JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER. 1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
57 YR OLD SAMUEL CASSIDY KILLER OF 8 AT SAN JOSE TRAIN FIX STATION - NO ARAB IÈM SURPRISED
ALSO THE LIBDEMONUTS ARE SO
DESPERATE TO HAVE A JAN 6TH COMMISION TO TRY TO SAY TRUMP CAUSED THE
VIOLENCE AGAINST THE BUILDING NEAR THE WHITE HOUSE. THAT THEY HAVE TO
GET THE MOTHER OF A COP THAT DIED OF NATURAL CAUSES BY STROKES-NOT
VIOLENCE FROM ANYONE ON JAN 6,21.A LAST DESPERATE TRY TO NAIL TRUMP.
THATS WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT BY THE NUTCASE DEMOLIBNUTS. THEY COULD CARE
LESS ABOUT JAN 6TH ATTACK. ITS ALL ABOUT NAILING TRUMP. BECAUSE THESE
LEFTY LOSERS COULD NOT STICK ANY RUSSIA DUNG AGAINST TRUMP FOR THE 4
YEARS HE WAS IN POWER AS PRESIDENT OF AMERICA.THE REPUBLICANS REFUSE TO
GO FOR THE SCAM SETUP AGAINST TRUMP. BY THE LIBS TO GET A COMMISION ON
JAN 6TH.
Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick died of natural
causes: D.C. medical examiner-Chris Sommerfeldt 4/19/2021-Capitol Police
officer Brian Sicknick suffered two strokes and died of natural causes
after fending off far-right rioters during the Jan. 6 attack, the D.C
medical examiner ruled Monday-Francisco Diaz, the medical examiner, said
in a statement that an autopsy discovered no evidence that the
42-year-old officer’s death on Jan. 7 was the cause of injuries. Rather,
Sicknick died from “acute brainstem and cerebellar infarcts” — medical
jargon for strokes — caused by a blood clot in an artery supplying the
brain, Diaz said.It’s not clear from Diaz’s statement if the strokes
were brought on by an underlying medical condition. However, the
statement clarifies that the office only uses the term “natural” when “a
disease alone causes death.”
DISEASES-ANIMAL TO HUMAN
REVELATION 6:7-8 (500 MILLION DEAD EACH FROM THE 4 JUDGEMENTS)(2 BILLION TOT DEAD HERE)
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth,(2 billion) of (8 billion) to kill with sword,(WEAPONS)(500 million) and with hunger,(FAMINE)(500 million) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES)(500 million) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE)(500 million).
THE COVID-19 TOTALS.
WORLD OVER ALL CASES 169,044,557 DEAD 3,511,102 AS OF WED MAY 26,21 (6.40PM)
Giving credence to lab leak theory, Biden calls to investigate COVID-19 origin-US president asks intel officials to ‘redouble’ efforts to find source of virus, says world must ‘press China to participate in a full, transparent, evidence-based’ probe-By Zeke Miller and AAMER MADHANI-27 May 2021, 12:38 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — US President Joe Biden on Wednesday asked US intelligence officials to “redouble” their efforts to investigate the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, including any possibility the trail might lead to a Chinese lab.After months of minimizing that possibility as a fringe theory, the Biden administration is responding to both US and world pressure for China to be more open about the outbreak.Biden asked US intelligence agencies to report back on their findings within 90 days. He directed US national laboratories to assist with the investigation and called on China to cooperate with international probes into the origins of the pandemic.Republicans, including former US President Donald Trump, have promoted the theory that the virus emerged from a laboratory accident rather than naturally through human contact with an infected animal.Biden in a statement said the majority of the intelligence community had “coalesced” around those two likely scenarios but “do not believe there is sufficient information to assess one to be more likely than the other.” He revealed that two agencies lean toward the animal link and “one leans more toward” the lab theory, adding, “each with low or moderate confidence.”“The United States will also keep working with like-minded partners around the world to press China to participate in a full, transparent, evidence-based international investigation and to provide access to all relevant data and evidence,” said Biden.White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that the White House supports a new World Health Organization investigation in China, but she added that an effective probe “would require China finally stepping up and allowing access needed to determine the origins.”Biden still held out the possibility that a firm conclusion may never be reached, given the Chinese government’s refusal to fully cooperate with international investigations.“The failure to get our inspectors on the ground in those early months will always hamper any investigation into the origin of COVID-19,” he said.Administration officials still harbor strong doubts about the lab leak theory. They view China’s refusal to cooperate in the investigation — particularly on something of such magnitude — as emblematic of other irresponsible actions on the world stage.Privately, administration officials say the end result, if ever known, won’t change anything, but note China’s stonewalling is now on display for the world to see.White House Chief Medical Adviser on Covid-19 Dr. Anthony Fauci listens in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC, February 25, 2021. (SAUL LOEB/AFP)-Dr. Anthony Fauci, a White House coronavirus adviser, said Wednesday that he and most others in the scientific community “believe that the most likely scenario is that this was a natural occurrence, but one knows that 100 percent for sure.”“And since there’s a lot of concern, a lot of speculation and since no one absolutely knows that, I believe we do need the kind of investigation where there’s open transparency and all the information that’s available, to be made available, to scrutinize,” Fauci said at a Senate hearing.Andy Slavitt, Biden’s senior adviser for the coronavirus, said Tuesday that the world needs to “get to the bottom … whatever the answer may be.”“We need a completely transparent process from China; we need the WHO to assist in that matter,”” Slavitt said. “We don’t feel like we have that now.”
