GAZA REVISITED




The Gaza envelope ‎ (“Otef Aza” in Hebrew), refers to the region of Israel surrounding the Gaza Strip, to the depth of a few miles (7 kms.), mostly agricultural settlements such as Kibbutzim and Moshavim. These Confrontation-line Communities compromise of  approximately 55 settlements, with the addition of the small town of Sderot.
Since the Second Intifada, and especially since Israel withdrew unilaterally from all settlements and bases in Gaza in 2005, the communities in the area surrounding the Gaza strip have been suffering from incessant terrorist attacks - such as infiltration attempts, mortar shells and Qassam rockets .
13 years ago, Israel withdrew from Gaza and transferred the entire coastal territory to the Palestinian Authority. In 2007 Hamas violently seized Gaza from Abbas and the PA and has since initiated or provoked three major conflicts with Israel. For the last nine months, Hamas has been trying very hard to provoke a fourth - with the Arabs from Gaza setting fires, shooting rockets, attacking IDF soldiers, and digging tunnels to infiltrate into Israel.

Since the cease-fire almost a month ago, apart from isolated instances the  Arabs in Gaza have - for the time being – stopped their attacks. Unbelievably, according to my son who lives nearby - the fields surrounding the Gaza Strip are now covered in green - in stark contrast to the scorched and burning fields barely a month ago.
The reason for this miracle is the fact that we have been enjoying an unprecedented amount of rain for December. I don’t recall such a rainfall in the beginning of winter for quite a few years. Especially for the northern Negev, where Gaza is situated, which has been suffering from almost constant droughts. Perhaps the gorgeous poppy fields will even start blooming again!

The damage the Gaza Arabs cause us is nothing compared to the damage they are causing themselves. Instead of Hamas wasting billions of dollars on weapons, rockets and tunnels, etc. they could be using the money for the welfare of their citizens. Gaza is on the verge of  collapse and still they don't learn.
Palestinian leaders are not offering their people a better life, prosperity, security and stability. Instead, the leaders are urging Palestinians to continue hating Israel and the US. They are urging Arab countries not to make peace with Israel: they consider normalization with Israel an act of treason.

A member of Kibbutz Nahal Oz (almost next door to Gaza) was murdered in the kibbutz fields by an Arab terrorist, nearly a decade before the Six Day War.  In his eulogy of the victim - Moshe Dayan, the Minister of Defense at the time, stated: “Beyond the line of the border surges a sea of hatred. Let us not fear to look squarely at the hatred that consumes and fills the lives of hundreds of Arabs who live among us. Let us not drop our gaze, lest our arms be weakened. That is the fate of our generation…….”


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

GRANDMA'S ARMY IN EMOTIONAL DISTRESS

Image
  GRANDMA'S ARMY IN EMOTIONAL DISTRESS Yesterday felt like the longest day in my life. I was   spending   the festival - which is considered the happiest in the Jewish calendar - with my daughter, her husband, son and very pregnant daughter-in-law in Gannei Tal (a moshav down south). Instead of dancing in the synagogue we were being confined to their “safety room”, like prisoners, while continuously being bombarded by the thousands of rockets coming from Gaza. Not long after the first siren woke us all up at 6:30 in the morning my grandson, who was a commanding officer in an elite unit, was called-up. He was gradually joined by his three brothers, one son’s triplets, plus the son and daughter of my other son. With the addition of two of my granddaughters’ husbands. Some are on the border with Gaza and others were sent to the north, where the threat from Hizbullah is always imminent.   Like the Yom Kippur War, the Arabs took Israel completely by surprise. The war began with a
Read more

GRANDMA'S ARMY IN DANGER

  The “Israeli Defense Forces”   is the only army in the world to be named as such. Since its inception, it has never been Israel’s intention   to be the aggressor or to start a war.   Israel is not looking to enlarge its territory, to become an Empire, or to make converts.   There are 56 Islamic countries, 125 predominantly Christian countries - how dare the Jews claim the right to have a country of   their own, and such a big one! People are used to the Jews being helpless, homeless, and defenceless.   That has been our role in the world for the last 2,000 years. For days, the civilized world has been steeped in stories of the unbelievable barbarity perpetrated by Hamas in Israel. And yet, there is still an international political regime, including academia, that romanticises so-called Palestinians and now blame Israelis for being brutalised. How can one rationalise the murder of close to 1,400 individuals, including rape, decapitating babies, and setting fire to whole famili
Read more

GRANDMA'S ARMY AT WAR

  Six-and-a-haIf years ago I began to write a blog “Grandma’s Army”, as I had seven grandchildren serving in the army at the same time.   Little did I dream that today, that number would jump to seven + ten, Apart from two in the regular army, all the rest are in the Reserves. Both of my sons, who are over 60 years-old, are in army uniform again. They have volunteered to drive army trucks for transport purposes all over the country, after taking a special driving course. Since I began this blog, Azriel and his wife have returned to live in their home on the moshav. They had been evacuated since the beginning of the war, since their home is in the “Gaza envelope”. Azriel has four children and one son-in-law in the army since the beginning. His officer daughter, Adi was called up to the War room of the Gaza Brigade on the second day of the war: “When the first Givati ground forces of the regular army entered Gaza, I knew that my fiancé, Hillel, was amongst them serving as an offi
Read more