October 7th, a Year Later, Fleur Hassan-Nahoum on Israel, Gaza, & Jerusalem's Government

Watch and Listen

It starts on the plane you go to the bathroom and notice a silver cup chained to the sink to be used for the ritual washing of hands as you disembark the flight attendant wishes you a gamar matova may you have a good ceiling in the Book of Life a customary greeting before yum kipur then it's the airport lined with posters of the hostages still held in Gaza none are ripped or defaced though many bear stickers or handwritten notes of Love or sorrow then it's the zza outside every hotel room door and you think to yourself I'm home if you're watching this you'll notice I'm not in my usual studio today is October 9th 2024 and I am in Israel the Holy Land the world's only Jewish State I was determined not to let the entire year go by without coming here so I slid in under the wire to be here for the one year anniversary of October 7th the worst massacre of Jews in Generations I have done much in my short time here I've spoken to soldiers most of them teenagers some active some injured none downtrod and all proud I've seen hundreds of bombed out cars with smashed windshields seats and doors riddled with bullet holes Dusty water bottles on the floor never to be finished by the families or young concert goers to whom they belonged I've seen rooms full of confiscated Hamas weapons manufactured by Iran Russia in North Korea I've attended memorials at dienoff Square hostage Square in kibutz faaza where many of the homes are still in a state of bloody pockmarked ruin and the bursts of machine gun fire and explosions can be heard in Gaza just a few kilometers away I met with a doctor who treated most of the returned hostages visited the memorial that now stands where the stot police headquarters used to be and even experienced my first rocket Red Alert which is basically in Israel W of Passage but the most impactful time were the hours I spent in raim at the site of the Nova Festival where nearly 400 innocent people were slaughtered like fish in a barrel in the most unimaginably heinous and terrifying of ways at the heart of the Nova site where the main stage once stood is an ad hoc Memorial of sorts row after row after row of posters on plywood sprouting out of the ground like tall flowers with beautiful smiling faces on them faces of people whose lives were ended somewhere on this Dusty ground upon seeing these posters I was struck by the powerful Spirit of the humans they represented these were vivacious vibrant free spirited Universe loving people each one's so full of life people you know you'd fall in love with if you ever got to know them young people mostly in their 20s and 30s their lives cut so short tragically because they went to the wrong concert on the wrong day if you or your friends or your children have ever been to Coachella or EDC or Burning Man this would have been you to think that these young people were mowed down burned alive dismembered disemboweled gang raped hung naked from trees with nails and knives shoved inside them it's too horrific to fully comprehend I was also struck by the natural beauty of the place so in congruous with the horrors that occurred there it was impossible to look at the fields the rows of trees Highway 232 up the hill and not imagine thousands of people running for their lives as I walked through the site I saw a young man I recognized which was the last thing I expected his name is k I recognized him as one of the featured narrators from the documentary we will dance again which should be absolutely required viewing for every human being on Earth take it from someone who has been to both the Nova exhibit and actual Nova the movie hits harder anyway of everyone in the film f is the one I'm most connected to because even as he recounted the horrors of the nightmarish experience his smile his humor his love of Life his Soulful energy continued to shine through him and so upon spotting him I immediately went up to him and told him this he smiled widely pulled me into a deep Embrace and said my brother it was so meaningful that of all the people I should run into on this day in this place was him I sat down to chat with when a friendly older British man sat down next to me and he asked why I had come and I told him I'm a Jew I just wanted to be here he smiled I said what about you he said my son Jakey was killed here it is so easy for those of us in the diaspora to forget that for thousands of Israelis it's still October 7th for them every day is October 7th how do you have a one-year anniversary of something that's still happening to you my last conversation there was with a Survivor named loie who had been at the festival with his wife and Friends he had not returned to the site since he escaped it 365 days ago spurred into immediate action by the thought of his young children at home Ry was one of the first to get his group to their car and get on the road ignoring ways his instructions praying as they went when all five cars in front of him turned right he turned left only to find himself surrounded by terrorists as he and his passengers ducked down and recited the shama the quintessential prayer of the Jewish people he kept driving through a hail of bullets miraculously escaping the death trap focused only on his Instinct that he must go forward until he reached his children he specifically elected not to stop at an army base or town or bomb shelter as so many doomed others would and he was safely reunited with his family well we lost 54 friends that day after listening to his story I again found myself in the Deep Embrace of someone I had just met and he said to me a my brother all afternoon people from home were checking in on me what a hard exhausting day this must be for you but truth be told it wasn't there was in ease to everything that I couldn't quite explain initially it only slept about 4 hours in two days but somehow I felt energized why because despite the pain being in Israel brings relief