Jerusalem City Walls, Chords Bridge, Other Structures Illuminated In Memory Of The Fallen
The walls of the Old City, the Chords Bridge, and other buildings throughout Jerusalem were illuminated on Tuesday evening (29th) in honor of the eve of Israel’s Memorial Day for Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terror.
The Jerusalem Municipality projected the names of the fallen and memorial candles on the Old City walls. On the Chords Bridge, the Israeli flag was displayed alongside the word “Yizkor.”
Many other buildings across the capital were lit up in blue and white.
Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion said, “On this evening, as Jerusalem is bathed in the light of remembrance, we all stand together with the bereaved families, Jerusalem pauses, bows its head, and embraces with love all those who have lost their most precious loved ones. Every stone in this city carries a story of heroism, sacrifice, and resilience. We pledge to remember, to never forget anyone, and to carry in our hearts the legacy of the fallen – to live here together, to build, to believe, and to protect the home that is so dear to us.”
“On behalf of all Jerusalem residents, I send a warm embrace to the bereaved families and promise – you will never be alone. The entire city is with you, remembering, grieving, honoring, May the memory of the fallen be blessed forever.”
We Honor The Fallen With Unshakeable Determination – Editorial
This week as sirens pierce the air, bringing an entire nation to a standstill, Israel stands united in grief on Remembrance Day – as we remember fallen soldiers and victims of terror. These sirens remind us with devastating clarity why Israel must remain resolute and strong in a region that has rarely allowed peace.
Critics fail to comprehend that Israel carries the sacred obligation to safeguard its people. International law does not demand suicidal generosity toward those who have written israel’s destruction into their founding charter. The same nations that condemn Israel would never allow aid to flow unchecked into territories controlled by forces planning their citizens’ massacre.
Israelis remember the unbearable price paid – generation after generation – simply to have a state at all. Each name read aloud at memorial ceremonies tells the story of why Israel cannot bow to international pressure when it comes to the security of its people. Israelis stand at gravesides and reaffirm a painful truth learned through centuries of persecution: without strength, there is no Israel.
This Remembrance Day, Israelis honor their fallen not just with tears but with unshakeable determination. They will continue to fight – with courage, with morality, and with unwavering strength – for their right to live freely in the only place they have ever truly called home.
PM To Bereaved Families: ‘In The Name Of The Fallen, We Pursue The Mission Of Victory’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed Israel’s bereaved families Tuesday evening (29th) at the start of Yom Hazikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day for fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism.
“My brothers and sisters, dear families of the fallen, as Memorial Day approaches – my heart and thoughts are with you in unwavering gratitude. I know the depth of your grief – the agony of loss, sorrow, longing. Countless tears of pain over the severing of the bond between loved ones,” Netanyahu said.
He added, “As Memorial Day approaches, I also remember what the fallen left us. They all aspired to make this world a better place. Our sons and daughters did not stand idly by. They stood by the flag – imbued with a mission, imbued with fortitude. They fought bloodthirsty enemies. They sacrificed their lives for all of us – so that we would be free in our land, protected in our state, rooted in our homeland. The lives of our heroes were short – but they were full of action and meaning.”
Dear families, the echoes of the battle have not yet died down. The war on seven fronts is in full swing. In the name of and for the sake of the fallen, we will continue to adhere to the mission of victory – including the return of all our hostages. The life force of our people will prevail over the accursed murderers who attacked us with such horrific cruelty. We will continue to ensure, with God’s help, the eternal life of Israel,” Netanyahu said.
He continued: “A Jerusalemite girl Talia Goldberg, lost her father, the officer and rabbi, Avi Goldberg, may his memory be for a blessing, who fell in battle in southern Lebanon.”
“In a heart-wrenching eulogy, while she was simultaneously enveloped in pain and strength, Talia taught us a lesson in gratitude. ‘But there is more presence than absence,’ she said. We have a country, we have a resurrection, we have each other. Because ‘there is more presence than absence’ and the ‘there is’ will prevail,” Netanyahu said.
New Memorial Wall Unveiled Honoring 466 Fallen Kibbutz Members
A new wall bearing the names of 466 fallen Kibbutz members was unveiled this week at the memorial to Fallen Kibbutzz Members in Mishmar HaEmek.
The site, located in the Megiddo Regional Council, has long served as a national tribute to kibbutz members who died in Israel’s wars and acts of terror. Until now, it featured four stone walls engraved with the names of 3,067 individuals. The addition of a fifth wall marks one of the most significant updates to the memorial since its establishment.
The new wall includes the names of 391 kibbutz members who were killed during the Oct.7 attacks, as well as 75 who have fallen since in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
The construction and funding of the new section were made possible through the Kibbutz Movement Rehabilitation Fund, which has been active in supporting bereaved families and rebuilding efforts since the attacks.
Although the wall was unveiled ahead of Israel’s national Remembrance Day, it will be formally inaugurated during the Kibbutz Movement’s own memorial ceremony next month.
Alongside the new wall, a monument was also introduced to mark the fact that, on the eve of Oct. 7, kibbutzim from the historic “11 Points” were celebrating the anniversary of the kibbutz movement’s founding.
