Friday, April 5, 2024

WCK Aid Workers: Civilian Casualties Occur in Fog of War

by Col. Richard Kemp ~ Ynetnews

Thursday, 4 April 2024 | The deaths of seven World Central Kitchen (WCK) aid workers were a terrible tragedy. We can only admire the courage and humanity of these men and women—and others like them—who work to alleviate the suffering of the civilian population while knowing they could be killed or seriously wounded in a war zone where by definition nowhere can be safe. While combatants on both sides have an absolute duty to adhere to the laws of war and where possible, avoid killing uninvolved civilians, the ultimate responsibility for all killings in this war—including the WCK workers—lies with Hamas.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has accepted direct responsibility for these deaths and initiated an independent investigation by the Fact Finding Assessment Mechanism. Until that investigation is complete, we won’t know exactly how these strikes came about. However, knowing the ethos of the IDF and its strict adherence to the laws of war, it is unthinkable that the action was deliberately intended to kill aid workers.

Some have suggested, however, that was, in fact, the purpose of the strikes. But setting aside morality and legality, what would have been the gain in purposely killing aid workers? The understandably harsh global condemnation would have been entirely predictable by anyone contemplating such an evil plan.

Those who do say the strikes were obviously intended to kill the WCK workers because of the prominent vehicle markings have presumably never observed drone optics at night. Indeed, the IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy has said that a preliminary assessment shows the incident occurred as a result of “misidentification.”

The implication of that is whoever ordered and conducted the strikes believed the vehicles that were hit contained terrorists, suggesting incorrect intelligence or failure of surveillance, possibly compounded by human error. There are many variables. We don’t yet know whether those who conducted the strikes were acting according to IDF rules of engagement or were negligent. Sometimes soldiers and commanders behave recklessly or irresponsibly in all armies, including the IDF.

Nor do we know whether accurate information on their movements was passed by the WCK staff or whether it was correctly understood by the IDF or shared with the strike commander. We do, however, know that differentiating between enemy forces and uninvolved civilians is made much more challenging by Hamas terrorists’ use of human shields, always moving and fighting in civilian clothes and sometimes using civilian vehicles such as ambulances and aid trucks.

Unfortunately, nightmares like this occur frequently in the fog of war, with its confusion, chaos, danger, death, destruction, mental overload, human pressure and technical failure. For example, during the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021, a US drone strike in Kabul mistakenly killed an aid worker and nine members of his family, including seven children. General Mark Milley, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff explained: “In a dynamic high-threat environment, the commanders on the ground had appropriate authority and had reasonable certainty that the target was valid. But after deeper post-strike analysis, we conclude that innocent civilians were killed.” This strike also occurred as a result of a misidentified vehicle.

Another tragedy occurred in October 2015 when a US gunship attacked a hospital in Kunduz operated by Doctors Without Borders in which 42 staff and patients were killed and many wounded. The US attributed the incident to “avoidable human error compounded by process and equipment failures,” with the aircrew misidentifying the hospital as a Taliban-controlled building.

I have not had personal experience of the killing of innocent civilians, but during different campaigns, I was involved with so-called “blue-on-blue” or “friendly fire” incidents, which are not dissimilar. They often occur in conditions of poor visibility or on difficult ground such as urban or wooded areas, when I know firsthand that it is all too easy to misidentify your own troops. Three soldiers from my own regiment were killed by a US air strike in Afghanistan in August 2007 due to human error by both the American strike commander and the British ground controller. The challenges of inherent battlefield chaos and consequent errors—which applies also to civilian casualties—is illustrated by estimates that suggest up to 25% of US casualties in war have been due to friendly fire.

I have no doubt the independent investigation will reveal the full facts and be made public. If there is intentional malice, breaches of IDF rules of engagement or reckless behavior, individuals will be held accountable under military justice. Lessons will also be learned by the IDF to help them avoid repetition, although the unfortunate reality of war is that other tragic incidents will re-occur during this and other conflicts around the world, especially where terrorists use human shields.

In this war in Gaza, there are two fail-safe means of preventing further major violence against civilians as well as soldiers. The first is for Hamas to surrender and release all the hostages. The second is the destruction of Hamas by the IDF.

Colonel Richard Kemp is a former UK Armed Forces commander.

