Celebrating Middle East Peace is Premature

Celebrating Middle East Peace is Premature
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
October 13, 2025

Mazal Tov! The 20 remaining living Israeli hostages held in Gaza by the terrorist organization Hamas have finally been returned to Israeli soil after 738 days in captivity. And they have been released on the eve of Simchas Torah, celebrating the completion of the reading of the Torah - scripture, and the beginning of the reading from Genesis all over again, along with singing and dancing - including dancing with the Torah scrolls. 

Seeing these 20, now former, hostages reunite with families, friends, and other loved ones expressing sheer exhilaration, raw emotions of tears of joy and grief, genuine love, and relief, as well as physical and mental exhaustion should implore anyone with a pulse to thank G-d for their return.

After 738 horrendous, painful days, Matan Angrest, Gali Berman, Ziv Berman, Elkana Bohbot, Rom Braslavski, Nimrod Cohen, Ariel Cunio, David Cunio, Evyatar David, Guy Gilboa-Dalal, Maxim Herkin, Eitan Horn, Segev Kalfon, Bar Kupershtein, Omri Miran, Eitan Mor, Yosef-Haim Ohana, Alon Ohel, Avinatan Or, and Matan Zangauker are back home in Israel where they belong. Say their names and pray for their mental and physical recovery.

“Those prayers of millions have finally been answered. Together we have achieved the impossible. At long last, we have peace in the Middle East,” said President Donald J. Trump.

This potential Gaza Peace Accords deal could only have been accomplished under Trump’s leadership through what President Ronald Reagan often referred to as “peace through strength.” So much strength that Trump took control of these negotiations in spite of countries like Australia, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom recognizing a Palestinian state. Terrorists must never be rewarded with statehood or legitimacy. https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2025/10/un-rewards-terrorists-near-107.html 

Under the feckless, weak-kneed Joe Biden administration, the United States commanded virtually no respect around the world. Biden displayed personal and political animus toward Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - a continuation of the less than friendly relationship between Biden’s former boss Barack Obama and Netanyahu. Additionally, Biden simply did not have the energy or mental capacity to conduct all the negotiations and deal making required to bring the necessary parties together to even consider such a lasting commitment. Perhaps Trump’s next bestseller ought to be entitled The Art of the Peace Deal.

Yes, potential, so don’t start celebrating Middle East peace just yet. There are still numerous pieces that have yet to navigate their way through this geo-political labyrinth.

The agreement has already been broken by Hamas in their failure to return all 28 bodies of deceased hostages - just four have thus far been sent back to Israel. Does anyone actually think Hamas can or should be trusted? Of course not. Can Hamas simply be marginalized? Will they disarm, as required? Will they actually leave Gaza willingly? Anyone holding their breath? And if so, where will they go? No other country wants them - this is how this kerfuffle began in the first place - so-called refugees for more than 75 years, claiming Israel to be their land. More than 40 Arab/Muslim nations refuse admission to the so-called Palestinians, because those nations know who those so-called refugees are. Yet, it is Israel that continues to be lambasted for not wanting, and with good reason, to absorb these people.

These so-called refugees chose to leave Israel upon its independence in 1948. They chose not to live side by side with the Jewish people in peace. What makes anyone think a so-called two-state solution could ever possibly succeed? Especially when the charters of Hamas and Hezbollah call for the evisceration of the Jewish people and the destruction of Israel. These self-defined refugees were not exiled, unlike the Jewish people living in the Arab/Muslim nations. Longtime thriving Jewish communities in the diaspora of the Middle East and North Africa suffered expulsion, a loss of property, and murder as their populations unwillfully shrank to nearly zero, and in some cases, absolute zero. In Israel, Arab/Muslim populations continue to blossom - completely belying the notion of Israel as an apartheid state. That Israel consistently traded, unadvisedly, land for peace, also evinces the lie of Israel as a colonizer. And, being historically accurate, make no mistake, Gaza is still Israel, as is the so-called West Bank, which, in reality is Judea and Samaria. Judea - as in Jewish - as in the Biblical, historical, indigenous, ancestral home of the Jewish people, and should never be under the auspices of any other peoples or nations. Ever.

Aside from the issue of where members of Hamas should relocate after leaving Gaza, what of the myriad other terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah, the Houthis, al-Qaeda, Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, and Islamic Jihad? What about the Islamic Republic of Iran, the largest state sponsor of terror? Even if Hamas abides by these agreements, none of these other terrorist organizations agreed to anything. They all have the destruction of Israel and the death of the Jewish people as their top priorities. Will the Islamic Republic of Iran offer safe haven to Hamas? Why is Hamas even being given a reprieve for their crimes against humanity in the first place? Quite frankly, the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) should stay in Gaza until the last Hamas terrorist is eliminated. Allowing any to live gives them an opportunity to regenerate. There can be no peace with surviving Hamas members or any of the other terror organizations’ members.

If this is intended to be a peace deal, why would there be a demand for the release of upwards of 2,000 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails and prisons? These are criminals convicted of commiting heinous crimes including, but not limited to rape, kidnapping, murder, bombings, and terrorist activities. There is no equivalence, moral or otherwise, between 250 Israelis forcibly taken hostage by Hamas versus criminal Palestinians imprisoned for committing the aforementioned crimes. If there is to be peace in the Middle East all geo-political entities must not only recognize Israel and its right to exist, but to do so in peace. Remember, on October 6, 2023 a ceasefire existed until shattered by Hamas the next morning - on Shabbos and celebration of Simchas Torah.

And just what will peace in Gaza look like? If Hamas is no longer to be the governing authority, who will fill that void? There are 2.1 million so-called Palestinians in Gaza. Gaza is still and should remain part of Israel. Should Gaza become a de facto Palestine? Quite frankly, Gaza is barely inhabitable. If Israel is to rebuild Gaza, it should be reinhabited by Israelis, not unlike those who were forced to evacuate in 2005. Israelis not only fled Gaza, their dead were taken with the living and reburied outside of Gaza. What became of Gaza after the Israelis departed is absolutely disgraceful - the so-called Palestinians destroyed the infrastructure, greenhouses, and even the agriculture, replacing much of it with substandard housing, schools teaching children to kill Jews and hate Israel, mosques preaching the same, and hundreds of miles of underground terror tunnels. Those so-called Palestinians who are truly displaced persons from their destroyed homes should be absorbed by the other Arab/Muslim nations on a per capita basis so as not to create an undue burden on those nations’ economies.

If Israel rebuilds Gaza, it should be Israelis who benefit with and from the businesses, technology centers, hotels and other hospitality at the beach, sports and music venues, as well as new, state of the art hospitals, schools and houses of worship that neither teach nor preach the killing of Jews and the hatred of Israel.

To paraphrase an old adage, a rising peace lifts all economies. The successful Abraham Accords during Trump’s first term between Israel, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates moved to normalize relations between those nations. With this future phase of Abraham Accords off in the not so distant horizon, a new era of recognition, cooperation, and hopefully economic partnerships will be ushered in where investments will be made in life saving medical techniques, technology, and agricultural advancements instead of bombs, munitions, and terror tunnels. 

Prabowo Subianto, president of Indonesia, a country with no diplomatic ties with Israel for decades, spoke before the United Nations on Tuesday September 23. “We must also recognize, we must also respect, and we must also guarantee the safety and security of Israel. Only then we can have real peace,” said Subianto, head of state of the largest Muslim-majority nation, with a population of 283 million people. Subianto concluded his speech with “Shalom.”

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He and his wife last visited Israel in 2019 and they look forward to a return trip.

UN Rewards Terrorists Near 10/7 Anniversary

UN Rewards Terrorists Near 10/7 Anniversary 
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
October 3, 2025

The upcoming celebration of Sukkot will be marred by the still fresh memories and open wounds of the invasion of Israel by the terrorist organization Hamas, the slaughter of more than 1,200 innocent Israelis by Hamas, and the capture of an additional 250 innocents - 48 of whom are still being held hostage by Hamas. Adding insult to injury, the feckless United Nations voted to reward those terrorists with a state, and did so just days before the Jewish New Year of Rosh Hashanah.

The first day of Sukkot, an eight day festival celebrating the harvest, where Jewish People eat their meals in huts, just thatched enough to be able to see the stars in the sky, falls on October 7 - the second dour “anniversary” of the 2023 invasion and massacre. Those huts, Sukkahs, are decorated by children with produce and artwork. Sadly, thanks to Hamas, hundreds of young people will not be able to decorate their family or synagogue sukkahs this year.

