Pomerantz . Consul Update - Edited and More.

https://townhall.com/columnists/johnandandyschlafly/2024/06/26/why-liberals-fear-trumps-second-term-more-than-his-first-n2640963

And:

https://pjmedia.com/athena-thorne/2024/06/26/the-receipts-all-three-of-trumps-debate-opponents-have-compared-him-to-hitler-n4930151

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There Is No Debate That The Debate Will Be An Ambush

By Kurt Schlichter

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The War Slows Down but Also Continues

 

By Sherwin Pomerantz

 

Hamas stood firm Tuesday against global pressure that it accepts the proposed three-phase deal, stressing that any deal which does not guarantee a permanent ceasefire from the start “is not an agreement.”  The Qatar-based Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh released the statement after his sister was killed during an IDF air strike in Gaza, accusing Israel of deliberately targeting her to pressure the group to take the deal.  “If [Israel] thinks targeting my family will change our position or that of the resistance, they are delusional,” he said.

 

He spoke out as Qatar and Egypt continued their efforts to close a deal; debate continued in Israel around the three-phase plan that US President Joe Biden first unveiled on May 31. US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters in Washington that Hamas had sent a written response to the deal several weeks ago. That response “rejected the proposal that had been put forward by Israel, [which] President Biden had outlined,” he said.  Miller recalled that the United Nations Security Council approved the proposal.

 

The deal would have delayed the issue of a permanent ceasefire, a sticking point between Israel and Hamas, to the second phase. It offered a first phase, during which talks over a permanent ceasefire would continue, while some 33 of the hostages would be freed in exchange for an immediate lull to the war.

 

The absence of a deal was one of the topics on Israeli Defense Minister Gallant’s agenda during his visit to Washington this week.  On Tuesday he met with his American counterpart, Defense Secretary Austin at the Pentagon.  Austin called on Hamas to accept the deal. “The onus is on Hamas to accept this roadmap to a durable end to this war,” he said.  “The failure of Hamas to accept this important proposal is prolonging the agony of Palestinian civilians and Israeli civilians,” he said.

 

Meanwhile, at the UN, US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield on Tuesday called out the expansion of Jewish neighborhoods in Judea and Samaria as “an obstacle to the achievement of a two-state solution—the end state we all want to see.”  Speaking at the monthly UN Security Council meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian file, Thomas-Greenfield said the expansions were “inconsistent with international law,” which “only serves to weaken Israeli security.”  The council also “cannot ignore” the record number of Palestinians killed in Judea and Samaria in 2023, or the “significant uptick in deadly” violence by “settlers,” she added.  Thomas-Greenfield also took Israel to task on Tuesday for Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s recent decision to withhold Palestinian Authority tax revenue.

 

Thomas-Greenfield urged support for Ramallah, saying that “Israel and Palestinians need to have faith in the Palestinian Authority’s ability to govern as a non-corrupt, faithful actor working in the interest of the Palestinian people. It is essential, therefore, that the Palestinian Authority work to reform itself, and that it do so as quickly as possible.”

 

During her remarks to the Security Council on Tuesday, Thomas-Greenfield did condemn Hamas for its rejection of an Israeli-proposed, Security Council-endorsed multi-phased ceasefire deal. “Unfortunately, Hamas has eschewed the calls from this council, and ignored voices from across the international community,” she said. “In fact, rather than accept the deal, Hamas has added even more conditions.” From Washington’s perspective, “It’s time to end the intransigence from Hamas, start a ceasefire and release the hostages,” she said.

 

Efforts by the US and Israel continue to find a diplomatic path to end the cross-border hostile acts between Israel and Lebanon that continues unabated.  Whie there has not been any significant achievement of note in this regard, it appears that all parties would like to avoid an all-out war, the ongoing belligerent comments notwithstanding.   Hopefully those efforts will bear fruit.

 

On the escalating anti-Semitism front, for a reasoned and sensible overview of how antisemitism has become the cover for the attempt to destroy western values by the demagogues of the east, this podcast by Sam Harris is worth listening to…..

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Operational Updates

Southern Gaza Strip

Yesterday (June 25), an IAF aircraft eliminated Wissam Abu Ashak, a Hamas terrorist involved in weapons smuggling operations for the terror organization. Ashak directed smuggling through the Rafah Crossing and underground tunnels.

Hamas Terrorists Fire Projectile at Humanitarian Aid Convoy Yesterday (June 25), Hamas terrorists fired a projectile at a UNICEF humanitarian aid convoy aiming to reunite children from northern Gaza with their families in the south. This deliberate targeting of humanitarian aid workers and Gazan children is yet another reminder of the Hamas terror organization's utter disregard for civilian life. To view footage of the attack, click HERE.

