Middle East Press on: Gaza, Israel, Yemen, Houthis, Trump, Syria, Assad: New Age Islam's Selection, 17 January 2025
By New Age Islam Edit Desk
17 January 2025
Will Gaza Return To October 6 After The Deal?
Will Yemen's Houthis Get Away With A Year Of Attacks On Israel?
President Trump, Help Israel Become Great Again
The New Syria, As Israel Wants It
The Palestinians In Syria, The Long Path Of Pain And The Outdated Assad Era
Israel Must Be Held To Account In Wake Of Gaza Ceasefire
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Will Gaza Return To October 6 After The Deal?
By Jpost Editorial
January 17, 2025
We fully support the deal to get the hostages home that Israel and Hamas agreed to in Qatar – but with reservations.
As President Isaac Herzog told the nation on Wednesday night in his appeal to the government to approve the agreement, the deal was a “necessary move.”
“There is no greater moral, human, Jewish, or Israeli obligation than to bring our sons and daughters back to us – whether to recover at home, or to be laid to rest,” he said.
Nevertheless, failure to acknowledge that the agreement is fraught with potentially dangerous pitfalls that have far-reaching implications for the future security of Israel would be irresponsible.
Similarly, acknowledging those dangers does not necessarily make you a proponent of keeping the hostages in captivity or stepping in line with hardline coalition members, such as Itamar Ben-Gvir or Bezalel Smotrich. It’s simply being realistic.
And those views – which are held by many camps in the Israeli landscape, including some families of hostages that have been held in Gaza for 468 days – should be considered and not simply dismissed as hawkish nonsense aimed at continuing the war.
The downsides of the agreement are clear for all to see. As Herzog said, “Let there be no illusions. This deal – when signed, approved, and implemented – will bring with it deeply painful, challenging, and harrowing moments… among the greatest challenges we have ever known.”
The deal will release some 1,000 Palestinian terrorists from Israeli prisons, making the region an inestimably more dangerous place. We know what happened in the years after the Gilad Schalit release. Security experts are predicting that the effects of this wave of releases will be even worse.
The troubling future
As troubling, if not more so, is the ambiguity over the future of Hamas.
In all of the material that has been leaked or revealed about the details of the deal, and neither in US President Biden’s lengthy announcement about the agreement on Wednesday night, has there been nary a mention of what the world plans to do about Hamas and its cruel abuse of the Gazan people.
For those who forged the deal and pushed it through – the Biden and Trump administrations, working hand in hand with Egypt and Qatar – an immediate ceasefire and end to the war, the return of the hostages, and the beginning of efforts to rebuild Gaza were the driving elements.
The issue of whether Hamas will continue to thrive – as a terrorist government and as the leading force in Gaza – took a back seat.
Biden, in his remarks on Wednesday night, said: “This deal will halt the fighting in Gaza, surge much needed-humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families after more than 15 months in captivity.”
But there was no mention of Hamas retaining control of Gaza.
Trump, for his part, wrote on his social media platform: “With this deal in place, my National Security team, through the efforts of Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, will continue to work closely with Israel and our Allies to make sure Gaza NEVER again becomes a terrorist safe haven.”
Exactly how that will take place, however, hasn’t been delineated anywhere.
As Israel prepares to make the ultimate sacrifice to return its citizens home and stop fighting the force that unleashed all of this evil on October 7, 2023, it’s incumbent to know that Gaza cannot once again be used as a launching pad for rocket attacks or ground invasions by Hamas.
Thursday’s delay in the cabinet meeting and approval of the deal demonstrates how delicate and problematic the process will be over the next few months, assuming it gets off the ground.
Perhaps the only way to get our hostages home is to kick the thorniest of issues down the road – such as who is going to replace Hamas as a functioning non-terrorist government that will focus on rehabilitating Gaza instead of spending a fortune on tunnels and rockets to attack Israel.
Or will the advocates of the deal simply admit silently that Hamas is going nowhere, and when the last Israeli troops leave Gaza, we’ll find ourselves in exactly the same situation we were in on October 6, 2023?
