Tuesday, April 22, 2025

04/22 Links Pt1: A Tragic Mistake? Yes. A War Crime? The Western world wants to keep Israel weak; No; 24 killed in massacre of tourists in Kashmir

From Ian:

Arsen Ostrovsky, John Spencer, and Brian Cox: A Tragic Mistake? Yes. A War Crime? No
The IDF's internal investigation concluded that the killings resulted from a series of operational errors and professional failures. IDF elements were operating in a "hostile and dangerous combat zone" and believed there to be a "tangible threat." Soldiers misidentified the convoy of vehicles, assessing that they were being used by Hamas insurgents—a tactic the group has systematically employed since Oct. 7, 2023.

Hamas has made a practice of blurring the lines between combatant and civilian, systematically exploiting ambulances, hospitals, and humanitarian symbols for military purposes. This tactic forces troops into impossible split-second decisions under fire—precisely the kind of dilemma that international law accounts for, but online critics ignore.

International humanitarian law also recognizes that tragic mistakes can happen during active combat, especially when insurgents like Hamas use protected facilities and vehicles to launch or shield attacks. Such conduct undermines the protections that civilians and humanitarian actors are entitled to.

No army—American, British, or Israeli—is immune to errors in war. What matters is what follows: transparency, investigation, disciplinary action, and institutional learning. That is the measure of a professional military in a democratic society.

In the IDF incident, surveillance indicated that five vehicles approached rapidly and stopped near IDF troops, with passengers quickly disembarking. The deputy battalion commander assessed the situation as a credible Hamas threat and ordered fire. Though that judgment proved incorrect, the belief was reasonable under the circumstances, including poor nighttime visibility, and which only underscored that the IDF complied with the rule of distinction under law of armed conflict.

The examination into the incident was conducted by the IDF General Staff Fact Finding Mechanism, a professional team outside the operational chain of command. Their findings were presented to the chief of the General Staff, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, and included operational breaches, failures to follow orders, and reporting deficiencies. As a result, the deputy commander of the Golani Brigade was dismissed, and the commander of the 14th Brigade was severely reprimanded. The case is also being reviewed by the IDF Military Advocate General's Office for potential legal proceedings.

The IDF expressed deep regret for the civilian harm and emphasized that the investigation is part of an ongoing commitment to learn from operational failures and reduce the risk of recurrence.

In short, the IDF acted exactly as a military in a democracy should: it investigated, acknowledged fault, and held individuals accountable.

There must also be a clear distinction between errors made in the course of legitimate military operations and intentionally directing attacks against civilians, which is Hamas' standard practice and a blatant war crime.

Israel mourns every innocent life lost. Hamas counts every innocent death as a victory. That is not just a moral difference—it is the difference between law and lawlessness, between a tragedy and a crime.
Seth Frantzman: What can be learned from the IDF inquiry into killing of medics in Gaza?
Perhaps the killing of the medics sheds light on the larger problem of assessing the number of terrorists killed.

How many other incidents occurred in the war in which 15 men were killed and six were terrorists? What process is used to determine that the six were terrorists? Were they armed?

The IDF report on the March 23 incident does not specify these details. This leaves many questions about “known unknowns,” to use the phrase former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld liked.

There are many known unknowns in Gaza. How many tunnels are there? How many were dismantled in 18 months of war? How many men has Hamas recruited?

How many Hamas battalions have actually been “dismantled”? How many more incidents are there where an inflated number of enemies were “eliminated”?

The last question raised by the report relates to why the IDF decided to crush the vehicles after finding out they were ambulances and rescue vehicles?

“The decision to crush the vehicles was wrong,” the IDF says. That one sentence doesn’t tell us much about why the decision was made. Is it the usual order to crush vehicles after a firefight?

If the vehicles are obstructing a road and disabled, why not just push them to the side? Why would anyone order an ambulance to be crushed? The fact that the decision was “wrong” doesn’t really tell us about the larger context or if this is the usual practice.

The IDF says it “regrets the harm caused to uninvolved civilians.”

It also says it will learn from this incident to “reduce the likelihood of similar occurrences in the future. Existing protocols have been clarified and reinforced – emphasizing the need for heightened caution when operating near rescue forces and medical personnel, even in high-intensity combat zones.”

While this is good, it doesn’t address larger questions about other civilians or why aid convoys continue to run at night through IDF-controlled zones if such convoys cannot be protected.

The report also doesn’t fully explain how the number of terrorists is determined after a firefight or why vehicles are crushed after these incidents.
IDF Reports on Investigation of March Incident Involving Rescue Teams and Vehicles in Gaza
The IDF said Sunday that an investigation into the incident involving rescue teams and vehicles in Gaza on the night of March 23, 2025, found that it occurred while the troops were conducting a vital mission aimed at targeting terrorists. Throughout the operation, vehicles and ambulances moved along the route without obstruction, since the forces did not perceive any threat posed by them.

