Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Within Range: 7th Day of War

Nadene Goldfoot
Jerusalem, the capital of Israel  is a city of 816,418 of 64% Jews and 36% Arabs.  The first missile that struck almost hit an Arab community.  Another has now fallen there.  They shoot these missiles, mortars or rockets indiscriminately, not knowing exactly where it will land.  It could be a holy site of any of the 3 religions.  I wonder how they'll feel if it hits the Dome of the Rock?  Tel Aviv was hit again.

This fight Israel has on its hands is with a people who have much different values and think so differently than Israelis or most Americans.  They are calling out that Israel is the aggressor after shelling Israel since 2001.  Just today 120 rockets fell into Israel.  They are very angry that the death toll for Israel is only 5 at this writing; the soldier hit while on duty checking the fence, the 3 religious Chabad members, and now an 18 year old soldier on the front line.

Since the beginning last week, Israel has had 252 casualties.  350 rockets have come into Israel.  The reason there is a difference in number is because Israel tries to protect its citizens while the terrorists put them out in the open to gain this very lop-sided number as something to hold against Israel in their way of thinking.  There have been 111 deaths to Gazans, most being Hamas terrorists with about 54 civilians.

Six Palestinians were killed by their own Hamas group for helping Israel, so they think.  They killed these men and then dragged around the body of one through the streets on the back of a motorcycle.  People along the street spit on them and called out, "Spy!  Spy!"  This is not showing any human decency for their own people; no trial, no judge, just a quick kill.  If they felt any responsibility, I don't think they would continue to put their rocket launchers amid women and children in densely packed areas, which they are hiding behind.

Turkey, whose government had become one with the Muslim Brotherhood, is also joining Abbas in calling Israel the aggressor, even though they know the background of this retaliation Israel is engaged in.

Israel wants 24 hours of no rockets, missiles or mortars fired from the terrorists before any further agreements are made to see if the terrorists can do it.  They do not want to escalate things but may if they have to.  Hillary  Clinton just landed in Jerusalem from Asia where she had joined Obama.  Michael Oren just said there is no agreement yet.  Israel wants a lasting peace, not a short term solution.  She's there to de-escalate the situation, however.

At this writing, rockets are still falling as rain, as one person put it.  The driver of Magan David Ambulance Service's house was hit.  Here he's been taking patients in his ambulance from the rockets these past years and now his home is struck.  Lindsey Graham threatened Morsi's aid to be cut off, and suddenly he's acting more like a broker in bringing about a cease fire agreement.  1,500 rockets in the past week have been fired into Israel by Hamas.  Israel is really fighting Iran in Gaza as Hamas is an arm of theirs.

Resource:  Fox TV News
http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?ID=292656&R=R1
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/20/hamas-kills-suspected-col_n_2165236.html
http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/11/20/3112436/rockets-pound-israel-for-seventh-day
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/jerupop.html population chart for different years
http://www.evi.com/q/population_of_jerusalem_2012



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