DAY 373 OF THE WAR: Drone Attack Kills 4 and Wounds 61 on Army Base in Central Israel, Yom Kippur Amidst War, US Deploys Strategic THAAD Missile Defense System to Israel
Tel Aviv Diary, October 13, 2024
I had nearly finished tonight’s update when once again, a devastating attack occurred. Reports emerged of a drone strike on an Army base, not far from Binyamina. The assault resulted in the deaths of four soldiers and an additional 61 wounded, of which seven remain in critical condition. The IDF has yet to release the names of the fallen soldiers.
Two drones were launched from Lebanon simultaneously via the sea, at the same time as a massive barrage of rockets attacked the North. One of the drones was detected and destroyed, while the second evaded our radar systems, making its way south and detonated on the dining hall of the base which was filled with soldiers eating dinner. Soon after, another drone was intercepted off the coast in Haifa Bay.
This was the first Yom Kippur in 50 years that we observed while at war. I still vividly remember arriving at shul in New Rochelle, hearing rumors of a war breaking out, and then walking a few blocks from my Synagogue to a local barbershop to view the TV news. This Yom Kippur, the reality of being at war came as no surprise. On a different level, however, the fact we are still at war — after an entire year of combat—has undoubtedly been a startling revelation to the average Israeli, in hindsight.
A short time before Yom Kippur commenced, one family received the most terrible news imaginable. First Sergeant Ittai Fogel, a 22- year-old tank commander, had been killed near Rafah. We decided to attend Kol Nidrei services in Hostage Square. Feeling so helpless amid the overwhelming events—and particularly the current total lack of action regarding the hostages—I felt it was the least we could do to show our support and solidarity with their families. There, amidst at least 2,000 people praying, the hostage clock continued its slow, relentless advance forward.
Later that night, two drones penetrated Israeli airspace from Lebanon, heading towards the center of the country. One was shot down over the sea, but inexplicably, the second managed to break through, reaching Herzliya. The drone actually entered an apartment before exploding. Fortunately, the resident was unharmed, having been in the safe room on that floor at the time. Over the course of the Yom Kippur holy day, over 300 rockets and drones were fired on Israel.
Yom Kippur afternoon, as I walked our dog through the silent streets of Tel Aviv, my watch kept buzzing with updates about the latest rocket attacks on towns in the North. I remarked to my son how surreal it felt to be strolling in the peaceful quiet of Tel Aviv while the northern part of our country endured relentless rocket fire. Where else in the world could such a dissonant contrast exist? Today, rockets were launched almost continuously at various locations in Northern Israel.
Fighting continues in southern Lebanon, where the IDF has expanded their operational zone. This morning, two anti-tank missile attacks struck soldiers in Lebanon. In addition, a rocket barrage hit another group of soldiers. Together, these three attacks resulted in the wounding of 25 soldiers, of which two soldiers were critically injured
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The IDF captured its first prisoner in Lebanon, who had been found left behind in a tunnel. This is a rare occurrence as most Hezbollah fighters have repositioned away from the border, preparing for future engagements. It is puzzling why the IDF is replicating the same strategy it used in Gaza—i.e., pushing Hezbollah back from the border, rather than leveraging its superior maneuverability to encircle Hezbollah troops.
The IDF Spokesman released the following statement regarding the capture of a Hezbollah fighter:
During IDF operations in the southern Lebanon area, an underground shaft was discovered in a building, leading to a terrorist hideout with an exit shaft nearby.
The forces surrounded the building, examined the tunnel shaft, and found an underground complex about 7 meters deep and 50 meters wide, where a Hezbollah terrorist was barricaded along with weapons and equipment for long-term stay.
After the terrorist surrendered and was arrested, the soldiers interrogated him on-site and then transferred him to a detention facility in Israel for further questioning.
IDF forces continue operations in the area.
Israel has requested the withdrawal of UNIFIL from South Lebanon, which the UN has refused. Three UNFIL members have been injured. It's important to remember that UNIFIL was originally established to prevent Hezbollah from operating south of the Litani River, but has completely failed to achieve this objective.
Defense Minister Gallant informed the cabinet that, to date, Israel has destroyed 67% of Hezbollah’s rockets in Lebanon.
