Hostage Rescue Less Vital to Many Israelis Than Defeat of Hamas

 Bloomberg

"(Bloomberg) -- The Hostage Families Forum occupies three floors of a high-end Tel Aviv office building. Under the motto “Bring Them Home Now!” the group generates millions of dollars in donations and gets worldwide publicity from international tours by stricken relatives. 

"With so much global attention on the hostages — about 100 remain in Gaza after being taken by Hamas militants on Oct. 7 — it may seem from afar like the main obstacle to their release is the will of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose war aims have become central to his political survival.

"US Secretary of State Antony Blinken this week toured the Middle East for a fifth time since the start of the conflict to try to broker a deal to end the Gaza war, which has been raging for four months since the initial Hamas attack on Israel. Any agreement between the sides would include the release of hostages in return for a cease-fire, yet no deal has been reached.

Read More: Netanyahu Balks at Israel-Hamas Deal Even as Blinken Voices Hope   

Biden avoids documents charges, gets roasted on memory loss

 A long-awaited report cleared President Joe Biden of any wrongdoing in his mishandling of classified documents Thursday but dropped a political bombshell by painting the Democrat as a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”

. . ."However, in a shock for the Biden campaign, special counsel Robert Hur said his probe had found a president with such reduced mental capacities that he could not remember the dates of his vice presidency under Barack Obama and the death of his son Beau to cancer in 2015.

"Speaker Mike Johnson and other top Republican leaders of the House of Representatives called the report “deeply disturbing” and said it showed Biden was “unfit” for the presidency.

“ 'A man too incapable of being held accountable for mishandling classified information is certainly unfit for the Oval Office,” they said in a statement.

"The 81-year-old Biden, speaking at a Democratic Party meeting, said he was “pleased to see they reached the conclusion… that no charges should be brought.' ” . . .

The Morning Briefing: Maybe Karine Jean-Pierre Doesn't Actually Know That Biden's Lost It – PJ Media

"One way to bolster a mentally iffy leader is to surround that leader with a cast of idiots who make him look good. That would certainly explain why Pete Buttigieg has a job in Biden's cabinet." Stephen Kruiser

. . ."Because Doocy is one of the last members of the White House press corps who is interested in doing real journalism, he brought up Biden's convo with the dead guy to KJP. Matt wrote about it for us:" 

On Tuesday, Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre about the incident.

“How is President Biden ever going to convince the three-quarters of voters who are worried about his physical and mental health that he is OK, even though in Las Vegas he told a story about recently talking to a French president who died in 1996?” he asked.

“I’m not even going to go down that rabbit hole with you, sir,” an exasperated Jean-Pierre replied.

But Doocy wasn't about to let it go. “What is the rabbit hole? He said he talked to Mitterrand."

“You saw the president in Vegas, in California. You’ve seen the president in South Carolina. You saw him in Michigan. I’ll just leave it there,” Jean-Pierre said.

“How is that a rabbit hole?” Doocy asked, but Jean-Pierre moved on, unwilling to address the issue.

Freed hostage recounts torture of women in Gaza's terror tunnels - Washington Post

The Jerusalem Post  

"In an interview for international media, Agam Goldstein-Almog discussed Hamas's psychological torture, starvation, and her encounter with other female hostages in the tunnels beneath Gaza."  J Post

"Hostages had been drugged with Clonazepam upon release so they would look happy, an official from Israel’s Health Ministry told the Knesset. As the drugs wore off, nightmares, anxiety, and tantrums became the new normal." 

"As soon as Agam Goldstein-Almog (17) was abducted from Kibbutz Kfar Aza on October 7 in Gaza, she was forced to put on a headscarf and a long dress, commanded to look at the ground, was forced to recite Islamic prayer, and her abductors gave her a name from the Quran, Salsabil, the Washington Post reported on Monday.

"In an interview with international media, Agam described the horror she experienced for nearly two months as a hostage inside Gaza while speaking from a kibbutz in central Israel that has largely become a temporary refuge for displaced Israeli civilians. 

