Shalom all.

Expressing “cautious optimism”, the IDF believes that it eliminated Mohammed Deif, the supreme commander of Hamas’ military wing in an airstrike yesterday (Shabbat) morning in the area of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. The strike was approved and carried out based on precise technological surveillance and human monitoring, which led to the confirmation that Deif was at the targeted site and came out of from hiding in the tunnels. Also believed eliminated in the operation was Rafa’a Salameh, the Khan Younis Brigade Commander and Deif’s right-hand man.

Saudi media reported that Hamas is investigating a “major internal breach” that made the strike possible. The report added that Deif, along with other senior officials of Hamas, relocated repeatedly in recent weeks, specifically to evade Israeli surveillance. According to The Wall Street Journal, the bodyguards of Deif and Salameh were among the dead. 

Israel’s defense establishment refers to Deif, one of earliest recruits of Hamas, as a “ghost-like” figure. He is actually more like a terrorist cat with at least 8 lives, who survived 7 previous assassination attempts on his life. The Israeli authorities arrested him in 1989 on charges of taking an active part of Hamas’ military activities. He took advantage of the 16 months that he spent in administrative detention in Israel to establish the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, which is now the military wing of Hamas headed up by Yahya Sinwar. Deif quickly rose through the ranks of Hamas and developed the terrorist organization’s tunnel network of tunnels, as well as its bomb-making expertise. Israel held him personally responsible for suicide bombings in the 1990s, which took the lives of dozens of Israelis.

As of this writing, there is no definitive confirmation of Deif’s death . And, as expected, “Hamas sources confirmed that Salameh was killed in the Israeli strike, while refusing to confirm or deny Deif’s death, according to a Sunday morning report in the pan-Arab daily newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat. A top Hamas official told AFP on Sunday that Deif was ‘fine’ despite the Israeli assassination attempt. ‘Commander Mohammed Deif is well and directly overseeing’ the terror group’s armed wing, the official said.” Obviously, the easiest way for Hamas to verify its claim that Deif is alive and well would be for him to be photographed holding today’s newspaper in his hands. His being alive or dead remains shrouded in secrecy, typical of the tactics of Hamas. In all likelihood, however, the outcome of the strike will become clear in the next few days, due to the fact that this operation was carried out above ground, where bodies are easily identifiable. In the meantime, we need to be careful about proclaiming as fact what we do not know for certain. After all, this is Mohammed Deif – the terrorist who survived seven previous assassination attempts. Earlier this year, the IDF took out Marwan Issa, the number 3 Hamas official in Gaza, who was the then deputy to Mohammad Deif, and one of the planners of the Hamas barbaric assault on October 7th, as was his boss, Mohammad Deif. Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, remains in hiding, much like the General Secretary of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah.

The IDF’s targeted strike and assassination of Deif could result in a temporarily halt to the negotiations for the release of the hostages. But, officialdom in Jerusalem believes that it could well increase the chances of reaching an agreement, as the loss of half of Hamas’ leadership could affect the organization’s fighting ability, embolden opposition to Yahya Sinwar and increase the pressure on him to reach a cease-fire agreement with Israel that would allow for the survival of the remaining leaders of Hamas, at least for a season.

Hamas acknowledges that Salameh was eliminated. If, in fact, Deif was also eliminated, that would leave only four high-ranking Hamas leaders in Gaza, the most senior of them being Sinwar. David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel, in his article that appeared in today’s edition, concludes with the following statement: “Deif’s death … would mark a turning point in Israel’s war to dismantle Hamas’s military and civilian governance capabilities and to bring home all the hostages. It might even come to constitute a breaking point. If, that is, the IDF finally got him.” And, according to Avi Issacharoff, the Arab Affairs commentator for Yediot Aharonot newspaper: “There has been a change in Hamas’s position. They are showing a willingness to go to an agreement without knowing in advance if we go to a complete ceasefire. Hamas no longer demands what it demanded at the beginning. There is flexibility. There are several considerations here, one of which is the military pressure taking its toll. Hamas is not immune to social pressure, so it may be that they are ready for some kind of easy compromise.”  

Israel should take full advantage of an opportunity like this and demand the return of all of the hostages, alive and dead, all at one time – not in stages, as is presently being negotiated. Due to international pressure, as well as internal pressure – mostly from the families of the hostages, Israel was the one that was pursuing Hamas to negotiate for the release of the hostages and Hamas was adamant and inflexible in its demands. Now, the situation appears to be different and the achievements of the IDF on the ground are having positive effects to diminish the bargaining position of Hamas. This is a momentum that should not be stopped until Hamas is forced to free all of the hostages at one time.

And what about the events in the north of Israel? The Hezbollah terrorist organization continues to launch missiles, rockets and armed drones into areas of the north of Israel and the IDF responds with a proportionate, retaliatory strike. At some point, Hezbollah’s attempts at a war of attrition will reach the breaking point and cross the line that lights the fuse of war. But, with the ever-increasing threat of war with Hezbollah and other Iranian proxies, more and more political pundits are arriving at the conclusion that if we fail to give appropriate attention to the worsening situation with Hezbollah, we will “lose the north”.

David Suissa, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief of Tribe Media/Jewish Journal, in his article entitled “While Consumed with Gaza, Is Israel Losing the North?”, refers in no small measure to an article by former Israeli Ambassador, Michael Oren. Suissa opens with:

“’Northerners feel that the country has abandoned them,’ author and former Israeli ambassador Michael Oren writes on his Substack. ‘Their plight barely makes the news. They have no indication of when, if at all, the fighting will end or how Hezbollah will be forced to retreat from the border. IDF commanders in the region estimate that as many as 40% of its previous population is unlikely ever to return.’

“The tragedy of the north is the dark secret of post-Oct. 7 life in Israel. The massacres of Oct. 7, which occurred in the south, were so horrific and traumatizing they have sucked up most the emotional energy of an exhausted nation. The continued plight of the hostages has only intensified the focus on Hamas and the war in Gaza.“

The article refers to the 80,000 Israelis who have been “uprooted, torn from their workplaces, their schools, and communities”, with reasonably anticipated consequences, not the least of which is the loss, not only of the north, but of “the state’s commitment to defend all our citizens irrespective of their place of residence, to preserve our precious human and natural resources, and to deter our enemies.”

Both articles are worth reading. Despite the difficulties and the challenges that are part and parcel of ongoing warfare, Suissa ends on a positive note:

“How do you live with the constant threat of violence and war?’ the late Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks asked. ‘That takes faith. Israel is the people that has always been sustained by faith, faith in God, in the future, in life itself.’ That faith in life, despite how bad things may get in the north or the south, may well be the secret weapon that enables Israelis to prevail.” 

While “faith in the future and faith in life itself” are important, the faith that Israel is called to live by is faith in God, the Creator of all life, who longs to be gracious to us. (Isaiah 30:8). How is that faith to be defined? “”[Faith] is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) Faith, when properly exercised, can move mountains and defeat even the most powerful of enemies. Israel’s leaders need to get back to basics: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” (Prov. 3:5). They need to allow the Captain of the Hosts of the Lord to show them how to walk by faith, fight the good fight of faith and cause the walls of every Jericho to fall down before them. May it be!

On a personal note, my thanks to all of you who have written and provided words of encouragement following my report of the hate mail that was sent to me.

Don’t let what you don’t know, take away from what and Who you do know.

Bless, be blessed and be a blessing.

Marvin