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Its Escalation….No Other Word for It
By Sherwin Pomerantz
If yesterday in Israel had not been so very sad, the words of Hizballah and Iran would have been laughable.
A rocket manufactured in Iran, one that among our current next-door enemies only Hizballah has in their arsenal, landed in a soccer field in the Druze village of Majdal Shams on the Golan Heights killing 12 children between the ages of 10-20 and injuring dozens more. It was the single deadliest Hizballah attack on northern Israel since fighting there began in October.
After first claiming that a Falaq-1 rocket fired from Lebanon was the culprit, overnight a senior spokesperson for the Iranian-backed Hizballah claimed they were not the ones who fired the missile after all. Really? Hamas doesn’t have one, the Syrians don’t have one, only Hizballah has that type of missile.
No doubt they did not want to claim it for fear of a massive uprising by the Druze community in Lebanon given that all the casualties here were Druze. Druze, by the way, who are full Israeli citizens, who join the IDF and who have buried their share of casualties in the war against Hamas.
And then Iran comes out with a warning that Israel better not responds to this or there will be dire consequences. Seriously? Makes one wonder what kind of an alternative universe these people are inhabiting? Clearly where they believe they can do whatever they want and that we are prohibited from responding.
Of course, while we did get off some rockets pointed at the area from where Saturdays attacked was launched, a stronger response needed to wait until our Prime Minister, who should never have left here in the first place, could not convene the security cabinet until he returned here this afternoon.
And before my readers climb all over me for having said that, yes, it was a good speech in Congress, he made his point, he represented Israel well, but yet another crisis developed and he was not here to manage it.
For me, actually, the highlight of his speech was seeing two of the four IDF soldiers in the gallery, who had both lost limbs in the fighting in Gaza. I looked at them, especially the one standing tall who had lost a leg which you would not have known had you not been told, and felt so much pride in what we do here. Two IDF soldiers, each of whom had lost a limb sometime in the last nine months, both fitted with working prostheses and rehabilitated, all within that nine month envelope. Truly amazing and something we can be proud of while we share with them our sadness about their sacrifice on our behalf.
But back to today…..there is a clear escalation going on with Hizballah having been allowed to move our northern security zone into Israel itself, forcing 80,000 citizens to evacuate their homes, many of which have since been destroyed while putting those who have remained at risk for their lives. It is encouraging to hear politicians worldwide telling us to “finish the job” as presumptive presidential candidate Kamala Harris said on Thursday after her meeting with the Prime Minister, but yet nothing changes.
Frightening as it is to say, as neither of these options will be very pleasant, we should either pull out all the stops and finish the job whatever that really means or agree that we can’t do it and settle for less than what we want…..knowing full well we will back into this again sooner rather than later. Otherwise, the escalation will continue and at some point, a larger war will happen in any event.
Sherwin Pomerantz has lived in Israel for 40 years, is Founder and Chair of Atid EDI Ltd., a international business development consultancy. He is also the Founder and Chair of the American State Offices Association, former National President of the Association of Americans and Canadians in Israel and a past Chairperson of the Board of the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies.
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This from a dear friend and fellow memo reader:
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Based on the search results, Kamala Harris faces several key challenges in her campaign against Donald Trump:
Establishing her own narrative: Harris needs to create a compelling storyline that highlights the issues that defined her political rise and vice presidency, such as abortion and immigration.
Immigration policy: Harris's role as the administration's point person on border issues has been criticized, and Republicans are likely to attack her as the "border czar," making immigration a vulnerable area for her campaign.
Overcoming biases: As a biracial woman, Harris faces additional hurdles including biased media coverage, gendered and racial criticisms, and heightened expectations as potentially the first woman of color at the top of a major party ticket.
Proving her ability to beat Trump: Harris must convince voters that she can defeat Trump, which will depend on how the Democratic base responds to her candidacy.
Addressing her past record: Her background as a prosecutor, while potentially helpful in a general election, may be used against her by both the left and the Trump campaign.
Improving her performance as a candidate: Harris's previous presidential campaign in 2020 ended poorly, raising questions about her ability to run an effective national campaign.
