Tuesday, January 28, 2025

01/28 Links Pt1: Netanyahu is first foreign leader invited by Trump to White House; Hostages spent eight straight months in tunnels; Senate Democrats block ICC sanctions bill

From Ian:

Hamas May Be Cheering, But It Is Writhing in Pain
All the stories about how Hamas has swiftly recovered, replenished its depleted ranks with new recruits, and resumed governing contradict the realities on the ground. Hamas has not renewed any of its military capabilities and has not yet reestablished its battalions. Nor has it resumed rocket production or tunneling work. The new recruits in the displaced persons camps have not been given any real training. Its civilian apparatuses are operating on a very limited scale.

Countless tweets and videos show that the local population has learned that it can both hate Israel and despise Hamas. Several clans in southern Gaza have formed armed gangs that are prepared to clash with Hamas operatives. Hamas may have a large amount of money, but it has gotten that money by scalping goods at the civilian population's expense. Everyone knows this.

It is clear to Hamas officials that no serious sum of money is going to be given to rebuild devastated Gaza as long as they remain in control. They have been practically begging PA President Mahmoud Abbas to assume responsibility for administering Gaza, but the PA won't enter unless Hamas first disarms. Neither the Emiratis nor the Saudis will open their wallets, and Israel isn't about to let Qatar sneak its way in.

For those who have already begun to weep bitterly because Hamas survived and supposedly emerged with the upper hand, they should think again.
Seth Mandel: Qatar’s Bid to Destabilize Israeli Politics
We know, and have known for some time, that the live return of all the hostages was not on the table in December 2023. We also know that the positioning of Israeli troops was so different in December 2023 that in terms of the reality on the ground, the deal would not have looked anything like the deal that was signed earlier this month.

As a reminder, here is what then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a few weeks ago regarding the barriers to a deal:

“The two biggest impediments to getting that over the finish line — and we’ve been so close on several occasions and as we speak today, we’re also very close — there have been two major impediments, and they both go to what drives Hamas. One has been whenever there has been public daylight between the United States and Israel and the perception that pressure was growing on Israel, we’ve seen it: Hamas has pulled back from agreeing to a cease-fire and the release of hostages. And so there are times when what we say in private to Israel where we have a disagreement is one thing, and what we’re doing or saying in public may be another. But that’s in no small measure because with this daylight, the prospects of getting the hostage and cease-fire deal over the finish line become more distant.”

Scapegoating Israel for the lack of a deal is nothing more and nothing less than a form of diplomatic sabotage. It is what Hamas was doing then, and it is what Qatar is doing now.

But to what end? What’s the purpose of Qatari misbehavior at a time like this? The answer is that Qatar is playing games with Israel’s domestic politics. Emotions are, of course, raw. And that is especially so around the hostage deals, in which Hamas and its Western chorus line have succeeded in portraying Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the roadblock.

We know now that this wasn’t the case all along—we know now definitively that it was Hamas acting as Lucy pulling the football away from Charlie Brown each time. But we’ve known this for quite some time. Nonetheless, Israelis had one government they could petition: their own. That petitioning morphed over time, for many in the Israeli public, into an article of faith that Netanyahu was negotiating against himself. Hamas took advantage of this and poked and prodded at Israel’s internal divisions, tormenting families and constantly reopening wounds.

That is what Qatar is doing now. The Qataris want what Hamas wanted: the destabilization of Israeli politics. And so they portray Israel as the only party to the conflict with agency. And they are willing to continue doing so, even if it maximizes the suffering of grieving Israelis.
End America’s unwise alliance with Qatar
An alliance with the U.S. — specifically, a Major Non-NATO alliance — was once the most highly coveted relationship a nation could earn, a sacrosanct pact of mutual importance. But one such alliance is now a liability for both the U.S. and its long-time allies.

Qatar, our oil-wealthy “ally” in the Persian Gulf, is funding and harboring terrorists that not only threaten American forces but are attacking long-standing American allies. Worse yet, Doha believes this terrorist/ally balance is protected because the country hosts the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East.

A U.S. base should give America leverage with the country hosting it — it should not give leverage to Iran, in the case of Iraq; and it should not give leverage to Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis in the case of Qatar.

Qatar is counting on the proposition that hosting a strategically significant U.S. base insulates Doha from the repercussions of funding and supporting Hamas attacks against Israel and helping the terrorist organization survive to carry out more such attacks in the future —attacks promised by Hamas leaders from luxury hotels in Doha.

How did the Hamas political office end up in the capital of a U.S. ally? Qatar’s ambassador to the U.S. says the nation was asked by the Obama administration in 2012 to set up “indirect lines of communication” with Hamas. Doha gravely mistook the request. Qatar was certainly not asked to give Hamas billions of dollars, give its leaders a platform on Al Jazeera to call for jihad, and embed its reporters to film terrorist attacks.

There should be a cost: targeted sanctions and designations like those established by the Russian Elites, Proxies, and Oligarchs Task Force, which was set up to seize and reallocate assets to support the victims of Vladimir Putin’s aggression. The U.S. should seize assets tied to individuals and entities in Qatar for supporting terrorist groups, especially those tied to Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism. The U.S. should use those funds to replenish the U.S. Victims Of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund.

