Disclaimer: I'm well aware of some of the war crimes committed by indivudial isreali soldiers but anyways I'm probably going to get dunked on and have the comment section turn into a complete warzone for what I am about to say here but here we go I guess lol:

I don't really know where to start off but for the last few months I've been getting a feeling that if I support Palestine, I feel like I'm supporting a Terrorist organization. Why might I think that you may ask? For starters, as we all know Hamas killed 1200 innocent people who didn't really do nothing wrong, and sure the IDF has also committed war crimes against civilians, but Hamas also uses Palestinians as Human shields so why the hell should I support Hamas? (Hamas officials admit its strategy is to use Palestinian civilians as human shields). And how in the hell is this a genocide? If we take a look at the death toll, around 45,000 Palestinians died, 17000 of those were militants, so 45,000-17,000 = 28,000/45000 = 62.2%. (Death Toll in Israel-Hamas War Surpasses 45,000 - Newsweek) If Isreal truly wanted to commit genocide, which would alienate themselves from the outside world, and waste precious resources against more credible threats like Iran or the Houthis, we would've seen it by now.

Also this is more of a personal side tangent but the whole fucking protests against Isreal i'd say made me more against Palestine, how in the fuck is rioting and burning a flag going to help Palestine. It pisses me off seeing the American flag being burned by a bunch of fucking retards who can't point to where the Gaza strip is on the map.

Anyways that's pretty much all I have to say regarding what I have to say, hopefully someone can relate here.

I’ve looked into this a bit because it is well understood that mass rape of civilian women during the execution of a war is not just some atrocious spontaneous happenstance but a fully acknowledged, how to put it, age-old war-time strategy.

Yet, despite how often I see it so mentioned by writers taking for granted as fact to be occurring must as wide-spread during this current war in Gaza, I am unable to find verifiable, nor simply a singular narrative evidence of an occurrence of male and/or female IDF boots-on-the-ground soldiers committing rape on Gazan women.

In my readings, I have unearthed claims that mass scale rape “happens in all wars so it most certainly is happening in Gaza currently, ESPECIALLY given how very evil the IDF in particular” or the singular incident whereby a mob of braincell deficient ultra-national religionist settlers in the West Bank sexually assaulted a prisoner in the West Bank (details not released and unclear whether he was “raped” by his victimizers in the purest sense versus repeatedly and atrociously sodomized with object(s). Not that the difference matters in terms of the injuries sustained or the trauma incurred by this victim or in the level of sadism exhibited by his victimizers. Though would one consider there be a distinction nevertheless? It is however, debatable though potentially in terms of the context of my inquiry.

I’ve found 2 so far narratives from separate Palestinian woman having their feelings hurt and/or left feeling verbally violated at IDF checkpoints (not in Gaza and not during this war) where both incidents evidenced extremely poor taste. In the first, a soldier teased the young woman she could get for herself preferential treatment for her and the other male family occupants by offering up sexual favors

The second incident was akin to essentially catcalling - the young woman was told something along the lines that what a shame she’d be so much more attractive if she’d let hair down. Culturally insensitive and mysoginistic surely, but arguably not quite meeting criteria for assault.

I’ve read accusations leveled that “MUCH worse MUST DEFINITELY occur frequently” because events like the 2 aforementioned inevitably lead to fear, ostracism and punishment of the young lady by her own male family members so these and events much worse MUST be widespread but under-reported naturally for this reason. Never-mind that in this statement of assumption itself it is quite unclear who would be mother more guilty party - the daft cruelty of the teenaged soldier or the cruelty of the young woman’s family members.

This in no way either is to support the portraiture of soldiers as “mere teenaged boys” who should be excused from all manner of idiotic to cruel to vicious actions, waved away as mere “boys being boys”. I believe it is the clear opposite. When a boy (or girl) has made the commitment to become a soldier, whether by their own volition or not, they have at that point forfeit any excuse not to think, breathe, and conduct themselves as anything other than a model adult.

My initial and point of my ask had not to do with inappropriate WB checkpoint activity but war-time rape. And that I am extremely interested to learn if any commenters have links for detailed evidentiary reports and/or testimonials from any female Gazan civilian victims alleging rape by a male or female IMF soldier currently or formerly on combat duty in Gaza.

Asking because, given the breadth of how this is reported in many outlets as gospel, I must entertain the possibility that I may simply be ignorant on the subject.

My prior understanding has been that the IDF, without making summary judgments regarding any other kinds of war-related violence or viciousness either occurring during this or any previous wars, nevertheless is/has been unique in that their “boots on the ground” men and women soldiers did/do not rape female civilians during the execution of war.

I mean this inquiry sincerely and in good faith, so if you are to respond, please do so bearing in mind what the accepted-as-reality definition of rape is without any broadening of the definition. That is - sexual assault that involves sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration without the victim’s consent. I’m merely trying to get a handle on what’s fact versus what is not litigated fact and, importantly, what might be better described as emotionally insulting versus truly assaulting and/or bodily invasive.

All manners of harm should never be minimized. I believe this with all of my being. Yet, it is vitally important to respect that harms exist along a spectrum with, not always clear, but boundary lines nevertheless and that lumping together all manner of mild to severe events ultimately serve only to dangerously minimize the experiences of victims of the most virulently heinous, truly violent and egregious crimes.

Thanks and sorry for the lengthiness.

(I'm pro-Palestine btw)

Suppose there is a button that would erase every single Palestinian in the world. They aren't harmed - they just disapear. Every single person forgets that Palestinians exist - all documents with the word "Palestine" and "Palestinian" disappears. After you press the button - both Palestinians and any recognition of Palestinians or Palestine ceases to exist.

If you had the ability to erase an entire group of people from the earth, would you do it?

(If you hate all Arabs and all Muslims, suppose the button erases them too)

If you think this is a hypothetical no one has ever talked about:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/sep/06/israeli-podcasters-laughing-gaza-genocide-two-nice-jewish-boys

"If you gave me a button to just erase Gaza, every single living being in Gaza would no longer be living tomorrow. I would press it in a second" - The Two Nice Jewish Boys podcast

If you answer no - why? Why do you believe that another group who'se identity conflicts with Zionism and Zionist ambitions have a right to exist? Isn't the word Palestine genocide?

What argument can you make that supports their existance and right to be Palestinian - as well as arguing that all of Palestine is the Jewish homeland and belongs to the Jewish state? If you had a button that would in effect end the conflict through "peaceful" extermination, why wouldn't or would you press it?

