Current sectionIsrael NewsHaaretz TodayHaaretz Today It is easy to feel cynical or desperate about the future this place holds for its people. But spending time with Palestinians in Haifa, I felt, as an Israeli Jew, a glimmer of quiet, ordinary hopeShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeDavid Issacharoff 08:23 PM • September 10 2026 IDTI am writing this on the floor of a packed train from Haifa to Tel Aviv, a day before Rosh Hashanah launches the Jewish holiday season. Around me are passengers with suitcases bound for the airport and soldiers armed with assault rifles heading home from the city's navy bases.Loading...Click the alert icon to follow topics:Haaretz Today NewsletterCommentsLoading...In the NewsIn the News: Live UpdatesNetanyahu October 7Settlement SanctionsIran-U.S.EisenkotBen-GvirHamasIsrael Election PollsOphir AwardsHaQuizHaaretz PodcastHow This Israeli City Challenges Jewish SupremacyTel Aviv Deputy Mayor Spreads Shas Campaign Materials in Municipal-run GroupTargeted: Gays and Protesters. The Israeli Cyber Firm Quietly Arming AutocratsPalestinian Teen Accused of Car Theft Released; Judge Says May Have Been CoercedNetanyahu's Terrible Tuesday Left Him Almost Unscathed in Polls – for NowRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMINetanyahu Got an Explicit Warning Before Oct. 7. He Didn't Brief Security ChiefsThink Bibi Is Bad? Meet Sara NetanyahuIMDb Replaces the Name Israel With 'The Occupied Palestinian Territories'Netanyahu Was Warned About October 7. Will Haaretz's Exposé Change Anything?Netanyahu Says He Will Sue Haaretz Following Oct. 7 ExposéWater Crisis Triggered by Gaza's Ruin: Israel Is Paying the Price of Destruction