Tuesday, July 30, 2024

07/30 Links Pt1: Hezbollah has exposed the West’s fatal cowardice; Why Hamas Is Refusing a Hostage Deal; US seeks ‘Goldilocks response’ from Israel

From Ian:

The West’s betrayal of Israel is shameful
When the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor announced that he was seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, former British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned the decision and said the UK would lodge a legal challenge. In a shameful abnegation of Britain's moral duty to an ally engaged in an existential war, the new Labour Government has now cast this policy aside. It amounts to an appalling betrayal of Israel in its hour of need.

There can be no lasting peace in the Middle East without the destruction of Hamas. The terrorists started this war when they launched a murderous pogrom on Oct. 7, and the extent to which this has been forgotten in the West is shocking. Israel remains under attack, including from Hizbullah. If Western leaders are unable to rediscover their courage, our enemies will be left in no uncertainty about how weak we have become.
Richard Kemp: Hezbollah has exposed the West’s fatal cowardice
This is not a matter of retaliation but of deterrence. A strong Israel benefits us all. Jordan is also in Iran’s sights, with Tehran actively seeking to destabilise the country using its militias in Syria and Iraq. Jerusalem plays a key role in bolstering Jordan against Iran, so any weakening of Israel will harm our wider interests in the region.

Assuming that the strategic importance of backing Israel is still understood in Labour’s Whitehall, it seems to be trumped by anti-Israel propaganda that paints the Jewish state as illegitimate. This false narrative is also being stoked by institutions such as the International Criminal Court, whose prosecutor wants to issue arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant. The Tory government recognised the gross injustice of this and applied to make formal objections to the court. Labour has now, shamefully, withdrawn them.

The political warfare campaign against Israel includes lies such as that it is an apartheid state. In reality, Israel is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious democracy, where minorities are far better treated than anywhere else in the Middle East. Arabs are represented everywhere, including in the Supreme Court and the Knesset, and many have joined the fight against Hamas.

The other day, I was briefed by a Druze colonel in Gaza, a member of the same community that was torn apart by Hezbollah’s attack on Majdal Shams. He is responsible for co-ordinating humanitarian aid to the population in Gaza. Denial of aid is the central element of the ICC’s case against Netanyahu and Gallant. Yet I and the group of former generals from Nato countries who accompanied me had never before seen such monumental efforts to get aid into a combat zone by an army fighting an active war.

The Government must see through the lies that are impairing its decision-making and fully support Israel in this fight. Like it or not, it is a fight for the West as well.
Biden, Blinken, and blinking on Iran
It would have made more sense if the protesters in their cars were driving past Blinken’s house in Virginia to thank him. For he is doing his best to push President Joe Biden’s policy that Israel should not “escalate” the conflict in response to this latest genocidal outrage perpetrated against the Jewish state. That means “not retaliate,” in other words, let the bastards get away with it.

The opposite would be a better idea. Although Israel has promised retaliation, it has indicated that Hezbollah will be its target. And sure, both of Iran’s proxies, the one on Israel’s northern border as much as the one on its southern border, should be destroyed.

But the real target for Israel and for the United States, if the latter had a less incompetent and feckless federal government, should be Iran itself.

The H&H proxies are just military pawns, cannon fodder, being manipulated by the mullahs in Tehran. And it is the mullahs, the brains — if that is the right word — behind the incessant killing who should be made to pay most.

Sanctions against their oil exports and international financial participation would be a good start, for they yield some $100 billion that pays for mass slaughter and destabilization of the Middle East. But sanctions and financial punishment should be only the beginning of a proper response.

What is really needed is not an effort to avoid escalation but a determined and concerted effort toward escalation — action by the civilized world to inflict much greater punishment on Iran, to rattle its leaders, and to stoke popular unrest against a regime detested by Iran’s suppressed citizens. Bombing Iran’s oil industry and military installations should be part of this, sending a clear message that we will return and inflict greater damage if the clerical tyranny continues its dastardly work.

The West needs to stop treating Hamas and Hezbollah as though we believe they are independent organic groups that sprang naturally from popular Arab outrage over Israel’s heinous crime of existing. They are subordinates of the biggest terrorist state in the world, well-funded by money we have allowed them to receive by not imposing sanctions. Their controlling power aims to destroy the Jewish homeland and, more ambitiously, to inflict mortal wounds on our own civilization.

We are at war with Iran. We should try to win it.


Why Hamas Is Refusing a Hostage Deal
In the spring, President Biden turned a cold shoulder to Israel as support for destroying Hamas morphed into a call to end the war and a warning against entering Rafah. Strategic weapons shipments were delayed in American ports. The International Court of Justice is seeking arrest warrants for the Israeli prime minister and defense minister, effectively equating them with Hamas leaders.

No wonder Hamas refused any deal offered, however generous. If the U.S. president seeks to end the war and the world will soon force the Israel Defense Forces to stop, why give up Israeli hostages?

When Vice President Kamala Harris became the de facto Democratic nominee, she gave Hamas an important gift. After meeting with Mr. Netanyahu, she said the next day, "We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the [Palestinians'] suffering. And I will not be silent." Ms. Harris is apparently unaware that food prices in Gaza are significantly lower than in Israel. In any other war in the past century, has one side regularly supplied food and goods to the enemy's civilians - and still been attacked by the White House?

