Friday, February 07, 2025

02/07 Links Pt1: Trump's Gaza Gambit and the Art of the Ultimate Deal; Or Levy, Eli Sharabi, and Ohad Ben Ami set to be released; Trump's AG to prosecute Oct. 7 crimes

From Ian:

Josh Hammer: Trump's Gaza Gambit and the Art of the Ultimate Deal
Prior to this week, Trump had alluded to the idea that he wanted Egypt and Jordan—the latter of which quite literally was established as the "Palestinian" state under the terms of the European powers' post-World War I settlement and the British Mandate for Palestine—to absorb the Arab population of Gaza. He has since doubled down. The idea of such a population transfer is unpopular in the Arab world, to put it mildly. But Trump has overcome such resistance before.

Three consecutive presidents—Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Obama—failed to fulfill the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995, which mandated moving the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, by issuing "national security" waivers every six months. All were scared of the reaction in the proverbial "Arab street." Trump didn't care and did it anyway. The reaction, it turns out, was fairly muted.

Suffice it to say Jordanian King Abdullah II's trip to the White House on Tuesday will be interesting.

But it turns out population transfer to Jordan and Egypt is only the first half of what Trump has in mind. He shocked everyone around him—including, it seems, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles—when he casually but assertively stated that the United States intends to "take over" Gaza after Israel's war against Hamas. The U.S. will "own" Gaza, Trump said, and make it a "Riviera of the Middle East." If we are taking Trump literally and not just seriously, to alter Salena Zito's popular 2016 quip, it seems part two of the plan (U.S. ownership of Gaza) is contingent on part one (population transfer of the Arabs there).

Or perhaps we should not take Trump literally. Perhaps this is, much like the "Peace to Prosperity" plan in 2020, a negotiating chip in a bigger plan—the much-desired entrance of Saudi Arabia into the Abraham Accords alliance, maybe. And there is certainly some early second-term data in favor of the "negotiating chip" theory: Trump's recent deferral of 25% tariffs on both Canada and Mexico in response to those two countries' leaders agreeing to send troops to their respective borders with the U.S., for instance.

It's difficult to know exactly what Trump is thinking here. There are real reasons for skepticism—but there are also real reasons for hope. He's done this before. Let's be patient and watch the shibboleth-buster in action. He may very well surprise us yet again.
Phyllis Chesler: The Gaza plan makes sense
I just read the current Torah portion, Beshalach. As all Torah chapters are, it’s about … everything. But this one includes God leading our people out of slavery in Egypt; describing my people complaining each step of the way—like children, like slaves, without spiritual or moral strength. The phrase is kotzer ruach.

They’ve had the very breath knocked out of them. The complaints are almost funny, but they are also embarrassing. And, by the way: God also splits the sea, allows our people to walk across it on dry land, then drowns the Egyptians in that very sea, provides a pillar by day and by night to lead us across vast desert spaces, feeds us rather magically, and on and on.

This was my beloved son’s parshah reading for his bar mitzvah, oh so long ago.

Is it entirely a coincidence? This year, this very week, we read this chapter. We read it at the same time that U.S. President Donald Trump has dared to open the world’s imagination, dared to risk the world’s hard heart and dared to risk the hot ire of billions by simply stating that the emperor is truly naked.

Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu understand that there are no Palestinian people; there are only Arabs who are living and dying in Gaza. There was never an ancient, or even a long-standing country, homeland or a state called Palestine.

And that it would be a humanitarian act to help those Arabs who have been under the boot of Iran’s terrorist organization, Hamas, to leave for another, nearby Arab Muslim country, like Egypt or Jordan—countries their ancestors came from no more than 100 years ago. And that under a Trump presidency, America could turn the Gaza Strip into the Riviera of the Middle East, a Las Vegas on the Mediterranean or Mar-a-Lago on the Med—a vacation destination that will employ many thousands of people. (This is not entirely my cup of tea but no matter. I’m not a businesswoman or a real estate broker. It might actually accomplish something good).

I don’t know what even a master dealmaker and bit of a bloviator will be allowed to accomplish. Will Trump be able to offer a deal to Egypt and Jordan that they will not be able to refuse?

The world is so invested in Jew-hatred and so determined to exterminate the State of Israel. The West and Muslim world deeply believe in the existence of a Palestinian people and a Palestinian homeland, and their propaganda battle has been hugely and dangerously effective. Most such true believers still refuse to recognize that Palestinianism is merely a relatively new incarnation of ancient antisemitism.
‘Transfer’ push enjoys broad consensus in Israel
Two weeks ago, the idea of “transfer” was as close to politically incorrect as possible in the context of Israeli politics.

