Orthodox Jews grabbed their phones after Shabbat ended to see what happened in Israel over the prior day. There was mixed news which had already been absorbed by the rest of the planet.

1. Europe and the United States held firm that the Global North cannot allow Iran to get nuclear weapons.

At the United Nations Security Council – and on X – western nations affirmed that Iran, the leading state sponsor of terrorism, cannot be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons. The UK, France, Denmark, Slovenia and Greece stated that Iran’s level of uranium enrichment is inconsistent with a peaceful civilian program, and that Israel has a right to defend itself from a regime which has stoked a war to eradicate the only Jewish State.

This support for Israel was far from given, considering the strident tones taken by some of these governments about Israel’s prosecution of the war from Gaza.

2. The Global South – including China, Algeria and Pakistan – rallied to Iran and called Israel the aggressor.

Russia went so far as to claim that Israel coordinated with the UK on the attack and used bases in Cyprus to support the Jewish State, seemingly trying to widen the aperture of the war. The UK strongly denied the allegation and condemned Russia for “spreading disinformation”.

3. Palestinians stayed bizarrely mum on the conflict.

Wafa, the Palestinian Authority news agency, said virtually nothing about the latest escalation between Israel and Iran. While it normally cheered attacks by Houthis and Hezbollah over the past 600+ days, it would appear that the PA is focused on separating itself from the Iranian axis of evil which includes Hamas, to position itself as a credible government for the day after the Hamas War.

4. Iranian nuclear capabilities remain intact.

From initial reports, it appears that only surface facilities were destroyed and that much of the hardened below ground nuclear infrastructure is still functional. It means that the war effort is unlikely to end soon, and Israel may turn to the United States to either supply the weapons to destroy the underground infrastructure or to compel Iran to dismantle it.

5. Iranian missiles kill Israeli civilians.

While Israel targeted Iranian military commanders and infrastructure, Iran fired over 100 missiles and drones at Israel, hitting apartment buildings and killing several people. The country remains locked down as the battle with Iran continues.

6. U.S. politicians gunned down.

In an ongoing disgraceful trend of targeted attacks, local politicians in Minnesota were shot and killed by a man who seems to have had a targeted list of people who supported abortion. On both the right and left, people with opposing views have come to view the other side as existential threats for which they are willing to kill and be killed.

7. Affable Democratic Socialist extremist closes on winning New York City Democratic primary.

Zohran Mamdani, a smiling radical backed by the antisemitic fringe group Democratic Socialist of America, is rallying far-left progressives as early voting commenced in NYC. His appeal to make busing and childcare free and freezing rent on rent-controlled apartments is too enticing for many to even consider the destruction he will do to the city.

New York Jews are forced to consider multiple layers of threats. The furthest away and most violent is the antisemitic Islamic Republic of Iran which still has the means to kill millions in Israel, Europe and the North America. A step closer, around the U.S., left-wing and right-wing radicals are using guns and Molotov cocktails to kill people with whom they disagree, and Jews are often the favored target. In the immediate backyard, the city with the greatest number of Jews is set to have a mayor backed by modern day non-White Nazis, just as lethal to Jews as the White Nazis of Europe in the 1930s and 1940s.

American Jews are buying guns. They are demanding that the government provide funds to harden Jewish centers and combat domestic terrorism. They are urging fellow Americans to prioritize law enforcement and peace over unsustainable giveaways.

And they are being forced to consider their own priorities: sending monies to organizations in Israel which are exhausted in fighting a multifront war, or to focus efforts here on electing centrist politicians, fighting toxic ideologies being instilled in schools, and preparing their community for a life lived in fear.

The violence is getting closer and Jewish trifocals are attempting to simultaneously assess the levels of threat and proximity. Two thousand years of collective trauma have often proven insufficient for the challenge.

Related:

David Duke, Ilhan Omar and the Three Lenses of Anti-Semitism (September 2020)

The March of Silent Feet (January 2020)

The Holocaust Will Not Be Colorized. The Holocaust Will Be Live. (May 2019)