Last night was a very long one for me — as I’m sure it was for many of you. I kept my cell phone on while I slept, waking periodically to turn on the TV.
Sirens woke my children and grandchildren who live in Tel Aviv at around 3:00 am, and they spent the rest of the night in their bomb shelters.
My daughter in Israel donated blood this morning, given the concern about the potential for a serious counterstrike. And many reservists across Israel have again been called up.
In so many ways, what Israel did in preemptively striking Iran’s nuclear program was not only essential for its own survival — it was an act taken on behalf of the entire Western world.
For 46 years, this Iranian regime has threatened to wipe Israel off the map. Just this Thursday, the International Atomic Energy Agency voted to censure Iran for failing to comply with its nuclear nonproliferation obligations, citing “undeclared nuclear material and activities at multiple undeclared locations.”
Until now, Iran’s proxies — Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis — have been the primary target of Israel's strikes. The head of the snake remained largely intact.
As more details emerge, it’s clear that Israel mounted an extraordinary, coordinated intelligence operation, years in the making. Much of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and military leadership has been decimated. The very people who would have planned a counterstrike are gone.
For now, Hezbollah says it won’t retaliate, while Hamas has already been significantly degraded.
Although there is still enormous concern ahead — and as I write this, there are incoming ballistic missile attacks into central Israel — this may be the historic beginning of a transformed Middle East.
In the haze of all this, we cannot lose sight of the 53 Israeli hostages still in the tunnels of Gaza. Our hearts are with them and their families, and we pray to see every last one returned home.
Since the earliest hours of October 7 — and really, even before the State of Israel was formally established — UJA has been there to provide critical, lifesaving support to our Jewish homeland. We will not waver, rising to meet whatever is required of us.
Equally important is our solidarity. The dozens of trips we’ve taken as a community to Israel since October 7 are a powerful reminder to Israelis that they’re not alone in this moment.
Here at home, we remain vigilant, especially following the Boulder firebombings and the brutal murder of a young Israeli couple in D.C.
Our Community Security Initiative (CSI) is closely monitoring the current situation in coordination with local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, including the NYPD and FBI.
While CSI is advising local Jewish institutions to be vigilant, currently there is no increased credible threat against the Jewish community in America. CSI recommends that communal institutions remain fully open and operational.
Since October 7, we’ve provided approximately $15 million in emergency security grants to local Jewish communal institutions — above and beyond our regular funding — to ensure that we can live proudly, openly Jewish lives, even and especially in moments like these.
I hope that more Shabbat candles will be lit tonight, and more families will hold each other close. And I hope synagogues and Jewish spaces will be overflowing tomorrow. Because time and again, we’ve seen how simply being together can be a profound source of comfort and strength. And strength and community are what will be needed in the days and weeks ahead.
Tomorrow, the Prayer for the State of Israel will be recited in services, but I think we might do well to say these words, together, right now:
“Strengthen the defenders of our holy land, grant them salvation and crown them with victory, bring peace to the land and everlasting happiness to its people.”
Amen.
Shabbat shalom