Category: Frontlines

Posted on

[WATCH] Newest Jewish Owned Store in Jerusalem Brings Israel to the Foot of the Temple Mount

In a short and poignant ceremony David Wiseman, spoke about his connection to the Land of Israel the desire to make a real difference in Israel’s struggle to build in Jerusalem that led him to buy a small storefront steps from the Temple Mount.  With a small group of activists on hand, including Rav Aviner and City Council Member and head of the Israel Land Fund, Aryeh King, the storefront felt alive.

“Everyone is supposed to own a piece of Israel,” Wiseman said. “So I decided to buy this small place to make a real difference here.”

The strategic importance of the storefront, while small in size is vital as it provides a Jewish presence on a major thoroughfare to the Kotel and the Temple Mount.  The South side of Shalshelet Street known as the “Arab Shuk” was traditionally Jewish.  Most of the stores while currently occupied by Arabs had been fully owned and operated by Jews until the final expulsion by Jordanian forces in 1948.  The reclamation of this area and return of these properties to Jewish hands is part of a larger struggle to ensure a Jewish Jerusalem. Although Wiseman bought the storefront from a Jewish educational institute, it had been previously unused due to the location.

Rabbi Ben packer of the Heritage House, who has been an integral part in preparing the property for use said the following:

“Today at the dedication of another Jewish store in the “arab shuk” of the Old City we strengthened the Jewish Presence both physically and spiritually. This is the correct formula for total victory, may it come soon.”

The Heritage House has been increasing its role in the past two years by providing young Land of Israel activists a platform to help secure and renovate returned Jewish property in Jerusalem and Hebron.

Watch the event below:

David Wiseman leads a group including Rav Aviner and Aryeh King to his store, just steps from the Temple Mount.

 

David Wiseman, owner of the store with Rav Aviner

 

Gershon, the manager of the new store next to Rabbi Ben Packer of the Heritage House.
Posted on

Hebron: Connecting to Our Roots

Today is called Yom Hevron (Hebron Day). It is the day where the Nation of Israel through one Rabbi, Rav Goren conquered an entire city during the Six Day War.  Hebron is the burial place of our Patriarchs and Matriarchs as well Ruth, Yishai, and many more ancient graves. It is our roots, our past, and the foundation for our future Kingdom. More than anything it is the testament that this Land is ours. The Cave of the Patriarchs is the oldest Jewish building stills standing dating back nearly 2000 years, built by Herod as a monument over the ancient cave where Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Rebecca, and Leah are buried.

Hebron is a city of conflict.  It is a place where we the Jewish people have struggled, fought, lost, and now have returned.

Our roots are our source of strength and faith. These roots are what gives us our ability to push forward even at times where we have no strength.

When the 12 Spies entered the Land under the orders of Moses, Joshua and Caleb understood that they would be on their own. Joshua was given an extra letter to his name to strengthen him, yet Caleb had no extra protection.  He split off from the group and the midrash says he went to Hebron, to the Cave of the Patriarchs and laid upon their graves.  This gave him the faith and trust in his true purpose to not fall into the sin of the spies.  Caleb merited to inherit Hebron upon his entering into the Land years later.

We as a nation have come home.  The source of our amazing and miraculous return is the roots that dig deep into the Land.  When Abraham bought the Cave where he buried Sarah and where he himself would be buried, he understood that its acquisition is for perpetuity.  This is the strength of Hebron and this is why the war over it is fought so strongly by our enemies. Without Hebron there is no past and therefore no future, even in Jerusalem.

Over 15 years ago when I first went to Hebron, I was nearly gunned down. Most people would have never returned, yet I was drawn to the struggle, to be close to my ancestors. I returned over and over again and my family and I eventually made our home just South of the city. There has been both joy and pain over the years, but Hebron has been our divine motivation to hold on and build our path to Redemption.

I thank the Almighty for the merit to have returned to the place where my ancestors began their journey to connect with the Divine and where King David began his rule.

