Doc's Talk: IDF soldier missing in Gaza, presumed dead

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

IDF soldier missing in Gaza, presumed dead

IDF identifies six of seven soldiers who were killed in APC by anti-tank missile on Sunday • Seventh soldier, Oron Shaul, is missing, but IDF believes there is little chance he is alive • IDF death toll rises to 27, as intense Gaza fighting continues.

Lilach Shoval, News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff

A wounded IDF soldier is evacuated to a hospital, Monday

Photo credit: Dudu Grunshpan

An Israeli soldier who was in an armored personnel carrier that was blown up by an anti-tank missile in the Shujaiyya neighborhood of the Gaza Strip on Sunday is missing and is presumed dead.

Six other Golani Brigade soldiers who were riding in the same vehicle were killed and have been identified as Sgt. Max Steinberg, 24, from Beersheba (a recent immigrant originally from Los Angeles); Staff Sgt. Shahar Taase, 20, from Pardesiya; Staff Sgt. Daniel Pomerantz, 20, from Kfar Azar; Sgt. Shon Mondshine, 19, from Tel Aviv; Sgt. Ben Oanunu, 19, from Ashdod; and Staff Sgt. Erez Noach, 22, from Hoshaya.

"At this time, the remains of six of the seven soldiers involved in the incident have been identified," the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement. "Given the complexity of the incident, the identification efforts concerning the seventh soldier are ongoing. The IDF is in constant contact with the families of all seven soldiers."

On Tuesday afternoon, the IDF published the name of the missing soldier -- Oron Shaul, 21 from Poria.

The IDF believes there is little chance Shaul survived the attack. Hamas has claimed it abducted Shaul, but there has been no verification of this claim. IDF officials think the most Hamas might have in its possession are identifying items taken from the scene of the attack.

Nine soldiers were killed between Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning in clashes with terrorists in southern Israel and Gaza Strip, bringing the death toll of Operation Protective Edge to 27. Over 150 soldiers have been wounded since the ground operation in Gaza began Thursday night.

Lt. Col. Dolev Kedar, 38, from Modiin, commander of the Gefen Battalion of the IDF's Bahad 1 officers' training base, was killed Monday when a group of IDF troops thwarted a terrorist infiltration near Kibbutz Nir Am. Three other soldiers were killed in the incident.

Kedar was the highest ranking IDF officer to be killed since ground operation began. He will be laid to rest on Tuesday afternoon at Modiin's military cemetery.

Gefen Battalion Sgt. Nadav Goldmacher, 23, from Beersheba, was laid to rest on Tuesday morning at the Beersheba Military Cemetery.

Gefen Battalion 2nd Lt. Yuval Haiman, 21, from Efrat, was laid to rest at the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery on Tuesday morning.

Chief Warrant Officer Baynesian Kasahun, 39, from Netivot, serving with the Gaza Division's Northern Brigade, will be laid to rest in his hometown on Tuesday afternoon.

Three IDF soldiers were killed in two separate clashes with terrorists in Gaza Strip on Monday.

Golani Brigade Staff Sgt. Yuval Dagan, 22, from Kfar Saba, was laid to rest at the Kfar Saba Military Cemetery on Monday night.

Golani Brigade Staff Sgt. Tal Yifrah, 21, from Rishon Lezion, was laid to rest in his hometown on Tuesday morning.

Details on the funeral of Golani Brigade Staff Sgt. Jordan Ben Simon, 22, from Ashkelon, have yet to be released.

Israeli forces clashed with terrorists in several incidents that took place on Monday night and the early hours of Tuesday morning in Beit Lahiya, Shujaiyya, and Khan Younis, Army Radio reported.

The military confirmed Tuesday that two Nahal Brigade soldiers were killed overnight: Sgt. 1st Class Oded Ben-Sira, 21, from Nir Etzion, and Master Sgt. Ohad Shemesh, 27, from Beit Elazari.

Day 14 of Operation Protective Edge saw the military destroy over 100 terror targets. According to Army Radio, since the ground incursion into Gaza Strip was launched the military has discovered 23 terror tunnels and over 60 shafts that had been dug along the border.

Some 180 terrorists have been killed since Operation Protective Edge was launched on July 7, the report said.

