Of course not! This photo is obviously fake! For starters, the IDF does not issue AK-47s to it’s soldiers. Secondly, no elephant serving for the IDF has ever reached the rank of Sergeant Major. It’s unbelievable how low enemies of Israel will stoop in order to cast aspersions on our beloved institutions. Even after being confronted with the obvious fakeness of this photo, many critics charge that it doesn’t change the fact that Palestinians have been harmed by the IDF. Perhaps, but how many were harmed by IDF Elephants? Sigh.

Masterful photoshop hat tip to this guy. I think.

Israel’s official memorial day, officially known as Israeli Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terrorism Remembrance Day. It honors the memory of 22,867 soldiers killed in the line of duty and 3,971 civilian victims of terror. National memorial services are held in the presence of Israel’s top leadership and military personnel. The day opens with a siren the preceding evening at 20:00 (8:00 pm), given that in the Hebrew calendar system, the day begins at sunset. The siren is heard all over the country and lasts for one minute, during which Israelis stop everything (including driving, which stops highways) and stand in silence, commemorating the fallen and showing respect. Many religious Jews say prayers for the souls of the fallen soldiers at this time. The official ceremony to mark the opening of the day takes place at the Western Wall, and the flag of Israel is lowered to half staff.

A two-minute siren is heard at 11:00 the following morning, which marks the opening of the official memorial ceremonies and private remembrance gatherings at each cemetery where soldiers are buried. The day officially draws to a close between 19:00 and 20:00 (7–8 p.m.) in the official ceremony of Israel Independence Day on Mount Herzl, when the flag of Israel is returned to full staff. This video was shot at Machane Yehuda – שוק מחנה יהודה -, Jerusalem’s busy central market at 11 am on May 9, 2011.

Kevin grew up in California, enjoying good weather, late night Tacobell runs, and his grandma’s Shabbos chicken. When he celebrated his 21st birthday at a restaurant with his family, everyone gave him Mazal Tovs, bought him a beer and said “speech, speech!” Kevin isn’t so into speeches, but he stood up, and announced:

Kevin at his IDF induction ceremony at the kotel

“Hey family, I’m joining the Israeli army”

His mother still hasn’t recovered from the shock.

For the last two years, Kevin has been dedicating his life to defending the state of Israel. He traded his expansive Jew fro for a buzz cut and began picking up Hebrew from officers who yell orders at him (you learn pretty fast this way). He wakes up at 4 am (on the chill days) to go on drill runs and and has guard duty for 8 hours at a time with no cell phones, books, iPods, etc. because he has to stay alert – this job is for real.

He has been saving up his off days for two years, planning to use them for a full month’s trip back to California, to visit his family, and also to attend his favorite music Festival: Coachella! He’s been a number of times already but he had to miss the last two years because he was busy, you know, becoming a Sergeant and protecting Israel so that you can come visit on Birthright Israel or sip a latté on Shenkin street and discuss Spinoza and post-existentialism.

On the last Shabbat prior to his departure, he told us about all the fun he was going to have at Coachella and all the great acts he was totally amped to see. He had just received his dates and was so happy that, after much finagling and calling in of favors, he was able to convince the IDF bureaucracy to make them correspond with the Festival. That’s when our very own ck broke his heart and said “Uh, dude? Those tickets totally sold out in less than three days.” To have seen Kevin’s face at that moment would have been to know the true meaning of heartbreak.

So the question now is, does anyone have an extra ticket to Coachella that they need to get rid of at a non-extortionate rate? I’m pretty sure that bringing a little joy to Kevin qualifies as a very big mitzva. Huge! Jewlicious applies to run a Shabbat Tent at Coachella but the powers that be rejected the application – otherwise Kevin would have been able to attend as staff. Now his only option is to pay scalper prices – remember he gets paid peanuts in the IDF – or, gasp, not go. Kevin can pay, help him find a ticket!

If you can help, or know anyone that can help, please contact Jewlicious using the Contact page, or leave a comment or send us an email at jewlicious at gmail dot com. We’ll hook you up.

Big Mitzvah. Huge!

Well, no. Not really. Almost a year ago I stated in a comment that “based on some of his comments thus far, I don’t believe we’ve heard Goldstone’s final word on the report that bears his name…” and sure enough, that off the cuff prediction came true. In an opinion piece that appeared in the Washington Post on Friday, April 1st (not an April fool’s joke), Goldstone stated:

We know a lot more today about what happened in the Gaza war of 2008-09 than we did when I chaired the fact-finding mission appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council that produced what has come to be known as the Goldstone Report. If I had known then what I know now, the Goldstone Report would have been a different document.

How so? Goldstone continues:

The allegations of intentionality by Israel were based on the deaths of and injuries to civilians in situations where our fact-finding mission had no evidence on which to draw any other reasonable conclusion. While the investigations published by the Israeli military and recognized in the U.N. committee’s report have established the validity of some incidents that we investigated in cases involving individual soldiers, they also indicate that civilians were not intentionally targeted as a matter of policy.

Goldstone blames the discrepancy between what really happened during Operation Cast Lead and the conclusions of the Goldstone Report on Israel’s decision not to cooperate with the UN Human Rights Council fact-finding mission:

Although the Israeli evidence that has emerged since publication of our report doesn’t negate the tragic loss of civilian life, I regret that our fact-finding mission did not have such evidence explaining the circumstances in which we said civilians in Gaza were targeted, because it probably would have influenced our findings about intentionality and war crimes… Israel’s lack of cooperation with our investigation meant that we were not able to corroborate how many Gazans killed were civilians and how many were combatants.

