Shawn Zelig Aster

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Jan 13, 2025, 12:36 PM

Why a Map Caused an Outbreak of ‘Historo-phobia’

An illustration showing the boundaries of the biblical kingdoms of Israel and Judah in 928 BC, published by the Israel Arabic account on X on January 6, 2025. (Israel Arabic via X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

History is at the heart of legitimacy in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The centrality of history is obvious when one considers the rage generated by Israel’s Foreign Ministry publishing a historical map of Biblical-era Israel. The spokesmen for two Arab...

Sep 1, 2024, 4:41 PM

Preventing tomorrow’s hostages

As long as Hamas can attack, Israel must ask how it can prevent future hostage-taking, even if doing so would mean not freeing current hostages

Jan 1, 2024, 10:21 AM

Why There is ‘No Safe Place in Gaza’

Hamas Rocket Launches into Israel from Humanitarian Zone

As December 26th sales were generating lots of buzz in American shopping malls, a different sort of buzz filled St Mary’s church in Iqrit. Located in Northern Israel, less than 4 km from the border with Lebanon, the church...

Oct 30, 2023, 12:19 PM

‘Ceasefire Now’ – Now and Then

Protest organized by Jewish Voices for Peace and If Not Now at Grand Central Station, New York, October 27, 2023 (Kena Betancur/AFP)

“Ceasefire!” and “End the War” are admirable sentiments – sometimes. The hundreds who blocked Grand Central Station on Friday demanding “Ceasefire Now” need to reflect back on similar calls echoing through recent history, especially the anti-war calls of the...

Oct 15, 2023, 5:34 PM

Harvard’s president implicitly called for dialogue with Hamas supporters

Last week began with an unprecedented attack, and ended with something else unprecedented: the president of Harvard issued a statement that implicitly called for a dialogue with Hamas supporters. President Claudine Gay sent a video address to all members of...

Apr 8, 2022, 5:46 PM

Requiem for a self-made man: Prince Philip

JLGB Members and Volunteers Salute Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, on Horse Guards Parade at the AJEX Parade 2004, with former AJEX and JLGB President Edmund de Rothschild (John Rifkin)

His family of origin became Nazi party members, yet the queen's husband went to war against them, choosing the right and the good from a young age

Apr 3, 2022, 3:19 PM

Why does a 3,300 year-old piece of rock from Mount Ebal matter?

Close-up of the outside of the arguably Late Bronze Age lead curse tablet discovered on Mount Ebal in 2019. (Michael C. Luddeni/ Associates for Biblical Research)

For starters, it may help connect several other texts used to reconstruct history, though archaeology largely reflects messy events, and not neat narratives

May 21, 2021, 5:44 PM

Woke? Go beyond ‘TL;DR’

Lia Tal, 40, rushes with her children and partner to take shelter as a siren sounds a warning of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, in Ashdod, Israel, on May 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Heidi Levine)

'Israel has the right to defend itself' is not some mantra of old white men scorned by progressives; it's a deep moral claim that protects millions, including me

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About Me

Shawn Zelig Aster is a faculty member in Bibical history and Jewish studies at an Israeli university, and a resident of southern Israel.