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Sunday, November 24, 2024

11/24 Links: The ICC has granted succour to terror organisations around the world; UAE arrests 3 suspects in murder of Rabbi Zvi Kogan

From Ian:

Natasha Hausdorff: The ICC has granted succour to terror organisations around the world
Perhaps even more concerning than the “legal technicalities” of a lack of jurisdiction and abandonment of the Court’s rules is the incorrect ground the warrants have been based upon. The Prosecutor’s public summary of his application, endorsed by some celebrity “experts”, contained only false material.

Every phrase of every sentence was untrue. How could the Prosecutor have got this so wrong, when publicly available information puts the lie to the allegation of starvation and when Israel’s conduct in this conflict has been unparalleled in protecting civilians from harm, a far higher standard that the UK or US acknowledge they could meet? Even more concerning was the Prosecutor’s response to being called out by multiple organisations writing as amicus curiae (“friends of the Court”). “Nothing to see here” was the reply.

The unprecedently public nature of Khan’s application and the subsequent granting of these warrants is a further give-away of the political game that is being played. “Real” arrest warrants for genuine suspects are issued in secret without press conferences and media interviews. But here the anti-Israel optics are the main objective.

Who are the winners of this dastardly enterprise? The internationally proscribed terror group Hamas publicly thanked the Court for its interventions on its behalf. But the message that is sent by this disgraceful development is one of encouragement to terror organisations the world over. It is an unconscionable attack on the inherent right of self-defence that other democratic states may well seek to exercise against similar fundamentalist terrorist organisations in the future.

The incoming US administration has plainly recognised this as an attack on law, liberty and liberal values. It understands the dangerous consequences that this decision has for other states, members and non-members alike, now that the Court has departed from the requirement of jurisdiction.

Keir Starmer’s equivocation indicates he is not entirely ignorant of the political game being played. One can only hope he will find the fortitude to stand up to the Israel-haters in his party and act in the UK’s national interest by calling out the politicisation of international legal institutions.
Amb. Alan Baker: The ICC Arrest Warrants Are an Illegal Action in Violation of the ICC Statute
After the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders, the issue is if the issuing of the arrest warrants is ultra vires [beyond the legal power or authority] of the ICC Statute, since there exists no Palestinian state, no sovereign Palestinian territory and hence the court has no jurisdiction. Therefore, the warrants are illegal, in violation of the court's statute and worthless, and should be ignored by all states.

The ICC has been permeated by politicization conducted over the years by the Palestinian leadership to such an extent that the court has lost any credibility.

Israel has sound legal justification in international humanitarian law for all its actions, as has been acknowledged by leading military experts and as is borne out by accurate statistics and footage.

Claims of starvation are false and contrived and footage exists indicating passage of food trucks and statistics regarding calories per person.

The ICC prosecutor, in addition to his own personal issues under investigation, has consistently demonstrated stark bias in respect to the Palestinian claims against Israeli political and military personnel, in violation of the terms of his job as set out in the statute.

Any state cooperating with the ICC arrest warrants is endorsing an illegal action by the court in violation of the ICC statute.
Why Some Countries Like the U.S. Won't Join the ICC
Several powerful countries, including the U.S., do not recognize the authority of the International Criminal Court and refuse to become members. The U.S. seeks to prevent the tribunal from being used to prosecute Americans. Other nations including China, India, Russia and Israel are not members.

U.S. administrations from both parties have argued in the past that the court should not exercise its authority over citizens from countries that are not a member of the court. "There remains fear of...being prosecuted for political, rather than evidence-based, reasons," said David Scheffer, a former U.S. ambassador and a chief negotiator of the statute that established the court.

Former ambassador John R. Bolton said, "These indictments [of Israeli leaders] prove precisely what is wrong with the ICC. A publicity-hungry prosecutor first goes after the victims of a terrorist attack, before going after the real criminals. I hope this is the death knell of the ICC in the United States."


ICC Decision Has Disrupted the Whole System of International Justice
The ICC's issuance of arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant is a "date that will live in infamy," former Israeli diplomat and former foreign ministry official Yigal Palmor said Thursday. "Not only has the ICC issued arrest warrants, in its communique, it has also determined guilt. The guilt of Netanyahu and Gallant is presented as an established fact." With such an establishment of guilt, there is no need for any legal process. "The ICC is not seeking to arrest suspects for their involvement in alleged crimes, it has determined that the crimes have been committed, and that they were committed by these specific individuals."

The warrants cross a line that was "very clear and agreed upon since day one: the line that separates democratic regimes - where the justice system is more or less independent - and the non-democratic regimes - where the justice system is dependent on international intervention.... Now they have erased that line altogether. Everything is permitted now."

The ruling means everyone could now sue everyone else. "If you dislike the principles of a certain government, you are now permitted to intervene from the outside, essentially trespassing a country's sovereignty," he said. "The independence of a local justice system will count for nothing." The "thoughtless, clueless" decision has disrupted the whole system of international justice, Palmor stated, "destroying and obliterating the founding principles of the ICC."
Dr. Yuan Yi Zhu: The ICC Has Destroyed Its Own Credibility
In issuing arrest warrants against Israeli leaders for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has undermined - perhaps fatally - its own credibility, as well as prospects for a peace settlement in Gaza. The process was compromised from the very beginning, when the ICC prosecutor, Karim Ahmad Khan, convened a "Panel of Experts in International Law" to provide support for his decision to seek the warrants. The panel's entire membership was selected by Khan, which raised concerns about its impartiality.

As Lord Macdonald, the former Director of Public Prosecutions, pointed out in September 2024, at least two of the Panel's members had publicly accused Israel of international crimes beforehand, while at least two others had personal links to the prosecutor.

The charges themselves are legally problematic. Netanyahu and Gallant are accused of using starvation as a method of warfare, which would be a war crime. Yet as Dr. Emanuela-Chiara Gillard, a leading expert in the law concerning civilian protection, pointed out, the mere existence of food insecurity in a war zone does not mean that a crime has been committed. Many of the issues with aid delivery in Gaza are caused by self-imposed limitations by aid agencies and the UN, the activities of Hamas, and others. Are they liable to be prosecuted on the same charge?

