Iran has no Intention of sign an agreement

 Sunday 23.30

Explosions rocked Beirut’s Dahiyah district on Sunday afternoon as Israel struck Hezbollah targets in the Lebanese capital, marking the clearest implementation yet of Jerusalem’s newly announced policy of responding to attacks from Lebanon with strikes in Beirut.

The operation followed several days of Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks on Israel, including repeated aerial infiltrations that triggered sirens across Israel's northern communities and sent residents to shelters.

According to an Israeli reports, Israel provided advance notice to the United States through military channels before carrying out the strike.

In a joint statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said the attack was carried out in direct response to Hezbollah fire toward Israeli territory.

“Under the direction of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, the IDF has struck Hezbollah terror targets in Beirut’s Dahiyah district in response to Hezbollah fire toward Israeli territory,” the statement said. “Israel will not tolerate attacks on its territory.”

The strike came after a weekend of repeated Hezbollah attacks. On Sunday, multiple drones infiltrated Israeli airspace from Lebanon, triggering alerts across northern Israel. The IDF later confirmed that several aerial targets crossed into Israeli territory and fell near the border. No injuries were reported.

The incidents followed rocket fire toward Metula and additional drone launches, adding to what Israeli officials describe as a growing pattern of Hezbollah ceasefire violations.

Shortly after the attack, the IDF announced that it had conducted a precise strike on a Hezbollah command center in Beirut.

It is quite clear that Hezbollah's attacks on Israel were approved by Iran, this in order to give Iran an excuse to not sign any agreement with Trump. They can now firmly place the blame on Israel

The Arab Oct. 7: Iran’s attacks collapse coexistence

 This moment came when Iranian regime missiles and drones targeted the UAE, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. 

The pragmatic and rational approach adopted by several Arab states failed to moderate the erratic behavior of the ideological regime ruling Iran. Arab nations pursued coexistence through trade, financial engagement, and, in Qatar’s case, political alignment with Islamist movements. The outcome proved catastrophic.

Despite extensive trade and financial ties with Tehran, the UAE was targeted more than Israel itself. Qatar, meanwhile, reportedly lost nearly 17% of its liquid gas capacity, amounting to an estimated annual revenue loss of $20 billion.

Why?

Because the regime in Tehran resents the Arab world’s vision of development, stability, and prosperity, a model increasingly admired by ordinary Iranians.

As long as this regime remains in power, sustainable regional development will remain impossible, as any progress can be quickly reduced to ashes.

It is a well-established economic truth that capital is timid, fleeing at the first sign of instability. International investors and global markets understand the risks of coexistence with an unpredictable ideological regime that prioritizes revolution and terror over peace and prosperity.

Just as Israel could not live peacefully alongside Hamas and Hezbollah, Arab states will struggle to achieve lasting stability while the ideological center of regional militancy remains in Tehran.

Any support for “peace” with this regime is ultimately little more than a temporary plaster over a deep and widening wound.

The long-term peace and prosperity of the Arab countries neighboring Iran are inseparable from the interests of both the Iranian people and Israelis: The end of the regime in Tehran and of the ideology that has destabilized the region for decades.

The writer is an Iranian journalist and former editor-in-chief of ManotoTV.

Qatar Buys Influence Through USA Education

 Is it any wonder that anti Semitism is on the rise in the USA, when vast amounts of Qatari money are pumped into the education system almost without control. These details taken from the Foundation of the Defense of Democracies recent report.

It should be remembered that Qatar is the main sponsor of the Muslim Brotherhood

HIGHER EDUCATION. The U.S. Department of Education launched a foreign funding dashboard in January 2026 showing that Qatar has pumped $8.8 billion into the U.S. higher education system since 2001. That sum positions Qatar as the largest foreign funder of U.S. higher education, surpassing China by approximately $2 billion.

Section 117 of The Higher Education Act requires schools to disclose gifts and contracts from foreign sources that exceed $250,000. The schools that receive the most funding from Qatar are those with satellite campuses in Doha: Cornell University, Carnegie Mellon University, Texas A&M University, Georgetown University, Northwestern University, and Virginia Commonwealth University. Texas A&M announced in 2024 that it will close its Doha campus by 2028. In March, the House Education and Workforce Committee released a report explaining that “financial incentives are a motivating factor” for universities to maintain their campuses in Qatar, and that the incentives often benefit their home campuses. Northwestern, for example, “annually transfers part of its management fee” from Qatar to its communication and journalism schools in Evanston, Illinois. Northwestern and Georgetown are also “contractually required to abide by the ‘applicable laws and regulations of the State of Qatar,’” which has allowed schools to “perpetuate antisemitism without apparent consequence” and left them “struggling to uphold free speech principles.”

