From: Shafaq News January 3, 2025
No handshake for Female German FM from HTS

Video footage showed Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbockher hosts did not shake her hand, opting for verbal greetings and smiles, while they shook hands with the other men in the delegation.

The same scenario occurred with Al-Sharaa when he greeted Baerbock at the People's Palace in Damascus.
He waved and smiled at her but shook hands with her French counterpart.

Criticism emerged, accusing the new Syrian administration officials of disregarding global political handshake protocols, with some suggesting they were attempting to steer the country towards a model similar to "Taliban-ruled Afghanistan."

Wouldn't suprise me if it's true.

'Tests recovered poison in...': Assad faced assassination attempt in Russia; Shocking report claims
ET Online | 03 Jan 2025, 04:04 PM IST
Ousted Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad reportedly survived a poisoning attempt in Moscow, where he has been under Vladimir Putin’s protection since December 2024 after his regime's fall to HTS rebels. As per reports, Assad fell gravely ill, coughing, choking and experiencing severe pain, with tests confirming exposure to poison. However, the Economic Times could not independently verify the authenticity of these claims.

Scum Must Go indeed

From: The Jerusalem Post January 4, 2025
Antisemitism is at a record high

Israel must go:
Israeli attacked in Berlin over Israeli-Palestinian peace pin. “Israel must go,” one of the attackers reportedly shouted.

Israeli-Palestinian peace pin:
An Israeli Jewish street artist was hospitalized in Berlin after she was attacked on New Year’s Eve for wearing a restaurant’s
Israeli-Palestinian peace pin, the vegan Israeli-Palestinian, Middle Eastern restaurant Kanaan, Berlin said, on Saturday.

The Israeli artist identified as “Soli” was wearing the Kanaan pin, which depicts a heart divided into an Israeli and Palestinian flag, was approached by at least four individuals, according to the Saturday Instagram post.

violence and hatred:
A young Arab woman pulled the Israeli artist’s hair, and the situation escalated with three men joining the physical attack, striking Soli.

'Heinous act of violence'
Kanaan said,
“This heinous act of violence serves as a stark reminder that intolerance and hatred can manifest in the most unexpected and brutal ways. We raise a red flag, calling on all community and cultural leaders in the city to condemn this violence unequivocally,”

“Berlin must not become a place where violence and hate are deemed acceptable tools.
The pain of the Palestinian people is not an excuse for violence and we in Kanaan vehemently condemn all forms of attack.”

According to photographs shared by the restaurant, Soli was hospitalized with a head injury. 

Kanaan called on the police to take action to identify and bring the alleged perpetrators to justice.
The restaurant urged others to contact the police and spread word about the incident.

The Berlin Police did not immediately respond to The Jerusalem Post’s request for comment.

The restaurant announced that it was selling the Israeli-Palestinian heart pins to raise money for the Israeli artist’s care and recovery.

Kanaan was established by Israeli entrepreneur Oz Ben David and Palestinian Restauranteur Jalil Dabit, according to its website.

The restaurant advertises itself as a safe place from racism, homophobia, and transphobia, and employs refugees from the Middle East and Africa.

From: PBS News October 7, 2024
U.S. military aid for Israel tops $17.9 billion since last October 7

Unlike the United States’ publicly documented military aid to Ukraine, it was impossible to get the full details of what the U.S. has shipped Israel since last October 7 so the $17.9 billion for the year is a partial figure, the researchers said.

They cited Biden administration “efforts to hide the full amounts of aid and types of systems through bureaucratic maneuvering.”
Biden has the right idea indeed

From: Council of Foreign Relations September 27, 2024
The total budget authority under these bills—the “headline” figure often cited by news media—is $175 billion.
It’s important to note that of the $175 billion total, only $106 billion directly aids the government of Ukraine

Most of the remainder is funding various U.S. activities associated with the war in Ukraine, and a small portion supports other affected countries in the region.

From: BBC January 4, 2025
Biden plans to send $8bn arms shipment to Israel

The US Department of State has notified Congress of a planned $8bn (£6.4bn) arms sale to Israel, an American official has confirmed to the BBC

The weapons consignment, which needs approval from House and Senate committees, includes missiles, shells and other munitions.
The move comes just over a fortnight before President Joe Biden leaves office.

