Monday 16 October - Gaza War - Aggregation & Commentary (live)

 

Gaza, October 2023. What did you think “Never Again” meant? 

Today’s Israel Today (page 17, Hebrew) reports that because of the condition of the remains, it could take weeks, perhaps months, for forensic pathologists to identify all the victims of Hamas’s butchery. So far, 532 bodies have been identified. The Times of Israel writes, Awaiting ID, the bodies of Hamas’s victims are stacked on racks in outdoor containers. Haaretz (Hebrew) covers the story here. 

"כולנו רוצים לזהות את החללים כמה שיותר מהר, אבל לא במחיר של טעות"

The Economist pitied Israel on the first day of the war. That was then. Now, on the third day of the war, the magazine’s empathy and patience have evaporated. “The fact that a lot of children in Gaza, Palestinian children, will die in an attack—even if it’s legal—is destructive for Israel’s legitimacy around the world.” The anti-Israel weekly intoned. “Israel must balance retribution against Hamas with the laws of war.”  

JoeTruzman at the Long War Journal has a piece about the specialized Hamas unit likely holding Israeli and American hostages. He notes that "Islamic Jihad claims to have over 30 hostages under their control, whereas the Popular Resistance Committees have confirmed through a message on their Telegram channel that they, too, possess hostages. Moreover, a distressing video released by the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades [associated with Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah] exhibits an injured individual accompanied by a terrorist, seemingly en route to Gaza."

He also covers the seizure by the IDF of EFPs, RPGs, and other munitions from

Hamas with Iran's fingerprints all over them. "Hamas’ possession of EFPs and the existence of EFP factories is a strong indication of support from both Hezbollah and Iran. EFPs are known as a signature weapon of Iranian proxies and clients."

Speaking of Iran, Robert Malley is expected to face a subpoena from the House Oversight Committee about how he ran his office as the Biden administration’s special envoy to Iran. Malley lost his security clearance, and there are suggestions some of his aides had unseemly ties with Iran. By the way, in retaliation for Hamas's attack on Israel, the Biden administration and Qatar reportedly "re-froze" that $6 billion in Iranian assets sitting in South Korea that had been released in the recent hostage exchange.

There goes the love. Veteran journalist Gary Rosenblatt sums up the thinking of two keen observers of the Israeli scene, Micah Goodman and Yossi Klein Halevi, on losing the world’s sympathy so soon into the Gaza war. Halevi said, “Israel must do whatever is necessary to reverse the image of Jewish helplessness that it has borne since Oct. 7, with the utter failure of the army, intelligence, and political system to protect its citizens.” Goodman explained, “We want Madonna and Bono to love us, but we want Hezbollah and Hamas and Iran to panic when they think of us,” he said. “The problem is that there is a zero-sum game between these emotions of love and fear.” You have to choose between them. “What we do to restore the fear will erode the love,” he figured. “And if we try to keep the West’s love, we won’t restore the fear of us in the Mideast.”

Not unexpectedly B'Tselem is trying to pull Hamas's chestnuts out of the fire so they can live to fight another day. They are telling Israel:

It is something to remember if you contribute to B'Tselem or the philanthropies and foundations that support B'Tselem. 

A Canadian-based progressive Muslim religious society (yes, there apparently is such a thing) has issued a statement signed by scores of imans denouncing Hamas and its antisemitism. The stationery of the Global Imams Council identifies Najaf, Iraq, as its headquarters. Perhaps it is some kind of oasis in Iran-dominated Iraq. Any sign of a reformation in Islam, no matter how slight, is genuinely welcome.

Mass demonstrations in New York, London, Paris, and elsewhere in the Western world took place Sunday to support Hamas. While many Muslims participated in these rallies, so did considerable numbers aligned with the Left (Jeremy Corbyn spoke at the London protest). 

Leftists have shown an uncanny ability to bridge the gap between Islamic fundamentalism and progressive politics.

 (see picture left).

