ISRAEL / (IINO)
Double-helix Rainbow – Spotted on the Gaza border 2/12/25
SCREAMS BEFORE SILENCE Full Video [57:00] A documentary film on the sexual violence committed by Hamas on October 7th, Screams Before Silence is a documentary film led by American businesswoman Sheryl Sandberg, that explores the sexual violence by Hamas during the Hamas-led attack on Israel, on 7 October 2023, including events at the massacre at the Nova Festival and abductions to the Gaza Strip.
February 17, 2025 𝗜𝗦𝗥𝗔𝗘𝗟 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗡𝗘𝗪S
‘I was there, in the Hamas tunnels. I must tell you – the hostages have no time to wait. We need to get them all back [right] now. Bring back my brethren. [Emphasis added]
Ohad Ben-Ami to Pres. Herzog: ‘We were six people in six meters, 30 meters underground’
Israeli President Isaac Herzog meets freed hostage Ohad Ben-Ami, marking 500 days since the October 7 massacre. ‘We have brothers and sisters still there in Gaza, and we want every last one of them home as soon as possible.’
Feb 17, 2025, 2:13 PM (GMT+2) Israel National News – Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Monday, marking 500 days since the October 7 massacre, met with released hostage Ohad Ben-Ami, who was kidnapped during the massacre and released from Hamas captivity after 491 days.
Ohad is remembered as the first hostage taken during the brutal October 7 terrorist attack. His wife, Raz, was also abducted and later freed in the first hostage deal.
Their daughters became symbols of determination and hope. From the very beginning, they tirelessly fought for their parents’ return. Now that their parents are finally home, they continue their struggle — for all those still in captivity, vowing not to rest until the last hostage returns.
President Herzog embraced Ohad and said: “Today marks the 500th day since the outbreak of this terrible war and Hamas’ barbaric attack on October 7. We have brothers and sisters still there in Gaza, and we want every last one of them home as soon as possible. I am expressing here the deepest sentiments of the people of Israel — to bring them home as quickly as possible and complete the deal. We know that our brothers and sisters, crying out to us from beneath the ground, must be back home in safety and peace.”
The President expressed his thanks to the IDF soldiers: “For 500 days, countless Israeli citizens have been in uniform, serving in reserve duty, risking their lives alongside our courageous regular soldiers and commanders. When they went into battle, they carried pictures of you and the other hostages in their vests. They did everything they could. We have lost many brave sons and daughters who fought with heroism, incredible families. Michal and I have met over a thousand bereaved families this year—both soldiers and civilians — amazing people. And all of them went into battle to bring the hostages home.”
“We have displaced residents in the north and south who need to return home as soon as possible,” he added. “We must rebuild the Gaza border communities, restore the northern border, and take pride in our people, who fought this war and achieved remarkable successes. This is a massive regional change. But in the end, everyone in this nation carries deep scars, and all of us want to see the hostages home.”
“I do not take this lightly — not the cost of the deal, nor the risks it entails. I fully understand these pains, and as a security and governmental system, we will have to address all these challenges. But ultimately, we know that our brothers and sisters in Gaza are calling out to us from the depths. We want them home.”
The President concluded his remarks to Ohad, saying: “When I look at you, I think of the saying, ‘Whoever saves one life, it is as if he saved an entire world.’ Truly, one life was saved — by the people of Israel, by the government’s decision, by the negotiations, by the deal. And we want to see them all come home. On this 500th day, we must remember and remind the world every single second of the unimaginable suffering of our brothers and sisters in Gaza. We want them all back — some for rehabilitation, others to be laid to rest in dignity.”
Ohad responded: “All I care about, all I want, is for my friends to return. There were six of us living in unbearable conditions, in a six-square-meter space. I got out, but they are still there. We cannot rest for even a moment. I appeal to the Government of Israel and to the dear and beloved people of Israel — today is the 500th day. Keep going, go out, fight! No one can just sit at home in front of the TV and hope someone else will do the job. We all need to take action. Our victory will be when the deal moves to the next stage, then the next, until everyone comes home safely. Until then, we will not be silent, and we will not rest. Everyone must be home with their families. Every day they remain there, every minute, they are counting the seconds, the minutes — not the days.”
