Transcript [00:00] So, uh, well, we want to bring on a very [00:02] special guest, I believe, coming to us [00:04] from Israel. Uh, there we go. The great [00:08] Rabbi Pesak Wiki. He's senior editor of [00:12] Israel 365 News and he is also a [00:15] columnist with the Jerusalem Post and [00:19] just a very good guest, a friend of [00:21] Rabbi, Rabbi, I I I really appreciate [00:24] you're coming on at this hour and at [00:26] this time because I remember back on [00:30] incident this is a very difficult time [00:32] but uh the the outcome [00:35] the outcome is glorious I have to say [00:41] you know someone described it as [00:43] miraculous and then your former prime [00:46] minister said no no it's bravery [00:51] I [00:53] You know, I I think if you if you think [00:55] about what is a miracle, what is the [00:57] definition of a miracle? [00:59] >> A miracle, if I could wax theological [01:01] for a moment, [01:02] >> please. I love it. You know, [01:03] >> you know, a miracle is the superseding [01:07] of the laws of nature. Correct. When God [01:09] supersedes the laws of nature, splits [01:11] the Red Sea, brings down frogs on the [01:14] Egyptians, pick your miracle. But if a [01:16] miracle is going beyond the laws of [01:19] nature, when human beings supersede [01:23] their own nature, when they go beyond [01:26] what is natural human behavior in the [01:29] service of a higher purpose, that is [01:32] also a form of miracle. It's a miracle [01:34] by the hands of of human beings who are [01:36] created in the image of God. And just as [01:38] God can perform miracles, those created [01:41] in his image can perform miracles as [01:43] well. So I do agree that this is a [01:45] miracle in the sense that human beings [01:47] imbued and created in the image of God [01:50] with God's help by using their courage [01:53] can perform miracles. You know trust in [01:55] God is not meant to make us passive and [01:58] let God do all the work. Trust in God is [02:00] meant to empower us. It's meant to [02:02] empower us and give us courage and give [02:05] us and and give us a sense of of of [02:07] bravery and a sense of purpose so that [02:09] we can act beyond beyond our our natural [02:13] instincts and supersede them and that's [02:15] s that is also a form of the [02:17] supernatural at the hands of human [02:19] beings and you know so this is it's [02:21] really a glorious day and you know and [02:22] you're talking about what the outcome is [02:24] here I think that's everything we have [02:26] to I I I want to paint a picture for you [02:30] what would this look like I'm in Israel [02:32] Right now, I'm right now in the city of [02:33] Ashkalone in the south of Israel and I [02:35] just went for a walk a few minutes ago. [02:37] As you mentioned, I stayed up late. It's [02:38] late at night here, but I went out for a [02:40] walk. I live near the beach and you [02:43] know, like near this beautiful marina [02:44] and and there's all the bars and [02:46] restaurants and there's people out [02:48] enjoying the festival. [02:50] >> People are intrepid. I mean, your people [02:52] >> but we're in the middle of a festival. [02:54] We're in the middle of the of the Feast [02:56] of Tabernacles, the Sukkot festival. And [02:58] people are out with their families. [02:59] They're enjoying the evening. It's a [03:01] beautiful night. They're dancing in the [03:02] streets. And I was just thinking to [03:05] myself, imagine had the more likely [03:08] outcome happened here. Because [03:10] considering what that plane was doing, [03:11] the most likely outcome by far is that [03:14] that plane would have crashed and there [03:15] would be 170 plus dead passengers, most [03:19] of them Israelis, almost all of them [03:21] Israelis. Imagine the dark cloud hanging [03:24] over this country, hanging over the [03:26] world, hanging over the free world [03:28] today. Had that plane gone down, imagine [03:31] what it would have done. And the timing [03:33] cannot be ignored. Mr. Mayor, the t [03:35] think of the timing on the Jewish [03:37] calendar. The anniversary of October [03:39] 7th. October 7th was on the final day of [03:41] the Feast of Tabernacles. One of the [03:43] most joyous days on the Jewish calendar. [03:45] And that day is two days from now. And [03:49] it would have been essentially we're in [03:52] the period of the anniversary of October [03:54] 7th. For the Jewish people, that's the [03:56] day that we mark. We don't necessarily [03:58] think of it as the 7th of October on the [04:00] Gregorian calendar. It's the date, it's [04:03] the last day of the feast of [04:04] tabernacles. It's a major Jewish [04:05] festival which like Yom Kipur which was [04:09] which was taken