Even more troubling is the fact that the Court had no jurisdiction at all to issue these warrants. A fundamental principle of international law is that a state is not bound to the jurisdiction of an international court unless it has agreed to do so. But Israel, like three of the UN's five permanent members, has chosen to not join the ICC, as is its sovereign prerogative, so the ICC does not have jurisdiction over its nationals.

As Professor Richard Ekins KC of the University of Oxford writes, the lawfare against Israel only damages the credibility of the institutions that engage in it.
Stephen Daisley: The International Criminal Court must fall
There is already a model for how the president-elect might proceed, provided by the man himself. When the ICC opened an investigation into the Americans’ prosecution of the Afghanistan war in 2020, President Trump objected on the grounds that the United States had not ratified the Rome Statute and was not a party to the court or its jurisdiction. He signed Executive Order 13928, which imposed economic sanctions on the ICC including by blocking the assets of all persons involved in the court and its Afghanistan investigation, or those providing ‘material assistance’ to that endeavour, as well as barring entry to the United States by ICC staff and their immediate family. Trump later imposed additional sanctions on the court’s prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and other senior staff. As usual, all the clever people pouted and protested, warning of dire consequences for the United States, and as usual they were proved wrong. The Afghanistan probe has gone nowhere.

It is not only the ICC but those who collaborate with it who need worry. Republican senator Lindsay Graham says he will be introducing a Bill to punish nations that cooperate with the ICC’s attack on Israel, warning: ‘If you aid and abet the ICC after their action against the State of Israel, you can expect consequences from the United States.’

The court and its allies will also be mindful of Section 2008 of the American Service Members’ Protection Act 2002. This authorises the president ‘to use all means necessary and appropriate to bring about the release’ of certain persons ‘being detained or imprisoned by, on behalf of, or at the request of the International Criminal Court’. The legislation protects US citizens but also the political and military leaders of major American allies, and even specifies the State of Israel. Anyone wondering what ‘all means necessary and appropriate’ means might wish to consult the law’s informal title: the ‘Hague Invasion Act’.

This is how a self-confident nation acts, a nation with the guts to stand up for itself and its allies, instead of bending the knee to every crummy outfit which dons the cloak of ‘international law’ and the ‘rules-based global order’ to calumny and undermine the civilised world. The prospect of the ICC’s demise would no doubt scandalise foreign policy elites, the NGO racket, the lawfare industry and academics of international law and human rights, which is exactly why they should resist politicisation and activism from such institutions. It is they who ought to have shouted the loudest about the need for the ICC and other bodies to remain within their remit, and for international law to avoid the trap of becoming the continuation of policy by other means. That they have still not learned their lesson is attested to by the fact that so many legal practitioners and commentators have colluded in, or consciously ignored, the gross distortion of legal text and principle which has seen Israeli self-defence since October 7 routinely characterised as genocide. Many of those who prate the loudest about law and process have done far more than Benjamin Netanyahu or Donald Trump to debase and discredit both.

The ICC was established to bring tyrants and human rights abusers to book, but today you have more to fear from this body if you are the elected leader of a democracy striving to protect its citizens from barbarism. The court has dragged itself and the laws it purports to uphold into a mire of politics, prejudice, caprice and improper process. It is no longer fit for purpose and its continued existence harms the global purchase of international law. The International Criminal Court must fall.
US Senator threatens to sanction allies including UK if ICC warrant against Netanyahu is enforced
US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Saturday threatened to sanction America’s allies if they sought to enforce the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

“To any ally—Canada, Britain, Germany, France—if you try to help the ICC, we’re going to sanction you,” Graham said in an interview with Fox News.

The US “should crush [their] economy, because we’re next,” he continued.

The ICC on Thursday issued arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant for alleged “crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024.”

In response, Graham called on US lawmakers to “act forcefully” against the court.

“Israel is not a member of the ICC nor is the United States. Israel has a very robust legal system and so does the United States. If we do not fight back against the ICC’s attack on Israel, it is as if we are conceding that they have jurisdiction over the United States,” he stated.

“We cannot let the world believe for a moment that this is a legitimate exercise of jurisdiction by the Court against Israel because to do so means we could be next,” he said, adding that countries could “expect consequences” if they assist the ICC in this regard.

The ICC has no jurisdiction over Israel as Jerusalem, like Washington, is not a signatory to the Rome Statute, which established the court. But in a legalistic sleight of hand, the court has asserted jurisdiction by accepting “Palestine” as a signatory in 2015, even though no such state is recognised under international law.

The 123 countries that are signatories to the Rome Statute are obligated to act on any arrest warrant it issues.

A host of European governments voiced their support for the Court in The Hague following its dramatic decision last week.

Josep Borrell, the European Union’s outgoing foreign-policy chief, claimed that the ruling was “not political” and should be respected.

“I take note of the decision of the International Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants for Prime Minister Netanyahu, the former minister of defense, Mr. Gallant, and the [assassinated] Hamas leader [Mohammed] Deif,” said Borrell.

“This decision is a binding decision on all states, all the state parties of the court, which include all members of the European Union,” he added.

The Hague’s top diplomat said the Dutch government would scrap all “non-essential contacts” with Netanyahu in response to the ICC ruling.

A French Foreign Ministry spokesperson informed AFP that Paris would respond in line with the court’s founding statutes, raising the possibility that Netanyahu and Gallant could be placed under arrest in France.


ICC Arrest Warrants on Israeli Leaders Impacts the Global Fight Against Terror
Anne Herzberg, a human rights expert and the legal adviser to NGO Monitor, responded to the ICC decision Thursday. "There has never been a conflict where a party that was subject to an invasion, missile threats from seven fronts, which has twice faced the largest ballistic missile attacks in history, where 1200 of its citizens were massacred, hundreds of hostages taken, and yet has taken the most extensive measures ever seen to allow for humanitarian aid to enter into enemy territory."

"Gallant and Netanyahu have allowed for airdrops, aid trucks, commercial aid, a humanitarian pier, a humanitarian corridor. They have gone above and beyond what the law requires, and yet they were prosecuted for that specifically. And yet, there is no mention of Hamas's role in denying the aid, UNRWA's role in preventing aid, the UN agency's total incompetence in providing aid."
Boris Johnson: All Starmer's pledges to stand with Israel were hypocrisy and guff. Instead I believe he's effectively saying: I stand with Hamas
Instead of standing with Israel, Starmer is effectively standing with Hamas – because he has cravenly endorsed the request, from the International Criminal Court (ICC), that the leaders of Israel should be charged with war crimes. If either Netanyahu, or Yoav Gallant, his defence minister, set foot in this country, they risk being arrested and bundled off to the Hague for trial and imprisonment.

