Monday, December 02, 2024

12/02 Links Pt1: Israel: The Mideast’s Anchor of Stability; Trump: 'ALL HELL TO PAY' if Hostages not returned; American-Israeli Thought To Be Hostage in Gaza Was Killed on Oct 7

From Ian:

Seth Mandel: Israel: The Mideast’s Anchor of Stability
Israel’s critics often give the impression that the Jewish state is the only state in the Middle East that doesn’t have a right to exist. But if events keep going along their current path, Israel might be the only state in the Middle East that exists at all.

Hyperbole? Sure. But a look around the Levant shows just who had true sovereignty and legitimacy all along.

The Assad dynasty in Syria spent decades carving up Lebanon and negating its territorial integrity. Now Syria itself is tumbling toward the same fate: a country with borders that exist only on paper and in a state of perpetual political chaos thanks to the machinations of its foreign patrons in Tehran.

Over the weekend, Islamist rebels retook effective control of the city of Aleppo, a central node of conflict in the ongoing Syrian civil war, which began more than a decade ago. The attack, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), began last Wednesday and in less than a week has thrown the regime of Bashar al-Assad into disarray.

For the duration of the Syrian civil war, Iran and Russia have kept Assad propped up while subjecting swaths of the country to ruthless bloodletting. But both Iran and Russia are stretched at the moment, the former in its multifront war on Israel and the latter in Ukraine. Hezbollah, Iran’s proxy in Lebanon, has been so depleted by the IDF that it is unable to come to Assad’s aid in any significant way. Iran itself has been weakened substantially by Israeli counteroffensive strikes, which took out Iranian ballistic missile sites as well as Iran-aligned terror infrastructure in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen. Because Iran was also providing missiles to Russia, Moscow has been hamstrung by Israel’s strikes on Iranian facilities.

This is almost certainly the reason the rebels chose to strike when they did, and it is surely why the surprise attack was as successful as it was. The rebels seemingly have drawn Russia’s air force back into the conflict, further stretching Moscow’s capabilities.

The rebels are led by an offshoot of al Qaeda and supported by Turkish-backed Islamists. They have, therefore, also done battle with the Kurds, a group traditionally backed (at least nominally) by the Western alliance, although the only NATO state involved at the moment is Turkey, which has long tried to obliterate the Kurds.

There are no “good guys” as traditionally understood in this round, and that includes our NATO “ally” Turkey, which has reembraced its role as sponsor and host of Hamas. Which is to say, the renewed rebellion can be Assad and Iran’s just deserts without being cause for bandwagoning. We don’t always have a dog in every fight.

But it does demonstrate the Jenga tower created by Iran’s regional adventurism. The more power Tehran took from Gaza, parts of the West Bank, South Lebanon and Syria, the more precarious the whole construct became. It is now teetering.
Prepare for Disintegration of Syria and Rise of Imperial Turkey
On the same day the cease-fire went into effect along the Israel-Lebanon border, rebel forces launched an unexpected offensive, and within a few days captured much of Aleppo. This lightening advance originated in the northwestern part of the country, which has been relatively quiet over the past four years, since Bashar al-Assad effectively gave up on restoring control over the remaining rebel enclaves in the area. The fighting comes at an inopportune moment for the powers that Damascus has called on for help in the past: Russia is bogged down in Ukraine and Hizballah has been shattered.

But the situation is extremely complex. David Wurmser points to the dangers that lie ahead:

The desolation wrought on Hizballah by Israel, and the humiliation inflicted on Iran, has not only left the Iranian axis exposed to Israeli power and further withering. It has altered the strategic tectonics of the Middle East. The story is not just Iran anymore. The region is showing the first signs of tremendous geopolitical change. And the plates are beginning to move.

The removal of the religious-totalitarian tyranny of the Iranian regime remains the greatest strategic imperative in the region for the United States and its allies, foremost among whom stands Israel. . . . However, as Iran’s regime descends into the graveyard of history, it is important not to neglect the emergence of other, new threats. navigating the new reality taking shape.

The retreat of the Syrian Assad regime from Aleppo in the face of Turkish-backed, partly Islamist rebels made from remnants of Islamic State is an early skirmish in this new strategic reality. Aleppo is falling to the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS—a descendant of Nusra Front led by Abu Mohammed al-Julani, himself a graduate of al-Qaeda’s system and cobbled together of IS elements. Behind this force is the power of nearby Turkey.
Seth Frantzman: Why hasn't Hamas faced repercussions for killing American citizens?
HAMAS LEARNED, through the October 7 attack, that murdering and killing citizens of numerous countries hasn’t had any real negative effect on Hamas. It isn’t more isolated today than on October 6, 2023. In fact, it has the same support abroad, probably more support, than on that day.

Hamas knows it has more support on campuses in the US today than two years ago, along with support from the Global South. Its willingness to kill so many people has appeared to make it get more respect from Russia and China. This means Hamas does not assess today that it has lost out due to the attack.

It hasn’t been replaced as a governing authority in Gaza. It still controls parts of Gaza City and the central camps area in Gaza. This includes Deir al-Balah, Bureij, Maghazi and Nuseirat. Hamas assumes that the IDF is exhausted from more than a year of war and that Israel wants to let reservists go home after the battles in Lebanon.

