Thursday, May 08, 2025

05/08 Links Pt1: UN Obstructed Probe into UNRWA Staff Tied to Hamas; Indian forces kill terrorist that murder Daniel Pearl; Why Hamas Wants To Control Gaza's Humanitarian Aid

From Ian:

Overlooked USAID OIG Investigation Found UNRWA Staff Tied to Hamas — but the UN Obstructed the Probe
Instead of cooperating transparently with the U.S. investigation, the United Nations appears to have gone out of its way to obstruct it. The UN’s own Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) did allow USAID OIG to review its internal report into UNRWA staff involvement in the attacks—but only after redacting the names of the implicated individuals. As the USAID OIG bluntly stated: “OIOS redacted the names of subjects, rendering the report unusable for our purposes.”

To make matters worse, UNRWA refused to provide the names of any personnel it terminated in connection with October 7. That means U.S. agencies have no way of knowing whether these individuals simply migrated from one aid group to another—potentially putting them right back on the payroll of U.S.-funded NGOs operating in Gaza.

In response to these findings, USAID OIG referred the information to the State Department’s Office of Inspector General for “administrative enforcement remedies.” While that’s a start, the lack of media scrutiny and broader U.S. government response raises serious concerns about accountability—or lack thereof.

Let’s be clear: this isn’t a case of one or two bad apples slipping through the cracks. This is an institutional failure on the part of UNRWA, compounded by the UN’s refusal to provide even the most basic transparency in the face of a mass terror attack. And yet, even after these revelations, there remains no serious public debate in Washington or Brussels about defunding the agency or holding it to real standards of oversight.

As USAID OIG rightly emphasized, the goal moving forward is to “prevent members of Hamas from circulating from UNRWA to other aid organizations.” That’s a noble and necessary aim—but without full cooperation from the UN and decisive action from donor nations, it may prove impossible.
Former US Delta Force commander backs Judea, Samaria sovereignty
Retired three-star general William Boykin, a former commander of the U.S. Army’s Delta Force and undersecretary of defense for intelligence, expressed support for Israel extending its sovereignty over Judea and Samaria during a tour with the Samaria Regional Council on Sunday.

“What we’re doing here is standing on a time bomb that’s going to go off at some point. It already did on the 7th of October,” Boykin declared, speaking alongside Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan.

“It’s gonna happen again, and that’s why … we need to recognize that if we don’t create a situation where we have sovereignty here, we’re going to see another Oct. 7,” said Boykin, who was tasked with the pursuit of Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein by President George W. Bush.

“There are people who have no knowledge or understanding, and they believe that a 15-mile stretch can be part of your defense—and that is not the case,” he stated, Israel’s Arutz 7 outlet reported. “You and we must stand together and say: We will not accept a two-state solution!”

Boykin and Dagan toured Samaria’s major sites, including the Trump Observatory in Peduel, Joshua’s Altar on Mount Ebal, the Mitzpe Yosef point overlooking Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus (Shechem), as well as the Barkan Industrial Zone, Elon Moreh and Har Bracha, the council said.

At the end of the visit, Boykin presented the Samaria leader with a Green Beret pin. “You are a warrior—you fight for what you believe in,” he said, adding: “This is the emblem for the special forces, the Green Berets.”
Indian forces kill terrorist involved in murder of Jewish journalist Daniel Pearl
The Indian government announced on Thursday that its military had killed an Islamist terrorist who was involved in the murder Jewish-American journalist Daniel Pearl.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), India's governing party, said that the Indian army killed Pakistani terrorist Abdul Rauf Azhar in "Operation Sindhoor."

A group of Islamist terrorists, including Azhar, kidnapped and murdered Pearl in 2002. The terrorist was affiliated with al-Qaeda and Jaish-e-Mohammed, an Islamist terror group that aims to separate Kashmir from India and fully incorporate it into Pakistan.

Who was Daniel Pearl, Jewish-American journalist?

Pearl was working as the South Asia bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal and was originally stationed in New Delhi. He moved to Karachi, Pakistan, to investigate terror after the September 11, 2001, attacks in New York City.

On January 23, 2002, Pearl was abducted by Islamist terrorists at a hotel in Karachi. His abductors, who called themselves the National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty, accused him of being an Israeli spy and sent the US a list of demands if they wanted Pearl freed.

The US government failed to meet the demands. In a video, Pearl stated he was Jewish and had visited Israel multiple times, moments before he was executed.

"My father's Jewish, my mother's Jewish, I'm Jewish. My family follows Judaism. Back in the town of Bnei Brak, there is a street named after my great grandfather, Chaim Pearl, who was one of the founders of the town." he said in the video.

India launched "Operation Sindoor" on Wednesday, which it claimed targeted "terrorist infrastructure." The operation was launched after Pakistani terrorists killed 26 Hindu tourists in Kashmir last month.

In the BJP announcement, the party said that Azhar was involved in a number of terror activities, including the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight, the 2016 Pathankot Air Force base attack, and a 2001 terror attack on the Indian parliament.


Melanie Phillips: The indestructible myth of famine in Gaza
Yet again, the myth has been revived that there is a famine in the Gaza Strip.

This claim, which has done so much to incite attacks on Jews, has been promulgated repeatedly by mainstream Western media during the past 18 months of war. It is a lie that distorts yet another lie.

Time and again, U.N. agencies and NGOs have warned that famine and starvation are imminent. But this has never happened. More food has been admitted to Gaza than people need.

The problem has been that Hamas took much of it to feed themselves and to sell it on the black market to finance their infrastructure of war.

