Here in USA, our agitprop machine (KCBS news radio) prepares us for the apparent implosion of the hostage deal announced yesterday. Some Israeli explainer tells us Hamas cannot be trusted to uphold their side of the deal, you know.
Methinks Israel, like USA, is whatcha call agreement incapable. Soon we’ll see.

Posted by: Aleph_Null | Nov 23 2023 14:20 utc | 3

As to what I expect from Mearsheimer the answer is: CLARITY
Posted by: botete | Nov 23 2023 14:21 utc | 344
Mearsheimer, Crooke, Sachs…all are duplicitous agents of Outlaw Empire. The reason they are donating their precious time to independent media is to try and get ahead of the backlash over their own failed actions over decades.
The only reason to listen to them is try and understand what the Outlaw Empire is aiming for.
You will never see Crooke writing an article headlined: the IMMORAL justification for Israel’s war. The whole point of his article, even if it accurately depicts Israel’s demented and genocidal state of mind is to subconsciously imply that the justification is not IMMORAL. He’ll push “religious civilization clash” too since he spent his entire MI6 career working with Israel to develop that narrative.
Sachs along with his Harvard buddies was involved in the rape of the USSR. Now he’s watching his hard work go up in flames.
Mearsheimer is the Everywhere Man. He pops up everywhere, all the time, on any issue. This is the guy who said the Israeli lobby is just another lobby and there’s no reason for it to be registered as a foreign agent. In other words, they try very hard to get ahead of the game.
Here is a rough guide to figuring out who is a genuine commentator on this situation (vs the narrative developers). Anyway who says we want a “political resolution” is not an honest analysts. If they were, they would say International law and past rulings against Israel must be enforced
–they do not start with the Holocaust and they never mention the Holocaust because drum roll it has nothing to do with the Palestinians.
— they frame the struggle of Palestinians as resistance to a brutually violent Eurosupremacist apartheid regime
–they cite international law: the various ICJ and other UN resolutions against Israel
-they cite evidence of Israel’s apartheid system
-they cite evidence of Israel’s war crimes
-they talk about the Palestinian resources that Israel wants
-they describe what is happening in the West Bank
-they use the words genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing in reference to Israel citing sources.

Posted by: pq | Nov 23 2023 14:45 utc | 5

I see. This is your “rough guide” on who is a genuine commentator to take notice of. Head of the list is yourself?

Posted by: botete | Nov 23 2023 14:56 utc | 7

Northern Front Daily SitRep:
https://english.almanar.com.lb/1985304
Hezbollah claimed a Merkava – tally now up to 91 Merkavas knocked out.

Posted by: Exile | Nov 23 2023 15:10 utc | 9

Strategically, and diplomatically, the fact that many major players (Iran, Turkey) haven’t made bold moves directly against Israel could simply be, “Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”
As much as no one wants to see anyone die or be hurt if this is an opportunity to metaphorically sink the Israeli state (and seriously wound Zionism), then that has to be on the menu.

Posted by: LoveDonbass | Nov 23 2023 15:28 utc | 11

Posted by: LoveDonbass | Nov 23 2023 15:28 utc | 11
Erdogan said he supports that “armada” of relief ships on the way to Gaza. we will see how that develops. last time the Israelis killed 10 Turkish sailors. Israel has provoked a worldwide backlash, finally. may get Erdogan off the fence, and as others have pointed out Turkey is a NATO member. of course the US assault on a NATO member was widely ignored, not least by Germany, the target, and the US so far is all in on backing Israel.

Posted by: pretzelattack | Nov 23 2023 15:37 utc | 13

@pq | Nov 23 2023 14:45 utc | 5
I agree but I also like to add that they all basically aid in hiding the truth about Israel being an angloamerican imperial beachhead and that it isnt in the interest of that empire to present it’s true nature.
This isnt just rogue. It is doublefaced in the extreme.
I think Douglas Macgregor is sincere when he doesnt see it in the manner I just described.
And that he, as it appears to me, sees Israel as an independent actor.
I suspect most of the commentariate are closer to Macgregors view than to mine.
And I think this is because people are yet to absorb the truth about how it all came to be and that it was never initially a matter of any request from the jews.
And that both zionism and nazism were two of a dozen different cults actually somewhat related to the Isis cult. The death Cult
that apparently captured the imagination of Bulwer Lytton.
The Victorian era ended long ago but historians are hiding so much that it still matters
My simple mode of reasoning is that if Israel would be or could be independent it wouldnt be everybody’d enemy.