Source: (This article was originally published Ynetnews on April 3, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Europecentral/wikimedial.org

Photo License: Wikimedia

Prayer Focus
Pray for the loved ones of the WCK workers as they deal with this tragic loss. Pray that the Lord will bring them comfort, peace and strength in light of the publicity and uncertainty surrounding their deaths. Cry out to the Lord that messages like this one from Col. Richard Kemp will come to the attention of the nations, causing them to recognize the hypocrisy in the reactions of world leaders and to understand that such tragedies—though deeply regrettable—are inescapable in war. Pray that they will place the blame squarely on Hamas, who forced Israel into a war Israelis have been trying to avoid for decades.

Scripture

Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; oh, deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man! For You are the God of my strength.

- Psalm 43:1–2a

Palestinian Authority Submits Bid for Full UN Membership

by JNS

Wednesday, 3 April 2024 | The Palestinian Authority [PA] submitted a request on Tuesday for the United Nations Security Council [UNSC] to vote this month on accepting the entity as a full member.

In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, PA UN envoy Riyad Mansour asked that an application submitted in 2011 be reconsidered. Another supporting letter was sent to Maltese diplomat Vanessa Frazier, who is currently serving as president of the 15-member council. That letter included the names of 140 countries that have recognized a Palestinian state.

However, the US is expected to block the bid due to Washington’s long-standing policy that UN membership will only come as a result of a negotiated bilateral agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.

“Our position has not changed,” US deputy ambassador Robert Wood told reporters Tuesday, as quoted by the Associated Press.

It was reported in February, however, that the Biden administration was considering unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, which if true, would mark a major foreign policy shift.

Mansour said on Monday that he hoped the UNSC would make a decision at an April 18 meeting on the Middle East, and Frazier told reporters on Monday that the council’s standing committee for new members, which includes all 15 UNSC members, is expected to meet privately to consider the application.

In his letter, Mansour claimed Ramallah’s 2011 membership application was still pending because the UNSC never made a formal decision on the matter. The PA currently holds UN observer status.

For the PA to gain full UN member-state status, at least nine of the 15 council members must approve the application, and then two-thirds of the UN General Assembly would have to support it in a vote.

There is widespread opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state in Israel, particularly after Hamas’s October 7 massacre.

Nearly two-thirds (66%) of Israeli Jews oppose the creation of a Palestinian state, while 27% support it, according to this year’s “Peace Index” survey released by Tel Aviv University.

On February 21, the Israeli Knesset [parliament] voted 99–11 to back the government’s decision to reject any unilateral recognition of “Palestine.” All coalition lawmakers and most members of the Zionist opposition parties voted in favor of supporting a Cabinet statement rejecting “international diktats regarding a permanent settlement with the Palestinians.”

Palestinian polls suggest that 89% of Palestinians support establishing a government that includes or is led by Hamas, which seeks to destroy Israel in its entirety and replace it with a Palestinian Islamic state.

Source: (This article originally published by the Jewish News Syndicate on April 3, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Mark Garten/UN Photo/jns.org

Prayer Focus
Beseech the Lord that this outrageous request be categorically denied by the UNSC. Cry out to Him that the United States will be true to their promises of stalwart friendship and support for Israel, as will other nations who claim to be “friends” of the Jewish state, and will veto any such bid.

Scripture

You shall be careful to do what has passed your lips, for you have voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God what you have promised with your mouth.

- Deuteronomy 23:23 ESV

Iran: ‘Deadly Attacks Against Israel will be Carried out Soon’

by Lior Ben Ari ~ Ynetnews

Thursday, 4 April 2024 | Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned Israel on Wednesday saying deadly attacks against the country would be “carried out soon. The resistance front will do its duty.”

The threat comes after an attack attributed to Israel in Damascus took place on Monday, in which senior Iranian commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi and several other officers were killed.

This warning was carried out by IRGC spokesperson Ramadan Sharif, who added, “We shall witness more and deadlier strikes.” Iranian news agency Tasnim reported Wednesday that Sharif said, “The casualties from the terrorist attack on the Iranian consulate will be buried on Quds Day (Friday).”

On Tuesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei also threatened Israel, saying, “The Zionist regime will be punished by the hands of our brave men. We will make it regret this crime and others it has committed.”

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi made similar threats. “This crime won’t pass without a response. The Zionist enemy should know that the resistance front is strengthening both in terms of its power and its hatred toward the enemy.”

Iranian media outlets reported Tuesday that the death toll in the attack had risen to 13, with seven of the casualties being Iranian military officials. The Iranian ambassador in Damascus noted the remaining six casualties were Syrian nationals.

On Monday, media outlets in Syria and Iran accused Israel of an attack on the Iranian consulate building in Damascus, located close to the Iranian embassy in the country and serving as the Iranian ambassador’s residence.

