Wednesday, December 18, 2024

12/18 Links Pt1: A New Era of Hezbollah Defeat; US intel ‘badly misjudged’ escalation risks of Israel’s war against Hezbollah; Debunking the Gaza Death Toll

From Ian:

Can Israel Save the World from a Nuclear Iran?
For the last 20 years, two primary fears have held Israel back from launching a preemptive military strike to eliminate Iran's nuclear program. The first was a concern that a military strike would not succeed. Senior defense officials in Israel and the West warned that the Israeli Air Force could not reach Iran, could not overcome the advanced Russian air defense systems that surrounded its strategic facilities, and could not penetrate some of the nuclear installations, which are buried deep underground beneath layers of thick concrete and steel.

The second fear was the practical price Israel would pay if it attacked. Iran is believed to have about 2,500 long-range ballistic missiles capable of striking Israel; Hizbullah, until recently, had an arsenal of 150,000 missiles; Hamas had around 40,000 and the Houthis in Yemen have hundreds. Lastly, the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, until recently, was in possession of hundreds of Scud missiles and several tons of chemical weapons.

These fears are no longer relevant. In October, more than 100 Israeli Air Force aircraft flew more than 2,000 km. and struck more than 20 targets throughout Iran, including Iran's S-300 surface-to-air missile systems, knocking out Iran's ability to defend itself and repel a future attack. All this means Iran is today vulnerable.

Israel, whether on its own or in coordination with the U.S., has a unique opportunity to remove the primary threat that it has warned about for more than 20 years - Iran's nuclear program. This window of opportunity is not unlimited. If Israel or the U.S. fail to act, Iran will take the final steps and build a nuclear bomb.
Danny Danon calls for UN to designate IRGC as a terrorist organization
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon addressed the Iranian regime directly in Farsi during Wednesday's session of the United Nations Security Council, saying to not miss this rare, historic opportunity and "take action now."

"I am telling the Iranian people, we know the cost of freedom and the courage it demands," Danon said before the Security Council. "Your fight is not just for yourselves but for the millions of lives the regime has destabilized and destroyed. In your hands lie the power to restore the beautiful Iranian nation, to rebuild a land rich in history, culture and resilience."

Danon was the last diplomat to speak in Wednesday's session centered on the Palestinian question and Israel's ongoing war with Hamas. Earlier in the session, Michael Levy, brother of Israeli hostage Or Levy, testified before the council about his family's experience as a hostage family.

The chance before us is clear, Danon said, to finally end the Islamic regime of Iran's aspirations for a Shiite supremacist Empire, the chance to "liberate the world from the most corrupt, most violent, most destabilizing regime."

"Israel has acted decisively," he said, by striking terror networks that once "cast a shadow over our region."
A New Era of Hezbollah Defeat
In the eighteen-year interwar interregnum, Israel shifted to a strategy of preventing the outbreak of a major war. Employing its intelligence-gathering skills to maximum effect, the Israelis struck repeatedly at Iranian weapons transfers to Hezbollah, primarily in war-torn Syria. This became known in Israel as the “campaign between the wars.” But the pinprick Israeli strikes, meant to slow Hezbollah’s arms buildup—specifically precision guided munitions—never challenged Hezbollah’s overall strength.

But in preparation for this war, the Israelis seem to have spent at least the past decade penetrating every level of Hezbollah’s organizational apparatus. Indeed, when the time came to fight, no Hezbollah official and no Hezbollah asset was safe. Israel seized the initiative and crippled the group’s military apparatus before it could even mobilize. The Israelis located and liquidated one Hezbollah “ghost” commander after the next, including the elusive mid-level Radwan force commanders who had invested heavily in anonymity. Israel’s campaign this go-round even demonstrated a better understanding of the pressure points on Hezbollah’s support base and the group’s broader Lebanese environment. Hezbollah’s path to regeneration, while not impossible, is more complicated than ever before.

On the Israeli home front, the Israeli public was steeled for this fight. The October 7 horrors and Hezbollah’s ability to conduct its own identical attack created an unprecedented recognition among Israelis that Hezbollah would need to be defeated, no matter the price. Compounding this, Hezbollah’s strikes drove an estimated 160,000 Israelis from their homes since October 8. According to one Israeli official who spoke on background to us, Hezbollah has destroyed $10 to $15 billion in Israeli insfrastructure in the countries north.

The war may not be over yet. And more damage could still be sustained. But after nearly a year of indecision, the IDF gained the conventional upper hand, and this time employed it to maximum effect. Israel deployed its forces according to a combined-arms doctrine that was specifically developed over the past eighteen years to confront Hezbollah. This included internal restructuring of the IDF to create forces like the Oz Brigade, which brought all the IDF’s special forces units under one umbrella, to confront an irregular actor like Hezbollah. When Israel entered Lebanon this time, it favored powerful and agile ground maneuvers over armor or standoff firepower.

Israel had also invested in building a multitiered missile defense array, including the short-range Iron Dome and and mid-range David’s Sling systems. These systems are defensive and not hermetic. They could not always neutralize Hezbollah drones and or “sniping” attacks on northern communities. There simply is no substitute for offensive action. Nevertheless, these systems blunted Hezbollah’s attacks just enough to minimize the group’s impact on the Israeli Home Front and to keep up public moralem a vital component of any democracy’s war effort.

