Monday, October 09, 2023

10/09 Links Pt2: The Hamas pogrom is the result of the West's refusal to accept the idea of evil; We were fools to support the Palestinian cause

From Ian:

Melanie Phillips: The Hamas pogrom is the result of the West's refusal to accept the idea of evil
Israel’s heart has been broken. At war once again against genocidal enemies, its people are shattered by shock, grief and horror.

At time of writing, the number of those murdered has risen to 800, with 2,315 wounded and at least 100 being held hostage in Gaza.

The images of what happened will stay with us forever. Dozens of Israelis were gunned down in their homes and their cars.

Elderly people and small children were slaughtered; women were raped; bodies taken into Gaza were paraded and desecrated; mothers with children in their arms were abducted and are now being held as hostages in Gaza’s terror tunnels.

This was barbarism and depravity, not seen on such an infernal scale since the Holocaust.

Every one of these attacks on Israeli civilians was a war crime. It is a moral imperative to destroy the forces who committed them and who — as they tell us — are intent upon eradicating Israel and the Jewish people.

And yet the US State Department said after the pogrom: ‘We urged all sides to refrain from violence and retaliatory attacks. Terror and violence solve nothing.”

All sides? That means the US is telling Israel to “refrain” from defending its people. Should the Americans have refrained from waging war against Afghanistan to destroy the Taliban after 9/11 as a “retaliatory attack”?

Of course not. Such moral equivalence, it seems, applies only to Israel. It is also the default position of the western left.

This has been on display once again in the media coverage of these events. Newspapers have been reporting “horrific” casualty figures “on both sides”; the BBC and other outlets announced on Monday morning that the death toll was 1,100, similarly equating the Israeli victims of mass murder with those killed in the attempt to prevent any more such attacks.
Fred Maroun: We were fools to support the Palestinian cause
As an Arab, I am ashamed. As someone who supported the Palestinian cause, I am ashamed. But now, as far as I am concerned, the Palestinian cause is dead. In fact, that cause has never existed because all evidence points to the Palestinians wanting nothing but the destruction of Israel and the Jews, at any cost.

The Palestinians have had 75 years to choose to have a state next to Israel, but they have repeatedly chosen terrorism.

Through the murder of hundreds of Israelis and the cheering for those murders, they made their final choice clear. Some people will say that it’s the fault of terrorists and not the fault of Palestinians. I won’t be one of those people. Terrorists cannot exist unless they’re supported by the people.

Before this, there seemed to still be a glimmer of hope for a Palestinian state, but I now admit that those of us who believed in that hope were naive. That hope is dead now. I see many peace activists, who previously held nuanced views on the conflict, now declaring on social media their unwavering support for Israel.

What choice do we have left? The so-called Palestinian cause will now forever be covered with the blood of Israelis that Hamas massacred and that Palestinians and pro-Palestinian activists cheered.

The only hope left for Palestinians who don’t wish to be terrorists is to move out of Gaza and the West Bank. They will never have a state on that land.

In the meantime, each of us who pays any attention to this conflict must stand with Israel. It is the duty of every decent person in the world. It is the only reasonable choice left.
Amb. Alan Baker: Hamas and Islamic Jihad Are Criminally Liable for War Crimes
The deliberate and cynical use by Hamas and Islamic Jihad of their own civilians as human shields, as well as their use of mosques, hospitals, schools, and private houses as weapons storage facilities and firing platforms, are no less severe war crimes and violations of international humanitarian law.

The construction of tactical tunnels beneath urban civilian areas, hospitals, public facilities, and urban roads are also a war crime and a grave violation of international humanitarian law.

Moreover, advocating a religious holy war aimed at creating a regional Islamic entity encompassing the whole of the territory of Israel contravenes the provisions of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention of Genocide.

For all the above crimes, Hamas and PIJ leaders and commanders are accountable and prosecutable under international law, which considers non-state actors bound by customary norms of international humanitarian law when they become a party to an armed conflict.

Hamas, even as a non-state entity or part of a non-state entity, is considered by all accepted criteria to be fully accountable under international humanitarian law for its actions in terror attacks against Israeli civilians and using its own civilians as human shields. Thus, its leadership, commanders, and fighters are punishable for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Martin Bright: Hamas is no resistance movement – it is an anti-Semitic, misogynist terror cult
he following statement should be uncontroversial. An organisation that kidnaps unarmed women, children and old people then parades the naked bodies of its dead victims should not be considered as a resistance movement. Hamas is what Hamas does: it is a violent Islamist terror cult. It has shown itself, in its actions in Southern Israel over the Jewish sabbath in its true anti-Semitic, misogynist colours.

You are waiting for a qualification, perhaps? This is not a time for “buts”. No rhetoric about the biggest prison camp on earth or the Israeli Apartheid state or the fascists in Netanyahu’s government can justify or explain the brutality of those men with guns on motorbikes and pickups. They were driven by the hatred of Jews and the hatred of women, which lie explicitly, transparently at the heart of Hamas ideology. It is dedicated to the destruction of Israel.

Truth may be the first victim of war, but empathy is the second. When I posted my views on Hamas on social media, the reaction to the massacres and rapes and kidnappings was an exercise in equivocation and moral relativism. I was schooled that anything goes in war and told that I should compare what happened to Dresden, Hiroshima and Vietnam (but not the Holocaust funnily enough). Both sides abuse women and children and pretend it’s for a cause, apparently. Could the “lovely old lady” depicted in one Hamas kidnap video actually be a settler who is actively stealing land and livelihoods from Palestinians.? The Israeli Defence Force has been doing the same as Hamas for years. Examine the records of post-war Jewish terrorist organisations Irgun and the Haganah. How many pieces of silver had I taken I taken?

One person suggested my comments were the final proof that the free speech organisation for which I work, Index on Censorship, is a “neo-con cut-out” (translation from the hard-left jargon: CIA front organisation). I wouldn’t mention this slew of poison if it weren’t so prevalent and consistent.

There is no correct way to react to atrocities of this kind, but this is surely the moment to show our common humanity. As the historian Anthony Glees, who advised the Thatcher government on Nazi war criminals wrote: “Few who have seen the picture of SS officers ‘interrogating’ an elderly Jewish woman with whips during WW2 will ever forget it. Same here.”

This is not the time for “buts”. There will come a time for a reckoning within Israel about the intelligence failings that led to this catastrophe. The support of any Israeli government depends on its ability to keep its people safe from harm in a hostile neighbourhood and in that Netanyahu has ostensibly and catastrophically failed. Many of these atrocities took place at a music festival for peace in the desert. What greater cultural symbol of progressive, inclusive Israel could there be? What greater symbol of everything Hamas despises. Dozens of young Israeli men and women held hostage in Gaza is Israel’s greatest nightmare.




EU backtracks on Palestinian aid freeze over Hamas attack
The European Union backtracked in disarray on Monday on an announcement that aid to Palestinians had been suspended in response to the attack on Israel by Hamas after EU countries complained the bloc's executive had overstepped the mark.

The confusion began after Oliver Varhelyi, the top official for relations with the EU's neighbours, said the European Commission was putting all its development aid for Palestinians, worth 691 million euros ($729 million), under review.

In a post on social media site X, Varhelyi - a Hungarian who is European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement - also said all payments were "immediately suspended".

Varhelyi was nominated for his post by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a staunch ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The announcement prompted consternation among multiple governments, who had warned against cutting off aid to the detriment of Palestinian civilians and questioned whether the Commission had the authority to take such a decision.

The move also came as a surprise as officials had said earlier in the day that aid to Palestinians would be discussed at an emergency meeting of EU foreign ministers on Tuesday.

Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg and Ireland publicly voiced alarm while other countries did so behind the scenes, diplomats said.

"Our understanding is that there is no legal basis for a unilateral decision of this kind by an individual Commissioner and we do not support a suspension of aid," a spokesperson for Ireland's foreign ministry said.
ISRAEL UNDER ATTACK Hamas Threatens to Execute Israeli Hostages, US Senator Jeered at Rally, Kidnapped Toddler on Video
Hamas Spokesman Says Terrorist Group Will Begin Executing Hostages

A spokesman for the terrorist group Hamas’ Izz ad-Din al-Qassam brigades on Monday said that the group would begin executing hostages in response to Israeli air strikes.

