Houthi Missiles Send Over A Million Israelis To Bomb Shelters
Sirens sounded Wednesday morning (14th) across central Israel, Jerusalem and the Dead Sea region following a ballistic missile launch from Yemen.
The missile was intercepted outside Israeli territory by Israel’s Arrow system and the American THAAD system.
No casualties were reported aside from a woman who fell on her way to a shelter.
Rocket alert sirens also sounded Tuesday evening (13th) across dozens of cities and towns in central Israel, the Sharon region, the Shefela, and the Jerusalem area following a ballistic missile launch from Yemen by the Iranian-backed Houthis. According to the Israel Defense Forces, one missile was successfully intercepted by the Arrow missile defense system. “Alerts were activated according to protocol.” the military stated.
Sirens were heard in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Rishon Lezion, Bnei Brak, Herzliya, Holon, Bat Yam, Ramat Gan, Nes Ziona, Rehovot, Modi’im, Beit Shemesh, Kfar Saba and Hod Hasharon,among other locations. In response to the attack, Ben Gurion Airport temporarily halted all departures and arrivals.
Israel’s national emergency service, Magen David Adom, reported no casualties, aside from several individuals treated for minor injuries while seeking shelter..
The alarm caught German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on his way from the King David Hotel in Jerusalem to the President’s Residence for the gala dinner marking the 60th anniversary of the establishment of relations between the two countries. Security guards returned the president to the hotel and there to a secure room. At the time of the siren, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee was also there and he was taken to a secure room as well. After the alarm, the German president left for the President’s Residence.
The missile launch comes amid a broader escalation of Houthi attacks on Israel in recent days, despite a ceasefire agreement between the Houthis and the United States. On Monday, (12th) a ballistic missile launched from Yemen failed to reach Israeli territory and did not trigger alerts. Over the weekend,millions of Israelis were instructed to enter bomb shelters as sirens sounded in response to similar launches.
An Israeli security official emphasized over the weekend that “we will continue to strike the Houthis. We are under no obligation–whatever agreement exists between the Houthis and the Americans does not bind us. They will pay the price.” Israeli sources added that while the US has paused its strikes on Houthi targets, Israel intends to intensify its own campaign in Yemen.
Israel’s objectives, the source said, include targeting as many launchers as possible and expanding attacks on critical infrastructure and ports still under Houthi control, aiming for their total destruction.
Officials also indicated that Israel is considering striking Iranian targets, stating, “Iran will not walk away unscathed. It’s clear the Houthis will continue their attacks, so we are preparing to escalate our response.”
Over the past two months, the Houthis have launched 31 missiles at Israel, with approximately 11 failing and landing in Saudi territory.
Rockets Fired From Gaza After Assassination Attempt On Sinwar
Hours after the attempted assassination of Mohammed Sinwar in an airstrike in Khan Younis, rocket sirens sounded Tuesday evening (13th) in several communities near the Gaza border, including Ashkelon, Sderot, Nir Am, and others. Islamic Jihad later claimed responsibility for the attack.
According to the IDF Spokesperson: “The Air Force intercepted two rockets launched from the Gaza Strip. A third projectile landed in an open area. No injuries were reported.
The rocket fire from Gaza followed the targeted strike on Sinwar, in which the IDF and Shin Bet security agency attacked Hamas operatives inside a command-and-control facility located beneath the European Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. Defense officials described “cautious optimism” regarding the operation’s outcome.
The decision to target Mohammed Sinwar was made shortly before the strike. Air Force jets were scrambled under tight timing constraints. Security officials noted that it could take several days to confirm the results of the operation. The strike was authorized by IDF Chief of Staff LG Eyal Zamir, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
‘Aid Will No Longer Reach Hamas,’ Danny Danon Says During UNSC Debate
Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said the current United Nations humanitarian aid system enables Hamas to benefit from international assistance and must be stopped.
“Aid will no longer reach Hamas,”Danon said during a UN Security Council (UNSC) debate on the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, Ynet reported Wednesday (14th).
Before the debate took place, Danon posted on X that the UNSC would convene for a special session to discuss the humanitarian needs in Gaza.
“In my speech, I will emphasize that the UN, led by the secretary general, insists on preserving old distribution mechanisms that help channel aid to Hamas. Israel will not allow this. Hamas will not benefit from humanitarian aid,” he posted.
Speaking at the debate, Danon directly criticized UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
“Instead of admitting that the system has failed, the UN insists on preserving Hamas’ supply pipeline. This is not neutrality — but support for terrorism,” he said as quoted by Ynet.
Danon added: “Israel will not cooperate with a mechanism that strengthens those who kidnapped, murdered, raped and tortured our citizens.”
In March, former hostage Eli Sharabi shared his testimony at an UNSC session focused on the hostages still held in Hamas captivity.
With regard to the humanitarian aid delivered to the Gaza Strip, Sharabi said that as an “eye witness” he saw what happened to that aid, The Jerusalem Post previously reported.
The “dozens of boxes paid by your government,” he said, were stolen by Hamas and fed to the “terrorists who tortured me and murdered my family.”
