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Sinwar Agonistes
Yahya al-Sinwar, head of the Palestinian Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, attends a meeting with people at a hall on the seashore in Gaza City.
JNS.org – Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, mastermind behind the Oct. 7 invasion of Israel and the worst single-day slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust, is believed to be lurking within the subterranean labyrinth that lies beneath Gaza.
With funds provided by the “international donor community,” Hamas constructed more than 300 miles of tunnels—a network more extensive than the London Underground.
We may assume that Sinwar is somewhere below the southern Gazan cities of Khan Yunis or Rafah, and that he is surrounded by hostages abducted from Israel and barely clinging to life. On the streets above, Gazans serve as his human shields—some voluntarily, some not.
I’d wager that Sinwar is pondering four options.
Option 1: He can wait, betting that President Biden will pressure the Israelis to accept a “ceasefire,” a deal that would allow him to rise, praise Allah for victory, resume ruling Gaza and prepare for the next round of atrocities.
Sinwar was surely encouraged to learn that Biden last week said that Israel’s “conduct of the response in Gaza has been over the top.”
That charge is entirely unfounded. In truth, despite Hamas’s human shields strategy, the ratio of civilian-to-combatant casualties is unprecedentedly low for urban warfare, as historian Andrew Roberts last week explained to Britain’s House of Lords, and as John Spencer of the Modern War Institute has attested.
War is always hell, but Israelis have done more than any other nation ever to spare civilians—despite the fact that they are fighting a genocidal enemy backed by Iran’s rulers. The battle against Hamas is not one the Israelis can afford to lose or even end in stalemate.
Option 2: The Israelis let Sinwar go into exile, say in Algeria, in return for his release of hostages he hasn’t yet murdered. He may be giving serious thought to that way out.
Option 3: “Martyrdom in the way of Allah.” To jihadis everywhere, Sinwar would be a hero and an inspiration.
I’ll come to the fourth option in a moment.
Though Sinwar has plenty of food and fuel—stolen from the aid that’s been pouring in for Gazan non-combatants—life in the tunnels cannot be pleasant.
But he may derive occasional amusement hearing Western leaders and U.N. apparatchiks solemnly pronounce their support for “territorial compromise,” “land-for-peace negotiations” and a “two-state solution.”
Last week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken went further, calling for “a concrete, time-bound and irreversible path” to a Palestinian state.
Note that Blinken is not saying that the leaders of such a state would forswear terrorism and peacefully coexist alongside the Jewish state. Nor is he guaranteeing that such a state will not become a vassal of Tehran.
All he’s said is that Israelis will have “security assurances.”
Like the security assurances Israelis received from the U.N. Security Council after they withdrew from Lebanon?
Like the security assurances Ukrainians received from the United States when they gave up their nuclear weapons?
Like the security assurances Hong Kong received when the British turned the territory over to China’s Communists?
Sinwar is not fighting for a Palestinian state. He is fighting for the extermination of the Jewish state and its replacement—“from the river to the sea”—by an Islamic emirate, a jewel in the crown of the mightier-than-ever caliphate that is to come.
For Sinwar a “two-state solution” would solve nothing—unless it provided an improved platform from which to launch Oct. 7-style attacks.
Also, for all intents and purposes, was there not a Palestinian state on Oct. 6? What attributes of statehood has Gaza lacked since Hamas took power in 2007 after forcibly expelling the Palestinian Authority?
What expressions of sovereignty do Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Malta possess that Gaza under Hamas did not? A vote in the U.N. General Assembly? Oh, big whoop.
I know you’ve heard that, despite Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, the territory continued to be “occupied.” That charge was based on the claim that Israelis had “hermetically sealed” Gaza, turning it into the “world’s largest open-air prison.”
You were misinformed.
Yahya R. Sarraj, the Hamas-appointed mayor of Gaza City, recently expressed his distress over the destruction of his municipality’s theater, library, zoo, cultural center, parks, seaside promenade, restaurants and recreation areas.
We now know that senior Hamas officials lived in luxurious villas by the sea. Fighters went to Lebanon and Iran for training.
There were poor people in Gaza, to be sure, but they were provided welfare and social services by U.N. agencies, in particular UNRWA, the U.N. Relief and Works Agency.
UNRWA employees include Hamas members, Hamas sympathizers and the beneficiaries of Hamas patronage. They turned a blind eye to the terror tunnels, even those built right under their headquarters. Some participated in the atrocities of Oct. 7.
The Israeli “blockade” was nothing more than an attempt to prevent Hamas from receiving tons of weapons and ammunition, mostly from Iran. We now know that this mission failed. Gaza’s border with Egypt appears to have been porous.
Hamas amassed an enormous arsenal which is why, four months after Oct. 7, Sinwar’s fighters are still firing missiles and shooting Israelis.
