Policing questions
I was interested to read the article from Ben Russell, deputy assistant commissioner of the Met Police (As Britain’s most senior Jewish police officer, let me assure you: the Met is doing everything to protect you, JC, April 10).
While I accept much of what he says, he fails to say, or maybe does not know, that recently the commissioner removed the most important police officers as far as religious communities are concerned – faith officers. Ben mentioned 264 extra community officers but these officers mainly have no knowledge of the various faiths they are expected to deal with. From my experience, nice as most of them are, the majority have never been to a synagogue, temple, Islamic centre or other faith building and have little knowledge of the various religions, whereas the faith officers make a point of doing so.
So why did Sir Mark Rowley make this very poor decision, which I understand was very much opposed by the Board of Deputies, CST and very many other religious leaders?
I had the opportunity to ask Sir Mark recently at a meeting why he was removing the faith officers, which means that there would only be a few dedicated and specialised officers. His answer was the Met does not have the resources! However, that cannot be correct since the government, via CST for the Jewish communities, and via another source for the other religions, has increased the funding for all faiths.
Surely recent terrible events only underline that faith officers are a very important division needed by the Met and they should return to duty immediately.
Joe Burchell,
Honorary Life President of Catford Synagogue
Israeli politics
Like Stephen Pollard I was appalled by the sight of Itamar Ben-Gvir celebrating the passing of a bill by the Knesset that enabled the death penalty for deadly acts of terrorism (Itamar Ben-Gvir’s revolting celebration of death, JC, April 3).
And like Pollard, I am against the death penalty because it isn’t an effective deterrent and because there are too many miscarriages of justice. It will also create martyrs.
President Herzog’s admission that more than 250 acts of settler violence in the West Bank are fuelling hatred against Jews around the world is also disturbing (Herzog: Settler violence “fuels hatred” against Jews worldwide, JC, April 3). He noted that these acts of violence contradict the values on which Israel was founded, and harm the ethical tradition of the Jewish people, with its emphasis on the sanctity of human life. The Israeli government has just approved 34 new West Bank settlements.
How are diaspora Jews supposed to react to unsavoury events that we are unable to influence? Do we simply take an upsurge in antisemitism on the chin? Is our unquestioning support of Netanyahu’s extreme politics taken for granted?
Stan Labovitch
Windsor
Though I do not share his view that the tide has turned against a safe future for Jews in this country, I well understand the point made by Daniel Baum (Letters, April 3) in his advocacy of aliyah that Jews in Israel are, as he puts it, at home and not in somebody else’s country waiting and hoping that they will protect them.
More’s the pity, though, that two and a half years ago Israel failed to detect the irruption of the Hamas cutthroats in time to save their victims.
The best you seem to get from partisans of the Netanyahu government are weak excuses – if they don’t shy away from addressing the question at all.
Jeffrey Lewis
Whitefield
Burning issue
I have been fascinated by the recent crop of photos in all the newspapers of groups of men in Islamic countries burning the US and Israeli national flags.
Where do they get them, do they keep a supply on hand and, more importantly, where do they source them?
I have this lovely picture in my mind of a small business in Israel doing nicely by fulfilling regular orders all round the world supplying flags for bonfires.
Carol Caplan
London, N11
More haste less speed
Rebbetzin Levin (Less speed, more haste: A motto for Pesach JC March 27 ) states that the Exodus happened in great haste, yet the Israelites sat down to eat their Paschal lamb, and they took the gold and silver the Egyptians left them.
I’ve always found it difficult to understand the great haste part of the story. Six hundred thousand men, presumably an equivalent amount of women, and presumably many children, and some sheep, goats, cattle, carts and so on.
Let’s say that 1.5 million people left Egypt, and assume that they were moving six abreast, lumbering along at a speed of 2.5 mph, a slowish pace. It would have taken at least 66 hours for them all to have passed the starting point.
Even if you don’t accept the numbers, there is still a question I think about the haste part of the story. And if they hung onto to most of their goods, chattels, children, elderly, cattle, it would have taken an equivalent amount of time to cross the Red Sea. I don’t doubt there was a sense of urgency, chaos, fear, bewilderment, as much for the Egyptians as for the Hebrews. But haste, I’m less certain. It was I think, a strange, strange time.
Lewis Herlitz
Leigh-on-Sea, UK
Far side of the moon
A rumour circulating in my shul was that the Artemis II Mission to the other side of the moon was to establish a Chabad House there.
One of our wardens, a keen traveller and photographer, is said to have inquired if they are taking bookings for Shavuot.
He was told they are full, but will never turn anyone away.
Barrington Black
London NW3
To get more from opinion, click here to sign up for our free Editor's Picks newsletter.