We are treating them like Slobodan Milosevic and Ratko Mladic, the butchers of the Balkans, when this ICC case is patently absurd.

The Hague court is designed for tyrants – like Putin or Milosevic – who have no chance of facing justice in their own country. The ICC is supposed to ‘complement’ any potential failure of due process.

But the whole point of Israel is that it is a functioning democracy, with a highly active culture of litigation. If Netanyahu or Gallant were indeed guilty of causing starvation, or mass murder, then there is every prospect that they would eventually be arraigned before the Israeli courts.

Instead – and this is perhaps the most obscene feature of the whole business – the ICC is expressly bracketing the Israeli leadership with Hamas. The court has simultaneously indicted the two Israeli politicians, Netanyahu and Gallant, alongside a Hamas terrorist called Mohammed Deif.

To compound the absurdity and unfairness, Deif is now dead, and wherever he is to be held to account for his crimes it will not be in the Hague. Starmer has chosen, amazingly, to go along with it all.

By accepting this indictment, the Labour government has accepted the moral equivalence of Hamas and Israel: that is, the equivalence between the terrorists and the victims; between those who committed unprecedented torture and mayhem and those whose wretched duty is to try to stop it happening again.

He has done it, because he is pathetically trying to appease pro-Palestinian sentiment – fuelled by anti-semitism – in the Labour party. After almost five months in office, this government is adrift, devoid of principle or purpose.

One day Starmer claims to stand with Israel; the next he is collaborating in an attempt to humiliate Israel and jail its elected leader.
Conservatives write to Starmer to express concern over government’s ICC stance
The Conservatives have written to Keir Starmer to express their concern over the Labour government’s handling of the International Criminal Court decision on arrest warrants for Israel’s policical leaders.

A joint letter from Priti Patel MP, Shadow Foreign Secretary, and Robert Jenrick MP, Shadow Justice Secretary, claims that the “only beneficiaries of this decision are Hamas”.

It then calls on the Prime Minister make clear that the Government will not support the arrest warrants.

It states:” The White House has ‘fundamentally rejected’ the ICC’s decision.

“Not least because this decision will do nothing to help secure the release hostages, get more aid into Gaza or deliver a sustainable end to the conflict.

“But, by contrast, the UK Government’s response to the decision has been nonsensical.

“On Friday, the Home Secretary refused to say whether Mr Netanyahu would be detained if he travelled to the UK. This opens the farcical spectre of your Government trying to sanction the arrest on UK soil of the leader of an ally of the UK.”

The letter regarding the ICC decision to issue arrest warrants for the State of Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu and its former Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant suggests it “has no proper basis in international law. ”

It adds:”The court was established on the principle of ‘complementarity’, meaning that it was designed to pursue cases in instances where countries do not have robust and independent judiciaries.

“That cannot be said of Israel, which is the only democracy in the Middle East and possessed of one of the most advanced legal systems in the world.

“Indeed, prosecutions on human rights grounds are regularly heard through Israeli courts and leading politicians routinely face trial – and indeed have been imprisoned.

“In failing to recognise this, the ICC’s decision to issue warrants violates its founding principle and displays clear judicial overreach. It is hard to escape the conclusion this is an activist decision, motivated by politics and not the law.”

The Tory duo add that concerns are heightened by reports of serious process errors in the ICC’s investigation.

It has been suggested that Karim Khan KC, the Chief Prosecutor, relied upon Hamas sources, and that “sources from UN bodies whose employees are affiliated with Hamas.”


Kevin Hollinrake Government's Approach to Netanyahu Arrest Warrant "Totally Wrong"



Australia urged to take a stand on Israel
Australia’s longest-serving foreign minister, Alexander Downer, says the Albanese government risks handing a propaganda win to terrorists by not rejecting an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for the Israeli prime minister, as Australia remained one of only a few countries not to declare its position.

The ICC late on Thursday (Friday AEDT) issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israel defence minister Yoav Gallant, with prosecutors accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity over Israel’s conduct in the war against terrorist group Hamas in Gaza, which has resulted in thousands of civilian casualties.

People shout slogans during a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv on Saturday. AP

“This is a propaganda win for Hamas, for Hezbollah, for Iran and their fellow travellers. It has destroyed the credibility of the ICC,” he said.

Mr Downer said Australia should make clear it would not arrest Mr Netanyahu should he visit the country. He said the ICC had been created on the basis of complementarity – essentially a “court of last resort” to ensure despots could be brought to justice when domestic laws failed to do so, which was not the case for Israel because it enjoyed a democratically elected government and fully functional legal system.

Mr Downer, who in 1998 signed the Rome Statute on Australia’s behalf to create the court, said the ICC was “beyond reform” and had been “colonised by zealots and activists”.

Australia has joined the likes of the France and Germany in expressing support for the court’s work while not explicitly declaring they would try to arrest Mr Netanyahu.

Over the weekend, a raft of European nations made clear they would seek Mr Netanyahu’s arrest should he set foot in their territory, including Ireland, Norway, Belgium, Spain, Slovenia, Switzerland and Austria, joining the Netherlands. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Ottawa would “abide” by the rulings and regulations of international courts.
Italian Defense Minister: Absurd to Equate Netanyahu with Terrorists
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said Saturday that it is "absurd" to put Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the same level as Hamas after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for him for alleged war crimes. He described the ICC move as "more political than technical." "We found it unacceptable and absurd to equate the leaders of a terrorist organization that attacked innocent people with those who legitimately lead a democratic state and are defending themselves." His words echoed statements made by Premier Giorgia Meloni on Friday.


Argentina Says ICC Warrants "Ignore" Right to Self-Defense
Argentine President Javier Milei on Thursday condemned the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's arrest. President Milei expressed Argentina's "profound disagreement" with the international tribunal. The decision "ignores Israel's legitimate right to self-defense against the constant attacks by terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hizbullah."

Israel was currently "facing brutal aggression, inhumane hostage-taking" and an "indiscriminate" attack on its citizens. "Criminalizing the legitimate defense of a nation while omitting these atrocities is an act that distorts the spirit of international justice." Argentina has the largest Jewish community in Latin America.


