Thursday, May 23, 2024

05/23 Links Pt1: Hamas terrorists confess to raping, murdering women on Oct. 7; Unpacking the ICC's absurdity; The Israelis Prove Biden Wrong on Rafah

From Ian:

Andrew Fox Israel Is Succeeding in Gaza
So how does the IDF plan to achieve the aim of defeating Hamas? Through a political solution? Definitely not. No one on the international stage has expressed any interest in helping with governance in Gaza. Nor is there any evidence that these nonexistent partners would do anything other than act as human shields for Hamas, making it impossible for Israel to attack its foes when necessary. The idea that there exists some magic device to convert any sizable number of Gazans to embrace a political alternative to Hamas that would be in any way favorable for Israel can be generously termed a fantasy. According to polling, 2% of Gazans support an Israeli-backed administration. The majority want Hamas back.

Israel’s war cabinet has received significant domestic and international criticism for their lack of a “day after” plan for governance in Gaza, which has been echoed in recent days by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and war cabinet member Benny Gantz. IDF planners are therefore faced with designing operations to achieve a loosely defined goal, with no clearly articulated strategic end state for the operation from their political leadership—in part perhaps because the “end state” may be unsatisfying to Western ears. So how have they met this challenge?

If you look at what is possible, what the best version of “success” looks like, and what Israel is doing, I contend that in Gaza we are seeing a masterpiece of operational design within severe politically imposed limitations. The IDF is not trying to clear Gaza. With no ability to impose a political arrangement in Gaza, and a Gazan desire for continued Hamas rule, the IDF answer is: Let them have Hamas. But the version of Hamas that Gazans will get is one heavily degraded militarily, and, most importantly, with vast swaths of their tunnels and civilian-embedded infrastructure destroyed. In other words, the IDF aims to replace Hamas 3.0—the version that fought three wars against Israel and then launched the brutal Oct. 7 surprise attacks—with Hamas 1.0, which took over the Gaza Strip from Fatah in June 2007.

To accomplish that end, the IDF has methodically razed what Hamas infrastructure they could find in Gaza City, Khan Yunis, and now Rafah. They have secured the Netzarim corridor to control freedom of movement from south to north. It looks like they are trying to do the same thing along the Philadelphi Corridor and Gaza’s southern border with Egypt, to cut off the inflow of weapons and supplies to Hamas.

Facial recognition software in controlled areas allows the IDF to stop known Hamas commanders moving around. This posture also allows the IDF to strike when concentrations of Hamas are identified, to degrade their manpower, and then withdraw again: And that is what we saw at Shifa hospital and are seeing now in Jabalia.

At the same time, the IDF has methodically destroyed buildings to create a 1-kilometer buffer zone around the Gaza border—a measure that if enforced would indeed prevent a repeat of Oct. 7. If Israel has its way, nobody in Gaza is getting anywhere near the border again. However, whether Washington will come down against this policy remains to be seen, which is why for Israel, the key strategic goal in Gaza is arguably to limit as much as possible the internationalization of the Strip through fantastical plans for “the day after.”

As things stand, the operational end state looks like significant Hamas infrastructure is destroyed, its fighting capability severely degraded, and the border secured, with the IDF retaining the capability to strike into Gaza at will. All of this has occurred while shifting hundreds of thousands of civilians out of harm’s way and minimizing innocent casualties (Hamas’ human shield tactics aside). As John Spencer, chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, has repeatedly pointed out, the efforts the IDF has made to protect civilians is unprecedented in modern urban warfare.

Both the tactical and strategic accomplishments of the IDF campaign in Gaza are entirely real. The operational design that allowed for these accomplishments does, of course, come with disadvantages. First, the destruction of civil infrastructure will require a massive reconstruction effort. While innocent civilian deaths are real and tragic, the almost 1-to-1 combatant-to-civilian death ratio remains very low compared to other conflicts. Second, the Egyptians have been very twitchy about Israeli control of the southern border.

However, we now know why. Since the start of the Rafah operation, the IDF has uncovered some 50 tunnels that run from Gaza into Egypt, suggesting a high and ongoing degree of complicity between the Hamas leadership and the military and political leadership in Cairo.

Militarily, the IDF is hamstrung by international pressure to slow operations, and uncertainty about what comes next in Gaza—a choice that may at least partially lie outside of Israel’s control. For our part, Western critics need to eat humble pie and accept that, on the evidence of the last 20 years, our tactics are not to be recommended. What we are seeing in Gaza is not a failure. It’s a quite brilliant IDF operational design, within the bounds of what is realistically possible.
Caroline Glick: Egypt must pay a price for sponsoring Hamas
According to an investigative report in Tablet magazine, in exchange for its “moderating” role in mediating the war between Hamas and Israel, Egypt has received loans and investments from the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and the United Arab Emirates totaling more than $50 billion. While Egypt was on the brink of insolvency on Oct. 6, this inflow of money has now secured Egypt’s financial viability for the next several years.

There is no objective reason that el-Sisi’s extortionist pro-Hamas policies should succeed. U.S. leverage over Egypt is considerable. Use of but a fraction of that leverage by the U.S. can induce a significant shift in Egypt’s actions, at least in the immediate term. But rather than use it, the Biden administration to date, has rewarded el-Sisi for siding with Hamas against Israel.

Egypt would not have received its cash infusion from the IMF, the European Union and the UAE without a green light from Washington, which also provides Egypt with $3 billion in military aid per year. Rather than demand that Egypt follow international humanitarian law and permit Gazans to flee the war zone to Egypt, the administration has firmly supported el-Sisi’s refusal to permit them to cross the border. Similarly, Washington has been as critical of Israel’s operation in Rafah as Egypt.

Given the administration’s policy, it is time for American lawmakers who understand the danger Hamas’s survival poses to begin criticizing and Egypt’s nefarious role in facilitating Hamas’s weapons build-up and its success in building its warren of more than 400 miles of underground tunnels across Gaza and into Egypt. Egypt should see its aid tied to an end to its sponsorship of Hamas.

If Hamas survives, its perceived victory over Israel will of course inspire Hezbollah, the Houthis, the Shiite militia in Iraq and Syria and Iran itself to step up their assaults on the Jewish state. But it will also be an adrenalin shot for Islamists in the Western world to expand their terrorist attacks and other forms of political violence against Westerners and home and worldwide.

U.S. elected officials must express their disapproval of Egypt’s policies. They need to take action to undermine el-Sisi’s ability to maintain his pro-Hamas policies and anti-Israel brinkmanship by, among other things, tying U.S. fiscal support and military assistance to Egypt to an end to its cooperative relationship with Hamas; its political warfare against Israel; and threats to abrogate the peace treaty with the Jewish state.
Seth Frantzman: A Hamas lobby emerges in the Middle East
A Hamas lobby that will affect the West

This is also important in the West. There are networks of activists with links to NGOs that are basically fronts for the Brotherhood. As such, Hamas has a lobby that stretches across the West.

A lot of this was known before October 7. Hamas was backed by Iran for years. Hamas leaders lived in Qatar since 2012. Egypt had mediated between Hamas and other Palestinian factions and Israel for years.

Doha had transferred cash to Hamas-run Gaza via Israel for years. Whenever there were tensions in Gaza, such as in May 2021, activists in the West would be galvanized to support the Palestinian cause.

In many cases, this was a thinly veiled form of support for Hamas. In fact, in recent years, there has been a quiet attempt to move Western activism away from backing two states and the Palestinian Authority to back Hamas and “resistance” and one state.

However, there are actors in the current conflict that appear to have remained behind the curtain until now.

Russia surprised Israel with its apparent support for Hamas after October 7. Because of the Ukraine war, Moscow viewed the Hamas attack positively as a way to create trouble for the US and US partners.

