Transcript [00:12] Hey, shalom everyone. I'm air salati [00:14] here from connect in the Jezrael Valley [00:17] in Galilee, Israel and welcome to [00:19] another anchor podcast. Our faith gives [00:23] us hope and that hope is an anchor to [00:27] our souls. And today with me uh is Uri [00:31] Rave, an Israeli that went through a [00:34] journey, a journey of faith, but a [00:36] journey that many Israelis uh probably [00:39] found themselves going through ever [00:41] since October 7th. a journey from having [00:45] been born as a secular liberal Israeli [00:49] all the way through the atrocities of [00:52] October 7th to the realization [00:55] that things that he grew up with and [00:58] understood as a child and also as a [01:02] grown-up are totally different in light [01:04] of what happened to the people of Israel [01:07] in the land of Israel less than three [01:10] years ago. an event that shook the [01:12] world, shook us as a nation, but also [01:15] shook uh Ori's life and brought upon him [01:20] amazing transformation. So without [01:23] further ado, shalom or ra and you are an [01:27] Israeli that lives in Milano in Milan in [01:30] Italy. So tell us a little bit about the [01:35] journey of an Israeli that was born in [01:37] Tel Aviv in to a a secular liberal [01:42] Israeli Jewish family all the way to the [01:46] big world of Milano in Italy. [01:51] >> Um thank you air and um thank you for [01:55] hosting me on the show. Um, yes, I was [01:59] born uh to a secular family in Tel Aviv. [02:03] One might say the classic Ashkanazi [02:08] uh Israeli [02:10] uh my parents grew up in Hifa, voted [02:13] labor practically all their lives. um [02:17] moved to Tel Aviv where I was born and [02:21] uh my life was uh completely inside what [02:25] I now see as the bubble of uh of the [02:28] central Gushan Tel Aviv bubble, the [02:32] center of Israel where uh where secular [02:37] uh being a Jew, a secular Jew is the [02:40] norm, where a lot of things that I now [02:44] see as part of really being a part of [02:47] the Jewish people were not exactly [02:51] mainstream. [02:52] And um my story is pretty simple. [02:56] >> A lot of people don't know a lot of [02:57] people don't know that uh in Tel Aviv, [03:00] Tel Aviv is like the I guess the New [03:03] York of Israel in a way. [03:05] >> Uh it's like uh if you want to be a [03:08] person of the of of the whole world of [03:11] the globe, then this is where you want [03:13] to live. It's a city that is a little [03:15] bit kind of disconnected. They say that [03:17] in in Jerusalem you pray and in Tel Aviv [03:20] you play. And uh and I guess th this is [03:24] how people feel like when they come to [03:27] Tel Aviv, the beach and the secular feel [03:30] that everything is okay, everything is [03:33] accepted, everything is allowed. And and [03:36] so that's where you came from. And it's [03:38] it's it's kind of [03:40] where people kind of tried to disconnect [03:42] themselves from their Jewish heritage [03:45] and wanted to be the citizens of the big [03:50] world. Am I right? [03:52] >> Yes. But I would say it's not a [03:55] conscious it's not a conscious decision. [03:57] It's it's not trying to disconnect. It [04:00] was normal. The normal life of a a [04:03] secular Jew in Tel Aviv is that you are [04:08] part of a global western world. Uh that [04:13] uh we are okay we're in the Middle East. [04:16] we have to uh we have wars and [04:19] everything but uh we are part of the [04:22] western world and that's uh completely [04:25] where our natural position should be and [04:29] that part being that part of the western [04:31] world means being secular means being um [04:37] adopt uh certain viewpoints about uh [04:43] political viewpoints there [04:46] Now I see them as completely globalist. [04:50] I wouldn't say woke at the time. It was [04:52] not a word. But uh they were definitely [04:55] progressive few world views that uh that [05:00] were the norm and they are still are the [05:02] norm in Tel Aviv. Now I moved to Italy [05:05] when I was 21. I I I served in the [05:09] military. Then I went abroad to study [05:11] architecture. I moved to Milan. I was a [05:13] young person here. I stayed I studied [05:16] architecture in Milano. I met my wife [05:18] and I I became that citizen of the [05:21] world. That seemed completely natural to [05:24] me. And uh my understanding of of that [05:30] impossibility [05:31] of being that uh uh person or citizen of [05:36] the world uh came much later. and [05:40] especially it dawned on me especially [05:42] after October 7th with the explosion of [05:45] anti-semitism in the world etc. But we [05:47] we'll get to that. What I'm saying is [05:49] that when I was in Israel, I was a [05:52] normal Israeli at as [05:55] that's how I perceive myself. I wasn't [05:57] trying to disconnect for myself from [05:59] from any Jewish heritage. It was just [06:01] the norm. [06:03] >> Yeah. And so you have an a vantage point [06:05] of both an Israeli that understands the [06:08] situation in Israel that understands the [06:11] complexity of things here in the Middle [06:13] East, but also as a European citizen, [06:17] not just a visitor, not a tourist, but a [06:19] citizen, someone who lives there, who [06:21] works there, who who got married there, [06:24] who's raising uh his family there. And [06:27] so you have a very unique perspective [06:30] because you can see both uh angles at [06:33] the same time. And I guess what you were [06:36] trying to say is that in the beginning [06:38] everything fits great. I mean whatever [06:41] you grew up with is uh found its natural [06:46] continuity [06:48] >> in that place where you moved into. But [06:51] then of course your eyes were open to [06:54] understand that maybe [06:58] maybe you thought you are the citizens [07:00] of the world and that being a Jew was [07:04] not as important and will never be held [07:08] against you in a way. But I guess [07:13] reality hit you pretty bad or pretty [07:17] hard. Am I right? [07:19] >> Yes, definitely. Um, look at we can we [07:24] can talk about October 7th and that like [07:26] real realization that [07:28] >> absolutely we're going I I think it [07:31] started before um [07:33] >> look when when we grew up um we had this [07:37] in Israel it's it was always this [07:40] theological kind of question. How was [07:43] the shuah possible? How was the [07:45] Holocaust possible? It was some