Yes, the deal must be accepted, even if that is the case. The hostages are sacrosanct.
But as always seems to be the case when Israel is forced to make huge concessions to save its own people, we must increase our vigilance and internalize that after this 15-month war, our enemy has not gone anywhere.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-837860
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Will Yemen's Houthis Get Away With A Year Of Attacks On Israel?
By Seth J. Frantzman
January 16, 2025
Among the groups that appear ready to end their attacks if a ceasefire happens in Gaza are the Iranian-back Houthis. However, the Houthis appear to be holding out for certain conditions to be met. This has left those closely monitoring the Red Sea with questions about what comes next.
This is important because the Houthis started attacks on Israel and shipping in the wake of the Hamas attack. They have now decided to possibly end those attacks. However, this will let them apparently walk away without any kind of punishment for their actions.
The website GCaptain notes that “Maritime stakeholders are closely monitoring the development, as the agreement could be a turning point for vessels in the Red Sea region, where ships have endured numerous drone and missile attacks since October 7, 2023. These attacks have forced much of global trade to divert around the Cape of Good Hope—significantly extending voyage times while raising both costs and emissions.”
The Houthis have attacked numerous ships and escalated their attacks throughout the war in Gaza. They launched cruise missiles, drones, and ballistic missiles at Israel. They have shifted their focus at times from attacking Eilat to attacking shipping to targeting central Israel with ballistic missiles.
Several decades ago, this kind of attack would have been seen as very serious. Israel, in the past, viewed attempts to blockade Eilat as a reason for going to war. In the Gulf War, when Saddam Hussein launched Scud missiles at Israel, it was a major crisis and left lasting scars.
Today, Israel has been led to accept missile and drone attacks from numerous fronts. This is because the Hamas attack on October 7 was so brutal that Israel sees the Houthi front as one of the smaller fronts. This has led to a kind of acceptance of the attacks.
Israel hasn't left Houthi aggression unanswered
Israel did retaliate six times, but those attacks, most of them focused on ports in Yemen, have not deterred the Houthis. In fact, the attacks on the Houthis may actually show that Israel will face an uphill struggle to attack Iran if Israel tries to go that route to prevent a nuclear Iran.
This is because the attacks on the Houthis did not stop them, and they had missiles hidden in caves. It turns out it is harder than it looks to strike at underground cave complexes that have missiles in them.
The international community also appeased the Houthis, for the most part. The US and several other countries tried to deter the Houthis, but they were unsuccessful. This has taught the region a lesson: Attacks on ships may go unanswered.
Iran has empowered groups like the Houthis to use them as proxies. Because the Houthis are not a “state,” they can often get away with whatever they want. They have pirated at least one ship, for instance. No one seems to even report on what has become of the crew of Galaxy Leader ship that the Houthis seized.
This illustrates how this group gets away with crimes. The Houthis claimed they were backing Gaza, but their attacks on ships targeted innocent civilian crews of commercial ships. The international community did not come out of this looking strong. Shipping lanes were threatened.
The message from the Houthis is that they decide the time and place of attacks. The message they think will resonate is that they got away with this. Time will tell if this is the case.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-837856
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President Trump, Help Israel Become Great Again
By Zvika Klein
January 16, 2025
As you stand in front of the mirror, straightening your tie and preparing to don that crisp new suit for your inauguration, take a few moments to reflect on everything you’ve accomplished—and everything still ahead. This inauguration isn’t just about stepping into office; but about your opportunity to step into history. The decisions you will make in the coming months will shape American history, your own legacy, but also the course of global events.
While you rehearse your keynote speech, take the upcoming hostage deal between Israel and Hamas and think about it. This a powerful example of what your leadership is able to achieve. Your involvement, alongside the trusted guidance of your envoy, Steve Witkoff, made all the difference.
Many people worked hard to move this forward, but your decisive action was the breakthrough. Thanks to you, there’s now a 42-day ceasefire in place, and 33 Israeli hostages are coming home. That’s a big deal, something Israel tried to achieve for too many months. This is proof that when you weigh into a potential deal - things happen.