Nevertheless, the Gazans have overwhelmingly remained conspicuously well-fed, while the people who really have been starved are the Israeli hostages they hold captive. Yet the media has continued to insist that civilians in Gaza are being starved to death.

Two months ago, with an estimated four months’ worth of food supplies remaining in Gaza, Israel instituted a blockade on further aid transports to force Hamas to release the remaining hostages.

The Israel Defense Forces will now oversee food distribution in southern Gaza in order to stop Hamas stealing it and to funnel civilians into those areas, isolating and weakening Hamas to enable the IDF finally to destroy it. The United Nations has refused to accept this plan, demonstrating that its aim is not to alleviate Gazan suffering but to aid Hamas in its war against Israel.

Stupefyingly, it is simply impossible to change the wicked media narrative that Israel is starving Gazan civilians to death. Facts and evidence get absolutely nowhere. Many believe that this is because of the false and obsessive belief that Israel is a colonial oppressor. But this embrace of revolutionary Marxist ideology is only part of the reason.

These lies have penetrated far beyond the keffiyeh-clad hordes of demonstrators. In Britain and elsewhere, it’s now the accepted unwisdom across great swathes of the professions, administrative class and business world that Israel is starving children and committing war crimes in Gaza.

When confronted with facts contradicting every one of these claims, such people ask incredulously: “Are you really saying that you are right while everyone else—the U.N., the international legal tribunals, the entire humanitarian establishment—is wrong?”

To which the answer is “Yes.” This does indeed sound incredible because it is incredible. The West is gripped by an epidemic denial of reason.

So why have all these transnational bodies swallowed and promoted these lies? And why are these bodies deemed to be beyond challenge?

As I write in my new book, The Builder’s Stone, the reason is the belief by the educated classes that while the Western nation-state is the source of division, prejudice and war, transnational legal bodies and laws representing the “brotherhood of man” stand for truth and conscience.

Institutions such as the United Nations, international courts and nongovernmental agencies such as Amnesty and Human Rights Watch are assumed to be disinterested, moral and just.

In fact, the very opposite is true. The International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice have betrayed the law and behaved as kangaroo courts over Israel. The NGOs that supply them with “evidence” are cesspits of exterminatory hatred against the Jewish state.
Khaled Abu Toameh: Why Hamas Wants To Control Gaza's Humanitarian Aid
Palestinians... say that if anyone is stealing the humanitarian aid and food, it is Hamas.

Videos posted on social media have shown Hamas thugs brutally beating Palestinians suspected of stealing food for their families.

A day earlier, Hamas announced that three Gazans will soon be slaughtered with knives for allegedly "collaborating" with Israel. Others will have their limbs hacked off with blades for supposed "theft" of food.

"Since October 7, I've said it without hesitation: Hamas is ISIS – only with better PR. And that PR machine runs on Qatari money, through media outlets that spin terrorism into heroism and wash blood with propaganda." — Hamza Howidy, Gaza-born peace and human rights advocate, X, May 4, 2025.

"There is no government, no law, no order – just fear. And as Palestinians dare to speak out, Hamas hunts them down, kidnaps them, threatens their families and silences them by force... They offer no protection, no aid, no leadership – only guns, terror, and slogans." — Hamza Howidy, X, May 3, 2025.

"Hamas relied on criminal elements to create pandemonium that generated mass looting events which provided some cover for the terror group to commit the organized theft of what remains of food supplies in Gaza." — Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, a Gaza native and senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, X, May 2, 2025.

This criminality is precisely why the international community needs to back Israel's effort to prevent Hamas from monopolizing and embezzling humanitarian supplies sent into the Gaza Strip.

The international community should support any initiative aimed at ending Hamas's rule over the Gaza Strip and destroying its military capabilities. Both Israel and the Palestinian people, who are paying a heavy price as a result of Hamas's decision to commit the biggest massacre against Jews since the Holocaust, will only gain from this.
UN, international aid orgs push back against Israel's new Gaza aid plan
A Western diplomat familiar with the discussions told the Post that the aid organizations were not necessarily against the distribution system Israel had proposed.

"It’s not necessarily that the organizations oppose a new distribution model, as Israel proposes, but they are not willing to accept a system in which the IDF and the Israeli security apparatus decide who receives aid and who doesn’t."

The Israeli concept behind the aid distribution list is that "It will establish an area in southern Gaza with aid centers and only allow those who are not Hamas members or identified with Hamas to enter."

But the organizations say that anyone not in this area—either because they didn’t pass the IDF’s screening at checkpoints to reach the southern zone or chose to remain in northern/central Gaza—will not receive aid. "This is unacceptable", the organizations say.
Why Is Israel the Only State Ever Charged With the War Crime of Starvation?
So, if there is no starvation in Gaza, how can there be a case against Israel and its leaders? And why is Israel considered ‘low-hanging fruit’ by human rights lawyers and others who are looking for opportunities to prosecute the starvation case against Israel at the ICC and ICJ?

One reason given is that some Israeli leaders, including Gallant after the massacre of October 7, 2023, have stated publicly that Gazans should suffer privations as a result. Two days after October 7, Gallant said, “I have ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip. There will be no electricity, no food, no fuel, everything is closed. We are fighting human animals, and we are acting accordingly.”

Intemperate words from a man whose country had just suffered a terrible orgy of rape and murder and seen a hundred or more hostages taken. This statement is seen by ICC prosecutors as a statement of genocidal intent. Intent is the key word in the indictment because even the lawyers at the ICC have to accept that hunger is a byproduct of all wars. For a successful prosecution, there has to be intent to kill the population, to commit genocide. Unfortunately for the ICC’s case, Gallant’s statement, born of fury, has not translated into a deliberate policy of starvation.

