Getting out the facts – and presenting a clear moral perspective– is an uphill battle. It’s important to reach as many as possible.
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Israel is coping within an unstable situation. (Ask me what else is new.) It is hardly surprising then that plans and policies shift.
The Security Cabinet had approved a major operation in Gaza City, which has just begun. Some 60,000 reserve soldiers have been called up for this operation and are scheduled to report for duty beginning on September 2. Already, there were reports two days ago that Israeli tanks had advanced into the Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City.
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But then in the midst of this, Hamas decided to withdraw some of its more outrageous demands for a hostage deal – demands that had shut down negotiations. The reason is obvious: this is an attempt to draw Israel into negotiations in order to curtail the IDF operation in Gaza City.
But in spite of the media hoopla about another chance to bring out hostages, the fact remains that what is being proposed, with “enhancements” put forward by Qatar (“new ideas, as additions to the existing framework, in hopes that the new proposal will enable Israel to accept the framework”) falls far short of what Prime Minister Netanyahu has enunciated as Israel’s demands: “the disarming of Hamas, the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip, Israeli control of the Gaza perimeter, and the installation of non-Hamas and non-Palestinian Authority governance.”
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-865285
What Hamas is proposing is another partial deal – with a 60-day ceasefire and the release of only about 10 of the presumed 20 who are still alive (Trump says it is fewer than 20). A second stage would be negotiated according to this plan, which would have built into it an end of the war. Hamas claims to have already received verbal guarantees that Israel would not be permitted to return to fighting.
https://www.israelhayom.com/2025/08/24/hamas-we-received-unwritten-assurances-from-mediators/
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If all of this has the feeling of déjà vu, it is with good reason. This is unbearably tiresome. And yet, the Security Cabinet will be meeting once again to decide how to respond to this negotiating offer. It would be exceedingly foolish and self-defeating for us to cut Hamas slack just at the time when they are on the verge of buckling. Last week “Israel responded by stating that the agreement deviates significantly from Witkoff’s original proposal and includes terms that Israel cannot accept.” (Thus has Qatar, a supporter of Hamas posing as a “mediator”, now tweaked the proposal.)
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/413609
But there is turmoil inside of Israel as those pushing for a deal have come out on the streets again today for another day of unrest.
Latest reports indicate that Israel indeed may send a negotiating team, but with the understanding that the demands already outlined by Netanyahu still stand. Bibi will not even put the possibility of a partial deal on the table when the Security Cabinet meets. And I say, Bravo Bibi!
https://www.jns.org/partial-deal-with-hamas-off-the-table-ahead-of-israeli-cabinet-meeting/
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Let us consider, then, why – beyond the very real concerns of Hamas attempting another October 7 – it is imperative that the IDF finally and clearly defeat Hamas.
The Western world is sadly oblivious to the dangers of Muslim Jihadists, who exist in many locations within that world and are intent on bringing down Western civilization. Their value system is founded on an honor-shame orientation. Should Hamas be permitted to remain standing, it would infuse Jihadists with pride and invigorate them in many places in the world. Hamas must be brought down.
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Back in November 2024, Ben Shapiro, a right-wing American commentator and journalist, and Douglas Murray, a right-wing British commentator and author, came together to speak at Jerusalem’s International Convention Center. Their words are every bit as powerfully relevant now as they were then:
“Thank you on behalf of Western civilization for fighting the fight the rest of the West should be fighting,” Shapiro told the audience. He emphasized that Israel’s fight is a fight for the West and maintained that the Jewish state is a last bastion of values that were the foundation for Western success.
“This is the tip of the spear in a civilizational battle…it’s why you don’t have a choice as to whether to succeed. You have a duty to succeed … Because as you go, Western civilization goes…The war is not only a war for Israel, but it’s the war for the West, for the moral argument for the West.”
Murray wrote, “The Strange Death of Europe: Immigration, Identity, Islam,” in 2017. In it, he warned that Europe could not survive mass Muslim migration and loss of faith in its “beliefs, traditions, and legitimacy.” Take a look at France and Britain – among other West European nations that have lost their way – and understand how precisely on the mark Murray is.
https://www.jns.org/douglas-murray-ben-shapiro-pack-israels-largest-auditorium/
Murray, on the right, with Amiad Cohen, CEO of the Herut Center, organizer of the event:
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As we recognize the full import of Israel’s fight against Hamas, it becomes easier to see why the battles on the PR, diplomatic and lawfare fronts have been so vicious. From the perspective of the Jihadists, and the Western nations that are absorbing and defending Jihadist values, demeaning and delegitimizing Israel is an important tool in the effort to defeat us.
“Murray stressed that Israel must maintain its strength, noting that history shows that the most dangerous time for Jews is when they are ‘prominent and weak.’ He dismissed as impossible the idea that Jews could avoid prominence, keep their heads down and not stand out.
“There’s only ‘one option,’ for Israel, that is to be ‘prominent and strong.’”
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Shapiro heartily concurred, saying that Israel’s efforts to convince the world of the rightness of its cause have failed because Israel’s enemies hate it precisely for its success and for being in the right.
