While we pray for a semblance of normality, we hold strong.
I cite here a quote from then prime minister Golda Meir, who spoke in a closed session of the Cabinet one month after the Yom Kippur war ended 51 years ago. The recording of that session has just been released:
“Many things will be forgiven, but one thing will not—weakness. The moment we are marked as weak—it is over.”
https://www.jns.org/golda-meir-in-newly-released-tape-weakness-will-not-be-forgiven/
Her words are every bit as true now as they were then, and most Israelis know it (even if the world chooses to represent it as otherwise, pressuring us to make concessions and agree to a ceasefire).
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On Saturday night, we came down from Yom Kippur – which, for many, had been extraordinary, emotionally weighted, because of the year we have just been through.
Throughout the holiest day of our calendar, barrages of rockets were launched by Iranian-controlled proxies, mostly into the north of Israel. Actually, as analyst Seth Frantzman noted, Iranian-backed groups sought to increase their attacks on Israel for that day: “It’s clear that there was a concerted effort by Iran and the groups it backs to escalate attacks on Yom Kippur.”
Details are available in the article linked below, but I wanted to mention two attacks in particular:
A rocket barrage that began at 5:23 p.m. on Friday, October 11, “was clearly designed to coincide with Yom Kippur, which began at 5:34 p.m.…It’s likely the Iranian-backed group sought to target people who it thought would be going to synagogue at that time.”
And then, Hezbollah targeted Herzliya with two drones. “This represented a new escalation by the group. Herzliya is where many foreign ambassadors live.”
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-824279
“While Israel reduced the intensity of its war effort against Hamas over Ramadan due to respect for the Muslim holy month, the Iranian-backed axis often escalates during Jewish holidays. The West, which urged Israel to reduce its operations in Gaza during Ramadan, has not called on Iran and groups such as Hezbollah or Hamas to refrain from attacks during Yom Kippur.“ (Emphasis added)
OK, clearly the western states know that Iranian proxies would not heed such a demand. But this does not exempt them from calling for reduced attacks on Yom Kippur or from denouncing Iranian proxies for their behavior. The West makes demands only of Israel.
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Last night (Sunday), just a day after the closure of Yom Kippur, we then endured a very painful attack: Hezbollah launched a UAV which was a direct hit into the dining room of the training base of the Golani Brigade in Binyamina, south of Haifa. Four soldiers engaged in infantry training were killed (from the left below):
Sergeant Yosef Hieb, Sergeant Amitay Alon, Sergeant Omri Tamari, and Sergeant Yoav Agmon. All were 19 years of age.
When the announcement broke Sunday night, it was said that 67 were wounded. Only this morning (Monday) was the fact that it was soldiers who were hit made public; 51 were said to be wounded, seven seriously. Clearly, some of the original 67 identified as wounded were hurt only superficially and released, but 51 remains an horrendous number.
There are questions as to how this could have happened, and the issue is being investigated. It may have been the case that this UAV escaped detection by radar because it flew low. Another UAV launched at the same time was taken out.
When IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi arrived at the base Sunday night, he told commanders:
“We are at war, and an attack on a training base on the home front is difficult and the results are painful. You operated well to treat and evacuate the wounded and injured. Embrace the bereaved families, accompany the wounded and strengthen the commanders and soldiers.
“We continue to fight and train for what lies ahead. The Golani Brigade has recorded many achievements in the war and dealt resolutely with difficult situations—continue on the path of this legacy.”
https://www.jns.org/hezbollah-drone-killed-four-israeli-soldiers-on-sunday-idf-says/
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Hezbollah supporters have been flooding social media with claims that Herzi Halevi was killed in the drone strike. Should you come across such a claim, rest assured that it is false.
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/sjzedlqy1e
The IDF has vowed to take down Hezbollah’s drone unit.
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There are multiple elements of our battle with Hezbollah in Lebanon that have a sense of déjà vu: We’ve been there, dealt with that, during the fighting with Hamas in Gaza. No reason to be surprised about this. The two groups have the same sponsor, probably study from the same manuals on how to fight a dirty war.
We have dealt over and over with charges that we are killing “too many” civilians in Gaza, when in fact civilians are being utilized by Hamas as human shields.
Now we are dealing with charges that we are shooting directly at UNIFIL troops in southern Lebanon, when in fact UNIFIL troops are being used as human shields.
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Before I deal with these charges, it is important to take a look at UNIFIL. The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon may qualify as one of the all-time most ineffective international peace-keeping forces.
Originally established back in 1978, its mandate was expanded when Security Council Resolution 1701 was passed in 2006. That resolution – which has never been enacted – stated that there would be no armed forces between the Blue Line (Lebanon’s border with Israel) and the Litani River other than those of the Lebanese army. Hezbollah was supposed to be disarmed and moved back beyond the river. None of this ever happened.
UNIFIL had a role in assisting the Lebanese army in securing control in southern Lebanon.
