@LindseyGrahamSC
 
I was just informed that the Spanish government has permanently recalled their ambassador to Israel. This is hard for me to absorb. Spain is a member of NATO, and the United States and Israel are in joint operations against the Iranian regime who openly calls for the destruction of the Jewish State, attacks against the West, and seeks to purify Islam in its own image.
 
The religious Nazi regime in Iran is the problem, not the Jewish State. I hope Spain’s actions will not encourage the tyrannical, fanatical regime in Iran — that abuses its own people — to hang on.
 
Time will tell.

Les États-Unis ont suspendu leur coordination avec l’armée libanaise, dans une volonté d’accentuer la pression pour obtenir la destitution du commandant de la troupe, Rodolphe Haykal, a appris L'Orient-Le Jour auprès de plusieurs sources diplomatiques.  
 
Une telle mesure est toutefois rejetée au Liban alors que la guerre se poursuit. Des acteurs internationaux seraient d'ailleurs intervenus pour empêcher toute atteinte au commandant de l’armée à ce stade. Les États-Unis ont envoyé mardi un message limpide à Beyrouth : « désarmez le Hezbollah et entamez des négociations directes avec Israël », ce à quoi le Liban essaye de répondre.

@FaytuksNetwork
 
BREAKING: Israel is preparing for a potential “significant expansion” of attacks by Iran and Hezbollah later Wednesday night, according to two Israeli sources.
 
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is convening senior political and security officials to assess the situation, an Israeli official told CNN.

Israël | Au moins 100 roquettes tirées par le Hezbollah sur le Nord. 1 blessé léger. Rappelons que le cessez-le-feu en vigueur était censé désarmer le Hezbollah…

Hezbollah announces the launch of “Al-Asf al-Ma’kul” operation against Israel, according to an official statement.

Ihab Hassan @IhabHassane

BREAKING: Israeli settlers are setting fire to Palestinian homes in Masafer Yatta in the West Bank in an attempt to burn Palestinian families alive and to implement their plan of ethnic cleansing against these communities. https://t.co/NIHCDpzF6j

@KobeissiLetter
BREAKING: Iran announces their requirements for a potential ceasefire with the US and Israel.
 
Requirements include:
 
1. “Recognizing Iran’s legitimate rights”
 
2. “Iran receives a payment of reparations”
 
3. “Firm international guarantees against future aggression”

@wikileaks
 
Jared Kushner linked to Israeli-American brothers convicted of sex trafficking.
 
Tal, Oren and Alon Alexander - recently found guilty in a major U.S. sex-trafficking case - had their surname redacted in the Epstein files, despite claims from Kash Patel that the files contained no evidence of trafficking.  Rep. Thomas Massie later exposed the names.
 
In December 2020, the brothers attended Donald Trump’s White House Hanukkah celebration. Oren Alexander wrote in a now-deleted Instagram post:
 
“Spare your political views. The president just served us kosher food in his house and wished us a Happy Hanukkah.”
 
Photos from the event showed Tal and Oren posing inside the White House.
 
Their links to Trump-world extended beyond parties. Oren Alexander brokered the $24 million Indian Creek mansion purchased by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump in 2021.
 
The brothers were also fixtures in elite Israeli and American networks. Seven years ago, twins Alon and Oren celebrated their 30th birthday at the upscale Claro restaurant in Tel Aviv, with a guest list including Israeli billionaire Shari Arison and Donald Trump advisor Aaron Jordan.
 
They were also major donors to pro-Israel and Jewish organisations, including:
 
• Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF)
• United Hatzalah
• The Jewish Federation
 
One acquaintance described the family: “They are a very positive family, big Zionists...”

Masoud Pezeshkian @drpezeshkian
 
Talking to leaders of Russia and Pakistan, I reaffirmed Iran’s commitment to peace in the region. The only way to end this war—ignited by the Zionist regime & US—is recognizing Iran’s legitimate rights, payment of reparations, and firm int'l guarantees against future aggression.

Shaiel Ben-Ephraim @academic_la
 
After some conversations with Israeli officials on the war with Hezbollah, I can see they are very unhappy with how it is going. Here is why:
 