Zahedi’s elimination is the most significant one attributed to Israel since October 7. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has bolstered its readiness following Zahedi’s death, and Iran has accused Israel of utilizing F-35 fighter jets to target the building close to the Iranian embassy in Syria’s capital of Damascus.

Zahedi was a senior IRGC officer serving as Iran’s envoy to command the Quds Force in Lebanon and Syria. Under his command, all plans for directing Iranian combat assets to Syria and Lebanon were approved, and the targeted building in the attack in Damascus served as a military command center for the local Iranian forces. He effectively led the IRCG’s regional Intelligence Division and ground and air forces. He was also involved in planning terrorist operations within Israel.

Source: (This article was originally published by Ynetnews on April 3, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Hesam404/wikimedia.org  

Photo License: Wikimedia

Prayer Focus
Pray that Iran’s threats will prove to be nothing more than saber rattling as they have done often in the past. But also cry out for Israel’s readiness to deal with whatever might be on the horizon, even a confrontation with Iran.

Scripture

The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance is of the LORD.

- Proverbs 21:31

Over 400 Doctors, Dentists Attend Aliyah Fair in Paris

by Efrat Forsher ~ JNS

Tuesday, 2 April 2024 | In an initiative aimed at combating the critical shortage of medical professionals in Israel, the first European MedEx event, a collaborative effort between the Israeli government and Nefesh B’Nefesh, was held in Paris on Sunday.

This pioneering conference is a key component of a national strategy designed to recruit 2,000 physicians from around the globe over the next five years to bolster Israel’s healthcare system.

The Aliyah and Integration Ministry, Health Ministry and Nefesh B’Nefesh, in partnership with the Jewish Agency, have launched the International Medical Aliyah Program to streamline the immigration and integration process for medical professionals.

This initiative seeks to ensure a seamless transition for these professionals into the Israeli medical sector. The event in Paris marked the beginning of this ambitious program in Europe, gathering more than 400 doctors and dentists from France and Belgium.

The MedEx event provided a comprehensive platform for potential immigrants to engage directly with representatives from Israeli healthcare institutions. This included opportunities to convert medical licenses, explore employment possibilities and learn about the incentives available to medical professionals making aliyah [immigration to Israel].

Originating in the US eight years ago, this initiative has now been extended to European shores, signifying a global effort to address the shortfall of healthcare workers in Israel. An OECD report highlighted this urgency, noting Israel’s falling doctor numbers compared to the OECD average.

Aliyah and Integration Minister Ofir Sofer emphasized the strategic importance of attracting medical professionals to Israel, especially to the Negev and the Galilee. This initiative, according to Sofer, is vital for enhancing the national healthcare system and has been met with enthusiasm from Jewish doctors worldwide, demonstrating their solidarity and commitment to Israel.

Echoing this sentiment, Health Minister Uriel Buso highlighted the national importance of attracting medical talent. Buso sees the MedEx conference as a crucial step in showcasing the opportunities within the Israeli healthcare system and as a call to European Jewish medical professionals to contribute to the nation’s well-being.

Nefesh B’Nefesh co-founders Tony Gelbart and Rabbi Yehoshua Fass expressed excitement and pride in this significant milestone.

“We are witnessing a historic and exciting moment for our organization as we hold this joint event for the first time on European soil. MedEx is not only important to us as an organization but has proven to be an incredible asset for the State of Israel and the Jewish nation. We hope that this new national program will provide Israel’s healthcare system with the additional manpower and support it currently needs.

“We are proud to be a resource for the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Ministry of Health and the Jewish Agency as we all work together with the goal of enhancing the quality of Israel’s public medicine while providing these olim medical professionals with a smooth transition to working and living in Israel,” they said.

Maj. Gen. (res.) Doron Almog, chairman of the Jewish Agency, highlighted the role of aliyah in strengthening Israel, particularly in challenging times. He praised new immigrants’ commitment to the state and their crucial role in enhancing the healthcare sector.

The event was attended by a host of distinguished guests and representatives from Israel’s health sector, including from hospitals and health funds (HMOs).

Since its inception, Nefesh B’Nefesh has facilitated the aliyah of over 940 physicians and more than 3,000 medical professionals, integrating them into Israel’s healthcare system.

Source: (This article was originally published by the Jewish News Syndicate on April 2, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Shahar Azran/jns.org

Prayer Focus
Praise God for the amazing willingness of Jews around the world to leave the comfort and familiarity of their homes and professions and move to Israel during a time of war. Pray that Israeli bureaucracy will not impede a seamless transition professionally and in everyday life for each one who heeds God’s call to return to their ancient homeland.

