Tag: strength

Sinwar is gone – what have we learned?

Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

This week the news broke that Yahyah Sinwar, the Hamas terrorist who planned the October 7th massacre and attempted genocide in Israel, was eliminated by the IDF. The amazing thing about it was that despite all the amazing Israeli intelligence and targeted attacks to eliminate Hezbollah and Hamas leadership, Sinwar was eliminated by a training unit in the tanks unit. This video shows the proof of his death.

Yahyah Sinwar is dead – the proof

Israel has been targeting the leadership of Hezbollah and Hamas for a while now and eliminating them to destroy the infrastructure. While the world said this wasn’t possible, Israel has once again shown that what the world says is not possible, they will make happen. The Hezbollah leadership has been decimated. Not only have they eliminated Nasrallah, they eliminated the next two successors to him. As the chart below shows, the top 3 levels of Hezbollah’s leadership has now been eliminated. This is how you defeat terrorism.

Yet there remain those who actively support the terrorists. Noted antisemite Jackson Hinkle continues to think the terrorists are fighting for freedom despite their clear statements to the opposite. While the terrorists call the United States “The Big Satan” and are clear that while they want to eliminate Israel and all Jews, their real goal is eliminate the West and make the world part of the caliphate under Sharia Law, people like Hinkle empower and embolden them in their efforts to do so. His hatred of Jews blinds him to their desire to kill him. Note the number of views, the number of likes, and those who have saved the post. It’s frightening.

There are those memorializing Sinwar as some sort of Palestinian hero. How easy it is for them to forget his nickname, “The Butcher of Khan Younis” came for slaughtering Palestinians. They quickly forget, or never bothered to learn, that he went to prison for murdering Palestinians or while in prison, he was accused of raping Palestinians and ordered the honor killing of his own sister for having an extramarital affair. It doesn’t matter to them that in his interviews, he stated that he did not care if 100,000 Palestinians died in the conflict he started with Israel. Their hatred of Jews is more important that the facts.

Then there are the lies being told about Israel not allowing food and aid into Gaza. Despite the documentation, despite the pictures and videos, the world chooses to repeat the lies. The documentation of UNRWA providing the aid to Hamas doesn’t change the world’s condemnation of Israel. When the people of Gaza complain that the food given as aid to be given out freely is too expensive, the world turns a blind eye. Israel is the only country that is expected to provide food, water, fuel, medicine, and power to the enemy they are fighting against. They are required to give it to an organization, UNRWA, that is tied closely to Hamas, the enemy they are fighting. The hypocrisy is real.

Over the past month, as Israel has systemically eliminated the leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah, they have shown their strength. As a result, other Arab countries are now taking a strong position against Hamas and Hezbollah. Unlike the current United State administration and European countries, Israel understands that strength is the currency of the Middle East. When you show strength, others join with you. When you show weakness, you are not respected and you have no ability to impact what is happening. We are now seeing Saudi Arabia come out publicly against Hamas and Hezbollah. This is because Israel has shown strength.

Our media and the world’s media doesn’t like to cover those speaking out against the terrorists or the hatred. Yet more and more of them are speaking out. More and more we are seeing those with knowledge choosing to take action and speak out against the terrorists and in support of Israel. The lie that you can’t defeat an ideology is being proven wrong. Here is an amazing piece by a Muslim Yemeni asking real questions and providing real answers. My favorite part is when he tells the muslim woman that what she just said makes her a Zionist.

Here is an Australian journalist speaking the truth. Where is this in our U.S. media? Where is this on the BBC? It’s powerful to watch and hopefully we will now be getting more of this time of accurate coverage.

There are a number of things we have learned since October 7, 2023. Here is a list of things we have learned that we either take action on or suffer because we chose to ignore them.