China sees the war the same way, and China’s backing of Palestinians has rapidly increased in recent years as Beijing has invested more in Tehran.

Egypt’s role is now in the spotlight. What did Egypt know about smuggling to Hamas? How did Hamas stockpile so many weapons despite supposedly being under blockade?

More difficult questions need to be asked about why Egypt didn’t want Israel operating in Rafah and what was done during the hostage talks that dragged them out and may have misled Israel.

For instance, why was Israel pressured to move to a lower-intensity war in Gaza and pause fighting for Ramadan? Was this really a US request, or was it based on Doha and Cairo asking the US to ask Israel to pause the righting?

This essentially gave Hamas a ceasefire in March and April so that it could recover. Hamas didn’t change its stance at the hostage talks and refused to even hand over a list of living hostages.

Israel doesn’t seem to have pressed for the list, leaving questions about whether the hostages were the top priority for Israel’s leaders as well.

However, the overall picture that emerges is that Israel was played by Doha and Cairo in the talks.

The problem Israel faces is the immense lobby for Hamas behind the scenes. Hamas not only has its official backers and the fact it is hosted in Doha, a Western ally, and backed by Turkey, a NATO member, but Hamas also has partnerships with many NGOs.

It has members who have infiltrated NGOs that work in Gaza. It has also brought their silence through threats or other means.

This means that most NGOs, whether those who deal in food health or other forms of aid, never mention Hamas's role in Gaza.

Hamas infiltrated hospitals and schools, and it is not critiqued by the NGOs. This is all part of a very complex lobby that makes Hamas very strong and hard to remove from Gaza.


Israeli President: Hamas Butchered the Biggest Supporters of Peace in Israel
President Isaac Herzog defended Israeli conduct during the war in Gaza on Piers Morgan's show Uncensored on Wednesday.

Morgan invited Herzog to defend Israeli conduct during the war in Gaza, first asking for the president's reaction to the announcement that Ireland, Norway, and Spain would recognize Palestine by the end of the month.

Herzog called them "futile steps" that would not cause any progress, he continued saying, "In order to reach any possible path for the future, there must be negotiations by the two sides."

Asked about the acceptance of a Palestinian state in Israel, saying "following October 7, in Israel, the deep feeling is that the neighbors that everybody promised us will be peaceful neighbors have attacked us in a brutal way and killed and butchered and raped and abducted first and foremost the biggest supporters of peace in Israel."

"There is also a national feeling that there is no trust – and in order to move to any possible future, there must be first and foremost trust."

He also said that declarations made in foreign offices designed to appease internal political pressures would not help Palestinians or Israelis.
“An Award To Hamas!” Israel President Herzog CONDEMNS Recognition Of Palestine
Piers Morgan speaks to Israeli President Isaac Herzog as the shadow of war continues to darken the Middle East. President Herzog reacts to the news that Ireland, Norway and Spain will officially recognise the state of Palestine by the end of this month, calling it a "futile step" that "won’t help" Palestinians.

He also comments on the recent death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, claiming they are not celebrating in Israel - but makes the point that the UN mourning his death illustrates the ‘rotting of the institution’. Before saying goodbye, President Herzog claims he cares about the Palestinian people, and even says he’ll take Piers’ complaint on the rights of journalists in Israel to the relevant authorities.

00:00 - Introduction
01:01 - President Herzog on the recognition of a Palestinian state
02:40 - End game of this war
05:27 - “Israel indirectly agreed to have a dialogue with the prosecutor"
08:52 - Serious charges being levelled by the ICC
11:32 - Israel’s duty to defend itself, and the scale of that defence
13:07 - Israel’s secondary attack on the freedom of press
16:00 - Herzog's views of the entire Palestinian population being culpable for Oct 7th
18:04 - “At what cost are you eliminating Hamas?”
20:50 - Netanyahu’s solution: An Israeli occupation of Gaza
24:50 - UNSC's minute of silence for Iranian President


Netanyahu: US Has Three Times the Number of Deaths from Starvation as Gaza
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: I think these charges are exactly what President Biden called them. They’re outrageous. They’re beyond outrageous. This is a rogue prosecutor that has put false charges and created false images that that are both dangerous and false. And first of all, the symmetry – he equates the democratically elected leaders of Israel with the terrorist tyrants of Hamas.

That’s like saying that, well, I’m issuing, you know, arrest warrants for FDR and Churchill, but also for Hitler, or I’m issuing arrest warrants for George Bush, George W Bush, but also for bin Laden. That’s absurd.

Netanyahu: Secondly, the charges are completely false. Let’s take this charge of starvation. We’ve put in 500,000 tons of trucks of food and medicine for this population. We’ve taken 20,000 trucks. We’ve paved roads to put those trucks in. We’ve opened border crossings that Hamas closed down. I’ve had airdrops that have facilitated sea routes, supplies. I mean, the whole thing is absurd.

You should know this. I mean, the price of food in Gaza has dropped by 80%. The markets don’t lie. They talk about 23, I think, or 30 cases of malnutrition, in a population of 2 million. Okay. The United States in 2022 had 20,000 deaths of malnutrition. That’s three times more than in Gaza. This is completely false. It’s the kind of slander that has been leveled at the Jewish people for ages. And it’s renewed now against the Jewish state. It was false then. It’s false now.

But one thing, this prosecutor, this rogue prosecutor, didn’t even bother to come here. He said he’d come here to check the facts. He didn’t check the facts. He just went out and demonized the Jewish state. And he’s taking the ICC down the route of the General Assembly that passes infinite resolutions, flat earth resolutions against Israel, or the Human Rights Council that used to have a reputation that is completely blown because half the resolutions are against Israel, not against Iran, not against North Korea, not against Syria.

It’s the same thing. It’s so outrageous. And false. It’s dangerous because it endangers every democracy. We should note, though, it’s not just the ICC expressing concerns about the lack of humanitarian aid getting into Gaza. President Biden and his administration and their officials, not to mention European allies of Israel and their officials. They’ve all been making this case for months that Israel is not letting enough aid in.


Tapper talks to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu after ICC seeks arrest warrant

Israel’s War Cabinet orders negotiators to continue hostage talks
Israel’s War Cabinet on Wednesday night approved updated guidelines for the team negotiating the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.

After four hours of deliberation, described by Walla! News reporter Barak Ravid’s sources as “in-depth and positive,” it was decided unanimously to restart negotiations under new guidelines after the talks stalled some two weeks ago.

A proposal presented by Israel Defense Forces Maj. Gen. Nitzan Alon to renew negotiations was rejected by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday night at the end of that day’s War Cabinet meeting, but this time the premier gave the green light.

An Egyptian intelligence official changed the terms of a ceasefire deal that Israel had already signed off on earlier in May to make it more favorable to Hamas, CNN reported on Tuesday.

Citing three sources with knowledge of the discussions, the U.S.-based news network revealed for the first time the changes made by Cairo, which angered American, Israeli and Qatari negotiators and left negotiations at an impasse.

The move raises questions about Egypt’s role in the ceasefire talks.

Before Egypt underhandedly changed the terms of the deal, U.S. officials had praised Jerusalem for its concessions, calling it “extraordinarily generous on the part of Israel.”
It’s unlikely any more hostages will be returned alive, says IDF lieutenant colonel
Hamas has no intention of returning any of the hostages according to a former senior IDF spokesman, who also warned about the looming danger of escalation with Hezbollah.

Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus told reporters he was “not optimistic” that any more hostages would be freed alive, although he said that some were known to be held in Rafah.

Speaking at an event with the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre, Conricus, who is a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said: “Hamas is not going to release the hostages.”

