Category: News Letter

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 19 February 2026

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

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Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF –16–19 February 2026
(Click on the blue title)



TO ALL OUR MUSLIM READERS




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

CRYING FOR THE BELOVED COUNTRY. AGAIN

Diplomatic ties hit all-time low between Jerusalem and Pretoria
By Rolene Marks

Sacking Seidman. It defies belief that in a country beset with so many challenges, its government would rather place skewered ideological allegiances above the well-being of its citizens.

CRYING FOR THE BELOVED COUNTRY. AGAIN
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

‘COURTING’ ANTISEMITISM – THE ROEDEAN HIGH SCHOOL AND KING DAVID SAGA

A tennis match that did not take place between two girls’ schools in Johannesburg exposes attitudes and antipathy towards Jews.
By Marika Sboros

Tennis Troubles. Once considered a “finishing school” for the country’s future leaders, Roedean’s reputation may well be “finished”  having become mired in accusations of antisemitism for failing to honour a scheduled tennis match against a Jewish girl’s school.

‘COURTING’ ANTISEMITISM – THE ROEDEAN HIGH SCHOOL AND KING DAVID SAGA
(Click on the blue title)



(3)

BONDI SHOWED WHAT HAPPENS WHEN UNTRUTHS GO UNCHALLENGED

A mass murder of Jews on a public beach did not “just happen” –  When lies reign, death ultimately follows.
By  Allan Joffe

Bondi Beach Massacre. Left behind was more than people’s personal belongings but the end of a nation’s innocence. The dangers that lurk in the sea has been superseded by the danger that lurks on the sand.

BONDI SHOWED WHAT HAPPENS WHEN UNTRUTHS GO UNCHALLENGED
(Click on the blue title)



(4)

THE SUBVERSIVE HATERS

Roedean no-show at scheduled tennis match against Jewish Day School exposes deafening silence in mainstream South African society to antisemitism.
By Craig Snoyman

Sounds of Silence. The writer notes that while the Gauteng Department of Education is customarily quick to respond to racist WhatsApp messaging from white pupils, it was silent with no statement or
condemnation of Roedean’s antisemitic conduct towards King David School.

THE SUBVERSIVE HATERS
(Click on the blue title)




LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com





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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 15 February 2026

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

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X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF –09–12 February 2026
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land’s disturbing ‘PhotoPick’ of the Week

Threatening Jews at Opera House, mass murdering Jews at a beach, violently protesting against the visiting president of the Jewish state, Australia’s message to the Jewish world is CHILLINGLY clear!

The Worst of Oz. Protests in Sydney turned violent as demonstrators protest against Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s state visit to Australia in the wake of December’s Bondi Beach mass shooting during a Hanukkah celebration. (Photo: AFP, Reuters).



ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

HOME AT LAST

In the final chapter of a national tragedy, some 700 personnel participated – including roughly 400 combat soldiers –  in ‘Operation Brave Heart’ –  bringing home the last hostage from Gaza.
By Jonathan Feldstein

Homeward Bound. Retrieving Israel’s last hostage was a masterpiece of military precision and moral resolve.  The writer – who interviewed Colonel Golan Vach who led the mission – offers insights into the operation and its meaning for Israel.

HOME AT LAST
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

SEIDMAN’S EXPULSION: THE COMEDY AND THE DARKER SIDE

South Africa’s expulsion of Israel’s Chargé D’Affaires is looking like absolutely fabulous fodder for comedians.
By Marika Sboros

Hardly Clean Hands!Duplicitous and devious, South Africa’s President Ramaphosa takes extreme and
unwarranted action against Israel’s head diplomat in Pretoria for alleged transgressions, while the truth lies entirely elsewhere!

SEIDMAN’S EXPULSION: THE COMEDY AND THE DARKER SIDE
(Click on the blue title)



(3)

COULD WE GO FROM GAZA’S LAST HOSTAGE TO COEXISTENCE?

Tensions between Muslims and Jews has not always defined their relationship. Can shared roots and cultural commonalities provide a favorable way forward?
By Steven Gruzd

Seeking Common Ground. With the current climate of animosity, can the long complex  relationship between Judaism and Islam which began in the 7th century,  offer instructive insights relevant for today?