Scripture

“For behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “that I will bring back from captivity My people Israel and Judah,” says the LORD. “And I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.”

- Jeremiah 30:3

Four Police Officers Injured in Terror Attack in Central Israel

by Ynetnews

Wednesday, 3 April 2024 | A ramming attack injured four police officers, one seriously so, Wednesday overnight near Kochav Yair located in central Israel. Following the attack, the terrorist, Wahhab Shbita, a 26-year-old Arab-Israeli from Tira, arrived at a checkpoint armed with a knife and attempted to stab security forces stationed there—and was neutralized.

Magen David Adom [MDA] emergency services teams evacuated the officer to the Rabin Medical Center in serious condition. Three other officers, one of whom was moderately injured, were taken to the Meir Medical Center.

The police launched an investigation into the attack and noted that following the ramming near Kochav Yair, the terrorist got out of his vehicle at the Eliyahu crossing, attempted to stab a security guard—and was neutralized.

Israel Police Central District chief, Superintendent Avi Biton, held a situation assessment at the scene, and said the terrorist rammed the officers who were stationed in the area and then attempted to stab a security guard at the Eliyahu checkpoint.

The MDA dispatch center received a report on the attack at 1:39 a.m. According to the report, a number of pedestrians were injured by a vehicle near Tira. MDA paramedics arrived at the scene and provided medical attention to the officers.

“Four injured individuals were evacuated to hospitals, including a 23-year-old man in serious condition with head trauma, a 46-year-old man suffering from head and limb injuries, and two others who received minor injuries,” MDA reported.

MDA paramedics Amir Dahari and Eyal Davidzon, who arrived at the scene, said, “We arrived at the scene and saw four injured individuals lying on the roadside and sidewalk, about 1 meter [3.2 ft.] apart from each other.”

“A 24-year-old man was semi-conscious and suffered from head and limb injuries, a 46-year-old man was fully conscious and suffered from head and limb injuries, and two others were fully conscious. We gave them medical attention on-site and evacuated them to the hospital,” they added.

Source: (This article was originally published by Ynetnews on April 2, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Dickelbers/Wikimedia.org

Photo License: Wikimedia

Prayer Focus
Pray for healing and restoration for each of the four police officers injured in this attack. Pray they will know the presence of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and will trust Him as they return to duty. Also beseech the Lord again for an end to this type of lone-wolf violence.

Scripture

Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, neither wasting nor destruction within your borders; but you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.

- Isaiah 60:18

Pro-Iranian Militias Claim Drone Strike Hit Building in Eilat

by Yoav Zitun and Lior Ben Ari ~ Ynetnews

Monday, 1 April 2024 | For the first time in three weeks, a warning siren sounded in Eilat and the surrounding region over the intrusion of a hostile aircraft. The incoming UAV [unmanned aerial aircraft] caused damage to a building and came a day after the interception of a drone as it attempted to enter the airspace of the Israeli Golan Heights.

Shortly after the sirens were triggered in Eilat, the Israel Defense Forces [IDF] announced that a “suspicious aerial target” had exploded in the Gulf of Eilat after it crossed from the direction of Jordan toward Israeli territory. According to the announcement, there was minor damage caused to a building and no one was injured.

Later, the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq” organization, which is made up of pro-Iranian militias operating in Iraq and Syria, announced that it had attacked a “vital target” in Israeli territory.

The terror groups also published a similar message Sunday morning, in which they took responsibility for a UAV attack—again on a “vital target”—in the Arab–Christian village of Eilabun in the Galilee.

This claim of responsibility was made hours after the IDF announced that it had intercepted a suspicious aerial target that made its way to the southern Golan Heights region from Syria. The UAV was intercepted by a fighter jet even before it crossed into Israeli territory.

Source: (This article was originally published by Ynetnews on March 30, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Fars Media Corporation/Wikimedia.org

Photo License: Wikimedia

Prayer Focus
Thank God that no one was injured or killed in these UAV attacks. Pray for ongoing protection for Israel’s airspace, that these aerial intruders will fail to inflict any harm to people or property, and for Israel’s ongoing quick responses to destroy them before they enter Israeli territory.

Scripture

A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes shall you look, and see the reward of the wicked.

- Psalm 91:7

Gaza: Razzia as Political Warfare

by Amir Taheri ~ Gatestone Institute

Friday, 29 March 2024 | Although the tragic narrative that started with Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel isn’t yet completed, do-gooders and virtue-signalers are rushing to write their postscripts.

