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Hamas had made it clear: They are willing to risk another war with Israe

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Hamas had made it clear: They are willing to risk another war with Israe
The arrest operation on Sunday targeting a dangerous Hamas cell in the West Bank not only stopped a ticking time bomb but showed just how serious the terrorist group is.

Based in the Gaza Strip, Hamas constantly attempts to carry out attacks in the West Bank. But this was on a different level.

The raids, which took place in five different locations in the West Bank, were aimed at dismantling a large decentralized Hamas terror infrastructure that was planning to carry out imminent terror attacks both in Israel and the West Bank.

Palestinians clash with Israeli security forces during a protest in the village of Deir al-Hatab, near Nablus, September 22, 2021. (credit: NASSER ISHTAYEH/FLASH90)

The attacks could have been reminiscent of the terror attacks carried out by Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups during the Second Intifada, complete with bombings and the kidnappings of Israeli soldiers and civilians.

According to the military, Israel’s defense establishment had been following the cell closely and acted when the Shin Bet internal security agency received intelligence that they were about to follow through with their plans.

Over 20 operatives belonging to the cell were arrested by security forces as well as five weapons. Additional cell members and their weapons are still believed to be on the loose, with Israel on their trail.

Building the infrastructure’s capabilities must have taken several months, if not more than a year. It meant funneling funds to purchase the weapons and training needed to carry out the attacks.

The funds could have come from the group in Gaza or from Turkey where the group’s number two, Saleh Arouri, calls home.

Arouri the deputy head of Hamas, and one of the founders of its military wing, al-Qassam Brigades, is responsible for several bloody terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers, including the 2014 kidnapping and murder of three Israeli teenagers in the West Bank that triggered Operation Protective Edge.

It would not be surprising if Arouri was also behind the cell that was targeted by Israel yesterday.

And it is not hard to imagine that had the cell been successful in carrying out their plans, that Israel could have found itself in another deadly conflict with the terror group, both in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Since Operation Guardian of the Walls and the cancellation of the Palestinian Authority elections, Hamas and Fatah have been fighting for dominance. And ,with armed struggle gaining support following the May conflict, militants are feeling more confident to engage Israeli forces.
Hamas has a strong presence in many villages and cities in the West Bank, and a recent study published by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research found that 45% of Palestinians believe Hamas should lead and represent them, while only 19% said Palestinian President’s Mahmoud Abbas’ secular Fatah should represent them.

The poll found that 78% of Palestinians want Abbas to resign.

The Hamas cell that was targeted likely also wanted to increase the pressure on Abbas and the ongoing and important security coordination between Israeli security forces and Palestinian Authority security forces (PASF).

Though the PASF have been trained and armed by the United States and other international forces, they have struggled to crack down on Hamas’ activities, due in part to their fear of engaging with Hamas operatives. And due to that fear, the large Hamas cell was able to coalesce right under their noses.

The fact that one of the Palestinians killed during the raids was a member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) shows that the two terror groups cooperate not only in the firing of rockets from the Strip but also in terms of deadly attacks emanating from the West Bank.

The group also showed the Palestinian street that less than six months after Operation Guardian of the Walls, they are ready and willing to drag the IDF into another deadly conflict, both in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Hamas has made it clear that even as they negotiate with Israel to rebuild the destroyed coastal enclave, they have not abandoned the armed struggle against its citizens.

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Biden delays deporting Lebanese citizens from US over Hezbollah-Israel conflict

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Biden delays deporting Lebanese citizens from US over Hezbollah-Israel conflict



The United States is deferring the removal of certain Lebanese citizens from the country, President Joe Biden said on Friday, citing humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon amid tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

The deferred designation, which lasts 18 months, allows Lebanese citizens to remain in the country with the right to work, according to a memorandum Biden sent to the Department of Homeland Security.

“Humanitarian conditions in southern Lebanon have significantly deteriorated due to tensions between Hezbollah and Israel,” Biden said in the memo.

“While I remain focused on de-escalating the situation and improving humanitarian conditions, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Lebanese nationals who are present in the United States.”

Increased attacks since Oct.7

Israel and Hezbollah have been trading fire since Hezbollah announced a “support front” with Palestinians shortly after its ally Hamas attacked southern Israeli border communities on Oct. 7, triggering Israel’s military assault in Gaza.

Firefighters work to extinguish wildfires following a missile attack from Lebanon which fell on the Israeli-Syrian border, Valley of Tears, Golan Heights, on July 20, 2024. (credit: MICHAL GILADI/FLASH90)

The fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 100 civilians and more than 300 Hezbollah fighters, according to a Reuters tally, and led to levels of destruction in Lebanese border towns and villages not seen since the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war.

On the Israeli side, 10 Israeli civilians, a foreign agricultural worker and 20 Israeli soldiers have been killed. Tens of thousands have been evacuated from both sides of the border.