Posted on

Bibi Netanyahu: “The People of Israel have Returned home to their Land”

Prime Minister Netanyahu said the following at Mercaz HaRav Yeshiva in commemoration of Yom Yerushalyim (Jerusalem Day):

“I have a deep obligation to continue to maintain a united Jerusalem, to protect the Western Wall, the Temple Mount and all the holy sites of Israel. Jerusalem will not return to being Aelia Capitolina, and Jerusalem will not go back to being a divided city like it was after 1948,” Netanyahu said.

“I hear people describe what happened to us [in the Six Day War] as a disaster. But that was our salvation, that was our redemption. We all felt that way then and I feel the same way today.”

“Is there anybody who wants us to go back in time? What would we go back to? A divided city? With ISIS on the Temple Mount? The northern branch of the Islamic Movement was there (in Jerusalem), have you heard of them? We outlawed them. They warned us not do it but we outlawed them anyway and nothing bad has happened.”

“They want us to turn this small square kilometer into what we see in Palmyra or Aleppo or Mosul, and that’s what will happen [if we divide Jerusalem]. Only under Israeli sovereignty is there freedom for all religions, and we will not give up the Temple Mount or the Western Wall and will not divide the city.”

“This fundamental truth stands before my eyes when I stand firmly and resolutely against elements in the world who seek to deny our sovereignty in Jerusalem and seek to return us to indefensible borders, and I never forget where we came from and where we are headed, and I am not talking only about Jerusalem, but about our entire homeland, the Land of Israel.”

“I say to the world – the people of Israel have returned home to their land. We are clinging to our land and our capital Jerusalem, we will deepen our roots and continue to send branches upwards…There is no existence for the Jewish people without the State of Israel in the Land of Israel and this is what I am entrusted with as Prime Minister, and with the help of God and with your help I do not forget that even for a fraction of a second,” said Netanyahu.

“The world of Torah is flourishing and the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva is one of the flagships that lead it proudly. We will continue to strengthen the capital of Israel, and add a measure of beauty and depth to strengthen its soul. Happy holiday to you my friends, and blessings from Zion to the lovers of Jerusalem in Israel and abroad.”

(Translation by Arutz 7)
Posted on

Emergency Knesset Committee on BDS Activity in Ben-Gurion University

Today (Wednesday), the Knesset Education Committee convened an emergency session to discuss the concern that Ben-Gurion University is promoting the BDS movement.

The committee was initiated by MKs Bezalel Smotrich (Jewish Home), Anat Berko (Likud) and Oded Forer (Yisrael Beiteinu) following the University’s recent promotion of a controversial workshop run by far-Left NGOs and sponsored by the European Union, which taught students how to effectively film protests.

Ben-Gurion University has come under fire in the past for its affiliation with anti-Zionism and BDS. In 2011, Israel’s Council for Higher Education recommended shutting down the University’s Department of Politics and Government unless changes were implemented.

Education Committee Chairman MK Yaakov Margi (Shas) said: “It is outrageous that such a phenomenon is occurring within Israel. We need to deal with whoever is promoting it.”

MK Bezalel Smotrich added: “You cannot talk about freedom of expression when [the professors] are signing in their name and in the name of the University on petitions against the State of Israel.”

“You cannot invoke freedom of expression on the one hand and protect the professors, yet not allow a member of the Board of Governors to express his opinion,” said Smotrich referring to an alleged attempt of the University to kick out a member of its Board of Governors who spoke out against this issue.

Ben-Gurion University President Rivka Carmi was also present at the discussion and rebuffed the claims that the University is involved in promoting BDS.

“The University is spearheading the battle against BDS,” said Carmi. “Again and again empty allegations arise [against the University]. The organizers of this discussion will not frighten us.”

Carmi also rejected the accusation that the University was trying to silence a member of its Board of Governors: “It has been said that we are silencing Michael Gross. We have listened to all of his comments. Michael Gross called me personally a ‘Kapo,’ and that’s the way he treats the University.”

Ahead of the discussion, the Zionist organization Im Tirtzu distributed reports citing a number of what it referred to as “anti-Israel” statements from Ben-Gurion University faculty, including public calls to boycott Israel.

“It is impossible to deny the involvement of Ben-Gurion University and its faculty in the delegitimization of Israel and IDF soldiers, and in the promotion of boycotts and international pressure against Israel,” said Im Tirtzu CEO Matan Peleg.

