Graciousness and modesty have never been the strong suits of US President Donald Trump. In his inauguration address, he could have mentioned all that his administration intends to achieve without heaping scorn on the outgoing government, whose leader, Joe Biden, was sitting only a few steps away from him.
Though Trump received several standing ovations during his rambling speech, the Democrats in the hall remained seated, except when he mentioned the return home of “the hostages in the Middle East.”
Coincidentally, the inauguration took place on Martin Luther King Day, a factor that Trump did not overlook, when saying that he would honor King’s dream. Without spelling it out exactly, he said that America would become a color-blind and merit-based society that will no longer engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life.
In his famous August 1963 “I Have a Dream” oration, King said that he had a dream that one day his four little children would live in a nation where they would not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
In Jerusalem there were long lines outside the premises of the Friends of Zion complex in which a screening of the inauguration was being held for the general public, including tourists, locals, and diplomats. People of varied nationalities and faiths mingled happily in near-messianic harmony.
The doors were opened at 5:30 p.m., but by 6 p.m. the auditorium and nearly all the halls were full, and there was hardly any room left inside. Some people who had long been waiting in line simply got fed up and went home or back to their hotels to watch the inauguration on their television screens. Those in the auditorium watched on a giant screen, while slightly smaller screens had been set up in the halls.
A trio of singing guitarists, all wearing kippot, sang American country and western songs, there was an interview with Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel before the inauguration, and a panel discussion afterward. There was also an address by author, journalist, and FOZ founder Mike Evans, an Evangelical Christian Zionist, who has the ear of world leaders, and who is a personal friend and adviser to Trump.
There were also prerecorded videos of Mike Huckabee, US ambassador to Israel nominee, and former ambassador David Friedman.
At the conclusion of the formalities, Evans called former Likud MK Yehudah Glick to the stage, to deliver a blessing for Trump in Hebrew.
The event was decidedly upbeat. There were red, white, and blue balloons, and some people were wearing the red Trump caps which are part of the president’s hallmark.
There was lots of food, but not enough for the huge crowd, and replenishments disappeared as soon as they hit the tables.
Haskel said that Trump has proved himself to be a true friend of Israel. With the challenges that Israel faces, she continued, “we have to surround ourselves with people who understand.”
With regard to Iran, Haskel declared that Iran is not just about Israel, it’s about America and the elimination of democracy. Iran seeks pockets of instability around the world to take over, she said. “Iran is a threat to the world.”
Evans assured everyone that they will see a lot of positive things from Trump over the coming four years, adding that Trump has zero tolerance for Hamas. He was also confident that “you’ll see peace with Saudi Arabia this year – and that’s a game changer. Donald Trump’s peace plan is not land for peace, but peace for peace.”
Huckabee credited Trump with doing more for Israel than any other president of the United States and was certain that this time around he would bring security for the people of Israel and throughout the region.
Friedman said that the people of Israel love and respect Trump, and are grateful for all that he has done for Israel. Addressing the president, he declared “You are the right man at the right time.”
Although Trump had made no mention of antisemitism, Friedman did, saying that it has reached unprecedented post-Holocaust levels. Presumably, he expects Trump to do something about that, too.
Biden's final day
■ IT WOULD be an understatement to say that Biden was unhappy on his final day in office as president of the United States. He would have been utterly miserable but for the start of a ceasefire and the return of three of the hostages from Hamas captivity.
It just shows what can happen when rivals work toward the same goal, as Biden and Trump did over the past two or three months, even though Trump could not refrain from denigrating Biden during that period. Trump must learn to be more gracious to people in the opposite camp. Both he and Biden are taking credit for the ceasefire, when it was the Biden administration that did all the legwork.
It was slightly reminiscent of Benjamin Netanyahu greeting Gilad Schalit when he returned from captivity in October 2011 after the Olmert administration had worked hard to secure Schalit’s freedom.
Trump should be enough of a gentleman to give Biden his moment of glory in history. After all, there are still other conflicts to resolve, not the least of which is that of Russia and Ukraine. If he manages that one, Trump may be in line for the coveted Nobel Peace Prize, which in previous years has been awarded to world leaders who did not exactly achieve peace.
New ambassadors
■ LAST WEEK, there was a change in the presenting of credentials at the President’s Residence by five new ambassadors – Bogdan Batic of Slovenia, Ezra Cohen of Panama, Helena Paiva of Portugal, Xiao Junzheng of China and Dhan Prasad Pandit of Nepal.