You’ve shown the world what bold, hands-on leadership looks like, especially in your collaboration with Prime Minister Netanyahu in promoting this deal. You knew exactly when to push when to pull back, and when to make the final call. This deal isn’t just a resolution to a difficult crisis but also a reaffirmation of America’s support for Israel. It tells the world that the United States stands by its allies, no matter how high the stakes.
But as you adjust your cufflinks and prepare to take that oath of office once more, it’s worth considering the bigger picture. Remember May 2024? A similar deal almost came together but fell apart when Hamas backed out. That moment emphasizes the need for a long-term vision that ensures Israel isn’t caught in these cycles of compromise over and over again. You need to help us to respond to crises as they arise; help us build a future where such crises don’t happen anymore.
This is your moment to think beyond the immediate. Your leadership has already achieved so much, but now you have the chance to help guide Israel toward lasting security—ending cycles of terror, hostage-taking, and uncertainty. Imagine looking back years from now, knowing that your presidency wasn’t just about standing with Israel in its most challenging hours but about ensuring its strength and safety for generations to come.
As you finish getting ready and prepare to step onto that grand stage, know this: The world sees your leadership. The world respects your strength. And the world is watching to see how you’ll shape what comes next.
Listen to the voices close to you who understand the complexity of this situation. Allow Israel to achieve victory—not another uneasy ceasefire that releases thousands of dangerous individuals for a fraction of our own people.
These hostages endured horrors that, at times, mirrored or surpassed the atrocities of Auschwitz, and it is symbolic that this week marks 80 years since Auschwitz’s liberation by American forces. Let this reminder of history guide your decisions.
Pro-Israel dream team
Empower your pro-Israel dream team: Mike Huckabee, nominated as ambassador to Israel, has said, “Israel has every right to its biblical homeland, and the West Bank is a part of that history.”
Your pick for Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has been very clear about Hamas. “Hamas is not a political organization; it’s a terrorist group whose only goal is the destruction of Israel,” he stated last year. Rubio is the diplomat Israel needs in its corner right now.
Pete Hegseth, tapped for Secretary of Defense, has been equally resolute. “Israel has every right to defend itself, and America should stand shoulder to shoulder with our ally against Iranian aggression,” he declared during a policy forum. He has a military background and clear understanding of the threats facing Israel, and he’ll bring strength and clarity to our defense strategy in the Middle East.
And then there’s Representative Michael Waltz, your incoming National Security Adviser, who recently credited your leadership for shaping the recent ceasefire. “Hamas only agreed because they know Trump doesn’t play games. Under him, they’d face a much tougher deal,” he said.
This team represents the best of what America can offer Israel—principled, decisive leadership that prioritizes action over appeasement. With their expertise and your vision, this is your chance not just to support Israel but to cement its place as a secure and thriving nation in the region. As you’ve said before, Mr. President, “We don’t just talk about making things better. We do it.” Now is the time to show the world what that means. Help make Israel great, once again.
History will remember whether you allowed Israel to stand victorious or settle for less. Make it count.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-837921
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The New Syria, As Israel Wants It
By Dr Mohammad Abu Rumman
January 16, 2025
Since the fall of Bashar Al-Assad’s regime over a month ago, Arab and regional powers are primarily worried about the Iranian agenda, as Iran is unlikely to accept the bitterness of defeat in Syria and may instead attempt to support internal chaos and play the sectarian card. Another major concern is Turkiye’s agenda, as many Arab countries view Turkiye with suspicion due to its continued support of political Islamic movements both in Syria and across the broader region, despite Turkish regional policies’ major transformations. However, we do not see any real apprehension by the Arabs towards the ruling Israeli right’s agenda and its real visions for the new Syria, or in more precise terms, the geopolitical shift required by Israel on the level of the entire region.