Peleg called on Carmi to “take responsibility” and immediately deal with this issue.

MK Tamar Zandberg (Meretz) shot back at Peleg, calling Im Tirtzu a group of “hooligans.”

“You have been pestering the Knesset for a long time now. Everyone works for you. You are engaging in a witch hunt,” said Zandberg.

At the conclusion of the session, Education Committee Chairman Margi remarked that he was pleased that the discussion convened. “Whoever calls to harm Israel, we must fight against them,” concluded Margi.

 

Posted on

Manchester, Trump, and the Lies of Abbas

On December 1, 2001, two suicide bombers detonated themselves on Ben Yehuda Street, followed by a car bomb set to go off as paramedics arrived. There was mayhem and fear.Thirteen people were killed, including a number of soldiers out of uniform, and 188 were injured. I was 23 then and had been learning in Yeshiva for close to six months.  That night my friends and I decided to finally get out of Yeshiva and do to downtown Jerusalem.  We were sitting in a nearby cafe when the blasts went off. Our hearts were pounding.  We had friends up in the area of the bomb blasts and did not know their condition.  As we waiting inside the cafe, the owner’s boy came inside in a state of shock.  He was holding a bag and inside was an organ from one of the bomb blast victims or even the bomber.  Someone quickly ran to get Zaka to ensure the body part was properly taken care of.  The suicide bombers and the car were packed with nails. One of our friends from yeshiva was hit and spent the next days in the hospital until he recovered.

This was not the first time I had experienced “Palestinian” terror.  Months earlier I was shot at while spending Shabbat in Hebron.  My group and I ran down the street as groups of Palestinian Authority funded terror gangs opened fire on all of us.

In those days Arafat was in control and he had made a direct covenant with Hamas to fight Israel. It was Arafat who came up with the idea of the suicide bomber who would decimate countless innocents with nail bombs. This was his gift to the world.  Suicide bombers with nail bombs.  This was the weapon of choice used to kill at least 22 people in Manchester.  Arafat’s deputy is the very same Mahmoud Abbas who President Trump claims is serious about peace.  The problem with this is that Abbas knew, funded, and supported the suicide attacks on Israel.  In fact it his Fatah who killed many people in last year’s spate of stabbing and car ramming attacks, including our first grader’s rabbi and son, our daughter’s friend, and father to her schoolmate.

For the President to condemn the Manchester attack as undertaken by “evil losers” while standing next to Mahmoud Abbas, a man responsible for the murder of thousands, including the 1976 Israeli Olympic Wrestling team as well as those murderous attacks on innocent Jews throughout Israel that continue today is nothing sort of hypocritical.

I believe Donald Trump is serious about peace, but if he truly want to move it forward the arch terrorist and Holocaust denying dictator of the PA should be the first person he boots if not arrests. By displaying Abbas as a pedestal of peace, President Trump will only encourage more attacks like the terror attack in Manchester. In fact as long as Abbas is not taken to task for his crimes, there is little hope for peace.

The choice is President Trump’s.  He can stop worrying about his image or grandstanding and either decide to stay out of the region or engage it with a bit more humility. After all, it is not the lives of his family or friends that will suffer for misguided policies and peace overtures that keep repeating themselves. Rather it is my family and friends that will ultimately be burdened by his ill fated attempt to make peace in a region whose parties have never been held accountable for their past actions.

Posted on

Jerusalem Day: Connecting Heaven to Earth

To recognize the true significance of Yom Yerushalayim – the day on which the Jewish people liberated Jerusalem from foreign rule – one must work to develop a deep vision of Emunah. In D’at Tvunot, Rabbi Moshe Ḥaim Lutzatto teaches us to see HaShem authoring history – to appreciate a Divine plan unfolding and to understand everything we encounter in our lives through the context of a greater goal that transcends yet includes all creatures, places and events. All of Creation, with all of its multiplicity and variety, is actually one organic whole that appears fragmented from the untrained human perspective. Due to our myopic perception, man tends to see everything as disconnected – and often even opposing – forces. But when we learn to view the world from the Divine perspective we become capable of relating to everything we encounter – with all of their unique functions and distinctions – as exceptional pieces of one giant amazing puzzle.

