News Digest — 7/29/24
Attack ‘Crossed Every Possible Red And Black Line’: Israeli Druze Fury At Hezbollah
Israel’s Druze community was reeling in shock after a Hezbollah rocket killed 12 youth and injured another 39 on a soccer field in the Druze town of Majdal Shams on Saturday (27th).
Most of the casualties were between the ages of 10-20. As casualties mounted, so did Druze anger.
“This is a terrible disaster that must not be ignored,” Israeli Druze politician Fateen Mulla told the Press Service of Israel.
“They deliberately targeted a Druze village, knowing that these residents would not be evacuated. And chose to attack a place where children were playing,” the former Knesset member said.
“The State of Israel must respond and eliminate Nasrallah and all the terrorists. If Israel does not act, we will act and restore peace to the entire north. We will not remain silent in this matter,” Mulla stressed.
Sheikh Muafek Tarif, spiritual leader of Israel’s 152,000 Druze, called the attack “cruel and murderous.”
‘It is impossible to imagine and describe the horrors of the children and their broken parts lying on the grass. A reformed country cannot afford continuous harm to its citizens.
“This is the ongoing reality in the northern settlements. The attack crossed every red and black line” Tarif said.
After being briefed on the situation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was in the United States, advanced his return to Israel early, arriving in Israel on Sunday afternoon (28th).
In a conversation with Sheikh Tarif, Netanyahu “made clear that Israel will not allow the murderous attack to simply pass on by, and that Hezbollah will pay a heavy price for the attack that it has not paid to this point,” the Prime Minister’s Office said.
The strike came hours after an Israeli airstrike destroyed a Hezbollah arms depot in the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila. Three Hezbollah operatives were killed in the strike.
Hezbollah initially claimed responsibility twice for firing rockets at an army base on nearby Mount Hermon, a few hundred meters away from Majdal Shams.
But the Iran-backed terror organization backed off the claim as the casualty count mounted, claiming that the children were killed by an Israeli Iron Dome interceptor.
In response, Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said,” In the last hour, Hezbollah has been lying and denying its responsibility. From our investigation, it is clear that Hezbollah is responsible for the killing of innocent children playing soccer. This is a very serious incident, and we will act accordingly. This is the most severe incident involving casualties since October 7th. We will act to restore safety on the northern border for the sake of all Israeli citizens.”
The army said the rocket was launched from a location north of the village of Chebaa in southern Lebanon. According to the IDF, warning sirens sounded, but there wasn’t enough time to take cover.
“We arrived at the soccer field and saw destruction and objects on fire, injured people were lying on the grass and the sights were dire,” said senior Magen David Adom medic Idan Avshalom.
“We immediately started sorting out the injured, some of the injured were taken to local clinics. During the incident, there were three additional alerts, as the medical treatment continued their work.
While the Israel Defense Forces had not identified what type of rocket was used in the attack, Sarit Zalavi, founder and president of the Alma Research and Education Center said that it was not a precision rocket.
“It’s not surprising that once these weapons are allegedly targeting military bases, they will fall in a nearby community. Hezbollah has accurate weapons, but it chooses again and again during this war to launch inaccurate weapons against military bases of the IDF and that puts at risk civilians in the north.”
She added that Hezbollah “fears a Druze response.” Druze make up approximately five percent of the Lebanese population.
The Druze trace their ancestry back to the Biblical figure Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses.
Israeli Druze serve in senior positions in public and military life, and the bond between Jewish and Druze soldiers is referred to as the “covenant of blood.”
The Druze speak Arabic but are not Muslim and are very secretive about their religious beliefs.
The Alma Institute told The Press Service of Israel that Hezbollah rocket barrages on northern Israel are expanding in range, reaching deeper into Israel to unevacuated communities.
Hezbollah leaders have said they will continue the attacks to prevent Israelis from returning to their homes. The attacks have killed 23 civilians and 18 soldiers since October 7th.
