By Andrew Bostom, MD, MS, 17th December 2023
—For two decades, ADL has been documenting, then downplaying, this uniquely Muslim scourge
I was introduced to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL)’s global Antisemitism survey data, indirectly, in 2006. An analysis of ADL’s 2004 Western European data was published August, 2006, in the The Journal of Conflict Resolution. The study authors confirmed their rather mundane a priori hypothesis: Anti-Israel sentiment was a strong, independent predictor of Antisemitism. De-emphasized, and noted only in passing by these authors, was a much more original, and striking finding: In a controlled comparison to Western European Christians, Western European Muslims were nearly 8-fold more likely to evidence extreme Antisemitism, as gauged by agreement with at least 6 of 11 Antisemitic stereotypes. More disturbing, and auguring a pattern of deliberate minimization which persists to this day, the original 2004 34pp. ADL survey report of 2004 made no mention of the Muslim sample at all!
As long as aid gets into Gaza, and as long as Israel is killing fewer civilians, the U.S. is in less of a hurry when it comes to Israel moving toward a lower-intensity phase in the fighting and, eventually, withdrawing from Gaza? Cairo floats new hostage deal proposal
By Amos Harel, HAARETZ DEC 25/23
Israeli soldiers near the border with Gaza, on Saturday.Credit: Ariel Schalit / AP
Christmas has arrived and the IDF is still fighting on the ground in Gaza. The early forecasts in Washington, and to some extent in Jerusalem, were that the Biden administration would demand that Israel end the high-intensity phase of the ground offensive against Hamas by the close of the year, and that at most the Americans would agree to only a further few weeks of fighting in the current format.
In the meantime, the U.S. is on its Christmas-New Year vacation like the rest of the Western world, and the administration in Washington will be working on a limited basis over the next 10 days or so.
Peloni: This is a remarkably important invention.
“Three minutes of a simple instruction given by Omer Levin, the manager of the company’s operational team, and immediately after – shooting at body targets from a distance of 200 meters, with 100% success.”
The SMASH smart fire control system has successfully countered drones and terrorists in Gaza; Smart Shooter CEO Michal Mor shares her journey of creating a revolutionary combat system now embraced by elite units in militaries worldwide
By Navit Zomer, YNET |
The phone of Michal Mor, founder and CEO of Smart Shooter, who is sitting in front of me, does not stop receiving congratulatory messages, even from abroad. The reason: on the day we met, it was announced that Israeli forces in Gaza managed to eliminate a swarm of seven attack drones using the SMASH smart fire control system, developed by the company.
T. Belman. Why is Israel so ready to rebuild Gaza together with the international community? Her starting position should be that we are taking back Gaza for our use.
Only if Gaza is completely razed can the thought of returning there be entertained. Response to a letter in Arabic by Israel’s NSC head.
By Dr. Aaron Lerner, INN Dec 25, 2023
I’m going to be sending this message out in English and Hebrew so that it is easy to forward.
I am taking this unusual step because there is talk that we are going to buckle to American pressure to allow Gazans to return to areas north of Wadi Gaza without properly processing those areas.
The best solution for Gaza is for the world that so supports it to take in its residents, as Nikki Haley suggested. But if that does not happen:
T. Belman. The corollary to this argument is that if Russia chose instead to support Israel and condemn Hamas, she would have made herself more relevant in today’s Middle East.
On Dec 6, Putin made a state visit to UAE and Saudia Arabia and received a warn welcome according to WSJ
By Alexander G. Markovsky, AM THINKER NOV 12/23
Vladimir Putin recently stated, “We have always advocated for the implementation of the decisions of the United Nations Security Council, which involve the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state.”
Moscow’s endorsement of a Palestinian state has been met with skepticism among Russia’s historians and supporters in the ongoing conflict with Ukraine. Moscow’s ill-conceived policy of supporting the Palestinian cause not only undermines its position vis-à-vis Ukraine but also erodes its standing in the Middle East.
Read more…
Israel must also lower its dependency on the US for arms. On the bright side, the Abraham Accords are still intact
By Efraim Inbarr, TOI DEC 23/23
The US has displayed great support for vanquishing Hamas, and this has enhanced Israel’s position as a valued American ally. Yet, the American motives are suspect. The Biden administration’s support is predicated by an obsession with the Two-State paradigm, which requires eliminating Hamas from Gaza and restoring the moribund and corrupt Palestinian Authority (PA) there. Moreover, the American embrace aims to restrain Israel from attacking Iranian proxies, a move that could lead to a regional escalation – something Washington is eager to avert. This has been the major motive for sending aircraft carriers to the region.
