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The next Israel-Hezbollah war is now unavoidable – and it will be worse

By Robert Inlakesh | RT | February 10, 2025

Another round of violence between Lebanon and Israel is not a matter of if, but when. Israel managed to extract a series of tactical victories from the war so far, but did not possess the capacity to defeat Hezbollah decisively. Now that Israel seeks to maintain freedom of action inside Lebanon, it threatens a much more violent outbreak than what was stopped by the November 27 ceasefire.

Much of the analyses offered on the conflict between Lebanon and Israel, which erupted into a paroxysmal battle in September 2024, trace its origins back to October 8, 2023. However, this take is limited in its scope and also often misses key lessons from the history of the conflict.

Understanding what shaped the Lebanon-Israel war

A day after the Hamas-led October 7 attack against Israel, it became clear, through the public statements and actions of the Israelis, that the war they sought to launch was intended to inflict maximum collective punishment on the civilian population of Gaza. Although it often goes unrecognized due to the shocking effects of the Hamas raid, at least 413 Palestinians were killed inside Gaza that day, most of them civilians. The next day, the Lebanese group Hezbollah began opening fire on Israeli monitoring equipment set up in the illegally occupied Shebaa Farms area.

After Israel conducted airstrikes in southern Lebanon and killed four Hezbollah members, the Lebanese armed group responded by opening fire on Israeli military sites and surveillance equipment on October 9. That same day, former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant declared a “complete siege” on Gaza and that “we are fighting against human animals” to justify blocking all food, water, and electricity from entering the territory.

Understanding the gravity of what had just happened, Hezbollah’s secretary general, Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah, understood that they were going to have to play a supporting role for the Palestinian armed groups in Gaza. However, the group did not want to drag Lebanon into a comprehensive war and repeatedly stressed this point. The one pledge that Nasrallah made was “Hamas will win,” offering no other red lines.

From October 8, 2023 to September 20, 2024, Israel was responsible for around 81% of all attacks between both sides, killing 752 people in Lebanon, while Hezbollah’s attacks killed 33 Israelis. The last time a war was fought between Lebanon and Israel was in 2006, which began when Hezbollah conducted a raid and kidnapped Israeli soldiers. The war was well planned by Hezbollah and resulted in a victory for the group, as Israeli forces retreated from Lebanese territory.

What made Hezbollah the first Arab force to claim a real victory over Israel in 2006 was down to the absolute power imbalance, in which a stalemate combined with tactical victories and a well executed plan made it a defeat of the Israeli military. After this, while Israeli forces committed thousands of violations of Lebanese sovereignty – by land, sea, and air – occasionally assassinating Hezbollah fighters in Syria that caused some brief border skirmishes, the two sides veered away from all-out war.

In 2019, however, the Israelis began working on a new security fence/wall along the Lebanese border, which cut into and annexed land clearly demarcated to be on Lebanon’s side of what is known as the Blue Line. In 2023, the most significant land grab was of the northern Ghajjar village, which was cut off from Lebanon and opened for Israelis to visit. In addition, Israeli forces repeatedly entered Lebanon in order to clear land between the fence and Lebanese farm lands, resulting in repeated standoffs.

During the period from 2006 to 2023, Israel had been working at infiltrating Hezbollah and spying on the political party, while the Lebanese group significantly strengthened its military power. This is of great significance to the conflict that has taken place over the past 16 months, because Hezbollah in 2006 was somewhat comparable in power to Hamas at the start of the war in October 2023.

Hezbollah was also born out of the conflict between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel, when the Israelis launched their invasion of Lebanon in 1982. The Israelis killed around 20,000 Palestinians and Lebanese in that war, which ended with a ceasefire due to the PLO’s surrender and acceptance of deportation to Tunisia.

Yet, after the PLO’s fighters and leadership left, Israel did not leave Lebanese territory and instead occupied the south of the country, while deploying its allied militias, including the Phalange Party, to massacre thousands of civilians in and around the Palestinian refugee camps. The lesson learned here for all future movements that would emerge to fight Israel, was that you never surrender your weapons; hence the Hamas slogan ‘victory or martyrdom’. The single biggest achievement that Hezbollah recorded in its history was forcing Israel to withdraw from Lebanese lands and give up on their occupation.

Why war is inevitable

It is clear that the war between Lebanon and Israel, which lasted nearly two months, was not one that Hezbollah was prepared for. Even after Israel’s booby-trapped pager attacks, which injured thousands across Lebanon, including many civilians, the Lebanese group still sought to fight a limited battle, as evidenced by the speech given by Nasrallah at the time. However, Israel did not stop there and decided to kill most of Hezbollah’s senior leadership, including Nasrallah, making a war unavoidable.

As early as October 8, 2024, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was threatening Lebanon with the kind of destruction wrought on Gaza. While the assault that the Israelis launched was certainly devastating to the civilian population, killing nearly 2,000 people, it was clear that it had not decided to launch a Gaza-style attack. Meanwhile, Hezbollah began using heavier missiles from its vast arsenal, but was tame in its approach and was careful to make much of its strikes symbolic or aimed at military facilities. This had nothing to do with what either side may have liked to do, but there was strategic constraint, which appeared to be deteriorating into the final week prior to the ceasefire.

