Day: October 8, 2023

Pray for Israel, Pray for Peace

By Rabbi Michael Barclay 2:28 PM on October 07, 2023
SEE: https://pjmedia.com/columns/rabbi-michael-barclay/2023/10/07/pray-for-israel-pray-for-peace-n1733135;Republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, & research purposes.

Pray for Israel, Pray for Peace
Mahmud Hams /Pool Photo via AP

Fifty years ago, almost to the day, on Oct. 6, 1973, Israel was attacked on the holy day of Yom Kippur. I remember being a child attending services and the Rabbi stopping the liturgy to tell us what had happened and to pray for Israel. On Oct. 7, 2023, Israel has again been attacked, this time on the holiday of Shemini Atzeret. Once again, our people and nation have been attacked on a holy day. All reservists have been called up, and Israel is again fighting for her life.

Hamas terrorists infiltrated Israeli communities through the Gaza Strip and launched a surprise attack in conjunction with over 5,000 rockets fired into Israel. Horrific videos of terror are filling the internet. One clip from Gaza shows a lifeless Israeli soldier being trampled by an angry crowd. Hamas asks that all Arab nations attack Israel immediately to “set the earth on fire.” The Hamas commander, Mohammed Deif, specifically asked all terror groups in Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq — all of which are funded through Iran — to join in a war against Israel. Israeli civilians are being specifically attacked, slaughtered, and kidnapped as hostages. We see video after video demonstrating that the Hamas terrorists act in ways that are beyond comprehension by any human being. Rather, they act like sick, rabid animals or zombies who have lost any sense of humanity.

But let’s all be honest: They have acted like this for decades. Hamas and its allies, all of which are funded by and through Iran, have behaved this way over and over as they have prayed for the destruction of both Israel and the United States. They have celebrated violence at every opportunity and demonstrated repeatedly that they would like to do exactly what they have been doing: kill Israelis and Americans, desecrate their corpses, and perform horrors that are unimaginable to any sane human being.

So here’s a question: Given Iran’s repeated hatred for everything Israeli and American, and given that they have constantly and consistently expressed their desires to destroy both nations, how could Joseph Biden and his regime support this evil and give over $6 billion to Iran, the admitted financier of Hamas as well as terrorists in Syria, Lebanon, and the entire region? Forgetting for a moment about all the other anti-American acts done by Biden during his tenure, isn’t sending money to self-proclaimed enemies of America and Israel the definition of treason to the United States?

With God’s help, we will have time to analyze why Israel was unprepared for this attack. Now is the time to support the only democracy in the region in every way, from money to arms to prayers. We will have time to investigate the relationship between the $6 billion gift from Biden to Iran and how it directly funded these horrors in Israel. History will judge Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and their cronies justly when it is realized that the horrors we are seeing are a direct result of the Democratic Party’s actions of supporting Iran.

For most of my life, I voted with the Democratic Party.  But for years now, I have said that any Jew voting for the Democratic Party is like a chicken voting for Colonel Sanders. Even those who refused to recognize this previously can now see how true this statement is, not just for Jews but for all Americans.

Biden and his supporters have fortified an enemy of the United States, and we are seeing the manifestation of true evil as a result. At this point, there is no realistic option but to realize that the president of the United States is, in fact, more committed to strengthening our enemies than to supporting our allies. For any American to still support Biden, Blinken, et al. is to be blind to the reality that they and their party are actively working to destroy Israel and America.

Related: What Went Wrong? How Hamas Managed to Stagger Israel

There will be time for an analysis of how this horrific war was permitted to start and the direct role the Democrats had in the process. But there are two things that we must each do to preserve the only democracy in the Middle East and to protect the United States. First, every American must immediately stop all support of the Democratic Party in its entirety until the party has once again become a political party that is committed to the United States and its allies. If we don’t want to see the horrors that are happening in Israel occur here in the United States, God forbid, we must entirely reject the Democratic Party and its candidates until it ostracizes its internal fanatics like Reps. Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, etc. As long as the Democratic Party is controlled by these fanatics—who hate America and her allies while supporting groups like Hamas that commit such heinous acts as we see going on in Israel right now—there is no hope for the Democrats or for peace.

And we must pray. We must all pray for our brothers and sisters in Eretz Yisrael, that they remain safe and protected and that they quickly triumph over these terrorists who worship death, destruction, and hate. The United States was built on the foundation of being a nation supported by God, and we need to develop our personal relationships with God through prayer and entreat God that this evil we see manifest among Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, and their allies is quickly, efficiently, and permanently destroyed. We must pray for peace and safety for all who support respect, healing, and peace in the world.