IT SEEMS THIS SHOOTER WHO HAD EXPLOSIVES IN HIS HOUSE. BURNT HIS HOUSE. PROBABLY TO TRY TO MAKE IT BLOW UP AND KILL NEIGHBOURS. WHILE ALSO A GREAT DISTRACTION WHEN HE THEN WENT TO THE TRAIN COMPANY WERE HE WORKED JUST BRIEFLY AND SHOT AND KILLED AT LEAST 8 PEOPLE AT THAT TRAIN RAIL WORK PLACE. THIS HAPPENED AT AROUND 6.30AM OR 9.30AM EST. WHEN THE POLICE CAME AND CONFRONTED THE KILLER. REPORTS ARE THE SHOOTER KILLED HIMSELF. LEAVING THE MOTIVE TO GO WITH HIM TOTHE GRAVE AND BURN FOREVER IN HELL FIRE WITH HITLER FOREVER. FOR KILLING INNOCENT PEOPLE. AND LIKE THE TYPICAL MEDIA NO MENTION OF THE KILLERS NAME. SO IT MIGHT BE AN ISLAMIC MUSLIM. BUT WE WILL FIND OUT IF THEY FINALLY SAY THE KILLERS NAME. I MISSED HOW MANY WERE INJURED. ITS 5.36PM WED MAY 26,21. SNIFFER DOGS PICKED UP EXPLOSIVED AT THE SHOOTING SCENE ALSO. ALL THE VICTIMS ALL KNEW THE SHOOTER WHO WORKED AT THE RAIL YARD. THE TRAINS ARE FIXED AT THIS SAN JOSE SHOOTING MASSACRE SITE. CHINA JOE WHO REFUSES TO BELIEVE CHINA MADE THE COVID IN A LAB. GOT HIS MOUTH AGAIN IN THIS SHOOTING SAYING - MOST OF THE AMERICANS (LIBERAL-DEMONUTS) HE MEANS NOT REPUBLICANS. WANT GUNS BANNED IN AMERICA. THEN COMMUNIST-SOCIALIST CHINA JOE CARRIES ON THAT MOST OF THE GUN OWNERS (LIBDEMONUTS) WANTS GUNS BANNED ALSO. WHAT A PILE OF DUNG. GET THE WHEELBARROWS OUT. CHINA JOE IS PILLING IT HELL HIGH.
Eight people killed in shooting at California railyard-Gunman dead; motive unclear; bomb squads searching rail complex after receiving information about possible explosive devices-By Jocelyn Gecker and Terence Chea-MAY 26,21-Today, 8:12 pm
SAN JOSE, California (AP) — An employee opened fire Wednesday at a California rail yard serving Silicon Valley, killing eight people. The suspect was also dead, authorities said.Santa Clara County sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Russell Davis said the suspect was an employee of the Valley Transportation Authority, which provides bus, light rail and other transit services throughout Santa Clara County, the largest county in the Bay Area.Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith said it was “undetermined” how the shooter died.The shooting took place around 6:30 a.m. at a light rail facility in San Jose next door to the sheriff’s department and across a freeway from the airport. The facility is a transit control center that stores trains and has a maintenance yard.Davis said the attack resulted in “multiple major injuries.” He did not know the type of weapon used or whether the gunfire happened indoors or outdoors. He said the victims included VTA employees. Authorities did not release any of the victims’ names.“These folks were heroes during COVID 19, the buses never stopped running, VTA didn’t stop running. They just kept at work, and now we’re really calling on them to be heroes a second time to survive such a terrible, terrible tragedy,” Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chavez.Police vehicles and orange crime-scene tape blocked off the area where the shooting happened, and reporters were kept at a distance The rail yard is in the city’s administrative neighborhood, near the sheriff’s office and city and county offices.Bomb squads were searching the rail complex after receiving information about possible explosive devices inside the building, Davis said.VTA trains were already out on morning runs when the shooting occurred. Light rail service was to be suspended at noon and replaced with bus bridges, agency Chairman Glenn Hendricks told a news conference.“It’s just very difficult for everyone to be able try to wrap their heads around and understand what has happened,” Hendricks said.Two patients were transported to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, according to spokesperson Joy Alexiou. One person was pronounced dead upon arrival, and the other was in critical condition.Outside the scene, Michael Hawkins told The Mercury News that he was waiting for his mother, Rochelle Hawkins, who had called him from a co-worker’s phone to assure him that she was safe.When the shooting started, “she got down with the rest of her coworkers” and dropped her cellphone, Michael Hawkins told the newspaper. Rochelle Hawkins did not see the shooter, and she was not sure how close she had been to the attacker, her son said.The attack was the county’s second shooting in less than two years. A gunman killed three people before killing himself at a popular garlic festival in Gilroy in July 2019.At a news conference, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo lamented the “horrific day for our city.” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a tweet that his office was “in close contact with local law enforcement and monitoring this situation closely.”Agents from the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were responding to the crime scene, officials said.
PROOF HALF ON EARTH DIE DURING THE 7 YR TRIBULATION PERIOD (8 BILLION ON EARTH)
REVELATION 6:7-8 (8 BILLION- 2 BILLION = 6 BILLION)
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth,(2 BILLION) to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).
REVELATION 9:15,18 (6 BILLION - 2 BILLION = 4 BILLION)
15 And the four(DEMONIC WAR) angels were loosed,
18 By these three was the third part of men killed,(2 BILLION) by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMBS)
HALF OF EARTHS POPULATION DIE DURING THE 7 YR TRIBULATION.(THESE VERSES ARE JUDGEMENT SCRIPTURES NOT RAPTURE SCRIPTURES)
LUKE 17:34-37 (8 TOTAL BILLION - 4 BILLION DEAD IN TRIB = 4 BILLION TO JESUS KINGDOM) (HALF DIE DURING THE 7 YR TRIBULATION PERIOD JUST LIKE THE BIBLE SAYS)(GOD DOES NOT LIE)(AND NOTICE MOST DIE IN WAR AND DISEASES-NOT COMETS-ASTEROIDS-QUAKES OR TSUNAMIS)
34 I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other shall be left.(half earths population 4 billion die in the 7 yr trib)
35 Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.
36 Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.
