In-Depth Issues:
How Iran Is Explaining Away Its Syrian Absence - Aviram Bellaishe ( Jerusalem Post) The Iranian propaganda machine is working fast to formulate an explanatory narrative for its decision not to intervene in Syria. The first step is to blame Assad's regime for "not firing a single shot at the Zionist regime for half a century." On Dec. 8, the Iranian foreign minister declared that "the Iranian forces were in Syria to fight the Islamic State - and with the end of the fighting returned to Iran." Militarily, Iran was not in a condition to help Assad - after senior IRGC officers in Syria were killed in targeted attacks attributed to Israel, with Hizbullah unable to send reinforcements, with Israel preventing Iranian planes from rea ching Syria, and amid attacks on the Iraqi militias by the Americans. A well-known social-media figure affiliated with Iran's Revolutionary Guards said, "With the removal of Hizbullah from the game and of the Iranian regime from Syria, the resistance project is now at a standstill." "Iran must completely rethink its defense doctrine. This is the end of the road." Iran is working on a transition to a new rhetoric in which the Syrian rebels are a new proxy objective. Instead of "terrorists," Iran now calls them "Islamist resisters." The aim is to preserve a route to Hizbullah for arms transfers, something analysts in Iran say is "not impossible." The writer, vice president for strategy, security, and communications at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, has served in senior government positions for over 25 years.
U.S. National Security Advisor Says Israel Is Acting in Syria for Its Own Defense - Hannah Sarisohn ( Jerusalem Post) After meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said Thursday that Israel had a right to defend itself against risks to its security from Syria. "What Israel is doing is trying to identify potential threats, both conventional and weapons of mass destruction, that could threaten Israel and, frankly, threaten others as well," Sullivan said.
Assad's Collapse Triggers Race to Find Missing Chemical Weapons - Joby Warrick ( Washington Post) In 53 years of Assad family rule, Syria's government made chemical weapons by the ton, from giant vats of World War I-era mustard gas to nerve agents so deadly that just a few drops could kill. According to an audit by international weapons inspectors, more than 360 tons of mustard gas that Syria admitted making has never been fully accounted for. Also missing are five tons of precursors for the nerve agent sarin. Gregory Koblentz, director of biodefense studies at George Mason University, said there is a "growing risk that chemical weapons may be looted by profiteers, competing rebel groups or terrorists."
U.S. Charges Ex-Syrian Prison Offi cial with Torture - Adam Goldman ( New York Times) A federal grand jury in Los Angeles on Thursday charged former Syrian government official Samir Ousman al-Sheikh, 72, with torturing political dissidents at the notorious Adra prison in Damascus. Al-Sheikh immigrated to the U.S. in 2020 and applied for U.S. citizenship in 2023, lying on federal forms. He was arrested attempting to fly to Beirut.
Files from Aleppo Intelligence Facility Show Extent of Assad Repression - Louisa Loveluck ( Washington Post) The binders in the basement of Aleppo's general intelligence branch lay out what happened here in meticulous detail. They list every victim and every alleged crime. There were buildings like this in every Syrian city. Long before prisoners reached the country's notorious jails, they were surveilled and interrogated in their neighborhoods. At least half a million people were killed and 100,000 disappeared during Syria's civil war, and branches like the one in Aleppo cranked the engine of killing.
Drug Warehouse Found at Military Headquarters Commanded by Assad's Brother - Tim Lister ( CNN) A social media video surfaced Wednesday showing a warehouse in Syria stacked with the drug captagon at the headquarters of a military division near Damascus that was commanded by Bashar Assad's brother Maher. P iles of pills are seen on the floor along with drug-making equipment. The highly addictive drug, mostly containing amphetamine, is sometimes described as the "poor man's cocaine," with annual trade in the drug worth billions of dollars. Al Arabiya recently reported the discovery of thousands of captagon pills at the Mazzeh airbase south of Damascus at a branch of Syrian Air Force Intelligence.