Predictably, Hezbollah is now attempting to claim victory. Merely surviving is the group’s key metric in this regard. Admittedly, the group has scored several hits against Israel, killing 56 Israeli soldiers and wounding hundreds of others, and confounding Israeli defenses with anti-tank guided missile attacks and swarms of loitering munitions. But as the dust settles, a stark picture of the group’s defeat emerges: at least 2,500 members killed, many of them elite and irreplicable leaders, a decimated arsenal, and flattened military infrastructure. All of this will take years to rebuild.


Debunking the Gaza Death Toll | Major Andrew Fox
In this video, we sit down with former British officer and disinformation expert Andrew Fox to tackle some of the most contentious claims surrounding the Gaza conflict. From the inflated casualty figures provided by Hamas to allegations of genocide, Fox addresses these issues head-on and explains how misinformation spreads during wartime.

He explains the complexities of proportionality in military law and examines key incidents, such as the Al-Ahli Hospital explosion. Using his military and investigative expertise, Fox sheds light on the complexities of proportionality in combat and the manipulation of narratives to sway global opinion.

This conversation offers a detailed look at how truth, perception, and propaganda intersect on the battlefield.

00:00 Introduction
01:11 Investigating Gaza Death Toll Data
02:26 Casualty Estimate
03:26 Genocide?
04:54 Proportionality in Military Operations
06:14 Sources of Data
07:39 The Al-Ahli Hospital Incident
08:18 Hamas Lists
11:15 Level of Damage
15:28 Morality in Hamas' Fight?
17:09 Civilian to Combatant Death Ratio
18:26 IDF Accountability


US intelligence ‘badly misjudged’ escalation risks of Israel’s war against Hezbollah
US intelligence officials wrongly predicted catastrophic consequences if Israel escalated against Hezbollah in September and warned of massive casualties and all-out war, according to a new report.

According to Times of Israel, US assessments prior to Israel’s escalation were based largely on intelligence from Israel itself, which envisioned Hezbollah’s missile capabilities overwhelming Israeli defences and causing substantial Israeli loss of life.

However, Israel crippled Hezbollah’s infrastructure and leadership in southern Lebanon, eventually leading the weakened terror group to agree to a ceasefire.

“The assessments… were that this was potentially going to be a catastrophic war that would cause potentially hundreds or thousands of Israeli casualties as Hezbollah missiles overwhelmed Israeli defences,” one US official told Times of Israel. These predictions, however, proved to be far from accurate.

Instead, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) dismantled much of Hezbollah’s military infrastructure, destroyed missile and drone capabilities, and decimated its senior leadership.

Hezbollah did manage to expand its range of rocket and drone launches, disrupting life for civilians in areas previously untouched by such threats, leading to 57 Israeli soldiers and 21 civilians losing their lives during the two-month escalation.

Israel’s military successes were significant enough to force Hezbollah, which had been aggressively attacking since October 7, to agree to a ceasefire by late November.

In the lead-up to Israel’s September offensive, US intelligence officials had expressed grave concerns about the potential for a devastating war.

“The disaster scenario appeared increasingly likely as Israel began striking targets deeper into Lebanon,” said one US official.

As tensions escalated, senior figures in Washington, including Pentagon and White House officials, began meeting to discuss how to respond to the expected conflict.

The US intelligence community shared a broad understanding with Israeli officials, acknowledging both sides’ fears about what would happen in a full-blown war with Hezbollah.


Biden administration faces lawsuit for ‘withholding’ anti-Israel funding documents
A national security-focused watchdog group is suing the Biden administration’s top foreign aid agency for allegedly “withholding” documents on its funding of anti-Israel groups overseas, according to a complaint.

The complaint, filed on Tuesday in federal court by the Washington, D.C.-based Center to Advance Security in America, accuses the U.S. Agency for International Development of stonewalling the watchdog’s July request for records on USAID’s grants and contracts to foreign groups behind anti-Israel boycott campaigns.

That funding was first reported by the Washington Examiner in July as part of an investigation into taxpayer-backed awards dating back to 2008.

“Extreme, anti-Israel nongovernmental organizations are receiving millions of dollars from federal agencies like USAID without proper transparency and oversight,” said James Fitzpatrick, CASA’s director.

“CASA brings this lawsuit after USAID has stalled in providing records and communications that may shed light on why these extreme NGOs were chosen to receive large sums of taxpayer dollars, and the officials at the agency who were involved in the selection process,” Fitzpatrick, a U.S. Army veteran, added.

In July, a Washington Examiner analysis of funding records found that USAID and the State Department have long routed grants and contracts to the Netherlands-based Center for Research on Multinational Corporations, Norwegian People’s Aid in Norway, and the Ireland-based Catholic Church agency Trocaire. The foreign NGOs join pro-Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaigns against Israel and release reports calling on the United States to cut off aid to the Jewish state.

In response to the report, the State Department insisted it is “a strong partner in opposing efforts to delegitimize Israel.” Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) criticized the anti-Israel funding, with Ernst saying USAID and the State Department “are undermining our ally and our own national security.”
Palestinians sue State Department over aid to Israel
A lawsuit filed Tuesday by Palestinians from Gaza and their U.S. relatives accuses the State Department of circumventing a law that prohibits U.S. military aid to foreign forces implicated in gross human rights abuses by sending aid to Israel.