“Transfer” is an umbrella term in Hebrew, referring to a family of policies, varying in their breadth and implementation, but unified in one characteristic: the movement of Arab populations out of contested areas as a method of resolving the Israeli-Arab conflict.

Left-wing politicians have dismissed the policies as “messianic” or a form of ethnic cleansing. Right-wing politicians have dismissed the idea as impractical or have refused to advance it through sheer political inertia.

However, after almost a year and a half of attack and retreat in Gaza, of thousands of rockets, terror attacks, ballistic missiles, exploding pagers, assassinations, hostage deals and terrorist releases, we found ourselves at the history-shifting moment when a United States president, of all people, put the “transfer” policy back on the political map.

In a joint press conference on Tuesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump announced his administration’s intention to “take over the Gaza Strip.”

Trump unfolded his vision to remove the entire population of Gaza “to several other countries,” after which Gaza would be leveled, cleared of rubble, and turned into an international economic development.

“This proposal has tremendously shifted the Overton window. People who were recently afraid to even broach the possibility of ‘transfer’ are now talking about it absolutely openly,” Martin Sherman, a senior researcher at the Israeli Defense and Security Forum, told JNS.

(The Overton window is the range of subjects and arguments politically acceptable to the mainstream population at a given time.)

Certain corners of Israel’s news punditry responded with shock at Trump’s proposal, apparently confused as to why he did not receive the memo that you are not allowed to discuss the idea of ‘transfer’ in polite society. However, according to recent polling, Trump is more in line with the Israeli street than many of the talking heads who have been bashing the new proposal.


Trump’s outlandish Gaza plan may spare Middle East from past mistakes
Trump's relocation idea touches untouched terrority
Trump’s idea, though, goes beyond merely advocating for the removal of Hamas.

It acknowledges that Gaza has been a disaster. The Egyptians didn’t want Gaza. Israel didn’t want it. The Palestinian Authority couldn’t control it.

Even today, Arab countries remain indifferent to the fate of Gaza’s population.

Despite sharing a direct border with Gaza, Egypt has shown no willingness to take in Palestinians from there. Likewise, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, geographically close, have also refrained from taking in people displaced from their homes.

This is the sad truth: The Arab world has no real interest in the people of Gaza.

This harsh reality cannot be ignored. And yet, while Trump’s idea is radical, it should not be simply dismissed as unrealistic.

The situation in Gaza requires a fundamental shift in strategy. As long as Hamas controls Gaza, as long as it remains mired in poverty and destruction, and as long as organizations like UNRWA continue to fund the perpetuation of conflict, the cycle of violence will persist.

To break this cycle, alternative solutions must be considered.

The conventional wisdom of the last 30 years has failed, and though Trump’s proposal may appear outlandish, sometimes drastic ideas are the only way to wake the world from its complacency.

The return of hostages must not be overshadowed
That said, as this debate unfolds, there is one undeniable priority that must remain front and center for Israel: the safe return of the hostages.

Earlier this week, I bumped into the brother of a hostage not included in the first stage of the deal. The man was waiting in the lobby of an office building in the hopes of landing a chance meeting with a senior cabinet minister who he believed could help ensure his brother would be on the list.

It was an act of desperation, a reminder that, for many families, the war is far from over.

Another group of hostages are supposed to be released this weekend and that is what matters right now.

There are still dozens of Israelis languishing in Gaza. Trump’s idea and plan can wait. The hostages cannot.
Attorney General Pam Bondi establishes task force to prosecute Oct. 7 crimes
In one of her first official acts after being sworn in on Wednesday, Attorney General Pam Bondi established a joint task force dedicated to investigating the perpetrators of the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks and seeking justice for their victims.

The scope of the body’s work goes beyond the attacks that took place more than a year ago. Bondi described a need to address “the ongoing threat posed by Hamas and its affiliates, both domestically and abroad.”

The remit of Joint Task Force October 7 will not be limited to terrorist violence — it is also tasked with prosecuting “antisemitic civil rights violations” and “other federal crimes” committed by Hamas supporters domestically, including on U.S. college campuses. The body will also seek the extradition of Hamas leaders who have faced charges for their roles in perpetrating the Oct. 7 attacks, charges that were brought by the Biden administration but that did not result in arrests.

“This administration is taking the threats to our community very, very seriously, which we are grateful for,” Michael Masters, CEO of the Secure Community Network, which provides security guidance to Jewish institutions across the U.S., said of the task force.

