🎗️Lonny's War Update- October 245, 2023 - June 7, 2024 🎗️

  

🎗️Day 245 that 124 of our hostages in Hamas captivity
**There is nothing more important than getting them home! NOTHING!**

“I’ve never met them,

But I miss them. 

I’ve never met them,

but I think of them every second. 

I’ve never met them,

but they are my family. 

BRING THEM HOME NOW!!!”

There is no victory until all of the hostages are home!

‎אין נצחון עד שכל החטופים בבית

Today is 8 months since October 7

Today, 8 months since the worst attack in Israel's history with more Jews killed in a single day than any time since the Holocaust. I am writing this in my name but I know that everything I am feeling and have felt is similar to so many others both in Israel and the Diaspora. October 7 changed me, it changed me in so many ways. But I will only focus on one or two of them. From the moment I wake in the morning, the hostages are deep in my mind. I put on my dog tags and yellow ribbon and a piece of masking tape with the number of days the hostages have been in captivity. Although, I don't need this reminders, I know that so many others do. The first news I check is about the hostages, discussions of the negotiations or lack of, and of the families. Every Saturday night, I join the thousands at the demonstrations in Jerusalem and I can't help but wonder why the numbers aren't larger, why aren't more people outraged that the hostages are still in captivity, being tortured, raped, dying. I get more furious with our dysfunctional government and mostly at our Prime Minister that we even have to be at these demonstrations, that the families have to fight to get their loved ones returned home, that the politicians don't see this as their most sacred duty before anything else. How is it that there are Knesset committee meetings that the Knesset members don't begin each meeting asking what they can do and Knesset members, as committee members and as Israelis why they aren't doing everything possible to get them home. I am deliberately not saying a word about politics because the hostages is all of us, no matter our political party, our religious affiliation, our gender, age. Until all of the hostages are home, we are all hostages. The country cannot move on, we cannot heal, we cannot deal with post trauma as the trauma is ongoing. And if the government doesn't do everything they possibly can, which they are no, the government has no legitimacy as they broke their most sacred contract with us, the people and abandoned us and continue to abandon us. My heart breaks for the families. So many of them are also families who have lost their loved ones in the massacre and no one has truly had a chance to mourn and go forward with their lives because the government is not doing what they need to.
At the beginning of the war, the country came together in such a way that no one could have imagined. It was magnificent and the population from everywhere in the country did whatever they could, no one was asked but everyone stood up, except, of course the government. Organizations were formed ad hoc and they did what the government was supposed to do but were totally incapable of doing.  There was a news commentator who said something that has stuck with me since the beginning. He said that he hopes that they way everyone has come together and shown what Am Yisrael really is, the people will continue to recognize that we are brothers and sisters who will continue to argue but his real hope is that we will argue without hate and without violence. That has been my hope as well from that terrible day in October. And it breaks my heart and hurts my soul that too many have gone back to the vitriol and violence. Although the numbers are not huge, they are big enough to be felt and seen and, of course, our extremist politicians are egging them on and even the initiators. I truly hope for better times.

Red Alerts - Missile, Rocket, Drone (UAV - unmanned aerial vehicles), and Terror Attacks and Death Announcements

*9:30pm last night- north - rockets/missiles Maayan Baruch, Beit Hillel, Hagoshrim

*11:00pm last night - north - rockets/missiles Zra'it

*10:20am - south - rockets/missiles Magen, Ein Habasor - Following rocket sirens in the Gaza border communities of Magen and Ein Habesor, the Eshkol Regional Council says it found one rocket had landed in an open area. No injuries or damage have been reported.

*1:00pm- north- hostile aircraft- Beit Hillel, Kfar Giladi, Kfar Yuval, Metulla, Manara, Maayan Baruch, Misgav Am, Kiryat Shemona, Tel Hai, Dafna, Hagoshrim 

🙂*1:35pm- north-hostile aircraft- Masada, Neve Aviv, Nimrod, Ein Kana

*2:25pm- north- rockets/missiles Kfar Kana, Mashhad, Nof Hagalil, Raina

Hostage Updates 

• An Israeli official tells the Kan public broadcaster that there has still not been a formal answer from Hamas regarding the proposal for a hostage-truce deal. The report comes after a source from the terror group told a Saudi outlet that Hamas would reject any proposal that does not include a guarantee for the war to end.

