What is astonishing is the willingness to abandon the sacrosanct motto of the #MeToo era: “I believe you.”

By Allan Wolman

When it comes to human rights abuses in Africa, particularly sexual violence against women, South Africa’s leadership skips a continent – its own – preferring to focus its energies on attacking Israel. Falsely accusing the Jewish state of genocide while mum on genocides far closer to home, exposes the moral bankruptcy of a nation that has squandered its potential inherited from the Mandela era.

In her op-ed in the NYT (21 March), Maebel Gebremedhin, cofounder and president of Tigray Action Committee and United Women of the Horn, highlighted the civil war between Ethiopia and Tigray. She describes this as one of the deadliest conflicts of this century with an estimated death toll of over half a million people and the region now facing widespread famine.

Coupled to this, over 100,000 women are believed to have been the victims of conflict-related sexual violence, and an estimated 40% of all Tigray women have been at the sharp end of “some type of gender-based violence”.

Gebremedhin goes on to say:  

“Tigray stands as one of many stark examples of what happens when conflict-related sexual violence goes unchecked. It is time the world speaks up for African women and holds governments, armies and all perpetrators accountable for the crimes they are committing. If not, they may continue to suspect that when it comes to them, accountability and justice are only buzzwords”.

In the conflict-ridden landscape of Sudan and Darfur, sexual violence has been tragically weaponized, with the appalling practices of trafficking girls and perpetrating rape employed as brutal tools war. The BBC recently featured a documentary “Unveiling the Forgotten: Sudan’s Hidden Conflict” which delves into the heart of the struggle, revealing untold stories, shedding light on a conflict that has long been overshadowed by other global crises.

 As the international community grapples with pressing global challenges, the BBC’s documentary serves as a timely reminder that Sudan’s forgotten war cannot be ignored. By amplifying the voices of those affected by the conflict, the film calls for renewed diplomatic efforts to address the root causes of violence and instability in the region.

The conflict in the region is attributed to tensions between Arab herders and non-Arab farmers over land, resources, and political power, with non-Arab groups accusing the Arab-dominated central government and militias like the Janjaweed of marginalization and discrimination. After the 2019 overthrow of al-Bashir, leadership in the Sudanese Armed Forces shifted, with General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan assuming control of the Transitional Military Council (TMC), while Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemeti, led the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), playing a significant role in post-al-Bashir Sudanese politics, particularly stemming from his involvement in the Darfur conflict Hemeti, has faced accusations of involvement in ethnic and sexual violence in  the Darfur region of Sudan. As the leader of the RSF, he has been accused of overseeing operations where such atrocities occurred. The RSF has been implicated in various human rights abuses, including allegations of ethnic cleansing, sexual violence, and other forms of violence against civilians. These accusations have led to international scrutiny and calls for accountability for those responsible for such acts.

 It’s the same Hemeti who was hosted by President Ramaphosa in Pretoria in early January this year for “discussions” on his vision for ending the war in Sudan. Indeed, that was before South Africa had thought about grandstanding at the International Court of Justice.  But it appears that Ramaphosa, a vocal advocate against gender-based violence, remained unmoved by the atrocities of genocide and sexual violence in Tigray and Sudan. Similarly, prominent women in South Africa, including Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor and UNHCR’s Chair Navi Pillay, remain silent on matters concerning their own continent.

To its credit, the NYT did expose the Hamas atrocities of sexual violence on Israeli women on 10/7. While the BBC extensively covered the Sudanese conflict on both TV and radio, their coverage of Israeli women victims of sexual violence remains mum. CNN, on the other hand, exposed the disturbing silence of UN Women, whose response only came after this revelation (some months later), once again underscoring the hashtag #MeToo Unless You’re a Jew.

About the writer:

Allan Wolman in 1967 joined 1200 young South Africans to volunteer to work on agricultural settlements in Israel during the Six Day War. After spending a year in Israel, he returned to South Africa where he met and married Jocelyn Lipschitz and would run  one of the oldest travel agencies in Johannesburg – Rosebank Travel. He would also literally ‘run’ three times in the “Comrades”, one of the most grueling marathons in the world as well as participate in the “Argus” (Cape Town’s famed international annual cycling race) an impressive eight times. Allan and Jocelyn immigrated to Israel three years ago.