1) The IDF had prepared a major surprise strike against Hezbollah, but it was postponed twice by Netanyahu as they prioritized hitting Iran at the right moment. Once the war with Iran began, the element of surprise was lost.
2) Most aircraft, drones, and strike units were redirected to the more important Iran front. That meant Hezbollah was not hit that hard and was able to respond powerfully.  
3) Israeli intelligence believed that Hezbollah was deterred. But they went into this campaign with an unexpected gusto. Hezbollah fired over 150 rockets and missiles in a single day at northern Israel, including targets in Haifa and Nazareth. No one expected that.  
4) The IDF transferred the Golani Brigade from Gaza to Lebanon. Three division headquarters are now operating there, with 18 fortified positions inside Lebanese territory hunting Radwan Force fighters.
5) Hezbollah is, as a result of these miscalculations, pummeling the north, to the point that the residents of places like Kiryat Shmona, who have yet to rebuild their lives from the previous war, are begging Israel to stop.  
6) Iran and Hezbollah are more coordinated than expected. They use simultaneous missile barrages from both fronts aimed at overwhelming the Iron Dome. Sometimes successfully.  
7) The organization is more resilient than expected. Despite Israeli strikes on senior leadership, Hezbollah has stabilized its ranks by appointing four deputies for every commander, ensuring tactical continuity even under heavy fire.
8) Hezbollah fire on the IDF is more significant than expected and has killed two soldiers. Officials told me a fairly deep invasion into the Bekka valley is being considered.  
 
The bottom line is this, Israel is proving unable to wage effective campaigns in Iran and Lebanon. In both places they are failing to achieve their goals and are being hit on the home front harder than expected. The IDF is very unhappy with the poor planning and lack of strategic thinking that led to this point.

Israel Plans New Foothold on the Red Sea to Fight the Houthis
 
While the Iran war rages, Israel is quietly planning for a potential base at the mouth of the Red Sea from which to strike one of the Islamic Republic's last proxies still operating at full strength: the Houthis of Yemen.
 
That’s thanks to Somaliland, the breakaway territory on the Gulf of Aden that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government recognized in December — a move that handed Israel its first diplomatic presence across from Yemen. Now, the Jewish state will follow up with a strategic security partnership that may involve Israel building a base – possibly covert – on its pristine coast, despite widespread regional criticism, according to Khadar Hussein Abdi, Somaliland’s minister of the presidency.
 
(...)
 
The breakaway state will allow Israel to gather intelligence on and conduct operations against the Houthis, according to two Somaliland officials who requested anonymity as they’re not authorized to speak publicly. The Yemeni group has struck the Jewish state with long-range weapons and has for years disrupted trade in the Red Sea, one of the world’s most vital shipping corridors.
 
(...)
 
Israel has already begun laying the groundwork for a potential base. Last June, a small group of Israeli security officials arrived in Somaliland to visit its strategic coastline, according to people familiar with the matter.
 
The group spent days surveying the self-declared nation’s beaches, in order to identify a possible site for a base or installation to fight the Houthis, based just 260 kilometers (160 miles) across the Gulf of Aden in Yemen, the people said.  
 
(...)
 
The Houthis — considered a terrorist group by the US — have held their fire since the US-Israeli attacks on Iran, but remain Tehran’s most formidable proxy after Israel crippled both Hamas and Hezbollah. Tensions between the group and Israel escalated in 2023, after the Yemeni militia began bombing both the Red Sea and the Jewish state in retaliation for the war in Gaza.
 
(...)
 
An Israeli general has established a special intelligence unit on the Houthis and said in a background briefing with Bloomberg that they have hundreds of rockets that can reach Israel.
 
“The Israeli relationship with Somaliland matters in large part because the Houthis are expanding along the Horn of Africa,” said Ari Heistein, a research fellow at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security. “If the ongoing US-Israel campaign degrades Iran’s ability to support the movement, the region could become an even more critical strategic arena for them.”
 
The two governments had discussed Israeli recognition for years, according to regional officials. But the deal was sealed quickly late last year because of Israeli intelligence officers, who now view the Houthis as one of Israel’s greatest threats, according to regional diplomats and a senior Israeli military official.
 
Shortly after Israel’s recognition on Dec. 26, more than a dozen senior military officials from Somaliland travelled to Israel for training as part of a push to deepen security ties, according to people familiar with the matter. Israel also rented rooms fitted with blast-proof windows on the top floor of a hotel in Hargeisa, they said, as it scouts a location for an embassy.
 
(...)
 
Israel’s growing presence in Somaliland places the country in direct competition with Turkey, which is the main supporter of the central Somali government. It comes as Israeli officials have increasingly framed Ankara as a key threat to the Jewish state, with former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett recently referring to Turkey as “the new Iran.”
 
“For Israel, recognition of Somaliland offers a security counterweight to Houthi dominance in the Gulf of Aden,” said Conor Vasey, an analyst at the London-based advisory firm J.S. Held. “Specifically, it helps balance rising Turkish influence in Somalia.”
 
Turkey has developed its largest overseas military training base in Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital, and recently deployed F-16 jets to protect its interests in the country that include a ship exploring for offshore oil and gas. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Israel’s recognition of Somaliland illegal on a December trip to the region.
 
Beyond the Middle East powers jockeying for influence, the Islamist groups Al-Shabaab and Islamic State in Somalia have both threatened to attack Somaliland should Israel use the country for its own interests.
 
(...)