#knesset protest

[news4dzhozhar]

Netanyahu has never given a damn about the hostages. He thinks they weaken his position by giving Hamas a bargaining tool. It's about time the families and others have gotten wise to this. He won't negotiate and the IOF continues to bomb areas where hostages are being held.

[grendelsmilf]

fwiw israelis get arrested in protests all the time. they are generally subjected to less brutality than palestinians (like if israelis & palestinians are protesting the same cause together, palestinians are treated far more violently at the same site), but this is hardly a new phenomenon, there just happens to be a spotlight on the region rn.

[bopinion]

2023 / 11

Aperçu of the Week:

"Reform can be accomplished only when attitudes are changed."

(Lillian D. Wald - American nurse, humanitarian and author)

Bad News of the Week:

Every reform project logically provokes opposition. After all, every change is beneficial to some and detrimental to others. Sometimes those who want reform are right. Sometimes those who protest against it are right. In the case of the pension reform in France, I am on the side of the proponents.

France, like pretty much every other industrialized country, is suffering from an aging society. As a result, fewer and fewer working people have to finance the pensions of those who are no longer working. What was supposed to be a solidarity system has not worked for a long time. For example, 20% of the German national budget flows into the pension system as a subsidy, and the trend is rising. So the period for which pensions are drawn must be shortened. There are only two solutions: either people have to die earlier - or work longer.

In Germany, the retirement age is 65 and will rise to 67 within the next eight years. Norway and Italy, for example, are already at this point. So the fact that the French are now protesting so vehemently against an increase in the retirement age from 62 to 64 - which is still moderate after all - is simply out of touch with reality. After all, you can't really argue against mathematics.

The bottom line is that both sides will lose: the politicians, because they are trying to push through the reform with democratically questionable means. And the people, who will have to pay the bill anyway. Only with more anger in their stomachs. Because of ignorance. There really may be something to "Les Français sont ingouvernables."

Good News of the Week:

Every reform project logically provokes opposition. After all, every change is beneficial to some and detrimental to others. Sometimes those who want reform are right. Sometimes those who protest against it are right. In the case of the judicial reform in Israel, I am on the side of the opponents.

Separation of powers is the crucial cornerstone of any democracy. A look at history teaches us that it has never been good for a nation when the independence of its judicial branch has been threatened. And in this case, it is more than just a threat. When an ultra-right government, which has a majority in the Knesset, can simply overrule supreme court decisions, it is in effect a disempowerment of the judiciary. It also gives Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personal protection from prosecution.

The protest against this government overreach is therefore fully justified. At home, where there are demonstrations on an unprecedented scale and even President Isaac Herzog speaks of a very bad situation, an "internal struggle that is tearing our country apart." And abroad. This week, Netanyahu was in Berlin. And there were expectations of a clear stance. Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews, was clear: "One must clearly criticize that a constitutional amendment undermines the separation of powers between parliament and the law, and that is not compatible with democratic principles." And he hoped that Chancellor Olaf Scholz would clearly criticize this. The latter then spoke of "great concern" he had regarding the planned judicial reform. And that the independence of the judiciary is a "high democratic good."

What may sound rather lukewarm is in fact almost a sensation. Even such soft-spoken criticism between the lines is something completely new. For official criticism of Israel by Germany is an absolute taboo. But this is not about criticism of a people, a nation, a state. It is about criticism of the actions of concretely acting persons. Who in turn abuse the state for their egomaniacal agenda. That has its justification.

Personal happy moment of the week:

It looks like winter is finally over in Bavaria. Which was not a nice winter in the last weeks: wet and with partly extreme wind. At least the temperatures should not fall below 0° anymore and reach up to 18° Celsius in the afternoons. Spring is coming!

I couldn't care less...

...about the world-wide trembling of the stock exchange prices before a renewed bank crisis. Because I have neither money in my account, nor even a single share. I am only afraid that this sourness could be replaced by anger at "the markets". If, once again, it is precisely those that have to be rescued as systemically relevant from the public money of the little people, who otherwise fill their pockets with tax avoidance, among other things. And it becomes clear that "the system" has not learned anything since 2008.

