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Friday, February 20, 2026

02/20 Links Pt1: Media’s Belated Truth-Telling on Gaza; Why Israel Does Not Want America’s Military Aid Money Anymore; Inside Al Jazeera’s Style Guide; Guterres and the gutless United Nations

From Ian:

Seth Mandel: Media’s Belated Truth-Telling on Gaza
From the Now It Can Be Told files come a couple more revelations about Gaza worthy of attention.

The BBC reports what has been true for over two years: Hamas is bleeding Gazans dry while violently cracking down on, as one Gazan described it, “people with opinions.”

The BBC has recently been embroiled in numerous ethics scandals around its reporting on the conflict. This report is an indication of what it might have looked like had the Beeb reported honestly and ethically for a single day during the war.

“At markets across Gaza,” BBC reports, “stallholders describe regular police patrols—and a renewed iron grip on official fees and taxes.” The market sellers can’t really afford what Hamas is demanding. “Should I pay them, or feed my children?” one asks.

As the piece explains, “food and some other basic goods are flowing into Gaza more freely. The few key traders with a license to bring them in from Israel say Hamas have reimposed strict control over taxing the imports. One trader, who agreed to share details anonymously, told us force was used against those who refused to pay.”

Same old story—Israel is letting in goods and food, and Hamas is taking it out of the mouths and pocketbooks of Gazan civilians and disappearing those who put up any resistance. The preceding sentence has never not been true since Hamas took control of the enclave close to two decades ago. If you want Gazans to be able to eat and earn a livelihood, you’ve got to remove Hamas. Because its policies are the same whether it’s peacetime or wartime: there is no such thing, in fact, as peacetime Hamas.

Interestingly, one trader told the BBC “that traders used a code-word for Hamas when discussing tax payments, so that Israel wouldn’t learn that money was being siphoned off to the group.”

Even Hamas’s victims have been helping the terror group cover up its crimes. What that means is simple: Hamas has, all along, been siphoning off a much larger share of goods and food and money than anyone claimed. If anything, the Israelis understated the extent of the problem.

In fact, it’s going to be difficult for anyone on the outside to get the full picture: “Hamas now has a database of all the traders who import goods into the Gaza Strip,” activist Mohammed Diab told the Beeb. “The trader pays in cash, not through bank transfers, so that the flow of funds cannot be traced. It is gradually restoring the system that was in place in the past, but away from the spotlight so it can’t be monitored.”

The longer it takes to disarm Hamas, the longer Palestinians will be immiserated and oppressed. It’s really that simple. And there’s nothing Israel can do to change that unless the world asks it to go in and disarm Hamas itself.
Inside Al Jazeera’s Style Guide, Which Forbids Reporters From Calling ISIS a ‘Terrorist’ Organization
Al Jazeera prohibits its staff from referring to al Qaeda, ISIS, and Boko Haram as "terrorist," "Islamist," or "extremist" groups, instead requiring reporters to use "neutral terms" like "fighters" and "armed groups," according to a copy of the outlet’s style guide obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

The guide was labeled "2023-2024 Edition" but appears to have been updated to reference more recent events like President Donald Trump's renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America (the outlet tells reporters to use the former). The guide’s treatment of terrorist organizations is one example of how the Qatari state media outlet, which did not respond to a request for comment, presents radical Islam to the world.

"There is nothing stylish or factual about this unholy text, which has a higher spin rate than any Major League power pitcher," said one media insider who has seen the document. "It simply confirms what many right-thinking people have always known: Al Jazeera exists only to parrot narratives that have been carefully crafted by the Hamas propaganda machine."

Below is a compilation of exact quotes from the guide followed by examples of its rules being used in Al Jazeera articles.

TERRORISM/TERRORISTS
We do not use these terms unless attributed.

