This Week Today Current Events from Israel Rabbi Ben Packer
https://mailchi.mp/dd9d88d97a17/israel-current-events***
In incredible twists of irony that would even shock Jewess Alanis Morissette, Israeli forces rescued an Israeli Muslim Arab hostage this week from a Hamas tunnel in Southern Gaza. Why Hamas took this guy hostage in the first place is anyone’s guess. And he’s not the only one. There are still more Arabs being held. Farhan al-Qadi, from Rahat in the Negev and married to two wives with a slew of kids, was reportedly treated very similarly to the Jewish Israeli hostages. How woke of Hamas – no Arab privilege.
The actual details of the rescue remain somewhat murky, but I would like to offer my own suggestion. In a recent misguided campaign, certain elements within the Haredi community began generating messages about their opposition to National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Jewish prayer activity on the Temple Mount – IN ARABIC! This is not the first time in history that folks have thought that potential Jew killers would spare them if they were the “right kind of Jews”. Well, you communicate in Arabic and G-d answers you with Arabic. Very fortunate for our Bedouin friend Farhan.
Obviously Mr. Al-Qadi speaks Arabic, so there are hopes that much intelligence about other hostages and Hamas will be gathered from him. Intelligence gathered from a captured terrorist led this week to the recovery of the body of an Israeli soldier killed on Oct. 7th. Sgt. Shaked Dahan, hy’d, was killed while fighting the terrorists from his tank that was stationed near the Jewish community of Nir Oz.
Despite what leftist defeatist propaganda would have folks believe, Israeli forces are making serious headway in Gaza. Hamas is falling apart and it’s only a matter of time before further Israeli advances, treachery and rebellion lead to even larger Israeli accomplishments throughout the Gaza Strip. A large percentage of the Israeli soldiers serving in Gaza currently are reservists and their morale is through the roof, much to the chagrin of leftists and anti-Semites around the world, including many in the upper echelon and non-combat roles in the IDF.
Up North
Earlier in the week, the main drama was definitely up north. Israel pre-emptively struck upwards of thousands of Hezbollah missiles aimed at Israel. Apparently these missiles were to be fired just a short time after they were destroyed. Hezbollah managed to fire approximately 350 rockets and drones at northern Israel. They claimed massive damage to Israeli military facilities, but not really. A chicken coup was hit and only slightly damaged, even most of the chickens survived unscathed. The combination of the footage from the triumphant, trash talking/clucking chickens and the Jews rescuing an Arab Muslim from Hamas torture set the Arab social media world on fire, with many Gulf Arabs mocking both Hamas and Hezbollah. This is more than fair. Hamas (Sunni) claims to be frumer than everyone else, but is actually in cahoots with Hezbollah (Shiites) who are considered heretics by mainstream Sunni Muslim society. This whole Oct. 7th thing stinks of ulterior motives and Allah cannot be at all happy with it.
Since Hezbollah’s big “fadicha”, they continue to shoot at the north with minimal results. Israel, on the other hand, continues to eliminate Hezbollah and other terrorists throughout Lebanon and Syria on a daily basis. The reality remains that Israelis who live along the northern border are still evacuated and there is no realistic resolution to the situation other than the annihilation of the Hezbollah threat. And while we’re at it, the same is likely true for the Iranian threat as well. Prime Minister Netanyahu personally visited the soldiers on the northern border this week to encourage them, so maybe soon.
Judea and Samaria
In recent weeks there has been a proliferation of explosive devices used against Israeli soldiers and civilians by terrorists throughout Judea and Samaria. Most attacks have occured in northern Samaria, but this week there was such an attack in the Gush Etzion region as well. Shooting attacks have occured and the rock throwing is endless. As a result of all this and Iranian/Hamas attempts to ignite the situation, the IDF has embarked on a wide scale operation code named “Summer Camp” to root out terror elements. Most of the fighting so far has been centered around Jenin, nearby Tubas and Tulkarem. At least 15 terrorists have been killed so far. Many IDF soldiers are involved in the efforts and it is reported that it may last for a few days. At this point, Judea and Samaria are Hamas’ only real hope for a future, so better to start dealing with that sooner, rather than later (the opposite of what was done in Gaza before Oct. 7th).
Of course the international community refuses to acknowledge these efforts by Iran/Hamas/other terrorist entities. It’s not new and it’s been going on for quite a while. As has the land grabbing and threatening actions of the Palestinian Authority against the Jewish residents of the area. However, when the Jews fight back, everyone starts yelling and screaming. The Biden Administration (is it still called that?) has decided to now sanction an organization that protects Jewish farms and the security coordinator of a large Jewish community in Samaria. Jews defending themselves has never been popular internationally. Luckily, this ain’t a popularity contest. Those who win are respected or feared or both. That should be the goal. Maybe this brilliant news report will get sanctioned. That would be a real hoot.
Domestically, the left continues to protest for the sake of protesting. Think cult classic PCU. All the polls see the current Coalition gaining electoral strength and it’s driving them nuts. Their various schemes to cling to unelected power are beginning to unravel. Although they successfully thwarted National Security Minister Ben Gvir’s original appointment for new police chief, his second choice was recently approved. Now they are going after other appointments they don’t like, but may lose those struggles as well. Additionally, a professor at Hebrew University who had been highly critical of Israel and claimed there were no rapes or other atrocities on Oct. 7th has resigned. Finally, a mental health professional serving soldiers of one of the IDF units in Gaza was removed from her post after referring to Religious Zionists as “a cult of death eaters”. So things are moving in the “right” direction…
The US State Department appointed a new “chief of Palestinian Affairs office”. Sounds like a terror supporting position. If President Trump is re-elected in November then this will be a pretty short stint for Hans Wechsel. Apparently he survived that fall from Nakatomi Plaza back in 1988.
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