Israel In World's Soccer Games

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                 

        The 2026 FIFA World Cup matches are jointly hosted across three North American countries: the United States, Mexico, and Canada.                                  

                Israeli team The Israel men's national football team is scheduled to play the Republic of Ireland on October 4, 2026. This UEFA Nations League match will be played at a neutral overseas venue and behind closed doors, having been relocated due to security and operational challenges. 

The governing body's board has held meetings in recent weeks to discuss the "operational aspects" of hosting Israel at Dublin's Aviva Stadium on 4 October.  Ireland was home for many Jews including my grandfather, Nathan Goldfoot/Goldfus. Despite the small numbers, Irish Jews have been deeply woven into the country's social and political fabric. For example, Chaim Herzog, who served as the sixth President of Israel, was born in Belfast and raised in Dublin,  but today Ireland is hostile to Israel.  This will be interesting.         

An Israeli flag was reportedly removed from a fan at a World Cup match between Iran and New Zealand, while nearby Palestinian flags were left in place, Hebrew media reported. The incident, filmed inside the stadium and circulated on social media, showed stewards asking a fan to hand over an Israeli flag during Iran’s opening match of the 2026 World Cup, Israel Hayom reported. The fan pointed to Palestinian flags being held a few rows away and accused the stewards of applying the rules unevenly.“Why don’t you tell them to take down their flag?” the fan said, according to Israel Hayom. “This feels like antisemitism. When you take that flag down, I’ll take mine down.” [The reason being that Palestine is receiving benefit from Iran, so they're not complaining].  {New Zealand's coalition government, led by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, has repeatedly condemned civilian deaths in Gaza and demanded unfettered humanitarian assistance. However, the government has stopped short of officially recognizing Palestinian statehood, aligning more closely with traditional Western allies.}So New Zealand was no help, either.  Yes, it was an anti-Semitic move, but then the act itself was pretty off-color being neither was playing against Israel. Wave the flag when we play New Zealand, if that comes up.   

The Israel men's national football team is currently ranked 76th in the official FIFA World Rankings.  FIFA stands for Fédération Internationale de Football Association. It is the global governing body for association football (known as soccer in the United States and Canada).                                                                             

     East wing of White House unfinished;  The East Wing housed several offices, including those of the first lady. It was built in 1902 and and has been renovated over the years, with a second story added in 1942, according to the White House. The Republican president had said in July when the project was announced that the ballroom would not interfere with the mansion itself. "It'll be near it but not touching it and pays total respect to the existing building, which I'm the biggest fan of," he said of the White House. Construction for the new White House State Ballroom began in September 2025, following the demolition of the original East Wing structure in October 2025

At the 2026 World Cup draw in Washington, D.C. on 5 December 2025, the inaugural prize was presented to Donald Trump, president of the United States, by head of FIFA Gianni Infantino.   Gianni Infantino holds citizenship in Switzerland, Italy, and Lebanon. 

World Cup: Argentina claimed the 1st prize at the last FIFA World Cup in 2022. The ongoing 2026 tournament is currently in its group stage.                                    

Group D:   USA vs. Australia was played today at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington.  USA played Australia today.  USA Advances 🚨🇺🇸 FIFA World Cup Now reacts to USA's 2-0 win over Australia.  Sacha Kljestan, Mo Edu, Stu Holden, Brad Guzan and Melissa Ortiz reacts to USA's 2-0 win over Australia, which sends them to the Round of 32.

  

The Rulers of Lebanon and How They Got On Their Seat Of Power Fighting Israel

 Nadene Goldfoot                    Biblical Days

           Jezebel (d: 843 BCE) she was able to influence her husband, King Ahab of Israel into anything.  

.  There was a time when they were friends: The king Hiram of Tyre sent artisans and cedar wood to King Solomon of Israel to help build the Temple.  The 2 kings jointly exploited the commerce between Elath and Ophir via the Red Sea.  

The Tyrian princess Jezebel, daughter of the king of Sidon,  married King Ahab, son of King Omri of Israel,  who ruled from 876- 853 BCE and introduced Baal worship to the Israelites, and the religious and cultural influence of Tyre penetrated to Israel and even to Judah. The Jewish population in Lebanon was ancient.  There have been Jews living today in Beirut.  There had been Jewish communities in Tripoli, Tyre, and Sidon.  They were engaged in commerce;  trading.

     Alexander the Great in red and white in the Temple in Jerusalem 

 By Assyrian and Babylonian history, Tyre was denounced by Ezekiel (Ch. 27), and suffered a series of Sieges and in 332 BCE, was captured by Alexander the Great.                            