I can’t say that I disagree with him. In this day and age of rapid and unfettered communication, trying to remain opaque, except for matters of absolute national security, is a policy that will always backfire and is an exercise in futility. The message that the world received is that Israel had something to hide. And yet, as Goldstone noted the findings of the UN committee of independent experts, chaired by former New York judge Mary McGowan Davis which stated that “Israel has dedicated significant resources to investigate over 400 allegations of operational misconduct in Gaza” while “the de facto authorities (i.e., Hamas) have not conducted any investigations into the launching of rocket and mortar attacks against Israel.” The implication here is that Hamas’s alleged war crimes in Gaza have now come under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court because no domestic investigation, or even the pretense of an investigation, has taken place. But don’t hold your breath waiting for that.

Goldstone concluded that “In the end, asking Hamas to investigate may have been a mistaken enterprise. So, too, the Human Rights Council should condemn the inexcusable and cold-blooded recent slaughter of a young Israeli couple and three of their small children in their beds.”

Obviously, this has set the world of punditry aflutter. The man who was once the darling of the “critical of Israel” crowd is now being reviled. His motivations are being called into question and every word of his “reconsideration” is being analyzed for hidden meanings. I’m sure that in the coming days and weeks we will hear more from Goldstone, but for me his words are crystal clear: The findings of the report merit reconsideration in light of new facts, and those new facts demonstrate that there was no intentional Israeli policy to target civilians.

I mean, duh!

Gaza is one of the most densely populated areas in the world. The IDF is one of the best, most powerfully equipped armies in the world. If the IDF’s intent was to target civilians, the death count would have been much, much higher. In fact, quite the opposite seems to be true. Remember the ridicule that greeted Col. Richard Kemp, Former Commander British Forces in Afghanistan, when he declared that “…the IDF did more to safeguard the rights of civilians in the combat zone than any other army in the history of warfare.” Not so ridiculous now, eh? But people will spin this however they like. Some spin will be reasonable, some will be quasi-retarded (what else did you expect from Richard Silverstein who used this post to make his blog’s first reference to the massacre of members of the Fogel family in Itamar. This man has no shame.) and others will be flat out hateful and anti-Semitic, claiming that Goldstone caved to Jewish communal pressure, or payoffs. But don’t start celebrating yet. Goldstone may have called into question the issue of intentionality, but he has yet to weigh in on other aspects of the report, ie the alleged use of human shields and the perceived disproportionality of Israel’s response to Hamas’s rocket fire.

In any case, like I said, we’ll see how this plays out in the future. I am reserving a more detailed analysis for a later date, or maybe for the Middle to pipe in given how much he’s written in the past about Goldstone. Well we’ve written a lot about the report, but he’s written the most…

Maj. Gen. (Res.) Amos Gilad – “in the past Israel has never had its easier, in regards to terrorism.” Gilad noted that the phenomenon of suicide terrorism, in Israel, has practically disappeared, as a result of the actions taken by ISA and the IDF. Today, Gilad stated, the P.A. opposes terrorism, and has been working against Hamas, particularly in light of Hamas’ actions towards Fatah members after they [Hamas] took over Gaza [in 2006]. A second threat is that of rockets. Gilad observed that, following Israel’s campaign in Lebanon in 2006, there have been very few rocket attacks from Lebanon, and that the same can be said from Gaza, following 2008’s Operation Cast Lead. In the center of the country, due to a combination of Israeli and Jordanian action, Israel has, what Gilad calls, “a quiet border all the way to Iraq.” Referring to the recent rocket attack from the Sinai, he called this a rarity. Moreover, he noted that Israel has not recently suffered from other forms of terrorism from which Israel suffered from in the past, such as sea-launched attacks. Yet, Israel, he argued, must not rest on her laurels; Israel must look to the future in order to answer future threats. The first present/future threat mentioned was that of rockets. This, he called, the “Qassam/Shihab” threat from “Hizbullah-stan.” There are currently around 25,000 rockets in Lebanon, which poses a serious threat to Israel’s north, particularly in light of the mayhem in Lebanon. The President of Lebanon, he said, “sold the south, and has no idea as to what is going on there.” “Hizbullah-stan is, essentially, its own state, with its own policies and militaries. Hamas-stan is built on the same model. Both are trying to build rockets which can hit Tel Aviv, to hit the home front, and hit strategic targets…” including psychological ones. To great measure, it can be seen, according to Gilad, that Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, and Hamas, are working together. To this end, Gilad claimed that the P.A. could not, today, take over and control Gaza. “If Jordan, God forbid, would be unable to hold its security as it does, or if we should leave Judea and Samaria for whatever political reasons, we must be sure that the P.A. forces are strong enough to deal with the Hamas so that we are not caught between rocket and other attacks on two fronts. So what do we need to do? We need to maintain our deterrence.” Deterrence, he argued, can only be maintained so long as “they” [i.e. states, organizations] believe that Israel can destroy them. Moving on to the ever-present issue, a nuclear Iran, he stated, would pose a great danger from the “terror crescent,” (referencing the crescent of Iran, Syria, Hezbollah-stan, and Hamas-stan). Appearances are important, he argued. Even if it only appears that Iran has a nuclear weapon, it will strengthen and embolden the terrorist organizations, like Hezbollah and Hamas. Regarding the Hamas, “we must remember that they are not simply Palestinian terrorists. They are Muslim Brotherhood whose ideology is to turn the Middle East into an Islamic caliphate.” Iran, he said, cannot be allowed to get to the point that it can further impact terrorism. “Not to mention that the Arab States, like Egypt and Saudi Arabia will not allow the Persians to become the leaders of the region, which is even more of a danger… It’s a psychological issue that could tip the scales against Israel.” Concluding, Gilad stated that at present, Israel is “ok, but we have a lot of heavy clouds in the sky, some of which are unseen, and we need to maintain our deterrence, our defense, and our treaties with Arab States. To our great luck, the Arab States are acting against their own terror, and are working to maintain it. In the security realm, in my opinion, Israel can deal with it through increasing cooperation with other states.”

