Tuesday, December 24, 2024

12/24 Links Pt1: Why the American Right Still Sides with Israel; Freed Israeli hostage Hannah Katzir dies, 78; UN Fakes Gaza Famine by Refusing to Deliver Food

From Ian:

Why the American Right Still Sides with Israel
Written in response to controversies surrounding the conservative journalist Joseph Sobran and the then-presidential hopeful Pat Buchanan, William F. Buckley’s In Search of Anti-Semitism rings eerily familiar today: its subjects leveled outlandish and conspiratorial charges against Israel, especially regarding its wartime conduct, and then hollered with outrage when accused of anti-Semitism, insisting they were victims of a nefarious Jewish plot to silence them. Many of the subtle and persuasive arguments deployed by Buckley against his fellow conservatives could be harnessed against the anti-Israel left today.

Meir Soloveichik considers the fact that, although the American right has since 2016 moved in a populist, Buchananite direction, it has only become more supportive of Israel:

Many religious conservatives are still driven by a belief that the story of Israel is a miraculous fulfillment of prophetic promises to the Jewish people. Moreover, what unites conservatives today is a detestation of wokeism and its anti-American creed; and it has become increasingly clear that woke-progressive hatred of Israel goes hand in hand with hatred of America. Many instinctively understand that a defeat of the enemies of the Jewish people is itself a victory for America.

This despite some notable exceptions, most importantly the Internet television host Tucker Carlson:

In the wake of the October 7 massacre, Carlson criticized Ben Shapiro for speaking so frequently about Israel, charging that this focus on another country meant that Shapiro did not truly love America. Not long after that, Carlson hosted and lauded a “historian” who claimed that Churchill, rather than Hitler, was the true villain of World War II, and that the death of countless Jews in the camps was a result of lack of preparation by the Germans.

Yet despite Carlson’s purported influence in the incoming administration, the cabinet that has emerged so far looks to be the most pro-Israel one in American history. . . . Trump’s pro-Israel stand seems to have only helped his electoral prospects. In the end, contra Buchanan, many political figures are pro-Israel not because Congress is “Israel-occupied territory,” [in Buchanan’s words], but rather because many Americans care about Israel’s future, and about the well-being of Jews.
Father of former hostage Emily Hand will not return to Ireland after it 'rewarded Hamas'
News of the embassy’s closure did not come as a surprise to Hand.

“I expected them to do it a lot earlier,” he said, because Israel regards Ireland as doing “too many anti-Israel things.”

Father and daughter are from Kibbutz Be’eri, which was the site of some of the worst horrors on October 7 and where 101 people were murdered. That day Hand was at his home on the kibbutz, while his daughter was on a sleepover at a friend’s house nearby.

Ireland’s recognition of a Palestinian state has come in for some harsh criticism from Hand.

“Recognizing Palestine as a state, very soon after their massive terrorist attack – it was almost a reward,” he said. “They [the Irish government] must have seen all the atrocious videos that Hamas put online themselves and yet they were recognised. For me personally, it looked like they were being rewarded for what they did.”

Hand, who like his daughter is a dual Israeli-Irish citizen, was not happy about the embassy’s closure as he believes cutting the lines for diplomacy is “never a good thing." “But I guess they had to show some kind of sign that we’re not very happy with the decisions being made by the Irish government,” he said.

Born and raised Catholic he now describes himself as an atheist and said he would “probably hesitate” before returning to Ireland due to the strength of anti-Israel feeling. “I’m pretty well recognized nowadays. I could be very easily attacked,” he said, as he recalled coming face to face with anti-Israel demonstrators while in Ireland.

The problem, he believes, is deeply entrenched.

“They [the Irish] simply don’t understand the history of the place. Myself, before I came here, I had Palestinian sympathies – I was a sympathizer.”

But living in Be’eri, just a few kilometers from Gaza, changed his outlook.

“They fired thousands and thousands and thousands of rockets at us continuously,” he said.

“Ireland mistakenly sees Israel as the super power, the strength, the oppressor and of course they have sympathies for the Palestinian people,” he said. “Well, if they understood the history of the place, they’d realise there is no comparison.”
Freed Israeli hostage Hannah Katzir dies, 78
Hannah Katzir, who was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz in southern Israel during Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre and freed in November of that year as part of a hostage exchange with Hamas, died on Monday night at the age of 78, the kibbutz confirmed on Tuesday.

