A Prelude To The End Of The War?

On Thursday, Ed Morrissey at Hot Air posted an article about the rapid changes happening in the war in Gaza. Hamas is in an awkward position now that a lot of the leadership in Iran has been removed. It is not clear how much funding Hamas continues to get from Iran. Evidently other countries in the Middle East have taken note of the recent actions against Iran.

The article reports:

Symbolic? Maybe, maybe not. If true, Hamas leaders didn’t just get a soft ultimatum from Donald Trump this week. 

Yesterday, Trump warned Hamas that the final deal for a cease-fire in Gaza was on the table, and that all other options would get “MUCH WORSE.” Qatar may have decided to raise the stakes to something more personal for Hamas’ billionaire clique in Doha:

Doha-based senior Hamas leaders have been told to lay down their arms as part of the efforts to reach a ceasefire deal with Israel, according to a Thursday morning report from The Times newspaper. …

The Times stated that those told to lay down their weapons were “the most senior Hamas leaders outside Gaza,  including the lead negotiator Khalil al-Hayya and other key figures.”

One of the key figures reportedly included Hamas political ­bureau member Zaher Jabareen, “a founder of the group’s military wing in the West Bank.”

An additional bureau member told to lay down weapons was Muhammad Ismail Darwish, who had “met the leaders of Iran and Turkey this year while shuttling between Cairo and Doha for indirect negotiations with Israel,” the report said.

The Times credits this as a “symbolic reflection of Hamas’ interest in the ceasefire proposal,” but that doesn’t make much sense. If Hamas wanted to send that kind of signal, their Qatar contingent would have voluntarily and unilaterally disarmed. They wouldn’t have needed the Qataris to order them to disarm.

That makes this sound like a much different kind of signal. The Qataris are likely as tired of playing the Hamas Hokey Pokey as everyone else, for one thing, while their leadership fattens up on “aid” meant for Palestinians. However, it may mean more than that, especially after the strike on Fordow by Trump and the B-2 bombers. That didn’t just send a signal to Tehran, but to Doha as well — and the rocket fire on Qatar afterward probably didn’t help, either.

This is definitely a wait-and-see moment. It is very possible that the attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities may have had a larger impact than initially realized.

Food As A Weapon

On Friday, Breitbart posted an article about an apology issued by MSNBC. Fake news can result in serious consequences, and the story originally put out by MSNBC was misleading and dangerous.

The article reports:

MSNBC issued an on-air correction on Morning Joe Friday after Middle East correspondent Matt Bradley falsely reported Palestinians had been killed in Gaza while waiting for aid from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).

On Thursday, Bradley had been introducing a video package about “controversial aid sites” run by GHF in Gaza. It was the latest in a series of mainstream media efforts to discredit the organization, which is currently the main provider of food aid in Gaza, distributing 2 to 3 million meals a day.

The United Nations and Hamas both oppose GHF because it undermines their role and power in Gaza.

Bradley’s report repeated familiar, and false, accusations that GHF is dangerous for Palestinians, and went even further than others had gone, targeting GHF executive chairman Rev. Dr. Johnnie Moore because of his “evangelical Christian ideology” and his alleged “somewhat messianic perspective on Israel.”

In introducing the report, Bradley said: “We’re still seeing massive numbers of casualties every single day. And actually, a lot of those folks are killed, and have been killed, waiting in line for much-needed food being distributed by a U.S.-backed organization that has attracted a lot of criticism and a lot of scrutiny. This effort just had its bloodiest day two days ago, when around 60 people were shot dead while waiting in line.”

As Breitbart News has noted, such reports have been false: no deaths or injuries have ever taken place at GHF aid distribution sides. Hamas and others opposed to GHF have spread fake news in an effort to discredit the organization; mainstream media outlets have often repeated these claims, only to retract them later.

Misreporting like this only makes the situation in Gaza worse. Hamas and the United Nations have used the scarcity of food to control the population. The GHF food is a threat to that control.

Aeschylus is credited with saying, “In war, truth is the first casualty.” That is especially true in Middle East reporting.

Stating The Obvious

War is a horrible thing, but sometimes it is necessary. The Bible notes that there is, “A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.” I am not sure that this is the time for peace in the Middle East, and evidently I am not the only person feeling that way.

On June 16th, John Hinderaker posted the following at Power Line Blog:

With respect to Israel and Iran, talk of peace is in the air. We are beset with calls from various quarters to “de-escalate” the situation there, lest wider war break out. President Trump, who partnered with Israel in deceiving Iran prior to Israel’s preemptive strike, is now talking about making another deal with Iran.

I hope he doesn’t mean it. The last thing Israel, or anyone else, should be thinking about is another agreement with the mullahs. Israel now controls the skies, has largely degraded Iran’s missile capability, and can do pretty much anything it wants, militarily. It was delightful to see that Israel wiped out the regime’s state broadcaster.

So this is a golden opportunity, almost certainly the best one Israel ever has had, or ever will have, to bring about regime change in Iran. The mullahocracy needs to go. Neither Israel nor the rest of the world will ever be safe, as long as Islamic extremists control Iran. Israel has already demolished Iran’s proxies, Hamas, Hezbollah, and, to a lesser extent, the Houthis. But if Iran’s regime is allowed to stay in place, it will readily rebuild its terrorist infrastructure, just as it will eventually rebuild its nuclear capability.

I agree with the idea of removing the Iranian theocracy, but I am concerned about what will replace it. First of all, America, covertly or openly, should not be involved in any regime change in Iran. Our track record there is not good–we installed the Shah, and that did not turn out well. I am not sure that we ever fomented a color revolution anywhere that actually turned out well. The Iranians need to be free to choose their own future without outside interference.

Fake News Has Consequences

On Sunday, Red State posted an article about the terrorist attack in Boulder, Colorado, on Sunday. The article noted that the attack took place hours after CNN, the Associated Press, Fox News, and other news outlets reported a fake story about Israeli soldiers massacring Gazans at an aid distribution center. The story simply was not true. I doubt that story alone was enough to inspire a terrorist who probably already had planned his attack, but how many future terrorists will it inspire before it is totally renounced as ‘fake news?’

The article reports:

Israel supporters marching at a memorial walk for the hostages still being held by Hamas were attacked with Molotov cocktails on Sunday, according to multiple reports. Videos of the aftermath are already circulating, and an alleged assailant is in custody.

…While officials from Boulder, a notoriously left-wing city, urged people not to jump to conclusions, there is no doubt what the motive was. The attacker can be seen saying, “This will end when Palestine is free,” in this  video.