"In the interview, Agam addressed the female hostages still in Gaza. She asked, “Have you eaten enough today? Are you together, or have they separated you? Has he harmed you again? Has he asked you, again, if you’re married, if he could set you up with someone from Gaza? Has he entered your shower again, stripped the pajamas that he gave you, touched the wound from the bullet that he shot, that really hurt you? But his control hurt more.” 

Agam was taken to the Hamas tunnels underneath Gaza, to apartments and a school that was also a rocket launching site. Her captors allowed her to shower five times in the 51 days she was in Gaza, the Washington Post reported. 

"At Kibbutz Kfar Aza, Goldstein-Almog’s father and older sister were shot dead by Hamas terrorists in their family home. She was taken in her “tiny shortie pajamas,” half sleeping in Gaza with her mother and her nine and 11-year-old brothers." . . . 

Hamas drugged hostages to look happy, Israeli officials say | National Post

Hamas Hostage Chen Goldstein-Almog on Her Time in Gaza: "Crying Was Forbidden" - DER SPIEGEL  . . ."I know that these girls experienced very serious sexual assaults. There was a young woman who was crying and one of the men took advantage of her weakness, he stroked her, touched her upper body. That is despicable and disgusting. Another guard held a gun to a woman's temple, kissed her and touched her all over her body. There are also other experiences that I can't recount because the women want to tell their families first." . . .

Houthis sentence 13 to public execution on homosexuality charges - report

 

Houthis sentence 13 to public execution on homosexual charges - report - The Jerusalem Post (jpost.com)

MEMRI photo; ISIS

"A court of the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen has sentenced 13 people to public execution on homosexuality charges, the French wire service AFP reported on Tuesday. Another 35 people have been detained for similar charges.

"The ruling was made in Ibb, a Houthi-controlled province from which the jihadist group has been launching attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, opening a war that reached its four-month mark this week. 

"The Houthis have a history of sentencing more people to death than they actually execute, according to a 2022 report by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, which counted 350 death sentences by the group since 2014, only 11 of which have resulted in execution. But the group's attacks on global trade could change this calculus.

" 'The [Houthis] are ramping up their abuses at home while the world is busy watching their attacks in the Red Sea," said Niku Jafarnia, a Yemen researcher for Human Rights Watch.

"A UN Security Council report in 2023 relayed that "the Houthis are [reportedly] detaining children as young as 13 years old," some of whom "are accused of 'indecent acts' for their alleged homosexual orientation.'"

Of course you interview Putin. Who doesn't want to hear his reply to Tucker's questions?

 Of course you interview Putin - Don Surber (substack.com)

The media now opposes freedom of the press. We live in Bizarro

. . ."Alex Barnicoat tweeted, “Tucker Carlson is about to save us from World War 3 with Russia. The West needs to hear the other side of the story.”

"Preventing World War 3? This is why they hate him and why they hate Trump. These idiots want another world war and they really don’t care if America loses.

"All evidence points to their desire to lose so they can set up a totalitarian government. The traitors in Washington have emasculated the military and literally cut the balls off generals. They opened the border to allow our enemies in. The traitors welcome Muslim terrorists and Chinese spies. The traitors depleted our military supplies by giving them away to Afghanistan and Ukraine." . . .

Prison for Tucker? What? Tucker Breaks his Silence EXPOSES Biden for SPYING ON HIM!? Think Patriot Act    Tucker video   Key Takeaways:

•  Tucker’s Moscow Visit: Tucker Carlson traveled to Moscow to interview President Vladimir Putin, emphasizing the importance of hearing all perspectives in journalism.
•  Spying Allegations: Carlson expresses concerns about the Biden Administration spying on him, possibly to prevent his interview with Putin, reflecting on past instances where he believed his communications were monitored.
•  Journalistic Duty: Carlson defends his trip as part of his journalistic responsibility to inform the American public about global events, particularly the war in Ukraine and its implications.
•  Global Repercussions: The video discusses the broader implications of the war in Ukraine, including its impact on global military and trade alliances, as well as the potential shift in the world’s economic order.
•  Challenges to Press Freedom: The video raises concerns about the potential suppression of press freedom, as suggested by the alleged government surveillance of Carlson’s communications.    Much more here.

