Liveblogging the War: Saturday July 15th – Sunday July 16th
First things first – I am alright, in case you were worried. If you are a new reader to this site, you would not have realized that I do not blog on the Jewish Sabbath. I planned on posting a pre-Sabbath post, but the Wi-Fi was turned off without warning, and that was the end of that.
Where do I start? It is a weird feeling to be away from the television and internet, knowing that your country is under attack. If the missiles were landing closer to us, then we would surely be connected, even on the Jewish Sabbath – life takes precedence, after all. But since we were out of harm’s way (we hope), we spent the Sabbath oblivious to what was going on. Except for the periodic sound of airplanes flying overhead (about once to twice an hour).
You are all probably aware of what has been going on since you last heard from me. The IDF warship being struck by an Iranian-manufactured missile, killing 1 soldier, with 3 others missing. The unrelenting barrages of Katushas hitting our northern communities, killing a 58-year-old grandmother and her 7-year-old grandson (or 5-year-old; once again Ha’aretz and JPost cannot agree), and wounding over a hundred others. The IDF deployment of Patriot missile batteries in Haifa, which do not protect against Katushas, but could protect against surface-to-surface missiles like those possessed by Syria. Our air force continuing to strike Hizbullah strongholds, and the Lebanese PM calling for a ceasefire, as well as help in deploying the country’s army in the south (methinks they should have done this 6 years ago).
I will endeavor to continue with the liveblogging as best I can, and time permitting (my day job keeps me very busy).
Updates (Israel time; most recent at top)
12:08AM: Hizbullah have fired Katushas in to Afula and Upper Nazareth, representing the furthest inside Israel they have reached up until now (50 kilometers inland from the northern border).
11:40PM: I can hear a number of planes flying overhead now.
11:35PM: Russian President Putin just becomes more unlikable by the minute.
Russian President Putin says he doesn`t regret having invited Hamas to Moscow
- Reuvan Levi, 43 year-old from Kiryat Ata
- Danis Lapidos, 24 year-old from Kiryat Yam
- Shmuel Ben Shimon, 41 year-old from Yokneam Ilit
- Nisim Elhariri, 43 year-old from Kiryat Ata
- Asa’el Damti, 39 year-old from Kiryat Yam
- David Feldman, 28 year-old from Kiryat Yam
- Sholomi Mansura, 35 year-old from Nahariya
- Rafi Hazan, 30 year-old from Haifa
Our thoughts are with their families.
9:48PM: Pam has posted this letter from a US marine in Iraq.
I am the Marine that wrote to you about the News Media betraying us. I just wanted to tell you that we, Marines, SUPPORT Israel in their war against Hamas and Hizbullah. I cannot express to you how many Marines I have talked to or have heard say how proud of Israel they are. I cannot tell you how happy I am that Israel is destroying Hamas and Hizullah. We all CHEER when we watch Lebanon being bombed on TV in the Chow Hall. I hope Israel annihilates Hamas, Hizbullah and Syria. Because the way we see it, that is less Jihadists for us to fight. I can’t speak for all Marines, but the Marines that I know and talk to stand by Israel 100%. And I am in the infantry, we are front line Marines. Warriors. We support Israel because we have fought the same people they are fighting, Jihadists. This is a world war. It has been a world war since 11 September 2001. Hopefully now people are realizing the true scale of this conflagration. And Israel is fighting the same enemy in Gaza and Lebanon as America is fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, just on another front in the same war. And we see the Israeli Soldiers as brothers in arms against a common enemy. Myself and the Marines in my unit, Veterans of 2 tours in Iraq, support Israel all the way to victory. And I THANK the State of Israel for their determination, fortitude and vigilance in the destruction of Evil.
God Bless America.
God Bless Israel.
And God Bless all freedom loving people worldwide.- US Marine and Veteran of the current world war.
PS Pay attention to Somalia. We are currently losing Somalia to the Jihadists and we are doing nothing about it. Someday we will have to go back Somalia and it will be a bloody mess.
Answer:
8:45PM: Reader Mark has suggested that I post links to some charities or organizations to which people can donate money to help Israel.
Here are some that come to mind:
Magen David Adom
Friends of the IDF
Zaka
Yad Sarah
State of Israel Bonds
One Family Fund
Please feel free to contact me if you have any other suggestions.
8:30PM: Terrorists have infiltrated an IDF post near Kiryat Shmona. One terrorist has been killed.