As I write this...

...I am excited about the arrest warrant of the International Criminal Court ICC against Vladimir Putin for war crimes, specifically the abduction of Ukrainian children. Especially that the German Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann made it clear today that this arrest warrant would be executed in Germany and Putin would be transferred to The Hague. One may be curious in this regard, for example, the attitude of South Africa. Because Putin wanted to attend a BRICS conference in August there in person.

Post Scriptum

Every reform project logically provokes opposition. After all, every change is beneficial to some and detrimental to others. Sometimes those who want reform are right. Sometimes those who protest against it are right. In the case of the electoral reform in Germany, I am on the side of the opponents.

In this, I find myself in rare company with the conservatives and the leftists. The Christian Social Union (CSU) and the Left Party (Die Linke) now have to fear for their seats in parliament. Since they get their seats almost exclusively via direct mandates by winning constituencies. Whereas the governing coalition of Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals do this mostly via the so-called second vote. This determines in percentage terms how many candidates from a state list will get into the Bundestag. Even if they only come fourth in their constituency. That's exactly what happened in our neighborhoods.

Yes, Germany has the second largest parliament in the world after the sham National People's Congress in China. And it makes sense to change that. For reasons of efficiency and cost. For example, through larger constituencies. But not like this, please. In concrete terms, this would mean that the candidate in our constituency, who has already won a clear majority three times, would be kicked out next time because his party might not reach 5% nationwide. How could it: after all, the CSU only exists in Bavaria, i.e. in only one of 16 German states.

I don't like this candidate or his policies. And I have never voted for him. But if he wins his constituency by a clear margin, he has to be our representative in Berlin. That's it. And not the candidate that hardly anyone votes for, but who is well networked in his state association and therefore has a good place on the list. After this reform, which is clearly partisan, our votes would be worthless. Democracy cannot want that.

[glazecake]

Palestine فلسطين

x / x / x | x / x / x | x / x / x

My goal with making this post is to use my platform to raise awareness and encourage solidarity and action for the people of Palestine. Over the past few weeks, I have felt powerless to watch the destruction of Gaza before the world's eyes. However, I realized that I still have a large platform despite this blog's inactivity. With this, I would like to share information about Palestine and what you can do to help.

In the above post, I have sought out videos of Palestinian food, culture, art, architecture, and nature to share. Israeli propaganda is trying adamantly to dehumanize the population of Palestine in order to further justify their genocide. Regardless, no matter where you are in the world, humans recognize and understand what it is to be human. What it is to make art, to share food with your loved ones, to travel, and laugh, and sing. To experience heartbreak and hardship, and to experience joy. To dream about the future. To stand up for what we believe in, to fight in the face of injustice.

If you are an American citizen, use your voice to stand up for what's right. Contact your representatives. Demand a ceasefire in Gaza. Boycott companies and celebrities who voice their support of the Israeli settler state. Protest. Donate. Organize. Fight. We are strongest when in community with each other. Our US tax dollars directly fund the murder of Gazan civilians. Make it known that we will not stand idly by while news outlets and propagandists lie to our faces about the atrocities enacted by the IDF and the Knesset.

Here are some links for information on Palestine, as well as places to donate:

decolonizepalestine - A website aiming to educate and dispel myths about the Palestinian people, ran by two Ramallah residents.

US Campaign for Palestinian Rights - You can use this website to find groups organizing near you.

Palestine Action US - The US branch of a directive aiming to dismantle the Israeli military regime, directly funded by the US.

Hirbawi Kufiya - The last and only Kufiya factory in Palestine, as featured in the gif above. You can pre-order a kufiya which will be shipped once the blockade has been lifted.

Let Gaza Live: Ceasefire NOW - An easy way to send letters to your representatives to demand ceasefire in Gaza.

The Palestinians: From Peasants to Revolutionaries by Rosemary Sayigh - A good introduction to the ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestine.

Click to Help - One click a day can help raise donations for the UNRWA.

baitulmaal - Donate to fund relief.

anera - Donate to provide hygiene kits for displaced Gazans.