There remain key questions related to the new information about the death of Neutra. He was a member of a tank crew on the border of Gaza on October 7. Why didn’t the US ask Doha if he was alive after the attack? Why wasn’t more done to confirm the details and status regarding the Americans held in Gaza? The fact that Hamas seems to have faced no queries from Doha about the status of Americans held in Gaza is concerning.

This is a reminder of several incidents over the past year that also raise questions. On October 20, 2023, Hamas released two American women who it had held hostage for two weeks. Nothing more was heard about this story or why it happened how and when it did. Clearly, Hamas had decided to release two Americans. Why not the others? Why not more discussions about their status at the time? Days later Hamas released two elderly women as well. Nothing more was ever revealed about these two hostage releases in October.

This begs the question of why the Bibas children were not released at that time. They were the most vulnerable of the hostages because one was a baby and one a toddler. There are a lot of questions now about why more wasn’t done to pressure Hamas for basic details on the hostages.

In January, reports circulated that Qatar and France had brokered a deal to deliver medical aid to 45 hostages in Gaza. Nothing was done to confirm whether the aid reached the hostages.

Why? Why is it that systematically since October 7 there has been a kind of collective shrug about basic details about the hostages, details that would have helped families who have been waiting for information?

No pressure from the US, no pressure from Doha, and it’s not clear if there is pressure from Israel. Since the decision to shift focus from Gaza to fighting Hezbollah, Hamas has felt free rein to run central Gaza and continue its rule.


'ALL HELL TO PAY': Trump Warns Hamas To Return All Hostages by Inauguration Day or Get 'Hit Harder Than Anybody Has Been Hit'
President-elect Donald Trump has a message for Hamas and its benefactors in Tehran: Release the hostages before Inauguration Day, or else.

In a Monday afternoon Truth Social post, Trump said that "everybody is talking about the hostages who are being held so violently, inhumanely, and against the will of the entire World," but "it's all talk, and no action!" He went on to warn Hamas that there will be "ALL HELL TO PAY" if the remaining Israeli and American hostages, taken by the terror group on October 7, are not returned by the time he returns to the White House.

"Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against humanity," he wrote.

"Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America," the president-elect went on. "RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!"

Trump's message came just hours after Israel confirmed that an American citizen who was believed to be held hostage in Gaza, Omer Maxim Neutra, was killed by Hamas during the Oct. 7 terror attack. One-hundred-one hostages remain in Hamas captivity, including at least seven American citizens, three of whom are believed to be dead.

Trump's deadline may pressure Hamas into inking a long-elusive ceasefire agreement before the president-elect takes office. The Jewish state agreed last week to a 60-day ceasefire deal with Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah, with White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan arguing that the move made a Hamas ceasefire "more likely."


American-Israeli hostage Omer Neutra announced dead in Gaza captivity
Capt. Omer Neutra, 21, died on October 7 of last year, and his body was taken by Hamas to the Gaza Strip, the IDF confirmed on Monday.

New intelligence information that came to light allowed a special military commission of rabbis, scientists, and lawyers to finally confirm his death around 14 months later, despite long-standing suspicions that he was dead.

Neutra was a lone soldier from New York, serving as a tank platoon commander in the 77th Battalion of the 7th Brigade.

He was abducted to the Gaza Strip on October 7 along with members of his tank crew.

Tank gunner Nimrod Cohen from Rehovot, who is currently held in Gaza, tank loader Oz Daniel from Kfar Saba, and driver Shaked Dahan from Afula, whom the IDF has confirmed as killed in Hamas captivity were among Neutra's crew.

On Sunday, Neutra's parents spoke with The Jerusalem Post about the possibility of a hostage deal during President-elect Donald Trump's candidacy.

“He’s a deal maker. He’s done it before,” Ronen Neutra, Omer's father, said.

“We’re just hoping that he uses his leverage. You know, each side has their own leverages,” Orna Neutra, Omer's mother, said, adding, “We’re hoping that the combined effort will finally make something move."

"Omer loved sports, played soccer, basketball, and volleyball, and served as captain of his school’s sports teams," the Hostages Families Forum said of him.

"His family and friends described him as a warm, optimistic, and people-loving person who 'lights up the room the moment he enters,'" the forum added.

Neutra's "bravery and sacrifice will never be forgotten," Garin Tzabar, the program through which Neutra enlisted, said of him.
American Thought To Be Hostage in Gaza Was Killed on Oct 7, IDF Says
An American-Israeli dual citizen, who was believed to be held hostage in Gaza, was in fact killed during Hamas’s Oct. 7 terrorist attack, Israel Defense Forces announced Monday.

Omer Neutra, 21, was presumed alive after being taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023, but recent intelligence gathered by the Israeli military confirmed his death on the day of the attack, according to the Jerusalem Post. Neutra, whose body remains in Gaza, grew up on Long Island and was serving in the Israeli military as a tank commander during Hamas’s invasion of southern Israel, Fox News reported.

Neutra’s parents, Orna and Ronen, have been vocal campaigners for the release of their son and the dozens of hostages still held in Gaza. They addressed the Republican National Convention in July and met with President Joe Biden and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.

On Thanksgiving Day, Neutra’s parents renewed their calls for Hamas to release the hostages.

