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Anti-Israel Protesters Interrupt Chelsea Handler Comedy Show Because of Her Support for Jewish State
Chelsea Handler. Photo: YouTube screenshot.
Several women interrupted Chelsea Handler’s comedy show in Richmond, Virginia, on Friday night in a coordinated effort to protest the Jewish comedian’s support for Israel since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
The incident took place at Handler’s show Little Big Bit**h at the Altria Theater. In a video that was shared on social media, one female audience member at the show stood up and shouted at Handler, “Murder. Mass Murder.” The pro-Israel comedian first replied, “I can’t hear you,” before adding, “Oh, honey, please. This is not what this night is for.” She then asked security guards to remove the protester from the audience.
Female demonstrators in the audience also yelled “Palestinian babies — you’re a genocide supporter” and “Free Palestine.” Some audience members who got frustrated by the show’s interruption helped authorities identify the protesters and were told by one of the activists, “You guys should be this angry about genocide, not people standing up.”
“Be angry about genocide and people dying — children are dying with our tax dollars,” shouted the same protester, referring to the US providing aid to Israel amid its war against Hamas terrorists controlling the Gaza Strip following the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks. After an audience member answered, “They should die,” the female protester replied, “They should die? Say that on camera.”
One protester was arrested by police and can be seen in the video being escorted away from the show in handcuffs. Handler also told the protesters, “Do you know that I’ve been on tour for a year and a half and this is the only city two people stand up? You guys really owe me an apology.”
The protesters appeared to be associated with the organization Here 4 The Kids, which said in an Instagram post that the demonstrators on Friday night “forced other white people to confront our American complicity in GENOCIDE, begging them to no longer remain silent after 195 days of massacre.”
“These are protestors who are AGAINST the indiscriminate slaughter of human beings,” the organization added, before telling Handler: “YOU owe Palestinians an apology. YOU owe every single orphaned Palestinian child AN APOLOGY. YOU owe HUMANITY an apology. Demand a Free Palestine.”
Handler said in 2022 that she stands with the Jewish community in its fight against antisemitism and in February of this year filmed a video with Israeli activist Noa Tishby to address misinformation being spread about Israel during the ongoing war in Gaza. She said in the clip that she is “pro-Palestinian and anti-Hamas, and it is OK to question Israel’s policies and still be pro-Israel.” She also called Israel “our greatest defense in the Middle East for all of Western democracy and Western values.”
Although Handler has been critical of Israel over the years, she joined hundreds of celebrities in signing on open letter in October that thanked US President Joe Biden for supporting Israel after it launched a war targeting Hamas terrorists in Gaza. The open letter also called on Biden to “not rest until all hostages are released.” Days after the Oct. 7 attacks, Handler, condemned Hamas and its “barbarism” in a statement.
The post Anti-Israel Protesters Interrupt Chelsea Handler Comedy Show Because of Her Support for Jewish State first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hamas Releases Video of Israeli-American Hostage Held in Gaza
FILE PHOTO: Yael, Adi and Mika Alexander, the family of Edan Alexander, the American-Israeli and Israel Defense Forces soldier taken hostage during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, pose for a photograph during an interview with Reuters at the Alexander’s home in Tenafly, New Jersey, U.S., December 14, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Stephani Spindel/File Photo
Hamas on Saturday released a video purportedly of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, who has been held in Gaza since he was captured by Palestinian terrorists on October 7, 2023.
In the undated video, the man who introduces himself as Edan Alexander states he has been held in Gaza for 551 days. The man questions why he is still being held and pleads for his release.
Alexander is a soldier serving in the Israeli military.
The edited video was released as Jews began to mark Passover, a weeklong holiday that celebrates freedom. Alexander’s family released a statement acknowledging the video that said the holiday would not be one of freedom as long as Edan and the 58 other hostages in Gaza remained in captivity.
Hamas has released several videos over the course of the war of hostages begging to be released. Israeli officials have dismissed past videos as propaganda that is designed to put pressure on the government. The war is in its eighteenth month.
Hamas released 38 hostages under a ceasefire that began on January 19. In March, Israel’s military resumed its ground and aerial campaign on Gaza, abandoning the ceasefire after Hamas rejected proposals to extend the truce without ending the war.
Israeli officials say that campaign will continue until the remaining 59 hostages are freed and Gaza is demilitarized. Hamas insists it will free hostages only as part of a deal to end the war and has rejected demands to lay down its arms.
The US, Qatar and Egypt are mediating between Hamas and Israel.
The post Hamas Releases Video of Israeli-American Hostage Held in Gaza first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Some Progress in Hostage Talks But Major Issues Remain, Source tells i24NEWS
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – A source familiar with the ongoing negotiations for a hostage deal confirmed to i24NEWS on Friday that some progress has been made in talks, currently taking place with Egypt, including the exchange of draft proposals. However, it remains unclear whether Hamas will ultimately accept the emerging framework. According to the source, discussions are presently focused on reaching a cohesive outline with Cairo.
A delegation of senior Hamas officials is expected to arrive in Cairo tomorrow. While there is still no finalized draft, even Arab sources acknowledge revisions to Egypt’s original proposal, reportedly including a degree of flexibility in the number of hostages Hamas is willing to release.
The source noted that Hamas’ latest proposal to release five living hostages is unacceptable to Israel, which continues to adhere to the “Witkoff framework.” At the core of this framework is the release of a significant number of hostages, alongside a prolonged ceasefire period—Israel insists on 40 days, while Hamas is demanding more. The plan avoids intermittent pauses or distractions, aiming instead for uninterrupted discussions on post-war arrangements.
As previously reported, Israel is also demanding comprehensive medical and nutritional reports on all living hostages as an early condition of the deal.
“For now,” the source told i24NEWS, “Hamas is still putting up obstacles. We are not at the point of a done deal.” Israeli officials emphasize that sustained military and logistical pressure on Hamas is yielding results, pointing to Hamas’ shift from offering one hostage to five in its most recent agreement.
Negotiators also assert that Israel’s demands are fully backed by the United States. Ultimately, Israeli officials are adamant: no negotiations on the “day after” will take place until the hostage issue is resolved—a message directed not only at Hamas, but also at mediators.
The post Some Progress in Hostage Talks But Major Issues Remain, Source tells i24NEWS first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Trump’s Envoy Witkoff Meets with Putin in Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Photo: Reuters/Maxim Shemetov
i24 News – Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met for talks in St. Petersburg on Friday.
Witkoff flew to Russia on Friday morning for talks with President Vladimir Putin about the search for a peace deal on Ukraine, the Kremlin said, saying the two men might also discuss a Trump-Putin meeting.
Witkoff has emerged as a key figure in the on-off rapprochement between Moscow and Washington amid talk on the Russian side of potential joint investments in the Arctic and in Russian rare earth minerals.
Putin was also in St Petersburg on Friday to hold what the Kremlin called an “extraordinarily important” meeting about the development of the Russian Navy, which is in the throes of a major modernization and expansion drive.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov played down the planned Witkoff-Putin meeting, telling Russian state media the US envoy’s visit would not be “momentous” and that no breakthroughs were expected.
The meeting will be their third this year and comes at a time when US tensions with Iran and China – two countries with which Russia has close ties – are severely strained over Tehran’s nuclear program and a burgeoning trade war with Beijing.
Witkoff is due in Oman on Saturday for talks with Iran over its nuclear program after Trump threatened Tehran with military action if it does not agree to a deal. Moscow has repeatedly offered its help in trying to clinch a diplomatic settlement.
Putin and Trump have spoken by phone but have yet to meet face-to-face since the US leader returned to the White House in January for a second four-year term.
Trump, who has shown signs of losing patience, has spoken of imposing secondary sanctions on countries that buy Russian oil if he feels Moscow is dragging its feet on a Ukrainian deal.
The post Trump’s Envoy Witkoff Meets with Putin in Russia first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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