The world really does hate us. We can’t forget that, ever. We see it constantly. Authors who cancel speaking engagements because they won’t share the stage with a Jew (they say Zionist but they mean Jew). Actors who take uneducated positions. Even Porn stars like Mia Khalifa are now being hailed by the NY Times as an activist because of her Jew hatred. She isn’t educated but she hates Jews and speaks out so that is enough. President Macron of France speaks out against us. President Erdagan of Turkey spews his Jew hatred and wants to partner with the regime of Iran. All we have to do is open our eyes and we can see the world hates us. We can’t keep our eyes closed or our heads buried in the sand about this any longer.

We are always Jews first. That’s who we are and how the world will see us. We are not American Jews, we are Jewish Americans. It’s no different than Germany in the 20s and 30s. Jews thought they were German first. They weren’t. We aren’t. Not Canadian-Jews but Jewish Canadians. We are not French Jews, English Jews, Spanish Jews, or Italian Jews. The Jewish part always comes first. We forget this at our own peril.

Education not Hasbarah for our children. We have lost and are losing our youth when it comes to Israel because we don’t teach them the facts. We don’t teach them the truth. Even when the truth may be ugly. No country is perfect. Every country has done things they regret and are embarrassing in retrospect. Israel is no exception. We need to teach the facts of Israel. Israel didn’t begin in 1948. It began with Abraham. When we teach our children the facts of Israel and the modern State of Israel, they are empowered to support Israel. They are much less likely to believe the lies they are told on college campuses and even in Middle and High School.

We can’t rely on anybody else. For years we have depended on the relationship with the United States for much of Israel’s support. Since October 7th we have seen that while we are still getting American support, some weapons are being delayed and withheld. As important as the relationship with the United States is, we cannot depend on America for as much as we do. Israel must create its own weapons industry to ensure that there are enough weapons, ammunition, and other needed weapons to defend herself when needed. At the end of the day, we are the only ones who will take care of ourselves. On a campaign stop Thursday at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, VP and Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris was Vice President Kamala Harris was interrupted by anti-Israel protesters asking about ‘the Genocide’. Her response included the words, “What he’s talking about is real.” This is scary to hear from our current VP and possible next President. You can watch and listen to it yourself.

VP and Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee last week.

Relationships do matter. If you had told me five years ago that Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt would help defend Israel from an attack by Iran, I would have laughed at you. Yet that’s what has happened TWICE in the past year. The Abraham Accords have changed the narrative and are creating a new opportunity for real peace in the region. The rebuilding of Gaza will happen with our Arab partners. The freeing of Lebanon will be with the Lebanese people. We see the Iranian people supporting Israel while the regime tries to eliminate us. Saudi Arabia is waiting to join in the economic boom that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is experiencing because of their normalization with Israel.

Peace through strength is real. We have seen that the only way to have peace is to show your strength. It doesn’t mean war. It means showing your economic and military strength. It means having strong intelligence and being able to act on it. It means being daring and innovative to gain respect. World leaders respect strength. They do not respect weakness. From the time Israel took the offensive and blew up the pagers and walkie talkies of Hezbollah leaders, the world took notice. As the leaders of these two terrorist organizations have been systematically eliminated, the world took notice. Peace comes through strength. Diplomacy happens because they respect your strength.

The media lies. This may seem like an obvious statement however far too many people simply believe what they see, hear, or read. TikTok has become the preferred news media for many. The bots telling lies make sure to spread them far and wide. The news media is really in the entertainment department and more interested in ad sales and clicks than facts. The old saying, “If it bleeds, it leads” has never been more true. Facts don’t matter, only what will sell more ads. We must be careful with believing what we see, hear, or read as far too often it is simply not factual. The world believes what they are told which only enhances Jew hatred. We do have some reputable journalists and we need to listen to them. One, Douglas Murray, who isn’t Jewish, has been outspoken. Watch this interview with Bari Weiss of The Free Press on her Honestly show.

    This is an hour long and worth every single minute.