over by the attack in [04:11] 1973. That festival has now forever been [04:14] marked by the events of October 7th and [04:17] it's already on everyone's mind. It's [04:18] it's it's two days from now. Had that ha [04:21] had the more likely outcome taken place, [04:24] we'd have 170 funerals being planned in [04:26] Israel. We would have had a national [04:28] disaster. It would have been one of the [04:30] darkest days in in our history after [04:32] October 7th. And think of where we are [04:35] today as a result of the heroism, the [04:38] courage, and the help of God that took [04:40] place. But, you know, there's also a [04:42] political angle in terms of the timing. [04:44] And I don't know what was in the mind of [04:46] this of this, you know, devout Islamic [04:49] pilot from Oman who who decided to kill [04:51] a bunch of people. I don't know if he [04:52] just woke up that morning, you know, [04:54] hearing uh hearing Muhammad's voice in [04:56] his head. I don't know what exactly it [04:58] was or if he was put up to it by someone [05:01] else, but we cannot ignore what's been [05:03] taking place over the last week. The [05:05] United Arab Emirates hosted a meeting on [05:08] Sunday where Prime Minister Netanyahu [05:10] flew out there and reportedly met with [05:13] representatives of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, [05:16] Libya, Jordan, a number of countries to [05:19] talk about area security. It was [05:20] supposed to be a private meeting, but it [05:22] was leaked. The Saudis, of course, [05:24] denied that they attended a meeting with [05:25] the Israelis, because they always do, [05:27] but this took place. The United Arab [05:29] Emirates openly said that the meeting [05:31] took place. There are there are [05:33] movements of foot. You know, the Saudis [05:35] have been scrambling to try to defend [05:37] themselves against the Houthis and their [05:39] pajamas and flip-flops with their huge [05:41] army. They can't defend themselves. And [05:42] the Pakistanis and the Turks didn't come [05:44] to help them. And they're and everyone [05:47] knows that they're asking for Israel's [05:48] help in this. And in the middle of all [05:50] of this shifting that's going on in [05:52] Middle Eastern geopolitics where the [05:54] world is realizing that the only [05:56] reliable the only reliable address for [05:59] security in the Middle East is the [06:01] Americans and the Israelis and Israelis [06:04] the Israelis are the [06:06] >> Israelis are becoming a regional [06:07] superpower. And in the middle of all [06:09] that, this was an attempt to torpedo the [06:12] Abraham Accords to make Israelis no [06:15] longer feel safe traveling to the UAE [06:17] >> as was October 7. [06:19] >> Absolutely. That's there's no I mean [06:21] it's almost transparent that October 7 [06:24] was fear that the Saudis and and the [06:27] Israelis and they and it it was done to [06:30] break it up among other things. [06:34] >> Yeah. Yeah. And listen, and we also [06:35] can't let the Saudis off the hook for [06:36] something else that happened today that [06:38] is not getting reported widely enough. [06:41] Um, and maybe it was already talked [06:42] about it. I didn't hear the previous [06:43] guest, but or the previous conversation, [06:46] but [06:47] >> but you know, when the after the plane [06:49] landed, the plane was badly damaged [06:52] because of that rapid descent. The tail [06:54] of the plane was actually broken because [06:56] of the way that it was it was uh it was [06:59] going vertically straight down and that [07:01] somehow damaged the plane. So they [07:03] couldn't fly to Israel on the same plane [07:05] they were on. And the Israelis wanted to [07:07] fly a plane in to Saudi Arabia to pick [07:11] up the passengers and bring them home. [07:13] It's a short flight. It's a 45minute [07:14] flight from Saudi Arabia to Israel. It's [07:16] it's like flying from, I don't know, [07:18] from Cleveland to New York. It's [07:19] nothing. [07:20] >> Yeah. Yeah. [07:20] >> And they wanted to fly a plane over and [07:22] the Saudis would not allow the Israelis [07:25] to land an Israeli aircraft in Saudi [07:27] Arabia. And they made the Emiratis send [07:29] a new plane from the Emirates to take [07:31] the Israelis back to Israel because the [07:33] Saudis are still so they're still so [07:36] wrapped up in this need to publicly say [07:39] that they have nothing to do with Israel [07:40] even though everyone knows they have a [07:42] working relationship with the Israelis, [07:44] but they would not allow they would not [07:45] allow an Israeli aircraft to land in [07:47] their territory. Rabbi, I did a lot of [07:49] work in um Dubai and and uh Qatar and [07:53] Israel and eventually Bahrain between [07:58] 2003 and 2008 17. And I have to tell [08:03] you, Israel worked more closely with [08:06] Saudi Arabia at that time. The Emirates [08:08] have be have have become the key [08:12] uh ally now. But Saudi Arabia work with [08:15] Israel more than anyone. [08:18] and never would admit it because they're [08:20] afraid of the street. [08:22] >> They're afraid of their own people. [08:23] That's right. [08:24] >> I mean, how can you But now it's 30 [08:26] years you're afraid of the street. [08:28] >> But exactly. It's their own point. [08:30] >> If you want to grow up and be a modern [08:31] nation, you got to get over being afraid [08:33] of the street. [08:34] >> But that's exactly the point. They had [08:36] they've had a couple generations where [08:38] they've been able to educate their [08:39] people differently, but they choose not [08:41] to. So the Saudi, listen, one of the [08:43] rules about the Middle East, and I write [08:45] about the Middle East for a living, and [08:46] I and I talk about the Middle East for a [08:48] living. One of my rules is that the [08:49] Saudis always mess up. The Saudis always [08:51] make mistakes. They always make the [08:53] wrong choice. And you know, they they [08:56] think they're so clever, dancing between [08:57] the raindrops and being everyone's [08:59] friend and pivoting from China to the US [09:01] and then back to China again. The Saudis [09:04] always paint themselves into corners and [09:06] here they are begging the Israelis to [09:08] help them with the Houthis, but publicly [09:10] they won't allow an Israeli plane to [09:11] land. The Saudis need to put their big [09:13] boy pants on and decide who side [09:15] >> it would change a lot. Actually, it it [09:17] would be more significant than we think [09:20] >> if they if if they did that. So now uh [09:24] Rabbi, how how does this [09:27] what the the mood in Israel is [09:32] relief and joy? Joy in a joy in a [09:36] >> there's definitely recognition. There is [09:39] recognition that that something [09:40] miraculous took place and the enormity [09:42] of the disaster that was averted is [09:44] definitely on people's minds more than [09:47] what you would think as outright [09:48] jubilation. It's really a sense of like, [09:51] whoo, maybe things aren't as safe going [09:54] out to the UAE as we thought. Maybe we [09:57] need to be more careful. And here's [09:58] another important detail that I don't [10:00] know if it's been discussed yet. The the [10:03] Israeli peace agreement, the Israeli [10:05] normalization with the United Arab [10:07] Emirates includes a clause that all [10:11] flights from the Emirates to Tel Aviv. [10:15] The pilots on those flights must have [10:18] citizenship of a country that has full [10:21] normalized peaceful relations with [10:23] Israel. [10:24] And the the main pilot, the one who was [10:27] stabbed, who was a hero as well. And we [10:30] should all be praying. [10:30] >> Oh my goodness. Yeah. The one who opened [10:32] the door. [10:32] >> We have to be praying for his wellbeing. [10:34] Nothing would have happened. [10:35] >> He's in the hospital now. He's Indian. [10:38] But the the the one who did the stabbing [10:40] was an Omani national. And the Israelis [10:44] and I'm hearing and I'm pretty well [10:46] sourced that the Israelis, as much as [10:48] everyone's expressing relief, and we [10:50] don't want to blow up relationships, the [10:52] Israelis are very upset with the with [10:54] the UAE for being so lax and not [10:57] honoring that commitment. And how that [11:00] Omani national ended up becoming a [11:03] co-pilot on this flight that was against [11:06] protocol. So particular particularly [11:09] with the Omanis right now the last year [11:12] or so really working more closely with [11:16] Iran than most others. I mean they're [11:18] working on this whole situation of [11:20] extortion in the straight of Hormuz. [11:23] They seem to be supporting [11:26] uh supporting uh uh uh Iran more than [11:29] others. So [11:31] >> yeah absolutely look it goes it's not [11:33] just at the diplomatic level. Um, Oman [11:37] serves as kind of a uh one of the [11:39] financial hubs for Iran getting their [11:41] money in and out of their economy. And [11:44] when you're talking about a pilot in [11:46] these countries, in these in these [11:47] little kingdoms, people who become a [11:50] pilot aren't just your average [11:52] workingclass Omani citizen who decides [11:54] to go to flight school. They're all from [11:56] the upper crust if you're they're a [11:57] pilot. And that and if you have an Omani [12:00] national who's a pilot, he's probably [12:02] connected to one of the