It’s time to put Doha on notice that they are jeopardizing their relationship with the U.S. by providing material support to designated terrorist groups. Qatar is clearly acting like a state sponsor of terror and should not be allowed to use the U.S. banking system to bypass existing, though not enforced, sanctions on funding Iran and its terrorist proxies.
The Real Humanitarians
Curiously, those in the West who most loudly claim to be champions of Palestinian human rights, international law, and a voice for the downtrodden have a bizarre double standard. The very people who are ordinarily the loudest advocates for the rights of refugees and asylees, are adamant that the right to leave a warzone doesn’t apply to Gazans.

Syrians, Afghans, Iraqis, Ukrainians and others are welcomed with open arms but Gazans? Well, hang on a minute, that’s much more complicated. For Gazans their advocacy is limited to outrage at both the conditions in Gaza and at the suggestion that Palestinians might choose to leave.

The absurd position these so-called humanitarians take is that survivors of what they claim is a genocide, must be prevented from leaving the place of their tragedy. What kind of monster demands that survivors of genocide live in tent cities for decades, and under the iron grip of the same oppressive regime which brought about this disastrous war in the first place?

Yet this is the position these sanctimonious hypocrites take. Instead of supporting Gazans right to rebuild their lives on their own terms, western activists fetishize Gazan suffering so they can display their professed moral virtue.

What then of the “brotherly” Arab nations? Where is their solidarity? Unless you count words, it’s just not there. Egypt, which ruled Gaza before Israel or Hamas and sits on vast tracts of empty land keeps its border slammed shut- refusing to accept any refugees. Gazans speak the same language, have the same religion and many have family ties in Egypt, but even the sick and wounded in Gaza are not permitted to leave for medical treatment unless it is to be treated in a third country. What about Yemen, which boasts of its solidarity with Gaza. Well, it turns out that the Houthi’s solidarity extends only so far as their effort to murder Israelis. They do nothing to save Gazans or reduce their suffering.

Others in the Arab world issue routine condemnations of Israel, but concrete help to Gazans other than dropping aid on their heads, or sending food which they know will be stolen by Hamas and sold for extortionate prices? Forget about it. With the exception of Bahrain and the UAE, the nations which make up the Arab League continue their decades long policy of using the Palestinians as a weapon against Israel, even though everyone knows they couldn’t care less.

Trump’s suggestion that Gazan be allowed to leave and rebuild their lives is a welcome break from the usual hot air, slander of Israel and slavish adherence to policies that have failed Arabs and Jews for decades.

Human rights advocates insist that Gazans leaving Gaza would be “ethnic cleansing”, ignoring the fact that no-one calls it this when refugees voluntarily leave other war zones, or that forcibly expelling Jews from Judea and Samaria is the preferred policy option of most govts. They aren’t humanitarians they are hypocrites.

True compassion for Gazans would be to genuinely free them. Not from Israel which left Gaza in 2005 and only went back to retrieve the hostages stolen by Hamas, but from those who claim to represent them. Hamas and Fatah do not care for Gazans, we saw in this war, and the negotiations to end it, that there is literally no-one on earth who cares less for them.

Certainly no-one serious is talking about forcing Arabs to leave Gaza, but let them leave if they wish. Let them start over in places where their children can grow up without fearing the next airstrike. Let them escape the grip of Hamas and the indifference of their “allies.”

Denying Gazans who wish to leave the chance to rebuild their lives elsewhere is not humanitarianism. It’s cruelty masquerading as solidarity.


Netanyahu is first foreign leader invited by Trump to White House
U.S. President Donald Trump invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to visit the White House on Feb. 4, the Prime Minister’s Office stated on Tuesday.

The reported visit wasn’t mentioned at the Trump administration’s first White House press briefing on Tuesday, and the administration hasn’t commented on it publicly.

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) told JNS that he is “very glad to see my friend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the leader of Israel and our greatest ally in the Middle East, slated as the first state visit to Trump’s White House.”

“I look forward to working with President Trump and the prime minister on securing the release of the hostages and continuing the strategic objectives to secure the region,” Scott said.

Former President Joe Biden invited Netanyahu to the White House for the first time of his tenure on July 25, 2024—some 20 months after Netanyahu was re-elected in November 2022.

David May, research manager and a senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told JNS that “Biden and Trump started their presidencies at very different points of Israeli politics.”

“When Biden took office, Israel was in the middle of a political impasse, and Bibi didn’t return to office until two years into Biden’s term. Trump started his second term with Israel at war against genocidal enemies,” May said.

“That being said, the immediate invitation is a strong indication of the importance Trump and his team place on the U.S.-Israel relationship,” May told JNS. “Trump has started his term with several moves that help Israel and a return to not having daylight between the two allies in public.”


Trump proposes US defense modeled after Israel’s Iron Dome
The US has long prioritized defense against large-scale threats like intercontinental ballistic missiles carrying nuclear warheads. However, it lacks a robust system to counter smaller-scale dangers such as rockets, artillery, mortars, drones, and cruise missiles—threats Israel’s Iron Dome is specifically designed to address. As President Donald Trump begins his second term, reports of unidentified drone sightings over sensitive US locations have heightened national security concerns.

In response, President Trump has proposed developing a US missile defense system inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome. This system would aim to protect against a wide range of threats, including drones, hypersonic weapons, and long-range missiles. However, experts in ballistic technology and geopolitics warn that such a system may not align with the US’s defense needs or strategic realities.

