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Sunday, August 11, 2024

08/11 Links: Israeli hospital documents damage to health of freed hostages; UK funding of UNRWA makes Gaza peace less likely; Israel’s 7 medals mark its best-ever Olympics

From Ian:

Israeli hospital documents damage to health of freed hostages
Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel in Petach Tikvah has documented the medical conditions of 26 women and children released from Hamas captivity in Gaza.

In the report, the details of which were published in Maariv for the first time on Sunday, experts at the hospital summarized the hard conditions suffered by those held captive by the terrorist group following the Oct. 7 attack on the northwestern Negev that killed some 1,200 people. The terrorists took around 250 people back to Gaza, 115 of whom remain there after 310 days.

Around 50 Israeli women and children were released in the November 2023 hostage deal; the study examined the medical records of 19 children between the ages of 2 and 18 and seven women between the ages of 34 and 78, who were all hospitalized at Schneider.

The findings
Ten patients, including a toddler, suffered from chronic constipation as a result of the prolonged hunger, thirst and the lack of food rich in fats and dietary fibers important for the digestive process.

Two women and nine children suffered from chronic diarrhea, with stool tests showing the growth of multiple fecal bacteria from the bad hygienic conditions.

All of the abductees suffered from starvation and poor nutrition. Fifteen of them displayed significant weight loss up to 15% of their body mass. According to the abductees, their diet consisted of a small amount of rice and white bread without vegetables, protein and fat.

Upon arrival, all of the patients received a nutritional regimen to avoid the risk of a severe syndrome known as “over-feeding.” All the patients were treated with multivitamins.

All 26 patients reported poor sanitation and poor hygiene conditions, including two women and six children who were kept underground in dark conditions for most of their captivity. Some suffered from a lack of vitamin D.

Most of the hostages reported limited access to running water. In six of the patients, head lice was found that required a haircut and the start of drug treatment. One woman and five children suffered from multiple insect bites and skin irritation.

Three of the children had a history of asthma and experienced attacks during captivity. It was unclear whether they were given inhalers. One woman and two children suffered from generalized muscle pain shortly after being hospitalized.

Lab tests showed high levels of the creatine phosphokinase (CPK) enzyme, indicating significant muscle damage, possibly from sitting for prolonged periods.

According to the blood tests, around half of the patients suffered from tick-borne fever, Q fever from inhaling dust or coming into contact with sick animals and murine fever caused by bacteria. These infections can cause neurological problems, breathing difficulties and damage to joints and muscles, and are sometimes life-threatening.
Einat Wilf: UK funding of UNRWA makes Gaza peace less likely
Remember Claude Rains’ Captain Renault in Casablanca protesting he was “shocked, shocked!” by the gambling going on under his nose?

Such was the reaction of UNRWA higher-ups to the finding that nine Palestinian employees were among the perpetrators of the October 7 massacre. Keeping up this façade is essential for the few non-Palestinians who work at UNRWA, their purpose to maintain the appearance of a respectable organisation paid for by international taxpayers – including the UK after its recent decision to restore funding.

The problem is, the façade is just that. UNRWA maintains the Palestinians as a people in waiting until they finally realise their vision of “return”. Anyone imagining that equates to innocent nostalgia for a great-grandmother’s long-lost home should look to the horrors of October 7 as a reality check. Since the 1950s, texts in UNRWA schools have portrayed “return” as bloody triumph over the Jewish body.

UNRWA’s few donor-facing Western managers will claim they are merely providing social services such as education and healthcare until the conflict is resolved. Palestinians are more straightforward, making it clear as far as they’re concerned they are owed those services until “return” is realised. A sign as you enter an area under Palestinian Authority control near Bethlehem, mis-labelled “a refugee camp”, reads: “UNRWA Services are our Right until Return”. The final purpose couldn’t be clearer.

Since its earliest days, UNRWA has been hijacked to become a purely Palestinian organisation devoted to “return”, nurturing violent groups determined to erase Israel. Almost all the terrorists who murdered Israeli athletes in the 1972 Munich Olympics were graduates of UNRWA schools. From Black September, Fatah and the PFLP to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, UNRWA provided the ideological infrastructure of the forever war against Israel’s existence. UNRWA’s connection with violence against Jews is not a bug, but its defining feature.
How the West Bank became an ‘occupied Palestinian territory’
Shortly after the Six Day War in 1967, the United Nations asked the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) – a private Swiss organization that is the official guardian of the Fourth Geneva Convention (FGC) – for its opinion on the legal status of the territories that Israel had conquered, including Judea and Samaria, known as the West Bank of the Jordan River.

Unilaterally, the ICRC decided that Israel had violated international law (meaning the FGC) and declared the disputed areas to be Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). This decision was adopted by the international community as law. The basis for the committee’s decision, however, was, and still is, secret – as are many things in Switzerland.

The ICRC later claimed that its decision was based on the Hague Regulations (1907), particularly Article 42, which defines occupation. It chose to ignore Article 43, however, which stipulates that occupation occurs when “the authority of the legitimate power... passe(s) into the hands of the occupier...” Since neither Jordan nor Egypt were the sovereign legitimate powers in the territories, Israel’s claims are not illegal.

In fact, earlier decisions of the international community, such as the San Remo conference (1920), which supported the idea of a “Jewish national home” in Palestine, validate Israel’s claims.

A Palestinian state did not exist at the time, nor has one ever existed.

The issue of "occupation"
The issue of “occupation” in The Hague Regulations and the FGC refers to states, not to “Palestinians.” The ICRC has never applied its criteria to any other “disputed territory.” Yet, because of its special “observer” status at the UN, the committee is considered the authority on what constitutes occupation and the law. UN Security Council Resolution 242 (1967), refers to “territories occupied in the recent conflict,” but does not specify what those territories are, or to whom they belong.

Nowhere in the resolution is the term “Palestinian” used. Later, UN resolutions adopted the ICRC’s interpretation and referred to “the Palestinian and other Arab territories.” The committee decisions, therefore, have no legal standing; and cannot be accepted as long as their archives remain secret.

