Israeli news and conflicts

It is New Year’s Eve and as of the time of writing at least 60 Hamas rockets and missiles have been fired at southern Israel. In response to Hamas’ ability to maintain a sustained level of fire against the Jewish state, the IAF (Israeli Air Force) today concentrated its efforts on tracking down and destroying the launchers and their crews. Even though only four Israelis were lightly injured, Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA – the country’s emergency medical, disaster, ambulance and blood bank service) has declared an unprecedented alert due to the increased range of Hamas rockets putting more and more Israeli civilians in danger.

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In addition to the missile/rocket team interdiction effort, more attacks were made against the Hamas smuggling-tunnel system. Besides continuing to damage Hamas’ money-making operations, intelligence came in that some of the tunnels destroyed Sunday night were already repaired and that some Hamas leaders and operatives were trying to get out of Gaza and into Egypt.

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An ominous report came out of the IAF this afternoon that has revised its estimate of the amount of damage it inflicted on Hamas’ missile and rocket stocks from 50% down to 10-15%. This new information means Hamas has at least 2000 more missiles and rockets to use than initially thought. The Israeli military estimates that Hamas can maintain a steady rate of fire of about 100 a day, thus the surviving missiles and rockets represent nearly three weeks of potentially continued fire. At least 100 of these are thought to be the long-ranged Iranian-made Grads (42 kilometer range) that are now being used to attack Beersheba.

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A further development is that Israeli intelligence now believes Hamas possesses rockets with a range of 50-55 kilometers and that they are keeping this trump card in reserve in case Israel invades with ground forces. Which model rocket, where they came from, or how many of them exist is not yet known.

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A truce between Israel and Hamas seems as elusive as ever as the world counts down to 2009. Israel categorically refuses to suspend operations or lift the blockade as long as it is being bombarded (because they will be backing down under fire, which would be interpreted as losing the conflict) and Hamas refuses to stop firing their missiles and rockets as long as Israel keeps attacking them and maintains the blockade. This is a vicious circle with no end in sight. It really does look like the current conflict is turning into a showdown in the American Western tradition. Now it will come down to who has the steadier nerve and who blinks first.

Egypt has been taking a lot of heat from Arabs and other Muslims all over the world for apparently helping Israel in this latest conflict. Cairo helped set Hamas up last week by telling them that Israel wouldn’t attack on Saturday (the Jewish Sabbath) and as a result, Hamas got caught with its pants down and took a serious beating. However, Egypt has gone even further than that. It has refused to fully open its border crossing into the Gaza Strip, thereby helping Israel maintain its blockade on the territory.

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President Hosni Mubarak, to his credit, has rebuffed this criticism and even turned it back on his detractors. He directly accused Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran of using the Palestinian people as pawns in a broader geopolitical game and blamed Hamas for starting the current war. In a further statement, he also said that he won’t allow the border to be fully opened until the Palestinian Authority (PA) is back in control of Gaza, as he views it as the only legitimate government of the Palestinian people.

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This is a remarkable set of statements because Mubarak openly declares he wants Hamas out of power, shows the world he is willing to cooperate with Israel and he doesn’t care too much about the increasing criticism he is coming under as long as he meets his objectives. He is making a lot of enemies very quickly.

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A further development was that a Hamas rocket hit the town of Beersheba for the first time. It is 40 kilometers from Gaza and has a population of 250,000. This represents the deepest penetration yet of Israeli territory and is certainly going to raise the stakes in this military confrontation. Jerusalem has already risen to this new challenge by calling up an addition 2500 reservists and putting its artillery into action against Hamas rocket, missile and mortar teams.

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Hezbollah has stated it will support Hamas in its struggle against Israel but it noticeably didn’t make any military threats against the Jewish state. As I predicted in an earlier article, Hezbollah will sit this one out, at least for a while, to see what new lessons Israel learned from their own fight with them in the 2006 Lebanon War so they can work on effective countermeasures. I also think Hezbollah is shocked at how precise and coordinated the Israeli strikes have been and how quickly the IAF (Israeli Air Force) took out nearly 50% of Hamas’ rocket and missile arsenal in the opening hours of the conflict. I think Hezbollah is nervous about this unexpected change in events and is quite happy that this onslaught is happening to someone else instead of them.