Israeli officials have been calling for Hezbollah to be disarmed and removed from southern Lebanon in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 Second Lebanon War.
Ministers Announce Netanyahu, Gallant To Order Retaliation For Deadly Golan Attack
Israeli ministers authorized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Defense Minister Yoav Gallant Sunday night (28th) to decide on the “manner and timing” of a response to the rocket strike in the Golan Heights that killed 12 children and teens nad injured dozens, which Israel and the United States blamed on Lebanese terror group Hezbollah.
Israel has vowed retaliation against Hebollah in Lebanon, and Israeli jets hit targets in southern Lebanon during the day Sunday (28th) and reportedly shelled sites there just after midnight Monday (29th), as Lebanon braced for Israel’s expected reprisal and diplomats scrambled to keep the conflict from snowballing.
Members of the Druze community held funerals Sunday for 11 of the 12 young victims of the strike on a soccer field in the town of Majdal Shams, amid fury and grief over the tragedy, which occurred just steps from a bomb shelter.
Netanyahu and Defense chief Gallant met Sunday night (28th) with members of the high-level security cabinet to discuss Israel’s response to the Saturday (27th) attack.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office, during the four-hour meeting, lawmakers voted to give Netanyahu and Gallant authority to decide on the scale and timing of Israel’s response to the deadly attack in the Golan.
Israel said that the Falaq rocket used in Saturday’s (27th) attack was an Iranian-made missile fired from an area of southern Lebanon, placing the blame squarely on Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
As thousands of residents of Majdal Shams gathered Sunday (28th) for the funerals of 10 of the 12 children killed in the rocket strike Saturday (27th), the Israel Defense Forces released evidence showing shrapnel found at the soccer field matching an Iranian-made Falaq-1 rocket, which in Lebanon is exclusively used by Hezbollah.
The Iranian-made Falaq-1 has a 50 kilogram (over 110.2 pounds) warhead and a range of 10 kilometers (over 6 miles), according to the IDF.
The IDF also published the flight path of the heavy rocket, showing it was launched from the Chebaa area in southern Lebanon.
Erdogan Demands Apology After Abbas Skips Turkish Parliament Event; Suggests Military Action Against Israel
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched a scathing attack on Palestinian Authority Leader Mahmoud Abbas Sunday (28th), demanding an apology for his refusal to accept an invitation to speak before the Turkish Parliament in Ankara.
“Mahmoud Abbas, who didn’t show up despite our invitation to address the parliament, owes us an apology. Let’s see if he’ll agree to come now,” Erdogan said during a charity event.
The Turkish president’s remarks expose the growing rift between Ramallah and Ankara, following Turkey’s unified stance with the Hamas terrorist organization, the PA’s political rival. Erdogan has also repeatedly hosted senior Hamas officials since Oct. 7.
In the same speech, he condemned the United States for allowing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address Congress. “We all witnessed the shameful spectacle in the House of Representatives. Frankly, we are embarrassed for humanity in light of what we saw there. They rolled out the red carpet for someone like Netanyahu and applauded him until their hands were sore.”
Meanwhile on Sunday (28th), Erdogan suggested that a potential military action could be taken against Israel, drawing parallels to Turkey’s involvement in Karabakh and Libya.
Erdogan, who is a fierce critic of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, started discussing that war during a speech praising his country’s defense industry.
“We must be very strong so that Israel can’t do these ridiculous things to Palestine. Just like we entered Karabakh, just like we entered Libya, we might do something similar to them,” Erdogan told a meeting of his ruling Ak Party in his hometown of Rize.
“There is no reason why we can’t do this… We must be strong so we can take these steps Erdogan added.
AK Party representatives did not respond to calls asking for more detail on Erdogan’s comments, and Israel did not immediately comment.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded late Sunday (28th) to Erdogan’s threats comparing him to Iraqi despot Saddam Hussein. “Erdogan is following in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein by threatening to attack Israel. He should remember how that turned out and how it ended,” Katz wrote on X. The Turkish President appeared to be referring to Past actions by Turkey.