The president was likely referring to an air defense system similar to Iron Dome, which has become a model for many nations. Countries such as Turkey and South Korea have adopted comparable systems, as widely reported in the news.

Iron Dome, developed by Israel to intercept short-range threats, has gained global recognition for its effectiveness in protecting civilian areas. Its success, however, comes in a context vastly different from the challenges the US faces.

Dr. Steven Terner, head of the New York-based Terner Consulting, criticized the idea of deploying an Iron Dome system across the US. “Where would the Iron Dome system go? Around every sensitive site in the US? Wouldn’t that alert spies to those locations? And does Iron Dome even target drones? I don’t believe it does,” he said.
'He had tears in his eyes': Witkoff shares Trump's reaction to hostages' release
Steve Witkoff, the US envoy to the Middle East and a confidant of President Donald Trump, addressed the hostage deal on Sunday, announcing his plans to visit Israel to "ensure the agreement is implemented properly," warning that "without the implementation, we're not going to get it right. We're going to have a flare-up."



Speaking at the dedication ceremony of the Altneu synagogue in Manhattan, attended by Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Witkoff shared his upcoming plans to visit Auschwitz before traveling to Israel.

The envoy opened up about how his son's death from drug addiction in 2011 created a profound connection to the struggle of the hostages' families, including seven families who welcomed their daughters home last week after more than 450 days in captivity.

"I'm always comparing my family and what it went through when I lost my boy, Andrew, and what it must have been like for these families not knowing what was going to happen to their girls," he shared. "So when the president asked me to do this, I thought to myself, this will be the most worthy thing I could ever do in my life. Nothing else would matter beyond this."

Witkoff's special bond with Trump deepened following his son's death, with the president attending the funeral and offering support during that challenging time. "He knew... that I was a member of a very bad club, the club of parents who have buried a child. And there could be nothing worse than that — because we would all give our lives for our children," Witkoff reflected. During the Republican convention last July, he portrayed Trump as a "kind and compassionate."


Some hostages spent eight straight months in tunnels
Some of the seven hostages released from Gaza during the current ceasefire had been held in Hamas tunnels for eight consecutive months, deprived of daylight and human contact, an Israeli medical official revealed on Monday.

“Some of them told us that they’ve been in the past few months, that they’ve been through the entire time, in tunnels, underground,” Reuters quoted Col. Dr. Avi Banov, deputy commander of the IDF Medical Corps, as saying.

“Some of them were alone through the entire time they were there,” he continued. “Those who said they were together were in better shape.”

The Israeli military oversees the initial health assessments of the released hostages.

Banov added that the hostages reported an improvement in their treatment in the final days before their release, when they were allowed to bathe and change clothes, and were provided with better food.

Some hostages had not received adequate care for wounds sustained during the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and a few showed signs of “mild starvation,” Banov noted.

The three civilian women released on the first day of the ceasefire, Jan. 19, were discharged from Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer in Ramat Gan on Sunday, while the four female soldiers freed in the second batch on Jan. 25 are still receiving care at Beilinson Hospital in Petach Tikvah.

Beilinson reported that the released hostages’ health is improving, with noticeable progress in nutritional and other indicators, though medical tests are ongoing.

Three hostages are to be released on Thursday—civilian Arbel Yehud, IDF soldier Agam Berger and an unidentified man. Three more abductees are to be freed on Saturday.
'Suddenly, I have a daughter who speaks Arabic': Romi Gonen's first days of freedom
Over a week after being released from Hamas captivity, Romi Gonen's father Eitan told Ynet on Tuesday that "Romi is amazing, wonderful. A champion inspiring admiration and awe. We just look at her and are in complete shock at what we see."

"When she saw me, she simply said, 'Dad, I came back alive.' That means all the interviews we did on TV and radio somehow managed to reach Gaza as well,” he noted.

"I ended every interview with these words: 'Romi will come back alive.' I said it thousands of times, hoping she'd hear it just once and she did,” he added. “That was the most important thing she had to tell me in the first sentence after 471 days of not speaking.

“I feel incredible euphoria. We waited so long for this day — to feel, to embrace Romi, to talk to her, like you see in the pictures. I get emotional every time I see that video; it's the highest of all highs."

Talking about her long captivity, Eitan clarified: "On Sunday, after consulting with psychologists, we handed the reins over to Romi. We told her we didn't want to overwhelm or discomfort her. We won't ask questions and will let her process it her way. If she wants a hug, we'll hug her."

“If she wants us to stand aside, that's what we'll do — and it's working. When she feels a little closed off, she says, 'Let me go,' and we do. When she says, 'Gather around me,' we gather." Eitan shared that the family was surprised by Romi's physical condition. "We were very worried about her right arm, where she was injured. We had no idea what or if she'd eaten or if she was sick. But I know Romi's noble spirit; she's the family's sunshine. I wanted that to come back, unharmed. Our sunshine is shining again, without a doubt."


In light of ‘concrete warnings,’ Israeli minister cancels visit to Brussels
Following concrete security warnings, Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister of diaspora affairs and combating antisemitism, canceled his Jan. 28 visit to Brussels, where he was due to address a conference in the European Parliament on International Holocaust Remembrance Day and meet with the Jewish community.

Chikli acted “in light of concrete warnings and in accordance with the guidance of security officials,” the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem said.