The terrorist has missed the point–Palestine (which has never actually been a country) needs to be free of Hamas. Since that is not possible, the people of the Gaza Strip need to be relocated to a place where they can live in peace. If you look at a map of the Middle East, you realize that the Arab countries have a lot of land and that Israel has a very small amount of land. Logically, if you want a country of Palestine, it could easily be given a small piece of Arab land to live happily every after. The reason that has never happened is that as long as there is no official Palestinian state and the ‘refugees’ have no home, the Arabs can use that as an issue in their fight to eliminate Israel.

The article concludes:

This is what happens when national and international press outlets run with an obviously fake blood libel fed to them by Hamas. Just like the two murdered Israeli embassy workers in mid-May, there are consequences to riling up deranged lunatics who want a “global intifada.” 

The Thinking Behind October 7th

On May 18th, Zero Hedge posted an article about what is considered the reason behind the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2024. I suspect there are many in Hamas who currently wish they could rethink that attack.

According to the article:

Newly uncovered internal Hamas documents confirm a longtime theory explaining the motives behind the Oct.7, 2023 terror attack which kicked off the bloody and grinding Gaza war, which still shows no signs of abating and has resulted in unprecedented death and destruction in the Gaza Strip.

The documents, published by The Wall Street Journal, demonstrate that Hamas leaders had a specific aim of preventing a potential peace agreement between Israel and Saudi Arabia based on the US-backed Abraham Accords. This was speculated about soon after the horrific attacks that also kicked off the hostage crisis.

This is according to minutes from a high-level meeting which cite now slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and which were reportedly discovered by Israeli forces in Gaza tunnels. Sinwar was quoted in the internal papers, which are dated Oct. 2, 2023 – as saying, “There is no doubt that the Saudi-Zionist normalization agreement is progressing significantly.”

The article concludes:

And the prospect of Palestinian statehood resulting from some kind of Israel-Saudi normalization agreement based on Trump’s Abraham Accords (conceived during his first administration) – which US media reports previously hailed as ‘deal of the century’ – also clearly seems a pipe dream at this point.

In this regard at least, Sinyar’s ‘extraordinary act’ served its purpose, but the bloody aftermath is thousands of Israelis killed, many tens of thousands of Palestinians dead and wounded, and a region on fire.

So what would Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords mean and why is it important? The two negative players in the Middle East right now are Iran and Turkey. Turkey, unfortunately is a member of NATO, which complicates things. A majority of the Middle Eastern countries do not want Iran to get a nuclear bomb. They understand that even if the bomb is only used on Israel it will negatively impact them–radiation, infrastructure damage, etc. Iran is funding Hamas. If Iran is isolated, it may lose the ability to fund Hamas. Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords might be the domino that falls and paves the way for other countries to join. Iran would be isolated, and the money to Hamas would probably dry up. October 7th was an act of desperation. I don’t think Hamas got the results they wanted–Israel is not going to stop fighting this time.

Oddly Enough, War Is Supposed To Have Rules

According to Britannica:

The development of the Geneva Conventions was closely associated with the Red Cross, whose founder, Henri Dunant, initiated international negotiations that produced the Convention for the Amelioration of the Wounded in Time of War in 1864.

…Because some belligerents in World War II had abused the principles contained in earlier conventions, an International Red Cross conference in Stockholm in 1948 extended and codified the existing provisions. The conference developed four conventions, which were approved in Geneva on August 12, 1949: (1) the Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field, (2) the Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded, Sick, and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea, (3) the Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, and (4) the Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.

These are supposed to be “the rules of war.” Hamas does not follow them, and humanitarian groups choose to overlook that fact.

On Friday, The Washington Free Beacon posted an article about an investigation, conducted by the Henry Jackson Society’s Centre for the New Middle East.

The article reports:

The United Nations and its network of international NGOs have systematically whitewashed Hamas’s reliance on human shields in Gaza, sweeping aside mountains of evidence revealing how the terror group intentionally places civilians in harm’s way to maximize bloodshed, a new report finds.

The first-of-its-kind investigation, conducted by the Henry Jackson Society’s Centre for the New Middle East, presents “the ‘missing chapter’ in all the U.N. and NGO reports” issued since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. Its authors reveal in detail how the terror group transformed civilian residences and infrastructure into military outposts, all while evading international scrutiny.

The article cites incidents such as placing mines among children’s toys and storing rockets in a child’s bed. Hamas has also reportedly hidden entrances to their tunnels in children’s bedrooms. The terrorist group has long been known to use civilians as shields. That is what makes it so difficult for Israel to fight Hamas without killing civilians.

The article notes:

Hamas members have admitted the terror group’s attitude toward civilian casualties in Gaza. The day after Oct. 7, for instance, Hamas official Ali Baraka told Russia Today TV that “the Israelis are known to love life. We, on the other hand, sacrifice ourselves. We consider our dead to be martyrs.”

Terrorists’ admissions of their own tactics have not prompted the U.N. to acknowledge them. In one notable display noted in the Henry Jackson Society compilation, a U.N. official said “word count” prevented the international body from noting Hamas’s reliance on human shields in a June 2024 report on “Children and Armed Conflict.”

…High-profile human rights organizations that work alongside the U.N. have also downplayed—or outright ignored—Hamas’s intentional endangerment of civilians.

One such group, Amnesty International—known for its hostility to Israel—released a December 2024 report accusing the Jewish state of perpetrating a genocide in Gaza. The 296-page report, You Feel Like You Are Subhuman: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza, barely mentions Hamas’s battlefield tactics, the Henry Jackson Society’s analysis shows.

Much like the ICJ’s filing, Amnesty International “deliberately omits any discussion of Hamas’s extensive tunnel network,” mentioning them only in the context of Israeli military operations.

A 2024 report from Human Rights Watch contained similar accusations of genocide without any discussion of Hamas’s tactics.

There are a lot of causes for the irrational anti-Semitism that is rampant around the world right now. A media that fails to report the truth is one of them.

Why The Palestinians Cannot Have Their Own State

On Thursday, Legal Insurrection posted an article about a recent poll taken in the “West Bank.” The poll is disturbing to say the least.

The article reports:

Most Palestinians in West Bank support mass-murder, rape and kidnapping of innocent Israelis by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7, 2023, a latest poll shows.

“59% of Palestinians polled in the “West Bank” still think that Hamas’ made the “correct decision” to torture, rape, burn alive, murder, and kidnap hundreds of hostages—even including children,” the media watchdog Israel-based Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) observed, citing the poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research.

Having learned nothing from the October 7 massacre and its aftermath, nearly 80 percent of all Palestinians were opposed to the dismantling of Hamas as a terrorist fighting force, poll numbers show. “77% of Palestinians overall (and 85% of Palestinians in the PA-controlled “West Bank”!) “oppose the disarmament of Hamas in the Gaza Strip in order to stop the war on Gaza,” the media watchdog added.