Plaintiffs argue in the lawsuit filed at the United States District Court for the District of Columbia that the State Department had created loopholes specifically benefiting Israel, allowing continued military support despite what they claim are credible allegations of violations.

The loopholes, they wrote, were designed to bypass the 1997 Leahy Law.

U.S. assistance to foreign armed forces comes from two budgets, so two versions of the Leahy amendment were enacted into law. One covers assistance funded through the State Department, and another covers assistance funded through the Department of Defense.

Supported by former officials and architects of the Leahy Law, the lawsuit demands it be applied to Israel. U.S. military aid to Israel during the ongoing conflict in Gaza is estimated to have reached $17.9 billion.

The lawsuit highlights alleged exceptions, such as a special committee to assess Israeli violations and a process requiring deputy secretary-level approval, said to be unique to Israel. It also alleges Israel can avoid aid restrictions by demonstrating corrective measures, whereas other countries cannot.

The case coincides with a wave of protests against Israel’s attacks on Hamas in Gaza, which followed the invasion by some 6,000 Hamas-led terrorists into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, when they murdered about 1,200 people and abducted another 250. About 100 of the hostages are still in Gaza but dozens of them are believed to have died.


Blinken meets with family of US-Turkish activist killed in Samaria in September
Antony Blinken, the U.S. secretary of state, met on Monday with relatives of Aysenur Eygi, an American-Turkish citizen who was killed in Samaria in September. An initial Israeli military probe suggested that the 26-year-old was “with high probability” struck by “indirect and unintended IDF fire, which was aimed at a main instigator.”

U.S. President Joe Biden said at the time that he was “outraged and deeply saddened” by the news and that Eygi’s “idealism led her to travel to the West Bank to peacefully protest the expansion of settlements.”

Blinken’s meeting with Eygi’s relatives wasn’t reflected on his official public schedule.

“Usually we don’t make meetings with private individuals public on the secretary’s schedule,” Matthew Miller, the U.S. State Department spokesman, told reporters at the department’s daily press briefing on Monday. “We put meetings—there are exceptions to that. We put meetings with foreign governments. We put meetings with organizations, but in the past when the secretary has met with private individuals, we don’t put it on his schedule.”

In this instance, when the family was comfortable with the department speaking publicly about the meeting, the department did so, Miller said.

“The secretary in that meeting offered once again his deepest condolences to the family for Aysenur’s death. It was a death that never should have happened, as he has said previously,” Miller said. “He told them that Israel has told us in recent days that they are finalizing their investigation into the matter, and he committed to them that as soon as we learn anything about the results of that investigation, we will report it to them.”

Miller added that the State Department doesn’t undertake its own investigations. “That would be in the remit of the Justice Department,” he said. “We have an independent Justice Department for a reason inside our government. So it’s ultimately something for the Justice Department to speak to, and the State Department can’t—can’t speak on behalf of an independent law enforcement agency as to what they may be doing or what they might—might do or might not do.”
A $2,000 Soccer Ball for Hamas-Friendly Qatar and a $1,500 Bowl for Xi: Biden Gave Lavish Gifts to Foreign Human Rights Abusers, Congressional Notice Shows
A $1,962 soccer ball for Hamas ally Qatar. A $1,557 bowl for Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping. A $2,310 handblown glass vase for Cambodian dictator Hun Sen. These are just some of the taxpayer-funded gifts the Biden-Harris administration awarded to foreign dictators, human rights abusers, and anti-American world leaders, financial disclosure forms reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon show.

The administration doled out the gifts from October 2022 to September 2023, as President Joe Biden and his top cabinet members traveled the globe for diplomatic powwows. While it is customary for U.S. officials to present foreign leaders with gifts as a sign of goodwill, the Biden-Harris administration spent liberally on presents for some of the globe’s foremost human rights abusers.

China’s Xi, for instance, received a $1,557.84 "custom glass bowl" during Biden’s travel in November 2022, according to non-public financial disclosure forms submitted to Congress this month and reviewed by the Free Beacon. The lavish bowl was packaged in a "Navy gift box" and included "hand-painted White House wood."

When Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to China in June 2023, he presented then-foreign affairs minister Qin Gang with a pewter tea set worth $1,345. The State Department sought special permission to purchase the gift because it exceeded the internal limit of $1,200 set under federal guidelines.

During the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, meanwhile, Biden presented the gulf state's emir, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, with a $1,962 "custom leather presidential soccer ball." The souvenir included the "seal and signature of the president of the United States" and was bestowed in a "custom leather presentation box with inscription."

Biden presented Al-Thani with the ball as Qatar faced enormous international pressure over mass human rights abuses in the lead up to World Cup games, which took place in stadiums built largely using forced labor from foreign workers. Qatar also remains one of Hamas’s top backers, supporting the terror group financially and providing its remaining leaders safe haven in Doha.

Jordan’s anti-Israel regime, led by King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein, received upwards of $10,000 in gifts during multiple visits with Biden and his wife Jill.

During his February 2023 visit to the United States, for example, the administration gifted Al-Hussein a "ship’s bell double clock" that featured "the president’s signature" and was valued at $1,912. He also received a $1,129 "custom handblown green glass bowl."