By adopting the anti-Israel narrative, Ms. Harris is giving Hamas's leader, Yahya Sinwar, every reason in the world to refuse a hostage deal. Why give Israel the hostages without ending the war if there is a possibility the 47th president will force Israel to end it anyway?

Campus protesters "are showing exactly what the human emotion should be as a response to Gaza," she said recently. She claims that a war between a pro-Iranian murder organization and a democratic state "is not a binary issue."

The U.S. administration is taking a similar stance on the Lebanese front. The Iranian proxy Hizbullah has been firing at Israel for months. There is no "siege" and no "occupation," yet the Biden administration is mediating between Hizbullah and Israel like a real-estate broker, instead of sending Iran an unequivocal, threatening message to halt the rocket fire.


'Silent' arms embargo against Israel harms security, slows weapons production
The possibility that Britain may soon announce a halt to defense export licenses to Israel, as revealed by Ynet and not ruled out in London, is part of the silent and unofficial arms embargo by Western countries in recent months. This includes delays in shipments of raw materials and parts to Israel's defense industries, ultimately used to produce weapons for the IDF. These silent sanctions come from major manufacturers in countries such as France, leading Israel's defense ministry to seek alternatives in Eastern Europe, South America and Asia. For example, a French manufacturer delayed for months a shipment of raw material for a major operational project for the IDF, which is produced by an Israeli defense industry. The multi-billion-dollar project continues, but at a slower pace which has pushed back its completion date.

Partial slowdowns are also being felt in the development of other combat systems for the IDF. Even the Merkava tank and the Namer APC, produced by a joint directorate of the IDF and the Defense Ministry, rely on 200 different suppliers, some dependent on foreign manufacturers. Consequently, top officials in the Defense Ministry are making frantic efforts to find alternatives, including in countries such as India and Serbia.

On Monday morning, as Israel anticipated the British decision was imminent, officials in Jerusalem noted that Britain is a significant player in defense exports. There is concern that this could be the first step, with other countries possibly following suit in a "domino effect."

Britain been examining the issue of arms export licenses for some time. However, with the recent change in government, Israel believes the decision is close, linked to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling calling on countries not to assist Israel.

A British government spokesperson responded to Ynet's revelation, stating: "The review of Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law is ongoing." British Foreign Secretary David Lammy added: "Our commitment to international law is clear, and we are following the necessary processes. Upon taking office, I instructed officials to conduct a comprehensive review of Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law, and this process is now underway. I will update once the process is complete."
‘Biden withholding at least 11 war-fighting systems from Israel’
Mark Levin, conservative commentator and host of Fox News‘ Mark Levin Show, accused the White House on Sunday of withholding essential weapons from Israel as it wages war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Biden administration is withholding 120-millimeter tank ammunition, 120-millimeter mortar ammunition, medium tactical vehicles, medium air-to-air missiles, F-15 fighter jets and engines used by F-35 fighter jets, said Levin.

The Biden administration is also withholding JDAMs, used for converting bombs into precision-guided munitions, 2,000-pound MK-84 bombs, rifles for Israel’s police force, .338 medium machine guns and guided missile systems, he said.

In his July 24 speech to Congress, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on lawmakers to fast-track military aid as a means to “dramatically expedite” an end to the war in Gaza and prevent all-out war on the Jewish state’s northern border and other fronts.

“In World War II, as Britain fought on the frontlines of civilization, Winston Churchill appealed to Americans with these famous words: ‘Give us the tools, and we’ll finish the job,’” said Netanyahu to applause on the right side of the aisle.

“Today, as Israel fights on the frontlines of civilization, I, too, appeal to America,” he said. “Give us the tools faster, and we’ll finish the job faster.”

On June 30, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Fox News Sunday: “This is what is most disturbing to me—is that we’re withholding weapon systems that I have signed off on and Congress has appropriated with the intent of sending those weapons to Israel. That is not helping Israel.”


UK decision on limiting arms exports to Israel to be delayed amid review — report
A possible suspension by Britain of arms sales to Israel will only be made later in the summer as ministers work to determine exactly which weapon deliveries would be paused, the UK’s Times newspaper reported Monday.

A decision will apparently take longer because ministers want to suspend licenses for specific weapons that are linked to suspected alleged war crimes in the ongoing conflict against Palestinian terror group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Investigations to clarify those details are expected to take weeks, the report said.

The assessment came a day after Hebrew media outlets reported Jerusalem officials were worried that a decision on the matter would likely be made in the coming days, amid concerns it could trigger other countries to also suspend weapons deliveries.

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has stated he does not back a blanket arms embargo, stressing Israel’s need to defend itself against surrounding enemies, including terror groups Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. While still in the opposition, Lammy said earlier this year that the government should suspend the sale of arms if there was a clear risk they might be used in a serious breach of humanitarian law.

Now in government, he said last week that he had requested an assessment of the legal situation regarding weapons use in Gaza and that he hoped to be able to communicate any decisions with “full accountability and transparency.”

