Shalom all,

The events of last week inched the Middle East closer to a regional war. The Hezbollah terrorist organization continued to launch barrage after barrage of missiles and armed drones into the north of Israel and into communities largely abandoned shortly after October 7th. Large sections of land have been destroyed by fires caused by the Hezbollah attacks. The easiest way to disprove terrorists’ repeated and historically baseless claims to the land of Israel is by pointing out their willingness to destroy it. This is what is being done in the north by the Hezbollah, what was done in the south by Hamas and what has recently been attempted in Tel Aviv by the Yemenite Houthis.

Whoever heard of the “Houthis” before the barbaric Hamas onslaught that took place 9-1/2 months ago? They seemed almost to come out of the woodwork after October 7th, revealing themselves as one more Iran-funded proxy, to be added to Hamas and Hezbollah – the unholy terrorist triumvirate of the Triple “H” Club (Ha-He-Hou, for short). A terrorist infant, yearning to be weaned and to flex its muscles in an attempt to find its nitch in the world of terrorism, the Houthis joined the attacks against Israel purportedly until Israel ends the fighting in the Gaza Strip.

Since last October, the Houthis have attacked Israel some 200 times, most of them geared towards the southern-most city of Eilat. But, last week, an armed Houthi drone managed to make it through and struck a residential building in Tel Aviv, resulting in the death of one Israeli and injury to at least ten others. Following this attack, Israel finally responded against the Houthi aggression. It sent fighter planes 1,700 kilometers (approximately 1,060 miles) to Yemen and destroyed the oil depot and electrical installations at the Port of Hudaydah (or Hodeidah), the second largest port in Yemen. 

We could try to rationalize why it took Israel so long to respond to the provocations of the Houthis. Two main excuses top the list: the first, that Israel has its hands full with Hamas and Hezbollah and did not want to open up a third “active” front. The second relates to the claim that as long as the Houthi threats did not result in the death of any Israeli, there was no serious need to retaliate. While the first excuse can stand the test of reason and practicality, the second one cannot. Waiting until the threat of harm becomes realized and people are killed and/or seriously wounded is exactly the kind of misguided thinking that allowed the events of October 7th to take place. Up until that time, Hamas tried time and again to inflict major harm to the communities in the Gaza Envelope, but failed to achieve widespread success. As a result, Israel tolerated repeated launches of mortars, missiles and fire balloons from Gaza and did not see the need for substantial retaliation to put an end to the potential threat. As long as multitudes of Israelis were not being killed, Israel was content to strike back with “proportionate responses”. It was part of the failed “concept” that allowed foreign funding, mostly from Qatar, to be poured into Gaza, which was intended to build a civilian infrastructure and improve the lives of the residents in Gaza. But, instead, the money was used by Hamas to build a terrorist infrastructure that Israel ignored until October 7th, when a thousand missiles rained hell and destruction on dozens of communities in the south of Israel, allowed for the assault by 3,000 terrorists from Gaza, resulting in the death of 1,200 Israelis and the capture of 250 who were taken hostage to Gaza. We waited too long. This same failed perspective was in play regarding the Houthis and appears to be part of the considerations regarding the nature of our responses vis-a-vis the Hezbollah.

One death in Tel Aviv from a Houthi projectile resulted in the massive destruction of an essential port in Yemen that was used for military purposes. What about the deaths of civilians and military in the north of Israel resulting from Hezbollah missiles, and the displacement of over 80,000 residents from their homes? This has only resulted in tit-for-tat responses by Israel and verbal warnings that have been ignored. Is the honor of Tel Aviv to be upheld, while the entire region of the north of Israel is being allowed to be sacrificed? The Israeli retaliation against the Port of Hudayda accomplished two necessary goals: First, it was a demonstration of Israel’s ability to reach its enemies, undetected, despite the considerabale distance from the shores of Israel. This was particularly important to show to Iran that it is within the striking distance of Israel (closer to Israel than Yemen). The second is to point out that Israel understands how relationships work – or don’t work – in the Middle East. “Israel’s enemies are deterred by actions, not words. If words had a deterrent power, the country’s North would not still be under a barrage of daily rocket fire from Hezbollah, because Israel’s threats against Hezbollah – with Gallant leading the way – have been many and frequent…Still, Hezbollah has not gotten the message. It’s actions that count, not threats.” The take away from the Israeli retaliation against the Houthis: There is a price to pay for repeated attacks against Israel. At some point, it will be paid and paid in full. Better sooner than later. 