Seth Frantzman: Honeymoon over: Abraham Accords tested as antisemitism resurges in Gulf
The murder of Chabad emissary Rabbi Zvi Kogan in the United Arab Emirates represents the culmination of fears that have often crept up over the years regarding the targeting of Jews abroad by various enemies.

Authorities identified the body of Kogan, according to reports on November 24. “The Israeli mission in Abu Dhabi has been in contact with the family since the beginning of the incident and continues to support them during this difficult time,” the announcement declared. “His family in Israel has also been informed.”

Abraham Accords
This incident will have a number of impacts. First of all, it is already impacting the Gulf. Israel, the UAE, and Bahrain signed the Abraham Accords in 2020. It has now been four years since the first momentous flights began. At the time, there were high hopes, and relations grew quickly. They grew in many ways, from tourism to business and also for the Jewish community in the Gulf.

The growth came so rapidly, after many years in which the community kept a low profile, that many wondered if it was too good to be true. Indeed, the very public profile of the Jewish community in 2020-2021 was a honeymoon period. Conflict in May 2021 in Gaza and then the October 7 attacks and other tensions in the region meant that there was a sense that the happy times of 2020-2021 were being put on ice, at least temporarily.

Over the last four years there has been a lot of talk about extending the Accords to include Saudi Arabia. The election of Donald Trump this month is expected to put more wind in the sails of a possible deal.

However, Israel’s enemies have shown that they are willing to burn down the region in order to prevent normalization. Iran, Hamas and other countries have opposed the Abraham Accords. For instance, Turkey threatened to break relations with the UAE in 2020 if the UAE normalized ties with Israel. Ankara is one of the most hostile countries to Israel in the world today.

Hamas was hosted in Doha and may now be hosted in Ankara. Doha is also hostile to Israel and did not join the Accords.

Opposition to the Abraham Accords doesn’t necessarily lead to attacks on Jews, however. In the wake of the October 7 attack there have been rising attacks on Jews around the world. These attacks are often fueled by Iran, Hamas, and groups that are linked to them.

Some of the groups may pose as progressives in the West, but their overall milieu is one that is linked to Hamas and Iran. For instance, a recent anti-Israel protest in Canada included images of a nazi salute and a woman calling for the “final solution.” In addition a Jewish man on his way to synagogue was shot in Chicago in a hate crime in October.

We have come to understand since October 7 is to recognize that there is a global effort to fan the flames of antisemitism. This is connected to numerous sources and influences.


Emirates says it arrested three in killing of rabbi ‘in record time’
The Emirati interior ministry announced on Sunday night that it has arrested “the three perpetrators involved in the murder of Zvi Kogan, a Moldovan national according to his identification documents at the time of entry into the UAE, where he lived as a resident.”

The United Arab Emirates “strongly rejects any threat to societal security as Emirati authorities arrest perpetrators in Moldovan citizen’s murder in record time,” the ministry stated.

The ministry “reiterated the UAE’s unwavering capability to decisively address any attempts to undermine the security and stability of its society” and “explained that upon receiving a missing person report from the victim’s family, a specialized search and investigation team was promptly assembled.”

“This led to the discovery of the victim’s body, the identification and arrest of the perpetrators and the initiation of the necessary legal procedures,” it said, adding that it will disclose more details when the investigation is concluded.

JNS sought comment from the Emirati embassy in Washington to ask if the country is currently in a position to guarantee the safety of Jews, including Israelis.

The Emirati ministry “affirmed that the UAE and its institutions are fully committed to safeguarding the safety and security of its citizens, residents and visitors,” it stated on social media. “The nation’s security apparatus maintains the highest standards of security and safety, which have been fundamental to the UAE since its founding.”

The ministry didn’t state in its post that the victim is a Chabad rabbi.

Rabbi Yehuda Krinsky, chairman of Chabad, stated on Sunday that “the worldwide Chabad community and the international Jewish community at large are shocked, grieving and outraged.”

“Rabbi Zvi Kogan, a young Chabad emissary, was kidnapped and murdered in cold blood last week while serving the Jewish community in the UAE,” Krinsky stated. “Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries serve in countries around the globe in a spirit of generosity and kindness. Wherever they are stationed to grow and sustain Jewish life, they benefit the larger community as well with their love and light for all humanity.”

“It is incumbent upon the authorities of every country where Chabad representatives serve in good faith, to ensure that terror finds no haven within its borders. The targeting of Rabbi Kogan was an attempt to destroy the sacred Jewish values that he represented: light, goodness and kindness,” he added. “No country, no community, no society can afford the loss of these sustaining values.”


Why Iran Murdered a Chabad Rabbi in the UAE | JLMinute
The Jewish world woke up to the tragic news that Rabbi Zvi Kogan, an Israeli-Moldovan Chabad emissary in the United Arab Emirates, was kidnapped and brutally murdered by an Iranian-backed terrorist group.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed revenge, but what will happen next and why was Rabbi Kogan murdered?

Join JNS CEO and Jerusalem bureau chief Alex Traiman and Middle East correspondent Josh Hasten as they unpack this story and more, including the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant; the U.S. vetoing a U.N. ceasefire proposal for Lebanon; and Washington withholding more arms from the Jewish state.




Israel raises Thai travel threat level, same risks
The Israeli government issued a level-two travel level for Thailand on Sunday, meaning that it perceives a “potential threat” and “it is recommended to take increased precautionary measures.”

The raised threat level for the country as a whole does not alter the “high threat” level-four advisory—which prohibits travel to an area and instructs those who are there to depart immediately—for southern Thailand, the Jewish state’s National Security Council stated.

On Nov. 12, the government “called on Israelis currently in Thailand to increase their awareness and pay attention to updates from the NSC due to emerging potential threat to Israelis in the country,” the council stated. “Roughly two weeks later, in light of the continued threats, the NSC raised the travel threat level to level two and is recommending to exercise increased caution.”

The Israeli government stated that the “threat has not worsened,” but the council “is publicly updating its recommendations until further notice for Israelis visiting the country.”

Israelis in Thailand are instructed to avoid “large events identified with Israel, especially those publicized in advance, as well as places of entertainment and leisure identified with Israel.”