Questioned by a Green Party lawmaker on whether he would act to stop “all UK arms exports to Israel,” Lammy answered in the negative, stressing the need for Israel to have access to defensive weapons.

“Israel is a country surrounded by people who would love to see its annihilation,” Lammy said at the time. “It is being attacked by the Houthis, missiles are being fired from Hezbollah, notwithstanding the desire for Hamas to wipe Israel off the map.”

“For those reasons, it would not be right to have a blanket ban between our country and Israel,” he added.

According to the Times report, arms sales from Britain to Israel last year were relatively minor, at £18.2 million ($23.4 million).


UK MPs demand ban on American oil tanker heading for Israel from docking in Gibraltar
UK Parliment Members demanded that an American oil tanker carrying 300,000 barrels of jet fuel to Israel be banned from docking in Gibraltar, the British newspaper The Guardian reported on Tuesday.

In a letter sent to UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy, it was noted the ship was scheduled to arrive in Gibraltar at 1:00 PM Israeli time. However, the Gibraltar government claims it has not received an official docking request.


US seeks ‘Goldilocks response’ from Israel as Hezbollah tensions spike
U.S. and international officials are urging both Israel and Hezbollah to exercise restraint and avoid embarking on a devastating, regional war, after a rocket strike from the Iranian-backed group killed a dozen young people on a soccer field in northern Israel.

The Biden administration has backed Israel’s assessment that the rocket that struck in northern Israel was launched by Hezbollah, even as the terrorist group and Lebanese officials have denied responsibility.

And the White House came out Monday saying Israel has a right to defend itself, while calling for diplomacy to calm tensions on both sides.

“Israel seems poised to conduct a pretty punishing strike against Hezbollah,” said Brian Katulis, senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy at the Middle East Institute.

“I think what the White House may be hoping for in its public messaging and what it’s doing privately is similar to the Goldilocks response … not too hard to cause a broad regional war, not too soft to have no impact at all. But something that’s just somewhere in between,” he continued.

But Biden administration officials are confident that such a strike against Hezbollah would not trigger a broader war.

“We all heard about this all-out war scenario now, multiple points over the last 10 months,” said John Kirby, the White House National Security Council communications adviser.

“Those predictions were exaggerated then, quite frankly, we think they’re exaggerated now. Look, Israel has every right to respond. But nobody wants a broader war, and I’m confident that we’ll be able to avoid such an outcome.”

The U.S. said it is in touch with Israeli and Lebanese officials to calm tensions. Hezbollah’s military and political wing are blacklisted by the U.S. as a terrorist organization, but the U.S. holds ties with Beirut and is a key supporter of the Lebanese armed forces.

While Hezbollah started striking Israel in the aftermath of Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attack as an act of solidarity with Palestinians, leader Hassan Nasrallah has said that the group would respect a cease-fire if reached between Israel and Hamas.

“One of the reasons that we’re continuing to work so hard for a cease-fire in Gaza is not just for Gaza but also so that we can really … bring calm, lasting calm, across the Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.


Seth Frantzman: Hezbollah’s predicament after Majdal Shams
The pro-Iran Al-Mayadeen media usually boasts about Hezbollah’s attacks daily on its front page. Following the Hezbollah rocket attack and the massacre of children at Majdal Shams, the Hezbollah media machine has toned down its boasting. While Hezbollah has denied the Saturday attack, which murdered 12 children, it has continued to carry out small attacks on northern Israel.

Hezbollah is in a difficult situation; it wants to show it is not deterred and that it is ready for escalation from Israel but is also worried about what might come next.

Evidence for Hezbollah’s concern can be found in the Iranian state media, IRNA. This is another website that usually cheers Hezbollah’s claimed attacks. What are the headlines at IRNA on July 29? One of them describes how an Israeli expert has expressed concern about Hezbollah’s advanced weapons capabilities. This messaging is designed to convey that Israel is worried.

The intention is to instill a sense of security in the Iranian axis of proxy groups. Leaks to Al-Jarida media in Kuwait recently claimed Hezbollah has “electromagnetic” weapons that could harm Israel’s energy grid. This appears to be Hezbollah or Iranian propaganda. However, it could also reference Hezbollah’s doomsday tactic of seeking to go after Israeli energy and water infrastructure in case of escalation. This is one of the tactics for mutually assured destruction.

Meanwhile, the Iranian media also notes that the US is urging Hezbollah to respond in a “limited” way to any Israeli response to Majdal Shams. The strategy aims to shift the responsibility for response to the Lebanese government, allowing Hezbollah to pretend that it is not escalating as a result of being “held back” by Beirut.

However, everyone knows that Beirut does not restrain Hezbollah. Therefore, any report that pretends that the Lebanese government has any say in what Hezbollah does is designed to make it appear that the terrorist group is listening to the US. This is all about posturing and positioning Hezbollah for the day after any kind of Israeli retaliation for Majdal Shams.

Finally, IRNA is reporting that Turkey has threatened Israel with military action. The Iranian Axis would like to drag Ankara into a wider war. Both Iran and Turkey back Hamas. Ankara does not back Hezbollah. However, Turkey doesn’t want Lebanon ruined in a major war. Therefore, it is interesting to see how Iran hopes Ankara might also play a role in reducing tensions in the region.