  Meanwhile, the network reports that the war cabinet meeting set to be held this evening has been canceled and the wider security cabinet will also not meet. The top political decision-making bodies had been set to convene for a final time before war cabinet minister Benny Gantz’s Saturday deadline. Last month, the National Unity leader issued an ultimatum to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, demanding the premier commit to an agreed-upon vision for the Gaza conflict that would include stipulating who might rule the territory after Hamas’s defeat, and warning that he would bolt the coalition on June 8 should this not happen.

• The leaders of countries with citizens held in Gaza call on Hamas to agree to the Israeli proposal announced by US President Joe Biden on Friday. “There is no time to lose,” say the world leaders in a statement. “We call on Hamas to close this agreement, that Israel is ready to move forward with, and begin the process of releasing our citizens.”

  The statement notes that the proposal “would lead to an immediate ceasefire and rehabilitation of Gaza together with security assurances for Israelis, and Palestinians, and opportunities for a more enduring long-term peace and a two-state solution.” “It is time for the war to end and this deal is the necessary starting point,” says the missive, signed by the leaders of the United States, Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, France, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain, Thailand, and the United Kingdom.

  Earlier today, the Saudi Ashraq news outlet reported that Hamas had circulated a memo rejecting the offer, but Israel has yet to receive a formal response.

• Egypt has received “positive signs” from Hamas over a proposed Gaza truce and hostage release deal, the state-linked Al-Qahera News reports, citing a high-level source.

  “Hamas leaders have informed us that they are studying the truce proposal seriously and positively,” it quotes the unnamed source as saying, adding that Hamas is expected to provide a response “in the coming days.”  Earlier a Saudi report said that Hamas had rejected the truce proposal.

• Hamas chief in Gaza Yahya Sinwar reportedly issues a brief response to the latest hostage-truce deal proposal, according to The Wall Street Journal.

  “Hamas will not surrender its guns or sign a proposal that asks for that,” the newspaper quotes Sinwar as telling Arab mediators.

  Earlier, an Egyptian source told state-linked TV that it had received “positive signs” on the latest deal and was expecting a response in the coming days.   link This, obviously is one of the biggest bones of contention for Netanyahu and his right wing coalition partners. Under no circumstances are they willing to consider the continuation of Hamas retaining is weapons and continuing to be a terror threat to Israel. Despite this statement of Sinwar, the security establishment has made it very clear to Netanyahu that he should make the deal to get the hostages home, even at the cost of stopping the war. They said that a restart of the war is feasible and can be done and that the hostages return must take priority over everything else. It is very well understood that Hamas will breech any agreement and provide justification for a restart of the war. It should also be remembered that the Hamas leadership's days are numbered. Every single person who had anything to do with the massacre at the Munich Olympics in 1972 found their end. The same happened to everyone who had any involvement in the kidnapping and 5 year 4 month captivity of Gilad Schalit. Months ago, Netanyahu gave the go ahead to the Mossad to handle all Hamas leaders everywhere, and we can be sure that this will be done sooner or later.

• A toned-down gathering to mark Pride Month in Tel Aviv is underway, with a focus on calling for the return of the hostages being held in Gaza. With a different tone than the usual annual parade and raucous party, the gathering is titled the “pride, hope and freedom” march and coordinated with the Hostage Families Forum. The event is also slated to highlight the contributions to the war effort of many soldiers and reservists who are part of the LGBTQ community. 

  
  
  

• Report: Qatar has threatened senior Hamas officials to be expelled from Doha if they oppose the deal: 

  CNN reported that Qatar threatened to expel senior Hamas officials from Doha if the terrorist organization did not accept the deal offer. This, following pressure from American officials and after months in which she warned Hamas that she would advance this move.

  Last night, for the first time, our military correspondent Nir Dabouri published about a confrontation between the Prime Minister of Qatar, the head of Egyptian intelligence and senior Hamas officials staying in Qatar. At a meeting held this week in Doha, the Qatari officials were angry at Hamas' response to the proposal, according to a security source in Israel.

