Hebrew Firsts

A few 'firsts' in Hebrew. All stories mentioned here took place between the 3rd and 20th century, when Hebrew was (supposedly) 'dead'.

If you know of earlier examples, I’d be glad to know.

First medical treatise

The first medical book in Hebrew is Sefer Harefuot (ספר הרפואות) - the Book of Medicines, written by Assaf ben Berechiah.  He was also known as Assaf Harofe (Doctor Assaf), and is commemorated by the Israeli hospital of that name.

He lived in Israel around the 3rd-7th century, as can be seen (among other things) by the purity of his Hebrew and by the fact that he was influenced by Talmudic and Greek knowledge, but not by Arabic medicine.

The book expects physicians to uphold a high moral standard. It discusses illnesses, treatments and prevention and prescribes exercise, healthy food and sanitation. It also describes around 100 medicinal herbs and stresses cheap medicines which can also be afforded by the poor.

The book also describes Israel's climate, waters and natural resources.

The book was known in France in the 9th century, and later in Italy as well.

In the introduction Assaf brings an oath and prayer for Jewish physicians.

It begins as follows:

זאת הברית, אשר כרת אסף בן ברכיהו ויוחנן בן זבדא עם תלמידיהם, וישביעום בדברי האלה: אל תצודו (תצדו) להמית כל נפש במשתה העקר

"This is the pact which Asaph ben Berakhyahu and Yohanan ben Zabda made with their pupils, and they adjured them with the following words: Do not attempt to kill any soul by means of a potion of herbs”

Full oath here in Hebrew and English.

First poem written by a woman

The first Hebrew poem (that we know of) that was written by a woman, was written by Mrs. Donash Labrat, who lived in 10th century Spain.

Her poem was discovered in the Cairo Genizah, in an exchange of letters with her husband, the famous grammarian and poet.

In this poem Mrs. Donash chastises her beloved for leaving her and the family while he traveled to far-off lands.

הֲיִזְכּוֹר יַעֲלַת הַחֵן יְדִידָהּ 

בְּיוֹם פֵּירוּד וּבִזְרוֹעָהּ יְחִידָהּ 

וְשָׂם חוֹתַם יְמִינוֹ עַל שְׂמֹאלָהּ

 וּבִזְרוֹעוֹ הֲלֹא שָׂמָה צְמִידָהּ 

בְּיוֹם לָקְחָה לְזִכָּרוֹן רְדִידוֹ

 וְהוּא לָקַח לְזִכָּרוֹן רְדִידָהּ – 

הֲיִשָּׁאֵר בְּכָל אֶרֶץ סְפָרַד

 וְלוּ לָקַח חֲצִי מַלְכוּת נְגִידָהּ?

 
And will her love recall his graceful doe 

Cradling her son and left alone?

Who set his right hand’s seal on her left 

Is not his arm wrapped with her precious stones?

That day she made a keepsake of his cloak 

And he made hers a keepsake of his own

—Would he remain in all the land of Spain 

If he’d been given half her prince’s throne?

Original and translation via Soul and Gone.

The only other Hebrew poetess of the medieval era that we know of is Merecina from Gerona, who lived in the 14th-15th century and wrote a piyyut which begins: "מי ברוך נורא ואדיר" ("Blessed, Majestic, and Terrible").

First BDS manual

Samuel Vivas was born in Israel in 1550. He served as a rabbi in Safed, then practiced medicine in Cairo, then he moved to Istanbul and finally to Italy. In 1593 he converted to Christianity and changed his name to Domenico Gerosolimitano (Domenico of Jerusalem).

Then he got a new job - censoring Jewish books. In fact, many Hebrew-speaking Jewish converts worked as censors for the Church, and so Samuel/Domenico wrote a helpful instruction manual for them, which he named Sefer Hazikkuk (ספר הזיקוק), the Book of Censorship.

The book lists general rules for censoring Jewish books and discusses specifically 426 Hebrew books.

Some examples of these rules:

כל שם משומד, כשאינו מדובר על דבר מה לחרפה לו, ימחק ויכתב במקומו: עכו"ם. אמנם אם הוא יזכר לחרפה לו ימחק לגמרי

כל שבח שמשבח אומה ישראלית, אשר ימשך ממנו חרמה לנו ויובן בזמן הזה, ימחק כל הענין כולו

All mentions of the term משומד (apostate) which are not insulting should be replaced by עכו"ם, but if it is insulting it should be erased entirely. 

Any praise to the people of Israel which implies disgrace for us, and is understood to be referring to the present time, should be entirely erased.

See here for the full intro in both English and Hebrew.

It’s interesting to note that back in those days, self-hating Jews converted.  They didn’t work for the enemy while claiming to still have Jewish interests at heart.

In today’s world, Samuel might have remained Jewish and would have justified to himself that by censoring our most holy books he was just helping Judaism and Jews. Otherwise the nations might hate us and we would bring ruin upon ourselves.

First native speaker in the modern era

In 1866 a man in Minsk by the name of Mordechai Aharon Teomim decided to raise his newborn son in Hebrew, and only Hebrew.

In 1873, when the child was seven years old, he was met by several Maskilim - members of the Haskalah movement.  They were quite impressed with his Hebrew speech: “He speaks whatever he wishes in pure Hebrew, just as people speak in any other language.”

Indeed, they wrote about it in the "Hamagid" newspaper, hoping that other people would follow in his footsteps.

Eliezer Ben-Yehuda was only 15 at the time, so he probably missed it.


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Wanted: Dead, Alive or Hebrew

As is commonly known, Hebrew was a dead language for close to 2000 years.

As Israeli linguist Chaim Rabin explains:

The speaking of Hebrew ceased about 200 CE (...) Since 1881 Hebrew again became a language spoken by the people.

Note the exact date when Hebrew became a spoken language again.  1881.  Unsurprisingly, this is the same year when the first Zionist aliyah began and when Eliezer Ben Yehuda came to Israel.

So what happened between 200 and 1881?  Hebrew was dead and Jews had no common language, right?

