Executive Director @FDD. Former @USTreasury terror finance analyst. Coiner of Schanzerisms. Author of 4 books on the Middle East. Host of FDD Morning Brief.
Standing on the moon
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I keep coming back to one detail from the news this morning.
Hamas fired at the hostages as they were being rescued.
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Out of curiosity, I just glimpsed the timelines of Amnesty, HRW & ACLU to see their response to the attack on Salman Rushdie. As it turns out, they didn’t respond at all. Not one tweet on the attack against an intellectual, inspired by a rogue state. What happened to these NGOs?
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Spin it however you want, but you’ll eventually arrive here: POTUS gave the green light for this war.
Turkey’s conflict in Syria took a major turn today. First alleged atrocities by Turkish-backed Arab militias, executing Kurds. US military officials tell me it's true, and they are DEEPLY concerned it opens the door to BOTH ethnic cleansing of Kurds and return of ISIS/Al-Qaeda
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Reminder: Half of London is owned by Qatar
I condemn Israel’s strikes on Doha, which violate Qatar’s sovereignty and risk further escalation across the region.
The priority must be an immediate ceasefire, the release of hostages, and a huge surge in aid into Gaza.
This is the only solution towards long-lasting peace.
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I can't overstate this:
The Middle East is now potentially hours away from the most devastating war in its bloody history.
A Israel-Hezbollah war would likely yield a shocking number of fatalities and destruction.
The US knew this day would come. Our leaders have failed.
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Now debunked by US officials. Embarrassing that this was posted without casting a shred of doubt.
Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib tells CNN that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah had agreed to a 21-day ceasefire just before he was assassinated by Israel.
The temporary ceasefire was called for by President Biden, President Macron and other allies during last week’s UNGA.
“He [Nasrallah] agreed, he agreed,” Habib told me in an interview on Tuesday.
cnn.com/world/live-news/isra…
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I’m old enough to remember when people called Gaza an open air prison before the war.
I’m also old enough to remember that Hamas launched the war.
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Talking to European friends in various government positions, there has been an overnight shift in views on the Middle East.
After recoiling from the images out of Gaza for weeks (even months), there is now wide recognition that this entire thing has been engineered by Iran.
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*IF* Sinwar is dead, here's what needs to happen:
When Qatar-based Hamas leader Khaled Meshal very likely takes over the organization, the US needs to put massive pressure on Doha.
Qatar should be forced to freeze Meshal's assets and then extradite him to the US or Israel...
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The Mossad just stole 100k documents from Iran and the Israeli prime minister provided proof of Iranian nuclear mendacity. Let’s go to our analysts for reaction:
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Hezbollah has launched more than 240 rockets at Israel today on Rosh Hashana.
I’m old enough to remember when the international community put immense pressure on Israel to not advance on southern Gaza during the entire month of Ramadan.
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Watching the Israelis systematically take out Hezbollah’s top leaders in short order with apparent relative ease makes me wonder: why didn’t they do this sooner?
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Yahya Sinwar must be turning in his grave.
The war he launched:
1. Left Gaza in rubble
2. Destroyed Hamas
3. Hammered Hezbollah
4. Toppled Assad
5. Left Iran without air defenses
6. Could even lead to loss of Palestinian control of Gaza
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Israel stole the physical files right out of Iran and now exposing them. Boldest damn intell operation I’ve ever seen.
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It’s rare that a social media post captures the desperation of a corrupt organization that knows it cannot exist much longer. Here is one such post:
🛑 Spreading unsubstantiated claims about @UNRWA must stop immediately.
Making serious allegations in the public domain, unsupported by any evidence or verifiable facts in support thereof may amount to misinformation.
FULL Statement ⬇️
unrwa.org/newsroom/official-…
Community note
Claims against UNRWA have been documented for a long time.
The headmaster of an UNRWA school was a terrorist.
reuters.com/article/middle…
Film by David Bedein in Jenin, UNRWA policies and practices
vimeo.com/856467890
UNRWA teachers celebrated Oct 7 massacre
unwatch.org/report-u-n-tea…
UNRWA teacher holds hostage in attic
washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense
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IDF says it has found 800 Hamas tunnels in Gaza so far. 500 destroyed.