By late November, Israel had failed to make meaningful advances on the ground in southern Lebanon and did not achieve its objective of reaching the Litani River area. Meanwhile, Hezbollah was not capable of equaling the level of destruction that Israel was committing against Lebanese cities using their missile strategy, it was also fighting essentially blindfolded and standing on one leg after the blows it suffered. Both sides realized that the inevitable result would be a stalemate, so in order to stop further devastation, a ceasefire was reached.

After suffering a major disruption to its supply line through Syria, the loss of its leadership and many commanders, also battling to solve the issues of infiltration, Hezbollah was severely wounded, but not destroyed. While the Israeli tactical victories have now shifted the propaganda war to make Hezbollah appear to be on its last legs, it is far from done. In fact, it still maintains a formidable ground force of around 100,000 fighters, a domestic weapons production capacity, and an abundance of ammunition, which the Israeli military understands well.

The loss of Nasrallah is not a small thing and still lingers in the minds of each and every supporter inside the country, many of whom still yearn for revenge after what was just committed against their nation. Israel proved incapable of beating Hamas after 15 months of all-out devastation, committing one of the worst atrocities since the Second World War. Hezbollah is still a much more capable fighting force than Hamas, yet there are a number of constraints on it due to the domestic political/economic/social situation inside Lebanon.

If Israel chooses to stay inside Lebanese territory, for whatever reason, it will only be a matter of time before action is taken. The next round will also likely be much more bloody, and the death toll will make the conflict last year seem relatively insignificant in comparison. This may not happen in the immediate future and could even take over a year, but the conflict is far from over and that is because there isn’t really a ceasefire in effect as of now.

On November 27, Israel made a point of not only violating it from the first moments and later advancing further into southern Lebanon, it committed hundreds of violations of the ceasefire. Israel has made it very clear that the new reality is that it has full freedom of action and can remain inside pockets of southern Lebanon for as long as it chooses. Therefore, there will have to be a war to ensure that a real ceasefire is reached and Lebanese territory will not be open season for the Israeli military to bomb, shoot at, and kidnap civilians.

Netanyahu is now bragging about changing the map of the surrounding region, while his new army chief of staff, Eyal Zamir, recently declared “2025 will continue to be a year of combat.” Israel is acting aggressively, expanding its borders, and does not appear to be backing down from its warmongering with Iran, which will lead to even greater chaos. Hezbollah will have to carefully navigate Lebanon’s domestic terrain and when it acts, implement a well oiled plan if it chooses to retaliate against Israel’s daily assaults on its country. All of the signs point to a dangerous escalation brewing.

Robert Inlakesh is a political analyst, journalist and documentary filmmaker currently based in London, UK. He has reported from and lived in the Palestinian territories and currently works with Quds News. Director of ‘Steal of the Century: Trump’s Palestine-Israel Catastrophe’.

February 10, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism | , , , , , | 1 Comment

Israel expands shooting orders in West Bank, adding to Palestinian death toll

Press TV – February 10, 2025

Israel has expanded shooting orders for its soldiers in the occupied West Bank in a move that has generated a high Palestinian death toll.

According to Haaretz newspaper, the so-called central command decided to implement the same shooting policy used during the campaign of genocide in Gaza to kill any unarmed Palestinian in the West Bank.

The Israeli soldiers taking part in the ongoing military assault said commander Avi Blot permitted them to shoot with the intent to kill Palestinians without resorting to arresting them.

“The orders made it easier for soldiers to pull the trigger at the behest of Central Command Commander Avi Blot.”

The head of the West Bank Division Yaki Dolf ordered soldiers to shoot at any vehicle “coming from a combat zone” and heading toward a checkpoint.

On Sunday, two Palestinians were killed in the West Bank when Israeli soldiers opened fire on a car approaching a military checkpoint.

Israeli forces earlier shot and killed an eight-month Palestinian pregnant mother and her unborn baby during a raid in the Nur Shams refugee camp.

According to the Israeli daily, soldiers used Palestinian civilians as human shields while searching buildings for explosives, the same tactic used by the military in Gaza.

Since January 21, the Israeli regime has conducted military operations in Jenin, Tulkarm and Tammun in the northern West Bank. The regime has killed more than 30 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry.

Israeli soldiers had earlier revealed appalling accounts of the notorious “kill zone” in the Netzarim corridor of the besieged Gaza Strip.

February 10, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, War Crimes | , , , | Leave a comment

Hamas says ‘Israel’ plotting to derail Gaza ceasefire deal

Al Mayadeen | February 10, 2025

The Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas believes “Israel” is actively working to derail the ceasefire agreement, a senior Palestinian official told Al Mayadeen on Monday.

The official stated that Israeli statements regarding the second phase of the deal signal an unwillingness to commit to a lasting ceasefire.

Moreover, Hamas, as per the official, sees “Israel” as relying heavily on US President Donald Trump’s reckless decisions to justify its policies and actions in the next phase.

Hamas says that if “Israel” does not adhere to the second phase of the agreement, it will pay a heavy price, the Palestinian official underscored.

Netanyahu moves to sabotage ceasefire talks: Israeli media

Israeli media on Sunday suggested that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is deliberately obstructing the ongoing ceasefire negotiations with Hamas, aiming to derail the agreement before its next phase.

Reports suggest that the Israeli delegation sent to Qatar lacks real authority, signaling Netanyahu’s unwillingness to move forward with a deal that would secure the release of more Palestinian detainees and a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

Haaretz cited sources stating that the delegation’s presence in Doha is merely for show.

