Dear Friends,
I arrived back home late last night, after having spent another day up
North. This was the first time I was there since the cease-fire was declared
last week. More than a month ago, people left their homes not knowing where
they were going. Now more than a month later, these same people don’t know
what they are returning to.
Some people returned to find their homes had been completely destroyed,
others found homes without windows, which had been blown out by the impact
of the missile attacks. Scores of homes have been looted and whole families
have lost absolutely everything they ever owned. There is a severe lack of
food and amenities in many cities. There is a great need for funds to help
these families rebuild their homes and regain a measure of stability.
Israel’s resounding failure in this war is glaringly clear. Ehud Goldwasser
and Eldad Regev, our two soldiers kidnapped by Hizbullah are still in
captivity and we have not been given any information regarding their
well-being or whereabouts. 118 soldiers lost their lives in this war.
Civilians were killed and hundreds were injured. There is severe destruction
all over the North. Israel has not succeeded in defeating Hizbullah. This
cease-fire has highlighted Hizbullah and its benefactors, Iran and Syria’s
greatest victory. Hizbullah chief Hassan Nasrallah and his terrorist group’s
leaders are alive and no longer in hiding. Thousands of Hizbullah terrorists
armed with thousands of missiles and rockets are roaming free in Lebanon.
How long do you think it will take before this cease-fire becomes a thing of
the past?
Throughout the day we met people who spoke of their mixed emotions. They
clearly are happy to no longer be living in bomb-shelters and want to
rebuild their homes and their lives, but they are on edge all of the time
and unsure whether to invest in rebuilding their homes, when it is obvious
that Hizbullah remains an unquestionable threat and it seems inevitable that
we will be at war again in the foreseeable future. One of things common to
all the places we visited were the large amounts of people who told us they
believe this cease-fire is temporary. I have heard Military Intelligence
reports on the news stating that Israel will face a rebuilt Hizbullah within
a maximum of the next two years. We heard how on Wednesday, Hizbullah
terrorists were already taking up observation positions along the northern
border. We then heard from soldiers that they had spotted Hizbullah
terrorists watching them through telescopes. All this clearly proves that
Hizbullah was not sufficiently weakened in this war. Hizbullah have not been
deterred in any way from amassing weapons and ammunition and they are as
determined as ever to continue with its declared position of wiping Israel
off the face of the earth.
I was told in various cities how sirens have been accidently sounded at
times. A woman shared with me her experience when a siren was accidently
sounded in Kiryat Shmona on Thursday morning. It had been three days since
the cease-fire went into effect and she had been in her living room clearing
debris when she heard the siren. She told me how the fear and anxiety came
rushing back as everyone rushed to safety at the nearest bomb-shelter. She
said she was very relieved when they were later told they were allowed to
leave the bomb-shelter but she asked “What will be next time?” She told me
she lives in constant fear that at any moment Hizbullah will launch rockets
into Israel again. I keep hearing of friends and the husbands of my friends
who have been sent home with their army-issued weapons and have been told to
be prepared to be called back at a moment’s notice.
The whole day I was engrossed with thoughts of how this all began. A lethal
ambush of IDF soldiers on the 12th July, resulted in two of our soldiers
being kidnapped and eight others murdered. This was then followed by
Katyusha rocket attacks on all Northern Israeli cities that lasted more than
a month. Hizbullah also attacked an Israeli navy ship, killing four sailors.
As Hizbullah continued rocketing Israel and more and more Israeli soldiers
and civilians were being killed, reserve soldiers received emergency call-up
notices, taking them away from their families and homes and into the
battlefield. It will take months to fully assess the extent of the very
heavy damage to homes and property all over the North. With every day that
passed, the conditions in the bomb-shelters and protected rooms became more
and more dire. Hygiene conditions were terrible in countless shelters and
given how hot it gets in the summer here in Israel, people struggled to
remain in such small, enclosed spaces for such long periods of time,
especially those in bomb-shelters without any fans.
We spent the day distributing food and other items to people in Kiryat
Shmona, Ma’alot, Nahariya, and Haifa. In all these cities, the majority of
residents have returned to their homes but there are still people living in
bomb-shelters as they simply have no home to return to. Given the
cease-fire, this trip was very different and it was very important to me to
meet up with people I had met on previous visits and find out about their
current reality. As a result we went to many, many homes where we were
greeted by familiar faces. Everyone was very grateful for the assistance we
brought them and for our continued efforts despite the cease-fire.
They have not created a word to adequately describe the measure of disgust I
felt when I walked into homes that had been looted. It is a very particular
kind of person who can steal from people who are sitting in bomb-shelters in
order to protect their lives and that of their loved ones from enemy missile
attacks. We saw so many disheveled homes, filled with debris and parts of
missiles. Rooms with craters in the walls, floors and ceilings from missile
attacks. We witnessed the army checking fields and open areas where missiles
had landed, to find missiles that had not yet exploded and therefore still
pose life threatening danger to people in the vicinity. We were told that
many such missiles have been found, some which have only exploded partially
and so those too still pose a threat. It is estimated that there are tens of
thousands of such missiles.
Schools start September 1st in Israel. Yesterday we saw little kids coming
home from school. When I enquired about this, it was explained to us that
some schools and nursery schools have opened their doors especially early,
in order to give children structure and routine, after all they have been
through this summer and after having spent more than a month in underground
shelters and bomb-shelters. While we were in Nahariya I spoke with people
who were very excited, as yesterday was the first time they were receiving
mail since the start of the war. I felt elated to see so many more cars on
the roads. People are coming back to the city even though hundreds have not
yet returned. Everywhere you look, you see destruction, broken glass, and
buildings that suffered direct hits from missile attacks.
Six years ago, the government under the leadership of then-Prime Minister
Ehud Barak, unilaterally pulled our troops out of Lebanon. Those of us who
stood in opposition of this decision stated time and again that doing so put
Israeli lives in danger and would set the framework in which Hizbullah would
be unrestricted in amassing ammunition and missiles with which to terrorise
Israel. Our calls went unheeded and this war saw the return of the IDF to
the security zone in Southern Lebanon from which it left six years ago.
In this war more than 2000 terrorist command rooms, military positions and
logistical warehouses were destroyed by the IDF. Over 7000 targets were
struck by our airforce. More than 170 bridges and 270 vehicles were blown up
and 320 missile launchers were destroyed. In excess of 500 Hizbullah
terrorists were killed and we have at least 20 terrorists in our custody.
