Wednesday, 20 November 2024

 

Your complete guide to Trump’s Jewish advisers and pro-Israel cabinet

Trump’s new cabinet picks include Mike Huckabee, Marco Rubio, loyalists with strong pro-Israel stances

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President-elect Donald Trump (center) on Nov. 13, 2024 and his recently announced appointees.

President-elect Donald Trump (center) on Nov. 13, 2024 and his recently announced appointees. Photo by College photo — via Getty Images

Jacob KornbluhBy Jacob KornbluhNovember 13, 2024

President-elect Donald Trump began shaping his cabinet this week, rolling out nominations that feature people deeply connected to the Jewish and pro-Israel communities, including Mike Huckabee, Steve Witkoff, and Marco Rubio.

His first national security picks are die-hard Israel supporters some of whom have denied the existence of the Palestinian people and back the annexation of the occupied West Bank. These loyalists are set to advance his “America First” and hardline populist agenda in a second term, could signal some shifts in longstanding U.S. policy, especially regarding a possible conflict with Iran and resolving conflicts in the Middle East.

Here’s a running guide to the key players and candidates in Trump’s incoming cabinet and advisory circles related to Jewish and Israel issues. 

Why Trump picked Rubio: Rubio, vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has vast national security experience and strong connections to secure a swift Senate confirmation.

What he’s said on Israel: Rubio, 53, has echoed Trump’s “peace through strength” doctrine and call to allow Israel to do what’s needed to defeat Hamas. In a viral video earlier this year, Rubio said he expected Israel “to destroy every element of Hamas.” Rubio likened the Israeli ground operation in Rafah, which was opposed by the Biden administration, to the Allies’ pursuit of Adolf Hitler during the Holocaust.

What he’s said on Iran: Rubio has advocated for reinstating tough economic sanctions on Iran to weaken its terror networks and prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons.

Relationship with Jews: Norman Braman, an auto dealership magnate and past president of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, was Rubio’s political patron. Rubio surprised pro-Israel backers with his April vote against emergency funding to Israel because it lacked border enforcement measures. Rubio excused Trump after he repeatedly accused American Jews of disloyalty to Israel and suggested they must hate their religion if they vote for Democrats. And he also angered Orthodox leaders in 2022 for introducing a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent across the nation, which would have made it more difficult for people to attend morning prayers and get to work on time.

Pete Hegseth, secretary of defense

Fox host Pete Hegseth on on Aug. 09, 2019 Photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images

What he’s said on Israel: Hegseth, 44, a Fox News host, provided favorable coverage of Israel on the network and said that his time in the U.S. Army turned him into a supporter of the Jewish state. He interviewed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in March and said, “Israel needs our support.” He also ran a three-part series on Fox Nation, “Battle in the Holy Land: Israel at War,” that focused on the war in Gaza and the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “There’s no doubt this is a fight that Israel needs to finish,” Hegseth said, echoing Trump’s call for Israel to finish the job and eliminate Hamas.

A hardliner on Iran: Hegseth called for U.S. military action against Iran back in 2020. “I don’t want boots on the ground, I don’t want occupation, I don’t want endless war,” he said on Fox News. “But Iran has been in endless war with us for 40 years. Either we put up and shut up now and stop it, or we kind of wait, go back to the table, and let them dither while they attempt to continue to develop the capabilities to do precisely what they said they want to do.”

Mike Waltz, national security adviser

Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL) on Aug. 12, 2023. Photo by Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Why it matters: The selection of Rep. Mike Waltz of Florida, a former Green Beret with a staunchly pro-Israel record, to lead the National Security Council signals Trump’s intent to maintain his strong support for Israel in a second term and take a tougher approach toward Iran.

What he’s said on Israel: Waltz, 53, consistently criticized the Biden administration’s foreign policy, describing it as one of “concession and chaos.” He strongly supports Israel’s war in Gaza and praised Israel’s targeting of Hezbollah operatives and elimination of the terror group’s commanding leadership. Even before the war in Gaza, Waltz said the U.S. should allow Israel to strike Iran’s nuclear program. Last month, Waltz recommended that Israel strike Kharg Island, a crucial hub for Iran’s oil exports, and its nuclear facilities at Natanz.