                                   Modern Days

The situation today is impossible.  Lebanon has no power over their country at all.  Hezbollah rules.. It hasn't always been like this.

Lebanon rules by 1. The High-Level Power Sharing ("The Troika")

By unwritten convention (originating from the 1943 National Pact), the three highest offices in the nation are strictly divided among the largest communities: 

• President: Always a Maronite Christian.
• Prime Minister: Always a Sunni Muslim.
• Speaker of Parliament: Always a Shia Muslim.

From 1947-1949, Israel's War of Independence, Lebanese forces invaded Israel along with their peers.  In 1944, the middle of WWII, there was the population of 6,261 Jews in Lebanon.  After 1948 this number grew by Jews entering from Syria, and the population by 1964 was from 5,000 to 7,000l.  After 67's Six Day War, the number lessened,                       

Hezbollah

Most of the 1,000 remaining Jews by 1975  left during the Civil War and by 1990 less than 100 remained.  Hezbollah was formed in 1982 by Lebanese Shiite clerics, heavily backed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), in response to the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.  Israel invaded Lebanon in June 1982 (often referred to as the 1982 Lebanon War - Wikipedia or Operation Peace for Galilee) to stop cross-border attacks, destroy the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in the region, and install a pro-Israel government in Lebanon. 

                    Bachir Gemayel -"General" Gemayel allied with Israel and his forces fought the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Syrian Army.

Two men served as President of Lebanon in 1982: Élias Sarkis and Amine Gemayel. A third president-elect, Bachir Gemayel, was assassinated before taking office.  He was elected president on 23 August 1982, but was assassinated before taking office on 14 September, via a bomb explosion by Habib Shartouni, a member of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party.

 Championing the Shiite population—historically marginalized by the country's ruling Christian and Sunni elite—Hezbollah established itself as a premier resistance force fighting to expel Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, which Israel ultimately withdrew from in 2000. Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in May 2000 primarily because the 18-year occupation had become a severe military and political burden. The prolonged presence in the self-declared "security zone" proved unsustainable due to escalating guerrilla warfare from Hezbollah, mounting Israeli casualties, and a growing domestic protest movement demanding troops be brought home,

The Lebanese Parliament: Confessional Seats: or how they decide things, how they vote.   

The Lebanese Parliament is a unicameral body consisting of 128 directly elected Deputies. In accordance with the Constitution, all parliamentary seats are divided equally between Christians and Muslims.  

The seats are further sub-divided into eleven confessional branches (four within Islam and seven within Christianity). The distribution of the 128 seats among the eleven confessions listed here is formalized under the 2008 Election Law.

The single seat for Christian Minorities is intended to provide parliamentary representation for six recognized confessional groups. Lebanese citizens of any other religion, including two that are formally recognized by the State, are unable to be elected to Parliament.

Today:  The President of Lebanon is Joseph Aoun, Christian.  Again and yet again, Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire that went into effect at 4:00 p.m. local time today. However, the situation dramatically flared overnight when an intense exchange of fire broke out just as diplomats were attempting to announce the fresh truce.Impact: The fierce exchange of fire overnight and into today resulted in the deaths of at least 18 civilians and four Israeli soldiers.   For the most recent flare-up between Israel and Hezbollah, Israeli officials stated they launched strikes in southern Lebanon in response to Hezbollah killing four Israeli soldiers in an attack on a tank.

 Diplomatic Fallout: Conflict Flared: The situation repeated itself as Israeli forces unleashed lethal salvos just as a ceasefire was being finalized, a recurring pattern in the conflict.  Let it be known that Hezbollah strikes first and then Israel follows up to beat the heck out of them;  teach them a lesson of STOP FIRING !!!!!

The sudden flare-up prompted Iran to suspend planned peace and de-escalation talks with the United States in Switzerland. [What a way for Iran to get out of it!].  Massive Missile Arsenal: Hezbollah possesses a vast, highly precise arsenal of tens of thousands of rockets capable of striking deep into Israeli population centers, critical infrastructure, and military bases within minutes. An initial strike would trigger this retaliation, resulting in significant civilian casualties and infrastructural damage.  Israel is on top of this.  They know of this danger. 

I can just see Iran laughing like crazy, having Israel by their bootstraps, caught if they attack Hezbollah and caught if they don't attack and defend themselves.   I believe Netanyahu just gave the order to not attack defensively for the present.  ???

Although Israel agreed to a ceasefire with Hezbollah, both sides have continued to report strikes and violations across the region, with Israeli officials warning that they will independently resume military action if they deem the truce conditions broken

Goals Of Netanyahu's Likud Party Affecting Vance And Trump ?

