Israel Weekly News Roundup May 10, 2024
5 Things you need to know
Israel at War - Day 217
1. President Biden announced he would stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if it launches a major invasion of Rafah
President Biden declared in an interview to CNN that the administration is reconsidering the shipment of offensive weapons to Israel. US Secretary of Defense, Mr. Lloyd Austin openly said in Congress that the administration is having second thoughts on military aid to Israel. The Biden administration opposes Israeli plans to launch a military operation in Rafah, the southernmost town in the Gaza Strip. Rafah is located on the border with Egypt. Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, Rafah has become the main refuge for more than a million Palestinian refugees who were displaced from their homes in northern Gaza. There is a densely populated refugee camp in Rafah and the US believes that if the IDF operates there, it will only cause a further deterioration of the already brutal humanitarian crisis. Israeli forces have called on Palestinians in Rafah to leave the area and move north of the city, in order to avoid being caught in the cross fire.
Israel claims that many weapons were smuggled into Gaza in the last few years enabling Hamas to heavily militarize. Earlier this week, Israeli military forces gained control over the crossing between Egypt and Gaza in Rafah. Analysts believe that this was done with the consent of Egyptian officials. PM Netanyahu keeps announcing that Israeli will eliminate Hamas and thereby achieve total victory in the war.
If the US delays, reduces, or halts military aid to Israel, this would have a marked impact on the ability of Israel to continue the war as planned, causing the IDF to reevaluate its strategy. Other countries may also reconsider their military support to Israel.
Meanwhile, Hizbollah has intensified its military attacks on northern Israel.
The military exchanges between Israel and the Lebanese Islamic organization Hizbollah have intensified. Israel launched military attacks on targets in southern Lebanon and deeper into the country. Hizbollah retaliated and launched shells and missiles at deserted communities in northern Israel. Most of the communities on the border between Israel and Lebanon were evacuated soon after October 7th, and the villages and towns are still deserted, with no target date to return. Three Israeli soldiers were killed in the last few days, bringing the total number of Israeli soldiers killed in the last year to 760. In addition, the rocket shelling and drones are causing heavy destruction of houses and other buildings in the area. Earlier this week PM Netanyahu announced that he is not sure when the residents will be able to return to their homes, that he is not sure if the school year will open there on September 1st as usual, and that parents will have to enroll their children at substitute schools.
2. The Families of the Hostages Intensify their Protests and Demand That Israel Agree to a Deal With Hamas
Hamas proposed a deal to release the hostages, in exchange for the release of dozens of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons, opening a corridor between southern Gaza and the north thereby allowing Palestinians to return to their homes in the north without any restrictions. At the end of the deal, Israel would withdraw all its military forces from the entire Gaza Strip allowing Hamas to regain power and control over the Gaza Strip. President Biden aspires to end the war. President Biden also plans to implements a plan for a new deal in the Middle East, in which Saudi Arabia will establish diplomatic relations with Israel, will gain American support in a regional alliance, and Israel will accept the two state solution allowing a Palestinian entity to control Gaza and the West Bank. Families of the hostages intensified the demonstrations and protests, while blocking roads. The police reacted forcefully towards the demonstrations.
PM Netanyahu refuses to recognize a Palestinian State, he has emphasized time and again that there will be neither Palestinian authority in Gaza, nor Hamas, and not a Palestinian State.
The head of the CIA, William Burns met with PM Netanyahu in regard to the hostages deal. The US administration is trying to push Israel to agree to a deal, by putting a lot of pressure and resources on the deal makers.
3. PM Netanyahu and his Government Decided to Implement a New Law, Issuing an Order to Close the Offices of Qatari Media Outlet, Al Jazeera
Recently the Israeli Knesset passed a bill that enables the government to close foreign media outlets, if they endanger state security. In order to implement the bill, the minister of communication needs a statement by one or more of the security agencies, intelligence, Shin Bet or other. This kind of statement was issued earlier this week and the inspectors of the ministry of communication, escorted by police, entered the offices of Al Jazeera in Jerusalem and Nazareth, confiscated their transmission and broadcast equipment and closed their offices. Al Jazeera filed an appeal to the district court, arguing that they did nothing wrong and that everything they broadcast from Israel was subject to military censorship. The Association for Civil Rights (ACRI) filled a petition to the High Court of Justice, claiming that this is an unprecedented attack on freedom of speech. The reason given for the closure is that the network often incites against Israel and reveals sensitive information. The closing order is for 45 days and can be renewed for another 45 days.
4. Israel Marks Holocaust Remembrance Day
The commemoration of the Holocaust this year was held under the shadow of the horrific events of October 7th, considered to be the most devastating for Jewish people since the Holocaust.
Holocaust Remembrance Day events started with the annual ceremony at Yad Vashem, Israel’s national holocaust memorial site, with the traditional wreath laying ceremony, attended by PM Netanyahu, President Herzog, and Speaker of the Knesset. In his speech, PM Netanyahu referred to the events of October 7th and said: "Let me clarify, the terror attack was not a Holocaust, but not because the intention was different; it's the same. Hamas is driven by the same goals as the Nazis”. Netanyahu further said, referring to growing pressure from the US administration to avoid an offensive in Rafah, that “Even if we have to stand alone, we will continue to fight against human evil”. Netanyahu also referred in his speech to the protests on university campuses and the ICC’s threat to issue arrest warrants against senior Israeli political leaders. Protestors attending the ceremony called on Netanyahu to resign, because of his failure to protect the people of Israel.
U.S. President Biden spoke at the ceremony at the National Holocaust Museum in D.C and dennounced the “ferocious surge”of antisemitism in the U.S. and the Hamas’ massacre on October 7th
The following day, the country came to a standstill for a 2-minute siren, followed by memorial ceremonies in the Knesset, at Yad Vashem, and in campuses, schools and communities around the country.
According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, there are 133,000 Holocaust survivors living in Israel. Some of them are now survivors of the Hamas’ October 7th attack and are still internally displaced from their homes.
5. Israeli Song Qualifies for Eurovision Final, Amidst Political Controversy
20-year-old singer Edden Golan, representing Israel in the Eurovision song contest qualified for the final, after her performance of the song “Hurricane” in the semi-finals, accompanied by booing and cheering from the crowd. After the show, Golan told the media that “"It is truly such an honour to be here on stage, representing [Israel] with pride."
Golan and the Israeli delegation to the Eurovision were accompanied at all times by a security detail since their arrival in Malmo, Sweden, for the most politically charged contest in the history of the Eurovision. This, due to the political controversy invoked by Israel’s participation in the contest amidst the war in Gaza. A mass pro-Palestinian demonstration was held in Malmo, the city hosting the contest, protesting Israel’s participation in the contest. A much smaller counter-demonstration in support of the Israeli delegation was also held.
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