ISRAEL
It is the state of Israel, not the Jewish state. However, we can refer to the Jewish state when the subject is the religious composition of Israel. Do not use Jewish state as a synonym for Israel. Do not use ‘Jerusalem’ as a synonym for the government of Israel, as one might use ‘Washington’ to imply the U.S. government. With regard to whether we use pro-Israel or pro-Israeli government…care needs to be taken to use the longer but more accurate phrase: ‘pro-Israeli government’. Israeli peace activists will tell you they are ‘pro-Israel’, but ‘anti-Israeli government’. When Israeli politicians address the public, make an effort to find out who they are addressing and report it as is.

EAST JERUSALEM
The term ‘occupied’ should be used wherever it’s necessary.

"Israel to advance plans for 9,000 units in occupied East Jerusalem," Dec. 17, 2025: "Israeli authorities are expected to advance plans to build 9,000 new housing units in an illegal settlement on the site of the abandoned Qalandiya airport in occupied East Jerusalem, in another attempt to cut off Palestinian lands from each other and block any possibility of a contiguous Palestinian state ever emerging."

WEST JERUSALEM
Do not say ‘occupied’. And never refer to it as the capital of Israel.

"Netanyahu finally announces October 7 inquiry: Why are Israelis furious?" Dec. 20, 2025: "The ministerial team tasked with determining the scope of the inquiry is to meet in West Jerusalem on Monday, coincidentally the same day that Netanyahu is scheduled to give testimony in his long-running corruption trial in Tel Aviv."

INCURSION
This is the word we use when Israeli settlers, politicians, religious figures or nationalist groups go into Al Aqsa Mosque compound. Don’t call it a ‘visit’.

"UN says Israel is stoking ‘ethnic cleansing’ fears in Gaza, West Bank," Feb. 19, 2026: "In Jerusalem, Ramadan has brought further restrictions at Al-Aqsa Mosque. The mosque’s imam, Sheikh Akrama Sabri, said Israeli authorities are ‘imposing a reality by force’ by limiting worshippers while allowing extremist Jewish incursions into the compound."

ISRAELI SETTLEMENTS
Should be called illegal on first reference. Settlements are residential areas built by Israelis in the occupied territories. They are illegal under international law: this is the UN Security Council’s position - although Israel rejects this. All settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are considered illegal under international law. There are no ‘legal’ settlements.

"Israeli minister approves gun licences for 18 illegal West Bank settlements," Jan. 22, 2026: "Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has approved the issuance of gun licences to Israelis in 18 additional illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, as the right-wing government headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushes to expand illegal outposts that undermine prospects for a two-state solution."

ISRAELI ARMY
Do not call it Israeli Defence Forces or IDF. Also avoid ‘security forces’.

"Israeli army sniper in Chile accused of Gaza war crimes could face justice," Feb. 18, 2026: "A Chilean court is considering a criminal complaint against a former Israeli army sniper who served in Gaza during Israel’s more than two-year-long genocide on the coastal enclave and the Palestinian people."

ISRAEL MILITARY DEATHS
We take a robust approach to censorship of our reporting by the Israeli military. Each case should be considered individually, but our first instinct should be to report the facts. The deaths in combat of Israeli soldiers are of high news value. If we are confident of the facts we should report them, even if the Israeli Army has asked us to wait for its permission. The Israeli Army says it routinely asks us to delay reporting deaths so it can first inform victims’ relatives. This is not a good enough reason for us to withhold news from our audience – provided we do not name the victim. This policy may provoke a reaction from the Israeli side. If it does, we will reassess it.
Josh Hammer: The Saudi Mask Slips
What the heck is going on here—and most important, what does it all mean for the United States and our very real interests in the Middle East?

First, the much-desired goal of Riyadh joining Abu Dhabi and Manama in the Abraham Accords circle of peace with Jerusalem is, at least for the time being, totally unachievable. A friend of mine who had been involved in the first Trump administration’s Abraham Accords diplomacy efforts once told me that, by the end of the first Trump term, a deal to bring Riyadh into the accords was “on the five-yard line.” This same official believed that, if Trump had been re-elected for a second term beginning in January 2021, Saudi Arabia would have joined the accords within a few months. Now, five years later, the notion of Israel normalizing relations with the state custodian of Islam’s holy sites is, sadly, a pipe dream.

