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Leon Duval

A writer interested in yesterday today and tomorrow

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May 19, 2026, 8:15 PM

Read Between The Lines

Last year I published a book that tells the story of a young girl, Martha Braun, who was sent to England with her younger sister on the rescue mission known as the Kindertransport. The story is heartbreaking; the girls...

Feb 10, 2026, 12:25 AM

‘It was planned and it happened’ Albert Speer

An epidemic of moral bankruptcy that appears to have infected the profession of journalism. This was not always the case; there was a time when editors took pains to ensure that sources were scrupulously verified before publishing. It’s not...

Jan 9, 2026, 6:04 PM

Reflections on Trafalgar

In 1805 twenty-seven British warships commanded by Admiral Horatio Nelson engaged a combined French and Spanish fleet of thirty-three off the coast of southwestern Spain near Cape Trafalgar. I just read a fascinating book based on eye witness accounts...

Feb 25, 2025, 12:17 AM

Yesterday, you are so far away

Yesterday I went to a concert celebrating the music of the Beatles. For me it was an evening of nostalgia, for the hundreds of young children in the audience many jumping in their seats, clapping hands and swaying in...

Oct 31, 2023, 1:06 PM

To the Secretary General of the United Nations

(WARNING: This article contains graphic descriptions of atrocities)

Oct 19, 2023, 7:30 PM

Israel’s 9/11

7-10-23; on that day our world changed for ever. It was a second act of creation, albeit an inversion of the original biblical narrative. This time there was order before the bang and after it came chaos. 7-10-23 was...

Jan 13, 2022, 10:19 PM

In Search of a Moral World

Some months ago while on a WhatsApp chat, my Australian Karate Sensei said something that I was unable to let go. His words were, “there is something going on in this world, I can’t really put my finger on...

Nov 28, 2021, 6:48 PM

A farm near Markowa

Personal photograph taken by author onsite

The simple metal plaque I am standing next to marks where an atrocity took place but it can never communicate the drama and tragedy behind it. It is a story that in microcosm presents the tragedy which unfolded in...

Nov 21, 2021, 12:26 PM

The Oracle of Krakow

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Ozjasz_Thon_5.jpg

The genesis for this Blog is a newsletter I sent to friends after my wife and I made Aliyah in 2015. I wanted to present an unbiased perspective about the situation in Israel countering the unbalanced picture frequently presented...

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About Me

Born in South Africa, at age 27 emigrated to Melbourne Australia where I lived for 40 years before moving to Jerusalem in 2015. My profession was to teach and consult in the area of strategic financial management. Now retired, I devote my time to reading and writing about stories from the pages of history and current affairs

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