“The enemy does not understand the language of humanity and morality, and we will address him in the language he knows,” Hamas spokesman Abu Obaida said in a statement. “In the past few hours, we have felt the pain of what happened to many families throughout the Gaza Strip, as a result of the Zionist fascist attack, which bombed homes…. We have decided to put an end to this, and from this hour we announce that every targeting of our people who are safe in their homes without warning, we will meet with the execution of our civilian hostages and we will broadcast it with audio and video.”

Hamas has taken an unknown number of hostages into the Gaza strip following its attack on Israel on Saturday, with the terrorist group claiming they have more than 100 captives, including both civilians and Israel Defense Force soldiers.

A spokesperson for the Israeli Foreign Ministry on Monday said that Israel is not currently negotiating for the release of the hostages.

“We are in a war, and I think that this is not the time for negotiation and mediation,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat said. “We’re not talking about negotiations or mediations at this time.”


Victor Davis Hanson: Reflections on Israel’s New Existential War
Our envoy Malley apparently advertises himself, to quote his Wikipedia bio, as “an expert on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and has written extensively on this subject advocating rapprochement with Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood.”

We are now witnessing the reification of our Iranian envoy’s idea of “rapprochement” in the streets of Israel.

Note that Malley is now under FBI investigation for security breaches, involving disclosing classified U.S. documents. He also is under further scrutiny for allegedly helping pro-Iranian activists and propagandists land influential billets inside the U.S. government.

Imagine that: Iran now cheers on mass death in Israel while its agents and provocateurs burrow into the U.S. government (which might explain the Biden State Department’s immediate call to cease Israeli retaliation).

The result of this madness is that there was a general Hamas and Iranian perception that the Biden administration had resumed the discredited Obama insanity of empowering Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas. This discredited agenda aimed to “balance” the power of Israel and the moderate Arab Gulf governments to achieve “creative tension,” and was certainly exacerbated by Biden’s loathing of the government of Benjamín Netanyahu.

Note as well that the Biden administration has insidiously siphoned off key weapons and munitions from emergency stockpiles inside Israel apparently to transfer them to Ukraine. The so-called “War Reserve Ammunition—Israel” is reportedly all but depleted of just the sorts of weapons and shells that will be likely needed in the present crisis.

Who knows, we should soon expect that some of the multibillion-dollar arsenal abandoned to the Taliban—who have now voiced a willingness to help Gaza in the killing of Jews—will end up with Hamas. So we deplete strategic arsenals in Israel, but leave them to the Taliban.

In this regard is there a Carteresque pattern here?

Upon the ascension of Biden and his woke strategic agendas, we witnessed the following chain of events: 1) the 2021 complete humiliation of the U.S. miliary in Kabul in its greatest defeat in 50 years; 2) followed by Vladimir Putin’s 2022 opportunistic invasion of Ukraine; 3) followed by China’s new belligerence and escalating threats to Taiwan; 4) followed by Turkey’s new de facto alliance with Russia and recent drone encounter with the U.S. air force in Syria; 5) followed by the Hamas/Iranian inspired attack on Israel—6) with more to come unfortunately.

Will Biden finally get the message from the attacks on the Ukraine and Israeli borders, that borders matter? We too are being invaded, with the encouragement of the Mexican government and to the advantage of the cartels. Biden should carefully digest the ranting of President Obrador who seems to feel he has veto power over the White House, as he demands our own borders remain open to his citizens for whom he cannot provide, while he seeks to influence U.S. elections.

In a sane world, the Biden administration would immediately cancel all talks with Iran, renew sanctions, and stop any cash transferences. (Why were the Obama and Biden administrations so fond of sending so much money to theocratic Iran)? It would stop all aid to the West Bank and Gaza. It would put a travel ban on anyone from Iran or the West Bank and Gaza and pull visas of any currently from Palestine in the U.S. It would immediately ramp up defense spending, especially on missile defense, dismantle the woke commissariat in the Pentagon, and prepare for the unthinkable and existential abroad.

And there is likely zero chance that the handlers of Joe Biden will do any of that.
This Attack on Israel Changes Everything
Early Saturday morning, Hamas launched over 2,000 rockets from Gaza into Israel, while sending about 1,000 terrorists through the border fence to commit acts of murder and barbarism. As of Sunday evening, over 700 Israelis—overwhelmingly civilians—have been killed, and over 100 are being held hostage in the Gaza Strip. Elliott Abrams examines how this war will transform the Jewish state’s situation:

For several years, and especially in the last year, it seemed that Hamas had decided to seek calm in Gaza, where it governs, while supporting violence and terror in the West Bank. And in the West Bank, terrorist attacks increased each month. Meanwhile, Israel allowed 17,000 workers to enter Israel from Gaza each day, and there was talk of raising that number to 30,000. It seemed that there was a silent agreement between Israel and Hamas to keep things quiet in Gaza.

But that view assumed that Hamas cared about the lives of the Gaza population, and the new attacks have proved yet again that it does not. Recent accounts of the Yom Kippur War of 1973 have noted the problem of the “conception” back then. Israeli security officials came to believe that after the crushing Arab defeat in the Six-Day War, an attack so few years afterward was inconceivable. Then it happened. In this case, the “conception” was that Israel could reach a modus vivendi with Hamas—because Hamas valued calm in its base, Gaza. Obviously, it does not.

Why did Hamas attack now? No recent event in Gaza explains the timing—nor do recent visits to the Temple Mount by Israelis. What seems obvious is true: the attack was timed for the 50th anniversary of the surprise attack in 1973. No doubt Hamas must be hoping as well to delay and even prevent the Israeli-Saudi rapprochement that is being discussed, but this attack has been in the planning for many months. When the planning began, Hamas had no way to know where a Saudi-Israeli negotiation would stand in October. What it did know was that the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur attack would occur this year on a Sabbath and during Jewish holy days (the last two days of the Sukkot festival). The possible delay in a Saudi-Israel deal was surely a happy addition for Hamas but was an add-on, not the original motive.

One can see other motives. This attack shows the world and shows Palestinians that Hamas is strong, while the Palestinian Authority and PLO are weak. And it shows Iran the same thing, perhaps giving hope to Hamas leaders that Iran will give them even more support.
Assessing Iran’s Role in Hamas’s Assault
As Jerusalem decides how to respond to the massive assault on its citizens, it will at some point consider whether—and how—to retaliate against Tehran, which, along with Qatar, is Hamas’s primary patron, and whose proxy, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, has been fighting alongside Hamas. Herb Keinon writes:

Last week, a senior Hamas commander was in Tehran with other Hamas figures and leaders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Similar meetings between terror leaders and Iranian officials also reportedly took place last week in Damascus and Beirut. While Iran has long been providing support to Palestinian organizations, Tehran has an added incentive now to support this terrorism in the hopes that it will derail a budding Saudi Arabia-Israel normalization deal.

For Iran, a fierce Israeli response serves Iran’s purposes because it will fill the Arab and Islamic world with images of Israeli warplanes bombing Gaza, inevitably triggering pressure both within Saudi Arabia and from around the Islamic world not to sign a deal with a regime attacking the Gaza Strip.

After Palestinian terrorists murdered Batsheva Nigri near Hebron in late August, [Defense Minister Yoav Gallant stated] that the current wave of terror “Is all guided by Iran, which is looking for any way to harm Israeli citizens.” Without providing any details, he said Israel “will take additional actions that will ensure the security of Israeli citizens and make those responsible pay a price.”

