Israel Takes Revenge on Hezbollah for Rocket Attack at Majdal Schams and Hamas Leader for Perpetrating October 7th Pogrom and War in Gaza

By US Army Brig. General (ret.) John Adams and Jerry Gordon

This is the 11th SITRep discussion on the 269th day of Israel’s War with Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah with John Adams, US Army Brig. Gen. (ret.), and Jerry Gordon, a Senior Editor at The New English Review.

It occurred in the wake of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the US, speech before a joint session of the Congress, White Visits with President Biden and Vice President Harris, now presumptive Democratic candidate, and visit in Florida with Republican candidate former President Trump. A visit was disrupted by a Hezbollah Rocket attack on the Druze Golan community of Majdal Shams that killed 12 children and injured 30 others.

 Israel subsequently unleashed a precision missile attack on Hamas military headquarters in South Beirut, killing Supreme Commander Fuad Shukr, who may have ordered the strike in Majdal Shams. Shukr also had a long outstanding US Reward of $5 million for information on his whereabouts for his involvement in the 1983 Bombing of US Marines Barracks, killing 241 service personnel. Israel alleges that Shukr may have organized the kidnapping of three Israeli reservists that triggered the 2006 Second Lebanon War. Hezbollah issued a statement confirming that Shukr was in the building at the site when it was destroyed but was waiting for the results of a diligence search.

In what was a “dramatic night,” Ismail Haniyeh, Political Leader of Hamas, along with his bodyguard, was assassinated by a small precision-guided missile in a home they maintained in Tehran.  A missile that evaded both Russian and Iranian radar systems. Haniya was in Tehran attending the swearing-in ceremony of Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday.  Iran’s Revolutionary Guard announced Haniyeh’s and his bodyguard’s death on Wednesday morning. Hamas accused Israel of making the attack.

In a possible defensive move against Hezbollah retaliation, Israel announced the closure of its airspace from Hedera north to the Lebanon border, excluding Ben Gurion Airport.  US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in response to the Israeli assassination of Fuad Shukr, announced: US Secretary of Defense “vowed on Tuesday that the United States will come to Israel’s defense if the Jewish state is attacked by Hezbollah, the powerful Iran-backed terrorist organization based in Lebanon.”

“We would like to see things resolved diplomatically,” Austin told reporters after meetings in Manila with senior Philippine officials. “If Israel is attacked, yes, we will help Israel defend itself. We’ve been clear about that from the very beginning.”

Watch the YouTube discussion with the following transcript with Brig—General (US Army retired) John Adams.

Background of General John Adams

John Adams retired as a Brigadier General from the U.S. Army in September 2007 after over 30 years of active-duty service. His final military assignment was as Deputy United States Military Representative to the NATO Military Committee in Belgium. John is a veteran of Operation Desert Storm (1991), where he earned the Bronze Star Medal of Operation Guardian Assistance in Rwanda (1996) and served throughout the Balkans from 1998-2003. He served as a military attaché with the U.S. Embassies in South Korea, Croatia, Belgium, and Rwanda. In 2004, he served on temporary duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. He was deployed outside the United States for eighteen of his thirty years of active-duty service, including duty in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. His extensive and diverse experience makes him a trusted source for insightful analysis.

He was stationed at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, and participated in disaster recovery operations at the crash site.

During the past five years, he has participated in unofficial fact-finding missions in Israel, Egypt, Turkey, the Balkans, and Cuba. He has close business relationships with retired officers of the Israeli Defense Forces and several NATO Allies. He is a strong supporter of the U.S. alliance with the State of Israel and NATO. 

Major Issues

The following issues were addressed in the discussion with retired US Army Brigadier General John Adams and Jerry Gordon of The New English Review.

1. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a historic fourth speech before a joint session of Congress on July 24th, which received 52 standing ovations despite the dissident progressive Democrats who boycotted the event. What was the message he conveyed to those dissident Democrat members of US Congress and pro-Hamas protesters outside the Capitol Building and Israel’s enemies in the Middle East and across the world?
2. During his address, Prime Minister Netanyahu pointed out several Israelis in his entourage in the Capitol visitors’ gallery who had accompanied him to Washington. Who were they, and what message did he convey to the world media, the congressional audience, and invited dignitaries?
3. Prime Minister Netanyahu had official meetings in Washington with President Biden and successor and presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris.  Did the encounters and messages from those White House meetings suggest a widening divide between the Biden Administration and the Netanyahu government on combatting the Palestinian terror group Hamas in Gaza and freeing American, Israeli, and Foreign hostages held by the Islamist terror group?
4. President Biden succumbed to Democratic party leaders’ clamor over his alleged failure in a Presidential debate with Republican Presidential candidate former President Trump. He acceded to their demands, withdrawing his nomination and endorsing Vice President Harris as his successor. What do we know about her positions on the US Strategic alliance with Israel, support for the war against the terror group Hamas, and Palestinian statehood aspirations?
5. From Washington, Prime Minister Netanyahu and his wife flew to Florida to meet with former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for President in the 2024 elections.  What was the purpose of the Netanyahu meeting at Trump’s resort of Mar al Lago in Palm Beach? What messages did Trump convey about support for Israel should he be elected in the November elections?
6. After nine months in combat, the IDF announced it may have killed or captured 60 percent of the HAMAS fighting battalions, including Mohammed Deif, its military Commander, and senior officers, leaving political leader Yahya Sinwar at large. What is Israel’s strategy to achieve its twin objectives of destroying the fighting force of HAMAS and freeing the surviving American, Israeli, and foreign hostages?
7. On July 27, Hezbollah launched an Iranian rocket was fired by Hezbollah from Southern Lebanon that slammed into a Soccer field in the Israeli Druze Community of MaJdal Shams near the Golan Heights, killing 12 teenagers who were playing and injuring 30 other youngsters.  That forced Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to shorten his US visit to Florida and return to Israel. Statements from PM Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant promised Druze Community Spiritual Leader Sheik Muafah Tarik harsh actions in reprisal for Hezbollah. Former President Trump condemned the Hezbollah action at a Minnesota Republican Presidential Rally. Will this brazen Hezbollah action trigger a long-awaited invasion of Southern Lebanon to destroy Hezbollah rocket, missile launching, and storage facilities?
8. Coincidentally, with Netanyahu’s visit to the US, the Chinese Foreign Minister convened a coalition of Palestinian terrorist and resistance groups in Beijing. What was the message behind this staged event sent by the Chinese Communist Party government of President Xi Jinping to the Arab governments in the Middle East, Israel, and Western governments?
9. On July 26, the first joint Chinese-Russian military intrusion in the airspace near Alaska was repelled by US and Canadian NORAD jet fighters. What was the message behind China and Russia’s actions?
10. On July 19, 2024, a suicide drone launched by Houthi rebels exploded in Tel Aviv, killing one person, injuring 11 others, and causing property damage.  On the following day, the Israeli Air Force unleashed a coordinated attack on the Yemeni port of Hodeida, with significant damage to port and power facilities that produced casualties. What message did the Israeli attack convey to the Houthi rebels, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Biden Administration, Saudi Arabia, and oil Emirates about the importance of bolstering deterrence in the strategic international oil and commercial maritime Red Sea nexus?
11. On July 21, two US B-52 H aircraft departed Barksdale, Louisiana, airbase. They were shadowed by Russian aircraft as they crossed the Barents Sea on a Task Force training exercise with Finland and landed at a NATO Base in Romania. Why does the US maintain the nearly 100-year-old B-52 fleet, and what is its mission?