Hanukkah Begins Sunday Night December 14's Sunday Night (Erev Chanukah)

 Nadene Goldfoot                                            

One of the videos shows the six hostages celebrating Hanukkah in a tunnel in Gaza months before they were killed by Hamas in August 2024. 

Hostages and Missing Families Forum---

Two of the clips show the hostages gingerly lighting makeshift candles on a menorah made of disposable cups. The hostages – Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Almog Sarusi, Ori Danino, and Alex Lobanov – say the Jewish blessings before lighting the candles in what would have been early-December 2023.

Update 8:56am:  A video of 6 hostages lighting the Hanukkah candles during their captivity in Rafah was released. The video, captured by IDF forces during the war, was filmed by Hamas as part of their psychological warfare campaign. The 6 hostages - Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Ori Danino, Alex Lobanov, Almog Sarusi and Carmel Gat - were all murdered by Hamas in the tunnel, after being tortured and starved for months.

The holiday of Hanukkah begins on Sunday night. The holiday represents the willingness of the Jewish People, and all good people regardless of their religion, to fight for the freedom to live according to their beliefs. It is also a time of miracles, the kind that we can all recognize and the kind that we pass off as coincidence or luck. The video of the hostages lighting the candles in the darkest place imaginable reflects both the struggle for freedom and the belief in miraculous salvation. The last 2 years of wars against our enemies does the same. After it all, we can light our Hanukkah lights in freedom, strengthened in our faith that truth and justice will continue to triumph over lies and terror.

What should we do on Sunday night?  

On Erev (the eve of) Chanukah, Jews prepare to celebrate the Festival of Lights by gathering as a family, preparing for the first candle lighting (usually just after sunset), reciting special blessings, and enjoying oil-based foods like latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly donuts), alongside playing dreidel and giving gelt (money or chocolate coins), all to commemorate the miracle of the oil that lasted eight days in the ancient Temple.   Remember the runners-young men running to the next town

which was pretty far away if you're a runner, and carrying some

oil back because yours in the Temple had none left.  Talk about

it.  

Resource:

israelAM

https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/11/middleeast/hanukkah-israeli-hostages-gaza-tunnel-latam-intl

Hamas Terrorists Stalling And What It Might Lead To

 Nadene Goldfoot                                            

James David Vance (born James Donald Bowman, August 2, 1984) 41 years old,  is an American politician, author, attorney, and Marine Corps veteran who is the 50th vice president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Ohio in the U.S. Senate from 2023 to 2025. During his tenure as vice president, Vance has also served as the finance chair of the Republican National Committee.  President Donald Trump is 38 years older than Vance.  

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance arrived in Israel yesterday to advance the launch of an international task force, led by the U.S., focused on recovering the remains of hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza. 

While Hamas has returned the remains of several hostages, most of the remains of the 28 hostages who were killed either on October 7th or in captivity, are still in Gaza. Hamas claims that they don't know where all of the bodies are or are unable to locate them in the rubble. U.S. officials have emphasized the importance of recovering all hostages, both living and deceased, as a prerequisite for moving forward with the next phases of the ceasefire deal.

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said yesterday, during his visit to Israel, that the Trump peace plan was moving forward in a positive way despite violations of the ceasefire by Hamas.  (We remember that if this occurred, action would be then taken.) 

Jared Corey Kushner (born January 10, 1981)age 44,  is an American businessman and investor. He is the son-in-law of the president of the United States, Donald Trump, through his marriage to Ivanka Trump and served as a senior advisor in his father-in-law's first administration from 2017 to 2021. He was also director of the Office of American Innovation, the new operation being run by presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner. Announced with much fanfare by the president in March, the office was set up to bring “new thinking and real change” to the country’s toughest problems, according to Trump, in part by drawing on the lessons of the private sector. (a huge undertaking!)

Jared Kushner stated that no financial aid or investment would flow into the part of Gaza that was still under Hamas control, until the terror group was disarmed and removed from rule.

Leaders of Fatah, Hamas who could not get along or agree

Meanwhile, a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 59% of Americans, including 80% of Democrats and 41% of Republicans, think the US should recognize Palestinian statehood. (My question is WHY ?) They are the world's worst enemy of the Jewish people.  They only want to drive out all Jews from their homes, as they proved on October 7, 2023.  They never belonged to "Palestine" (Judea and Samaria) in the first place; but in nations around it.  They are terrorists who couldn't even manage Gaza without Israel's help.  Here is the public who is undereducated about Israel and Hamas and then again, don't even care about the lives of Jews at stake once again.  What they see on TV is what they believe or care about like they are watching a football game.  

