Dear Friends,

The biblical Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot, begins tonight, the 15th day of the month of Tishrei according to the biblical calendar. Sukkot (Hebrew for tabernacles) is one of a number of holidays described in Leviticus 23, including Passover, Shavuot (Pentecost), Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur.

Tabernacles is a joyous seven-day festival of thanksgiving observed by Jews worldwide in remembrance of God's protection and provision for the Israelites during their forty years in the desert. The holiday is referred to as "the season of our joy" because according to Deut. 16:11-15 and Lev. 23:39-43, those who observe Sukkot do so with rejoicing. The feast is observed, in part, by eating meals in a sukkah - a temporary structure built in remembrance of shelters used by the Israelites as they traveled through the wilderness after leaving Egypt.

Of all the biblical holidays, Tabernacles is unique. According to Zechariah 14:16, it is the only festival that is also to be celebrated by people from all the nations who will go up to Jerusalem every year to keep the Feast. Therefore, it is entirely appropriate for Christians to join their Jewish brethren in celebrating Sukkot.

The Feast of Tabernacles is immediately followed by the holiday of Simchat Torah, which literally means "rejoicing of/over the Torah." This joyous day is observed by dancing with Torah scrolls held high in celebration of the completion of the annual Torah reading cycle and the beginning of the next. This year, Simchat Torah occurs on October 15th according to the Gregorian calendar, but in 2023, it fell on October 7th. 

Simchat Torah, October 7th and the Proposed End to a Two-Year War

It was on what is supposed to be a joyful holiday that Hamas terrorists carried out their genocidal attack on the people of Israel, murdering 1,200 people, wounding thousands more, and taking over 250 hostages to Gaza - men, women, children and elderly. Thankfully, most of the hostages have since been rescued or released in exchange for convicted terrorists with blood on their hands. However, there are still 48 people, with as many as 20 of them still alive, held in horrific conditions in tunnels deep underground. 

This past week, President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu announced, what is intended to be, the final deal to end the two-year-long war in Gaza. The US and Israel are in agreement on the terms of the deal, but as of this writing, it remains to be seen exactly how Hamas will respond and how the particulars of the deal will be carried out.

According to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, 90% of the details have been agreed upon and only logistical details remain to be determined. Based on other comments from the US President and Secretary of State, it is clear the war has not ended, and work remains to be done before an agreement is finalized. This is still very much a work in process because Hamas is reportedly presenting their own series of demands ahead of negotiations scheduled to begin in Egypt today.

The US - Israel deal to end the war clearly calls for the immediate release of all 48 remaining hostages at one time and the complete removal of Hamas from power in the Gaza Strip. Both of these objectives are contrary to the long-term purposes and intent of Hamas, which has a long history of delaying responses, changing the terms of a proposed agreement, and blatantly defying established parameters. Hamas now has to decide if it will continue to employ its usual tactics or do what is best for all concerned and release all the hostages, lay down their weapons, and relinquish control of Gaza. If the terrorists attempt to stay in power, President Trump has made it clear that Hamas faces "total destruction."

This coming week promises to be eventful, as we wait to see if Hamas accepts and carries out the terms of the deal, or decides to keep fighting. Whichever way Hamas decides to go in relation to the current deal, it is important to remember that 1) this two-year-long war was initiated by the terrorist attack in Israel on Simchat Torah in 2023, and 2) Israel intends to accomplish its goals of freeing every hostage and removing Hamas from power, once and for all.

World-wide Antisemitism in the Wake of October 7th 

Ever since October 8th, 2023 - the day after the atrocities of October 7th - we have witnessed an alarming rise in the irrational and vile hatred of Jews worldwide. This increase in Jew-hatred manifests through verbal and physical attacks on Jewish people and institutions, Holocaust denial, excusal or denial of the events of October 7th, and blaming the Jews for anything and everything - no matter how outrageous the false charges may be.

A recent manifestation of antisemitism - the unadulterated hatred of Jews - occurred this past week outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in Manchester, England on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. In the attack, two Jews were killed and the deaths of who knows how many more were prevented by intervention of the part of the rabbi and local police.

Please read CAMERA's statement concerning this deadly terror attack and as you do, strengthen your resolve to:

- not be complacent in the face of evil
- not be afraid to take a stand for truth and justice
- oppose the oldest hatred and its equally evil twin, opposition to the Jewish State

Here is CAMERA's statement, issued on October 3, 2025: 

CAMERA mourns the brutal murder of two Jewish worshippers outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in Manchester, England on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. Our hearts are with the victims’ families and with the entire British Jewish community as they grieve this horrific act of terror.

This attack did not arise in a vacuum. It is the deadly consequence of an atmosphere in which anti-Jewish hatred has been tolerated, normalized, and too often excused. Since the Hamas atrocities of October 7, 2023, Jews in Britain and across the West have faced an alarming escalation of open antisemitism in the streets, in schools and universities, in healthcare settings, and online. Calls for violence against Jews have been met with equivocation, and those who should have acted decisively to confront hatred have too often looked away.

Terrorists alone bear responsibility for murder. But hatred does not grow in isolation. It is inflamed when media outlets and public figures promote wild, baseless accusations that Israel is committing genocide, deliberately starving civilians, or targeting innocents while ignoring or downplaying the terror and brutality Jews and Israelis face. Such lies give license to rage, justify hostility toward Jews everywhere, and embolden those willing to turn words into violence.

“That is why CAMERA’s work matters,” said CAMERA CEO Kurt Schwartz. “For more than four decades, we have challenged misinformation and demanded accuracy when it comes to Israel and the Jewish people. Holding media and institutions accountable is not abstract. It is essential to protecting Jewish lives.”

CAMERA calls on British leaders, civil society, and the press to do more than offer condolences. Words of solidarity are necessary but insufficient. They must be joined by clear action: enforcing laws against incitement, protecting Jewish houses of worship, refusing to amplify unverified claims that demonize Israel, and confronting Jew-hatred with moral clarity.

“To the Jewish community in England,” Schwartz said, “CAMERA stands with you. England is your country too. You have the right to worship in safety, to live without fear, and to participate fully in civic life without enduring hatred or intimidation. CAMERA will continue to expose the misinformation that fuels antisemitism and to insist on the truth.