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Volume 17, Issue 07
“(President Trump) is also a man who speaks clearly and unambiguously and makes clear his views on issues. The first he’s made clear. The hostages need to come home and need to be released…That must happen, it is not optional. And I would add that that is a goal we share in common and that is a goal we work on together. The President also has been very bold about his view of what the future for Gaza should be, not the same tired ideas of the past, but something that is bold, and something that frankly took courage and vision in order to outline. And it might have shocked and surprised many. But what may not continue is the same cycle where we repeat over and over again, and wind up in the exact same place. Related to that, the President has been very clear. Hamas cannot continue as a military or government force, and frankly as long as it stands as a force that can govern, or as a force that can administer or as a force that can threaten by use of violence, peace becomes impossible. They
must be eliminated. They must be eradicated.”
--Secretary of State Marco Rubio, February 16, 2025
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** This Week's Featured Article
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** By Sarah Stern | February 16, 2025
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As Israel has fought to dismantle much of Hamas’ infrastructure in Gaza, and the international community is evaluating President Trump’s plan, many in the foreign policy world have been wondering what the population itself, in Gaza believes. Although the totalitarian, terrorist regime of Hamas, which remains in control of the population, has placed a sealed blockage of communication around the true feelings of the inhabitants, Ahed and Hadeel work for an organization that has been able to send people into Gaza and document their actual feelings.
They have created a platform for voices that otherwise would have been silenced, and unknown to the outside world.
Beyond that, both Ahed and Hadeel are Syrian refugees who were imprisoned and tortured by the Bashar al-Assad regime for founding a secular, anti-regime student organization. Come and hear their firsthand accounts of their experiences under Assad’s rule, as well as their assessments of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and the administration of Ahmed al-Sharaa (Mohammad al-Jolani).
Ahed is a senior fellow at the Center for Peace Communications, has written for Foreign Affairs, and has worked with Advancing Human Rights and the Extremist Watch Desk at Voice of America.
Hadeel Oueis is a writer and journalist specializing in Middle Eastern affairs and a research fellow at the Center for Peace Communications. She majored in law and, in 2011, at the age of 18, was arrested by the Assad regime for her key role in the early days of the Syrian protests. In 2012, a U.S. delegation in Geneva met with Oueis and facilitated her relocation to the United States. She now analyzes U.S. policies in the Middle East for major Arabic networks and has reported extensively on the Jews of the Middle East for various Arabic publications.
The founder and President of the Center for Peace Communications, Joseph Braude, is an expert on the nexus of culture and politics in Arab societies and an active presence in the region’s media and policy debates. He studied Near Eastern languages at Yale and Arabic and Islamic history at Princeton. He developed his Arabic to broadcast quality over a seven-year stint on Moroccan national radio and added Persian to his Arabic and Hebrew as a graduate student at the University of Tehran.
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** EMET in the News
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** News
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Israel eliminates top Hamas commander in Lebanon ([link removed])
JNS
Freed hostage learned fate of family day before release, survived on love, wife says ([link removed])
Times of Israel
Saudi Arabia spearheads Arab scramble for alternative to Trump's Gaza plan ([link removed])
Reuters
Gaza deal emerged after intense 96 hours, US officials say ([link removed])
Reuters
Israel Sees Opening for Strikes on Iranian Nuclear Sites, U.S. Intelligence Finds ([link removed])
Wall Street Journal
Released Gaza Hostages Face Long, Wrenching Recoveries ([link removed])
Wall Street Journal
UAE envoy: Currently ‘no alternative’ to Trump plan for Gaza Strip ([link removed]) [link removed]
Columbus Jewish News
Scott, Rosen reintroduce Antisemitism Awareness Act in Senate ([link removed])
JNS
Israel likely to strike Iran in coming months, warns U.S. intelligence ([link removed])
Washington Post
Hamas will not release all Gaza hostages on Saturday, spokesman says ([link removed])
Jerusalem Post
The Historical Case for Trump’s Riviera ([link removed])
The Washington Free Beacon
Bound, gagged and starved: Released hostages report severe mistreatment by captors ([link removed])
Times of Israel
After meeting with Trump, Jordan's King Abdullah II reiterates 'steadfast opposition' to moving Palestinians out of Gaza ([link removed]) [link removed]
NBC News
PA has no intention of relinquishing its ‘pay for slay’ incentive, experts say ([link removed])
JNS
As hostages return, families of others still in Hamas captivity learn of loved ones’ fates ([link removed])
Jewish Insider
Analysis: Syria’s crackdown on smuggling sparks tensions with Hezbollah and Lebanon ([link removed])
FDD’s Long War Journal
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