“With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of our member, Hannah Katzir of blessed memory, following a prolonged battle with complex medical complications after her release from captivity,” the statement read.

Her funeral is scheduled for Tuesday at 4 p.m. in Kibbutz Nir Oz.

Katzir’s husband, Rami, was killed during the Oct. 7 invasion. Their son, Elad, abducted alongside her by Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists, was killed in captivity in Gaza in January. His body was recovered in April during an Israel Defense Forces operation in Khan Younis.

Hannah was released on Nov. 24 as part of a hostage deal that freed 12 other women and children that day. By the end of the six-day truce on Nov. 30, a total of 105 captives had been released.

Days before her release, PIJ falsely claimed she had died in captivity. She had previously appeared in a propaganda video on Nov. 9, with the terror group later stating she would be freed due to humanitarian concerns.

Hannah’s daughter, Carmit Palti Katzir, recently testified before a Knesset committee about her mother’s declining health following her release, as reported by Kan News.

“My wife Sara and I are deeply saddened by the passing of Hannah Katzir, of blessed memory, a survivor of Hamas captivity, who passed away after a year-long battle for her life,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement on Tuesday.

“We succeeded in bringing Hannah home, who was brutally kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7, but her body and soul carried the scars of horror until her last day. We embrace the Katzir family and are committed to doing everything in our power and continuing to work tirelessly until we bring all our hostages home,” Netanyahu continued.


An Absence at Auschwitz On January 27, there will be a ceremony commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz at the site of the death camp, attended by survivors and such dignitaries as King Charles II. Benjamin Netanyahu, however, will not be attending, as the Polish government has announced that if he does it will arrest him, pursuant to a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The editors of the New York Sun comment:

That threat came without Prime Minister Netanyahu even asking, amid a war Israel is fighting against, among others, Palestinian Arabs whose World War II-era leader sided with Hitler. . . . As Israel noted in a recent filing at the Hague, it is not a party to the Rome Statute that established the criminal court, so the ICC has no jurisdiction over its citizens. Why would Poland disagree on such a fundamental and commonsense rule?

The answer is rooted less in jurisprudence than in geopolitics. . . . Poland is eager to arrest President Putin of its rival Russia, who is wanted by the ICC. So to be consistent, it must also arrest the Israeli leader.

All of which underlines the capricious nature of what is called international jurisprudence. Kafkaesque rules allow a country that is fighting Iranian proxies who commit crimes against humanity to be accused of committing such crimes. . . . A gathering of leaders at Auschwitz will be meaningless without, in Benjamin Netanyahu, the one world leader with the clearest standing to speak there.

Ben-Dror Yemini: Yes, it's an antisemitic report
A senior reserve officer, who has been serving almost non-stop since October 7 in both Gaza and Lebanon, called to say he was in shock. He read an article published by Nir Hasson in Israeli daily Haaretz about a report written by Dr. Lee Mordechai accusing Israel of genocide.

"It's a blood libel," he told me. "You have to pick up the gauntlet," he asked. "I've been with the soldiers for hundreds of days," he said. "There are exceptions. But there is no genocide. It is impossible to leave such a report without a response."

There are countless reports against Israel. But Mordechai's report surpassed them all. The man who wrote a megaplot became a megastar. The report received enormous circulation—4.6 million exposures. After receiving more and more references to this report, I read it.

Well, this report is another barrel of oil for the fire of hatred. The enthusiasm comes from Mordechai's kind. Haaretz journalist Hasson has written in the past that in his view, terrorists are "heroes." Now he has another hero. Mordechai also has a hero. At the very beginning of the report, he admits: "I was inspired by Prof. John Mearsheimer." The man gained worldwide fame after he co-authored, together with Prof. Stephen Walt, the book on the Jewish lobby.

In the sane days of Haaretz, the book was defined as a "shameful document" that was close in spirit to the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. The Washington Post, not particularly known to be a pillar of Zionism, also published a review of the book under the headline: "Yes, It's Anti-Semitic."

