| Erev Shabbat - Parashat Ki Tisa 5784 | 21 Adar 1 5784 - March 1, 2024 | |  
Last Wednesday, over 140 people heard
IDF Colonel Golan Vach speak about his amazing experiences saving lives in Gaza and around the world.
This multi-talented "Hero of Israel" inspired the audience with song, music, and incredible rescue stories.
The program was hosted by Congregation Or Torah in partnership with Mizrachi - Religious Zionists of Chicago. | | |  Listen to an extraordinary shiur by Rabbi Yona Reiss, cRc Av Beth Din, at Mizrachi - RZC: Halachic Perspectives on the International Court of Justice. Click here to listen | | | 
February 5 was a fact-filled evening at Mizrachi RZC featuring
Nefesh B'Nefesh representatives Marc Rosenberg and Orly Tamir
Click here for audio of the evening | | |  On January 29, 2024, Mizrachi - RZC members and friends attended the Grand ReOpening of the newly remodeled Mizrachi - Religious Zionists of Chicago building
Listen to the ReOpening recordings | | | 
"Mizrachi Chicago – you are amazing!"
That is what we heard from the representatives of the IDF families to whom we sent meals for Shabbat as part of this year's Raffle – Support IDF Families campaign.
So far, we have arranged for 355 meals to be sent, showing our care and concern for the IDF Families and creating personal connections with them.
We are continuing this effort, now in partnership with the Efrat Development Foundation. As before, each $60 donated will result In a Shabbat meal for an IDF family whose parent/spouse is on active IDF duty. Tax-deductible donations are to be sent directly to the Efrat Development Foundation by clicking here. | | | Head's Up, People! Rabbi Stewart Weiss  The centerpiece of this week's Sedra, of course, is the dramatic saga of the Egel ha-Zahav, the Golden Calf worshipped by the nation. But was this truly a case of Avoda Zara, idolatry? If so, why such a relatively mild punishment? Yes, 3000 people were killed, but this is small compared to the suffering caused by the M'raglim.
To answer, let's go to the very start of the Parsha. Moshe conducts a census and counts the people via a half-shekel donation given by all.
But rather than the use the typical word "lis'por," to count, the Torah uses the phrase, "Ki tisa et rosh Bnei Yisrael," literally, "when you lift up the heads" of the people. Why such a strange idiom?
I suggest that Moshe – charged by Hashem to restore a sense of self-esteem to a royal nation that was enslaved and degraded for more than a century – is charging the people to lift their heads up high. "Be proud of who you are," Moshe is saying. "In the eyes of G-d, you count!"
But that is easier said than done. When Moshe goes up to Har Sinai, and the leaders miscalculate his return, the nation reverts back to their insecurity. They demand a "go-between," an intercessor between them and Hashem, someone who can plead for them, like Moshe did, since they felt inadequate to approach Hashem on their own.
The key word used in this story is "boshesh."
It's usually translated as "delayed," as in Moshe's delay to return. But, of course, it is connected to "busha," shame or embarrassment. The clear message being sent is that the people were ashamed that they lacked the personal self-worth that would allow them to go on, even without their extraordinary leader. And so they descended into their inferior state, dancing brazenly before the Calf in imitation of what they had previously seen the Egyptians do.
While Moshe is certainly upset, and some bloodletting needed to occur for this sinful action, Moshe is lenient. He knows that he has yet to succeed in elevating the nation's self-worth and confidence, and he must do something about it.
And so he calls out to G-d for help. Say Chazal, G-d then appears to Moshe wrapped in a Talit, like a Chazan, and says, "Whenever Israel sins, let them pray the following, and I will forgive them."
And Hashem teaches Moshe the 13 Midot, the "Attributes of Mercy." When we recite these powerful expressions of Hashem's love for us and desire to forgive us, we evoke G-d's compassion and we regain our stature as a holy, beloved nation that knows no bounds and we can surmount any and all challenges.
Israel, constantly maligned by the nations, must always hold its head up high. G-d loves us, and that is paramount. | | 
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| |  | Featuring Diverse Sources, Guiding Questions, and Relevant Halachic Topics | | | Servant Leadership | Ki Tisa 5784 Rav Doron Perez
Executive Chairman of Mizrachi World Movement Robert Greenleaf in his book "Servant Leadership" suggests that the paradigm is a leader who is a servant, who serves the people and a cause larger than themselves.
