| DAILY ALERT |
Tuesday, January 21, 2025 |
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News Resources - North America, Europe, and Asia:
U.S. President Joe Biden said Sunday, "By the 16th day of the [hostage] deal, talks will begin on the second phase. This phase includes the release of Israeli soldiers and a permanent end to the war without Hamas in power or able to threaten Israel." "We've reached the point today because of the pressure Israel built on Hamas, backed by the United States....Hamas's sponsors in the Middle East have been badly weakened by Israel, backed by the United States." (White House) See also Trump: "You Certainly Can't Have the People that Were There" Running Gaza - Hannah Sarisohn President Donald Trump was asked Monday if he was confident the ceasefire in Gaza could be kept. He replied, "I'm not confident. It's not our war. It's their war. I'm not confident, but they're very weakened on the other side." He said Gaza is a "phenomenal location on the sea" with the best weather. "Some fantastic things could be done with Gaza." "You certainly can't have the people that were there. Most of them are dead. But they didn't exactly run it well. They run viciously and badly. You can't have that." (Jerusalem Post) See also Incoming U.S. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz: "Hamas Will Never Govern Gaza" - Margaret Brennan Incoming National Security Adviser Mike Waltz told "Face the Nation" on Sunday: "What we're talking about here is making sure that Hamas is destroyed as a terrorist organization. Hamas is no different than ISIS or Al Qaeda or any of the worst of the worst that has so brutalized the Middle East over the years." "Hamas will never govern Gaza. That is completely unacceptable, because they've made their intention clear, which is to destroy Israel and to have future October 7s." (CBS News) President Donald Trump shook hands with former hostages and family members of current hostages held in Gaza on Monday at his inaugural rally in Washington, to sustained cheers of "bring them home" from the crowd. Standing in front of the relatives of hostages, Trump said, "Now we have to bring them home." (JNS) See also Trump Brings Families of Israeli Hostages on Stage - Ben Samuels The families of Israeli hostages were brought on stage during Trump's victory celebration in Washington wearing matching yellow scarves and holding placards of their loved ones after being seated in the arena's front row. Trump said, "Some of the folks here are former hostages. Not a good situation. The three young ladies who came home - they were hurt. One had her fingers blown off. She was trying to defend herself from a bullet....We're so glad you're reunited with your friends and families. Some just want us to bring home their son's body. It should have never happened." (Ha'aretz) As a ceasefire begins in Gaza, Israel hasn't fulfilled its top war aim: to destroy Hamas. Hamas is claiming a win despite its heavy losses, and parading its fighters in the streets of Gaza, because it has reached its own goal of surviving the onslaught. Yet the strategic gains from 15 months of war are almost all on Israel's side. The country has emerged stronger, having cut several of its adversaries down to size. Meanwhile, the Palestinian cause is facing its bleakest prospects for decades. Despite widespread international sympathy, the Palestinians are more divided internally, more isolated in the region, and face an Israel that, after Oct. 7, 2023, is even more firmly against a Palestinian state. "On the Israeli side, there is disappointment and frustration about the war in Gaza," said Michael Milshtein, a former head of Palestinian affairs for Israeli military intelligence. "But Israel has a lot of strategic achievements. It caused severe damage to all its enemies. They are not the same threats that they were on Oct. 7. Israel's deterrence is much improved, and the society demonstrated its resilience." The real defeat for Hamas came on Israel's other fronts, where Hamas's allies in what is known as Iran's axis of resistance suffered a string of setbacks. The all-out regional war on Israel that was dreamed of by Hamas's Gaza chief Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind of Oct. 7, turned into a fiasco. "Hamas lost a lot of fighters and equipment and infrastructure, but what forced it to the negotiating table was the changed regional situation, plus the arrival of Trump," said Ofer Fridman, a former Israeli officer and war-studies scholar at King's College London. (Wall Street Journal) 79% of U.S. voters support Israel over Hamas, according to the Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll conducted on Jan. 15-16, 2025. This includes 75% of Democrats and 79% of those aged 18-24. (Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll) News Resources - Israel and the Mideast:
Sgt. First Class (res.) Eviatar Ben Yehuda, 31, was killed and four others were wounded from a roadside bomb early Monday. Their vehicle was part of a convoy on patrol in Tamun in the northern West Bank, when a large explosive device was detonated. Ben Yehuda, the driver, was killed and the battalion commander, a reservist lieutenant colonel, was seriously wounded. Three soldiers in the back of the vehicle were also hurt. (Times of Israel) Emily Damari, 28, Romi Gonen, 23, and Doron Steinbrecher, 31, were released by Hamas on Sunday as part of the ceasefire deal. Steinbrecher was abducted from Kfar Aza on Oct. 7, where she was hiding under her bed. Damari, a British-Israeli, was also abducted from Kfar Aza after being shot. Gonen was abducted from the Nova music festival after being shot. (Jerusalem Post) See also Video: Freed Hostages Reunite with Their Families - Elisha Ben Kimon (Ynet News) See also We Are in for a Long, National Rollercoaster Ordeal - David Horovitz 471 days after they were dragged away into the dark underworld of Hamas captivity, Romi, Emily, and Doron emerged into the light on Sunday - and they were not merely standing and walking but also smiling. Emily's beaming face as she and her mother phoned their family, her bandaged left hand waving - two fingers missing from where she was shot on Oct. 7 - took the national breath away. Minutes later, the pictures of all three young women embracing their mothers surely moved many Israelis, and others all over the world who love this country and its people, to tears of joy and relief. But nobody can forget for a second that this phase of the deal has only just begun. Not all of the 33 women, children and men to be freed are alive. There will be much that is terrible before it is over. And nobody can forget that the agreement comes at the price of the release of hundreds of the most dangerous terrorists, most of whom have every intention of killing again. And 94 hostages are still held captive in Gaza. (Times of Israel) 90 Palestinian prisoners were released on Sunday in exchange for three Israeli hostages. 78 prisoners were released in the West Bank, while 12 were released in eastern Jerusalem. Most of the prisoners released were women. (Jerusalem Post) The IDF said Sunday that it is deploying reinforcements to the West Bank in light of the release of Palestinian terrorists to the area as part of the Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. The additional forces include special units to enable more strikes against terror groups. The IDF is aware that many released Palestinians are likely to return to terror activities and it will be keeping track of those released. The IDF noted that it had already killed three Palestinian terrorists who were released to the West Bank during the November 2023 hostage exchange and had returned to terror. (Jerusalem Post) See also Fear of a Security Escalation in Judea and Samaria following the Release of Terrorists - Yoni Ben Menachem (Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Global Commentary and Think-Tank Analysis:
The Gaza War Until Sunday, the survivors of Hamas's terror army were skulking inside what's left of their tunnel network, hiding in civilian houses, mosques, schools and hospitals or embedding themselves into humanitarian areas on the coast. They disguised themselves as civilians, sometimes dressed as women and journalists and never daring to openly carry weapons above ground. Today they are out on the streets of Gaza proudly wearing their green bandanas and combat uniforms while flaunting assault rifles and rocket launchers. Since the ceasefire was agreed, the terrorist leaders have been renewing their vows to kill more Jews and launch repeated Oct. 7-style massacres. Meanwhile, hordes of Gazan civilians have flooded into the streets, mostly healthy in appearance, well dressed, and many visibly over-fed. A far cry from the picture Hamas, the UN, human rights groups and so much of the media have painted for the last 15 months: of disease and famine at the hands of the Israelis. These "innocent" civilians have been screaming themselves hoarse with an Arabic rallying cry calling for the slaughter of Jews. The fight will certainly have to be resumed. It is for Jerusalem to calibrate when and how that is done. Into that equation will also have to be factored wider strategic imperatives, not least a potential strike on Iran's nuclear program, which now becomes a more realistic proposition with Donald Trump back in the White House. The writer, a former commander of British forces in Afghanistan, was chairman of the UK's national crisis management committee, COBRA. (Telegraph-UK) It is crucial to recognize that Hamas is not an external force imposed on Gaza's population. Rather, it is an authentic expression of the aspirations held by the majority of the two million residents of Gaza. Culturally, ideologically and politically, Hamas and Gaza are deeply intertwined. To ensure the safety of Israeli citizens, in