Sunday 15 October - Gaza War - Aggregation & Commentary (live)

 

For the Medical Community -

Update from Israel: One Doctors Perspective | Prof Mark Clarfield MD FRCPC

Israel at War: Special Online Medical Webinar | Monday 16 October | 7pm BST

Speaker: Prof Mark Clarfield MD FRCPC

Emeritus Professor, Ben-Gurion University; Chair, Israel National Council on Geriatrics

Prof Clarfield will be giving an update from Israel with his perspective as a doctor.

Please click here to register for the event. Sponsored by the Jewish Medical Association of the UK

Sunday's New York Post front page

Thank God for all the anti-regime change “anarchists” and “traitors.”   Reserve generals and pilots and ordinary volunteers on the home front. 

GPS צה"ל הגביר דרמטית את שיבושי ה-GPS לסיכול מתקפת מל"טים של חיזבאללה

השיבוש מכוון גם נגד רחפנים של חמאס וטילי שיוט של איראן. חוקרים אמריקאים איתרו לאחרונה משבש עוצמתי במירון. החסימות מפריעות לתעופה האזרחית ומסכנות מטוסים בנתב"ג

President Herzog met a bipartisan delegation of US Senators this morning (Sunday) in Tel Aviv led by Senate Majority, Senator Chuck Schumer. With Schumer were Republican Senators Mitt Romney and Bill Cassidy, and Democratic Senators Mark Kelly and Jacky Rosen. They expressed their solidarity with the State of Israel. (GPO)

Sderot to be Evacuated. Residents will be evacuated from Sderot, at 11:00 today, Sunday, 15 October. (GPO) 

Who is responsible for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza? I mean, who needs to worry about the civilian population in Gaza? Not Israel. Israel is at war with the regime in Gaza. The war aims to remove the regime's capacity to govern and pose a military threat to Israel. So, Israel's first responsibility is to its citizens: crushing Hamas. 

Gazans have been urged to move south of the city of Gaza located in the north of the strip. 

As Aaron Lerner (IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis) points out:

Gazans are not being told by the IDF to travel hundreds of kilometers to reach safety outside of the war zone delineated at this time by Wadi Gaza. Not scores of kilometers. We are talking single digits! Distances which could have been traversed at a snail's pace within the 24-hour warning period. The distance between the northernmost section of Gaza City and Wadi Gaza is no more than 5 kilometers (about 3.1 miles). The northernmost point in the Gaza Strip is only 7 kilometers from Wadi Gaza. UNWRA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) could cooperate in moving civilians this short distance or cynically contribute to encouraging human shields for Hamas to remain in place.

Foremost, Hamas is responsible for the people of Gaza. The Palestinian Authority and UNWRA could play a constructive humanitarian role if they'd set aside their animus toward the Jewish state. The oil-rich Arab world can help, too. But just as you don't ask Ukraine to take responsibility for Russian civilians while it strikes at Russian military targets, don't ask Israel to take responsibility for the Gazans. Hundreds of Afgan civilians were inadvertently killed by the British military in Afganistan. The number of Iraqi civilians killed inadvertently by the US numbers in the hundreds of thousands. 

The aims of Hamas are genocidal. It is us or them. If Hamas hides behind civilians, the onus for their deaths is on Hamas, not on Israel. If you don't get that, your moral compass is askew.

I have been channel-hopping in watching coverage of the war. Channel 14 is “all-Bibi-all-the-time” and devotes disproportionate air time to defending their hero. Mainly, this involves panels of pundits blaming Israel’s unpreparedness on someone other than Bibi, on the amorphous “left.” Haim Ramon (a has-been politician from Labor and later the defunct Kadima) is a frequent punching bag. Not sure why.

Channel 11 consistently provides solid non-showy coverage, though I switch to 12 when Ayala Hasson comes on. The veteran journalist was brought over to 11 to try to win over some of the Channel 14 crowd. It has not worked, as ratings for 11 are the lowest of all the channels. My go-to channel is 12. They have the best line-up of talent, even if (former) boy genius Amit Segal gets on my nerves sometimes. I don’t see much of 13 just because I can do only so much clicking with my arthritic fingers. 