Crazy how much time, effort and money went into this war infrastructure.
Equally crazy to ponder: how much of that time, effort and money could have gone into building Gaza for the Gazan people.
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Southern Gaza is where the IDF and Shin Bet recovered a hostage alive today.
Southern Gaza is where the Biden Administration repeatedly told Israel not to operate.
Southern Gaza is where the Egyptian regime has repeatedly told Israel not to operate.
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British planes from Cyprus knocked a bunch of Iranian drones out of the sky tonight. US systems nailed a bunch. Jordanian systems did, too. And of course Israel.
Not a bad night for the Western-led alliance in the Middle East. Not bad at all.
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Hamas:
1. Not disarming
2. Slaughtering its opponents
3. Not returning bodies
Trump needs to come down like a ton of bricks on our “friends” in Doha and Ankara.
Qatar & Turkey are Hamas’s patrons and protectors. If the deal fails, it’s on them.
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Reports tonight out of Lebanon tonight that Israel targeted Osama Hamdan, one of the few remaining identifiable Hamas leaders in Lebanon.
This is just remarkable to watch. Nearly every leader of the two main Iran proxy groups I’ve followed for nearly 3 decades: eliminated.
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Hamas now firing rockets out of southern Gaza, which is where Israel has tried to facilitate a humanitarian effort. Hamas is, once again, using the civilian population as a tool in this war.
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If you told me after 10/7 that American students would be protesting on behalf of the killers & rapists, I wouldn’t have believed you.
If you told me that Biden would withhold military assistance to Israel in its battle with Hamas, I’d have told you to stop sniffing glue.
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I clearly struck a nerve yesterday. So let me repeat:
Qatar helped create this crisis by funding Hamas, and giving the group a HQ in Doha.
Qatar could force the Hamas to surrender & release the hostages. It not done so.
We must hold Qatar responsible when the war ends.
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Glad we clarified that after hearing this slogan for 40 straight years and 7 different presidents.
'Death to America' aimed at Trump, not American nation, Iran leader says reut.rs/2GhaSY6
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Soleimani was designated by the US as a terrorist. Bush and Obama administrations. Actual policy. Bipartisan policy. Meeting legal threshold.
Calling Soleimani a terrorist feels like a cop-out to avoid saying if US is at war with Iran.
Yes, he was drenched in blood of Syrian civilians. But their slaughter is Iranian state policy. Are Russian generals in Syria terrorists and therefore fair targets by the same logic?
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Khaled Meshal just called upon Hamas to resume suicide bombings against Israel.
Khaled Meshal lives in Qatar.
Qatar is a purported US ally.
It's time for Qatar to extradite Meshal.
A new piece from me & @FDD colleague @NatalieEcanow in @Commentary.
commentary.org/jonathan-scha…
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10 hostages over 5 different handovers?
I can’t believe we’re still playing Hamas’ game.
Squeeze the hell out of Qatar & Turkey, Hamas’s top patrons, and get them all out —all 50, alive & dead - at once.
Every last one needs to be released on the same day. Then end the war.
10 חטופים חיים ב-5 פעימות: מתווה העסקה עם חמאס נחשף | כל הפרטים
maariv.co.il/news/military/a…
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To bring everyone up to speed:
On the same morning that IDF reports finding 3 dead hostages under an UNRWA facility, and amidst continued reports of Hamas-UNRWA cooperation, the ICJ rules against Israel…
…citing UNRWA reports.
You can’t make this stuff up.
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From an impeccable Israeli contact:
The strike appears to have ended the Iranian nuclear program. Confirmation to come in the next 24 hours. The last step is to remove the nuclear material from the nuclear sites.
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As part of his capitulation to Israel and America, Ali Khamenei should be forced to call upon Hamas to release every last hostage, dead and alive.
