ONE YEAR ON - DAY 367 OF THE WAR
" When you go into battle in your own land against an enemy who is oppressing you, sound a blast on the trumpets. Then you will be remembered by the Lord your God and rescued from your enemies ".
Numbers 10:9
Today is the 7th of October 2024, one year on since the terrible massacre of October 7th, 2023. One year of sorrow, war and suffering for so many people. Each morning, I am a little surprised that I have made it through another night, and my heart sinks with the realization that I must face another day during which the war is still ongoing.
It has been quite a while since I wrote on this blog. The months seem to be passing in a blur of motion. It is quite impossible to report on everything that has happened in the intervening months.
Today the IDF published the following statistics:
- On 7 October 2023 1,200 Israelis, civilians and security personnel, were killed, and 251 abducted into Gaza. 101 of those abducted are still in the hands of Hamas in the tunnels of Gaza but it is estimated that between 50-70 of those have been killed or died.
- On the same day 07/10/23 Hamas fired about 5,000 rockets and missiles into Israel. Around 6,000 Hamas terrorists infiltrated Israel and about 1000 of these were killed, the remainder were captured, or managed to escape back into the Strip,
- Since that day, 26,000 rockets, missiles and explosive drones have been launched at Israel, including a total of 13,000 from Gaza, 12,000 from Lebanon, 60 from Syria, 180 from Yemen, 400 from Iran (their figures did not include those fired from Iraq). These figures do not include hundreds of rockets that misfired or landed in the Gaza Strip or in Lebanon.
- Since 07/10/23, 728 Israeli soldiers and local security officers have been killed and 4,576 wounded, including 56 killed by 'friendly fire'.
- Since 08/10/24, 885 Israeli civilians have been killed including 53 children, and 923 children made orphans.
- According to unverified, and probably exaggerated, Hamas figures, around 40,000 Gazans have been killed, including terrorists and civilians, and those who have died from natural causes. (Even the pro-Palestinian UN had to admit that that figures received from Hamas were inflated, and they halved them). The IDF estimates that around 17,000 Hamas terrorists have been killed.
- The IDF has struck 40,000 targets in Gaza and located 4,700 tunnel shafts.
- In Lebanon, the IDF has struck 11,000 Hezbollah positions, and killed around 800 Hezbollah operatives, including 90 Commanders.
After 12 months of war in Gaza, during which the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) have largely destroyed Hamas' military capability, and has been engaged in a slowly escalating 'tit for tat' war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, the war has now entered a new phase. It began on September 17th with the audacious and brilliantly executed simultaneous explosions of thousands of pager devices carried by mid- to high-level Hezbollah operatives, followed the next day by the explosions of walkie-talkie radios. In the two attacks tens of Hezbollah operatives were killed and thousands injured, many maimed for life, losing hands, eyes and suffering groin injuries (since they had their devices in their pockets or in their hands).
Ten days later, on Friday 27th September, a massive, targeted airstrike on the main Hezbollah command center in Beirut killed the Hezbollah leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and a number of other Hezbollah leaders. As of today, all of the 18 most senior leaders of the Hezbollah terror army have been assassinated by Israel.
As the focus of fighting has shifted away from Gaza and turned upon Hezbollah, more and more rockets, RPG's, missiles and explosive drones have been fired from Lebanon, Syria and Iraq into Israeli towns along the northern border and throughout the Galilee, the Jezreel Valley, Haifa and even further south - up to 200 per day. The IDF has been constantly hammering Hezbollah operatives and military infrastructure in southern Lebanon, destroying thousands of rocket launchers, missiles and other weapons, military installations and tunnels.
A few days ago, on 1st October, Iran fired a massive barrage of at least 181 ballistic missiles at Israel, though Iran claims it fired 400. Ballistic missiles fly high up into space and then fall towards their target. It takes about 12 minutes for a ballistic missile to fly from Iran to Israel, as opposed to 2 hours for cruise missiles and 9 hours for an armed drone. For this reason, only ballistic missiles were used this time, unlike in the April attack when cruise missiles and drones were also fired. Ballistic missiles are massive, around 20 m long, and carry an explosive payload of 500-800 kg. They can cause a great deal of damage and many casualties. Most of the missiles in this attack either fell short or were shot down by US, Jordanian and Israeli anti- missile defense systems, but approximately 20 hit Israeli soil, causing some damage to homes and other buildings.
About 15 minutes before the attack began sirens sounded all over Israel, sending most of Israel's 10 million residents into shelters and 'safe spaces', though of course many were caught out on the roads or far from a safe space. There was only one fatality, a Gazan man illegally present in Jericho. No Israelis were killed and there were no serious injuries. This is truly miraculous and once again evidence of God's supernatural protection over Israel.
Just minutes before the Iranian attack began, news had started coming in of a serious terror attack on the light rail commuter train in Jaffa, Tel Aviv. Two terrorists opened fire on passengers and killed 7, wounding several more, before they were neutralized by a security guard and an armed civilian who were in the vicinity.