As of October 27th, 2023, Gazans are losing access to the internet. It is imperative for us to share their stories, to continue to remain active and aware of their martyrdom. The IDF will utilize this information blackout to their advantage. We must do all we can. Do not forget the plight of the Palestinian people. Do not allow their voices to go unheard.

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. 🇵🇸

[jewish-sideblog]

Obviously Hamas actions are abhorrent and the rise in antisemitism is uncalled for. What is the proper the response to 75yrs of apartheid though? Something has to be done about that or his cycle will never cease.

So you came from the post in which I explicitly named three organizations working for a two-state solution. And didn’t think… to look into… their proposals for a two-state solution…

As a reminder, before Hamas’s attack, Israel was working on normalizing peaceful relations with Saudi Arabia. That’s dead in the water because Hamas broke a ceasefire and killed a thousand Jewish civilians.

Before Hamas’s attack, there were massive, frequent, and often daily protests among the Israeli public, speaking out against an administration comprised of anti-Palestinians. Those are on hold now, because a thousand Jewish civilians were killed, and the country is at war. But Netanyahu’s coalition of asswipes is built like a house of cards, and they’ll suffer in the next election. That much is clear.

Hamas wasn’t looking to gain territory, win, or free Palestine on October 7th. Israel has never lost a war in its modern history, and it has overcome far worse odds than a couple thousand terrorists. There’s no feasible way for Hamas to have won. They broke the ceasefire and killed civilians anyway. Why? Why waste those lives and those resources, knowing that Israel would retaliate against Gazans?

Because Hamas looked around and saw something that horrified them. They saw Arab nations, once their allies, walking away from the idea of killing millions of Jews in favor of normalization and peace with Israel. They saw the citizens of Israel, rallying in unprecedented numbers for peace and democracy. They saw Fatah, their Palestinian enemies since 2007, ready to come back to the bargaining table for a peaceful two-state resolution.

Hamas broke a ceasefire for a media ploy. They did it, knowing that it would stop the normalization process between the Saudis and Israelis. They did it, knowing that it would bring an abrupt halt to Israeli protests. They did it, knowing that Israel would retaliate, and that the world would be watching as Hamas put Palestinian civilians in the line of fire and blamed it on Israel. They were looking to propagandize a dying movement, and friend, it seems like you bought into it.

Something does have to be done about Israeli’s treatment of Palestinians. Something does have to happen to end this cycle of violence. And plenty of things were being done about it, in the Knesset, on the streets of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. But Hamas considers peace without genocide to be a failure. Peace without genocide leaves Hamas out of a job. So they put a stop to it, at the cost of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian lives.

And you don’t gotta take that from me. Ask them. They aren’t trying to hide it, they’ve been saying it all month. It’s in their founding charter.

[koheletgirl]

Would love to hear about how you became an anti Zionist!

before i get into this, i'd like to direct you to some of @jewishvitya's posts: [x] [x] [x]. i think their perspective is more relevant to the current situation than mine, and they address issues that i won't get into here because they had no personal relevance to me and you asked about me.

so my family is considered left-wing in israel. my parents voted for ha'avoda (israeli labor) in most elections i can remember, my mom even went "as far" as voting for meretz (as far as jewish parties go, they're the furthest to the left. still zionist though. didnt get enough votes to get into the knesset in the last elections). i grew up mourning rabin, hating bibi before i even knew who he was, believing that the settlements are the source of all israeli wrongdoings. in 2005 people would put ribbons on their cars – green if you support dismantling the settlements in gaza, orange if you're against it. we had a green ribbon. my family talks about the two states solution, about going back to the '67 borders. my grandmother jokingly calls herself a "leftist traitor", because that's how the right labels them.

i grew up with these values. i was taught to value human life, i was taught that all people were equal, i was taught that nationalism and imperialism were wrong. we weren't afraid of talking about the occupation. we weren't afraid of calling israeli fascism what it was. you might have heard about the democracy protests that have been happening in israel in the past year; my parents went every week.