The study of Emunah is learning to see the Divine light in its unity before its having been distilled into multiplicity from the human perspective – to see not only the seemingly fragmented branches but also the unified roots. The study of Emunah helps us to recognize the One that precedes and transcends the individual parts yet is at the same time revealed through them, thereby giving them their true significance and purpose in our world.

Because we exist within the framework of time, history seems from the human perspective to flow in a long process of events. But from the perspective of HaShem – who creates the framework of time and is clearly not bound by it – history exists as one giant light. What we might perceive to be disconnected events with hundreds of years and thousands of miles between them are actually interdependent expressions of a singular Divine theme in which HaShem’s Oneness is revealed to all of Creation.

Everything in Creation possesses a spiritual back end that manifests itself in our world through a tangible vehicle that expresses its inner content. Everything we encounter on the terrestrial plane possesses a spiritual counterpart in the celestial realm. And a central component of the Hebrew mission requires us to reveal the kedusha inherent in our world through actualizing concrete material expressions for our deepest spiritual values and ideals. Israel is not so much tasked with spiritualizing the material but rather materializing the spiritual in order that the Torah’s loftiest concepts attain full expression in our reality.

Celestial Jerusalem as a spiritual ideal represents the absolute good from beyond this world and the eternal Divine values constantly driving history forward toward its goal. Terrestrial Jerusalem here on earth is the physical expression of the celestial Jerusalem above. What may appear to the human eye as merely an ancient mountain city is actually the uniquely designed conduit that reveals HaShem’s Oneness to mankind and enables the flow of Divine energy and blessing into our world (Tanḥuma Pekudei 1).

HaShem swore that His Shkhina would not enter celestial Jerusalem above until the Jewish people enters terrestrial Jerusalem below (Zohar 3:15b).

Knesset Yisrael – the unique spiritual organism revealed in this world through millions of bodies in space and time called Jews – is the national receptacle that receives and expresses the Divine Ideal. What the Land of Israel – and specifically Jerusalem – is in geographic form, the Nation of Israel is in human form. The famed kabalist of Ḥevron, Rabbi Avraham Azulai, teaches in the Ḥesed L’Avraham that the size of the window through which Divine blessing enters our world directly depends on how much of Eretz Yisrael is under Hebrew governance. Jerusalem is the bridge connecting the physical and spiritual realms – the portal between our corporeal realty and the world beyond. And that portal connecting celestial and terrestrial Jerusalem is only open for blessing to enter our world when the human and geographic manifestations of the Divine Ideal unite – when the Nation of Israel possesses political sovereignty over Jerusalem.

Our Sages explain (Megillah 29a) that when Israel is exiled from our land, the Shkhina is also exiled and that only when the Jewish people returns to Eretz Yisrael does the Divine Presence return. When the Children of Israel were separated from Jerusalem, HaShem’s Ideal for this world could not be perceived as unified here on earth. Mankind lacked the ability to fully connect to our inner Source. In such a situation, reality appeared not as one Divine light but as fragmented individual components separate from one another and history became viewed as merely a series of disconnected events.

But when the Hebrew Nation returned to Jerusalem on the 28th of Iyar, the expression of His Ideal became unified with all Creation, establishing the conditions for the fulfillment of the verse that “HaShem will be One and His Name will be One” (ZEKHARIA 14:9).

According to the holy Zohar (3:93), this verse refers to the unification of His Ideal with the reality we experience. Israel’s liberation of Jerusalem ushered in a new historic era for mankind in which the bridge linking this world to the world beyond is back in place. The portal through which Divine blessing enters our world is once again open.

Malkhut Yisrael on earth is the material vehicle that receives and expresses the Divine Kingdom above. The core of this realm, where our ability to perceive and experience our connection to HaShem is strongest, is the Judea region – including and surrounding Jerusalem. We therefore have unique laws and customs exclusively pertaining to this region, such as the commandment for a Jew to rend his garment upon seeing the cities of Judea destroyed – a mitzvah that does not apply to cities in any other portion of our country. And according to both the Beit Yosef and the Mishnah Brurah on the Shulḥan Arukh (Oraḥ Ḥaim section 561), the term “destroyed” is legally defined as being under foreign rule. This means that a Jew who sees a physically ruined and uninhabitable city in a free Judea is not commanded to tear his garment but he would be commanded to do so upon seeing a Judean city under gentile sovereignty – even if that city is fully developed and abounding with vibrant Jewish life. And indeed, following the liberation of Jerusalem in the Six-Day War, Rabbi Zvi Yehuda HaKohen Kook ruled that although our Holy Temple is not yet rebuilt, we no longer rend our garments upon seeing the Temple Mount.