One of his key tasks: Waltz, a staunch advocate for expanding the Abraham Accords, will be playing a central role in talks with Saudi Arabia to advance Trump’s goal of achieving regional peace and resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Elise Stefanik, U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) on Oct. 27, 2024. Photo by Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images

What it means for Israel: Stefanik, 40, brings her national security experience and a combative, unapologetic style to the United Nations at a critical juncture for Israel and the Middle East. With tensions expected to rise around Iran’s nuclear ambitions and increasing global pressure on resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Stefanik could position herself as a formidable ally for Israel. Stefanik recently called to cut off aid for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine (UNRWA), the main supplier of humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in Gaza.

Her popularity among conservative Jews: Stefanik gained popularity in the Jewish and pro-Israel community after challenging the presidents of Harvard, MIT, and the University of Pennsylvania on whether calls for the genocide of Jews violate their campus codes of conduct.

Mike Huckabee, U.S. ambassador to Israel

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee on Oct. 29, 2024. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Why he got the job: Huckabee, 69, enjoys the trust of both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Huckabee, a Baptist minister, has been traveling to Israel since 1973 and says he’s taken more than 100 trips there since. A MAGA loyalist, Huckabee is a seasoned advocate for Israeli interests. His influence could bolster Netanyahu’s outreach to U.S. evangelicals, a community Netanyahu has increasingly prioritized over American Jews in recent years.

What he’s said on Israel: Last year, he led a mission of evangelical leaders to Israel following the Oct. 7 attacks. “I came here to say loud and clear that evangelicals stand with Israel,” Huckabee said. In 2008, Huckabee said, “There’s really no such thing as a Palestinian.” During the 2016 Republican presidential primary, Huckabee said he saw the occupied West Bank as an “integral part” of Israel. In 2017, he said, “There is no such thing as a West Bank. It’s Judea and Samaria. There’s no such thing as a settlement.”

A supporter of annexation: In a radio interview following the announcement of his new role, Huckabee said there’s a chance that Israel will be given the green light to annex the occupied West Bank in a second Trump term.

Unconventional pick: The position, traditionally a political appointment, is usually given to Jewish donors, trusted Jewish officials or career diplomats. Huckabee would be the first non-Jewish ambassador since 2011 and the first non-Jewish appointee without diplomatic experience in more than four decades.

Steven Witkoff, special envoy to the Middle East

Steve Witkoff on Oct. 27, 2024. Photo by Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Why he was picked: Witkoff, 67, has no diplomatic experience. However, he has a longstanding trusted relationship with Trump, and with his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who was instrumental during the first Trump administration in crafting the Trump peace plan and brokering the Abraham Accords. Like Kushner, Witkoff brings a real estate negotiating approach that Trump values. Witkoff has served as the Trump campaign’s backchannel to the Jewish business community, particularly after President Joe Biden halted the shipment of 2,000-pound weapons to Israel.

Relationship with Israel: Witkoff attended Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress in July, and found it moving, especially when Netanyahu talked about the hostages in Gaza — some of whom were at the Capitol that day. “It felt spiritual,” Witkoff said on the Fox Business channel the next day, “and yet, that’s not the reaction you sense that you were getting from many of those Democrats.”

John Ratcliffe, CIA director

John Ratcliffe, former director of National Intelligence, on April 18, 2023. Photo by Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images

What it means for Israel: Ratcliffe, 59, previously a member of Congress from Texas and former director of national intelligence, accused the Biden administration of diverting critical U.S. intelligence assets from monitoring terrorist groups like Hamas. During the presidential campaign, he criticized Vice President Kamala Harris for promoting “a false narrative” that portrayed Israel as targeting innocent Palestinians in Gaza. Ratcliffe also supported the 2017 travel ban that restricted immigration from seven predominantly Muslim countries.