What all Arabs should be concerned about, along with Iran and Turkiye’s agendas, is the right-wing Zionist vision of Syria and the region, especially with the return of Donald Trump and his right-wing team that will be complicit. As for Iran, it has no real cards left to play in Syria, is currently in a phase of its regional influence being torn apart and is in a state of defence and concern about the existence of an American-Israeli agenda for a direct and indirect attack on Tehran. As for Turkiye, it has a strategic agenda and interests with the new Syria, but they are shared, and Turkiye will be a sponsor and supporter of the new regime. There is no real concern about Turkish influence, but it may be very positive in light of the economic conditions, the destroyed infrastructure and the absence of the army and security in Syria.
On the other hand, why should we worry about the Israeli agenda? In short, it is mainly based on the theory that Israel’s security in the long term depends on fragmenting and dividing Syria and playing the minorities card, as well as perhaps creating states representing the Alawites, Druze and Kurds. This agenda has been in place since the moment the Al-Assad regime fell, seen through Israel’s haste to destroy the entire military structure of the former Syrian army, destroy weapons depots, expand into southern Syria in the forbidden zone, and declare the ceasefire in 1974 invalid. It also includes control of Mount Hermon, which represents a strategic line of defence for both Syria and Lebanon and with Israel’s control over it, southern Syria and even Damascus have become strategically exposed.
Israel did not wait for the world’s approval or international resolutions but rather moved quickly within a few hours to control the area, and Netanyahu even went to visit. Yedioth Ahronoth recently revealed, quoting Israeli officials, Israel’s intentions to maintain control over approximately 15 kilometres and an intelligence distance of up to 60 kilometres in Syria. This would mean it is imposing a strategic and security occupation and almost absolute control over the southern region, initially, and in preparation for widening the scope of the occupation army’s strategic operations in the event of chaos in the south to expand the buffer zones.
Could Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) have stopped the Israeli project? Certainly not, especially since US interests in Syria are linked to Israel, and there is no equating the HTS and the occupation. This is in addition to the fact that the HTS priorities today are much more treacherous in dealing with unity, security, stability and many challenges, but what happened reveals the real difference between countries (and regimes) that have real strategic visions and the Arab environment that is still stumbling, differing and confused about how to deal with the new Syrian reality.
It is very sad that Israel has taken control of the vital water resources of Jordan and Syria in the Yarmouk Basin, which could have solved a major problem for Jordan, and that the Israeli army has set out to threaten the people and villages in Syria and disarm them. Israel has seized this opportune moment to redraw the region’s map in its favour, leveraging its clear security objectives and strategic interests to impose its agenda on the international community.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250116-the-new-syria-as-israel-wants-it/
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The Palestinians In Syria, The Long Path Of Pain And The Outdated Assad Era
By Nabil Al-Sahli
January 16, 2025
This applies to Palestinian refugees in Syria who have suffered from the injustice and tyranny of the Al-Assad regime, just like the Syrian people. Therefore, the Palestinian refugees in Syria have also participated in the Syrian Revolution since the beginning.
The Action Group for Palestinians of Syria has documented 3,085 cases of arrest by the fugitive criminal regime since the beginning of the Syrian Revolution in 2011, including 28 children and 117 women; 643 people died under torture, while only 48 people were released after the fall of the tyrant Bashar Al-Assad’s regime. Of course, young Palestinian activists there documented Palestinian detainees, the forcibly disappeared and martyrs in Syria. It is important to point out that the criminal regime of Al-Assad and the sectarian Shia militias from Iraq and other nationalities, such as the Fatemiyoun and Zainabiyoun militias, arrested more than 2,000 Palestinians after they fled from the south of Yarmouk Camp through the Ali Al-Wahsh area. Their fate remains unknown.
Among the young Palestinian martyrs who were tortured in the prisons of the fugitive tyrant are Ahmed Amairi, Mohammed Amairi, Yazan Arisha and Hassan Hassan. The fate of the young detainee Khaled Bakrawi remains unknown. The well-known young martyrs who were martyred in Yarmouk are Bassam Hamidi and Ahmed Taha, and the photojournalist Tariq Al-Khader was martyred in Daraa. It is worth noting that a number of officers and soldiers from the Palestine Liberation Army defected and stood by the Syrian people. I remember among them was Colonel Qahtan Tabasheh, who was martyred while defending Daraa in southern Syria and its people. There was also First Lieutenant Iyas Naimi, who was martyred defending the Yarmouk Camp and its people.