The second reason that Israel is seen as ‘low-hanging fruit’ is because it has already been convicted in the court of Western opinion and elsewhere as the guilty party in the war against Hamas. The case against Israel and its leaders only makes sense in the wider context of widespread hostility towards Israel at the UN and in the wider international community. Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East and the only Jewish state on earth, the country that was invaded and its citizens butchered and raped, has little international sympathy. Israel is the lowest common denominator for international outrage. This is the bigger picture that has emboldened the ICC to pursue its case against Israel. The crisis of international institutions

There is a third reason behind the ICC’s case against Israel. The period of relative peace in the West since World War II enabled the growth of an international lobby of progressive lawyers, non-governmental organisations, and other activist forces, centred around the UN, which has been pushing for a universalist approach to the rules of war and is opposed to the sovereignty of states. However, in recent years, the post-war global consensus that fostered the ICJ and later the ICC has been fragmenting. So much so that the U.S., under whose global dominance the UN was founded, has started sanctions against the ICC itself on the basis that it is prejudiced against the U.S. and Israel.

The globalist attack on sovereignty is deeply undemocratic, as Melanie Phillips has argued
At a deeper level, the notion that developed after the Holocaust that international laws and institutions would deliver justice was fundamentally flawed. Law derives its authority from being passed by parliaments representing the will of the people. International laws and tribunals, which have no such inherent jurisdiction, lack that legitimacy and therefore inescapably become instruments of politics rather than law.

The ICC and institutions like it are on the back foot. Even at its formation, countries representing more than half the world’s population refused to ratify membership of the ICC, including the U.S., China, India, and Russia. Hungary has just welcomed a visit from Netanyahu and announced that it is leaving the ICC. In our world of fragmenting alliances, it is unlikely that the postwar institutions can continue to carry much clout.

In this context, the prosecution of Israel has become a test case for the credibility of the ICC/ICJ. This was made clear at the ICJ hearings against Israel at The Hague last week when, the Guardian reports, Blinne Ní Ghrálaigh, the counsel for the Palestinian state, described Israel’s actions as
“antithetical to a peace-loving state”. She said the restrictions on “the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people, [Israel’s] attacks on the United Nations and on UN officials, property and premises, its deliberate obstruction of the organisation’s work and its attempt to destroy an entire UN subsidiary organ” were “unprecedented in the history of the organisation”… Warning that the international order was crumbling and expressing “the continuing desperate hope that international law might finally prevail”, Ní Ghrálaigh urged the court to reset the moral compass enshrined in the UN charter by ordering Israel to permit aid to enter Gaza, and by restoring cooperation with UNWRA.

The writ of the ICC and ICJ has never run far, and successful prosecutions have been few and far between. Let us hope that it will shrink further so that it cannot credibly condemn the sovereign state of Israel for defending itself.
EU Parliament votes to freeze Palestinian funding over incitement in textbooks
The European Parliament on Wednesday voted to freeze funding to the Palestinian Authority due to continued incitement in school textbooks and condemned the involvement of UNRWA employees in the October 7 Hamas-led terror attack.

In a series of resolutions passed as part of the parliament’s annual budget review, lawmakers strongly condemned Palestinian textbooks used by both the Palestinian Authority and UNRWA, for the sixth consecutive year, stating that the materials include “antisemitism, incitement to violence, hate speech, and glorification of terrorism.”

The resolutions declared that EU funding to the Palestinian Authority should be withheld “as long as the content of the textbooks fails to meet UNESCO standards, antisemitic references are not removed, and examples inciting hatred and violence remain.” For the first time, the parliament also included a specific demand that inciting content be removed by the start of the next academic year in September. It conditioned future EU assistance on concrete textbook reforms.

The decision, adopted as part of the European Parliament’s annual budgetary process that evaluates the use of taxpayers’ money, passed with broad cross-party support—including from center-left parties—and was especially backed by the influential chair of the parliament’s Budgetary Control Committee. The resolution passed with a commanding majority: 443 votes in favor, 202 against, and 21 abstentions.

The parliament rejected repeated efforts by left-wing parties allied with the Palestinian Authority and UNRWA to soften or delete key language from the resolutions.

Back in July 2024, the European Commission had already announced that EU aid to the Palestinian Authority would be officially conditioned on reforming its educational content. Despite promises made by the PA to the EU at the time, a March 2025 investigation by the research and policy institute IMPACT-se found no evidence of meaningful reform. On the contrary, the report revealed that the PA had produced an entirely new curriculum for Gaza that was filled with violent incitement, calls to kill civilians, promotion of jihad, and explicit antisemitism.
Trump warns Iran, defends Israel in Hugh Hewitt interview
U.S. President Donald Trump issued a blunt warning to Iran during an interview Wednesday on “The Hugh Hewitt Show,” declaring that the Islamic Republic must dismantle its nuclear program or face overwhelming military force.

“There are only two alternatives—blow them up nicely or blow them up viciously,” Trump said of Iran’s uranium enrichment centrifuges, emphasizing that the United States will not tolerate nuclear threats under his leadership.

Trump said he was open to a deal with Iran, but insisted it must include full and verifiable denuclearization. “I would much prefer a strong, verified deal where we actually blow them up, but blow them up or just de-nuke them. But the other alternative, there are only two alternatives there—blow them up nicely or blow them up viciously,” he said.

On the issue of Israel, Trump reaffirmed his steadfast alliance with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and expressed alarm over the surge in antisemitism across the United States.