i think this is why it took me so long to break out of my zionist worldview. people talk about zionism as if it's explicitly genocidal and built on racial supremacy, and i understand why (and agree with this to an extent), but you have to understand how absurd this idea sounds to people like my parents. they don't think zionism is the issue, they think the israeli right is. they acknowledge the evils of the settlers in the west bank, but they would never consider themselves settlers. it's very easy to see the wrongness of a person going to someone's house and violently kicking a family out of there because they believe it should belong to them (not a hypothetical, this is happening in the west bank as we speak); it's a lot harder to think that maybe everything you were taught to believe about your own right to be here was a lie from the beginning.

and that's the problem, that it is a lie. we are literally taught there was nothing here. swamps and malaria and sand and sand. the zionists built a civilization out of nothing. that's the story, that's the myth.

another aspect of this that's essential to acknowledge is the dehumanization of palestinians in israel, which is still prevalent in leftist circles, despite taking a different form. the israeli left Loves to make the distinction between palestinians and "israeli arabs" - a term that some people that i have met have used for themselves, and i am not the right person to speak on (i'm sure there's nuance here i'm unaware of). these people don't think of themselves as racists. they don't mind arabs in general, they only mind "the arabs who want to harm us". and it's so easy for them to pat themselves on the back because they have plenty of arab friends and they actively oppose the goverment's racism; but they all draw the line when it comes to palestinians. to them, once a person calls themselves a palestinian, it means they believe jews have no right to exist here. it means their existence is at odds with their own. they don't see palestinians as people, they see them as an agenda.

i was going to add a bit about how the israeli left's aversion to religion (which stems from the influence orthodox jews currently have on israeli law) plays into this, but this is getting really long.

anyway. for me, it wasn't a revelation as much as it was a willingness to open my eyes to the fact that everything i had been taught was a lie. it was always there, this doubt, this uneasiness. i knew that there were a lot of people over the world whose opinions i generally agreed with – except when it came to israel. it just took me a really long time to be able to doubt Everything.

because that required tearing down everything my worldview was based on, everything i had believed in, and it was scary. it's a very, very difficult thing to do. not knowing what to believe is horrifying. realizing you have believed in lies your whole life is horrifying.

but at some point i had to ask myself: how can i hate everything this country stands for, and not doubt what it's taught me? how can i know what i know about the idf, and still believe it's acting humanely? and the thing is, i still don't know what to believe a lot of the time. i still doubt everything, all the time. i'm critical of all of my beliefs, and i think it's good to be. but i listen, and i look, and i feel, and above all i try to be compassionate. and there's only one stance you can take here if you value human life above all else.

here are some israel-based organizations that influenced my political views and i recommend checking out (even though i have my disagreements with them): b'tselem, standing together, breaking the silence, mesarvot

[argyrocratie]

(...)

In a message that sharply diverges from the mainstream Israeli public discourse amid the army’s ongoing assault on Gaza, and at a time when anyone in Israel who expresses even mild opposition to the war is facing persecution and repression, Mitnick told +972: “My refusal is an attempt to influence Israeli society and to avoid taking part in the occupation and the massacre happening in Gaza. I’m trying to say that it’s not in my name. I express solidarity with the innocent in Gaza. I know they want to live; they don’t deserve to be made refugees for the second time in their lives.”

(...)

How did your decision to refuse enlistment come about? 

Even before the first draft notice, I knew I was not interested in enlisting. I knew I wasn’t willing to serve in this system that perpetuates apartheid in the West Bank and only contributes to the cycle of bloodshed. I understood from the very privileged position I find myself in, having a supportive family and environment, that I have an obligation to use it to reach other young people and to show that there is another way.

When I talk to my friends — some of whom serve and some of whom received exemptions — about why I’m not going to the army, they understand that it comes from a humane perspective of consideration for the other. No one thinks I support Hamas or want [my friends] to experience harm. There are people who believe that military activity will bring security; I believe that my public refusal is what will influence and bring the most security.

How did the protests against the judicial overhaul help you shape your worldview?

Before the protests, I viewed political activism as something very distant, and I didn’t think it was possible to make an impact as an individual. When the protests began and I saw they included members of Knesset going out to the streets, I realized that politics is closer to me than I thought, that it can reach every corner of the country, and that it is possible to have an influence. That’s where I understood that my actions can affect the reality we see here, and I have an obligation to act for a better future.

