Wednesday, October 04, 2023

10/04 Links Pt1: American Involvement Has Not Made the United Nations Any Better; Israel-Saudi normalization has nothing to do with Biden

From Ian:

American Involvement Has Not Made the United Nations Any Better
Last week, Russia’s announcement that it is seeking a seat on the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) stirred some outrage in the West. To anyone familiar with that organization—where such countries as China, Cuba, and Qatar join in libeling and condemning Israel while diverting attention from their own human-rights abuses—it will be no surprise if Moscow’s bid succeeds. And this sort of corruption is endemic to the United Nations as whole. The UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), for instance, recently made the ancient city of Jericho a “world heritage site” with a statement that ignored any ties to Jewish history.

As Richard Goldberg and Enia Krivine point out, the U.S. had left both the UNHRC and UNESCO because of such behavior. The Biden administration has rejoined, on the grounds that “engagement” is the only way to obtain reform—with little success:
The U.S. rejoined [UNESCO] and began paying down more than $600 million in arrears in July, only to be sucker-punched with another anti-Semitic act as the president arrived in New York last week. The administration had demanded the legal ability to rejoin UNESCO, claiming it necessary to counter China within the UN system. But . . . the Biden administration’s track record of countering China at the UN is abysmal.

The administration didn’t even try to challenge the WHO’s Beijing-influenced director-general despite China’s continued cover-up of COVID-19’s origins. A U.S. attempt to hold China accountable inside the Human Rights Council for its genocide in Xinjiang failed. And China still works with Russia to stymie Washington in the Security Council. The goal of countering China within the UN system is noble. Believing that it can be achieved by abandoning U.S. leverage is woefully misguided.

Countering China, however, is not the real reason the U.S. has rejoined a UN organization that continues to spew anti-Semitism. The real reason is the Biden administration’s unshakable ideological belief in the utility of UN engagement for engagement’s sake—the notion that swimming against anti-American currents in a sea of dictators will produce positive results for U.S. national security. The overwhelming evidence suggests the opposite is true.
Israel ambassador warns UN 'contaminated' by antisemitism, says peace with Saudis can 'transform' region
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan had pointed remarks for the world body after being detained by its security personnel, telling Fox News Digital that antisemitism is "very prevalent" within the halls of the U.N.

"The U.N. is a building, and it's fair to say that in this building, antisemitism sadly is very prevalent," Erdan said during an interview with Fox News Digital. "There are many antisemitic countries like Iran who want to annihilate the one and only Jewish state, and we don't hear any condemnation against Iran for saying it."

Erdan's comments come after U.N. security personnel detained the Israeli ambassador after he left the General Assembly Hall to protest a speech by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.

During his protest of the speech, Erdan held up a picture of Mahsa Amini, the Iranian woman who sparked protests across the country last year after she was killed while in the custody of police for not wearing the proper head covering in public, with a caption of Erdan's photo reading, "Iranian women deserve freedom now!"

Erdan expressed disgust with the U.N.'s "red carpet treatment" of the Iranian president to Fox News Digital, noting that Raisi is "responsible for the murder of thousands of his own people."

"I felt that I had to do something," Erdan said. "So I protested peacefully, and I held up the picture of Mahsa Amini and suddenly… I was roughly manhandled by the U.N. security."

Erdan said that his detention "was a small price" to pay for the protest, arguing that he wanted to convey an important message that "the people of Israel stand in solidarity with the people of Iran" against "this ruthless regime."
Seth Frantzman: Iran facing a battle to stop Middle East normalization with Israel
Nasrallah and the ayatollah are on the same page because Iran is quite good at controlling the narrative it puts out, using both its media and its proxies to conduct a full-court press. It could even operationalize other proxies, such as Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, or the Houthis in Yemen.

The concern now in Tehran is that it has not been able to push its agenda as much as it would like. Earlier this year, it was able to obtain reconciliation with Riyadh via a China-brokered deal, and it later got the Assad regime to come in from the cold via reintegration with the Arab League.

This all looked like positive news to Tehran, possibly opening the door to concessions from Washington. But since then, it has seen many of these pawn-like movements on the chessboard of the region face hurdles.