“Well, I think I’m crushing it more than anybody ever, and I think nobody’s been better to Israel as a president than me, by a factor of about 20. In fact, I could say maybe nobody’s ever been better than me on Israel,” the president asserted. “And I am shocked to see what I’m seeing, because if you look back at the old days of the Holocaust, you’re seeing the same kind of thing happening now.”

The president singled out Harvard University for fostering anti-Israel activism, vowing to pursue reviews of tax-exempt status for institutions where antisemitism is “out of control.” “Harvard is totally antisemitic,” he said. “We’re going to go after that.”
Trump drops Israel ties as condition for Saudi nuclear talks
The United States is no longer demanding Saudi Arabia normalize ties with Israel as a condition for progress on civil nuclear cooperation talks, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters ahead of US President Donald Trump's visit next week.

Dropping the demand that Saudi Arabia establish diplomatic relations with Israel would be a major concession by Washington.

Under former President Joe Biden, nuclear talks were an element of a wider US-Saudi deal tied to normalization and to Riyadh's goal of a defense treaty with Washington.

The kingdom has repeatedly said it would not recognize Israel without a Palestinian state, frustrating Biden administration attempts to expand the Abraham Accords signed during Trump's first term.

Under those accords the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco normalized relations with Israel. Progress towards Saudi recognition of Israel has been halted by fury in Arab countries over the war raging in Gaza. The nuclear talks had also stumbled over Washington's non-proliferation concerns.

In a possible sign of a new approach, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said that Saudi Arabia and the United States were on a "pathway" to a civil nuclear agreement when he visited the kingdom in April.

"When we have something to announce, you will hear it from the President. Any reports on this are speculative,” US National Security Council spokesman James Hewitt told Reuters in response to a request for comment.


Cruz: Iran doesn’t need a civilian nuclear energy program
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) argued on Thursday that Iran does not need a civilian nuclear energy program — a stance that would support a more stringent position on the ongoing nuclear negotiations than members of the Trump administration have outlined.

At the same event, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) called for full Iranian “nuclear disarmament,” the latest and most senior congressional Republican to weigh in in favor of that position, as the administration continues to send sometimes-muddled messages on the issue.

U.S. officials have recently said that they’re willing to allow Iran to maintain a civilian nuclear power program — and sources indicate that negotiations have included the possibility of a so-called 123 Agreement with the United States, a deal that would set up civilian nuclear cooperation between the U.S. and Iran with certain nonproliferation conditions and restrictions, an arrangement that usually involves exports of nuclear material and equipment.

Cruz said he does not believe Iran needs a nuclear program of any kind.

“There is significant talk about potential solutions in which the Ayatollah gets to keep a civilian nuclear program, but must give up all his enrichment capacity, and how that might be a solution,” Cruz said. “Personally, I don’t think the Ayatollah needs uranium for any kind of energy production. Iran floats on a sea of oil. They are not lacking for energy.”
Graham, Cotton warn Iran nuclear deal without ‘complete dismantlement’ won’t pass Senate
Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Tom Cotton (R-AR) are cautioning that the Senate will not deliver President Donald Trump the 67 votes he needs to ratify a nuclear agreement with Iran if that deal does not require the “complete dismantlement” of Tehran’s current program.

The senators issued the warning during a press conference at the Capitol on Thursday promoting their resolution affirming that the only acceptable outcome of U.S. nuclear talks with Iran would be the total dismantlement of its enrichment program.

Asked why the approval of the Senate is necessary when Trump could technically implement a deal without the legislative branch, both senators noted that his agreement would have no guarantee of surviving in future administrations if not ratified by Congress.

“If they want the most durable and lasting kind of deal, then they want to bring it to the Senate and have it voted on as a treaty,” Cotton said.

Graham noted another requirement of a deal getting congressional support would be its addressing Iran’s missile and terror proxy activities. He said that he told Secretary of State Marco Rubio that, “A treaty with Iran in this space is only possible if you get 67 votes …You’re not going to get a 67 votes for a treaty regarding their nuclear program unless they deal with the missile program and their terrorism activity. So is it possible? Yes, if Iran changes.”

“I would urge the Ayatollah to seriously consider what Secretary Rubio and [Middle East envoy Steve] Witkoff are proposing. You can have what you claim you want, which is a peaceful nuclear power program, if you dismantle, but it’s more than that. You can have a better relationship with the United States if you do the things that Sen. Cotton laid out. Without fundamental change, there is no pathway to a treaty in the United States Senate,” Graham added.

“To the Iranian regime: you claim all you want is a peaceful nuclear power program. You can have it, but you cannot enrich and you must dismantle,” Graham said. “And you must dismantle now.”


Andrew Fox: Hamas’s Human Shield Strategy in Gaza
Since 7 October 2023, the UN has issued 367 reports that are filed under the subject of “Gaza Strip”. A search of these reports reveals that the UN has rarely acknowledged and never asserted the use by Hamas of “human shields”. The phenomenon of “human shields” has only been mentioned four times, in each case in only a single sentence, as either an “allegation”, an Israeli “claim” or an unverified “report” that this practice occurred. The UN has never dedicated a single paragraph, let alone an entire report, to analysing how Hamas has fought the war in Gaza.

In contrast, the UN has issued at least ten reports critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, from accusations of “indiscriminate attacks” to illegal “attacks on hospitals”. A November 2024 investigative report by the UN accused Israel of committing genocide, but the document makes no mention of Hamas’s fighting tactics in Gaza, let alone provides an analysis. The NGOs (non-governmental organisations) Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch each released reports in December 2024 accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza. Over hundreds of pages of text, the reader would struggle to realise that Hamas even exists in Gaza. Neither report provides any discussion or analysis of Hamas’s human shield strategy.