The “terrorists would eat many meals a day from the UN in front of us, while the hostages never got any of it.”
Israeli Forces Join African Lion Drill In Morocco Amid Gaza Conflict
Amid ongoing combat operations in the Gaza Strip, an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) delegation has traveled to Morocco to take part in an international military exercise, according to a report by Kan News.
The exercise known as “African Lion,” is the largest of its kind on the African continent and is jointly led by the US and the Moroccan Armed Forces. It includes military units from 20 countries, among them several Arab states.
This marks the third time Israeli forces have joined the African Lion exercise in Morocco. Notably during last year’s iteration of the drill, which also coincided with heightened military activity in Gaza, the IDF’s involvement was kept from the public eye amid concerns over the potential impact on diplomatic and security ties between Jerusalem and Rabat.
Israel and Morocco formalized diplomatic relations in 2020 as part of the Abraham Accords, a US-brokered agreement that also saw normalization between Israel and several other Arab nations.
How Hamas Exploits Psychology To Harm Israel From Within And Abroad – Dr. Irwin J. Mansdorf
People are wired to respond to immediate rewards even if those carry long-term consequences. If the reward feels good enough and the threat seems distant enough, we take the risk. This is a weapon that Hamas has used masterfully in its psychological war against Israel and the West over the past 18 months.
Hamas has turned hostage diplomacy into a psychological trap. The emotional appeal of bringing hostages home – a deeply human desire has become the bait. The cost? A stronger, bolder, more dangerous Hamas, just as ideologically committed to Israel’s destruction as ever.
Public discourse is dominated by the plight of the hostages. Families appear on TV daily. Emotional appeals grip the nation and Hamas knows this. That’s why, every few weeks, another hostage video surfaces, precisely timed to stoke hope, pain, and division.
All the while, Hamas plays the victim: children under rubble, hospitals without power, shelters destroyed. The images are tragic – but they also serve a purpose, suggesting that the responsibility lies not with Hamas but with Israel. Headlines rarely acknowledge Hamas’ role in initiating the conflict or continuing to hold innocent Israelis captive. The moral burden shifts to Israel, while the terrorists evade accountability.
The moral imperative to rescue living hostages is real – but so is the government’s duty to protect its citizens from future atrocities. We must recognize that Hamas is playing us. It continues to manipulate public opinion, both in Israel and in the West.
In the West, those who value freedom, justice, and moral clarity must understand that the same tactics Hamas uses against Israel can – and will – be used against them too. Psychological warfare is still warfare. If we want to win, we must start by understanding the battlefield we’re actually on.
The writer is a clinical psychologist and a fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs specializing in political psychology..
Remembering Jewish Heroes From World War II – Ran Puni
May 9, 80 years ago, was Victory Day over Nazi Germany. Dr. Tamar Katko serves as curator of the Jewish Fighter In World War II Museum in Latrun, which she helped found. One and a half million Jews fought in World War ll. She tells some of their stories.
Cpl. Sam Schwartz immigrated with his family from Hungary to the U.S. in 1939. When World War II broke out, friends from the neighborhood suggested he enlist with them. He served as a paratrooper and commander who carried out operations in enemy territory. He participated in battles in North Africa, the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes, and in Germany. With his unit comrades, he rescued several Holocaust survivors at Dachau camp and brought them to the U.S for treatment after the war. For his actions, he received dozens of medals for bravery, and he is buried with his wife in Jerusalem.
Polina Gelman was accepted to a flight and navigation course and recruited to the women’s regiment in the Soviet Red Army Air Force, In 1942, she began missions bombing German targets. She bombed force concentrations, fuel depots, anti-aircraft batteries, searchlights, bridges, vehicles and caused significant damage to the Germans. She completed 857 missions, logged 1,300 flight hours, and dropped 113 tons of bombs, earning her the Hero of the Soviet Union Award.
At the outbreak of World War ll, Lt.-Col. Mordechai Frizis commanded a Greek battalion against the Italian attack in northern Greece, on the Albanian front. On Dec. 4, 1940, in the Kalama sector, he managed to break the Italian attack and force the Italian troops to retreat, leaving behind hundreds of dead and about 700 prisoners. Some saw this as the first victory for the Allies in World War ll. The next day, his unit was attacked by Italian aircraft and he was killed. He became one of Greece’s national heroes, with his statue erected in the main square of his hometown. 25 streets in cities across Greece bear his name.
The first 12 generals in the IDF were from the Jewish Brigade of the British Army. Three IDF Chiefs of Staff came from the British Army, along with two presidents – Ezer Weizman and Chaim Herzog. Most of the commanders who shaped the IDF were World War ll veterans.
In World War II, 1,700 Jewish soldiers from mandatory Palestine who enlisted in the British Army were prisoners in Greece, in German captivity, where they were tortured and starved. Among them was Shimon Peres’ father, Yitzhak Perski.
The Jewish fighters in World War II “had an urge to prove that ’we are not like you think we are.’…This means that Jews showed they don’t avoid danger, don’t avoid responsibility, they’re the first to charge, to take responsibility…. Jews proved they would fulfill any mission as army soldiers.” (Israel Hayom)