sort of [07:48] question that had no answer. Well, after [07:50] October 7th, I think I received my [07:53] answer loud and clear. Being here and [07:56] understanding [07:57] like how the population here reacted [08:01] after October 7th, right when we thought [08:06] uh they would come and understand us and [08:10] what we got was the exact opposite. But [08:13] even before that, I think I started to [08:16] realize that uh even though I was a [08:19] secular Jew, uh you can't when you look [08:23] at me, I don't think you can tell I'm a [08:25] Jew, okay? I don't work. I don't [08:27] practice. I'm I speak perfect Italian. [08:31] I'm pretty good in I'm pretty good at [08:33] languages, even though now I might be [08:36] faltering with my English, but uh you [08:39] don't see it on me. But every now and [08:41] again people can tell because maybe [08:45] you're tired, your your language is not [08:46] that perfect and people will ask you [08:48] where are you from? And I would say I'm [08:50] from Israel. And sometime I would get [08:52] that that look and [08:56] we know as Jews that anti-semitism, [08:58] anti-semitism exists, but we thought it [09:01] was buried six feet under. It was very [09:05] very in the background. We thought we've [09:07] passed that. He thought that the [09:09] Holocaust uh kind of brought this [09:14] terrible, you know, thousands of years [09:17] of story to an end and that it's over. [09:20] Okay, we have our state and uh we don't [09:25] have to suffer anti-semitism in the [09:27] world anymore and that the world [09:28] understood and but you know you used to [09:33] get all these tiny little signals of you [09:35] know people understanding that you're [09:37] Jewish or understanding that you're [09:38] Israel or there are tiny jokes you know [09:41] in Italian you say a rabbi to to someone [09:45] that is cheap that is like you know [09:48] attached to money that's that's what [09:50] They call him call a rabbi. So all these [09:53] kind of things. [09:53] >> What is the what is the word in Italian? [09:56] >> Rabino. [09:58] >> So So when someone is cheap, they call [10:00] him Rabino. [10:02] >> Yes. Yes. Exactly. So [10:04] >> by the way, it exists also in American [10:06] in American lingo. I mean uh I I I [10:11] remembered when I was uh leading tours [10:13] in Israel, some of the pastors taught me [10:16] there's a phrase called to Jew someone [10:18] down. So, in other words, to to lower [10:21] the price. [10:22] >> Exactly. [10:22] >> That's what they use. [10:24] >> Yeah. [10:24] >> It's everywhere, but the the point is we [10:27] know it. It's everywhere, but we didn't [10:30] give it importance. It It was just like [10:33] some sort of folklore. You know what I [10:35] mean? It's it's not serious. It's not uh [10:40] it's not a real threat. It's not a real [10:43] prejudice. It's just a a joke. Uh let [10:47] let me jump forward. I want to tell you [10:50] an incident that happened to my wife uh [10:53] here in my neighborhood. So like I said, [10:56] you can't tell. [10:57] >> Your wife your wife that is Roman [11:00] Catholic, she's not even Jewish. [11:01] >> Yes. Yes. Yes. She's not even But listen [11:03] to this story. It's crazy. So, we have I [11:06] live in the in a peripheral area of [11:09] Milano and it's it's a neighborhood [11:11] where everybody knows everybody and we [11:14] have little shops around like we have an [11:16] optometrist [11:18] uh maybe 200 yards from where I live and [11:21] we know this person for I don't know 20 [11:24] years. Uh like everybody knows [11:26] everybody. We my wife has uh um vision [11:30] problems. She used to go there a lot and [11:33] she goes there to do something. This is [11:35] post October 7th. Uh she goes there to [11:38] do something and uh it's only her and [11:41] this optometrist. I'm talking about the [11:44] person that's completely an educated [11:48] business person that is has his own [11:51] business, perfect service, [11:55] splendid person like you couldn't say [11:58] anything. and she's talking to him about [12:01] whatever. And then the the conversation [12:03] goes to, you know, people complain about [12:06] politics, whatever. And then he starts [12:08] saying stuff like about, you know, the [12:11] pharmaceutical, the pharma, big pharma [12:14] is is controlling everything. And then [12:16] he puts this word about, you know, and [12:18] it's all in the hands of the Jews. And [12:21] she's like, "Okay, you know, it's like [12:23] it's the classic big pharma, you know, [12:26] Jews are successful, so they control [12:27] everything, right? A big farm is in the [12:29] hand of the Jews." And you know, and [12:32] then he puts this. This is the talk. [12:35] It's only him and her. And he tells her, [12:38] you know, maybe I shouldn't say this, [12:40] but Hitler was right. [12:43] Wow. [12:45] So, like, imagine this. He does. He [12:48] knows me. He doesn't know I'm Jewish. He [12:51] knows her uh for years. And post October [12:55] 7th, people started feeling it's okay to [12:59] say that stuff. Before October 7th, he [13:03] would have never said it. But since he's [13:07] been poisoned, he I see it as as if that [13:12] anti-semitism that I said was we thought [13:14] was buried 16 six feet under. It was [13:17] actually only one millimeter [13:19] uh beneath the beneath the surface and [13:22] all it needed is a little bit of water [13:25] and somebody to uh make it sprout again [13:29] and it's there inside people. And what [13:32] happened is that's look I'm here I don't [13:34] watch TV but if I watch TV and the news [13:38] is on ever since October 7th there has [13:40] not been a single day that the news [13:43] didn't speak about Gaza. [13:45] every single day for more than 1,000 [13:49] days. Now, you can imagine what they're [13:51] saying is because nobody talks about [13:54] October 7th. That was one day. Now, it's [13:57] 10. Now, it's 1,000 days of genocide and [14:01] famine and starvation and Israel [14:03] bombarding. Nobody gives the context. [14:06] So, what I'm seeing is that there is a [14:08] system that [14:11] slowly but thoroughly is feeding the [14:15] anti-semitism and making it grow and [14:18] making it legitimate up to the point [14:21] where such people that you would never [14:23] ever suspect to be anything other than a [14:28] normal citizen, law-abiding citizen [14:30] would say such a thing to another [14:33] person. Okay, that's the