Hezbollah aims to escalate tensions leading to full-scale war
The Middle East is bracing for an Israeli response to Hezbollah’s rocket attack on Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights on Saturday that killed 12 children and wounded more than 40 people.

After months of sustained rocket and drone fire from Lebanon on Israel’s north, Hezbollah’s attack may have been the game changer, according to experts who spoke with JNS.

According to Col. (res.) Eran Lerman, deputy director of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security and a former deputy director of the Israeli National Security Council, one possible scenario involves an Israeli response that could be “a painful but contained strike on something (or someone) of high value to Hezbollah, coupled with a demonstrated ability to obliterate Lebanese infrastructure, sending the message that ‘We can do to you what we did to the Houthis.’”

“Then, or rather concurrently, leveraging Hezbollah’s internal problem with the Druze to push them off north of the Litani River, possibly enabling the evacuated to return [to their homes in northern Israel],” said Lerman.

Israel’s response, he added, is “intimately related to the Iranian nuclear issue, which is becoming acute and may lead to sudden action.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday visited the site of the tragedy in Majdal Shams, together with Shin Bet Director Ronen Bar.

In his remarks, Netanyahu said, “These children are our children; they are the children of us all. The State of Israel will not, and cannot, ignore this. Our response will come and it will be severe.”

That response is what has the global community on edge. The U.S. and France have expressed their wish to see a calming of tensions to prevent an all-out war.

Meanwhile, several airlines have canceled flights in and out of Lebanon and several countries have urged their citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible.

Whether or not the United States would back Israel in the event of an all-out war is still unclear, but in June, CNN reported that senior American officials had assured Israel that Washington is prepared to “fully back” its ally in the event of a further escalation on the northern border.

Israel’s next step must be not only to exact a price for the tragedy Hezbollah caused, but must also restore at least a minimal level of deterrence.


Israeli killed as Hezbollah rocket scores direct hit in northern kibbutz
An Israeli civilian was killed on Tuesday afternoon when a Hezbollah terror rocket scored a direct hit on a home in Kibbutz HaGoshrim in the Galilee panhandle, medical authorities confirmed.

“EMTs and paramedics provided treatment to a male approximately 30 years old in critical condition with shrapnel wounds, and following resuscitation efforts have pronounced him dead,” the Magen David Adom medical emergency response group announced.

“A Magen David Adom team that was dispatched to the scene and arrived minutes later found this person in critical condition and immediately initiated life-saving procedures while reporting back and preparing a helicopter in order to evacuate this person to the hospital as fast as possible,” a spokesperson said.

“Although the team did not spare any effort, and although it used all its advanced equipment, we weren’t able to save this young person’s life,” he added.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, the deadly Hezbollah barrage comprised around 10 rockets, most of which were intercepted. The military responded by attacking the source of the fire with artillery.

Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the deadly attack, confirming it launched dozens of rockets at a nearby IDF military base.

The Israel Police said security forces were dispatched to multiple scenes where rockets impacted throughout the Galilee panhandle, adding that officers were working to remove danger to the public.

Following the attack, the Upper Galilee Regional Council ordered residents of eight northern kibbutzim that have not been evacuated to stay near bomb shelters and avoid public gatherings until further notice.

Air-raid sirens subsequently sounded in several border communities, including HaGoshrim, due to what the IDF Home Front Command said was the suspected infiltration of a “hostile aircraft” into Israeli airspace.


IDF strikes Beirut: Hezbollah commander responsible for Majdal Shams strike likely killed
The IDF struck Beirut on Tuesday afternoon, likely eliminating a Hezbollah commander who was responsible for the strike on Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights a few days earlier that killed 12 Israeli Druze children and teenagers, according to a report by KAN.

The name of the commander targeted was Fuad Shukr. The Hezbollah official had a $5 million bounty "on his head," according to the United States Rewards for Justice.

Shukr was Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah's military adviser and has been active in the terrorist organization for 30 years, where he was the head of the terrorist group's operations room, three senior security sources told Reuters. Shukar also goes by the names "Hajj Mohsen" and "Muhsin Shukr."

Shukr was sanctioned by the United States in 2015.

Directly after the strike, a loud blast was heard, and a plume of smoke could be seen rising above the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital as a result of the strike, a stronghold of the Lebanese terrorist group.

Two people were killed in the attack, according to Saudi news source Al-Hadath, but also reported, in contrast to KAN, that Shukr survived the attack. Two security sources told Reuters also of Shukr's survival. The Jerusalem Post is unable to confirm Shukr's fate.

The city has been on edge for days ahead of an anticipated Israeli attack in retaliation in Majdal Shams, where Israel and the United States have blamed Hezbollah for the attack. Hezbollah has denied responsibility.


West Point urban warfare expert John Spencer discusses Gaza, Hezbollah and Ukraine

School of War: Ep 135: Rich Goldberg on Israel‘s Northern Crisis
Rich Goldberg, senior advisor at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, joins the show to talk about the expanding war between Israel and Iran.