Making a strong first impression: Unlike Biden, Harris is not the incumbent, so she needs to quickly establish herself as a credible presidential candidate.
Uniting the Democratic Party: Harris must rally support from various Democratic factions, including younger voters and minorities, to create a winning coalition.
Overcoming polling deficits: Current polls show Harris trailing Trump in key battleground states, particularly in the Rust Belt.
Debating Trump: Harris has expressed willingness to debate Trump, but there are uncertainties about the debate format and hosting.
These challenges highlight the complex landscape Harris must navigate as she campaigns against Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
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"Kamala Rock" is wishy washy but remains dirty as hell because leopards do not change their spots.
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Kamala Harris wants it both ways on Israel
The vice president says the war in Gaza is not a binary issue. Yet seeking to please both liberal Jewish donors and those who want Hamas to win isn’t honest or moral.
By Jonathan S. Tobin
Since she became the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party for the presidency in the last week, backers of Vice President Kamala Harris have been doing their best to redefine her image. That has involved a considerable amount of positive spin about her past and personality, all intended to create a wave of support for the effort to defeat former President Donald Trump.
It’s also involved a healthy dose of what can only be considered an almost Stalinist rewriting of history, such as their claim that President Joe Biden hadn’t put her in charge of the disaster on America’s southern border, which has been dutifully repeated by their cheerleaders in the mainstream corporate media. The same treatment has been given to coverage of her support in 2020 for a fund that bailed out Black Lives Matter rioters and other criminals, including those guilty of violent offenses.
However, when it comes to defining her views on Israel and the war being waged against it by Iran and its terrorist proxies, such shameful deceptions aren’t considered necessary. Instead, the vice president believes the way to navigate the campaign is a careful effort to signal both friends of the Jewish state and those who oppose it that she sympathizes with their positions.
Splitting hairs on the Middle East
That’s the only way to characterize her comments following her July 25 meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during which she posed as not only a supporter of Israel but also someone who sides with its most harsh and dishonest critics. In doing so, she provided ammunition for her supporters to fend off the arguments of those on the right who claim that she is nothing less than an open foe of the Jewish state. At the same time, she gave Democrats seeking to persuade hard-core leftists who do hate Israel—and who had threatened not to vote for Biden—that they have reason to hope that she may be more hostile to Jerusalem than Biden was.
Harris’s comments demonstrated that while she has been a flawed messenger for the administration who often inspired more ridicule than praise, she can also be a savvy politician who knows how to split hairs when necessary.
Since the Hamas terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, Biden has struggled mightily to articulate a coherent position on the war on the terror group in Gaza. At times sounding like the lifelong Zionist he claims to be while at other moments repeating Hamas propaganda, Biden sewed confusion when he should have been sending clear messages to Iran and its terrorist proxies. But while Harris’s position was similarly equivocal, it was delivered with the sort of assurance and steely discipline, as well as a degree of calculated hostility towards Netanyahu, Biden was incapable of pulling off.
This should give no comfort to those who worry about how a Harris administration will treat the Jewish state. Jewish Democrats will harp on her statements of support for Israel, its right to exist and her horror for the crimes of Oct. 7—all of which are, if viewed in isolation, exemplary. But her declaration that the ensuing war post-massacre, carried out by Hamas and Palestinian operatives, “is not a binary issue” should send chills down their spines. By championing the notion that the two sides are morally equivalent, she made it clear that Israelis should not be counting on the United States to have its back should she prevail in November.
That Harris wished to accentuate her hostility to Netanyahu and the democratically elected government he leads became apparent the day before the meeting when, along with half of the Democrats in the House and Senate, she boycotted his address to Congress. She was determined to avoid any pictures or videos of her applauding or treating the prime minister with the courtesy and honor she has given other foreign leaders, like Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Any thought that this gesture was followed by a friendly chat was dispelled by her opening remarks, characterizing the meeting as “frank and constructive.” In the language of diplomacy, that can only describe a conversation conducted with hostility and distrust.
