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Monday, July 06, 2026

07/05 Links: How Israeli Society Reacted to Oct. 7; When Medical Journals Sell Hate Propaganda; Natasha Hausdorff: How the West's own laws are being used to destroy it

From Ian:

How Israeli Society Reacted to Oct. 7
Micha Popper, 78, professor emeritus in psychology at the University of Haifa, said, after the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, "We were going crazy, thinking: What can we do? So we drove down to [Kibbutz] Kfar Azza [a few days later]."

"This was during the early days. Everything was in ruins, they had just removed the bodies. We started to clean the refrigerators in the dining hall, to work in the fields - we helped physically with whatever we could, and we were in contact with the army personnel who were in charge of the work there. We decided to go anywhere where help was needed."

"I saw that there are masses of people here who simply couldn't stand by. That wherever there is a problem, they are there. It floored me."

"Everything worked excellently, without the need for meetings, through spontaneous activity that was carried out by talented, take-charge people who came up with ideas of their own."

"And they did it masterfully, with the aid of other skillful individuals: locating missing people; establishing schools and daycare for the people evacuated from their homes; farming; providing psychological assistance to and employment for the evacuees; helping businesses."

"Israelis are problem solvers. Give them a problem and they'll know how to handle it. And then there is the ability to improvise, implement and be creative. That has to do with our history, with survivability."

"And then there is familyhood, which is part of the willingness to step in and carry the burden together."

"There was a woman who understood algorithms, data, and she suggested an idea to locate missing persons with the aid of photographs taken by the [Hamas] terrorists, who filmed everything with their body cameras. To look for all sorts of signs - like a stain on a shirt."

"She brought in a high-tech person and a few other people, and together they created things that don't exist anywhere in the world. After three days it was already up and running. The Israel Security Agency called; they wanted what the group had invented."

"There were plenty of initiatives like that, of people with vision, creativity and knowhow in their fields. No one waited for anyone."

"I saw people coming in private cars to transport equipment to wherever it was needed. I saw CEOs, well-known people who had already retired, companies that donated money. It was like they were all on steroids; people didn't sleep."

"Having so many go-getters is something you don't see anywhere in the world."
Gerald Steinberg: When Medical Journals Sell Hate Propaganda: The Lancet Crosses the Line (Again)
The ramifications of The Lancet’s role in this campaign should disturb anyone who takes science, medical ethics, and professional accountability seriously. It is also, more broadly, another step toward the normalization of silencing among doctors and health providers — actions that have become distressingly common among academics, including medical schools. The central involvement of once respected humanitarian NGOs such as Doctors Without Borders highlights the processes by which these structures have been hijacked by small groups of anti-Israel activists.

Horton has a long history of abusing his position and The Lancet to publish pseudo-scientific articles filled with false accusations against Israel, including an “An Open Letter for the People of Gaza,” a heinously propagandistic screed. Two co-authors had sent emails to other medical professionals under the subject line “CNN Goldman Sachs & the Zio Matrix” that promoted a video featuring white supremacist leader David Duke and other antisemitic materials.

In 2014, following many calls for Horton’s removal, he suddenly appeared before an audience of Israeli doctors and expressed contrition, declaring he was hurt by the accusations of antisemitism and of abusing his position as editor of the medical publication.

But now, Horton and The Lancet have reverted to earlier form, joining in a campaign led by fringe NGOs that singles out Israel for opprobrium and vicious demonization. Once again, the abuse and lack of accountability is blatant.

In response, Horton repeats his standard claim that professional journals should not be “neutral” or hide their “moral outrage,” in this case, triggered by Israeli actions in Gaza following the October 7 atrocities. But this argument collapses in the absence of any criteria or review processes for the ostensibly moral claims and the evidence ostensibly behind them. Instead, moral outrage is simply an excuse for abandonment of scientific principles — and systematic discrimination and bias targeting Israel in general, and medical professionals in particular.

Neither The Lancet nor the NGOs pushing this campaign have called for boycotts of medical associations in the many countries involved in actual — as distinct from invented — ethical violations, for example, Russia, Iran, Sudan, and China.

The credibility of scientific publishing depends precisely on the ability to distinguish between evidence-based claims and ideological advocacy. By erasing that distinction, this once respected journal is transformed into another platform for orchestrated discrimination and demonization.

The responsibility for ending such abuse rests first and foremost with the publisher, Elsevier, and its corporate framework, which has already allowed Horton to control this platform for far too long. The lack of oversight and accountability, and the stain resulting from the trashing of medical ethics has spread throughout Elsevier’s network of publications and other activities. The time to pull the plug on this farce is long overdue.
Doctors Without Borders plagued by deep-rooted antisemitism, anti-Zionism, NGO Monitor says
Antisemitism, anti-Zionism, and other expressions of hostility are “deeply rooted” within Doctors Without Borders (MSF), claimed NGO Monitor in its new report “Documenting the Antisemitic Organizational Culture of Doctors Without Borders.”

The report documents MSF’s internal staff conversations and culture regarding Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the personal experiences of Jewish staff members within the organization.

Based on these many testimonials by MSF insiders, NGO Monitor says it is “clear that antisemitism and anti-Israel bias are widespread in MSF’s organizational culture and are expressed by both top officials and lower-level staff.”

One testimony is from former MSF Secretary-General Richard Rossin, who, on July 13, 2024, told Canada’s National Post that the ideological bias against Israel “was perceptible around the beginning of the 80’s.”

“Antisemitism within MSF began under the cover of anti-Zionism. It [the ideological shift] cannot be fixed. How can you fix antisemitism, which is not an opinion but a mental disease?” Rossin said.

MSF Holland contingent refused to interact with a fellow Israeli medical NGO team
The National Post wrote, “Rossin recalled his experience in 2010 on a mission to Uganda when an MSF Holland contingent refused to interact with a fellow Israeli medical NGO team dispatched to help. Rossin remembered it as an episode of ‘one-way empathy,’ where prejudice had poisoned the MSF team’s ability to cooperate with Israel in their shared goal of helping civilians. He feels these same issues continue to plague MSF’s mission in Gaza today.”

NGO Monitor also draws on the words of Alain Destexhe, a doctor with MSF in the 1980s and its Secretary-General in the 1990s. In an October 2025 interview, Destexhe stated: “I think now MSF in Gaza is really taking the side [of] Hamas and against Israel. Americans need to know that Doctors Without Borders is not anymore the organization that it was 15 or 20 years ago. It has become a biased, partial and militant organization.”

“MSF is lying, MSF is partial, MSF is biased, and MSF is an accomplice of Hamas.”

