An Iron Dome missile defense battery near the southern Israeli town of Ashdod. Each interceptor missile cost Israel $50,000. (David Buimovitch/Flash 90) TEL AVIV (JTA) — After the missiles have stopped, after the troops have come home, even after most of the wounded are out of the hospital, Israelis will still be feeling the burden of Operation Protective Edge — this time in their pockets. With the recent expiration of a… Read more »
The bloody collision between Israel and Hamas is reaching a significant crossroad, with the U.S. Administration pressuring Israel to stop Operation Protective Edge now, and deal with demilitarization of Gaza later. However, many in Israel, including key ministers in Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, believe that stopping Israel’s ground operation now,… Read more »
Palestinian man seen in front of a fire raging at Gaza's main power plant following an overnight Israeli airstrike, south of Gaza City, July 29, 2014. (Emad Nassar/Flash90) RAMLE, Israel (JTA) — In her living room in the Israeli town of Ramle, Sarah says she wants a peaceful life. At 79, she deserves one. A Hungarian-born Holocaust survivor, Sarah was sent to a Nazi concentration camp in Serbia as a child, arriving in Israel at age 17.… Read more »
An Israeli tank crossing through a field in southern Israel near the border with Gaza, the day after Israel began its invasion of Gaza, July 18, 2014. (Hadas Parush/Flash 90) TEL AVIV (JTA) — For the first time in years, Israeli ground troops crossed into Gaza. Rather than just return to the status quo before the conflict of “quiet for quiet” — no Hamas missiles and no Israeli airstrikes — Israel’s stated objectives are to bring a sustained cessation… Read more »
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon being briefed in the South Front Command on Operation Protective Edge, July 9, 2014. (Ariel Hermoni/Ministry of Defense/Flash90) TEL AVIV (JTA) — Get used to conflict. That’s the message Israeli officials and security experts are relaying as the Israel Defense Forces conducts its third operation in six years against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Israel’s missile defense capabilities have grown significantly since previous rounds of fighting in… Read more »