Mearsheimer is also a hero of David Duke, the former leader of the Ku Klux Klan, a notorious antisemite. Mearsheimer also has a hero. He published a book recommendation by one Gilad Atzmon—a Jew, a former Israeli, and especially an avowed antisemite, who claims that "the Jews are trying to take over the world... We need to re-examine the allegations about Jews who used blood to make matzah."

With boundless arrogance, Mordechai claims, "My work on this document is very similar in nature to the professional work I conduct daily." A strange claim considering the most cited source in the report, nearly 500 times, is posts on X (formerly Twitter). In second place—Haaretz, with 200 mentions. The report does not refer to a single serious study. Only one, which proves something.

So Mordechai turns to any dubious source. For example, there are 38 references to the EuroMed monitor which is headed by Prof. Richard Falk. Falk, who served as a rapporteur on the UN Human Rights Council, has made a variety of antisemitic statements, including that "the Jewish people have decided to destroy human civilization."


Albanese calls anti-Israel film ‘must-watch,’ links to Falun Gong music video
If at first you don’t succeed in promoting an anti-Israel film, try again.

Francesca Albanese, special rapporteur for the Palestinians at the United Nations who has a long history of attacking the Jewish state, wrote at 5:20 p.m. Eastern time on Monday that the film “Israelism” is a “must-watch.”

In the since-deleted post, Albanese wrote that “it shows” that “many Jewish people worldwide, unconditionally in love with Israel, live a lie” and “premised upon the invisibilization/erasure of the Palestinians, Isreel’s [sic] lie today is leading to a genocide.”

“What a disgraceful epilogue,” she added.

The anti-Israel film that she recommended purports to detail the experiences of Simone Zimmerman, the founder of IfNotNow, an organization that opposes Israel’s existence and which stated after Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attacks that “we cannot and will not say today’s actions by Palestinian militants are unprovoked.”

The film also follows an Israeli soldier, who criticizes Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.

IfNotNow has been a sponsor of the antisemitic protests by Hamas supporters which have disrupted Columbia University’s campus since last fall.

But instead of linking to the film, as Albanese did in a subsequent post, she shared a dance performance by the anti-communist China group Shen Yun, which is tied to the Falun Gong movement. (The group’s social media handle has four pro-Israel posts, all in 2018, when it performed in Tel Aviv.)

The new post spells “Israel” correctly and adds a reference to the Jewish state’s “founding ideology” being a lie.

As a special rapporteur, Albanese has an independent mandate and doesn’t report to anyone in the U.N. system.

Multiple U.S. ambassadors and the French and German governments have accused Albanese of Jew-hatred, including for comparing Israel to Nazi Germany and stating that Hamas wasn’t motivated by antisemitism when it attacked Israel on Oct. 7.


Kassy Akiva: Drone That Caught Yahya Sinwar Was Donated By New Jersey Jews Says IDF Captain
American Israeli Defense Forces reservist Chaim Meisels didn’t just fly from New York to Israel on October 7, 2023, to fight against Hamas — he also helped the IDF acquire the drone that located Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.

Sinwar, 61, was killed in October after the drone detected a group of militants moving between buildings. The drone helped pinpoint the terrorists’ location, leading to a firefight and the terrorists splitting up before being killed. Sinwar ran alone into a building and was eventually killed.

Sinwar’s final moments were captured by another drone, which recorded him sitting with his head covered and throwing what appears to be a stick at the device. The IDF was not immediately aware that Sinwar was part of the group of militants.

The first drone, donated by a group in New Jersey, was a DJI Mavic equipped with thermal imaging and primarily used for general observation. The second drone, a DJI Avata, was donated by London fashion designer Hannah Lancry Sufrin, and is designed for navigating small spaces, such as entering buildings through windows, according to Meisels. Lancry told The Daily Wire she has raised close to half a million dollars since the war began to assist with getting supplies to the IDF.
Seth Frantzman: It will take more than words to stop Houthis
In Lebanon, Hezbollah has been weakened, but it still exists. It may have lost leaders and weapons, but it would be foolish to think it has vanished. Is Hezbollah weaker today than in 2006? It may regrow itself.