Despite all this we did not manage to deter Hizbullah from firing more than
3200 missiles into Israel. The amount of ammunition that the army caught and
impounded is mind-boggling and includes hundreds of anti-tank missiles and
motorbikes which Hizbullah terrorists used for a speedy get-away from the
site of rocket attacks. It has been reported that the level of
sophistication of the night-vision equipment found in the hands of Hizbullah
terrorists has shocked our army.
Throughout the war Hizbullah chief Hassan Nasrallah continued to release
videotapes in which he threatened Israel with continued missile attacks and
restated his aim of eradicating the “Zionist enemy”. Hizbullah is a part of
the coalition Lebanese government. The same government that the
international community has pledged to rush financial aid to and the very
same one who has stated in the clearest of terms, will not make any effort
to disarm Hizbullah.
Let it be clear to everyone that we have to take care of Iran, for it is a
problem that will not disappear. Iran reported last week that starting this
past Saturday it would be launching large-scale military maneuvers all over
Iran, “aimed at introducing Iran’s new defensive doctrine” military
spokesman General Muhammad Reza Ashtiani declared. This announcement was
made as Iran adamantly refuses to suspend its uranium enrichment and nuclear
program and openly supports Hizbullah.
The Palestinian Authority is simply one more Iranian emissary. During this
war in Lebanon, mass rallies in Gaza and Ramallah were organised and led by
so-called moderates within the Fatach party and security forces, in full
support of Hizbullah while demanding that Hassan Nasrallah bomb Tel Aviv.
Furthermore, Palestinian spokesmen have declared that the fate and possible
release of Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier kidnapped by Palestinian
terrorists on the 25th June, lies not in their hands but rather in those of
the Iranian and Syrian decision-makers. Syria’s President, Bashar Assad gave
a speech last Tuesday in which he called for the “redeeming of the Golan
Heights” and clearly stated Syria’s intention to destroy Israel. Army
reports tell us that Syria has stockpiles of missiles with the potential of
reaching every part of this country. Think what destruction they will
inflict upon us, if we fight that war the way we just fought this one.
Israel was forced into a war started, paid for and conducted by Arab
terrorists! The U.N. unfailingly aids and supports the very nations
determined to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. How long before U.N.
facilities & interests are added to their list of targets? Could the U.N.
make their agenda any clearer? We know what Hizbullah got out of this
cease-fire. Syria undoubtedly will demand from the U.N. unprecedented
payoffs and rewards for the same.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has his hands full as he tries to survive
politically. There are calls for an investigation by the state commission of
inquiry into grave mistakes made during the war, protests for him to resign
immediately and demands for the cessation of his “realignment plan” or
Disengagement 2. Soldiers from Ma’aleh Rechavam arrived back home from the
battlefield in Lebanon and found letters awaiting them, informing them that
they were slated to be evicted from their homes. I find it inconceivable
that while the country is at war on two fronts, in Lebanon and Gaza, the
government finds the time to destroy Jewish homes. Despite all this, Olmert
insists that Israel was victorious in this war. Olmert is currently being
investigated by state officials on multiple charges of corruption and
illegal political appointments he is suspected of having made while Trade
and Industry Minister. In addition, Olmert and his wife Aliza are under
investigation by the State Comptroller’s Office regarding allegations that
they received approximately half a million dollars in illegal profits on the
purchase of their home in Jerusalem. There are also reports that Olmert
paved the way for the contractor to receive permits from the city, allowing
the construction of an additional two apartments in the same building.
Yesterday, Chaim Ramon resigned from the government as a result of the
indictment filed against him. He is no less than our Justice Minister! He
will stand trial on charges of sexual harassment. Two women have come
forward with charges against him. Not only was he a strong advocate of our
army unilaterally leaving Lebanon in 2000 and Gaza last year, but as
recently as March of this year, he claimed that Hizbullah would not dare
attack Israel. The list of members of Knesset currently under investigation
and those who have already been indicted is lengthy.
While government officials on every level are tripping over themselves to
place blame on each other for the huge errors and short-sightedness of this
war, IDF Chief of Staff, Dan Chalutz, not only continues to assert the great
success of this war, but is under attack for his audacity in taking the time
to liquidate his investment portfolio three hours after our two soldiers
were kidnapped by Hizbullah and while the IDF was entering this war. He too,
must be sent home.
Where was our leadership? Where are they now? They still talk about the
possibility of living in peace with our neighbours. Can one truly be that
blind and delusional? Have they really learned nothing from the wars we have
fought and from the clear, methodical and consistent speech and actions of
our self-declared enemies?
Wherever we went yesterday, from city to city we heard repeated time and
again how the residents of these cities are receiving aid and help from
private volunteers and organisations and from some municipalities in the
country and nothing from the government! We saw street-cleaning machines
that were sent to the North from Jerusalem to help clean streets all over
the North. We met residents of Ra’anana who have been helping to clear
fields, parks and debris in Kiryat Shmona. We met countless volunteers from
all over the country who have generously given of their time to clean and
repaint bomb-shelters in preparation for the next time that our brothers and
sisters will be needing them in order to protect their lives – and that time
is not far-off!
With the help of all of you who have contributed so generously to our
project, we will continue to send trucks filled with ready-prepared meals to
the North daily. While funds continue to come in, the food and supplies will
continue to provide some measure of comfort to as many people as we are able
to provide for. I remain deeply indebted to all of you who have and continue
to send money and to those who have brought packages of other supplies to my
home. The people in the North are unfailingly grateful and appreciative!
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Interesting Reading!
The Global Islamic population is approximately 1,200,000,000, or 20% of the
world population.
