Jew Oughta Know

Diving into the start of 2024: the ground war in Gaza, escalating conflict with Hezbollah, the Houthis attacking cargo ships in the Red Sea, and a return to Israeli domestic politics with a major ruling from the Supreme Court.

The tragic killing of three Israeli hostages by the IDF raises questions about the military’s conduct during this war. Is Israel adhering to the laws of war?

There are conversations no longer worth having because their answers have no meaningful impact. Is anti-Zionism antisemitism? Who actually hates Jews? Are Jews indigenous to Israel? Let’s stop debating these distractions.

Why is the relationship between Israel and the United Nations so bad? Historical events, the makeup of the UN, and its relentless condemnations of Israel explain why Israel no longer considers the global body a neutral actor.

The West Bank — what many Jews call Judea and Samaria — is another sector of this war that is boiling over with tension and violence. While Israeli forces arrest thousands of Hamas terrorists, fanatical Jewish settlers attack Palestinian civilians. What is going on and how did we get here?

After seven weeks of fighting, Hamas and Israel agreed to a deal to release some of the Israeli hostages, who have started returning home to great joy and relief. How can we understand this deal in context? What should we make of the role of Qatar as mediator? What does it tell us about Hamas? What are the dilemmas facing Israel going forward?

“Never Again” evokes the promise of no more genocide, as the world has learned the lessons of history and the Holocaust. But “Never Again” has a different connotation for the Jewish People — and helps us understand the decisions Israel is making in fighting this war against Hamas.

Hamas’ massacre unleashed a worldwide wave of hatred and vilification against Israel and the Jewish People, summed up in the noxious idea of “Palestine will be free from the river to the sea” — a call for the destruction of Israel. Leftist ideology, classic antisemitism, and Israel demonization all play a role in this stunning display of moral blindness.

Israel’s ground invasion of Gaza is underway. It is difficult, dangerous, and deadly fighting that has already claimed dozens of Israeli soldiers. The goal is to eliminate Hamas. But what about afterwards? Today we’ll look at five options for post-war Gaza.

In the constant struggle to keep up with what’s happening, how can we understand what we’re seeing on the news? The media ecosystem often accepts Hamas’ claims uncritically, while Israel’s are subjected to days of scrutiny and doubt. Skepticism and patience are our best tools to navigate the complexities here.