Saudi Arabia has its own interests in reconciliation with Iran. But Riyadh also has its own independent foreign policy, and Saudi Arabia pursues its own interests on its own time; they run both together and independently.

This means Tehran may have miscalculated what it could get out of the moves it made over the past year. Reports about its strategy in Syria, trying to use Hezbollah to help arm Arab tribes to challenge the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in exchange for also getting something from Russia, show Iran flailing about for a new policy.

Tehran fully knows it now faces an uphill struggle against the momentum toward normalization. It will attempt to destabilize various arenas in an effort to get the ball back in its court.
Israel's alleged airstrike: A message to 3 regional actors
Israel reportedly carried out 32 attacks in Syria in 2022, and since early 2023 it has already struck 25 times in the country—at the very least. . . . The Iranian-Israeli clash stands out in the wake of the dramatic events in the region, chiefly among them is the effort to strike a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia, and later on with various other Muslim-Sunni states. Iran is trying to torpedo this process and has even publicly warned Saudi Arabia not to “gamble on a losing horse” because Israel’s demise is near. Riyadh is unlikely to heed that demand, for its own reasons.

Despite the thaw in relations between the kingdom and the Islamic Republic—including the exchange of ambassadors—the Saudis remain very suspicious of the Iranians. A strategic manifestation of that is that Riyadh is trying to forge a defense pact with the U.S.; a tactical manifestation took place this week when Saudi soccer players refused to play a match in Iran because of a bust of the former Revolutionary Guard commander Qassem Suleimani, [a master terrorist whose militias have wreaked havoc throughout the Middle East, including within Saudi borders].

Of course, Israel is trying to bring Saudi Arabia into its orbit and to create a strong common front against Iran. The attack in Syria is ostensibly unrelated to the normalization process and is meant to prevent the terrorists on Israel’s northern border from laying their hands on sophisticated arms, but it nevertheless serves as a clear reminder for Riyadh that it must not scale back its fight against the constant danger posed by Iran.


Learning the Right Lessons from the Iraq War
One of the few points of general agreement between the American right and left today is that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was a colossal strategic blunder. Yet, Abe Greenwald observes, much of the discussion of the war today is surrounded by “hysteria” that “has made it difficult to look back on the invasion of Iraq with the kind of seriousness that such investigations require.” He finds in Melvyn Leffler’s Confronting Saddam Hussein a much-needed sober evaluation:

Leffler frames the decision to invade Iraq as the last stage in a long-developing showdown between Saddam Hussein and the United States. And in his opening chapter on the life of Hussein, the accurate recounting of the facts is more than sufficient to create a lurid portrait of a life-long monster. There’s much here that the “Sure, Saddam was bad, but” crowd would do well to learn. . . .

Leffler’s characterization of George W. Bush’s path from first son to president is pedestrian by contrast, since the facts of Bush’s somewhat wayward youth and his religious redemption are already sufficiently known. But Leffler’s take is valuable in demonstrating that, upon taking office, neither Bush nor most of his foreign-policy team had any interest in toppling Saddam Hussein or establishing democracy in Iraq. Contrary to popular imagination, this was no neoconservative cabal.

What changed everything, of course, were the attacks of 9/11. But even after that, Bush was slow in coming around to focusing on Iraq. . . . And, for their part, what interested [Secretary of Defense Donald] Rumsfeld and [Deputy Secretary of Defense] Paul Wolfowitz about Iraq was not its dearth of democracy or the prospects for regime change, but rather its capacity to hit the U.S. even harder than al-Qaeda had. This wasn’t the position of the Defense Department alone.

At the same time, Hussein was making jihadist speeches and supporting Hamas. He had kicked weapons inspectors out of Iraq, and the international sanctions regime against him was falling apart. And he had duped inspectors in the past.
Afghan resistance leader wants Israel's help in fighting the Taliban
The leader of the National Resistance Front in Afghanistan, the primary group fighting the Taliban in the country, said that he would be willing to work with Israel in a regional peace initiative according to an exclusive Tuesday interview with Maariv.

He has said he would be willing to accept aid and support from the Jewish state.

"We need help from any party that wants to support us, including Israel. I think we should all act together for the advancement of humanity in the face of darkness, terrorism and ignorance,” said Ahmed Massoud, the head of the National Resistance Front.