They have received the following Nobel Prizes:
Literature:
1988 - Najib Mahfooz
Peace:
1978 - Mohamed Anwar El-Sadat
1994 - Yaser Arafat
Physics:
1990 - Elias James Corey
1999 - Ahmed Zewail
Medicine:
1960 - Peter Brian Medawar
1998 - Ferid Mourad
The Global Jewish population is approximately 14,000,000, or about 0.02% of
the world population. They have received the following Nobel Prizes:
Literature:
1910 - Paul Heyse
1927 - Henri Bergson
1958 - Boris Pasternak
1966 - Shmuel Yosef Agnon
1966 - Nelly Sachs
1976 - Saul Bellow
1978 - Isaac Bashevis Singer
1981 - Elias Canetti
1987 - Joseph Brodsky
1991 - Nadine Gordimer
World Peace:
1911 - Alfred Fried
1911 - Tobias Michael Carel Asser
1968 - Rene Cassin
1973 - Henry Kissinger
1978 - Menachem Begin
1986 - Elie Wiesel
1994 - Shimon Peres
1994 - Yitzhak Rabin
Physics:
1905 - Adolph Von Baeyer
1906 - Henri Moissan
1907 - Albert Abraham Michelson
1908 - Gabriel Lippmann
1910 - Otto Wallach
1915 - Richard Willstaetter
1918 - Fritz Haber
1921 - Albert Einstein
1922 - Niels Bohr
1925 - James Franck
1925 - Gustav Hertz
1943 - Gustav Stern
1943 - George Charles de Hevesy
1944 - Isidor Issac Rabi
1952 - Felix Bloch
1954 - Max Born
1958 - Igor Tamm
1959 - Emilio Segre
1960 - Donald A. Glaser
1961 - Robert Hofstadter
1961 - Melvin Calvin
1962 - Lev Davidovich Landau
1962 - Max Ferdinand Perutz
1965 - Richard Phillips Feynman
1965 - Julian Schwinger
1969 - Murray Gell-Mann
1971 - Dennis Gabor
1972 - William Howard Stein
1973 - Brian David Josephson
1975 - Benjamin Mottleson
1976 - Burton Richter
1977 - Ilya Prigogine
1978 - Arno Allan Penzias
1978 - Peter L Kapitza
1979 - Stephen Weinberg
1979 - Sheldon Glashow
1979 - Herbert Charle s Brown
1980 - Paul Berg
1980 - Walter Gilbert
1981 - Roald Hoffmann
1982 - Aaron Klug
1985 - Albert A. Hauptman
1985 - Jerome Karle
1986 - Dudley R. Herschbach
1988 - Robert Huber
1988 - Leon Lederman
1988 - Melvin Schwartz
1988 - Jack Steinberger
1989 - Sidney Altman
1990 - Jerome Friedman
1992 - Rudolph Marcus
1995 - Martin Perl
2000 - Alan J. Heeger
Economics:
1970 - Paul Anthony Samuelson
1971 - Simon Kuznets
1972 - Kenneth Joseph Arrow
1975 - Leonid Kantorovich
1976 - Milton Friedman
1978 - Herbert A. Simon
1980 - Lawrence Robert Klein
1985 - Franco Modigliani
1987 - Robert M. Solow
1990 - Harry Markowitz
1990 - Merton Miller
1992 - Gary Becker
1993 - Robert Fogel
Medicine:
1908 - Elie Metchnikoff
1908 - Paul Erlich
1914 - Robert Barany
1922 - Otto Meyerhof
1930 - Karl Landsteiner
1931 - Otto Warburg
1936 - Otto Loewi
1944 - Joseph Erlanger
1944 - Herbert Spencer Gasser
1945 - Ernst Boris Chain
1946 - Hermann Joseph Muller
1950 - Tadeus Reichstein
1952 - Selman Abraham Waksman
1953 - Hans Krebs
1953 - Fritz Albert Lipmann
1958 - Joshua Lederberg
1959 - Arthur Kornberg
1964 - Konrad Bloch
1965 - Francois Jacob
1965 - Andre Lwoff
1967 - George Wald
1968 - Marshall W. Nirenberg
1969 - Salvador Luria
1970 - Julius Axelrod
1970 - Sir Bernard Katz
1972 - Gerald Maurice Edelman
1975 - Howard Martin Temin
1976 - Baruch S. Blumberg
1977 - Roselyn Sussman Yalow
1978 - Daniel Nathans
1980 - Baruj Benacerraf
1984 - Cesar Milstein
1985 - Michael Stuart Brown
1985 - Joseph L. Goldstein
1986 - Stanley Cohen [& Rita Levi-Montalcini]
1988 - Gertrude Elion
1989 - Harold Varmus
1991 - Erwin Neher
1991 - Bert Sakmann
1993 - Richard J. Roberts
1993 - Phillip Sharp
1994 - Alfred Gilman
1995 - Edward B. Lewis
The Jews are not demonstrating with their dead on the streets, yelling and chanting and asking for revenge.
The Jews are not promoting brain-washing the children in military training camps, teaching them how to blow themselves up and cause maximum deaths of Jews and other non Muslims.
The Jews don't hijack planes, nor kill athletes at the Olympics.
The Jews don't traffic slaves, nor have leaders calling for Jihad and death to all the Infidels.
The Jews don't have the economic strength of petroleum, nor the possibilities to force the world's media to see "their side" of the question.
Perhaps the world's Muslims should consider investing more in standard education and less in blaming the Jews for all their problems.
Regardless of your feelings about the crisis between Israel and the Palestinians and Arab neighbors, even if you believe there is more culpability on Israel 's part for whatever reason, the following two sentences really say it all:
If the Arabs put down their weapons today, there would be no more violence.
If the Jews put down their weapons today, there would be no more Israel .