MICHAEL GOLDFARB, who is Jewish, spent 15 years at Doctors without Borders US. He told The Jewish Chronicle of London in March 2026 that “European colleagues freely told me, knowing I am Jewish, that Israel doesn’t have a right to exist.”

“You see extreme ideological fervour – Israel as a Nazi state, Jews as the oppressive, colonial, white supremacists, Zionism as Nazism,” Goldfarb said. “Nothing meaningful has been done to address antisemitism, to show solidarity with Jewish staff, or call out this hate. That creates a permissive environment in which it flourishes.”


EXCLUSIVETortured by Hamas's so-called doctors: October 7 hostage's terrifying account of how Gaza medics sliced open her skin, poured alcohol into open wounds and reattached her FOOT at 90 degrees
A former Hamas hostage has opened up about the cruelty 'deliberately' inflicted on her by Palestinian doctors who reattached her ankle at a 90-degree angle after she was shot by terrorists.

Maya Regev, who was 21 when she was kidnapped on October 7, 2023, also revealed how medics in Gaza needlessly sliced open her skin before pouring alcohol, chlorine and vinegar over her wounds while watching her helplessly scream in pain.

Just days earlier, Maya had been enjoying 'the best four hours of my life' after joining fellow trance revellers at the Nova Festival, alongside her younger brother Itay, 18, and their close friend Omer Shem Tov, 20.

All three would later fall into the hands of Hamas terrorists, who ruthlessly shot them at close range before hauling them onto a truck across the Gaza border.

Maya and Itay were later released in November 2023 during the first ceasefire negotiations, having spent 50 days under the control of their brutal captors.

But Omer, who went on to be held in isolation and kept largely in darkness, was only finally released after 505 days.

Maya, from Herzliya, central Israel, is one of several survivors appearing at an immersive exhibition in London - running until July 15 - showing the atrocities that took place at the Nova Festival on October 7.

Some 413 people were killed and 44 taken hostage to Gaza from the annual outdoor trance festival in southern Israel, with terrorists inflicting similar barbarities in nearby Kibbutzim, including Be'eri, Kfar Aza and Nir Oz.
'I am proof of Hamas's violence': Ex-hostage Ilana Gritzewsky tells 'Post' of sexual abuse in Gaza
A terrorist who held Ilana Gritzewsky for 10 days after she was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz told her she would marry him and have his children, the former hostage told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday, weeks after she bravely shared her experience of sexual abuse in captivity at the UN Human Rights Council.

While the former hostage admitted she would have liked to focus on her healing journey after 55 days of captivity – and following the release of her partner Matan Zangauker after 738 days – Gritzewsky said she felt she had a responsibility to share her story given that the opportunity was stolen from so many on October 7, 2023, and in the years that followed the hostage crisis.

“I’m from an area where, on October 7, many people were killed,” she said. “They lost their voices; they were murdered, and they no longer have a voice. There are also more women and men who have experienced sexual assault and don’t have the power or voice to speak about it. So I want to give them strength and show them that if I’m standing here, you can too,” she explained.

“We don’t have to be ashamed of it; it’s not our fault. We didn’t do anything. We can stand with our hands up and say the truth because it’s not our fault. We are victims, and we are survivors, and we are still fighting. And if our soldiers can give everything with their hearts and bodies to protect us, then why can’t I give my fight? When people don’t love us or don’t respect us, I can still bring our voice. I can give us a voice.”

Confronting UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, 'silence and denial'
Though Gritzewsky was willing to share her testimony, she made no secret of the fact that it hurt to know she was not believed by many on the international stage whose role is to represent all human rights, including those of Israeli victims of Hamas.

“Why? If you are an organization that is meant to support every people in the world, no matter their religion, the color of their skin, whether they are women or men, you need to protect everyone; we are the same people, with lives, with souls, with a future. So why do you silence or deny things when it concerns Jewish men and women?

“Why, when it concerns us, is it silence, denial, or dismissed as propaganda, or that we are not the good ones? Why do we need to keep proving and proving the truth when there is so much evidence? Why is there always a finger pointed at Jews, and why can’t they believe us?” she said, talking to the Post

In a speech facilitated by UN Watch, Gritzewsky last month confronted UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women Reem Alsalem for choosing to remain in “silence and denial” when she, along with countless other Israelis, were brutalized.

“I am a woman who survived. I am the living proof of sexual violence by Hamas. When other Israeli women and I begged not to be raped, why were you silent?” she asked the official.
Israel approves $20 million plan for Oct. 7 festival survivors
The Israeli government on Sunday approved a 60 million shekel (about $20 million) plan to continue rehabilitation and support for survivors of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on two music festivals.

The three-year plan promoted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will provide continued medical, mental health, employment and social support to thousands of survivors and their families, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.

The PMO said some 3,600 festival survivors have been officially recognized as victims of hostile actions, with the rates of injuries and disabilities indicating “long-term consequences that necessitate ongoing tailored support, treatment and rehabilitation.”

Under the plan, survivors will receive assistance through a centralized support system that will help them access benefits, coordinate therapy and ensure continuity of care through the Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs.

The outline also expands medical and mental health services, improves access to emergency mental health care and establishes dedicated substance abuse prevention and treatment programs, in addition to boosting support for survivors’ families.

It also calls for rehabilitation and employment integration pathways through the Labor Ministry, the Israel Employment Service and the National Insurance Institute.

The government said it would continue developing a digital platform to coordinate services across government agencies. An interministerial committee of ministry directors-general will oversee the plan’s implementation, with a dedicated official within the Prime Minister’s Office coordinating the government’s efforts.
Israeli judoka sells Olympic uniform to fund mental health care for rescue volunteers
Israeli judoka Peter Paltchik announced he is selling the judo uniform he wore while winning a bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, aiming to raise $50,000 for mental health care for volunteers of ZAKA, Israel’s search, rescue and recovery organization.

Proceeds will fund mental health care and resilience programs for ZAKA volunteers, who treat victims in the aftermath of terrorist attacks, wars, natural disasters and mass-casualty accidents in Israel and abroad.

The Ukrainian-born Paltchik is among Israel’s most decorated athletes, having also won a team bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, an individual bronze at the 2023 World Championships in Doha, and a gold medal at the 2020 European Championship in Prague.

Paltchik dedicated his Paris medal to his coach, 1992 Olympic bronze medalist Oren Smadja, whose son Sgt. 1st Class (res.) Omer Smadja was killed in action in Gaza in June 2024.

“Real armor doesn’t just belong on the judo mat. It belongs to the men and women of ZAKA, who wear the yellow vest to preserve human dignity in humanity’s darkest moments. They leave their families and run to arenas that most people can’t even imagine, but when the mission is over, the memories remain,” Paltchik said. “I’m exchanging my armor to help fund them.”

