MirYam’s Commentary
As we enter the new decade, the time is right to ask how Israel can amend ties with the mostly liberal American Jewish community, while safeguarding strong relations with the White House. This is especially urgent in light of the recent killing of Qasem Soleimani and its reverberating impact across the globe and region.
The Iranian reaction to the killing of Qasem Soleimani, which some news reports tied to critical intelligence provided by Israel, has thus far been a textbook example for how Iran responds asymmetrically to threats. First, Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles against two air bases in Iraq where coalition troops reside.
This past Shabbat, we read the story of Vayigash – And He Drew Near, the penultimate portion of the book of Genesis.
It recounts the tale of the brothers reconciliation with Joseph, the sibling they sold into slavery, who rose to become viceroy of Egypt. He’d been separated from them for so long that they no longer recognized him.
As has been covered extensively by American and international news media, General Qasem Soleimani’s death on Friday, January 3, 2020, in Baghdad, Iraq, was a history-altering event. The legal and justifiable strike of an arch-terrorist leader in a United States military theater of operations was in response to the recent attacks on the United States Embassy in Iraq and Soleimani’s history of unprecedented influence and violence within Iraq and the greater Middle East. Jews, the question bears mentioning, should Jewish Americans be worried for our future in the United States?
Presented by the MirYam Institute: Col. Eli Baron (IDF Ret.) - Former Deputy Military Advocate General, in conversation Benjamin Anthony, Co-Founder & CEO, the MirYam Institute
As a new year on the Jewish calendar begins, we are well served to reflect on the year that was 5779. For the American Jewish community, it was unfortunately a year marked with trouble. Without question, the most devastating event that will be remembered this year was the terrorist attack at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.
This August, I traveled to Israel as one of 40 Israel Law and Policy (“I-LAP”) delegates. The I-LAP tour was hosted by Our Soldiers Speak (“OSS”)—a non-profit organization focused on elevating the discourse surrounding Israel.
In June 2019, our organization brought forty I-SAP delegates from the U.S. Military Academies to the state of Israel. During that tour, they received a "Diplomacy Masterclass" featuring two former Deputy Directors General of the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The lecture was entitled "Israels Geo-Political Positioning In The Modern Era."
The Israel Strategy and Policy tour (I-SAP) is a unique initiative, specifically tailored for military cadets and future officers of the United States Armed Forces. Cadets are recruited from the US Military Academy at West Point, the US Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs and Virginia Military Institute, Virginia.