ISRAEL AND JERUSALEM FACTS
1. ISRAEL BECAME A STATE IN 1312 B.C., TWO MILLENNIA BEFORE ISLAM;
2. ARAB REFUGEES FROM ISRAEL BEGAN CALLING THEMSELVES "PALESTINIANS" IN 1967, TWO DECADES AFTER (MODERN) ISRAELI STATEHOOD;
3. AFTER CONQUERING THE LAND IN 1272 B.C., JEWS RULED IT FOR A THOUSAND YEARS AND MAINTAINED A CONTINUOUS PRESENCE THERE FOR 3,300 YEARS;
4. THE ONLY ARAB RULE FOLLOWING CONQUEST IN 633 B.C. LASTED JUST 22 YEARS;
5. FOR OVER 3,300 YEARS, JERUSALEM WAS THE JEWISH CAPITAL. IT WAS NEVER THE CAPITAL OF ANY ARAB OR MUSLIM ENTITY. EVEN UNDER JORDANIAN RULE, (EAST) JERUSALEM WAS NOT MADE THE CAPITAL, AND NO ARAB LEADER CAME TO VISIT IT;
6. JERUSALEM IS MENTIONED OVER 700 TIMES IN THE BIBLE, BUT NOT ONCE IS IT MENTIONED IN THE QUR'AN;
7. KING DAVID FOUNDED JERUSALEM ; MOHAMMED NEVER SET FOOT IN IT;
8. JEWS PRAY FACING JERUSALEM ; MUSLIMS FACE MECCA . IF THEY ARE BETWEEN THE TWO CITIES, MUSLIMS PRAY FACING MECCA , WITH THEIR BACKS TO JERUSALEM ;
9. IN 1948, ARAB LEADERS URGED THEIR PEOPLE TO LEAVE, PROMISING TO CLEANSE THE LAND OF JEWISH PRESENCE. 68% OF THEM FLED WITHOUT EVER SETTING EYES ON AN ISRAELI SOLDIER;
10. VIRTUALLY THE ENTIRE JEWISH POPULATION OF MUSLIM COUNTRIES HAD TO FLEE AS THE RESULT OF VIOLENCE AND POGROMS;
11. SOME 630,000 ARABS LEFT ISRAEL IN 1948, WHILE CLOSE TO A MILLION JEWS WERE FORCED TO LEAVE THE MUSLIM COUNTRIES;
12. IN SPITE OF THE VAST TERRITORIES AT THEIR DISPOSAL, ARAB REFUGESS WERE DELIBERATELY PREVENTED FROM ASSIMILATING INTO THEIR HOST COUNTRIES. OF 100 MILLION REFUGEES FOLLOWING WORLD WAR 2, THEY ARE THE ONLY GROUP TO HAVE NEVER INTEGRATED WITH THEIR CORELIGIONISTS. MOST OF THE JEWISH REFUGEES FROM EUROPE AND ARAB LANDS WERE SETTLED IN ISRAEL , A COUNTRY NO LARGER THAN NEW JERSEY ;
13. THERE ARE 22 MUSLIM COUNTRIES, NOT COUNTING PALESTINE . THERE IS ONLY ONE JEWISH STATE. ARABS STARTED ALL FIVE WARS AGAINST ISRAEL , AND LOST EVERY ONE OF THEM;
14. FATAH AND HAMAS CONSTITUTIONS STILL CALL FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF ISRAEL . ISRAEL CEDED MOST OF THE WEST BANK AND ALL OF GAZA TO THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY, AND EVEN PROVIDED IT WITH ARMS;
15. DURING THE JORDANIAN OCCUPATION, JEWISH HOLY SITES WERE VANDALIZED AND WERE OFF LIMITS TO JEWS. UNDER ISRAELI RULE, ALL MUSLIM AND CHRISTIAN HOLY SITES ARE ACCESSIBLE TO ALL FAITHS;
16. OUT OF 175 UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS UP TO 1990, 97 WERE AGAINST ISRAEL ; OUT OF 690 GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTIONS, 429 WERE AGAINST ISRAEL ;
18. THE U.N. WAS SILENT WHEN THE JORDANIANS DESTROYED 58 SYNAGOGUES IN THE OLD CITY OF JERUSALEM . IT REMAINED SILENT WHILE JORDAN SYSTEMATICALLY DESECRATED THE ANCIENT JEWISH CEMETERY ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES, AND IT REMAINED SILENT WHEN JORDAN ENFORCED APARTHEID LAWS PREVENTING JEWS FROM ACCESSING THE TEMPLE MOUNT AND WESTERN WALL.
THESE ARE TRYING TIMES. WE MUST ASK OURSELVES WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING, AND WHAT WE WILL TELL OUR GRANDCHILDREN ABOUT OUR ACTIONS DURING THIS CRISIS, WHEN WE HAD THE CHANCE TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
START NOW! SEND THIS MESSAGE TO 20 FRIENDS, AND ASK EACH OF THEM TO SEND IT TO 20 MORE. JEWISH OR NOT, IT DOES NOT MATTER.
TRUTH AND PEACE ARE VALUES COMMON TO ALL OF US.
Sunday, August 13, 2006
My Second Trip to the North
BS"D
Thursday 10 July 2006
Dear Friends,
Early this morning, I left Jerusalem with three friends and travelled up
North in an effort to continue the project I launched in light of the
current war in Israel. We have been successful in sending trucks filled with
ready-cooked meals and other supplies to people living in bomb-shelters for
the past few weeks and I wanted to have another opportunity to go to the
North myself and connect with people whose lives are being so badly affected
on a daily basis. Today was day 30 of this war and for the soldiers fighting
so that we can continue to live our lives in our small country and for the
residents of the North unable to live in their homes and crammed into small
unventilated bomb-shelters it feels like far longer than one month.
As I didn’t sleep all of last night, I had already heard the news that had
been reported in the early hours of the morning. 15 reserve soldiers were
killed in Lebanon yesterday. 24 were injured, some of them seriously. My
friends were hearing this news on the radio for the first time as we were
exiting Jerusalem and the tension in the car was palpable and set the tone
for much of what was to follow the rest of the day.
Yesterday afternoon the Israeli security cabinet decided to expand military
operations in southern Lebanon, sending troops as far as the Litani River.
The news caused a frenzy in the North and in many parts of the country and
for a short while there was a little doubt as to whether we would still be
allowed to go up North today. That decision has since been put on hold
because the United States is demanding Israel further diplomatic efforts in
order to reach a cease-fire. The United Nations has proposed a draft which
calls for the withdrawal of the Israeli army with the arrival of an
international peacekeeping force. As far as I am concerned, the only real
option we have right now is to continue our military offensive and disarm
Hizbullah.
More than 80 rockets were fired into the city of Kiryat Shmona yesterday.
Already at the entrance to the city, I could see evidence of far more
destruction than the last time I was there, two and a half weeks ago. We
were witness to some of the more than 650 buildings and apartments that have
been hit by Katyusha rockets. Kiryat Shmona is the city that has suffered
the most building damage in this war, followed by Nahariya and then Tzfat.
Having said that, it is very important to emphasise the miracles that
continue to occur here daily. According to yesterday’s army reports more
than 3200 rockets have hit northern Israel since the start of this war and
only 5% of them have hit buildings. The report also states that of those
people who have listened to army directives and remained in bomb-shelters
and protected rooms, no-one has died or been badly injured.
While we were in Kiryat Shmona, I got a call from a friend who was at Ben
Gurion airport. She was there to welcome friends who were making aliya today
on the Nefesh b’Nefesh plane. Sitting in this boiling hot, stuffy
bomb-shelter, I felt incredibly comforted knowing that 243 Jews had just
chosen to make Israel their home and that this war had not derailed their
plans or their determination. My friend told me that Nefesh b’Nefesh
co-founder Rabbi Yehoshua Fass said that a few months ago 243 people had
registered to be on today’s flight and despite the war, not a single person
cancelled. Demographically, without continued aliya our situation is far
more grave than many realise. I want you to know that despite the security
situation in Israel, aliya continues to flourish and people making aliya
through Nefesh B’Nefesh are only some of those choosing to make Israel their
home right now. There are many more Nefesh B’Nefesh flights expected this
summer including 3 flights on August 16 alone! After ending the phone
conversation, I told the woman sitting next to me about what I had just been
told. The news spread through the bomb-shelter like wild fire and everyone
had something to say about it. Almost everyone was amazed that people were
prepared to make Israel their home right now. I told them about Nefesh
b’Nefesh and the incredible work they do to facilitate thousands of people
making aliya. One man said “ When this war is over and the next Nefesh
b’Nefesh plane arrives, I will be at Ben Gurion airport to welcome them.”
