NEW FROM FMEP
FMEP Legislative Round-Up August 9, 2024 (Lara Friedman)
- Bills, Resolutions; 2. Letters; 3. Hearings; 4. Israel/Palestine in 2024 Elex/Politics; 5. Selected Media & Press releases/Statements
Turning Pain into Power: Feeding Families & Bringing Attention to Gaza (Occupied Thoughts Podcast)
FMEP Fellow Rania Batrice speaks with Hani Almadhoun, Gaza native, Director of Philanthropy at UNRWA USA, and co-founder, along with his family in Gaza, of Gaza Soup Kitchen. They discuss survival and loss in Gaza, where Hani’s parents, siblings, and extended family live, and the project his family created to provide meals and clean water to thousands of Palestinians in Gaza. Rania and Hani also talk about the hopes and priorities for Palestinians in the United States and how people in America see the Palestinian cause. They draw from Hani’s work at UNRWA USA — including the recent jump in donors to UNRWA USA from 10,000 to 120,000 donors — as well as Hani’s experience attending Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent speech in Congress as a guest of Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib.
Immoral Policy, Looming Regional War, and Leaving the Biden Administration (Occupied Thoughts podcast)
FMEP Fellow Peter Beinart speaks with Harrison Mann, a former U.S. Army major and executive officer of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) Middle East/Africa Regional Center who resigned in protest of his office’s support for Israel during its Gaza campaign. They discuss Harrison’s decision to resign, why government officials continue to implement policies they consider immoral, and how U.S. intelligence internally predicted almost everything that has happened in Israel’s assault. They also compare some elements of U.S. and Israeli policy and look at how and why the US may be dragged into a regional war.
REGION/GLOBAL
Washington and Arab states scramble to avert an all-out Middle East war (WaPo 8/6/24)
“The United States has scrambled to position additional military assets, including a squadron of F-22 jets and naval destroyers, closer to Israel to help defend against what officials believe will be an imminent attack by Tehran in retaliation for last week’s killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in the Iranian capital. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is leading a diplomatic sprint to apply indirect pressure on Iran, asking top officials in Cairo, Baghdad and other Arab capitals to urge that any response from Tehran and, potentially, its militant allies be restrained.” See also US official warns of ‘quite significant consequences’ if Iran attacks Israel (Times of Israel); Scoop: Israel told U.S. Hezbollah will pay “disproportionate price” if attack hits civilians (Axios); Most Americans oppose sending U.S. troops to defend Israel, poll finds (WaPo); Iran says it has duty to punish Israel over killing of Hamas leader in Tehran (Guardian); US to supply Israel with 1000lb MK-83 bombs as regional tensions mount (Israel Hayom); As war looms and flights dwindle, Lebanese grapple with whether to flee (WaPo)
Iran may rethink reprisals against Israel over killing of Hamas’s leader (Guardian 8/8/24)
“Iran may be rethinking the scale and format of its planned reprisal against Israel after the assassination of Hamas’s political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, but is not likely to be put off by the absence of explicit support from Muslim states for an Iranian military response, officials have suggested. Meanwhile, Israeli officials have reportedly concluded that the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah is determined to carry out an attack in the next few days in response to Israel’s killing of senior commander Fuad Shukr, but the degree to which it will coordinate with Iran is unclear. US and Israeli sources have reportedly said in recent days that Tehran is still deciding on the scale and scope of its response after significant diplomatic pressure to avoid civilian casualties. Iran appears likely to target those responsible for the attack, specifically the Mossad and its agencies, rather than civilians.”
Israel revokes accreditation for Norwegian diplomats dealing with Palestinian Authority (Times of Israel)
“Israel revokes the diplomatic accreditation of eight Norwegian diplomats based in Tel Aviv who dealt with the Palestinian Authority. A Foreign Ministry statement says the move is in response to “a flurry of recent anti-Israel and unilateral steps taken the government of Norway,” including recognizing a Palestinian state and recent “severe comments by senior Norwegian officials.”…“There is a price for anti-Israeli conduct. Instead of fighting Palestinian terrorism after October 7 and supporting Israel’s fight against the Iranian axis of evil — Norway chose to award the murderers and rapists of Hamas in the form of recognition of a Palestinian state,” says Foreign Minister Israel Katz. Oslo also “joined the unfounded lawsuit against us at the ICC,” Katz says.”
