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Monday August 31, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
This past week has seen a huge increase in COVID cases in Jordan which until now, had the virus under control and contained.
Just on Sunday 73 new cases of COVID were reported. That is the highest number of daily cases since the pandemic started.
Thus far, Jordan has only had 15 deaths and 1966 positives since March - so the number 73 is a significant number. Unless they control the contagion quickly, the numbers could exponentially increase daily.
Jordan instituted a nightly curfew, from 11pm to 6 am. Before this, their curfew began ay 1am.
Jordan has also cracked down on movement. Borders are closed and Jordanian authorities are even preventing people from travelling from one city to another.
These are not draconian measures, they are life saving measures.
Joran was successful in keeping people in place which kept down the transmission of the virus. They need to make that happen again.
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Friday August 28, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
On Thursday night 26 firebomb balloons flew from Gaza into Israel. Most of the fires they created were small and were extinguished by firefighters.
Incendiary balloons and kites are becoming more and more common. They are launched into Israel from Gaza night after night. Israel has struck back hitting the sites that launch and design the bombs. Israel has attacked the headquarters of the groups who perpetrate these attacks.
These attacks are low tech. They cost only pennies to make and do not require sophisticated expertise to launch. Israel has high tech weapons and now they need to go low tech to shoot down these kites and balloons.
The best way to solve the problem is to get Hamas to stop the problem on their end. And that is exactly what Israel is trying to do.
Negotiations are taking place through a 3rd party - Egypt. There is hope. Israel is pressuring Hamas by bombing
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Thursday August 27, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
NY Governor Andrew Cuomo slammed large gathering within the Jewish community, especially in the New York City Jewish community. He also condemned Catholics for gathering in large numbers.
Cuomo, himself a staunch Catholic, said: “We’ve had superspreader events in New Rochelle with the Jewish community, we’ve had them in the Catholic community.
The virus does not discriminate by religious or racial lines, right? This is an equal-opportunity situation. So we police it in every circumstance.”
Cuomo threatened NYC Mayor Bill Deblasio, demanding that the mayor act against the superspreaders, defined as groups that gather without complying with the safety precautions of keeping safe distance and wearing a mask. The governor said: “If the mayor is not doing any enforcement actions, then the state will.”
Cuomo was not just spouting off, he does have jurisdiction. The governor can, legally, take action in NYC.
Having events with large numbers is simply irresponsible.
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Wednesday August 26, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
The United States is not at all pleased that Turkish President Erdogan hosted Hamas leaders. When the US State Department issued a statement of public criticism of Turkey, Turkey immediately rejected the comments.
The US State Department statement said that the Hamas officials were "Specially Designated Global Terrorists" and the United States was seeking information about one member of the delegation, Hamas' military wing founder Saleh al-Arouri, for his involvement in multiple terrorist attacks, hijackings and kidnappings.
The United States and many other countries consider Hamas to be a terrorist organization.
The United States is of the opinion that Erdogan’s meeting with Hamas leaders will hurt Palestinians. The US believes that supporting Hamas over the Palestinian Authority is a mistake.
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Tuesday August 25, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
The new COVID-19 numbers from Israel are deeply troubling.
The most compelling numbers are truly disturbing. Israel is using the traffic light system to establish procedures in dealing with COVID. That the entire country is not monolithic. Each area is different, and a different policy is required for each place.
Of the thousands of cities towns and villages in Israel – all except 20 are green or yellow. Only 20 are red zones and those cities are divided into regions which are also divided into color zones.
Here is the most troubling dimension of the new COVID -19 numbers. 40% of the positive numbers are from the Chareidi community. 20% of the new positives are from Arab communities.
The 40% is probably much higher. Rabbis in the Chareidi community have urged their members not to test because those results can be used against their community.
Leaders need to be urged to put a stop to large gatherings. People must be urged by their leaders to wear masks.
The COVID-19 numbers will increase if these steps are not taken soon. The economy of Israel is dependent on getting those numbers down.
Tourism cannot return until Israel becomes a green state. Only then Israel will open it doors to countries to other green countries and the tourist dollars will follow.
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Monday August 24, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Remember when I told you that Iran was smuggling oil to Venezuela? Remember that it was a blatant violation of US sanctions against Iran?
Venezuela needed the oil. Even though they are sitting on huge oil reserves, Venezuela is suffering a terrible oil shortage. Their oil industry has been falling apart and is in bad need of replacement parts.