Second, it seems that Riyadh’s recent shift in posturing is motivated less by a sincere ideological cottoning to Islamism—the Brotherhood remains officially banned throughout the kingdom, for example—and motivated more by MBS’s unseemly personal petulance and immaturity. It’s worth remembering that MBS, a nepo baby if there ever were one, has behaved like a spoiled child before. He initiated a high-profile mass arrest of prominent Saudi elites at the Riyadh Ritz-Carlton in November 2017. In October 2018, Islamist “journalist” Jamal Khashoggi was butchered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul; a CIA report the following month concluded that MBS had ordered the hit. Whatever one might say (and I have nothing nice to say about Khashoggi), these incidents were unnecessarily provocative—perhaps even gratuitous.

It seems that MBS is now up to his old tricks. By all accounts, MBS has come to loathe Mohamed bin Zayed, rule of Abu Dhabi and president of the UAE. I’ve heard speculation that MBS now harbors an even deeper hatred of MBZ, and by extension the entire UAE, than he held for Qatar and its ruling House of Thani during the 2017-2021 GCC crisis. Given that the UAE under MBZ has been perhaps the most moderate of all the oil-rich Sunni Gulf states in its general approach to Islam and the most publicly embracing of Israel of all the Abraham Accords’ Arab signees, there is no clear reason why MBS has adopted such a hostile posture—given his years of anti-Islamist crackdowns and purges—other than pure pettiness and jealousy.

It’s juvenile—blatantly, insanely, and disgustingly so. But as Riyadh cozies up to Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s strongman Islamist regime in Ankara, Ahmed al-Sharaa’s al Qaeda-lite regime in Damascus, and sides against Israel and the UAE on Somaliland’s push for national autonomy, MBS’s spoiled outbursts nonetheless have real consequences for the region.




Kassy Akiva: Why Israel Does Not Want America’s Military Aid Money Anymore
In the 1980s, Israel launched an ambitious program to develop its own fighter jet: the Lavi. Its name, which translates to “Lion,” reflected the aircraft’s promise — a sleek, agile jet praised by test pilots for its exceptional handling and designed to give the Israeli Air Force a superior edge in air combat.

Israel’s cabinet canceled the program in a narrow 12‑11 vote following pressure from American officials. Washington objected to the Lavi because its high costs would strain Israel’s defense budget, divert Israel from spending United States military aid on other American equipment, and compete with the F-16.

The Lavi remains a cautionary tale as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders seek to end the Jewish state’s reliance on American military aid.

“I want to taper off military aid within the next 10 years,” Netanyahu told The Economist in January, just a month after the prime minister unveiled a $108 billion, decade-long investment to build an independent Israeli munitions industry.

“That’s not saying I don’t want to fight for the allegiance and the support of the American people,” Netanyahu said. “I do. You’d have to be crazy not to.”

If Netanyahu succeeds, Israel will no longer accept the roughly $3.8 billion in annual U.S. aid — about $3.3 billion of which is required to be spent mostly on American companies.

Netanyahu is not alone in advocating for reduced U.S. military aid. Other leaders who spoke to The Daily Wire said the goal is not to weaken the relationship with the United States, but to transform it into a partnership based on mutual strength.

“This has nothing to do with the importance of the relationship between Israel and the United States,” General Amir Avivi, chairman and founder of the Israel Defense Security Forum, told The Daily Wire. “Israel wants to deepen relations, but Israel, and I, think also the United States are seeking a partnership rather than a relationship based on aid. Israel is not a third-world country. Israel is a regional power, and in some aspects even a global power.”
Compel the Taylor Force Act and crack down on its offenders
The Taylor Force Act (22 USC 2378c-1) was named in memory of Taylor Force, a U.S. veteran and graduate student who was visiting Israel and was murdered by a Palestinian terrorist. The Palestinian Authority awarded the terrorist’s family a stipend for his homicidal efforts, under its longtime “pay for slay” program.