Australian Sky News Host Who Spoke Out in Favor of Israel Is Fired ( Ynet News) Australian news anchor Erin Molan has been fired from hosting the Friday evening Sky News newscast that bears her name. See also Fired Australian Sky News Host Criticizes Appeasement of Terror Supporters ( Ynet News) After she was dismissed from the Australian Sky News network, Erin Molan criticized those who allowed the world to devolve into supporting extremism and terrorism. In a video on Instagram, she attacks anyone who glorifies terrorists, supports Hamas, or even sits idly by while Israel is fighting the war against terrorism. "Pressure Hamas? Oh God no, don't be silly, they're just terrorists, let them be. Pressure Israel, that's it. The only democracy in the Middle East fighting blood-thirsty killers on multiple fronts on behalf of the entire world, desperately trying to get their people back including babies while simulta neously trying to protect the rest of their citizens from the same fate. Yes, demonize them. They are the problem." "I care too much about fighting for the innocent children in Gaza, suffering at the hands of terrorists who attack, kill, kidnap Jews, then delight in using their own families as human shields in some kind of sick attempt to win the PR battle." "And yes, standing against terrorism in all its forms is supporting children everywhere in the Middle East, including in Gaza. Nothing the mobs chant or say will convince me otherwise, and nor should it." "I'm not from Israel, I'm not Jewish, I'm not American. I have no skin in this game but you see, I do. And that's a problem, we all do. Doesn't matter how far away we are. When hate is allowed to fester, we all lose. We can't escape it." "When stupidity isn't called out, it can become very dangerous. And if I back down now and sit idly by, then I am just as muc h to blame as the fool waving the Hamas flag at a bogus protest that has nothing to do with Palestinian lives." See also Video: Erin Molan Outlines Her Principles ( Instagram)
Trials Expose Logistics, Planning behind Amsterdam Pogrom - Canaan Lidor ( JNS) A month after dozens of Arab men went on a "Jew hunt" for Israeli soccer fans in Amsterdam, the trials of seven suspects last week revealed new information on the logistics of the event. Organizers worked for days to bus in culprits from across the Netherlands to ambush Israelis, whom the attackers often referred to as "Jews." More than 20 fans returning from a soccer match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and the local Ajax team were wounded in the assaults. Police were deployed in large numbers near the stadium but failed to protect the Israelis in the city center, where they walked into an ambush that had been planned days in advance by Arab men, including dozens of taxi drivers, the indictments showed.
Greece to Buy Artillery Systems from Israel ( Reuters) Greece is in advanced talks to buy 36 PULS rocket artillery systems from Israel, two officials said on Friday. Discussions on the $700 million deal come during negotiations for Israel to sell Greece an anti-aircraft and missile defense dome. The PULS system, made by Israel's Elbit, has a range of up to 300 km. (190 miles). Most of the new artillery systems will protect Greece's northeastern borders with Turkey and its islands in the Aegean, an official said.
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| News Resources - North America, Europe, and Asia: - The Syrian Upheaval Has Iranian Leaders Reeling - Farnaz Fassihi
In the days since the abrupt obliteration of Iran's dominant presence in Syria, the Iranian government has faced a fierce public backlash over the billions of dollars spent and the Iranian blood shed to back the Assad regime. The criticism, including from conservatives, is flowing freely on television channels and talk shows, and in social media posts. It also appears on the front pages of newspapers every day.
&n bsp; Ebrahim Motaghi, a professor of international relations at Tehran University, said on a talk show that Iran had been reduced from regional power to merely another country. Cleric Mohammad Shariati Dehghan, a former Iranian representative to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, wrote in a front-page opinion piece in Ham Mihan that the defeat of Assad exposed Iran's strategy as misguided and "built on weak foundations." He demanded a new approach that redirected money and resources back to the people of Iran instead of propping up militant groups.