here no one doubts the evil of barbaric human butchers or the righteousness of the fight to defeat them no one Falls for terrorist propaganda or protests my existence or hides from their Jewish identity here I can relax out of my defensive stance take off the emotional and mental armor I have to wear every day as a Jew in the dasera here I can breathe no wonder I have so much energy even with the grief and Trauma and the very real threat of violence hovering in the background there is a feeling of great comfort here we are in a place that is for us the only place that is truly for us where our way of being is the rule rule not the exception where everyone Jewish or not understands something fundamentally deep inside each other at home as we mourn the tragedies of the past year we do so in private in houses of worship in group chats at the dinner table in Israel we all mourn together unified as one at home I try to hold up Israel and the Jewish people however I can here Israel and the Jewish people hold me it is so easy to fall into despair frustration helplessness why don't people understand how do they have it so backwards why won't they just leave us alone but honestly these questions are irrelevant the world is what it is and asking questions isn't going to change it not when there is work to be done so instead of despairing get to work this is an all Hands-On deck moment whatever Lane you're in whatever corner of this world is yours throw yourself into it stand up for Jews stand up for yourself stop apologizing for being who you are respect yourself so that others respect you in turn lean into your connection to the Jewish people don't let a vague fear or peer pressure or moral confusion pull you back we are all in this together and as long as there's an Israel there will be an us and as long as there is us there will always be an Israel this is the fifth episode of being Jewish with me Jonah Platt [Music] [Music] my guest today though really I kind of feel like her guest since I'm in her City and her country is an extremely respected leader in Israeli Society she is a humanitarian a successful politician a mother a religious Jew and a fiery media personality she's also a special Envoy to the foreign Ministry which is pretty darn cool I'm very excited to be sitting down with her welcome FL Hassan n thank you Jonah thank you for having me absolutely thank you for having me in your beautiful city and Country well I'm so happy that you're here me too good for you middle of the war you know God on a flight no time like the present oh my Lord so in many ways speaking of Israel you sort of embody the dream of Israel you are a child of the diaspora who returned to the ancestral Homeland you're raising a family here and contributing so greatly to the community have you ever thought of yourself in those terms no because you know what Jenna I feel that everybody who's here who um immigrated to Israel is kind of here deliberately to do something good you know so all of my immigrant friends and I have many I live in a neighborhood with a lot of mixed couples I mean somebody Israeli married to somebody who immigrated from somewhere and everybody's here you don't come here because you want the good life and make money you come here because you feel that you have a sense of mission that you have some type of ideology that want to live out here in Israel and so yes I do feel like a contributing member of Israeli Society but I'm I'm amongst many contributing members of Israeli Society it's a place where you learn from a very young age because I've seen it with my kids' education that you don't just live for you for yourself you live for society so I'll give you an example kids can't graduate high school unless they've done 250 volunteer hours whoa where do you have that it's a our schools like and then you have to go to the Army right so you don't live for you and I think that in this kind of very egotistical world that we live in this iPhone IE this I that that's a good thing for kids it's a it's a great thing I mean we talk about that in America a lot like we wish there was a some sort of mandatory service to to teach you a sense of community and exact being part of something greater than yourself it's definitely something I admire about Israel so you have a very unique family history and and background you can pick which generation you want to start at but like bring me up to speed how do we get to flor I was I I was brought up in jalta jalta is a little British protectorate in southern Spain so it's part of the Iberian Peninsula which is where my family originally emanate from um but it's British so I like to compare it so Americans understand it we're like the Puerto Rico of the UK that's good comparison a great comparison we speak Spanish we have British citizenship when you living in j so you can vote for your local uh leaders but when you move you can move to England like the Puerto Ricans can move to America then there you can vote for the leadership of of uh the UK so it's very very similar in status so I grew up there I studied law in the UK because thankfully when I was growing up there were no universities there so we get to leave we all want to leave because it's very small it's like a kibot in a way what's the Jewish Community like there the Spanish in their agreement to pass over Jala to the British said you can't have Muslims or Jews living there because of course remember they'd cleansed the Iberian Peninsula of Jews and Muslims you know ironically Jews and Muslims lived in Spain in andalo which is southern Spain as peaceful Partners right under of course the morish regime at the time so the British set up a military base because jabala is literally the lookout of the entrance to the Mediterranean when you look at it on the map it's opposite Tangi as Morocco okay and it's the Straits of jial is very narrow and literally whatever comes into the med Mediterranean you can see through jalta mhm and so it's a very strategic military base for the