The act requires cutting of funding available for assistance for the West Bank and the Gaza Strip (outside of three very limited humanitarian exceptions) directly benefiting the P.A., so long as it continues its payment system to terrorists and their families. The statutory finding under the act makes clear that money is fungible. Thus, it declares that while the United States does not provide direct budgetary support to the P.A., it does pay certain debts and funds programs for which the P.A. would otherwise be responsible.

Under the act, such funding is illegal unless the U.S. Secretary of State certifies in writing to the appropriate congressional committees that, among other things, the P.A., PLO and any successor or affiliated organizations are taking credible steps to end acts of violence against America and Israeli citizens, have terminated “pay for slay” payments and revoked or invalidated any law or decree providing for the same.

It is reported that yet again, the secretary of state was unable to so certify. This is because the P.A. has not actually ended its despicable program. Instead, its leaders have put in place yet another ruse to mask the payments by disguising them as social welfare administered by a foundation. The payment mechanism may be different, and the name may be changed, but the effect is the same: Murderers and their families receive cold, hard cash incentives. In addition, the P.A. continues to enact laws providing financial support to terrorists.

It should also be noted that among those receiving such payments are Hamas terrorists who participated in the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, in which 45 Americans were murdered and 12 Americans kidnapped.

It is respectfully suggested that this is a violation of the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Law (18 USC 2339B). Furthermore, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026 reaffirms the requirement of compliance with the Taylor Force Act and also flags the diversion of any funds to Hamas or other terrorist and extremist entities in the West Bank or Gaza.
Hamas says open to Gaza peacekeeping force, but rejects foreign role in ‘internal affairs’
Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said Friday that his terror organization is open to international peacekeeping forces in Gaza, but rejected any interference in the territory’s “internal affairs.”

“Our position on international forces is clear: we want peacekeeping forces that monitor the ceasefire, ensure its implementation, and act as a buffer between the occupation army and our people in the Gaza Strip, without interfering in Gaza’s internal affairs,” Qassem told AFP.

Hamas had initially come out fervently against the International Stabilization Force when it was initially laid out last year by the US in its 20-point plan for ending the Gaza war. The terrorist group appears to be softening its stance now that the ISF is coming together and several countries have agreed to contribute troops to the force.

Hamas said in a statement late Thursday that any discussions on Gaza must begin with a total halt to Israeli “aggression” as US President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” maps out the territory’s future, with Israel insisting on the terrorists’ disarmament before reconstruction starts.

Trump’s board met for its inaugural session in Washington on Thursday, with a number of countries pledging money and personnel for rebuilding, more than four months into a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

He revealed that five countries — Indonesia, Morocco, Albania, Kosovo and Kazakhstan — agreed to contribute thousands of personnel to the International Stabilization Force, which is supposed to gradually replace Israeli troops in Gaza.

But the board meeting offered no timeline for Hamas to lay down its weapons or for Israel’s army to withdraw from the shattered enclave.

“Any political process or any arrangement under discussion concerning the Gaza Strip and the future of our Palestinian people must start with the total halt of aggression,” Hamas said.


Trump says ‘considering’ limited strike on Iran to coax it into accepting deal on his terms
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he was considering a limited military strike on Iran to coax it into accepting a nuclear deal on Washington’s terms as the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, steamed into the Mediterranean.

The threat came as Iran said it would be ready to present its draft of a possible nuclear deal to the US within two or three days, but also claimed that a demand for zero uranium enrichment was not on the table.

Amid the tensions, the Israel Defense Forces said it was on high alert amid expectations that Iran would attack and fire missiles at Israel should the US strike. However, the military reiterated that there were currently no new instructions or restrictions for the Israeli public.