There were three shooting incidents on that day: In the first incident, troops fired at a vehicle identified as a Hamas vehicle. An hour later, the troops opened fire on suspects emerging from a fire truck and ambulances very close to the area in which the troops were operating, after perceiving an immediate and tangible threat. Supporting surveillance had reported five vehicles approaching rapidly and stopping near the troops, with passengers quickly disembarking.

The deputy battalion commander assessed the vehicles as employed by Hamas forces, and ordered to open fire. Fifteen Palestinians were killed, six of whom were identified later as Hamas terrorists. Due to poor night visibility, the deputy commander did not initially recognize the vehicles as ambulances. Only later, after approaching the vehicles, was it discovered that these were indeed rescue teams.

About 15 minutes later, the troops fired at a Palestinian UN vehicle due to operational errors in breach of regulations. At dawn, it was decided to gather and cover the bodies to prevent further harm to them and clear the vehicles from the route. There was no attempt to conceal the event, which was discussed with international organizations and the UN, including coordination for the removal of bodies.

The investigation determined that the fire resulted from an operational misunderstanding by the troops, who believed they faced a tangible threat from enemy forces. Alongside this, the examination identified several professional failures, breaches of orders, and a failure to fully report the incident. The deputy commander of the battalion will be dismissed due to his responsibility as the field commander in this incident. Existing protocols have been clarified and reinforced - emphasizing the need for heightened caution when operating near rescue forces and medical personnel, even in high-intensity combat zones.


Hamas’s ‘all-or-nothing’ strategy: Why it rejected a partial deal
Lt. Col. (ret.) Jonathan D. Halevi, a senior researcher of the Middle East and radical Islam at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs and co-founder of the Orient Research Group Ltd., noted that contrary to public perception, “The phrase ‘everyone for everyone’ never existed. That’s a misrepresentation. For Hamas, it’s everyone in return for everything.”

Halevi detailed Hamas’s core demands: complete IDF withdrawal from Gaza, including the security perimeter, the lifting of the security blockade, international guarantees against renewed Israeli military action, and large-scale reconstruction of the Strip—including the rebuilding of Hamas’s infrastructure.

Halevi warned that this approach is designed to manufacture a narrative of jihadist victory, which would reverberate across the Middle East. “If there’s an ethos of Hamas victory, that has forward-looking consequences—not just locally,” he said,

He explained that Hamas is stalling while leveraging international pressure campaigns to increase internal Israeli dissent and influence public opinion.

“Their emphasis is to cause internal pressure to force Netanyahu to accept Hamas’s terms. That’s their declared strategy—through families of hostages, through protests. The messages, as seen from the outside, are the same on both sides,” he said, adding that it seems that Hamas is copying some anti-Netanyahu messages from among Israeli protesters and trying to co-opt them, as part of its pressure campaign.

“The Israeli view is very narrow. It focuses on seeing the Israel-Gaza problem. This is inaccurate. Hamas could decide [as part of a future deal] to stop releasing hostages because of Israeli activities at Al-Aqsa [the Temple Mount in Jerusalem] or the Cave of the Patriarchs [in Hebron], for example,” he warned.

As part of this pressure campaign, Halevi said, based on Hamas documents that he has recently translated, it emerged that the late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar had interpreted the protests in Israel against the government as constituting “a green light that the [former American Biden] administration wanted to bring down Netanyahu.”

The IDF conducted extensive overnight airstrikes this week across the Gaza Strip, focusing on western Gaza City, Khan Yunis (southern Gaza), and Rafah (southern Gaza).

Specific IAF strikes targeted at least three concentrations of heavy engineering vehicles used by Hamas for terror infrastructure. The IDF spokesperson stated these strikes targeted Hamas infrastructure.

Meanwhile, an analysis published on April 21 at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security by Col. (res.) Prof. Gabi Siboni, who serves as a consultant to the IDF, and Brig. Gen. (res.) Erez Winner, a former head of planning for IDF Southern Command, warned that Hamas does not fear the suffering of Gaza’s civilian population and views the October 7, 2023, massacre as a model for future operations.

“Hamas is already working on the next Oct. 7,” they said. “It views the attack as a great victory and is unmoved by the price paid by it or the Gaza population.”

They noted that Hamas rejected both Israel’s proposal and the American Witkoff Plan, which included the return of approximately half the remaining 59 hostages, living and dead, in exchange for an extension of the ceasefire.

The authors called for full Israeli military control over the Gaza Strip, stating, “The key to achieving the war’s objectives lies in the complete destruction of Hamas’s military and governmental presence in Gaza.”

They warned that this is essential not only to ensure security in the south but to prevent Hamas from framing the current campaign as a victory that would inspire further radicalization in Judea and Samaria.


Trump after call with Netanyahu: ‘We’re on the same side of every issue’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke via phone on Tuesday with US President Donald Trump, the American leader said, declaring that the pair “are on the same side of every issue.”

The call covered “numerous subjects including Trade, Iran, etc.,” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social, adding that the conversation went “very well.”

Notably, Trump did not include Gaza or the 59 hostages being held there in his list of topics discussed amid the ongoing impasse in ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas. However, according to a report in Axios, the pair did talk about efforts to reach a hostage release deal, with the Trump administration pushing for a breakthrough and Israel wary of any agreement that would end the war.

