The Israel Defense Forces are preparing to evacuate Gaza civilians to safer areas in the southern part of the enclave in advance of a looming invasion of the city of Rafah, which straddles Gaza’s border with Egypt.

At least four battalions of Gaza’s ruling Hamas terrorist organization remain unscathed and active in the city, and it is believed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and his No. 2, Mohammed Deif, are both holed up there along with many of the Israeli hostages who remain their captives.

Approximately two-thirds of Gaza civilians are also sheltering in the city, having moved south at the encouragement of the IDF which provided safe zones for their transit from the combat areas in the north.

During his Passover message to the nation on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alluded to the approaching invasion, saying, “In the coming days, we will increase the military and diplomatic pressure on Hamas because it’s the only way to release our hostages and achieve our victory.”

Finish the job.

Sources:
IDF Prepares to Evacuate Gaza Civilians, Invade Rafah, by Hana Levi Julian/Jewish Press, April 24, 2024

Hamas chief Sinwar exited tunnels, met with terrorists aboveground – report, Jerusalem Post Staff, April 24, 2024

Following the October 7th massacre on southern Israel, the government of Israel submitted a severe report to the UN, that included testimonies and evidence that Hamas committed sexual crimes on women and girls.

Despite the gruesome details documented in the report to the UN, UN Secretary General, António Guterres, has decided not to include Hamas in the UN’s blacklist of organizations suspected of committing acts of sexual violence during conflict.

The Minister for Social Equality and the Advancement of the Status of Women, May Golan, said that “The UN and Secretary General António Guterres always manage to break a new record of hypocrisy, antisemitism and the continuous cover-up of sexual crimes! Countless testimonies of difficult and shocking cases of rape and massacre of Israeli women that were committed on October 7th, were not enough for the Secretary General to include the Hamas Nazis in the blacklist of those suspected of committing sexual violence during a conflict.”

Source:
Minister for Social Equality: ‘UN an antisemitic, extremist and dangerous institution’, by Hezki Baruch/Israel National News, April 25, 2024

An independent UN review of UNRWA, the UN’s agency for “Palestinian refugees”, released its report on Monday.

The panel, headed by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, found “neutrality-related issues” in UNRWA but also claimed that Israel had yet to provide evidence for allegations that a significant number of its staff were members of terrorist organizations.

Israeli Affairs Ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein stated “The problem with UNRWA-Gaza isn’t that of a few bad apples; it is a rotten and poisonous tree whose roots are Hamas. The Colonna report ignores the severity of the problem and offers cosmetic solutions that do not deal with the enormous scope of Hamas’ infiltration of UNRWA. This is not what a genuine and thorough review looks like. This is what an effort to avoid the problem and not address it head on looks like,”

The finding of this report should be of no surprise to anyone. The UN has yet to show itself to be fair and unbiased agency that lives up to its stated mission. The UN’s double standard and demonization of Israel continue in any way they can implement it.

Source:
UN probe on UNRWA: Israel didn’t provide evidence staff were terror group members, by Elad Benari/Israel National News, April 22, 2024

Israel early last Friday morning attacked Iran with a retaliatory strike, as explosions were reported near a military base in Isfahan.

The Tasnim news agency reported that nuclear sites in the province of Isfahan are “absolutely safe,” denying foreign media reports about an incident at a nuclear site in Isfahan. ABC News reported, citing a US official, that Israel delivered a missile strike on a “facility in Iran.”

The Israeli attack fell on the 85th birthday (according to the secular calendar) of Iran’s supreme leader, Seyyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei. L’havdil, the attack also fell on the 122nd birthday (according to the Hebrew calendar) of the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, z”l, who would have been delighted with the news of the attack, but probably wonder why so little and so late.

The attacking side in Iran managed to achieve higher damage than the one caused in the Iranian attack, with one tenth of the armaments. Now Iran realizes that if indeed Israel carried out the attack, it can attack nuclear facilities next time with relative ease. In addition, the move paves the way for military action in Rafah.

The Israeli attack on Iran could have been more destructive than what was delivered. Israel’s intention was to signal to Iran that Israel has full ability to – and will – defend itself and can paralyze Iran’s defenses. Did Iran get the message? We wait to see. Israel must remain vigilant in the coming weeks, especially with the Passover holiday upon us.

Source:
Reports: Israel Attacked Military Base in Isfahan, Iran, by David Israel/Jewish Press, April 19, 2024

On Friday, Axios reported that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was considering applying the Leahy Law, which prohibits the U.S. from funding foreign police and military units suspected of human rights abuses. Blinken said, “I’ve made determinations; you can expect to see them in the days ahead,”

The US proposal would deny military aid to the ultra-Orthodox IDF Unit Netzah Yehuda. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called proposed sanctions ‘the height of absurdity” and a “moral low.”

It was also reported that the ultra-Orthodox IDF unit Netzah Yehuda would face US sanctions over the death of an 80-year-old Palestinian-American suspect Omar Assad, who died of cardiac arrest while he was handcuffed.

Perfect timing Mr. Blinken. Your boss funds and emboldens Iran, which seeks the destruction of Israel, a war is raging against Israel, and Israel fights for its very survival. You just couldn’t resist an opportunity to dig in further and stab the Jewish Nation State in the back.

Source:
Netanyahu slams ‘absurd’ proposed US sanctions against IDF unit as ‘a moral low’, by Vered Weiss/World Israel National News, April 21, 2024

Egyptian officials are gearing up for an Israeli invasion of Rafah, which the Biden administration reportedly approved in exchange for a promise from Israel that it would not launch an intense retaliatory attack on Iran.