Were you debating whether to do it now, given the current atmosphere? 

Yes, there were doubts. I always knew that the army doesn’t have a consistent policy regarding conscientious objectors, that the response can change in a moment – to release all objectors or to imprison them for a long time — and I was prepared for that. After October 7 and the [government’s] attack on the peace movement, on Jewish-Arab partnership, and on Palestinian citizens expressing support and solidarity with the innocent in Gaza, even on demonstrations, it has become frightening. But now is precisely the time to show the other side, to show that we exist.

Do you think there’s anyone in the country willing to listen to such messages right now?

We all know that we need another way, especially after October 7. We all know that it simply doesn’t work, that Benjamin Netanyahu is not “Mr. Security.” Managing the conflict is a policy that hasn’t worked and eventually collapsed. 

We can’t continue with the current situation, and there are two options now: the right suggests transfer and genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza; the other side says there are Palestinians here, living between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, and they are entitled to rights. Even people who voted for Bibi, and even those who supported the judicial reform, can connect to the idea that everyone deserves to live justly, that everyone deserves a roof over their heads, and support shared existence here.

After October 7, many who were on the left claimed they “sobered up”. Did this affect you?

There is no justification for harming innocent civilians. The criminal attack on October 7, in which innocents were killed, is illegitimate resistance to the oppression of the Palestinian people in my eyes. However, outlawing legitimate resistance such as protests, or declaring human rights organizations as terrorist organizations, leads people to dehumanize the other and to actions targeting civilians.

October 7 did not change my perspective; it only reinforced it. I still believe it is impossible to live with the siege on Gaza and an occupation, and not feel [any consequences]. I believe that many people finally understand this. The idea of “out of sight, out of mind” doesn’t work. Something needs to change, and the only way is to talk, to reach a political settlement. I’m not saying it will solve everything, but it will be another step toward justice and peace.

What was your experience at the Conscience Committee? 

The pre-committee interviewer was aggressive. She questioned my nonviolence because I opposed the government’s actions and the occupation. Essentially, due to my opinions, she told me that I am not a conscientious objector because these were political views.

In the end, I went through the pre-committee, and appeared before the committee itself less than a week after the interview, while many people usually wait half a year. It was a hostile interview: me opposite four people.

They attacked my opinions. They asked me what I would have done on October 7, and how I would have handled the situation. They constantly interrupted me, and said they would phrase the question differently. I tried to continue answering, but they said I wasn’t responding to them. I am not the leader of Israel; they can’t place me in that position.

They asked me how my refusal is different from the refusal of Brothers in Arms [a group of army veterans who declared their refusal to show up for reserve service in protest against the judicial coup]. I replied that I appreciate them and think it’s important that there are people who have a red line for service — but I set my red line before that, and I hope their red line moves in the direction of my red line.

Two days later, they told me I hadn’t passed the committee. I wasn’t surprised. I didn’t receive any explanation, they just called and told me the result."

...

[yuri-alexseygaybitch]

Libzios: the majority of Israelis don't want Netanyahu's war! They want to live in stabilized apartheid peace with Palestinians!

Literally every Israeli opinion poll since Oct. 7: 99.9% of respondents believe Palestinians should be exterminated like rats; The 0.1% who disagree plan to stage a performance art piece outside the knesset in protest

[matan4il]

Daily update post:

Remember how I mentioned yesterday that Hezbollah had attacked the Northern Command base? It was announced that Ali Hussein, the commander of that aerial strike on the IDF base, has been eliminated.

Hey, remember how the anti-Israel crowd kept insisting that Israel has turned Gaza into a concentration camp, before this war? The IDF has arrived at the summer home (!) of Marwan Issa, the deputy military commander of Hamas in Gaza, and I am trying to remember a single Jewish slave laborer in Dachau, who had a summer home that looks like this, inside the camp...