ZAKA CEO Dubi Weissenstern said the donation reflected a stirring recognition for the organization’s volunteers.

“Peter Paltchik’s moving gesture goes far beyond a financial donation. This is an expression of deep appreciation for the ZAKA volunteers, who work with endless dedication in the most difficult arenas, while also bearing the mental cost of their work,” Weissenstern said. “Caring for the mental resilience of the volunteers is an integral part of our commitment to them, and we thank Peter for choosing to volunteer for this important cause.”
Jake Wallis Simons: Trump has been fooled by the Turkish cuckoo in the Nato nest
What has happened to Turkey is a tragedy. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the father of modern Turkey, replaced Islamic law with Swiss-inspired civil law, adopted the Latin alphabet, banned the fez and promoted Western dress, and granted extensive legal rights to women, including suffrage. Conservative Islam was limited to rural areas and Islamist networks were pushed underground.

Even when political Islam began its inexorable comeback in the 1970s and 1980s, secular culture remained dominant. Its most eye-catching symbol was Ankara’s friendship with Israel. In 2017, when I was a foreign reporter, I was sent to Istanbul on a freezing New Year’s Day to cover the massacre of 39 people in a nightclub by an Islamic State gunman.

One of the victims was a 19-year-old Arab-Israeli woman called Leann Zaher Nasser, who had been there on holiday. Such was the closeness between the two nations that Mossad officers later confided to me that they were hugely frustrated at having failed to prevent the atrocity.

Such relations would never have been found in any of Turkey’s Muslim neighbours. Later that year, however, Erdogan made constitutional changes that concentrated power in the presidency, followed by an intensification of restrictions on journalists, pressure on political opponents and limits on freedom of expression and assembly. The rot was setting in.

Amid this growing Islamist authoritarianism, Ankara’s relationship with Israel now lies at an all-time low. Benjamin Netanyahu surpassed Hitler long ago in the crime of genocide, Erdogan announced last year, calling the Israeli leader a “bloodthirsty vampire” and “psychopath” in charge of a country he has previously described as a “terror state”.

This Israelophobia is not a local problem. Rather, it is the banner that flutters above a hardline, neo-Ottoman, expansionist regime that is filling the regional power void left by battered Tehran, bolstered by its close alliances with Qatar – another Brotherhood enthusiast – and Pakistan.

Syria is now ruled by the former Al-Qaeda warlord Ahmed al-Sharaa, who swept to power with Turkish backing. Azerbaijan’s 2020 victory in Nagorno-Karabakh, enabled in part by Turkish drones, paved the way for its final 2023 takeover. Westward, Turkey holds quiet influence over Europe’s gas and migrant flows, while across the Muslim world, its popular soft-power exports of television dramas and films have long been winning millions of hearts and minds.

History denied
Meanwhile, Erdogan’s propaganda is becoming increasingly unhinged. This week, in another public war of words with Jerusalem, he made the bizarre claim that “in our history there is no genocide, no massacre, no oppression, and no colonialism”. How, then, would he describe the butchery of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottomans in 1915, an atrocity widely viewed as the 20th century’s first genocide?

How, for that matter, would he explain the Ottoman Empire itself, which at its height stretched from the walls of Vienna across the Balkans, Anatolia, the Levant and Mesopotamia to the Gulf, and from the steppes of Crimea to the deserts of Yemen and the shores of North Africa? If that’s not colonialism, I’m not sure what is.

This is a problem that is not going away. Without a clear mechanism for expelling a Nato member – those drawing up the North Atlantic Treaty did not have the foresight to design one – there is no obvious way to defuse this combustible mess. What the alliance badly needs is an American president with the deftness to bend ErdoฤŸan towards a Western agenda. Under the free world’s current vain, inept and capricious leadership, however, Truman’s legacy is dying in our hands.


Amb. Alan Baker: Israel's Right to Maintain Security Zones and Demilitarized Areas
Every territorial withdrawal Israel has undertaken - whether in the Sinai following the 1956 Suez crisis, and pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty, in Syria in the 1974 Israel-Syria Disengagement Agreement, in southern Lebanon in the late 1980s, and in Gaza in 2005 - has been accompanied by security and demilitarization arrangements, monitored and supervised in order to prevent hostile forces from embedding themselves along Israel's borders.

Yet these various security and demilitarization arrangements, dependent on foreign forces and UN approval, proved to be totally inadequate to prevent violations of the demilitarization requirements.

As long as a real and immediate danger continues to exist along Israel's borders, and as long as Israel's security continues to face ongoing threats from neighboring territory, Israel is fully justified in insisting on security zones and demilitarized areas under its monitoring and supervision.

Insistence by Israel on such ongoing presence and supervision is a prerequisite for any hope of regional stabilization and an essential requirement to ensure Israel's justified and proven right to ensure its security in accordance with its internationally acknowledged rights to defend itself and its people.
Weaknesses of the Framework Agreement between Lebanon and Israel
The path to the implementation of the framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon appears long and fraught with obstacles, and there is no certainty that it can be successfully implemented. Hizbullah refuses to accept the terms or relinquish its weapons, autonomous status, and ties to Iran. It may, as in the past, attempt to target Lebanese leaders involved in negotiations with Israel.

Although Hizbullah is currently weaker than before, it still retains the capacity to disrupt the implementation process, including continued military activity against IDF forces operating in Lebanon.

The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) remain at a disadvantage vis-a-vis Hizbullah, even in its current weakened state. Past experience has demonstrated that the Lebanese army lacks both the will and the capability to confront Hizbullah. To date, it has avoided violent clashes with Hizbullah and has at times even cooperated with it. In order to meet the demands placed upon it by the agreement, comprehensive reforms, significant strengthening, and a shift in its strategic posture vis-a-vis Hizbullah will be required.

The agreement could also face potential disruption by Iran, which has already demonstrated its willingness to risk the collapse of the ceasefire in order to preserve its position in Lebanon and ensure Hizbullah's survival.

For Israel, the agreement reflects recognition of the State of Israel by the Lebanese government and points to the possibility of a future transformation in bilateral relations with Lebanon. It also partly offsets the negative implications of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between Iran and the U.S., which acknowledged Iranian involvement in Lebanon. The framework also renders unnecessary the involvement of the states that were supposed to oversee the ceasefire alongside the U.S. - Iran, Pakistan, and Qatar.
IDF Officer: Oct. 7 Changed How Israel Fights Its Enemies
A middle-ranking IDF officer said, "the army is not the same army it was" on Oct. 7. "The way we look today at an emerging threat, our approach toward the enemy is different. Today, there is no such thing as no response."