The funds disclosed to the Department of Education are only part of the story. Researchers at universities across the country receive funds from Qatari sources that they are not required to disclose. Qatar has funded projects at Northwestern University, Rutgers University, Stanford University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Washington to the tune of more than $6 million. This is not an exhaustive account of Qatari-funded research projects.

K-12 SCHOOLS. There is no equivalent reporting requirement for K-12 schools. Public records from a range of school districts in major cities across the country document over $8 million in support from Qatar Foundation International (QFI) since 2010. QFI is the American arm of the Qatar Foundation, which is run by the Qatari royal family. QFI primarily funds teacher trainings, Arabic language and culture programs, and student trips to Doha.

The $8 million figure here is likely an undercount because it reflects spending only in selected districts. Moreover, The Wall Street Journal reported that QFI gave $30.6 million to dozens of schools between 2009 and 2017.

YOUTH PROGRAMS. In addition to direct funding for schools, Qatar has disbursed grants to a range of youth programs, including Boys & Girls Clubs; Learning Undefeated, which brings STEM education to underserved communities; and Break the Barriers, which provides extracurricular programming for students of all ages and abilities.

The report by FDD provides a good first glimpse at Qatari dollars in America. It is certainly not the final word on the problem. But it should prompt a serious discussion. From there, one can only hope that a more serious national dialogue, followed by legislation or other government measures, can begin to tackle the problem.

 

The Giving Tree

 (Cross posted from Grandma's Army )

There's a well-known children's book by Shel Silverstein about a boy and a tree. The boy keeps taking from the tree. The tree keeps giving. The boy never says "thank you" the tree never says "no". Until the stump of the tree is all that's left.

This is similar to the story of Israel and the "Palestinians": Israel is the tree. The "Palestinians" are the "boy". Ungrateful, entitled, and permanently dissatisfied. In addition, the "boy" is invariably hostile.

Baum/Boim (tree in Yiddish), is a common Jewish surname: applebaum (apple tree), birnbaum (pear tree), kirschbaum (cherry tree), nussbaum (nut tree), feigelbaum (fig tree), mandelbaum (almond tree).

Here are a just a few examples of THE GIVING BAUM:

Rescue from neglect and poverty:

From 1948 until 1967, the "West Bank" of the Jordan river was controlled by Jordan. Jordan treated it as far less important than the "East Bank". King Abdullah revoked citizenship from many of the residents who, overnight, became stateless. They couldn't visit or buy land in Jordan. The area remained neglected and underdeveloped.

In 1967, Israel was attacked by Jordan from this territory and won a war of self-defense. It took control of this region. This is what followed: Israel connected the local population to water and electricity; life expectancy rose by decades; medical services became accessible; infrastructure was built; modern agricultural was introduced; Arab men were given employment in agriculture and building; a modern economy was formed.

But the "boy" responded in only one way: RESISTANCE!

Even after a terrorist committed a horrifying attack, was arrested, and sent to prison - Israel treated him in a highly unusual way: Comfortable living quarters; education and hopefully, rehabilitation.  And the "boy"?

He waits for a hostage exchange, gets released and returns to terror.

Peace offers:

Israel has agreed to several major peace offers, from the Peel Commission in 1937, to the Abraham Accords in 2020. Always making concessions that could have ended the conflict and brought prosperity to the region.

The "boy refused every single one of them.

Life saving:

Most people are unaware of the fact that Yahyr Sinwar, the instigator of the horrendous events of October 7th, was treated for brain cancer in an Israeli prison. Israel saved his life. Israeli hospitals treated family members of Hamas and Palestinian Authority leaders, as well as thousands of "Palestinian children from Gaza and the "West Bank." And the "boy"? He recovers and returns to terrorism.

Humanitarian Aid:

Israel sent tons of food into Gaza. Another highly unusual practice of feeding the civilian population of one's enemy, many of whom supported terrorism. Hamas prevented their own citizens from accessing the aid - selling it at inflated prices to their fellow Gazans. The money was used to pay fighters and to recruit new ones. And the "boy"?

He convinced the world that the bad tree was starving them.

The question is: Why is Israel the eternal giver? And why are the "Palestinians" the eternal takers?

It has nothing to do with the so-called Nakba of 1948. It has nothing to do with the so-called "Palestinians". This dynamic existed long before the Arab "Palestinians" ever existed. It is time for the tree to learn what the book doesn't teach. That endless giving without boundaries is not morality. It is self-destruction.

What Happens When Jihadists Smell Weakness

 by Khaled Abu Toameh

Full article at https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22582/jihadists-smell-weakness

§  The message emerging from Hamas -- and Iran -- is unambiguous: Hamas and Iran believe they are winning.