(screenshots from a vid in Hebrew here, discussing Marwan Issa, his home, and the way Hamas leaders built their wealth)

This is vital: UN Watch have published a report about the Telegram group of UNRWA teachers, who celebrated the massacre of Oct 7, and prided themselves that this was thanks to the education that the terrorists got...

In the US, Jewish stars have signed a letter addressed to the Academy for Motion Picture, Arts and Sciences, protesting the fact that Jews are not on the list for includion, as one of the marginalized groups that suffer from underrepresentation. I've written way before the war about Jewish representation, and how it has never been good enough. But more than that, Most people are incredibly ignorant about Jews, Judaism, Jewish identity, Jewish history, and even some very basic related facts, such as Jews being native to Israel, or that Jews aren't just white people with a less popular religion. Jews have suffered the longest streak of persecution in human history, the most extreme genocide, and yet we're not even recognized as marginalized and discriminated, which means we're discriminated against even among marginalized groups. It's unfathomable, and it has to change, if the west wants to fight antisemitism, and it has to change NOW.

Idan Amedi's condition, which I posted about in my update post yesterday, is said to have improved, he's regained consciousness, can breathe on his own, and even talked a bit to his family.

This is 62 years old Aviva Siegel.

She's one of the hostages that were released. Yesterday, she went to the Knesset (Israel's parliament), and I got to hear her testimony about the sexual abuse and torture of the young women in captivity in Gaza, which she had witnessed firsthand. Aviva recounted that one young hostage asked to go to the bathroom. When she returned, Aviva could tell something was off. The young woman confirmed to her that the terrorist molested her. Aviva went to comfort the girl, but the Hamas terrorist rapist stopped her with gun threats. "He wouldn't even let me hug her after he raped her," Aviva said. She also shared that there was another young woman who was physically tortured based on the suspicion that she was an IDF officer. Aviva's husband is still held in captivity, for 96 days now.

This is Ronen Engel, with his daughters Mika and Yuval.

On Oct 7, Ronen was murdered, his body is still held hostage in Gaza. Yuval and Mika were kidnapped together with their mother Karina, and the three were released during the hostage deal. Two days ago, during the tragedy with the explosives truck in Gaza in which many soldiers were killed and injured 2 days ago, the Engel's family adopted son, 25 years old Amit Shachar, was killed.

May Ronen and Amit's memories be a blessing.

This was just SO sweet, I had to share. Since the fighting in Gaza started, and some soldiers have been away for months at a time, when they do get to come home, people have shared vids of the reunion joy, and this has to be my personal fave so far:

(for all of my updates and ask replies regarding Israel, click here)

[thebrightestwitchofherage]

I’ve said it before, but

Can anti Zionists here please realise that most Israelis hate our government too!!!!

-They were elected after 5 elections in a few years , and not by a majority.

-we’re not a fan of the extremist members of the Knesset either… there were protests from the moment they were elected , especially since they tried to overturn the “reasonableness” law.

-In fact, there were weekly protests for almost a year - up until October 7th… they’ve resumed in the last few weeks though.

[workersolidarity]

🇮🇱 🚨

THOUSANDS OF ISRAELIS HEAD TO THE KNESSET TO DEMAND END TO NETANYAHU REGIME

📹 Scenes from the thousands of Israeli protesters headed to the Zionist Knesset to demand the resignation of occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, call for new elections, and demand negotiations for the return of hostages held by the Palestinian resistance.

#source

@WorkerSolidarityNews

[girlactionfigure]

🟠 Thu morning - ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

( 1 / 2 )

💩US WILL NOT SUPPLY.. Biden: If Israel launches a large-scale operation in Rafah, we will not supply it with bombs and artillery shells.

.. A senior Israeli official after Biden's announcement: We have enough means to enter Rafah and occupy it without American assistance. Rafah will be occupied in any case. The main problem is the message it sends to Hezbollah and Iran, that Israel will apparently come without weapons to the conflict in the north.

.. Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell sent a letter to President Biden in which they expressed great concern over the decision to suspend arms shipments to Israel.  (( Sadly this is becoming a Republican vs. Democrat issue in the U.S. ))

♦️IDF forces in the Gaza Zeytun area; about 25 terrorist targets were destroyed from the air, our forces are working on the ground to (re)purify the area.

