Janet and I are currently in Tiberias on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. There’s not much talk here about the problems in Syria because everybody’s out doing what they do on the Sabbath. It is an issue for us of course, because we have 91 pilgrims arriving on Sunday.
However, we are very confident that everything is going to go smoothly and there is no danger. The article below is in today’s Jerusalem Post and explains one of the reasons why I am confident in continuing on with our pilgrimage and not being concerned about a very unlikely attack from Syria even if the US sends missiles into Syria.
In the meantime everything here in Israel is normal. Nothing is changed: people are out swimming, jogging in the streets, and enjoying the day off like they do every other Sabbath. Today I ride my bike and swim, read and write. Later we’ll go to Mass.
There is much more news about this in the United States than there is here. In Israel they don’t sensationalize the news like they do in United States, repeating it over and over again to fill time.
So we are enjoying the day waiting for our group to arrive; the buses are ready and we’re anxious to show them all the beautiful land of our Lord and our Lady.
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As the US reportedly prepares to launch an attack on Syria, PM Binyamin Netanyahu urges Israelis to go about their everyday lives as per usual; security cabinet approves limited call-up of IDF reservists.
Even as Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Tuesday called on Israelis to carry on with their daily routines in light of a possible US strike on Syria, the security cabinet approved a limited call-up of reservists in vital military capacities….
In addition, the sources said that the government approved the deployment of advanced anti-missile batteries in the north….
The information presented at the meeting indicated a “low probability” that Syrian President Bashar Assad would respond to US military action by striking Israel. Nevertheless, the sources said, Israel was preparing for any eventuality, which explained the limited reserve call-ups.
Following the security cabinet meeting, the second urgent security consultation in as many days, Netanyahu issued a statement Wednesday saying Israelis need not alter their daily routine.
“The IDF is ready to defend against any threat and prepared to respond severely agaisnt any attempt to harm Israeli citizens,” he said.
One of the reasons for the “low probability” assessments of a Syrian response against Israel is the assessments in Jerusalem that Syrian President Bashar Assad is cognizant of messages Israel has sent indicating that an attack on Israel would ignite a counter-attack that would bring his regime down…