Incredible as it may seem, after the hundreds of attacks against Israel by the Houthis, when Israel finally retaliated, the Houthis accused Israel of “opening a war with the Yemeni people”. A Houthi spokesman, speaking to the Qatari-owned news site Al Jazeera, said: “The conflict with the Israeli enemy will be open, without boundaries or a commitment to rules of engagement…”The threats will continue in Tel Aviv, and the new equation is clear evidence that anyone who defends the enemy fails. The Americans, the British, European nations and Arab agents will not succeed in preventing the threat from reaching Israel. We are pleased to have a direct battle against the Israeli enemy…There are several critical and sensitive targets in Israel that we will strike. We will announce our actions once they are carried out.” The major open question is whether the Houthis will try to recruit other pro-Iranian militias for a coordinated attack on Israel. Israel is preparing for different scenarios.

Israel is actively engaged in two fronts against two of Iran’s proxies: Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The latter is usually referred to as a terrorist organization, but it has clearly developed into an unofficial army. Israel cannot wait until Hezbollah succeeds in carrying out major destruction to cities, kibbutzim and moshavim. Hezbollah is not Hamas. It is well trained, well financed, has a tunnel infrastructure better than that of Hamas and has a quarter of a million missiles pointed in our direction. Israel needs to take preventative action to seriously disrupt Lebanese infrastructure and destroy depots storing missiles and military equipment of Hezbollah. Diplomacy doesn’t work with the Hezbollah. Threats against it fall on deaf ears. All that they understand is power and force. Nobody wants an all-out war, but crossing our fingers and hoping that it is not going to happen is wishful thinking. If the Gaza war ends, the conflict with Hezbollah will only be put on hold. It is doubtful that the Houthis will simply walk away and carry on with their terrorism elsewhere. Iran does not pay them to sit around and do nothing.

Needless to say that other Arab countries condemned Israel’s “aggression” against Yemen, expressing concern that Israel’s actions “harm regional security and undermine international efforts to end violence”. Why is there no expression of concern about the attacks upon Israel from the Hezbollah and the Houthis? The simple answer is that Arab communities see each other as members of a broader family, irrespective of where all the family members live. An attack upon one member by Israel is treated as an attack upon the entire family, hence the repeated call for united action against Israel. 

Hostage negotiations are back on the table and the Israeli delegation will be returning to Doha on Thursday, to respond to the 29 Hamas comments to the proposed outline. As will be recalled, the present situation calls for the release of 30 live hostages. The pressure to reach a “deal at any price” is gaining momentum, particularly in light of today’s news that two additional hostages died while in Hamas custody. This latest push, even from members of the security establishment, also includes support from the far religious right, who see the release of the hostages as a matter of pikuach nefesh – the saving of a life. But, their support of making a deal now is related to freeing “all” of the hostages “now”, while Israel is willing to negotiate for 30 now, the rest later. Given the prior track record of unreliability of the Hezbollah, the willingness to enter into piece-meal negotiations only prolongs the agony of the hostages, their families and the division of the nation, half of which wants to force Hamas to surrender and return the hostages, while the other is interested only in the return of the hostages, essentially ignoring the fact that we are at war. And the entire country suffers as a result of the disunity.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now in the United States and will be delivering a message to the Congress. He is scheduled to meet with President Joe Biden and, undoubtedly, the latter will push for Netanyahu to close the deal with Hamas and end the war, while Biden is still in office. As for the consequences of Biden’s decision not to pursue re-election, that remains a matter of speculation. America will once again soon demonstrate how ugly politics can be, while Israel, who is not a stranger to ugly politicking, is hoping that Biden’s replacement, whoever it is, will be supportive of Israel, not only as a friend, but as an ally.

Finally, if Israel didn’t have enough to worry about, traces of polio virus in the sewage system of the Gaza Strip. There is a concern that it might affect the members of the IDF presently engaged there, who might bring the virus back with them when their tours of duty are over. As a result, the IDF was instructed “to ensure that all soldiers are vaccinated against polio. It is recommended that even those vaccinated in the routine immunization program receive a booster dose due to potential exposure risk, especially in field conditions. Besides protecting the soldiers themselves, it is crucial to prevent them from getting infected and subsequently infecting others, as the virus is excreted in large quantities through the intestines…The [Israeli] Health Ministry’s directive to the IDF also said that ‘the vaccine is recommended for all combat teams currently in Gaza or those about to enter the area. There is no need to vaccinate soldiers who were previously in Gaza’.”

Israel continues to suffer from national trauma. The nation is divided over hostages and war. The drain is evident in all areas, particularly as more deaths of hostages or members of the IDF are announced. We need a spirit of unity. We need wisdom, courage and decisiveness. We need an undergirding of fervent prayer for: the hostages who are still alive; for the families of the hostages; for the soldiers who are wounded; for the families of those who lost loved ones since October 7th; for wisdom to know how to proceed, the boldness to pursue what we know to do and the skill to be able to accomplish what needs to be done.

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit. (James 5:17-18)

Have a healthy and a safe week. And remember: Bless, be blessed and be a blessing. In a world that doesn’t know which end is up, these things are still possible.

Marvin