Venezuela is also suffering from US sanctions against Iran. That’s because US sanctions didn’t apply only to oil, they did not permit any oil industry replacement parts either.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro thanked Iran for sending oil and oil factory parts.
In his official statement of thanks to Iran, Maduro suggested that Venezuela will also be purchasing missiles from Iran.
The nexus of Iran and Venezuela does not portend well for the world.
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Sunday August 23, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Turkish President Erdogan hosted a full delegation from Hamas.
That’s unnerving, but not supporting. Turkey supports Hamas financially and politically. And Turkey has even granted citizenship to many Hamas leaders.
Present at the meeting were Hamas leader Ismayel Hanyieh as well as Hamas military wing founder Saleh al-Arouri - who is wanted by the U.S. government.
Also there were the head of Hamas' foreign branch Maher Salah and the group's representative in Turkey, Jihad Yaghmor.
The group went to Turkey to report on the Palestinian situation. The two main topics discussed were Israel’s plan to annex the West Bank and the UAE / Israel peace accord. Interestingly, the Palestinians are still burning about the Israel annexation plan despite the fact that it was shelved by the UAE accord.
Turkey, together with Iran, Hamas and the PA, are among the very few voices to have publicly condemned the UAE Israel agreement.
Turkey has become a sponsor of terror. They have moved into a position parallel to Iran in joining forces with those who oppose the West, especially the US and Israel.
This meeting is just another example of that behavior.
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Friday August 21, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
For me some of the irony is so tragic it is hilariously funny.
Tensions are heating up between Israel and Gaza. Hundreds of balloon and kite bombs launched from Gaza have caused fires and caused terrible and costly damage in Israel.
Israel has responded by striking at those terror bases and places from which the kite and balloon bombs are launched.
Escalating the situation, on Thursday night Hamas launched three rockets hoping to strike fear into Israelis beyond those living in communities located on the Gaza border.
But the three rockets never made it out of Gaza – and not because they were shot down or intercepted. They just dropped from the sky. Onto Gaza.
Hamas was trying to send a message to Israel. These rockets were supposed to tell Israel that they, Hamas, have the ability to hit central Israel.
Instead, they demonstrated how inept they are.
Ironic, but funny.
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Thursday August 20, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
The ripples across the international community in the wake of the UAE/Israel peace are beginning to be felt.
There has been virtually no condemnation of the agreement - except from the regular suspects, Palestinians, Iran and Turkey.
Several countries in the Arab world are denying that they are in talks with the Jewish state, but they are - and that too is to be expected.
The reality is that the Arab world is no longer what it once was. The Palestinian issue, once front and center, is now practically irrelevant.
The Arab world has determined that Palestinian leadership is locked into the past, that they do not see and are unwilling to accept the new reality that has emerged – that Israel is here to stay and that Israel is a force to be dealt with.
Palestinian leadership remains steadfast and cannot be coaxed or tempted or convinced that it is better to accept the new reality, which means peace and coexistence, than be locked into an unrealistic hope that Israel will be destroyed by the combined efforts of the pan-Arab society.
The prevalent stance of greater Arab leadership, in the Middle East and beyond the region, is that there is more to gain from Israel than by ignoring or totally rejecting her.
It took a lot of growth and soul searching to reach that conclusion. Kudos to today’s Arab leadership.
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Wednesday August 19, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
I just read a fascinating article about why the United States destroyed their entire fleet of F-14 Tomcats in 2007, after the entire fleet was retired.
Each of the fighter jets could have been sold for parts and would have brought in $38 million each.
The reason President Bush opted to destroy the fleet instead of selling it off was because, when the F-14 Tomcat was in its heyday, the Shah of Iran bought 80 of the planes. After the fall of the Shah, all those planes fell into he hands of the Ayatollah. Iran’s new air-force had the planes after the Islamic Revolution.
President Bush was thinking of the future. He knew that one day those planes would need spare parts.
Iran’s air-force now needs spare parts and because of the decision made way back in 2007, the Iranian air-force has been seriously weakened.
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Tuesday August 18, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
A leading member of Hamas posted a video on Friday that called on all seven million Palestinians in the Diaspora to murder Jews everywhere they live. All seven million.
