Israel Hamas War the Widening Middle East Conflict

[Social Media]

Justice Department Strips Immunity from UNRWA, Backing Lawsuit by Oct. 7 Victims' Families

In a significant reversal of previous U.S. policy, the Justice Department has declared that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) is not entitled to immunity from prosecution, opening the door for a $1 billion lawsuit brought by survivors and families of the victims of the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre.

Under President Biden’s administration, the Justice Department had argued that UNRWA and its personnel were protected by “absolute immunity” under the International Organizations Immunities Act of 1945. However, the Trump administration has now taken a starkly different position.

 

New Topic:

 

 

[Bkk Brian]

It's day 572 of the October 7 Hostage Crisis.

59 hostages are trapped in the dungeons of Gaza. 

24 are presumed alive, but they're at imminent risk of death. 

The Hamas terror state must #LetThemGoNOW🎗️

[Jeff the Chef]

IDF reservists from all branches of the military are campaigning for an end to the war in Gaza.

The Israeli military has threatened to dismiss those who have signed open letters in protest of the conflict.

 

 

[Bkk Brian]

PA leader Abbas: ‘Hamas-affiliated gangs primarily responsible’ for Gaza aid looting
Statement says Palestinian people ‘will not forgive these disgraceful acts committed in such a critical time’

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday issued a statement condemning Israel over its military offensive in the Gaza Strip, but also denouncing the enclave’s Hamas rulers for looting humanitarian aid.

The statement posted to the PA’s official Wafa news agency said Abbas “expressed his categorical rejection and firm condemnation of the looting and theft carried out by criminal gangs targeting warehouses and storage facilities of humanitarian aid designated for the people of Gaza.”

https://www.timesofisrael.com/pa-leader-abbas-hamas-affiliated-gangs-primarily-responsible-for-gaza-aid-looting/

 

United States and Israeli officials are discussing a mechanism to deliver aid to Gaza that bypasses Hamas, an Israeli source familiar with the matter and a State Department official told CNN. The official said an announcement could be made “in the coming days.”

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/05/03/middleeast/israel-us-aid-talks-gaza-intl

[Bkk Brian]

Hamas should have released the hostages, actually they should never have started this war. 

 

Cabinet-approved plans include ‘conquering Gaza and holding territories,’ official says

The security cabinet last night unanimously approved the operational plan for the next phase of the campaign in the Gaza Strip, which would include the “conquering of Gaza and holding the territories,” says an Israeli official.

The plan presented by IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir will see the IDF take control of territory in Gaza, move the civilian population toward the south, attack Hamas, and prevent the terror group from taking control of humanitarian aid.

The security cabinet also approved overwhelmingly a plan to distribute humanitarian aid in Gaza “that would prevent Hamas from taking control of supplies and would destroy its governing capabilities.”

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/cabinet-approved-plans-include-conquering-gaza-and-holding-territories-official-says/

[bannork]

A senior Hamas official told AFP on Tuesday the group was no longer interested in truce talks with Israel after Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday announced a new “intensified” offensive in Gaza that will involve Israeli troops holding on to seized territory and significant displacement of the population.

“There is no sense in engaging in talks or considering new ceasefire proposals as long as the hunger war and extermination war continue in the Gaza Strip,” Basem Naim told the news agency, urging the international community “to pressure the Netanyahu government to end the crimes of hunger, thirst, and killings” in Gaza.

His comments come a day after Israel’s military said expanded operations in Gaza would include displacing “most” of its residents, and amid Israeli strikes on Yemen and Lebanon.

Hamas says no sense in truce talks after Israel’s new Gaza plan, senior official says – Israel-Gaza war live

[Social Media]

@bannork there is a topic already running here on those posts.

 

 

[coolcarer]

Latest poll and survey from the Palestinian Center for Policy has some interesting results.

 

Almost half of Gazans 49% may be willing to apply to Israel to help them leave for other countries but 50% said they would not. In a first since the start of the conflict more Gazans thought Israel rather than Hamas would emerge victorious. When asked about Trump's plan, 56% of Gazans said they would be unwilling to emigrate after the war, and 43% said they would. 

 

The majority thought Hamas should never have started the war 58%, while 37% stated they agreed with starting it and 5% didn't know.

 

Obviously down to Hamas propaganda and media availability in Gaza but by far the majority 87%, denied that Hamas had committed “the atrocities seen in the videos shown by international media,” such as murdering women and children in their homes. Only 9% believed Hamas committed atrocities. 64% in Gaza, were opposed to the disarmament of Hamas. However 48% of Palestinians in Gaza supported the series of anti-Hamas demonstrations that have been taking place throughout the strip.