Trauma of Palestinians Who Fled Gaza for Egypt Is Compounded by Legal Woes (Truthout)
“By some estimates, as many as 100,000 Palestinians have escaped into Egypt since the war began…Palestinians from Gaza currently living in Cairo say they were given a 45-day permit upon arriving in Egypt. The Egyptian government has overlooked the tens of thousands of Palestinians overstaying their permits during the war. But undocumented Palestinians cannot open bank accounts, attend school, open a business, or get health insurance. Many have turned to charity to survive. “I’m feeling so lost,” Hashim says, in tears; her family is also now entirely reliant on the help of others, lining up to collect cash assistance from the Palestinian embassy in Cairo and various nonprofit organizations to afford basic necessities, such as rent and food.”
Turkey joins genocide case against Israel at the ICJ after months-long delay (Middle East Eye)
“Turkey officially submitted its intervention in favour of Palestine on Wednesday at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in a case pursued by South Africa accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza. Even though Ankara officially announced in May that it would join the case, the legal complexities of the application and possible future ramifications put Turkey in months-long deliberations before submitting its intervention.” See also Palestinian Human Rights Organisations Submits Amicus Curiae Observations to the International Criminal Court on the Oslo Accords (Al Haq)
UK’s biggest private pension fund dumps £80mn of Israeli assets (FT)
“Britain’s biggest private-sector pension fund has sold £80mn of Israeli assets, joining a wave of global retirement funds retreating from the conflict-ridden region following public pressure. The £79bn Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), which has more than 500,000 members, has “materially” reduced its exposure to Israeli investments including government debt and Israeli currency in the past six months, said two people with knowledge of the matter…The move followed sustained pressure from the pension fund’s members, concerned over Israel’s human rights record in occupied Palestinian territories since the start of the war with Hamas last year.”
GAZA
U.S., Qatar and Egypt invite Israel and Hamas for summit to finalize Gaza deal (Axios 8/8/24)
“President Biden, the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah al-Sisi are calling on Israel and Hamas to take part in a final round of negotiations next week to finalize a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, the three leaders said in a joint statement on Thursday…U.S. officials said in recent days that a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal is the only way to calm regional tensions that reached a new height after Israel assassinated a top Hezbollah military commander in Beirut and Hamas’ political leader in Tehran last week. The Biden administration is trying deter Iran and Hezbollah from attacking Israel as part of a retaliation to the assassinations, while also pushing for a diplomatic solution…The negotiations over the hostage and ceasefire deal stalled in recent weeks over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new conditions.” See also Hamas said demanding release of Marwan Barghouti in first stage of hostage deal (Times of Israel); U.S., Egypt, Qatar urge Israel, Hamas to restart Gaza cease-fire talks (WaPo)
Hamas names Yahya Sinwar as new leader after Ismail Haniyeh’s killing (Al Jazeera)
“Haniyeh’s assassination, almost certainly carried out by Israel, sent shockwaves through the region and was seen by many as an effort by the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to scuttle efforts to negotiate a ceasefire, in which Haniyeh was a key figure. Analysts have said his replacement by Sinwar, who has gone largely unseen since the October 7 attack was an indicator of the central place that Gaza occupies in the group’s political vision. “He [Sinwar] has skyrocketed to an influential position in Hamas, leading it in Gaza. The choice of Hamas to name him leader of the movement now puts Gaza front and centre of, not just the events on the ground, but certainly of the dynamics in the Hamas movement,” Nour Odeh, a Palestinian political analyst based in Ramallah, told Al Jazeera. “And it really sends a signal, as far as negotiations of a ceasefire is concerned, that Gaza calls the shots.”’ See also Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza, now has the top political post in Hamas. (NYT); For Gaza Palestinians, Haniyeh’s death makes him ‘just like the rest of us’ (Al Monitor)
Israel strikes Gaza schools, saying Hamas uses them to plan attacks (WaPo 8/8/24)