Asked by reporters on Friday if he was looking at a limited strike after The Wall Street Journal reported as much, Trump paused and smiled before responding, “I guess you can say I am considering it.”

However, as reporters were ushered out of the room at a White House event, Trump appeared to mock the question, suggesting that he wasn’t going to publicly telegraph his plans regarding Iran.

Trump’s comments came as the USS Gerald R. Ford entered the Mediterranean Sea, according to maritime tracking data. Trump ordered the carrier strike group to the Middle East last week, as he considers whether to take possible military action against Iran.

Maritime tracking websites showed that the USS Mahan Arleigh Burke-class destroyer — part of the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group — was crossing the Strait of Gibraltar on Friday morning.

It is expected take the aircraft carrier several more days to reach the Middle East and be poised to operate against Iran.

Nevertheless, two US officials told the Reuters news agency that US military planning on Iran has reached an advanced stage with options including targeting individuals as part of an attack and even pursuing regime change in Tehran, if ordered by Trump.

The military options are the latest signs that the United States is preparing for a serious conflict with Iran should diplomatic efforts fail. Reuters first reported last week that the US military is preparing for a sustained, weeks-long operation against Iran that could include striking Iranian security facilities as well as nuclear infrastructure.

The latest revelations suggest more granular, ambitious planning ahead of a decision by Trump, who has in recent days also publicly floated the idea of regime change in the Islamic Republic.
Grand jury indicts three Silicon Valley engineers in alleged trade secrets theft tied to Iran
A federal grand jury has indicted three Silicon Valley engineers accused of stealing sensitive technology from Google and other technology companies and “transferring confidential data to unauthorized locations, including Iran,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Samaneh Ghandali, 41; her sister Soroor Ghandali, 32; and Mohammadjavad Khosravi, 40—Samaneh Ghandali’s husband—were arrested on Feb. 19 and appeared in federal district court in San Jose. All three live in San Jose, prosecutors said.

According to the indictment, the defendants exploited their positions at leading mobile processor companies to access trade secrets related to processor security, cryptography and related technologies. They allegedly transferred the material to unauthorized third-party and personal locations, including work devices associated with each other’s employers and to Iran.

Samaneh and Soroor Ghandali both worked at Google before moving to another technology firm identified in court papers as “Company 3.” Khosravi worked at a separate firm identified as “Company 2.”

“As alleged, the defendants exploited their positions to steal confidential trade secrets from their employers,” U.S. Attorney Craig H. Missakian stated. “Our office will continue to lead the way in protecting American innovation, and we will vigorously prosecute individuals who steal sensitive advanced technologies for improper gain or to benefit countries that wish us ill.”

Prosecutors allege that Samaneh Ghandali transferred hundreds of files—including Google trade secrets—to a third-party communications platform using channels named for the defendants, with Soroor Ghandali allegedly adding more files.
Iran sentences British couple to 10 years in prison on espionage claims
A British couple detained in Iran since January 2025 have been sentenced to 10 years in jail for espionage, their family announced on Thursday, prompting condemnation from the UK government.

Lindsay and Craig Foreman, both in their 50s, were arrested while traveling through the country on an around-the-world motorcycle journey, according to relatives, and have consistently denied Tehran’s spying claims.

Their family says the sentences follow a court appearance last October that lasted just three hours and in which they were not allowed to present any defense.

“They have consistently denied the allegations. We have seen no evidence to support the charge of espionage,” their son Joe Bennett said in a statement revealing the jail terms.

“We are deeply concerned about their welfare and about the lack of transparency in the judicial process.”

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper hit out at the sentences, calling them “completely appalling and totally unjustifiable.”


Guterres and the gutless United Nations
"Why do Israelis so often criticize the UN?” is a question I hear a lot.

