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Israel/Middle East Briefs: U.S. residents of Judea and Samaria sue Biden over sanctions

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WND 
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris meet with national security advisers Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023, in the White House Situation Room before a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the terrorist attacks by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023. (Official White House photo by Adam Schultz)

JERUSALEM – Middle East/Israel Morning Brief

U.S. residents of Judea and Samaria sue Biden over sanctions

A pair of Israeli-Americans recently filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration alleging that it had improperly imposed sanctions on them under an executive order intended to combat “extremist settler violence” in Judea and Samaria.

Matthew Mainen, a lawyer representing the plaintiffs on behalf of the National Jewish Advocacy Center, told JNS that the case, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, raises basic questions about the rights of U.S. citizens to due process under the law.

American citizens have a right to be heard and to challenge the government before the government takes action against them or deprives them of some interest,” Mainen said. “The Biden administration, with what appears to be zero due diligence, did just that.”

In February, U.S. President Joe Biden Biden issued executive order 14115, “on imposing certain sanctions on persons undermining peace, security and stability in the West Bank,” which was intended to combat “extremist settler violence” in Judea and Samaria that the Biden administration had determined to be undermining a path to a two-state solution.

The text of the order says that it could be applied to any “foreign person” that the Biden administration determines to be undermining peace and security in the “West Bank,” but makes no provisions for U.S. nationals.

In first, U.S., U.K., Israel conduct joint strikes on Yemeni targets

Arab media outlets reported an unprecedented military operation Friday, marking the first coordinated strikes by U.S., U.K., and Israeli forces since the escalation of regional hostilities. According to international sources, the operation comprised three waves of strikes targeting critical infrastructure across Houthi-controlled territories, Israel Hayom reported.

The operation, totaling approximately 30 strikes, focused on several strategic locations: underground military installations in the Amran governorate, military complexes in Sanaa, a power generation facility south of the capital, and the strategic western ports of Al-Hudaydah and Ras Issa.

A mass pro-Hamas demonstration took place in Sanaa concurrent with the military operation. Participants rallied behind the Shia-Zaidi terrorist movement’s ideological slogan, chanting “Death to America, Death to Israel, Curse upon the Jews, Victory for Islam.” Eyewitness documentation captured smoke plumes rising from multiple strike locations across the capital.

Congress hits ICC officials in response to Netanyahu, Gallant war crimes arrest warrants

The U.S. House on Thursday approved H.R. 23, the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act, a bill imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court officials in response to the court’s issuance of an arrest warrant last year against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-defense minister Yoav Gallant, reported the Jewish Press.

The bipartisan vote, 243-140, demonstrated continued majority support in Congress for Israel’s military response to the October 7, 2023, Hamas atrocities, even as most House Democrats opposed the measure. Forty-five Democrats supported the legislation. Last summer, 42 Democrats supported a similar bill.

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, who authored the bill, issued a statement saying, “This bill is about protecting America and our allies’ sovereignty from a rogue, globalist court. The ICC investigating and issuing arrest warrants for the sitting Prime Minister of Israel is a blatant assault on a critical ally’s sovereignty amid an existential fight against Hamas. Make no mistake, if the ICC is allowed to target Israel unchecked, they will go after American service members and veterans again in the future.”

Sen. Ted Cruz: ‘It’s time for U.S. airlines to resume flights to Israel’

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, the chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, is calling on U.S. airlines to resume flights to and from Israel after they suspended service last summer amid an escalation in fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Cruz, who has been tracking this issue since Oct. 7 in his capacity as the top Republican on the committee, made the comments during an appearance on the “Nothing But The Truth” podcast, hosted by NORPAC New York’s co-president, Trudy Stern, according to Jewish Insider.

“I think it is time for American airlines to resume flights to and from Israel. At this point with every day that goes on, it appears more and more to be a politically motivated boycott instead of a genuine safety concern. It was one thing right at the outset of the war when it was unclear what was going to happen,” Cruz told Stern. “It was one thing to take a step potentially in terms of preserving safety.”

