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Blinken in Israel in Last Big Ceasefire Push Before US Election

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is welcomed by US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew and Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deputy Director General for North America Lior Hayat, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 22, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Nathan Howard/Pool

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday in the first big US push for a Middle East ceasefire since Israel killed the leader of Hamas last week — and the last attempt before a presidential election that could upend US policy.

Blinken began his meetings in Israel as Hezbollah launched rockets into Tel Aviv and Haifa and Israeli air strikes pummeled parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Repeated diplomatic efforts have failed to bring an end to both the year-long war in the Hamas-ruled Palestinian enclave of Gaza and to its spillover conflict between Israel and the Lebanese Iran-backed armed terrorist group Hezbollah.

Blinken, on his 11th trip to the region since the Gaza war erupted, faces a daunting mission.

Hezbollah said on Tuesday there would be no negotiations while fighting continues and it claimed responsibility for a drone attack on Netanyahu’s holiday home on Saturday.

Washington hopes the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar — Israel‘s most wanted man, blamed for triggering the year of warfare by planning the deadly attack on Oct. 7 last year on Israeli territory — will provide a new opportunity for peace.

But Israel has so far shown no sign of relenting in its military campaigns even after assassinating several leaders of Iran’s allies Hamas and Hezbollah, which lost its powerful leader Hassan Nasrallah in a Sept. 27 airstrike.

In Gaza on Tuesday, the UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA called for a temporary truce to allow civilians to leave areas in the north of the enclave where Israeli forces were hunting down Hamas terrorists.

SIRENS IN TEL AVIV

Blinken was meeting Netanyahu and other officials at the start of a week-long trip that will also take him to Jordan and Qatar. US officials say he is exploring plans for rebuilding and governing Gaza after the war, key to reaching a ceasefire.

Iran and its terrorist allies — Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis, armed groups in Iraq, and Hamas in Gaza — have said that their “Axis of Resistance” against Israeli and US interests will emerge victorious.

The Houthis said on Tuesday they had targeted an Israeli military base in Tel Aviv using ballistic missiles in solidarity with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

Hours before Blinken landed, air raid sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and other areas of central Israel after Hezbollah fired missiles at what it said were Israeli military targets near Haifa and Tel Aviv. The missiles were an apparent demonstration that Hezbollah’s capabilities have survived Israel‘s biggest operation in decades of hostilities.

The conflict has spread to Lebanon over the past month, with Israel launching a ground campaign and intensified air assaults against Hezbollah, which had been firing across the frontier for a year in solidarity with the Palestinians.

During a night of heavy strikes on south Lebanon and the southern suburbs of Beirut, Israel struck the area near Beirut’s Rafik Hariri hospital, Lebanon’s main state medical facility. Lebanese authorities said 13 people were killed.

The Israeli military said the hospital itself had not been targeted and was not affected. Director Jihad Saadeh said the hospital was damaged because of an Israeli attack near it.

Hamas, which is still holding scores of hostages in Gaza seized in its Oct. 7, 2023 raid on Israel, refuses to release them without an Israeli pledge to end the war.

Israel says it will not halt fighting until the Islamist terrorist group is completely destroyed in the enclave, which has been largely reduced to ruins during Israel’s military campaign.

Washington and other allies hope Israel‘s killing of Sinwar in a firefight last week could provide a breakthrough by making it easier for Netanyahu’s government to assert that its objectives have been achieved in Gaza.

But diplomats and other sources say Israel is pressing to lock in a strong position before a new US administration takes over following the Nov. 5 election between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump.

ISRAELI RETALIATION AGAINST IRAN

State Department officials said Blinken intended to raise the issue of what happens in Gaza when the war ends, focusing on security, governance, and reconstruction. Washington has long said it ideally wants Gaza reunited with the West Bank under a government run by the Palestinian Authority, which now exercises limited self-rule.

Blinken will also discuss Israel‘s anticipated retaliation for a ballistic missile attack launched by Iran on Oct. 1, a senior State Department official said.

Allies are worried that Israel‘s response could disrupt oil markets and ignite a full-blown war between the arch-enemies.

The Gaza war began after Hamas-led fighters attacked Israeli communities on Oct. 7 last year, killing around 1,200 people and capturing more than 250 hostages.

The post Blinken in Israel in Last Big Ceasefire Push Before US Election first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Teachers Unions Across US Under Fire for Alleged Antisemitism

National Education Association president Becky Pringle leads hundreds of demonstrators in chants during a rally to end US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids, in Washington, DC, US, on, June 9, 2025. Photo: Allison Bailey/NurPhoto via Reuters Connect

Teachers unions across the United States have come under intense scrutiny from both Jewish activists and federal lawmakers for allegedly promoting antisemitic ideas and fostering a hostile environment toward their Jewish members.

The US House Committee on Education and the Workforce, for example, has opened an investigation into the National Education Association (NEA), the nation’s largest teachers union, over allegations that its policies and materials discriminate against Jewish members.

Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI), the committee’s chairman, sent a letter late last month to NEA President Becky Pringle demanding documents tied to what he described as “antisemitic content” in the union’s 2025 handbook and its decision to sever ties with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) over its support for Israel.

“The NEA’s 2025 handbook … contains passages and priorities that are hostile towards the Jewish people,” Walberg wrote, citing language that he said downplays the uniquely Jewish suffering of the Holocaust and promotes lessons on the so-called Palestinian “nakba,” the Arabic term for “catastrophe” used by Palestinians and anti-Israel activists to refer to the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948.

In July, the NEA refused to adopt as policy a ban on the ADL voted for by the group’s Representative Assembly during an annual conference.

“The National Education Association stands firmly for every student and educator, of every race, religion, and ethnicity, and we unequivocally reject antisemitism,” the NEA told JNS in response to Walberg’s letter. “We have fought against all kinds of hate, including antisemitism, throughout our history and remain focused on ensuring the safety of Jewish students and educators.”

The congressional probe comes as teachers unions across the country face mounting criticism from Jewish educators and civil rights advocates who say the organizations are failing to protect them, and in some cases are actively fostering hostility.

In Massachusetts, the Zionist Organization of America filed a sweeping civil rights complaint last week against the Massachusetts Teachers Association, accusing the organization of creating a discriminatory environment. The filing cites union-distributed images and posters viewed as antisemitic, including one showing a dollar bill folded into the shape of a Star of David and another reading “Zionists [Expletive] Off.” Some Jewish educators say they have already left the MTA over its stance.

In New York, meanwhile, the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) has come under fire from its own Jewish members for their responses to antisemitic incidents in schools. The criticisms stem in part from an incident at Hillcrest High School, where a Jewish teacher was reportedly forced to lock herself in an office during an anti-Israel protest. Union critics also blasted the UFT for endorsing New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, a supporter of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel who has been accused of antisemitism.

“How can we feel safe? When our teachers get attacked, our union says little and does nothing. When our protected rights are infringed upon, our union says little and does nothing. When they need us, they pretend we matter, and when they don’t, they ignore our concerns,” Moshe Spern, head of the United Jewish Teachers caucus, said last week at an “End Jew Hatred” rally, according to the New York Post.

Spern noted that more than 150 teachers are moving to cancel their union dues in protest.

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Iran’s Executions in August Jump 70 Percent Compared to Previous Year as Rights Groups Warn of Troubling Surge

Illustrative: A February 2023 protest in Washington, DC calling for an end to executions and human rights violations in Iran. Photo: Reuters/ Bryan Olin Dozier

The Islamic regime in Iran accelerated its execution machine last month, killing at least 152 prisoners according to the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights.

The figure represents a surge of 70 percent compared to the 94 executions conducted in August 2024.

While Hengaw has identified 148 of those killed last month, four individuals remain unknown. Two people killed include Roozbeh Vadi, alleged to have engaged in “espionage for Israel,” and Mehdi Asgharzadeh, an alleged ISIS member. Iran executed at least five women for murder and one woman on drug charges.

According to Hengaw, two or more of the executions took place in public in Beyram and Kordkuy, cities in the country’s southern and northern provinces, respectively.

On Monday, the Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA) released a report of human rights violations in Iran during August, noting that the number of executions had increased 40 percent compared to June and July, bringing the total execution count to 837 for the year. In comparison, the Islamic regime executed 930 people for the entire year of 2024.

HRANA broke down last month’s executions by charges, finding 87 drug offenses, 60 murder charges, two rapes, one for security offenses, and one person’s offenses are unknown. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, during the first half of 2025, nearly half of Iran’s executions targeted those convicted over drugs.

Iran killed one person on the charge of “corruption on earth,” which translates from the Koranic term “mofsed-e fel-arz” (مفسد فی الارض), a vague concept that Islamic judges have often applied toward political dissidents, alleged spies, or religious converts.

One tool that HRANA identifies Iran regularly deploying in its judicial system is forced confessions.

“Extracting forced confessions from political and ideological defendants, followed by broadcasting them on state television, is one of the regime’s routine practices against its opponents,” the human rights group stated. “In 2024, HRANA documented 28 cases of forced confessions. This month as well, Iran’s state television aired the forced confessions of a group of Christian converts.”

HRANA also found 73 arrests last month for citizens speaking out about their political views and beliefs; in addition, the state sentenced 27 people to 658 months in prison, 132 months of exile, and 130 lashes for speech offenses.

United Nations spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani warned last week that the human rights situation in Iran could be even worse than documented figures suggested.

“The high number of executions indicates a systematic pattern of using the death penalty as a tool of state intimidation, with disproportionate targeting of ethnic minorities and migrants,” Shamdasani said. “Public executions add an extra layer of outrage upon human dignity … not only on the dignity of the people concerned, the people who are executed, but also on all those who have to bear witness”

Shamdasani warned that “the psychological trauma of bearing witness to somebody being hanged in public, particularly for children, is unacceptable.” She argued that the death penalty “should never be imposed for conduct that is protected under international human rights law.”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Saturday announced the capture of eight people accused of aiding Israel’s Mossad espionage agency. During Iran’s 12-day war with Israel in June, police arrested as many as 21,000 individuals.

Australia announced the expulsion of Iran’s ambassador on Aug. 26, giving the diplomat seven days to leave following the discovery that the Islamic regime had directed antisemitic terrorism against the country’s Jews.

“These were extraordinary and dangerous acts of aggression orchestrated by a foreign nation on Australian soil,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said. “They were attempts to undermine social cohesion and sow discord in our community.”

Mike Burgess, director general of Australia’s security agency, said “they’re just using cut-outs, including people who are criminals and members of organized crime gangs to do their bidding or direct their bidding,”

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Aug. 24 that “they want Iran to be obedient to America. The Iranian nation will stand with all of its power against those who have such erroneous expectations … People who ask us not to issue slogans against the US … to have direct negotiations with the US only see appearances … This issue is unsolvable.”

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Belgium Ties Palestinian State Recognition to Hamas Exit, Hostage Release, Imposes Sanctions on Israel

People take part in pro-Hamas protest in Brussels, Belgium, Nov. 11, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Yves Herman

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot has announced that Brussels will recognize a Palestinian state at this month’s United Nations General Assembly if the Hamas terrorist group is removed from power in Gaza and all remaining hostages are freed.

“Belgium will recognize Palestine during the joint initiative of France and Saudi Arabia,” the top Belgian diplomat said in a post on X on Tuesday, calling the move a “powerful political and diplomatic signal.”

Prévot’s announcement came after Prime Minister Bart De Wever warned that recognizing a Palestinian state would be “pointless and even counterproductive” without strict conditions in place.

“Hamas must disappear completely, there must be a credible Palestinian Authority, an agreement must be reached on borders, and Israel must receive security guarantees. Without that, recognition makes no sense,” De Wever said last week.

Ahead of this month’s UN gathering, the Belgian declaration marks a conditional pledge to recognize a Palestinian state, provided there is mutual recognition of Israel in the Arab world, democratic elections in “Palestine,” and an agreement on final-status talks between the two parties.

Belgium is the latest country to join the initiative to recognize a Palestinian state, alongside France, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and others — a move sharply criticized by US and Israeli officials as a “reward for terrorism.”

Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad has previously praised the increasing Western support as “the fruits of Oct. 7,” citing the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

“The fruits of Oct. 7 are what caused the entire world to open its eyes to the Palestinian issue,” the terrorist leader said in an interview with Al Jazeera.

However, Prévot has pushed back against such accusations before, insisting that this initiative does not support or condone terrorism.

“Incidentally, recognition is not at all a reward for the horrific terror of Hamas. On the contrary, it’s about recognizing a state, not a government. And certainly not a terrorist group,” Prevot said in an interview with De Standaard on Sunday.

In his statement, Prévot also announced a package of 12 sanctions targeting Israel and Hamas, including a ban on imports from Jewish communities in the West Bank, entry bans on “two extremist Israeli ministers … and Hamas leaders,” and a review of public procurement policies with Israeli companies.”

“Given the humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Palestine … and the violence committed by Israel in violation of international law … Belgium was compelled to take decisive measures to increase pressure on both the Israeli government and Hamas terrorists,” the Belgian diplomat wrote.

“It is not about punishing the Israeli people but about ensuring their government respects international and humanitarian law and taking steps to try to change the situation on the ground,” Prévot continued.

He also affirmed that Belgium will continue advocating within the European Union for the suspension of all cooperation with Jerusalem, including the Association Agreement — a pact governing the EU’s political and economic ties with the Jewish state.

“Belgium will recognize Palestine … to preserve the prospects for a two-state solution and to condemn Israel’s expansionist intentions through its settlement programs and military occupations,” Prévot said.

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