Marking one year since the horrendous massacre carried out by Hamas (and cooperating Gaza civilians) on the Jews of the moshavim and kibbutzim of the Gaza envelope, the area adjacent to Gaza.
I have been pondering, struggling with what I wanted to say to mark this day. At times I have felt that a posting would not suffice, I had to write at least a dozen posts. At other times, I felt myself rendered speechless.
Oft times, even when things in my personal life seemed good, I have found myself suddenly crying, because the tears are always there.
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It wasn’t “just” (and I use the word very advisedly) the massacre: the burning of babies, the corpses decapitated, the rape, the capture of hostages, the wanton destruction of housing. All obscene, indescribably ugly. Some 1,200 Israelis dead, others wounded. Hostages held in inhumane conditions.
The very face of evil.
It was also the aftermath of that day: the war, which we are still fighting, and the horrendous way in which the world very quickly turned on us. Support for Hamas burgeoned, the acts of terrorists were rationalized because Israel was accused (most unjustly) of being an “occupier” – as if “occupying” another’s land, were it true, which it is NOT, justifies what I describe above, including burning babies.
Sometimes it has been difficult to take a breath. This was especially so because it readily became apparent as well that governments of the Western world, including first of all the US, were willing to lend support in our war against Hamas just so far, but chose not to assist us in definitively winning the war. They offered assistance with defense but were content to leave a remnant of Hamas standing in Gaza, a remnant that would reconstitute itself and attack Israel once again. In international agencies such as the UN, the stance was, and is, blatantly anti-Israel and simply immoral. No gray area in their proclamations.
Fighting a defensive war with exquisite care for enemy civilians, we have been accused again and again of waging an “immoral” war.
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And so, we learned that we stood alone.
But we also understood that there could be no compromise in taking out Hamas.
We are doing superbly well on that score, although we could have done better yet, acted faster, had the US not withheld some weapons and slowed down the delivery of others.
Currently there is a major operation on-going in Jabaliya, in north Gaza. We are enlarging the Netzarim Corridor, which divides north and south Gaza, and moving out civilians from the north. The intention is to declare the northern area a closed military zone, in which Hamas terrorists will be caught.
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/b1ubmjgjjg#autoplay
The 162nd Division entering the north:
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Yet all of this is only a portion of what we must contend with.
To our north is Lebanon and the forces of Hezbollah. This is in addition to the jihadist forces in Judea & Samaria, in Syria, in Iraq, and with the Houthis in Yemen. It is Iran, to our east, that is the driving force, seeking to destroy us by utilizing its proxies – most especially Hezbollah.
Our stand against these forces has been stunning. Many of us – myself included – see the Hand of God in what we are accomplishing.
We executed an astonishing “beeper attack,” which has taken out thousands of wounded terrorist fighters, diminishing their morale and their ability to communicate. We have taken out Nasrallah, vaunted head of Hezbollah. This deeply shook the organization, because it made clear how powerful was Israeli intelligence inside of Hezbollah security. Nasrallah was thought to be in a “secret” hiding place.
Last week we executed an airstrike on a bunker in Beirut, designed to take out Hashem Safieddine, the presumed successor to Nasrallah. I don’t believe his death has been officially confirmed, but he hasn’t been heard from and is presumed likely dead. The next person in line to replace Nasrallah has reportedly declined the honor.
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Hezbollah, while still a military force to contend with, is just a fraction of what it once was. Our air campaign in recent weeks has taken out launching sites, launchers, and missiles.
Then, last week, a ground operation into Lebanon was begun. Tanks went in first, followed by ground troops. The stated goal is to make it safe for some 60,000 Israeli citizens to return to their homes in the north of Israel. This means dismantling Hezbollah and driving it north of the Litani River.
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A week ago, the IDF revealed some stunning information:
Originally, Hamas and Hezbollah, with guidance and support from Iran, were supposed to attack Israel simultaneously – Hamas outside of Gaza and Hezbollah in the Galil. The horror of what would have taken place with the joint attack does not bear thinking about.
Ultimately Hamas attacked from Gaza unilaterally last October 7, earlier than the planned date, without informing Hezbollah. They were attracted by the obscene possibility of attacking young people at the Nova music festival.
Even before the recent Israeli ground incursion, it turns out, the IDF had been sending commando forces into Lebanon for secret raids to weaken Hezbollah before the major incursion. Some 2,400 Radwan terrorists and another 500 Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists — trained by Radwan — were waiting in southern Lebanon villages for the moment when they would attack Israel.
The Israeli commandos, including combat engineers, carried out numerous strikes against the Radwan forces and relevant sites. There were 70 forays into Lebanon, which reached 1000 sites. Some of these raids lasted three to four days; in all, 200 nights’ worth of operations.
Terrorist forces were driven back. Tunnels – some of which led right to the border with Israel, for use during the planned attack – were entered. Weapons hidden there — assault rifles, machine guns, RPGs, anti-tank missiles, explosive devices, mines, mortars, and equipment such as walkie-talkies – were recovered and the tunnels destroyed.