“No normalization” refers to one of the “Three Nos” of the 1967 Khartoum Resolution. And when the Arabs made this promise, they made a tragic and fateful decision, but one that they very much meant, and was very much in character for their culture. Read any generalizing guide to the Arab worldview and mindset, or talk to anyone raised Arab who’s willing to be honest with you about this, and you’ll see a pretty intense people, who let their strong emotions guide their actions. You may see this likened to, in perhaps a reflection of, the harsh, extreme, unforgiving desert environment they call home. This is tempered and balanced by a high value placed on people-smarts and social awareness, and a complicated social game of strict protocols, whose point is avoiding making others feel not good. Though my Arabic language skills are quite poor — far surpassed by the English proficiency of the vast majority of Arabs I’ve met and interacted with — this cultural disconnect has been consistent for me, and I’ve found it very hard as a nerdy and cerebral Westerner to get used to: If an Arab doesn’t like the way anything I do or say makes him feel, I’ve already lost him and his goodwill. He’s likely to remain unfailingly polite outwardly, though maybe a touch curt or backhanded. But inside, he’s written me off, and doesn’t care what happens to me as long as he never has to interact with me again. In culturally Arab-predominant social circles, I have received righteously indignant pushback to the idea that I am not responsible for, or in control of, how other people feel. There, I most certainly am responsible, or at the very least should expect to be held fully responsible for how people respond emotionally to me. If disrespect from my general direction is so much as suspected, then it is on me to clear myself of such charges, or leave, before something very bad happens to me. This is balanced and accommodated, in turn, by normalizing enduring beefs and violent feuds as an inevitable fact of life.

All I have read and experienced tells me that Arabs, in general, bring this all-or-nothing approach to human relationships. Families are tight and loyal to a degree that most Westerners would cringe at, and call unhealthy enmeshment. Most other people, on the other hand, are never trusted at all. This creates a situation where it’s very easy and consequence-free to cope with life’s troubles by blaming and poormouthing outsiders among family members. It’s risk free because all of you can assume that your whole family is in complete agreement on values and priorities, and none of you trust, care about, or even interact enough with the people you’re trashing, for this trash-talking to ever come back and affect you.

But here’s the problem. This treating of others as externalities and dumping grounds for your frustrations in life, will doubtless bond your family closer. Nothing unites like a common enemy. Plus all the better for your family’s cohesion and harmony, if internal frictions can instead be blamed on outsiders. But without the attenuating effect of regular interactions with the targeted people, reminding us that in the end they’re people just like us, this practice can easily spiral unchecked into dehumanization and complete denial of empathy. It’s a lot easier to be cruel to people whose faces you don't see, and whose voices you don't hear. It’s a lot easier to believe a horrific rumor about people you share no mutually positive memories with.

As long as a significant number of Palestinian Arabs and their supporters preemptively refuse to talk at all to anyone who doesn’t support them, and oppose Team Israel, unreservedly from the very start, then I just don’t know how these blame-attenuating and ethnic-rift-healing positive social interactions can take place. If we could get to a future where most Israelis and most Palestinian Arabs could say, “Yeah, know and am friends with a bunch of [the other group’s] people. Most of them are super chill; I didn’t even know they were [the other ethnic group] until recently, and even after I found out, I didn’t care,” then in the long run, we’d have little to worry about. If we could get to a point where most Arabs see unbreakably tight families as no longer worth the cost of potential alienation from, and endless conflict with, everyone else, what a wonderful world it would be.

I come to realize this because I've seen a lot of screwed up things in the community like memes that made fun of Jews specifically and mocked Pro-Israel supporters, bullying or misusing the watermelon and [-] flag emoji for trolling if they disagree with you, dismissing anti semitism, making excuses to even to the point of supporting h**as, etc. I have seen a lot in the community for only 1 year and the fact that this exists is sad imo..

I notice this is especially for younger people in the community like young adults, teens and children. If they are trying to tell people about peace, how come the opposite happens? As someone who is Pro-Israel, it is very sad that this exists...

I've also noticed other trends in the community too like hating someone already for specifically being Jewish, trying to educate facts about Israel, even if its done in a peaceful and kind way, seeing a Israeli flag and confronting you for it, etc.

Idk when and how the Pro [-] Community gotten to be so toxic but I suffered the bullying before and it felt dark and even angerfying as in losing my patience. I've even been mocked for simply being Jewish and these expieriences are unacceptable. I noticed somehow the Pro Israel community is very peaceful and beautiful. The people in the pro [-] deserve the same kindness that people in the Pro Israel have. At the end of the day, we are just people both the 2 communities so we deserve the same nice treatment.

(Idk what flair to have so I chose this one to be the most precise..)

These words are deeply significant.

The Palestinian cause has not really evolved despite ample opportunities to embrace peace, but Israel has changed. Israel, once a naive upstart, believing in the promise of peaceful coexistence has now become staunchly conservative in its middle age. Hopes for peace are replaced by actions for survival, and often these actions do seem to go too far (though never as far as the media falsely paint them).

The country that wanted to hold musical celebrations of peace on its front yard, has turned into the country of "Hey you kids get off my lawn." But this is what happens when your music festival is turned into a rape-fest massacre.

Today we can hear useful idiots in the West proudly and ignorantly declaring that Jesus was a Palestinian. It's so far from the realm of reality that it can be laughably dismissed. But what these ahistoric infants have truly forgotten is that unlike Jesus, Golda Meir was a self-declared Palestinian. The leader of a nation of refugees seeking safe harbor in their continuous and historic homeland. Too many of them have sacrificed their lives for our salvation.

It's ironic that the entire world expects only the Jewish state to embrace the Christian ethic of turning the other cheek, when they themselves would never be so tolerant of violent terrorism in their homes.

But in this holy time of year, we should all strive to uphold the vision of that truly great Palestinian, Golda Meir, that peace is possible. But it will be possible only when the Palestinians learn to love their children more than they hate Israel.

לֹא יִשָּׂא גוֹי אֶל גוֹי חֶרֶב לֹא יִלְמְדוּ עוֹד מִלְחָמָה

https://aish.com/golda-meir-on-the-palestinians/

I understand this is a controversial topic, and I'm asking this in good faith and am just looking for the truth.  I have read Benny Morris’ Righteous Victims and 1948 and Rashid Khalidi’s The Hundred Years War on Palestine, and I'm well read on the mass exterminations/expulsions from the late Ottoman Empire, the mass postwar deportations from Europe, and Soviet mass deportations of 'hostile' ethnic groups.

Palestinian 'keys of return' are of course an iconic symbol of Palestinian nationalism and identity. I visited Israel/Palestine  several years ago and was quite moved by the frequent display of these keys in the West Bank. The claim I've always heard is that these do not represent a symbolic right to return, but rather are the original keys from Palestine houses depopulated in 1948. I do not question Morris' estimate that around 700,000 Palestinian Arabs either fled in apprehension of genuine danger or were directly expelled in 1948-1949.

However, some details puzzled me. For one thing, the keys I’ve seen displayed seem to have an almost uniform, blocky design, although often quite rusted and certainly having the appearance of being 'historic'. Furthermore, if Palestinians  did indeed keep these house keys, doesn't this bolster the old, widely challenged pro-Israel narrative that these were orderly withdrawals ordered by the Arab leadership?  If you were fleeing for your life, why would you take your house key?  In reading about other mass displacements and expulsions in the 20th century, I've never come across mentions of house keys kept as mementos.

I can't help thinking of the fantastic 1998 book “The Spitting Image” by Jerry Lembcke about the similarly iconic image of Vietnam veterans being spat on upon by anti-war protestors. While this trope is widely known, Lembcke makes an excellent case that that there's little if any contemporary evidence that it took place and that rather, it is a narrative that developed later, rooted in veterans’ collective trauma and a feeling of abandonment by the public. There has been extensive commentary about the dubious historicity of the 'spat-upon-veteran' claim. 