The administration presented Al-Hussein’s wife, Queen Rania Al Abdullah, with a "custom handmade 14 karat yellow gold brooch" worth $854. First Lady Jill Biden presented the gift in a "blue lacquer jewelry box" that featured "the first lady’s signature."

In May 2023, during a trip to Jordan, Biden presented Al-Hussein with a $2,236 "custom leather stationery set" that included a "custom hand-painted fountain pen made from White House wood." On that same foreign jaunt, Jill Biden gave Jordan’s queen an "18 karat yellow gold diamond necklace" priced at $2,400.
Iran’s nuclear program alarms world powers: No ‘civilian justification’
The United Kingdom, France and Germany on Tuesday called on Iran to “reverse its nuclear escalation,” claiming that there is no “credible civilian justification” for the amount of highly enriched uranium it is stockpiling, AFP reported.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Tehran has already become the only non-nuclear state to have uranium enriched to 60%, just a short step from military-grade level.

In a joint statement ahead of a U.N. Security Council meeting, the three countries warned that “Iran’s stockpile of High Enriched Uranium has … reached unprecedented levels, again without any credible civilian justification. It gives Iran the capability to rapidly produce sufficient fissile material for multiple nuclear weapons.”

The trio added: “Iran has ramped up its installation of advanced centrifuges, which is yet another damaging step in Iran’s efforts to undermine the nuclear deal that they claim to support.”

London, Paris and Berlin on Dec. 6 informed the Security Council of their willingness to reimpose “snap back” sanctions on Iran over its illicit nuclear program.

“Iran must de-escalate its nuclear program to create the political environment conducive to meaningful progress and a negotiated solution,” the U.N. ambassadors of the so-called E3 countries wrote in letter to the Security Council.

“We reiterate our determination to use all diplomatic tools to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, including using snap back if necessary,” they added.

The threat comes after IAEA head Rafael Grossi confirmed that Tehran has in recent weeks sharply increased its uranium enrichment.

“Today the agency is announcing that the [Iranian] production capacity is increasing dramatically, of the 60% inventory,” said Grossi at the Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain on Dec. 6.


What Al-Jolani's Past Can Reveal about Syria's Future
Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) leader Ahmed Shara/Abu Mohammed al-Jolani is now the de facto ruler in Damascus. Western media and governments are weighing his every utterance in an effort to understand what may lie in Syria's future. Has he moderated? Is he still a jihadi? But there is a better way to try and grasp what may now lie ahead. In the period between 2017 and 2024, al-Jolani and his movement were the de facto rulers of Idleb province. Observation of how they governed there is likely to yield clues.

Israeli researcher and former IDF military intelligence officer Alex Grinberg has made a close study of HTS's seven-year experiment at governance in Idleb. HTS did not go in for the mad excesses of their rival jihadis in the Islamic State. There was no enslavement of non-Muslim women, none of the lurid insanity associated with IS.

On the other hand, what was established was a repressive, authoritarian statelet ruled in accordance with Islamic Sharia law. Women were required to wear the hijab, music and alcohol were banned. No opposition was permitted to the edicts of HTS. Non-Muslims and women were not allowed to be in the representative bodies established. In al-Jolani's prisons, incarceration without trial and the practice of torture were routine. There is every reason to believe that the system developed in Idleb will now be installed throughout the country.

HTS's highest religious authority is Abd al-Rahim Atoun, who called the Oct. 7 attacks "the greatest act of Islam in this era." Atoun compares HTS's march from Idleb to Damascus to the Oct. 7 attacks, and requests "the Almighty to disgrace the Jews, suppress them, and curse them and those who support and back them."

The government of Israel has been engaged in recent days in preventing the emergent Islamist regime in Damascus from possessing any but the most rudimentary military capacity. Some have questioned the motivation for this action. Yet Israel's decision to disarm HTS as far as is possible is likely to yet be considered prescient.


As northern Israel comes back to life, Hezbollah strongholds over the border lie in ruins
The Fatima Gate has witnessed the key chapters in Israel’s involvement in southern Lebanon.

In the 1970s, the border crossing — also known as the Good Fence Crossing — was the focus of Israel’s humanitarian efforts towards its northern neighbor. Israel opened a military health clinic at the gate for residents of southern Lebanon, including Shi’ites. Over time, the effort expanded, as Lebanese traders were allowed to drive into Kiryat Shmona for business, and Lebanese laborers crossed through the gate to reach their jobs in Israeli farms and factories.

When Israel invaded Lebanon to fight Palestinian Liberation Organization terrorists in 1978, and then again in 1982, IDF troops and intelligence officials moved back and forth through the gate. As Israel set up its security zone in southern Lebanon in the ensuing years, fighters from the South Lebanon Army (SLA) and their family members used the crossing to work, shop and receive medical care in Israel.

Unsurprisingly, Fatima Gate was an enticing target for Hezbollah, the fledgling Shi’ite militia Iran had founded to carry out a guerilla war against IDF troops in Lebanon. In 1988, a Hezbollah suicide bomber killed 8 Israeli soldiers in an attack there.

When Israel finally pulled out of southern Lebanon in 2000, panicked SLA troops and their families gathered at Fatima Gate, trying to escape anticipated retribution from Hezbollah. The mile-long stretch of abandoned cars was a potent symbol of Israel’s humiliating retreat under fire from a security zone that had cost the lives of hundreds of soldiers and caused fissures in Israeli society.

