Long Island’s Next Jewish Republican Congresswoman Might Be an Ethiopian IDF Veteran

Dec. 19 2023

Now that George Santos’s short, scandal-plagued political career has come to an end with his expulsion from the House of Representatives, Republicans in New York’s Third District must find someone to run in a special election to replace him. Seth Mandel profiles Mazi Melesa Pilip, the candidate for the job:

Pilip . . . was born in Ethiopia and brought to Israel as a child as part of the famed Operation Solomon airlifts. She is an Orthodox mother of seven who served as an IDF paratrooper and as vice-president of her Long Island synagogue, the former presumably a training run for the latter.

The war in Gaza will likely hover in the background of the February 13 election. . . . IDF paratroopers, meanwhile, have been leading the offensive in Khan Younis, so Pilip’s specific military experience will be of interest. . . . Pilip also entered politics in large part because of rising anti-Semitism, which her son had encountered in school. That subject is everywhere at the moment.

Read more at Commentary

More about: American Jewry, Congress, Ethiopian Jews, Republicans, U.S. Politics

After Taking Steps toward Reconciliation, Turkey Has Again Turned on Israel

“The Israeli government, blinded by Zionist delusions, seizes not only the UN Security Council but all structures whose mission is to protect peace, human rights, freedom of the press, and democracy,” declared the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a speech on Wednesday. Such over-the-top anti-Israel rhetoric has become par for the course from the Turkish head of state since Hamas’s attack on Israel last year, after which relations between Jerusalem and Ankara have been in what Hay Eytan Cohen Yanarocak describes as “free fall.”

While Erdogan has always treated Israel with a measure of hostility, the past few years had seen steps to reconciliation. Yanarocak explains this sharp change of direction, which is about much more than the situation in Gaza:

The losses at the March 31, 2024 Turkish municipal elections were an unbearable blow for Erdoğan. . . . In retrospect it appears that Erdoğan’s previous willingness to continue trade relations with Israel pushed some of his once-loyal supporters toward other Islamist political parties, such as the New Welfare Party. To counter this trend, Erdoğan halted trade relations, aiming to neutralize one of the key political tools available to his Islamist rivals.

Unsurprisingly, this decision had a negative impact on Turkish [companies] engaged in trade with Israel. To maintain their long-standing trade relationships, these companies found alternative ways to conduct business through intermediary Mediterranean ports.

The government in Ankara also appears to be concerned about the changing balance of power in the region. The weakening of Iran and Hizballah could create an unfavorable situation for the Assad regime in Syria, [empowering Turkish separatists there]. While Ankara is not fond of the mullahs, its core concern remains Iran’s territorial integrity. From Turkey’s perspective, the disintegration of Iran could set a dangerous precedent for secessionists within its own borders.

Read more at Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security

More about: Iran, Israel diplomacy, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey