Among the pieces of legislation Orthodox parties wish to advance in the new Knesset is one that, according to its critics, threatens to impose on Israeli women a situation akin to that found in Iran or Saudi Arabia. Ruthie Blum explains that it will do nothing of the sort:

The Religious Zionism and United Torah Judaism parties are demanding that legislation be enacted to enable the separation of men and women at publicly sponsored events without its being deemed discriminatory. The purpose of the move is to prevent a repeat of a ridiculous 2019 court-ordered cancellation of a sold-out concert by the renowned ḥasidic singer Motty Steinmetz at the Afula Municipal Park.

The ruling was spurred by a “Women’s Lobby” petition challenging the separate seating that had been arranged ahead of the much-anticipated musical happening. That this was at the behest of a mainly-ḥaredi audience made no difference to its detractors. Ditto for the many other similar anti-Orthodox appeals over the years.

Contrary to the claims of disingenuous fear-mongers, the religious parties do not intend to impose gender segregation on the general public. They simply aim to allow for it among those whose interpretation and observance of certain talmudic decrees requires it. [Meanwhile, their opponents are] mum about gender segregation in the secular sector. The latest case in point is a “women only” cruise along the Yarkon River, which took place on Friday under the auspices of and advertised by the Tel Aviv municipality.

Addressing a recent meeting of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s Central Committee, Mahmoud Abbas criticized Hamas more sharply than he has previously (at least in public), calling them “sons of dogs.” The eighty-nine-year-old Palestinian Authority president urged the terrorist group to “stop the war of extermination in Gaza” and “hand over the American hostages.” The editors of the New York Sun comment:

Mr. Abbas has long been at odds with Hamas, which violently ousted his Fatah party from Gaza in 2007. The tone of today’s outburst, though, is new. Comparing rivals to canines, which Arabs consider dirty, is startling. Its motivation, though, was unrelated to the plight of the 59 remaining hostages, including 23 living ones. Instead, it was an attempt to use an opportune moment for reviving Abbas’s receding clout.

[W]hile Hamas’s popularity among Palestinians soared after its orgy of killing on October 7, 2023, it is now sinking. The terrorists are hoarding Gaza aid caches that Israel declines to replenish. As the war drags on, anti-Hamas protests rage across the Strip. Polls show that Hamas’s previously elevated support among West Bank Arabs is also down. Striking the iron while it’s hot, Abbas apparently longs to retake center stage. Can he?

Diminishing support for Hamas is yet to match the contempt Arabs feel toward Abbas himself. Hamas considers him irrelevant for what it calls “the resistance.”

[Meanwhile], Abbas is yet to condemn Hamas’s October 7 massacre. His recent announcement of ending alms for terror is a ruse.

Abbas, it’s worth noting, hasn’t saved all his epithets for Hamas. He also twice said of the Americans, “may their fathers be cursed.” Of course, after a long career of anti-Semitic incitement, Abbas can’t be expected to have a moral awakening. Nor is there much incentive for him to fake one. But, like the protests in Gaza, Abbas’s recent diatribe is a sign that Hamas is perceived as weak and that its stock is sinking.