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US State Department Spokesperson Shuts Down Suggestion Israel Responsible for Majority of Oct. 7 Casualties
US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller shut down a conspiracy theory floated by a Palestinian journalist that Israel killed most of its own civilians who died during the Hamas terror group’s Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel.
During a State Department press briefing on Thursday, Said Arikat — the Washington bureau chief for Al Quds, a Palestinian daily newspaper — asked if the department believed that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) killed the majority of civilians on Oct. 7, citing a report recently published by the left-wing Israeli outlet Haaretz. The article alleged that the IDF approved of the controversial Hannibal Directive, a military protocol which reportedly sanctions use of maximum force to prevent soldiers from being taken hostage, even if it results in increased civilian and military casualties.
Arikat asked Miller if the report changed or influenced the State Department’s :position or perspective on what happened [on Oct. 7].”
“Israel may be responsible for killing a majority of people that died,” Arikat added.
Miller gave a testy retort to Arikat’s attempt to seemingly shift the blame of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel. The spokesperson asserted that Hamas, which rules Gaza Gaza, is responsible for the vast majority of Oct. 7 casualties.
“I don’t think that there’s any question that it was Hamas that was responsible for the overwhelming number of deaths on Oct. 7,” Miller responded.
Watch as Al Quds reporter pressed Matthew Miller, saying “Israel—responsible for killing a majority of people that died [on Oct. 7th].”
Miller immediately shuts him down. pic.twitter.com/DMU3WDODpX
— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) July 11, 2024
Haaretz obtained documents and soldier testimony claiming that the IDF launched the Hannibal Directive on Oct. 7. According to Haaretz, the IDF ordered the directive as a response to being “overwhelmed” by the sheer number of Hamas terrorists flooding into southern Israel.
The IDF has launched internal investigations into what transpired on Oct. 7.
“The aim of these investigations is to learn and to draw lessons which could be used in continuing the battle. When these investigations are concluded, the results will be presented to the public with transparency,” the military said in a statement.
Israel first approved the Hannibal Directive in 1986 in response to IDF members being taken hostage by enemy forces such as Hezbollah. The IDF officially repealed the controversial procedure in 2016, saying it would instead create new orders better tailored to the various situations that soldiers may find themselves in.
Critics of Israel have falsely claimed that the Haaretz article suggests that the IDF intentionally killed Israelis Oct. 7 in an apparent attempt to defend Hamas’ brutal invasion of the Jewish state.
Arikat has been an outspoken critic of Israel, accusing the IDF of deliberately killing Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
During a May press briefing, Arikat said that Hamas was not motivated by an “ancient desire to eliminate Jews.” Miller, who was conducting the briefing, responded that Hamas has repeatedly proclaimed it is “committed to the destruction of the state of Israel and committed to the death of the Israeli people.”
The post US State Department Spokesperson Shuts Down Suggestion Israel Responsible for Majority of Oct. 7 Casualties first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Canada Boosts Security at US, Israeli Diplomatic Buildings After Consulate Shooting
A member of law enforcement personnel works at the scene outside the US Consulate after shots were fired, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, March 10, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. Photo: REUTERS/Kyaw Soe Oo
Canada is increasing security around US and Israeli diplomatic buildings after a shooting at the US consulate in Toronto, a Canadian police official said on Tuesday.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Chief Superintendent Chris Leather said the consulate shooting is being investigated as a “national security incident,” although it’s too early to determine the motive.
Leather said the US and Israeli consulates in Toronto, the country’s most populous city, and embassies in the capital Ottawa will be seeing a change in the security posture in response to the shooting.
“These consulates deserve a heightened amount of vigilance and security at this time in the hopes that we can bring the temperature down in the coming days and weeks,” Leather told reporters at a press conference.
Toronto Police Deputy Chief Frank Barredo said police were called to the US consulate in Toronto around 5:30 am ET on Tuesday, where they found spent shell casings and damage to the building.
Barredo said witness evidence indicated that two men exited a white SUV that was stopped outside the consulate around 4:30 am ET, shot a handgun at the front of the building and then drove away.
While there were people in the building at the time of the shooting, police say no one was injured.
SYNAGOGUE SHOOTINGS
The consulate shooting follows three separate incidents last week where gunshots were fired at synagogues in the Toronto area. No one was injured in those shootings. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called the attacks “criminal antisemitic assaults.”
Barredo said it’s too early to draw a connection between the consulate shooting and those at the synagogues.
“We definitely will be looking at any possible connections. Obviously, it is far too early in this investigation, but we do not look at them in isolation,” he said.
Canada‘s public safety minister described the consulate shooting as an unacceptable incident.
“The shooting … is absolutely unacceptable. Canada will never tolerate intimidation and violence of any kind, including towards our American friends in Canada,” Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said in a post on X.
The US State Department said in a statement that it was aware of the incident and was closely monitoring the situation in coordination with local law enforcement.
Separately, on Sunday, an improvised device exploded in Norway at the US embassy in Oslo, and police were still searching for a suspect, with a possible link to the Iran war among the lines of inquiry.
In New York City, two men have been charged with terrorism after throwing a homemade bomb at anti-Islam protesters over the weekend.
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Suspected Hamas Member Detained in Cyprus Over Weapons Procurement
Palestinian Hamas terrorists stand guard at a site as Hamas says it continues to search for the bodies of deceased hostages, in Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, Dec. 3, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Stringer
Cypriot authorities have detained a suspected member of Palestinian terrorist group Hamas wanted in Germany for procuring weapons and ammunition for attacks on Israeli or Jewish facilities, German federal prosecutors said on Tuesday.
The Lebanese-born suspect, identified only as Kamel M. in line with German privacy rules, was detained at Cyprus‘ Larnaca airport on March 6, arriving from Lebanon, they added in a statement.
The suspect is wanted in relation to the transport of 300 rounds of live ammunition, according to prosecutors. It wasn’t clear from the statement where the rounds had come from, or where they were thought to be heading.
“The operation served as preparation for deadly Hamas attacks on Israeli or Jewish institutions in Germany and Europe,” they said.
Police also searched the suspect’s apartment in Berlin.
Once Kamel M. is extradited to Germany, a judge will decide on pre-trial detention, the statement said.
Attacks against Jews and Jewish targets have risen worldwide since Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, triggered by the Islamist group’s 2023 attacks on Israel.
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Russia Told Trump It Isn’t Sharing US Military Asset Info With Iran, Says Witkoff
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attend a documents signing ceremony in Moscow, Russia, Jan. 17, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool
Russia has denied sharing intelligence with Iran on US military assets in the Middle East, US special envoy Steve Witkoff said on Tuesday in a CNBC interview.
Witkoff said the denial came during a phone call that US President Donald Trump had with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday.
The Washington Post reported on Friday that Russia was providing Iran with targeting information that included locations of US warships and aircraft in the Middle East.
“Yesterday on the call with the president, the Russians said that they have not been sharing,” Witkoff said when asked if Washington thought Russia had shared with Tehran intelligence about the location of US military assets.
“We can take them at their word. But they did say that. And yesterday morning, independently, Jared [Kushner] and I had a call with [Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri] Ushakov who reiterated the same,” said Witkoff.
He added: “That’s a better question for the intel people, but let’s hope that they’re not sharing.”