After the retreat, Hezbollah supporters would walk right up to the gate to throw rocks at Israeli soldiers on the other side of the border.

In recent weeks, Fatima Gate witnessed a dramatic change. After years of maintaining a defensive posture that allowed Hezbollah fighters to build an extensive network of tunnels, weapons caches and fighting positions along the border, the IDF finally went on the offensive in October. The devastatingly effective operation drove Hezbollah back from the border, as Israeli troops methodically searched the border villages and detonated any building used by Hezbollah for military purposes.

On Sunday, this Times of Israel reporter crossed through Fatima Gate with 91st Division commander Brig. Gen. Shai Klepper to examine what Lebanon’s border villages look like after two months of fighting, and how the ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel is holding up.


A black day for the international community
The United Nations has once again demonstrated why it should never be considered a serious institution of influence in geopolitics – much less a bastion of morality.

The resolutions passed in the General Assembly on December 11 are so blatantly absurd that it’s like watching an episode of the Twilight Zone, leaving viewers scratching their heads and asking, what just happened there?

Take the first resolution passed – resolution A/ES–10/L.32 – Support for the mandate of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), which passed with 159 countries in favour, 9 against and 11 abstentions.

The resolution is a delusional diatribe, consisting of self-congratulatory praise for how wonderful UNRWA is, how essential UNRWA is, how UNRWA works so hard, how bad Israel is, and, of course, pleading for money.

But what it doesn’t say is what’s more important.

It fails to even mention the systematic infiltration of UNRWA in Gaza by the Hamas terror group, ignoring the copious amount of evidence that Israel and others have provided, including proof that Hamas terror commanders who worked for UNRWA took part in the October 7 attacks, and both murdered and kidnapped Israeli civilians, and at least 10% of UNRWA staff were members of terror groups.

Also not mentioned was UNRWA facilities being used as Hamas command centres, including a sophisticated data centre built directly under the headquarters of UNRWA in Gaza.

The resolution also ignores UNRWA’s inadequacy as a humanitarian aid organisation, delivering only 13% of all aid into Gaza over the period from August to October, and only 7% in November. So much for its claim to be the “backbone of all humanitarian response in Gaza.”

The second resolution, (A/ES–10/L.33) – Demand for ceasefire in Gaza, that passed – with 158 countries in favour, 9 against and 13 abstentions – is even more insidious.

This resolution demands “an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” in Gaza with the keyword being “unconditional.” Such a ceasefire would seal the fate of the 100 or so Israeli hostages who remain in Hamas’ terror dungeons, abandoning them forever, because while it calls for their release, it allows for absolutely no mechanism for pressuring Hamas after it inevitably refuses to release them. An “immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” would also leave Hamas back in power in Gaza, free to carry out more atrocities like October 7 – something it has vowed to do.

The resolution’s vision of a two-state solution was myopic and unrealistic, “two democratic States, Palestine and Israel, live side by side,” while stressing the “importance of unifying the Gaza Strip with the West Bank under the Palestinian Authority.”


Australia is abandoning Israel
Last week, the Australian Government voted in favour of yet another UN General Assembly resolution that clearly undermines its own declared policy.

That resolution called for an “immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” in Gaza, without mentioning Hamas or making any demands of it.

If actually implemented, it would be guaranteed to leave Hamas permanently in control over Gaza — even though both Prime Minister Albanese and Foreign Minister Wong have repeatedly called for Hamas to play no future role in ruling Gaza.

While the resolution ostensibly calls for Hamas to release the Israeli hostages it has been holding for the last 14 months, this was not linked to the call for an immediate ceasefire.

In other words, it demands Israel permanently cease-fire in Gaza even if Hamas refuses to release the hostages — as it certainly will. It effectively gives Hamas everything it wants — the ability to continue to control Gaza, to continue to exploit the hostages as bargaining chips, and to begin preparing more October 7-style attacks, as its leaders have promised is their goal.

Bizarrely, Australia’s UN Ambassador says Hamas must lay down its arms and there must be no role for terrorists in the future governance of Gaza, then voted for a resolution guaranteeing the opposite outcome.

This vote was part of a clear pattern by the Australian Government of deliberately transforming our bipartisan history of warm relations with Israel combined with thoughtful support for a negotiated two-state resolution with the Palestinians.

Our new policy appears to be something approaching open antagonism to the Jewish state, combined with a near obsession with demanding Palestinian statehood at all costs.

Other recent examples forming part of this ongoing shift include: the Government’s support for a biased UN resolution demanding Israel unilaterally withdraw from all of the West Bank and east Jerusalem without negotiations or requiring any reciprocal actions from the Palestinians; Wong’s December 9 speech appearing to equate Israel with serial human rights violators Russia and China, and the decision to deny a visitor’s visa to former Israeli justice minister Ayelet Shaked, on dubious grounds, after granting her one less than two years ago.

Domestically, this major foreign policy shift has been accompanied by what most Australian Jews regard as a wholly inadequate response to the approximately four-fold increase in anti-Semitism in the country since the Hamas mass terror attack on October 7 last year.

Thus the Jewish community was horrified but largely not surprised by the Adass Israel Synagogue arson terrorist attack on December 6.

