October 298, 2023, "The War"

My 223rd post on The War

Today’s Image

This is Itamar Ben Gvir, leader of the extreme right wing party Otzma Yehudit and Minister of National Security in the current government. I really, really dislike him.

Gaza Rockets

No rockets launched from Gaza crossed into Israel in the last 10 days.

Casualties

There were no casualties reported by the IDF in the past 2 days.

Gaza Operations

Fighting appears to have intensified during fighting in Rafah. Here you will see tunnel entrances that IDF troops found hidden under the bed in a child’s bedroom. This has been very common. You can see the video here and read more.

Lebanon Operations

Today, Hezbollah Hollywood Productions released a new video to music. This one was taken by one of their drones that penetrated Israeli air space and photographed installations inside an IDF base in the north. You can see the video here. There has been no formal comment from the IDF regarding the video. It is a bit shocking that they are able to do this kind of reconnaissance without detection by the IDF.

Israeli fighter jets attacked several Hezbollah facilities in southern Lebanon, including

Reports have appeared in both the Hebrew and English press here regarding a New York Times report that the US is reporting that Hezbollah would cease attacks on Israel if a ceasefire takes hold in Gaza. My readers should remember that Hezbollah attacked Israel long, long before Israel launched any attack on Gaza. It started its attacks the week of October 7, in support of Hamas not in response to Israel’s entry into Gaza. Nonetheless, there appears to be something in the works and Hezbollah is interested in constructing a deal. According to the reports, Hezbollah would move its forces back from the Israeli border to positions north of the Litani River, about 10 km north of the Israeli border. They would be replaced by Lebanese Regular Army forces. The discussions would also include the demarcation of borders between the two countries along the westernmost part of border. I think that the eastern section is not under discussion as it is a bit contentious. Here is the only reference I could find in English.

Yemen Operations

The fires at the Yemeni Hodeidah Port are still raging, yet the Houthis claim that the port is fully operational as of yesterday and operating at full capacity. This is hard to believe.

Aid

I reported a few weeks ago and then again two days ago on efforts by Hamas and armed gangs to take over the aid delivery trucks which transport the aid from the staging areas inside Gaza to the humanitarian zones demarcated by the IDF. Today, the IDF reported that its special sniper divisions have been very active in reducing this ongoing threat and estimate that they have eliminated more than 150 of these armed bandits/terrorists during the course of aid delivery. There are many reports now coming out that this effort is finally starting to bear fruit.

According to COGAT, who provides very detailed reports on inbound aid to Gaza here, reports that 207 humanitarian aid trucks were transferred into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom and Erez border crossings. Aid is still accumulating inside Gaza in the staging areas.

Hostages/Ceasefire

The Israeli negotiating team was informed that they must wait before flying off to Doha for the current round of negotiations. Nominally, the reason given is that the government wanted to wait until after Prime Minister Netanyahu met with President Biden, tomorrow when they are expected to discuss the hostage/ceasefire deal. But opposition leaders are accusing the government of postponing the negotiations for political purposes. There is logic to their argument so let me explain.

Starting early next week the Knesset will go into a three month recess. This recess is long as it covers summer with opportunities for a vacation as well as the Jewish Holidays in the fall. During this recess, the Knesset does not formally meet but there is still a lot of activity going on by its members and, of course, the government. During this period it is not possible for a party to introduce a resolution to the plenum that calls for a no confidence vote against the government. Without the ability to call for a no confidence resolution, the government cannot “fall”. It is believed that the current hostage/ceasefire deal being considered will be attacked by both of the extreme right wing parties and there is almost no conditions under which they would consider supporting such a resolution. Hence, if a hostage/ceasefire deal is approved by a majority of the Cabinet members in the current government it will hold and the extremist parties can do little about it… until the end of October, of course. Depending upon one’s political perspective one could consider this a shrewd move by Netanyahu and his lieutenants or one could argue that he is unnecessarily delaying getting the hostages back for his own political benefit, so the government can stay “in tact” while going forward with a hostage/ceasefire deal. In practical terms it doesn’t matter. Logically and ironically, this is the most expeditious way of moving quickly on a deal.

Meanwhile, the government hosted many of the hostage families and they accompanied the Prime Minister on his current trip to Washington, DC. There he met with them. But, many are meeting separately with either Congressional subcommittees or groups of lawmakers. Many are criticizing Netanyahu in front of these US congressmen/women as they contend that he doesn’t care about the hostages and has not done enough to secure their release. They are insisting that the government agree to whatever terms necessary to recover their hostage family members. This morning, Wednesday, they met with over 100 Democratic Party members of Congress to describe what they have had to endure for the past nine months. They were openly critical of the current government and received a sympathetic ear. Nancy Pelosi was said to have read from a poem she likes written by Ehud Manor - “I have no Other Land”… אין לי ארץ אחרת . It is my understanding that many of these Democratic Congressmen will not attend Netanyahu’s speech today.

Politics/Protests

I worry that we have a lunatic playing as a minister in this government who is creating more and more problems for this country. Yesterday, Itamar Ben Gvir, the leader of the extreme right wing party Otzma Yehudit, went up on the Temple Mount and announced that he formally prayed there. By tacit agreement with the Jordanian Waqf that was given responsibility for overseeing the area, Jews are not supposed to pray there. This area is very sensitive. It is the site of the biblical “Akeida” when Abraham almost killed his first son, Isaac, by command of G-d but was restrained at the last second. It is the location of the First Temple built by King Solomon and the Second Temple built by Hasmoneans and then reconstructed by King Herod. It is the site of the Dome of the Rock, the golden dome built in the 8th Century by the conquering Moslems right over the site of the Second Temple. And it is the location of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. By agreement, non-Moslems are only permitted up on the Temple Mount during 2-3 set hours each day and, by agreement, they are forbidden from praying. In reality, some of the Jews who visit there pray there, but in a discrete “hidden” fashion. But this numbskull goes up on the Temple Mount and proclaims that he not only prayed there, but that this changes the “status quo” and agreements in place. He has no authority to make that statement, but he does so for the purpose of provoking the Moslems on a sensitive issue.

Then today, Ben Gvir publicly endorses Trump for President of the USA. What a reckless idiot. No Government Minister should take positions on the Presidential Elections in the USA.

International

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to address a joint session of Congress today in Washington, DC. I thought that this was a very bad idea weeks ago. I hope that I am proven wrong and he finds a way to “pull a rabbit out of his hat” as he is entering a chamber this is set for a very contentious election in November with a great deal at stake. Israel cannot afford to “piss off” one of the political parties or presidential candidates.

And In Your Copious Spare Time…

• Here is a short read and analysis of some of Israel’s accomplishments in The War.

• Previously I had posted a link to a video presented by Israeli TV Program, Eretz Nehaderet. It is the closest thing that Israel has to Saturday Night Live. Here is a new skit from them… enjoy.