Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger, “Second Thought: a US-Israel Initiative”
October 2, 2026
*The late King Hussein recognized Jordan’s susceptibility to a repeat of the deadly “Black September,” due to its intrinsic demographic vulnerabilities, such as the restive Palestinian majority time bomb, which traditionally collaborates with the subversive/terroristic Muslim Brotherhood, while the Bedouin tribal society is inherently fragmented. Therefore, the King warned Western and Israeli policy makers that a Palestinian state west of the Jordan River would doom the pro-Western Hashemite regime east of the river. Moreover, a Palestinian state would deny Jordan the defensive benefits of the Israel’s full control of the mountain ridges of Judea and Samaria, that played a key role in aborting the “Black September” Palestinian assault. In fact, a more volcanic “Black September” could reoccur due to the presence of 1-2 million Syrian refugees in northern Jordan (some of them terrorists and drug traffickers), Iran-inspired terrorist activities in Jordan and the neighboring Iraq, and the potent presence in Jordan of Hamas terrorists, who are inspired by the October 2023 horrific terror offensive against Israel, and Western appeasement of Hamas, in particular, and Palestinian terrorism, in general.
*Western policy makers’ infatuation with the proposed Palestinian state has been driven by Western preoccupation with the moderate Palestinian talk, which is aimed at Western target audiences. On the other hand, Arabs have been preoccupied with the rogue Palestinian intra-Arab walk, which has led the Arabs to display indifference-to-rejection toward the proposed Palestinian state.
*Since 1948, Arab countries have never flexed military, financial or political muscles on behalf of the proposed Palestinian state. No Arab war against Israel was launched due to the Palestinian issue, and never did Arabs intervene militarily during Israel-Palestinian wars. In fact, in November 2023, an Iranian-Algerian-Palestinian proposition to end all diplomatic-economic-defense-tourist ties with Israel was rejected by a joint summit of The Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
*While the Arab talk has been overwhelmingly supportive of the proposed Palestinian state, the Arab walk has systematically refrained from – and occasionally opposed – the establishment of a Palestinian state.
*Arabs do not sacrifice their interests on the altar of a proposed Palestinian state, which they consider as an existential threat. They are fully aware of the 55-year-rogue Palestinian intra-Arab track record, terrorizing their host Arab governments in Egypt (1950s), Syria (1960s), Jordan (1970), Lebanon (1970-1982) and Kuwait (1990). This track record has positioned Palestinians as the role-model of intra-Arab subversion, terrorism, treachery and ingratitude.
*The Arabs are, also, aware of the Palestinians’ collaboration with – and training of – terrorist organizations in Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America, as well as their relationship with radically ruthless anti-Western regimes, such as Nazi Germany, the Soviet Bloc (including ideological and operational links with the Soviet KGB and the East German Stasi), Ayatollah Khomeini, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, China and Russia.
*Western policy makers have contended that Palestinian terror has been driven by despair, and therefore should be dealt with diplomatically and financially – not militarily – and bolstered by appeasement and concessions. However, Middle East reality documents that Palestinian terror has been driven by a fanatical ideology (e.g., Fatah’s and PLO’s 1959 and 1964 Charters – before the 1967 War), which mandates the total uprooting – not size reduction – of the “illegal Zionist entity.”
*Western policy makers have been obsessed with speculations about a reformed Palestinian state. In contrast, Arab policy makers have been preoccupied with the well-documented Palestinian rogue track record. They are convinced that assessments of the nature of the proposed Palestinian state – and its geo strategic impact – should be based on the well-documented track record rather than well-intentioned speculations.
*Therefore, Jordan and Egypt did their utmost to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state, when they fully controlled Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) and Gaza in 1949-1967. Moreover, in 1948, the Arab League established the “All Palestine Government,” downgrading it to a “Palestinian Desk” in 1950-52, and eliminating it in 1955.
*In 1970, Jordan’s Prime Minister Wasfi al-Tal and Commander of the Armed Forces Habis al-Majali stated that Palestinian ideology was fundamentally incompatible with Jordan’s national sovereignty. In 1974, King Hussein warned Western policy makers that a Palestinian state in the West Bank would leverage Jordan’s demographic reality (e.g., a Palestinian majority) and constitute a real and clear existential threat to the Hashemite regime. In 1993, the King told the Head of Israel’s Mossad that the Oslo Accord could lead to a Palestinian state west of the Jordan River, an irredentist springboard, destabilizing Jordan – a death sentence to Jordan’s pro-Western Hashemite regime east of the Jordan River. That warning was echoed by Jordan’s military Chief-of-Staff and Head of Military Intelligence during the October 1994 signing of the Israel-Jordan peace treaty.
