11/14 Links: John Spencer: The Evil of NAZA; ICC's Khan ordered by court to pay 25 Mil NIS to former hostages; Mossad warns of Iranian plot to target Trump with drones

From Ian:

John Spencer: The Evil of NAZA

In the entire film, there is no specific strike documented in enough detail to assess the allegation of Israeli misconduct. The viewer cannot reconstruct any attack mentioned, starting from the intelligence and going through approval to its outcome. There was and is no lack of acknowledged strikes. In numerous cases, the IDF has publicly announced what or who was the target and what the precautions were. Yet, because no strike is documented in that detail, viewers are never able to apply the elements of the allegation to anything but their own imaginations.

NAZA’s filmmakers do not tell their audience that assessing expected civilian harm is a requirement of the law of armed conflict—and that formal collateral damage estimates are a regular practice of militaries across the world. This is a required step in the law of armed conflict’s core principle of proportionality. It requires those planning or deciding on an attack to assess the incidental civilian harm expected from the attack and weigh it against any concrete and direct military advantage anticipated to be gained from the attack. The nation or actor considering the strike must refrain from an attack if the expected incidental harm would be excessive in relation to that advantage. As part of the process, it must also take all feasible precautions to avoid or minimize incidental civilian harm.

The U.S. military calls the process “collateral damage estimates” (CDE) and has long used intelligence and computer tools to conduct those estimates before an attack. U.S. military doctrine, such as the instruction titled “No-Strike and the Collateral Damage Estimation Methodology,” details how analysts are to use imagery and other intelligence to identify military targets and any civilian presence and/or protected facilities. Automated tools support the assessment, while weapons testing and computer models provide estimates of potential weapon effects.

Where casualty estimates are required, analysts consider building dimensions, construction, the area exposed to those effects, and estimated civilian occupancy during the day or night. The doctrine discusses conducting targeted intelligence collection about civilian activity and that it should replace general-population estimates when available. The CDE process also considers ways to reduce harm through weapon selection, timing, and other precautions. The doctrine explicitly recognizes that these assessments contain uncertainty and cannot predict the exact outcome of an attack.

Calculating expected civilian casualties helps a military meet its legal obligations, but the calculation alone cannot establish whether it has met them. It is not by itself evidence of an intention to kill civilians. All attacks should be assessed based on examining the intelligence, anticipated military advantage, precautions, and decisions involved.

The testimony of the anonymous sources in NAZA alleges deliberate killing, but the film does not supply the records and circumstances needed to test those allegations. Nor does it document the anticipated civilian harm, military advantage, and precautions for any strikes so viewers can assess whether an attack was disproportionate. Most of all, two directors and one anonymous soldier calling the war a genocide does not make that repellent and slanderous assertion true.

The film’s use of Holocaust-remembrance footage leads it into its most insidious strategy. By framing IDF service as a modern version of Nazi complicity, NAZA perpetuates Holocaust inversion. The Nazis constructed an industrialized, systematic killing machine to exterminate millions of defenseless, unarmed civilians, many of whom were citizens of their own country, posed no military threat, had no army, and held no hostages. That comparison erases the distinction between the extermination of defenseless civilians and a war against an armed enemy operating among civilians.

NAZA is misleading even in its title. It takes a military term for collateral damage and presents the effort to estimate civilian harm as evidence of an intention to kill civilians. The film’s flashes of destruction, political speeches, and Holocaust imagery carry the audience far beyond the targeting practices it claims to investigate. It is, instead, designed to depict Israel as monstrous and Israelis as Nazi-like villains. That is why the directors are so cavalier about misleading their audience about military terminology, the law of armed conflict, common military practices, and common sense. All they really want is for people who see it to come away from their disgraceful work substituting the letter “I” from “Nazi” for the “A” in NAZA.

Will former Hague prosecutor compensate captivity survivors?

The Jerusalem District Court has ordered Karim Khan, the former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, to pay NIS 25 million in damages to Eitan Mor and the families of Avinatan Or and Omri Miran, who were abducted by Hamas.

Judge Eran Shilo issued the default judgment after Khan failed to file a defense, despite having been duly served with the lawsuit.

The lawsuit was filed in August 2025, while Eitan Mor, Avinatan Or and Omri Miran were still being held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. All three were released about two months after it was filed.

The lawsuit centered on the allegation that Khan's conduct in his role at the court in The Hague contributed to the hostages' continued captivity. The families alleged that he refrained from taking legal action against Hamas and Islamic Jihad figures whom they held responsible for holding the hostages.

According to the lawsuit, Khan waited eight months before seeking arrest warrants for three senior Hamas leaders: Mohammed Deif, Yahya Sinwar and Ismail Haniyeh. It further alleged that he linked those applications to requests for arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

The plaintiffs also noted that Khan refrained from seeking arrest warrants for additional senior Hamas officials and Islamic Jihad leaders, including figures who were outside the Gaza Strip and involved in conducting negotiations with Israel.

The families argued that his failure to act against those figures allowed the terrorist organizations to continue holding the hostages. The lawsuit also alleged that Khan drew an improper moral equivalence between Israel and the terrorist organizations, and that his decisions were influenced by extraneous considerations.

The damages were awarded by default due to Khan's absence, rather than following a full examination of both sides' arguments in evidentiary proceedings.

How an evolutionary biologist is taking the fight to the 'mutating virus' of anti-Zionism

Flipping the script and building the tool-kit
Rather than trying to convert every casual critic into an ardent Zionist, Expose Antizionism Now aims to equip ordinary people with the language, confidence, and conversational strategies needed to challenge anti-Zionist premises in daily life, whether at a PTA meeting, an HR office, or the dinner table.

“From the position of our organization, we do not need you to be a Zionist,” Spielman clarified. “We just need you to be against anti-Zionism. I’m not trying to convert you to Zionism; I’m trying to get you to recognize that there’s something a little bit sick about the anti-Zionist movement, and that that is a problem.

“We have been taking the bait for a long time,” Spielman continued. “Someone levels an accusation against Israel or Zionism, and because we feel passionately, we launch into a defense. That feels really good to us, but it doesn’t move the needle at all, because the person we’re talking to operates in a completely different factual and emotional universe. By accepting the premise that Israel needs to be defended, we validate the accusation.”

Spielman’s approach focuses on shifting the power dynamic of the interaction.

“Instead of launching into a defense, ask them: ‘Where did you get that idea? Do you know what anti-Zionism is? Do you know where that concept comes from?’” she suggested. “All of a sudden, they have to answer something instead of you. You aren’t going to change someone’s mind in one conversation, but you plant a seed. You make a crack in their worldview.”

To operationalize this approach, Spielman is building a comprehensive tool kit with her volunteer team, which includes their academic adviser, Prof. Andrew Pessin, founder of the Institute for the Critical Study of Antizionism. This includes downloadable community discussion kits, local training modules, and an AI-driven educational tool called Azaryah.

Azaryah allows users to chat interactively with an AI trained on the history, rhetoric, and tropes of anti-Zionism.

“It’s a partner for engaging on these issues,” Spielman explains. “You can chat with it about anti-Zionism’s history, how it functions as an ideology, and get feedback on how to have strategic conversations, set boundaries, or determine if you’re in a safe conversation. It democratizes the learning so people can engage with this information at their own schedule.”

Stripping the social permission: A strategic campaign
Operating in the Philadelphia area, a region experiencing acute political friction over anti-Israel activism, Spielman’s effort is scaling up as a grassroots start-up. Currently run by dedicated volunteers, Expose Antizionism Now is seeking seed funding and donor backing to expand its operations and deploy Azaryah at scale.

For Spielman, the battle against anti-Zionism requires walking away from superficial media outrage and focusing on long-term cultural change.

“We have to embark on that process in a very intentional, strategic way,” Spielman emphasized.

“Instead of playing Whack-A-Mole with whatever Ed Sheeran story of the week there is, we need to focus on what anti-Zionism actually gives people today. It feels good to them. It gives them a social community, a sense of righteousness, and access to elite spaces. It takes a long time for that to be beaten back, but we have to start beating it back.”

To those hesitant to confront anti-Zionist activism directly, she offers a stark historical parallel.

“A lot of the pushback that you sometimes get is, ‘Oh, well, I can’t condemn anti-Zionism because the anti-Zionists are proud of it,’” she noted. “Yeah, they are, because they think it’s a moral stance. But we have shown in the past that the Ku Klux Klan is not a moral stance. We can do this, too. We have that ability.”