Against the backdrop of Oct. 7, the most central move made by the IDF with the political leadership's backing has been maneuvering deep inside enemy territory, establishing itself there and creating a broad security belt and strategic depth for the State of Israel. No more defense along the border line. "Today we believe in the threat, much more than we believed then."

The lessons learned since Oct. 7 have brought about a revolution in the IDF's defense concept, one that abandons static positioning on Israeli soil in favor of operational dynamism. The IDF no longer relies only on a narrow contact line between the fence and the Israeli community, but clearly distinguishes between "security zones" - areas whose purpose is airtight protection of the communities and prevention of enemy infiltration - and "holding zones" - areas in enemy territory where a continuous operational presence of IDF soldiers is maintained to prevent infiltration and help enable a rapid transition to attack.

Defense Minister Israel Katz has described a mindset shift, moving from passive defense that waits for an event to active defense designed to prevent the extreme scenario from materializing in the first place. In Katz's view, that is not going to change in the coming years and the IDF must adapt. In addition, response times of forces in the air, on land and sea have changed beyond recognition.
IDF: Gaza airstrikes kill two Hamas commanders
The Israel Defense Forces said on Sunday that it had killed two Hamas terrorist commanders in separate airstrikes in the Gaza Strip last week.

Muhammad Najib Ashour, a Nukhba Force platoon commander in Hamas’s “military wing,” and Tamer Saeed Abu Nakhal, a cell commander, were involved in advancing attacks on IDF soldiers, the military said.

The terrorists “posed a threat to the troops and were subsequently eliminated in precise strikes,” it added.

The statement noted that steps were taken to limit harm to noncombatants, including the use of precise munitions and aerial surveillance.

Soldiers remain deployed in the enclave in accordance with the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement “and will continue to operate to remove any immediate threat,” it declared.

The current ceasefire went into effect in the Gaza Strip on Oct. 10, 2025, ending the two-year war that began when Hamas, other Palestinian terrorist groups and Gazan “civilians” invaded the northwestern Negev on Oct. 7, 2023.

Under the second phase of U.S. President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan, Hamas is to cede power and Gaza is to be deradicalized and disarmed, with the deployment of an International Stabilization Force to parts of the Strip currently held by the Israeli military.

Top Hamas leaders, including Khaled Mashaal and Musa Abu Marzouk, rejected key parts of Trump’s plan in recent months, including disarmament, despite having agreed to the proposal in October.

On Friday, the IDF and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) announced that they had eliminated a senior Hamas terrorist who took part in the Oct. 7, 2023, kidnapping of Capt. Daniel Perez and later held three Israeli hostages in captivity.


Israel: Lebanese Army Sidelining Shiite Troops Who Won't Confront Hizbullah
Israel's ambassador to U.S. Yechiel Leiter said Thursday that the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) is sidelining Shiite troops and officers who are unwilling to confront Hizbullah, reflecting a growing readiness in Beirut to act under the new framework agreement with Israel. Leiter said the LAF are more capable of confronting Hizbullah than they sometimes appear.

"There has to first be will. There are elements within the LAF that didn't have the will to confront Hizbullah, because you have about 25% to 30% of the army which is Shia, and of the Shia Muslims you have anywhere between 30% and 50% support for Hizbullah."

"The solidification of the government now has moved those elements within the army to the side. So there's a greater will because of the degrading of Iran, and the degrading of Hizbullah and the fall of Assad. They were always intimidated by Assad, which was a long arm of Iran sitting on their border. Now, Assad has been toppled, thanks in no small measure to Israel. By degrading Hizbullah, Assad didn't have a proxy to defend him either."

"We came to our senior partner here in the United States and we said...you're already funding, to a large extent, the Lebanese Armed Forces. If you fund them a little bit more, but now make it progress-based, performance-based, not timelines; that's another piece of magic we put into this agreement. The focus of this agreement is the dismantlement of Hizbullah. It's not the withdrawal of Israel....Hizbullah is dismantled, Israel withdraws, and we have full peace." Leiter said Israel would not leave its current security zone until all of southern Lebanon south of the Litani River is under Lebanese army control.

Moreover, Hizbullah's tunnel infrastructure in southern Lebanon must also be destroyed. "These are the tunnels that Hizbullah built with tens of millions of dollars that are aimed to do two things: Number one, provide them cover so that they can come out of the tunnels, shoot missiles into our northern towns, and run back in and we can't get them. The other one is to use these tunnels to penetrate Israel by foot like the Nukhba did in Gaza and actually attack our citizens."
IDF kills armed terrorist in Southern Lebanon buffer zone
The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday eliminated an armed terrorist who entered the security zone in Southern Lebanon, the military said.

Soldiers identified the terrorist during operations in the Majdal Zoun area, some six miles from the Jewish state’s northern border, according to the statement.

“Following the identification, the soldiers responded to the threat and opened fire at the terrorist. Following extensive searches, the soldiers eliminated the terrorist,” it stated.

The IDF described the infiltration of the security zone as a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon and said it would “continue operating to remove any threat to its soldiers and Israeli civilians.”

Hezbollah renewed its rocket and drone attacks from Southern Lebanon on Israel on March 2, following the targeted killing in Tehran of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on the first day of “Operation Roaring Lion” on Feb. 28.

In response, Jerusalem launched a broad aerial campaign against Hezbollah targets and expanded military operations in Lebanon aimed at preventing cross-border attacks on Israeli communities.


Hamas Is Failing to Genuinely Rearm
After 1,000 days of war, nothing remains of the densely populated Jabalia refugee camp north of Gaza City. The area looks desolate and quiet like the surface of the moon. Engineering drills search for tunnels below ground, with D9 bulldozers operating above. In all the territory controlled by Israel, which makes up 2/3 of the territory, nothing remains. Rafah was wiped off the face of the earth, as was most of Khan Yunis. 92% of the tunnels in this part of the territory have been completely destroyed; the rest will be destroyed soon.

Reports of a resurgence inside Hamas-controlled Gaza should be taken with a massive grain of salt. Hamas is failing to genuinely rearm after its smuggling routes in the air, on land, at sea, and underground were choked off. 362 smuggling tunnels from Egypt were destroyed in Rafah. Training is conducted in hiding, reconstruction materials aren't arriving, and the newly dug tunnels in the sand are barely shored up with whatever is available: sheet metal, wood scraps.

"Make no mistake," says a very senior army officer, "of all the enemies we have faced, they are the most cruel, the most hateful toward us, and the most uninhibited." This is exactly the reason why it was forbidden to stop and "fight another day." Without this level of destruction and without isolating them from their patrons, Gaza would have recovered rapidly.


