1. Israel planned and canceled major retaliatory strike on Iran

The Israeli government originally planned a far larger retaliatory strike against Iran following Iran's firing of hundreds of attack UAVs and missiles at the Jewish state on April 13, but ultimately shelved those plans, the New York Times reported.

This original plan would have involved striking many more military targets in Iran, including targets near the capital of Tehran.

According to the report, which cited three anonymous Israeli officials, the decision not to respond with significantly greater force was made following a phone call between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden.

The officials said that Israel's retaliation on Thursday night consisted of the firing of several missiles from fighter jets hundreds of miles west of Iran and the launching of quadcopter attack drones to confuse Iranian air defense systems.

One missile destroyed an anti-aircraft battery. A second missile fired at the same target was remotely destroyed by the IAF in midair once it was determined that the first missile had already struck the target.

Damage was caused to the Isfahan base, near the site of one of Iran's nuclear facilities.

One of the reported reasons for the limited strike was the desire to avoid an escalation that could have led to a wider regional war.

[קישורים:4:Massive Iranian Attack]

On the night of April 13, Iran launched an unprecedented direct attack on Israel, launching over 300 projectiles, including about 170 attack drones, 30 cruise missiles, and over 100 ballistic missiles. Israel's air defenses and air force, together with assistance from the US, UK, France, Jordan, and Egypt, shot down nearly all of the drones and missiles, with only a small number of ballistic missiles reaching their target.

An air force base in southern Israel suffered minor damage in the barrage, and the only casualty was a seven-year-old Bedouin girl who was seriously wounded in the Iranian attack.

2. Jerusalem terrorists identified as Hebron residents

The two terrorists who carried out the ramming attack in Jerusalem this morning (Monday) were identified as Mu'taz Ghulama and Hatem Qawasmeh, residents of the Palestinian Authority-controlled part of Hebron.

The terrorists arrived in a vehicle with a yellow Israeli license plate. The security establishment is investigating how the two entered Israeli territory.

Military correspondent Doron Kadosh noted that one of the terrorists is a member of the Qawasmeh clan, which is known for its strong ties to the Hamas terrorist organization.

Kadosh mentioned that "just a few months ago, last November, two members of the Qawasmeh clan tried to carry out a serious terrorist attack in Jerusalem, when they tried to enter Jerusalem while they were well armed, with a car with a fake Israeli license plate on it, but they were stopped by the security forces at the tunnel checkpoint and there they committed the attack."

Three people were injured in two different locations in Monday morning's attack.

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Security camera footage showed two terrorists speeding towards a group of people, ramming them, and then exiting their vehicle with weapons.

The terrorists fled without opening fire, apparently because their weapons malfunctioned. A Carlo-type submachine gun was found along the escape route the terrorists took.

Shaare Zedek Medical Center reported that three victims of the attack arrived with light injuries. The hospital's trauma unit reported that it received a 20-year-old man, along with two teen boys, ages 18 and 15.

Accoring to Shaare Zedek, all three are expected to be released later on Monday morning.

Two of the victims, Menachem Mendel Fish and Yosef Yitzchak Hirschenbaum, said, "Thank G-d, we are healthy and whole, and we experienced a Passover miracle. We ask for unity in the nation of Israel and we wish a kosher, happy, and safe Passover to the entire People of Israel."

Security forces believe that the terrorists attempted to fire their weapons, but their firearms malfunctioned, and therefore were not used in the attack. Large numbers of police and Border Police forces searched the area for the suspects, and after approximately two hours succeeded in arresting them.

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3. Calls for a double Holocaust at Columbia U

Gary Willig is a member of the Arutz Sheva news staff.

The recent anti-Israel and pro-Hamas demonstrations at Columbia University have seen calls for a double Holocaust – not a second Holocaust, but a double one.

In footage that emerged from the Columbia hate orgy over the weekend, one of the protestors yelled at Jewish students and counter-protestors, "Remember the 7th of October! That will happen not one more time, not five more times, not 10 more times, not 100 more times, not 1,000 more times, but 10,000 times!"

About 1,200 people were murdered on October 7, 2023. 10,000 times 1,200 comes out to 12 million people.

This protester called for the extermination of double the number of Jews who were murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust, and more than two-thirds of the entire Jewish population worldwide.

Not to be outdone, another protester screamed, "Are you ready? 7th of October is about to be every day. Every day. 7th of October is going to be every day for you."

It does not look like this man wants the killing to ever stop as long as a single Jewish person still breathes anywhere.