Massoud, who succeeded his father after studying at elite universities and the famous Sandhurst Royal Military Academy in England, came to gather support in Europe for the resistance forces he led and to promote his book ‘Our Freedom’.

Massoud has claimed he does not want to be the president himself and that a democratic government will be established which will then decide on its official international relations and its participation in regional development programs with Israel.

Conflict harms us all
"But I believe that it will be necessary to overcome the conflicts of the past and live together in peace. We live, unfortunately, in a connected world.

"Conflicts like those in Palestine and Israel and in other places like Africa, Yemen and Afghanistan itself - will harm us all. There is a need for solutions and dialogue. Peace is the goal and it needs to begin from us".
Putin's Man in Ankara: Erdoğan
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is trying to get the most from Turkey's theoretical Western allies while in reality allying with Russian President Vladimir Putin – like sort of a Muslim Fidel Castro.

"[A]ny sense of a significant change in Mr. Erdoğan's balancing act between Russia and the West appeared to evaporate on Monday, when he and Mr. Putin stood side by side after a meeting in the Russian resort town of Sochi and spoke of expanding cooperation." — Editorial, The New York Times, September 4, 2023.

Erdoğan returned home [from Sochi] with an agenda to convince Western parties to the [grain corridor] deal on whatever terms Moscow insists should be in any new agreement.

Erdoğan needs Western money to prevent Turkey's economic suicide. He needs U.S.-made fighter jets to maintain a delicate power balance over the Aegean skies. He needs Western pats on the shoulder to win legitimacy for his undemocratic one-man rule. But he wants all of these cookies without having to give up Russia. Over the past years, Erdoğan has made Turkey addicted to Russia, like a junkie to a dealer.

[I]t was appalling to hear an EU ambassador in Ankara tell me that he was appalled that Erdoğan said that a) he trusts Russia as much as he trusts the West, and that b) Ankara could "part ways" with the European Union if necessary. Erdogan's ultranationalist ally, Devlet Bahçeli, immediately endorsed the cheap bluff: "We're done with the EU."

That is the way Erdoğan does horse trading. Sadly, each time, the gullible West gets cheated.

Erdoğan's Turkey is one of the countries breaking Western sanctions on Russia. Earlier in September, the US State Department imposed sanctions on five Turkish shipping and trade companies for repairing Russian Defense Ministry vessels, transporting Russian military goods, and helping Russia to evade sanctions.

Perhaps Erdoğan is right. Turkey should part ways with the EU – and NATO too.
Syria’s Druze Uprising, and What It Means for the Region
When the Arab Spring came to Syria in 2011, the Druze for the most part remained loyal to the regime—which has generally depended on the support of religious minorities such as the Druze and thus afforded them a modicum of protection. But in the past several weeks that has changed, with sustained anti-government protests in the Druze-dominated southwestern province of Suwayda. Ehud Yaari evaluates the implications of this shift:

The disillusionment of the Druze with Bashar al-Assad, their suspicion of militias backed by Iran and Hizballah on the outskirts of their region, and growing economic hardships are fanning the flames of revolt. In Syrian Druze circles, there is now open discussion of “self-rule,” for example replacing government offices and services with local Druze alternative bodies.

Is there a politically acceptable way to assist the Druze and prevent the regime from the violent reoccupation of Jebel al-Druze, [as they call the area in which they live]? The answer is yes. It would require Jordan to open a short humanitarian corridor through the village of al-Anat, the southernmost point of the Druze community, less than three kilometers from the Syrian-Jordanian border.

Setting up a corridor to the Druze would require a broad consensus among Western and Gulf Arab states, which have currently suspended the process of normalization with Assad. . . . The cost of such an operation would not be high compared to the humanitarian corridors currently operating in northern Syria. It could be developed in stages, and perhaps ultimately include, if necessary, providing the Druze with weapons to defend their territory. A quick reminder: during the Islamic State attack on Suwayda province in 2018, the Druze demonstrated an ability to assemble close to 50,000 militia men almost overnight.
Jonathan Tobin: Israel-Saudi normalization has nothing to do with Biden
What the Saudis want
As we learned this past week, Iran’s nuclear program has now reached the point where it is now a given that the Iranians can assemble a bomb in less than two weeks, essentially ending in the failure of Western and Israeli efforts to prevent such an outcome.