The question in light of Saturday’s massive attack is whether the sheer magnitude of this attack will compel the IDF to send a military message to Iran.
October 7, 2023 and the Israeli Consciousness
It appears that Hamas has chosen the date of its ongoing invasion of Israel to coincide with that of another invasion that also occurred on a holy day and temporarily overwhelmed the Jewish state’s defenses: namely, the Yom Kippur War, which began 50 years ago on October 6. (While that war is still remembered in Egypt for the stunning military success of its early days, it ended with the Syrian army broken, Egyptian forces surrounded, and the IDF simultaneously advancing on Cairo and Damascus.) The Israeli novelist Ruby Namdar describes his reaction to the current war, and the memories it stirred up of 1973:

Waking up [on Saturday] and glancing at my cellphone to see what was new in the world, learning about the horrific attack that Hamas had launched against so many civilians in the south of Israel, sent me straight back to that day, to the boy I was then. Shock, bewilderment, a slight nausea, a sudden urge to fight back the tears that welled in my eyes. The frightened look on the face of my parents and my aunts and uncles was the first thing that came to my mind—but now I, we, all Israelis, were those frightened grown-ups who’d lost the sense of control over our reality.

This shock has yet to dissipate—I live in New York, but most of my family and friends are in Israel. With every new bit of information, I’ve been feeling sicker and sicker to my stomach at the number of those dead, injured, or kidnapped from their home and paraded through the streets of Gaza City to the cheers of an ecstatic crowd. I write these words only to give some shape and form to the chaos that’s been ravishing my mind since yesterday morning. I am not alone.

I am not the only one to associate the shock of today’s horrific events with that of the Yom Kippur War. The date of the attack does not feel random; it seemed carefully planned for the anniversary of that accursed war, which imprinted itself in the Israeli collective memory as a loss. It has shaken our very core, robbing us of our basic sense of stability and evoking the many horrible trials our people endured before the Zionist revolution and the establishment of the state of Israel—the pogroms, the Holocaust, and the murderous attacks on the young Jewish settlement in the Palestine of the early 20th century. . . .

I hope to God that the coming few weeks will restore the physical sense of security to Israel and the Middle East, but I also fear that this trauma will linger and haunt and perhaps even define us for many, many more years.
Jonathan Tobin: Will Biden stand with Israel in the war’s next phase?
Biden knows that the sympathies of his party about the Middle East conflict have shifted in recent years. The most recent Gallup tracking poll showed that Democrats favor the Palestinians over Israel by a 49% to 38% plurality. By contrast, Republicans back Israel by a staggering 78% to 11% margin while independents side with Israel by 49% to 32%. That illustrates the growing power of the intersectional left that views Jews and Israelis as “white” oppressors and, regardless of the facts, the Palestinians as victims.

It also reflects the viewpoint of a mainstream liberal press that—as some of the initial coverage in outlets like The New York Times and MSNBC demonstrated—were ready to believe the lie that the Palestinians are only defending themselves by slaughtering Jews in their homes, as well as to conflate the totals of Israeli civilians who had been murdered with those of Palestinian murderers.

Israelis may now be prepared to pay virtually any price to rid Gaza of Hamas and ensure that Palestinians will never again be able to inflict such pain on them. But everything that Biden has done in the past and everything that is being said on the political left in the United States would tend to indicate that he and his party won’t go along with that.

It’s hard to imagine Biden being able to shake off his foolish beliefs about the Palestinians wanting peace and the need for suicidal Israeli territorial surrenders that have always colored his stance on the Middle East. Even if he were, he will come under enormous pressure to make Netanyahu stop the counter-attack on Gaza long before it achieves even its most minimal goals. That will come from his political base, his press cheerleaders (who have relentlessly defended him from charges about his family’s corrupt business activities and policy failures since entering the White House) and from within his own foreign-policy team largely composed of Obama alumni who are inveterately hostile to the Jewish state.

The Palestinians’ crimes may have made it imperative that Israel not accept a return to a status quo that enables the terrorists to pose an ongoing threat. Netanyahu is likely to have the domestic support he needs to do whatever is needed—no matter how many human shields in Gaza are harmed—to guarantee that Hamas and the Palestinians are defeated in this war rather than benefiting politically.

The ultimate test of Biden’s claim to pro-Israel bona fides is whether his administration will back such an outcome rather than, as U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger did in 1973, seek to give Israel just enough support to survive but not to win decisively. If he backs away from Israel as the war enters its next phase, then anyone who claims to be a supporter of the Jewish state must judge him accordingly.
Hamas’s War on Israel: Everything You Need to Know
What should the Israelis do now?
In a perfect universe, the Israelis would be able to tend to the families of their dead and wounded while getting all their hostages back unharmed, and then sign a peace treaty with Saudi Arabia that would counterbalance the Iranian axis of terror and provide the entire region with a new horizon for hope.

Unfortunately, none of that will happen.

In the cruel logic of the region where Israel is located, and has been located for several thousand years, Hamas’s killing spree was not a repulsive example of the depths of human barbarism. Instead, it was a huge win, and shredded Israel’s vaunted military deterrence. Millions of Arabs and other Middle Easterners, stuck in poor countries run by dysfunctional, oppressive regimes, can go to bed at night with a ray of hope: Israel can and will be destroyed. A regional war is hardly impossible, unless Israel can reestablish its deterrence, fast, and prove that it is not a paper tiger. That means war.

But war with whom? Sadly, America’s deal with Iran dictates the answer there, too. Israel can hardly strike back at Iran, even if it wanted to, because Iran is now under the protection of the United States, which feeds the regime with regular shipments of cash and has promised to protect its nuclear program.

An Israeli strike on Iran’s oil fields, or a strike on Iran’s nuclear program, or the decapitation of the Iranian regime, would likely be good for Israel, and good for the region. But since those would effectively be strikes against the regional order that was brought into being and is supported by the United States, striking Iran would put Israel in direct conflict with the United States. That is too big a risk for a divided and traumatized Israel to conceivably handle.

Israel could also strike Iran’s most valuable strategic ally, which is Hezbollah, the terrorist group that controls Lebanon. However, since Hezbollah didn’t attack Israel, and doesn’t appear to have had any direct involvement in the attacks, such a move would be harder to justify—and would involve Israel in a two-front war with a much more powerful opponent than Hamas.

Israel will therefore be obliged to do something in Gaza, though its hands are tied there, too, by the over 150 hostages that Hamas took, perhaps two dozen of whom are said to be Americans. That means that the outcome of whatever Israel does is likely to be as pointless as its previous wars in Gaza, which left Hamas in charge of Gaza.

What is clear from all of this is that Israel’s deterrence strategy of sticks and carrots and electronic barriers against Hamas has failed, and something new will need to be tried in its place.

But what about the Palestinians in Gaza? Aren’t they suffering?

Yes. They are. Ordinary Palestinians are suffering every day under Hamas’s brutal rule. But murdering grandmothers and uploading their dead bodies onto their own Facebook pages for their family to see and massacring people at a music festival are not actions taken by people looking to build, or fight for, a thriving society. And anyone insisting upon asking this question on a weekend when more than 700 noncombatants were murdered, women raped, and babies kidnapped has a marked inability to acknowledge the suffering of others. Or maybe just of Jews.
Hamas' Deadly Attack Has Changed Everything
Three concepts that have been at the foundation of Israel's military and political policies regarding Gaza and Hamas collapsed on Saturday as hundreds of Hamas fighters stormed across the border and began their bloody rampage through kibbutzim and towns. The first concept was that Hamas has a greater interest in bolstering its rule over Gaza and improving the economy there than in once again inviting destruction on its inhabitants.

The second concept was that Israel had already succeeded in denying Hamas nearly all avenues of attack. The massive border fence would prevent incursions over ground. A network of underground sensors would detect tunnels which would then be destroyed. And Israel's Iron Dome would eliminate the missile threat. All these systems worked brilliantly, until they weren't enough to hold back a concerted and coordinated attack on multiple points at the fence, all under the cover of a barrage of rockets.

The third concept was that Israel can "shrink the conflict" by minimizing points of friction between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian civilians. That it can create sufficient economic incentives to disincentivize violence among groups like Hamas who are sworn to destroying Israel. This concept has now failed spectacularly.