This is what Jewish leadership is all about, as we see with Moshe Rabbeinu, who says to G-d that if He wants to destroy his people, then he was willing to give up his individual life and future for the sake of the people.
Rav Kook, too, speaks so much about serving a cause bigger than ourselves, and often signed his letters as "servant of the holy nation in the holy land." A leader is a servant, not to use the public for their own aggrandizement, but to use their individual talents to serve the public. This is what we have seen, too, since Simchat Torah, October 7th – of people demonstrating that Jewish existence is bigger than ourselves.
In addition, Rav Kook says we can't lose ourselves in our public role, but also as our own personal growth as individuals. We are one for all, but also all for one. We see, similarly, how an entire people are concerned for each and every hostage, each individual, knowing the value of every single life. | |
Ki Tisa 5784
Dr. Julie Goldstein,
Founder and Director of Amudim | | | 
A Two-Stage Sin
Rabbi Menachem Leibtag  Despite the severity of the sin of the Golden Calf, it's important to notice that G-d only becomes angry on the day after it is formed. This point, together with the fact that Moshe doesn't accuse Aharon of sinning, he only asks his brother – what caused you to do something that caused the people to sin (see 32:21) – suggests that the primary sin must have been how the calf was worshiped. When comparing the celebration on that 'next day' (32:5–6) to the parallel celebration at Mt. Sinai some forty days earlier when Am Yisrael declared "na'aseh v'nishma" (24:4–11) – it becomes quite clear that the key difference is the final phrase "vayakumu l'tzachek" (32:6,7) – suggesting that the celebration concluded with 'frivolous' behavior and wild dancing.
It may have been even worse if we note G-d's initial instruction of Moshe: "go down for your people have gone astray" (32:7). This is the same verb that the Torah used in Sefer Bereishit to describe the behavior of society before the Flood (6:11–12) which included terrible corruption and crime.
To further support this – note Yehoshua's initial reaction to the 'loud noise' that he heard:
"Yehoshua heard the sound of the people b'rayo – screaming loudly, and said to Moshe: there are sounds of war in the camp. But Moshe answered – these are not the sounds of triumphs… they are simply sounds [of wildness] that I hear." (32:18)
Because of this behavior, G-d concludes that Bnei Yisrael have not changed their ways, as they have reverted to their Egyptian ways and customs. The events at chet haEgel, which had started with good intentions, quickly turned into wild and out-of-control behavior, revealing deep down nothing had changed.
Based on the terms of the 'Ten Commandments', G-d should punish them harshly and immediately, but Moshe 'saves the nation' by breaking the "luchot" – thus breaking the original contract. Afterward, Moshe will argue for a 'new contract' which will include G-d's attributes of mercy – thus enabling Am Yisrael to remain G-d's people, even though they may continue to sin.
Bnei Yisrael's sin at chet haEgel had two stages. The first – making a physical representation of G-d – though improper was understandable. The second – the frivolous behavior after the ceremony – was inexcusable.
These two stages are reflected in G-d's 'double statement' to Moshe in the aftermath of this sin (32:7–10). - G-d's first statement:
"And G-d spoke to Moshe: Hurry down, for your people have acted basely… they have turned astray from the way that I commanded them – they made an 'egel masecha' [a representation of Me]..." - G-d's second statement:
"And G-d spoke to Moshe: I see this nation, behold it is an "am k'sheh oref" [a stiff-necked people]. Now, allow Me, and I will kindle My anger against them and I will destroy them and I will make you a great nation [instead]." G-d's first statement describes the act that began with good intentions but was nonetheless forbidden [Shemot 20:19 – "lo ta'asun iti elohei kesef…"].Though requiring rebuke and forgiveness (see 32:30), this sin didn't warrant the destruction of the entire nation.
G-d's second statement reacts to "vayakumu l'tzachek," i.e. their frivolous behavior, indicating a regression to Egyptian culture. Concluding that they are a 'stiff-necked people' resistant to change, G-d decides to destroy Bnei Yisrael, selecting Moshe as His chosen nation instead.
The punishment for Bnei Yisrael mirrors the two stages of their transgression. Initially, the three thousand instigators responsible for the licentious behavior (stage 2) are killed without forgiveness (32:26–29). However, on the next day, Moshe pleads with G-d to forgive the rest of the nation (32:30–32) as their actions, starting with good intentions (stage 1), warrant pardon despite their sin.