The horrific Tadamon massacre committed by the intelligence officer of the defunct Al-Assad regime on 16 April, 2013 (the fugitive criminal Amjad Yousef and his group) is considered a major indicator of the extent of crimes committed against the Syrian and Palestinian peoples. Among the victims of the massacre is Wassim Siam, a resident of the Yarmouk Camp on the well-known Al-Ja’ouneh Street in the middle of the camp. He is the son of the dear brother and friend Omar Siam, who is currently in Germany, along with his family and the family of his martyred son.
Most of the massacre’s martyrs were Palestinians from the Yarmouk and Tadamon areas east of Yarmouk. The entire family of Umm Ziad Amairi from Yarmouk was arrested during this. The total number of family members killed reached 90, most of whom were children. It is believed that they were executed in Tadamon and other areas in the region. I met the eldest son, Ziad, in 2014 in Lebanon, and he had wished for their deaths for fear of them being raped.
The refugees in Syria have become part of the Syrian social fabric, carrying in their movements and travels the dreams of return that have never left them. Most of the Palestinian camps in Syria have witnessed bombing and complete or partial destruction at the hands of the Al-Assad regime army, which is fleeing justice. This led to the destruction of large parts of the Palestinian camps and the displacement of about 250,000 Palestinians to several Western countries: Turkiye, Canada and Brazil. In addition to this was the internal displacement that affected tens of thousands, especially to the Sahnaya area and others. The major wave of displacement occurred after a MiG jet belonging to Al-Assad’s criminal regime bombed the Abdul Qadir Al-Husayni Mosque in the centre of Yarmouk Camp on Sunday, 16 December, 2012, at exactly 12:45 pm. As a result of that operation, 185 worshippers and displaced persons were martyred inside the mosque. This day was considered a turning point in the Palestinian situation in Syria. The total number of Palestinian refugees residing in Syria at the end of 2012 was estimated at 560,000. As for their geographical distribution, the data collected by the Syrian statistical groups indicate that 67 per cent of the total number of refugees are concentrated in the Syrian capital, Damascus, and the camps located in its suburbs, while the remaining 33 per cent are spread across the other governorates. In general, about 30 per cent of the total number of refugees in Syria are concentrated in nine refugee camps recognised by The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Syria, and it rises to 60 per cent if we count Palestinian refugees residing in Yarmouk Camp.
These figures do not include the number of Palestinian Arabs who came to Syria in 1967 and 1970, as they are not registered in UNRWA records in Syria. Hence, the actual number of Palestinian refugees in Syria is higher.
It goes without saying that the Palestinian people, in general, and the Palestinians of Syria, in particular, were overjoyed by the Syrian people overthrowing the Al-Assad regime, especially since the Palestinian refugees suffered, as did the Syrian people, from injustice and tyranny during the criminal Al-Assad era that lasted more than five decades. It is a well-known fact that the law regulating the lives of Palestinians in Syria in terms of their rights and duties, known as Law 260, was issued in 1956 before Hafez Al-Assad seized power in 1970.
He supported and adopted the split from the Fatah movement, the largest Palestinian faction, in 1983 and did not stop there. His security forces went further than that, arresting thousands of the movement’s members and throwing them into the toughest prisons and dungeons, which the entire world saw after the fall of Bashar Al-Assad’s regime.
These individuals spent many long years behind bars with great suffering. Among them were our brothers Dr Samir Al-Rifai, the current Palestinian ambassador to Damascus, the late Hosni Hamdan Abu Imad, Mustafa Al-Khoury Abu Mahmoud, Badi Hamzat, Haitham Shamloni, Alaa Al-Sabaa and Abu Taan.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250116-the-palestinians-in-syria-the-long-path-of-pain-and-the-outdated-assad-era/
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Israel Must Be Held To Account In Wake Of Gaza Ceasefire
Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib
January 16, 2025
A ceasefire in Gaza is set to take effect on Sunday and everyone is happy this nightmare might finally be over. But as we approach the “day after,” it is important to highlight what the responsibilities of Israel and the international community are to the people of Gaza.