Tucker Carlson In Moscow: I'm Interviewing Putin "To Inform People" On "History-Altering Developments" | Video | RealClearPolitics

WH's Karine Jean-Pierre Asked If Biden Tried To Stop Tucker Carlson's Interview With Putin: Absolutely No Comment | Video | RealClearPolitics

Schadenfreude: Nikki Haley defeated by 'none of these candidates' in Nevada

"How loud do voters have to get to get her to go home? She doesn't seem to hear anything from them because she isn't listening. Now she can't even win against a none-of-the-above competitor."

Monica Showalter   "Is it time for Nikki Haley to pack up her campaign baggage and get the heck home?

"Sure looks like it. 

"Because out in Nevada, the primary results came out like this:

Nikki Haley suffered an embarrassing loss in the Republican presidential primary in Nevada on Tuesday, receiving far fewer votes than the "none of these candidates" option, according to the Associated Press.

With 86% of the votes counted, Haley received less than half (20,799, or 30.8%) of the 42,534 garnered by "none of these candidates."

It was a contest that former President Donald Trump did not compete in and which the state party tried to have canceled. Nonetheless, a combination of intense support for Trump and distaste for Haley among Republican voters in the state combined to deal her an unusual humiliation.

"That's bad. That's like being defeated by a dead guy." . . .

Nikki Haley Fumes Over Nevada Primary Loss, Says Trump 'Rigged' the Election (thefederalistpapers.org)   . . ."That’s why Haley decided to take part in the symbolic state-mandated primary on Tuesday, which Trump did not. It wouldn’t award delegates, but at least it wouldn’t be “rigged,” right?

"Well, then she lost to … absolutely nobody. So it became “rigged.' ” . . .

Trump Called 'Racist' for Saying 'Invasion' -- Is it Still Racist When Sharpton Says It?

 Larry Elder (townhall.com)

"The top issue during the Iowa caucus was immigration. "60 Minutes" just ran a segment on illegal aliens using TikTok for a step-by-step guide on where and how to enter the country illegally. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott deployed his state's National Guard to defend its border. Several migrants beat up NYPD cops. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who once brazenly said, "our borders are not open," barely dodged impeachment. And now, even Sharpton calls the unprecedented number of illegal entries an "invasion." Is Trump still a "racist"?"

. . ."A Time Magazine headline read: "Donald Trump's Anti-Immigration Rhetoric is Rooted in Racism. Trump's Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric Was Never About Legality -- It Was About Our Brown Skin."

"But in a recent interview, MSNBC's Al Sharpton, a left-wing flamethrower with impeccable Trump-hating credentials, pulled out the "I word." Speaking to a stunned Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), one of the authors of a proposed immigration bill, Sharpton went full Trump: "You are seeing an influx of migrants all over the country that, frankly, have people outraged. ... Why are you allowing this to continue? ... I mean, we're looking every day at the invasion of migrants, and they are playing a time game with politics on this?"

"Neither The Atlantic, CNN nor Time slammed Sharpton for his "racist rhetoric."

"On illegal immigration, many Democrats used to sound like Trump before Trump. In a 1993 speech, Nevada Sen. Harry Reid said: "If making it easy to be an illegal alien isn't enough, how about offering a reward for being an illegal immigrant? No sane country would do that, right? Guess again. If you break our laws by entering this country without permission and give birth to a child, we reward that child with U.S. citizenship and guarantee a full access to all public and social services this society provides. And that's a lot of services." Reid later apologized.

"In 2005, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama said: "We simply cannot allow people to pour into the United States undetected, undocumented, unchecked, and circumventing the line of people who are waiting patiently, diligently, and lawfully to become immigrants in this country." . . .

Exclusive — Mike Johnson: Biden Blaming Trump for Border Was ‘Offensive’ (breitbart.com)   . . .“It was offensive,” Johnson said in a Wednesday afternoon phone interview when asked to react to Biden’s address. “I don’t think anyone is buying it. Everyone understands this all changed dramatically when he walked into the White House. Now, we’ve shown, and we continue to show the American people step-by-step, how he and Mayorkas orchestrated this. There is a reason why only 18 percent of Americans in the latest polls approve of the administration’s handling of the border. His overall approval rating is only 37 percent in the last poll I saw. That means they know he has to do something to address the border, and he won’t. The idea that he could blame Republicans for the catastrophe they created is laughable. It’s time for him to take ownership.' ”

Report: Border Agents Encountered Over 1,000,000 Migrants Since Oct. 1 (legalinsurrection.com)

Chief Jason Owens

@USBPChief

This FY24, USBP apprehended +160 undocumented subjects with gang affiliations. These gangs (Paisas, MS-13, etc.) are involved w/murder, extortion, narcotics, weapons/human trafficking & prostitution. This is a threat to our safety and why we need agents patrolling the border.