While the return of the Jewish people to the city that had been the central focus of our tears, dreams and tefillot for thousands of years would be sufficient to warrant the establishment of a new festival (complete with Hallel), Yom Yerushalayim actually commemorates so much more. The 28thof Iyar is the day on which the bridge linking heaven and earth was restored and the portal through which Divine blessing enters our world was reopened. Yom Yerushalayim inaugurates a new historic era in which the Shkhina is no longer in exile and all of mankind can recognize and experience its inner connection to the timeless and boundless ultimate Reality that creates all, sustains all, empowers all and loves all.

Posted on

REVISITING THE SIX DAY WAR

Even secular non-believing Israelis considered the hand of God in this war.

June 5th, 2017 will mark the 50th anniversary of the 1967 Six Day War in which Israel vanquished the Arab armies arrayed against it.  Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon were the main combatants, but large contingents from Iraq, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Kuwait, Pakistan, Sudan, and the P.L.O. also took part in the war as auxiliaries, by lending aircrafts, tanks, manpower, and logistics.  I was then a young draftee facing a war on an Israeli airbase.

In 1967, Israel had a small population of 2.7 million, while Egypt’s population alone amounted to 31 million.  Syria’s population was at the time 5.76 million, Jordan’s 1.32 million, Lebanon’s 2.175 million, and Iraq’s about 9 million.  The Arab confrontation states alone accounted for about 50 million.  The Arab armies had approximately 465,000 troops, more than 2,800 tanks, and 800 planes.  Israel fielded its regular army of 50,000 in addition to its reserve force for a total of 264,000, almost 10% of its total population.  Israel threw into the fight about 800 tanks and 300 combat aircrafts…just about a third of the Arab aircrafts, and a similar proportion of tanks.

Monday, June 5, 1967 was an unforgettable day.  The Jordanian’s began bombing our base with heavy artillery and mortar fire right after midnight, as we tried to sneak in an hour of sleep between the around-the-clock work, readying our planes for combat.  Their firing positions were eventually silenced by our fighter pilots.  Israel kept radio silence throughout the early hours of June 5th, while squadrons from our airbase and other bases around the country were in route to destroy the Arab air-forces.

At noontime on that fateful Monday, we were ordered to assemble at the parade ground of the airbase. The base commander moved slowly to the microphone, while the tension was mounting among the assembled ranks.  He opened up with “Airmen and women, this is a dramatic day in the annals of Israel’s history. As of this time, the Arab air-forces do not exist.” The moment was unlike any other we had experienced as young adults…the relief, excitement, joy, and euphoria enveloped us all.  We threw our berets up to the sky, much like college kids do at graduation time.  We hugged each other, and silently thanked God for our deliverance.

When the day was over, Israel controlled the skies over all the battlefields in which it fought.  The next day was no less dramatic. Israel consolidated its capture of the Sinai Peninsula.  Tuesday gave way to Wednesday, June 7, which turned out to be the most dramatic and historical event yet.  It was the day Israeli paratroopers liberated the Old City of Jerusalem and the Western Wall, a remnant of Solomon’s Holy Temple.  Ironically, the Israeli government had no intention of moving against Jordan, much less to capture Judea and Samaria and the Old City of Jerusalem.  Israel conveyed a message through the UN to King Hussein to stay out of the fighting.  Nevertheless, Hussein had been persuaded by Nasser, the Egyptian dictator that Egyptian forces were on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.  Nasser pointed to radar dots that showed fighter-planes flying toward Israel, alleging that these were Egyptian planes, and not Israeli planes returning for refueling.

As the fighting in Jerusalem ceased, thousands of Israelis, secular and religious, crushed through the Mendelbaum Gate that separated the Israelis from the Jordanian part of Jerusalem, on their way to the Old City and the Wall.  For the first time in 19 years, Israelis had access to the Old City and the Wall.  And for the first time in over 2,000 years, Jerusalem was once again under Jewish control.

