Israel@75
Israel@75: Time to Celebrate?
April 26 (5 Iyar) 2023 marks 75 years since the birth of the State of Israel. Israelis and Diaspora Jews will celebrate Yom Ha’atzmaut (Independence Day) as the culmination of a 2,000 year-old Jewish dream. Palestinians will mourn the Nakba (Catastrophe) that ended their way of life. Neither will mark the day with much hope for national unity or peaceful coexistence.
This significant anniversary comes at a time when Israel is experiencing unprecedented internal divisions between religious and secular, Right and Left, belief in democracy and attachment to nationalism. It comes as the occupation remains unresolved and the possibility of two states seems increasingly remote.
In this special issue The Jewish Independent explores the successes and the challenges of contemporary Israel. We honour what has been built and we face honestly where Israel is failing.
We celebrate freedom achieved but we condemn shrinking civil rights and attacks on democracy. We rejoice in the release of Jews from thousands of years of oppression, but we are angered by the oppression of Palestinians. We cheer Israel’s many achievements, but we worry about its political, social, and environmental sustainability.
We are grateful for the hope fulfilled in the creation of the State, but we hope and believe we can build a better Israel.
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