Similarly, Israeli officials have taken credit for the fall of Bashar al-Assad, but the reality is that Assad fell because of his own hollow regime and the ability of the opposition to mobilize and take advantage of the weakening of Hezbollah.

Lastly, the lessons of Israel’s strikes on Iran are not yet clear.

The Houthis present a challenge, and the lessons from other fronts may not be applicable in Yemen. Clearly, whatever path forward is chosen, the Houthis will need to suffer more serious blows because, currently, they feel emboldened.

The fact that millions of people in central Israel are now forced into shelters every two nights is not an acceptable way to live. Rather than boasting about defeats of the enemy, it would be better to consider that Israel has been put in a vulnerable situation because of the increased power of its enemies.
Israel intercepts Houthi missile as sirens wail across central Israel
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired another ballistic missile at Israel early Tuesday morning, triggering sirens across the center of the country as well as in southern Israel, for the third time in less than a week.

The Israel Defense Forces said it managed to intercept the missile before it entered Israeli airspace.

According to a military source, the projectile was shot down using the long-range Arrow air defense system, which is designed to take out ballistic missiles outside of the atmosphere.

Sirens were triggered across central Israel — between Herzliya and Ashdod — as well as in several towns east of Beersheba, as a precaution due to the possibility of fragments landing inside Israeli territory following the interception, the military said.

The Magen David Adom emergency medical service said it did not receive any reports of injuries due to fallen missile or interceptor fragments.

However, a 60-year-old woman fell while running to a shelter in Tel Aviv and was taken to the city’s Ichilov Hospital in serious condition, MDA said.

At least 25 people were treated for minor injuries after falling while running to the shelter or due to anxiety attacks caused by the missile sirens, MDA added.

Shortly after the launch, senior Houthi official Hezam al-Asad tweeted that such attacks would continue “until the aggression against our people in Gaza stops.”


‘Jewish plotters’ crushed to death in Der Sturmer-like video clip from Yemen
Stereotypical Jews scheming to take over the world find themselves crushed under the wheels of a truck - thus depicts a new music video launched by popular Yemeni comedian, Mustafa Al-Momri.

Al-Momri, whose social media accounts boast over 4 million followers across all popular platforms, including YouTube, X, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, released the video only a couple of days ago, but it already garnered almost one million views.

The song titled “The Hebrew Dream” in Arabic and “The Israeli Dream” in English depicts a scene of stereotypical Jews plotting to conquer Arab lands as if to achieve the faux ‘Greater Israel between the Nile and the Euphrates,’ a conspiracy theory especially prominent in the Arab world, which has been propagated by politicians, academics and media personalities alike for the past decades.

“Arab lands belong to us… we’ll make their leaders (our) puppets,” read some of the lines in the song. The clip also shows a stereotypical Jew providing Arab youth with alcoholic beverages, which are prohibited in Islam, singing “when the generation becomes drunk, we’ll control them all.”

It also propagates the trope of Jewish control over media, accusing Saudi channel Al-Arabiya of fostering “a Hebrew spirit”.


Russian Cargo Ship On ‘Syria Mission’ Sinks in Mediterranean After Engine Room Explosion
A Russian cargo ship on its way to Syria sank in the Mediterranean Sea on Monday after an explosion in its engine room. Ukrainian military intelligence claims the ship had been sent to collect Russian weapons and military gear from Syria after the fall of Moscow-supported dictator Bashar Assad.

The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed the ship, which was named Ursa Major, sank in the Mediterranean south of Spain after passing through the Strait of Gibraltar. Fourteen members of the crew were rescued and taken to a port in Spain, while two remain unaccounted for.

The Ursa Major was the flagship vessel for a Russian shipping company called Oboronlogistika, which frequently carries cargo for the Russian Defense Ministry. Bloomberg News on Tuesday described it as “the biggest cargo ship belonging to the Russian military’s logistics fleet.”

Oboronlogistika and many of its ships, including Ursa Major, were sanctioned by the U.S. State Department in May 2022 for helping to resupply Russian troops involved in the illegal occupation of Crimea.

