News Digest — 2/24/25
White House Backs Israel’s Decision To Delay Terrorist Release: An Appropriate Response
The White House on Sunday (23rd) expressed support for Israel’s decision to delay the release of more than 600 terrorist prisoners.
“Given Hamas’ barbaric treatment of the hostages, including the hideous parade of the Bibas children’s coffins through the streets of Gaza, Israel’s decision to delay the release of prisoners is an appropriate response,” White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said in a statement.
Hughes added that President Trump is “prepared to support Israel in whatever course of action it chooses regarding Hamas.”
The Prime Minister’s Office announced early Sunday morning (23rd) that in light of Hamas’ repeated violations, it has been decided to delay the release of terrorists that was planned for Saturday (22nd).
According to the announcement, one of the reasons for the decision is the ceremonies that humiliate the hostages and the cynical exploitation of the hostages for propaganda purposes.
The PMO clarified that the terrorist release will only take place after the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies.
Following the decision, the terrorists who were set to be released were removed from the buses and returned to their prison cells.
Israel was to have released 620 on Saturday morning (22nd), including 71 who were sentenced to life imprisonment and 60 with lengthy prison terms.
Netanyahu Calls For Demilitarization Of Southern Syria, Protection For Druze
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the demilitarization for southern Syria and the protection for its Druze community on Sunday (23rd), the first time he has publicly called for this since the collapse of Bashar Assad’s regime in December,
“We demand the full demilitarization of southern Syria,” said Netanyahu, who was addressing a graduation ceremony for cadet officers in Beersheva. “We will not tolerate any threat to the Druze community in southern Syria.”
Netanyahu also held up a photo of Shiri Bibas and her sons, Ariel and Kfir whose remains were recently returned to Israel. Forensic experts who examined the bodies said they had been murdered, and that there was no evidence to back Hamas’ claims they were killed during an Israeli airstrike.
“This picture says it all, and I ask that you engrave it on the tablet of your hearts so that we always remember what we are fighting for and who we are fighting against, “ Netanyahu said.
“In the beginning days of the war, Hamas murdered Shiri and her children in cold blood. They strangled the tender children with their own hands, and if they could, they would have murdered all of us with the same cruelty,” he added.
Regarding Iran, Netanyahu reaffirmed Israel’s long-standing stance, declaring, “We will not allow Iran to obtain nuclear weapons.”
Israel sent forces into the 235 sq km buffer zone to prevent Syrian rebels from approaching the border when Turkish-backed islamist rebels toppled Assad’s government. Israel also launched waves of airstrikes on Syrian army assets and Iranian stockpiles to prevent them from falling into the hands of radical Islamists.
Israel considers the 1974 ceasefire agreement void until order is restored in Syria.
While Israeli forces have briefly entered the buffer zone in the past, December’s takeover marked the first time since its establishment that the IDF set up positions there. The demilitarized zone was established with a ceasefire in 1974 that ended the Yom Kippur War.
40,000 Palestinians Evacuated As IDF Deploys Tanks In Samaria
IDF tanks rolled into the Palestinian city of Jenin in northern Samaria on Sunday (23rd), marking the first time since the Second Intifada that Israeli armored units have operated in the area.
On Sunday morning (23rd) photographs and video began circulating on social media outlets showing Israel Merkava main battle tanks being deployed to Jenin and nearby Arab villages.
An IDF spokesperson later confirmed that tanks were operating in the area as part of the ongoing Israeli counter-terror operation in Samaria.
Since January 21st, Israeli forces have killed more than 70 terrorists and detained 300 suspects in Operation Iron Wall, carried out in the Jenin district of northern Samaria and Tulkarem and nearby Nur al-Shams in western Samaria.
The operation was launched after Palestinian Authority security forces failed to take control of Jenin from rogue terror groups and following the January 6th shooting attack in Samaria that left three Israelis dead.
Later on Sunday (23rd), Defense Minister Israel Katz discussed the expansion of Operation Iron Wall, saying that some 40,000 Arab residents have been evacuated from the targeted areas.
“The IDF is expanding its operations in northern Samaria and, as of last night, it is also operating in the town of Qabatiya as part of Operation Iron Wall to combat terrorism in Judea and Samaria. The military is reinforcing its forces with armored units and additional troops,” Katz said in a statement.
“So far, 40,000 Palestinians have evacuated from the refugee camps of Jenin, Tulkarem, and Nur al-Shams, which are now empty of residents.”
Furthermore, Katz said the Israeli military will remain in parts of Jenin and Tulkarem for an extended period of time, without giving a deadline for their withdrawal.
“We are at war against Islamic terrorism in Judea and Samaria. I have instructed the IDF to prepare for a prolonged stay in the cleared camps for the coming year–to prevent the return of residents and the resurgence of terrorism.”
During the recent operations, Katz added, IDF forces have shut down operations by the terror-linked United Nations Relief and Works Agency in the Near East (UNRWA).
“UNRWA operations in the camps have also been halted,” Katz said.
“We will not return to the previous reality. We will continue to clear refugee camps and additional terror hubs to dismantle the battalions and terror infrastructure of radical Islam, which were built, armed, funded, and trained by Iran’s axis of evil in an attempt to establish an eastern terror front against the settlements of Samaria, the security barrier, and major population centers in Israel.”
Terrorist Behind Deadly Bombing Falls To His Death A Week After Release Under Gaza Deal
Nael Obeid , a Hamas terrorist notorious for his role in the deadly 2003 Cafe Hillel bombing in Jerusalem, fell to his death near his home in East Jerusalem after being freed in a hostage-prisoner exchange a week ago.
