(Day 601) Swords of Iron – “Dramatic Turning Point in the Middle East?”

Chaim starts by saying that Israeli soldiers want victory, nothing less.

He then proceeds to talk about the work of demolishing Hamas terror tunnels, which is a specialty of the Yahalom Combat Engineering unit he’s part of. There are many hazards they have to deal with when they clear a tunnel, including booby traps and hidden explosives. The tunnels are very complex, with systems inside systems, and demolishing them can be very difficult and dangerous. There is also always the possability of encountering Hamas terrorists in these tunnels, which of course adds another dimension to the danger.

Next Chaim talks about the death of Ravid Haim Gez, whose mother Tze’ela was shot to death as she was on her way to the hospital to deliver him two weeks ago. The shooting attack on their car also resulted in light wounds to Ravid’s father, who must now raise his three surviving children without their mother or their little brother.

Next Chaim talks about how the last 601 days have seen a huge change in the Middle East, with senior Hamas leaders Yahya and Muhammad Sinwar both eliminated along with many other terrorist leaders. But now Iran is closing in on nuclear weapons capability and there is talk of an agreement between Iran and America that would allow Iran to keep some of its enrichment capabilities. Chaim thinks that would be a mistake.

There is also talk of an agreement that would require the IDF to completely leave the Gaza Strip, allowing Hamas to stay in power while humanitarian aid, which they would control, is sent in. All of this in exchange for the release of 10 living hostages and the remains of a few others who have died in captivity.

Chaim also thinks this would be a bad idea.

Next he mentions the man who murdered Yaron Lischinsky and his girlfriend, Sarah Milgrim, in Washington DC last week. He says that the shooter didn’t know anything about them and didn’t care, he just wanted to murder some Israelis to make a point about his opposition to Israel. Chaim says this attitude is becoming more common, as people become more comfortable with saying they’re not anti-Semitic, they just oppose Zionism. This is barely even a “fig leaf” and no one really believes it, not even the people who say it. Zionism is merely the Jewish expression of the principle of “self-determination,” which is otherwise universally accepted.

In this context, Chaim quotes Jeremiah 16:16; “Behold, I will send for many fishermen,” says the Lord, “and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.”