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Israelis bracing for as many as 2000 ballistic missiles from Iran tonight. If the regime uses them all, they’ll have nothing left. If they don’t, Israel will destroy them. Use or loose. Regardless, they will have to reckon with the Israeli Air Force tomorrow. Tensions high.
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I’ll say this again:
Qatar helped create this mess by funding & harboring Hamas.
Qatar could wield its leverage with Hamas to force the group to surrender & release the remaining hostages. It hasn’t.
Qatar must be held to account when this war ends.
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To recap:
Turkey facilitated the rise of ISIS
Turkey helped Iran evade sanctions
Turkey supports Sunni jihadis, including Al-Qaeda, in Syria.
Turkey now hosts the Hamas HQ
Turkey bought a Russian s-400 system in violation of its NATO obligations
Turkey is a rogue state.
Arab diplomat with knowledge tells me Hamas leadership is in Turkey right now, as first reported by KAN.
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I repeat: Hakan Fidan was the intelligence chief who presided over the establishment of a Hamas headquarters in Turkey that included an active terrorist commander directing attacks in the West Bank, Saleh al-Arouri.
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Hamas without Ismail Hanieyah and without Mohammed Deif is not the Hamas that existed before 10/7.
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Jimmy Carter used to give annual town hall lectures at Emory. I felt the need to attend them as a student. But as I began to understand the depths of his toxic anti-Israel post-presidency, I actually refused to give a penny to Emory so long as he was affiliated with the school.
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Qatar's PM finally comes out with it. He calls for an immediate ceasefire, regardless of whether the hostages are released.
There you have it, folks.
Qatar never cared about releasing the hostages.
Qatar wants the war to end to preserve their client Hamas in Gaza.
ראש ממשלת קטאר בוועידת מינכן: שחרור החטופים לא צריך להיות תנאי להפסקת אש בעזה. המלחמה בעזה צריכה להיפסק מיד
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53 hostages to be released. 40 kids and 13 mothers. This appears final. Deal imminent.
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I know Trump has said he wants the US to stay out. But this WH and those set to join the next admin should be warning Turkey and Qatar to keep their henchmen away from Israel’s border and away from the Kurds or there will be terrible consequences.
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Some of Hamas’s top surviving leaders live in Qatar.
Qatar must put those Hamas leaders under house arrest.
Qatar must force them to surrender on Al-Jazeera.
Qatar must force them to call for the release of all remaining hostages.
That’s how the Gaza war ends, @POTUS.
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October 7, 2023 was the day the Iranian regime believed Israel would begin to collapse.
June 21, 2025 was the day the regime finally understood that it had made a terrible mistake.
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Columbia needs to start kicking kids out of school and checking IDs to keep agitators off campus. What am I missing here?
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Qatar says it got permission from Hamas to send medications to the hostages.
The last batch of medicine was found in the trash by Israeli soldiers.
This is all Qatari theater.
Qatar is a Hamas patron pretending to help.
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Qatar has failed to secure the release of the hostages. In other words, the reason that it cites for sustaining a Hamas headquarters — leverage over the group— was a lie. The same goes for Turkey. Their status as state sponsors of terror should be declared as US policy.
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“We did it, my brother. We got Al-Qaeda installed as the new rulers of Syria.”
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If you’re blaming one person, one party, one movement for anti-Semitism, you really don’t understand the problem.
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A few hours ago, an El Al flight had to make an emergency landing in Antalya, Turkey.
Reports from Israeli channel 12 now conveying that Turkish authorities are not allowing the plane to take off again.
The Erdogan government is effectively holding an entire plane hostage.
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Qatar reportedly firing the top echelon of Al-Jazeera execs. Waiting for official confirmation
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The irony of recognizing a century-old genocide while negotiating with and legitimizing a regime that today aspires to genocide should not be lost on anyone.
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Now that the Ashli hospital flap is over, the media must prepare for a story that will be difficult to navigate. The Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City is also the command center for Hamas. At some point, it will be an Israeli target. A legitimate military target, per the laws of war
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Vehicular terrorist attacks in Berlin, Nice, Jerusalem. Two received global coverage. One won't. Two prompted worldwide outrage. One won't.