Prof. Moshe Arens – terrorism is, causing intentional harm against civilians, is an effective weapon. In the last years there has been a “plague” of terrorism, with Israel at the center. Israel, therefore, had to contend with “the suicide bombers, who are effective and precise weapons, able to target both a place and time. Serial suicide, as Israel was subject to 10, 20 years ago, during years where bombers were blowing themselves up on busses and in restaurants, in population centers, sometimes once, twice a day, were aimed to break the spirit of the attacked population, and were stopped mostly through Defensive Shield.” The second popular weapon among terrorists is rockets. Rockets, Arens noted, are not new, as the Germans used them against Britain. Yet, while very effective, they are not decisive. According to Arens, from then on, rockets have been available and cheap, and again, Israel has been the main target of rocket terrorism, primarily from Hamas in the Gaza Strip. “We have spent a lot of effort and funds, including on ‘Golden Domes,’ to defend against the relatively short range rockets. But, we have to deter those who have the ability to perpetrate acts of terrorism.” When discussing terrorist organizations, which don’t have a system of policy or administration, he said, there is little to be done. Yet, Arens argued that acts of terrorism will not occur if the terrorists are fearful of the response. Recalling the terrorism which used to be quite common coming from Judea and Samaria, he stated that such terrorism was stopped by deterrence. In contending with terrorism, it is important, according to Arens, to remember that terrorists, too, have considerations, and are, therefore, sensitive to acts which undermine them. Capabillity, he argued, is less important than motivation. (an argument with which I, your humble Jewlicious blogger, disagree). Arens provides two examples. First is that of Hezbollah. Hezbollah is a terrorist organization, but also has a system which is both hegemonic and part of the government, which results in their having a series of considerations in deciding whether to perpetrate acts of terrorism. The second example is the Second Lebanon War. Arens argued that in a very short period of time, Israel was able to deter Hezbollah, and stopped the katushas and the kidnappings, and though there is great criticism regarding the war, there is little doubt that Hezbollah today thinks twice, or even thrice, regarding the implications of attacking Israel. A similar example is that of Hamas in Gaza. According to Arens, there were a number of years in which Israel was unable to deter Hamas from shooting their short-range rockets at Israel’s population. Yet, Arens noted, a barrage of rockets from Gaza have not hit Israel, since Cast Lead, because Hamas, while a terrorist organization, also, has an administrative apparatus. Under this logic, the governmental apparatus provides some stability as a result of Israel’s actions against them. While there have been terrorist attacks from Hamas, as of late, they emanated from Judea and Samaria, where they do not have the administrative apparatus, which made the individual Hamas-men more free to act. Arens concluded by noting that deterrence, when it works, is key, but when it fails, causes problem.

Lt. Gen. (Res.) Shaul Mofaz – “Nine years ago were the attacks of 9/11 which shook the world, and led to a change and an increase in mutual cooperation throughout the world to defend against global terrorism. The era of suicide terrorism, between 2000 and 2005, was the hardest military period Israel has ever had to contend with and had great difficulty in providing security to its citizens. It was difficult, because these people ultimately didn’t care about getting home. But then, at least their goal was mostly establishing a Palestinian state on the pre-67 borders. But now, new terrorism is coming from Gaza, though there, too, we [Israel] managed to deter it, and that is one of the great successes of the Israeli security apparati against terrorism.” Deterrence against radical organizations, Mofaz noted, requires a great deal of effort and funds. “The challenge of security and policy of Israel is first the double threat of Iran.” The Iranian threat, he argued, is the greatest threat to Israel. First, Iran leads the “radical crescent,” comprised of Syria, Hezbollah, and Hamas. This threat is relatively new, he argued, not having existed 15 years ago. The second threat posed by Iran, is its desire to become a nuclear power. “An Iranian bomb is an existential threat to the State of Israel, probably more so than any threat since the War of Independence.” According to Mofaz, this element must be understood by all decision makers in Israel. Today, he argued, Iran’s strategy is to gain time and go slowly. In Mofaz’s opinion, there are three steps to preventing a nuclear Iran. The first is international pressure, the second is sanctions, the third is a military strike. Mofaz argued that anyone who believes it is possible to compromise with a nuclear Iran is “delusional.” The US, he said, needs to lead each of these steps. A related security element with which Israel need contend, Mofaz stated, is the threat of missiles, which the aforementioned nations all have. The security apparati cannot solely be relied upon to prevent such attacks. Mofaz was vehement that Israel must find other ways to contend with these threats. “It’s a challenge of challenges,” he said, and has been a major topic of peace agreements in recent years. He, also, mentioned the fields of contending with terrorism, and proliferation of unconventional, and conventional weapons. “In my opinion, we have an opportunity to deal with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with two nation-states for two people.” Summarizing problems, he argued, doesn’t work, recalling the many years since Oslo. “The Palestinians,” he said, “are looking at the fact that they have two political administrations, Fatah in Judea and Samaria, and Hamas in Gaza,” and so long as they don’t win with politics, they will turn to terror. This calls for an interim agreement. He claimed that the starting point should be some form of agreement between Israel and the Palestinians; dealing with borders and security. If those can be settled, than it is possible to move on. Borders, he argued, should based upon the large settlement blocks (i.e. Ariel, Gush Etzion, etc.) in exchange for extra land near the Gaza Strip. The land size, he stated, must be equal to those of the 1967 borders, “though not necessarily the same as ‘67.” Peace can be made, he believes, with the help of the USA, Europe, and increased regional economics. Deterrence, though, must continue to be part of strategic though. Mentioning the preliminary talks which are scheduled for September 23, he said, “let’s set the border. We must continue building and strengthening our borders, the [settlement] freeze can be maintained so long as we see that the [peace] process will be completed in the near future. I believe that the process can lead to trust between the two peoples, which doesn’t exist today. Today there is a feeling that we can’t come to an agreement with them, but the Palestinians won’t accept anything without the Americans…. I believe with the help of the Americans, Europe, and a reasonable Israel, we can make peace in our path….” Mofaz was vehement that Israel defend her citizens, and provide legitimacy to her borders, and “we shouldn’t have to relate our story every day” and justify “to our enemies…” Mofaz, also, noted the importance of speaking with Syrians, in order to find a way to negotiate and break up the “radical crescent,” for, “if we don’t make the effort, it’s possible that someone else will make the decision for us, and we can’t be sure that that will take into account our security and national concerns… so we need to take those steps.. in the hope of peace….”

