Saturday, February 01, 2025

02/01 Links: Yarden Bibas, Ofer Kalderon, Keith Siegel free after 484 days in Gaza; Trump reiterates that Egypt, Jordan will take in Palestinians

From Ian:

Yarden Bibas, Ofer Kalderon, Keith Siegel free after 484 days in Gaza
Yarden Bibas, Ofer Kalderon and Keith Siegel were freed on Saturday after 484 days in Hamas captivity in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian terrorists handed over Bibas and Kalderon to the Red Cross in Khan Yunis, in the Strip’s south, while Siegel was released in Gaza City.

“The government of Israel is committed to returning all of the hostages and the missing,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement issued by his office.

The statement concluded with a quote from the Bible: “I will save you from the hands of the wicked and deliver you from the grasp of the cruel” (Jeremiah 15:21).

The Hostage and Missing Families Forum issued a statement saying: “Their release today brings a ray of light in the darkness, offering hope and demonstrating the triumph of the human spirit. Yet their return also reminds us that 79 hostages remain in Gaza, still waiting to be saved. We will not rest until every phase of this deal is completed and every hostage is returned—the living to reunite with their loved ones, and the deceased for proper burial with dignity.”

In exchange, Jerusalem on Saturday was set to free 183 Palestinian terrorists—18 serving life sentence, 54 serving lengthy terms and 111 arrested since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre. Freed hostage Yarden Bibas meets IDF troops, Feb. 1, 2025. Credit: Israel Defense Forces.

Bibas’s wife, Shiri, 33, and their two sons, Ariel, 5, and Kfir, 2, are on the list of the 33 hostages to be released in the first phase of the ceasefire agreement. Hamas, however, has claimed that Shiri and the children have been killed.

Kalderon, 54, a dual Israeli-French citizen, was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7, 2023, along with his son Erez, 12, and daughter, Sahar, 16. The children were among the 105 captives freed in November 2023 as part of a ceasefire-for-terrorists agreement.

Siegel, 65, a dual Israeli-American citizen, was taken from his home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza during the Oct. 7 massacre. His wife, Aviva, was among those who returned as part of the November 2023 swap with Hamas.
Hostages’ stories: Gadi Mozes paced 7km a day in tiny cell, soldiers rationed grains of rice
Gadi Mozes, isolated, paced 7 kilometers a day in his two-square-meter room; female surveillance soldiers counted grains of rice to fairly divide the scant food they had between them; one hostage convinced her captors to film a propaganda video of her, hoping to offer her family a sign of life.

These are some of the stories emerging as newly freed hostages begin to recount to their families the hellish 15 months they spent as captives of Gaza terrorists, stripped of their autonomy, enduring abysmal conditions and uncertain of their fate as hour after hour ticked excruciatingly by, over the course of more than 470 days.

Channel 12 news reported Friday night on some of those harrowing experiences and the hardships, struggles and moments of bravery they entailed.

Mozes, 80, who was freed on Thursday from Hamas captivity, told family members that throughout 15 months he was never with other hostages. The first Israeli he met was 29-year-old Arbel Yehoud, as they were brought together a few days ago ahead of their joint release.

For some 70 days of his captivity, Mozes was in complete isolation, locked alone in a dark room, he said. He was moved between several apartments over the course of the war, and was not held in tunnels.

Mozes knew his longtime partner Efrat Katz had been murdered during the attack, and mourned her. But he did not know what had happened to his daughter Moran until being freed (Moran survived and met him Thursday upon his return).

For much of his time in captivity, the octogenarian was held in a two-square-meter (2.4-square-yard) room, in which he regularly paced some 7 kilometers (over 4 miles) every day, counting the tiles on the room floor and solving math problems to pass the time and keep his mind sharp.

His glasses were broken during the kidnapping, but after two months he managed to get new ones from his captors and was able to read two books.