As MBS told Fox News, the Saudis won’t sit by and allow their sworn enemies in Tehran to get a bomb without seeking one themselves. That’s why the wish list they handed the Americans earlier this year as the price for signing a normalization agreement included U.S. assistance to create a Saudi nuclear program.

That’s never going to happen. Most Democrats despise the Saudis and wouldn’t go along with a treaty guaranteeing their defense—another possible component of a normalization deal—even without helping the authoritarian monarchy in Riyadh go nuclear.

The Saudis are willing to pay lip service to the Palestinians. But it’s equally clear that MBS’s government has zero interest in efforts to create another independent Palestinian Arab state besides the Hamas-run terrorist enclave in the Gaza Strip. In his interview with Baer, MBS spoke of wanting to “ease the lives of Palestinians” but conspicuously left out any mention of two states or Israeli territorial concessions. The only ones talking about those dubious objectives are Biden’s team.

This leaves the president caught in an interesting bind. He’d like a diplomatic win to boost his re-election chances, but the Biden team is too interested in undermining Netanyahu and in trying to somehow salvage their desire for a rapprochement with Iran to return to a policy that weds the United States to its traditional Israeli and Saudi allies.

That leaves Biden’s Middle East policy a hopeless muddle. Nevertheless, as both Netanyahu and MBS have made clear, they don’t need Washington to hold their hands in order for the two countries to grow closer. These two once-unlikely friends were brought together by Obama’s pivot to Iran and the nuclear dilemma, as well as their national interests. That will continue to bind them in an informal alliance that can thrive even without a signed treaty.
Senior Biden advisers quietly visit Saudi Arabia to discuss mega-deal
Senior Biden advisers quietly visited Saudi Arabia last week to continue talks on a potential mega-deal that could include a peace agreement between the kingdom and Israel, two sources with direct knowledge of the issue told Axios.

Why it matters: Talks for the deal gained momentum last month following President Biden's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But it also became clear there are still many issues to work out, including a Palestinian component to any such agreement, and that the process will take time.
- The Biden administration is pushing to get a mega-deal with Saudi Arabia and Israel before the 2024 presidential campaign consumes Biden's agenda.

Behind the scenes: Brett McGurk, the White House Middle East czar, and Amos Hochstein, Biden's senior adviser for energy and infrastructure, visited Saudi Arabia for several hours last Thursday, the sources said.
- The White House did not disclose their trip.
- McGurk and Hochstein met with MBS and other senior Saudi officials and discussed the different elements of the mega deal, according to the sources.
- One of the sources said the Biden advisers also discussed other regional and bilateral issues.
In first, Israeli minister delivers speech in Riyadh, lauds blossoming ties
Communication Minister Shlomo Karhi made history on Wednesday as the first Israeli politician to deliver a speech in Saudi Arabia, a country that has no ties with the Jewish state.

“We greatly appreciate the tireless efforts of the leaders of Saudi Arabia, and our Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, for nurturing the blossoming ties between our nations,” Karhi told the University Postal Union’s Fourth Extraordinary Congress.

Speaking in English from his seat, Karhi wore a blue suit and a crocheted skullcap on his head and spoke into a handheld microphone.

Like all the speakers, who also used English, he addressed the country’s postal plans for the future explaining that he wanted to privatize that service. US efforts toward Israeli-Saudi normalization

But his speech gave a nod to the US-led efforts underway to normalize Israeli-Saudi ties and was laced with symbolism about Israel’s push to build ties with its Arab neighbors.

“Today, as I stand before you, I am reminded of the great leaders of our past, who envisioned a world united in purpose, and bound by shared values,” Karhi said.

Then he held up a small optical fiber cable as a sign of how countries would unify in the future as he referenced the US-based India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor that US President Joe Biden unveiled last month. That cording linking India and Europe is expected to travel through Israel, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia.
David Litvinov and the heavy lifting of Israel-Saudi peace
As Israel and Saudi Arabia continue to inch their way towards peace, a member of the Israeli weightlifting team that was the first to compete in an athletic tournament inside the desert kingdom shared his experience and hopes for the future.