§  Iran has been dictating to Washington when and with whom it will negotiate. Washington apparently never insisted upon face-to-face negotiations with Iran. Why not? By discontinuing talks with the US, Iran also succeeded in maneuvering the Trump Administration into two huge victories for the current regime. First, as the Wall Street Journal pointed out in "Iran Gets Trump to Rescue Hezbollah," US President Donald J. Trump demanded that Israel stop defending itself against attacks from another proxy of Iran: Hezbollah in Lebanon. Second, Iran -- as a result of a much-publicized shouting match between Trump and Netanyahu – masterfully created "daylight" between its two main adversaries: Israel and the United States.

§  These are not the words of a defeated terror organization. These are the words of a group that believes time is on its side.

§  Abu Obeida's remarks are particularly alarming because they come after nearly three years of war, the elimination of many top Hamas leaders, and countless declarations by international mediators that Hamas would eventually be removed from power.

§  Instead, Hamas is still standing. Hamas, like Iran, appears increasingly confident.

§  The "Board of Peace" was supposedly created to bring stability to the Gaza Strip, end Hamas rule, and establish a new political reality after the war.

§  The truth is that the "Board of Peace" has failed in its central mission.

§  Recent reports that the Trump Administration pressured Israel to cancel a planned strike against Hezbollah targets in Beirut's Dahiya district sent a troubling message throughout the region.

§  For Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah, any indication of friction between the US and Israel is good news. Terrorists thrive on the perception that their adversaries are divided.

§  Across the Middle East, terrorist organizations constantly search for signs of weakness among their enemies. Jihadists interpret "restraint" quite differently from the way Western policymakers do. What many Western leaders describe as diplomacy, patience, or de-escalation is frequently seen by Islamists as surrender, fear or exhaustion.

§  Weakness, hesitation, and public divisions send exactly the wrong message to Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran. Every appearance of indecision only encourages further aggression and convinces terrorist leaders that persistence will eventually bring victory.

§  The latest Iranian and Hamas statements are not merely propaganda. They are a warning. The question is whether decision-makers in Washington are listening.

New Book "David and Goliath"

In the Middle East, Arabs talk openly about Israel as Europe shuns it

 For full article see https://www.ynetnews.com/opinions-analysis/article/bk2jdi4zzg

Opinion: In Europe, mentioning October 7 can bring accusations of genocide complicity, but across the Middle East people scarred by Assad, Hezbollah and Iran speak about Israel openly, sometimes with envy, as a country that rose from ruin and is here to stay

Francesca Borri|12.08.25 

t“In 1948, my uncles stayed in Haifa, and today my cousins are doctors and engineers,” a Palestinian I met in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus told me, during a story I prepared for a mainstream Israeli newspaper.

“In the end, those who found themselves in Israel succeeded more than those who found themselves among the Arabs.” Yarmouk was once the capital of the Palestinian diaspora. It no longer exists. Assad bombed everything.

The Middle East is confusing right now. In Jenin, an activist who used to travel to Ramallah to buy wine to drink in secret with friends told me, “Everything here is stuck in place, culturally and socially. If it weren’t for the occupation, we would all want to live in Tel Aviv.” In Baghdad, a musician said, “After the Holocaust, the Jews started again from zero. Look at Israel now. For a moment, don’t look at the occupation. Look at the economy, the technology. Here, by contrast, there is only what was built hundreds of years ago. There is only what we inherited. We only destroyed.”

In Beirut, the barista at my favorite cafe is an admirer of Netanyahu. “I don’t relate to the occupation. Netanyahu is a decision maker. He has a strategy I don’t agree with, but he goes straight ahead. And here? Here there isn’t even a government. Here we don’t even know who decides.”

In Europe, if you so much as mention the October 7 massacre, they accuse you of complicity in genocide. In bookstores, you can find everything; everyone has written a book about Gaza, but you can’t find Eli Sharabi’s book “Kidnapped.” You try to understand Israel, and they tell you there’s nothing to understand, that everyone is a murderer. In the Middle East, it is the opposite. People speak openly about Israel, a country like any other country, one that exists and will continue to exist, that will face criticism but will not be erased.

Maybe that is not so strange. On October 7, no one answered Hamas’ call. No one joined the war, not even Hezbollah, not even Iran. For all Arabs, what was clear to Syrians long ago was suddenly clear again: they are pawns. For Assad, for the Gadhafis, for the Saddams, opposition to Israel was mostly rhetorical, an excuse to impose permanent emergency rule, justify general collapse and cling to power.

Now there is a new Middle East. You can choose to fear it and bomb it, or be brave and talk to it. Assad left Syrians in absolute poverty. But one day we hope to walk in Damascus the way we walk in Paris, London or Venice, and we will find the antiques shop beside the Umayyad Mosque, where all of Syria is still whole. It is packed with carpets, textiles, ceramics and silver. The owner knows the history of every object and every corner of Damascus. Listening to him over a cup of tea is like stepping into “One Thousand and One Nights.” His name is Salim Hamdani. He is Jewish.