the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire negotiations to free the remaining hostages, Israel cannot allow armed jihadist organizations to maintain a military presence in Gaza. Israel must demand the demilitarization of Gaza and the dismantling of all terrorist infrastructure - tunnels, rocket launchers, mortars and explosive devices. If no international body can enforce this, the IDF will have to undertake this task. A second demand should be the removal of Hamas from power in Gaza. Hamas has repeatedly indicated that it does not wish to shoulder civilian governance responsibilities in Gaza, preferring instead to operate as an armed political entity akin to Hizbullah in Lebanon. Israel should welcome Hamas relinquishing its governing role but must oppose any arrangement that allows the group to retain arms. (Ynet News) When the war began on October 7, 2023, Hamas was estimated to have around 30,000 fighters. Other terrorist groups in Gaza, primarily Palestinian Islamic Jihad, had thousands of fighters as well. The initial IDF advance targeted northern Gaza. The IDF never entered many neighborhoods around Gaza City, and didn't fully clear places like Jabalya or Beit Hanun. Hamas moved away, mixed with civilians, and waited. In January and February 2024, the IDF shifted focus to Khan Yunis, clearing this key area until April. Then, after a long pause, the IDF went into Rafah and the Philadelphi Corridor. Hamas was able to move back to Khan Yunis because the IDF had left. Hamas regrouped in northern Gaza and settled down in central Gaza in Nuseirat, El-Bureij, Deir el-Balah, and Maghazi. It also controlled the Al-Mawasi humanitarian area. Hamas has survived because it was never defeated in central Gaza or Gaza City. When Hamas lost units, it rebuilt them. When it lost commanders, it replaced them. Hamas controls the two million people of Gaza. It recruits from a pool of 300,000 young men and can continue to replenish its ranks. (Jerusalem Post) Israel is one of the few countries in the world that uses all means to free its nationals, that it never abandons a comrade on the battlefield, alive or dead. Unfortunately, we pay a heavy and painful price each time because we are dealing with bloodthirsty terrorists, barbaric Islamists who couldn't care less about international laws and treaties on prisoners of war. Fortunately, we have managed to completely change the geopolitical situation in the region: Hizbullah and Hamas have lost the war and have been considerably weakened, their leaders have been eliminated. Of course, we cannot eradicate the religious ideology and fanaticism of the Islamists, but on the military and strategic level, the victory is clear and the IDF once again becomes the most powerful army in the Middle East. The writer, a researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, is a former Foreign Ministry senior adviser who was Israel's first ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. (Israel Hayom) The contrast between two societies - one fighting to protect its citizens and the other entrenched in a culture of violence - is painfully evident. The fragile ceasefire has exposed the enduring abyss of hatred that fuels Hamas. The scenes of joy accompanying the release of Israeli hostages like Romi, Emily and Doron - imprisoned for over a year in the brutal confines of Hamas's regime - were a bittersweet reminder of human resilience. These young women, held captive in a society that thrives on terror, were finally returned to their families. Yet, their liberation only underscores the broader tragedy. More than 90 other hostages remain in captivity, their fate uncertain. As Israel navigates the challenges ahead, the smiles of its rescued daughters serve as a poignant reminder of what is at stake. These moments of joy, though fleeting, embody the resilience of a nation determined to protect its people and uphold its values. The writer, a fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, served as vice president of the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the Italian Chamber of Deputies. (JNS) To all those in the West who have perpetrated the lie of Israeli genocide in Gaza for the past 15 months: look at the pictures of the mob surrounding the three Israel women hostages who were freed today, and see thousands of Gazans who are well-fed, well-groomed and well-dressed. Look at that horrifying footage of those Gaza mobs, those enormous potential lynch mobs jeering and threatening the three Israeli women as they were handed over to the Red Cross - the same mobs who abused the live hostages and desecrated the bodies of the murdered ones when they were all dragged into Gaza after the Oct. 7 massacre. Then tell us all again that the vast majority of Palestinian Arabs in Gaza are innocent civilians and victims of the Israelis. Listen to those mobs chanting ecstatically for the murder of Jews in a repetition