Shalom all,

As of this writing, the number of IDF members reported to be killed since the beginning of the ground offensive is 48! The heart is broken … the soul weeps.

A hospital is the last place one would normally expect to conduct warfare, unless, of course, the fighting takes place in Gaza City and the hospitals are used as military staging areas by Hamas. Major hospitals in that city had become places for storing weapons, including anti-tank missiles. A squad of over 20 terrorists operating in the area of the Al-Quds hospital (Gaza City’s second largest hospital after the Al Shifa Hospital) was eliminated today by the IDF. A terrorist leaving the hospital building with an RPG can be seen in the video that is part of the attached article . Israel has maintained that Hamas established command centers under and around hospitals, fully aware that Israel would exercise restraint and not fire upon hospitals. Believe it or not, the European Union actually “condemns the use of hospitals and civilians as human shields by Hamas” . Hamas, of course, denies using hospitals and civilians as human shields. But, as everyone should have learned by now, nothing coming out from Hamas is the be believed. In the same breath that the EU condemns Hamas, its foreign policy chief, Josep Morrell, reminded Israel of its obligation under to protect hospitals, among other things. Somewhere along the line, all of those countries urging Israel to be “kind to your enemy” forget that in an ongoing military conflict, every place used by combatants from which to wage war becomes a legitimate target. If civilians are used by Hamas as human shields, Hamas, and not Israel, is to blame if they are killed.

Fighting continues in the streets surrounding Al Shifa Hospital. Israel asserts after Hamas took control of the Gaza enclave, it built several floors under the hospital over the last 16 years and attached it to a vast underground tunnel network, able to accommodate for an extended period of time hundreds of terrorists, store weaponry, food and medical supplies. According to Israel, the facilities under Shifa Hospital are used as a major command center for Hamas, from which it also directs rocket fire on Israel. While expressing concerns of the Biden administration over potential civilian casualties in the IDF’s operation at Shifa Hospital, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also stated, “The United States does not want to see firefights in hospitals where innocent people, patients receiving medical care, are caught in the crossfire”, but also appeared to back Israel’s claims regarding the use of the hospital by Hamas: “Without getting into intelligence information, we can just look at the open source reporting that Hamas is using hospitals as it uses many facilities for command-and-control, for weapons storage, to house its fighters, and this is a violation of the laws of war.” In case someone has not been paying attention, Hamas terrorists do not play by the “rules of war”.

And it appears that Israel is ready to pursue Hamas in the massive tunnel system built by the terrorist organization, that is also lined with explosives that can be detonated by remote control. We definitely need abundant prayer for the protection of every member of the IDF. You CAN do your part by petitioning before the One Who longs to be gracious to us (Isaiah 30:18)

Israel continues to be pressed to “do more” in providing humanitarian aid to the residents of Gaza. Corridors protected by the IDF that allow residents from the north to move south, out of harm’s way, along with allowing dozens of truckloads of supplies through the crossing for Egypt, among other things, doesn’t seem to be enough to satisfy those accusing Israel of creating a humanitarian crisis.  Even when we offer to supply fuel to hospital in Gaza, Hamas rejects our offer.

The reknowned British journalist, Douglas Murray, has become one of the most energetic and effective spokesmen for Israeli advocacy. On an interview on Ynet Live, he spoke, among other things, about the anti-Israel hostility and demonstrations around the world and the tearing up of the posters of the abductees, which he said is “an unbelievable abomination”. He added: “I don’t remember when when the West was battling ISIS demands that we fuel ISIS’s war machine or give them electricity or any of those. There’s an obscenity about this whole discussion that goes on with the International Red Cross where they seem to think this is a conflict between two equal sides, rather than a terrorist group and a state and they demand that the state protects the terrorist group.” Although the article is in Hebrew, the interview is only about 9 minutes and is in English and it is worth viewing.

As I mentioned in recent updates, the northern front is definitely heating up, with more and more activity on the part of the Hezbollah terrorist organization. Rocket fire into northern areas of Israel, aimed at Acco (Acre) and the suburbs of Haifa, has increased, resulting in civilian casualties, as well as injury to members of the IDF. The Hezbollah is playing a very dangerous game, one which could easily ignite the region and spill over into a full-scale war – and second front – with that organization, as well as potentially with Syria.

It needs to be understood that if the cross-border incidents and rocket launchings from the Hezbollah had occurred before the 7th of October, there is a tremendous likelihood that Israel would have been involved in a out-and-out war with Hezbollah. Now, however, with Israel immersed in the war against Hamas in Gaza, it needs to exercise great wisdom and discernment concerning its potential involvement in its northern front. The rocket launchings are extending further and further south, with Israel responding in an effective, although more-or-less restrained manner. Nevertheless, with the Hezbollah’s encroachment into Israeli territory, Israel is responding in kind, reaching deeper into Lebanon and taking advantage of the military escalation to eliminate potential problem areas controlled by the Hezbollah. Israel has said that it does not want to enter into a war with the Hezbollah, and its Secretary-General, Hassan Nasrallah, appears to have a similar attitude – at least for the moment. Nevertheless, it would seem that by its daily escalation, the Hezbollah wants to drag Israel into a full-scale military confrontation at some point. The question of the day is “when?”