Posted by: petergrfstrm | Nov 23 2023 15:42 utc | 15

We will see how this deal pans out.
On the one hand, it seems inconceivable that Hamas may keep his word. These are terrorists trying to get their own children killed to damage Israel with the PR, it’s not that they have any concept of honour or decency, or even humanity.
On the other hand, the agreed terms indicate to me that Hamas is quite desperate, now being ready to free dozens of their hostages for 1) exacty 0 of their own terrorists kept prisoner in Israel and 2) a short respite in the pummeling, after which the pummeling will resume with, likely, even greater enthusiasm.
Plus, this little pause allows Israel to say to the US (admitting, for a moment, that Israel cares a dry fig for what the US think) that Biden got the “ceasefire” he so much longed for and should now therefore, kindly, shut up. As I have expressed here many times, Netanyahu is an extremely smart cookie and would run circles around someone way more intelligent than Biden, or Blinken, or Sullivan.
You can dream of destroyed Merkavas and other imaginary successes all you want, but you know that this is not going well for Hamas. Some here remind me of the Ukrainians in 2022, committing impure acts all day with their “ghost of kiev” and their fantasies of military victories that never were. Reality can be a very harsh teacher.
Another of the favourite anti-Israel tropes is not aging well, at all, as it seems Israel has all the time and all the money it needs, and there is no trace whatever of having to scale down operations because they run out of money, weapons, or (funny, this one) soldiers. But again, I heard this from, roughly, the same people who told us that the Israeli would never dare enter gaza in the first place. That, also, did not age well.
Once again: Israel will do a great deal of damage to Hamas. Not to total destruction (the US will not allow it as they have their own philoterrorists at home, and they all vote Democrat), but enough to make them regret their bloodthirsty folly. At which point, they will pretend to acquiesce to the US demands so they keep the subsidies flowing.
The Israeli have the brains and the money.
Hamas only has the hatred.
You know already how this ends.

Posted by: Augusto Pi | Nov 23 2023 15:53 utc | 17

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Article 1
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
Article 2
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.
[…]

People of the the European American persuasion immediately proceed to qualify universal human rights.

Considering the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations on
10th December 1948;
[…]
ARTICLE 1
Obligation to respect Human Rights The High Contracting Parties shall secure to everyone within their jurisdiction the rights and freedoms defined in Section I of this Convention.

except

SECTION I
ARTICLE 2 Right to life
1. Everyone’s right to life shall be protected by law. No one shall be deprived of his life intentionally save in the execution of a sentence of a court following his conviction of a crime for which this penalty is provided by law.
2. Deprivation of life shall not be regarded as inflicted in contravention of this Article when it results from the use of force which is no more than absolutely necessary:
(a) in defence of any person from unlawful violence;
(b) in order to effect a lawful arrest or to prevent the escape of a person lawfully detained;
c) in action lawfully taken for the purpose of quelling a riot
or insurrection.
[…]

US American interpretation and incorporation of optional universal human rights.

[…]
Although there is no consensus on what rights are considered human rights, most countries recognize the principles set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Proclaimed by the U.N.’s General Assembly in 1948, the Declaration of Human Rights is an aspirational document, and is non-binding on its signatories. It includes negative rights LOL! (whereby national governments may not engage in certain activities, such as torture) and positive rights LOL! (calling on nations to provide certain basic services, such as free education).
[…]

Posted by: sln2002 | Nov 23 2023 16:05 utc | 19

Do yourself a favor: Don’t ruin your day, today, by watching this:
https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/watch-israeli-children-sing-we-will-annihilate-everyone-gaza

Posted by: Aleph_Null | Nov 23 2023 16:06 utc | 21

Posted by: Augusto Pi | Nov 23 2023 15:53 utc | 17
You lost me at Hamas are terrorists. You’re positively glowing.

Posted by: Mary | Nov 23 2023 16:10 utc | 23

“Israel will cleanse itself of Arab Terrorists… Heheheh…”
Posted by: NeverAgain | Nov 23 2023 16:15 utc | 24
Come on Mohammed – you can do better than that.

Posted by: richard | Nov 23 2023 16:26 utc | 25

Posted by: pretzelattack | Nov 23 2023 15:37 utc | 13
################
The youth around the world are increasingly anti-Zionist, and this recent pogrom against Palestine will only continue to erode support for the Israeli state that the Zionists envision.
We’re talking long game here. Lacking full control of the global media and education processes, it is up to laymen via the internet to convince people that Zionism is the new Nazism (Nazism as it has been cast as the greatest evil the West has ever faced).
And that is happening. There has been a trend on TikTok of people making short videos about reading the Quran for the first time, and that will only help to bridge the gap created by the Global War on Terror. It takes time to change narratives without narrative control.
Understanding is the first step toward friendship, sympathy, and eventually, solidarity.

Posted by: LoveDonbass | Nov 23 2023 16:38 utc | 27

petergrfstrm | Nov 23 2023 15:42 utc | 15
That US is using israel rather than Israel using the US is I think correct. It could be a little each way at times but overall it is the US that is using Israel. AS RFK made very clear when he stated openly that Israel is an Unsinkable aircraft carrier in the region that allows the US some form of control over the Persian Gulf oil.
Israel was I think a British child. Interviews with pilots and navigators of SR-71 blackbirds that were sent on missions over Israel make it clear the the US pushed its way in. Those blackbirds were flying spy missions in late sixties and into the seventies, first under CIA and then predominantly under the pentagon. In the 67 war, the blackbirds where sent to photograph the battle fields so it could be determined how many tanks Israel had lost and If they needed more. At that time, Israel was very hostile to the US.
Until the deployment of the new long range hypersonic interceptor missile for the S-200 in 1970, the Blackbird could fly anywhere without being shot down.
That is around the time of the USS liberty (67) and is the reason Israel attacked it and the US admin did nothing.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Nov 23 2023 16:39 utc | 29

