Gordis: This film, released a year ago enables us to revisit the events of October 7, to remind ourselves of the depth of our collective loss

Posted on October 19, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

ISRAEL FROM THE INSIDE
October 7: Bearing Witness to the Massacre
Daniel Gordis
October 6, 2026

To listen to Israeli radio this week is to subject oneself to a unique kind of pain — recordings of final phone calls between young people and their parents, recollections of last hugs from widows whose husbands went off to war but did not come back, reflections on homes lost, dreams shattered — and hope still emerging. If one doesn’t live in Israel or speak Hebrew, those radio broadcasts, especially on Reshet Bet, aren’t accessible. How, then, can we create time this week to devote ourselves to the preservation of the memories in which Israel is mired? October 7: Bearing Witness to the Massacre was officially released on digital and streaming platforms on October 3, 2025. It became available for digital rental and purchase across major streaming platforms, including Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, and YouTube…Renting the movie is one way to honor the victims and the memories this nation will carry for as long as any of us will live. READ MORE

ArchitectGuy recently screened this film at a local church. It’s very well-structured and provocative, well worth your time to view. Here’s the trailer. One reviewer: “I ask everyone who has the mental and emotional capacity, please watch this. Please.”

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Pro-Israel Democrats may blame Netanyahu for their party’s drift from Israel, but Jonathan Tobin argues the responsibility is closer to home: They enabled Obama’s “daylight,” tolerated the Squad’s Israel-bashing and now accommodate candidates like El-Sayed to appease the left.

Posted on October 19, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

JNS
The Democrats have abandoned Israel, not just Netanyahu
Jonathan S. Tobin
October 14, 2026

…With El-Sayed still locked in a close race against Republican Mike Rogers, Democrats just rolled out their version of political royalty to help him: former President Barack Obama. El-Sayed’s obsessive attacks on Israel and its Jewish supporters, as well as demonizing the AIPAC lobby as part of a plot to capture America for a foreign power, haven’t played as well among African-Americans as they do among college-educated liberal whites. And so, Obama campaigned with El-Sayed this week to help shore up that key Democratic constituency for him. Obama’s intervention on behalf of an openly antisemitic candidate caused little surprise. But it does bring to mind when the breach between Israel and the Democratic Party became a serious problem. Netanyahu’s domestic political foes, as well as American liberals like [Josh] Shapiro, have argued for years that it was the prime minister who blew up bipartisan support for Israel.They say it can be primarily traced to the eight years when Obama and Netanyahu were locked in a long-running duel of clashing personalities and policies when the two were leading their respective countries. READ MORE

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What happens when Hamas refuses to surrender its weapons and accept the authority of a single Palestinian government?

Posted on October 18, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

GATESTONE
The Palestinian Authority’s Dangerous Pursuit of Unity with Hamas
Khaled Abu Toameh
October 19, 2026

More than three years after the October 7 massacre, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and his ruling Fatah faction are still pursuing reconciliation with Hamas, the Iran-backed terrorist group that led the assault on Israel. Instead of making Hamas’s disarmament and the dismantling of its military infrastructure prerequisites for Palestinian political unity, Fatah officials are traveling to Cairo to negotiate ways of incorporating the terrorist group into a unified Palestinian political system. The latest round of talks, sponsored by Egypt, once again raises a fundamental question: Why is Fatah treating Hamas as a legitimate political partner before the group has demonstrated a willingness to abandon terrorism, surrender its weapons, and relinquish its independent military forces? The question is particularly urgent as the international community seeks to establish a different future for the Gaza Strip, one that would prevent Hamas from restoring its military capabilities and ensure that the territory is no longer controlled by an armed organization. READ MORE

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Last call for this event: StandWithUs Midwest Annual Gala on Sunday, November 1, 2026

Posted on October 18, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

StandWithUs Midwest Gala 2026

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Iran does not want to escalate tensions ahead of Israel’s elections, and Trump does not want an escalation ahead of the US midterms. Yet one thing is clear: Something dramatic is unfolding between Washington and Jerusalem.

Posted on October 15, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

ISRAEL HAYOM (by agreement with JNS)
Even before the elections? Growing signs of an impending strike on Iran
Amit Segal
October 15, 2026

Iran does not want to escalate tensions ahead of Israel’s elections, and Trump does not want an escalation ahead of the US midterms. Yet one thing is clear: Something dramatic is unfolding between Washington and Jerusalem…What can be done in two months that would change the picture? And if the goal is to get ahead of the hostile Congress, is it worth it for Trump, against all odds and analyses, to open a campaign even before then?…The 26th Knesset will be marked by a human statistic that probably has no parallel in world history: one in every ten Knesset members will come from a family bereaved in the last war. Gadi Eisenkot, possibly the next prime minister, lost his son. On his list, in realistic spots, are Shira Shapira, who lost her son Ener at the shelter in Re’im, Nir Hajbi, whose son Yonatan was murdered two kilometers west of there in those very same hours, and Shai Fisher, whose grandmother and uncle were murdered in Kfar Yuval by Hezbollah fire. READ MORE

ALGEMEINER Iran Races to Rebuild Underground Missile Arsenal as Hezbollah Told to Prepare for ‘Imminent’ War Iran’s apparent efforts to resume underground ballistic missile production and reports of Tehran mobilizing its regional terrorist proxies are putting Israel on high alert over the threat of a renewed multi-front confrontation in the Middle East. New satellite imagery showing renewed tunneling and underground construction at three major Iranian sites — Parchin, Khojir, and Shahroud — has raised concerns about the Iranian regime’s efforts to rebuild its missile production capabilities despite Israeli and American strikes that severely damaged key facilities, according to a report released Wednesday by the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI).