• 01:40 Introduction
• 03:30 Where things stand
• 15:25 Israeli expectations
• 24:44 Retaliation
• 31:39 Iran’s strategic concept
• 36:16 American interests
• 44:20 Projection
• 50:36 Once Iran has nuclear weapons
Caroline Glick: How the West Enabled Hezbollah to Grow Out of Control
The situation on Israel’s northern border is spinning out of control while leaders scramble to find a solution. On Saturday, Hezbollah massacred 12 children on a playground and now the world waits with bated breath for the Israeli response.

In this episode, Caroline Glick sits with columnist and Levant analyst Tony Bedran to discuss the colossal mistakes made by both American and Israeli elites in their handling of Hezbollah. We’ll also cover the real situation on the ground in Lebanon; how American intervention has only further whetted Hezbollah’s appetite; the threats Israel faces; and the disastrous plan now being pushed by the same people who created the current mess.

Chapters
0:00 Intro
2:20 Why Majdal Shams?
5:30 Blood in the water: How we got here
14:15 US creates a storm (american perfidy)
21:00 On the ground in Lebanon
31:00 What Israel is up against
34:45 Threats on the table
39:00 Strengthening Hezbollah
47:00 The current disastrous plan
54:40 What Israel must understand about Lebanon




Israeli advocacy fumbled the ball after Majdal Shams
Since the massacre in Majdal Shams, where 12 children and teenagers were killed by a Hezbollah rocket, there has been a claim that Israel missed a rare opportunity to shift the narrative in the propaganda war against the terrorist organization and Iran. The global media reported the incident as an attack on occupied territory, with almost no blame placed on the actual culprits: Hezbollah and Iran. So, was this a failure of Israel's propaganda apparatus?

Firstly, global public opinion and international media can't focus on two fronts in the same country - the south and the north. Additionally, over the past ten months, the official State of Israel has focused primarily on the Gaza Strip and legitimizing actions there. This was the directive from the political echelon. Therefore, all propaganda efforts since October 7 have been directed toward the southern front.

Only in the last two months has there been increased exposure to Hezbollah's activities in the north. Previously, Israel was preoccupied with the horrors of Hamas, the hostages, and cases of rape, and the north was an afterthought. Many media outlets and journalists suddenly discovered that there was an active northern front, but because the tragedy and drama paled in comparison to what was happening in Gaza, the issue was covered with low intensity.

The fact that the victims were Druze and Arabs living in Israel, in an area perceived by some countries as occupied, only complicated matters. Global media initially found it hard to understand these were Israelis in every sense. The issue is complex, and international media struggles to break down complex topics. They often see things in black and white - Jews versus Arabs, for instance. This complexity is hard for them to grasp.

AP led the anti-Israel narrative, reporting on the Majdal Shams incident with the absurd headline: "Israel-Hezbollah exchange of fire kills three militants, wounds 11 in Israeli-controlled Golan Heights." The AP tweet garnered 1.5 million views. Subsequently, many media outlets worldwide used AP's report, shaping a problematic narrative.

However, Israel was not without its own significant mistakes. It seems there was a severe failure in the propaganda apparatus for not distributing visual materials to all entities meant to represent Israel. The English page of the Prime Minister's office did not upload any images from the attack scene, only the Prime Minister's statement and the fact that he was being updated on the matter.

The IDF's English page first uploaded visual materials from the attack scene only at midnight between Saturday and Sunday. Initially, there was only one image from the attack scene, followed later by a picture of the children killed by the Iranian rocket and a photo of IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi visiting Majdal Shams. Additionally, IDF spokesperson debunked Hezbollah's claims that it was not behind the deadly rocket launch.


In Humiliating Editor’s Note WaPo Cops To Omitting Mention of Hezbollah Strike From Coverage of Israel’s Response
In a humiliating Tuesday editor’s note, the Washington Post acknowledged its July 29 front-page headline and photo did not provide "adequate context" regarding a Hezbollah attack on Israel that killed 12 children.

Monday’s large-font front-page headline read, "Israel hits targets in Lebanon," with the subheadline, "Strikes against Hezbollah installations muted amid international calls for restraint." The text was positioned directly under a photo of an Israeli family mourning over the coffin of Alma Ayman Fakhr al-Din, 11, one of the 12 children who were killed by a July 27 Hezbollah airstrike on Israeli territory.

"The headline and subline that accompanied a July 29 Page One photo and article about Israeli strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon did not provide adequate context," the editor’s note reads. "The headlines should have noted that the Israeli strikes were a response to a rocket strike from Lebanon that killed 12 teenagers and children in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights."

The July 29 page-one design is the latest in a string of public controversies for the Washington, D.C., newspaper, which has been repeatedly scrutinized for its seemingly anti-Israel bias in its coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.

A Washington Free Beacon report found that the Post’s foreign desk employs at least six people who previously wrote for Al Jazeera, the Doha-based news outlet bankrolled in part by Qatar's government and described by an Israeli court as an "intelligence and propaganda arm" for Hamas. The Qatar-backed outlet has used work by Heidi Levine and Niha Masih, two co-authors of the Post’s July 29 article, including Masih's social media posts and Levine’s photos, in multiple of its articles.

Earlier this month, the Post came under fire for sharing and then deleting an X post that shamed an Israeli-American couple for failing to speak "about the ferocity of Israel's counterattack" on Hamas when raising the plight of their imprisoned son.

