Prayers for Men: Shalom Charles ben Gracia, Daniel ben Rivka, Ephraim ben Mazel, Zev ben Rachel, Yisrael Ben
Dovid ben Drorah Rivka, Meir Melech ben Bracha, NEW ADDITION Arieh ben Sara,
Women: Karen Neshama bas Esther Ruth, Chaya Melecha Rachel bas
Baila Alta, Miriam bas Irene Taita Malka, Drorah
Rivka bas Chana, Mine’ Dulah bas Maxine, Rachel Izel bas Sara, Miriam
Esther bas Golda Chaya, Sophia bas Basya,
I also received this from Neal Z. Please
continue to keep Izzy in your thoughts and in your prayers (Yisroel Alter ben
Chava Chana), as the power of our collective prayers can hopefully continue to
penetrate the heavenly gates of mercy! https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-save-izzy-zundells?attribution_id=sl:b938c042-0242-4126-89e8-889b40b4c42d&ts=1772510070&utm_campaign=natman_sharesheet_dash&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link
Parsha Devarim
Our fifth
and last section of the Chumash is Sefer
Devarim (Deuteronomy). We continue with journeys mentioned in last week’s
Parsha but this time warnings of Ethic Breaches and the rebuke starts
immediately. Devarim contains three different speeches of Moshe in his last 37
days.
1:1 These
are the words which Moses spoke unto all Israel beyond the Jordan; in the
wilderness, in the Arabah, over against Suph, between Paran and Tophel, and
Laban, and Hazeroth, and Di-zahab.
The
following are the words. Since these are words of
reproof and Moses lists here all the places
where they angered the Omnipresent, he did not explicitly mention the issues
but merely alluded to them, out of
respect for Israel. To all
Israel. Had he
reproved only some of them, those who were elsewhere could have said to those who were present: “You heard what the son of Amram said and you did not answer
anything with this or that point. Had we been there, we
would have answered him.” For this reason, he gathered them all together
and said to them, “Since you are all here, anyone who has anything to say in response
– let him respond!” In the
desert. They were
not in the desert but in the plains of Moab, so what is the meaning of בַּמִּדְבָּר? It can only mean: Regarding their having
angered God in the desert, in that
they said: “If only we had died…in
Egypt…. But You have taken us out to this desert to starve this entire assembly
to death….” In the plain - means: regarding what happened in the plain, i.e., that they sinned by worshiping Baal Peor at Shitim in the
plains of Moab. Opposite
[the Sea of] Reeds - i.e., regarding their having
rebelled at the Sea of Reeds, when they came to the Sea of Reeds and said: “Was
it for want of graves in Egypt that you
brought us to die in the desert?” Similarly, they rebelled when they went out of the
sea, as it says: “they rebelled at the sea, at the Sea of Reeds,” as stated in Arachin.
Between
Paran and Tofel and Lavan. Rabbi Yochanan said: We
searched through all of Scripture and did not find any place named Tofel or
Lavan. Rather, it means
that he
rebuked them for having maligned (שֶׁתָּפְלוּ) the manna, which is white (לָבָן), by saying: “and we are weary of this light bread!” and also for what they did in the
Paran Desert in the
incident of the
spies. And
Chatzerot - i.e., in Korach’s dispute.
Another explanation: He said to them: “You should have taken a lesson from what
I did to Miriam at Chatzerot for having spoken slander, yet you spoke against the
Omnipresent.” And an
abundance of gold. He
rebuked them for the Golden Calf, which they made as a
result of the abundance of gold that they had, as it says: “I gave them plenty
of silver and gold, but they used it for the idol Baal.”
Di-Zahav refers to the
golden calf. Zahav is the word for gold in Hebrew.
2 It is eleven days journey from Horeb unto
Kadesh-barnea by the way of mount Seir. 3 And it came to pass in
the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that
Moses spoke unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the LORD had
given him in commandment unto them;
This is
Rosh Chodesh Shvat 2488 and 37 days before the passing of Moshe that he is
giving his first Drasha of three in Devarim.
4 after he had smitten Sihon the king of the
Amorites, who dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, who dwelt in
Ashtaroth, at Edrei; 5 beyond the Jordan, in the land of Moab,
took Moses upon him to expound this law, saying: 6 The LORD our
God spoke unto us in Horeb, saying: 'Ye have dwelt long enough in this
mountain; 7 turn you, and take your journey, and go to the
hill-country of the Amorites and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the
Arabah, in the hill-country, and in the Lowland, and in the South, and by the
sea-shore; the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river,
the river Euphrates.
The proof
that we are in messianic times is when Yisrael extends from ‘the river in Egypt”
to the Euphrates and Har HaHor by the Turkish Border.
8 Behold, I have set the land before you: go in
and possess the land which the LORD swore unto your fathers, to Abraham, to
Isaac, and to Jacob, to give unto them and to their seed after them.' 9 And I spoke unto you at that time, saying: 'I am not able to bear
you myself alone; 10 the LORD your God hath multiplied you, and,
behold, ye are this day as the stars of heaven for multitude.—
Yoshua did
not conquer quickly and I do not know the reason for it. He dawdled and it cost
us dearly in land for the tribes. The many nations today will block us and
already the small inroads we made into southern Lebanon we are being forced to
give up.
11 The LORD, the God of your fathers, make you
a thousand times so many more as ye are, and bless you, as He hath promised
you!-- 12 How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your
burden, and your strife? 13 Get you, from each one of your
tribes, wise men, and understanding, and full of knowledge, and I will make
them heads over you.' 14 And ye answered me, and said: 'The
thing which thou hast spoken is good for us to do.' 15 So I took
the heads of your tribes, wise men, and full of knowledge, and made them heads
over you, captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds, and captains of
fifties, and captains of tens, and officers, tribe by tribe. 16
And I charged your judges at that time, saying: 'Hear the causes between your
brethren, and judge righteously between a man and his brother, and the stranger
that is with him. 17 Ye shall not respect persons in judgment;
ye shall hear the small and the great alike; ye shall not be afraid of the face
of any man; for the judgment is God's; and the cause that is too hard for you
ye shall bring unto me, and I will hear it.'
While we
were in Sinai prior to the giving of the Torah, I judged per laws and
traditions and by the word of HASHEM, but it was too much for me so I appointed
judges of 1,000’s, 100’s, 50’s and 10’s to learn the law.
18 And I commanded you at that time all the
things which ye should do. 19 And we journeyed from Horeb, and
went through all that great and dreadful wilderness which ye saw, by the way to
the hill-country of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came
to Kadesh-barnea.
This is the
modern Egyptian-Israeli Border. The area in modern times is not far from Rafa
the furthest point south of Gaza. It is below Beer Sheva by 74.9 km.
