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US says Hamas holding up 6-week ceasefire by refusing to release vulnerable hostages 8 March 2024 By: The Times of Israel Biden officials insist deal still possible amid deadlock, reveal truce would let civilians return to north Gaza; add there’s no hard deadline but want agreement before Ramadan Senior Biden administration officials on Thursday accused Hamas of holding up a six-week ceasefire deal with Israel by refusing to release the sick, elderly and female hostages that it’s holding in Gaza. “There could be at least a six-week ceasefire today if Hamas would agree to release a defined category of vulnerable hostages, including women, the elderly, the sick and the wounded,” said one of the officials, who all briefed reporters on condition of anonymity. “The onus right now is on Hamas.” “The fundamental element on [Hamas’s] side is releasing the sick, the elderly and the woman. That is right now the holdup,” a second official added. While there have been reports that Hamas has walked away from the talks in Cairo after they apparently hit a wall, the US officials insisted that a deal is still possible and that they’re still working to reach one. “We see this as the path to get the hostages home,” one of them said. Offering new details on the deal being negotiated, the senior Biden administration officials briefing reporters said the ceasefire would start with a six-week-long first stage and be structured in a manner in which two more stages could be subsequently added. The deal would also see the “repositioning of Israeli forces” during that first stage and also allow for Palestinians to return to northern Gaza. This has been a sticking point for Israel, which has publicly rejected this demand to date, claiming it would allow for a resurgence of Hamas in that half of the Strip. “We’re returning people to the north. That is part of the arrangement that has been worked out,” the official asserted. The plan to allow Palestinians to return to northern Gaza expedites the need to improve the mechanisms for delivering humanitarian aid throughout the Strip, which is why the Biden administration is advancing a maritime corridor and other delivery mechanisms, one of the senior officials said. One of the senior US officials acknowledged the Biden administration is working to secure a temporary ceasefire deal before Ramadan, which starts around March 10. However, they clarified that “there’s no hard and fast deadline on this negotiation.” “We recognize that extremists could try to use Ramadan to spark something that would be deeply unfortunate in that holy month, and we want to make sure that we have a peaceful period so people can worship,” the senior official said. “We’re working that through with the Israelis, with the Palestinian Authority, with the Jordanians and others.” “[Ismail] Haniyeh, leader of Hamas, has called for violence over Ramadan. We recognize that this is something that they might very well try to do. It’s always a volatile period… We fully recognize what [Hamas’s] intentions might be,” the official said, referring to the Hamas chief’s recent call for Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem to march to the Temple Mount on the first day of the Islamic holy month. Turning to the State of the Union speech on Thursday night, the senior US official said US President Joe Biden will address Hamas’s “horrific attacks” on October 7 and “Israel’s right to go after Hamas and those responsible.” Biden will also stress “Israel’s fundamental responsibility to protect innocent civilians in Gaza and also to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” the official said, noting the added burden faced by the IDF, given that Hamas hides and operates among civilians. The president will also “speak to the plight of the hostages,” highlighting his efforts to broker a truce deal in November that allowed for the release of over 100 hostages. At least one of those freed hostages will be in the gallery for Biden’s speech, along with over a dozen relatives of hostages still in Gaza or of those who have been released. “This is something we are working on constantly, not just to save the lives of the hostages and get them out, but also because this is a path to a ceasefire,” the official said. “A ceasefire… will facilitate and enable the humanitarian surge that we’re working on. That is why [it] is first and foremost on our minds, on the President’s mind. He’ll obviously speak to that tonight,” the official added. The sentiment was echoed earlier Thursday in remarks US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew made at a security conference in Tel Aviv. “It’s a mistake” to think hostage negotiations have ended. “There are still conversations going on, there is still back and forth, the differences are being narrowed,” he said. “A pause would increase the likelihood of a diplomatic solution in the north. A pause would increase the likelihood of Saudi normalization going forward,” Lew maintained. In order for normalization to happen, however, there must be an “over the horizon” conversation about a Palestinian state, he clarified. If the hostage issue is not resolved, he said, “I don’t know how to put the other