37 And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.(Christians have new bodies,this is the people against Jerusalem during the 7 yr treaty)(Christians bodies are not being eaten by the birds).THESE ARE JUDGEMENT SCRIPTURES-NOT RAPTURE SCRIPTURES.BECAUSE NOT HALF OF PEOPLE ON EARTH ARE CHRISTIANS.AND THE CONTEXT IN LUKE 17 IS THE 7 YEAR TRIBULATION OR 7 YR TREATY PERIOD.WHICH IS JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH.NOT 50% RAPTURED TO HEAVEN.
MATTHEW 24:37-42 (THESE ARE JUDGEMENT SCRIPTURES-SURE NOT RAPTURE SCRIPTURES)
37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.
42 Watch therefore:(FOR THE LAST DAYS SIGNS HAPPENING) for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
AMERICA (POLITICAL BABYLON)(NUKED BY SNEAK ATTACK FROM RUSSIA)
IN REVELATION 17 & 18 IS THE DESTRUCTION OF THE RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL BABYLONS.IF YOU CAN NOT DECERN BETWEEN THE 2 BABYLONS IN REV 17 & 18.YOU WILL JUST THINK THEIR BOTH THE SAME.BUT NO-THERES A RELIGIOUS BABYLON (THE VATICAN IN REV 17)(AND THE POLITICAL BABYLON IN REV 18 (AMERICA OR NEW YORK TO BE EXACT)
ISAIAH 34:10
10 It (AMERICA-POLITICAL BABYLON) shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.
JEREMIAH 51:29-32 (CYBER ATTACK 1ST)
29 And the land shall tremble and sorrow: for every purpose of the LORD shall be performed against Babylon,(AMERICA-NEW YORK) to make the land of Babylon (AMERICA) a desolation without an inhabitant.
30 The mighty men of Babylon (AMERICA) have forborn to fight, they have remained in their holds: their might hath failed; they became as women: they have burned her dwellingplaces; her bars are broken.
031 One post shall run to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to shew the king of Babylon (NEW YORK) that his city is taken at one end,
32 And that the passages are stopped,(THE WAR COMPUTERS HACKED OR EMP'D) and the reeds they have burned with fire, and the men of war are affrighted.(DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO)
COMPLETE SILENCE AFTER AN EMP GOES OFF
REVELATION 8:1
1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
JEREMIAH 50:3,24
3 For out of the north (RUSSIA) there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon,(AMERICA) and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD. (RUSSIA A SNEAK CYBER,EMP ATTACK,THEN NUKE ATTACK ON AM
EZEKIEL 39:11-22
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog (RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS) a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers (EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN JORDAN VALLEY) on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog (RUSSIAN) and all his multitude:(ARAB/MUSLIM HORDE) and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog.(BURIEL SITE OF THE 300 MILLION,RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS)
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.(OF ISRAEL)
13 Yea, all the people of the land (OF ISRAEL) shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I (GOD-JESUS) shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD.
14 And they shall sever out men of continual employment,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB EXPERTS) passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search.
15 And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man’s bone, then shall he set up a sign by it,(WON'T TOUCH IT) till the buriers have buried it (PROPERLY) in the valley of Hamongog.(RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS NEW BURIEL SITE)(EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN THE JORDAN VALLEY)
16 And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.(OF THE ISRAEL-GOD HATERS)
17 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl,(500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS THREW ISRAEL EVERY SPRING,FALL) and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.(OF THE RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIM ARMIES)
18 Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.
19 And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.
20 Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.
21 And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them.
WELL THIS IS VERY INTERESTING. THIS MORNING AT 7AM WAS A SUPER MOON. AND NOW 2 TIMES IN THE LAST MONTH. A VULTURE THAT EATS HUMAN FLESH HAS BEEN SEEN IN ISRAEL. IT WAS THOUGHT VTO BE EXTINCT 30 YEARS AGO. AND ITS INTERESTING THE 500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS ARE IN ISRAEL AS THE SPRING BIRD MIGRATION COMES TO TOWN FOR A POSSIBLE FEAST ON THE RUSSIA-ARAB-MUSLIMS BODIES IF ISRAEL WOULD NUKE THEM. WERE THEY WILL HAVE A 300 MILLION MAN BURIAL SITE EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN THE JORDAN VALLEY. IT WILL TAKE ISRAEL 7 MONTHS TO BURY THIS HOARD AFTER 7 YEARS OF LETTING THE RADIATION IN THE BONES SUBSIDE. THE PROFESSIONAL NUKE BOMB CREW WILL COLLECT THE BONES. AS PEOPLE WILL BE ASKED NOT TO TOUCH ANY BONES FOUND IN THE AREA. JUST PUT A MARKER BY THEM. AND THE NUKE CREW PROFESSIONALS WILL BURY THE BONES IN THE JORDAN VALLEY. WERE THE ARAB-MUSLIMS. CAN VISIT THIS ISRAEL HATER FAMILY MEMBERS THAT ARE BURNING FOREVER IN THE LAKE OF FIRE WITH THEIR NEVER DYING BODIES. THIS WILL BE THE RUSSIANÉARABÉMUSLIM CEMETARY. DURING THE VTRIBULATION PERIOD AT LEAST.
