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| Gazans set IDF tank aflame. |
October 9, 2023
Shalom Friends,
We are a country in mourning for the 800 Israelis murdered since Saturday morning. It was the Sabbath (Shabbat), the last day of the biblical holiday of Succot (Feast of Tabernacles), and most people were praying in the synagogues, unaware. This is a tragic repeat of October 6, 1973, when Israel was attacked by an Arab coalition led by Egypt and Syria, on Yom Kippur, the holiest Jewish day of the year.
Since the infiltration of 1,000 Hamas terrorists into Israel from Gaza on Saturday, most of our deaths have occurred around southwestern Israel as far [north] as Tel-Aviv. Families were murdered, and more than 100 were taken captive into Gaza – from young children to senior adults. Although there are daily warning sirens, we do not know if any Gazan rockets actually fell into Jerusalem or if they were taken out by the Israeli Iron Dome defense system.
The Israeli disengagement from Gaza 18 years ago, followed two years later by the rule of Hamas, initially had over one million Arabs in this tiny strip of coastland. In the ensuing years, the population doubled to more than two million and spawned too many to count attacks on our country, resulting in the volatile situation seen today.
Our Israeli leader, self-involved in legal battles, and the seeming complacency of the military for more than a year, have brought us to a vulnerable position. This provides a ripe opportunity for our enemies. The brilliant aspect of the way our borders were breached by Hamas will become more evident in retrospect. As the world valuably learned from 911 - evil is not stupid.
Israeli Army reservists have also been called up to the northern border. With Iranian intervention in Syria for the last 10 years, and its funding of terrorist groups Hamas in Gaza, and Hezbollah in Lebanon/Syria (both sworn to the destruction of Israel), our existence is continually threatened. Iran’s financial support reaches from the UN to individual countries.
Most of us are staying near home until the Land is cleared of Hamas infiltrators; many have already been eliminated. Most commercial businesses are closed except for places to buy food. There is no sunshine; the skies are clouded. Except for the occasional, ominous warning sirens of incoming rockets, everything is uncharacteristically quiet in my neighborhood.
We are hearing the sound of aircraft overhead, sometimes at regular 20-minute intervals, a graphic portrayal of the reality now occurring in Gaza, possibly leading to its destruction. Arabs there were warned on Sunday of impending air attacks, but its effectiveness is unknown. So too, the innocents in Gaza are to be mourned, most of them trapped by leaders who have not even supplied them with basic water and electricity in 16 years of rule.
It is heartbreaking, the loss of life on both sides. Please continue to pray for Israel – we need help from the only One who is more than able to adequately provide it. Holding on to Psalm 91, especially vs 4 “He shall cover thee with His pinions and under His wings shalt thou find refuge.”
Blessings,
Nita
Reference for keeping up on the war, live from Israel, in English: “The Times of Israel” easily accessed online.
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I am open to running your criticism if it is not ad hominem. I prefer praise, though.