So, I'm wondering, when did references first emerge to these keys being kept and displayed by Palestinians as an indication of a “right to return”? Is there early documentary/journalistic/photographic evidence that refers to this phenomenon, and if so how widespread is it?

see constant headlines stating that ‘medics in Gaza’ report deaths in an area, or that ‘the Hamas Health Ministry reports x was bombed’. How are these reports verified so that they can make it into main stream news headlines? I assume that there is an obvious minimum standard require to make it into a professional new report, and also an obvious interest to inflate casualties and make extreme reports in the instance that they aren’t performing fact checks.

Is this verification process accessible by the public?

Who won the propaganda and Political war? A year ago it seemed that Israel was completely doomed in the Public Opinion. The Pro-Palestine crowd was very vocal, they managed to influence the West's policies and had a lot of backing. The traditional pro-Israel crowd struggled a lot against them, the pro-Israel crowd also lost a lot of its famous lobbying power and every day you would see giant protests from Palestinians. In general, a month after October 7th public opinion sided with the Palestinians.

The protestors also managed to influence the Democrats, they put a lot of pressure on Biden which pushed him to take a harder stance on Israel and even Jewish people were terrified of them. Multiple anti-Israel messages spread which caused the rise of Antisemitism in Europe and the United States..Israel was seen as almost a mini-Russia and was very demonized. Even Josh Shapiro probably wasn't chosen as Harris' VP because she was afraid of the backslash from the Pro-Palestine crowd.

But lately, I don't know what happened and I don't know if it's only me, but I've started to feel that the wheel turns. It seems that the Pro-Palestinian crowd got very weakened and also tired. The pro-Israel activists are getting a red carpet from the emerging American administration and it also seems that there are parts of the Democratic Party that are trying to get closer to the pro-Israeli communities again. It feels like everyone is pretty tired of the Palestinians and is starting to turn a blind eye to Gaza and push the pro-Palestinian movement out of the mainstream. You now see many Pro-Israel Liberals that are becoming very popular (Ritchie Torres stands out), Western Leaders like Macron have become complete jokes and even Sweden is cutting funding to UNRWA. In general, it seems that the Pro-Palestinian crowd is becoming radioactive and is getting ridiculed and that the public is slowly turning its back on the Palestinian cause. I don't know if its because of the election results, wishful thinking or maybe I'm just over-analyzing it.

https://www.reuters.com/world/sweden-will-no-longer-fund-unrwa-aid-agency-minister-says-2024-12-20/ (paywall)

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/sweden-says-it-will-stop-funding-unrwa/

Sweden is among the top 5 donor countries to UNRWA. Sweden plans to increase its humanitarian aid to Gaza next year to 800 million Swedish Crown ($72 million) but not through UNRWA. The humanitarian aid to Gaza will instead be going to other organizations such as World Food Program, UNICEF, Red Cross, etc…

This is in response to the new Israeli law banning UNRWA operations in the country beginning late January next year.

In the meantime, the Dutch parliament announced a gradual phase out funding for UNRWA. The Netherlands being a top ten donors to UNRWA. If the bill passes through the Dutch Senate and is signed into law, it will cut contributions to UNRWA from €19 million to €15 million in 2025 and will continue to decrease annually until 2029 when only €1 million will be granted.

UNRWA has suspended aid deliveries into Gaza since Dec 1st, 2024. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1ln5592v46o Other aid organizations are still delivering humanitarian aid into Gaza despite the challenges.

This is meant as a summary on how to counter debate post on Hasidic anti-Zionism for Israeli supporters.

The most common way you'll run into this argument is from BDSers who don't know anything about Judaism. Some rabbi in a hasidic outfit (generally Neturei Karta but can be a few others) says some nonsense and since BDSers grab on to any piece of negative information they find this convincing.

As a first round treat this like any other extremist religious groups. Christians have Christian Identity, Amish, Palmarians... there is no reason to feel apologetic about treating Neturei Karta similarly. They are an extremist sect rejected by the Jewish mainstream with far fewer members than Jews for Jesus. Satmar and some of the others are larger but they again do not and never did represent the mainstream. So try and dismiss it.

What if they decide to argue that no this version of Judaism is authentic and binding? The argument falls apart pretty fast. There is a notion of "3 Oaths". The 3 Oaths are established by a fabrication of author's intent with no textual support. Force the opponent BDSer to defend that, they likely can't. The whole argument hinges on that and it is simply undefendable.

What about someone [Jewish] Orthodox? Well for someone Orthodox you have to dig into history. Their argument is structured something like this:

1. We can ignore the wealth of actual writings of Jews from the Temple Period about what Jews from the Temple Period believed.

2. We instead should rely on the Gemara authors who have essentially no cultural continuity with Temple Judaism and a playful spirit with the text. We should treat this as an unquestionable absolute, reading it in a fundamentalist manner.

3. Later works like Mishneh Torah and Aruch HaShulchan systemize Gemara. Their systemizations get rejected in many places but here they cannot be.

4. This theology they are preaching they claim was the Jewish norm until Zionism (1882).

This whole structure is so full of holes that it gives a wealth of points of attack.

1. If you are at all familiar with pre-Talmudic Judaism point (1) falls apart immediately. We know what early Jews believed and it bears very little resemblance to any modern Judaism. The further back you go the less resemblance. Continuity from some period many centuries earlier is contradicted by the evidence. You can pick virtually anything from the 2nd century or earlier and it almost immediately contradicts a doctrine of Gemara continuity. Zionism has an explicit doctrine of שלילת הגולה (negation of the diaspora). This doctrine basically holds that Jews developed a culture (which would include the religion) consistent with discrimination and persuction in the diaspora. This culture needs to be reformed into a new culture appropriate for a free people living as equals. That makes the break a feature not a bug of Zionism, consistent with its objectives. The Orthodox anti-Zionist needs to defend a continuity from before the Diaspora since otherwise this would just be one more piece of slave culture that needed to be eliminated for Jews to be free. Jews becoming free of mental slavery is an explicit part of Torah and a theme of Pesach.

2. If you are familiar with Talmud you can point to lots of examples of various readings of Talmud. The decision to focus on the 3 Oaths in a fundamentalist way without nuance is a theological choice, and a theological choice contrary to Jewish tradition which generally emphasizes practicality and nuance. 3 Oaths is an offhand comment in Gemara, it is Maimonides who attaches theological structural imporance to it.

3. (3) is their strongest point. My advice would be don't go here. This argument provides a wealth or rich targets don't hit the most fortified target. That being said the best way to address Mishnah Torah if you do go there is to directly at Maimonides' authority to decide on prioritization. 3 Oaths is an offhand comment in Gemara, it is Maimonides who attaches theological structural imporance to it.