Someone sitting on my left said “Pity we can’t be there now.” So I said, “We
can’t be there now, but we can sing Hatikva now, just as they are doing
right now at the airport”. Every single person in that bomb-shelter stood
and sang Hatikva with a heightened sense of intention and meaning and by the
end of the anthem there was not a single dry eye in the shelter.
At around 11:00 a.m. sirens sounded throughout the North of the county. We
were unloading food from a truck and were rushed into the bomb-shelter which
we were just about to enter to distribute food. Katyusha rockets fired from
Lebanon landed in many cities including Kiryat Shmona, where we were. A
short while later we heard that a mother and her baby were killed in a
rocket attack in the Arab village of Dir al-Assad, near Carmiel, and other
family members had been hospitalised.
The people left in Kiryat Shmona are primarily those unable to help
themselves – the poor, elderly, handicapped and sick who cannot afford to
leave the city. We met some patriots who told us they have remained to look
after their homes and to watch over the city and who refuse to be run out of
Kiryat Shmona by terrorists. In some of the bomb-shelters, we heard that the
Kiryat Shmona municipality had handed out food vouchers to people in certain
shelters on Tuesday because the food crisis is so grave.
From Kiryat Shmona we went to Nahariya. Once again, the shelters were
unventilated and boiling hot. The sanitary conditions are very difficult and
there are no showers. People greeted us with unconstrained appreciation.
They seemed desperate for food. Katyusha rockets had been fired into
Nahariya early this morning and some of the people we met were still visibly
in shock. It was clear to us that a lot more people had left the city since
we were last there.
At 2:30 p.m. sirens sounded again all over the North. By then we were in
Carmiel. A home in the Ma’alot area was damaged in a Katyusha rocket attack
and rockets landed in Rosh Hanikra. Fire fighters and fire fighting planes
were battling to control forest fires in the Golan Heights and Upper Galil
areas, resulting from Katyusha rocket attacks. I want you to know that this
is what is happening here every day! Every single day! You will not see this
on BBC and CNN but this is our reality.
The strength of Am Yisrael is so clear to me. Since this war began I have
been inundated with calls and emails from people here in Israel and all over
the world, genuinely wanting to help. People have sent money and others have
brought packages to my apartment filled with toys, books, games, clothes and
toiletries. Chessed is our strength and so is tefilla. The attitude of the
people living day after day, night after night in these small bomb-shelters
with horrendous conditions is exceptional. Despite the incredible
difficulties they have faith in Hashem. Wherever we went yesterday, people
openly shared their feelings and thoughts, and place after place we heard
people say they were willing to endure all that this war entails so long as
the government allows the army to complete their job and does not give into
international pressure.
For me, one of the most moving parts of my day was stopping to distribute
food and supplies to a group of soldiers. These soldiers are all very young
– 19, 20 years old. They told me how the religious among them put tefillin
on the irreligious soldiers every morning, how the irreligious soldiers have
learned Tefillat Haderech off by heart from their religious friends and what
made me cry (for the umpteenth time today) was when they told me how they
sing “Ani Ma’amin” as they march in Lebanon to face Hizbullah terrorists. I
thanked them profusely for their holy work and told them that because of
them and what they are doing to protect us, we are able to remain here.
At about 3:15 p.m. I was on the phone with someone in Kiryat Shmona, when
the siren sounded again and we had to cut the call short so that he could
get into a bomb-shelter. The bomb-shelter we were in was shaking and
children were screaming. My heart was pounding. It was very scary and I kept
thinking that with all the experience these people have gained in the past
month, this is just not something you get used to. A few minutes later I
heard that sirens were also sounding in Shlomi, Nahariya and other northern
cities.
We left Carmiel and arrived in Haifa just after 4:00 p.m. and we took a
short break for Mincha. About 15 minutes later, literally seconds after I
finished davenning, warning sirens sounded in Haifa, Carmiel, Nahariya, Rosh
Hanikra and surrounding areas. Residents were told to take cover in
bomb-shelters and protected rooms. A building in Haifa suffered a direct hit
and people were injured. We piled into the closest bomb-shelter and a bunch
of children were sitting nearest to the entrance playing cards. Seeing four
new faces in their shelter they asked us who we were. I sat down next to
them and as we talked they asked me to play with them. They shared with me
how hard this past month has been and how helpless they feel about their own
reality. We spoke about ways people can help themselves in difficult times
and when I suggested that we recite Tehillim together they were very
skeptical. They spoke among themselves and one of them told me very
matter-of-factly that they would say “just one”. 40 minutes later as we said
goodbye, these kids were still reciting Tehillim.
While we were in that bomb-shelter someone told me that an army official had
just announced on the news that aerial photos of Kiryat Shmona were found in
southern Lebanon in one of the villages used as Hizbullah headquarters. At
that moment all I could think about were the faces of the people I had seen
this morning in Kiryat Shmona.
After 5:00 p.m. we heard on the news that ten rockets exploded in Ma'alot
and again sirens were sounding in Nahariya and Kiryat Shmona. The whole day
we kept hearing news broadcasts and the names of the soldiers killed
yesterday were slowly released for publication. There was an outburst of
anger in one of the bomb-shelters when a few men heard on the news that IAF
planes had once again dropped flyers in Beirut neighbourhoods, warning
residents to leave for their own safety. The men explained to us that it
infuriates them that our army constantly gives Hizbullah warning of
impending attacks when Hizbullah continues to rain rockets on our cities
with no hesitation or warning.
In all the places that we went to today, aside from buildings and structures
that have been destroyed, I was very aware of the large number of trees that
have been destroyed by forest fires that have broken out as a result of
Hizbullah rockets. At approximately 6:15 p.m. 3 rockets were fired into Acco
and sirens were again sounding in Kiryat Shmona and surrounding areas.
Forest fires had broken out in the area.
Throughout the day, I saw many familiar faces – people I had seen and met
the last time I was in the North. One of the most heart-warming reunions was
that of my “Sudoku buddies” in Haifa. They showed me the Sudoku puzzle books
I had sent them and told me they would soon be needing new ones.