He added that the terror group had used the hostages as leverage: "They have been using this as a way of prolonging the war and getting Israel to divert its time and efforts away from defeating Hamas.”

“They used the holy month of Ramadan very cleverly and got a month of almost zero IDF operations in Gaza by dangling the hostages in front of Israel for a month. They really fooled Israel.”

Of the 128 hostages still in Gaza, 36 have been declared dead by Israeli officials.

In addition, between 30 and 50 more hostages are believed to be dead, but their families have not yet been informed according to Conricus.

About the remaining hostages, the colonel said: “There is a lot of ambiguity". One of the hostages whose body was rescued from Gaza last week was previously thought to be alive. Conricus described the operation as “a needle in a haystack”.

He warned that Israel’s “failure” to bring most of the hostages home “will be dangerous in the future for Israel because we will see other terrorist organisations emulate this. What this means for other border communities in Israel is very dangerous.”
Hamas terrorists confess to raping, murdering women on Oct. 7
Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper released footage on Thursday of two captured Hamas terrorists telling Israeli interrogators that they raped and murdered women and girls on Oct. 7, 2023.

Jamal Hussein Ahmad Radi, 47, and his son Abdallah, 18, were arrested by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip earlier this year, the report said, adding that the elder terrorist was a member of Hamas’s “Security Service.”

In the video clip, father-of-seven Jamal describes to an Arabic-speaking Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) officer how he, his son and other terrorists broke into Kibbutz Nir Oz on the morning of Oct. 7.

“In each house where we found someone, we either killed them or kidnapped them,” the Hamas terrorist says in a matter-of-fact voice. “In the first house, I found a woman and her husband, and we hit them with live fire and killed them. … they were in their late 40s.”

Nir Oz, a small desert kibbutz within sight of the Gaza border once home to some 400 people, was among the hardest hit during the Oct. 7 assault. One in every four residents was either killed or kidnapped.

Jamal then confesses to rape, saying: “She was screaming, she was crying, I did what I did, I raped her. I threatened her with my gun to take her clothes off, I remember she was wearing jean shorts, that’s about it.

“I don’t know what happened to her [after that], I was there for 15 minutes and then I left,” Jamal claimed.

However, according to his son Abdallah, both he and his father violated the woman, who was murdered following the assault.

“My father raped her, then I did, and then my cousin did, and then we left, but my father killed the woman after we finished raping her,” he told an interrogator.

“Before this woman, we had raped another girl as well; I killed two people, I raped two people, and I broke into five houses,” Abdallah admitted.


'I have friends in Palestine': The tragic irony of a peace activist held by Hamas
"I have friends in Palestine." These words, spoken by Naama Levy, an Israeli soldier and peace activist, that were uttered to her Hamas captors while her face was covered in blood, underscored the tragic irony of her abduction. Levy, who dedicated her young life to promoting peace and understanding between Israelis and Palestinians, was brutally kidnapped during the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

At 19 years old, Levy should have embodied the hope for a future in which Israelis and Palestinians could coexist peacefully. But this did not come true; on the contrary. Raised in Ra’anana near Tel Aviv, she became deeply involved with Hands of Peace, an organization committed to fostering dialogue and mutual understanding among young people from both sides of the conflict. Through this program, she participated in workshops, dialogues, and activities aimed at breaking down barriers and building bridges between communities long divided by hatred and violence.

Through this program, she participated in workshops, dialogues, and activities aimed at breaking down barriers and building bridges between communities long divided by hatred and violence.

The absurdity of Levy’s situation is heart-wrenching. Here is a young woman who, despite the profoundly entrenched conflict, chose to extend a hand of friendship and understanding to her Palestinian peers. Her dedication to peace and justice was not just theoretical; it was deeply personal and active. She fought for the rights of Palestinians, believing in a shared humanity and a better future for all.

Yet, on that fateful day in October, this same dedication was met with unimaginable violence. Levy was abducted from the Nahal Oz kibbutz military base. Footage of her abduction showed her in distress, injured, and forcibly taken by Hamas terrorists. In a cruel twist of fate, the very people she fought to understand and support became her captors, not because of her actions or beliefs, but simply because she was Jewish.

This stark contradiction is not just tragic; it is an indictment of the blind hatred that fuels such conflicts. Levy’s abduction is a grim reminder that in this brutal cycle of violence, even the most ardent advocates for peace are not spared. Further, her story highlights the absurdity and futility of a conflict that also punishes those who seek to bridge the divide.


Anti-Israel Celebrities Remain Silent After New Hamas Video Shows Kidnapping of Female Israeli Hostages
Celebrities who have regularly expressed anti-Israel sentiments since the start of the Israel-Hamas war stayed quiet on Wednesday in response to a heart-wrenching new video that shows the moments when five female Israeli soldiers were kidnapped by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 in southern Israel.

Mark Ruffalo, Susan Sarandon, John Cusack, and Bella Hadid were among the celebrities who stayed tight-lipped as the world saw the newly released, firsthand footage in which Hamas terrorists force the female Israeli soldiers, who are covered in blood, against a wall and threaten to kill them. The women, some of whom are teenagers, were kidnapped by Hamas terrorists at the Nahal Oz base in southern Israel near the Gaza Strip. The video was taken by body cameras on the Hamas terrorists and the hostages were identified as Naama Levy, Agam Berger, Daniela Gilboa, Liri Albag, and Karina Ariev. They have been held hostage by Hamas terrorists for more than seven months.

In the clip, Hamas terrorists are heard telling the hostages in Arabic, “you dogs, we will step on you,” and “our brothers died because of you. We will shoot you all.” They also call the women “so beautiful,” and one terrorist points to the hostages while saying in Arabic, “here are the girls” who can get pregnant and “these are the Zionists.”

Instead of addressing the new Hamas video, Ruffalo — who supports a Israel-Hamas ceasefire and has condemned Israel’s war against terrorists responsible for the Oct. 7 attacks — instead expressed support on Wednesday for the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and his demand for arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s defense minister, and three Hamas leaders.


Jewish Learning Institute: How I Survived the Nova Festival Massacre
Join Natalie as she recounts her extraordinary experience at the Nova Festival in Israel amidst a sudden rocket attack on October 7th. Despite the chaos and fear, Natalie shares why she feels safer in Israel than in the United States, even during times of war. From the moment the rockets started falling, Natalie's story is a testament to the resilience and unity of the Jewish people. Discover how a series of 'choiceless choices' led to her survival and why she believes in the strength of the Jewish community. Don't miss this gripping and inspirational narrative of courage, hope, and solidarity.


Unpacking the ICC's absurdity
SO, ONE has to question why it took some seven months for the international courts to publicly state that Israel’s prime minister and defense minister were retroactively guilty of crimes against humanity and dating these to as early as the day after the brutal massacre that shocked the world’s collective conscience.

Could it be because Israel is about to finish off the last safe haven of Hamas terrorists who have been hiding out in Rafah, this one particular area, determined to be a forbidden territory for Israel’s military to enter?

We have repeatedly been told by the Biden administration, along with other countries and world leaders, as well as by pro-Palestinian demonstrators not to even think about making a move into that part of Gaza, all under the guise of protecting its citizens who, coincidentally, are embedded with the same Hamas terrorists who executed unspeakable crimes against humanity but are, nonetheless, being protected and granted immunity by way of being indistinguishable from ordinary people.

Terrorism pays when it can be camouflaged and ultimately excused with the sudden “sanctity of life” claim.

But what about the sanctity of Israeli lives? Is a sovereign country no longer permitted to react to being savagely attacked for fear of its leaders being reduced to war criminals? If so, then we have lost the basic right of self-defense. And if this has become the new standard in war, how is evil ever to be defeated?