A press release from Oboronlogistika claimed the ship was en route to Vladivostok with two large cranes that would be used for civilian port construction, but Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (commonly known by its Ukrainian acronym GUR) claimed the Ursa Major was in fact bound for Syria, where it would collect Russian weapons and military equipment from the port of Tartus.

Tartus is Russia’s only refueling port on the Mediterranean. It was originally built in 1977 under the first Assad dictator, Hafez al-Assad, and was neglected after the fall of the Soviet Union until 2015, when Russia intervened on behalf of Hafez’s son Bashar in the Syrian civil war.

Russia signed a 49-year lease for the port with Bashar Assad’s government in 2019, a lease that appears to have become null and void after Assad was driven out of Damascus by rebels on December 8. The victorious Islamist rebels of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) have yet to make an official statement about whether Russia will required to vacate the Tartus naval base.


Counter-terrorism op: Security forces arrest 18 wanted persons in West
Security forces arrested 18 wanted persons overnight and confiscated weapons across the West Bank, the military said on Tuesday.

The IDF added that in Tulkarm, troops eliminated a terrorist in close-quarters combat and were continuing to operate to thwart terror activities in the area.

Palestinian news agency WAFA said a man named Fathi Saeed Odeh Salem died after snipers shot him. It added that Israeli forces allegedly prevented ambulance crews from reaching Salem by opening fire on him.

In Nablus, the troops shot at a terrorist who attempted to flee and thwarted him.

WAFA also said Israeli bulldozers demolished infrastructure in the camp, including homes, shops, part of the walls of Al-Salam mosque, which they barricaded off, and part of the camp's water network.

Overnight operations in the West Bank
This comes after an additional round of arrests in the West Bank on Monday, in which IDF troops and Shin Bet officers arrested nine wanted persons during an overnight operation.

Troops also confiscated weapons and military equipment, which were transferred along with the suspects to the security forces.


IDF conducts targeted raid against terrorists operating at northern Gaza hospital
The Israel Defense Forces wrapped up a targeted counter-terror operation at the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza, between Jabaliya and Beit Hanun, the military announced on Tuesday night.

Troops of the IDF’s Givati Brigade launched the raid overnight on Monday after intelligence provided by the Military Intelligence Directorate and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) indicated “the presence of terrorists and terror infrastructures in the area of ​​the hospital,” the IDF stated.

The Israeli military said at least five gunmen were killed and several more were arrested during the hours-long operation, including a terrorist who participated in the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

During the past month, the premises of the Indonesian Hospital were repeatedly used to attack Israeli troops, including with anti-tank fire. The military said Hamas also planted explosive devices in the area.

To mitigate possible harm to noncombatants, the IDF said it “enabled and facilitated the secure evacuation of civilians, medical personnel, and patients from the area both before and during the operation.”

“The operation was conducted after multiple warnings were issued to the [Hamas-run] Gaza health ministry regarding terrorist activity being conducted inside the hospital,” the military statement continued.

Also on Tuesday, Israeli Air Force fighter jets struck a Hamas rocket-launching pad in the Al-Shati Camp on the northern Gaza coast. The strike near a United Nations structure was carried out after the IDF called on noncombatants to leave the area, according to a statement.

Footage published by the Israeli military showed a Hamas terrorist rocket flying out of the launch site following the IAF airstrike.


UN Fakes Gaza Famine by Refusing to Deliver Food
Why isn’t the food being delivered? Because the UN only wants Hamas to be able to deliver it.

The New York Times comes closest to admitting what’s going on in its latest article.

The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said this month that it would no longer deliver aid through Kerem Shalom, the main border crossing between Israel and southern Gaza, because of the breakdown in law and order.

Hundreds of truckloads of relief are piling up at the crossing in part because aid groups fear they will be looted.

Remember all the claims that UNRWA, which is filled top to bottom with terrorists, is the only thing standing between the Arab Muslim colony in Gaza and death?

UNRWA won’t even deliver food. Why not?

The situation in Gaza deteriorated after the Israeli military invaded Rafah in May, seeking to oust Hamas from one of its final strongholds. Hamas’s security forces fled, and organized gangs — with no one stopping them — began intercepting aid trucks as they headed from the main border crossing into southern Gaza. They are stealing flour, oil and other commodities and selling them at astronomical prices, aid groups and residents say.