It is Day 4 in Israel’s assault on Hamas and there has been no let up in the action. Yesterday, Hamas fired 100 missiles and rockets at Israel, killing 3 and wounding 32 more, demonstrating that the terrorist government has recovered somewhat from the hammer blows of the IAF (Israeli Air Force). Nearly 50% of Hamas’ missile and rocket stockpile has already been destroyed, but an estimated 6000 still remain in their hands, giving them the ability to still reach out and touch the Israelis deep inside their own country. Some of these rockets are Iranian-made high-quality Grad rockets with a range of 42 kilometers.

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On Sunday, the IAF destroyed 40 smuggling tunnels in order to hurt Hamas where it really counts, in the wallet (see Israeli Offensive Continues: 40 Smuggling Tunnels Destroyed). Today, tunnels along the Gaza-Egyptian border are being targeted again.

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It has come out that Israeli forces have been using electronic warfare to disrupt Hamas’ communication network. That has led to a lot of confusion among the Palestinian forces and was partially responsible for the fragmented and sporadic response of the first days of the conflict. However, Hamas is now using runners WW I-style to counter this effort. It may be a slower method but at least the leadership can now communicate with and coordinate its various units.

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Then there is the problem of morale. DEBKA reports that the lower ranks in Hamas are growing resentful at how their leaders are all hiding safely underground while they are out in the open getting blown to bits. Missile and mortar crews are being hit especially hard and are making up a larger and larger percentage of the casualties. Palestinian civilians are also angry at being made to house Hamas operatives and their equipment, making them legitimate targets of Israeli wrath (see Muslim Terrorists Turning Ordinary Houses into Firing Platforms).

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The sick thing is that Hamas wants these civilians to get hit. It makes great video to see a mother and her children buried alive (or dead and in pieces) in their former home, now a giant rock pile. The world sees it all on CNN, BBC and YouTube complete with crying and wailing relatives and all the anti-Israeli protests begin, just like Hamas wants. Sacrificing some of their own people isn’t a problem for them. They’re all going to Paradise anyway, right? It’s just that the victims will get there a little sooner than they had anticipated, so everybody on the Palestinian side wins, sort of.

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Israel needs to run with this morale problem Hamas has. If it gets much worse, Hamas can start losing control of their units and may face some type of insurrection or defection of operatives to rival organizations. The IAF and Israeli commando teams have to keep up the pressure and force the Hamas leadership to stay underground like the troglodytes they are. Maybe a lucky bomb strike will bury them alive and end this thing for good.

The latest development in the current Gaza conflict is that a prominent conservative Iranian political party, the Combatant Clergy Society, has called for volunteers to fight Israel in order to aid their spiritual and terroristic brothers, Hamas.

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The reason for this is that supreme ruler Ayatollah Ali Khameini gave a speech on Sunday in which he issued a fatwa calling on true believers to carry out their duty to defend Palestine against Israel. A later Iranian Foreign Ministry statement said that any believers who are killed in this cause will be counted as martyrs, meaning they get a first-class express-lane ticket to Paradise. A fatwa is a religious opinion on Islamic law given by an Islamic scholar. It is usually non-binding; however, in Shia Islam, the status of the scholar is taken into account when considering whether the decision is binding or non-binding. Ayatollah Ali Khameini is as high and respected in Iran as a person can get so one can guess how strongly his opinion is taken.

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The semi-official Fars news agency reports that the volunteers are being taken to fight the Israelis in the military, financial or propaganda spheres. This is a change from just looking for mujahideen or suicide bombers. Iran seems to be developing a 21st century view of warfare that doesn’t just rely on blood, gore and lots of explosions. As the Russians learned to their displeasure in their conflict against Georgia, war is now fought as much in the newspapers and on TV and the Internet as it is on the battlefield. Propaganda, these days, is just as important as weapons.