story we're [14:37] dealing with. [14:38] >> And that's unbelievable. It's [14:40] unbelievable [14:42] >> when something like this happens to you, [14:45] >> you know that all the masks are off. You [14:48] really realize what you're dealing with. [14:51] >> So, where where did October 7th catch [14:54] you? Where were you? What I mean, [14:56] obviously Saturday morning. Uh, [14:59] obviously an hour early. You're an hour [15:02] earlier in in in Milano. [15:04] >> Um, an hour. [15:06] >> Yeah. Earlier. Yes. It was 5 in the [15:09] morning. [15:09] I exactly I was here in Milano. The [15:12] context is I work for an Israeli [15:14] company. I used to work for an Israeli [15:16] company for 15 years. Uh global company [15:19] doing e-commerce. So we were I was [15:21] constantly working also on Saturdays on [15:23] weekends daily contact with Israel and [15:27] um but I don't remember exactly when [15:31] when I understood something really [15:33] serious happened. at maybe 8:00 in the [15:35] morning and there was just a continuous [15:39] uh [15:41] unfolding of horrors but in the in the [15:45] beginning it was not even the horrors [15:46] you would see I don't know the guys on [15:48] the jeep in st you would see that kind [15:51] of videos and understanding something [15:53] major is happening without understanding [15:55] what it was that evening me and my wife [15:58] we had to we had dinner with friends uh [16:01] uh we didn't cancel we went out to [16:03] dinner And uh I think when we were there [16:07] I right two hours before that I started [16:10] realizing the magnitude and at that [16:12] point we were talking only about 200 uh [16:15] dead people that was in the evening. So [16:18] the scale was completely unknown. [16:21] Now after that uh it was uh I think like [16:26] everybody a terrible two weeks of shock [16:29] and and uh and trying to grapple with [16:33] with what's going on and understanding [16:36] what's going on and what went wrong and [16:38] like any Israeli across the world I [16:40] don't think my experience was different. [16:42] What I did do and maybe this is how we [16:44] got to know each other. What I did do [16:47] since I was I you know I was abroad I [16:49] couldn't go to Israel to fight. It's not [16:52] uh it's not something I could have done. [16:54] Uh I I felt I needed to do something to [16:58] to share something to and I'm not a very [17:02] social media person but I I opened an ex [17:05] account a Twitter account uh called [17:08] Hamas atrocities and um I started [17:11] publishing all the videos that I found [17:13] on on Telegram and yeah I'm not the only [17:16] person [17:17] >> I want to say I I I want to say that you [17:19] did an excellent job quite a few times I [17:23] I actually for uh kind of shared and [17:25] forwarded [17:27] >> uh and retweeted that as well. You [17:30] caught my attention and I honestly [17:33] I I I kind of I was wondering at what [17:36] point [17:37] >> they're going to uh suspend your account [17:40] because [17:42] they can't they can't handle the truth. [17:44] It's too much. It's too I mean they [17:47] don't mind echoing horrific things that [17:50] are said about us, but when you put that [17:53] mirror, you don't even say something [17:55] against him. All you do is show them a [17:58] video of them doing those things. [18:01] >> That is too much for them. [18:04] >> And I guess there was mass reporting [18:08] that caused X to [18:10] >> uh I guess [18:12] >> currently pull down. Currently my [18:14] account my account is suspended after uh [18:17] three four four or five days ago. Uh my [18:20] account was suspended due to a mass [18:22] reporting of my profile image. Uh by the [18:25] way for years I had the profile image of [18:27] the image of the of the hostages posters [18:30] and once all the hostages came back I [18:33] was uh I felt I could change it to [18:36] something different and it was a [18:38] difficult choice. one image was uh [18:41] removed and I chose another image where [18:43] I tried to follow uh X's media policy [18:49] but I guess it wasn't enough and now uh [18:52] I was mass reported again and my account [18:55] is suspended and next week this week I'm [18:57] going to sue X to have my account back. [19:01] I I reached 189,000 followers. Jeff [19:05] Bezos is a follower just to to do a name [19:09] drop here. It's and it's been I actually [19:12] I'm actually quite surprised I wasn't [19:14] banned before. Uh I think [19:17] >> that's that's what I meant when I saw [19:19] the content. I thought, man, this guy is [19:22] giving them uh so so just for the sake [19:26] of of of everybody's uh understanding. [19:29] And by the way, we're going to put here [19:30] in the lower third uh a screenshot of of [19:34] what your X uh account uh uh is. And so [19:39] people can actually maybe uh also write [19:42] to X and ask that they will restore it. [19:45] Um but uh um basically what you decided [19:51] to do is not to sit and do nothing uh is [19:56] to at least at least show the world what [20:00] really happened because the world is not [20:04] informed. The problem is that I mean [20:07] people I see protests and when reporters [20:11] come to those protesters and ask them so [20:15] how did it all start? They have no clue [20:17] that there was an October 7th. They [20:19] believe that October 7th is related to [20:22] Israel invading Gaza not to anything [20:25] that happened between Hamas and Israel [20:29] that Hamas invaded Israel. That's [20:31] actually how it all started. I think [20:33] they don't know that. I think they don't [20:34] understand that if you remove names and [20:37] you just told them what was done without [20:41] telling who did what, who did to whom, [20:45] okay? If you just told them what [20:48] happened, they would all root for Israel [20:51] and and against Hamas, but the minute [20:54] the minute they understand that it's [20:56] Hamas that did that to Israel, [20:58] suddenly it's okay. suddenly. But again, [21:01] I'm I'm a big I'm a big fan of your [21:06] courage now. So, so here you are. [21:09] October 7th happened. You understand the [21:12] magnitude of the event. [21:14] What led you to take action? I mean, was [21:18] it overnight? Was it over a week or two? [21:24] Tell us a little bit about that because [21:26] a lot of people wish they either have [21:29] the courage or they think they're not [21:32] good enough to be a