Hamas launched this operation with one main objective - snatching as many Israelis, soldiers and civilians, dead or alive, into Gaza. And have succeeded beyond their wildest imagination. It is not hard to predict they will insist on the release of all 5,200 Palestinian prisoners Israel is currently holding.

Hamas has seen in the past how difficult it is for Israelis to accept that their own people are being held captive by the enemy. Israel released over a thousand Palestinian prisoners, including dozens of murderers, one of whom, Yihya Sinwar, is now Hamas chief in Gaza and one of the men directing this operation, in exchange for one IDF sergeant, Gilad Shalit.

But Israel may not conform to Hamas' concept this time. Israel is reeling from the worst military setback and tragedy most of its citizens can remember. Hamas has won the first round. But this time it seems that Israel is not going to limit its forces when it embarks on the inevitable attack on Gaza, at least not to the extent it has in the past.
Hamas' War on Israel Offers Sobering Clarity in the Fight Against Evil
It is already clear that Palestinian terrorists have crossed a line as never before. In an era when the line between right and wrong is constantly blurred, this is a moment of sobering clarity. Hamas has sunk to a depth of savagery that should shock us to the core.

The terror group infiltrated Israel and attacked nearby communities. They slaughtered the elderly, gunned down civilians in their homes, kidnapped mothers with babies in their arms, mutilated the bodies of men and women, and paraded their victims through the streets of Gaza in a show of celebration.

Through these and many other inhumane acts, Palestinian terrorists have shown their fight is not about settlements or checkpoints. On Saturday, we saw what militant Palestinians and their supporters mean when they tell us they want the land "From the River to the Sea." They want every inch of land - every city, town, and kibbutz - between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and they want it cleansed of every single Jew.

Some things are not open to interpretation. Certain lines should never be crossed. We must never confuse the terrorists who target civilians with an army that targets terrorists who attack its civilians.
Punishing Hamas by Crushing Its Soul
How do you crush the soul of a bloodthirsty enemy? You ram down his throat what he hates the most, what he absolutely can’t stomach. What Hamas can’t stomach, above all, is a world that admires Israel. In the cesspool of its terror doctrine, the Jewish state is an evil that is meant to be destroyed, not admired.

That’s why Jew-hating entities like Hamas and its terror sponsor Iran despise the Abraham Accords– they transform Israel from a demon into an angel, from evil Zionists into useful allies, from oppressors into partners. In recent months, talks were heating up to add Saudi Arabia, home of Islam’s holiest sites, to the Abraham alliance. That is so monumental it would make Israel’s transformation from demon to useful partner irreversible. For Jew haters everywhere, that is a nightmare indeed.

No wonder Iran and Hamas had to act. With a deal with Saudi Arabia brewing, what better way to sabotage peace with Israel than to start a war with Israel?

In the throes of understandable rage, Israel must now be cold-blooded and strategic. It’s tempting to want to turn Gaza into rubble to satisfy a hunger for revenge. I share that sentiment. But that would be playing checkers, not chess. If turning Gaza into rubble turns a Saudi deal into rubble, that is not a victory for Israel. It’s a victory for Hamas and Iran.

It’s true that Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations have made the obligatory statements in favor of Palestinians. But interests are interests. Let’s not forget that the Saudis have an enormous interest in a partnership with Israel and the United States as a bulwark against its number one foe, Iran. It has woken up to the multiple benefits of having Israel as an ally. President Joe Biden also has a significant interest in a deal with the Saudis, both to counteract China and as a feather in his cap in an election year. And Netanyahu? With his legacy in shambles, he’s probably the most motivated of the three partners.

The point is, the Abraham Accords are about building a future; Iran and Hamas are about destroying it. We shouldn’t let the destroyers win.

My revulsion at what happened on October 7 knows no bounds. I hope and pray that Israel finds a way to liberate the hostages and eradicate the evil leadership that drives Hamas. But war or no war, Gaza is a hornet’s nest, a magnet for disasters. Its future will remain uncertain for a long time.

An Abraham Accords that includes Saudi Arabia and the U.S. is a bona fide game changer for Israel and the region. As Israel gives Hamas the punishment it deserves, it should keep that long game in mind: Ultimately, the deepest way to punish Hamas and crush the soul of Jew haters is to elevate the status of the Jewish state throughout the Arab world.

None of this mitigates the nightmare of October 7. This will be a day that will leave an indelible mark in collective Jewish memory. On a day when we were supposed to dance and rejoice, our enemies reminded us that no matter how good things get, Jews can never feel totally safe. It’s a lesson we keep learning over and over again, whether on Yom Kippur or Simchat Torah.
The Ayatollah's Plan for Israel and Palestine
The book has received approval from Khamenei's office and is thus the most authoritative document regarding his position on the issue.

Khamenei makes his position clear from the start: Israel has no right to exist as a state. He claims his strategy for the destruction of Israel is not based on anti-Semitism, which he describes as a European phenomenon. His position is based on "well-established Islamic principles."

According to Khamenei, Israel, which he labels an "enemy" and "foe," is a special case for three reasons. The first is that it is a loyal "ally of the American Great Satan" and a key element in its "evil scheme" to dominate "the heartland of the Ummah."

Khamenei describes Israel as "a cancerous tumor" whose elimination would mean that "the West's hegemony and threats will be discredited" in the Middle East. In its place, he boasts, "the hegemony of Iran will be promoted."

Khamenei's tears for "the sufferings of Palestinian Muslims" are also unconvincing. To start with, not all Palestinians are Muslims. And, if it were only Muslim sufferers who deserved sympathy, why doesn't he beat his chest about the Burmese Rohingya and the Chechens massacred and enchained by Vladimir Putin, not to mention Muslims daily killed by fellow-Muslims across the globe?

In the early days of his mission, the Prophet Muhammad toyed with the idea of making Jerusalem the focal point of prayers for Islam. He soon abandoned the idea and adopted his hometown of Mecca. For that reason, some classical Muslim writers refer to Jerusalem as "the discarded one," like a first wife who is replaced by a new favorite. In the 11th century the Shiite Fatimid Caliph, Al-Hakim even ordered the destruction of Jerusalem.

Dozens of maps circulate in the Muslim world, showing the extent of Muslim territories lost to the infidel that must be recovered. These include large parts of Russia and Europe, almost a third of China, the whole of India and parts of the Philippines and Thailand.
Hold The Front Page: How Newspapers Covered The Hamas Attack on Israel
Israel was forced to go to war on Saturday following an unprecedented surprise attack by Hamas in which the terrorist group launched ground, air and sea invasions, slaughtering Israeli civilians and kidnapping others who are being held hostage in the Gaza Strip.

As the Jewish state was placed on a wartime footing, which included the mobilization of hundreds of thousands of reserve soldiers and counterstrikes in Gaza to eliminate terrorist infrastructure, this was how the English-language international media responded in the newspaper print editions over the past 48 hours:

The majority of front pages in both the United States, United Kingdom and Australia focused on the savagery of the Hamas’ rampage through Israeli communities in the south of the country.

There were, however, some disappointing examples of coverage.

The Guardian, for example, completely ignored the attack on Israel on the splash of its international edition on Sunday — approximately 24 hours after the first massacres of Israeli civilians — to instead focus on the election of a new House speaker in the United States.

Meanwhile, several outlets, including the Boston Globe and the Washington Post opted to flip the narrative and focus on Israel’s precision counterstrikes in Gaza, which involved the IDF forewarning civilians in residential areas to evacuate buildings that might be affected.

Finally, a handful of media outlets, such as the Wall Street Journal, sanitized their front page headlines and subheadings to gloss over Hamas atrocities to merely report that Israel and Hamas are “at war” and lumping the death count together, meaning Hamas terrorists and Israeli civilians were included in its official toll.
UK civil society organisations stand against Hamas's invasion of Israel
Today, CAMERA UK led an initiative and approached various UK Civil Society organisations to take a stand against Hamas’ Invasion of Israel by signing an open letter.