With wingspan of nearly 10 ft., 'it was incredible to see' Vulture thought extinct from Israel for 30 years spotted twice in a month-Israel Nature and Parks Authority hopes sightings of subspecies of ecologically important lappet-faced vulture signal its return-By Sue Surkes-MAY 26,21-Today, 8:43 pm
Last month, the chief scientist of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority witnessed the appearance in Israel of a species recorded as extinct for the second time in his career.The first time was in 2011 when the Hula painted frog, endemic to the Hula marshes of northern Israel, was rediscovered. It was thought to be extinct in the wild as a result of habitat destruction during the 1950s.The second time was in late April, when the lappet-faced vulture, extinct in the country since 1989, paid a visit to the Hai Bar Nature Reserve at Yotvata in southern Israel.On Tuesday, it — or another bird of prey of the same species, nobody is sure — appeared at Hai Bar for a second time.Yehoshua Shkedy told The Times of Israel that the return or rediscovery of just one species that had gone extinct was “enough to make me ecstatic.”He added, “I feel so blessed. When the bird was reported the first time, I dropped everything and drove down to Yotvata to see it. I saw it spread its wings. It has a wingspan of 2.9 meters (9.5 feet). It was incredible to see.”Torgos tracheliotos negevensis, named for the Negev desert, is a subspecies of lappet-faced vulture. Its head is a duller color than that of its African cousin — pink rather than red — and it does not have the distinct white line on the underwing that the African one has.It could once be seen from the northern Negev and central Judean Desert down to the Eilat mountains on the country’s southernmost tip. It still inhabits the Arabian peninsula and Shkedy has made preliminary inquiries with nature organizations in the United Arab Emirates, with which Israel normalized relations last year, with a view to acquiring birds and establishing a breeding program.The most powerful of the African vultures and the one with the biggest wingspan, the lappet-faced vulture stands at around a meter tall (3.3 feet) and has a powerful beak. According to Shkedy, it is the only creature in Africa other than the lion and the hyena capable of ripping open the carcass of a large mammal. Unlike the other two, it will allow smaller vultures and other animals to join the feast.Its bald head is adapted to its feeding habits. There is no point having a fancy hairdo when your face spends much of its time inside the entrails of a corpse.In recent decades, the whole species of lappet-faced vultures, including the negevensis subspecies, has seen a drastic decline, with just 5,700 birds left in Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean. It is now classified as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. The main reason is poisoning by humans of animal carcasses to get rid of other wild animals that prey on their livestock.By eating carrion, vultures perform a critical service, cleaning up waste and, according to the Vulture Conservation Foundation, preventing the spread of diseases such as anthrax and rabies.The Israel Nature and Parks Authority has already been successful in breeding other species of birds of prey. But it is a long process.The organization prefers to use pairs of birds that cannot survive in the wild anyway either due to injury or disability, Shkedy explained. The birds need to successfully breed and be able to feed their young, and the chicks need to survive a few years before they can be released.“If we started today and saw the first nest in six or seven years, that would be regarded as a success,” Shkedy said.This is why he is praying that the visitor or visitors to the Hai Bar, of as yet unknown gender, might be scouting out Israel as a place to start nesting again.“I didn’t agree to catching the bird the first time for ringing,” Shkedy said. “I wanted to see whether it would bring its partner and others of the same species, whether there will be natural rehabilitation.”April also saw the first sighting in Israel of a white-backed vulture over the Og streambed in the northern Dead Sea area. This species is categorized as critically endangered by the IUCN. Its numbers have dropped by 90% over the last 55 years.
Hamas Gaza chief threatens to renew fighting if Israel ‘violates’ Al-Aqsa-Yahya Sinwar vows terror group won’t touch ‘one cent’ of international aid for Strip, says the ‘greatest gift Israel can give me is to assassinate me’-By Agencies and Aaron Boxerman-MAY 26,21-Today, 7:26 pm
The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas on Wednesday threatened to renew intense fighting against Israel if the Jewish state “violates” the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, and downplayed damage to its military infrastructure following the 11-day conflict in the Gaza Strip.“What has happened is but a drill for what will come if Israel violates the Al-Aqsa Mosque,” the terror group’s Gaza leader, Yahya Sinwar, said on Wednesday, days after a ceasefire entered effect. “The occupation must know — Al-Aqsa has men who will defend it.”Violent clashes between Palestinian worshipers and Israeli police at the Jerusalem holy site in early May preceded the Hamas rocket barrage on Israeli cities and towns that began the Israel-Hamas conflict.The Hamas leader also said he would welcome Israel killing him in a targeted strike.“The greatest gift Israel can give me is to assassinate me,” he said. “I prefer to die a martyr from an F-16 than to die of coronavirus or [another] disease.”In a speech, Sinwar also vowed not to touch “a single cent” of international aid to rebuild Gaza following its war with Israel that ravaged the enclave it rules. Sinwar promised “transparent and impartial” distribution of aid.Diplomatic efforts are underway to solidify a fragile Egypt-brokered truce that halted the fighting, with plans to rebuild the Gaza Strip where Israeli airstrikes damaged infrastructure and leveled buildings.“We welcome any international or Arab effort to rebuild the Gaza Strip,” Sinwar told a news conference in Gaza City.“I affirm our commitment not to take a single cent intended for reconstruction and humanitarian efforts,” he said. “We have never taken a cent in the past.”Sinwar said that Gaza has “sufficient financial resources… a large part of which are from Iran, and another part comes from Arab and Muslim donors and free people of the world who stand in solidarity with our people and their rights.”During a visit to Israel, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that all aid would be “administered in a way that benefits the Palestinian people — not Hamas.”Sinwar added: “I say to Blinken and to everyone else: enough playing with our internal divides. We know how to solve our problems internally. Enough cultivating of internal conflict. We will make way for anyone who wants to rebuild in Gaza or improve the economic situation.”An Israeli Defense Ministry official said all funds to Gaza would have to flow through an international “mechanism” to reach people directly, to prevent the terror group from replenishing its rocket arsenal.The latest military confrontation with Hamas ended in a ceasefire early Friday. It began on May 10 when Hamas launched a massive rocket barrage on Israeli cities, sparking IDF retaliatory strikes and 11 days of fighting, leaving 13 dead in Israel and over 240 fatalities in Gaza. The Israeli army said most of those killed in Gaza were terror combatants.Over 4,000 rockets were fired at Israeli cities, according to the IDF, sending civilians throughout the center and south of the country rushing to bomb shelters at all hours of day and night and leaving hundreds of Israelis injured.In his address, Sinwar also praised Arab Israeli riots in which Jewish Israelis and their property were attacked during the conflict. He claimed there are “10,000 suicide bombers in Israel” willing to respond to any Israeli “violations” in Jerusalem.He said Arab Israelis “have proven that so-called ‘Israelification’ — the attempt to turn them into Israeli citizens rather than Palestinians — “and ‘coexistence’ have fallen once and for all.”Sinwar also dismissed an Israeli operation to bomb Hamas’s underground network of tunnels, which its terrorists use for military operations. Statements by the Israeli military during the fighting led foreign journalists to believe that an Israeli ground invasion had begun, reportedly in the hope that Hamas fighters would enter the tunnels to prepare for war.The IDF later denied misleading anyone, saying the statements were made erroneously. Hebrew media later reported that the operation had been less successful than hoped: relatively few Hamas fighters had entered the tunnels before they were bombed.“It was clear to our military intelligence that this was a deception, and that there was no ground invasion,” Sinwar said.Hamas’s public works ministry said 258 buildings — around 1,042 residential and commercial units — were destroyed by the Israeli air campaign. Another 769 units were severely damaged, rendering them uninhabitable, and 14,536 suffered minor damage. Seventeen hospitals were damaged, as well as 53 schools.Over 100,000 people were internally displaced during the hostilities, according to the UN. While many have since been able to return to their dwellings, others have been left homeless.The Israeli military says it does not target civilian structures and takes pains to minimize harm to noncombatants. It maintains it is forced to operate in civilian areas because Palestinian terror groups fire rockets at Israel from inside Gaza’s densely packed cities.