pieces in a place where I can get them resolved,” referring to normalization with Arab countries in the region and a diplomatic solution to fighting against Hezbollah. Turning to the “day after” the war, Lew said that the future administration of Gaza is “at the heart of every plan” for the future. “The workforce is going to have to come from the people from the area, many of whom have worked for the Palestinian Authority,” he said. “It’s going to have to be a vetted group of people.” He acknowledged Israelis’ discomfort in talking about a two-state solution, but indicated that the alternative would be unending violence. Later Thursday, US Central Intelligence Agency Director Bill Burns reportedly arrived in Qatar after quietly spending the past day in Egypt, as the Biden administration made what may be a last-ditch attempt to secure a hostage agreement before Ramadan begins at the beginning of next week. The talks appeared to reach an impasse earlier Thursday as a Hamas delegation left Cairo without any breakthrough reported in the talks being brokered by Egypt, Qatar and the US. Burns was not planning to make a stop in Israel during his regional tour, a US official told CNN, adding that there was also not slated to be another four-way meeting in Doha with the intelligence chiefs from the US, Egypt and Israel along with Qatar’s prime minister. CNN said hopes were fading for a deal to be reached before Ramadan but the Walla news site said US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told visiting hostage families in Washington on Wednesday that the US would continue working to secure a deal even after the holy month begins around Monday. Sullivan told the families that the deal on the table was reasonable and that the US would continue to try and put pressure on Hamas via Egypt and Qatar over the weekend, Walla said. An Israeli official told the Ynet news site, though, that Jerusalem’s assessment is that Hamas has made a decision to stonewall and allow the war to continue into Ramadan. Earlier Thursday, Hamas issued a statement saying its delegation had left Cairo, but would continue with Gaza truce talks until an agreement is reached with Israel, blaming Jerusalem for the lack of progress. An official Egyptian source told the country’s Al-Qahera News state-affiliated TV channel that negotiations over a ceasefire in Gaza reached an impasse over Hamas’s demand for a phased process culminating in an end to the war, but said talks will resume next week. Egyptian officials had earlier said that despite the impasse, they did not rule out a deal being reached before the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which is expected to begin on Sunday and has emerged as an informal deadline. The Egyptian officials said Hamas has agreed on the main terms of such an agreement as a first stage, but wants commitments that it will lead to an eventual, more permanent ceasefire. There was no immediate comment from Israel. Negotiators from Hamas, Qatar and Egypt — but not Israel — have tried this week to secure a six-week ceasefire in time for Ramadan. The deal presented to Hamas for Gaza would free at least some of the hostages the terror group still holds following the October 7 massacre in the first stage. Palestinian prisoners held in Israel would also be released. A source had earlier said Israel was staying away from the Cairo talks because Hamas refused to provide a list of hostages who are still alive. Hamas claims this is impossible without a ceasefire as hostages are scattered across the war zone. Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said Thursday that the death toll in the Gaza Strip has surpassed 30,800 since October 7, when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists launched a murderous rampage across southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages. Hamas’s figures cannot be verified, do not differentiate between combatants and civilians, and include some 13,000 Hamas terrorists Israel says it has killed in battle since October. Israel also says it killed some 1,000 gunmen inside Israel on October 7. Hamas officials also said Israel had on Thursday returned 47 bodies of Palestinians it killed earlier during the military offensive, through its crossing with the enclave in the southern Gaza Strip. <- Previous Read full article Next -> More Insights US says Hamas holding up 6-week ceasefire by refusing to release vulnerable hostages 'We have hostages, I caught one': IDF uncovers recordings of UNRWA employees from October 7 The Free Press in Israel: A Special Limited Series Many Iranians Despise The Regime's Support For Palestine Public protests and criticism of Hamas in the Gaza Strip during recent months Arab world calls stampede at aid truck 'deadly massacre' and U.S. is 'concerned' Latest Video Clips The History of Israel This Muslim Israeli Woman Is the Future of the Middle East Natasha Hausdorff responds to the content of the House of Commons Gaza Debate. Its time to face the hard truth that you're being played as a sacrificial fool by terrorists. Peace cannot be achieved with those who desire war and jihad instead. 'Awful Things Happening In Israel Nothing To Do With British Jews'