“The Israeli military said in a statement that “the school compounds were used by Hamas terrorists and commanders as command and control centers” from which they planned and carried out attacks. Many Palestinians displaced by the fighting, or whose homes have been destroyed in the war, have sought shelter in schools across the Gaza Strip, crowding into disused classrooms to pool resources and in the hope that the facilities might provide some protection. But in recent weeks, strikes on schools have become much more frequent, with Israel targeting seven schools in the eight days prior to the attacks Thursday, according to the U.N. Human Rights Office. In a report this week, the United Nations said it was “horrified” by the escalation, which has seen at least 163 Palestinians — including children and women — killed in strikes on at least 17 schools over the past month.” See also Israel kills 40 Palestinians in Gaza airstrikes amid fears of wider war (Reuters 8/8/24); Dozens killed as Israel bombs Gaza schools housing displaced Palestinians (Middle East Eye 8/4/24)
Israeli Army Launches Ground Operation in Gaza’s Khan Yunis (Haaretz)
“The Israel Defense Forces announced on Friday morning that it has launched a ground operation in the Khan Yunis area in southern Gaza – the third such ground operation conducted by the IDF since the start of the war on October 7.” See also Gaza war: Khan Younis residents forced to evacuate as Israel launches new attacks (New Arab 8/9/24)
Netanyahu says ‘victory’ over Hamas is in sight. The data tells a different story (CNN 8/5/24)
“of their fighting capabilities despite more than nine months of Israel’s brutal offensive, according to analyses by the American Enterprise Institute’s Critical Threats Project, the Institute for the Study of War and CNN. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces growing international pressure to agree to a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza, has repeatedly said that Israeli forces are nearing their stated goal of eliminating Hamas and destroying its military capabilities. Addressing a joint meeting of Congress on July 24, he said: “Victory is in sight.” But forensic analyses of Hamas’ military operations since it led attacks against Israel on October 7, which draw on Israeli and Hamas military statements, footage from the ground and interviews with experts and eyewitnesses, cast doubt on his claims.”
‘Order from Amazon’: How tech giants are storing mass data for Israel’s war (Yuval Avraham//+972)
“However, a new investigation by +972 and Local Call can reveal that the Israeli army has in fact stored some intelligence information collected via the mass surveillance of Gaza’s population on servers managed by Amazon’s AWS. The investigation can also reveal that certain cloud providers supplied a wealth of AI capabilities and services to Israeli army units since the start of the Gaza war…According to multiple sources, the exponential capacity of the AWS public cloud system allows the army to have “endless storage” for holding intelligence on almost “everyone” in Gaza. One source who used the cloud-based system during the current war described making “orders from Amazon” for information while carrying out their operational tasks, and working with two screens — one connected to the army’s private systems, and the other connected to AWS. Military sources emphasized to +972 and Local Call that the scope of intelligence collected from the surveillance of all Palestinian residents of Gaza is so large that it cannot be stored on military servers alone…The vast amount of information stored in Amazon’s cloud, the military sources testified, even helped on rare occasions to confirm aerial assassination strikes in Gaza — strikes that would have also killed and harmed Palestinian civilians. Taken altogether, our investigation further exposes some of the ways in which major tech corporations are contributing to Israel’s ongoing war — a war that has been flagged by international courts for suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity on illegally occupied territory.”
Israel returns ‘decomposed’ bodies of 89 Palestinians to Gaza (Al Jazeera)
“Israel has returned the bodies of nearly 90 Palestinians killed in its military offensive in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Ministry of Health has said. Yamen Abu Suleiman, the director of the Palestinian Civil Emergency Service in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, said on Monday that it was unclear whether the bodies had been dug up from cemeteries by the army during the ground offensive, or whether they were “detainees who had been tortured and killed”. “The occupation provided us with no information about the names, or ages, or anything. This is a war crime, a crime against humanity,” Abu Suleiman said.”