Muslim nations ask UN to form unprecedented permanent panel to critique Israel-Proposal comes ahead of rights council session on ‘grave human rights situation’ in Gaza, West Bank, East Jerusalem; no commission of inquiry has ever received a continuing mandate-By Jacob Magid and Agencies-MAY 26,21-Today, 6:45 pm
Member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation are calling on the UN Human Rights Council to set up a permanent commission to report on alleged human rights violations in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank.The move comes in the wake of this month’s 11-day conflict between Israel and terror groups in Gaza. If passed, it would mark an unprecedented level of scrutiny authorized by the UN’s top human rights body.The proposal by the OIC comes ahead of a special session of the Geneva-based council on Thursday to address “the grave human rights situation” in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The meeting was sought by Pakistan, the OIC’s coordinator.The investigators, the text of Pakistan’s request said, should probe “all alleged violations and abuses” of international law linked to the tensions that sparked the latest violence.The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said at least 243 Palestinians were killed, including 66 children and teens, with 1,910 people wounded in the violence. It does not differentiate between terror group members and civilians. The Israeli military maintained that it killed some 225 terrorist operatives and that the Palestinian death toll was in fact considerably higher than was reported. It said some of the civilian fatalities were caused by Hamas rockets falling short and landing in the Strip.Palestinian volunteers sweep dust in front of a building destroyed during the latest round of fighting, in Gaza City’s Rimal district on May 25, 2021. (MOHAMMED ABED / AFP)-Thirteen people were killed in Israel, all but one of them civilians, including a 5-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl. Some 357 people in Israel were wounded.During the fighting, outgoing International Criminal Court prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said the court may look into the fighting as part of its current probe into alleged war crimes in the region, which date back to the events leading up to the last major Gaza conflict in 2014.But the Human Rights Council draft text goes far beyond the most recent conflict, also calling for investigators to probe “underlying root causes of recurrent tensions and instability, including systematic discrimination and repression based on group identity.”The investigation should focus on establishing facts and gather evidence and other material that could be used in legal proceedings, and as far as possible should identify perpetrators to ensure they are held accountable, it said.“Long-standing and systemic impunity for international law violations has thwarted justice, created a protection crisis and undermined all efforts to achieve a just and peaceful solution,” the draft text said.The session at the 47-member-state rights is slated to last all day.A vote on the draft resolution is likely at the end of Thursday’s session, which will be largely virtual.Council spokesman Rolando Gomez says passage of the draft resolution would mark the first time that a commission of inquiry received a “continuing mandate.”It remains unclear whether there will be enough support at the Human Rights Council to pass the resolution.Twenty of the council’s 47 members were among the 66 countries that backed holding Thursday’s special session, which was requested by Pakistan and the Palestinian Authority.The rights council holds three regular sessions each year, but can hold special sessions if at least a third of members support the idea.Israel accuses the council of anti-Israel bias and has generally refused to cooperate with its investigators. Israel’s ambassador, Meirav Eilon Shahar, has called on member states to oppose Thursday’s meeting.“The convening of yet another special session by the Human Rights Council targeting Israel is testament to the clear anti-Israeli agenda of this body,” she said on Twitter.Israel is the only country that is systematically discussed at every regular council session, with a dedicated special agenda item.The standing agenda item and body’s overall anti-Israel stance were among the main reasons that the United States under former president Donald Trump decided to leave the council.His successor Joe Biden has returned the United States to the fold as an observer, with an eye on membership, arguing that while the council “disproportionate[ly] focuses on Israel,” the US can be more influential from within it than it can from the outside.
GOD MAY HAVE GAVE HEZBOLLAH LEADER HASAN NASRALLAH COVID-19 TO KILL HIM OFF. FOR COMING AGAINST ISRAEL. THAT WOULD SAVE ISRAELS ROCKETS AND NUKES FOR GAZA AND HAMAS (VIOLENCE MEANING IN THE BIBLE) AND THE ISLAMIC MUSLIMS AROUND ISRAEL.