Washington has rejected calls to suspend military backing for Israel because of the number of civilians killed during the war in Gaza.

In August, the US approved the sale of $20bn in fighter jets and other military equipment to Israel.
The latest planned shipment contains air-to-air missiles, Hellfire missiles, artillery shells and bombs, the US official said.

Biden has often described US support for Israel as iron-clad.

From: Haaretz January 4, 2025
Now in Gaza: Israel Seems to Have Its Own Unhinged Officers

In a new book, a lieutenant colonel, in the reserves, tells about crazed soldiers and wayward officers who espoused the credo that 'revenge is legitimate in this war'

This week, Haaretz' Amos Harel, met with a friend whose son has been doing combat service in Gaza, on and off since the start of the October 7, 2023 war

The son reports,
1. morale in his company is high,
2. the officers are professionals
3. and the troops are determined to go on fighting

From: Haaretz January 4, 2025
U.S. House Republicans push bill sanctioning ICC announce vote to be held on Tuesday

GOP leadership in the U.S. House announced that the vote on a bill issuing sweeping sanctions on the International Criminal Court will be held on Tuesday, signifying its prioritization.

From: Agence France-Presse January 5, 2025
Syria monitor: 101 killed in battles between pro-Turkey and US-backed Kurdish forces

More than 100 combatants were killed over the last two days in northern Syria in fighting between Turkish-backed groups and Syrian Kurdish forces, a war monitor said on Sunday.

Since Friday evening, clashes in several villages around the city of Manbij have left 101 dead, including 85 members of pro-Turkish groups and 16 from the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The SDF said it had repelled "all the attacks from Turkey's mercenaries supported by Turkish drones and aviation".
The Turkish defence ministry said it had "neutralised" 32 Kurdish fighters in northern Syria, without providing further details.

Turkish-backed factions in northern Syria resumed their fight with the SDF at the same time as Islamist-led rebels were launching an offensive on November 27 that overthrew Syrian president Bashar al-Assad just 11 days later.

The pro-Ankara groups succeeded in capturing Kurdish-held Manbij and Tal Rifaat in northern Aleppo province, despite US-led efforts to establish a truce in the Manbij area.

The fighting has continued since, with mounting casualties.

During a visit to Damascus on Friday, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said security of the Kurds is "essential for a peaceful Syria." this requires "an end to the fighting in the north and the integration of the Kurdish forces... in the Syrian security architecture."

The SDF controls vast areas of Syria's northeast, and parts of Deir Ezzor province in the east, where the Kurds created a
semi-autonomous administration following the withdrawal of government forces during the civil war that began in 2011

The group, which receives US backing, took control of additional territory after capturing it from the jihadists of the Islamic State group.

Ankara accuses the main component of the SDF, the People's Protection Units (YPG) of affiliation with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has fought a decades-long insurgency in southeastern Turkey and is banned as a terrorist organisation by the government.

The Turkish military regularly launches strikes against Kurdish fighters in Syria and neighbouring Iraq, accusing them of being PKK-linked.

Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria's new leader and the head of the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) told Al Arabiya TV in late December that local Kurdish-led forces should be integrated into the national army.

HTS led the coalition of rebel groups that overthrew Assad last month.

Syria not a threat to world, rebel leader Ahmed al-Sharaa tells BBC in an interview with Jeremy Bowen 19 December 2024

The de facto leader of Syria, has said the country is exhausted by war and is not a threat to its neighbours or to the West.
He said HTS was not a terrorist group.

Sharaa denied that he wanted to turn Syria into a version of Afghanistan. He said,
1. the countries were very different, with different traditions.
2. Afghanistan was a tribal society. In Syria, he said, there was a different mindset.

Sharaa was relaxed throughout the interview, wearing civilian clothes, and tried to offer reassurance to all those who believe his group has not broken with its extremist past. Many Syrians do not believe him.

The actions of Syria's new rulers in the next few months will indicate the kind of country they want Syria to be - and the way they want to rule it.

From: The Times of Israel January 5, 2025
Though HTS leaders celebrated the devastating Hamas assault on Israel on October 7, 2023 the new [jihadist leader to rebel politician] Syrian leadership stresses that it is not interested in a fight with Israel.