“I regretted receiving instructions from security officials this evening to cancel my participation in the International Holocaust Remembrance Day events at the European Parliament,” Chikli said on Sunday. “Unfortunately, the capital of Europe has become an unsafe place for Jews and Israelis.”

According to Israel’s Kan News, Chikli canceled the trip over fears that anti-Israel groups would seek a warrant for his arrest. Belgian officials reportedly informed Jerusalem that Chikli would not enjoy diplomatic immunity, as he would not be there on an official visit to the country.

Tuesday’s event in the European Parliament, titled “Never Again? Indoctrinating hatred of Jews: What has changed in 80 years?” is co-hosted by Members of the European Parliament Lukas Mandl of Austria and Andrey Kovatchev of Bulgaria, in association with the European Jewish Association.

“The fact that in 2025, an Israeli minister was forced to cancel his visit to a Western European country for security reasons is more evidence than anything else that all the leaders’ ‘Never again’ declarations are hollow,” Rabbi Menachem Margolin, chairman of the European Jewish Associations, said on Sunday. “This year, International Holocaust Remembrance Day is more regrettable than ever—the worst since the Holocaust.”
Israel would cease to exist if it listened to European advice, Czech official says
Introducing his conversation on Thursday with Tomáš Pojar, the national security adviser to the Czech prime minister and government, Michael Makovsky, the president and CEO of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, referred to the Czech Republic as “probably Israel’s closest ally in Europe.”

“Not probably,” Pojar said, waving his finger for emphasis. “The closest.”

Pojar, whose grandfather was Jewish, shared his concern about the rampant rise in antisemitism across Western cities.

“Prague is really still one of the European cities where Jews, even with a kippah, can feel safe and go around in the streets,” he said. “It’s one of those cities where Israelis speak openly in Hebrew, and it’s safe.”

The former Czech ambassador to Israel attributes this increasingly rare sense of tolerance toward Jews to the nation’s agnosticism and non-religiosity, having “never experienced the source or the magnitude of Catholic or Protestant antisemitism.”

“Over the centuries, the level of antisemitism in Czech society was always lower than the level of antisemitism of our neighbors in Central Europe and, I would say, in Europe,” he said.

For the most part, Jews were “very much assimilated and blended into the population,” according to Pojar.
Macron says Israeli firms can participate in Paris arms fair
French President Emmanuel Macron has assured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israeli defense firms will be able to participate in the June 16-22 Paris Air Show, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement following a call between the two leaders on Sunday.

According to the PMO readout, Netanyahu and Macron also discussed other issues, “including developments in Lebanon and Gaza.”

Last year, the French government introduced extreme restrictions on Israeli entities taking part in arms fairs in the country, banning all firms whose products were used in the wars in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.

Virtually all Israeli arms manufacturers sell their products to the security forces, which have been conducting the fighting for more than 15 months.

In October, a Paris court reversed the decision to ban Israeli firms from the next month’s Euronaval Defense Exposition, citing principles of equality.

Jerusalem and Paris have repeatedly clashed since Macron called for a partial arms embargo on the Jewish state’s military in early October.

“I have a message for President Macron. Today, Israel is defending itself on seven fronts against the enemies of civilization,” Netanyahu said in an Oct. 5 statement published by his office. “All civilized countries should be standing firmly by Israel’s side. Yet President Macron and some other Western leaders are now calling for an arms embargo against Israel. Shame on them,” he said, adding, “What a disgrace.”

Later that month, the Israeli prime minister rebuffed Macron after he claimed that the Jewish state was created by a United Nations vote.
How Swedish MEP Alice Teodorescu Mawe became Israel’s most outspoken European ally
Less than a day after three female hostages were released as part of Israel’s ceasefire and hostage deal with the Hamas terror group, Swedish politician Alice Teodorescu Mawe fired off a searing invective during a speech to the European Parliament that targeted the Red Cross and Hamas and its supporters — and she did it while wearing a yellow pin in support of the hostages.

“The masks have fallen from the so-called freedom fighters, who, together with many of those taken for innocent civilians, surrounded like hyenas the three young women who were taken from Hamas’s violence yesterday,” she said.

Calling out “the West’s spineless politicians, activist journalists and corrupt judicial institutions,” Teodorescu Mawe called for tougher measures against Hamas “now that the masked monsters have been unmasked, stomping on a Red Cross ambulance — and thus on our Western values.”

Her outspoken comments might be considered remarkable coming from another source — especially in a political climate in Europe that has not been particularly friendly to Israel during the last 15 months of its multi-front war — but for Teodorescu Mawe, it was just another Monday.

In recent months, the politician has captured attention and ignited public debate with her unapologetic candor. From defending Israel’s right to self-defense after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre to advocating for expelling antisemites from Sweden and proposing that Swedish citizenship should be contingent on recognizing Israel’s legitimacy, her advocacy has been as resolute as it is viral.

“Every time a Jewish person thanks me for my position, I get sad because my reaction should be the norm,” she told The Times of Israel in a recent interview.

Teodorescu Mawe’s support for Israel and Jewish causes has grown amid rising Middle Eastern immigration and escalating antisemitism in Sweden and Europe. Her July 2024 appointment as Sweden’s sole center-right Christian Democrat MEP has further amplified her voice on the international stage.
Doubling down, Trump suggests Gazans better off somewhere not ‘associated with violence’
US President Donald Trump doubles down on his desire for Egypt and Jordan to take in Gazans, suggesting that Palestinians would be better off somewhere not “associated with violence.”

