IDF Strikes Beirut Target Planning Hamas Attack On Israelis
The IDF’s Spokesperson’s Unit announced Monday night (3/31) that the Israeli Air Force conducted a strike in Beirut’s Dahieh district against a Hezbollah operative who had been directing Hamas operatives recently. According to the military statement, the targeted individual was helping Hamas plan an imminent severe attack against Israeli civilians.
Lebanese media outlets reported significant damage to the targeted building with the upper floors destroyed in the strike. Rescue teams immediately began searching through the rubble for casualties. Preliminary reports indicate at least three bodies have been recovered with several persons injured.
The Al-Mayadeen channel, which has connections to Hezbollah, confirmed that a Hezbollah operative was eliminated in the strike while emphasizing that the individual was not a senior official within the organization.
This strike follows a statement made Sunday (3/30) by a Lebanese security source who claimed that the rockets fired toward Israel on Saturday (3/29) were launched by a “professional element,” likely of Palestinian origin. The source added that an ongoing investigation has already resulted in the arrest of four suspects – two Palestinians and two Lebanese citizens.
IDF Issues Large-Scale Evacuation Order In Rafah As Military Pressure Intensifies
The IDF issued an unusually large-scale evacuation order in Gaza on Monday (3/31), calling on all residents of Rafah and several nearby towns to leave the area. In an Arabic-language statement, IDF Arabic-language spokesman Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee warned that the military is “resuming intense combat to dismantle terrorist capabilities in these areas”
Evacuees were directed to relocate to the coastal area of Al-Mawasi, but for now, no large-scale ground operation is planned in Rafah and its surroundings. It is the largest evacuation order since fighting resumed in Gaza.
Following stalled negotiations over hostage releases in recent days, the Security Cabinet decided Saturday night (3/29) to increase military pressure on Hamas to force it to accept Israel’s counterproposal . Hamas has offered to release five hostages in exchange for a 50-day ceasefire, while Israel is demanding the release of 11 living hostages and half of the deceased captives.
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer claimed that Israel’s military pressure is working and that Hamas is “starting to blink,” A senior Israeli official added: “There’s no doubt the military pressure and logistical shortages are influencing negotiations. There’s progress and that led to an exchange of proposals. We’ve submitted a counteroffer and are awaiting Hamas’ response.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also asserted that the strategy is effective. “It’s working because it’s hitting Hamas militarily and politically while creating conditions for the release of our hostages. The Cabinet decided to increase the pressure — already at high levels — to further weaken Hamas and improve conditions for their release.” Netanyahu said.
The IDF has repeatedly expanded operations in Rafah in recent days, targeting various neighborhoods. Until now the military had refrained from ordering a full evacuation of the enclave’s southernmost city despite ongoing combat in Gaza. Since the ceasefire ended, the IDF has taken control of half of the Netzarim Corridor and resumed operations in northern Gaza, including in Beit Lahia.
Netanyahu Backtracks : Sharvit Will Not Be Appointed As Shin Bet Chief
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Tuesday (1st) that “after further thought” he has decided to withdraw the appointment of Vice Admiral (Res.) Eli Sharvit as director of the Israel Security Agency (ISA-Shin Bet).
“Prime Minister Netanyahu met for a second time last night with VADM Sharvit regarding his appointment as the director of the ISA,” the Prime Minister’s Office wrote in a statement.
The office added: “The Prime Minister thanked VADM Sharvit for his willingness to be called on, but notified him that after further thought, he intends to consider other candidates.”
Netanyahu’s announcement on Monday (3/31) that he intended to appoint Sharvit as ISA Director was met with strong opposition from many in his own camp.
Sharvit who completed his role as Navy Commander in 2021, has expressed his personal opinions on volatile issues after his discharge and even participated in the Kaplan protests against the judicial reform
The opposition reached its peak when US Senator Lindsey Graham (R.-SC), a close ally of the prime minister, called on Netanyahu not to appoint Sharvit, who, several months earlier, penned an opinion column attacking President Donald Trump and his environmental policies.
Visiting Greek PM Stresses ‘Critically Important’ Defense Cooperation With Israel
Visiting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday (3/30) that the nations share “many security challenges,” and that their defense cooperation is of great importance.
Speaking before their meeting in Jerusalem Sunday evening (3/31), Netanyahu said the two would discuss “security challenges, economic opportunities, and the ways we can create the chances for a lasting peace in our region.”
“We are two ancient peoples,” Netanyahu said. “Our free civilization started in Athens and Jerusalem. We have common values, and we share common interests today, and also common challenges.”
“From one democracy in the eastern Mediterranean to another democracy in the eastern Mediterranean, welcome friend,” the Israeli leader added.
Athens is in talks with Israel to buy advanced artillery systems and to purchase an Iron Dome-like missile defense system.
Greece is keen to invest in its defenses to keep up with its NATO ally and historic rival Turkey, which is also developing its own air defenses, despite some improvement in relations.
Earlier Sunday (3/30), Mitsotakis also met with President Isaac Herzog, who told him that Israel’s renewed military campaign in Gaza is intended to secure the return of remaining Israeli hostages.
“We are now pursuing military operations in order to get back our hostages,” Herzog told the Greek leader during a meeting at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem, adding that Israel is receiving “very disturbing reports
about the medical situation” of hostages and that their swift return is “the highest priority of our nation.”
“It has to be clear in the family of nations that this is something that is totally unacceptable,” the president said regarding the 59 hostages still held by the Hamas terror group in Gaza.
The president addressed the need to confront rampant terror activity in Israel and the region, highlighting an attack in Jaffa last October in which 16 people were injured and seven people were killed, including Greek citizen Jonas Chrosis.
Hamas later claimed responsibility for the murders, saying the gunmen were members of the terrorist organization.
