Mandel: “The Hamas-Israel war didn’t have to happen and Egypt could very well have prevented it”

Posted on March 3, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

COMMENTARY
Egypt Tells Trump to Pound Sand
Seth Mandel
March 5, 2025

Despite presumably having watched the way Donald Trump has responded recently to world leaders who question or challenge him, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has decided to poke the U.S. president in the eye and see what happens. The much-ballyhooed Arab Plan for postwar Gaza has been released, and it is unimpressive even by the standards of past pan-Arab peace proposals. Perhaps even deliberately so…We can go back further and point out that the war itself didn’t have to happen and that Egypt could very well have prevented it. Cairo had stopped policing the smuggling routes between Egypt and Gaza in the area of Rafah, a town that is split between the two jurisdictions. Those smuggling routes enabled Hamas to resupply and reinforce its army…READ MORE

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Hollywood: “The symbolic shedding of Jewishness, the criticism of Jews and the embrace of antisemites has become an almost mandatory ritual in an industry formerly created by Jews, but where it’s trendy to despise Jews and career suicide to stand up for them”

Posted on March 3, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

JEWISH PRESS
Hollywood Hates Jews
Daniel Greenfield
March 3, 2025

…The symbolic shedding of Jewishness, the criticism of Jews and the embrace of antisemites has become an almost mandatory ritual in an industry formerly created by Jews, but where it is trendy to despise Jews and career suicide to stand up for them. “From ‘A Real Pain’ to ‘The Brutalist’ and beyond, Jewish movies were everywhere in 2024. What does it mean?” the JTA asked. What it means is that these movies aren’t Jewish. They are the work of people who hate Jews and Jews who hate themselves. Two years after life fundamentally changed for Israeli and American Jews, the industry continues to roll out highly fictionalized prestige Holocaust movies and neurotic shlock about Jewish hipster losers. Only one movie, September 5, the story of the media coverage of the Munich massacre of Israeli Olympic athletes, dealt with anything remotely relevant to Jews after Oct 7. READ MORE

TABLET MAG Sasha Stone: Who Killed the Oscars? Hollywood no longer knows how to celebrate, much less create, art. If you want to know what happened to it, look at what happened to me…I’d been standing against “cancel culture” for almost 10 years, and now it was my turn to be canceled.

FUTURE OF JEWISH The award for Best (Antisemitic) Documentary goes to… Of the many reviews of the newly Oscar-winning documentary “No Other Land,” none of them even hint at the facts. The film is pure propaganda meant to incite people to hate Israel.

TABLET MAG You Will Regret This Within this limp moral logic, it becomes understandable—no, even commendable—that Adrien Brody bravely uttered the word “antisemitism” in his incredibly long acceptance speech for portraying a Holocaust survivor in The Brutalist. Never mind that he immediately went on to equate it with “racism and othering,” whatever “othering” means, in order to ensure that the word didn’t draw undue attention during his record-smashing six minutes of blathering.

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“Antisemitism thrives in loopholes. Congress has the power and the obligation to close them”

Posted on March 2, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

JNS
Senate panel hearing addresses line between Jew-hatred, free speech
Mike Wagenheim
March 6, 2025

As the Trump administration threatens to take a hard line on antisemitic protesters, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Wednesday that addressed where to draw the line between free speech and Jew-hatred…Adela Cojab, a legal fellow at the National Jewish Advocacy Center, testified about encountering Jew-hatred as a New York University student even before the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Cojab endorsed the pending Antisemitism Awareness Act, which passed the House last year and codifies Jew-hatred at a federal level. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who was then the body’s majority leader, declined to put it up for a vote, reportedly fearing insufficient votes from within his party. READ MORE

ARUTZ SHEVA State Department to use AI to crack down on foreign students who support Hamas US Secretary of State Marco Rubio launching an AI-driven “Catch and Revoke” program to cancel the visas of foreign nationals who express support for Hamas or other designated terrorist organizations.

FORBES BREAKING NEWS Video: Applause Breaks Out When John Kennedy Grills Witness About Antisemitism On College Campuses At yesterday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) questioned witnesses about antisemitism on college campuses.

FORBES BREAKING NEWS Video: Josh Hawley’s Call To Deport Foreign Students Engaged In Antisemitic Violence Wins Applause At today’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) questioned witnesses about antisemitism on college campuses.