soldier in that [21:35] battle. So, well, tell us about [21:38] yourself. [21:40] >> Uh, I think it started from basic [21:43] frustration. I had no goal to become [21:46] big. I had no idea I would become a big [21:50] uh account. Uh, I just sat here. It was [21:54] extremely sad and extremely horrifying. [21:57] And by the way, a year before October [21:59] 7th, Elon Musk bought Twitter and and [22:02] and removed. I'm I'm I follow politics a [22:06] lot. I follow all the tech world and all [22:10] all those issues for quite some times. [22:12] And I felt okay, this is the right time [22:16] to use [22:18] because it's where influence really [22:20] happens. And now it's finally free to to [22:23] be able to post the truth without being [22:26] subjected to too much censorship. And I [22:30] just felt it was it was something that I [22:33] should do. And it it came out of [22:35] frustration. I had no idea where it was [22:37] going to lead me. Uh by the way, but I [22:40] did take a I did take a a conscious [22:43] decision. Uh look, I'm an Israeli. I [22:46] live in Italy and uh I work for an [22:49] Israeli company but then I decided to do [22:51] something in English and I've always [22:54] been you know on this situation where I [22:57] don't know which which one is my [22:58] language you know my language if I'm [23:01] going on social do I talk to in Hebrew [23:03] do I talk in Italian do I talk in [23:05] English do I who do I want to reach and [23:08] at this point when I decided to do this [23:10] I said okay this is too important this [23:13] needs to reach as many people as [23:15] possible [23:16] I'll open another account. I have [23:18] another IX account that I haven't opened [23:20] for, I don't know, more than two and a [23:22] half years. But I opened a dedicated X [23:25] account for this. And I said, look, I'm [23:28] not the only one who shared those videos [23:30] and the that content, but I think I'm [23:33] maybe the only one that opened a [23:35] dedicated uh account for it. And maybe [23:39] that was part of the success, you know, [23:42] because I became the authority where [23:44] people would go to show that kind of [23:47] content. Again, I'm not the only one. [23:49] I'm not even the biggest one, but I'm [23:50] I'm the one that's dedicated especially [23:53] to that. And and that's that's way [23:56] success. [23:57] >> By the way, where did you find your [23:59] content? [24:01] >> Uh, look, I was hungry for content. They [24:04] just went on Telegram and and and slowly [24:07] but surely I started finding all these [24:10] all these channels mainly Arab channels [24:13] by the way most like the the first [24:16] >> you know it's funny because [24:18] they say it never happened but they were [24:20] so proud to document everything they did [24:24] >> and by the way if you if you go on on [24:26] Telegram there is still I don't remember [24:28] exactly the name because it's banned in [24:30] Europe now which is ironic but there is [24:33] a Hamas [24:34] channel, Hamas video, Hamas war videos. [24:37] It's like, I don't know, 20,000 [24:39] followers. And that's where they put all [24:42] those videos out. And now in Europe, you [24:44] cannot watch it. [24:46] >> Now, why why would you ban that? Because [24:49] you want people to uh not be [24:52] radicalized. Believe me, people will be [24:54] radicalized by by themselves in the [24:56] mosque. They don't need this channel to [24:58] be radicalized. I think we shouldn't ban [25:01] that content. I think people should be [25:03] able to see it because as you said uh [25:07] people don't know what happened and even [25:10] though Hamas did it and try to glorify [25:15] it by transmitting it to the entire [25:17] world and still people don't know and [25:19] now they can't know because I'm banned [25:22] and Hamas channels are banned. It's like [25:25] this there's an attempt to control [25:29] >> what people know and don't know. And uh [25:32] I honestly don't don't uh don't trust [25:36] anymore those people who try to control [25:38] what you know and you don't know. [25:40] >> Anyway, uh going back to my journey, I [25:42] was I started I started publishing. I [25:45] was a very small account and some there [25:47] was a Canandio journalist that started [25:50] uh sharing my videos and then it just [25:53] started to blow up and I found myself by [25:55] the way I I I specifically made this an [25:58] anonymous account. Uh, I've it wasn't [26:02] about me. And it's still not about me. [26:04] I'm not a very uh public I'm not a [26:06] public figure. I'm probably not not in [26:08] my DNA, but it was not about me. It was [26:12] about really focusing on what happened. [26:16] And then I I started also writing, you [26:19] know, it was not just sharing videos and [26:21] also my viewpoints kind of kind of got [26:24] attention and I made some conscious [26:27] decisions. For example, one of the [26:29] decisions I made was not to talk about [26:31] Israeli politics. Uh I have a lot to say [26:34] about it, but uh but I decided [26:38] consciously to not use that account to [26:41] uh to talk about internal Israeli [26:43] politics because I understood there's a [26:46] public that needs to know what's going [26:49] on in the Israeli conflict in this [26:51] world. It's not I don't see it as just [26:53] an Israel Palestinian conflict. It's a [26:56] conflict of the western world. Uh people [26:59] will will not like me citing BB [27:02] Netanyahu, but I believe that what he [27:04] said in the UN is very right. It's a [27:06] battle between it's not a battle between [27:09] civilizations. It's a battle between [27:11] civilization and barbarism. And this is [27:14] what it is. And Israel is in the [27:16] forefront of that battle. and we should [27:19] show the world as much as we as much as [27:22] we possibly can the nature of this [27:25] conflict. And so I took it, it became a [27:29] mission. It grew and with it my [27:32] >> my dealing with it while I was working. [27:35] I I it never became a job. It was always [27:38] >> uh [27:39] >> a side hustle I would say. Yeah. that [27:42] were that gave me a lot of meaning uh to [27:45] you know to being there and getting [27:48] feedback and giving my my viewpoint [27:50] about what's going on. [27:52] >> Yeah. So let's now concentrate on your [27:56] journey from being a secular [28:00] globalist liberal [28:03] Tel Avivb born Israeli [28:06] to where