As to American Zionism, one aspect I had not thought about until now, is what role did the Brits play in it? An aspect that I now think needs looking into. Until the communist revolution in Russia, around 1920, US was on good terms with Russia and still somewhat Hostile to Britain. Britain had undertaken a number of initiative to pull the US back into the anglo fold and it was in the early 1900s that Zionism really began to develop.
The Scofield bible perhaps being the major influence in US zionism. From wiki…
“The Scofield Reference Bible is a widely circulated study Bible edited and annotated by the American Bible student Cyrus I. Scofield, which popularized dispensationalism at the beginning of the 20th century. Published by Oxford University Press and containing the entire text of the traditional, Protestant King James Version, it first appeared in 1909 and was revised by the author in 1917”

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Nov 23 2023 16:52 utc | 31

I have no words
Bear witness
https://twitter.com/i/status/1727373296285745263

Posted by: ld | Nov 23 2023 17:08 utc | 33

Let’s talk about it.
[…]
Posted by: sln2002 | Nov 23 2023 16:59 utc | 33
Articles of the UN Charter and conventions simultaneously “recognize” individuals who are not UN “members” per se and “member” state sovereignty. This is a prescription for system failure as neither legal term of art is self-executing”.

Posted by: sln2002 | Nov 23 2023 17:15 utc | 35

Posted by: pq | Nov 23 2023 14:45 utc | 5
‘You will never see Crooke writing an article headlined: the IMMORAL justification for Israel’s war. The whole point of his article, even if it accurately depicts Israel’s demented and genocidal state of mind is to subconsciously imply that the justification is not IMMORAL. He’ll push “religious civilization clash” too since he spent his entire MI6 career working with Israel to develop that narrative.’
Your comment is absolutely untrue with respect to Alastair. I watched Alastair Crooke on Judge Andrew Napolitano’s show (the good Judge is a man I greatly admire and trust). Alastair clearly stated that what is happening is without morality and has descended into lawlessness. He is clearly VERY troubled by the actions of Israel and points to the fact that more than 80% of Jews are in agreement with the government on this genocide. He cites the reasons as being eschatogical, where the desire is to reestablish the land of biblical Israel while expelling all Arabs from the land who refuse to accept the land as Israel and pledge allegiance to the Jewish state.

Posted by: Áobh O’Sheachnasaigh | Nov 23 2023 17:28 utc | 37

Please some context on that horrifying video
Posted by: Exile | Nov 23 2023 17:20 utc | 37
I am not sure but I believe it was the result of one last go round by israel before the cease fire.
As b correctly assreted when the cease fire was announced “Gaza was about to see its worst day yet”

Posted by: ld | Nov 23 2023 17:48 utc | 39

Posted by: Áobh O’Sheachnasaigh | Nov 23 2023 17:28 utc | 38
I agree with you. Crooke has been presenting important new insights, which he has been the first to bring up. e.g. the genocidal mania which has been taking over Israel.
“more than 80% of Jews are in agreement with the government on this genocide.”
That is wrong; not of all Jews, only 80% of Israeli Jews is what he said.

Posted by: laguerre | Nov 23 2023 17:51 utc | 41

@5 “Mearsheimer, Crooke, Sachs…all are duplicitous agents of Outlaw Empire.”
WORD!

Posted by: lindaj | Nov 23 2023 17:52 utc | 43

Hamas claims today a booby trapped tunnel entrance successfully destroyed a IDF squad
https://english.almanar.com.lb/1986195

Posted by: Exile | Nov 23 2023 17:56 utc | 45

Posted by: Lurk | Nov 23 2023 17:28 utc | 39
Dunno. Some have claimed Wilders’ mother was Jewish. I do know she is Indonesian and he was called the “negro of Venlo” at school for being so dark.
Some have claimed that he said, while drunk, that he has an Israeli passport. Yeah maybe.
Then his current wife is said to be working for Mossad… probably because she works for Pfizer etc. etc.
But then there is this assessment at the end of a study paper published by the Jewish museum of Berlin:
“The PVV is instrumentalising Jews, Jewry and Israel, anti-antisemitic enthusiasm and selective philosemitism being two of its tools.”
A good explanation is that the Dutch elected him because they are fed up with their immigrant population. Some recent example of why that would be so was the recent football hooliganism by the Moroccans.

Posted by: Jonathan W | Nov 23 2023 18:10 utc | 47

Agreed – most log these Merkavas claimed are likely disabled rather than destroyed. TBD.