At 8:00 p.m. we took a break and sat in a bomb-shelter watching the news on
television. We heard that more than 160 Katyusha rockets had been fired into
Israel today. I got a sms to my cellphone that a tourist had been stabbed to
death by an Arab terrorist in the Old City of Jerusalem. Arabs have free
access to our cities, public transport, restaurants, malls ands cafe's and
so attacking Jews simply poses no problem for them. Needless to say what
would happen if Jews were to enter their restaurants, malls ands cafe's!
I am very grateful to those of you who don’t know me but were forwarded my
first article and made the effort to call and email me. To all of you who
have generously contributed to my project, I thank you from the bottom of my
heart! The money has allowed us to continue sending prepared meals up to the
North daily and I can tell you that the expressions on the faces of the
people in the bomb-shelters, especially the children, when we distributed
the toys, games, clothes and toiletries was priceless. Thank you, thank you,
thank you!!! May Hashem bless you and bless us to continue our work.
Thursday 10 July 2006
Dear Friends,
Early this morning, I left Jerusalem with three friends and travelled up
North in an effort to continue the project I launched in light of the
current war in Israel. We have been successful in sending trucks filled with
ready-cooked meals and other supplies to people living in bomb-shelters for
the past few weeks and I wanted to have another opportunity to go to the
North myself and connect with people whose lives are being so badly affected
on a daily basis. Today was day 30 of this war and for the soldiers fighting
so that we can continue to live our lives in our small country and for the
residents of the North unable to live in their homes and crammed into small
unventilated bomb-shelters it feels like far longer than one month.
As I didn’t sleep all of last night, I had already heard the news that had
been reported in the early hours of the morning. 15 reserve soldiers were
killed in Lebanon yesterday. 24 were injured, some of them seriously. My
friends were hearing this news on the radio for the first time as we were
exiting Jerusalem and the tension in the car was palpable and set the tone
for much of what was to follow the rest of the day.
Yesterday afternoon the Israeli security cabinet decided to expand military
operations in southern Lebanon, sending troops as far as the Litani River.
The news caused a frenzy in the North and in many parts of the country and
for a short while there was a little doubt as to whether we would still be
allowed to go up North today. That decision has since been put on hold
because the United States is demanding Israel further diplomatic efforts in
order to reach a cease-fire. The United Nations has proposed a draft which
calls for the withdrawal of the Israeli army with the arrival of an
international peacekeeping force. As far as I am concerned, the only real
option we have right now is to continue our military offensive and disarm
Hizbullah.
More than 80 rockets were fired into the city of Kiryat Shmona yesterday.
Already at the entrance to the city, I could see evidence of far more
destruction than the last time I was there, two and a half weeks ago. We
were witness to some of the more than 650 buildings and apartments that have
been hit by Katyusha rockets. Kiryat Shmona is the city that has suffered
the most building damage in this war, followed by Nahariya and then Tzfat.
Having said that, it is very important to emphasise the miracles that
continue to occur here daily. According to yesterday’s army reports more
than 3200 rockets have hit northern Israel since the start of this war and
only 5% of them have hit buildings. The report also states that of those
people who have listened to army directives and remained in bomb-shelters
and protected rooms, no-one has died or been badly injured.
While we were in Kiryat Shmona, I got a call from a friend who was at Ben
Gurion airport. She was there to welcome friends who were making aliya today
on the Nefesh b’Nefesh plane. Sitting in this boiling hot, stuffy
bomb-shelter, I felt incredibly comforted knowing that 243 Jews had just
chosen to make Israel their home and that this war had not derailed their
plans or their determination. My friend told me that Nefesh b’Nefesh
co-founder Rabbi Yehoshua Fass said that a few months ago 243 people had
registered to be on today’s flight and despite the war, not a single person
cancelled. Demographically, without continued aliya our situation is far
more grave than many realise. I want you to know that despite the security
situation in Israel, aliya continues to flourish and people making aliya
through Nefesh B’Nefesh are only some of those choosing to make Israel their
home right now. There are many more Nefesh B’Nefesh flights expected this
summer including 3 flights on August 16 alone! After ending the phone
conversation, I told the woman sitting next to me about what I had just been
told. The news spread through the bomb-shelter like wild fire and everyone
had something to say about it. Almost everyone was amazed that people were
prepared to make Israel their home right now. I told them about Nefesh
b’Nefesh and the incredible work they do to facilitate thousands of people
making aliya. One man said “ When this war is over and the next Nefesh
b’Nefesh plane arrives, I will be at Ben Gurion airport to welcome them.”
Someone sitting on my left said “Pity we can’t be there now.” So I said, “We
can’t be there now, but we can sing Hatikva now, just as they are doing
right now at the airport”. Every single person in that bomb-shelter stood
and sang Hatikva with a heightened sense of intention and meaning and by the
end of the anthem there was not a single dry eye in the shelter.
At around 11:00 a.m. sirens sounded throughout the North of the county. We
were unloading food from a truck and were rushed into the bomb-shelter which
we were just about to enter to distribute food. Katyusha rockets fired from
Lebanon landed in many cities including Kiryat Shmona, where we were. A
short while later we heard that a mother and her baby were killed in a
rocket attack in the Arab village of Dir al-Assad, near Carmiel, and other
family members had been hospitalised.
The people left in Kiryat Shmona are primarily those unable to help
themselves – the poor, elderly, handicapped and sick who cannot afford to
leave the city. We met some patriots who told us they have remained to look
after their homes and to watch over the city and who refuse to be run out of
Kiryat Shmona by terrorists. In some of the bomb-shelters, we heard that the
Kiryat Shmona municipality had handed out food vouchers to people in certain
shelters on Tuesday because the food crisis is so grave.
From Kiryat Shmona we went to Nahariya. Once again, the shelters were
unventilated and boiling hot. The sanitary conditions are very difficult and
there are no showers. People greeted us with unconstrained appreciation.
They seemed desperate for food. Katyusha rockets had been fired into
Nahariya early this morning and some of the people we met were still visibly
in shock. It was clear to us that a lot more people had left the city since
we were last there.
At 2:30 p.m. sirens sounded again all over the North. By then we were in
Carmiel. A home in the Ma’alot area was damaged in a Katyusha rocket attack
and rockets landed in Rosh Hanikra. Fire fighters and fire fighting planes
were battling to control forest fires in the Golan Heights and Upper Galil
areas, resulting from Katyusha rocket attacks. I want you to know that this
is what is happening here every day! Every single day! You will not see this
on BBC and CNN but this is our reality.