There was no immediate readout of the call from the Israeli side, but Netanyahu reposted Trump’s post, commenting, “Thank you, President Trump!”

An Israeli source told The Times of Israel that the call was short and that the two discussed Iran’s nuclear program, among other issues.

The conversation marked their first publicly known call since Netanyahu met with Trump in the White House two weeks ago after he was hastily summoned to Washington. The Israeli prime minister arrived in DC planning to discuss tariffs, but learned upon landing that he was there for a heads-up about the already-made US decision to enter nuclear talks with Iran.

Netanyahu has since stated that Israel does not oppose talks that lead to Iran completely dismantling its nuclear program, but Trump officials at times have indicated that they’d be willing to accept Iran keeping its nuclear facilities, while adhering to strict caps on its uranium enrichment akin to the deal that was signed in 2015 during the Obama administration. US President Donald Trump meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 7, 2025. (SAUL LOEB / AFP)

Last week, The New York Times reported that Trump blocked an Israeli plan for a series of joint strikes next month on Iranian nuclear facilities to instead pursue diplomatic means.

Asked about the report at the time, Trump said that “I wouldn’t say ‘waved off’” a joint attack on Iran, but then he added, “I’m not in a rush to do it.”

Tehran and Washington have held two rounds of indirect talks in Muscat and Rome since April 12, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff leading the negotiations.

Oman said the third round, also set for Saturday, would again be held in Muscat.


National Security Council Shoots Down ‘Lies’ About Staffer Accused of Work for Israeli Government
The National Security Council categorically rejected claims surfaced in a news report that a senior staffer previously worked for the Israeli government before subsequent calls from anti-Semitic groups, like the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), emerged for that staffer’s dismissal.

Merav Ceren, now helping to steer White House policy for Israel and Iran, is a "patriotic American," Brian Hughes, a deputy national security adviser, said in a statement provided to the Washington Free Beacon. He was responding to assertions first leveled by Ryan Grim and Saagar Enjeti on the Substack site, Drop Site News, that Ceren had "formerly worked for the Israeli Ministry of Defense." She had not, Hughes said.

"Merav was never employed by the Israeli Defense Ministry, let alone was she an Israeli official. She did a policy fellowship studying resource management in the West Bank, which is overseen by the Israeli Ministry of Defense, which required her to liaison with them for her research," Hughes said. "She is a patriotic American committed to implementing President Trump’s agenda, and these lies are efforts to undermine the President’s agenda."

Ceren is a longtime Republican policy hand in Washington, D.C., and has previously worked for Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) and Rep. James Comer (R., Ky.).

Drop Site News, founded by longtime progressives Grim and Jeremy Scahill, beats a consistently anti-Israel drum. Its news report was based on a 2016 biography for Ceren posted to the website of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, which erroneously stated that "she worked at Israel’s Ministry of Defense."

The report reverberated across the anti-Israel corners of the internet. CAIR demanded the Trump administration drop her from the National Security Council. The non-profit has faced accusations of financing Islamic terrorism and was named by the FBI as an unindicted co-conspirator in a 2008 Hamas financing probe. Just days after Hamas's Oct. 7 massacre, a top CAIR leader said the slaughter of Jews made him "happy"—prompting the Biden administration to cut ties with the organization.

The Quincy Institute, an isolationist think tank funded by George Soros and Charles Koch that advocates for normalized relations with Iran, also seized on the report, labeling Ceren as a "former Israeli Ministry of Defense official."
State Department shake-up keeps antisemitism office in place
A new organizational chart released by the State Department on Tuesday shows major changes to the department’s structure, including the elimination of the office where the special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism’s team is located. Despite this, internal department communications affirmed that the office of the special envoy is still a department priority and will continue to exist.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the major shake-up of the department’s organizational structure as seeking to counter what he described as left-wing orthodoxy in the department and “drain[ing] the bloated, bureaucratic swamp.”

The changes include the elimination of the office of the under secretary for civilian security, democracy and human rights, where the office of the antisemitism envoy was previously placed.

A fact sheet sent to State Department employees that was obtained by Jewish Insider makes clear that the antisemitism envoy’s office will now fall under the State Department’s new foreign and humanitarian affairs office, along with the office of international religious freedom. Many other offices were not afforded the same clarity in Rubio’s fact sheet. Layoffs are expected across the department, but senior officials declined to share with employees who might lose their job.

“President [Donald] Trump and Secretary Rubio are focused on realigning U.S. foreign policy to reflect America’s core national interests and deliver better results for Americans,” the fact sheet stated.


Israel Must Start Planning for the Day after a New Iran Deal
Over the weekend, nuclear negotiations between the U.S. and Iran continued in Rome, and are expected to resume on Saturday. Both sides told news outlets that talks went well. Such optimism alone is cause for worry, as are reports that the White House called off a planned Israeli strike. Michael Oren explains how Israel should respond if America indeed concludes a deal that allows Tehran to keep its nuclear program in exchange for difficult-to-enforce promises that it won’t put it to military use.