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Taking a page out of Israel’s current economic strategy against Hamas (by blowing up their smuggling tunnels (see Israeli Offensive Continues: 40 Smuggling Tunnels Destroyed), Iran also seems to want to do the same to the Jewish state. The problem for Tehran is that the economic strategy takes a lot of time to plan and implement if one wants to make it effective. The pace at which the current situation in Gaza is evolving will probably preclude the timeframe needed to pull this off effectively.

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Iran is also calling for all Arab countries to go to war with Israel. While the common man on the street might support such a call, not all Arab governments are so willing to become the sacrificial lambs in Iran’s carefully choreographed war. Egypt, for one, has openly accused Hamas of starting this conflict and blamed Tehran for manipulating the entire situation in order to achieve its goal: the weakening and eventual destruction of the State of Israel.

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So far, the Arab governments haven’t fallen for Iran’s ploy, but they may feel forced to do something soon if their native populations get too agitated about the conflict. Therefore, it is in Israel’s best interests to conclude their operations as quickly as possible. The longer the fighting drags out, the more unrest will grow in the Arab world. Jerusalem has very few friends in the Muslim community and it can’t afford to lose any of them. Speed and violence of action are needed now. The quicker Hamas can be brought to its knees and to the negotiating table, the better for all parties involved.

The Israeli conflict with Gaza is entering its 3rd day and according to the Times, Palestinian losses stand at nearly 300 dead and up to 1000 wounded. Israeli tanks, infantry and artillery have been moved up to the border and 6500 reservists have been called up. There is much speculation over whether Israel will really send in ground forces or if this is just a scare tactic to force Hamas to the negotiating table, but according to DEBKA, Israeli commandoes have already been operating inside Gaza since at least yesterday.

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The commandoes seem to be fulfilling three functions. The first is to mark targets for aerial bombardment. The second is to prepare the way for a possible armored incursion so the regular Israeli ground forces don’t get the same nasty surprises they got when they entered Lebanon against Hezbollah in 2006.

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The third and final function has a Hollywood quality to it. Using helicopters and UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) to mark targets such as mortar and rocket teams, command posts and supply vehicles, Israeli commando squads have launched a series of ninja-like hit-and-run raids that left a lot of death and destruction and precious little evidence behind. It’s as if ghosts had materialized out of thin air, wreaked havoc, then vanished back into the netherworld. Such tactics inspire great fear in the survivors, which brings about the ironic situation of the terrorists being terrorized themselves.

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It isn’t known yet, but these commandoes may have played a part in yesterday’s destruction of 40 of Hamas’ smuggling tunnels near the Egyptian-Sinai border by marking the targets for the laser-guided GBU-28 (Guided Bomb Unit 28s) bombs that were used for this task. The GBU-28 is a deep-penetrating bomb that was originally developed for the Gulf War. It can penetrate 30 meters (100 feet) of earth or 6 meters (20 feet) of solid concrete, making it a perfect bunker- and tunnel-busting bomb. Israel bought 100 of these in 2005.

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One interesting point to consider is that so far Hezbollah has refused to open a second front against Israel to take pressure off of Gaza. They are certainly a far more dangerous opponent than Hamas, and much smarter too. I think they are sitting this one out, at least for a while, to see what Israel has learned from their joint conflict in 2006. Hezbollah realizes that this present struggle is but a harbinger of what they will have to deal with when (notice I didn’t say if) they fight the Israelis again. For example, Hezbollah has also buried most of its 40,000 strong missile and rocket arsenal, and now they can see how vulnerable they still are and try to compensate by adjusting their strategy and tactics.

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This new Israeli-Hamas conflict is going to be as instructive as the Lebanon War of 2006, except this time around, the Israelis seem to be doing everything right. Hopefully, their middle- and long-term strategies will be just as effective as their opening one so they can put Hamas away for good.

Hamas and ants have something in common: they both like to dig tunnels and put things underground. Ants store their food and eggs in them; Hamas is into more ‘explosive’ things. They keep their rockets, missiles, weapons, ammunition and reserve forces in an extensive network of subterranean passages that would be the envy of the Formicidae world.