The strength of Am Yisrael is so clear to me. Since this war began I have
been inundated with calls and emails from people here in Israel and all over
the world, genuinely wanting to help. People have sent money and others have
brought packages to my apartment filled with toys, books, games, clothes and
toiletries. Chessed is our strength and so is tefilla. The attitude of the
people living day after day, night after night in these small bomb-shelters
with horrendous conditions is exceptional. Despite the incredible
difficulties they have faith in Hashem. Wherever we went yesterday, people
openly shared their feelings and thoughts, and place after place we heard
people say they were willing to endure all that this war entails so long as
the government allows the army to complete their job and does not give into
international pressure.
For me, one of the most moving parts of my day was stopping to distribute
food and supplies to a group of soldiers. These soldiers are all very young
– 19, 20 years old. They told me how the religious among them put tefillin
on the irreligious soldiers every morning, how the irreligious soldiers have
learned Tefillat Haderech off by heart from their religious friends and what
made me cry (for the umpteenth time today) was when they told me how they
sing “Ani Ma’amin” as they march in Lebanon to face Hizbullah terrorists. I
thanked them profusely for their holy work and told them that because of
them and what they are doing to protect us, we are able to remain here.
At about 3:15 p.m. I was on the phone with someone in Kiryat Shmona, when
the siren sounded again and we had to cut the call short so that he could
get into a bomb-shelter. The bomb-shelter we were in was shaking and
children were screaming. My heart was pounding. It was very scary and I kept
thinking that with all the experience these people have gained in the past
month, this is just not something you get used to. A few minutes later I
heard that sirens were also sounding in Shlomi, Nahariya and other northern
cities.
We left Carmiel and arrived in Haifa just after 4:00 p.m. and we took a
short break for Mincha. About 15 minutes later, literally seconds after I
finished davenning, warning sirens sounded in Haifa, Carmiel, Nahariya, Rosh
Hanikra and surrounding areas. Residents were told to take cover in
bomb-shelters and protected rooms. A building in Haifa suffered a direct hit
and people were injured. We piled into the closest bomb-shelter and a bunch
of children were sitting nearest to the entrance playing cards. Seeing four
new faces in their shelter they asked us who we were. I sat down next to
them and as we talked they asked me to play with them. They shared with me
how hard this past month has been and how helpless they feel about their own
reality. We spoke about ways people can help themselves in difficult times
and when I suggested that we recite Tehillim together they were very
skeptical. They spoke among themselves and one of them told me very
matter-of-factly that they would say “just one”. 40 minutes later as we said
goodbye, these kids were still reciting Tehillim.
While we were in that bomb-shelter someone told me that an army official had
just announced on the news that aerial photos of Kiryat Shmona were found in
southern Lebanon in one of the villages used as Hizbullah headquarters. At
that moment all I could think about were the faces of the people I had seen
this morning in Kiryat Shmona.
After 5:00 p.m. we heard on the news that ten rockets exploded in Ma'alot
and again sirens were sounding in Nahariya and Kiryat Shmona. The whole day
we kept hearing news broadcasts and the names of the soldiers killed
yesterday were slowly released for publication. There was an outburst of
anger in one of the bomb-shelters when a few men heard on the news that IAF
planes had once again dropped flyers in Beirut neighbourhoods, warning
residents to leave for their own safety. The men explained to us that it
infuriates them that our army constantly gives Hizbullah warning of
impending attacks when Hizbullah continues to rain rockets on our cities
with no hesitation or warning.
In all the places that we went to today, aside from buildings and structures
that have been destroyed, I was very aware of the large number of trees that
have been destroyed by forest fires that have broken out as a result of
Hizbullah rockets. At approximately 6:15 p.m. 3 rockets were fired into Acco
and sirens were again sounding in Kiryat Shmona and surrounding areas.
Forest fires had broken out in the area.
Throughout the day, I saw many familiar faces – people I had seen and met
the last time I was in the North. One of the most heart-warming reunions was
that of my “Sudoku buddies” in Haifa. They showed me the Sudoku puzzle books
I had sent them and told me they would soon be needing new ones.
At 8:00 p.m. we took a break and sat in a bomb-shelter watching the news on
television. We heard that more than 160 Katyusha rockets had been fired into
Israel today. I got a sms to my cellphone that a tourist had been stabbed to
death by an Arab terrorist in the Old City of Jerusalem. Arabs have free
access to our cities, public transport, restaurants, malls ands cafe's and
so attacking Jews simply poses no problem for them. Needless to say what
would happen if Jews were to enter their restaurants, malls ands cafe's!
I am very grateful to those of you who don’t know me but were forwarded my
first article and made the effort to call and email me. To all of you who
have generously contributed to my project, I thank you from the bottom of my
heart! The money has allowed us to continue sending prepared meals up to the
North daily and I can tell you that the expressions on the faces of the
people in the bomb-shelters, especially the children, when we distributed
the toys, games, clothes and toiletries was priceless. Thank you, thank you,
thank you!!! May Hashem bless you and bless us to continue our work.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
The truth about Arab terrorism!
Brigitte Gabriel's Speech At Duke University
"I'm proud and honored to stand here today as a Lebanese speaking for
Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East. As someone who was raised in
an Arabic country, I want to give you a glimpse into the heart of the Arabic
world.
I was raised in Lebanon where I was taught that the Jews are evil, Israel is
the devil, and the only time we will have peace in the Middle East is when
we kill all the Jews and drive them into the sea.
When the Muslims and Palestinians declared jihad on the Christians in 1975,
they started massacring the Christians city after city. I ended up living in
a bomb shelter underground from age 10 to 17, without electricity, eating
grass to live, and crawling under sniper bullets to a spring to get water.
It was Israel who came to help the Christians in Lebanon. My mother was
wounded by a Muslim shell and was taken into an Israeli hospital for
treatment. When we entered the emergency room, I was shocked at what I saw.
There were hundreds of people wounded, Muslims, Palestinians, Lebanese
Christians, and Israeli soldiers lying on the floor. The doctors treated
everyone according to their injury. They treated my mother before they
treated the Israeli soldier lying next to her. They didn't see religion,
they didn't see political affiliation; they saw people in need and they
helped.
For the first time in my life, I experienced a human quality that I know my
culture would not have shown to their enemy. I experienced the values of the
Israelis, who were able to love their enemy in their most trying moments. I
spent 22 days at that hospital; those days changed my life and the way I
believe information, the way I listen to the radio or to television. I
realized that I was sold a fabricated lie by my government about the Jews
and Israel, which was so far from reality. I knew for a fact that if I were
a Jew standing in an Arab hospital, I would be lynched and thrown to the
ground as shouts of joy of "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) echoed through the
hospital and the surrounding streets.
