AUGUST IS a festival month in Jerusalem in both spiritual and secular events, usually coinciding in part with the Hebrew calendar month of Elul – a month of introspection, repentance, goodwill, asking for and giving forgiveness during the period leading up to the High Holy Days.
Elul is a Hebrew acronym that translates to I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine. As for August, the event that arguably attracts the largest number of people from throughout the city’s demographic mosaic is the Hutzot Hayotzer International Arts and Crafts Fair, with a huge variety of culinary delights and top-line entertainment.
There will be four categories of food in different areas, with meat choices in one, dairy in another, Asian in a third, and desserts in a fourth.
The fair was set to officially open well before sunset on Thursday, July 30, while it is still Tu B’Av, the festival of love. At the opening, there was a musical tribute to Yehonatan Geffen and Matti Caspi; later in the evening, Ishay Ribo took the stage, hosted by Amit Dadon. On Sunday, the entertainment line-up will feature Idan Raichel. In addition to nightly live performances, there will also be DJs strategically deployed.
Because this is the 50th anniversary fair, organizers have pulled out all the stops to make it worthy of the title jubilee.
Wide range of activities to commemorate Rabbi Kook
EVERY YEAR on Elul 3 – this year Aug. 16 – members of the national-religious camp, with children in tow, flock to the Jerusalem International Convention Center to pay tribute to Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak Kook – the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi during the British Mandate.
There is a wide range of activities for the children and a slew of lectures by rabbis and sometimes a rabbi’s wife about different aspects of Rabbi Kook’s life and character. In addition to the large number of speakers, there will also be entertainers headed by popular singer Avraham Fried.
Demonstrations continue in Jerusalem
NO PLACE in Jerusalem is safe from demonstrators. Last Saturday night, residents of Brenner Street, adjacent to Balfour Road, had their peace of mind disrupted by a very noisy anti-government demonstration in which participants blew horns and whistles and shone LED lights while recording the demonstration on video.
Police did nothing to stop them. Some demonstrators carried placards with negative slogans aimed against Benjamin Netanyahu, who has not lived in the prime minister’s residence for the past five years. No government minister or MK lives on these streets, so there is absolutely no justification for holding a large, loud demonstration in a quiet residential area. Residents have written a letter of complaint to Mayor Moshe Lion, council members, the chief rabbis, and President Isaac Herzog.
In case Brenner Street residents are unaware, President Herzog has his own problems with noisy demonstrators. If he can’t have them removed from across the road from his residence, there’s not much he can do for the residents of Brenner Street. As for the people at City Hall, we’ve had more than enough evidence about how little attention they pay to the complaints of their constituents. The chief rabbis will pray for the peace of Jerusalem, but they won’t get involved. It’s not their province.
Palestinian residents of Jerusalem continue to struggle
IF JEWISH residents of Jerusalem have it tough, Palestinian residents have it tougher, especially when traveling abroad. Because they do not have citizenship, they have to carry two sets of documents, one from Israel and one from Jordan, depending on their destination country. Anyone who is stateless is more vulnerable than anyone who has citizenship of any country.
The British newspaper The Guardian ran a story about the Abdallah family of East Jerusalem. Parents Therese and Ghassen are well-educated Palestinians who have been to the UK several times to attend academic conferences and encountered no difficulties in getting a visa. This time they were planning to spend time with their son Karim, who has been living in London since 2019. They were subsequently going to Ireland for a family wedding.
Therese Abdallah is a retired English teacher. Her husband is a psychologist. He received his visa with no problems along the way. But when it came to her, the British Home Office denied her application on the grounds that there was a suspicion that she would try to remain in Britain.
Therese tried to explain she was a multi-generation Jerusalemite with a home there, that most of her family and friends live in Jerusalem, and that she would not want to live anywhere else. Moreover, if she stayed away too long, she might not be allowed to return.
Her explanation was not accepted. The reunion with her son was ruined, and worse still, she was told that she could not appeal the decision. It’s not the bureaucracy – it’s the heartless and bigoted bureaucrat.
Lawyer argues first case in Jerusalem Supreme Court
JERUSALEM-BASED entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and founder of OurCrowd Jonathan Medved has a lawyer son, Momo, who recently argued his first case in the Supreme Court. The proud father posted a photo of Momo alongside Chief Justice Yitzhak Amit.
The post prompted several congratulatory and admiring reactions – all fairly brief except for one. Why is it that some people are unable to express a compliment without dripping acid?
In this case, the congratulatory sentence was followed by the comment, “Please note that Amit is not recognized by the government as the president of the court. The system of judicial selection and activist judicial overreach is inconsistent with a successful system like the US Supreme Court…”
The Medved family knew all that. There was really no point in dripping the acid.
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