“I’d like to get them living in an area where they can live without disruption and revolution and violence,” Trump tells reporters aboard Air Force One.

“When you look at the Gaza Strip, it’s been hell for so many years… There have been various civilizations on that strip. It didn’t start here. It started thousands of years before, and there’s always been violence associated with it. You could get people living in areas that are a lot safer and maybe a lot better and maybe a lot more comfortable,” Trump says.

Asked if this stance means he no longer believes in a two-state solution, Trump avoids answering directly, saying he’ll be discussing the issue with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he comes to Washington to meet him “in the not so distant future.”

He says a date will be set for the meeting “very soon.”

Two sources familiar told The Times of Israel on Monday that Netanyahu’s office is planning for the premier to travel on Sunday to Washington, where he’ll meet Trump at the beginning of the week before returning to Israel on Wednesday. The trip has not been finalized and will depend on Netanyahu’s health as he recovers from prostate surgery, the sources said.
Trump’s New Gaza Plan ROCKS Deep State | Caroline Glick In-Focus
Is it time for Gazans to kick rocks and head to Egypt? U.S. President Donald Trump certainly thinks his plan might bring lasting peace to the Middle East. JNS senior contributing editor Caroline Glick will discuss the latest proposal from the White House on this episode of "In-Focus!"

Also, learn what's happening behind the scenes in the ongoing drama surrounding the war that the Israeli left has been waging against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; the latest hostage release; and Gazans returning to the northern Strip. All this and more on "In-Focus!"


Forever WAR in Gaza or Relocation? Trump Doubles Down | Israel Undiplomatic
U.S. President Donald Trump continues to shake things up not only in America, but across the globe. Recently, he doubled down on the idea of relocating residents of the Gaza Strip to another country, either temporarily or permanently.

Join JNS senior contributing editor Ruthie Blum and Mark Regev, former Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom—both former advisers at the Prime Minister's Office—for an in-depth look at where this all may be headed.

They’ll also be discussing the hypocrisy of International Holocaust Remembrance Day in light of everything that has transpired since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist massacre in Israel.

All this and more on “Israel Undiplomatic!”




'Tainted by Terror': Israel Bans UNRWA From Operating in Its Territory
Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon announced Tuesday that his country will ban UNRWA, a Palestinian refugee agency whose members participated in Hamas's October 7 massacre, from operating in Israeli territory.

"UNRWA has miserably failed in its mandate. It has failed the people who are supposed to benefit from its services," Danon said in a press conference. "We reaffirm our readiness to cooperate with other U.N. agencies that are not tainted by terror."

The ban will take effect within 48 hours.

The United States backed Israel's decision at Tuesday's U.N. Security Council briefing, with U.S. chargé d'affaires Dorothy Shea saying that shuttering the agency is a step toward giving Gazans a "brighter future."

The U.S. show of support for Israel follows years of mixed messages from the Biden administration, which restarted U.S. funding for UNRWA in April 2021 before freezing it again following the October 7 attacks. President Donald Trump's nominee for U.N. ambassador, Elise Stefanik, has vowed that, if confirmed, she will fight "anti-Semitic rot within the United Nations," particularly UNRWA.

After the Palestinian aid agency claimed for months that none of its staffers had anything to do with Hamas's October 7 terror attacks, which killed more than 1,200 Israelis, UNRWA in August abruptly fired nine staffers after an investigation revealed that they "may have" participated in the attacks. Reports broke one month later that a prominent UNWRA official who worked as a principal at a U.N. school moonlighted as Hamas's top commander in Lebanon.


Israel’s UNRWA ban will lead to further conflict, MP claims
Israel’s ban on the Palestinian relief agency UNRWA will “almost certainly” lead to further conflict in Gaza, the Commons chair of International Development Committee has claimed.

UNRWA has been ordered to vacate its headquarters in East Jerusalem by Thursday following bills passed by the Israeli parliament in October.

The move, in response to evidence that some staff employed by the UN agency had been supporters of the October 7 Hamas attacks, bans its operations in Israel and the Palestinian territories and designated it a terror organisation.

The Israeli government insists Hamas has infiltrated the organisation, compromising its neutrality.

But the UN says effective action has taken by the agency in relation to evidence that some employees were involved with Hamas.

Critics claim the curb on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) will wreck urgent humanitarian aid efforts in Gaza.

Middle East minister Hamish Falconer told Jewish News this week that there was a clear difference of opinion between the UK and Israel on the decision to go ahead with the ban.

Labour MP Sarah Champion, who chairs the international development committee, said on Tuesday: “Let us be clear: this ban will be devastating for Palestinian refugees across the region. Food, water, education, even rubbish collection will all be affected.


Senate Democrats block ICC sanctions bill
Senate Democrats blocked consideration of legislation sanctioning the International Criminal Court for issuing arrest warrants against Israeli leaders after failing to reach an agreement with Republicans to narrow the legislation.

Just one Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), voted in favor of a procedural motion on Tuesday to advance the bill. The bill amassed substantially more Democratic support in the House, but Senate Democratic leaders rallied to keep their caucus united in a bid to force Republicans to compromise.