…The poll results should not come as a surprise if one recalls how thousands of Palestinians flocked to greet Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023 as they rode back on their pick-up trucks after massacring and raping Israeli men, women and children —  brandishing their weapons and parading their captives.

The macabre display was not limited to Hamas-ruled Gaza; the Palestinian Authority-run West Bank witnessed hideous celebrations on the streets and in schools over the mass-murder of around 1,200 Israelis.

The article concludes:

The poll also showed that nearly half of Gaza’s residents would prefer to leave the Hamas-infested enclave. The mainstream media was outraged when President Donald Trump in February suggested relocating large number of Gazans to neighboring Arab states for the post-war reconsecration of the enclave to take place.

“Almost half of Gazans may be willing to apply to Israel to help them leave to other countries, according to a survey released Tuesday,” The Times of Israel reported. “The poll (…) showed that for the first time since the Gaza war was sparked by the Hamas onslaught of October 7, 2023, more Gazans thought Israel rather than Hamas would emerge victorious, though a plurality thought the war would end in a stalemate.”

Why would you form a nation of people who have so little regard for human life and the rules of civilization?

Forgetting The Lesson Of October 7th

Any plan that puts the Palestinian Authority or the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) back in control of the Gaza Strip is simply a path to war and to the genocide of the Jews in Israel. In 2005, Israel moved the Jewish settlements out of Gaza and gave the area over to be governed by the Palestinians. In January 2006, Hamas was elected by the Palestinians in Gaza as their government. In 2006, rockets were being fired into Israel from Gaza. That continued until Gaza was pretty much decimated by the Israeli Defense Forces.  The greenhouses that had formed the basis of the successful Gaza economy were destroyed by the new residents and the metal water pipes used to make rockets. It was evident from the beginning that Gaza had no intention of being a peaceful neighbor to Israel. Their children were taught the glories of martyrdom from an early age. Things continued to get worse until October 7, 2023, when Gaza launched a brutal attack on Israel. The lessons of history illustrate the fact that if peace is a goal, the Jews need to rule Gaza. Unfortunately, Europe has not yet learned that lesson.

On March 8, Fox News reported the following:

A $53 billion Arab-backed plan for the reconstruction of Gaza has garnered support from France, Germany, Italy and the U.K., after receiving pushback from the U.S. and Israel

“The plan shows a realistic path to the reconstruction of Gaza and promises – if implemented – swift and sustainable improvement of the catastrophic living conditions for the Palestinians living in Gaza,” the foreign ministers wrote in a joint statement. 

The foreign ministers called for a post-war plan based on “a solid political and security framework,” but reiterated the need for Hamas to not be able to govern Gaza. Additionally, the European leaders said that they are supportive of the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) “central role” in a post-war Gaza and “the implementation of its reform agenda.”

The $53 billion Egyptian plan was meant as a counter to President Donald Trump’s U.S. takeover idea and comes after Cairo rejected the idea of accepting displaced Gazans for “national security” reasons. While Trump’s plan would resettle Palestinians outside the Strip, Egypt’s proposal focuses on Palestinian-led reconstruction efforts. 

Both the U.S. and Israel have rejected the Arab-backed plan for Gaza reconstruction. Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Oren Marmorstein said in a statement that the plan “fails to address the realities of the situation following October 7th, 2023, remaining rooted in outdated perspectives.”

The Arab countries know the history of the Palestinians and Hamas. They do not want to import terrorists into their country. That is the root of this alternative plan. The Palestinian Authority has the same goals as Hamas. This is not a path to peace, it is a road to another war. Unless you break up the Palestinian Authority and Hamas and get them to focus on living happily in various Arab countries, you will not achieve peace.

North Carolina Is Not Immune From Lawfare

On Friday, the RAIR (Rise Align Ignite Reclaim) USA Foundation, which describes itself as grassroots activist organization comprised of everyday Americans leading a movement to reclaim our Republic from the network of individuals and organizations waging war on Americans, our Constitution, our borders and our Judeo-Christian values posted an article on their website about some recent events in Holly Springs, North Carolina.

The article reports:

Sloan Rachmuth, a Jewish journalist and political commentator, was arrested at her home in front of her terrified children on November 3, 2024. Her alleged crime? According to Rachmuth, she objected to a supermarket employee at Harris Teeter wearing the controversial keffiyeh, a political symbol widely associated with Hamas and its ambitions to destroy Israel and the Jewish people worldwide.

Rachmuth, an outspoken advocate against antisemitism and a contributor to national media outlets on Middle Eastern affairs, explained to RAIR Foundation in an exclusive interview that she was handcuffed, marched through her neighborhood, and charged with cyberstalking, posting about the troubling incident online.

Rachmuth explained the police never asked for her side of the story, nor investigated the credibility of the alleged victim. Her arrest was based solely on an unverified accusation, raising serious concerns about law enforcement’s complicity in this apparent retaliation.

Rather than uphold its corporate attire and political expression policies, Harris Teeter—a subsidiary of The Kroger Co., the largest supermarket chain in America—ignored its regulations. Indeed, Harris Teeter allowed an employee to wear a threatening symbol of Islamic and Palestinian terrorism, visibly wrapping it around her head while working with customers.

The article includes a summary of the event that led to her arrest:

On October 31, 2024, Rachmuth entered Harris Teeter on Sunset Lake Road in Holly Springs, North Carolina, a store where she had shopped regularly for seven years. According to Rachmuth, as she checked out, she noticed an employee handling food while wearing a keffiyeh—a garment long associated with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and frequently worn by Hamas militants and supporters. In America, the keffiyeh has been used as a rallying icon for violence against Jews during demonstrations. Even countries like the United Arab Emirates and Egypt—both Arab nations—have banned its political use, recognizing its ties to Islamic groups.

Aware of its political significance, Rachmuth says she politely asked the employee, Amira M. Fattah, “It’s Halloween; are you wearing this as a costume?” Fattah replied, “No, it’s for Free Palestine,” confirming she wore the keffiyeh as a political statement rather than for religious reasons.

As a Jewish woman and a longtime customer, Rachmuth was deeply uncomfortable with a store employee openly supporting an ideology that symbolized the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people while handling food. While at the store, Rachmuth escalated her concerns to store manager Sheronna Irick, expecting Harris Teeter to uphold its policies against political speech in the workplace.

Instead of addressing the hostile work environment created by an employee wearing a symbol of Jewish oppression, Irick dismissed Rachmuth’s complaint outright and told her, “Like it or leave.”

…Frustrated by the store manager’s hostile response, Rachmuth turned to social media and posted about the encounter on X (formerly Twitter). She included a photo of the employee wearing the keffiyeh—showing only the employee’s profile—along with a caption questioning the corporation’s stance on political speech in the workplace.