This report by the Henry Jackson Society represents the “missing chapter” in all the UN and NGO reports. It provides a comprehensive analysis of Hamas’s systematic use of human shield tactics during the 7 October Israel–Hamas war and the broader Gaza conflict. Drawing on extensive evidence from international media, military assessments, legal frameworks and firsthand accounts, the report outlines how Hamas has embedded its military operations within civilian infrastructure, weaponising Gaza’s population and urban landscape to achieve both tactical and strategic objectives.


Israel shuts six UNRWA schools in Jerusalem
Israel on Thursday shut down six UNRWA schools that were illegally operating in eastern Jerusalem, the Ministry of Education said.

The move followed a closure notice issued to the schools last month and the Knesset’s decision in October to ban UNRWA from operating within its territory, and for state officials to cooperate with it, over the U.N.’s Palestinian aid agency’s ties to terrorists in Gaza.

The Education Ministry said that the schools were operating “illegally and without a license,” and that the parents of the schoolchildren had been notified over the last months to register their children in other city schools.

The ministry said it will place the children in other Jerusalem schools, and “ensure the immediate and optimal integration of all students.”

Arabs make up nearly 40% of Jerusalem’s million-strong population.

The Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority condemned Israel’s closure of the UNRWA schools.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini called the school closures an “assault on children.”


Omer Shem Tov reveals Hamas tried to use him to kill IDF soldiers in terror trap
Hamas tried to use Omer Shem Tov in a terror trap designed to kill IDF soldiers, the released former hostage revealed in an interview with Channel 12's Uvda program on Thursday evening.

In the interview, Shem Tov recounted how terrorists began spreading what Shem Tov estimated to be around three million shekels on the floor, before instructing him to blow up a building on top of the tunnel they were keeping him captive, he said. When he refused to participate in the trap, he recounted how the terrorists threatened to shoot him in the head.

"Shoot me in the head, then,” Shem Tov responded.


How Israel Is Keeping Hizballah in Check
With a fake famine in Gaza, strikes from—and counterstrikes on—Yemen, nuclear negotiations with Iran, and a volatile situation in Syria, one could be forgiven for forgetting the Lebanon front. Fortunately, the IDF has not forgotten, and continues its efforts to keep Hizballah from rebuilding. Orna Mizrahi writes:

Since the cease-fire, over 130 Hizballah operatives have been eliminated, and the organization’s infrastructure has been attacked across Lebanon. This includes a broad wave of strikes on April 20, and multiple strikes in Beirut’s Dahiya quarter. On March 28 and April 27, Hizballah infrastructure there was targeted, and on April 1, an operative allegedly involved in planning attacks on Israeli civilians—according to the IDF—was eliminated.

Nevertheless, Hizballah has not disappeared and is trying to recover by any means possible. While its military capabilities are now limited, its military and civilian operatives rank in the tens of thousands, and it continues to enjoy support from the majority of Lebanon’s Shiite population.

This [current Lebanese government] had been elected in January–February 2025 largely due to Hizballah’s weakened state. . . . Since the cease-fire, Lebanese security forces have sought to prevent Hizballah from smuggling arms and cash by blocking transit routes to and from Syria and monitoring air and seaports.

The situation is far from ideal, but is also a far cry from the recent days when the Lebanese government was under Hizballah’s thumb, and had neither the will nor the ability to confront it.
IAF strikes Hezbollah site in southeast Lebanon
Israeli Air Force fighter jets carried out a targeted strike on Thursday afternoon in the Beaufort Ridge area of southeastern Lebanon’s Nabatieh District, hitting a site used by Hezbollah to manage its fire and air defense systems.

The attack neutralized multiple terrorists, weapons, and underground shafts, the military said. The facility was part of a significant subterranean Hezbollah project that, due to repeated IDF strikes, has now been rendered inoperable.

The IDF stressed that the existence and operational use of this site is a clear violation of the post-Second Lebanon War understandings between Israel and Lebanon, and of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, which bar Hezbollah activity south of the Litani River.

“The IDF will continue operating to remove any threat to the State of Israel and will prevent any attempt by the Hezbollah terrorist organization to restore its capabilities,” the military said.

The strike comes amid a series of IDF operations against Hezbollah and Hamas assets in Lebanon. On Wednesday, Israel killed Khalid Ahmad Ahmad, a senior Hamas operative based near Sidon. Ahmad led Hamas’s Western Brigade operations in Lebanon and was actively involved in cross-border attacks, arms smuggling, and coordinating terrorist activities on Israeli soil.

A day earlier, the IDF reported the killing of Adnan Muhammad Sadiq Harb, a senior Hezbollah commander in the group’s Badr Unit. Harb played a central role in restoring Hezbollah’s military infrastructure both north and south of the Litani River—a direct breach of the 2006 ceasefire terms.


IDF sets up field triage facility for Syrian Druze civilians
The Israel Defense Forces announced on Thursday that it has established a forward mobile triage facility near the Syrian village of Hader, part of a broader humanitarian and security initiative aimed at supporting Syria’s embattled Druze community.

According to the IDF, the facility is one of several efforts designed to ensure the safety of Druze civilians in southern Syria amid ongoing sectarian violence. “The IDF continues to monitor developments and remains at peak readiness for defense and various scenarios,” the military stated.

Over the past two days, 10 injured Syrian Druze civilians were evacuated to Ziv Medical Center in Safed for urgent medical care. The IDF has reinforced its presence in the region to prevent the infiltration of hostile elements into Druze-populated villages.