The bases for Israel’s claims were examined thoroughly in a study by former High Court justice Edmund Levy and others but have been ignored by the international community. ICRC’s rulings have distorted and confused the issue of Israel’s legitimate claims to the territories, and are used to condemn Israel. The committee’s goal was to deny Israel’s claims to the historical heartland of the Jewish people, by promoting controversial issues: the right of Palestinian self-determination; a Palestinian state; the two-state solution; and “ending the occupation.”


Michael Dickson: Sitting down with the man who stands for Israel
Years before Michael Dickson made aliyah and became executive director of StandWithUs, he began to see the writing on the wall when it came to anti-Jewish sentiment in his native London.

He had just begun working as the director of informal Jewish education at the Jewish Free School in the English capital when two planes hurtled into and destroyed the Twin Towers in New York City.

On that September 11, 2001, afternoon in London, two students turned to Dickson and said, “Are we next?”

Although the question seemed absurd in the context of the situation – a private Jewish school would certainly not be the next target after the World Trade Center and the Pentagon – in that moment Dickson began to understand the undercurrent of unease the next generation of British Jews were beginning to feel.

“But the question was instructive because it spoke to their insecurity as young Jews. It was clear to me that back then they were being maligned as Jews and didn’t have a full understanding of their own sense of Jewish identity,” he says.

“I couldn’t have imagined how the need would grow for what our organization would become,” he says in awe, adding that when he first began his role at StandWithUs in 2006, the organization had a small office with barely three people.

On a sweltering day in July, In Jerusalem visited a thriving, bright, dramatically improved facility as we met Dickson in the StandWithUs office in the capital. Their visitors’ center has space to seat up to 200 and is equipped with an expansive multipurpose room, as well as interactive audio-visual technology capable of simulating media broadcast interviews.

We sip chilled Coke Zero as we take in an open floor plan hosting nearly a dozen hard-at-work staffers; the camaraderie among them is strong. StandWithUs has grown exponentially over the years to provide the tools and manpower to meet this critical moment.

StandWithUs, an international, non-partisan education organization that supports Israel and fights antisemitism, was founded by Roz Rothstein, Jerry Rothstein, and Esther Renzer in Los Angeles in 2001 as Israel was in the thick of the Second Intifada. For nearly two decades, Dickson has spearheaded innovative initiatives to educate on Israel, lead anti-BDS campaigns, host delegations of visiting prominent figures, and create a social media presence for the organization – all in the name of telling Israel’s story.

Narratives are provided for everyone wanting to share the facts about the state – be it a US college student or a Pakistani journalist.
The kingmaker of chaos: George Soros’s failed experiments threaten his kingdom
Consider Alliance for Global Justice. As the Washington Examiner reported, the little-known charity in Tucson, Arizona, shares ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a U.S.-designated terrorist faction. That revelation prompted a collection of payment processors to jump ship, meaning Alliance for Global Justice can no longer fundraise online and must receive checks at an address in the desert. This is a massive blow to the longevity of its fiscally sponsored projects, including the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, which has shared employees with the PFLP. News of terrorism ties led the Ford Foundation and $1 billion Arabella Advisors-managed New Venture Fund and Windward Fund, among other backers, to swear off future grants.

Arnold Ventures, the philanthropy of ex-Enron executive John Arnold and his wife, former Cobalt International Energy lawyer Laura Arnold, also vowed no longer to allow their group to back Alliance for Global Justice after just $5,000 flowed to it via an employee-directed donation in 2020. A source close to the Schmidt Family Foundation, an entity steering the wealth of ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt and his wife, Wendy Schmidt, told me it does not plan to keep funding the Arizona nonprofit organization.

In the case of all of these philanthropies, who were contacted about their giving to Alliance for Global Justice in 2023 and years prior, it took the Oct. 7 massacre of 1,200 Israelis by Hamas last year for them to pledge not to fund a terrorist-linked entity. But reached by the Washington Examiner about a $250,000 check the Foundation to Promote Open Society cut in 2020 to Alliance for Global Justice, an Open Society Foundations spokesperson did not say whether it had any regrets.

“I really don’t understand the relevance,” an Open Society Foundations spokesperson wrote over email last month. The Anti-Defamation League sent letters to state attorneys general in Arizona and New York in July requesting an investigation into the tax-exempt status of AFGJ, which fundraised last year for a French group partnered with the PFLP. The ADL also sent a letter to the IRS asking for a formal inquiry. “Our grantmaking dates to four years ago, in 2020, when we made one grant on the issue of climate change,” the Open Society Foundations spokesperson said. “Since then, there has been no further grant activity.”

This reaction to scrutiny over the Alliance for Global Justice funding is “troubling,” particularly as antisemitic college campus groups funded by Soros call for genocide against Jews after Oct. 7, said President Marc Greendorfer of Zachor Legal Institute, a think tank that is also calling for federal investigations into AFGJ.

Alliance for Global Justice’s sponsorship of Samidoun “should be a firm line in the sand” for donors, an ADL spokesperson told the Washington Examiner. Spokesman Itai Reuveni for NGO Monitor, an Israeli watchdog group that tracks terrorism, added that it is “unfortunate Open Society Foundations will not admit it made a mistake in funding AFGJ, as other foundations.”

“But,” Reuveni said, “it’s unsurprising. Over the years, Open Society Foundations has provided grants to numerous highly biased and politicized groups active in the Israel-Arab conflict.”

Soros has thus remained publicly confident. How could any man with a net worth of around $7 billion not? He told the New York Times in 2018 that through the work, he found a “niche,” his life’s “mission.” He defended his soft-on-crime district attorneys in a Wall Street Journal op-ed in 2022, arguing that there is “no connection between the election of reform-minded prosecutors and local crime rates.” An Open Society Foundations spokesperson said the entity’s accomplishments include backing groups in Ukraine, delivering COVID-19 vaccines in Africa, and aiding in prosecuting war crimes in Syria.

Open Society Foundations, the spokesperson insisted to the Washington Examiner, is “dedicated to advancing policies that promote inclusive democracy, shared and sustained economic growth, and human rights in the United States and around the world.”