The answer can be found by reversing the words: The UN bashes Israel literally as a matter of routine. It is mandated to discuss Israel’s perceived faults and wrongdoings every three months in the Security Council, three times a year in the Human Rights Council, and finishes every year with a round of condemnations in the General Assembly.

In short, Israel is never far from the UN spotlight as the “bad guys,” while an entire department is dedicated to promoting the Palestinian narrative.

Indeed, on February 3, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addressed the 2026 opening session of the “Committee for The Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.” After listing grievances against Israel, he declared: “In Gaza, Palestinians continue to endure grave suffering,” as if Israelis don’t suffer from war and terrorism.

Guterres spouted his usual mantras: “The work of this committee reminds the world that we must never lose sight of the core objective: resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The occupation must end, as affirmed by the International Court of Justice. The inalienable rights of the Palestinian people must be realized. International law must be respected, and accountability ensured. The unity, contiguity, and integrity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory must be preserved.”

The path to “a just, lasting peace between Palestinians and Israelis,” according to Guterres, lies solely in the “two-state solution… A solution with Israel and a fully independent, democratic, contiguous, viable, and sovereign Palestinian state, of which Gaza is an integral part – living side by side in peace and security within secure and recognized borders, on the basis of the pre-1967 lines, with Jerusalem as the capital of both states.”

The fact that the Palestinians in Gaza and Judea and Samaria (“Occupied Palestinian Territory,” in UN terminology) don’t have peace even among themselves – and are not demanding to live in security alongside Israel, but to destroy it – did not faze him.
The UN: A bankrupt, two-faced institution
The UN’s organizational structure enables a political majority to impose a narrative even when it is detached from reality. When anti-Israel bias becomes a “diplomatic” method, the path to institutionalized antisemitism is very short. That antisemitism is already here-wrapped in polite diplomatic language and providing legitimacy to terrorism.

At the center stands UN Secretary-General António Guterres, a figure bordering on the pathetic, who more than anyone symbolizes the organization’s decline. Under his leadership, the UN has not corrected its distortions; it has deepened them. Instead of serving as a voice of international responsibility, the organization has embraced a one-sided political discourse that distances it even further from the status of a credible mediator. A secretary-general unable to set clear moral boundaries leads an institution that has lost its own boundaries. Silence in the face of injustice is not neutrality; it is a choice.

The collapse is not only moral; it is also financial. The UN is approaching insolvency, and not by chance. Donor states are weary of funding a massive apparatus that produces statements instead of results. Billions are poured into bloated bureaucracy while public trust collapses. When an organization ceases to be morally relevant, it also loses its economic right to exist. A budget without trust is a body without a soul, destined to collapse.

This is a moment of truth. The UN continues to exist by inertia alone. It survives by diplomatic habit, not by trust. The wider the gap between its pretensions and reality, the stronger the sense that it speaks in the name of humanity without representing it. The world is changing rapidly, and the UN remains stuck in power structures of the previous century.

The problem is not criticism of Israel per se. States should be subject to scrutiny; the problem is selectivity. When terrorism is met with understanding and self-defense is presented as a crime, the moral system is inverted. When the UN leads this injustice, it becomes an institution that legitimizes it. International morality turns into a political tool.

Deep reform is no longer an option; it is a condition for survival. Without transparency, without balance, without oversight mechanisms that prevent cynical political exploitation, the UN will continue to disintegrate-not in a dramatic explosion, but in a slow rot of lost trust. Institutions do not die in a single day; they erode until they become irrelevant.

History is unforgiving toward institutions that lose their purpose. If the UN does not awaken, it will be remembered not as a promise that protected humanity, but as a warning of what happens when international power becomes detached from basic morality. The question is whether this archaic body still has the will to change and to represent its members morally and equitably, or whether it will continue to exist only as a shadow of itself.
University of Southern Maine nixes campus event with Francesca Albanese
The University of Southern Maine, a public school, has terminated an agreement for its facilities to be used for a “Consequence of Palestine” conference, which was slated to include remarks from Francesca Albanese, a special U.N. rapporteur whom the federal government sanctioned for her anti-Israel remarks.

