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DJ Dreidel poses with friends, at The Home Depot in West Nyack, New York, October 20, 2026. (Yael Buechler)

Yael Buechler

When the Jewish calendar doesn’t cooperate with Christmas

Maccabeak, the Hanukkah porch goose, may stay out a little longer this year as many Americans count down to their biggest holiday

Cameron, James C. (James Chalmers);
Norris, Richard C. (Richard Cooper), 1863-1937; Dickinson, Robert Latou, 1861-1950, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

Ruthie Hollander

Like Rivkah, pregnancy was intensely existential for me

I felt I had secret knowledge that connected me to every generation before me, and I somehow knew why I exist, what I am for, and what it’s all for (Toledot)

SS female auxiliaries (Helferinnen) pose for photos at Solahütte, an SS retreat south of Auschwitz, from an album that belonged to SS officer Karl Höcker (center). In the album, there is a handwritten caption that reads “Here there are blueberries.” (US Holocaust Memorial Museum)

The Nazis ate blueberries. Their grandchildren bear the scars

Auschwitz’s perpetrators photographed their picnics and sing-alongs, not their victims. A Broadway play asks what that blindness means for their descendants

Tens of thousands of red-clad protesters march demanding their government do more to halt Israel's campaign in Gaza against Hamas, during a demonstration in The Hague, Netherlands, June 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

Andrew Srulevitch

Three centuries of Jewish history, cancelled over Gaza

A Dutch museum has abandoned plans to celebrate its city’s oldest synagogue, exposing Europe’s increasing failure to stand up for Jewish communities

(courtesy)

Leah Stern

I haven’t sat down to eat in a year

Caring for my family’s needs – meals, laundry, bills, the kids’ activities – has worn me down, so this Shabbat, I’m going to sit and relax… until the main course

A Hamas gunman watches from the side of the road as vehicles of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) leave with the second batch of Israeli living hostages released by Hamas in Deir el-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on October 13, 2025. (Bashar TALEB / AFP)

Adele Raemer

The Red Cross came to Kibbutz Nirim. I had questions for them

Why did our hostages go without food, medicine and visits? And will the organization be able to ensure that future captives aren’t left to suffer alone?

Members of Leading as Equals: people with intellectual and developmental disabilities from across Israel who work together to advance the rights, participation, and influence of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in society. (Leading as Equals via Facebook)

Yana Mibashev

I have an intellectual disability. I demand equal rights

As an Israeli citizen, I am asking the new Knesset to replace years of promises with laws that guarantee our independence and dignity

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Michael Bresler

Nov 15, 2026, 1:24 AM

When Did Character Become a Footnote?

Like many, I've been following Nvidia and its former CEO, Jensen Huang, following reports of extramarital affairs. What caught my attention wasn't just the story itself, but the lessons being drawn from it. I've read articles discussing the importance of succession...

Andy Blumenthal

Nov 15, 2026, 1:23 AM

What If Israel Lost the War for Hearts and Minds?

An expert on antisemitism recently warned that recognizing the threat and allowing ourselves to become deeply concerned about it could lead us toward paranoia. What troubled me was the direction of the warning. We do not need paranoia. We need the...

Nassir Hussein Kahin

Nov 15, 2026, 1:21 AM

From Recognition to Investment: What Berbera Needs Next

From diplomatic recognition to commercial opportunity: Somaliland–Israel ties are developing the institutions needed to support investment in Berbera. © HOASR — Original Illustration.

From recognition to embassies and business forums, a lasting relationship Between Israel and Somaliland is taking shape. Recognition gives Somaliland greater access to decision-makers. Investment grows when that access produces projects with customers, finance, workable rules, and accountable delivery. This developing...

Nov 15, 2026, 1:21 AM

At 95, She Refuses to Do Nothing. What About Us?

How a Holocaust survivor, her son, and an exhibition of stolen futures are challenging the world to move beyond remembrance. “The one thing I will not accept is to do nothing,” Lusia Rosenzweig Milch said. I wrote down her words as...

Nov 15, 2026, 1:20 AM

Making Room for What We Inherit – Toldot 5787

I approach the weekly Torah portion not as a religious scholar or someone seeking to offer an authoritative interpretation, but as a secular Jew for whom Jewish texts remain a source of curiosity, questioning, and spiritual reflection. My reading...

Hande Gençünal

Nov 15, 2026, 1:19 AM

Who Are You My Son? On Toledot

On the guises we wear to be loved and the scent no one can borrow My mother always knew my father was home by the way he shut the car door. Şakir, our driver, used the same car and could...

Gulaid Yusuf Idaan

Nov 15, 2026, 1:17 AM

Cruz Pushes US Recognition of Somaliland

Introduction: A Direct Challenge to Washington’s Somaliland Policy The question of Somaliland’s international recognition took centre stage during a United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, where Senator Ted Cruz directly challenged President Donald Trump’s nominee for Ambassador to Somalia,...

Nov 15, 2026, 1:17 AM

Bye Bye Amir Ohana – A Bit of Justice, a Whole Lotta Schadenfreude

An extraordinary confrontation in the Knesset, a story of Israeli heroism, and… good riddance to Netanyahu’s loyal lapdog. Something powerful and moving happened in the Knesset on Wednesday, November 11. Omri Ronen, a newly elected MK from the Democrat Party, rose...

Binyamin Elkalay

Nov 15, 2026, 1:16 AM

Renting a car in Israel: the VAT tourists skip

Two travelers land at Ben Gurion on the same flight, walk to the same rental counter and book the same compact car for a week. One pays 18% more than the other. The difference is not the car, the...

Nov 15, 2026, 1:16 AM

When Doctors Stop Seeing a Future in Israel

Israel is facing the potential loss of some of its most accomplished physicians. The reasons are complex, but the consequences could affect every one of us. There is something deeply troubling about watching good physicians leave Israel. Even more troubling...

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