And yes, it is Hamas being rewarded with a state. It was the terrorist organization Hamas that garnered a so-called election in Gaza in 2006 - to date the only such plebiscite under the authoritarian and terrorist regime. A regime responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of its own people via shootings, stoning, strangulations, and starvation. Gaza, (Israel) which had been inhabited by Jewish People, withdrew not just the living, but the dead - reintering their deceased out of Gaza in order to allow so-called Palestinians the inhabitation of that land in 2005. Since then, Hamas destroyed the infrastructure left in place by the Jews before vacating Gaza, and in its place Hamas built hundreds of miles of terror tunnels. Gaza has beachfront land that could have been built into the Riviera of the Middle East. But instead, terrorism, murder, rape, kidnapping and destruction became the order of the day.

For those with short memories or who have chosen to ignore facts, reality, and truth, the ceasefire demanded by the useless UN, and a cavalcade of their ignorant minions (so-called sovereign nations living on their knees), actually existed until October 6, 2023 when Hamas shattered it by slaughtering more than 1,200 innocent Israeli children, women, and men, many attending a music festival, others preparing to observe Simchat Torah. Simchat Torah celebrates the completion of the reading of the Torah - scripture, and the beginning of the reading from Genesis all over again, along with singing and dancing - including dancing with the Torah scrolls. Hamas produced its own video footage of their heinous crimes against humanity - including raping little girls and women, murdering pregnant women, murdering babies and children, as well as the kidnapping of more than 250 other innocents. Of those 250 hostages, 48 are still in captivity, with 20 believed to be alive - maybe. Put in perspective, consider if more than 40,000 Americans were murdered on September 11, 2001.

In the two years since the October 7, 2023 Hamas invasion of Israel, in unprecedented actions, Israel warned civilians in Gaza, via various forms of media, to flee for their safety as the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) sought to eliminate Hamas and other terrorists. Additionally, it is Hamas killing its own people - preventing them from seeking safe havens because of the optics to make Israel look guilty in the eyes of the anti-Israel press, the UN, and other detractors. It is Hamas starving its own people - again with video proof - by hijacking thousands of tons of food and medical supplies sent into Gaza provided by Israel. Hamas then extorts its own people in an effort to fund their continued terrorist war against Israel. While Israel gives Gazan civilians warnings before strikes against Hamas, it is Hamas hiding in hospitals, elementary schools, even mosques - desecrating their own houses of worship.

And for all the damage, death, and destruction perpetrated by Hamas and its rabid supporters, the UN decided now is the right time to reward that evil, heinous, murderous behavior. So the message, the takeaway, is clearly rape, kidnap, and kill as many Jews and Israelis as possible and you will become a sovereign nation within the family of nations. Where will this nation exist? With what borders? Under what leadership? With what form of government? Will this be the same nation people supporting a two-state solution have naively called for? Naively because it is written in the charter of Hamas (and Hezbollah) that the Jewish People are to be eliminated (killed), and the sovereign, independent nation of Israel is to be razed. One cannot negotiate with, or peacefully coexist with those seeking your total annihilation. And those rabid supporters include the tens of thousands of painfully ignorant college students residing full time in their echo chambers driving the rates of antisemitism through the roof. And the overseas antisemitism that includes the attack on, and murder in a Manchester, UK synagogue on Yom Kippur (Oct. 2), the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.

This is also why land for peace is a perpetual failure. Once land is gone, it is gone; peace is fleeting at best. A nation for the Palestinian people must never include land that is Israel. And that includes the so-called “West Bank,” which is, and always has been Jewish land - Judea and Samaria - Judea, as in Jewish, and should never belong to anyone else. Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, Islamic Jihad, and myriad terrorist organizations won’t even acknowledge Israel as a nation or recognize its basic right to exist as a people, as a sovereign nation. They certainly wouldn’t dare to praise Israel for being the most democratic nation in the Middle East affording equal rights to its citizenry - Jewish, Christian, Druze, Muslim, Israeli, and Arab. They serve in the military, the Knesset (parliament), work as judges, doctors, lawyers, architects, engineers, businessmen, and teachers. All these terrorist organizations want is the death and destruction of the Jewish people and its Biblical, eternal, indigenous, native land of Israel. That is never a viable solution.

The UN voted overwhelmingly, on September 12, to reward terrorism and terrorists with a nation called Palestine, as 142 nations voted in favor, 10 voted against, and 12 abstained. The 10 nations opposing the measure included the United States, Israel, Hungary, Argentina, Paraguay, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga. These are the brightest nations in an increasingly dim UN who know terrorism and terrorists should never be rewarded with a nation, or anything else. (https://www.newsweek.com/un-general-assembly-israel-palestine-two-state-solution-2129372) 

Israel and the Jewish People, a scant 0.2 percent of the global population - not two percent, two-tenths of one percent, are fighting for mere survival on a daily basis. From the executions, expulsions, pogroms, and Holocaust prior to the present-day re-founding of Israel in 1948, to the five-pronged invasion upon the announcement of independence, to the Six Day War, the Yom Kippur War, the intifadas, the War with Iran, and the myriad continuous invasions and terrorist attacks on an almost daily basis, as well as the calumny of disinformation, misinformation, and outright lies perpetuated by Israel’s enemies, the UN, and the global press, Israel is in a constant state of defense and survival mode. While they are made to be a constant victim, they are not behaving like a victim - laying on the floor crying, whimpering in the corner. 

No, instead, Israel and the Jewish People are doing what is right and necessary to not just survive, but prosper and thrive. Public opinion be damned. Israel and the Jewish people must stand strong, be bold, be proud - speak out against antisemitism wherever it may be - on campus, in the cities, in the media, and in the body politic. Dara Horn (no relation) wrote an excellent book - People Love Dead Jews, a title that speaks volumes. That there is sympathy, for, and a desire to read about dead Jews in history, and not the living. It is the living Jewish People who are the future of a strong, vibrant nation, growing stronger in their faith, their patriotism, and their continuing contribution to all avenues of society - medicine, law, education, science, literature, and service to community. The Jewish People and Israel - hardly monolithic - survived the pogroms, the Holocaust, October 7, 2023, and will continue to do so in spite of the terrorists, the antisemitic press and academia, and the antisemitic UN and its tentacled agencies, such as UNRA, UNESCO, WHO, and ICC. 

Am Israel Chai. עם ישראל חי.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He and his wife last visited Israel in 2019 and they look forward to a return trip.

US and Israel Make the World a Safer Place

US and Israel Make the World a Safer Place
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
Overnight June 21-22, 2025

In history making strikes, President Donald Trump announced at 10 PM EDT Saturday June 21 that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites have been “completely and totally obliterated.” With strikes Trump called a “spectacular military success,” this hopefully completes the necessary work begun by Israel.

Hopefully, because until the dust settles, it may not be known to what extent the level of success, and Israel is also preparing for Iranian retaliation. Now in its tenth day, what began with Operation Rising Lion, Israel took preemptive measures knowing how close Iran had become to completing its nuclear weapon capability, presumably, the hard part is over, as Iran is severely diminished via its air capabilities as well as its nuclear facilities.

The precision targeted strikes by the United States included Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz - all in central Iran. In hitting Isfahan and Natanz, US bombers successfully used 30 Tomahawk missiles. Fordow, considered the most difficult to access, roughly 300 feet underground and beneath a mountain. It is there where the United States launched six bunker buster bombs, carried on three B-2 stealth bombers - a mission practiced and prepared for, for a number of years. These operations do not happen overnight - they require an incredible amount of preparedness, precision, and even patience which when conducted in real time, and completed with the level of success achieved, make these pilots beyond the best of the best. They are to be applauded the world over. On this night, Israel and the United States together saved humanity, and that is not hyperbole.

Israel had no choice but to unleash the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) on June 12, against the number one state sponsor of terror, who for decades have called for “death to Israel, death to America,” referring to the United States as the Great Satan, and Israel as the Little Satan. Iran had been in the advanced stages of uranium enrichment and had the ballistic missiles with which to strike. Even the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) reported Iran’s “engaging in clandestine nuclear activity.” When someone tells you they want to kill you, take them at their word.

“Iran must not have a nuclear weapon,” Trump has repeated for more than 20 years. “Now is the time for peace,” he also said tonight.

Iranian leadership is not honorable; at best they are disingenuous. Its citizenry, for the most part, desperately wants to see regime change. Every day Iranians have been virtual prisoners in their own country since the Iranian Revolution of 1979. This revolution saw the capturing of 66 Americans on November 4, 1979, 52 of whom remained hostages in Iran for 444 days, released, not uncoincidentally, on January 20, 1981 - the very day President Ronald Reagan took the oath of office.

The Islamic Republic of Iran refused to sit at the negotiating table. And quite frankly, what is there to negotiate when Iran and its funded proxies - Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis only seek the death of the Israelis and the Jewish people, as well as the evisceration of Israel itself. 

