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Hezbollah Drone Strike on IDF Training Base Kills Four
Israeli soldiers walk near the scene where a drone from Lebanese Hezbollah attacked Israel, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, in Binyamina Israel, Oct. 13, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Itay Cohen
JNS.org — The Hezbollah terror organization killed four Israeli soldiers in a drone strike on a Golani Brigade training base near Binyamina on Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces said early on Monday morning.
The IDF named the fatalities as: Sgt. Omri Tamari, 19, from Mazkeret Batya; Sgt. Yosef Hieb, 19, from Tuba-Zangariyye; Sgt. Yoav Agmon, 19, from Binyamina-Giv’at Ada; and Sgt. Alon Amitay, 19, from Ramot Naftali.
“The IDF shares in the grief of the bereaved families and will continue to accompany them,” the Israeli military said. “We ask to refrain from spreading rumors and the names of wounded individuals and to respect the families.”
The IDF added in Hebrew that seven soldiers were seriously wounded in the attack. Some 50 others were moderately or lightly hurt.
Hezbollah took responsibility for the assault, claiming in a statement that it had “launched a squadron of attack drones at an IDF training camp for the Golani Brigade in Binyamina, south of Haifa.”
According to Channel 12, two drones approached Israeli territory from the sea. While one was shot down, the second was not intercepted, apparently due to its low altitude. No air-raid sirens were activated prior to the attack.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi arrived at the Golani Brigade training base on Sunday night after the attack, conducting an initial briefing with commanders.
“We are at war, and an attack on a training base on the home front is difficult and the results are painful. You operated well to treat and evacuate the wounded and injured. Embrace the bereaved families, accompany the wounded and strengthen the commanders and soldiers,” Halevi said.
“We continue to fight and train for what lies ahead. The Golani Brigade has recorded many achievements in the war and dealt resolutely with difficult situations — continue on the path of this legacy,” he continued.
On Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant visited the site of the strike, including the dining hall where the drone impact occurred, pledging to find solutions to Hezbollah’s drones.
“This is a difficult event with painful results,” he told Golani officers who witnessed the attack. “We must investigate it, study the details and assimilate the lessons in a quick and professional manner.”
Gallant continued: “Faced with the threat of UAVs, we are concentrating a national effort and are engaged in developing solutions that will help deal with the threat.”
Hezbollah on Monday launched rockets from Lebanon at central Israel, triggering sirens in the Sharon, Menashe, and Wadi Ara areas. The Israeli Air Force intercepted all of the projectiles.
The IDF said that the details were under review. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage.
Earlier on Sunday, 28 IDF soldiers were wounded by enemy anti-tank fire in southern Lebanon. Two sustained serious wounds, and the rest were moderately and lightly wounded.
On Friday, an IDF soldier was killed battling Hamas terrorists in the southern Gaza Strip.
Staff Sgt. Ittai Fogel, 22, served as a tank commander in the 46th Armored Battalion of the IDF’s 401st “Iron Tracks” Brigade. He was from Yakir in Samaria.
On Thursday, three IDF reservists were killed and two others seriously wounded when their vehicle hit an explosive device in the Jabaliya area of northern Gaza.
The fatalities were named as Master Sgt. (res.) Ori Moshe Borenstein, 32, from Moreshet; Master Sgt. (res.) Tzvi Matityahu Marantz, 32, from Bnei Adam; and Maj. (res.) Netanel Hershkovitz, 37, from Jerusalem. All three were part of the 5460th support unit of the IDF’s 460th Brigade.
The death toll among IDF troops on all fronts since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre stands at 739, according to official military data.
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Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really?
JNS.org – If I asked you to name the most famous line in the Bible, what would you answer? While Shema Yisrael (“Hear O’Israel”) might get many votes, I imagine that the winning line would be “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18). Some religions refer to it as the Golden Rule, but all would agree that it is fundamental to any moral lifestyle. And it appears this week in our Torah reading, Kedoshim.
This is quite a tall order. Can we be expected to love other people as much as we love ourselves? Surely, this is an idealistic expectation. And yet, the Creator knows us better than we know ourselves. How can His Torah be so unrealistic?
The biblical commentaries offer a variety of explanations. Some, like Rambam (Maimonides), say that the focus should be on our behavior, rather than our feelings. We are expected to try our best or to treat others “as if” we genuinely love them.
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, in his classic text called the Tanya, argues that the actual feelings of love are, in fact, achievable provided that we focus on a person’s spirituality rather than how they present themselves physically. If we can put the soul over the body, we can do it.