On Monday, Israeli forces uncovered and destroyed a key Assad regime military headquarters near Mount Hermon. The site contained fortified bunkers and a large weapons cache, including mortars, artillery and landmines.

The developments come amid an upsurge in Israeli military activity in Syria, including weekend airstrikes on regime assets in Damascus, Hama and Daraa. Israeli officials attribute the intensified operations to rising threats against Syria’s Druze minority, more than 100 of whom have reportedly been killed in recent sectarian clashes.


Energy Shortages in Iran May Pose a Growing Threat to Regime Stability
The Houthis will likely exploit the ceasefire with the United States to reconstitute themselves while continuing to target Israel. The air campaign will only have temporary effects, regardless of the degree to which the campaign degrades Houthi capabilities. The Houthis can replenish their drone and missile arsenal through a combination of shipments from Iran and domestic production using goods purchased on the international market. The Houthi-U.S. ceasefire is reportedly a "verbal understanding" rather than a formal agreement, and the conditions remain ambiguous.

U.S. airstrikes have targeted and killed mid-level Houthi commanders and technical experts, which presumably temporarily disrupted the Houthi chain of command. The Houthis are a well-entrenched military and political organization with decades of wartime experience, which will make it possible for the Houthis to rapidly replace dead commanders and experts.

Houthi officials have clarified that their ceasefire with the United States does not include Israel, and that they will continue to attack Israel in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The Houthis will almost certainly resume attacks targeting international shipping again in the future and can do so for reasons and at a time of their choosing. An unspecified Houthi spokesperson separately told Al Jazeera on May 7 that the Houthis will continue to target Israeli ships until Israel transfers aid into the Gaza Strip.

The Houthis launched three drones targeting Eilat Airport in southern Israel and an Israeli military target in the Tel Aviv-Jaffa area on May 7 after the U.S. ceasefire took effect. The Israel Defense Force (IDF) intercepted one of these drones. These attacks likely represent a continuation of the Houthis' effort to "blockade" Israel, but the Houthis have decided to target Israeli airports rather than Israeli shipping. Attacks targeting Israel use different weapon systems than the attacks targeting maritime shipping. Attacks targeting Israel require medium-range ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and long-range drones, while maritime shipping attacks can use shorter-range drones and anti-ship ballistic and cruise missiles. This means that the Houthis can rebuild their anti-ship missile stockpile that they will need for future campaigns in the Red Sea.


Natasha Hausdorff: The anti-Israel lobby now has its foothold in the Tory Party
It is a dark day in UK politics when a dozen or so members of Parliament support those forces seeking the destruction of Israel, a key ally of the United Kingdom.

The recent letter to the Prime Minister, signed by senior Conservative MPs and peers urging recognition of “Palestine” breaks ranks with the UK’s formal policy on Israel, undermines international law and will serve only to encourage the death cult of Hamas that is committed to the destruction of Israel as an outpost of Western liberalism in the Middle East.

Let me explain why.

The law, as outlined in the 1933 Montevideo Convention, is well established: the necessary criteria for statehood include a permanent population, defined territory, government, and capacity to enter into relations with the other states.

The Palestinian Authority, in the areas of the West Bank which it controls, does not comply with these criteria – nor does Hamas-governed Gaza. The political division between these two groups undermines any argument that Palestinians might fulfil these established criteria in the foreseeable future.

But it gets worse. The legal illiteracy of the letter’s authors is highlighted by their comparison of the issues in the “West Bank” to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The inversion and double standards displayed thereby undermine any credibility the authors might profess to have.

The formation of Ukraine’s borders followed the same rule of international law (uti possidetis juris) that defined Israel’s borders in 1948. According to this default rule, the borders of new states follow the pre-existing administrative boundaries of the previous entity, in Israel’s case, the British Mandate. The application of this default rule belies the letter’s allegations of “annexation”, since a state cannot annex its own sovereign territory.
Tory push to recognise Palestine shows they’re not serious about winning
Hang on, I thought the Conservatives had received such a ruthless drubbing in the last election because they had ceased to be recognisably conservative?

I was under the impression that with taxes, immigration and public spending at bewildering highs and patriotism and defence spending at rock bottom, what the Tory legacy said to voters was this: We’re just as awful as the other lot, so you might as well give them a go?

It had seemed to me that as she rose from the steaming wreckage, the Herculean task facing Kemi Badenoch was as difficult as it was simple: to convince the public that the flaccid libdemmery of the past 14 years was firmly in the past, while continuing to rely upon the very people who had helped squander that inheritance in the first place? To make the beleaguered Conservatives conservative, in other words? Or what was left of them?

More fool me. According to more than a dozen Tory MPs and peers, the real problem with the Conservative Party is that it wasn’t pro-Palestine enough.

At least, that was the impression they gave yesterday when this motley crew of rebels broke ranks to write to Sir Keir Starmer expressing support for unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, then leaked the letter to the Guardian.

How Badenoch’s heart must have lifted. That should help in the struggle against Reform, eh? To add insult to injury, Sir Keir didn’t bother to reply.

To most Conservative voters, there are few gestures less conservative than lending support to the tinpot autocrats who for as long as anybody could remember have been big on incitement and short on peace.

Yes, Mahmoud Abbas, I’m looking at you: the Soviet ally who completed a PhD in Holocaust revisionism at the Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow (and quite possibly, according to claims in the New York Times, worked for the KGB) before becoming a PLO activist, demanding the deportation of Jews to Arab lands, winning the Palestinian presidency, losing an election to Hamas, gaining power anyway and stretching his four-year term for more than two decades.