Israel must enter into an intimate dialogue with the White House on ways Israel can nevertheless defend itself. These must include ironclad U.S. security guarantees and assurances that Israel will always have the means to defend itself against Iranian aggression. Israel must, for the first time, be permitted to purchase strategic bombers and train its crews to fly them. It must reach agreements with the United States regarding the permanent demilitarization of Gaza and southern Lebanon.

The intimate dialogue is all the more important in view of the fact that, in contrast to the past, Israel cannot count on Congress to oppose a new nuclear deal. The Democrats will support any deal that closely resembles Barack Obama’s while the Republicans will refrain from opposing Donald Trump. Israel has no choice but to make its case directly to the Oval Office. It must begin its negotiations with the administration now, irrespective of who may leak and for what reason.


Trump To Welcome Hamas, Harvard Donor Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to White House
President Donald Trump is reportedly meeting on Tuesday with Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, a man who, as Qatar's prime minister, is a major financial backer of both Hamas and Harvard University.

Al Thani, who also serves as Qatar's foreign minister and is a member of the ruling family that also includes Qatar's emir, arrived in the United States this week for meetings with senior federal officials. They include Trump himself, according to reports.

The meeting comes one day after Harvard sued the Trump administration for freezing more than $2 billion in grants and contracts to the Ivy League university. It also comes as Qatari officials attempt to revive a Hamas ceasefire deal. Al Thani, in his role as Qatar's second most powerful official, is a top ally of both parties.

Qatar has given Harvard $3.8 million since 2020, federal records show. It is also one of Hamas's primary funders and sheltered the terrorist group's leaders in the wake of Oct. 7. The gulf state has a major lobbying presence in Washington, D.C., and has spent billions trying to influence U.S. policy over the past two decades.

The Trump administration has mulled sanctions against some Qatari nationals as part of an effort to crack down on pro-Hamas campus groups, the Washington Free Beacon reported last month. At the same time, some administration officials and members of Trump’s inner circle have also signaled their support for Qatar. Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff recently called Qatar an "ally of the United States" and said it has "moderated quite a bit."

Trump ally Bernard Kerik, the former New York Police Department commissioner, registered as a foreign agent of Qatar earlier this month, according to lobbying disclosure records.


The Western world wants to keep Israel weak
HERE IS THE place to explain why Israel no longer considers “effective government and reconstruction” (involving for example the lavishing of additional billions of dollars and euros on the PA) or feeble diplomatic agreements (such as soft deals with Syria and Iran or a deal with Saudi Arabia on civilian nuclear power – which Miller and Simon endorse) to be sufficient security policy.

Forty or so years of Oslo-style arrangements, in which the West cajoled and pressured Israel into territorial withdrawals and a policy of restraint against emerging enemy threats, has proven to be an utter failure. “Containment” policy, which prioritized diplomacy over decisive military triumphs, has failed. It all blew up in Israel’s face, with terror and invasion from the West Bank and Gaza and Syria and Lebanon, and the march of Iran’s nuclear bomb program to near completion.

This was accompanied by decades of willful Western blindness to the jihadist nature of Israel’s enemies, to the threat of the jihadis to other countries in the region, and to infiltration of jihadist influences in – and jihadi-minded migrant populations to – the West itself.

Consequently, over the past 18 months, Israel has necessarily moved to a better balance between diplomacy and the use of force to prevent and scuttle enemy threats. Israel must and will continue to employ fierce, overwhelming, and surprising strikes against enemy assets and strongholds. It needs to keep its enemies off base with beeper blasts and bunker-busting airstrikes, even on hospitals and schools where the enemy burrows its arms arsenals and terrorist headquarters.

Israel wants to be feared – and yes, militarily “dominant” – not loved. And Israel also knows that its neighbors will seek true partnership with Israel only when it is strong.

Thus, Israel can no longer accept policies that emphasize “quiet for quiet” or “restraint” because this allows the enemy to develop its attack capabilities under the cover of diplomatic breathing time; what Miller and Simon wrongly call “stability.”

In this new era, Israel intends to project its strength to definitively neutralize adversaries, and in so doing to lead the region – to gather a coalition of truly peace-seeking nations. Yes, to truly “stabilize” the region, but not through reliance on hackneyed diplomatic templates and failed formulas that ooze weakness.

It is sad and so destructive that politicians like Macron and analysts like Miller and Simon think that the way to peace in the Middle East is, once again, ho-hum, to pressure Israel into restraint, to “show good faith” in diplomacy, to bend to Arab demands and agree to withdrawals that supposedly will “satisfy” the enemy bloodlust.

It is ugly that they stoop to demonizing Israel as the threat, rather than the greatest asset for the West, in resetting the strategic table and helping win the war against the Russia-China-Iran axis.
Macron’s Middle East ‘grandstanding’ will backfire
This week, Israel revoked the entry visas of 27 French lawmakers and local officials. While the delegation, organized by the French consulate in Jerusalem, claimed its visit was intended to promote international cooperation and peace, Israeli authorities accused the group of planning activities hostile to the state.