“We do not want any conflict, whether with Israel or anyone else, and we will not let Syria be used as a launchpad for attacks.

From: The Times of Israel January 5, 2025
“It’s too early to believe this rebrand,” an Israeli official told The Times of Israel.

As European and Arab leaders rush to meet Syria’s new leader, Israel calls for caution

Ahmed al-Sharaa is hoping to convince the world that he’s left his jihadist past behind, but Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and other senior officials are not persuaded

As Syria’s new government strives to gain international legitimacy after overthrowing the Bashar al-Assad regime, Western countries seem open to giving a chance to the government led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, head of the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group.

At the same time, Israel is focused on making sure its allies don’t give a free pass to a man who led a brutal jihadist organization.

“This is a terrorist gang”
In Israel, Sa’ar is leading an effort to press the world to treat Sharaa’s government with extreme suspicion, while warning that European countries are too eager to overlook any potential problematic aspects of the new government in order to send back the millions of refugees who have fled the fighting since 2011

Also, last month, Sa’ar’s deputy Sharren Haskel accused Sharaa of being “a wolf in [sheep’s] clothes.”

“It is important to avoid falling for the attempt to whitewash jihadist [groups] in Syria. We know who they are and their true nature, even if they change their names, and we understand how dangerous they are to the West,” said Haskel.

Israeli leaders besides the foreign minister have also been warning against too readily buying into Sharaa’s ostensible transformation.

From: The Times of Israel January 6, 2025
Trump is with Israel
Trump reiterates his threat to Hamas: ‘Those hostages have to get out, they have to get out now’

US President-elect Donald Trump reiterates his warning to Hamas to release the hostages it is holding in Gaza, in a radio interview with conservative radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt.

Asked what he meant when he said previously that there would be “hell to pay” if the hostages aren’t released before he takes office on January 20, Trump says: “Exactly what it says — if those hostages aren’t released by the time I get office there will be hell to pay.”

“I don’t think I have to get into it… But it won’t be the word ‘don’t,’ you know,” he adds, referring to a warning made by US President Joe Biden on October 10, 2023 in a speech pledging support for Israel in the wake of Hamas’s October 7 atrocities.

“There will be hell to pay,” he repeats, “Those hostages have to get out, they have to get out now.”

Earlier in the interview Trump says, “I’m with Israel. I think that’s pretty obvious to everybody… I do have to add, I’m also for peace.
It’s time. This fight’s been going on for a long time, longer than people would understand.”

From: The Jerusalem Post January 6, 2025
Trump is Israel’s best friend

Trump reiterates: 'If the hostages aren't released by the time I take office, there will be hell'

Trump added: "I am Israel’s best friend. I moved the embassy to Jerusalem—everything was good, including the Abraham Accords, and every major positive event in Israel recently was because of me. I must also note that I support peace—now is the time."

President-elect Donald Trump, when asked about his warning that "there will be hell if the hostages aren't released by his inauguration," responded, "That is exactly what I meant. If the hostages are not released by the time I take office, there will be hell—no ‘don’t,’ there will be hell. They need to be released now."

The President-elect made the statements on the Hugh Hewitt Podcast on Monday.

Trump's "don't" comment appears to be a jab at US President Joe Biden, who warned other actors in the region who were thinking of attacking Israel shortly after October 7

Biden said from Israel on October 10, 2023 "To anyone thinking of taking advantage of the situation, I have one word: 'Don't,'

Trump initially made his "hell to pay' comment in a post on Truth Social on December 2, 2024

He made the statement after the IDF's confirmation that Hamas killed American-Israeli Omer Neutra on October 7 and has held his body hostage since.

"Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025 the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity," Trump wrote in December.

Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the "long and storied History of the United States of America," Trump said. "RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!" he concluded.

Turkey-backed Syria may be bigger threat than Iran, says Israeli government panel
Government committee warns a direct clash between Turkey and Israel may be possible in Syria in the future

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/turkish-backed-syria-bigger-threat-iran-says-israeli-govt-panel

Perhaps Trump tethers Turkey...

Turkey a rogue, untethered NATO member
No friend of Israel NATO ally. Always hostile to Israel -- Enmity, Power struggle, Volatility

However... From: The Times of Israel January 5, 2025
Though HTS leaders celebrated the devastating Hamas assault on Israel on October 7, 2023 the new [jihadist leader to rebel politician] Syrian leadership stresses that it is not interested in a fight with Israel.