For all the channels, my policy is when panel members start shouting and talking over each other, I mute the sound.

Speaking of muting, Netanyahu has received justified criticism for going on TV Friday night. The last time a prime minister went on TV Friday (Shabbat) night was Yitzhak Rabin in 1994 during the kidnapping (eventual murder) of Israeli soldier Nachshon Wachsman by Hamas in Oslo days.

When an anchor tells frazzled Israelis the prime minister has asked to address the nation on a Friday night, the assumption is the news is big and bad. But when Bibi went on TV this past Friday night, it was to blow off hot air. Many people say that the channels should not immediately go live when he is on until they can establish he’s saying something of substance. But in a time of war, that’s not a good idea. 

Things are getting weird when friends and family are sending around a pro-Israel op-ed that ran in the vitriolically anti-Zionist Guardian. But one of their Jewish in-house writers (who’s never been on the fringe left anyway) wrote a column people find worthwhile. So here it is. I prefer Al Jazeera to the Guardian. But that’s a matter of personal taste.

Catching up on the weekend papers...

The Secrets Hamas Knew About Israel’s Military  (NYT)

The Erev in the Trafalgar Square area must be back up. Neturei Karta is my favorite anti-Zionist group.  The secular anti-Zionists are so vanilla, but these characters ... thank you, Woody Allen. And by the time they got home, the chulent was burned. (Daily Mail)

Friday 13 October - Gaza War - Aggregation & Commentary

BEFORE SIGNING OFF FOR SHABBAT... 

HAMAS MUST SURRENDER

 UNCONDITIONALLY

Remorseless anti-Zionists such as Lara Friedman, Kenneth Roth, Peter Beinart, and Gideon Levy are working overtime to save Hamas so it can fight another day. Naturally, they don't quite put it that way.

But they are lobbying against evacuating civilians from the northern Gaza Strip. 

What these self-styled human rights campaigners should be telling Hamas is "SURRENDER UNCONDITIONALLY!" 

And if they can't bring themselves to say that, they should, at the very least, not rouse Hamas to continue using human shields. They should at least tell Hamas leaders in bunkers below Gaza's hospitals to get out from behind the wounded.

Tell Palestinian civilians to move south. If the anti-Zionists value human life, they need to tell Palestinians to move south.

The IDF is coming for Hamas.

How do you deal with a morally relativist Sky Newsreader? 

Who's asking why Israel is letting Palestinian babies die in the incubators?

Watch how Naftali Bennett handles it. 

Alumim coming home with your help.  Kibbutz Alumim, located on the border of the Gaza Strip, was founded in 1966. For the 57 years of its existence, it has flourished, producing prime agriculture, and generations of children and youth.

But all came to a standstill during a long day of battle.  On the morning of 7th October 2023, on the joyous festival of Simchat Torah, Dozens of terrorists infiltrated the kibbutz.

They attacked and murdered foreign farm workers, burnt agriculture infrastructure and kibbutz institutions, and then a grand battle ensued, led by the kibbutz security squad, who drove them away. We are raising funds to rebuild and restore Kibbutz Alumim, and we appeal to all of you to assist us as much as you can. Alumim has not fallen and never will With your help, we can restore Alumim to its magnificent glory and bring her home.

Link: https://pe4ch.com/ref/sBtgV2pH2cen

With heartfelt gratitude - The Members of Kibbutz Alumim.

I can vouch for this appeal. It is being conducted by our friends on the Kibbutz. We know the kibbutz well - Elliot.

Journalist Amir Bar-Shalom says he heard Persian (Farsi) spoken during the Hamas attack and again in Gaza - I am not sure what to make of this, but it deserves dissemination and professional analysis. 

This is a screenshot.  