UK sure for Britain and they opened up this military base but they needed Merchants they needed people to bring supplies who are the merchants the Jews y so they called the Jews back into uh jalter to come and live in jalta and so my family that were wandering around after the in the Inquisition they ran away they're wandering around the Iberian Peninsula that were in minorka which is nearer to IA they heard that jalta was opening up to Jews so they went and moved so my family have been in jalta for since the 1700s wow I know it's crazy and my mother's side also Spanish Jews but they wandered off to Northern Morocco to Tangers so at home we spoke Spanish so you said your family you know escaped from so you are spartic I'm Safari yeah yep um what are some of your favorite spartic Customs or quirks that are specific um well that's an interesting the food I think would be the first thing to talk about we have great food it's it's kind of a combination of Jewish and Mediterranean food and the Nexus of that I'm interested yes well next time you're around for Shabbat you really have to come to my house because because what happened was I then married another type of safari my husband's family are Iraqi Indian Jews so the Jews who ran away from Iraq and then wound up in India 200 years ago because India was actually good to the Jews and their food is wild so in my house it's a combination of Moroccan Spanish Indian and Iraqi food whoa that's I mean we've created a whole new category we really have we that's cool I I'm I'm in yeah but I love the songs it's very melodic it's very interesting I think a lot of people don't know this but flamco which is Spanish I guess folkloric music comes from or part of its roots is from Safari Jewish synagogue singing so there's a lot of ah you know that type of thing which is flamco right and it actually comes from Jewish singing huh yeah now you know yes exactly we should do a flamco show Jonas as you sing I'll play the guitar you do the you do the stepping yes I'll do that your family is like jalter political royalty right I mean apparently your your father was the the first mayor is that right the first mayor and and the first Chief Minister which is like a head of government first mayor I mean that's pretty cool I know so my father basically led the first civil rights movement in Jala oh my gosh you know not against the British because they understood that they can't be independent they need to be under the British but with more autonomy with more self-government and so my father's political career was essentially just fighting for more self-government for the people of giala wow so they started with the first city council my father run became the first mayor then they evolved that into a parliament my father run became the first Chief Minister which is head of government wow and he was there his whole life he really gave to to that you went to London for school yeah what was it like at that time being Jewish in Britain so it wasn't so bad I mean I was in um university was which actually was kind of a little bit more anti-israel militant but it was the it was the it was still the beginning the very beginning we were still having normal discussions about the Israeli Palestinian conflict with Palestinians and with Arabs where it was civilized where we were listening to each other's opinions it was what university should be right should be that's great that so that was the environment so yeah there were people who were like heatedly but then we'd like go for a drink that this doesn't exist anymore that doesn't exist anymore so I went to college then when is that what then is 92 to 95 okay and then I continued on to law school bar school I'm a barrister Barrister is just a litigator that's the difference but they give you a wig still you got to wear the wigs yes like the white like powdered wig kind of thing the white powder wig with a horse horse hair huh yeah so they still wear the wig isn't that amazing some traditions never die wig wigs and robes so you know in England as opposed to America I always trying to compare things diaspora communities in America you can you can tell me if it's true or not when you were raised right being Jewish and being American was no contradiction right right in fact being American melt meant were part of this kind of diverse beautiful Melting Pot Mosaic whatever you want to call it right totally so it's not like that in Europe in Europe there's a small at best a small tension so it's kind of dual loyalty very under the radar suspicion you never that you do know now we do that's I mean I was just reading an article about the Europe europeanization of America like for Jews now so we always had we always kind of had a tolerance for under the radar anti-Semitism little remarks little things that people would say I remember being in a conversation with somebody didn't know I was Jewish and and saying oh and the Jews control and then the guy was sitting next to me was like you know flir's Jewish because they he didn't want them to continue where they were going with this that always existed yeah that always exists in Europe and that didn't was certainly was a mainstream in America and I think it's certainly not in like you know the the 80s 90s 2000s sort of like a real Gan age I think Jewish culture was very much considered part of Americana in a way American culture yeah people just didn't think that much about it yeah you know we got our we got our one shelf in the Walgreens in the holidays for the Hanukkah stuff that was good yeah so like we were in the mix you were in the mix and also when you look at TV which is like a you know a measure I guess of American culture lot of you know the way that you see a lot of uh Black Americans on TV there was a lot of Jewish characters on TV a lot jewi shows a lot of them are meant to really be Jewish but are not always like talked about as being Jewish yes I mean look Seinfeld never made a song and dance about the fact he was Jewish but he was very