What he’s said on Iran: In an interview with Fox News this year, Ratcliffe praised Israeli strikes on Iran, describing them as an example of the ‘Trump doctrine’ of maximum pressure. He suggested that the U.S. should assist Israel in such military actions.

Stephen Miller, deputy chief of staff and homeland security adviser

Stephen Miller, senior adviser to Donald Trump on Oct. 27, 2024. Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Jewish with strong nationalist views: Miller, 39, declared last month at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally, “America is for Americans and Americans only.” He was influential in crafting tough immigration policies during Trump’s first term and the architect behind the policy of separating young children from their undocumented parents. Miller led the implementation of the so-called Muslim travel ban in 2017 and reportedly also hoped to eliminate all refugee admissions to the U.S., dismantling a policy put in place in the wake of the Holocaust.

Condemned by family and classmates: Miller, now tapped for a powerful role within the administration, has been condemned by his Jewish family, descendants of immigrants who fled pogroms, and by his past classmates. His uncle, Dr. David Glosser, a retired neuropsychologist, called him an “immigration hypocrite.” His former rabbi said Trump and Miller’s statements are “echoes of ominous promises that Jews have heard throughout history.”

Lee Zeldin, EPA administrator 

Former Rep. Lee Zeldin on July 17, 2024. Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

A Jewish MAGA loyalist: Zeldin, 44, has earned Trump’s trust since voting as a congressman against certifying the 2020 election results. During the campaign, Zeldin was a vocal Trump surrogate and critic of anti-Israel sentiment in the Democratic Party. He excused Trump’s remarks saying Jews would be to blame if the former president lost the election, and he accused Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro of “trying to un-Jewish himself” to become Kamala Harris’ vice presidential pick.

His Jewish background: Zeldin, who is married to a Mormon, leaned into his Jewish background to rally Orthodox voters during his 2022 New York gubernatorial campaign. His great-grandfather Moshe Efraim “Morris” Zeldin, whom Zeldin is named after, was an Orthodox rabbi in Brooklyn and a pioneer in the Zionist movement. Growing up in Suffolk County on Long Island, Zeldin spent considerable time with his grandfather Bernard Zeldin, who founded the Farmingdale Jewish Center. His mother, Merrill Schwartz, was a fourth-grade teacher at a yeshiva in Brooklyn.

Kristi Noem, homeland security 

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem on Oct. 14, 2024. Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

What it means for Jews: The department of homeland security provides resources and guidance to houses of worship to protect themselves under the Nonprofit Security Grant Program. Close collaboration between the agency and Jewish community leaders will be vital to address growing threats and security concerns. Earlier this year, Noem, 52, serving as governor of South Dakota, signed into law a bill that mandates the use of the controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism when investigating allegations of discrimination.

Best known for: Noem gained national attention earlier this year after a revelation in her memoir sparked backlash that derailed her bid to be chosen as Trump’s vice presidential pick. She disclosed that she had shot her hunting dog, an action that stirred controversy, as societal views against cruelty to animals stretch back to the time of the Talmud.

Matt Gaetz, attorney general

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) on Oct. 12, 2024. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images

Um, what? Trump raised eyebrows when he announced the nomination of Gaetz, 42, as head of the justice department.

What he’s done and said: Earlier this year, Gaetz faced backlash for voting against a bipartisan bill aimed at addressing rising antisemitism in colleges and universities by invoking an antisemitic trope that Jews killed Jesus. Gaetz called the Anti-Defamation League “racist” in 2021 after it urged Fox News to fire host Tucker Carlson for promoting the antisemitic Great Replacement Theory. In 2019, Gaetz suggested that George Soros, the Hungarian-born Jewish billionaire and frequent target of antisemitic tropes, was behind an alleged migrant caravan.

Association with white nationalists: In his first term in the House, Gaetz defended giving a ticket for the State of the Union to Chuck Johnson, a right-wing troll who once denied the Holocaust. He also hired a Trump White House speechwriter who was fired after it was reported he appeared at a conference featuring a white nationalist.

