Day 10

Dear Friends,

A full ten days into the war, we are still grappling with the scale of the devastation, but the fog of war is beginning to thin. Somewhat.

The grim work of identifying murdered, dismembered and charred bodies of women, children and entire families taken from us by Hamas continues in the South by angel volunteers, soldiers and government officials.

The mental health toll of the attacks and their aftermath on Israeli society is only beginning to unfold, as families bury their dead, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and reservists await the call to battle and parents juggle work, children on Zoom and running back and forth to shelter from rockets. Israelis are notoriously resilient, of course. We are all ok (not ok), when asked.

Military situation

On the front, after reports of an impending ceasefire at 9 AM Israel time, both Israel and Hamas denied it. Hamas promptly fired rockets at Nahal Oz.

Aid for Gaza is supposedly sitting on the Egypt side of Rafah Crossing, which Egypt has closed off anyway to prevent refugees getting through. Foreign passport holders are waiting to get out, pending permission from Hamas, Israel and Egypt.

News of an impending invasion by Israeli troops is gathering steam… for the last few days. The evacuation of Northern Gaza is the bottleneck, it seems.

Israel continues operations in the West Bank to round up Hamas and other militants, netting ever larger numbers.

On the Lebanon front, Hizballah continues its provocations to distract the IDF from Gaza, as directed by Iran, shelling northern Galilee towns and sending anti-tank missiles. Sirens have been going off regularly, although reports of actual infiltrations by terrorists and drones have (mostly) proven false. It’s not clear what’s causing all the false alarms. The IDF has cleared civilians from a 2 km strip from the border, relocating civilians further south.

President Joe Biden continues warning Hizballah and Iran from escalating the conflict. It’s not clear whether they will heed the warning.

Meanwhile, the world outside of the major Western powers seems (shockingly - sarcasm) hellbent on condemning Israel. Anti-Semites and islamo-nazi sympathizers are having a field day, with online and real-life anti-Semitism seeing a massive spike in the days since the October 7th attack.

Hostage situation

The number of kidnapped Israelis confirmed by the IDF now stands at 199.

The Red Cross has demanded permission to visit and examine the hostages, but (shocker) Hamas has not given it yet.

The Jerusalem Catholic Patriarch (yes, you read that correctly) has offered to be exchanged for all the hostages.

Civilian support

The Home Front remains united, with many stories of behind-the-scenes logistical coordination of feeding, arming and otherwise supporting the soldiers and civilians, alike. Kiryat Gat has hosted hundreds of soldiers for a week without blinking. Orthodox women are working in the background to solve large logistical challenges. The Haredi sector has turned out in numbers to help the home front, feeding soldiers and making tzitzit for them, among others. Universities have suspended students and staff voicing support for Hamas online.

We officially have a unity government, with Gantz and Lieberman now in and Lapid locked out.

By the Numbers

If you like what you’re reading here and want to buy me coffee (or 5), do so here.

Oh, and tell all your friends, too :)