WHAT’S DRIVING THE AMERICAN JEWISH CONVERSATION

Pope Francis and Biden officials meet with families of hostages, Trump again criticizes Jews who vote for Democrats, trial for slain Jewish college student begins today, why some Jewish groups are against more security funding for synagogues, and a rare six-legged gazelle spotted in Israel.

ISRAEL AT WAR

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday in Washington, D.C. (Getty)

Analysis: Is Israel on the cusp of a ceasefire and hostage deal? Our Jacob Kornbluh reports this morning that signs are pointing to a deal within the coming days that would involve 40 hostages, a little less than half of the 98 hostages still believed to be alive. After mounting pressure from the United States and the announcement Sunday of a strategic withdrawal from Gaza, Israel’s security cabinet is scheduled to meet today. Read the story ➤

Opinion | My family member is a hostage in Gaza. With Netanyahu in charge, I’m afraid he’ll never make it home: “Unifying the hostages’ solidarity gatherings with the anti-government protests is not the peace movement that many of us dream of, but it is the only movement that could hold the power to effectively call for the release of the hostages and end the suffering in Gaza,” writes Alana Zeitchik. She adds: “Now we must act, together, to force Israel to prioritize the lives of our loved ones.” Read her essay ➤

Related: Biden officials met on Monday with families of American hostages held in Gaza. They were told that CIA Director Bill Burns and other negotiating parties are in Cairo this week working on a release deal.

On Sunday, Sigal Manzuri and Amit Cohen visited the marker of their daughters Norelle and Roya, who were killed on the Oct. 7 attack at the Nova music festival. (Getty)

Opinion | How should we understand Israel’s progress after six months of war?Dan Perry, the author of two books about Israel, offers up six points to consider as Israel withdraws from southern Gaza and renews hostage negotiations. He argues that Israel is making strategic blunders and losing international support by restricting humanitarian aid and planning to invade Rafah. He sees the Israeli public reaching its breaking point, and the U.S. investing an enormous effort in what comes next. Read his essay ➤

‘An earthquake in Israel’ | An Israeli expert discusses the end of the Haredi draft exemption: There is less than a month until a deadline to reach a compromise between Orthodox leaders who rely on the exemption and nationalist parties that oppose it. “One of two things will happen,” predicts Shlomit Ravitsky Tur-Paz of the Israel Democracy Institute. “The court could grant the government an extension — or the government will fall.” Read the story ➤

A view of the destruction in Khan Younis after Israel pulled its ground forces out of the southern Gaza Strip, six months into the war. (Getty)

Plus…

• The leaders of France, Jordan and Egypt called for an “immediate” ceasefire and release of the hostages in an essay they co-wrote for The Washington Post.

  
  

• Israel is purchasing 40,000 tents to prepare for the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians ahead of a potential invasion into the southernmost Gaza city of Rafah.

  
  

• Donations to Israel since Oct. 7 topped $1.4 billion, according to a new report released Monday.

  
  

• Germany is giving each Holocaust survivor in Israel a wartime $238 solidarity grant.

  
  

• More than 1,600 American academics condemned “Israel’s systematic attacks on educational life in Gaza,” noting that all 12 universities in Gaza have been either destroyed or damaged. They referred to Israel's actions as “scholasticide.”

ALSO IN THE FORWARD

Abraham and Lot divide the land and, in some way, begin to invent the concept of taxation. (Getty)

The secret Jewish history of Tax Day: It has roots in the biblical concept of tithing, something like the original flat tax, meant to redistribute wealth in a more equitable fashion. Tithing is discussed by the prophets and in the Talmud, and Jewish law prohibits tax evasion. Does tithing cover the mitzvah to give charity? As our Seth Rogovoy writes, it’s best you consult a tax professional or a rabbi — or, preferably, a tax professional who is a rabbi.

Plus…

• Six years after the death of gay Jewish college student Blaze Bernstein, a jury will hear evidence Tuesday against the man prosecutors say murdered him, a former high school classmate allegedly active in a neo-Nazi group at the time of the killing.

  
  

• Levi’s Jeans, founded in 1853 by a German-Jewish immigrant, is having a moment — thanks to Beyoncé.

  
  

• Why are some Jews opposed to more federal funding for synagogue security? Arno Rosenfeld explains in our new weekly antisemitism newsletter. (If you don’t already subscribe, sign up here!)

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

Donald Trump at a rally last month in Ohio. (Getty)

🇺🇸  Former President Donald Trump once again criticized American Jews who vote for Democrats, saying in a television interview that they don’t love Israel. He added that Democrats are “on the side 100% of the Palestinians.” (X)

Related: Every time Donald Trump has accused American Jews of disloyalty

🎞️  A popular Philadelphia theater venue on Monday canceled the screening of an Israeli film, saying it did not want to be seen as taking sides with Israel at this particularly tense time. (Haaretz)

🎨  To protest Israel, seven anti-Zionist Jewish artists pulled out of a California Jewish museum’s exhibit. (J, The Jewish News of Northern California)

🦌  A rare six-legged gazelle has been spotted in Israel, with an extra pair of legs growing from its back. (CBS News)

What we’re watching ➤ Alex Edelman’s Just For Us, which ran on Broadway last year, moves seamlessly between hilarious stories of his Orthodox Jewish childhood and his infiltration of a neo-Nazi group in Queens. It's now available to watch on Max. Run, don’t walk, to see it.

Shiva call ➤  Amy Ettinger, who inspired readers with her life-affirming essays on dying, succumbed to cancer at 49.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

(Getty)

Pope Francis met Monday for an hour with relatives of hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7, marking the six-month anniversary of the attack in southern Israel.

Thanks to Jacob Kornbluh for contributing to today’s newsletter, and to Lauren Markoe for editing it. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com.

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