Pope Francis unveils Nativity scene, with Jesus swaddled in an Arab keffiyeh!
Plus, Benjamin Netanyahu gives court testimony at his corruption trial
JERUSALEM – Middle East/Israel Morning Brief
Pope Francis unveils Nativity scene, with Jesus swaddled in an Arab keffiyeh
Jesus was a Jew who lived in a land called Judea. That is beyond dispute.
Placing him in a Palestinian keffiyeh is ridiculous, ahistorical, and offensive. pic.twitter.com/fmCXoI8gue
— Avi Mayer אבי מאיר (@AviMayer) December 8, 2024
On Saturday, Pope Francis attended a nativity scene titled “Nativity of Bethlehem 2024,” crafted in the Judean city of the same name, by Johny Andonia and Faten Nastas Mitwasi and presented by Palestinian officials in Pope Paul VI Hall in Vatican City. The display depicting the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem featured baby Jesus swaddled in a keffiyeh.
Speaking at the event, a wheelchair-bound Francis called on Catholics to “remember the brothers and sisters, who, right there [in Bethlehem] and in other parts of the world, are suffering from the tragedy of war,” adding, “enough war, enough violence!” and lamenting the existence of the commercial arms trade.
Benjamin Netanyahu gives court testimony at his corruption trial
“Eight years I’ve been waiting for this day.”
Benjamin Netanyahu set to finally begin testifying in his corruption trial today after his many bids for delay rejected. Judges have mandated 3 days a week for 6 hours at a time. Testimony could take weeks. https://t.co/Zi0I6RE3IB
— Neri Zilber (@NeriZilber) December 10, 2024
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared at the Tel Aviv District Court Tuesday to defend himself against a number of charges relating to bribery, accepting illegal gifts, and corruption.
Some five years have passed since the unprecedented indictment of a sitting prime minister, and now Netanyahu will present his version of events in these cases over the course of weeks, possibly months.
U.S. assesses journalist Austin Tice is alive in Syria, thought to be held along with others as bargaining chip for former regime official
US believes captured journalist Austin Tice is still alive in Syria — and they’re hunting for prison where he’s held https://t.co/uDzEyLRYAV pic.twitter.com/JmZ2eSMBnh
— New York Post (@nypost) December 10, 2024
The Media Line confirms U.S. journalist Austin Tice, who was abducted in Syria in 2012, and several other detained journalists are alive, but in urgent need of food and water. Tice, a former U.S. Marine Corps officer, and the other journalists are being hidden in a secure location by a member of the ousted Syrian regime who is attempting to ensure their safe escape from the country.
Efforts to ensure the safety of the detained journalists are ongoing. A source in Damascus told The Media Line that Tice and the others have been without food or water since the regime fell. Deliveries are impossible as the person protecting them is in a separate location, and any movement risks compromising their safety.
U.K. considers removing HTS from terrorism list
UK could remove Syrian rebel group from terror list to avoid ban on contact, but watching to see how HTS treats minorities https://t.co/YoLuJ8fEe7
— Matthew Levitt (@Levitt_Matt) December 9, 2024
Cabinet Minister Pat McFadden announced Monday that the British government will review its terrorist designation of the Syrian rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), signaling a possible modification of the U.K.’s official stance toward the organization. McFadden clarified that no decision has been reached regarding the current ban on HTS, the jihadi organization which has spearheaded the opposition campaign against the now-fallen Assad regime.
IDF strikes some 300 targets in Syria, dozens of aircraft, almost entire Syrian navy reported destroyed
Overnight, IDF air strikes against assad regime military targets that were abandoned after the regime collapsed continued throughout #Syria. pic.twitter.com/7PYnJ1Yfe3
— paralel_universe (@ignis_fatum) December 10, 2024
The Israeli Navy carried out a significant strategic operation against the Syrian Navy overnight Tuesday, destroying a large number of vessels and preventing weapons from falling into the hands of jihadist terrorists.
In effect, Israel’s action destroyed the Syrian Navy’s ships. This joins a large-scale operation by the Air Force in the past two days in which Syrian Air Force aircraft were destroyed: MiG-29 and Sukhoi fighter jets, and helicopters at bases throughout Syria.
Dutch leader Geert Wilders meets with Netanyahu in Jerusalem
Great meeting today in Jerusalem with my friend Bibi @netanyahu. pic.twitter.com/azL0PBjveg
— Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) December 9, 2024
Dutch political leader Geert Wilders has met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the latter’s office in Jerusalem, the prime minister’s office says.
Wilders posted to X that he told Netanyahu “in 1 year — by crushing Hamas, pulverizing Hezbollah and significantly weakening Iran — he has done more to fight (international) terrorism than the EU has done in the last 70 years!”
Israel denies Qatari report about Hamas sharing names ahead of proposed hostage-prisoner swap
“These reports are not true”
A Qatari report suggested Hamas had submitted names of sick and elderly captives, as well as four Americans, set for release in an impending ceasefire agreement.
Israel has denied it. https://t.co/I2HKmjs79O
— Jewish News Syndicate (@JNS_org) December 10, 2024
Israel denied a Dec. 9 report that the Iran-backed terrorist organization Hamas had provided a list of Israeli hostages seized during its Oct. 7, 2023, atrocities.
