Israel News Today

A British pro-Palestinian journalist accosted the IDF Operations Chief, Major General Oded Basiuk, who arrived in London to discuss cease-fire; Meanwhile,  anti-Israel Hind Rajab Foundation files another complaint in Central Europe against IDF reservist who served in Gaza from ynet - News https://ift.tt/FlEAQCw

Hebrew could be heard at several watch events and on the streets of Washington, DC; 'We need someone in power who can speak the language that terrorists understand' from ynet - News https://ift.tt/F0NHnq6

Steve Witkoff says all countries in the region could get 'on board' to normalize ties with Israel; IDF liaison to Palestinians meets with Egyptian officials in Cairo to advance Gaza truce, focusing on reopening Rafah crossing under international oversight from ynet - News https://ift.tt/lTazwVW

Harel Saidov, severely injured in Khan Younis building collapse last March, rescued by Eliya Hilel, who noticed he was still breathing; Hilel killed in West Bank ramming attack 2 months later; ahead of his wedding, Saidov places invitation on his grave from ynet - News https://ift.tt/EtO3laJ

Mandy Damari thanked citizens in the UK and around the world who called for her daughter's release from captivity, emphasizing: 'There are 94 more hostages who need us' from ynet - News https://ift.tt/boWZrja

( JTA ) — JERUSALEM — In the haredi Orthodox Jerusalem neighborhood of Geula, a newly renamed pizzeria advertised a special just for Monday: Customers who bought two slices would get a free order of fries. The timing wasn’t random. The shop’s new name is Pizza Trump, and the special was pegged to the inauguration of its namesake, who returned to the U.S. presidency on the day the deal was offered. The restaurant’s slogan: “Make pizza great again.” Did the shtick bring in more customers? “Maybe,” said owner Yitzchak Babayoff, who added that some customers asked “to make their whole order free” in the president’s honor. The shop, which served Hasidic diners late on Monday, is lined with framed portraits of revered Jewish luminaries — Rabbi Yeshaya Steiner, Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, and the Gerrer Rebbe. Next to them is a photo of Trump, smiling — or smirking, depending on one’s outlook — and flashing a thumbs-up. Naming the pizzeria after a U.S. president wasn’t Babayoff’s idea. For ...

Freed hostages say Hamas informed them of their release only hours before; 'We were terrified of the Gazan crowds,' they share; moved dozens of times, often underground, they say, 'We cared for each other constantly,' with one adding, 'I thought I’d die' from ynet - News https://ift.tt/EoZ5xGD

( JTA ) — Viewers tuning in early to broadcasts of Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony on Monday could catch a glimpse of a woman with long white hair standing next to Hillary Clinton and speaking animatedly with Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles. The woman was Miriam Adelson, the pro-Israel megadonor who helped propel Trump to both electoral wins and who is hosting an inaugural ball Monday night alongside Mark Zuckerberg , the Meta CEO who has more recently engaged with Trump. Adelson, 79 who stepped back during the inauguration itself is a major funder of pro-Israel politics and a prolific donor to Jewish causes , carrying on a legacy she built with her late husband, casino magnate Sheldon Adelson. The Adelson family has long been one of the largest sources of campaign money for Republican candidates and has backed Trump during each of the last three general elections. Now, the widow is wielding an estimated net worth of $35 billion on her own. She has carried on her late hu...

Israel prepared for second phase of hostage release Saturday, set to include 4 captives; however, terror group announces would provide names Saturday, with release itself now delayed to Sunday from ynet - News https://ift.tt/uP7cRA6

( JTA ) — Donald Trump celebrated the release of three Israeli hostages from Hamas captivity, and has signaled that he is committed to fully implementing the ceasefire in Gaza. “Hostages starting to come out today! Three wonderful young women will be first,” the incoming president posted on social media . He wrote the post hours before Emily Damari, Doron Steinbrecher and Romi Gonen returned to Israel as the first stage of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire set in. Trump, who will take office on Monday, has long vowed to bring peace to the war-torn region. He escalated his pressure for a ceasefire in the weeks before the inauguration, threatening “hell to pay” if the hostages remained in captivity. His team was involved in the negotiations for a deal. Now, he is sending signals that he intends to see the ceasefire through. The first stage of the ceasefire will last six weeks and see the release of 30 more hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners. The second and ...

