Free Republic

WASHINGTON — President Biden “reiterated” to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Monday that he does not want Israel to invade the Hamas-controlled city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip — following reports that the US has frozen ammunition shipments to deter such an attack. Biden, 81, placed the call on Holocaust Remembrance Day, when Israelis pause to remember the genocide of 6 million Jews by Nazi Germany during World War II. The call also took place one day before the seven-month anniversary of Hamas terrorists invading southern Israel and killing around 1,200 people — including 33 Americans — on...

After replacing the elite school’s American flag with a Palestinian one, anti-Israel activists at George Washington University called to “liberate” the world from “colonialism, imperialism, white supremacy, capitalism, and Zionism,” as pro-Palestinian activists on college campuses continue to reveal the true agenda behind the spreading demonstrations. In a clip from Sunday, an anti-Israel protester at George Washington University’s “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” is seen advocating for a world free from various policies and ideologies, including “colonialism” and “capitalism,” while envisioning an imminent collapse of the current system. “Each and every one of you believes in a world liberated from colonialism, imperialism,...

On Sunday, Politico published a story suggesting that foundations tied to several top Democratic donors have been funding the pro-Palestine protest groups dogging President Joe Biden wherever he goes. “Pro-Palestianian protesters are backed by a surprising source: Biden’s biggest donors,” read the headline. The story quickly went viral — Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), for instance, posted on X that the piece confirmed “anti-Israel astroturfing.” Fox News cited the report to write that “President Biden’s biggest Democratic donors are also funding some anti-Israel protests that have taken over college campuses.” However, a Rolling Stone review of the numbers and documents cited...

A shipment of U.S. ammunition bound for Israel last week was halted by the Biden administration for reasons yet to be made clear, a report Sunday claimed. Israeli officials were left scrambling as to why the shipment was withheld, Axios reported, while CNN declared the decision was unrelated to U.S. opposition to an invasion of the Hamas terrorist stronghold of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. The Biden administration recently signed off on $26 billion in military and humanitarian aid for Israel in its war against Hamas terrorists but officials have repeatedly warned against moving into Rafah, where over a...

People flee the eastern parts of Rafah after the Israeli military began evacuating Palestinian civilians ahead of a threatened assault on the southern Gazan city, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip May 6, 2024. Hamas warned that the IDF’s evacuation of civilians from eastern Rafah was a dangerous escalation that could scuttle the already strained hostage talks. "The US administration, alongside the occupation, bears responsibility for this terrorism," the official, Sami Abu Zuhri, told Reuters, referring to Israel's alliance with Washington. He warned that it was a "dangerous escalation that will...

Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns is heading to Doha, Qatar, in a last-ditch effort to save talks on a potential hostage deal between Israel and Hamas after the terror group balked at Israel continuing the war against it.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov declared his support for Palestinians and offered to send his soldiers to “mediate in the conflict” between Israel and the Hamas. In a video recorded on Monday and released on his Telegram channel, Kadyrov who is also known as a long-time ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, urged the international community to call for a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “I address the leaders of Muslim nations to create a coalition and reach out to those who you call friends, Europe and the whole West to demand stopping the bombing of peaceful civilians in Palestine...

The conflict in Ukraine has been threatening to become a world war for a considerable period, and if one key ally of Vladimir Putin gets his way, that’s exactly what’s going to happen. Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Russia’s Chechen Republic, is enraged about ongoing incidents of desecration of the Qur’an in Sweden and Denmark, and he has now vowed to “deal with” those countries once he and his allies take care of Ukraine. Denmark is a NATO state, and Sweden has been making a concerted effort to join. If Kadyrov’s threat actually came to pass, it would mean World...

Israeli fighter jets during the night shot down a drone that was heading toward Israel from “the eastern direction,” the military says. The IDF says the aircraft had been tracked throughout the incident, and there was no threat to civilians.

The Biden regime has cut off ammunition supplies to Israel as they attempt to appease the growing anger among the left of the Democratic Party over America’s support for the war against Hamas. According to a report from Axios, the decision to put a hold on the ammunition shipment caused panic among the Israeli security services and is intended to prevent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from proceeding with an invasion of Rafah. Axios notes: The Biden administration last week put a hold on a shipment of U.S.-made ammunition to Israel, two Israeli officials told Axios. It is the first time...