The Free Press in Israel: A Special Limited Series 6 March 2024 By: The Free Press You can’t cover a country at war over Zoom. So we went. And now we’re bringing the stories back to you on Honestly. By Candace Mittel Kahn “I don’t know if I should go,” I told my husband. It was a few days before I was supposed to fly from my home in Atlanta to Tel Aviv with Bari and a small team of Free Press producers to report on the war. I had the ticket. I am the executive producer of Honestly and I needed to be there. I just didn’t know if I could get on the plane. There were the practical reasons holding me back: I have two small children and I had never been away from them for anything close to an entire week. There were the safety concerns that kept me up at night: I am the kind of person who does not like to shower when I am alone in my house. I bring pepper spray with me wherever I go. But there were also intangible, existential things eating away at me. The last time I had been to Israel was a decade ago, when I lived in Jerusalem after college. I was young and hungry, and I devoured the country. I loved its motley cultures, the country’s ancient history, the way everyday people found a way to live inside one of the most contested pieces of land in the world. Israelis are often called sabras, after the thorny desert cactus: prickly, thick, harsh on the outside, but soft and sweet on the inside. I remember a man yelling at me on the bus one afternoon after I mistakenly took his seat. Minutes later, as my dates and grapes and tomatoes from the market spilled out of my bags, he helped pick them up. We happened to get off at the same stop, and he carried my heavy groceries for me all the way to my apartment. I also felt safe there, both in a practical sense (I would walk the streets alone late at night without hesitation) and also in a deeply emotional sense. I was safe in Israel as a Jew. And as the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors who once had no place to flee, I realized how precious and profound that feeling was. Now, months after Hamas invaded the country, I knew that Israel was gone. What I would find in its place, I didn’t know. But I went. I went because I wanted to know. The sun was just beginning to rise as we flew over the Mediterranean Sea and past the city-side beaches of Tel Aviv, but you couldn’t tell because it was an overcast and foggy morning. I looked at the in-flight map in front of me and I thought of the two redheaded boys—ages 1 and 4, the same age as my own children back home—who are being held as hostages by Hamas in Gaza. I thought: if only we could fly just a few more minutes south, we could reach them . We walked down the long hallway from the gate to customs and saw those two redheaded boys—on posters lining the walkway—along with hundreds of others, some already confirmed dead. We changed in the airport bathroom and headed directly to Kfar Aza, a kibbutz just four miles from Gaza. Of the 950 residents of that community, 63 were murdered, 18 were kidnapped, and six were severely injured on October 7. I had seen the videos and the pictures. I had even reported on the stories: within 48 hours of October 7, we had interviewed over a dozen people for Honestly . But that is different from standing in the home of a young couple who had been slaughtered. I looked up at the ceiling and saw hundreds of bullet holes. There was nowhere in the tiny, 400-square-foot home to hide. I noticed the spices—amba, cinnamon, salt—left on a small shelf above the kitchen sink and wondered what they had been planning to make for breakfast that morning. From there we went to the Nova music festival site where 364 civilians were murdered on October 7. We spoke to two young women who shouldn’t have survived but did. Michal recalled hiding under a tank for hours after she’d been shot: “They threw grenades at us. I lost my hearing. And it was just: wait for death. We all knew we were going to die. We just didn’t know which way and when.” “They came very fast,” Mazal, the other woman, told us about the moment the terrorists approached her and her two close friends. “Then, I felt a ‘boom’ in my head, and I fell to the floor. And I felt that someone put ropes on my legs. I felt his hands on me for at least a month after.” Mazal—her name means “luck”—made it. Her friends were murdered next to her. While they told us their stories in the same fields where their friends once lay dead, we heard the thundering of weapons just a few miles away. Those sounds, which were the backdrop of the day alongside the wind and the birds, reminded us that what happened here months ago is far from over. Over breakfast at our hotel in Jaffa the next morning, we met a young woman from Sderot and her two-year-old twins. The majority of the hotel was occupied not by beachside vacationers but by Israeli refugees who cannot return to their homes. I made peek-a-boo faces with the children when the mom pulled out her phone and showed me a picture. “This is my brother, Kobi,” she said. “He was murdered by Hamas on October 7. He was out for his morning run. He loved to run.” The two-year-olds giggled at our feet. She told me her brother was named after their uncle—also named Kobi—who was killed in the Yom Kippur War 50 years ago: October 