4. (4) is a rich target for anyone who knows later Jewish history. There was no point in time all during the Dark Ages, Middle Ages, Renaissance... where something like Hasidic theology or practice was the norm. They constantly use "Judaism" to mean a religion that was practiced by either no or almost no Jews at any century what-so-ever. They argue Zionism introduced the change look at the theology of the Haskalah Movement (1770-1881) which came right before Zionism and out of which Zionism emerged. Let them try and defend that Moses Mendelssohn wasn't a Jewish leader. If we assume rather than Zionism being relatively continuous with the Judaism that actually existed (as opposed to the pretend Judaism that mostly never was normative of the NK) they need to come up with a breaking point. How and when did Jews rethink their history? The anti-Zionist case doesn't have a good answer to this question. They can't admit that it happened much earlier than 1882 because that contradicts the whole "Zionism led the Jews astray" schtick. They can't admit that there was no major rethinking because that contradicts the whole "Orthodoxy was norm" schtick.

Basically this debate point when it comes up can be defeated if you breathe on it too hard. Even for BDSers this one is exceptionally factually inaccurate. Don't treat it as something that takes years of study to master. It is just another anti-Zionist talking point based on lies, like the rest.

Read the full report here please: https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/questionable-counting/

".. This report raises serious concerns that the Gaza MoH figures have been overstated. The data behind their figures contains natural deaths, deaths from before this conflict began and deaths of those killed by Hamas itself; it contains no mention of Hamas combatant fatalities; and it overstates the number of women and children killed.

Serious errors have been discovered on the Ministry’s lists of fatalities. These errors include a 22-year-old registered as a four-year-old, a 31-year-old registered as a one-year-old and several men with male first names registered as female – artificially increasing the numbers of women and children reported killed. The lists also include people who died before the war and people who died from attacks by Hamas rather than the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).

They likely include around 5,000 natural deaths per year, including cancer patients who were listed by the Ministry for hospital treatment after they had already appeared on fatality lists. Hamas also claimed hundreds of fatalities from attacks which turned out to be misfired rocket launches by Gaza factions.

It is indisputable that natural deaths which occur in times of peace would also occur during a war. The pre-war rate of natural deaths in Gaza is known from relevant mortality data presented by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, based in Ramallah in the West Bank.

Media reports claiming totals killed in Gaza by IDF action have not verified the figures cited and fail to account for the deaths of upwards of 17,000 Hamas and affiliated combatants as part of that toll.

This report also shows that the methodology of data collection by the Ministry of Health is not scientifically valid, and that its reports from previous conflicts have also concealed combatant deaths.

This fatality analysis recognises the immense toll of the war on Palestinians in Gaza. Even as fatalities are discussed as quantifiable numbers, it is important to remember that innocent people are suffering, and each number represents a human life. Many of those lives were innocent people caught in the middle of a brutal war started by Hamas on 7 October. The suffering, death and destruction are very real for actual human beings.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDwvk9OxNaU/?igsh=MWhqcWhydzlkd3FkdQ==

Sure, in Israel, you have Jews, but they come in different types and colors. You have white Jews, black Jews, MENA Jews, mixed-race Jews, etc. and also non-Jews live in Israel in harmony alongside Jews. But Palestine is 100% Arab and they kill or persecute anyone who is not one of them and yet I'm supposed to think Israel is the ethnostate?

It's been a little over a month since Israel Katz was appointed as Defense Minister to replace Yoav Gallant and I'm curious as to what people think of his performance thus far. As a reminder, there had been widespread protests in opposition to the dismissal of Gallant, concerns that Katz would not be a suitable candidate for the position due to his lack of military experience in comparison, as well as general opposition to his appointment as he is generally seen to be a Netanyahu "Yes Man".

Since his appointment, he has overseen the war in Lebanon in addition to the ceasefire agreement, the continuation of the fighting in Gaza, the capture of Mount Hermon and surrounding towns in The Golan after Assad was overthrown by rebel groups, and now retaliation against the Houthis for their attacks against Israel.

I just wanted to put this post out there since I don't see many talking about it, but the drone that was always buzzing over Beirut since the Israeli attack on Hezbollah was gone for a few days since the ceasefire, but it's intermittently coming back.

Today it was very loud, it's just a constant buzzing. Many refer to it as the mosquito, some jokingly refer to it as em kamal (aka kamals mom, because it's called MK), some even jokingly said they got used to it.

Anyways, the point of this post is just to raise awareness since I don't see many talking about it. Do you think this will end when Israeli withdraws after the 60 day period is over?

I know there was a separate agreement between the US and Israel outside of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah/Lebanon that allows Israel intelligence gathering flights, but they specifically mention it should not be visible (the MK drone is visible) nor be heard (it is extremely loud at times and it's constant buzzing for quite a long time).

Video 1 https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDkE-bfI-HH/

He is speaking to Pro-Palestinian who got confused when he tried to explain to him that he is Arab Israeli. I think the Pro-Palestinian got confused when he realized that not every Israeli are Jews, there are Arabs living in Israel too. Part of the conversation is in Arabic, English subtitles provided. Marwan speaks fluent Arabic. Not in this video, but Marwan explains he spoke to many Arabs from around the world and they mistakenly thought there are no Arabs in Israel, they mistakenly thought everyone in Israel are Jews, and mistakenly thought all the Arabs were expelled during the Nakba.

Video 2 https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDSK_H4owdx/

The girl is an Israeli Jew interviewing Marwan. Marwan explains he is not Palestinian. Marwan explains he is an Arab Israeli. They discuss about the Nakba. He doesnt think Israel is an apartheid.

What he didnt specifically mention in this video is he is a Druze Arab Israeli. Druze speaks Arabic. They are not Muslim, their religion is Druze. While everything they talked in the video is correct and accurate in my opinion, like they say, the devil is in the details. To the uninformed, those people who fell into the trap and see the Israel-Palestinian conflict as a dichotomy (either or, in absolute terms), thats where they get many things wrong. This conflict is very complicated and there are many nuances.

Video 3 : https://www.instagram.com/reel/C8Mpphwq5Uc/

Marwan introduces himself as a Druze Arab Israeli. He explains that because Israeli Jews dont speak Arabic, the message to the Arab world has been monopolized by one side. Hence, he feels the responsibility to explain the truth and set the record straight in the Arab world using the Arabic language lies with the Arab Israeli. He was just 15 years old when he made that video.

P/s: most of the videos you see of him mentioned he is 15 years old, but he just turn 16 two days ago.

It seems like the deal is coming to a close in the coming days. The saudi crown prince mohammed bin salman will continue normalization with Israel without Palestine. He states to Blinken, that he doesn't really give a damn about Palestinians, but his people do saying that most of his population specifically 70 percent are younger than him and have just noticed this conflict about now so of course he would say the buzzwords to keep them aware that what Israel is doing is wrong. Essentially he said what he said to save face and said that the normalization deal will continue and will actually be coming to a close this December. As Hamas once again continues this conflict via no returning all hostages, Saudi and as a whole the entire middle east will continue normalization with Israel while Hamas/Fatah or any other Palestinian group continues to squabble with Israel without any change.

Overall, normalization has continued and the requirement of having the Palestinian state to exist is no longer a requirement for normalization. Overall what do you guys think about this situation? This just confirms what I already knew about Saudi, not caring about the Palestinians and only saying to save face. Now normalization will continue and with that other nations will follow such as Oman. The middle east is moving forward to tomorrow with the benefits of normalization being way more beneficial to them rather then limit trade of technology that is useful. Whether or not Palestine will also move forward will be up to those in power in West bank and the Gaza strip.