Israeli air strikes have destroyed a cluster of 40 of these tunnels concentrated near the Gaza-Egyptian border. They were vital to Hamas for two reasons. Firstly, they were part of a vast smuggling scheme in which the Palestinians were able to sneak in all sorts of goods and munitions from the Egyptian Sinai. The list of contraband includes guns, ammo, Iranian Grad rockets (which are currently being fired at Israel in the deepest penetrations to date), explosives and fuel. The loss of these tunnels puts a serious dent in Hamas’ smuggling business and has cost them a large part of their underground arsenal. The second thing has not been mentioned in the news yet and regards the number of Hamas personnel and fighters who were killed outright or buried alive. That is something the outside world may never find out about. Since these tunnels supposedly don’t exist, there won’t be any sob-story videos on BBC or CNN.

A more ominous sign for Hamas is that Israeli infantry and armor have been massing on the border, 6500 reservists were called up today and artillery batteries are being moved forward. This all indicates that the air raids are not going to be just a wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am operation. There is definitely going to be a Part Two and the nature and extent of it is anyone’s guess. Israel pulled off a brilliant surprise attack and they have everyone, especially Hamas, still questioning what will happen next.

An interesting part of Israel’s apparent strategy is that it is targeting Hamas’ commercial, money-making interests. The smuggling tunnels are where its at for Hamas. The goods and items they bring in, from medicines to fuel to foodstuffs, add more money to their coffers. By cutting off this major source of revenue, Israel is crippling Hamas in one of the worst ways possible. No money, no weapons. No cash to support families, no more suicide bomber ‘volunteers.’ One of the things Hamas has been relying on is being able to pay salaries, fund various projects and hand out cash to the needy. Once the funds dry up, so may their support. As everyone knows, money makes the world go around, even in the terrorist world. Hamas may just learn how dirty of a thing bankruptcy really is.

Israel and Hamas continued to bombard each other overnight as the conflict between them has extended into its second day. As of the time of writing, Israel has hit at least 170 high-value Hamas targets (command-and-control centers, headquarters, training camps, underground missile sites and weapon storehouses), while Hamas has fired at least 80 missiles, rockets and mortar shells at southern Israel. Palestinian casualties vary by source because of the chaotic situation, but the high figure is currently 350 dead (15 of them civilians, according to Palestinian sources) and 800 wounded. These figures may skyrocket because many people/bodies are still buried in the rubble and haven’t been recovered yet.

The next stage of this battle is a ground invasion by Israel. Troops and armor are already massing near the Gaza border. Jerusalem seems to have learned its lesson from the unsatisfactory end of the Lebanon conflict of 2006 when it put off the ground phase of its operation too long and allowed Hezbollah to recover from the air strikes and be ready for them. At the moment, Hamas is breaking out its rocket and missile arsenals, priming its many suicide bombers and calling for a third intifada in the West Bank. Israel has to continue to catch Hamas off guard before they can organize an effective resistance and counterattack.

One of the main objectives of a ground incursion, according to DEBKA, is to destroy what is dubbed ‘Lower Gaza,’ an underground enclave big enough to shelter Hamas’ 15,000 man army and its weapons. That is going to be a truly Herculean task because it is actually an extensive network of underground sites spread all over the Strip which will undoubtedly be well-defended.

What is most interesting in this latest conflict is that Israel seems to have some unusual and unexpected allies. As I wrote about in my last article (see Israel Strikes Back!), Egypt told Hamas that Israel wouldn’t attack on a Saturday and they believed Cairo’s word resulting in their complete surprise and the massive casualties that followed. A Hamas official has openly accused Egypt of deceiving them. Egypt countered by holding Hamas mostly responsible for this escalation of violence because of its continued bombardment of Israel after refusing to renew the truce between the two powers.

The Palestinian Authority (PA), headed by President Mahmoud Abbas, has said, according to the Jerusalem Post, ‘that they were prepared to assume control over the Gaza Strip if Israel succeeds in overthrowing the Hamas government.’ Fatah has also ordered its people in Gaza to be prepared to reassume power in the territory. Hamas can’t but be suspicious about these announcements. Indeed, it strongly appears as if the PA and Jerusalem are actively working together with the blessing and aid of Cairo. In fact, all three have their own reasons for seeing Hamas toppled from power (Egypt, for revenge against Hamas’ arrogance and recent flouting of its will; Israel, to stop the bombardments; the PA, to regain control of Gaza).