As the Guardian puts it, in their review of Shlomo Sand's book:

In 2009, Shlomo Sand published The Invention of the Jewish People, in which he claimed that Jews have little in common with each other. They had no common "ethnic" lineage owing to the high level of conversion in antiquity. They had no common language, since Hebrew was used only for prayer and was not even spoken at the time of Jesus. Yiddish was, at most, the language of Ashkenazi Jews. So what is left to unite them?

Well, let's go back to what Rabin has to say.

[The Jews] did indeed speak [Hebrew] sometimes, on the Sabbath, or when they desired not to be understood by gentile bystanders, or with Jews from other countries; but this ability to speak occasional Hebrew did not move them to any attempt to speak Hebrew at all times.

He's right.  Jews did not speak Hebrew at all times.  But if Hebrew was a dead language and if Jews did not speak Hebrew, how were they able to speak it occasionally?

The answer is that while Hebrew was not 'alive', it wasn't 'dead' either.

As much as people like Shlomo Sand would like to think otherwise, the Jewish people have had two constants in their history which united them into one nation: a common land and a common language.

And just as there were constant attempts to renew the land, there were constant attempts to renew the language.

It's easy today to dismiss those attempts, because they were not as successful as those of the past century or two, but it is a mistake to do so.  We build on the efforts of those who have come before us.  If the Jews of the 5th, 10th, and 15th century hadn't taken concrete steps to renew Jewish sovereignty in Israel, we wouldn't have been able to do so in the 20th century.

And if the Jews of the 5th, 10th and 15th century hadn't written and used Hebrew and hadn't taught their children to do the same, we wouldn't have been able to do so today.

Other nations today want to emulate us and cannot understand why the Jews were so successful in returning to their land and language and they are not.  They do not realize that keeping your link to your ancient heritage is a lot of hard work.  Once you let it go, it is almost impossible to get it back.

In the years when Hebrew was 'dead', Jews created an impressive body of literature, from religious works to historical narratives, translated works and original creations, poems, plays and personal letters.  In some cases, they also spoke Hebrew.

This article is the first in a series.  In future articles I will discuss the history of our language.

I'll end here with a short quote from Yannai, one of Israel's foremost poets.  This piyyut (hymn) was written about 1500 years ago, when Hebrew was officially 'dead' for over 300 years.  It was part of the prayer for the Torah portion relating to Jacob's return to the land of his ancestors.

In simple, clear language, Yannai draws the parallels between Jacob and his descendants - the Jew standing in prayer - both of whom are named 'Israel'; between returning to the land and returning to God.

Yannai, who lived in Israel, points out that no matter where we go, we will always be strangers in a strange land, and he asks God to return us, in peace and quiet, as sovereigns in our homeland.


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The Rabbi Who Got Us To Sing

393 years ago, at the beginning of Kislev (November 1621), Rabbi Isaiah Horovitz entered the gates of Jerusalem.  He commemorated this uplifting event by naming the prayerbook he wrote "The Gate of Heaven".

The Parsha, the portion of the Torah read that week, was Vayetze, which tells us of Jacob's dream.  When Jacob wakes up, he looks around and says 'How full of awe is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven' (Genesis 28, 17).

The gate of heaven is Jerusalem.

Rabbi Isaiah Horovitz is more well-known as the Shelah Hakodosh (The Holy Shelah).  As is common among Jews, the Shelah is named after his book "Shnei Luchot Ha-Brit" (Two Tablets of the Covenant).  The book was printed only after he passed away.

The Shelah was a great Torah scholar. He served as a Rabbi and Dayan (Judge) in various cities in Europe: in Ostroh and Dubno in Ukraine, Frankfurt in Germany and Prague in the Czech Republic.  When he was about 45-50, after his first wife passed away, he decided to move to Israel so he could better study Kabbalah (Jewish mystic thought).

He traveled to Israel via Syria.  The two main Jewish communities in Israel in those days were in Safed and Jerusalem.  Both communities sent emissaries to convince the Rabbi to accept a position as their leader. The emissaries from Safed made it first and met the Shelah in Damascus, where he told them that he intended to stay in Safed anyway for a few days and that they could talk further there.

The Jerusalemite emissary met the Rabbi on his way out of Damascus.  The people of Jerusalem were generous in their offer as they were concerned that Safed would bait the Rabbi before they even got there.  And so they offered the Shelah to be head of both the Rabbinical court (Av Beit Din) and the Yeshiva in the Holy City. They were willing to pay him any salary he wished.

But the Shelah didn't need convincing: he was simply overjoyed that he could realize his dream and live in Jerusalem. He even refused to accept a salary, because he knew that the Jerusalem community was sunk in debt, and instead he asked for a furnished apartment and for the community to cover his tax bill.

An apartment, because "there is not much room in Jerusalem, because the Ashkenazi community in Jerusalem is twice as large as that of Safed, and it's growing daily."

Of all the letters he sent to his family and friends in Europe, two survived - one from his stay in Safed and one from Jerusalem. From those letters we learn both of the general situation in Israel in those days, and of his great love for the Land and especially Jerusalem.  He writes that in Jerusalem "Jews have lived continuously for hundreds of years".  Throughout history, the only times when Jews were absent from Jerusalem were those times when they were banished from the city - under Byzantine and Crusader occupation.  But Jews always returned to their most cherished city as soon as it was possible again.

In the Shelah's days, at the beginning of the 17th century, the Golden Age of Safed was at an end, while Jerusalem was flourishing.

The Shelah writes that in Safed he found abandoned, ruined synagogues with Torah scrolls inside. "The Muslims don't touch them, in fact - they treat them with respect."  In Safed the Jews suffered from marauders as the city was unwalled, while in Jerusalem the Ashkenazi Jews were living in a closed compound.

When the Shelah got to Safed, his first stop in Israel, he writes: "I fell on the ground and kissed the stones and earth."

In Safed he was honored with copying the book "Magid Meisharim", one of Rabbi Joseph Karo's mystical works.  He also visited saintly tombs in Safed and the surrounding area.  From Safed he traveled to Jerusalem, journeying via Meiron, Tiberias and Nablus (Shechem).  At every stop, he visited the local holy sites.

From Jerusalem he reported that the city is as big as Krakow. "And every day more and more grand buildings are built... we see the Ingathering of Exiles every day.  Every day they come. Walk the streets of Jerusalem - it's filled with Jews, Yeshivas and children studying."