Tunnel terror attack foiled

Israeli communities near the Gaza border were placed under lockdown twice on Monday, following alerts suggesting a possible terrorist infiltration in the area. Security forces blocked dozens of roads in southern Israel and instructed residents to remain inside as they canvassed the area.

The IDF was able to thwart a terror attack near Kibbutz Nir Am, which is adjacent to the Gaza border. The incident, described by military officials as one of the most severe in the fighting so far, saw 10 terrorists infiltrate Israel through a terror tunnel dug under the border fence.

According to available detailed, the incident took place around 6 a.m. Monday, when 10 terrorists infiltrated Israel using a tunnel believed to have been dug from the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun. Military sources said the underground passage stretched about 270 yards into Israel's territory, emerging on the outskirts of Nir Am, and that the terrorists sported full IDF gear, clearly meaning to blend in with Israeli troops deployed in the area.

According to military sources, intelligence obtained by the Shin Bet security agency warned of an imminent terror attack in the area and the IDF bolstered its deployment accordingly. IDF spotters alerted the troops on the ground to the cell's presence, but the Israeli Air Force refrained from launching an airstrike so not to place Israeli soldiers in harm's way.

Ground forces, led by the Gefen Battalion, scrambled to the area. The terrorists then spotted two military vehicles, rose from the bushes and opened fire at the soldiers, launching an anti-tank missile at the vehicles.

The lead vehicle, carrying Kedar, Goldmacher, Haiman and Kasahun, sustained a direct hit. The four were killed immediately.

Once the soldiers realized the terrorists were disguised as Israeli troops and confirmed their location, the IAF was ordered to launch an airstrike, foiling their attempted escape through the nearby tunnel. One terrorist was able to escape, but the IDF was able to retrieved nine terrorists' bodies from the scene.

'There's no such thing as full protection'

The IDF revealed Tuesday that the commander of the Egoz Reconnaissance Unit sustained serious injuries in a clash with terrorists in Gaza Strip on Monday. He was airlifted to the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, where he remains in serious condition.

Meanwhile, the military released the preliminary inquest report on the Sunday incident in Shujaiyya in which the Golani Brigade soldiers were killed in the APC.

The inquest found that one of the M-113 "Cheetah" APCs that entered the area as part of a military convoy stalled and required a second APC to extract it. Two soldiers left the vehicles to facilitate the extraction, when the troops came under RPG fire.

The use of M-113 APCs has been criticized in the past, as they are considered too outdated for deployment in Gaza.

GOC Southern Command Maj. Gen. Sami Turgeman commented on the inquest report saying, "There's no such thing as full protection for every measure deployed in Gaza. We use the necessary discretion when deploying the troops."

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The IDF’s Minorities in Numbers and Pictures

In honor of IDF Diversity Week, we present diversity through numbers and pictures. Each year, more and more Muslims, Christians, Druze, Bedouin and immigrants from around the world take on the responsibility of defending Israel.

MUSLIMS:

Muslim Arab Israelis are not required to draft in the IDF, but there are many who volunteer. In 2013, there were over 200 Muslims serving in the IDF and over 300 in the reserves.

Bedouins:

Bedouins are nomadic Muslims who were in Israel when modern borders were set in place and are now considered Israeli citizens. They are not required to draft but a growing number choose to enlist. In 2012, there were over 1,400 Bedouin Muslim soldiers doing regular IDF service and almost 1,500 in the reserves.

Read more:http://www.idfblog.com/2014/02/27/truth-idf-numbers-pictures/#more-34027

Are you aware that in 2013, Middle class taxes go up-significantly?

In January of next year, the federal income tax rate for middle-class taxpayers is scheduled to rise from 25 percent to 28 percent, and the payroll tax is scheduled to rise from 13.3 percent to 15.3 percent… This drives the marginal tax rate based on the aforementioned three taxes to 48.12 percent. Add in state and local property, corporate, excise, and other state and local taxes, and the percentage of each additional dollar that is taxed hovers around 50 percent… When half of each additional dollar earned is taxed away, taxpayers experience a disincentive to start businesses or expand existing ones. This leads to fewer jobs being created.

Why is HAMAS Inside Tampa Schools?