10, 1973. “The same day as my brother’s funeral.” And that was just the first 24 hours. In the week that followed, we talked to people across the country. Everyone from former Soviet dissident Natan Sharansky . . . To Arab-Israeli Muslim journalist Lucy Aharish . . . From people who hate the Netanyahu government but nonetheless showed up as reservists without hesitation. . . To people who voted for Bibi and now want him—and his entire coalition—removed from power. . . From family members of hostages who can barely get out of bed each morning. . . To the soldiers who have no choice but to do so every day. . . From the son of one of Hamas’s founders who escaped the terror group in the West Bank and now calls Israel his home. . . To Palestinians in Ramallah who told us they supported the events of October 7. . . On our final evening in Tel Aviv, just a few hours before we were headed to the airport, rocket alert sirens sounded throughout the city. I was in the shower. Frantic, I grabbed the hotel robe and ran to the stairwell, which serves as the makeshift bomb shelter. I still had shampoo in my hair. As I heard the booms of the Iron Dome intercepting Hamas’s rockets, I thought about the Israelis on October 7 who also sought safety in their shelters, only to soon discover they were their slaughterhouses. And I thought about the civilians and children in Gaza who have no shelters at all. Hamas’s tunnel network is longer than the London Tube. But it’s reserved for terrorists—not innocents. If you would have told me before I left that I’d have to take cover in the hotel stairwell as a dozen rockets flew over my head, I might not have gone. I am so glad I did. For a journalist, nothing compares to reporting on the ground. There is so much to capture and discover that a phone call or a Zoom conversation simply cannot. I got back to Atlanta with some 30 hours of tape. And I got to work putting together the story of a people in mourning, a country at war, and a nation on the frontlines of a civilizational fight. <- Previous Read full article Next -> More Insights The Free Press in Israel: A Special Limited Series Many Iranians Despise The Regime's Support For Palestine Public protests and criticism of Hamas in the Gaza Strip during recent months Arab world calls stampede at aid truck 'deadly massacre' and U.S. is 'concerned' 'We have hostages, I caught one': IDF uncovers recordings of UNRWA employees from October 7 5 Key Takeaways from AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report Latest Video Clips The History of Israel This Muslim Israeli Woman Is the Future of the Middle East Natasha Hausdorff responds to the content of the House of Commons Gaza Debate. Its time to face the hard truth that you're being played as a sacrificial fool by terrorists. Peace cannot be achieved with those who desire war and jihad instead. 'Awful Things Happening In Israel Nothing To Do With British Jews'

Public protests and criticism of Hamas in the Gaza Strip during recent months 6 March 2024 By: Terrorism-info During the past three months, in light of the continued fighting, public criticism of the Hamas government and leadership has increased significantly in the Gaza Strip compared to the protests in the first months. The expanding activities of the IDF forces in Khan Yunis, Gaza City and the central Gaza Strip, the continuation of IDF and Israeli Air Force attacks throughout the Gaza Strip, the increase in the number of casualties and the heavy damage caused to infrastructure and buildings, the lack of food, the plight of the residents, especially the displaced persons, as well as the discourse about a military operation in Rafah, brought residents into the streets to demonstrate against Hamas. At the protest demonstrations, which are mostly held during the day, for the most part Gazans express their anger at their situation and at senior Hamas officials, especially Isma’il Haniyeh, head of Hamas’ political bureau, and Yahya al-Sinwar, head of the Hamas political bureau in the Gaza Strip. The demonstrations highlight the growing frustration and despair among the Gazans living under the Hamas administration . They are angry at having to pay the price of the war while senior Hamas officials live in luxury in hotels abroad, while those who are in the Strip hide in tunnels. Most of the protesters call for the overthrow of the Hamas government and emphasize their desire to live a life of self-respect and support their families with dignity. An analysis of the demonstrations indicates that currently they are local and sporadic, apparently organized spontaneously. They are not held particularly frequently, only a few per month, and are attended by a few hundred people. Apparently Hamas is not trying to stop them, possibly because it does not currently regard them as endangering its status. Furthermore, Hamas [falsely] claims that most of the demonstrations do not represent the feelings of the population and are fabricated or directed by Israel. Meanwhile, because of the complaints, Hamas is clearly making attempts to correct the situation. For example, in response to complaints about the high price of food, the Hamas ministry of the interior appointed committees to monitor prices and prevent