…Three days later, after Rachmuth’s X post, Holly Springs Police officers—Elliott Warren, Benjamin Marino, and Edgar Hernandez—arrived at Rachmuth’s home and began pounding on her door.

The article includes the outcome of the case:

In a letter to Rachmuth dated January 9, 2023, the police admitted that they had thoroughly analyzed the documentation, consulted with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (NC-SBI), and ultimately concluded that the harassment fell under ‘First Amendment protected speech’—even though it included threats, public exposure of personal records, and clear targeting of her family. In an email, the police chief justified inaction by citing the need to follow a chain of command before presenting charges for judicial review.

Yet, regarding her arrest, no such legal scrutiny or procedural delay was observed, as evidenced by the charges being dropped within 24 hours. She was promptly taken into custody without the due diligence police had claimed was necessary in previous cases. The statute requires ‘repeated’ communication directly to a person, a requirement absent from the arrest warrant. Furthermore, North Carolina courts have overturned similar cases on constitutional grounds.

Questions remain over who ordered her arrest. The DA was not involved in the initial decision—as later suggested when Freeman personally called her to confirm there was no case. Was this the work of a police department eager to silence her? She argues that the lack of due process in her case, compared to the meticulous legal caution used when she was the victim, speaks volumes about the selective enforcement of the law.

Please follow the link above to read the entire article. This was definitely a violation of Rachmuth’s First Amendment rights. It’s sad to think this can happen anywhere.

This Makes My Blood Boil

On Thursday, Hot Air posted an article about Hamas’ release of the bodies of four hostages. The fact that Israel is backed into a corner and is releasing live terrorists for dead hostages is bad enough, but Hamas used to occasion as propaganda. It was disgusting.

The article quotes The U.K. Daily Mail:

Hamas has been condemned for parading the coffins of hostages in Gaza, with the United Nations rights chief saying the ‘abhorrent’ treatment of the October 7 attack victims ‘flies in the face of international law.’

Israelis are mourning the youngest hostages – baby Kfir Bibas and his four-year-old brother Ariel – as well as their mother Shiri and elderly captive Oded Lifshitz, whose bodies are believed to have been inside the caskets.

The four coffins were displayed to crowds in front of disturbing propaganda posters before being handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) by armed Hamas fighters. 

I admire Israel’s restraint. If it were up to me, Gaza would be a radioactive parking lot by now.

The article at Hot Air includes multiple pictures of the transfer of the bodies of the hostages.

The article at Hot Air includes the following screenshot from X:

I agree.

UPDATE:

The woman’s body that was returned is not the mother of the two murdered children.

 

Your Family History Does NOT Determine Your Future

On Saturday, The U.K. Daily Mail posted an article about Kai Höss, the grandson of Rudolf Höss, commandant of Auschwitz. Kai Höss is now a pastor, who speaks to groups about the horrors of that camp.

The article reports:

Just the other day, a local technical college near Stuttgart, Germany, rang Kai Höss with alarming news. Someone had been etching swastikas on the doors of the loos. 

This followed a number of student protests against Israeli operations in Gaza. Might Kai give a talk to the students?

He did not hesitate. Days later he was addressing a packed assembly, reading a first-hand account of scenes from the death camp at Auschwitz.

Of two small boys, newly arrived off a cattle truck and so engrossed in a game of tag that they failed to heed the command to follow the rest into the gas chamber until the commandant ordered two guards to pick them up and throw them inside.

Of a frantic mother trying to wedge the doors open and force her children out, screaming: ‘Why don’t you at least let my precious children live?’

‘People were in tears – including me,’ Kai tells me. ‘And so they should be. If this stuff doesn’t get you from here to here [he points from his head to his heart], then it hasn’t sunk in. It’s just another history lesson.’

The college has asked him to come back and give the same talk to those who could not be accommodated last time.

He is happy to oblige. Germany never takes the appearance of swastikas lightly, of course. But Kai speaks with a unique authority. The author of those accounts was not some terrified witness. He was Kai’s grandfather Rudolf Höss, commandant of Auschwitz and one of the most brutal criminals of the Second World War.

…Tracked down by the British after the conflict, he laid it all out in the chillingly clinical memoir he wrote as he awaited his date with the gallows in April 1947.

‘No one wants to be Rudolf Höss’s grandson,’ Kai, 62, tells me over a cup of tea at his home near Stuttgart. ‘Every day I must face the fact that I am descended from the worst mass-murderer in history.’

While some might want to put as much distance as possible between themselves and such a dark family past, Kai takes the opposite view.

A hotel manager turned evang-elical pastor, this father-of-four wants to ensure future generations never forget the horrors committed by his grandfather’s generation. In particular he wants to do what he can to stem the Gaza-fuelled rising tide of anti-Semitism in Western democracies.

He is determined to debunk any attempts to use moral relativism to compare Israel to the Nazis, let alone accuse the Jewish state of ‘genocide’ and thereby demand the dismantling of Israel.

‘You hear those demonstrators shouting ‘from the river to the sea’, but they don’t even know which river – or which sea,’ he says, shaking his head.

‘There’s all this emotional energy but they don’t understand what it’s really about. Hamas’s strategy was to bring Israel to the point where they get mad and hit hard so the world rises against Israel.

Please follow the link to read the entire article. This is a man who knows what he is talking about.

I Suspect This May Be A Very Temporary Agreement

The big news right now is the cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas. The fact that the hostages are coming home is wonderful, but I am not sure the rest of the deal will hold for very long if it happens. Hamas has a way of changing the rules on the way to the signing of an agreement. Right now, it is a great idea to get the hostages out, but with President Trump coming into office and Netanyahu in charge in Israel, I suspect Hamas is not going to be happy for very long.

On Wednesday, Red State reported:

On Wednesday, we reported that Israel and Hamas had reached a tentative ceasefire deal, which will result in the release of some of the terror group’s hostages. Debate has raged in the ensuing hours over whether it is a good deal for Israel and which American commander-in-chief deserves the credit: lame-duck President Joe Biden or incoming President-elect Donald Trump.

While we certainly hope for the release of all the hostages taken in Hamas’ savage Oct. 7, 2023 attack, their newest chief is sounding anything but peaceful. In fact, despite the deal being reached, Hamas leader Khalil al-Haya delivered a sick, bloodthirsty call for more violence and said he was “proud” of Oct. 7.

His words are deeply disturbing:

Hamas Leader Khalil al-Haya allegedly promised another October 7 style attack during a press conference Wednesday just after a tentative ceasefire was announced, according to multiple reports.