The Gaza Roadmap: A Diplomatic Fantasy That Keeps Hamas in Power

 Full report at https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22543/gaza-roadmap-diplomatic-fantasy 

by Khaled Abu Toameh  •  May 26, 2026 

• Hamas remains armed, organized, and committed to its declared goal of destroying Israel through jihad (holy war). Yet instead of confronting this reality, international diplomats continue to indulge in dangerous fantasies about negotiating Hamas out of existence.
• [Nickolay] Mladenov [former United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process] added that the biggest obstacle to full implementation of the ceasefire remains "Hamas's refusal to accept a verified decommissioning, relinquishing coercive control, and permit a genuine civilian transition in Gaza."
• That Mladenov is appealing to the UN Security Council to pressure Hamas reveals the core flaw of the entire approach: the "Board of Peace" and its international sponsors continue to view Hamas as a rational political actor rather than what it actually is: a jihadist terror group.
• Mladenov's roadmap repeatedly speaks about "reciprocity," "verification," "implementation mechanisms," and "phased decommissioning."
• Hamas's charter states that "Israel will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it," and mandates jihad as a religious and individual duty for all Muslims to "liberate Palestine."
• Hamas [in the "roadmap"] is even being allowed to remain armed and influential during the early stages of the transition process....
• This is unacceptable and contradicts the very spirit of the UN Security Council Resolution 2803, on which the roadmap claims to be based. The resolution authorizes a temporary International Stabilization Force and requires the complete demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, including the full disarmament of Hamas and the destruction of all its military infrastructure.
• The message being sent to Hamas is unambiguous: continue holding your weapons, continue ruling the Gaza Strip through intimidation and terror, and the international community will keep negotiating with you.
• The latest roadmap explicitly states that the proposal "does not call for immediate surrender or unilateral disarmament." Instead, it outlines a "phased, Palestinian-led internationally verified process."
• Hamas... has already made clear that it rejects the proposal altogether.
• Hamas is again telling the world openly that it has no intention of disarming. It wants to remain in power so it can continue pursuing, with the help of the Iranian regime, its jihad against Israel.
• While diplomats hold meetings in Cairo, New York, Doha, and Ankara, Hamas uses time to entrench itself, rearm, regroup, recruit, and tighten its control over the Gaza Strip's population.
• Despite recognizing this reality, the proposed solution is still more diplomacy, more negotiations, and more phased implementation mechanisms.
• The new roadmap offers no serious answers because it is based on the false premise that Hamas will agree to disarm and give up power through negotiations and diplomacy.
• The hard truth is that Hamas will not voluntarily disarm. It will not transform itself into a peaceful political movement. It will not abandon its jihadist ideology because of UN resolutions or international conferences.
• When the Mladenov roadmap inevitably collapses under Hamas's rejectionism, the world may finally be forced to admit what should have been obvious long ago: Negotiations do not defeat Islamist terrorist groups. As with Afghanistan and Iran, deciding not to defeat them only re-empowers them.

Israel unmasks IRGC Unit 4000 global terror network

 Full article at https://tinyurl.com/yhtzmurv

Joint intelligence operation reveals IRGC network. The Mossad, IDF, and Shin Bet jointly announced the exposure of IRGC’s Unit 4000, which they say was tasked with assassinating senior Israeli officials and striking strategic infrastructure worldwide. The revelation followed months of intelligence work and arrests in Azerbaijan, where operatives allegedly acted under direct Iranian orders. The network’s discovery is linked to the broader US-Israeli campaign against Iran launched on February 28. 

Foiled plots in Azerbaijan highlight strategic stakes Azerbaijan’s state security service reported thwarting attacks on the Israeli embassy in Baku, a synagogue, Jewish community leaders, and the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, which supplies a third of Israel’s oil imports. Arrested cell members were reportedly in possession of explosive drones and fragmentation charges, and had conducted surveillance of targets.

Key IRGC operatives killed in Operation Roaring Lion

Rahman Moqadam, head of Unit 4000, and his superior Majid Khademi were among several senior IRGC figures killed in Israeli strikes. Moqadam allegedly oversaw recruitment, training, and intelligence gathering on Israeli, Western, and maritime targets.

Potential long-term geopolitical consequences

The dismantling of Unit 4000 could temporarily weaken Iran’s overseas strike capabilities, but may also escalate covert hostilities between Tehran and its adversaries. One scenario sees strengthened regional security cooperation, especially between Israel, Azerbaijan, and Turkey, to protect shared infrastructure.