Talks on the bill were ongoing through Tuesday morning, with top Democrats, led by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, demanding Republicans narrow the bill to ensure that U.S. tech companies and others that do business with the ICC and U.S. allies that are ICC members would not be sanctioned.

Democrats’ aggressive push for unity on the ICC bill came after public fractures last week on the Laken Riley Act, a bill relating to undocumented immigration that picked up support from a number of moderate Democrats.

One Democrat told JI that they had heard from multiple tech CEOs expressing concern about the scope of the bill, specifically mentioning Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president and vice chairman. Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Sens. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) voted against the bill despite having voted for the same legislation in the House last year. And Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) opposed it despite saying she supported sanctioning the ICC. Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) did not vote on the motion (nor was he present for any other votes this week), and a spokesperson said he is currently out sick.

In a joint statement, Rosen, Gallego and Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Gary Peters (D-MI) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) said they were “deeply troubled” by the ICC’s actions and said they warranted “both condemnation and severe consequences,” including “sanctions on those at the ICC directly responsible.”

But they said that the bill as written was too broad and would implicate U.S. allies and private companies, and called for Republicans to return to negotiations for a more targeted bill.


Shaheen says Democrats want changes to ICC bill to protect contractors, member states
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, outlined Democrats’ demands for changes to legislation sanctioning the International Criminal Court on Monday evening, ahead of the Senate’s first procedural vote on the bill scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.

In brief comments to reporters, Shaheen said she’s asking Republicans for changes to the bill to “address the businesses that are doing business with the ICC and the member states, so that they’re not automatically sanctioned just for being a member.”

Shaheen said that Democrats are seeking changes to the bill, not just votes on amendments to it.

She said that negotiations were still ongoing as of Monday evening, and that “some” Republicans appear open to the proposed changes. Shaheen spoke to Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), the lead sponsor of the legislation, on the Senate floor on Monday, before meeting privately with other Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The sanctions push comes in response to the ICC’s decision in November to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Shaheen’s comments are the first public articulation of Senate Democrats’ negotiating position on the bill, which they’ve kept private in recent days as the caucus worked behind the scenes to strategize about the legislation, which is likely to split Democrats.

House Democrats had previously expressed similar concerns — that the legislation as written could impact companies providing services to the ICC, potentially including U.S. tech companies — as well as U.S. allies that are members of the ICC.


Ex-UN official from Montreal nabbed by FBI for alleged role selling Chinese weapons to Libya
The FBI has arrested and charged a former top UN agency executive from Montreal for allegedly attempting to broker more than $1 billion worth of illicit arms deals between China and Libya, Global News has learned.

“James” Kuang Chi Wan, who was a deputy director at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), was apprehended by the FBI after he stepped off a flight from Taiwan that landed at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Jan. 21, 2023, FBI documents show.

Wan, 62, allegedly spearheaded a scheme to help the People’s Republic of China (PRC) sell $1.54 billion of drones, missiles and even shoulder-fired missiles to armed militants in Libya between 2019 and 2023, according to an FBI search and arrest warrant and criminal complaint attached as an exhibit.

The U.S. Department of Justice charged Wan, whose principal residence is in Montreal, with breaching the U.S. Arms Export Control Act after the FBI uncovered evidence suggesting he allegedly benefited financially from the scheme.

The FBI’s criminal complaint against Wan alleges that he and six co-conspirators, including one Canadian, were involved in the multinational operation. The six others were not named.

Wan said one participant was “a special advisor to Chinese President Xi Jinping,” according to the FBI documents.

The criminal complaint filed against Wan in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York two years ago remains sealed from the public.


Seth Frantzman: Rafah redux: Will EU Rafah mission be effective
At an EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting on January 27, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas mentioned the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt and discussed the EU’s potential role there.

Kallas is the EU high representative for foreign affairs and security policy and vice president of the European Commission. She has been involved in a number of key issues recently, from Syria to Gaza.

“Everyone agrees that EUBAM Rafah can play a decisive role in supporting the ceasefire,” Kallas wrote on social media on January 27. “Today, EU Foreign Ministers agreed to redeploy it to the Rafah Crossing Point between Gaza and Egypt. This will allow a number of injured individuals to leave Gaza and receive medical care.”

The European Union Border Assistance Mission to Rafah was established in 2005 when Israel withdrew from Gaza during the Disengagement. Although the mission attempted to carry out its work after 2005, it was hampered by the chaos in Gaza. It suspended activities in the summer of 2007. It had to leave Rafah eventually after the Hamas takeover. Now it may be redeploying.

“At the request of Israel and the Palestinians and with the agreement of Egypt, EUBAM Rafah is redeploying at the Rafah Crossing Point in Gaza. In the coming days, EUBAM Rafah will deploy a specialised team to the Rafah Crossing Point to allow Palestinian personnel to reopen the RCP,” EUBAM recently said. “This will allow for the transfer of injured individuals out of Gaza for medical treatment. EUBAM Rafah personnel will monitor the transfers.”

The Rafah crossing is a tense and delicate issue. The IDF moved into the crossing in May when Israel launched an offensive into Rafah. This came after months in which Israel said it would operate in Rafah.