Iran had 60 days to comply and reach the negotiating table, which when they refused, on day 61, Israel took decisive action. President Trump indicated he would decide within two weeks what actions, if any, the US would take. Two days later, those awesome decisions helped save the world. Both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deserve to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. Don’t anyone hold their breath, but they do deserve it. The world as a whole owes both leaders and both nations an enormous “thank you.” Even German Chancellor Friedrich Merz noted that Israel and the United States are doing the dirty work that so clearly needed doing. 

These are issues of moral clarity. Israel would not move against Iran if not absolutely necessary. Iran has made it vividly clear, in their death to America, death to Israel mantra, that acquiring nuclear capability is to use their nuclear capability against, first Israel, then the United States. Is Israel moving against Canada? Spain? Japan? Of course not because none of those nations are threatening Israel. As has oft-been said, should Israel lay down their weapons, there will be no Israel, but should Israel’s enemies lay down their weapons, there can, and will be peace.

Of course Iran is not expected to simply roll over and lay down. Israelis, at this very hour, now approaching 8 AM Jerusalem time, remain in or close to their bomb shelters, while schools and most businesses remain closed. Iran has taken a beating. They have been embarrassed and humiliated, and they will not take that lightly. Whether in the Middle East or via sleeper cells in the United States, all must remain vigilant and on high alert. Make no mistake, thanks to the open borders under the failed Biden administration, there’s no telling how many of the illegal aliens are part of organized cells seeking to commit acts of terrorism in the United States. On the other hand, it is rather telling that key supporters of Iran, the Chinese Communist Party, North Korea, and Russia, have been virtually silent.

President Trump sounded effusive when addressing the nation at 10 PM EDT, and quite frankly, humble. “I want to thank and congratulate Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu. Thank Israel’s military for the wonderful job they have done…. Incredible effort by the US military - no military in the world could have done what we did tonight - not even close. I want to just thank everybody, in particular G-d. I want to just say we love you G-d, and we love our great military - protect them. G-d Bless the Middle East, G-d Bless Israel, and G-d Bless America,” said Trump. How often does the president, any president, or any world leader invoke the name of our L-rd, our G-d, the way President Trump did this evening. 

I think the two assassination attempts on Trump’s life last July during the presidential campaign changed Trump in a spiritual way. Make no mistake, he can still be boisterous, but there also seems to be a leveling off, putting him on a more even keel. He’s still tough, says what he means, and means what he says, and this situation with Israel and Iran certainly proves that.

Netanyahu offered his praise. “Congratulations President Trump. Your bold decision to target Iran’s nuclear facilities with [the] awesome and righteous might of the United States will change history. History will record that President Trump acted to deny the world’s most dangerous regime, the world’s most dangerous weapon. His leadership today… can help lead the Middle East and beyond to a future of prosperity and peace.”

In addition to the Iron Dome, the missile defense system that has so protected Israel, Rabbi Chaim Mentz of the Chabad of Bel Air, CA added, “Israel has that extra dome - the G-d Dome.”

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He and his wife last visited Israel in 2019.

...And Tiny Israel Shall Save the World

…And Tiny Israel Shall Save the World
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
Overnight June 12-13, 2025

It is approaching midnight (EDT) - soon to be Friday, June 13, nearly 7 AM in Jerusalem. Operation Rising Lion underway for several hours, has Israel preemptively striking the nuclear facilities in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Israel’s strikes are designed to prevent a nuclear war, and not start a war.

Israel had no choice but to unleash the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) against the number one state sponsor of terror, who for decades have called for “death to Israel, death to America,” referring to the United States as the Great Satan, and Israel as the Little Satan. When someone tells you they want to kill you, take them at their word.

While Iran’s political leadership sits at the negotiating table, its scientists continue enriching uranium in the laboratories. It’s reminiscent of pre-World War II Germany, building and stockpiling military weaponry underground in remote places while allowing inspectors to visit Germany in a sleight of hand parlor game. Iranian leadership is not an honorable entity; they are terribly disingenuous. Its citizenry, for the most part, desperately wants to see regime change. Every day Iranians have been virtual prisoners in their own country since the Iranian Revolution of 1979. (This revolution saw the capturing of 66 Americans on November 4, 1979, 52 of whom remained hostages in Iran for 444 days, released on January 20, 1981 - the very day President Ronald Reagan took the oath of office.)

The Islamic Republic of Iran is no longer inching toward nuclear weaponry. In recent months and weeks it has made nuclear armament a potential reality by leaps and bounds, thus making Israel’s preemptive strikes necessary - necessary for the actual survival of the nation of Israel. But Iran is not just a threat to the Jewish people, Israel, or even the United States. It is not hyperbole to say Israel is fighting to save the world.

President Donald Trump dearly wanted negotiations to succeed, and still does, letting it be known he played no role in this preemptive strike by Israel, all the time knowing and understanding how vital this operation is. Trump reiterated the importance of Iran never achieving nuclear capability. And the longer Iran’s political leadership sits at a negotiating table, they maintain their jobs and power. But don’t count on continued negotiations - even as there are some scheduled in Oman this weekend.

Quite frankly leaders in the Middle East, in Europe, and the citizenry of Iran also appreciate what Israel must do. They won’t say so, at least not publicly, but behind closed doors, the Iranian citizenry, and even many other leaders are quietly thanking Israel. Iran has long been the bully, a menace, in the Middle East. The success of the Abraham Accords during the first Trump administration gives credence to thinking Israel’s neighbors, save for Qatar, actually appreciate the bold, necessary operations by Israel.

Israel made pinpointed, targeted strikes, and assassinations overnight. The targets included nuclear facilities, ballistic missile sites, and specific leaders in an attempt to end Iran’s quest to become a nuclear nation with the capability of following through on the decade’s long threats to eviscerate Israel, slaughter the Jewish people, and do similarly to the United States. Israel struck Iran’s uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, with goals of doing likewise at the atomic energy research center in Bonad, the heavy water nuclear reactor in Arak, the nuclear fuel, research, and production center in Isfahan, the nuclear fuel unit in Ardakan, and the nuclear facility in Bushehr.

The pinpointed assassinations included three top level Iranian military figures and six nuclear scientists. The military leaders assassinated were Mohammad Hossein Bagheri - Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, Major General Gholam Ali Rashid - Armed Forces Deputy Commander, and Major General Hossein Salami Commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. Civilians did not suffer during this operation.

Israel’s actions became necessary because under both former presidents Barack Hussein Obama and Joseph R. Biden, Iran could flex its muscles, and did. The United States under both America Last presidents and their policies of appeasement,  slathered Iran with pallets of cash to the tune of billions of dollars. Billions of dollars used to fund the proxies of the Islamic Republic of Iran - Hezbollah to Israel’s north, the Houthis to the southeast, and Hamas to the south and west. Hezbollah and Hamas have it written in their charters the call to wipe Israel off the face of the globe, and slaughter the Jewish people. This is the same Hamas that, unprovoked, slaughtered more than 1,200 Israeli children, women, and men, and kidnapped hundreds more on October 7, 2023, violating the cease fire that existed on October 6. More than 50 hostages remain in captivity.

As of 8 AM, Jerusalem time, 100 drones had been launched by Iran, heading toward Israel. Israel naturally anticipated retaliatory actions and advised its citizenry to stay as close to the bomb shelters as possible. Schools are closed, businesses are closed, outdoor activities have been cancelled, yet Shabbat approaches. While Israel’s attacks on Iran were carried out with pinpointed precision and accuracy, Iran’s  retaliation will undoubtedly include civilians of all ages - just as their proxies carried out their heinous actions 20 months ago, and continue in the war lasting more than 600 days. As of 9:30 AM, Jerusalem time, Israel had already begun to intercept the Iranian drones, yet the nation remains in a state of emergency and on full alert. Israel enjoyed a very successful overnight and put Iran on its heels. By noon, Jerusalem time, Israel continues to successfully thwart Iran’s drones, none having struck any targets in Israel.

It matters not what international criticism befalls Israel, it is used to global condemnation for all the ills of the planet. There can be no compromise with nations wishing to erase you from the planet. How many tens and tens of thousands of missiles and rockets have to be fired into Israel before Israel is granted permission to retaliate? Is Israel not supposed to defend itself? Sadly, there are far too many people in far too many nations who would be satisfied if Israel did not defend itself and just disappeared. More and more of those people are making themselves known, especially in the United States with skyrocketing rates of antisemitism since October 7, 2023. Is Israel expected to wait until Iran is fully nuclear capable and an atomic bomb is headed toward Tel Aviv before it defends itself?

