All eyes on Iran ... As Gaza battles still rage with horrific costs, the IDF is already speaking about moving on—to Iran?
Later this week, some Israeli prognostications about how Teheran's plans vis-à-vis Israel might be changing. And a dance at a Kibbutz that's hard to fathom.
It was a terrible weekend in Gaza, with the highest number of soldiers killed in a single day in many months. But that all happened after this weekend’s papers had already been delivered to our homes. Below, a glimpse at what Israelis were thinking and reading about, and what all these headlines says about this country’s mindset.
Plus, a song that’s become very popular, “This is Why I Stay.” And a dance I suspect you’ll have trouble getting out of your mind.
We being with the press, first with Yedi’ot Ahronot. Each headline on its own is perfectly interesting, but what really matters is the mood that emerges from the conglomeration of them all.
When you compare these to Makor Rishon below, you’ll see some of the same concerns: the north that has been lost to Hezbollah, and a looming war with Iran. More below.
Here’s Yedi’ot:
In the YELLOW frame, it appears that the army is now taking the side of those who say it’s time to end the Gaza War in order to get the hostages back. The headline reads: “The security establishment to the political echelons: the IDF is on the verge of defeating Hamas, there’s nothing to fear about ending the war in exchange for getting the hostages back.”
In the wide GREEN frame, hints about how worried the IDF is about Teheran’s changing plans and timetable (more on that tomorrow). The headline reads: “As eyes are all turned to the burning north, the IDF is convinced that it’s accomplishments in Gaza will soon allow it to move into a ‘new phase.’ ⚫️Even so, the IDF is warning that the war against Hamas will in reality continue for several years. ⚫️ Western intelligence sources: “In an all our war against Hezbollah, it is like that Iran will join the attack on Israel.”
In the LIGHT BLUE frame on the side, a sense of bewilderment on the part of many that the disaster in the north has been allowed to go on for so long: “The north is on fire. Does the government not care?”
In the PURPLE rectangle towards the bottom: “The north is burning. More than 40 [Hezbollah] launches in less than two hours.”
In the RED square towards the bottom right: “We’re dancing to the melody of Sinwar’s flute.” The article is about how we now love to take the deal that Sinwar offered a few months ago, only now, he feels more empowered and his demands have risen.
Now for Makor Rishon:
In the YELLOW rectangle at the top of the page: “The fire in the north is spreading, municipal officials are demanding that Israel go to war.”
In the PURPLE rectangle (and read this one carefully!): “Destroying Iran’s nuclear capacity is nearly impossible, but still, Israel needs to act.”
In the RED square at the bottom: “Teheran has shortened its timetable for the destruction of Israel. Only complete unity here can upend their plan.”
In the GREEN rectangle on the left, the cover of a magazine section, more on which below. The bumper sticker says “The nation is with the Galilee,” which is a pun we’ll explain. The headline says, “The exchange of blows between Israel and Hezbollah is getting more intense. Have we lost the north?” That, too, is a play on words, which we’ll explain.
First, we need to understand the following bumpersticker to understand the one that’s on the cover of the magazine. They look almost identical, but they’re not. This one, immediately below, became popular about a quarter of a century ago when there were rumors that the Israeli government was willing to return the Golan to Syria in exchange for peace.
That, of course, was when Syria was much more sovereign and powerful than it is today. But the phrase on the bumpersticker, העם עם הגולן or Ha-Am Im Ha-Golan,
“The people is with the Golan” became ubiquitous, as if to say, “We’re with you. We’re not going to support any deal in which the land you’ve cultivated with such dedication for so many years might go back.”
For the most part, since any discussion of the Golan going anywhere has long since disappeared, the phrase Ha-Am Im Ha-Golan is more a memory of a distant era than anything else. But in recent weeks, it’s come roaring back, as Hezbollah fire into the Galilee is making much of the Galilee, far to the south of the Golan, uninhabitable.
So the bumpersticker has been altered, albeit with the same fonts. Now, it reads: , העם עם הגליל or Ha-Am Im Ha-Galil, “The people is with the Galilee.” The point? Now it’s not the Golan we’re thinking of giving up—it’s the Galilee. “They don’t have a single boot on the ground, but we’ve already lost the territory.”
What does the headline in white say? “That gorgeous area has been abandoned and crushed for eight months, already, and Hezbollah’s brazenness is only growing stronger. Have we lost the North?"
But in Hebrew, “to lose the north” means to “lose your sense of direction.” So just as the fake bumper sticker is an “inside” play on words, so, too, is the headline a double entendre. It’s asking both “have we lost the north?” but also “have we lost our way” altogether?
When a magazine cover is worth a thousand words ….
The song below is not new. It came out in 2022, but as soon as you hear it, you’ll understand why it’s become a bit of an “anthem” of this era. It’s on the radio all the time, referenced constantly.
So, while the headlines above are part of the story of what Israelis are feeling and thinking about, so, too, is the newfound popularity of this song also an important indication of another side of things. You’ll see from the video that when it was made, Covid was still a big deal. And you’ll see references to “existential worry”—who could have known how raw that issue would be just two years later.
Which is the “real” Israel? Obviously, both. The song is called Ani Nish’ar or “I am Staying” by the “Ma Kashur” (What’s the connection) Trio, whose members are Assi Israeloff, Tzvika Baruch, and Shalom Michaelshvili.
And finally, while memories of Shavu’ot are still reasonably fresh, a “Shavu’ot scene” that has gone viral.
One of the Shavuot traditions on kibbutzim all over Israel is harvest ceremonies and the revealing of the “first fruit” of the season. The ceremony also includes bringing out all of the new babies born on the kibbutz since the previous Shavuot. It’s very “old Israel,” the Israel of black & white newsreels, one would think, not the Israel of today.
But some old kibbutz traditions still survive, and if they might seem quaint most years, this year, one was particularly poignant.
The video below was shared on Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak’s Instagram page on Erev Shavuot. It’s the dance of the newborn babies of Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak and Kibbutz Eilot (residents of Nir Yitzhak have been relocated to Eilot since October 7. Eilot is the southernmost kibbutz in Israel, in the Arava).
In the video, you’ll see a woman wearing a dress and white sneakers. She is Ela Balberman Chaimi, the wife of Tal Chaimi z’’l. Tal, a third- generation member of the kibbutz, was part of Nir Yitzhak’s kitat konenut [emergency response team]. On October 7, he was taken hostage by Hamas terrorists. It was later confirmed in December that he had been killed on the 7th and that his body is being held by Hamas.
In May, seven months after her husband was killed, Ela gave birth to their fourth child, Lotan. And here she is, with the rest of the kibbutz, dancing with “the first fruits” of the season, a generation of Israelis for whom the Israel of October 6 is an Israel that people will have to tell them about. Because the Israel into which they were born is an entirely different country.
And still, they dance.
As must we, somehow.
Thank you for illuminating, providing a much different perspective than anything we read in US. I’m still crying, so touched by “first fruit”, as Jews, we truly “choose life”.
At some point, Israel must cut off the head of the snake before it becomes a nuclear power. The U.S. & EU are too weak and too busy appeasing the mullahs and the jihadists they imported through open immigration.