News Digest — 5/13/24
Israel Marks First Post-Oct. 7 Memorial Day
Israel marked its first Post-Oct. 7 Memorial Day beginning Sunday (12th) at sundown and extending until Monday evening (13th).
Memorial Day for the Fallen Soldiers and Victims of terrorism (Yom Hazikaron) was ushered in with a one-minute siren at 8 p.m., followed by a state ceremony at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The event was attended by President Isaac Herzog, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi.
At 9:15 p.m. the parliament held an event in memory of the fallen, attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Knesset Speaker Amit Ohana and acting Supreme Court President Uzi Vogelman.
At 8:30 a.m. on Monday (13th), the names of the fallen soldiers were read at Mount Herzl in Jerusalem.
Another two-minute siren sounded at 11 a.m., bringing the country to a standstill.
Minutes later, Israeli Air Force jets flew over Mount Herzl, kicking off the main ceremony, attended by Herzog, Netanyahu and others. Other ceremonies were held at cemeteries, community centers and schools across the country.
Remembrance events will continue until Monday night (13th), at which point the country will shift to celebrating its 76th Independence Day (from sundown Monday night, 13th, through Tuesday evening, 14th).
Since Last Memorial Day (April 25, 2023) 1,594 Israeli soldiers and civilians have died. This includes 760 Israel Defense Forces soldiers (61 of whom succumbed to their wounds from previous years) and 834 civilians, of which 822 were killed on or after October 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas in southern Israel, according to numbers released by the Israeli Ministry of Defense on Thursday (9th).
Five additional soldiers were killed in the Gaza Strip over the weekend.
A total of 30,139 security personnel and civilians have been killed defending the Land of Israel and in terrorist attacks since 1860, the year in which the first Jews left the Walls of Jerusalem to build new Jewish neighborhoods.
Ahead of Memorial Day, Israel’s leaders gathered on Sunday (12th) in a solemn ceremony at the Yad LeBanim organization for bereaved families in Jerusalem.
Addressing the various communities that make up the State of Israel, Netanyhau said, “The firm commitment to our country encompasses all of our fighters in the difficult war – Jews, Druze, Christians Muslims, Bedouins, Circassians… We all fight together, because this is the only way to defeat the monsters of Hamas, who want to destroy us all.”
“The spirit of the people will continue, with God’s help, to lift us up in the fateful challenges that are still ahead of us, and in the full 76 years of our independence. May the memory of those who fell in the ranks of Israel, and of the victims of hostilities, the heroes beloved of our souls, be with us forever,” added the premier.
Chief Of Staff Herzi Halevi’s Memorial Day Statement
Chief of the General Staff, LTG. Herzi Halevi spoke at the Yom Hazikaron ceremony at the Western Wall on Sunday evening (12th).
The following are the Chief of Staff’s full remarks at the ceremony.
“When a person assumes command in the IDF, he takes on the weight of responsibility and a divine appointment.
He educates his soldiers on warfare and warcraft. He mentors them in values, professionalism, determination, initiative and dedication to the mission.
He passes down the legacy of former heroes of Israel and shapes them in their heroic image.
Leading them from the front, he bears the grave responsibility for the soldiers lives; it is his duty for life.
When they fall, he stands before their families, weighed by the responsibility, which never dissipates.
The responsibility is etched on the faces of field commanders, and I see it each time I meet them.
Honorable President of the State, Mr. Isaac Herzog, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Dear bereaved families, Distinguished Guests: Throughout this war, I have visited our troops in Gaza numerous times.
Try to visualize the battlefield.
Facing me is a relatively young officer – courageous and composed, filled with a sense of purpose and fully aware of the gravity of his duty.
He recounts stories and important insights from the battlefield and I listen and learn. When I depart, his image as commander stays with me. And I know we can trust him.
Shortly after, the news comes – there was a fierce battle, there were casualties— and he is one of the fallen. The memory of his steadfast gaze and reassuring words will forever linger in my mind.
How deep the pain of loss, and how worthy the cause.
Every Memorial Day, we stand and read the Yizkor Prayer for our fallen soldiers, comrades and commanders.
For the splendor of youth, the yearning for valor, the sanctity of will and virtue of self-sacrifice.