The Hamas Family Behind Two of Gaza's "Murdered Journalists"
One of the biggest propaganda lies since October 7 has been the claim that Israel “systematically targets journalists” to silence the truth and hide evidence of its alleged crimes. The accusation has become a cornerstone of the broader “genocide” narrative, repeated by media outlets, NGOs, and international organizations like the United Nations with little scrutiny of who was actually being counted as a journalist.

The claim that Israel systematically targets journalists depends on the public accepting that everyone labeled a “journalist” actually was one, and that they were killed because of their work. UNRWA video editor Abdulhadi Habib and his cousin, Al Jazeera photojournalist Mustafa Ayyad, are just two more examples of so-called “journalists” with ties to Hamas. In their case, the publicly available evidence points to deep generational and familial ties to Hamas’ top leadership.

Al Jazeera photojournalist Mustafa Ayyad, who was killed on May 6, 2024, in a targeted strike on his home, was the son of Al-Qassam field commander Hatem Khader Ayyad, killed in a strike by Israel in 2008. In addition to serving as an Al-Qassam commander, Hatem Khader Ayyad was also a bodyguard for senior Hamas leader and Hamas Minister of the Interior Saeed Siam. Siam, who was killed in an Israeli strike in 2009, had also worked as a teacher for UNRWA from 1980 to 2003. He was also among the hundreds of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad members deported by Israel to Lebanon in 1992, alongside Ismail Haniyeh and Abdel Aziz al-Rantisi.

In addition, Al Jazeera photojournalist Mustafa Ayyad's maternal grandfather was Mustafa Munib Sarsour, one of Hamas' top leaders and an original member of the organization. Sarsour also served as one of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin's bodyguards and was killed alongside him in the same Israeli strike in 2004. According to Mustafa Ayyad's mother, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin was a close friend of Mustafa Ayyad’s grandfather, and he was not merely Yassin's bodyguard, but his "inseparable shadow."

Al Jazeera photojournalist Mustafa Ayyad's familial ties to Hamas leadership also include his uncle (mother’s brother), Al-Qassam field commander Mohammed Sarsour. Mohammed Sarsour also served as the bodyguard of Hamas commander Wael Talab Nassar. Both were killed in the same Israeli strike in 2004 after multiple assassinations attempts over the years. According to Al-Qassam’s website, Mohammed Sarsour was among the first to shelter wanted members of the Al-Qassam Brigades in his home, including commanders Imad Aqel, Tariq Dukhan, Marwan al-Zayigh, Bashir Hammad, and, most notably, Mohammed Deif, the longtime head of the Al-Qassam Brigades, whom he sheltered in his home for five years.

Mustafa Ayyad’s mother’s Facebook is mostly filled with images glorifying the “martyrdom” of his father, grandfather, uncle, and brothers, but it also includes many images of Mustafa when he was as a child where he is dressed as a Hamas terrorists carrying weapons.

Mustafa Ayyad appears to have had at least two brothers who were also affiliated with Hamas. His eldest brother, Tariq, was killed during “March of Return,” and Raed who was killed during the current war. Based on his mother’s eulogies, Raed appears to have served as a cameraman in Al-Qassam’s media unit.

Mustafa Ayyad’s mother’s Facebook posts also provide additional insight into the family’s longstanding ties to Hamas. According to posts published on her account, she appears to have adopted and raised her nephew, the son of Hamas commander Saad Al-Arabid, raising him as one of her own children after his father’s death in 2003.


Natasha Hausdorff discusses CPJ's review of its list of 'journalists' killed in Gaza
For years, and particularly since October 7, 2023, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has published figures on journalists killed in Gaza that have been widely cited by governments, NGOs, campaign groups and international media organisations.

Those figures have frequently been referenced in allegations that Israel has deliberately targeted journalists during the conflict.

CPJ has now announced a full review of its database after removing a number of individuals previously listed as journalists when subsequent evidence established they were combatants belonging to Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Critics argue that independent researchers had been identifying terrorist affiliations for many months before the review was announced, and that those findings were largely ignored while the original allegations continued to shape international reporting and public opinion.

In this interview, UKLFI Charitable Trust Legal Director, Natasha Hausdorff, examines CPJ's announcement, the methodology behind its reporting, the legal criteria for determining whether a person is to be treated as a combatant, and the wider implications for media credibility and international public discourse.

Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:14 Why CPJ's announcement matters
03:49 Why were researchers' warnings ignored?
07:10 International law
08:30 How did CPJ's figures shape global narrative?
10:07 CPJ's methodology under fire
12:01 Future standards for organisations like CPJ




At Khamenei funeral, speaker calls to kill Trump; posters and grafitti urge death to Netanyahu, too
Iran’s top officials and brothers of the country’s new supreme leader emerged into public view Sunday to attend the funeral prayers for the late ayatollah Ali Khamenei, signaling a new confidence in their safety as calls grew for the killing of US President Donald Trump.

Their presence before hundreds of thousands of people in the capital Tehran would have been unthinkable during the Iran war, which saw airstrikes in its opening moments on February 28 kill the 86-year-old Khamenei, his family members, and other officials.

Israel also targeted others who appeared publicly during the war, in at least one case likely using their public appearance to fix their position for a strike.

But still unseen was Iran’s new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei. He is believed to be in hiding after being wounded in the airstrike that killed his father. His face was disfigured, and he suffered a significant injury to one or both legs, people close to his inner circle told Reuters.

Israel has threatened to kill him as well, as he leads a theocracy now negotiating with the United States over a permanent end to the war and over Iran strangling traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global energy supplies.

Ziba Naderi, a 42-year-old nurse attending the funeral Sunday, said Iran needed to follow whatever Mojtaba Khamenei commands regarding the nation.

“I heard the call for revenge, but our leader should say what we need to do,” she said. “And we must listen to him.”


Rising antisemitism leaves many British Jews uncertain about staying in the UK
Journalist and author Melanie Phillips weighs in on the growing wave of antisemitism that has left many British Jews questioning if they can safely remain in the UK.

“There’s a tremendous amount of concern about rising Islamism, a tremendous amount of concern about the cost of living and about the fact that for many years, the British government has been extremely dysfunctional,” Ms Phillips said.

“There is a certain amount of talk, certainly among British Jews, as in America and elsewhere, because of the terrible rise of violent antisemitism.

“There are certainly British Jews who are thinking is there a future for Jews in this country?”


How the West's own laws are being used to destroy it: Natasha Hausdorff exposes the ICC and UN
Natasha Hausdorff tells Jonathan Sacerdoti that international law — the very system the West built to protect itself — has been turned into a weapon against Western civilisation, and that what is being done to Israel today will be done to Britain and America tomorrow.