That supposed dedication, the longtime liberal consultant told the Washington Examiner, is deeply undermined by Open Society Foundations staffers “crippled by an attempt to deal with espoused ideals versus realities.”.
How Trump Could Drain the United Nations ‘Swamp’
It’s likely America would withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council as it did under the leadership of Ms. Haley in 2018. She and Secretary Pompeo argued that the council, whose 47 member states included countries with poor human rights records and a shared anti-Israel bias, needed to be reformed to fulfill its mission. America rejoined the council under the Biden administration, and Trump could pull back from it again and potentially replace it with a new structure outside the UN system.

The outcome of the American election could also affect the race for the next secretary-general to replace Mr. Guterres after two terms in power. Trump would likely support a candidate who is less critical of Israel — the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, has repeatedly urged Mr. Guterres to resign — and whose values align with a Republican administration.

Mr. Guterres led Portugal’s socialist party for a decade. Ms. Epstein argues that “if Trump wins, you need somebody who can work with him so that the US doesn’t take all its funding away.” The selection process for the next secretary-general begins in 2026.

Asked about how a victory by Trump might affect the UN, the spokesman for the secretary-general, Stephane Dujarric, tells the Sun, “U.S. participation and engagement is critical to the work of the United Nations. We always work cooperatively and constructively with U.S. administrations.”

The kinds of reforms a Trump administration would pursue depends, of course, on whom the president would appoint as his envoy to the world body a firebrand like his former ambassador to Germany, Rick Grenell, a MAGA enthusiast who’s already courting right-wing populists overseas. If so, more dramatic reforms might take place. As President Reagan’s director of personnel, Scott Faulkner, once said, “Personnel is policy.”

Rather than aggressively reform the UN, a Trump administration might instead seek to manage it via an envoy he trusts, as he did during his first term. “He sees the UN, I think, as an opportunity to advance US policies through his ambassador,” Ms. Haley’s chief of staff at the American mission to the UN, Steven Groves, tells the Sun. “The UN is just one more forum to protect and advance US national security and foreign policy.”

Yet as war threatens to engulf three theaters — Europe, the Middle East, and East Asia — how effective is that forum? According to the “America First” agenda, the United Nations is an obstacle, not a conduit, to solving global challenges. Trump and his allies seem willing to sidestep the institution and rely on the state department to pursue its foreign policy plans, where they might advance more expediently, unencumbered by opposition from adversarial nations.

Getting business done at the UN, Mr. Wachtel says, is a bit like swimming with sharks: “You put on your swimsuit and jump into the Security Council and you’re swimming with the bad boys and try to do what you can. And at one point you’re like, what am I doing in this pool?” For the former president, the answer might be: Get out.
Caroline Glick: Trump’s rhetoric vs. Harris’s policies
Since Oct. 7, Harris has been the most outspoken critic of Israel in the administration. Just three weeks after the Hamas invasion, and in the midst of the worst eruptions of antisemitism in the United States in 90 years, Harris announced on X that the Biden administration would develop “the first ever U.S. National Strategy to Counter Islamophobia.” She then added, falsely, “As the result of the Hamas terrorist attack in Israel and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, we have seen an uptick in anti-Palestinian, anti-Arab and Islamophobic incidents across America.”

Last week Harris raised concerns about her commitment to Israel’s security when she met with the heads of the most viciously anti-Israel and pro-Hamas group in the Democratic party ahead of an election rally in Michigan.

Harris spoke with the heads of the so-called “Uncommitted National Movement,” the group that convinced thousands of pro-Hamas voters in Michigan to vote “uncommitted” rather than vote for Biden in the Michigan primaries. According to the Washington Free Beacon, the two leaders in the conversation with Harris were Abbas Alawieh, former chief of staff for Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), and Layla Elabed, sister of Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.). Tlaib and Bush, of course are outspoken in their hatred for Israel and for American Jews who support Israel. After losing her Democratic primary in a landslide defeat on Aug. 6, Bush committed herself to destroying the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. In her words, “AIPAC, I’m coming to tear your kingdom down!”

Alawieh and Elabed told Harris that they want the United States to impose an arms embargo on Israel. Harris reportedly responded that she is “open” to a discussion on the issue. While Harris’s aides have breathlessly insisted that she never expressed any support for an arms embargo and that she opposes an arms embargo, Harris supported the administration’s decision to block shipments of several critical weapons systems to Israel.

In late March she threatened Israel with “consequences,” if it defied the administration’s wishes and began a ground operation in Rafah.

In mid-March, Harris stood at a historic Civil Rights movement-era site in Selma, Alabama and intimated that Israel was committing war crimes in Gaza.

Referring to humanitarian conditions in the terror enclave as a “catastrophe,” Harris said, “What we’re seeing every day in Gaza is devastating. We have seen reports of families eating leaves or animal feed. Women giving birth to malnourished babies with little to no medical care. Children dying from malnutrition and dehydration.”

She then wagged her finger and said, “The Israeli government must do more to significantly increase the flow of aid. No excuses.”

None of Harris’s descriptions were accurate. By giving voice to the slanders, the vice president facilitated the anti-Israel and anti-Jewish riots that were taking place on U.S. campuses, and provided support to the International Court of Justice at the Hague and its Kafkaesque trial of Israel for genocide.

Harris’s national security adviser Phil Gordon has a long history of pro-Iran and pro-Hamas positions. He is closely associated with President Joe Biden’s former envoy to Iran negotiations Robert Malley. Malley was forced to resign after his security clearance was removed. He is under FBI investigation for misuse of classified materials. Malley and three of his former associates were exposed as part of an Iranian regime influence operation. Gordon is now the subject of a congressional inquiry seeking information about his ties to that influence operation.

Gordon’s pro-Iran and pro-Hamas positions are shared by his colleague and fellow Harris adviser Ilan Goldenberg. Both men are expected to receive senior foreign policy positions in a Harris administration.

According to Pew, less than half of American Jews believe the president is striking the right balance in his support for the sides in the war. Given her rhetoric and actions, Harris is expected to be much less supportive of Israel than American Jewish voters believe the president should be.
Biden again warns Iran against attacking Israel: ‘Don’t’
Joe Biden delivered another “don’t” when asked by reporters what his message to Iran was as the U.S. president was walking out of a church and entering his vehicle in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware on Saturday.