Clare Lopez

Kelly Miliziano, who teaches history classes at Steinbrenner High School in the Tampa, Florida area apparently thinks it’s perfectly OK to invite a senior official of a HAMAS-affiliated organization into her classroom to discuss Islam with her students. According to local media reports, not only has this been going on for years, but in spite of the civil and criminal proceedings that could result from such reckless negligence, the Hillsborough County school superintendent, Mary Ellen Elia, and the chairman of the school board, Candy Olson, also expressed approval for students under their responsibility to be exposed repeatedly to guest speaker, Hassan Shibly, who is the Executive Director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in the Tampa area.
More...

Did You Know... Ignoring the Call to Islam will Bring Jihad

‘Conquest through Da’wa [proselytizing] that is what we hope for. We will conquer Europe, we will conquer America! Not through sword but through Da’wa.’
-- Yousef al-Qaradawi , Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader The Arabic word ‘Da’wa’ means the “call to Islam.” But do not think that Da’wa is the same thing as an invitation to an optional holiday event. The classical Islamic doctrine of jihad mandates that enemies must be given the opportunity to convert to Islam or pay the jizya tax before it is permissible to attack them.
Clare M. Lopez

Who is being discriminated-facts tell the truth

Religious bias

Hate crimes motivated by religious bias accounted for 1,409 offenses reported by law enforcement. A breakdown of the bias motivation of religious-bias offenses showed:

65.4 percent were anti-Jewish.
13.2 percent were anti-Islamic.
9.5 percent were anti-other religion, i.e., those not specified.
4.3 percent were anti-Catholic.
3.8 percent were anti-multiple religions, group.
3.3 percent were anti-Protestant.
0.5 percent were anti-Atheism/Agnosticism/etc.

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2010/narratives/hate-crime-2010-incidents-and-offenses.

On March 31, 1977, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published an interview

with PLO executive committee member Zahir Muhsein. Here's what he said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct "Palestinian people" to oppose Zionism.

For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

In March 1977, Zahir Muhsein, a PLO executive, said:

"The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct Palestinian people to oppose Zionism."

"For tactical reasons, Jordan, which is a sovereign state with defined borders, cannot raise claims to Haifa and Jaffa, while as a Palestinian, I can undoubtedly demand Haifa, Jaffa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem. However, the moment we reclaim our right to all of Palestine, we will not wait even a minute to unite Palestine and Jordan."

The Arab Apartheid

Ben-Dror Yemini
In 1948, the Arab countries refused to accept the UN partition proposal and they launched a war of annihilation against the State of Israel which had barely been established. All precedents in this matter showed that the party that starts the war - and with a declaration of annihilation, yet - pays a price for it. Between 550,000 and 710,000 Arabs fled because of the war and a larger number of 850,000 Jews were expelled or fled from Arab countries (the "Jewish nakba").
Population exchanges and expulsions were the norm at that time, occurring in dozens of other conflict points and affecting about 52 million people. In all the population exchange precedents that occurred during or at the end of an armed conflict, there was no return of refugees to the previous region, which had turned into a new national state.
Only the Arab states acted completely differently from the rest of the world. Instead of assimilating the refugees, they crushed them despite the fact that they were their coreligionists and members of the Arab nation - instituting a regime of apartheid. So the "nakba" was not caused by the actual dispossession, which had also been experienced by tens of millions of others. The "nakba" is the story of the apartheid, oppression, abuse and denial of rights suffered by the Arab refugees at the hands of the Arab countries. (Maariv)

International Law and Military Operations in Practice - Col. Richard Kemp

"Islamist fighting groups study the international laws of armed conflict carefully and they understand it well. They know that a British or Israeli commander and his men are bound by international law and the rules of engagement that flow from it. They then do their utmost to exploit what they view as one of their enemy's main weaknesses. Their very modus operandi is built on the correct assumption that Western armies will normally abide by the rules, while these insurgents employ a deliberate policy of operating consistently outside international law. "

Lost Historical Moments

What Rabin’s last Knesset speech really said:repudiation of a Palestinian state

Rabin ruled out a fully sovereign Palestinian state :

“We view the permanent solution in the framework of State of Israel which will include most of the area of the Land of Israel as it was under the rule of the British Mandate, and alongside it a Palestinian entity which will be a home to most of the Palestinian residents living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. We would like this to be an entity which is less than a state, and which will independently run the lives of the Palestinians under its authority.”

Rabin ruled out a total withdrawal from Judea and Samaria and thus a return to the pre-June 1967 borders :

“The borders of the State of Israel, during the permanent solution, will be beyond the lines which existed before the Six Day War. We will not return to the 4 June 1967 lines.”