I became friends with the families of the wounded Israeli soldiers, one in
particular, Rina, whose only child was wounded in his eyes. One day, I was
visiting with her and the Israeli army band came to play national songs to
lift the spirits of the wounded soldiers. As they surrounded his bed playing
a song about Jerusalem, Rina and I started crying. I felt out of place and
started walking out of the room, and this mother held my hand and pulled me
back in without even looking at me. She held me, crying, and said, "It is
not your fault." We just stood there, crying, holding each other's hands.
What a contrast between her-a mother looking at her deformed, 19-year-old
only child and still able to love me, the enemy-and a Muslim mother who
sends her son to blow himself up to smithereens just to kill a few Jews or
Christians.
The difference between the Arabic world and Israel is a difference in values
and character. It's barbarism versus civilization. It's democracy versus
dictatorship. It's goodness versus evil.
Once upon a time, there was a special place in the lowest depths of hell for
anyone who would intentionally murder a child. Now, the intentional murder
of Israeli children is legitimized as Palestinian "armed struggle." However,
once such behavior is legitimized against Israel, it is legitimized
everywhere in the world, constrained by nothing more than the subjective
belief of people who would wrap themselves in dynamite and nails for the
purpose of killing children in the name of god.
Because the Palestinians have been encouraged to believe that murdering
innocent Israeli civilians is a legitimate tactic for advancing their cause,
the whole world now suffers from a plague of terrorism, from Nairobi to New
York, from Moscow to Madrid, from Bali to Beslan.
They blame suicide bombings on the "desperation of occupation." Let me tell
you the truth. The first major terror bombing committed by Arabs against the
Jewish state occurred 10 weeks before Israel even became independent. On
Sunday morning, February 22, 1948, in anticipation of Israel 's
independence, a triple truck bomb was detonated by Arab terrorists on Ben
Yehuda Street in what was then the Jewish section of Jerusalem. Fifty-four
people were killed and hundreds were wounded.
Thus, it is obvious that Arab terrorism is caused not by "desperation" or
"occupation", but by the VERY THOUGHT of a Jewish state.
So many times in history in the last 100 years, citizens have stood by and
done nothing, allowing evil to prevail. As America stood up against and
defeated communism, now it is time to stand up against the terror of
religious bigotry and intolerance. It's time for everyone to stand up and
support and defend the State of Israel, which is the front line of the war
against terrorism.
Thank you."
"I'm proud and honored to stand here today as a Lebanese speaking for
Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East. As someone who was raised in
an Arabic country, I want to give you a glimpse into the heart of the Arabic
world.
I was raised in Lebanon where I was taught that the Jews are evil, Israel is
the devil, and the only time we will have peace in the Middle East is when
we kill all the Jews and drive them into the sea.
When the Muslims and Palestinians declared jihad on the Christians in 1975,
they started massacring the Christians city after city. I ended up living in
a bomb shelter underground from age 10 to 17, without electricity, eating
grass to live, and crawling under sniper bullets to a spring to get water.
It was Israel who came to help the Christians in Lebanon. My mother was
wounded by a Muslim shell and was taken into an Israeli hospital for
treatment. When we entered the emergency room, I was shocked at what I saw.
There were hundreds of people wounded, Muslims, Palestinians, Lebanese
Christians, and Israeli soldiers lying on the floor. The doctors treated
everyone according to their injury. They treated my mother before they
treated the Israeli soldier lying next to her. They didn't see religion,
they didn't see political affiliation; they saw people in need and they
helped.
For the first time in my life, I experienced a human quality that I know my
culture would not have shown to their enemy. I experienced the values of the
Israelis, who were able to love their enemy in their most trying moments. I
spent 22 days at that hospital; those days changed my life and the way I
believe information, the way I listen to the radio or to television. I
realized that I was sold a fabricated lie by my government about the Jews
and Israel, which was so far from reality. I knew for a fact that if I were
a Jew standing in an Arab hospital, I would be lynched and thrown to the
ground as shouts of joy of "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) echoed through the
hospital and the surrounding streets.
I became friends with the families of the wounded Israeli soldiers, one in
particular, Rina, whose only child was wounded in his eyes. One day, I was
visiting with her and the Israeli army band came to play national songs to
lift the spirits of the wounded soldiers. As they surrounded his bed playing
a song about Jerusalem, Rina and I started crying. I felt out of place and
started walking out of the room, and this mother held my hand and pulled me
back in without even looking at me. She held me, crying, and said, "It is
not your fault." We just stood there, crying, holding each other's hands.
What a contrast between her-a mother looking at her deformed, 19-year-old
only child and still able to love me, the enemy-and a Muslim mother who
sends her son to blow himself up to smithereens just to kill a few Jews or
Christians.
The difference between the Arabic world and Israel is a difference in values
and character. It's barbarism versus civilization. It's democracy versus
dictatorship. It's goodness versus evil.
Once upon a time, there was a special place in the lowest depths of hell for
anyone who would intentionally murder a child. Now, the intentional murder
of Israeli children is legitimized as Palestinian "armed struggle." However,
once such behavior is legitimized against Israel, it is legitimized
everywhere in the world, constrained by nothing more than the subjective
belief of people who would wrap themselves in dynamite and nails for the
purpose of killing children in the name of god.
Because the Palestinians have been encouraged to believe that murdering
innocent Israeli civilians is a legitimate tactic for advancing their cause,
the whole world now suffers from a plague of terrorism, from Nairobi to New
York, from Moscow to Madrid, from Bali to Beslan.
They blame suicide bombings on the "desperation of occupation." Let me tell
you the truth. The first major terror bombing committed by Arabs against the
Jewish state occurred 10 weeks before Israel even became independent. On
Sunday morning, February 22, 1948, in anticipation of Israel 's
independence, a triple truck bomb was detonated by Arab terrorists on Ben
Yehuda Street in what was then the Jewish section of Jerusalem. Fifty-four
people were killed and hundreds were wounded.
Thus, it is obvious that Arab terrorism is caused not by "desperation" or
"occupation", but by the VERY THOUGHT of a Jewish state.
So many times in history in the last 100 years, citizens have stood by and
done nothing, allowing evil to prevail. As America stood up against and
defeated communism, now it is time to stand up against the terror of
religious bigotry and intolerance. It's time for everyone to stand up and
support and defend the State of Israel, which is the front line of the war
against terrorism.
Thank you."
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