Nasrallah threatens to bomb Tel Aviv
Think about the difficult lesson I posted earlier this afternoon. Hassan Nasrallah can't say he gives up. So instead, he keeps on threatening. Hopefully, we will pound the you-know-what out of him until he gives up (or we kill him - even better).Nasrallah went on his television station, al-Manar tonight to tell us that if Israel bombs Beirut again, "If you indeed do this, I say this clearly. I won't use terms I used up to now, past Haifa, but I will say clearly and in a way that is not open to interpretation: If you bomb our capital we'll bomb your capital. We'll bomb Tel Aviv and we can do this."
By the way, Tel Aviv is not the capital of Israel - Jerusalem is. But Jerusalem may be the safest place in the country right now, partly because there are so many Arabs here, and partly because of what would happen to Nasrallah if he ever hit one of the mosques on the Temple Mount.
And the response, according to YNet:
A senior Israeli defense source told Israel's Channel 1 that Israel will destroy Lebanon's infrastructure if Hizbullah fires rockets at Tel Aviv.Why haven't we done that already? What's Haifa or Akko or Tsfat - Swiss cheese? No, it's real simple: Tel Aviv is MyBackYard (and for those of you who don't get the reference, the search you want to run on my blog is NotInMyBackYard - a syndrome that unfortunately afflicts this country, which is why we have a Prime Minister who after three weeks of war in Lebanon and longer in Gaza still wants to give more land to the 'Palestinians'). Until this war, I thought Haifa was too, and in fact it was the first rocket hitting Haifa that led to the first assualt on Beirut.
For the record, the IDF is taking these threats seriously.
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:24 PM
3 Comments:
I live in Montreal Quebec, Canada where there is great sympathy for the Lebanese. The trouble is very few Quebeckers have any knowledge of Middle East history. I have written a couple of posts on Israel, the last one being,"Israel, the so called new kid on the block" on my blog "Politics and the Law" at "hladdie.blogspot.com"
Let me know what you think.
His, not bad, I'm not Israeli, but as a quick summary seems ok.
If you want to know more two books I've read which help to understand this issue are -
'The Case for Israel' by Alan Dershowitz
'Fast Facts on the Middle East Conflict' by Randall Price
These books have helped me when countering the anti-Israel propaganda. Dershowitz handles specific accusations usually thrown out. Gotta admit, being able to quote the facts in a historical context helps.
LET US REMEMBER......
BY: FERN SIDMAN
Tisha B'Av (the 9th day in the month of Av) is now over. Every year on this date, the Jewish people commemorate all the horrific and painful tragedies that have befallen us as a people since the beginning of time. We fast and mourn and pray with fervor to the Almighty G-d of Israel that He deliver us from the nightmare of the exile, return us to our homeland so that we may witness the coming of our righteous Messiah and the rebuilding of our Holy Temple.
We recite the book of Eicha (Lamentations) which graphically descirbes the destruction of Jerusalem and the agony and humiliation that the Jewish people endured. It is a painful book to read, one that evokes horrifying memories of not only the distant past but of events that are ancestors lived through.
A few examples of the devastation, death and destruction that was wrought on this day are as follows:
On the 9th of Av, Moses broke the first tablets of Law when he came down from Sinai to find the people worshipping the golden calf.
Solomon's Temple (the First Temple) was destroyed by the Babylonians in 587 BCE, under the rulership of Nebuchadnezzar.
The Second Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE, under the leadership of Titus.
In 135 CE, the final destruction of Bar Kochba's army after his last fortress, Betar, fell. Jerusalem was ploughed by the Roman Emperor Hadrian and thus became a Roman city.
In 1290 CE, King Edward 1st of England signed an edict expelling all Jews from England.
In 1492, the Jews were expelled from Spain.
World War 1 began on the 9th of Av.
Himler presented his plan to the Nazi Party on the "Final Solution" to the Jewish problem, July 31, 1940 - Tisha B'Av
One year later to the day, Himler's "Plan" was formerly implemented.
The beginning of Nazi deportations of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto, 1942.
And now, on this ninth day in the month of Av in the year 2006, Israel is yet again subjected to a barbaric enemy that seeks to eradicate its existence. It has been reported that today, Aug 3, 2006, Tisha B'Av on the Jewish calendar saw, "the deadliest day yet for the Jewish state in its two-front war." (Fox News, 8/3/06). This is of no coincidence.