Israeli forces are now battling a Hamas brigade in Khan Yunis, and have begun “pinpoint raids” in Rafah, where four battalions reportedly remain. On Sunday night, Israeli commandos rescued two hostages in Rafah.
Which brings us to Sinwar’s fourth option. He could emerge from the depths, surviving hostages in tow, and order his troops to cease firing.
That would save the lives of many Gazans, both his comrades-in-arms and those serving as Hamas pawns.
But that option, I’d wager, is the one Sinwar is least likely to choose.
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On Yom HaShoah, Three New Holocaust Films Are Worth Watching
The entrance to Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
As we mark Yom HaShoah this year, three Holocaust films stand out.
The first is a gripping drama about the first Jewish escape from a death camp. The World Will Tremble is directed by Lior Geller and features excellent acting by Oliver-Jackson Cohen, who plays Solomon, a Jew who makes an unlikely escape from Chelmno. The cast of Jews and Germans is all stellar but Geller, who wrote and directed the film, is the real star. Geller crafted a gripping film that soaks you in a bath of horror and despair only to embrace you with a towel of freedom and hope. It is an impressive movie that is full of heart, and tells a story that is not well known.
UnBroken is a documentary that shares the seemingly implausible story of seven Jewish siblings who survived the Holocaust, largely due to gentile farmers who chose to hide them. It is directed with deft and passion by Beth Lane, who goes to Germany to see the places where her family, including her mother, hid.
Unbroken explains how Lane’s grandmother was extremely daring, and when she loved a Christian man, she got him to convert. There is some unexpected humor toward the beginning of the film, and at a time when few survivors are alive, it is a blessing to see a film in which some appear and are completely cogent. The film is also based on the writings of Alfons, one of the seven siblings who survived. Was that result due to luck, kindness of farmers, or the work of God? The film is not overly preachy and allows the viewer to come to their own conclusions.
Lane’s film is an exquisite look at how the morality of two people can impact more than 70 lives, as the siblings have children and grandchildren. At one point, Lane asks if young people today would risk their lives to hide her. We can never really know what one would really do, but I suspect that few would risk their lives to save strangers.
Both The World Will Tremble and UnBroken would be excellent choices to show high school or college classes.
And if you want to learn about something you most certainly haven’t heard of, none other than the iconic Martin Scorsese has done an episode of his series The Saints that involves an unexpected hero of the Holocaust. Available on Fox Nation, the episode tells of Maximilian Kolbe, a Catholic priest who started the first Christian radio station in Poland. Interestingly, Kolbe at one time preached antisemitism, believing that the sick conspiracy book The Protocols of The Elders of Zion was actually true.
But that did not stop him from doing something unthinkable when the Gestapo sent him to Auschwitz. When one Jew escaped, a Nazi decided 10 would have to die. When Kolbe heard that one Jewish man cried that he had a wife and child, Kolbe asked the Nazi if he could be killed instead. He agreed. And a Jewish man named Franciszek Gajowniczek was saved, and lived until 1995 and attended the canonization of Kolbe.
There is not much dialogue, but the acting of Milivoje Obradovic is strong as Kolbe, who isn’t dramatic, doesn’t yell and chooses his fate to die for a Jew as if it is a totally normal request, even though the Nazi seems dumbfounded.
It is unclear whether or not he realized The Protocols of The Elders of Zion was a lie, or he simply realized that the barbarity of the Holocaust was an affront to God. Earlier in the episode, as a child, he says he wants to be pure and a martyr and may have been affected by his father’s death.
At a time when some people think they know all of the Holocaust stories already out there, here are three new ones — and all are worth telling.
The author is a writer based in New York.
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UK Lifts Sanctions Against Syria’s Defense Ministry, Intelligence Agencies
Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa attends an interview with Reuters at the presidential palace, in Damascus, Syria, March 10, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi
Britain on Thursday lifted assets freezes on Syria’s defense and interior ministries, and a range of intelligence agencies, reversing sanctions imposed during Bashar al-Assad’s presidency.
The West is rethinking its approach to Syria after insurgent forces led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham ousted Assad as president in December after more than 13 years of civil war.
A notice posted online by the British finance ministry said the Syrian Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Defense, and General Intelligence Directorate were among 12 entities no longer subject to an asset freeze.
The notice did not set out reasons for the de-listing.
In March, the government unfroze the assets of Syria’s central bank and 23 other entities including banks and oil companies.
The British government has previously stressed that sanctions on members of the Assad regime would remain in place.
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Finding Peace in the Middle East
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, then-US President Donald Trump, and United Arab Emirates (UAE) Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed display their copies of signed agreements as they participate in the signing ceremony of the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations between Israel and some of its Middle East neighbors, in a strategic realignment of Middle Eastern countries against Iran, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, US, September 15, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Tom Brenner/
President Donald Trump is planning a trip to the Gulf States in May. According to the White House, he will visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In anticipation, others are shifting gears, raising the question. “Are we getting closer to, or farther from, a peaceful region?”