Rabbi Menachem Leibtag is an internationally acclaimed Tanach scholar and online Jewish education pioneer. He is a member of the Mizrachi Speakers Bureau (www.mizrachi.org/speakers).
| |  | | Chicago Mizrachi Pina Chama in Itamar
dedicated in honor of our
Chayalim Bodedim
Maintenance costs for the month of
Adar 1 5784
have been sponsored
in memory of
Nagia David, a"h
Nagia bat Tzion v'Yaffa
and
Sam Trubnick, a"h
Yehoshua ben Mordechai Halevi
by Michelle and Randy Trubnick and family | | | To watch and view the picture gallery of the Mizrachi Chicago Pina Chama in Itamar Dedication and Hachnasat Sefer Torah in the Shomron (July 30, 2023)
CLICK HERE | | | Terrorist who murdered two in Eli, PA police officer The terrorist who carried out the murderous attack in Eli is Muhammad Manasra, who is affiliated with Fatah and has served two prison terms in Israel.  The terrorist who carried out the murderous attack in Eli is Muhammad Manasra, who is affiliated with Fatah. He served as a Palestinian police officer, at a rank equivalent to major. Manasara had two previous prison terms, and was last released from the Ofer prison in 2019, after serving a prison sentence for illegal carrying of arms. Two Israelis, aged 50 and 20, were murdered in the attack. Aviad Gizbar, owner of Hummus Eliyahu at the Eli gas station, recounted how he eliminated the terrorist who murdered two Israelis. "I was on a refreshing break from battle in Khan Yunis and came here to my place at Humus Eliyahu," said Gizbar adding that "the same terrorists who are in Gaza are the same terrorists who are here. Everywhere they want to destroy us." Gizbar shouts out, "We must stand up straight, stop being pushed around. It's time to understand that we are here, and we are here to stay. Stop with the slacking attitude. We must stand up straight, continue the construction. Let's raise our heads high." He recounted the moments of the attack, "I heard gunshots, I was inside the hummus restaurant. I immediately understood that it was an attack. I shot one bullet so that the terrorist would realize that I was here. I signaled to him, I saw that he saw me and started charging in my direction." He added, "I took position and shot him. We took him down. I continued scanning the area and saw that there were no other risks. That's how the incident ended." israelnationalnews.com | | Rescued Gaza hostage Ori Megidish returns to active military service Megidish to serve in IDF Military Intelligence Directorate after being kidnapped on Oct. 7 from Nahal Oz base where she served as surveillance soldier Emanuel Fabian  Cpl. Ori Megidish, who was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7 and later rescued from captivity in the Gaza Strip by the Israel Defense Forces, returned to active military service on Monday. Megidish, who had served as a surveillance soldier at the Nahal Oz post, will now serve in the IDF's Military Intelligence Directorate. The IDF said that the decision to return Megidish to service "stemmed from her personal desire and sense of mission to serve the country." Megidish was abducted from the Nahal Oz post by Hamas terrorists on October 7 when the group launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, murdering some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping 253. In total, 66 soldiers were killed in Hamas's assault on the base, and a number were taken hostage.
While Megidish was kidnapped along with other soldiers from the base, she was believed to have been held alone and was rescued by the IDF in an overnight mission on October 30. The IDF did not release further details on the rescue.  IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said that the rescued soldier was able to provide helpful details about her time in captivity.
Following her rescue, Megidish met with a number of Israeli officials including President Isaac Herzog, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar. Megidish also met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's wife, Sara, and told her that she was eager to return to active service. It is believed that 130 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza — not all of them alive — after 105 civilians were released from Hamas captivity during a weeklong truce in late November. Four hostages were released before that, and three were rescued by troops, including Megidish. The bodies of eight hostages have also been recovered and three hostages were mistakenly killed by the military. One more person has been listed as missing since October 7, and her fate is still unknown. timesofisrael.com | | | Here is a direct link to join the group - | | 
Here is a direct link to join the group - | | | Husband of 'Rachel from Ofakim' passes away The couple became a viral sensation online with the story of how Rachel served Hamas terrorists cookies while waiting for security forces to rescue them.  David Edri, the husband of 'Rachel from Ofakim' who was taking hostage with her on October 7th, has passed away.
He left behind his wife Rachel, three children, two of whom are police officers, and three grandchildren.
The couple were locked in their house for several hours with a number of Hamas terrorists who took them hostage. They were rescued when a police force breached the house and killed the terrorists.