Chief of State Protocol Gil Haskel, a career diplomat who works out of the Foreign Ministry and meets new ambassadors as they arrive in the country, was abroad, and for some odd reason, the ministry was unable to provide someone to take his place, even though at least one former chief of protocol is currently in Israel and working at the ministry. So Lt.-Col. (ret.) Oren Avraham, who is the chief of protocol in the President’s Office, took over for Haskel, and acquitted himself quite well.
Whether this was just a temporary arrangement or whether it will become the norm remains to be seen. It’s bad enough when the prime minister wants to clip the wings of the ministry; the president should not get in on the act and do the same.
There have already been huge changes under the current order in the President’s Office, with numerous traditions practiced by past presidents discarded.
■ THE MOST frequently played song on radio these days is “Habaita” (Homeward), with lyrics by Ehud Manor. Nothing could be more appropriate under the circumstances, with hostages coming home.
While every hostage who returns is deserving of tears of joy, the callousness of Hamas is evident in that children were not in the trio of hostages to arrive from Gaza this week.
What is amazing is that throughout the 15-month ordeal, Meirav and Eitan Gonen remained optimistic, speaking in confident voices on the radio and at rallies, saying that Romi would come home alive. That confidence was not misplaced. Yet in his elation, Eitan did not forget the other families waiting to be reunited with their loved ones – whether to physically embrace them or place their remains in Israeli soil.
■ REMEMBERING THAT Ron Arad’s mother, Batya Arad, went to her grave without knowing whether her son was alive or dead, Oren Shaul’s mother, Zehava Shaul, told journalists that she had never expected, after more than a decade, to be able to bury his remains in Israel.
It is very sad that the family of Hadar Goldin, which has been waiting and campaigning for the same period of time, could not experience similar closure.
■ WHAT IS painful is the realization that the repatriation agreement reached was no less feasible in May, last year. If implemented then, it could have saved numerous lives on both sides.
In the early stages of the crisis, MK Ahmad Tibi, who has relatives in Gaza, some of whom lost their lives, said that the crisis would end in a prisoner exchange, as has happened in the past. The too little, too late outcome reminded veteran KAN Reshet Bet broadcaster Arieh Golan of a saying by Israel’s late ambassador and foreign minister Abba Eban: “History teaches us that men and nations only behave wisely once they have exhausted all other alternatives.”
Something of a similar nature was said by Winston Churchill, who declared: “You can always count on the Americans to do the right thing after they have tried everything else.”
■ LONG BEFORE he became a full-time journalist and the director of the Center for Near East Policy Research, David Bedein was a social worker and community organizer, in which capacity he worked with Shlomo Carlebach on several projects. Bedein was a 10-year-old schoolboy when he first met Carlebach.
“Our Hebrew school teacher in Philadelphia brought him to sing for our fifth-grade class.
“The teacher had more than singing on his mind. Our teacher had become a devotee of Chabad-Lubavitch and was concerned that we did not know much about Judaism. We had a special request: Christmas was coming, and every year we were forced to sing Christmas carols in public school. We wanted to learn some Jewish songs. (All we knew was ‘Hava Nagila’ and ‘Zum Gali Gali.’)
“So he brought in Shlomo Carlebach to teach us. We learned some beautiful songs: ‘Borchi Nafshi,’ ‘Vechulam Mekablim,’ ‘Essa Einai’…. But more than that, Shlomo infused us with spirit – the spirit to sing with our soul.“Over the years, I got to know Shlomo in many different contexts. When I worked with youth, he would often join me for activities.
“Shortly before he died, Shlomo spent Shabbat in Efrat, where we live. I brought my then-12-year-old son, Noam, to meet him. Noam asked Shlomo if he would be the cantor when Noam became bar mitzvah – one month hence. Shlomo happily agreed. At that moment, it occurred to me: in my 34 years of knowing Shlomo, I had never asked him how he came to do his work.
“Here is the answer, perhaps the last interview Shlomo ever gave.
“After World War II, Shlomo’s father brought him to a DP camp. Someone had built an improvised sukkah for people from the DP camps who had survived the concentration camps. It was a very exciting week of Sukkot. During that holiday, a man stood outside, screaming at the sukkah, even throwing rocks, very upset about what was going on.
“At the end of Sukkot, Shlomo approached the distressed man and asked: Why didn’t you come in? He said that he stood outside the sukkah because no one asked him to come in.