Other appointments 

Vivek Ramaswamy, 39, a biotech entrepreneur who has never served in public office, was appointed to an outside government entity, called the Department of Government Efficiency, along with Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Ramaswamy has publicly questioned the necessity of continuing U.S. military aid to Israel.

► Rick Grenell, former ambassador to Germany who also served as acting director of national intelligence towards the end of Trump’s first term, was on the shortlist for secretary of state. If Rubio is nominated, Grenell may still secure a significant role in the cabinet. He was a key figure in advancing sanctions against Iran and the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. Grenell was also instrumental in Trump’s outreach to Arab American and Muslim voters in Michigan during the presidential campaign.

► Boris Epshteyn, a Jewish senior adviser to Trump since 2016. He also served as counsel during the hush money trial in New York, and will likely stay in Trump’s inner circle, perhaps as a general adviser with a broad portfolio.

► Alina Habba, Trump’s trial attorney who in her RNC speech touted her marriage to Jewish entrepreneur Gregg Reuben, is on the shortlist to serve as White House press secretary.

► Tulsi Gabbard, an anti-war former Democratic congresswoman who switched to the Republican Party, is reportedly being considered for director of national intelligence, raising concerns within the pro-Israel community.

Candidates for treasury secretary 

► Scott Bessen, a hedge fund manager and a top fundraiser for Trump, is the leading candidate for treasury. The department oversees economic and trade sanctions on Iran and other bad actors. Bessen is described as a protege of Jewish billionaire George Soros, serving for two decades as management investing chief at the Soros Fund Management. Trump invoked the Soros-as-puppeteer antisemitic conspiracy in his fundraising emails last year.

► Howard Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald and co-chair of Trump’s transition team is also in the mix for the job.

Outside Jewish advisers and people with access: 

► Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and former Middle East adviser, who said earlier this year he would not return to the White House, is involved behind the scenes and could be a key player in a potential normalization deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

► Massad Boulos, the Lebanese American father-in-law of Tiffany Trump who led outreach to Arab-American communities during the election, is likely to be the point person for Lebanon and have Trump’s ear on the Middle East.

► David Friedman, Trump’s first ambassador to Israel, is interested in returning to a national security position to influence Middle East policy and advance a pro-settlement agenda.

► David Sacks, a tech entrepreneur who bundled millions for Trump. He is also a longtime friend of Musk.

► John Paulson, a financier and an ardent supporter of Trump. He removed himself from consideration for treasury due to financial obligations.

► Steve Schwarzman, Blackstone CEO, will be a powerful voice on antitrust rules, trade policy and the tax code. He is offering recommendations for administration roles.

► Wayne Berman, head of global government affairs for Blackstone and a Republican Jewish Coalition board member. Some suggested Berman as deputy secretary of treasury.

► Miriam Adelson, the widow of casino magnate and GOP megadonor Sheldon Adelson, who spent more than $100 million for Trump and made several joint appearances with him.

► Elan Carr, CEO of the Israeli American Council who served as the antisemitism envoy in Trump’s first term.

► Jeff Miller, head of Miller Strategies and one of Trump’s top fundraisers.

► Arthur Schwartz, a behind-the-scenes operator and Twitter troll who has been Donald Trump Jr.’s political adviser for years and is close to Vice President-elect JD Vance.

► Bill Ackman, a hedge fund billionaire who has been highly critical of the pro-Palestinian protest movement at Harvard and the university’s response to antisemitism. He has also been outspoken against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

► Ike Perlmutter, the former Marvel mogul and a Mar-a-Lago member who influenced policy at the department of veterans affairs in Trump’s first term.

► Steve Wynn, the Vegas casino mogul and longtime Trump friend who warned him about being off message during the campaign.

► Paul Packer, who chaired the commission of the preservation of America’s heritage abroad in Trump’s first term, was co-chair of the Trump campaign’s Jewish Leadership Coalition, a fundraising group.

