HEAT WAVE
It is deliciously cool today (21/07) here on my Judean mountaintop, a welcome relief from the heat of this past week. There is a lovely fresh wind coming off the Mediterranean and even a few fluffy clouds in the sky. This is not normal for an Israeli summer, but then nothing is normal this summer. It has been a hotter than normal summer so far, with maximum daily temperatures reaching 3-4 degrees Celsius above normal.
Gaza
Gaza
In contrast to today's pleasant weather, it has been a very hot week, not just in terms of the weather, but also in terms of the security situation. On Friday, 13 June, in a continuation of the 3-month long "March of Return" protests, thousands of Palestinians rioted in several locations along the Gaza border, burning tires and hurling grenades, explosive devices, and firebombs towards the security fence and IDF troops. An Israeli officer was injured by a grenade. An attempt was also made to breach the security fence and infiltrate Israel. The IDF responded by firing towards (but not at) the terrorists (1).
The IDF has adopted a policy of restraint in the face of these threats and has avoided firing live ammunition at rioters, or those launching incendiary balloons or kites into Israel, because many are women and children. However this situation is becoming intolerable. With an average of 21 fires being started each day, and repeated 'code red' (incoming rocket) sirens sounding in the communities around the Gaza border area, there is growing public pressure, especially from the people of those communities, for the government to deal with this situation once and for all.
The following day, Saturday 14th July, the IDF responded to Friday's rioting by attacking a tunnel in southern Gaza, a Hamas training site, and several complexes used to prepare the arson attacks. Hamas responded by firing 31 rockets and mortars into Israeli settlements. In response, the IDF targeted dozens of military installations including a Hamas battalion headquarters (1). The Israeli Air Force also struck an uncompleted high rise building in the Al Shati Refugee Camp in northern Gaza that was being used by Hamas to train its fighters, and which also had a tunnel dug underneath it. Hamas then fired a further 160 rockets and mortars into Israel. This brought to around 200 missiles fired into Israel, 30 of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome anti-missile batteries, and 173 'red alerts' (incoming missile sirens) in the space of just 24 hours (1). Four members of the same Israeli family were injured, one seriously, when a rocket struck their home. A children's playground and a synagogue were also hit, but there were no additional casualties.
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| https://www.idf.il/en/minisites/hamas/hamas-fires-200-rockets-at-israel-in-just-24-hours/ |
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| A family runs for cover as siren sounds for a rocket attack in the southern city of Sderot, July 14. https://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Israel-warns-Hamas-after-rocket-barrage-as-UN-Egypt-push-cease-fire-562517 |
Yesterday two incendiary balloons were found in the Jerusalem suburb of Gilo. It is not known if they were released locally or had blown in the wind from Gaza. It is a worrying development nevertheless. The Jerusalem hills are covered by beautiful but tinder-dry pine and cypress forests interspersed with many settlements. If local Palestinians were to start using incendiary balloons and kites in this area it would be a disaster, and a phenomenon very difficult to stop.
Yesterday, Friday the 20th July, rioting along the Gaza border erupted once more, and there were several infiltration attempts. Explosive devices and shots were fired at Israeli troops and an IDF soldier was killed by direct sniper fire, the first to be killed in active duty on the Gaza front since Operation Protective Edge in 2014. A line was crossed!
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| Staff Sergeant Aviv Levi, killed on Friday by sniper fire from Gaza https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5314447,00.html |
Last night (21/7) the IDF attacked some 60 targets in the Gaza Strip, including 4 battalion headquarters, training facilities, observation posts, command and control rooms, weapon caches, a storage facility for unmanned aircraft and a factory for making tunnel infrastructure. During this time Israeli residents in the Gaza border area were instructed to stay within 15 seconds of their safe rooms and to avoid mass gatherings. In the face of the fierce Israeli barrage, Hamas managed to fire off only three rockets into Israel during this time, and there was no damage or injuries.
Around midnight last night Eygpt and the UN again brokered a ceasefire with Hamas and Islamic Jihad and so far it appears to be holding. Only time will tell if it lasts. Going on past 'ceasefires' I don't have a lot of faith. It seems that Hamas is inevitably dragging us into greater and greater responses, and sooner or later we will have to enter into all-out war. No one here wants that but what else can we do?
The situation is intolerable and no nation on earth would have shown the restraint we have shown in recent months, but there is a limit, and we are fast approaching that line. Over the last week the IDF has carried out widespread training exercises involving both front-line troops and home front preparations for a potential attack and invasion of the Gaza Strip. The Iron Dome anti-missile defense systems around major towns and cities have been strengthened. This is intended as a warning for Hamas, but is also preparing for what could happen should Hamas not heed that warning.
The Gaza Strip was once part of the Philistine territory and Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Gath and Ekron were the five Philistine cities. As the Babylonian Empire was spreading towards Israel, the Prophet Zephaniah said this:
Gaza will be abandoned
and Ashkelon left in ruins.
At midday Ashdod will be emptied
and Ekron uprooted.