8:15PM: The IAF has attacked some rocket launching sites in southern Lebanon, hitting at least one mobile missile battery.
Meanwhile, here’s why civilians are being killed in Lebanon.
“We have a pretty good idea where they are launching their rockets from – villages and small communities – and [as such] we have warned civilian residents to evacuate their homes,” he said.
8:06PM: Our Air Force chief has stated that Israel has so far used only a small fraction of its aerial capability.
According to Ehud Ya’ari on channel 2, the video of Nasrallah was recorded at 1:00 p.mSo he could be hurt after all…
7:48PM: Well I guess if we did hurt Nasrallah this morning, it was not enough to shut him up.
Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah on Sunday said the Israel Defense Forces offensive on Lebanon had not depleted its large stockpile of rockets, and warned that the Islamic group could strike almost anywhere in Israel.“We will continue. We still have a lot more and we are just at the beginning,” Nasrallah said in a taped televised address on Al-Manar. “We promise them surprises in (any) confrontation.”
Nasrallah threatened “direct confrontation” if IDF ground forces entered Lebanon, adding that his guerrillas have “complete strength and power” despite Israel’s five-day bombardment.
“As long as the enemy pursues its aggression without limits and red lines we will pursue the confrontation without limits and without red lines,” Nasrallah said. “The enemy doesn’t know our capabilities or what we have.”
The Hezbollah leader said the IDF’s offensive in south Lebanon “relied on false information,” adding that “all the targets hit in south Lebanon were civilian. There were no bases or Katyushas there.”
He urged Arabs and Muslims worldwide to support his guerrillas, saying his group was fighting Israel on behalf of them.
“Today, especially in this sensitive moment and after several military achievements and surprises, Hezbollah is not fighting a battle for Hezbollah or even for Lebanon. We are now fighting a battle for the(Islamic) nation,” he said. “The peoples of the Arab and Islamic world have a historic opportunity to score a defeat against the Zionist enemy … We are providing the example,” he added.
“The Zionists did not understand our warnings and carried on with their strikes. Today we had no choice, and therefore we bombed Haifa. We are aware of the danger in this town, and that is why we did not strike the petrochemical factories,” he stated.“Had we targeted the plants, this would have been a disaster for the residents. We hit around these factories in order not to escalate the situation, and out of belief that our weapon is the weapon of deterrence,” Nasrallah explained.
“Hizbullah is very surprised…We had the audacity to strike Hizbullah‚Äôs most sensitive center. They are surprised by the resilience of the home front; they are surprised because they do not hear the Israeli public panicking and calling on its government to call off the operation (In Lebanon. On the contrary, Hizbullah sees before it a united country and it is vital that this resilience continues, because it will determine the outcome of the entire war.”I have mentioned this before. We are becoming more unified here in Israel, as left-wing and right-wing find common ground: the will to survive. For instance, I spoke with a very left-wing colleague of mine at work, with whom I hardly ever agree. Today I asked him if he agrees with what we are doing in Lebanon. He answered: “Absolutely.”Hizbullah have made a grave error: they have underestimated the power of a united Israel.
“We are being asked why we bombed the Beirut-Damascus road? The reason is not that we’re interested in harming Lebanese infrastructure, or in punishing Lebanon, but rather it is to prevent caravans of weapons and other supplies from Syria to Hizbullah.”
The Israel Police on Sunday detained an Al-Jazeera news team after it broadcast live footage which disclosed the area of Sunday’s deadly Katyusha attack in Haifa, in violation of military censorship rules, police and security officials said.
A senior IAF officer revealed to the Post on Sunday afternoon that the IDF was using bunker-buster bombs to strike at senior Hizbullah officials in hiding throughout Beirut and Lebanon. According to the officer, several of the bunker hideouts were hidden under civilian parking lots.The officer also said that the air force had encountered some resistance, including the firing of anti-aircraft shells at IAF aircraft.Since the Lebanon operation began, the IAF has launched close to 2,000 sorties over Lebanon. According to the officer, the strikes were conducted under the assumption that the Hizbullah had and would use shoulder-mounted surface-to-air missiles.In addition, overnight strikes in northern Lebanon near Tyre killed several senior Hizbullah officials. On Sunday, the Post was told, the IDF destroyed five long-range rocket launchers in southern Lebanon, some of which were used to fire rockets at northern Israel over the past few days, including at Haifa.
