Many have read in the Bible about marauders attacking the people of Israel, taking prisoners and burning fields, but Saturday’s audacious incursion into southern Israel caught everyone by surprise.
What does this mean for Israel, America and the Arab World? How should we respond as Americans?
In case you missed it, Isis “wannabees” from the terrorist group, Hamas, crossed the border on paragliders, motorcycles and golf carts on the Jewish Sabbath. The marauders killed people at a music festival and kidnapped people from their homes. Homes were set on fire, and horrible acts committed. Israel is calling this their “Pearl Harbor” or “9-11” with more than 900 villagers in southern Israel dead, and a full-scale war ramping up.
During my trip to Israel over a decade ago, I stood in that very place. There I met Kobi Harush, a security officer with the Israeli Defense Force, who works in the border town of Sderot, which is just a couple of miles from the Gaza Strip. Gaza is a coastal enclave filled with almost 2 million Palestinians under the control of Hamas, since 2007. Even back then, he showed me hundreds of rockets that had been fired from Gaza over into his town through the years. When the alarm sounds, his residents have only about 15 seconds to find shelter in their safe room or public shelter. This time it was more than just rockets.
So how did Israel miss this? And what is still ahead. That root cause analysis probably will have to be done later because on Israel’s northern border, there are even more weapons aimed at them. These are not the dumb SCUDs from 2006—that just land in random places. Hezbollah has thousands of precision guided missiles that can easily challenge the Iron Dome system used to shoot down missiles. And these weapons can get all the way to Jerusalem.
That is why Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has sent the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the eastern Mediterranean. Along with an aircraft carrier, the group includes a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser, and four Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers. This should deter any missiles from Lebanon being fired into Israel. Hamas wants to ethnically cleanse the Middle East of all Jews. The Palestinians not only want the West Bank, but if you listen to the translation of what their leaders say to their people in Arabic, they want ALL of Israel’s land. In other words, they would end the Jewish State of Israel. The only way to do that, of course, is with a nuclear weapon.
That leads us to Iran, the only nation capable of building a nuclear weapon who has stated multiple times their intent to destroy Israel. What is their responsibility in this? What should America do? President Biden might consider an ultimatum to Iran regarding the American and Israeli hostages—threatening military action against oil refineries or other strategic targets. For us at home, it certainly includes showing solidarity like flying the Israeli flag, speaking out in favor of Israel’s capacity to defend themselves, and urging our elected officials to stand strong. Yosi Shnaider, whose children were kidnapped, said on Fox News that “the world should wake up and stop judging Israel.” Never a truer word has been spoken. I hope you will join me in supporting this important friend.
Tim Echols is the vice-chair of the Georgia Public Service Commission
