The surprise discovery of an ancient drainage tunnel in Jerusalem provides archeologists with insight into life in the Jewish capital during the Second Temple period.
By Netanel Doron
Israeli archaeologists stumbled upon an important historical find outside the walls of Jerusalem’s Old City, on the steep road leading down to the Pool of Siloam where Jesus healed the blind man (John 9:1-11). They had been digging in the area for three months, searching for what was the main road in Jerusalem during biblical times.
The sudden collapse of a stone wall revealed a hole, and when archeologists Eli Shukron and Ronny Reich climbed in the spectacle before them took their breath away. They found themselves in a well-preserved tunnel made of hewn stones, about seven meters (yards) below today’s streets. It is about 70 meters long, 2 to 2.5 meters high and 1 meter wide.
“The discovery of the tunnel was a total surprise,” Shukron told Israel Today during a tour of the site. “As we were entering, we also discovered the street we were searching for, above us. The street was used by Jewish pilgrims to ascend to the Temple on the three great pilgrimage festivals of Passover, Shavuot ...   more »

The Christian world is buzzing with news of a major find. Israeli archaeologists have uncovered the ruins of a third or fourth century church in northern Israel, which they believe could be the oldest ever found in the Holy Land. The church contains a well-preserved mosaic with references to Jesus Christ and images of fish—an ancient Christian symbol. “This find is once in a lifetime,” chief archaeologist Yotam Tefer told israel today.
“It’s very, very exciting. It’s a very dramatic discovery because an old building of this type has never been found in the Land of Israel.” The church was found during renovations at a prison in Megiddo—what the New Testament calls Armageddon— the site where all the armies of the world will meet for the final showdown between good and evil.
“Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon” (Revelation 16:16). \
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By Yossi Klein Halevi      
A letter from an anxious Israeli to the presidential candidate on the eve of his visit to Jerusalem
 ERUSALEM — Dear Senator Obama,
Welcome to Israel. When you arrive here today, you will encounter a people intrigued by your candidacy and, given the current crisis of Israeli leadership, envious of your capacity to inspire. Issues that have worried some Americans about your background have scarcely been noted here. The whispering campaign labeling you a Muslim wasn't taken seriously by mainstream Israelis. Nor are we fazed by your middle name: Half of Israel's Jewish population has origins in Muslim cultures. Despite black-Jewish tensions in America, your color evokes little concern here; Israel rescued tens of thousands of African Jews and turned their arrival into a national celebration. Even Rev. Wright didn't cause much of a stir, maybe because we're used to being embarrassed by our own religious leaders.
Still, as much as Israelis want to embrace you, there is anxiety here about your candidacy. Not that we doubt your friendship: Your description of Israeli security as "sacrosanct," and your passionate endorsement of Israel's cause at the annual AIPAC conference in Washington, were greeted with banner headlines ...   more »

by Rabbi Shraga Simmons
How do we respond when a Hezbollah killer goes free?
Emotions peaked last week as Hezbollah handed over the bodies of the two Israeli soldiers whose kidnapping touched off the 2006 Lebanon War, Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, in exchange for Israel's release of Samir Kuntar, the unrepentant terrorist and child murderer.
The reaction in Israel was of somber national mourning.
In Lebanon, it was a day of national celebration. Government offices and banks were closed, and Kuntar was accorded a hero's welcome amidst huge rallies and fireworks.
With his military garb and arm proudly thrust forward in a Nazi salute, Kuntar vowed to murder more innocent Jews.
Throughout most of the civilized world, the reaction to this scene was revulsion and disdain.
My reaction was sorrow, mixed with humble gratitude, as I recalled this story from the Holocaust:
Rabbi Yekusiel Yehudah Halberstam, the revered Klausenberger Rebbe, was savagely beaten by a Nazi with crushing, deadly blows. As the rabbi was sprawled on the ground, bleeding from his head, the Nazi thrust his jackboot into the rabbi's chest and mockingly sneered: "So tell me, how does it now feel to be a Jew?"
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It is difficult to imagine Israel attacking Iran.
It is, however, more difficult to imagine Israel not attacking Iran.
Consider three questions:
First, does Iran mean what it says about destroying Israel? When its leaders repeatedly call for Israel's annihilation, after referring to it as a cancer and using other rhetoric not heard on a national level since the Nazi regime's depiction of Jews, is this just rhetorical flourish? Or do they really hope and plan to destroy Israel?
Second, can Iran do it? One can hope and even plan to do something outrageous, but that does not necessarily mean that one can accomplish it. So, the second question is whether Iran can destroy Israel, or at least murder a high enough percentage of its population and destroy enough of its infrastructure to enable surrounding Arab states to invade and do the rest of the job that the majority of Arabs favor (even if some of their governments have a peace treaty with Israel).
It seems to me that the answers to the first two questions are so obvious that any burden of proof rests on those who argue otherwise. Do they think Iranian leaders are bluffing? Why would these ...   more »

Yaakov Asael, 53-year-old grandfather of six, kills rampaging bulldozer driver
Yaakov Asael, a resident of the Susiya settlement in southern Mount Hebron is Tuesday's hero. Asael shot and killed the terrorist who carried out the bulldozer attack in Jerusalem earlier in the day  
Fifty-three-year-old Asael is an IDF reserves company commander, a father of eight, grandfather of six, and a teacher.  
Terror Attack  
18 injured in Jerusalem bulldozer attack / Efrat Weiss  
Once again: Bulldozer driver runs wild on Jerusalem's King David Street, crashing into cars; at least 18 people injured, one sustaining moderate to serious wounds. Civilian, Border Guard officers shoot terrorist to death     
Ayelet Recanati, Asael’s daughter, told Ynet that her father is “resourceful."  
"He was a military man in commanding positions in combat units, in the armored corps," she said.  
“He is a bible teacher and an agriculturalist but has studied judo his whole life. He is a Jewish Israeli who combines the Torah and labor and tremendous politeness," she said.
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