“We do not want any conflict, whether with Israel or anyone else, and we will not let Syria be used as a launchpad for attacks.

From: The New Arab News December 31, 2024
How Trump's team navigates the war-torn Syria's delicate transition into the post-Assad era could have profound repercussions for the country [and the region] Washington has no choice but to work with the new HTS Syrian leader, in one way or another.

Israel is the only country in the world that has to defend itself, for defending itself, in their terrorists invasion of unprovoked brutal terror, monstrous, violent Guerilla warfare unleashed inside their borders

From: The New Arab News January 7, 2025
Germany defunds two Israeli rights organisations, critical of Gaza war

The German government has defunded two Israeli human rights organisations that are critical of the war on Gaza and Israel's policy towards Palestinians.

The German government has defunded two Israeli human rights groups known for being critical of Israel's war on Gaza and its occupation of the West Bank.

The move to cut off funding to the Israel-based human rights groups Zochrot and New Profile was part of a broader attempt to stop the federal funding of human rights organisations which criticise Israeli policies and the continued war on Gaza, the German media outlet Deutsche Welle (DW) reported.

Germany's funding cut has resulted in the end of ongoing projects the groups had previously cleared in late 2023

Zochrot which means "Remembering" in Hebrew, advocates for accountability for the Nakba, Arabic for the word "catastrophe" and a term used to refer to Zionist militias killing and expelling hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their villages in 1948

The group advocates for the right of return of Palestinian refugees and works to inform people of this legal right, something that the Israeli government strongly opposes.

It has lost about a quarter of its budget due to the German funding cut.

From: Al Jazeera January 7, 2025
Trump says: ‘All hell will break out in the Middle East’ if captives are not released

US President-elect Donald Trump and Middle East envoy Steve Wittkoff, held a news conference in Florida, where they addressed some questions about the Gaza ceasefire talks.

Trump said if the captives are not back by the time, he gets into office, “all hell will break out in the Middle East, and it will not be good for Hamas, and it will not be good, frankly, for anyone”.

‘Donald Trump believes that he can get a ceasefire deal’
This is something – trying to get a ceasefire for Israel’s war on Gaza and to release the captives – that has been eluding the current US administration for quite some time.

In fact, this is something that President Joe Biden had hoped would be part of his legacy.
But, in the waning days of his administration, it is not something they have been able to achieve.

And so, one would argue that this is naïveté on the part of the incoming [Donald Trump] administration and the new Middle East negotiator [Steve Witkoff].

They believe that the man who wrote the book 'The Art of the Deal' can strike a deal.

One has to look and see whether or not this is achievable. Donald Trump believes that he can get a deal.
He is threatening that, if it’s not done, there will be consequences to be paid with punitive action.

From: Al Arabiya News January 7, 2025
Trump should get Nobel Peace Prize if he brokers peace between Israel, Palestinians

From: Al Jazeera January 7, 2025
What further hell could Trump bring to the Gaza Strip?

Omar Rahman, a fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, spoke to Al Jazeera about Trump’s comment that “all hell will break out in the Middle East” if the captives are not released by the time, he gets into office.

“What further hell could you bring on the Gaza Strip than is already being imposed on it?” Rahman asked.

“You need to tackle … structural issues. That doesn’t mean the US as a superpower, with all the economic and military power it has, can’t take further actions … to step up the pressure on all the parties,” he said.

He said, it is hard to know exactly what Trump entails by this threat, but he suggested that it could mean he might be willing to use military force against Iran or “green light further ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip”.

Rahman added that Trump might also “be just leaning into the role of the kind of unpredictable, the unwieldy leader, the bully, and hoping that people fear that and kind of just bend the knee.”

Erdogan seeks to reset Turkey's strained ties with the United States by inviting President-elect Donald Trump to Turkey

Erdogan does a simultaneous display of chess.