20 And I said unto you: 'Ye are come unto the
hill-country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God gives unto us. 21 Behold,
the LORD thy God hath set the land before thee; go up, take possession, as the
LORD, the God of thy fathers, hath spoken unto thee; fear not, neither be
dismayed.' 22 And ye came near unto me every one of you, and
said: 'Let us send men before us, that they may search the land for us, and
bring us back word of the way by which we must go up, and the cities unto which
we shall come.' 23 And the thing pleased me well; and I took
twelve men of you, one man for every tribe;
As I wrote that
it was a good idea for the men to spy out the land. However, they should have
kept things quiet and only report to Moshe.
24 and they turned and went up into the
mountains, and came unto the valley of Eshcol, and spied it out. 25
And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and brought it down unto
us, and brought us back word, and said: 'Good is the land which the LORD our
God gives
unto us.'
The original
report was that of a good land.
26 Yet ye would not go up, but rebelled against
the commandment of the LORD your God; 27 and ye murmured in your
tents, and said: 'Because the LORD hated us, He hath brought us forth out of
the land of Egypt, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Whither are we going up? our brethren have made our heart to
melt, saying: The people is greater and taller than we; the cities are great
and fortified up to heaven; and moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakim
there.'
These men
similar to Og were giants. I have no idea of the average height of an Egyptian
Slave from the food that they ate. I can only tell you is that my father’s father
was about 5’ 2” or about 157.5 cm and my grandmother 4’ 10” or 1.37 cm. My
father ate better and grew to 5’ 6” or 167.5 cm I ended up being 5’ 9.75” or
177cm. If these people were an average of over six feet 180-195cm tall they
would appear like giants to the Bnei Yisrael not to mention if they were
particularly tall.
29 Then I said unto you: 'Dread not, neither be
afraid of them. 30 The LORD your God who goes before you, He shall fight for you,
according to all that He did for you in Egypt before your eyes; 31
and in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the LORD thy God bore
thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came
unto this place. 32 Yet in this thing ye do not believe the LORD
your God, 33 Who went before you in the way, to seek you out a
place to pitch your tents in: in fire by night, to show you by what way ye
should go, and in the cloud by day.'
The heart
of these cowards melted. They forgot the cloud and the pillar guiding them from
HASHEM. Or as a philosopher stated “Familiarity breeds contempt.” The opposite
we find in Dovid vs. Goliard. He was short like my grandfather and Goliard was
up to 274 cm which made Dovid childlike before him.
34 And the LORD heard the voice of your words,
and was wroth, and swore, saying: 35 'Surely there shall not one
of these men, even this evil generation, see the good land, which I swore to
give unto your fathers,
From here
we learn that the 10 cowardly spies died on the spot and many who were persuaded
by them.
36 save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, he shall
see it; and to him will I give the land that he hath trodden upon, and to his
children; because he hath wholly followed the LORD.' 37 Also the
LORD was angry with me for your sakes, saying: Thou also shalt not go in
thither; 38 Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before thee, he shall go in
thither; encourage thou him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it. 39 Moreover your little ones, that ye said should be a prey, and
your children, that this day have no knowledge of good or evil, they shall go
in thither, and unto them will I give it, and they shall possess it. 40 But as for you, turn you, and take your journey into the
wilderness by the way to the Red Sea.' 41 Then ye answered and
said unto me: 'We have sinned against the LORD, we will go up and fight,
according to all that the LORD our God commanded us.' And ye girded on every
man his weapons of war, and deemed it a light thing to go up into the
hill-country.
These were
men of the Tribe of Ephraim and they thought that they could fight but not
without the help of the L-RD. They were warned and they were slaughtered.
42 And the LORD said unto me: 'Say unto them:
Go not up, neither fight; for I am not among you; lest ye be smitten before
your enemies.' 43 So I spoke unto you, and ye hearkened not; but
ye rebelled against the commandment of the LORD, and were presumptuous, and
went up into the hill-country. 44 And the Amorites, that dwell
in that hill-country, came out against you, and chased you, as bees do, and
beat you down in Seir, even unto Hormah. 45 And ye returned and
wept before the LORD; but the LORD hearkened not to your voice, nor gave ear
unto you. 46 So ye abode in Kadesh many days, according unto the
days that ye abode there. 2:1 Then
we turned, and took our journey into the wilderness by the way to the Red Sea,
as the LORD spoke unto me; and we compassed mount Seir many days.
So, the
L-RD had them wonder around the water and grazing source near Har Sinai.
2 And the LORD spoke unto me, saying: 3 'Ye
have compassed this mountain long enough; turn you northward. 4 And command
thou the people, saying: Ye are to pass through the border of your brethren the
children of Esau, that dwell in Seir; and they will be afraid of you; take ye good
heed unto yourselves therefore; 5 contend not with them; for I will not give
you of their land, no, not so much as for the sole of the foot to tread on;
because I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a possession. 6 Ye shall purchase
food of them for money, that ye may eat; and ye shall also buy water of them
for money, that ye may drink. 7 For the LORD thy God hath blessed thee in all
the work of thy hand; He hath known thy walking through this great wilderness;
these forty years the LORD thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked
nothing.' 8 So we passed by from our brethren the children of Esau, that dwell
in Seir, from the way of the Arabah, from Eilat and from
Ezion-geber.
These are
areas in the plain near Eilat some in modern Egypt (aka Mitzrayim) and some in
modern Yisrael. They had water sources that could support the people.
And we turned and passed by the way of the
wilderness of Moab. 9 And the LORD said unto me: 'Be not at enmity with Moab,
neither contend with them in battle; for I will not give thee of his land for a
possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.—
These are relatives
from Avraham’s brother Haran who died on a Kiddush HASHEM in the oven of
Nimrod. Therefore, do not touch them. Little did the people know that Ruth from
Moav would be a great grandmother of Dovid and the future Moshiach.
10 The Emim dwelt therein aforetime, a people
great, and many, and tall, as the Anakim; 11 these also are accounted Rephaim,
as the Anakim; but the Moabites call them Emim. 12 And in Seir dwelt the
Horites aforetime, but the children of Esau succeeded them; and they destroyed
them from before them, and dwelt in their stead; as Israel did unto the land of
his possession, which the LORD gave unto them.-- 13 Now rise up, and get you
over the brook Zered.' And we went over the brook Zered. 14 And the days in
which we came from Kadesh-barnea, until we were come over the brook Zered, were
thirty and eight years; until all the generation, even the men of war, were
consumed from the midst of the camp, as the LORD swore unto them. 15 Moreover the
hand of the LORD was against them, to discomfit them from the midst of the
camp, until they were consumed. 16 So it came to pass, when all the men of war
were consumed and dead from among the people,
Each year
the tradition says that on Tisha B’Av the people would dig a grave and go to
sleep. If they were the 15,000 that would die that year, they were buried and
if they awoke they would do so the next year. After 40 years they dug and some
remained alive indicating repentance but not to enter the land.