 

https://pcpsr.org/en/node/997

[Ratman]

No  state of Gaza.....they want Israel off the planet....The Muslims have hated the Jews since 610....it will never change. In England the 5 largest cities are 

Muslim mayor....The PM is giving in to the Muslims mayors 

[proton]

57 minutes ago, Ratman said:

No  state of Gaza.....they want Israel off the planet....The Muslims have hated the Jews since 610....it will never change. In England the 5 largest cities are 

Muslim mayor....The PM is giving in to the Muslims mayors 

 

Indeed, all free Palestine means is no more Israel, they will have a very long wait for that

[bannork]

Thousands of people protested in Israel Saturday against the new military offensive against the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

At the central rally in Tel Aviv, which was called by The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, relatives who have been fearing for their loved ones for 581 days now also spoke.

According to official Israeli figures, 59 hostages are still being held in the Gaza Strip, but only 24 of them are believed to be alive.

Thousands demonstrate against expansion of Gaza war

 

MOD EDIT: The quote from the article above was posted in a misleading manner and has been edited back to its original @bannork

[Social Media]

UPDATE:

 

Hamas to release US-Israeli hostage as part of efforts to reach Gaza ceasefire

 

Hamas says it will release Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, who is believed to be the last living captive with US nationality in Gaza, as a part of efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement.

The decision comes ahead of President Donald Trump's visit to the Middle East on Tuesday. Hamas said it was also intended to facilitate a deal for the entry of humanitarian aid. Gaza has been under an Israeli blockade for 70 days.

Earlier a senior Hamas official told the BBC that the Palestinian armed group was holding direct negotiations with a US administration official in Qatar.

The Israeli prime minister's office said it had been informed by the US of the Hamas intention to release Alexander.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from BBC  2025-05-12

 

 

[Evil Penevil]

He's been released!

 

 

[Evil Penevil]

36 minutes ago, bannork said:

Israel denying food to Gaza is 'weapon of war', UN Palestinian refugee agency head tells BBC

 The most authoritative data-driven assessment of famine and food emergencies in the regular reports issued by Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC,  is a joint venture by UN agencies, aid groups and governments that measures whether a famine is happening.

The IPC says that 470,000 Gazans, 22% of the population, are in a classification it calls "Phase 5 – catastrophe." The IPC defines it as a condition in which "at least one in five households experience an extreme lack of food and face starvation resulting in destitution, extremely critical levels of acute malnutrition and death."

Gaza: Israel denying food to Gaza is ‘weapon of war’, says Unwra chief - BBC News

 

 

You should have cited the BBC article properly and in line with board rules.  It is by Jeremy Bowen and reads more like an opinion piece than a news article.

 

Israel denying food to Gaza is 'weapon of war', UN Palestinian refugee agency head tells BBC

How do you measure misery? For journalists the usual way is to see it, to feel it, to smell it.

Beleaguered Palestinian colleagues in Gaza are doing that, still doing invaluable reporting at great risk to themselves.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx27dzv7znpo

 

Everyone should read the full article  to judge for themselves how impartial Bowen is.  A new low for the BBC.

[Social Media]

@bannork another post with misleading order of quotes and no link has been removed. This must stop.

[Magictoad]

On 8/6/2024 at 11:06 PM, novacova said:

All this war mongering is dragging the world further into the abyss of darkness 

 

It's not bringing the world closer to the abyss of darkness- quite the opposite. 

[bannork]

22 hours ago, Evil Penevil said:

He's been released!

 

 

Amid the celebrations in Israel, the U.S. success in freeing Alexander "created a backlash" against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, The Associated Press said.

Netanyahu "sought to persuade a sceptical public" last night that his "decision to prolong the war contributed to Alexander's release," The Washington Post said.

But Israel "learned about the deal" only late Sunday, a development many Israelis "interpreted as a sign of increasingly strained relations" between Trump and their prime minister.

Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel

[Evil Penevil]

Edan Alexander's identity as an IDF soldier with U.S. citizenship must have made an extreme object of hate for Hamas. He was often held without light and given only starvation rations.  It's a wonder- and testimony to his physical and mental strength- he survived 584 days.

 

US hostage  ‘held in a cage and tortured repeatedly by Hamas’

Edan Alexander, an IDF soldier who was freed on Monday, says he was routinely abused by the terror group during his captivity

 

A US hostage freed on Monday in an American deal with Hamas has said he was held in a cage and repeatedly tortured.

Edan Alexander was shackled by his hands and feet for long periods, and was routinely abused by the terror group, he reportedly told Israeli officers.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/05/13/us-hostage-idf-edan-alexander-cage-tortured-hamas-israel/?msockid=22c6161a5ddf6bba08b203c95c006a5a

[coolcarer]

4 hours ago, bannork said:

Amid the celebrations in Israel, the U.S. success in freeing Alexander "created a backlash" against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, The Associated Press said.

Netanyahu "sought to persuade a sceptical public" last night that his "decision to prolong the war contributed to Alexander's release," The Washington Post said.

But Israel "learned about the deal" only late Sunday, a development many Israelis "interpreted as a sign of increasingly strained relations" between Trump and their prime minister.

Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel

Nope, infact that couldn't be further from the truth. Steve Witkoff personally thanked Prime Minister Netanyahu and said the hostage deal could not have happened without him.