Here is the link.      (h/t IM)

Hard as it is to believe, if Israeli elections were held now, plenty of patsies would still vote for Smotrich, Ben-Gvir, and Netanyahu. Watching Bibi address the Knesset last night, I can understand why. He's a wizard bedeviling the masses. It's like he's just arrived on the scene to clear up the mess that Bennett, Lapid, Rabin, Golda, and Ben-Gurion left for him in Gaza. He's so dazzlingly manipulative I almost felt sorry that it had all been thrust on his shoulders! I almost forgot he was shtuping Hamas with suitcases of money and insisting on maintaining the Islamists in power to counter the PLO. I almost forgot that he had no time to talk to the generals, that he fired his defense minister, then took him back but would not talk to him...I almost forgot. But I didn't.

סקר "מעריב": הקואליציה מתרסקת, הליכוד 19 בלבד; גנץ נוסק | כל הפרטים

Opposition leader Yair Lapid explains why he has not joined Netanyahu's government:

בעקבות המלחמה: רכבת ישראל תפעל במהלך השבת, הנסיעת יהיו חינם

The Economist (a superior weekly not known for its Philo-Zionism) offers this podcast with Hamas politburo member Moussa Abu Marzouk. The editor is discomfited by dead Jews, so it is a contentious interview. By next week, I'd expect the Economist to be back to form.

Daniel Gordis has been doing exceptional blogging on the war. My friend Gary brought it to my attention, and I am sharing it with you. 

Islamists have declared today in the Land of Israel and in the Diaspora a "Day of Rage." Their "rage" is understandable. Hamas tried to slaughter us - we resisted - and now we are coming after them - so they are enraged.

Sanhedrin 72a-b

Ha-ba le-horgekha, hashkem le-horgo  – if someone comes to slay you, you should hurry to slay them first.

Having been a graduate student at NYU and an adjunct instructor of political science there for many years, I was curious to "meet" the head of the New York University Law School Student Bar Association whose first reaction to the slaughter of Jews on Israel's side of the Gaza border was, "I will not condemn Palestinian resistance.” 

You can read all about her here. Oh, did I say "her?" Sorry. She's actually Non-Binary. Neither moral nor sapient.  

If you give money to NYU, Columbia, or Harvard, consider the dividends your investment is paying.

For a semi-amusing antidote to such stupidity, have a look at this eight-minute video.

Thursday 12 October - Gaza War - Aggregation & Commentary

הכרת הטוב

'I Come Here Also as a Jew': With Netanyahu, Blinken Pledges That 'U.S. Has Israel's Back'

So far, no daylight between Israel and the Biden administration on Hamas. The U.S. Navy is deterring Syria, Iran, and Hezbollah from launching a major attack from the North as the IDF concentrates on Gaza.

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-10-12/ty-article-live/idf-strikes-gaza-overnight-prioritizing-attacks-on-senior-officials/0000018b-221a-d010-a59f-bb7bf0400000

To take your mind off our troubles. Here is 1:44 of a deranged 77-year-old man talking shite. Enjoy.

https://www.c-span.org/video/?531054-1/president-trump-addresses-supporters-west-palm-beach-florida

Army Radio report

באופן חריג: אל-על תפעיל בשבת 2 טיסות חילוץ להשבת אנשי מילואים מהמזרח וארה"ב

El Al will fly reservists back on Shabbat.

There's been some confusion about where the EU stands on funding the Palestinians. Here is the latest:

https://www.impact-se.org/blog/

EU President reconfirms freeze in aid to Palestinians in place following Hamas onslaught Following conflicting messages: EU President Ursula von der Leyen clarified that a wholesale review of Palestinian funding is taking place. EU Commissioner also reaffirmed suspension of aid and subsequent audit after EU Foreign Minister had claimed opposition to the move. Sweden and Denmark join Austria in suspending aid, Germany considering freeze. The unprecedented Hamas attack on Israel reflects years of hate-teaching in Gaza schools, with European funding contributing to textbooks used. Dear Elliot, Ramat Gan, October 12, 2023 – Following conflicting messages from leading figures in the European Union, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reconfirmed yesterday that EU funding to the Palestinians is being thoroughly reviewed. As a result the EU, which is the largest single donor to the Palestinians, will now freeze aid. In a statement addressing the Hamas onslaught, President von der Leyen said: “There can be no justification for Hamas' act of terror.” Consequently, she explained that “It is important that we carefully review our financial assistance for Palestine. EU funding has never and will never go to Hamas or any terrorist entity. So we will now again review the entire portfolio in light of an evolving situation on the ground.” Oliver Varhelyi, the EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement responsible for EU funds to the Palestinian Authority, reaffirmed the position, telling the Financial Times today that “Having seen what has happened, we cannot not check [the funding] again, to see whether we have not been used and abused.” Emphasising the extent of EU funding to the Palestinians, he added: “We’re in the middle of a war where it seems that we have a very strong Islamist terrorist organisation emerging in a territory where we are the biggest donor.” On Monday, Varhelyi announced: “There can be no business as usual. As the biggest donor of the Palestinians, the European Commission is putting its full development portfolio under review, worth a total of EUR 691m.” The Financial Times makes clear that Varhelyi made the original announcement “with the understanding that he had backing from the Commission’s executive.” However, the announcement was challenged on Tuesday by Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign affairs commissioner, who claimed that the “overwhelming majority” of EU states are in favour of continuing Palestinian funding unabated, and that funding “would not be cancelled.” Borrell’s position would appear to be undermined by a flurry of EU member-states who have already decided to freeze their own bilateral funding to the Palestinians. On Tuesday, Sweden’s Development Minister Johan Forssell announced: “We have a new situation after the 7th of October… Our decision today is that Sweden will ... pause development aid to Palestine until further notice.” Earlier in the day, Denmark’s government said that it "has decided to put Danish development assistance to Palestine on hold." Meanwhile, on Monday Austria announced that it would be suspending its aid to Palestinians in response to the Hamas attack on Israel. Germany is also reconsidering aid to the Palestinians after German Development Minister Svenja Schulze stated that “these attacks on Israel are a terrible turning point. We will therefore examine our entire commitment to the Palestinian territories.” International funds to the Palestinian Authority (PA) have been used to finance the production of textbooks which are replete with hatred, and incitement to the type of extreme violence which Hamas has deployed. Driven by IMPACT-se, over the last five years the European Parliament has passed five pieces on legislation condemning the Palestinian Authority and UNRWA for hate teaching, and has threatened the withdrawal of funding. Best regards, Marcus Sheff

(communicated)

Yesh Atid Wisely Stays out of the Netanyahu-led government

בוקר טוב, לצערנו, הצעתו של ראש הממשלה לשעבר וראש האופוזיציה, יאיר לפיד, לממשלת חירום מקצועית ללא הקיצונים לא התקבלה. איננו זקוקים לתפקידי שרים בזמנים כאלה, אלא זקוקים להשפעה אמיתית על המצב. נמשיך ביש עתיד לתת גיבוי מבחוץ ולתמוך במדינת ישראל ובכוחות הבטחון עד למיגור מוחלט של החמאס בעזה. נמשיך לתמוך במשפחות ולפעול למען הלוחמים הגיבורים שלנו ולמען העורף הישראלי. שיהיה בוקר שקט, שימרו על עצמכם 

(communicated)

The Hamas horror is also a lesson on the price of populism By Yuval Noah Harari

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/10/11/netanyahu-populism-weakened-israeli-security/

Bit by bit, the story dribbles out.

היום השישי למלחמה | דובר צה"ל: היו סימנים בלילה שלפני פלישת חמאס, אך לא על מתקפה בהיקף כזה

https://www.haaretz.co.il/news/politics/2023-10-12/ty-article-live/0000018b-208e-d010-a59f-b9ef0ba50000

Why does the BBC even think it has to explain its anti-Zionism and moral relativism after all these years.

Terrorism is perforce anti-civilian warfare except at the BBC.