COULD WE GO FROM GAZA’S LAST HOSTAGE TO COEXISTENCE?
(Click on the blue title)



LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com






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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 08 February 2026

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
Please visit/ join/follow our social media platforms:

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/LotLSite/

X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF –02–05 February 2026
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land’s ‘PhotoPick’ of the Week

SUSPENSE SAGA

People in the region WATCH, WAITand WONDER what may unfold and how it may impact their lives!

To Strike or not to Strike. The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, accompanied by two military supply ships and two U.S. Coast Guard cutters, sail towards Iran in the Arabian Sea as aircraft from Carrier Air Wing 9 fly overhead. (Photo: CENTCOM)




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

BRAVE HEART

A fulfillment of a sacred vow – to bring them all home
By Rolene Marks

Lion of Judah.  With a broken shoulder, 24-yer-old Ran Gvili went into battle and fought
like a lion. “First in, last out,” in the words of his bereaved mother, Ran symbolizes
 the courage and self-sacrifice of Israel’s finest young people.

BRAVE HEART
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

THE WORLD’S MOST EXCEPTIONAL PEOPLE

The upside-down world that we now live in.
By Neville Berman

Palestinian Puzzle. While ‘Indigenous Peoples’ from the Kurds and the Rohingya to the Tibetans, Uyghurs
and Yazidis struggle for their cause of sovereign rights to globally resonate, not so for the Palestinians.
Has it less to do with being Palestinian and more to do with their adversary being a ‘Jewish’ state?

THE WORLD’S MOST EXCEPTIONAL PEOPLE
(Click on the blue title)



(3)

CYPRUS, ISRAEL’S CLOSEST FARAWAY PLACE

Not only an attraction for Israel travelers, this captivating Mediterranean gem is attracting Israelis who are contributing to the Island and its tourism industry.
By Motti Verses

Beauty Spot. The writer marveling at the beauty where legend has it that Aphrodite, the goddess of love
and beauty was born. For centuries, people have traveled here to sweep their loved one off their feet.
More and more Israeli tourists are showing that are being swept off their feet by Cyprus.

CYPRUS, ISRAEL’S CLOSEST FARAWAY PLACE
(Click on the blue title)



(4)

THE ARAB VOICE – FEBRUARY 2026

Perspectives and insights from writers in the Arab media

While there is much skepticism of Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ – particularly across Western Europe – many
in the Arab media are more approving, viewing it as a last ‘shot’ at peace for the region.
Whether expectation is a consequence of exasperation, time will tell.

THE ARAB VOICE – FEBRUARY 2026
(Click on the blue title)




LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com






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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 01 February 2026

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
Please visit/ join/follow our social media platforms:

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/LotLSite/

X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF –26–29 January 2026
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land’s Image Pick of the Week

HOME AT LAST

First in, last out, Ran Gvili after 843 days in Gaza is finally home.

Much of the world failed to understand WHY Israel fights for the return of deceased hostage as much for the living.
The explanation lies in who we are and why we will always be.
Am Yisrael Chai.




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

WORD OUT ON THE STREET

From a street in Minneapolis to the streets of Tehran, what does media focus reveal about global morality and hypocrisy?
By David E. Kaplan

Streets Apart. The killing on a street in the state of Minnesota by a federal law enforcement official – as chilling
and traumatic as it is to victim, family and nation – shades in media-magnitude to the wholesale slaughter
of thousands on the streets in Iran. Why the disturbing absence of global media interest?

WORD OUT ON THE STREET
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

TIME FOR IRAN’S NUREMBERG TRIALS

Nazi Germany existed for less than a generation. Islamic republic for nearly half a century. The list of crimes and people to be tried will be endless. That alone makes this urgent.
By Marziyeh Amirizadeh – a former Iranian death row inmate

Tehran’s Tormentors. In order not to forget the faces of their interrogators in Tehran’s infamous prison so that they
can someday be brough to justice, the writer and her cell mate, Maryam, sketched “Rasti” and “Haghighat”.  
How long before these two find themselves in a cell – not as interrogators but inmates?