They also ought to hide anything that identifies them as Israeli or Jewish, avoid posting their location or travel plans on social media and refrain from talking about their military or reserve service or talking or posting about such things on social media, per the Israeli government.

JNS sought comment from the Israeli government and the Jewish state’s embassy in Bangkok and asked whether non-Israeli Jews ought to be cautious about travel to Thailand.

“Advisory speaks for itself,” an Israeli government spokesman told JNS. “Not adding to it.”

Per the Israeli government, “in the south of Thailand, there is terrorist activity by local militias, in particular in the ‘deep south’ districts, which are close to Malaysia.”
Memphis police probing ‘all leads’ in killing of Israeli man, ‘no indication’ of hate crime
The Memphis Police Department is investigating the killing of Aviv Broek, 21, who was shot to death and whom officers found shortly after 1:15 a.m. on Friday morning on the 2300 block of Hernando Road.

“There has been no arrests in this case. This is an active investigation and there is no indication at this time of a hate crime,” the Tennessee department’s public information office told JNS. It added that it “is pursuing all leads.”

Israeli media had reported that local police was investigating the killing of Broek—which reports spelled “Brock”—as a suspected terror attack.

Broek, who reportedly is from Rehovot, was robbed and killed while on a call as a locksmith, according to various press reports.

Ynet quoted a friend of Broek’s, who said that “on Thursday evening, around 10:30 p.m., Aviv received a call to change a lock” and “when he got out of the car in an isolated alley, he was robbed and shot four times in the stomach. According to the police, he did not resist or struggle, yet they shot and killed him.”

The friend told Ynet that another friend, who worked with Broek, “reached him two hours after the shooting. They found him lying on the floor and immediately called the police.”

“They used a location app on their phones, and that’s how they found him,” the source told the Israeli publication. “As soon as the app stopped working, we started to suspect something was up.”

The friend told Ynet that the killer took Broek’s “work equipment worth thousands of dollars, cash and even his passport.”

The publication also quoted Broek’s older brother Rotem, who told the publication that his brother had reported that “there is no antisemitism” in Memphis.


Hezbollah rocket salvos wound eight in northern, central Israel
Lebanon’s Hezbollah terrorist group fired rocket barrages at central and northern Israel on Sunday, wounding at least eight people, damaging structures and sending hundreds of thousands running for shelters.

The Iranian-backed terrorist army fired some 240 projectiles across the border throughout the day, marking one of the most intense days since the start of the war.

Two men in their 60s were wounded by shrapnel in the Upper Galilee on Sunday afternoon, one severely and one moderately to severely, according to the Magen David Adom emergency medical service.

Also in the afternoon, Hezbollah fired eight rockets at central Israel, most of which were intercepted, according to the Israel Defense Forces. The launches triggered sirens in north Tel Aviv, Petach Tikvah, Herzliya, Rosh Ha’ayin, Ra’anana and the surrounding areas, the military said.

One impact was reported in Petach Tikvah, east of Tel Aviv, with video showing a vehicle on fire and damage to a house. Heavy damage was also reported in Moshav Rinatya, southeast of Petach Tikvah.

MDA treated a 70-year-old woman for smoke inhalation and evacuated her to Petach Tikvah’s Beilinson Hospital. A 23-year-old man sustained minor injuries from the blast in the city, and several other people suffered minor injuries on their way to bomb shelters, per MDA.


IDF apologizes after Lebanese army post hit amid fighting against Hezbollah
The Israel Defense Forces issued an apology on Sunday after one Lebanese soldier was killed and 18 were wounded, some of them seriously, in an Israeli airstrike on a Lebanese Armed Forces position in Southern Lebanon.

“The incident took place in an area where fighting is ongoing against the Hezbollah terror organization,” the Israeli military confirmed in a statement in response to a query by local media.

“The IDF regrets the incident and clarifies that it is fighting in a targeted manner against the Hezbollah terror organization, and not against the Lebanese Army,” the statement continued, noting that the incident remains under investigation.

The LAF post in the Southern Lebanese village of Al-Amiriya on the Al-Qalila-Tyre road was severely damaged by the strike, the LAF claimed in a statement.


Gunman opens fire near Israeli Embassy in Jordan, is shot dead; 3 cops wounded
A gunman opened fire near the Israeli Embassy in Jordan early Sunday, a security source and state media said, adding that the gunman was killed and three policemen were injured in the incident, which was over.

Police shot a gunman who had fired at a police patrol in the Rabiah neighborhood of Amman, state news agency Petra reported, citing public security, adding investigations were ongoing.

Jordanian police had earlier cordoned off an area near the heavily policed embassy after gunshots were heard, witnesses said. Two witnesses said police and ambulances rushed to the Rabiah neighborhood, where the embassy is located.

Police had called on residents to stay in their homes as security personnel searched for the culprits, a security source said.

The area is a flashpoint for frequent demonstrations against Israel.

The kingdom has witnessed some of the biggest rallies across the region as anti-Israel sentiment runs high in Arab countries over the war in Gaza, which was sparked by the Hamas terror group’s onslaught of October 7, 2023.


Haaretz publisher calls Palestinian terrorists ‘freedom fighters’ in newly revealed speech
Haaretz publisher Amos Schocken is facing renewed backlash after a recently revealed speech in which he referred to Palestinian terrorists as "freedom fighters" and called for sanctions against Israeli leaders and settlers.

The speech, which was delivered at a conference hosted by the New Israel Fund and the Berl Katznelson Foundation on October 8 in Israel, was uncovered by Channel 14 through the New Israel Fund's YouTube channel.

Schocken's comments were described as inflammatory, particularly in light of his earlier statements at a conference in London, which had already prompted the Israeli government to cut all ties with Haaretz.

Schocken’s controversial remarks
In his October 8 speech, Schocken stated:
“The Netanyahu government wants to continue and intensify illegal settlement in the territories that were meant for a Palestinian state. It doesn’t care about imposing a cruel apartheid regime on the Palestinian population. It dismisses the costs of both sides for defending the settlements while fighting the Palestinian freedom fighters that Israel calls terrorists.”

He further argued that the only way to advance the establishment of a Palestinian state was through international sanctions:
“A Palestinian state must be established, and the only way to achieve this is by applying sanctions against Israel’s leaders and settlers in the occupied territories.”