At a certain point, Mozes said he decided to live one day at a time, and not think of release. Freed hostage Gadi Mozes reunites with his children (from left) Oded, Moran and Yair at an IDF facility near Re’im on January 30, 2025. (IDF)

Once every five days or so Mozes was given a bowl of tepid water to shower with, using a cup to pour the water over his head. He insisted on shaving himself, despite it being a messy and painful affair, as it was important to him not to neglect himself. Mozes lost some 15 kilograms in captivity, according to the network.

At some points, he feared he would be executed. In one instance, he was held in a hot pickup truck for 12 hours under Red Cross offices in the Gaza Strip, he said. Though he hoped he was being released, he was only being moved between hiding spots.
What medical condition are the Thai nationals released from Hamas captivity
Following the arrival of the Thai national hostages from Hamas captivity on Thursday to the Shamir Medical Center, its director, Dr. Osnat Levzion-Korach, disclosed the details of their condition.

Regarding the condition of the released hostages, Dr. Levzion-Korach stated it was surprising to find that while the hostages "endured unimaginable horrors and harsh conditions, it appeared that those who have been released so far were relatively well cared for."

Dr. Levzion-Korach then elaborated on what is now to be expected for the released Thai hostages as they stay in the hospital for their recovery.

"The Thai citizens who arrived at our hospital are currently in good and stable condition, but we will continue to conduct comprehensive medical examinations alongside extensive psychological treatments as needed," she said.

"Over the next week, they [the Thai hosategs] are expected to stay here and recuperate. In addition to medical care, they will have sessions with psychologists and social workers," Dr. Levzion-Korach added.

She also emphasized, "It is important to remember that despite their good physical condition, they survived nearly 500 days of a horrific ordeal and will require long-term rehabilitation. Moving forward, we will assist them according to the guidelines we receive from the Thai embassy and the families of the hostages as they prepare to return to Thailand."

Dr. Levzion-Korach noted while there has been considerably "less focus" on the Thai hostages, the medical team at the Shamir Medical Center did not "neglect them for a moment."

"In the previous hospitalization [of the released hostages in November 2023], we provided dedicated care to 24 foreigners, including 23 Thai hostages and one Filipino. They received a great deal of respect and warmth from us, and we will once again ensure they receive comprehensive care and attention," she explained.


Netanyahu to returnees: ‘How good to see you home’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday sent a welcoming message to Yarden Bibas, Ofer Kalderon and Keith Siegal, who were freed earlier in the day from captivity in the Gaza Strip, stressing Israel’s commitment to bring all remaining hostages home and achieve the goals of the war.

“Ofer, Yarden, Keith—It is so good to see you home! Together with all citizens of Israel, and together with many around the world, my wife and I were so moved to see you with us,” Netanyahu said in a recorded statement.

“Earlier this week, in the previous phase, we made it very clear that we would not tolerate any violation of the agreement. We insisted on this and we brought forward by a week the release of three of our hostages,” the premier continued, referring to returnees Agam Berger, 20, Arbel Yehud, 29, and Gadi Mozes, 80.

Netanyahu further emphasized Jerusalem’s demand of Hamas to allow the safe release of the hostages, “after the scenes that we all saw the day before yesterday [when Yehud was surrounded by a threatening Gazan mob], we demanded a safe exit for our hostages in the coming releases.

“As you saw today, this steadfast stand proved itself. The message was delivered, received and carried out. Israel expects that all of the coming phases also be carried out safely,” he said.

“Citizens of Israel, in the last two weeks, we have succeeded in releasing 13 of our hostages, and five Thai nationals who were also held by Hamas,” the prime minister continued.

“At this time our thoughts are all with Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas, and all of our hostages, the living and the deceased, who have yet to return home.

“We will continue to take determined action to bring them back home, and achieve all of our objectives for the war. With God’s help, we will do it and we will succeed,” Netanyahu said.
Eyal Zamir to become IDF’s 24th chief of staff on March 6
Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir has been designated to replace Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi as the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on Saturday night.

Zamir, 59, the current director general of the Defense Ministry, will be the first IDF chief who started his career in the Armored Corps since David (Dado) Elazar in the 1970s.