“Netanyahu is signaling quite clearly that he does not want to move on to the next phase,” one source said, adding that he views the ceasefire as politically damaging.

The reports indicate that Netanyahu is more concerned about appeasing “Israel’s” far-right factions than securing the freedom of Israeli captives.

“Right-wing voters see on the ground that we have not defeated Hamas and its operatives continue to walk around with weapons,” one source explained, referencing a sign at a Hamas-organized captive release event in Gaza that mocked Netanyahu‘s claim of achieving “total victory.”

Efforts to undermine the agreement

According to Haaretz, Netanyahu’s obstructionist tactics could lead to the ceasefire breaking down entirely. Analysts warn that Hamas, recognizing “Israel’s” refusal to honor its commitments, may halt further captive releases.

“Hamas is not stupid,” a source said. “They see the politicization of the negotiations, the placement of Netanyahu confidants Ron Dermer and Gal Hirsch [at the helm of negotiations], the threats by [Finance Minister Bezalel] Smotrich and the right-wing ministers that they will dissolve the government. They understand where this is going.”

Channel 12 confirmed that Netanyahu sent the delegation only to discuss technicalities and not to negotiate the second phase of the ceasefire. Officials stated, “This delegation has no real mandate. It will not deal with anything related to the second phase.”

Among the delegation members was government captive negotiator Gal Hirsch, along with a Shin Bet official replacing the security agency’s head, Ronen Bar, who was removed from the process by Netanyahu.

Hamas officials have warned that “Israel’s” bad-faith approach could reignite hostilities. In an interview with AFP, Hamas politburo member Basem Naim criticized “Israel’s” failure to fulfill its obligations. “The delay and lack of commitment in implementing the first phase,” as well as the attempts to “pressure the Palestinian negotiators upon entering the second phase, certainly exposes this agreement to danger and thus it might stop and collapse,” he said.

Agreement in jeopardy

The first phase of the ceasefire, set to last 42 days, stipulates that Hamas will release 33 women, children, and elderly captives in exchange for the freedom of hundreds of Palestinians, many of whom have been detained without charge.

The next phase, if honored, would require “Israel” to release additional Palestinian detainees, halt military aggression, and withdraw from Gaza in exchange for the release of remaining captives.

Following the latest release, 73 captives out of the 251 taken on October 7 remain in Gaza, while at least 34 have been confirmed dead.

Hamas has so far handed over 21 captives under the current ceasefire, while 105 were released during a brief truce in November.

Under the deal, which came into effect on January 19, 17 more captives should be released before the end of the first 42-day phase of the truce.

Meanwhile, “Israel” continues to hold thousands of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including children, journalists, and activists, many of whom have been subjected to inhumane treatment.

February 10, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism | , , , , | Leave a comment

Trump claims US will ‘buy and own’ Gaza, says Palestinians have ‘no alternative’

The Cradle | February 10, 2025

US President Donald Trump said he is “committed to buying and owning” the Gaza Strip and expelling the two million Palestinians living there, amid condemnation from Palestinians and the UN.

“I’m committed to buying and owning Gaza. As far as us rebuilding it, we may give it to other states in the Middle East to build sections of it. Other people may do it through our auspices. But we’re committed to owning it, taking it, and making sure that Hamas doesn’t move back,” Trump said while speaking to reporters during a flight on Air Force One on 9 February.

Trump did not explain who he would buy Gaza from or how the US would own it.

“There’s nothing to move back into. The place is a demolition site … The remainder will be demolished … But we’ll make it into a very good site for future development by somebody,” the US president declared.

Trump promised to “take care of the Palestinians.”

He said, “We’re going to make sure they live beautifully and in harmony and peace and that they’re not murdered … They don’t want to go back to Gaza. They only go back because they have no alternative.”

Trump did not mention who might murder Palestinians or why they might not have an alternative to return to their lands and destroyed homes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump’s proposal as “revolutionary and creative” despite the plan being met with severe international backlash.

Israel relentlessly bombed Gaza for 15 months, killing at least 48,000 Palestinians, before the ceasefire went into effect on 19 January. Some estimates suggest Israeli forces may have killed over 200,000 Palestinians, largely with the help of US-supplied bombs.

As part of the so-called Generals’ Plan beginning in October, Israeli forces attempted for several months to besiege, starve, and bomb hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in north Gaza to forcibly expel them to the strip’s south.

Trump stated that people from all over the world would be able to move to Gaza, adding that he might allow regional countries to be involved in rebuilding parts of the territory and that he would make sure the Palestinian refugees would “live beautifully.”

The US president’s political allies in Israel, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and former national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir, openly advocate ethnically cleansing Gaza of Palestinians, confiscating the strip’s land, and relocating Jewish settlers there.

Both the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the resistance movement Hamas condemned Trump’s plan.

“The rights of our people and our land are not for sale, exchange or bargaining,” the PA Foreign Ministry said, adding that “The Israeli government and Prime Minister Netanyahu are trying to cover up the crimes of genocide, forced displacement, and annexation which they have committed against our people.”

Hamas political official Izzat al-Rishq affirmed that “Gaza is not a property to be sold and bought. It is an integral part of our occupied Palestinian land.”

The UN Human Rights Office warned that any forcible transfer in, or deportation of, people from occupied territory was strictly prohibited under international law.

US voters are also skeptical of Trump’s plan. A CBS poll showed that 47 percent of US citizens believe that US control of the Gaza Strip is a “bad idea,” only 13 percent think it is a good idea, and 40 percent say they are not sure.