*The toppling of Jordan’s Hashemite regime would transform Jordan into another platform of anti-Western Islamic terrorism, involving the Muslim Brotherhood, Palestinian terror organizations, proxies of the Ayatollah regime, ISIS, etc. This terrorism would not be confined to the area of Jordan, but would spread southward, triggering existential threats to the pro-Western Arab regimes in Egypt (via the terror-ridden Sinai Peninsula), Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Kuwait, further destabilizing the Middle East – the epicenter of 9/11-like anti-Western Islamic terrorism, the location of 48% of global oil reserves and a critical intersection of trade sea lanes between the Far East and Western Europe.
*The toppling of the Hashemite regime would advance a key strategic aspiration of the Ayatollah regime to establish contiguous land access to Israel and to the Mediterranean (via Gaza), while encircling Saudi Arabia.
*A Palestinian statewould welcome cooperation with China and Russia, which would include intelligence stations and the funding of – and access to – an upgraded port in the Gaza Strip, bolstering their stature in the western Mediterranean, as Middle East powerbrokers at the expense of the US.
*Western policy makers, who accord much significance to moderate Palestinian talk, and therefore speculate on a reformed Palestinian state – which would abandon core ideology, depart from its rogue track record, and embrace peaceful coexistence – would benefit from the following country colloquialism: “You may put your boots in the oven, but that don’t make them biscuits!”
Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger, “Second Thought: a US-Israel Initiative
September 23, 2026
*Israel’s distinction as the most high-value, low-cost, low (US) footprint, battle-tested, technologically-advanced and unconditional American ally – substantially more significant than the NATO countries, South Korea, Japan and Australia – is underscored by the F-35 combat aircraft program.
*Thus, Israel played a consequential role in the F-35’s evolution from a troubled, over-budget development program – doomed to fail according to top US avionic experts in 2018 – into the flagship fighter of the US Air Force. In fact, since Israel received the F-35, it has emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing defense exports.
*Israel was the first country to operate the F-35 in combat (in 2018), and the only foreign user granted substantial authority to integrate indigenous software, electronic-warfare systems, weapons, and sustainment solutions. The US manufacturer, Lockheed-Martin, and the US Air Force are aware of the expected benefits derived from the invaluable operational, rapid-testing and validation, maintenance and repair feedback from Israel under a uniquely-intense battle-proven reality. Moreover, the Israeli real-world experience (in close cooperation with Lockheed Martin) – particularly in mission systems, data processing, electronic warfare, weapons integration, maintenance, and fleet availability – identified and resolved most of the technical and mechanical glitches, that might have otherwise required costly testing and redevelopment, and potentially aborting the entire F-35 program.
*Although the precise financial benefits have not been publicly quantified, the Israeli intense combat-proven experience and capabilities saved many years of research and development (equal to billions of dollars, as attested by the F-35 research and development cost – over $60bn). The Israeli knowhow reduced technical risks, accelerated the maturation of the aircraft, strengthened confidence among prospective buyers, and contributed to the F-35’s transformation from a widely criticized program into the centerpiece of US airpower and a multinational mega-billions of dollars export success.
*Hence, the F-35A ($92mn), the F-35C ($110.8mn) and the F-35B ($121.4mn) have been exported to more than 20 countries, including the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Poland, Finland, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Israel, Singapore, Romania, Greece and the Czech Republic. Furthermore, export of the F-35 has experienced a massive surge, culminating in 191 aircraft delivered by Lockheed Martin in 2025, compared to 134 in 2019, making it one of the most widely exported 5th-generation stealth fighters in history. According to Lockheed-Martin, the F-35 backlog (mostly to the US Air Force) was $170bn in 2025.
*Israel has served as the F-35’s unique battle-tested laboratory, research and development center, as it has for the F-16, F-15, the Apache and Black Hawk helicopters, the THAAD and Patriot missile defenses and dozens of additional advanced US military systems). Israel has been a combat-proven showroom and battle tactics innovation center, bolstering the US economy – including expanded employment and increased corporate and individual income tax revenues – as well as enhancing the capabilities of the US Air Force, while extending the life-cycle and export-potency of advanced US military systems (e.g., the 55-year-old F-15 and F-16).
*Israel has contributed to the US defense and aerospace industries – which employ 2.5 million Americans – and to the US Armed Forces the same benefits it has contributed to over 250 commercial high tech giants (e.g., Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Apple, John Deere, Nvidia, Johnson & Johnson, General Electric, etc.), but much more! Israel has played a key role in boosting the global superiority of the US’ commercial and defense technologies.