The terrorists were in the house for 19 hours, during which Rachel served them cookies, coffee, lunch, and a pineapple, as well as carrying on conversations with them.
At 2:00 a.m., after the involvement of a police hostage negotiating team, the YAMAM (Israel's national counterterrorism unit) breached the house, killed the terrorists, and rescued the couple. Their son was required to wait outside the house during the hostage rescue operation to prevent his emotional involvement from hampering the operation. israelnationalnews.com | | Brazilian opposition flies Israeli flag high after president's Hitler comparison Supporters of ex-leader Bolsonaro hoist flag at São Paulo rally 'in solidarity with Jewish community in face of antisemitic attacks by Lula da Silva'  Following Brazilian President Lula da Silva's controversial comparison of Israel's actions against Hamas in Gaza to Adolf Hitler's, sparking a major diplomatic spat, a large São Paulo rally in support of his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, on Sunday saw Brazilian and Israeli flags flown side by side.
Bolsonaro, known for his staunch support of Israel, often showcases the country's flag at rallies, including the one on São Paulo's iconic Paulista Avenue on Sunday, and his sons have been seen in the past wearing IDF and Mossad shirts.
Brazilian media reported that Israeli flags were displayed at Sunday's rally "in solidarity with the Jewish community in face of the recent anti-semite attacks by Lula da Silva comparing the war on Hamas to the holocaust."
Bolsonaro supporters gathered to show support for the former Brazilian president as he finds himself embroiled in several investigations that many believe could land him in jail.
 Bolsonaro called the rally, which he dubbed a "peaceful gathering in favor of the rule of law and our freedom, families and future," after being targeted by a police raid earlier this month as part of a probe into an alleged coup attempt.
He had his passport confiscated and was accused of editing a draft decree to overturn election results, pressuring military chiefs to join a coup attempt and plotting to jail a Supreme Court justice after his electoral loss to leftist President Lula in 2022.
Supporters of Bolsonaro, a populist often likened to former U.S. President Donald Trump, invaded and ransacked Brazil's presidential palace, Supreme Court and Congress calling for a military coup on Jan. 8, 2023, a week after Lula took office.
Allies expect Sunday's demonstration to show that Bolsonaro, who is barred from running for office until 2030 for spreading election falsehoods and faces several other criminal probes, still holds political strength in deeply polarized Brazil.
ynetnews.com | |  | WATCH: Soldiers from Nahal Oz base share their amazing stories of survival The base was overrun by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7th and with no outside help, the soldiers attempted to fight off the terrorists. worldisraelnews.com | | Victims of Hamas massacres sue Reuters, Associated Press Relatives of Israelis murdered during Hamas massacres on October 7th file lawsuits against news syndicates, accusing them of employing terrorists involved in the atrocities. The families of five Israelis murdered by Hamas on October 7th are suing two of the world's largest news syndicates over the role their journalists allegedly played in the terrorist massacres.
 The five Israelis were all killed by Hamas terrorists at the Nova music festival outside of Re'im, early on the morning of October 7th. They include Mai Naim, Abir Lotan, Guy Gabriel Levi, Shalev Madmoni, and Shani Louk. In their lawsuit, the victims' families accused Reuters and The Associated Press of employing journalists from the Gaza Strip who are affiliated with the Hamas terrorist organization, and who allegedly took part in the massacres. The suit charges the two news syndicates with publishing reports and photographs taken by the Hamas-affiliated journalists who were embedded with the terrorist forces as they invaded Israel.
"They are liable for the direct and indirect damage and actions of their 'journalists'," papers filed for the lawsuit argued.