Obeid went free on February 15 as part of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, which has seen Israel free hundreds of terrorists, many of them convicted for deadly attacks, in return for hostages taken on October 7, 2023.
The cause of his fall was not immediately clear. He was pronounced dead at Hadassah Medical Center near Mount Scopus on Saturday afternoon (22nd), according to local Palestinian media.
Obeid helped plan one of the most infamous suicide bombing attacks during the Second Intifada, which killed seven people and wounded 57 others at Cafe Hillel in the capital’s Emek Refaim Street.
At the time, Obeid headed a Hamas cell in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiya alongside his relative , Ahmad Obeid. The cell took orders from Hamas operatives in Ramallah, who procured them a suicide bomber to carry out the attack.
The two spent over a year scoping out potential terror targets and accumulating weapons before transporting 22-year-old Ramez Abu Salim to the bustling street, where he carried out the bombing on September 9, 2003.
Among the victims of the bombing were Dr. David Applebaum who treated suicide bombing victims as head of Shaare Zedek Hospital’s emergency room, and his daughter Nava, who was to be married the next day.
Arrested a year later, Obeid was handed seven life sentences, plus an extra 30 days, for his role in the deadly bombing.
Why Trump Must Insist On Removing Hamas From Power – Khaled Abu Toameh
• Hamas has reportedly expressed readiness to cede control of Gaza and hand it over to the Palestinian Authority. This does not mean, however, that Hamas is willing to lay down its weapons. Hamas wants the PA to return to Gaza only to pay salaries and fund reconstruction. That arrangement would allow the terror group to rearm, regroup and rebuild its military capabilities.
• Hamas senior official Osama Hamdan recently affirmed that his group has no intention of laying down its weapons or ending its rule. In addition, Hamdan stressed that Hamas leaders will not leave Gaza. He told Al Jazeera in mid-February, “The issue of the weapons of the resistance and the leaders of the resistance is non-negotiable.”
• Hamdan also threatened that Hamas would not allow any non-Palestinian party to enter Gaza. No Arab country will agree to play any role in the administration of Gaza as long as Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups continue to maintain an armed presence there.
• Hamas leaders are basically saying that they do not believe the Trump Administration’s talk about removing Hamas from power. Ignoring Hamas’ threats means that there will be more Oct. 7-style massacres of Israelis. Any deal that allows Hamas to remain in power would be disastrous for Israel, the Palestinians, and Arab states threatened by the Iran-led “Axis of Resistance.”
• There should be no reconstruction of Gaza as long as Iran’s proxies remain in power. The idea of allowing the Palestinian Authority to return to Gaza as a civilian body that pays salaries and funds projects should be rejected by the Trump administration.
The writer, a veteran Israeli journalist, is a senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute and the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs.
Both The Nazis And Hamas Murdered Jewish Children – Dr. Hamma Nirenstein
The killing of Jewish children underscores the persistent and brutal nature of anti-Semitic violence, revealing its continued threat in the modern era. The Nazi ideology led to the systematic murder of 1.5 million Jewish children during World War II and the Holocaust, many slaughtered in their mothers’ arms or subjected to brutal conditions in concentration and death camps. The echoes of this horror resonate today as Hamas targets Jewish children.
The response from international organizations and human-rights groups has been tepid at best. While anti-Semitic violence surges across the Western world, many institutions remain silent.
Unlike during the Holocaust, modern-day Israel has a strong military and the determination to fight for its survival and the survival of the Jewish people. Israel refuses to be deterred in its mission to eliminate Hamas.
While Palestinian children tragically perish in war, they are collateral victims of Hamas’ strategy, whereas Jewish children are deliberately targeted.
The writer, the Israel Foreign Ministry’s Special Advisor for Combating Anti-Semitism, is a fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs. She served as vice president of the committee on Foreign Affairs in the Italian Chamber of Deputies. (JNS)
(jns.org)
Buenos Aires Proposes Bill For Renaming “Palestine Street” To “Bibas Family Street”
Following the return of the remains of Shiri Bibas and her children Ariel and Kfir, a deputy mayor of Buenos Aires proposed naming a city street after them. Yamil Santoro, a member of the Argentine capital’s city council, introduced the proposal, calling for the street named after Palestine in the Almagro neighborhood to be renamed “Bibas family Street.”
Shiri Bibas, her husband Yarden, and their children, 4-year-old Ariel and 9-month-old Kfir, were kidnapped to the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023. Shiri and the children were taken separate from Yarden and were murdered shortly afterward. Yarden was released on Feb. 1 as part of the second hostage deal.
“The confirmation of the murder of the two children and their mother is a deep pain for everyone,” Santoro said.
A key obstacle to Santoro’s proposal is Law No. 83, which was approved in October 1998, and states that under no circumstances may streets or public places be named after individuals before 10 years have passed since their death,” but the city council member was working to amend the law for what he calls the “unique case” of the Bibas family.
Santoro told local media that he has not yet attempted to contact the Bibas family out of respect for their loss. “We will wait until a reasonable amount of time has passed before approaching them,” he said.
He also asked citizens in a post on X to suggest other initiatives that the Buenos Aires legislature could pursue to honor the victims and combat terrorism.
On Thursday (20th), following the return of the bodies of Kfir and Ariel – who held both Israel and Argentine citizenship – Argentine president Javier Milei declared two days of national mourning in their memory.