price gouging. The committees’ operatives examine prices, mainly in Rafah, where the majority of the population is concentrated, and masked, walk in the streets armed with clubs and guns, and supervise the markets. Criticisms are also posted on the social networks. However, at the moment there are relatively few threads, managed by a handful of people with a limited number of followers. Criticism deals mainly with two topics: harsh criticism of the conduct of senior Hamas officials inside and outside the Gaza Strip, and a description of the Gazan population’s appalling situation. So far, the number the protests is small and they do not endanger the Hamas administration. However, as time passes and Israel’s military pressure increases in the Gaza Strip, and as a result the humanitarian crisis worsens and the lack of food and shelter for the residents increases, the protests will continue and most likely increase. It is also possible that the approaching month of Ramadan, which begins on March 11, 2024, will further increase the public’s sense of want and its frustration, and therefore the extent of the protests. <- Previous Read full article Next -> More Insights The Free Press in Israel: A Special Limited Series Many Iranians Despise The Regime's Support For Palestine Public protests and criticism of Hamas in the Gaza Strip during recent months Arab world calls stampede at aid truck 'deadly massacre' and U.S. is 'concerned' 'We have hostages, I caught one': IDF uncovers recordings of UNRWA employees from October 7 5 Key Takeaways from AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report Latest Video Clips The History of Israel This Muslim Israeli Woman Is the Future of the Middle East Natasha Hausdorff responds to the content of the House of Commons Gaza Debate. Its time to face the hard truth that you're being played as a sacrificial fool by terrorists. Peace cannot be achieved with those who desire war and jihad instead. 'Awful Things Happening In Israel Nothing To Do With British Jews'

'We have hostages, I caught one': IDF uncovers recordings of UNRWA employees from October 7 5 March 2024 By: YNET UNRWA workers who took part in October 7 attack (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) Army releases names and recordings of 4 UNRWA employees talking and joking with alleged terrorists about taking part in October 7 massacre The IDF revealed Monday new evidence based on military intelligence regarding the involvement of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Hamas’s October 7 attack. The military published the identities of four additional workers who were involved in the massacre - after the identities of other involved employees in the UN agency were already exposed - and also published incriminating recordings of two terrorists for the first time who, alongside their operation for terror organizations in the Strip, worked as teachers in UNRWA schools, and admitted to participating in the massacre. 'I'm inside, with the Jews' In the first recording, a terrorist who works as an Arabic teacher in a UNRWA school in Deir al-Balah described how he infiltrated Israeli territory on October 7 and said he was holding onto an Israeli woman he abducted. The terrorist, and another one with whom he conversed on the phone, are heard laughing and joking - with the latter even describing some woman, likely a hostage, as a "noble mare." In the second recording that was exposed, another terrorist who works as a teacher in an elementary school of UNRWA in Khan Younis, is heard saying he managed to infiltrate Israel: "I’m inside, with the Jews ," he said. "Terror organizations in the Strip use civilian institutions, hospitals, and international aid organizations, and coerce them for terrorist purposes and harming innocent civilians," the military said in a statement. It added that according to its intelligence, over 450 Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists in the Strip are employed as UNRWA workers. IDF Spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, issued a statement on the incriminating recordings, saying the identities of additional terrorists employed by UNRWA will be revealed in the coming days - including those holding senior positions within the UN agency. He noted that in the recordings, the terrorists speak with contempt and hate, referring to the abducted women as "Sabaya" - an Islamic term that refers to women and children as the property of men, and can also be interpreted as slaves or servants. Hagari mentioned that the Islamic State also used the term to describe Yazidi women whom they abducted for sexual slavery. According to Hagari, this is further evidence that Hamas terrorists treated women with brutality and saw them as animals on October 7 — after numerous pieces of evidence and testimonies have already been exposed regarding the terrorists’ sexual atrocities. "The way they refer to the abducted women as 'Sabaya' or 'noble mares' is extremely worrying and calls for a global outcry – the same as when the world cried for Yazidi women," Hagari said, highlighting Israel’s concerns for hostages still held in the Strip. In the main recording released by the military, Yousef Zidan Suliman al-Hawajri, an Arabic teacher in Deir al-Balah, who according to the IDF is a terrorist associated with Hamas's military wing. "We have hostages. I caught one," al-Hawajri says. In the recording, the date of which wasn’t disclosed, he’s heard speaking with another undisclosed individual — though it’s likely he also took part in the massacre due to the context of his words. In the second recording the two individuals, as mentioned, are heard congratulating each other and expressing joy over Hamas's success in carrying out the most severe attack against Israel in its history. 