17 that the LORD spoke unto me saying: 18 'Thou
art this day to pass over the border of Moab, even Ar; 19 and when thou come
nigh over against the children of Ammon, harass them not, nor contend with
them; for I will not give thee of the land of the children of Ammon for a
possession; because I have given it unto the children of Lot for a
possession.-- 20 That also is accounted a land of Rephaim: Rephaim dwelt
therein aforetime; but the Ammonites call them Zamzummim, 21 a people great, and
many, and tall, as the Anakim; but the LORD destroyed them before them; and
they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead; 22 as He did for the children of
Esau, that dwell in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them; and
they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead even unto this day; 23 and the
Avvim, that dwelt in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorim, that came forth
out of Caphtor, destroyed them, and dwelt in their stead.-- 24 Rise ye up, take
your journey, and pass over the valley of Arnon; behold, I have given into thy
hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land; begin to possess it, and
contend with him in battle. 25 This day will I begin to put the dread of thee
and the fear of thee upon the peoples that are under the whole heaven, who,
when they hear the report of thee, shall tremble, and be in anguish because of
thee.' 26 And I sent messengers out of the wilderness of Kedemoth unto Sihon
king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying: 27 'Let me pass through thy land;
I will go along by the highway, I will neither turn unto the right hand nor to
the left. 28 Thou shalt sell me food for money, that I may eat; and give me
water for money, that I may drink; only let me pass through on my feet; 29 as
the children of Esau that dwell in Seir, and the Moabites that dwell in Ar, did
unto me; until I shall pass over the Jordan into the land which the LORD our
God giveth us.' 30 But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him; for
the LORD thy God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that He
might deliver him into thy hand, as appears this day.
This whole
section mentions how the Golan Heights changed hands over the years. Finally,
the Bnei Yisrael only wanted to pass through on the way into Eretz Yisrael and
the people came out in force which resulted in their conquest.
31 And the LORD said unto me: 'Behold, I have
begun to deliver up Sihon and his land before thee; begin to possess his land.'
32 Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his people, unto battle at Jahaz.
33 And the LORD our God delivered him up before us; and we smote him, and his
sons, and all his people. 34 And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly
destroyed every city, the men, and the women, and the little ones; we left none
remaining;
These were
idol worshipping Canaan People and were to be destroyed due to their wickedness.
The order came from HASHEM.
35 only the cattle we took for a prey unto
ourselves, with the spoil of the cities which we had taken. 36 From Aroer,
which is on the edge of the valley of Arnon, and from the city that is in the
valley, even unto Gilead, there was not a city too high for us: the LORD our
God delivered up all before us. 37 Only to the land of the children of Ammon
thou camest not near; all the side of the river Jabbok, and the cities of the
hill-country, and wheresoever the LORD our God forbade us. 3:1 Then
we turned, and went up the way to Bashan; and Og the king of Bashan came out
against us, he and all his people, unto battle at Edrei. 2 And the LORD said
unto me: 'Fear him not; for I have delivered him, and all his people, and his
land, into thy hand; and thou shalt do unto him as thou didst unto Sihon king
of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon.' 3 So the LORD our God delivered into
our hand Og also, the king of Bashan, and all his people; and we smote him
until none was left to him remaining. 4 And we took all his cities at that
time; there was not a city which we took not from them; threescore cities, all
the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan. 5 All these were fortified
cities, with high walls, gates, and bars; beside the unwalled towns a great
many. 6 And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon king of Heshbon,
utterly destroying every city, the men, and the women, and the little ones. 7
But all the cattle, and the spoil of the cities, we took for a prey unto
ourselves. 8 And we took the land at that time out of the hand of the two kings
of the Amorites that were beyond the Jordan, from the valley of Arnon unto
mount Hermon-- 9 which Hermon the Sidonians call Sirion, and the Amorites call
it Senir—
These are
three names for Har Hermon.
10 all the cities of the plain, and all Gilead,
and all Bashan, unto Salcah and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan.--
11 For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the Rephaim; behold,
his bedstead was a bedstead of iron; is it not in Rabbah of the children of
Ammon? nine cubits was the length thereof, and four cubits the breadth of it,
after the cubit of a man.—
As tall as
we say Og was, his bed which allowed him to stretch was 13.5 feet or 4 m 5cm. The
width was as wide as a standard queen size bed and probably to have a wife or
two sleep with him. I assume that the Bnei Yisrael in Mitzrayim or Bamidbar did
not have beds that wide.
12 And this land we took in possession at that
time; from Aroer, which is by the valley of Arnon, and half the hill-country of
Gilead, and the cities thereof, gave I unto the Reubenites and to the Gadites;
13 and the rest of Gilead, and all Bashan, the kingdom of Og, gave I unto the
half-tribe of Manasseh; all the region of Argob--all that Bashan is called the
land of Rephaim. 14 Jair the son of Manasseh took all the region of Argob, unto
the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and called them, even Bashan,
after his own name, Havvoth-jair, unto this day.-- 15 And I gave Gilead unto
Machir. 16 And unto the Reubenites and unto the Gadites I gave from Gilead even
unto the valley of Arnon, the middle of the valley for a border; even unto the
river Jabbok, which is the border of the children of Ammon; 17 the Arabah also,
the Jordan being the border thereof, from Kinnereth even unto the sea of the
Arabah, the Salt Sea, under the slopes of Pisgah eastward. 18 And I commanded
you at that time, saying: 'The LORD your God hath given you this land to
possess it; ye shall pass over armed before your brethren the children of
Israel, all the men of valour. 19 But your wives, and your little ones, and
your cattle--I know that ye have much cattle--shall abide in your cities which
I have given you; 20 until the LORD give rest unto your brethren, as unto you,
and they also possess the land which the LORD your God giveth them beyond the
Jordan; then shall ye return every man unto his possession, which I have given
you. 21 And I commanded Joshua at that time, saying: 'Thine eyes have seen all
that the LORD your God hath done unto these two kings; so shall the LORD do
unto all the kingdoms whither thou go over. 22 Ye shall not fear them; for the
LORD your God, He it is that fights for you.'
All the
conquered land would belong to the two and a half tribes. HASHEM would be with
them going in front to fight the battlws.
23 And I besought the LORD at that time,
saying: 24 'O Lord GOD, Thou hast begun to show Thy servant Thy greatness, and
Thy strong hand; for what god is there in heaven or on earth, that can do
according to Thy works, and according to Thy mighty acts? 25 Let me go over, I
pray Thee, and see the good land that is beyond the Jordan, that goodly
hill-country, and Lebanon.' 26 But the LORD was wroth with me for your sakes,
and hearkened not unto me; and the LORD said unto me: 'Let it suffice thee; speak
no more unto Me of this matter. 27 Get thee up into the top of Pisgah, and lift
up thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward, and eastward, and behold
with thine eyes; for thou shalt not go over this Jordan. 28 But charge Joshua,
and encourage him, and strengthen him; for he shall go over before this people,
and he shall cause them to inherit the land which thou shalt see.' 29 So we
abode in the valley over against Beth-Peor.
I, Moshe, wanted to enter the good land.
However, I was told to go up the mountain to view it from afar. Yoshua would be
the new leader and conqueror of the land.