Removing that social cover remains the ultimate goal.

“We need a reality where there is no more social permission, and certainly no social benefits, to being anti-Zionist,” Spielman concluded.

“Anti-Zionism’s outcomes are not freedom for Palestinians; its outcomes are the decimation of Jewish communities. It’s time we start beating it back in a deliberate, intentional, and strategic way.

Jonathan Tobin: Trump nips JD Vance’s Iran appeasement gambit in the bud

The midterm elections were disastrous for the Republican Party. But as bad as the results were for the Trump administration and GOP candidates around the country, they were even worse for the vice president. Less than two weeks after the debacle, JD Vance was unceremoniously fired from his position as chief diplomatic envoy charged with finding a way to end the conflict with Iran and diverted to an amorphous task of investigating corruption in Democratic-run cities and states.

This was not a promotion. Nor is it a post likely to produce headlines that will aid Vance’s efforts to succeed the president in 2028. It’s a clear sign that the Vance foreign-policy test drive that began last spring is finally over. That produced a Memorandum of Understanding with Iran that seemed to resemble previous American initiatives to deal with the Iranian threat by Democratic administrations under Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden. And it failed just as much as those efforts did, with Iran backing away from it almost immediately. They had quickly grasped that Vance was, like them, eager to appease their regime rather than a statesman who was willing to stand up to them.

An ironic demotion
Any plans for renewing that foolish effort have now been nipped in the bud.

It’s ironic. The vice president thought that he could get out ahead of the usual intraparty post-election circular firing squads that usually follow a catastrophe of such magnitude. He did so by blaming the defeat on his favorite scapegoats—the Iran war, as well as Israel and its supporters—in his election postmortem.

Not content to merely put the onus for the massive Republican losses on the policies that he opposed from inside the Trump tent, he also seems to have launched an initiative to renew his effort to appease the Islamist regime. He proposed, as The Wall Street Journal reported, to restart diplomacy with one of Tehran’s chief hardliners.

While Trump has sent the public a series of confusing and often contradictory signals about his Iran policy since the midterms, the one thing everyone can be sure of is that he has no intention of letting Vance be in charge of it. And now, be anywhere near it.

That’s good news for those who feared that Vance would exploit the shock inside the administration over the midterm results. His intention appeared to be to take charge of Middle East policy and then ensure a surrender to Tehran he thought would aid his bid for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination.

Standing their ground on Iran
That isn’t happening. Instead, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who had seemed to be out of the limelight in recent months, appears to be back in charge.

Rubio’s policy is for the United States to stand its ground on Iran. He doesn’t want to give in to the temptation to give up the struggle with it as Vance seemed inclined to do. Such a choice would not only endanger the West by allowing Iran to race to rebuild its nuclear and ballistic-missile programs. It would also isolate and betray American allies, like Israel and moderate Arab states, who rightly fear that, left alone to recover from its defeats at the hands of the United States and Israel in 2025 and 2026, Iran will once again constitute a threat to the region.

Rubio and Trump seem to believe that increased sanctions and a steady U.S. determination to crush Iran economically will force it to concede the end of its existential threats to the West and Israel—or set in motion events that will lead to the end of the regime.

It remains to be seen whether they are right about that. Sooner or later, the administration may be compelled to resume military attacks on Iranian targets to forestall the Islamist government’s plans to resume efforts to intimidate regional friends of the United States.

Whether or not that is what happens, Trump’s statement that America “doesn’t need a deal with Iran” is a rebuke to Vance.

Biden accuses Netanyahu of broken promises, prioritizing political survival over Israel in memoir

Former US president Joe Biden accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of ignoring US demands to reduce civilian casualties in Gaza, making empty promises, and prioritizing his political interests over Israel’s well-being in excerpts from Biden’s new memoir that CNN has published.

Some sections from Promise Me, America concentrate on the deteriorating relationship between Biden and Netanyahu after Hamas’s October 7 massacre.

“I had been calling on Israel to take precautions to reduce civilian suffering since the beginning of the conflict,” Biden wrote.

He claimed Netanyahu acknowledged that rising Palestinian casualties were damaging Israel’s image and American support for the war, yet repeatedly failed to change Israel’s conduct.

“When we called them on it, the Israelis always had an explanation or excuse, but the result was the same,” Biden wrote.

Biden also questioned Netanyahu’s trustworthiness, accusing him of prioritizing his own political survival over Israel’s long-term interests.

“Bibi had no qualms about making promises he had no power – or intention – to keep,” Biden said.

“I was frustrated by his failure to think like a statesman and safeguard Israel’s long-term interests, not just his own short-term political needs,” he recalled.

Former Biden officials recount White House tensions with Netanyahu
Biden’s account follows several memoirs by former administration officials detailing tensions with Netanyahu during the war.

Brett McGurk, who served as deputy assistant to Biden and National Security Council coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa and led hostage negotiations, detailed the tensions between Biden and Netanyahu in his book Brink, published last month.

Following the April 2024 Israeli strike that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in Gaza, McGurk recalled Biden confronting Netanyahu at what he described as a “boiling point.”

Biden and Netanyahu clashed over multiple decisions, including the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in July 2024, which Netanyahu said could strengthen Israel’s position and Biden thought could put hostage negotiations at risk.

That said, McGurk placed most of the responsibility for the negotiating deadlock on Hamas, arguing that public US pressure on Israel strengthened the terrorist organization’s position.

Call me Back: Where Does the U.S.–Israel Relationship Go From Here? With Amit Segal

Recorded at the live Israel Hayom summit, Dan and Ark Media contributor Amit Segal unpack the big things happening in American politics–and how it all impacts the relationship with Israel. With the Democrats’ big win still getting sorted out, and Israelis in coalition-building mode, Dan and Amit predict major changes on the horizon for Jews in Israel and in the diaspora. They spoke on November 11th in New York City.

JNS: Tuvia Tenenbom Reveals Never Before Told Details Of Plan To Annex Judea & Samaria!

Eight months among settlers. Revealing encounters. Uncomfortable questions. And Tuvia Tenenbom’s unmistakable humor.

0:00 Trump wanted annexation—Bibi said no
0:38 Tenenbom spent eight months with the settlers
3:35 Journalists who visit for three hours
7:06 Tel Aviv from the balcony—Ben Gurion in range
8:59 "It's impossible to divide this land"
9:48 The hilltop youth are not an organization
13:56 He asked Smotrich: "Excuse me, is this yours?"
18:48 Trump was ready. Netanyahu said no
23:20 On the record in a Manhattan restaurant
24:28 Secular settlers want annexation more
26:17 Windowless houses, paid for by the EU
28:45 Settlers who sing in Arabic
32:02 "More connected to that village than to American Jews"
36:23 "Israel is the worst in the world at PR"
38:56 "If the Jews don't believe this is theirs"

Netanyahu: Unity government is answer to MKs who walked out during 'Hatikvah'

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Yashar chairman MK Gadi Eisenkot to join him in forming a national unity government on Saturday, saying that the appropriate response to lawmakers who deliberately walked out during the singing of Israel's national anthem, "Hatikvah," was to establish a "government of hope."

"The necessary response to those who deliberately walked out during the singing of 'Hatikvah' is to establish the government of hope, the national unity government," Netanyahu said in a video shared on X/Twitter.

His remarks followed an incident at the swearing-in ceremony of the 26th Knesset on Tuesday, when Joint List lawmakers walked out during the singing of the national anthem. Ra'am chairman Mansour Abbas and his fellow faction members remained standing during the anthem.

Netanyahu said his conversation with Eisenkot on Thursday had reinforced his belief that Israel needed a government bringing together all parties that recognize Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people.

The two leaders met for a security and diplomatic briefing on Thursday that lasted more than two hours and was attended by Netanyahu's military secretary.

"This meeting only strengthened my understanding of how essential it is at this time to establish a national unity government, a government that would include all the parties that support the existence of the State of Israel as the state of the Jewish people, and that would be able to meet the enormous and complex security challenges before us," Netanyahu said.