David Litvinov was a member of the four-man team that competed in the 2023 World Weightlifting Championships in Riyadh in September. The delegation openly represented Israel under the Jewish state’s flag, while on a mission to secure a spot in the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

“It was very special for us, because it was the first time an Israeli delegation could officially be in Saudi Arabia, and it was very exciting because of that,” said Litvinov.

“We found ourselves celebrating Rosh Hashanah there, also celebrating a new chapter in relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel, and it was very special for us to be part of it,” he continued. “We were allowed to go out of the hotel and see Riyadh, the security guards took us every place we could find on the internet, tourist spots.”

Asked how the Israeli delegation’s participation in Riyadh came about, Litvinov, who competed in the 109 kilogram category, said, “Part of the way to qualify for 2024 Olympics is to take part in international competitions, and one of them is the championship in Saudi Arabia. They realized they had to let us compete, otherwise they would have to withdraw from hosting the competition.”

Israeli sporting officials made contact, and the Saudis “gave us everything we needed to make this happen,” he said.

“It was no surprise, everyone knew we were coming there to compete.”
PreOccupiedTerritory: Biden Admin Promises To Help Make Israel As Secure As Southern US Border (satire)
White House representatives issued assurances today that the president remains as committed as ever to keeping the Jewish State safe, stressing American guarantees to keep its staunchest Middle East ally as tightly protected as the frontier between Mexico and the states of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Wednesday at the daily briefing that President Biden and his team will continue to support Israeli security, and that anyone who doubts the US ability to do so should look at the southern border with Mexico.

“That is the quality of the results we aim to achieve,” she stated. “The seal we have on our southern border represents the iron-clad guarantees we offer for ongoing Israeli security and safety.”

Israel faces constant attempts by Palestinian and other Islamist militants to infiltrate its territory, from the Gaza Strip, the Sinai border with Egypt, occasional guerrilla activity from Jordan, and from Iran-backed militias and terrorist groups in both Syria and Lebanon. The IDF has thwarted numerous infiltration attacks that the terrorists have tried to perpetrate using tunnels, gliders, frogmen, and other means – in addition to missiles and rockets that groups in both Gaza and Lebanon have procured from Iran in the thousand or tens of thousands, or produced crudely on their own.

“I urge everyone to visit Eagle Pass, Texas, for example, to get a clear picture of our vision for Israel’s border security,” Jean-Pierre stressed.


IAI signs $120 million satellite deal with Azerbaijan
Israel Aerospace Industries and the Space Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Azercosmos) on Tuesday announced the signing of a cooperation agreement for the sale of two advanced IAI satellites. According to Azerbaijan, the deal is valued at $120 million.

The “cutting-edge” satellites offer native imaging resolution better than 1.6 feet, according to a statement from the Israeli defense firm. Under the terms of the agreement, IAI will also provide “technology and knowledge for the construction and the operation of the satellites,” according to the statement.

The agreement includes a long-term business partnership between IAI and Azercosmos, reflected in the establishment of innovation, entrepreneurship, academic and study ecosystem in the field of space in Azerbaijan over the years.

“This landmark deal represents a significant step forward in space technology and cooperation between the two companies,” said IAI. “We are proud to have made significant contributions to this cooperation for Azerbaijan, and we are sure that this collaboration will propel us to new heights.”
Armenians threaten violence against Jews over Azeri relations
The World Jewish Center in Armenia’s capital, Yerevan, was vandalized on Tuesday night in an act thought to be directly related to Israel’s growing relations with neighboring adversary Azerbaijan.

The Nagorno-Karabakh enclave in Azerbaijan, historically inhabited by ethnic Armenian Christians, has been at the center of a longstanding conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

The improved relations between Israel and Azerbaijan prompted supporters of the Armenian separatist government in Nagorno-Karabakh to target the Jewish center in Yerevan.

The attackers issued a statement saying: “The Jews are the enemies of the Armenian nation, complicit in Turkish crimes and the regime of [Azerbaijan President Ilhan] Aliyev. The Jewish state provides weapons to Aliyev’s criminal regime, and Jews from America and Europe actively support him. Turkey, Aliyev’s regime, and the Jews are the sworn enemies of the Armenian state and people.”