5
Woe to you who live by the sea,
you Kerethite people;
the word of the Lord is against you,
Canaan, land of the Philistines.
He says, “I will destroy you,
and none will be left.”
6
The land by the sea will become pastures
having wells for shepherds
and pens for flocks.
7
That land will belong
to the remnant of the people of Judah;
there they will find pasture.
In the evening they will lie down
in the houses of Ashkelon.
The Lord their God will care for them;
he will restore their fortunes.
Zephaniah 2: 4-7
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| Ekron today http://www.aiar.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/AirView-Tel-Miqne-1.jpg |
This prophecy has already been partially fulfilled. The Babylonians totally razed the city of Ekron, and the Philistines fled or were captured leaving Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod and Gath abandoned. Today Israel occupies Ashkelon, and Ashdod but Gath and Ekron are still just ruins. According to this prophecy, one day Gaza too will belong to the remnant of the people of Judah. Will Israel be forced into capturing Gaza in the near future? I don't know. I do know that we do not want war nor do we want to occupy the Gaza Strip. What would we do with the nearly 2 million Gazan Palestinians, many of whom hate us and want only our destruction? On the other hand it seems like Hamas is on its way out. The present confrontations are its death throes, and a desperate attempt to gain the favor of its citizens. It has however spectacularly failed the people of Gaza, who are more and more expressing their dissatisfaction. How much longer will they tolerate Hamas rule? But who else will rule them? The Palestinian Authority is weak and has its own problems in the West Bank, Egypt doesn't want them and the Gazan people are neither sufficiently organized nor capable of self-rule at this point of time. The situation seems insoluble.
Syria
Meanwhile in the north, the Syrian Army continues to push towards the south and west, drawing ever closer to the Israeli border. So far Assad's army has recaptured large areas of this region which had been partly under the control of the rebel Free Syrian Army and partly under the control of Islamic State affiliated Khalid Ibn al-Walid Army. A heavy bombardment by Russian and Syrian forces of the Yarmouk Basin led to a large number of civilians fleeing the area towards the Israeli border. On Thursday the previous week (12/07) the rebel army in Daraa surrendered to Assad's forces in return for assurances of safe passage to Idlib province for the fighters and their families. Yesterday these refugees were put onto buses for the transfer. During the operation a number of refugees were killed when a bus crushed them. Daraa lies on the main highway between Damascus and Jordan and is the cradle of the rebel uprising that began in 2011.
According to the UN some 120,000 Syrians have fled the area but many have nowhere to go since both Israel and Jordan are denying them entry. Camped out near the borders they are without adequate food, water or shelter. Last Tuesday dozens of Syrian refugees, waving white flags, approached the Israeli border begging for entry to the Golan Heights, where many of them have relatives. Israel made it clear to them that they would not permit them to enter Israeli territory but would do everything it could to assist them with humanitarian aid. Israel has treated between 4000-4500 Syrian war casualties and some 3000 others requiring medical treatment since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war 5 years ago (2). In addition it has provided tents, food, clothing and children's toys for Syrian refugees near the Israeli border.
After taking Daraa Assad's forces turned their attention to the region of Quneitra which lies adjacent to the Israeli Golan Heights. On Thursday (19/07) Assad's forces, with the help of Russian troops, fired some 800 missiles into the area.
On Saturday night, even while the IDF was busy fighting in Gaza, it also carried out a daring rescue of some 450 of Syria's volunteer civil defense group, the White Helmets, whose lives were at immediate risk, and who were trapped in Quneitra. The IDF did this at the request of the US and European countries. The White Helmets are credited with saving hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped in rubble or caught up in the fighting, and incurred the wrath of Assad's regime by reporting the use of gas against civilians. They were taken to Jordan but it is intended that these refugees will be resettled in the UK, Canada and Germany.
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| Rescue workers work at the site of airstrikes in the al-Sakhour neighborhood of the rebel-held part of eastern Aleppo, Syria, September 21, 2016. (Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets via AP) https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-evacuates-800-of-syrias-white-helmets-and-their-families-to-jordan/ |
Tisha B'Av
Today is Tisha B'Av, the 9th Day of the Jewish Month of Av, and it is a day of mourning and fasting which commemorates the destruction of both the first and second Temples, which occurred on this day. In addition there is a long list of other historical calamities which occurred on this date:
- the spies sent out to spy out the promised land returned to the people with their bad report and on the 9th of Av the people cried out that they would rather go back to Egypt than be slaughtered by the Canaanites. God was displeased and on this date sent them into the desert for 40 years of wandering.
- on this date the Jewish rebels under Simon Bar Kochba were brutally defeated by the Roman Army at Betar, spelling the end of the rebel uprising and their Messianic expectations.
- a year after the rebel defeat the Romans plowed over the site of the Temple
- in 1290 CE (AD) the Jews were expelled from England
- in 1492 CE the Jews were expelled from Spain
- both World Wars started on this day (3).