The signs had been building for months: doxxing of Jewish creatives, hate-filled slogans at anti-Israel protests, Jewish students advised to study from home for their own safety, and defaced war memorials.
Israel lashes out at Foreign Minister Penny Wong
The strained relationship between Israel and Australia has reached new heights following a fiery confrontation between Foreign Minister Penny Wong and her Israeli counterpart.

The clash comes after Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the Albanese government of an “extreme anti-Israel position”.

According to Israeli media, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar expressed frustration with Australia’s response to the Gaza war during a phone call with Ms Wong on Wednesday.

During the call, Mr Sa'ar accused the Albanese government of distancing itself from Israel during the Jewish state’s most difficult period.

“Australia has chosen to distance itself from Israel in its most difficult year, when it has fought against its bitterest enemies,” he said according to Israel Hayom newspaper.

He went on to criticise Ms Wong for having mentioned Israel alongside Russia and China in a recent speech.

“Israel is a Western democratic state that upholds the rule of law, has an independent judiciary, and adheres to international law," Mr Sa'ar said.

“In the past year, Israel has fought the radical axis led by Iran, which is supported by Russia and China.”

The newspaper reported Australia’s Foreign Minister as being “the most anti-Israel” member of the Albanese government.

The verbal exchange then escalated as Ms Wong reportedly pressed for Jerusalem to provide further humanitarian aid to the citizens in Gaza.

Mr Sa’ar insisted that Israel, not Palestine, was the true victim given the scale of the October 7 massacre orchestrated by Hamas.

The conversation also touched on Australia’s refusal to grant a visa to former Israeli minister Ayelet Shaked over claims her presence would “undermine social cohesion”.

“How would you react if we acted like this towards a former minister from Australia,” Mr Sa’ar asked.

This clash is part of a broader deterioration in relations between Israel and Australia, fuelled by the Albanese government’s recent votes at the United Nations.


‘Release the hostages’: Israel-Gaza war will only end when Hamas surrenders
When the Hamas terrorists release all the hostages and surrender, “the conflict ends”, claims Sky News host James Macpherson.

“But what about negotiations? Well, you don't negotiate with terrorists. I mean, unless you want more terrorism,” Mr Macpherson said.

“The way I see it, Hamas forfeited the right to be spoken to as equals when they raped and slaughtered 1,200 Israelis before boasting about it on social media.

“Release the hostages. Until you do that – there's nothing to talk about.”


Ben Dror-Yemini: Selective justice: The double standards of international criticism against Israel
Ten drivers exceeded the speed limit of 60 mph. The first accelerated up to 120 mph, the second to 115, and so on. Yet the police stopped only the last driver, who was going 75 mph. “How is it,” he asked the officers, “that you didn’t stop at least nine cars that passed me at insane speeds?”

“Stop with your whataboutism,” the officers replied.

A week later, the same story repeated itself. And again, he was stopped. The third time, he confronted the officers: “All the drivers you let go are white. And every time, you only stop me—the only Black driver on the road.”

Is the Black driver the dangerous offender here, or are the police simply a bunch of racists? The answer is obvious. Yet for the United Nations Human Rights Council, the UN General Assembly and countless other international bodies—it is not.

Consider this: since 2015, the UN General Assembly—one of the world’s most influential international bodies—has passed 156 resolutions condemning Israel, compared to just 70 for all the other countries combined. Israel, it seems, is not a country. It’s a monster.

In that same period, the World Health Organization—an entity that should be free of politics—condemned Israel 13 times. How many times did it condemn the rest of the world? Zero.

Any claim of discrimination is inevitably met with a predictable response from so-called human rights advocates of the antisemitic variety: “Whataboutism.”

It’s no surprise that evil majorities dominate international institutions. But international human rights organizations? One might hope for better. That hope is misplaced.

Robert Bernstein was one of the world’s leading human rights activists and the founder of Human Rights Watch (HRW). With his vision and passion, he turned it into the largest human rights organization in the world. In 2009, Bernstein pointed me to an op-ed he had written for The New York Times. I thought he was responding to critics of HRW—critics like me.

To my surprise, Bernstein delivered a scathing rebuke of the very organization he had created—and still led at the time—for its biased treatment of Israel. Since then, things have only gotten worse. The organization’s allegations, in both senses of the word, are thoroughly documented and refuted by NGO Monitor.


Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto to visit Israel
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto is set to make a surprise visit to Israel next week as a guest of Defense Minister Israel Katz.

Crosetto is expected to discuss southern Lebanon and the Syrian Golan Heights.

The Italian military has over 1,000 soldiers serving in the UNIFIL forces.


Hostage’s relative to address UN Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is holding a hostage-family briefing on Wednesday featuring an address by a relative of one of the Israelis being held by Hamas in Gaza.

According to the Hostage and Missing Families Forum Headquarters, an Israeli group representing the captives and their families, it marks the first time in Security Council history that a hostage’s family member will address the 15-country forum at U.N. headquarters in New York.

Michael Levy, whose brother Or was kidnapped by Hamas from the Nova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, will deliver remarks at the opening of the session, the topic of which is to be the situation in the Middle East.

“This unprecedented invitation follows sustained efforts by hostage families in Washington, and the Hostage Families Forum in Israel, New York, and [Washington],” the forum said.