Hamas now realizes what’s up but is powerless to do much about it at the moment. As long as Israel doesn’t allow it to get its second wind, then the anti-Hamas trio may actually achieve its goal of overthrowing the terrorist group.

It is telling that a senior Hamas official in Damascus was quoted by the Jerusalem Post as saying, ‘We are astonished by reports according to which some parties have been urging Israel to wipe out Hamas. We are also shocked to hear officials in Ramallah and Cairo blame Hamas for the latest aggression.’

Wake up and smell the coffee (and cordite) Hamas. You got too comfortable, assumed too much and pushed too hard. Now it’s time to pay the piper and his bill seems mighty steep.

(This is a developing story and the figures are changing by the hour.)
Israel’s patience has finally run out and now Hamas and the Palestinians of Gaza are paying a heavy price for it. The truce between Hamas and Israel expired a week ago when Hamas refused to renew it (see Hamas Refuses to Renew Gaza Truce). Since its expiration, the Palestinians of Gaza have fired over 200 missiles, rockets and mortar shells at Israel (which totals to about 3000 for the year, according to Israeli military sources). That is an act of war in any country’s definition and now Hamas has the conflict it has literally been begging for.

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60 Israeli aircraft struck approximately 100 targets in Gaza this morning killing 155 and wounding another 310. According to Hamas, all of its security installations have been hit and 140 of the organization’s men have been killed, including the police chief of Gaza.

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The air strikes were part of an operation code-named Cast Lead and they achieved near total surprise. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, news coming from Jerusalem officials on Friday, 26 December, gave the impression that the Israeli cabinet put off immediate military operations for the very near future. The second point, reported by DEBKA, was that Egypt played a part in this deception by stating reliably that Israel would not strike on Saturday (Shabbat). Apparently, Hamas was taken in and got stung.

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Why would Egypt help the Israelis against their Muslim brothers? Cairo is still upset that Hamas pulled out of Egypt-sponsored peace talks and also refused to renew the truce with Israel that they played a part in. This is payback for what Egypt sees as Hamas’ increasing arrogance and recklessness.

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What will Hamas do about this new development besides swearing vengeance? To begin with, they have already started their counterattack by launching several missiles at Israel, killing one and wounding seven. All Israelis living within 20 kilometers of Gaza have been ordered to remain in protected places in anticipation of further bombardments.

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The big questions now are if Israel will widen the scope of their attacks and if Hezbollah will join the party. Israel has held off from ground operations for the moment, but if Hamas’ missile offensive continues unabated, that option may come into play because that is the only way to effectively stop the missile teams.

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Hezbollah is another mystery. They are currently sitting on an arsenal of 40,000 rockets and their trigger fingers must be getting really itchy. The organization’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, visited Iran secretly in November to discuss operations against the Jewish state. Shortly afterward, the commander of al Qods (an elite paramilitary and espionage organization of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards) paid a visit to Beirut. The purpose of his trip was never disclosed but the timing is suspicious at best.

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Jerusalem doesn’t trust its northern terrorist neighbors and has stated that the Gaza raids were only a beginning and could be expanded ‘as needed.’ The IAF (Israeli Air Force) had better be brewing a lot of strong coffee for its pilots. This party is far from over.

In a move that shows Europe hasn’t thrown in the towel yet, EU Parliamentary President Hans-Gert Poettering called on Arab countries to allow the building of churches within their territories in the same way Muslim communities are allowed to build mosques in Europe.

He also stated that Arab governments need show more tolerance towards other religions, saying: ‘It is vital that we get a better understanding of the Islamic culture, but it’s a two-way road. We ask for tolerance for Christians…in the Arab world. It’s mutual.’

Poettering toured Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to discuss EU-Gulf relations and pushed the point of religious freedom in every one of his meetings. He said he was able to attend mass in a Roman Catholic church in Muscat, but he could not do the same in Saudi Arabia. Why? Because the government officially maintains the position that it cannot allow the practice of other religions since two of Islam’s holiest sites, Mecca and Medina, lie within its borders. Saudi officials actually compared their entire country to the Vatican, saying that a mosque would not be allowed on Vatican-territory so why should a church be allowed in Saudi Arabia?