Allow me to share the interpretation of the Ramban (Nachmanides), a 13th-century Torah scholar from Spain. His interpretation of the verses preceding love thy neighbor is classic and powerful, yet simple and straightforward.
“Do not hate your brother in your heart. You shall rebuke him, but do not bear a sin because of him” by embarrassing him in public. “Do not take revenge, and do not bear a grudge against your people. You shall love your fellow as yourself, I am God” (Leviticus 19:17-18).
What is the connection between these verses? Why is revenge and grudge-bearing in the same paragraph as love your fellow as yourself?
A careful reading shows that within these two verses are no less than six biblical commandments. But what is their sequence all about, and what is the connection between them?
The Ramban explains it beautifully, showing how the sequence of verses is deliberate and highlighting the Torah’s profound yet practical advice on how to maintain healthy relationships.
Someone wronged you? Don’t hate him in your heart. Speak to him. Don’t let it fester until it bursts, and makes you bitter and sick.
Instead, talk it out. Confront the person. Of course, do it respectfully. Don’t embarrass anyone in public, so that you don’t bear a sin because of them. But don’t let your hurt eat you up. Communicate!
If you approach the person who wronged you—not with hate in your heart but with respectful reproof—one of two things will happen. Either he or she will apologize and explain their perspective on the matter. Or that it was a misunderstanding and will get sorted out between you. Either way, you will feel happier and healthier.
Then you will not feel the need to take revenge or even to bear a grudge.
Here, says the Ramban, is the connection between these two verses. And if you follow this advice, only then will you be able to observe the commandment to Love Thy Neighbor. If you never tell him why you are upset, another may be completely unaware of his or her wrongdoing, and it will remain as a wound inside you and may never go away.
To sum up: Honest communication is the key to loving people.
Now, tell me the truth. Did you know that not taking revenge is a biblical commandment? In some cultures in Africa, revenge is a mitzvah! I’ve heard radio talk-show hosts invite listeners to share how they took “sweet revenge” on someone, as if it’s some kind of accomplishment.
Furthermore, did you know that bearing a grudge is forbidden by biblical law?
Here in South Africa, people refer to a grudge by its Yiddish name, a faribel. In other countries, people call it a broiges. Whatever the terminology, the Torah states explicitly: “Thou shalt not bear a grudge!” Do not keep a faribel, a broiges or resentment of any kind toward someone you believe wronged you. Talk to that person. Share your feelings honestly. If you do it respectfully and do not demean the other’s dignity, then it can be resolved. Only then will you be able to love your fellow as yourself.
May all our grudges and feelings of resentment toward others be dealt with honestly and respectfully. May all our grudges be resolved as soon as possible. Then we will all be in a much better position to love our neighbors as ourselves.
The post Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee looks on during the day he visits the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem’s Old City, April 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Saturday dismissed as nonsensical the report that President Donald Trump would endorse Palestinian statehood during his tour to the Persian Gulf this week.
“This report is nonsense,” Huckabee harrumphed on his X account, blasting the Jerusalem Post as needing better sourced reporting. “Israel doesn’t have a better friend than the president of the United States.”
Trump is set to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. The leader’s first trip overseas since he took office comes as Trump seeks the Gulf countries’ support in regional conflicts, including the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and curbing Iran’s advancing nuclear program.
However, reports citing administration insiders claimed that Trump has also set his sights on the ambitious goal of expanding the Abraham Accords. These agreements, initially signed in 2020, normalized relations between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. The accords are widely held to be among the most important achievements of the first Trump administration.
The post ‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy-designate Steve Witkoff gives a speech at the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena on the inauguration day of Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
i24 News – Unless significant progress is registered in Sunday’s round of nuclear talks with Iran, the US will consider putting the military option back on the table, sources close to US envoy Steve Witkoff told i24NEWS.
American and Iranian representatives voiced optimism after the previous talks that took place in Oman and Rome, saying there was a friendly atmosphere despite the two countries’ decades of enmity.
However the two sides are not believed to have thrashed out the all-important technical details, and basic questions remain.
The source has also underscored the significance of the administration’s choice of Michael Anton, the State Department’s policy planning director, as the lead representative in the nuclear talks’ technical phases.
Anton is “an Iran expert and someone who knows how to cut a deal with Iran,” the source said, saying that the choice reflected Trump’s desire to secure the deal.
The post US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks first appeared on Algemeiner.com.