Source: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-saudi-arabia-closer-normalisation-deal-report

So let me start off my saying I’m not Jewish or Israeli so BOOM do whatever you want with that Information

Now I do happen to be in a relationship with an Israeli person and since then I’ve taken a deep dive into learning all I can about the country and culture. Then Oct .7th happened and the whole world did the same. At this point I’ve gone far past the light reading on Israel and I can say with some confidence that I probably know more information about Israel’s history and politics than the average Israel citizen and definitely more than then average American citizen (Jew or gentile).

Cutting straight to the point I believe the first step in creating “peace in the Middle East” is to provide a better education to the Israeli people. From my experience I’ve come to the understanding that people education is being extremely limited to only Jewish or Israeli information and figures. This is not a problem in itself but it becomes an issue when Israel enters the world stage.

The lack of globalized eduction creates a sense of willful ignorance which is enforced by the government under the guise of religious and national loyalty. The places the average Israeli citizen at a disadvantage when engaging in any conversation about their country with anyone that does not completely support their own personal beliefs. This is not a new phenomenon, those of us outside of Israel recognize this a racism, bigotry, or simple ignorance. The Israeli citizen doesn’t know that and so they are forced to face any and every conversation or criticism with defensive hostility. This happens within their homes, their friendships and relationships, and any social setting where Israel comes up.

it also blinds the citizens of Israel to the reality of the world outside of this war. The truth is critiquing governments, protesting war, and differing opinions is completely normal. It’s the blind unwavering loyalty in the face of it all that is not normal. This educational isolation is compounded by Israel physical isolation. located in an area surrounded by enemy countries and inhabited by an overwhelming homogeneous group of people, it creates an almost inescapable vacuum of conformity that is reinforced again at the age of 18 when a citizen MUST go to the army or else face arrest.

Education and knowledge is the key to unlocking the minds of any people anywhere in the world. The continued debate about two states solutions and enemy combatants is a laughable distraction. However in the eyes of the Israel citizens it is the only idea they’ve ever known.

Explained by Ibrahim Eid Dalalsha (Based in Ramallah) & Shira Efron (Based in Tel Aviv)

The answer to the question of what comes next in Gaza the day after the war ends has eluded analysts and officials alike since the start of the war, which began with Hamas’ onslaught on Israel’s southern communities. While most actors are aligned in their objective of removing Hamas from power and the desire to see the Palestinian Authority return to Gaza, approaches differ as to the extent of the PA’s control and the underlying conditions required for this transition.

The four most prominent plans—put forward by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, and the Palestinian Authority— cannot be squared with Israel’s declared principles, which rule out any formal role for the PA. Yet they indicate how a post-war Gaza may move forward, and, assuming the Trump administration will push for ending the war, some elements of these proposals are flexible and lend themselves toward a compromise with Israel’s demands.

1. Egypt’s Proposal: Community Support Committee in Gaza

The Egyptian Community Support Committee focuses on transitional governance with local expertise and minimal international involvement but gives a local national body an oversight role. This plan was approved by Hamas, which issued an official statement following talks with Egyptian and Fatah officials in Cairo in early December. Fatah and the Palestinian Authority’s official position remains under review, with reports indicating serious reservations about its content.

Key Features

• Governance: A committee of 10-15 professionals, agreed upon by the different political factions, will operate under PA laws. A national body will review and oversee the operation of the committee. The arrangement will restore the unity of the Palestinian territories and avoid the separation of Gaza from the West Bank.
• Security and Law and Order: No specific security plan was provided, but the committee will operate under PA directives and laws.
• Reconstruction: In coordination with regional organizations, the committee will manage reconstruction of infrastructure and create a new pool of funds to be administered by donor countries.
• International Role: The committee will collaborate with international and Arab stakeholders in ensuring transparency and efficiency. In particular, it will coordinate with Egypt on cross-border security, access, and movement.

2. The UAE’s Proposal: Transition From Temporary International Mission to PA Rule

The priority is immediate international control over Gaza with an eye toward transitioning responsibility to the PA in the long run, only if the PA fulfills two conditions:

(1) meaningful reforms, including a new prime minister

(2) in the short term, allowing regional and international forces to assume responsibility for security and law enforcement.

Key Features

• Goal: Gaza will be stabilized and brought back under the control of a fully reformed PA as part of a push to advance a two-state outcome. The PA will undergo a change in its political leadership.
• Governance: The plan calls for PA reform, including the appointment of a new prime minister and a Gaza Executive Committee via presidential decree. The PA will gradually assume responsibility for governance in Gaza.
• Security and Law and Order: A Temporary International Mission (TIM) with representatives from several Arab and Western countries and the PA will be deployed for stabilization and law enforcement. Rather than immediately assuming exclusive responsibility for law enforcement and security, the PA’s involvement will take place as part of the TIM.
• Reconstruction: International donor-led reconstruction of infrastructure, services, and PA institutions in Gaza.
• International Role: The U.S., UAE, and other regional partners will coordinate with Israel to ensure success and safety.

3. U.S. Non-Paper on Principles

The U.S. is pushing for hybrid international oversight, phased transfer of control to the PA, and PA reforms—all centered on sustainable governance capacity.

Key Features

• Goal: Transition to a post-Hamas Gaza governance, including security and recovery.
• Governance: The PA will carry out reforms with an eye toward long-term governance in Gaza. A transitional mission will be managed by an executive board with Palestinian and partner representatives.
• Security and Law and Order: Various partners will screen, vet, and train new PA security forces. A temporary multinational force will be deployed for border security and humanitarian aid delivery. The IDF will coordinate a phased withdrawal with the deployment of PA Security Forces.
• Reconstruction: An international fund will funnel donations for Gaza’s recovery through the PA. Partners in the fund will ensure transparency and accountability of decision-making and expenditures.
• International Role: The U.N. will facilitate humanitarian assistance, recovery, and reconstruction. The U.S., Gulf states, and other partners will provide political and financial backing.

4. The PA’s Plan: Gaza and the West Bank to Unite Under One Law, One Authority, One Gun

The PA emphasizes the need for Palestinian self-reliance, institutional unification, and a two-state outcome.

Key Features

• Goals: Durable ceasefire, humanitarian assistance, political settlement, and a two-state solution based on UNGA Resolution 67/19.
• Governance: Gaza and the West Bank will be reunited under the PA on the basis of one law, one authority, and one gun. The PA government will be reorganized to maintain order and control over all Palestinian territories.
• Security and Law and Order: PA Security Forces will be under a single command.
• Reconstruction: International donors will support reconstruction and economic development. The PA will set up infrastructure and try to negotiate independence from Israeli control, building on existing trade agreements.
• International Role: The international peace conference will aim to establish a sustainable two-state solution. Arab and international partners will provide governance and security guarantees.