The establishment of the new body was one of 14 directives Bondi sent to Department of Justice employees on Wednesday, offering the clearest glimpse yet into the issues she plans to prioritize as America’s top law enforcement official. Many are reflections of hard-line policies that Trump backed in his campaign: taking a tough approach to liberal “sanctuary cities,” prioritizing immigration offenses, reinstating the death penalty in federal offenses and raising anti-DEI efforts to a major concern for the civil rights division.

The announcement of the Oct. 7 task force suggests Bondi views Islamist terrorism as a major threat and urgent issue to address.

The task force, which will be supervised by the deputy attorney general, will be staffed with FBI agents who have expertise in terrorism investigations. It will also work in conjunction with counterparts in Israel, as well as colleagues at other federal agencies, including the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service.
‘Ironclad’ US support for Israel, Johnson says after meeting with Netanyahu
Standing aside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) pledged “ironclad” support for the Jewish state on Friday.

“As Prime Minister Netanyahu said Tuesday at the White House, when our enemies see daylight between Israel and the United States, they will exploit it,” Johnson said following a closed-door meeting with the prime minister. “We all know that is true, and that’s why strong, decisive leadership is so crucial in this time.”

Originally scheduled for Thursday, the meeting was postponed due to budget talks at the White House with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Following Johnson’s remarks, Netanyahu also talked about the close relationship between the United States and Israel, which he said was only reinforced during his visit this week, including his meeting at the White House with Trump.

“I was deeply moved by the reception that we got, the substantive things that we discussed—making sure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon and also making sure Hamas is destroyed,” Netanyahu said. “We’re not going to have a future for Gaza or a future for peace in our part of the world if Hamas remains there.”

“It sets the tone for this great strengthening of the American-Israeli alliance,” he added. “It’s not only an alliance between governments. It’s an alliance between peoples.”

Netanyahu also thanked Trump for releasing the shipment of 2,000-pound bombs that then-President Joe Biden held up last year over, he said, worries about civilian casualties, even as he approved a new $8 billion sale of weapons to Israel last month.

The Israeli prime minister said that he has developed a “very warm personal bond” with Johnson and invited the House speaker to come to Israel. “This year in Jerusalem,” Netanyahu said.

Johnson said that the first measure under his leadership that passed the House was a resolution that reaffirmed the American commitment to Israel’s security.
Netanyahu on Saudi demand for PA state: ‘We had one, it was called Gaza
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the issue of normalization with Saudi Arabia and the establishment of a Palestinian state, saying such a state would be a “giant reward for terrorism,” in a Feb. 6 interview with Israel’s Channel 14.

Saudi Arabia has made the creation of a Palestinian state a precondition for normalization of relations with Israel. Most recently on Feb. 5, the Saudis swiftly contradicted U.S. President Donald Trump, who said on Tuesday that the Saudis were not demanding a Palestinian homeland in exchange for ties with Israel.

Asked whether the contradictory statements of Trump and the Saudis could be bridged, Netanyahu said simply, “I will not make any agreement that endangers the State of Israel. I will not do it.”

The prime minister said this applied “especially” if that meant creating a Palestinian state. “After the seventh of October [2023], do you know what that is? There was a Palestinian state. It was called Gaza. Look what we received. The biggest massacre since the Holocaust.

“To establish a Palestinian state after October 7 is a huge prize not only for Hamas [but] for Iran,” Netanyahu added.

The Saudis view the attrition and near-destruction of Hamas as a positive development and have aligned themselves with the Palestinian Authority, which controls Arab-populated areas in Judea and Samaria, advocating for that entity to take over the Gaza Strip.

“The Palestinian Authority is capable, with the support of the international community, of controlling the West Bank and Gaza Strip,” said Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud at last year’s Munich Security Conference.
Egypt’s large military presence in Sinai continues to raise questions
The considerable Egyptian military presence in the Sinai Peninsula and ongoing infrastructure work has some observers in Israel alarmed.

Officially, the Israeli defense establishment says that coordination between the two militaries remains tight and contributes to regional stability. However, the concentration of forces in Sinai is not easily explained by previous justifications such as fighting ISIS, and raises the more troubling, seldom spoken, possibility that President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and his army view Israel as a potential future adversary.

On Feb. 4, Kan News, citing the Beirut-based, Hezbollah-aligned Al Akhbar newspaper, said Egyptian sources revealed that Cairo “conveyed an explicit warning to Israel in the military coordination meetings that the continued stay of IDF forces in the Philadelphi Corridor [on Gaza’s border with Egypt] would be considered a violation of the Camp David [Peace] Agreement between Israel and Egypt, and that Egypt would not be obligated to the agreement in the ongoing coordination regarding the situation of its forces on the border.”