GAZA
Combat continues in Gaza, with the most intense fighting occurring in Jabalya. We are receiving terrible coverage of our actions in Jabalya, with some accusing us of genocide. The irony is that the critics claim that the IDF’s actions are based on the plan presented by Retired General and former Head of the National Security Council, Giora Eiland, along with other generals, to defeat Hamas, which involved relocating civilians from northern Gaza. However, Eiland stated this morning that his plan is not being followed; instead, the action in Jabalya is more of what has been done before, leading to more of the same outcomes
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IRAN
It appears—unless this is an intentional ruse—that the Israeli government has yet to finalize its plans for an attack on Iran. Meanwhile, Defense Minister Gallant is unable to travel to the U.S. for consultations. It’s a rather absurd situation instead of taking advantage of the fact that Gallant is the only minister respected by the U.S. and therefore well-positioned to engage with U.S. officials, Netanyahu refuses to allow anyone else to take the spotlight.
U.S. STRATEGIC DEFENSE CAPABILITIES TO BE DEPLOYED IN ISRAEL
This afternoon, the Pentagon announced that, under President Biden's orders, it is deploying THAAD anti-ballistic missile systems to Israel, along with American soldiers to operate them. THAAD, an American system comparable to Israel's Arrow, does not offer different capabilities but provides additional interceptors. This enhancement will increase Israel's capacity to intercept multiple missiles simultaneously and underscores a further level of U.S. commitment to Israel’s defense. The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system operates in tandem with Israel’s missile defense capabilities. Over the past few years, the two militaries have engaged in numerous air defense exercises.
KNESSET VOTES TO AUTHORIZE ADDITIONAL NATIONAL DAY OF MOURNING
The Israeli government has designated an additional national day of mourning for the October 7th massacre, aligning closely with the Hebrew calendar date, (though not precisely, as the exact date falls on Simchat Torah).
Some ministers have voiced objections, arguing that the world recognizes October 7th, not a different date. Supposedly, the proposal came from Miri Regev, which likely means the suggestion originated with Netanyahu. My guess is that Netanyahu doesn’t want October 7th to become the defining date of the war. Despite his continued efforts to label the war with a variety of other names, Netanyahu likely fears that history will remember this catastrophic war as the War of October 7th.
Furthermore, designating an additional national day of mourning is a terrible idea for another reason—this year, Israel certainly has no need another day of mourning. We are still engaged in a multi-front war, and the country is grappling with trauma. The last thing we need is another memorial day. It's disheartening that the cabinet devoted time today debating this issue instead of focusing on the hostage situation or other urgent matters.
Here are several quotes from the cabinet meeting:
MK Amichai Shikli: Why do we need to waste money on another ceremony? The flags have already been lowered [to commemorate Oct. 7th].
MK Miri Regev: The flags weren’t lowered [“officially”]. What [Speaker of the Knesset] Ohana did in the Knesset, he did on his own. He lowered the flags by his own decision. That doesn’t mean it’s accepted by all of us.
MK Gidon Sa’ar: Fine, but there were two [commemorative] ceremonies (one by the government and one by the families), and there were dozens more in the communities, etc.
MK Regev: There weren’t two ceremonies.
MK Haim Katz: You can say and do whatever you want, but there were already two ceremonies.
FOUR WORTHWHILE READS …
It appears that someone in Israel has leaked significant information about Hamas to both the Washington Post and the New York Times, with each publication reporting slightly different details. For example, The New York Times article focuses on attempts to involve Iran in the war, elaborating on how Hamas postponed initiating the war and employed deceptive tactics against Israel; while the Washington Post provides detailed information about Hamas's plans to target skyscrapers in Tel Aviv.
In addition, while the Washington Post article cites its inability to independently verify the authenticity of documents from Hezbollah, (though stating that the documents appeared genuine); The New York Times confirms that it was able to independently verify the authenticity of the documents it reviewed.
Here’s the link to The Washington Post article: Captured documents reveal Hamas’s broader ambition to wreak havoc on Israel
Here’s the link to The NY Times article: Secret Documents Show Hamas Tried to Persuade Iran to Join Its Oct. 7 Attack
In addition, two notable articles appeared in Foreign Affairs: the first, authored by Aluf Benn, the current editor of Haaretz and former military correspondent for the same publication, discusses Israel's lack of a strategic plan and the consequences of not having one.
