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Israel’s war with Iran’s proxy army, Hezbollah, widened this weekend with a deadly missile strike against Haifa’s rail-yard that killed eight Israelis and wounded many more. In addition to a hit on Tiberius Friday, a radar-guided, Iranian made missile torn into an Israeli warship 16km off the Lebanese coast minutes after Hezbollah announced it would hit a ship. The radar guided anti-ship missile killed four Israeli sailors. Another radar guided missile—with a range of 110km —hit a freighter and sunk it 60km off the Lebanese coast. Israeli jets pounded Beirut, and flattened the Hezbollah headquarters and dozens more targets.

Hezbollah is itching for an Israeli invasion, so they can use the booby-trapped corridor to Beirut to exact a high toll on Israel. They would also count on widespread civilian support. Israel’s Defense establishment has used graphic language to describe their planned destruction of Hezbollah, but is it possible without sending in troops? Last time Israel sent in commandos from the sea, Hezbollah turned them back, killing several. An aerial drop behind lines would leave soldiers vulnerable till ground reinforcements arrive. Hezbollah is not likely to give up its weapons unless Iran or Syria steps in, unlikely at this juncture. This leaves Israel’s response to continued aerial bombardment.

Israel should be insisting on Red Cross access to the two soldiers taken captive and help evacuate American and EU residents stuck in the Lebanon. They should demand that Lebanon arrest Hezbollah’s leadership, but perhaps this is too late, as this could have been a demand before the war began.

Further suggestions for Israel? Please write below.

About the author

Rabbi Yonah

17 Comments

  • They *should* be relying on the red cross for the two kidnapped soldiers, but where has red cross access to Gilad been? We know Israel can never rely on international cooperation, even when it is from a supposedly neutral organization like the Red Cross.

  • I shudder at this thought…but a few B-52 sorties, carpet bombing the area may help soften up the area for a ground invasion. Other than that, the losses to our troops would be HUGE. Can we stomache it? I doubt it.

  • A ground invasion will not work, because the Israelis are not barbaric enough to fight in the manner of the enemy, i.e. what will they do when the enemy starts with the suicide bombers?

    They will cut and run after a few months as they did in the past.

    Unless you are willing to respond in exactly the barbaric manner of the jihadist islamo fascist, you will not defeat them.

    My advice is to continue the current military option it may work but I am not so optimistic.

    The Rabbi mentioned prayer, at first I was going to write that we should do chessed also, that chessed is more important but I saw the Medrash Tanchumah on the parsha that prayer is the most important thing you can do. Whew, I thought bein adam liadam was most important!

  • TWG as we pray during the Yamim Nora’im:

    “U’teshuva, U’tefilla, U’tzedak ma’avirim et ro’ah hag’zerah”

    “And repentence, and prayer, and charity remove the of terribleness of the decree”

    A pefect triple combo, consisting of so much of both bein adam la’Makom and adam la’Chaveiro.

    Or as they used to say at Nike: “Just do it!”

  • Has anyone heard from the guys in Sinai? It makes me nervous not to see a post or anything…

  • Don’t remember where I saw/heard it in the rush of news coverage, but there was a report that the US is shipping Israel some “bunker buster” bombs to take out the Hizzies’ munitions stashes and kill the leadership.

  • Ben David, Israel has been using bunker buster bombs at least over the last 2 days, without a doubt.

    I think Israel’s receipt of BBs was already reported months ago. I’m pretty sure I read it on Debka. No, I’m not a big Debka fan but they do get some scoops right now and then.

  • No, exiled Yeru, Israel has nothing in the line of heavy bombers of a B52’s caliber.

  • The B52 commend was mere wishful thinking (in a perverse, frustrated kinda way). I don’t believe we’ve engaged in that kinda bombing campaign since WW2 i.e. carpet bombing major cities.

    Though what the IDF/IAF are planning to do to “crush” Hezbollah is beyond me. Looks like Hez have the IDF/IAF exactly where they want ’em.

  • SN, no worries. They’re back, and they’re fine. Their posts with copious beautiful photographs to come shortly.