“Shlomo said that he understood, that he had learned a lesson that he would carry with him for his entire life. The lesson was: do not be like Job, who was known for his hospitality but who waited for people to come to him. Instead, be like Abraham – sit outside of the tent and invite people in. And that is how Shlomo learned his first outreach lesson. Unless you invite people to come in, they will stay away. That distressed man in the DP camp helped Shlomo start his career, which became a legacy.
“Shlomo would not make it to Noam’s bar mitzvah. I once asked my son what he remembered from that encounter. The answer: ‘He kissed me on my forehead. I never forgot that.’”
Carlebach’s birthday marked
■ LAST WEEKEND, the 100th anniversary of Carlebach’s birth was marked in synagogues around the globeIn Jerusalem, guest cantor Ari Greene led the services on Friday night and Saturday morning at Hazvi Yisrael Synagogue in Talbiyeh, and poured his soul into singing Carlebach melodies.
But on Saturday night there was a lot more Carlebach at the Ohel Nehama Synagogue, less than a 10-minute walk from Hazvi Yisrael.
Rabbi Yosef Ote, the spiritual leader of Ohel Nehama, is very musical. He is an instrumentalist, singer, and composer, but he preferred to deliver a lecture on the effects of music on people’s hearts, souls, moods, and even sporting prowess and health. He left the Carlebach-style performance to his predecessor Rabbi Aharon Adler, who is a singer-guitarist, and his son Chaim Adler, who is a keyboard exponent and singer.
Ote and his wife, Atira, sat in the last row of the crowded hall, in which the audience included people who are not congregants of Ohel Nehama.
It’s amazing how many Carlebach singers manage to sound very much like Carlebach. Adler is no exception, and he also has Carlebach’s body language.
Like Bedein, his first encounter with Reb Shloimele, as he called him, was when he was still a boy in New York City’s Washington Heights.
Adler has an extensive Carlebach repertoire, which he spiced with Carlebach anecdotes.
With all the affection that he has for Carlebach, Adler did not skim over the less than holy aspects of Carlebach’s character. “He did some shameful things, which we should never forget,” said Adler, “but at the same time we should remember his legacy of stirring music and effective outreach.”
■ THE OXFORD Israel Alumni Society, together with the Foreign Ministry, will hold a comprehensive discussion at the ministry on Thursday, January 23, to gain additional insights on current issues and challenges.The main focus will be on ways in which diplomacy can be used to create awareness to benefit Israel.
Speakers will be: Dan Oryan, director of the ministry’s Civil Diplomacy Department; Akiva Tor, former ambassador to South Korea; Mark Regev, former ambassador to the United Kingdom; Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, special envoy for trade and innovation; Ruth Cohen-Dar, director of the ministry’s Department for Holocaust Remembrance and Combating Antisemitism;Tamar Schwarzbard, head of digital operations at the ministry; Arsen Ostrovsky, CEO of the International Legal Forum; and Ofir Dayan, researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies.
Subjects to be discussed include: a closer look at the ministry’s work in different regions; the role of academia in shaping diplomacy; exploring innovations in digital diplomacy; and tackling antisemitism on the global stage. There will also be a panel discussion with leaders in civil diplomacy.
■ MAJOR CHANGES are occurring at the Thai Embassy as Ambassador Pannabha Chandraramya and Chulvat Narinthrangura, deputy head of mission, complete their postings. Chandraramya, who is the longest-ever serving Thai ambassador to Israel, served for five years, whereas on average her predecessors served for two to three years.
An interview with The Jerusalem Post in October 2023 took place at the David Intercontinental hotel in Tel Aviv, where Chandraramya had temporarily moved her office in order to process the thousands of Thai workers who wanted to go home following the Hamas massacre.
She had never previously served in a country at war, so she had no experience in dealing with a massive repatriation effort, but she and her staff applied themselves unhesitatingly, and sent planeloads of Thai citizens to Bangkok in planes supplied by the Thai government.
Thais were among the people murdered and kidnapped by Hamas. Chandraramya said at the time that she would remain in Israel until the last Thai hostage was released. She had not imagined that more than a year would pass without the release. However, it got to the stage where she could no longer wait. Her country’s Foreign Ministry wanted her to go to Switzerland to take up her new post as ambassador there.
She had planned to make a quick trip to Bangkok to see her mother and sister, but when news came of Hamas agreeing to a hostage deal, she decided to forgo the visit home, just in case Thais were included among the hostages listed for release.