    Antisemitism, really Jew hatred, never went away. As Jews in America, we had an incredible period of time when expressing Jew hatred was not acceptable. As a result, we fooled ourselves into thinking that America was and always would be a safe place for us. October 7th and what has come afterwards has shown us the folly of our ways. Jew hatred on college campuses has gone from verbal to intimidation to physical attacks. There is a movement to defund and remove Hillels from college campuses. We see violent demonstrations targeting Jews and Jewish communal facilities under the guise of targeting Israel. Physical attacks just for being Jewish are happening all over the world, including America. The day after it was confirmed that Sinwar was eliminated, multiple signs on UPenn’s campus were vandalized with “Sinwar Lives.” This comes after students and faculty posted repeatedly about Sinwar as a “hero.” This is what we face on the college campuses.

      We cannot be silent. Far too many people are choosing to stay silent rather than stand up for what they know is right. They’d rather be silent and ignored than speak out and take a risk. Their silence makes them complicit in the Jew hatred and the violence. The choice is to remain silent and wait until they come for us or speak up loudly and not allow the hate to grow uncontested. We saw what happens when stay silent in Germany and with the pogroms in Russia. We can no longer afford to be silent. Our silence will ensure our death.

      We have to go to Israel. I don’t mean we have to make Aliyah. We have to visit. Our brothers and sisters need our support. We need to see, feel, and experience what’s going on there. We have an eternal bond with the land and after October 7th, that bond is stronger than we realize until we are there. So go. Volunteer. I’ve worked the land in May and July for a few hours. It’s incredibly rewarding. It is meaningful. I’ve volunteered making packages for IDF soldiers, making Tzizit for IDF soldiers, and making sandwiches for children who aren’t able to afford to purchase them. Each one is more meaningful than the next. I’m too old to join the IDF but I’m not too old to help Israel and the Israeli people.

      These are important lessons that we cannot forget. Our history shows we do forget. We think we are part of the Babylonian people, the Romans, Spain, Russia, Germany, England, France, and the United States. We aren’t. We are always the Jews. We have always been the Jews. We will always be the Jews. As long as we remember that, we will not just survive but thrive. When we forget, we risk elimination.

      Below are two pieces about being Jewish. Both are powerful pieces describing being Jewish. I encourage you to spend the time watching and listening to both.

      I met Andrew years ago at the JFNA General Assembly. His poetry is powerful and worth listening to.

      And of course, the famous piece by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (z’l)

      Iran, Israel, the US, the UK and a surprise from Jordan

      Posted on by Keith Dvorchik

      I had a totally different topic for this blog post and was in the middle of writing it when the alerts came out that Iran had launched drones at Israel.  It quickly became 50+, 100+ and the final report is more than 300 drones. Iran launched cruise and ballistic missiles.  Yemen has launched drones.  Hezbollah launched drones and rockets.  The US came to the support of Israel.  American forces intercepted drones in the skies over Iraq and Syria.

      This image, from the NY Post, shows where things came from yesterday.

      Reports indicate that British fighter jets stationed in Cyprus will assist in intercepting the drones.  Jordan launched planes and shot down those that came through their airspace.  Egypt closed it’s airspace and said they would destroy anything that came through it. Iran has said they will attack US bases if there is any US offensive involvement.  There was no way I could finish the blog I intended to write with this going on.

      So, I’m going to write about where we are.  These are my opinions.  They are my hopes, dreams, concerns, and fears.  I will be wrong about many of them, and we will find out in the coming days what I was right about, what I was wrong about, and what things are yet to be determined.  I’m going to write them now anyway, even as things are developing moment by moment and by the time this is published, some of what I write may be dated.

      Most people expected an Iranian response after the bombing of the headquarters of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Syria.  The IRCG is a branch of the Iranian military that has been designated by the US as a terrorist organization.  The retaliation was expected to happen after Ramadan, so it’s not a surprise that Iran did something.  I’m not sure anybody expected that it would 300+ drones with bombs, cruise, and ballistic missiles, or that it would come from Iran, Yemen, and Hezbollah.  As I watched TV, last night, reading my WhatsApp updates from both the IDF and the Bernie News Network (an amazing way to get updates), I am filled with so many different emotions.