The Shelah was asked by his acquaintances back in Europe whether Jews are allowed to live in Jerusalem, since there's a concern they'll accidentally step into sacred areas and by so transgress.  But the Shelah, despite being very strict about such matters, wrote that there's no problem at all, since the area of the Temple Mount is well-defined and obvious to anybody who comes to Jerusalem.  The opposite is true, he wrote, not only are Jews allowed to live in Jerusalem, they should live there.  Jerusalem is especially the place for the more observant Jews.

More Jews followed in the Shelah's footsteps, and the Ashkenazi community grew, as did the Sephardi one.

Life was not easy in Jerusalem.  In the Shelah's first year there, a famine hit the city and the rabbi fell into debt.  But despite that, he did not request a salary, since he knew the community itself had no money.  In fact, he warned Jews who thought of coming that they should not expect to rely on charity as the local community was very poor.

In 1625 the despot Muhammad Ibn Faruch took power in Jerusalem. We learn about his reign from a pamphlet titled: "The Suffering of the Jews of Jerusalem in the Days of the Pasha (Governor) Muhammad Ben Faruch". It was written by an unidentified Jew who wrote under the pseudonym - "Man of Jerusalem".

With sharp Jewish wit, "Man of Jerusalem" tells us how Ibn Faruch terrorized the residents of the city - Muslims, Christians and Jews - so much so that he had to lock the gates to prevent them from fleeing.  But his main victims were the Jews.

In the summer of 1625, Ibn Faruch was sent to accompany the pilgrims to Mecca, and in his stead he appointed his brother-in-law, Othman.  At first, the Jews were afraid of the acting governor, but when Othman told them that instead of the 'holiday gift' that the community was obligated to give him, he'd accept a new suit, they were ecstatic.

"I think Othman's almost becoming Jewish," one of the community leaders said. "He spoke to me today with such great love."

But this love did not last for long.  The next day, on the Sabbath, Othman sent his soldiers to both the Ashkenazi and Sephardi synagogues and arrested 15 rabbis, including the Shelah.

Othman demanded a very large ransom for his prisoners. After two weeks of begging by the Jews, he agreed to lower his demands just a bit, and the Jews managed to collect enough money to release nine of the rabbis.  The six others remained in jail for a few more days and were released on Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year.

The Ashkenazi rabbis fled Jerusalem to Safed.  The Shelah lived in Safed for a few years and then moved to Tiberias.  The synagogue where he prayed on the shores of the Kinneret is today a Greek-Orthodox monastery.  About 200 years ago, the Jewish community was forced to sell some of its properties.  The contract stipulated that they could buy the place back, but the Church has never allowed it.  Today, Jews are not allowed to enter.

The Shela left us a spiritual legacy which has sustained Jews till today.  All of it is from the period when he lived in Israel.  His book, Shnei Luchot Ha-Brit, written in Jerusalem, laid the foundations for the Hasidic movement, which sprouted a century later in Europe.

Here in Israel, he had access to ancient manuscripts. In one of them he found prayers, which he copied.  The most famous of them is today known as "The Shelah's Prayer" - a prayer for parents to say over their children.

Out of his love for the Land, he also popularized the custom of reciting the Psalms "On the Rivers of Babylon" (Psalm 137) and "Shir Hama'alot" (Psalm 126) after the meals.  The former expresses our longing for the Land, while the latter expresses our joy at returning to it.

In the early 20th century, the great cantor Yossele Rosenblatt popularized the following tune for "Shir Hama'alot".

The Shelah passed away about a decade after arriving in Israel.  Life expectancy in Israel was very low at the time.  The many hardships, government persecution, recurring plagues and earthquakes that hit every once in a while - all conspired to shorten the lives of the Jews who lived here.

Despite this tough reality, the Shelah was filled with love for the Land, which he expressed in his books and in his letters, in which he called on Jews to follow in his footsteps and return to their Land.


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Israeli History: UN, 9th century CE

Every Sabbath, Jews read a portion of the Torah (the parsha).  Today we read through the whole Torah in one year, but the ancient Israeli custom was to finish the Torah twice in a 7-year cycle.  

The Midrash are compilations of ancient synagogue Sabbath sermons, originating from the period knows as the Dark Ages (3rd-13th centuries) and mostly written in Israel.  They generally follow the Israeli custom.   Most Midrash focus on the first verse or two of the Israeli 'seder', the 'portion of the week'.

Midrash Tanhuma was written in Israel around the 9th century.

Here is my translation for one of the sermons for the seder starting "And these are the generations of Isaac" ("chapter 5" of Toldot, this week's parsha).

You find that Israel tell God: "Lord of the Universe, see how the nations persecute us, they have nothing else to do but sit around and scheme against us", as it says in Lamentations 3:63 "Behold Thou their sitting down, and their rising up; I am their song."

God told them: "Take no heed. They pass evil decrees and I cancel them.  As it says 'I am their song'.

The Midrash then continues, giving examples of Biblical history.  Pharaoh wanted to kill all Jewish boys, but God did not wish it, and therefore it did not happen.  Haman wanted to kill all Jews, but God did not wish it, and therefore it did not happen.  Balak and Bilam wanted to curse the Jews, but God did not wish it, and therefore it did not happen.

The Midrash then adds a conversation between the Roman emperor Hadrian and the Israeli Jewish leader Rabbi Yehoshua ben Hananiah.

Hadrian: How great is the sheep that is surrounded by 70 wolves. 

Rabbi Yehoshua: How great is the shepherd, who saves it and guards it.

Hadrian's question can be understood in different ways.  He's either praising the sheep (Israel), who manages to withstand the hungry wolves (nations) around it, or he's praising the wolves, who are not eating the sheep.

Rabbi Yehoshua answers him that it's not up to the sheep or the wolves, it's all in God's hands.


Antisemitism is not new.  Even back in the first millennium, the Jews who lived here in Israel felt that the nations of the world were scheming against us.  Just like today, they asked themselves: Don't the nations have anything better to do?  Don't they see the real evil in their world?

As it says in the Sifrei, a Midrash written around the 3rd century: "Everybody knows that Esau hates Jacob".  Esau is the Romans and the Christians.  Jacob is Israel.  Since then, the list of our enemies has only grown.