The same report stated that “the Egyptian sources emphasized that Egypt’s messages are based on the adherence of the Palestinian factions to the clauses of the ceasefire agreement, on Cairo’s refusal to create a new geographic reality, and on the Israeli claim that it is possible ‘to eliminate Hamas.’”

Israel’s defense establishment, for its part, pointed to longstanding cooperation mechanisms that remain in place despite the reports of tensions. Israeli defense sources have affirmed that security coordination between Cairo and Jerusalem was and remains tight, “as it has been for years,” adding that “the security coordination reflects the common security interest of both countries for regional stability and preserving national security.”

Egyptian troop deployments in Sinai grew over recent years, ostensibly to fight jihadist insurgents, but some observers in Israel have raised the possibility that such a substantial presence could become a strategic liability under changed circumstances.
Ted Cruz: Biden admin. poured 'millions of dollars' into Hamas
The US poured "hundreds of millions of dollars" into Hamas, Republican Senator Ted Cruz told The Daily Caller following news of the Trump administration's pause on foreign aid. The Trump administration had paused the foreign funds to review if aid allocation was aligned with his foreign policy.

“They secretly poured literally uncountable hundreds of millions of dollars toward Hamas, including tens of millions of cash they could never account for,” Cruz said.

"Throughout the Biden admin, they knew the money they were pouring into Gaza would benefit Hamas," the Texas senator wrote in a post to X/Twitter. "They did it anyway."

The Daily Caller reported that over $1.3 billion in US taxpayer funds during the Biden presidency ended up funding groups that either sponsored or directly committed terrorism.

The largest share went to Palestinian organizations.

“The American people deserve to know where their hard-earned dollars are going and spending must be aligned with what is best for our country,” Cruz told The Daily Caller.

Cruz acknowledged that some of USAID's functions are important but that the organization must be held accountable.


Or Levy, Eli Sharabi, and Ohad Ben Ami set to be released as part of hostage deal's fifth wave
Or Levy, Eli Sharabi, and Ohad Ben Ami are to be the next set of hostages released by Hamas on Saturday, the prime minister's office confirmed Friday.

The three have been held captive by the terrorist organization for 491 days. Both Ben Ami and Sharabi are residents of Kibbutz Be'eri.

Levy, now 34, was attending the Nova Music Festival on October 7 with his 32-year-old wife, Eynav, leaving their two-year-old son Almog with his grandparents. Hamas killed Eynav and abducted Or to Gaza. He is a resident of Rishon Lezion and worked as a programmer at a startup company.

Sharabi's wife Leanne and their two daughters Noya, 16, and Yahel, 13, were also murdered on October 7. His brother, Yossi Sharabi, was murdered in captivity with his body still held in Gaza. Leanne came from England as a volunteer to work at Kibbutz Be'eri where their family lived.

Ben Ami was abducted alongside his wife Raz, although she was freed during the hostage deal in November 2023. His family was among many of the hostages' families who protested tirelessly for his release.

In his free time, Ohad spent his time cycling, though his friends whom he cycled with stopped riding together after he was kidnapped, and waited for his return to ride together again.

His daughter, Ella, posted an Instagram story responding to her father's release, saying "Nothing could've prepared my lungs for this moment."


'Netanyahu, bring my family back,' released hostage Yarden Bibas says in first official statement
Released hostage Yarden Bibas addressed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in in his first official statement on Friday since his release last Saturday.

"Netanyahu, I'm now addressing you with my own words, which no one dictated to me: Bring my family back. Bring my friends back. Bring everyone home," he said.

He was released alongside hostages Ofer Kalderon and Keith Siegel after being held in the Gaza Strip for 484 days. Bibas's wife, Shiri, and their two children, Ariel and Kfir, are still held in captivity in Gaza.

"My light is still there, and as long as they're there, everything here is dark," he said about his family. "Thanks to you, I was brought back - help me bring the light back to my life." Unity of the Israeli people

Additionally, in his statement, Bibas also said that he didn't realize the large extent and strength of the Israeli people's unity in times of disaster.

"On October 7, 2023, I was kidnapped from Israel. On February 1, 2025, I returned to a different country.

"I want to thank you for the strength you gave my family and friends. They told me about everything you did for me and my family, and 'thank you' is not big enough to express my gratitude to you." He then requested, after seeing what he described as the unity of our amazing nation," to not "wait until the next disaster to be united."

Bibas also thanked the Israeli military, calling them "heroes, each and every one of you." He then encouraged the entire Israeli public to not stop and "continue the fight to bring everyone back."




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