Paying Tribute to the Endless Mission of the Combat Medic

Afghanistan.  Battleground of the last decade for many US troops.  Now that the intensity of the ground campaign in Iraq is lowering, even more boots are entrenched in this mysterious, mountainous, and vicious country.  As more troops are inserted into the fighting, more are exposed to danger.  As the number of casualties mounts, one branch of the service gets busier and busier.  Here is a tribute article to the harrowing and ongoing life-saving mission of the Medevac combat teams of the US military. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/13/world/asia/13medevac.html?hp

More Evidence Revealed About Flotilla's True Intent

'I want to be a shahid': Flotilla activist hoped for martyrdom

In footage apparently captured on board the Gaza-bound boat Mavi Marmara and released by the IDF, passenger wishes for death in confrontation with Israel troops.
 
For the rest of the Haaretz article go to:

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/i-want-to-be-a-shahid-flotilla-activist-hoped-for-martyrdom-1.293953

After Initial Reports of Bloodshed at Sea, it is Clear What the Gaza Flotilla's Goal Was: an Altercation with Israeli Troops

My initial perception of the flotilla has been, sadly, confirmed by their hostile actions towards the Israeli Navy and Israel's security rights at large.  This is a sad day for all who truly long for peace. 

This is the actual statement issued to the flotilla just prior to the forceful action taken by the Navy.




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6jDIQr59Sk&feature=player_embeddedhttp://

The "Humanitarians" on Hamas's Side

Israel Prepares to Fend Off Ships Heading to Gaza, Wall Street Journal

"Israel says it intends to prevent, by force if necessary, the ships from reaching port. It has also said that if the ships dock at an Israeli port first, it will allow the full shipment of humanitarian cargo to reach Gaza, after undergoing security checks."

Why didn't the title of this Wall Street Journal article simply state Israel's willingness to allow the aid into the Gaza strip if the "humanitarians" would simply follow the security protocol? After all, Israel is at war with the Hamas ruled Gaza strip whether these people on the aid ships notice that or not. In fact, this aid shipment would not be very different form the daily truck convoys allowed into Gaza by the Israeli military (even during the 2008/9 month-long offensive), despite this ongoing conflict. 

It seems that the main point of this "humanitarian aid" flotilla is not to provide Gazans with the building supplies that they already receive and smuggle daily across the border. The clear purpose of this mission is to declare exactly which side the members of the flotilla are on in this bloody conflict over the right to exist.
The flotilla has chosen to actively support Jihadi Hamas and their entrenched ideology that Israel has no right to exist in the Middle East. 
The flotilla can call their efforts "humanitarian" for the purpose of gaining world sympathy.  But regardless of what is on board, the members of this flotilla are making a declaration of support for one side over another in a protracted and very violent conflict between two peoples not their own.  Both Israel and Hamas will manage this challenge at the front line (make no mistake, world PR is part of the front line of this one)however they see fit. 

It is about time that more of the world recognizes that Israel is not solely to blame for any humanitarian crisis in Gaza.  The tragic narrative of the Arabs in the Gaza strip is filled with a complicated history.  There should be no blame on Israel for putting its own security at the top of the priority list, while trying to cater to world PR during its fight for survival against Hamas.

A Profound Moment... of Silence

Today is Israel's national memorial day for fallen soldiers and victims of terror attacks.  As on every Israeli memorial day, there is a 1 minute moment of silence at 11am. 
This is not like any moment of silence I have ever taken part in.  I stand on the street in statue-like reverence, surrounded by others in equally still poses.  A woman's cigarette burns in her hand. 
In my relatively short time in this country I have experienced a deep exposure to the reality of Israeli life.  I have spent 6.5 years here.  Not a lifetime.  Not even half of my young life.  Yet in this chapter of my life here I have felt the sacrifice, I have seen the pain, and I have the faces of lost friends burned onto my conciousness .  My moment of silence is filled with images of my young compatriots who fell defending their homes and the ideals thats stand among them.  All of this is reinforced by the stand-still scene that surrounds me on a busy street in Tel Aviv. 
There is much behind this fervently observed moment of silence.  Seeing the cars come to a stop; their drivers standing alongside in the street, the never-ending stream of city busses sitting in their places, the throngs of pedestrians on the sidewalks, all standing motionless and deep in thought. 
This scene means something.  It means that the sacrifice laid down by the hero soldiers we stop and remember today, was not in vain.  The people here remember.  The loss of a soldier matters.  The nation cares. 

Each soldier that falls in the line of duty here is remembered as a hero, and their deeds will never be forgotten or taken for granted. 
This is why the Israeli Defense Force is the best army in the world.  The whole country stands behind us.  The whole nation cares.

