You actually can go home again—but in cases like this, it's a heartbreaking return.
You actually can go home again—but in cases like this, it's a heartbreaking return.
Before the video about Yuval Sharabi returning to her her Kibbutz Be’eri home for the first time since October 7th, a look at what Israelis are reading about the US, on the eve of July 4th.
One of the running jokes around town these days, at least among Jerusalemites, is that if we go to Tel Aviv, we say that ‘'‘we went to the northern border.” So using that definition, that’s exactly what we did for a couple of days last week, and unexpectedly, were reminded once again of how this war has permeated every crevice of Israeli life.
We’ll focus on that mostly on Tuesday, but also in multiple ways throughout the week.
Before we get to the video below, created by Channel 13 documenting Yuval Sharabi and her return “home” to Kibbutz Be’eri for the first time, a look at what the Israeli press is saying about the place that many of our readers call home.
This page is from one of the Magazine Sections of Yisrael Hayom—the section is called Yisrael HaShavua (“Israel this week”).
In the twenty-five years that we have lived in Israel, I have never seen the Israeli Hebrew press devote so much coverage to the United States—particularly domestic issues in the United States. Obviously, after 9/11, there was endless amounts of coverage. Presidential elections always evoke more attention. All of that and more is obvious.
But in the past half year, it feels like something has changed. Ever since the Presidents of Penn, MIT and Harvard couldn’t tell Rep. Elise Stefanik that calling for the genocide of the Jews was a violation of their campus’ policies, Israelis have been fascinating with “just what is happening over there?” To the Jews, but to the country no less.
We’re not going to translate this entire article by Liel Liebowitz, an Israeli journalist based in New York ( he also writes widely and excellently in a variety of English language publications), but will translate just the two headlines to give you an idea of what Israelis are talking and reading about, this week of July 4th.
The LARGE headline reads:
From the Cities to the Mountains
The SMALLER headline reads:
“So how are things in New York?” you asked. “Bad. Thanks for asking.” And it’s the same in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago, and the other large cities in America. ⚫️ Whoever can, is leaving the city for small towns. And whoever cannot leave the cities is stuck with the flow of immigrants who benefit from protection thanks to identity politics, and the resulting crime. ⚫️ Shortly before it celebrates the 250th anniversary of its independence, a dark cloud is hovering over America, but this also affords America an opportunity to rebuild.
Ironically, that last sentence is precisely what we Israelis are saying about ourselves.
America’s situation is obviously much more complex than that. Yet this is but the first of a series on the subject, all by Liebowitz. We’ll see what follows and perhaps share more.
MONDAY (07/01): We’ll hear from a Shalem College student, “Roy”, who spent most of his first semester in battle in Gaza. I heard Roy speaking with a group of people about why he was so optimistic about Israel’s future, and asked him to share his thoughts with us. In a way I would never have imagined, what gave him hope was not so much what he sees in the future, but what he knows about the past.
TUESDAY (07/02): On a recent trip to Tel Aviv, I stopped by the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, whose front entrance on has turned into Hostage Square, the most heartbreaking square in the country. But the sorrow doesn’t stop at the door. Every exhibit we saw was colored by the war. Even in cases where the work of art had nothing to the with the war, the curators’ notes couldn’t help but making everything about October 7th. We’ll take a look at that, and one fascinating exhibit on a “Zionism that might have been.”
WEDNESDAY (07/03): Israel's demographics and high birth rate have long been cited as some of this country’s greatest achievements. We decided to get an update on demographic trends in the Jewish state. We heard about the current numbers, the good needs as well as concerns about long-term sustainability as a result of some of these trends. In this week’s podcast episode, we’ll speak to Professor Alex Weinreb, a demographer from Israel’s Taub Center in Jerusalem, about what he finds most fascinating in the latest statistics.
THURSDAY (07/04): We’ll look at two different sides of the army. There’s the side of renewed pride in fighting what is without question an existential war that Israel simply cannot afford to lose—even if it’s also clear that it’s not been able to win.
But along with the pride, there is also the dread. “Is this really what our existence has come to?” Everyone here has asked themselves that question in the last nine months. Especially mothers. As one woman put it, it starts with two lines on a pregnancy test, the first time she feels the baby kick, but for too many mothers it also ends with that dreaded knock at the front door… We’ll see how that’s getting reflected in contemporary Israeli popular culture.
Yuval Sharabi hails from Kibbutz Be’eri. On October 7th, her father, Yossi Sharabi, and her boyfriend, Ofir Engel were taken hostage by Hamas. Yuval, her mom and two sisters were rescued from the kibbutz later that night.
Ofir was released on November 29 during the temporary ceasefire.
On January 16, it was confirmed that Yossi, Yuval’s dad, had been killed and his body is being held by Hamas terrorists.
The video below is the story of Yuval going back to her home in Kibbutz Be’eri for the first time since October 7. The original video by Channel 13 can be viewed here. For our readers, we’ve added English subtitles below.
There’s not much that needs to be said, except for the fact that there are hundreds and hundreds of stories like this. These are the battered hearts who will make up a significant part of this country’s soul for as far as the eye can see.