The corruption of the Palestinian leadership is well-known. Until this week, the only people willing to tie themselves to the mast for that lot were keffiyeh-clad idiots on university campuses, Gaza Independents and the nuttier fringes of the left. Yet this was the very outfit that the Tory rebels looked upon this week and thought: Oh, how the shires will love this.
Commenatry PodCast: A Perilous Week Ahead
Jonathan Schanzer joins us to talk about the Houthis, Israel, Iran, Qatar, dangerous negotiations, the universities, and side business deals.


Why Israel’s survival depends on defeating Hamas | Straight Up
On this week’s “Straight Up,” former senior Israeli government official Danny Seaman sits down with Ronit Farkash, a resident of Moshav Tkuma near the Gaza border, who shares a harrowing, firsthand account of survival, loss and resilience on October 7th.

Farkash's community was among the hardest hit during the Hamas massacre. She describes how government negligence left families defenseless after their weapons were removed, how terrorists came within meters of her home and how only a series of miracles and last-minute civilian action prevented further slaughter. Her children, like many others, now serve on the front lines. One was nearly killed by a sniper; another defended Israel’s coast from terrorist infiltration by sea. She explains why any ceasefire before Hamas is eradicated would be a death sentence for communities like hers—and why residents of Israel’s south won’t accept a return to the pre-war status quo.

This episode is more than a conversation—it's a warning, a call to moral clarity and living proof that Israel’s war is not about revenge, but survival.


Houthi missile breaches Israeli defense, near-miss at Ben-Gurion airport | The Quad
Israeli innovation envoy Fleur Hassan-Nahoum returns to the JNS Jerusalem studio alongside journalist and Iranian expert Emily Schrader, women's rights advocate Shoshanna Keats Jaskoll and media entrepreneur & IDF reservist Raquel Karamson for a no-holds-barred panel on the week’s most urgent security and political developments.

Topics covered include:
The Iranian regime’s fingerprints behind the Houthi missile that narrowly missed catastrophic damage at Ben-Gurion Airport

Biden administration talks with Iran: hypocrisy or strategic misstep?

The resurgent American isolationist movement—from the populist right to the progressive left—and how it endangers Israel, regional allies, and Western deterrence

Hamas exploitation of humanitarian aid, child starvation in Gaza and Yemen, and media complicity in repeating terror group narratives

The IDF’s strategic moral dilemma in protecting the Druze minority in Syria

The Western media’s blind spot on Iran, Islamic terrorism, and what the team calls the "Horseshoe Alliance" between far-right and far-left anti-Israel pundits

Calling out everyone from woke influencers to 90-year-old fake IDF protestors and antisemitic Ivy League universities


Louis Theroux's The Settlers: An Incomplete Portrayal by John Aziz
In his Quillette essay, The Settlers: An Incomplete Portrayal, British-Palestinian writer and peace activist John Aziz critiques Louis Theroux’s 2025 BBC documentary The Settlers for offering a narrow and unbalanced depiction of Israeli settlers in the West Bank. Aziz argues that Theroux's focus on extremist voices, such as settler leader Daniella Weiss—who is shown physically confronting Theroux—fails to capture the complex socio-political dynamics of the region. Drawing from his own experiences visiting Palestinian cities like Ramallah, Nablus, and Jenin, Aziz highlights the deep divisions between Israeli settlers and Palestinians, emphasizing the need for narratives that foster mutual understanding rather than reinforce stereotypes.

Aziz contends that Theroux's documentary lacks historical context, particularly regarding the origins and growth of Israeli settlements since the 1967 Six-Day War. He criticises the film for not providing a comprehensive view that includes moderate perspectives within the settler community or the broader geopolitical factors at play. Aziz believes that such omissions hinder the audience's ability to fully grasp the complexities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the human experiences on both sides.

As a British-Palestinian musician and analyst of Middle East politics and history, John Aziz has contributed extensively to discussions on the region, advocating for nuanced and empathetic approaches to understanding the conflict.

00:00 – Intro
02:18 – What Theroux Leaves Out
04:21 – Forgotten Jewish History
06:12 – Gaza Withdrawal Fallout
07:49 – Palestinian Power Struggles
09:28 – Call for Real Balance


UKLFI: Jonathan Turner calls out misinformation on BBC Ulster Radio
Jonathan Turner, UKLFI Charitable Trust Executive Director, objects to misinformation on BBC Ulster Radio on 6 May 2025.


How the BBC Tried to Silence Me When I Spoke About October 7th – The Full Interview!
🔹 The truth behind the “starving child” photo – and what they don’t want you to see?
🔹 The hypocrisy exposed: Egypt also enforces a blockade on Gaza – yet only Israel is blamed
🔹 “No proof of a massacre” and “don’t repeat your stories” – that’s how the BBC host reacted when I spoke about October 7
🔹 Should murderers receive humanitarian aid?
🔹 Trump is pressuring? Israel decides!
🔹 The only solution: Bring the hostages home and disarm Hamas

A tough Arabic-language interview about humanitarian aid – with historical facts - the host didn’t always know how to respond to… so he just changed the subject.

Will I get banned again for a few months?


Sex Pistols’ John Lydon Says Kneecap ‘Need a Bloody Good Kneecapping’
John Lydon addressed the controversy surrounding Kneecap during an appearance on Good Morning Britain, describing the Belfast trio as “my enemy from here on in for the rest of your mediocre existence.”

Kneecap have been in the crossfires since their performance at Coachella in April that saw the band calling for a free Palestine during its set. Since then, many public figures have spoken out on both sides of the debate, with Massive Attack issuing a statement in support of the musicians, saying “Kneecap are not the story. Gaza is the story. Genocide is the story.”