you are today. Because for for [28:10] the longest time wherever I travel the [28:12] world I tell people that October 7th [28:16] began an exodus of many Israelis from [28:20] hedonism, materialism and secularism [28:23] towards the realization of their Jewish [28:27] roots, their Jewish faith, their Jewish [28:29] back uh heritage. And part of it is [28:33] getting close to understanding [28:36] that there is a God also and and that is [28:42] you know there it's a bigger picture [28:45] than only few people came to dry out the [28:50] swamps and there you go there's a state. [28:53] Um [28:54] >> so um tell us your journey from [29:00] having been [29:03] uh you know that liberal secular Israeli [29:06] to and tell us where you're now actually [29:08] and so why don't we start with that [29:10] where are you now and what was the [29:12] journey [29:13] >> okay I don't know where I am now it's [29:17] it's a journey um look I'm not I'm not [29:21] I'm not a religious person. Um I don't [29:25] practice uh I don't keep Shabbat. I [29:30] don't A lot of things have not changed [29:33] but my journey is more uh of [29:36] understanding my identity [29:39] and um so [29:41] >> that's where it starts by the way. [29:44] >> Yeah. Mhm. I I don't know where it would [29:46] lead me, but I know that like I went to [29:49] a to a Shabbat dinner with Kabad here in [29:53] Milano and my mom was very worried. You [29:57] know that I would you know you know what [29:59] it is. It's like [30:00] >> no I I get it. the realization of [30:05] the that I am Jewish [30:09] uh is is uh regardless of me defining [30:14] myself as a religious person that it's [30:17] part of what I am and I think it's a [30:21] very important thing because I I don't [30:24] want to get too much into politics but [30:26] uh what part I was speaking before that [30:29] we're in a part of a war between between [30:32] barbarism and civilization. And a part [30:35] of that war war is stripping you of your [30:39] identity. And I think part of you know [30:42] being secular and and in some way uh [30:48] minimizing more and more your being [30:51] Jewish is part of you playing into that [30:54] war on the wrong side of it. [30:57] uh uh progressivism is is uh fills you [31:03] with its ideas after it took from you [31:06] your identity and your and it creates a [31:09] void and that void is filled with with [31:13] those ideas. So I understood and it took [31:17] a while. I understood that I've been [31:20] filled with these concepts my entire [31:23] life and and that a lot of them are [31:27] maybe worthy but a lot of them are false [31:30] and and terrible and uh you know like [31:34] you grow up on if you grow up on the [31:35] left it's all very righteous. uh you [31:41] feel that of course everybody feels that [31:44] they're right you know uh but uh but and [31:48] today I see a certain moral superiority [31:51] of the left that is completely baseless [31:56] uh and uh and it's I don't know it's [31:59] difficult for me to put it in words so I [32:01] might be going all over the place but [32:04] for me it was a journey of understanding [32:06] that all those ideas that was I grew up [32:10] with were in part uh damaging in part [32:15] took away from me my identity and I [32:18] found my identity again now again I'm [32:20] not religious I'm not but I am Jewish [32:24] and [32:24] >> yeah I ask me [32:28] >> no no when people ask me um after [32:30] October 7th when people ask you know [32:32] some people asked where you from and I [32:34] was kind of hesitant to say I'm from [32:36] Israel today I'm proudly saying I'm from [32:39] Israel and uh we have nothing to be [32:42] ashamed of. Uh it's the other side. [32:45] >> I think the enemy of [32:47] >> that that's one of the losses of the [32:49] enemy [32:50] on two levels. The enemy tried [32:55] to [32:56] uh before October 7 to steal our [33:00] identity and to feed us with false hope [33:03] that there can be peace only if we give [33:07] up our identity and that obviously blew [33:11] up because the enemy cannot really [33:13] provide that. But the second thing is uh [33:17] the enemy also tried to uh cause us to [33:20] be ashamed of our identity and now we're [33:23] very proud of it. And if the enemy c if [33:26] the enemy tried to delegitimize [33:30] the presence of Jews in the land now [33:33] what it caused is such a wave of [33:35] anti-semitism across the globe. There's [33:38] many more Jewish people that they never [33:40] really thought that the day will come [33:42] that they'll feel safer in Israel than [33:44] where they are. [33:46] >> They're now flocking to Israel uh from [33:50] places that are pretty well off. I mean, [33:52] we're talking about Australia. We're [33:54] talking about Western Europe. We're [33:56] talking about Northern America. And now [33:59] they understand it's getting worse and [34:02] worse wherever they are. And actually, [34:04] Israel has [34:06] become a safer place for the Jews than [34:10] any other place that they saw. And so [34:13] again, the enemy wanted to do one thing, [34:16] but eventually it backfired on him, I [34:18] believe, because all it caused is to for [34:22] Jewish people to be to reconnect with [34:25] their Jewish heritage, to be proud of [34:27] them being Jews, to search for because I [34:32] always tell people, the first people [34:34] that were murdered by Hamas, the first [34:37] people that were murdered by Hamas [34:40] were the people that were actually the [34:43] most pro Palestinians among the [34:45] Israelis. [34:47] >> Those who live in the kibbutas along the [34:49] Gaza border, those who were attended the [34:52] festival that was supposed to be a [34:53] festival of peace and harmony and all of [34:56] that. [34:56] >> These are the people that were [34:58] massacred. Uh in fact, the religious [35:01] communities uh not far were the ones [35:04] that knew what the enemy is all about. [35:06] That's why they secure themselves so [35:08] much and the enemy couldn't go in. But [35:10] it's it's the secular kibbutz that were [35:14] super pro Palestinians, that provided [35:16] work for the Palestinians, that took [35:18] them to Israeli hospitals for [35:20] treatments, that really were there in [35:23] every forum to support a Palestinian [35:25] statethood and all of that. They're the [35:27] ones that Hamas killed and brutally [35:29] murdered or kidnapped. And why? Because [35:32] for