Letters to the Editor, January 24 2026

By failing to draw these distinctions, Mirvis's words and the JC's coverage portray settler violence as systemic, representative of all settlers, and emblematic of Israeli society. They also signal an objection to Jews living in Judea and Samaria, which it can be argued under uti possidetis juris, were part of Israel's original sovereign territory from inception and so were not occupied but reclaimed from Jordan in 1967.

The path forward demands accuracy: reject exaggeration and avoid fuelling anti-Israel propaganda that echoes the false genocide accusations Mirvis himself decries. Misrepresentation only empowers our enemies.

Norman Fenton (Professor)

London

Questions for Reform

An interview conventionally involves questions, sometimes searching questions, being asked. On that basis, your front page “far reaching, exclusive interview” with Richard Tice, the Reform UK deputy leader (Far-right not welcome in Reform, declare deputy leader Richard Tice JC, January 16) had a missing ingredient. May I suggest a couple of questions that your correspondent could raise the next time he has an interview with Reform UK?

Mr Tice states that Reform UK will enforce a zero tolerance policy towards the far right. Given that the best indicator of future performance is past performance, can Mr Tice explain why a succession of Reform UK candidates and officials have been reported by the JC and other reputable sources as promulgating far right politics. Reform UK even publicly defended a candidate who argued that the UK should have remained neutral in the Second World War rather than fight Hitler. Do Reform UK’s actions speak louder than Mr Tice’s recent words?

Mr Tice also promises a “major clear out” of the Foreign Office. This could be a more enticing prospect but for Reform UK’s close association with the interests of the Russian Federation. Their vetting practices did not avoid them appointing as a national leader someone subsequently jailed for 10 and a half years for taking bribes to make statements in favour of Russia. The fact that Mr Tice then pretended not to have even met that individual, despite evidence to the contrary, raises further questions about Reform UK’s real motives for a Foreign Office clear out.

David Lee

South Woodford

Orthodox thinking 

Re your piece on Miriam Lorie (Being a female Orthodox rabbi is a start-up job, JC January 9): Can Lorie name a halachic authority who sanctions mechitzah-free seating in shul? She – and JC readers – should for starters consult Baruch Litwin's The Sanctity of the Synagogue, a anthology of opinions authored by rabbinic luminaries who universally uphold the imperative of separate seating. Among its other authoritative views, the book features the famous ruling by Rabbi Yosef B. Soloveitchik to the effect that if the only synagogue in one's locality has no mechitzah it is preferable to pray at home on Rosh Hashanah, even at the cost of missing the shofar blowing.

And how does Lorie substantiate the awarding of aliyot for women following the initial two callings up of male Cohanim and Leviim? What source in Jewish law lends its imprimatur to this curious half-and-half demographic? And should no Cohen be available at a given minyan, would Lorie approve of women receiving the first two aliyot as well?

The kind of hip, something-for-everybody inclusiveness Lorie promotes is dangerously misleading. While Liberal Judaism pretends no fealty to halachah, a self-described Orthodox functionary claiming to operate within the halachic fold should indeed know better - and she doesn't have to be "ultra" Orthodox, either.

I should add that I for one have no particular problem with mixed seating or calling women to the Torah - but it isn't my call. I would humbly submit that it isn't Lorie's, either.

Abbott Katz

Edgware

Rallying against hate 

Last week I attended a rally in Whitehall organised by the London-based Iranian community – a protest against the evil theocracy that strangles their homeland. It was a masterclass in purpose and passion. Thousands gathered, their voices united in a cry for freedom. The rally was loud, disciplined, and inspired – yet entirely devoid of the venom and hatred that so often infect other public demonstrations.

It was impossible not to notice the contrast with our own community’s rallies. Recent Jewish gatherings have been feeble by comparison – sparsely attended, muted in tone, and lacking the vigour and confidence we so desperately need to display. Faced with rampant antisemitism and relentless hostility towards Israel and the Jewish people, the Anglo-Jewish community cannot afford to look timid or indifferent.

Jeffrey Leader put it perfectly in his recent letter to The Jewish Chronicle (Letters JC December 26) when he lamented “a certain blandness to our protests, a lack of the necessary edge that might truly capture public attention and spur meaningful dialogue.” That observation remains painfully accurate.

Perhaps this is the moment for our communal organisers to take note of the Anglo-Iranian example. Their rallies show how a community can turn indignation into action, pain into purpose, and protest into pride. We should be learning from that – and striving to recover our own sense of unity, urgency, and strength.

J Da Costa

Ilford

As a 68 year old Jewish person, who spent most of his life in the Bradford area, and only recently moved to Edinburgh, I am very concerned by the current levels of antisemitism, in all its forms. The situation in Gaza has not helped, but most days new incidents are reported, which are blatantly antisemitic on nature.

Is it time the Jewish community became more pro- active in confronting the issue? The few rallies that take place, tend to be in reaction to some terrible event. I believe more regular rallies, against antisemitism (and all forms of racism) should be held to counter the bile spewed out most weekends in city centres across the UK. Our local politicians, local press and radio must be made more aware of what is occurring. We need to raise our heads more often above the parapet

L Couplan

Edinburgh

Gerry remembered 

The superb obituary of Gerry Gable - who I knew quite well - (JC January 16) was totally deserved. But something not touched on and that he made little of, was his proud, staunch Zionism and support for Israel . This annoyed his left wing friends who could never understand (can they ever?) how you can be both a passionate Zionist and a good Socialist at the same time viz the Socialist Zionist kibbutzim, as just one example - but he ignored their ill-educated objections and under his long stewardship Searchlight magazine was never allowed to stray into the hard left territory of demonising Israel, but stayed firmly focused on its mission of fighting fascism, and racism and antisemitism. I will miss long chats with him in his cockney Jewish brogue, which I shared; his passing is a great loss to our people.

Martin Sugarman

(AJEX Archivist)

Supportive friend

I served in Iraq and Afghanistan with the RAF in the immediate aftermath of the terrible attacks on the USA on 9/11. When growing up as a bog-standard British schoolboy, I never paid much attention to Jews and their struggle to exist. My patchy religious education barely covered Christianity! When I deployed to Iraq and had to study Islamic culture and customs in great depth in order to understand the environment in which I was operating, I gained a deep awareness of Islam, but again, nothing about Judaism.

It is only now, as an older man and a civilian trying to make sense of this still-terrible world, that I have become a regular reader of the JC. I applaud your paper and its breadth of coverage of Jewish matters which has educated me so well over the past few years. I have never felt so much in awe of a people who have suffered yet persevered against incredible odds to still be standing where you are today. Please be assured that there are many British non-Jewish people like me, quietly learning and supporting you wherever we can. And I sincerely hope that with further learning and understanding spread throughout this country, we can make this world a little less terrible yet.

Ben Hale (Flt Lt RAF Retd)

Flimwell, East Sussex