Eighty years ago the Holocaust of European Jewry, the slaughter of six million innocent children, women, and men officially came to an end. This only happened to be another chapter in the history of the Jewish people - a history including expulsions, inquisitions, pogroms, invasions, deadly attacks and bombings, when all the Jewish people want is to be left alone to live in peace amongst their neighbors, within a world that does not seek its eradication. Israel is no threat to a nuclear free Iran. The world is a safer, more peaceful place with a nuclear free Iran. Ever since the Holocaust the rallying cry has been “never again,” and especially since October 7, 2023. Israel will no longer roll over and be led like lambs to the slaughter. As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said overnight, “we have risen like lions to defend ourselves.”

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

IDF Recovers Bodies of Six More Hostages

IDF Recovers Bodies of Six More Hostages
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
September 1, 2024

With much sadness, but little surprise, the deaths of six hostages held in Gaza, including one American, are confirmed by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as reported on Fox News, and in The Epoch Times. It is believed Hamas murdered the hostages within the past day or two, also according to the IDF.

The six most recently murdered hostages include Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, kidnapped by Islamic extremist terrorist group Hamas from the Nova music festival in southern Israel last October 7. Goldberg-Polin attended the music festival with friends in celebration of his birthday. The other five murdered hostages are Master Sergeant Ori Danino, 25, Carmel Gat, 40, Alex Lubnov, 32, Almog Sarusi, 25, and Eden Yerushalmi, 24.

Goldberg-Polin’s parents, Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, spoke on August 21, Day Three of the Democrat National Convention. “This is a political convention. But needing our only son - and all of the cherished hostages - home, is not a political issue. It is a humanitarian issue,” said an impassioned Polin.

This tragic news broke on Sunday morning, 330 days following the October 7, 2023 Hamas invasion of Israel, the slaughter of more than 1,400 people, and the kidnapping of 250 men, women, and children ranging in ages from, on that date, a few months to over 85 years of age. Of the eight Americans among the hostages, at least four are known dead. The status of more than 100 hostages, including up to four Americans, remains unknown. What is known, is that the IDF recovered the bodies of the six murdered hostages from an underground tunnel in Khan Yunis, Gaza. This is a tunnel the IDF recently captured from Hamas in Rafah. 

“A few hours ago, we informed the families that the bodies of their loved ones had been located by IDF troops in an underground tunnel in Rafah. According to our initial assessment, they were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists shortly before we reached them,” said IDF spokesperson Admiral Daniel Hagari.

Hamas is responsible for the October 7 invasion of Israel and the massacre of more than 1,400 innocent men, women, and children - the largest massacre of Jewish people in a singular incident since the Holocaust of World War II where the Nazis murdered more than six million Jews. Hamas didn’t simply murder more than 1,400 people, they recorded many of their atrocities including the rape of women and children, the slaughter of children in front of their parents - only to murder the parents, the burning alive of children, also in front of their parents before murdering the parents.

Included in the October 7 massacre by Hamas were more than 200 people from foreign countries outside of Israel, most of whom carried dual citizenship with Israel. The following countries lost the denoted number of nationals - murdered at the hands of Hamas, according to The Times of Israel: France (35), Thailand (33), United States (31), Ukraine (21), Russia (19), United Kingdom (12), Germany (10), Nepal (10), Argentina (9), Canada (6), Romania (5), Austria, China, Philippines, Portugal (4 each), Belarus, Brazil, Italy, Peru (3 each), South Africa (2), and Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Spain, Turkey (1 each). Most of these same countries had or still have hostages held by Hamas of indeterminate numbers.

Addressing his nation, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “Whoever murders hostages does not want a deal,” in Hebrew.

Both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris expressed their outrage regarding the murder of the six hostages by Hamas. “It is as tragic as it is reprehensible. Make no mistake, Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes. And we will keep working around the clock for a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages,” said Biden. Quite frankly, for a  man who has been AWOL from the White House the past two weeks, Biden’s words ring hollow. How will he make the Hamas leaders pay for their crimes? He has done nothing since October 8.

Harris’s words carry no more confidence than Biden’s. “I strongly condemn Hamas’ continued brutality, and so must the entire world. As Vice President, I have no higher priority than the safety of American citizens, wherever they are in the world,” said Harris.

Yet, it continues to be the feckless “leadership” of the Biden-Harris administration that emboldens not just Hamas, but Hezbollah, another Islamic extremist terrorist group, to continue their bombings and shootings in their attempts to destroy Israel, the world’s lone Jewish nation on the planet. They have attempted to handcuff Israel at every turn in an attempt to secure a ceasefire, which will only make the administration look good, keep Hamas alive and breathing, without making Israel one bit more secure.

Biden and Harris have blood on their hands. While attempting to walk both sides of the street in telling Israel how they have the right to defend themselves, as if Israel needs permission from anyone as an independent sovereign nation, Biden and Harris are also attempting to placate the Hamas wing of their Democrat Party. The ever-growing radical, far-left of the Democrat Party, thousands of whom voted uncommitted during the primaries, have not only demanded an immediate ceasefire since October 8, but don’t even support the right of Israel to exist - taking their marching orders from Hamas and Hezbollah, who in turn are taking their marching orders from the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is the same Iran that during the Trump administration, could not lift a finger against either the US or Israel. Now, thanks to Biden and Harris’s funding of Iran and lifting of sanctions against Iran, has returned the Islamic Republic to its former strength in efforts to build nuclear weaponry to be used against the “Great Satan,” and the “Little Satan.”

Both Biden and Harris continue talking out of both sides of their mouths. Calling for an immediate ceasefire since October 8 supports Hamas, gives Hamas new life, while endangering Israel further. Telling Israel they have the right to defend itself, while also demanding Israel exercise caution and limit their response to the terrorism intended to end the very existence of Israel, certainly is not terribly supportive.

Harris in particular has demonstrated more support for Hamas and the Palestinians by approving the pro-Hamas, anti-Israel, antisemitic rallies, marches, and violence on myriad American college campuses since October 8. Harris has repeatedly said she understands the outrage of their venomous and criminal behavior. She has, on numerous occasions, relied upon statistics provided by Hamas in condemning Israel for the alleged number of Palestinians killed since the Hamas invasion of Israel and slaughter of 1,400 Israelis. The sad reality is Hamas hides among its own people, intentionally putting them in harm’s way and actually killing many of their own people in an effort to curry global support via the media. Hamas, receiving 80 percent of the vote among the Gazans for Hamas to be the elected rulers of Gaza, in addition to hiding among their own people, hides and stores their weaponry in elementary schools, hospitals, residences, and yes, even mosques. 

Additionally, Biden and Harris accuse Israel of withholding food and medical supplies from the people of Gaza, when in reality it is Hamas that hijacks the thousands of trucks rolling into Gaza, and keeps those supplies from their own people, starving them and allowing them to die.

Harris has specifically warned Israel against moving on Rafah, which would be strategically important for Israel to end the war sooner rather than later. “We have been clear in multiple conversations and in every way, that any major military operation in Rafah would be a huge mistake,” said Harris on ABC, on March 24. Is she dictating to Israel? And let’s not forget, Harris, the sitting vice president seeking a promotion this November, boycotted PM Netanyahu’s address before Congress in July.

Biden and Harris simply want to end the war. Israel wants and must win the war. There is an enormous difference. Ending the war allows Hamas to live another day and continue its terror campaign in its effort to eliminate the only Jewish nation on the planet. Winning the war allows Israel to exist, and its people to live and thrive peacefully. Hamas is a terrorist organization hell bent on ending the existence of Israel and killing the Jewish people, while Israel is a legitimate sovereign nation. Hamas and Israel should under no circumstance ever be equated with one another. The fact is, if Hamas puts down their weapons, there will be no more war. If Israel puts down its weapons, there will be no more Israel. May the memories of the hostages forever be for a Blessing.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

Israel Smartly Says No Deal

Israel Smartly Says No Deal
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
May 6, 2024

On this Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), whatever the latest machinations of an alleged ceasefire deal manifested by Qatar and Egypt have smartly been rejected by Israel. Hamas, a known terrorist organization, actually agreed to this deal, which, after rejecting all others, should tell Israel all it needs to know.

The fact of the matter is that a ceasefire existed on October 6, 2023 before Hamas permeated the peacefulness of a Shabbat morning by invading Israel, slaughtering more than 1,200 innocent children, women, and men. More than 250 hostages were taken by Hamas, a puppet, whose strings are pulled by the Islamic Republic of Iran. And while approximately 40 hostages have been released during an earlier ceasefire, the current ceasefire deal made no mention of further release of additional hostages. Quite frankly, there has been more than a little speculation as to how many of the hostages, if any, are actually still breathing. Such a proposal is only designed to make Israel look like the aggressor - belligerent for not accepting a ceasefire, flawed or otherwise.