obviously a New York Jew in that show here's a story about s they the character of George was based on Larry David who is Jewish but they made they made him Greek because they were like we can't have another Jew well there's too many Jew but he was just a Jewish guy they just made his name Greek you well I think New York culturally there's a lot of people are not Jewish who just are Jewish culturally almost because they of course because New York is a very Jewish cultural place it's the the biggest Jewish population outside Israel yeah MH absolutely so yeah so I I think that's interesting that the you and now going through exactly that I know interesting is one word for it I could think of a few others um so you moved to Israel in the middle of the second inata which know I think everybody listening to my show knows what it is but just in case you know it's a period where there was terrorist attacks and urban Warfare Urban Warfare suicide bombers cafes pizza restaurants whatever when you when you got to are we like oh crap we made a huge mistake or was it like no we're here and we're going to figure out I've never never felt moving to hisra was a mistake it's I mean it's crazy because I remember going to a cafe on a Sunday and that same Cafe blowing up on a Wednesday and my husband and I would be like oh my God or I remember walking with my husband for like to have breakfast somewhere and going okay my husband would go where do we sit so that in case there's a suicide bomber we won't be I don't know maimed or dead I mean who can live like this Israelis only honestly we have such a high tolerance but I want to remind your listeners also Jonah that the reason that the second figh happened was because we had the audacity to offer Arafat who was the Palestinian leader at the time a two-state solution how dare 97% of the West Bank Judea Samaria the the half of Jerusalem and the three quarters of the old city how much better could it have gone and I know that's a major turning point in not just like the conflict but in Israeli sort of society and politics cuz it was like well even when we make an amazing offer they try to blow us up well ex I think that was the moment when we realized that we grew up we lost our innocence we realized it was a delusion we realized that this was not a territorial conflict we realized that hey we're giving them everything they say they want right and they're still not taking it and instead they want to go out and kill innocent people on the streets of Jerusalem maybe that's actually not what they want and that's when I I woke up because I was all in favor of the two State solution I was all in favor of giving Palestinians and I still am they should have self-determination but unfortunately the leadership doesn't care about self-determination they care about destroying the state of Israel right and that that was my wakeup call hey yeah see I is the only thing to say so in 2013 you jump into Israeli politics in a big way joining the yusel party in hopes of making Jerusalem more pluralistic City what problems did you try to tackle first and were you successful so that's a good question I don't think that the work is never done but the I think that Jerusalem um is is the most diverse city in the country and we have two of the largest minorities of the country living in their largest numbers here the ultra Orthodox Jews and the Arab population um so for me a pluralistic City means everybody gets the same opportunities everybody has the same rights but everybody get the same opportunities which means better education better integration into high great places of work um and that's really what I focused on but uh when I spoke about pluralism at the time also and still there's a tension in Israel always about religion and state so what you know how does Jerusalem keep being an open City and yet keep the integrity and the heritage of its history right what do you do on Shabbat what is open on Shabbat what is closed on Shabbat how do we live with an ultra Orthodox population how do we become a welcoming place for all populations like lgbtq how do we Embrace uh Arab society and embrace them into the prosperity of the startup Nation we move the needle definitely with education of minorities and job opportunities and I created a number of programs for integration of Arab and Ultra Orthodox women in Hightech companies um advancement of these women Hightech companies also men creating uh you know more high-tech opportunities in East Jerusalem creating more um Arab men and women Engineers uh by you know closing educational gaps in language and that type of thing so we definitely moved the needle the job is still not done what issues are you most interested in tackling now is it the same or is have you got a different Focus so when I was appointed the idea was because I'm also the co-founder of um a couple of organizations around the Abraham Accords one is called the UA Israel Business Council right and the other one is the gulf Israel women's Forum so I took this opportunity to try and see how we were going to open the peopl to people rap rant and peace with Saudi Arabia because it was literally Round the Corner the piece of Saud Arabia and this is one of the reasons why Hamas picked this moment in time of course there's no doubt so that was supposed to be my gig October the 7th happened and my gig has completely pivoted to advocacy for Israel explaining the conflict keeping those relationships in the gulf and the Arab world uh through a very difficult trying times and I've just uh created a new organization called campus Israel in order to encourage and facilitate uh Jewish and non-jewish students from all around the world to come and study in English in Israel study you know you know just imbue yourself in the Innovation culture and academic institutions here how cool and bring foreign students to Israel that's amazing yeah when when is it launching for students or when do you hope to launch it 2025 so we this winter we hope to have our