"For us, it’s no holiday," Neutra’s father said during a CNN interview. "Our holiday table is empty a second year in a row. Omer is not there. We are hoping this is the last year that we are in this situation."

Netanyahu on Monday praised Neutra as "a hero of the Israeli army."

"Omer was a man of values, blessed with talents and a Zionist in every aspect of his being," Netanyahu said in a statement. "He immigrated to Israel to enlist in the I.D.F., chose a combat path and was chosen to command and lead."

At least four of the seven American hostages in Gaza are now presumed dead.


‘Devastated, outraged,’ Biden says of learning Omer Neutra’s death
American “hearts are heavy today” as the news came out that terrorists killed Omer Neutra, a U.S. citizen, during the Oct. 7 attacks and that Hamas continues to hold his body in Gaza, U.S. President Joe Biden stated on Monday.

“Omer was just 21 years old when he was taken by Hamas. He was serving as a tank commander in an Israel Defense Forces unit that was among the first to respond to Hamas’s campaign of cruelty—risking his life to save the lives of others,” Biden stated.

“A Long Island native, Omer planned to return to the United States for college. He dreamed of dedicating himself to building peace,” the U.S. president added, noting that he met less than a month ago with Omer’s parents at the White House.

Theirs is “pain no parent should ever know,” Biden stated. “They told me how Omer’s grandparents were Holocaust survivors and how their family’s strength and resilience has been carried through the generations.”

“During this dark hour—as our nation joins Omer’s parents, brother and family in grieving this tragic loss—we pray to find strength and resilience,” Biden added. “To all the families of those still held hostage: We see you. We are with you, and I will not stop working to bring your loved ones back home where they belong.”

Current and former U.S. officials and lawmakers also commented on the news.

“We just learned that this prayer couldn’t be answered for the family of Omer Neutra,” stated New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat. “Omer was barbarically murdered by Hamas in the October 7 attacks. We pray that his body can be returned to his family, who have been speaking out for him and all hostages since that horrific day.”

“Our hearts are broken for the Neutra family,” wrote House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.). “For over 420 days, Ronen and Orna Neutra have been tireless advocates for their son and the many others who have been held hostage in the wake of Oct. 7.”

“Please join us in praying for the Neutra family, as we continue to seek justice against Hamas and the return of Omer’s body,” Johnson said.

Senate Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) stated that “I am devastated and heartbroken to learn Omer Neutra was killed by Hamas on Oct. 7.”

“He was 21. From Long Island. I’ve met with his family. They’re incredible people who fought with determination for Omer,” Schumer wrote. “I won’t stop fighting to bring Omer’s remains and the 101 hostages home.”


Kirby cites Mark Twain quote about ‘good books’ on anti-Israel volume Biden carried in Nantucket
John Kirby, the White House national security communications advisor, defended U.S. President Joe Biden, who was photographed carrying an anti-Israel book as he exited a bookstore in Nantucket, Mass., over the weekend.

During a press gaggle aboard Air Force One, as Biden traveled to Luanda, Angola, on Monday, a reporter asked Kirby and Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, about the president’s decision to carry The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi as he left the bookstore.

“Over the Thanksgiving holiday, the president was seen exiting a bookshop with a copy of a book by a Columbia historian, Rashid Khalidi, who has referred to the Palestinian conflict essentially as being an ethnic cleansing operation,” the reporter asked. “Why did the president choose to read that book at this point in his presidency?”

Kirby said, “When you say something like that, it reminds me of what Mark Twain said, that a man who refuses to read good books has no advantage over a man who cannot or won’t read those books.”

“I can’t speak to why the president made that particular purchase. Wasn’t with him, haven’t had a chance to ask,” he said. “But he reads broadly, and he’s fascinated by history and the lessons of history, and where that can take us going forward.”

“So that doesn’t surprise me that he would go into a bookstore and get a book of history, particularly about the Middle East, to try to imbibe and keep learning,” Kirby added. “He really does believe in speaking, learning, thinking broadly, and that’s what that tells me.”

“He’s actually reading it?” the reporter asked.

“I don’t know,” Kirby said.
Ruthie Blum: Bogie’s subversion isn’t so surprising
Yes, thanks to the likes of Bogie, the brave, conscionable men and women who’ve spent the past 14 months safeguarding their country—after it suffered the worst atrocities against Jews since the Holocaust—are all the more likely to be targets of antisemitic lawfare.

Horrified and saddened, those who served with or under Bogie’s command in previous wars haven’t been able to wrap their heads around his betrayal. Though aware of his gradual repudiation of his right-wing views (i.e. opposition to Israel’s disengagement from Gaza in 2005 and support for Jewish settlement in Judea and Samaria)—and of his anti-Netanyahu activism—they seem to have been in denial about how radical he’d actually grown.

Resorting to psychological explanations for his transformation, some head-scratchers are chalking it up to a combination of resentment and envy toward Netanyahu, beginning in 2016. That was when he resigned from his post as defense minister, citing “difficult disagreements [with Netanyahu] on moral and professional matters,” and warning that “extreme and dangerous elements have taken over Israel and the Likud Party [of which Bogie was a member].”

The truth is that Netanyahu was replacing him with Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Liberman, whose condition for joining the coalition—expanding it from 61 to 67 seats—was to receive the defense portfolio.