ruling families. [12:04] And those are the people in Oman who are [12:06] most intertwined with the Iranians and [12:07] most and most in bed with them. So look, [12:10] I again I don't know if this guy just [12:12] woke up and decided to become a [12:14] psychopath, but you know, there's an [12:15] important point here about terrorism. [12:17] And you know, I actually it you know, [12:19] I'm so happy you invited me on today, [12:20] but I was thinking about you today [12:22] because of the sim this must have been [12:24] this must be bring back memories of [12:26] >> Oh my goodness. From the moment I heard [12:29] about it, it's like half my mind is on [12:32] that [12:33] >> and the other half the terrorist mind [12:35] and we just celebrated or I hate to say [12:38] celebrated. We just remembered [12:41] >> the 25th anniversary [12:43] under enormously difficult circumstances [12:46] with this horrible mayor that we have in [12:48] New York which is like a having Satan [12:52] here. You know, the hijackers on 9/11 [12:56] famously were not from poor persecuted [13:00] backgrounds. They were from the elite [13:02] families and they were people who were [13:04] raised in wealth. [13:05] >> There was 15 Saudis actually. [13:08] >> And the same is true here. This is this [13:10] is the point I'm making. If you have [13:12] someone who's an Omani national who's a [13:14] who's a trained pilot, you know for sure [13:17] that he's from one of those upper crust [13:18] families. That's the way it works in [13:20] these societies. And the there's a lie [13:24] that that we are always told that what [13:26] leads to terrorism is desperation and [13:29] poverty and it's not true. What leads to [13:31] terrorism is genocidal evil ideologies. [13:35] Yeah. And that's what leads to [13:37] terrorism. And it can be a wealthy if [13:38] this guy was a co-pilot flying for, you [13:41] know, Fly Dubai Airlines, he's obviously [13:43] someone who was upper middle class at [13:44] least in his society. And yet he was [13:48] going to suicide bomb that entire plane [13:50] down into the ground so that he so that [13:53] he could kill a couple hundred Jews [13:54] along with himself. That's what this was [13:56] about, you know. So look, we've been [13:59] waiting for wakeup calls. 9/11, we all [14:01] thought at the time that it was going to [14:02] be the big wakeup call, but look where [14:04] we are today. Like you say, you have [14:05] Mamani in New York there. [14:08] Israel's war against these jihadists [14:11] that surround us is the same war that [14:14] you're fighting domestically against the [14:16] Mamanis of the world that's going on in [14:18] Europe with the takeover of Islam. There [14:20] is only one war taking place and [14:22] Americans need to wake up and realize [14:24] that that's where we are. That's where [14:26] we are as a civilization. That's where [14:28] we are as a society. [14:29] >> Well, Rabbi, I can't thank you enough [14:31] for coming on and and telling [14:34] >> if you could just let me add one more [14:35] thing. I have [14:36] >> You can add anything you want. So, this [14:37] is what I tell you. I'm going to blow [14:38] your mind right now. Mayor, [14:40] >> I am completely I am completely uh [14:42] amazed. [14:43] >> I'm going to blow your mind. [14:44] >> What a what a good man you are. And I [14:46] can feel it. I can feel [14:47] >> Mr. Mayor. I'm going to blow your mind [14:49] right now. We met once before. And I'm [14:51] going to tell [14:51] >> I know you're you look very familiar. [14:53] >> No, no, no, no. You don't remember. I'm [14:55] going to tell you when we met [14:56] >> face. [14:58] >> Well, you might recognize me because I'm [14:59] I'm a frequent guest on Steve Bannon's [15:01] show. So, you might have seen course. [15:03] All right. [15:03] >> But I got to tell you what the one time [15:05] we met before. This is going to blow [15:06] your mind. In 1993, [15:10] >> okay, [15:10] >> while you were running successfully [15:13] >> against David Dinkens, [15:15] >> right, the second time, [15:16] >> okay, when you beat Dinkens, [15:18] >> I'll tell you what I was doing for a [15:20] living. [15:20] >> I was a young Jewish activist working [15:23] for Rabbi Avi Weiss in New York [15:27] >> and we were campaigning against Dinkens. [15:30] You might remember everything we did [15:31] >> in the Bronx. In the Bronx. [15:32] >> In the Bronx. I remember his synagogue [15:34] in the Bronx was near my old college, [15:36] Manhattan College. [15:38] >> Absolutely. And we brought you might [15:39] remember we did a rally where we brought [15:41] a coffin to Gracie Mansion. [15:43] >> I I I love it. Yeah. I loved [15:45] >> everything. So we we campaigned