portal ready where you can just type in college in Israel and look at all the opportunities and as an added cherry on the top it's way way cheaper to study here than in American universities W all right well parents and high schoolers I hope you were taking notes on that part you have said previously that Jerusalem is not the core of the problem but the laboratory to the solution what is the problem and why is Jerusalem the key to that solution so the main um issues if we put politics aside for a second the main issues that we have in this country socioeconomic especially with these two minorities with the Arab minority and with the ultra Orthodox minority when it comes to the ultra Orthodox minority the men are working in really low numbers because the their politicians their leaders have kind of pushed them into this life of Torah learning which is great but it came from that direction you think the politicians pushing them towards as opposed to them wanting to go there well nowhere in the world I mean you live in LA you have spent time in New York what are the New York CR Jews doing they're working they working they're working just go to what's it called B&H that yeah that's right it's Electronics Electronics they're working that Diamond District they're working yeah right mhm why is it that initial the ultra Orthodox are not working and it was something which is was Israeli policy the borian agreed with the um religious K leadership at the time at a time after the Holocaust when it was important for the Jewish people to rebuild the centers of Torah scholarship we were talking then about 5,000 right they're 15% of the country now the country can't afford this right but where do we see it right in our faces in Jerusalem because they're 30% of the population right and so we need to we need to really deal with the situation here and that model we create for integration economic integration is a model that's going to save the country same with the Arabs the educational system of the Arabs particularly in Jerusalem is very very hostile to Israel but they also don't teach Hebrew so they can't integrate even when they want to so again we're doing Alternative Learning programs immersive language programs so on a socioeconomic level the laboratory of all those models for integration and economic development and opportunity for these two minority groups that live in the poorest numbers in this country we're we're developing those models here what's working here will work everywhere right from a kind of more macro level Jews and Arabs live here in Jerusalem we are building bridges all the time in October 7th Yas sina's dream was that the Arabs of Jerusalem would turn against the Jews and they didn't not they're not zionists but they've learned we've learned to live together there's radical elements we've got to get rid of them but for the most part people just want to make a living have a nice time walk in the park go to Zumba class go home go out for dinner and if you walk around Jerusalem Jonah you have now for a couple of days what do you see on the streets it's a it's a whole mix of everybody I mean I was walking today by the like employment office and noticing the line of people was just you know Arab Jew har secular men woman just everybody exactly that's Jerusalem something I've observed is that there is often a very different connection to being Jewish for Israelis and diaspora Jews because in Israel you can sort of take being Jewish for granted a little bit and uh in the states if you want to be Jewish you have to really be Jewish you have to be part of a community in the states yes and and not even you just you have to really think about you know observing or or connecting or whatever um what what are some other differences perhaps that you've noticed between Israeli and diaspora Jews well I don't think Israelis know what anti-Semitism is they don't know it wow they can't capture it they can't grasp it why because they've been raised in a country where there are a majority that's so interesting we've suffered lots of things in Israel but not anti-Semitism I mean terrorist attacks may have anti-semitic Roots they may not want us here because we're Jewish all of that yes but not the same way you've experienced it and I find that incredible and I think that October the 7th was a wake up call for diaspora jewelry it was a wakeup call for Israelis as well cuz they didn't realize the anti-Semitism that exists around the world they think oh the Holocaust that was it that was the end of it we got our own country it's over oh the Jews and the desper live great lives that was a wakeup call for them as well so I think that's I see it with my kids my kids were born here they don't really understand anti-Semitism wow you know and so that's I think another difference but I think that generally the Jew here is not um seeking validation from anyone they don't have to we're here yeah get used to it you know what I mean that's it I mean that's that's what what you just said is sort of how I feel about the term Zionist because you know Zionism implies some dream of a an Israeli Homeland it's like it's already here yeah so I don't know why we have to keep framing ourselves as point it was a political exactly it was a political movement that that was successful and it completed its task exactly so it would be like if Americans still called themselves like Colonial Rebels it's like no we're it's just Americans now yes that's a really good point um but you know what we're like we just like to then evolve the term so you have the post Zionist and you have the what is the new Zionism and let's reinvent Zionism and you know people talk about tuno Lam as a kind of Zionism it's not Zionism it's just Jewish values yeah we've always had it yeah that's that's another reason I think to retire the term and too many different things and especially when it's been now taken by the haters and branded with such a bad you know just a substitute for dirty Jew yeah you know oh it really