Northern Command chief Ori Gordin provides first reference from an army official to the fear of Hezbollah tunnels in Lebanese territory near the northern border; the IDF is working to eliminate all threats emerging along that border, aiming to weaken Hezbollah’s capabilities
By Yair Kraus, YNET 24 December 2023
IDF Major General Ori Gordin
IDF Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin, the Northern Command chief, addressed the concerns of residents living on the northern border due to the threat of Hezbollah tunnels, following the exposure of Hamas’ massive tunnel in the Gaza Strip.
Peloni: As Alex Grinsberg noted earlier this year, Russia and Iran are each driven by their respective national interests which are not mutually aligned.
Iran International Newsroom, December 24, 2023
Russia’s support for the United Arab Emirates in its dispute with Iran over the ownership of three Persian Gulf islands has turned into a controversy in Tehran.
The Iranian leadership, typically reticent about Russia’s double standards, has, for the second time this year, heightened its response to Moscow’s stance. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s most senior foreign policy adviser, former Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati, implicitly criticized Russia’s behavior by stating, “Iran will not allow any foreign entity to intervene in its internal affairs.”
No, no, antisemitism is not, only, a phenomenon of the political extremes. It lies just beneath the surface in the hearts and minds of all too many “moderates” in the “civilized” west, as well as all around the planet.
By Alan G. Futerman and Walter E. Block, ISRAEL HAYOM 24 Dec 2024
Many people thought that antisemitism was all but a thing of the past. Oh, well, yes, out there in the fever swamps of extremism, it still lurked; this could be acknowledged. The white supremacists of the right and the woke cultural Marxists of the left still basked in this evil. But, surely, among moderates, any such viewpoint is summarily dismissed. (Who says that the proper political spectrum is a straight line? Perhaps it is more of a circle, where the two supposedly opposite philosophies meet, albeit in some cases for different reasons.)
By David Israel, JEWISH PRESS 24 December 2023
The Direct Polls survey that was published last Thursday (Direct Polls: Gantz and Bibi Neck-and-Neck, Smotrich Beats the Threshold) included the question: “To what degree do you support encouraging the voluntary emigration of Gaza Strip residents?”
The response of 1,487 adults (18+) who are a representative sample of the general population in Israel, with a statistical sampling error of ± 3.9%, at a 95% probability, was overwhelmingly in favor of the idea.
Peloni: There is no need for the US to raise an international alliance to protect shipping against the Houthi menace, and doing so will only serve to institutionalize the ongoing piracy being waged against the world, as it would take very little to restore deterrence needed to end the Houthi aggression and/or deplete its capabilities to hold the world hostage. Given that the US is intent upon funding Iran’s terror regime and protecting its hubs of terror, there seems to be a failing interest in aiding the Americans in their charade because these nations who use to be reliable US allies are more concerned about the consequences coming from Iran than those coming from Washington.
by Tyler Durden, Zero Hedge Dec 23/23
Australia is the latest country to reject a request from the United States to send warships to the Red Sea under the command of the Pentagon’s Operation Prosperity Guardian to protect commercial vessels along the critical maritime trade route from Iran-backed Houthi.
Defense Minister Richard Marles told Sky News that Australia’s military would not send a “ship or a plane” to the Red Sea but would triple the number of troops for the US-led maritime force.
T. Belman. Compare Netanyahu’s statement with this:
A new report claims the IDF is minimizing firepower due to American and European pressure to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians.
PM says Israel’s operational decisions are based on its own considerations as a sovereign nation, not external pressure.
Israel National News Dec 24, 2023, 1:07 PM (GMT+2)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the fall of eight IDF soldiers in battle in Gaza during the start of the Government meeting at the Kirya in Tel Aviv today (Sunday).
“This is a difficult morning, after a very difficult day of fighting in Gaza. On behalf of all members of the Government and the entire people of Israel, I would like to send condolences to the families of our heroic soldiers who have fallen in the war over our home. Our hearts are with the families; our hearts go out for the young lives that were cut short in their prime. We all send best wishes for a quick recovery to our wounded. The war is exacting a very heavy cost from us; however, we have no choice but to continue to fight,” Netanyahu began.