The audience reportedly applauded his remarks, highlighting the divide between Israeli and international discourse on the matter.
Israeli gov’t votes to cut all ties with ‘Haaretz’
Israeli government ministers on Sunday voted to cut all connection with the left-wing Haaretz daily.

The Cabinet decision came, according to a statement from Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi’s office, in response to “numerous articles that harmed the legitimacy of the State of Israel in the world and its right to self-defense, particularly in light of the recent statements by the publisher of Haaretz, Amos Schocken, who expressed support for terrorism and called for sanctions against the government.”

Karhi explained, “We cannot allow a reality in which the publisher of an official newspaper in the State of Israel calls for sanctions against it and support the state’s enemies in the midst of a war, while international bodies harm the legitimacy of the State of Israel, its right to self-defense, and actually impose sanctions against it and against its leaders.”

At a Haaretz-organized London conference on Oct. 27, Schocken urged that sanctions be imposed on the Jewish state, accused the government of imposing apartheid rule in Judea, Samaria and Gaza, referred to Palestinian terrorists as “freedom fighters” and claimed that the Israel Defense Forces was carrying out a second nakba, or “catastrophe” (the Arab term for the creation of the modern-day State of Israel in 1948).

In response to the remarks, several Israeli government ministries vowed to cancel business ties with Haaretz, including the Foreign, Education, Culture and Sport, and Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism ministries.

Sunday’s government decision halts all state-paid advertising, state-funded subscriptions and other connections with the newspaper.

Haaretz lost hundreds of subscribers due to Schocken’s remarks, news site Walla reported earlier this month. The financial blow to the paper is “one that has not been seen in many years,” Haaretz stated, according to Walla, adding that during internal meetings there was talk of “a crazy rate of cancellations and a sharp drop in newspaper advertising.”

Meanwhile, Justice Minister Yariv Levin is seeking to advance a bill that would criminalize calls by Israeli citizens for international sanctions against the Jewish state. Under the proposed law, offenders could face up to 20 years in prison for public calls for sanctions against “Israel, its leaders, members of the security forces and Israeli citizens.”


Palestine has ‘rejected’ two-state solution ‘repeatedly’
Former British commander Richard Kemp has criticised Palestinian people and their politicians for not wanting a two-state solution.

The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence minister Yoav Gallant.

“The Palestinian people and their politicians don’t want a two-state solution,” Mr Kemp told Sky News Australia.

“They’ve rejected a two-state solution repeatedly over the decades.”


ICC issues arrest warrant for ‘dead Hamas terrorist’
Barrister and UKLFI Charitable Trust Legal Director Natasha Hausdorff has criticised the International Criminal Court for issuing an arrest warrant for a “dead Hamas terrorist” alongside Israel’s Prime Minister and former defence minister.

The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence minister Yoav Gallant.

“This is a decision by the Pre-Trial Chamber to issue arrest warrants, not just against Israel’s Prime Minister … but also against a dead man, Mohammed Deif,” Ms Hausdorff told Sky News Australia.

“Hamas confirmed his death some three weeks ago.

“The overriding impression, certainly from that inclusion of a dead Hamas terrorist, is that the court is seeking to approach this matter … in some even-handed fashion.”


‘Morally bankrupt’: ICC issues arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu
Sky News host Danica De Giorgio discusses the ICC’s “morally bankrupt” stance after it issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Ms De Giorgio said this is “more proof the International Criminal Court bends over to terrorists”.

“All Penny Wong could muster up ‘Australia respects the independence of the ICC’.”




Police accused of ‘turning blind eye’ to anti-Semitism to pursue ‘nonsense’
Police chiefs have “turned a blind eye” or even “looked for reasons” not to pursue charges against anti-Semites and instead spent their time investigating “nonsense”, a charity boss has said.

Gideon Falter, chief executive of the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism (CAAS), said that in the past year his charity had launched half a dozen private prosecutions in cases where the police refused to act.

He said since October 7 2023 – when Hamas terrorists invaded Israel and massacred over 1,200 people – there has been an explosion in anti-Jewish hatred, but police were routinely declining to pass cases on to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

The Metropolitan Police said that its approach to policing had “evolved” since October last year and acknowledged that “despite our best efforts, we won’t always get every judgment right”.

In one case taken up by the CAAS, a man said to a woman showing support for Israel on social media just after the October 7 massacre that “Hitler has been proven right”.

This was reported to the Metropolitan Police which investigated, but decided not to refer the case to the CPS, claiming that there was “not a sufficiently strong evidential case” to pursue it.

CAAS launched a private prosecution which was then taken on by the CPS. The man pleaded guilty to an offence under the Communications Act and was sentenced last month at Lincoln District Magistrates’ Court, where he was ordered to pay a fine, a victim surcharge and prosecution costs.

In another case, a man published a series of anti-Semitic messages on X, formerly Twitter, in the days after the Oct 7 attacks, including Holocaust denial and accusing Jews of “manipulating politics” and of being “easy to hate”.

Again, Scotland Yard said it did not refer the case to the CPS on the basis that “no suspect was identified”. The CAAS brought a private prosecution against the individual who pleaded guilty at the first hearing and now awaits sentencing.

Mr Falter said: “For over a year now, the police have turned a blind eye or even looked for reasons not to make arrests or pursue charges against extremists targeting Jews.
Michael Coren: The Montreal riots should be a wake up call for Canadians to take antisemitism seriously
The juxtaposition couldn’t have been more damning. On Friday night, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was filmed dancing in Toronto at a Taylor Swift concert. At the very same time in Montreal, where he is an MP, there were mass riots by pro-Palestinian mobs where an effigy of Benjamin Netanyahu was set on fire, small explosive devices and metal barriers were thrown at the police, shop windows were smashed, and cars set ablaze. It was violent chaos, with police injured, arrests made, and people wearing keffiyehs and masks screaming abuse. Perhaps the most chilling comment wasn’t screamed but spoken quite calmly. One woman walked in front of a peaceful gathering of Jewish counter-protestors and said slowly and deliberately, “The final solution is coming your way, the final solution. You know what the final solution is?”

Israel and Jews weren’t the only targets of the violent mob. 300 NATO delegates are in Montreal, and rioters roared about NATO and waved Russian flags. Benoit Allard from Divest for Palestine said it was all about NATO's "complicity with Israel's military while it's conducting its genocide in Gaza, war crimes in Lebanon, Syria" and that "it's enforcing illegal occupation of Palestinian territories." Well of course that was what is was about!