Conclusion:

Despite various differences, the four plans reviewed assign a role for the PA in the post-war governance of the Gaza Strip. However, the UAE uniquely prioritizes the PA’s institutional reforms—which in the plan are defined as preconditions for greater PA rule over Gaza—suggesting a proactive approach to long-term state-building. In addition, with the exception of the Egyptian proposal—which seeks understandings with Hamas—all plans rule out any direct or indirect role for Hamas in Gaza’s post-war governance. While there appears to be substantial overlap in the broad aims and structures of the plans, none comport with Israel’s day-after principles, which dismiss any PA role and assign the IDF indefinite responsibility for securing Gaza. The challenge remains how to square Israeli security concerns and unwillingness to assume risks with the international community’s goal of simultaneously supporting Palestinian self-determination, strengthening the PA, and pushing for a two-state outcome.

https://www.thetimes.com/world/middle-east/article/abu-mohammed-al-jolani-syria-hts-leader-interview-nmbz0xb0v

He continues with "The Syrian people need a break, and the strikes must end and Israel has to pull back to its previous positions."

What do you guys think of this? How I see it is that Israel invaded Syrian territory completely unprovoked, especially since there was no governmental collapse but rather a proper transition with all institutions remaining in place.

Edit:

It seems Israel is escalating it with Israeli troops among civilians in Daraa in southern syria:
https://www.reddit.com/r/syriancivilwar/s/K3mGPjXjSA

I know Abbas is the leader of the PA, and the PA technically recognizes Israel’s right to exist, but aside from his personal goals of enriching himself and his family, what are his goals for Palestine? Does he plan to utilize Arafat’s strategy of gaining as much territory as possible, and then using this territory as a springboard to take over all of the land/destroy Israel? Also, I know Abbas is deeply unpopular, but where within the PA does he garner support/who does he garner the most support from? I am interested in learning about the specific aspects that influence why the PA has retained control, why they want control aside from the fact that Abbas (to my knowledge) is corrupt and power hungry. Which segment of Palestinian society does his inner circle come from? I have been studying this conflict for about a year now, and feel as if I still have much to learn and would like to learn more and figured this sub would be able to help provide me with answers. Furthermore, why does Abbas turn a blind eye to Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and why does he not put an immediate stop/use his security forces to stop the settlements? Also, how does he still retain aid from the international community whilst also promoting antisemitism and the martyr fund? I find it impossible to understand how these two factors can coincide. Finally, I am also a bit interested as to how this reflects on the demographics of Palestine and which sub groups in Palestine support different factions within the political scene. My final question is: does Abbas ever plan to attack Israel?

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/gaza-death-toll-inflated-to-promote-anti-israel-narrative-study-finds/ar-AA1vSgqX

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/12/14/number-civilians-killed-gaza-inflated-to-vilify-israel/

Key Findings:

Men listed as women to inflate female fatalities: Analysis of Gaza Ministry of Health (MoH), Hamas fatality data reveals repeated instances of men being misclassified as women. Examples include individuals with male first names (e.g. Mohammed) being recorded as female. This misclassification contributes to the narrative that civilian populations, particularly women and children, bear the brunt of the conflict, potentially influencing international sentiment and media coverage.

Adults registered as children: Significant discrepancies have been uncovered where adult fatalities are reclassified as children. For instance, an individual aged 22 was listed as a fouryear-old and a 31-year-old was listed as an infant. Such distortions inflate the number of child casualties, which is emotionally impactful and heavily emphasised in global reporting. These misrepresentations suggest a deliberate attempt to frame the conflict as disproportionately affecting children, undermining the credibility of the fatality data.

Disproportionate deaths of fighting-age men: Data analysis indicates that most fatalities are men aged 15–45, contradicting claims that civilian populations are being disproportionately targeted. This age demographic aligns closely with the expected profile of combatants, further supported by spikes in deaths of men reported by family sources rather than hospitals. This evidence suggests that many fatalities classified as civilian may be combatants, a distinction omitted from official reporting.

Inclusion of natural deaths in reporting: Despite the typical annual rate of 5,000 natural deaths in Gaza, the fatality data provides no accounting for such figures. This omission raises concerns that natural deaths, as well as deaths caused by internal violence or misfired rockets, are being included in war-related fatality counts. Instances of cancer patients, previously registered for treatment, appearing on war fatality lists further support this assertion. Such practices inflate the reported civilian death toll, complicating accurate assessments of the conflict’s impact.

Media underreporting of combatant deaths: Analysis of media coverage reveals that only 3% of news stories reference combatant deaths, with outlets like the BBC, CNN, Reuters and The New York Times primarily relying on Gaza Ministry of Health figures (Hamas). These figures often lack verification and fail to distinguish between combatants and civilians. The omission creates a skewed narrative that portrays all casualties as civilian, thus shaping public opinion and international policy based on incomplete or manipulated data. For example, more than 17,000 Hamas combatants are estimated to have been killed, yet these figures are largely excluded from global reporting.

As a disclaimer: I have been getting more in-depth about this conflict recently. I may not be aware of all happenings or nuances, so please correct me where I'm wrong, but here's my thought process;

From a couple resources in Dutch, I've been able to conclude that the birth of the nation of Israel is contested territory, due to issues of legitimacy, partitioning and a certain level of claimed 'birth'right to the land. While this is a critical point in how this conflict came to be, that is not the focus of my question.

A little later on in these resources, I've read that pretty much all wars that Israel has fought in were instigated by the surrounding countries. Wars like the Independence war, Suez-crisis, Yom-Kippoer, etc. Over the course of a couple decades, Israel has been bullied and terrorized by those surrounding countries, and recently by Hamas who has bombed Israel on multiple occasions. I can only see this as how WW2 Germany has bombed Rotterdam, the UK, Poland etc.

From the time of WW2, it's often forgotten how much Germany, especially it's citizens, endured during it's sunset. Because of the Allied bombings, 400.000 Germans lost their life, hundred thousands were injured, millions were made homeless and fleed (citizen numbers). This humanitarian crisis was however, back then and still as of today, seen as a necessary evil due to the threat of Germany.

Why is the world so critical on Israel for defending their homeland against war threats and terrorism from it's neighboring countries, while we literally did it ourselves 80 years ago to protect us against aggressors then?

Edit: Multiple people have stated in their comments that the bombings of WW2 Germany can't be compared to what is happening in Gaza now. They are right, by definitive measure (level of destruction, death toll etc). I however made the comparison on a moral level, the action of retaliation. Hope that clarifies my point of view.

How did Israeli culture become so similar to Western culture?

Jews are a Middle Eastern people with a beautiful and ancient culture.

For centuries they have preserved their customs and traditions passed down from generation to generation. Their customs and traditions are conservative, such as men and women who marry as virgins, their clothing should not show intimate parts of the body in public, men pay dowries to the bride's father, and Jews do not have girlfriends or boyfriends (Western customs). Jews only get engaged and get married. I have heard of a Jewish community in the diaspora that maintains customs that were practiced two thousand years ago, which have now been abolished in modern Israel. A Jew told me that they lived in the diaspora for 2,000 years following the same traditions, but when they arrived in modern Israel many abandoned their traditions to act like Westerners.

I know Westerners who have visited Israel and felt as if they were in the West.

Why did this happen?

How did such a big change in culture occur in just a few decades?