The ICC has clearly crossed a line of no return when as an official body, purporting its commitment to justice and truth in matters of war and peace, it is able to view demonic terrorists through the same lens as it views a prime minister and defense minister of a democratic and free nation that has sought to help its neighbors during times of tragedy and great hardship.

While the stark differences should be evident and distinguishable, they are about as obscure as the truth – which is no longer of any importance to those committed to the evil which has replaced all other standards.
Jonathan Tobin: Don’t downplay the impact of the ICC indictment of Netanyahu
Still, the short-term impact of the ICC announcement not only undermined the anti-Netanyahu protest movement inside Israel but forced the Biden administration to shift its tone of harsh and deeply unfair criticism of the Israel Defense Forces’ conduct of the war. Even President Joe Biden found himself forced to say that Israel was not guilty of “genocide.” And it gave a boost to the efforts of House Speaker Mike Johnson to pressure Democrats to join him in inviting Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress, thus providing him an opportunity to make Israel’s case to Americans without the filter of an often-hostile news media.

As with Israel’s top generals and those in charge of the country’s intelligence agencies, there is a good case to be made that Netanyahu should be forced out of office because of the historic disaster that occurred on his watch. That may well happen after the war is concluded. But the bulk of Israel’s journalistic, legal, academic, business and security establishments have been seeking to topple Netanyahu’s government almost from the moment he won the last Knesset election in November 2022. Up until Oct. 7, their focus was on thwarting the Likud Party-led effort to reform Israel’s out-of-control judiciary. After a few months of unity after the Hamas massacres in southern Israel, the opposition resumed its push to unseat Netanyahu by blaming him for the plight of the hostages still being held captive in Gaza and the war continuing to drag on.

But nothing is more likely to bolster support for Netanyahu than outside pressure from the United States or the international community, which have been demonizing him for positions or actions supported by most Israelis. That was a lesson that former President Barack Obama never seemed to learn during his eight years in office. The pressure from Obama to force Israel to retreat to the 1967 borders and to divide Jerusalem to create a Palestinian state that the Palestinians consistently refused to accept actually helped Netanyahu repeatedly win re-election. His future in office is, at best, unclear. But as long as he can show the Israeli public that he is the only leader with the guts to stand up to the Americans and foreign pressure to adopt positions on borders, Palestinian statehood and the survival of Hamas, it would be a mistake to underestimate his ability to use that to hang on.

It’s also true that the ICC arguably has no real jurisdiction over Israel and that many countries, including the United States, will not recognize its authority. And there is every chance that the Americans will penalize Khan and the ICC for this outrage. Even Secretary of State Antony Blinken—who is as devoted a supporter of international organizations, the United Nations and its agencies as anyone who has ever been in charge of U.S. foreign policy—pledged to work with Congress on sanctioning the ICC.

The same is true for other aspects of the international campaign to isolate Israel such as the decisions of Spain, Norway and Ireland to recognize Palestinian statehood in a vacuum. Since there is no existing state of Palestine, these sorts of gestures are meaningless acts of virtue-signaling as well as an immoral reward to the Palestinians for employing terrorism.

Sanction the ICC and the UN
Meaningless gestures, however, have a way of accumulating and creating a compendium of moves that effectively brand not just Israeli policies as unpopular but illegitimate. Israelis have come to believe that their high-tech prowess, innovations in medical technology and a host of other accomplishments mean respect the world over and that they can’t be made into a pariah state. Their newfound normalization agreements by two Gulf states, Morocco and Sudan via the 2020 Abraham Accords brokered by former President Donald Trump bolstered that belief.

The mechanisms of international law can be mocked, as well as correctly labeled as the product of anti-Israel propaganda. But the reaction to the Hamas atrocities of Oct. 7 should make it clear to Jews everywhere that counting on much of the world to condemn a movement of murderers, rapists and kidnappers bent on Israel’s elimination may be a fool’s errand.

Having downplayed the threat of lawfare against Israel for a generation, many in the pro-Israel community still don’t acknowledge the danger it poses. Even after the current war ends, the impact of the lies about Israeli “genocide” will still be felt. What is needed now is a robust American campaign not just to condemn the ICC and the United Nations, but a decision to defund all institutions that are part of a campaign to aid the Hamas cause of destroying the one Jewish state on the planet. Washington could cut certain institutions and nations off from the American economy, which would give the Biden administration the tools to substantially end this threat on its watch. Relying solely on goodwill, reason, logic and the truth to defend Israel against a malevolent international community won’t be enough. It’s time for supporters of the Jewish state to recognize that as unthinkable as it may be for Israel to be shunned in the same manner as South Africa, it could happen if action isn’t taken to punish the ICC and U.N. agencies who are behind this vile plot.
ICC, ICJ may hinder Israel’s war effort, despite Netanyahu’s assurances
Khan’s announcement on Monday apparently came as a surprise to the United States, which has sharply criticized the move.

“The United States fundamentally rejects the announcement today from the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) that he is applying for arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials, together with warrants for Hamas terrorists,” said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a press statement on Monday.

Khan’s request not only violated the principles of complementarity, but also established a “shameful” equivalence between Israel and Hamas, ” a brutal terrorist organization that carried out the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust and is still holding dozens of innocent people hostage, including Americans,” the statement continued.

In addition to the issue of jurisdiction, Blinken also noted “deeply troubling process questions” surrounding the move by Khan.

“The prosecutor had been scheduled to visit Israel as early as next week to discuss the investigation and hear from the Israeli government. His staff was to have landed in Israel today to coordinate the visit; Israel was informed they had not boarded their flight around the same time Khan went on cable television to announce the charges,” he said.

“These and other circumstances call into question the legitimacy and credibility of this investigation,” which not only does nothing to help but could actually jeopardize ongoing hostage negotiations between Israel and Hamas,” the statement continued.

At the same time, the International Court of Justice is deliberating on charges of genocide levied against Israel by South Africa over its conduct of the war.

Senior Israeli officials told Israel Hayom on Thursday that there is concern in Jerusalem that the court may call for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Rafah in southern Gaza, or in the entire Gaza Strip.

While such a ruling would not be binding, it could lead the U.N. Security Council to demand a ceasefire, necessitating a U.S. veto, the official said.

While Netanyahu has sworn that even if the ICC approves Khan’s request for arrest warrants or the ICJ calls for a ceasefire Israel will not stop, Israel’s dependence on the U.S. veto in the Security Council, as well on the supply of armaments from Washington, could force his hand.

In a scenario where the U.S. fails to exercise its veto, Israel could find itself forced to prosecute the war alone, or be put in a position where it must make a one-sided deal with Hamas that may bring some hostages home but leaves the terrorist group in power.
ICJ poised to order halt to Gaza war; Israel braces for Security Council drama
Israeli officials anticipate that the International Court of Justice in The Hague will issue orders on Friday to halt the ongoing military conflict with Palestinian militants in Gaza, according to a senior diplomatic source.

An Israeli diplomatic source told Israel Hayom that legal experts assessed there was a high probability the court would rule to issue injunctions following a petition filed by South Africa against Israel’s military actions.

The two potential scenarios, the source said, were that the court could order a cessation of Israeli operations in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza, or further, that it could seek to halt the broader war in Gaza entirely through court injunctions.

Orders to halt the war represent the most severe scenario from Israel’s perspective, as they could significantly impede Israel’s ability to continue its military mission in Gaza. This despite Israel repeatedly emphasizing it is not bound by the court’s rulings.

Another significant concern is that injunctions from The Hague could precipitate a similar resolution by the U.N. Security Council, where Israel would again require the United States to veto it.


Netanyahu to address joint session of Congress, Johnson says
Republicans and Democrats are poised to invite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint session of Congress, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) announced on Wednesday.