Tehran has vowed to retaliate against the Jewish state for the targeted killing of Hamas terror leader Ismail Haniyeh in the Iranian capital on July 31. Jerusalem has not taken responsibility for the assassination, but the Islamic Republic and Hamas have attributed it to Israel.

Biden previously said “don’t” to deter Israel’s enemies in the days after the Oct. 7 Hamas-led massacre in the northwestern Negev. The president also used the word to warn Iran against an attack against Israel in mid-April.

Iran’s Lebanese terror proxy Hezbollah has carried out near daily cross-border attacks since Oct. 8, and Tehran launched more than 300 missiles and drones at Israel the day after Biden’s previous warning.

Meanwhile, Iran appears intent on going ahead with its second-ever direct attack on Israel, with the timing and nature of the retaliation still uncertain.

Hezbollah has also vowed to attack Israel, in retaliation for the July 30th targeted killing of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut, for which Jerusalem took responsibility. The assassination was in retaliation for a Hezbollah rocket strike on a soccer pitch that killed 12 children in the Golan Druze town of Majdal Shams.

Ahmed Bahsheesh Ardestani, a member of the National Security Committee of the Iranian Parliament, said overnight Saturday that “the air operations of the Islamic Republic against Israel may last for three to four days,” according to the London-based Iran International news agency.
Aggressive Moves by Iran Require Response
It appears that Washington is seeking to leverage the tensions with Iran to accelerate the promotion of a regional arrangement that would also include Gaza. It can be assumed that administration officials are trying to secure Israeli agreement to end the war in Gaza in a way that would allow the Iranians to market it as an achievement.

The position of Israel's political echelon is that a ceasefire in Gaza should be limited in time and without giving up Israeli control over the Philadelphi Corridor and the Netzarim Corridor. At this point, concessions beyond this on Israel's part will provide a lifeline to Hamas and allow it to recover, consolidate its governance, and renew military capabilities.

The causes of the current clash between Israel and Iran lie in the aggressive moves the regime is taking to realize its vision of achieving regional hegemony and destroying Israel. The ring of fire that this regime has built around Israel through its many proxy forces is one component. Its significance was well demonstrated in the current war. An additional component is the regime's advanced efforts to acquire nuclear weapons.

Iran's moves pose an existential threat to Israel. Israel is behaving as required in the face of such a threat, demonstrating determination, self-confidence, and high intelligence and operational capabilities. In Iran and Lebanon, they are well aware of the damage Israel can inflict on their critical infrastructures.

The Iranian threat is a challenge not only for Israel. Iran is a key player in shaping the axis of countries opposing the U.S. and the West. Its influence and actions do not stop at the borders of the Middle East. There are red lines whose crossing will compel Israel to act. This is well understood in Tehran, Beirut, and Washington.
Tehran and Its Allies Aren't Ready for a Full-Scale Conflict with Israel and the U.S.
Iran can't afford a war with Israel, which would likely pull in the U.S. For decades Tehran has preferred to harry its rivals in the region through a network of foreign militias.

Tehran-backed Hizbullah also has more to lose from escalating its 10-month cross-border battle with Israel into a full-scale war. While Hizbullah has a missile arsenal that could punish Israel severely, its leaders have watched Israel demolish much of Gaza since the Oct. 7 attacks and pick off its leadership - something Israel has vowed to replicate in Lebanon if provoked.

Both Iran and Hizbullah are penetrated by Israeli intelligence. Israel has signaled its readiness to reply quickly to any strike and even pre-empt one if necessary. Israel might use any Iranian-orchestrated attack as an excuse to strike back even harder.

The last time Hizbullah fought a war with Israel was in 2006. Sami Nader, director of the Institute of Political Science at Saint Joseph University in Beirut, said, "The situation is totally different from the one in 2006. Lebanon has gone through economic collapse, people lost their savings in the banks, the currency lost 98% of its value, unemployment is high. Hizbullah's constituency in the south lost their houses once. They don't want to do it a second time. The timing is not right for a war with Israel."
U.S. Stalls Israeli Preemptive Strikes
Israel is being pressured and incentivized by Washington to avoid a preemptive strike that might trigger a regional war.

A preemptive strike on Iran is complex militarily due to its distance and size.

On the other hand, Israel could deliver an effective preemptive strike against Hizbullah.

Israel is ready to act now, at a moment's notice. The plans, weapons and aircraft are prepared.

Yet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the defense establishment agree that the IDF will not launch a preemptive strike to avoid the regional war that the U.S. fears.

The almost certain scenario is that if the IDF launched a preemptive strike on Hizbullah, similar to Israel's actions at the start of the 2006 Lebanon War when it neutralized Hizbullah's heavy Zelzal missiles within 39 minutes, Iran and its proxies would likely join the fight, leading to the regional war the U.S. is determined to prevent.

An announcement that the U.S. is granting Israel permission to utilize $3.5 billion from the $14.1 billion aid package approved by Congress six months ago to purchase U.S. weapons and military equipment serves as one of the "carrots" the administration uses to reward Jerusalem for "good behavior."
Iran's Mullahs Will Not Stop Unless They Are Stopped
Since the Biden-Harris administration came into power in 2021, the Iranian regime's belligerent behavior has reached unprecedented levels. The only way to stop this regime's aggression is a response that makes it clear that the cost of any further malign activity on the part of them -- or their proxies -- will be a price too high to pay.

The fingerprints and influence of Iran are evident in countless conflicts – both global and regional. Iran, along with Qatar, have been key players in the war against Israel.

Iran was also behind "over 150 attacks" on US troops in the Middle East, just since October 7, 2023, wounding many American troops.

So long as the Iranian regime is allowed to expand its influence and wreak havoc –before it has nuclear bombs -- global security will continue to deteriorate. Just imagine what Iran will do once it has them.
Iran: A Grin and Bear it Game?
A repeat of the recent comedy of launching 400 flying objects against Israel while making sure none reaches a target would be one hoax too many, even from a master of all hoaxes.