 Nadene Goldfoot                                       

Benjamin Netanyahu and other Likud members make a number four gesture (credit: LIKUD SPOKESPERSON)

The Likud party aims to secure the northern border against Hezbollah by maintaining military deterrence, pushing for enforcement of truce agreements requiring Hezbollah to leave southern Lebanon, and refusing to restrict IDF operations. 

Currently, five countries operate without a single codified, written constitution: Canada, Israel, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, and the United Kingdom. 

"Unwritten" (or uncodified) doesn't mean these countries lack constitutional laws; instead, they rely on a collection of separate foundational documents, statutes, judicial precedents, and unwritten traditions rather than one unified text.                                 

Rooted in Revisionist Zionism, the party views the Land of Israel as an eternal birthright and advocates for uncompromising state security and the defense of all Jewish communities.

Likud (Hebrew: הַלִּיכּוּד,  'The Consolidation'), officially known as Likud – National Liberal Movement is a major right-wing political party in Israel. It was founded in 1973 by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon in an alliance with several right-wing parties. 

Likud emphasizes national security policy based on a strong military force when threatened with continued enmity against Israel. It has shown reluctance to negotiate with its neighbors whom it believes continue to seek the destruction of the Jewish state, that based on the principle of the party founder Menachem Begin concerning the preventive policy to any potential attacks on State of Israel. Its suspicion of neighboring Arab nations' intentions, however, has not prevented the party from reaching agreements with Israel's neighbors, such as the 1979 peace treaty with Egypt. Likud's willingness to enter mutually accepted agreements with neighboring countries over the years is related to the formation of other right-wing parties. Like other right-wing parties in Israel, Likud politicians have sometimes criticized particular Supreme Court decisions, but it remains committed to rule of law principles that it hopes to entrench in a written constitution.

Israel does not have a single, formal, written constitution. Instead, it operates under an uncodified constitutional system.  Instead of a single document, Israel relies on a collection of "Basic Laws". These laws, such as those defining the structure of the government and protecting human rights, hold a semi-constitutional status. 

This piecemeal constitutional framework came about for a few key reasons:

• The Harari Resolution: Under the 1950 Harari Resolution, the Israeli legislature (the Knesset) decided to pass Basic Laws individually, with the intention of eventually compiling them into a single, formalized constitution. This unified compilation has never been completed.
•                                              
  
  
  

  David Ben Gurion, to become Prime Minister of Israel,  reading the Declaration of Independence of the State of Israel © GPO/Hans Pin. 

• On May 14, 1948, on the day in which the British Mandate over a Palestine expired, the Jewish People's Council gathered at the Tel Aviv Museum, and approved the following proclamation, declaring the establishment of the State of Israel. The new state was recognized that night by the United States and three days later by the USSR.

• Religious and Political Divisions: Early leaders, including David Ben-Gurion, faced deep disagreements between secular groups and religious factions regarding the role of Jewish religious law (Halacha) and state identity, leading them to avoid a rigid constitutional document.  Because Israel's system of proportional representation means no single party ever wins an outright majority in the 120-seat parliament (Knesset), Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has historically relied on coalitions built with ultra-Orthodox and extreme right-wing religious parties to secure and maintain power.
• Judicial Review: Over time, the Israeli Supreme Court determined that because these Basic Laws function as a constitution, the court has the power of judicial review and can strike down laws that contradict them.
• The national identity of Israel was most recently restated on July 19, 2018, when the Knesset (Israel's parliament) passed the Basic Law: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People.  (#1 below)
• In July 2018, the Israeli Knesset passed the highly controversial "Nation-State" Basic Law: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People. 
  The law constitutionally anchored Israel's character as the nation-state of the Jewish people. It was "shook up" and passed for the following reasons: 
  • National Self-Determination: It explicitly established that the right to national self-determination in Israel is "unique to the Jewish people".
  • Hebrew Language: It made Hebrew the country's sole official language, downgrading Arabic from an official language to one with a "special status". 
  • Jewish Settlement: It established the development of Jewish settlements as a national value and mandated that the state promote it.

• Basic Law: Israel as the Nation State of the Jewish People

  1 — Basic principles

  A. The land of Israel is the historical homeland of the Jewish people, in which the State of Israel was established.

  B. The State of Israel is the national home of the Jewish people, in which it fulfills its natural, cultural, religious and historical right to self-determination.

  C. The right to exercise national self-determination in the State of Israel is unique to the Jewish people.

• Netanyahu had reason enough to defend Israel's land from Hezbollah.  At the same time, his act might have strengthened Lebanon into fighting Hezbollah as well. 

•