“The American administration showed acceptance of the plan previously presented by [Israel] regarding the military operation in Rafah, in exchange for not carrying out a large-scale attack against Iran,” an unnamed official told Qatari-owned news site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

A Western diplomat confirmed that claim, stating that via “political maneuvering,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was able to “obtain American approval for the military operation in Rafah,” by promising to avoid a major counterattack in Iran.

It is possible Israel never had a plan in the first place to respond to Iran’s initial attack with an intense retaliatory strike. If they did, it would open up a can of worms the entire Middle East does not want to see, especially Israel. We trust that Israel will make its own decisions and take the actions to defend itself that it deems necessary.

Source:
US agrees to Rafah invasion for ‘small’ Iranian strike: Egyptian official, by World Israel News

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir recently established a special team within the Judea and Samaria Police precinct under his command, to operate against left-wing agents provocateurs in the liberated communities.

The team includes several precinct detectives who collaborate with Immigration Police and Interior Ministry officials. Their goal is to search and locate activists who damage the security and stability in Judea and Samaria.

A security official explained that “the role of the model we established is to respond to three main issues:

1. Foreign citizens who come here from all over the world straight to the territories and create provocations against IDF soldiers in different places.
2. Tourists who come here under the guise of a visit but arrive at the same places of friction in Judea and Samaria.
3. Israeli citizens who confront IDF soldiers in various locations.

The attacks against residents in Judea and Samaria from not only terrorists but the Central Command needs to stop. We trust Ben Gvir’s action as an intermediary will put a stop to the ongoing and baseless harassment of residents.

Source:
Ben Gvir Establishes Police Unit to Remove Leftist Provocateurs from Judea and Samaria, by David Israel/Jewish Press, April 17, 2024

Cheryl Chumley, editor of the op-ed section in the online Washington Times, published a scathing article against the illegal Palestinian construction in Area C.

Chumley accused that, “The Palestinian Authority, fed by funds from the UN, the European Union and the US, has taken upon itself the task of expanding the Arab footprint in the lands of Israel, by building houses on land that was supposed to remain clear. This is the Palestinian’s quiet way of stretching the borders, seizing Israeli lands, and thwarting the possibility of applying Israeli sovereignty in the area, and all of this was done without firing a single shot.”

We thank Cheryl Chumley for shedding light on the truth about this horrendous matter. If more media sources would allow facts to be reported how much better educated the public would be. It’s a critical component missing in Israel’s fight for survival.

Sources:
Washington Times: ‘Israel is losing sovereignty, Palestinian Arabs continue to build’, by Israel National News, April 16, 2024

Israel losing land, sovereignty, identity to illegal Palestinian construction, by Cheryl Chumley/The Washington Times, March 27, 2024

Kan 11 News reported Sunday night that during the meetings of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s war cabinet many were in favor of an immediate retaliatory attack on Iran. However, the decision to attack was averted at the last minute, following a conversation with President Joe Biden. It appears that in addition to US pressure, Netanyahu decided to halt the attack because the damage caused by the Iranian attack was not significant.

On Sunday, Kan11 reported that Saudi Arabia and Jordan responded to Iranian criticism of their assisting Israel in shooting down drones under the American umbrella, saying the Iranian “sponsors of terrorism should have been stopped a long time ago.”

A senior official in Amman told Kan11 that “What stands before Jordan’s eyes first and foremost is the protection of its citizens, the security of its borders, and its sovereignty. This is above all other considerations. Escalation from any side in the region will only bring destruction, death, and extremism,”. Clearly this was in response to Iranian criticism.

Indeed, despite Iran’s claims to great success in attacking Israel, the attack was its biggest failure. With cruise missiles carrying 750 kgs of explosives each, the worst they could manage was to injure a 7-year-old Bedouin girl, and some peripheral damage to an air force base. It appears that it wasn’t Israel losing its deterrence, it was Iran. Now its Sunni foes in the region understand that an Iranian attack can be stopped with relative ease – and they also know they won’t be alone under such an attack.

A coalition coming together for to protect Israel – and ultimately protect their own nations continues to isolate Iran. The Middle East has woken up to the true threat Iran represents to the region. While there are still other issues in Middle East relations, i.e., Israeli sovereignty and no two-state solution, that need to be resolved, we are grateful for the support Israel received over the weekend.

In the end, an extraordinary coalition was cobbled together to help Israel defend itself, but not to rain hellfire on the aggressor. Was this the right decision? Only time will tell.

Source:
The Coordinated Response to Iran’s Attack Was Driven by a New Regional Alliance, by David Israel/Jewish Press, April 15, 2024

Israel was set to begin its operation against the last Hamas battalions in the Gaza Strip this week but delayed the operation following Iran’s massive attack over the weekend, officials told CNN.

According to the report, the IDF had planned to begin dropping leaflets over Rafah today (Monday) to warn civilians of the impending operation, but ultimately did not do so.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported that US officials believe that Israel could retaliate against Iran in the near future, possibly even today.

There have been conflicting reports on the current state on the potential Rafah operation. Earlier today, a security source said that Israel is considering entering Rafah earlier than planned due to Hamas’s refusal to accept a deal to release the hostages.

No matter what the reports say, the job must be finished and that means going in to Rafah to eliminate the terrorist scourge.

Source:
Report: Rafah op. delayed from this week after Iranian attack, by Israel National News, April 15, 2024