For more, you can follow the conference on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

There are actually a bunch of these videos online. The one reposted below by TM has truly gone viral.

Upon waking up this morning, I flipped through the news channels and as I passed the BBC, I heard the discussion going about an “Israeli commando attack on a peaceful ship of civilians bringing aid to Gaza” last night, about 60km off of the coast of Gaza. The woman being interviewed claimed that the ship, which embarked from Turkey with the intention of breaking the Israeli naval blockade on Gaza, was a civilian ship, full of people who believed in non-violent protest. In fact, she claimed, they brought a baby on board. “They wouldn’t have had a baby there if they thought that there would be violence.” From this story, one would think that the Israeli Navy was bored and, being comprised of evil human beings, decided to go out and massacre a bunch of peace activists.

Yet, here in Israel, the media tells a different story. Channel two aired a clip of the IDF announcing on loud speakers that Gaza was off limits and under a naval blockade, but that the ship was invited to dock in the Ashdod harbor, and that any supplies they brought would be inspected and transferred to Gaza under their [the activists'] supervision. After the activist’s refusal, the Israelis boarded the vessel. According to an article in the Jerusalem Post, the passengers attacked the soldiers with knives, bats, and metal pipes, until one of the “peace activists” obtained control over a soldier’s weapon, and opened fire on the Israelis. The result was that ten of the activists were killed, more wounded, and two to six Israeli soldiers were wounded, depending upon the report. An IDF officer reportedly said that, “It was like a well-planned lynch. These people were anything but peace activists.”

I wasn’t there. I don’t know what actually happened. But, I do know that it is ridiculous for the Free Gaza movement to expect us to believe that the people on board the flotilla did not expect a reaction. They knew the were breaking a naval blockade. They knew that the every other ship, since Operation Cast Lead, which tried to enter Gaza had been stopped, boarded, and sent to Ashdod. They knew that the Egyptian government, too, supports the blockade. Every report in the Israeli media, at least, has noted that the activists attacked the IDF soldiers. It is truly inconceivable to think that they did not expect any reaction from the Israeli military.

To the Free Gaza Movement, I say, you don’t have to agree with the blockade. In fact, you even have the right to act against it. But do not belittle and insult us with this claim that you had no idea that you’d be met with resistance. Because either you are lying, or delusional and incompetent.

That’s Lisa Goldman‘s central thesis in an opinion piece written in today’s edition of Haaretz:

For Palestinians in the West Bank, the sense of helplessness and frustration must be enormous. When they are attacked, they can almost never hope for justice within the framework of the legal system. Nor are they allowed to defend themselves. Nor can they expect the IDF to protect them. And even when they protest these injustices using nonviolent methods – marching, chanting and waving flags – they are punished with arrests and violence, with dehumanizing skunk gas and beatings. So what happens when there is no legal recourse or justice for the injured and no real civic structure, and when the moderates are systematically crushed? Surely these are the ideal psychological circumstances that make people vulnerable to the beckoning finger of extremism.

This is an important point, underscored by increasing settler violence. When mosques are vandalized and farmers are attacked with impunity, only a small step further is needed before lawlessness becomes rampant and even soldiers are attacked. This is what happened in Yitzhar just a few days ago when residents of the settlement, some say students of a Yeshiva on the settlement, attacked and injured IDF soldiers. The security forces are clearly pissed:

“The Israel Police and the Border Police will take a hard hand against the lawless rioters,” the Border Police said… The IDF is increasingly concerned that settler violence may ignite the West Bank and lead to an escalation in Palestinian terrorism. Data obtained by Military Intelligence and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) has shown in the past that settler violence leads to an increase in Palestinian attacks.