Why BBC doesn't call Hamas militants 'terrorists' - John Simpson

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67083432

I was curious about the source of this story. Turns out it is a GOP House member. No reason for him to try to damage Bibi. Senior US lawmaker says Egypt warned Israel 3 days before onslaught

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/senior-us-lawmaker-says-egypt-warned-israel-3-days-before-onslaught/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CWe%20know%20that%20Egypt%20has,was%20given%2C%E2%80%9D%20he%20says.

As we keep one eye on the north, I am thinking about Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah and his February 2023 comment about Netanyahu's putsch for regime change: “For the first time since the creation of [Israel], we hear speeches from the entity’s president and former prime ministers Lapid, Bennett, Olmert and Barak along with former defense ministers and generals who talk about civil war and bloodshed and say that there is no solution to the challenges posed by the new government.” Gleefully picking up on Herzog warning, Nasrallah says Israel tearing itself apart

The finance world braces for impact from the Israel-Hamas warThe shockwaves of the Israel-Hamas war have finally reached Marrakesh. It took several days—as it often does in the technocratic world of international economics—for financial leaders gathered here at the Meetings to grasp that the conflict could affect everyone.

Here on the ground, the full scale of the devastating human tragedy and military conflict unleashed by Hamas’s assault on Israel last Saturday is coming into focus—and with it a focus on the war’s economic ramifications. Several conversations are happening at once. 

First and foremost, there is growing horror as reports about the terrorist attacks and fallout in Israel and Gaza play on TV screens and phones inside and outside the official venue for the Meetings.

There is also discussion of the global economic fallout. Energy prices have understandably been a big focus, with memories of the 1973 Yom Kippur War and ensuing oil embargo front of mind for ministers. But as many of the economists milling about the pavilions have noted, the global energy market has shifted dramatically in the fifty years since that war. The world doesn’t solely rely on the Middle East for energy. And—for now—the conflict hasn’t spread through the region.

Then there’s the shekel and Israel’s economy. Israel’s central bank intervened to prop up the currency by selling thirty billion dollars in foreign reserves, but the shekel’s slump continues. There is wider concern that foreign investment in Israel will dry up and create a recession in the Israeli economy.

With regard to Gaza, the question is about reconstruction—whenever that time comes. Will the World Bank and other development banks play a role and step in with aid? A European commissioner initially signaled that the Commission would stop sending some aid to Palestinians, but that decision was quickly reversed by the European Union. There are open questions in Marrakesh right now about 1) what kind of aid will flow to Gaza in the near term and 2) what kind of money will be requested in the long term. Because these are questions for the development banks, the IMF has, so far, been able to sidestep the questions.

But don’t expect avoidance of these issues to continue. By the end of the week, the ministers and governors in Marrakesh will realize what many around the world already see clearly: What is unfolding in Israel and Gaza will have global political and economic impacts.

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/updates-imf-world-bank-meetings-behind-the-scenes/

Iran's president Ebrahim Raisi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman hold their first EVER phone callhttps://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12621611/Irans-president-Ebrahim-Raisi-Saudi-Crown-Prince-Mohammad-bin-Salman-hold-phone-call-discuss-need-end-war-crimes-against-Palestine.html

The ethos of Hamas is the Palestinian ethos. Polling before the war revealed that if presidential elections were held & the choice was the PLO's Abbas or Hamas's Ismail Haniyeh, Abbas would get 33% and Haniyeh 64% in Gaza. Haniyeh would also win in the WB.

https://pcpsr.org/en/node/955

https://x.com/JAGERFILE/status/1712308338245914685?s=20

So proud to have been a Never Trumper from the get-go.The bulvan offers words of "comfort" to Israel while campaigning in Florida.

https://twitter.com/MeidasTouch/status/1712273555294232879

#Hamas Declares Friday, October 13, As General Mobilization Day For 'Al-Aqsa Flood Operation,' Urges #WestBank, #Jerusalem Palestinians To Join Massive Rallies And Confront Israeli Soldiers - Audio of report here https://ow.ly/Up4U50PVj00 #MEMRI

https://twitter.com/MEMRIReports/status/1711830817968681127

Channel 14 Israel - All Bibi-All-The-Time. Then came a glitch.