By uttering the words ‘the splendor of youth,’ we visualize their final moments, their noble choices and courageous decisions, to uphold their oath to defend the State of Israel.
‘A yearning’ is a powerful desire to achieve that which is sublime.
This yearning is the essence of human will, because it seeks to attain that which is beyond reach.
The bravery of IDF soldiers has manifested in many forms over generations and battles. Their heroes differ in time, place and circumstance, yet they share a common element.
The heroes of the IDF have joined its ranks out of a sense of duty and purpose, and when faced with the ultimate test, they had the courage to do what was right.
The service of every man and woman in the IDF requires bravery. The willingness to shoulder the responsibility and undertake tasks which involve risk requires bravery. Every act of an individual to ensure the safety of many, requires bravery.
Israel’s fallen soldiers strove for bravery, but did not seek death. They aspired to a life filled with meaning, to follow their passion, fulfill their dreams and leave a mark on the world.
They were heroes for the living, in the name of the living. When they fell they left an indelible mark of bravery.
On this day we bow our heads in memory of those who fought before us and alongside us in the wars for the independence of Israel and for the freedom of our people, and they have laid down their lives fighting the enemy.
We commemorate those who perished in accidents, and those who succumbed to illness or emotional distress.
By honoring our missing ranks, we vow to stand by our wounded – in body and soul.
We vow to do whatever is necessary to locate those missing in action and bring them back to their country.
We vow never to forget our hostages – men, women, children and elderly, civilians and soldiers – and never to forsake our profound commitment for their swift return to their homes.
On this Memorial day, in the 76th year of our independence, on behalf of all the previous commanders of the IDF, I salute the 25,040 fallen soldiers of Israel.
As the commander of the IDF during the war, I bear the responsibility for the failure of the IDF to defend our civilians on October 7th. I carry its weight on my shoulders daily, and in my heart, I fully understand its significance.
I bow my head in tribute to the civilians we could not save, to our comrades of the alert squads and security services and to the fallen soldiers of the IDF, men and women in reserve or active duty, who died in battle since the war began.
They were warriors, who bore full responsibility for missions of security and defense, rose to the occasion and stormed ahead without waiting for orders. They were women who stuck to their posts and would not abandon them in the face of approaching evil.
In the fiercest battles, many commanders charged forward, straight into the fire.
On long days of intense and daring fighting, amidst the enemy above and below ground, they all faced danger courageously and prevailed.
We are eternally indebted to those who walked the narrow path separating the sanctity of life and self-sacrifice.
They viewed themselves as if the fate of the entire war rested solely upon their shoulders. They did not seek glory, but to be the shield that safeguards their people.
Dearest families, when a commander loses soldiers, his responsibility becomes an endless commitment to their legacy and the people they left behind.
I am the commander who sent your sons and daughters into the battle from which they never returned, and to the posts from which they were taken hostage.
I carry the memory of the fallen with me and I am responsible for providing answers to the difficult questions that haunt you.
I did not know all of the fallen soldiers, yet I shall never forget them.
I have not been able to visit their homes, yet I am forever committed to you – parents, children, siblings, partners and grandparents.
I stand humbly before your courage to endure pain, to gather strength each day despite heavy loss, and fill the void with meaning.
In this war, we are resolved to complete our mission, although we realize the heavy cost.
As long as our enemies rise against us, we shall stand guard, ready and willing, respond forcefully to any attempt to harm us , and strike down those who seek our destruction.
Service men and women of the IDF —
From the day we don the IDF uniform, we wear the mantle of responsibility. From the moment we enlist, we are united under one worthy cause – the defense of the country.
So it has been, and so it shall be.
It is a great privilege to be your commander – you, who are courageous and virtuous, steadfast, and devoted, willing to take risks for this worthy cause, the worthiest of all.
Our debt to the fallen spans generations; to all who dreamed of the ‘coveted land, good and abundant,’ yet never lived to pass through its gates, and to all who have returned, held onto its soil, and whose valor ensures the independence of Israel in our homeland – the coveted land our forefathers yearned for. And its protector – the IDF.
May the memory of the fallen be blessed.”
Gallant Instructs Ministry To Develop New Peerless Weapon To Combat Terrorists
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant instructed the head of the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Research and Development (DDR&D, or MAFAT in Hebrew), Danny Gold, in a private conversation to develop a type of weapon that no one knows about and has no equivalent in the world.