Israel’s 26th Knesset took the oath this week. A record 33 women. 17 Arab members, 2 Druze, 3 openly LGBTQ. 88 IDF veterans. One parliament. Every part of Israeli society. 🗳️🇮🇱

— StandWithUs (@StandWithUs) November 14, 2026

Eisenkot bloc leaders fear Bennett may prefer new elections over partnering with haredi parties

Questions are mounting within Yahar leader Gadi Eisenkot’s bloc over former prime minister Naftali Bennett’s position on efforts to form a government with the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties, as Eisenkot and Yisrael Beitenu head Avigdor Liberman remain divided over the proposed coalition framework and the compromises required on military conscription, according to political sources in the bloc.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appealed to Eisenkot on Saturday night to form a national unity government.

Negotiations to establish an Eisenkot bloc government continue to expose disagreements among the potential coalition partners, with questions now emerging about Bennett’s position.

While Eisenkot and Liberman are working to bring the haredi parties into the coalition, bloc members are questioning whether Bennett will support the emerging framework, particularly the agreements required on military conscription.

There is no consensus within the Eisenkot bloc on how to bring the haredi parties into the government. Eisenkot and Liberman ultimately seek the same coalition but disagree over the timing and whether they can secure Shas’s agreement at this stage.

Eisenkot believes that waiting for Shas chairman Arye Deri could delay forming a government and therefore wants to proceed in stages. Liberman, by contrast, believes an agreement can be reached with haredi parties from the outset and prefers not to rely on Shas joining the coalition later.

Bennett avoids taking a position on haredi draft concessions
Eisenkot’s other partners in the bloc have not expressed a clear position on the matter. The bloc’s leaders have stressed that they “support Eisenkot and trust him,” but are not currently involved in managing negotiations with the haredi parties.

Alongside the disagreement between Eisenkot and Liberman, however, the bloc is also raising questions about Bennett’s conduct. At this stage, his position on the framework Eisenkot is promoting remains unclear, particularly regarding possible compromises with the haredi parties over military conscription.

“Naftali has lowered his profile and imposed silence on himself regarding the contentious issues and negotiations with the haredi parties,” a source in the Eisenkot bloc said.

In Arabic, Mansour Abbas denies having indicated a willingness to designate the Hamas movement as a terrorist organization. Panet Arabic language newssite: "Regarding the report published on the "Ynet" website—which suggests a readiness to recognize Hamas as a terrorist organization in exchange for participation in an Israeli government—Dr. Mansour Abbas stated: "I did not make such a statement. I would like to assure all Arab viewers that, during this period, you will hear many statements from various sources and media outlets. ... I urge the Arab public to disregard any statement that has not been issued directly and officially by us—the United Arab List (Ra'am) and its representatives. No statement holds any validity unless it is issued by us, directly and officially."" Is Mansour Abbas preparing the stage to say one thing in Hebrew and the opposite in Arabic, in order to gain access to the government? Will they call Hamas terrorists during negotiations, in order to placate the Jewish Israeli public, while publicly denying it in Arabic? In any case, even if true, it seems a strange deal. Why would the other coalition member parties be prepared to ignore all the evidence that Ra'am is subordinate to the Islamic Movement Southern Branch, which fundementally sees the State of Israel as an illegitimate entity - in return for a half-hearted acquiescence that Hamas are terrorists?

— Imshin (@imshin) November 12, 2026

Your inability to negotiate a final settlement agreement in good faith, the intifadas, kidnappings, murder of innocent civilians. All of that probably has something to do with it.

— 𝔼𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕠𝕥 𝕄𝕒𝕝𝕚𝕟 (@ElliotMalin) November 14, 2026

'Israel has always killed children': Albanese's claim echoes history of blood libels

One word in Francesca Albanese’s remarks exposes her entire argument. “Israel has always killed children,” the United Nations special rapporteur told a committee of the Irish Parliament.

Before the Israeli soldier was born, before the government was formed, and before the shot she was supposedly discussing was fired, she had already reached her verdict. That single word, “always,” reveals Albanese’s antisemitic audacity and perhaps raises questions about her state of mind.

There was no need to identify a place, a time, an act, or a person responsible. She asked her listeners to accept the outrageous claim that killing children is a permanent characteristic of the Jewish state. Anyone who speaks this way has already abandoned the question of what actually happened. She knew the answer the moment she heard the accused's identity.

At the same time, Albanese claimed that Palestinian detainees had been raped using dogs trained in Europe and that people in Europe were profiting from selling them. In the remarks attributed to her, she offered no evidence that dogs had been trained or traded for that reason. It was clearly an absurd story that she may not even believe herself.

What is infuriating is that once those words left the committee room, Israel was somehow expected to disprove this nonsense. Europeans were also assigned a role in the plot as people supposedly profiting from it.

One sentence was enough to place people on two continents in the defendant’s chair without identifying a single accused person whose response could be requested.

How do these statements align with Albanese’s response to the murder and rape of Israelis on October 7?

Human monsters hunted young people at the Nova music festival and dragged children and elderly people into Gaza for the sole crime of being Israeli. That is why the way she addressed the reports of rape cannot be accepted. In March 2024, she said that the reports she had read contained no evidence that convinced her.

That same month, Pramila Patten, the UN special representative on sexual violence in conflict, reported that there were reasonable grounds to believe that rape and gang rape occurred in at least three locations during the attack. Regarding the hostages, the mission found clear and convincing information that sexual violence, including rape, had taken place.

Faced with those findings, Albanese remained skeptical. Yet when leveling a horrifying accusation against Israel, her caution disappeared. What is an Israeli woman who survived the attack supposed to understand when she hears a UN rapporteur explain why the evidence failed to convince her?

The blood libel against the Jews preceded the Spanish Inquisition by centuries. In 1144, the body of a Christian boy named William was found near Norwich, England. The city’s Jews were accused of ritual murder. The lie later spread across Europe that Jews required the blood of Christian children to bake matzah.

A story passed from church to church and from one generation to the next, becoming so familiar that people believed it whenever they heard it. That was its deadly power. In every city, the child’s name could be changed while the identity of the accused remained the same.

Haaretz showcases what a deeply unserious person Navi Pillay is. In this short clip, she describes her evidence as social media videos, says Israel killed "73,000 civilians" (which even HAMAS's numbers don't claim), and says Israel should have responded to October 7 with arrests

— Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) November 14, 2026

Not to mention this gem: Q: In one section of the report, you write that "Israeli authorities intended to kill as many Palestinians as possible." Do you really believe that? A: "You know, when you use aerial bombing, that's indiscriminate killing. You don't care whether children are there, women are there. Nobody should be killed by indiscriminate bombing. We describe the kinds of weapons used. They're designed to kill a large number of people." She is using "indiscriminate killing" simply to mean that the attack may also kill people in the viscinity of the target. So all aerial bombing is "indiscriminate" by definition.

— Eirik Schrøder-Bråtane (@EirikSchr) November 14, 2026

Iran is now part of a UN committee shaping priorities on human rights, women’s rights, disarmament and counterterrorism. What role did Britain play in this? I discuss with @ThatAlexWoman on @TalkTV https://t.co/hV7xS3NJ40

— Jake Wallis Simons (@JakeWSimons) November 14, 2026

Israeli intelligence warns of Iranian plot to target Trump, top US officials with drones

The prospects of reaching an agreement between the US and Iran, even a preliminary one, have diminished significantly in recent days, partly because of intelligence the Mossad provided to the CIA indicating that Iran intends to target President Donald Trump and senior members of his administration. Senior Israeli and American officials told Israel Hayom that the threats were among the main factors behind Trump's recent shift in his approach to negotiations with Tehran.

According to the senior officials, Israel corroborated the intelligence at the request of the Americans, after US intelligence agencies asked the Mossad to verify the information. Mossad Director Roman Gofman is currently visiting the US, where he has met, among others, with CIA Director John Ratcliffe. Gofman has made frequent visits to the US since taking office, maintaining close ties and coordination with his American counterparts.

One senior official said the Americans were already aware of Iranian threats against the lives of senior administration officials, particularly following the killing of Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, at the outset of the joint Israeli-US offensive. The intelligence provided by Israel points to specific, recent threats, including the possibility of attacks using explosive-laden drones, a method that is difficult to counter with conventional protective security measures.

Drone threat prompts heightened security for senior officials
In response to the threats, the officials considered to be at risk have sharply curtailed their public appearances at outdoor events, while several have been temporarily relocated from their homes to secure facilities.

According to Fox News, one of those officials is Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who oversees sanctions against Iran and is regarded as a driving force behind the economic campaign that has inflicted severe damage on the Iranian regime. Bessent was moved from his home in Washington's Georgetown neighborhood to a secure military base.