Posted by: Exile | Nov 23 2023 18:13 utc | 49

Something to bring up at the Thanksgiving table. It’s presented by Snopes, who we know is mostly an Empire defender.
Israel Friendship Song 2023: Snopes
Autumn night falls over the beach of Gaza
Planes are bombing, destruction, destruction
Look the IDF is crossing the line
to annihilate the swastika-bearers
In another year there will be nothing there
And we will safely return to our homes
Within a year we will annihilate everyone
And then we will return to plow our fields
The above translations use both “annihilate” and “eliminate” to refer to the destruction of Gaza.
There is no publicly known reason for why Kan News deleted the video, but Electronic Intifada argued, “It is possible that someone there was concerned that it could make the channel complicit in genocide.” Electronic Intifada also noted that Israelis and other users criticized the post. Middle East Eye reported that the posts resulted in many online accusing the news agency of advocating genocide. We have reached out to the network and will update this post if we receive more information.
The Jewish Press was critical of Kan’s decision to remove the video, writing sarcastically that “someone at Kan 11 found the harsh sentiment pronounced by the six girls in the video unacceptable for viewing – by a nation which just watched more than a thousand of its people being raped, beaten, beheaded, and burned alive. So they took it down.”
On Nov. 16, 2023, U.N. experts and scholars warned that grave violations committed by Israel against Palestinians point to a “genocide in the making.”
https://www.snopes.com/news/2023/11/20/israeli-children-singing-annihilate-gaza/

Posted by: daffyDuct | Nov 23 2023 18:21 utc | 51

Israel needs to forgive the Hamas raid on October 7 and Palestine has an even bigger forgiveness task to forgive 75 years of murder and oppression.
Posted by: Chas | Nov 23 2023 16:07 utc | 22
Always easy to say until you experience scraping the bits of your four year old daughter into a black plastic bag, trying to put the pieces of her face back together for one last look.
Go talk about forgiveness to a Palestinian father who’s not only done this one but thrice.

Posted by: Arch Bungle | Nov 23 2023 18:31 utc | 53

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Nov 23 2023 18:21 utc | 53
I agree that, that’s what RoW are pushing, re, two state solution.
I read somewhere that in order for that to happen, and create contiguous land for that state, some 700,000 settlers, with many manicured lawns, will have to be relocated. Some had suggested, infeasible, tunnels to connect the two parcels of land.

Posted by: Sakineh Bagoom | Nov 23 2023 18:43 utc | 55

Scott Ritter: Hamas Winning Battle for Gaza
« (….) While the ceasefire, negotiated between Israel and Hamas by Qatar, was mutually agreed between the two parties, let no one be fooled into thinking this was anything less than a victory for Hamas. Israel had taken a very aggressive position that, given its stated objective of destroying Hamas as an organization, it would not agree to a ceasefire under any conditions.
Hamas, on the other hand, had made one of its primary objectives in initiating the current round of fighting with Israel the release of Palestinian prisoners, and in particular women and children, held by Israel. Seen in this light, the ceasefire represents an important victory for Hamas, and a humiliating defeat for Israel.
One of the reasons Israel eschewed a ceasefire was that it was confident that the offensive operation it had launched into northern Gaza was going to neutralize Hamas as a military threat, and that any ceasefire, regardless of the humanitarian justification, would only buy time for a defeated Hamas enemy to rest, refit, and regroup. That Israel signed on to a ceasefire is the surest sign yet that all is not well with the Israeli offensive against Hamas.
(…) The October 7 attack by Hamas was not a stand-alone operation, but rather part of a strategic plan possessing three main objectives—to put the issue of a Palestinian state back on the front burner of international discourse, to free the thousands of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and to compel Israel to cease and desist when it came to its desecration of the Al Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third holiest place. The October 7 attack (…) was designed to trigger an Israeli response which would create the conditions necessary for Hamas’ objectives to reach fruition.
(…) [Hamas’] goal was to lure Israeli forces into Gaza, and then subject these forces to an endless series of hit-and-run attacks (…)
And it worked. While Israeli forces have been able to penetrate into the less urbanized areas of the northern Gaza strip, taking advantage of the mobility and firepower of its armored troops, the progress is illusory, as Hamas forces harry the Israelis continuously, using deadly tandem-warhead rockets to disable or destroy Israeli vehicles, killing scores of Israeli soldiers and wounding hundreds more.
(…) But the main reason for Israel’s defeat to date is Israel itself. Having taken the bait, and fallen into the Hamas trap, Israel went on to execute its Dahiya Doctrine against the Palestinian population of Gaza, carrying out indiscriminate attacks against civilian objects in blatant disregard for the law of war. (…)
While Israel may have been able to garner the support of the international community in the aftermath of the October 7 attack by Hamas, its gross overreaction has instead turned world public opinion against it—something Hamas was counting on. Today, Israel is increasingly isolated (…). This isolation, combined with the kind of political pressure Israel is unaccustomed to receiving, helped contribute to the Netanyahu government’s acquiescence regarding the ceasefire and subsequent prisoner exchange.
(…) Hamas is doing more than surviving — it is winning. Having fought the Israel Defense Forces to a standstill on the battlefield, Hamas has seen every one of its strategic objectives in this conflict reach fruition. The world is actively articulating the absolute necessity of a two-state solution as a prerequisite for a lasting peace in the region. Palestinians held prisoner by Israel are being exchanged for the Israelis Hamas took hostage. And the Islamic world is united in condemning Israel’s desecration of the Al Aqsa Mosque.
None of these issues were on the table on October 6. »
For whatever reason, Sputnikglobe can be read by people residing in the European Union without using an anonymiser.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20231123/scott-ritter-hamas-winning-battle-for-gaza-1115160045.html