Other protesters held signs calling on Hamas to murder Jewish students.

We should not need further proof that the rabid anti-Israel and pro-Hamas protestors who have taken to the streets across the world since October 7 are horrible people. It was obvious the moment celebrations of the Hamas atrocities broke out in Sydney Australia and the streets of New York. Chants of "gas the Jews" or "where’s the Jews" left no room for doubt as to the sinister intentions of those who said them.

The massacre was celebrated by a member of Columbia’s own staff. Politics and history teacher Joseph Massad called the worst massacre of the Jewish people since the Holocaust “awesome,” “astonishing,” “astounding,” and a “stunning victory.”

Amazingly, Massad, thanks to his tenure, is still employed at Columbia.

For the last six months, we have been gaslit and told that ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ is not antisemitic or genocidal but merely a call for peace and freedom.

We have been told that these constant displays of hate are merely exercises of free speech against Israel and any criticism of them is an attempt to silence critics of Israel.

This is even as antisemitic incidents rose over 300%, as security around Jewish institutions had to be increased, and as police in London warned a visibly Jewish man that his very existence was triggering to the anti-Israel mob.

A rabbi at Columbia has warned Jewish students to go home and stay off campus for their own safety, and before that, Jewish students were already requesting permission to learn remotely rather than risk violence from those who so openly wish to murder them.

And still there are those who defend those who call to murder Jews in New York City as mere critics of Israel, who decry any attempt to combat this naked hatred as the silencing of legitimate criticism.

Those who constantly defame Israel with the charge of “genocide” have nothing but good things to say about those who openly call for the murder of literally millions of Jews, of twice as many Jews as the Nazis succeeded in killing. Because that is the point of the genocide accusation in the first place, to keep Israel from being able to defend itself against a real genocide and leave Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah, and their Iranian masters free to murder every last Jewish person in the State of Israel.

Calling for 10,000 October 7s or the murder of Jewish students should cross a line that makes everyone step back and truly take stock of what is happening. There has already been violence, such as the Jewish student reporter who was stabbed in the eye by an anti-Israel demonstrator with a flag.

There is a famous sketch by the British comedy show That Mitchell and Webb Look in which two Nazi soldiers notice the skulls on their caps and ask, “are we the baddies?”

If the useful idiots who have joined the antisemitic chorus supporting Hamas’s genocidal war to wipe out the Jewish people would ever have a moment of self-reflection and realize just how evil the people they have joined forces with are, this is a question they would ask themselves.

“Are we the baddies?” If you’re on the side of someone who calls for 10,000 October 7s, if you’re on the side of someone who carries a sign pointing at Jewish students and calling on Hamas to murder them, then yes, you are.

And at this point, more than six months after it became clear who the modern day Nazis are and with such open calls for an updated Holocaust, you don’t deserve the benefit of the doubt.

4. Lapid demands Netanyahu follow intelligence chief and resign

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to follow in the footsteps of Major General Aharon Haliva, chief of the IDF's Military Intelligence Directorate, who today (Monday) announced his intention to resign following the intelligence failures of October 7.

"The resignation of the IDF Intelligence Directorate head is justified and respectable. Prime Minister Netanyahu should have done the same," Lapid wrote on X.

Earlier, Yesh Atid MK Vladimir Beliak also wrote on X: “IDF Intelligence Directorate head was wise to resign. A state inquiry committee must be established without delay. The Prime Minister must resign immediately, regardless of the establishment of a state inquiry committee."

[קישורים:4:Aharon Haliva]

Haliva is the first official to announce his resignation in the wake of October 7. In light of a decision by IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and with the approval of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Haliva will terminate his role and leave the IDF, after a replacement has been found and appointed in an organized and professional fashion.

In a letter announcing his decision, Haliva emphasized his great appreciation for the work of those serving in the Military Intelligence Directorate during the course of the war. Halevi thanked Haliva for his work over the course of his 38 years in the IDF, during which he contributed greatly, both as a soldier and as a commander, to the State of Israel's security.

"On Saturday, October 7, Hamas carried out a murderous surprise attack against the State of Israel," Haliva wrote in his letter. "The Intelligence Directorate under my watch did not stand up to the task with which we were entrusted."

"Now, after more than half a year has passed, and with the start of the investigations, I request to end my role and leave the IDF, following the completion of a stage in the investigations and after a Military Intelligence Directorate chief is appointed to lead the excellent people in the Directorate during the coming years."

