The Antizionist Criticizing Jews for Praying for Israel

Dr. Rahmeh Aladwan, antizionist influencer, dropped her recent bombshell on X: “Jews have been reciting the (Z)ionist Amidah prayer for 2400 years. It was made up by rabbis. They pray it 3 times a day.”

Guilty! I spent years teaching Hebrew school and I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Dr. Rahmeh Aladwan is an outspoken British Palestinian doctor who was suspended from practicing medicine over allegations that she promoted antisemitic tropes, justified terrorism, and expressed support for Hamas.

After the October 7 attacks, she wrote that she wishes she could join Hamas fighters, called the Holocaust a “fabrication,” declared that Israel has “no right to exist.” She has called Jews “the most despicable people on earth.” In March 2026 she was arrested for supporting terrorism and stirring up racial hatred.

Now Dr. Aladwan has a new focus for her ire: the central Amidah prayer.

Amidah means “standing” in Hebrew, because Jews stand up to recite it. It’s also known as the Shemona Esrei, or “Eighteen” in Hebrew, because it used to be made up of 18 separate prayers. (A 19th blessing was added 2,000 years ago.) The Amidah forms the centerpiece of every Jewish service.

Dr. Aladwan is particularly upset about six of the Amida’s blessings. She must have dropped in on a particularly good Hebrew school lesson somewhere, because she certainly knows a lot about this timeless Jewish prayer. She singles out blessings number 1, 10, 11, 12, 14, and 17 for special opprobrium, noting that they show Jews’ intense connection with the Land of Israel.

These are some of my favorite parts of the Amidah too. The first blessing recalls our Biblical patriarchs: Abraham, his son Isaac, and Isaac’s son Jacob, thanks God for creating the world with love, and thanks God for being the “shield of Abraham.”

The tenth blessing asks God to gather together all the Jewish exiles “from the four corners of the earth.” The eleventh asks God to help establish a fair judicial and governing system. Blessing twelve asks God to protect us from our enemies and to eradicate evil on earth. The fourteenth blessing is about rebuilding Jerusalem, and the seventeenth asks that God restore the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.

Dr. Aladwan realizes how important Israel is to Jews. She laments that “jews (sic) are inseparable from zionism (sic)” and that “the vast majority - about 90% - continue to support the existence of ‘israel’ (sic) aka zionism (sic). Not surprising when their prayers and religious lives contain zionist (sic) teachings.”

Even though she sounds like a crank, Dr. Aladwan has legions of supporters; thousands of people have poured money into an online campaign for her legal defense fund, and her views are regularly reposted by supporters and news outlets.

For Dr. Aladwan, Jews’ connection to Israel is a tragedy. She urges Jews to “repent” and remove much of the Amidah prayer. I have a better idea: let’s resolve to say the Amidah - in all its original glory - today.

It puts into words our longing for unity, for justice, and that good will triumph over evil. The Amidah praises God and thanks the Divine for creating us and the world in which we live. It asks that we have peace and security, both as a people and individually. It envisions a world in which Jews return to the holy Land of Israel and prosper there.

Let’s respond to Dr. Aladwan’s ridiculous criticisms - and that of her fellow antizionists - by doubling down on our Jewish pride.

The weekday Amidah can be found here.