"Any excuse or justification that could be raised claiming the rules of journalism – such as the right of the public to know – cannot justify a situation whereby a reporter for one of the agencies would be present, participate and film the commission of a serious crime, such as the abduction of an elderly woman from her home." "There is no doubt that the 'journalists' who were present at the massacre could have assisted the victims and notified Israeli authorities in advance so that the atrocities would have been prevented. The news agencies who had contracted the services of the 'journalists', and who are responsible directly for their actions, are liable for damages caused to the plaintiffs." The lawsuit comes months after a expose produced by the Honest Reporting watchdog group found that four Gazan journalists and photojournalists were embedded with the terrorist forces which invaded Israel on October 7th. The four, identified as Hassan Eslaiah, Yousef Masoud, Ali Mahmud, and Hatem Ali, have been linked to Reuters, The Associated Press, The New York Times, and CNN. In addition to apparently having foreknowledge of the invasion, the four have been accused of taking part or aiding in the massacres of Israelis. In the case of Shani Louk, an Israeli-German dual citizen who was murdered on October 7th, her dead body was photographed by Ali Mahmud and Hatem Ali as her remains were paraded down a Gaza City street in the back of a pickup truck. It was later revealed that one of the four, Hassan Eslaiah, had been photographed while being kissed by Yahya Sinwar, commander of Hamas forces in Gaza and mastermind of the October 7th invasion. worldisraelnews.com | | One person remains missing from Oct. 7. Her family has accepted she's gone After initially being considered dead, lack of conclusive evidence about fate of Bilha Yinon, 76, has IDF considering every option, though her daughters don't think she's a hostage Bilha Yinon, a 76-year-old who lived with her husband Yakov in Moshav Netiv Ha'asara, was last heard from at 8 a.m. on October 7.
 Her house was burned down by Hamas terrorists who infiltrated the community via paragliders amid their murderous onslaught against southern Israel. She was initially considered dead along with her husband, but a lack of DNA evidence led the IDF to retract that conclusion.
"They still haven't found her," the Yinons' daughter, Maayan, told Channel 12 news in an interview aired Saturday evening. "They can't conclusively identify. They can't recover DNA." During the October 7 massacre, which saw Hamas terrorists kill some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnap 253, an estimated 35 Hamas operatives entered Netiv Ha'asara — a community that sits 100 meters from the border with Gaza — and killed 22 people. "Dad sent us a WhatsApp message at 7:30 a.m. that they're sitting in the safe room, the house is locked, and they're hearing a lot of shooting and rockets," Maayan recalled in the interview. "By 7:45 a.m. they were already disconnected and not answering. The house got a direct hit and was on fire within minutes. This was a house built with light materials like plaster and plywood." "I said that my parents didn't survive this event," the Yinons' other daughter, Mor, told Channel 12. "By 10 a.m., I wrote my cousins that they should prepare themselves for a very very difficult day." The Yinons' grandson, Eitan, told Channel 12 that he remains hopeful about the fate of his grandmother. "My head understands that she is dead, but my heart tells me that maybe she is somehow kidnapped, maybe something did happen." "I'm trying to not build up expectations, and think about 'what if,'" he added. "But I do in a way need that identification." The daughters, however, are convinced of their mother's fate. Between the house being burnt down and conversations with neighbors who saw the terrorists, the family decided to sit shiva – the traditional seven-day mourning period for Jews – without holding a funeral. "Her place is with dad. They left this world together."  The daughters told Channel 12 that they are not entertaining the possibility that Bilha was taken hostage because no other kidnappings were reported in Netiv Ha'asara on October 7.
"There's a disagreement between the fire services – who say that the fire was at a very high temperature and that it's certainly possible that DNA can't be recovered – and the [forensic scientists] who say that that can't be, something can always be recovered," Mor said. Lt. Col. Dana Nof, an IDF reserve officer responsible for maintaining contact with the Yinon family, is not willing to reach a verdict. "This is a mystery that we're trying to solve. It's not a mystery that will just remain a mystery. We're trying to conclude whether Bilha is alive or not," she told Channel 12. "At the beginning of the war, IDF representatives told the Yinon family that they found remains in the house, including a woman's DNA, but they retracted that statement later on," she explained. "The possibility that she's kidnapped is being checked, it's possible. I can't tell you definitively; we don't have intelligence that she's kidnapped in Gaza, but it wouldn't be outrageous," Nof said. "We're doing everything we can to give absolutely certain answers," she added. "But we're still not there."  Bilha and Yakov requested in their will that their bodies be cremated and spread out over the grounds of Netiv Ha'asara because they did not want their bodies to take up land. The will, however, cannot be executed until the daughters are given a final answer from the government regarding the fate of Bilha.