*Israel provides an unusually densely-challenging innovation ecosystem, facing unique climatic, irrigation, agricultural, economic, health, medical and national security challenges. These challenges have yielded game-changing, ground-breaking developments and applications, which have been leveraged by many of the leading US commercial and defense industries.
*Therefore, in January 2026, the US and Israel announced a strategic framework covering AI, energy, advanced computing, space, semiconductors, and other critical technologies, explicitly linking the relationship to economic growth, job creation, and national security.
*Israel is the US’ most valuable operational partner for evaluating selected air-defense, missile-defense, counterterrorism, urban-warfare, intelligence, and force-protection capabilities under real-world conditions.
*Israel has been a significant node in the US’ determination to bolster its global superiority in the dual-use areas of small and medium-size space satellites, autonomous systems, unmanned aerial vehicles, medical technologies and combat medicine, cybersecurity and AI. Israel has advanced the US’ computing, semiconductors, aerospace and avionics, air and missile defenses, sensors and electro-optics, water and environmental technologies.
*Israel’s demography (facilitating the successful blending of Israeli agents in Muslim countries), geo-strategic location and rare existential challenges and experience, have transformed Israel into the most substantial intelligence partner of the US in the areas of counterterrorism, terror financing and money laundering, counterproliferation and regional/global threats. This partnership has also produced critical data on advanced military systems, manufactured by enemies and rivals of the US, which has uniquely benefitted the US economy and defense, saving American lives abroad and on US soil.
*According to the late Senator Daniel Inouye, who was the Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and the Full Appropriations Committee, the flow of Israeli intelligence to the US exceeded the scope and quality of intelligence provided to the US by all NATO countries combined. Inouye assessed the value of the Israeli-delivered intelligence in billions of dollars.
*Israel provides the US with an unusually high level of annual R-o-I (return on investment) on the $3.8bn, which is exponentially higher than US “foreign aid.”
*Israel provides the US with a second-to-none combat-experienced, reliable forward operating base (irrespective of Left or Right governments, unlike other allies) in a most critical region. In addition to intelligence and defense-technology, Israel has generated tailwind to the US defense and commercial industrial bases. Thus, sustaining US manufacturing, engineering, subcontracting and export capacity – a mega billions of dollars contribution to the US economy.
*Israel constitutes a high-intensity force-multiplier and dollar-multiplier for the US. This Israeli feature has bolstered the US’ posture of deterrence with no US combat boots on the ground, unlike the NATO allies, Japan and South Korea. The latter rely on substantial US combat military bases and mega-billions of US dollars, which is required to maintain these bases, while refraining from flexing their muscles in the face of mutual existential threats.
Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) Guide for the Perplexed, 2026
Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger, “Second Thought: a US-Israel Initiative”
September 17, 2026
More on Jewish holidays: Smashwords, Amazon
*Modeled on Yom Kippur and other Biblical fast days, the Early Pilgrims’ and Founding Fathers’ “Day of public humiliation, fasting and prayer” suspended business to confess collective wrongdoing and petition for mercy through soul-searching. Thus, the Second Continental Congress proclaimed a fast day on July 20, 1775, and repeated it through the war, calling for collective repentance and prayer to petition King George III to end the bloodshed, as the Revolutionary War began; President John Adams issued national fast days in 1798 and 1799; President James Madison did so during the War of 1812. General George Washington strictly enforced the religious observance and banned unnecessary labor and recreation for troops under his command.
*Yom Kippur is observed on the 10th day of the Jewish month of Tishrei, starting on the evening of September 20, 2026. It is referred to as a Super Sabbath (Shabbat Shabbaton in Hebrew), concluding 10 soul-searching days, personal and collective accountability spiritual self-awareness and self-enhancement, beginning on Rosh Hashanah, the first day of the Jewish year.
*Ten has a special significance in Jewish tradition: God’s abbreviation is the 10th Hebrew letter (Yod – י); the 10 Commandments; the 10 Plagues of Egypt; Yom Kippur on the 10th day of Tishrei; the 10 spheres of the spiritual universe, highlighting the Biblical Creation; 10 reasons for blowing the Shofar (ram’s horn) on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur; the 10% Biblical gift to God (tithe); the 10th day of the Jewish month of Tevet commemorates the beginning of the 586-589 BCE siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar; 10 Martyrs (Jewish leaders) were tortured/murdered by the Roman Empire; 10 generations between Adam and Noah and between Noah and Abraham; Abraham passed 10 divine tests; a 10-person-quorum (Minyan in Hebrew) is required for a collective Jewish prayer service; 10 sons of Haman and 10 Nazi leaders were hung; etc.