► Bruce Blakeman, Nassau County’s first Jewish executive and a close Trump ally, who is in consideration for an administration job.

► Sid Rosenberg, conservative New York-based radio host who was one of Trump’s most aggressive Jewish surrogates.

► Laura Loomer, the conspiracy theorist and provocateur who flew with Trump and appeared with him in September and uses her Jewishness to attack opponents.

Other influencers within Trump’s close circle who have promoted antisemitic tropes and are associated with white nationalists include former Fox news host Tucker CarlsonRobert F. Kennedy Jr.Steve BannonCharlie Kirk


VT Condemns the ETHNIC CLEANSING OF PALESTINIANS by USA/Israel

$280+ BILLION US TAXPAYER DOLLARS INVESTED since 1948 in US/Israeli Ethnic Cleansing and Occupation Operation
150B direct "aid" and $ 130B in "Offense" contracts
Source: Embassy of Israel, Washington, D.C. and US Department of State.


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Israel rejects northern Gaza-bound humanitarian aid trucks – Day 409

Israel rejects northern Gaza-bound humanitarian aid trucks – Day 409
A Palestinian child waits to receive food in southern Khan Younis (Doaa Albaz/Anadolu Agency)

Compilation of news reports – IAK staff

At least 50 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza over the latest 24-hour reporting period, according to the Health Ministry.

The Government Media Office in Gaza has published its latest key statistics about Israel’s war, now in its 410th day, including figures about the underage victims of Israeli attacks:

  • Of the 43,972 Palestinians confirmed killed, 17,492 are children
  • 211 newborns were born and killed during the genocide
  • 825 infants under the age of one have been killed
  • 70 percent of victims are women and children
  • 35,060 children are living without one or both parents
  • 3,500 children are at risk of death due to malnutrition and hunger

Lebanon’s health ministry said on Tuesday that in the past day, 28 people have been killed and 107 others wounded.

UNICEF says children in Lebanon are facing a “silent normalization of horror”, with more than 200 killed and 1,100 injured in the last two months.

A child sits with the bodies of Palestinians killed in an Israeli attack on the Jabalia al-Baled area on November 10, 2024
A child sits with the bodies of Palestinians killed in an Israeli attack on the Jabalia al-Baled area on November 10, 2024 (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu)

Israeli forces target Kamal Adwan Hospital with 3-hour shelling barrage

Dr Hussam Abu Safia, the hospital’s director, said the building’s roof and upper floors were destroyed in the latest Israeli attack.

The shelling, which began as doctors were resuscitating a wounded man, lasted three hours.

“The hospital has been targeted with harmful sound bombs. These explode and spread shrapnel – which can break bones – and they destroyed, for the 10th time, the water tanks and sewage systems,” said Ahmed al-Kahlout, director of the intensive care unit (ICU) at Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya.

A view of destruction near Kamal Adwan Hospital after Israeli forces’ withdrawal, northern Gaza Strip on October 27, 2024.
A view of destruction near Kamal Adwan Hospital after Israeli forces’ withdrawal, northern Gaza Strip on October 27, 2024. (Khalil Ramzi Alkahlut – Anadolu Agency)

Israeli army forced food off trucks before delivery to north Gaza: UN

The UN’s humanitarian office says thousands of Palestinians in the areas of northern Gaza under siege by Israeli forces are struggling to stay alive because there has been virtually no food or humanitarian aid deliveries for more than 40 days.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric delivered the grim report from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, known as OCHA.

“OCHA reports that all attempts by the UN to support people in [Beit Hanoon], Beit Lahiya and parts of [Jabalia] – all of which remain under siege – have been either denied or impeded,” he said.

So far in November, OCHA reports that 27 out of 31 planned humanitarian missions were rejected by Israel and the other four were severely impeded, Dujarric said.

“The result is that bakeries and kitchens in north Gaza governorate have shut down, nutrition support has been suspended, and the refueling of water and sanitation facilities has been completely blocked,” Dujarric said.