OK cool. Just enforce the rule of law across the board. Don’t come down hard on one side while giving the other a virtual free pass. That doesn’t help anyone.

Last night, I went to an “alternative” Holocaust memorial ceremony. With some of it, I strongly disagreed, and with some, I didn’t understand the connection to the Holocaust. However, there are a few points with which I was left which I wanted to share with you.

1) What’s with the “second generation,” “third generation,” etc.? When will it stop? If I have my way – never. By considering ourselves as a generation in the line of survivors, we force ourselves to remember. You cannot forget something if you feel a familial connection towards it. Perhaps that is why the average Jew does not feel connection to elements of Jewish history such as the fall of the Second Temple. We do not view ourselves as the Xth generation. It is therefore essential that we continue to view ourselves not in the light of the Holocaust, but as a continuation of those who survived. For we must not forget.

2) What if you’re not connected – you family lost no one? To this, I have a simple answer: since when does Jewish connectivity require every single individual to have experienced the same things? Yet, were there not pogroms in Morocco and Iraq? Of course there were. Did those who did not lose a family member not lose from the loss of their fellow Jewry, their bnei brit? My dear friend Margot, from Leadel, sent me this video of Rabbi Lau, who addressed this very issue, when he discussed his story of survival.

3) Comparisons. We hear the terms “Nazi” and “Kristallnacht” thrown around from time to time. Often, we hear the IDF being referred to as Nazis. Last night, at this alternative ceremony, I heard a speaker compare Operation Cast Lead to Kristalnacht. I don’t like the idea of using Holocaust memorial day to address politics. However, I feel that it is necessary to briefly address this. The National Socialist Workers Party rallied their public and, among other things, bureaucratically and methodically slaughtered the Jewish population which they viewed as enemies and subhuman. To those who would compare Israel to such perpetrators of crimes against humanity, I ask: do you truly not see a difference? The Jews were not firing rockets into Nazi controlled territory. The Jews were not calling for the death and destruction of the Nazis. Moreover, as my friend Yoni pointed out, the Nazis did not single out a specific part of the Jewish community and say: we only want to kill Jewish bankers; they went after the entire Jewish population. Israel seeks out terrorists. Surely, a rational individual can see a powerful distinction between the two.

As the siren rang this morning for two minutes at 10:00am, my only thought was: we must not forget.  We must not forget that we were slaughtered. We must preserve our people. We must defend ourselves against those who would slaughter us. To borrow from Pirkei Avot, if we are not for ourselves, who will be for us?  How do we prevent such an atrocity from being repeated? We must be ever vigilant. And in order to be vigilant, we must remember. Darkness reigns only so long as a candle remains unlit. We must remember to light that candle.

Khaled Meshal, political leader of Hamas, recently stated that all options against Israel remain open, including war: “We will do everything to obtain the rights stolen from us, including confrontation with the enemy,” according to Haaretz.

Meshal was meeting with senior members of Palestinian terrorist organizations, including Ahmed Jibril, the head of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine… Jibril said that he supports efforts to achieve Palestinian reconciliation. Regarding Israel, he added that Palestinians are being asked to relinquish their rights “first and foremost, armed resistance.” … Jibril also said that Palestinians are being asked to “recognize the Zionist entity and accept the conditions put forth by the Quartet

Perhaps Meshal was emboldened to make his statement by the presence of Jibril, a staunch advocate of terror and one of the first old-school Palestinian leaders to embrace Iran, Hezballah and other radical Islamic groups not nice guys who are totally not representative of the vast majority of peace loving Muslims around the world and who are not just a benign presence but are actually a force for good and justice. **

But let’s get real. War? Really?? Hamas isn’t good at war. Hamas is good at terror, aiding and abetting terror, murdering political opponents, stuff like that. But war? As in uniforms and helmets and fighting other armed combatants? Uhm, not such a good idea. I mean it sounds bad ass and all, but come on, who are we kidding!

In related news, the Jerusalem Post reported that:

Hamas and several other Palestinian factions have decided to stop rocket attacks against Israel, so as not to give the IDF an excuse to launch a major offensive in the Gaza Strip, sources in Gaza City said on Monday… Representatives of the factions, which held emergency discussions over the past few days, “stressed the need to maintain the unofficial cease-fire with Israel,” The sources said… The groups that agreed to stop firing rockets at Israel are Islamic Jihad, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), in addition to Hamas, the sources added.

Despite all this, a Kassam rocket slammed into the western Negev on Sunday night, causing no casualties or damage. As a result, Israelis are taking a wait and see attitude towards this new unofficial cease fire. Here’s hoping that these Palestinian groups decides to pursue peace rather than further aggression. I mean really, it’s in their people’s own best interest.

** Are you wondering what that was all about? I was just trying to be in compliance with Barack Obama’s upcoming National Security Strategy which will reportedly ban the use of terms like “radical” or “Islamic” or “Jihadist” when describing say a, err… radical Islamic Jihadist. More on that later I suppose…

The Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, (the “Malam”), headed by Colonel (Res). Reuven Erlich, has released a 500 page report refuting the Goldstone Report. In a summary published in the Jerusalem Post, the report is described to mostly focus on Hamas’ activities during Operation Cast Lead, including its use of humanitarian and/or civilian structures, such as “mosques, hospitals, ambulances and schools,” as shields and launch sites. For example, over 100 mosques and hospitals were used as Kassam launch sites. A video, also, shows the use of children as human shields by Hamas.