The defense minister asked that the weapon be designed to fight effectively against terrorist organizations according to combat scenarios in ongoing fighting in the Gaza Strip in which terrorists succeed in hiding under cover of buildings and underground infrastructure over large areas.
Gallant’s directive comes against the backdrop of American threats to stop arms shipments and Iran’s historic attack on Israel by launching hundreds of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles.
MAFAT informed the defense minister that the development of the laser system in the air and on land is progressing beyond expectations. It should be noted that no laser firing test has been conducted.
It is estimated that the system will develop over the next two years to begin intercepting aircraft, rockets and mortar shells and will serve as a complimentary system to the Iron Dome.
The development of the Arrow 4 system is also advancing according to expectations in collaboration with defense industries, and it is already generating significant interest in the United States and other countries.
This is amid the Arrow 3 system’s recent success against threats fired from Iran, Iraq, and Yemen.
Gallant also approved a special budget for MAFAT to accelerate the development of highly advanced chips that will improve the computing capabilities of various Israeli ordnance and enhance battlefield performance.
Security officials emphasize that the IDF must grow and be capable of shouldering the cost of combat in the Gaza Strip, the northern border and other areas.
Ex-US Army Chief Defends Israel’s Oct,-7 Response: ‘Can You Imagine What We Would Do?’
Former US Army Chief Mark Milley on Tuesday (7th) defended Israel’s conduct of the war in the Gaza Strip after Hamas’ October 7 massacre, saying a massacre equivalent in scale in the United States would have meant “”50,000-100,000 people” being killed in a single morning.
“Israel has a right to defend itself. They were the ones who were attacked, brutally, on the 7th of October. Twelve hundred people were slaughtered — not just killed in the conduct of war, they were slaughtered, beheaded, butchered, raped in front of their husbands,” Miley, who ended his four year term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs in September, said at a geopolitics panel in Washington DC.
During Hamas’ brutal incursion, 252 hostages were also taken, 128 of whom remain in Gaza, not all of them alive.
“And it was stuff that was not even a hair’s breadth removed from what the Nazis did,” he continued. “And if you take the math and do 1,200 and apply it to the United States, that’d be 50,000-100,000 people dead. Can you imagine what we would do?”
Milley added that in his own experience, “war is a horrible thing” and that such a war fought in “dense urban areas” inevitably would produce “collateral damage,” appearing to reference the significant destruction in the Strip amid the military offensive against Hamas, which is taking place in densely populated Gaza.
“There’s almost no way around it… you need to get into it, achieve your objectives, and get it done and over with,” he said.
Israel stresses it is only targeting terror groups in its offensive, but faces an uphill battle in limiting civilian casualties in this conflict, and has provided overwhelming evidence that Hamas and other terror organizations use civilian areas as a cover for their activities.
Jews Are Becoming More, Not Less Zionist – Gil Troy
A few marginalized, anti-Zionist Jews share massive headlines, as the overwhelming majority of pro-Israel Jews abandon their delusions that Jew-hatred had ended. Accusing Israel of “colonial land theft” negates Jews’ 3,500-year-old indigenous roots. Charging “ethnic cleansing” overlooks the UN’s 1947 partition plan and every other compromise Palestinians rejected. And crying “genocide” perverts the word’s meaning (eliminating another nation): the Palestinian population has quintupled since 1948.
Most Jews had a Zionist awakening on Oct.7, because they saw what victory looks like to the anti-Zionists – and what happens if we don’t protect ourselves. In their bones, Jews recognized the sadistic Jew-hating glee motivating the Hamas terrorists – followed by waves of Gazans – raping, kidnapping, maiming, murdering. On April 13, the Iranians and their proxies launched 320 lethal reminders that thousands more would die without Israel’s vigilant army.
The Jewish and Zionist lesson is: First defend yourselves – survival – then heal the world. Hillel the elder understood that too, saying, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me?” Zionists understand that Jews are a people, not just a religion, with millennia-old ties to one particular homeland, and the right to build a state in that homeland.
The writer, a Distinguished Scholar of North American History at McGill University, is a Senior Fellow in Zionist Thought at the Jewish People Policy Institute. (Los Angeles Jewish Journal)