The actual choice here is between the ‘armed gangs’ (many of whom consist of the same people as Hamas) taking the aid and reselling it at astronomical prices… or Hamas seizing the aid and reselling it at astronomical prices.

And, unsurprisingly, the UN prefers that Hamas seize the aid.

A third option would be for Israel to provide security for food deliveries, but the UN rejects that.

International aid workers have accused Israel of ignoring the problem and allowing looters to act with impunity.

The United Nations does not allow Israeli soldiers to protect aid convoys, fearing that would compromise its neutrality, and its officials have called on Israel to allow the Gaza police, which are under Hamas’s authority, to secure their convoys.

Israel, which seeks to uproot Hamas, accuses the group of stealing international aid and says that the police are just another arm of the militant group

The UN refuses to allow Israel to protect aid convoys. It wants only Hamas to protect them. Then it blames Israel when the convoys are raided because its goal is to preserve Hamas authority.

Read that again.

The UN is refusing to conduct food deliveries in order to manufacture a famine in Gaza with the aim of preserving Hamas.


Monday Marks Day 445 for Hostages in Gaza — Longer Than the Iranian Hostages
On November 4, 1979, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s henchmen stormed the US embassy in Tehran and held Americans hostage for 444 days, releasing them on January 20, 1981. On October 7, 2023, Hamas storm troopers and Gazan civilians paraglided and marched into Israel and took hundreds of American and Israeli hostages after killing over 1,200.

Comparing the two situations shows how much has changed in the last four decades — none of it for the better.

Hostages, Then and Now

The Americans taken hostage by Khomeini’s followers were all adults working at the US embassy. The captives in Gaza today, both male and female, range from infants to the aged. One hostage, Kfir Bibas, born on January 18, 2023, was only 262 days old when he was stolen from his bed. He celebrated his first birthday as a hostage and has spent the majority of his life as a Hamas prisoner.

Some of the American diplomats were beaten during and after the November 4 siege of the US embassy. They were undoubtedly held in inhumane conditions and sometimes threatened with execution. But unlike those seized on October 7, not one was executed. Not a single one was raped.

After the first few days of their captivity, unless they were being moved from one location to another or paraded in the street, the American diplomats were not blindfolded. Aside from when they were kept periodically in a damp, windowless warehouse on the embassy grounds, which the hostages named “The Mushroom Inn,” they could see outside.

Hamas’ hostages, on the other hand, have likely been kept underground in the maze of tunnels that constitute subterranean Gaza for most of their 445 days of captivity. Many have likely not seen the sun in all that time. They have been severely beaten.

On November 17, 1979, Khomeini ordered the female and African-American hostages released because “Islam has a special respect toward women” and because blacks had been forced to suffer “under American pressure and tyranny.” Some of the women released by Hamas in the November 2023 ceasefire were sexually assaulted and constantly intimidated.
Impossible to reach a deal without Hamas delivering list of living hostages, Israeli official says
“Hamas has yet to deliver the list of hostages who are alive – without it, it’s impossible to reach a deal,” an Israeli official told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.

The official added that although the mediators are pressing hard on Hamas to deliver the list, it seems that Mohammed Sinwar, one of the most prominent figures of Hamas in Gaza and the brother of Yahya Sinwar, is refusing to hand over the list.

Sinwar is believed to have taken over from his brother as leader of Hamas since Yahya was killed by IDF personnel on October 16.

“It’s still possible to continue talking and advancing some issues without the list, but it will be impossible to reach a breakthrough without it,” the official said.

The PMO issued a statement that a working-group delegation is returning from Qatar after more than a week.

“It was a long negotiation, and now there will be consultations,” the official said. “There has been some progress in the talks, but it doesn’t seem a deal is going to be reached soon.”

A senior Israeli official cited in a Walla report clarified that the recall of the team “is not due to a breakdown in negotiations.”
Daughter of Slain Terrorist Arrested for Swearing Allegiance to Hamas
A resident of the Shuafat neighborhood in northeastern Jerusalem was arrested after she swore loyalty to slain Hamas terrorist leader Yahya Sinwar, the Israel Police said after initial charges were filed on Sunday.

