Author: AFSI Staff

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participated today in the discussion of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee and referred to the continuation of the war against Hamas and the possibility that another front would open in the north.

“First of all we will win in the south and then we will deal with the north. As a first step, we will push Hezbollah beyond the Litani River and later we will also have to take care of the organization itself. If we open two fronts we can find ourselves not winning decisively in either of them,” Netanyahu stated.

In his opinion, the Palestinian Authority cannot in any way be considered to be a solution for Gaza the day after the war. “Oslo was the mother of all sins. The difference between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority is only that Hamas wants to destroy us here and now and the PA wants to do it in stages. We cooperate with them against Hamas when it serves their interest and ours up to a certain limit. We decided a few months ago that we don’t want them to collapse so that Hamas does not rise up in Judea and Samaria as well.”

Netanyahu stated that the State of Israel will have sole responsibility for security in Gaza the day after the war. “Only the State of Israel will be responsible for the demilitarization of the Strip. The Gulf countries will invest in reconstruction and we will have to build an entity that does not want to destroy us, that will manage the civil administration there. We will allow anyone who wants to go out to do so. Today, Hamas does not allow this.”

We would certainly look forward to a large measure of peace for Israel upon the successful completion of this war. Now, as we read about talks of rebuilding “Gaza” and the potential for peace…all of this needs to be become a reality.

Source:
Netanyahu: First we’ll win in the south, then we’ll deal with the north, by Israel National News, December 11, 2023

Israel’s Cabinet on Sunday approved the outline for a strategic multi-year plan to rehabilitate and develop the Gaza Strip-adjacent “Tekuma” region and its population.

The plan constitutes a broad budgetary framework for five years (2024-2028) of up to 18 billion shekels ($4.9 billion) intended to lead to the rehabilitation of the region.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “In the area adjacent to the Gaza Strip at the start of the war, we established the Tekuma Authority.” (Tekuma means “revival” in Hebrew.)

“We provided a massive budget to rebuild the communities and to ensure that nobody will be left behind,” he added.

Source:
Israel to rebuild Gaza frontier towns destroyed in Hamas invasion, by World Israel News via JNS, December 11, 2023

As Israel wages its righteous war against Hamas, it is important for the United States to be wary of Qatar, which is already attempting to establish itself as a mediator.

Qatar is not a neutral agent, despite its attempts to portray itself as such. Time and again, it has supported the region’s most radical nations and paramilitaries, all to the detriment of American and Western interests.

In an interview published over the weekend, Eyal Hulata, formerly Israel’s National Security Advisor, said that Qatar had funded “military operations in the military branch [of Hamas], and they’d done so while colluding with the Iranians.”

Time and again, Qatar has supported the region’s most radical nations and paramilitaries, all to the detriment of American and Western interests.

Source:
The U.S. Should Beware Qatar, by Gregg Roman/JNS, December 7, 2023

One of the largest weapons depots in the Gaza Strip was found this week near a clinic and school in the northern Gaza Strip by the IDF’s 50th Battalion of the 460th Brigade.

The depot contained hundreds of RPG missiles and launchers of various types, dozens of anti-tank missiles, dozens of explosive devices, long-range missiles aimed at central Israel, dozens of grenades, and UAVs.

“We are in the heart of a residential neighborhood,” the Commanding Officer of the 50th Battalion, LTC Tomer, pointed out. He added that nearby, “One can also see a very large school campus.”

All of the terrorist infrastructure was found close to civilian buildings in the heart of a civilian population — proving once again, for the umpteenth time, Hamas’ cynical use of the residents of the Gaza Strip as human shields.

Sources:
IDF Soldiers Uncover One of Gaza’s Largest Weapons Depots, by Hana Levi Julian/Jewish Press, December 6, 2023

Nahal Brigade troops find weapons in mosque, school, by Israel National News, December 6, 2023

‘Today, every citizen in the State of Israel knows that to restore security to the South…there is no choice but to reassert full control over Gaza.’

As the US, Arab nations and Israel discuss the future of Gaza after the war, there is a vocal movement that believes Israelis should return and settle the Gaza strip.

Otzma Yehudit MK Limor Son Har-Melech said, “Today, every citizen in the State of Israel knows that to restore security to the South, to remove from common parlance the words ‘rocket’ and ‘red alert,’ to give back to each and every child a sense of security, there is no choice but to reassert full control over Gaza.”