The public debate is extraordinary, given that for years Iranian leaders portrayed their support for Syria and allied militant groups fighting Israel as a nonnegotiable principle of the Islamic revolution and critical for national security. Prominent Tehran-based analyst Hassan Shemshadi, who is close to the government, said, "People are asking: Why did we spend so much money there? What did we achieve? What is our justification now that it's all gone?" (New York Times) - IAEA: Iran Plans to "Significantly Increase" Enriched Uranium Production
An updated design of Iran's Fordo plant showed that the effect of the change "would be to significantly increase the rate of production of uranium enriched up to 60%," an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report said. Production will jump to more than 34 kg. of highly enriched uranium per month, compared to 4.7 kg. previously. (AFP) - Trump Team Weighs Options, including Airstrikes, to Stop Iran's Nuclear Program - Alexander Ward
President-elect Donald Trump is weighing options for stopping Iran from being able to build a nuclear weapon, including the possibility of preventive airstrikes. The military-strike option against nuclear facilities is now under more serious review by some members of his transition team in light of Iran's weakened regional position and recent revelations of Tehran's burgeoning nuclear work.
Trump has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent calls that he is concerned about an Iranian nuclear breakout on his watch, signaling that he is looking for proposals to prevent that outcome. The president-elect wants plans that stop short of igniting a new war. The president-elect's transition team is devising what it calls a "maximum pressure 2.0" strategy against the regime that would include military steps paired w ith tighter financial penalties.
Iran has enough highly enriched uranium to build four nuclear bombs, making it the only nonnuclear-weapon country to be producing 60% near-weapons-grade material. It would take just a few days to convert it into weapons-grade nuclear fuel. U.S. officials have previously said it could take Iran several months to field a nuclear weapon.
Trump aides and confidants supporting military options said the main idea would be to support Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities like Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan, and even potentially have the U.S. participate in a joint operation. More needs to be done than increased economic and financial pressure because Iran "is actively trying to kill President Trump," a person on the transition team said. "That certainly influences everybody's thinking." (Wall Street Journal) - Trump: There Are Ideas Other Than a Two-State Solution
As TIME's 2024 Person of the Year, President-elect Donald Trump said on Nov. 25 in an interview: "October 7 was a horrible thing. Everyone is forgetting conveniently about October 7, but that was a horrible day for the world, not for Israel, for the world."
Q: Do you still support a two-state solution?
Trump: "I support whatever solution we can do to get peace. There are other ideas other than two state, but I support whatever is necessary to get not just peace, a lasting peace. It can't go on where every five years you end up in tragedy. There are other alternatives....What I want is a deal where there's going to be peace and where the killing stops."
"I want a long-lasting peace, a peace where we don't have an October 7 in another three years. And there are numerous ways you can do it. You can do it two state, but there are numerous ways it can be done." (TIME)
News Resources - Israel and the Mideast: - Syrian Druze Village Calls to Be Annexed to Israel - Ohad Merlin
Viral videos circulating on social media depicted a gathering of dignitaries from the village of Hader, on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, speaking in favor of joining Israel. A dignitary said he spoke on behalf of several villages in the region and told a crowd of dozens: "We ask to be annexed to the Golan....We want to ask to join our kin in the Golan, to be free from injustice and oppression," to which those present replied: "We agree, we agree!" (Jerusalem Post) - IDF Continues to Dismantle Rocket Launch Sites in Gaza and Lebanon
The IDF is continuing to dismantle rocket launch sites in both Gaza and southern Lebanon, the army reported Friday. In southern Lebanon, soldiers discovered a large weapons store, including Kornet missile launchers, AK-47 rifles, magazines, and missiles hidden in dense, mountainous terrain. The IDF also removed an anti-tank missile launch site and a weapons cache containing RPG missiles and mortar shells. The IDF reiterated that in removing threats to Israel, it is acting in accordance with the ceasefire agreement.