IDF says it struck Hezbollah arms convoy in Lebanon; Beirut reports 14 wounded
The IDF said it targeted a truck and other Hezbollah vehicles used to transfer weapons on Tuesday in southern Lebanon in violation of the ceasefire agreement. Lebanon’s health ministry reported fourteen people wounded in the airstrike.

“The truck and vehicles were struck after being monitored by the IDF while transferring the weapons,” the military added.

The strike came as the IDF again warned Lebanese civilians against returning to villages in southern Lebanon, where Israel has said it would remain until February 18. Israel had been due to withdraw by January 26, but said it could not do so as the Lebanese army had not yet deployed in those areas.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said that at around 7:30 p.m., “a strike with a guided missile targeting a small vegetable truck” in Nabatieh al-Fawqa, which lies north of the Litani River but just 10 kilometers (seven miles) from the Israeli border.

Under the deal, Hezbollah must pullback north of the Litani — some 30 kilometers (18 miles) from Israel — while Israel is entitled to strike threats it considers imminent, and forward less imminent threats to a monitoring committee comprising representatives of Lebanon, Israel, France, the United States and UNIFIL.

Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati assailed the strike on Nabatieh al-Fawqa. During a phone call with US General Jasper Jeffers, who chairs the monitoring committee, Mikati urged a firm stance to guarantee Israel implements its commitments, according to a statement from the premier’s office.

Mikati also said Tuesday that Israel had freed nine Lebanese prisoners of war, whose identities and affiliations were unclear, under the terms of the six-week-old ceasefire deal. He called on Israel to free nine more prisoners, and thanked the Red Cross, which welcomed the release. Israel has yet to comment on the statement. Lebanon’s Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati delivers a statement to the press in Beirut, Lebanon, on November 27, 2024. (Fadel Itani / AFP)

Mikati had already appealed to the United States on Sunday to use its influence with Israel to secure the release of Lebanese detained by Israel during the war.

A source close to Hezbollah told AFP on Monday that seven of the terror group’s operatives had been captured in the fighting.


After the Pogrom | Israel, Hamas, and the West's Crisis of Civilization
In this gripping episode of State of a Nation, former Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy sits down with English pundit, author, and journalist Brendan O'Neill to unpack the moral and cultural crisis that followed the October 7th massacre in Israel. Together, they explore why the West failed what O'Neill calls a “moral test” in his thought-provoking book, After the Pogrom: October 7th, Israel, and the Crisis of Civilization.

This deep-dive conversation addresses:
The intellectual climate in the West and its response to the horrific events of October 7th.
Why O'Neill sees this as a moment of reckoning for Western values and moral confidence.
The troubling rise of anti-Semitism and the normalization of glorifying violence.
How radical ideologies from the far left to political Islam threaten Western civilization.
Solutions for combating cultural decay and supporting Israel’s fight for its future.

0:00 - Coming up
0:18 - Monologue
2:54 - Welcome
6:13 - Western moral compass
9:32 - Israel in the culture wars
14:39 - Anti-Western Left
18:55 - Oppressor Vs. Oppressed mentality
29:43 - After the Pogrom
36:42 - Political Islam in The West
42:35 - Brendan's turn from The Left
46:46 - How to never fail again
51:52 - Institutions targeting Israel
54:19 - Goodbye


Jonny Gould: 173: Dr. Dan Diker, Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs: "The world is really suffering from the lack of a rules-based order".
Find and follow the rest of Jonny's interviews in the series here.

Is Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office a cause for celebration in Jerusalem, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh - and fear in Tehran?

Is the multipolar world but a consequence of America’s loosened grip on the world by previous administrations? Will President Trump reassert his nation on the world stage?

And the hostage deal: what should we make of its grievous cost in terms of future security with the release of hundreds of convicted murderers? Will we see a reprise of the terror which allowed Gilad Shalit to come home in exchange for a thousand killers, including Yahya Sinwar, architect of October 7th?

These are the vital questions I got to ask Dr. Dan Diker, who I caught up with on a flying visit to London.

Dan, who’s based in Israel is President of the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs.

He's written six books exposing the “apartheid antisemitism” phenomenon in North America and authored studies on Iran’s race for regional supremacy and Israel’s need for defensible borders
Caroline Glick Warns Against Misplaced Optimism in Israel Hamas Ceasefire
Caroline Glick, Senior Contributing Editor of Jewish News Syndicate, speaks out on why the current ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas cannot be a permanent one, in light of news that Hamas is reconstituting itself. She also previews Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s upcoming White House visit.


The Israel Guys: Trump’s Shocking Plan to RELOCATE GAZA and Secret China-Iran Deal EXPOSED
In today’s video, we’re diving into President Trump’s bold and controversial plan to relocate Arabs from Gaza to other countries 🌍. While the world is up in arms about this idea, we’ll explain why it’s not as far-fetched as it seems. Plus, shocking reports reveal that China just secretly shipped enough chemicals to Iran to fuel 260 ballistic missiles 🚀, posing a massive threat to the future of the Middle East!

But that’s not all – find out how Trump’s D9 bulldozers and 2,000-pound bombs are on their way to Israel 🇮🇱 in a major military move! 💥 Why are these shipments so important?


Exchanged Palestinian Terrorists Prefer Jail Over Gaza | The Quad
In this episode, “The Quad” is again joined by a special guest from California: podcaster and entertainer Barbara Heller.

