Each day is bringing an escalation in the Middle East, as Saturday night was the eighth consecutive night of attacks from both the U.S. and Iran. While things are tense, Iran is making a point of attacking American bases in other Gulf countries, and consciously staying away from attacking Israel at this time. Israel has repeatedly said that even the smallest attack will prompt them to use the full force of all Israeli military on Iran, without any consideration of the U.S. or anyone else. As a result, Iran, despite the rhetoric, has avoided any of their rockets getting near Israel.
The general public does not know a lot of information about what Iran is or is not actually doing, nor what types of targets the U.S. is attacking every evening. But Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization accused the U.S. of attacking the “Darkhovin nuclear power plant under construction.” The power plant is apparently located in Khuzestan Province in the southwest of the country. It would seem that at least we are going after some nuclear sites, although it is incredibly important that we take out Pickaxe Mountain ASAP as it is the main site where weapons are being developed.
Thousands of people are marching today from Israel toward the Gaza Strip in the “March of the Thousands,” calling for the immediate re-establishment of the settlements of Nissanit, Dugit, and Eli Sinai. Having just returned from Israel, I can tell you that there are a lot of people who think we never should have left Gaza in 2005, and that Israel should be fully controlling the Strip.
This past week, I taped today’s podcast of The Rabbi’s Table from Israel. Jennifer Horn and I discussed the trip I had been on, as well as what is really happening on the ground in Israel. I hope you will listen to it, share it, and subscribe to these weekly shows.
May we all go from strength to greater strength, and may we all be blessed to go home to Israel for a visit in this coming year.
Chazak u’Baruch
Rabbi Michael Barclay
July 19, 2026
5th of Av, 5786
For the 10th consecutive night, there were attacks by the U.S. and Iran; the Iranians claimed that they attacked U.S. bases in Jordan, Kuwait, and Bahrain, as well as Amazon’s central data infrastructure in Bahrain. CENTCOM released a statement that “American forces struck Iranian military command centers, naval capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and air defense systems to degrade Iran’s ability to continue attacking commercial vessels flowing through the Strait of Hormuz.”
After over a 10-day series of attacks, the U.S. renewed its travel warning for its citizens worldwide. According to the statement, “Due to increasing tensions in the Middle East, the security environment remains complex, with potential for unforeseen escalation.” This is not just for the Middle East, as Iran has vowed to go after Americans and Israelis anywhere in the world.
In a typically inappropriate move, the American Federation of Teachers approved resolutions at its national convention accusing Israel of causing the teachers’ salary crisis in Palestinian Authority territories. (Huh? Palestinian teachers’ crisis?) One of the resolutions accused Israel of violating International Labour Organization procedures, claiming that withholding Palestinian tax revenues harms the salaries of fifty thousand teachers.
If this is the belief of schoolteachers, if they buy into the media about Israel being genocidal, is it any wonder that younger generations are getting progressively more antisemitic?
We teach l’dor v’dor, “from generation to generation,” as an understanding that how our children are educated will determine the future of a society. The anti-Semites have been teaching more and more propaganda, and it is imperative that every educated person of faith step up and stop local school systems from perpetuating the fallacies that are being promoted. We must get our children to Israel via the Birthright or similar programs so that they see for themselves the beauty and peaceful intentions of Israelis. And we must all get involved in combating the antisemitism being taught in our schools every time we hear about it from children.
A lasting peace will only happen when this Jew-hating indoctrination (it is also an indoctrination against all people of faith) is stopped, and it will only be stopped when each of us has the courage to fight against these anti-Israel “activists” every time we hear about their actions. Over the last year, I have gotten involved in this propaganda at over a dozen schools, including Westlake High School. But it is not the responsibility of only Rabbis to take on this fight. Rather, it is every person’s obligation to get involved and protect our children.
Two thousand years ago, Hillel said, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?” We must each stand up against the wave of Jew-hatred that our children are learning; the time is now.
May we all have the courage to defend the next generation from indoctrination. And in so doing, make a real contribution to the future, to achieving a lasting peace and safety for our children, and to eliminating the hate of antisemitism.
Chazak u’Baruch
Rabbi Michael Barclay
July 21, 2026
7th of Av, 5786
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