The diplomatic kerfuffle follows closely on the heels of another provocation: French President Emmanuel Macron’s announcement that he and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will co-host a June conference focused on establishing a Palestinian state—a move that drew sharp criticism from Jerusalem.

“In the coming months, together we will multiply and combine our diplomatic initiatives to bring everyone along this path,” said Macron during a visit to Saudi Arabia.

“We want to involve several other partners and allies, both European and non-European, who are ready to move in this direction but who are waiting for France,” he added.

David Weinberg, managing senior fellow at the Jerusalem-based Misgav Institute for National Security & Zionist Strategy, told JNS Macron is “grandstanding” to “defy and constrain” the Jewish state.

“After all, the insistence on Palestinian statehood—after 30 years of Oslo process failures and the Oct. 7 attacks—flies in the face of logic, justice, history, and basic security realities,” said Weinberg, referring to the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 invasion of southern Israel. “The Palestinian national movement, Fatah and Hamas wings alike, largely have shown themselves to be committed to Israel’s debilitation and destruction, not to a peaceful two-state solution.”

Macron’s inability or unwillingness to read the room and understand that his obsession with a two-state solution is no longer a viable solution matters little, said Weinberg. He aims to follow in the footsteps of Ireland, Spain, Norway and Slovenia, all of which recognized a “State of Palestine,” disregarding the fact that Palestine does not exist.

Macron’s notion that a Palestinian state will bring peace in the region is countered by a recent survey conducted by the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, which found that 64% of the Israeli public oppose the establishment of a Palestinian state, even as part of a normalization process with Saudi Arabia.
At least 24 killed in massacre of tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir
At least 24 people were killed in Indian-administered Kashmir when gunmen opened fire on tourists on Tuesday, a senior police officer told AFP, with authorities calling it the worst attack on civilians in years.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi decried the “heinous act” in the summer retreat of Pahalgam, pledging the attackers “will be brought to justice.”

A tour guide told AFP he reached the scene after hearing gunfire and transported some of the wounded away on horseback.

“I saw a few men lying on the ground looking like they were dead,” said Waheed, who gave only one name.

The attack targeted tourists in Pahalgam, which lies about 90 kilometers (55 miles) by road from the key city of Srinagar. Initial reports suggested that the tourists were mostly Indian. No other details on their identities were immediately released.

The senior police officer in the region, speaking on condition of anonymity, described a massacre in which at least 24 people had been killed.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but rebels in the Muslim-majority region have waged an insurgency since 1989.

They are seeking independence or a merger with Pakistan — which controls a smaller part of the Kashmir region and, like India, claims it in full.

The killings come a day after Modi met with US Vice President JD Vance, who is on a four-day tour of India.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that “the attack is much larger than anything we’ve seen directed at civilians in recent years,” with the death toll “still being ascertained.”

“This attack on our visitors is an abomination,” he said in a statement. “The perpetrators of this attack are animals, inhuman and worthy of contempt.”

India’s Interior Minister Amit Shah said he was flying to the site of the attack.

“Those involved in this dastardly act of terror will not be spared, and we will come down heavily on the perpetrators with the harshest consequences,” Shah said in a statement.


How Israel can tackle UNWRA & the UN's terror problem | Basic Law
Host Aylana Meisel, Executive Director of the Israel Law and Liberty Forum, sits down with leading international law expert Professor Avi Bell (University of San Diego, Bar-Ilan University, Kohelet Policy Forum and board member at NGO Monitor) for a powerful exposé on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and its deeply controversial role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Amid renewed global debate over humanitarian aid to Gaza and Israel's legal obligations, this never-before-released episode investigates the systemic infiltration of UNRWA by Hamas, its misuse of foreign aid, and the legal battles now unfolding. Professor Bell explains how UNRWA schools have promoted radical ideology, stored weapons, and employed individuals complicit in the October 7th terror attacks—all while funded by taxpayer money from the U.S., Canada, EU, and others.

Topics covered:
UNRWA’s legal immunity and the push to revoke it
Israel’s new law banning UNRWA from sovereign territory
Why most aid to Gaza risks empowering terrorist groups
International law and the myth of Israeli obligation
NGO abuse and the crisis of unchecked civil society organizations

Chapters
00:00 Humanitarian Aid and Israel's Legal Obligations
03:04 Understanding UNRWA: Structure and Function
05:46 UNRWA's Political Role and Controversies
08:56 Coordination with Terror Organizations
12:05 Legal Implications and International Law
15:08 Challenges in Implementing New Laws
18:09 Future of Humanitarian Aid in Gaza
21:02 Public and Private Responses to UNRWA
24:03 Lessons for Israel from NGO Monitor




‘How about we put pressure where it really belongs, on Hamas,’ Huckabee tells WHO
Mike Huckabee, the newly installed U.S. ambassador to Israel, shared a public response to Dr. Hanan Balkhy, regional director for the eastern Mediterranean at the World Health Organization, who called on him to allow more aid into Gaza.

Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, said he appreciated Balkhy’s request but suggested that “we work together on putting the pressure where it really belongs—on Hamas.”

