We are living in the whirlwind. Unimaginable events sweep over us like hurricane winds, swiftly and unexpectedly. It seems like almost overnight, the Assad regime’s barbaric 61 year rule is over. While beheaded statues of the butcher Hafez al-Assad are being dragged through the streets of Homs, children riding on top of it as if it was a fairground attraction, his idiot son, Bashir, has fled the country, in a plane which has mysteriously disappeared from radar screens, prompting rumors of a crash. Mrs. Assad and the kids are apparently in Russia. Enjoy the winter!

Who could have predicted this would happen so fast? That Syrian rebels would be capable of launching a massive ground blitz that would capture Aleppo province, takeover Idlib province and Hom, and finally Damascus itself?

The first and main loser here aside from Bashir of course, is Iran, Abu Ali explains. The “Shia Crescent,” a continuous land corridor of states loyal to Iran and its interests that stretched from Iran to Lebanon is no more. The continuous highway for the delivery of arms to Hezbollah from Iran and Syrian army labs in al-Safirah, as well the Iranian control of Syrian weapons production is over. Syria was the central and most critical land link in Iran’s plan to encircle Israel with direct threats from the north and east. Without Syria, the Shiite Crescent is severed, leaving Lebanon isolated. Without Syria, Hezbollah loses its vital land supply line.

We must not be naïve. The people ousting Hezbollah and Iran are no better, and maybe worse, groomed by al Qaida. But in the meantime, they are sopping up the remaining Hezbollah and Iranian threat, doing the IDF’s job, thank you very much.

We are watching truckloads of Hezbollah-draped coffins being transported by truck for burial; the hysterical surge of Iranians returning to Iran, and Iraqis loyal to Hezbollah fleeing back to Iraq. One more Iranian proxy has fallen. God be blessed!

Abu Ali: “If there’s one group the Sunni Syrian rebels hate more than anyone, it’s the Shiites. Beyond centuries-old religious animosities, the Sunni rebels have a fresh score to settle from the past decade with the Shiite Axis – Iran, Hezbollah, and Shiite militias – for atrocities committed during the Syrian civil war. Now, it’s time for revenge, which is burning strongly in the rebels’ veins. As they kill each other, we can take a breather.

Turkey, the main booster of the rebels, needs to be kicked out of NATO, President-elect Trump. I’m sure you’ll get around to it.

In the meantime, President-elect Trump has issued an amazingly strong warning to Hamas about the hostages, threatening if they aren’t released by the time he takes office: “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied history of the United States of America.” Thank you my dear Mr. President-elect for being a light in the darkness of international evil! Such moral clarity has not been heard for a disgracefully long time on the world stage.

As the IDF continues to blow up booby-trapped tunnel entrances and kilometers of tunnels in Gaza, we cannot help but fear the worst in relation to our hostages who have been under this barbaric imprisonment. Could a woman or child survive? Could a man? Will any of the hostages come home alive? It is terrifying to dwell on this.

 Last week, the IDF recovered the body of Itai Svirsky from the Gaza Strip.

Itai, a member of Kibbutz Be’eri, was taken hostage by the terrorist organization Hamas on October 7, 2023, and subsequently murdered in captivity. May his memory be a blessing.

This week Hamas released a propaganda video of Matan Zangauker, 24, who was abducted on the morning of October 7 from Nir Oz along with his partner, Ilana Gritzewsky, who was later released in a prisoner exchange. His mother, Einav, has become one of the most prominent activists advocating for the release of the hostages at any price. Apparently, Hamas is now seriously trying to figure out exactly where the hostages are. They have no idea. I think they got Trump’s message, and if nothing else, Trump’s words will perhaps make them think twice abount being trigger-happy. May God watch over all our people and bring them home safely.

I feel, personally, an easing of tension. People are are visiting up North again. One park was so overrun by hikers they had to close it off! I saw my young neighbor yesterday. We gave each other big smiles. So glad for him and his young wife and three little kids that Dad is home now. He was called up so often. My grandsons and granddaughters, all IDF soldiers either in the regular army or reserves, are back home, or back on their bases as well.

We are getting fewer “The IDF has cleared for publication…” notices of the fallen, thank God! We are not running to air raid shelters.

The war isn’t over. But we are in a much better place than when it started, and the people who began this war have been pummelled and decimated, their threat significantly reduced. And Iran? I saw a photograph online, a collage of Khameini embracing Haniya, and Sinwar, and Assad, and Nasrallah….Ha! It does my heart good.

So now we are at our leisure to fight with each other again. Especially about the need to share the defense burden. Three very prominent rabbis from the haredi sector, who refused to identify themselves, had a front page article in Makor Rishon this Shabbat in which they said that not only does the army need the haredim, but the haredim need the army to shake them out of the bubble they are living in. They complained that the religious Zionist parties are missing the boat by giving their backing to their haredi counterparts in the Knesset. “Smotrich (MK of the religious Zionist party) is damaging and destroying the opportunity to effect real change. If you don’t pressure them (i.e., haredim ) now, and hard, you will have lost an historic opportunity that won’t come again.”

What do they suggest? Heavy economic pressure is the only thing that will work, they say. For those who refuse to serve in the army, don’t finance day care centers for their children, or pay their city taxes, or let them register for housing lotteries (for cheap apartments). Perhaps don’t allow them to take out mortgages. They should be treated like felons: no driver’s licenses, or opening a bank account, or leaving the country or registering for a marriage license. “That would be a serious shock. “ Which is just what the situation calls for. I agree. Interesting this is coming from within the community.

This week too, the Israel Air Force announced the graduation of the first class of ultra-Orthodox flight technicians. The recruits will work on F-16 fighter squadrons at the Ramat David air base. I also saw a video of yeshiva students dancing at the hesder yeshiva (whose students combine their Talmud studies with army service) in the heavily bombed Northern city of Kiryat Shmona after a year of being exiled. Very moving!

Welcome home boys!

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