Every time I walked into the Old City, for work or commerce or pleasure or worship, I felt that I was stepping into a holy island that held all the promises of a vacation destination never visited before. The sounds and the sights and the smells were new each time, even though they were familiar. I would swell up with anticipation and with excitement just walking the streets.

Today, the city is sad.

At the first Zionist Congress in 1897, women did not have speaking rights or voting rights.

To “rectify” that anomaly, in March, the Jerusalem Municipality, in partnership with the major women’s organizations in the country, held the first Women’s Zionist Congress. I had the privilege to be invited and to hear from some remarkable women, including Sarit Sussman, the proud mother of fallen soldier Ben Sussman z”l, who spoke poetically and spiritually, breaking through her grief, and released hostage, Danielle Aloni, who spoke uncompromisingly, with clarity and strength about her captivity – their stories were both harrowing and uplifting.

Four months ago, I wrote about “the deadly cost of boys’-club governance,” asking whether after this war, will we learn to honor and value the contribution of women to the country’s security, homefront, and recovery.

We don’t have to wait. We already know the answer. With regards to women, we are a third-world country – or worse. After all, many developing countries have a much better record than we do in appreciating women’s contributions and leadership potential. Women are not recognized, valued or rewarded in this country.

He was almost not going to vote!
I told him that he had to.
In many ways, voting for the municipal council is more important than voting for the Knesset. It is our local municipality that controls most of the things that directly affect our daily lives.

If you watch the official announcements in the media from the government and the army, you might think it is men running this country.

An open letter signed by dozens of women’s groups from Israel and around the world criticises the failure of UN Women to speak out about the Hamas Pogrom of 7 October.

She was an often defiant, galvanizing force in pressing for equal treatment for women in marriage, employment, education and more.

As it is poised to pass another bill that will roll back women's rights, Israel's government should not underestimate the power and courage of women who refuse to see their rights usurped

It's a day when the city is not being soothed and restored to wholeness; she is being brutally contested, pulled in multiple directions.

The 95-year-old Israel Prize laureate was awarded a lifetime prize by the Kiverstein Institute.