Zamir previously served as deputy chief of staff (2018 to 2021), and before that, he led the Southern Command from 2015 to 2018. During that time, he helped formulate war plans focused on Hamas and contemplated scenarios in which the terrorist faction might be replaced in Gaza, though subsequent Southern Command leaders did not properly update these plans.

While at the helm of the Defense Ministry, Zamir has spearheaded efforts over the past year to greatly ramp up domestic weapons production to reduce reliance on imports, working with local defense companies to do this.

Zamir will replacing Halevi, who said he will step down on March 6.


Yarden Bibas reportedly says Hamas taunted him about Shiri and kids; he’s clinging to hope
The three hostages who were released earlier today have all said since their return that they were held in harsh conditions, that they were frequently moved around, and that food was scarce, Kan news reports.

Keith Siegel was held by Hamas captors in Gaza City along with other hostages. He was kept in tunnels for some time, but mostly was moved between homes. His captors would lock him in a room so that he would not be spotted. Food was extremely scarce. Siegel is a vegetarian but his captors would sometimes bring him meat which he ate in order to survive, according to the report.

For many months, he did not know if his son Shai had survived the Hamas attack on Kibbutz Kfar Aza. But then he heard Shai’s voice on the radio, and was immensely relieved.

Ofer Calderon and Yarden Bibas have recounted that they were held together in the early days of their captivity, Kan also reported. The terrorists beat them, put them in cages and abused them physically and mentally. They were moved often and held underground and in buildings, including with other hostages.

The captors treated Calderon like a reservist soldier, and thus he was released today in military clothing.

On his release, he asked the IDF soldiers with him for a beer, and was told he would need to take it slow because he was weak.

Bibas said he was moved from place to place in Khan Younis — in homes and tunnels. He learned Arabic. He was subjected to grave psychological abuse, including being compelled to film a video after his captors claimed his wife, Shiri, and young sons Ariel and Kfir. had been killed in an IDF strike. His captors talked incessantly to him about them, the report says. Now, Kan says, “he is clinging to hope.”

Both he and Calderon saw reporting on the campaigns for the hostages, and this gave them strength and hope, they have said.


The PA admits: UNRWA is a political organization
The mask is finally off. The UN and its benefactors can stop deceiving the world that UNRWA (UN Relief and Works Agency) is a humanitarian organization. The Palestinian Authority (PA) itself, UNRWA’s most ardent and interested advocate, has inadvertently admitted the essential role played by UNRWA in the Middle East is political and not humanitarian.

UNRWA’s mission came into the spotlight after the Knesset passed a law that goes into effect on January 30, banning UNRWA from operating within sovereign Israel. In response, the UN, NGOs, and numerous donor countries quickly joined the PA in condemning Israel’s law.

They all complained that UNRWA could no longer fulfill its role. However, there is a complete misunderstanding among UNRWA’s benefactors about what UNRWA’s role really is.

The UN asserted that UNRWA “has provided essential humanitarian services to Palestine refugees.” Human Rights Watch, along with 52 NGOs, concurred that Israel’s move “threatens… the international humanitarian operation in Gaza.” Foreign ministers of donor countries, including Canada, Australia, France, Germany, and the UK, expressed “grave concern” because “UNRWA provides essential and life-saving humanitarian aid.”

In each response, the mantra is that UNRWA’s role is humanitarian. Comparing these reactions to those of the PA underscores the vast divide between what much of the world thinks UNRWA is and what its champion – the PA – knows UNRWA is.

Nabil Abu Rudeina, spokesperson for PA head Mahmoud Abbas, sounded the PA’s position: “The newly passed [Israeli] law aims to liquidate the issue of refugees and their right to return and compensation.” Abbas’s office then added: “The presidency decided to act urgently… since the topic of UNRWA is a political topic that is related to the right of return.”

Ahmad Abu Houli, chairman of the PLO Department of Refugee Affairs, concurred that “this [Israeli law] is part of its efforts to eliminate the Palestinian refugees’ cause and their well-rooted right of return, negate their status as refugees, and unilaterally change the criteria for a future political solution.”