Notes from Underground: The life of Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas in Gaza. (David Remnick//New Yorker)
“Abdul said, “I may not support Hamas, but I support the struggle. We cannot go on losing and losing.” There was no bottom to his quiet fury. And, like the I.D.F. general in Be’eri, he found his frame of reference in the Second World War. The Israelis, he said, were no longer the victims of Hitler: “They now seem to want to be Hitler. ‘The most moral army in the world?’ All a big lie.” As we got up to leave, I asked Abdul what he thought about Sinwar. “Sinwar is in every home in Palestine,” he said. “He is the most important Palestinian in the world.”’ Also see from David Remnick: Israel’s Other Intractable Conflict (New Yorker podcast with author Nathan Thrall and human rights lawyer & author Raja Shehadeh); See also Nathan Thrall: ‘The scale and brutality of the Israeli response in Gaza hasn’t surprised me, no’ (Guardian);
Implications for Hamas: A Manageable Challenge (Belal Shobaki//Al Shabaka)
“Sinwar’s appointment is likely to be accepted by the movement’s larger base, both as a result of increased general support as well as due to members’ political education, which stresses acceptance and loyalty to the party’s decisions. Indeed, Haniyeh’s assassination is likely to increase the credibility of Hamas’s leadership among both its members and its broader following. Many believe that his killing, as well as the recent killing of his family in Gaza by Israeli bombardments, reflect how the leadership remains deeply intertwined with the reality faced by Palestinians on the ground. This desire to anchor leadership within Gaza has been a central concern for Hamas for years, and played a crucial role in the selection of Sinwar as Head of Hamas in Gaza in 2017. Undoubtedly, it remains a key consideration as he succeeds Haniyeh today. Overall, it is unlikely that there will be vast changes within Hamas following this latest assassination.” See also Haniyeh’s Assassination & Israel’s Charade of Diplomacy (Belal Shobaki, Tariq Kenney-Shawa, and Fathi Nimer//Al Shabaka);
Journal still can’t confirm January story about UN agency for Palestinians (Semafor 8/4/24)
“In January, The Wall Street Journal made an explosive claim: Quoting “intelligence reports,” the paper reported that not only had 12 members of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, or UNRWA, taken part in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, but 10% of the relief agency’s 12,000 workers in Gaza had ties to militant groups. The New York Times on Jan. 28 had published a detailed story about 12 workers who aided in the Oct. 7 attacks, followed by the Journal’s broader piece about UNRWA staff’s alleged links to Hamas — a one-two punch that had an immediate impact on the agency. More than a dozen countries including Germany and Britain froze funding to UNRWA, stalling a total of $450 million. It was a massive scandal that put the organization, the main conduit for aid to Gaza, on the defensive. But months later, the paper’s top editor overseeing standards privately made an admission: The paper didn’t know — and still doesn’t know —whether the allegation, based on Israeli intelligence reports, was true…According to three people familiar with the situation, since the story was published earlier this year, reporters have tried and failed to corroborate the 10% claim at the center of the story.”
U.N. fires Gaza staff, citing possible involvement in attack on Israel (WaPo)
“The United Nations has officially closed its internal investigation of Israeli allegations that staff members of UNRWA, the main U.N. relief agency in Gaza, participated in the Oct. 7 Hamas invasion of southern Israel after determining that nine of 19 accused “may have been involved” in the attack. The nine have been fired, according to U.N. statements. Investigators determined there was “insufficient” evidence to support Israel’s charges against another nine of the accused, and “no evidence” against one, a spokesman for Secretary General António Guterres said Monday.
Israel’s Bombs Will Go On Killing Gazans Long Into the Future (Mary Turfah//The Nation)
“Even when the war is technically declared over, thousands and thousands of unexploded munitions will remain, waiting for their chance to do harm.”
‘We’ve lost everything, for what?’: Gazan anger at Hamas grows as war drags on (Mahmoud Mushtaha//+972)
“What has become clear over the past 10 months is that the Palestinian leadership — both Fatah and Hamas — has abandoned the people without any forethought or a coherent plan. While Gazans face relentless Israeli bombardment with no safe place to turn to, Hamas evades its responsibility to protect the population and Fatah is nowhere to be found. As the war has dragged on, displays of public opposition to or criticism of Hamas have grown among Palestinians in Gaza. Many accuse Hamas of failing to anticipate the ferocity of Israel’s response to the October 7 attacks, and hold the group partially accountable for the dire consequences they are now facing.”