MEDIA LINE How Israel Votes: A Guide to the Knesset, Political Parties, and Coalition Governments Israelis vote for party lists rather than individual lawmakers or a prime minister. A proportional electoral system, mathematical seat-allocation rules, and coalition negotiations determine who governs. In Israel, voters do not directly elect their prime minister or individual members of parliament. Instead, each voter chooses a single list of candidates, usually representing a political party or an alliance of parties. The votes determine how the 120 seats in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, are distributed. What happens after the election can be just as important as the vote itself. Parties negotiate alliances, agree on policies, and divide government responsibilities. The leader of the largest party does not automatically become prime minister, and a smaller party can sometimes determine who governs. 

JPOST Majority of Israelis back Haredi draft law, October 7 inquiry, IDI survey finds A majority of Jewish Israelis supported requiring ultra-Orthodox men to enlist in the IDF and establishing a state commission of inquiry into the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack, while Arab Israelis expressed the strongest support for exploring negotiations with the Palestinians, according to an Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) survey published Wednesday. The survey, conducted by the Viterbi Family Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research at the Israel Democracy Institute between October 5 and 8, surveyed 602 Jewish Israelis and 149 Arab Israelis aged 18 and above.

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“Wikipedia has failed to systematically review or correct edits to pages on Hamas, Zionism, the Oct. 7 terror attacks and Israel’s war in Gaza, even after banning editors involved in the alleged campaign, according to the report”

Posted on October 15, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

JEWISH INSIDER
Wikipedia failed to address coordinated anti-Israel campaign, new ADL study finds
Haley Cohen
October 15, 2026

A year after the Anti-Defamation League exposed what it described as a coordinated campaign to inject antisemitic and anti-Israel narratives into Wikipedia entries, 91% of one banned editor’s contributions to six prominent articles on issues related to Israel remain in the live text, according to a new report. The report, released Thursday by the ADL Center for Technology and Society, found that Wikipedia has failed to systematically review or correct edits to pages on Hamas, Zionism, the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks and Israel’s war in Gaza, even after banning editors involved in the alleged campaign…Among the report’s examples, the ADL found that an October 2023 restructuring of Wikipedia’s “Hamas” article moved the bulk of material about the group’s antisemitism, use of human shields and human rights abuses to a separate, less-read article titled “Criticism of Hamas.” READ MORE

EYEWITNESS NEWS Dozens of Jewish educators say they had to cancel conference in Italy Nearly 70 Jewish American educators canceled a trip to Reggio Emilia, Italy, after the group said an Italian organization sought signed statements distancing the educators from the occupation of Gaza and violations of rights in occupied territories….The educators said they learned their social media profiles were being analyzed for possible ties to Israel, its military and the occupation in Gaza. They also learned of threats of protest in Italy upon their arrival. “They couldn’t guarantee our safety, I think that’s the number one thing,” Schiffer said. According to the educators, the Italian organization also sought a statement signed by each Jewish teacher pledging that they “hereby declare that they distance themselves from the occupation of Gaza and the violation of children’s and human beings’ rights in occupied territories.”

JTA Irish Jewish leader ‘shocked’ after hotel cancels over 70 rooms for antisemitism conference An Irish Jewish leader said a Dublin hotel canceled rooms reserved for European delegates after learning that they were visiting for an antisemitism conference. Maurice Cohen, the president of the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland, said he booked over 70 rooms at the Herbert Park Hotel for people attending a meeting of the Special Envoys and Coordinators Combating Antisemitism (SECCA). The envoys, who included Jewish community leaders, diplomats and government ministers from across Europe, were invited to the conference this week organized by the World Jewish Congress and the European Commission.