As many universities and colleges around the nation are preparing for summer break and commencement ceremonies, anti-Israel protesters show no signs of giving up. Several protesters told Politico they were not going to give up, even with summer approaching and as several anti-Israel encampments on university campuses have been cleared, adding there is “nothing that will deter” them from continuing to protest as the war between Israel and Hamas continues. “There is a genocide going on in Gaza and there’s nothing that will deter us from doing everything we can do end it,” Ryan Mersol-Gard, a senior at the University...

Three things are certain: antisemitism is on the rise; hatred of Muslims is increasing; and everyone – but especially those at universities with time to reflect – should be very, very troubled by this. Without taking account of the hate waves, it is impossible to understand why the seemingly mundane act of pitching a tent on campus has become so high stakes: is it announcing a desire to annihilate Israel, or is it a perfectly legitimate way to protest against particular US (and university) policies

The Democratic Party is bracing for massive protests during the Democratic National Convention, comparing it to another chaotic event from the 1968 convention. As pro-Hamas protests continue to rage through college campuses due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, concerns that similar protests will occur during the DNC convention this August in Chicago. Former President Barack Obama’s chief of staff William Daley told the Washington Post that the chaotic college protests that have occurred in the past week have “taken the demonstrations to a different level.” “It portends that you have the potential for big demonstrations. Whether they get violent —...

Armed groups in Gaza, including one with presumed Hamas links, last month robbed the Bank of Palestine of some $70 million, French daily Le Monde reported Saturday. The funds were taken from the vaults of several branches of the bank, it said, citing a Bank of Palestine document sent to “certain international partners” detailing the robberies. On April 16, staff discovered a hole in the ceiling of the safe deposit room at one of the bank’s Gaza branches and found that some $3 million worth of Israeli shekels destined for cash dispensers were missing, Le Monde said. The next day,...

The House of Representatives on Wednesday voted overwhelmingly to advance a bill that would empower the federal government to crack down on student protests by defining antisemitism in a way that includes certain criticism of Israel. Sponsored by Rep. Mike Lawler, a Republican from New York, the bill's passage reflects a broader national trend. Earlier this year, Gov. Brian Kemp signed H.B. 30, which revised Georgia’s hate crime statute to include certain forms of speech critical of Israel. In March, Gov. Kristi Noem signed legislation into the South Dakota civil rights statute that codified some forms of speech critical of...

Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) said the ongoing pro-Palestinian college protests are “working against peace in the Middle East.” Fetterman has been outspoken about his support for Israel, saying recently that the pro-Palestinian encampments on college campuses were “pup tents” for militant group Hamas. Host Margaret Brennan asked Fetterman on CBS’s “Face the Nation” about the protests on Sunday, asking him whether he considers flying the Palestinian flag during the demonstrations to be antisemitic.

Israel has ordered the closure of Al Jazeera in the country, a move the Qatar-based news network called a “criminal act.” Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a post on X: “The government headed by me unanimously decided: the incitement channel Al Jazeera will be closed in Israel.” Ofir Gendelman, the prime minister’s spokesperson to the Arab world, said Sunday that the decision would be “implemented immediately.” In a post on X, Gendelman said that the network’s “broadcast equipment will be confiscated, the channel’s correspondents will be prevented from working, the channel will be removed from cable and satellite...

During the address, the Prime Minister turned to the world in English: "Eighty years ago, in the Holocaust, the Jewish people were totally defenseless against those who sought our destruction. No nation came to our aid. "Today, we again confront enemies bent on our destruction." Netanyahu continued: "I say to the leaders of the world, no amount of pressure, no decision by any international forum, will stop Israel from defending itself."

The Biden administration last week put a hold on a shipment of U.S.-made ammunition to Israel, two Israeli officials told Axios. Why it matters: It is the first time since the Oct. 7 attack that the U.S. has stopped a weapons shipment intended for the Israeli military. The incident raised serious concerns inside the Israeli government and sent officials scrambling to understand why the shipment was held, Israeli officials said.

Does anyone still talk about the Three Rs in education? That would be reading, writing and racism ...whoops, my mistake, 'rithmetic. It isn't difficult. Every weekend, my inbox fills up with readers demanding to know what I think about this or that news story, but in the end all the news stories are the same. Just from the last couple of days: ~At McGill University in Montreal, cute young predominantly female students in masks and keffiyehs take over the campus to demand "intifada until victory"; ~At the University of Texas in Austin, a comedian attempts to point out to members...