While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves.  LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).

With hundreds of thousands of reservists putting their studies, careers and families on hold to serve their country in its hour of need, Israel’s younger generation has shown its true mettle.

By Harris Zvi Green

March 22, 2024

My dearest friends,

During the past 24 weeks I’ve written much about the hypocrisy and cynicism that plague our world. The hatred fuels the jealousy that fuels the denial that fuels the hatred. A vicious circle energized by its own velocity. Speaking out against the never-ending tsunami of lies and distortions was my natural reaction. As a result, I haven’t said nearly enough about how proud I am of our younger generation.

October 7 was a nightmare. Israel was literally caught with its pants down. Our security forces were completely unprepared. Twelve hundred people were savagely murdered. Another 250 people were abducted to Gaza. After 168 days, 134 of them are still being held hostage under the most inhumane conditions.

From Day One, our younger generation showed its mettle. Their sense of sacrifice and determination to defend our country and its people so unselfishly, was instantaneous. Israel’s Tik-Tok generation took responsibility. They led by example. Hundreds of thousands of reservists put their studies, careers, families and livelihoods on hold to serve their country in its hour of need. They never waited for call-up papers. They showed up in their droves. Their priorities were crystal clear.

Their response was the same as that of Abraham to God, when he was called upon to sacrifice his beloved Isaac. Hineni – I am ready.

Many of our young men and women made the supreme sacrifice. Some suffered irreversible injuries requiring years of rehabilitation. Each and every one of them put themselves at enormous personal risk. They inspired and brought us together. They made us bury our differences for the common good. If our generation did anything right, it was raising this generation to save our people from another holocaust.

Our youngsters have won this war for us. We owe them so much.

An integral part of Israel’s Independence Day’s celebrations are the prestigious awards to those who have excelled in particular professions and fields. Amongst this year’s special awards, is a prize for “Civilian Heroism”. This prize will be awarded to Menachem Kalmanson and his nephew, Itiel Zohar, for their bravery in rescuing many of the residents of Kibbutz Beeri on October 7.

Early in the morning of October 7, 42-year-old Elchanan Kalmanson heard news of the massacre. Intuitively, he knew his presence was needed. Together with his brother, Menachem, and nephew, Itiel, they drove more than 100 kilometers to Kibbutz Beeri, not knowing what to expect.

With rockets falling around them, they finally arrived at the Kibbutz. The scene that greeted them was one of burning homes, gunshots and pandemonium. This group of three remarkably brave men went from house to house evacuating as many people as possible. They were forced to contend with blood-thirsty terrorists in their efforts to do so. Over a period of 14 hours, they made repeated trips into the fray and successfully evacuated tens of men, women and children.

On the last of these trips, Elchanan and Menachem were hit by terrorist fire. Elchanan died in Menachem’s arms. Elchanan Kalmanson, 85 residents of Be’eri and 26 policemen and IDF soldiers, fell in the battle for Be’eri. The Kalmanson family are worthy recipients of this award.

Josep Borrell is the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. Over the past months, he has made numerous statements condemning Israel for her actions in Gaza. His statements suggest he is completely ignorant of the atrocities perpetrated by Hamas on October 7. He appears to question Israel’s right to self-defense and her duty to ensure the events of October 7 don’t repeat themselves.

Like many of his fellow politicians, Borrell has paid the customary lip service calling for the immediate and unconditional release of the hostages. But, like them, Borrell hasn’t bothered to follow through. He’s done nothing to put pressure on Hamas and her financial backers to release the hostages.

On the contrary, his politically motivated statements such as calling for an arms embargo against Israel and his outrageous claims that Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war and provoking famine in Gaza, only serve to embolden Hamas. With such diplomatic support from the EU, what incentive does Hamas have to release the hostages?

Borrell is doing his job to keep the Palestinian terror machine alive. He’s not the only one.