them, it doesn't matter. You're a [35:35] Jew. [35:36] It doesn't matter if you're a leftist. [35:39] >> There you go. you're settlers whether [35:41] you're it's the West Bank, Judea, [35:42] Samaria, God, it doesn't matter if [35:44] golden height, every non-Muslim in and [35:49] in that case every Jew that lives in [35:50] every square inch of what they call [35:53] Palestine is a settler. And so while if [35:58] you took a piece of land that used to be [36:00] Muslim ones, [36:03] it's okay to kill you. It's actually [36:06] very good to kill you. It's you're doing [36:08] a service to your religious uh ideas. So [36:13] it's very interesting to see that [36:15] journey that you that uh you took. And I [36:19] will also tell you this, look, I'm not a [36:21] religious person. You don't see the [36:24] earlock. You don't see armwork on my [36:25] head. And I don't keep the Sabbath the [36:27] way the religious Jewish people will [36:29] keep the Sabbath. But nevertheless, I am [36:31] a believer. I I have faith. you can have [36:34] faith u without having to you know wear [36:37] those things and and you know do [36:40] specific rituals but I do want to tell [36:43] you that I believe that God exists a but [36:47] I also believe that the story of Israel [36:50] has been foretold from you know the [36:53] prophets of Israel you the whole the [36:55] whole uh um uh declaration of [36:59] independence of Israel mentions that [37:02] Israel was born according to the vision [37:05] of the prophets of Israel. [37:08] And and and so we we cannot disconnect [37:12] ourselves from the Bible. And by the [37:14] way, every archaeological finding [37:17] in so many places around this country [37:19] confirms the biblical narrative [37:22] >> and discredit any idea that we were not [37:26] here before. Um so [37:29] >> that's actually what Sorry to interrupt, [37:32] but That's actually what makes it so uh [37:35] crazy to think about the trajectory of [37:38] the Israeli left and you were saying you [37:41] know a lot of people around the world [37:42] kind of understood because they saw what [37:45] happened on October 7th and you spoke [37:48] about the enemy. I think the real threat [37:51] we are facing is not the enemy. The real [37:55] threat is inside the west inside uh [37:59] Israel itself. the people who refuse to [38:02] understand, who cling to the illusions [38:05] of a globalist uh view, worldview where [38:10] everybody's the same, everybody, all [38:13] cultures are alike, nobody's better than [38:16] anybody. And in in order to cling to [38:19] that illusion, to me, I you know, I was [38:22] I was in favor of the Oslo Accord. Today [38:25] I think about it how [38:29] crazy it is for the Jewish people after [38:33] 2,000 years to say, "Okay, take Judea." [38:40] It's it's mindboggling to me that we [38:43] reached the point where we and I [38:46] personally believed it. I believed it [38:48] because I thought, you know, I'm a [38:50] citizen of the world and there's a [38:52] majority of Palestinians there, [38:54] whatever. [38:55] that word means uh there is a majority [38:58] of Arabs there and they want the state [39:00] of course they want the state there just [39:01] like us you know they want so let's give [39:04] it to them it's it's so crazy to me to [39:07] think about me having believed this but [39:12] what more is what's more devastating is [39:15] to realize that a lot of people still [39:17] believe that a lot of people refuse to [39:21] let go of the illusions and I understand [39:23] psychologically it's very difficult to [39:27] yeah if you believed in something your [39:29] entire life for 50 years it is very [39:33] difficult to say I was wrong okay I was [39:37] wrong I was dead wrong and not only I [39:39] was wrong but what I believed in what I [39:42] promoted actually brought death and [39:46] destruction and sorrow and grief to [39:51] generations of people of my people. So, [39:54] a a lot of these people actually prefer [39:57] to cling to an illusion. They tell [40:00] themselves these narratives that are [40:02] completely [40:04] disconnected from reality to justify [40:07] them still believing clinging to that [40:09] illusion. And and at that point, these [40:12] people it's very difficult to speak to [40:14] them. They don't look at facts. They [40:16] don't they don't hear reason. And uh and [40:20] to me to me that that voyage October 7th [40:24] was [40:25] >> maybe the end of that uh uh journey. It [40:29] started before that it started you know [40:32] here in Europe uh you grow up you start [40:34] to understand I don't know European [40:36] Union is an undemocratic [40:39] I don't know we want to get there but [40:41] there there's so much things that would [40:43] you realize that you're part of a [40:46] a system that wants to erase your [40:50] identity in order to transform into [40:52] something else. Exactly. And that's [40:54] something else as a globalist [40:57] uh person without any connection to land [41:01] to nation and and to and and that when [41:05] you have nothing when you have no nation [41:07] when you have no identity [41:09] >> then you will do anything you will you [41:11] will grab anything they feed you because [41:13] you have a void. [41:15] >> Let me tell you another small story if I [41:18] can. uh right after October 7th I was uh [41:22] dinner like Christmas dinner you know [41:24] towards Christmas a lot of people do [41:26] these gatherings here in Italy and uh I [41:29] met few friends from it was December [41:31] 2023 I met a few friends from university [41:34] after not seeing them for many many [41:36] years and one of them about my age was [41:39] telling me uh he was so impressed about [41:42] seeing young Israeli [41:44] men fighting for their country and that [41:47] he would never be able to do such a [41:48] thing. So I said, "Hold on. What do you [41:51] mean you would never be able to do such [41:53] a thing? Would you not be able to pick [41:55] up a rifle if your country, your your [41:59] being, your your life would be [42:01] threatened or in danger?" And he said, [42:03] "No." He simply said no. Right? He would [42:06] never be able to pick up a weapon. And [42:09] it astonished me because [42:12] this person is pretty well off. He [42:14] doesn't have children. He has a a house [42:16] with a pool. he's well off and he would [42:19] not protect it. And I think the reason [42:22] for this