Everyone is skeptical about whether Israel will comply. The Israeli far right definitely does not want a deal and does not care about the hostages. The country’s media (with the exception of Haaretz) has been taken over by the right and it keeps on spreading misinformation, claiming that Hamas has been blocking the deal.
A deal has now been agreed, but there is no clarity on whether Israel will withdraw from Gaza, which is why Hamas asked for maps. Also, the phase two negotiations will begin on the 16th day of the ceasefire. Hence, the Palestinians are entering a process without knowing exactly where it will take them. Nevertheless, the Palestinians just want a ceasefire. They deem that anything is better than what they are going through.
Regardless of the political and military details of the deal, the people of Gaza need urgent attention. Society in Gaza is decimated. Though the reported number killed is about 47,000, the real number is likely much higher. A study by British medical journal The Lancet estimates that the final death toll will probably be 40 percent higher. Most surviving Gazans have lost family members during the 15-month war. The entire community suffers from malnutrition and trauma.
The international community, which has been complicit in covering up for Israel, should put pressure on Tel Aviv to comply on several fronts. The first point is to allow humanitarian aid. Throughout the war, Israel has been using hunger as a weapon. It should not be allowed to do that anymore. During the war, it has done everything it can to prevent aid from reaching Gaza, starting with allowing Israeli fanatics to confiscate aid and destroy it at the border. It is also allowing gangs to steal the aid as it enters Gaza. This is to exonerate itself from any responsibility for such thefts. All these crooked practices should be banned. Whether Israel fully withdraws or not, humanitarian aid should be allowed to be distributed freely and should be protected by an international force.
The second point that should be enforced is not allowing Israel to steal any funds designated for the Palestinians. Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom last week reported that Tel Aviv had “repurposed” funds dedicated to the Palestinian Authority. The report claimed Israel used money from “the Norwegian fund” to settle a debt by the PA for the provision of electricity. This is just another way to cover up the theft of funds earmarked for Gaza. After the ceasefire, a huge amount of aid funding will flow into the afflicted Strip to cater for the urgent needs of Gazans. There should be a proper oversight of funds allocated to Gaza. Israel should not be allowed to take any cuts or divert any funds.
Israel should also be coerced into allowing the free flow of information. The ceasefire should be an opportunity to reveal the truth of its Gaza war to the world. Israel should not be allowed to restrict the movement or operation of the media. The world needs to see what Israel has been doing. It has been targeting every source of life of the Palestinians. It has been targeting places of worship. It has even been targeting humanitarian safe zones that were designated as such by the Israeli army.
Also, Israel has been targeting everyone of importance in society: doctors, researchers, university professors, poets, athletes and journalists. It wants to destroy society. It tried to eradicate any qualified person, any talent, in Gaza. The media is just beginning to dig deeper into Israel’s crimes. The BBC this week published a report in which it said Israel had struck a “humanitarian zone” almost 100 times since May. The media should be able to freely report the stories it has not been able to cover during the war.
Israel should also be held responsible for handling the 2 million people who are without housing and live without any proper sanitation or care.
The international community, especially Arab countries, which will be tasked with financing the rebuilding of Gaza, should be aware and vigilant. Israel will try to hide its crimes from the international community. This is an occasion to uncover the “shameful” situation in Gaza, as Pope Francis described it last week. Israel has so far claimed that all the accusations against it are not true. It claims that the number of casualties is being hyped up by Hamas. It claims that it has not been blocking aid, but rather Hamas is stealing it. All these lies should be dispelled. Even Tel Aviv’s allies should push for this, because it will pressure Israel into walking the line. If Israel feels there is no accountability for what it has done, it will repeat the same criminal act again in a few years’ time.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586677
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