In 2020, Turkey sent military personnel to Libya in support of the United Nations-recognized Government of National Accord of Libya.
Libyan Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah, who heads the Government of National Unity in Tripoli is backed by Turkey.
Turkey has denied any direct role in Azerbaijan’s military operations in Nagorno-Karabakh, but said last year it was using “all means,” including military training and modernization to support its close ally.
Plague-Infected Letter Mailed To French Interior Minister Amid Heightened Security Concerns
French police are investigating the origins and circumstances surrounding a letter, sent to French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, which tested positive for the bubonic plague, the Telegraph reported on Sunday night (28th).
The letter had been discovered in a mail-sorting center but suspicious details of the envelope led staff to telephone the police.
The letter was sent without a stamp and had undisclosed “inscriptions” on its back.
When authorities opened the letter, they were met with black powder. The content of the letter also reportedly included a variety of racist insults.
After carrying out tests on the letter, it came back positive for the bubonic plague – which famously killed millions in Europe in the Middle Ages.
A local prosecutor said that there was still a chance that the test results were a false positive and that more tests would be carried out.
France has been on high-alert, as the Paris Olympics 2024 is a prime target for international terrorist organizations. Arrests have already been carried out against individuals for planning attacks at the event.
Adding to the heightened alert, Israel’s athletes have faced threats and intimidation. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators have attempted to see the Jewish state disqualified from the games – some by intimidation and others by protest.
French police have opened an investigation into death threats received by three Israeli athletes at the Games, the Paris Prosecutor’s Office said on Sunday (28th).
On Thursday (25th), Israel’s foreign minister warned his French counterpart of a potential Iranian-backed plot to target Israeli athletes and tourists during the Paris Olympic Games.
Recently a video went viral in which a man in Hamas-garb threatened the Olympics for its allowance of Israel’s participation.
Saboteurs struck the French TGV high-speed train network in a series of pre-dawn attacks across the country, causing travel chaos and exposing security gaps ahead of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony on Friday (26th).
The coordinated sabotage took place as France mounted a massive security operation involving tens of thousands of police and soldiers to safeguard the capital for the sporting extravaganza, using security resources from across the country.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks on the high-speed rail network, which is a source of national pride for many in France.
‘No Way To Treat An Ally At War:’ WSJ Editorial Slams Protests Targeting Bibi’s Congress Address
The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board, on Thursday (25th), published a condemnation of the way anti-Israel protesters acted during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the US Congress last week.
The board pointed to numerous crimes committed by protesters, including the defacement of federal property, the wounding of police officers, the burning of American flags, and the dumping of mealworms, maggots, and crickets into a hotel where Netanyahu was residing.
“BON APPETIT” the Palestinian Youth Movement wrote on Instagram, adding, “Mealworms and maggots were left on their (Netanyahu and his entourage) banquet tables, and crickets were released on multiple floors of the hotel.”
The WSJ expressed sympathies for the hotel staff who would have to clean up the pests.
As Netanyahu outlined the next stage in the war against Hamas, which the WSJ board described as “reasonable,” the board wrote,”Israelis can be proud; Americans, less so.”
The board claimed that the protesters had been “trumpeting their hatred for America, Israel and Jews” during the demonstration.
The board further condemned members of the Democrat Party for boycotting Netanyahu’s speech, stating that the actions of the protests proved “Netanyahu’s point that many anti-Israel protesters choose to stand with evil. They stand with Hamas.”
It charged that the boycott of Netanyahu was “no way to treat an ally at war.”
While the editorial board acknowledged that not all protesters demonstrating on behalf of Gaza were this despicable,” it concluded that “most of the anti-Israel movement despises America and seeks to intimidate Democrats into submission.”