Israel’s Paradox of Defeat: How the Country’s Military Success Is Producing Political Failure
The second article, authored by Ari Shavit, known for his acclaimed book My Promised Land, is titled: "What Israel Has Lost And How It Can Regain Its Strategic Edge." In the essay, Shavit proposes steps Israel can take to reshape its strategic outlook.
BUSINESS
The Israeli company HT-VET is revolutionizing the veterinary world with its HT-Vista device, which enables the fast, accurate, and non-invasive classification of tumors in dogs. The need for a revolution in the diagnosis of tumors in animals is clear and essential. Nearly half of dogs over the age 10 suffer from cancer—which is the leading cause of death among pets. Every week, veterinary clinics encounter dogs with lumps suspected to be cancerous tumors, but in most cases, the vet sends the owner home to wait and see if the lump disappears or develops. Often, by the time the dog returns to the clinic, it is too late to save its life.
This is because diagnosing cancerous tumors in animals has, until now, been a cumbersome, lengthy, invasive, and expensive process, which is difficult to perform with the tools available to veterinary clinics. Additionally, pet owners do not always have the financial resources to fund these tests. As a result, in many cases, the diagnosis comes too late, and the outcome is fatal.
“Cancer diagnosis in two minutes”… The device developed by the startup HT-VET (founded by Toledano, HT-Vista), simplifies and speeds up the entire procedure. The veterinary technician places the device over the examined area, and the device sends a heat wave to the tumor. In just two minutes, the unique algorithm developed by the company analyzes the data and provides an accurate, automatic decision—whether the tumor is benign or requires further diagnosis.
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A PIECE OF HISTORY
Rise of the “Start-Up Nation”
As I have been telling the political and military story of Israel during the early 2000s, there is also an important economic story that needs to be told—the story of Israel's transformation into the "Startup Nation." The roots of Israel's high-tech sector can be traced back to the early days of the state with the development of the arms industry and Israeli Aircraft Industries. However, the true catalyst of this metamorphosis occurred when Intel opened its first R&D facility in Israel, prompted by a chief engineer's desire to return to the country.
The 1970s marked a significant era of development for Israel's tech sector, highlighted by the growth of Scitex, a company that pioneered digital printing and evolved into a substantial entity. In the 1980s, Amdocs was established, followed by the emergence of Check Point, Israel’s first cyber defense company, in the 1990s.
By the late 1990s, Israeli companies were actively participating in the dot-com bubble, though many of these companies collapsed after the bubble burst in 2000. However, a group of companies managed to survive the crash and, starting in the early 2000s, these resilient companies began to be sold for significant sums, cementing Israel's status as a key player in the global tech industry.
SanDisk's $1.6 billion acquisition of M-Systems, a leader in flash memory storage, was a watershed moment. Founded by Dov Moran in 1989, M-Systems was renowned for inventing the DiskOnKey (thumb drive, a pioneering USB flash drive). This deal not only strengthened SanDisk's market position but also highlighted Israel's growing importance in the global tech arena.
Then, Hewlett-Packard (HP) made two significant acquisitions in Israel:
Indigo (2002): HP's $882 million acquisition of Indigo, a digital printing leader founded by Benny Landa, bolstered its position in the digital printing market.
Mercury Interactive (November 2005): In a landmark $4.5 billion deal, HP acquired Mercury Interactive, a software company specializing in IT governance and application management. This acquisition, one of the largest in Israeli tech history, significantly expanded HP's enterprise software offerings and its ability to compete with giants like IBM and CA Technologies.
These acquisitions were instrumental in shaping Israel's reputation as a hub for technological innovation. They drew international attention to Israel's high-tech ecosystem, spurring further investments and acquisitions in the years that followed. Success stories from companies such as M-Systems, Indigo, and Mercury Interactive highlighted Israel's capabilities across various technological domains, from hardware innovations to software solutions. This era laid the groundwork for Israel's sustained growth as a global leader in technology and innovation, setting the stage for the thriving startup ecosystem that exists today.