The day-long conference, which was scheduled for Feb. 28, was to be hosted by the school’s criminology and sociology department, with Maine Coalition for Palestine and Maine Voices for Palestinian Rights.

The public school told JNS that it had “terminated the agreement for the use of USM facilities for the Consequence of Palestine conference after learning that one of the event’s speakers is sanctioned by the federal government and appears on the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s office of foreign assets control’s specially designated nationals and blocked persons list.”

That “legally prohibits any U.S. person or entity from exchanging any goods or services with those on the list,” the university told JNS.

The event was to take place in the school’s Hannaford Hall, part of its Abromson Community Education Center. The center is named, in part, for the late Linda Abromson, a Jewish activist and Portland’s first female Jewish mayor.

JNS sought comment from the school’s criminology and sociology department on Wednesday. A staff member confirmed that the department planned to host the event and knew that Albanese was sanctioned by the U.S. government. JNS sought comment from the university, which receives federal funds, about whether the department will host the event off-campus.

Albanese has a long history of antisemitic comments. Several European Union foreign ministers condemned her comments and called for her resignation in recent days after she referred to a “common enemy of humanity,” widely interpreted to refer to the Jewish state, at an Al Jazeera conference.
Border Police thwart illegal Palestinian infiltration attempt near Jerusalem
Border Police on Friday thwarted an attempt by approximately 30 Palestinian West Bank residents to infiltrate Israel through the seam route near the Nebi Samuel area, located just outside Jerusalem.

According to the Israel Police Spokesperson's Office, Border Police initially identified a suspicious vehicle transporting several individuals near the route. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the vehicle's driver, a 60-year-old Jerusalem resident, was assisting the Palestinians. The driver was subsequently detained for questioning by the Jerusalem Border Police's Investigations and Intelligence Division.

Meanwhile, additional suspects were located near the route. An initial field interrogation revealed that the suspects were attempting to attend Ramadan prayers at the Temple Mount. Police keep worshipers safe during Temple Mount Ramadan prayers

Thousands of police officers and Border Police were deployed across Jerusalem on Friday, the first Friday of Ramadan, to ensure the safe arrival of worshippers at the Temple Mount. Under the command of Jerusalem District Commander Major General Avshalom Peled, the forces were tasked with overseeing security operations throughout the city, particularly at key points such as the Qalandiya crossing.

The coordinated effort aimed to maintain public order, facilitate smooth traffic flow, and ensure the safety of tens of thousands of worshippers attending the noon prayer at the Temple Mount. The prayer proceeded without incident, with extensive security measures in place.

Earlier in the day, a special situation assessment was held at the police point at the Western Wall, attended by Police Commissioner Major General Danny Levy, Major General Avshalom Peled, and other senior police officers. Following this, Minister of National Security MK Itamar Ben-Gvir joined the team for a subsequent situation briefing to finalize security preparations for the day’s events.


At least 12 said killed as Israel targets Hamas, Hezbollah centers in Lebanon strikes
At least 12 people were reported killed in a series of Israeli strikes targeting Hamas and Hezbollah centers in Lebanon on Friday, including a senior Hezbollah official.

Lebanon said an Israeli strike on the country’s largest Palestinian refugee camp killed two, with the Israel Defense Forces saying it had targeted a Hamas command center.

The official National News Agency said “an Israeli drone” targeted a neighborhood of the Ain al-Helweh camp, which is located on the outskirts of the southern city of Sidon. Lebanon’s health ministry said two people were killed in the raid.

An AFP correspondent saw smoke rising from a building in the densely populated camp as ambulances headed to the scene.

The IDF said it targeted a Hamas command center in the airstrike in the refugee camp, which it said was being used by the terror group to advance attacks on Israel.