Fathi Hamad said: “Seven million Palestinians outside, enough warming up, you have Jews with you in every place. You should attack every Jew possible in all the world and kill them.”
Established leadership in the Palestinian Authority condemned the comments. Even Hamas distanced itself from Hamad’s comments, saying that their fight was with the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories and was “not a conflict with Jews across the world or Judaism as a religion.”
But the denial of other Palestinian leaders cannot put the genie back into the bottle. This call to murder touched a real chord.
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Monday August 17, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) summoned the Iranian Charge d’Affaires stationed at the Iranian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and issued a stern memo.
The summons came as a result of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s threatening statements concerning the UAE and the new agreement emerging between the UAE and Israel.
The memo, which was published on twitter, reads that he was summoned and that the government: “hands him a strong note of protest against threats in President Rouhani's speech on UAE sovereign decisions. Ministry considers the speech unacceptable & inflammatory w/ serious implications for security & stability in the region.”
Iran’s statements were viewed by the UAE as an “interference in internal affairs and an attack on sovereignty.”
The UAE is telling Iran that they are not free to act or even speak as they please.
The UAE is warning that there will be diplomatic repercussions for Iran’s aggressive behavior.
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Sunday August 16, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
With so much happening in the world, certain stories are bound to get lost and not receive the attention they deserve.
For example: The UN Security Council decided not to extend the embargo on Iran that is scheduled to end October 18th.
The proposal to extend was brought by the United States – and was soundly defeated.
There were 2 votes in favor, 2 opposed and 11 countries abstained. Russia and China, the two countries who opposed, did not even need to waste their veto power. The resolution had no chance of passing.
Five Gulf Arab countries and Israel were in favor of the resolution, but they had no vote. They know that once Iran is back up and running, they will wreak havoc in in the region and elsewhere. Iran will be free to sell weapons to whomever they please.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that we “know Iran will spread even greater chaos and destruction if the embargo expires, but the Security Council chose to ignore them.”
The UN Security Council decision is disastrous. Iran is reading the situation and rejoicing. They will conclude that world leadership does not with the United States or with the Gulf countries. They will understand that the momentum has shifted in their direction.
That conclusion by Iran is far more dangerous than the decision reached by the Security Council.
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Friday August 14, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
The framework for the Abraham Accords has been made public and the parties are sitting down to iron out the details. Responses and reaction is flooding in, most of it expected.
These responses leave no doubt as to where people and countries stand on the issues of Israel and real peace.
Many voices are saying the best part of the deal is Israel’s tabling of their plan to annex parts of the West Bank.
When Turkey came out blasting the deal saying that it was a stab in the back and that peoples of the region "will never forget and will never forgive this hypocritical behavior", many were taken aback.
Not me. It is exactly the response I expected from Erdogan.
The response is, never the less, insightful. It demonstrates how far Turkey has moved in the past few years. Once a friend of Israel, Turkey cannot now even see the benefit other states can receive by normalizing with Israel.
Not a surprise, but still a shame.
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Thursday August 13, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Iran’s influence in Lebanon has been severely damaged by the gargantuan blast that rocked Beirut.
Iranians are monitoring the protests and rallies very carefully. And Iran continues to publicly declare their solidarity with Lebanon.
Iran exerts tremendous influence in Lebanon through their proxy Hezbollah.
Iran sponsors Hezbollah and dumps huge amounts of money and community support to prop up Hezbollah and give their proteges a significant advantage in Lebanon.
Here is where Iran comes up short: right now, Iran does not have the money to help.
The Iranian economy is in shambles and COVID has been devastating for them.
Lebanon needs money to search for victims and to clear rubble and then to rebuild.
Iran knows that the Lebanese people are angry. They monitor Lebanon’s social media and see protestors holding effigies of Hezbollah’s Sheik Nasrallah with a noose around his neck.
Iran knows that if Hezbollah is weakened, their influence in Lebanon is lost.
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Wednesday August 12, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
An international hacker group named “Lazarus” was hired by a foreign government to infiltrate Israel’s defense computers.
The hack was stopped – and now we know just how devious these hackers are.
The hackers assumed the roles of HR recruiters for IT positions at huge international firms on LinkedIn. They approached Israelis working in extremely sensitive and secret departments in Israel’s defense and Israeli air divisions offering extremely attractive positions in the private sector.
Through their communication with the “recruits”, they dropped spyware onto the targets’ computers which allowed the hackers to monitor and follow and even infiltrate Israel’s secret defense systems.