Lucie and
Raymond Aubrac of the French Resistance
In 1943, the Gestapo finally caught
Raymond Aubrac, one of France’s most wanted Resistance leaders. The German
secret police sentenced him to death, and his execution was only days away.
At the same time, his wife Lucie was
six months pregnant with their second child. Most people in her position would
have gone into hiding, grieved quietly, and prayed for a miracle.
Lucie Aubrac decided to do something
completely different.
She got her hands-on forged identity
papers, created a believable cover story, and walked straight into the office
of Klaus Barbie. History would later remember Barbie as the brutal Butcher of
Lyon, but Lucie did not let fear stop her.
She looked him in the eye and
successfully convinced him to grant her a final visit with her condemned
husband.
But Lucie did not risk her life just
to say a tearful goodbye. While she was inside the prison area, she was
secretly memorizing the positions of the guards, counting the minutes between
patrols, and mapping out the exact route the prison truck would take.
She was treating a desperate
situation like a military operation.
On October 21, 1943, that prison
truck rolled through the streets of Lyon. It was carrying Raymond and several
other prisoners toward what should have been their final destination. What the
German soldiers did not know was that Lucie had spent weeks quietly assembling
a dedicated team of Resistance fighters.
She planned an ambush with absolute
precision.
When the truck finally reached the
chosen ambush spot, her team struck fast, coordinated, and without a single
moment of hesitation.
In the middle of the sudden gunfire
and chaos, Raymond Aubrac was pulled free from the truck. Lucie, who was
visibly and unmistakably pregnant, had organized every single detail of his
dramatic liberation.
Right after the rescue, the couple
had to go into deep hiding. A few weeks later, Lucie gave birth to their
daughter in a secret safe house while German forces searched frantically for
them across France. They managed to evade capture until the war ended.
When liberation finally came, the
Aubracs did not just try to sit back and recover from their trauma. Instead,
they rebuilt their lives and continued to serve their country.
Raymond became a celebrated engineer
and entered public life to help rebuild France's infrastructure. Lucie became a
respected historian, pouring decades of her life into making sure that the
women of the French Resistance were never forgotten.
She wanted to make sure these women,
who were so often unnamed in the history books, were written permanently into
the record. Together, the couple raised three children, travelled the world,
argued, laughed, and grew old side by side.
Years later, journalists asked Lucie
what had compelled her to risk everything on that dangerous October day. She
did not hesitate for a second. She looked at them and said, "He was my
husband. What else would I do?"
In his final years, he continued
speaking publicly to young generations about the Resistance, the power of
memory, and the absolute obligation to tell the truth about history.
When Lucie passed away in 2007 at
94, and Raymond followed her in 2012 at 97, they left behind a 64-year marriage
that was a testament to the ultimate triumph of life and family over hatred.
Their love didn't just survive a
war—it blossomed into a lifetime of shared smiles, proving that the greatest
force in the world is a heart that refuses to give up on the one it loves.
#TrueLove #FrenchResistance #LucieAubrac #InspirationalStories #HistoryHeroes
Nathan
Straus
He co-owned Macy’s and could have kept every dollar. Instead,
Nathan Straus gave two-thirds of his fortune to a country that didn't even
exist yet.
An American New Yorker, Straus visited Jerusalem in 1904,
cancelled the rest of his Mediterranean tour, and dedicated his life to the
Land of Israel.
He poured his wealth into:
Soup kitchens feeding hundreds daily in the Old City. Health stations to fight malaria and trachoma. A major Jerusalem health center with a cornerstone carved in
English, Hebrew, and Arabic—built "for the benefit of all
inhabitants."
In 1912, he was in Palestine with his brother Isidor. Nathan
wanted to stay longer, but an impatient Isidor sailed home early on a ship
called the Titanic. Isidor never made it back.
Devastated, Nathan spent the rest of his days giving, famously
saying: “Give at death, it is lead. Give in sickness, it is silver. Give in
health, it is gold.”
Today, a thriving coastal city of 250,000 people
stands in Israel, built on the land he bet on decades before it was a state.
It’s called Netanya. Named for Natan
Misiras
Nefesh Story
Not every
story in the world is worth telling. 99% of the time I have a nice Jewish Hero
or anti-Nazi Story. But sometimes one can learn from other people.
In April 1972, an American pilot carrying high-level intelligence
secrets was shot down deep behind enemy lines in Vietnam. His knowledge was too
dangerous to ever fall into enemy hands.
The Air Force threw everything they had into getting him out, but
it wasn't enough. One aircraft after another went down in the attempt. Airmen
died; others were captured. Within a week, commanders had to make a brutal
call: halt the air rescues. The cost had simply become too high to bear. That should have been the end of it.
Instead, a Navy SEAL named Tom Norris decided to walk in.
With a small team of South Vietnamese commandos, he slipped
through enemy-held territory on foot. In the dead of night, he successfully
pulled out a different stranded pilot who had been shot down nearby. Hours
later, the base Norris had just returned to was slammed by a rocket barrage.
But the second pilot the one with the critical secrets was still
out there, starving, disoriented, and surrounded by thousands of North
Vietnamese troops. Two air rescue attempts had already ended in tragedy.
So Norris tried an approach almost too simple to work. He and a
single Vietnamese sailor, Petty Officer Nguyen Van Kiet, dressed as local
fishermen. They paddled a wooden sampan boat straight up the river, right into
the heart of enemy territory, completely in the open.
At dawn, they found the pilot, hid him under a pile of bamboo
branches at the bottom of the boat, and started paddling for home.
They almost made it back cleanly. Then, heavy gunfire opened up
from the riverbank. Left with no choice, Norris called in an airstrike nearly
on top of their own position to clear the way and the little boat slipped
through.
Norris didn't want the credit. He even tried to turn down the
nomination for the Medal of Honor, but the Navy gave it to him anyway. For his
bravery on the same mission, Kiet received the Navy Cross becoming one of the
few Vietnamese sailors in history to earn the distinction.
Six months later, Norris was shot in the head during another
mission and by all accounts should have died on the spot.
He survived because a fellow SEAL, Michael Thornton, fought his
way back under intense fire to find him. Thornton carried an unconscious Norris
hundreds of yards to the water and towed him out to sea for two hours until
they were finally rescued by a support ship.
Thornton received his own Medal of Honor for that incredible
rescue. A few years later, when it was Norris’s turn to receive the Medal of
Honor, he was still recovering in the hospital. Doctors refused to let him
leave, so Thornton simply snuck his friend out the back door so he wouldn't
miss his White House ceremony.
Two men. Two medals. Each had saved the other's life.
Norris spent years and countless surgeries rebuilding his body. He
went on to join the FBI's newly formed Hostage Rescue Team spending the rest of
his career doing professionally what he had already proven he could do when it
mattered most: going in when everyone else had stopped.
Yet, he never wore his medal for himself. He always maintained
that it belonged to the teammates who never made it home to wear one of their
own.
Céleste Varon the woman who almost saved seven worlds
Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:9 Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he destroyed
an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an
entire world.