Rabin ruled out withdrawing form the Jordan Valley:

“The security border of the State of Israel will be located in the Jordan Valley, in the broadest meaning of that term.”

Rabin ruled out uprooting settlement blocs, like the Gush Katif bloc in Gaza (which was subsequently uprooted by former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon):

“The establishment of blocs of settlements in Judea and Samaria, like the one in Gush Katif.

AND

Rabin ruled out removing any settlement before coming to a full peace agreement with the Palestinians:

“I want to remind you: we committed ourselves, that is, we came to an agreement, and committed ourselves before the Knesset, not to uproot a single settlement in the framework of the interim agreement, and not to hinder building for natural growth.”

Rabin insisted on Israel retaining full security control of the borders with Egypt and Jordan, contrary to Israel’s relinquishment of the Philadelphia Corridor on the border with Egypt:

“The responsibility for external security along the borders with Egypt and Jordan, as well as control over the airspace above all of the territories and Gaza Strip maritime zone, remains in our hands.”

Correcting Oslo Myths-Part 2

3) Kuttab laments that the post-1993 Oslo process resulted in a Palestinian Authority "whose ministers and legislators are not guaranteed passage between Gaza and the West Bank ...."

Before free passage or other perquisites, PA leaders were obligated, among other things, to eliminate the terrorist infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, end anti-Israeli, antisemitic incitement in schools, mosques, and communications media, and resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful negotiations. They met none of these commitments, sometimes bolstering terrorism and greatly increasing incitement.

4) Kuttab complains that under Oslo the PA got "lightly armed police ---- but no real sovereignty over the land or contiguity between our communities in Gaza and the West Bank."

Oslo agreements repeatedly were revised, regardless of Palestinian non-compliance, until the authorized number of police grew from 8,000 to 40,000. Though they were to be the only armed forces in the territories, Israeli estimates early in the second intifada put the number of gunmen - police, "security services," terrorists, and armed gangs - at 85,000. Their armament reportedly included not only heavy machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, but also anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles.

Sovereignty was to be negotiated in the envisioned 1998 "final status" talks - after a five-year period of confidence-building. Palestinian leadership chronically undermined the process. Palestinian terrorism made the 1993 - 1998 Oslo period more deadly for Israelis than the 15 years preceding it.

The United States doesn't have contiguity between the lower 48 states and Alaska and Hawaii; territorial contiguity between the West Bank and Gaza Strip - that is, through the 20 miles of Israeli territory between them - was never promised and would destroy Israeli contiguity.

5) "Palestinians have been made to endure hundreds of checkpoints in the West Bank, an eight-foot wall deep in our territories, and tight Israeli control over borders."

The security barrier is not "deep in Palestinian territories," but rather encompasses less than 8 percent of Judea and Samaria, and is mostly a fence, rarely a wall; the land in question is not "our [Palestinian] territories" but disputed territory to which, according to the authors of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, Jews as well as Arabs have claims; and there are no international borders, only the 1949 armistice lines with Jordan. Under 242, borders remain to be negotiated. As for checkpoints - like the security barrier and "tight Israeli control" - Palestinian Arabs precipitated these measures themselves. No terrorism and there would be no fence or tight Israeli control and few checkpoints - like before the first intifada.

Correcting Some Oslo Myths

1) In Oslo "Israeli, Palestinian and other world leaders promised that ... Palestinian sovereignty would be solidified."

No, they didn't. The 1993 Declaration of Principles and subsequent Oslo agreements outlined a process by which final status negotiations about the West Bank and Gaza Strip would be reached. The process required an end to anti-Israel terrorism and incitement and a commitment to peaceful negotiations. The PA, Fatah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and other terrorist groups, sabotaged the process from the start.

2) "The reality is that, in defiance of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which states that it is inadmissible to occupy land by force, Palestinian territories are still under foreign military occupation."
Wrong again. Resolution 242 (1967) does note "the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war." It also affirms the right of every state in the area "to live in peace with secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force." There were no "Palestinian territories." Jordan occupied the West Bank, Egypt controlled Gaza. Israel did not have "secure and recognized boundaries," so retention of some of those territories was possible under 242. Israel is not a "foreign" military occupier in the West Bank but, pending final negotiations, the lawful military administrator as a result of a successful war of self-defense.

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