They added: “If Jewish rabbis in the United States and Europe continue to support Aliyev’s regime, we will continue to burn their synagogues in other countries. Every rabbi will be a target for us. No Israeli Jew will feel safe in these countries.”
Hamas Rocked by Israeli Spy Penetrating Its Highest Ranks in Lebanon
An Israeli intelligence agent successfully infiltrated the upper echelons of Hamas in Lebanon, sending shockwaves through the terror organization and causing significant embarrassment.

The agent in question, identified as Khalil Abu Ma’za, a Hamas operative from the Gaza Strip, had been operating undercover for years, working closely with Israeli intelligence.

The reports say he was arrested by Lebanese authorities towards the end of September. He apparently came to the attention of Lebanese officials working to calm an outbreak of fighting in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in August.

The successful infiltration of an Israeli operative into the upper ranks of the Hamas organization has caused significant embarrassment and concern among its leadership.

Saleh Arouri, who is believed to be a top target for Israeli assassination, is said to be particularly worried about the security breach.

According to Lebanese intelligence reports, Abu Ma’za was originally tasked with infiltrating the leadership of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, a mission he carried out with remarkable success. Under the guidance of his Israeli handlers, he climbed the ranks of Hamas, especially within its Izz a-Din al-Qassam Brigades military wing.
Palestinian, Israeli women to march for peace in Jerusalem today
Palestinian and Israeli women plan to join forces on Wednesday afternoon to march for peace in Jerusalem and the Dead Sea and to call for female voices at the negotiating table.

“It is time for courageous leaders to generate hope for a better future for our children,” said Yael Admi, one of the founders and leaders of the Israel-based group Women Wage Peace which is a co-sponsor of the march together with the Palestinian group Women of the Sun.

A founder of the latter group Reem Hajajri said, “more and more women join the movement, women who want to protect their children and prevent them from being the next victim.

“We started out as a movement with a few lone women and now we are thousands from the West Bank and Gaza.

“We no longer take the back seat and are determined to act persistently to end the cycle of bloodshed and to achieve freedom and a just, honorable life for Palestinian and Israeli children,” she said.

Politicians and foreign diplomats to join march
The groups draw women of all political stripes around a central belief in peace and demand that women be included in the peacemaking process.

The march will begin at 1 p.m. in Jerusalem at the Monument of Tolerance and proceed for one kilometer along the Goldman Promenade in Jerusalem’s Armon HaNatziv neighborhood.
Princeton finally acknowledges kidnapping of Israeli student
Princeton University has finally acknowledged the kidnapping of Elizabeth Tsurkov, the doctoral candidate at the university and dual Russian-Israeli citizen who was kidnapped in Iraq six months and whose kidnapping was first reported in July.

Michael Hotchkiss, a deputy spokesman at Princeton, acknowledged that "Elizabeth was kidnapped while enrolled at the University and was in Iraq conducting research related to her approved Ph.D. dissertation topic."

Hotchkiss added that the university is “deeply concerned about the safety and well-being of Princeton graduate student Elizabeth Tsurkov and are eager for her to be released so she can rejoin her family and resume her studies."

“We have offered support to Elizabeth’s family and are in communication with government officials and experts for guidance on how the University can best help to bring Elizabeth home safely," he said.

Previously, Princeton had refused to admit that Tsurkov had been kidnapped and had maintained that she was merely "missing" following her abduction by Kata'ib Hezbollah,a Shi'ite militia affiliated with the Iranian government.

Tsurkov's family expressed relief that the university had finally acknowledged the kidnapping after campaigning for such acknowledgment for months.
Netanyahu intervenes and arrests made after Charedim spat at Christian pilgrims
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned "any attempt to intimidate worshippers" as five people were arrested after strictly Orthodox Jews were filmed spitting at Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem.

In footage posted online on Monday, a group can be seen leaving a church carrying a wooden cross.

They are forced to stop to avoid walking into a procession of Charedi men and boys celebrating Succot, several of whom then spit on the floor in front of the Christians.

Four children and one adult have since been arrested for assault, Jerusalem Police have said.