Though Netanyahu was considering consoling Bogie with the job of foreign minister, the latter quit in a huff. He spent the following years trying to defeat Bibi, first by forming his own party, Telem, and subsequently by merging it in 2019 with the parties run by Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid to create a new bloc called “Blue and White.”

Failing to realize his fantasy of ruining his nemesis, Netanyahu, and after four rounds of Knesset elections that ended in an impasse, he retired from politics in 2021, before Lapid and Naftali Bennett concocted a short-lived rotation government.

Bogie found his calling when Netanyahu became prime minister at the end of 2022 and the government began proceedings to reform the judicial system. A key leader of the protest movement, which grew uglier with each passing week, Bogie became the darling of the woke bleeding hearts who not long ago wouldn’t have given him the time of day, let alone the benefit of the doubt.

One such figure is Nava Rozolyo—a lawyer, accountant, Pilates instructor, vegan and founder of the “Shame Guard Corps”—with whom he recently shared a protest podium and beaming selfie. She, like Bogie, refers to Bibi as an illegitimate “dictator.”

Among other charming activities, the Shame Guard Corps shows up at the homes of coalition members and harasses them. In an Oct. 29 interview with the far-left podcast Hamutzim, Rozolyo said that the purpose of the protest movement is to provide wind for the sails of the gatekeepers with the power to topple the government. These include: the defense establishment, the judiciary, the attorney general, courageous journalists and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency). In addition, she said, the point is to reach out to foreign governments and the tribunals at The Hague—you know, the ICC and ICJ.

Rozolyo is chummy with Yair Golan, leader of the new hybrid Labor-Meretz party, the Democrats. Golan is the former deputy IDF chief who took the opportunity of Holocaust Remembrance Day in 2016 to tell soldiers he was seeing signs of the processes that occurred in Nazi Germany “among us today.”

Bogie, it should be noted, defended him against his detractors—and that was eight years ago.

His metamorphosis may be jaw-dropping for people who used to admire him. But their attributing it merely to Bibi-aversion—as delusional a syndrome as it’s proven to be—means they weren’t grasping the depths of his ideological conversion.
'Blood libels': Herzog rejects Moshe Ya'alon's IDF 'ethnic cleansing' claims
Israel's President Isaac Herzog addressed former Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's claims that the IDF was ethnically cleansing Gaza, calling them "entirely disconnected from reality," during a Monday event, the President's Office said afterward.

Herzog's comments came after Ya'alon stirred controversy in an interview with journalist Lucy Aharish on DemocratTV on Saturday, saying Israel was "being dragged into annexation and ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip.”

During a film premier event at Jerusalem's Museum of Tolerance, Herzog commended the statements, emphasizing that "the IDF is a moral army that operates according to the strictest international legal standards and humanitarian norms, with every unit accompanied by meticulous legal counsel."

"Time and again, we repel blood libels against us, including claims of genocide or ethnic cleansing allegedly carried out by the IDF," he continued.

"These are outright lies. IDF soldiers do not murder, and they do not carry out ethnic cleansing. Period," Herzog added.
After ‘ethnic cleansing’ charge, Ya’alon says IDF ‘not most moral army’; IDF rejects claims
Former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said on Sunday that he will not apologize for his comments accusing Israel of carrying out “ethnic cleansing” in the northern Gaza Strip, and countered the oft-repeated statement that the Israel Defense Forces is “the most moral army in the world.”

In a brief response on Monday, the IDF Spokesman denied Ya’alon’s accusations. “The IDF acts in accordance with international law, and evacuates the population in accordance with the operational need and temporarily, for its protection,” the military said in response to reporters’ queries. “The IDF rejects the grave allegations of ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip, which harm the IDF and its soldiers.”

In a sit-down interview with Channel 12 news on Sunday night, Ya’alon said: “I don’t say anymore [that the IDF is] the most moral army in the world,” precisely because of “the interference of politicians, who are corrupting the army.”

“It’s not the most moral army today,” he repeated. “And it’s difficult for me to say that.”

Ya’alon, who served as a lawmaker in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and as defense minister under him, resigned in 2016, citing deep distrust in Netanyahu’s leadership, and has since become a staunch critic of the premier.

Again doubling down on his comments from the previous evening — after also doing so in an interview with the Kan public broadcaster earlier in the day — he said he believed his assessment to be “accurate,” and that there is “no other word for it” but ethnic cleansing, given that government ministers speak about how “the Strip will be cleansed of Arabs.”

Asked whether he wanted to take back his use of the phrase, given that it is “extremely harsh,” Ya’alon reiterated that he spoke the way he did “on purpose, to sound the alarm.”
Kallas takes reins as top EU diplomat, replacing
Former Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas took office on Sunday as the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, replacing Spain’s Josep Borrell.

The appointment of Kallas as Brussels’ top diplomat was formalized on Thursday following a vote in the European Parliament the previous day.

Borrell’s five-year tenure in the post was marked by incessant criticism of Israel and a lack of action against Iranian-backed terrorism.

Kallas’s opinions on the Jewish state are not widely known. During her three-year premiership, she made her name primarily as a prominent critic of Russia’s war in Ukraine. In a 2022 interview with Axios, she criticized the previous Israeli government’s “neutral” stance on Ukraine, urging Jerusalem to denounce Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “playing on the suffering of the Jews” by saying he seeks to “de-Nazify” Ukraine.

