Matti Friedman: “To free its people, Israel negotiates with terrorists and releases murderers. Is that a strength or a weakness?”

Posted on January 22, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

FREE PRESS
Israel’s Prisoner’s Dilemma
Matti Friedman
January 17, 2025

In Israel, news of an imminent hostage deal with Hamas grips the country. Fifteen months after the attack of October 7, 2023, when Palestinian terrorists seized 250 civilians and soldiers from Israeli territory, nearly 100 hostages remain in Gaza. The oldest is 86. The youngest is 2. Most seem to be dead, murdered by their captors, or killed inadvertently by Israeli forces, but Hamas refuses to divulge how many. The hostages’ faces have become familiar to everyone in Israel. They’re on posters in bus stops, on telephone poles, hanging from highway bridges. We all feel we know them. Even though not all details of the deal are clear, Israelis are broadly behind it—a poll on January 15 put the number at 69 percent, with 21 percent unsure and only 10 percent opposed. READ MORE

FUTURE OF JEWISH Joshua Hoffman: The Cruel Math of Palestinian Prisoners for Israeli Hostages In the cynical calculus of global expectations, one nation stands out as an aberration: Israel, a country that has repeatedly freed hundreds of convicted terrorists — responsible for the cold-hearted killing of civilians — in exchange for the safe return of a single soldier or citizen.

JAKE WALLIS SIMONS SUBSTACK Why did Israel release so many murderers? Three innocent Israeli women. Ninety Palestinian terrorists. Such were the terms of the grim human transaction that took place last weekend. Granted, this was a very different deal from October 2011, when 1,027 prisoners – including Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind of the pogroms that darkened the globe 12 years later – were traded for a single Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit. But many around the world looked on in bewilderment. Hamas has been on the ropes. Why did Israel, by far the stronger party, make such concessions?

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Israeli hostages held in UN camp

Posted on January 21, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

FDD
‘Den of Antisemitism’: Hamas Held Israeli Hostages in UNRWA Camps
January 22, 2025

The three female Israeli hostages released last weekend following the ceasefire in Gaza revealed on January 21 that they were incarcerated in a refugee camp operated by UNRWA — the United Nations agency catering exclusively to the descendants of Palestinian refugees — for part of their time in Hamas captivity, according  to Israel’s Channel 13 network. Details as to which of the eight camps run by UNRWA in Gaza were used have not been made available. Following the October 7, 2023, atrocities committed by Hamas in Israel, in which several UNRWA employees participated, Israel accused the agency of actively colluding with the Iran-backed terrorist organization, passing legislation last October barring it from operating in the Jewish state.

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Trump needs to ask: Is Qatar the fireman or the arsonist ?

Posted on January 21, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

GATESTONE
For Peace in the Middle East, Trump Must Move the US Al-Udeid Air Base from Qatar to the United Arab Emirates
Robert Williams
January 23, 2025

“This is Qatar’s classic game: support the Islamist terrorists and then present itself as a mediator, liaison, and even peacemaker – the arsonist playing firefighter. As in Afghanistan, as in Egypt in 2010, and as in every Muslim country. In every Muslim country where there is a battle between the Islamists and the secularists, Qatar supports the Islamists, as in Gaza supporting Hamas for years, building its military might and enabling October 7.” — Colonel Yigal Carmon (ret), MEMRI, January 21, 2025…The US cannot continue to reward terrorism. President Donald J. Trump would do well to declare as a Foreign Terrorist Organization the Muslim Brotherhood, which is the font of all Sunni Islamist terrorism and is effectively promoted worldwide by Qatar’s television bullhorn, Al-Jazeera. READ MORE

MIDDLE EAST FORUM Daniel Pipes Trump and the Art of the Double Pander The tiny but fabulously wealthy Qatar regime has for thirty years brilliantly pursued influence for itself and the Islamist cause through funding, diplomacy, and public relations. Think U.S. university curricula, major non-NATO ally status, and the 2022 World Cup. It has also worked hard to reach Trump’s inner circle, including Steven Witcoff. Witcoff’s uncouth and insolent treatment of Netanyahu, as reported in Ha’aretz and the Wall Street Journal, “appears to have saved Hamas,” writes Daniel Greenfield. I add: thus enabling it to massacre another day.

JEWISH INSIDER Lahav Harkov: Israeli right still hopeful about Trump presidency despite ‘terrible’ cease-fire deal Since Israel and Hamas reached a cease-fire and hostage-release agreement last week, with significant pressure from the incoming administration, the Israeli right’s take on Trump has been much less ecstatic. In the wake of the agreement, a new narrative has taken hold: that Trump will give Israel something else in return for the deal it made. Many hope Netanyahu received promises from Trump for the future, such as support for attack on Iran, peace with the Saudis.