Saying no to a ceasefire is the smart decision by Israel, not because they are warmongers, just the opposite. Israel knows a ceasefire is a false narrative because in the charters of Hamas and Hezbollah, both proxies of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the language calls for the destruction of Israel and the slaughter of the Jewish people. When someone says they want to kill you, take them at their word. Since the October 7 massacre there have been countless promises of a repeat of the very same October 7 massacre, not one more time, not 10 more times, not 100 more times, not 1,000 more times, but 10,000 times over. If calling for the destruction of Hamas, if calling for the unequivocal eradication of every last member of Hamas is perceived as overkill on the part of Israel, what then is the promise of 10,000 more October sevenths by Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, and the Islamic Republic of Iran?

“You cannot negotiate peace with somebody who has come to kill you.” Golda Meir, Israeli Prime Minister 1969-74

Prime Minister Meir’s prophetic words are also why a two-state solution is no lasting solution whatsoever. Who would support the establishment of a hostile, terrorist, state at their own border? Only a nation or state with a suicide wish. To reiterate, the charters of Hamas and Hezbollah call for the destruction of Israel and the death of the Jewish people. Is there really any other reason necessary to not support a ceasefire or two-state solution?

“The key thing is, the Israelis have to finish this thing. The Palestinians have to accept they’ve lost this war, and will come to some kind of terms. But, what we can’t have is them regrouping because they think the United States has their back, and they’re going to come back and do October 7 again,” said Victoria Coates, former Deputy National Security Advisor during the Trump administration.

Coates’ assertions speak the truth as Joe Biden has been less than full throat supportive of Israel since October 7. Biden has been playing both sides of the same Middle East coin, attempting to support Israel with lip service while simultaneously placating the far-left Hamas wing of his Democrat Party calling for Israel to temper its responses. In doing so, Biden continues to lose support from both constituencies. No problem. No self-respecting Jewish voter in the United States should embarrass him or herself before G-d voting for Biden and/or a party that openly supports raging anti-Semitism from coast to coast. The only real two-state solution Biden desperately wants is Michigan and Minnesota. Neither Israel nor the Jewish people have a friend in the White House right now.

But this is not about Biden. Nor is this about Trump. This isn’t even about the virulent anti-Semitism running rampant on more than 100 college and university campuses across the fruited plain, and the ruination of numerous graduation ceremonies by the pro-Hamas protesters. This is about the survival of Israel and the Jewish people pure and simple; and as a sovereign nation, Israel not only has the right, but the mandate to do whatever it takes to survive as the lone Jewish nation on G-d’s green earth. The majority of Israelis under age 30 do not support a two-state solution, more so than ever since October 7.

Israel exists under the hypocritical, watchful eye of the so-called United Nations, seemingly united only in its constant refutation and condemnation of Israel. Israel fights wars unlike any other nation - declaring its intentions in advance in an effort to protect civilians, providing its enemies with humanitarian aid, and is typically excoriated to temper its response after being attacked; no condemnation for the attacks on Israel. It took months before UN Women condemned the rape of Israeli girls and women. University presidents only condemned campus anti-Semitism in “context.”

In 2022 the United Nations General Assembly voted to condemn Israel more than all other countries combined, by a tally of 18 to 14. Of the 14 non-Israel condemnations, seven cited Russia, two against Iran, and one each against the United States, Afghanistan, Myanmar, North Korea, and Syria. Israel didn’t fare any better last year either, outpacing the world 15 condemnations to seven. Two of the seven non-Israel condemnations cited Russia, and one each against the United States, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, and Syria. At best such a scorecard is a farce. Where’s China? Cuba? Haiti? Libya? Sudan? Venezuela? All paragons of virtue? Obviously not. Yet Israel, defending itself with one hand tied behind its back as described above, is taken to the woodshed more than any other nation.

In the battle of good versus evil, and while no nation is free of foibles and flaws, when Israel vacated Gaza in 2005, which should never have happened, what did the Palestinian people do? Leveled the standing infrastructure left intact by Israelis. Israelis saw no legitimate point in destroying what could still be used. Were the Palestinians to use their engineering skills, which are vast, see 300-plus miles of underground tunnels, livable infrastructure, and weaponry storage, and built houses, schools, libraries, businesses, including resorts on their portion of the Mediterranean Sea - that’s valuable undeveloped real estate, they would have a thriving economy. Instead they are being starved, literally, by the same terrorists they voted to lead them - Hamas. Hamas is responsible for hijacking more than 90 percent of the humanitarian aid delivered to Gaza from Israel and the United States. Hamas is responsible for the slaughter of more of its own people than is Israel, contrary to anti-Israel mainstream “news” reporting.

The Palestinian people have a long history of not taking yes for an answer, dating back more than a century to the 1917 Balfour Declaration when they were given 80 percent of partitioned land that should have all been designated for the return of the Jewish people from the Diaspora to their Biblical, ancestral, and historical homeland Eretz Yisrael. Jordan, then Transjordan, had been designated for the Palestinian people. The Palestinian people have a one-state solution - an Israel free of Jewish people - in its entirety - no compromise.  (https://besacenter.org/palestinian-rejectionism/) 

From their Declaration of Independence, May 15, 1948, Israel suffered massive attacks from all sides - Egypt from the south and southwest, Saudi Arabia from the southwest, Iraq, Jordan, and Syria from the east, and Lebanon from the north. (https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/map-of-the-arab-invasion-in-the-1948-war) Internally, Israel experienced attacks from Palestinians.

And thus the importance necessitating Israel’s Rafah operations. The people there have already been given their generous warnings to evacuate. After all, how many civilians are Hamas participants? Sadly, and obviously, unknown. This exercise is vital for the IDF to continue rooting out the more than 300 miles of underground tunnels and its accouterments. Hamas must never be permitted to regenerate. Doing so only keeps Israel at risk, and war a never ending constant in the region. No deal is better than a bad deal.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

This Chanukah Shine a Brighter Light on Antisemitism

This Chanukah Shine a Brighter Light on Antisemitism
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
December 4, 2023

While the war in Israel heats up once again, thanks to Hamas violating the cease fire, it is also time to focus our attention on the heat of a more serene nature. That would be the heat emanating from the lights to be kindled starting Thursday night as the Jewish community the world over ushers in Chanukah - the Festival of Lights.

Thursday night December 7 (also Pearl Harbor Day - lest we forget), Kislev 25 on the Jewish calendar is the commencement of a festival celebrating sovereignty, religious rights and freedom, as well as protecting and recapturing a homeland that had been many times invaded by Greeks, Persians, Romans, and Syrians.

The mere dates and locations of the history of Chanukah is proof positive that the Jewish people are the rightful residents in the Holy Land - the Land of Israel. The history of Chanukah dates back more than 2000 years - long before Palestinians or Muslims invaded the Jewish Biblical, ancestral, historical homeland of the Jewish people - the indigenous peoples of Israel. The history of Chanukah includes the lands of Judea and Jerusalem.

Chanukah - the Festival of Lights - where we do not hide behind masks as Israel’s and the Jewish people’s adversaries do, nor do we hide in the dark. The Jewish people shine a light as a beacon for the world to see the results of peace and freedom - the same freedom many Arab Israelis have attested that they enjoy as Israelis and not in any Arab/Muslim country.

This year, that beacon of light is ever more important to fight the ignorance that is mounting, virulent Antisemitism from coast to coast in the United States on far too numerous college campuses, in city streets, where violence and vandalism has been growing more frequent akin to Kristallnacht. (https://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2023/11/jew-hating-like-its-1938.html)

This year, that beacon of light is ever more important to fight the arrogance that campus denizens who clearly have never learned a lick of history, deign to make demands of a foreign government (almost as arrogant as the Biden administration - see Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken). Their arrogance to clamor for a cease fire that heretofore existed on October 6 before Hamas shattered it with their invasion of Israel, their slaughter of 1,400 Israeli civilians, the rape of innocent girls and women, the decapitation of babies, and the kidnapping of more than 240 innocent people from Israel, the United States, Italy, Mexico, and many other nations ranging in ages from, then eight months, to 85 years old. 

It is beyond arrogance when there is video evidence of these crimes against humanity perpetrated by Hamas and uploaded by Hamas, which is then ignored by the useful idiots on campus and within the so-called mainstream media. And useful idiots they are, if they think for one second they themselves would be spared by Hamas - in their anti-Sharia dress, their signs of support for the gay and trans communities, and the self-loathing Jews siding with Hamas. Once again, this arrogance and ignorance stems from a paucity of historical data and knowledge. 