Speaking to two audiences
That was followed by a ritual declaration of “unwavering support” for Israel and her claim that she raised money as a child for the Jewish National Fund. It’s possible that this undocumented anecdote is true, but the idea that the daughter of a Marxist economics professor went door to door asking for donations for planting trees in Israel in far-left Berkeley, Calif., sounds like one of the tall tales Biden likes to spin about his life.
This was followed by her not only denouncing Hamas’s crimes but also saying aloud the names of the Americans still being held hostage by the terrorists. That was not only entirely praiseworthy—and a signal to Netanyahu’s Israeli critics who favor prioritizing the ransoming of the hostages over finishing off the terrorists—but a smart way to signal support for Israel that Biden failed to articulate.
It was immediately offset by qualifying her support for Israel’s right to defense with the caveat that “how it does so matters,” followed by a repetition of Hamas’s claims about the plight of the Gazans who have been harmed by the war.
Her talk of “food insecurity” showed that the claims of a famine in the Gaza Strip are now so thoroughly debunked that not even Harris will repeat it, while also being absurd since how can any people who launched a terrorist war—as the Palestinians did on Oct. 7—expect that the supply of food to their kitchens will not be affected. Nor did she mention that the only reason why the massive amounts of aid that have poured into Gaza since the war started with Israeli help have not lessened Palestinian suffering is that Hamas seizes most of it. Also missing was any mention of Iran, which has played a key role in fomenting the war. Unfortunately, appeasing the Islamist regime remains an article of faith among liberal Democrats like Harris.
In this section of her statement, Harris was all sympathy and concern for Palestinians and their suffering, yet she didn’t state the most important point to be made about what is a genuine crisis, even though it has been exaggerated: All of it is the fault of Hamas. To speak of “images of dead children” without saying that the only reason they died is that their leaders intended to start a war in which as many Palestinians as possible would perish to blacken Israel’s image is an act of moral obtuseness.
Granting Hamas victory
She then asserted that a deal to “end the war” was on the table, which would involve a complete ceasefire and then a total withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. Israel would get its hostages back, but what this amounts to is a demand for a return to the status quo that existed on Oct. 6. And that represents nothing less than a formula for victory for Hamas, which would rightly claim that the West had forced Israel to accept defeat. Though the terrorists’ organized military formations have been largely destroyed, its remnants would quickly resume control of the Strip in spite of any possible plans for foreign forces to assume security control.
Bolstered by the triumph of their survival, the terror group would loom as an even greater threat to the alleged “moderates” of Fatah, who control the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria, than before. And without Israel administering the border between Gaza and Egypt, Hamas would quickly go about reconstructing its terrorist state with, no doubt, the assistance of Western Europe and a Harris administration.
Such a deal might gain the freedom of the Israeli hostages, though anyone who is counting on Hamas keeping its word after it gets most of what it wants is dreaming. What it would be is a guarantee that Israel could look forward to future atrocities by a Hamas movement that will have been emboldened by the sympathy of Western liberals rather than chastened by the cost of the Israeli counter-offensives. Hostage families thinking that this is a fair exchange is perhaps to be understood; still, it is incompatible with any notion that the United States supports Israel’s security or wishes to prevent more bloodshed in the future.
Harris then followed that by saying that the United States was still committed to a path towards a two-state solution sometime in the indefinite future.
Illogical and insincere
A two-state solution is a rational idea in theory. But Harris and the Democrats who cling to this notion are not listening to the Palestinians. Hamas, which now commands the support of most Palestinians, is only interested in Israel’s extinction and the genocide of Jews. The Palestinian Authority is similarly unprepared to recognize the legitimacy of a Jewish state, no matter where its borders are drawn. And both have demonstrated their commitment to this vile goal by their attitude towards the current war and the atrocities of Oct. 7.
At some point, leaders like Harris—who qualify their support for Israel with arguments that Jerusalem must also be forced to make suicidal concessions to people who have shown time and again that they are not interested in peace—need to be held accountable for a position that is, at best, illogical, and, at worst, utterly insincere.