TIME FOR IRAN’S NUREMBERG TRIALS
(Click on the blue title)



(3)

WHY WE ARE “PROTESTANT” ZIONISTS

Israel’s last major allies are several hundred million Protestant Zionists but the Islamist world – with compliant local church support – is desperate to break this alliance.
By John Enarson

Brick Wall. Behind the veneer of the walls of the Old City, the writer (above) exposes what’s behind Jerusalem’s
Catholic church and its allied denominations with their January 19, startling  statement  condemning
Christian support for Israel as a “damaging ideology”. Damaging to who?

WHY WE ARE “PROTESTANT” ZIONISTS
(Click on the blue title)



LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com








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).


Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 25 January 2026

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
Please visit/ join/follow our social media platforms:

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/LotLSite/

X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF –19–22 January 2026
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land’s PhotoPick of the Week

“SOUNDS OF SILENCE”

This photo is an indictment as much against the West as against Iran
Appealing for the support that characterized the streets and colleges of the West since October 2023, Iranians – cut off from communicating – are met with a deafening “Sounds of Silence”.

The desert saying, “The dog barks but the caravan moves on,” reflects Western indifference while Iranian
protestors are slaughtered, hospitals struggle to treat the injured, women wail at cemeteries
overwhelmed by the dead, and morgues fill with bags holding unidentified bodies.
(Photo: Kim Kyung/Reuters)




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

BATTLEGROUNDS FOR RECONCILIATION

The Pivotal Role of HBCUs in combating antisemitism in America’s Black Community.
By Jonathan Feldstein

Reviving Reconciliation. While Martin Luther King Jr. – seen here with Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel –
expressed the Jewish community “more than any other ethnic group” stood by the Black community, 
historical shifts, cultural influences, and educational institutions have fueled division. 
Can this process be reversed?

BATTLEGROUNDS FOR RECONCILIATION
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

GOODBYE KHAMENEI, HELLO ABRAHAM ACCORDS

How regime change in Iran can lead to a more peaceful and prosperous Middle East.
By Neville Berman

To Be or Not to Be. Its not just a rhetorical question but the future of millions of Iranians and people in the
region and around the world wait in anticipation for the dawn of a new era of peace and prosperity.

GOODBYE KHAMENEI, HELLO ABRAHAM ACCORDS
(Click on the blue title)



(3)

MAN ON THE RUN

From running marathons to running a top travel agency, Allan Wolman could also not get faster enough to Israel in 1967 to volunteer during the Six Day War.
A tribute by David E. Kaplan

True to his Word. A frequent contributor to Lay of the Land, we pay tribute to this former South African who in his own way, fought for Israel both in word and in deed.

MAN ON THE RUN
(Click on the blue title)



LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com






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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 18 January 2026

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
Please visit/ join/follow our social media platforms:

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/LotLSite/

X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF –12–15 January 2026
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land’s Photo Pick of the Week

OVER THE RAINBOW

Hula Nature Reserve in northern Israel, January 13, 2026.(Photo: Ayal Margolin/Flash90)

Under a Dark Cloud. In a week that people in the region were bracing for war, it was a welcome sight to be greeted in the morning media by nature’s symbol of Hope, New Beginnings, Peace and Divine Promise.



ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

TO THOSE WHO HAVE TAKEN TO STAGE, SCREEN AND PETITION – FACTS MATTER

An Open Letter to the Entertainment Industry.
By Rolene Marks

Face the Facts. The writer confronts with FACTS those voices from “stage, screen and the recording arts” who advocate for Black Lives Matter,  #MeToo movement, gender equality and other Human Rights groups but are SILENT when it comes to Israelis and Jews.

TO THOSE WHO HAVE TAKEN TO STAGE, SCREEN AND PETITION – FACTS MATTER
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

OUT OF THIS WORLD

A tribute to Israeli entrepreneur, innovator, philanthropist and visionary Morris Kahn (1930-2026) who sought frontiers below and beyond.
By David E. Kaplan

Feisty Frontiersman.  From manufacturing bicycles to telecommunication software powerhouse, to creating unique tourist underwater observatories beneath the world’s oceans, to supporting Israel’s entry into the Space Age, Morris Kahn has been a true trailblazer.