It sometimes seems as though we are pressured like never before.  But we should remember that nothing is new under the sun. Just as the Jews who lived here before us survived the antisemitism of old, we will survive the antisemitism of today.  The wolves can continue howling, they can continue scheming against us, but we will survive.



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The Holiest Sports Arena on Earth

FirstEnergy Stadium, Madison Square Garden, Yankee Stadium?

Rome's Coliseum?

The Holiest Sports Arena on Earth is right here in Jerusalem...on the Temple Mount! Or as the rest of the world likes to refer to it, Haram al-Sharif.

This holy place which "offends" Muslim leaders when Jews silently and peacefully walk through the area, is also the place where holy Muslim children play holy sports games, such as soccer (European football), volleyball and others.

Yet it's a terrible provocation for Jews to walk there....let alone move their lips in silent prayer in the holiest sports arena on the planet.

On the bright side, at least the ball is blue and white...

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PM Netanyahu's Speech at UN Sept. 29 2014

Thank you, Mr. President, Distinguished delegates,

I come here from Jerusalem to speak on behalf of my people, the people of Israel. I’ve come here to speak about the dangers we face and about the opportunities we see. I’ve come here to expose the brazen lies spoken from this very podium against my country and against the brave soldiers who defend it. Ladies and Gentlemen, The people of Israel pray for peace. But our hopes and the world’s hope for peace are in danger. Because everywhere we look, militant Islam is on the march. It’s not militants. It’s not Islam. It’s militant Islam.

Typically, its first victims are other Muslims, but it spares no one. Christians, Jews, Yazidis, Kurds – no creed, no faith, no ethnic group is beyond its sights. And it’s rapidly spreading in every part of the world. You know the famous American saying: “All politics is local”? For the militant Islamists, “All politics is global.” Because their ultimate goal is to dominate the world. Now, that threat might seem exaggerated to some, since it starts out small, like a cancer that attacks a particular part of the body. But left unchecked, the cancer grows, metastasizing over wider and wider areas.

To protect the peace and security of the world, we must remove this cancer before it’s too late. Last week, many of the countries represented here rightly applauded President Obama for leading the effort to confront ISIS. And yet weeks before, some of these same countries, the same countries that now support confronting ISIS, opposed Israel for confronting Hamas. They evidently don’t understand that ISIS and Hamas are branches of the same poisonous tree. ISIS and Hamas share a fanatical creed, which they both seek to impose well beyond the territory under their control.

Listen to ISIS’s self-declared caliph,Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi. This is what he said two months ago: A day will soon come when the Muslim will walk everywhere as a master… The Muslims will cause the world to hear and understand the meaning of terrorism… and destroy the idol of democracy. Now listen to Khaled Meshaal, the leader of Hamas. He proclaims a similar vision of the future: We say this to the West… By Allah you will be defeated. Tomorrow our nation will sit on the throne of the world. As Hamas’s charter makes clear, Hamas’s immediate goal is to destroy Israel. But Hamas has a broader objective. They also want a caliphate. Hamas shares the global ambitions of its fellow militant Islamists. That’s why its supporters wildly cheered in the streets of Gaza as thousands of Americans were murdered on 9/11. And that’s why its leaders condemned the United States for killing Osama Bin Laden, whom they praised as a holy warrior. So when it comes to their ultimate goals, Hamas is ISIS and ISIS is Hamas. And what they share in common, all militant Islamists share in common: • Boko Haram in Nigeria; • Ash-Shabab in Somalia; • Hezbollah in Lebanon; • An-Nusrah in Syria; • The Mahdi Army in Iraq; • And the Al-Qaeda branches in Yemen, Libya, the Philippines, India and elsewhere.

Some are radical Sunnis, some are radical Shi’ites. Some want to restore a pre-medieval caliphate from the 7th century. Others want to trigger the apocalyptic return of an imam from the 9th century. They operate in different lands, they target different victims and they even kill each other in their quest for supremacy. But they all share a fanatic ideology. They all seek to create ever expanding enclaves of militant Islam where there is no freedom and no tolerance – Where women are treated as chattel, Christians are decimated, and minorities are subjugated, sometimes given the stark choice: convert or die. For them, anyone can be an infidel, including fellow Muslims. Ladies and Gentlemen, Militant Islam’s ambition to dominate the world seems mad. But so too did the global ambitions of another fanatic ideology that swept to power eight decades ago. The Nazis believed in a master race. The militant Islamists believe in a master faith. They just disagree about who among them will be the master… of the master faith. That’s what they truly disagree about. Therefore, the question before us is whether militant Islam will have the power to realize its unbridled ambitions.

There is one place where that could soon happen: The Islamic State of Iran. For 35 years, Iran has relentlessly pursued the global mission which was set forth by its founding ruler, Ayatollah Khomeini, in these words: We will export our revolution to the entire world. Until the cry “There is no God but Allah” will echo throughout the world over… And ever since, the regime’s brutal enforcers, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, have done exactly that. Listen to its current commander, General Muhammad Ali Ja’afari. And he clearly stated this goal. He said: Our Imam did not limit the Islamic Revolution to this country… Our duty is to prepare the way for an Islamic world government… Iran’s President Rouhani stood here last week, and shed crocodile tears over what he called “the globalization of terrorism.” Maybe he should spare us those phony tears and have a word instead with the commanders of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

He could ask them to call off Iran’s global terror campaign, which has included attacks in two dozen countries on five continents since 2011 alone. To say that Iran doesn’t practice terrorism is like saying Derek Jeter never played shortstop for the New York Yankees. This bemoaning of the Iranian president of the spread of terrorism has got to be one of history’s greatest displays of doubletalk. Now, Some still argue that Iran’s global terror campaign, its subversion of countries throughout the Middle East and well beyond the Middle East, some argue that this is the work of the extremists. They say things are changing. They point to last year’s elections in Iran. They claim that Iran’s smooth talking President and Foreign Minister, they’ve changed not only the tone of Iran’s foreign policy but also its substance.