They are arrogant to think their calls for a two state solution will succeed - whether those calls come from campus or the White House - it is demonstrative of their lack of knowledge of history. All anyone need do is read the charters as established by both Hamas and Hezbollah to LEARN that a two state solution is untenable when one of the states only wants the eradication of the other state and the death of the people of that state. Those supporting a two state solution, those supporting Hamas, those chanting the death mantra of “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” only seek two things - the destruction of Israel and the death of the Jewish people. They may claim to be pro-Palestinian, but they, in reality, are anti-Zionist, anti-Semitic, anti-American, anti-capitalist, anti-democracy, and anti-Western Civilization. They have been indoctrinated to believe in a black and white set of options - oppressors and oppressed, that Israel with its success represents the West, represents white people, and therefore could not be the oppressed peoples, and could only be the oppressors. Once again, the lack of knowledge of history plays a key role.

The reality is that when Israel vacated Gaza in 2005, it left intact the infrastructure - buildings, green houses, schools, hospitals, that would in turn be razed by Hamas, the ruling faction elected in 2006. Hamas has not held a single election since. Hamas has prevented its own people from relocating. Hamas hides behind its children and most vulnerable using them as human shields. Hamas has used billions of dollars worth of materials designated for the infrastructure of Gaza to build more than 300 miles of rather intricate tunnel systems from which to wage war, store weapons, and ammunition under and in hospitals, children’s bedrooms, even mosques - their own holy house of worship. From the category of good versus evil, they could have used their engineering smarts for the betterment of the Gazan people and live life instead of worshiping a cult of death as Hamas does. Learning this and additional genuine history would be a great 2023 Chanukah miracle.

Israel is neither an occupier nor a colonialist as is incorrectly bandied about during the less than peaceful protests and on signs. The Greeks and Syrians occupied present day Israel more than 2000 years ago - including during 222-186 BCE (Before the Common Era), under Antiochus III, king of Syria - oppressing the Jewish people in their Biblical and ancestral homeland. Upon the death of Antiochus III, his son Seleucus IV took the reins, imposing even greater taxes on the Jewish people in an effort to pay his own debt to the Romans. Hellenists attempted to force the Jewish people to worship Hellenist idols, but the Jews resisted as “Judaism emphasizes truth and moral purity, as commanded by G-d in the Holy Torah.” (chabad.org) Seems the anti-Israel, anti-Semitic, pro-Hamas crowd, “can’t handle the truth,” to borrow from Jack Nicholson’s Col. Nathan Jessep in A Few Good Men (1992).

Upon the death of Seleucus, his brother Antiochus IV began his reign (174 BCE) - a worse tyrant than his brother before him - responsible for the slaughter of thousands of Jews in the Holy Land. Antiochus IV inflicted numerous Antisemitic laws against the Jewish people, such as forbidding Jewish worship (confiscation of, and burning of Torahs), prohibition of Shabbat observance, circumcisions, and kashrut (observance of dietary laws), all under penalty of death.

This occupation and the Draconian laws imposed upon the Jewish people lead to a series of military battles. The Jewish people won the war for their sovereignty and religious freedoms. (This is something the people of Gaza can do as well for themselves - against Hamas - their de facto masters.) The victory by the Jewish people came under the leadership of Judah, son of Mattityahu, the old priest. Mattityahu instructed the people to “follow the counsel of… Shimon the Wise,” and “their leader should be Judah the Strong,” a.k.a. Judah the Maccabee. (chabad.org)

Judah and his fellow Maccabees returned to Jerusalem, freed their people, and restored their Holy Temple to the Jewish people - only after clearing it of idols, properly cleaning it, and built a new altar dedicated on 25 Kislev 139 BCE. When lighting the new menorah, there seemed to be only enough oil for one night, but “by a miracle of G-d, it continued to burn for eight days,” until new oil became available. (chabad.org)

This very  brief history of Chanukah includes the freeing of Judea - recovered by the Jewish people having been overrun by Syrian armies. The Jewish people celebrated their victory with gratitude to G-d, with Psalms and offerings in a period of thanksgiving.

This second Holy Temple stood for another 210 years (420 in total) until its destruction in 70 CE (Common Era) by the Roman invaders. Jews lived under foreign rule and occupation by Greeks, Persians, Romans, and Syrians.

There are two schools of thought regarding the lighting of the Chanukah menorah. One starts with eight candles and removes one each night until there is but one candle on the eighth night. The other school of thought, and the one followed by global Judaism, is to add a candle each night until there are eight on the eighth night, thus adding to the light, making it brighter, not depleting it, making it darker. There is one additional candle for each night, plus a “leader” candle - the shamash - designated to light all the others.

This year it has been suggested that Jewish people either not light their menorahs or keep them hidden so as not to be seen from the outside in light of the war and the exponential rise in rabid Antisemitism (up 388 percent since October 7 - as per the ADL) around the globe. When the menorah is lit, it should be either in a doorway or on a windowsill so as to BE visible. 

In 2023 that tradition will be upheld once again. We will not be deterred by ignorance. In fact, there have been postings on social media that non-Jews also put a menorah or candles in their doorway or on their windowsill to demonstrate their support of Israel and their Jewish friends and neighbors. Let’s shine a brighter light to rid the world of the oldest hatred - Antisemitism, and create yet another Chanukah miracle. Wishing all a happy, healthy, and meaningful Festival of Lights with plenty of latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot  (jelly doughnuts), while praying for the miracle of the return of the remaining 137 hostages held by Hamas.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He last visited Israel in 2019 with his wife.

For proper Blessings for Chanukah, menorah, and candles, please visit: https://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/article_cdo/aid/5746657/jewish/Menorah-Blessings.htm 

Schumer Must Whip Up the Minyan on Iran Deal

Schumer Must Whip Up the Minyan on Iran Deal

Commentary by Sanford D. Horn

August 20, 2015

Senator Charles “Chuck” Schumer (D-NY) wants to be Minority Leader in the next Congress. (Actually he really wants to be Majority Leader, but is at least smart enough to know that won’t happen.) Point being, Schumer, for all his desire to lead, passed on a golden opportunity to do just that – demonstrate his leadership chops on this disgraceful Iran deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

There have been numerous articles and columns written ad nauseum opposing Barack Obama’s capitulation to Iran while doing his best impression of the second coming of former British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain (1869-1940). These two feckless so-called leaders gave away their respective stores in an attempt to bring “peace to our time.” It failed miserably under Chamberlain, who did not live long enough to see his successor Winston Churchill (1874-1965) become a British hero, himself rising out of the political ashes like a Phoenix.

Obama, not learning from history, presented two options to both the American people and the world – his tepid, borderline traitorous deal with Iran or the inevitability of war, most probably a nuclear war at that. For once Iran procures the bomb its first strike will be toward Israel, the nation Iran perpetually promises to wipe from the map and globe, followed by attempts to destroy Western Civilization as a whole.

Obama, as GOP presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee (R-AR) has advised, should take Iran seriously. Huckabee came under a degree of criticism for not just calling the Iran deal “idiotic,” but that “Obama ultimately will take the Israelis and march them to the door of the oven,” a reference to the Holocaust without using that word. Huckabee said neither anything wrong or hyperbolic in the strength of his words, and in fact it was Iran, long a Holocaust denier, said having so many Jews in Israel makes it easier to wipe them off the face of the map, calling for a holocaust. Huckabee also opined that when Iran makes such incendiary proposals it is better to take them at their word. And while Obama chided Huckabee’s remarks as “ridiculous and sad,” Huckabee responded by saying, “what’s ridiculous and sad is that President Obama does not take the Iran threats seriously.”

Apparently neither does Secretary of State John Kerry. Iran’s repeated virulent calls for Israel’s destruction makes Kerry’s recent remarks even more myopic than one could have originally imagined. In an interview with Jeffery Goldberg of The Atlantic, Kerry said “this deal is as pro-Israel… as it gets.”

Kerry further demonstrated how obtuse he truly is when asked if he believes “Iranian leaders sincerely seek the elimination of the Jewish state?”

“I think they have a fundamental ideological confrontation with Israel at this particular moment. Whether or not that translates into active steps, quote, ‘wipe it,’ you know…

“Wipe it off the map,” Goldberg said, finishing Kerry’s moronic thought.

“I don’t know the answer to that,” Kerry continued, adding he saw nothing to indicate the destruction of Israel was a goal of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Kerry also said, “There isn’t a better deal to be gotten.” That statement alone is demonstrative of the utter submission to Iran and its future quest to achieve nuclear weaponry.

“The deal leaves Tehran on the cusp of a bomb while sanctions vanish,” wrote The Wall Street Journal in its July 15 editorial condemning this atrocious deal that will almost certainly lead to the destruction of Israel.

Certainly Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who can run mental circles around both Obama and Kerry with half his brain tied behind his back, understands the riskiness of this deal.

“The world is a much more dangerous place today than it way yesterday,” calling this deal a “stunning historic mistake,” and a “death sentence for Israel,” said Netanyahu in July. He also said it is a gamble that 10 years from now Iran will no longer be a state sponsor of terror seeking to destroy Israel and the United States.