Jewish Pride

Cross posted from Gloria Ariels blog "Grandma's Army https://agariel33.blogspot.com/2026/05/jewish-pride.html

The late Prime Minister Menachem Begin famously said: "I am not a Jew with trembling knees. I am a proud Jew with 3,700 years of civilized history. Nobody came to our aid when we were dying in the gas chambers and ovens. Nobody came to our aid when we were striving to create our country. We paid for it. We fought for it. We will stand by our principles. We will defend them. And, when necessary, we will die for them again, with or without your aid".

For decades, we have confronted the scourge of Islamic fundamentalism. We have outlived expulsions, progroms, massacres, and even the Holocaust. Our history may be tragic, but we have reason to be optimistic. We are living in times in which we need to be reminded of how much strength the Jewish people have: Our survival as a people, the gathering in of exiles and the rebuilding of a Jewish state.  

To quote Mark Twain: "Properly, the Jew ought hardly to be heard of, but he is heard of, has always been heard of.  He is as prominent on the planet as any other people, and his importance is extravagantly out of proportion to the smallness of his bulk. His contributions to the world’s list of great names in literature, science, art, music, finance, medicine and abstruse learning are also very out of proportion to the weakness of his numbers.  He has made a marvelous fight in this world in all ages; and has done it with his hands tied behind him."

There is no moral ground in calling for the annihilation of a nation. Israel must respond, not just with military strength but with narrative strength. The story of Israel is powerful – one of trauma, triumph, rebirth, and hope. The world needs to hear it from Israelis themselves, not distorted through foreign correspondents or activist NGOs with political agendas. Rather than disproving accusations point by point, Israel must face anti-Israel propaganda by telling the truth about Israel as it is – flawed, complex, democratic, diverse, authentic, and deeply human.

Israel must stop letting its enemies define the terms of the debate. Occupation"? It is the same land offered to the "Palestinians" in countless peace deals, all of which  they rejected – not because of borders – but because of Israel's existence. "Genocide"? The IDF is the only army in history which warns civilians before striking terror targets embedded in homes, hospitals, etc. "Colonization"? There has never been a Palestinian state to colonize. Jews are not foreigners in Jerusalem, Hebron, or Tiberias. They are natives returning home. Israel's greatest revenge against its enemies is to keep flourishing.

From October 7th, Israel stands as an example of how a nation confronts a real existential threat, demonstrates immense inner strength, and succeeds in repelling the danger that threatens its existence. We are proud to belong to a nation whose people are ready to fight, to sacrifice their sons and daughters, to stand firm in the longest war in Israel's history. Israel cannot expend its energy on appeasement and begging the world to understand. It must stop apologizing for its existence.

Israel doesn't have to be liked, or even to care. The Jewish people, whether in the Diaspora or in Israel must not be silenced by their opponents.  Zionism was founded by the new and courageous Jew. The Jews of today cannot betray that courage. They must walk with heads held high, strong, and proud.

The Jewish people have outlasted every enemy, defied every expectation, and proved over and over again that hatred is not stronger than history.  Israel does not need to win hearts to be victorious. It only needs to stand tall, clear and unafraid.

CNN again assist the Palestinian Narrative

 CNN's global headlines are carefully staged to shape

perception and what really happened behind the scenes

in the southern Hebron Hills. This video arms you

with a critical skill: how to question what you see and

to dig for truth beneath the surface. If you want to understand

how media narratives are built, and how to spot the cracks,

this is a video you must watch.

A Message NOT to be Ignored

 

The Cyber Mirage: How Israel Successfully Deflected Iran’s Massive Wave of Digital Strikes

Eliana Fleming APR 20, 2026

A recent study published by the firm ClearSky has revealed that the Iranian regime’s cyber capabilities have suffered a major strategic defeat. Despite a significant 15 fold increase in activity from groups such as Handala, the research concludes that the vast majority of these operations resulted in nothing more than reused propaganda. While the regime and its proxy groups have flooded the internet with grand declarations about the collapse of Israeli critical infrastructure, the actual impact on the ground has been negligible.

The investigation indicates that the Iranian cyber strategy has prioritized psychological war over tangible technical results. By claiming responsibility for events that never occurred or inflating minor technical glitches into strategic breakthroughs. Many of the purported data breaches, which Handala touted as massive thefts of sensitive information, were exposed as recycled data from years past or entirely fabricated claims. This approach has allowed the regime to maintain a facade of operational potency while lacking the actual capacity to disable the Israeli economy or degrade civilian life.

Tehran has increasingly utilized its cyber arm as a supplementary tool to generate a digital image of victory whenever the war results in military losses. However, the study identifies three critical factors behind this ongoing failure: the robust defensive posture of Israel’s security establishment, the lack of genuine technological innovation among Iranian hackers, and the persistence of outdated attack methods. Despite having ample time to modernize, Iranian operators continue to rely on basic techniques such as phishing and the utilization of known vulnerabilities.