Al-Haya said that the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel “will forever be a source of pride for our people” and expressed no regret for the destruction caused by the terrorist group, according to multiple sources. As of Wednesday afternoon, a six-week ceasefire is set to begin on Sunday, with both sides set to exchange hostages and Israeli troops withdrawing from Gaza.

The article concludes:

The message continues to be delivered over and over again—usually by Hamas itself—that a civilized world cannot exist alongside such a barbaric death cult that believes in sadistic violence over everything else. Joe Biden could never wrap his head around this, but hopefully incoming President Donald Trump does understand it. While it would be beautiful to see some of the hostages released, the fact that the terrorists still hold them after all this time shows the depths of their depravity.

The reality is that there will be no true peace until these maniacal zealots are wiped off the face of the earth.

We can’t put Hamas in jail because they will take hostages to get their members back. The solution to the Hamas problem is one I don’t want to think about.

As Iranian Military Might In The Middle East Shrinks, China’s Grows

On January 6th, The National Interest reported the following:

Amid Iranian defeats across the Middle East, the Houthi rebels in Yemen are increasingly turning to China for missile components to use against the West.

The Yemen-based Houthi rebels have found a new backer: the People’s Republic of China. In a recent report published by i24 News, U.S. intelligence sources detail the undercover collaboration between Beijing and the Iranian-backed terror group which has perpetuated the ongoing instability in the Red Sea. While the Houthis have indiscriminately carried out attacks targeting warships and shipping vessels alike in these waters for years, the rebel group’s maritime strikes have escalated following the October 7, 2023, massacre in Israel. According to the Israel-based news outlet, the Houthis are now using Chinese-designed weapons in their attacks. In exchange, the terror group will cease attacks on ships flying the Chinese flag. With a shared mutual contempt for the West, Beijing and Tehran’s collaboration in the region makes sense.

 Iran has suffered significant blows over the last year. From the decimation of Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah’s leadership in Lebanon to the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria, Tehran’s clout in the Middle East is rapidly deteriorating. Lacking the resources and weapons needed to continue its asymmetric objectives in the region, the regime has relied on China and Russia for support. The rogue allies are largely isolated from the international community and therefore lean on each other for arms, funds and even training at times.

The article concludes:

The Chinese-Iranian collaboration on this front coincides with the allies’ determination to establish a new international order based on their own rules. Beijing, Tehran, Moscow and even Pyongyang are increasingly working together to undermine the U.S. and Western power. The People’s Republic of China has also allegedly interfered in the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine by providing drones to Moscow. Now that U.S. intelligence services have uncovered China’s material support for a group perpetuating attacks against Israel, the U.S. and other Western nations, the depth of this collaboration is even more alarming.

Diplomacy in the Middle East is going to be very complicated in the coming years. China is not fighting the west directly–it is just supplying weapons to countries that will not be able to stop its rise to world domination in the future. The idea is that these countries will use the weapons against countries that might actually be able to compete with China. If China can significantly weaken the major western countries without being directly involved, there will be no barriers to China become the sole superpower of the world.

The Only Path To Peace In The Middle East

While the Biden administration and the political left are pushing for a two-state solution to end the war in the Middle East, people who actually understand the situation understand that this is not realistic. The status quo before October 7, 2023, was essentially a two-state solution–Gaza was not controlled by Israel–Jews were not allowed in Gaza. Many of the residents of Gaza worked in Israel because of the poor economic situation in Gaza (caused by using the relief money for weapons and tunnels). Sadly, many of the murderers on October 7th brutally attacked the people who provided them with work and income. The two-state solution is not acceptable as a permanent solution for the residents of Gaza and the West Bank–they want a one-state solution with Israel driven into the sea and all of the Jews killed. That was evident on October 7th.

On Monday, Breitbart reported the following:

Israel reiterated a new offer Monday made last week by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week: Hamas terrorists who release their Israeli hostages will be allowed to live; those who do not will be hunted down and killed.

There are 101 remaining Israeli hostages still in Hamas captivity in Gaza, about a third of whom are presumed dead.

However, the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by Israeli troops last Wednesday has renewed hope for a hostage deal — even if it is not clear with whom Israel would be negotiating. In the vacuum, private actors have begun to step forward: Daniel Birnbaum, has made a public offer to pay $100,000 per living Israeli hostage freed by October 23.

…As Breitbart News reported last Thursday, Netanyahu gave an address in Hebrew in which he said: “I am calling on everyone who is holding our hostages: whoever lays down his arms and returns our hostages, we will allow him to escape and to live. And by the same measure, I say: whoever harms our hostages, his blood will be on his own head.

It is long past time for Hamas to release the hostages. It is also long past time for the American government to put pressure on Iran to have the hostages released. The real solution to peace in the Middle East is regime change in Iran.

Maybe Yahya Sinwar Was Not The Entire Problem

On Friday, Ed Morrissey posted an article at Hot Air about some of the statements made after the killing of Yahya Sinwar. Those who fail to learn the lessons of history tend to repeat the mistakes.

The article reports:

So much for all of the fatuous demands from the Biden foreign-policy team for Israel to declare an end to the war. Both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris made remarks yesterday cheering the death of Yahya Sinwar in Rafah, a city that both had warned Israel not to enter at all for most of the winter and spring. Both proclaimed this a great time to declare the conflict over, as did the State Department — and all aimed at getting Benjamin Netanyahu to stand down:

As both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated Sinwar’s death, they also expressed hope that the moment would enable Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare victory in Gaza and bring Israeli operations there to a close, finally clearing the way to a hostage deal and easing the daily drumbeat of grim headlines: civilian casualties in Gaza, ongoing Israeli operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and a looming Israeli strike against Iran.

Biden’s statement made even less sense than Harris’, which at least sounded coherent. I clipped this strange remark from Biden in the Final Word post last night, but it’s worth considering here as well:

“This is a good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world,” Biden said in a statement.

“To my Israeli friends, this is no doubt a day of relief and reminiscence, similar to the scenes witnessed throughout the United States after President Obama ordered the raid to kill Osama Bin Laden in 2011.”

The killing of Osama Bin Laden in 2011 really had little impact on anything except to bring some closure to the families of 9/11 victims. It really had very little impact on the war on terror–it was doubtful how much Bin Laden was controlling at that point.

The article notes:

Netanyahu isn’t the problem; Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran are the belligerents that started this war. And all three have declared that they intend to keep fighting it even after the deaths of the leadership in both Iranian proxies. Hamas confirmed Sinwar’s death and reiterated his position that they would not negotiate on hostages until Israel withdraws from Gaza and pledges not to return:

Israeli hostages in Gaza will not return until “the aggression” on the besieged Palestinian enclave stops and Israeli forces withdraw, Khalil Al-Hayya, deputy Gaza Hamas chief and the group’s chief negotiator, said on Friday.