FRONT PAGE MAG Which ‘Trump Transition Official’ is Pushing ‘Palestinian’ Nation Building? Presidential teams have all sorts of players on them. And much as some might have hoped that after the first term, the Trump team would be ‘clean’, that’s proving not to be the case. The adoption of Biden’s disastrous surrendering to terrorist deal by Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, appears to have saved Hamas. And we’re getting all sorts of leaks to the media by people supposedly on the Trump team blasting Israel and propping up Islamic terrorists in Gaza and Lebanon.

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First African female ICJ judge Julia Sebutinde, who rejected South Africa’s genocide claims, poised for presidency

Posted on January 19, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

ISRAEL HAYOM (by agreement with JNS)
Hague tribunal could get pro-Israel judge as chief
January 14, 2025

In a significant shift at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Judge Julia Sebutinde is poised to assume the presidency, marking another milestone in her groundbreaking career. The Ugandan jurist, who recently made headlines for her robust defense of Israel against South Africa’s genocide allegations in the Gaza war, will take the helm following current President Nawaf Salam’s departure to form Lebanon’s next government…Sebutinde’s recent ruling on the Israel-Hamas war has particularly resonated in international legal circles. She dismissed South Africa’s requests for temporary injunctions to halt the Gaza war, asserting that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian people is fundamentally political rather than legal in both its nature and historical context, and therefore falls outside the court’s purview for resolution. READ MORE

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Netanyahu defends the DOGE administrator who came under fire after he made a gesture that was interpreted to be a Nazi salute

Posted on January 19, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

ARUTZ SHEVA
Salute controversy | Netanyahu defends Musk: ‘A great friend of Israel’
January 23, 2025

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to the defense of billionaire and US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Elon Musk on Thursday after the latter was accused of making a Nazi salute. “Elon Musk is being falsely smeared,” Netanyahu declared in a post on X. He added: “Elon is a great friend of Israel. He visited Israel after the October 7 massacre in which Hamas terrorists committed the worst atrocity against the Jewish people since the Holocaust. He has since repeatedly and forcefully supported Israel’s right to defend itself against genocidal terrorists and regimes who seek to annihilate the one and only Jewish state. “I thank him for this.” READ MORE

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Inside the mind of an IDF sniper

Posted on January 18, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

ALL ISRAEL NEWS
IDF sniper shares experience of fighting Hamas terrorists in Gaza
January 18, 2025

…In an exclusive interview, IDF Staff Sergeant ‘K,’ an American Jew who enlisted in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) after making aliyah, shares his personal experiences and impressions from the Gaza battlefield…Nevertheless, there is no avoiding the horrors of war. As K. reflects on a harrowing experience, he recalls an incident involving a child’s booby-trapped body being used to lure unsuspecting soldiers. “At that point, my head just wanted to kill the dude,” he admits. K. explains that this event played a role in desensitizing him to the enemy, saying, “There was no emotion or any feeling to my enemy whatsoever.” READ MORE

Click here for video interview

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Dershowitz: “The decision by the Israeli government to make significant concessions to the Hamas kidnappers should never be called a “deal.” It was an extortion”

Posted on January 17, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

GATESTONE
It Wasn’t a Deal – It Was a Crime
Alan M. Dershowitz
January 17, 2025

…Would you call it a deal if somebody kidnapped your child and you “agreed” to pay ransom to get her back? Of course not. The kidnapping was a crime. And the extortionate demand was an additional crime. So the proper description of what occurred is that Israel, pressured by the United States, capitulated to the unlawful and extortionate demands of Hamas as the only way of saving the lives of kidnapped babies, mothers and other innocent, mostly civilian, hostages. This was not the result of a negotiation between equals. If an armed robber puts a gun to your head and says, “your money or your life,” your decision to give him your money would not be described as a deal. Nor should the extorted arrangement agreed to by Israel be considered a deal. So let’s stop using that term. READ MORE

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“Despite the fact that Jews have been the most oppressed group in history, about 40 percent of whom were slaughtered worldwide less than 80 years ago, Jews are seen by DEI programs as being oppressors”

Posted on January 17, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

CITY JOURNAL
Trump’s DEI Move Is One to Celebrate
Christopher Rufo
January 21, 2025

Yesterday, President Trump signed an executive order abolishing the “diversity, equity, and inclusion” bureaucracy in the federal government. The move marks a stunning reversal of fortune from just four years ago, when Black Lives Matter, critical race theory, and DEI seemed unstoppable. Following the death of George Floyd, left-wing race activists made a blitz through America’s institutions, rewriting school curricula, altering government policy, and establishing DEI offices in major universities, big-city school districts, and Fortune 100 companies. The Biden administration immediately followed suit, mandating a “whole-of-government equity agenda” that entrenched DEI in the federal government. No more. READ MORE

FREE PRESS Coleman Hughes: The End of DEI Trump is ending racial preferences, and America will be better because of it. Last February, my book, The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America was published. In it, I argued that color blindness—the principle that people should be treated without regard to their race—should guide American public policy. For this, I was called a “charlatan” by Sunny Hostin on The View.