Trudeau did eventually take to social media, stating that, “What we saw on the streets of Montreal last night was appalling. Acts of antisemitism, intimidation, and violence must be condemned wherever we see them.”

Fine words, but this is hardly the first time that the Jewish community has been targeted. Dozens of bomb threats were sent to synagogues in 2024, and Jewish schools and community centres have been vandalized, fires started outside, and even shots fired at them. There have also been attempted boycotts at Jewish-owned shops where any Israeli connection is discovered. Canadian Jews report being screamed at and abused, and many say that they no longer wear anything publicly that would make their Jewishness obvious.

The governing Liberal Party, traditionally the political home of the Jewish community, isn’t unsympathetic but is seen by many as not taking the problem sufficiently seriously. Montreal Liberal MP Anthony Housefather, who is Jewish, wrote after the mob protests. “Tonight in Montreal it appears protests have veered into lawlessness. I have consistently asked mayors to advise police that criminal law and municipal bylaws need to be applied. Tolerating behaviour like this to avoid escalation emboldens those breaking the law and scares others.”

There are around 350,000 Jews in Canada, out of a population of 40 million. Antisemitism was a major issue until the 1950s, with quotas, refusal to hire and rent, and social racism. But things have changed radically since then, until October 7th. Here, as well as internationally, it was as though all of the dark toxins of Jew-hatred were suddenly allowed to flow into far too willing bodies.


‘Hateful remarks, gestures’: Canadian coffee chain boots franchisee at Jewish Montreal hospital
The Canadian chain Second Cup Café announced on Saturday that it shut down a franchisee’s cafe at Jewish General Hospital in Montreal and terminated its relationship with that person after the latter “was filmed making hateful remarks and gestures.”

“Second Cup has zero tolerance for hate speech,” the chain stated. “In coordination with the hospital, we’ve shut down the franchisee’s cafe and are terminating their franchise agreement.”

The person’s actions, the chain said, both breach the franchise agreement and “violate the values of inclusion and community we stand for at Second Cup.”

Idit Shamir, the consul general of Israel in Toronto and western Canada, named the former franchisee as Mai Abdulhadi, and said that the latter had chanted “the Final Solution is coming” and performed a Nazi salute at Concordia University, “while running a café at Jewish General Hospital, a place built by Holocaust survivors.”

“Thankfully, Second Cup acted swiftly: café shut down, franchise revoked,” Shamir wrote. “Mai Abdulhadi—Hate speech isn’t just vile, it’s a threat, and it will be met with consequences.”

The company earned accolades—and some promises of business—from Paul Hirschson, the Israeli consul general in Montreal, and from leaders at the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center.

“This great Canadian, Montreal-owned company has taken this principled stand at risk to their own business. In so doing, they are showing the courage and leadership Canada needs right now but is so desperately lacking from those in the highest of public offices,” stated Leo Housakos, a senator from Quebec. “I hope everyone goes out and buys their coffee tomorrow.”

Michal Cotler-Wunsh, the Israeli special envoy for combating antisemitism, wrote that it “turns out moral clarity is not so difficult.”


Amid anti-Israel hostility, Irish Jews say antisemitism is now rooted in public schools
Dublin resident Justine Zapin’s two sons, ages 8 and 10, arrived at their public elementary school earlier this month to find Irish lawmaker Chris Andrews outside handing out “Free Palestine” bracelets to pupils.

The bracelets caused discomfort for the brothers and some of their Israeli classmates. When they asked a third classmate if he would be willing to remove his, he became upset and reported them to the teacher. The 8-year-old later said he “felt like he got in trouble” with his teacher for expressing his unease, while his older sibling faced peers questioning his objection with remarks like, “But Israel started the war,” and “Israel’s killing babies.”

After the Hamas-led massacre on October 7, 2023, a classroom discussion implied that “the Jews deserved this,” Zapin said, with objections receiving minimal response from school officials.

Some 1,200 men, women, and children were slaughtered in the full-scale invasion of southern Israel, and 251 were kidnapped to the Gaza Strip.

More recently, the school — part of the Educate Together network, which, according to its website promotes equality-based and inclusive education — dismissed a pupil’s Nazi salute as “boys being boys.”

“There is clearly a culture in the school that is permissive, if not welcoming, to these sort of anti-Israel, anti-Jewish narratives,” Zapin said.

Zapin’s sons’ experiences dovetail with the release of a report this month by education monitoring group IMPACT-se, which exposed profound distortions of the Holocaust, Israel, Judaism, and Jewish history in Irish textbooks.

In one example highlighted in the report, a religious studies textbook cited Islam as being “in favor of peace and against violence,” while Judaism “believes violence and war are sometimes necessary to promote justice.” The New Testament parable of the “Good Samaritan” is illustrated with an image of a boy wearing a Palestinian scarf protesting against Israel.

A history textbook refers to Auschwitz — the Nazi concentration camp in Poland where over 1 million Jews were murdered — as a “prisoner of war camp.”

In a children’s textbook retelling the story of Jesus, a comic strip contains the line, “Some people did not like Jesus,” with disapproving figures depicted in distinctly Jewish attire, including tallits and kippahs. In another instance, Jesus is described as having lived in “Palestine.”

“Misrepresentations of historical facts can perpetuate narratives that challenge Israel’s legitimacy and foster political agendas against the state of Israel,” the report said.


Assessing the Houthi Threat to Israel and the West
The Houthis of Yemen are a well-armed and dangerous army of 873,000 fighters threatening Israel, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf Emirates, the U.S. Navy, and international shipping, with drones, ballistic missiles, and rockets.

After Hamas and Hizbullah, the Houthis remain Iran's most viable and dangerous proxy. Like Hizbullah, the Houthis view their mission as relieving Israeli pressure on Hamas.

Houthis could show up on Israel's borders as Iranian expeditionary forces.

In November 2023 and February 2024, Houthi air defense systems shot down two advanced, $30 million, U.S. MQ-9 unmanned combat aerial vehicles.

U.S. defense officials focus on the Houthi threat to international shipping and Israel but pay little or no attention to Iran's immense support role in training, and providing weaponry, intelligence, and funding to the Houthis.

Ultimately, all violence against the West, Israel, and freedom of shipping in the Middle East is traced back to Iran.


