#efrat

In major escalation PIJ claims responsibility for the rockets launched towards Jerusalem and Gush Eztion in the last hour. 

Last month, Palestinian terrorists murdered Lucy Dee and her two daughters, Rina Dee and Maya Dee while they were driving in the Jordan Valley. 

Surviving daughter Tali Dee wrote a heartbreaking article in the Times of Israel last month, explaining the horrific grief she is suffering and will continue to suffer as a result of this violence. 

Rabbi Leo Dee could have chosen anger, vengeance, and hatred towards the sick cowards who slaughtered his wife and daughters last month. Instead, he has spoken words of wisdom, kindness, and peace. He has even said that Arab neighbours sent him condolences and Dee also praised the fact that Lucy Dee’s organs helped save the life of an Arab as well as Jewish citizens. 

Most importantly, Rabbi Dee has pointed out that this terrorism can happen whether you are in Tel Aviv or in Efrat. This is a clear rebuttal of those like UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, who so disgustingly try to blame the Dees for living in disputed territories when not long after this terrorist attack, a different Palestinian terrorist murdered an Italian tourist in Tel Aviv, which is not disputed territory. 

It’s not about where the Jews live. Israel has offered the Palestinians almost all of the disputed regions several times in return for peace. Palestinian terrorism is about destroying the Jewish nation by murdering Jewish people. Period. This is why Hamas said in its charter that it would encourage the murder of any Jew anywhere. 

Palestinian terrorists in Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the PLO, and the Palestinian Authority have no interest in peace or a two-state solution. They simply want the annihilation of the Jews. 

Just want to remind anyone Jewish and getting an abortion to ignore things Christian folks are saying about “abortion = murder.” In Judaism abortion is NOT murder. (Okay, some rabbis would compare them a bit in some circumstances.) (Gotta love halachic nuance.)

There’s loads of rabbinic opinions if it helps you to talk to your rabbi or get into the nitty gritty of halacha. Long story short, potential life is great, the mother dying as a result of her pregnancy is not, there’s disagreement beyond that. I’m going to go over it somewhat here, but I’m just working off the internet and a few hours from a class I took years ago.

Abortion and Halacha

If carrying this fetus to term is “endangering your life” (that’s generally the English phrasing) including mental/emotional health then Jewish law requires you to get an abortion to protect your life. This is at any point in the pregnancy. At any point. Even very late.

Especially early in the pregnancy, abortions for less extreme reasons are often accepted. In (I think) Yevamot 39b, a fetus before 40 days is considered “merely water.”

In cases where the baby would be born very ill or fatally ill, some rabbis permit abortion, especially early in the pregnancy. This, depending on the case, could be on the grounds of inevitable future suffering and death of the baby, or on the severe emotional distress inflicted upon the mother. (i.e. Tay Sachs)

Sources and further reading:

Jewish Virtual Library (gives a good variety of perspectives)

BBC (a shorter and less nitty gritty summary than Jewish Virtual Library or Jewish Women’s Archive)

Jewish Women’s Archive (very detailed and gives a lot of good rabbinic options in addition to some information on where Christian perspectives come from)

Slate: What do Orthodox Jews think about abortion and why?

(This is the additional post and below are your more resources vvv )

For women who have decided to continue a pregnancy

That said, human life, and even potential life is very valuable in Judaism. But a fetus is just that, a potential human life. Generally, the line at which the fetus becomes a full person is when the head breaches. At any point before that, abortion is typically accepted at least in some circumstances. However, Judaism values potential human life. (Great story about Miriam/Exodus here at Exodus Rabbah 1:13!) Below are some Jewish(!!) resources here too for folks who may be considering continuing a pregnancy but don’t currently have access to the resources they would need to do so:

In Shifra’s Arms: runs a US helpline for Jewish women with unplanned pregnancies. That said, they tend to run on the banning abortions end of halacha so maybe don’t turn here unless you’ve already made a decision to continue the pregnancy. They offer supplies and education for new mothers of unplanned pregnancies and also offer information about adoption

Jewish Children’s Adoption Network: they aren’t an agency, but can help you make sure your baby/child is placed with a Jewish family. They also emphasize the importance of finding families for babies/children with disabilities and health concerns.