Israel anticipated this type of hack and the targets were prepared for it. The hack was stopped but not before it was teased and led into dead ends. Israel kept the tease going long enough time for Israeli counter hacking teams to track and trace the hack back to Lazarus.
At this point the foreign body who sponsored Lazarus is unclear. Bu there are only a few possibilities. China, Russia, North Korea, or of course, Iran.
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Tuesday August 11, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Balloons and kites have started over 30 fires in Israel over the past day.
How is that possible?
These incendiary flying weapons have retuned as an inexpensive and effective tool by terrorists from Hamas in Gaza.
Terrorists attach an incendiary device with a timer to a balloon or kite. They then launch the kite or balloon. When timer ends, the fire begins consuming the balloon and it falls into Israel. If times correctly and the device is still burning, it ignites the fields or crops or orchards where it has landed and burns them.
This low-tech weapon was very common in 2018. They are very difficult to defend against and cost less than a single dollar to build and launch.
A jet or helicopter gunship is useless against this low tech device. Radar does not work. Snipers can try to shoot them before they cross the border, but that is both very difficult and inefficient and a bullet will not bring down a kite.
Israel has found a solution, however. They used it in 2018 and they will use it again in 2020. A special team of volunteer drone operators fly their drones into the kites and balloons.
The IDF will bring back the drones.
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Monday August 10, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Iran has 125 army bases in Syria.
This information is documented by a Turkish research institute named Jusoor.
Their study shows that Iran has established itself as a significant presence all over Syria.
Iran is filling the vacuum left by Russia and the United States and are they are shaping Syrian defense systems.
Many of Iran’s bases in Syria were set up very close to Israel’s borders. The region of Deraa has 37 bases. There are 22 around Damascus and 15 around Aleppo.
From Israel’s perspective, most troubling of all are the 5 Iranian bases around Quientra.
Quinetra is a city in the Golan Heights, right on the border of Israel. If each of these bases has just 100 Iranian troops, that means they have 12,500 troops right next to Israel.
Like Israel, Turkey does not want an Iranian presence in Syria. In Syria, Iran is only interested in building and in extending their control.
Iran is creating a “land bridge” from Iran through Iraq and then into Syria and to the Mediterranean Sea. From there they have access to Europe.
And that is their goal.
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Sunday August 9, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Social media in Lebanon is popping with condemnation of Hezbollah.
They are blaming Hezbollah for the ammonium nitrate explosions that killed hundreds and wounded thousands of their friends, family and fellow citizens in the port of Beirut.
The rumors that Hezbollah is behind the explosions have made their way to major media outlets. Middle East TV, (MTV) a Christian media outlet out of Lebanon, broadcast that Hezbollah officers, disguised as aid workers, have been found at the location. The reports are that the ammonium nitrate stockpiles belonged to Hezbollah and they simply neglected it.
Many Lebanese are saying that even their evil enemy Israel would never explode a bomb like that - how could Hezbollah permit this. Pictures of Hezbollah’s leader have been posted on social media with a noose around his neck.
Hezbollah is being blamed for putting Lebanon at risk. When Hezbollah attacks Israel, all of Lebanon suffers from Israel’s counter attacks.
This anger, this vitriol, this frustration and grief does not, however, mean that Hezbollah will be pushed out of power and influence. There are too many Shiites in Lebanon who would rather have corrupt Hezbollah leadership than Sunni or Christian leadership.
What it does mean is that those who are non-Hezbollah supporters are less and less afraid to speak out and are becoming more and more vocal.
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Friday August 7, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Glos Polski is a weekly Polish paper in Toronto. It has published an article - for the second time, that blames COVID-19 on the Jews.
No surprise.
Glos Polski has also have published lies about Jews created ISIS. They write that Israel is the root of all evil and the devil itself. And if that is not enough for you, they preach that Vladimir Lenin, leader of Soviet Union, was Jewish. They write that Joseph Goebbels, the head Nazi propaganda, was really Jewish. They even argue that Turkish president Erdogan is Jewish.
B’nai Brith of Canada has filed a police complaint against Glos Polski for repeatedly spreading lies against Jews.
More and more anti-Semitism is permeating our world. People certainly have freedom of speech, but even that freedom has a limit.