Trump also told journalists while flying on Air Force One that he was “losing patience” with the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas after seeing footage of the resistance movement releasing Israeli captives over the weekend.

“They look like Holocaust survivors. They were in horrible condition. They were emaciated … I don’t know how much longer we can take that … at some point, we’re going to lose our patience.”

At the same time, freed Palestinian prisoner Sami Jaradat told Anadolu Agency that he and other Palestinian prisoners were terrorized and subjected to humiliation, severe beatings, and deliberate starvation.

“I have lost more than 30 kilograms of my weight,” Jaradat said.

Palestinian prisoners and detainees are also often tortured and raped by their Israeli captors.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) alleges that Prime Minister Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant have committed war crimes by using starvation as a weapon against Palestinians.

The ICC issued arrest warrants for the Israeli leaders in November, who imposed a “total siege” on Gaza at the beginning of the war in October 2023, blocking food, water, and fuel from entering the enclave.

February 10, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Illegal Occupation, War Crimes | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Senior Ansar Allah official on why Yemen fought for Gaza

The Grayzone | February 9, 2025

Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, welcome back to the Gray Zone. The Gaza ceasefire has finally been achieved after 15 months of gruesome fighting. And Western commentators, many of them referred to Ansar Allah as mad or insane for its refusal to back down in the face of U.S. and U.K. and Israeli airstrikes.

And to end its blockade of the Red Sea, its naval blockade. Why was Ansar Allah willing to risk so much to attempt to force a ceasefire in Gaza? And was the price worth it?

In the name of God, the most merciful, we in the Ansarullah movement act based on religious and moral principles, not agendas or self-interest.

That is why we were prepared to make every sacrifice to defend the oppressed in Gaza. We successfully pressured the US and the Zionist entity, ultimately leading to a ceasefire. Our operations became the most significant leverage for the Palestinian resistance. Without them, I feared the Palestinian people would have suffered even greater losses and the war would still be ongoing today. Yemen has endured immense suffering due to American and British policies. The price we paid was heavy, but it is insignificant compared to our duty toward Hamza. Our ultimate goal is to help establish a global order based on justice for all peoples of the world.

Many in the Gaza Strip, after the ceasefire was declared, profusely thanked Ansar Allah and the people of Yemen. That was the first party that they thanked, as well as Abu Abaydah, the spokesman for the Al Qasem Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas. What message do you want to send back to them?

We consider what we did a moral, religious and humanitarian act. We consider the Palestinian people the first line of defense for the Arab and Muslim nations, as well as the nations of all those who are oppressed given the sacrifices they have made in the pursuit of justice.

For that reason, they are more deserving of gratitude than we are. They are confronting a global alliance of oppression and injustice.

Israel lobby-connected think tank, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said last October that the Houthis are stronger, more technically proficient, and more prominent members of the axis of resistance than they were at the war’s outset. At the same time, the U.S. government, Tel Aviv, Even Riyadh, Doha have said that the axis of resistance as a whole has been significantly weakened by Israeli attacks. So what is your message to them? Is the axis of resistance still intact? What’s your message to those who say it’s been defeated?

Al-Khan al-Sahyuni wa-Hulafaa.

The Zionist entity and its allies failed to achieve their objectives. The Hamas movement not only endures, but has grown more popular than ever. Not just in Palestine, but across the Arab and Muslim world. Additionally, global awareness has increased significantly. The Zionist entity is built on lies and deception and its defeat in the arena of public opinion is a major blow. Yemen’s military operations inflicted significant costs on the US and its allies by draining financial resources, undermining the security of the entity and weakening the credibility of their military presence in the region. the american navy despite its overwhelming strength was forced to yield to us as a result the losses suffered by global zionism and its allies far outweigh those of the axis of resistance while syria was a significant loss for the axis the zionist alliance has suffered even more especially in the battle of global awareness.

Well, we’ll get to the issue of Syria, but first I want to ask you, what did you do when Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced his intention, the intention of the Israeli military, to assassinate the leadership of Ansar Allah, including Abdul Malik al-Houthi and yourself? You appeared on a public Israeli kill list.

What did you do and do you believe Israel still has the intention to assassinate you and other leaders of Ansar Allah?

We have made it clear to the US and the Zionist entity that we are ready for modernism. Our message has also been clear that any targeting of leadership in Yemen will be met in an equal retaliation, whether that be in the US, the UK or in the entity. We are serious.

If they want this war to become one of assassinated leaders, we are ready. We would advise them to focus on maintaining the ceasefire rather than further escalation of the war. An escalated war and a war of assassinations will not go in their favor. We are ready for all options. The ball is in their court.

The new U.S. President Donald Trump is clearly driven by rabid Zionist forces.

Some of the most extreme forces on the political spectrum in Israel support Donald Trump. which leaves open the possibility of a U.S. war with Iran, which has been Netanyahu’s top objective. Now, if that happens, what will Ansar Allah do? Will you intervene, for example, by opening a front against American Gulf interests, attacking oil facilities, which has been put on the table by other members of the Axis?

First, we are focused on achieving stability in the region. We want peace for the region and the whole world. We will never start a war. We do not believe in pre-emptive strikes even if we know that the Trump administration will escalate. That said, in the case that one member of the Axis is targeted, we will not leave them alone and we will support them exactly like we supported our brothers in Gaza. We consider that the American foreign policy and that of its allies aims to break each member of the resistance individually.