Rather than tell you all about it, and give you my opinion on it (since I don’t really have time to read and fully analyze it at present), you can find the English version of the document here.  Below is the table of contents:

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: Main Findings I

2. Part One: An examination of how the Goldstone Report relates to Hamas and the terrorist threat to Israel from the Gaza Strip before Operation Cast Lead 1

Section I –The historical-security context of Operation Cast Lead 10

Section II – The nature of Hamas and the other terrorist organizations operating in and from the Gaza Strip 13

Section III – Hamas-governmental support for terrorism: the de facto Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip 32

Section IV – The Hamas-led military buildup in the Gaza Strip 45

Section V – The increase in terrorism from the Gaza Strip and the events leading to Operation Cast Lead 56

Section VI – Rocket and mortar shell fire during and after Operation Cast Lead 95

Section VII– External support for terrorism: Iran and Syria support the buildup of the military infrastructures 103

3. Part Two: The Use of Civilians in the Gaza Strip as Human Shields during Operation Cast Lead 108

Main Findings 110

Section I – Hamas’ combat doctrine for urban areas and its implementation in Operation Cast Lead 117

Section II – Hamas’ military use of public and administrative institutions and facilities during Operation Cast Lead 143

Section III – Hamas’ combat tactics of fighting in densely-populated areas during Operation Cast Lead 195

4. Part Three: Integrating the Hamas police and internal security services in military-terrorist activity both routinely and during Operation Cast Lead 262

Main Findings 265

Section I – Integrating the police and other internal security services into the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades 268

Section II – Cooperation between the police, other internal security services and the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades during Operation Cast Lead 288

Section III – Police and other internal security operatives with double identities killed during and after Operation Cast Lead 297

Section IV – Sayid Siyyam as a case study: Portrait of the interior and national security minister of the de facto Hamas administration, killed by the IDF in Operation Cast Lead, an example of the double identities of senior security figures 309

5. Appendix I: Analysis of the Ratio between the Military Operative and Civilian Casualties

during Operation Cast Lead 312

Section I: Main findings of a statistical study carried out by the Israeli defense establishment compared with data from Hamas and Palestinian NGOs in the Gaza Strip 315

Section II: Reasons for the statistical divergences 317

Section III: Operation Cast Lead vs. Other Areas of Asymmetric Warfare 323

6. Appendix II: A selection of Intelligence and 325

Terrorism Information Center Bulletins Issued in recent years on issues relevant to the

Goldstone Report Overview 325

Links to Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center Bulletins on key issues 326

The Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip and its significance 326

Hamas’ essential nature and its military buildup 327

The Gaza Strip as focal point for anti-Israeli terrorist activity 327

The lull in the fighting and its unilateral termination by Hamas and subsequent deliberate escalation (June –December, 2008) 330

Using the civilian population as a human shields 331

The military use of administrative and public buildings 332

The police and other internal security services integrated with Hamas’ military terrorist wing 333

Palestinian Casualties during Operation Cast Lead 334

Documents Containing Basic Relevant Information 334

Serial publications 335

Speaking briefly of the Palestinians, Peres discussed the Palestinians’ state-building enterprises, and the efforts they are making to build a state and achieve peace. Peres emphasized that the enemy of the Palestinians is Hamas; not Israel.

Discussing the topic of globalization and technology, he said, “Globalization is not an ideology. Globalization is a new situation, almost without any borders, without any distance… [Today] the source of income is not land; it’s science. Science is not conquered by an army. Science is not being stopped in the customs.” Today’s leaders must focus on “innovations not accrued assets.”

Peres spoke about the morality of the Israeli Defense Force. “The IDF,” he said, “is an army of values.” Speaking of Israel’s recent rescue mission to Haiti, he said, “I believe that if there had been an earthquake in Mauritania, where there’s no TV, I’m sure that the IDF would have been there. It is our wish to serve life, serve the living.” He spoke of the military as a tzva ha’am, a military of the people. He described the IDF as a “wonderful school,” and stated his dream that every soldier should complete their army service with a B.A.

Peres spoke of the chutzpah of the Jews. The Jews are 0.2% of the world population, yet 52% of chess champions and 54% of Nobel Prize winners are Jewish. Jews are 2% of the U.S. population, yet 34% of large business owners are Jewish. Jews are never satisfied. Using events from the story of the Exodus from Egypt as an anecdote, Peres explained that it is this eternal “dis-satisfaction” that is the source of Jewish creativity.

In discussing the way Israel is viewed in the world, he joked that Israel, “is the most popular country in the world.” India likes Israel because they, too, suffer from terrorism. China admires Israel, not because of Moses, Abraham, or Marx, but because of Israel’s agricultural achievements and agricultural technology. 62% of the American population supports Israel. Much of Russia supports Israel, as well, after 1.2 million Russians emigrated to Israel, leaving family and friends in the “old country” with ties to Israel.

Peres, also, addressed Iran. Israel, he said, is not the biggest danger in the Middle East; Iran is. Iran, he explained, has two main problems. The first problem is that of the enriched uranium. The second, is the “oppressive regime.” Commenting on the two problems, he said, “I don’t know which one of the two is the most dangerous.” Ahmadinejad acts like a “king,” when in fact he is no more than a “dictator.” The regime, governed by a dictatorship, fires upon unarmed protesters, threatens Israel, denies the Holocaust, finances terrorism, and impoverishes its own country. The regime is “a climax of moral corruption.” Therefore, Peres exclaimed, the world should oppose Iran on moral grounds. Iran, he said is “the source of evil for the peace- and freedom-loving world.”

