Thursday, June 19, 2025, marks the anniversary of the date when, traditionally, the Jewish people turned the tables on their enemies in the story of Purim.
As the story is recounted in the Book of Esther, on this day in the Hebrew calendar, the 23rd day of the month of Sivan, King Ahasuerus, ruler of the Persian Empire, accepted the plea of his Jewish wife, Queen Esther, to allow the Jewish people to defend themselves. This was a stark reversal of the decree signed with the king's seal by his vizier Haman, which would have seen all the Jews of Persia slaughtered by their foes on the fateful day during the Hebrew month of Adar.
This moment was a momentous turnabout in the story of Purim, itself known for the heavy theme of reversals. It is when the Jewish people quite literally brought themselves from the brink of extinction to an incredible triumph.
While it is a matter of considerable debate how much of the events, if any, in the Book of Esther actually happened, the story itself has been passed down for over a thousand years, and a tomb believed by some to contain the bodies of the story's protagonists Esther and Mordechai remains one of the most important Jewish holy sites in all of Iran, the modern-day descendant of Persia.
And it is in Iran that, according to some, a similar turnabout has taken place.
As Israeli journalist Amit Segal mentioned in a social media post on Wednesday:
"Tomorrow is the 23rd day of the month of Sivan in the Hebrew calendar—and it's worth noting given Israel's war with Iran. Why? I'll explain. According to the Purim story, Haman convinced King [Ahasuerus] to sign off on his decree 'to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews, from young to old, infants and women, in one day.' But, as Jewish tradition goes, on the 23rd of Sivan, at [Ahasuerus]'s instruction, the Jewish Queen Esther and Mordechai drafted a royal decree giving Jews under the king's rule permission to rise up and kill those who had allied with Haman to kill them. And they did just that, saving themselves from annihilation. Where did this take place? Persia. Coincidence? I'll let you decide."
He certainly isn't alone in making this comparison. On Wednesday, Rabbi Shmuel Bistrizky of the Savyon Religious Council shared a video with his community discussing the events of the 23rd of Sivan and how it ties in to today.
He mentioned that in 1983, the Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson described the timelessness of Purim, and how on the 23rd of Sivan, the Jewish people can write their own history.
"On this day, the 23rd of Sivan, every Jew, even though they are in [exile] as Mordechai was, and even though there is a darkness, as there was during the decree of Haman, nevertheless, every Jew has the power to accomplish what he wants, the same way Mordechai accomplished. We can request what we want and our will will be granted by Hashem Himself," he said at the time.
This, Bistrizky explained, applies today as Israel fights against Iran.
Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs is of a similar mind. Taking to social media, he wrote that King Ahasuerus gave Mordechai and Esther "a free hand" to defeat the enemy.
"We will stand strong together as we did 2,500 years ago," he further said, referencing the story of Purim once again.
The dangers of Iran's nuclear program, missile and drone arsenal, and axis of resistance that continue to attack the Jewish state are all often cited as existential threats to Israel and the Jewish people overall. Whether this is true or not is a matter of opinion, but leading Israeli security officials and analysts certainly believe it to be the case.
And with Israel striking Iran on an unprecedented scale, it seems for many that the great reversal of Purim has taken place once again.
Will Donald Trump help Israel fight Iran, destroy Fordow?
But others think that it may not have happened. The reversal would need to be something bigger than just attacking Iran – it would need to be something on the level of the US joining the fray, going on the offensive alongside Israel. Fully attacking and destroying the Fordow nuclear site, for example. The site is a key target for Israel's Operation Rising Lion as it plays a major role in Iran's nuclear program. However, the highly fortified target is built underground and is all but impossible to destroy with anything in the IDF's arsenal. One of the only weapons capable of doing so would be the bunker buster bombs, which only the US military has.
If Israel wants to destroy the Fordow site, US aid is essential.
In an article for Maariv, Josh Aronson wrote that Trump is known for his love of dramatic timing, and as such, it could be seen as fitting if he took action on this particular date.
"It may sound like a Hollywood script, but Purim also began that way," Aronson noted, concluding that only time will tell if the story repeats itself.