Israel paused Monday to observe the anniversary of the terror attack of October 7, 2023, when Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists brutally murdered 1200 Israelis and abducted over 250 hostages, often torturing and raping their victims.
In the year since, Israel has smashed the Hamas terrorist organization in Gaza; begun uprooting Hezbollah terrorists from its northern border; destroyed facilities in Yemen used by Houthi rebels; and threatened Iran itself with attack.
Israelis cannot move on past October 7 while there are still roughly 100 hostages being held by Hamas. Though some 34 are believed to be dead, many are thought to be alive. Public ceremonies and demonstrations on Monday in Israel stressed the need to bring the hostages home — whether through a diplomatic deal or, if possible, by military rescue.
At the same time, Israel is far stronger than it was a year before. Hamas managed to fire a handful of rockets toward central Israel on Monday, a year after it launched thousands. It has lost tens of thousands of its fighters; most of its leaders are dead; its 24 battalions are in disarray; and it can no longer threaten the communities surrounding Gaza.
Hezbollah, which began firing at Israel’s northern communities on October 8, has been decapitated. It can still fire rockets sporadically, but is no longer capable of mounting the massive barrages Israelis once feared. Israeli soldiers are advancing through southern Lebanon, making a mockery of Hezbollah’s pretenses as the defenders of Lebanon.
The Houthi rebels of Yemen have fired hundreds of missiles and projectiles toward Israel. They have also crippled international shipping, thanks to the weakness of the Biden administration, which delisted the Houthis as terrorists in 2021 and has adopted a defensive posture. But Israel has twice attacked Houthi facilities, making them pay a price.
In the West Bank, known to Israelis as Judea and Samaria, Israel has quietly dismantled the nascent terrorist forces that Iran had begun to build there, through Hamas and other groups. And while Israel recently suffered a successful drone attack by Shiite militias in Iraq, the Iraqis are said to fear Israel’s response, seeing the consequences elsewhere.
As for Iran, the regime recently launched nearly 200 ballistic missiles at Israel, its second such attack in six months. It did little damage and now awaits Israel’s response, nervously, not knowing if Israel will attack its nuclear facilities or its oil industry, its missile sites or its government institutions. Iran struck the first blow but will not strike the last.
Politically, Israel is a more united and cohesive nation than it was on October 6, 2023. When the terrorists attacked, Israelis ran toward the battle, with reservists driving across the country to join the fight. Volunteers emerged to do whatever was needed for those in the line of fire, or anyone affected by the war. Israelis know they cannot be broken.
The same is not true of the West, where mobs celebrated the October 7 attack in the streets of major cities and turned elite universities into cesspools of antisemitism.
A political reckoning may soon be coming for the weak leaders that allowed America, and Europe, to slide toward the abyss.
Until it does, Israel is leading the West’s fight for survival.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of The Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days, available for pre-order on Amazon. He is also the author of The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency, now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