In Gaza, IDF troops dismantled a rocket launch site in Beit Lahia with three underground multi-barrel launchers loaded with rockets. In Rafah, IDF troops located tunnel shafts and eliminated terrorists. (Jerusalem Post) - Israel Continues Strikes on Syrian Military Sites - Lior Ben Ari
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Sunday that Israel carried out 61 airstrikes on military sites across Syria on Saturday, targeting tunnels housing ballistic missile stockpiles. Additionally, Syrian sources told Russia's Sputnik news agency that Israel launched 52 airstrikes on military positions in Damascus, its rural outskirts, Homs, Hama and Daraa. (Ynet News) - IDF Strikes Hamas Terrorists Looting Aid Convoys
The IDF carried out strikes on two groups of terrorists trying to loot humanitarian aid in Gaza on Thursday. "All of the terrorists who were eliminated were Hamas terrorists who planned to violently take control of humanitarian aid trucks," the IDF said. (Times of Israel) - Clashes between Terror Groups and Palestinian Security Forces Escalating - Einav Halabi
The Palestinian Preventive Security forces launched a large-scale counterterror crackdown in the West Bank's Jenin, Tulkarm and Nablus refugee camps last Sunday, marking the most extensive action against Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad operatives in years. The operation inclu ded a foiled car bomb attack targeting Palestinian security personnel in Jenin and clashes in multiple locations. (Ynet News)
Global Commentary and Think-Tank Analysis:
Iran
- IDF Sees Chance for Strikes on Iran Nuke Sites after Knocking Out Syria Air Defenses - Emanuel Fabian
The IDF believes there is an opportunity to strike Iran's nuclear facilities and the Israeli Air Force (IAF) has continued its preparations, military officials said Thursday. The IDF also believes that Iran may push ahead and develop a bomb as it scrambles to replace its deterrence. Iran is committed to Israel's destruction. Over the past year, it has twice fired massive barrages of missiles at Israel.
After over a decade of evading air defenses over Syria during a campaign against Iran's supply of weapons to Hizbullah, the IAF said on Thursday that it had achieved total air superiority in the area, enabling safer passage for IAF aircraft to carry out a strike on Iran. Last week the IAF destroyed 86% of the former Assad regime's air defense systems.
If in the past, the IAF would not fly directly over Damascus when striking Iran-linked targets in the capital, it now can. The IAF can also send surveillance drones over Damascus without them being shot down by advanced Russian-made air defense systems. (Times of Israel) - Israel Paves Way for Strike on Iran's Nuclear Facilities after Taking Out Syria's Military Infrastructure - Jotam Confino
Israel's air force and navy are estimated to have destroyed around 80% of the Syrian army's equipment since Islamist rebels seized Damascus last Sunday, including air defense systems that may have been used to protect Iran against any attack.
Assad's collapse, combined with the fact that Iran is already weakened by the systematic dismantling of its proxy Hizbullah in Lebanon, has opened a unique window of opportunity for Israel to strike, a senior Israeli official told the Telegraph. "Iran is at its weakest and lowest point in 30 years. All the terrorist organizations it funded and built have fallen one after another. This is the time to strike a blow that will destabilize the regime of evil and te rror in Tehran," the official said.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has long called for Iran's nuclear program to be stopped in its tracks. Yair Lapid, Israel's opposition leader and former prime minister, said he agreed with Netanyahu's desire to hit Tehran's nuclear capabilities. "The Iranian nuclear program is not only a threat to Israel; it is a threat to world peace and a risk to global security. Israel needs to work together with its allies to thwart the threat in every possible way, including bombing nuclear facilities," Lapid told the Telegraph.
Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Yaakov Amidror, a former national security advisor, said Israel should "hugely accelerate" its plans for an attack. "Hizbullah was the deterrence against Israel. And I think [their weakening] is very important for the future decision [on Iran] by Israel," he said. Amnon Sofrin, the former head of Mossad's intelligence dire ctorate, agreed that now would be an opportune time to attack. (Telegraph-UK) - With Iran's Guard Down, the U.S. and Israel Face an Urgent Choice - David Ignatius
Iran's proxy armies have been crushed in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria. And it appears to be nearly naked to attack after a wave of pinpoint Israeli airstrikes on its air defense system in October. "We showed that Iran is vulnerable," argued Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Yoav Gallant, who was Israel's defense minister during most of this year's military campaigns against Iran and its proxies. Gallant explained to me in Washington last week that Israel's devastating bombing campaign on Oct. 26 created "a window to act against Iran" before it produces a nuclear weapon.