Hamas has dictated the parameters of victory
BY EDWARD LUTTWAK, UNHERD Dec 23/23
Professor Edward Luttwak is a strategist and historian known for his works on grand strategy, geoeconomics, military history, and international relations. His most recent book is The Art of Military Innovation: Lessons from the Israel Defense Forces.
During their protected wars in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, America’s leaders and generals could never define victory. Hamas, by contrast, has a clear understanding of what it looks like. Now that the terror group has demonstrated the failure of Israel’s deterrence, it insists it will not any more short ceasefires in exchange for hostages, but only a complete end to Israel’s offensive, which would of course leave it in full control of Gaza.
By Michael Ordman, VGNI
It’s clear in last week’s positive news that Israeli forces are steadily clearing Hamas terrorists from Gaza. We learned that on Oct 7, another Israeli hero gave dozens of survivors a clear escape route from death. A trained IDF K9 dog is helping clear Gaza from bombs and hidden terrorists. And the IDF cleared the way for one soldier to race from Gaza to be at the birth of his baby son.
Israeli medical news includes a new therapy for clearing the breathing of asthma sufferers; a psoriasis treatment to give clear skin; and an antibody that clears the way for the immune system to destroy cancer.
An Israeli startup has won an international award for its software that gives driverless cars a clear way through traffic. Success in Gaza has cleared the way for airlines to resume flights to Israel. And an Israeli startup is helping clear the water in Phoenix Arizona. Finally, two Israeli soccer teams have cleared the way through to the final stages of European competitions.
Read more…
Urgent call illustrates Washington’s attempts to prevent a widening war in the Middle East
By Vivian Salama, Dion Nissenbaum and Benoit Faucon, WSJ Dec. 23, 2023
Israeli soldiers guard near the border with Lebanon. The war between Israel and Hamas that ignited on Oct. 7 has also inflamed tensions on Israel’s northern border with Lebanon. PHOTO: AMIR LEVY/GETTY IMAGES
WASHINGTON—President Biden urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to halt a pre-emptive strike against Hezbollah forces in Lebanon days after Hamas militants’ Oct. 7 assault on southern Israel, warning that such an attack could spark a wider regional war.
Israel had intelligence—which the U.S. deemed unreliable—that Hezbollah attackers were preparing to cross the border as part of a multipronged attack, pushing some of Israel’s more hawkish officials to the brink, officials said.
30,000 EXPLOSIVE WEAPONS CAPTURED SINCE START OF WAR
Deaths bring weekend toll to 13, with 152 troops killed since start of ground op; military says chief of supplies for Hamas’s armed wing killed in Rafah strike, as campaign expands
By EMANUEL FABIAN, TOI 24/12/23
IDF soldiers announced killed in the Gaza Strip on December 24, 2023: Top L-R: Master Sgt. (res.) Nadav Issachar Farhi, Master Sgt. (res.) Eliyahu Meir Ohana, Sgt. First Class (res.) Elyassaf Shoshan, Sgt. First Class (res.) Ohad Ashur; bottom: Staff Sgt. David Bogdanovskyi, Staff Sgt. Orel Bashan, Staff Sgt. Itamar Shemen, Staff Sgt. Gal Hershko. (Courtesy)
The Israel Defense Forces announced Sunday the names of eight additional soldiers killed in fighting on Saturday, bringing the number of troops killed over the weekend to 13, as the military deepened its offensive against the Hamas terror group.
Four soldiers of the Combat Engineering Corps and a paramedic were killed by an anti-tank guided missile that hit a Namer armored engineering vehicle they were in, in southern Gaza. Another four were killed by bombs in two separate incidents during battles with gunmen in central Gaza.
I recently wrote a column about why I believed Trump should not run in 2024. I was wrong. I allowed my distaste for Trump’s personality to override his virtues, which are considerable.
Some people want Trump without his vices. I was among them — until I watched and listened to Tom Klingenstein’s speech titled “Trump’s virtues.”
It was masterful and shamed me that I did not make the distinction between Trump’s character and his virtues, the former being deeply flawed, the latter being almost perfect.