This question is meant to be a logical touché by equating the two places as religious capitals but in reality it is a sad joke that relies on people’s ignorance of the geographical realities involved. The Vatican is .44 sq. km. in size and has a population of 824, of which 100% are Roman Catholics. Saudi Arabia comprises 2,149,690 sq. km. with a total population of 28,146,656. 100% of the native population is Muslim, but there are 5,576,076 non-national residents (mostly guest workers), of which at least one million are Christian Filipinos. That means Saudi Arabia is nearly 4.9 million times larger than the Vatican in land area and 34,159 times larger in population. What realistic comparison can be made here?

Even worse is that the practice of any other religion is forbidden so services, including such holidays as Christmas, have to be held in secret (and these have been known to be raided by the Committee for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice - the ‘religious police’). Furthermore, materials belonging to other religions are also officially banned. This includes Bibles, crucifixes, statues, etc. All citizens must be Muslim and conversions to other religions are punishable by death. When was the last time the Vatican executed anybody for anything?

Poettering countered the Saudi position by stating that mosques are allowed all across Europe, which is true. Addressing Saudi Arabia’s total ban on other religions, he said: ‘In Mecca and Medina I can understand there are no churches, but not for the whole country.’

For the one million Christians in Saudi Arabia who had to celebrate Christmas either in embassies (the only safe places) or secretly in fear of arrest, one can only hope and pray that the Saudis relent on this issue. Unfortunately, hell will freeze over before that happens because it is a conservative country sitting on some of the world’s largest oil reserves. People, including EU Parliamentary President Poettering, can ask for leniency, but they are in no position to demand anything.

The Muslims of Nazareth have gotten into the Christmas spirit of gift giving and presented the Christians there with something from the bottom of their black hearts. The day before Christmas, they set up two large banners in the plaza in front of the Basilica of the Annunciation to greet the many Christian pilgrims they knew would be passing by. One banner is in Arabic, the other in English. They read:

‘In the name of Allah, the most beneficent, the most merciful, Say (O Muhammad): He is Allah, (the) One and Only. Allah, the Eternal, the Absolute. He begetteth not, nor was begotten, and there is none like unto Him.’

These banners directly refute the main premise of Christianity (that Jesus is the Son of God), a slap-in-the-face insult for any true believer. What is more interesting is that the Mayor of Nazareth (a Christian himself) states that this is not a provocation, even though these banners were placed in the city’s most prominent location in front of a holy place in the Christian religion on Christmas Eve. Furthermore, he stated that he would not have the banners removed. The latter point is understandable because he believes Islamic fundamentalists are waiting for such an action in order to provoke a confrontation. I have to agree with him on this one because this situation is set up to make it look like the Christians are starting trouble, not the Muslims.

The Basilica is not a minor place in the Christian world. According to tradition, it is built over a small grotto that marks the remains of Mary’s house. It has the status of a minor basilica (an important church that has been given special ceremonial rites by the Pope) in the Catholic Church and is considered sacred in some circles.

What is amazing about this story is the fact that it isn’t being reported in the Western media. As of the time of writing, I couldn’t find it mentioned in any mainstream news source. On the other hand, if some Christians had unfurled an anti-Muslim banner in front of an important mosque, you can bet your life that CNN, BBC and everyone else would have it covered from 17 different angles and the perpetrators would be publicly crucified (sorry, I couldn’t resist) as bigots and racists.

Again I have to ask: Where is the outrage? Where are all the liberals? Where are those who profess to stand up against bigotry and prejudice? I strongly get the impression that most people think that prejudice, bigotry and racism only apply when it is Christians and/or whites doing something against anyone else but never the other way around. It seems that we in the West have to take anything anyone throws at us, that it isn’t actually so bad when we are the victims.

When is this insanity going to stop and when will we finally do something about it. The West seems to have lost not only its spine, but the will to stand up even for itself and its own values. If the rot sets in any further, we will be willing to watch our own family members get swept away without lifting a finger to help. I, for one, hope I don’t live long enough to see such a thing happen.