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Thursday August 6, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
The explosions in Beirut at the port were cataclysmic. According to experts, this explosion was the closest in size to a nuclear explosion that has yet to occur.
The numbers of victims and injured will continue to climb.
The estimated cost of the damage is $15 billion, that too will climb. Given that Lebanon has only 6.8 million people and a GDP of $58 billion that number is bigger than huge.
Ammonium Nitrate has been used regularly for bombs. The IRA used it in London.
The Oklahoma City Bomber used it. It was used in Bali and used in India. Just about anywhere a huge explosion takes place, it can be traced to ammonium nitrate - often placed in a car or truck.
Stored properly ammonium nitrate is safe. But the more you have and the longer it sits, the more unstable it becomes.
2,750 tons is a recipe for an explosion. 2,750 tons is 5,500,000 pounds.
That’s what exploded in Beirut. It is dangerous by any estimate and was an explosion waiting to happen.
If this was an accident, it could – and should, have been avoided.
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Wednesday August 5, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
On Wednesday the wedding of the grandson of the Belzer Rebbe took place in Jerusalem. The wedding was held in the Belz synagogue in Jerusalem which is enormous. The building can be seen from miles away. After it was built, the synagogue was jokingly referred to as the 3rd Temple by many of those who live in Jerusalem.
Thousands of people were invited to participate in the wedding. Thousands accepted the invitation and they were all in close contact.
Police officials met with Belzer leadership and explained how unsafe and unwise such a gathering would be. But the wedding went on as planned. The new head of Israel’s National COVID Task Force called the wedding a huge potential center for contamination. He was so upset he even went so far as to say that events like this play “Russian Roulette” with people’s lives.
Police fined the organizers 5000 NIS that is about $1400 for violating COVID laws and having such a large gathering.
We pray that no one gets infected. But mathematics may prove the opposite.
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Tuesday August 4, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
On Monday Israel launched the Ofek 16 Spy Satellite.
Prime Minister Netanyahu said in a Cabinet meeting: “The success of the Ofek 16 satellite very much increases our ability to act against Israel’s enemies, near and far alike. It greatly expands our ability to act on land, at sea, in the air, and also in space.”
The prime minister even hinted that Israel was responsible for the recent explosions and fires in Iran.
Israel has been using satellites for over 20 years. They are an enormously important part of their intelligence gathering.
Every new satellite that is launched has better technology than the ones that were launched before. Not just a little better - exponentially higher tech, higher speed transmission, better resolution with pictures and video that are immediately sent.
From high up in space, these satellites can even read the license plate on a car parked in a dark alley.
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Monday August 3, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
Indian companies are about to stop exporting tea and basmati rice to Iran.
Their complaint is that it is very difficult to get payment from Iran.
The CEO of a rice company in India said “The payment is very slow and it is coming in small batches. It is becoming impossible to do trade with Iran. The Indian government should work out a deal with Tehran so that exports can be carried out smoothly.”
Iran loves basmati rice and Indian tea and they are very large importers of both.
But when a client cannot send you money, the supplier shuts down the supply.
Once again, sanctions are hurting Iran.
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Sunday August 2, 2020
I've Been Thinking:
The Palestinian Authority looks to be teetering. Actually, even on the verge of imploding.
The chaos that will emerge if or when this happens is not good news for anyone in the region – not just for Palestinians and for Israel.
If the PA falls the only power poised to fill the void is Hamas.
That is a 100% inevitability. And if Hamas takes charge in the West Bank, they will turn the area into an even bigger and failed mess than Gaza. they will make it into an even bigger failure than Gaza. If you think the West Bank is dysfunctional now, imagine if Hamas was in charge.
There are several indicators of the instability in the PA. It is apparent that PA President Abbas is no longer leading and directing. COVID plus economic difficulties plus Israel’s annexation threats are huge obstacles that Abbas is not properly embracing.
Rather than inspiring the masses, Abbas has activated his traditional tropes whereby he automatically turns Israel into an enemy and the root of all problems.
He has called out to the world to condemn Israel and called for aid and assistance.
This old strategy is no longer working.
In order for Abbas to build a stable society and transition and transfer power to a successor, whoever that may be, he needs to work together with Israel, especially in terms of security and safety.
Israel has a vested interest in keeping Abbas in power. Israel is working to maintain the PA president’s safety and to protect him from Hamas. Abbas, however, is not working with Israel.
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