Behind the headlines about war crimes, genocide and starvation lies a harder story. What happens when the courts meant to deliver justice become political tools? When UN reports launder terrorist propaganda as established fact? When the photographs that moved the world turn out not to show what we were told they showed? And if "what starts with the Jews doesn't end with the Jews," what does the weaponisation of international law mean for every law-abiding nation that still fights by the rules?

In this conversation, Jonathan Sacerdoti speaks with Natasha Hausdorff — barrister, international law expert and founder of the Centre for International Rule of Law — about how the laws of war are being inverted, why the ICC and ICJ have lost their credibility, how NGOs like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch built cases on Hamas sources they never verified, why the "State of Palestine" fails the basic legal test for statehood, and why the West's silence in the face of this abuse may be the most dangerous signal of all.

๐Ÿ‘️‍๐Ÿ—จ️ Watch if you want to understand how international law — from the ICC to the UN Human Rights Council — is being turned against Israel and the West, and why the outcome affects every nation that still plays by the rules.

๐ŸŽ™️ We Discuss:
⚖️ Why Natasha Hausdorff founded the Centre for International Rule of Law — and what "the weaponisation of international law" actually means
๐Ÿ›️ How rule-of-law nations treat law as a limit on power, while despots treat it as a tool to wield power
๐Ÿ”ด Why the ICC and ICJ increasingly look like political bodies rather than independent courts
๐Ÿ“„ How the latest UN Commission of Inquiry "launders" terrorist propaganda into an official report on the targeting of children
๐Ÿ—‚️ Why Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch relied on Gaza "local authorities" — while admitting they had no one on the ground
๐Ÿ” "Projection": how Israel's accusers are guilty of exactly what they accuse Israel of
๐Ÿงพ Why the "State of Palestine" fails the Montevideo test for statehood — and how the ICC invented its own jurisdiction
๐Ÿฝ️ The starvation narrative: why over 3,000 calories per person per day were entering Gaza — and why up to 90% of aid was diverted by Hamas
๐Ÿšธ The truth behind the "starving children" photographs — and the well-fed relatives cropped out of frame
๐ŸŽ“ How the international legal academy silences anyone who won't "drink the Kool-Aid" on Israel
๐Ÿšง Why Egypt sealed the border at Rafah — and how the international community became complicit in Palestinian suffering
๐ŸŽ–️ How a senior British general was attacked by his own colleagues for reporting honestly what he saw in Gaza
๐ŸŒ Why "what starts with the Jews doesn't end with the Jews" — and how lawfare will one day be turned on Britain and the US


UKLFI: Daniel Berke discusses case against Palestine Action barrister Rajiv Menon KC for contempt of court
A High Court judge has ruled that there is a case to answer for contempt of court against a senior King's Counsel following his closing speech during the trial of the so-called Filton Four activists.

The case arose from the 2024 Palestine Action break-in at an Elbit Systems UK facility in Filton, near Bristol. While supporters of Rajiv Menon KC argue the proceedings risk undermining the independence of the Bar, others contend that allowing advocates to disregard judicial rulings would threaten the fairness of jury trials and the rule of law itself.

In this interview, Daniel Berke, a UKLFI Director and leading solicitor specialising in criminal law, examines what the judgment actually says, why the judge concluded there is a realistic prospect that contempt proceedings should be considered and why this case has generated such significant debate within the legal profession.

The discussion explains the legal meaning of contempt of court, the distinction between fearless advocacy and compliance with judicial rulings, the role of juries and judges in criminal trials, the principle of "jury equity" and the wider implications for the administration of justice if advocates invite juries to decide cases on matters ruled legally irrelevant or inadmissible.

Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:15 Why the judge found there is a case to answer
05:37 Fearless advocacy or contempt of court?
08:30 Why judicial rulings matter in jury trials
11:10 Does this threaten the independence of the Bar?
17:01 What does this mean for the rule of law?


Comedy Cellar USA: Israel’s Gloomy Future? Occupation, Isolation, and Survival - Daniel Sobelman
A conversation about the future of Israel and world Jewry. Can Israel protect itself without becoming a global pariah? Did Hamas gamble that even losing the war could pull Israel into isolation? Noam and Sobelman discuss occupation, unilateral withdrawal, the settler movement, Jewish vulnerability abroad, and the difficult tradeoffs now shaping Israel’s future.

00:00 Intro: Daniel Sobelman returns
03:47 Israel after October 7: a new era for Jews and Israel
08:58 Sobelman: October 7 as a nuclear-level shock
11:48 Why Israel was blamed before it responded
15:50 Hamas’s strategy: provoke a war and isolate Israel
22:35 Occupation, moral corrosion, and the West Bank dilemma
32:23 Could Israeli initiative restore its global standing?
34:03 Settlers, politics, and the failed path of unilateral withdrawal
41:29 Israel as both Jewish safety net and source of Jewish vulnerability
52:02 Resistance vs normalization: the future of the Middle East
Daniel Sobelman is a professor of international relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and a research fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Middle East Initiative.


Nas Daily: How I Risked EVERYTHING On AI l Trailblazers Episode 39
In this episode, we sit down with Nas Daily, entrepreneur, creator, and founder of one of the world's largest creator brands. After building an audience of more than 70 million followers through nearly a decade of daily videos, Nas made the biggest gamble of his career by pivoting his content to AI. We discuss why he believes AI will create the next Walt Disney, how he built and manages a company with more than 100 employees, the philosophy behind Nas Daily, the family gamble that got him into Harvard, his perspective on the Israel-Palestine conflict, and how he thinks about storytelling, leadership, and the future of content. If you're interested in entrepreneurship, the creator economy, AI, or building a business that stands the test of time, this episode is for you.

Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:45 Nas Is Very Opinionated
4:40 How To Actually Create Company Culture
5:56 Nas Hasn’t Changed His T-Shirt In 9 Years
8:40 Asking People Their Net Worth Should Be Normal
9:21 How Nas Chooses What Products To Build
13:52 Why Justin Bieber’s Business Failed
16:09 Predicting What Type Of Founders Will Be Successful
17:13 How Nas Daily Hires Employees
18:05 Why AI Agencies Suck
21:16 The Biggest Risk Nas Daily Ever Took
24:10 How Nas Daily Closed Series A Investment
29:31 The Passing Of Zaki Djemal
32:40 The Importance Of Believing In Yourself
36:20 Why Nas Boycott YouTube For 2 Years
38:37 Discussing The Israel-Palestine Conflict
49:04 Growing Up In Israel
51:08 How Nas Ended Up Going To Harvard
52:43 North Korea Vs Israel
54:47 Rapid Fire Questions




Half of the American Congress will scream ‘Free Palestine’
The other big winner was Darializa Avila Chevalier, a pro-Palestinian advocate who has enthusiastically joined demonstrations against Israel at Columbia University, unseating five-term incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat in New York’s 13th Congressional District.