The prime minister expressed his condolences to the parents of Jonas Chrosis, whom he said he met with in Athens and announced a soon-to-be-opened “scholarship program honoring Jonas,” who was studying abroad at Tel Aviv University before his murder.
Signing the president’s guest book, the Greek Premier wrote a note expressing his desire “to underline the strategic partnership and strong ties of friendship between our people, in good times and bad.”
Israel To Start Construction Of $1.4 Billion Security Fence Along The Jordan Border
Israel will start building the long-discussed security fence along its border with Jordan. The project, expected to last three years, will cost $1.4 billion.
Calls to build a secure border fence were a reaction to the increase in drug and gun smuggling over the border, which is blamed for the sharp rise in violent incidents within the Arab community and acts of terrorism against Israelis.
The border stretching from Hamat Gader at the southern edge of the Golan Heights to Ramon International Airport north of Eilat, includes an 18-mile section upgraded similarly to Israel’s border barriers with Egypt and the Gaza Strip during 2010.
Israel will try to construct the fence as close as possible to the Jordanian border; the currently standing fence leaves a 170-square-kilometer gap.
The new fence is expected to be stronger and more sophisticated than the current chain-link fence, which has sensors in some places and only barbed wire in others.
In November, Defense Minister Israel Katz, while still occupying the position of foreign minister, stressed the need to increase security at the Jordanian border and said that Iran was taking advantage of the weak fence to smuggle weapons and other items to terrorists.
“We see a relentless and institutionalized Iranian effort to establish an eastern front against the State of Israel. I have decided to intensively promote the construction of the fence on the eastern border between Israel and Jordan. We are going to do it very quickly,” Katz said.
He accused Tehran of working to create an “eastern terror front against Israel.”
On October 7 Hamas’ attack heightened these concerns, although it remains unclear whether the IDF will increase a troop presence along the new barrier or primarily depend on technology.
Israel Outperforms Germany, Spain In Global Ranking Of ‘Safe Countries’
Andorra, the small principality nestled between Spain and France in southwestern Europe, has been declared the safest country in the world, according to the Numbeo Safety Index. Joining Andorra in the top five are the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Taiwan, and Oman.
To create the “Safety Index by Country for 2025,” Numbeo researchers ranked countries based on overall crime levels. These rankings were derived from surveys conducted among website visitors. Survey participants shared their feelings of safety while walking during daylight and nighttime hours. They also expressed concerns about robbery, theft, car break-ins, physical assault by strangers, harassment in public spaces, and discrimination based on skin color, ethnicity, gender or religion.
Additionally, researchers examined the prevalence of property crimes like burglary, theft and vandalism, as well as violent crimes such as assault and murder. Each country was assigned a score on a scale from 1 (most dangerous) to 100 (safest).
It’s important to note that Numbeo’s index is based on user-reported data perceptions, which may differ from official government statistics,” researchers explained. “The index serves as a comparative tool to evaluate safety levels between different cities or countries, enabling individuals to make informed decisions and understand the crime landscape in specific areas.”
Israel ranked 34th, outperforming several notable countries like Portugal, Norway, Cyprus, Spain and Germany. The United States received a relatively low score, landing at 89th, just two spots behind the United Kingdom in 87th.
Iran, Israel’s primary adversary, ranked 93rd. Greece, a favorite travel destination for Israelis, ranked 77th. Egypt, Israel’s southern neighbor, ranked 81st, while Jordan, its eastern neighbor, ranked 53rd. Syria and Lebanon, Israel’s northern neighbors, were ranked 140th and 78th respectively.
Earlier this month, the United Nations released its World Happiness Report. In this ranking, Israel placed 8th, ahead of Luxembourg, and Mexico, which rounded out the top ten. The first seven countries in the happiness index were Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Costa Rica and Norway.
The Forgotten Massacre Of 3000 Jews – Mendi Safadi
676 years ago, on the first day of Nisan (March 21, 1349), one of the greatest tragedies in Jewish history occurred – the Erfurt Massacre. Approximately 3,000 members of the Jewish community in the German city were murdered in riots that erupted during Sabbath prayers, part of the 1349 persecutions that swept across Europe during the Black Death.
The Black Death – the plague epidemic that ravaged Europe in the 14th century – claimed the lives of tens of millions, but that wasn’t the end of it. In the midst of the chaos, blood libels spread, accusing Jews of poisoning wells and causing the epidemic. The result was a wave of brutal riots in many cities, including Erfurt, which sealed the fate of entire Jewish communities.
The Jewish community in Erfurt, which was a vibrant center of Torah learning, also lost one of its spiritual leaders that day – Rabbi Alexander Suslin HaCohen, author of “Sefer HaAgudah.” Jews who fled the city commemorated the tragedy in lamentations, and one of them, Rabbi Israel of Erfurt, wrote “Zion Aryeh Bedhi,” a heartbreaking lament about what had occurred.
Beyond the bloodshed, a cultural erasure campaign took place: valuable Hebrew manuscripts were defaced and looted. Some were preserved in various libraries throughout Germany and later became part of what is now called the “Erfurt Collection.”
The Erfurt Massacre was not an isolated event. It was part of a horrific chain of killing sprees, during which tens of thousands of Jews were murdered across Europe in a period of less than two years. The exact numbers are unknown, but estimates range from 50,000 to 100,000 Jews who were murdered or perished in riots, escapes and mass suicides.
The most severe riots occurred in major cities in Germany, Switzerland, France and Spain. Jewish communities in many cities were almost completely destroyed, and many Jews were forced to convert or flee to eastern Europe, especially Poland and Lithuania, where they received more tolerant treatment during the period.
If we thought the Middle Ages were behind us, history reminds us again and again: we are the only ones to stand up for our fate. We are the only ones responsible for ensuring “Never Again.”