  In a conversation at the closed hearing, Qatar's officials clarified to Hamas officials: "We are disappointed with your conduct regarding the abductees issue. Israel lost patience and gave a far-reaching proposal. The US guaranteed this proposal, it is the best you will receive."  link This isn't the first time that news of Qatari threats on the residence of Diaspora Hamas leaders. In Qatar, they lead lives of luxury funded and supported by Qatar. They have already had an invitation offered to them by Erdogan in Turkey a couple of months ago when the Qataris first threatened them. The Hamas terrorists living Qatar don't want to leave their comfortable lives where they have also become very wealthy personally. However, Sinwar in Gaza doesn't care about the diaspora Hamas' living conditions. This threat appears to be rather meaningless for Sinwar. In the past, all major decision making in Hamas was done by consensus of the following bodies: Gaza leadership, Diaspora leadership in Qatar, Turkey and Lebanon, Hamas prisoners in Israeli prisons. During this war, especially everything having to do with the hostages, decision making within Hamas has gone through a monumental change. Sinwar is the final decision maker with veto power, something that hasn't be in the past. This makes it much more difficult to reach agreements as Sinwar sees the situations in a very different light than the Hamas diaspora leaders and this has been very bad for any hostage negotiations.

Gaza 

• The IDF says it has killed dozens of terror operatives amid an ongoing operation in east Buriej and east Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. The operation began earlier this week, and is being carried out by the 98th Division. Troops located tunnel shafts and demolished infrastructure used by terror groups in the area, the IDF says. The head of a Hamas rocket-launching cell was also killed in an airstrike in the central Gaza area, the IDF adds. The IDF also continues its offensive in southern Gaza’s Rafah, where it says troops of the 162nd Division located additional tunnel shafts and weapons over the past day. The military also continues to operate in the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza, with the Paratroopers Brigade being deployed to the area, joining the 99th Division.

• Israeli fighter jets and other aircraft struck dozens of targets across the Gaza Strip over the past day, the military says.
  The targets included weapon depots, buildings used by terror groups, tunnel shafts, and other infrastructure.
  One drone strike hit a position from which rockets were launched at Israel previously, and another targeted a launcher and a terror cell that fired mortars at the border community of Kissufim, the IDF says.
  The strikes come as troops continue to operate in the east Bureij and east Deir al-Balah areas in central Gaza, in Rafah in the Strip’s south, and in the Netzarim Corridor.
  In Bureij and Deir al-Balah, the IDF says troops located several tunnel shafts and weapons, and killed several members of Hamas’s rocket unit with tank shelling.
  In Rafah, several more tunnel shafts were located, along with caches of weapons, the military adds.

• The IDF on Thursday blasted international media organizations for again taking the claims of Hamas authorities at face value and reporting that Israel carried out a deadly airstrike on an UNRWA school without noting that the central Gaza compound was being used by terrorists.

  “Sadly, we saw some media outlets fall for Hamas’s tactics yet again before checking the facts,” IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said during a press conference in which he revealed the identities of nine terror operatives killed in the attack.

  Those targeted were members of Hamas’s elite Nukhba force (these were the terrorists responsible for the October 7 attack and atrocities) and of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group who “directed terror attacks from the area of the school while exploiting it as a civilian location and as a shelter.” “The terrorists inside this school were planning more attacks against Israelis, some of them imminent. We stopped a ticking time bomb,” Hagari claimed.

  Hagari said there were around 30 terrorists in the three rooms that were targeted. He said some of those killed had participated in the Hamas-led October 7 terror onslaught during which some 1,200 Israelis were killed and 251 were taken hostage. Hagari said the IDF was working to verify this information further before making it public.

  Many international reports on the Wednesday night strike relied on Hamas authorities’ claim that 33 Palestinians were killed and made little or no mention of any alleged connection to terror activity.

  

  The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital initially reported that nine women and 14 children were among those killed in the strike on the school that had been operating as a shelter due to the war’s mass displacement of Palestinians.

  The hospital morgue on Thursday evening amended those records to show that the dead were three women, nine children and 21 men. An Associated Press reporter had counted the bodies but was unable to look beneath the shrouds.  Hagari said the strike targeted the Hamas and PIJ operatives gathered in three classrooms at the UN school and noted this was the fifth time this past month alone that the IDF struck terrorists operating from facilities belonging to the UNRWA agency for Palestinian refugees.

