Europe's Iron Dome Plans at Risk over Anti-Israel Backlash - Joe Barnes (Telegraph-UK)
    Europe's plans to construct an Iron Dome-style missile and drone shield risks being scuppered by mounting anti-Israel sentiment over the war in Gaza.
    The German-led Sky Shield Initiative aims to create an air-defense dome stretching from Turkey to Finland as part of a continental rearmament drive to face down Russian aggression.
    For high-altitude interceptions it is planning to use the Israeli Arrow 3 - the world's first air-defense system dedicated to shooting down hypersonic missiles and capable of exo-atmospheric interceptions.
    Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin, Israel's former military intelligence chief, said: "If Germany takes significant steps that will harm Israel's national security, Israel will have no choice but to walk back certain elements in the relations that are beneficial to both sides."

Inside Postwar Tehran - An Iranian dissident (Ynet News)
    When Israel began its offensive against Iran in June, the regime appeared to crumble before people's eyes as airstrikes targeted some of its most symbolic assets.
    Israeli planes made clear to ordinary Iranians that the authorities were powerless to protect them. The bombings didn't frighten us. They gave us hope.
    The government unleashed 50,000 police officers, soldiers and morality enforcers into the streets, beating anyone they suspected of dissent.
    In Tehran, most women now drive without covering their hair, and many no longer wear headscarves even on the street. Modesty patrols stopped caring about women's headscarves; they were hunting spies.
    Imagine a life where those meant to protect you are in fact your greatest enemy. Where you are afraid to step outside for fear of running into security forces. This is not a normal existence.
    At the moment, our belief in toppling the regime is close to zero. The government has preserved and even strengthened its grip at home.
    For 46 years, Iranians have been trained to keep their eyes down, suppress feelings, and say black when they see white. Cemeteries here are called "Paradise."

"Hamas Teaches Palestinians to Die - It Is Not Islam" - Shachar Kleiman (Israel Hayom)
    In 2020, peace activist Rami Aman was imprisoned by Hamas along with other Gazans for organizing a Zoom meeting with Israelis about possible solutions to the coronavirus crisis. Today Aman lives in Europe.
    He recalls how after Hamas's violent takeover of Gaza from Fatah in 2007, it began "controlling everything in Gaza - the media, UNRWA, the private sector." Hamas placed many of its members in jobs at UNRWA because of the relatively high salaries.
    "What happened in the 2023 war already happened in 2009, 2014 and 2021. Hamas used the same methods - exploiting the people of Gaza, controlling the media, and receiving aid."
    "For Hamas, this is a good way to fight its wars. Every time people die and no one cares. But in the end, for Hamas, the message is 'we are still here,' and that means 'victory.'"
    "Hamas teaches Palestinians how to die, how to marry 70 virgins in heaven - and that is certainly not Islam. It is an easy way to brainwash people in Gaza to achieve their goals."

Israel-Qatar Derangement Syndrome - Editorial (Wall Street Journal)
    On the anniversary of 9/11, the U.S. joined a UN Security Council condemnation of a targeted strike on Islamic terrorists.
    In other words, don't dare touch the leaders who tried to carry out another Holocaust. They are supposed to be off-limits while living the good life in Doha.
    After Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. successfully pushed for Security Council Resolution 1373, which bars all UN members from harboring terrorists.
    Doha didn't complain nearly as much in June when Iran fired ballistic missiles at U.S. troops stationed in Qatar. Why now is the West pretending it was a crime to strike Hamas's head office?

Israeli Film Industry Leaders Call Growing Boycott "Counterproductive" - Gary Baum (Hollywood Reporter)
    Nearly 4,000 figures from the international film and TV landscape have pledged not to work with Israeli counterparts.
    Israel's industry leaders believe the boycott effort is misguided and self-defeating - that its effect only undermines and isolates a group of people who are, within the country, among the most sympathetic to the Palestinian cause.
    The signatories' letter justifying their action makes no mention of Hamas, which killed nearly 1,200 Israeli citizens in October 2023, nor the hostages whom Hamas has held since.
    None of the high-profile boycott signatories appear to have taken similar public positions against the Russian industry (considering the war against Ukraine) or the Chinese industry (given alleged human rights abuses against China's Uyghur Muslim population).

Israel's Barak 8 to Be Part of India's Air Defense - Dean Shmuel Elmas (Globes)
    India recently presented its strategic plan to create a multi-layered defense system, which includes the Barak 8 surface-to-air missile system, developed jointly by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) with India.
    Barak 8 is designed to defend against any type of airborne threat including aircraft, helicopters, anti-ship missiles and UAVs, as well as ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and combat jets.

Diaspora Jews Volunteer for the Israel Defense Forces - Judy Maltz (Ha'aretz)
    Last week, Israeli officials held a hero's welcome for 350 Diaspora Jews who were under no obligation to serve in the army.
    Yet, they chose to leave behind family and friends - now of all times - to volunteer for military service in a faraway country at war.
    Mostly in their late teens and early twenties, these young men and women are participants in Garin Tzabar, a program that brings hundreds of volunteers to the Israel Defense Forces every year.
    At any given time, about 3,500 soldiers from overseas serve in the IDF, with more than a third coming through Garin Tzabar.
    Among the 900 soldiers killed in action since Oct. 7, six were Garin Tzabar participants (another two were counselors in the program).
    Since Oct. 7, participation in Garin Tzabar has increased markedly. In August 2023, 230 lone soldiers arrived. By August 2024, that number had risen to 320, and by August 2025, to 350.
    Saul Rurka, a British-Israeli who supports social welfare projects for lone soldiers, said, "In the past year, when I ask them...what made them come to Israel and join the IDF, the answer will be 'the 7th.' It jolted a lot of young people who were not really connected to Judaism and who now say they want to protect their people and their country."
    Not one of these soon-to-be-soldiers said they had second thoughts about their decision.
    Although Americans account for the largest group, this summer's cohort includes participants from Australia, Canada, Russia, Ukraine, France, Britain, Germany, Denmark and Holland. Children of Israelis account for about half the participants.
    Dr. Lior Yohanani, a political sociologist at the Israel Democracy Institute, said, "There's a lot of antisemitic and anti-Israel sentiment out there these days, and without sounding cynical, it's being used to help recruit these kids."
    "This is also really the first time in many years that there's a true sense of emergency in the country, so these kids really feel that there's a purpose to what they're doing."