I once saw an Israeli say that he wanted to marry a virgin and a virgin woman. He was harshly criticized by other Israelis. I was shocked because I thought that marrying a virgin was part of the culture. Was there any repression by the Israeli government to make them abandon customs considered Middle Eastern and adopt Western customs? Why is Western culture so strong in Israel?

One of the challenges the new government will face is what kind of relations they should have with Israel. Things aren't off to a good start with Israel bombing Syria, but it's possible that the new government will want to have good relations with Israel. The Golan Heights are a major obstacle to peaceful relations between the two countries, and it looks very unlikely that Syria will be able to ever retake the region. Should they just agree to sell this area to Israel as a way to bring in some cash and pave the way for good relations with Israel?

Would it make sense for Israel to agree to buy this region as a way to improve relations with Syria and the Arab world in general?

I do think we should acknowledge that if you are looking to unify the diverse population of Syria around Nationalist ideals then trying to retake the Golan as a long term national project is very appealing. The new Syria, if it is more competent and united, could be much more dangerous to Israel over the coming decades if they go in that direction.

I get the impression that there's quite a bit of overlap between the countries that won't acknowledge Israel's existence, the countries that have the worst human rights records, and the countries that are members of the UNHRC.

Of the countries that do not recognize Israel:-

• more than three quarters of them score below 50/100 on the FHI Freedom index
• the list's average score is 25.9 mean, 29 mode, 42 median
• most are on the U.N. Human Rights Council — exceptions are Yemen, Lebanon, Brunei, Comoros, and North Korea
• all other countries [ed: in the UNHRC] recognize North Korea (score:3) but not Israel (score:74)
• only one country on that list (North Korea) is not majority-Muslim

Managed to 'lose' between 99.996% and 100% of their Jews in the last century:-

• Syria: 74% Muslim; 1/100 on Freedom index; 30,000 => 0
• Afghanistan: 94% Muslim; 6/100 on Freedom index; 3,300 => 0
• Libya: 98% Muslim; 9/100 on Freedom index; 38,000 => 0
• Iraq: 95% Muslim; 30/100 on Freedom index; 135,000 => 4
• Kuwait: 64% Muslim; 38/100 on Freedom index; 200 => 0
• Pakistan: 96% Muslim; 35/100 on Freedom index; 60,000 => 1
• Yemen: 99% Muslim; 10/100 on Freedom index; 63,000 => 0

Managed to 'lose' 95-99% of their Jews in the last century:-

• Algeria: 99% Muslim; 32/100 on Freedom index; 140,000 => fewer than 200
• Djibouti: 94% Muslim; 24/100 on Freedom index; 45,000 => a few dozen
• Bangladesh: 91% Muslim; 40/100 on Freedom index; 135 => 4

Managed to 'lose' 80-98% of their Jews in the last century:-

• Lebanon: 54% Muslim; 42/100 on Freedom index; 3,588 => 30
• Indonesia: 87% Muslim; 57/100 on Freedom index; 3,000 => 500

Hasn't had a statistically significant Jewish population in the last century:-

• Saudi Arabia: Islamic theocracy; 8/100 on Freedom index
• Somalia: 99.8% Muslim; 8/100 on Freedom index
• Brunei: 82% Muslim; 28/100 on Freedom index
• Comoros: 98% Muslim; 42/100 on Freedom index
• Malaysia: 64% Muslim; 53/100 on Freedom index
• North Korea: no comment; 3/100 on Freedom index; Jewless

[e] For u/LeonCrimsonHeart — well, you did say 'please', so what the heck. :) As for 'should', that's funny, because I don't usually work for free.

Syria: 74% Muslim; 1/100 on Freedom index; 30,000 => 0

In 1947, there were still 15,000 Jews left... and a few Nazi war criminals that Syria's government gave shelter. They were subject to an apartheid-style system and they weren't allowed to leave the country. I urge you to look it up. As of 1964, Jews were not allowed to work for the government or banks, could not acquire drivers' licenses, and were banned from purchasing property. Jews could not choose to have their heirs inherit their property, with the government confiscating the property of all Jews upon their deaths. Some escaped to Israel, it's true, but it was quite a long time before Syria allowed this persecuted minority to leave.

Afghanistan: 94% Muslim; 6/100 on Freedom index; 3,300 => 0

Starting in the late 19th century, Muslim authorities enacted harsh anti-Jewish measures. Pogroms were carried out in the major Jewish centers of Maimana and Herat, and Jews were forced to pay high taxes and serve in the armed forces. The Jews had a brief revival under the rule of King Nadir Shah (1929-33) who reversed many of the decades-old anti-Jewish decrees and gave Jews equal rights as citizens. Disaster struck when the king was assassinated and Nazi propaganda filtered into the country causing more pogroms and the ghettoization of Jews in Herat and Kabul. Harsh economic laws drove many Jews out of the country in the 1930‘s and those who remained were restricted to the cities of Herat, Kabul, and Balkh.

Libya: 98% Muslim; 9/100 on Freedom index; 38,000 => 0

In 1945 more than 35,000 Jews lived in Libya, but close to ninety percent had left before Libya attained its independence in 1952. A savage pogrom in Tripoli on November 5, 1945, killed more than 140 Jews and wounded hundreds more. Almost every synagogue was looted. On June 12, 1948, rioters murdered another 12 Jews and destroyed 280 Jewish homes. Thousands of Jews fled the country after Libya was granted independence and membership in the Arab League in 1951. After the Six-Day War, the Jewish population of 7,000 was again subjected to pogroms in which 18 were killed and many more injured, sparking a near-total exodus that left fewer than 100 Jews in Libya.

Iraq: 95% Muslim; 30/100 on Freedom index; 135,000 => 4

The rise of Nazi Germany and the spread of anti-Semitic propaganda further fueled hostility toward Iraqi Jews. In 1941, Baghdad experienced a violent pogrom, the Farhud, in which hundreds of Jews died and some of their property was destroyed. This event marked a turning point in the history of Iraqi Jews, as it triggered a mass exodus. In the following years, discriminatory laws were enacted, Jews were dismissed from government positions, and their property was confiscated. The establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 intensified the persecution of Iraqi Jews, and in many cases their freedom of movement was even restricted. During Operation Ezra and Nehemiah in 1950-1951, tens of thousands of Iraqi Jews were airlifted out of the Arab country and transported to Israel via Iran and Cyprus. (The operation was named after Ezra and Nehemiah, who had led the Jewish people from Babylonian exile back to Israel.) Most of the $4 million cost of the operation was funded by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. The majority of Iraqi Jews, some 130,000 people, left Iraq and never came back.

Pakistan: 96% Muslim; 35/100 on Freedom index; 60,000 => 1

The history of Jews living in Karachi is neither preserved nor remembered in Karachi today. Instead, Jews have become a favorite punching bag of the religious right as they habitually invoke a "Jewish conspiracy" to explain away the failures of the Pakistani state. You're welcome to look up the statistics. Help me understand how it's not ethnic cleansing when a nation loses approximately 99.99998% Jewish population.

