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US Lawmaker Defends Support for Israel as Part of ‘America First’ Agenda
US Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) talking to reporters after a meeting of the Republican House caucus at the US Capitol. Photo: Michael Brochstein/Sipa USA via Reuters Connect
Supporting Israel is part of an “America First” foreign policy agenda, according to US Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY).
During an interview with journalist Michael Tracey at the Republican National Convention (RNC) this week, Barr defended his decision to vote for a foreign aid package earlier this year that included $26 billion in military support to Israel. The congressman argued that a thriving and secure Israel benefits the United States, underlining the necessity of American military and diplomatic support for the Jewish state.
“A strong Israel that is able to defend itself is not just in the interest of our greatest ally and democracy in the Middle East,” Barr said. “It is in the interest of the United States. A strong Israel is a bulwark against terrorism in a very dangerous and difficult part of the world. And they are a forward operating base for our fight against radical Islamic terrorism.”
The lawmaker rejected the notion that the US federal government’s support for Israel comes at the expense of American national interests.
“Being pro-Israel is ‘America first,’ plain and simple,” Barr declared, making an apparent reference to the “America First” policy agenda of former US President Donald Trump, who on Thursday officially became the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nominee.
Barr also asserted that both Jews and Christians in Kentucky prioritize support for the Jewish state. The congressman claimed that the Bluegrass State’s Christian population “understand that Israel is the Biblical homeland of the Jewish people.”
“It is extremely meaningful for the people of our country to harken back to our Judeo-Christian heritage, and remember that those who bless Israel are blessed by God,” Barr said.
Barr lambasted US President Joe Biden for “pushing back” against Israel, arguing he has hampered the Jewish state’s ability to dismantle Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group that runs Gaza. He argued that Biden has exhibited a more adversarial posture toward Israel, a US ally, than Hamas.
Here’s my interview on the floor of the GOP Convention with Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) who declares: “Being pro-Israel is ‘America First.’ Plain and simple.”
pic.twitter.com/S4UA6fXO3Q
— Michael Tracey (@mtracey) July 18, 2024
Biden has come under heavy fire from Republicans as well as pro-Israel Democrats for what they’ve described as him turning against Israel amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
The US president expressed strong support for Israel following Hamas’ brutal invasion of southern Israel on Oct. 7, when Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists murdered 1,200 people and kidnapped about 250 hostages during their onslaught. In recent months, however, Biden has paused some weapons shipments to Israel and accused the US ally of “indiscriminate bombing” — a charge rejected by Israeli officials.
The Biden administration also discouraged Israel from launching a military offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah to target some of the last remaining Hamas battalions, arguing such an operation would put too many civilians at risk. Experts told The Algemeiner at the time that Israeli forces needed to operate in Rafah in order to dismantle Hamas’ military capabilities.
More broadly, the relationship between the Democratic Party and Israel has deteriorated in the months following Oct. 7. Several high-profile Democrats, such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (MA) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY), have floated the theory that Israel’s military operations in Gaza are tantamount to a “genocide.” A group of 30 House Democrats, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA), signed a letter earlier this year urging Biden to block arms transfers to Israel if the Jewish state “fails to sufficiently mitigate harm to innocent civilians in Gaza.”
The post US Lawmaker Defends Support for Israel as Part of ‘America First’ Agenda first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Treasure Trove is cheering for Israel’s soccer team at the Paris Olympics
The Paris Olympics open on Friday, July 26. For the first time since the 1976 Montreal Olympics, Israel will compete in the Olympic soccer tournament (the team’s first game is against Mali on July 24). Soccer (known as football outside North America) was introduced to Israel in the 1910s and was popularized by the British during […]
The post Treasure Trove is cheering for Israel’s soccer team at the Paris Olympics appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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French Police Arrest Knife-Wielding Assailant Expressing Support for Hamas on Terrorism Charges
Illustrative: French police secure access to the Bir-Hakeim bridge after a security incident in Paris, France, Dec. 3, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
French police arrested on Friday a man on terrorism charges accused of trying to murder a taxi driver with a knife while expressing support for Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, a source at the terrorism prosecutor’s office said.
France is on its highest state of security as it gears up to host millions of visitors, athletes, and world leaders during the Paris Olympic Summer Games, kicking off on July 26.
The man, already known by authorities as someone who had been radicalized, stopped a taxi on Tuesday night while brandishing a gun in the city of Le Mans, and asked to be taken to an isolated area near Ferte-Bernard.
He then forced the driver out of the car, bound him, and attacked his neck with the blade, the source said.
The driver managed to escape to a local resident’s home, where he was eventually treated by emergency services. The assailant was arrested early on Friday morning in Yvelines, west of Paris, the source said.
He is being investigated on terrorism, attempted murder, and kidnapping charges, the source said.
On Thursday, a police officer was critically injured in a stabbing attack in Paris’ Champs Elysees shopping district, in the latest in a string of unrelated security incidents in the French capital this week.
A soldier was stabbed and wounded by a man armed with a knife at a railway station on Monday. Authorities are also investigating whether a man who rammed a car into the terrace of a cafe on Wednesday evening did so deliberately.
The post French Police Arrest Knife-Wielding Assailant Expressing Support for Hamas on Terrorism Charges first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israeli Soccer Team Allowed to Compete in Paris Olympics After FIFA Postpones Decision About Ban
A long exposure shows FIFA’s logo near its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland February 27, 2022. Photo: Reuters
Soccer’s world governing body FIFA has postponed a decision on a Palestinian proposal to suspend Israel from international soccer tournaments until after the Olympic Games, giving Israel’s men’s national soccer team the opportunity to compete in the Paris Olympics.
“Following requests for an extension from both parties to submit their respective positions, duly granted by FIFA, more time is needed to conclude this process with due care and completeness,” FIFA announced on Thursday. “The assessment will be shared with the FIFA Council for any subsequent decision to be taken no later than Aug. 31, 2024.”
The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) submitted a proposal in May to suspend Israel from all international soccer matches because of its military actions in the Gaza Strip as it targets Hamas terrorists responsible for the Oct. 7 deadly attacks in Israel. FIFA responded to PFA’s proposal, which was backed by the Asian Football Confederation, by ordering an immediate legal evaluation. The FIFA Council had originally promised to address the matter and share insight from its independent legal assessment by Saturday, which is just four days before the start of the Olympic soccer tournament.
The Paris Olympics will be held from July 26 – Aug. 11 and group matches for the men’s soccer tournament start on July 24. Israel is set to play Mali, Paraguay, and Japan in the group phase. The men’s Olympic soccer final is scheduled to take place on Aug. 9.
The PFA said it received a letter from FIFA on Thursday about the postponement. The PFA said it wanted clarification from FIFA regarding its process for the legal assessment.
“FIFA’s letter did not indicate the mechanism by which the independent legal opinion will be dealt with by the Council when it is presented to it,” the PFA said in a statement on Friday, adding that it “has previously addressed the International Federation more than once asking for clarifications regarding this.”
A group of lawyers who specialize in international law and human rights also urged FIFA to ban Israel this week, claiming that the Jewish state has violated several of FIFA’s statutes related to human rights and humanitarian objectives because of its “conduct in Palestine” during the ongoing war in Gaza.
The post Israeli Soccer Team Allowed to Compete in Paris Olympics After FIFA Postpones Decision About Ban first appeared on Algemeiner.com.