Eyal Kalderon, whose cousin Ofer Kalderon was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7, 2023, and is still being held in Gaza, told JNS on Wednesday, “It’s very important for Michael to be speaking in front of the U.N. Security Council today, because this organization and especially the Security Council tried a few times to force Israel to accept a ceasefire and end the war in Gaza while omitting to speak about the hostages.

“They didn’t prioritize the hostage crisis as a main issue of the war in Gaza. They just focused on the Gazan side,” he said.

“They need to look into Michael’s eyes, hear about the conditions in which the hostages are held in the hell tunnels of Gaza and find a solution. The hostages don’t have time. The Security Council must speak up and demand the return of the hostages. Through that, the war in Gaza will end,” Kalderon continued.

“The hostages must come home. This is a war crime,” he said.


UN torture expert visits Oct. 7 sites for first time, speaks to hostage families
The United Nations’s senior expert on torture visited the kibbutzim that were attacked on October 7, 2023, for the first time on Wednesday, to offer support to families of Israelis held hostage by Hamas in Gaza.

Alice Jill Edwards, the UN special rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment, spoke to Reuters, as mediated talks continued between Israel and Hamas for a potential hostage-ceasefire deal.

“I’m very hopeful for a deal. I’ve been calling for a long time for the immediate and unconditional release of the hostages. This is an unlawful act under international law. It’s an atrocity. It’s a war crime,” she said in an interview.

“I am hopeful that the families will be able to see their loved ones as soon as possible and that there will be peace restored in this region.”

Some 3,000 Hamas-led terrorists invaded southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages, amid acts of brutality and sexual assault. The Hamas attack started the ongoing war in Gaza, which has also included fighting on other fronts.

On her visit, Edwards described the scene as both eerie and uneasy, a mix of flowers and greenery amid broken windows and shattered glass, the result of intense gun battles and homes being set on fire by the Hamas invaders as they attempted to flush residents out on that October day 14 months ago.

Edwards said she had written to the Palestinian Authority — which governs parts of the West Bank, and does not have a presence in Gaza — about independent and verifiable reports of sexual torture and violence that occurred on October 7. It was not immediately clear whether Edwards made any reference to Hamas or other terror groups that participated in the attack.

In March, the UN envoy on sex crimes during conflict presented a report at the UN indicating that rape and gang rape likely occurred during the onslaught, that “clear and convincing” evidence shows that hostages were raped while being held in Gaza, and that those currently held captive are still facing such abuse.


Ilana Gritzewsky, fighting for hostage boyfriend, knows Hamas captivity firsthand
Ilana Gritzewsky is fighting a battle against time to save her boyfriend from Hamas captivity.

While there is reported to be progress toward a deal to free the remaining captives in phases, Matan Zangauker would likely not be released in the first stage since he is a young man. Gritzewsky is terrified a deal could break down or he could die in captivity before he’s freed.

Gritzewsky knows first-hand the perils facing her boyfriend, who turned 25 on Wednesday. During the Hamas-led attack last year that started the ongoing war, she too was kidnapped, and was held hostage in the Gaza Strip for 55 days.

Last November, Gritzewsky was released along with 104 other civilian hostages, in exchange for a weeklong truce and the release of hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners. In the thirteen months since, several waves of negotiations have stalled and failed to reach another deal.

“All the hostages need to get out,” Gritzewsky said. “If we don’t release all of the hostages — all the hostages in captivity — they will be dead.”

Many relatives of people held in Gaza find no reprieve in reports that negotiations toward a deal are progressing. The renewed ceasefire talks are just the latest twist in what’s been more than 14 months of anguish, despair and uncertainty about their loved ones’ fates. Still, they dedicate themselves to lobbying for their loved ones’ freedom, even as the world moves on to other crises.

“I gave my promise to my friends from the kibbutz in the tunnels before I went home. I told them I will do everything, everything I have to, to take them out from that hell. And I ask all the time: Am I doing everything I can?” said Gritzewsky, 31.

It is believed that 96 of the 251 hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7 remain in Gaza, including the bodies of at least 34 confirmed dead by the Israel Defense Forces. Hamas is also holding two Israeli civilians who entered the Strip in 2014 and 2015, as well as the bodies of two IDF soldiers who were killed in 2014.


JNF: IsraelCast | Col. Richard Kemp

The Israel Guys: Yemen Just Fired A BALLISTIC Missile at Israel and the US Responded in FORCE
Yemen fired a ballistic missile towards Tel Aviv yesterday but was thankfully intercepted. In retaliation, the U.S. struck a key Houthi command center in Yemen, as Israel preps for more potential operations.

Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump is considering military action to stop Iran’s nuclear ambitions, including possible airstrikes.


The Israel Guys: The CRAZY Reason There Are STILL Hostages in GAZA| Insane Reality of Urban Warfare
Here's a question one of our viewers had: "How is it that Israel has not found all the hostages? We keep hearing that Hamas is crushed, defeated, impotent, etc. If this is actually true, then how can the hostages still be captured, guarded, and hidden? Please explain."


Unpacked Podcasts: Zach Sage Fox Is Teaching Truth Through Humor
Zach Sage Fox talks to Elon about having his bar mitzvah, going to rehab, and starting stand-up all in middle school, shares his near-death experience in the West Bank, and opens up about the importance of therapy and healing from an eating disorder.