In 2024, Donald Trump is our last hope

 I fear that time when - hopefully - Biden is voted out of office by someone competent in November yet has until January 20 to leave the Oval Office. How much irreparable damage can Joe's handlers do to this nation in that block of time? TD

                                                                        AfterMath

Bob Weir - American Thinker   "We the people of these United States have been thrust into a nightmare scenario as we go through, arguably, the strangest era in our history.  When President Trump was in office, he opened the oil spigot and soon made the U.S. energy independent.  Under Trump’s leadership, in 2018, the U.S. surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world’s largest producer of crude oil.  The move alone helped spur the economy and lower prices on just about everything we use.  Biden immediately turned off that spigot, resulting in high inflation and more dependence on foreign oil.  And that was just the beginning of Biden’s assault on the U.S., including opening our southern border to millions of illegal aliens, as he used executive orders to reverse everything Trump did to make our country greater.

"The invasion of our border by scores of foreign countries is nothing short of a declaration of war!  Yet, instead of using our military to fight off the invasion, Biden lies to us about the border’s security while using our military to protect Ukraine’s border.  It’s become evident that the left is willing to use any means necessary to weaken our country.  Voters in the 2024 general election should keep in mind the question: are we better off now than we were four years ago?  No sensible person could answer that question in the affirmative.  As much as I hate to admit it, the left, with its nefarious allies in the MSM and the total corruption of the “justice system,” is winning the war with propaganda.  

"I’m thankful that we have resistance from courageous stalwarts like Texas’s Governor Abbott, who defied Biden and the Supreme Court when they ordered him to take down the razor wire along the border.  I’m also encouraged that thousands of patriots have joined together in that truck convoy to help shore up the Texas border.  Yes, this could lead to a civil war because there seems to be no way to stop the Biden regime.  They’ve become nothing less than a criminal cartel, no better than organized crime gangsters!  In fact, much worse than gangsters, because they are in charge of all the agencies of justice, meaning there’s no authority above them.  If they’re all crooks, who’s capable of arresting, prosecuting, and incarcerating them?  Those Deep State criminals have built a virtually impenetrable wall around themselves." . . .

The ‘Border Bill’ was to have funded all sorts of things Americans don’t want

. . ."In other words, the bill would have funded Gaza and the West Bank (i.e., Hamas and the Palestinian Authority). That was as good a reason as any to vote this bill down.

"Congressional conservatives, We the People are counting on you to be smart and stand up to the Dem bullies in the Senate. The American people pushed back this time around but you’re the real gatekeepers…and please, read the darned bills because the Devil is always in those details."

Leftists Protest the Stores They Put Out of Business -

Why can we not elect competent legislators who understand how life works for people in their districts? Their voters rob the stores blind, ruining all chances of staying in business so one has to ask Pressley what does she recommend to help the situation? How can legislators protect businesses so they can continue to serve their people? People like Pressley are vicious and silly. TD

  The American Spectator | USA News and Politics

The people pointing the biggest fingers at Walgreens bear a massive share of the blame.

Pressley’s contention that Walgreens closed not because it wanted to stop losing money but because of its deep hatred of racial minorities and poor people suggests not only a profound misunderstanding of how businesses work but reflexive thinking, which is no thinking at all. Discrimination as the default criticism and protest as the default response shows the degree to which ideology puts brains on autopilot.

. . ."One reason Walgreens and other stores close in high-crime areas involves retail theft. Walgreens reported theft losses at 2.5 percent of sales in 2023’s fourth quarter, a number actually heading in the right downward direction but still crippling when one considers the fine line between profits and losses.