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The film “October 8” takes a chronological look at U.S. college scenes from Oct. 8, 2023 until today

Posted on March 2, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

DAILY NORTHWESTERN
‘October 8’: Medill alum’s new documentary sheds light on rising antisemitism in universities since Israel-Hamas war
Alexia Sextou
February 25, 2025

Northwestern Hillel and End Jew Hatred hosted a screening of “October 8” — a documentary exploring the surge of antisemitism on U.S. college campuses, social media and beyond since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel — Monday evening in Medill’s McCormick Foundation Center. In an emotional compilation of interviews with about 40 people — including activists, authors, college students and university faculty — the documentary tells the story of Jewish and non-Jewish individuals within the past year. In her opening remarks before the screening, documentary director and producer Wendy Sachs (Medill ’93) addressed the audience, noting the film’s success in getting major theater chains to screen the documentary — including AMC Theatres. Almost every seat was filled in the auditorium, which holds 197 people. READ MORE

Click here for trailer

Click here for theatre locations and to purchase tickets

Chicago area theatres

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MSNBC whistleblower reported Joy Reid’s “100 percent antisemitic” comments

Posted on March 1, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

NEW YORK POST
Ex-MSNBC host Joy Reid went on antisemitic ‘rant’ about COVID, former staffer claims
Doree Lewak
March 1, 2025

Former MSNBC host Joy Reid went “on a vile antisemitic rant,” in which she blamed Orthodox Jews for the spread of COVID-19 in New York City, a former production assistant at the network claims. In the summer of 2020, the lefty former “TheReidOut” host allegedly ripped Orthodox Jews, saying they “only care about themselves” and are “in their own bubble,” and accused the group of reckless behavior during the opandemic, according to the PA. The ex-PA, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said she is speaking out now that Reid’s been axed because “people should know what her character is.” READ MORE

NATIONAL REVIEW Rachel Maddow Strikes a Blow Against Institutional Racism at MSNBC It was inevitable that the network devoted to accusing people of racism would accuse itself of racism for canceling the show of an African-American host famous for accusing people of racism.

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Israel’s top command was unaware regional division was not functioning for nearly 10 hours during onslaught; army failed to build a picture of the situation, backup didn’t reach the right areas

Posted on February 28, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

TIMES OF ISRAEL
Entire Gaza Division was overrun for hours, and IDF didn’t know it; 767 troops faced 5,000 terrorists
Emanuel Fabian
February 27, 2025

An Israel Defense Forces series of investigations into the battles that took place during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, onslaught found that it was only recognized months after the invasion and slaughter that the military’s Gaza Division, the regional unit responsible for the Strip and for protecting southern Israel, was “defeated” for several hours. The chaos and confusion catastrophically slowed the fightback on the day…The investigations into the battles found that the IDF failed to protect Israeli civilians and it was not prepared for a wide-scale surprise attack. READ MORE

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“His family murdered in Gaza, freed hostage says he misses nibbling on baby Kfir, hopes there are butterflies in heaven for Ariel; asks slain wife: ‘Guard me so I don’t sink into darkness’”

Posted on February 27, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

TIMES OF ISRAEL
‘I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you all’: Yarden Bibas’s eulogy for wife Shiri, sons Ariel and Kfir
February 25, 2025

In a heartbreaking address, Yarden Bibas eulogized his wife Shiri and children Ariel and Kfir at their funeral. Shiri, Ariel, 4, and baby Kfir were abducted by Hamas-led terrorists from Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023, and murdered in captivity in Gaza…“Mishmish, who will help me make decisions now? How am I supposed to make decisions without you? Do you remember our last decision together? In the safe room, I asked if we should ‘fight or surrender.’ You said fight, so I fought. Shiri, I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you all. If only I had known what would happen, I wouldn’t have fired. I think about everything we went through together—there are so many beautiful memories. I remember Ariel and Kfir’s births. I remember the days we would sit at home or in a café, just the two of us, talking for hours about everything under the sun. It was wonderful. I miss those times deeply. Your presence is profoundly missed.” READ MORE

WALL STREET JOURNAL Bernard-Henri Levy: Ponder How the Bibas Boys Died One must imagine the life of Kfir and Ariel as hostages if, as is probable, they were torn from their mother’s arms. Imagine the life of a baby who spends most of his time in dark, damp tunnels. Imagine the life of a toddler, ripped from his family without understanding. Picture them playing, because children always play. Did they have stuffed animals or spent shell casings? Legos or guns to lick instead of honey-coated letters? Were they hungry? Thirsty? Did they scrape mud with their tiny nails or drink contaminated water?