We won’t let that happen. Are you concerned after the devastation of the war and with a new president in Washington, that the plans for the Abraham Accords and normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states could go ahead, could be reignited. And what will be the consequences for Ansar Allah if this takes place and what would you do to prevent it?

We are always advising Arab and Muslim nations not to normalize or design this entity, as this will not be in their own interest. This goes against their duties towards their people in Gaza, especially considering that the Zionist entity is backed by powerful and rich countries. But if the Saudis and the Emiratis continue with further normalization,
we send them nothing but the advice. We will never escalate militarily against them unless they attack us first.

You had warned that Syria was the weakest link in the axis of resistance. How damaging to the axis was the loss of Syria to Mohammad al-Jolani’s NATO-backed Hayat Tahrir al-Sham forces? And why do you think the Syrian government folded so quickly along with its Iranian and Russian allies?

Yes, I had mentioned that Syria was the weakest link. I also advised that the Syrian government should have opened a front against the Zionist entity. That would have made Syria the strongest link. But sadly, the Syrian government made the wrong calculations. The enemies of Syria and the enemies of the resistance were able to focus their efforts on Syria, while the rest of the Axis was preoccupied with its engagements with the United States, the United Kingdom and the Zionist entity. The Syrian army was also struck on many occasions, strikes that went without retaliation, which I believe weakened morale on the army. Also, we can’t forget the massive support that Al Jawlani’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham received from the United States and its allies, and especially Turkey. Al Jolani’s people learned some lessons from their handlers and they pretended to offer amnesty to all their former rivals in Syria. This eased their consolidation of power, but now we are seeing that these initial actions were fake and those who believed them are paying the price.

What does it mean for the Axis to lose an ally like Syria? Does it fundamentally cripple Hezbollah because it loses the land bridge with Iran? Where does the Axis stand today without Syria?

The Syrian front was an important one for the Axis for two reasons. The first, because it was an important path for delivering supplies and arms to the Palestinian and Lebanese resistance movements. And the second, because it was the last sovereign Arab nation that shared their border with Palestine. No such state exists any longer. Lebanon’s government is not sovereign. Therefore, the loss of Syria cannot be understated.

Still, we must also remember that Syria had become a huge burden on the Axis in the last years. Syria’s loss is not the end of the Axis. The Axis will adjust to this loss. The losses of the Axis, as large as they were, are minute in comparison to the losses of the Americans and their allies.

More close to home in Yemen, Ansar Allah unilaterally released 153 war detainees, detainees from the Yemeni Civil War, in a good faith gesture to your adversaries in the south. This took place obviously in the wake of the ceasefire. So what message are you trying to send to southern Yemen and to the quote-unquote international community?

Our decision to unilaterally release the hostages had nothing to do with Gaza or the ceasefire. In the past, we have done dozens of similar unilateral overtures as a message to all that we aim to turn the page on the practice of hostage-taking on both sides. However, it is evident that our internal opponents did not return the favor.

At the end of the day, we would not have any of their hostages if they did not have any of ours. We strive to turn the page on the practice.

And southern Yemen state media is calling for the purification of the country from the sectarian Houthi militia. They’re using this sort of language. They’re accusing you of all sorts of crimes, of using human shields, pointing fingers. What’s your response to the… to these accusations? And have you considered actually just seceding and declaring independence given the seeming intransigence?

The mercenary leadership in southern Yemen no longer holds a popular mandate, nor does it represent the Yemeni people. They represent our oppressors in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Everyone knows that the Saudis and their allies picked this mercenary government that is represented by Rashad Al Alimi and his leadership council.

They do not in any way represent the interests of the Yemeni people. Therefore, we are not surprised that this is their stance. For us, we still advocate for the unification of Yemen and a political solution that deals with the territorial and political concerns of all parties.

We are open to all solutions that address the interests of all the Yemeni governorates including the southern ones. And we must emphasize that the overwhelming majority of the Yemenis from the southern and eastern governorates are against secession. They equally desire the reunification of the country, especially after what they witnessed in terms of abuses from the militias that are supported from the outside, especially the militias that are controlled by the United Arab Emirates.

The forces of imperialism from Washington to Tel Aviv to the Wahhabi Gulf states are bringing enormous amounts of power down on Ansarallah and Yemen, seeking to dislodge you from power. And these are very powerful forces. Have you considered or undergone any process to reach out to China or Russia or any
other BRIC states to offset the impact of this imperial pressure?

Radical Islamic ideology exists in the world, but it is limited and weak. The problem is that the United Kingdom and the United States supported these radical movements, and on top of them, the Wahhabi movement, that considered all other Muslims infidels. The United Kingdom and then the United States benefited from these radicals.

They weaponized them against their opponents in the Muslim world and the rest of the globe. These radical forces were weaponized against the leftist movements in the Arab world. and the movements of Arab nationalism.

And most recently, they have been weaponized against the members of the axis of resistance in the name of a Sunni versus Shia sectarian war. They were also weaponized against countries that have stood by the Palestinian people historically, such as the USSR, as represented by Russia, and China, and even India.

We have sadly now lost India and its support in the struggle, and it is now one of the strongest allies of the United States and the Zionist entity. The victims of America and her politics are numerous. They include the Russians and the Chinese. Of course, there must be a form of an alliance between them and all the other victims of the United States around the globe, an alliance that could help each withstand the threats, external or internal, imposed by the United States. The United States today is the force that controls radicalism, whether that be by ISIS or Al-Qaeda.