The report said Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a staunch opponent of reaching an agreement with Iran, had also been moved to secure housing on a military base. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is likewise staying at a secure military facility as part of heightened security arrangements for senior members of Trump's national security team.

As for the president himself, the senior officials said special protective measures have been introduced for his public appearances, some of which were held outdoors ahead of the midterm elections. Such appearances have now been sharply reduced. When they do take place, additional security measures are deployed alongside reinforced conventional protection, including specialized systems designed to neutralize drone threats.

Iran says IAEA can’t resume inspections until US military threat removed

Tehran told the International Atomic Energy Agency that supervision over Iran’s nuclear program cannot restart as long as the Islamic Republic is under military threat by the United States, the Associated Press reported on Friday.

Iran’s remarks, which were made earlier this month, were forwarded to United Nations member states via a confidential report on Nov. 13 and obtained by AP.

The Islamist regime lamented the “series of persistent, explicit, and public threats by the President of the United States of America ... to commit further acts of armed aggression” against Iran “particularly targeting its nuclear facilities,” according to the report.

Inspections will not resume “until the root causes of the present situation are addressed and the essential requirements for normal safeguards implementation are restored,” Tehran added.

Three Iranian nuclear-related facilities were hit by the U.S. and Israeli militaries during the 12-day war (“Operation Rising Lion/Operation Midnight Hammer”) in June 2025. These sites have not been inspected by the IAEA since then.

The IAEA expressed its concern over the lack of information about the sites, and said this matter “needs to be rectified with the utmost urgency,” AP reported.

The confidential report also highlighted the U.N. nuclear watchdog’s “increasing concern” about Iran’s Isfahan Fuel Enrichment Plant, which it has never inspected. Tehran first informed the IAEA about the facility before the 12-day war began, according to AP.

The IAEA further said in its report that it “does not know” the site’s “exact location or whether it contains nuclear material.”

IAEA staff visited Iran only once since the war in June 2025, on Sept. 12-15, to inspect the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, which currently uses uranium from Russia enriched to the low-level of 4.5%.

The nuclear watchdog says that Iran has a stockpile of some 972 pounds of uranium enriched up to 60%, which is considered a short, technical step away from nuclear bomb-grade levels of 90%, the report said.

EU demands Israel grant ‘immediate, unimpeded’ aid to Gaza amid winter flooding

The European Union on Saturday demanded that Israel grant urgent access for aid groups to the Gaza Strip to help the victims of flooding after heavy rains soaked tens of thousands of tents housing displaced Palestinians in recent weeks.

“The severe flooding and winter conditions that have struck Gaza are further aggravating the living conditions of an already exhausted population, exacerbating unsafe conditions and human suffering,” the EU said in a statement, a day after over 50 countries and organizations issued a letter demanding Israel let more winter supplies into Gaza.

“We urge Israel to allow immediate, unimpeded access and sustained distribution of humanitarian assistance and early recovery support at scale, and to reopen all Gaza border crossings,” it said.

Last week, COGAT, the Israeli body that coordinates aid to Palestinians, said that it had stepped up efforts to improve sanitary conditions in Gaza before the heavy rain, in coordination with international organizations. It said Friday that more than 93,000 tents and 8,600 trucks carrying “winter supplies and other essential equipment” had entered Gaza.

Israel has said that allegations that COGAT is not allowing in enough supplies “divert attention from Hamas’s responsibility.”

The EU’s statement is completely unbalanced and rewards Hamas’s refusal to disarm, as mandated by the Peace Plan. The statement ignores the unprecedented humanitarian effort led by the Board of Peace and facilitated by Israel. So far, more than 93,000 tents and over 8,600 trucks carrying winter supplies and essential equipment have entered Gaza. It also ignores Hamas’s continuous abuse of hospitals for terror operations and its diversion of humanitarian aid to military infrastructure. The EU should demand that Hamas disarm immediately, so that Gaza is demilitarized and reconstruction can begin.

— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) November 14, 2026

It really should be obvious at this point that the most humanitarian thing that could be done for the peaceful residents of Gaza is to let the IDF go in there and get rid of Hamas. As long as Hamas is there concrete is not going to be allowed to go into Gaza. If Hamas has concrete they'll use it to build tunnels and they'll use it to fortify themselves again to prepare for the next October 7, which Israel obviously cannot allow. You have a choice: you can either have concrete in Gaza or Hamas. If you don't have concrete and you don't have building materials, then everybody's stuck in tents indefinitely. And if you aren't going to let the IDF go into Gaza and get rid of Hamas, then you should at least be nice enough to the residents of Gaza to allow them to leave (so they can actually live in a house instead of a damn tent). But that, of course, assumes that people care more about the well-being of Gazan civilians rather than their utility as a weapon to undermine the state of Israel.

— Will Chamberlain (@willchamberlain) November 14, 2026

IDF: Documents found in Gaza expose terrorists’ ‘systematic exploitation’ of hospitals

The Israel Defense Forces published on Friday two documents it had seized in Gaza that provide more details on the extent to which Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist organizations exploited hospitals throughout the Strip to carry out terrorist activities.

The papers were uploaded online in their original Arabic-language format (here and here) and were translated into English by the IDF in separate documents (here and here).

The first document, written in 2019 by the deputy commander of Hamas’s Khan Yunis Brigade, outlines a protocol for handling suspects taken by Hamas for interrogation and apprehension, the military said.

Among the locations used for interrogations are Nasser Hospital (in Khan Yunis), the Red Crescent Hospital (apparently Al-Amal Hospital, run by the Palestine Red Crescent Society, located in Khan Yunis) and the European Hospital (in Al-Fukhari, near Khan Yunis), according to the document.

The document also discussed the guidelines provided for patrols during wartime, saying “security teams in each battalion were assigned to operate within their respective residential areas (company sectors), with each member responsible for his designated area,” according to the IDF translation.

If further names three persons responsible for the interrogations.

The second paper, written in 2020, is centered on a request by Palestinian Islamic Jihad to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry to allocate space for the organization’s terrorist activities. The document largely criticizes PIJ for not adequately coordinating its activities with the relevant authorities in the Shifa (Gaza City), Al-Rantisi (Gaza City) and Kamal Adwan (Beit Lahia) hospitals.

The document, which was found in a vehicle loaded with equipment near Shifa Hospital, does not specify who authored it. The translation shows it was addressed to the “Department of National and Islamic Organizations.”

The activities mentioned in the document include the positioning of mortar shells near the hospitals, documenting rocket launches, taking over offices and establishing an operations room for use by the terrorist group. The document also details the security risks associated with such exploitation, the IDF said.

One activity mentioned in the paper involved several commanders and personnel of PIJ’s Saraya al-Quds armed wing, some of whom “forcibly took control of the [Al-Rantisi Hospital] upper floor and established an operations room there.”

In addition, the document expressed concern that such activities could provide the “Zionist enemy with a pretext to target and bomb Ministry of Health institutions and departments.”