That’s just another example of an Israel hater prevailing over her opponent, Espaillat, who made the mistake of expressing support for Israel while campaigning.

Both of these women, who claim to be anti-Zionists, failed to condemn the October 7 massacre or criticize Hamas terrorists.

In fact, according to an article in the Times of Israel, “Chevalier attended a rally that celebrated the October 7, 2023, terrorist onslaught in Israel the day after the attack, has posted online that ‘Israel doesn’t exist,’ and has backed Palestinian terrorist Rasmea Odeh.”

Another shared position of Valdez and Chevalier is their support for the abolishment of ICE. In fact, if it were up to Valdez, criminals would roam free, since she is opposed to prisons. And criminals galore there will be since Valdez doesn’t believe that countries should have borders.

From local wins to a national shift
Amongst her many troubling connections, perhaps the most disturbing one is her affiliation with the anti-Zionist group, Jewish Voice for Peace, for whom she has engaged in activism for the rights of Palestinians.

As a congresswoman, Valdez would be in a position to impose a full arms embargo on Israel, something she is keen to propose. Also, as a proponent of the BDS movement, there is no end to the type of damaging legislation which could come from her extreme positions directed at the Jewish state.

It’s no wonder that Bowman predicted a seismic shift in America’s Congress, with the likes of these anti-Israel representatives, all of whom can end the nearly eight decades of close partnership between the US and Israel.

What we are witnessing is so much more than a major change in the Democratic Party, since there are apparently enough voters to dramatically change the course of America, possibly turning it into a Socialist society that values the collective over the individual.

It is a harbinger of not just how America will abandon Israel but how it will bitterly turn against it, with the help of Jew-haters and Israel bashers.

How long will it take before these incoming congresspeople join ranks with the likes of Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and all the others who are already chanting, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free?”

In that respect, Bowman is not clairvoyant. He has merely paid attention to the winds of change that have been blowing in the direction of a hostile takeover of both America, the bastion of freedom and liberty, as well as Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East.

For those who have warned that the Democratic Party is out of step, has lost its way, and could very well lose many future elections, they should pay close attention to the primary results of two weeks ago, because they represent the wave of the future.

Regrettably, that “Free Palestine” shout could soon be the dominant voice in America if everyone doesn’t wake up!
Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro slams socialist NY Dem Darializa Avila Chevalier — and warns major battle for future of party is coming
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro tore into New York socialist congressional nominee Darializa Avila Chevalier and warned that a battle is brewing for the soul of the Democratic Party.

“Her district voted for her, but I have profound differences from that particular candidate,” Shapiro (D) bluntly told CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday.

“And she’s not someone who seemingly I would agree with on many things or that we share similar values,” he went on. “She ran on the Democratic ticket; I guess [she] is a socialist. Her voters in that district determined that she was the one they wanted representing her.”

Chevalier defeated Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairman Adriano Espaillat (D-NY) last month in the Empire State’s deep blue 13th Congressional District, which encompasses parts of Upper Manhattan and the West Bronx.

The self-described democratic socialist previously espoused many far-left views such as abolishing prisons, eliminating Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), calling former President Joe Biden a rapist, and bragging about wiping her dirty hands on the American flag.

“I think what our party has to go through that will be very healthy, and something we’ve not really done since the 1992 election cycle, is to have a battle over what we believe in,” Shapiro contended.

Shapiro is widely seen as a comparatively moderate figure within the Democratic Party, though unlike Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), the Pennsylvania governor is careful about picking fights with the far left.

Chevalier campaigned heavily against Israel, an issue that will likely become a problem for Shapiro if he runs for the Democratic presidential nod in 2028.

Shapiro sidestepped a question about how his Jewish identity would impact his prospects of becoming the Democrats’ presidential standard-bearer in two years, given where the party is on Israel.
Democratic Senate primary in Michigan narrows to Israel critic vs. AIPAC favorite
Michigan Democrat Mallory McMorrow suspended her campaign for the US Senate on Sunday, abruptly reshaping the party primary just a month before the election and leaving a two-person contest between moderate Haley Stevens and progressive Abdul El-Sayed.

McMorrow’s exit comes after many Democrats increasingly viewed her as a long shot for the nomination. It also creates a fresh dynamic in one of the country’s most closely watched Senate races, forcing Democratic voters into a direct choice between Stevens, a mainstream congresswoman backed by much of the party establishment, and El-Sayed, supported by many progressive movement leaders.

The binary choice will be on full display Tuesday, when Stevens and El-Sayed are set to face off in a televised debate. During a May debate, El-Sayed repeatedly went on the offensive against Stevens, who mostly declined to engage directly with him.

McMorrow’s departure could also prompt influential Democrats in the state to announce their support for Stevens because of concerns about El-Sayed’s electability in a general election. Some had stayed on the sidelines because of relationships with McMorrow.

The seat being vacated by Democratic Sen. Gary Peters is one that the party must hold if it hopes to reclaim the Senate majority in this fall’s midterm elections. The primary winner is expected to face Republican Mike Rogers, who lost to now-Sen. Elissa Slotkin in 2024.

McMorrow made the announcement in a statement and video posted online Sunday, which came after ballots have already gone out.
Muslim group that hawked Hamas, other terror trinkets scores $85K taxpayer handout via NYC Council
A Muslim nonprofit with strong ties to NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani was awarded $85,000 in taxpayer dough through the City Council – despite coming under fire in January for hosting a Brooklyn fundraiser featuring a twisted array of trinkets promoting Hamas and other terror groups.

The Muslim American Society of Brooklyn and Staten Island received $70,000 in Council “discretionary funds” from Democrat Kayla Santosuosso, who represents Bay Ridge and other parts of southern Brooklyn. Alexa Avilรฉs (D-Brooklyn), whose district includes Red Hook and Sunset Park, allocated the remaining $15,000 in political pork.

The funds were awarded despite City Council Speaker Julie Menin expressing shock in January upon learning the terrorist swag was being peddled by the nonprofit that previously received $265,000 in Council funds over three years under her predecessor, ex-Speaker Adrienne Adams.

Menin, the Council’s first Jewish speaker, told The Post at the time she would block $80,000 in funds that had yet to be paid out to the MAS pending an investigation by city lawyers – and potentially future funding for the nonprofit.

Council spokesman Yoav Gonen said the legislative body’s Office of the General Counsel conducted an investigation and “found no affiliation” between the nonprofit and the vendor “that sold the controversial merchandise,” adding that MAS ended its relationship with the rogue vendor.

“The nonprofit’s funding was restored after its leadership committed in writing to enhanced screening and prevention protocols for all future vendors using its space,” he said.