The terror group should sign an agreement to allow aid into Gaza without looting it and must release the hostages, and then “aid can flow into Gaza to the people who desperately need it,” the U.S. envoy said.

“Aid that goes to Hamas is not humanitarian,” wrote Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in response to Huckabee.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry and its embassy in Washington, D.C., and the Republican Jewish Coalition thanked Huckabee.

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) wrote that Huckabee was correct. “Hamas has spent the last 563 days holding innocent Americans and Israelis hostage in Gaza,” Scott stated. “The pressure belongs on Hamas terrorists to release every last hostage today.”

“Israel can’t quit the World Health Organization quick enough,” wrote Eugene Kontorovich, professor at the George Mason University Scalia Law School. “After helping Hamas hide in hospitals, WHO has chutzpah to ask a U.S. ambassador, whose country is already quitting the corrupt organization, to pressure Israel.”


Seth Frantzman: Syrian forces detain two ‘Palestinian leaders in Damascus’ - report
The report went on to say that the sources confirmed that Khaled’s arrest came less than 48 hours after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s visit to Damascus and his meeting with Syrian President Sharaa. The sources revealed a large movement by Palestinian and Arab leaders inside and outside Syria to release the Palestinian leader. Syrian media reported that Khaled and Yasser were accused of “collaborating with Iran.”

The report said PIJ had not left Syria after December 8. “Several Islamic Jihad headquarters in Damascus have been subjected to repeated Israeli strikes, the most recent of which occurred on March 13, when the home of the movement’s secretary-general, Ziad al-Nakhalah, was hit by an Israeli missile strike in the Dumar neighborhood, north of Damascus.”

The report said this is the first time “a Palestinian leader has been arrested in Syria, where more than 13 Palestinian factions are present, some of whom have left Damascus.”

RT in Arabic appeared to confirm the story. “The Saraya al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, issued an urgent appeal to the Syrian government to release two of its leaders who have been detained for five days,” the report said. “The Brigades identified the two detained leaders as Commander Khaled Khaled, responsible for the Syrian arena, and Commander Yasser al-Zafari, head of the organizational committee. They noted that the arrests were carried out without providing any clear reasons.”

In its statement, the organization recalled “Syria’s history of struggle in support of the Palestinian cause... Syria has always been a haven for loyal and free people who defended the nation against occupiers and tyrants.”

The statement also said: “While the al-Quds Brigades have continued to fight against Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip for more than a year and a half, its weapons have been directed only at the Zionist enemy, and our martyrs from the Syrian arena have fallen on the borders of occupied Palestine.”

Al-Quds daily, a Palestinian publication, also reported on the arrests, repeating the Sky News Arabia report. The New Arab said the arrests appear linked to the Trump administration’s demand that Syria crack down on these types of extremist groups to get any sanctions relief.

Syrian officials have said they intend to travel to the US soon. Two US congressmen recently arrived in Damascus for meetings. The overall role of Khaled in PIJ was not clear in the wake of his arrest.
Hamas calls on Jordan to release Muslim Brotherhood cell involved in producing rockets
Hamas urged Jordan to release members of a reported Muslim Brotherhood terrorist cell, who were arrested last week by the Jordanian Intelligence, after being accused of attempting to manufacture rockets and drones with training from Hamas leaders in Lebanon.

According to Qatari outlet Al Jazeera, Hamas claimed in their statement that they have “been informed of the developments and details of the case related to the arrest of a group of Jordanian youths,” defending their actions as “motivated by support for Palestine and the defense of Al-Quds and al-Aqsa Mosque.”

Hamas also claimed that the arrested operatives’ actions “did not in any way target Jordan’s security or stability,” adding that the group “appreciates these initiatives, which stem from the conscience of the nation and its national and Islamic conscience.”

The terror-designated group continued: “Supporting the Palestinian resistance is a national and moral duty.

“It should not be condemned or criminalized, but rather celebrated, and its proponents thanked,” adding that they “salute every free voice and sincere initiative in dear Jordan and throughout the nation that contributes to supporting the steadfastness of our people.”
Weekend Hamas ambush lays bare vulnerability of Israeli-held Gaza buffer zone
On Saturday, a Hamas cell of at least six operatives emerged from a tunnel on the side of a road in the northern Gaza Strip. The well-armed terror operatives hid in the shrubbery, waiting as Israeli military vehicles passed by, then opened fire with rocket-propelled grenades and gunfire at one they misidentified as belonging to a senior commander.

The unarmored army car was flipped over on the side of the road. Three servicewomen, including an officer, were seriously wounded inside it, with no other forces in the area to return fire.

After the attack on the vehicle, the terror operatives laid a bomb on the side of the road and detonated it when rescue forces arrived around 25 minutes later, killing a soldier, Warrant Officer G’haleb Sliman Alnasasra, and seriously wounding another.

The Hamas gunmen were able to flee back through the tunnel they emerged from, as other operatives stationed further away shelled the area with mortars.

The tunnel used in the attack had already been discovered by the Israel Defense Forces, and the army was in the process of mapping it out and demolishing it. Hamas apparently realized it would soon lose the tunnel and decided to use it in the deadly attack.