“Every day begins, and it barely ends. You just find yourself living through another day and another, under unbearable conditions. But the moment we knew that people were fighting for us and wanted us back, it gave us strength and kept us going. And when our national consciousness, as a united, Israeli, Jewish people, remains strong — that is what truly matters.”
Ohad also sent a message to IDF soldiers, saying: “This is my chance to truly send a message to all IDF soldiers: Know that we were there, underground, 30 meters beneath the surface, and we always knew that you were up above, searching for us, doing everything to find us — with a deep sense of mission.”
“It’s not easy. Families have lost their loved ones — both regular and reserve soldiers. We were aware of the numbers, and it pained us deeply. I want to express my deepest gratitude, with all the sorrow and pain, to every IDF soldier and security force member.”
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PM asks to speak, judges refuse. PM: I’m shocked Orli Harari
Judges criticize proceedings, require expediting process; Netanyahu shocked he was not given the right to speak. ‘Prosecution knows there is no chance of conviction,’ Adv. Hadad says.
Feb 17, 2025, 11:04 AM (GMT+2) Israel National News – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived at the Tel Aviv courthouse this morning (Monday), where he began his tenth day of testimony in the court cases against him, with the main focus being on Case 4000 (the Bezeq-Walla case).
During the hearing, Judge Rivka Friedman-Feldman commented that Netanyahu’s testimony was repetitive and noted: “We feel that there should be a change in the main testimony. You are repeating yourselves.”
Netanyahu’s attorney, Adv. Amit Hadad, responded firmly: “How can you say such a thing? If I don’t go over all details, I won’t be doing my job properly. I am not enjoying this, but there’s nothing we can do about it.”
Judge Shaham added that, “We are talking about the issue of the items. We understood the direction. There is marginal benefit in going over each and every one of them. Everything is a matter of measure.”
At one point, Netanyahu tried to comment, but Judge Friedman-Feldman firmly stopped him: “No, Sir. We are talking with the lawyers. If you have something to say, tell your lawyer.”
Netanyahu tried again to speak, but the judge repeated: “Mr. Netanyahu, I am not prepared for this. You have a lawyer, tell him what you want.”
The Prime Minister responded to her by saying: “I am shocked,” apparently surprised by the judge’s decision not to allow him to participate directly in the hearing.
Netanyahu’s defense attorney surprised the judges when he revealed the number of hearings he wants to conduct on Case 4000. According to him, there are twenty-four more sessions left for the main investigation alone, twelve-fourteen more sessions in Case 4,000, and ten more sessions on Case 1,000 and 2,000. “A change needs to be made,” the judge stated.
Netanyahu’s attorney claims interrogations should last 3-4 more days.
[Ed.:
Explosive Recordings Reveal Hamas Hoarding Aid While Gazans Starve
February 17, 2025 Jewish Breaking News – Damning evidence of Hamas hijacking humanitarian aid continues to pour in.
On Monday, the IDF handed over recordings to the US revealing that food and supplies meant for struggling Gazans were being diverted to Hamas leaders. In the recordings obtained by Channel 12 news, lower-level Hamas operatives could be heard complaining that the aid was not reaching them. Their anger intensified when they spoke of attacks on their families in Rafah, where women were assaulted inside a mosque.
“Aamer, spare me these stories that the leadership wasn’t following,” one operative can be heard saying. “I swear to you, we will tear you apart. Tell the leadership in Khan Yunis as well. You only care about yourselves. There is no leadership.”
“All the leadership in Khan Yunis should cover their heads because they are not men. They enter the women’s rooms and beat them inside the room. Everyone needs to understand that our honor is more precious than our lives.”