The U.K. government has also taken aim at the band and counterterrorism police have begun investigated footage of old performances, including a clip that appears to show the band calling for death of British politicians. The band issued an apology for the footage, which also allegedly showed them voicing support for Hamas and Hezbollah, saying they “reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual.”

The controversy was brought up during Lydon’s appearance on Good Morning Britain as the presenter noted that they’ve been compared in the Financial Times to his former band the Sex Pistols.

The singer responded, “If you’re advocating the death of another human being, then you have no cause whatsoever. You are my enemy from here on in for the rest of your mediocre existence. You shouldn’t be talking like that; you shouldn’t be making enemies of your fellow human beings. Other than that, maybe they need a bloody good kneecapping!”

Lydon also suggested that Kneecap may be taking cues from the Sex Pistols’ playbook. “I think they’re following what they think is the Sex Pistols route,” he said. “It’s helpful, isn’t it, when you get the Financial Times propping you up. In a weird way, with the Sex Pistols, we were celebrated in money business papers and publications. They thought they were humiliating us, but now that’s become a format.”


Australian Jewish Association: Campus Antisemitism: Lessons from the U.S. with Shabbos Kestenbaum
Antisemitism skyrocketed on US campuses following the October 7 attacks. The Biden Administration failed to respond and the disruptions eventually spread to Australia.

Now, the Trump Administration, is taking serious measures including deporting trouble-makers and withholding funding. Many believe the tide is turning.

What lessons can Australia learn from the US example?

Shabbos Kestenbaum has been one of the leading Jewish activists on campus and led the fight against his own school, Harvard. A lifelong Democrat, Shabbos was invited to speak at the Republican National Convention and endorsed President Trump due to the Democrats failures on antisemitism. Now Shabbos is close to many decision makers in the Republican Party.


What the Hell Is Going On PodCast: WTH Is Going On With Antisemitism at Harvard? The Free Press’s Maya Sulkin Explains Explicit
Harvard has finally released its 311-page report on the antisemitism Jewish students face on one of America’s most elite college campuses. The stories of Jews being forced to conceal outward displays of their religion, being shut out of academic and extracurricular spaces alike, and facing systemic harassment are horrifying. However, the intensity of the antisemitism at Harvard is also unsurprising. And the manner in which this report was released indicates the university has no real intention of fixing the root causes of Jew hatred on its Cambridge campus. How did Harvard University go from being a quarter Jewish to becoming a bastion of antisemitism? And how does foreign funding perpetuate antisemitism at elite universities?

Maya Sulkin is a reporter at The Free Press. Before that, Maya was chief of staff of the FP. She started at the FP as an intern in 2021 while a student at Columbia University.


Australia's Labor Party must fix Israel ties, fight antisemitism
The reelection of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Labor Party (ALP) on May 3, with a greatly increased majority, was ultimately due to the voting public supporting its economic policies over the opposition Liberal-National Coalition’s vision.

Notwithstanding that, over the past 19 months, the effects on Australia of Hamas’s October 7, 2023 massacre were certainly important factors that influenced how Jews cast their votes.

Following less-than-stellar support for Israel by the Albanese government since the atrocities of October 7, Jewish discontent with the current government has been growing, not just over Israel but also soaring antisemitism.

In electorates where the Jewish population was large enough to influence a close race, postal votes from religiously observant Jews (elections are always held on a Saturday) have kept several races still too close to call.

Nationally, the Israel-Hamas War had little effect on the election’s outcome, which followed a well-executed campaign by the incumbent, who focused on decreasing the cost of living and benefited from the tailwind of anti-Trump sentiment.


BBC Bargain Hunt star, 53, charged with terrorism offence following Met Police investigation
Bargain Hunt and Antiques Roadshow star Ochuko Ojiri has been charged with terrorism offences following a Metropolitan Police investigation.

The 53-year-old art dealer, whose real name is Oghenochuko Ojiri, was held over a probe into terrorist financing.

Ojiri has been a regular on the BBC shows for several years.

He faces serious charges related to his business activities in the regulated sector.

The television personality, who resides in west London, was charged after an extensive investigation by counter-terrorism officers.

Ojiri is charged with eight counts of failing to make a disclosure during the course of business within the regulated sector.

The offences allegedly took place between October 2020 and December 2021.

These charges are specifically related to terrorist financing, according to the Metropolitan Police.
Cardiff councillor convicted after locking himself to another person at police station
A Welsh councillor has been ordered to pay hundreds of pounds after being involved in a protest that took place at a police station last year. Cardiff Council ward member for Penylan, councillor Imran Latif, was suspended from the Liberal Democrats group last year after he was charged with two offences following a pro-Palestine protest that took place in June 2024.

Councillor Latif, 45, pleaded guilty at a Cardiff Magistrates Court hearing on Tuesday, May 6, to locking himself to a person to cause significant disturbance. The second charge of using threatening/abusive words/behaviour likely to cause a disturbance was dismissed after no evidence was offered.

South Wales Police confirmed last year that 16 people were arrested after a spontaneous protest occurred in the front desk area of Cardiff Bay Police Station at 9.30pm on June 3, 2024. Never miss a Cardiff story and sign up to our newsletter here.

This happened just hours after another protest involving 50 to 60 protesters took place in Cardiff city centre. At the time, it was reported that people were protesting against the war in Gaza. The court heard how councillor Latif entered Cardiff Bay Police Station, sat on the floor and locked himself to another protester.




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Elder of Ziyon - حـكـيـم صـهـيـون



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

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