Ayatollah Khamenei Tells Hamas Delegation Their Victory in Gaza Is a Defeat for America (Tehran Times)
    Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Leader of the Islamic Revolution, met with top Hamas officials in Tehran and emphasized that the Palestinians' victory in Gaza represented a defeat of the United States even more than it did Israel.
    Khamenei quoted the verse: "How many times has a small force vanquished a mighty force by the Will of Allah! (Quran 2:249). You prevailed over the Zionist regime and, of course, over the United States."
    Ayatollah Khamenei told Hamas's leaders: "The day will come when all of you, with absolute honor, have solved the issue of al-Quds [Jerusalem] for the Islamic world, and that day will certainly arrive."

Hizbullah's Soul-Searching Reveals Its Defeat - Col. (res.) Dr. Raphael G. Bouchnik-Chen (BESA Center for Strategic Studies-Bar-Ilan University)
    As the formal ceasefire between the IDF and Hizbullah, announced on Nov. 27, 2024, expires, the Lebanese army is delaying taking control of the area south of the Litani River.
    Israel has made clear that it will not withdraw its forces from southern Lebanon as long as Hizbullah outposts remain in the area.
    There is therefore a chance that both parties will agree to an extension of the ceasefire beyond 60 days.
    It appears that Hizbullah's current motivation to resume hostilities against Israel is low.
    Hizbullah is trying to broadcast an image of a glorious victory, but with its leader Hassan Nasrallah eliminated by Israel along with the lion's share of its command, and about 2,500 of its field operatives killed as well, boasting about the great defeat of the "Zionist enemy" rings hollow.
    Hizbullah acknowledges that the vast arsenal of weapons it had amassed has been substantially eroded by Israel.
    This includes substantial damage to the array of ballistic missiles that had been cultivated and maintained by Iran's Revolutionary Guards, both as a means of deterrence and as an Iranian front line for a "second strike" capability against Israel.
    The most severe of the many blows Hizbullah suffered was the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.
    For many years, the Syrian regime played a central role in preserving the Shiite "axis of evil" in both logistical and ideological terms, with the goal of maintaining Hizbullah as an active arm against Israel.
    No less than this, the dramatic damage Israel inflicted on Iran in the reciprocal attack aimed at its air defense systems accelerated the undermining of Tehran's grip and regional aspirations, particularly in Lebanon.

The Political Shift in Lebanon - Challenges for Israel - Lt.-Col. (ret.) Orna Mizrahi (Institute for National Security Studies)
    The election of Joseph Aoun as president of Lebanon and the appointment of Nawaf Salam as prime minister signal the beginning of a new era in Lebanon and another painful blow to Hizbullah, following its defeat in the war against Israel and the collapse of Assad's regime in Syria.
    Hizbullah's weakened position enabled the opposition forces - backed by the U.S., France, and Saudi Arabia - to secure a required majority, even compelling Hizbullah to reluctantly support Aoun, while Salam was elected without Hizbullah's endorsement.
    This new leadership in Lebanon presents a potential opportunity for Israel, as both Aoun and Salam share an interest in reducing Iran's and Hizbullah's influence and in disarming the organization.
    However, their immediate priority is to rehabilitate collapsing Lebanon and not a direct military confrontation with Hizbullah, which is focused on maintaining its standing and preserving its military power.
    The writer, a senior researcher at INSS, served 26 years in the IDF and 12 years in the National Security Council, including as deputy national security adviser for foreign policy.

Younger Gazans Dream of Leaving - Amal Helles (Sunday Times-UK)
    Nadine Abdullatif, 14, a blogger who has 127,000 followers on Instagram, joined half a million people in late January who made the journey back to Gaza City.
    Some were quick to turn back around, finding nothing waiting for them.
    She said, "The streets I once knew are gone, replaced by rubble. My neighborhood is barely recognizable, houses turned to dust, families are struggling just to survive another day. We wake up, search for water, food, and a way to stay warm."
    "People are exhausted. Everyone is focused on their own survival....Everyone in the streets is talking about Trump's statements."
    "Some say they will never leave....But others, especially the younger generation, feel differently. They dream of leaving - not because they don't love their land, but because they don't see a future here anymore."
    "I am torn. If I had the chance to leave, I probably would."

Gaza-Born Palestinian Politician: How Is This Victory? The Resistance Axis Has Collapsed (MEMRI-TV)
    Gaza-born Palestinian politician Tahani Abu Daqqa, a former Palestinian Authority minister, told Al-Arabiya on Jan. 25, 2025:
    "I would like to ask: In what way is this a victory? Perhaps it can be said that the Hamas movement has shown its strength, has proven that Israel could not easily reach the hostages to free them, but ultimately, it was us who were slaughtered. We have become displaced, we have died, we have been humiliated."
    "The entire Resistance Axis has collapsed. The Resistance Axis that we used to threaten and intimidate Israel has collapsed."
    "The power of Hizbullah, of Syria, and of Hamas, whose weapons frightened the occupation...it is all gone. As far as I can see, we have no Resistance movement left."

U.S. "Maximum Pressure" Announcement Sinks Iranian Currency - Doron Peskin (Calcalist)
    President Trump's announcement of a return to a "maximum pressure" policy on Iran via sanctions caused the Iranian rial to fall to an all-time low, trading at 858,000 rials per U.S. dollar.
    Since November, the rial has lost 25% against the dollar.

U.S. Attorney General Establishes October 7 Task Force (U.S. Department of Justice)
    U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi launched Joint Task Force October 7 (JTF 10-7) on Wednesday to seek justice for victims of the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack in Israel, address the ongoing threat posed by Hamas and its affiliates, and combat antisemitic acts of terrorism and civil rights violations in the U.S.

UN: Over 10,000 Aid Trucks Have Entered Gaza since Ceasefire (AFP)
    More than 10,000 aid trucks have crossed into Gaza since the ceasefire took hold on Jan. 19, UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said Thursday on X, describing it as "a massive surge."

How Western Governments Are Funding the Persecution of Jews - Brendan O'Neill (Spiked-UK)
    The British government helped to fund the persecution of a British Jew. Hostage Emily Damari said she was held in an UNRWA facility for some of the hellish time she spent in Hamas captivity.
    The government pumps millions of pounds into UNRWA, used, in part, for the upkeep of buildings like the one in which Ms. Damari was held. Our money went to an organization whose facilities were used to tyrannize a British Jew.
    British taxpayers helped to fortify buildings in which Hamas committed war crimes. British taxpayers helped to fund one of the dens of antisemitism in which our fellow citizen was held captive for the "crime" of being a Jew in Israel. Where is the outrage?
    Everyone who has been paying attention knows that UNRWA has been thoroughly compromised by its intimate links with Hamas. Other hostages have likewise said they were held in UNRWA buildings.
    It's possible some of these hostages were seized by UNRWA's own employees. Intelligence experts believe that up to 10% of UNRWA's staff in Gaza "have links" to Islamist militants.
    A Telegram channel for 3,000 UNRWA-employed teachers had thousands of messages praising Hamas's pogrom.
    The liberation of Gaza from both the iron fist of Hamas and the patrician governance of UNRWA is the best thing that could happen to Palestinians.