Hostage Update: 814 days and 1 remains Sergeant Rani Gvili, whose body was abducted into Gaza.
Former Hostage Romi Gonen Breaks Silence https://open.substack.com/pub/evebarlow/p/romi-gonen-breaks-silence
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ISRAEL
From Avi Abelow Israel is the only force willing and capable of ensuring Hamas and Hezbollah are no longer threats to its borders, and that Iran is prevented from threatening Israeli lives.
Israel Recognized Somaliland
ITALY
Italian police say that they have arrested nine people suspected of raising millions of euros for Hamas
JORDAN
Jordan carried out airstrikes in southern Syria, hitting factories used by arms and drug smugglers.
LEBANON
▪️Israeli intelligence: Hezbollah is rearming
▪️US intelligence: Hezbollah is rearming
▪️Arab intelligence: Hezbollah is rearming
▪️UNIFIL: What rearming?
PAKISTAN
Pakistan is offering to be part of US President Donald J. Trump's proposed International Stabilization Force (ISF) in the Gaza Strip. Pakistan, which does not recognize Israel, has already made it clear that it is "not ready" to disarm Hamas. Indonesia, whose government has offered 20,000 troops to the ISF, was also opposed to disarming Hamas. https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22145/pakistan-in-gaza
PALESTINIANS/HAMAS/PA
INSIDE HAMAS GAZA STRIP Hospitals-turned-ministries, war taxes, and a stalled plan https://www.lastampa.it/esteri/2025/12/16/news/gaza_war_hamas_extortion_taxes_testimonies-15436444/ and https://david-collier.com/october-7-al-shifa-hospital-hostage-convoy/
>Senior Hamas officials living overseas, primarily in Turkey, are trying to direct kidnapping attempts to free Hamas members who are still behind bars
>Islamic Jihad lauds dead “Jihad fighter”; Palestinian Authority: He was innocent “delivery boy
>Christian population nearly wiped out under Hamas, PA rule in Christianity's birthplace
>Pastor routinely presented by international media as a moral Christian voice from Bethlehem, yet outlets omit that he publicly justified the October 7 Hamas massacre
>New Demands: Hamas says it will not disarm until there is a Palestinian state with an army.
QATAR
QatarEnergy’s $3.1 billion drilling contract with Italy’s Saipem
Qatar is paying $80,000 a month to former congressmen Jim Moran, Tom McMillen, Tom Davis, and Tom Reynolds to lobby Congress and polish its image. see attached image
RUSSIA
>Russia has substantially upgraded the original Iranian-made Shahed suicide drones—modifications that could pose new and more complex threats, not only to Ukraine but also to Israel, plus Iranian nuclear scientists visited Russia to upgrade their nuclear weapons. https://www.meforum.org/mef-observer/russias-upgraded-shahed-drones-reshape-the-threat-facing-israel-and-ukraine
>Russia is redeploying troops and equipment to Syria and to restore Syrian army presence in southern Syria near the Israeli border. Israel reportedly supports Russian presence there to counterbalance Turkish influence.
TURKEY
>Turkey is moving to deploy advanced radar systems on Syrian territory, a step officials fear could restrict Israeli military operations across the region.
>The Trump administration has just concluded another round of diplomatic talks with Turkey and Qatar about Gaza. Meanwhile, both Turkey and Qatar support Hamas, and Turkey declared Israel enemy number 1.
>Israel now faces a rising threat from a radicalized, Turkish-backed Syria
UAE
UK
Two-tier justice system in the UK: Luke Yarwood jailed for 18-months over horrific 𝕏 post seen by 33 people. Vs. Bob Vylan: NOT jailed after demanding death to IDF soldiers during Glastonbury set seen by millions on BBC.
Big bruhaha in the UK over Alaa Abdel Fattah, he's been welcomed by Keir Starmer. The BBC described him as an "Egyptian activitst;" The Independent described him as a "democracy activist." He was in prison in Egypt. He explicitly incites violence against Jews and Israelis, and outright promotes anti-Western sentiments and tells us, openly and blatantly, that Britain is a country he despises and hates.
USA
>At least 20% of Zohran Mamdani transition committee team linked to radical anti-Zionist groups. REPORTER: People on your transition team supported the killing of Jews after October 7th...will you reject them from your administration? ZOHRAN MAMDANI: "...there's a wide variety of political opinion."
>At the recent Turning Point USA event and other forums, Steve Bannon, Tucker Carlson, and fellow MAGA icons have been battling with Ben Shapiro and Mark Levine. At issue is not immigration, tariffs, or government spending but, once again, Israel and the Jews.
>New York's KKR & Co. completed its first private credit deal in Saudi Arabia
>The New York Times Used Selective West Bank Data to Shape a False Moral Verdict
GOOD NEWS ON CAMPUS
University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill ’s Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies is scheduled to close in 2026. This comes as welcome news to all those who seek a fair and equitable environment on campus. https://www.algemeiner.com/2025/12/24/after-speaker-calls-oct-7-a-beautiful-day-and-other-offenses-unc-center-one-of-many-set-to-close/
Georgetown University Severs Ties with UN's Francesca Albanese https://unwatch.org/georgetown-university-removes-uns-francesca-albanese/
University of Sydney staffer aggressively harassed Jewish students celebrating Sukkot in October with disgusting Jew-hatred, after the Bondi Chanukah massacre, she was finally fired, arrested, and charged with: Intimidation with intent to cause fear of physical harm; Stalking and harassment