is that people in the west, [42:25] people in uh mainly in Europe have been [42:29] living in a certain bubble for 80 years [42:32] protected by NATO that is invisible. You [42:36] don't see NATO and everything, all this [42:39] uh all this wealth that you see around [42:41] us is something that's being protected [42:44] by men with guns. But these men with [42:47] guns are invisible. Nobody has uh they [42:50] don't even have voluntary military here. [42:53] They don't have anything. Uh everything [42:56] is delegated to some external force. And [42:59] uh they had uh this period where they [43:02] spoke about you know needing a European [43:05] military ever since the Russia Ukraine [43:08] war became a big thing and people would [43:11] there was a guy that was came to Milano [43:13] to interview young people and asked them [43:16] if they were in favor of having a [43:18] European army and everybody yes yes [43:21] we're in favor of having European army. [43:22] The next question was would you enroll [43:25] to the army? Oh, no, no, no. I could [43:30] never. So, it's it's it's I'm saying [43:34] this because there's a we're we started [43:38] talking about this about people not [43:40] understanding [43:41] uh what is going through in Israel, what [43:45] people in Israel are going through and [43:47] how people people's minds were people [43:51] became weak because their identity was [43:54] taken from them. And here in Europe, you [43:57] see it very very strongly. Uh everything [43:59] that has to do with the nation is bad. [44:03] So being a nationalist is bad. There is [44:06] no rightwing. There's only far right. [44:09] Okay? Uh if if if you are uh a [44:13] right-wing leader and you follow what [44:16] the European Union is saying, you're [44:18] okay. But if you don't follow what the [44:20] European Union is saying is you're far [44:22] right. And you can see that about all. [44:24] >> And you're an extremist. [44:27] >> You're an extremist. You're a white [44:29] supremacist. You [44:31] >> look at what's happening in Look at Look [44:34] at what's happening in in Spain. Look at [44:36] what's happening with immigration. Uh [44:39] it's it's a mess here. And [44:41] >> yeah, [44:42] >> maybe we're maybe we're [44:43] >> I always tell people it it it backfires [44:46] in Europe right now. And it's funny [44:48] because uh you probably heard that uh [44:53] interesting uh article that u um a [44:58] journalist from Spain wrote about how [45:02] Europe exchanged [45:04] the Jewish people with a new population [45:09] and they exchanged a population that [45:12] contributed that assimilated that that [45:15] was uh very um you know very much [45:20] identifying with that nation and they [45:22] exchange it with people that hate them, [45:26] people that are a huge burden on their [45:29] welfare system and people that want to [45:32] take over and turn it into something uh [45:35] where they came from. Um it's very [45:37] interesting to see that. But I I [45:39] honestly believe that Europe may be [45:42] waking up right now. We see stuff in in [45:44] in in some parts of Europe, but it might [45:47] be too late. That's that's the the thing [45:50] it might be too late. Uh because these [45:53] type of these processes normally take [45:57] many years a and a change in a mindset [46:01] of a whole generation has to you know it [46:04] takes time and I don't think we have the [46:07] time when when this the the the [46:09] demographics don't give you time and uh [46:12] So it's it's it's very interesting to [46:14] see what's going on in Europe. But those [46:16] who wake up, [46:18] then they stand with Israel. That's when [46:21] they understand we were supporting the [46:23] wrong side. Now we understand these [46:25] people. We're facing exactly the same [46:28] thing. Um, [46:31] so, uh, you know, uh, just to wrap [46:35] things up, Ary, I remember you told us [46:38] that one of the things that kind of [46:40] lifted you up and encouraged you was [46:43] when you saw on my Telegram channel all [46:45] these videos of Christian communities [46:49] uh, supporting Israel and tell us a [46:52] little bit about that because, you know, [46:54] all over the world there's not too many [46:57] people that love Israel, support Israel, [46:59] But I think it's important that we tell [47:01] those who do that they do an amazing job [47:05] and that um not only that the they bless [47:10] the heart of God for his people but they [47:12] bless the heart of the people [47:15] themselves. So can you share a little [47:17] bit about that? [47:19] >> Yes. Uh I'll be glad to because actually [47:22] I came to know you and your your work [47:24] and your channel through telegram uh [47:27] when I was here you know just going down [47:30] the rabbit hole of understanding what's [47:32] going on and I was here in in Europe we [47:36] started having all those prop palestine [47:39] uh rallies every Saturday and we saw [47:42] that around the world we saw that in [47:44] Sydney Australia on October 8th we saw [47:47] uh Harvard on October 8th we saw We saw [47:51] at the UK and every week all these explo [47:55] this explosion of [47:58] anti-Israel sentiment and and as a [48:01] person who felt so Israeli at that point [48:04] but was here outside it was very [48:07] difficult. It was difficult to [48:08] understand that you're you're you're [48:10] being closed on from both sides and it [48:14] seemed like everybody was against us. [48:16] And then I came to see that you you were [48:18] in your telegram channel. You would post [48:20] these pictures and videos of of these [48:23] congregations or communities. They would [48:26] send you uh you know solidarity and [48:29] pictures with the flag of Israel. And at [48:32] a certain point I saw that you posted a [48:35] lot of those. I even posted I I [48:37] downloaded them. I posted them to ex now [48:39] I can't find it but uh I did a post [48:42] about it because a part of the message [48:44] you know the message that was giving was [48:47] not just that the message cannot be just [48:50] everybody's against us you know that's [48:52] not a good message the message is also [48:54] there's something else out there and and [48:57] your telegram channel actually made me [48:59] know a part of that a part of this world [49:01] that was completely uh unknown to me as [49:05] I said I'm not a religious person I [49:07] don't follow a lot of religion