Gallant hopes the U.S. and Isra el will work together to prevent a nuclear Iran. But he stressed: "Israel has the means to strike Iranian assets in a precise, forceful and sophisticated manner. If needed, we will not hesitate to act." (Washington Post)
Syria
- Why Israel Moved into the Buffer Zone on the Syria Border - Rolf Dobelli
Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin served as the head of IDF Military Intelligence from 2006 to 2010 and was one of the fighter pilots who disabled Saddam Hussein's nuclear capabilities in Iraq in 1981. In an interview on Dec. 10, he was asked about reports that Israel is also invading Syria on the ground. He replied that on the ground t here is a buffer zone between Israel and Syria. This zone was created in 1974 by Henry Kissinger when he brokered the disengagement after the Yom Kippur War. The buffer zone provided a designated area where no weapons were allowed.
After October 7, 2023, Israel decided that there will be no terror organization on its border with the capability to launch an attack within hours. And HTS [Hayat Tahrir al-Sham] which just toppled the Assad regime, demonstrated their ability to emulate Hamas with a surprise attack from a point of zero distance to the border. So, Israel is making sure that this buffer zone will not be taken by terrorists. When Israel will see that there is an accountable regime in Syria, a regime committed to the 1974 agreement, it will withdraw back to the lines where it started from. Any rumors that Israel is moving toward Damascus is nonsense. (Politico) - Israel Used a Power Vacuum to Destroy Syria's Military Assets - Shira Rubin
Last week Israel effectively destroyed Syria's military capabilities in a matter of days and seized military posts beyond a UN-monitored buffer zone established after the 1973 Yom Kippur war. Avi Dichter, a member of Israel's Security Cabinet, said the goal "is to establish facts on the ground" as Syrian rebels seek to cement their rule. When Iranian military advisers and allied forces withdrew and Assad fled, the IDF followed maps annotated with suspected chemical and biological weapons facilities, armored divisions and airfields.
The Security Cabinet approved a preemptive ground and aerial campaign aimed at eliminating future threats from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Syria's leading rebel group and de facto governing authority, which began as an offshoot of al-Q aeda. Israeli officials discussed the operations with their American counterparts.
U.S. officials told the Washington Post that Washington had given its blessing years ago to Israeli freedom of action in Syria, including airstrikes, as a self-defense measure, and that it extended to the present. The officials emphasized that Israel neither needed nor asked for U.S. approval or assistance for its operations in Syria since the rebel takeover.
From the Israeli perspective, "the need for the buffer zone action was clear from day one," said a person familiar with Cabinet discussions. "No one wanted to see the rebels on Mount Hermon, looking down into Israel." Successive waves of strikes took out Syrian missiles, drones, fighter jets, attack helicopters, tanks, radar systems and the country's small naval fleet in the port of Latakia. (Washington Post)
U.S.-Israel Relations
- How Israel Turned the Mideast Around - Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer interviewed by Barton Swaim
Critics used to complain about the "Israel lobby" and its supposed ability to bend U.S. policy to its will. A saner case could be made that Israel is constantly doing America's dirty work at immense cost to itself. Its war against Hamas and Hizbullah isn't some regional conflict over disputed territory but a battle in a worldwide cold war between an alliance of democracies and a confederation of anti-American dictatorships.
Ron Dermer, 53, Israel's minister for strategic affairs who grew up in Miami Beach, was Israel's ambassad or to the U.S. from 2013-21. He says, "A lot of people...think America is hated because of Israel. I think Israel is hated because of America. We're seen as an extension of your values. And guess what? They're right."
Six months ago, global opinion-makers spoke mainly about the "genocide" perpetrated by Israel in Gaza. Dermer says, "The Jews must be the dumbest genocidal force in history. We win Nobel Prizes, but we're idiots when it comes to genocide - the Palestinian population is about 10 times what it was in 1948."