OUT OF THIS WORLD
(Click on the blue title)



(3)

THE INCOMPATIBILITY OF JUDAISM AND ANTIZIONISM

A Jew opposing Jewish statehood displays today historical illiteracy or suicidal self-destructiveness.
By Grant Gochin

Defining the Difference. Far from the common “colonial” slur, Zionism at its most basic core, explains the writer “…means to stop murdering Jews, while antizionism means to continue to murder Jews.” Do Jews have to again stand in line for a ‘shower’ to understand the distinction?

THE INCOMPATIBILITY OF JUDAISM AND ANTIZONISM
(Click on the blue title)



(4)

IS HALTING EXECUTIONS IN IRAN GOOD ENOUGH?
Pulling back from military intervention following bellicose threats, is Trump failing – like Carter, Obama and Biden preceding him – the long-suffering people of Iran?
By Jonathan Feldstein

Suppressing the Street. A brutal theocratic dictatorship, Iran has devolved into a failed state unable to provide water and electricity and its currency devalued to record lows, more than one million rials per dollar. The message from the street is for no more “deals” but regime change?

IS HALTING EXECUTIONS IN IRAN GOOD ENOUGH?
(Click on the blue title)


LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com






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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 11 January 2026

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
Please visit/ join/follow our social media platforms:

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/LotLSite/

X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF – 05–08 January 2026
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land’s Photo Pick of the Week

REVOLUTIONARY ROAD

Streets across Iran erupt in public anger against a dictatorial theocratic regime. Lay of the Land notes a world uninterested and most the international news networks either ignoring the story or minimizing coverage. Behind the façade of ‘Human Rights” stands a world exposed for its hypocrisy.




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

PROTESTS IN TEHRAN TODAY BRING HOPES FOR IRANIANS TOMORROW

If President Trump likes to speak of ”making deal”, the best deals are to be made after the Islamic regime falls.
By Marziyeh Amirizadeh

State vs Street. Iranians are risking their lives on the street to take on the oppression of their state. The writer who was once a prisoner in Teheran under a death sentence, acknowledges the support of the US and Israel and pleads:  “Where are all the others?”

PROTESTS IN TEHRAN TODAY BRING HOPES FOR IRANIANS TOMORROW
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

THE SOMALILAND LITMUS TEST

Refusal to recognize Somaliland  exposes global hypocrisy and rewards terror.
By Grant Gochin

Rousing Recognition. When the Israeli flag is sighted on the streets of the Muslim world, it is often being set alight or trampled underfoot. Yet in recent days the Star of David has been plastered on buildings and brandished by jubilant crowds in the capital of Somaliland. 

THE SOMALILAND LITMUS TEST
(Click on the blue title)



(3)

LIFE AFTER LOSS

Rabbi Leo Dee’s experience and counsel on how to honour personal tragedy without being imprisoned by it.
By Jonathan Feldstein

Regret to Response. Following the murder of his wife and two daughters, Rabbi Leo Dee, a former UK private equity professional was plagued by the “What if?” questions of “What if you had left London later?” or had “…never left at all?” His journey of traversing tragedy necessitated a rephrasing of the questions.

LIFE AFTER LOSS
(Click on the blue title)



LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com






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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 24 December 2025

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
Please visit/ join/follow our social media platforms:

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/LotLSite/

X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF – 22–24 December 2025
(Click on the blue title)



Lay of the Land wishes its readers around the world

A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND
A HAPPY NEW YEAR

May all the peoples of the world know peace in 2026
and be safe from harm’s way.

Lay of the Land will take festive leave over the New Year
and return in mid-January 2026




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

WHAT DID ANTI-ZIONISTS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT SYDNEY BESIDES PRAISE FOR EL-AHMED? NOT MUCH.

Those who see ‘safety through solidarity’ as the ‘lesson’ of the terror attack have internalized what classical Zionist thinkers called an ‘exile mindset’ — a near-religious sanctification of Jewish powerlessness.
By Zev Dever

Strange Syndrome. While el-Ahmed is a hero treasured by all, why is it that many progressive Jews are relieved to have this Muslim man as a counterexample to the terrorists who carried out the massacre?