  “Hamas wages war from schools and hospitals. Hamas hopes that international law and public sympathy will provide a shield for its military activities, which is why it systematically operates from schools, UN facilities, hospitals and mosques,” Hagari continued, stressing that this is a war crime that should be condemned by the international community.

  The IDF spokesperson noted that the IDF delayed the strike twice after identifying civilians in the area, which it had been monitoring for several days.

  “We conducted the strike once our intelligence and surveillance indicated that there were no women or children inside those classrooms,” he asserted.  He did not deny that civilians were still killed in the strike.

  Ostensibly relying on the same reports from Hamas authorities, governments and international organizations issued a flood of condemnations against Israel on Thursday.  Meanwhile, the US called on Israel to be “transparent” regarding the strike, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.

  Miller said the United States believed Israeli assessments that Hamas has at times hidden in civilian infrastructure, but said it was waiting for information on the latest strike.  full article

• The Bislamach Brigade — the IDF’s School for Infantry Corps Professions and Squad Commanders in peacetime — has been withdrawn from southern Gaza’s Rafah after a week and a half of operations.

  The IDF says the brigade will now prepare for additional operations.

  This week, troops of the Bislamach Brigade discovered a tunnel shaft in a child’s bedroom, the military says.

  The IDF says the troops also discovered a cache of weapons, including explosive devices stored inside bags bearing the United Nations logo. 

  
  A tunnel shaft found in a child's bedroom in a home in southern Gaza's Rafah, in an image published by the IDF on June 6, 2024. (Israel Defense Forces)
  
  

• IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari says the Hamas terror cell that had attempted to infiltrate into Israel this morning from southern Gaza’s Rafah, had initially emerged from a tunnel shaft some 200 meters from the border. He says the cell was armed with RPGs and assault rifles. Three members were killed in a drone strike and tank shelling, while a fourth fled back toward Rafah, he says. One soldier was killed in an exchange of fire when the cell was first discovered. The IDF releases footage showing the drone strike.  video of the drone strike on the terrorists  The local council heads and the Gaza border communities are furious with the army that they were not given any warning, alert or announcement of this infiltration, and they are extremely justified in their fury. This is, unfortunately another lesson that the army has not learned from October 7

• The IDF reached the sea in Rafah, took complete control of Philadelphia

  The Palestinians claim that IDF forces reached the intersection of the Philadelphia route with the sea, and said they saw the army in another western neighborhood of the city as well • According to reports, face-to-face battles took place there, at least two militants were killed • Documentation: The large amount of combat equipment that the fighters located in the Rafah area. Residents of Gaza who spoke with the Reuters news agency claim that IDF tanks are advancing westward into Rafah. According to Palestinian reports, IDF forces reached the sea in Rafah and took control of the entire Philadelphia axis, up to its intersection with the sea. Residents reported identifying IDF forces in the Al-Azba area as well - in the southwest of Rafah, near the sea. 

  

  It was also reported that in the southern city, exchanges of fire and face-to-face battles developed between the IDF and Hamas. The Palestinians report that at least two were killed in the exchanges of fire in Rafah, and in total, 15 Palestinians were killed overnight in IDF strikes in the central Gaza Strip and its south. The Palestinians reported that tanks took full control of the border line with Egypt, and from there carried out raids into the center of the city and its west, "surprising people in their homes." For its part, the IDF announced this morning that the Nahal Brigade's combat team under the 162nd Division has been operating in the Rafah area in recent weeks, but did not confirm the Palestinian reports of the forces reaching almost to the sea. "The fighters are locating many of Hamas' combat assets," it was reported. "During the fighting, RPG missiles, launchers, Kalashnikovs, ammunition and more were located." The army also noted that the fighters found weapons in a baby crib. The IDF added: "The forces are locating and destroying tunnels in the area, including tunnels concealed in residential buildings and containing many combat assets. The fighters are engaging in face-to-face battles with armed militants above and below ground. Under the direction of the divisional fire array, terror infrastructures were attacked, including launching areas from which fire was directed at the forces, underground routes and observation and sniper posts used by the militants in operations against our forces."

  Link

Northern Israel - Lebanon/Hizbollah

• Before the mortar attack on Horfeish: The soldiers warned the commanders and asked to move to a different location

  The fighters complained to their commanders and warned that the area was under surveillance by Hezbollah, but nothing was done. They even expressed a specific concern about a suicide drone attack, which ultimately occurred and led to the death of a reserve soldier.