is yeah it totally is what is something you think diaspora Jews don't understand about Israelis I think that just what I said earlier I think they they don't understand that we're not we're not trying to um ingratiate ourselves with anyone here we just are we don't think about it we don't apologize for it I still find the diaspora there's still an element of Love Me Love Me by the Jews you know like bending over backwards in everybody's cause in every social justice movement to just show that we're good people here we don't we don't have to show anybody we just saw well that's that's a little cynical I feel like a lot of that is at least in the social justice world is is authentic and it's part of that t Al it's totally authentic it it's totally authentic and it does come from a good place of tun but I think that October 7th people realized just cuz I showed up for these people doesn't mean they're showing up for me yeah exactly and then maybe analyzing well why was I showing up at everything the way I see it is this the Jewish people are a family okay yep families are dysfunctional right yes you come from quite a few siblings you fight with them you grow up fighting with them and that's how it is right yes and the way I see it is that's totally normal yeah the Jewish people are a family we fight we disagree but when you're out of the house what did your mother tell you you don't fight with your sibling when there's other people around when you're out of the house you certainly don't side with anybody else against your sibling in in the Schoo yard would you right right of course not so I say this to young people all the time yes you could be really angry at your sibling you could be really angry at your uncle he could be doing something that embarrasses you he could be doing something that makes you angry but when you're out there and the world is against you or when you're out in that playground and there's other kids and there's bullies where do you stand and so why aren't you standing for your people and your family and that really bothers me it bothers a lot of us I and is really don't don't see that right it's it's that need to be liked yes and accepted at the cost of your own family more enlightened if I'm with you who hate me because somehow if I'm still in my tribe in my family that's primitive that's like saying that standing with your brother even though you disagree with him but I'm going to stand with my brother that's primitive because somehow it's ingrained that some higher ideological cause is more important than family no it ain't nothing is nothing with you so I'd be remiss if I didn't discuss the current War a little bit with you you've already spoken about how you sort of what your role has been in this time you've also said when comes to the communications War we aren't even in the arena no how do we fix that I mean and that's something you hear in the diaspora a lot like what are they doing where's the pr campaign what's What's Happening Here Israel's never thought about this I mean I guess that speaks to what you've been saying they they just do what they do well yes I guess it is I didn't think about it that way so it's a good point J but I think that every country uh especially a country that is so vilified should have a comm's strategy sure it's like a BBC exactly um Gulf States have a Comm strategy I know somebody who works for the Emirates mhm he told me his com strategy so everybody has a com strategy everybody has a branding yeah and somehow Israel is not in the arena and I think that comes you know what I was telling you about Israeli like we don't care we are who we are there's an to me there's an element of arrogance in that yeah that I criticize a lot I do it internally but I do criticize it lot what you know no you can't say there is a part of a lot of people here who say they hate us anyway why bother I don't I don't agree with that yeah I think come on you got to get into the fight you got to put people straight they're just lying it's liables and slander when people liable and slander you what do you do you either fight back or you sue them that's what we need to do and instead of being on defense let's go on offense why are we always on defense always just reating react always putting out fires always saying no no no no no we didn't do this I I think that's a big mistake like I I was telling you that I pivoted well I I didn't pivot deliberately I was dragged in on October 7th at 10: in the morning and like you said I'm an observant Jew I normally wouldn't be on my phone when I realized we're at War I switched on the TV to see what was happening and then my phone rang and it was the BBC now why is the BBC calling the deputy mayor of Jerusalem they called me because they obviously called four other people before me including the the government press office incl including the prime minister's office including the IDE of spokesperson and nobody answered I was the first one to answer and that's why I've been doing what I've been doing but what I wish is that the government took it seriously and instead of spending money on one more war plane which yes is necessary to beat the terrorist enemies but take that money just one and put it in a decent get the best people around the world you know what I say Jonah people say we control the media well let's control the media they're accusing they're accusing us of it already we're nowhere near even controlling the narrative yeah never mind the media that's right I mean you know how government works obviously like what how to create any kind of change in this Arena well this is why I am masochistically still consider myself a politician still want to continue running for office because I'm not you know I'm not going to I'm not an expert in National Security I'm not an expert on welfare I'm not an expert on transport but what I think I have some expertise in is the communications war and so I would love to be that in in the Israeli government and that's still why why I'm still