UNRWA Jerusalem operations mostly intact despite ban
The U.N. Relief and Works Agency’s field office in the Ma’alot Dafna neighborhood of Jerusalem has been cleared out but its neighborhood facilities kept operating on the first day that Israeli law banned the entity from operating in Israel, according to Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman for António Guterres, the U.N. secretary-general.

“What I know from the conversations I’ve had is that there is very little news to report. There was, in front of our headquarters in the Sheikh Jarrah area, there was a small demonstration early this morning that disbanded very quickly,” Dujarric told reporters during a press briefing on Thursday. “What my colleague told me is that there were more reporters than demonstrators.”

Though vacated, the building still flies the flag of the United Nations, Dujarric said. He added that staff emptied the facility of files, computers and vehicles, and the roughly 50 international staff members, who no longer held valid Israeli visas, went to Jordan. (The U.N. flag has reportedly been taken down and replaced with an Israeli one.)

“My understanding is that the headquarters building is empty of staff. There is some security office, security guards—civilian, unarmed local security company that we contract with that are there,” Dujarric said, “but the UNRWA staff is doing what it should be doing, which is working in the clinics and other other places they work in the region.”

“The humanitarian operation in Gaza continues, including with UNRWA’s work there,” he added. “UNRWA says that it is committed to staying and delivering.”

Two UNRWA schools in Jerusalem are still operating, and the U.N. agency continues to administer operations in the Shuafat neighborhood, which it considers a refugee camp.

JNS asked Dujarric at the press conference if UNRWA has received any updated directives given the new circumstances on the ground.

“The directive is that UNRWA will continue to do its work until it no longer can, which is what is going on today,” he told JNS. “There are no instructions or directives for UNRWA not to work in close cooperation with other U.N. agencies. They are part of the U.N.’s humanitarian system, whether in Gaza or in other places.”


Trump reiterates view that Egypt, Jordan will take in Palestinians
A reporter asked U.S. President Donald Trump during a press conference as the president signed executive orders about Trump’s plan to send Palestinians to Egypt and Jordan.

Trump called on Arab nations last week, specifically Egypt and Jordan, to take in more Palestinians to “clean out” the Gaza Strip. Both King Abdullah II of Jordan and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi have rejected that plan.

The reporter asked Trump on Thursday what he planned to do to make the countries take Palestinians in. “Is there anything you can do to make them do that, I mean tariffs against those countries for example?” the reporter asked.

“They will do it. They will do it. They’re gonna do it, OK?” Trump said. “We do a lot for them, and they’re gonna do it.”

“What’s amazing about this is that Gaza was Egyptian prior to 1967 and Jordan is majority Palestinian,” wrote the conservative commentator Dave Rubin. “Why wouldn’t they want to save their own people from those very mean Jews?”
Responding to Trump, Arab nations reject transferring Gazans ‘under any circumstances’
Arab foreign ministers on Saturday rejected the transfer of Palestinians from Gaza “under any circumstances or justifications,” presenting a unified stance against US President Donald Trump’s call for Egypt and Jordan to take in residents of the Strip.

In a joint statement following a meeting in Cairo, the foreign ministers and officials from Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League said they were looking forward to working with Trump’s administration to achieve a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East, based on a two-state solution.

The foreign ministers rejected any “infringement of the inalienable rights” of Palestinians, whether by “settlement, expulsion, home demolitions, annexation, depopulation of the land of its people through displacement, encouraged transfer or the uprooting of Palestinians from their land.”

The statement warned that such plans “threaten the region’s stability, risk expanding the conflict, and undermine prospects for peace and coexistence among its peoples.”

Trump insisted on Thursday that Jordan and Egypt will support a proposal to resettle Palestinians in their countries rather than in a rebuilt Gaza Strip, despite flat refusals from both countries to consider the move.

“They will do it. They will do it. They’re gonna do it, okay? We do a lot for them, and they’re gonna do it,” Trump said when asked about the proposal during a photo op in the Oval Office. US President Donald Trump looks on after delivering remarks at the House Republican Members Conference Dinner at Trump National Doral Miami, in Miami, Florida on January 27, 2025. (Mandel Ngan/AFP)

Both Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el-Sissi and Jordan’s King Abdullah explicitly rejected the proposal on Wednesday.

