A group of purportedly “Jewish” celebrities and 350 self-described “rabbis” took out a full-page ad in the New York Times falsely labeling Trump’s proposal for rebuilding Gaza as “ethnic cleansing.”
The ad on page A7 reads, “Trump has called for the removal of all Palestinians from Gaza. Jewish people say NO to ethnic cleansing!”
While Jews only represent .03% of the world population, it is an incredible level of hubris for this group of a few hundred to declare themselves as representing “the Jewish people.” In fact,. “Approx. 80% of Israelis support Trump’s plan to relocate Gazans – survey,” reported the Jerusalem Post on February 3, 2025.
It should also be noted that when he announced his plan on February 4 during a joint press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, Trump did not call for the forcible removal or the permanent resettlement of the Palestinians in Gaza. Trump called for allowing the Palestinians to leave Gaza to carry out reconstruction, a complex process that is estimated to take up to a decade.
It should be noted that the Palestinians in Gaza are being denied the right to leave a war zone and seek refugee status. Indeed, many Gazans want to emigrate. A Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research survey published on June 26, 2024, found that 44% of Gazans ages 18-29 would emigrate if given the chance. The report noted, “Among those [of all ages] who have considered emigrating, 30% say they would do so even if they did not have the required papers.”
Implicit in the objections to Trump’s vision is the desire for Gazans to continue to suffer and act as human shields to prevent a complete victory over Hamas.
The actions of these Jews is reminiscent of the Sin of the 12 Spies described in Numbers, chapters 13-15. In that episode, ten princes and leaders of the Hebrews committed a grievous and unforgivable sin of spurning the land of Israel. For this, the entire generation was sentenced to die in the desert.
The two spies who advocated for the land of Israel were Caleb and Joshua, and, as a result, they were the only two people who lived through the desert wanderings and entered the land of Israel. In the tradition of these two tzaddikim (righteous men), Israel365 Action is advocating to stop the “Two State Solution,” a political agenda to create an unprecedented militarized Arab state inside the borders of Israel, ethnically cleansed of Jews, with its capital in an exclusively Muslim Jerusalem.
“The two-state delusion is a cover for our enemy’s true goal: the destruction of the Jewish state,” the I365 Action website reads. “For far too long, Zionist leadership has helped our enemies by supporting the misguided and dangerous drive for a ‘Palestinian State’ in the historic heartland of the Jewish people – only to be rewarded with terror, war, and murder.”
“We need Jewish leaders who will courageously state the truth,” the I365 Action website reads. “The entire land of Israel belongs to the people of Israel.”
“The two-state delusion is a cover for our enemy’s true goal; the destruction of the Jewish state. For far too long, Zionist leadership has helped our enemies by supporting the misguided and dangerous drive for a ‘Palestinian State’ in the historic heartland of the Jewish people – only to be rewarded with terror, war, and murder.”
Indeed, the ad in the New York Times underscores that the greatest threat to Israel comes from within, from false leaders that follow in the tradition of the ten evil spies that led the nation to destruction by rejecting the land. To support Israel365 Action’s efforts at the World Zionist Congress, please sign up at the website.
When considering the future of Gaza concerning Israel, it is essential to understand its role in the Bible and prophecy. Gaza appears 18 times in the Hebrew Bible and is listed in Genesis 10:19 as being included in the southern border of the Promised Land.
One organization that proudly endorsed the ad was the anti-Israel IfNotNow, which tweeted, ”We take a stand against ethnic cleansing—wherever it happens.”
Gaza was ethnically cleansed of Jews in 2005 when all its 9,000 Jewish residents were forcibly removed. There is no record of any objections to that operation being raised by IfNotNow.
The signatories of the NYT ad include dozens of Jewish actors, artists and public figures, including Joaquin Phoenix and his siblings Summer and Rain, Ilana Glazer, Eric André, Morgan Spector, Tony Kushner, Jonathan Glazer, Larry Charles, Naomi Klein, Peter Beinart, Tavi Gevison and Wallace Shawn.
The list of “rabbis” includes Sharon Brous, Amichai Lau-Lavie, Amy Eilberg, Sally Priesand, Elyse Wechterman, Dan Wolpe, Jill Jacobs, Alissa Wise, Brant Rosen, Francine Roston, Lizzi Heydemann, Roly Matalon, Susan Talve and Sharon Kleinbaum, none of whom are Orthodox rabbis.
The ad’s website says donations from the project go to the In Our Name Campaign, an initiative founded by Jews in philanthropy who sought to raise $10 million for “organizations that support Palestinian-led efforts to build safety, dignity, and self-determination in Palestine” as well as pro-Palestinian organizing in the United States.
The In Our Name donation page notes that the organization is a “Fiscally Sponsored Project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors.” The Anti-Defamation League notes the nature of the Rockefeller organizations:
“The Rockefeller Brothers Fund (RBF) is one of the best-known private foundations in the U.S. and a long-time funder of anti-Israel activism. RBF is distinct from the better-known Rockefeller Foundation, but its funding is sourced from the family. Both are headquartered in New York City.”
The Rockefeller organizations fund some of the most anti-Israel organizations, including Jewish Voices for Peace, Palestine Legal, Breaking the Silence, Al-Shabaka/The Palestinian Policy Network, Adalah Justice Project, IfNotNow, and some of its board members are associated with the New Israel Fund.
RFB indirectly provided support for the antisemitic protests that took over campuses after the Oct. 7 massacre.