Chuck Schumer, Democratic Majority Leader of the US Senate, had the audacity to use the Senate floor to call for elections in Israel. With all due respects to Mr. Schumer, Israel is a democracy and not a banana republic. Elections in Israel were last held 16 months ago. Unless the Knesset elects to dissolve itself, the next election will, by law, take place towards the end of 2026. The difficulties facing the Biden campaign in Wisconsin have no bearing on the timing of Israel’s next election.

The gullibility of the world continues to amaze me. As news consumers, the assumption is that we’re ready to accept anything and everything. The media presents “facts and figures” that suit the political agendas of the tycoons who control the media outlets. The news items and their authenticity are nothing more than hanging rails for revenue generating commercials. It’s so bad that even government sources and international organizations regurgitate these “facts and figures” as if they were gospel.

In an article published in the Telegraph UK on March 16, Jake Wallis Simons referred to a study made by Professor Abraham Wyner, a data scientist at the University of Pennsylvania, regarding the number and breakdown of the casualties in Gaza. The study shows that the numbers and their breakdown are statistically impossible. They indicate Hamas is faking the death figures put out by Gaza’s Ministry of Health.

The unfortunate reality is that governments, humanitarian organizations and the media readily accept and provide credibility for these “facts and figures”. As Simons says, “this gullibility has led to a crime against reality.”

My condolences to those mourning their nearest and dearest. My wishes to the injured for a complete and speedy recovery. May God protect our brave soldiers. May the hostages soon be reunited with their families. May you all be blessed with good health to see smiles on the faces of your loved ones for many years to come.

Wishing you all Shabbat Shalom and better times ahead.

Am Yisrael Chai.

Harris Zvi Green.

About the writer:

Harris Zvi Green was born in Cape Town, South Africa. Aged 77, he made Aliyah 53 years ago. An accountant by profession, he served as the Chief Financial Officer for a number of Israel based hi-tech companies. He is married to Phyllis. They have 3 married children ,13 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren. Harris Zvi Green is a founder member of Truth be Told, an organization engaged in public diplomacy on behalf of Israel.

While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves.  LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).

The line separating the joy of being home and the trauma at home is very narrow.

By Jonathan Feldstein

Coming home to Israel after a trip overseas to anywhere, for any length of time, is always emotional.

Choking back tears, in a matter of minutes I see the coast, cities with countless construction sites indicating growth and building for the future, low lying houses and buildings surrounded by fertile cultivated fields. I anticipate seeing my family and sleeping in my own bed. Touchdown is often greeted with applause. I’ve never landed at any other airport where so many people applaud and get emotional. I’m home.

Emotions continue minutes later walking down the ramp to passport control and baggage claim, past pictures of the 134 hostages still in captivity by Hamas in Gaza, the same 134 people whose pictures I walked by, slowly, still in captivity when I left weeks earlier.

The lump in my throat got bigger and it became harder to breathe. The trauma of being home, to a country at war, returns full force.

Suddenly I realize that the line between the joy of being home and the trauma at home is very narrow. As much as I am thrilled to be home, returning to the trauma is strangely comforting. I’ve missed it traveling through two countries and 11 states, in more than a dozen hotels. I’ve even felt guilty being away, an undeserved respite despite the fact that every day is spent thinking and talking about the situation, often intensely and emotionally.

The trauma continued upon leaving the airport as I learned of a serious security incident involving snipers. While security incidents in Israel are not unusual, snipers at the airport are rare indeed. Welcome home to the trauma. Now I just want to get home to my house.

The next day is the first Friday of Ramadan. After 20 years, we’ve learned that as much as Ramadan may be the Islamic holy month, it is often used as a catalyst or excuse for terrorism and violence. Precautions have been made to limit the threats, but living adjacent to a Palestinian Arab village whose mosque is often louder than my TV, we also know to be on the lookout and careful about incidents that could happen at any moment.

That evening, after the sanctity of the beginning of Shabbat descended on Israel, the day of rest, I was reminded how close everything is. We live some 40 miles northeast of Gaza. During the course of the war, it has not been unusual for rockets to be fired this far, sending us to our bomb shelter, multiple times until the sound of the Iron Dome intercepting the rocket overhead.