It’s all well and good to repeat lines about a two-state solution being necessary for the survival of a secure, Jewish and democratic state. This is a theory that could have made sense before Israel signed the Oslo Accords in 1993—agreeing to withdraw from almost all of the territories and part of Jerusalem in 1999, 2000 and 2008 in order to create a Palestinian state—only to be turned down each time. It did remove every Jewish settlement, settler and soldier from Gaza in the summer of 2005. But the events of the last 31 years have completely discredited the land-for-peace theory among Israelis, the overwhelming majority of whom now reject the idea as not so much ill-advised as insane. That understanding of the intransigence of the Palestinians was only reinforced by the events of Oct. 7. Yet to Harris, none of this matters.
The worst element of Harris’s statement came at its end when she told “ceasefire advocates”—a euphemism for the pro-Hamas mobs that gathered this week in Washington to vent their spleen at Israel and to tear down and burn American flags, as well as to the antisemitic mobs that have turned college campuses into no-go zones for Jews—that “I see you and hear you.”
Like her previous statements along these lines, this is a demonstration of sympathy for those who, like Hamas, want Israel destroyed. It needs to be repeated that this is exactly what Democrats have falsely accused Trump of doing when they promoted the myth that he had called neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017 “very fine people.” For Harris, those who demonstrate for the destruction of Israel are not hatemongers to be despised but “very fine people” who need to be assured that they are seen and heard.
Moral equivalence
In saying that the war in Gaza “is not a binary issue” but a complex one, the vice president was not only directly refuting Netanyahu when he told Congress that the conflict represents a clash between “barbarism and civilization.” She was denying the essential reason why the conflict continues despite decades of peace-processing and Israeli concessions. To condemn “terrorism and violence” without understanding that these are the only tactics that Palestinians consider politically legitimate is to display both ignorance and disingenuousness.
The same is true for her closing remarks declaring her opposition to both antisemitism and Islamophobia. The surge in Jew-hatred across America among left-wingers is real. Talk of Islamophobia is merely a way to try to delegitimize those who call out Muslims for their loathing of Jews and Israel.
The events of Oct. 7—and the reality of Palestinian intransigence and commitment to anti-Jewish violence—should compel decent people to recognize that the current war is a conflict between good and evil. Yet if the goal is only to combine statements to placate liberal Jewish Democratic donors with those that might play well among antisemitic radical leftists and Muslims, then such moral clarity is neither possible nor desirable.
Americans have a right to expect more than platitudes that treat Israel and its foes as morally equivalent. The talk of rejecting binary reasoning about this war is no more defensible than it would be about the war against the Nazis, whose eliminationist goals, Hamas and the Palestinians share.
A President Kamala Harris can be expected to continue a policy of moral equivalence in which Israel might not be completely abandoned but it would be pressured, as it was under President Barack Obama, to endanger its people in order to appease people who want it dead. Some may consider that good enough. But in a Middle East that—thanks to the colossal mistakes made by Obama and Biden—has become even more dangerous for Israel, it is a formula for a future in which we can expect more Jewish and Arab blood to be shed because Palestinian terrorists believe that Washington will continue to bail them out.
AND:
Would Wishy Washy change her support of rabid campus Islamists
Would Wishy Washy change her support of rabid campus Islamists
were this to happen on an American university/college campus?
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Hezbollah rocket of Iranian production kills 12 children in Majdal Shams, dozens wounded
According to military guidelines, the residents of several localities in the Northern Galilee were told to stay near shelters following the direct hit.Israeli rescue forces seen at the site of a Hezbollah drone attack in the druze village of Majdal Shams,
Majdal Shams local council confirmed the names of 11 out of the 12 victims of the attack on Sunday morning.
These are, Fajr Laith Abu Salah, 16 years old Amir Rabi Abu Salah, 16 years old Hazem Akram Abu Salah, 15 years old John Wadie Ibrahim, 13 years old Izil Nashat Ayoub, 12 years old Finis Adham Safadi, 11 years old Yazan Naif Abu Salah, 12 years old Alma Ayman Fakhr al-Din, 11 years old, Naji Taher Halabi, 11 years old Millar Maadad al-Shaar, 10 years old, Nazem Fakher Saeb.
