WHAT’S DRIVING THE AMERICAN JEWISH CONVERSATION

Man who robbed matzo factory gets prison time, Alec Baldwin battles pro-Palestinian activist, and a Holocaust survivor-turned-drummer fulfills a lifelong dream.

ISRAEL AT WAR

(Getty)

In a new war over Middle Eastern food, eating hummus and shawarma becomes a political act: Since the war began, Israeli and Palestinian-run restaurants in the U.S. have become targets for activists as well as gathering points for community members to vent and grieve over bowls of hummus. Andrew Silverstein trekked across New York City to chat with chefs and customers about how food has become a powerful symbol in the conflict. Read the story ➤

The latest…

The chief of the Mossad met Monday in Warsaw with the director of the CIA and the prime minister of Qatar to iron out details for a new hostage release plan. It is believed that 129 hostages remain in Gaza — not all of them alive.

Hamas released a video Monday of three elderly Israeli hostages. The men, ages 79-84, said they are suffering without proper medical care.

Birthright Israel is set to resume its free 10-day trips in January, with the group adding security measures and educational elements about the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7.

More than half of American voters, 57%, disapprove of President Biden’s handling of the war in Israel, according to a new poll out this morning.

Jewish Federations should earmark some of the $700 million they have raised for Israel since Oct. 7 to replace olive trees in the West Bank, writes Rob Eshman, who suggests rebranding those iconic blue coin boxes.

Opinion | Why we need ‘Pushkes for Palestinians’: “Since Oct. 7, West Bank settlers have harassed Palestinian olive farmers, prevented them from reaching their groves and destroyed their olive trees,” writes our senior columnist, Rob Eshman. “American Jews, who have been sending money to plant trees in Israel since before there was an Israel, should start a campaign to reimburse these farmers for their lost crops and replant their destroyed trees.” Read his essay ➤

Opinion | What my ketamine therapy taught me about the war in Israel: Abby Horowitz has always been to the left on Israel, disagreeing with what she describes as American Jewry’s “blind allegiance to the country.” But after the Hamas attacks, she found herself waving an Israeli flag. Days after the attacks, she went to an already scheduled appointment to receive a dosage of ketamine, something she’d done several times to help with her depression. In a new comic for the Forward, Horowitz reflects on that therapeutic experience, and what it meant for her politics, identity and ideas about Jewish community. Read the story ➤

Israeli soldiers refuel an armored vehicle near the border with the Gaza Strip on Tuesday. (Getty)

Plus…

Amid a “a surge in violent and graphic content” on Facebook and Instagram after Oct. 7, automated content moderation tools went too far in removing posts that social media users should have been able to see, an independent oversight panel at their parent company, Meta, ruled today.

South Africans fighting for Israel in Gaza could face prosecution at home, the government warned on Monday, as President Cyril Ramaphosa denounced the war as a “genocide.”

A scaled-back Israeli delegation is headed to the Pan American Maccabi Games in Argentina next week.

British Airways removed a Jewish-themed sitcom from its in-flight entertainment to “remain neutral” during the war. The airline has now apologized and said it will put the show back on.

Actor Alec Baldwin got into an argument with anti-Israel protesters on the streets of New York City Monday night.

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ALSO FROM THE FORWARD

Missouri Rep. Sarah Unsicker, seen here in a video announcing her withdrawal from the state’s attorney general race. (Twitter)

Are Israeli secret agents running for Missouri attorney general?That’s what one candidate, state representative Sarah Unsicker, said about her opponents. Her colleagues are mystified that she and others have adopted this conspiracy theory. “They’re so far down the rabbit hole even the rabbits think they’re crazy,” said one. Our Louis Keene has the details on one of the stranger 2024 election tales so far.

That 98-year-old man on drums at the White House Hanukkah party? A Holocaust survivor fulfilling a dream: Saul Dreier didn’t pick up a drumstick until 2014, when he founded the Holocaust Survivor Band, which began with a klezmer concert at a synagogue and was soon performing around the world, including in Israel, Germany, Brazil and Poland — both in Warsaw and at Auschwitz. His ultimate goal was to perform in the White House. So when he got a few minutes with President Biden before the party, Dreier simply asked.

Plus…

It was one of the strangest Jewish records ever made. Good luck finding a way to listen to it.

It looks like a church, but murals reveal this shul’s Jewish identity.

– From our Sponsor: Spertus Institute –

WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

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⚖️ A Brooklyn man who robbed a matzo factory, stealing cash and checks worth more than $94,000, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison. (NY Jewish Week)

🏳️‍🌈 Pope Francis approved Catholic priests blessing same-sex couples, a radical shift in policy aimed at making the church more inclusive. At the same time, he reaffirmed the church’s position that marriage is a union between a man and a woman. (AP)

✍️ During World War II, the people who hid Curt Bloch, a German Jew, in the crawl space of a Dutch home gave him pens, glue and other materials which he used to create 95 issues of a satirical poetry magazine now drawing attention. (New York Times)

🎬 Russell Crowe, Rami Malek and Michael Shannon are set to star in Nuremberg, an upcoming movie about the real-life American psychiatrist who was tasked with determining whether Nazi prisoners were fit to stand trial for their war crimes. (Wrap)

🤼 Zac Efron stars in a new movie about the real-life Von Erich brothers, wrestling superstars from Texas. Turns out, they were huge in Israel. (JTA)

Mazel tov ➤ To our colleagues at J. The Jewish News of Northern California on winning five awards at the San Francisco Press Club’s annual gala.

What else we’re reading ➤ A photography exhibit explores the meaning of Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s collars … Jewish communal leaders still committed to DEI framework, despite widespread criticism … New York Times names this Jewish dessert as one of the city’s best dishes of 2023.

VIDEO OF THE DAY

Filmmakers of Supernova: The Music Festival Massacre revealed a trailer of a new documentary film. It charts the dramatic events that took place during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack at a music festival in southern Israel through the eyes of survivors.

Thanks to PJ Grisar, Jacob Kornbluh and Talya Zax for contributing to today’s newsletter, and to Beth Harpaz for editing it. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com.

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