After cough-filled speech, Israeli military hints Nasrallah may have COVID-Defense officials mock Hezbollah leader: Instead of being threatening, his televised address made him seem weak and infirm-By Judah Ari Gross-MAY 26,21-Today, 10:09 pm
The Israeli military believes Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah may have contracted the coronavirus, following a speech on Tuesday in which the terrorist leader was seen coughing and occasionally struggling for breath, The Times of Israel has learned.The Israel Defense Forces’ assessment appeared to be largely based on circumstantial evidence as, according to Israel’s Channel 13, Nasrallah has not yet actually been tested for COVID-19.During his speech, the terror leader threatened “regional war” if Israel attacked holy sites in Jerusalem.“The Israelis must understand that breaching the holy city and Al-Aqsa mosque and sanctuaries won’t stop at Gaza resistance,” Nasrallah said, referring to the Temple Mount compound in Jerusalem’s Old City.“Jerusalem means a regional war. All the resistance movements cannot stand by and watch this happening if the holy city is in real, grave danger,” he added.The speech came on the 21st anniversary of the IDF’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon, following an 18-year occupation of the area, and days after Israel and the Hamas terror group fought an 11-day battle in and around the Gaza Strip, which began when the latter fired multiple rockets toward Jerusalem after Israeli police officers responded forcefully to a riot on the Temple Mount.Israeli military officials derided the speech by Nasrallah, who appeared pale and weak on camera, calling it a mistake.Instead of being menacing, the usually media-savvy Nasrallah appeared sick and weak, Israeli defense officials believe.Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is speaking on TV, and he's not looking well. Pale, thin, a bit breathless and coughing from time to time. — Liz Sly (@LizSly) May 25, 2021-Hezbollah’s shadow loomed large during Israel and Hamas’s conflict, with the possibility it could unleash its arsenal of missiles — far more powerful than Hamas’s — in support of the Palestinians. But the Iran-backed group largely remained on the sidelines.Though Hezbollah did not play an active part in the fighting, three barrages of rockets were fired toward Israel from southern Lebanon during the Gaza battle, which Israel believes Hezbollah at least tacitly approved.Daily protests, including by members of Hezbollah and Palestinians in Lebanon, took place along the frontier with Israel in solidarity with Gaza. One Hezbollah member was killed when Israel opened fire to push back against protesters who tried to break through the volatile frontier.Agencies contributed to this report.
Blinken: Israel ‘took very significant steps’ to avoid hitting Gaza civilians-In interview with Israeli TV, top US diplomat laments Palestinian death toll, underlines Biden’s support for two-state solution and Iran deal-By TOI staff-MAY 26,21-Today, 11:18 pm
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel “took very significant steps” to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza during the recent fighting with Hamas, while underscoring the Biden administration’s backing for a two-state solution for solving the Israeli-Palestinian process.In an interview with Israeli television aired Wednesday, Blinken also stressed US President Joe Biden’s support for rejoining the international accord limiting Iran’s nuclear program if Tehran returns to compliance with the deal, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opposes.Blinken spoke with Channel 12 news while visiting Israel to shore up the ceasefire reached last week to end the 11 days of hostilities between the Israeli military and Hamas, the Islamist terror organization that runs the Gaza Strip. He also visited the West Bank, Egypt and Jordan during his tour of the region.In the interview aired Wednesday night, America’s top diplomat reiterated Biden’s commitment to Israel’s security, when asked about opposition among progressive Democrats in Congress to a sale of precision-guided missiles to Israel.“President Biden has been absolutely clear, and he’s been clear on more than one occasion: We are committed to Israel’s security, period. We will make sure that Israel has the means to defend itself,” he said.Blinken said this was “particularly” the case in light of the “attacks from a terrorist group indiscriminately targeting civilians,” saying “we want to make sure that Israel has the means to deal with that.”He stressed though that as a democracy, Israel has an “extra burden” to avoid civilian casualties when responding to attacks targeting Israeli citizens. The interviewer, news anchor Yonit Levi, asked Blinken if Israel sought to avoid hitting civilians while striking in Gaza during the recent conflict.“I think Israel took very significant steps to do that, but we also know that on both sides men, women, and especially children were lost, and I think that’s deeply painful, and it’s a reminder that we throw around numbers, statistics, but these statistics, these numbers can’t hide the fact that we’re talking about real human beings,” he said.The latest military confrontation with Hamas ended in a ceasefire early Friday. It began on May 10 when Hamas launched a massive rocket barrage on Israeli cities, sparking IDF retaliatory strikes and 11 days of fighting, leaving 13 dead in Israel and over 240 fatalities in Gaza. The Israeli army said most of those killed in Gaza were terror combatants.Blinken said he believed there was “a lot of work” needed to “rebuild some confidence, to try to rebuild some trust,” before seeking to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.“We continue to believe very strongly that a two-state solution is not just the best way, but probably the only way to really assure that going forward, Israel has a future as a secure Jewish and democratic state, and the Palestinians have a state to which they’re entitled,” he said.The current focus, however, was “trying to build on the ceasefire, address the immediate needs and concerns,” according to Blinken, before seeing “if over time the conditions are such that there’s a better environment for trying to pursue a two-state solution.”Turning to the ongoing nuclear talks in Vienna on restoring the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which the US is taking part in indirectly, Blinken said “the jury is still out” on whether the Islamic Republic is willing to reverse its breaches of the deal since then-president Donald Trump withdrew America from the agreement in 2018. Biden has repeatedly said the US will return to compliance with the deal if Iran does.“I think we’ve clarified increasingly what each side would need to do to come back into compliance with the JCPOA, but it remains an unanswered question whether Iran is actually prepared to do what it needs to do to come back into compliance,” Blinken said of the talks, using the initials for the deal’s formal name, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.Blinken acknowledged differences with Israel over how to prevent Iran from an atomic bomb, but insisted the countries were united in opposing such a prospect.“We are joined in that goal and in that commitment. It’s also no secret that over time we’ve had differences over the best way to get there, to make sure that Iran does not get a weapon,” Blinken said.While meeting Tuesday with Netanyahu, the premier told Blinken he hopes the US does not return to the JCPOA in its current form, arguing it will allow Iran to acquire nuclear arms.The secretary of state argued the nuclear deal was doing “exactly what it set out to accomplish,” saying Iran would have needed at least a year to produce enough material for an atomic weapon before Trump pulled out. Now Iran could obtain sufficient material in a “very short order,” he said.“And so far from getting less dangerous without the deal, it’s gotten more dangerous,” he warned.If the deal is restored, Blinken said the Biden administration will seek to make it “longer and stronger” and to also address Iran’s “destabilizing activities in the region, proliferation of weapons, support for terrorist groups, et cetera.” He added this could include an extension of the so-called sunset clauses, which allow Iran to begin resuming some nuclear work when they start expiring in 2025.Blinken, whose stepfather was a Holocaust survivor, was also asked about the antisemitic incidents in the US amid the fighting in Gaza.“It’s profoundly, profoundly disturbing. And we have seen, not just in the last week although we’ve seen – well, actually, we have seen a very disturbing eruption of antisemitic incidents,” he said. “And so when I see that I feel it both on a very personal level, but I also see it as a warning sign, a signal that there are – things are happening that we have to address.”He was also asked if comments by “known figures on the far left” in the US calling Israel an apartheid state could fuel antisemitism.“No Israeli politics, no American politics,” he replied, refusing to comment directly. “When we see antisemitism emerge anywhere, whether it’s in the United States, whether it’s in this part of the world, whether it’s anywhere in the world, we have to take it seriously, we have to address it, we have to deal with it.”The Israeli network also asked Blinken if Biden was planning a trip to Israel.Blinken replied that he had no information on such a trip, but said Biden “very much looks forward to coming back.”
