One side says, “He’s abandoned the Iranian people to die in the streets!” Meanwhile the other side says “How would we really know what he’s up to when he’s made clear that his strategy is one of unpredictability?”
Two sides represented below, first by the Jerusalem Post editorial team, the second by Rabbi Pesach Wolicki:
Source:
Jerusalem Post, 2026-02-04 pg 9.
"Trump's betrayal: It's not too late for Donald Trump to topple Iran's regime:"
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-885513
"Trump's strategic unpredictability and the Iranian threat:"
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-885327
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All this time I’ve been mystified, hearing that in the Gaza cemetery where Ran Gvili’s body was found, news stated that his body was dressed in a police uniform. So I put that together with the hundreds of Palestinian fighters buried in the same spot – and that his body was hidden for 843 days there – did they dress his body up in a Gaza police uniform to conceal his identity or just to make things difficult? Or what?
Then I found this report:
“He was reportedly found in a body bag from Gaza’s Hamas-linked Shifa Hospital, still wearing his Israel Police uniform, shoes, and belt.”1
OK – so that means the Gazans knew that he was Israeli and not Gazan – at least – if anyone was paying attention. Maybe not, during the chaos of the early days.
Here’s a bit more about his job, his life, and his broken shoulder:
“Gvili, who was laid to rest Tuesday in the military section of the Meitar cemetery, served in the elite Yasam Negev unit of the Israel Police’s Southern District. On October 7, despite having recently suffered a motorcycle accident and being scheduled for surgery on a broken shoulder, Gvili joined the fighting. He managed to save the lives of dozens of partygoers at the Re’im music festival before being killed and abducted near Kibbutz Alumim. He became known as “Rani, the protector of Alumim.”2
Nablus, the Roman name for the ancient Biblical city of Shechem, is where Joseph’s bones were buried after Israel transported them out of Egypt during the Pessach (Passover). Located just up the road from here in Shomron (Samaria), today, Shechem is an Arab Muslim city under the Palestinian Authority, and is one of the main sources of Islamic jihadist terrorism in Shomron.
Despite all this, Jews have been going there to pay their respects to Joseph, as well as to pray–monthly under great IDF military protection–but since 2000 in the Second Intifada, only at night.
Ran Gvili’s body–the last hostage–has been returned as of Day 843, aka the 26th of January 2026. As such, Hostages Square in Tel Aviv held a closing ceremony, and the big digital clock went dark at 843 days, 12 hours, 6 minutes.
See below:
Jerusalem Post carried this story on the front page 28 Jan 2026, but Large Garfield sat on the news.
Screenshot from Times of Israel on 28 Jan 2026.
Let’s continue to pray for all the families of the hostages and their recovery, as well as for the surviving hostages.
The timing is very interesing indeed.
IDF Commander states that Hamas obstructed, rather than assisted, the recovery of the body, found in part thanks to intel from an Islamic Jihad fighter during interrogation in Israel.¹
Sources:
¹Hamas did not assist:
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/defense-news/article-884709
Israel reacts as Ran Gvili's body returns home:
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-884609
Hostages Square clock goes dark:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/after-843-days-12-hours-6-minutes-hostages-square-clock-goes-dark-with-ran-gvilis-return/
Comment: Israel completes Hostage recovery:
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-884611
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Note how this fool uses the tired old “synagogue of satan” phrase from Revelation (2:9 & 3:9).
It ought to be obvious that one cannot build a dogma out of just one unique Bible passage.
In these two verses, part of the letters to the seven congregations, translators could have chosen less-charged words such as “congregation” or “assembly.”
That said, just because two first-century Turkish* congregations (Smyrna and Philadelphia) had some issue with some assembly of Satan or other, that certainly does not mean that ALL such congregations are affiliated with the enemy. One has to be a special kind of sophomore to jump to that conclusion.
But this clown really thinks he’s right, and he believes he is honorable for being willing to pay the legal price for his hate.