They believe Rouhani and Zarif genuinely want to reconcile with the West, that they’ve abandoned the global mission of the Islamic Revolution. Really? So let’s look at what Foreign Minister Zarif wrote in his book just a few years ago: We have a fundamental problem with the West, and especially with America. This is because we are heirs to a global mission, which is tied to our raison d’etre… A global mission which is tied to our very reason of being. And then Zarif asks a question, I think an interesting one. He says: How come Malaysia [he’s referring to an overwhelmingly Muslim country] – how come Malaysia doesn’t have similar problems? And he answers: Because Malaysia is not trying to change the international order. That’s your moderate.

So don’t be fooled by Iran’s manipulative charm offensive. It’s designed for one purpose, and for one purpose only: To lift the sanctions and remove the obstacles to Iran’s path to the bomb. The Islamic Republic is now trying to bamboozle its way to an agreement that will remove the sanctions it still faces, and leave it with the capacity of thousands of centrifuges to enrich uranium. This would effectively cement Iran’s place as a threshold military nuclear power. In the future, at a time of its choosing, Iran, the world’s most dangerous state in the world’s most dangerous region, would obtain the world’s most dangerous weapons. Allowing that to happen would pose the gravest threat to us all. It’s one thing to confront militant Islamists on pick-up trucks, armed with Kalashnikov rifles. It’s another thing to confront militant Islamists armed with weapons of mass destruction.

I remember that last year, everyone here was rightly concerned about the chemical weapons in Syria, including the possibility that they would fall into the hands of terrorists. That didn’t happen. And President Obama deserves great credit for leading the diplomatic effort to dismantle virtually all of Syria’s chemical weapons capability. Imagine how much more dangerous the Islamic State, ISIS, would be if it possessed chemical weapons. Now imagine how much more dangerous the Islamic state of Iran would be if it possessed nuclear weapons. Ladies and Gentlemen, Would you let ISIS enrich uranium? Would you let ISIS build a heavy water reactor? Would you let ISIS develop intercontinental ballistic missiles? Of course you wouldn’t. Then you mustn’t let the Islamic State of Iran do those things either. Because here’s what will happen: Once Iran produces atomic bombs, all the charm and all the smiles will suddenly disappear. They’ll just vanish. It’s then that the ayatollahs will show their true face and unleash their aggressive fanaticism on the entire world.

There is only one responsible course of action to address this threat: Iran’s nuclear military capabilities must be fully dismantled. Make no mistake – ISIS must be defeated. But to defeat ISIS and leave Iran as a threshold nuclear power is to win the battle and lose the war. To defeat ISIS and leave Iran as a threshold nuclear power is to win the battle and lose the war.

Ladies and Gentlemen, The fight against militant Islam is indivisible. When militant Islam succeeds anywhere, it’s emboldened everywhere. When it suffers a blow in one place, it’s set back in every place. That’s why Israel’s fight against Hamas is not just our fight. It’s your fight. Israel is fighting a fanaticism today that your countries may be forced to fight tomorrow.

For 50 days this past summer, Hamas fired thousands of rockets at Israel, many of them supplied by Iran. I want you to think about what your countries would do if thousands of rockets were fired at your cities. Imagine millions of your citizens having seconds at most to scramble to bomb shelters, day after day. You wouldn’t let terrorists fire rockets at your cities with impunity. Nor would you let terrorists dig dozens of terror tunnels under your borders to infiltrate your towns in order to murder and kidnap your citizens. Israel justly defended itself against both rocket attacks and terror tunnels. Yet Israel also faced another challenge. We faced a propaganda war. Because, in an attempt to win the world’s sympathy, Hamas cynically used Palestinian civilians as human shields. It used schools, not just schools – UN schools, private homes, mosques, even hospitals to store and fire rockets at Israel. As Israel surgically struck at the rocket launchers and at the tunnels, Palestinian civilians were tragically but unintentionally killed. There are heartrending images that resulted, and these fueled libelous charges that Israel was deliberately targeting civilians.

We were not. We deeply regret every single civilian casualty. And the truth is this: Israel was doing everything to minimize Palestinian civilian casualties. Hamas was doing everything to maximize Israeli civilian casualties and Palestinian civilian casualties. Israel dropped flyers, made phone calls, sent text messages, broadcast warnings in Arabic on Palestinian television, always to enable Palestinian civilians to evacuate targeted areas. No other country and no other army in history have gone to greater lengths to avoid casualties among the civilian population of their enemies. This concern for Palestinian life was all the more remarkable, given that Israeli civilians were being bombarded by rockets day after day, night after night. As their families were being rocketed by Hamas, Israel’s citizen army – the brave soldiers of the IDF, our young boys and girls – they upheld the highest moral values of any army in the world. Israel’s soldiers deserve not condemnation, but admiration. Admiration from decent people everywhere. Now here’s what Hamas did: Hamas embedded its missile batteries in residential areas and told Palestinians to ignore Israel’s warnings to leave. And just in case people didn’t get the message, they executed Palestinian civilians in Gaza who dared to protest. No less reprehensible, Hamas deliberately placed its rockets where Palestinian children live and play. Let me show you a photograph. It was taken by a France 24 crew during the recent conflict. It shows two Hamas rocket launchers, which were used to attack us. You see three children playing next to them.

Hamas deliberately put its rockets in hundreds of residential areas like this. Hundreds of them. Ladies and gentlemen, this is a war crime. And I say to President Abbas, these are the war crimes committed by your Hamas partners in the national unity government which you head and you are responsible for. And these are the real war crimes you should have investigated, or spoken out against from this podium last week. Ladies and Gentlemen, As Israeli children huddled in bomb shelters and Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system knocked Hamas rockets out of the sky, the profound moral difference between Israel and Hamas couldn’t have been clearer: Israel was using its missiles to protect its children. Hamas was using its children to protect its missiles. By investigating Israel rather than Hamas for war crimes, the UN Human Rights Council has betrayed its noble mission to protect the innocent. In fact, what it’s doing is to turn the laws of war upside-down. Israel, which took unprecedented steps to minimize civilian casualties, Israel is condemned.

Hamas, which both targeted and hid behind civilians – that a double war crime – Hamas is given a pass. The Human Rights Council is thus sending a clear message to terrorists everywhere: Use civilians as human shields. Use them again and again and again. You know why? Because sadly, it works. By granting international legitimacy to the use of human shields, the UN’s Human Rights Council has thus become a Terrorist Rights Council, and it will have repercussions. It probably already has, about the use of civilians as human shields. It’s not just our interest. It’s not just our values that are under attack. It’s your interests and your values.

