Children, Sports and the Loss of Innocence
Day 100. 136 hostages still being held in Gaza and if you were to look at my calendar, it’s hard to tell if I had more meetings or more funerals the past several days.
The Sabbath attacks continue. On Friday evening, three terrorists breached the security fence in Adora, a small village outside of Jerusalem. Their names were Udai Abu Jahisha, 16, Muhammad Arafat Abu Jahisha, 16, and Ismail Abu Jahisha, 19 – all from the same family. According to the BBC, these are “children.” We learned about it as flares went up in the sky Friday night to ensure all of the terrorists had been captured. Of course, so was the 14 year old girl that tried to carry out a terrorist attack in Jerusalem last Tuesday: https://www.timesofisrael.com/east-jerusalem-girl-14-arrested-for-plan-to-carry-out-a-terror-attack-and-die/. So where do we draw the line? These “children” are brainwashed and told every day – in school and in camp – what a wonderful opportunity it is to kill a Jew: https://www.tiktok.com/@hadarmuchtar/video/7293528281549180178?is_from_webapp=1.
Let’s look at this in a historical context. Yasuo Tanaka was the youngest kamikaze pilot. He flew what was referred to as an “Okha,” an airplane without wheels thus ensuring he didn’t change his mind. On May 11th, 1945 young Yasuo was killed. His friend, Torao Kato was on an identical mission. He was 18. These “children” joined the air force training corps at the age of 14. Nobody seemed to object when the new President of the United States, Harry Truman, decided to hit back hard. In the words of President Truman, “When you have to deal with a beast you have to treat him as a beast. It is most regrettable but nevertheless true.” (See attached) The question needs to be asked, if given the chance to take out these “children” before the damage is done, would we? Could we? I think we all know the answer.
The “children” I wrote about (above) are the same ones Hamas will want released in the next hostage swap. Let us not forget so many of those “children” came back to rape, murder and torture the young families in the south of Israel on October 7th. Where do these “children” learn to hate from? Yes Hamas but also UNRWA, the Red Cross and the many relief agencies that are in Gaza and made up of Hamas members themselves. Yes, the very same United Nations that calls for “peace, dignity and equality.” That’s the one! See for yourself: https://unwatch.org/group-of-3000-unrwa-teachers-celebrates-hamas-massacre-and-rape/
There’s an old expression, “No good deed goes unpunished.” It’s a phrase from literature in the 1100’s which just goes to show pessimism is not a new concept! I have often thought about this phrase particularly in this current environment. On February 6th of last year, an earthquake struck Turkey. 50,783 people died in Turkey alone as well as many in Syria. The government of Israel sent almost 500 humanitarian aid workers and more than fifteen cargo planes with hundreds of tons of aid. This included almost 250 medics, dozens of physicians and rescue experts that extricated Turkish citizens from the rubble. On the 12th of February of 2023, United Hatzalah https://israelrescue.org/ – an amazing charitable organization – left Turkey as they received a number of terroristic threats against their personnel working around the clock to help those in need. The establishment of an Israeli field hospital in Gaziantep was approved and all of this despite President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s hatred for Israel. So today when Sagiv Yehezkel scored a goal for Antalyaspor, a Turkish football (soccer) team, President Erdogan decided to thank Israel in a way that only he can do. He had Sagiv – an Israeli citizen – suspended and arrested (see picture below). When I was a kid, I thought sports were meant to bring people together. That was until I went to the Green Monster for a Yankees game. Today it is commonplace in Europe to see fans (and some players) performing a Nazi salute at matches. If you’re a player, Turkey is not alone in ridding itself of Jewish players. David Teeger, who represents South Africa, as the Captain of the under-19 cricket team was replaced https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/david-teeger-dismissal-cuts-across-south-african-politics-1416791 because he dared to say that he did not feel “Israel was committing genocide.” Right. Free speech is only allowed if you agree with the ruling government and their hateful ways. In countries like Turkey and South Africa statements such as these are not welcome especially when your country brings Israel to the ICC (International Criminal Court). Interesting given the fact that the South African delegation to the ICC includes Shawan Jabarin, the general director of Al-Haq and a terrorist himself having served as part of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). Terrorists yelling “Shame” at Israel for defending themselves and fighting to get their citizens, friends and relatives back. What a joke.
Meanwhile, People for Israel continues our good work. In the past week we delivered over 500 meals to those in need as well as hats, gloves and boots by the case. We are awaiting more winter supplies and our volunteer kitchen is working fast and furious. Once we donate supplies, it is not frequently that we hear from the recipients. This is understandable given the circumstances on the ground. However, last night I got a message from a young man named Eitan and this was it: “I don’t know if you heard but Friday night there was a terrorist attack in Adora…..I know for a fact the items you provided us helped to sustain us through a very stressful evening. I just wanted to thank you.” Hearing this message made me think about the past 100 days. Some mornings I truly don’t know what to do. Yet hearing this message brought a small smile to my face and made me remember why we formed People for Israel. It’s thanks to people like you that we are able to help so many. Thanks to you too Eitan. Your message gave all of us a lot of strength. Stay safe my friend.
Today’s Pictures:
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At People for Israel, we are helping people across the Holy Land. By providing transportation to those in need, helping to enhance security in our most vulnerable communities, providing food and supplies to those in need – we are trying to do our part. When a donation is received, we utilize these funds as quickly as possible by responding to requests we have received from across the country. Please consider giving a donation here: https://secure.cardknox.com/peopleforisrael, or asking us to speak to your church, synagogue or civic group allows us to share what is really going on here. Signing up for our journal at www.peopleforisrael.com or subscribe to our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCif40j-GEupVqzbBi_ZnCg
David
David at People for Israel
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Since October 7, 2023
