A century ago, it was commonplace to find Jewish communities in small towns throughout the American Midwest. But since World War II, these communities have dwindled and their synagogues gradually closed. Not so the B’nai Jacob congregation in Ottumwa, Iowa, as Ryan Schuessler writes:

When the temple was founded in 1915, it numbered several hundred people. Today there are just seven members, and they know the inevitable is looming: B’nai Jacob will soon dissolve, joining the list of small-town synagogues that have disappeared, closing a critical chapter of Iowa’s Jewish story. . . .

The decline of Iowa’s small-town synagogues is tied to the decline of small-town Iowa itself. Iowa’s metropolitan areas have grown by more than 60 percent since 1950 and are now home to the majority of Iowa’s population, and the majority of Iowa’s Jews. On the other hand, rural [areas] and smaller towns like Ottumwa—home to the majority of Iowa’s population a century ago—have seen steady decline.

Ottumwa, founded in the mid-1800s, first boomed as a coalmining hub. As the town and region grew, Jews from Central and Eastern Europe arrived as merchants, opening furniture, shoe, and dry-goods stores. Their children and grandchildren went off to college. Few returned, finding better opportunities elsewhere, as small-town Iowa’s economy collapsed.

Considering the current state of Israel-Arab relations, Ghaith al-Omari writes

First and foremost, no ceasefire will be possible without the release of Israeli hostages and commitments to disarm Hamas and remove it from power. The final say on these matters rests with Hamas commanders on the ground in Gaza, who have been largely impervious to foreign pressure so far. At minimum, however, the United States should insist that Qatari and Egyptian mediators push Hamas’s external leadership to accept these conditions publicly, which could increase pressure on the group’s Gaza leadership.

Washington should also demand a clear, public position from key Arab states regarding disarmament. The Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas endorsed this position in a June letter to Saudi Arabia and France, giving Arab states Palestinian cover for endorsing it themselves.

Some Arab states have already indicated a willingness to play a significant role, but they will have little incentive to commit resources and personnel to Gaza unless Israel (1) provides guarantees that it will not occupy the Strip indefinitely, and (2) removes its veto on a PA role in Gaza’s future, even if only symbolic at first. Arab officials are also seeking assurances that any role they play in Gaza will be in the context of a wider effort to reach a two-state solution.

On the other hand, Washington must remain mindful that current conditions between Israel and the Palestinians are not remotely conducive to . . . implementing a two-state solution.