RIVER TO THE SEA
Smotrich: Might be ‘justified and moral’ to cause 2 million Gazans to die of hunger, but world won’t let us (Times of Israel)
“Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich implies he believes that blocking humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip is “justified and moral” even if it causes 2 million civilians to die of hunger, adding however that the international community won’t allow this to happen. “We are bringing in aid because there is no choice,” Smotrich says at a conference in Yad Binyamin hosted by the Israel Hayom outlet. “We can’t, in the current global reality, manage a war. Nobody will let us cause 2 million civilians to die of hunger even though it might be justified and moral until our hostages are returned. Humanitarian in exchange for humanitarian is morally justified, but what can we do? We live today in a certain reality, we need international legitimacy for this war.”’ See also Israel’s Western allies slam Israeli minister’s remark that Gaza starvation may be justified (AP)
Palestinian prisoners describe systemic abuse in Israel’s jails (Guardian)
“Violence, extreme hunger, humiliation and other abuse of Palestinian prisoners has been normalised across Israel’s jail system, according to Guardian interviews with released prisoners, with mistreatment now so systemic that rights group B’Tselem says it must be considered a policy of “institutionalised abuse”. Former detainees described abuse ranging from severe beatings and sexual violence to starvation rations, refusal of medical care, and deprivation of basic needs including water, daylight, electricity and sanitation, including soap and sanitary pads for women. In a months-long investigation, B’Tselem interviewed 55 former prisoners housed in 16 Israeli prison service jails and detention centres run by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), mapping the scale and nature of abuse. The highly respected Jerusalem-based group concluded that Israel’s prisons should now be labelled “torture camps”…A former barracks that became a processing centre for people seized in Gaza, there have been suggestions that suffering at Sde Teiman is a horrific and temporary exception created by the Gaza war. Detainees’ testimony and the B’Tselem report suggest, however, that it is just one particularly violent component of an abusive system, and cases of abuse are not unsanctioned acts of violence. Instead, it is suggested that under the direction of the far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, the mistreatment has become an integral part of Israel’s detention system. At least 60 people have died in Israeli custody since the war in Gaza broke out, compared to one or two deaths a year previously.” See also: Everything is legitimate’: Israeli leaders defend soldiers accused of rape (Al Jazeera 8/9/24); Torture, abuse and humiliation: Palestinians on Israeli prison ‘hell’ (Guardian); Leaked video shows Israeli soldiers sexually assaulting Palestinian detainee (Al Anadolou)
Welcome to Hell: The Israeli Prison System as a Network of Torture Camps (B’Tselem)
““Welcome to Hell” is a report on the abuse and inhuman treatment of Palestinians held in Israeli custody since 7 October 2023. B’Tselem collected testimonies from 55 Palestinians held during that time and released, almost all with no charges. Their testimonies reveal the outcomes of the rushed transformation of more than a dozen Israeli prison facilities, military and civilian, into a network of camps dedicated to the abuse of inmates as a matter of policy. Facilities in which every inmate is deliberately subjected to harsh, relentless pain and suffering operate as de-facto torture camps.” See also Sexual-Abuse Case Rocking Israel’s Military Broke After Doctors Sounded Alarm (WSJ)
‘Raped by female soldiers’: Palestinian in leaked Sde Teiman photo speaks out (Al Jazeera)
“Blindfolded, arms behind his head and standing by the barbed wire fence of the Israeli Sde Teiman detention camp. It was one of the first photos leaked from the notorious army base, where thousands of Palestinian prisoners were held without charge and routinely tortured. The man in the picture, Ibrahim Salem, was released last week after nearly eight months of detention…“Most of the prisoners will come out with rectum injuries [caused by the sexual assault],” Salem, 36, told Middle East Eye…In the following eyewitness account, Salem recalls his ordeal, starting from his arrest at a hospital in Gaza until his release.”