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The narrative that ISIS is hardcore while the Taliban is pragmatic is flat out bonkers, reflecting a total lack of understanding of the landscape. Both organizations are jihadist. Both embrace violence and seek America’s destruction. Both are American enemies.
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Just waiting for all the retractions and apologies from all those who denied Shifa's role in Hamas military infrastructure.
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Reminder what red hands mean historically in this conflict.
The photo on the right is from Ramallah in 2000.
Aziz Salha proudly waved his bloody hands from the window as an Israeli was lynched.
Salha was arrested then released in a hostage deal that released…Yahya Sinwar.
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Tough to grasp why people are losing faith in mainstream media.
Associated Press photographer who participated in the October 7th attack on Israel and took photo of the mutilated body of Shani Louk wins prestigious journalism award.
Hamas journalist Ali Mahmud's won the RJI Awards ‘Team Picture of the Year’ for his picture of the German-Israeli woman’s body in the back of a pickup truck as Hamas terrorists stood on her near-naked body.
The Associated Press and the RJI Awards did not blur the young woman’s body in the photo.
The photographer accompanied the terrorists as they slaughtered 364 people at the Nova Music Festival.
The award was handed to the photographer by the Ronald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute.
Sources: RJI, Jewish Chronicle, Arise Israel
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Turkey now treating 1,000 wounded Hamas terrorists in country.
Question: how are they getting there?
"More than 1,000 Hamas members" are being treated in hospitals in Turkey right now, President Erdogan reveals during presser with Greek PM Mitsotakis; adds that he was saddened by the Greek view that deems Hamas a terrorist organisation.
Mitsotakis: "Let's agree to disagree"
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Americans will wake up today & learn that Hamas murdered another 6 Israeli hostages, including one American-Israeli whose story was highlighted at the DNC.
Some thoughts to follow that will *not* focus on the heartbreak/trauma in Israel.
Let’s focus on who bears responsibility.
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Israel is getting attacked on 7 fronts by the world’s top state sponsor of terror.
Biden doesn’t get it: The more he pressures Israel, the more Iran steps up its aggression.
The moment he throws his weight behind Israel & snarls at Iran is the moment this thing de-escalates.
🚨🇺🇸🇮🇱President Biden privately demanded in a "tough" call Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stop escalating tensions in the region & move immediately toward a Gaza hostage & ceasefire deal, U.S. officials told me. My story on @axios
axios.com/2024/08/02/biden-n…
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One thing I want to stress about last night’s operation was the sheer complexity.
1/3 or maybe even 1/2 of the Israeli Air Force was in the sky last night, striking enemy targets 1000 miles from home.
All the aircraft and pilots came back without a scratch.
No simple feat.
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Question for @statedeptspox: What is the punishment when Americans send cash -- to evade our banking laws -- to a state sponsor of terror?
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If Qatar somehow manages to deliver on some of the hostages, it should get no credit.
This tiny dirt patch of a country has funded and sheltered Hamas for more than a decade.
Qatar created this crisis, along with Iran and Turkey.
Qatar must be held to account.
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Turkey should never acquired the S400.
Turkey should never have been in the F35 program.
Turkey should not be in NATO.
The US needs to get out of Incirlik.
New:the United States has submitted proposal to resolve the S-400 issue, which includes transferring the Russian missile systems to the US-controlled section of Incirlik Base. Despite the complexity of the issue, both sides now appear eager to reach a successful resolution, as it would address a major challenge for Washington and NATO while allowing Ankara to rejoin the F-35 fighter jet program
ekathimerini.com/politics/fo…
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Channel 13 reporting that IDF has given a green light to targeting *all* Hamas operatives at *all* levels, both inside Gaza and out. Obviously implications for Iran, Turkey, Qatar, Malaysia, etc.
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The WH sending unmarked cash in an unmarked plane to a state sponsor of terrorism....engaging in behaviors we ourselves used to punish.
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Gaza Health Ministry Cannot Provide Names for More Than 10,000 It Says Have Died.