Haliva also called for the creation of a governmental investigative committee, writing, "I am convinced, for the sake of the State of Israel, for the sake of the nation of Israel and future generations, that it would appropriate to create a governmental investigative committee which will be able to investigate and clarify, in a thorough, deep, comprehensive, and profound fashion, all of the bodies and circumstances which led to these difficult events."

5. Amb. Friedman: There is a path forward - full Israeli sovereignty

David Friedman, former US ambassador to Israel spoke with Arutz Sheva - Israel National News in a special interview for Pesach. Friedman will be the Honorary Chairman of the upcoming Arutz Sheva Jerusalem Conference in New York, to be held along with the Celebrate Israel Parade on June 2nd.

Take us back to October 7th, what do you remember from that day?

“In the first couple of days, I was focused on two things - the loss of life and the hostages. It was like nothing I'd ever seen before, and I was just overwhelmed. I had small grandchildren with me, and we were running in and out of shelters the first few days. They're asking me, why are people trying to kill us? They don't even know us. They don't know who we are. We've never done anything to them. Why are they trying to kill us? The answer was - like it’s been in other places - because we’re Jewish.”

What’s changed six months later?

“There has been some return to normalcy, but it's not the same. There's a huge, huge, huge trauma that has been inflicted on the country. It was the worst day in the history of the state of Israel.”

“The people of Israel are some of the most incredible people in the world. I've seen unity, the likes of which I've never seen in any country, and so desperately needed here. That doesn't take away the fact that there's a lot of sadness and a lot of trauma, a lot of unanswered questions. There'll be a reckoning for that, for those failures at some point. So, on the one hand, the Israeli people are some of the greatest people in the world and I'm so proud of them. On the other hand, there's a lot of trauma and still a lot of work to be done.”

What about Iran?

“I blame America for that. America, since we left office, has not enforced sanctions on Iran. They have provided them with tens of billions of dollars of sanctions relief, which they have used to spread terrorism and weaponry across the whole crescent of the Middle East to Iraq, to Syria, to Lebanon, to Gaza.”

What are US politics like right now?

“Israel is fighting for its life and Biden is fighting for Michigan. He needs to show that he's not so pro-Israel, so he's disappointed many, many, many Jewish people. I think he's made a bad political calculation, but more importantly, I think he's just made a very immoral calculation."

The effect of what he's done is to embolden Hamas. It raises the price that they will impose for any return of hostages. It gives them more bargaining leverage. It does exactly the opposite of what I think Biden wants to accomplish, which is to end the war.”

“Biden has done nothing but make mistakes since he's been in office. He made a huge mistake in Afghanistan, in his relationship with Russia, with Iran, and now with Hamas and Hezbollah.”

If he had just said from the beginning to the Israelis, “This is your war. we're here to help you, but it's your war, go win the war. We trust you, do it as best you can, and you won't hear from us again” - that would have brought this war to a much faster conclusion.”

President Biden supported Israel at first. Were you surprised by the change?

“I'm an optimist and I try to see the best of people. In the first couple of days, I was complimentary publicly. My optimism was mistaken. We're in an election year, and this guy wants to get elected. The people that vote Democratic, some of them support Israel, but it's a shrinking percentage of the Democratic Party, and Biden is going to pursue politics over principle every day of the week.”

And the other Democrat leaders?

“We also heard Chuck Schumer and Vice President Kamala Harris say that the US should separate between the Israeli people and the Israeli government. Chuck Schumer in particular, with his speech, has legitimized criticism of Israel from the rest of his party.”

“When the war is over, and God willing, Israel has a huge victory, there'll be time for politics. And then Israel, and only Israel, will decide who its leaders will be. Even people that despise Netanyahu don't think this is the right time to change governments, because you have to focus on winning the war. And Schumer knows that, but he doesn't care.”

What’s Israel to do?

“Israel has to do what's best for Israel. What I’m not clear on is the extent to which Israel needs things from America to win the war and what leverage and threats are being used against Israel. Israel needs to maintain a relationship with America and I think Netanyahu has been doing this a long time. I don't want to react emotionally and say Israel should just ignore America, because they may not have the luxury of doing that. They have to hang on until we get a better president.”

Would the situation have been different under Trump?

“Yes. We had a small example of this back in 2019, when Hamas started a rocket attack. That day, I went on Twitter, with the president's approval, and I said, “Israel should defeat its enemies as quickly and decisively as possible and we have full and unconditional American support, period.” Trump's been critical of Israel that they haven't won the war already. He was hoping for was an overwhelming response by Israel that would have ended the war faster. He wants a victory by Israel.”