*According to Leviticus 23:26-32: “The Lord said to Moses, that the tenth day of this seventh month [Tishrei] is the Day of Atonement…. Do not do any work on that day…. This is a lasting ordinance for generations to come….” Yom Kippur highlights second-chance-eligibility and renewal through repentance, commemorating the day of divine forgiveness for the sin of worshipping the golden calf idol, and the introduction of the Moses-made second set of the Two Tablets (Ten Commandments). Mankind is urged to learn from mistakes, and refrain from the recurring human fallibility: the temptation to sacrifice spiritual values on the altar of convenience.
*The astrological sign of the months of Tishrei is Libra (♎), which symbolizes the scales of justice, truth, optimism, humility and tolerance. Libra is ruled by the planet Venus (Noga – נגהin Hebrew – is the name of my oldest granddaughter), which represents divine light and compassion.
*The Hebrew word Kippur [כיפור] means atonement/repentance – a derivative of the Biblical word Kaporet [כפורת], which was the dome/cover of the Holy Ark in the Sanctuary, and the word Kopher [כופר], which was the cover/dome of Noah’s Ark and the Holy Altar in the Jerusalem Temple.
Yom Kippur resembles a spiritual cover/dome, which separates between spiritualism and materialism/mundane. The Kippah [ [כיפהis the skullcap – a spiritual dome – which covers one’s head during prayers.
*Asking forgiveness of fellow human-beings is a major feature of Yom Kippur, transferring human behavior from acrimony and vindictiveness to forgiveness and peaceful coexistence. The wronged party must accept a sincere apology. Ritual alone does not substitute for repair. It is consistent with the philosophy of Hillel the Elder, a leading 1st century BCE Jewish Sage: “The essence of the Torah is: do not do unto your fellow person that which is hateful to you; the rest [of the Torah] is commentary.” Criminals and sinners are invited to participate in Yom Kippur services.
*Fasting is a key feature of Yom Kippur, reducing material pleasure in order to focus on one’s soul-searching, and enhancing empathy with the needy. The Hebrew spelling of fasting [צומ] is the root of the Hebrew word ((צמצומ for reducing and the Hebrew word for a camera’s focus (צמצמ).
However, Judaism opposes ascetism and self-torment, and therefore views genuine repentance as a critical engine of elevating individuals from despair to hope, from abuse to caring, from intolerance to tolerance, from violence to comity, from isolation to integration, from ignorance to knowledge and from forgetfulness to commemoration.
*There are six annual Jewish fasting days:
(a) The 10th day of the month of Tishrei is Yom Kippur.
(b) The 10th day of the month of Tevet commemorates the beginning of the 586-589 BCE siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar.
(c) The 17th day of the month of Tammuz commemorates the 586 BCE and 69 CE breaching of Jerusalem’s walls by the Babylonian and Roman Empires, as well as the breaking of the Tablets by Moses upon confronting the Golden Calf lapse of faith.
(d) The 9th day of the month of Av is the most calamitous day in Jewish history, commemorating the destruction of the first (586 BCE) and second (70 CE) Jewish Jerusalem Temples, by the Babylonian and Roman Empires respectively; the beginning of the Jewish exile from the Land of Israel; the Ten Spies’ bankruptcy of faith; the crushing of the 132-135 CE Bar Kokhbah Revolt by the Roman Emperor Adrianus (600,000 Jewish fatalities); the pogroms of the First Crusade (1096-1099) in Germany, France, Italy and Britain; the expulsion of the Jews from Britain (1290) and Spain (1492); the eruption of the First World War (1914); and the beginning of the 1942 deportation of Warsaw Ghetto Jews to the Treblinka extermination camp.
(e) The 3rd day of the month of Tishrei commemorates the murder of the Jewish Governor of Jerusalem, Gedalyah Ben Achikam, by another Jew, Yishmael Ben Netanyah (586 BCE).
(f) The 13th day of the month of Adar is the Fast of Queen Esther – one day before the Purim holiday – commemorating Queen Esther’s three-day-fast prior to her appeal to the Persian King Ahasuerus to refrain from exterminating the Jews (around 480 BCE).
*According to Judaism, the human tongue can be lethal, and therefore, ill-speaking of other people (“evil tongue” in Hebrew) may not be forgiven.