London-October 9th: UK Civil Society Orgs Stand Against Hamas’ Invasion Of Israel

On Oct 7 the world woke up to news of an orchestrated attack on Israeli civilians by the terrorist organisation Hamas. This attack occurred on Shabbat (the Jewish Day of Rest), the Jewish Holy Day (Simchat Torah), and a day after the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the Yom Kippur War. With at least 800 Israelis murdered (and thousands injured), the attack represents the largest number of Jews killed in a single day since the Holocaust. We are still in the midst of learning of the gravity of the situation, including how many Israelis were taken hostage.

We’ve also learned that several foreign nationals have been killed, kidnapped, and paraded in the streets of Gaza.

We, as various civil society organisations, join together in calling on the UK government, Universities, and other relevant bodies to hold to account anyone who publicly supports Hamas in the name of the Palestinian people. Refer to the below:

In 2021, the UK Government proscribed Hamas as a terrorist organisation, and the UK Government Terrorism Act 2000 made clear that it is illegal to:
- express an opinion or belief that is supportive of a proscribed organisation, reckless as to whether a person to whom the expression is directed will be encouraged to support a proscribed organisation; (section 12 (1A))
- arrange or manage a meeting in support of, to further the objectives of, or to be addressed by a member of a proscribed organisation; (Section 12(2))

We call on media outlets to stop referring to Hamas as “militants” and call them what they are according to UK law: terrorists. We also call on media outlets to stop excusing the violence by attributing Hamas’s attack to the failure of the peace process, ‘frustrated young men’, or ‘the occupation’, but to note the truth of what “From the River to the Sea” truly means.
Excuses for terror on the BBC News TV channel
The BBC knows full well that Hamas is not interested in any kind of ‘peace process’ and that it is committed to Israel’s destruction. One must therefore ask why Hockings’ irrelevant pontifications on that topic were presented to BBC television audiences at all when they clearly contributed absolutely nothing to audience understanding of the subject matter.

The “young, angry, militant men” who murdered people at a bus stop, set fire to civilians’ homes, killed partygoers and indiscriminately slaughtered motorists are motivated by an ideology that the BBC refuses to address. By avoiding that topic, the corporation whitewashes terrorism and turns the perpetrators of vicious atrocities into victims.

There is no excuse for the BBC’s promotion of such obviously politically motivated narratives which – particularly in light of its longstanding refusal to even name terrorists as such – actively and deliberately hinders audience understanding of this story and many others.

There is an urgent need to address the issue of how that editorial policy employed by a publicly funded national broadcaster which is obliged to “help contribute to the social cohesion and wellbeing of the United Kingdom” influences opinions and events on the streets of towns and cities in Britain.


Newsweek Reporter Obsesses Over Gal Gadot’s Support For Israel
Many international celebrities publicly shared their sentiments on the horrendous Hamas attack on Israel which started on October 7.

But Newsweek, despite publishing an article covering various superstars’ reactions to the conflict, chose to devote an entirely separate piece to Israel’s most famous celebrity, titled: “Everything Gal Gadot Has Said About Israel Attack By Hamas”.

And the article, which suffers many flaws, indeed quotes everything. But why is it a story that an openly and proudly Israeli-born star supports her own country in its darkest hour? It seems like the writer of the piece, Newsweek’s Pop Culture & Entertainment reporter Shannon Power, can’t accept Gadot’s obvious empathy for her terror-stricken homeland and attempts to “balance” it with anti-Israeli talking heads – which is no surprise when one looks at what this “reporter” has shared against the Jewish state on social media.

A quick look at the article exposes the problems:
- Not providing context on the slaughter and kidnapping of hundreds of Israeli civilians by Hamas;
- Calling the terrorist group simply a “movement” and
- Labeling its barbaric acts inside Israeli territory “an operation.”

While obsessively analyzing every post by Gadot, Power attempts to remind readers that the Hollywood star “served in the Israel Defense Forces under the country’s compulsory military service laws” and that what she shared was “from an Israeli perspective” (as if the massacre of innocent men, women and children might look better from another perspective?).

The “balancing” in the second part of the article needlessly references the anti-Israeli rants of openly anti-Israel MSNBC news host Ayman Mohyeldin, in addition to those of a “prominent Palestinian” comedian. Both of them struggle to justify Hamas’ evil rampage, saying things like:


UPI Ignores Israeli Terror Victims While Rationalizing Hamas’ Terror
Coupled with UPI’s implicit demonization of Israel’s response to Hamas’ terrorism is the wire service’s seeming justification for the terrorism itself.

Although Hamas is sworn to Israel’s destruction (as defined in its 1988 charter and re-emphasized in its 2017 document of principles and policies), UPI chose to ignore this salient fact and instead rationalize the attack by claiming that in the past year, the IDF has fired missiles at Gaza, the Israeli police has “stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem at least twice, including the Muslim holiday of Ramadan,” and that Israel has built new settlements in the West Bank.

Not only is this an echo of Hamas’ stated reasoning for butchering hundreds of innocent Israeli civilians, it is also seriously lacking in vital context.

The earlier missile strikes in Gaza were part of a concerted counter-terrorism effort by Israel against leaders of the Islamic Jihad terror group, while the Israel Police was forced to enter the mosque after it had been overrun by Palestinians who were rioting and attacking Israelis with rocks, firecrackers, and other projectiles.

For UPI to demonize Israel’s response to terrorism while simultaneously providing rationales for the terrorism itself is the height of journalistic malpractice.

Indeed, there is so much wrong with this piece, it would not be amiss to call for its removal in its entirety from the UPI website.

HonestReporting will be filing a complaint with UPI.


PMW: Fatah: “Strike the sons of apes of pigs… slaughter everyone who is Israeli”
A Telegram channel associated with Fatah’s military wing the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, is calling on Palestinians to slaughter Jews who they term “apes and pigs.”

The first post published by the Fatah channel after Hamas launched its terror massacre on Israel on Saturday was a “call for general mobilization” and to strike the settlers and occupation soldiers with full force and with all means.” The post started with a quote from the Quran and ended stating the belief that the Palestinians will “triumph with Allah’s might”:
Posted text: “‘So fight them and Allah will punish them at your hands, put them to shame’ [Quran 9:14, Sahih International translation]’…
Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar (i.e., “Allah is greatest”)!
This is a call for mobilization, a call for general mobilization (refers to the Hamas terror war; see note below -Ed.)!
All our lucky fighters in the West Bank must increase the level of full preparedness, unite in this true battle, and strike the settlers and occupation soldiers with full force and with all means.
This is the final promise (see note below -Ed.), O beloved ones. ‘They truly see this Day as impossible, but We see it as inevitable’ [Quran 70:6-7, Sahih International translation], and we are triumphing with Allah’s might.
Scents of Paradise have begun to blow.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades – the occupied land of Palestine.”
[The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades – Palestine the Occupied Land, Telegram channel, Oct. 7, 2023]

Many posts begin with the words “Allahu Akbar - “Allah is greatest” – although Fatah presents itself to the world as a non-religious movement. One such post called for “Jihad” – Islamic war -and invoked an antisemitic Quranic reference to Jews, calling to “strike the sons of apes of pigs, kill everyone who is a settler, slaughter everyone who is Israeli”:


PMW: Fatah mocks Israel, “the Zionist enemy”: Your “undefeatable army is weaker than cobwebs”
Following Hamas’ terror massacre on Israel Saturday morning, Abbas’ Fatah Movement has urged Palestinians in the West Bank and Jerusalem to join in the terror against Israel, as Palestinian Media Watch documented yesterday.

The “successful” terror attack, in which Hamas terrorists have murdered between 800 and 1000 Israelis – mostly civilians - wounded over 2,500, and taken approximately 150 hostages into the Gaza Strip, is seen by the Palestinians as a great “victory.” Official PA TV broadcast a Fatah member mocking Israel that its allegedly “undefeatable army is weaker than cobwebs”:
Fatah Tubas branch member Ghassan Daraghmeh: “Long live our Palestinian people, since yesterday [we are] rising up and there is a state of great joy… We say to the Zionist enemy that you and your army that was called ‘an undefeatable army’: Here, it has been proven that it is weaker than cobwebs, and that the concept of deterrence and of a pre-emptive strike against the PA and the Palestinian resistance [has failed]. Yesterday the fundamental message of the Palestinian resistance was that we are capable, we remain, and we are continuing.”