Criticism of Netanyahu on his own TV Channel. If you have Hebrew, this is a *stunning* interview.  Disseminate. Not just for its content but that it aired on Bibist Channel 14. They didn't intend to air it, but live TV makes total control impossible.

https://twitter.com/JAGERFILE/status/1711996839476511095

'EVIL IS NOT STUPID' Guest Posting - From My Christian Friend in Jerusalem -

====================================================================

FOR THE LATEST NEWS, GO TO THE TIMES OF ISRAEL

www.timesofisrael.com/ or  the Jerusalem Post www.jpost.com/

For the latest in Hebrew, you can follow events here.

glz.co.il and haaretz.co.il/ and www.n12.co.il/

I am occasionally posting on X (Twitter) twitter.com/JAGERFILE and invite you to follow me.

Thank you for standing with Israel now more than ever.

=====================================================================

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.

Israel at War - Recriminations - Netanyahu Must Go

Early Sunday morning, Army Radio began reading the names of the 500 dead from yesterday’s Pearl Harbor-like attack by Hamas Gaza on Israel. Over two thousand were wounded. The number of Israelis – men, women, and children – taken captive by the enemy is unknown.

The final number of dead from yesterday will go higher as the fog of war lifts and bodies are recovered.

Some 24 hours after the initial attack, the security situation in two kibbutz settlements on our side of the Gaza border is unclear.

Hamas managed to occupy parts of Israel within the Green Line for the better part of a day. That is something no other enemy has achieved since 1948.

Day two of the 2023 war has dawned.

I hear this is not the time for recriminations. I beg to differ. At the very least, let's put the cards on the table.

Binyamin Netanyahu is responsible for our predicament. When the situation stabilizes, he should resign. 

The heads of the IDF and security services repeatedly warned him that his putsch to transform Israel into an illiberal majoritarian democracy and the vehement mass opposition it was engendering was undermining our deterrence. Yet he plowed on. 

He formed the most extreme insular government in Israel’s history. Not since Oslo has the national consensus and esprit de corps been so undermined.

Seeing their leaders in the cabinet emboldened Hardal messianics to dance their way up, around, and into the Temple Mount. The Palestinian Arab leadership exploited this reckless behavior to argue that the Jews were “storming” their holy shrines. In recent weeks, they tied up the army with midnight visits to “Joseph’s Tomb” in Nablus. These pilgrimages require an incursion into an enemy city, invariably leading to clashes and casualties.  

The most right-wing government in Israel’s history lost control of the security situation inside the country. Violence in the Arab sector spiked. Spitting and other attacks by Hardalim and other ultra-Orthodox louts on Christians became routine. The government was obsessively focused on changing the regime. Nothing else mattered.

It shoveled millions of shekels to the Haredim and to runaway settlement building. 

Netanyahu was scheming to find legislative ways to institutionalize Haredi draft dodging.

He lied about stopping Iran from getting nuclear weapons. For all intents and purposes, the mullahs can now put an atomic bomb together within two weeks.

He bet on building up Hamas to the detriment of the PLO. He gave the green light for Qatar to deliver suitcases stuffed with millions of dollars into the hands of the Islamists.

And, of course, he released from prison all the prominent Hamas chieftains who went on to rebuild the terror infrastructure in Gaza and the West Bank. 

He was derelict in repeatedly appointing unqualified defense ministers who failed to ask the right questions about our Maginot Line along the Gaza Strip.

He is accountable for the intelligence failure of Israel being caught with its pants down precisely 50 years after the Yom Kippur War. He has to answer for the military being so stretched that it could not push the invaders out for a full day. He is liable for not addressing the nation on a timely basis.  

As soon as it is propitious, Binyamin Netanyahu and his incompetent government must go. 

Until then, he should bring in Yair Lapid and Benny Ganz and create an emergency war cabinet. 

When this is over, we can get down to more substantive recriminations and a State Commission of Inquiry.