He asks me to imagine I'm president of the United States and I have to pick one ally for the next half-century. "Just one, strictly in terms of American interest. You want an ally that can defend itself by itself and you don't have to send in troops to protect it. You want an ally with formidable intelligence capability and cyber capability and all the new forms of warfare. And you want an ally that can develop new weapons. If you're honest, you're down to Britain and Israel. And I think we have a bigger standing army than the Brits." (Wall Street Journal)
The Gaza War
- Number of Civilians Killed in Gaza "Inflated to Vilify Israel" - Patrick Sawer
The number of civilians killed in the Gaza conflict has been manipulated for propaganda purposes to portray Israel as deliberately targeting innocent people, according to a study by the Henry Jackson Society think tank. The Gaza ministry of health is accused of overstating casualty data by including natural deaths, failing to differentiate between civilian and combat casualties, and over-reporting the numbe rs of women and children killed. In fact, the majority of those killed are fighting-age men.
Around 5,000 natural deaths, which would have happened even without the conflict, appear to have been added to the list of casualties. The casualty figures also failed to distinguish between Gazans killed by the IDF and those killed by misfired Hamas rockets.
The Hamas-sanctioned casualty figures are taken at face value by the BBC, the New York Times and CNN. Only 5% of 1,378 news articles cited casualty figures issued by the Israeli authorities, while 98% used those provided by Hamas. During previous conflicts, similar inaccuracies were documented. (Telegraph-UK) - Distorted Data from Gaza Harms Global Understanding of Israel's Actions - Editorial
We call on the international media to exercise greater caution when reporting on casualty figures, ensuring their information is sourced from reliable, verified data rather than propaganda tools controlled by terrorist organizations. Furthermore, we urge policymakers, journalists, and the public to reject narratives rooted in manipulation and misinformation.
The truth matters. It is time to hold Hamas accountable for its lies and ensure that the narrative surrounding this conflict is grounded in facts, not fabrications. (Jerusalem Post) - BBC "Portrayed Palestinian Gunmen Killed in Gaza as Innocent Civilians" - Patrick Sawer
Research by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA) found that in nearly 30 separate reports, BBC Arabic failed to give any indication that Palestinians killed in clashes with Israeli soldiers were fighters with terror groups such as Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
Researchers found that, during an 18-month period after August last year, there were 18 items in which BBC Arabic failed to report cases of Jewish civilians falling victim to Arab violence. A report in October described all 24 Israeli fatalities in the West Bank since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks as "soldiers," when more than a third were civilians. In another 19 items, civilian hostages taken by Hamas were described as "prisoners of war" and Jewish fatalities as "settlers" - despite them living inside Israel's internation ally recognized territory.
A spokesman for CAMERA noted that "even when Hamas, the PIJ and Israel alike agree that a certain fatality was a combatant, the BBC opts not to mention this." (Telegraph-UK) - We Must Be Liberated from Hamas - Anonymous Gazan
We've tried an armed struggle in the past and achieved nothing. I oppose such a struggle because violence leads to more hatred and more deaths, taking place in an arena with an imbalance of forces. Israel will always overcome us that way.
This war has changed people's mindset and overturned conceptions. I have lost my loved ones, family members , friends and neighbors. My house is in ruins. I believe that resolving the conflict must be done on a realistic basis, relying on tools available in the present, not on stories of the past and on history.
Illusions must be discarded, such as the illusion that Israel can be removed or that [the old] Palestine can be restored. Israel is a fact and it's powerful, while the establishment of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza is impossible. Such a state is perceived as a threat to Israel's identity, and faces many obstacles.
I've always supported the idea of an independent Palestinian state, but if we had such a state now, most chances are that Hamas would be ruling it, turning it into an arm of Iran, like in Lebanon. An independent state could become fertile ground for the appearance of radical groups like Hamas, groups that intensified their activity against Israel after the Oslo Accords, competing politically with the Fatah movement.