The Dubai Police Mockery

For far too long we have been hearing about the "alleged" Israeli assassination of a top Hamas operative in Dubai. Why has the media carried on so long (over a month now) about the death of this Hamas operative? Why does the world seem to care so much?

The answer: because it "allegedly" involves Israel.

We have always seen this disproportionate amount of attention on Israel in the media but this time there is nothing even concrete to tie Israel to the story except that it involves an operative of Israel's vile enemy, Hamas. If the world media was so quick to point the finger at Israel for this murder without ANY evidence, then there must be a reason that Israel would want such an agent of Hamas dead. It turns out that this particular Hamas operative was the go-between of Hamas and Iran for smuggling weapons to the Gaza strip.

Now Dubai's response is to ban entry to ALL Israeli citizens (who before this were only allowed to enter using an alternate foreign passport, if they were dual citizens). To do this the police force in Dubai says that they will "seek to identify Israelis by physical features and the way they speak.'' said Lt. Gen. Dahi Khalfan Tamim, chief of the Dubai Police Dept.

The Dubai police are making a mockery of themselves with this high profile response and should instead focus their efforts on the many high profile exiled terrorists (with similar resumes to the Hamas operative killed) residing peacefully in their emirate.

It is quite clear that it is not in the interests of the Dubai Police force to crack down on local Islamic militancy, but rather to point the finger ignorantly at Israel for all of Dubai's embarrassing woes.

This Wall Street Journal Article expands:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703429304575095124162751164.html?mod=WSJ_World_LEFTSecondNews#articleTabs%3Darticle

The Passing of a National Hero

This morning I learned of the passing of Zvi Shafir ז"ל, the grandfather of good friends of mine here in Israel. This man was a great representative of a fantastic generation here who pioneered the establishment of the modern Nation of Israel. He was one of the lucky Jewish refugees from a morally tattered Europe who made it to then Palestine and toiled to create this country for the generations to come. Zvi was part of a generation who will hold legendary status in the lengthy annals of Jewish history. It is of my opinion that proper tribute can hardly be paid to Zvi and the many others of his time who created a new future, pride, and a hope of surviving and prospering for the Jewish People. I feel lucky to have known him. His passing simply highlights how my young generation must truly cherish the opportunity to still sit and learn first-hand of the tribulations of those times over 60 years ago.

Please take some time to watch this incredible video interview produced just weeks before his death by his granddaughters:

Zvi's Memories from Gustavo Sales on Vimeo.

The Newest Method to Indiscriminately Attack Us

Hamas has resorted to new outrageous offensive maneuvers against us... indiscrimately floating explosive barrels towards our beaches. So far, thanks to our diligent naval and intelligence services, no real harm has been done.


Israel Searches for Explosive Barrels in Sea

By JOSHUA MITNICK

TEL AVIV—Israel closed a stretch of beaches north of the Gaza Strip after two explosive-laden barrels washed ashore and Palestinian militants promised more, in revenge for what some in Hamas said was Israeli's assassination of a top Hamas leader last month.

Reuters Mounted police officers patrol a beach in Ashkelon, Israel, on Tuesday.
.
Maritime authorities warned civilian vessels to be alert to possible dangers in the Mediterranean after the military linked the barrels to two explosions at sea Friday. At the same time, police deployed helicopters and mounted units to comb the length of Israel's coastline to the Lebanon border in search of additional explosive devices.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a news conference that Israel would respond to the explosives found on the beaches, and Israel launched airstrikes in Gaza shortly after that, officials on both sides said, according to Reuters. No injuries were reported. An Israeli army spokesman said the strikes targeted two sites where tunnels were dug to help gunmen infiltrate from Hamas-ruled Gaza into Israel and to smuggle in weapons from Egypt.

continued...


http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424052748703338504575041521232295824-lMyQjAxMTAwMDAwMzEwNDMyWj.html

World Media Creating Mistrust for Israel

The media posts another libel piece against Israel. Stories like this are so damaging as they lead people to believe that this guy was an Israeli spy (which he was not), and breed mistrust for Israel.
The article title and content was basically all about the caught Israeli spy. The reality of the story was only explained in one line in the middle of the article. If you read the whole article or just glance at the title (like most people do) it is very misleading.



Quoted one line from the middle of the article below, exonerating Israel:
(unfortunatley most people do not read this far in the article)


New York Times, Oct 21: "The Justice Department said on Monday that "the complaint does not allege that the government of Israel or anyone acting on its behalf committed any offense under U.S. laws in this case."


Link to article.


Wall Street Journal, Oct 21: "U.S. officials said the Nozette case doesn't include allegations that Israel or its agents were involved."


Link to article.