This incident did not occur on the frontlines deep inside Gaza.
Israel's unmanned bulldozers breaking ground in Gaza war
At first glance, there is nothing unusual about the bulky bulldozer turning up soil at a testing site in central Israel, but as it pulled closer it became clear: the driver's cabin is eerily empty.

This is the Robdozer, a fortified engineering vehicle manned remotely, and in this case operated from a military expo halfway across the globe in Alabama.

Army engineers and military experts say that the Robdozer -- the robotic version of Caterpillar's D9 bulldozer -- is the future of automated combat.

The Israeli military has used D9 for years to carry out frontline tasks like trowelling roads for advancing troops, removing rubble and flattening terrain.

But since war in Gaza broke out in October 2023 and later in Lebanon, the Israeli military has increasingly deployed this robotic version in a bid to enhance its field operations and reduce the risks to its troops.

"The idea is to eliminate the person from the cockpit of the dozer," said Rani, whose team at the state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries developed the Robdozer.

During the Gaza war, the military has increasingly opted for the unmanned version, which can carry out a full range of tasks "even better than a human", said Rani, using his first name only for security reasons.

While such vehicles and other systems are currently operated by humans, future versions could be autonomous, raising ethical and legal concerns over the unchartered future of warfare being shaped by the Israeli military in the Gaza war.

- 'Changing the paradigm' -
Israel's increasing use of advanced technology on the battlefield, from air defence systems to a broad range of AI-driven intelligence tools, has been well-documented but also criticised for inaccuracies, lack of human oversight and potential violations of international law.

Analysts say the growing Israeli deployment of the Robdozer reflects broader global trends towards automation in heavy combat vehicles, like remote-controlled personnel carriers that operate much like drones.

An Israeli military official, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, told AFP that the army has been using "robotic tools for over a decade, but in very small numbers. Now it is being used in large-scale warfare".


IDF destroys dozens of Gaza construction vehicles it says used for terror activities
The Israel Defense Forces carried out a series of strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight and on Tuesday morning, attacking terror infrastructure and also targeting and destroying some 40 construction vehicles in the Gaza Strip, which the IDF said were used by Hamas for terror activities.

The action came as Gaza’s Hamas-run civil defense agency said Israeli air strikes killed at least 26 people across the territory. The figures could not be verified and do not differentiate between civilians and terror operatives.

Israel did not comment on the individual strikes, but says it seeks to minimize civilian fatalities and stresses that Hamas uses Gaza’s civilians as human shields, fighting from civilian areas, including homes, hospitals, schools, and mosques.

In a statement, the military said that the heavy equipment it destroyed was used by Hamas during the October 7, 2023, onslaught to breach the Israeli border barrier in dozens of locations, allowing thousands of terrorists to stream into Israel.

The earthmovers have also been used by Hamas during the war to plant bombs, dig tunnels, and clear rubble to locate weaponry buried under it, the IDF said.

“The engineering vehicles that were struck are a major component of Hamas’s ability to carry out terror attacks on IDF troops and the State of Israel,” the statement said.

The IDF said the strike was carried out to “disrupt” Hamas’s heavy equipment capability.


IAF strike kills senior Hamas-linked terrorist in Lebanon
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed on Tuesday that an Israeli Air Force strike earlier in the day in Haret en Naameh, Lebanon, eliminated Hussein Izzat Mohammad Atwi, a senior operative in the Jamaa Islamiya terrorist organization, which is affiliated with Hamas in Lebanon.

According to the IDF, Atwi was a key figure in orchestrating and advancing terrorist activity against Israel from Lebanese territory, including rocket fire, infiltration attempts and the coordination of terror infrastructure along the northern border.

The military added that Atwi was also responsible for directing attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets abroad, operating in close coordination with Hamas.

“The IDF will continue to operate to prevent any threat posed to the civilians of the State of Israel,” the military said.


Thornberry clashes with UKLFI director over UK policy on Israel
Emily Thornberry has clashed with the director of UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) over Israel’s adherence to humanitarian law during the war in Gaza during a Foreign Affairs Select Committee session.

Giving evidence in Westminster on Tuesday, Natasha Hausdorff had claimed Britain and the United States “have consistently said they do not have concerns about Israel’s approach to humanitarian law with respect to proportionality and targeting”.

Responding, Thornberry looked outraged as she said: “Oh no, no, no, nah, nah, nah” before adding: “That is an extraordinary allegation.”

Looking surprised at the chair’s intervention, Hausdorff next said: “May I finish the answer?”

Thornberry then responded: “Be careful what you are saying.”

Hausdorff then said: “I have come here in good faith to answer your questions, and from the moment I have walked in the room I have been barracked and told to be quiet. I will answer this one with your permission?”

“Please answer this question accurately and with care,” responded Thornberry.

Hausdorff then replied: “Yes, the UK and the US have consistently said that so far as targeting proportionately – which is what your question pertains to – there aren’t concerns.”