For the Jewish people to return to live in “Gaza” would be a dream come true. While it will never erase the horrific memories of the 2005 expulsion (see photo in this article), it would bring back Jews to their rightful land. Security must be first. We will be watching developments on this very closely and pray the photo in the article turns to one of joy upon the resettlement of Jews to the land that is rightfully theirs.

Source:
Movement to resettle Gaza gains support during Hamas war, by Vered Weiss/World Israel News, December 5, 2023

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird led a group of 15 Republican AGs who sent a joint letter warning officials at the New York Times, Associated Press, CNN, and Reuters that federal law bars providing “material support” to terrorist organizations, and notes that it is illegal under their states’ laws as well. The letter puts the four news organizations “on notice.”

In the letter, Bird and the other 14 Republican state attorneys general suggest the four news outlets may have provided “material support to terrorists” by purchasing photographs from Gaza-based journalists with known ties to Hamas.

AFSI applauds these Attorneys General for their brave and very necessary action to help to. better protect Israel.

Source:
15 AGs Warn NYT, AP, CNN, Reuters that Employing Hamas ‘Journalists’ Supports Terrorism, by David Israel/Jewish Press, December 5, 2023

The IDF has announced the renewal of fighting in Gaza after the Hamas terror organization violated the terms of the operational pause.

An IDF spokesperson said that IAF aircraft are attacking Hamas targets in Gaza. A diplomatic source said, “We are renewing the fighting with all our might. There are no negotiations for the release of hostages.”

At the same time, the IDF’s Home Front Command updated the guidelines for the Israeli public, and in most cities in central Israel, schools will be open only in locations where a protected space is accessible within the required amount of time.

Source:
Live updates: IDF resumes combat against Hamas, by Israel National News, December 4, 2023

The Kohelet Forum published a really good pamphlet that discusses all the issues of the “Swords of Iron” Gaza war. Not only is Hamas clearly guilty of genocide, but that status obligates all nations to assist Israel.

Sources:
A Great Guide to How Israel is Adhering to International Law – and Hamas is Violating It, by Elder of Ziyon, December 3, 2023

The “Swords of Iron” War and International Law – Q &A, by Adv. David Peter and Adv. Avraham (Russell) Shalev

The Civil Administration is struggling to deal with the fire hazard at pirate garbage sites created by Arabs in Judea and Samaria, the Binyamin Council slammed.

“An illegal Arab waste site near the town of Ateret in Binyamin on Sunday night caused thick smoke, which infiltrated the residents’ homes and disturbed their sleep. The smoke continues to suffocate the town this morning as well,” the Council said.

Binyamin Council head Israel Ganz stated, “This is a systemic hazard which stems from the abandonment on the ground. Unfortunately, the Civil Administration does not do enough, and the results harm the health of our residents and the health of the residents of central Israel. The incinerators are operating this morning in additional locations in Binyamin. This is a serious hazard which has a direct connection to security – because governance and security go hand-in-hand.”

Source:
Illegal waste site in Ramallah chokes residents of Jewish town, by Israel National News, December 4, 2023

This morning three people were murdered and others wounded in a shooting attack carried out by two Eastern Jerusalem Arabs at one of the entrances to Jerusalem. Later in the early afternoon, a Palestinian Authority terrorist used his vehicle to attack Israelis at the IDF checkpoint next to Moshav Beka’ot in the northern Jordan Valley.

Yesterday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed fears that the extended ceasefires would harm the war against Hamas. “From the start of the war, I set three goals: Eliminating Hamas, returning all of our hostages, and ensuring that Gaza will never again go back to being a threat to the State of Israel. These three goals still stand,” stated Netanyahu.

When asked if after completing the return of the hostages, whether Israel will go back to the fighting? “The answer is an unequivocal yes,” declared the Prime Minister. “There is no situation in which we do not go back to fighting until the end. This is my policy. The entire Security Cabinet is behind it. The entire Government is behind it. The soldiers are behind it. The people are behind it – this is exactly what we will do,” he concluded.

Today’s terror attacks are a clear violation of the current ceasefire. We have no doubt Netanyahu will make good on his word.

Sources:
Three dead in shooting attack at entrance to Jerusalem, by Chana Roberts/Israel National News, November 30, 2023

2 IDF Soldiers Injured, Terrorist Neutralized in Jordan Valley Ramming Attack, by Hana Levi Julian/Jewish Press, November 30, 2023

Prime Minister Netanyahu: ‘There is no way we don’t return to fight until the end’, by Israel National News, November 29, 2023