“Regarding what is being said about the displacement of Palestinians, it can never be tolerated or allowed because of its impact on Egyptian national security,” Sissi said.

Trump said earlier this week that the issue would be discussed with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he travels to Washington next week.

Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, who has spent the past week on a diplomatic trip around the region, including a visit to Gaza during his larger trip to Israel, told Axios Thursday that there is “almost nothing left” of the Strip and rebuilding the war-ravaged enclave could take 10 to 15 years.

“People are moving north to get back to their homes and see what happened and turn around and leave… There is no water and no electricity. It is stunning just how much damage occurred there,” Witkoff told the US news website after visiting Gaza.

Witkoff also told Axios he has not discussed with Trump the idea of moving Palestinians from Gaza.


New Zealand: No visa requirements policy against IDF soldiers
New Zealand has not introduced new visa application policies against IDF soldiers or reservists, Immigration New Zealand (INZ) said in a statement, rejecting Israeli media reports that Israelis had been denied admission to the country because of their military service in Gaza.

INZ said that applicants for visas must meet immigration criteria, but military service alone was not a reason for declined applications. The government body said that it assessed a number of factors, including character, medical, financial and previous travel history.

“The declined visitor visa applications we have identified for Israeli nationals have been because the applicants did not demonstrate that they meet the standard requirements to show that they are genuine applicants, such as providing proof of ties to their home country, reasons for their stay, or evidence of their travel plans,” said INZ.

“A visitor visa can be declined for several reasons, and it is difficult for us to comment on why a person’s application was declined without a privacy waiver from the individual. Immigration requirements do not prevent individuals who have served in this conflict from applying for or being granted a visitor visa,” INZ continued.

INZ noted that Israel is a visa waiver country, and only need to apply for visas if visiting for longer than three months. Travelers only need to complete an electronic declaration to enter New Zealand.

The immigration authority said that since the war between Israel and Hamas broke out, it has attempted to prioritize allocation for applications for people living in the impacted areas.

“Palestinian and Israeli nationals can apply for any visa category they meet the requirements for,” said INZ. “We will continue to prioritize the processing of applications for people impacted by the conflict.”


Anti-Israel Groups Slapped With Class Action Lawsuit For Orchestrating Traffic Blockade
Several anti-Israel organizations that blocked major roadways in Washington D.C. last year were slapped with a class action lawsuit Friday by a legal group representing a traveler trapped in the traffic jam.

Left-wing groups, including Jewish Voice for Peace, the Palestinian Youth Movement and its fiscal sponsor, the Westchester Political Action Committee Foundation, among others, shut down access to several major roadways in D.C. on Feb. 1, 2024, for close to an hour. A total of 23 anti-Israel activists were arrested on charges of "crowding, obstructing or incommoding." Three were also charged with resisting arrest.

The keffiyeh-clad activists chained themselves together in the middle of highways while others linked arms with PVC pipes, forming human chains to block roads. Many of the activists held signs that said, "From the River to the Sea, Palestine Must be Free," and chanted slogans including "We Don’t Want No Jewish State" and "If We Don’t Get It, Shut It Down!"

The Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute filed its lawsuit Friday on behalf of Daniel Faoro, who was trapped by the blockade. They called the traffic jam "perhaps the most disruptive action by anti-Israel activists" and said commuters "were trapped in their vehicles with no inkling as to when their freedom of movement would be restored."

"Thousands of commuters were late for work or school, or missed critical appointments and important events, some of which may have been scheduled weeks in advance," the complaint said. "Plaintiff Faoro and other innocent class members traveling into and around the District that morning had nothing to do with the conflict thousands of miles away, or the debate within Congress regarding support for Israel; many probably have no opinion at all on the issue."

Hamilton Lincoln Law Institute president Anna St. John told the Washington Free Beacon the lawsuit seeks accountability for those "who use intimidation and obstruction to push their agenda."

"Blocking roads is not free speech—it’s lawlessness. These activists disrupted daily life for countless individuals. HLLI's lawsuit seeks to ensure that those responsible face consequences and that this kind of behavior is not repeated," St. John said.


