Yahya al-Sinwar, head of the Palestinian Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, attends a meeting with people at a hall on the seashore in Gaza City. Photo: Yousef Masoud / SOPA Images/Sipa via Reuters Connect At a recent US State Department briefing, an American official told reporters that Yahya Sinwar, leader of the Hamas terrorist group in the Gaza Strip, is single-handedly holding up any progress on a potential hostage deal, according to reports. The senior Biden administration official said that while Hamas’ political bureau has shown some willingness to compromise on the terror group’s mos ..read more

The “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” at Columbia University, located in the Manhattan borough of New York City. Photo: Reuters Connect Anti-Zionist protests striking US colleges and universities across the country have been the result of “tightly coordinated” efforts backed by the financial power and logistical support of groups linked to terrorist organizations and some of America’s most prestigious philanthropic foundations, according to a new report. In the wake of the Hamas terror group’s Oct. 7 invasion of southern Israel, the “exponential rise in antisemitic violence, incitement, intimidat ..read more

Drones are seen at a site at an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on April 20, 2023. Photo: Iranian Army/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS The United States on Thursday issued further sanctions on Iran, targeting Iranian drones, including their use by Russia in the war in Ukraine, as Washington seeks to ratchet up pressure on Tehran. The US Treasury Department in a statement said the action, taken in coordination with the United Kingdom and Canada, targets over one dozen entities, individuals, and vessels it accused of playing a key role in facilitat ..read more

Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, attends a side event during the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, March 26, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Denis Balibouse The United Nations’ special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Palestinian territories has praised the anti-Israel demonstrations that have erupted on university campuses across the US over the last week. “Hope comes from the ‘Watermelon Revolution’ (if its brave souls allow me to call it such),” Francesca Albanese wrote on Monday, hours before th ..read more

Anti-Israel protesters outside Columbia University in Manhattan, New York City, April 22, 2024. Photo: USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters Connect We live in a world of escalating antisemitism — and understanding this hatred is a necessity, not a luxury. From Hamas’ brutal actions to the resurgence of anti-Jewish hostility on college campuses, we face a complex web of hatred fueled by ignorance, prejudice, and dangerous worldviews. To effectively combat the threats before us, we must build and strengthen an indispensable tool for the long run — powerful academic research. Almost a decade ago, I ca ..read more

FILE PHOTO: Sudanese refugees who fled the violence in Sudan’s Darfur region and newly arrived ride their donkeys looking for space to temporarily settle, near the border between Sudan and Chad in Goungour, Chad May 8, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra/File Photo False statistics have been used to devastating effect since the outbreak of the October 7 Hamas-initiated war against Israel. From Hamas’ curated death tolls reported in the Gaza Strip, to disputes over the number of aid trucks entering the Strip, the spread of misleading or outright false data has done considerable harm to Israel ..read more

Iranians attend an anti-Israel rally in Tehran, Iran, April 19, 2024. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS The geopolitical tensions between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the State of Israel have long been a focal point of Middle Eastern politics, drawing global attention due to their potential implications for regional stability and international security. This article examines the recent developments in Iran-Israel relations by analyzing Iran’s military capabilities, its nuclear ambitions, the rhetoric of the conflict, and the implications of Iranian terroris ..read more

Israel’s military displays what they say is an Iranian ballistic missile which they retrieved from the Dead Sea after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel, at Julis military base, in southern Israel, April 16, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen In essence, time represents the most critical determinant of Israel’s survival as a state. This is true not just in relation to operational requirements of counterterrorism and nuclear war avoidance, but also because Israel’s policies reflect the accumulated learning of past experience. Such experience, as we may glean from Samuel Beckett’s a ..read more

A person attends a protest as they call for the immediate release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza since the deadly Oct. 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist terrorist group Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel, April 25, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton The United States and 17 other countries on Thursday issued an appeal for Hamas to release all of its hostages as a pathway to end the crisis in Gaza, but the Palestinian terrorist group vowed not to relent to international pressure. “We call for the immediate&n ..read more

Commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) Quds Force, Esmail Qaani speaks in Tehran, Dec. 20, 2022. Photo: Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Reuters Connect An Iranian and two Peruvians have been sentenced to 18 months of preventative detention for allegedly plotting to kill two Israelis living in Peru. The order by Magistrate Miguel Quevedo was issued on Tuesday but released on Wednesday, according to the Associated Press, which reported that the defendants were also accused of conspiracy to commit terrorism. Peruvian police and prosecutors said that the Iranian, Majid Aziz ..read more