&n bsp; In all honesty, I don't think we are ready for a state. We've experienced two ruling authorities in Gaza: a Fatah government, which was characterized by disorder and gangs, followed by Hamas. After Hamas won the election in 2006, we've experienced 18 years of tyrannical rule, with crumbling health and education systems, unemployment, poverty, suicides, and the channeling of tax revenues to the building of a military force.
Hamas rule has turned us into a nation of beggars. Gaza, which used to be a free and diverse place, became a closed and poor enclave devoted to security, replete with displays of militarism and extremism, like in Afghanistan. I don't think that Hamas' liberal supporters overseas know that this movement burned cinemas in Gaza in the early 1990s, preventing their re-opening to this day, with its rule in Gaza being a copy of the regime in Iran. We must be liberated from slavery to Hamas and from organizations working for Iran. (Ha'aretz)
Antisemitism
- Pass the Antisemitism Awareness Act - William Daroff
In the aftermath of the Hamas pogrom of October 7, 2023, campuses throughout the country became sites of exclusion, discrimination, and violence against Jewish college students. To address this problem, the Antisemitism Awareness Act (AAA) would instruct the U.S. Department of Education to take into account the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism in order to determine when harassment on campus may be motivated by anti-Jewish animus and therefore violates federal anti-discrimination statutes.
The IHRA definition includes as example s of antisemitism the targeting of Jewish Americans for perceived association with or connection to the State of Israel. This connection seems more than vindicated by the events of the last 15 months. The campus antisemites demand the expulsion of Hillel Jewish student centers in the name of "anti-Zionism." Their comrades lay siege to synagogues and rampage through Jewish neighborhoods invoking the same logic. Anti-Zionism is antisemitism.
The Antisemitism Awareness Act merely recognizes this reality and equips the Department of Education to protect our Jewish students. Congress must pass this critical legislation right now. Though the House overwhelmingly passed the AAA last spring, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer will not schedule a vote on the bill. American Jews - and decent Americans of all faiths - demand Congress do the right thing: pass the Antisemitism Awareness Act before the current congressional term ends.
The writer is CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. (Times of Israel)
Observations:
- Reporting on Amnesty International's new report about Israel's War in Gaza, the New York Times headline read: "Amnesty International Accuses Israel of Genocide in Gaza." The Los Angeles Times was similar: "Amnesty International says Israel is committing genocide in Gaza."
- Calling the report unfair would be a profound understatement. Here's its first sentence: "On 7 October 2023, Israel embarked on a military offensive on the occupied Gaza Strip." In other words, the story begins not with Hamas's unprecedented terrorist attack on Israeli civilians that day. Rather, it begins with the Israeli response to the aggression of Hamas. This is a bit like reporting on America's "genocide" in Japan by stating, "On April 18, 1942, the United States embarked on a military offensive on the Japanese nation" - leaving out that whole Pearl Harbor thing.
- The Genocide Convention of 1948 is very clear about what constitutes actual or attempted genocide: "acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group." But the Palestinian population has grown more than eightfold since Israel's founding, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, and the population of Gaza has increased 600% since 1960.
- One of the most important words in the UN definition of genocide is "intent." If Israel, which even its enemies characterize as supremely competent and lethal, intends genocide, it's really, really, bad at it. Indeed, if genocide were the goal, you would think Israel would stop warning civilians to evacuate areas it's about to attack and sending Palestinians caravans of aid.
- On page 101 of Amnesty's 296-page report, the authors essentially concede that Israel isn't committing genocide under prevailing interpretations of international law, as they reject "an overly cramped interpretation of international jurisprudence...that would effectively preclude a finding of genocide in the context of an armed conflict."
- As Commentary's Seth Mandel writes, "So Amnesty International dissents from international law. That's fine. Just be up-front about it: Amnesty is not accusing Israel of 'genocide,' it is accusing Israel of a different crime which Amnesty has named 'genocide,' just so it could use that word." Amnesty didn't want a discussion about the proper definition of genocide. It wanted headlines alleging that Israel committed the crime - and it got them.
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