The Israeli defensive teams and large scale organizations have successfully blocked thousands of daily penetration attempts, proving that the regime’s digital bark remains far worse than its bite.

Israel Turns 78 With 10.244 Mill. People and a Happiness Ranking Embarrassing Most of Europe

 By Shmuli Volkin, Jewish Breaking News

On the eve of its 78th Independence Day, Israel is not just surviving, it’s surging. The Central Bureau of Statistics put the country’s population at 10.244 million, up roughly 146,000 people, or 1.4 percent, over the past year.

Born out of war, tested by war, and still absorbing the shock of October 7 and the campaigns that followed, the Jewish state enters Yom Ha’atzmaut more populous, more prosperous and, by its own citizens’ accounting, happier than most of the Western world.

The demographic snapshot tells a story no adversary wants to hear. Jews and those classified as “others” make up 7.79 million residents, about 76 percent of the population. Arab citizens number 2.157 million, and roughly 296,000 are foreign nationals.

Some 177,000 babies were born in the past year, a figure that dwarfs the birth rates of virtually every comparable developed economy, alongside around 21,000 new olim and 48,000 deaths.

Four in five citizens are Israeli-born sabras. More than a quarter of the country is 14 or younger; only 13 percent are over 65. In an aging West, Israel is conspicuously young.

Today close to 45 percent of the world’s Jews live inside its borders, a reversal of nearly two millennia of exile that no planner in Ben-Gurion’s era would have dared predict.

Life expectancy has climbed by nearly two decades since independence, now sitting at 81.1 years for men and 85.5 for women. Average wages have jumped from roughly 2,300 shekels a month in the 1990s to just under 14,000 today. Car ownership, that crude but telling marker of middle-class arrival, has climbed from 3 percent of households in 1959 to about 72 percent now.

Despite the hostage crisis, the rocket fire, the war with Iran, and the drumbeat of international hostility, Israelis overwhelmingly say they’re doing fine. Ninety-one percent report being satisfied or very satisfied with their lives. The United Nations’ World Happiness Report ranks Israel eighth for 2026, well above the USA at 23 and the UK at 29

Selective Outrage: When Hezbollah Attacks

 by Majid Rafizadeh  •  April 18, 2026

For full article go to https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22447/selective-outrage-hezbollah

• The latest escalation in hostilities did not begin with Israel. It began with Hezbollah.
• Israel found itself faced with ongoing rocket fire from Lebanon and the presence of a heavily armed group on its border – in contravention of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which had unanimously required of Lebanon: "three principles -- no foreign forces, no weapons for nongovernmental militias, and no independent authority separate from the central government -- as vital to a lasting Lebanese peace."
• Hezbollah's operational tactics, like those of Hamas and other terrorist groups, is to embed its military infrastructure within civilian areas — hiding weapons, command centers and operational assets in densely populated neighborhoods.... With Hezbollah's military targets located in homes, hospitals and schools within civilian population centers, any efforts to neutralize them carry the tragic possibility of unavoidably harming civilians. It is a strategy deliberately designed to constrain Israel's responses and generate international backlash against it.
• Responsibility for these war crimes lies squarely with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, which deliberately orchestrated them. Any resulting casualties cannot be judged outside this context.
• In 2024, Hezbollah violated its ceasefire with Israel and also attacked in 2025 at Iran's behest. Israel's response comports with what any sovereign state would do when confronted with attacks on its territory and civilian population.
• If there is to be any meaningful discussion about stability in the Middle East, it needs to begin with an honest acknowledgment of these realities. Otherwise, international reactions will continue to mischaracterize the problem by criticizing responses while overlooking their causes -- and contributing to the conflict rather than to its resolution.

 

US allies nominate Iran for UN human rights committee despite mass executions

 With thanks to Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Iran is set to take its place as a member of a 54-nation committee to safeguard human rights, despite the Islamic Republic’s mass execution of protesters.

Iran will join the UN’s Committee for Programme and Coordination after being selected by the body’s Economic and Social Council, which comprises 54 nations.

Many countries, including the UK, Australia, France and Canada, nominated Iran to join the committee. The only country to vote against the nomination was the US.

The committee’s upcoming agenda includes issues such as terrorism, women’s rights and gender equality, and disarmament.

Iran’s selection comes as its authorities continue a wide-ranging crackdown on dissent.

On January 8 and 9, security forces opened fire on nationwide demonstrations, killing tens of thousands of protesters. Estimates place the death toll between about 12,000 and more than 30,000 people over those two days.

The government has continued its campaign in the months since, carrying out arrests and executions and enforcing restrictions on women’s rights. Authorities have maintained policies that limit basic freedoms and suppress opposition activity.