'I saw, they shot them in the eyes' Al-Hawajri asks his unnamed caller if "he found something," to which he replies: "Yes, they brought a horse." According to the IDF, this is likely a codename for a woman. "You brought in a mare?" al-Hawajri confirms - and the other answers that it is a "noble mare, not just any horse." He then adds, "I’m kidding bro.” In the recorded conversation, the two discuss the massacre in southern Israel, and the unnamed caller says: "I was in the eastern area; there’s a lot of smoke in all of the military outposts." Al-Hawajri: "I was there." Caller: "Where?" Al-Hawajri: "Inside, east of al-Dair." Caller: "No way, how is it there?" Al-Hawajri: "We went in." Caller: "Really, bro?... I saw the (graphic) sights." Al-Hawajri: "Yes, I saw it... They shot them in the eyes." Caller: "How many did you see?" Al-Hawajri: "I saw two, me and another guy from our group." Caller: "You should’ve brought them with you.” Later in the conversation, al-Hawajri recounts how the terrorists in the massacre "broke the cameras and the gates" in southern Israel. "Wow, what a thing they did. Listen, they carried out an operation to free us." The second speaker asks if he brought weapons with him, and he replies, "No, we brought what we could." When asked "what he found in Israel," al-Hawajri replied: "1,000 shekels." As mentioned, the IDF revealed another recording of a terrorist named Mamduh Hassin Ahmed al-Kak — a member of the Islamic Jihad’s military wing — who also works as a teacher at a UNRWA elementary school in Khan Younis. The military didn’t detail who he talked with, but it could be assumed to be another terrorist based on the conversation’s context. The second speaker asks al-Kak where he is, and he indicates that the Gaza border "is full of shooting and fighter jets." Al-Kak responds, "I'm inside, with the Jews inside." Later, the second speaker asks al-Kak how he intends to return home, to which he answers, "When I die." In addition to the two recorded terrorists, the IDF revealed the identities of two other terrorists employed by UNRWA: Rassan Al-Jabari, who according to the IDF is associated with Hamas's Al Furqan Battalion and also works as a UNRWA "health officer", and Bakr Mahmoud Abdullah Darwish, who served as an advisor at a UNRWA school - alongside his involvement in Hamas's military wing. After cutting ties with 10 workers out of 12 Israel has previously uncovered as working for Hamas and taking part in the October 7 attack, UNRWA has accused Israel of abusing its workers into confessing these crimes, which they allege didn’t take place. The UN body announced Monday that it will soon publish the conclusions of an investigation it conducted into the alleged abuse of Palestinian detainees held at bases in Israel by the IDF, according to the New York Times. Foreign Minister Israel Katz responded to the report and attacked UNRWA, saying that "there is no limit to the brazenness of this organization, dozens of whose employees took an active part in the October 7 massacre, thousands of them are members of Hamas and its facilities were used by Hamas' infrastructure." <- Previous Read full article Next -> More Insights 'We have hostages, I caught one': IDF uncovers recordings of UNRWA employees from October 7 5 Key Takeaways from AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report Many Iranians Despise The Regime's Support For Palestine Former Lebanese President Michel Aoun Criticizes Hizbullah: One Party Cannot Make Decisions About A Conflict With Israel; Lebanon Has No Obligation To Defend Gaza Arab world calls stampede at aid truck 'deadly massacre' and U.S. is 'concerned' The Houthi Hypocrisy – Maintaining Vast Arsenals But Relying On The West To Feed The Starving Yemenis Latest Video Clips The History of Israel This Muslim Israeli Woman Is the Future of the Middle East Natasha Hausdorff responds to the content of the House of Commons Gaza Debate. Its time to face the hard truth that you're being played as a sacrificial fool by terrorists. Peace cannot be achieved with those who desire war and jihad instead. 'Awful Things Happening In Israel Nothing To Do With British Jews'