  Fighters who were in the Horfeish area in recent weeks complained to their commanders that the area was "burned", meaning Hezbollah had detected it. They claimed they asked their commanders to move them to a different area, but the commanders did not do anything - as reported this evening (Thursday) on the Kan 11 News.

  Yesterday, in a Hezbollah drone attack on the area, Staff Sergeant (res.) Raphael Quiders was killed and nine other soldiers were injured, one of them seriously.

  The soldiers in the area claimed to their commanders that due to the proximity to the border, sirens are sometimes not heard there, and they even expressed concern about a suicide drone attack - like the one that took place.

  The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said in response: "The incident of the drone crash in the Horfeish area is being investigated by all relevant parties. The fortification conditions at the base are adapted to the location of the outpost and provide a response to the number of soldiers staying there, in addition to an ongoing dialogue with the battalion according to operational needs. The IDF shares in the family's grief and will continue to accompany them."  link  Unfortunately, this is one more case of the army not learning its own lessons. We have seen so much of this. I guess it is inevitable in such a huge organization that direction from above many times does not make it all the way down. In the last 3 weeks, there were 3 blaring examples of this. The first was bringing women reserve soldiers to guard the Nuchba terrorists (these are the terrorist who committed the worst atrocities on October 7). They were given a week's training and then told they would be guarding the worst of the worst. This is in direct contravention to the orders and directives that women soldiers would no longer be in any proximity to security prisoners anymore. This order came after the horrifying relaxations of  young women soldiers who were co-opted in their military service to serve within the Israel prison services and many of these women were subjected to sexual harassment and physical abuse by security prisoners with the knowledge of some/many of the Prison officials. In some cases, it was so bad that the prison officials were trading prison quiet for allowing the security prisoners 'access' to these young women. The second case came to light last week. One of the bases on the Gaza border that was attacked and soldiers were killed had an incident on Memorial Day a few weeks ago. There weren't a lot of soldiers on the base due to Memorial Day (I don't know why this was the case after October 7). 2 men in a black Audi came to the front gate of the base and told the guard the name of a non commissioned officer. Not only did the guard allow them to enter the base without asking for any identification or checking with an officer, he allowed them to enter with their car. The 2 men then went looking for a soldier and found him sleeping in his bed after his shift. They proceeded to beat him and spray him with tear gas to his face and then casually left the base with no one stopping them. After this attack, the 'officer on duty', a sergeant was informed of the attack. The beaten soldier was sent to the hospital on his own and told to open a complaint with the Police, not even the Military Police. It took 2 full days before any real officer even questioned the events and then no higher officer came to investigate such a major breech that, in normal times would have demanded a full investigation by a senior officer, but in today's environment should have been reported to the commander of the Gaza Brigade and then probably to the General Staff. And this attack on Hurfeish where Hizbollah knew exactly where the soldiers were. It is well known by the army that Hizbollah is constantly launching surveillance UAVs to track soldiers' movements and army base activities. We saw the first attack on troops from their surveillance activities a couple of months ago when an explosive UAV made a direct hit on a large group of soldiers who were in Arab Al Aramshe on the border. The commanders in the north were warned about these survellance methods and the dangers to the troops. When this commander was warned by his troops, he immediately should have sprung into action and, at the very least, moved from that location and spread the troops out so they wouldn't all be congregated in a single place. His not doing the minimum was pure negligence and cost the life of a reserve soldier and others who were seriously wounded.

• Israeli fighter jets struck a Hezbollah weapons depot in southern Lebanon’s Wadi Jilou overnight, as well as two more sites belonging to the terror group near Aadchit, the military says.

