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Dear A.,
The IDF
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carried out a "series of significant strikes" on 30 Hamas commanders and other terror targets overnight, after Hamas killed another Israeli soldier operating on the Israeli side of the yellow line.
Master Sergeant (res.) Yona Efraim "Efi" Feldbaum, 37, was killed by Hamas terrorists when they opened fire on a group of Israeli soldiers near Rafah yesterday. Efi
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leaves behind a wife and five young children.
May his memory forever be a blessing.
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Following the Israeli strikes, Defense Minister Israel Katz said that any member of Hamas will not be safe if the group continues to target IDF soldiers.
Katz
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added , there "will be no immunity for anyone in the leadership of the Hamas terror organization, neither for those wearing suits nor for those hiding in tunnels. Whoever raises a hand against IDF soldiers, his hand will be severed... whoever attacks IDF soldiers and breaches agreements will pay the full price."
President Trump, speaking to reporters on Air Force One, defended Israel's right to strike Hamas in response to its blatant violations. “They killed an Israeli soldier. So the Israelis hit back. And they should hit back," he said.
Trump also again
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warned Hamas that if they continue to break the ceasefire, they will face serious consequences. "Hamas is a very small part of peace in the Middle East, and they have to behave... if they’re not good, they’re going to be terminated."
Even Hamas's backers in Qatar have acknowledged that the terrorist group is to blame for the constant ceasefire violations.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Al Thani
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said that Hamas' killing of an Israeli soldier was "very disappointing and frustrating for us... What happened yesterday was a violation."
He also noted that there is a push for Hamas to "acknowledge that they need to disarm."
The United States must increase the pressure on Hamas and its sponsors in Qatar, Turkey and Iran to fully comply with the agreement and release all the hostages.
Continue to
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follow AIPAC on social media for the latest updates.
Jake Braunstein
Director of Policy Communications
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Family of murdered hostage speaks out over staged remains
The family of murdered hostage Ofir Tzarfati has blasted Hamas for staging his remains to look like a new slain hostage was found.
Israeli military drones caught Hamas bringing Ofir's remains out of a building, placing them in a hole, covering the remains in dirt and then "uncovering" them.
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You can watch the drone video here.
Ofir's mother, Rachel,
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said that the group's actions are like "a punch in the gut, an arrow to the heart, a wound that is reopened again and again."
Rachel added that "We thought we had come full circle, that we were able to lay Ofir to rest. But today we discovered that we never received all of him... Each time we open the grave, my heart opens and another little part of me is buried. And what turns the pain into something unbearable is the way Hamas chooses to play with the bodies of our boys."
Ofir's sister, Shoval, spoke out and said, "I stand here with a crown on my head, grateful for the privilege of having such a good brother. Ofir is a hero of love and light... his bright light continues to shine in the hearts of all of us."
MUST WATCH
Hamas forced hostages to eat worms in captivity
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Yosef Haim Ohana speaks out about his time in captivity, including how Hamas forced him to eat worms.
John Spencer: A safe zone in Gaza could turn survival into renewal
In
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a new op-ed in The Washington Post, John Spencer, executive director of the Urban Warfare Institute, writes that the safe zone being established by Israel in Gaza with support from the United States can be the foundation of a brighter future for Israelis and Palestinians.
“Creating a haven for civilians is essential, but safety alone is not a strategy. The real challenge is how to start building a better society once the fighting ends — how to turn survival into renewal. That requires not only engineering and diplomacy but also imagination…”
“The emerging safe zone needs to become more than a humanitarian bubble. Ideally, it would become the seed of Gaza’s rebirth, a physical example of what life without Hamas looks like. A community with functioning utilities, transparent governance, schools, playgrounds, markets and basic freedoms would be a deliberate challenge to Hamas’s narrative that only endless struggle defines Palestinian identity. It would show that life without Hamas is not surrender; it is liberation...”
“In Gaza, the first secure zone can become more than just a perimeter of safety. It can be the beginning of something greater, a place that proves Gaza’s next chapter does not have to be defined by ruins or rockets. Because the real enemy of Hamas is not Israel. It is hope. And nothing weakens despair more than proving that life can begin again.”
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Read the full op-ed here.
Israeli companies boosting the U.S. economy
A
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new report found that nearly 600 Israeli-founded companies have created more than 27,000 jobs in New York City, with an average income of over $160,000.
The companies generated $8.1 billion in total earnings, adding an estimated $12.4 billion in value to the city’s economy, and indirectly supporting an additional 50,000 jobs.
Expanding U.S.-Israel cooperation helps make both nations more prosperous.
Read and share this
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AIPAC memo on how Israel helps keep America safe, strong and prosperous.
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IDF stops another arms smuggling attempt
The IDF announced today that it had foiled yet another attempt to smuggle weapons into Israel from Egypt.
The military said that it had located a drone flying across the border and shot it down. The drone was carrying three assault rifles.
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Sanctions hurting Iran as oil sales, economy decline
Iran is offering the highest
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discounts on its oil sales to China in a year, as U.S. and international sanctions crack down on the regime’s illicit oil exports.
The United States is continuing to impose maximum pressure on Iran, including by implementing sanctions authorized by the Stop Harboring Iranian Petroleum (SHIP) Act that AIPAC successfully lobbied Congress to pass. U.S. diplomatic pressure also successfully restored snapback sanctions on Iran at the United Nations.
Iranian oil constitutes about 14% of China's oil imports; oil exports to China are a key source of revenue for the Iranian regime.
Meanwhile, the Iranian government was
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forced to take over one of the country’s largest private banks to prevent a major financial collapse. Longstanding U.S. sanctions have placed the country’s financial system under significant strain, with inflation at more than 30%.
The United States must continue to increase the economic pressure on the Iranian regime.
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The mission of AIPAC is to encourage and persuade the U.S. government to enact specific policies that create a strong, enduring and mutually beneficial relationship with our ally Israel.
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