Yom Shabbat
Saturday
5 Nisan 5784
April 13 2024
UPDATE 10:00 PM
An attack from Iran once again seems imminent.
The Security Cabinet is meeting at midnight tonight.
Flight teams at Ben Gurion Airport have been told that flight schedules in the coming days will be altered.
All domestic and international flights have been canceled in Iran.
Jordan has closed down its airspace.
GPS systems are down in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Kuwait, and Jordan.
Israeli hospital authorities are meeting at this moment to assess their readiness.
UPDATE 9:00 PM
In a dramatic announcement tonight, the IDF spokesman announced that all educational institutions including kindergartens, elementary and junior high schools, and high schools as well as universities are ordered closed until further notice because of the situation with Iran.
Other restrictions include not taking trips and reducing the number of people in activities.
At the same time, the official Iranian news declared this evening that the earlier report about the hijacking of the ship in the Strait of Hormuz being Iran’s retaliation for what happened in Damascus was fake news.
UPDATE 4:00 PM
Two major incidents have happened since our morning update:
First, Iranian Revolutionary Guards staged a helicopter commando raid in the Strait of Hormuz taking over the MSC Aries, a Portuguese ship (flagged in the Madeira Islands) partially owned by Israeli businessman Eyal Ofer. The ship is now on its way to a port in Iran.
The cargo ship MSC Aries.
MSC has issued this statement:
The cargo ship was on the way from the UAE to India. At least 20 of the 25 on board were Filipino sailors. The nationality of the other 5 is not known at this time.
Iranian sources have told the Saudi Al-Haddad network that “Iran chose to respond to the assassination of the commander of the Quds Force in Lebanon and Syria by hijacking the Portuguese ship.”
No one here expects that this is the Iranian attack we have all been waiting for, but it may indicate that Iran has opted for a series of attacks in different arenas.
The sky here remains full full of planes and drones.
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Second, the body of 14-year-old Benjamin Achi Meir has been found, one day after he disappeared while tending his sheep near the Malachi Shalom farm in the Binyamin area of Judea and Samaria.
Some hours after Benjamin took the sheep out to graze, the sheep returned but without him.
Benjamin was murdered by Palestinian terrorists, and PM Netanyahu issued an unusual Shabbat statement this afternoon declaring that his murderers will be tracked down.
Netanyahu also called on members of Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria not to take matters into their own hands, and to stay out of way of the IDF as the army searches for the murderer or murderers.
That is unlikely as community members have already gone to Douma and Al-Muayyir in search of the killers.
UPDATE 10:00 AM
Another long night and morning here in Ashdod: drones humming and planes roaring overhead.
But no missiles from Iran. Yet.
However, at exactly midnight last night, Sderot was hit again by missiles from an Iranian proxy:
Sderot was targeted by incoming missiles at midnight last night.
This morning, Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack. At least 3 incoming missiles were intercepted over the city.
This attack came after an earlier attack of more than 50 missiles on northern Israel by another Iranian proxy, Hezbollah.
And we have awakened to these disconcerting pieces of information:
*A senior Bidenite told CNN that “Iran will attack multiple targets in and around Israel, and that Iran’s proxies will be involved in the attack.”
*ABC News in the U.S. reports that another Bidenite says that Iran has prepared 100 cruise missiles for an attack on Israel.
*Air France and Austrian Air have joined Lufthansa in suspending all flights to Iran. Germany has directed all of its citizens there to leave.
*Qatar and Kuwait have told the U.S. that it cannot use bases in their countries to attack Iran.
*Israeli television Channel 12 is telling us this morning that it will take 12 minutes for an Iranian ballistic missile to get here, 2 hours for an Iranian cruise missile, and 9 hours for a drone.
*The commander of the American Central Command (Centcom), Gen. Eric Korilla, has extended his stay in Israel “amid tensions and preparations for an Iranian attack.”
*The U.S. has asked Israel to hold consultations before we retaliate for an attack from Iran.
On the Ground in Gaza and the North
In Gaza:
The IDF struck multiple targets in Nuseirat and Deir Al-Balach overnight. In total, the IAF attacked 30 terrorist targets yesterday.
In the North:
The IAF hit Rihan in southern Lebanon where many of the missiles were fired from last night.
Rejoicing in The Deaths of Their Children:
The Typical Palestinian Reaction
Ismail Haniyeh visited his wife Amal in a Qatari hospital yesterday to tell her about her their 3 sons being killed in Gaza. This photo of the happy couple rejoicing was taken by a HamISIS photographer.
Our OneIsrael Campaign For Our Soldiers
IDF soldiers on the ground in Gaza and in the north have indicated that they urgently need more basic supplies and armaments. Just this morning, it was announced that “barrier shields” are finally being erected at military outposts in the south where soldiers were forced to lie in open trenches to protect themselves from incoming missiles.
The IDF ombudsman reported last month that there has been a 265% increase in the number of incidents in which soldiers are short of combat equipment and basic protective gear.
Members of the Nahal Brigade which remains in Gaza despite the general IDF withdrawal (photo: IDF).
Here at OneIsrael we are engaged in another campaign for our soldiers. This campaign will extend through Passover and to Shavuot.
Please consider donating to our campaign by clicking on the donate button in the right hand column on this page. All donations go directly to our soldiers.
A student from Malawi, who had worked with an Israeli health volunteer in his country battling AIDS, came up to us as we walked down the street in the UC-Davis Picnic Day Parade and wanted to carry the Israeli flag.