United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that the United States is not interested at this point in a cease fire that would allow Hizbullah and the Hamas to violate it by firing rockets toward Israel.Rice also said during the interview that this is not the time for it, and there is need to impose UN resolution 1559 that calls for disarming all the militias in southern Lebanon
According to the A-Sharaq Alwasat news agency, an Iranian military source said that Iran transferred 11,500 missiles and rockets to Hizbullah between the years 1992 to 2005.According to their report, Hizbullah currently has four kinds of advanced ground-to-ground missiles: the short-range FajR (100 km range), the Iranian 130 missile (90-110 km range), the Shahin missile (up to 150 km range) and a rocket 335 mm in diameter (150 km range).
“Only if the two goals which Israel has set for itself ‚Äì removing Hizbullah and disarming it, including rockets, and returning the kidnapped soldiers ‚Äì there will be a point in discussion the Lebanese offer,” a senior state official said.
11:31PM: Here’s more Russian nonsense:
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov on Saturday warned that other nations could be drawn into the escalating Middle East conflict, which he called “a war that has begun.”Ivanov appealed to the Islamic extremist group Hezbollah to stop using “terrorist methods” and said both sides must exercise restraint.
11:25PM: Russian President Putin reportedly thinks Israel seeks “wider goals” than the release of our soldiers. Well, we do. Like being able to live in peace and security, without having rockets and missiles rain down on us. Not to mention terrorists blowing us up, and shooting us. Call us unreasonable if you want.
Putin, go back to doing what you do best.
Saturday 11:20PM: I just watched Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mark Regev on CNN. I must say he gave a great account of himself, and handled the presenter’s hostile questions with ease. We need more like him (and I am not just saying this because he is Australian!)
About the Author
An Australian immigrant to Israel, Aussie Dave has been blogging since early 2003.Filed Under: General
You are all in our thoughts and prayers. Good to read that you’re doing okay. I just read that Hezbollah may possess missiles which can reach as far south as Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. If so, look out, because they will not hesitate to use them……….
Can you believe that these idiots (the Finnish Socialist Union) are calling Hezbollah terrorism an “act of solidarity”? http://sosialistiliitto.org/uutiset_gaza_libanon.php (it’s in Finnish so you won’t, probably, understand it – the rest of it is just typical nonsense with the standard image of a Palestinian civilian victim).
At the end of the article they summarize their “demands”. No wonder there isn’t even one part asking for Palestinian and Lebanese terrorists to stop killing Israelis.
Dear Dave, you may wish to leave the gal patuach open for updates on Shabat without opening the radio.
It’s a weird feeling looking for some shelter. Of course we have no bomb shelters here anymore — they were dismantled or are out of use for many years. We’re just a bit south of Haifa… I have no idea what to do “in case”. I hope it won’t happen.
I have linked quite a lot to you lately. Kol ha kavod for never losing your spirit, bite and humour. Much appreciated!!!
it is not ur country being attacked. it is your country doing the attacking!
Israel
While some of the worlds major powers fail to condemn Israel for the slaughter; many Lebanese are dead, the tanks are back in Gaza and Syria is reportedly next on Israel’s agenda.
Rather than attempting to sum-up the situation or provide any me…
Arabist propaganda always a laughable package of desperation
Remember this joker?
To the Arabist street he was the “Iraqi Information Minister” during the second gulf war. To the rest of us he was a comedian put on air for our amusement. And amuse us he did.
Hizbollah is employing similar comedy …
Long live Israel! There are many Americans with you in spirit! And many Christians the world over. I am so proud that Israel is finally taking a stand and not backing down; your country has given far too much away, time after time. And I think it honorable that Israel is willing to fight for two of it’s own (soldiers). As we say in America, Semper Fi!
You say that only because you are prejudiced against Israel, and have been from the beginning. You side with terrorists, and you would endorse anything they did to Israel; people like you think Israel has no right to defend itself nor to draw it’s own boundaries. Or perhaps you are just a coward, who would never fight for anything noble yourself, and so despise anyone who does.
All those babes with paint on their faces, prancing around elections-time waving cedar flags as if it meant something.
Odd how nobody noticed the maniacs with Hezbollah flags.
Now they all have blood on their faces, ain’t that pretty at all.
Sucks, doesn’t it?
Until Lebanon has the courage to be Lebanon and not West Syria, it’s going to suck worse.