FREE PRES Seth Mandel: The Meaning of Kfir Bibas The crimes against the Bibas family are indeed the symbol of the anti-civilization menace that is Hamas—but also of the cowardice of the political and cultural leaders of the enlightened West. Yes, we should be ashamed of our fellow Americans, who not only won’t mention the Bibas family but won’t even learn the name of a single American hostage held in Gaza throughout the war…As the “pro-Palestinian” mobs filled the streets of every major city to celebrate Hamas’s slaughter, Jews around the world looked at them dumbfounded; they kidnapped a baby. How much does one have to hate Jews to side with the monsters who kidnap babies? A lot is the answer—an unpleasant realization Jews came to over the past 16 months.

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“The Israeli Air Force was carrying out a new ‘Sword of Damocles’ operation as it was carrying out the ‘Hannibal directive'”

Posted on February 27, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

JPOST
IDF carried out Hannibal Directive, new ‘Sword of Damocles’ operation on October 7
Yonah Jeremy Bob
February 27, 2025

The Air Force was carrying out “the Sword of Damocles” operation – a code name only being revealed on Thursday for the first time – to attack many Hamas commanders and their headquarters around 10:30 a.m. on October 7, 2023, just as it was carrying out the “Hannibal Directive” of gunning down anything that moved around the Israel-Gaza border. The Air Force has been questioned about if the forces it had invested in attacking Hamas commanders deep in Gaza would have been better used to defend the Gaza border and to attack Hamas invaders in Israeli villages. Air Force sources have said that they wish this air power had been used differently on October 7, given that protecting the villages and the border should have been a higher priority than killing top Hamas officials. READ MORE

WIKI The Hannibal Directive is the name of a controversial procedure used by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to prevent the capture of Israeli soldiers by enemy forces… According to the directive, once it had been declared by a field officer, Israeli forces were to open fire on enemy forces carrying away an IDF prisoner. Vehicles suspected of removing such a prisoner from the battlefield could thus be attacked, even at the risk of harming, or even killing, the abductee himself.

TIMES OF ISRAEL IDF’s Oct. 7 probes show it misread Hamas for years, left southern Israel utterly vulnerable Investigations detail military’s decade-long ‘misperception’ of Hamas, its refusal to recognize the imminent invasion even in the last few hours, and the chaos that catastrophically slowed the fightback on the day. Yahya Sinwar was seen as ‘a pragmatist’ who didn’t want war.

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The controversial firebrand rabbi is experiencing a revival—but for whose benefit?

Posted on February 25, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

TABLET MAG
Kahane Lives
Liel Leibovitz
February 27, 2025

A specter is haunting Judaism’s genteel corners these days: the specter of Meir Kahane. Everywhere you turn, the rabbi and Israeli politician, who was assassinated by a jihadist in New York in 1990, is looming large… Considered with October 7 and its aftermath firmly in mind, there is nothing particularly jarring about this insistence on separation. As President Donald Trump argues, we need a new paradigm if we are to secure the safety and wellbeing of Israelis and Palestinians moving forward. Keep Hamas in power, or hand over the reins to the only slightly less genocidal PLO, and you’ll have another Oct. 7 (and its Israeli reply) next week, next month, next year. This is why the idea of forced relocation is gaining traction. READ MORE

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How the BBC made the terror group its silent partner in Gaza

Posted on February 25, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

FREE PRESS
A BBC Documentary—Brought to You by Hamas
Adam LeBor
February 24, 2025

…Yet now it is the BBC that’s under fire over the documentary’s fishy sources and methods. It turns out that Al-Yazouri was anything but a random child-journalist. He is the son of Dr. Ayman Alyazouri, a deputy minister in the Hamas government. It took an investigation by David Collier, a British media researcher and activist who describes himself as “100 percent Zionist,” to bring this fact to light. Though obviously pertinent information, it was not disclosed to viewers. The ensuing uproar extended across Britain’s political spectrum and forced the BBC first to issue a correction and then to remove the film from broadcast “for further due diligence.” Lisa Nandy, the Labour government’s culture secretary, has said she will demand answers about the film from BBC bosses. READ MORE

NATIONAL REVIEW BBC’s Accidental Hamas Profile Just the Latest Incident in Long Anti-Israel Track Record The BBC removed its new documentary on the war in Gaza from its online streaming service last week, after an investigative journalist found the film unwittingly profiled the son of a Hamas member. But that’s far from the first time the outlet has been caught violating journalistic standards in its reporting on the Israel–Hamas war.

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