"A district court appointed me to be the temporary estate manager for my mom," Mor told Channel 12. "I am conducting transactions in my mom's bank account on her behalf. These things are a bit absurd and emotionally difficult. It feels like some kind of pretend game to me." Maayan told Channel 12 that Bilha was a regular at anti-judicial overhaul protests that occurred throughout 2023 until October 7, and showed a suitcase Bilha would take with her that had "Benjamin Netanyahu, take this and leave" written on it. Bilha Yinon is currently the only person considered officially "missing" by the State of Israel following the October 7 attack, with an additional 130 people believed to be held hostage in Gaza, including the bodies of 31 people who the IDF has confirmed were killed before or after they were kidnapped. timesofisrael.com | | IDF targets Gaza area from which rockets were launched into Ashkelon, kills terrorists Troops also targeted terror shafts and infrastructures from which terrorists exited to carry out terror activities in the Gaza Strip.  Forces of the Southern Command, in conjunction with the Air Force, attacked eight important targets in Gaza, in the area from which rockets were launched towards Ashkelon on Tuesday, the military said on Wednesday.
Troops also targeted terror shafts and infrastructures from which terrorists exited to carry out terror activities in the Gaza Strip.
In western Khan Yunis, the combat team of the 7th Brigade raided buildings where troops found weapons and military equipment.
IDF eliminates terrorists in the Strip In parallel, the troops killed five terrorists by firing a precise missile at a vehicle in which they were traveling. In addition, IAF jets attacked two military compounds, killing terrorists who were located in them, the military said. Forces of the Paratrooper Brigade killed terrorists with sniper fire. Furthermore, two terrorists were killed by an IDF aircraft after soldiers of the Givati Brigade identified it and directed the aircraft towards them.  Similarly, forces of the 98th Division directed a fighter jet that struck terrorists who were readying to ambush the forces in a military compound in the Khan Yunis area. The attack triggered secondary explosions, illustrating the presence of additional weapons in the compound, according to the military.
In Zaytun, in the center of the Gaza Strip, forces of the 162nd Division 162 continued to operate. In the past day, a task force of the Nahal Brigade killed terrorists and found weapons in the area. During one of the operations, troops identified a terrorist squad, which was subsequently eliminated by a combat helicopter.
Furthermore, in Khan Yunis, forces of the Paratrooper Brigade killed terrorists at close range, among others, by directing fire from the air and ground, the military said later on Wednesday.
Forces attacked buildings used by Hamas in the al-Amal neighborhood. Troops also raided infrastructures in the Absan neighborhood, killing dozens of terrorists and finding weapons. During one of the operations, forces found an RPG, Hamas flags, communication devices, and explosive devices. Here, too, soldiers killed dozens of terrorists they had located in the area. jpost.com | | On Oct. 7 killing grounds, a vigilante army vet inspires grieving US Jewish leaders Eran Masas tells American visitors how he risked his life – and lied to his wife – to rescue survivors despite having no official mandate to act Canaan Lidor  On the grounds of the Supernova music festival massacre near Re'im, dozens of leaders of American Jewry quietly mourned the devastating aftermath of a rare moment of helplessness in the history of a nation built on the ethos of self-reliance.
As they inspected the grounds on Monday, many of the visitors were still processing the chilling words of Bella Haim, a Holocaust survivor from Kibbutz Gvulot near Gaza whose grandson Yotam was abducted from Be'eri and accidentally killed in Shejaiya by Israeli troops after escaping captivity.
"I never imagined that in this country, something like this could ever happen," Bella Haim said during a talk in Kibbutz Magen with the visitors, members of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations umbrella group's first delegation to the south of Israel since October 7.
But the visitors also heard on Monday an uplifting testimony that highlighted the resilience of many Israelis during and after October 7. The testimony, a relatively unknown account, was by Eran Masas, an army veteran from the Haifa region who singlehandedly coordinated multiple search and rescue operations in the border Gaza area while pretending to be an on-duty Israel Defense Forces officer to reassure stranded civilians — even though no one had authorized him to take any action.
Capturing both the national weaknesses and strengths laid bare by the trauma of October 7, when 3,000 Hamas terrorists invaded Israel and murdered about 1,200 people, the visitors' encounters left them deeply moved — many to tears – and reaffirmed their confidence in Israeli society's ability to transcend one of the worst crises in the country's history, several of them said.
"It showed me that this is a place that, when you see someone in need, people don't think about who to call. You're it, it's on you," Seth J. Riklin, the president of B'nai B'rith International, said as tears ran down his face after the 40-minute talk by Masas. "Israelis and Texans have that in common," added Riklin, a sustainable energy entrepreneur based in Houston.  Masas, 46, broke down in tears several times during his talk, in which he told the group how he ended up leading shellshocked soldiers through the killing fields of Re'im when they were strewn with hundreds of bodies of partygoers — mostly young people to whom he referred throughout the talk as "children."