Yemen’s Houthis a ‘menace’ for Israel despite weakened Iran
The Australian 31 December 2024

Extracts:

• Yemen’s Houthis a ‘menace’ for Israel despite weakened Iran

With the ranks of Hamas and Hezbollah decimated and with the fall of Assad in Syria removing a key link in Iran’s anti-Israel ‘axis of resistance’ the Houthis have emerged as Israel’s most immediate security concern

Israel At War - Day 460

Australia 'mending' fractured relationship with Israel
The Sydney Morning Herald by Matthew Knott 07 January 2025

Please! Stand by Israel our ally

Extracts:

• Australian minister to fly to Israel to mend fractured relationship - Too little Too late

among others,
1. anti-Israel slogans sprayed on car in Queens Park, New South Wales 05 January 2025
2. anti-Israel slogans and car set on fire in Woollahra, New South Wales 10 December 2024
3. Adass Israel Synagogue in Ripponlea, Victoria Fire bombed with worshipers inside 06 December 2024

Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus is preparing to travel to Israel within weeks in a bid to help mend the fractured relationship between the Albanese and Netanyahu governments

Dreyfus, who is Jewish, is one of the strongest supporters of Israel in the Labor caucus and his planned trip would be the first by a government minister since Foreign Minister Penny Wong visited the Middle East almost a year ago

Dreyfus, one of Labor’s most senior ministers, will take a week-long trip after a planned visit last year for the first anniversary of Hamas' 07 October 2023 attack had to be cancelled when Iran launched missile strikes in Israel

Dreyfus is expected to meet with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and other senior officials on the trip, during which he will emphasise the longstanding ties between Australia and Israel Words are cheap

A spokesman for Dreyfus said the trip had not been finalised

Australia 'mending' fractured relationship with Israel
The Sydney Morning Herald by Matthew Knott 07 January 2025

Please! Stand by Israel our ally

Extracts:

• Australian minister to fly to Israel to mend fractured relationship - Too little Too late

Tensions between the two nations boiled over last month when Netanyahu accused the Albanese government of fomenting a rise in antisemitism in a fiery intervention just days after Australia’s ambassador to Israel was summoned by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar for a rare dressing down

Local pro-Israel groups were angered that Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong did not visit a kibbutz that was attacked by Hamas terrorists on 07 October 2023 during her trip, with the Executive Council of Australian Jewry describing the omission as “insulting and deeply concerning”

Australia 'mending' fractured relationship with Israel
The Sydney Morning Herald by Matthew Knott 07 January 2025

Please! Stand by Israel our ally

Extracts:

• Australian minister to fly to Israel to mend fractured relationship - Too little Too late

Netanyahu used social media last month to claim that an arson attack on the Adass Israel synagogue in Ripponlea, Victoria, could not be separated from the “extreme anti-Israeli position of the Labor government in Australia”

Netanyahu singled out the Australian government for its decision to
1.*reverse Australia’s diplomatic position on Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territories at the United Nations
2. and to deny ex-Israeli minister Ayelet Shaked a visa on grounds she could threaten social cohesion
Shaked did make inflammatory statements

Netanyahu said,
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong responded in a speech days later by saying:*The timing.... Rewarding terrorism

Australia 'mending' fractured relationship with Israel
The Sydney Morning Herald by Matthew Knott 07 January 2025

Please! Stand by Israel our ally

Extracts:

• Australian minister to fly to Israel to mend fractured relationship - Too little Too late

Netanyahu’s post came after Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called in Australia’s ambassador, Ralph King, for an official reprimand over the decision to deny Shaked a visa

Sa’ar said the move was
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said at the time that his department refused Shaked’s visa because of fears she would “seriously undermine social cohesion” while in Australia
In a speech to parliament after the 07 October 2023 attacks, which killed some 1,200 Israelis [and hostages taken] Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus described Australia’s relationship with Israel as “deep and enduring” and defined by “a bond of true friendship”

Australia 'mending' fractured relationship with Israel
The Sydney Morning Herald by Matthew Knott 07 January 2025

Please! Stand by Israel our ally

Extracts:

• Australian minister to fly to Israel to mend fractured relationship - Too little Too late

Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has argued that Labor has not committed to recognising a Palestinian state, even though the party’s platform says it is expected to be “an important priority” for the government

Dreyfus wrote after Labor’s 2021 conference
Israel’s bombardment and ground invasion in Gaza since the 07 October attack has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, according to [Hamas-run] Gaza’s Health Ministry