House education committee blasts Biden-Harris toothless settlement with anti-Semitic colleges

The Biden administration is under fire for reaching last-minute anti-Semitism settlements with the University of California, Rutgers University, and Johns Hopkins University, with Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., saying the “toothless” agreements “shield schools from real accountability,” reported the Washington Free Beacon.

“It’s disgraceful that in the final days of the Biden-Harris administration,the Department of Education is letting universities, including Rutgers, five University of California system campuses including UCLA, and Johns Hopkins, off the hook for their failures to address campus antisemitism,” said Walberg, who chairs the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

“These so-called resolutions utterly fail to resolve the civil rights complaints they purport to address. The Department is shamefully abandoning its obligation to protect Jewish students, faculty, and staff and undermining the incoming administration.”

Tlaib wears keffiyeh at Carter funeral, thanks former president for speaking out on ‘apartheid’

US Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D–MI, one of the most strident opponents of Israel in Congress, wore a Palestinian keffiyeh to the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter, commemorating the late American leader’s advocacy against so-called “apartheid” in the Jewish state.

“Rest in peace, President Jimmy Carter. It was an honor to be there with your family. I wore my Palestinian keffiyeh to show my gratitude for your courageous stance in speaking out against apartheid and standing up for peace,” Tlaib posted on X along with a picture of her keffyeh, and which the Algemeiner reported.

Over the past couple of decades, Carter’s public commentary on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has ruffled feathers among supporters of the Jewish state. In 2006, Carter raised eyebrows after publishing a book titled, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, which condemned Israel for constructing settlements in the Judea and Samaria and accused the Jewish state of constructing a racially-discriminatory political regime.

Mossad chief heads hostage delegation to Qatar

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday evening confirmed Mossad chief David Barnea will leave for Qatar with a delegation of senior officials, for the purpose of advancing negotiations for a ceasefire-prisoner swap deal between Israel and Hamas.

The prime minister “held a discussion to assess the situation regarding the hostages and the missing with the defense minister, the heads of the security establishment, and with the American negotiators of both the incoming and outgoing administrations,” a statement said.

“At the conclusion of the discussion, the prime minister directed the Mossad Director, the ISA Director, Maj.-Gen. (Res) Nitzan Alon, and his Foreign Policy Adviser, Dr. Ophir Falk, to depart for Doha in order to continue advancing a deal to release our hostages,” reported Israel National News.

James Woods’ home survives L.A. fire, actor attacks online pro-Hamas haters who crowed over assumed loss

James Woods has experienced a miracle.

The 77-year-old actor revealed his home in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles has survived the devastating wildfire that continues to ravage the upscale neighborhood, according to the New York Post.

Woods was evacuated earlier this week when the deadly Palisades Fire broke out on Tuesday.

He was later reduced to tears when he spoke about the devastation and what he believed to be his destroyed home in an interview with CNN.

However, it all changed on Friday when he was able to visit his property line and spotted his house still standing amid the rubble.

Woods shot back at an X user who equated the horrific fire with the events in Gaza in which people’s homes – many which either housed weapons or were used to hide tunnel entrances – were destroyed. “Maybe you shouldn’t have raped and murdered innocent women and children on Oct. 7. You reap what you sow. Go f*ck yourself, you Hamas-loving scum.”

#INSTABLOCK

4 IDF soldiers killed, 6 wounded in northern Gaza battles

The IDF reported on Saturday that four soldiers were killed in battle in Gaza’s Beit Hanoun after an explosive device detonated near their vehicle.
They are: Sergeant Major (res.) Alexander Fedorenko, 37, from Bat Yam, a Heavy Truck Driver in the 79th Battalion, 14th ‘Machatz’ Brigade; Staff Sergeant Danila Diakov, 21, from Ma’ale Adumim, a soldier in the 931st Battalion, Nahal Brigade; Sergeant Yahav Maayan, 19, from Modi’in, a soldier in the 931st Battalion, Nahal Brigade and Sergeant Eliav Astuker, aged 19, from Ashdod, a soldier in the 931st Battalion, Nahal Brigade.

The troops were killed by the detonation of a powerful explosive device targeting a command vehicle. The unit was traveling along an administrative route in Beit Hanoun, where the brigade has been operating in recent weeks. Five additional soldiers were injured in the incident, including two in serious condition.