“As many communities continue to grieve their losses and kibbutzim work to rebuild their homes, it is crucial to pause and honor their memory,” Neri Shotan, CEO of the Kibbutz Movement Rehabilitation Fund, said in a statement. “The work of rehabilitation continues amid great uncertainty, and we stand with them in remembrance and solidarity.”
Israel’s Population Tops 10 Million For 1st Time On Eve Of 77th Independence Day
In an annual report ahead of Independence Day, the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) said Tuesday (29th) that Israel’s population stood at almost 10.1 million people, marking a twelvefold increase since the country was founded in 1948.
The figure, which represents an increase of some 135,000, or 14% over the previous year, includes roughly 7.7 million people, or 77.6%, who are registered as Jewish or “other” – a category that was previously counted separately. This category includes non-Arab Christians and people with no ethnicity listed, most of whom are entitled to live in Israel because of a Jewish grandparent or Israeli spouse, the CBS said.
Some 2.1 million people living in Israel, or 20.9%, are Muslim, Chrisitan or Druze Arabs. Another 250,000 people, or about 2.5%, belong to neither category, and include international students, foreign workers and undocumented immigrants, the agency reported.
Over the past year, according to the report, some 174,000 babies were born in Israel, 28,000 people immigrated to the country and 50,000 Israelis died. Israel has a relatively young population, 27% of which is under the age of 18 compared with 13% aged at least 65, the CBS said.
Israel’s population grew rapidly in comparison with the world population, which grew by some 0.9% to just over 8 billion in 2023, the last year for which the World Bank has made data available. However, Israel’s population growth this year was slightly lower than it was last year, when the CBS reported that Israel’s population had grown about 1.9% to 9.9 million.
Part of the decline could be attributed to the 24% decrease in immigration to Israel over the past year, as recorded in a pre-Independence Day report by the Aliyah and Integration Ministry on Monday (28th).
Meanwhile, some 56,000 Israeli citizens were living abroad, the CBS said. The agency said the figure had decreased but did not say by how much.
In its report Tuesday (29th), the CBS said about 3.5 million people have immigrated to Israel since 1948, 47.6% of whom came starting in 1990, after Soviet Jews were allowed to emigrate en masse. As of the end of 2023, about 45% of world Jewry lived in Israel, and 80% of Jewish Israelis had been born in the country, according to CBS.
Netanyahu: “Without Our Help, Assad’s Regime Wouldn’t have Fallen” – Itamar Eichner
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed Sunday (27th) that Israel moved up its pager operation against Hezbollah by several weeks after intelligence indicated that three pagers sent from Lebanon were being scanned in Iran. “We launched the campaign in Lebanon three weeks earlier than planned,” he told the Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) conference in Jerusalem on Sunday (27th). “Within six to seven hours, we destroyed most of the weapons Nasrallah had stockpiled over 30 years.”
Netanyahu also disclosed that Israeli F-16 fighter jets were deployed to intercept Iranian aircraft en route to Damascus to prevent the collapse of Bashar Assad’s regime. “Without our help, Assad’s regime wouldn’t have fallen,” he said, adding that Israel destroyed 90% of the Iranian weaponry transferred to Syria to ensure Assad’s survival.
Turning to Iran’s nuclear program, Netanyahu noted that Israeli operations had delayed Iran’s progress toward a nuclear bomb by about a decade. He warned that Iran had made significant advances in uranium enrichment and weaponization. “It’s not enough to prevent enrichment – they must lose the capability altogether,” he said, stressing the need to destroy centrifuges and remove enriched uranium from Iranian territory.
He rejected the idea of establishing a Palestinian state, saying, “We tried that already” in Gaza. “Hamas won’t be there. But we’re not putting the PA there either,” he said. “Why replace one regime sworn to destroy us with another regime sworn to destroy us?” He added that Israel would continue to maintain military control over Gaza after the fighting ends.
Report: Lebanese Army Raids Hundreds Of Hezbollah Sites
Sources reported that the Hezbollah terrorist organization prevented the Lebanese Army from searching sites attacked by Israel in Dahiyeh on Sunday (27th). The strikes occurred in areas south of the Litani River, north of the river, and in Dahiyeh, a suburb of Beirut.
After the terrorist organization blocked them: Sources in the Lebanese government briefed Saudi media on Tuesday (29th) regarding the Lebanese army’s operations against Hezbollah infrastructure. According to the sources, the army raided more than 500 Hezbollah precision weapons sites located south of the Litani River, north of the river and in Dahiyeh.
It was also reported that the head of the committee overseeing the ceasefire agreement, Maj. Gen Jasper Jeffers, will visit Beirut on Wednesday (30th) to meet with senior Lebanese officials and discuss the implementation of the parties’ commitments.
This briefing follows reports on Monday (28th) from sources close to Hezbollah, in the Al Hadath media outlet stating that the organization had prevented the Lebanese army from searching sites attacked by Israel in Dahiyeh on Sunday (27th). According to the sources, Hezbollah rejected the army’s request, claiming the sites were located north of the Litani River and therefore were not included under the obligations of the ceasefire agreement.
Meanwhile, political sources in Lebanon told the newspaper Ad-Divar that Israel’s strikes were also intended as a message to Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, indicating Israel’s opposition to his approach regarding Hezbollah’s weapons. According to these sources, Israel seeks to “maintain its freedom of action in Lebanon.”