of the slaughter of Jews by Islam's founder Mohammed in 7th century Khybar. Look at the thousands who have emerged in Hamas uniform and armed to the teeth, vowing to carry out more and more Oct. 7 massacres until every Jew is dead and Israel is destroyed. This hostage negotiation was more akin to a mafia-style hit-job forcing Israel under unimaginable pressure to release dozens of men who have slaughtered Israeli Jews over the years, who left hundreds of families permanently bereaved and shattered and are now being released to do it all again. The writer is a columnist for The Times-UK. (Substack) The mainstream Israeli position is that the government must make every reasonable effort to save the lives of captives, whether that means military operations if possible, or freeing jailed terrorists in exchange for hostages if necessary. Opponents of the deal, even if they're tortured by the suffering of their fellow citizens in brutal conditions in tunnels under Gaza, see the deal as a form of surrender that rewards the tactic of hostage-taking and invites future attacks, saving people in the present while sacrificing people in the future. In my experience, most people actually hold parts of both positions, but when forced to choose, they tend to choose the first. This is a small country where people know each other, and one negotiator remarked that logical considerations were effective "until a mother faints on your desk." Israelis face the current deal with hope that at least some of the familiar faces from the hostage posters will finally return to their families after 15 months of horror, and also with relief at a pause in the Gaza fighting. But the regional war that began on October 7, 2023, isn't over, and neither is the terrible dilemma that faces Israel every time hostages fall into enemy hands. The writer was an Associated Press reporter in Jerusalem between 2006 and 2011. (Free Press) Just as Israel will not allow Hizbullah to reestablish itself along its northern border, it will not allow Hamas to rebuild its murderous capabilities along its border. Yet Hamas remains a significant presence in Gaza. On Sunday, Hamas terrorists wore uniforms and rode through the streets in white pick-up trucks, brandishing their automatic rifles. The new U.S. administration has been unequivocal: Hamas cannot openly govern Gaza nor control it from behind the scenes. If it refuses to disarm, the war in Gaza will not end. Israel will have no other choice. International donors, with the exception of Qatar, will not invest unless Hamas ceases to be a military force and relinquishes its control. The question is whether they have the fortitude to condition any aid to Gaza on the dismantling of Hamas. Israel will need to insist that there can be no reconstruction of Gaza with Hamas still in power. Otherwise, Hamas will simply rearm, setting the stage for continued conflict, because Israel cannot live with a viable Hamas threat on its border within striking distance of neighboring Israeli communities. After Oct. 7, there is no room for any illusions about what leaving Hamas unchecked would mean. (Jerusalem Post) From Hamas's perspective, the hostage/ceasefire agreement is a significant achievement and a victory. Hamas has preserved its control of Gaza, as a step toward its goal of taking over the entire Palestinian system. Its ethos of resistance embarrasses the Palestinian Authority, highlights the failure and the futility of the diplomatic path the PA chose over resistance, and strengthens Hamas's political and national standing, which already enjoys greater support than Fatah. The agreement also breathes renewed fighting spirit into Hamas and its leadership. Therefore, even when the residents of Gaza wake up the day after to find Gaza in ruins, with no home to return to, their frustration, anger, and pain won't necessarily translate into protest against Hamas. From Hamas's perspective, the agreement is another crack in the wall of the Palestinian Authority before Hamas eventually captures it from Fatah. Hamas is resolutely continuing its struggle against Israel until the ultimate goal is achieved, even if delayed. (Institute for National Security Studies-Tel Aviv University) A recent New York Times article suggested that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) made a deliberate decision to green-light increased civilian casualties. But this narrative is divorced from the realities of how a professional, law-abiding military wages war. The Times cites examples of IDF strikes that did result in many casualties, but it fails to cite the numerous attack proposals that were canceled or suspended because a commander who could authorize them decided not to do so. Hamas has eroded every distinction between military and civilian targets, turning all of Gaza into a battlefield and intentionally endangering civilians in doing so. Gen. Charles Wald is former Deputy Commander of