Iran releases footage of underground missile base used in attack on Israel

The Aerospace Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Friday unveiled what state TV called an underground missile city.

According to Iran International, the missile base was unveiled by IRGC Chief Commander Hossein Salami and the Aerospace chief Amir-Ali Hajizadeh.

The base was used in the Iranian missile attacks against Israel in what the Islamic Republic codenamed operations True Promise 1 and 2 in April and October 2024, the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News outlet said.

“The volcano lying under these mountains can erupt in the shortest time possible,” state TV’s report said.
Earlier in the day, Salami said Iran has more missiles than it can store, the Revolutionary Guards commander while dismissing what he called enemy propaganda about the weakening of Iran’s armed forces following consecutive attacks by Israel on Iran and its allies.

Israeli ministers unveil judicial reforms to reshape Supreme Court appointments

Justice Minister Yariv Levin and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar introduced a significant judicial reform package on Thursday, outlining changes to the Judicial Selection Committee, the status of Basic Laws, and the authority of the High Court of Justice.

The reforms, set to take effect after the next Knesset elections, propose altering the Judicial Selection Committee’s structure by replacing Israel Bar Association representatives with experienced litigators chosen by the coalition and opposition, reported The Media Line. Judicial appointments to lower courts will require a majority vote, including coalition, opposition, and Supreme Court representatives, while Supreme Court appointments must also meet specific cross-party approval thresholds.

Critics have denounced the proposed reforms, saying they will overly politicize the court system.

Two Sydney synagogues desecrated with spray-painted swastikas

Two Sydney synagogues, a home, and cars were vandalized over the weekend, according to the New South Wales Police Force and Jewish community groups, with one of the houses of worship also targeted with attempted arson as part of the latest in a series of antisemitic incidents in Australia reported the Jerusalem Post.

The Newtown Synagogue building and fence in Sydney’s inner west was graffitied with red swastikas on Saturday morning, according to NSW Police and Executive Council of Australian Jewry CEO Alex Ryvchin, with closed-circuit television footage revealing that a pair of men attempted to light the premises on fire before dawn.

Ryvchin said on social media on Saturday that the Newton incident occurred in the prime minister’s “backyard,” and calls to finally act against antisemitism were 15 months too late, referencing the escalation of antisemitism in the country after the October 7 massacre.

Pro-Palestinian campaign mangles prosecutor’s words, claims Hamas rapes didn’t occur

Palestinian propagandists distorted the words of an Israeli prosecutor, who was until recently a member of the team prosecuting Hamas sexual crimes on Oct.7, to claim there had been no rapes during the massacre, according to Ynet.

Moran Gez said in an interview with Ynet’s sister publication Yedioth Ahronoth it was hard to prosecute the rapes and sexual assault committed by the terrorists because many of the victims of the atrocities did not survive and therefore could not come forward.

“Unfortunately, we have no victims. They were either murdered or some of those who were raped chose not to come forward to share what had happened,” she said. She said women’s groups also had few recorded testimonies although they were approached by parents asking what they can do when their daughter was a victim of those crimes.

Soon after the interview was published, posts appeared on social media claiming the accusations of rape were a “mistake,” or a “joke.” A journalist who has hundreds of thousands of followers led a campaign of denial of the rape accusations, using the interview and the fact that no charges were filed, as “evidence” that no such crimes were committed.

Report: IDF to withdraw from Lebanon within two weeks

The U.S. has committed to Israel withdrawing from Lebanon within the next two weeks, according to Israel National news, which cited Lebanon’s Hezbollah-affiliated Al Akhbar.

According to the report, U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein informed official sources in Lebanon that Washington promised a complete withdrawal of IDF forces in southern Lebanon before the end of the sixty-day period outlined in the ceasefire deal.

The report also said Hochstein is demanding the Lebanese army reinforce its units and increase its alert level, as well as reposition its forces to fill in the vacuum.

Hochstein is also apparently calling for Lebanon to ensure Hezbollah hands all its weapons south of the Litani River over to the Lebanese army.