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by the IDF, Hamas official Basem Naim confirmed on Friday, Israeli media reported. …

“Israel seems to believe that killing our leaders means the end of our movement and the struggle of the Palestinian people. They can believe what they want, and this is not the first time they have said that,” he added.

Israel did not start this war. I hope Israel continues it until all of Hamas is wiped out. Until that happens, there will not be peace. Israel is not the problem–nor is Prime Minister Netanyahu.

The Death Of Another Terrorist

On Thursday, The Washington Examiner reported that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed in a strike in southern Gaza. He has been described as the man behind the October 7th attacks on Israel.

The article reports:

Although Israelis and Palestinians have both suffered from Sinwar’s war, the terrorist himself directly profited from the conflict. Sinwar had been Hamas’s commander in the Gaza Strip but was promoted to lead the group after Israel killed Ismail Haniyeh in a daring strike in Iran in July 2024. Sinwar rose in prominence within Hamas after he plotted the abduction and murder of Israeli soldiers in the late 1980s. He was particularly infamous for his role in killing Palestinian “collaborators” — that is, those Palestinians who objected to Hamas’s brutal, authoritarian rule. Sinwar was later caught and jailed in an Israeli prison for his crimes. He even received life-saving treatment for brain cancer while he was incarcerated. Tragically, the nephew of Yuval Bitton, the Israeli doctor who saved Sinwar, would be among those murdered by Hamas on Oct. 7.

…Sinwar’s death is significant, both symbolically and otherwise. Israel has killed the “architect” of the worst slaughter of Jewish civilians since the Holocaust. His demise is also the tip of the iceberg. In a span of months, Israel has eliminated the head of Hamas, Haniyeh, as well as top Hezbollah operatives, including the longtime leader of that Lebanese-based group, Hassan Nasrallah. And now Haniyeh’s successor is dead, too. Hamas and Hezbollah, Iran’s two most formidable proxies, are severely degraded. The overwhelming majority of Hamas’s “battalions” have been destroyed — and many of them, it must be noted, in Rafah, where Sinwar was killed and where the Biden administration attempted to pressure Israel not to launch operations.

Thank God for the leadership of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in continuing to fight terrorism despite the Biden administration’s trying to hinder his efforts.

Wanting A Cease-Fire So They Can Re-Arm

On Tuesday, The New York Post reported the following:

Hezbollah said Tuesday it is now ready to engage in cease-fire talks with Israel, after suffering serious blows to its leadership and ranks in recent months.

The terror group in Lebanon made the announcement after firing more than 100 rockets at the Jewish state hours earlier.

Hezbollah’s deputy secretary general, Naim Qassem, publicly endorsed a truce with Israel, the first such time the terror group has proposed a cease-fire not conditioned on the war in Gaza.

We need to remember that the only time the Arabs or the United Nations call for a cease-fire in the Middle East is when Israel is winning and the Arabs involved need time to re-arm. You can bet if the terrorists were winning they would be avoiding talks for a cease-fire.

The article concludes:

It remains unclear if Israel would accept a cease-fire deal with Hezbollah as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reiterated that the operations in Lebanon would not end until he is assured the terror group will no longer pose an active threat to northern Israel.

The US and France have repeatedly urged for the two sides to engage in a truce over fears the conflict would spark an all-out war in the Middle East.

The only was to deal with terrorists is to defeat them totally. Otherwise October 7, 2023, will be an event that happens periodically. America understood that in World War II. If we don’t remember it, we will be on our way to World War III.

The Numbers Tell The Story

The media tells us that Israel is unmercifully killing civilian Palestinians, but is that really the truth? First of all, Israel invites the civilians to leave an area before it attacks. It recommends safe zones for them to go. Secondly, there are very few Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank who do not support Hamas.

On Monday, Pamela Geller reported the following on the Geller Report:

Don’t say “Hamas’ massacre.” Say “the Palestinian massacre.” That’s the way Palestinians see Oct. 7.

Every poll of Palestinians since October 7, 2023, by both AWRAD – Arab World for Research and Development, and PSR – Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, shows that an overwhelming majority of Palestinians supported and continue to support the rapes, torture, beheadings, and murder of more than 1,100 people in southern Israel led by Hamas, and their kidnapping of 250 hostages.

Significantly, the polls found that the support in the West Bank was higher than the that the Gaza Strip. Asked if they supported the attack on Oct 7, the first poll in November 2023 found West Bank support at 83%. Half a year later, in June 2024, after the destruction in Gaza, 73% still said that the decision to attack Israel was correct. In the Gaza Strip, two months into the war support had already dropped to 63% and continued to fall to only 31% in March 2024, saying it was correct to attack. Astonishingly, the joy over the rape, torture, beheadings, and murder of Israelis was so great that even after much of Gaza was in rubble following Israel’s counter attack, for West Bank Arabs that one day of horror inflicted on Israelis, made the destruction of Gaza an acceptable price to pay.

Israel did not start this war. They did not wantonly murder innocent women and children. From what I have read, the October 7th invasion by Hamas was supposed to happen at a later date simultaneously with an invasion in the north of Israel by Hezbollah. Thank God that Hamas got impatient and started without Hezbollah. The only path to peace in the Middle East is through the elimination of Hezbollah, Hamas, and the leaders of their sponsor nation, Iran. A regime change in Iran will begin to bring peace to the region.

Wisdom From Someone Who Executed Successful Middle East Policy

On Sunday, Legal Insurrection posted an article about the recent events in the Middle East.

The article reports:

Former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and advisor, Jared Kushner, had some wise words yesterday about Israel.

Israel has to finish the job. Now. She cannot stop.

People have responded, “I don’t agree with you politically at all, but this is true!”

Kushner wrote:

September 27th is the most important day in the Middle East since the Abraham Accords breakthrough.

I have spent countless hours studying Hezbollah and there is not an expert on earth who thought that what Israel has done to decapitate and degrade them was possible.

This is significant because Iran is now fully exposed. The reason why their nuclear facilities have not been destroyed, despite weak air defense systems, is because Hezbollah has been a loaded gun pointed at Israel. Iran spent the last forty years building this capability as its deterrent.

President Trump would often say, “Iran has never won a war but never lost a negotiation.” The Islamic Republic’s regime is much tougher when risking Hamas, Hezbollah, Syrian and Houthi lives than when risking their own. Their foolish efforts to assassinate President Trump and hack his campaign reek of desperation and are hardening a large coalition against them.