Even if the ayatollah manages to kill many Israelis and Palestinians in an initial raid, he may be putting his whole regime at risk.

Exposed as a big talker and small achiever, he could face an internal popular uprising that might wish to seek a different way of life.

Khamenei knows that, and yellow being his favorite color, he is trying to step back from the brink with a minimum loss of face.

Khamenei's new shying-off tactic could give Israel the chance to follow the destruction of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza with the crippling of the Houthis, the next laggard. That could be followed by "downgrading" the laggards in Iraq, with tacit support from the Iraqi regular army and Israel's allies inside Iraq. That would put Hezbollah next in line for downgrading.

All that, of course, is speculation. But the fact is that anyone who thinks Khamenei would risk his own skin for Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Houthis, Hashd al-Shaabi and Hezbollah needs to have his head examined.
Iran Knows It Cannot Win a War against Israel
[T]he likelihood of Iran launching another attack against Israel in retaliation for Haniyeh's assassination appears to be receding, not least because Tehran is well aware that, in any major military confrontation with Israel, it will inevitably be the loser.

Israeli officials also believe that the initial assault will not originate from Iran. The latest intelligence assessment by Israeli officials, reported on August 7, indicates a shift in expectations regarding the source of the anticipated attack.

Cooperation between Israel and Russia has often resulted in the Russians turning a blind eye when Israel attacks Iranian positions in Syria, even though Russia and Iran are supposed to be allies working together in their joint venture to keep Syria's Assad regime in power.

In responding to Iran's desperate plea for more arms, therefore, Putin may be reluctant to take any action that could upset his delicate relationship with Israel.
Israel Names 19 Terrorists Killed in Military Headquarters at Gaza School
The IDF and Israel Security Agency on Saturday night named 19 Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror operatives killed in an airstrike on a Hamas and Islamic Jihad command room embedded within a mosque at the Taba'een school in Gaza City. The IDF said the strike was carried out using three "precision munitions" and that footage after the strike showed that there was no major damage to the surrounding school complex. It also said that the missiles "could not have caused the damage that corresponds to the casualty reports of the government media office in Gaza."

IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said, "Increasingly in recent months Hamas has focused on exploiting school buildings, often where civilians are sheltering inside, to use them as military facilities, command and control centers, for storing weapons, and to execute terrorist attacks."

"Over the last few weeks, our intelligence has been closely monitoring an active Hamas and Islamic Jihad military facility, where approximately two dozen Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants were operating. After we received clear intelligence of the threat posed by these terrorists and in accordance with international humanitarian law, we took numerous steps to mitigate the risk to civilians, including using aerial surveillance prior to the strike and selecting very precise munitions to avoid civilian casualties....Early this morning, the IDF conducted a precision strike against the terrorists in one specific building of the compound - an area that, according to our intelligence, no women and children were present."

According to military assessments, Hamas operatives are struggling to remain inside tunnels and are increasingly moving to above-ground sites, while hiding among innocents.


Israel Advocacy: Did Israel target the al-Tabeen school in Gaza?



One killed, one wounded in Jordan Valley shooting attack
One Israeli was killed and another moderately wounded when terrorists opened fire at their vehicles near the Mehola Junction in the northern Jordan Valley on Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces confirmed.

“Terrorists fired from a passing vehicle at several cars in the area of the Mehola Junction on Route 90 in the [sector of the Judea and Samaria Division’s 417th] Bekaa and Emekim Brigade,” the IDF stated.

Magen David Adom medics, working alongside IDF soldiers, pronounced the death of a man in his 20s and evacuated the moderately wounded victim—a 33-year-old male with gunshot wounds to his lower body— to a hospital by helicopter, the emergency service said in a statement.

IDF troops made their way to the scene and opened a manhunt for the terrorists.

The slain victim was identified as Yonatan Deutsch, 23, from the city of Beit She’an. He recently got engaged to get married, local media said.


Drone strike on Syria-Iraq border kills 5 pro-Iran militiamen
Five members of a pro-Iranian militia died in a drone strike on a vehicle near the Syrian-Iraqi border on Sunday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The U.K-based monitor did not identify who launched the drone, which struck near the village of Al-Kishmah in the Deir ez-Zor region of eastern Syria.

The attack came less than 48 hours after several United States and coalition personnel suffered minor injuries when a suicide drone hit the Rumalyn Landing Zone in northeastern Syria.

No terrorist organization claimed responsibility for that attack, but similar strikes in the past have been carried out by Iran-backed militias.

Also on Sunday, the Israeli military shelled Syrian Army targets in the Daraa region in the southwestern part of the country, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The group reported “consecutive explosions” near the border with the Israeli part of the Golan Heights, claiming the IDF hit a “post of regime forces in Tel Al-Jabiyah area in western Daraa countryside, where smoke was seen rising from the targeted site and ambulances rushed to the site.”
Hezbollah sends ‘drone swarm’ into Israel after IDF kills terrorist in Sidon
An unspecified number of drones entered Israeli airspace from Lebanon at approximately 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Israel launched several interceptors at the unmanned aerial vehicles. One UAV was intercepted.

Hezbollah took credit for the attack, which caused no injuries but started several fires in open areas. One of Israel’s interceptors hit the Hydro Therapy Centre located in the Mount Hermon region, damaging a building.

“I started crying when I saw the damage there. I immediately saw all the children, disabled, the IDF [soldiers] and the amputees who receive treatment here,” Mount Hermon Regional Council head Beni Ben Muvhar told Channel 12.

Hezbollah said it launched the “swarm of drones” in response to Israel’s targeted killing of Samer Mahmoud al-Haj, a senior commander in the terrorist organization, in Lebanon on Friday.

Samer was responsible for advancing terrorist attacks and projectile launches from Lebanon towards Israeli territory. He was also “responsible for the recruitment and training of terrorists to attack the State of Israel,” the IDF said in a statement.

Israel also identified a Hezbollah terrorist entering a “military” structure in the area of Tayr Harfa, a village in Southern Lebanon near Tyre. Shortly thereafter, the Israeli Air Force struck the structure, the IDF reported.