Seth Frantzman: Iran is making nuclear moves in conflict with West
Iranian state media is highlighting Tehran’s decision to activate centrifuges linked to its nuclear program. Iran also says it wants to expand enrichment capacity.

Both of these moves appear to be about sending a message to the West. Iran has already enriched a lot of uranium in recent years. Its real hurdle to nuclear weaponization is to test a bomb and put it on a missile that can carry it.

The regime is moving in that direction, but it’s making more noise about the enrichment program than the weaponization.

“Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Qalibaf says the Islamic Republic began activating its advanced centrifuges in response to a politically motivated measure by the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors on the country’s peaceful nuclear program,” Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), Iran’s official news agency, reported Sunday.

“The actions of the three European states and the US, which are politically motivated and detrimental, resulted in an unjust resolution regarding Iran’s peaceful nuclear program,” the report said. “The speaker underlined that the three European countries and the US are using Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities as an excuse to advance their illegitimate measures, undermining the credibility and independence of the IAEA and disrupting the constructive collaboration between Iran and the agency.”

“Iran will significantly accelerate its uranium enrichment activities by installing thousands of new advanced centrifuges over the next few months, following the Western-backed censure at the International Atomic Energy Agency,” IRNA reported.

Next steps in Iran's nuclear program
Iran is now positioning itself to enrich more uranium and prepare for the next steps in its nuclear program. This would likely happen as US President-elect Donald Trump takes office on January 20.

“However, what will happen on the ground is that in the next 4 to 6 months, with the activation of thousands of new centrifuge machines, the speed of enrichment will increase, new infrastructures will be established, and some other actions will take place,” Kamalvandi said.

“Thus, the Western parties that have been trying to push back Iran's nuclear program will face a different reality: a program that is significantly broader and more advanced, both quantitatively and qualitatively, which will certainly not bring them any joy,” he noted.


‘Dirty f***ing filthy Jew’: Israeli backpackers harassed by pro-Palestinian shopkeeper in Australia
Two Israeli backpackers visiting Townsville, in Queensland, Australia, were subjected to an antisemitic verbal attack on Saturday by a local tobacco shop worker, the Anti-Defemation Commission (ADC) reported on Sunday.

The ADC is an Australian civil rights organization that combats antisemitism and other forms of hate. It was established in 1979 and now works to bridge communities, collect data on antisemitism and other biases, and respond to incidents of discrimination.

As the two backpackers in their 20s visited Flinders Tobacco on Flinders Street, they noticed the shop was raising money for “Palestine,” the ADC stated. After the backpackers asked for more details on where the donation would go, the shopkeeper reportedly became enraged.

“Get the f*** out of my store!” she yelled at them before approaching them with a shovel, ADC reported. “You are dirty f***ing filthy Jew.”

The Israelis reportedly left the shop quickly, but the shopkeeper allegedly followed them outside with her shovel raised. The backpackers recorded the incident.

Dr. Dvir Abramovich, Chairman of the Anti-Defamation Commission, condemned the incident.

“This is a scene ripped straight from the darkest pages of history – a venomous and shameful outburst dripping with hatred, teetering on the edge of violence,” Abramovich said. “Two young Israelis, eager to embrace the adventure and warmth Australia is known for, instead found themselves thrust into a nightmare they could never have imagined.”


Sderot memorializes police station that was destroyed on October 7
Sderot’s local police station was the infamous scene of a brutal gun battle after it was assaulted by Hamas terrorists during the October 7, 2023, attack.

Terrorists stormed the station and killed 20 police officers before barricading themselves inside and exchanging heavy fire with security forces. The station was eventually bulldozed by Israeli forces amid gunfire to kill the remaining terrorists inside.

“They conquered it, for real,” said Ilan Abecassis, a Sderot resident who now serves as a tour guide at the site. “Three of their pickup trucks were right there,” he said, pointing at a nearby traffic circle, “and they encircled the station. This place was a death trap.”

Abecassis stood on the plaza of what was formerly the location of the station, now a hastily assembled memorial site established last summer for the catastrophic attack that shook the city to its core. In all, 72 people were killed in Sderot during the Hamas onslaught.

On a late afternoon recently, several people stood under concrete pillars that reach toward the sky, mirroring the central tower that once formed the core of the community police station.

They read the Hebrew quotes engraved on the pillars, listening to the embedded speakers playing snippets of voice recordings of phone calls from that day as police officers and citizens under attack called for help.

The recordings include the voice of one six-year-old girl whose parents were shot and killed in front of her in their car. As the police rushed to rescue her, she asked, “Are you the police of Israel?” and told them she was hiding her two-year-old baby sister under the back seat cushions. The two were eventually rescued.

Another group of visitors that had arrived at the memorial site in a tour bus sat nearby, softly singing songs of loss as one person strummed a guitar.
‘It healed my soul’: Therapy retreat helps ZAKA rescuers deal with trauma from Oct. 7
From a distance, it seemed like a relaxing get-together among friends. A group of men sitting around a crackling bonfire in the Jerusalem Hills, one strumming a guitar while others sang along. Between each song, they laughed and joked.

But when the music stopped, each volunteer rescue worker was handed a pen and a scrap of paper. Then they were instructed by psychologist Vered Atzmon Meshulam to write down a negative thought, something they wanted to release, and throw it into the fire.

The bonfire, singing and the practice of casting away a negative thought, a custom usually performed ahead of the holiest Jewish day of Yom Kippur, were part of a two-day therapy retreat for rescuers from ZAKA.

The organization is a unique Israeli rescue and recovery group tasked with collecting the remains of the dead. Every part, including blood, is collected for burial in accordance with Jewish religious law.

On October 7 last year, these men, mostly ultra-Orthodox Jews, were among the first responders to reach multiple sites in southern Israel attacked during Palestinian terror group Hamas’s unprecedented invasion and onslaught, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 were kidnapped to Gaza, most of them civilians attacked in their homes or at a music festival amid scenes of sexual assault and other atrocities.

The sheer size and brutality of the attack left them all with deep psychological scars. Although their lives continue as normal, they are unable to forget the death and carnage they witnessed that day and on those that followed.

“I was in a very bad mental state, couldn’t sleep at night, I was sleeping on the floor and had all kinds of strange symptoms,” Oz Avizov, who has volunteered with ZAKA for more than 15 years, told AFP.




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