Two years ago, Liz Hirsh Naftali was working in real estate, organizing for the Democratic party, and enjoying life as a mom and auntie. Then, she awoke in Tel Aviv one day, and her world had been ripped apart: her family killed, her 3-year-old niece kidnapped in the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Abigail was eventually returned, but Liz has kept working to free the others. Now, two years into the conflict, 48 hostages remain, only 20 or so believed to be alive, and Gaza is in full-blown humanitarian crisis. Liz has crossed the aisle and the world telling her family's story to help bring an end to the conflict. Her book, Saving Abigail, and her podcast The Capitol Coffee Connection, are both part of her mission to bring people together.
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Simchat Torah: the yearly celebration of finishing reading the Torah, and starting over again.
United Hatzalah is a community-based, volunteer emergency medical service in Israel.
Kfar Aza: one of the communities hit hardest in the October 7 attacks, along with Be'eri and Nir Oz. Recently, they've begun rebuilding.
The "ceasefire before October 7" claim: while there was some cessation of hostilities between powers at the time, violence against Palestinians in the West Bank in particular, and attacks on Israelis by Palestinian Islamic Jihad and rocket attacks from Gaza had occurred as early as January. What is clear, however, is the October 7 attacks were meticulously planned and aimed at provoking a larger conflict, weakening Israel's diplomatic ties and destabilizing talks with Saudi Arabia. For a deeper understanding, see here, and here, and one of the best sources for background on Hamas, and most things Middle East, in my opinion, the Conflicted podcast.
A survey cited in NPR reporting in July said 80% of Israelis support ending the war in Gaza, but a more recent poll cites 66%. Protests against the war in Israel are widespread, and families and friends of
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