Shalom all,

The number of IDF members killed in action since the beginning of the ground offensive is up to 97. That number includes 3 from our block – 1 from the festival, 2 from IDF.

Fall-out from the UN Security Council vote: As expected, the U.S. is receiving condemnation for having vetoed the Arab-backed resolution that called for the immediate, humanitarian ceasefire. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres invoked Article 99 of the UN Charter, which authorizes the head of the UN to raise threats he sees to international peace and security – a provision that hasn’t been used at the UN since 1971. According to Guterres, “there is a high risk of the total collapse of the humanitarian support system in Gaza”, adding that Gaza is at “a breaking point” that would result in “a complete breakdown of public order and increased pressure for mass displacement into Egypt.”

The head of the UN (an organization that has repeatedly and unashamedly passed more resolutions against Israel than against any other country) and the thirteen member states of the Security Council that voted in favor of the resolution, fail to acknowledge the “big picture”. 

The present war and situation is Gaza is a consequence of a bloody invasion and massacre terrorists who rule the Gaza Strip, who thrive in Gaza, where most of the citizens are in line with the terrorist ideology to destroy Israel. Since 2007, when Hamas took over the rule in the enclave, repeated terrorist incidents have taken place against Israel. Tens of thousands of projectiles have been launched against Israel over the years, including up to this very day. Israeli citizens have been subjected to attacks, some have been killed, many have been wounded and considered damage has been caused by Hamas, “Palestinian” Islamic Jihad and other terrorists emanating from Gaza. Enough is enough!

The UN has taken a microcosmic view of the situation, believing that the present war is due only to the pogrom that took place on October 7th. Yes, we want to release the hostages and bring them home. Yes, we want to eliminate Hamas and prevent it and other terrorists in Gaza from committing a replay of October 7th. But, Israel has always said that it wants to live in peace and has entered into agreement after agreement that Hamas and its ilk has failed to live up to. Israel vacated all of the settlements in Gush Katif in 2005, removing some 9,000 Israeli citizens from the Gaza Strip, leaving it in the hands of Gazans, who left it in the hands of Hamas, a totally immoral, evil terrorist organization that exalts death and celebrated the devastating massacre on October 7th. Its leaders even stated publicly that it intends to commit similar massacres until the Jewish state is totally eliminated.

The slaughter that took place on October 7th was the “straw that broke the camel’s back”. Israel has responded to prior attacks by Hamas against Israeli citizens, to prior rocket attacks, to prior vehicle ramings, to prior isolated incidents of terror. But, this latest attack struck the heartstring of the nation. Israel is committed to eliminating Hamas and its leadership, to locating and returning all of the hostages. The leadership of Hamas, like the leadership of the Hezbollah, assign others to do their dirty work, while they hide in underground bunkers or reside abroad in 5-star hotels abroad. The terrorists like to operate from underground tunnels and sneak out of their holes like snakes crawling out of their dens to seek their unsuspecting victims and bring them back with them into their burrows. 

The Arab world, and countries expressing anti-Israel sentiment, as well as antisemitic organizations and demonstrations, try to paint a picture of Israel being an occupying, apartheid nation that is carrying out genocide and ethnic cleansing against Gazans, as well as being expansionist, while conducting an immoral war. Nothing could be further from the truth. There are no Israeli communities in Gaza – so much for any claim of being an occupier or practicing apartheid (apart from the Islamist claim that all of Israel is “occupied territory”). The population of Gaza has significantly increased, rather than decreased – so much for the claim of attempting genocide and ethnic cleansing of Gazans. Israel abandoned its communities inside of Gaza 18 years ago – so much for a claim of being expansionist. As for conducting an immoral war, no nation in the world has a military more moral than Israel. Every effort has been made by the IDF to minimize civilian casualties. But, the Hamas terrorists are like cowardly cockroaches, hiding behind whatever will give them protection, intentionally using civilians as human shields, fighting from inside civilian locations, in hospitals, schools and UN facilities (known by those institutions and yet, denied by them). And, at the end, they will crawl back into their holes and tunnels and then cry “foul”.

The cries of Hamas to the Security Council to “save the Gaza Strip” and to bring about a ceasefire to the “brutal war”, is nothing more than Hamas pleading for help to keep it alive to fight another day. The “crime” that the Arab nations accuse Israel of committing in this war is simply the our fighting to survive. The fighting and the war can end today, if Hamas surrenders and returns ALL of the hostages, including the remains of Israelis who were taken captive by the people group that refers to itself as “Palestinian”. Whatever “humanitarian crisis” exists in the Gaza Strip today is the result of oppression and reckless indifference to the lives of Gaza residents by Hamas, pure and simple. They have voluntarily injected themselves with cancer cells and allowed that cancer to grow within them unchecked. Sometimes, drastic surgery is needed to remove the cancer and prevent it from spreading. And, if it is denied treatment, it will result in the death of the host.

Much of the world community, and particularly the Arabic-speaking nations, gaze upon the present war situation and say, “poor Gazans”, while they make no attempt to provide the remedy that can stop the Gazans from dying, namely: to force Hamas to surrender and force it to release ALL of the hostages. They speak the same language as Hamas. They provide the financing to Hamas and the materials needed for establishing an enormous labyrinth of tunnels. They know that the humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip on a daily basis is grabbed up primarily by Hamas to keep its terrorist network functioning, while ordinary citizens of Gaza are suffering as a direct result of Hamas’s apathy to the plight and, indirectly, as a result of the atrocities committed on October 7th. 