Posted by: Leuk | Nov 23 2023 18:47 utc | 57

(Forgive the long cut and paste – posted for those who can‘t get Sputnik )
Scott Ritter: Hamas Winning Battle for Gaza
“The recently announced ceasefire is a blessing for Palestinians and Israelis alike—a chance for prisoners to be exchanged, humanitarian aid to be distributed to those in need, and for emotions on both sides of the conflict to cool down.
While the ceasefire, negotiated between Israel and Hamas by Qatar, was mutually agreed between the two parties, let no one be fooled into thinking this was anything less than a victory for Hamas. Israel had taken a very aggressive position that, given its stated objective of destroying Hamas as an organization, it would not agree to a ceasefire under any conditions.
Hamas, on the other hand, had made one of its primary objectives in initiating the current round of fighting with Israel the release of Palestinian prisoners, and in particular women and children, held by Israel. Seen in this light, the ceasefire represents an important victory for Hamas, and a humiliating defeat for Israel.
One of the reasons Israel eschewed a ceasefire was that it was confident that the offensive operation it had launched into northern Gaza was going to neutralize Hamas as a military threat, and that any ceasefire, regardless of the humanitarian justification, would only buy time for a defeated Hamas enemy to rest, refit, and regroup. That Israel signed on to a ceasefire is the surest sign yet that all is not well with the Israeli offensive against Hamas.
This outcome should not have come as a surprise to anyone. When Hamas launched its October 7 attack on Israel, it initiated a plan years in the making. The meticulous attention to detail that was evident in the Hamas operation underscored the reality that Hamas had been studying the Israeli intelligence and military forces arrayed against it, uncovering weaknesses that were subsequently exploited. The Hamas action represented more than sound tactical and operational planning and execution—it was a masterpiece in strategic conceptualization as well.
One of the main reasons behind the Israeli defeat on October 7 was the fact that the Israeli government was convinced that Hamas would never attack, regardless of what the intelligence analysts charged with watching Hamas activity in Gaza were saying. This failure of imagination came about by Hamas having identified the political goals and objectives of Israel (the nullification of Hamas as a resistance organization by undertaking a policy built on “buying” Hamas through an expanded program of work permits issued by Israel for Palestinians living in Gaza.) By playing along with the work permit program, Hamas lulled the Israeli leadership into complacency, allowing Hamas’ preparations for their attack to be carried out in plain view.
The October 7 attack by Hamas was not a stand-alone operation, but rather part of a strategic plan possessing three main objectives—to put the issue of a Palestinian state back on the front burner of international discourse, to free the thousands of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and to compel Israel to cease and desist when it came to its desecration of the Al Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third holiest place. The October 7 attack, on its own, could not achieve these outcomes. Rather, the October 7 attack was designed to trigger an Israeli response which would create the conditions necessary for Hamas’ objectives to reach fruition.
The October 7 attack was designed to humiliate Israel to the point of irrationality, to ensure that any Israeli response would be governed by the emotional need for revenge, as opposed to a rational response designed to nullify the Hamas objectives. Here, Hamas was guided by the established Israeli doctrine of collective punishment (known as the Dahiya Doctrine, named after the West Beirut suburb that was heavily bombed by Israel in 2006 as a way of punishing the Lebanese people for Israel’s failure to defeat Hezbollah in combat.) By inflicting a humiliating defeat on Israel which shattered both the myth of Israeli invincibility (regarding the Israel Defense Forces) and infallibility (regarding Israeli intelligence), and by taking hundreds of Israelis hostage before withdrawing to its underground lair beneath Gaza, Hamas baited a trap for Israel which the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu predictably rushed into.
Hamas has prepared a network of tunnels underneath the Gaza Strip that, in total, stretch for over 500 kilometers. Nicknamed the “Gaza Metro,” these tunnels consist of interconnected deep underground bunkers used for command and control, logistical support, medical treatment, and billeting, along with other tunnel networks dedicated for both defensive and offensive operations. The tunnels are buried deep enough to avoid destruction by most bombs in Israel’s possession and have been provisioned to withstand a siege of up to three months (90 days) in duration.
Hamas knows that it cannot engage Israel in a classic force-on-force encounter. Instead, the goal was to lure Israeli forces into Gaza, and then subject these forces to an endless series of hit-and-run attacks by small teams of Hamas fighters who would emerge from their underground lairs, attack a vulnerable Israeli force, and then disappear back underground. In short, to subject the Israeli military to what is the equivalent of a death by a thousand cuts.
And it worked. While Israeli forces have been able to penetrate into the less urbanized areas of the northern Gaza strip, taking advantage of the mobility and firepower of its armored troops, the progress is illusory, as Hamas forces harry the Israelis continuously, using deadly tandem-warhead rockets to disable or destroy Israeli vehicles, killing scores of Israeli soldiers and wounding hundreds more. While Israel has been reticent in releasing the figures of armored vehicles lost in this fashion, Hamas claims the number is in the hundreds. Hamas’ claims are bolstered by the fact that Israel has halted the sale of older Merkava 3 tanks, and instead has organized their inventory of these vehicles into new reserve armor battalions to make up for the heavy losses being sustained in both Gaza and along the northern border with Lebanon, where Hezbollah forces are engaged in a deadly war of attrition with Israel in operations designed to support Hamas in Gaza.
But the main reason for Israel’s defeat to date is Israel itself. Having taken the bait, and fallen into the Hamas trap, Israel went on to execute its Dahiya Doctrine against the Palestinian population of Gaza, carrying out indiscriminate attacks against civilian objects in blatant disregard for the law of war. An estimated 13,000 Palestinian civilians have been killed by these attacks, including more than 5,000 children. Many thousands more victims remain buried under the rubble of their destroyed housing.
While Israel may have been able to garner the support of the international community in the aftermath of the October 7 attack by Hamas, its gross overreaction has instead turned world public opinion against it—something Hamas was counting on. Today, Israel is increasingly isolated, losing support not only in the so-called Global South, but also in traditional strongholds of pro-Israeli sentiment in the US, UK, and Europe. This isolation, combined with the kind of political pressure Israel is unaccustomed to receiving, helped contribute to the Netanyahu government’s acquiescence regarding the ceasefire and subsequent prisoner exchange.
Whether the ceasefire will hold or not remains to be seen. So, too, the question of turning the ceasefire into a lasting cessation of hostilities remains an open question. But one thing is certain—having declared that victory is defined by Hamas’ total defeat, the Israelis have set the stage for a Hamas victory, something Hamas achieves simply by surviving.
But Hamas is doing more than surviving — it is winning. Having fought the Israel Defense Forces to a standstill on the battlefield, Hamas has seen every one of its strategic objectives in this conflict reach fruition. The world is actively articulating the absolute necessity of a two-state solution as a prerequisite for a lasting peace in the region. Palestinians held prisoner by Israel are being exchanged for the Israelis Hamas took hostage. And the Islamic world is united in condemning Israel’s desecration of the Al Aqsa Mosque.
None of these issues were on the table on October 6. That they are being addressed now is testament to the success Hamas enjoyed on October 7, and in the days and weeks that followed, as Israeli forces were defeated by a combination of Hamas’ tenacity and their own predilection for indiscriminate violence against civilians. Far from being eliminated as a military and political force, Hamas has emerged as perhaps the most relevant voice and authority when it comes to defending the interests of the Palestinian people.”
Sputnik