After 471 days in Hamas captivity, Emily Damari, Romi Gonen and Doron Steinbrecher reunite with their mothers and airlifted to Sheba Medical Center; Emily, seen smiling with a bandaged hand, lost two fingers during her abduction; Romi embraced her mother, Merav, a leading advocate for the hostages’ release, while Doron and her mother wept during their emotional reunion from ynet - News https://ift.tt/9axBptN

Police and Border Police forces announce heightened readiness to counter any attempts by released prisoners to reestablish terror networks, following imminent release of 90 inmates as part of ongoing hostage-prisoner exchange deal from ynet - News https://ift.tt/IaxFVYC

( JTA ) — In a brief address on his last full day as president, Joe Biden hailed the ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza and predicted Hamas would not regain power. He also defended his support for Israel in the 15 months since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Biden spoke as Israeli hostages Emily Damari, Doron Steinbrecher and Romi Gonen left Hamas captivity and were on their way to Israel. Their release was the first stage of a ceasefire deal that came into effect on Sunday after months of negotiation and more than a year of fighting. In the initial phase of the deal, which will last six weeks, Hamas is due to release 3o more Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian security prisoners. “The deal that I first put forward last May for the Middle East has finally come to fruition,” he said. “Today we’re seeing hostages being released. Three Israeli women held against their will in the dark tunnels for 470 days.” He added, “After so much pain, destruction and loss of li...

Despite prior commitments, terror group misses 4:30 p.m. deadline but reportedly assures mediators it would submit list soon after transferring hostages to secure location; Israeli officials remain confident plan will proceed as scheduled from ynet - News https://ift.tt/758tFoT

The 47th U.S. president will be sworn in Monday, joined by past presidents, foreign leaders and families of American hostages; celebrations, costing $200 million, start Saturday; who will share Trump’s stage, who’s skipping and will Sara Netanyahu attend? from ynet - News https://ift.tt/CJr4IxA

Military readies for Hamas cease-fire with repositioning in Gaza, bolstering forces in West Bank and protocols for safe return of hostages; officials warn of potential cease-fire violations and psychological warfare campaigns from ynet - News https://ift.tt/ilQJEL7

10 foreign nationals remain captive in Gaza, excluded from hostage deal’s first phase—8 Thai, 2 from Nepal and Tanzania; among them: student in Israel for weeks, father supporting his child and man who heroically shielded others under fire from ynet - News https://ift.tt/87cIm6k

The swearing-in of a new president is one of the most treasured rituals in American politics. And it’s one that, a little-known history shows, has been meaningfully shaped by Christian nationalism — and with it, covert antisemitism. Everyone knows the presidential oath of office ends with the phrase “so help me God,” theoretically because George Washington ad libbed it during the very first inauguration in American history. But as I wrote recently in a piece for The Conversation , there’s no contemporary evidence that Washington said any such thing. Claims that he did first emerged in the 1850s, a time of surging social pressures to reshape the United States as an explicitly Christian country. As we prepare for Monday’s inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, a modern iteration of that Christian nationalism, closely allied with Trump, is once more ascendant. When Trump becomes president with the words “so help me God” next week, he will be invoking a past era’s intense bel...

Ahead of cease-fire deal and hostage release, Yemeni rebels pledge continued support for Palestinians, vowing to 'expel the Israeli enemy'; departing from past statements on Gaza, spokesperson declares, 'The goal is to liberate every inch of Palestine' from ynet - News https://ift.tt/zNyd8C1

It may be song of the year — but is it also an antisemitic dig? Drake’s lawsuit against Universal Music, alleging defamation and harassment over Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy-nominated diss track “Not Like Us,” notes in its complaint that the song “alludes to Drake’s Jewish heritage” when it states that the rapper is “not a colleague” but “a f–kin’ colonizer.” The suit , filed Wednesday, goes on to say that posters responding to the song on YouTube and X “turned to racial and religious slurs against Drake, who is mixed race and Jewish.” One comment cited said that Drake was a “pedojewboy” and has a “jew protection pedo team” that will defend him. (The filing alleges the track, which refers to Drake and his circle as “certified pedophiles,” “accuses Drake of being a pedophile and calls for violent retribution against him.”) Other posters claimed Jews are colonizers and that Drake is a “Kazarian [sic] Jew,” a reference to a conspiracy theory that Jews are descended from a Turkic people tha...