P.M. Benjamin Netanyahu, while serving as Knesset Chairman, said on August 14, 2006,  “If the Arabs lay down their arms there will be no more war, but if Israel lays down its weapons there would be no more Israel.”  Some things are so clear they need no elaboration.

The Red Cross reprimands hostage families:  Families of Israelis being held hostage by Hamas were reprimanded by representatives of the Red Cross .

Generally speaking, The International Committee of the Red Cross is supposed to be “an independent, neutral organization ensuring humanitarian protection and assistance for victims of armed conflict and other situations of violence. It takes action in response to emergencies and at the same time promotes respect for international humanitarian law and its implementation in national law.”  The respect that Israel may once have had for this humanitarian organization has dropped considerably, as a result of its lack of action and apparent indifference regarding the hostages being held by Hamas. Some considered that this organization’s involvement consisted of providing taxi service for transporting hostages released by Hamas to the control of Israeli authorities.

The attitude towards the Red Cross worsened considerably after a meeting this held between that organization and Roni and Simona Steinbrecher, the parents of Doron Steinbrecher, who is being held hostage by Hamas. Doron’s parents that that the Red Cross was going to provide the medication needed by their daughter. But, instead, they were told by representatives of the organization, “Think about the Palestinian side…It’s hard for the Palestinians, they’re being bombed.” Incredible! What about impartiality? What about providing “humanitarian … assistance for victims of armed conflict and other situations of violence”? And to think that people actually donate money to an organization that adds insult to injury by failing to abide by its own “mandate and mission”.

Failed attempt to rescue hostages: The IDF Spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, announced briefly yesterday that two members of the IDF were seriously wounded during a failed attempt to rescue hostages. He added that the IDF “will continue to act in a number of ways, operationally and with intelligence…to return all the hostages home, and to obtain information on them.”  National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi said today in a television interview that efforts to rescue hostages are incredibly high risk “because their captors are waiting with their fingers on the trigger”, adding, that is what resulted in two IDF commandos being injured yesterday. Even though two terrorists were eliminated, no hostages were found to be present at the location where the operation took place.

Hamas operatives surrendering to the IDF? Yes, it is estimated that more than a hundred and fifty Hamas operatives have surrendered to the IDF in areas of northern Gaza, while the fighting continues in the southern portion of the enclave. <https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel-at-war/1701980659-over-150-hamas-terrorists-surrender-to-idf-forces-in-khan-yunis> The terrorists were arrested and are being interrogated by Unit 504 of the Intelligence Corps and the Internal Security Service.

Deadline to end the war? Nothing like being sure of what is unsure. Here are some straight-forward headlines:

December 7th: “White House official: ‘We haven’t given Israel a deadline to end the war’.”

December 7th: “White House: We havaeli military operations, Israelis will decide their course’.”

December 8th: “Biden administration said to demand Israel conclude war against Hamas by end of year”

December 8th: “The United States has given Israel a deadline: Here’s when the war must end. The administration of U.S. President Joseph Biden has given Israel a deadline to end the war against Hamas by the end of the year.”

December 9th (today, at 11:33 a.m.): “US on report it gave war deadline: ‘These are Israeli military operations, Israelis will decide their course’.“

December 9th (today, at 18:09 p.m.): “Biden gives Israel until end of year to finish Gaza war – POLITICO.”

Whose war is this, anyway? Lest we forget, election politics will be the focal point of 2024 in the U.S. Does any politician want to focus his campaign on the support or lack of support for Israel’s war with Gaza?

If America behaved more like a Christian country should, Jews would be more secure! How’s that for a statement?

Dennis Prager is a nationally syndicated radio talk-show host and columnist. He is the co-founder of Prager University and author of a Torah commentary. In an eye-opening article appearing in Jewish Journal on December 7th, he wrote, in part: 

“Since World War II, most American Jews have believed that the more secular American society is, the more secure their status. This has been, as I have argued all of my life, a colossal error. Indeed, it may turn out to be a fatal error. With the outburst of unprecedented levels of antisemitism, American Jews are living the famous warning: ‘Beware what you wish for; you just may get it’.”

Prager quotes a portion of Mark Twain’s famous essay “Concerning the Jews” that appeared in Harper’s Magazine in 1899, as well as a number of sources lauding the accomplishments of the Jews and their contribution to American society. But, significantly, he points out: “The primary reason American Jews have lived in the most Jew-friendly, even Jew-honoring, country in history is that most Americans have been Christian. But we must make a key distinction here. American Christians have been not just Christian, as Europe was, but Judeo-Christian…[A]lmost to a man the Founders were Judeophiles.” 

I would encourage you to read his article, which is not lengthy and will close with Prager’s closing comments: “As I said to John Anderson, the former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, on his podcast: “I say this as a Jew … I don’t romanticize Christianity when I say its death is the death of the West. I am rooting for Christianity’s survival as much as you, the Christian, are. Look around, my fellow Jews. Are you happy with the results of the secularization of America? Do you feel more secure? Or less?

“I ask you: Is it not obvious that when more Americans attended church every Sunday, America’s Jews were far more secure?”

Food for thought.

Tonight is the third night and the third candle of Hanukkah. Part of the prayers that accompany the lighting of the candles includes the following:

“Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe, who performed miracles for our forefathers, in those days at this time.” We know that the Lord our God is the same yesterday, today and forever. What he did then, He is still able to do now. May the miracles of defeat of our enemies that were performed for the Maccabees also be performed in our time as well! 

Bless, be blessed and be a blessing.

Marvin