“Our blood is worthless when it comes to our honor. Despite everything we are going through, this is what burned us from within,” another Hamas terrorist could be heard saying. “The war is one thing, the war and the rockets and nothing else scares us. Until this issue. This is what killed us. Our honor.”
According to the report, Israel presented the recordings to then President Joe Biden, who was nevertheless insistent that 250 trucks of aid enter Gaza on a daily basis.
Meanwhile, while Hamas leaders were diverting aid supplies, evidence was also building of their extensive ties to United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) operations.
“At the moment, monitoring is underway, and we will receive updates. There are definitely injured among them. Some of them are UNRWA employees. Two of them are police officers,” a terrorist said in the recording.
The Knesset passed a law in January banning UNRWA operations because of its ties to terror organizations. Just prior to signing a ceasefire deal in Gaza, the IDF discovered a Hamas tunnel network beneath UNRWA’s Gaza headquarters. In October, Hamas converted an UNRWA clinic in Jabaliya into a weapons storage facility and base of operations.
Israeli intelligence has identified at least 12 UNRWA employees as participants in the October 7 massacre, with an estimated 1,200 employees having ties to Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad. A New York Times report revealed that 24 UNRWA teachers were confirmed terrorists. Half of these educators had documented access to weapons and explosives, yet they remained employed even after Israel warned UNRWA about their affiliations.
HAMAS MESSAGE, BRESLEV INVADES LEBANON
February 16, 2025 ISRAEL REALTIME – Connecting to Israel in Realtime
HAMAS MESSAGE TO ISRAEL – Hamas terrorists in messages to the State of Israel: “We will emerge from the earth to continue fighting until liberation.
We are Toufan Al-Aqsa and we are the day after – we are the perpetrators of the attack on October 7th and we are the day after.”
VIDEOS OF HAMAS BULLDOZERS 200 METERS – from the security fence, not being confronted, as well as burying “objects (IEDs) – with NO RESPONSE by the IDF.
DEAL COSTS – IDF: 1,135 Arab convicts have been released so far, 460 convicted mass murderers with 40-60% (per Shin Bet statistics) likely to murder again. [Emphasis added]
(update) THE (FAKE?) ISSUE OF THE DAY – the article we shared wrote, “Qatar is not an enemy country. Many Israelis do business with it, and it is legal.” This DOES NOT mean they are a friendly country. They appear to finance quite a bit of the radicalism in the Arab world, including to organizations that target Israel.
YAVNE DRILL – Sunday-Thursday, February 16-20, 2025, an IDF exercise will take place in the western region (across Highway No. 4). Between 08:00-17:00, explosions may be heard. IT’S A DRILL.
EGYPTIANS THREATEN TEL AVIV – minister saying they could take Tel Aviv in 24 hours. Almost 30% of the Egyptian army is ‘training’ in the Sinai.
BRESLEV CHASSIDIM INVADE LEBANON – At least 20 Israelis crossed the fence into Lebanon last night to visit the tomb of Rabbi Ashi on Mount Shanan, which is located in Lebanese territory near the border, in order to pray and renovate the tomb. IDF forces returned them to Israel, 8 of whom were taken for questioning.
.. talks have been underway with the IDF to allow orderly and secure entry of worshippers to the tomb of Rav Ashi on the Lebanese border. The expected date of the first entry: 7th Adar, the day of the celebration of Moses.
ARMORED PERSONNEL CARRIERS – are being deployed to Israeli towns in Judea-Samaria, due to deteriorating security conditions.
ALIYAH CHANGE – licensed professionals (such as doctors) who are interested in immigrating will be able to begin the licensing process even before arriving in Israel. This is in contrast to the current situation, in which immigrants first moved to Israel and only here began a long process of adapting their work permits in their countries of origin to Israeli standards.