Johnson repeatedly urged Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to co-sign a letter inviting Netanyahu to address the lawmakers.

“I spoke with him today and he’s going to sign the letter jointly and it’ll get out to the prime minister this week,” the House speaker told Britain’s The Independent after votes in the House on Wednesday.

Earlier on Wednesday, Axios cited Johnson as saying that he had “not spoken to [Schumer] personally, but our staffs have communicated and it seems as though he wants to sign on. I expect it to happen today or as quickly as possible because we have to get the letter sent out.”

Johnson said he did not have a date set, telling The Independent, “No, I’m going to talk [with] Prime Minister Netanyahu about that today.”

The Biden administration said on Wednesday that it had not been informed of a visit by the Israeli leader. “We’ll stay in touch with the prime minister and obviously we’ll stay in touch with the Congress and see what happens,” said National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
Yellen vows to stop Israel from cutting off PA banks from financial system
Smotrich on Wednesday called for a series of punitive steps against the Palestinian Authority in response to its push for unilateral statehood and support for the International Criminal Court case against the Jewish state.

In a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the finance minister announced his intention to immediately halt the transfer of all monthly tax revenues that Jerusalem collects on behalf of the P.A.

The announcement came hours after Norway, Ireland and Spain declared their recognition of a Palestinian state, in decisions that the P.A. and the Hamas terrorist organization welcomed.

Oslo in recent months has been serving as an intermediary to transfer some funds earmarked for the P.A. that Israel froze in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas-led terrorist massacre in the country’s south.

“Norway was the first to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state today, and it cannot be a partner in anything related to Judea and Samaria. I intend to stop the transfer funds and demand the return of all funds transferred,” Smotrich wrote to the prime minister.

Approximately 1 billion shekels ($272 million) has been parked in Norway over the past three months, while Jerusalem transfers some 600 million shekels ($163 million) to Ramallah directly every month.

“The Palestinians are working against Israel with political terrorism and promoting unilateral measures around the world—I cannot continue to transfer funds to them. If this causes the P.A. to collapse, let it collapse,” Ynet cited Smotrich as saying.
The ICC Prosecutor Has United Israel in Opposition
As the war against Hamas dragged on, deep disagreements arose in Israel about its direction, postwar planning, and the price that ought to be paid to free the hostages still held by Hamas. That is, until Monday.

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan's announcement that he will seek arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has produced a groundswell of anger and indignation that has united the country once again. 106 of the Knesset's 120 members - including most of the opposition - have signed a statement slamming Khan's comparison of Israel's leaders to the mass murderers of Hamas.

To Israelis, the suggestion of moral equivalence between their government and a terrorist group that openly and actively seeks their destruction is repulsive and contemptible. The notion that any comparison could possibly be drawn between the Jewish state, endeavoring to defend itself in the wake of the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, and the perpetrators of that very massacre, is horrifying.

The world might have moved on from Oct. 7, but Israelis have not. Just this week the nation buried the mutilated bodies of four of its people brutally murdered that terrible day. Any effort to tie Israel's hands while it is defending itself will be met with wall-to-wall resistance and steely determination.
Former Israeli Supreme Court Justice: Request for Arrest Warrants from ICC Is "Blood Libel"
Former Supreme Court justice Elyakim Rubinstein has described the request for arrest warrants by International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Karim Khan against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as “a blood libel” and illegitimate on both a substantive and procedural level.

Speaking to The Times of Israel, Rubinstein also denounced Khan’s juxtaposition of Netanyahu and Gallant with the three Hamas leaders against whom the prosecutor is also seeking arrest warrants.

Khan announced on Monday he was seeking warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant on charges of crimes against humanity, on the allegation that Israel is deliberately starving Palestinians in Gaza, as well as for war crimes of willful killing and intentionally attacking civilians.

“Requesting these arrest warrants is wrong and not appropriate in any way, not in the manner and framework in which it was done, and not in the substance [of the decision],” said Rubinstein, who served as a Supreme Court justice for 13 years, of which two were spent as deputy president.

“In terms of the manner: to juxtapose the Israeli prime minister and defense minister to the Hamas criminals is awful; there is no substantive comparison between them,” he said.

“Allegations of crimes against humanity such as starvation against Gazans simply have not happened — there is a hidden line connecting between the ICC allegations and the proceedings against Israel in the International Court of Justice on allegations of genocide, which are both blood libels,” averred the retired justice.


Can the ICC Ever Give Israel a Fair Hearing?
Was there ever any doubt that the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor would eventually accuse Israel of war crimes?

He represents an institution that is seen by some as a political pressure group as much as a court of law.

Advising the prosecutor, a barrister named Karim Khan, was a panel of jurists including human rights lawyer Baroness Helena Kennedy from the sanctimonious Left (who did condemn Hamas after October 7).

Even so, the chances of their having total sympathy with Israel in its struggle for survival were not high.

The truth is, Mr Khan's decision to request an arrest warrant for Israel's elected prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defence minister is an absurd overreach.

He tried to show some semblance of even-handedness by also calling for the arrest of three Hamas leaders, but this made the situation even worse.

It draws a moral equivalence between the genocidal terror group that sparked this latest conflict with an orgy of rape, murder and kidnap, and a democratic government acting to defend itself.

It's true that Israel has exacted a heavy price in Gaza, but its sole aim is to stop such abominations as the October 7 massacre happening again. This is not a 'war crime', it's simply war.

It's easy for puffed-up ICC lawyers to pronounce judgment, but they are not the ones Hamas wants to exterminate.
Experts slam ICC for quick case against Israel while ignoring brutal regimes: 'Totally politically driven'
The International Criminal Court (ICC) drew anger over its consideration to issue arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas officials, prompting critics to highlight cases of rogue nations where leaders appear to escape the court’s scrutiny.

"While the ICC has been around for over two decades, it has less than 10 successful prosecutions," Orde Kittrie, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and law professor at Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, told Fox News Digital.

"It’s spent over $2 billion. It’s been really ineffective, and that makes it particularly ironic that it’s going after the officials of Israel. Israel isn’t an ICC member state, and the ICC is prohibited by its charter for going after a state which effectively polices its own alleged violations," Kittrie said. "Israel polices its own alleged violations, so the ICC really has no business going after Israeli officials."

"It’s obviously, totally politically driven," he added. "The failings are clearly driven by politics and the same anti-Israel animus that has long dominated the U.N. and other international organizations whose filings should be treated as what they are: It’s quintessential lawfare, a political vendetta masquerading as a legal proceeding."

"There’s no way that they should have filed against Israel," Kittrie argued. "The ICC prosecutor decided to do it for political reasons … there’s more pressure on him to file against Israel than there is against far more worthy candidates, so that’s what he does. It's basically law by windsock."
Countries With the Worst Record of Human Rights Abuses Get a “Free Pass” from the ICC – Find Out Who They Are!
In its defense, the ICC claims that it faces significant resource constraints, with a large number of cases as well as limited financial and human resources. The ICC also claims that this necessitates prioritization, and not all cases can be pursued simultaneously . Interesting that the ICC suddenly had a copious amount of time on their hands as well as the formidable funding that is required to issue arrest warrants to Israeli leaders .

The ICC’s clear cut inaction on the flagrant human rights abuses that have taken place in Venezuela has also drawn criticism from human rights organizations and victims’ groups, who argue that justice is being delayed and denied. They call for more robust and swift action to hold perpetrators accountable and to provide justice for victims.

But circling back to the frighteningly surreal situation that the leaders of the Jewish state find themselves in and because they are on the receiving end of the palpable animus of the ICC, hope might be slipping away in terms of rectifying this legal imbroglio. The court, by treating Israel’s defensive actions as morally equivalent to the terror acts of Hamas, diminishes the severity of true terrorism. This false equivalence not only discredits the suffering of victims of terrorism but also emboldens terrorist organizations such as Hamas by absolving them of full responsibility for their actions.