* “Asia Minor” in Biblical terms; located in present-day Turkey.
For Further Reading:
"To use a phrase that “this is one of the most misunderstood verses in the entire Bible” is to use a cliché, but in this case the claim is actually true...."
https://israelbiblicalstudies.com/blog/category/jewish-studies/what-is-the-synagogue-of-satan-rev-39-13/
"...For the author of Revelation, however, to pay the tax would be an act of apostasy, as the tax paid for the rebuilding of the Capitoline temple."
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/014610799902800405
Sources:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/mississippi-suspect-laughed-as-he-confessed-to-torching-synagogue-of-satan-fbi/
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-883166
Mississippi suspect laughed as he confessed to torching ‘Synagogue of Satan’ — FBI
By LUKE TRESS and ZEV STUB
Stephen Spencer Pittman burned Jackson congregation due to the ‘building’s Jewish ties,’ criminal complaint says
This photo provided by Beth Israel Congregation shows damage sustained during a fire, January 10, 2026, at Beth Israel Congregation, in Jackson, Mississippi. (Beth Israel Congregation via AP)
A ‘deliberate attack on Jews’: Community condemns arson attack on Mississippi synagogue
By ZEV STUB
Fire damage to the Beth Israel Congregation, a synagogue in Jackson, Mississippi, January 10, 2026. (Beth Israel Congregation)
Mississippi’s largest synagogue severely damaged in suspected arson attack
By ZEV STUB
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with oil executives in the East Room of the White House, Jan. 9, 2026, in Washington. (AP/Evan Vucci)
‘We don’t need them. We don’t like them’: Trump says MAGA has no room for antisemites
By JACOB MAGID
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UN Watch, a Geneva-based NGO, has strongly criticized the Colonna Report, calling it a “whitewash” and “rigged” to exonerate UNRWA and restore donor funding rather than conduct an impartial investigation.
Key Criticisms Conflict of Interest and Bias: UN Watch argues that former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna had a conflict of interest, as France is a major UNRWA donor. They claim her mandate was to “reassure donors” and “restore confidence,” not to investigate impartially. Pre-Determined Outcome: UN Watch cites statements from UN officials and Colonna herself indicating the review was designed to “provide cover” for donors to resume funding, suggesting a predetermined outcome. Dismissal of Evidence: The organization claims the review ignored extensive evidence it submitted, including hundreds of pages, screenshots, and videos showing UNRWA staff promoting terrorism. Biased Research Institutions: The three research institutes involved—Chr. Michelsen Institute, Raoul Wallenberg Institute, and Danish Institute for Human Rights—are accused of having pro-UNRWA and anti-Israel biases, with histories of dismissing allegations of terror ties. Failure to Address Systemic Issues: UN Watch highlights that the report downplayed the politicization of staff unions and failed to address the scale of Hamas infiltration, despite evidence that over 1,400 UNRWA employees in Gaza were members of Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Lack of Accountability: As of late 2025, UNRWA had not implemented any recommendations related to staff union neutrality, further undermining the report’s impact.
1st of January in Israel / 25th of December: Normal working days, no days off for anybody. Some folks acknowledge this verbally, saying “Shana Tova” (Happy New Year, but it’s more common to hear this on the street at the end of summer before Rosh haShana), some go to parties and drink, but that is with the understanding that there’s no sleeping in or missing work the day after.
Feast days in Israel: Day off, no work. (Pessach “Passover,” Shavuot “Pentecost,” Rosh haShana “Yom Teruah, Day of Trumpets, agricultural new year, Sukkot “Tabernacles”). Also, the prior day is a half day, a “preparation day,” some shops/workplaces are open half day, others are closed completely. If open, it closes early. Office workers are not required to show up on preparation day nor on the Feast, but normally return to work on the First Day after the Feast.