Let’s talk about the day after the war.

“I'm very much against a Palestinian state and I would not create a Palestinian state to placate any country. I don't know anyone who's willing right now to come in and stabilize Gaza, which means that Israel may just be the one that has to stabilize it in the short run. If you said to me that over time, there might be a way to bring in the Saudis, the Egyptians, the Emiratis to come in and create a force to rehabilitate Gaza? Yeah, that could be a very good idea.”

“I don't think there's a quick fix to Gaza. I think it's going to take a little bit of time, even after there is, the war extends to Rafah. Besides the battalions still in Rafah, there are hundreds of terrorists from other, defeated battalions still alive, and significant sections of Hamas constructions and infrastructures that still exist. Stabilizing Gaza will take more than just invading Rafah. Let's hope that Israel is able to accomplish this and still maintain its diplomatic relations with the world.”

Sovereignty in Judea and Samaria?

“It's the right time to talk about it. It's not an easy decision, so there needs to be a discussion and an analysis. I don't think Israel has the bandwidth to focus on this right now during a time of war, but when we get past the war, I think we need to retain the clarity that came from the war.”

“Palestinian sections of Judea and Samaria are largely radicalized. They are not in a position to live side by side with Israel in their own state. It'll be a platform for terror.”

“What we need to do on the one hand is to say to the Palestinians -you want to be in Palestinian land, go to Jordan. We actually would love it if you would say to us, look, how do we in Jenin and Ramallah work with you and find ways to do business together and become more profitable?”

“The Palestinians can live with certainty that they're not going to be evicted, that they're not going to be thrown out of their homes, that they'll have better opportunities, better prosperity, better human dignity, better health care, but they need to understand that the Jewish people are not leaving. I don't think we have to expel anybody from their homes or from their land as long as they live to agree to live in peace under Israeli sovereignty.”

Could the Palestinians do so on their own?

“Hopefully we get help from our friends in Saudi Arabia and in the Emirates and Bahrain and Morocco and elsewhere, where we explain to them, look, the solution is not to be separated. The solution is to live together in a way where people do better. We can make peace with Palestinians as long as that peace does not require us to give away our biblical homeland. They need to understand that there is a pathway forward, with help from some of our other countries that have money to spend to build better infrastructure. That's the only future. "

Are you headed back to the White House if Trump wins?

“He has to offer me a job. When I was ambassador, it was the honor of my life. I'd love to be able to go back and do it again. The particular job I get - that's up to the President, but I would love to do it again.”

Join us for the third annual Jerusalem conference in New York.

This year's conference will focus on 'The Victory of the Jewish Spirit' - as it will be emphasizing the courage and heroism of many - in Israel and around the world.

The conference will include on-stage interviews, speeches, special panels and of course the granting of special Jerusalem Prize awards.

The Jerusalem Prize awards will be granted to those who act for the sake of the people of Israel during these challenging days.

Leading Jewish organizations, Government ministers, Knesset members, activists, business officials and public figures will be participating as well as IDF reservists and members of bereaved families.

Join us this year, on June 2nd after the Celebrate Israel Parade, at the New York Hilton Midtown Hotel.

6. Terrorists attempted to shoot, failed, and rammed pedestrians

[video:2141962]

Three pedestrians were hit at two different locations in the Romema neighborhood of Jerusalem on Monday morning, by what is believed to be the same vehicle.

One of the pedestrians was hit on Techeilet Mordechai Street, and the other on Yirmiyahu Street. The ramming on Techeilet Mordechai took place when a vehicle carrying terrorists sped towards a group of neighborhood residents burning hametz, or leavened foods, in a traditional pre-Passover ceremony.

The vehicle then drove off, escaping the scene.

Eyewitnesses told Arutz Sheva - Israel National News, "We were standing there and suddenly we saw a vehicle approaching quickly, ramming three of my friends. They continued and came out with weapons and tried to fire. We came here to burn hametz, we escaped to the synagogue."

[video:2141968]

Magen David Adom initially reported that medical teams were providing medical aid to the two victims at the scenes, both of whom had suffered light injuries.

"Two terrorists escaped on foot from the scene of the terror attack in Jerusalem, and on their escape route, homemade Carlo weapons were found," Israel Police said in a statement. "Two victims were evacuated to Shaare Zedek Medical Center."

Shaare Zedek Medical Center reported that three victims of the attack arrived with light injuries. The hospital's trauma unit reported that it received a 20-year-old man, along with two teen boys, ages 18 and 15.

