The people of Israel have been on an emotional roller coaster over the past few weeks with the release of hostages. Their families, who have been going between hope and despair for 16 months – demonstrating, advocating, and pressuring the Israeli government through any avenue they could, and meeting with leaders around the world to pressure Hamas – have finally managed to find some comfort with the release of their loved ones.
Happy New year,
We are delighted about the news for the release of the hostages still kept in the tunnels of Gaza hopefully starting next week.it is believed that several dozens are still alive and their release is being prioritised (although the release of all would have been the preferred option).
For the past few months we have witnessed dramatic changes in the geo political landscape. The Iranian axis has received serious blows, including the Hizbollah defeat in Lebanon; the destruction of Iranian air defence systems and other critical infrastructure , leaving their nuclear facilities and oil industry vulnerable, and most recently, the collapse of the Assad regime – a key ally of Iran and Hizbollah. The Houties in Yemen are the only force still showing signs of aggression with two long range missiles hitting central Israeli cities in the past week or two.
As Progressive Zionists, we know that supporting a pluralist and egalitarian Israel is more important than ever post-October 7, and also because of the continued attempts to undermine Israeli democracy in the name of “judicial reforms”.
ARZA needs your membership to make sure we can effectively represent the Progressive values of democracy, social justice, human rights, equality for all, and religious pluralism at the World Zionist Congress in the face of growing opposition. (more…)