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio referenced the ICC as a “rogue court” that is “crippling” the US

Posted on October 14, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

MILITARY DAILY NEWS
Trump Sanctions Entire ICC, Drawing Rebuke From US Allies
Haley Fuller
October 9, 2026

The Trump administration sanctioned the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday, expanding restrictions against individual officials into financial measures targeting the institution. Eight U.S. allies jointly rebuked the decision, exposing a divide over protecting military personnel from potential international prosecution and preserving accountability for atrocities. The U.S. Treasury Department added the Hague-based court to its sanctions list under President Donald Trump’s 2025 sanctions order. The ICC said the designation follows sanctions against 13 court officials. “We will ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off their resources and crippling its ability to operate against us,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in his announcement. Rubio also warned: “Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC.” It freezes the court’s assets held in the United States or controlled by U.S. citizens, permanent residents or businesses, and generally bars them from doing business with the court unless an exception applies. READ MORE

FREE PRESS Douglas Murray: The International Criminal Court Is a Sham Recent years have seen a flourishing of BS institutions. There is the International Association of Genocide Scholars, an organization that suddenly leaped to prominence last year when it was reactivated in order to accuse Israel of “genocide” in Gaza; there is the International Court of Justice (ICJ), a politicized pseudo-court that seems determined to fast-track that same genocide allegation; there is the United Nations Human Rights Council, whose only standing agenda item devoted to a single country is, yes, about the Jewish state; and the list goes on. But the institution that must win any and all awards for not being what it says on the tin is the International Criminal Court (ICC).

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After 2,000 years of persecution, pogroms, and genocide, a peculiar breed of Jew has concluded that Jewish history’s greatest mistake was finally acquiring the power to defend themselves

Posted on October 13, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

MORAL CLARITY
The astonishing stupidity of Jewish anti-Zionists
Nachum Kaplan
October 9, 2026

I was losing my nightly battle with insomnia so instead of counting sheep I went through the groups of people I cannot stand. Islamists, Far Left losers, Nazis and people who stop to plan their day at the top of the escalator were on the list. So were anti-Zionist Jews, a group whose existence I consider a personal affront. There is a peculiar intellectual vanity involved when a Jew surveys the history of Jewish powerlessness, notices that Jews finally acquired a state, an army, borders, sovereignty, and the ability to admit other Jews without petitioning a foreign ruler, and concludes that this was the great moral error. I briefly admired the chutzpah of speaking such idiocy out loud and being willing to look foolish before the whole world, but it soon gave way to mourning the historical illiteracy, lack of Jewish pride and self-regard. READ MORE

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The world calls them extremists. But who are Israel’s Hilltop Youth, really?

Posted on October 13, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

FUTURE OF JEWISH
These are the most misunderstood teenagers in Israel
Dory Benami
October 15, 2026

…I thought I knew who the Hilltop Youth were. I didn’t. There are ideological activists in that world, and there are people who commit violence. But there are also boys who arrived because school went badly, home went badly, or because a remote farm was the first place anyone gave them a job, a bed, and a role. Some are very young. Recent Israeli reporting describes children as young as 10 showing up at isolated farms after dropping out of school, sometimes without much adult supervision. Israeli security officials describe a larger group dominated by teenagers who dropped out of the education system or got into trouble with the law. A 10-year-old isn’t working through the Oslo Accords, international law, or competing theories of sovereignty. He wants somewhere to belong. The word “outpost” can make these places sound more substantial than they are. Sometimes you’re talking about a caravan on a rocky hill, a water tank, solar panels, a generator, rough fencing, dirt roads, and sheep — lots of sheep. READ MORE

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A Nobel Prize for Hating Israel — Israel assails decision as a “grotesque weaponization of an award to legitimize anti-Israel hatred and prejudice”

Posted on October 12, 2026 by ArchitectGuy

TABLET MAG
Is the Whole World Wrong? Yes. We should stand firm in the conviction of what we know to be true.
Natan Sharansky
October 09, 2026

This morning the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced that it has awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2026 to South African judge Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, who led the 2025 U.N. commission that found Israel guilty of genocide against the Palestinians. This appears to be the greatest possible legitimization of the now-established consensus about Israel’s war in Gaza. As Jews around the world react with despair, I am reminded of an excellent article by Ahad Ha’am, written in 1892 and titled “Half Solace.” Observing the renewal of the ancient blood libel in his own time, the great cultural Zionist notes that “philosophers know that there is no lie and no evil that cannot obtain ‘general agreement’ if only the conditions of existence are suitable to it.” Unfortunately, however, “only philosophers know this, and in the eyes of the masses, even now there is no greater authority than ‘consensus.’” READ MORE

JNS Navi Pillay, who accused Israel of genocide, wins Nobel Peace Prize South African jurist Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, who headed a United Nations commission that accused Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip, was awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday…Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Friday assailed the Norwegian Nobel Committee for awarding the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize to Pillay, calling it a “grotesque weaponization of an award to legitimize anti-Israel hatred and prejudice.” “If there were a prize for lies, hatred and blood libels, Navi Pillay would not merely be a candidate—she would be the front-runner,” the ministry said. “Now that the Nobel Committee has rewarded the biggest lie of the 21st century, Joseph Goebbels is surely applauding from hell.”

WALL STREET JOURNAL Editorial Board: A Nobel Prize for Hating Israel It’s possible that the Nobel Committee will someday bestow its peace prize on a less worthy recipient than Navanethem “Navi” Pillay, but we doubt it. The Oslo worthies this year have honored an 85-year-old South African whose career has been marked above all by hatred for Israel and the Jews who support it.

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