 

“Mr. Prime Minister, I told Edan and his family everything you did to make this happen over the past few days. It was a tense negotiation, and your leadership — the way you allowed the process to move forward — was critical. That’s a big part of why Edan is home with his family today.”

 

 

In addition.

 

U.S. Middle East Envoy @SteveWitkoff told families of the hostages that President Trump "is not going to tolerate anything other than everybody coming home. And he will be relentless on that pursuit.“

https://x.com/ariel_oseran/status/1922276032024817852

 

[Bkk Brian]

The elimination of top rat Sinwar's brother was carried out a few hours ago, of course Mohammed Sinwar was hiding in a tunnel complex in the grounds of a hospital but 9 bunker busters put paid to that. More terrorists were also killed including a so called Gaza photo journalist as the BBC describes him......lol

 

 

The IDF and ISA conducted a precise strike on Hamas terrorists in a command and control center, located in an underground terrorist infrastructure site beneath the European hospital in Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza, a short while ago. 

Hamas continues to use hospitals in Gaza for terrorist activity,  demonstrating its cynical and brutal use of the civilian population in the hospital and its surroundings.

Prior to, and during the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians and civilian infrastructure, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance and additional intelligence.

The IDF and ISA will continue to operate to remove any threat to the civilians of the State of Israel.

 

The IDF and Shin Bet confirmed that no hostages were near Muhammad Sinwar before the attack

[bannork]

At least 22 children were killed in Gaza overnight Tuesday and early Wednesday in a punishing series of Israeli airstrikes on homes in northern Gaza, according to local hospitals.

The strikes killed at least 48 people in total, the Indonesian Hospital in Jabaliya reported. The strikes came a day after Hamas released an Israeli-American hostage in a deal brokered by the United States, and as President Donald Trump was visiting Saudi Arabia.

Israeli airstrikes in Gaza kill 48 people, including 22 children, hospitals say

[Evil Penevil]

The death of Hamas hard-liner  Muhammad Sinwar could facilitate the release of the remaining hostages,

 

Eliminating the most dangerous man in Gaza is not the end of Hamas

 

From the analysis piece:

 

Mohammed Sinwar has long been one of the hardest-line figures in the Hamas leadership—arguably even more extreme than his brother Yahya.

...

He has repeatedly been an obstacle to any deal with Israel or a ceasefire. If he was indeed eliminated, it may open the door for more pragmatic voices within Hamas’ leadership, such as Khalil al-Hayya and others currently involved in negotiations with Qatar and the Americans.

 

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/r1qb0qz11gx

 

[bannork]

French President Emmanuel Macron openly denounced the Israeli government’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza, labelling it “unacceptable” and “a disgrace,” according to Digi24.

The French leader, who previously visited the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza, described the scene as “one of the worst things I have ever witnessed.”

He criticized Israeli authorities for blocking humanitarian aid from reaching Palestinians, highlighting that assistance sent by France and other countries is being obstructed.

Macron Condemns Israeli Offensive in Gaza as “Unacceptable”

[Bkk Brian]

6 minutes ago, bannork said:

At least 22 children were killed in Gaza overnight Tuesday and early Wednesday in a punishing series of Israeli airstrikes on homes in northern Gaza, according to local hospitals.

The strikes killed at least 48 people in total, the Indonesian Hospital in Jabaliya reported. The strikes came a day after Hamas released an Israeli-American hostage in a deal brokered by the United States, and as President Donald Trump was visiting Saudi Arabia.

Israeli airstrikes in Gaza kill 48 people, including 22 children, hospitals say

Ex hostages that were kidnapped from Israel and abused by Hamas sing their joy at the scums Muhammad Sinwar death.

 

Hamas captivity survivors Daniela Gilboa, Naama Levi and Karina Ariev, published a story on Instagram after hearing about the possible elimination of Mohammad Sinwar

 

 

 

[Evil Penevil]

6 minutes ago, bannork said:

At least 22 children were killed in Gaza overnight Tuesday and early Wednesday in a punishing series of Israeli airstrikes on homes in northern Gaza, according to local hospitals.

The strikes killed at least 48 people in total, the Indonesian Hospital in Jabaliya reported.

 

From the analysis piece cited in my previous post (my bold text):

 

[Mohammad Sinwar] was among the top operatives behind the October 7 attack and has since shown no signs of moderation or willingness to compromise. On the contrary, he has shown a ruthless willingness to sacrifice tens of thousands-or even hundreds of thousands-of lives if it means preserving Hamas’ hold on Gaza.

 

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/r1qb0qz11gx

[Bkk Brian]

Here is Mohammad Sinwar driving a car in one of the terror tunnels that led to the Israeli border:

 

 

[Social Media]

Please remember what the topic is here. It is not about posting links to any world wide minister or politican to what they have to say about Israel or Hamas. It is about updates on the war. A further post with no supporting link has been removed @bannork

 

Israel Hamas War the Widening Middle East Conflict