University of Michigan suspends pro-Palestinian group for 2 years
A pro-Palestinian group at the University of Michigan has been suspended for two years and will lose its funding in connection with protesters’ demands for divestiture from companies doing business with Israel.

Students Allied for Freedom and Equality, also known as SAFE, was accused of violating the university’s standards of conduct for recognized student organizations following a protest last spring outside a regent’s home and a demonstration without school permission on its Ann Arbor campus.

Tensions over the Israel-Hamas war led to sometimes-threatening demonstrations on US campuses, including a wave of pro-Palestinian tent encampments that led to about 3,200 arrests.

The war in Gaza was sparked by an October 7, 2023, attack on Israel in which Hamas-led terrorists killed about 1,200 people and took 251 hostages.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order calling for aggressive action to fight antisemitism on college campuses and promising to prosecute offenders and revoke visas for international students found to be “Hamas sympathizers.”

The University of Michigan’s sanctions against SAFE were handed down nearly two weeks earlier, on Jan. 16. The group is also prohibited from reserving university spaces. It has until next Thursday to appeal.

The suspension could be lifted earlier than two years if the group satisfies all the sanctions against it and meets with school officials to discuss the university’s decision and the awareness of policies for student organizations. However, that could occur no sooner than winter 2026.

“Protests are welcome at U-M, so long as those protests do not infringe on the rights of others, significantly disrupt university events or operations, violate policies or threaten the safety of the community,” the school said in a statement.

“The university has been clear that we will enforce our policies related to protests and expressive activity, and that we will hold individuals and student organizations accountable for their actions in order to ensure a safe and inclusive environment for all.”


Channel 4 bosses are blasted for 'sanitising' extremist views of reality show star accused of anti-Semitism and homophobia
Channel 4 is under fire for 'sanitising' the extremist views of a woman accused of anti-Semitism and homophobia in a show about immigration.

Former The Apprentice candidate Bushra Shaikh appears in reality show Go Back To Where You Come From which starts on Monday.

The series takes six people – four anti-immigration and two pro-immigration – and shows them following migrant routes from Somalia and Syria.

Ms Shaikh, 41, who is of Pakistani heritage and headed an anti-racism campaign in sport called Run Racism Out, is on the show as a pro-immigration campaigner.

She is shown in a trailer saying: 'There is a proportion in Britain who I think are as thick as s***. I am not the person you want to have these ridiculous racist and Islamophobic conversations with.'

However, Channel 4 is accused of not showing her more extreme side which can be seen through her social media accounts.

This week, after tweeting that an Iraqi Christian called Salwan Momika who was famous in Sweden for burning the Koran had been shot dead, she wrote to her 89,000 followers on X: 'Some of you may disagree but the public desecration of any holy book should be viewed as a hate crime and the offender should face consequences.'

She later insisted she didn't mean that he should have been shot, adding: 'I'm neither sad nor happy that Salwan Momika is dead. I don't care.'

In 2023 she wrote a tweet which was described as homophobic in which she said that homosexuality was seen as 'unnatural and immoral' in Islam. She then compared homosexuality to paedophilia, writing: 'Nobody is born gay. It is a choice. Nobody is born a paedo either right. Feelings do not determine that which is right to do. Both are wrong.'

Earlier in the week, meanwhile, the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) uncovered a string of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic posts in which Ms Shaikh, who runs a fashion line of 'modest' clothing, said Jews who moved to Israel from Europe are 'the biggest charlatans on this planet' and a 'bunch of lying scumbags'.

She also said that Jews should be expelled from Israel, writing on X: 'One state solution. Palestine. And send this European problem back to f****** Europe.'

The tweet was posted a week after the first anniversary of the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023.

The CAA said: 'Channel 4 is sanitising Bushra Shaikh to make her more sympathetic instead of revealing her as the hypocrite she is.'


Disillusioned Gazans return south after finding northern homes in ruins
Following Hamas’s organized celebrations and encouragement to Gazans to go back to the northern Gaza Strip, many of those who made it there were forced to return southward after discovering their former houses in ruins.

