  on Amazon! "He's an Anti-Zionist Too!" cartoon book (December 2024) PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022)

 

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47 Minutes of Evil Greta Wouldn’t Watch (Judean Rose)

Disclaimer: the views expressed here are solely those of the author, weekly Judean Rose columnist Varda Meyers Epstein.

On June 9, 2025, Israeli naval forces intercepted the Madleen, a rusty, overhyped, and under-provisioned “aid boat” that sailed with great drama from Europe to Gaza. Onboard: Greta Thunberg, a few other professional protesters, and a pathetic 100 kilograms of flour.

To put that in perspective: Israel facilitates hundreds of aid trucks to Gaza every single day, carrying hundreds of tons of food, medicine, diapers, and fuel. Greta brought enough flour to feed roughly 330 people for one day—assuming Hamas or hungry mobs don’t steal it first, which is precisely what happened to UN flour shipments this week.

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A post shared by Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר (@emilyintelaviv)

In exchange for this performative voyage, Greta got what she came for: selfies, headlines, and a chance to pretend she was the moral conscience of the world. But what she didn’t expect was Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz offering her and her selfie-yacht companions a front-row seat to truth.

The Film They Refused to Watch

Israel prepared a 47-minute documentary, “Bearing Witness to the October 7 Massacre,” which compiles footage directly from Hamas bodycams and GoPro devices worn during the pogrom. The footage is unsparing: rape, torture, execution, mutilation. It’s not Israel’s word against Hamas—it’s Hamas filming its own barbarism, proud, gleeful, laughing as they slit throats and shoot children point-blank.

Greta and gang were invited to watch. According to multiple media accounts, they agreed to begin, then either shut their eyes or turned away, refusing to take in more than a few seconds. Maybe they knew what they would see. Maybe they were afraid they’d lose the ability to justify their moral theater.

Maybe they already had seen it—and simply didn’t care.

Historical Precedents: Can Footage Change Minds?

Israel’s tactic wasn’t new. There’s a long history of using atrocity footage to rip the mask off sanitized evil:

·        Nuremberg Trials (1945): The Allies didn’t just charge Nazis—they made the court and the world watch what they found in the camps. British and American cameramen documented the piles of corpses, gas chambers, and starved survivors. The footage stunned even hardened prosecutors. German civilians were marched into local theaters and made to watch. Some fainted. Others wept. A few denied. But the films worked: they shattered any lingering doubt—at least for a time.

·        Vietnam (1972): The iconic photo of “Napalm Girl,” 9-year-old Kim Phuc screaming, her skin burned off, turned American public opinion decisively against the war. One picture—raw, ugly, undeniable—shifted the moral calculus more than a thousand op-eds could ever have done.

·        Rwanda (1994): In contrast, during the Rwandan genocide, footage was deliberately suppressed. The Clinton White House wouldn’t call it genocide, and CNN didn’t show rivers filled with hacked bodies. Result? Nothing was done. No outrage, no pressure, no intervention. Without images, there was no movement.

·        Israel, 2023–24: The IDF’s October 7 footage has been shown to journalists, diplomats, foreign correspondents, and lawmakers. At a screening in Los Angeles, attendees were reportedly shaken. Some demanded to see more—beheadings, rapes—in order to confront the full horror. A separate screening for foreign journalists in Israel left many stunned. And at Harvard, a screening organized by Chabad with support from Bill Ackman reportedly prompted some students to reconsider their assumptions.

But no screening has been more visceral than the one held for members of the Israeli Knesset.

On November 6, 2023, over 100 MKs watched a version of the October 7 footage at the Knesset. What followed was human, gut-wrenching, and painfully real: some parliamentarians burst into tears. Others vomited. Several ran from the room. The footage, reported by the Jerusalem Post, was described as “unbearable.” Likud MK Galit Distel sobbed and shouted, “Where is the world?” Another member said, “I have no more tears left to cry.”

A short video clip from the screening shows elected officials weeping uncontrollably and being comforted by colleagues as they fled the hall.

This is how decent people react when confronted with evil. With horror. With grief. With rage.

Now compare that to Greta Thunberg and the Madleen crew, who closed their eyes and turned their heads when given the opportunity to bear witness. These are the same people who flew across continents to play martyr in Gaza. Who accuse Israel of genocide while refusing to look Hamas genocide in the face. They couldn’t handle 47 minutes of footage—but they feel qualified to comment on 75 years of Jewish history.

There’s a word for that. But let’s just call it what it is: moral cowardice.

One Boat Does Not a Flotilla Make

The Madleen carried no aid worth mentioning, no moral compass worth respecting, and no courage whatsoever. It was a stunt—and everyone knows it. Everyone on that boat knew that Israel would be polite and diplomatic, and that they were completely safe at all times, free to watch or not watch the footage as they pleased, and offered sandwiches, bottles of water, and a free flight back to Europe, where they belong.

All the passengers of the ‘selfie yacht’ are safe and unharmed. They were provided with sandwiches and water. The show is over. pic.twitter.com/tLZZYcspJO

— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) June 9, 2025

Israel should be commended for showing restraint—because really, Greta Thunberg’s face begs to be slapped. But no. Israel did nothing of the sort.

Greta: People were not treated well

Journalist: Can you elaborate?

Greta: mmm.. Dehumanizing, They didn’t let me say goodbye

Journalist: Can you give an example, tell us what happened to you when you arrived to the port? Were they violent?

Greta: mm I prefer not to mm yea
🤡 pic.twitter.com/EVqLymChHk

— The Uri (@uricohenisrael) June 10, 2025

Fifteen years ago, during the Mavi Marmara incident, things got violent. This time? No shots. No injuries. The IDF simply rerouted the Madleen’s symbolic “aid,” through proper humanitarian channels, handed the activists sandwiches, and gave them a chance to learn something.

They declined.

Greta had a moment—a chance to really bear witness.

She blinked.

Then she shut her eyes.

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Buy EoZ's books  on Amazon! "He's an Anti-Zionist Too!" cartoon book (December 2024) PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022)

 

Read More