or [49:09] religious material. So, it was very [49:13] refreshing to see uh solidarity from [49:16] Christians around the world to the [49:18] Israeli cause and that not everybody was [49:21] against us [49:22] >> and uh that was that was a very [49:26] >> uh positive moment in in a moment of [49:29] darkness. Um, so thank you for that and [49:33] thank to all the people who sent you [49:35] those messages and uh they it's good for [49:38] them to know that they're what they sent [49:41] to you actually reached a lot of people [49:44] and uh [49:46] >> well I I just want to encourage people [49:48] that are watching us uh to continue to [49:50] pray for the Jewish people, for the [49:52] people of Israel, but also for Israelis [49:55] that are all around the world that feel [49:57] like uh not only that uh We have [50:01] physical war at home, but we have the [50:04] war of public opinion and a very very [50:08] intense spiritual war all over the [50:11] world. And I think uh [50:13] >> you're in the forefront of that one. And [50:16] thank God that you had a courage to [50:18] stand up and take action and expose the [50:21] truth uh when needed. Then we're going [50:24] to also encourage people to uh write to [50:28] X in order to have your account restored [50:31] and in order for truth to be told. And [50:34] uh I think they just [50:35] >> probably at some point they they they [50:38] were looking for an excuse to block you. [50:40] >> I mean I can't believe they just blocked [50:42] you just because of a you know profile [50:45] photo. It just makes no sense. [50:47] >> Exactly. when they know the the [50:50] importance of your of your content. [50:53] >> So, [50:54] >> look, we shall see. And if I may add [50:56] just a little bit of information, uh we [50:59] shall see. I'm going to sue X on to [51:01] restore my account and I'm working on [51:03] it. And by the way, I have to say [51:05] something or I became a little bit [51:09] anti-fragile through these years. I I [51:12] grew a thick skin as I as you have to to [51:16] be in this world and and being there and [51:18] getting all the hate. And uh so I I'm [51:21] not backing down. I'm not going to stop. [51:24] And I'm actually going to once this [51:27] account is restored, I'm going to double [51:29] down. And one of the things I want to [51:31] do, uh I'll probably do a GoFundMe and I [51:35] want to do an October 7th movie. uh you [51:38] know the 47th movie of the horrors that [51:41] are is shown only to to select [51:45] journalists. [51:46] >> You're talking about the 47 minutes [51:48] >> the 47 minutes video. Yes. The official [51:51] one that has never been released. [51:53] >> At a certain point I said to myself, I'm [51:55] going to release it. I'm going to do my [51:57] version. I'm going to do this. I'm not [52:00] stopping. And uh none of us should be. [52:03] And as you said, a lot of people still [52:05] don't know because they're every day [52:08] being fed with lies. And uh we need to [52:11] keep uh keep what we're doing the truth. [52:15] >> When you have it, let us know and we'll [52:16] post it on Telegram. I guess Telegram [52:19] will be the only platform where it can [52:21] actually go uncensored. Uh I I also I [52:26] also did something uh in collaboration [52:29] with a few people uh called uh [52:32] unfiltered October 7th unfiltered but um [52:36] but yeah you have a lot of material [52:38] that's actually was the core of your of [52:41] your channel on X and yeah I would love [52:44] to echo that on platforms where it's [52:48] okay to show it [52:49] >> but again Uri I want to thank you for [52:52] your courage I want want to thank you [52:54] for uh standing up for the truth. I'm [52:57] thank I'm thankful to God that he he [53:00] brought you through a journey uh from [53:03] having been lost in this progressive [53:05] liberal globalist world to understand [53:08] that to come to under the understanding [53:10] that uh you should be proud of your [53:12] Jewish heritage that you're part of a [53:13] nation that has an amazing history and [53:16] you should never be ashamed of it. And [53:19] um and we'll continue to pray for your [53:22] journey of faith. Uh and again, I don't [53:25] believe you need to become religious to [53:28] be a man of faith. Not at all. Uh but [53:31] take say hello to your wife and to uh [53:35] your the rest of your family. And I hope [53:37] that uh next time when I'm in Italy uh I [53:40] will be able to see you face to face and [53:43] uh break not break bread, break [53:45] faukatcha. [53:47] Okay. and uh and have capuccina [53:50] together. Uh so thank you. [53:54] >> Thank you Ori. You have definitely [53:56] opened the eyes uh I guess of so many [53:59] people in the things that you've said. [54:02] Again, we don't give up on Europe. Uh [54:05] but uh the Europeans should stand up and [54:09] should understand that the Jewish people [54:11] are not their enemy. They are their [54:13] enemies already within them trying to [54:17] kill them and steal their identity. And [54:20] if anything, they should learn from the [54:21] Jewish people to fight to preserve the [54:24] identity and to understand [54:28] that um globalism [54:31] was was never something that could [54:34] provide anything but uh being lost and [54:39] not being found. Uh and um again my my [54:44] prayer is that people will come to the [54:45] understanding [54:47] uh of of their need for uh for salvation [54:54] and for redemption. But but not through [54:58] empty promises of the world and empty [55:01] promises of uh some um empty agreements [55:07] and uh trusting the enemy and not [55:10] trusting the one God that uh he is the [55:14] one who preserved our nation and he's [55:17] also the one that is protecting and [55:20] preserving. In Hebrew we say [55:25] for the Lord will not cast away his [55:27] people and he will never leave his [55:30] inheritance. That's the word. That's the [55:33] promise and we're holding on to it. So [55:35] thank you. God bless you and we'll stay [55:39] in touch. [55:39] >> Thank you. Thank you air. Thank you for [55:42] having me. [55:43] >> Okay. [55:45] And uh thank you everyone for watching [55:48] this anchor podcast. It was a a [55:50] fascinating conversation with Ur and [55:53] please take action in helping him to [55:55] restore his ex account and then follow [55:58] him for fascinating information. Thank [56:01] you. God bless you and shalom.