“The command center that was struck had been used in recent months by Hamas terror operatives for preparations for terror activities against IDF troops in Lebanese territory, and included training intended to advance various terror attack plans against IDF troops and the State of Israel,” the military said in a statement, attaching footage of the strike.

The IDF said that the site was embedded “in the heart of a civilian population, cynically exploiting the village’s residents to advance the organization’s terror objectives and using them as human shields.”


U2’s new EP features Yehuda Amichai poem, memorializes slain Palestinian activist
A new six-song EP released by Irish rock band U2 on Wednesday features at least three tracks referencing or alluding to Israel.

Titled “Days of Ash,” it was the band’s first release since 2017.

One song, called “Wildpeace,” is a recitation of the poem of the same name by iconic Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai. The poem, which is read on the track by Nigerian artist Adeola Fayehun, begins, “Not the peace of a ceasefire / not even the vision of the wolf and the lamb / but rather as in the heart when the excitement is over / and you can talk only about a great weariness.”

Another track, called “The Tears of Things,” borrows its title from a book of the same name by Richard Rohr that is centered on the prophets of the Bible. The song imagines a conversation between Michelangelo and his “David” sculpture, which is meant to reflect “the ongoing conflict” in Gaza, according to Rolling Stone.

While there does not appear to be an explicit reference to the war in Gaza, there is a mention of the Holocaust in the lyrics, “Six million voices silenced in just four years, the silent song of Christendom, so loud everybody hears.”

In remarks made for an interview published in an edition of the band’s Propaganda fanzine released with the album, U2 lead singer Bono mentioned antisemitism, condemned the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack that launched the Gaza war, and criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s management of the war.


CAIR calls Sharia Free America Caucus in House ‘anti-Muslim hate group’
The Council on American-Islamic Relations has designated the U.S. House of Representatives Sharia Free America Caucus an “anti-Muslim hate group,” the first time in CAIR’s 32-year history that it has designated a congressional caucus an extremist organization, according to a Feb. 18 statement from the group.

“Caucus members support extreme policies that would effectively ban the practice of the world’s second-largest religion in the United States,” the designation states, explaining that “like canon law for Catholics and halachah for Orthodox Jews, Sharia refers to the rules that Muslims follow, including praying five times a day, fasting in Ramadan, giving in charity, and following the laws of the land in which they live.”

CAIR’s announcement comes as the Republican-led caucus continues to advocate for legislative and policy action against what its members describe as the threat of Islamic law in the United States.

“If enacted, their extreme policies could have significant impacts on U.S. commercial interests, international adoptions, foreign marriages, business arbitration and inheritance disputes, where contracts may include considerations of the laws of Muslim majority nations,” the designation states.

CAIR research and advocacy director Corey Saylor said, “Congressmen Randy Fine, Chip Roy, Keith Self and other members of this so-called caucus have appointed themselves as religious police with the power to tell Americans how to worship.”

He added that “these legislators have put cancel culture on steroids, applying it to an entire faith,” he said. “The bigoted rhetoric used by this caucus resembles the hatred that anti-Catholic politicians once unleashed against Irish Americans.”

Saylor noted that “Islam is an American faith, present for over 250 years. No one who wrote the Constitution or enforced it since has empowered these legislators to pick which religions get to exist in America.”

In response to CAIR’s designation, Roy, a co-founder of the caucus, rejected the characterization.


All but one of 18 Palestine Action accused granted bail
All but one Palestine Action activists have been granted bail ahead of trials over a break-in at a UK centre for an Israel-based defence firm.

On Friday, Mr Justice Johnson granted conditional bail to 18 defendants who, along with six others, are facing a series of linked trials.

The 24 defendants had been in custody on charges of criminal damage and violent disorder over the raid on the Elbit Systems site near Bristol on August 6 2024.

They included three women and one man who had previously staged hunger strikes in prison.

The defendants had appeared at the Old Bailey by video links from Peterborough, Belmarsh, Lewes, Newcastle, Eastwood Park and Chelmsford prisons.




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