hard. We [15:48] campaigned hard against Dinkens because [15:50] of Crown Heights. [15:51] >> Thank you, Rabbi. [15:52] >> And and we were very active. And I [15:54] remember the day after you won, I we got [15:56] a call. I was in the office. We got a [15:57] call from your office inviting Rabbi [15:59] Weiss to sit on the deis for your [16:01] inauguration. [16:03] I love that. [16:03] >> And then you came and then you came to [16:05] the synagogue a few weeks later. [16:07] >> Yeah. Beautiful synagogue. [16:08] >> And that's when I met you that night. So [16:10] that's that's the one time I met you in [16:12] the past. [16:12] >> What a BEAUTIFUL SYNAGOGUE. [16:13] >> I HELPED GET YOU ELECTED. [16:15] >> Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And and [16:18] and thank you for what you're doing and [16:20] the risk that you're taking. And we'll [16:22] be in touch uh often now that I we [16:25] reconted. God bless you. I want you to [16:27] see the tie I put on today. [16:31] >> Thank you. God bless you. And you know, [16:33] you know that sculpture you came to [16:36] Israel. You came to Israel dur when [16:38] there were a lot of bus bombings going [16:39] on. They dedicated they dedicated a [16:42] replica uh an artistic replica of the [16:46] Statue of Liberty [16:47] >> and you came there for that ceremony [16:49] showing your solidarity with us during a [16:51] very difficult time. I was living in [16:52] Jerusalem at the time and I remember [16:54] that with great gratitude. Many Israelis [16:56] do remember that visit at the time that [16:58] not so many people were visiting Israel. [17:00] Do you know that was enormously that [17:02] that was a visit that helped me a lot on [17:04] September 11? I'm going to tell I'm tell [17:06] you I went there at the request of the [17:08] may of the mayor and I I actually called [17:11] the mayor up uh to offer my help like [17:14] I'll send [17:16] uh items. I'll send rescue workers. I [17:19] wasn't going to send me. And he said, [17:21] "You know, the best thing you could do [17:23] is come and ride the bus with me." I [17:25] said, "Gee, I I don't." And I thought [17:28] about it. I said, [17:30] just to fight go over quick. I'll be [17:32] back in two days, one day. I did it. And [17:35] I came there thinking I was going to [17:37] like being great strength to the Israeli [17:40] people. And here here you were in the [17:43] middle of these terrible bombings. You [17:45] had actually had another one in Tel Aviv [17:46] at the time because I went to both [17:48] places, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. [17:51] And you were like the people of Israel [17:54] were like make a me. They were telling [17:56] me not to worry. And I came back and [18:00] when we got hit with September 11, I was [18:03] trying to figure out who ever went [18:06] through this. What can I rely on for my [18:09] um I always have to have I always have [18:11] to like challenge myself with if [18:13] somebody else could do it, we can do it. [18:16] So I'm thinking the Battle of Britain. [18:19] Okay, that's one Churchill. [18:21] But what about Israel? We got bombed [18:24] once, one time. We have this one thing. [18:26] They're getting bombed every every other [18:28] day and they just go right back to work [18:30] and they basic basically say you can't [18:33] stop us. And I'm telling you that gave [18:35] me the strength to get through it. Both [18:38] you and Churchill. [18:40] So I love your people and I have to tell [18:43] you as an American, which you are too, [18:45] but I'm going to tell you as an [18:46] American, we have never had a better [18:48] ally. I sometimes will cry when I think [18:52] of what a strong friend we have in [18:54] Israel. It's like when I was a kid, I [18:57] grew up in Bedford Styverson, rabbi, and [19:00] I was a boxer and a street fighter. And [19:03] I always like to have a nice strong guy [19:07] right next to me. I had a couple. And [19:11] those are the ones I wanted with me. I [19:13] would not want to go in a war without [19:15] Israel. I'm sorry. Right at my side, [19:17] right next to me. [19:18] >> Amen. [19:19] >> Right here. You can take all the rest of [19:21] them. [19:23] What a country. What a country. [19:26] And I don't know, I'm not going to get [19:28] political, [19:29] >> but your prime minister's speech at the [19:31] UN, whether you agree with him [19:32] politically or not, it's one of the best [19:34] speeches I ever heard at the UN. [19:38] >> Yeah. He spoke the truth. [19:39] >> Yep. For for you. [19:42] >> Amen. [19:42] >> For for for a corner, a rock of Western [19:46] civilization. God bless you. [19:48] >> Amen. Honor to meet you. [19:50] >> Honor to talk to you again.