Posted by: Exile | Nov 23 2023 18:55 utc | 59

@ Exile
You nasty copycat!

Posted by: Leuk | Nov 23 2023 19:10 utc | 61

Question for the bar:
The Israeli propaganda war is escalating beyond even absurdity. The WW II and Nazi analogies are easily refuted, but, while I know it in my gut (but not yet my head) that the recent equation of Russia’s SMO with Israeli Gaza operation is badly flawed, I’m not clear on exactly why. I recently was disappointed to hear even Yanis Varoufakis make that same comparison (“we condemn both”) on DIEM25 pod.
Can the more thoughtful and knowledgeable and better writers here please explain why this equation is flawed and false?

Posted by: bill wolfe | Nov 23 2023 19:25 utc | 63

Re: Merkava‘s
Apparently the Arabs have some home grown RPG that has a 2 stage warhead – think it’s called 105 Yassin or similar
Leuk – great minds think alike. (Note to self check thread before posting 😂)

Posted by: Exile | Nov 23 2023 19:31 utc | 65

@ Posted by: NeverAgain | Nov 23 2023 16:15 utc | 25
“Heheheh…”
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uxo5g_xn2oc
Dumb mut-ley.
Your Dasterdly Masters little hench dog.
Like the nafos now shutting down, deleting and running.
Are you secretly anti Zionist?

Posted by: DunGroanin | Nov 23 2023 19:44 utc | 67

@Peter AU1 | Nov 23 2023 16:52 utc | 32
Concerning zionism originating from Britain
I recently posted these links elsewhere so I just
copy them
http://www.wlym.com/archive/campaigner/7812.pdf
for example this article in that link
How Britain’s Biggest Racists Created Zionism
by Mark Burdman
https://larouchepub.com/eiw/public/1982/eirv09n25-19820629/eirv09n25-19820629_036-why_israel_fights_britains_wars.pdf
https://larouchepub.com/eiw/public/1997/eirv24n46-19971114/eirv24n46-19971114_036-british_israelites_and_empire.pdf
https://larouchepub.com/eiw/public/2002/eirv29n44-20021115/eirv29n44-20021115_058-christian_zionists_are_not_chris.pdf
https://larouchepub.com/eiw/public/2002/eirv29n46-20021129/eirv29n46-20021129_063-darby_made_christian_zionism_for.pdf
From Donald Wagner:
https://web.archive.org/web/20040624082018/http://www.sabeel.org/old/news/cstone30/Christian_Zionist_Primer_Pt_1.htm
https://larouchepub.com/eiw/public/2009/eirv36n03-20090123/eirv36n03-20090123_036-netanyahus_godfather_how_british.pdf
Thierry Meyssan:
https://www.voltairenet.org/article184973.html

Posted by: petergrfstrm | Nov 23 2023 19:55 utc | 69

https://electronicintifada.net/content/evidence-israel-killed-its-own-citizens-7-october/41156?