Iranian leadership is stuck in the old Middle East, while their neighbors in the GCC are sprinting toward the future by investing in their populations and infrastructure. They are becoming dynamic magnets for talent and investment while Iran falls further behind. As the Iranian proxies and threats dissipate, regional security and prosperity will rise for Christians, Muslims and Jews alike

The article concludes with more of Jared Kushner’s statement:

The philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy wrote on X, “I keep reading everywhere that Lebanon is ‘on the brink of collapse.’ No. It is on the brink of relief and deliverance.”
Moments like this come once in a generation, if they even come at all.

The Middle East is too often a solid where little changes. Today, it is a liquid and the ability to reshape is unlimited. Do not squander this moment.

Let’s all pray for success, for peace and for the good judgement of our leaders.

Lebanon used to be the garden spot of the Middle East. I pray that someday it will again be the beautiful, free land it once was.

 

Isn’t This Racist?

On Wednesday, The Jewish News Syndicate reported that the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution declaring Israeli presence to be illegal in any area over the 1949 armistice line. That’s interesting. Israel is one of the few countries in the Middle East where Jews, Christians, and Muslims have the same rights and are allowed to participate in the government of the nation. Why is the United Nations picking on the a non-racist country in the area rather than the countries where Jews are not allowed? Why–because there are now enough Muslim countries in the United Nations to begin to take over the organization and to align with the non-Muslim tyrants to attempt to make Sharia Law and Muslim dominance a feature of the United Nations.

The article reports:

More than 40 countries sponsored the resolution, which was the first that Palestinians filed after being granted unprecedented privileges, for a non-U.N. member, earlier this year.

The resolution calls on the Israel Defense Forces to withdraw completely from Judea and Samaria, eastern Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip within 12 months, which means evacuating all Jewish communities beyond the armistice line, including Jerusalem’s Old City.

It also bans arms sales to the IDF of any equipment that would be expected reasonably to be used in the territory over the 1949 lines and calls for a boycott of all products produced by Jews in those areas.

The resolution text lacks any mention of Israeli security concerns, historic ties to the lands or Hamas’s terror attacks in Israel on Oct. 7.

Just for the record, this is the land given to Israel by the Balfour Declaration”

These are the borders for the Jewish state set up by the League of Nations:

The Arabs do not have a legitimate claim to Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, eastern Jerusalem, or the Gaza Strip. Historically, all of these lands are Jewish and play a major role in both Jewish and Christian history.

The article at the Jewish News Syndicate concludes:

Arsen Ostrovsky and Nadav Steinman, CEO and board chair, respectively, of the International Legal Forum, stated that “today, simply put, the United Nations has become the diplomatic arm of Hamas” and that the resolution “is just the latest in a litany of obscenely one-sided anti-Israel resolutions at the U.N. since Oct. 7.” 

“All it does is reward the murderers, rapists and abductors of Hamas while pouring further fuel on worldwide antisemitism and eroding whatever remaining credibility of the already problematic and politicized International Court of Justice, upon which this resolution is meant to be based,” they added. “Ultimately, peace will only prevail when Hamas is defeated and the hostages are released, not through tiresome antics and pyrrhic Palestinian ‘victories’ at the U.N.”

Giving land to terrorists has never worked in the past. There is no reason to believe that it will work in the future.

Don’t Mess With Israel

Israel has not yet taken responsibility for this event, but most sources are suggesting that Israel is behind the event.

On September 17th, The New York Post reported:

Hundreds of Hezbollah terrorists were seriously wounded on Tuesday when the pagers they used to communicate exploded around their belts and pockets – with officials claiming a hacking attack by Israel triggered the blasts.

Hezbollah officials confirmed the wide-range attack on its operatives, including fighters and medics, with one member, speaking on the condition of anonymity, calling it the “biggest security breach” since it began its daily attacks on Israel on Oct. 8.

Videos uploaded to social media show several incidents where seemingly unaware men had devices in their pockets blow up, with the victims crying in pain as bystanders ran away.

…The devices that detonated were all the latest models acquired by Hezbollah in recent months and distributed to its members, with the devices suspected of being tampered with, three security sources told Reuters. 

Through the use of malware, the devices could see their lithium batteries overheat and explode. 

One Hezbollah official told the Wall Street Journal that some members felt their pagers heat up and disposed of them before they detonated.     

The terror groups’ leader, Hassan Nasrallah had previously warned his fighters not to carry cell phones or pagers, telling them they could be used to track their movements or carry out some kind of targeted strike. 

The exact cause of why the pagers exploded have yet to be revealed. 

Reuters journalists witnessed ambulances rushing through Beirut with the wounded terrorists amid widespread panic over the explosions. 

The article concludes:

Although Lebanese Health Minister Firas Abiad said no deaths have been reported as of Tuesday morning, he expects several casualties given the wide range attack.

Israel and Hezbollah have engaged in near daily attacks over the border since the terror group began attacking the Jewish state in solidarity with Hamas.

There are many ways to fight a war.

The Link Between Hamas And The United Nations

On Thursday, PJ Media reported the following:

The United Nations frenziedly condemned a new Israel Defense Forces (IDF) strike as one of Israel’s “dramatic violations of international humanitarian law.” The problem is that the UN workers killed were also Hamas terrorists.

The UN and many other organizations and governments love to emphasize that the IDF strikes schools and “aid workers.” What they are not telling you is that Hamas jihadis have long used schools and other “civilian” buildings in Gaza as terrorist bases and that the “aid workers” almost always turn out to be active terrorists. That appears to be the case once again with the IDF strike this week, where at least three UNRWA “workers” killed were Hamas jihadis.

UNRWA is absolutely infested with Hamas operatives, according to international human rights lawyer Hillel Neuer. As JihadWatch has noted, terrorists specifically place military targets in humanitarian zones so that, if IDF strikes, they can immediately condemn Israel. So whenever the UN starts wailing that the IDF causelessly killed their humanitarian workers while they were operating a school or shelter, always fact-check that claim. It will almost certainly turn out to be false.

According to the state of Israel, which is a more reliable source on these topics than is the Hamas-loving UN, so far the confirmed casualties in the precision strike are terrorists — including at least three UNRWA “workers.”

As long as Hamas is using human shields, there will be ‘civilian’ casualties. However, a lot of these ‘civilians’ support Hamas. Private homes have tunnel entrances; Hamas members work for so-called humanitarian organizations to bring ‘aid’ into Gaza. It doesn’t seem to matter to those providing the aid that the money and supplies are used to strengthen Hamas and build more tunnels.

The United Nations began with a dream of world peace. Instead of working toward that dream, they have become a hotbed of corruption and and a supporter of terrorists and terrorism. It’s time to kick the United Nations out of New York City and turn their building into luxury apartments!