      My first reaction was “this is what happens when you allow evil to remain.”  I have written at length about evil and how it needs to be destroyed.  The world’s inability to eradicate evil when we see it, leads to things like this.  Hamas is evil and must be removed.  There are no excuses to not remove them.  The leadership of Iran is evil.  As Iranian people.  I have friends both of Iranian decent and who live in Iran currently and they hate the government.  Hezbollah is evil.  The Houthis are evil.  As long as we are willing to allow evil to remain, to continue, for any reason, we put the world at risk.  Yesterday was a good example of why Israel must go into Rafa and eliminate Hamas.  It’s why we can’t continue to attempt diplomacy with Iran.  Their government is evil and cannot be trusted.  They only respond to strength.

      My second reaction was to reach out to my family and friends in Israel to check on them.  With this many drones and missiles fired at Israel from multiple directions, the entire country is on lockdown.  Everybody is concerned.  My friends with young children were playing games with them to keep them calm as they were in their safe room.  Those with adult children serving in the IDF are concerned not only about their own safety but the safety of their children.  Those without children at home were trying to sleep but obviously couldn’t.  And my friends that are single were sharing their confidence in Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and the Arrow 3 Israel has in place.  I reached out to two friends in the IDF.  One responded that ‘it will be a long night’.  The other, a high-ranking officer, did not respond as I’m sure he was involved in high level, secret meetings about the response to Iran’s attack, when and how Israel will enter Rafa, or some other critical matter.  October 7th was personal for me and many diaspora Jews.  The attack today is another personal attack, a day I won’t forget. 

      Drones and missles over Jerusalem being shot down by Iron Dome and David’s Sling.

      As I watched the news, once again I was amazed as people blamed Israel for Iran’s attack.  People defending the Iranian government and this massive attack.  People trying to separate Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis from Iran.  I found myself getting very angry listening to them spin responsibility, saying Israel deserved to have 300+ suicide drones ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles fired at the entire country, targeting civilian and military targets.  The video of Iron Dome in effect over Temple Mount is a spectacular example of targeting non-military targets.

      Drones flying over the Temple Mount. Thanks to Iron Dome, nothing was damaged and nobody injured.

      I think about our US government and those who voted against funding Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and the Arrow 3 technology.  These are defensive technologies, designed only to save lives.  They have no purpose other than to save the lives of civilians from terrorists firing rockets, missiles, and drones at Israel.  The members of the US House and Senate who don’t support Iron Dome funding are even more clearly antisemitic.  The only reason to have them is to save the lives of all Israeli citizens and those who live in Israel.  When they vote against this funding, they are saying that Israeli lives don’t matter.  On a day like today, when hundreds of rockets and missiles are fired at Israel, the need for this technology is even clearer.  I’ve written about how October 7th has changed me.  The events of today have impacted me as well.  Those who won’t support Iron Dome and defensive technology designed to save lives are people who I view as wanting me and all Jews to be dead.  If they had their way, many Israelis would have been killed.  My friends and family.  If I happened to be there, me.  And they’d be happy if I was killed here.  That makes them people who shouldn’t be in office and who I feel an obligation to do what I can to have them lose their positions.  Today, and their actions, have made me an activist.

      The Arrow 3 system defeating a ballistic missile in space. This video has gone viral on X with over 850k views since I posted it.

      Here is the list of the 9 who voted against Iron Dome and the two who voted ‘present’ in case you want to be an activist as well.

      From Top L-R Reps. Jesus Garcia, Raul Grijalva, Rashida Tlaib, Thomas Massie, Andre Carson, Marie Newman, Cori Bush, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Hank Johnson. (Composite/AP)

      Israel isn’t alone.  Despite some of the challenges with the Biden Administration and the House and Senate, the United States joined with the UK and Saudi Arabia to deploy jets from Cyprus to defend Israel and shoot down drones and rockets before they arrived in Israel.  Jordan directly intercepted drones targeting Israel.  Egypt closed its airspace and activated its air defense systems.  Not too long ago that would have been an unthinkable thing to say.  A few days ago, it was Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Iraq trying to talk Iran into not doing anything.  Another unthinkable statement just a few years ago.  Both Indonesia and Saudi Arabia are still on track to normalize relations with Israel in the future.  Despite the rise in antisemitism, despite the worldwide criticism of Israel in the war with Gaza, despite the negativity Israel faces in the media, Israel is not alone.  As Jews, we don’t have to be alone either.  We can build relationships with different groups to that we are there for them in their time of need and they will be there for us in our time of need.  Just like it took Israel a great deal of effort to make the Abraham Accords a reality and it’s taking hard work to get Saudi Arabia and Indonesia to normalize relations, it takes a lot of hard work to build those relationships.  So start now. 