Following the November 2022 election victory of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, she congratulated him, saying she was looking forward to strengthening Estonia’s “close bond” with Israel.

“In difficult times, democracies stick together—this is the way to stand against pariah states and safeguard our freedom and sovereignty,” Kallas added in a post on X.

Receiving the Europe Prize on Oct. 18, 2023, Kallas mentioned that the Jewish state was “facing some of the deadliest and darkest days in its 75-year history” since the Hamas massacre earlier that month.

“Israel is engaged in self-defense against terrorism. Throughout this defense, civilian lives should be spared, and norms of international law followed,” she stated, adding that Hamas terrorists show “no regard for human life, including for the lives of their fellow Palestinians.”
Protesters denounce UN Women’s silence on hostages in Gaza

Ceasefire in Lebanon Is Stopgap Until Trump Takes Over, Israelis Say
President Joe Biden and his senior aides are hailing a ceasefire they brokered in Lebanon last week as a potential breakthrough for Middle East peace. But Israeli leaders see the truce as a way to get through the final days of Biden's presidency so Israel can finish the war with its genocidal enemies.

In the Rose Garden on Tuesday, Biden announced the 60-day ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah. He said the deal, which went into effect early Wednesday and has so far held, "heralds a new start for Lebanon" and "brings us closer to realizing the affirmative agenda that I’ve been pushing forward during my entire presidency: a vision for the future of the Middle East where it’s at peace and prosperous and integrated across borders."

"I believe this agenda remains possible," Biden continued, vowing to use the final 54 days of his presidency to try to end Israel’s war in Gaza, normalize Israel-Saudi relations, and secure a "credible pathway for a Palestinian state."

According to current and former Israeli officials, however, Israel's government agreed to the ceasefire largely to appease and move on from the Biden administration. President-elect Donald Trump will be back in the White House when the 60-day deadline for troop withdrawals comes around, and they expect he will support a strong response to any violation of the deal as well as Israeli action against Iran and Hamas, a Hezbollah ally and fellow Iran-backed terrorist group.

"It’s not for no reason that we insisted on 60 days," Ohad Tal, a member of Israel’s parliamentary defense committee from the governing Religious Zionism party, told the Washington Free Beacon.

The ceasefire agreement provides "zero" security benefits to Israel in Lebanon, Tal said, noting that the Lebanese Army and international peacekeepers have abjectly failed to enforce Resolution 1701 for the past 18 years. He said pressure from the Biden administration was the "main reason" Israeli leaders nonetheless got behind the deal.

"It’s a bad deal," Tal said. "But it’s a bad deal that we had to sign under the circumstances, and that had everything to do with the current administration in America."
US follows France in warning Israel over ceasefire violations
Washington has backed up Paris’s assertions that Israel is violating the terms of last week’s ceasefire agreement with Lebanon, that formally ended 14 months of hostilities with the Hezbollah terrorist group.

U.S. presidential envoy Amos Hochstein, who played a pivotal role in brokering the deal, conveyed a message to officials in Jerusalem that they are not abiding by the truce terms, Ynet reported on Monday.

Sources told the Hebrew news outlet that the Americans believe that there have been violations on the Israeli side, primarily its use of surveillance drones over the skies of Beirut.

The sources stressed that for the ceasefire to hold, “restraint is required from all sides.”

Paris, a member of the Washington-led monitoring mechanism overseeing the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire agreement, had accused Jerusalem of committing 52 ceasefire violations, according to Hebrew media reports on Sunday that cited French diplomatic sources.

The sources alleged that Israel had bypassed the established channels for reporting violations before taking action.

The reports also claim that three Lebanese civilians were killed and highlight an increase in Israeli drone activity, claiming that low-altitude flights over Beirut had resumed.

Paris is reportedly in ongoing communication with Lebanese Army Chief of Staff Gen. Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Najib Mikati to address these developments.

“The Lebanese are fully committed to upholding the ceasefire and preventing Hezbollah from reestablishing its presence in southern Lebanon, but they need time to demonstrate their efforts,” a French official told Ynet on Sunday.

According to a separate report by i24NEWS on Sunday, Jerusalem stated that the agreement’s implementation mechanism “will begin to accelerate” on Monday and Tuesday. An Israeli diplomatic source emphasized that “any violation will be met with a significant response, as is already happening on the ground.”
Hezbollah fires mortars at Israel on day six of truce
Hezbollah terrorists launched two mortar shells across the border with Israel in the Mount Dov area on Monday afternoon, in violation of the Nov. 26 ceasefire agreement, the Israel Defense Forces said.

“A short time ago, the Hezbollah terrorist organization carried out two launches toward the Mount Dov area [in the Golan Heights], which fell in open areas, there were no casualties,” the IDF said in a statement.

The Iranian-backed terrorist organization took responsibility for the attack, claiming it fired at an Israeli military outpost “as a warning.”

Defense Minister Israel Katz stated following the mortar assault in the north, “We promised to respond to any violation of the ceasefire by Hezbollah—and that is exactly what we will do. Hezbollah’s firing at the IDF post on Mount Dov will be met with a harsh response.”