In Israel it is observed as a day of mourning by mainly the religious community, and most places of entertainment are closed, but for over half of Israelis is it considered 'just another day' (4)
LGBT demonstrations
This year Tisha B'Av is being marked by large demonstrations nationwide as thousands protest the exclusion of gay couples right to have children by surrogacy in the new surrogacy law passed this week. Demonstrations have blocked roads in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and other places around the country and this evening a mass rally event will take place in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv (5) .
National Law
Another potentially divisive issue is that of the Nation-State Law passed by the Knesset this week. Intended as a state constitution it seeks to put into law the existing principle of a Jewish State. The wording of the Law has provoked considerable controversy and anger as it is seen by some as downgrading the status of Arabs and other minorities while promoting Jewish settlement and the segregation of ethnic and religious communities. You can read the full text of the law in this link: https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Read-the-full-Jewish-Nation-State-Law-562923
Tourism
Now for some good news! In spite of all the tensions in the Land, both external and internal, Israel has seen a record 2.1 million of tourists in just the first half of this year (6). Tourism is one of the mainstays of the Israeli economy. Most of these tourists are Christians and this is a fact appreciated by many Israelis. If you haven't yet visited this fascinating and dynamic country I strongly encourage you to do so. It is safe and full of fun things to do and see, whatever your age, state of health or interests. I would not however recommend a visit in the summer months which are extremely hot. The rest of the year however is very pleasant.
Bible Reading Project
This last Sunday marked the beginning of the second round of the 929 Bible Reading Project here in Israel and this time it has an English language option as well as Hebrew. In 2014 Rabbi Lau, a modern orthodox rabbi in Jerusalem, began this project in which participants commit to reading one chapter of Scripture every day, five days a week. 929 is the number of chapters in the Jewish Bible (the Old Testament). Rabbi Lau and hundreds of other teachers give classes on the chapters all around the country and there are audio and video lessons on line and a weekly radio broadcast. Rabbi Lau's vision is to bring the Bible back to the people, something which has been lost through the centuries, largely through the emphasis of the religious teachers on the Talmud to the exclusion of the Bible, and also the secularization of a large portion of the population, both in the Diaspora and in Israel itself. In Israel the Bible is taught in schools but in secular schools, at least, it is taught only as history. Its spiritual message and principals are ignored. The first round was hugely successful with over one quarter of a million people participating and 75% of them not religious (8). Please pray that this project will bear much spiritual fruit and turn the people back to a living faith in God and direct them to the true Messiah.
Idol Worship
I want to finish this blog with something that is happening not in Israel but across the other side of the world, in New Zealand. I was shocked and horrified to read that there are plans to erect a gigantic statue of Papatuanuku, the Earth Mother who is believed to give birth to all things, according to Maori tradition. If completed this statue would be 30-50 meters high (about the same size as the Statue of Liberty in the USA) and would stand on Bastion Point/Takaparawhau at the entrance to Auckland Harbour and would be visible from most of the city. This project was proposed by the local Maori tribe, Ngati Whātua Ōrākei, and would be partially funded by the Auckland City Council. Auckland Mayor, Phil Goff, said it " has the potential to be an iconic symbol of Auckland". I am grieved that a nation that was founded on strong Christian principles would even consider erecting a pagan idol as its symbol. If you live in New Zealand and are a Christian, pray against this atrocity and speak out to the government, for the sake of your nation.
Of what value is an idol carved by a craftsman?
Or an image that teaches lies?
Habbukuk 2: 18
I will sweep away both man and beast;
I will sweep away the birds in the sky
and the fish in the sea—
and the idols that cause the wicked to stumble
Zephaniah 1 : 3
The Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth be silent before him
let all the earth be silent before him
Habbukuk 2:20
Be silent before the Sovereign Lord,
for the Day of the Lord is near.
Zephaniah 1: 7
References:
1. https://www.idf.il/en/minisites/hamas/hamas-fires-200-rockets-at-israel-in-just-24-hours/
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5309502,00.html
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5309645,00.html
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5310440,00.html
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5310629,00.html
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5311533,00.html
https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/israel-deploys-iron-dome-in-tel-aviv-area-following-gaza-escalation-1.6271716
2. https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5308281,00.html
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5310480,00.html
https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/syria/dozens-of-syrian-refugees-approach-israeli-border-1.6287950
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-evacuates-800-of-syrias-white-helmets-and-their-families-to-jordan/
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5308524,00.html
3. https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/946703/jewish/What-Happened-on-the-Ninth-of-Av.htm?
4. https://www.timesofisrael.com/for-over-half-of-israelis-tisha-bav-is-just-another-day/
5. https://www.timesofisrael.com/protesters-block-tel-aviv-highway-as-lgbt-strike-begins-over-surrogacy-law/
6. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-compromise-reached-on-jews-only-communities-clause-1.6271813
7. http://www.jerusalemonline.com/tourism/record-2.1-million-tourists-visit-israel-in-first-half-of-2018-36305
8. https://www.timesofisrael.com/launching-in-english-chapter-a-day-project-looks-to-bring-bible-back-to-masses/
9. https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12088430