Since the Iranian attack Israeli leaders have made it crystal clear that we will retaliate and are currently coordinating with the US in order to carry out a direct attack on Iran. The only question remaining is how hard we will hit them, what we will hit and when. We will only know after it has begun, but sources predict it will happen in the next hours or days. Polls show that about 80% of Israelis support such an attack, even though it is likely to result in a severe retaliation by Iran. We all understand that this is the right time to 'cut off the head of the octopus'. We have never had such a good opportunity, nor may we get another.
In addition to this direct confrontation with Iran, Israel has in the last few days been openly sending ground troops into Lebanese territory in order to clear out the Hezbollah infestation so that residents of the northern Israeli towns and cities can return to their homes, farms and businesses.
Bizarrely, here in the center of Israel life has continued more or less normally - we are going to work and school, shopping and eating in restaurants and cafes, going to the beach and the pool as if there was no war. Outwardly all looks normal, but we all know that at any moment everything could change, and below the smiles lie hearts full of sadness, anxiety and downright fear. Any minute, the sirens could go off, the missiles start falling and all hell break loose (literally).
For all that, many of us here in the relatively 'safe' center are suffering a kind of survivors' guilt, as we think of our friends and loved ones who are living through the constant missile fire from Gaza and Lebanon, evacuated from their homes for a year now, or not evacuated and trying to exist while under constant rocket fire, many without any adequate shelters. We also have the hostages and their families very much on our hearts and in our prayers, together with the bereaved families and friends of the soldiers and civilians who have been killed, neither do we forget the thousands of wounded soldiers, whose lives will never be the same. It's a lot of sorrow to carry in our hearts.
For me it is a challenge to deal with all this emotion. I am now working for All Israel News as a proof editor, so I have to read and correct nearly all the articles coming in. I am enjoying this job but it does make it difficult to turn off from the war. I, like all Israelis, are deep down weary of it all. This war is a marathon, not a sprint, and I fear the highest hill is still before us, while the finish line is nowhere in sight. Still, I feel we have passed a turning point with the pager attack. The stalemate is broken and we can see victory ahead, albeit yet far off in the distance.
Meanwhile life has to go on. I cannot complain since I have not suffered personally either physically or in the loss of any very close friends. I still have food on the table, water in the tap, a roof over my head and electricity in the mains. We cannot take any of these things for granted, and I am deeply grateful for them. All the trials and difficulties of regular life continue unabated, however. Dealing with the bureaucracy and the health system is even more challenging than normal since a large portion of the work force has been called up for army service.
This video shows life in Jerusalem in the midst of the war : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbY9xuX72oM
I am also still writing the occasional article published in All Israel News. Here is the link to the latest one: https://allisrael.com/blog/israel-he-who-contends-with-god
This link will take you to all the articles I have published so far:
https://allisrael.com/search?addsearch=talia%20voice
I know I am a bit biased, but I recommend All Israel News for factual, up-to-date reporting of developments in Israel. It is written by Israeli believers for the evangelical audience. The news section gives only the news without commentary and it is gleaned from reliable sources, updated several times a day. Opinion articles and blogs are in a separate section.
I feel this is an important ministry and contribution to the war effort in disseminating trustworthy information to the evangelical world so that you can pray with understanding, and in the Spirit. The prayers of believers all over the world are essential and I believe they are having great effect in the heavenly places. I believe that Israel's astounding successes in recent weeks are directly due to the prayers of believers here and around the world. It is also deeply encouraging for those of us living here and a powerful witness to all Israelis, Jew and Arab alike. I sense a change in the spiritual atmosphere here as more people are beginning to acknowledge God and seek him. Please keep praying that more and more people, Jew, Arab and Gentile will repent and call upon God in these days.
The link below explains why the support of Christians, especially those who come to visit or volunteer, is so appreciated by Israelis at this time: https://allisrael.com/running-into-the-fire-israeli-tour-guide-explains-why-christians-still-come-to-israel
We have just finished the Biblical Feast of Trumpets, also known as Rosh Hashanah. Little is said in the Bible about how this feast should be celebrated, except by the blowing of trumpets or the shofar (a ram's horn). This morning a friend sent me this Instagram video of Israeli soldiers praying and blowing the shofar before entering the battle in Lebanon (see the Bible verse at the top).
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DAm0aCwNLFV/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Here is a prayer request I just received,
The parents of the late X (murdered in the attack in Jaffa) are both Greek doctors, Christian believers. They have been in Israel for over 35 years out of a desire to bless the Jewish people, and work at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem. They occasionally come to the meetings of the Messianic community in Jerusalem.
The son X just finished architecture studies and returned to the Lord with all his heart, 26 years old. He is their only son, and was murdered in an attack in Jaffa last week. Pray for them at this time with this huge loss.
(I have removed the names to protect their identity- God knows who they are)
With this I will close and please keep praying - your prayers matter more than you can know.