  The IDF adds that buildings used by Hezbollah in Beit Yahoun and Seddiqin, and additional infrastructure in Odaisseh, were also hit. video of attack

• The IDF says it is delaying by several weeks a planned move to reduce the number of members of local security teams in towns in northern Israel. The civilian security teams are staffed by reservists on active duty amid the war.  The IDF had planned to release many of those reservists in towns in northern Israel that are not close to the border. The security teams in evacuated towns, within a few kilometers of the Lebanon border, were to remain unchanged. The IDF says that following a new assessment of the situation, it was decided to postpone the reduction by several weeks.  -- the idea of reducing the size of these emergency squads (and with it, reducing the weaponry that the IDF provides) is unbelievably stupid, near sighted, and another example of the army not learning its lessons. Following the October 7 attack, emergency squads were seen as being crucial for the defense of communities, especially those on the borders. On October 7, it was the reduced emergency squads in the Gaza border communities that provided the only defenses until the army got its act together which took too long. Many of those same emergency squad volunteers were killed while others proved to be the only defense to prevent the terrorists from entering and/or destroying other communities. It is shocking that the army is considering reducing the numbers and the weapons of communities in the north. Just the opposite should be happening. They should be strengthened and on a permanent basis.

West Bank

•     The Palestinian Authority health ministry reports three dead by IDF fire amid a raid in the West Bank city of Jenin. The ministry says several others are wounded.

  There is no immediate comment from the IDF on the operation. Tensions have been high in the West Bank amid the war in Gaza, with the IDF reporting that since October 7 troops have arrested some 4,150 wanted Palestinians across the West Bank, including more than 1,750 affiliated with Hamas. According to the PA health ministry, more than 520 West Bank Palestinians have been killed in that time.

Politics 

• AG tells Netanyahu that state commission into war is best way to counter Hague efforts: Israel’s attorney general has urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to establish a state commission of inquiry into the ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza, in order to counter the legal steps being taken against Israel abroad.

  In a letter from Gali Baharav-Miara sent to Netanyahu earlier today and published on the Walla news site, the attorney general says that such a move is the best defense against both the ongoing trial against Israel at the International Court of Justice and the arrest warrants sought by the top prosecutor of the International Criminal Court against Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

  “Given the urgency of dealing with the threats on the international stage, our professional opinion is that there should be no delay in establishing a state commission of inquiry in investigating the events of the war,” Baharav-Miara writes in the letter.

  Netanyahu has resisted calls from within his coalition and the opposition to establish such a commission.

  Such a commission, usually headed by retired Supreme Court justices, would almost certainly head off procedures in the ICC, since the court is prohibited in principle by the Rome Statute which founded it from holding proceedings against the nationals of a country, which is itself holding credible investigations into the allegations in question.  link  This call by the AG presents a very interesting situation. Until now, Netanyahu has been the biggest antagonist against a State Commission of Inquiry because of all the risks he, personally faces with such a commission. From almost day one of the war, he was stated that there will need to be a Government Commission of Inquiry instead. The differences are not just semantics but are actually very great. A government commission would be headed by members of Netanyahu's coalition (a major conflict of interests) and its legal power to do anything other than issue a report would be minimal, if any. A State Commission is an independent body and headed by respected judges and members of the non partisan government legal system with wide legal powers to subpoena and either bring charges or recommend bringing charges against those who may be legally culpable, including Netanyahu. Now, with the arrest warrants potentially looming for Netanyahu and Galant by the ICC, Netanyahu may be forced to take a more favorable view of a State Commission.
  
  **The government secretary's response to the AG - "The issue of establishing a state investigative committee is within the exclusive authority of the Israeli government in accordance with the law," Fox wrote in his letter to the ombudsman.

• The NAACP, an influential civil rights organization, urges US President Joe Biden to “indefinitely” halt all weapons deliveries to Israel and apply pressure for the end of the war, sending a reminder that his support for Israel could hurt him among Black voters in November’s election.
  The NAACP’s call is a rare instance of the advocacy group for Black Americans taking a position on US foreign policy toward a country without a significant Black population.
  The organization says Israel had a right to defend itself after the Hamas massacre of October 7 and urges the terror group to return the hostages and “stop all terrorist activity.” It also urges Israel to “commit to an offensive strategy that is aligned with international and humanitarian laws.”
  “The NAACP calls on President Biden to draw the red line and indefinitely end the shipment of all weapons and artillery to the State of Israel and other states that supply weapons to Hamas and other terrorist organizations. It is imperative that the violence that has claimed so many civilian lives, immediately stop,” the organization says in a statement first provided to Reuters.  link This call by the NAACP does not help in promoting dialogue and understanding between Blacks and Jews in the US. Jews have always been on the frontlines of all the Civil Rights movements and fights but relations between us have been fraught at various times in recent history. This can cause those relations to become even more frayed, especially when they made the call to end shipments to Israel and other states that supply weapons to Hamas, equating Israel and Hamas in the same statement just as was done by the Chief Prosecutor of the ICC in the Hague. A disgusting equation.