Meanwhile, she tried to book an El Al flight to Switzerland, but all flights for February 5, the date on which she is supposed to leave, are full. She would like to leave Israel on El Al, but in the interim several European airlines have announced that they are resuming flights at the beginning of February, and in the worst-case scenario, she will take a flight to as close a European capital as possible and continue by train to Switzerland.
Because Narinthrangura was returning home this week to take up another senior position, the ambassador decided to host a farewell reception for both of them last Thursday, but invited only friends and close colleagues from the diplomatic community to her magnificent mansion in Herzliya Pituah.
Both she and her deputy spoke of Israel as a wonderful country, and each said that the most lasting memory they would carry away with them would be the people of Israel, whose strength and resilience they felt privileged to witness.
Chandraramya said that when she first arrived, she did not expect to have many friends here, but she made so many friends whom she will never forget that she will always have a soft spot in her heart for Israel.As she prepared to leave, she said, there were two unfulfilled wishes that weighed on her heart.
First was the hope to see all the hostages, including eight Thai citizens, released; and the second was to see visa-free travel to Israel for holders of Thai passports. She was hopeful that both these wishes might be realized before she leaves.She definitely intends to come back to visit, but not during her time in Switzerland, where she will be for less than two years with a lot of work to accomplish in a relatively short space of time.
■ AN AVID overseas traveler, President Isaac Herzog has already chalked up two trips abroad this year, and by the end of January the number will be three.
The first trip was to Cyprus. He is currently in Davos, attending the World Economic Forum, and next week he will be in New York to address the United Nations General Assembly on International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
■ ON JANUARY 27, Jewish and non-Jewish communities will mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day, The annual IHRD event, initiated by the Foreign Ministry, was adopted by the UN General Assembly in November 2005.This year is the 20th anniversary year of its establishment as a permanent feature on the global calendar, in addition to it being the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
Aside from official state and community memorial events on that date, there are organizations whose members are second and third-generation Holocaust survivors whose parents and grandparents hailed from a certain town or city, who band together on this date to remember the Nazi atrocities that took place in those places.
The Sephardic Heritage International in DC will cohost the seventh annual Congressional Holocaust Commemoration, a hybrid bipartisan event, on Thursday, January 23, 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. (EST) in the US Congress Rayburn House Office Building.
The featured speaker will be Greek Holocaust survivor Ninetta Matsa Feldman, who lost approximately127 family members who were murdered in Auschwitz.
In addition to Feldman’s testimony, speakers will include Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Florida), Greek-American Congressman Gus Bilirakis (R-Florida), and Greek Ambassador to the US Ekaterini Nassika.
More than 67,000 Greek Jews – 87% of the Greek Jewish population – were murdered in the Holocaust. Ninetta was one of only about 10,000 who survived. This loss was proportionally one of the highest demographic decimations in Europe.
The Greek city that suffered the highest death toll was Thessaloniki (also known as Salonika), which lost 96% of its Jewish population. Up until the Holocaust, Salonika was mostly Sephardi with a Ladino-speaking population. The city was also the only major European city with a Jewish majority.
Between March 20 and August 19, 1943, Nazi German officials deported over 40,000 Jews from Salonika to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where nearly all of Salonika’s Jews were murdered upon arrival.
The Matsa family survived in the mountains of Psilovrachos, a village under partisan control.
Ninetta Matsa immigrated to the US in 1959 and settled in the Washington, DC, area, where she met and married Lloyd Feldman. She taught in Washington and Maryland schools and is currently a volunteer at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
■ IN ITS Saturday afternoon lecture series coupled with the third Sabbath meal, the Jerusalem Great Synagogue will, this Saturday, January 25, feature attorney Moshe Yaffe, a graduate of Columbia University and Phd candidate at the University of Michigan, a lecturer in constitutional law at the Sha’arei Mishpat Academic Center and comparative constitutional law at the Cardoza School of Law in York.
Yaffe also serves in the IDF reserve forces as a legal adviser in the Terror Unit of the Judea and Samaria Legal Adviser’s Office.
At 4:40 p.m. he will speak in the entrance foyer of the Great Synagogue, where he will discuss yeshiva students, the security barrier, and the Rafah blockade, in addition to the role of Israel’s Supreme Court in military operational discourse.
The problem with having speakers on such interesting topics is that they have only one hour at their disposal, including Q and A. Perhaps when daylight saving is revived at the end of March, they will be given more time.