[Official PA TV, Oct. 8, 2023]

The PA and Fatah top have legitimized the slaughter and capture of innocent Israelis as “self defense” and Fatah has called for “escalation” of the terror.


PA official: The Arab nation agreed to “interim plan,” but “aspiration is to return to Jaffa, Haifa, everywhere”
Palestinian National Council Chairman Rawhi Fattouh: “We did not deceive ourselves and say that we alone will fight Israel, but we lead the Arab nation on the path to liberating Palestine, all of Palestine. This is how we felt then [in 1965], but the balance of powers did not remain in our favor. Therefore the Arab nation agreed to [UN] Resolution 242 - a resolution of defeat, not a resolution of victory… It is a resolution of defeat for the Arabs… They forced us… to approve and recognize an interim plan, because that’s how the global balance of powers was... Currently the Palestinian people’s aspiration is that the [Palestinian] son of Jaffa will return to Jaffa and the [Palestinian] son of Haifa will return to Haifa, everywhere.”

[Official PA TV, Rummaging Through Memories, Sept. 17, 2023]

Jaffa and Haifa are Israeli cities.

Rawhi Fattouh also serves as Fatah Commissioner of International Relations and Fatah Central Committee member.




PA ministry official: ”Everything on the land of Palestine and the antiquities within it are a heritage of the Palestinian people”
PA Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities Director of Historical Sites Dirgham Al-Fares: “The Palestinian people today is a continuation of the original residents from the Stone Age… There was no monotheistic religion throughout the Iron Age. The Jewish religion formulated during the period of Babylonian Exile, and the ones who formulated it and developed it and developed the concept of divinity (i.e., monotheism) were our ancestors. We accepted the Jewish religion, and the Christian religion, and Islam. Therefore, we always say that everything on the land of Palestine and the antiquities within it are a heritage of the Palestinian people, in any period and regardless of the character of the place, whether it is a place of worship, a synagogue, a church, or a mosque. And here a question could pop up for some people: If we are the ancient Jews and we own the cultural heritage, then who is the occupier? … It is the right of the Jews in the world to come to Palestine for religious tourism, but under the sovereignty of the Palestinian state and according to the laws of the Palestinian state… Everything on the Palestinian land is ours. We own the land and the history… When I speak about Palestine, I’m of course talking about historical Palestine (i.e., both Israel and the PA areas.) These are our antiquities and this is what is proven by archaeology and the historical truths.” [Official PA TV, Palestine This Morning, Sept. 13, 2023]


Fatah praises Nazi ally Al-Husseini and murderers from 1929 Arab riots
Fatah-run Awdah TV narrator: “The first rebellion broke out against the Judaization of the occupied capital [Jerusalem] in 1929 and was called the Al-Buraq Rebellion (i.e., the 1929 Arab Riots)…The Jews attempted to bring in equipment for celebrations to the Al-Buraq Wall on Aug. 14, 1929, and thus they provoked the Muslims… A group of young Jews began a provocative procession in the streets of Jerusalem, and when they reached the Al-Buraq Wall they waved the Zionist flag… These were the events of the Al-Buraq Rebellion, which broke out to reject the Judaization of the holy city. It is important to note some names and prominent figures in this rebellion, including [Grand Mufti] Haj Muhammad Amin Al-Husseini (i.e., a Nazi ally and associate of Hitler) - Head of the Islamic Council and Head of the Supreme Arab Committee, who was considered one of the leaders of the Al-Buraq Rebellion; Martyr Sheikh Farhan Al-Sa’adi (i.e., terror leader in British Mandate period), one of the prominent fighters and leaders of the Al-Buraq Rebellion and a comrade of Martyr Izz A-Din Al-Qassam (i.e., terror leader in British Mandate period); and also… the brave heroes Ataa Al-Zir, Muhammad Jamjoum, and Fuad Hijazi (i.e., terrorist murderers).”
[Fatah Commission of Information and Culture, Facebook page, Aug. 15, 2023]

Posted text: “Watch: The anniversary of the 1929 Al-Buraq Rebellion (i.e., 1929 Arab Riots)”

The Al-Buraq Wall – Islam's Prophet Muhammad is said to have ridden during his Night Journey from Mecca to "al aqsa mosque", i.e., "the farthest mosque" (Quran, Sura 17), and there tied his miraculous flying steed named Al-Buraq to a "stone" or a "rock." (Jami` at-Tirmidhi, Book 47, Hadith 3424). In the 1920's, Arab Mufti Haj Amin Al-Husseini decided to identify the Western Wall of the Temple in Jerusalem as that "rock" or "stone," and since then Muslims refer to the Western Wall as the "Al-Buraq Wall."

Haj Amin Al-Husseini - the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem from 1921-1948 and during the British Mandate. Declassified American intelligence shows the lethal 1936-1939 Arab Revolt led by Al-Husseini was made possible by Nazi funding. During World War II he was a Nazi ally and an associate of Hitler, living in Germany from 1941 until the war’s end and receiving funding from the Nazi government. Detailing a 1941 meeting with Hitler in his memoirs, Al-Husseini wrote: “Our fundamental condition for cooperating with Germany was a free hand to eradicate every last Jew from Palestine and the Arab world.” He broadcast in Arabic on Nazi radio during the war, saying: “Kill the Jews wherever you find them – this pleases God, history and religion.” Al-Husseini was on Yugoslavia's list of wanted war criminals, and was responsible for a Muslim SS division that murdered thousands of Serbs and Croats. When the Nazis considered freeing some Jewish children Al-Husseini fought against their release, and as a result 5,000 children were sent to the gas chambers. After the war Al-Husseini fled to Egypt where he was connected to terror activity in the region, including the 1951 assassination of Jordan’s King Abdullah I.




FDD: Attacks on Israel Part of Iran’s Ring of Fire Strategy
Iran Convening Terrorists in Lebanon
Since the May 2021 Gaza war between Israel and Hamas, evidence has surfaced to indicate that Iran has facilitated the establishment of a joint operations room in Lebanon to coordinate efforts between the IRGC and Iranian-backed terror organizations Hezbollah and Hamas.

In May 2018, then-Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Danny Danon wrote a letter to the UN secretary-general and to the UN Security Council president warning of the growing cooperation among Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran. While the letter was not made public at the time, a copy was shared with FDD. In the letter, Danon noted that Hamas has been covertly building a military force in Lebanon, which could “pull Lebanon into a conflict with Israel.”

Before last month’s meeting in Beirut, Palestinian terrorist leaders met with Iranian leaders on numerous occasions. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi met with Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders during a visit to Syria in May, where Raisi reportedly called for “unity and cohesion of the resistance forces.” The following month, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and Raisi met with Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders in Tehran, where the Iranians congratulated Islamic Jihad’s leaders for its attack on Israel a month earlier and urged both groups to cooperate.

Nineteen Iranian-Backed Terrorist Groups
According to an FDD tracker, Iran has built a network of at least 19 armed groups on Israel’s borders, including in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, and Syria. The largest of these organizations are Hamas and Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah. These groups and others receive funding, training, and weapons from the IRGC. According to Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Iran sends $100 million annually to Hamas, $700 million annually to Hezbollah, and tens of millions to Islamic Jihad. Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups also use Iranian technology and logistical support to produce arms locally such as rockets and drones. What Hamas does not produce it smuggles into the Mediterranean enclave from tunnels under its border with Egypt.
Biden Administration Enabling Iranian Mullahs' Dangerous Nuclear Weapons Program – Again?
Iran's ruling mullahs have been rapidly and defiantly advancing their nuclear weapons program to levels never before seen. Apparently, after a short nap, a make-believe, monumentally unenforceable, nuclear deal with Iran is back in play.

"The JCPOA is not off the table...." — Iranian Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian, iranintl.com, September 3, 2023.