According to local media, one of the people arrested is believed to have appeared in the video, while the other four suspects allegedly spat at Christian visitors in a separate incident.

Responding to the clip, Netanyahu posted on X/Twitter: "Israel is totally committed to safeguard the sacred right of worship and pilgrimage to the holy sites of all faiths.

"I strongly condemn any attempt to intimidate worshippers, and I am committed to taking immediate and decisive action against it.

"Derogatory conduct towards worshipers is sacrilege and is simply unacceptable. Any form of hostility towards individuals engaged in worship will not be tolerated."

Several religious leaders have also strongly criticised the "despicable" actions captured on film.
Ultra-Orthodox spit on Christian worshippers in Jerusalem
Ultra-Orthodox spit on Christian worshippers in Jerusalem, sparking outrage and leading to the arrest of 5 suspects. Tour guide Robby Berman who witnessed this incident joins to provide more detail into this event.


Israeli child wounded by Palestinians near Huwara
An Israeli child was lightly wounded on Wednesday morning when Palestinian stoned Israeli vehicles on a road in the area of Huwara, according to Israel’s Army Radio.

The three-year-old girl was treated on the scene by Israel Defense Forces medics in the area and did not require evacuation to a hospital, the report added.

Four Israelis have been killed in Huwara in the past year—brothers Hallel and Yagel Yaniv in February and father and son Shay Silas and Aviad Nir Nigrekar in August.

Dual Israeli-U.S. citizen David Stern, 41, narrowly survived a shooting on March 19 while he was driving through Huwara with his wife on their way to Jerusalem.

Two Israeli soldiers were also wounded in a drive-by shooting in the village on March 25. A few days later, dozens of Arabs stoned cars traveling through Huwara bearing Israeli license plates.

Route 60, the main north-south highway in Judea and Samaria, runs through the village, which is located just outside Shechem (Nablus). The main section of a road that bypasses the town is scheduled to open later this month.

Work on the road began approximately two years ago, with several delays in the beginning. The construction received a boost in the form of an additional 50 million shekels ($13.2 million) following the murder of the Yaniv brothers and was initially planned to be completed by December.

Israeli Transportation Minister Miri Regev has lauded the project, saying the bypass road “will save lives and give residents a sense of security.”
IDF arrests 17 terrorists in West Bank raids
Israeli forces arrested 17 suspects and seized weapons in raids across the West Bank on Tuesday night, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said on Wednesday morning.

Troops fell under gunfire and bomb attack when they arrested one man in 'Aqqaba, but the only damage was to several military vehicles. Israeli forces were also attacked with stones during an arrest in Salfit and had to employ anti-riot measures.

In Hebron, two men were arrested and their stun grenades, pistol, and ammunition were confiscated. Another man was arrested and a pistol was seized in Barta'a.

Backpacks also found
Twelve people were arrested when the IDF, Shin Bet, and Israel Border Police conducted raids in Rujeib, Yatta, Samu, Beit Awwa, Qatanna, and Beit Ummar.

Israeli forces investigated reports of gunfire in different locations in the territories. Near Mevo Dotan backpacks were found near where gunshots were heard on Tuesday night. Backpacks were also found near Bat Hefer, but there were no traces found near Gan Ner to corroborate reports.
20 years since the devastating suicide bombing in the Maxim restaurant
Exactly 20 years ago, one of the worst attacks that the State of Israel has ever known happened in Haifa: the suicide bombing of the Maxim restaurant.




Hezbollah: Muslim world must condemn those that normalize ties with Israel
Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah said on Monday evening that Muslim countries that normalize ties with Israel “must be condemned,” Iranian state media reported on Tuesday.

“Any country that signs a normalization agreement [with Israel] must be condemned and its actions denounced. It is a very dangerous step and a stab [in the back] of the Palestinian people, the first qibla [direction of prayer, i.e. Jerusalem] and an abandonment of Palestine,” said the Iran-backed Lebanese terror leader in a televised address.

“The ummah [‘Islamic nation’] needs to take responsibility for the Palestinian people. The Arab world must not abandon the Palestinians. The Zionists must hear the roars of the Muslim world,” Nasrallah continued.