Of course, it controls them indirectly through its Saudi and other Gulf puppets. Still, we emphasize that any alliance between said allies must be built on a strong foundation of humanitarian and ethical grounds. This is a sacred priority for us. And as I mentioned before, according to our military doctrine, we only engage in defensive military action, or military action to support the oppressed. We do not believe in preventative war. There are many shared interests that we can unite for with other nations of the resistance. Still, there are many shared interests that we can unite under with all the other nations that are equally suffering from American policies.

And finally, I asked you this question during our last interview, which took place at a different time in the midst of war. What is your message to the American people at the dawn of the second Trump administration?

My message to the American people and the people of the West in general is that every civilization is built on a set of foundational pillars. And when a civilization loses these pillars, it crumbles. Today, Western civilization is dangerously close to collapse due to its abandonment of many of its moral and ethical foundational values.

The ethical and moral values of the West seem to exclude the Palestinians and deprive them of their rights while excusing all the crimes of the Israelis and offering them no accountability. This is a massive problem for the Western mentality. Also, they must recognize that the peace that will come by way of Trump and his Abraham Accords is not a real peace, but a submission. Every time the West speaks of stability and security, they mean security and stability only for them and their people. We see how the Zionist entity is aiming to achieve a ceasefire for only one side. They want to keep targeting Gaza, the south of Lebanon, and the West Bank with impunity and without a response. That’s why we must all re-examine our moral and humanitarian ideology and worldview. Our ideologies must be built on the foundation that everyone deserves peace, everyone deserves freedom, and everyone deserves human rights. Not human rights, freedom, peace, for some, at the expense of others.

Okay, well, Mohammed Al-Bukhaiti, spokesman for Ansar Allah, thank you for joining us again at the Grey Zone. Best of luck.

Thank you, Max, for all that you do in this fight for the rights of the Palestinian people. We count on voices like yours to achieve real change in the world, in America and in the West.

Absolutely. And I look forward to talking again with you.

February 10, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, Wars for Israel | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Withdrawal from Netzarim Corridor another ‘failure’ of war goals for Israel: Hamas

Press TV – February 9, 2025

The Palestinian resistance movement has celebrated the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Netzarim Corridor as a victory, describing it as yet another failure for the occupying regime in achieving its declared goals in the 15-month-long genocidal war on the people of Gaza.

Hamas made the remarks in a statement on Sunday, after Israeli troops withdrew from the Netzarim Corridor – a military zone cutting off the north of the Gaza Strip from the south- as part of a ceasefire deal in the blockaded territory.

The complete withdrawal of the Israeli military from the Netzarim Corridor signals a “continuation of the failure of the goals of the war of extermination against the Palestinian people,” the resistance group said.

Hamas went on to say that the return of displaced Palestinians to their homes and the ongoing prisoner swap refutes Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “lie” about achieving victory in Gaza.

“Gaza will remain a land liberated by the hands of its people and its fighters, and forbidden to the occupying invaders and any external force,” it added.

Meanwhile, the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) described the Israeli forces’ withdrawal from the Netzarim Corridor as a sign of the Palestinian nation’s and the resistance’s victory over the “American-Zionist” projects.

“The withdrawal of the enemy army from the Netzarim corridors is a victory for our people and their courageous resistance, and it destroys the myths of the Zionist extremists,” the coalition of resistance groups said.

The withdrawal of the Israeli military from the Netzarim Corridor confirms that Palestinians will remain in their land and that the displacement projects have failed in the face of the steadfastness of people in Gaza, they added.

The latest developments came after Hamas announced earlier in the day that the Israeli military has withdrawn from the Netzarim Corridor, with the police force deployed to the area to manage the flow of Palestinians crossing through.

The Netzarim military base was a corridor created by the Israeli occupation forces as a way to enforce the permanent displacement of Palestinians from the northern parts of the Gaza Strip.

However, after more than 15 months of genocide, Palestinians are now using the same corridor on their return journey back to the north.

February 9, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism | , , , , | Leave a comment

Israel used toxic gas to suffocate Palestinian resistance fighters, captives in Gaza’s tunnels, report finds

MEMO | February 7, 2025

Israeli occupation forces bombed Gaza and “intentionally weaponised toxic byproducts of bombs to suffocate” Palestinian resistance fighters they believed were hiding underground, an investigation by +972 Magazine and Local Call revealed yesterday.

The report is based on information obtained from 15 Israeli Military Intelligence and Shin Bet officers who have been involved in tunnel-targeting operations since 7 October 2023. It found that occupation forces tried to “compensate for the army’s inability to pinpoint targets in Hamas’ subterranean tunnel network”.

This policy allowed for the killing of “triple-digit numbers” of Palestinian civilians as “collateral damage”, while senior Hamas commanders were being sought out.

The report highlighted that some of these strikes “which were the deadliest in the war and often used American bombs, are known to have killed Israeli hostages.”

“Pinpointing a target inside a tunnel is hard, so you attack a [wide] radius,” a Military Intelligence source told +972 and Local Call. This radius would be as large as “tens and sometimes hundreds of metres,” meaning these bombing operations collapsed multiple apartment buildings on their occupants without warning. This was referred to by Palestinians as “fire belts”.

Bunker-buster bombs release the lethal gas carbon monoxide as a byproduct, which can kill people inside a tunnel through asphyxiation even at a distance of hundreds of metres, the report adds, explaining that Israel has known about this since 2017.

“The gas stays underground, and people suffocate,” Brigadier General (reserves) Guy Hazoot said. “[We realised] we could effectively target anyone underground using the Air Force’s bunker-buster bombs, which, even if they don’t destroy the tunnel, release gases that kill anyone inside. The tunnel then becomes a death trap.”

Three Israeli hostages — Nik Beizer, Ron Sherman and Elia Toledano — were definitively killed by asphyxiation as a result of a 10 November 2023 bombing that targeted Ahmed Ghandour, a Hamas brigade commander in northern Gaza, the report said.

Military officials told +972 and Local Call that the intent was to use the chemical byproduct solely to kill Hamas operatives “who intended to fight the IDF [Israeli occupation forces].”

Israel’s efforts to maximise the chances of killing senior militants hiding underground also included attempts to crush parts of a tunnel network and trap the targets inside.

February 7, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, War Crimes | , , , , | Leave a comment

Ex-Israeli war chief confirms issuing Hannibal Directive to kill own civilians, soldiers

The Cradle | February 7, 2025

Former Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant has acknowledged ordering the army to use the Hannibal Directive to kill Israeli civilians and soldiers during the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023.

During an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 on 7 February, Gallant admitted to ordering the controversial protocol that involves killing captives along with their captors.

When asked whether an order was given to implement the Hannibal Directive, Gallant responded:

“I think that, tactically, in some places, it was given, and in other places, it was not given, and that is a problem.”

Israel claims Hamas killed roughly 1,100 Israeli civilians and soldiers during its attack on Israeli settlements and military bases on 7 October as part of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.

However, Israeli forces killed large numbers of their own civilians and soldiers during the attack. The army dispatched attack helicopters, drones, and tanks on its own territory to respond to the attack, killing not only Hamas fighters but also Israeli civilians and soldiers that the Palestinian fighters attempted to take as captives back to Gaza.

Israeli helicopters also killed Israeli civilians at the Nova festival, which took place near the Re’im military base.

Gallant also criticized former police security minister Itamar Ben Gvir for his provocative storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, stating that it “was like detonating the situation.”

Gallant made the comments in his first interview since being dismissed as defense minister in November.

The former defense minister said that the current ceasefire deal with Hamas in Gaza is nearly identical to an earlier proposal that Hamas was willing to agree to in April last year.

Gallant accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet of delaying the ceasefire deal, adding that had he agreed to it at that time, Israel could have brought back more living captives while releasing fewer Palestinian security prisoners, Gallant said.

Many of the 251 Israeli soldiers and civilians successfully taken captive by Hamas were later killed by Israeli airstrikes and friendly fire from soldiers.

“I think that the Israeli government did not do everything it could have to return the hostages,” Gallant stated.

In January, Israel’s top general, Herzi Halevi, resigned. He cited the “terrible failure” of security and intelligence related to the Hamas attack.

Israel’s subsequent war on Gaza has killed at least 47,000 Palestinians, with some estimates suggesting that the death toll exceeds 200,000.

February 7, 2025 Posted by | War Crimes | , , | Leave a comment

Journalist Richard Medhurst Raided and Detained

Richard Medhurst | February 6, 2025

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Richard Thomas Medhurst (1992) is an independent journalist, political commentator, and analyst from the United Kingdom with a focus on international affairs, US politics, and the Middle East. Medhurst is known for his coverage of the Julian Assange extradition case in London, as one of the only journalists to report on the trial of the WikiLeaks founder from inside the court.

He has also covered the Iran nuclear deal talks on the ground in Vienna. Medhurst was born in Damascus, Syria. His father is English and mother is Syrian. Both his parents served in United Nations Peacekeeping and Observer missions and were among the UN Peacekeepers awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988. Owing to his parents’ professional mobility, he has lived in Syria, Pakistan, Switzerland, and Austria. He speaks four languages fluently: English, Arabic, French, and German.

As an independent journalist, Medhurst regularly hosts live broadcasts and video reports on his YouTube channel. Previous guests include the Foreign Minister of Venezuela, the Dep Foreign Minister of Iran; the Palestinian, Russian and Cuban ambassadors to the United Nations in Vienna; the former British Ambassador to Syria; and various UN officials, journalists, and more.

Medhurst’s reports and analysis on Yemen, Ukraine, Syria, Niger, Lebanon, Iran, the Israeli occupation in Palestine and its genocide in Gaza have gone viral countless times, racking up millions of views. Richard Medhurst has a combined following of roughly one million people online, and appears regularly on international news outlets including Al Jazeera, WikiLeaks, Black Agenda Report, Al Mayadeen, The Times, LBC, and others.

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February 7, 2025 Posted by | Full Spectrum Dominance, Video | , , , | Leave a comment

Trump sanctions ICC

RT | February 6, 2025

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) for investigating the US and its allies. Last November the Hague-based court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, in a move that angered US officials.

Trump’s executive order will enforce financial and visa-related sanctions on individuals and families who support ICC investigations into US citizens or allied nations.

The ICC has been preparing for a “swift assault” from the new US administration, the Guardian reported last month, citing sources within the organization. The measures could affect the ICC’s access to banking and payment systems, IT infrastructure, and insurance providers, the publication said. It could also “paralyze” the court’s work and pose “an existential threat” to its functioning.

Earlier this month, the US House of Representatives voted to impose sanctions that would cancel US visas and place financial restrictions on any ICC officials prosecuting US “allies.”

The US adopted the American Service-Members’ Protection Act in 2002 – nicknamed “The Hague Invasion Act.” The legislation was designed to protect American military personnel, as well as elected and appointed officials, from prosecution by international legal bodies which Washington has not recognized.

The act authorizes the US president to use “all means necessary and appropriate to bring about the release of any US or allied personnel” detained or imprisoned on behalf of the ICC, since the US is not a party to the Rome Statute regulating its activities. The authorization implies potential military action, leading to the act’s informal name.

The ICC’s attempt to investigate alleged American war crimes in Afghanistan in 2020 resulted in the US placing sanctions on then prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.

The court has accused Netanyahu and Gallant of using starvation as a method of warfare in Gaza, as well as deliberately depriving the enclave’s civilian population of essential supplies such as food, water, and medicine without any “obvious military necessity.” Washington says the ICC lacks jurisdiction over Israel, since it is also not a signatory to the Rome Statute.

Last year, however, the US praised Karim Khan, the same ICC prosecutor who requested arrest warrants against Israeli leaders, when he brought charges against Russian President Vladimir Putin. Moscow is not a party to the agreement establishing the court.

February 6, 2025 Posted by | Aletho News | , , , , , | 1 Comment

UK local council pensions enabling Israel’s genocide, apartheid, new figures reveal

MEMO | February 6, 2025

Funds held by the Local Government Pension Scheme, which is administered by local council across the UK, invest over £12 billion ($14.9 billion) in companies enabling Israel’s genocide, military occupation and apartheid against Palestinians, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) revealed today.

The group said research it carried out, obtained through Freedom of Information requests, details the investments of 81 LGPS funds in companies which: produce weapons and military technology used in Israel’s attacks on Palestinians; provide services or infrastructure that supports Israel’s unlawful military occupation; or conduct activity in Israel’s illegal settlements on stolen Palestinian land.

“Collectively, LGPS funds invest over £450 million [$557.6 million] in BAE Systems, which manufactures components for Israel’s F-15, F-16, and F-35 fighter jets used to bomb Gaza. Over £80 million [$99.1 million] is invested in Caterpillar, which manufactures bulldozers used by Israel to demolish Palestinian homes, schools and hospitals. While over £90 million [$111.5 million] is invested in RTX Corporation, formerly Raytheon, which produces 4000-pound GBU-28 bombs used by the Israeli military,” PSC said in a statement.

For the first time, PSC’s research identifies investments in Amazon and Alphabet Inc (Google). This totals £4.7 billion ($5.8 billion), nearly 40 per cent of the value of all investments listed. Both companies work together to provide cloud computing infrastructure to the Israeli military and government, dubbed Project Nimbus. In addition, the research shows LGPS funds hold over £28 million ($34.7 million) in Israel government bonds, “therefore lending Israel money to carry out its atrocities”.

The new research comes as campaigns calling for the divestment of LGPS funds from companies enabling Israel’s human rights abuses continue to gather momentum.

Lewis Backon, campaigns officer at PSC, said: “The scale of LGPS fund investments in companies that are complicit in Israel’s grave abuses of Palestinian rights is shocking. The deferred wages of millions of local government workers are going into companies enabling Israel’s war crimes, without their consent.”

“Divestment from Israel’s crimes is a moral and legal imperative that cannot be ignored.”

February 6, 2025 Posted by | Militarism, War Crimes | , , | Leave a comment

Israel wants European nations to take displaced Palestinians

RT | February 6, 2025

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has instructed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to prepare a plan to encourage Palestinians to emigrate from Gaza, according to a post he made on X on Thursday.

The minister also suggested that refugees should be taken in by European countries that opposed West Jerusalem’s military action in the enclave. Katz said that it would reveal their “hypocrisy” if these nations declined to accept Gazans.

It follows US President Donald Trump’s remarks on Tuesday that the US would “take over the Gaza Strip” and take charge of reconstruction. He added that Palestinians living there should leave, to be provided for by “neighboring countries of great wealth.”

Katz has praised Trump’s “bold initiative” to relocate Palestinians from Gaza.

Among possible destinations, he mentioned Spain, Ireland, and Norway, claiming they have “falsely accused Israel” over its war against the Gaza-based Hamas militant group and therefore are “legally obligated to allow Gazans to enter their territory.”

Commenting on Katz’s remarks, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares has rejected the suggestion that Spain should accept displaced people from Gaza.

”Spain makes decisions sovereignly and independently. No third party should tell us what to do,” Albares told broadcaster RNE.

The minister stressed that “Gazans’ land is Gaza” and that “Gaza should be part of the future Palestinian state.” He added that the debate about whether Palestinians should leave Gaza is “closed,” and Spain “is introducing our humanitarian aid as much as possible to help the people.”

Ireland, which formally recognized Palestine as a state last year, also rejected Katz’s comments about receiving war refugees.

In an emailed statement to Reuters, the Irish Foreign Department stressed that “The objective must be a massive scale-up of aid into Gaza, return of basic services and a clear framework under which those displaced can return,” adding that “any comments to the contrary are unhelpful and a source of distraction.”

February 6, 2025 Posted by | Ethnic Cleansing, Racism, Zionism, War Crimes | , , , , , , | 1 Comment

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