In October 1942, a terrified nineteen-year-old Jewish girl
knocked on the door of Céleste Varon, a 63-year-old seamstress who lived alone
with her elderly cat.
The girl was the Mandel daughter from the second floor.
The girl’s parents had already been taken by the authorities,
and she had absolutely nowhere left to go. Céleste did not make a grand speech,
and she did not hesitate.
She simply stepped aside, let the frightened teenager inside her
two-room apartment on the Rue Sainte-Catherine, and quietly decided to change
history from her sewing machine.
For forty years, Céleste had a reputation in her Bordeaux
neighborhood as the woman who could make something from nothing.
She spent her days doing close work by her window, watching the
world change through the glass. When the German occupation brought terror and
yellow stars to her streets, she did not see a political crisis.
Instead, she saw a practical problem that required a practical
solution. To survive, her new guest needed to become completely invisible to
the soldiers patrolling the city.
Céleste knew exactly how to do that because she understood that
how a person is seen depends entirely on what they wear.
She immediately set to work transforming the young girl into her
niece. She did not just alter clothing. She coached the girl on how to walk,
how to carry her shoulders, and how to blend into a crowd with the same patient
specificity she used during dress fittings.
Later, she used her sharp eyesight and steady hands to alter
identity papers, mixing her own inks under a work lamp until the changes were
flawless. "A person is noticed when they look out of place,"
Céleste whispered to her guests as she worked. "Our job is to make sure
you look exactly like what the world expects to see."
Soon, her quiet resistance grew.
Over two years, Céleste hid a total of seven people in her tiny
back room.
When her savings ran out in 1943, she took a massive risk to
feed them. She started accepting alteration commissions from the wives of
German officers. She sat calmly in apartments decorated with swastika flags,
pinning hems and maintaining a perfectly blank expression, using the money from
the occupiers to buy food for the Jewish citizens hidden right under their
noses.
Twice, the French police searched her building, but they only
ever saw an old woman sewing quietly at her machine and moved on.
Of the seven people she sheltered, five survived the war. After
the liberation, the Mandel daughter emigrated to Canada and eventually named
her own first daughter Céleste.
In 1947, she sent a letter back to the little apartment on Rue
Sainte-Catherine, thanking the woman who taught her how to walk down a
dangerous street like she belonged there.
They wrote to each other for eleven years until Céleste passed
away in 1958, right at her sewing machine, with a piece of fabric still under
the needle.
Céleste never asked for fame, medals, or recognition.
She simply went back to her normal life after the war, believing
she had just done her job. Today, her story lives on through that single,
treasured letter preserved in the Bordeaux municipal archives. It reminds us
that ordinary kindness, mixed with a little courage and practical skill, has
the power to light up the darkest times and sew a broken world back together.
The Holy Ari of Safed (Tzefat) by R’
Yerachmiel Tilles
https://ascentofsafed.com/Stories/Stories/5786/1492-43.html
Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534-1572), renowned as the greatest kabbalist
of modern times, is commonly known as the A.R.I., an acronym standing for Elohi
Rabbi Yitzhak - the G-dly Rabbi Isaac. No other master or sage ever had this
extra letter, standing for - Elohi - G-dly - prefaced to his name. This is a
sign of what his contemporaries thought of him. Later generations, fearsome
that this appellation might be misunderstood, said that this alef stood for Askenazi,
indicating that his family had originated in Germany, as indeed it had. But the
original meaning is the correct one, and to this day Rabbi Isaac Luria is
universally referred to as the Ari HaKadosh - the 'Holy Ari.'
The Ari was born in Jerusalem in 1534. By the time he was eight, he was
recognized as a wonder child, a prodigy who already outshone the greatest minds
of Jerusalem. At this tender age, he had already mastered the intricacies of
the Talmud and committed dozens of volumes to memory.
The Ari's father died while he was still a child. Under the pressure of
poverty, his mother went with him to Egypt, where they lived with her brother,
Mordecai Frances, a wealthy tax agent. The Ari's brilliance continued to shine.
The young prodigy was placed under the tutelage of Rabbi Betzalel Ashkenazi
(1520-1592), best known for his important Talmudic commentary, the Shita
Mekubetzet. There is also evidence that the young lad also studied under the
great Radbaz, Rabbi David ben Zimri (1480-1573) who was then the chief rabbi of
Cairo.
By the time he was fifteen, his expertise in Talmud had overwhelmed all the
sages in Egypt. According to a reliable account, the Ari himself also wrote a
large Talmudic commentary around this time. Had he remained nothing more than a
Talmudic scholar, he would have joined the ranks of the greatest of all times.
At age 15, he married his uncle's daughter. At age seventeen, he discovered the
Zohar, obtaining his own manuscript copy. After, he spent fifteen years
meditating, at first with his master, Rabbi Betzalel Ashkenazi, and then alone,
reaching the highest levels of holiness.
Eventually, he spent two years meditating in a hut near the Nile, utterly
isolated, not speaking to any human being. The only time he would return home
would be on the eve of the Sabbath, just before dark. But even at home, he
would not speak. When it was absolutely necessary for him to say something, he
would say it in the least possible number of words, and only in the Holy Tongue.
It is accepted that the Ari became worthy of ruach HaKadosh - 'Divine inspiration'. At times, Elijah revealed himself to him and taught him the
mysteries of the Torah. Every night his soul ascended to heaven. Angels would
escort him, asking which academy he chose to visit. Sometimes it would be that
of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. He also visited the academies of Rabbi Akiba and
Rabbi Eliezer the Great, and on occasion the academies of the ancient Prophets.
At the end of this period he received a command from Elijah the Prophet to go
to the Holy land. He arrived in Safed during the summer of 1570, and began by
concealing his gifts completely. He was only there a short time when the Ramak
(Rabbi Moshe Cordovero 1522-1570), head of the Safed kabbalists, died on 23
Tammuz, 5330 (June 1570). By being able to identify the heavenly pillar of fire
that followed the great kabbalist's funeral procession, the Ari established
himself as the new leader.
The Ari passed away on July 15, 1572 (5 Av, 5332), barely two years after he
had arrived in Safed. During his brief stay there, he had assembled a group of
approximately a dozen disciples, with Chaim Vital at their head, and they
continued to review his teachings. For the most part, it was Rabbi Chaim who
put them into writing. The main works are the Etz Chaim (Tree of Life) and Pri
Etz Chaim (Fruit of the Tree of Life), as well as the Eight Gates, which deal
with everything from Bible commentary to divine inspiration and reincarnation.
The Ari also authored the liturgical poems "Azamer Bishvachin,"
"Asader Lisudata," and "Bnei Heichala," sung at the three
Shabbat meals respectively and included in nearly every Chassidic and Sephardic
prayerbook.