"Omer Neutra has been missing since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel," the post read. "When his parents speak publicly, they don't talk about Israel's assault on Gaza that has killed over 38,000 Palestinians, according to local officials. Experts have warned of looming famine."

The post was deleted and replaced with an apology after social media users voiced anger with the paper’s sentiments.


Visiting Gaza: A parent's respect for his son's hard work in the IDF
April 25 came a little late for me this year, and then it came with a twist.

For those unaware, the fourth Thursday of April in the United States – this year, April 25 – is national Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day, which in simpler times was just known as Take Your Kids to Work Day.

The purpose is to bring the kids to work, show them where Ma and Pa spend so much of their time, and expose the little ones to career possibilities, either those of their parents or other grown-up folks. It also helps the children understand the source of their parents’ seemingly endless aggravation and anxiety, though these are not the reasons advertised in the preparatory literature.

Earlier this month, I was one of a handful of journalists the IDF invited for a half-day visit to Gaza. I jumped at the opportunity, looking at it as a perfect Take Your Kids to Work Day experience, only in reverse.

Instead of me taking my kids into the newsroom – not nearly as thrilling as it was in the Jimmy Olsen, pre-computer days when reporters actually worked there, the teletype machine clattered in the corner, phones rang incessantly, cigar smoke hung heavy in the air, editors barked out orders, and copy boys darted around desks – this would be an experience for me to see where my three sons and my son-in-law work. Or, at least, where they spent a good part of the last nine months.

While the half day in Gaza City’s Shejaia neighborhood did not open my eyes to any new career possibilities, it did give me renewed respect for what they and all those like them do – as well as a better understanding of why they come home from “work” tired, taxed, and, on occasion, testy.
Seth Frantzman: Cherished canine companions: IDF Oketz unit honors dogs killed in Gaza
Small white stones against dark, almost black, earth and pebbles. On the stones are single names in Hebrew. Hogen: May 24, 2024. Jaber: May 14, 2024. Ivan: April 24, 2024. Each was killed in Operation Swords of Iron, the war forced upon Israel by the Hamas massacre of Oct. 7.

Since that dark day, hundreds of thousands of Israelis have been sent to fight Hamas in Gaza and other border areas. Among them are members of the elite Oketz (Sting) Unit, who work with dogs to fight terrorists, find booby traps that contain explosives, and investigate Hamas tunnels.

The canines have played a key role in this war. They have also suffered high casualties. Twenty-nine dogs were killed by mid-July. Of those dogs, nine remains were never brought back from Gaza.

The dogs and their soldier handlers form a unique bond. Each dog is paired with a soldier, and they train together. The loss of the dog is a heavy loss for the soldiers, as well as for the army. Honoring the IDF's fallen dogs

Israel commemorates the fallen dogs in a designated cemetery in an army base not far from central Israel. The site is accessed by a winding road, which I drive down on July 17. It is late afternoon, just before sunset, when the landscape takes on a kind of golden appearance, and the shadows grow long.

When I arrive at the cemetery, which has been expanded and renovated, there are only a few soldiers. I walk among the small white stones, laid out in rows and in a large semi-circle. These bear the names of some 200 dogs killed since Israel first began using K-9s in this unit decades ago. The current war has taken the heaviest toll in a short period of time.

The loss of dogs whose remains were never found is especially painful. To ease the pain and provide closure and to honor the sacrifice, the army held its first ceremony for the dogs whose did not come home.

IDF wraps up Khan Younis operation
The Israel Defense Forces overnight Monday concluded a week-long operation in eastern Khan Younis, the military said on Tuesday. More than 150 Hamas terrorists were killed during the operation, according to the IDF.

Troops from the 98th Division dismantled Hamas tunnels, weapons storage facilities and terrorist infrastructure during the operation, in addition to seizing weapons caches.

During the operation troops also recovered the bodies of five people abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7: Oren Goldin, 33, Ravid Katz, 51, Maya Goren, 56, Sgt. Kiril Brodski, 19, and Staff Sgt. Tomer Yaakov Ahimas, 20.

Hamas commander killed in central Gaza
During operations in central Gaza, the Israeli Air Force eliminated Ibrahim Hegazi, commander of Hamas’s anti-tank missile forces in the Nuseirat Battalion.

“Ibrahim planned and directed numerous terror attacks against IDF troops and he served as a central source of knowledge on anti-tank missiles for Hamas,” the IDF said.


UAE ship delivers 5,340 tons of food and aid to Gaza through Egypt's Arish port
A ship from the UAE carrying aid for Gaza arrived at Al-Arish this month, delivering aid via a port in Sinai. This is the largest cargo ship aid shipment since the UAE began providing aid to people in Gaza following the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel.

According to reports, the ship that arrived in El Arish brought 5,340 tons of food and shelter materials destined for Gaza.

Egyptian Maj.-Gen. Khaled Megawer, Governor of North Sinai greeted Rashid Al-Mansouri, Secretary-General of the Emirates Red Crescent when the ship arrived, according to the Daily News Egypt. Sultan Al-Kaabi, spokesperson for relief affairs in Operation Gallant Knight 3 and Ahmed Mubarak, Medical Director of the floating UAE hospital in Al-Arish were also present, the report said.