Tehran has also been cited for its role in funding major terror organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah, even as it prepares to participate in discussions that include counterterrorism.

The Economic and Social Council’s decision places Iran on a committee tasked with coordinating UN programs, including those tied to human rights-related issues.

The UN’s Committee for Programme and Coordination is a subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council that reviews and coordinates the United Nations’ work programs.

It is becoming politically incorrect to defend oneself

 A growing number of leading progressives in the American political spectrum have come out against continued American funding for the system, some saying it has “emboldened Israel" to attack other countries.

For years, support for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system was immune to politics.

Republicans backed it. Democrats backed it. Funding passed because it was obvious. Intercepting rockets aimed at civilians is not a complicated moral equation.

That clarity is now fading.

As recently as September, a bill to approve supplemental funding for Iron Dome passed the House with only 9 dissenting votes.

However, today, a growing number of leading progressives have come out against continued American funding for the system.

J Street president Jeremy Ben-Ami, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), Ro Khanna, and Jewish Democratic congressional challenger Brad Lander all now oppose future budget earmarks for Israeli defense systems.

The bottom line is that it is becoming politically incorrect to win a war and human rights are being turned on its head.

Why ‘US Aid to Israel’ is a Myth

 Full article at https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-891150

The full strategic consequences of the conflict with Iran remain to be seen. What has already emerged, however, is a clearer picture of the US-Israel alliance: not a one-sided act of American benevolence or an emergency rescue mission, but a deepening strategic partnership shaped by shared interests, joint capabilities, and mutual benefit. That is exactly why the habitual phrase “aid to Israel” is so misleading.te

Israel is America’s cost-effective strategic ally

One conclusion was unmistakable: calling the US-Israel security framework “aid” is inaccurate, and it hands skeptics an easy talking point, as though this relationship cannot be equated with America First. 

In reality, the arrangement functions as a strategic exchange that advances American interests, strengthens American industry, and reduces the need for costlier US R&D and military exposure.

Every few months, Washington relitigates “US aid to Israel,” as though it were a discretionary act of charity, a foreign transfer sustained primarily by sentiment. That framing is politically unhelpful and descriptively wrong. The word “aid” implies a one-way relationship, dependency, and benevolence unconnected to the donor’s concrete interests. It invites the predictable question: Why are we paying for someone else’s security when Americans have needs at home? It is the wrong framework for a security architecture designed to protect American interests, strengthen American production, and reduce the likelihood of direct American military exposure.

If the United States wants a clearer debate, it should change the terminology. Call it what it functionally is: a US-Israel security exchange, a strategic defense partnership, or an allied capability investment. The label matters because the arrangement itself is not structured as a cash gift, and the returns are not abstract.

Begin with the legal and financial structure. The 2016 memorandum of understanding established a 10-year framework totaling $38 billion, comprising $3.3b. annually in Foreign Military financing and $500 million annually for missile defense cooperation. 

This is a financing mechanism tied to procurement of US services, and production connected to American defense systems and American firms, it is NOT general budget support. A significant portion of what is commonly called “aid” functions as sustained demand for US manufacturing and supply chains, supporting the American defense industrial base.

That is the industrial dimension. There is also the strategic dimension, which is more consequential. In a region that repeatedly generates global shocks, the United States has two basic options: deploy major US assets forward, or rely on capable allies who carry the operational burden locally while remaining interoperable with US systems. The first option is slow to surge, expensive to sustain, and puts Americans in harm’s way.

Effectively, Israel’s continuous present, fully engaged allied force in the region substitutes for that kind of US forward deployment. A “USS Israel” American aircraft carrier, so to speak. And unlike an actual carrier strike group, whose annual operating costs run into the billions of dollars, Israel delivers that strategic presence at a fraction of the cost while placing no American sailors or pilots in the line of fire.

This is a strategic, practical, cost-saving measure that is anything but charity, which is wholly not captured by the term “aid.” It obscures reciprocity and, in doing so, undermines the durability of public support. Labels become shorthand, shorthand becomes perception, and perception becomes policy. When the label is wrong, the coalition built on it becomes fragile.

All of this was true even before the war with Iran. But the recent US-Israel coordination in confronting Iran has made the point even harder to ignore. When set against the cold shoulder and strategic impotence shown by older allies, whose defense Washington underwrites at far greater cost each year within the NATO framework, the value proposition of the US-Israel partnership comes into even sharper focus. 

Far from being a burden on America, Israel is one of the most cost-effective strategic investments the United States makes anywhere in the world.

