Connect with us

RSS

PLO Official Equated Released Palestinian Teen Terrorists with Israeli Child Hostages

Mia Leimberg, a hostage who was abducted by Hamas during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, holds her dog Bella while she and others are handed over by Hamas terrorists to members of the International Committee of the Red Cross, as part of a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel amid a temporary truce, in an unknown location in Gaza, in this screengrab taken from video released Nov. 28, 2023. Photo: Hamas Military Wing/Handout via REUTERS

In the recent exchange deal between Israel and Hamas, Israel initially agreed to release 150 terrorist prisoners — among them teen terrorists — in return for 50 Israeli female and child hostages captured by Hamas during its terror attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

Palestinians and others abroad have shockingly compared the innocent Israeli civilian hostages to the Palestinian terrorists imprisoned for terror attacks.

Thus, PLO Ambassador to the UK, Husam Zomlot, referred to Palestinian terrorist prisoners and Israeli civilian captives as one and the same thing — “hostages”:

PLO Ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot: “It is good news that hostages will be released from both sides, and while the world is hailing the release of 50 Israeli hostages — good for them — nobody is talking about the hundreds of Palestinian children that will be released, that have been taken hostage by Israel even before the 7th of October …

So this is an opportunity to expose the rotten, corrupted system of racial domination that Israel has erected in the entire occupied Palestinian territories.” [emphasis added]

[PLO Ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot, X (Twitter) account, Nov. 23, 2023]

An interviewer with CNN challenged Zomlot’s equating Palestinian terrorist prisoners with Israeli civilian hostages:

CNN interviewer: “When we look at the pictures of how those [Israeli] people [who] were kidnapped, elderly women thrown over motorbikes screaming, taken over the border, shoved down tunnels, kept in dark — there is a quantitative and qualitative difference in the mode of detention between the two.” [emphasis added]

[CNN Arabic, X (Twitter) account, Nov. 25, 2023]

Zomlot answered by denying any responsibility by terror organization Hamas, belittling the brutal kidnappings of Israelis of all ages, and claiming they were “done by individuals” whereas the Palestinian terrorist “hostages” were “kidnapped” by “a state”:

Husam Zomlot: “I’ll tell you what’s the difference. I’ll really tell you what’s the difference. The difference is the first is done by individuals [sic., by Hamas], but the second is done by a state, by a state that sponsored an army …

It is disgraceful to even draw any equity between a state that is a member of the UN, that is Israel and its responsibility under international law, and between individuals [sic., Hamas], so in fact the lack of equity is to focus on ‘responsible’ – between parentheses – actors, that they should perform in full accordance of international law.” [emphasis added]

[CNN Arabic, X (Twitter) account, Nov. 25, 2023]

Asked about Israel’s definition of the released prisoners as “terrorists,” Zomlot responded that to Israel, “every Palestinian is a terrorist,” and every person siding with “Palestine” is too:

Sky News interviewer: “The Israelis say that some of the people, some of the women and children in that group, are terrorists. How do you react and respond to that?”

Husam Zomlot: “Well, for the Israelis every Palestinian is a terrorist. For the Israelis every human being who supports our rights, everybody who calls for the end of the occupation is an antisemite.

For the Israelis every Jewish person who supports our rights is a self-hating Jew.” [emphasis added]

[PLO Ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot, X (Twitter) account, Nov. 23, 2023]

One such teen terrorist who Zomlot refers to as an innocent child “hostage” was Yazan Al-Hasanat, a 17-year-old member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terror organization, who was held under administrative detention from June 22, 2023, until his release in the deal.

Upon his release, Al-Hasanat praised Hamas’ “achievements” that led to his and other terrorists’ release:

Released terrorist prisoner Yazan Al-Hasanat: “We will empty the prisons. The prisoners’ situation requires resistance [i.e., terror] that will release them … The resistance is with blood, with weapons.

The prisoners do not want peaceful resistance. They want resistance that will fight so they will triumph. All the prisoners are in favor of the resistance … We are very proud of the resistance [i.e., Hamas], of the resistance’s achievements, and satisfied with what is happening in the Gaza Strip, with the abductions, the abduction of the captives [i.e., Israeli hostages].” [emphasis added]

[Quds News Network, Twitter account, Nov. 26, 2023]

At the time of the prisoner exchange for Israeli hostages, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ advisor, Mahmoud Al-Habbash, also referred to all imprisoned Palestinian terrorists as “hostages” who have a “right to breathe free air”:

PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ Advisor on Religious Affairs and Islamic Relations Mahmoud Al-Habbash: “It is the right of these brothers, sisters, and sons to breathe free air. We think that it is the right of every Palestinian to achieve his freedom and leave the Israeli prisons, because they are hostages in the hands of the occupation state ]i.e., Israel], and without a doubt it is their right to be released and their families’ right to rejoice.”