Ladies and Gentlemen, We live in a world steeped in tyranny and terror, where gays are hanged from cranes in Tehran, political prisoners are executed in Gaza, young girls are abducted en masse in Nigeria and hundreds of thousands are butchered in Syria, Libya and Iraq. Yet nearly half, nearly half of the UN Human Rights Council’s resolutions focusing on a single country have been directed against Israel, the one true democracy in the Middle East – Israel. where issues are openly debated in a boisterous parliament, where human rights are protected by independent courts and where women, gays and minorities live in a genuinely free society. The Human Rights… (that’s an oxymoron, the UN Human Rights Council, but I’ll use it just the same), the Council’s biased treatment of Israel is only one manifestation of the return of the world’s oldest prejudices.

We hear mobs today in Europe call for the gassing of Jews. We hear some national leaders compare Israel to the Nazis. This is not a function of Israel’s policies. It’s a function of diseased minds. And that disease has a name. It’s called anti-Semitism. It is now spreading in polite society, where it masquerades as legitimate criticism of Israel. For centuries the Jewish people have been demonized with blood libels and charges of deicide. Today, the Jewish state is demonized with the apartheid libel and charges of genocide. Genocide? In what moral universe does genocide include warning the enemy’s civilian population to get out of harm’s way? Or ensuring that they receive tons, tons of humanitarian aid each day, even as thousands of rockets are being fired at us? Or setting up a field hospital to aid for their wounded? Well, I suppose it’s the same moral universe where a man who wrote a dissertation of lies about the Holocaust, and who insists on a Palestine free of Jews, Judenrein, can stand at this podium and shamelessly accuse Israel of genocide and ethnic cleansing.

In the past, outrageous lies against the Jews were the precursors to the wholesale slaughter of our people. But no more. Today we, the Jewish people, have the power to defend ourselves. We will defend ourselves against our enemies on the battlefield. We will expose their lies against us in the court of public opinion. Israel will continue to stand proud and unbowed. Ladies and Gentlemen, Despite the enormous challenges facing Israel, I believe we have an historic opportunity. After decades of seeing Israel as their enemy, leading states in the Arab world increasingly recognize that together we and they face many of the same dangers: principally this means a nuclear-armed Iran and militant Islamist movements gaining ground in the Sunni world. Our challenge is to transform these common interests to create a productive partnership. One that would build a more secure, peaceful and prosperous Middle East. Together we can strengthen regional security. We can advance projects in water, agriculture, in transportation, in health, in energy, in so many fields. I believe the partnership between us can also help facilitate peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Many have long assumed that an Israeli-Palestinian peace can help facilitate a broader rapprochement between Israel and the Arab World.

But these days I think it may work the other way around: Namely that a broader rapprochement between Israel and the Arab world may help facilitate an Israeli-Palestinian peace. And therefore, to achieve that peace, we must look not only to Jerusalem and Ramallah, but also to Cairo, to Amman, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and elsewhere. I believe peace can be realized with the active involvement of Arab countries, those that are willing to provide political, material and other indispensable support. I’m ready to make a historic compromise, not because Israel is occupying a foreign land.

The people of Israel are not occupiers in the Land of Israel.

History, archaeology and common sense all make clear that we have had a singular attachment to this land for over 3,000 years. I want peace because I want to create a better future for my people. But it must be a genuine peace, one that is anchored in mutual recognition and enduring security arrangements, rock solid security arrangements on the ground.

Because you see, Israel’s withdrawals from Lebanon and Gaza created two militant Islamic enclaves on our borders from which tens of thousands of rockets have been fired at Israel. These sobering experiences heighten Israel’s security concerns regarding potential territorial concessions in the future. Those security concerns are even greater today. Just look around you. The Middle East is in chaos. States are disintegrating. Militant Islamists are filling the void. Israel cannot have territories from which it withdraws taken over by Islamic militants yet again, as happened in Gaza and Lebanon. That would place the likes of ISIS within mortar range – a few miles – of 80% of our population. Think about that. The distance between the 1967 lines and the suburbs of Tel Aviv is like the distance between the UN building here and Times Square. Israel’s a tiny country.

That’s why in any peace agreement, which will obviously necessitate a territorial compromise, I will always insist that Israel be able to defend itself by itself against any threat. Yet despite all that has happened, some still don’t take Israel’s security concerns seriously. But I do, and I always will. Because, as Prime Minister of Israel, I am entrusted with the awesome responsibility of ensuring the future of the Jewish people and the future of the Jewish state. And no matter what pressure is brought to bear, I will never waver in fulfilling that responsibility. I believe that with a fresh approach from our neighbors, we can advance peace despite the difficulties we face.

In Israel, we have a record of making the impossible possible. We’ve made a desolate land flourish. And with very few natural resources, we have used the fertile minds of our people to turn Israel into a global center of technology and innovation. Peace, of course, would enable Israel to realize its full potential and to bring a promising future not only for our people, not only for the Palestinian people, but for many, many others in our region. But the old template for peace must be updated. It must take into account new realities and new roles and responsibilities for our Arab neighbors. Ladies and Gentlemen, There is a new Middle East. It presents new dangers, but also new opportunities.

Israel is prepared to work with Arab partners and the international community to confront those dangers and to seize those opportunities. Together we must recognize the global threat of militant Islam, the primacy of dismantling Iran’s nuclear weapons capability and the indispensable role of Arab states in advancing peace with the Palestinians. All this may fly in the face of conventional wisdom, but it’s the truth.
And the truth must always be spoken, especially here, in the United Nations. Isaiah, our great prophet of peace, taught us nearly 3,000 years ago in Jerusalem to speak truth to power.

לְמַעַן צִיּוֹן לֹא אֶחֱשֶׁה וּלְמַעַן יְרוּשָׁלִַם לֹא אֶשְׁקוֹט עַד-יֵצֵא כַּנֹּגַהּ צִדְקָהּ וִישׁוּעָתָהּ כְּלַפִּיד יִבְעָר.