Ben Gurion Airport under fire: ‘No airport has operated like this under war conditions’

 Full article at https://www.ynetnews.com/travel/article/bydhuviqzg#autoplay

On Saturday morning, February 28, Operation Roaring Lion began, and Israel’s skies shut down once again, as they had during the earlier Operation Rising Lion. With the outbreak of that war, about 80 aircraft parked at Ben Gurion Airport had to be evacuated immediately.

This time, however, lessons from the previous round meant contingency plans were already in place, including a structured framework to keep the airport operating under attack, subject to Home Front Command guidelines, the Civil Aviation Authority and security officials.

To see how that plan works in practice, we joined a special tour of the airport on Sunday, as it continued operating under missile fire and repeated alerts.

The tour began with a descent into a protected shelter. This was not a drill. Phones around us blared with the harsh alert tone as a real siren sounded. A glance at the Flightradar app showed an Air Haifa flight from Larnaca circling in the air, delayed before landing, a routine procedure since the start of the rescue effort.

In the operations control room overseeing the “Open Skies” mission, another situation assessment was underway despite ongoing missile launches, with all relevant agencies present. Listening to the briefings, we learned that a missile fired from Iran toward central Israel had been successfully intercepted.

At the same time, standard protocol kicked in. Specialized runway vehicles, known as “carpets,” scanned takeoff and landing strips for debris and metal fragments from the interception. They collected the shrapnel and cleared the runways thoroughly.

Moments later, we were informed of another missile launched toward Eilat. The intensity underscored the challenge facing crews working around the clock in what may be one of the most complex operations ever managed in civil aviation. Only after the runways were fully cleared did operations resume, with landings and takeoffs restarting under strict limitations. View gallery

A passenger’s path: From Hall G to Gate C

What does flying from Ben Gurion look like in wartime? Departing passengers check in and undergo security screening in Hall G, not the usual departures hall. The reason is proximity to shelters, allowing up to 1,500 people to be evacuated quickly if needed.

After check-in and security, passengers proceed through border control and head to Concourse C, where they wait at the gate. Only one café is open, along with a small duty-free shop across from it.

On the tarmac, just one commercial concourse is active. At the time of our visit, two aircraft were preparing for departure, one from Israir already pushed back toward the runway, and another from Arkia still boarding.

Otherwise, the airport was nearly empty of commercial planes. Aircraft do not remain parked here; they land, take off and clear the area quickly. Much of the airfield is now dedicated to U.S. aerial refueling planes operating around the clock, giving the airport the feel of an American military base.

The next stop on the tour was the duty-free zone. “It’s not pleasant to see everything closed,” Kedmi said. “But Ben Gurion airport, operating under war conditions and missile fire from Iran and Hezbollah, is functioning in an unprecedented way. No airport in the world has maintained inbound and outbound flights under such intense fighting.”

"The airport is operating under a strict capacity cap of 2,300 people at any given time to ensure rapid evacuation if needed. It’s not worth risking even one passenger’s life for a flight,” Kedmi said.

At that moment another alert sounded for missiles fired toward central Israel. Staff immediately sprang into action, calmly and efficiently directing passengers in the hall toward the protected shelters.

“This is why the framework allows a maximum of 100 passengers on narrow-body aircraft and no more than two flights per hour, both departures and arrivals,” Bar-Oz explained. “What allows us to reopen the skies for such a complex operation starts with protecting human life, without taking unnecessary risks.”

"Everything is tightly scheduled. Boarding takes about 20 minutes, and each flight cycle is calculated at roughly half an hour. At peak, the airport is handling about 1,000 passengers per hour.

The tour concluded at the control tower, in the radar room beneath the glass cab above. There, Deputy Director of Operations Assi Ben-Michael gave a detailed briefing on the radar units, approach control and area control.

“Air traffic management has several moving parts, and this is one of them,” he said, without going into detail. “In practice, aircraft control is handled from here. We are fully coordinated with the Air Force under very strict procedures. The complexity is high, because alongside passenger and cargo flights, a fleet of U.S. refueling aircraft is also operating, and the goal is to keep planes on the ground for as little time as possible.”

He noted that managing air traffic during wartime is fundamentally different. "In normal times, efficiency comes right after safety. Now, after safety the priority is operational coordination, especially those of the Air Force, so we can operate without interfering with them. It’s a major challenge, particularly since we sometimes have to move into protected shelters, while continuing to manage traffic and communicate with aircraft."

"The most challenging moments come when many aircraft are in the air and on the ground simultaneously, especially with heavy activity from U.S. refueling planes. During an alert, we still have to manage the airspace, and it can reach very intense peaks. We maintain continuous communication with aircraft, factoring in each plane’s fuel levels while keeping safety above all else.

To enable the effort, the head of the Home Front Command approved an exception to standard protection policies at Terminal 3, allowing up to 2,300 people to be present at the same time, including about 800 airport staff.