Sovereign states must have the ability to defend themselves against existential threats. The ICC’s warrants undermine Israel’s right to protect its citizens and its existence. This sets a dangerous precedent that could deter other nations from taking necessary actions against terrorism for fear of international legal repercussions.

The ICC should concentrate on unequivocal instances of war crimes and crimes against humanity, ensuring that perpetrators of such acts face justice. This includes holding terrorist organizations accountable for their violations of international law.

The ICC must strive to apply its mandate uniformly, avoiding political biases that could undermine its integrity. Upholding balanced justice is essential for maintaining international trust and legitimacy.

The ICC should concentrate on unequivocal instances of war crimes and crimes against humanity, ensuring that perpetrators of such acts face justice. This includes holding terrorist organizations accountable for their violations of international law.

The future of the ICC’s involvement in Venezuela remains uncertain. Continued documentation of abuses, international advocacy, and potential changes in the political landscape could influence the ICC’s decisions. The court’s mandate to fight impunity for the gravest crimes remains a crucial element in the pursuit of global justice.


WSJ Editorial: The Israelis Prove Biden Wrong on Rafah
Remember Rafah? For months, the Biden Administration bitterly opposed an Israeli invasion of Hamas's last stronghold in Gaza.

The mantra was that Israel had "no credible plan" to evacuate the city's 1.3 million civilians. That was the justification for the President's arms embargo.

Yet the Israelis went ahead anyway, and two weeks later they have safely evacuated an estimated 950,000 people.

"This Administration never supports anything we do until we do it," a senior Israeli official said early this month.

To win Mr. Biden's consent, the Israelis first had to advance and succeed. But the delay his opposition caused has dragged out the war.

Now the Biden team has moved on to criticizing Israeli readiness for the "day after" the main fighting.

It's reasonable to ask what force will control Gaza in the future. But no one else will fight and die to defeat Hamas for Israel, or even to resist it as a civilian power.

Israel probably will need to fill the vacuum in Gaza for a time.
The Emerging Reality in Gaza
What appears to be emerging in Gaza is a situation in which a truncated, half broken but still viciously repressive Hamas continues to be the de facto governing authority.

Israel, meanwhile, maintains freedom of operation throughout the Strip, striking Hamas and its leaders at will, with the involvement of only a limited number of forces.

At the same time, an IDF zone of control along the Gazan side of the border prevents further Oct. 7-style attacks on Israeli border communities.
IDF reveals to 'Post': How Hamas exploits Gaza side of Rafah Crossing
As part of the IDF’s securing of the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing, soldiers came across incriminating evidence that at least part of the staff at the crossing also served in Hamas’s militia, the Al-Qassam brigades.

A worker’s pass from the Rafah crossing maintenance department was retrieved, belonging to a worker named Nasser Kamal Ghizan Abu Mousa, alongside another card of his depicting him as a member of Hamas’s Ezedeen Al-Qassam brigades. The Al-Qassam card also read, “Please facilitate the tasks of this card’s holder.”

“The IDF’s mission in the Rafah crossing revolves around cleansing the area from Hamas’s terror activity and to make sure that the goods brought into the Gaza Strip will make it to Gazan citizens, rather than Hamas terrorists,” a military source told The Jerusalem Post.

“There are other terrorists linked to the crossing, which we will expose in the future,” the source said. “This is but one of a series of findings providing evidence to the fact that Hamas has been clandestinely running affairs de facto, exploiting the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing for its own survival.”

The source highlighted the fact that in recent weeks, IDF forces have uncovered tunnel shafts in the area of the Rafah crossing that Hamas uses for attacking purposes. “This also demonstrates how Hamas exercised control over the vicinity of the crossing.”

Hamas attacks entry points for humanitarian aid
In the same context, Hamas has been repeatedly firing rockets aimed at the Kerem Shalom crossing and its surroundings from the Rafah crossing area, exploiting these areas to threaten aid convoys trying to reach the citizens of Gaza.

Despite ruling the Gaza Strip de facto since the last round of elections and its bloody coup more than two decades ago, over the years, Hamas officials have denied responsibility for their constituency in Gaza.

In October, Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzouk implied that the terrorist group’s tunnel network was only meant to protect Hamas members, while the rest of Gaza’s citizens fall under the jurisdiction of UNRWA or Israel. Likewise, several Hamas leaders escaped the Gaza Strip to the safety of their patrons in Doha or elsewhere a few days before the October 7 massacre to avoid facing Israeli retaliation.


FDD: Stung by Looting, UN Announces New Distribution Routes for Gaza Aid Delivered Through U.S.-Funded Pier
Latest Developments
The United Nations announced that new routes are being planned for the delivery of humanitarian aid in Gaza arriving through a U.S.-built pier off the Mediterranean coast, Reuters reported on May 21. The announcement came as the distribution of aid delivered to the pier was suspended for a third day because of concerns over looting.

Although the initial 10 trucks carrying aid to a World Food Programme (WFP) warehouse in Deir el-Balah in central Gaza made it safely to their destination on May 17, one day after the pier opened, looters severely disrupted a convoy of 16 trucks on the following day. Five of those trucks managed to reached the WFP warehouse, while the other 11 were “cleaned out” by Palestinians during the journey. “Crowds had stopped the trucks at various points along the way. There was what I think I would refer to as self-distribution,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on May 21.

A WFP spokesperson in Cairo, Abeer Etefa, told Reuters that distribution had been paused as the UN planned new routes and coordination of deliveries in a bid to prevent more aid from being intercepted. “The missions were planned for today using the new routes to avoid the crowds,” Etefa said.

The pier, constructed at a cost of $320 million and involving 1,000 U.S. service personnel, is intended to provide another aid route into Gaza to augment land crossings from Israel and Egypt and air drops of food and other supplies.

Expert Analysis
“The United States is now experiencing some of the same challenges that Israel has been wrestling with for months. Getting aid to Gaza is one thing, but the distribution of aid once it arrives in Gaza is a whole different matter. This reality should make critics of Israel in the United States and Europe think twice before accusing the Jewish state of blocking the flow of aid into Gaza, even as the same critics ignore or minimize aid distribution problems within Gaza.” — Bradley Bowman, Senior Director of FDD’s Center on Military and Political Power

“We need a serious conversation about whether American taxpayers just spent $320 million to pump aid directly into Hamas’s hands.” — Richard Goldberg, FDD Senior Advisor

Looting Hampers Efforts to Distribute Gaza Aid
The Pentagon has said that the United States is coordinating with UN agencies, including the WFP, to distribute the aid in Gaza. On May 20, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) reported that 569 metric tons of humanitarian assistance had been delivered using the pier. Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said during a press briefing on May 21 that Washington was helping to establish “alternative routes for the safe movement of that cargo.” He added that “aid is now being taken from those assembly areas to warehouses for further distribution throughout Gaza.”

In recent weeks, a number of incidents of aid theft have been reported. These include the hijacking by Hamas terrorists of a major humanitarian aid shipment that entered through the Erez crossing into northern Gaza on May 2 as well as the WFP’s decision in February to pause aid delivery after a convoy involving multiple trucks was looted and a driver physically assaulted. According to veteran Israeli journalist Ehud Ya’ari, Hamas has earned at least $500 million from the sale of captured aid since the beginning of the war.


IDF,Shin Bet kill Beit Hanoun Battalion Hamas commander in Jabalya tunnel underground
The IDF and Shin Bet killed Hussein Fiad, the commander of Hamas' Bein Hanoun Battalion, during an underground combat in the Jabalya region, the IDF reported on Thursday.