NATIONAL REVIEW DEI Noah Rothman: Dies with a Whimper Early indications suggest that mainstream Democrats welcome their emancipation from these initiatives.

MINDING THE CAMPUS DEI Is Antisemitic The foundational idea of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is the Marxist theory that all humanity is divided between oppressors and victims. This class conflict can be seen in its economic dimension—bourgeois vs. proletarians—its political dimension—oligarchy vs. democracy or fascist vs. woke—its sexual dimension—men vs. women—its racial dimension—whites vs. blacks, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC)—its health dimension—the fully abled vs. the disabled or “otherwise abled”—its sexuality dimension—heterosexuals vs. lesbians, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, two-spirit, plus many other varieties (LGBTQ2S++)—or its ethnic and religious dimension—Christians and Jews vs. seculars and Muslims.

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Netanyahu’s office confirms agreement finalized but says government won’t meet to approve it until Saturday, which will delay the return of the first hostages from Sunday to Monday

Posted on January 16, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

TIMES OF ISRAEL
PM’s office: Security cabinet to meet Friday, government will approve deal on Saturday
Jacob Magid
January 17, 2025

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirms that the Israeli and Hamas negotiating teams have signed a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Doha. A statement from Netanyahu’s office says the premier has convened a security cabinet meeting for Friday in order to hold a vote on the deal. The full cabinet meeting is not slated to take place until Saturday night, though, a Netanyahu spokesperson says, explaining that opponents of the deal must be given 24 hours to petition the High Court of Justice and a Friday afternoon meeting would not provide them enough time to do so because many of them are religious and observe the Sabbath. While the security cabinet is waiting for Israel’s negotiating team to return from Doha to hold the meeting, it was not clear why both the security cabinet and full cabinet could not still be convened before sundown on Friday. Holding the full cabinet meeting on Saturday means the 24-hour grace period for petition filing won’t conclude until late Sunday, meaning the deal won’t come into place until Monday — a day after originally slated. The first three hostages who were supposed to be released on Sunday will have to wait an extra day. READ MORE

JPOST Hostage deal signed by both parties in Doha , Israeli delegation heads home 98 Gaza hostages set for gradual return home after 15 months in Hamas captivity. Biden confirms American citizens will be released in first phase. The first phase of the deal will last 42 days, and implementation of the agreement will begin two or three days after its signing. The IDF will withdraw from the Netzarim corridor and all populated areas of the enclave to about 700 meters from the border, except in five specified areas, where it will be 400 meters. The IDF will reportedly reduce its presence on the Philadelphi corridor and then withdraw from it completely over the course of the first 50 days.

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“Maybe Israel’s answer to questions about its intentions should be, “you’re about to find out””

Posted on January 16, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

COMMENTARY MAGAZINE
A Soldier’s Perspective on the Ceasefire
Seth Mandel
January 16, 2025

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis have fought in the war against Hamas since October 2003, yet the perspective of the Israeli soldier is often missing from the discussions of the conflict. A friend of mine who is serving his fourth tour in Gaza in this war alone yesterday posted his perspective on this week’s ceasefire deal, and it’s worth considering, since it addresses some of the skepticism toward the deal. G. is a master sergeant, a reservist, and makes two arguments worth grappling with. First, he writes, “As the military campaign reaches a turning point, it is crucial for Israeli society to begin moving forward. In my opinion, the time has come to focus on healing the nation, supporting those who have suffered, and rebuilding the foundations of strength and resilience. READ MORE

ALGEMEINER Mike Waltz Vows Trump Admin Will Support Israel Resuming Operations in Gaza if Hamas Violates Ceasefire Deal Reflecting on the newly announced ceasefire deal between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group, US Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL), who is set to become White House national security adviser under incoming President Donald Trump, has vowed that the Trump administration will support Israel renewing military operations in Gaza if Hamas launches more attacks against the Jewish state and violates the agreement…”If they need to go back in, we’re with them.”

NEW YORK POST Senior Hamas official praised Oct. 7 attack on Israel after cease-fire deal struck: ‘Miraculous achievement’ A senior Hamas leader praised the Oct. 7 terror attack as a “miraculous military and security achievement,” while promising “justice” for those who committed so-called “genocide” in a stunning speech just after the cease-fire deal was announced. Khalil al-Hayya’s televised remarks were delivered from Qatar on Wednesday just hours after a long-awaited and widely celebrated cease-fire deal was reached between Israel and Hamas.  

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