New Report Dispels Myths Surrounding Food Security in Gaza Yesterday (June 25), the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), an umbrella organization that brings together 19 different bodies and agencies - UN agencies, state aid bodies and NGOs - and focuses on research on food security in different parts of the world, published the conclusions of the investigation it conducted for the period until the middle of June, and a forecast until September regarding the food security situation in the Gaza Strip. The IPC has a 5-step scale regarding food security situations according to which it ranks the situation in different places. (1 - no food security problem, 5 - acute hunger). The conclusions reflect the fact that despite the forecast in the previous report (March 18), and against backdrop of the increase in the transfer of food and other humanitarian aid to Gaza, a situation of famine (level 5) did not develop in the Gaza Strip, as many have dishonestly claimed in order to pressure Israel to stop its operational activity against the Hamas terror organization. The organization has published three reports on the state of food security in Gaza to date. The second report (March 18) included an assessment of the situation in Gaza for the period between February 15 and March 15, and a forecast from mid-March to July 2024. The report stated that the entire population in the Gaza Strip faces a situation of acute food insecurity - Level 3 (Crisis) throughout the Gaza Strip, Level 4 (Food Emergency) in the southern Gaza Strip, and up to Level 5 (Catastrophe/Famine) in the northern Gaza Strip (with regard to 70% of the population of the north - about 210,000 people.) According to the organization's forecasts, by May 2024 most of the population of the Gaza Strip was expected to suffer from acute hunger (Level 5), which was revealed to be far from the truth. It should be emphasized that the report's assessments and predictions do not reflect the actual situation, and that an examination of the report raises many methodological problems in relation to the standards of the IPC itself. Israel published a document detailing the methodological problems in the organization's second report (click HERE to read), which it delivered directly to the IPC, as well as detailed data reflecting the actual current situation, including an academic study that includes a nutritional assessment of the food entering Gaza as part of the humanitarian aid (click HERE to read) which indicate that the food entering the Gaza Strip should satisfy the needs of the local population and not allow the development of hunger. The third report, which includes the conclusions of the inspection for the period until mid-June and a forecast until September, is still flawed by many of the methodological problems previously pointed out by Israel authorities. However, even with the serious problems in the report, its conclusions actually refute the organization's own forecasts over the relevant time period, stating unequivocally that there is no famine occuring in the Gaza Strip. Professionals in Israel are analyzing the current IPC report. Israel will ensure that international parties who rely on the IPC reports regarding Gaza, and especially the countries that finance this activity, will be made aware of all the ethical, factual and methodological problems arising from them. Even in spite of all the shortcomings and the negative bias of the situation, the report confirms the facts as presented by Israel: the claims regarding hunger in Gaza are baseless. The report also notes Israel's consistent and ongoing expansion of humanitarian aid and refutes the libelous accusation according to which Israel supposedly implements a deliberate starvation policy. Ultimately, the situation in the Gaza Strip is the result of Hamas’s murderous aggression and its cynical use of the residents of Gaza for its survival: using the civilian population as human shields, the massive theft of humanitarian aid, exploitation of hospitals, shelters and UN facilities for terror purposes, etc. If international organizations focus on these atrocious tactics of Hamas and acts against them, the food security situation in Gaza will improve even faster than the new IPC report indicates.

An Overview of Hezbollah's Terror Campaign Against Northern Israel Footage of Northern Israel ablaze as a result of Hezbollah's recent rocket attacks (June 25). For the past 8 months, the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror organization has launched near-daily attacks against northern Israel - firing thousands of rockets, missiles, UAVs, and drones with the goal of murdering Israelis. This coordinated terror campaign has led to the internal displacement of approximately 100,000 Israelis, making many areas of the northern part of the country uninhabitable. THIS VIDEO provides an overview of the suffering and destruction which Israelis have had to endure as a result of Hezbollah's increasing aggression.

U.S. Treasury Department Sanctions International Shadow Banking Network Operated by Iran Members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Yesterday (June 25), the U.S. Treasury Department announced that it is sanctioning nearly 50 entities and individuals belonging to an international shadow banking network used by the Iranian regime's Ministry of Defense and its elite terror organization, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). According to the Department, this network has enabled Iran "to gain illicit access to the international financial system and process the equivalent of billions of dollars since 2020." The revenue generated by this shadow banking network has been used by Iran to fund and equip its terror proxies throughout the Middle East, including Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis. Israel's Foreign Minister Israel Katz commended the U.S. Treasury Department for the sanctions: "I welcome today’s sanctions imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department on the shadow financial networks of Iran’s Defense Ministry and of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. It is an important step in the fight against the Iranian regime and its efforts to finance terror, proliferate armaments, and destabilize the Middle East and the rest of the world. Strong international cooperation is the key to tackling the Iranian threat." To learn more about the recent U.S. sanctions against the Iranian regime, click HERE.

Operation: Swords of Iron Humanitarian Aid Update To view the latest data regarding Israel's coordination of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, click HERE. ++++