"Various media sources have reported that Tehran and Washington are discussing an unofficial deal, whereby Iran would limit its uranium enrichment and Washington would agree to the release of all funds frozen in several countries totalling around $20 billion." — iranintl.com, September 3, 2023

The regime is now finally at the threshold of making all the nuclear weapons it desires, along with missiles to launch them at their enemies in the Middle East, Europe and America.

The Iranian authorities continue to claim that their nuclear program is designed for peaceful purposes only. If that were true, why is the regime continuing to enrich uranium and refusing to cooperate with the IAEA?

The Biden administration has totally failed to curb Iran's nuclear program – but then again evidence shows it had never intended to. The "sunset clause" in then President Barack Obama's 2015 JCPOA "nuclear deal" assured Iran's rulers that in a few years, they could legitimately have as many nuclear weapons as they desired. Obama's assurance that his deal "prevented Iran from having nuclear weapons" is at the same level of trustworthiness as his, "If you like your doctor you can keep your doctor," or President Joe Biden's, "nobody earning less than $400,000 a year will pay an additional penny in new taxes."

Biden's legacy -- along with surrendering to the Taliban in Afghanistan and possibly "sell[ing] out" America to the Chinese Communist Party at home -- might well be turn out to be paying off Iran, called by the US State Department the world's "top state sponsor of terrorism," with billions of dollars, to help it become nuclear-armed state, so long as the mullahs promise -- Scouts' honor! -- not to use their nuclear weapons on his watch.
On Robert Malley, We Tried To Warn You
It looks like part of the Washington press corps has finally caught up with our own Adam Kredo's reporting on President Biden's envoy to Iran, Robert Malley, who is now under FBI investigation for mishandling classified information.

Now that the scandal is out in the open, it's worth recalling some of Kredo's prescient scoops. Before Malley was formally announced as the Biden administration's point man to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, Kredo smelled a rat. On January 25, 2021, he reported that a senior adviser to Iran's then-president, Hassan Rouhani, welcomed the selection of Malley to the post.

A few weeks later Kredo reported on the odd talks Malley had with Chinese Communist Party officials about restarting nuclear diplomacy with Iran, a move that contradicted Secretary of State Antony Blinken's own promise to pause diplomacy until and unless Iran stopped stockpiling highly enriched uranium, fuel suitable for a weapon.

When Malley was absent from briefings to Congress on the Iran deal, Kredo wrote about the first House investigation into the revocation of the envoy's security clearance. When the Tehran Times, an Iranian regime mouthpiece, printed a letter from the State Department's diplomatic security office informing Malley that his security clearance was suspended, Kredo was once again on the case.

For the most part, Kredo's scoops were met with crickets from the fourth estate and the Biden administration. But the stench is now too pungent to ignore. After Semafor and Iran International last month published bombshells on an Iranian foreign ministry initiative to cultivate Western experts to influence the debate over Iran policy, mainstream outlets are starting to connect the dots.

It turns out that Malley hired an adviser for his work to revive the nuclear deal, Ariane Tabatabai, who also participated in this Iranian operation. The Pentagon soon plucked her to be the chief of staff to the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low intensity conflict. Malley tried to hire Ali Vaez, another member of the Iranian influence network, but Vaez never got the proper clearances for the job.
Bahraini militia celebrates Hamas-led invasion of Israel, calls for mobilization against Israelis
Saraya Wa’ad Allah, an Iranian-backed militia in the island Kingdom of Bahrain, has announced its support for Hamas’ slaughter of Israelis and called for similar mobilization inside Bahrain. Despite the threat of violence, however, similar calls to action by the militia, or other Iranian-backed groups on the island over the last few years, have failed to materialize.

According to Saraya Wa’ad Allah, the Hamas-led assault on Israel “revealed the internal defeat of the house of spiders, as God has fulfilled his promise.” Moreover, the militia states that “what the Israeli occupation is experiencing is the inevitable divine promise that this great act of resistance will overshadow this bastard entity and God will decree their evacuation sooner than later.”

The militia goes on to congratulate Hamas and other groups within the so-called “Islamic Resistance,” or other militant groups within Iran’s orbit, and calls on them to continue until the “adhan [call to prayer] and calls of takbeer” can be heard from within.

Turning more locally, Saraya Wa’ad Allah also states that this is evidence that the current ruling Al-Khalifa family of Bahrain should turn against Israel and not pursue normalization. Calls against normalization with Israel have been a common refrain for Bahraini militias for several years.

The Shia militant group then states that the Hamas-led assault should be the call for Bahrain’s own mobilization against “Zionists” on the island and calls for a popular resistance uprising against the Bahraini state and Israelis.

Despite the fresh threat, this is not the first time Saraya Wa’ad Allah has issued such a communique against Israel. For instance, in 2020 it stated it created a dedicated sub-unit to target Israeli interests in Bahrain. It also took credit for threats against an Israeli delegation meeting with Bahraini officials in 2019.

Other Iranian-backed Bahraini militias, such as Saraya al-Ashtar and Saraya al-Mokhtar, have also threatened Israeli’s on the island.
MEMRI: Iran-Backed Militia: Direct U.S. Involvement Makes Interests In Region 'Legitimate Targets,' Eliminates All 'Red Lines'; Jihadi Clerics Suggest Overthrowing Regime In Jordan, Drone Attack Against USS Gerald R. Ford
On October 8, 2023, several Telegram channels affiliated with jihadis and with Iran-backed militias in Iraq shared commentary following U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's show of force in support of Israel by sending multiple ships and aircraft closer to Israel. The outlets argued that any direct involvement of U.S. forces makes U.S. interests in the region a "legitimate target" for the Iran-led axis of resistance, and that the U.S. announcement is but an attempt to cheer the "defeated side."

The previous day, October 7, 2023, Hamas had launched "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood," a surprise attack on Israel in the early morning of a major Jewish holiday. As part of the attack, the Gaza-based terrorist group fired thousands of rockets into Israel and dispatched militants into Israeli towns near the Gaza Strip.

The following report reviews initial statements about the events issued by leaders of Iran-backed militias in Iraq.

Sayyid Al-Shuhada' Brigades: U.S. Direct Involvement Would Make U.S. Presence "Legitimate Target," Eliminate All Red Lines

The official Telegram channel of the secretary-general of the Iran-backed Shi'ite militia Sayyid Al-Shuhada Battalions published a statement by the militia's Jihadi Council. The statement said that Palestine is not Ukraine, and that if the U.S. intervenes directly in the ongoing developments, as part of its "attempt to stabilize the crumbling entity," the U.S. presence in the region and its facilities and personnel "will become legitimate targets for the axis of resistance."

"Each [U.S.] strike will be met with 10 strikes. On that day, there will be no red lines to be observed," it concluded.
MEMRI: Column In Qatari Al-Watan Daily: Hamas Attack On Israel – Like Prophet Muhammad's Attack On Jews Of Khaybar In 628
In his column in the Al-Watan daily, Palestinian journalist Samir Al-Barghouti called the Hamas attack against Israel “a first-class, high-quality military operation” reminiscent of the Prophet Muhammad's attack on the Jews of Khaybar in 628.”[1]

The following are excerpts from his column:
“Like the Prophet when he decided to attack [the Jews of] Khaybar and raised his finger and said, 'Allah akbar, Allah akbar, Allah akbar, if we enter their territory, evil and bitter will be fate,’[2] at six in the evening [on October 6, 2023] the men [of the Palestinian resistance] said their sunset prayers and then began to prepare themselves throughout the night. At six in the morning [on October 7, 2023] they attacked the Khaybar of Gaza [i.e. the communities in the Gaza envelope]…

“Missiles pounded the Zionist enemy from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv and from the north to the south of occupied Palestine. More than 500 Israelis were wounded, more than 20 were killed and dozens were taken hostage. [The operatives] reached the land that was occupied in 1948, the settlers fled through the deserts and Zionist settlers and soldiers were taken prisoner.