While the IDF operated in the Jabalya area, Israeli Air Force special forces, together with the "Yahalom" unit, killed the terrorist Hussein Fiad. Key Hamas commander

Fiad was responsible for a significant amount of the anti-tank rockets launched at Israeli territory since the beginning of the war on October 7th.

Furthermore, Fiad commanded the extensive mortar fire toward Israeli communities near the northern part of the Gaza Envelope.

In their announcement, the IDF stated that Fiad's death is part of the IDF's operational activity above ground to locate tunnels and Hamas terrorists and below the ground to destroy Hamas terror tunnels.
'Post' takes a look inside Hamas's Jabalya tunnels that hid hostage bodies
Outside a ruined house in the Jabalya refugee camp in northern Gaza on Wednesday, Lt.-Col. Almog told a group of reporters: “The enemy placed explosives and prepared ambushes and waited for us. We found explosive devices and booby traps in each of the houses. But the 202nd Battalion has been fighting for eight months in Gaza; the weaponry and means of combat we found there weren’t any different. There was an enemy here – a stubborn one. They fought for this place – and died in it.”

Almog, 36, from Kibbutz Neot Mordechai in the Upper Galilee, is the commander of the Paratroopers Brigade’s 202nd Battalion.

It is a regular formation, one of the three battalions of this most-storied of IDF infantry brigades. The 202nd has spent the last two weeks in the heart of Jabalya. The area is still not completely pacified, and small arms and tank fire could be seen close by.

In the course of its operations in Jabalya earlier this week, the 202nd recovered the bodies of four Israelis murdered by Hamas on October 7: Itzik Gelenter, 57; Amit Buskila, 28; Shani Louk, 23; and Ron Binyamin, 52.

How the IDF was able to return the bodies of hostages
I attended the funeral of Louk in her hometown, Moshav Srigin, south of Beit Shemesh in the Eila Valley. Coming to this place can tell us more about how her body was found and about the soldiers who carried the mission out.

“The intelligence we had on this place came from the brigade and battalion intelligence level,” Almog said, “and we came to the conclusion that something was unusual here… It’s a combination of several factors – intelligence at the brigade level, the tactical force that locates the site, and then the force from the Yahalom [Combat Engineering Corps reconnaissance] unit that carried out its specialized work.”

The paratroopers’ tactical force, which entered the house and located the shaft in which the bodies were located, was led by Lt. Roi Beit Yaakov, 22, from Eli, who was killed last week in Gaza fighting.


IDF announces deaths of three soldiers killed fighting in northern Gaza earlier today
Three Israeli soldiers were killed during fighting in the northern Gaza Strip today, the military announces.

The slain troops are named as:
Master Sgt. (res.) Gideon Chay DeRowe, 33, of the Combat Engineering Corps’ elite Yahalom unit, from Tel Aviv.
Cpt. Israel Yudkin, 22, an officer in the Kfir Brigade’s Netzah Yehuda Battalion, from Kfar Chabad.
Staff Sgt. Eliyahu Haim Emsallem, 21, of the Kfir Brigade’s Netzah Yehuda Battalion, from Ra’anana.

Emsallem and Yudkin were killed in a Hamas sniper attack in northern Gaza’s Beit Hanoun. Another soldier of the Netzah Yehuda Battalion was seriously wounded in the same incident, the IDF says.

DeRowe was killed by an explosive device in a building in northern Gaza. The military says another soldier of the Netzah Yehuda Battalion and a Yahalom reservist were also seriously wounded in the same blast.

Their deaths bring the toll of slain troops in the IDF’s ground offensive against Hamas and during operations along the Gaza border to 286. A civilian Defense Ministry contractor has also been killed in the Strip.


Hezbollah fires 30-rocket salvo at Upper Galilee
Hezbollah terrorists fired a barrage of around 30 rockets from Lebanon at the Upper Galilee on Thursday. Most of the projectiles were intercepted, while others hit in open areas, the IDF said.

There were no initial reports of injuries, though the rockets caused several fires, according to the Upper Galilee Regional Council.

The Iranian terror proxy took responsibility for the salvo, saying that it had fired “dozens of Katyushas” at a military base near Safed. Hezbollah claimed that the attack was in response to a strike on a vehicle in Lebanon’s Nabatieh area earlier in the day that killed a Hezbollah operative.

The IDF later named the dead man as Muhammad Ali Nasser Fran, who in recent years was “responsible for the infrastructure for the production and equipping of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon.”

The IDF continued: “In recent years, the terrorist Nasser Fran has been engaged in the production of strategic and unique weapons for Hezbollah, and some of the infrastructures he was responsible for in Southern Lebanon have been attacked during the past months.”


Blinken: Egypt must do ‘everything they can’ to allow aid into Gaza
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday called on the Egyptian government to take whatever measures are necessary to ensure the entry of aid into Gaza.

“We do strongly urge our Egyptian partners to do everything that they can on their end of things to make sure that assistance is flowing,” the top diplomat said at a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

“We need to find a way to make sure that the assistance that would go through Rafah can get through safely,” Blinken also told lawmakers.

On Tuesday, a senior Biden administration official offered a rare rebuke of Cairo’s refusal to work with Jerusalem to coordinate aid shipments to Gaza.

“What should be going into Kerem Shalom [a crossing point between Israel and Gaza] is the U.N. assistance which is now in Egypt. Egypt is holding that back until the Rafah Crossing situation settles out,” the official told reporters during a briefing.

“We do not believe that aid should be held back for any reason whatsoever. Kerem Shalom is open. The Israelis have it open. And that aid should be going through Kerem Shalom,” the official added.
AP Misreporting on Rafah Food Shortages
The Associated Press is feeding the allegation that Israel is starving Gazan civilians. In an article on Wednesday holding Israel responsible for the reported food shortage in Rafah, AP concealed that it is Egypt - not Israel - that has forced the shutdown of the Rafah border crossing, thereby stopping the flow of aid through that point. AP egregiously covered up Egypt's closure of the Rafah crossing, instead citing "an untenable security situation caused by Israel's expanding military operation."

At no point did AP clearly report that Egypt closed the crossing at the expense of Palestinian civilians. Even state-controlled Egyptian television reported that Egypt refused to coordinate with Israel on the transfer of aid.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said Tuesday that there was a "need to persuade Egypt to reopen the Rafah crossing to allow the continued delivery of international humanitarian aid to Gaza....The key to preventing a humanitarian crisis in Gaza is now in the hands of our Egyptian friends." In contrast, Reuters published an article on May 11 titled, "Egypt Refuses to Coordinate with Israel on Entry of Aid from Rafah Crossing."


What the Hell Is Going On: WTH is the International Criminal Court Prosecuting Netanyahu and Threatening Congress? Senator Tom Cotton Explains
Hosted by Danielle Pletka & Marc Thiessen
This week, International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan, K.C., announced on CNN that he will seek arrest warrants for Israel’s democratically elected Prime Minister and Defense Minister, as well as three members of Hamas leadership because of “crimes against humanity” related to October 7 and the subsequent Israel-Hamas war. Israel is not a party to the Rome Statute that underpins the ICC, which therefore has no legal jurisdiction in Israel. The ICC has admitted a “State of Palestine,” which theoretically grants jurisdiction over actions in “Palestine” and over Hamas figures. How should Washington respond to the ICC’s extrajudicial investigation? And how will the ICC’s announcement affect its global standing?

