Hamas guards border

While Egypt clears Sinai

When Hosni Mubarak fell and Mohammed Morsi, with his Muslim Brotherhood associates, rose to power, Israelis had to wonder if the quiet along the Egyptian-Israeli border would remain or if the sound of gunfire would once again resound.

It’s hard to believe, but with Morsi at the helm, things actually are getting better for Israelis in Israel. At least for now.

Even attacks from Aza are down.

Morsi did what Mubarak never did: he sent in troops to clear some of the terrorists out of the Sinai after first working with Israel to modify cease fire terms on the number of troops allowed in the desert.

I still think the Sinai should be cleared of terrorists by a joint Egyptian-Israeli force; to my mind it would be a win-win situation for Egypt and Israel; only the terrorists would lose, and that’s a good thing.

The real surprise, though, is Morsi’s action toward Aza.

One of his first acts as president was to start destroying the tunnels from Egypt into Aza. The tunnels were the primary way weapons were smuggled into Aza, weapons used against Israel. The tunnels also were used to smuggle in people and consumer goods, avoiding Hamas’ import duties.

Now Morsi has gone beyond tunnel destruction.

He successfully pressured Hamas to cease attacks on Israel and charged it with preventing attacks by splinter groups such as the Salafists.

IT’S WORKING!

According to a Times of Israel article (http://tinyurl.com/lb8v4vm) :

Hamas established a special force of about 600 men to “safeguard public order;” it operates mostly along the Aza-Israeli border.

There has been a dramatic decline in the number of rockets fired at Israel. According to Israeli figures, since the end of Operation Pillar of Defense in November (2012), some 20 rockets or mortar shells have been fired into Israel, compared to about 150 over the same the previous year.

Egypt still has a long way to go get its own house in order, but from Israel’s perspective, the Morsi regime has to be a welcome surprise, even though Egypt currently is not a recommended tourist destination for Israelis. Currently there are no flights between Lod (TLV) and Cairo (CAI). El Al canceled its flights allegedly due to the high cost of security vs. the number of empty seats. A PalAir flight from Aza to Lod also is no more, probably more because of lack of passengers than the chance a terrorist missile bound for Israel might down a commercial flight. (You can fly from Lod to Cairo via Amman, but it’s pricy.)

No one ever expected two terrorists – Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin – to manage a peace agreement after years of war between their two countries, but they did, and while it cost Sadat his life, after Sadat and Begin inked the agreement, the greatest danger for Israelis visiting Egypt was traffic accidents. Perhaps, with Morsi in control, it will be that way again. (Too bad Israel lacks a man of Begin’s stature.)

 

Planning a long flight? Take heed.
Flying to TLV? Did you make your reservations via an on-line service? Take the following advice to heart. CALL THE AIRLINE AT LEAST 72 HOURS (3 days) BEFORE THE DEPARTURE DAY to assure you have kosher meals and the seat location you ordered online. We have a situation where the airline and the booking service are pointing their fingers at each other saying “It’s not our fault you didn’t get your meal and it’s not our fault that you were stuck in a middle seat instead of the window you arranged online.

Direct line to HaShem?

 

Messiah won't come unless haredim get our way: UTJ MK

 

Objecting to a proposal by the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee that would allow Israeli couples to register for marriage anywhere in the country and proposed amendment that would mandate the inclusion of a woman in the committee that selects rabbinical judges, MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) harshly criticized committee chairman, MK David Rotem (Yisrael Beytenu), saying "the messiah will see what this committee is doing and he won't come!"

"This committee has become the garbage can of Judaism. All the anti-Jewish laws find you," Gafni told Rotem, himself an observant Jew. "You have always been anti-religious! You are a big hero, you talk the talk, and that is why you cannot be a representative on the Judicial Selection Committee -- that committee needs strong people."

Apparently only haredi men qualify as "strong people." All others, it appears, equate to Oscar the Grouch of Sesame Street (ר''ח שומשום) fame.

Last month, Gafni said because Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid started pushing to draft haredi males into the IDF or for national service (שרות לאומי ), Israel's security situation has drastically worsened and Syria is aiming missiles at Tel Aviv. Gafni also blamed Israel's credit rating downgrade on Lapid's "infringing on the Torah" according to Israel HaYom (http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=9893)

I'm confidant that Gafni is correct that the meshiach will delay his arrival, but not because of any decisions to which haredim might object but because of the vitriolic senat henam (לשון הרע ושינאת חינם) spewing from the likes of Gafni and his fellows in the UTJ and Shas parties. I would encourage the haredim to go back and read the works of R. Yisrael Meir (Kagan) Poupko, the Chafetz Chayim (חפץ חיים), on lashon harah and baseless hatred (לשון הרע ושינאת חינם). If the meshiach thinks twice about coming to Jerusalem - and G-d knows we need mashiach now, with the world in its precarious condition - it's because of those Jews who think only they have a direct line from HaShem. Seems to me they are modeled after Korach and Company.

A democracy, even an "Israeli-style" democracy demands respect for - and by - all citizens. It demands participation by all citizens in all aspects of the government.

After Moses died, two people led the nation: Yohasua ben Nun and Pinchas ben Afunah. Yohasua was the political leader and Pinchas was the religious leader and, unlike the politicians of today, these two apparently (there is no indication in Torah (תורה שבעל-פי) of anything otherwise) worked together. The cohanim took the field with their brothers to conquer the land. The only exceptions were for cowards. newly weds, owners of new houses and people too young or too old. Perhaps today's haredim who dodge both the IDF and national service are one of the three exempt groups.

Likewise, according to the Torah, everyone except leviim and cohanim had to support both the state and the Temple; in truth, I'm not sure the leviim and cohanim were exempt from taxation to support the state's needs (army, judges and courts, etc.).

The "bottom line" is that when we came into Israel from Egypt, everyone - without exception - participated in the conquest; everyone did their part.

If the haredim complain that the IDF is "not kosher enough" then their presence would enhance the military's kashrut. (One hopes it would reach the level of Bet Yosef/Halak vs. "just glat.") Apparently the IDF IS kosher - when last in Israel and riding cross-country buses, I noticed a number of "modern Orthodox" - male and female - in uniform and, by their gear, some in well-respected combat units.

While I don't have a lot of respect for politicians - Israeli or U.S. - I think Gafni's remark that a Knesset committee is the "garbage can of Judaism" goes to far; that suggests, at least to me, that this representative of the haredim considers all non-haredim as "garbage." He's telling us that "if you are not like me, you're garbage." Today the "garbage" is any non-haredi, tomorrow the "garbage" will be anyone not aligned with his party (UTJ), and the day after, the "garbage" will be anyone who follows any rabbi but Gafni's.

It is because of MKs such as Gafni that the political-religious parties are today in the opposition and continually losing support from the non-haredi sectors. There are political parties that are populated by observant Jews, by Jews who believe in inclusion rather than haredi's exclusion mentality.

"Garbage" MK Gafni? That's pure hutzpah and a disgrace to Judaism.

After thought Another article from Israel HaYom is headlined "Thousands of haredim protest against IDF draft in NYC" and reports on New York's Satmar haredim hitting the streets to protest a draft in a place they don't live, a place where a Satmar admor once said was not a place for (his) Jews.
( http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=9867)

I can recall a rally for Israel in Washington D.C. a few years back. As I was making my way back to the Metrorail station I saw a cluster of Satmar "hasidim" waving not an Israeli flag but a "Palestinian" flag. These are the people who have the nerve to try an tell a government they don't recognize how to deal with its population! They may be the only group of people with more absolute hutzpah than the haredi politicians in Israel.