A CHALLENGE AND AN OPPORTUNITY.......

 

Ten months after the attacks of  OCT.7th, the humanitarian conditions in Gaza and most of the West Bank, plus the south of Lebanon and possibly all of it, have all become extreme, hunger and devastation and massive death are unfolding, and a real threat of regional and beyond war, that may soon spiral out of control, all in real time, right before our eyes.

 
It is painfully clear how urgently a permanent ceasefire and a long term aftermath blue print for a fair solution to all sides are needed for peace and dignity to reign through the region.

 
We cannot sit aside, pretending the United-States is incapable of stopping Israel from committing major human rights abuses, like any small insignificant terrorist group. 

Every day of U.S. support for Israel's wars threatens the life of thousands of innocent people, mostly children, their mothers and grand parents, through continued strikes on civilian targets, through deliberate starvation, through a lack of access to clean water, through a lack of medicine and medical supplies, and more, and more. 

We all have a moral obligation to act. Let's demand it from our new possible leaders, let's hope and demand presidential hopeful Kamala Harris, if she could and would be willing to navigate our force and influence in different ways from her predecessors and be able to enforce some solution to the 75 years old occupation and annexations and dehumanization of millions of indigenous residents of these lands.

Let's admit it, Netanyahu's visit to Washington this week, and his address to Congress are both a challenge and an opportunity to the actual administration and to the hopeful new one, it's a test as well, of ethics, of courage, and of global morality and righteousness. "Our common humanity compels us to act" Kamala Harris said . 

The determination to become a successful leader. We'll see how the vice President will do this week and through her presidential bid.  

As always, my many thanks to all my good readers.          

HAARETZ HEADLINES

 

HAARETZ Headlines: How three Democrats paved the way for Netanyahu's 'total victory' in Washington

What Netanyahu will celebrate this week will be a personal and political victory: Ten months after the October 7 debacle, which will forever tarnish his legacy, he will get a renewed sense of public legitimacy during his U.S. visit

 Amir Tibon  

U.S. President Joe Biden's announcement on Sunday that he will step aside from the 2024 election and allow another Democrat to run in his place came at a bad time for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Until the moment Biden took over the headlines with his selfless act of patriotism, Netanyahu's visit to Washington was supposed to be the biggest story of the week in Israel – but it will now be eclipsed by the U.S. political drama. Still, even when that is taken into account, Netanyahu's very arrival in the American capital is a quite unbelievable turn of events.

Almost ten months after Hamas' October 7 terror attack, the Israeli prime minister this week will finally get the "total victory" he has been promising his supporters since the early stages of the war in Gaza.

It won't be a "total victory" over Israel's enemies, don't hold your breath. Hamas will continue to hold 120 Israeli hostages captive in unimaginable conditions in the tunnels under Gaza. Hezbollah will continue to fire dozens of rockets and drones at northern Israel, an area that has been empty and abandoned ever since October 8, and has no hope for recovery any time soon. Iran will continue to get closer and closer to nuclear weapons, and the Houthis in Yemen – even after this weekend's impressive Israeli strike against them – will continue to strangle the port of Eilat, Israel's most important maritime gateway.

No, it won't be a victory for Israel that Netanyahu will celebrate this week, while citizens kidnapped under his watch will suffocate in the tunnels and entire regions of his country will remain a de facto no man's land.

What Netanyahu will celebrate this week will be a personal and political victory: Ten months after the October 7 debacle, which will forever tarnish his legacy, he will get a renewed sense of public legitimacy. The man that fed Hamas for years with Qatari money, until the monster he fostered turned on his own country, will be received in the corridors of the White House as a supposedly legitimate state leader. This, at a time when record highs of Israelis want a new election in light of his catastrophic failures.

Three politicians, all of them Democrats, bear responsibility for this astonishing turn of events: Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, two weak, cowardly "leaders" who are too lazy to try and understand what Israelis actually think about the invitation they sent to Netanyahu; and Biden, a good man with outdated views of the U.S.-Israel relationship, who has refused to adapt to changing realities – and will pay a political price for it.

Read more about the Israel-Hamas war:

■ Israel's continued denial of the reality of the occupation will be its ruin

■ If Netanyahu's letting the hostages die isn't a red line for Israelis, nothing will be

■ What Israel owes the female IDF spotters and their families

■ Since October 7, the Arab citizens of Israel have been silenced

■ With Israel's first ever attack in Yemen, the war takes a dangerous new turn nine months in

■ Implementation of ICJ ruling on Israeli occupation depends on the UN and U.S.

