Tisha B'Av: Just a Thought

With the arrival of Tisha B'Av (the 9th day of the 11th month of the Hebrew calendar) which is traditionally held as a day of great catastrophe in Judaism, perhaps it's worth considering whether it's a mere coincidence that the day of venahafoch hu (reversal, turning around of circumstances) for Zionism came on the catastrophic 11th day of the 9th month of the Gregorian calendar 2001:

Asked [the night of September 11, 2001] what the attack meant for relations between the United States and Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, the former prime minister, replied, "It's very good." Then he edited himself: "Well, not very good, but it will generate immediate sympathy." He predicted that the attack would "strengthen the bond between our two peoples, because we've experienced terror over so many decades, but the United States has now experienced a massive hemorrhaging of terror." (James Bennet, "A DAY OF TERROR: THE ISRAELIS; Spilled Blood Is Seen as Bond That Draws 2 Nations Closer," New York Times, September 12, 2001)

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/12/us/day-terror-israelis-spilled-blood-seen-bond-that-draws-2-nations-closer.html

The Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv on Wednesday reported that Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu told an audience at Bar Ilan university that the September 11, 2001 terror attacks had been beneficial for Israel.

"We are benefiting from one thing, and that is the attack on the Twin Towers and Pentagon, and the American struggle in Iraq," Ma'ariv quoted the former prime minister as saying. He reportedly added that these events "swung American public opinion in our favor."

Netanyahu reportedly made the comments during a conference at Bar-Ilan University on the division of Jerusalem as part of a peace deal with the Palestinians. ("Report: Netanyahu says 9/11 terror attacks good for Israel," Haaretz, April 18, 2008)

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/975574.html

also see:

Perpetual Purim, Reversal/Hippuch

Purim-Shpiel 2009