Palestinians, including children, wait to receive food distributed by an aid organisation in, Gaza on November 18, 2024
Palestinians, including children, wait to receive food distributed by an aid organisation in, Gaza on November 18, 2024 (Hassan Jedi/Anadolu Agency)

West Bank: Israeli Forces Kill 5 Palestinians in Jenin

Israeli forces assassinated five Palestinian men, on Tuesday, after besieging and bombing a home in the village of Ash-Shuhada (Martyrs’ Triangle), southwest of Jenin in the northern occupied West Bank.

The Palestinian Health Ministry announced that it was informed by the General Authority of Civil Affairs of the death of three Palestinian young men by Israeli forces.

The Ministry identified the slain young men as Raed Abdul Rahman Sadiq Hanaysha, 24, Anwar Nidal Tawfiq Saba’neh, 25, and Suleiman Adnan Suleiman Tazaza’a, 32, as well as Firas Al-Jasser and Rami Al-Huwaiti,

Sources added that soldiers opened heavy fire at the besieged young men and blocked ambulance crews from providing medical treatment, causing them to succumb to their wounds.

5 West Bank Palestinians killed Tuesday, Nov 19, by Israeli forces.
5 West Bank Palestinians killed Tuesday, Nov 19, by Israeli forces. (IMEMC)

‘Total oppression’: West Bank children being killed at unprecedented rate

Mohammad was 12, a football-mad teenager who spent his days dreaming of a career on the pitch and his last minutes practicing ball skills. Ghassan was 14, a quiet, generous teenager who ran errands for elderly relatives, with an adoring six-year-old brother who stuck to him like a shadow.

Both boys were shot dead this summer by Israeli soldiers, victims of an unprecedented surge in attacks on children in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

In the year from the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, Israeli troops and settlers killed 171 Palestinian children there, equivalent to one death almost every other day, according to UN data. More than 1,000 others have been injured.

The youngest victim was a four-year-old girl, shot dead when she and her mother were sitting in a taxi near a checkpoint in January.

Officially there is no war in the occupied West Bank, and the scale of death in Gaza has overshadowed the losses there. But children are dying in greater numbers than at any time since the Israeli army seized control of the area in 1967.

“In the course of last year there was an extremely concerning increase in children killed in conflict-related violence in the West Bank, and we already see the trend is continuing,” said Jonathan Crickx, spokesperson for Unicef Palestine.

“Unicef wants to ring the alarm bell, that children are being killed and seriously injured on a regular basis, mostly by live ammunition.”

The UN only counts child victims whose name, age and cause of death it has verified.

No soldier has been charged over any of the shootings, and the Israeli military did not directly address the surge in child casualties when approached for comment.

According to a September 2024 report by Defense for Children International, Israel has been killing one Palestinian child every two days in illegally occupied West Bank (Pictured: A woman walks with children in a destroyed part of Jenin in West Bank, September 1, 2024)
According to a September 2024 report by Defense for Children International, Israel has been killing one Palestinian child every two days in illegally occupied West Bank (Pictured: A woman walks with children in a destroyed part of Jenin in West Bank, September 1, 2024) (Issam Rimawi – Anadolu Agency)

Israeli paramedic suspended after mocking woman’s death in rocket attack

Israel’s national ambulance service has suspended one of its paramedics who rejoiced over the death of an Arab woman killed by a rocket attack on the Arab city of Shfaram in northern Israel, according to Arab parliament member Ahmad Tibi.

Writing on Instagram about the rocket attack victim, the paramedic said: “There’s no reason to feel sorry. She’s a terrorist by every definition. She doesn’t support us in any way.”

Israel’s ambulance service plans to fire the paramedic, The Times of Israel cited Tibi as saying.


White House Staffers to Biden: “You Are Running Out of Time” on Gaza

A group of White House staffers sent a letter of dissent on Monday over the Biden administration’s decision not to enforce its own ultimatum over the Israeli government’s restriction of humanitarian aid to Gaza.

With just weeks until President-elect Donald Trump begins his second administration, the letter is a plea for President Joe Biden to “take simple and immediate action to drastically mitigate the humanitarian crisis.”