So, their "chosen ones" Hamas said it would stop public executions (of their own people) after Trump warned in a TruthSocial post:

"Numerous of our NOW GREAT ALLIES in the Middle East, and areas surrounding the Middle East, have explicitly and strongly, with great enthusiasm, informed me that they would welcome the opportunity, at my request, to go into GAZA with a heavy force and “straighten our Hamas” if Hamas continues to act badly, in violation of their agreement with us. 

The love and spirit for the Middle East has not been seen like this in a thousand years! It is a beautiful thing to behold! I told these countries, and Israel, “NOT YET!” There is still hope that Hamas will do what is right. If they do not, an end to Hamas will be FAST, FURIOUS, & BRUTAL! I would like to thank all of those countries that called to help. Also, I would like to thank the great and powerful country of Indonesia, and its wonderful leader, for all of the help they have shown and given to the Middle East, and to the U.S.A. TO EVERYONE, thank you for your attention to this matter! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP"

Unfortunately, while the public executions might have been halted, the off-camera executions are continue at scale, according to sources in Gaza. It's also unclear what Arab countries would be willing to send in troops to forcefully stop Hamas, as none have publicly agreed to do so. Will Israel have to do the job?

Resource:

israelAM

https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/07/01/jared-kushner-office-american-innovation-000470/

Why Jewish Parents Of Hostages Are Adament About Wanting Bodies Of Sons

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                 

Some 48 hostages of which 20 were to be delivered alive of hostages are to be returned to their parents from Hamas terrorists.  Trump and others have inferred their wonder at such a demand.  The war was triggered by the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel, when some 1,200 people were killed and 251 kidnapped.

The release of the hostages from Gaza is expected to begin on Monday morning, Hamas and Israeli officials said over the weekend, though some uncertainty remains regarding the timing.

Under the terms of the ceasefire agreement reached on Thursday, the IDF had 24 hours to complete its initial withdrawal in Gaza. Hamas was given a window of 72 hours after the withdrawal to release the 48 hostages, 20 of whom are thought to be alive.

• ,    
• 
  A poster of hostage Bipin Joshi, a citizen of Nepal, is displayed at the protest camp for hostages kidnapped during the deadly October 7 attack, in the vicinity of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Jerusalem residence, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Jerusalem.
  (photo credit: RONEN ZVULUN/REUTERS)
• Deceased status confirmed on October 13: On the day of the exchange, two additional hostages, Bipin Joshi and Tamir Nimrodi, were confirmed dead by Hamas. Their status had previously been a cause for "grave concern". The body of Joshi was among the four returned that day.  Bipin Joshi, a Nepali national who arrived in Israel in an agricultural educational work program just three weeks before his kidnapping, has been published in Hamas’ list of the four bodies of hostages set to return to Israel on Monday night, hours after the release of the remaining 20 living hostages.

Proper burial is a sacred duty in Judaism because it returns the body to the earth, from which it came, to allow the soul to rest and return to its source. 

This tradition is rooted in the belief that the body is a sacred vessel that housed a divine spark, and the burial process respects this sanctity by facilitating natural decomposition and aiding the soul's transition to the afterlife.

This concept is reiterated later in the Torah (Deut. 14), where we are commanded to bury the dead: "You shall bury him on that day." The Talmud adds that burying the dead emulates the actions of G-d, for He buried the dead (as the Torah writes of Moshe).

Therefore, cremation violates a biblical command of burying the dead. Furthermore, humankind was created in the Divine image, and this includes the body, which is of reason why there are many prohibitions on the mutilation of the body. This principle applies after death as well as during one's life, and there is a severe prohibition of mutilating or otherwise disgracing a dead body. Of course, cremation is a severe mutilation, and it strikes against the image of G-d latent in us.

 The practice is also a way to honor the deceased and show communal responsibility. Israel has always honored this and never leaves bodies but brings themhome.  Today, the State of Israel has even been prepared to release terrorists in exchange for the dead body of its Jewish citizens, in order that they should be brought to proper burial.

According to the kabbalistic tradition, the soul remains over the body for a number of days after death, and cremation would be a terrible agony for the soul.

A further point is our belief in the resurrection of the dead. Cremation is a statement of unbelief in the resurrection.

• Spiritual progress: The Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, taught that death is a great advantage for the soul, allowing it to ascend to a higher spiritual state. The loss is primarily for the bereaved family, not the soul itself. The soul's ultimate destination is determined by its deeds in life, not the circumstances of death. 