Netanyahu observed and asked, that with all their oil, why do they need a nuclear power plant, as Iran claims it is seeking. Clearly Iran is undergoing a quest to build a nuclear bomb, or numerous bombs, as they continue pursuing nuclear bomb grade uranium. And with the relaxed sanctions and the return of $150 billion to Iran, their quest just became easier.

“Israel is not bound by this deal with Iran because Iran continues to seek our destruction,” said Netanyahu in July.

Because of the stress on Israel and its future, it becomes incumbent of the United States Congress to eviscerate this deal when it reaches their chambers in September. This is where Senator Schumer needs to step up and be the leader he was elected to be. To be the leader that will promote him to the Leader post he so desires, as well as be the statesman by leading his people to the right side of history.

There are 10 Jewish United States senators. From a religious standpoint, this is significant, as 10 people having surpassed the age of bar/bat mitzvah (13), comprise a minyan, the daily service required in the Jewish faith. Jews are required to pray thrice daily, and in a minyan, as certain prayers are required to be recited as a community.

Schumer has already announced his rejection of the Iran deal and plans to vote against it. Sadly, he also announced he would not “whip up” his fellow Democrats to follow suit. This is a huge mistake on Schumer’s part. He must remain true to his position that “to me, the very real risk that Iran will not moderate and will, instead, use the agreement to pursue its nefarious goals is too great…. Therefore I will vote to disapprove the agreement… because I believe Iran will not change… Better to keep U.S. sanctions in place, strengthen them, [and] enforce secondary sanctions on other nations,” wrote Schumer in an August 6 editorial in The Wall Street Journal.

How weak a deal did Obama cobble together? As previously mentioned, millions of dollars returned, which only strengthen Iran’s financial place in the world, when in reality, Iran should be shunned and isolated until brought to its knees. Leading from behind, as is an Obama trait, is akin to America on her knees before the Ayatollah. The United States couldn’t even extract the four hostages still held in Iran. This country is still rewarding bad behavior.

And now, the latest shocking news as reported by the Associated Press on Wednesday, August 19, “that Iran can conduct inspections on its own Parchin nuclear site under a top-secret agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) amounted to a new target for critics of the deal ahead of next month’s vote on the nuclear deal in Congress.”

Such an absurd allowance is worse than the proverbial fox guarding the henhouse.

This is why Schumer must whip up the minyan, and although the Jewish vote is not a monolithic vote (OK, not as much as it used to be) he must get the other nine Jewish senators on board. They must abandon their ultra-liberal roots in favor of common sense to preserve and protect both Israel as well as the United States. Make no mistake, if Iran can, it will strike the United States. It is up to all Americans, from all faiths to call these senators as well as the two from each of our home states.

Need more evidence this deal with Iran is wrong and dangerous? Israel and Saudi Arabia are on the same side opposing this treacherous pact, and the United Nations approves the deal. Iran’s long-standing desires to exenterate Israel must be stopped before the mushroom cloud of World War III forces World War IV to be fought with nothing more than sticks and stones.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

To reach the Senate operator who will connect you to your senator, call 202-224-3121.

Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) – 202-224-5852

Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) – 202-224-2823

Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) – 202-224-3553

Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) – 202-224-4524

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) – 202-224-3841

Senator Al Franken (D-MN) – 202-224-5641

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) – 202-224-5141

Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) – 202-224-3934

Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) – 202-224-6542

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) – 202-224-5244

Obama Jewish? My Tuchus He Is

Obama Jewish? My Tuchus He Is

Commentary by Sanford D. Horn

June 4, 2015

Recently Barack Obama opined to his former senior advisor David Axelrod, “You know, I think I am the closest thing to a Jew that has ever sat in this office. For people to say that I am anti-Israel, or even worse, anti-Semitic, it hurts.” (www.jpupdates.com)

Well, Mr. Obama, stop reading because there’s going to be a whole lot of hurt to follow, as if Obama is actually reading this.

On its prima facie, there can easily be a knee-jerk reaction to Obama’s visceral behavior toward Israel, its Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and by extension the Jewish people not just in the United States, but universally.

Yet even I understand that just because Obama may not have the warmest relationship with Netanyahu doesn’t make Obama anti-Israel. Is Obama anti-Israel because he disparaged Netanyahu in November 2011 over an open microphone in a conversation with then French President Nicolas Sarkozy? Is Obama anti-Israel because he refused to meet with Netanyahu during his September 2012 UN visit? Is Obama anti-Israel because he made no effort to determine which member of his administration called Netanyahu a “chickenshit” in October 2014? Is Obama anti-Israel because from January through March of this year he repeatedly criticized Netanyahu for coming to the United States and delivering a speech to the body Congress, by invitation from Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH)? (http://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2015/03/bibi-brings-down-house-and-senate.html) Is Obama anti-Israel for not meeting with Netanyahu following his Capitol Hill speech? Is Obama anti-Israel for trying to influence and interfere with Israel’s elections in March? Taken individually, probably not – just personal animus toward Netanyahu.

However, Obama’s demands for Israel to return to its pre-1967 War borders certainly was not in the best interest of the tiny Jewish state, roughly the size of New Jersey. Obama’s continual turning of a blind eye to Iran’s proliferation of materials for the construction and ultimate use of nuclear weaponry against Israel is demonstrative of someone who is anti-Israel. In the last year and a half, Iran has increased its nuclear stockpile by 20 percent, according to the New York Times. The Obama State Department says it is “perplexed” by this activity, conducted right under Obama’s nose. Russia is brashly building a nuclear power plant in Iran.

This is the same Iran who will not allow nuclear inspectors within its borders. The same Iran committed just as ever to the destruction of Israel. The same Iran whose government denies the Holocaust. Obama sits idly by fiddling a la Nero as Iran prepares to burn down the world, or at least the Middle East.

Yet, Obama appeared on 60 Minutes where he dismissed Israel’s concerns about Iran’s future as a nuclear power as merely “noise.” With a June 30 deadline looming overhead like the Sword of Damocles a bad deal with Iran is worse than no deal regarding its potential nuclear prowess to the detriment of Israel, what Iran calls the Little Satan, and eventually, the United States, what Iran calls the Big Satan. Even France has condemned the deal.

Obama’s actions are demonstrative of one who is anti-Israel, while his words merely pay lip service as he glad-hands and fist bumps his way through campaign stops and fundraisers collecting millions from liberal Jewish supporters who continue to fawn over Obama like obsequious weasels. Fortunately, Obama’s hold over the Jewish constituency was begun to wane, as more Jewish voters are coming to their senses and finding a home with the Republican Party. (Not enough yet, but it’s a work in progress.)

Is Obama an anti-Semite? Obama continues to literally bow down to the Muslim world. He made his first overseas visit upon taking office to Egypt. Obama said he would create daylight between himself and Israel. Obama refused to cease aid to the Palestinian Authority, even following a peace deal between the PA and Hamas. Obama has put Israel and terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah, and Islamic Jihad on an equal plane. Obama has made demands that Israel needs to consider a two-state solution, yet made no demands of concessions that should come from the terror groups. These terrorist organizations won’t even recognize Israel let alone accept its right to exist among the community of nations. Yet, there is Obama, sidling up to them as though they were legitimate states. What do those entities have to offer that Israel doesn’t in terms of economic or strategic partnerships? Nothing. Thus something must be drawing Obama and his minions toward terrorists while shunning the only democratic country and long term ally in the Middle East.

Obama has surrounded himself with anti-Semites, and to suggest that there is no guilt by association, one can define a person by the company with which he keeps – starting with Reverend Jeremiah Wright, himself a virulent anti-Semite. In his administration, Obama has UN Ambassador Samantha Powers, an outspoken supporter of a Palestinian state. Obama’s former Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is a rabid anti-Semite having said, among other things, “the State Department has become adjunct to the Israeli foreign minister’s office.”

Obama’s National Security Advisor Susan Rice sharply rebuked Israel for continuing to build settlements in the territory occupied in 1967, demonstrative of her lack of knowledge of history and of warfare – when one wins a war, one does not return territory. And Obama’s current Secretary of State, John Kerry, also demanded Israel make concessions to Palestinians or suffer global condemnation and possible financial repercussions.

To call himself, or simply suggest, that he is “the closest thing to a Jew that has ever sat in this office” is a disgrace and an affront to every self-respecting Jewish man, woman, and child the world over. The Jewish people, for one, are not “things.” Obama was completely insensitive by moving the White House observance of Chanukah in 2011 to suit his scheduling. Was Christmas observed on any day other than December 25^th? Was Obama’s precious Ramadan celebrated in a month other than that which the calendar states? (http://sanfordspeaksout.blogspot.com/2011/12/obamas-inconvenient-chanukah.html)

With “friends” like Obama, do Israel and the Jewish people need enemies?