Engineers, surveyors, doctors and veterinarians, accountants, insurance agents, financial advisors, social workers, and more – will be able to submit the documents remotely and receive a temporary permit, even before immigrating to Israel.
Contact the Ministry of Absorption.
♦️JENIN – Arab report: IDF bulldozers continue to destroy infrastructure in the Jenin “camp” neighborhoods.
♦️LEBANON – The Air Force attacked 110 kilometers deep into Lebanon, in the town of Kharbata in the Beak’s Valley.
.. In two days, the ceasefire will end, at the end of which IDF forces are supposed to withdraw from Lebanon. The forces are preparing for a full withdrawal from Lebanon, while in the background they are waiting to see whether instructions will be received from the political echelon to remain in a number of control points, or alternatively the withdrawal will be postponed for another ten days.
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DEAL CONFUSION, FAKE ISSUE OF THE DAY
February 16, 2025 ISRAEL REALTIME
DEAL? After days of Arab media reports of caravans entering Gaza (they haven’t) and heavy equipment entering (unclear), today we have: Al-Arabiya network reports this morning that Israel is not complying with the agreements, and that so far no basic equipment has entered the Strip, in addition to heavy equipment and caravans. They further added that Israel’s failure to comply with the terms of the agreement places the mediators in an embarrassing position.
Literally yesterday they were embarrassing the Israeli govt. with all the proscribed items entering, and today complaining the detail is failing because they aren’t entering.
Commentary – Yossi Eliezer: On the one hand, left-wing modernism in the current context promotes the idea of ending the war in favor of releasing all the hostages, as if this were really an option. On the other hand, right-wing modernism in the current context seeks to realize the spirit of Trump and the ultimatum they gave to Hamas in order to win the war and erase the disgrace of the images of Hamas militants at the hostage release ceremonies, with their polished uniforms and drawn weapons.
The issue is to return as many hostages as possible and not cause the deal to implode, or at least phase one of Biden’s path, which is truly terrible, but the government will not be forgiven if it does not exhaust it to the fullest, at least not in the public aspect. On the other hand, the preparations for the possibility of the negotiations exploding and the renewal of the campaign in the Gaza Strip.
THE (FAKE?) ISSUE OF THE DAY – accusations that part of the PM’s negotiating team with Qatar have done business with … Qatar, to the point of legal representation. Expert commentary: “Qatar is not an enemy country. Many Israelis do business with it, and it is legal. And the business is probably not selling Dead Sea mud to the Qataris. It is permissible to do business with it. But this requires disclosure and examination of conflicts of interest. And it is worth noting previous claims have been hoaxes.”
BUNKER BUSTERS ARRIVE – The Defense Ministry says a shipment of heavy bombs from the United States, which had been held up by the previous administration, arrived in Israel. A ship carrying numerous MK-84 2,000-lbs munitions arrived at Ashdod port and was unloaded.
RAMADAN – The islamic holiday month of Ramadan starts on Feb. 28 or March 1. Why we care: The amount of terror attack attempts increases significantly during the month. Additionally, conflicts at holy sites such as the Temple Mount also increase with crowds for the holiday.
SNOW WARNING? Weather models are predicting possible snow on this coming Friday or Saturday at higher elevations, including the Golan, Safed area and Galilee, and Gush Etzion, Mt. Hebron and, in the worst case model, Jerusalem. Being over a week away the timing and severity will change, but some preparation would be wise.
SYRIA – US airstrike on terrorists in a vehicle in northwest Syria.
WORLD NEWS OF NOTE.. Peace talks between Ukraine and Russia will begin in Saudi Arabia in the coming days. US National Security Advisor Wall, US Secretary of State Rubio (who is on his way to Israel) and Special Envoy for the Middle East Witkoff (who apparently took the word “Middle East” and expanded it a bit) will participate. (Politico)
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80-Year-Old Hostage Survived Hamas Hell With Math, Walking, and Defiance
February 14, 2025 Jewish Breaking News – In a tiny room in Gaza, 80-year-old Gadi Moses walked. Seven kilometers each day, back and forth across the same few feet of floor, counting his steps and solving complex mathematics in his head.