It’s such a narrow country that whether en route to attacking a terrorist site in Gaza, or having just done so, we often hear the thunderous sound of military aircraft overhead. This was the first time I had heard these since coming home, but still they sounded unusually loud. My family looked at one another aware that the quantity of airplanes overhead sounded unusually large, wondering what they were doing or had just done.

Another momentary awareness of the reality of the trauma around us, even at 34,000 feet. Nevertheless, it is a comfort to be home, aware that despite the war, there’s no shortage of hardware to protect us.

Speaking with friends and family, I also became aware that while many have been discharged from active military service, the trauma they experienced was not left behind. It still impacts Israelis daily. While traveling, I spoke of how the war and its consequences will impact the DNA of our soul. I visited a college professor who has been concerned for my family from the start of the war. He reminded me that it’s a real phenomenon (which I knew), but I didn’t know it had a name. Epigenetics.

I wish I could be alive 50 years from now to study the history of this time, but also to see how my children and grandchildren grow up, hopefully thriving as adults and parents and grandparents themselves.  I hope they are able to put the trauma of this war in perspective and succeed on every level personally, as well as continuing to build our country. We are all deeply impacted in our soul. This, sadly, will probably not go away anytime soon.

The trauma is not just personal but national. I don’t know how yet, but it will impact everything going forward in the future of the State of Israel and Jewish history. It will impact how we look at ourselves, how we defend ourselves, the risks we’re willing to take, our economy, international relations, who our friends really are, and much more.

There’s trauma in international calls and pressure for a cease fire that takes into account only the alleged civilian casualties among Gazans (based on the undocumented and conflated Hamas numbers), with no parallel calls for a release of all the 134 hostages, dead and alive, or the urgency to eradicate Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Iranian Islamic regime that is the head of the evil snake, and where regime change must begin. 

There’s profound trauma amid painful negotiations for a hostage release. 134 people still being held by the terrorists. It’s unthinkable that anyone would think that taking hostages is acceptable to begin with, or that we would have to negotiate and release hardcore terrorists to get them back, as if some sort of corporate business deal.

For weeks there’s been talk of releasing 40 or 50 hostages, but this brings to the forefront the awareness of the trauma we know they have suffered, how to help them when they are freed, and the psychological warfare that the terrorists inflicted, cruelly manipulating us in December as 101 hostages were released. No doubt this will be the same if a new deal is secured, if not worse, traumatizing us all.

There’s added trauma that we feel indirectly through the families of the hostages. If 40-50 are released, that means most will not be, leaving unbearable suffering for the families of those remaining in captivity. 

The trauma is heightened further by the horrific and yet possibly necessary release of terrorists in exchange for the hostages, including murderers. The suffering of the families of their victims, where they will be released to, and when they will commit more acts of terror are just some of the things that traumatize us as a nation. There’s no end to the trauma in sight, but what is always a constant is that even with the war and the trauma, it’s a blessing to be home, personally and prophetically.

About the writer:

Jonathan Feldstein ­­­­- President of the US based non-profit Genesis123 Foundation whose mission is to build bridges between Jews and Christians – is a freelance writer whose articles appear in The Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel, Townhall, NorthJersey.com, Algemeiner Jornal, The Jewish Press, major Christian websites and more.

While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves.  LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).

Presenting a façade on CNN of the ‘motherly’ queen, Jordan’s Queen Rania questions authenticity of Palestinian massacre of Israelis.

By Lawrence Nowosenetz

In an interview with CNN (Tuesday 12 March 2024) Queen Rania was discussing the humanitarian aspects of the Gaza war. She said:

 “Aid under bombardment does not stop the destruction, the death and the heartbreak. We cannot save people from hunger only then to bomb them to death”.

Rousing words indeed. 

As usual, she reduced the root cause of the conflict – as all the twisted and dishonest opponents of Israel do – to historical injustice: occupation, settlement expansion, human rights abuses and disregard for international law.

Have we not heard this litany of slander abundant times before?

Naturally the democratic peace-loving nature of Palestinian society was nowhere mentioned.

Even the interviewer Christina Amanpour, not known for her regard for Israel or her balance in coverage of the conflict, could not hold back from questioning the queen about the events on 7 October 2023.