They will be discussing the latest release of hostages by the Hamas terrorist group and call out the International Committee of the Red Cross for its failure to protect the captives in the Gaza Strip.

And, of course, get ready for the Scumbags and Heroes of the Week!

Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Context of the Situation
01:01 The Resilience of the Released Soldiers
06:12 The Psychological Warfare of Hamas
09:30 Media Manipulation and Misrepresentation
12:20 Ceasefire Violations and Regional Tensions
19:36 Critique of Media Coverage
24:29 Political Appointments and Their Implications
30:31 Scumbags of the Week
31:57 Celebrating Heroes and Resilience
44:56 Closing Thoughts and Future Hopes


travelingisrael.com: The Israel-Hamas ceasefire explained. (WARNING: culture shock)
The Israel-Hamas ceasefire explained. (WARNING: culture shock)


‘I understand what evil can do’: Holocaust survivor reflects on the horrors of Auschwitz
Child Holocaust survivor Helen Studencki has opened up about the sorrow she “constantly carries” after losing family members in the Holocaust.

Helen Studencki survived the war in Radymno, Poland in a ghetto and then in hiding.

“99% of the family perished during the Holocaust,” Ms Studencki said.

“Even when we were liberated, we were liberated to a world without any relatives… No grandparents, no uncles, no aunties."

Marking the 80th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz, Ms Studencki reflected on the importance of standing up against antisemitism.

“We will never be victims again, not anyone of us," she said.

“I’ll be up there standing up. But I’d be standing up there for you too, because I understand what evil can do and I don’t want that to happen to any other single human being, not in my country, not anywhere.”


‘Incredibly moving’: Jewish Australian speaks out after 80th anniversary of Auschwitz liberation
National Council of Jewish Women Australia President Lynda Ben-Menashe speaks out on the global rise in antisemitism after she attended an event commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

Ms Ben-Menashe also visited Auschwitz-Birkenau several months ago and revealed what she experienced and felt when she entered the concentration camp.

“It’s an incredibly moving place to be,” she told Sky News Australia.


‘Wrong place, wrong time’: Penny Wong's Auschwitz remarks criticised for political messaging
Sky News contributor Kosha Gada has reacted to comments made by Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong when reflecting on the 80th anniversary of Auschwitz.

“The thing with world leaders is they’re always speaking to multiple audiences at the same time regardless of what the actual backdrop is of where they’re standing,” Ms Gada said.

“This particular venue feels like the wrong place, wrong time for that message if taken in a vacuum but she’s obviously speaking to her base and the left of politics.

“She’s trying to walk that line and package it with enough ambiguity to appeal to both the people that are very favourable of Gaza in her base as well as obviously trying to show respect to the Jewish community.”


‘Horror’: Survivors of Auschwitz speak out against rise in global antisemitism
Sky News host Sharri Markson discusses the speeches of the survivors from the Holocaust at the Remembrance Day event.

“Survivors of the horror death camp Auschwitz have spoken about the global rise in antisemitism at the 80th Liberation Remembrance Service,” Ms Markson said.

“They have warned it is the same hatred that led to the Holocaust in the first place.”


‘Racism, hatred and violence’: Sharri Markson goes on the road with Strike Force Pearl
Sky News host Sharri Markson goes on the road with Strike Force Pearl to deliver in-depth and exclusive access into how police are tackling the nation’s rising antisemitism.

Ms Markson sat down with NSW Police Force Counter Terrorism and Special Tactics Commander Assistant Commissioner Mark Walton to break down the troubling issue.

“For 15 months, Australians have been bewildered and angry as racism, hatred and violence exploded in our country,” Ms Markson said.

“We’ve begged politicians and law enforcement for action.

“Have a look at this report and tell me what you think about how the police are handling this.”


Erin Molan: Bat Beep Crazy: My take on TRUMP’s 1st week, Antonio Guterres ‘anti-semitism’ message 🙄 and… Jewel!

New Zealand requires Israelis to disclose IDF service details as condition for entry
New Zealand’s government immigration authority has begun to require Israelis applying for a visa to report details of their military service as a condition for entry, and at least one person has been denied admission after doing so, The Times of Israel has learned.

Israelis of reserve service age who applied for tourist visas to New Zealand have been asked to report whether they had served in the Israel Defense Forces — as almost all Israeli citizens are required to do — and whether they are active reservists. Those who answered affirmatively were required to complete detailed questionnaires about their military service.

In the first questionnaire, visa applicants were asked about the dates of their military service, the location of their bases, the corps and units in which they served, the military camps where they were stationed, their rank, details of their roles, and their military ID number.

In the second questionnaire, they were asked:
“Have you been associated with any intelligence service or group, or law enforcement agency?”
“Have you been associated with any group or organization that has used or promoted violence or human rights abuses to further their aims?”
“Have you committed or been involved in war crimes, crimes against humanity, or human rights abuses?”

Those who can’t disclose details of their military service due to security concerns are not exempt from filling out the questionnaire; as a result, they are unable to complete it and obtain a visa.

At least one soldier who served in Gaza during the ongoing war against Hamas has been denied entry to New Zealand. He said that this was a direct result of his answers to the questionnaire, while noting that he said he had not been involved in war crimes in Gaza.

Australia has been operating a similar policy, and at least two Israelis have been denied entry as a result.




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Elder of Ziyon - حـكـيـم صـهـيـون



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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