The remarks came shortly before Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a series of posts on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, took aim at attempts to further integrate Israel into the region.

“Governments that are gambling on normalizing relations with the Zionist regime will lose. As the Europeans say, ‘They are betting on a losing horse.’ This is the Islamic Republic’s definite position,” Khamenei wrote on Tuesday.

“Imam Khomeini once described the usurper Zionist regime as a cancer. This cancer will definitely be eradicated at the hands of the Palestinian people,” the Iranian leader continued.

Khamenei and Nasrallah’s comments were widely regarded as directed towards Saudi Arabia, which is considering a normalization deal with Israel. U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Sept. 29, referring to a prospective agreement: “All sides have hammered out, I think, a basic framework.”


Iran's Pentagon infiltration should have us worried
Moreover, the ideological alliances between elements of the Iranian regime, such as the Reformists, and groups like the People's Mojahedin Khalq (MEK), with certain factions on the American Left, are not merely speculative but substantiated by evidence. Revelations from various sources, including recent emails, provide insights into the extent of influence and allegiance between certain American officials and the Iranian regime. Such interactions have been further substantiated by disclosures made by former American officials in their memoirs, underscoring the pervasive nature of this infiltration.

This security scandal raises alarming concerns about the manipulation of American public opinion and policy-making by the Iranian regime. The informational and ideological framework propagated by the Ministry of Information of the Islamic Republic of Iran has been disseminated effectively through this clandestine network within the United States. This influence has the potential to shape American policies, impacting critical decisions that affect national security.

The harrowing reality of Iran's infiltration into the heart of American society is a cause for immediate and serious concern. The covert activities orchestrated by the Iranian regime within the United States present an imminent threat that demands urgent attention from the US intelligence community. The presence of apologists, pro-regime influencers, propagandists, clandestine agents, and sleeper cells poses a direct threat to US national security under any circumstance.

It is imperative to acknowledge and address this critical security issue promptly. The United States must prioritize identifying and neutralizing these covert networks to safeguard its national interests and ensure the security and well-being of its citizens. The gravity of this infiltration necessitates a comprehensive and coordinated response, with all relevant stakeholders collaborating to mitigate this growing threat effectively.
Dems To Force Vote on Biden Nominee Who Dismantled Iran Sanctions
Senate Democrats are poised to force a vote Tuesday on a contested Biden administration nominee who played a central role in weakening Iran sanctions, a vote that comes as military nominees languish in limbo in what Democrats have described as a national security crisis.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) has scheduled a vote on James C. O'Brien, who serves in the State Department as the head of the Office of Sanctions Coordination, which is responsible for coordinating sanctions policies among government departments and international allies. O'Brien has been tapped to serve as the next assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs.

O'Brien has generated Republican opposition due to his role in watering down sanctions on Iran that have led the hardline regime to restore its oil exports to the highest levels since the Trump administration withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and restored sanctions. This has generated billions for the hardline regime as it continues to fund terrorism operations across the globe.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) has been holding O'Brien's nomination, effectively preventing it from moving forward, due to the nominee's role in weakening economic restrictions on Tehran, Cruz's office confirmed to the Washington Free Beacon.


Iranian girl in coma after alleged assault on metro by morality police
An Iranian girl aged 16 has been left in a coma and is being treated in hospital under heavy security after an assault on the Tehran subway, a rights group said on Tuesday.

The Kurdish-focused rights group Hengaw said the teenager, named as Armita Garawand, had been badly injured in a run-in on the Tehran metro with female morality police officers.

This has already been denied by the Iranian authorities, who say that the girl “fainted” due to low blood pressure and that there was no involvement of the security forces.

Iranian authorities remain on high alert for any upsurge of social tension just over a year after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini who had been arrested for allegedly violating the strict dress rules for women.

Her death sparked several months of protests that rattled Iran’s clerical leadership and only dwindled in the face of a crackdown that according to activists has seen thousands arrested and hundreds killed.

Hengaw said that Garawand was left with severe injuries after being apprehended by agents of the so-called morality police at the Shohada metro station in Tehran on Sunday.

It said she was being treated under tight security at Tehran’s Fajr hospital and “there are currently no visits allowed for the victim, not even from her family.”




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