Many Iranians Despise The Regime's Support For Palestine 3 March 2024 By: MEMRI Iranian Islamic Scholar Mohammad-Taghi Akbarnejad: Many Iranians Despise The Regime's Support For Palestine; Khamenei Must Stop Supplying Palestine With Military Support; If Iran Continues On This Path – The Regime Will Fall Director of Jurisprudence and Islamic Civilization Institute Mohammad-Taghi Akbarnejad discussed the Iranian regime's support of Palestine in a December 23, 2023 interview with DidarNews (Iran). He said that a large part of the Iranian population despises the regime's support of Palestine. Akbarnejad suggested that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei stop stating that he wants to wipe Israel off the face of the earth, stop supplying weapons to Gaza, and stop providing military support to the Palestinians. He said that this will lift the sanctions off Iran. Akbarnejad said that Iran is at a "very dangerous crossroad," and if it continues on the same path, it will collapse and the regime will fall". Mohammad-Taghi Akbarnejad: "Our people have shown that they want to support the oppressed of the world, but at what price? What have we done that caused a significant part of our population to despise the support of the Islamic Republic of Iran for Palestine? You see where we have brought our people?" "The logic of the Quran about helping others is like a natural spring. Once the spring starts to flow, it irrigates the trees around it first. If it had more water to spare, it would irrigate other trees and gardens. If we try to divert the water away from the trees around the spring to other places, we cause division, and divert from the logic of Quran. My point is that our people feel that the regime is not focused on them". "I believe that if Mr. Khamenei was asked today to sacrifice his life, his possessions, his family, and his honor for his people, he would not think twice. He would definitely do it. I know Mr. Khamenei to be this kind of person. Unfortunately however, I have reached the conclusion that the focus of Mr. Khamenei's policy is outside of [Iran's] borders". "If today the world asks Mr. Khamenei to back down a little on the issue of Palestine – that he no longer uses the slogan of wiping Israel off the face of the earth, that he will not give more weapons to Gaza, and no longer support the Palestinians militarily...Give them diplomatic support as much as you can, but do not get involved militarily, and back down from the slogan of erasing Israel". "In return, all the sanctions [against Iran] will be lifted, and we will have a clean slate. Iran will be able to resume all forms of cooperation with the world. This will give the Iranians some breathing room again". "My feeling is that Mr. Khamenei would not accept such an offer. Why? Because for him, the Palestinian cause has become the cornerstone of the Islamic Republic". "When the focus of your policy-making is erasing Israel and saving Palestine, and you are not willing to budge a little even when your people are suffering so much, you have to pay the price, and the sanctions are the price. It results in living in [unstable] security conditions". "For the past 45 years, our people have lived in such security conditions. The way we have acted is an indication that the regime's number-one priority is its own survival." "I feel that today our country is at a very dangerous crossroad. Very dangerous. If we continue on the same path as before, our collapse is certain. I am sad to say this but our collapse would be certain – the regime will fall and God only knows what will happen to our country. The policies of the Islamic Republic in the last 40 years have caused many [countries] to become our enemies". "This nation can only tolerate up to a certain limit. It can persevere up to a certain point, but it will explode when the threshold is crossed, and then it will be too late to do anything." <- Previous Read full article Next -> More Insights Many Iranians Despise The Regime's Support For Palestine Former Lebanese President Michel Aoun Criticizes Hizbullah: One Party Cannot Make Decisions About A Conflict With Israel; Lebanon Has No Obligation To Defend Gaza Arab world calls stampede at aid truck 'deadly massacre' and U.S. is 'concerned' The Houthi Hypocrisy – Maintaining Vast Arsenals But Relying On The West To Feed The Starving Yemenis 5 Key Takeaways from AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report The Corruption-Fueled Wealth Gap in Gaza and the West Bank Latest Video Clips The History of Israel This Muslim Israeli Woman Is the Future of the Middle East Natasha Hausdorff responds to the content of the House of Commons Gaza Debate. Its time to face the hard truth that you're being played as a sacrificial fool by terrorists. Peace cannot be achieved with those who desire war and jihad instead. 'Awful Things Happening In Israel Nothing To Do With British Jews'

Arab world calls stampede at aid truck 'deadly massacre' and U.S. is 'concerned' 29 February 2024 By: YNET Gazans swarming on aid trucks in Gaza(Photo: REUTERS/Kosay Al Nemer) Palestinian Authority and other Arab nations quick to accuse Israel of killing innocent Palestinians despite IDF probe showing the more than 100 Gazans were killed as they rushed to grab aid; US calls stampede 'serious incident' The Arab world rushed to blame Israel for "committing a heinous and brutal massacre" on Thursday after dozens of Gazans died during a stampede as large crowds descended on humanitarian aid trucks entering northern Gaza. This comes despite aerial documentation published by the IDF which clearly shows how the crowd attacked the trucks that arrived at the scene. The U.S. said officials were examining reports of the IDF opening fire on Gazans waiting for humanitarian aid