His story began at 7:30 a.m. on October 7 in Kiryat Ata near Haifa, when his older brother Avi woke him up by calling his cellphone and alerting him "to get up because we've lost the country." On social media, Masas, a father of four who was discharged from the army in 2020 with the rank of lieutenant colonel, saw a picture of a Hamas pickup truck on the streets of Sderot. He was "overpowered by an insane desire to go stop that pickup truck," Masas said. This made him tell the first of many "lies," he told the audience: He lied to his wife that he had been called up by the army. He put on a uniform, took his sidearm, and drove 200 kilometers (124 miles) to Sderot. Not far from there, he saw a bullet-riddled car that he identified as belonging to the police's feted Yamam unit, which is one of the most skilled special forces outfits in Israel and beyond.  "The officers were all dead. And it was then, when I started to understand the scale of the invasion, that I first felt afraid," Masas recalled. But he couldn't afford to give into fear. Nearby, he saw another police car with dead officers inside. The terrorist who killed them was sitting in a pickup truck that, unbeknownst to Masas, was rigged up to explosives to serve as a bomb on wheels. Masas outdrew the terrorist, killing him with five out of 10 bullets in his sidearm, Masas said.
En route to Sderot near Moshav Patish, Masas saw hundreds of young people, whom he later understood to be Supernova rave survivors, in a state of panic, exhaustion, and trauma. He directed the survivors into Patish and assured them that they would be bused out of there within half an hour. But this was "just another lie. There were no buses. I was just giving them something to hold onto," Masas said. "People trust the army, but the army was not present. They needed someone to trust." To his astonishment, he saw three buses traveling down Route 241 nearing Patish Junction – a fact he said he believed was divine intervention. "I stopped the drivers and lied again: I told them I was the officer in charge of the sector and that they were to take the survivors to Beersheba. When one of them refused, I told him to do it or get shot. He believed me," Masas recounted. With the survivors gone, Masas began collecting bodies using an abandoned pickup truck. The first one was a young woman he called "the lady in green." She was nearly naked, and he apologized to her dead body for seeing her in that state and having to move her, Masas said. "I thought of my daughters," he added, his voice trembling with emotion. He stopped talking and sobbed for about a minute, as multiple listeners shed tears along with him.  In one of his rounds, a Channel 12 reporter, Adva Dadon, approached Masas with her film crew and described him as the officer in charge.
"At that moment, I thought the gig was up. I was going to prison [for impersonating an officer]." There was also the issue of his wife, a career officer's spouse. She had sufficient knowledge of the army to realize that her husband, a single officer with a sidearm and no command car, had lied to her to pursue dangerous vigilante action. "I whispered to Adva and asked her to stop filming me because my wife would kill me," said Masas, who at that point still had not fully grasped the enormity of what happened on October 7, and how it had sidelined issues like the fact that he wasn't officially drafted. (Multiple reservists and civilians acted on their own initiative on October 7, rescuing survivors and engaging terrorists.) The reporter reassured Masas, he said. "She told me it's alright, she believes in me, the people around us believe in me and that's what matters. And it gave me confidence," he recalled. Having moved about 15 bodies, Masas encountered some soldiers and told them he was the designated officer in charge ("another lie," he remarked) and led them to search the party grounds for survivors. The search produced one of the most harrowing videos from October 7: It shows Masas, his sidearm drawn, calling out "IDF, police, are there any survivors?" as he encounters body after body, before finally reaching an area behind the party's main stage, where he is heard saying, "Oh my god, it's full of bodies, no one is alive, everyone's dead."  At the end of the testimony, B'nai B'rith International president Riklin approached Masas to hug him. "I want to invite you to come visit Texas someday soon when this is over," Riklin told Masas. "It's a great place to relax and forget about all this business for a while."
The Conference of Presidents found it important to expose their delegates to the accounts of Haim, the Holocaust survivor, Masas, and others because "together, they form a complete story," said CEO William Daroff. "It shows what Israelis are made of, and why Israel will not be defeated." But Masas's testimony and filmed evidence have another significance that is at the heart of the decision to tour the south even as the war with Hamas rages on, said Daroff, who had led a previous delegation on October 17 that did not venture south. "We need to be able to witness and testify to counter the outrageous October 7 denialism, which, sadly, we will be dealing with for many years," Daroff said. timesofisrael.com | | | | |
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