Also on Saturday, IDF soldiers identified and attacked rocket launchers in the areas of Houla and Khilat al-Daba in Southern Lebanon. And the IAF struck a ready-to-fire Hezbollah UAV and a terrorist attached to Hezbollah’s aerial unit, who operated in the area.


Hundreds entering Israel illegally from Jordan each month
Some 4,000 people illegally infiltrated the Jewish state through its eastern border with Jordan in the first half of 2024 alone, Israeli security sources say.

According to security officials’ assessments, approximately 600 people crossed into Israel illegally from the Hashemite Kingdom every month, the Maariv newspaper reported over the weekend. By comparison, in all of 2023, Israeli security forces arrested fewer than 90 foreigners who tried to penetrate the eastern border.

The infiltrators hail from China, Georgia, Ghana, Jordan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and other countries.

There is mounting concern in Israel’s security establishment that pro-Iranian elements could attempt to penetrate the eastern border to commit a mass attack similar to the Hamas-led Oct. 7 massacre. The IDF is working to prevent such a scenario, including by reinforcing its troops.

The frontier with Jordan extends 192 miles, making it the Jewish state’s longest border. Israel signed a peace treaty with Amman in 1994, but the kingdom has a majority Palestinian population and its rulers have taken an increasingly hostile tone since the start of the current Hamas war.

There has also been a dramatic increase in arm-smuggling into Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley that Jerusalem has explicitly attributed to Iran. Over the past two years alone, IDF border units have seized more than a thousand weapons during patrols on the eastern frontier.

A year ago, the Israeli government announced its intention to build a security barrier along the eastern border to thwart Iranian efforts to smuggle weapons to terrorist organizations in Judea and Samaria.


NYTs: A Show of Palestinian Support for Hamas in the West Bank
On the day that Hamas's political leader was targeted in Iran, small groups of Palestinians in a number of West Bank cities turned out to protest, some chanting pro-Hamas slogans and waving the group's green flag.

This outpouring of sympathy was notable because the Palestinian Authority generally has shown little tolerance for such open shows of support for its main rival in the past.

Since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, the Palestinian Authority has been losing support to factions like Hamas that favor armed struggle and are actively fighting Israel, according to a recent poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research.

"The PA is reading the room right now" said Tahani Mustafa, a senior Palestinian analyst at the International Crisis Group. "If they were to clamp down on Hamas supporters, it would be absolutely disastrous."

In a video of one protest in the West Bank city of Jenin on July 31, one Palestinian man yelled, "We from the land of Jenin affirm that we are all Hamas."

Ms. Mustafa added, "In terms of Hamas's popularity, yes, they are the de facto leaders of Palestinians, whether we like it or not."


‘Not a problem’: Spy boss says Hamas sympathy not a visa dealbreaker
The nation’s top spy says Palestinians who have expressed rhetorical support for listed terror group Hamas will not necessarily be blocked from entering Australia, as the federal government prepares to announce a new visa pathway to help those fleeing the war in Gaza.

ASIO director-general Mike Burgess also urged politicians to moderate their language, warning that inflammatory rhetoric could encourage aggrieved individuals to turn to violence.

Burgess, who last week raised the national terror threat level from “possible” to “probable”, said that providing financial support or material aid to Hamas may be a problem for Palestinians undergoing security checks as part of their visa application process.

It is a different matter if people are expressing support for Hamas because they “want their homeland”, he said.

“If it’s just rhetorical support, and they don’t have an ideology or support for a violent extremism ideology, then that’s not a problem,” Burgess told ABC’s Insiders program on Sunday.

“If they have a support for that ideology, then that will be a problem.”

Hamas, which has governed Gaza since 2007 and organised the October 7 attacks on Israel that led to an estimated 1200 deaths, is a listed terror organisation in Australia.


Betul was the recipient of an Australian of the Year award... now she's been slammed for an 'appalling' act
The recipient of an Australian of the Year award has drawn criticism for referring to members of terrorist organisation Hamas as 'freedom fighters'.

Betul Tuna, who has been an outspoken supporter of Palestine and wore a Palestinian keffiyeh-inspired scarf to accept her 'Local Hero' award, shared the disturbing content earlier this week.

In her controversial post, Ms Tuna said those 'the colonisers label a terrorist, historians will declare freedom fighters'.

Ms Tuna described herself as a 'change maker, activist, advocate and Intersectional Feminist' and works for the Victorian Government in child protection.

She received her Local Hero award in recognition of her being 'deeply committed to humanitarian and community causes'.

Her comments on Hamas followed the death of Ismail Haniyeh, the group's former leader who was assassinated in Iran on July 31.

Ms Tuna's post was described as 'appalling' and 'divisive', yet she was featured in an advertisement promoting the Australian of the Year awards by the National Australia Day Council (NADC) just days later.

The ad was also shared by the Department of Premier and Cabinet which urged Victorians to 'recognise someone in your community who's helping Victorians'.

However, it's not the first time the NADC has overlooked Ms Tuna's support of Palestine, the Herald Sun reported.

The activist has shared several anti-Israel posts since Hamas' October 7 massacre and the subsequent war in Gaza, which has caused a humanitarian crisis.

Ms Tuna also recently shared photos of a protester wearing a jumper with the words 'Intifada Revolution' at a rally in Melbourne's CBD.

The phrase calls for a violent uprising against Israel. Two Intifadas in the past led to the deaths of thousands of Palestinians.

Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin called for the NADC to refocus its awards on 'leadership and virtuous behaviour' rather than honouring those who 'inflame and divide'.


Uni students supporting Palestine continue their cause as new semester kicks off
Meanwhile on Friday, UniMelb for Palestine activists set up a table outside the Royal Exhibition Building – where University of Melbourne graduations were taking place – to give out keffiyehs to students.

Some students then wore the keffiyehs over their graduation robes during the ceremony, despite university policy requiring them to wear personal clothing under their academic gowns. During the graduation ceremony, pro-Palestine supporters – including UniMelb for Palestine organiser Dana Alshaer – either waved Palestinian flags, raised their fists or yelled “free Palestine” when they were called on stage.

But as a consequence of their actions, they missed the opportunity to have their official stage photo taken and were excluded from the official videography of the event.

