RSS
US Official Blames Hamas Leader Sinwar for Lack of Hostage Deal
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. Photo: Yousef Masoud / SOPA Images/Sipa via Reuters Connect
At a recent US State Department briefing, an American official told reporters that Yahya Sinwar, leader of the Hamas terrorist group in the Gaza Strip, is single-handedly holding up any progress on a potential hostage deal, according to reports.
The senior Biden administration official said that while Hamas’ political bureau has shown some willingness to compromise on the terror group’s most hardline positions, Sinwar’s maximalist demands continuously win out.
“Sinwar has made the decision he’d rather hold [the hostages] rather than securing a ceasefire, and that’s just the truth of the situation,” the official said.
The United States and 17 other countries issued a joint statement on Thursday calling for the immediate release of all hostages held by Hamas, reaffirming the international community’s commitment to resolving the crisis.
Amid the diplomatic maneuvers, Egypt reportedly presented a new hostage deal proposal to Hamas and Israel, signaling ongoing efforts to find a resolution to the protracted crisis in Gaza.
US negotiators have said in recent days that Israel has made significant concessions to try and engender a hostage deal with Hamas — and that Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had “fully agreed” to the proposed deal currently being offered to Hamas.
Israeli media reported earlier on Thursday that Israeli officials are considering a proposed deal which would see 33 hostages held by Hamas released.
The Palestinian terrorist group kidnapped 253 people during its Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel. About 130 of the abductees remain in captivity in Gaza, although it’s unclear how many of them are still alive.
The post US Official Blames Hamas Leader Sinwar for Lack of Hostage Deal first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
Treasure Trove: A shard of glass from an East Berlin synagogue recalls the destruction of a Jewish community
This is a piece of broken glass from the Neue (New) Synagogue in Berlin. I am lucky that the Stasi, the state security service of East Germany, did not arrest me when I got it. It was the summer of 1982 and I went to Berlin while backpacking through Europe. The city was then divided with West Berlin being […]
The post Treasure Trove: A shard of glass from an East Berlin synagogue recalls the destruction of a Jewish community appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
RSS
Israeli Official: Reports of a Deal to Be Unveiled on Saturday Are Premature
Israeli troops on the ground in Gaza. Photo: IDF via Reuters
i24 News – An Israeli official speaking to i24NEWS on the condition of anonymity on Saturday sought to rebuff reports that a ceasefire and hostage deal could be announced in the coming hours.
Even allowing that an agreement on the framework of the deal is in place, there are still many details to thrash out, including the names of the prisoners to be released, which has yet been discussed at this stage, the official told i24NEWS.
Certainly no agreement is expected on Saturday, seeing as the head of the Mossad, Dedi Barnea, has not traveled to Cairo today.
As for US assurances regarding the end of the war, the source said these are promises made by the Americans to Hamas, and it is only theirs. Israel will maintain a military presence in Gaza, the official underscored, “because the Israeli public will not accept a different reality.”
The post Israeli Official: Reports of a Deal to Be Unveiled on Saturday Are Premature first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
Pro-Palestinian Group Demands California University Cut Ties With Jewish Community Organizations
Illustrative: Students Supporting Israel and Reservists on Duty protests the SJP National Conference at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities / Source: SSI
i24 News – Extremist campus group Students for Justice for Palestine issued a demand for UC Santa Cruz to boycott both Israeli and Jewish community organizations, a move described by Jewish groups and student and blatantly antisemitic.
SJP demanded that the university “Cut ties UC wide with all zionist [sic] organizations — including study abroad programs, fellowships, seminars, research collaborations and universities. Cut ties with the Hellen Diller foundation, Koret foundation, Israel Institute and Hillel International.”
US campuses have been roiled for weeks by anti-Israel and pro-Hamas encampment and riots, including scenes of violence at UCLA and other top universities, where anti-Israeli rhetoric has consistently glided over into antisemitism.
However, this latest demand is noteworthy in its apparent lack of interest in the usual fig leaves of anti-Israeli activism.
“Three of the four organizations cited in the academic boycott demand by encampment activists at UCSC are Jewish charities and communal groups,” the Bay Area Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) said in response.
“They are pillars of the Jewish community. This isn’t just about opposing Israel’s Gaza actions but seems aimed at Jewish institutions, revealing underlying antisemitism.”
The post Pro-Palestinian Group Demands California University Cut Ties With Jewish Community Organizations first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login