Dov Waxman

Why Hamas Agreed to Release the Hostages And why it might not matter much for Gaza’s future, or for Palestinian statehood.

Khaled Elgindy proving that you can in fact talk to Isaac Chotiner without sounding like you've recently been lobotomized with a cheese grater

Very good piece.

The Manchester synagogue attack inspires 'her skirt was too short' antisemitism I do not opine on this from some lofty arena where Jews are not targets. No such place exists.

I just did an op-ed @thecjn.bsky.social specifically to define those terms!! thecjn.ca/opinion/pers...

Minneapolis police investigating antisemitic vandalism at Temple Israel The largest synagogue in Minnesota has once again been vandalized with spray paint bearing antisemitic messages.

This hateful antisemitic vandalism in Minneapolis is alarming and unacceptable.

Targeting synagogues with anti-Zionist/anti-Israel slogans isn’t political activism — it’s harassing and threatening Jewish communities.

I was very glad to write this article and I hope people pay attention to it. It’s very important.

Excellent article and, as you said, very important.

I wrote about the Manchester synagogue attack and attempts to blame Gaza protests
rachelshabi.substack.com/p/indivisibl...

Hold that Nobel Prize: This Peace Plan Will Die, and Bibi Will Kill It Trump does deserve some credit here. But Netanyahu does not want peace, and it’s about as simple as that.

I agree with this smart analysis by @alonpinkas.bsky.social: Hold that Nobel Prize: This Peace Plan Will Die, and Bibi Will Kill It newrepublic.com/article/2015...

Trump promised not to let Israel break Gaza ceasefire to get deal Israel broke one ceasefire. Trump told the mediators he wouldn't let it happen this time.

The ceasefire in Gaza, now in effect, depends on the promise given by an inveterate liar and conman (Trump) to a ruthless terrorist organization (Hamas) that he will prevent another serial liar, conman, and war criminal (Netanyahu) from resuming the war:

It's 9am in Israel and I'm standing on a hill in Sderot looking into Gaza and hearing the sounds of distant explosions and seeing dust clouds and plumes of smokes. The war hasn't ended yet.

I agree. If Israel has agreed to release Barghouti that could be a game-changer in Palestinian politics.

Very happy and relieved that a ceasefire-hostage agreement has been reached and that all the hostages will be home soon. I hope that the second phase of Trump's plan will also be implemented. That will be much harder to do than the first phase. The pressure on both sides must be sustained.

Today marks two years since Hamas’ October 7 massacre and the start of Israel’s assault on Gaza. We asked Palestinians and Jews on our team how they felt about their home then — and how they feel now. To see the full post, click here shorturl.at/msoVq
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To reiterate, this is only a partial list of the many consequences of the Oct 7 attack and the subsequent war in Gaza (end of thread).

22. A majority of American Jews have come to condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza, with 61% calling them war crimes and nearly 40% describing them as genocide (according to a recent poll by the Washington Post).

21. The war has accelerated trends in American public opinion that were already underway. More than half of American adults now have an unfavorable opinion of Israel. Support for Israel among older Democrats and younger Republicans has significantly declined during the war.

20. In the U.S., unconditional American support for Israel is now under much greater scrutiny. In particular, U.S. military support for Israel has become more controversial, even among Republican lawmakers.

19. Antisemitism has surged around the world. Most Jews have experienced antisemitism over the past two years. Social media has been flooded with antisemitic messages. Jewish students have become reticent and even fearful about publicly identifying as Jewish.

18. Palestinian statehood has been recognized by more Western governments, including major allies of Israel (France, the UK, Canada, Australia).

17. Israel is on trial at the ICJ for committing the crime of genocide, and its leadership has been indicted at the ICC for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

16. The war has reverberated around the world. Israel's global standing has significantly declined. Israel is more isolated than ever before around the world.

15. The geopolitics of the region has been transformed. Israel has secured its military hegemony. Iran has been weakened. Assad's regime in Syria has been overthrown. Hezbollah has been decapitated & defanged. Normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia is now off the table.

14. Israeli settlement building in the West Bank has accelerated. Thousands of Palestinians in the West Bank have been forcibly displaced from their homes.

13. Gaza is in ruins. Roughly 60% of all buildings in the Gaza Strip have been destroyed or damaged. The vast majority of homes and most infrastructure have been destroyed. Only 14 out of 36 hospitals in Gaza are still functioning, and only partially.

12. A humanitarian catastrophe has unfolded in Gaza, including a near-famine, resulting in the death of 460 Palestinians from starvation or malnutrition, including 154 children. Over 14,000 Palestinian children in Gaza have suffered from acute malnutrition (according to UNICEF).

11. More than 100,000 Israelis have been internally displaced due to the war (according to Israeli officials).

10. About 1.9 million Palestinians in Gaza, or 90% of the population, have been displaced, many multiple times.

9. Nearly all Palestinians in Gaza are deeply traumatized, and most children will likely suffer from PTSD.

8. Thousands of Israeli combat soldiers now suffer from PTSD. Dozens of soldiers who’ve returned from fighting in Gaza have committed suicide.

7. At least 913 Israeli soldiers have been killed and more than 20,000 injured since the war began (according to Israel’s Ministry of Defense).