Sometimes The Truth Isn’t Pretty

On Monday, Hot Air posted an article about the internal conflict taking place in Israel about the conduct of the war against Hamas. Obviously, Israelis want the hostages home safely and the war over, but in their quest for peace, many are overlooking the basic character of Hamas. Meanwhile, President Biden is sitting on a beach in Delaware playing armchair quarterback to the Netanyahu government. President Biden has never been a friend of Netanyahu and part of the problem in the war against Hamas–not part of the solution.

The article reports:

Benjamin Netanyahu stuck to his guns in his effort to remove the incentives for hostaging by Hamas. But it got a lot more difficult after the terrorists murdered six of them over the last few days. And even though Netanyahu won this round in his own Cabinet, that victory may not last. Especially not if Joe Biden gets his way. 

The fight in the Cabinet came from Defense Secretary Yoav Gallant, an ally-of-sorts for Netanyahu most times, who objects to Netanyahu’s plan to keep control of the Gaza-Egypt border. Netanyahu has made clear that he does not want Hamas to get resupplied or to escape out to the Sinai, especially with the hostages. Gallant considers the policy both unnecessary and provocative, and accused Netanyahu of prioritizing the land over the hostages:

He again turned to the premier and asked: “If Sinwar presents you with the dilemma: Either you leave Philadelphi or you return the hostages, what do you do?”

Netanyahu responded that the imperative to keep the IDF at the corridor was of crucial importance to the state.

Gallant said that was all well and good if it was a decision taking in isolation. But, he asked, “What about when 30 lives are at stake? What do you do?”

The prime minister said: “I stay on the Philadelphi. Only resolute negotiations will force [Sinwar] to fold.”

Netanyahu then demanded an immediate vote on his policy. Only Gallant voted to oppose it, although he grumbled afterward that the Cabinet would eventually come around to his position. 

President Biden has stated that he believes Prime Minister Netanyahu is not doing enough to secure the release of the hostages. Somehow I doubt Netanyahu is the problem.

The article concludes:

Ahem. Which side has executed hostages? In fact, which side takes hostages as a war strategy in the first place? And which side started the war on October 7 — while breaking a US-negotiated cease fire? 

There was a time when the world knew that harming an American abroad meant dire consequences for the perps. Now Hamas has demonstrated that killing Americans will put them closer to a strategic victory in separating the US from Israel, with no consequences at all from this administration. What kind of incentives do we think this sets for Hezbollah, Iran, and every other terrorist state and non-state terror networks?

It’s one thing for the Israelis to debate cooperation in hostage strategy. It’s another thing entirely for the US to hand Hamas a strategic victory with our own pusillanimity.  

The Biden administration is encouraging terrorism.

 

 

Wisdom From Someone Who Knows

On Sunday, The New York Post posted an article about the possibility of a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.

The article reports:

One-time Israel double agent and son of a Hamas founder Mosab Hassan Yousef warned there is “no such thing” as a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas until Iran’s supreme leader is removed from power.

“This is an open war, and I’m afraid that we haven’t seen the worst of it yet,” Yousef told Fox News Digital. “And let me tell you something: This whole thing is only for one purpose – to just bring the hostages back, and whenever there is an opportunity to just bring the hostages, I think this is where Israel is compromising.”

“But, eventually, this war is not going to stop until Islamists are removed from power, and I’m afraid now that we are coming to realize, without removing ayatollah from power, the Middle East would never experience peace and prosperity,” Yousef said. 

The son of a Hamas founder details in his new book, “From Hamas to America,” the deeply psychological impact of his harrowing life as a member of Hamas, his time as a double agent working for the Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet) and his exit to America after a decade of service. 

Something to consider when dealing with Iran is that the majority of Iran’s population is under the age of forty. That majority does not necessarily support the Islamists. Iran is a totalitarian state and opposing the government is difficult, but another revolution is not out of the question.

The article concludes with a short sketch of Mosab Hassan Yousef”s biography:

Yousef grew up in the West Bank amid limited opportunities and resources, with many of his classmates either dropping out of school or working manual labor in Israel. He was taught to fear Jews and only met Israelis in “uniform” when he turned 27.

Yousef, in his book, discusses his life as a member of Hamas, including sexual abuse he suffered as a child and his time in Israeli prisons before agreeing to work with Shin Bet. He ultimately fled to the US, where he continues to live and work, speaking out about his experiences with Hamas.

During his time in prison, Yousef started studying the Bible, and he converted to Christianity in 1999. He then fled to the US in 2007, where he experienced some culture shock due to the “false ideologies” that have flooded Western nations, such as “new age theories” that he finds can be “as dangerous as extreme or terrorist ideologies.”

“I am not shocked anymore by human delusion,” Yousef said. “You can say whether if it’s in the West or in the East, it’s the human condition, and time will prove every theory to be actually based according to the universal design, evolution – even though evolution is a very sensitive term – or narratives with dead ends.”

“I appreciate the freedom of speech, even though I have been canceled many times by liberals and mainstream media, which is basically – I don’t want to say it’s shocking, but it’s fascinating to see people who swear by the name of liberty and democracy, but in practice, they are the opposite,” he added.

“For me, this is my journey, and it doesn’t matter what people perceive on the outside,” he stressed. “What matters to me is what I’m learning, what I am seeing as I evolve and integrate.”

Ultimately, Mosab Hassan Yousef”s story and stories from other terrorists like him who have become Christians are the real answer to terrorism. Only Jesus can change a heart that completely.

Risking Americans’ Safety

On Thursday, Hot Air posted an article about one impact of our open southern border–we have no idea of who is in our country and why they are here.

The article reports:

This is turning into an unpleasant pattern that continues to repeat despite assurances from Joe Biden and Kamala Harris that they have the situation under control. Last month, border agents caught three Palestinians whose names appear on the terror watchlist coming over the southern border into California. On Monday, CBP found another one, this time in New Mexico. Omar Shehada turned out to be a doozy. He’s from the West Bank and he landed on the watchlist because he had already been convicted of terror attacks involving “explosives and firearms.” (Probably against Israel.) And now he has crossed the world and very nearly entered our country undetected. Are we honestly expected to believe that he was the only one?

The article concludes:

We are unable to get any background information on these people. It’s something of a miracle that we were able to flag these last four. You can’t simply send an email to Hamas Headquarters or the Palestinian Authority and expect them to tell you what all of their militants have been up to. We run into the same situation with Venezuela and many other nations that are plagued with terror issues. This leaves us unable to vet them properly even when we do manage to catch them coming over the border.

These Hamas terrorists can keep tabs on the international news just like anyone else. They clearly know that the United States is somewhat divided at the moment and they have supporters out there on college campuses. It probably wouldn’t be all that hard for them to find some financial and logistical support for their plans right here among our own people. But just make sure that somebody hands a voter registration form to Omar Shehada. I’m sure he’s just the sort of person that the Democrats want showing up at the polls in November.

We are inviting a terrorist attack.