♦️Footage from Gaza channels shows a missile being launched from an Israeli combat helicopter at a target in the Tel Al-Sultan area in West Rafah.

♦️”Sources claim”: Israel dropped a unique bomb in an attack on a Kafrkela in southern Lebanon that has not yet been used previously - to penetrate deep and hit underground bunkers.  Israel used a GBU 10 bomb or a Spice 2000 bomb.

⭕ Islamic Jihad terrorist published videos in which they show launching rockets at IDF forces and armored vehicles in East Rafah.  They took responsibility for 5 terrorist operations against IDF forces in the East Rafah area in the last 30 hours, including the firing of grenades, RPG missiles and machine gun fire.

⭕ HAMAS ATTACKS U.S. AID PIER.. Hamas fired twice in the last day at the temporary dock by the Americans.  

⭕ HAMAS ATTACKS AID PORT KEREM SHALOM.. again (3rd time).  (( Almost like they don’t want aid arriving. I suggest we agree. ))

⭕ DRONE ATTACK SOUTHERN GOLAN VIA SYRIA.. Yonatan, Keshet, areas not previously attacked, suicide drone from SYRIA.

⚠️NEXT STEP - DEMONIZE.. The US State Department is finalizing a report that will discuss whether Israel violates international law (in Gaza - and/or maybe Judea-Samaria).

“YOU DON’T WANT TO SELL US SMART BOMBS”.. MK Tali Gottlieb in a Knesset speech: “the US doesn’t want to sell us smart bombs, we’ll use dumb bombs - and blow up 10 buildings to hit the one we want.”

The US State Department: These are obscene statements, and Israeli government officials should refrain from saying them. (( Umm, no, they are reality.  Israel is not going to roll over and die, we’ll use what we must. ))

🟠 Thu morning - ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

( 2 / 2 )

▪️A HERO SOLDIER HAS FALLEN.. Haim Sabach, 20, from Holon, in defense of the north.  May his family be comforted among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem, and may G-d avenge his blood!

▪️FINANCE MINISTER - RESTART CONSTRUCTION IN JUDEA-SAMARIA.. The Minister of Finance Smotrich sent a letter to the Prime Minister: "The reality in which a de facto construction freeze is carried out in Judea-Samaria is intolerable, unacceptable and is a reward for terrorism. I can no longer put up with it"  The Minister threatened that if he did not receive an answer in writing from Netanyahu to continue with the construction freeze, construction will resume in Judea-Samaria.

▪️AID PROTESTS.. The supply trucks to Gaza are stuck in Mitzpe Ramon after access was offered via the Eilat - Jordan crossing. Residents of Eilat blocked them all night, and residents of Mitzpe Ramon are blocking them during the day.

▪️HOLY TOMB VISIT INTERRUPTED BY ARSON.. Last night the IDF enabled safe passage into Kifal Harath, Samaria to the holy tomb of Yehoshua bin Nun (biblical leader Joshua).  During the visit, local Arabs attempted an arson attack by dumping a burning tire onto the tomb - while the Jews were inside!  Forces were able to extinguish the fire, allowing the pilgrims to continue their visit.

▪️HOUTHIS.. claim to have attacked 3 ships, including one in the Indian ocean.

🔸DEAL ACTIVITY..  It was the head of the CIA, Burns, who authorized Hamas to make the changes in the wording of the deal.

▪️ECONOMY - TAXES..  In the Treasury they are formulating approaches to deal with the war costs: raising the income tax, raising the VAT (sales-value tax) this year, canceling credit points for parents, imposing a sugar tax, closing government offices, cutting coalition funds.

[charlesoberonn]

I'm in the Pro-Democracy Anti-Netanyahu protest near the Knesset right now

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

By ZACH KESSEL

One recent college graduate, alongside her former professor, has created a documentary series aimed at educating people past the flashy signs and catchy slogans one might see and hear at an anti-Israel rally, toward a full understanding of what Zionism and anti-Zionism really mean. That series, “Zionism and Anti-Zionism: The History of Two Opposing Ideas” by Zoé Tara Zeigherman, had its Washington, D.C., premiere Thursday night. 