😂😂 LMFAO 😂😂 This is what happens when complete journalistic ignorance meets raging anti-Israel bias. As the "journalist" is pushing abhorrent lies against @Israel, she's encouraging others to "forcefully pushback" lest they're "complicit in these crimes & guilty of dereliction". 🤣🤣🤣 Let's clear a few things up about the video & this "journalist's" commentary about it, shall we? First of all, she claims "they showed fragments" of the munition that was purportedly responsible for the Nasser Hospital attack, but the video she plays reveals they didn't show any "fragments" at all. 😂😂 Take a look for yourself (pic 1, top). That's a complete and UNEXPLODED munition, not bomb "fragments." So if "they" claimed they were showing you "fragments" of the bomb responsible for the strike, they lied to you and you are so ignorant & gullible that you believed it. Based on a photo of the damage from the actual strike, it's evident that a munition configured with a delayed fuse penetrated the roof of the building & DID detonate on the second floor (pic 1, bottom). Now if the munition did explode, then all that's left WOULD be scattered fragments. But "they" showed you a full bomb and NOT just fragments ... so yes "they" lied to you. For anyone familiar with munitions, the bomb (not fragments) "they" showed us is a 250 lb variety, as the "journalist" suggests. And the damage observed from the exterior of the building is also consistent with a 250 lb bomb. Ok. @IDF is known to use 2 different varieties of 250 lb munition: a GBU-39 small diameter bomb (SDB) sourced from 🇺🇸, and the "SPICE 250" developed by 🇮🇱. Because the SPICE 250 is primarily designed for the role of suppression of air defense (SEAD), I suspect the 🇺🇸 made GBU-39 small diameter bomb was used for this strike. With that assumption in mind, how do we know the in-tact munition on the stretcher (again, pic 1, top) - which is the main component of the GBU-39 - isn't what was responsible for the strike? Well it's clear that the munition that WAS responsible exploded (again, pic 1, bottom), so the ACTUAL bomb wouldn't be in tact. In case you're not sure about that, check pic 2 for an action shot of an SDB with a delayed fuse penetrating a bunker then detonating below. BOOM. Only fragments, no in-tact bomb. Got it. Ok - in case you're not familiar with the anatomy of an SDB: it's got honing devices in the nosecone (it's GPS or laser guided), tail fins at the back, a set of stabilizing wings attached to the top (stowed on the aircraft, deployed in flight), and the warhead is in the tube near the middle with the fusing mechanism behind the warhead (pic 3 for an exterior visual image of an SDB). If you compare the fully operational SDB (again, pic 3) with the full munition (not "fragments") "they" showed us (again, pic 1, top), you see it IS an SDB but the in-flight components (like the stabilizing wings) have been removed. So what we're ACTUALLY looking at isn't "fragments" of the bomb responsible for the attack on the hospital at all. The yellow band near the front of the munition on the stretcher (again, pic 1, top) indicates it WAS a live (high explosive) munition at some point (and not an inert training munition, which has a blue band in the same place instead). If we put all these details together, what we come up with is "they" are showing us an SDB that at some previous time was dropped & didn't explode. I would imagine an insurgent explosives tech extracted the warhead, removed the flight components, and now we're left with a giant tubular paperweight. And judging by its condition, it's probably been around for quite a while - either exposed to the sun or it was buried underground for some time. In any event, "they" didn't show us "bomb fragments." "They" showed us an in-tact unexploded ordinance that had nothing to do with the Nasser Hospital strike, but the "journalist" covering the story is too ignorant AND too ideologically inclined to look for reasons to blame 🇮🇱 for something - anything - to know the difference. One last point. Let's talk a bit more about the GBU-39 SDB. As the @usairforce webpage on the SDB indicates, its small size "inherently reduces the probability of collateral damage" (pic 4). Hold on. Selecting a munition that reduces the probability of collateral damage, as well as delaying the fuse so the munition detonates only on the 2nd floor where the actual targets were presumably located, are both examples of what we call in #LOAC parlance "feasible precautions in the attack." Depending on the expected military advantage of neutralizing the targets & the anticipated incidental damage, personnel responsible for this attack probably COULD have selected a munition with a larger warhead to increase the likelihood of a successful strike. But they apparently utilized a munition with the smallest yield among conventional bombs AND delayed the fuse to limit the blast to the intended target area alone (check pic 1, bottom again ... pretty impressive). These are all indications that 🇮🇱 COMPLIED with relevant LOAC obligations, and indeed EXCEEDED what was required. And last I checked, isn't 🇮🇱 supposedly committing gEnOcIde? Well if they're taking measures to limit the risk of harm to civilians, doesn't that NEGATE the conclusion that the intent of the military campaign in #Gaza is to destroy the Palestinian population, in whole or in part, as such?? Yet we've got a "journalist" here claiming that "any media that doesn't forcefully pushback on these abhorrent lies ISRAEL is spreading, is complicit in these crimes and guilty of a dereliction of duty." In reality, the "journalist" is amplifying lies PALESTINIANS are spreading (by claiming an in-tact munition displayed on a stretcher was responsible for the Nasser Hospital strike) AND is "complicit" in widespread anti-Israel propaganda by falsely accusing 🇮🇱 of committing crimes even though the attack doesn't amount to a "crime" at all. Oh and we haven't even mentioned the fact that it was HAMAS that compromised the civilian object status of the hospital - and endangered civilians inside - by operating from within & thereby converting it into a military objective. How's that for "dereliction of duty"? This is what happens when complete & utter ignorance meets with rabid anti-Israel sentiment. The result is not "journalism" at all. It's terrorist propaganda, covered with a thin veneer of "objective" "news" reporting to make it seem legitimate while attempting to conceal the anti-Israel bias lurking just below the surface. #TheMoreYouKnow #legaldisinformation #journalisticmalpractice

— Dr. Brian L. Cox (@BrianCox_RLTW) November 14, 2026

Abdu claimed he "personally knew" Ahmed Al-Jabari and that he was "never engaged in any... military activities." But PIJ itself said otherwise, they issued a martyr notice identifying this same man as a Platoon Commander. 2/ https://t.co/fXgNFY8m0v

— Aizenberg (@Aizenberg55) November 14, 2026

Israel Vows to Continue Targeting Hamas Leaders in Gaza Following Abu Younis elimination. - Defense Minister Katz

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) November 15, 2026

Ibrahim Saleh Mustafa al-Siqilli, a senior member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, died on November 13. According to the PFLP, al-Siqilli joined the organization in 1980, served in its military apparatus and governing body from 2006 to 2015, and later became a member of its General Central Committee. The group said he died after suffering a sudden stroke. His funeral was held in Khan Younis, Gaza.

— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) November 14, 2026

I was never a fan of this type of stunt. Those bullets come down, ya know? Also, the guy on the left holding the rifle with one hand 🤦 https://t.co/xnq2Fbn8fQ

— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) November 14, 2026

https://t.co/m6WtJpv3T9

— Noam Dworman (@noam_dworman) November 14, 2026

Sir Michael Moritz: I am a card-carrying ‘October 8 Jew’

Antisemitism, he ventured, “has been in the air supply for 2,200 years, and it's always going to remain there. It's easy to ignite it.”

It had “always been in America, but the size of the country means that the impact I don’t think is as great as it is in Britain because if you live in London, Manchester isn't very far away. If you live in San Francisco and there's an attack on a synagogue in Michigan, it's like a different universe.”

He has received hate-mail but experienced “nothing phyiscal – or anything like that. I have a friend, a Jewish friend who runs a night nightclub. He had all his windows smashed and [a] Star of David painted over them.”

He said he knew “several fairly prominent Jews who've decided to leave London and go live elsewhere because of the atmosphere here”.

But the effect of antisemitism was that “it made me want to survive”, he revealed. “It's given me the grit and determination to shrug it off and persevere. So, I think it's it's really stiffened my backbone.”

Earlier this year, he acquired a third passport – by dint of his parentage – from Germany. “I came across a couple of very plaintive letters from the grandfather who didn't survive, pleading to get into the United States.

“And of course his pleas went unanswered. He was too far down the list of people who would be considered as immigrants.

“And the lesson I took away from that was you can never have enough passports because when you're in desperate need of a passport, it's going to be too late.”

Barrister suspended for saying ‘world needs to eradicate Zios’

A barrister has been suspended after saying that the “world needs to eradicate Zios”.

Forz Khan made “anti-Semitic” and “seriously offensive” comments on his LinkedIn account, saying that there needed to be a “global cleansing” of the “cult” of Zionism.

The barrister posted that the “entity calling itself Israel is an apartheid war criminal entity”, and that there was “only one final solution to the problem of Israel”.

Mr Khan was suspended for four months after a Bar Standards Board misconduct hearing.

He was admitted to the bar in 1988 and has worked in London as a self-employed barrister, specialising in crime, immigration and family law.

Mr Khan made several posts on his LinkedIn account that were deemed to be misconduct because they were “anti-Semitic” and “seriously offensive”.

In March last year, he said: “There is only one solution to the evil that is Zionism. Unless there is a complete global cleansing, this pernicious cult will continue to spread its hate, genocide and evil.”

Israel a ‘thoroughly vile entity’
Another post read: “The best recruitment tool for Hamas in Israel is Israel, it’s [sic] policies of evil and the IDF. There is only 1 final solution to that problem that is Israel.”

Mr Khan also said: “Israel is a colonial land-thieving apartheid war criminal entity governed by war criminals committing genocide, war crimes and breaking international law. The world needs to eradicate Zios globally.”

A month later, he posted again on his LinkedIn account with similar offensive comments. He wrote: “This entity calling itself Israel is an apartheid war criminal entity, governed by war criminals, committing genocide, war crimes and breaking international law.

“Until there is the wholesale dismantling of this thoroughly vile entity, evil will pervade the region. There is only 1 final solution to the problem of Israel.”

