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Addressing Jewish Republicans, Kevin McCarthy promises to yank Ilhan Omar from House Foreign Affairs Committee
LAS VEGAS (JTA) — Kevin McCarthy, the likely next speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, said he would remove Ilhan Omar, the Minnesota Democrat, from the House Foreign Affairs Committee, in part because of her criticism of Israel.
He also hinted that her personal criticism of him last year was a factor.
McCarthy, a California Republican whose party just won a narrow majority in the House, was speaking Saturday to the annual Republican Jewish Coalition conference in Las Vegas.
“I remember what she said about me,” he said. “I remember what she said about Israel. I remember what she said about the [U.S.-Israel] relationship,” he said. “I remembered it so much, I promised you last year she would no longer be on foreign affairs. I’m keeping that promise.” There was applause.
Omar has called for greater congressional oversight of the U.S.-Israel relationship. She has attacked parts of the pro-Israel lobby, at times appearing to invoke themes of Jewish control, which has drawn accusations of antisemitism from some Jewish groups, from Republicans and from some Democrats. (Omar has apologized for some but not all of the remarks that caused offense.) She also supports the movement to boycott Israel.
One of Omar’s most notorious tweets was when she said that McCarthy’s support for Israel was “all about the Benjamins,” slang for $100 bills. She later apologized. McCarthy’s reference to what Omar said about him may also refer to her calling him “a liar and a coward” last year after he refused to discipline a Republican congresswoman, Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert, for calling her a member of a “jihad squad” and joking that she feared Omar, a Somali American Muslim, carried a bomb.
In a rare move in 2021, Democrats, who controlled the House, stripped Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, of her committee memberships in part for her past embrace of QAnon, a conspiracy movement that has spurred violence. McCarthy then said he would retaliate should he be elected speaker.
Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic House speaker at the time, declined a compromise from McCarthy that would have removed Greene from sensitive committees but allow her to remain on other committees. Saying that Omar “would no longer be on foreign affairs” and not banned from committees suggests that McCarthy may be thinking of the same sort of outcome for Omar.
Jeremy Slevin, Omar’s spokesman, said McCarthy did not care about antisemitism and was only seeking to silence Omar.
Greene “ran an ad holding a machine gun to @IlhanMN’s head and said Muslims couldn’t be in Congress,” Slevin said in a tweet. “Donald Trump led fascist chants of ‘send her back,’ leading to death threats. This has nothing to do with antisemitism and everything to do with silencing her by any means necessary.”
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The post Addressing Jewish Republicans, Kevin McCarthy promises to yank Ilhan Omar from House Foreign Affairs Committee appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Defense Minister Moves to Shut Down Israel’s Historic Army Radio Station
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz looks on, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Jerusalem, Nov. 7, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz, said he plans to bring a proposal to the government on Sunday to close Galei Tzahal, the Israel Defense Forces’ radio station, ending a broadcast operation that has been on the air for more than seven decades.
If approved, the shutdown would take effect on March 1, 2026.
The announcement has triggered sharp backlash from journalists, legal experts, and civil society groups, who warn the move could have far-reaching implications for press freedom. Tal Lev-Ram, the station’s commander, has already signaled that Galei Tzahal’s leadership intends to challenge the decision in the High Court of Justice. Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara also voiced concern, cautioning that the plan could amount to political intervention in public media and pose risks to freedom of expression.
Criticism has also come from the Israeli Press Council, headed by former Supreme Court justice Hanan Melcer, which labeled the proposed closure unlawful.
The council argued that dismantling a public broadcaster requires explicit legislation passed by the Knesset, not a government decision alone. Advocacy organizations, including the Movement for Quality Government, said they are preparing legal petitions as well.
Katz defended the initiative by citing the findings of a professional review committee, which concluded that a military-run radio station broadcasting political and current affairs programming to the general public represents a “democratic anomaly.”
He argued that Galei Tzahal has moved beyond its original mandate of serving soldiers and their families.
The committee examined a range of alternatives, such as converting the station into a music-only outlet or partially privatizing its operations.
Ultimately, it recommended either closing the station altogether or significantly scaling it back by removing political content. Katz noted that Galgalatz, the popular music station operated by the army, would continue broadcasting under the proposed plan.
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Trilateral Summit: Israel, Greece, Cyprus to Discuss Regional Security
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participates in the state memorial ceremony for the fallen of the Iron Swords War on Mount Herzl, Jerusalem on Oct. 16, 2025. Photo: Alex Kolomoisky/POOL/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – Jerusalem will host a trilateral summit tomorrow, bringing together leaders from Israel, Greece, and Cyprus to discuss strengthening security cooperation in the eastern Mediterranean.
The summit follows reports by Amichai Stein of i24NEWS last week that the three countries are considering the formation of a joint rapid-response military unit.
The Israeli Prime Minister is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with each of his counterparts before convening the full trilateral session, which will conclude with a joint press statement outlining the summit’s outcomes.
Media reports indicate that the initiative is driven in part by concerns in Athens over Turkey’s growing military activity in the region. The proposed rapid-response force is expected to enhance coordination, readiness, and overall security among the three allies.
Analysts say the meeting could solidify Israel, Greece, and Cyprus’s strategic partnership and signal a more unified approach to regional defense challenges.
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Justice Department Restores Trump Photo to Public Database of Epstein Files
An exterior image from the U.S. Virgin Islands property on Little St. James once owned by Jeffrey Epstein. via U.S. Justice Department
A photo of US President Donald Trump that had been removed from the cache of Jeffrey Epstein files released by the Department of Justice was restored on Sunday after officials determined none of Epstein’s victims were in the image, the department said.
The photo showing a desk with an open drawer containing a photo of Trump with various women was flagged by the Southern District of New York for review to protect potential victims.
“After the review, it was determined there is no evidence that any Epstein victims are depicted in the photograph, and it has been reposted without any alteration or redaction,” the Justice Department said on X on Sunday.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said earlier on Sunday his office removed the photo because of concerns about women in the photo. “It has nothing to do with President Trump,” Blanche said during a Sunday morning appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press with Kristen Welker.”
The Justice Department released thousands of documents on Friday related to Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender who committed suicide in 2019. But it has drawn criticism, including from some Republicans, over extensive redactions and few documents mentioning Trump despite his well-publicized friendship with Epstein.
During an ABC News interview on Sunday, Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called for a “full and complete investigation as to why the document production has fallen short of what the law clearly required.”
Up to 16 photos, including the desk drawer Trump image, were removed on Saturday from the Justice Department website, according to The New York Times, NPR and the Associated Press, although Reuters could not independently confirm the removals.
The Justice Department said on Sunday it acted with an abundance of caution after receiving requests from alleged victims and their lawyers to remove information.
Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing and has denied knowing about Epstein’s crimes.