Shalom all,

The number of IDF deaths since the beginning of the ground offensive jumped to 161. The total number of IDF deaths since October 7th is reaching close to 500.

Proposed terms of negotiations are not in line with Israel’s objectives. – Egypt and Qatar are the two main “movers” in the attempts to lay out the ground work for a second round of negotiations for the return of hostage/release of prisoners and cease fire. In the background of those attempts is the leadership of Hamas. So, it shouldn’t come as a major surprise that Egypt’s proposal is heavily in favor of Hamas, while holding out the carrot before Israel for the initial return of dozens of hostages.

The essential of Egypt’s proposal, which was prepared together with Qatar, is far-reaching in its scope and goes beyond the cessation of hostilities, are the following : (1) It starts with a ceasefire for a period of up to two weeks, during which time the terrorist organizations (Hamas and “Palestinian” Islamic Jihad and, perhaps others) would return between 40 to 50 hostages. These would include women, elderly and sick. In exchange, Israel would release between 120-150 additional “Palestinians” presently in Israeli jails. (2) Additional negotiations that would be conducted during this initial ceasefire stage would focus on extending the ceasefire and the return of additional hostages, including bodies of Israelis still held by the terrorists. (3) The two drafters of the proposal would hold meetings with all of the different factions of “Palestinians”, including Hamas, with the goal of getting those factions to agree to the setting up of a government of “experts”, who would rule both the Gaza Strip and the “West Bank” (Biblical Judea and Samaria) until the various “Palestinian” factions resolve their disputes. Once that happens, those same factions would further agree to hold both presidential and parliamentary elections. (4) While all of the “Palestinian” factions are pursuing the goals mentioned in the above third point, Israel and Hamas would “negotiate” an “all-for-all” deal, one that would result in (a) the return of all remaining hostages (b) the release of all of the “Palestinian” prisoners (c) the withdrawal of the IDF from Gaza and (d) the cessation of rocket attacks into Israel by “Palestinian” terrorists. That’s the general idea.

Realistically, however, the likelihood that Israel would be willing to accept those proposals is close to nil. While emptying Israeli prisons of some 8,000 prisoners would be economically beneficial for Israel, considering the extremely high cost of providing for them, their release in exchange for about 130 hostages could quickly and easily replenish the losses incurred by the terrorists since October 7th.

Moreover, the proposal totally ignores Israel’s stated goals of eliminating Hamas, as well as its repeated insistence on maintaining military control in the Gaza Strip for a period of time, presently unknown, but at least for the foreseeable future, after the war ends. It is foolish to believe that the terrorist hierarchy of Hamas would voluntarily agree to turn over the reigns of power and authority to any group of “experts”, presently unspecified. 

The three “Ds” for peace: – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it clear that Israel would not agree to end the war until its goals are obtained. In an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, he laid out three prerequisites for peace between Israel and its “Palestinian” neighbors, which can be summed up, as follows : “1) the destruction of Hamas; 2) the demilitarization of Gaza and 3) the deradicalization of Palestinian society,” all of which he expanded upon in the above-mentioned op-ed.

In the meantime, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant does not see an early end to the Gaza War. Addressing Members of the Israeli Knesset (Parliament) today, Gallant stated: “This is a long, tough war. It has costs, heavy costs, but its justification is the highest that can be”, noting that Hamas will pay for its barbaric attack of October 7th, “whether it takes months or years.” He put the present picture together in his statement that Israel is now fighting on “seven fronts” and responded, so far, to six of them. That’s a polite way of saying that we are involved in a multi-front war.

In an earlier post, it was pointed out that in an effort to avoid an all-out conflagration with Lebanon, Israel was demanding that the Hezbollah terrorist organization move northward to the Litani River, creating a buffer zone of about 30 km from the border with Israel. This would allow for the displaced residents to return to their homes in the north. Apparently, P.M. Netanyahu is backing away from his earlier demand, due to pressure being exerted by the U.S. and France, who are trying to stave off a full-scale war with Lebanon. That leaves the terrorist group to continue to act in complete violation of U.N. Resolution 1701, which created a buffer zone that has the Hezbollah has blatantly ignored. No one seems to be complaining about this, except for Israel.

Iran threatens to retaliate against Israel for the death of IRGC general in Syria. – Razi Mousavi was a close friend of Iranian General Qassim Soleimani, who killed by the U.S. in 2020. Mousavi himself was killed yesterday (Monday) in an airstrike in Syria, attributed to Israel. He was also an adviser to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, which threatened that Israel would end up paying for killing him. That is one of the 7 fronts that Gallant mentioned. Iran has so far operated by its puppet proxies, Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthis, the 3-H club. But, it won’t sit on the sidelines for too much longer.

The Dry Bones Blog – 21 December, 2023

The “West” is urged to take in refugees from Gaza. – According to some Israeli Members of Knesset, both in the coalition, as well as in the opposition, one of the solutions to the problem of Gazan refugees is for other countries to welcome them. Over a month and a half ago, the Wall Street Journal published an Opinion piece by those Members of Knesset which included, among other things, “The international community has a moral imperative—and an opportunity—to demonstrate compassion, help the people of Gaza move toward a more prosperous future and work together to achieve greater peace and stability in the Middle East.” This would not be a “transfer”, but a humanitarian solution for those Gazans who want to leave and relocate to another country. Egypt is not in favor of it. One European diplomat reported that he was told by an Egyptian official: “You want us to take one million people? Well, I am going to send them to Europe. You care about human rights so much – well, you take them.”  None of our neighbors want to take in the people from Gaza, who refer to themselves as “Palestinians”. I am presuming that they don’t want to take the chance that among those Gazans will be other non-desirables that go by the name of “Hamas” or “Palestinian Islamic Jihad.”

Hezbollah strikes a church in Galilee. – During a heavy exchange of fire between Israel and the Hezbollah terrorist organization, the latter fired a missile that struck St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church in the Village of Iqrit, in Western Galilee. Where is the international outcry? Or is it only when Israel is alleged to have bombed a church in Gaza that the world has something to say?

Bless, be blessed and be a blessing.
Marvin