British and European Union leaders say the time has come to formally accept the creation of a Palestinian state.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and EU foreign policy tsar Josep Borrel even suggest that the Security Council pass a resolution to make that mandatory, adding to the 230 resolutions already passed on the issue.

Meanwhile, Major-General Ismail Qaani, chief of the Quds Force of the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, promises to “rebuild Gaza stronger than before as an advance post against world Zionism.”

The Biden administration in Washington is making favorable noises about the two-state “solution” while musing about regime change, albeit in Israel.

The so-called “solution” has been there since 1947 and has led nowhere because those directly involved don’t want it.

The Madrid Conference in 1991 petered out as a sorrowful farce. For over a decade, the two-state solution was on the agenda without anyone telling us where those imaginary states would be located.

British and European pundits are also “concerned” about the length of the Gaza war and urge unspecified action to shorten it.

They forget that fighting armed groups that wish to impose their agenda by—to put it in a politically correct manner as the BBC does—”irregular warfare” cannot be conceived in terms of a short theatrical sketch.

It took the British 11 years to extinguish the fire of “irregular fighters” in Malaya. The fight against Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path) in Peru took almost 30 years. In Colombia, the M19 took 20 years to die. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia did better by hanging on for almost 40 years. Uruguay managed to kill the Tupamaros in five years. India partly calmed down the “freedom fighters” of Nagaland after a 40-year war, while it continues to face an even more tenacious adversary in Kashmir. Turkey has been fighting the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) for more than 30 years. In Burma, Karen “freedom fighters” have been at war with the Rangoon junta for almost half a century.

Claiming to be a “freedom fighter” shouldn’t mean a license to kill at will. Even the “oppressed” have certain duties and must observe some rules while, as history has shown, the tyranny of the underdog could be as deadly as that of the oppressor.

The question today is why, when no time limit is imposed on conventional war until a victor emerges, should war against an insurgent group be subjected to calendar-based shenanigans?

The October 7 attack on Israel was a razzia, an Italian word that has entered most European languages. In fact, the origin of razzia is the Arabic word ghazwa, which means a sudden no-holds-barred attack on a single set of targets in the hope of knocking out an adversary.

The sinking of the cruiser Lusitania during the First World War in May 1915 was a razzia, as was the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941. Those two razzias pushed the United States into two world wars.

The 9/11 attacks of 2001 on the US were four coordinated razzias.

Each of those razzias led to the destruction of perpetrators, sometimes, as in the case of the August 7 attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki or the carpet-bombing of Dresden, with far greater fury.

Payback after those razzias didn’t produce sympathy for the perpetrators. People in the so-called democracies didn’t march to stop action against those who had sunk the Lusitania, bombed Pearl Harbor and turned part of London into heaps of rubble. Harvard and Princeton luminaries didn’t protest when the US launched its “war on terror” to avenge 9/11.

No one denies that for over seven decades, Palestinians have suffered a great deal. But is the way to end or at least alleviate their suffering to exempt their self-imposed political organizations from observing a minimum of ethical rules, even if their adversary didn’t always reciprocate?

Treating the Palestinian issue as if it were an exception to all rules has done great harm to Palestinians.

They have become the first people in history to have four generations frozen in the status of refugees. World War II produced over 30 million refugees, all of whom acquired new abodes within a decade. The partition of India produced 14 million refugees, again, seeing all of them resettled in less than a decade. Since 1959, more than 10 million Cubans have been driven out of their homeland and settled in a dozen countries, notably the US.

Does it make any sense to have refugee camps even in Gaza, which was free of Israeli occupation for two decades? Or in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria], governed by the Palestinian Authority? Is it humane to turn being a refugee into a profession, with UNRWA [United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees] as the franchise-holder?

Do those who encourage Hamas by marching in its support know what percentage of Palestinians it represents and, more importantly, whether those who do support it also approve of the 7 October razzia?

The Biden administration is making a big mistake by implicitly upgrading Hamas to a legitimate partner through regional allies, thus creating the illusion that razzias like the October 7 one could still produce at least a lollipop for perpetrators.

Source: (Excerpt of an article originally published by the Gatestone Institute on March 24, 2024. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit/Wikimedia.org

Photo License: Wikimedia

Prayer Focus
Pray for a mighty move of God that will infuse this volatile situation with common sense and a recognition of the truth. Ask the Lord to enlighten world leaders of the dangers of their arrogant insistence on Israel’s capitulation and the rebuilding of Gaza as an “advance post against world Zionism” under Hamas control.

Scripture

“For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.”

- Malachi 4:1 ESV