Queen Rania gave this astonishing response:

“Israel experienced one October 7, since then, the Palestinians have experienced 156 October 7’s”.

This breathtaking lie suggest that for the last 156 days of the Gaza war, Israel has been committing similar atrocities on a daily basis on the civilians of Gaza. Not one single instance has been recorded of anything remotely approximating (G-d forbid), torture, burning, mutilation, rape, even necrophilia by Israeli soldiers on Palestinian women and children.    

However, her rank hypocrisy and dishonesty reveal a far more profound dimension of gross historic amnesia. Airing her crocodile tears to a gullible global audience over the plight of the Palestinians in Gaza – dismissing that it began with a massacre of Jews – she conveniently overlooked the history of what befell the Palestinians in Jordan at the hands of her husband’s father – King Hussein!

Remember the Black September massacre of the Palestinians by the Jordanian armed forces in 1972?

The viewers of CNN should have been reminded by Amanpour of this glaring historical fact. So should Queen Rania if she is unfamiliar with her own inconvenient history!

Quick rewind.  After the Six Day war in 1967, the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) and hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, mostly from the former Jordanian occupied West Bank, fled to Jordan. Refugee camps were set up. The fedayeen i.e. PLO fighters, conducted their international terrorism activities from Jordan. In 1970, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a splinter group of the PLO, hijacked three civilian aircraft to Dawson’s Field in Jordan. The aircraft were blown up and Jewish hostages were taken. The left wing of the PLO became emboldened calling for the overthrow of the Jordanian monarchy to create a Palestinian state within Jordan. There were assassination plots against King Hussein. The king saw these actions as a threat to the sovereignty of Jordan and took military action against fedayeen posts in the refugee camps. Some writers describe this conflict as a civil war.  In September 1970, the Jordanian armed forces launched full scale military attacks on Palestinian strongholds and the PLO was expelled. Many sought refuge in Lebanon. Palestinian fatalities including civilians are estimated to be between 4000 and 25,000 depending on the source. 

Another elephant in the room during this interview is the question why Jordan has refused to accept refugees from Gaza. This would be a natural and immediate humanitarian response from Jordan. Queen Rania was silent too on this issue preferring to soldier on blaming Israel’s “hardline leaders keeping their people in this perpetual state of fear of an existential threat that doesn’t exist…”

Doesn’t exist?

How can Her Highness say that following Hamas’s political bureau member Ghazi Hamad emphatically expressing to the world on 1 November 2023 in an interview with a Lebanese TV channel that the terror group will repeat the October 7 attack time and again until Israel is annihilated.

Did she not see and hear Hamad express the following:

“We must teach Israel a lesson and we will do that again and again. The Al-Aqsa Flood is just the first time, and there will be second, a third, a fourth.”

While Queen Rania chose to ignore this egregious declaration of genocide, she surely can’t escape the Hamas charter which seeks to establish an Islamic state in all of Israel.

The Queen may be forgiven for her ignorance or dishonesty, but her compliant interlocutor Amanpour cannot. She is a seasoned news veteran on a major news network and one would assume has some smidgen of journalistic ethics to place the real facts on record. Would that be expecting too much from CNN?  

In the words of Bob Dylan from the songA Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall –

“And I’ll tell it, and speak it, and think it, and breathe it

And reflect from the mountain so all souls can see it

And I’ll stand on the ocean until I start sinking

But I’ll know my song well before start singing”

We know our song well and we will never be silent or silenced by a world that turns a blind eye and a deaf ear to the injustices and lies against our people.

About the writer:

Born in Pretoria, Lawrence Nowosenetz obtained his BA at University of the Witwatersrand and LL.B at the University of South Africa. Admitted as an attorney and advocate in South Africa, he practiced at the Pretoria and Johannesburg Bar and worked as a human rights and labour lawyer at the Legal Resources Centre, a public interest law firm. Awarded a Fulbright Scholarship, Lawrence completed an internship in the USA and is presently a part-time Senior Commissioner at the Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) as well as a panelist at Tokiso Dispute Settlement – the largest private dispute resolution provider in South Africa. He has also served as an Acting Judge of the Hight Court, South Africa.

While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves.  LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).