Israeli Army Strikes Tul Karm, West Bank; Palestinians Report Nine Dead, Including Hamas Commander (Haaretz 8/3/24)
“The IDF said it struck a vehicle carrying terrorists in Tul Karm using a drone, and claimed the occupants were on their way to carry out an attack. The army struck Tul Karm a second time, and eyewitnesses reported nine dead in the two strikes.”
Director of Al-Haq Shawan Jabarin Holds Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera accountable (European Legal Support Center)
“Il Corriere Della Sera, one of Italy’s most prominent newspapers, has paid around 15,000 Euros in damages to Shawan Jabarin, the General Director of Al-Haq, for falsely accusing him in 2021 of being a terrorist and murderer, an unfounded allegation based on Israeli propaganda and smear campaigns…After being summoned to Court, Il Corriere Della Sera accepted a settlement agreement, which included compensating Shawan Jabarin for ‘reputational’ damage suffered and publishing an article retracting the defamatory claims. Despite reporting on the incident and retracting the terrorist claim, the newspaper failed to acknowledge that it was their own publication that had defamed Mr. Jabarin.”
The Radicalization of Israel’s Military (Isaac Chotiner interviews Yehuda Shaul//New Yorker)
“Lawlessness and violence was allowed because the relationship between the military and the settlers on the ground became so symbiotic. It is now so symbiotic that it’s not clear any more where the military starts and ends, and where the civilians start and end…The police in the West Bank are almost completely settlers and militia…And if I zoom out and connect the West Bank to Israel, I would say that we are in a place where Israel will have to decide whether we are a country that has a settlement project—a colonial project in the West Bank—or we are a colonial project that has a country.” See also With attention on Gaza, Jewish settlers expand in the West Bank (NPR); Three Israeli army refusers: ‘We will not participate in genocide’ (Oren Ziv//+972);
Scoop: U.S. won’t sanction IDF unit for human rights violations in West Bank (Axios)
“Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke on Friday with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and informed him that he had decided to end the investigation into the Israel Defenses Force’s “Netzah Yehuda” battalion for human rights violations in the occupied West Bank and not impose sanctions on the unit, according to two senior U.S. and Israeli officials. Why it matters: It’s a significant diplomatic achievement for Gallant, who in recent months has had quiet talks with Blinken and other senior U.S. officials in an effort to demonstrate the IDF has taken steps to address human rights violations by members of the battalion. If sanctions were imposed on the Netzah Yehuda battalion, it would have been an unprecedented move on the part of the Biden administration, and potentially damaged the IDF and relations between Israel and the United States.”
Settlers assault Arab Israelis, torch car after they accidentally enter W. Bank outpost (Times of Israel)
“Five Arab Israelis, including an infant, were attacked and their car was set on fire Friday after they accidentally drove into an illegal West Bank outpost…Nufah, one of the woman who was attacked, told Haaretz their navigation app had led them astray.
“We accidentally went into some place and then people started running after the car, throwing rocks,” she said. “After they broke all the windows they sprayed tear gas.” She said one of the attackers put his gun to the infant’s head and ordered them to get out of the car.”
U.S. SCENE
US support for Israel is collapsing. And Aipac knows it (Yousef Munayyer//Guardian)
“On Tuesday night, Representative Cori Bush lost in a Democratic primary election to challenger Wesley Bell, whose election campaign was overwhelmingly financed by pro-Israel groups such as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac). According the New York Times, the spending by pro-Israel groups “transformed the race into one of the most expensive House primaries in history”. While Bush, an outspoken opponent of Israel’s crimes against Palestinians, is on her way out of Congress because of Aipac’s big spending, the victory for Israel donors is the latest sign of their cause’s decline in the United States and especially in the Democratic party. How could it be that such a powerful flex by pro-Israel donors is a reflection of a weakening cause? It’s simple: it is because such power flexes were never needed before. Now, it has become routine.” See also In Washington’s streets, a new popular consensus on Palestine (Ahmed Moor//+972); Cori Bush loses primary after pro-Israel groups spend millions to oust ‘Squad’ member (Guardian)
Israeli Minister Held Talks With Black Cube About Spying on pro-Palestinian U.S. Student Group (Haaretz)
“Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli met recently with Black Cube CEO Dan Zorella to examine the possibility of the private intelligence agency conducting an investigation into Students for Justice in Palestine – the group that has led anti-Israel protests on U.S. campuses since the Israel-Gaza war broke out in October. Hiring a private intelligence firm to spy on a group based in the United States, and when most of its activists are U.S. citizens, could be seen as a blow to U.S. sovereignty, according to ex-senior Israeli diplomats…In response to this story, a spokesperson for the Diaspora Affairs Minister said Black Cube had approached the ministry, but the ministry rejected its proposal. However, three sources with knowledge of the matter painted a different picture, saying the initiative came from the ministry but was rejected by the company.”