Today four Israeli soldiers were killed in battle with Hezbollah guerillas in southern Lebanon and eight civilians were murdered by Katyusha rockets fired at the northern Israeli cities of Acre and Maalot. Today twelve lives were taken from us. Today, young Jews defending their country from terrorists were ripped from our bosom. They are not just statistics in the mounting death rate or faceless beings. They are our sons and brothers. They are young boys who will not live to marry and raise another generation. They are: Sergeant Andrei Brudner, 18, from Rishon L’Tzion, Sergeant Itamar Tsur, 19, from Be’er Tuvia, Sergeant Alon Fintuch, 19, from Kiryat Yam and Sergeant Yonatan Sharabi, 19, from Petach Tivkah.
Today we witnessed a funeral of a young American Jewish soldier. Michael Levin, a 22-year-old Israeli soldier who grew up in Philadelphia, was laid to rest at Mount Herzl (Jerusalem’s military cemetery). First Sgt. Levin was one of three Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers killed Tuesday when his platoon was hit by a Hezbollah anti-tank missile in Aita al-Shaab, a southern Lebanese town one kilometer (0.62 miles) away from the border with Israel, near Moshav Zarit.
Levin immigrated to Israel at the age of 18 after graduating from Council Rock High School in Bucks County, Mass. in 2002. He briefly studied on Kibbutz Tirat Tzvi, located along the Jordan River south of Bet She’an, prior to joining the IDF. After his time at the kibbutz, Levin joined the IDF as a paratrooper. He was recently granted special permission from the army to go on temporary leave and visit his family in the United States. While there, news that war had broken out on the northern border prompted Levin to cut his vacation short to join up with his unit in Lebanon.
Each of these fallen soldiers has his own story. Each one can never be forgotten as a hero to his people and his nation. On this ninth day in the month of Av, this day of mourning, this day of tragedy and torment, we must add the names of these brave and courageous souls to those who we will mourn for.
We must also remember the names and stories of those civilians who were murdered on this ninth of Av. They are: Shimon Zaribi, 44, from Akko, Mazal Zaribi, 15, (Shimon’s daughter), Albert Ben-Abu, 41 from Akko, Aryeh Tamam, from Akko and Tiran Tamam (Aryeh’s brother).
We must remember these precious souls. A father and his daughter killed on the same day and two brothers. We must remember them and the families who grieve and mourn and suffer in silence. Our compassion and mercy must be aroused and our tears flow freely. The nation of Israel will never forget that these souls were taken on this most ominous day in Jewish history.
In Maalot, three Israeli Arabs from the village of Tarshiha were riding in a car when rockets started falling. They are: Sinati Sinati, 18, from Maalot, Amir Naeem, 18, from Maalot and Muhammad Faour, 18, from Maalot.
And let us remember today's wounded. According to Arutz Sheva news service, "Reports from northern area hospitals state 47 people wounded in rocket attacks remain hospitalized in Nahariya Hospital and Rambam Medical Center in Haifa. One of the victims is listed in critical condition, 14 serious and the remainder light and light-to-moderate."
And to those who will say that this bloodiest day thus far in the battle for Israel's survival is just a coincidence, we must ask why this death and carange did not happen yesterday or a week ago. For those who have eyes to see and ears to listen with, we must know that events such as this horrific one did not happen on this particular day for no reason. We must know that this a reminder from the Almighty G-d of Israel. A reminder that we must mourn and repent and come closer to the G-d that will deliver us from our enemies, if we only allow Him to. If we only recognize His dominion and His sovereignty in this world.
This war is far from over. Our victory or defeat will not be inextricably tied to our military technology, superiority or strength.. Wars in the nation of Israel are not won because we know how to fly planes or shoot missiles. We have the physical tools to go into battle with. Our ultimate victory or defeat will depend on our stalwart faith and trust in the Almighty G-d of Israel. The ultimate outcome will depend on our resolve to defeat our enemy and our determination to fear only G-d and not mortal man.
Through the vehicle of prayer, repentance and charity we can arouse the infinite mercy and compassion of the Creator of the Universe. Let us be resolved to intensify our prayers and to remember that we are never alone. If we will have the strength to defeat our enemy and display no fear, the Almighty will be at our side.
There is a passage in the Talmud, in the tractate Sotah that describes the period that will precede the coming of Messiah. The Galil will be under heavy attack, it states, - so even in our pain, there is a measure of comfort in the knowledge that HaShem is above us, and in the end, our redemption will come.
May it be the will of G-d that this be the very last Tisha B'Av. May it be His will that this day be transformed into a day of joy, a festive holiday. And may we merit to see the final redemption speedily in our days.
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