Thursday and Friday, June 8 and 9, 1967, saw fierce fighting on the Golan Heights.  Maj. Gen. David Elazar, head of the Northern Command, begged Defense Minister Moshe Dayan to lift once and for all the persistent Syrian menace against the low lying Kibbutzim along the Sea of Galilee.  Syrian planes attacked Israeli villages in the Galilee, and were summarily downed by Israeli fighter-planes.  Israeli infantry forces (Golani Brigade) moved against well-fortified bunkers and tunnels the Syrians dug on the high ridges of the Golan overlooking the Sea of Galilee.  Bitter hand-to-hand fighting ensued, and the highly motivated Israeli soldiers prevailed over the Syrians, whose officers fled and left some of their soldiers literally tied to their positions.

On Saturday, a day of rest, cease-fire was declared and observed.  The Golan Heights were under Israeli control, as well as the entire Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank and Gaza, and the Old City of Jerusalem.  The miracle of the Six Day War had occurred.  Even secular, non-believing Israelis considered the hand of God in this war.

Our squadron had been confined to base since the early days of May, and it was an incredible, around-the-clock effort on the part of every airman and woman that made the victory possible.  We were exhausted but euphoric nevertheless.  We had seen a miracle in our lifetime.  A week after the war, our squadron, with numerous commandeered army trucks, moved up to Jerusalem to touch the most sacred monument in Judaism – the Western Wall.  We proceeded to Bethlehem and the Church of the Nativity, and then further on to Hebron and Machpela Cave, where Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Leah and Rebecca were buried, an equally sacred place for Jews.

Although each of us carried Uzi sub-machine guns, we did not threaten the Arab population who feared retribution from us.  Had it been the other way around, the Jordanian army would have massacred our civilians and soldiers as they did in Gush Etzion, in 1948, assisted in that task by the Palestinian-Arab mobs.

When our unit finally got passes to leave base, it was an extraordinary scene on the crossroads.  Drivers stopped to give us lifts, and sometimes they competed as to who could pick us up first.  At the same crossroads, high-school girls and their mothers handed out sodas, cakes, and fruit to all uniformed soldiers.  The euphoria in the country was infectious, and it lasted for a while.

Howard Sachar, author of  A History of Israel: From the Rise of Zionism to Our Time, quoted Yitzhak Rabin, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief-of-Staff during the Six Day War, explaining Israel’s victory in that war: “Our airmen, who struck the enemies’ planes so accurately that no one in the world understands how it was done and people seek technological explanations or secret weapons; our armored troops who beat the enemy even when their equipment was inferior to his; our soldiers in all other branches…who overcame our enemies everywhere, despite the latter’s superior numbers and fortifications—all these revealed not only coolness and courage in the battle but…an understanding that only their personal stand against the greatest dangers would achieve victory for their country and for their families, and that if victory was not theirs, the alternative was annihilation.”

Originally Published in FrontPageMag.

Posted on

PM Netanyahu Blasts Hebrew U for Cancelling ‘Hatikvah’ at Graduation Ceremony

PM Netanyahu called the Hebrew University’s Faculty of Humanities decision to not play “Hatikvah” at tonight’s graduation ceremony “embarrassing” and the “peak of subservience, the opposite of national pride.”
The Prime Minister’s statement came following a recording obtained by the Zionist organization Im Tirtzu in which a department worker explained that the faculty’s dean ordered the national anthem not to be played as to not offend any of the Arab students.
“We are proud of our country, our flag, our national anthem, and this only reinforces my opinion to pass the national law that we are leading in order to anchor into law the national symbols that are so dear to us,” added Netanyahu.
Education Minister and head of the Council for Higher Education Naftali Bennett also responded to the news by phoning Hebrew University President Menahem Ben Sasson and clarifying that “Hatikvah” needs to be played at every state ceremony held at the University.
Bennett added that in regards to non-state ceremonies, “the decision of whether or not to play the anthem cannot be influenced by consideration of whose feelings it hurts, as a symbol of the State of Israel does not constitute any harm.”
The Education Minister also informed the President that as a public institution, Hebrew University must “honor the state that stands behind it.”
Prof. Ben Sasson said that he would ensure that the national anthem is played at state ceremonies, and would look into this specific event.
In a statement released by Hebrew University, they said that: “There is no statutory provision and/or guidance from the Council for Higher Education regarding the singing of anthems at academic ceremonies, hence there is no basis for complaints to the university on the subject. At official state ceremonies at Hebrew University, the national anthem is played as usual. At academic ceremonies there is no obligation to play the anthem.”
Im Tirtzu CEO Matan Peleg noted that “over that past few weeks, we have been witness to a number of anti-Israel events held on Israeli campuses, including events marking Israel’s establishment as a catastrophe.”
“We welcome the mobilization of government officials who are working to stop this absurdity,” Peleg added.
Posted on