The series, a five-episode look at the varieties of both its titular subjects, covers Jewish history and the development of Zionism, the intra-Jewish debates that occurred before Israel’s founding in 1948, and various strains of anti-Zionism from post-1948 Arab opposition to Israel to Soviet propaganda.

Zeigherman, alongside her former Georgetown University professor (and former member of Israel’s Knesset) Einat Wilf, began formulating the idea for the series in 2022, well before anti-Zionism and antisemitism shot to the fore of public debate following the October 7 Hamas attack. Zeigherman thinks the problem was always there, but now that college campuses are under a microscope, the documentary series is even more relevant.

“I think that what a lot of Jews have experienced since October 7 is kind of waking up to this feeling that something is seriously wrong; seeing protests on October 8, they’ve been feeling that something is mobilizing against Jews, and they don’t really understand what’s happening.” Zeigherman told National Review. “I had that feeling in the Black Lives Matter protest era when antisemitism was erupting online and I couldn’t understand where it was coming from.”

“If it can just help one young Jew the way Einat’s course helped me, that’s enough,” she told NR. “But I would really like to see it be part of something bigger, where Jews aren’t afraid to be Jews anymore — where we stand taller and prouder and go on offense as opposed to constantly defending ourselves and apologizing.”

Zeigherman initially came up with the idea for the series during her time as a Beren Summer Fellow with the Tikvah Fund, a nonprofit organization that promotes Jewish leaders and ideas, in 2022. While a fellow, she worked with individuals both inside and outside the Tikvah Fund to determine how to bring her vision to life.

[eretzyisrael]

Last week, a representative of an Israeli social threat intelligence firm Cyabra spoke at a Knesset session about how a coordinated influence campaign from Iraq was using bots in the first days of the war to impact public opinion.

I've discussed this a little, and I spent some more time looking at the bots attacking my account.

Social media allows attackers to quickly adjust their methods to see what is working and what isn't. I'm finding that they are getting more effective at their messaging.

The ones attacking me are specifically trying to turn the Israeli public against the war. They post almost exclusively in Hebrew. They are using a few vectors for their messaging that would resonate with Israelis: attacking Netanyahu's leadership, pretending to care about the hostages, and claiming that the IDF is hiding things from the public during the war and things are going badly.

When they create new bot accounts, they will use Jewish and Israeli iconography in their profiles - lots of Israeli flags, for example. 

They'll use typically Jewish and Israeli names - lots of "Levy" and "Cohen" and "Friedman"s. And there is a hierarchy - some older bot accounts that have been around for several months that aren't specifically Israeli sounding are feeding a second tier, which might have 30-150 fake followers of other bots, and then the bottom tier will only have one or two followers. Nearly all of the bottom tier accounts have been created within the past few weeks. 

Often, the accounts will start off by following and retweeting actual popular Zionist accounts (including mine) to make themselves look legitimate,. and sometimes this fools real people into following them, making it a little harder to identify them.

I don't know where they get their content, but it is getting much more sophisticated every day. Here is a video that was posted by hundreds of those bots where they use humor to try to demoralize Israelis into thinking the IDF is killing hostages and being killed by Hamas because of stupidity. This one seems to have been created by an Arab account but they added Hebrew messaging. 

As I mentioned last week, Iranian-linked sites are bragging that they are learning Hebrew and studying the Israeli psyche to fine tune these sorts of messages and make them appear to be truly from Israelis.

To these botmasters, Israeli dissension on how to conduct the war and anti-government protests are a godsend. It makes some of their messages look like they really could be from left-wing Israelis, and some of their material may indeed be from a fringe of Israelis. The sheer number of bots makes it appear that Israelis are far more divided.

The good news is that their attempt to use these bots to get a ceasefire or demoralize the Israeli public means that Hamas is losing, badly. But every social media user must understand how extensive and sophisticated these campaigns are to manipulate you. Tens of thousands of fake accounts, with millions of messages, is not a small scale campaign.