The UAE has also been helping Palestinian civilians injured in Gaza. This includes a field hospital in Gaza as well as the floating hospital near El Arish. According to the reports 42 Palestinians are currently receiving treatment at the floating hospital. The UAE has also offered to receive injured children from Gaza directly via flights from Israel.

The large ship that arrived off the coast of Egypt left the UAE’s port of Fujairah on July 8. According to Al-Ain media, there have been eight aid ships from the UAE and four of them have come under the operation of Gallant Knight 3, designed to aid Gazans.


A mother mourns her son and daughter-in-law with the dishes that he loved
Since October 7, Ravit Berdichesky has to find the reasons to get up in the morning.

Berdichesky’s son, Itay Berdichesky and his wife, Hadar Berdichesky, were killed by Hamas terrorists in their Kibbutz Kfar Aza home on October 7. Their 10-month-old twins were found alive in the sealed room, surviving 14 hours on their own.

The twins are now being cared for by a maternal aunt.

Their grandmother, Ravit Berdichesky, along with her three surviving sons, searches for meaning as she loves with her bereavement, having also lost her husband Ilan in a cycling accident five years earlier.

“I said to my brother, ‘How will I get up in the mornings? He said to me, ‘You didn’t get up for Itay in the morning, you got up for yourself,'” she said. “That set the path for me.”

One source of comfort came from Asif, a Tel Aviv culinary center that has dedicated itself to helping soldiers, survivors, the bereaved and evacuees in the months since October 7.

The culinary center is building A Place at the Table, a commemorative project documenting the favorite dishes of those killed on October 7, with recipes and stories written in Hebrew, English and Arabic.

“It’s all kind of stories that help the families immortalize their loved ones,” said Matan Choufan, senior director of content at Asif. “There’s a sense of mission in it.”

Each week, Asif posts a new video on social media, featuring a family member or friend speaking about a loved one killed on October 7, through the preparation of a favorite dish, along with the recipe.


After complex rescue ops in Gaza, IDF assess some hostages may never be found
Recent complex military operations in the Gaza Strip to recover the bodies of slain hostages have brought the Israel Defense Forces to the understanding that there is a possibility that some of those abducted by Hamas terrorists on October 7 may never be found, The Times of Israel learned on Tuesday.

The grim assessment comes as 111 of the 251 hostages seized by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, now for nearly 300 days, including the bodies of 39 confirmed dead by the IDF. Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014.

Last week, during a raid in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, the IDF’s 98th Division along with the Shin Bet recovered the bodies of five hostages who were killed and then kidnapped during the onslaught nearly ten months ago.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said following the operation that though “we were near these bodies before, we didn’t know how to reach out [and recover them]. Now that we knew how to reach out, we did so. We brought five [slain hostages], which otherwise, it’s not certain we would have ever found them.”

The bodies had been buried inside a tunnel some 20 meters belowground in Khan Younis.

According to the military, the bodies were hidden behind a wall in the tunnel, and without exact information on the location — provided by a detained terrorist — it was unlikely they would have been found.
IDF commander who oversaw Oct. 7 battle in Be’eri apologizes to bereaved residents
The families of victims killed on Kibbutz Be’eri during the October 7 Hamas terror assault met with the commander of the Israel Defense Forces’ 99th Division, Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram, on Tuesday for the first time since the military published the results of its probe into the events that unfolded inside the tight-knit community on the day of the massacre.

The meeting, described by those who attended as tense and difficult, took place inside the partially destroyed home of slain resident Pessi Cohen. Cohen’s home was shelled by IDF tanks on October 7, under Hiram’s orders, as the IDF battled Hamas terrorists who had taken 15 hostages and barricaded themselves inside.

One hostage had been able to leave the house prior to the shelling and the ensuing gun battle, but once the smoke cleared, 13 of the 14 hostages were dead. The IDF probe stated that many of the hostages were apparently killed by gunfire, and found that Hiram’s decision to order the tank shelling was a “professional and reasonable” one.

Nevertheless, the relatives of civilians killed inside Cohen’s home, as well as other members of the kibbutz, have expressed anger over decisions taken by the chief of the 99th Division and accused him of failing the roughly 100 civilians killed inside the community’s gates on October 7, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel.

In a partial recording of his statements at the meeting broadcast on Channel 12 news, Hiram said he took full responsibility for his actions at Be’eri, and noted that the terrorists “had come to murder everybody on the kibbutz.”

“It was hell even to get here [to Be’eri],” he said. “The number of vehicles, the number of bodies on the way — this did not look like [the work of] people who came to leave anybody alive.”

He also said he was “very sorry, from the bottom of my heart, if any of my behavior in the 10 months [since October 7] personally hurt anybody,” in reference to interviews he had given since. “Nothing I said was intended, heaven forbid, to do harm or indicate contempt.”

“It was a complex meeting for several reasons,” Sharon Cohen, daughter-in-law of Pessi, said in a statement released to the press after the meeting. “We heard his side, he took responsibility and said that the army had failed.”


Honestly with Bari Weiss: A Middle East on the Brink
On Saturday afternoon, a Hezbollah rocket fired from southern Lebanon struck a soccer field in the village of Majdal Shams in Israel’s north, slaughtering 12 children.