“What was will no longer be,” the Israeli defense minister concluded.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attack “constitutes a serious violation of the ceasefire, and Israel will respond strongly to this.”

He added, “We are determined to continue to enforce the truce, and to respond to any violation by Hezbollah—minor or serious.”

The IDF subsequently announced on social media that its forces were “attacking targets in Lebanon,” without sharing further details.
Israel has been violating terms of Lebanon ceasefire, US envoy Hochstein claims
US special envoy Amos Hochstein told Israel that there had been Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon, state broadcaster KAN reported on Monday.

The report came as Lebanon's health ministry said that one individual had been killed in an airstrike on Marjayoun, near Lebanon's southern border with Israel.

Earlier on Monday, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar told his French counterpart Jean-Noël Barrot in a phone call that Hezbollah terrorists who are currently south of the Litani River are violating the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon and must move northward.

Sa'ar also reportedly told Barrot that Israel was not breaching the ceasefire but was enforcing it in light of Hezbollah's violations of it.

On Sunday, it was reported that France had claimed that Israel had breached the ceasefire with Lebanon, with some 52 violations being counted on that day.


An IDF reservist's top ten takeaways after returning from Gaza
On Sunday, I returned to The Jerusalem Post after being drafted as an IDF reservist for almost 80 days for my second tour of duty in Gaza since the October 7 massacre. My anecdotal experience as an infantryman and perspective as a journalist in civilian life have given me a unique perspective on war issues, familiar and unexplored alike.

These ten takeaways from someone who has been in the mud of the battlefield should be considered by policymakers and citizens for whom much of the information about the war is second-hand or hearsay.

1. The IDF is winning, and needs to be allowed to win
Compared to their operations during my first tour at the end of 2023, there is a sense that Hamas is collapsing. The terrorist organization once fielded ambush cells that conducted frequent hit-and-run anti-tank missile attacks and ambushes from a wide network of bunkers and tunnels for a guerilla defense-in-depth strategy.

Almost a year later, Hamas seems unable to operate on a strategic level, even from areas in which its battalions have remained structurally intact or reconstituted from degraded units. This is exemplified by Hamas’s inability to launch targeted reprisals for the death of military leaders or even attempt traditional attacks on Jewish holidays or the anniversaries of October 7.

By and large, they do not operate at night or the light of day, clinging even closer to the low visibility of dawn and dusk, whereas their operatives would once openly operate in daylight hours due to being able to escape underground after an attack. It appears that their tunnel networks have been greatly compromised, as they have had to travel along roads and weave between buildings.

Their legitimate operations focus on improvised explosive devices and lone sniper attacks rather than using heavier munitions, but a greater focus has been filming any engagement so that they can edit the footage and claim to foreign supporters and Israeli citizens that they have destroyed Israeli vehicles. Stealing humanitarian aid was apparently not enough for some Hamas battalions, as in one case, they resorted to sending plainclothes operatives to loot food and supplies from abandoned IDF positions.

Their mortar bombs fall far less accurately than they once did, and we did not encounter any enemy drone activity. The Netzarim security corridor seems relatively safe, with paved roads and outposts enjoying electricity provided by power lines.

While many soldiers left Gaza positive about the IDF’s advancements, the path to victory is long, and the journey should not be confused with its destination. Many soldiers have mixed their sense of Hamas’s significant degradation with the feeling that the military is being held back from decisive action, entering and leaving areas to allow Hamas to retain territorial control.

2. Gaza has suffered heavy damage
The extent of the damage to infrastructure hasn’t been completely appreciated by the general public, and Israeli and international leaders will need to develop extensive plans to rebuild the territory. Whole neighborhoods have been leveled during direct combat, the search and destruction of tunnels and booby traps, and the establishment of defensible positions.

If buildings have not been damaged by their proximity to explosives or pocked by suppressive fire, they have had their outer walls shaved away to reveal the possible presence of terrorists. Concrete rubble and trash are strewn along wide fields in the Strip and will need to be collected and moved before some areas are traversable, let alone livable. The IDF will need to prepare to explain the extensive damage to civilian infrastructure.

3. Gaza was far from an 'open-air prison'
One of the great shames about the extensive damage to Gazan infrastructure is that it was not the desolate “open-air prison” that it had been advertised as being in anti-Israel propaganda. While there certainly were residents living in desperate conditions, the houses, apartments, and villas that we cleared and took position in had a decent and even opulent quality of life. All the homes we saw had televisions, computers, refrigerators, decorations, and stores of food similar an Israeli suburb.

Our impression was not one of squalor but normal conditions. In rural areas, villas and mansions oversaw sweeping vineyards on one side and a view of the ocean on the other, and in urban areas, large schools, restaurants, and other facilities. The lost potential and degraded conditions in Gaza make Hamas’s decision to attack Israel and weaponize its territory - rather than develop what they held - even more of a shame.

4. Hamas weaponized Gaza
Much has been said about Hamas’s use of civilian shields to deter IDF operations – a detained civilian told our troops that he was unable to travel from the north to the south along humanitarian corridors because he had to bribe Hamas operatives who were bent on keeping civilians around them as cover. Yet the civilians are just one aspect of Hamas turning Gaza into a weapon to try to destroy Israel.

