Netanyahu tells Israel ‘We are at war’ after Hamas launches an unprecedented attack, killing at leas

Dispensing tropes as they arise …

Israel among the least religious countries in the world

 

I’m ok with funding for both. What I don’t agree with is the bulk of those funds coming from us when some allies put in Pennies in comparison. I also want something in return.

 

As I recall, Ariel Sharon said at the time that they were pulling troops out to avoid unnecessary casualties, but that they could "just as easily" come back in at any time.

Noone doubted him then, but Ariel Sharon is not in power anymore.

Netanyahu talks a big game, but he doesn't seem to have the stomach for a real operation. He put together this coalition of hardliners in the Knesset and positions himself as the arbiter between them and the diplomatic crowd. He uses process as his tool to avoid taking action while appearing to look tough.

Just this morning, he said he would clear out the infiltrators before taking any action against Hamas in Gaza. (As if the IDF couldn't handle both operations.)

You'll have a situation where the first round of attackers are dealt with, and Hamas is sending in attacks with impunity. (Israeli airstrikes hitting predictable targets and nothing of military value)

Then the rest of the world demands negotiations for Israel to stop airstrikes and Hamas to stop its war on Israeli civilians. Hostages are already in Gaza.

Now Bibi has a perfect political situation to milk where his hawkish government can grow its majority so long as the threat is present.

Maybe I am wrong @ATLGATORFAN and Bibi will make the hard choice to send in ground forces to weed out Hamas properly like Sharon did nearly 20 years ago. (taking politically costly casualties in the process).

I doubt it though. If he achieves a decade of peace at the cost of soldiers' lives, he knows the pendulum in the Knesset will swing the other way as Israelis get complacent and blame him for every casualty. Netanyahu has been an opportunistic politician for a long time.

If a meaningful counter is launched as you (and most others) predict, I will be pleasantly surprised.

 

Most meaningful counter would be to heavily damage Iranian nuclear facilities…kill 2 birds with one stone

 

You are on fire today.

 

don’t know how you can’t go in heavy and hard now.

 

are you talking about Ukraine, Israel or both?

 

We really need to stop most, if not all of it. Not only does it inevitably end up in the wrong hands, not only do we rarely ever see a net return on our investment (usually the opposite), we have a lot of problems here in the homeland that should be addressed long before we pay kickbacks to defense contractors to fund foreign wars.

 

And also hitting the true source of the attack. But Netanyahu has been putting himself up as the man to deal with Iran and he hasn't tossed a stone yet.

Neither can I, and my thinking powers have been trained on it.

But Bibi has been spewing hot air and taking half measures for a long time now and using it to stay in power.

How did the blockade work out for him? He spent years in hero mode championing it against foreign pressure, yet 5000 rockets and gunmen flying in on ultralights were sent into Israel this morning. He made the Palestinians hungry and more dependent on Hamas for getting them food than before, and yet they are armed to the teeth.

My gut tells me he will find a way to draw this out.

 

agree with pretty much all of above.

 

Bibi has to the thread the needle because idiot regimes in Washington actually validate Hamas and Palestinian terrorism instead of holding them accountable for their war crimes and their strapping of explosives to their children to kill a few Israelis. Bibi sees idiot regimes gifting Iran $6 billion, so he has to weigh the international consequences of going full on werewolf and lighting up Iran’s nuclear facilities, among other desirable targets. If it wasn’t for the idiotic woke west validation of Hamas terroristic behavior, Bibi would have set the boundaries properly a long time ago.

I should add that while Bibi understands the lunacy that exists in Washington, he still has to thread that needle, because it’s the US and the US (regardless of who’s in the White House) still swings the largest dick.

 

Reading comprehension sucks for righties. I’m saying the 6B has nothing to do with todays attack.

 

I think Israel needs to fully conquer Gaza this time, put all of Hamas to the sword, and only pull out in exchange for Egypt annexing the territory and taking full responsibility for it. I promise you Egypt won’t put up with any future Hamas BS, and you’ll never hear a word about how they’ve gone about it.

 

Get ready for some serious inflation once the US starts funding Israel in this conflict. Ukraine will look like baby shit in comparison.

 

Dispose of our old nukes by blanketing the area. Problem solved. Tired of the religious BS. Peace between Arabs and Jews is impossible.

We can use the land in 50 years for a solar farm or a Walmart distribution center.

 

No, I fully comprehend your words. And that’s probably what I would say, too, if I had championed the President’s decision to pay $6B in tribute to Iran. I would be all in on “Nanny nanny boo boo, you can’t prove one cent of that money went to Iran.”

However, since I pointed out the terrible risk of this decision at the time and predicted that not only would we be encouraging Iran in its bad behavior but also giving them the means to increase it, I feel very comfortable in my earlier position today.

 

Appreciate the snide remark. Good try. You made the specific comment about restrictions about receiving the 6b which the Iranians themselves already rejected so they don’t need you to defend them. Of course this attack was already planned and paid but it’s nice to get a windfall to refill the coffers.

 

Flights to Israel being canceled for now. Smart…

 

He doesn't have to.

Ariel Sharon went house to house in Gaza, bulldozing corners off of buildings to avoid booby traps. He did this before asking for permission from the outside. Then he publicly announced plans for a "final stroke" against Gaza leadership that included mosques, imams, mullah, mufti, and others. (imho it wasn't even a real plan)

The US put pressure on him to not push that horrifying button, and he relented. Everyone took a collective sigh of relief, yet arrests continued as Gaza was fully occupied. Hamas leaders were on social media lamenting at all of the friends they had lost.

Sharon did that in response to a far smaller attack than we witnessed this morning. There are today dead and kidnapped children all over southern Israel.

Bibi draws things out with process for political gain. Half measures, then diplomacy, then he does just a little bit more than the world can stomach and paints himself a defender of Israel.

 

Reagan traded money for hostages in '81 and HW Bush did it in '91. The difference then was we paid with our money.

This $6 billion was being held in South Korean banks in South Korean funds because it was money South Korea lawfully owed to Iran for South Korea's purchase of Iranian energy products. South Korea had no legal right to withhold those funds, they did so to appease the US and South Korea paid a significant price for doing so. Iran seized one of their tankers in 2021, banned some South Korean goods and was going to sue South Korea, a lawsuit Iran was likely to win. South Korea badly wanted out of unlawfully retaining those funds.

No interest was paid on the money and it lost a billion in value due to South Korean currency issues.

The simplistic, rightie knee jerk reaction here was, of course, anticipated.

One Iranian official said that, Raisi, and it was quickly walked back by other Iranian officials.
Sloppy attempt.