“The world of moral persuasion is not where Israel is going to guarantee its future. The world of independence and strength is where Israel always has and always will guarantee its future.” (Emphasis added)
Shapiro offers wisdom here: We must broadcast the truth, always; I would never suggest otherwise But we must not delude ourselves that we can easily turn around hostile and irrational opinions by doing so.
We must fight the ultimate evil that is Hamas – it is in the nature of a moral imperative to so.
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Should you doubt the severity of the warning by Douglas Murray and Dan Shapiro regarding the threat to Western civilization of the Jihadist Muslim mentality, please see the interview by JNS editor-in-chief Jonathan Tobin (pictured) with Ben Poser, the executive editor of White Rose Magazine.
This is a threat that must not be minimized. Referring to what he calls “the death cult of Islam,” Poser indicates that “in the name of tolerance and pluralism, many in the West fail to understand that jihadist terror groups and their advocates aren’t so much distorting Islam as they are a reflection of its basic beliefs and texts…
“He says Western societies need not violate their principles of civil liberties to defend their values against those who seek to impose Muslim practices that are antithetical to liberty and democracy. Moreover, they need to recognize that while the…[Muslim] alliance seems to be solely focused on vilifying Jews…it is also a threat to the entire West and not just Israel and its supporters.”
https://www.jns.org/the-threat-from-the-death-cult-of-islam/
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The lies being promulgated about Israel seem endless. One of these, embraced broadly, speaks of “settler violence” against Arabs in Judea & Samaria. The facts tell another story – a story we should all be aware of (emphasis added below).
“Seventy-one Jewish farmers and shepherds have been wounded in Palestinian terrorist assaults across Judea and Samaria since the beginning of 2025, according to an Israeli rescue organization.
“Data gathered by the Hatzalah Judea and Samaria…indicate a rise in violence targeting Jewish agriculturists.
“Fifty-two shepherds and 19 residents of Jewish farms sustained wounds in the first seven months of the year, alongside ‘dozens’ of additional assaults that ended without casualties.
“Victims were attacked ‘with stones, gunfire, axes, clubs, attempted car rammings and severe violence, alongside extensive online incitement and calls to harm Jews who are defending state lands from Arab invasion and takeover’…
“’The farmers have proved again how important their presence is in the open areas between the Jordan Valley and Jerusalem and that they are protecting our country’s lands,’ Binyamin Regional Council head Israel Ganz declared.
“Arab aggression against Jewish shepherds in Judea and Samaria has been on the rise for years, according to data collected by authorities.
“Jewish farmers are grazing their sheep in open areas; Arabs don’t like that, even if it happens in Area C [of Judea and Samaria, where Israeli civilian communities are located]. They’re trying to stop them by using violence, a local official from Judea and Samaria told JNS on Aug. 9, 2023.
“More generally, Palestinian terrorists targeted Israeli Jews in Judea and Samaria at least 6,343 times in 2024, according to figures published by Hatzalah Judea and Samaria on Feb. 17.”
https://www.jns.org/71-jewish-shepherds-and-farmers-wounded-in-arab-attacks-since-jan-1/
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It is as essential as well to expose the very destructive libel that Israel is creating conditions of famine in Gaza.
“The UN-affiliated Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has published a report claiming ‘mass famine’ in Gaza. The announcement made instant headlines worldwide. But behind the drama was a quiet, extraordinary shift in methodology. Instead of the accepted global standards for measuring malnutrition, the IPC downgraded its criteria, relying on mid-arm circumference instead of weight-to-height and lowering the threshold for acute malnutrition from 30% to just 15%…
“According to that very same IPC report, nearly 24 million Sudanese face food insecurity. Over eight million are in emergency conditions, and tens of thousands are already in famine. Unlike the disputed Gaza numbers, these are facts that no one contests. Yet, Sudan earns almost no front-page coverage, no mass demonstrations in Western capitals, and no urgent debates in the UN.
“Why? Because Hamas has perfected the art of weaponizing human suffering. It blocks aid, manipulates data, and circulates shocking images, all to increase international pressure on Israel.”
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-865129
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“Israel’s COGAT says nearly 9,200 aid trucks entered Gaza since May, while the UN reports only 3,553; Officials warn the discrepancy—almost 6,000 trucks—distorts the humanitarian picture and misleads world leaders.”
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/b1wd5bzfll#autoplay
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Let me close with this special story, a story of courage, dedication and gratitude:
Idan Amedi, singer and star of Netflix’s Fauda, was called up to do reserve duty at the age of 37, leaving behind a wife and two very small children. In January 2024, he was severely injured in an explosion in Gaza that killed six members of his IDF unit. He was burned, unconscious, and badly wounded by shrapnel. A medic, Dr. Tuvia Book, gave him immediate treatment that saved his life. Idan was then brought to Sheba Medical Center for extensive treatment and rehabilitation.
Idan has recovered and is entertaining again. Dr. Book came to see him perform. See how Idan greeted Tuvia, once he learned he was there:
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Please, pray with full hearts, my friends, for the strength and wisdom of our leaders, the safety of our fighting troops, and the rescue of our hostages.
©Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by independent journalist Arlene Kushner. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution.