Tunnel networks are not just placed around or under civilian objects; terrorist infrastructure is integrated into civilian infrastructure in a way that makes the two indistinguishable. Civilian homes are turned into lookout and reconnaissance outposts, with members of families hired by terrorist organizations to provide intelligence, as was exemplified by the capture of spotters by a neighboring battalion.

Armories are hidden within houses to be accessed by plainclothes terrorists when they have the need to shed the veneer of being civilians. Tunnel entrances can be found on the first floor of apartment buildings, not just in their backyards. Other homes are booby-trapped, leading to widespread suspicion of each home being laced with explosives. With Gaza being weaponized in such a fashion, it has led military units to take precautions and actions that damage buildings and homes so that they can stay alive.

5. The IDF is not conducting a genocide
The purpose of our operations was not geared toward the elimination of Gazan civilians. There were never orders to kill civilians wantonly, and there were debates on whether we had enough information to use deadly force and when it was legitimate to open fire. Civilians were allowed to pass by our positions along humanitarian corridors unmolested.

These elements would not be found among a force that is devoted to mass murder or genocide. Civilian casualties are tragic, and unfortunately, they always occur in war, which is why such conflict should be avoided in the first place.
The IDF is in Jabalia again, but this time there is nowhere for Hamas to run
The Israel Defense Forces are fighting in Jabalia for the third time, confronting yet another Hamas resurgence in the northern Gazan terror stronghold and taking losses in the battle. But this time around, Israel is leveraging new strategic advantages to seal off the neighborhood so terrorists cannot escape to other parts of Gaza. With the IDF’s new playbook of sealing the battlefield and systematically evacuating civilians, the terrorists barricaded in Jabalia will be apprehended or eliminated.

Israel’s new approach in Jabalia has elicited some consternation. As is often the case, Israel is in the unenviable position of having to balance its reputation in the international community against the security of its civilians.

However, Jerusalem cannot guarantee security to the Israeli border communities—many of which remain within easy artillery range and in some cases sniper range from northern Gaza neighborhoods—until the threats in northern Gaza are dealt with conclusively. If the IDF is not successful in Jabalia, then thousands of Israeli civilians who have been displaced for more than a year will remain so.

During the two previous campaigns in Jabalia, one in December of 2023 and another in May of 2024, Hamas operatives could flood southward when the water got too hot—to hide in humanitarian zones like Mawasi, take cover in cities without an IDF presence like Rafah or make a run for the extensive Hamas tunnel network that crisscrossed underneath Gaza’s border with Egypt along a strip of territory known as the Philadelphi Corridor.
Digging in, IDF builds dozens of bases in and around expanded Netzarim Corridor
The IDF has significantly bolstered its presence in the central Gaza Strip in recent months, and the territory controlled by Israel in and around the so-called Netzarim corridor has rapidly expanded, according to a report Monday, in an apparent indication the IDF is preparing to remain inside the Palestinian enclave for at least the foreseeable future.

By analyzing satellite images and video footage, the New York Times reported that Israeli forces have also constructed several dozen new bases in and around the corridor over the last three months.

The Netzarim Corridor, which started as a four-mile strip of land, is built around a road south of Gaza City, enabling the IDF to carry out raids in northern and central Gaza while controlling access to the north for Palestinians seeking to return after fleeing south. It also enables Israel to coordinate deliveries of humanitarian aid directly to northern Gaza.

In recent months, however, the corridor has significantly expanded, reaching as far as the outskirts of Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood to the north, and the Wadi Gaza stream to the south, encompassing around 47 square kilometers (18 square miles) of land.

The IDF has attempted to create what appears to be a buffer zone around the outskirts of the military-controlled block of land, the report said, and in doing so, has demolished around 600 buildings, residential and otherwise, over the last three months.

The Times said that the estimation was reached by analyzing satellite images and video footage taken by the IDF’s Combat Engineering Battalion between September 3 and November 21.

Troops have also “rapidly expanded a network of outposts equipped with communications towers and defensive fortifications,” the report said.

The IDF’s expansion work “suggests that it may be preparing to exert long-term control over the area,” The Times said.


Call me Back Podcast: Is Israel Winning? - with Haviv Rettig Gur
Is Israel winning? This is a question we kept running into in our conversations in Israel with Israelis last week, especially as Israel reached a ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah.

To help us assess, Haviv Rettig Gur returns to the podcast.

Haviv Rettig Gur is the political analyst at The Times of Israel. He was a long time reporter for the Times of Israel. Haviv was also a combat medic in the IDF where he served in the reserves.

Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
04:54 Initial observations
16:23 Is the ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah a win?
29:16 Will things return to normal in the North?
32:17 What is to be expected on the Gaza front?
34:36 Israeli perception of victory in Iran
38:43 Israeli reactions to the incoming U.S. administration


What Will It Take to Stop the Avalanche of Jew Hate? | Caroline Glick In-Focus
Not a day passes without another incident in the global war against the Jewish people.

Not only is antisemitism in vogue on college campuses and in think tanks, but even in the highest echelons of government.

In this episode of "In-Focus," JNS senior contributing editor Caroline Glick draws a picture of where things are headed if the good people of the world, specifically Jews, don’t stand up quickly.