Pro-Israel interests pour millions into defeating a second ‘Squad’ member (WaPo)
“In Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, the pro-Israel lobby is pouring millions into a campaign to unseat Bush as part of a broader, well-funded effort to replace critics of the Israeli government and the war in Gaza, such as Bush, with more Israel-friendly Democrats. Outside groups have already spent over $15 million in this race, according to Open Secrets, a Washington nonprofit that tracks campaign finance and lobbying data. More than 80 percent of that money has gone toward ads opposing Bush and supporting her opponent…Bush is facing a tight primary contest Tuesday against St. Louis county prosecutor Wesley Bell, who is backed by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), a powerful pro-Israel group.”
Uncommitted voters respond to Harris-Walz ticket with hope and reservations (Guardian 8/8/24)
“Leaders of the “uncommitted” campaign spoke with Kamala Harris and her newly announced running mate, the Minnesota governor, Tim Walz, before a rally in Detroit on Wednesday to discuss their calls for a ceasefire in Gaza and an arms embargo on Israel. Harris “shared her sympathies and expressed an openness to a meeting with the Uncommitted leaders to discuss an arms embargo”, the organization said in a statement. But a Harris aide said on Thursday that while the vice-president did say she wanted to engage more with members of the Muslim and Palestinian communities about the Israel-Gaza war, she did not agree to discuss an arms embargo, according to Reuters.” See also Harris rejects claims she would support Israel arms embargo (BBC 8/824); Trump claims surging Jewish support, suggests those backing Harris ‘get head checked’ (Times of Israel); Kamala Harris heckled by protesters over Israel-Palestine stance (Al Jazeera 8/8/24); Here’s Why Two Protesters Interrupted Kamala Harris—in Their Own Words (Mother Jones 8/9/24)
Antisemitism? No, That’s Not The Reason Kamala Harris Rejected Josh Shapiro (Prem Thakker//Zeteo)
“Amid mass enthusiasm over Vice President Kamala Harris’ pick of Minnesota Gov. Walz as her running mate, Republicans and other pro-Israel figures…disingenuously claim her decision was in fact motivated by antisemitism…Above all else, they conveniently and cynically ignore the litany of reasons that Harris, whose husband is Jewish, may have had for seeing Walz as a better fit for her campaign. For one, Harris was reportedly compelled by Walz’s biography and political accomplishments…And then there was concern about alienating voters concerned with Israel’s war on Gaza and worried about Shapiro’s record on Israel (not his Jewish faith). On the one hand, Shapiro has called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “one of the worst leaders of all time.” But as independent writer and contributing editor at Jewish Currents David Klion recently argued, the Pennsylvania governor’s recent steps suggest a stance unique even among his Democratic colleagues who share generically pro-Israel records. In April, as student protests began erupting across the country against Israel’s war on Gaza, Shapiro compared student protesters to the KKK. He also suggested that a peaceful pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Pennsylvania was threatening student safety. When the university shut down the protest – at his urging – and arrested 33 people in the process, his office called it the “right decision.” Anti-war and pro-Palestine voters also pointed to his broader record. In 2021, then-Attorney General Shapiro heralded penalizing Ben & Jerry’s – founded by two Jewish Americans – under the state’s anti-Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions law after the company refused to sell its ice cream in illegal Israeli settlements.”
