Five hours after Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948, the tiny and deeply vulnerable Jewish State was attacked simultaneously from all borders. Egypt, Transjordan (Jordan), Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and various sundry other Jew-hating Arab forces invaded the nascent state and it would be hard to attribute anything less than the Hand of God for Israel’s victory and survival.
Some things never change.
Read any book, any article, any column since that day and they all read exactly the same way: Arabs/Muslims attack Israel, Israel fights back, Israel prevails.
Welcome to the IDF. The Israel Defense Forces.
For 80 years, it has been just that. Defense.
The Muslim and Arab world attacks and attacks and attacks. Israel responds. Repeat.
Well, 2025 is the year that Israel is finally saying goodbye to the IDF’s defensive strategy and adopting what would much more appropriately be called the IOF. The Israel Offense Forces.
In the perpetual pursuit of peace for its people, Israel has never in its history sought out war or conflict. The very mission of the Zionists was to create a state where Jews could live in peace and prosperity in their own ancestral homeland.
In the perpetual pursuit of peace for its people, Israel has never in its history sought out war or conflict. The very mission of the Zionists was to create a state where Jews could live in peace and prosperity in their own ancestral homeland.
After millenia of persecution and, yes, genocide (the real kind), the Jewish people finally learned in the Holocaust that no country was safe. No country would protect them or come to their rescue.
Back then, there was no never again.
The Jewish People learned that in order to survive, they would need to build a land where they were in charge of their own destiny.
That destiny was Eretz Yisrael. Intended to be perhaps the one place on earth that a Jew could honestly call home. Where a Jewish soul could rest and rejoice and a Jewish person could just be Jewish.
Peace was The Hope. HaTikvah. “To be a free nation in our land, The land of Zion and Jerusalem.” It has always been that simple.
Israel has never wanted to send its children to war…or be forced to kill anyone else’s children, for that matter. Over and over again, it has leaned into periods of relative calm hoping aid and accords and the occasional military response would maintain at least a baseline status quo.
Through it all, Israel’s enemies have relentlessly threatened its borders, built sprawling terrorist enclaves, pushed and pushed until…October 7th. The day Hamas pushed too far. The beginning of the end for them and for all of the Iranian and terrorist proxies who have gotten away with literal murder for far too long.
For decades, Israel sat back and absorbed hundreds or even thousands of terrorist missiles before responding militarily. They didn’t intervene as Hezbollah built one of the largest and most lethal arsenals on earth today. Hamas was allowed to build its terror tunnels and infrastructure right under Israel’s noses. Sometimes literally.
And now…the IDF finds itself 22 months into its last defensive war.
Never again will Israel rest on its heels waiting for the next terrorist attack. There’s a new sheriff in the Middle East. One false move and it’s game over.
Iran, want to create a bomb? Good luck with that.
Hezbollah, want to re-arm? Your beeper has something to say about that.
Syria, want to create a new Islamist Caliphate? It will be hard without Hay’at al-Arkan.
Houthis, want to export your terror? There may be a challenge without any ports or airports.
Hamas, think you have a future? Only in the dust bin of history.
Now that Israel has decided to overtake 100% of Gaza, the message is clear…even if it is spoken in a language few understand. Yes, the IDF will always defend the state of Israel but it is no longer worried about offending its enemies in the meantime. Not in the pursuit of war, but the ultimate pursuit of peace.
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Am Yisrael isn’t just the people of Israel. It’s the Nation of Israel, within Eretz Yisrael and throughout the Diaspora. If you are part of Am Yisrael—or a precious ally—please join the Yoga of War community.
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With the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, new states were created. Israel only became an independent state in 1948, to which not only the Holocaust survivors but also the 700,000 Arab Jews fled. A state of refugees. A strong Jewish woman, Golda Meir, guided Israel through the most dangerous period and managed to win the US over to her side. The current prime minister, a war hero, is ensuring that Israel's mistakes are corrected. For a peaceful future with its Arab neighbors.
We must not forget that the IDF saved the Lebanese Christians, as well as the Druze.
Despite all this, the Muslim Brotherhood remains the greatest enemy, especially for Europe. Vance has warned about this before. Proud of Israel, proud of the IDF.
As usual your brilliant commentary and your passionate support of Israel and its allies in an increasingly dishonorable world are a beacon of light in a dark and twisted antisemitic world! 🌎 YASHER KOACH!!✡️