WHAT DID ANTI-ZIONISTS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT SYDNEY BESIDES PRAISE FOR EL-AHMED? NOT MUCH.
(Click on the blue title)



(2)

DIASPORA JEWS ARE NO LONGER FREE

Washington DC, Colorado, Manchester, Bondi. Where next?
By Sir Mick Davis

Massacre in the Making. From calls to murder Jews outside Sydney’s iconic Opera House
to murdering Jews on Sydney’s iconic Bondi Beach only kilometers away.
Why the Surprise?

DIASPORA JEWS ARE NO LONGER FREE
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(3)

BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS

“Never Again” was an empty promise
By Andrew Fox

Writing was on the Railing. Only two weeks before the Bondi Beach Chanukkah massacre,
beachgoers were met with antisemitic slogans including “Fuck the IDF” and “Free Palestine” sprayed on the beachfront’s pavilion palisade.

BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS
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(4)

BONDI BEACH LESSON: ANTI-ZIONISM IS A MODERN MUTATION OF ANTISEMETISM

A beach massacre displays bloodedly the linkage between antizionism and the new antisemitism
By Marika Sboros

Pondering in her Palm. At the Bondi memorial site, a woman sits, stares and asks
herself: “What happened, why did it happen, and where it will all lead?”

BONDI BEACH LESSON: ANTI-ZIONISM IS A MODERN MUTATION OF ANTISEMETISM
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LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com






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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 21 December 2025

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
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Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF – 15–18 December 2025
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Lay of the Land’s Photo-Pick of the Week

“JEWISH LIVES MATTER”

From a music festival in Israel to a festive candle lighting on a beach in Australia, Jews across the world are being mass murdered in broad daylight!

A Star of David is seen at a makeshift memorial to the victims of the Bondi terror attack. (Photo: Mick Tsikas/EPA)




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

ARAB MEDIA: DESPERATELY SEEKING SADAT!

An article that disappointed less from what it said and more from what it did not say.
By David E. Kaplan

Cause of Death. Egyptian president, Anwar Sadat’s death was attributed to “violent nervous shock and internal bleeding in the chest cavity, where the left lung and major blood vessels below it were torn.” In truth, the actual cause of death was that he outreached to the Jewish state to make peace!

ARAB MEDIA: DESPERATELY SEEKING SADAT!
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(2)

APPEASEMENT IS BACK

How Australian government policies led to the disaster on Bondi Beach.
By Neville Berman

Devious Descriptions. Two radicalized Islamic terrorists murder 15 innocent Jewish civilians and wound 40 others on Bondi Beach and are described in the media as “antisemites”, “shooters”, “gunmen”, and “offenders”. Why avoid defining them what they are – “Muslim Terrorists” or “Militant Islamists”?

APPEASEMENT IS BACK
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(3)

TIME TO OUTLAW EXTREMIST ISLAM

It’s not permissive gun laws but unchecked cascading ideological hate that is killing Jews.
By Jonathan Feldstein

Father and Son. Going fishing or off to watch a cricket or rugby match is what you would consider standard fare for a typical Australian father and son to do together. Not so for Sydney father Sajid Akram and his son Neveed! Their outing the beach meant shooting at a Jewish gathering on the sand.

TIME TO OUTLAW EXTREMIST ISLAM
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(4)

LAST ONE OUT TURNS OFF THE DARKNESS

First to race into the inferno of October 7, Ran Gvili is now the last.
By Forest Rain Marcia

Waiting for Ran. His mother says Ran “always made sure everyone else was ok before thinking of himself. It is like him to be last, to make sure everyone else goes first.” Such is the nature of Ran and his fellow warriors. While the world maligns Israel, the writer asserts, “Hollywood has nothing on us. Our heroes are real.”

LAST ONE OUT TURNS OFF THE DARKNESS
(Click on the blue title)



LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com





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).

Lay of the Land Weekly Newsletter- 14 December 2025

Unveiling the contours and contrasts of an ever-changing Middle East landscape Reliable reportage and insightful commentary on the Middle East by seasoned journalists from the region and beyond.