  • “I love the smell of napalm in the morning… smells like, VICTORY” – I too had the “wishful thinking” of a B-52 assult of carpet bombing. It’s not a pretty thought, but damn, I believe droping a payload in the south to move the rockets out of range would be a nice follow up to the on going air assult.

    “BLE PANIKA” like the hitchhikers guide tells us “DON’T PANIC”

  • Here’s an idea from a friendly Christian in Washington State on how to end the threat of Hezbollah against our good friend, Israel. Wait for a really hot, windy day in Tehran. First, bunker bust their water system to ensure that the mains run dry. Then, open up the natural gas mains
    with the next run of sorties, and to top it off, drop fuel-air explosive bombs and incendiary explosives in concentric circles around their capital until the entire city of over 10 million burns to the ground. Then, hit their next largest city the same way, and so on. Either the Iranians decide that picking fights with the world is no longer in their interests, or the Iranians no longer exist. Watch the end of Islamic extremism as the 30 million Iranians that are left behind try to find a warm spot for the winter. Hezbollah in Lebanon is nothing more than the fangs of the snake. The head is in Iran, and you must cut off the head of the snake to neutralize the threat that the snake poses to you. Wound the body, or rip out a fang, and the snake can still strike. This is not a war that Christianity or Judaism asked for, and the actions of Muslims the world over shows us that Islam is a religion of tyranny. The armies of Muhammed terrorized the world for 1000 years. It is a religion that martyrs the murderers of children, and promises sexual deviance upon death as a means to motivate it’s followers. What point is 72 virgins for you when you condemn your own daughters and sisters to slavery. Islam subjugates women while encouraging men to kiss each other. From the beginning of the seventh century A.D, Islam has been about murder, punishment, revenge, guilt, and warfare. I am grateful that a religion, which to me is the personification of evil, has decided that I am it’s enemy. You fight the good fight, Israel, and I know you will stay strong.

  • hello i’m a lebanese now in jordan because of the hezeballah-isreal conflict. i just hope that israel only hits hezeballah targets, for now they have destroyed almost all bridges in lebanon and the airport and more :s, and now about 400 civilians died if u like to check out http://fromisraeltolebanon.info/. plz know where ur hitting! i don’t support hezeballah and their ideology! and i don’t like the way ur government handles things! u have to understand that the lebanesne army are mostly shee3a muslims it would b hard to disarm hezeballah even if we want to, the lebanese army barely consists of 38,000 not well equiped men, lebanon has always suffered because of the palestinians, syrians, iranians and isrealis. They all faught their war in the tiny* lebanon! i hope this will end soon.

  • So like…hmmm I dont know how to say it up but these 2 words are the closest thing to sum up my feelings towards Israel…FUCK ISRAEL ! ! Seriously, what monsters has Hitler created. I guess you guys learn from the best in terms of how to rack people up in city sized prisons I.E. Gaza and the west bank and brutally torture,kill,rape, bla bla bla the list goes on. I mean you have the internet, havent you seen videos of Israelis beating and killing Palestinians? What do you guys have to say for that? Seriously, forget that I’m against Israel, and think of me as just another human seeing other humans in pain..how do you explain for what Israeli soldiers are doing? Listen to what the palestinians are saying…you might learn from it. They have no rights and you guys are killing them, if their in an environment where they feel they are dying anyways, they lose fear of death, and have nothing to lose…so basically your causign their reactions…oh and Lebanon, your Israel destroyed a country that took 50 years to get back on its feet…and killed 100’s of civilians…dont you think its wrong? I know your gonna reply with blah blah hezbollah blah blah, but for one their a resistance group fighting israelis who are invading their land. Dont you think a country has a right to defend themself is an unwanted intruder is trying to get in? Do you know why Israel attacked Lebanon, it wasnt over 2 soldiers,it was planned from the beginning to create “greater israel”, im sure u know what that is. anyways, peace, I know I havent changed your minds, but speaking as a fellow human, realize people are dying, and Israel is bullying weaker countries around…just cuz your allies with an american superpower doesnt mean what your doing is right, look at the facts…compare Hitlers holocaust to Israels holocaust, seriously, make a list in your mind and match up what he did to what israel is doing, you will find many similarities, and no cheating, dont be biased on it lol, just look at the facts. peace.