He also said: “Scum like this should be in a gas chamber.”

The Bar Standards Board panel deemed his comments, in this context, to be anti-Semitic.

It said: “Mr Forz Khan, a barrister, behaved in a manner which was likely to diminish the trust and confidence which the public places in him or in the profession.”

New BBC Arabic chief called Israeli cities ‘occupied’ and rocket victims ‘settlers’

The BBC’s newly appointed head of Arabic news described Israeli cities as “occupied” and Israelis injured in rocket attacks as “settlers” in a series of social media posts.

According to The Telegraph, Mayssaloun Nassar, who took charge of BBC News Arabic last month, made the remarks while working for France 24, raising fresh concerns about impartiality at a service already facing repeated accusations of anti-Israel bias.

During fighting between Israel and Hamas in November 2012, Nassar referred to Beersheba, a city in southern Israel, as the “occupied city of Beersheba”. The following day, she reported that 100 rockets had landed in Israel and 28 “settlers” had been injured. However, the attacks took place in southern Israeli towns within the country’s pre-1967 borders, not in West Bank settlements.

On 21 November 2012, Nassar described a projectile fired from Lebanon as targeting “Israeli settlements”. A minute later, she reported that another had landed in Metula, “inside the occupied territories”.

Both Beersheba and Metula are internationally recognised as part of Israel.

Nassar previously served as deputy editor-in-chief of France 24, where she also came under scrutiny over a September 2016 programme featuring the wife of Ahed Abu Ghoulmeh, a Palestinian prisoner serving a life sentence in Israel.

Introducing the report, Nassar said Abu Ghoulmeh had been jailed by Israeli authorities but did not explain that he had been convicted for his role in the 2001 assassination of Israeli tourism minister Rehavam Ze’evi.

The report, presented by another journalist, described Abu Ghoulmeh as having “struggled and made sacrifices”, without mentioning the assassination. Mayssaloun Nassar

Nassar’s appointment follows a major overhaul of BBC Arabic after a damning internal dossier by former BBC editorial standards adviser Michael Prescott raised serious concerns about its coverage of Israel and Gaza.

The dossier highlighted how the BBC’s English-language website had published 19 stories about hostages taken by Hamas that were absent from BBC Arabic. The service also faced criticism for using Gaza contributors who had previously posted antisemitic remarks.

BBC executives subsequently acknowledged shortcomings, introducing tighter editorial oversight, additional contributor checks and an Arabic-speaking editorial standards chief.

UK licence fee payers fund BBC Arabic to the tune of approximately £20million annually.

BBC Arabic needed a new head to set things straight. But its new editor, Mayssaloun Nassar: ❌ Described Beersheba as the “occupied city of Beersheba”. ❌ Described Israeli civilians injured by rocket attacks as “settlers”. ❌ Described Metula, within Israel’s internationally recognised borders, as being “inside the occupied territories”. ❌ Introduced a report about a Palestinian terrorist serving a life sentence without mentioning that he had helped assassinate Israel’s tourism minister. This appointment came after BBC Arabic had: 🤦🏻‍♂️ Given Samer Elzaenen, who suggested burning Jews as Hitler did, 244 appearances. 🤦🏻‍♂️ Given Ahmed Alagha, who described Jews as devils and Israelis as less than human, 522 appearances. 🤦🏻‍♂️ Given Ahmed Qannan, who praised a terrorist who murdered four civilians and an Israeli policeman, 217 appearances. 🤦🏻‍♂️ Published 523 articles over five months without a single one criticising Hamas, while reproducing every article critical of Israel published by the BBC’s English-language service. 🤦🏻‍♂️ Described Hamas and Hezbollah as the resistance, and terrorist attacks that killed civilians as resistance operations. 🤦🏻‍♂️ Described the deaths of members of terrorist organisations as martyrdom. 🤦🏻‍♂️ Repeatedly presented a former PLO general who celebrated the October 7 massacre as an independent military expert, without disclosing his PLO background. 🤦🏻‍♂️ Falsely claimed that Israel had targeted women and children. And also: 😖 Issued 80 corrections in the first five months of the Gaza war alone. 🤔 Been forced to issue 34 corrections for wrongly describing Israeli towns as settlements or their residents as settlers. 😵‍💫 Failed to publish 19 stories about Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas that appeared on the BBC’s English-language website. 😤 Reported on the rescue of a Yazidi woman who had spent a decade in sexual slavery by foregrounding Hamas’s denial of the Israeli account of her rescue. 🧐 Been exposed in a devastating internal BBC dossier documenting serious failures of impartiality in its coverage of Israel and Gaza. 🤯 Required additional editorial oversight, tighter checks on contributors and the appointment of a dedicated Arabic-speaking editorial standards chief. The BBC’s verdict on Nassar? 🤡 She was the “outstanding candidate for the role”.

— Jonathan Sacerdoti (@jonsac) November 14, 2026

Democratic senator warns electing 'anti-Israel' leader would be 'troubling'

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., told Fox News on Saturday that he no longer sees "any more common ground" with the far-left wing of his party over its stance on Israel.

During an appearance on "Saturday in America," Fetterman criticized efforts to replace Senate Democratic Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., with Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and called his new 2028 Democratic primary challenger "pro-Hamas."

"I have a strong, strong difference of opinion on Israel and the Jewish community overall now. I don't think there's going to be any more common ground," Fetterman told Fox News host Kayleigh McEnany.

"Now I think if someone can't identify [that] Iran is an enemy, and that it's committed to destroying Israel and our nation as well, too — once again, this is the kind of individual that the Democratic Party elected," he added.

Following midterm elections that saw Democrats regain control of both the House and Senate, Schumer is facing a challenge to his leadership. Van Hollen announced his bid to replace Schumer on Thursday, with support from progressive lawmakers, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed, D-Mich.

Fetterman said a Van Hollen victory would be troubling.

"It would be troubling if my caucus elects someone like Van Hollen, that has really made his name being very... hostile to Israel," Fetterman said when asked if a Van Hollen win would cross a "red line."

Fetterman said Van Hollen has made his name on strong "anti-Israel" views and also received attention after his high-profile trip to El Salvador to meet with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran migrant deported by the Trump administration.

"Other than that, I can’t really think of what Van Hollen's known for, but he became like a progressive darling, but I don't see that he has a path to be leader, but overall it's possible because just last weekend I had a lot of people protesting, demanding that we vote against Schumer," Fetterman said.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA): “Abdul El-Sayed can’t even identify Iran as an enemy of the United States.” https://t.co/f27HyK3s49

— DSA Watch (@DSA_Watch) November 14, 2026

Here's another example to the totality of BS -

— נדב איל Nadav Eyal (@Nadav_Eyal) November 14, 2026

The narcissism of the anti-Semitic left is never not amazing. Piker has repeatedly made deeply insensitive and anti-Semitic comments toward Jews … but if Jews are upset with him it’s Islamophobia and has nothing to do with him being a raging a-hole. It also makes it even more aggravating that @ezraklein keeps giving this guy a platform. What does Piker add to the discourse that it’s so important to have him on his show?

— Michael A. Cohen (NOT TRUMP’S FORMER FIXER) (@speechboy71) November 13, 2026

I'm very curious as to why Tom Clonan is so outraged by the idea of the Irish Defence Forces being on a mission to disarm Hezbollah, the same terrorist group that murdered Private Seán Rooney.

— ZZ Flop ✡️🇮🇪 (@ZzVvbbbbn) November 14, 2026

Ireland: “We will never buy Israeli technology!” Also Ireland: Quietly buys the world’s best anti-drone jammers from a Tel Aviv company for EU Presidency security because nothing else works. Oops, we accidentally bought Israeli tech 😉 Virtue-signaling is easy until the drones show up.

— Ella Ke (@EllaTravelsLove) November 14, 2026

Here’s 3 accounts with more than 5m followers (more than 10x the number of Jews in the entire country) retweeting the Waitrose QAnon conspiratorial ‘investigation’ into Jews and allies tweeting about antisemitism. Just when you think things couldn’t get more mad, they do. https://t.co/YxadLLYFGB

— Nicole Lampert (@nicolelampert) November 14, 2026

Antizionist Jacob Berger just said that his antizionism means “removing all the Jewish Israelis and KICK them off the land”. He supports “resistance” and wants “no peace with Israelis”. Berger is currently in a popular @netflix show and has 1.3 million followers. Horrific. https://t.co/ySdTpoedWv

— Heidi Bachram (@HeidiBachram) November 14, 2026

This is now my favorite episode…. 🤣🤣🤣

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) November 14, 2026

Somerville city council votes to divest from Israel as lone dissenter warns Jews feel targeted

The City Council in this city north of Boston voted 10-1 Thursday night to ban the municipality from doing business with companies complicit in humanitarian violations, specifically naming those operating in “Israel and Palestine.”