The suspect was identified as the daughter of Barakat Odeh, a terrorist who was killed by police forces while carrying out a ramming attack near the Dead Sea on Oct. 30, 2022, wounding five IDF soldiers.

According to the police, the terrorist’s daughter managed accounts on several social networks under the name “Martyr Barakat Odeh,” which celebrated and glorified Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups.

Among her alleged social media posts were pictures of Sinwar and Hamas “political” leader Ismail Haniyeh, along with the caption, ‘We swear allegiance to you, Abu Ibrahim [i.e., Sinwar],” according to the police.

The suspect was also said to have mourned Zakaria Zubeidi—the Jenin chief of Fatah’s armed terrorist wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, during the Second Intifada—and Ibrahim Nabulsi, who led a Nablus terrorist cell.

The suspect’s pre-trial detention was extended until Monday as prosecutors prepared to submit a formal indictment against her.
IDF probe finds no fault in actions leading to hostages’ deaths in Gaza
The IDF on Tuesday released its final probe regarding Hamas’s killing and the IDF’s finding of six hostages on August 31 in a tunnel at Tel Sultan in Rafah in southern Gaza.

According to the IDF, its military actions in Tel Sultan were not deficient, though the military has also concluded that those actions did likely lead the Hamas terrorists guarding the hostages to execute them.

The six hostages – Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, Alexander Lobanov, and Ori Danino – who had been held by Hamas since October 7, were likely slaughtered by Hamas shortly before the IDF got to them.

The bodies were discovered only one kilometer from where Bedouin hostage Qaid Farhan Alkadi was found four days earlier.

All of these hostage events came after the military set up a command center in Tel Sultan on August 15 to finish off the remainder of Hamas’s forces in the area.

Unsure on Sinwar's orders
Since Alkadi, 52, had been found, the IDF put out instructions to be extra careful in the area. It is possible that Hamas killed the six, knowing that the military was close by and that the hostages might be taken by the IDF alive.

The military is still unsure whether then-Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar gave the order to kill the hostages, though it said he had been nearby.

On September 12, The Jerusalem Post visited the tunnel shaft in Tel Sultan, where the six bodies were found.

At different points, the IDF has said the six were killed on August 28 and, at times, on August 29.

The shaft, which was in a children’s area, still showed pictures of Mickey Mouse, Snow White, and the word “LOVE” in English prominently displayed on one of the partially broken walls next to it.

Multiple buildings around the area were still standing, though many had been damaged by the IDF’s need to remove items that would have obstructed exhuming the bodies.

The area was extremely well-hidden, off from the main road.

IDF sources said that although the military had believed there might be hostages in the general area, at the time in late August when they were maneuvering in the area, the chances of hostages being there had dropped significantly.


Katz orders IDF to release full October 7 recordings of slain surveillance soldiers
Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday that he has ordered the IDF to provide the families of surveillance soldiers killed or abducted in Hamas’s October 7, 2023, onslaught with the full recordings of their last radio communications, after the army sent them apparently edited versions.

In a statement issued by his office, Katz said he told the army to provide the families with the full recordings, “with the exception of limited sections that are restricted due to clear security reasons, and this is due to the need for full transparency with the families.”

The IDF already said earlier that some portions of the recordings were removed due to privacy concerns, as the omitted sections included conversations with combat soldiers.

“The IDF is committed to the bereaved families, and does not hide any information from them,” the military said in a new statement following Katz’s comments.

The military said it sent the families the recordings on Monday, after several re-examinations of the audio. It added that the tapes sent to the families only include those in which the voices of the surveillance soldiers can be heard.

The IDF also said it would allow all of the families to coordinate visits to the military to hear the entire recordings, adding that it has “no intention of causing further suffering to the families and is sorry for any harm was caused.”


Gaza protesters ejected from Limmud event with Israeli envoy Hotovely
Heads of Limmud have slammed a protest which took place yesterday when the Israeli Ambassador came to speak at the festival.

Around 30 Limmud participants stood in silence, with their backs to Tzipi Hotovely, holding posters saying: “Ceasefire now” and “14,000 children killed”. They were quickly asked to leave by security.