in it because I still feel that I have something meaningful to contribute to my country and my people well we we got to make this happen for you I mean we need you I wish people in the diaspora could actually vote how do you feel about Israel's current trajectory in regards to Gaza Lebanon the West Bank and Iran I know that's four different things yeah unfortunately and I say unfortunately because it means the war might last a little longer we need to win yeah we can't not win if we don't win first of all it it we're just allowing the cancer to remain at a low grade and then continue to grow a b we're sending a message to the terrorists around the world that we who represent the Free World here are not really going to get rid of you and we don't have the stomach for it that's not a good message for the I think internal terrorism that America and Europe and the West is going to face because the islamists Jihadi islamism has gotten everywhere yeah it's in your college campuses it's in Europe in the streets of New York it's in the streets of New York it's only a matter of time before look you guys had it in 911 people have such short memories what do they think 911 was about well I I guess the the it's it's the people who weren't alive for 911 or who were babies the ones that think that Osama Bin Laden is somebody to rever right it's so sad it's almost funny it's so funny it's almost sad I don't even know what to how to look at this anymore I know well turned upside down what would you like to see happen next um and and what is your most desired outcome at the end of this like what does that look like the first thing is to bring the hostages home the the alive and the dead ones it's just not your parent Jonah yeah it just how can you live how can any of us think of our child in there yeah you know being tortured girls being raped we need to get them home not even forget the families for a second but for the soul of this country we cannot leave any man or woman behind and so we need to get them home that's the first thing we need to do whatever it takes so that's the first thing I want to see the second thing I want to see is a decisive Victory and I know we're losing boys our boys beautiful boys and girls every day in the war in the Army and I we need to dismantle Hamas we need to maybe I mean ideally for me because I've been very involved with Abraham M's stuff the ideal situation in Gaza would be if we could manage to convince some of the gulf countries to come and administer them they have the money and they have the ability to reconstruct quickly I mean if you've been to the gulf they' created they how to build Min Manhattans in like 10 years it's crazy have you gotten any indication with your relationship that that's something they have an appetite for if America were to create a package by which uh the Saudis want a defense pack with America that's what they want why do they want it because they understand Iran is their major threat the Islamic Republic of Iran if we created a package where the it would be a win-win for the for the Saudis and the Gulf States I think it could happen and I think to be honest the gazans would be thrilled if they created a Dubai over there for them do you imagine um the other thing that we to do and I know I you I did an article I was interviewed for an article in uh Newsweek a couple of weeks ago and I was called a warmonger but we really need to get rid of the Islamic Republic of Iran because as long as you don't they're just going to continue with their proxy strategy and they just they're just their tentacles are getting bigger they've now got six seven countries they're going to continue they've got their hands in Africa they're going to go everywhere yeah there's no there's no indication at all that they are getting ready to throw the towel in they're not going to throw the towel in and let me tell you the people who really want us to do this are the Iranians 80% of the country hate their regime they've raped and killed and murdered women in captivity for showing a strand of hair yeah how these idiots and morons in college campuses can be like shouting you know let's you know we stand withas don't they realize what the life would be I don't think they even realize what they're saying mean a lot of them have no idea what those things are it's just trendy slogan isn't it so so anyway so we need to and we need a strong America and you know unfortunately the the Obama Doctrine which continue till today of appeasement is has not worked it they've gotten worse their Monster's gotten bigger it has not worked it will not work and America has to take its role as the leading superpower that it is because it's going to the way that it got to America in 911 it's going to come back to America we're just the first front of this war we're not the last to the Islamic jihadists we're not that's for sure yeah what are some mistakes that you've seen along the way that you wish had been avoided well I think that procrastinating and maybe worrying about what the world think of us maybe it was a mistake at the same time hand inand with that is we need to be a lot more efficient in helping shape the narrative that the world thinks of us so if we would have a better narrative maybe we would have more decisive actions and not be so worried about you'd have more Capital to be able to do what you need to do exactly that's exactly it's politics it's politics we need to have had more Capital we didn't because it wasn't considered seriously and I've always said you know we're fighting many friends but another front that we're fighting is a Communications War yeah um and I think for the first time Jonah the communications War has affected our military war and that's why we need to get our act together and that's new interesting that's new mhm yeah how do you feel when you hear folks both inside Israel and outside calling for a ceasefire look we all want the war to end and a ceasefire could happen tomorrow tomorrow it's very simple don't