@fdd’s @adesnik is not having any of Hamas’s math. fdd.org/analysis/2024/05/02/…
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Had the craziest dream last night that a president of the United States gave a glide path to a terrorist group in pursuit of a nuclear deal that gave a state sponsor of terror $150+ billion in concessions. politico.com/interactives/20…
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The entire Arab world will go apoplectic over Trump's proposed takeover of Gaza. And it's not hard to understand why. But here's the thing: Trump doesn't need to do anything after this but wait. The very fear of a this will finally get the Arab world to move on the "day after."
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Crazy stuff out of Rafah:
A Gazan boy was shot dead by Hamas after he tried to access humanitarian goods. A riot broke out. Hamas then opened fire to contain the rioters.
mako.co.il/news-military/202…
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Iran and Thailand have a direct hostage channel.
This is quite telling.
Iran is so clearly the sponsor of Hamas that Thailand went right to the source of power.
המקור חשף כי איראן "מילאה תפקיד חלקי באשר לתיווך", לבקשת ממשלת תאילנד. לאחר שעמדה בקשר עם הנהגת חמאס, טהראן סיפקה לממשלת תאילנד מידע ופרטים לגבי מצבם של 23 פועלים שנחטפו. הגורם הסביר כי חמאס אישר כי "ישחרר אותם בתיווך איראני, ללא כל תנאי".
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Never mind that Biden just threw Hamas a lifeline.
He just demonstrated to every country in the Middle East and beyond that an alliance with America is worth little to nothing during election season.
Who in their right mind would seek out this kind of an alliance?
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🧵Campus protest thread here.
I’ve received lots of calls & emails in recent days related to this testimony from 2016.
docs.house.gov/meetings/FA/F…
I testified again last year on the same topic
gop-waysandmeans.house.gov/w…
Both about a group called American Muslims for Palestine.
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The United Nations stopped delivering aid to millions of Yemenis nine months ago. No one seems to care. aijac.org.au/fresh-air/the-u…
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Nawaf Salam, ICJ judge, is citing UNRWA reports as evidence right now. You can’t make this up.
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BDS this jpost.com/HEALTH-SCIENCE/Isr…
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Hakan Fidan, the former Turkish Intell chief who built a Hamas HQ in Turkey, attended @SecBlinken’s meeting on Gaza’s future.
What the actual f*ck is going on at @StateDept?
This is beyond bad judgment. Why not just ask the Supreme Leader of Iran to join?
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Finally.
Netanyahu calls upon Qatar to stop playing both sides in hostage talks.
I’d love to see the same from the US side now. timesofisrael.com/liveblog-m…
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As someone who has studied Hamas since the 1990s, I tend to disagree. timesofisrael.com/witkoff-ha…
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Israeli strike on tunnels in Northern Gaza (Beit Hanoun). Watch how the explosion extends in multiple directions.
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Saudi official says the quiet part out loud: Iran engineered war in Gaza to ruin normalization with Israel timesofisrael.com/liveblog_e…
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Qatar now arguing against Israel at the ICJ.
At the same time, it pretends to play a neutral role in Paris — with the lives of the Israeli hostages in the balance.
Remember: Qatar has provided a headquarters & $30 million a month to Hamas.
Qatar is a state sponsor of terror.
#عاجل | ممثل #قطر أمام محكمة العدل الدولية: إسرائيل تنتهك حق الفلسطينيين في تقرير مصيرهم وتنتهج سياسة فصل عنصري
- ممارسات إسرائيل خرق فاضح للقانون الدولي الإنساني
- إسرائيل عرقلت كل الحلول السلمية وتواصل احتلال الأراضي الفلسطينية
- لا يمكن للمحكمة تجاهل تفاقم الوضع في قطاع غزة
#حرب_غزة
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Qatar-based Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh is now in Turkey after traveling to Iran.
Reminder: Iran, Qatar and Turkey are the 3 primary jurisdictions of Hamas terror operations around the world.
Why are Qatar and Turkey not named state sponsors of terrorism by @StateDept?
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