Hotovely had been about to start a conversation with Michael Wegier, CEO of the Board of Deputies, when the demonstrators stood up.

Their actions were strongly condemned by Limmud executive director Adam Rossano, who said “there is no place for disruption like this at Limmud Festival”.

He told the JC: “The protesters were disruptive to the session, so they were asked to allow the session to continue or to leave. The protest dissipated quickly, and the session was able to go ahead.

“There is no place for disruption like this at Limmud Festival - we prefer those who disagree with one another to engage in constructive dialogue and debate. We do not participate in legitimising or de-legitimising any religious or political position found in the worldwide Jewish community.”

Sarah (not her real name), one of the protesters, said that she had been disappointed that Hotovely had been invited to speak, saying that festival organisers had crossed a “red line”.

“She is at odds with Limmud’s values of pluralism,” she told the JC, adding that the ambassador’s views were also “at odds with the majority of the Jewish community in the UK”.

Most of the protesters were believed to be connected to far-left Na’amod movement, a Jewish organisation, which seeks “to end our community’s support for Israel's occupation and apartheid”.
War W/ Houthis Explodes After Tel Aviv Attack | JLMinute
In the latest attack from Yemen, a Houthi missile landed in the Tel Aviv area, wounding 16. This happened only days after the Israel Defense Forces struck terrorist enclaves in Yemen in response to a missile that landed on a school in Ramat Gan.

What’s next and what do the U.S.-led strikes on the Houthis mean? JNS CEO and Jerusalem bureau chief Alex Traiman and Middle East correspondent Josh Hasten unpack this story and more, including Turkey’s incursion into Syria; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's fear of being arrested in Poland; and ongoing hostage negotiations with Hamas.


Is Iran About to Collapse? | The Quad
Another week in a new Middle East! Iran’s energy sector is crashing as Israel’s military advises to attack, Jerusalem's eighth war front opens in Syria and Turkey pushes for power amongst the chaos.

"The Quad" unpacks the news and what this means for the Jewish state.


Palestinians sue oil giant BP for supplying Israel during Gaza war
Palestinians affected by the Israel-Hamas War have initiated legal action against British oil giant BP, alleging its involvement in supplying crude oil to Israel facilitates human rights abuses.

The claimants submitted a legal notice accusing the company of violating international human rights laws and its own corporate policies, the Guardian reported on Monday.

At the heart of the dispute is the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, operated by BP, which carries oil from Azerbaijan through Georgia and Turkey to Israel. It reportedly supplies 28 percent of Israel's crude oil, a critical resource for its military operations.

According to the claim, oil refined from the pipeline is being used to fuel jets, tanks, and bulldozers.

"Israel relies heavily on crude oil and refined petroleum imports to run its large fleet of fighter jets, tanks, and other military vehicles and operations, as well as the bulldozers implicated in clearing Palestinian homes and olive groves to make way for unlawful Israeli settlements," the notice claimed.

Case alleges BP complicity
"Some fuel from refineries goes directly to the armed forces, while much of the rest appears to go to ordinary gas stations where military personnel can refuel their vehicles under a government contract."

The claimants want to take the case to a British court, citing BP's UK headquarters and the claimants' British ties.

The legal action argues that BP's operations breach the UN's Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which require companies to avoid contributing to human rights violations.


'Outrageous': Walmart slammed for Sinwar shirts in online store
American retail giant Walmart sparked controversy on Tuesday after shirts praising former Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar appeared to have been available for purchase on its online store.

“@Walmart, are you aware you’re selling apparel celebrating terrorism and violence against Jews?” StopAntisemitism, a nonprofit watchdog organization aimed at exposing and combating antisemitism, said on X/Twitter. “This is outrageous – remove them immediately.”

"This is outrageous—remove them immediately," the post added.

The Sinwar shirts have since appeared to be removed. However, tops featuring former Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah still seem to be available for purchase.

Sinwar was killed by IDF troops in the Gaza Strip in October, while Nasrallah was eliminated in an Israel Air Force strike in Beirut in September.

The individual selling the shirts at Walmart also offers for sale a shirt depicting a swastika on an American flag paired with the inscription “I don’t kneel.”
`



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