Councilwoman and staunch Zionist Inna Vernikov (R-Brooklyn) said “individual members get to decide what groups get their discretionary dollars, but funding nonprofits that appear to flat out support designated terrorist organizations and spread radical, Jew-hating propaganda is far beyond the pale and potentially illegal.”

“And if this was some kind of an alleged hiccup, did MAS apologize and condemn Hamas? No,” she added.

“These members must explain to the public why their taxpayer dollars should be given to America-hating jihadis, rather than so many other groups who have a legitimate purpose and actual needs.”


Antwerp council votes to keep Israeli flag at city hall
The city council of Antwerp, Belgium last week decided by a narrow majority not to remove Israel’s flag from its faรงade.

Twenty-seven members of the city council’s 55 seats voted in favor of keeping the flag in a vote held at the request for left-wing and far-left parties that wanted it removed. Another 24 voted in favor of removing it, and another four did not vote.

“Removing the Israeli flag from this city hall would by no means be a neutral gesture. It would be a political signal. And for many—including myself—it would mean [a signal] that Israel has no right to exist,” Michel Freilich, a member of the Antwerp City Council and a federal lawmaker of Belgium for the New Flemish Alliance of Prime Minister Bart De Wever, said in a speech ahead of the vote.

Antwerp Mayor Els van Doesburg, who represents the same party, has resisted pressure to have to flag removed, bringing the matter to a vote.

Antwerp displays all the flags of countries with accredited envoys or consulates in Belgium, Freilich told JNS. The PLO flag is not on display at city hall. In 2022, Antwerp removed the Russian flag from the faรงade to protest Russia’s invasion into Ukraine. Anti-Israel activists argued the same should be done with the Israeli flag, but the mayor has resisted this argument, noting that Belgium has downgraded its diplomatic relations with Russia.

In 2022, Belgium kicked out of its territory more than 20 Russian diplomats and applied sanctions a year later that it has not applied against Israel, resulting in a fundamentally different bilateral relationship than the one it has with Israel.

The New Flemish Alliance has 30 seats in Antwerp’s city council, where it formed a coalition with the left-wing Vooruit party, which pushed for removing Israel’s flag.


First time in 2,000 years: Israel carrying out conservation work at Tomb of the Patriarchs
For the first time in 2,000 years, Jewish authorities are conducting conservation work at the Tomb of the Patriarchs, where, according to the Bible, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob and Leah are buried.

The site, revered as the burial place of the patriarchs and matriarchs of the Jewish people, is Judaism’s second-holiest site.

The maintenance and safety upgrades include electrical renovations, air conditioning, improved drainage, new lighting and a fire protection system.

The renovation is helping transform the site into a world-class destination, Yishai Fleisher, director of international and government affairs for the Jewish Community of Hebron, told JNS on Thursday.

“It has a really high-end look and feel and, of course, it will make worship inside much more pleasant, more moving and more spiritual. It also shows the State of Israel is engaging with the site and recognizes its importance to our heritage, tourism and the identity of Israel,” Fleisher said.

He said the investment demonstrates the government’s commitment to preserving a site central to Jewish history and emphasized its potential impact on tourism.

“After Jerusalem, it is one of the most important historical and iconic sites. The building itself is a 2,000-year-old Herodian structure—the only one of Herod’s buildings that still stands. In a sense, we are finishing Herod’s work,” he said.

The centerpiece of the renovation is the long-awaited installation of a roof over the Jewish prayer area. Annual winter rains have frequently flooded the site, damaging infrastructure, while a temporary canopy failed to provide adequate protection. The new roof, combining a metal frame with glass panels, will protect visitors while allowing natural light into the structure.

The Waqf Islamic trust and the Palestinian Authority-run Hebron Municipality hold jurisdiction over the site, while Israeli authorities are responsible for maintaining the section designated for Jewish worship. Any structural changes, however, required Waqf approval. Earlier this year, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who also serves as a minister within the Defense Ministry overseeing civil affairs in Judea and Samaria, transferred approval authority from the P.A. to an Israeli body, clearing the way for the renovations.
Venezuela Thanks Israel for Earthquake Aid after Years without Ties
Venezuela's interim president Delcy Rodriguez publicly thanked Israel for dispatching a team of disaster specialists following the country's devastating earthquakes.

She praised the professionalism of the Israeli experts and said the team reached Venezuela after coordination through the country's Jewish community.

The humanitarian mission comes despite the absence of diplomatic relations between Israel and Venezuela.


Alon Ohel plays ‘Superman’ on USS Nimitz in NYC
Israeli pianist and former Hamas hostage Alon Ohel performed aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz on Saturday as part of the United States’ 250th Independence Day celebrations.

Ohel was invited by American singer-songwriter John Ondrasik, known professionally as Five for Fighting, to join him in performing the song “Superman” on the carrier’s flight deck during the central holiday events tied to the International Naval Review 250 in New York City. The USS Nimitz, which has been in service for 51 years and is nearing retirement, is participating in the review marking the U.S. milestone.

Senior U.S. government and military officials attended, including the chief of naval operations and the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

The performance took place during an official reception before thousands, accompanied by an aerial flyover salute.

Ohel, 25, was abducted by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack at the Supernova music festival and held hostage in the Gaza Strip for two years before being released on Oct. 13, 2025, as part of a Gaza ceasefire agreement.


Herzog attends wedding of former Gaza hostages
President Isaac Herzog attended the wedding of two former hostages, Sasha Troufanov and Sapir Cohen, on Sunday evening.

Herzog and his wife First Lady Michal gave the couple a blessing from under the huppah (Jewish bridal canopy).

"We prayed for your return, we were moved to tears when you came back home, and this evening we were privileged to rejoice together with you and to bless you under the chuppah on your joyous day," they said.

"Mazal tov Sasha and Sapir. May you merit to build together a home filled with love, light, and joy!"

The two were abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz during the October 7 massacre, while visiting Troufanov's family.

Under the huppah, Herzog explained that he had previously stated that he would not attend any weddings until all the hostages returned, according to reporting from Ynet.

Cohen and Troufanov's time in Hamas captivity
Cohen was held by Hamas terrorists for 55 days before her release in November 2023, during the first hostage release deal, while Troufanov was in capitivity for 498 days. He was released as part of phase one of a mediated ceasefire/hostage release deal in February 2025.

Following Troufanov’s release from captivity on February 15, Cohen told reporters at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer: “He prayed I’d find another man, thinking he’d never return. But I waited.”

The couple announced their engagement in July 2025, 5 months after Troufanov's release.





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Reclaiming the Covenant on America's 250th (May 2026)

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

PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022)

    

 

 

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