She then accepted “there have been other concerns raised on the basis of incorrect information, if we have time to discuss, detention and aid we certainly can.”

Thornberry raised the possibility that the government had responded to genuine concerns about the use of UK supplied exports by Israel in possible breaches of international humanitarian law.

But the barrister said this was something for the committee to possibly look into on another occasion.

Hausdorff also said the UK’s concerns regarding international law had “nothing to do with the arms that have been embargoed”, and accused the government of making a “political” decision that was “deeply deeply troubling” when it announced its partial arms suspension last September.

Later the UKLFI director accused the UK government of adopting policies which had only served to “encourage Hamas”.
Natasha Hausdorff gives evidence to the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee
Video of oral evidence given by ‎Natasha Hausdorff, barrister, international lawyer and UKLFI Charitable Trust Legal Director, to the UK House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee on 22 April 2025. The Committee, chaired by Dame Emily Thornberry, is conducting an inquiry into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, asking "how the UK and its allies can help to achieve a ceasefire and lasting end to the war in Gaza and Lebanon".


Jonathan Sacerdoti gives oral evidence to the UK's Foreign Affairs Committee
British commentator and analyst Jonathan Sacerdoti gives evidence to the the UK Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, 22 April 2025.

The Foreign Affairs Committee examines the expenditure, administration and policy of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and other bodies associated with the Foreign Office and within the Committee's remit, including the British Council.




Call me Back Podcast: Between Gaza and Tehran - with Amit Segal & Nadav Eyal
On Saturday night, in an attempt to address two of Israel’s most critical concerns - the hostage crisis in Gaza and the US-Iran nuclear negotiations - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a pre-recorded statement, in which he said that Hamas has formally rejected Israel's offer for a new deal. And, against the backdrop of a report in the New York Times that President Trump had headed off Israeli plans for a military operation against Iran’s nuclear program, Netanyahu emphasized: "We are committed to preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons."

With both Tehran and Gaza in mind, we turn to two of Israel’s leading journalists: Nadav Eyal, senior analyst at Yediot Achronot, and Amit Segal, senior political analyst at Channel 12 - to understand Israel’s standing on these two critical fronts.


US + Iran = 💀 A Match Made in Nuclear Hell
Welcome to the A Paratrooper and a Yogi Walk Into a Bar... Podcast, where veteran paratrooper Andrew Fox and expert yogi Shana Meyerson discuss the most interesting events relating to Israel, war in the Middle East, and antisemitism in the past week. 🥂

YOGI YADA-YADA WITH SHANA: Shana talks about the futility and foolishness of Trump and the United States negotiating a nuclear deal with the terrorist state of Iran.

JUMPING IN WITH ANDREW: Andrew avoids predictions but explains the inevitable pitfalls and shortcomings of ANY Iranian nuclear deal, Libya model or otherwise.

Andrew Fox is a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society. He served for 16 years in the British Army, leaving the Parachute Regiment with the rank of Major. He completed 3 tours in Afghanistan including one attached to US Army Special Forces, as well as further tours of Bosnia, Northern Ireland and the Middle East. He was a senior lecturer at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, teaching in the War Studies and Behavioural Science departments. In the last year he has visited Gaza twice as well as Hezbollah tunnels in Lebanon. Andrew is a regular Middle East commentator on GB News, TalkTV and LBC radio, and has been published in The Spectator, The Sun, The Daily Telegraph, New York Post and The Tablet, amongst others.


Gad Saad: Douglas Murray Returns! Author of "On Democracies and Death Cults" (THE SAAD TRUTH_1842)

Murray vs. Smith: Dispatches from Podcastistan - Konstantin Kisin
Konstantin Kisin on the recent Joe Rogan Experience featuring Dave Smith and Douglas Murray. | We use Ground News to escape the echo chamber and stay fully informed. Go to https://ground.news/triggernometry to save 40% on the Ground News unlimited access Vantage plan.




Ex-Labour MP previously suspended over ‘f*****g Israel’ comments standing in local elections
A former Labour MP who was suspended last year over comments he made about Israel is standing as a candidate for the party in next month’s local elections.

Graham Jones had been suspended ahead of the general election as the candidate for Hyndburn after comments in which he said “f**king Israel” and where he suggested Britons serving in the IDF during the war in Gaza should be “locked up” emerged in a recording of a meeting with local Muslim voters.

But Jones was informed by the party that his suspension had been lifted last May, and he is now standing as the party’s candidate for councillor in Accrington South, a seat on Lancashire County Council, in the May 1 election.

At the time of his alleged remarks, the Jewish Labour Movement said Jones’s alleged comments were “appalling and unacceptable”.

In a Facebook post Jones said he had been asked by the national party to stand in the seat, which is currently held by the Conservatives. Other party sources insist Jones has received a standard email sent to members in an attempt to find a suitable candidate to stand.




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This blog may be a labor of love for me, but it takes a lot of effort, time and money. For 20 years and 40,000 articles I have been providing accurate, original news that would have remained unnoticed. I've written hundreds of scoops and sometimes my reporting ends up making a real difference. I appreciate any donations you can give to keep this blog going.

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