Rabbi Cohon’s Response to the Iranian Attack
As you all are likely quite aware, on Saturday Iran brazenly attacked Israel directly, sending over 350 missiles and drones at Israeli cities and other civilian population centers. Anti-missile defenses—primarily Israel's, but also American, Jordanian, and other allied nations—shot down all of them, with no loss of life. Iran also seized an Israeli-linked ship in the Straits of Hormuz, a vital artery for the oil trade.
While Iran has long used "proxy" terrorist groups to attack Israel, including Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis in Yemen, and Iran's Syrian clients, this marks the first direct attack on Israel by Iran ever. It is a major escalation against Israel, a violation of all international law, and an act of war. It is quite obviously a Casus Belli, a legal reason to go to war.
Israel has shown restraint in not immediately responding by attacking Iran directly. To this point, much of the world's effort has been directed at restraining Israel from answering Iran's obvious provocation, rather than condemning Iran for acting against all responsible standards of civilization and being the outlaw theocratic state that it is. This shows, yet again, the highly prejudicial double standard applied constantly to Israel.
No one knows how this will all develop. But it is clear that we must stand with our brothers and sisters in Israel who are being attacked yet again, this time in an unprecedented way by a regional power that has continually broadcast its fervent desire to destroy the only Jewish state on the planet and massacre all its Jews. Israelis have had a sleepless night; it could have been much worse. We can thank God, and Israel's defenses and allies, that it was not.
The international effort to delegitimize Israel has ratcheted up ever since the Palestinian Arab atrocities perpetrated by Hamas and other Palestinians on October 7th, an incredibly brutal and horrific attack that was sponsored and coordinated by Iran. The Israeli hostages who still remain alive have now spent over six months in terrifying captivity in and under Gaza, and we will begin Passover a week from tonight with the knowledge that this year, in particular, we are not all free.
At this time of challenge and attack on our homeland of the heart, Israel, it is incumbent on every Jew in the world to support Israel in every way that we can. We may not always agree with everything that Israel does; in fact, it would be positively un-Jewish to think that we would. We may not approve of the current Israeli government; most Israelis don't either. But it is a mitzvah of the highest order to support Israel as a primary Jewish act right now. Kol Yisrael Areivim Zeh Bazeh, the Talmud teaches us. Every Israelite is responsible for every other; every Jew has a moral obligation to care about and help every other Jew.
And all of us have just such a responsibility to Israel.
My sermon, delivered last Friday night before this Iranian attack, addresses this question, too.
May Israel emerge from this latest dark chapter a stronger, better nation. And we pray that peace returns to her speedily and soon.