“You are running out of time to do the right thing, but decisive action could save precious lives in the next two months,” reads the letter. Twenty “current, full-time employees of the White House,” who were not named for fear of professional retaliation, drafted the letter.

The Intercept spoke with two senior White House staffers who helped draft the letter, which was directed to Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and a variety of senior policy advisers.

“I’m thinking a lot about the concept of legacy and ending well,” said one of the staffers. “I personally want to be seen as someone who keeps my commitments and want to be part of an administration that keeps its commitments too” (continue reading here).

President Joe Biden departs after speaking to the media at the White House on July 1, 2024 in Washington, D.C.
President Joe Biden departs after speaking to the media at the White House on July 1, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Five Days on a Media Junket in Israel: Lies, Half-Truths, and Conspiracy Nonsense

In late July, [Alexander Willis] received a peculiar cold email. It was an invitation from the American Middle East Press Association (AMEPA) for an all-expenses-paid tour of Israel, tailored exclusively to members of the U.S. media. As a journalist in Alabama whose job consists primarily of chasing around lawmakers and writing about committee hearings, the offer was certainly outside my wheelhouse.

But as someone who has observed Israel’s war in Gaza closely and the western media’s coverage of the war, I was intrigued, especially since AMEPA’s goal is “to get the truth out there,” according to Kim Kamen, the organization’s chief operating officer. So in September, I took them up on their offer and headed to Israel.

During the five-day trip, we were told that nearly every Palestinian in Gaza shared culpability for the October 7 attack by Hamas. Several of the experts and officials AMEPA introduced us to said that rape and brutal killings are inherent to the Islamic faith and that many United Nations aid workers were terrorists. Some even suggested that the countless videos of Palestinians injured or killed by Israeli bombardment were, in fact, often staged film productions [all false].

AMEPA’s truth, as I discovered, amounts to a version of pure Israeli propaganda far more extreme than anything I could have expected.

Ziv rebuffed the assertion that Israel had prohibited humanitarian aid from getting into Gaza…“The problem, by the way, in Gaza today— it’s not starvation, it’s the other way around,” he said. “People can die from overeating. Seriously, the amount of food and everything there. And Hamas is taking that over and reselling to the people.”

Ziv made no mention of the fact that, just one day earlier, the Norwegian Refugee Council had published a report showing that Israel had blocked 83% of the food trucks reaching Gaza, allowing only 69 trucks per day, on average, a record low. While Israel has long claimed that Hamas steals humanitarian aid intended for civilians in Gaza, many of whom are starving to death according to research from Oxfam International, its government has yet to produce evidence proving the group has seized any significant portion of aid.

Perhaps most striking were the claims that videos of suffering or killed Palestinians had been elaborately staged using actors, prosthetics, and makeup, a supposed ruse Israeli propagandists refer to as “Pallywood,” a portmanteau of Palestine and Hollywood…(continue reading here).

Destroyed buildings and difficult conditions, in Khan Younis, Gaza on October 13, 2024.
Destroyed buildings and difficult conditions, in Khan Younis, Gaza on October 13, 2024. (Doaa Albaz – Anadolu Agency)

US to present UN resolution opposing Israel’s control of occupied West Bank: Israeli media

The US administration plans to present a draft resolution to the UN Security Council to oppose Israel’s control over the occupied West Bank, Israeli media said on Tuesday.

Israel Hayom newspaper, citing a US source close to the Biden administration, said the draft will state that Israel’s presence in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem and its Old City area, is in violation of international law.

The draft is currently being formulated by the US National Security Council, the source said, without specifying when it will be presented to the Security Council.

Biden’s move is similar to a decision by the Obama administration on Dec. 2016 to abstain from voting on a Security Council resolution that demands an immediate halt to all Israeli settlement construction in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, enabling the resolution to pass.