Hezbollah is an Iran-backed terrorist group and the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon.





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Preparing for war: Haifa mayor describes city’s infrastructure changes tensions in North escalate

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Preparing for war: Haifa mayor describes city’s infrastructure changes tensions in North escalate



Haifa mayor Yona Yahav spoke this past Monday with Lior Rosenfeld on Radio North 104.5FM about the escalation of the war in the North and his entry into political office amidst the security situation.

Yahav began, “I cannot speak on behalf of the North as I don’t know exactly what’s happening there. No one updates me, as if we are not the largest and most important city in the North. Tomorrow, the Home Front Command is coming to see us for the first time, and we will see what they have to say. We are doing everything to ensure that the city itself and our residents are safe and know what to do in case, God forbid, missiles fall on us. They are more accurate than those in 2006.”

Yahav also discussed the city’s preparations for a war in the North.

“We are now changing the entire method of building public structures,” Yahav said. “We are preparing them for prolonged stays. The minimum will be four consecutive days in shelters and such buildings, which require preparation. For example, installing toilets, which we don’t have today, and we have given instructions to build them in places close to where new houses are being built. This has been fully understood, and developers have begun to understand that the talk about evacuation and reconstruction has undergone drastic changes in light of the security situation. For example, road width needs to be maintained for the sake of evacuating residents on these roads. These are things that were not considered until now and must now be taken into account.”

Yonah Yahav (credit: ASLAN ABGANA)

Yahav’s plans for the success of Haifa’s future

Yahav then discussed his appeal to the transportation minister to stop the Highway 23 Carmel Tunnels’ toll charge.

“We called on the transportation minister to stop the discrimination. Haifa and the North are always discriminated against compared to central Israel, and there’s no reason for this. There are huge tunnels dug in Jerusalem that do not cost residents any money to pass through. There’s no reason why the tunnels dug in Haifa should include a toll. I speak on behalf of Haifa residents, and we are preparing to petition if we do not receive an answer.”

Regarding his entry into his mayoral role about three months ago, Yahav said, “I found a completely ruined city. They destroyed the municipality, and it’s very difficult to move things around. I don’t understand how residents sat idly by and kept quiet. We are trying to go to government offices to fix relations, to get funds, to move projects to bring in fees – and we are doing all this in a short time.

“The ministers are acting openly and with the goodwill to help. I am now waiting for the money on the table. The casino building in Bat Galim will be a luxurious hotel on the Bat Galim seashore. This neighborhood will undergo a complete transformation and will be the most beautiful neighborhood in the country. It will also be the only neighborhood facing a recognized beach. We came to make a change, and we will succeed.”

In conclusion, he touched on the issue of wild boars: “You won’t be able to follow them because soon you won’t see them anymore.”





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‘Psychological operation’: Turkey condemns FM Katz social media post depicting toddler Erdogan

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‘Psychological operation’: Turkey condemns FM Katz social media post depicting toddler Erdogan



Turkey’s Foreign Affairs Ministry released a statement on Sunday condemning a social media post made by Foreign Minister Israel Katz, in which Katz presented Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan as a toddler on the lap of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. 

Katz, in a Sunday post on X, wrote “Erdogan @RTErdogan finances and arms terrorist organizations of Hamas to carry out attacks and murder against Israelis. The General Security Service captured a squad of students from Bir Zeit who were employed by the Hamas headquarters in Turkey to carry out murder attacks in Israel, through training and weapons and tens of thousands of dollars provided to them.

“Erdogan turned Turkey into a state that supports terrorism and subjects Turkey to the Iranian axis of evil in the name of extreme ideology and blatant anti-Semitism.”

Katz’s comments were made in reference to a recently thwarted terror attack planned by the student Hamas cell in Bir Zeit University, north of Ramallah. The attempted attack, the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) said, was directed by Hamas’s base in Turkey. 

TURKEY’S PRESIDENT Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, in Istanbul, earlier this month. Reports in the media suggested that this meeting was the result of a breakdown in relations between Hamas and Qatar. (credit: Turkish Presidential Press Office/Reuters)

Turkey condemns the social media post

The Turkish ministry responded “The Israeli Foreign Minister is trying to hide Israel’s crimes against the Palestinians behind a series of lies, slander and disrespect.

“Israel’s dirty propaganda targeting Türkiye and President Erdoğan, and psychological operation attempts will not bear fruit.

“The members of the Netanyahu Government, who have killed nearly forty thousand Palestinians in Gaza and are now trying to start a regional war in order to stay in power, will be tried in international courts and held accountable for their crimes.

“Türkiye will continue to speak the truth and defend the right of the Palestinian people to live in justice and peace.”

The ministry cited data provided by the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. 

Additionally, Turkey has repeatedly asserted that it does not categorize Hamas as a terrorist organization – despite its western allies acknowledging it as such and its proven attacks on Israeli civilians. 





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