Weekly Shabbat in Israel: On the prior day (preparation day) the supermarket closes at 2pm in winter, 3 or 4 in summer; convenience stores close by 3 pm in winter; half the restaurants are closed for preparation day, none of the offices are open; half the residents are not working the day before and practically none work on the day of Shabbat; Work forbidden (exceptions made for specifically-approved 24-hour convenience shops, hospitals, electric plant workers, all of which are given an exception, for the purpose of saving lives).
Just a few of the differences here, in contrast to the rest of the world.
In Times Square, New York City, Israel bought a Happy New Year’s Day ad, with a reminder about Ran Gvili, whose body is still held in Gaza after he was killed in Israel on Oct 7. See our post below and scroll up from there:
“In the end, they realised he really was a journalist,” the source added, and the reporter was taken off the target list. ¹
OK – so this proves that when Israel finds they made a mistake they corrected it and did not order his killing.
A study by the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center found that approximately 60% of individuals classified as journalists or media personnel killed during the Gaza war were members of or affiliated with terrorist organizations, primarily Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, with many holding dual roles as armed operatives. This figure, based on an examination of 266 media workers killed between October 7, 2023, and November 30, 2025, indicates that 157 of the deceased were either direct members of terror groups or worked for outlets affiliated with them.
Hamas Affiliation: Of the 157 individuals with terror ties, 104 were linked to Hamas, including at least 47 who served as military operatives.
Other Groups: 45 were affiliated with Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), including 18 confirmed operatives, while smaller numbers were linked to Fatah, PFLP, and other factions.
Dual Identity: The report highlights a widespread pattern where media workers simultaneously served as military personnel, a phenomenon that the study notes undermines trust in media credibility and alters their status under international law.
The study also noted specific cases where individuals, including several Al Jazeera correspondents, were identified as having coordinated with terror groups to cover combat zones while acting as operatives, with some receiving advance notice of attacks to broadcast live coverage of the October 7 assault.
“To put people who celebrated or participated in the Oct. 7 attacks in the same category as journalists who risk and sometimes lose their lives endeavoring to bring us the truth is a disgrace.” ²
Sources:
¹ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/15/israeli-military-unit-reportedly-tasked-with-linking-journalists-in-gaza-to-hamas
² James Kirchick, Aug 21, 2025, writing for the Wall Street Journal.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/who-is-a-journalist-in-gaza-18a70ad0
https://israel.com/security/dual-roles-undermine-trust-in-media-most-journalists-killed-in-gaza-had-terror-ties-study-finds/
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hyjqezozze
https://www.terrorism-info.org.il/en/about-60-of-the-gazans-classified-as-journalists-and-other-media-personnel-killed-in-the-gaza-strip-war-belonged-to-hamas-and-other-terrorist-organizations/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/majority-of-journalists-killed-in-gaza-linked-to-terror-organizations-study-says/
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That’s the takeaway re: Gaza from this week’s Netanyahu/Trump summit in Florida. But Israel does not think Hamas will actually cooperate–for good reason:
While Israel has fulfilled all of its obligations for Phase 1 of the ceasefire as of day one, Hamas has not–and actively violates in every day with more fighting in the forbidden yellow zone in Gaza.
Presidents Obama and Biden did not pressure Iran at all regarding their ballistic missiles. And yet, during the 12 day war, once Iran started firing them, they sought to overwhelm Israel’s defense system. The few ballistic missiles that got through were deadly for Israelis.
Yonah Jeremy Bob wrote:
“Israel could live with an Iran that has some ballistic missiles. Until the war, it had around 2,500. That was not the problem. The problem was Iran seeking to develop an arsenal of 5,000 or even 10,000 such missiles. At some point, the volume of missiles could overwhelm Israel’s missile shield. Iran killed 28 Israelis, wounded thousands, and damaged around 13,000 residences in June when 36 of its 550 ballistic missiles got through the missile shield. Imagine if it fired 5,000 missiles and got 500 through.” ¹
President Trump stands apart — to join with Israel to take ballistic missiles seriously. Missiles in the hands of the mullahs are no light matter.
Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem. They shall prosper that love thee.