and said it was a serious incident. "We mourn the loss of innocent life and recognize the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, where innocent Palestinians are just trying to feed their families,” the White House National Security Council said in a statement. “This underscores the importance of expanding and sustaining the flow of humanitarian assistance into Gaza, including through a potential temporary cease-fire,” the statement added. The first to condemn the incident were Egypt and Jordan, who have signed peace agreements with Israel. Cairo issued a sharp condemnation of the incident and called it "an inhumane Israeli attack on Palestinian civilians waiting for the arrival of humanitarian aid trucks." According to Egypt: "This is a violation of international law and a disregard for human life. Egypt calls on international actors to halt the fighting, take humanitarian, moral and legal responsibility, and stop the Israeli war against Gaza." The Jordanian Foreign Ministry addressed the assailants who, according to the IDF’s investigation, opened fire at the aid and called them "Palestinians waiting to receive aid." "We condemn the cruel Israeli attack on Palestinians who were waiting to receive humanitarian aid from south of Gaza City," the ministry said in a statement. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said that Saudi Arabia condemns "the harm to civilians in the northern Gaza Strip, which led to dozens of dead and hundreds of injured." According to Riyadh, the international community "must take a firm stand and force Israel to respect international law, open humanitarian crossings, allow the evacuation of the wounded, and unlimited aid, in order to alleviate the humanitarian crisis and prevent it from getting worse." An initial IDF probe into the incident found that Palestinian gunmen fired at the aid trucks, with most fatalities resulting from trampling and crowding. Additionally, a portion of the crowd reportedly approached an IDF unit overseeing the trucks' entry, leading to soldiers firing warning shots into the air. The military’s investigation didn’t satisfy Palestinian Authority officials, after PA President Mahmoud Abbas called on Hamas to expedite talks for a hostage release deal with Israel in order to allow a cease-fire in Gaza as soon as possible. In light of Hamas' threats to halt the talks following the so-called "massacre," Abbas' office said: "The Palestinian presidency condemns the heinous massacre carried out by the Israeli occupation army against civilians awaiting the arrival of aid trucks, which led to their deaths and the injuries of hundreds." According to the statement, "the large number of innocent civilian casualties is an inseparable part of the genocide committed by the occupation’s government against us, and it bears full responsibility before international courts." The statement added that “this crime adds to a series of massacres committed by the occupation against our people since the beginning of the war, which left thousands dead and wounded, most of them children and women,” and stressed that international neglect of the issue “encourage the occupation to continue shedding Palestinian blood with unprecedented genocidal crimes in modern history." Abbas' office called on the U.S. to intervene and criticized the international community. "There’s an urgent need for international intervention in order to stop this war, especially by the American government which provides support and protection to the occupation," the statement read. Abbas’ office threw further accusations against Israel according to which, "these massacres clearly indicate that their true purpose is to slaughter the Palestinian people." These claims come after Gaza's Health Ministry, which is controlled by Hamas, reported that the number of victims has reached 104 dead, and about 700 wounded. According to eyewitnesses who spoke to CNN, the truck drivers tried to flee the area and accidentally ran over Palestinians who were there. The IDF's initial investigation also indicates that most of the victims died as a result of being crushed or trampled. Hamas warned in a statement that the incident could lead to the failure of talks aimed at a deal on a truce and hostage release. <- Previous Read full article Next -> More Insights Arab world calls stampede at aid truck 'deadly massacre' and U.S. is 'concerned' The Houthi Hypocrisy – Maintaining Vast Arsenals But Relying On The West To Feed The Starving Yemenis 5 Key Takeaways from AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report The Corruption-Fueled Wealth Gap in Gaza and the West Bank Former Lebanese President Michel Aoun Criticizes Hizbullah: One Party Cannot Make Decisions About A Conflict With Israel; Lebanon Has No Obligation To Defend Gaza A Stop Before Rafah Is a Stop Before Victory Latest Video Clips The History of Israel This Muslim Israeli Woman Is the Future of the Middle East Natasha Hausdorff responds to the content of the House of Commons Gaza Debate. Its time to face the hard truth that you're being played as a sacrificial fool by terrorists. Peace cannot be achieved with those who desire war and jihad instead. 'Awful Things Happening In Israel Nothing To Do With British Jews'