I ask that you join me in your hearts, souls, and voices:

Ribbono Shel Olam, Master of the Universe; Shema Koleinu, Hear our voices. Keep the men and women in the IDF safe and protected as they defend our people and our nation. Protect the civilians of Israel, and lead our people to a speedy and safe victory over those who seek to destroy us and have attacked us on the Holy Day of Shemini Atzeret. Keep our people safe, and let your healing light keep our bodies and souls strong and whole. Bring healing to the bodies of our brothers and sisters in the IDF and healing to the hearts of these Arab terrorists so that they put down their weapons and totally cease their hate for us. Please, God, please, bring peace and healing swiftly to the Jewish people so that we may worship and live safely in the land you gave to us through our forefathers. May You, the One who makes peace in the Universe, make peace upon us and upon all Israel. And together, let us say, Amen.

 

Trump: Hamas Attacks ‘Never Would Have Happened’ Under My Leadership

Trump: Hamas Attacks ‘Never Would Have Happened’ Under My Leadership

'The United States Has To Support Israel': Trump Touts Israel Record, Slams Biden's

US President Donald Trump boards Air Force One before departing Harlingen, Texas on January 12, 2021. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
(Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

OAN’s Daniel Baldwin
2:12 PM – Saturday, October 7, 2023

SEE: https://www.oann.com/newsroom/trump-hamas-attacks-never-would-have-happened-under-my-leadership/;

Republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, & research purposes.

Former President Donald Trump issued a strong statement in support of Israel after Hamas launched the largest attack in decades into the southern parts of Israel.

“The Hamas terrorist invasion of Israeli territory and the murder of Israeli soldiers today and the brutal murder of citizens is an act of savagery that must and will be crushed,” Trump told Iowa caucus-goers in Waterloo Saturday afternoon.

Trump was speaking at a Commit to Caucus event in Black Hawk County, a major Democrat stronghold in Iowa when he made the remarks.

“It has to be dealt with very powerfully,” Trump said. “This is a time where the United States needs leadership. We don’t have leadership, but Israel is at war. And the United States obviously is going to stick with Israel, and strongly.”

Hamas militants had launched thousands of rockets into Israeli towns near the Gaza Strip in a surprise assault Saturday morning. They also sent in soldiers who slaughtered dozens. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the country was “at war.”

Trump took aim at the Biden administration for unfreezing $6 billion in Iranian assets before Hamas attacked Israel.

“I would not be at all surprised if part of that tremendous wealth that they just accumulated went into, all of a sudden, watching this level of aggression,” Trump said. “They didn’t have that level of aggression with me.” 

This move came as part of a prisoner swap deal that permitted the transfer of money held in a South Korean bank to accounts in Qatar. The Biden administration has claimed that the money will only be allowed to be used for humanitarian purposes, but national security expert Clare Lopez, founder of Lopez Liberty LLC, explained why that may not be true.

“Money’s fungible and were that money to be used for let’s say humanitarian purposes,” Lopez told One America News. “That frees up another $6 billion some other place that will unmistakably, unarguably go to nuclear weapons production. It will go to terror support Islamic jihad groups in the Middle East and, and further abroad.”

Trump emphasized what he believed to be a key point.

“This would have never happened with me there,” Trump said.

Trump is leading his primary competitors by more than 30 percent in Iowa, according to RealClearPolitics polling Average.

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Israel at war: Saudis, Qatar, Iran blame ‘occupation’; France, Netherlands support Israel’s right to defend itself

By

SEE: https://www.jihadwatch.org/2023/10/israel-at-war-saudis-qatar-iran-blame-occupation-france-netherlands-support-israels-right-to-defend-itself;

Republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, & research purposes.

Israel has declared a state of war after Hamas launches a massive surprise attack. At least 70 Israelis have been killed, over 900 wounded, and dozens of hostages in Israel and Gaza have been taken. Hamas has been reportedly using Islamic State tactics as it stormed Israeli communities and took captives.

“At least five different communities were attacked on the ground by terrorists. They were in pickup trucks, much like ISIS uses,” said Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus.

Biden didn’t release a statement until after 11AM:

Operation Swords of Iron is now on.

Meanwhile Saudi Arabia, along with Iran and Qatar are blaming Israel for the attack because of its alleged “occupation.” Many say that Iran launched this attack in order to head off Israeli-Saudi normalization.


“Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iran say Israel has only itself to blame for Hamas attacks,” by Nick Robertson, The Hill, October 2, 2023:

The governments of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Iran appeared to back Hamas in its escalating conflict with Israel on Saturday.

The Palestinian militant group launched a mass attack on Israeli forces and settlements, killing at least 40 people early Saturday.

While leaders in the U.S. and Europe quickly denounced the attack and gave support for Israel, the three Middle Eastern nations criticized the country over its treatment of Palestinians.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is closely following the developments of the unprecedented situation between a number of Palestinian factions and the Israeli occupation forces, which has resulted in a high level of violence on several fronts there,” the country’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“The Kingdom recalls its repeated warnings of the dangers of the explosion of the situation as a result of the continued occupation, and deprivation of the Palestinian people of their legitimate rights, and the repetition of systematic provocations against its sanctities,” the statement continues.

The condemnation comes as both the Israeli and Saudi governments have attempted to normalize relations in recent years, at the encouragement of the U.S.

