“Britain recorded thousands of antisemitic incidents after the outbreak of war
between Israel and Hamas in October, making 2023 the worst year for UK
antisemitism since 1984, when Jewish advisory body CST began recording such
data, it said on Thursday. The number of antisemitic incidents across the
country reached 4,103, more than twice the figure in 2022, amid a surge of
threats, hate speech, violence and damage to Jewish institutions and property,
the Community Security Trust said. The CST, which advises Britain's estimated
280,000 Jews on security matters, said two-thirds of those incidents occurred
on or after Oct. 7, when Hamas militants rampaged through southern Israel,
killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostage."











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Eye on Extremism



February 15, 2024



Reuters: UK Records Worst Year For Antisemitism After Outbreak Of Israel-Hamas
War
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“Britain recorded thousands of antisemitic incidents after the outbreak of
war between Israel and Hamas in October, making 2023 the worst year for UK
antisemitism since 1984, when Jewish advisory body CST began recording such
data, it said on Thursday. The number of antisemitic incidents across the
country reached 4,103, more than twice the figure in 2022, amid a surge of
threats, hate speech, violence and damage to Jewish institutions and property,
the Community Security Trust said. The CST, which advises Britain's estimated
280,000 Jews on security matters, said two-thirds of those incidents occurred
on or after Oct. 7, when Hamas militants rampaged through southern Israel,
killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostage."



Associated Press: Gaza Cease-Fire And Hostage Release Talks Appear To Stall
As Netanyahu And Hamas Trade Blame
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“International efforts to broker a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas
suffered a setback on Wednesday as Israel reportedly recalled its negotiating
team and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of hobbling the
high-stakes negotiations by sticking to “delusional” demands. Netanyahu’s
remarks came hours after local media reported that the Israeli leader had
ordered an Israeli delegation not to continue talks in Cairo, raising concerns
over the fate of the negotiations and sparking criticism from the families of
the roughly 130 remaining captives, about a fourth of whom are said to be dead.
The relatives of the hostages said Netanyahu’s decision amounted to a “death
sentence” for their loved ones."



CEP Mentions



WTOP News: Israeli Operation To Destroy Hamas Could Be Terrorist Propaganda
Bonanza
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“Israel’s military is planning a military operation in southern Gaza to go
after the remaining members of Hamas. On this week’s episode of “The Hunt with
WTOP national security correspondent JJ Green,” Dr. Hans Jakob Schindler
suggests that the operation could be a gold mine for terrorist propaganda.”



United States



Associated Press: On The USS Eisenhower, 4 Months Of Combat At Sea Facing
Houthi Missiles And A New Sea Threat
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"... While the Houthis have launched unmanned surface vessels, or USVs, in
the past against Saudi coalition forces that have intervened in Yemen’s civil
war, they were used for the first time against U.S. military and commercial in
the Red Sea on Jan. 4. In the weeks since, the Navy has had to intercept
multiple USVs, including one on Wednesday. It’s “more of an unknown threat that
we don’t have a lot of intel on, that could be extremely lethal — an unmanned
surface vessel,” said Rear Adm. Marc Miguez, commander of Carrier Strike Group
Two, of which the Eisenhower is the flagship. The Houthis “have ways of
obviously controlling them just like they do the (unmanned aerial vehicles),
and we have very little little fidelity as to all the stockpiles of what they
have USV-wise,” Miguez said.”



Iran



Reuters: Iran Will Reciprocate If Its Ships Are Seized, Official Says
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“Iran will reciprocate if its ships are seized, the legal adviser to Iran's
President told state media on Thursday, in response to a statement by the
United States Department of Justice. This month, the Department of Justice
issued a statement announcing the seizure of more than 500,000 barrels of
Iranian fuel to clamp down on the "Revolutionary Guards' financing network".
"If an Iranian ship is seized, we will reciprocate and the legal way is not
closed in this regard," legal adviser Mohammad Dehghan said, adding that he was
not able to confirm whether U.S. authorities had seized an Iranian vessel."



Turkey



Associated Press: Leaders Of Turkey And Egypt Unite In Efforts To Stop
Israel’s Looming Offensive In Gaza’s Rafah
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“Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Edrogan and Egypt’s leader united their
efforts Wednesday in Cairo, calling for a halt to Israel’s looming offensive on
a southern Gaza city in its war against Hamas. Erdogan’s visit comes as ties
between Ankara and Cairo are back on track after years of tensions and frosty
relations. Turkey has long been a backer of the pan-Islamist Muslim Brotherhood
group, which has been outlawed as a terrorist organization in Egypt."



Afghanistan



Voice Of America: UN Seeks Taliban's Presence At Qatar-Hosted Huddle On
Afghanistan
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“The United Nations says it would like to see Taliban representatives attend
a two-day international conference on Afghanistan that will take place in Qatar
next week. Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said Wednesday the
Taliban would participate in the February 18 meeting, provided they are
received as official representatives of Afghanistan. U.N. Secretary-General
Antonio Guterres will host the two-day session, with member states and regional
organizations’ special envoys on Afghanistan in attendance. Stephane Dujarric,
the secretary-general’s spokesperson, said that the objective of the meeting is
to discuss the international engagement approach with the Taliban since they
reclaimed power."



Pakistan



Reuters: Ex-Pakistan Premier Imran Khan Nominates Omar Ayub As PM Candidate:
Aide
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"A key aide of former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan said on Thursday
that the jailed leader had nominated Omar Ayub Khan as a candidate in a
parliamentary vote to elect a new premier following last week's national
elections. The polls did not return a clear majority for anyone, but
independent candidates backed by Khan won 92 out of 264 seats making them the
largest group. Khan ruled out alliances with the three largest parties, which
means his candidate currently does not have the numbers to form government."