*Yom Kippur is concluded by blowing the Shofar (a ritual ram’s horn), which represents a moral wakeup-call, optimism, determination, humility and peace-through-strength (the peaceful ram deters enemies through its horns). The blowing of the Shofar commemorates the saving of Isaac by a ram; the receipt of the (second) Tablets/Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai (even the sin of the Golden Calf does not foreclose restoration); the re-entry to the Land of Israel and the conquest of Jericho by Joshua; as well as Gideon’s victory over the much larger Midianite military. The Hebrew word Shofar שופר]] means “to enhance,” “top quality,” glory and spiritual pleasure [שפר, שופרא].
*The Biblical Scroll of Jonah – which is the fifth book in The Twelve Prophets – is read on Yom Kippur, underscoring repentance, prayer/faith, justice and forgiveness. The Prophet Jonah (“dove” in Hebrew), son of Amitai (“truth” in Hebrew and the name of my 4th grandchild) transformed the sinful Assyrian population of Nineveh into a pious society; thus, displaying social responsibility.
*A Memorial Candle in memory of one’s parents is lit on Yom Kippur, reaffirming “Honor thy father and mother,” providing an opportunity to mend fences with – and ask forgiveness of – one’s parent(s).
Palestinian Terror Monuments – Palestinian Vision Carved in Stone
Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger, “Second Thought: a US-Israel Initiative”
September 16, 2026
*Western policy makers tend to be impressed by a moderate Palestinian diplomatic talk, directed at Western – not Arab – target groups, while taking lightly the Palestinian intra-Arab walk, which has transformed the Palestinians into a role model of intra-Arab terrorism.
*Western policy makers tend to accord overriding weight to moderate Palestinian diplomatic rhetoric (enunciated by skillful Palestinian representatives), while underestimating – or overlooking – the critical significance of the litany of Hamas and (mostly) Palestinian Authority terror monuments in Gaza and Judea and Samaria (the West Bank). These monuments highlight terrorists as role models for Palestinian youth, mirroring the core Palestinian vision and strategy when it comes to Israel. Moreover, the terror message conveyed by the monuments is underscored in the PLO and Hamas Charters, school curriculum (praising Jihad, self-sacrifice/shahada and martyrdom), mosque sermons, official media (WAFA news agency, PA TV, Al-Aqsa TV, Al-Aqsa radio, Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Al-Ayyam and Filastin daily newspapers) and the mega-billions of dollars “Pay for Slay” lifetime allowances (“Martyrs and Prisoners Fund”), extended since 2004 by the Palestinian Authority to families of terrorists.
*While Palestinian monuments are tangibly carved in stone, the Palestinian talk (toward Arabs and Israel) is intangibly written on ice.
*Palestinian terror monuments are not an aberration, but a blueprint of institutional and doctrinarian culture and ideology that systematically glorify and inspire terrorism (especially suicide bombing) and reject the existence – not just the size – of “the infidel and illegal” Zionist entity.
*Terrorists – contrary to freedom fighters – focus systematically, indiscriminately and deliberately on civilians.
*Most cities, towns and villages in Judea, Samaria and Gaza feature monuments, town squares, streets, schools, commemorative landmarks and sporting events, honoring hundreds of terrorists (shahids/martyrs), including the chief Palestinian Nazi collaborator, Haj Amin al-Husseini, who called for the extermination of all Jews and Arafat, who was a role model for terror organizations in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.
For example:
^Amin al-Husseini Elementary School in El-Bireh;
^Amin al-Husseini Multi-Purpose Hall in Jericho;
^Arafat Museum and Tomb in Ramallah, street statues and memorials in TulKarem, etc.
^Monuments, schools and squares idolizing Dalal Mughrabi, who led the 1978 Coastal Road Massacre of civilian passengers in a Haifa-Tel Aviv bus, murdering 37, including 12 children, and a US photographer on a nearby beach.
^Monuments and sites glorifying Abu Jihad (Khalil al-Wazir), the Head of Fatah’s terror wing, who orchestrated the murder of 125 Israeli civilians.
^Monuments revering Khaled Nazzal, who played a key role in the 1974 Ma’alot massacre of 22 children and 4 adult civilians.
^Monuments praising Ahmad Jabarah Abu Sukkar, who planned the 1976 murder of 15 Israeli civilians in Jerusalem.
^Etc……
*Palestinian veneration of ordinary terrorists and suicide bombers (Shahids) via physical monuments is not an isolated ritual. It directly intersects with intrinsic Palestinian cultural, political and ideological doctrines, legal texts, school textbooks, and Palestinian Authority and Hamas official media.
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