A retired Israeli army major has admitted Israel probably killed some of the 1,200 Israelis the government claims Hamas murdered on 7 October.
The confession, discovered by The Electronic Intifada, is one of the highest level confirmations to date that Israel killed many, if not most, of the civilians that died during the Palestinian offensive…..

Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Nov 23 2023 20:06 utc | 71

petergrfstrm | Nov 23 2023 19:55 utc | 70
Thanks. I don’t have drive, for whatever reason, for a lot of reading and research now but looking at the big picture, it seems likely Zionism was a British strategy designed to be used used against the US as in influence operations.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Nov 23 2023 20:13 utc | 73

Reparations are likely to become a bigger question than any other. Especially since the ICH opined in 2004, that Israel as the occupying power owes reparations.

Posted by: Exile | Nov 23 2023 20:15 utc | 75

Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt
@FranceskAlbs
Yet another trail of egregiously false claims agst me. My trip to Australia was paid by the UN as part of my mandate’s activities.
Continuous defamation agst my mandate may be well remunerated,but won’t work. It just wastes time that should be used to help stop violence in oPt.
https://twitter.com/FranceskAlbs/status/1727695227828281568

Posted by: Menz | Nov 23 2023 20:20 utc | 77

https://t.me/Reality_Theories/15895
Israel is shutting down haaretz newspaper for being unpatriotic. It published the helicopter story about killing their own, so will be punished .
The middle east only democracy and all that

Posted by: Hankster | Nov 23 2023 20:25 utc | 79

Posted by: Leuk | Nov 23 2023 18:47 utc | 58
Thanks for posting of Scott Ritter’s essay. His analysis make complete sense but he doesn’t go far enough.
Hamas won a multi-layered global victory, here some additional perspectives.
– Abraham Accords with Arab vassals in dust bin.
– Indian-Arab-Zionist trade and energy route plans teared into pieces.
– Egyptian-Zionist-Turk trade and energy route jeopardized.
– Iran’s defensive military doctrine where Palestine played first-tier defense is circumvented, now Iran is de facto last-tier defense for Palestine.
– US have to keep at least 2 Carrier Strike Groups near the coast of Palestine permanently to deter Axis of Resistance. (resource draining)
– Western pro-Palestinian leftists and progressives got a needed fresh blood transfusion.
– “Multipolar World” (Cino-Russian lobby), “Global South” (Indian lobby), “Collective West” (Brics lobby)
lost ground to the “Global Anti-imperialist Camp” where Palestinian Issue has the most central and symbolic value!

Posted by: Framarz | Nov 23 2023 20:36 utc | 81

As much as I want them to be factual, I take these reports with a grain of salt as I have yet to see video of any armor ” cooking off “, flying turrets, and other obvious signs of destroyed armor as in many other recent conflicts. There might be several reasons for this of course.
Posted by: Moonie | Nov 23 2023 18:02 utc | 47
Abu Obeida always gives counts of how many type of vehicles they’ve destroyed. The number one reason why fighters don’t stick around is that Israelis are calling in air strikes within 6 minutes.
In fact in the speech he gave a couple of days ago, Obeida emphasized that Israelis are again using Hannibal doctrine on soldiers in Northern Gaza when they are in clashes because they don’t want them taken captive.
The planes just come in and bomb them all. Abu Obeida claims that Israeli strikes on their own troops in Northern Gaza have claimed lives. What is clear from the videos is that the Israelis never get out of their tanks and that the resistance has eyes on them everywhere from the rubble.
Electronic Intifada, one of the best sites around has livestreams every few days. The Jon Elmer guy seems to have military knowledge if that’s what you are interested in.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtdUjPoYnJI

Posted by: pq | Nov 23 2023 20:57 utc | 83

” The planes just come in and bomb them all. Abu Obeida claims that Israeli strikes on their own troops in Northern Gaza have claimed lives. What is clear from the videos is that the Israelis never get out of their tanks and that the resistance has eyes on them everywhere from the rubble.
Posted by: pq | Nov 23 2023 20:57 utc | 84 ”
Thanks for the video.
Your comment implies that the armored vehicles get bombed, including the crews, that means Gaza should be littered with wrecks that are damaged beyond the capabilities of mere RPGs. Those could be easily filmed after the bombings, yet I havent seen any evidence such damage yet.

Posted by: Moonie | Nov 23 2023 21:15 utc | 85

Haaretz has not been shut down. For the actual story see “Minister suggests sanctions on Haaretz for ‘false propaganda’ but action unlikely” Times of Israel today.

