Middletown Mayor, Other NJ Republicans Visit Israel This Week

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Middletown Mayor Tony Perry is in Israel Monday. He will be there until Wednesday, as part of a three-day trip organized and funded by the Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest NJ.

Here is a description of the trip on the Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest NJ's website.

Perry made the trip with 22 people total, including New Jersey school superintendents (they did not name which districts) and other NJ state legislators, including Point Pleasant Beach Mayor/Assemblyman Paul Kanitra (NJ10), Assemblymen Michael Inganamort (NJ24) and Greg Myhre (NJ9).

All three are Republicans who just won election to the NJ state Assembly in November. Perry is also a Republican.

“As the mayor of one of the state’s largest towns (Middletown), it is critical to show support for Israel and our Jewish community during this time of war,” said Perry of why he chose to go. "I’m honored to have to the opportunity to understand the complexities of the situation firsthand, hear the stories of those most affected, and see the efforts towards recovery and healing.”

New Jersey is home to one of the largest Jewish populations in the United States.

“This is a unique opportunity to connect with families devastated by the brutal Hamas attacks on Israel,” the four Republicans said in this press release about the trip from the New Jersey Senate Republican office.

The trip was paid for by the Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest NJ. No taxpayer dollars were used for this delegation's trip, according to Middletown Township. (Point Pleasant Beach Mayor Kanitra told NJ101.5 he paid his own way.)

The visit is not without controversy, with some calling it a "propaganda trip."

Former NJ Democratic assemblyman Sadaf Jaffer wrote Jan. 20 on his Facebook page "it is wrong for New Jersey legislators to go on a trip sponsored by the Israeli government as bombs are dropping & killing 100 Palestinian children a day."

Also, two Jewish groups — Jewish Voice for Peace of Northern New Jersey and Central New Jersey, and If Not Now NJ (both of which have caused for a cease-fire in Israel's war with Hamas) — sent the lawmakers this open letter Jan. 9:

"We ask you to consider that this trip will not be a genuine fact-finding mission, but rather a trip designed to expose you to an entirely one-sided view of the situation in an effort to try to whitewash Israel’s current actions in Gaza," they wrote.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest NJ called it "the first fact-finding trip of its kind in (the group's) history."

"We will speak with some of the families of the more than 130 hostages still being held captive, more than 100 days later. And we will speak with Israeli Arabs and others to hear their hopes for the future and thoughts about peace and coexistence," said the group on its website. "For our part, we believe in the importance of bringing people to the region to see with their own eyes what Hamas has wrought."

Group will visit Kibbutz Kfar Aza and Ofakim; Perry will give American flag to Israeli mayor

Their first stop will be Kibbutz Kfar Aza. This is the now-infamous kibbutz on the Gaza border that was targeted by Hamas in the surprise attack on Oct. 7. More than 60 residents of Kibbutz Kfar Aza were killed that day, including children. 17 people were kidnapped from that kibbutz; four of them remain held hostage in Gaza as of today.

They will next stop at Ofakim, a small city approximately 18 miles east of the Gaza Strip. The city had 40 residents killed in the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks, and residents taken captive. On behalf of the residents of Middletown, Mayor Perry will present an American flag to Ofakim Mayor Yitzhak Danino.

Perry said Middletown feels kinship to people in Israel because Middletown has also been affected by terrorism: Middletown saw 37 residents killed in the Sept. 11 terrorism attacks.

“Middletown is no stranger to the tragic and devastating act of terrorism, and we hope this gesture shows how much we share in the overwhelming grief felt by Israel and the world,” said Perry.

The American group will also deliver letters from local New Jersey students to Muslim and Jewish students at Hand in Hand School in Jerusalem, in the hopes of fostering cultural exchange and understanding. Additionally, they will meet Israeli volunteer groups leading relief efforts near the Gaza border. Their visit also includes a stop at the Hadassah Hospital, where they will spend time with patients injured in the war.

The four men are also supposed to have meetings with members of Knesset, Israel's legislative body.

"By hearing from primary sources, participants will engage in the complexities of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. By meeting with Israeli Jews and Arabs, Ethiopian Jews, and members of the Druze community, participants will see the diversity of Israeli society. We will encourage everyone to ask tough questions, wrestle with issues, and observe what Israel means to the people who live there, both Jews and Arabs," said Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest NJ Director Linda Scherzer in this trip description.

"For some of the school superintendents, it was a brave decision to join us, not because they’re travelling to a country at war, but because of the criticism their trip has generated at home," she continued. "Many school districts have been dealing with enormous tensions around the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Several high schools have faced student walkouts in support of the Palestinian cause, creating fear and anxiety for many Jewish students. Board of Ed meetings have devolved into angry confrontations between parents who feel their children – whether Jewish or Muslim – have not been properly supported in school. A surge of antisemitism and Islamophobia has been playing out in classrooms, libraries and social media. Parents are worried about the safety of their children. Students are worried about losing friends as they watch the debates play out on their social media feeds. School administrators have been searching for ways to bring balanced conversations and proper civil discourse into the classroom."