U.S. Official: Biden Realized Netanyahu Lied to Him About Hostage Deal (Haaretz 8/3/24)
“A senior official in the Biden administration told Haaretz on Saturday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is ungrateful toward the United States and disregards the significant amount of aid it has provided to Israel throughout the past 10 months of war. The official also said that the last two conversations between President Joe Biden and Netanyahu – one during a meeting at the White House some 10 days ago, the other over the phone last week – were difficult and tense. “Biden realized that Netanyahu was lying to him about the hostages,” the official told Haaretz. “He’s not saying it publicly yet, but in the meeting between them, he specifically told him, ‘Stop bullshitting me.'”’ See also Netanyahu, Defiant, Appears to Have Gone Rogue, Risking a Regional War (NYT 8/2/24); State Dept calls for Israel to investigate allegations of ‘horrific’ sexual abuse of Palestinian detainees (CNN)
Far-right groups that block aid to Gaza receive tax-deductible donations from US and Israel (AP)
“Three groups that have prevented humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza — including one accused of looting or destroying supplies — have raised more than $200,000 from donors in the U.S. and Israel, The Associated Press and the Israeli investigative site Shomrim have found in an examination of crowdfunding websites and other public records…Donations have continued even after the U.S. imposed sanctions against one of these groups.”
PERSPECTIVES//LONG READS
We’re already in a regional war. Only a Gaza ceasefire can end it (Amjad Iraqi//+972)
“Indeed, although October 7 thrust the entire Middle East into a violent vortex, we have repeatedly been told that the threshold of a “regional war” has not yet been crossed. The battling actors, experts insist, are still playing a risky but calibrated game to re-establish mutual “deterrence,” permitting certain levels of violence that can still be read as avoiding all-out havoc. In many ways, however, this is a discursive trick that downplays the harrowing truth on the ground: we have already been in the throes of that regional war for months. The evidence is in the bodies and debris piling up in Gaza and southern Lebanon, and in the activation of the Western-led alliance and the Axis of Resistance across multiple fronts — from U.S. warships in the Mediterranean to Houthi militias in the Red Sea, from Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon to a missile barrage from Iran. This confrontation can become infinitely worse. Yet the very reason that international actors have belatedly jolted into action this past week is the same reason the war is being pushed into its most hazardous phase yet: that certain lives, and certain interests, matter more than others…As much as Western powers may skirt around the problem, a ceasefire in Gaza remains the keystone to regional de-escalation, and Palestinian liberation the blueprint for regional hope. Palestine is hardly the first epicenter of the Middle East’s regional battles, but it may be the final crack that shatters any semblance of the international order that failed to prevent such a war. What comes next will be defined by what happens in Gaza — and Palestinians must seize the tools to sculpt it.”
In memory of journalist Ismail Al-Ghoul, Gaza City’s voice to the world (Mohammed Mhawish//+972)
“Ismail joined Al Jazeera in November and chose to document a genocide as one of their main reporters in Gaza City, with broadcasts nearly every hour. With his recurring sign-off, stretching out the vowels of his name — “Ismaeel Alghoool, Al Jazeera, Gaza City” — he was a reassuring presence to me and his millions of viewers worldwide…Ismail was also the eyes and ears for the world when the Israeli military raided Al-Shifa Hospital, at a time when much of the international media denied the testimonies of Palestinians. He continued reporting from the scene bravely and professionally until Israeli forces arrested him. Despite the fact that he was a well-known Al Jazeera journalist, the soldiers treated him brutally and interrogated him harshly during his detention…Ismail was killed barehanded. He wasn’t holding a gun or firing a rocket, and posed no threat to anyone. On the contrary, he was clearly marked as a member of the press, wearing his flak jacket and protective helmet. Still, the Israeli military deemed him a target and decapitated him with a drone strike, in what was one of the cruelest images to be broadcast on television during this war.” See also Al Jazeera rejects Israeli allegation that slain journalist was Hamas fighter (WaPo)
WATCH: ‘Israel’s Reel Extremism’ – A Startling New Documentary from Zeteo (Zeteo)
“An ‘extraordinary’ film on Israel examining viral social media posts from Gaza – including exclusive interviews with the Israeli soldiers behind them.”