For the sake of Zion, I will not be silent. For the sake of Jerusalem, I will not be still. Until her justice shines bright, And her salvation glows like a flaming torch.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Let’s light a torch of truth and justice to safeguard our common future.

Thank you.

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Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Where in the World is Mohammed Zoabi?

Where is the Muqata's friend -- Israeli-Arab Zionist Teenager, Mohammed Zoabi?

Many of you who have been following the Muqata FB page know about the Israeli-Arab Zionist teenager, Mohammed Zoabi - who proudly expressed his support for Israel, and not only condemned the abduction of the 3 Jewish teens this summer (as opposed to his infamous cousin, MK Hanin Zoabi -- the Hamas cheerleader in the Knesset), yet young Mohammed also threatened the terrorists that they should return the abducted teens safe and sound if they knew what was good for them.



Mohammed was ultimately correct, and while the 3 teens were already murdered at the time unbeknownst to us all, -- the terrorists who abducted and murdered the teens were all killed by the IDF.

Unfortunately, while Mohammad is a great example of loyalty, he received death threats and the police even uncovered a kidnapping plot against him -- by his own relatives! They planned to take him to a PA controlled city...for him to be "reprogrammed" and taught a lesson what happens when an Israeli Arab dares express loyalty to the State of Israel. We reported all this while it was happening, and then Mohammed went underground for his own safety. We respected his privacy...and kept him out of our newsfeed.

Today....in an article in Yisrael HaYom, we learn that not only has Mohammed gone underground -- he has LEFT ISRAEL for his own safety.

What a tragedy that a brave Arab teenager has to flee Israel -- the same revolting Palestinian terrorism that he spoke out against, has been used against him to silence his criticism of terrorism and his loyalty to the State of Israel.

Mohammed Zoabi -- where ever you are, we pray for your safety, and thank you for your loyalty.

Jameel and The Muqata Staff.

Translation of the enclosed Hebrew article: (by Jameel)

Appears in Yisrael Hayom Newspaper, Sept 28, 2014

The Israeli Arab teen who condemned the abduction has fled Israel.by Daniel Siryoti

The Israeli Arab teen from Northern Israel who condemned on Facebook the abduction of Eyal Yifrach, Gil-ad She'ar and Naftali Fraenkel has been forced to leave Israel due to death threats against him.

The teen uploaded a video to Facebook after the 3 yeshiva high school students were abducted, and condemned the action, calling terrorists and their supporters "cowards" and demanded that the teens be released. In the video, the teen states he is a Muslim, and also a loyal citizen to the State of Israel and its Democratic values. The video went viral and shortly thereafter, the teem receives angry responses from the Arab community. In response to death threats, also from his family, he was forces to leave his house where he lived with his mother, and go underground.

Over the past weekend, the teen opened a new Facebook page, after he had to close his previous one where he condemned the abduction. On his new page he wrote: "I am a proud Muslim, Arab Zionist." He also explained that he now lives outside of Israel after he was forced to flee due to death threats.

His mother explained she supported her son's move outside of Israel and said of her son: "He is a wonderful person and never did anything wrong to anyone. The treatment he is receiving is unfair. The treatment I am receiving is as if I killed someone. People turn their back on me and don't speak to me.

We don't deserve this."

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152739657699169&set=a.10150285359049169.345551.839839168&type=1&theater



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Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

IDF Operation Protective Edge - August 26, 2014

Newest updates will be at the top. To refresh [F5 key]


8:00pm Hamas Victory in Gaza includes: No Water, No Electricity, 350,000 refugees. All they get is the opening of the humanitarian conveys via the border crossings with israel (which Israel keeps open anyway).

There will be discussions about an air/sea port for Gaza, but nothing is promised.

Israel will discuss the demilitarization of Gaza, but nothing is promised.

The cease fire has no stated end point.
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8pm Antisemitism in New York Jewish couple attacked...

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/anti-semitic-thugs-attacks-jewish-couple-in-new-york-city/2014/08/26/

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7:58pm Update 1 dead and 6 injured in Eshkol attack.

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/1-dead-2-badly-wounded-in-gaza-rocket-attack-on-southern-israel/2014/08/26/Upda
********************************************************************************************************7:49pm PM Netanyahu did not bring the cease fire decision for a cabinet vote this evening, but decided on his own -- due to the probability that the cabinet would reject the cease fire agreement.

(Channel 2).
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7:47pm Gaza celebrates "victory"

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7:46pm Channel 2 reports 1 Israeli killed and 2 seriously wounded in an Israeli Gaza border community (in the Eshkol region) from the mega rocket fire over the past hour. (before the 7:15 ceasefire started)

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7:43pm Ceasefire seems to have started. The Egyptian plan says Israel must immediately open up the border crossing points. 

Over the next month discussions of the following:
Israel demands the demilitarization of Gaza
Hamas demands a (duty free weapons bonanza) sea port.
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7:34pm Roundup for past 25 minutes:

7:15 Eshkol
7:14 Eshkol
7:09 Shaar HaNegev

Hamas claims cease fire has started. Reports of Gaza celebrations.

Channel 10 reports that the IDF has been instructed to stop attacking Gaza (I didn't notice what we were attacking).

Reports of 3 seriously wounded Israelis from the past hour's mega rocket barrage from Gaza.

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7:05pm Beeri (again)
7:05pm That was the shortest ceasefire in history
7:05pm Beeri. Otef Aza
7:05pm Yad Mordechai x 2
7:02 pm no ceasefire
7:00pm Ceasefire?
6:59 pm Continuing rocket barrage Ashkelon
6:59pm Ashkelon.
6:58 pm Rocket barrage Hof Ashkelon, Ashkelon
6:57 pm Rocket alert Eshkol
6:56 pm More alerts Ashdod area, Gan Yavne, Merkaz Shapira
6:55 pm Multiple rocket alerts Ashdod, Be'er Tuvia, Merkaz Shapira
6:55 pm Rocket alert Eshkol region
6:53 pm Ongoing attacks on Be'er Sheva, more alerts Eshkol region
6:52 pm Multiple rocket alerts Be'er Sheva, Ofakim
6:52 pm Rocket alert Shaar HaNegev
6:51 pm Multiple rocket alerts Shaar HaNegev