Lebanon



BBC: Israel Launches Deadly Air Strikes In Lebanon After Rockets Hit Army Base
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“A woman and two children were killed in Souaneh, and at least four members
of a family were later killed in Nabatieh. At least two Hezbollah fighters were
also killed in attacks in southern Lebanon, the group said. Israel's military
said it hit Hezbollah infrastructure in response to a deadly rocket attack on
northern Israel. Hezbollah fighters have exchanged fire with Israeli forces
almost every day along the border since the start of the war between Israel and
the Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip in October.”



Middle East



Reuters: Palestinian UNRWA Agency Faces 'Deep' Cash Crunch In April, Chief Says

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“The U.N. Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) said on Thursday that the cash
crunch it is facing next month will get far worse in April if it cannot secure
fresh funding or convince donors to resume suspended contributions. UNRWA chief
Philippe Lazzarini was speaking in Dublin, where Ireland announced 20 million
euros in support for the agency and urged countries that have suspended funding
to "urgently rescind that decision" and resume and expand their support. UNRWA,
which provides healthcare, education and other services, has been pitched into
crisis since Israel alleged that 12 of its 13,000 staff in Gaza were involved
in the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel that precipitated the Israel-Hamas
war."



The Washington Post: Israel Complains After Vatican Denounces 'Carnage' And
Disproportionate Response In Gaza
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“Israel has formally complained after a senior Vatican official spoke of
“carnage” in Gaza and what he termed a disproportionate Israeli military
operation following the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks. The Israeli Embassy to the Holy
See called the comments by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of
state, “deplorable.” In a statement Wednesday, the embassy said Parolin hadn’t
considered what it called the relevant facts in judging the legitimacy of
Israel’s actions. Speaking Monday at a reception, Parolin condemned the Oct. 7
Hamas attacks against Israel and all forms of antisemitism. But he questioned
Israel’s claim to be acting in self-defense by inflicting “carnage” on Gaza.
“Israel’s right to self-defense has been invoked to justify that this operation
is proportional, but with 30,000 dead, it’s not,” he said.”



Associated Press: Israeli Forces Storm Main Hospital In Southern Gaza After
Prolonged Standoff And Partial Evacuation
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“Israeli forces stormed the main hospital in southern Gaza on Thursday, hours
after Israeli fire killed a patient and wounded six others inside the complex.
The Israeli army said it was a limited operation seeking the remains of
hostages taken by Hamas. The raid came a day after the army sought to evacuate
thousands of displaced people who had taken shelter at Nasser Hospital in Khan
Younis. The southern city has been one of the main targets of Israel’s
offensive against Hamas in a war that also has fueled escalating violence
between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group over the last 48 hours.
The military said it had “credible intelligence” that Hamas had held hostages
at the hospital and that the remains of hostages might still be inside."



United Kingdom



Reuters: Ireland To Give UNRWA 20 Mln Euros After Key Donors Suspend Aid
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“Ireland announced 20 million euros ($21.46 million) in support for the U.N.
Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) on Thursday and urged countries that have
suspended funding to resume and expand support to the agency. UNRWA, which
provides healthcare, education and other services, has been pitched into crisis
since Israel alleged that 12 of its 13,000 staff in Gaza were involved in the
Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel that precipitated the Israel-Hamas war. The
allegations prompted a number of countries to suspend funding, including the
United States, its largest donor."



Associated Press: Russia And China Clash With US And UK Over Attacks On Yemen
Rebels For Strikes On Red Sea Ships
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“Russia and China on Wednesday accused the United States and Britain of
illegally attacking military sites used by Yemen’s Houthi rebels to launch
missiles at commercial vessels in the Red Sea, disrupting global shipping. U.S.
deputy ambassador Robert Wood and UK Ambassador Barbara Woodward countered that
the Houthi attacks are illegal, and their “proportionate and legal action”
against the Yemen rebels are being taken in self-defense. Woodward said the
Houthi attacks are “driving up the costs of global shipping, including the
costs of food supplies and humanitarian aid in the region.”



Canada



Reuters: Canada, Australia, NZ Call For Immediate Ceasefire In Gaza Ahead Of
Rafah Assault
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“The leaders of Canada, Australia and New Zealand on Thursday called for an
immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, according to a joint statement
released in response to reports about Israel's planned military operation in
Rafah. "We are gravely concerned by indications that Israel is planning a
ground offensive into Rafah. A military operation into Rafah would be
catastrophic," the statement by the prime ministers of the three countries
said. "An immediate humanitarian ceasefire is urgently needed." Israel will
press ahead with an offensive against Hamas in Rafah, the last refuge for
displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza, after allowing civilians to vacate the
area, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday."



Technology



Forbes: X Accused Of Profiting From Banned Terrorist Groups
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“A campaign group has accused X of granting blue checkmarks to terrorist
organizations that should be subject to U.S. sanctions. The Tech Transparency
Project said it has identified more than a dozen X accounts for U.S.-sanctioned
entities that have been given the paid-for checkmark, which, it said, confer a
variety of perks, including the ability to post longer text and videos and
greater visibility for some posts. These accounts, said the TTP, are listed by
the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control as Specially Designated
Nationals, with whom U.S. nationals and U.S. incorporated entities are
prohibited from trading without a license, or waiver, from the government."



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