The Abu Salah children were reported to be related.
The wounded were transported to hospitals by Magen David Adom teams and IDF helicopters, MDA said in a statement. Following the direct hit in Majdal Shams, about 100 doses and blood components were provided to hospitals, MDA stated. MDA has asked the public to donate blood during the week.
Rambam hospital in Haifa reported on Sunday morning that 4 of the 5 children who were evacuated to them underwent surgeries during the night. Four of the children are now hospitalized in the intensive care unit at the Ruth Children's Hospital in Rambam (three of them are breathing independently) and one child in the pediatric surgery department. Ziv Medical Center in Safed, in an update on Sunday morning, said that of the 39 wounded who were evacuated them, 17 were in a moderate-severe condition, 21 in a minor condition and one person died of wounds immediately upon arrival.
The rocket hit a soccer field near a playground.
IDF Spokesperson R-adm. Daniel Hagari said early Sunday that the rocket which was fired at Majdal Shams was a Falaq 1 rocket of Iranian production whose warhead carried over 50 kilos of explosives. Hagari stated such a rocket is to be found in Hezbollah's possession, adding the terror group had "carried out the launch from the Chebaa area in Lebanon."
Hagari also named the Hezbollah commander who guided the fire as "Ali Muhammad Yihye."
Graphic of the area of the rocket launch from southern Lebanon to the center of Majdal Shams, July 27, 2024. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)Graphic of the area of the rocket launch from southern Lebanon to the center of Majdal Shams, July 27, 2024. (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
Earlier, an IDF situational assessment stated the rocket launch toward Majdal Shams was carried out by Hezbollah. A senior official from Hezbollah, Mohammad Afif, told Reuters on Saturday that the group was not responsible for the strike, although later Hagari stated that the terror organization was lying.
From the analysis of the IDF's operational systems, the rocket launch was carried out from an area located north of the village of Chebaa in southern Lebanon.
Upon arrival at the scene, senior MDA medic Idan Avshalom stated, "We arrived at the soccer field and saw destruction and items on fire. Victims were lying on the grass, and the scenes were difficult. We immediately began triaging the injured. Some of the injured were taken to local clinics, and our teams were directed to those clinics as well. During the incident, there were additional alerts, and medical treatment for the injured is still ongoing."
Situational assessments of the incident
The Chief of the General Staff, Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi, the Northern Command's Commanding Officer, the Operations Directorate Head, the Israel Air Force Head, and other members of the General Staff Forum are currently conducting a situational assessment of the incident.
In addition, the Northern Command's Commanding Office Major-General Ori Gordin conducted a situational assessment in Majdal Shams where he also visited the area of the direct hit. Gordin also spoke with Shaykh Mowafaq Tarif, the head of the Druze community.
Furthermore, the Education Ministry in the North opened a situation room to assess the events, accompanied by the authorities, families, and school personnel.
Alarms were activated in the Majdal Shams area in the Northern Galilee at 6:18 p.m.
Israel Army Radio later reported that an initial IDF investigation found that it had been impossible to give a longer warning time and that an interceptor had not been launched due to topographical challenges. The rocket's low flight reportedly made the interception difficult.
Army Radio added that detecting the rocket was, however, no difficulty, and while an alarm sounded, the short distance from launch to impact made earlier warning impossible.
The military said residents had about 20 seconds to react to the alarm, but the Israeli outlet added that locals reported only having a few seconds.
The scene at the soccer field where a rocket crashed in Majdal Shams, July 27, 2024. (credit: MDA Operational Documentation)The scene at the soccer field where a rocket crashed in Majdal Shams, July 27, 2024. (credit: MDA Operational Documentation)
Moshe Davidovitch, head of the Mateh Asher Regional Council and chairman of the Confrontation Line Forum, responded to the incident, "I share the sorrow of the leadership of the Majdal Shams local council over the tragic harm to innocent residents and send speedy recovery wishes to the injured."
"I am outraged! It seems that until the rockets land in Caesarea, the Prime Minister and cabinet members will continue their policy of ignoring the north. I call on the government to wake up from its slumber and act immediately!" he declared.