Chapters
00:00 The Global Jewish Experience: A Crisis in the West
02:57 Cultural Cancelation: The Arts and Jewish Identity
06:08 Rising Anti-Semitism: Incidents in London and Beyond
08:56 State Support for Anti-Semitism: A Global Perspective
12:12 Political Responses: Leaders and Their Stances on Anti-Semitism
15:02 Biden's Policies: A Shift in American Middle East Strategy
17:48 The Role of the U.S. in Israeli Defense: A New Approach
21:10 Neo-Colonialism and the Future of Jewish Sovereignty
26:59 The Sovereignty Debate: Israel and the West
30:10 International Law and Israel's Position
36:45 Internal Conflicts: The Israeli Left vs. Right
49:34 Global Jewish Identity and Responsibility


The Israel Guys: Why Palestinian Attacks in the WEST BANK are Getting Worse
Palestinian terrorism in Judea & Samaria has not been getting any better since the start of the war. The question is why? If the Palestinians truly wanted to create a peaceful two-State solution, wouldn’t they want to distance themselves from Terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah? Well the answer is definitely NOT what the media has been telling you! Also, the ceasefire in Lebanon is going. . .well just about how we predicted it would, NOT GREAT! AND just when you thought the Middle East was calming down a bit, things just got crazier. . . Syrian rebels have taken over the second largest city in Syria! . . .I’m Josiah Hilton, and this is The Israel Guys!


Ed Husic’s ‘dangerous’ comments on Israel as ‘aggressor’ in Middle East war
Sky News host Chris Kenny slams Labor MP Ed Husic for his portrayal of Israel as the “aggressor” in “dangerous” commentary on the war.

“Labor MP and Muslim-Australian Ed Husic gave his take on all of this,” Mr Kenny said.

“He is an Australian government minister putting the blame for the deaths of innocent civilians on Israel, no mention of Hamas atrocities.”




Protesters raise Nazi, terrorist salutes at London protest march
Anti-Israel protesters raised Nazi and terrorist salutes at a Pro-Palestinian march and Pro-Israel counter-protest in London, according to statements by Stop The Hate UK and the Metropolitan Police.

The Met appealed to the public on Sunday for their aid in the identification of an elderly man “in connection with an alleged public order offense,” confirming to STH on social media that the investigation was related to a video of the suspect raising his arm in a Nazi salute in the direction of counter-protesters.

STH on Sunday published footage on X/Twitter of another anti-Israel marcher who appeared to shout “Heil Hitler” and raise a Nazi salute and then a middle finger in the direction of pro-Israel counter-protesters.

“When we tell you these are hate marches, when we tell you that British Jews are frightened to enter central London when they come to town – this is why,” STH wrote on social media on Saturday. “A Nazi salute in full view of officers and directed at Jews. How many more instances like this do Jewish Londoners have to endure before you do something to stop these hate marches?”

The Met issues warnings
STH also condemned the presence of red inverted triangles in protest materials and the hand gesture counterparts raised by activists. The NGO charged that the Met understood the meaning of the inverted red triangle, a terrorist symbol used in Hamas propaganda videos to indicate the targeting of their enemies, but had ignored their use at the protest.

Ahead of the protest, the Met had issued warnings that it was a criminal offense to express support for proscribed organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah through chanting, garb, flags, signs, or logos.

The Met had also issued conditions for the protest and counter-protest, limiting them to set routes and locations so that they would not impact the busy Black Friday shopping period or enter into conflict. The Met said on social media that the Palestine Solidarity Campaign march had passed the STH protest without incident.

“Ahead of the weekend, we have been in regular discussions with the PSC, counter-protesters Stop the Hate, as well as faith and community groups – particularly the Jewish community who we know continue to be impacted by protests – residents, and businesses,” Deputy Assistant Commissioner Jon Savell said ahead of the protests.


Fans fume at ejected NFL star Azeez Al-Shaair after controversial political message on his cleats is revealed
Eagle-eyed NFL fans took aim at Azeez Al-Shaair on Sunday night after spotting a controversial political message on his cleats for the Texans-Jaguars game.

The linebacker was already in the bad books of many for a brutal hit on quarterback Trevor Lawrence, that led to him being ejected from the game.

And now more fans are piling in, after noticing a bold 'Free Palestine' message on his cleats.

The Tampa-born NFL star, 27, had 'Free' written on the outside of his cleats in red and green Palestine colors, with messages written on the side.

On one cleat, it read: 'Surely to Allah we belong and to him we will all return,' while the other said: 'At least 41,788 Palestinians killed. 10,000+ estimated to be under the rubble. 96,794 wounded.'

Al-Shaair is a practicing Muslim, and he joined the Texans in March on a three-year, $34million contract.

Taking to X, many NFL fans piled in on the player for using the sport to share his political views, with one writing: 'Ooh now I really hate him.'

Another urged the NFL to suspend him, but others defended him and wrote: 'Religion of peace.'

Yet more fans brought up Nick Bosa's recent fine for wearing a Donald Trump MAGA hat and speculated over the punishment Al-Shaair will face for his own political message.

The linebacker first hit the headlines on Sunday for a brutal hit on Jaguars QB Lawrence, that left him motionless on the turf and sparked a huge brawl between the teams.




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

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