don't pressure Israel for a ceasefire pressure the terrorists to dismantle and to return the hostages and then you have a ceasefire pressure uh um Lebanon hisbah to go back north of the lutan river and to comply with resolution 171 if they did that it would be over so yes we all want to cease fire but we need the terrorist entities to actually do what they're supposed to do and then they get a ceasefire but a ceasefire has to come with a guarantee that this is not going to happen again in 3 years and have my 15-year-old son today be fighting in that war because we didn't finish the job mhm do you feel hopeful for the future of the Jewish people always and I'll tell you why we're resilient people that's for sure we've been around for thousands of years we are walking dinosaurs we've been around with the Assyrians and the Babylonians and the Romans where the hell are they today gone they're gone they're gone but we're still here yeah which means we are an eternal people and we will win the question is what price are we going to pay that's the question it's always what price at what price are we going to be able to continue to survive and then Thrive and we will I just pray say that the price is not too high it's already been too high yeah speaking of the future a little lighter turn uh the holiday of sukot is going to start right after this airs yes how will you be celebrating sukot again we make wonderful food we have people over we drink we eat um and we we listen last year sukot was We were living under this illusion that we were going to have a fantastic year we had the worst year in the history of the state of Israel I think in our generation's uh history of the Jewish people sure and it was simor last year when this whole happened so I pray that we find the light and the joy we continue always as Jewish people Jewish people are very good at um at commemorating the tragedy alongside celebration and appreciation of life and we have to keep doing that that's beautiful it's like half the holidays I feel like right there exactly all right so to wrap it up I'm going to do a little lightning round some some quick questions I'm going to throw at you what is your favorite book about Jerusalem Jerusalem by Simon seag Monte Fury if you want the book The Master Class on the entire history the 3,000 plus years of Jerusalem it's long yeah it's got to be it's long but he's he's fantastic okay awesome what do you eat for breakfast I I've broken away from family tradition okay cuz we always used to my mother always used to first of all you're going to like this my father who was not a drinker the first thing we would do would come to the house after um after synagogue after the fasts take a shot of whiskey cuz he would say that warms up and gets the body started I might try that this year try it it's like it puts you in a different place um so normally my mother would make chicken soup because she always felt it super good for your body after you've been fasting but I think we've been ashkenaz ified and now we do more milky stuff bagels and locks Bagels locks sweets lasagna so yeah I I mean I love the the diversity of the Jewish people so I take from everyone as we should as we all should I wish we did it more yeah what is your favorite can't miss non-touristy Jerusalem experience oo non-touristy everything's become so touristy at the moment yeah I want like The Insider tip of like when you're in Jerusalem you got to do blank there is a museum which I think is less known but it is a gem and it's called the Tower of David Museum and basically the museum tells the story just in its construction it tells the story of Jerusalem because every meter of this incredible Fortress it's a Fortress Is Like A Century Of History okay so Tower of David Museum that'll be top of my list next time I'm in town I'll take you myself oh deal uh who is one of your biggest Jewish Role Models you know lot of people talk about the fathers of Zionism MH nobody talks about the mothers of Zionism talk about them but the mothers of Zionism um actually created Israel's the beginning of Israel's health and social welfare system those women were the the mothers of Zionism when the men were doing like the building up the defense systems of Israel and going and being diplomats around the world trying to lobby and advocate for a state of Israel they were looking around going damn people are dying why don't we open baby clinics why don't we open nutrition clinics why don't we create the first hospital wow I like those women that's great yeah do you have a favorite Jewish holiday oh god um I do love porb yeah it's a good time it's fun good time my husband's favorite he's just a grown man looking for an excuse to dress up as a Star Wars character I love it so he's you know he that's his favorite but but I I you I've broken away from Star Wars because how many years can you be princess l in a row so now I'm I'm I'm trying to break out of that when the Game of Thrones was on I was uh I was kisi which I really ah nice daus targaryan targaryan love her couple more who's your favorite child of my children I can't tell you that I'm kidding um okay last but certainly not least what is one final thought that you would like to impart to my mostly non-israeli audience you know just be proud We are part of such an incredible tribe and we're not perfect we can be really annoying and you know I'm the biggest you know I I can talk a lot about what annoys me about the Jewish people but ultimately we are a people who have stood the test of time everywhere we go we're like fertilizer we produce we develop we make the surroundings better not just for us but for every everyone else and it's because we're rooted in the values of giving we have a blueprint called the Torah which teach us how to be less selfish that teach us how to live in community and live for others and that is something only to be proud of Flor thank you so much this was so fantastic God bless you Jonah thanks for being here really thank you [Music]