U.S. European Command. Geoffrey Corn, Director of the Center for Military Law and Policy at Texas Tech University, served as the Army's senior law of war advisor. (Cipher Brief) Nine years ago, my father, Richard Lakin, was brutally murdered by a Hamas terrorist on his way home aboard bus 78 in Jerusalem. Gunshots and stab wounds ended his life. If releasing the terrorist who murdered my father could save even one hostage from the horrors of Gaza's dungeons, I would support it. I am confident my father would feel the same. Yet the statistics are clear: released terrorists return to kill and many are responsible for the murder of thousands of additional Israelis. Among those previously released are the masterminds behind the horrific massacre of Oct. 7. We must demand that Israel confront terror with strength, enforce justice with resolve, and uphold the honor of every life taken. (Jerusalem Post) The Koby Mandell Foundation was created in honor of our son Koby and his friend Yosef Ish Ran who were murdered by terrorists 24 years ago near our home in Tekoa. I just got a message from Chaya, one of the bereaved women we work with, who had just received a devastating phone call notifying her that the Palestinian killer of Erez Rond, her son, is about to get out of prison and be set free. She says that she felt like somebody had punched her in the gut, as if she was receiving the news of her son's murder again. Multiply the message that Chaya received by thousands. The hostages need to be released, and most of us are not naive about the price. We know that we cannot bear for our people to be hostages in Gaza, but we also know that the price we have to pay is unbearable. I'm glad that my son's murderers were not found. I would be terrified that I, too, would receive a phone call telling me they were letting out Koby and Yosef's killers. We are tired of being called on to bear the injustice of releasing the killers of our children. (Times of Israel) "Prisoner exchange," they say. How conveniently these terms flatten the moral landscape into a level playing field. For what, pray, is being swapped here? On one side, innocent civilians - children, mothers, grandparents - dragged from their homes and held in appalling conditions On the other, convicted criminals, many of whom have committed atrocities that chill the blood. Equating the two is not merely lazy; it is profoundly immoral. Yet, some persist in reshaping Hamas - a proscribed terrorist organization - into something resembling a state actor. The implication is that this "exchange" is part of some twisted game of political chess. No. Hamas does not play chess. It burns the board, murders the players, and then claims victimhood when it is called out for its crimes. (Times of Israel) Over the years, approximately 17,000 terrorists have been released early from Israeli prisons. Between 50-80% returned to terrorism. Islamist murderers who swore to kill Jews will almost certainly continue to kill Jews. Musab Al-Hashlamoun was released in the Tannenbaum deal and orchestrated the murder of 16 Jews. Salah Shehade was released and orchestrated dozens of attacks and the murder of Atzmona preparatory students. Yahya Sinwar was released in the Shalit deal and orchestrated Oct. 7. (Israel Hayom) Palestinian Arabs In 2018, the U.S. Congress enacted the Taylor Force Act (TFA), named for a West Point graduate and veteran of tours in Iraq and Afghanistan who was murdered on March 8, 2016, in Tel Aviv by a Palestinian terrorist. The TFA sought to address the Palestinian Authority practice of paying a financial reward to the family of the terrorist, known as the "Pay-for-Slay" policy. Imprisoned terrorists and released prisoners from Fatah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and others are all adopted by the PA and paid salaries. Congress concluded in the TFA that "The Palestinian Authority's practice of paying salaries to terrorists serving in Israeli prisons, as well as to the families of deceased terrorists, is an incentive to commit acts of terror." It conditioned the bulk of U.S. aid that directly benefits the PA on the complete abolition of the policy. PA terror reward payments totaled over a billion dollars from 2018 through 2023. Due to the PA's financial crisis, it has applied a pay cut to all salaries, including those of imprisoned terrorists. Yet this disruption may be temporary. Any entity that pays huge sums to terrorists as a reward for their participation in terror cannot be seen as a partner for peace. Rather, it should be recognized as a sponsor of terror. The writer, former director of the Military Prosecution in Judea and Samaria, is director of the Palestinian Authority Accountability Initiative at the Jerusalem Center. (Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Observations: Why Hamas Keeps on Celebrating - Jonathan Sacerdoti (Spectator-UK)
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