ISRAEL’S NORTHERN BORDERS

Israel’s enemies know there will be a price to pay for attacking the Jewish state.

Tel Aviv, Israel…

The period that encompasses Holocaust Memorial Day (Yom Ha’Shoah), Israel’s National Memorial Day (Yom Ha’Zikaron), and Israel’s Independence Day (Yom Ha’Atzmaut), all occurring this year on April 24, May 1, and May 2 respectively, are considered by secular Israelis as the National High Holidays.  Tourists find in that week of holidays a strong burst of nationalism and pride.  Israeli flags are hung on people’s balconies, windows, cars, and public buildings.  Amazingly, on Yom Ha’Shoah, the entire nation stands still, in silence, while all vehicular traffic comes to a stop, even in the middle of busy highways.  The same feat is repeated on Yom Ha’Zikaron.  A minute of silence is observed nationwide, and it is respected.

It is in between these hallowed holidays that my good friend, Avi Golan, a retired officer in the paratrooper brigade, and currently a licensed Tour Guide, joined me on a tour of Israel’s northern and northeastern border areas.  I was questioning Avi about our personal security as we embarked on the trip.  He assured me that we are fairly safe.  We drove from Nahariyya, on the Mediterranean Sea in northern Israel, eastward along route 89 and passed Mt. Meron, the tallest mountain in the Galilee.  We then turned north along the border fence with Lebanon.  Literally, steps away from us to the north was Lebanon. We came across a United Nation’s observation post just a few feet away and saw their white vehicles.  A few hundred yards farther north was a Hezbollah outpost, with its yellow flag painted on a water tower.  Once again, I asked Avi why they were not shooting at us since they could clearly see us, and he replied, “They know that they would receive devastating fire from our forces that would turn Lebanon upside down.”  Traveling up the road to Kibbutz Menara, reaching the wide observation deck of the Kibbutz, perched high up, the Lebanese border was a few hundred meters away.  We could see the Lebanese villagers going about their business, and we were assured by local Kibbutz members that Hezbollah has a presence in the village.

Although the peace along Israel’s northern border with Lebanon has been preserved now for over a decade, there is no guarantee it will last for another decade.  It is hard to gauge the true extent to which Israel would be able to deter a Hezbollah attack. But for now, Hezbollah’s deep and costly preoccupation in the Syrian conflict makes it difficult for this terrorist organization to precipitate another conflict with Israel.  Moreover, domestic Lebanese considerations preclude it.  Its involvement in Syria and the resultant flood of refugees into Lebanon is putting pressure on Hezbollah not to provoke another war with Israel, at least not at this time.  In fact, Hezbollah has not fully recovered yet from the 2006 war with Israel. Additionally, Hezbollah’s paymaster and arms provider, Iran, has made the preservation of the Assad regime a top priority for now.  It is likely that Tehran’s ayatollahs seek to reserve Hezbollah as a retaliatory force in case its nuclear facilities are attacked by Israel or by the U.S.

The Hezbollah leaders have nevertheless sought to establish a second front against Israel on the Golan Heights.  Israel has managed however, to eliminate a number of key Iranian and Hezbollah officers operating next to the Golan area.  Still, with an annual income of about $1 billion, Hezbollah has been able to increase its missile arsenal from 15,000 to almost 100,000 with millions in annual funding from the Islamic Republic of Iran, and it’s with ties to the Assad regime and increasingly with Russia. Some of these missiles have a ranges of 300 kilometers and can reach most areas in Israel.  Hezbollah has also acquired Yakhont anti-ship cruise missiles that have proved to be lethal to Israeli naval ships.