“The University has terms and conditions for attendance at ceremonies which have been communicated to those attending,” a University of Melbourne spokesman said.

“These state that graduates who take prohibited items on stage will not have their official on stage photograph taken nor be part of the official videography of the event.

“If a graduate does not follow the protocols outlined in the terms and conditions while crossing the stage to receive their testamur, the videographer will pan away during any unscheduled activity to ensure minimal disruption of proceedings.”


Belgian publisher takes down ‘stab every Jew’ column amid outcry, lawsuit threat
A Belgian magazine has taken down a controversial column in which the writer said the death of Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip made him want to “stab every Jew in the throat.”

The incendiary remarks, which caused a public outcry and spurred legal action, come at a time when anti-Jewish hatred is escalating around the globe, including in Belgium, in the wake of Israel’s 10-month-long war against Hamas in Gaza.

The offending piece, penned by the Flemmish writer and columnist Herman Brusselmans in Humo magazine, begins with a personal broadside against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanayhu reminiscent of the depiction of Jews in Nazi German propaganda, continues by citing a grossly falsified ratio of civilians to combatants killed in Gaza and then culminates with talk of killing every Jew.

The article caused Jewish groups to announce plans to file a lawsuit against the magazine, the columnist and the publisher.

“I understand that people who are not sufficiently familiar with HUMO or Herman Brusselmans’ style and are confronted with this quote without context are shocked,” Humo’s deputy editor-in-chief Matthias Vanderaspoilden wrote in a statement five days after the Aug. 4 column was first published. “It was of course never the intention to hurt the Jewish community. If that did happen, we would like to apologize for it. That is why we ultimately decided to take the column offline. Anyone who knows HUMO a little knows that it is certainly not an anti-Semitic magazine.”

The magazine has called the piece satire, and earlier refused to take it down or apologize.

The Brussels-based European Jewish Association called the removal of the article “a step in the right direction,” but said that the legal case against the writer, the magazine and the publisher would continue so that “justice is properly and meaningfully served.”

“The author has shown zero remorse for his ‘thought experiment’ of murdering any Jew he meets in the street,” said EJA chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin in a statement this weekend. “He continues to regard incitement to murder as his freedom of speech.”
BBC accused of inviting ‘anti-Semitic’ commentator onto show
The BBC’s Arabic channel has been accused of inviting a guest onto its programme to discuss Israel despite claims she shared anti-Semitic views.

The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (Camera), which lobbies for a fair representation of Israel in the media, said the BBC was not doing enough to monitor the editorial policy and decisions of its Arabic channel.

It said BBC Arabic’s decision to invite commentator Hind al-Dawi onto its current affairs programme Egypt Mean Time last month showed BBC managers needed to exercise closer control over the channel.

Ms al-Dawi said it was wrong to describe Hamas fighters as terrorists just two weeks after the Hamas attacks of Oct 7, which led to the deaths of more than 1,200 Israelis and the taking of 253 hostages.

On Oct 30 she told the Russia Today discussion programme Ask More: “Hamas, like the Jihad, like the PFLP [Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine], like anyone who takes up arms in Palestine, is a resistance movement. Resistance is a legitimate right, enshrined by every law and constitution.”

When guest Dr Meir Masri, an Israeli author and professor of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, confronted her by citing the Oct 7 atrocities, she replied: “I recommend the viewers to read Karl Marx’s ‘On the Jewish Question’ to learn [about] the role of the victim which the Jews have been playing since the dawn of history.”

Oct 7 attack a ‘necessary pre-emptive measure’
In early May, Ms al-Dawi described the Oct 7 attack as a “necessary pre-emptive measure” Arabs had to take to defend Jerusalem’s holy place, telling the Egyptian satellite channel ON: “If it weren’t for what happened on October 7th… we would have woken up one day to the Dome of the Rock or al-Aqsa Mosque being stricken.”

Following these comments, Ms al-Dawi was invited on to BBC Arabic’s Egypt Mean Time on July 18 to discuss negotiations between Israel and Egypt.

She appeared just two days after Richard Burgess, director of news content at BBC News, defended BBC Arabic against claims it made a habit of using people accused of anti-Semitic views as experts on Israeli affairs.


U.S. Intelligence Says Iran Is Better Positioned to Launch Nuclear-Weapons Program
A July report to Congress from the U.S. Director of National Intelligence warned that Iran has "undertaken activities that better position it to produce a nuclear device, if it chooses to do so." Driving the change in the new intelligence assessment is scientific and engineering research work that Iran has been doing over the past year, experts say. In recent months there have been concerns among Israeli and U.S. officials about weaponization-related research being conducted by Iran, including computer modeling and metallurgy.

Even if Iran weren't to proceed with the development of a bomb, the intelligence report added, Tehran seeks to exploit international worry over the pace of its program "for negotiation leverage and to respond to perceived international pressure."

"Now that Iran has mastered the production of weapons-grade uranium, the next logical step is to resume weaponization activities to shorten the time needed to manufacture a nuclear device once a political decision is made," said Gary Samore, director of the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University and a former White House official.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in July that it would probably take Iran "one or two weeks" to produce enough weapons-grade enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon. Experts say Iran already has enough enriched uranium to be able to fuel multiple nuclear weapons within six months.

David Albright, a former weapons inspector who heads the Institute for Science and International Security, said it could take Iran less than six months to develop a crude nuclear device and that Iran has managed to deceive the U.S. about its nuclear capabilities in the past.

"We need a new, honest public discussion on Iran's nuclear-weapons capabilities and the technical and diplomatic structure Tehran has put in place that would allow it to quickly build nuclear weapons while the U.S. is paralyzed in its attempts to avoid a crisis," Albright said.


Jewish man stabbed near Chabad HQ by man shouting 'Free Palestine'
A young Jewish man was stabbed by a stranger shouting “Free Palestine!” close to the Chabad headquarters in Crown Heights on Saturday, Chabad Lubavitch confirmed.

According to COLlive, a Chabad publication, the attack happened at around 2 a.m. local time, near Eastern Parkway and Kingston Avenue.