For the last 10 months, many have warned that Israel is on the brink of a major war with Hezbollah. But the truth is that Hezbollah has been fighting—and winning—in Israel’s north since October 8. For the past 10 months, Hezbollah, the Iranian proxy terror group that controls southern Lebanon, has essentially redrawn the northern border of Israel by pummeling the border towns daily with rockets, leaving 225 square miles unlivable for Israelis and displacing around 80,000 Israeli citizens.

Israel—pounded by Iranian proxies from all directions—now faces one of the most perilous moments in recent history. The prospect of an all-out war with Hezbollah, which could very well spread to a larger, more dangerous regional war—perhaps directly with Iran—seems closer than ever.

What is Israel going to do? Will Israel choose to confront Hezbollah, or will they respond in a more limited way to avoid the regional escalation that the Americans so fear? How does U.S. policy, and the upcoming presidential election, influence Israel’s strategic calculation? Is Kamala Harris equipped to bring calm to the region? Or are Israelis just waiting for Trump to return to office? Is America’s current policy—which is the containment of Iran—backfiring and inadvertently creating a regional crisis? Most importantly, should we be thinking about the war with Gaza and the war with Hezbollah as discrete fights, or are they all part of a broader war that’s already underway between Israel and Iran?

Answering those questions today is Haviv Rettig Gur. Haviv is a journalist and writer for The Times of Israel, and he is one of the most important and insightful thinkers of our time on Israel and the Middle East.
The Israel Guys: Tragedy in Israel as Rocket from Hezbollah Kills 12 Children
Tragedy struck Israel as a rocket launched from Hezbollah hit a soccer field in northern Israel killing 12 and injuring 29. This massacre marks the largest number of civilians killed on a single day since Oct 7th. Israel’s leaders vow to respond harshly against Hezbollah and are currently deciding how to retaliate and show Hezbollah that this has gone too far.

Meanwhile, the President of Turkey just casually threatened to invade Israel. Things are getting crazy here in the Middle East!


Hezbollah and Hamas ‘committed to the destruction of Israel’
Shadow Defence Minister Andrew Hastie says Hezbollah and Hamas will continue their assault on Israel “forever”.

“Hezbollah of course are always seeking to provoke Israel along with Hamas and if you read both of their charters as I have done, they are committed to the destruction of the state of Israel,” Mr Hastie told Sky News host Sharri Markson.

“These are not people who want peace, they are not going to negotiate and they will continue their attacks on Israel forever.”


BBC’s coverage of Hezbollah rocket killing Israeli children is ‘outrageous’
Jewish Chronicle’s Political Correspondent Lorin Bell-Cross says the BBC’s coverage of Hezbollah’s rocket killing Israeli children is “outrageous”.

“Much of the international media’s coverage of this horrific incident has just been absolutely outrageous,” he told Sky News Australia host Danica De Giorgio.

“One news outlet described Hezbollah as the partners of the Lebanese government rather than an Iranian proxy militia which is holding the country of Lebanon effectively hostage.”


Opposition leader meets with President Herzog
[Australia] Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has met with President Isaac Herzog at the start of his three-day trip to Israel.

After the meeting Dutton thanked President Herzog, “for a very friendly and productive meeting today in Jerusalem”.

“We discussed Australia’s and Israel’s close relationship and shared trust,” Dutton posted.

“We both expressed our desire for this relationship between our two countries to continue to grow by building on our mutual interests and shared values.”

Dutton will meet with senior members of the Israeli Government, as well as members of the community that were impacted by the October 7 attacks.

In a statement announcing his sudden trip, Dutton said the connections between Australia and Israel “are deep and abiding”.

“Today, Australia and Israel have a strong bilateral relationship traversing trade, agriculture, technology, security and more.

“It’s a relationship which will only grow stronger built around our devotion to democracy in a world where our values and way of life faces old and new threats.”


Bella Hadid says she didn’t know the ‘historical context’ of 1972 Olympics when she accepted Adidas deal
Model Bella Hadid said she did not know about the historical context of the 1972 Olympics when Adidas asked her to be the face of its revamped 1972 Olympics shoe.

The sports giant faced a huge backlash over the decision to cast her as the face of the shoe and was forced to pull its campaign following criticism.

The 27-year-old model, who is of Palestinian descent, said she did not know about the 1972 Olympics, where 11 Israeli athletes and coaches were killed by Palestinian terrorist group Black September.

The cult shoe re-launched by Adidas was originally designed for runners in the Munich Olympics.

And Bella Hadid has been accused by antisemitism campaigners of “fanning the flames of antisemitism” by spreading misinformation about Israel.

Hadid has accused Israel of being an apartheid “Jewish supremacist” state and claimed, “Jesus was Palestinian”.

Speaking out for the first time since the controversy the model said she would "never knowingly engage with any art or work that is linked to a horrific tragedy of any kind.”

In a statement posted to Instagram, she said: "I am shocked, I am upset, and I am disappointed in the lack of sensitivity that went into this campaign.

"Had I been made aware, from the bottom of my heart, I would never have participated."

She said her team and Adidas "should have known" and she should have done more research and "spoken up."




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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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