Yemen: 99% Muslim; 10/100 on Freedom index; 63,000 => 0

In 1922, the government of Yemen reintroduced an ancient Islamic law requiring that Jewish orphans under age 12 be forcibly converted to Islam. In 1947, after the partition vote, Muslim rioters, joined by the local police force, engaged in a bloody pogrom in Aden that killed 82 Jews and destroyed hundreds of Jewish homes. Aden’s Jewish community was economically paralyzed, as most of the Jewish stores and businesses were destroyed. Early in 1948, the false accusation of the ritual murder of two girls led to looting. This increasingly perilous situation led to the emigration of virtually the entire Yemenite Jewish community - almost 50,000 - between June 1949 and September 1950 in Operation “Magic Carpet.”

Algeria: 99% Muslim; 32/100 on Freedom index; 140,000 => fewer than 200

On the eve of WWII, there were about 120,000 Jews in Algeria. In 1934, Muslims, incited by events in Nazi Germany, rampaged in Constantine, killing 25 Jews and injuring many more. Starting in 1940, under Vichy rule, Algerian Jews were persecuted socially and economically. On October 7, 1940, French citizenship was withdrawn from all Jews by the Vichy government.

The Jews averted total destruction through their initiative and participation in the resistance. Their resistance activities helped neutralize Algiers while the Allies landed on the beaches during Operation Torch.

In 1955, there were 140,000 Jews in Algeria. After being granted independence in 1962, the Algerian government harassed the Jewish community and deprived Jews of their economic rights. As a result, almost 130,000 Algerian Jews immigrated to France. Since 1948, 25,681 Algerian Jews have immigrated to Israel.

In 1994, the terrorist Armed Islamic Group - GIA declared its intention to eliminate Jews from Algeria; thus far, no attacks have been reported against the Algerian Jewish community.

Djibouti: 94% Muslim; 24/100 on Freedom index; 45,000 => a few dozen

You can handle this one.

Airwars is a UK-based, non-profit organization, that tracks and archives the international air war against "IS" and other groups in Iraq, Parts of the Levant and Parts of North Africa, assessing and following up on credible allegations of civilian casualties from coalition, Russian, Turkish, Israeli, and domestic Libya airstrikes.

Israel has consistently claimed it protects civilians. However, a new report by Airwars dismantles this in its entirely.

This is an excerpt, from their most recent article:

Key findings:

By almost every metric, the harm to civilians from the first month of the Israeli campaign in Gaza is incomparable with any 21st century air campaign. It is by far the most intense, destructive, and fatal conflict for civilians that Airwars has ever documented. Key findings include:

• At least 5,139 civilians were killed in Gaza in 25 days in October 2023. This is nearly four times more civilians reported killed in a single month than in any conflict Airwars has documented since it was established in 2014.
• In October 2023 alone, Airwars documented at least 65 incidents in which a minimum of 20 civilians were killed in a particular incident. This is nearly triple the number of such high-fatality incidents that Airwars has documented within any comparable timeframe.
• Over the course of 25 days, Airwars recorded a minimum of 1,900 children killed by Israeli military action in Gaza. This is nearly seven times higher than even the most deadly month for children previously recorded by Airwars.
• Families were killed together in unprecedented numbers, and in their homes. More than nine out of ten women and children were killed in residential buildings. In more than 95 percent of all cases where a woman was killed, at least one child was also killed.
• On average, when civilians were killed alongside family members, at least 15 family members were killed. This is higher than any other conflict documented by Airwars.

When the Israeli Defense Minister, and an Israeli General charged with Civilian Affairs, had described those civilians as "Human Animals" and "Human Beasts" - who as the General put it - would only get damage in hell, it's important to outline these quotes when thinking about this report. Israel has made it clear from the start of its Genocidal intent on Gaza.

According to Airwars, at least 5,139 civilians were killed in October 2023 in Gaza. Of those, at least 1,900 children were killed. Do not forget, that the vast majority of this, was before the Ground Invasion. Airwars say it is by far THE MOST intense, destructive, and fatal conflict for civilians - that Airwars has ever documented - in its decade of run-time.

Need I say anymore? I would love to hear the opinions, of those of you, who continue to defend the inhumane actions of this Government.

For those who believe that the 1967 borders specifically are the occupied territories, please explain how?

I would understand if people argued the 1947 partition plan lines were occupied. That makes sense.

I would understand that the 'entirety' of Israel is occupied. However when people say this, the rest of the Palestine region is completely left out of 'Occupation' and the Negev which was not apart of the Palestine region is added as apart of the Palestine 'Occupation' so this argument just feels like 'we just don't want the jews to have sovereignty over anything' period, rather than any meaningful claim to the Palestine region. If Palestinians were trying to make a claim to the entirety of the 'Palestine' region then this argument would make the most sense to me.

What I don't understand is why the world decided that only the 1967 borders are occupied? This makes the least sense. Those borders were only created because of a 20 year long occupation by Jordan and Egypt. What does that have to do with the Palestinians? Why would the Palestinians have more of a right to the land because of Egypt and Jordan's occupations?

I'm genuinely curious for people's answers to this. Why are the 1967 borders the most accepted form of what is considered occupied?

1. Do you trust the United Nations, international world order, ICC, international law (enforcement), HRW, Amnesty International, WHO, etc…to protect and save you ? Why and why not ? I trust they will issue strong verbal condemnations, that’s about it. All words and not much actions. Are words of condemnations enough to save you or anyone else for that matter ?

2. If you yourself dont trust UN, internation world order, international law, etc… to protect you and save you, why should others ? Why should Israeli trust UN to be able to enforced any peace agreements registered with UN ? Can you trust 10,000 UNIFIL peace keepers stationed in Lebanon ? Did UNIFIL do their job ? Did any of the UN resolution passed prevent any new settlements in the West Bank ? How many more UN resolutions would it take for people to realize this isnt working ?

3. Is the UN, international world order, international law, etc… only for the weak and disenfranchised ? Why would anyone strong rely on them ? Bush started war against Iraq with the coalition of the willing. Where was the international law then ? Putin initiated his strategic military operation against Ukraine in 2022 ? How many people’s lives did international law saved ? Remember how UN voted against Ugyhur human rights abuse https://www.reuters.com/world/china/un-body-rejects-historic-debate-chinas-human-rights-record-2022-10-06/ Did Tedros from WHO found the origin of covid-19 ?

4. If Global South doesnt like the UN, if Putin doesnt like the UN, if China doesnt like the UN, if Trump doesnt like the UN, if Israel doesnt like the UN, if BRICS doesnt like the UN, …who likes the UN anyways ? We just tolerate the UN, international world order, ….because we all cant agree on a better alternative ? Not that we trust them with our lives.

My answer is a hard yes despite never being raised in the religion. I was raised Lutheran but left the faith and as a result, was able to move on easier and a similar thing can be said for other religions except Islam. Islam is so strict, so authoritarian in the way they practice it, that many ex-Muslims make it their life's mission to destroy the religion's influence if they're lucky and live anonymously online or live in/flee to a Western country.

Hamas is an Islamist terror group that if it got what it wants (the entire state of Israel gone, not just a "free" Palestine), would impose strict Sharia Law like what the Taliban is doing after they took over Afghanistan. At least Israel has women's rights and freedom of religion. I don't want to imagine what the Levant would look like if the tides turned and Hamas managed to destroy Israel.