At a Walgreen’s in San Francisco, they chained up the freezer and placed gum, toothbrushes, and nuts behind a plexiglass protector. In Chicago, a store unveiled a new layout with two display aisles and kiosks to order products fulfilled by workers in a backroom that keeps all the goods away from all the customers, paying and otherwise.

"Why did it so recently devolve to where stores lock up not just high-priced items such as razors and Red Bull but toothbrushes?

"It turns out the people pointing the biggest fingers at Walgreens bear a massive share of the blame.

"Take Ayanna Pressley. Even prior to the summer of George Floyd, she came out with something called the People’s Justice Guarantee, which posited that “the American legal system duplicates and maintains systems of oppression that can be traced back to slavery.” Her solution, outlined in a congressional resolution containing 62 whereases, involved ending bail, mandatory minimums, truth-in-sentencing laws, and “dramatically increasing diversion opportunities, community service, restorative justice programming, and treatment options that minimize court involvement and result in no prison time for most offenses where the person does not cause or intend to cause harm.”

"Stores abandon urban areas not because their owners hate people of color or poor people but because many cities embrace the basic tenets expressed in Pressley’s People’s Justice Guarantee. By not prosecuting so-called petty crimes, ending bail for most offenses, and putting habitual offenders on the streets and not in a cell, criminal justice systems in many cities incentivize theft." . . .

Inbar Haiman, 27, was murdered in Hamas captivity while the Hamas leader lives large elsewhere.

Inbar Haiman, 27, was murdered in Hamas captivity.

"Inbar Haiman, 27, was murdered in Hamas captivity.

"Inbar was an art student and a free soul who was kidnapped from the Nova music festival by Hamas on October 7th.

"She was supposed to be released with the other female hostages held in Gaza but Hamas did not release her and other female hostages because they did not want the victims of rape to speak.

"May her memory be a blessing."

Living large and directing the massacre of Israeli families and homes.

"IDF is just doing the housekeeping in his absence. He left to murder jews and its own palestinians and to do business with baby K’fir’s and other 100 hostages’s lives.

You are invited to Sinwar’s house in Gaza - open buffet with caviar, free drinks, latest and greatest hi tech, expensive furniture, high brands items…, you know, the usual stuff you can have as a #palestinianreffugee , when flooded with humanitarian money by a world full of… pic.twitter.com/t9VjblwUe4

— miha schwartzenberg (@mihaschw) February 7, 2024

 

Tara Reade Vs FBI and Biden: 'Operation Cassandra' to stalk, discredit, intimidate, and to possibly eliminate her as a threat to Joe Biden

 . Whatfinger News Summary   "Tara Reade (@ReadeAlexandra) who says Joe Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993, has filed a complaint with the US Department of Justice seeking $10 million in damages for invasion of privacy, emotional distress, and a violation of her rights. She says the FBI subjected her to a secret operation, “Operation Cassandra” to stalk, discredit, intimidate, and to possibly eliminate her as a threat to Joe Biden." . . .

Tara Reade fires back after Jen Psaki claims Biden allegations were 'heavily litigated'* during election

'Did I miss the investigation and litigation? I sure did not miss the smears and attacks on my character,' Reade wrote

. . ."This isn't the first time Reade took issue with Psaki's remarks from the White House podium. 

"Following the shocking Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision that overturned the sexual assault conviction of disgraced comedian Bill Cosby, Psaki declined to weigh in on the ruling itself at Wednesday's press briefing but spoke about Biden's activism in combatting violence against women as a nod to Cosby's victims.  

"The president has long been an advocate for fighting against violence against women," Psaki told reporters in June. "For ensuring that we are raising the voices and the stories of people who have been survivors of sexual assault. 

"That’s something [he] has done throughout his career and will continue to do," she added."

And has taught his son to be that way as well.

"Psaki speaks for the man who is now POTUS who sexually assaulted me and I am sure she has heard me," Reade told Fox News. "She is complicit with rape culture by displaying her hypocrisy and the administration's hypocrisy regarding standing up for women when they are the perpetrators."

* SocialButterfinger posted: 5 August, 2021 "Heavily litigated translates to "Biden campaign spent a lot of money paying lawyers to suppress the allegations.' "