Councilor Kristen Strezo cast the only opposing vote on the 11-member board.

Opponents of the ordinance fear that, in execution, it would be akin to a boycott of Israel, and as such would create a negative environment for the city’s Jewish and Israeli residents. The ban only involves companies that work with the municipality and does not impact companies that operate privately in Somerville. It also excludes sole proprietors (individuals operating as companies).

Somerville Mayor Jake Wilson’s office said that, given that the ordinance passed with a veto-proof majority, the measure is now considered final.

The ordinance was originally introduced in June by Councilors Ben Ewen-Campen and Ben Wheeler, after the City Council voted in November 2025 to implement ballot Question 3 on Israel divestment, which had been approved by 55.7% of voters earlier that month. Question 3 spoke of banning businesses that sustain “Israel’s apartheid, genocide, and illegal occupation of Palestine.”

During his campaign in 2025, Wilson did not endorse Question 3.

Nine councilors on Thursday night offered comments in advance of the vote.

Update: La Raza Cultural Center has removed the Hamas and Hezbollah flags but keeps up Sinwar’s photo. La Raza is funded by the Mellon Foundation and the Prebys Foundation. Let their Board know how you feel about their philanthropic dollars supporting terrorists👇👇👇 📧: grant@conradprebysfoundation.org 📧: media@mellon.org

— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) November 14, 2026

Jews 'don't feel safe' three years after October 7, Germany’s new antisemitism czar tells 'Post'

When Dr. Katharina von Schnurbein was offered the position of Germany’s commissioner for Jewish life and the fight against antisemitism, she did not hesitate.

For someone who had spent more than a decade working to combat antisemitism across the European Union, the opportunity to move from the European level to a national position offered something she believes is increasingly necessary: the ability to turn policy into concrete action.

“I see it really as an opportunity to be able to do things in a lot more concrete way than is possible at the European level,” von Schnurbein told The Jerusalem Post in an interview days after taking up her new position this month.

Between 2015 and 2026, von Schnurbein served as the European Commission’s coordinator on combating antisemitism and fostering Jewish life. She was a central figure in developing the EU’s approach to antisemitism, building relationships with Jewish communities across the continent, and promoting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism.

Her new position, formally titled “federal government commissioner on Jewish life in Germany and the fight against antisemitism,” is based in the Interior Ministry. Although appointed by the government, the position is independent.

The move comes at a particularly difficult time for Germany’s Jewish community. Since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, massacre in southern Israel, antisemitic incidents have surged across Europe, while Jewish communities have increasingly reported feeling unsafe in public spaces, universities, and even their own neighborhoods.

“There will be forever a before and after October 7,” she said. “The hatred that erupted, the antisemitism that erupted, particularly also online, on October 7, 8, and 9, gave a push to what had probably been dormant.”

She also pointed to the celebrations that took place in European streets following the Hamas attack as an indication of how deeply rooted some of these attitudes are.

One of the most significant developments, she argued, has been the growing prominence of Israel-related antisemitism.

“It has pushed to the fore Israel-related antisemitism, which I think has become really one of the most prevalent forms,” she said.

Von Schnurbein is careful to distinguish between criticism of Israeli government policies and antisemitism. However, she argues that hostility toward Israel can become a vehicle for antisemitic attitudes, and that the impact on Jewish communities cannot be ignored.

“All forms of antisemitism are equally pernicious and toxic for democracy,” she said. “It erodes democracy, and therefore, in a way, we would have to fight it even if it was only about the Jews.”

She added that combating antisemitism should not be viewed as a favor to the Jewish community.

“First, it is our duty, but it is also something that, as part of the defense of democracy, is absolutely necessary.”

Dutch Jewish leader tells ‘Post’: ‘If you’re visibly Jewish in Holland, you have a real problem’

Threats, canceled Jewish events in the Netherlands
Van Praagh told the Post that since October 7, Jewish community members in the Netherlands regularly face overt threats, including being told to leave the country or facing taunts such as, “they forgot to kill you in the war.”

Van Praagh highlighted a growing reluctance among public venues in major cities like Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and The Hague to host Jewish events due to fear of harassment. In her hometown of Amersfoort, a planned museum exhibition marking the 300th anniversary of the local synagogue was canceled by the museum manager due to fears over volunteer safety, only to be reinstated after the local mayor intervened.

“In day-to-day life, there are not many problems, but it’s the feeling of imminent threat,” van Praagh explained, noting that the Dutch Chief Rabbi now requires full-time security guards to travel in public.

Van Praagh also pointed to a trend in public education, where Holocaust survivors are increasingly canceled or turned away from speaking at public schools due to pushback from parents and students. “They used to go to schools to talk to children about what happened in the Holocaust, and they’re canceled,” van Praagh noted, highlighting how second-generation and elderly survivors are facing censorship in educational settings. She specifically observed that students in public schools sometimes turn their backs to the survivor and walk out of the class, while some parents complain that survivors are bringing “propaganda.”

Dutch Jewish leader’s message to European leaders


Van Praagh told the Post that she and the Chief Rabbi maintain close contact with center-right and Christian parties, such as the SGP and Christian Union, to help shape parliamentary questions and discussions. Conversely, she noted with regret that left-wing political groups have largely abandoned their traditional support for Israel and the Jewish community.

Van Praagh told the Post ahead of the symposium that European leadership must take decisive action rather than turn a blind eye.

“What I’m trying to convey is that the world shouldn’t look away, because it’s very easy to take a step back and don’t get involved,” she said. “If we don’t have politicians, teachers, and people of influence telling the true story about what happened in the past centuries... there won’t be Jewish life in Europe in the next 20, 30 years.”

Asked how Dutch Jewry should respond to the surge in antisemitism in the Netherlands, van Praagh said, “Fight it. Fight it, because if we don’t, my family will have lost their lives for nothing. That can’t be happening. Keep on fighting. We don’t lose a battle. Never. We have never done so in the past, and we will not in the future.”

In the Netherlands, even a souvenir in a Jew's suitcase can become a political issue

Europe has discovered a new threat to the international rules-based order: the souvenir in your suitcase.

Since September 22, travelers arriving at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol may have their luggage searched, possessions confiscated, and names referred to the Public Prosecution Service if their bags contain an item made in an Israeli settlement.

It does not matter whether the item is a gift, a personal keepsake, or a purchase made years before the ban. Dutch customs officers are instructed to consult European postal codes to determine whether an olive-wood trinket or a jar of face cream carries a prohibited address.

A bottle of wine, an heirloom, a household item: somewhere along its production chain lies the wrong postal code. Europe’s moral conscience can now, it seems, be settled at the baggage carousel.

This policy is presented as an objective defense of international law. Before applauding, we should ask two questions: Why this exceptional zeal? And why does the historical memory that animates it run so reliably in only one direction?

The geography of this moral fervor warrants scrutiny. During the Nazi occupation, three-quarters of the Netherlands’ Jewish population was systematically murdered.

That catastrophe was enabled not only by foreign occupiers but also by the quiet, methodical cooperation of Dutch civil servants, municipal clerks, and police officers who processed forms and enforced decrees without asking what justice required.

This history does not disqualify Dutch citizens today from debating foreign policy. It does, however, counsel profound humility – not bureaucratic zeal – when their country criminalizes Jewish presence through economic policy.

Japan offers a revealing contrast. Although allied with Nazi Germany, it did not share Europe’s centuries of anti-Jewish persecution. Although Japan has sanctioned four settlers accused of violence, sanctioning individuals accused of violence is a far cry from confiscating an ordinary traveler’s keepsake because of its place of manufacture. The contrast does not prove motive.

Does it invite a question: why does this particular enthusiasm for policing Jewish addresses flourish among governments on a continent with such a terrible history of doing precisely that?

Consider how historical reality is treated under this doctrine.