This action prevented the planned Hezbollah massacre in northern Israel.
Hezbollah has been seriously degraded, but there is still more work to be done.
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There is, then, yet one more factor to deal with. The major factor: Iran.
Just over two months ago, Israel took out Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, while he was in Iran. It was a brilliant operation, this time highlighting Israeli inroads into Iranian security. At that time, and for weeks following, there was speculation as to whether Iran would retaliate. It was a blow to Iranian honor that they could not protect their guest. But it was not an Iranian official we had taken out.
Last Tuesday night, one day prior to the beginning of Rosh Hashana, we had our answer, when Iran launched 81 ballistic missiles targeted all over Israel. Israel, with help from a coalition including the US, France and Jordan, took down many of the missiles; others were hit by our aerial defense equipment; some landed in open fields.
No one would deny that it was an exceedingly stressful time: a siren sounded, then there were several loud booms as missiles were taken down, then there was another siren….
But it was an abysmal failure from the Iranian perspective. A few infrastructures, including buildings on airbases, were destroyed. But no Israeli planes were hit, and most importantly, there were no Israeli deaths. The single person who died was an Arab from Gaza who was in Judea for reasons not entirely clear to me.
Iran, of course, claimed a great victory.
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Now we wait for the Israeli response. That there will be a major response to this attack is a given: At a time and in a manner of our choosing.
The major options being discussed are a hit on Iranian nuclear facilities or on Iranian oil fields or refineries.
To hit the nuclear facilities would be magnificent. The Iranians are all too close to developing nuclear military capability. We cannot take out the nuclear project (without American assistance), but we can set it back.
Hitting oil refineries would serve a good purpose as well, as it would be severely destructive to the Iranian economy and would weaken the regime.
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There is tension in the air; nothing feels normal. It could not be otherwise, for we await our hit on Iran and then face the possibility of reprisal action from Iran. This Shabbat is Yom Kippur, and following days later, Sukkot.
And so, we are mindful of what might be coming down the road, but we are very resilient and understand full well what must be done.
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What we are confronting once again – this truly is déjà vu – is a call from Biden to not stir things up. First, he advised us not to attack the nuclear facilities of Iran, and then he declared were up to him, he wouldn’t attack oil refineries either. His rationale, of course, has nothing to do with Israel’s need to weaken an enemy. It’s about the US election. Further military unrest in the Middle East would not help the Democrats. And weakening oil production facilities in Iran would hike gas prices before the election.
I note here that Donald Trump said he thought Biden was wrong: “Isn’t that what you’re supposed to hit? I mean, it’s the biggest risk we have, nuclear weapons.”
Right on! And in due course we will see what our leaders decide.
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As I write this there are memorial ceremonies for October 7 being held across the country.
We mourn the 1,200 lost last October 7, and the 700 plus soldiers who have since given their lives in combat, and the dozens lost in terror attacks, which are ongoing. We grieve that we have not been able to yet recover the 50 plus hostages believed to still be alive. They are not forgotten.
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We have learned a great deal in the past year. Never again will we be taken unawares by our enemy. We understand the importance of vigilance – a vigilance that has now prevented what would have been a second massacre coming from Hezbollah.
We understand that we stand alone but that it is possible to do so and come out ahead. We cannot heed the advice of other nations; we must provide our own counsel, with priority given to our own best interests.
We have demonstrated that we have military planners who are able to think out of the box and a magnificent army. I am in awe of our soldiers, who go to fight willingly and stand by their fellow soldiers. There are stories of soldiers who had already served but went back to the war voluntarily because they needed to be part of it, soldiers who risked their lives to save others. And then the stories of soldiers badly wounded and given the option to go home, who have insisted they must join their buddies and continue fighting.
In addition to the 700 plus who have given their lives, there are many – thousands – who have been wounded but hold their heads up with eagerness to continue their lives, perhaps without an arm, or a leg.
And then there are the magnificent families – the wives and parents and siblings – who give encouragement to their soldiers and carry on to the best of their ability without them. Should the worst happen, and their beloved soldier dies, they demonstrate an extraordinary strength.
How beautiful we are!
There has been astounding spirit of volunteerism in the country, and an embrace of religious practice by some, notably soldiers, who had been unobservant.
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The bottom line here is that there IS evil in the world, an evil that must be destroyed. Bargaining with it, or offering conciliation, is counterproductive. Israel understands this. And until the rest of the Western world also understands, it is Israel that is fighting for all.
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I always call for prayer at the end of my posting, and this is especially pertinent as we in the time of the High Holidays.
Express great gratitude to the Almighty for his protection and what we are able to achieve.
Then, please, pray with a full heart for the continued strength and courage of Israel’s leaders as they make the hard decisions, and for the safety and effectiveness of our soldiers in battle as they fight a righteous war.
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©Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by independent journalist Arlene Kushner. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution.