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

Bibi Brings Down the House - and the Senate

Bibi Brings Down the House – and the Senate

Commentary by Sanford D. Horn

March 3, 2015

In a powerful and passionate speech before a joint meeting of Congress Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday clearly outlined why the Islamic Nation of Iran must never possess nuclear capabilities or weaponry at the risk of not just the future of Israel, but that of the United States and possibly civilization as a whole.

Netanyahu’s appearance before the joint meeting of Congress marked his third, tying him with the great British Prime  Minister Sir Winston Churchill, for the most by a foreign leader. Netanyahu was also presented with a bust of Churchill  by House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH).

Iran “plays a pretty good game of hide and cheat,” said Netanyahu, referring to the operation of secret nuclear facilities while keeping teams of international inspectors at arm’s length from discovering anything suspect.

Netanyahu bluntly and appropriately stated that the deal currently under consideration between the United States and Iran to scale down the degree to which the Islamic nation could create nuclear energy is a bad deal. Any deal allowing Iran nuclear capabilities at any time is dangerous and must be rejected. However, in spite of this notion of common sense, Barack Obama is so desperate for a legacy-saving deal on which to hang his hat, he does not have Israel’s best interests at heart; and quite frankly is not doing what is best for his own country either.

“This is a bad deal – a very bad deal. We’re better off without it. Now we’re being told that the only alternative to this bad deal is war. That’s just not true. The alternative to this bad deal is a much better deal,” Netanyahu said, noting that no deal is better than a bad deal.

Iran’s desires are very well known. Their quest for nuclear capability is for the purpose of destroying the Jewish people and their homeland. “Israel must be annihilated. Israel must be destroyed,” are being tweeted in English by Iran’s leader Ayatollah Khamenei, said Netanyahu. This current crop of educated and upwardly mobile terrorist belies the notion put forth by Obama that if they had more noble pursuits there would be less terror activity.

Netanyahu noted that Iran was once a great civilization that was hijacked in 1979 by “religious zealots” lead by Ayatollah Khomeini pushing to “export the revolution throughout the world,” whose founding document calls for “death, tyranny, and the pursuit of jihad,” while America’s founding document calls for “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

“If all the Jews gather in Israel it will save us the trouble of chasing them down around the world,” said Netanyahu, crediting that quote to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. Iran, of course, supports Hezbollah and is part of the continuing battle of Iran or ISIS “competing for the crown of militant Islam,” said the Prime Minister.

“Don’t be fooled. The battle between Iran and ISIS doesn’t turn Iran into a friend. In this deadly game of thrones, there is no place for America or for Israel; no peace for Christians, Jews, or Muslims who don’t share the Islamist medieval creed, no rights for women, no freedom for anyone. So when it comes to Iran and ISIS, the enemy of your enemy is your enemy,” stated Netanyahu so eloquently.

Radical Islamists are patient people – see also the first assault on the World Trade Center, February 26, 1993, followed eight years later by the horrific attacks that ultimately brought those buildings down on September 11, 2001. There is no reason to believe that Iran won’t temporarily change its behavior, let the clock run out on the ban in 10 years before attacking Israel and eventually the United States. During this time Iran could follow Hitler’s lead in illegally stockpiling munitions and rebuilding the army Germany was prohibited from having as per the punishment following WWI.

Such a deal “doesn’t block Iran’s path to the bomb; it paves Iran’s path to the bomb,” said Netanyahu. Iran with sanctions already controls four capitals – Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus, and Sanna. Without sanctions, they will only continue to “devour” more countries. Iran will not become a better nation; Iran will be a more aggressive sponsor of terror. “This deal will not be a farewell to arms, but a farewell to arms control,” continued Netanyahu.

Knowing the desires of Iran and ISIS, as have been on display for the entire world to see, it is not hyperbole coming from Netanyahu. He is speaking of the utter survival of the lone Jewish state on the planet and doing so with urgency – an urgency that does not appear to engulf the Obama administration. Obama, behaving like a petulant three year old, announced weeks ago he would not attend Netanyahu's address before the Congress. He did so because of a perceived slight as the invitation to Netanyahu came from Speaker of House Boehner and was not cleared through the White House. Seems that if Netanyahu was invited to speak before Congress, the invitation should have come from Boehner and Obama should not have been offended. Yet, the thin skinned Obama takes offense at most everything when it does not put him on the pedestal he thinks upon which he belongs.

Then Obama attempted to turn Netanyahu’s visit into a politically motivated trip as Israel is holding elections for which Netanyahu is up for reelection in two weeks. Obama and the Democratic critics of Netanyahu’s visit needed only consult a calendar of events. The fact of the matter is, Netanyahu’s visit coincided with his speech before AIPAC just the day before, also in Washington, DC. AIPAC (The American Israel Public Affairs Committee) is the largest pro-Israel lobby organization in the United States, is dedicated to the security of both nations, and is non-partisan.

There was no slight, to which Netanyahu attested during both his AIPAC and Capitol Hill speeches. In fact, Netanyahu praised Obama for his support of Israel on several occasions during both presentations. Yet not only did Obama shun the Congressional speech, as did Vice President Joe Biden, Obama sent nary a single representative from his administration to The Hill, and that includes the American ambassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro. Such an embarrassment.

Further, it was the Senate Democrats who offered to meet privately with Netanyahu after his speech that turned his visit into a political venture. Netanyahu did the smart thing and rejected the invitation. If the Democrats wanted to hear from him, they could walk over to the House Chamber. Additionally, those Democratic lawmakers who boycotted Netanyahu’s appearance on Capitol Hill then took to microphones following the speech to deride it and disrespect Netanyahu. Their collective attitude was visceral.

At least eight Democrats chided Netanyahu for his timing, suggesting he would be more than welcome to speak after Israel’s election. Again, for those without a calendar of events, the Capitol Hill speech coincided with speech presented to AIPAC the day before. No more should be made of the timing.

Rep. David Price (D-NC) said this was a “one party invitation.” John Boehner is Speaker of the whole House, not just the GOP side.

Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY) accused Netanyahu of being “arrogant, hostile, disrespectful,” and of fear mongering, adding, “He can go home!” If anyone was disrespectful, it was Yarmuth comparing Netanyahu’s desire to extract a better deal to a child wanting nothing more than to go to Disney, eat junk food, and drink soda every day. If anyone was disrespectful, it was Yarmuth and his Democrat cohorts who opted to boycott the leader of a foreign nation, and an ally at that, in an effort to curry favor with Obama.

As for arrogant and hostile, from one who listened to the entire speech – twice – Netanyahu was neither. He did not make demands, he was complimentary to Obama – even when it was less than necessary, he was personable, and presented his speech in an even-keeled tenor.

“Indeed it was political theater worthy of an Oscar®,” said Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN). “The president has Israel’s best interests at heart… negotiations are the only way to go – sanctions will not work,” Cohen added.

Cohen couldn’t be more wrong and needs to be reminded of how Obama demanded Israel’s borders revert to their pre-1967 War state, which would have endangered them with an eight mile width at its most narrow. Obama’s sense of history is clouded at best. As for negotiations, how does one negotiate with an entity calling for the destruction, the eradication, the elimination, the evisceration of their enemies? There is no gray area there.

Sanctions must be employed to the most stringent extreme possible – economic, materials, freezing accounts, denying student visas, whatever it takes to send the message. If necessary, Israel must do to Iran what it did to Iraq in the 1980s.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did himself and the people of Israel proud on this day speaking before a packed House chamber. He reminded the global audience that before any restrictions against Iran are removed, “the world should demand that Iran do three things.”

“First, stop its aggression against its neighbors in the Middle East.” Notice the plural of neighbor; Netanyahu is looking out for all of the Middle East.

“Second, stop supporting terrorism around the world.” Again, the concern for the global community.

“And third, stop threatening to annihilate my country, Israel, the one and only Jewish state.”

“…I can guarantee you this – the days when the Jewish people remained passive in the face of genocidal enemies… are over,” said Netanyahu to one of more than 40 rounds of applause.

“For the first time in 100 generations, we, the Jewish people, can defend ourselves.”

“…as a prime minister of Israel, I can promise you one more thing: even if Israel has to stand alone, Israel will stand. But I know Israel does not stand alone. I know that America stands with Israel. I know that you stand with Israel. You stand with Israel because you know that the story of Israel is not only the story of the Jewish people but of the human spirit that refuses again and again to succumb to history’s horrors,” said Netanyahu, to a roar of approval. Those in attendance were witness to a dynamic speech and fervent display of true leadership – a lesson Obama could learn.

Never again is the perpetual battle cry that there never again is another Holocaust – that includes Iran – no matter what.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.