Various viral videos, tweets, and posts have been circulating on social media, many brought by Israeli channels such as Khalifa Shrugged, Abu Ali Express, and Daniel Wachtel, which showed Gazan citizens who were eager to go north to where their homes were returning southward, disillusioned after seeing the immense destruction left by the war.

A Gazan citizen interviewed on the Qatari Al-Araby channel after coming back from Beit Hanun told the interviewer: “I couldn’t find anything… The house was located more toward the Jews, but I was scared to look more closely due to there being unexploded bombs or rockets. There’s no life, no nothing. Even if I bring my tent there – there’s no life there.

“I’m going back to Al-Mawasi in Khan Yunis, in the desert. It’s easier to find level ground there, you can sit there, there’s water… People are shouting and crying in their houses. This is indescribable… I’m not going back. I lost 20 years of my life. My house, my home, my farm… nothing left. There’s a pit instead of my house.”

'This war was uncalled for'

Another Gazan woman who presented herself as a worker in the education sector was filmed saying: “May Allah have vengeance on the occupation. This war was uncalled for. They did not prepare us for it. Our homes are gone and our children are gone. Where are we going back? To the rubble? We didn’t benefit in anything… I hope someone takes us out of here. Two entire generations were destroyed… We were humiliated. I had a new villa worth $250,000; it was destroyed.

“I call on our President Mahmoud Abbas to save us, and I thank Turkiye for standing with us. I wish they would see this video and embrace us and take me and my girls. This is the suffering of after the war – if this war is even over.”
Gazan civilian spotted wearing United Hatzalah sweatshirt stolen on October 7
During the hostage release on Thursday, United Hatzalah (UH) President Eli Beer noted that a Gazan civilian was seen wearing a United Hatzalah sweatshirt, which he claimed was likely stolen on October 7.

Beer confirmed the person was not a UH volunteer and that the sweatshirt was most likely stolen on October 7 from one of the ransacked homes.



He said there was no security implication but that it was something that should be noted.

An estimated 2,500 Gaza civilians participated in October 7; many looted destroyed Israeli villages and IDF bases near the border.

United Hatzalah on October 7
On October 7, around 1,700 UH volunteers arrived from dispatch centers and on their own initiative to help save lives.

Over the course of the day, UH volunteers treated over 12,000 people throughout the south of the country, including soldiers and civilians.


UN’s Shoah program hosts events around annual remembrance day
When Israeli President Isaac Herzog entered the United Nations on Monday to keynote the organization’s annual International Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony, he first headed to a small, private gathering below the General Assembly Hall.

Tracked every step by supporters, Herzog made his way around an exhibit of about 10 posters, set up specifically for the event. The haunting photographs and stories captured in the exhibit were taken from the Auschwitz Album, the only known visual documentation of the process employed by the Nazis leading to the gas chambers at the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.

The exhibition is one of three temporary exhibits on display at U.N. headquarters through Feb. 21 as part of the U.N. Outreach Programme on the Holocaust’s annual commemoration. There is also a permanent exhibition year-round inside the Secretariat Building.

• “Auschwitz—A Place on Earth. The Auschwitz Album,” like the other two temporary exhibitions, can be found near the main public entrance to U.N. headquarters. It is organized by Yad Vashem.

Two of the guards assigned to handle fingerprinting and photographing of incoming prisoners are believed to have taken most, if not all, of the 193 photographs in the 56-page album, which depicts the arrival of transports from Hungary in the spring of 1944. One of those guards wrote the captions, which do not depict any actual murders, and which portray the Nazis’ view of the process.

The photographs show the arrival of boxer cars, packed to the brim, and the separation and selection process aboard a train platform, including children, who were among those sent to immediate death.

The album also shows slave laborers, and a picture of a woman with four children in tow, apparently heading toward the gas chambers. Details of the album’s discovery are also included.

• “Holocaust Remembrance—A Commitment to Truth” is an overview of the Shoah, featuring testimony of survivors and a historical look at the factors that fomented the Holocaust and allowed it to take shape.

