Just back from a quick trip to Canada and the U.S., Ya’akov tells us he was struck by the insecurity and anxiety he encountered among Jewish groups he met with in Toronto, Detroit, New York, Chicago and Florida. (He sure covers a lot of ground in less than a week.) Their concerns are not much different from those that preoccupy Israelis: Hostages. Civilian casualties and humanitarian suffering in the Gaza Strip. Israel’s disunity, which is becoming more apparent as the immediate shock factor of October 7
Today Netanyahyu called a special meeting of the cabinet to discuss Ben-Gvir's proposal to limit Muslim worshippers from praying on the Temple Mount during Ramadan. (He has refused so far to call a meeting to come up with a "day after" plan for Gaza). And he sided with Ben-Gvir on this. Unheard of in the past to do this kind of thing pre-emptively. Gantz and Gallant and the Shin Bet were opposed to this incendiary idea. Once again Netanyahu is putting his own political skin ahead of what the country needs . I hope this topic of Ramadan / Temple Mount attendance will be discussed with Yaakov next week since it didn't come up today.
Why is it taken for granted that a prisoner exchange now will necessarily result in more hostage-taking in the future? The Shalit swap, which was much more extensive than anything being considered now, was in 2011. Was there a wave of hostage-taking as a direct result of that swap? I don't think so. Our hostages that were taken on Oct. 7 were carried off in an extremely unusual and sophisticated operation that only succeeded because we (Israel) had dropped its guard in an absolutely unfathomable way. The entire Gaza border was being "guarded" [sic] by 200 soldiers and a dozen vehicles. That should never have been allowed to happen.
Today Netanyahyu called a special meeting of the cabinet to discuss Ben-Gvir's proposal to limit Muslim worshippers from praying on the Temple Mount during Ramadan. (He has refused so far to call a meeting to come up with a "day after" plan for Gaza). And he sided with Ben-Gvir on this. Unheard of in the past to do this kind of thing pre-emptively. Gantz and Gallant and the Shin Bet were opposed to this incendiary idea. Once again Netanyahu is putting his own political skin ahead of what the country needs . I hope this topic of Ramadan / Temple Mount attendance will be discussed with Yaakov next week since it didn't come up today.
Why is it taken for granted that a prisoner exchange now will necessarily result in more hostage-taking in the future? The Shalit swap, which was much more extensive than anything being considered now, was in 2011. Was there a wave of hostage-taking as a direct result of that swap? I don't think so. Our hostages that were taken on Oct. 7 were carried off in an extremely unusual and sophisticated operation that only succeeded because we (Israel) had dropped its guard in an absolutely unfathomable way. The entire Gaza border was being "guarded" [sic] by 200 soldiers and a dozen vehicles. That should never have been allowed to happen.