Jewish Democrats accuse colleagues of antisemitism over Israel criticism-Hawkish lawmakers pen letter to Biden expressing alarm after Squad members allege that Jewish state guilty of ‘apartheid’ and ‘terrorism’-By JTA and Jacob Magid-MAY 26,21-Today, 11:13 pm
Four Jewish House Democrats on Tuesday made an accusation of antisemitism against party colleagues who have alleged that Israel has committed “apartheid” and “terrorism” against the Palestinians.Their rebuke was part of a letter to US President Joe Biden condemning the rising antisemitism sparked by the Israel-Hamas war earlier this month.One congressman who signed the letter, Dean Phillips of Minnesota, was chastising a fellow Democrat, Ilhan Omar, in a neighboring district, though Phillips did not use her name.“Elected officials have used reckless, irresponsible antisemitic rhetoric,” said the letter sent Tuesday.Along with Phillips, the other signatories were fellow hawkish Democratic Reps. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, Elaine Luria of Virginia and Kathy Manning of North Carolina. They did not name their colleagues, but included direct quotes of their controversial comments.The Jewish Democrats also called out a Republican lawmaker who likened a mask mandate in Congress to the Nazi yellow star.“These include repeated, unacceptable and blatantly antisemitic statements made by a Member of Congress comparing face-masks and other COVID-19 public health measures to ‘what happened in Nazi Germany’ during the Holocaust,” the letter said, referring to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who has drawn condemnations from leaders of her own party for her remarks.“We also reject comments from Members of Congress accusing Israel of being an ‘apartheid state’ and committing ‘act[s]’ of terrorism,” the letter said. “These statements are antisemitic at their core and contribute to a climate that is hostile to many Jews. We must never forget that less than eighty years ago, within the lifetime of our parents and grandparents, six million people were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust because they were Jews. Israel has long provided the Jewish people with a homeland in which they can be safe after facing centuries of persecution.”Omar and Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Cori Bush of New York have accused Israel of apartheid, and Omar has said “Israeli airstrikes killing civilians in Gaza is an act of terrorism.”Phillips’ district covers the suburbs of Minneapolis, while Omar’s includes part of Minneapolis. Phillips has criticized Omar in the past for her Israel statements, but has also defended her.Hours after the letter was published, Omar tweeted her own condemnation of the recent rise in antisemitic attacks, calling it “appalling.”“We must be clear and unequivocal: antisemitism is unacceptable and has no place in any movement,” she continued. “Fighting bigotry of any kind means fighting bigotry of every kind.”But Omar also made a point to implicitly call out those attacking her, without mentioning the letter by name.“We cannot equate legitimate criticism of the Israeli government, its policy, and its military occupation with antisemitism. Connecting the actions of a foreign country’s government and military with an entire faith does nothing to keep the Jewish people safer,” she wrote.There are 25 Jewish Democrats in the House. The letter comes as Republican leaders who have criticized Greene have lambasted Democratic leaders for sparing Omar, Tlaib and Ocasio-Cortez.
Biden administration adds $38.5 million in aid to the Palestinians-Blinken says additional US financial support won’t go through Hamas or PA, which would violate US law, but rather via UNRWA and NGOs-By JTA and Jacob Magid-MAY 26,21-Today, 10:42 pm
The Biden administration increased its assistance to Palestinians by $38.5 million in the wake of the latest Gaza war and pledged to abide by existing law that bars US aid to the Palestinian Authority as long it continues its prisoner payment policy.On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken outlined the additional funds that the administration plans to steer to the Palestinians in a statement from the State Department. It came as Blinken wrapped up his trip to Israel and the West Bank where he met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to discuss sustaining the ceasefire that ended the 11-day rocket exchange this month between Israel and the Gaza-ruling Hamas terror group.Blinken said an additional $33 million would go to UNRWA, the United Nations agency that administers relief to the Palestinians, on top of the $150 million for the agency announced in April.Along with another $150 million that Congress has approved for humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians for 2020 and 2021 directed to nongovernmental organizations, $5.5 million will be designated for recovery from the war this month, including “emergency shelter, food, relief items, and health care, as well as mental health and psychosocial support for those who experienced trauma,” Blinken said.US Secretary of State Antony Blinken waves as he boards a plane on May 24, 2021, at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, en route to the Middle East. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)-He added that the Biden administration would abide by laws that require the money go directly to the Palestinians and not to Hamas or the Palestinian Authority.The United States bans any assistance to Hamas, a designated terrorist group. The Taylor Force Act bars aid to the Palestinian Authority as long as it subsidizes families of terrorists who have killed Israeli or US civilians as part of its welfare program. Officials in Ramallah told The Times of Israel in December that it is working on amending the policy so it falls into compliance with the US legislation by basing the stipends on recipients’ financial needs rather than the length of the prison sentences.“US foreign assistance for the Palestinian people serves important US interests and values,” said Blinken in the statement. “It provides critical relief to those in great need, fosters economic development and supports Israeli-Palestinian understanding, security coordination and stability.”The Trump administration suspended virtually all aid to the Palestinians. US President Joe Biden campaigned on a pledge to restore the funding.While in the region, Blinken also formally announced plans to reopen a consulate in Jerusalem. The de facto representative to the Palestinians was merged into the US embassy in Jerusalem in 2019.
