Tag Archives: coronavirus

We are at the height of Sukkot at the moment and I would love to write about the special prayers and celebrations that are taking place in Jerusalem and around the Jewish world, but with coronavirus still ravaging our population, we are in lockdown, synagogues are closed and prayer are …

The festival of Sukkot, the most joyous festival in the Jewish calendar, began last night, lasting for 7 days (8 outside of Israel), running straight into the Simchat Torah festival on the 8th day (9th day outside Israel). Sukkot is the last of the Shalosh R’galim (three pilgrimage festivals). Like …

Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, begins tonight (Friday night), and lasts for 2 days, until sundown on Sunday night. The Jewish year follows the lunar calendar, and the number counts the number of years since Creation. This year we will mark the beginning of 5781. This year is going …

That was the title of a Broadway musical which first made it to the stage almost sixty years ago. This provocative title came into my mind now because of the current state of the world. I don’t really want to get off, my friends. I’m too much of a fighter …

My father-in-law recently died alone in a hospital room.  His body remained in the hospital until it could be removed by a special Coronavirus team.  His funeral was a lonely one and my wife was unable to travel to say her goodbyes.  It was his failing heart that certainly killed …

Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of terror, began last night at sundown with the sound of the siren, as Israel commemorated its fallen with a one minute siren at 8 pm and a surreal ceremony at the Kotel, where – due to the constraints of …

On March 30, 2020, the Toronto Star wrote an article “Fearing Gaza coronavirus spread, Hamas preps for mass quarantines” which painted Hamas as a reasonable and responsible government caring for its citizens. The article opened with a woman returning to Gaza from Egypt who was surprised that Hamas had set …

FACT: As in the specious claim that Israel is refusing to help Palestinians in the West Bank contain the coronavirus, similar lies are being disseminated about Israel’s treatment of those in Gaza.  The Guardian reported, for example, “An Israeli blockade, in place since 2007 although eased in recent years, has …

We have been exhibiting a disturbing tendency to look for scapegoats, but demonizing an entire sector of our own people is unacceptable. Thomas Paine’s famous line has attained iconic status: “These are the times that try men’s souls.” Indeed, crises can bring out the best, as well as the worst …

FACT: One of the many ironies of the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement is that its proponents routinely use Israeli products, innovations and medical treatments. Now they face another challenge: should they risk dying from the coronavirus rather than accept help from Israel? Just as most Palestinians in the …

The eyes of the world are on the coronavirus and its implications for each of us. Here in Israel we are struggling with a heavy situation, rendered all the more difficult by a political situation that is literally unbearable. I remain alone in my apartment: Alone, and determined to come …

How can I post a Good News Weekend post amidst this unprecedented worldwide quarantine which has confined millions to their homes, shuttering businesses and places of entertainment and leisure, and bringing the world economy to its knees?  There are more unknowns than knowns, and the worst is the not knowing. …

Our first battle is against the coronavirus, which is being fought not just in Israel, but around the world.  It preoccupies everyone, so that political news here is not necessarily even front page any more. I write from my Jerusalem apartment: I am well, thank Heaven, but following the rules …

The news has been inexorably bad for the last few weeks and I have been in no mood to write anything (in case you hadn’t noticed). The 3rd round of Israeli elections yielded exactly the same results as the second and first rounds (surprise!), i.e. a stalemate. This time Netanyahu …

But now it’s time to catch up on some good news for a change, so here is my latest Good News Weekend post. My first item is davka¹ related to all the bad news about the spread of the coronavirus. It has unfortunately reached Israel via travellers to the Far …