      A cruise missile shot down in Jordan. 8 months ago, the idea of Jordan helping defend Israel was unthinkable.

      While the drones and missiles that Iran fired have largely been neutralized today with minimal damage and injuries, it is far from over.  Israel will retaliate.  Iran has threated the US directly and any other nation that gets involved to help Israel.  Will China and/or Russia get involved?  Is this the start of World War 3 or will it pass.  Nobody knows at this point but what we do know is that we must remove the evil for if we don’t, it will grow.  It will spread.  It will come to the United States, and we will face attacks on our own soil.  We will be in a far worse position for allowing it to remain than to do the hard work to eliminate it.  Eliminating evil isn’t easy.  It isn’t pretty.  It won’t come without criticism from those who don’t understand the power of evil and the cost of eliminating it.  We must do it anyway.  The cost of removing evil is less than the cost of letting it remain, grow, and flourish.

      As we move into a new day, we have heard that the Biden administration has told Israel that while Israel will always have the support of the US in defending herself, the US will NOT be involved with any retaliation against Iran.  Once again, the infatuation of this administration with diplomatic attempts with the Iranian government, who doesn’t believe in diplomatic solutions and only strength, is astonishing.  They are correct that the incredible defense by Israel and her allies is a major win against Iran but without a response, Iran will only see weakness.  The message they receive is that this time it was stopped but we can do it again and again until it actually works.  There must be consequences.  The lack of consequences is why the government of Iran continues to terrorize and brutalize their citizens.  It’s why they ignore the nuclear sanctions and continue to develop a nuclear weapon.  The Iranian government lives by the words my father ingrained in my while I grew up, “Talk is cheap” and “Show me, don’t tell me.”  Iran needs to be shown there are consequences and a slap on the wrist or telling them they were bad doesn’t do it.  Israel will respond because they understand the need for strength.  They understand that without showing strength, you lose.  And losing for Israel means not existing.

      I spoke to a friend of mine in Toronto late last night.  I didn’t realize that while I was captivated by the news and checking on my friends in Israel, in Toronto they were in the streets cheering Iran’s attack.  While the Israeli people were being terrorized by the sirens, hiding in safe rooms, listening to the explosions above their heads, Jews in Toronto were being terrorized by people in the streets.  This is another example of the power of weakness.  I was immensely sad chatting with my friend in Toronto.  She shouldn’t have to go through this.  Her husband and sons shouldn’t have to go through this.  The Jews of Toronto shouldn’t have to go through this.  Canadians will support the rights of anybody EXCEPT the Jews.  This is the world we live in today and unless we are willing to be activists, unless we are willing to stand up and speak out, unless we are willing to show strength and fight back, we will live in terror.  I refuse to live in terror or be a part of allow this to continue.  That’s my choice – you have to make your own and live with it. 

      While Israel survived this first attack by Iran with minimal damage, it is only the beginning.  The world must face the fact that Iran is evil.  Their own people hate their government and have tried to resist while the world stood by and watched.  Now it is Israel who will fight back.  Who will escalate the situation.  The world can’t sit by quietly.  They must choose a side.  Let’s hope they choose good over evil.  Let’s hope they understand the fight they are in and that the price, while high, to eliminate evil is worth it. 

      Am Yisrael Chai

      PS:

      Jews are used to being attacked and persecuted. As such we have developed a sense of humor that even in horrible times, we use to cope. Here are two items that in the midst of this horror, I found amusing and lightened my spirit just a little. I hope they do for you.