Category: Articles

The Trump administration sanctioned four members of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday over their efforts to “investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute nationals of the United States or Israel, without the consent of either nation,” the State Department confirmed to the Washington Free Beacon.

“The United States has been clear and steadfast in our opposition to the ICC’s politicization, abuse of power, disregard for our national sovereignty, and illegitimate judicial overreach,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement provided to the Free Beacon. “The Court is a national security threat that has been an instrument for lawfare against the United States and our close ally Israel.”

The Trump administration also sanctioned United Nations special rapporteur Francesca Albanese in July “for her illegitimate and shameful efforts to prompt International Criminal Court action against U.S. and Israeli officials, companies, and executives.”

The U.S administration under Donald J Trump is hands down the greatest ally Israel has ever had. These recent sanctions by the U.S. are another important indication demonstrating the need to continue the fight for the truth about Israel.

Source:
Trump Admin Sanctions Four Top International Criminal Court Members for Targeting US, Israeli Officials, by Adam Kredo/Washington Free Beacon, August 20, 2025

As part of the IDF’s preparations for evacuating the population southern from Gaza City for its safety, officers from the IDF Gaza District Coordination and Liaison in COGAT carried out initial warning calls on Tuesday to medical officials and international organizations in the northern Gaza Strip in order to prepare for the evacuation of the population to the southern Gaza Strip.

In an interview with Sharri Markson of Australia’s Sky News, Netanyahu confirmed that his government would continue a full military takeover of Gaza even if Hamas accepted a late ceasefire offer. Interviewer Sharri Markson noted that there are reports Hamas was “on the verge of accepting a deal for a ceasefire” and wondered if “it is true, and do you still plan to take over Gaza and eliminate the terrorists if they do agree to a deal?”

Netanyahu responded, “We’re gonna do that anyway. There was never a question that we’re not going to leave Hamas there. I think President Trump put it best, he says Hamas has to disappear from Gaza. It can end if Hamas lays down its arms and releases the remaining 50 hostages, at least 20 of which are alive, and that’s our goal to get all the hostages out, to disarm Hamas, demilitarize Gaza, and give a different future for Gazans.”

According to an IlTV YouTube report, the operation began ahead of schedule.

Sources:
Netanyahu says Gaza City takeover inevitable regardless of Hamas stance, by Erez Linn/Israel Hayom, August 21, 2025

IDF begins warning calls to medical officials in northern Gaza, by Israel National News, August 21, 2025

US President Donald Trump issued a forceful statement regarding the hostages being held in Gaza, asserting that the release of remaining captives held by Hamas will only occur once the terror organization is decisively defeated.

“We will only see the return of the remaining hostages when Hamas is confronted and destroyed!!!” President Trump declared in a post shared on social media. “The sooner this takes place, the better the chances of success will be.”

Speaking at the opening of the weekly government meeting on Sunday, Netanyahu excoriated the protesters, saying calls to end the war prematurely and without the destruction of Hamas emboldened the terrorist group and made it more difficult to secure the hostages’ return.

In addition, Netanyahu said that an end to hostilities at this point, without the removal of Hamas, would “ensure” a repeat of the massacres of October 7, 2023.

Truth speaks loudly on both sides. Military moves are highly sensitive and Israel’s military can’t reveal the if, where, when and why. The longer the hostages remain captive the more threatened their survival is. If Israel ends the war now it’s likely that terrorist attacks will resume. Reports this morning state that Hamas has responded positively to the latest proposals coming out of Egypt. Maybe they’re afraid of Israel taking over Gaza City as nearly 100,000 troops prepare for the operation. This goes around in circles. We wait anxiously to see how this develops.

Sources:
Report: Hamas responds positively to latest ceasefire proposal, by Israel National News, August 18, 2025

President Trump: ‘Hostages will return only when Hamas is destroyed’, by Israel National News, August 18, 2025

Netanyahu: Protesters demanding end to Gaza war guarantee another Oct. 7, by David Rosenberg/World Israel News, August 17, 2025

The “next phase” of Israel’s war against Hamas will soon begin, Israel’s top soldier said during a field tour of Gaza on Sunday.

“Today we are approving the plan for the next phase of the war. Just as in the recent operations in Iran, Yemen, Lebanon, Judea and Samaria, and Gaza, we will continue to reshape the security reality,” said Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the Israel Defense Forces’ Chief of Staff.

Despite nationwide demonstrations demanding an end to the war in order to release the hostages, the army is moving forward. The Israel Defense Forces was due to begin transferring tents and shelter equipment into southern Gaza on Sunday to house hundreds of thousands of civilians expected to be displaced ahead of an offensive to seize Gaza City.

Source:
Israel’s Top General: Next Phase of War Against Hamas to Begin Soon, by Ehud Amiton/TPS-IL, August 17, 2025

The Yesha Council has appealed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to move ahead with applying Israeli sovereignty over all of Judea and Samaria, requesting that the issue be addressed at the next government meeting.

In a letter sent last Thursday, 19 regional and local council leaders said the step was needed in response to recent political and security developments. They warned that hesitation on the matter “encourages” international initiatives to promote Palestinian statehood. AFSI is proud to be a signatory to a letter in support of the Yesha Councli’s position.

The Yesha Council represents Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria and has repeatedly urged the government to formalize sovereignty in the area. There was no immediate public response from Netanyahu’s office to the latest appeal.

Israel must not let the need to apply sovereignty throughout Judea and Samaria fall through the cracks!! The push for sovereignty must remain the #1 talking point on the “to do” list of Israel’s leadership.

Source:
Yesha Council urges Netanyahu to apply full sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, by World Israel News, August 15, 2025

After more than two decades of political stagnation caused by persistent international pressure and opposition from the Palestinian Authority, the E1 plan in Ma’ale Adumim is moving forward with the approval of 3,401 new housing units and another 3,515 units in the “Desert Bird” neighborhood, together expected to add around 35,000 new residents in the coming years.

