Yom Shabbat
Saturday
17 Tishrei 5785
October 19 2024
UPDATE 8:00 PM ISRAEL TIME
Two more IDF soldiers have fallen in battle:
Sgt. Ofir Berkovich, 20 years old, from Medi’in-Maccabim-Reot, an armored fighter in the 52nd Battalion, “Iron Traces” formation (401), fell in battle in the northern Gaza.
Sgt. Elishai Young, 19 years old, from Dimona, an armored fighter in the 52nd Battalion, ‘Traces of Iron’ formation (401), fell in battle in northern Gaza.
May Their Memories Be For A Blessing
About ten thousand food packages have been dropped into Khan Yunis, Gaza in the last 48 hours in coordination between Israel and 13 other countries–especially the UAE– and in accordance with the guidance of the government. As we all know, this “humanitarian” drop is being done at the demand of the Biden government in Washington.
Of course you know what this means. First, many Palestinians will get killed from being hit in the head by the parachuted pallets. In fact, two were killed yesterday. Second, half of what they drop will end up in the Mediterranean and will then wash ashore to the north of Gaza such as on the beach in front of our house in Ashdod.
UPDATE 5:00 PM ISRAEL TIME
Important events since the morning update:
*Updated and corrected: a 51-year-old man, Alexei Popov of Kiryat Haim was killed at the Naaman Junction near Akko when a missile exploded on the other side of the road he was driving on and the shrapnel hit the car he was in.
*Hezbollah missiles and drones attacked at the following locations since 9:00 am this morning: 10:02 Misgav Am; 10:09 Northern Golan; 10:22 Kiryat Biyalik, Kiryat Motzkin, Akko; 10:35 Shlomi; 12:09 Zerait; 12:20 Ma’ale Yosef; 12:22 Tzfat; 12:25 Sha’ar Naaman; 12:28 Upper Galilee; 13:37 Misgav Am; 15:39 Shlomi, Asher; 16:23 Metulla; 16:36 Misgav Am; 16:53 Zerait.
So far today there have been more than 200 missiles fired in 26 barrages.
*A Palestinian terrorist attempted to ram a police car near the entrance to Ofra in Samaria. The police were uninjured; the terrorist was killed.
*An IAF attack at Junia, north of Beirut, eliminated Racha Abbas Owacha, a senior member of Hezbollah’s intelligence system–and his Iranian wife.
*The IAF is currently attacking in the Dahiyeh neighborhood of Beirut.
UPDATE 9:00 AM ISRAEL TIME
As early as it is this Shabbat morning, Hezbollah has been busy attacking Israel:
00:31 [on the border-missiles] Kiryat Shmona, Margaliot, Manara; 01:17 [on the border-missiles] Malkia; 03:35 [northern Golan–drones] Merom Golan, Odem, El Rom; 06:18 [Sharon area-drones] Gan Yoshia, Olesh, Amatz, Bat Hefer Yad Hama; 06:54 [on the border, upper Galilee–drones] Gesher HaZiv, Nahariya, Mazra’a, Regba, Ness Amin, Shomrat, Akko, Bustan HaGalil, Jadeidi-Makr, Ein HaMifratz; 07:18 [lower Galilee, southern Golan–missiles] Tiberias, Poria, Migdal, Susita, Ein Gev; 07:40 [on the border-missiles] Ya’ara; 08:02 [Wadi Ara, HaMifratz, HaCarmel–missiles] Haifa, Ramot HaCarmel, Yokneam Illit, Ramat HaShofet, Carmel, Elyakim, Megiddo; 08:52 [on the border] Misgav Am.
In addition and not included in the above–this statement from the IDF spokesman at 08:17 this morning:
“During the past hour, three UAVs (drones) were identified crossing from Lebanon into Israeli territory. Two of the UAVs were intercepted. One additional UAV hit a structure in the area of Caesarea. No injuries were reported. During the incident, sirens were activated in the Glilot military base. The presence of additional hostile aircraft in the area has been ruled out.”
As you know, PM Netanyahu’s home is in Caesarea. The Glilot military base is where the soldiers were killed by an exploding drone last week.
On the Ground in Gaza
IDF Spokesman:
“The terrorist Mahmoud Hamdan (Tom), the commander of Hamas’ Tel al-Sultan Battalion, was responsible for guarding Yahya Sinwar and overseeing the six hostages who were murdered in the area. A few weeks ago, it was assessed based on intelligence information, with a high probability that he had been eliminated. Today, we understand that the intelligence on which this assessment was based was insufficient, meaning Hamdan continued to guard Sinwar. Today (Friday), Mahmoud Hamdan was eliminated by the IDF during an encounter with IDF troops, approximately 200 meters from the spot where Sinwar was eliminated.”
As always, we wish our soldiers and you dear readers
Shabbat Shalom!
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.