6:50 pm Rocket alert Eshkol
6:49 pm Rocket alert Eshkol
6:48 pm More rockets Netivot
6:47 pm Barrage at Netivot, Sdot Negev, Shaar HaNegev
6:46 pm Yet another rocket alert in Eshkol region
6:44 Rocket alerts Eshkol, Be'er Sheva
6:42 pm Rocket barrage Eshkol region
6:41 pm Another rocket alert Be'er Sheva
6:40 pm Rocket alert Be'er Sheva
6:37 pm Another rocket alert in Eshkol region
6:35 pm Multiple rocket alerts Eshkol
6:30 pm Multiple rocket alerts Eshkol region
6:27pm Rocket alert Kerem Shalom
6:20 rocket alert Hof Ashkelon
6:06pm Rocket alert Eshkol Region
6:00pm Multiple Rocket alerts Ashkelon
5:57pm More Rocket alerts Eshkol Region
5:55pm Rocket Alert Eshkol Region... Ofakim...
5:53-5:54pm Ongoing Barrage of Rocket alerts Ashdod... Kiriyat Malachi... Beer Tuvia and surrounding areas
5:52pm Multiple Rocket alerts Eshkol Region
5:48pm Multiple rocket alerts Shaar HaNegev
5:48pm Barrage of Rocket alerts Eshkol Region
5:29 pm Multiple rocket alerts Eshkol
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5:22pm Gosh, so who do we believe?

Arabs say there is a truce, and only waiting for Netanyahu to agree (PA says Israel has agreed):

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/israel-to-decide-on-truce-with-hamas-this-morning/2014/08/26... See More
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4:49 pm Another rocket alert Kerem Shalom, multiple alerts Shaar HaNegev
4:49 pm Rocket alert Kerem Shalom
4:11 pm Rocket alerts Sderot, Hof Ashkelon, Shaar HaNegev
4:05-06 Rocket barrage Hof Ashkelon, Ashkelon industrial area
3:28 Multiple rocket alerts Sderot and surrounding areas, Hof Ashkelon, Shaar HaNegev
3:21 pm Rocket alert Shaar HaNegev
2:30 pm Rocket alert Be'eri
2:28 pm Rocket alert Eshkol
2:19 pm Another rocket alert Be'eri
2:16 pm Rocket alert Kerem Shalom
2:08 pm Rocket alert Be'eri (Eshkol)
2:07 pm Rocket alert Kissufim (Eshkol region) x 2
2:02-03 pm Rocket barrage Ashkelon, Hof Ashkelon, Ashdod
1:02pm Sdot Negev, Shaar Negev
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1:01pm This is interesting...

The Prime Minister's office told JewishPress.com that Israel has no negotiators in Cairo, and haven't had any there since the ceasefire was broken.

They also said that Israel is not involved in any ceasefire talks in Cairo or anywhere else.

And for good measure added, "Israel will not negotiate under fire".

Hmmmm.

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/pmo-no-negotiations-under-fire-period/2014/08/26/
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12:58 pm Sdot Negev, Shaar Negev
12:36 pm Ashkelon Coast
11:38 am More damn rockets from Gaza. POOR ESHKOL.
11:23 am Eshkol region
11:20 am Eshkol region rocket alert.
11:03 am Eshkol region
11:06 am Eshkol region
11:13 am Eshkol region
11:02 am Eshkol Region
10:38am Rocket alert Kerem Shalom
10:33am Rocket alert Kerem Shalom
10:31am Rocket alert Kerem Shalom
10:22am Rocket alert Shaar HaNegev
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9:46am Rocket alert Eshkol Region
9:40am Rocket alert Eshkol Region
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9:33am (Israel to decide this morning whether to call the agreement with Hamas a truce or a surrender)

Egypt is waiting for an answer from Israel, if the government accepts the terms. The Gazans on their part have agreed.

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/israel-to-decide-on-truce-with-hamas-this-morning/2014/08/26/
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9:26am In 7:06am rocket strike on home in Ashkelon, 21 people were lightly injured, and another 20 people were treated for shock.

Most of the injuries were from broken glass.

The parents were moving the children to the bomb shelter when the rocket directly hit the parent's bedroom.

Several homes around the hit home were damaged.
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8:24am Rocket alert Eshkol Region
8:19am rocket alert Eshkol Region
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7:23am IDF Spox Video (English) on the terror infestation in Gaza.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfQ5jBDpqbM&feature=youtu.be

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7:11am Rocket alert Eshkol region

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7:10am Terror target hit in Gaza last night by IAF airstrike....see building before and after photos of a 13 story building terror target.

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7:06am Direct hit on a house in the Ashkelon region. No known reports of injuries at this time.

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6:57am As we wait for reports on the previous rocket strike....here are where the sirens went off...

6:47am At 6:32am minutes ago...there was a simultaneous, large scale rocket attack on Israel....Ashkelon....Ashdod...Tel Aviv...Herziliya...Hod Ha Sharon...Yahud (near the airport)...Savyon...Rosh Haayin...Shoham...

Direct hit reported on a building in the Ashkelon area....emergency forces responding.
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1:10am Nature abhors a vacuum.

If no one else is going to take the lead in fighting Islamic terrorism, then some of the more unlikely players are going to step up to bat.

Egypt and United Arab Emirates have attacked Libyan Dawn terrorists twice this past week...

Stranger things have happened.

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/egypt-and-uae-new-anti-islamist-police-in-middle-east/2014/08/25/

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12:35am After consulting with the IDF, the Kiryat Shmona municipal council has decided against opening public bomb shelters and requesting for the public to stay in shelters.

I guess the IDF was convincing in whatever they said...
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12:07pm Egypt has put forward a proposal for a 1 month ceasefire, to begin at 7am on Tuesday. Reportedly, Hamas has embraced the plan, and they are waiting for Netanyahu to respond.

There has been no comment fro Jerusalem on this story.

During the ceasefire, Israel and Hamas would continue to negotiate.

1 month from now, when the ceasefire would end (presuming that Hamas doesn't break the ceasefire earlier) is Rosh Hashana.

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12:03pm 22 Israeli-Arab in wadi Joz arrested by police for throwing rocks at vehicles.

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Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד