Connect with us

RSS

Lebanon Seeks Faster Israeli Pull-Out, Right to Self-Defense in Truce, Official Says

Smoke billows over Khiam, amid ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as pictured from Marjayoun, near the border with Israel, Oct. 29, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Karamallah Daher

Lebanon is seeking changes to a US ceasefire proposal to ensure a speedier withdrawal of Israeli troops from south Lebanon and to give both parties the right to selfdefense, a senior Lebanese official said on Thursday.

Lebanese officials requested the changes during meetings in Beirut this week with US mediator Amos Hochstein, who is working to strike a deal in the waning months of the Biden administration to end the war between Lebanese terroristt group Hezbollah and Israel.

The amendments sought by Lebanon, details of which have not previously been reported, indicate Hochstein still has work to do to seal a ceasefire agreement which he said was “within our grasp” during a visit to Beirut on Tuesday.

The Lebanese official told Reuters that Lebanon wanted to see Israeli troops “withdraw immediately after the ceasefire is declared so the Lebanese army can deploy in all areas” and so displaced people could return to their homes.

The official added that the Israeli position was a withdrawal within 60 days of the truce being announced.

A spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was not immediately available to respond to Reuters questions about their stance on the language of the truce deal.

Israel sent ground forces into south Lebanon on Oct. 1 as part of its stepped-up offensive against Hezbollah, which exerts significant political and military influence in Lebanon. The Iran-backed terrorist group has been firing rockets, missiles, and drones at northern Israel almost daily since last October, when Hamas launched the war in Gaza with its invasion of and massacre across southern Israel. The relentless barrages from Hezbollah have forced tens of thousands of Israelis to flee their homes in the north near the Lebanon border.

The Lebanese official said the current draft deal referred to a pullout from “Lebanese borders” while Lebanon wanted a specific referral to “the Lebanese border” to ensure that Israeli troops would withdraw from the frontier in full, not in part.

Lebanon has also sought language in the proposal that would preserve the right of both sides “to selfdefense“, the Lebanese official said, without elaborating.

Israel has insisted that, even if a truce is agreed, it will have the right to keep striking Hezbollah. Israel’s foreign minister said on Wednesday his country wanted to “enforce” that Hezbollah would stay out of southern Lebanon and not bring in weapons into Lebanon by land or through sea and airports.

The Lebanese official said there was no language in the US draft deal on Israel continuing its strikes against Hezbollah and that Lebanon rejected any breach of its sovereignty.

The post Lebanon Seeks Faster Israeli Pull-Out, Right to Self-Defense in Truce, Official Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Continue Reading

RSS

Surge of Antisemitic Incidents Rocks France Amid Growing Security Concerns

The Paris Holocaust Memorial, three synagogues, and a Jewish restaurant were all vandalized with green paint last weekend. Photo: Screenshot

France has been hit by a wave of antisemitic incidents in recent days, despite increased security at Jewish sites nationwide following last month’s antisemitic shooting in Washington, DC — prompting urgent calls from the country’s Jewish community for stronger government action amid growing fears of escalating violence.

On Friday, a French rabbi was violently assaulted by three drunken individuals in the town of Deauville, located in the Normandy region of northwestern France.

According to local police, Rabbi Eli Lemel — a prominent figure in French Jewry — was attacked around 3:30 pm by three men who approached him, repeatedly punched him in the stomach, and shouted antisemitic slurs.

French authorities have launched an investigation into the assault, but no arrests have been made so far.

After the incident, Lemel called on the Jewish community to draw spiritual strength amid the increasing hostility that Jews are facing across France.

“I’m deeply moved by the outpouring of support following the attack. Thank God, I’m okay,” the Jewish leader wrote in a post on X. “I was struck and verbally abused in a language I didn’t understand.”

In a separate incident, a 21-year-old man was arrested on Saturday after climbing a synagogue in the town of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine in north-central France, removing an Israeli flag from its façade, and attempting to set it on fire.

According to local media, the suspect — who was already known to authorities for prior offenses — confessed to committing the attack and admitted to being intoxicated at the time.

French police confirmed that the man is being charged with trespassing in a place of worship, theft by climbing, and causing damage to property on religious grounds.

The local Jewish community has voiced deep concern following this incident, viewing it as part of a broader surge in hostility targeting Jewish institutions across France.

Sandrine Dos Santos, the city’s mayor, expressed “[her] solidarity, as well as that of the city, toward the Jewish community directly targeted by these unacceptable antisemitic acts.”

“Faced with the increase in violence, our commitment against discrimination remains unwavering and will not waver. We repeat it loud and clear: no form of racism or rejection of others has a place in Poissy,” the French leader said.

In a separate incident on Saturday, three Serbs were arrested near Antibes in southeastern France, suspected of painting several Jewish community buildings green in Paris — an act currently under investigation as possible foreign interference.

Last weekend, the Paris Holocaust Memorial, three synagogues, and a Jewish restaurant were all vandalized with green paint in an incident denounced by the French government.

On Monday, an elementary school in Lyon, east-central France, was set on fire and defaced with antisemitic and pro-Palestinian slogans, as well as swastikas, marking one of the latest antisemitic incidents to impact France in recent days.

As the school had no direct connections to the Jewish community, local police have launched an investigation to determine the motive behind the attack.

French authorities reported that the fire was limited to the outdoor bathrooms, causing no significant damage to the school. They also found antisemitic graffiti and swastikas in three classrooms.

Yonathan Arfi, president of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF), denounced the attack, saying that “the Palestinian cause is used as justification for burning down a school” and that the “Nazification of Israel serves as fuel for crass antisemitism.”

“When a populist pro-Palestinian narrative is allowed to take hold, it is French Jews who ultimately pay the price,” Arfi wrote in a post on X. “The twisted use of the Palestinian cause is turning into a rallying cry of hatred against both Jews and the Republic itself.”

Beyond France, other European countries have also experienced a surge in antisemitic incidents in recent weeks.

On Monday, several headstones were vandalized at a Jewish cemetery in a suburb of Belgrade, located in north-central Serbia, marking the second such incident in the country in recent weeks.

The post Surge of Antisemitic Incidents Rocks France Amid Growing Security Concerns first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Continue Reading

RSS

US Vetoes UN Security Council Demand for Gaza Ceasefire

Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from Israel, June 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen

The United States vetoed a UN Security Council demand on Wednesday for an “immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire” between Israel and Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza and unhindered aid access across the enclave.

“The United States has been clear we would not support any measure that fails to condemn Hamas and does not call for Hamas to disarm and leave Gaza,” Acting US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea told the council before the vote.

“This resolution would undermine diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire that reflects the realities on the ground, and embolden Hamas,” she said of the text that was put forward by 10 countries on the 15-member council.

The remaining 14 council members voted in favor of the draft resolution.

Israel has rejected calls for an unconditional or permanent ceasefire, saying Hamas cannot stay in Gaza. It has renewed its military offensive in Gaza – also seeking to free hostages held by Hamas – since ending a two-month ceasefire in March.

The war in Gaza has raged since 2023 after Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people in Israel in an Oct. 7 attack and took some 250 hostages back to the enclave.

The post US Vetoes UN Security Council Demand for Gaza Ceasefire first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Continue Reading

RSS

Trump Picks Lawyer Who Called Oct. 7 Attack a ‘Psyop’ to Lead Federal Watchdog Agency

Paul Ingrassia (Source: Youtube- AMAC - Association of Mature American Citizens)

Paul Ingrassia. Photo: Screenshot

Paul Ingrassia, a 29-year-old lawyer who was recently nominated by US President Donald Trump to lead a federal agency dedicated to combating corruption and protecting whistleblowers, seemingly dismissed the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2o23, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel as a “psyop,” or “psychological operation, in resurfaced social media posts. 

“This ‘war’ is yet another psyop to distract Americans from celebrating Columbus Day,” Ingrassia wrote on X/Twitter on Oct. 8, 2023. 

“I think we could all admit at this stage that Israel/Palestine, much like Ukraine before it, and BLM before that, and covid/vaccine before that, was another psyop,” he posted a week later. “But sadly, people fell for it. And they’ll fall for the next one too.”

On the actual day of the Oct. 7 massacre, Ingrassia compared illegal immigration into the US to the Hamas-led onslaught.

“The amount of energy everyone has put into condemning Hamas (and prior to that, the Ukraine conflict) over the past 24 hours should be the same amount of energy we put into condemning our wide open border, which is a war comparable to the attack on Israel in terms of bloodshed — but made worse by the fact that it’s occurring in our very own backyard,” he posted. “We shouldn’t be beating the war drum, however tragic the events may be overseas, until we resolve our domestic problems first.”

Trump announced last week that he picked Ingrassia to serve as head of the US Office of Special Counsel, a position that requires confirmation by the Senate.

The Office of Special Counsel is an independent federal ethics agency that works to ensure fairness and accountability within the government. Ingrassia’s role, if he is confirmed, would involve investigating claims of wrongdoing, such as retaliation against whistleblowers or improper political activity in the workplace. The official can recommend disciplinary action and reports serious findings to Congress, helping to protect federal employees and uphold the integrity of the civil service system.

Ingrassia also maintains a relationship with and defends alleged sex trafficker Andrew Tate, who has promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories on social media. Tate wrote on X/Twitter that he refuses to “listen to women, Mexicans, or Jews” and that Jewish people are “subverting Western populations into mass genetic suicide” by advancing what he described as misguided immigration policy. Tate has also accused Israel of committing a “genocide” in Gaza against Palestinians and engaged in Holocaust denialism. 

The furor surrounding Ingrassia is the latest dustup the Trump administration has had regarding controversial personnel and antisemitism.

The Trump administration’s appointment of Kingsley Wilson as deputy press secretary at the Department of Defense also sparked widespread criticism due to her history of promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories and extremist views. Wilson, formerly associated with the Center for Renewing America, has a documented history of social media posts endorsing white supremacist ideologies, including claims about the 1915 lynching of Leo Frank — a Jewish man whose wrongful conviction and subsequent murder galvanized the founding of the Anti-Defamation League. In 2023, she tweeted that Frank “raped & murdered a 13-year-old girl,” a statement aligning with neo-Nazi narratives.

Late last month, the Pentagon announced that Wilson will be promoted and serve as the department’s new press secretary.

The post Trump Picks Lawyer Who Called Oct. 7 Attack a ‘Psyop’ to Lead Federal Watchdog Agency first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Continue Reading

Copyright © 2017 - 2023 Jewish Post & News