In a statement sent to hostage families on Dec. 9, Israel said a report published in the London-based Qatari newspaper al-Araby al-Jadeed stating Hamas was willing to release the listed hostages to Egyptian negotiators as part of ongoing ceasefire negotiations was “not correct.”
Separately, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a televised address that the overthrow of the Iran-backed regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria meant that Hamas’s isolation “opens another opening to making progress on a deal that will bring our hostages back.”
World Central Kitchen forced to fire 12% of Gaza staff after failing security background checks
World Central Kitchen fired 60 of its 500 employees in Gaza after they failed Israeli security checks, a week after an Israeli strike that killed a WCK employee who participated in the Oct. 7 terror attacks.
That’s about 12% of WCK’s Gaza staff.https://t.co/ZhiJDJYozy
— Melissa Weiss (@melissaeweiss) December 10, 2024
Fadi Hamad, who started working with the group four months ago, said he was suspended on the basis of “a security check that recommended that I no longer continue working.”
Shocking revelation … NOT. Captured records show Hamas controlled UNRWA schools in Gaza
At least 24 employees of UNRWA in Gaza were Hamas terrorists, with some as commanders in the military wing of Hamas. pic.twitter.com/PI4WpkSxaH
— Vivid. (@VividProwess) December 9, 2024
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, managed schools throughout Gaza until they were closed following Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the subsequent war. Employing approximately 13,000 staff members, including many in its schools, the agency is responsible for ensuring the neutrality of its facilities in conflict areas by preventing terrorists from accessing its premises or being on its payroll.
However, interviews and an analysis of records shared with the New York Times by the Israeli military and foreign ministry suggest UNRWA employed at least 24 people across 24 different schools, who were members of Hamas or the Islamic Jihad. Before the war, UNRWA oversaw a total of 288 schools housed within 200 building complexes in Gaza.
WATCH: Syrians in Damascus pull down statue of former Syrian dictator Hafez al-Assad
Israel denies its tanks reached Qatana, within 15 miles of Damascus
Contrary to reports:
IDF is not advancing on Damascus.Israel is doing exactly what is necessary:
1. Destroying advanced Syrian military capabilities before they fall into the hands of radical Jihadists.
We do not know what are the motivations of the various players, but we…— Naftali Bennett נפתלי בנט (@naftalibennett) December 10, 2024
The Israeli military on Tuesday denied reports that its tanks were advancing towards Damascus, insisting that Israeli forces were stationed in a buffer zone near the Israeli-Syrian border.
“The reports circulated by some media outlets claiming that the Israeli Defense Forces (military) are advancing towards or nearing Damascus are completely false,” military spokesman Avichay Adraee wrote on X. “The IDF forces are stationed within the buffer zone and at defensive points near the border in order to protect Israel’s borders.”
IDF eliminates 10-man Hamas terrorist cell responsible for deaths of 3 Israeli troops in Jabalia
BREAKING: The IDF officially confirms: “We have eliminated 10 Hamas terrorists who were involved in the killing of the 3 IDF soldiers yesterday in Jabaliya.”
Israel will find them all.pic.twitter.com/l96fhMa2Lv
— Vivid. (@VividProwess) December 10, 2024
An IDF aircraft killed 10 of the Palestinian terrorists responsible for the deaths of three soldiers in the Gaza Strip on Monday, the military announced in a statement on Tuesday morning.
“In a joint operation of the 401st Brigade and the air force, an aircraft attacked and eliminated ten of the terrorists who took part in yesterday’s terror act, in which Staff Sgt. Ido Zano, Staff Sgt. Barak Daniel Halpern and Sgt. Omri Cohen, of blessed memory, fell,” the army stated.
The three soldiers, all members of the Givati Brigade’s “Shaked” Battalion, were reportedly killed by a Hamas anti-tank missile during counterterror operations in the Jabalia area of the northern Strip.
U.N. kept quiet when Turkey ethnically cleansed 200,00 Kurds; criticizes IDF presence in Syria buffer zone as ‘violation of 1974 agreement’
UN after Israel took control of Golan Heights buffer zone.
vs
UN after Turkey ethnically cleansed 200,000 Kurds in northern Syria to change the demographics of the region. pic.twitter.com/3PrTTZ7mPR
— Hemdad Mehristani (@Mehristani) December 9, 2024
The United Nations accused Israel of having violated the 1974 Disengagement Agreement with Syria, after Jerusalem informed the U.N. Security Council that it had taken “limited and temporary measures” in a demilitarized strip on the border in Syrian territory to counter any threats to the Israeli Golan Heights.
Gallant speech at Washington, D.C. synagogue canceled over ‘security concerns’
“A spokesperson for Adas Israel declined to comment on the nature of the threat or share specifics about why the synagogue, which regularly hosts big-name speakers, felt a need to cancel this one.”https://t.co/psPaeJunp6
— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) December 10, 2024
Adas Israel, the largest Conservative synagogue in Washington, D.C., canceled a planned event on Monday with former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, citing a security threat.
The synagogue shared with JNS a follow-up statement from its executive committee that was sent to congregants on Monday.
“Due to specific security concerns that arose in connection with this event, Adas Israel Congregation canceled the scheduled speaking engagement with former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant,” the committee stated. “Contrary to speculation, this decision was not based on the event’s subject matter, but rather on our commitment to the safety of our community.”
Originally Published at Daily Wire, World Net Daily, or The Blaze
What's Your Reaction?