Driving along the border we reached Kibbutz Mishgav Am a bit farther north.  We then swung east towards the Golan Heights, observing Mt. Hermon in the distance on our way to the Druze town of Majdal Shams.  Here, we once again found an observation point a few hundred meters from the border fence with Syria.  We stood at a hill opposite another ‘shouting’ hill belonging to Syria, where Druze families divided by the border used to shout news and greetings at each other. At this place, neither Syrian forces nor Hezbollah terrorists can be seen with the open eye.  In the rugged and mountainous terrain, the border fence is along a patch of green grass with no habitation visible.  Yet, most of the recent skirmishes between Israel and Hezbollah have occurred along the Syrian front bordering the Golan Heights.  Clearly, if Hezbollah decided to take action against Israel, it is likely to come from the Syrian side.

The devastated border town of Quneitra is a likely place for a Hezbollah strike.  It is from this direction, on October 6-10, 1973, during the Yom Kippur War, that 700 Syrian tanks driving westward encountered about 175 defending Israeli tanks, in the battlefield known as the “Valley of Tears.”  It is named so for the many burned tanks and half-tracks left on this battlefield, along with many dead Israelis and Syrians.  We entered the “Valley of Tears” where Lt. Col. Avigdor Kahalani and his crew stopped the Syrian onslaught, destroying 500 of their tanks.  It was truly a heroic act that saved Israel from a Syrian conquest.

As the sun began to set, we drove down from the Golan Heights toward the Sea of Galilee.  We continued through Tzemach and Beth-Shaan, into the Jordan Valley.  Facing eastward, we could see the lights of Jordanian towns and villages.  Peace with Israel has helped Jordan elevate the standard of living of its people.  New hotels and classy restaurants are now to be found not only in Amman or Akaba, but in the northern cities we now faced to our east.

As the evening set upon us, we headed back to the Tel Aviv area.  The next day was Israel’s Memorial Day, a time to remember the ultimate sacrifices made by the defenders of the Golan Heights.  Israel remembered however, all of the men and women who fell in all the wars and terror attacks, and those who served and fell in the pre-independence underground militias.  Those young men and women gave their lives to establish an independent Jewish state, protect its independence, and safeguard their families and friends.  They fought and died in wars and terror attacks forced upon the Jewish state.

It was quiet and peaceful along Israel’s northern borders, but that is only because Israel’s enemies know that the Jewish state is determined and capable of inflicting a heavy price on those who will attack its people.  The Memorial Day observances make it clear that Israelis will not allow the sacrifice of over 23,000 men and women to have been in vain.

Posted on

JEWS UNDER ATTACK: Jewish House Near Lions Gate Firebombed

Although deep inside what even Arabs consider to be a dangerous part of Jerusalem’s Old City do to rival Arab clans, Jews have returned to their former property near to the Lions Gate. Despite the isolation from the other burgeoning Jewish areas that have continued to grow througout the Old City, the reacquired building has undergone significant renovations in the past few months.  With two liveable rooms and more to be renovated the, the house near the Lions Gate provides hope that the Jewish return to the entire Old City will continue to all parts of the ancient walls.

With the Lions Gate property showing increased Jewish presence the Arab neighbors have now decided to stop more Jewish residents from moving in.  Over the past week Arab neigbors have violently firebombed the front entrance to the house in the hopes Jewish residents will flee, but the opposite has occurred.

The Lions Gate property is key to continuing the returning of stolen Jewish property throughout Jerusalem’s Old City.  Where Jews move into, safety and security can be established once there is a critical mass. The Lions Gate property will lead to more properties and they will connect the last area once void of Jews to the growing Jewish areas on the main street running from the Western Wall to Damascus Gate.

Redemption occurs in steps.  The Lions Gate property like those Jewish properties in other parts of the Muslim Quarter have become beacons of light, shining the pathway to redemption in a sea of darkness.  Now is the time to strengthen the lights of the Jewish return to Jerusalem.