NOTE: Since Israel’s invasion of Gaza, the U.S. has vetoed three separate U.N. Security Council resolutions that would have called for a humanitarian pause or immediate ceasefire.
A general view of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, in New York
A general view of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, in New York (Fatih Aktaş/Anadolu Agency)

MORE NEWS:

Al Jazeera: Palestinian Canadians condemn ‘betrayal’ of faltering Gaza visa scheme
The Intercept: No Room For Emergency: San Francisco’s Biggest Hospital System: Don’t Talk About Palestine
Middle East Monitor: UK lawmaker says ‘targeting’ of children in Gaza by Israeli drones like ‘warped video game’
Palestine Chronicle: Delenda Est Carthago – Extermination by Machine and Starvation in Gaza

STATISTICS OCTOBER 7, 2023 – NOVEMBER 19, 2024:

Palestinian death toll from October 7, 2023 – November 19, 2024: at least 44,757* ( 43,985 in Gaza* – 69% are women and children, according to Gaza’s Media Office). [The Ministry’s figures have been contested by the Israeli authorities, although they have been accepted as accurate by Israeli intelligence services, the UN, and WHO. These data are supported by independent analyses, comparing changes in the number of deaths of UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) staff with those reported by the Ministry, which found claims of data fabrication implausible.]

This is expected to be a significant undercount since thousands of those killed have yet to be identifiedThis does not include an estimated 10,000 more in Gaza still buried under rubble (4,900 women and children).

In the West Bank, Israeli soldiers and/or settlers have killed at least 790 Palestinians (~167 of them children).

In July 2024, the Lancet said: “Applying a conservative estimate of four indirect deaths per one direct death to the 37,396 deaths reported, it is not implausible to estimate that up to 186,000 or even more deaths could be attributable to the current conflict in Gaza.

Ralph Nader earlier estimated 300,000 Palestinians may have been killed in Gaza.

  • At least 60 Palestinians have died in Israeli prisons.
  • At least 43 Palestinians have died due to malnutrition (at least 37 of them children)**.
  • About 1.9 million of Gaza’s 2.3 million population are currently displaced.
  • About 345,000 Gazans are currently experiencing catastrophic levels of food insecurity.

Palestinian injuries from October 7 – November 19, 2024: at least 110,308 (including at least 104,092 in Gaza and 6,300 in the West Bank, including 830 children). [It remains unknown how many Americans are among the casualties in Gaza.]

Reported Israeli death toll from October 7, 2023 – November 19, 2024: ~1,582 (~1,139 on October 7, 2023, of which ~32 were Americans, and ~36 were children); 404*** military forces since the ground invasion began in Gaza (updated: Nov 19); 39 military and civilians in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Israel) and~10,000 injured.

The death toll in Lebanon since October 8, 2023 is at least 3,558, with 15,123 injuries.

NOTE: It is unknown at this time how many of the deaths and injuries of Israelis on October 7 were caused by Israeli soldiers.

*Previously, IAK did not include 471 Gazans killed in the Al Ahli hospital blast since the source of the projectile was being disputed. However, given that much evidence points to Israel as the culprit, Israel had previously bombed the hospital and has attacked many others, Israel is prohibiting outside experts from investigating the scene, and since the UN and other agencies are including the deaths from the attack in their cumulative totals, if Americans knew is now also doing so.

**Euro-Med Monitor reports that Gaza’s elderly are dying at an alarmingly high rate. The majority die at home and are buried either close to their residences or in makeshift graves dispersed across the Strip. There are currently more than 140 such cemeteries. Additionally, according to Euromed, thousands have died from starvation, malnourishment, and inadequate medical care; these are considered indirect victims as they were not registered in hospitals. 

***The figure does not include the reportedly 56 Israeli soldiers – nearly 16% of the total Israeli military deaths – killed due to friendly fire in Gaza and other military-related accidents. 

† For most of the conflict, women and children accounted for about 70% of deaths in Gaza, with children making up a little over 40% of those killed, according to official statistics.

Find previous daily casualty figures and daily news updates here.

Hover over each bar for exact numbers.
Source: IsraelPalestineTimeline.org
 

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