Accoring to Shaare Zedek, all three are expected to be released later on Monday morning.

Two of the victims, Menachem Mendel Fish and Yosef Yitzchak Hirschenbaum, said, "Thank G-d, we are healthy and whole, and we experienced a Passover miracle. We ask for unity in the nation of Israel and we wish a kosher, happy, and safe Passover to the entire People of Israel."

Security forces believe that the terrorists attempted to fire their weapons, but their firearms malfunctioned, and therefore were not used in the attack. Large numbers of police and Border Police forces searched the area for the suspects, and after approximately two hours succeeded in arresting them.

[קישורים:4:Ramming Attacks]

In a later update, MDA said, "MDA EMTs and paramedics provided medical treatment and evacuated 2 casualties to Shaare Tzedek Hospital, including: an 18-year-old young male, in mild-moderate condition with a head injury, and 1 in mild condition."

MDA EMTs Yitzchak Har Kesef and Daniel Levy said, "We were near the scene and as soon as we arrived at the scene, we saw a young man about 18 years old walking around the scene with a head injury. He was very upset, we treated him and evacuated him to the hospital in a mild-moderate condition. People at at the scene told us that while he was engaged in burning chametz, a car hit him at the entrance to the parking lot between buildings."

Speaking to Arutz Sheva - Israel National News at the scene of the attack, Har Kesef added, "We were called up by MDA, to the scene of a terror attack in Jerusalem. We arrived quickly, and there was great commotion at the scene. We were referred to a 20-year-old male victim who suffered injuries to his face and hands. We provided him with initial medical treatment and evacuated him in stable condition to Shaare Zedek Medical Center."

MDA paramedic Nadav Arzi recounted: "We were called to Yirmiyahu Street, near the place where the vehicle hit the pedestrians, and we saw a 22-year-old man who was fully conscious, walking around. He told us that while they were engaged in burning chametz at the entrance to the parking lot between buildings on Techelet Mordechai Street, a vehicle sped towards a group of people and hit him and another injured person. He immediately ran away to the nearby Yirmiyahu Street. He suffered injuries to his head and face. We treated him and evacuated him to hospital in mild condition."

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7. IDF: As Passover begins the IDF is at full readiness in all areas

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The IDF's Spokesperson's Unit announced that during the Passover holiday, which begins tonight, the IDF continues its operational activity and remains fully alert in all areas.

In the Southern Command, the 162nd Division, led by the Nahal Brigade, initiated an operation to thwart terrorism in the central Gaza Strip. The soldiers continue to eliminate terrorists, locate, and dismantle terrorist infrastructure. In the last day, the forces identified a cell of terrorists posing an immediate threat to the soldiers which was targeted by Israel Air Force jets.

In the Northern Command, numerous IDF soldiers on land, air, and sea, are deployed along the northern border from Mount Hermon to Rosh HaNikra, in strong defense and ready for any attack. The forces are conducting ambushes, locating, and eliminating terrorists who pose a threat to IDF soldiers and are targeting command centers, weapon storage facilities, and terrorist infrastructure belonging to the Hezbollah terrorist organization.

In the Central Command, IDF soldiers are deployed and continue their defense efforts, ready to maintain security on roads and to prevent terrorism.

[קישורים:4:IDF]

IDF soldiers and security forces apprehended 13 wanted individuals in the various regional brigades last night.

During the last week, the soldiers in the Binyamin region operated to locate the terrorist who murdered 14-year-old Binyamin Achimair, a Jewish shepherd, on April 12.

IDF soldiers are currently operating in Hebron, in the residences of the terrorists who carried out the attack earlier today in Jerusalem, and are investigating individuals suspected of assisting them.

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8. New details emerge on Israel's attack on Iran

The New York Times on Saturday quoted two Iranian officials and a Western official as saying that the attack on Iran, allegedly carried out by Israel, involved missiles fired from warplanes, as well as drones.

According to the report, Israeli warplanes fired missiles on Iran during the attack, something which suggests that "more advanced firepower was involved" than reports initially indicated.

[קישורים:4:Iran]

The strike also involved drones which were launched from within Iran, that country's officials told the Times.

They added that the radar systems had not detected unidentified aircraft entering Iranian airspace, but a separate group of small drones was shot down in the Tabriz region, about 500 miles north of Isfahan.

The Times noted that it was not clear where the missiles were fired from, or what type of missiles were used in the strike. It is also not known where they landed, or whether any were intercepted.