The perpetrator, reportedly a black male in his early 20s, asked the victim, “Do you want to die?” before stabbing him.

Footage of the incident was later publicized. The victim is expected to recover due to the quick response of the paramedic team and the location of the wound.

According to Yaacov Behrman, who runs PR for Chabad, local residents were able to detain the attacker until the police arrived and arrested him.


Swiss police arrest ‘mentally disturbed’ man for pouring gasoline on synagogue
A 32-year-old man with mental health issues was arrested on Sunday for allegedly dousing a synagogue in the city of Zurich with gasoline, Swiss police said.

According to the Zurich municipal police’s initial investigations, the Swiss national “acted alone and no extremist motives have been put forward” for the attack.

The suspect spilled gasoline at the synagogue’s entrance on Saturday evening, before being surprised by a member of the Jewish place of worship’s security services.

Police launched a manhunt for the suspect after the man fled the scene on foot, and arrested him early on Sunday morning.

The police added that the suspect “appears to be mentally disturbed.”

A March report by two Swiss antisemitism watchdogs found that violence against Jews in the country had almost tripled since the Gaza war broke out on October 7, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists stormed southern Israel to kill nearly 1,200 people and take 251 hostages.

The report came days after a teen stabbed an ultra-Orthodox man in Zurich, leaving him seriously injured. The stabber, who reportedly shouted, “Death to all Jews,” was said to be an Islamic State supporter of Tunisian origin.
Israel Sells Arrow Missile Defense to Unnamed Country for $1.9 Billion
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) said on Thursday that it signed a $1.9 billion deal to sell the Arrow air defense system to an unnamed country over seven years.

The demand for Israeli-made weapon systems is at an all-time high, especially after they showed excellent results during the war.

Germany purchased the Arrow missile defense system from IAI in 2023, at an estimated cost of $3.5 billion.

IAI said it had orders in the pipeline valued at $19 billion.
2021 film about the destruction of the Second Temple finds new resonance after Oct. 7
As the resident film impresario at Manhattan’s JCC, Isaac Zablocki specializes in screening movies that challenge, provoke and enlighten audiences.

When he first heard of the Israeli feature “Legend of Destruction,” before it had even hit theaters in 2021, he knew he needed to screen it.

While many of the films Zablocki screens revolve around current events — including a steady diet of offerings on Israel’s myriad challenges — “Legend” was different: It retold one of the most well-worn ancient Jewish narratives, about the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE.

To Zablocki, it could not have felt more urgent. That feeling has only intensified this year, after thousands of Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping 251 to the Gaza Strip while committing horrific atrocities.

“It was relevant before October 7. It’s even more relevant now,” said Zablocki, director of the JCC’s Israel Film Center.

“It’s really shocking how history repeats itself,” he added. “I mean everything we’re showing these days, it immediately gets — you put on the glasses of October 7. Has October 7 made the Jewish community more unified? Has it created, actually, more division? And I see both.”

The film — about the intra-Jewish rifts that preceded the temple’s destruction — was acclaimed in Israel precisely because it reflected the deepening social and political divides in 21st-century Jerusalem. It won four awards at Israel’s version of the Oscars and, in the middle of a rowdy session in Israel’s parliament, then-prime minister Naftali Bennett exhorted lawmakers to go see the movie to understand that polarization “is not the way.”
Brushing off threats and boos, Israel’s 7 medals mark its best-ever Olympic showing
After heading to the Paris Olympics under the shadow of death threats and expected provocations, Israel wrapped up its best ever Games on Sunday with a record seven medals.

While there was heightened concern over the reception Israeli athletes would receive in Paris amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, anti-Israel protests and demonstrations were largely muted throughout the 16 days of competitions, limited to a handful of posters and signs at matches and a smattering of boos during events.

Heading in with a goal of making their presence known and refusing to retreat in the face of threats and efforts to boycott and ban them, Israel’s athletes sailed past the country’s previous four-medal haul in Tokyo, bringing home seven new medals — one gold, five silver and one bronze — and surpassing the expectations that Israeli Olympic officials set earlier this year.

Israel will now have to shell out a total of NIS 5 million — tax-free — to its medalists, plus an additional NIS 2.5 million to the winning coaches. Handing out its highest bonuses to date, and among the highest given in the world, the government will award NIS 1 million to its gold medalist, NIS 700,000 to each silver medalist and NIS 500,000 to its bronze medalist.

Speaking to reporters during a briefing in June, Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar said he would love for his biggest budgetary concern to be finding the cash for a large number of Olympic medalists.

“This is the kind of thing I will really look forward to dealing with,” he said at the time. “That’s my aspiration, believe me, to be in the situation where I need to raise the funds. I’ll get them easily. Please create this problem for me.”

Israel headed into Paris with a total of just 13 Olympic medals in history, and left with 20, a massive jump for the nation of just 10 million people.
Israelis 11.5 times as likely to medal at Olympics as Chinese, twice as likely as Americans
Israeli citizens were significantly likelier to earn medals at the Olympics than were those from the leading two medaling countries, the United States and China, and they were more likely to earn gold medals than Chinese people were, but not Americans, according to a JNS analysis.

JNS studied the top 50 medaling countries—in descending order of gold medals—and it used the most recent population estimates for countries from the CIA World Fact Book.

Israel, which has a population of 9.402 million, per the CIA, earned one gold medal and seven total medals. That means that one Israeli per 1.343 million medaled, and one Israeli per 9.402 million earned a gold medal.

The Jewish state significantly outperformed the average of the top 50 medaling countries, per the JNS analysis. On average, top 50 countries had populations of 75.2 million—some eight times Israel’s population—and earned 6.3 golds and 18.64 total medals.

That meant that, on average, those in the top 50 medaling countries had a one in 5.867 million chance of medaling and one in 17.43 million chance of earning gold. Israelis were 4.368 times likelier to medal than average, among top 50 countries, and were 1.854 times likelier to earn gold than the average.

The top two medaling countries were the United States—which earned 40 golds (one per 8.549 million) and 126 total medals (one per 2.714 million)—and China, which earned 40 golds (one per 35.401 million) and 91 total medals (one per 15.561 million




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