The Israel Police reported that they are dealing with a number of scenes where shrapnel fell in the North of the Golan directly after initial reports of the incident.
Police and Northern District police detectives isolated the crash scene and are searching for additional remains to remove further risk to the public.
Heavy barrages of rockets to the North
The residents of several localities in Northern Galilee were told to stay near shelters, including in Nimrod, Neve Ativ, Odem, El-Rom, Merom Golan, Ein Zivan, Ortal, Sha'al, Qela Alon, and Ramat Trump Heights, according to military guidelines, following several barrages of rockets. Additionally, Wast Junction and Brown Junction in the area are closed to vehicle traffic.
In the most recent barrage of rockets since the hit in Majdal Shams, 100 rockets were reportedly fired, according to the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Mayadeen network.
Earlier, a barrage of rockets was fired Saturday evening toward Neve Ativ at 5:55 p.m., which included approximately 10 projectiles from Lebanon, the IDF reported. All projectiles fell in open areas and there were no injuries reported.
At 5:24 p.m., approximately 30 rockets were seen crossing from Lebanon into Israel, and alarms were activated in Kiryat Shmona, Tel Hai, Margaliot, and across the Northern Galilee. In this instance, the IDF Aerial Defense Array intercepted numerous projectiles, and the rest fell in open areas. In this instance, also no injuries were reported.
The shooting was carried out in response to the elimination of four Radwan force operatives in southern Lebanon Saturday evening, Ynet reported. These operatives included Naeem Ali Farhat and Ahmad Hikmat Musa from the Al-Bekaa region in northeastern Lebanon, Mohammed Ali Mustafa Merish from Beirut, and Hassan Al-Halal Al-Saidi from the town of Toul in southern Lebanon, Ynet reported, citing Hezbollah.
This brings the total number of the organization's fatalities since the start of the war to 383.
Reuters and Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.
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Until, Bibi nukes the door to Iran's nuclear facilities, takes out their electrical grid and ruins their source of income, by blowing their energy fields away, and ending the power of The IRC, so their people can come into the streets and rid he nation of the Ayatollah's, everything else is showtime.+++
Victims of the attack arrive at Rambam Hospital
Senior political and military figures are holding consultations on the Israeli response to the Majdal Shams rocket strike.
A security source told the media that "there will be a response that we have not seen until now in the war."
Channel 12 News reported that Israel's response to the direct hit will be "different" from what we have seen in the nine months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. "The dire consequences of Hezbollah's firing allow Israel to act in a way it did not have the legitimacy to act until now. Israel has so far been careful and has limited itself in terms of targets, distances from the Israeli border, and the degree of aggressiveness."
The IDF stated: "In light of the assessments in the IDF and the intelligence at our disposal, the launch towards Majdal Shams was carried out by the terrorist organization Hezbollah. Hezbollah stands behind the rocket that struck the soccer field in Majdal Shams and caused numerous casualties, civilians only and including children, earlier this evening."
Hezbollah has denied involvement in an official statement: "We deny the accusations of the attack on Majdal Shams, we have no connection to this event."
Finally:
The international media’s coverage of Hezbollah’s deadly rocket attack on July 27 represents another low in reporting on Israel since the war began. As the victims’ identities emerged and it was confirmed that they were not Jewish Israelis, Hezbollah backtracked on its initial statement and denied responsibility for the attack. But the media obscure these clear facts in reports on the attack. Why?
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Market Comment:
If you own stocks with upside earning progress as they begin reporting you will be able to sail through the current rough patch with little trouble. The ensuing quarters should be increasingly impacted by the introduction of AI as it crushes many jobs and the transition continues from older technology to newer.
If you own stocks with upside earning progress as they begin reporting you will be able to sail through the current rough patch with little trouble. The ensuing quarters should be increasingly impacted by the introduction of AI as it crushes many jobs and the transition continues from older technology to newer.
This is the historical price that always occurs during technology upgrades/transitions and A! is a monumental technology change which can last several years. It is as revolutionary as the wheel!
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