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
08:09 Path to becoming a viral sensation
13:00 Multimedia company
13:33 Concerns about Gen Z ignorance
15:02 Trip to the West Bank
21:21 Favorite Jewish holiday
22:02 Coping with an eating disorder
25:51 Biggest vice
26:47 Getting therapy
32:01 Adam Sandler's silence on antisemitism
34:32 Sasha Baron Cohen
35:47 Yiddish word of the week
45:31 Working for what you want
46:42 Live show announcements
49:04 Outro


"What I Smell Is FEAR" Israel-Palestine Conflict Latest
Over the past 12 months, the status quo in the Middle East has been utterly destroyed, and a new, more dangerous situation on the ground has emerged. While bullets fly and bombs drop, the state that has consistently made gains has been Israel, no doubt due to its support from the West. The Jewish state has seen its enemies in Palestine and Syria evaporate, while simultaneously weakening Iran. This begs the question, has Israel basically won?

To discuss the continuing conflicts and the future of the region, Piers Morgan engages with a plethora of minds keenly focused on the subject of Israel. These are General Secretary and co-founder of the Palestinian National Initiative Mustafa Barghouti, former IDF spokesperson Jonathan Conricus, co-host of the ‘Useful Idiots’ podcast Aaron Maté, Iranian academic Mohammad Marandi and father of former Hamas hostage Emily Hand, Thomas Hand.

00:00 - Tease
01:09 - Introduction
02:44 - Barghouti: Netanyahu is a war criminal
04:39 - Barghouti on downfall of Bashar Al Assad
13:34 - Conricus and Maté join the debate
17:09 - The media’s role in the Israel-Gaza war
20:19 - Have Palestinians walked away from a peace deal?
29:19 - Marandi on Iran’s role in the Middle East
29:44 - Where does this leave President Trump?
39:09 - Should we be concerned about Iran?
50:09 - Hand on hostages, Israel's response and how his daughter Emily is doing




Foxx praises passage of Never Again Education Reauthorization Act
Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), chair of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, lauded the passage of the Never Again Education Reauthorization Act of 2023.

“Expanding the presence of Holocaust education programs in schools will increase the knowledge of basic facts related to the Holocaust, and that’s important,” Foxx said on the House floor.

“But more importantly, it will give high school schools optional resources to help provide students a greater understanding of the ancient scourge of antisemitism and provide them intellectual and moral tools to fight against it and to prevent genocide, hate, and bigotry against any group of people,” she added.

The legislation, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday, reauthorizes a United States Holocaust Memorial Museum program that provides funding and resources for schools to properly educate students about the horrors of the Holocaust. Funding will be extended for the program through Fiscal Year 2030.

Foxx said the Hamas-led terror attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, marked “the worst day in Jewish history since the Holocaust.” This legislation, she said, “will ensure that the lessons of history are not forgotten in these troubling times.”

Rep. Earl “Buddy” Carter (R-Ga.), sponsor of the House companion bill, said following the legislation’s passage that “we must speak out against hate and educate our students on the history of antisemitism to ensure that the horrors of the Holocaust are never repeated.”

In his remarks, Carter noted the “staggering” rise of antisemitic incidents on college campuses, highlighting the “morally reprehensible” demonstrations seen at Columbia University, Harvard University and George Washington University.

“We must set a better example than that for our children, and the recent pro-Hamas demonstrations happening at colleges and high schools across the nation are proof of that,” he added.

“When we say, ‘never again,’ we mean it,” Carter said.


Police accused of ignoring criminality at JW3 protest
The Metropolitan Police have been accused of failing to combat open criminality during an anti-Israel demonstration at JW3 in north London, sparking fresh outrage over how the police has handled Palestine protests.

Acting for a local resident, top criminal barrister Jeremy Dein KC has written to the Met to question its response to the October 27 protest, when a Haaretz conference at the West Hampstead Jewish cultural centre was besieged by demonstrators, reducing Jewish attendees to tears.

In a scathing 17-page letter seen by the JC, Dein outlined “substantial and extensive grounds” for police intervention, alleging that multiple offences were committed outside JW3 in clear view of the police, including race-based harassment and breaches of the Public Order and Terrorism Acts.

Between 50 and 150 demonstrators, many masked, chanted slogans such as “baby killers not welcome here” outside the conference. At least one elderly woman openly wept and the noise disrupted the pro-peace event. After being instructed by a resident who attended a pro-Israel counter-protest, Dein suggests that a “mob-like atmosphere” outside JW3 could have been avoided if the police had enforced the law. The Community Security Trust (CST) welcomed the KC’s intervention, describing the protest as “an appalling example of hatred and abuse”.

A spokesperson for the CST said they believed that multiple offences had been committed at the protest and urged the Met to launch a full investigation.

In his letter, the barrister accused the Met of ignoring the concerns of the public and exacerbating their trauma by treating victims more harshly than alleged perpetrators. He argued that officers prioritised the demonstrators’ rights over the safety of JW3 attendees, leaving the Jewish community vulnerable.

He accused the force of being “ill-equipped” to distinguish between legitimate protest and criminal behaviour.

“Police were confronted on the one hand with an innocent group of people seeking to go about their business in an entirely legitimate fashion, whilst on the other having to grapple with an aggressive and intimidating group, purporting to be peacefully protesting,” he wrote.

“There was clear, repeated, diverse, and fundamental infringement of the Jewish public’s business.”




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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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