Jordan just banned the Muslim Brotherhood (MB). The country’s Interior Minister said all MB activities would be banned in the country, and anyone promoting the group’s ideology will be held accountable by law. He added that the ban includes publishing, and requires “closure and confiscation” of all MB offices and property.
This, along with the Kingdom’s ban on Al Jazeera, puts Jordan in line with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. Israel and Bahrain also ban Al Jazeera, as does the Palestinian Authority (see below). All these entities understand that the Qatari government-owned media outlet magnifies and encourages radical MB ideology, promotes Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and attacks conservative Arab governments.
Jordan’s actions garnered praise from a prominent UAE entrepreneur posting on X: “The UAE was among the first to ban the Muslim Brotherhood and warn the world about its ideology … This is not Islamophobia! This is about national security, public safety, and peace.”
This is a step forward.
Lebanon
While Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun agrees that the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) should be the only armed force in the country, he is hedging over what happens to the remaining Iran-supported Hezbollah forces and weapons. “Any divisive issue should not be approached through the media or social platforms, but rather through quiet and responsible communication with the concerned parties.”
Hezbollah wouldn’t agree “to give up its arms de facto out of principle,” Karim Safieddine, a Lebanese political writer and doctoral student in sociology at Pittsburgh University, told Al Jazeera. Instead, they could disarm “in exchange for big benefits.”
Now, that is a bit of bravado, as Saudi reports indicate that more than 200 of the remaining Hezbollah commanders have left Lebanon for South America, where the organization has a well-entrenched drug and arms smuggling network.
Apparently, the commanders fear they could be targeted if more of its infrastructure is dismantled — though whether it would be targeted by the IDF or by unhappy Lebanese citizens is unclear. In any case, there are still tens of thousands of Hezbollah supporters in the country, and Lebanon still permits the airing of Al Jazeera.
But, an Israeli military source told Ynet, “In large areas, the Lebanese army is taking action against Hezbollah to a much greater extent than we expected.” Israel’s decimation of Hezbollah offers Lebanon its best chance for stability and prosperity in decades. If they can take it. It is a maybe.
The Palestinian Authority
It almost sounded as if Mahmoud Abbas, the corrupt dictator of the Palestinian Authority (PA), in the 20 year of his single, elected 4-year term, had come to grips with the monstrosity of Hamas behavior. Abbas called on Hamas to “release the hostages.” And, indeed, he did call Hamas “sons of b****es,” a huge insult.
But this is not about peace. Abbas opposes the continued holding of hostages by Hamas because he, Abbas, is paying a price. And Israel is winning. He told an audience:
They don’t want to hand over the American hostage. You sons of b****es — hand over what you have and get us out of this. Don’t give Israel an excuse. Don’t give them an excuse. Hamas has given the criminal occupation excuses to commit its crimes in the Gaza Strip, the most prominent being the holding of hostages. Why have they taken them hostage? I am the one paying the price. Our people are paying the price, not Israel … My brother, just hand them over. [emphasis added]
The banning of Al Jazeera by Abbas should be seen in this context. Al Jazeera, and the Government of Qatar, support Hamas over the PA and incite violence against both the PA and Israel. While the latter is acceptable to him, the former is not.
And Abbas isn’t too keen on Americans, either. He told his audience: “They [the Americans] said: Normalize, or something like that. You know the Americans; the Americans are like this. May their father be cursed [Laughter and applause]. I am not a great Arab leader. I am a dwarf, this small. Thirty-three times I told them, ‘No!’”
This is not a man seeking a resolution of the conflict either with Israel or the United States. This one is a no.
Finding Peace
The Abraham Accords of 2020 split the region. There remain those like Lebanese Sunni Islamic scholar Aboubaker Zahabi, who, during a protest in Beirut, declared: “To the sons of Zion, our religion is the religion of jihad. We will come to you and slaughter you.”
But there is also Khalifa, who marked Holocaust Memorial Day: “Standing here today as an Emirati and a believer in tolerance, coexistence and peace, I honor the memory of Holocaust victims and pay tribute to their memory by working to create a world where dignity is upheld and diversity is cherished.”
And Mohamed Albahraini of Bahrain, who wrote: “#Holocaust Remembrance Day. Asking God for the victims of our #JEWISH brothers and sisters mercy and forgiveness. May their souls rest in peace forever.”
As the President prepares for his trip, more Khalifas and Mohameds — and fewer Aboubakers — means more possibility that the region’s upheaval will ultimately result in peace. Good luck, President Trump.
Shoshana Bryen is Senior Director of The Jewish Policy Center and Editor of inFOCUS Quarterly magazine.
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