Additionally, in its role as an observer force it was to monitor the border between Syria and Lebanon to ensure that Iranian weaponry was not being smuggled from Syria into Lebanon for use by Hezbollah. But according to the Brookings Institute, “Hezbollah’s arsenal of missiles and rockets has grown from 15,000 in 2006 to over 130,000 today [January 2024].”
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/hezbollah-and-the-axis-of-resistance-in-2024/
And where, pray tell, was UNIFL while these rockets were being smuggled to Hezbollah?
I can provide one answer. Some few years ago, I read a statement from the individual who was then head of UNIFIL. He sent his troops out to monitor the situation only during the day, he said. At night it was too dangerous for them.
And there you have it.
Tal Beeri (pictured), director of research for Alma Research Center – a privately funded nonprofit that monitors security developments on Israel’s northern border – charges that UNIFIL is “unwilling and unable to confront Hezbollah.” Beeri served for decades in IDF intelligence units.
“When Hezbollah places a rocket launcher next to one of UNIFIL’s positions, 99.9% of the time UNIFIL will not do anything about it. They are afraid,” said Beeri.
“If Hezbollah tells UNIFIL forces not to get into a certain area, they won’t. If they do it anyway without prior coordination, they can get physically hurt or abducted.”
UNIFIL plays a secondary role by providing health care via UNIFIL-run hospitals and serves as a “mediation mechanism.”
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UNIFIL has accused the IDF of firing directly on its positions. What followed this charge was condemnation by the 40 countries that contributed to the UNIFIL forces.
Prime Minister Netanyahu then responded on Sunday with a direct message to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres (emphasis added):
“It is time for you to remove UNIFIL from Hezbollah’s strongholds and from the combat areas.
“The IDF has repeatedly requested this, only to be met with refusal, a refusal aimed solely at providing Hezbollah terrorists with a human shield. Your refusal to evacuate UNIFIL soldiers turns them into hostages of Hezbollah. This endangers both them and the lives of our soldiers.
“We regret the harm caused to UNIFIL soldiers, and we are doing everything we can to prevent it. But the simplest and most obvious way to ensure their safety is to simply remove them from the danger zone.
“Mr. Secretary-General, get the UNIFIL forces out of harm’s way. It should be done right now, immediately.”
https://www.jns.org/netanyahu-tells-un-to-get-forces-out-of-harms-way-in-lebanon/
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Alma has uncovered five UNIFIL bases that had been used by Hezbollah as cover for rocket launches on Israel. Twenty-two rockets have been fired from Hezbollah using these bases as cover.
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Circling back to Gaza, then:
“The Israeli mission to the United Nations in Geneva reacted furiously to a Thursday report issued by a U.N. commission, calling ‘outrageous’ accusations leveled that Jerusalem has intentionally destroyed Gaza’s healthcare system.
“Israel has repeatedly provided evidence that Hamas and other Gazan terrorist groups have commandeered medical facilities and vehicles for ‘military’ purposes, including for weapons storage, attack staging and the concealment of hostages. Tunnels used by Hamas for terrorist activities have also been located under numerous hospitals throughout the Strip.
“The commission’s report acknowledges the evidence, but dismisses it as unreliable, untrue or impossible to verify.”
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Sukkot, a holiday of joy begins on Wednesday night, and across Israel people are busy erecting their sukkahs. This is a time that reinforces hope. I want to end, then, with some good news items:
While the US has dragged its feet, collectively, when it comes to supporting Israel’s efforts to eliminate Hamas and to degrade Hezbollah and push it back beyond the Litani River, the Americans have been supportive with regard to aiding and bolstering our defense.
“The latest news is that the Pentagon on Sunday confirmed that Washington will send an advanced air defense battery to Israel to protect the country in case of an Iranian reaction to an expected Israeli reprisal attack, along with American soldiers to operate it…A US defense official said around 100 US troops would be deployed to operate the system.
What will be deployed is a THAAD battery, which is a compliment system to the Patriot system but can defend a wider area. “The battery consists of six truck-mounted launchers, 48 interceptors, radio and radar equipment.”
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“Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IDF Strategy Division Chief, Maj. Gen. Eliezer Toledano, provided a security briefing to Israel’s Cabinet on Sunday, reporting that Hezbollah has less than one-third of the missiles it once possessed.”
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/bk9jqbtkkx#autoplay
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“The Israel Land Authority (ILA) is seizing the land of UNRWA’s headquarters in Jerusalem, in order to build 1,440 housing units.
“As the extent of UNRWA and its employees’ collaboration in the massacre at Gaza border communities by Hamas and their role in providing assistance for murder, kidnapping, and more continues to be revealed, a significant step has been taken for the first time against the refugee agency.”
https://www.israelhayom.com/2024/10/10/unrwa-headquarters-in-jerusalem-to-be-seized/
About time!
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I always call for prayer at the end of my posting, and this is especially pertinent at this time.
Express great gratitude to the Almighty for 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.