Peres ended his with a call for social justice and tikun olam.

It must have seemed like a good idea at the time I suppose. I mean when you look at any kind of armament you can’t help but notice all kinds of obscure alphanumeric codes that don’t usually mean anything to the end user and certainly don’t affect the effectiveness of said weaponry. So the evangelical Christian owners of Trijicon Inc. probably thought what heck! Why not emboss meaningful alphanumeric codes onto the advanced telescopic sites they sold? The sites, widely used by the US armed forces in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as by the IDF in Israel contained the following codes: “JN8:12,” a reference to John 8:12 which describes Jesus as the “light of the world” – and “2COR4:6,” a reference to part of the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians. They were probably thinking that these codes were barely legible! What harm could it do?

Plenty.

Despite the fact that the company had been inscribing their gun sights in this way since 1995, no one noticed until it was brought to light by former U.S. air force officer, Michael Weinstein, president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. Reactions? Plenty!

“The Muslim Public Affairs Council in Washington said the biblical references violated the nation’s values and would stoke the fires of extremists who accuse the United States of carrying out a religious crusade in Asia and the Middle East… In a letter early Thursday to President Obama, the Rev. C. Welton Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance, said the gun sights “clearly violate a government rule prohibiting proselytizing” and called the practice “only the latest in a long line of violations of the boundaries between religion and government within the military.” … In Afghanistan, the Al Jazeera news service reported that sights with the Christian references had been distributed to some Afghan soldiers and that this would provide the Taliban with a propaganda coup.

And in Israel?

The IDF Rabbinate told Arutz Sheva that the codes do not violate Jewish law but that it is preferable to remove them because of the “sensitivity” regarding their appearance on weapons used by the army of the Jewish State. The IDF said it was unaware of the codes until the issue was raised in the United States.

Anyhow, Trijicon has sent out kits to remove the offending code and has promised not to do that ever again. Oh those whacky Christians. What will they think of next?

Eretz Nehederet is an Israeli sketch comedy show that I never, ever watch. I think it airs on Friday night when I am usually in the company of my Sabbath posse. Also, I don’t own a television. In any case, they poke fun at pretty much all elements of Israeli society in a way that makes us laugh, squirm uncomfortably or get angry. Or all three at the same time. But I still love those little fuckers. The clip above is a commentary on the media hype that accompanied Israel’s humanitarian mission to Haiti in the aftermath of an earthquake that left over 200,000 people dead and many more injured. And of course there was hype – but the fact that it came equipped with a fully functional and rapidly deployed IDF field hospital manned by experienced staff – makes it hype with substance. That my country was sending help to people who desperately needed it was more important to me than whatever positive publicity we were gaining. And while perhaps the PR angle of this operation made me a tad uncomfortable, again, the most important thing was that we were helping.

But of course, those that hate us glommed on to the PR angle while almost completely diminishing the actual good that was done by the IDF. And that’s the beauty of this clip. Watch it carefully and note that while it’s fairly critical of the PR aspect of Israel’s mission, it is equally if not more critical of those idiots out there who claim that the mission was 100% PR driven and meant solely to deflect world attention from the never ending plight of the Palestinians as they suffer from the jack booted oppression of racist Israeli Apartheid military machine. Blah. The journalist in this clip is clearly so over the top, you’d have to be an idiot to take his depiction seriously.

So uhm, yeah. Go Israel! Heh…

It turns out that three Israeli officers that are part of the rescue efforts – who trained the people on the ground in Haiti – all went to the same school, Boys Town Jerusalem.

As the world intently watches the horrifying earthquake destruction in Haiti, three Israeli Army colonels are closely following the events from 6,500 miles away—with an eye on gaining know-how that will save lives in future catastrophes. The three officers, experts in human rescue, have worked closely in training and equipping the Israeli rescue team who rushed to the scene in Port-au-Prince, and with whom they maintain 24-hour-a-day contact from afar. All three men are on alert to be dispatched to Haiti at any moment. And all three share a personal bond: each graduated from Boys Town Jerusalem where they developed a mission to save human lives, anywhere in the world.

“The Israeli rescue and medical team was among the very first to arrive in Haiti, even though they traveled a much farther distance than the others. And with each hour, they are gaining world renown for working miracles,” explains Colonel Ben-Tzvi Elyassi, who serves as a commander in the IDF Home Front Command. One of Israel’s top experts in rescue and relief operations, Elyassi’s 25-year military career has provided him with “hands-on” experience in saving human lives in disasters of untold proportions. Col. Elyassi assumed second-in-command control of Israeli search-and-relief missions and was dispatched to the 2002 earthquake in India, the 1999 earthquake in Turkey, and the 1999 earthquake in Greece—in addition to a host of military and civilian disasters in Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Nothing’s ever that black and white.

UPDATE: The Jerusalem Post now reports that there was a nationwide roll call of all soldiers after a female soldier reported seeing 2 civilians forcing a soldier into a car last night near an air force base. A Palestinian group has already claimed to have successfully kidnapped a soldier:

The Palestinian Ma’an news agency reported that a previously unknown group calling itself the “Al-Quds Army” claimed responsibility for the reported capture in a statement sent to it… “A group of our resistance fighters captured an Israeli soldier near Ben Gurion Airport and withdrew with the soldier without incident . we will provide details about the captured soldier later,” the statement quoted on Ma’an’s Web site said.