Posted by: Pundita | Nov 23 2023 21:19 utc | 87

al jalzeera headlines UK time 9pm
some
most significant attack from Lebanon by Hez. about 50 projectiles to Galilee area.. IDF bombs areas in south Lebanon
205 plus med staff killed in Gaza in the war so far…..deaths injuries West bank people taken away
60 captives by H killed by IDF . 72 IDF killed in ground op. 300 on 7 Oct in the attack
more airstrikes Gaza strip 27 plys Palestine killed in school..deaths in refugee camps ..200 plus killed by IDF since Wed
189 critically ill still in Al Shifa Director and staff arrested…ambulance convoy out held up for 20 hr journey
civil defence and med staff attacked in north Gaza
Indonesian hosp must be evacuated surrounded by tanks ….has been attacked but patients will die if moved
….

Posted by: Jo | Nov 23 2023 21:29 utc | 89

Re Hamas-Russia analogy
The Hamas-Russia/Putin analogy being spread by the western ruling and media networks is false. It’s just another piece of the never-ending propaganda puzzle, the distortions, lies and fabrications that have been poisining their own populations and the world atmosphere for decades.
The analogy Hamas- Russia/Putin is geared towards planting in everyone’s mind that Hamas and Russia/Putin are -terrorists. This is not factual, not correct, not true.
There is nothing ‘terrorist’ in Russia’s operation in Ukraine. The full background and the events leading up to the operation are all in the public domain, in detail. There is no need to repeat them here where most of the serious contributors are well informed, and where all the aspects of Russia’s intervention have been thoroughly discussed.
Hamas is not a terrorist organisation, it is a resistance/liberation movement. It has a right, and a moral duty, to fight the oppressor, to fight for liberation, for freedom, for decolonisation and a Palestinian state. For detailed information about Hamas, Finkelstein is an authoritative source. Everyone can educate themselves. Go for deeper knowledge, for understanding, not sound bites and quotes.
An analogy is possible between Israel and Ukraine – they both act with rabid, blind hatred, and are denying the rights, one of Ukranian Russian citizens, the other of Palestinians, and in the Zionist’s case, the very existence of Palestinians.
The terrorist is Israel, as it is proving daily, and has been proving for decades. The Ukrainians have been using terrorist tactic also. The US, a well known terrorist supporter, and user of terrorist tactics, just recently committed an unprecedent terrorist act by blowing up the NS pipeline. It’s efforts to pin it on others are hilarious.
As for Yanis Varoufakis – he has no sympathy for Russia and Putin, to put kindly, and that clouds his judgement regarding international affairs which he does not always understand. I must say that in many ways he has disappointed, which is a pity.

Posted by: JB | Nov 23 2023 21:36 utc | 91

Can the more thoughtful and knowledgeable and better writers here please explain why this equation is flawed and false?
Posted by: bill wolfe | Nov 23 2023 19:25 utc | 64
Well for months and years we have had the narrative that Russians have targeted hospitals and schools, in the past 18 months about 600 children have been killed in Ukraine, about 6000 have been killed in six weeks in Gaza, the numbers speak for themselves.

Posted by: Englishman | Nov 23 2023 21:51 utc | 93

What I see on Aljazira -live right now, looks like mortars fired from within Gaza city at Northwestern coastline of Gaza.
It seems that Hamas is trying to define the trench line coordinates before start of the ceasefire. Perhaps we get causality numbers and video reports tomorrow morning.

Posted by: Framarz | Nov 23 2023 21:58 utc | 95

Whitney 89
Not claiming to be wise, articulate or well informed, but Victorian age Imperialists offered to create a zionist homeland in order make a base to control the Middle East.
By 1918, Churchill had recognised the necessity of extracting ME oil for fuel. The British plan of a Zionist state was an oven-ready colonial plan for the US to implement. The only thing missing was a justification to do it, which Hitler ‘s Holocaust furnished, not by accident.
The US found themselves irresistibly attracted to Nazism as a post- monarchical model for State power.
Israel was created on the outlaw / cowboy colonialism of the US.
Other influences came from Iraqi Kurdistan which had a 2500 year shared history with Palestine, and from every other country in the Jewish diapora, especially Soviet Russia, and Europe.
After WW2, the British conceived the idea of building their empire 2 starting with agricultural Eastern Europe then the oil-rich Middle East.
It was the British desire for restoring their ruined empire that drove the US interest in Hegemony.
In conclusion Israel is a British Imperial concept, with a US Christian crusading Mission and a Nazi political doctrine of terror and Fascism. Judaism is scrap value only, having been superceded by Islam, its neighbour on every side.
Israel’s inner contradictions make it volatile and dangerous. The concept of Greater Israel remains 100 % British, hence the extraordinary behaviour of playboy Sunak.

Posted by: Giyane | Nov 23 2023 22:10 utc | 97

96
Muslim Brotherhood and its offshoot Hamas are proxies of the Empire 2 Tory British and their sole function is to build a Greater Israel under British control with the carrot of future Eastern , Islam- proselytising wars.

Posted by: Giyane | Nov 23 2023 22:30 utc | 99