■ The blind side: By not seeing the Palestinians, Israelis stop seeing themselves

■ Israel's attack on the Houthis: Justified? Yes. Proportionate?  No.  Game-changer? Unlikely

A factual article from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, it depicts the reality of Israel position and majority opinions, ahead of the PM visit to Washington and the Congress address, all in light of course of yesterday's decision by president Biden not to run for the next election....     All my thanks to my good readers. 

THE OTHER SIDE'S OPINION.....

 

Benjamin Netanyahu will step up to the podium in Congress on Wednesday.

As he has done before, I expect he’ll use the platform to bolster his political standing in Israel, wedge his political rivals here, and spin himself as a champion of peace and democracy – even as many Israelis, who’ve flown to DC on their own dime, protest him outside.

He’ll no doubt use Israelis, Jews and Palestinians as political props. He may claim to speak for Jews everywhere. He’ll likely put himself forward as the face of Israel, and paint even legitimate political criticism of his decisions as antisemitic.

He might even cut a campaign ad out of the footage, as he has done before.

But like the speeches from Netanyahu’s political allies at the Republican National Convention this week, his words will be heavy on spin and saber rattling, light on hope and leadership.

J Street has made it no secret: We agree with liberal Israelis and pro-democracy protest leaders that Netanyahu should never have been invited to Congress or the White House.

It’s deplorable that Speaker Johnson is trying to use a divisive figure to wedge Democrats on support for Israel – and trying to boost Netanyahu’s flagging poll numbers by handing him the Congressional stage. Johnson’s bizarre comment this week that he’s “going to have extra sergeants-at-arms” on the floor to potentially arrest Democratic members is appalling.

But since Netanyahu will be here, J Street is partnering with Israeli pro-democracy leaders and the families of hostages to ensure their voices are also heard.

We’re making sure everyone in Washington understands the dynamics of this moment, and the motivations of Prime Minister Netanyahu and his Republican allies.

And we’re urging our leaders in Congress and the White House to use the moment to deliver a message not only to Netanyahu, but to Israelis and Palestinians abroad:

• From President Biden down, our leaders must stress the urgency of a swift and lasting end to the catastrophic war in Gaza – one which frees all hostages, ends civilian suffering and charts a course toward long-term peace.
• Our leaders should join with the families of hostages and insist that Netanyahu stop issuing highly-politicized missives which undercut his own ceasefire negotiating team.
• They should join with the majority of Democrats and Jewish Americans in demanding greater respect for Palestinian lives, humanitarian aid groups and international law.
• They should join with peace advocates and demand Netanyahu constrain extreme-right members of his own government, who are actively advocating for settlements in Gaza and West Bank annexation.
• And they should join with Israeli and US security experts in demanding a concrete “day after” plan for governance, stability and reconstruction in Gaza – and a clear, achievable pathway to sidelining Hamas by resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict once and for all.

And yes: For those Members of Congress who’ve made the understandable decision to take a pass on attending Netanyahu’s speech, we’ve urged them to make crystal clear that their objection is to Prime Minister Netanyahu and the politics he represents – not a reflection of their commitment to supporting the US-Israel relationship, Israel’s security, or Israelis themselves.

We’ll have more to say in the days ahead as we work with partners on Capitol Hill and our pro-peace, pro-democracy Israeli allies.

If you’ll be in Washington DC or live nearby, we also hope you’ll be able to join one of several events we’re supporting next week. 

In the meantime, I want to thank you, once again, for your ongoing support, and for sharing our message within your community.

Yours in difficult times,

Jeremy Ben-Ami
President, J Street

Some excellent words from J Street, reflecting the true opinions and thoughts of many unmentioned Jews, in America, Israel and the world.....    My many thanks to all my good readers.  

GOOD WORDS ......

 
From the writings and ideas of the well known Iranian thinker, Dr. Ali Shari'ati, who was assassinated in Britain in 1977 AD. Consider his wonderful description of the reality of the situation:

1. The mosque in the time of the Prophet had three dimensions:
Religious dimension (temple)
And an educational dimension (school)
And a political dimension (parliament)
Every citizen was a member of it.
The mosque has now become a luxurious palace, but without dimensions!!
2. I would rather walk in the street thinking about God than sit in the mosque thinking about my shoes!!
3. The war between Muslims is not a war between Shiism and Sunnism, nor for the sake of faith, but rather it is a battle between the interests of countries whose victims are the common people, both Sunnis and Shiites!!
4. Let these merchants of religion know that a day will come when people will revolt against them, and I fear that religion will become a victim of that revolution!!
5. It is difficult to live with people who think they are always right!!
6. If people were not aware and cultured before the revolution, do not blame anyone when their revolution is stolen!!
7. If you want to ruin any revolution, just give it a sectarian or religious dimension, and it will end in vain!!
8. We must return the Qur’an once again from the graves and condolences to life, and recite it to the living, not to the dead!!
9. The problem with us who have been affiliated with Islam for centuries does not lie in our failure to implement Islam, but rather in the fact that we have not understood it yet!!
10. When a fire breaks out in your house, and someone calls you to pray and supplicate to God, know that it is the call of a traitor. Because caring about anything other than putting out the fire, and diverting from it to another work is performing ablution, even if it is a sacred work!!
11. When clerics abandon their responsibilities and turn into agents of anesthesia for people, it is expected that people will turn away from religion and search for what achieves their ambitions!!
12. I pity the girl when her reputation is bad, as she cannot grow a beard to Delete or hide that picture!!
13. There is no difference between colonialism and fascism and dictatorship, except that the first comes from the outside, and the second comes from the inside!!
14. It is better for people to hate you for your honesty than to love you for your hypocrisy!!
15. My father chose my name, my ancestors chose my family name, and I chose my path!!
16. Do not say yes to falsehood, no matter the interest!!
17. When you respect your mind, it will take you deeper than you can imagine!!
18. You do not have to agree with me, it is enough for you to understand what I want to say!!
19. They are afraid of your mind to understand, but they are not afraid of your body to be strong!!
20. We are talking about a society: half of it is asleep, drugged and enchanted, and half of it is awake and on the run. We want to wake up those who are asleep. Let them stand on their feet, and we return the fugitives to stay!!
21. My neighbor died yesterday of hunger, and in his condolences they slaughtered all the sheep!!
22. A woman who spends a year talking about her trousseau, haggling over her dowry, the jewels that are given to her, and the extravagance of the wedding, is still a slave in the full sense of the word!!

Some powerful words that go well beyond the strict frame of Islam, it covers all other religions and religious sectarianism, they cover all our societies nowadays.   My, as always, many thanks to all.  

ARMIES WILL ENTER LEBANON........

 

An Israeli article, from the newspaper "Maariv" specifies the starting point of these events. 

The Israeli paper Maariv published a new article by the writer Jackie Hughey, he said in it:

The call for an invasion of Lebanon and destroying Hezbollah, is like an election slogan.

In his article, Hughey says, that there has been a lot of talk in recent days about the necessity of waging a deep war against Lebanon. He added: sometimes I doubt that those who call for declaring war on Hezbollah and to end it once and for all, Do they truly understand who this organization is and what such a conflict entails, although there are no indication that the security establishment is pushing for war, not even Prime Minister Netanyahu nor Defense Minister Galant, there are some Ministers and a chorus of Tweeters encouraging it. 

He added, All of these people are calling for a comprehensive war - that will cause tremendous human losses- with Hezbollah, similar to what the Israeli army is doing these days in the Gaza strip. But Hezbollah has a much stronger army than Hamas in Gaza. Also, we are in Lebanon, we will not be confronting the party alone, as the resistance axis considers such a war an existential battle, and it also believes that broad Israeli campaign against Hezbollah would destroy the entire camp. 

He added, in Iraq emergency plans have already been completed, and pro-Iranian groups are ready to send tens of thousands of fighters to Lebanon. Recruits may also come from Yemen, as well as Iran. Here the Israeli army may find itself , if it starts a war on Lebanon, facing  a coalition of armies of not very high quality, but with great manpower. 

He continues: In order to destroy Hezbollah, "The IDF will have to reach Beirut on foot, and for this purpose several infantry divisions at their best are needed. The regular and reserve forces of the IDF are not in an ideal position to conduct such a campaign after the war in Gaza, and we have not yet discussed the enormous quantities of ammunitions that will be required. 

He adds, The Israeli economy is already suffering from a recession, and it is expected to enter a state of chaos if a second front ignites with Lebanon. The main lesson we have to learn here is that; although Israel an iron-fisted regional power, it is not an all-powerful power. In simpler words, Israel is not as strong as we thought. We cannot fight all the time, on all fronts, and expect to win, or maintain a high level of vigilance at all times, on regular days as well as on holidays. 

The IDF cannot place a soldier on every citizen and settler, a battalion in preparation in every area, and a division on every front. Even with the technical superiority we enjoy, the enemy has answers. When I hear an Israeli politician or a public opinion leader calling for an invasion of Lebanon, or eliminating Hezbollah, I'm worried about him. You can invade Lebanon, and you can eliminate Hezbollah, but at a very high price, and not at this time, as the Israeli army is working with great intensity on another front. When the Israeli society is bleeding, a little humility won't hurt. 

An interesting article, reflecting the reality on the ground, and not just fulfilling destructive wishful ideologies and superiority colonialism and genocidal and annexation attitudes and policies. 

My many thanks to all.