FINAL UPDATE: False alarm! Thank goodness. Though I must say, having had to slog through all that traffic, I can’t help but be impressed by the efforts expended at saving just one soldier from the fate currently suffered by Gilad Shalit who has been held in captivity by Hamas for just over three years now, without a single visit from the Red Cross.

The IDF Speakers Unit has released footage from 7 months ago which demonstrates that Hezbollah was creating and maintaining a series of store houses connected by tunnels, despite the fact that UNIFIL has claimed, since 2006, that no such activity has occured.
IDF Footage of Hezbollah Resuming Activities in Violation of UN Resolution 1701

On Tuesday morning (July 14, 2009), according to the IDF, a house in “Hirbet Salim in Southern Lebanon, approximately 7 km from the Israeli border, exploded on 14 July 2009 at 0730 exposing the large quantity of munitions stored in the building. The many holes on the roof and walls attest to the destructive power of the weapons being stored and accumulated by the Iran-backed Hizbullah in Southern Lebanon. This is a clear and blatant violation of UN Resolution 1701, which prohibits the use and storage of weaponry south of the Litani River in Lebanon.” The footage attached is of the house, prior to its explosion.
Hezbollah Munitions Store House

Imagine how UNIFIL feels now. UNIFIL, on Wednesday, stated that this incident was a “serious violation.” Lebanese Security Services have confirmed the explosion, but Hezbollah has not yet commented. It would appear that UNIFIL is not doing a very good job at watching. If things are going on under their watch, one must question what it is that they are actually doing. Hezbollah is clearly stockpiling arms and munitions, many of them gifts from their friends in Iran, as well as training their “soldiers” for a not-too-future war. It is rather dubious that the United Nations’ Force is unaware of this. Between tacit compliance and simple incompetence the options are not too great.

Hamas Map (Ynet)

Earlier today, the IDF unveiled a Hamas map found by a unit of the Paratroopers Brigade in the al-Atatra neighborhood in the northern Gaza Strip. The map is hand-drawn, and depicts the neighborhood being broken down into three color-coded sections. According to Chief IDF Intelligence Officer Brigadier-General Yuval Halamish, “Inside the map, the terrorists also marked sniper positions, as well as the location of roadside bombs, anti-tank bombs and landmines.” They specifically marked civilian cites, such as mosques, gas stations, fuel depots, houses, et al, for use in guerrilla tactics. For example, some entrances to civilian homes were marked with booby traps. In others, dolls or mannequins dressed in military garb were placed in the entrances to draw Israeli troops into the homes, where they would be ambushed and kidnapped. Moreover, next to a gas station, a large explosive device was planted so that if it had been detonated, it would have likely exploded the gas station and injured many civilians. Throughout the three regions, sharp shooter positions were, also, labeled. Hamas uses civilians as shields, and intentionally places their citizens in harm’s way. This map, clearly, testifies to this fact, in no uncertain terms.

It all started when the IDF discovered a tunnel linked with the Gaza Strip which could be used to smuggle supplies, weapons, and people into and out of the Gaza Strip. Should it be used to allow terrorists out of Gaza, this would be of great danger to Israeli security. In response to the destruction of the tunnel, rockets have been fired into Israel, which has warranted Israeli air strikes against the rocket launchers. Minister of Defense Ehud Barak has said, “No country can accept the consistent shelling of its citizens from a foreign entity. Israel won’t accept this. When conditions are ripe and there is a necessity to do so, we will act.” Perhaps this has led to the most recent incursion into Gaza this morning, in which Palestinian militants fired mortars at IDF tanks which briefly entered the Strip.

Technically the cease-fire is still in effect, as it has not yet been called off by either side. In case that the questions were not lacking prior to the beginning of the ceasefire, they ought to be asked now. It is clear that the ceasefire is simply giving Hamas and the other militant groups time to rearm and regroup. This being said, what is the purpose of the ceasefire. While most Israelis would like to have peace with their neighbors, and this, in fact, is a part of Israel’s Grand Strategy towards all of its neighbors (in particular, Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, and Lebanon), Israelis, in general, are split as to what is a reasonable cost. The Ehud Baraks of the Israeli government would like Israel’s Grand Strategy towards Gaza to be one which brings quiet for the short term. It does not matter for them if, in 5, 10, or ever 20, years time, Hamas will be more powerful than it ever was and in even less of a position to accept Israel’s existence. Thus, they will be willing to make whatever concessions are necessary in order to maintain this ceasefire. This being said, the objective ought not be quiet, but rather containment.

A terrorist organization uses force against a civilian population with a political motive. Allowing such an organization to grow stronger will not yield peace, nor will it yield tranquility in the long term (or even the short term, as the renewed rocket barrage ought to show). Jabotinsky argued that the only way to have peace with those who want to push you into the sea is to prove to them, beyond any measure of doubt, that you are going nowhere, and that you will not be pushed into the sea. He, as did the Talmud, also, argued against meeting those halfway, who have no wish to even take a baby step in your direction. A ceasefire, or defacto recognition of Hamas’ right to use acts of terror against Israel’s civilian population cannot result in peace. Rather, it will probably result if far more death and destruction than would direct confrontation.