“This is a first-class, high-quality military operation that sends a message to the occupier and to all those who try to eliminate the most important variable in the issue of Middle East peace, namely the fighters of the Palestinian resistance. The monster [i.e., Israel] has become terrified of the revolution of the giants who formulated a plan to sweep all the Zionists out of Palestine along with all the [Arabs] who have become Zionists.

“This is a message to everyone: Have no fear, we will be the ones who to vanquish those whose instill fear. Oh Muhammad Deif, how beautiful you are when you are clear and explicit, as you were when you conveyed your message to the Zionists, namely that every act of aggression against our mothers at Al-Aqsa [i.e. the murabitat[3]] will exact a high price, and that the cries of ‘Allahu akbar, Allahu akbar,’ uttered by a murabita at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem being dragged [along the ground] by the Zionist army, will be met with a harsh response. And this was the response.

“We who follow this victory on television should take to [the streets] in Amman, Cairo, Baghdad and in all the Arab capitals to support this resistance, which on October 7 recorded a victory the likes of which has not been achieved since October 1973.

"‘…If you support Allah He will support you…’ [Quran 47:7] The word of Allah is the truth.”[4]


TMU Instructor Blames Hamas Massacre Of Israelis On “75 Years Of Military Occupation”
In the early morning hours of October 7, hundreds of Hamas terrorists entered sovereign Israeli territory, indiscriminately targeting innocent men, women and children for murder. Horrific videos posted by the Islamist terrorist group show their operatives barbarically attacking civilians whose only crime was being Jewish and living in Israel.

But to one commentator, the act was an opportunity to spread patent falsehoods and to paint the Hamas attack as merely the latest in a tit-for-tat fight between the terrorist group and Israel.

Ginella Massa, a former CBC journalist and news anchor of Canada Tonight until July 2023, when she became a journalism instructor at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), posted on X (formerly Twitter) to her 31,500 followers on October 8, that it was “horrific to see hundreds of innocent civilians killed on both sides in this all out war,” but not before adding: “But let’s not call this unprovoked since it’s been 75 years of military occupation. Agree with the tactics or not, you can’t talk about this war without basic context.”
Mount Royal University Professor Says Hamas’ Attacks An “Expression Of Desperation”
Mark Muhannad Ayyash is a professor of sociology at Mount Royal University in Calgary, and one of Canada’s most prominent peddlers of anti-Israel disinformation and hate.

Ayyash has published opinion columns on Al Jazeera falsely accusing Israel of attacking Palestinian worshippers on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount and has claimed that Israel expelled 750,000 Palestinians to create the Jewish State, when in reality many were forced by Arab leaders to leave.

More recently, in the spring of 2023, Ayyash nominated one of the world’s most heinous proponents of antisemitic propaganda, Mohammed El-Kurd, for the “Calgary Peace Prize.” El-Kurd has previously posted antisemitic tropes on social media, as well as posts glorifying Palestinian terrorism against Israelis.

And now, Ayyash has weighed in on Hamas’ recent murderous terrorist attack against Israeli civilians.

In an interview with Global News in Calgary on October 8, Ayyash said that “this latest operation is an expression of their (Palestinians) desperation, to say ‘if we’re going to be erased from the map, then we’re not going to go quietly into the night.’”


CUNY Law quietly bans student speeches at graduation ceremonies after anti-Israel rant called for attacks on 'fascist' NYPD and military
CUNY's law school banned student speakers at future commencements after last year's anti-Israel rant that called the NYPD and other groups 'fascist.'

In a now-infamous speech from last year, Yemeni immigrant Fatima Mousa Mohammed claimed laws are 'white supremacy' and attacked American institutions.

The speech drew immediate backlash from numerous organizations and elected officials, even as Fatima defended her words and doubled down on her message.

Now, administrations have quietly banned student speakers at the school's graduation, though they will still give speeches as 'pre-commencement' events.

'It's a great step in trying to combat hate speech at the law school — that they're changing the process to make sure that what happened in the last two years won't happen again,' NYC Councilwoman Inna Vernikov said.

'We appreciate the small steps, but everything they do can't just be a response to bad press,' she told the told the New York Post.

The school said in a statement they are 'committed to ensuring a 'welcoming' commencement ceremony' for 2024.

Adar Rubin, an activist with End Jew Hatred also welcomed the idea that a student speaker would not be permitted.

Rubin wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that the decision to 'bar a student speaker was a small step in the right direction' but that it didn't go far enough because 'allowing students to hold a private pre-commencement event opened the door for student speakers to 'spew Jew-hatred'.

'On top of that, Dean Sudha Setty's statement below categorizing the NY Jewish community's outrage and pleas to CUNY to recognize their civil rights on campus as "anti-Palestinian harassment" is beyond disgraceful,' he added.
Penn to review policies following ‘Palestine Writes’ literary event
Responding to the international outcry over a campus conference titled “Palestine Writes,” featuring antisemitic speakers over Rosh Hashanah weekend, administrators at the University of Pennsylvania say they are re-evaluating their speaker policies.

The school will conduct an unspecified “review” of its policies on when to grant facilities to outside groups while emphasizing that it would not seek to exclude speakers, wrote The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Still, Scott Bok, chair of Penn’s board of trustees, said that university leadership did not “want to be in the business of vetting and approving each of the few thousand of speakers” invited to campus, according to the article.

The school did ban antisemitic rocker Roger Waters from attending, prompting the former Pink Floyd frontman to send his message via an Instagram video, despite his flying in specially for the event.

In response, Susan Abulhawa, executive director of the festival, said “there was not a single moment or statement of care for Penn’s Palestinian students who have been marginalized and maligned and subjected to violent propaganda year after year.”

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, said Penn’s leadership had failed, stressing that the university had chosen not to condemn the speakers’ antisemitism “in a clear and cogent way.” He further described the university’s hosting of the event rather than sponsoring it as a “difference without a distinction.”
Policing Scholarly Debate Anti-Israel Activist Scholars Try to Intimidate Academic Journal
Seeking to prevent one’s opponents from making their case is a sign of intellectual vulnerability. A good example of this comes from a recent “open letter” from a group of anti-Israel regulars trying to pressure a legal journal into deplatforming the scholarly presentations made at a recent international law conference in Israel.

The event in question was the Fourth IDF Conference on the Law of Armed Conflict held in May. A few of the presentations were posted on the blog of the European Journal of International Law (EJIL). The published presentations – delivered by a postdoctoral fellow at a Dutch scholarly institute, a U.S. State Department legal adviser, and the head of Israel’s Military Advocate General’s Corps – were thoughtful discussions of important questions in the field of international law. They delved into the fundamental question of how “customary international law” is identified, that is, rules that come from “a general practice accepted as law” and which “exist independent of treaty law.”

A handful of academics and anti-Israel (and sometimes antisemitic) activists did not like this. Together they sent an open letter criticizing EJIL for publishing the presentations on its blog.

It is evident, however, that this was not a good faith, principled stance on their part. A brief glance at the signatories shows not only the hypocrisy of their words, but why they might want to drown out the discussion that was held.

Consider just a few examples that illustrate why this was not borne out of any real scholarly principles other than hostility to the Jewish state.

The open letter decries EJIL for “legitimizing the ‘scholarship’ of regular armed forces of a state actively engaged in war crimes…” Yet in March 2023 – just two months before the IDF conference – one of the signatories, Richard Falk, participated in an “international law” conference organized by an affiliate of an internationally designated terrorist organization, Hamas, which openly boasts of having committed thousands of war crimes. There, Falk spoke alongside numerous current and former leaders of Hamas, whose founding charter and terroristic methods are an affront to the very idea of international law.

There is also Susan Power, identified as the “Head of Legal Research and Advocacy” at Al-Haq. How many times has her General Director, a convicted member of the internationally designated terrorist organization Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), been caught participating in PFLP events, such as a memorial for a PFLP founder?

Neither Hamas nor PFLP works within this “framework that respects the principles of justice, equality, and the integrity of the discipline itself” that the signatories declare excludes the IDF conference. To these signatories, the principle of not legitimizing those who engage in war crimes apparently does not apply if those war crimes target Jews and Israelis.




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This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For 20 years and 40,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.

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