The teachings of the Ari have been afforded status as a primary authority, on
the same level as the Zohar itself. Every custom of the Ari was scrutinized,
and many were accepted, even against previous practice. The great Polish
codifier, Rabbi Abraham Combiner (1635-1683), author of the Magen Avraham
(Shield of Abraham), takes the Ari's personal customs as legally binding
precedents. In deciding disputes that had remained unresolved for centuries, he
often cites the Ari's custom as the final authority. The fact that the Ari had
acted in a certain manner was enough to convince this tough-minded legalist
that this was the correct opinion.
There are a select number of individuals who live on a plane so high above the
rest of humanity that it seems as if they are a completely different, higher
species of being. They teach, but we grasp but little, and from the few crumbs
that we glean, we can build mountains. Such a person was Rabbi Yitzhak Luria,
the holy ARI, the Lion of Safed.
[Source: compiled by Yerachmiel Tilles from Meditation and Kabbalah by Rabbi
Aryeh Kaplan and from other sources)
* * *
Part 2
The main and most trusted student of the ARI, Rabbi Chaim Vital, writes in the
Introduction to Shaar HaHakdamot (translated by Rabbi Moshe Miller):
The Ari overflowed with Torah. He was thoroughly expert in Scripture, Mishnah,
Talmud, Pilpul, Midrash, Aggadah, Maaseh Beresheis ("Kabbalah of Creation") and Maaseh Merkavah
("Kabbalah of the ["Divine] Chariot").
He also was expert in the language of trees, the language of birds, and the
speech of angels. He could read faces in the manner outlined in the Zohar (vol.
II, p. 74b). He could discern all that any individual had done, and could see
what they would do in the future. He could read people's thoughts, often before
the thought even entered their mind. He knew future events, was aware of
everything happening here on earth, and what was decreed in heaven.
He knew the mysteries of gilgul [reincarnation], who had been born previously,
and who was here for the first time. He could look at a person and tell him how
he was connected to higher spiritual levels, and his original root in Adam. The
Ari could read wondrous things [about people] in the light of a candle or in
the flame of a fire. With his eyes he gazed and was able to see the souls of
the righteous, both those who had died recently and those who had lived in
ancient times. With these departed souls, he studied the true mysteries.
From a person's scent, he was able to know all that he had done. (See Zohar, Yenuka
vol. III p. 188a). It was as if the answers to all these mysteries lay dormant
within him, waiting to be activated whenever he desired. He did not have to
seclude himself to seek them out.
All this we saw with our own eyes. These are not things that we heard from
others. They were wondrous things that had not been seen on earth since the
time of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. None of this was attained through magic,
heaven forbid. There is a strong prohibition against these arts. Instead, it
came automatically, as a result of his saintliness and asceticism, after many
years of study in both the ancient and the newer Kabbalistic texts. He then
increased his piety, asceticism, purity and holiness until he reached a level
where Eliyahu/Elijah would constantly reveal himself to him, speaking to him
"mouth to mouth," teaching him these mysteries and secrets.
Why This Week? The fifth of the Jewish month of Menachem-Av [2026: Sat. night
July 18 through Sunday, July 19 is the yahrzeit of the Ari.
Inyanay Diyoma
July 11th
and 12th
Day 1009 & Day 1010
since Oct. 7th Roaring Lion Day 131 & Day 132 start of week 145
Blessed be the true
JUDGE. One of Israel’s best friends passes away suddenly.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/sen-lindsey-graham-dies-after-brief-sudden-illness-office-says
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindsey_Graham
Heartbroken President
Herzog on Graham: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430023
PM Netanyahu on Graham
may go to the funeral and meet with POTUS.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430012
Iran rejoices over
Lindsey Graham’s death. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/skuhxxbegg
The Iranians hit a
Cypress Ship and one crew member missing. The US ups the ante to 140 targets
with the Iranians shooting and a number of US bases as close as Yarden. https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-strikes-iran-again-after-irgc-attacks-ship-in-hormuz-and-declares-strait-closed-until-further-notice/
Vanity of Vanities …
there is nothing new under the sun- Shlomo HaMelech.
Chassidic Rebbe
hospitalized. Rabbi Tanchum
Binyamin ben Miriam.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430021
Netanyahu is guaranteed to receive eight
reserved spots in the top 30 positions, four of which are earmarked for a
potential technical merger with the Religious Zionist party. The report indicates that if
Netanyahu decides to maximize the right-wing bloc’s strength and presses
Minister Bezalel Smotrich to agree to a deal where the Religious Zionist party
does not run independently, he intends to offer him four reserved slots in
highly realistic positions on the Likud list. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429999
Hack or malfunction? Many
Israelis in central Israel reported on Sunday that they received an unusual
alert on their mobile phones from the IDF Home Front Command.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430016
We had a short
black/brown out by us this afternoon.
Israel Prison Service (IPS) Marwan Barghouti
continues to convey messages supporting "armed resistance" from
behind bars while actively working to advance his political leverage. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430002
Eisenkot is half
Sephardic and former Chief Rabbi praises him. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429994
Toronto Festival Shooting. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429998
CNN reported,
quoting a source familiar with the talks, that Oman proposed two
separately-controlled routes: The "Northern Corridor" through Iranian
territorial waters would require prior approval from Iran but no tolls, while
the "Southern Corridor" through Omani territorial waters would allow
"free navigation" under pre-war conditions. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429996
Mujtaba Khamenei wants
vengeance. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429980
Three Israeli Women
rescued from Yericho. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429984
Zini opposed TV Report
investigation but: https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429986
2 Hamas terrorists
eliminated. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429967
Nukhba terrorist
eliminated. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429956
Hezballah terrorist
eliminated. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/429971
July 13th
Day 1011 since Oct. 7th
Roaring Lion Day 133
Trump has finally
stopped playing the cease-fire and peace game with the Iranians. Right now, he
is working on Hormuz. The Nuclear threat has not faded and they are rebuilding
is spots. However, he wants to keep the price of gasoline down through the
midterms. What can possibly save him and the Republicans in this off year, is
that fact the Democrats are running extreme left candidates. https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-carries-out-fresh-wave-of-strikes-on-iran-insists-tehran-doesnt-control-strait/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/massive-fire-at-a-bar-in-bangkok-kills-at-least-27-people/
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/americas-retirement-system-broken-trump-may-have-found-bold-fix
https://www.aol.com/articles/34-years-kristi-noem-divorcing-193327000.html
https://www.foxnews.com/world/four-americans-caught-horrific-mexico-highway-pileup-killed-least-10
Hamas
terrorists on Saturday forcibly entered a World Food Programme (WFP) food
distribution site in Jabaliya, forcing the suspension of distributions that had
provided daily assistance to thousands of families. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430079
A
haredi man who was arrested last Wednesday for draft evasion and was held for
three days in a military detention facility was not permitted to put on
tefillin after facility staff refused to give him his religious belongings.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430075
The
husband of Minister of Science and Technology Gila Gamliel, revealed in an
interview with Channel 14 on Monday that his wife's security detail has been
reinforced over the past day. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430082
Degel Hatorah chairman MK Moshe Gafni lashed
out during a Knesset Finance Committee meeting on Monday over the removal of
haredi institutions from the list of organizations eligible for tax-deductible
donations under Section 46, directing his criticism at the Religious Zionist
community.