[Facebook, Nov. 24, 2023]

 The author is a senior analyst at Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article was originally published.

The post PLO Official Equated Released Palestinian Teen Terrorists with Israeli Child Hostages first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Continue Reading

RSS

UN Data: Nearly 90 Percent of Gaza Aid ‘Intercepted’ Before Reaching Intended Recipients

Palestinians collect aid supplies from the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, June 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hatem Khaled

The vast majority of humanitarian aid entering Gaza is intercepted before reaching its intended civilian recipients, newly released data from the United Nations shows, fueling growing concerns among Israeli officials and international observers about systemic aid diversion by armed groups in the enclave.

According to figures tracking humanitarian assistance for Gaza from May 19 to Aug. 1 of this year, out of the 2,010 UN trucks (carrying 27,434 tons of aid) collected from any of the crossings along Gaza’s perimeter, only 260 trucks (4,111 tons) reached their intended destination. That equates to a staggering 87 percent of all trucks and 85 percent of all tonnage of aid being stolen and not getting into the hands of civilians at the intended destination.

The UN’s own data, posted on the website of the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) as part of the “UN2720 Monitoring & Tracking Dashboard,” reveals that almost all the aid — 1,753 trucks (23,353 tons) — has been “intercepted, either peacefully by hungry people or forcefully by armed actors” while being transported inside Gaza over the past few months.

No breakdown is provided of how much aid has been seized by armed groups versus civilians.

The data also shows that much of the UN aid offloaded at any of the crossings along Gaza’s perimeter has not been collected to enter the war-torn enclave during this period. Out of 40,012 tons of aid (2,134 trucks) being delivered to the crossings, just 27,434 tons (2010 trucks) have been picked up. It’s unclear what exactly led to this discrepancy, with issues such as poor internal coordination and security concerns potentially delaying aid shipments.

The UN2720 mechanism, created earlier this year, was intended to boost transparency by verifying and tracking aid shipments via QR codes at key checkpoints. The system monitors each pallet from offloading to delivery and flags any discrepancies in a centralized database.

Israel has facilitated the entry of thousands of aid trucks into Gaza, with Israeli officials condemning the UN and other international aid agencies for their alleged failure to distribute supplies, noting much of the humanitarian assistance has been stalled at border crossings or stolen by the ruling Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

On Sunday, Israel announced a halt in military operations for 10 hours a day in parts of Gaza and new aid corridors as Arab and European countries began airdropping supplies into the enclave.

However, the UN and several Western governments have increased pressure on Israel to allow more aid into Gaza, blaming the Jewish state for what they described as a hunger crisis and insufficient amounts of aid reaching civilians.

Israeli officials have said that claims of mass starvation in Gaza are false and being amplified by not only Hamas, which has ruled Gaza for nearly two decades, but also international humanitarian organizations and media organizations to manipulate global opinion.

Continue Reading

RSS

Dutch Nurse Under Police Investigation for Alleged Threats Against Israeli Patients

Pro-Hamas demonstrators march in the Dutch city of Nijmegen. Photo: Reuters/Romy Arroyo Fernandez

A Muslim nurse in the Netherlands is under police investigation after allegedly threatening to administer lethal injections to Israeli patients — an incident that has sparked public outrage and intensified fears over rising antisemitism and patient safety in Europe’s health-care systems.

The comments were widely circulated by Israeli influencer Max Veifer, who also exposed a recent case in Australia where two nurses were suspended for two years over antisemitic threats and remarks.

In a video shared on social media, Veifer denounced Dutch-Muslim nurse Batisma Chayat Sa’id’s remarks as a serious violation of medical ethics.

“Someone like that should be prosecuted and barred from treating patients. Imagine your grandparents being cared for by someone so hateful,” the Israeli influencer said.

The incident was sparked when an Israeli-Dutch woman living in the Netherlands commented on a social media post by far-right politician Geert Wilders, who cautioned about what he called the country’s looming radical Islamization by 2050.

A social media account belonging to the Muslim nurse also commented on the post, claiming it would happen by 2027, to which the Israeli woman responded, “Your dream is our nightmare. But people wake up from nightmares. Our Netherlands, our Israel.”