A senior Iranian government advisor explicitly endorsed Hamas in the conflict, the most direct support for the militant group from any government official globally.

“We congratulate the Palestinian fighters,” advisor Yahya Rahim Safavi said, according to state media via Reuters. “We will stand by the Palestinian fighters until the liberation of Palestine and Jerusalem.”

Iran state media showed video of parliament members chanting in support of Hamas on Saturday, saying “Death to Israel” and “Palestine is victorious, Israel will be destroyed”.

Iran has funded and supplied Hamas for years as part of its decades-long conflict with Israel….

What Went Wrong? How Hamas Managed to Stagger Israel

By Robert Spencer 1:49 PM on October 07, 2023
SEE: https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/robert-spencer/2023/10/07/what-went-wrong-how-hamas-managed-to-stagger-israel-n1733128;Republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, & research purposes.

What Went Wrong? How Hamas Managed to Stagger Israel
AP Photo/Craig Ruttle, File
How did Hamas, the bloodthirsty jihad terror group in Gaza, perpetrate mayhem and destruction inside Israel on a scale never before seen?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Saturday that “since this morning, the State of Israel is at war.” This was as Hamas fired over two thousand rockets into Israel, and over a hundred Israelis were murdered as jihad terrorists entered Israel and began killing people indiscriminately.

There has never been a Hamas jihad offensive from Gaza of this magnitude. In fact, throughout the history of modern Israel, there has never been anything like this, even when the Jewish state faced jihad coalitions of the neighboring Arab states in major wars in 1948, 1967, and 1973. So how was Hamas able to do it?

For one thing, it was Shabbat in Israel and the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah. In that, this latest jihad resembles the 1973 war, which was launched on Yom Kippur. The idea in both cases was to catch the Israelis napping and at minimal preparedness, with large numbers of military personnel off for the holiday.

But that was by no means all. There were widespread reports that as Hamas’ relentless rocket barrage began, Israel’s vaunted Iron Dome missile defense system was down. Reports on this so far are sketchy, but if the Islamic Republic of Iran, which as the chief financier of Hamas is clearly behind these attacks, has managed to breach Israeli security and interfere with the functioning of the Iron Dome, the ominous implications cannot be overstated. If Israel cannot manage to get the Iron Dome up and running on a secure basis, the Hamas attacks on Saturday could turn into a larger war that engulfs the entire region, as the Islamic Republic of Iran finally attempts to make good on decades of genocidal rhetoric directed at Israel.

Hamas also took advantage of vulnerabilities in Israel’s defenses. As jihadis screamed “Allahu akbar,” a bulldozer destroyed Israel’s fence at the Gaza border, allowing jihadis to pour into Israel in large numbers. Hamas’ military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, issued a triumphant communique on Telegram:

Under intense missile cover and targeting of the enemy’s command and control systems, the Mujahideen of the Qassam Brigades were able to cross the enemy’s defensive line and carry out a simultaneous coordinated attack on more than 50 sites in the Gaza Division and the southern region of the occupation army, which led to the overthrow of the division’s defense, and our Mujahideen are still They are [sic] fighting heroic battles in 25 locations so far, and the fighting is currently taking place at the “Ra’im” base, the headquarters of the Gaza Division.

It is a jihad of victory or martyrdom.

Why wasn’t there a full-fledged wall at the Gaza border? Well, just imagine how the Biden regime, which resumed shoveling millions to the Palestinians after Trump stopped doing so, would have reacted if the Israelis had tried to construct such a thing. They would have denounced it as another “apartheid wall” and demanded that it be dismantled.

Related: You-Know-Who Is to Blame for Hamas’ Bloody New Jihad Offensive Against Israel

The Israeli government, however, could fall as a result of this and certainly bears a great deal of responsibility. Yet here again, the ultimate fault lies with the Biden regime. Ever since Benjamin Netanyahu was reelected prime minister and embarked upon efforts to reform the Israeli judiciary, the Bidenites have been undermining him in every way possible, and have even been accused of funding the massive protests in Israel against the Netanyahu government.

How much of what Hamas was able to get away with on Saturday was the result of the U.S. pressure upon Israel and favoring of the Palestinians, as the American government turned a blind eye to the genocidal jihad rhetoric that permeates the Palestinian areas every day? How distracted was the Israeli government in having to spend the bulk of its time on internal disagreements that the Biden regime had exacerbated instead of paying the necessary attention to national defense?

Old Joe Biden finally shuffled out of bed and issued a pro-Israel statement shortly after 11 a.m. ET on Saturday. It is unlikely, however, that the regime for which he is the bumbling, semi-coherent figurehead will depart from its ordinary practice of urging “restraint” upon Israel and condemning it for a “disproportionate” response once the Jewish state takes even the smallest measures to defend itself.

As I explained here, the Biden regime brought about the current situation. Now it should have the residual decency to get out of the way and let Israel do what it must do in order to survive. But yes, “Biden” and “decency” are two phenomena that have never met, and never will meet.