"Have they removed all the Torah
institutions? Who gave them the authority? There is a law in this
country," Gafni said angrily. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430081
Poll https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430051
Likud lawmaker
David Bitan mounted a last-minute challenge Monday to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s effort to
replace the party’s traditional primary system with a more
centralized method of selecting candidates for the next Knesset election. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/sjf4kmgvzg
The Saudis attack the
Houthis. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/s1zrpsfngl
Actor Sam Neill passes
away: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jekyxBCuaE
This summer over 10,000
dead from heat wave in Europe. https://www.jpost.com/environment-and-climate-change/article-902315
It is popular to
sanction Charedim but they won’t be drafted. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-902297
Renewed
US-Iran fighting drew Jordan and Bahrain deeper into the regional fallout over
the weekend, as Iran launched another wave of missiles and drones toward US
military facilities and countries hosting American forces following large-scale
US strikes inside Iran. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-902328
July 14th
Day 1012 since Oct. 7th
Roaring Lion Day 134
Reports of shootings at the dead Ayatollah's funeral with a
number of IRGC soldiers killed in Iran. - Barry Shaw
I have already three
stories this week of which one is of Misiras Nefesh of two non-Jewish heroes
that so impressed me I had to bring it down for the rabbipauli.blogspot.
Willing to do something extra dangerous to save another’s life.
CENTCOM Attacks Iran again.
“During the five-hour mission, U.S. forces successfully struck
military targets across Iran including Bushehr, Chah Bahar, Jask, Konarak, Abu
Musa, and Bandar Abbas to further degrade Iran's ability to attack commercial
shipping," CENTCOM https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/iran-war-trump-israel-hormuz-july-13
Professor
Alan Dershowitz has paid tribute to Republican Senator Lindsey Graham,
describing him as one of Israel's strongest allies in the US Senate and a
leader whose support for the Jewish state never wavered. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430066
US not removing anymore
refueling tankers due to Iran tensions. 50,000 plane tickets at risk. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430138
The
judges of the Supreme Court are knowingly harming the IDF’s ability to fight
and win, all in order to appear enlightened and progressive. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430090
i24NEWS
Arab affairs commentator Zvi Yehezkeli expressed concern that the
United States is not demonstrating sufficient force against Iran, arguing that its strikes
have been overly restrained. "Precisely now, when the Iranians
obviously believe they 'have the upper hand,' it's possible to strike them through
the leadership, the media, through channels that are painful to the
Revolutionary Guards - especially those related to their control and the
appearance of control. Not to mention cyber operations, which can be carried
out covertly and inflict great pain." https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430118
Bennett’s red line. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430117
The Israeli government on Tuesday approved a
proposal by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Transportation and Road
Safety Minister Brig.-Gen. (Res.) Miri Regev, to name Route 443.
The highway will now be called, "The
Levites' Way" in memory of Minister David Levy, of blessed memory, along
the section of the road between the Ben Shemen Interchange and the
Beituniya-Givat Ze'ev Junction. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430137
More than 100 reservist soldiers stationed at
an IDF outpost near Margaliot along the Lebanon border are coping with severe
infrastructure and sanitation problems, according to a report published Tuesday
by Galei Tzahal. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430129
Senior IDF appointments
and switching commands. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430099
Hamas’s naval commander
and three others eliminated. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430123
A
16-and-a-half-year-old terrorist from the village of Nahalin admitted during
police questioning that he left his home intending to carry out a stabbing
attack against an IDF soldier near the community of Neve Daniel in Gush Etzion,
with the goal of dying as a martyr. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430141
(Nahalin is
on the northern side of Hashmonayim close to the entrance to Modiin Illit.)
Approximately
100 Israeli citizens entered the Samaria village of Kifl Harath in the early
hours of Tuesday morning without coordinating with security forces. The group,
followers of Rabbi Eliezer Berland, had travelled to visit the traditional
burial sites of Joshua bin Nun and Caleb ben Jephunneh. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430134
https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-major-escalation-yemens-houthis-target-saudi-arabias-abha-airport/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-chief-raps-inconceivable-bill-freezing-ultra-orthodox-enlistment/
https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/07/14/historic-iaf-promotion-col-g-washington-attache/
https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/07/14/hezbollah-now-has-reason-to-worry/
Explosions heard in
Bandar Abas this afternoon. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hjjd11fxvmx
The
Hamas-run Palestinian Interior Ministry said Tuesday morning that Mohammed
Marwan Salem, the head of the police station in the Jabaliya camp, was killed
along with several officers and staff members in an Israeli strike.
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/skeiqjm4mx
The
United Nations weather agency on Friday raised its forecast for the rapid
emergence of a strong El Nino in
the coming months, warning that the phenomenon is likely to drive global
temperatures higher. https://www.jpost.com/environment-and-climate-change/article-901342
July 15th
Day 1013 since Oct. 7th
Roaring Lion Day 135
The refueling tankers
have started returning to Ben Gurion meaning about 50,000 airline tickets will
have to be cancelled. Bibi is just waiting to take out the IRGC and others to
get rid of the regime. Taking out the electricity and the bridges will not stop
the Shiites. Only taking out their repressive guards will change things.
https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/iran-war-trump-israel-hormuz-july-14-2026
Michael Katz of Haifa
dies from his wounds of an Iranian Missile Attack. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/b1nyfonefl
The
German government made it clear today that any vote by the European Union
on a boycott or toughening of trade terms
with Jewish settlements in the West Bank requires unanimous agreement from
all 27 member states, which significantly reduces the chances of the measure
being adopted. https://www.jpost.com/business-and-innovation/article-902551
Arab and perhaps
Israeli Mafia. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/crime-in-israel/article-902547
Of course the leftist
anti-Torah Supreme Court freezes the law. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430210
Minister Ofir Sofer to
retire from politics. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430212
Pregnant woman killed
in crash. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430208
9year old girl in
critical condition struck by a car. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430214
The
IDF eliminated a terrorist who took part in the abduction of Colonel Asaf
Hamami, Staff Sergeant Tomer Ahimas, and Sergeant Kiril Brodsky during the
October 7th massacre. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430211
Czechia
is in talks with Israeli
firms to buy a number of air-defense systems, Czech Foreign Minister
Petr Macinka said on Tuesday. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-902490
Two more Nukhba
commanders gone. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430204
Woman injured by stone
attack. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430186
Democratic House Leader
to vote against bill halting Israeli aid. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430182
Soldier jailed for
contact w/Iran. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430191
During
a targeted enforcement operation at the Tunnels Checkpoint and the a-Zaim
Crossing, Israel Police and Border Police officers arrested four Palestinian
Authority illegal infiltrators and an Israeli citizen suspected of transporting
them within the span of a few hours. One was a terrorist. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430185
Lebanese arrest a high level
Hezballah spy. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430181
Deputy FM leaves
government over Charedim. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430161
Jordan River Valley: Lt.