“Nothing belongs to you! My grandparents built the Netherlands. I was born and raised here, and I will do everything in my power to help this country get rid of the Zionist cancer,” the nurse further replied.

“You know what I’m doing with Zionists — giving an extra injection as a nurse specialist. Letting them go to heaven!” Sa’id continued.

When the Israeli woman threatened to report her, Sa’id replied: “Haha, try your best! I don’t have a boss — I’m the boss! All Zionists can die, inside healthcare and beyond, and I’m happy to help with that!”

Shortly after her posts gained widespread attention, Sa’id deleted all her social media accounts, insisting that her identity had been stolen and that she was not responsible for such comments.

On Wednesday, local police detained Sa’id for questioning, but she denied the allegations, asserting that someone had impersonated her online.

“It seems someone is pretending to be me, posting false and defamatory statements,” the nurse said. “I want to make it clear — I hold no hatred toward Jews or any people, race, religion, or identity.”

Even after announcing plans to file an identity theft complaint, she faces skepticism from authorities, who have assigned a digital forensics expert to scrutinize her online accounts.

Last year, an account under her name also posted threatening messages aimed at Jewish people, including “Your time will come — don’t spare anyone,” and another in which she described the burial of Israelis in Gaza as “a dream come true.”

Earlier this year, two Australian nurses — Ahmad Rashad Nadir and Sarah Abu Lebdeh — gained international attention after they were seen in an online video posing as doctors and making inflammatory statements during a night-shift conversation with Veifer.

The widely circulated footage, which sparked international outrage and condemnation, showed Abu Lebdeh declaring she would refuse to treat Israeli patients and instead kill them, while Nadir made a throat-slitting gesture and claimed he had already killed many.

Following the incident, New South Wales authorities in Australia suspended their nursing registrations and banned them from working as nurses nationwide.

They were also charged with federal offenses, including threatening violence against a group and using a carriage service to threaten, menace, and harass. If convicted, they face up to 22 years in prison.

Continue Reading

RSS

French Authorities Halt Gaza Evacuations After Palestinian Student Expelled Over Viral Antisemitic Posts

Anti-Israel demonstration supporting the BDS movement, Paris France, June 8, 2024. Photo: Claire Serie / Hans Lucas via Reuters Connect

French authorities have halted evacuations from Gaza after a Palestinian student was expelled from the prestigious Sciences Po Lille and placed under investigation, following the viral circulation of hundreds of antisemitic posts praising Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and calling for the murder of Jews.

The incident drew widespread condemnation and public outrage, prompting French ministers to demand answers and call for an investigation into how the Gazan student was allowed into the country in the first place.

On Friday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot announced that all further evacuations from Gaza would be suspended pending the completion of the investigation into the student’s background.

After receiving a scholarship, 25-year-old Nour Atalla, a Palestinian from Gaza, arrived in the country in early July to begin her master’s degree in law and communications this fall at the Institute of Political Science in Lille, northern France.

Barrot confirmed that discussions are ongoing about the student’s possible return to Gaza, making clear that she must leave the country pending the investigation’s outcome.

“She has no place at Sciences Po, nor in France,” the top French diplomat said.

On Thursday, local authorities reported that a criminal investigation is underway into Atalla, with the public prosecutor in Lille confirming the case was opened for “apology of terrorism, apology of crimes against humanity using an online public communication service.”

Barrot admitted lapses in the screening process that allowed her entry and has mandated a comprehensive review of everyone evacuated from Gaza to France.

“The security checks, carried out by the French services and Israeli authorities, did not detect the antisemitic content,” the French diplomat said.

Atalla is one of 292 Gazans admitted to the country following a court ruling that opened the door for Gazans to seek refugee status based on their nationality.

She was offered a place at Sciences Po Lille University based on “academic excellence” and following a recommendation by the French consulate in Jerusalem.

On Wednesday, the university announced it had revoked Atalla’s enrollment after hundreds of her past antisemitic and violent social media posts went viral, sparking widespread condemnation from political leaders and members of the local Jewish community.

In several of these posts, she glorified Hitler, praised Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel, called for the execution of Israeli hostages and the killing of Jews, and expressed support for terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Hezbollah.

In one post, Atalla shared a video of Hitler giving a speech about Jews, writing, “Kill their young and their old. Show them no mercy … And kill them everywhere.”

In another post shared on Oct. 7, 2023, the day of the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, she wrote, “We must do everything we can to match the bloodshed — as much as possible.”

Continue Reading

Copyright © 2017 - 2023 Jewish Post & News