• “Lest We Forget,” meanwhile, details small, enjoyable moments of Jews before the Holocaust took place, as a reminder of life before the Nazis and of the humanity of European Jewish communities that stood there.
Walk-out at Leicester Holocaust Memorial Day after speaker accuses Israel of genocide
The grandson of Holocaust survivors says he was “forced out” of Leicester’s Holocaust Memorial Day event after a speaker accused Israel of “genocide”.

Approximately ten Jews, including a local rabbi, walked out of the HMD commemoration after a speaker claimed Israel was committing a "genocide in Gaza."

During the city’s memorial event on Monday evening, titled “The Student Experience” and hosted by De Montfort University, a panel of high school students who had visited Auschwitz addressed the crowd.

One student delivered a speech addressing the Holocaust and the Bosnian genocide, and then brought up the war in Gaza.

Victor Kaufman, a grandson of Holocaust survivors, said the comments about Gaza were "deeply offensive" and has lodged a complaint with the local council, the event’s sponsors.

"She said that Israel is committing a genocide," Kaufman, an NHS accountant, said. "It was disturbing that she drew parallels between the Holocaust and what is happening in Gaza."

Some audience members reacted by heckling, shouting "rubbish" and "stop," before around ten people, including Kaufman and Rabbi Pink, walked out.

When the speech ended, the student received applause from those who remained, with at least one person giving a standing ovation, according to Kaufman

Kaufman told the JC: "She is a young person, and young people make mistakes. I do not know whether she was put up to this, and I do not want a young person to suffer for doing something stupid.

"But it is not OK on Holocaust Memorial Day for a group of Jews and a rabbi to be forced to leave an event because of offensive comments. Most people are concerned about innocent lives in any war, but this just was not the place for that."

In an email to Leicester council and its mayor, Kaufman accused the student of “using the event to infer unfounded allegations of a ‘genocide; in Gaza and then equate events in Gaza to that of the Nazi Holocaust of the 1930s.

“These deeply offensive and unfounded parallels forced myself, and others including the local Orthodox rabbi, Jews and allies to leave the event.

"I am saddened and aghast at the events of tonight. Our towns and cities for the past 15 months have become no-go areas for Jews. Now even a Holocaust Memorial Event is not a safe space for Jews. When will this stop?”
Major fire breaks out at Salford Orthodox synagogue
Emergency services have extinguished a fire after it tore through a synagogue in Greater Manchester.

Emergency services attended the blaze at the Satmar V'Yoel Moshe synagogue on Friday night, and said the fire was extinguished by 9.30pm.

Enormous plumes of smoke from the shul on Northumberland Street could be seen across Salford on Friday evening.

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said the fire was extinguished by 9.30pm, and fire crews will remain on the scene overnight.

One synagogue representative told Manchester Evening News it was “very upsetting” to see the damage.

“Our heart and soul is in that building,” he said. “We come here everyday. Everyone is connected to it.”

Six fire engines were deployed to the scene at around 5pm.

Firefighters used hose reels to control the blaze while Greater Manchester Police (GMP) managed traffic and closed the area.

Synagogue representatives said the blaze started in offices on the top floor of the building and that they believe it was an electrical fire, but added it was “too early” to be sure.




Buy EoZ's books  on Amazon!

"He's an Anti-Zionist Too!" cartoon book (December 2024)

PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022)

    
 

 



AddToAny

Printfriendly

EoZTV Podcast

Podcast URL

Subscribe in podnovaSubscribe with FeedlyAdd to netvibes
addtomyyahoo4Subscribe with SubToMe

search eoz

comments

Speaking

Speaking

translate

E-Book

For $18 donation








Sample Text

EoZ's Most Popular Posts in recent years

Search2

Hasbys!

Hasbys!

2019 Nobel Peace Prize nominee

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.

Donate!

Donate to fight for Israel!

Monthly subscription:
Payment options


One time donation:

Follow EoZ on Twitter!

Interesting Blogs

Show All

Blog Archive

Copyright © Elder Of Ziyon - Israel News | Powered by Blogger
Blogger Templates