The plan, which connects Ma’ale Adumim to Jerusalem and disrupts Arab territorial contiguity between Ramallah and Bethlehem, is viewed as a decisive move that buries the idea of a Palestinian state. From the perspective of the Palestinian Authority and the international community, this strategic area is considered essential for the establishment of a Palestinian state with its capital in eastern Jerusalem.

Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated: “The approval of the construction plans in E1 buries the idea of a Palestinian state and continues the many actions we are advancing on the ground as part of the de facto sovereignty plan initiated with the formation of the government. After decades of international pressure and freezes, we are breaking conventions and connecting Ma’ale Adumim to Jerusalem. This is Zionism at its best- building, settling, and strengthening our sovereignty in the Land of Israel.”

This is an incredible step toward ending the delusional dream of a two-state solution and MK Smotrich’s work is to be commended. It seems like so many decisions made and actions taken in the last year are heading toward to the goal of sovereignty. As Israel progresses to a new level with the approval of building new housing, let’s remember that the ultimate action to truly bury the idea of a two-state solution rests on the full application of sovereignty across Judea and Samaria NOW!

Sources:
Maaleh Adumim mayor announces E1 plan, recites special blessing, by Hezki Baruch/Israel National News, August 14, 2025

Burying idea of Palestinian state: Smotrich to approve thousands of units in Ma’ale Adumim, by Israel National News, August 13, 2025

Samaria governor Yossi Dagan sent an urgent letter on Wednesday to U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, calling for harsh personal sanctions against Mohammad Ibrahim Shtayyeh, the former Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority.

Dagan’s appeal follows the circulation of a video in which Shtayyeh praised the October 7th massacre, describing it as “a bold and unprecedented action” and “a turning point in the Palestinian struggle.”

Dagan concluded: “Taking action will send a clear and powerful message: support for terrorism will not go unanswered. This is not just rhetoric — it’s support for terror and incitement to another massacre reminiscent of the darkest chapters in history. The time for sanctions is now. We must not stay silent in the face of calls for murder and terror.”

Just as sanctions are used as a foreign policy tool against a country, it’s time to have sanction programs targeted against individuals and groups as well.

Source:
Samaria governor urges US sanctions against PA leaders, by Israel National News, August 13, 2025

Ahead of the UN Security Council discussion on extending the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) taking place later this month, Israel and the United States have informed Council members that they oppose an automatic renewal of the mandate and are demanding a reassessment of the force’s necessity.

A diplomat familiar with the talks told The Jerusalem Post that this comes “in light of its prolonged failure to prevent Hezbollah’s infiltration into southern Lebanon, and to enforce the Lebanese government’s sovereignty in the area.”

Since being tasked with preventing Hezbollah’s rearmament during the Second Lebanon War in 2006, UNIFIL has done nothing to confront the organization over its weapons.

Israel believes that at this stage there is no longer a need for an international intermediary force on the ground, and that UN resources would be better invested in supporting the LAF.

We couldn’t agree more.

Source:
Israel, US oppose automatic UNIFIL renewal, citing failure to prevent Hezbollah infiltration, by Amichai Stein/Jerusalem Post, August 11, 2025

After an all-night discussion last Thursday, Israel’s Security Cabinet approved a proposal to expand the war on Hamas including reoccupying the Gaza Strip, and adopting five principles for ending the war, the Prime Minister’s Office announced early Friday morning.

“The IDF [Israel Defense Forces] will prepare to take control of Gaza City while providing humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones,” Netanyahu’s office said.

Ahead of the meeting, Netanyahu told a delegation of Indian journalists, “Israel does not want to annex Gaza, but to transfer control of the Strip to an international governing body that is disconnected from Hamas.”

An “international governing body” disconnected from Hamas aligns with Netanyahu’s broader stated goal of removing Hamas from power while avoiding direct Israeli administrative control of Gaza. We don’t know if we can count on an “international governing body” made of pro-Israel nations. Many countries have already declared their support for a Palestinian state and others are starting to let the world know they intend to follow suit thinking they will save Gaza with the delirious two-state solution. With that said, Netanyahu’s decision is a very troubling one and most certainly not the resolution we anticipated we’d hear.

Source:
Israel Sets Conditions for Ending Gaza War, Plans for Civilian Governance, by Pesach Benson/TPS-IL, August 8, 2025

The IDF has been carrying out “unprecedented operations” in major Palestinian terror hotbeds in Samaria over the last eight months that have borne excellent fruit, the colonel in charge of Central Command’s engineering division said.

Referring specifically to the most dangerous neighborhoods of Tulkarem, Jenin and Nur a-Shams, which are misleadingly called “refugee camps,” Col. A. said, “You have to understand that the bold win, and when you freeze in place and fear your own shadow, bad things happen. Today we are carrying out unprecedented operations here, things that have never been done here before.”

The army’s forays into terror strongholds in Judea and Samaria have not ceased since its inception in 2022 with operation “Breaking the Waves,” even with the ongoing war in Gaza, with various operations steadily increasing the pressure on the terrorists.

The results have been forthcoming, the security establishment said in May.

While there were an average of 214 terrorist attacks a month in 2023, the numbers dropped to 115 in 2024 and further declined to just 57 in the first five months of this year.

The Israel Defense Forces continues to find terrorists every which way they turn in every operation they undertake and it should be daily headline news. If only Israel had a publicc relations arm that was every bit as powerful, if not more, than Arab propaganda, what a difference we might see.

Source:
IDF: ‘Unprecedented operations’ clear terror hotbeds in Samaria, by Batya Jerenberg/World Israel News, August 10, 2025