Jewish Family Services: They are nondenominational and from my experience generally run secular/cultural. (**If you aren’t Jewish and for some reason are reading this, they will help you too!**) May be able to connect you with resources to raise your baby, or to help you with adoption. Some JFS branches have a specific affiliated adoption agency, whereas others may be able to connect you to secular, non-affiliated local resources. (There’s a list by US state of mainly JFS organizations here if you just click Member Organizations to help find your local one)

Efrat: For women in Israel. This organization is similar to Shifra’s Arms in the sense that I wouldn’t contact it unless you’ve already made the decision to continue your pregnancy. They have a big emphasis on giving women the economic support they need to keep a baby.

For women who aren’t sure

Planned Parenthood is a great organization, but there are other groups that can provide help and/or safe, legal abortions. Be wary of Crisis Pregnancy Centers though as they are often Christian-leaning, and against abortions to the point of lying. Look into an organization’s general bias (or have someone help you if possible) before letting them counsel you on your specific situation.

If you don’t feel comfortable talking to your rabbi or don’t know of a rabbi near you, I’m sure there are some tumblr folks who would help direct people to rabbis. I’m going to call out @progressivejudaism (sorry to put pressure on you!) as a source for Reform rabbis. If you feel comfortable connecting folks with rabbis of other denominations if you could reblog this saying you can (and maybe add said denomination) that would be incredible. Be wary of just turning to your local Chabadnik, etc. if that isn’t your branch. Find a rabbi with the same approach to Judaism as you before looking for spiritual and halachic guidance.

I've used women in this post which is shitty of me. But it’s pretty late to change it since half of it is already on that other post. So just know that if you’re trans/agender/non-binary/etc. there are still people (including rabbis -- check out Reform movement but also others) who are there to help you.

The mother of the two British-Israeli sisters killed in the terrorist shooting attack in the Jordan Valley on Friday is still in critical condition, reports said Saturday.

The incident on Road 57 near Hamra junction was initially reported as a traffic accident, but an initial investigation found that the terrorists fired at the Efrat family’s vehicle, causing it to veer to the shoulder and crash. They then fired again at the car to ensure that they had hit those inside.

20-year-old Maya and 15-year-old Rina Dee were killed on the spot, while their mother Lea, 48, is in critical condition. Over 20 bullet casings were found at the scene.

Their father was driving in a separate vehicle ahead of them and arrived at the scene after rescue efforts had begun. The family was on its way to a holiday destination in Tiberias, reports said.

Efrat Council head Oded Revivi said the local council is working to provide the family with any requirements they need in this difficult time.

Soldiers are still searching the area for the terrorists and have set up dozens of checkpoints in the Jericho area. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held a situational assessment in light of the attack on Friday afternoon, instructing the defense establishment to allocate all the necessary resources to catch the terrorists and to strengthen security on the roads throughout the West Bank and Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also held a situational assessment on Friday.

The two sisters’ funeral is set to take place on Sunday at 5:00 p.m., the family said.

Police chief Kobi Shabtai said the attack emphasizes how relevant the threat of terrorism is in its various forms.

“Therefore, alongside our operations and that of the security forces in all sectors, I call on every citizen who has a licensed firearm and is skilled in operating it legally to carry it these days,” he said.

Commander of the IDF’s Central Command Maj.-Gen. Yehuda Fuchs stated: “We experienced an extremely severe terrorist attack. As we have known how to pursue and find the terrorists until now, we will also deal with these terrorists. We are reinforcing forces in all sectors. We were unable to prevent this attack, but we will do everything we can to prevent the following ones.”

After the terror attack in Tel Aviv on the same day

The other terror attack that occurred on the same day saw one person killed and seven others injured in a ramming attack in Tel Aviv. The murdered victim was Alessandro Parini, a tourist visiting the country from Italy. The terrorist who carried out the attack was Yosef Abu Jaber, who worked as a janitor at a school in Kiryat Ono.

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen arrived at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center at around 7 p.m. on Saturday accompanied by the Italian Ambassador to Israel, Sergio Berbenti, to visit the injured from the terror attack the night before.

Tourism Minister Haim Katz sent a letter of condolence to Parini's family, stating that "on behalf of the government of Israel, we grieve with you for your loss. The gratuitous hatred of the extremists has no geographical boundaries, and does not differentiate between religion, race and nationality, between innocent citizens and tourists. May you know no more sorrow."