Home

Like this content? Please share and tweet it to your friends and followers.

To subscribe via email please send a mail noting your request to: layotland@gmail.com 
Please visit/ join/follow our social media platforms:

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/LotLSite/

X (Twitter): Lay Of The Land – @layoftheland5

Also available on YouTube @The Israel Brief  – Simply click on the red subscribe button to receive alerts when a new report is posted.



What’s happening in Israel today? See from every Monday – Thursday LOTL’s The Israel Brief broadcasts and on our Facebook page and YouTube by seasoned TV & radio broadcaster, Rolene Marks familiar to Chai FM listeners in South Africa and millions of American listeners to the News/Talk/Sports radio station WINA, broadcasting out of Virginia, USA.

THE ISRAEL BRIEF – 08–11 December 2025
(Click on the blue title)



ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Festivity of Light

In a world full of Darkness

It is with great sadness that Lay of the Land wishes its Jewish readers a ‘Happy’ Hanukkah in the light of the mass terror attack on the Jewish community’s festive gathering for Hanukkah on Bondi Beach, Australia. From the stabbing attack in the UK at a Synagogue in Manchester on Yom Kippur to today’s mass shooting at a Hanukkah lighting of the first candle in Sydney, Australia, Jews today are threatened, hounded and murdered. The message of Hanukkah – resistance and resilience against insurmountable odds – resonates ever so much more today. Our thoughts are with all the families directly affected and the Jewish community of Australia.




ARTICLES

Please note there is a facility to comment beneath each article should you wish to express an opinion on the subject addressed.

(1)

THE GREAT PRETENDER

Behind the polished façade, the “gifts” of Gift of the Givers has a price tag.
By Allan Wolman

Charitable Charlatan. While engineering that his Islamic charity – ‘Gift of the Givers’ – is rewarded with generous media coverage of their presence at disaster scenes across the world, what are the real aims behind the façade of this increasingly powerful and influential political puppeteer?

THE GREAT PRETENDER
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(2)

WHAT LIES BEHIND UCT’S BATTLEFIELD AGAINST ‘PESKY’ JEWS?

No surprise university’s recent Convocation election has been described as“Kristallnacht 2025”!
By Marika Sboros

Cry the Beloved Campus. No surprise UCT’s recent Convocation election became “a battleground with the hallmarks of a
hijacking, purge, even a ‘pogrom’ against Jews.”  A core campaign slogan had nothing to do with academia and
all to do with ensuring that UCT is “never a home for Zionists”. “Zionist” today is codeword for “Jew”.

WHAT LIES BEHIND UCT’S BATTLEFIELD AGAINST ‘PESKY’ JEWS?
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(3)

BETWEEN  AUSCHWITZ AND BE’ERI: COMMUNITIES CAUGHT BETWEEN MEMORY AND RENEWAL

How do traumatized kibbutzniks build a new life amongst the rubble  and remnants of personal horror?
By Gadi Ezra

From ‘Streets’ to ‘Dead Ends’. With rows of kibbutz houses destroyed as well as the lives of its former occupants, are
these horrific remnants to remain as stark memorials like Auschwitz or should they be respectfully removed to make way for rebirth and renewal? Tough decisions lie ahead!

BETWEEN  AUSCHWITZ AND BE’ERI: COMMUNITIES CAUGHT BETWEEN MEMORY AND RENEWAL
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(4)

THE ISRAELI SIDE OF THE STORY NEEDS TO BE HEARD

Fear that independent scrutiny will expose false narratives, Israel’s opponents discourage “See for Yourself” visits to the Jewish state.
By Kenneth Kgwadi

He Came, He Saw, He was Vilified.The recent visit to Israel by a cousin of Nelson Mandela,  King Dalindyebo of the
AbaThembu nation, created a storm of protest on his return to South Africa?  Why?
What are Israel’s opponents in south Africa afraid of – the TRUTH?

THE ISRAELI SIDE OF THE STORY NEEDS TO BE HEARD
(Click on the blue title)




LOTL Cofounders David E. Kaplan (Editor), Rolene Marks and Yair Chelouche

To unsubscribe, please reply to layotland@gmail.com





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).