Throughout the course of the day, Israel has had to deal with reports of soldiers being killed and wounded, as well as civilians. It continues to hear reports of negotiations to free “some of the hostages” being held by Hamas, although Hamas said that it was cutting off negotiations because of the IDF’s movements in and around Shifa Hospital. Relatives of hostages are clamoring for the release of their loved ones, almost at “all costs” – they want them back! And the war is affecting the work-force and the economy, as well as generating more and more antisemitism around the world. To paraphrase a fast-food commercial: “We deserve a break today!”

So, here are a few thoughts: Efraim Kishon was one of Israel’s most famous humorists. He was born in Budapest, Hungary, and a Holocaust survivor, who immigrated to Israel in 1949 and died in 2005. Some of his stories and remarks continue to be circulated over the internet, some of which include the following:

Israel is a country so tiny that there is no room to write its name on the world map. (Some Arab countries have already removed Israel from the map and redesignated the entire area of Israel as “Palestine” – whatever that is supposed to be. – my note)

Israel is a country where every human being is a soldier and every soldier is a human being.

Israel is the only country in the world where reservists are bossed around and commanded by officers, male and female, younger than their own children.

Israel is the only country in the world where inviting someone “out for a drink” means drinking cola, coffee or tea.

Israel is a country where everybody has the right to speak his mind, but there is no law forcing anybody to listen.

Israel is a country surrounded on all sides by enemies, but the people’s headaches are caused by the neighbors upstairs.

Israel is one of the few places in the world where the sun sets into the Mediterranean Sea .

Israel is the only country in the world whose soldiers eat three sets of salads a day, none of which contain any lettuce (which is not really a food), and where olives ARE a food and even a main course in a meal, rather than something one tosses into a martini.

Israel is the only country in the world where one is unlikely to dig a cellar without hitting ancient archeological artifacts.

Israel is the only country in the world where the graffiti are in Hebrew.

Israel is the only country in the world that has a National Book Week, during which almost everyone attends a book fair and buys books.

Israel is the only country in the world with bus drivers and taxi drivers who read Spinoza and Maimonides.

Israel is the only country in the world where no one cares what rules say when an important goal can be achieved by bending them.

Israel is the only country in the world where “small talk” consists of loud, angry debate over politics and religion.

Israel is the only country in the world where bank robbers kiss the Mezuzah (a small object placed on the doorposts of Jewish homes and rooms, containing a passage from Deuteronomy – my note) as they leave with their loot.

Israel is one of the few countries in the world that truly likes and admires the United States.

Israel is the only country in the world where everyone on a flight gets to know one another before the plane lands. In many cases, they also get to know the pilot and all about his health or marital problems.

Israel is the only country in the world where no one has a foreign accent because everyone has a foreign accent.

Israel is the only country in the world where people cuss using dirty words in Russian or Arabic because Hebrew has never developed them.

Israel is the only country in the world where patients visiting physicians end up giving the doctor advice.

Israel is the only country in the world where everyone strikes up conversations while waiting in lines.

Israel is the only country in the world where people call an attache case a “James Bond” and the “@” sign is called a “shtrudel”.

Israel is the only country in the world where there is the most mysterious and mystical calm ambience in the streets on Yom Kippur, which cannot be explained unless you have experienced it.

Sunsets in Jerusalem are gorgeous every evening.

Israel is the only country in the world where people read English, write Hebrew, and joke in Yiddish.

Israel is the only country where rockets have already exploded from Iraq, Katyushas from Lebanon, suicide bombers from Gaza and shells from Syria, and still a three-room apartment costs more than in Paris.

Israel is the only country where the man in the open shirt with the stain is the Honorable Minister, and the one next to him with the suit and tie is his driver.

Israel is the only country where it’s no problem to get computer software to fly spaceships, but you have to wait a week to get your washing machine fixed. And only here is the unit of time called “I will arrive between nine and six”.

Israel is the only country where 60-year-olds still hate the Sergeant from the army Squad.

Israel is the only country where the corporal’s mother has the platoon commander’s phone, and let him be careful.

Israel is the only country where you can tell what the security situation is by the songs on the radio.

Israel is the only country where the rich are on the socialist left, the poor are on the capitalist right, and the middle class pays everything.

Israel is the only country where on the first date you ask the girl where she served in the army and it turns out that she was more combative than you. 

Israel is the only country where there are exactly sixty seconds between the happiest day and the saddest day (Independence Day following the Memorial Day for our fallen in war and by terrorism – my note). 

Israel is the only country where if you hate politicians, hate bureaucrats, hate the situation, hate the taxes, hate the quality of service and hate the weather, it means that you love it.

Israel is the only country where most people are unable to explain why they live there, but they have many reasons why it is impossible to live somewhere else.

Food for thought! Yes, there’s more.

Bless, be blessed and be a blessing.

Marvin