Resource:

https://dinonline.org/2011/04/11/the-importance-of-proper-burial/#:~:text=Answer:,great%2C%20and%20of%20utmost%20importance.

Hostages Waiting for Terrorists to Decide on If And Or When

 Nadene Goldfoot      

                                                              Trump's peace plan:  

It seems we are in a time warp that is repeating itself.  It's like re-reading a novel over and over.  Here is a large segment I wrote on October 1, 2025.  Below I plan to find ABC's David Muir's report I just heard tonight on TV, October 8, 2025.  

  

 "This is a hazy picture as well as Trump's plan, in my judgement.  The TV program, Israel Guys, broadcast from Israel, picked the 21 points apart, one by one, discussing them and pointed out the fallacies.  Personally, the thought is that Hamas will not go for it".  

• 72-hour hostage deadline: The peace plan itself includes a 72-hour deadline for Hamas to release all remaining hostages, both living and deceased, after Israel formally accepts the deal. This hostage release timeline is a component of the deal, separate from the multi-day deadline given to Hamas for their overall response.  The plan, agreed by Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, proposes 
• 1.  an immediate end to fighting, 
• 2. the release within 72 hours of 20 living Israeli hostages held by Hamas as well as 
• 3. the remains of the more than two dozen hostages who are believed to be dead -
• 4.  in exchange for hundreds of detained Gazans. On October 7, 2023, not only Hamas terrorists attacked Israel's citizens, but their own citizens followed them and also attacked the people.  

Today,  Wednesday, October 1, reports indicated that Hamas is studying the proposal but told mediators they need more time, possibly "two or three days". A senior Hamas official also expressed dissatisfaction with some terms and said the group would likely need amendments.

This means that hostages should all be returned by Saturday, October 4, 2025.  

Remember this promise from Trump?

President Donald Trump has warned that “all hell, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas” if the militant group does not agree to the Gaza peace deal by his newly-appointed deadline.

“We will have peace in the Middle East one way or the other. The violence and bloodshed will stop. Release the hostages, all of them, including the bodies of those that are dead, now,” said Trump via Truth Social on Friday. “This deal also spares the lives of all remaining Hamas fighters.”

Israel and Hamas agree to first phase of Trump's Gaza ceasefire plan

By Matt Spetalnick, Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Trevor Hunnicutt

• Trump announces Israel and Hamas agree on first phase of Gaza ceasefire, hostage release
• Trump says all hostages will be released 'very soon'
• Trump says all parties will be treated fairly
• Hamas confirms agreement reached to end the war

WASHINGTON/CAIRO, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Israel and Hamas agreed on Wednesday to the first phase of U.S. President Donald Trump's plan for Gaza, a ceasefire and hostage deal that could open the way to ending a bloody two-year-old war that has upended the Middle East.

Just a day after the second anniversary of Hamas militants' cross-border attack that triggered Israel's devastating assault on Gaza, indirect talks in Egypt yielded an agreement on the initial stage of Trump’s 20-point framework to bring peace to the Palestinian enclave.

Offering Hamas “one last chance” to sign the deal, which was announced on Monday, Trump issued a deadline of 6 p.m. ET on Sunday night. (I am writing this on Wednesday night).  

The President claimed that 25,000 Hamas members have already been killed in the war, which is approaching its two-year mark on Oct. 7. (TIME has been unable to independently verify this figure.) (The information comes from Hamas terrorists themselves and they have been lying about their facts all along.)

“As for the rest, we know where and who you are, and you will be hunted down, and killed,” Trump warned.

CNN Update:

Following recent negotiations, Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of a ceasefire deal, which includes a timeline for a pause in fighting and the release of hostages. 

Timeline of events

• Cabinet approval and ceasefire: The Israeli government is holding a security cabinet meeting today, October 9, 2025, to ratify the agreement. A ceasefire is set to begin within 24 hours of this approval.
• Hostage release: Following the cabinet's ratification, a 72-hour countdown will begin for Hamas to release the remaining hostages. According to an Israeli official, the release of the living hostages is expected to begin Sunday or Monday. 
• From the 4th to Monday, the 13th...With this stall, how many more live hostages have 
• died already?  

Resource: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGbT8jfoKJY

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/hamas-says-it-handed-over-list-israelis-palestinians-swap-deal-2025-10-08/

https://time.com/7323101/trump-warning-hamas-gaza-peace-deal-deadline/