• Dutch lawmakers join passersby inside replica of Hamas tunnel in The Hague: Outside a train station in The Hague, five teenagers pause to study an imposing structure: a 24-meter (79-foot) dark tunnel with just a faint light visible at its end.

  Having missed an explanatory board, they debate its meaning briefly. Rachel Meijler, an Israel-Dutch gallery owner, explains that it’s a replica of the tunnels where Hamas has kept hostages from Israel since October 7. Her nephew, Laor Abramov, 20, was murdered by the terrorists at the Supernova music festival, she adds. The students fall silent and venture into the cramped space, one of them bending slightly.

  Brought to the Netherlands last month at Meijler’s initiative, the tunnel opened to the public yesterday in The Hague, the seat of the Dutch government, the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, where Israel is facing disputed genocide charges over its war on Hamas in Gaza.

  “The tunnel has been on display in Amsterdam for a month but The Hague is the more strategic place,” says Ronny Naftaniel, a former leader of Dutch Jews. “Theoretical knowledge is different to the stuffiness and discomfort one feels inside the thing,” he tells The Times of Israel.

  Multiple lawmakers visit the tunnel. Ulysse Ellian, a lawmaker for the People’s Party for the ruling Freedom and Democracy, comments after the visit: “It’s unthinkable that there the hostages are kept in these conditions, day in day out.”  link At Hostage Square in Tel Aviv, there is also a replica of the Hamas tunnels. It is a short passage but certainly has an impact. I have no doubt that it is a very far cry from what the hostages suffer on a daily basis but it is shocking and scary to go through this short passage that just takes a minute or two. I hope that it will have the effect that is needed in The Hague.

• The US State Department has for the first time announced sanctions against the Lion’s Den terror group that was established over two years ago in the northern West Bank.
  “The United States condemns any and all acts of violence committed in the West Bank, whoever the perpetrators, and we will use the tools at our disposal to expose and hold accountable those who threaten peace and stability there,” US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller says in a statement.
  The Lion’s Den — or Areen al-Ossud in Arabic — emerged in late 2022 in the city of Nablus in the northern West Bank as violence surged in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and carried out a number of terror attacks. It has been largely dormant over the past year, and has not claimed responsibility for an attack since mid-2023.
  In October 2022, Lion’s Den claimed responsibility for several drive-by shootings in the Nablus area. Lion’s Den members opened fire at Israeli vehicles driving close to the nearby settlement of Elon Moreh, injuring a taxi driver and damaging vehicles. In a separate attack, numerous shots were fired toward the West Bank settlement of Har Bracha, the State Department says.
  In September 2022, Lion’s Den fighters injured and killed Palestinian civilians during clashes between Palestinian fighters and Palestinian Authority Security Forces in Nablus, the US announcement adds.
  The US State Department announcement also cites April 2024 Palestinian media reports of Lion’s Den fighters targeting Israeli forces with small arms at an Israeli checkpoint in Nablus. However, these reports were never confirmed, the group never claimed responsibility for that attack and it could well have been perpetrated by Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters.

• Britain’s opposition Labour Party is expected to include a pledge to recognize a Palestinian state at an appropriate time in peace talks in its election manifesto, the Guardian newspaper reports, citing people with knowledge of the document.

  The manifesto, which sets out the party’s policies ahead of the vote on July 4, will also pledge to ensure that recognizing a Palestinian state is not vetoed by a “neighboring country,” the newspaper reports. Labour leader Keir Starmer said last month that he wanted to recognize a Palestinian state if he won power, but that such a move would need to come at the right time in a peace process. The manifesto will be finalized in a meeting with unions tomorrow and will be presented next Thursday, the report says. Labour did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment. link

The Region

• Yemen’s Houthi terror group claims it launched two joint military operations with the Iraqi Islamic Resistance against ships at Israel’s Haifa port.
  “The first targeted two ships carrying military equipments in the port of Haifa, while the second targeted a ship that violated the decision to ban entry to the port,” Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claims in a televised statement.
  There were no reports of an incident in Haifa, and previous claims by Iran-backed groups have later been proven to be exaggerated or fabricated.
  “It’s not true,” says IDF spokesperson Lt.-Col. Peter Lerner.
• Security firm reports explosion near vessel in Red Sea off coast of Yemen: A merchant vessel reported an explosion took place near it in the Red Sea today about 19 nautical miles west of the Yemeni port city of Mokha, British security firm Ambrey says.