For 483 days, this was how he survived.
“At some point, he realized he had to stop expecting immediate rescue and shift his focus to surviving each day,” his nephew Shai tells Walla News. “He taught himself to think differently, to keep pushing forward, and to avoid the crushing disappointment of not being freed the next morning.”
Though Mozes wasn’t held in Gaza’s underground tunnels like other Oct. 7 hostages, isolation became its own form of torture. The room was dark and unsanitary. Food was scarce. To fill the endless hours, he created a world within his mind, holding imaginary conversations with those he loved. Although not knowing that one of them, his long-term partner Efrat Katz, had been murdered on October 7.
But Moses was not a man to be broken. An agronomist and potato expert by trade, he engaged with his captors, even negotiating access to a television. Through it, he watched as his country protested for the hostages’ release, drawing strength from the knowledge that Israel was fighting for their return.
He spoke to his captors of the future. If peace came, he told them, he would teach them to farm. When they taunted him, demanding he “Go back where your parents came from!” he stood his ground. “What are you talking about?” he challenged them. “Our people lived in these places 3,000 years ago!”
For nearly sixteen months, Moses saw no other Israelis. That changed only in his final moments of captivity, when he was escorted through hostile crowds on Jan. 30 alongside fellow hostage Arbel Yehoud, 29, toward freedom. It was only then that Moses learned his daughter Moran had survived the Hamas massacre.
He had kept walking, kept thinking, kept talking, kept hoping. In the end, it had been enough. [Emphasis added]
February 15, 2025 ISRAEL REALTIME
HOW MANY MURDERS WERE RELEASED? (Meaning, how many murders committed by the terrorists released?). 155
The murderers of 155, including children, released.
Ahmed Barghouti – 12 murdered.
Mazen Al-Qadi – 3 murdered, and 5 prison guards raped.
Mansour Sharim – 6 murdered.
Nael Obeid – 7 murdered.
Muhammad Mezlach – 2 murdered.
Ahmed Abu Hader – attempted murder of 11 at a hospital.
Osama Ashkar and Muhammad Naifa – 8 murdered, of which 4 were children.
Abd al-Karim Awis and Amjad Takatka – 6 murdered.
Bachar Najjar – 4 murdered.
Hafez Sharia – 1 murdered, police.
Said Shtia – 2 murdered.
Shadi Abu Shahida – 1 murdered, 100 injured.
Samir Ghit – 1 murdered.
Abd al-Majid Mahdi – 1 murdered.
Mantsur Mokada – 1 murdered.
TRUMP EMPOWERS ISRAEL, ISRAEL SAYS “EH” – Trump: Israel must decide what it wants to do about Hamas not releasing all hostages.
.. On Tuesday of this week, the Prime Minister’s Office issued a statement saying that if the kidnapped people are not returned by Shabbat, we will go back to war. Afterwards, in a briefing “on behalf of a political official,” he said that this was about all the hostages. Only three returned today. Trump backs every move. The Israeli government is currently doing nothing in response. A critical mistake. (Opinion by Kaan 11 reporter.)
.. Now the rumors are circulating that Israel and the US are pressing for another round of hostage release in the coming days, so that the six living hostages who need to be released in phase one of the deal will all be released within a week.
.. Otzma Yehudit Chairman, MK Ben-Gvir: “The Israeli government continues to miss opportunities and fail. Instead of adopting President Trump’s words and applying hell to Hamas, Prime Minister Netanyahu prefers continued negotiations with the devil and the path of surrender and submission. This is not how a “right-wing government” should operate.”
.. Opposition leader MK Lapid – Yesh Atid: Lapid: “We must not stop. Israel must go to phase two of the deal. Everyone must return home.”
♦️LEBANON – IDF continues demolitions in Ya’aron.
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