Tom Cotton is a United States Senator from Arkansas. Senator Cotton’s committees include the Judiciary Committee, where he serves as the Ranking Member for the Subcommittee on Criminal Justice and Counterterrorism, the Intelligence Committee, and the Armed Services Committee, where he serves as the Ranking Member of the Air Land Power Subcommittee. Before joining the Senate, Senator Cotton was a member of the House of Representatives and served on active duty in the United States Army as an Infantry Officer.
The Commentary Magazine Podcast: The Psalm of Rafah
Hosted by Abe Greenwald, Christine Rosen, John Podhoretz & Matthew Continetti
Today’s podcast takes up the text of Psalm 94, which is a stunning evocation of the moment facing Israel right now and the threat to its enemies—not from Israel itself but from the God of Israel.


Call Me Back PodCast: Rafah, Egypt & the “Day After” – with Amos Harel
In recent days, we have had three persistent questions:

One, how is it that – in just a matter of approximately 10 days – managed to move anywhere between 850,000 to a million Gazan Palestinians from Rafah to other areas of Gaza so Israel could conduct its operation against remaining Hamas battalions in Rafah? Weren’t we repeatedly told by the Biden administration that it was impossible?

So, our first question is, how did this happen? And what does it tell us about other gaps between the Biden administration forecasts and that of Israel’s when it comes to war-fighting in Gaza?

Our second question is about Egypt. Given what we have learned in recent days, why has Egypt escaped any real scrutiny or pressure over the past 7 months?

Our third question is whether all the heat on the Israeli Government for a lack of a “day after” plan really about the pursuit of a “day after” plan, or is it about deflecting scrutiny from other failures?

To help us answer these questions and others, we are joined by Amos Harel, who has been the military correspondent and defense analyst for Israel’s Haaretz newspaper for 25 years. He is among the most well-sourced and thoughtful journalists and analysts covering Israeli security affairs inside Israel. Prior to his current position, Amos spent four years as night editor for the Haaretz Hebrew print edition, and from 1999-2005 he was the anchor on a weekly Army Radio program about defense issues.
Mark Regev & Ruthie Blum: What Israel Must Do to Stop the ICC Arrest Warrants | Israel Undiplomatic
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is pushing to issue arrest warrants for Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu along with Hamas terrorist mastermind Yaya Sinwar and other Hamas leaders. How should Israel respond to such obscene accusations? Can Israel work with the US and other powers to put a stop to this?

Watch Ruthie and Mark duke it out on the outrageous ICC accusations against Israel, European countries' equally cynical recognition of Palestinian statehood, and the US push for Saudi normalization--before Hamas is even defeated.




'Appalling judgement': ICC ruling Israel guilty of genocide blasted as 'blood libel'
The Times of London Columnist Melanie Phillips has blasted the ICC’s Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan for ruling Israel’s military efforts to rid Gaza of Hamas as genocide and calling for the arrest warrants of several Israeli leaders.

Ms Phillips told Sky News Australia host Andrew Bolt it was an “appalling judgment”.

“The idea that Israel is deliberately, intentionally wantonly killing people, which is what the prosecutor has said, is not just a lie, it is actually a blood libel and the opposite of the truth.”


Douglas Murray slams ‘wrongheaded’ pro-Palestinian university students
Author Douglas Murray has slammed the “wrongheaded” university students at pro-Palestine protests for being in “lockstep” with someone who planned the October 7 attacks.

“All of those wrongheaded students on various campuses who’ve made common cause with Hamas – they’re on exactly the same page, lockstep with one of the people who planned the 7th of October massacre,” Mr Murray told Sky News host Rita Panahi.

“I hope they’re proud of themselves. History will be horrible to them.”


Col. Richard Kemp: ICC warrants are like Nuremberg trying Churchill and Truman
Colonel Richard Kemp, the former commander of the British military forces in Afghanistan, spoke to Israel National News - Arutz Sheva about International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan's announcement that he is seeking arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

"The ICC prosecutor’s attempt to bring charges against the Prime Minister and Defence Minister of Israel alongside Hamas terrorist leaders is equivalent to the Nuremberg Tribunals attempting to bring charges against Churchill and Truman alongside Goering and Himmler. That of course did not happen and would have been unthinkable. Only moral bankruptcy in the ICC could have led this court to even contemplate such depravity," Col. Kemp said.

He called the attempt to bring warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant "a scandalous abuse of the ICC’s power. It is a political not a legal decision, intended to undermine a democratic state’s efforts to defend itself from genocidal terrorists. As well as the anti-Israel political motives of ICC officials and those in the UN who influence them, this is in part an effort by the court to deflect critics who say that it is too strongly focused on non-democratic states including African countries. But in fact, its focus should be on such countries because its founding statute only permits it to act in respect of states that lack either the capability or will to bring to justice those who seriously breach international law. That is far from the case with Israel, which has a long-established and world-respected judicial system with a track record of investigating and trying such allegations."

He warned that "the ICC has also had the US and UK in its sights for war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. These investigations have also been an abuse of the court’s statute because like Israel both countries are more than capable of carrying out such processes under their own sovereign power."

"On the face of them the ICC’s allegations do not stand up," he said. "They relate to illegally killing civilians and withholding humanitarian aid as a weapon against the population of Gaza. I have been into Gaza myself several times since this war began and I have witnessed the delivery of aid into Gaza. From my observations, there is absolutely zero foundation for the ICC’s charges against Israeli leaders. I have also had meetings with both Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defence Minister Gallant as well as numerous other political and military commanders."
‘Nothing short of an obscenity’: ICC’s arrest warrants for Israeli leaders
Former British Commander Richard Kemp says the ICC’s attempt to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu and his defence minister is “nothing short of an obscenity”.

Mr Kemp told Sky News host Sharri Markson that the civilian loss of life in Gaza is “entirely due to Hamas”.

“If Hamas had not invaded Israel with such barbarity on the 7th of October, then there would be no war in Gaza.”




‘Clearly playing politics’: Alexander Downer hits out at ICC warrant requests
Former foreign minister Alexander Downer has hit out at the International Criminal Court’s appeal for a warrant for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s arrest.

The ICC is seeking arrest warrants for three leaders of Hamas, as well as Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the defence minister.

“I find it horrendous really,” Mr Downer told Sky News host Chris Kenny.

“With Karim Khan as the prosecutor, it's clear that all he wants to do is play politics and create tomorrow's equivalents between a terrorist organisation in Hamas which wants to destroy the state of Israel and kill Jewish people with a democratically elected Israeli government.

“So to draw a moral parallel between those two is just atrocious.”


Anthony Albanese has shown ‘unwillingness to criticise the ICC’
Sky News host Sharri Markson says Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has shown “unwillingness to criticise the ICC” for seeking arrest warrants against Israel leadership.

The ICC is seeking arrest warrants for three leaders of Hamas, as well as Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Defence Minister.

Ms Markson said other leaders around the world have claimed the situation to be “outrageous and incomprehensible”.


Progressive Social Justice Warriors Standing With Terrorists Like Hamas, with Bill Maher
Megyn Kelly is joined by Bill Maher, author of the book "What This Comedian Said Will Shock You," to talk about woke progressives social justice warriors standing with Hamas and other terrorists, the need for the left to support women and actual liberal ideals, the Ben Affleck vs. Sam Harris "Real Time" moment, and more.


‘Far-left fanaticism’: Hamas-themed birthday party held in Sydney
The Sydney bakery selling treats decorated with Hamas icons shows how “far-left fanaticism” has “crawled” out from under the rocks, former Victorian Liberal Party president Michael Kroger says.

“These young kids are indoctrinated as soon as they get to primary school and onwards into secondary school,” Mr Kroger said.

“It just shows you once again what far-left fanaticism has crawled out from under the rocks as a result of what’s happened in the Middle East.

“We see all these extremist views, demonstrations at universities and now even at kids birthday parties … it is extremely worrying.”






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Elder of Ziyon - حـكـيـم صـهـيـون



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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