  Separately, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) says it has received a report of an incident 27 nautical miles south of Mokha and authorities are investigating.

  The vessel fit the target profile of Yemeni Houthi terrorists, who have attacked ships off the country’s coast for several months, Ambrey says in a note. It was unclear whether the two incidents reported by Ambrey and UKMTO were the same.

• A meeting between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and a group of Arab counterparts in Riyadh in late April deteriorated into a shouting match between the foreign minister of the UAE and a senior Palestinian official, a source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel.

  Confirming reporting in the Axios news site, the source recalled how Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed said during the meeting that there was no real reform in the Palestinian Authority, accused the Palestinian leadership of being “Ali Baba and the 40 thieves” and said all of the PA leadership is “useless.” Bin Zayed went further, asking why the UAE would want to provide funding to such a body.

  “His Highness added that if the Palestinian Authority paid as much attention to its own people as it does to security coordination with Israel the Palestinians will be in much better shape,” an Emirati official told Axios — a particularly low blow, given that the PA has long come under fire domestically for its security cooperation with Israel but usually receives praise for it from the US and the rest of the international community.

  Palestinian Liberation Organization Executive Committee secretary general Hussein al-Sheikh, a close aide to PA President Mahmoud Abbas, shot back that nobody could dictate to the PA how to conduct its reforms.

  The sides both stormed out of the room in anger and later returned to apologize to Blinken for arguing in his presence, according to the source.

  The PA has long had a rocky relationship with the UAE, particularly since Abu Dhabi normalized ties with Israel in 2020. The personal relationship between Abbas and Emirati President Mohammed bin Zayed is widely known to be chilly.

  But the source familiar with the matter said anger with the PA and Abbas stems well beyond just the UAE, with the majority of the other countries present at the meeting — Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Qatar — all increasingly losing their patience with Ramallah.

  The feeling among many of those present in the meeting was that Abbas has not been willing to institute the significant reforms that are necessary in order to reform the PA so that it can return to governing Gaza and advance a two-state solution.

  The frustration with Abbas extends to Qatar who wanted him to appoint a prime minister who would have support within Palestinian society, including the Islamist sectors. This message was passed along by Qatar’s emir during Abbas’s visit to the country in February. However, Abbas ultimately snubbed the emir and appointed a close confidant, Mohammed Mustafa, whose public support is rather limited.  link  The PA, since its initiation by Arafat has seen great corruption by its officials and their families, making many of them multimillionaires at the expense of the Palestinian people. There is probably the least amount of corruption in the PA at this time and for the last number of years under Abu Mazen (there was still plenty of corruption under him as well) that at any times since the PA started. However, they are perceived by the majority of the Palestinian street as still be corrupt and they are very undemocratic. Abu Mazen is now serving his 18 years of a 4 year term because elections have not been held all this time, for various reasons that I'm not going to get into now. Abu Mazen's time has come to step aside and have full, legitimate democratic elections. There are a number of very qualified people who will command the respect of the street as well as being known as not corrupt and the future of the Palestinian State. Abu Mazen does not want to step aside but should and if he still wants to be at the top, it should be in an honorary position and not a position of power, such as President Emeritus. With him in control, there is no real hope that the PA could go through a real change of reform both in the eyes of the Palestinians and the eyes of the international community, which is crucial for the rebuilding, future governance of Gaza and for a future Palestinian State.

Acronyms and Glossary

COGAT - Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories

ICC - International Criminal Court in the Hague

IJC - International Court of Justice in the Hague

MDA - Magen David Adom - Israel Ambulance Corp

PA - Palestinian Authority - President Mahmud Abbas, aka Abu Mazen

PMO- Prime Minister's Office

UAV - Unmanned Aerial vehicle, Drone. Could be used for surveillance and reconnaissance, or be weaponized with missiles or contain explosives for 'suicide' explosion mission

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