Sitting in my synagogue during the High Holy Days in September 2023, I could not help but feel optimistic about the future of Israel and the Middle East.

I had been in Israel three months before and experienced the vibrant pulse of a still-young nation. At the time, its palpable energy was stoked by the Abraham Accords, brokered by President Donald Trump in 2020. These agreements marked a historic shift in the Middle East, as they normalized diplomatic and economic relations between Israel and several Arab nations — initially the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, and eventually Morocco.

That optimism was dashed on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists and allied militants attacked Israel early in the morning and slaughtered 1,200 men, women, children and babies, and took 251 hostages.

Her

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