Col. V., commander of the 47th Battalion, "Lions of the Valley,"
discussed the security challenges facing the sector under his command in an
interview with Arutz Sheva-Israel National News. The battalion is
responsible for an area stretching from the southern Jordan Valley to the
northern shores of the Dead Sea. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430170
Indian Navy
investigating why their production of an Elbit Drone crashed. https://www.jpost.com/defense-and-tech/article-902548
Sara
Netanyahu, wife of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, requested that
lifetime security measures be taken for her and her children, the N12 news site
reported on Tuesday. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-902545
July 16th
Day 1014 since Oct. 7th
Roaring Lion Day 136
The latest Iranian
Billboard is Trump in a coffin. There hidden “newer” Nuclear Site is 600 meters
almost 2000 feet underground. The way to get to it is through its air vents as
well as above and probably will involve Israeli boots on the ground.
https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/iran-war-trump-israel-hormuz-oil-july-15-2026
US Citizen held in Iran
released. https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-902671
Arieh Deri, Shas Party
accused the Chief of Staff of trying to aid Eisenkot and the left with his
attack on Torah Learning. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-902705
The
IDF is racing to finish eliminating Hezbollah
terror infrastructure in 52 southern Lebanese villages in the coming weeks
before the US presses Israel for a wider withdrawal, IDF sources said on
Wednesday.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-902615
Syria
has busted a new smuggling operation that was attempting to move weapons to Hezbollah. This bust comes at
a key time, as Hezbollah is under some pressure by Israel, the US, and Lebanon
as the US hopes for progress on trilateral talks.
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-902720
US Refueling Planes at
Ben Gurion. The demand for the US to utilize the airport
stems from the need for the US military to prepare for regional worst-case
scenarios, including an attack on its bases in the Persian
Gulf, a situation that would require available Israeli logistical
support. https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-902673
Over 500 fleeing
Burmese Muslims die as boats capsize. https://www.jpost.com/international/article-902667
A
discovery by an Israeli researcher may shed light on one of the greatest
mysteries in modern physics. An academic paper by Dr. Ira Wolfson of Braude
College of Engineering in Karmiel, recently published in the
scientific journal Classical and Quantum Gravity, proposes a
striking new solution to a fundamental puzzle in modern physics: the geometric
secret of black holes. https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/h1pnzf84zg
Iran again threatens
Barb el Mandeb blockade. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/skc9iringe
Nearly
30 years after being caught by the FBI, "The Analyzer"
is back in the headlines. An international network suspected of running large-scale investment scams
across Europe for years has been dismantled in recent weeks, with 46-year-old
Israeli national Ehud Tenenbaum at the center of the investigation.
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/bkbvini4me
X-AI sues user for deep
fake child photos.
https://www.ynetnews.com/tech-and-digital/article/bycsmsuegx
AI cracks brain code. https://www.ynetnews.com/business/article/hjcvw6v4fx
On
Wednesday, July 15, 2026, Rabat hosted a historic diplomatic milestone that
promises to profoundly reshape the security landscape of the Middle East. Under
direct instructions from King Mohammed VI, Morocco signed the legal framework to
participate in the International Stabilization Force in Gaza.
https://www.ynetnews.com/opinions-analysis/article/r1wtangi4gx
Shabbos times: Shorter
Shabbos afternoons. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/shabat/
PFLP The
Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), Israel Police, and the Israel Defense Forces
announced today (Thursday) that several individuals involved in managing the
Union of Health Work Committees have been arrested in recent weeks as part of a
joint operation carried out by the Shin Bet, the Judea and Samaria Border
Police, and IDF troops. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430283
Eggs thrown at tax
inspectors in Bnei Brak. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430281
British Media
Personality watches the films taken by Hamas on Oct. 7th. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430280
Eisenkot accused of
racism. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430276
Knesset observes a
moment of silence for Lindsey Graham. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430228
Body found on stretcher
in Lebanon in the middle of a mine field.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430267
Soldier had a large
arms cache in his home. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430232
On
Wednesday night, the IDF struck in the central Gaza Strip and dismantled four
weapons storage facilities belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430275
On
Wednesday, in a precise strike in the central Gaza Strip, the IDF eliminated
the terrorist Omar Ahmed Abu Qasem, a Battalion Sniper Commander in Hamas'
military wing. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430257
https://www.timesofisrael.com/knesset-passes-law-expanding-gender-segregation-in-academia/
July 17th
Day 1015 since Oct. 7th
Roaring Lion Day 137 end of week 145
Teheran train station
among targets hit. https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-strikes-iran-for-sixth-consecutive-night-as-deescalation-chances-appear-to-fade/
https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/ibm-sends-shockwave-through-tech-industry-ai-warning
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/tim-scott-says-hed-love-see-fox-news-host-replace-lindsey-graham
https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/07/16/us-may-intensify-iran-strikes-seek-to-avoid-full-scale-war/
https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/07/16/wildfire-smoke-poses-major-threat-to-world-cup-final/
https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/07/15/failed-mossad-plot-iran-ahmadinejad-regime-change/
https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/07/15/new-york-times-shareholder-lawsuit-israel-bias/
The IDF has launched a major reform
of its Military Intelligence Directorate (AMAN), including doubling the number
of intelligence officers at the battalion level, establishing forward
intelligence units, and dramatically reducing the time between target detection
and engagement. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430317
US
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Foreign Minister detailed the joint
operational methods of radical left-wing movements and Palestinian Arab as well
as regional terrorist organizations. He focused specifically on the political
and media exploitation of protest flotillas aimed at the Gaza Strip. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430310
Malaysian
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim pledged Wednesday to immediately expel any Israeli
citizens identified within the Southeast Asian country, as federal agencies
look into allegations that Israelis joined an international technology retreat
located in the Muslim-majority nation. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430312
Car locking system failure: Security
camera footage shared by Sharon, the mother of a two-month-old baby, has gone
viral after capturing the terrifying moments when her infant daughter was
accidentally locked inside a car during an extreme heatwave.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430313
National
Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir is continuing to advance his plan to use
crocodiles around prisons holding security prisoners. (Alligators?)
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/430295
Op-Ed Israel cannot
ignore signs in Washington. https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-902797
Iran's
Revolutionary Guards claimed on Friday they had attacked a US special
operations command center at al-Tanf in Syria in retaliation for the killing of
Iranian soldiers in Iranshahr, Iranian state media reported.
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-902822
New poll shows
opposition wins outright.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-902821
US
President Donald
Trump delivered a prime-time speech on Thursday focused on election
security, bringing renewed attention to his long-running complaints about
voting systems and election administration as Republicans
face challenging midterm elections in November. https://www.jpost.com/american-politics/article-902812
Israel
should be able to produce its own JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition) bombs en
masse within two years, The Jerusalem
Post has learned.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-902760
Have a
healthy, happy, peaceful and restful Shabbos and a productive Tisha B’Av fast, Rachamim Pauli