Blinken visits Jordan, wrapping up Mideast tour to shore up Gaza truce-US secretary of state meets with Jordanian King Abdullah II following two days of talks in Israel, the West Bank and Egypt-By Agencies and TOI staff-MMAY 26,21-Today, 8:28 pm
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Jordan Wednesday, wrapping up a two-day Mideast tour that aimed to shore up an Egypt-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian terror groups in Gaza.After meeting Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi — whom he praised for helping bring an end to the intense violence “relatively quickly” — he flew to Jordan, where half of the 10 million-strong population is of Palestinian origin.Blinken met King Abdullah II, following two days of regional talks — including with both Israeli and Palestinian leaders — to throw Washington’s support behind the truce that ended 11 days of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip into Israel and heavy Israeli retaliatory airstrikes.“Securing the ceasefire was important, particularly because of the devastating toll violence took on families on both sides,” Blinken told reporters after meeting with the Jordanian monarch in Amman, his final stop.“We see the ceasefire not as an end, but as a beginning of something to build on.”Following talks with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas at his headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Blinken vowed to rebuild US relations with the Palestinians by reopening a consulate in Jerusalem, as well as give millions in aid for the war-battered Gaza Strip.The announcements signaled a break with US policy under former president Donald Trump, who had shuttered the diplomatic mission for Palestinians in 2019 and slashed aid to the Palestinian Authority.In the long term, Blinken evoked the “possibility of resuming the effort to achieve a two-state solution, which we continue to believe is the only way to truly assure Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state, and of course to give the Palestinians the state they’re entitled to.”After meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he reiterated support for Israel’s right to defend itself against rocket attacks by Gaza’s Hamas rulers, adding that they must not benefit from the reconstruction aid.Hamas political chief Yahya Sinwar vowed Wednesday not to take “a single cent” of the aid, insisting that “we have never taken a cent in the past.”Rebuilding Gaza-On Wednesday, after meeting with Sissi, Blinken later said that both “believe strongly that Palestinians and Israelis deserve equally to live in safety and security,” and that “Egypt is vital to these aspirations.”Unlike the United States and many European governments, which boycott the Hamas terror group, Egypt maintains regular contacts.Last week, Sissi pledged $500 million to help reconstruction efforts in Gaza.Egypt was also the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, with Jordan following suit in 1994.Cairo has sent delegations to both Tel Aviv and Gaza to watch over the implementation of the ceasefire, and has also been coordinating international relief and reconstruction aid for the enclave, which has been under Israeli and Egyptian blockade for nearly 15 years to prevent Hamas from building terror infrastructure.Blinken said Wednesday the US was in the process of providing more than $360 million in assistance to Palestinians, including $250 million announced in March and April.On top of that, the administration intended to provide $75 million in aid to the Palestinians, as well as $5.5 million in immediate disaster assistance for Gaza, and nearly $33 million for an emergency humanitarian appeal by the UN.The latest military escalation started when Hamas fired rockets at Jerusalem after clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police officers at the Temple Mount.Israeli security forces had also sought to quell protests against the threatened eviction of Palestinian families from homes in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah to make way for Jewish families.Rocket and other fire from Gaza claimed 13 lives in Israel, including one child and teenager, an Israeli soldier, one Indian national and two Thai workers, medics say. Some 357 people in Israel were wounded.Israeli airstrikes and artillery fire on Gaza killed 254 Palestinians, including 66 children, and wounded more than 1,900 people in 11 days of conflict from May 10, the health ministry in Gaza says. Israel asserts some 200 of those killed were terror operatives.
Qatar says it will contribute $500 million for Gaza reconstruction-The Gulf state, a key backer of the Strip’s Hamas rulers, pledges money following recent fighting in the enclave-By Agencies and TOI staff-27 May 2021, 12:26 am
Qatar announced on Wednesday that it would provide $500 million for Gaza’s reconstruction after the coastal enclave was battered by Israeli airstrikes in 11 days of hostilities between the Jewish state and Palestinian terrorists earlier this month.“The state of Qatar announces $500 million in support for the reconstruction of Gaza,” Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani tweeted.Qatar is a key backer of the Islamist terror group Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip.The funds aim to help Gazans “face the life challenges posed by the recent Israeli attacks, and to contribute to the reconstruction of service facilities in Gaza… in addition to the homes that were destroyed,” the official QNA news agency said.Al-Thani also vowed in a statement that Qatar will continue to support Palestinians so as to reach “a just and lasting solution by establishing their independent state in accordance with the Arab Peace Initiative,” referring to a Saudi-backed peace initiative first offered in 2002.Several countries have pledged funds to help reconstruct Gaza. Qatar’s regional rival Egypt has said it will also spend $500 million on reconstruction efforts. The United States has promised $37.5 million in immediate relief to the Gaza Strip, with millions more in development assistance to be distributed later.Qatar has funneled cash into the blockaded, Hamas-ruled enclave for years with Israeli approval. The Gulf state had already pledged $360 million in aid to Gaza at the beginning of the year.The announcement came amid diplomatic efforts to solidify a fragile Egypt-brokered truce that halted the fighting, with plans to rebuild Gaza.Al-Thani visited Cairo on Wednesday, as ties improve between the countries after a January declaration ended a diplomatic crisis that began in 2017 with a rift between Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain on one side and Qatar on the other.The latest military confrontation between Israel and Hamas ended in a ceasefire early last Friday. It began on May 10 when Hamas launched a massive rocket barrage on Israeli cities, sparking IDF retaliatory strikes and 11 days of fighting, leaving 13 dead in Israel and over 240 fatalities in Gaza. The Israeli army said most of those killed in Gaza were terror combatants.