Victor Harel , the israeli ambassador in Spain is doing a good job, and belive me it’s not easy, national spanish tv is insane…
and Israel is being attacked, thats a fact, you lier, and then Israel attacks terrorist bases in lebanon . But Europe dont know the word defence
I don’t think it’s an issue of courage. Remember the courage they had when they stood up to Syria a scant few months ago? I believe it’s more of an issue of probability. It is extremely likely that if Lebanon tried to take on Hezbollah, they would lose in a massive civil war peppered with terrorist acts that would utterly destroy Lebanon.
It sucks that Israel has to be the one to clean up this mess (the ‘mess’ being Hezbollah) but they are the only power in the area with any possibility of success.
Wishing you safety and success from America Mr. Israellycool.
Kevin
Terribly sad to hear about the additional casualties in Haifa. Just wanted to share an AP map I found. I think it fairly proves their actual compasses are as broken as their moral ones. Or has their been some unprecedented collaboration that we’re not aware of? Shavua Tov
Keep safe, there are many people on Israels’ side, and many of us are now spreading the word, correcting the propaganda at every opportunity. It must be working, their getting hysterical (as per Opinionated Voice). Take heart at the world’s response, which has been muted.
Israel stands proud in its handling of this conflict. Their respect for human life is well above any other nation in conflict. The world is waking up to the higher so-called ‘civilian’ casualties where the terrorists hide amongst their human shields. Children make such good propaganda, don’t they Opinionated?
Chris from Oz (Melbourne’s wet and cold in the middle of winter, some things don’t change)
Hey Dave -
Just wanted to say “hi” as I crawl out of the Muqata war bunker for some fresh air.
Great job – keep up the excellent work!
I’m sure there will be a JIB category next year for “best war coverage”…right?
Thanks for the reports – I’m sending support to you from Ithaca, NY.
I don’t understand the Russians… They’ve been hit hard by Islamic terror, and yet they get cosy with maniacal dictatorships that hail the Chechen terrorists and then, after that, they have the nerve to help Iran achieve their Nuclear goals by providing… Wasn’t it Uranium they gave Iran? Doesn’t Russia recognize that after, God forbid, America and Israel are no longer the target of Islamic terrorists, Russia WILL be next?!
They boggle my mind!
Israelly Cool
IsraellyCool is live blogging the war.
**Link Updated**
…
You all are in our prayers, and I thank you for doing the work that the American politicians don’t have the will to do. Stay safe, and again, thank you.
–Andrew; Rolla, MO
according to ehud ya’ari on channel 2, the video of nasrallah was recorded at 1:00 p.m
So he could be hurt afterall…
Read The Bush-Putin G8 Summit.
As Churchill said: An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile – hoping it will eat him last.
Shy Guy
Bush To Israel: Be “Mindful Of The Consequences” (of actions). What About Consequences Of Inaction?
While there Bush’s comments on the recent outbreak of war in the middle east have been pretty well received by most, I think many people are overlooking one small thing that he said, that isn’t quite sending the right message….
I am not Jewish but, I pray for all of Isrial at this time of great fear… and of sorrow. For it’s warriors, I say a special prayer as, I was once young and a soldier too so, I understand what thoughts run thru their minds right now.
For you, I will make up a one of a kind “blog news caster” one. You just be careful and get in the shelter when told. Don’t try to be a hero of some sort.
As for the out come of this “little exchange”, I am old enough to remember a younger Isrial, Moisha Diane, {please forgive my mispelling of the late, GREAT general’s last name} “Golda” the Priminister. Very heady days these were. Exciting for a young trooper to watch an almost new born protect itself.
These crazy people, these terrorists, have not learned anything from history? Do they not know that, the little speck of sand in the middle east, Isrial, faught an ALL OUT, THREE FRONT WAR, not this little firefight going on now but, a real war, and kicked some big time… butt?
Again I pray that, it dosen’t come to it but, if it does, my money is on a tiny country that, has the Star of David on it’s flag. This is a no brainer bet.
The only regret I feel with all that has and may go on in the future, is all the inocents who will be killed… or worse.
Please excuse these ramblings of an old man remembering the past but, I just wanted to say my little bit on the subject.
And again… you be careful and stay safe. I’ll check your site every day till this is over.
I will probably misspell this also but, here it goes… Shalom my friend.
Rick