It seems every “Gaza” account posting relentless A.I. slop has a “fundraiser” in their bio. Imagine how much gullible idiots have handed over in 3 years. And how much GoFundMe (3%), Chuffed (2-3%), LaunchGood (3%), JustGiving (3%), GoGetFunding (6.9%) have creamed off the top. https://t.co/B1vaIsWWlm

— Joo (@JoosyJew) November 14, 2026

Jewish heirs seek to halt $180 million Van Gogh auction over alleged Nazi-era forced sale

The descendants of the Jewish former owners of a Vincent van Gogh painting were asking Sotheby’s to pull the work from an auction scheduled for Wednesday night, arguing that their family sold it under duress from Nazi persecution in 1936, The New York Times reported Friday.

“Châtaigniers en Fleurs,” or “Blossoming Chestnut Trees,” in English, was painted in 1890 and was expected to fetch around $180 million.

The $180 million estimate was the highest for any work being offered during the season’s major art auctions and, if achieved, would surpass the auction record for a Van Gogh. Sotheby’s had also guaranteed the work, assuring the seller of a minimum price.

The painting had entered the Fischer family collection in 1909, when prominent German publisher Samuel Fischer bought it from a Paris gallery. Fischer founded S. Fischer Verlag, whose authors included Thomas Mann, Hermann Hesse and Alfred Döblin. After his death in 1934, his son-in-law, Gottfried Bermann Fischer, took over the publishing house.

As the Nazis tightened their grip on Germany, many writers published by the company were banned. Bermann Fischer subsequently left Berlin for Vienna and attempted to continue publishing their work there.

The family deposited the Van Gogh with art dealer Walter Feilchenfeldt, who ultimately sold the painting to a Paris collector in 1936; it then passed through several owners before being acquired in 1975 by the Argentine collectors whose collection is now being auctioned, the Times reported.

The heirs argue that the family’s circumstances under Nazi persecution were directly connected to the eventual 1936 sale of the Van Gogh. The Nazis restricted what Jews were permitted to take with them when leaving Germany, and the Fischer family was forced to pay the “Reich flight tax,” according to research by the heirs’ attorney, Gunnar Schnabel.

Florida man forfeits ancient Torah scrolls, cuniform tablets in US antiquities smuggling probe

Two Torah scrolls and Mesopotamian tablets dating back up to 4,000 years are among antiquities forfeited by a Florida man as part of a federal smuggling investigation, the US Department of Justice announced this past week.

The Torah scrolls were seized by authorities back in March, alongside Chinese scroll artwork and ancient Egyptian artifacts, after federal agents lawfully searched the home of Matthew Weinberg in Miramar Beach.

According to court documents, investigations into Weinberg began in July 2025 after US Customs and Border Protection agents notified the Department of Homeland Security of a suspicious shipment it had detained.

The shipment, traveling inbound to Pensacola International Airport from the United Arab Emirates and destined for Weinberg, listed on its manifest two terracotta objects valued at less than $200.

After the shipment was appraised following its detention, it was revealed to contain two cuneiform tablets from Iraq, valued at over $15,000 and dating to between 3,000 and 2,000 BCE.

After the discovery, authorities investigated several other shipments destined for Weinberg and determined that, in addition to the shipment from the UAE, he had also illegally obtained shipments of antiquities from Iran, Egypt, and Cyprus.

All of the shipments were found to have the antiquities listed as significantly undervalued items on their manifests, just as were the tablets from Iraq. These shipments included bronze figures, ceramic architectural models, and terracotta idols.

Mumbai resident said arrested for allegedly gathering intel on Chabad House

A 20-year-old Mumbai resident has been arrested for allegedly conducting reconnaissance of several “sensitive” sites in the city, including its Chabad House, according to Saturday reports in Indian media.

The man, identified as Yash Singh, was arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad after they identified social media links between him and “anti-national handlers,” according to an official quoted by the Times of India.

During interrogation, Singh reportedly told investigators that he was tasked with gathering intelligence on several sites in Mumbai, specifically in the southern neighborhood of Colaba.

According to the report, the official said the handlers were “linked to mafia gangs and subversive elements.”

The report did not specify if the suspected handlers were domestic in origin or if they acted on behalf of foreign countries or organizations.

One specific task was to find and take pictures of the Chabad House, as well as other Jewish-owned sites and businesses, according to the official. Singh also allegedly recorded vehicle details and gathered precise information about Jewish individuals in the area.

The report added that the suspect admitted to receiving money to carry out the tasks.

Mumbai’s Chabad House was attacked during the November 2008 terror attacks that took place across the city. Seven people were killed in the attack on the site, which was one of over a dozen attacks over four days in the city carried out by an Islamist Pakistani group that killed a total of 166 and injured hundreds more.

Brazil investigates strife between Israeli tourists and pro-Palestinian residents

Arguments between Israeli tourists and pro-Palestinian residents over a historic colonial house and a viral report of sexual harassment in Brazil’s Bahia state have snowballed into a controversy entangling local, state and federal authorities.

Police are investigating the latest incidents, which represent an escalation in tensions between Israeli tourists and local Brazilians who identify with the Palestinian cause, in yet another episode of the Middle Eastern conflict echoing far beyond the region.

Bahia Gov. Jeronimo Rodrigues, an ally of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, made a trip earlier this week to the beach city of Itacare, where one of the incidents occurred, and met with local authorities and security forces.

“Tourists, from wherever they are from, will always be treated well,” Rodrigues said in a video posted on Instagram Tuesday. “But we also want respect for Itacare and the people of Bahia,” he said, adding that he was in touch with the foreign affairs, tourism, and justice ministries.

Simon Wiesenthal Center honors Skydance co-CEO Ynon Kreiz

The Simon Wiesenthal Center presented its 2026 Humanitarian Award to Skydance co-CEO Ynon Kreiz at its annual tribute dinner in Beverly Hills on Wednesday, November 11, the organization announced.

Kreiz was recognized for his philanthropic work, including initiatives he led during his eight years as chairman and CEO of Mattel, where he expanded the company's global charitable programs and partnerships with nonprofit organizations. The center also cited his support for education and research at Tel Aviv University.

"At a time when confronting antisemitism demands courage and conviction, Ynon Kreiz leads by example," Simon Wiesenthal Center CEO Jim Berk said.

Kreiz called the award a "deep honor," saying society had a responsibility to "fight hatred and intolerance in every form."

"Even when it seems impossible, we must have the courage to imagine a better future, because without imagining a better future, we cannot hope to create it," he said.

Ancient tunnels that helped Jewish rebels evade the Romans now open for tourists

The story of Horbat Burgin begins during the Second Temple period, when the site was home to a large village that some researchers have suggested may be Caphar Bish, a settlement mentioned by the first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus.

In the Early Roman period, extensive networks of rooms and tunnels were hewn into the bedrock as the inhabitants prepared for conflict with the Romans.

“The stone is very soft here in the Shphela [lowlands] region, so every house had underground rooms and shelters,” said Amir Ganor, one of the IAA researchers who led the excavations. “During the time of Bar Kochba’s rebellion, they connected all of these with tunnels so they could easily hide and flee from the Roman army.”

Now, the archaeological complex — featuring underground hiding tunnels used by Jewish rebels during the Roman period and a Byzantine-era church decorated with colorful mosaics — has been opened to the public for the first time. Some of these tunnels are preserved for visitors to climb through today, with about 200 meters accessible underground, Ganor noted.

Horbat Burgin, located within Adullam–France Park south of Beit Shemesh, is one of the largest archaeological sites in the area of the Judean foothills, with numerous periods of settlement between the second century BCE, during the Second Temple period, and the Ottoman Empire of the 19th century CE, said Ganor.

Ganor, along with Alon Klein and Peter Gendelman, began excavating the site in 1995 in response to looters who were constantly digging through the ruins and selling artifacts they discovered on the black market, Ganor said.

“Once we started to dig here, the looting stopped,” Ganor said. “This is what we need to do at all archaeology sites that suffer from looting.”

The site was excavated, conserved and developed as a public site by KKL-JNF, the Israel Antiquities Authority and the Mateh Yehuda Regional Council, according to an announcement by the IAA.

The story of Horbat Burgin begins during the Second Temple period, when the site was home to a large village that some researchers have suggested may be Caphar Bish, a settlement mentioned by the first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus. Now, the archaeological complex — featuring underground hiding tunnels used by Jewish rebels during the Roman period and a Byzantine-era church decorated with colorful mosaics — has been opened to the public for the first time. Read more on The Times of Israel.

— The Times of Israel (@TimesofIsrael) November 14, 2026

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