Habib Siddiqui

  Muhannad Ayyash The ceasefire deal between Hamas and Israel is, first and foremost, a welcome relief for the Palestinians in Gaza who are suffering from a most brutal and horrific genocide. For 15 months, they have endured daily bombings, killings, threats, imprisonment, starvation, disease, and other hardships that are difficult for most people to even imagine, let alone live through and survive. The deal will not come into effect until at least Sunday, January 19, 2025, not coincidentally a day before Donald Trump’s inauguration as president of the United States. While some are attributing the success of the agreement to the Trump administration’s unique ability to pressure Israel, it is critical to underscore that Trump is a master of political theatre and undoubtedly wanted Israel to agree to a ceasefire just before his inauguration so that he can use it to boost his political capital. In other words, Trump did not pressure Netanyahu to accept the agreement because he genuine...

  According to the January 8   Guardian,  the  New York Times  refused to publish an anti-war ad from the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) that referred to Israel’s actions in Gaza as “genocide.” The  Times  followed outgoing President Joe Biden in refusing to accept the genocide label for Israel’s massive bombings in densely populated areas, the targeting of doctors and journalists, and the ethnic cleansing of Gazans through repeated evacuations, and starvation as a war weapon. Meanwhile, Israel has increasingly justified its scorched earth devastation of the Gaza Strip as a fight against  terrorists  and  terrorism.   On college campuses. pro-Palestinian protestors have faced calls of  antisemitism. Those three oft-used words (genocide, terrorism and antisemitism) warrant examination in the context of Gaza and the U.S.   What do those words mean and how are they being used? Genocide.  According to the ...

  In early January, most of the major military forces of Iran participated in a large military  exercise   called Payambar-e Azam (Great Prophet), which started as an annual exercise 19 years ago. These forces included the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Basij Resistance Force, and took place in the air, on land, and in the sea. The exercises began in Iran’s western Kermanshah province, with the Mirza Kuchak Khan Brigade in the lead. Mirza Kuchak Khan (1880-1921) successfully led the  Jangal  (forest) Uprising in northern Iran in 1918 against the British and counter-revolutionary Tsarist forces. Then, after a triumph, he created the short-lived Socialist Republic of Gilan in June 1920 (which was eventually overthrown by the Shah’s forces in September 1921). That a brigade of forces in the Islamic Republic is named after this socialist warrior is interesting by itself, but not germane to the fact that these Special Forces are now playing a l...

US Major General: Israeli pullout on a ‘very positive path’ by Jason Ditz   January 16, 2025 at 12:54 pm ET   Categories News Tags Israel ,  Lebanon ,  Pentagon US Special Envoy  Amos Hochstein offered a “guarantee”  over the weekend that Israel would fully withdraw from Lebanon by the 60-day ceasefire deadline. The official US maintains this is still the plan, and with just 10 days left in that ceasefire, Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, the Chairman of the US-run body meant to oversee the ceasefire, claimed the pullout was “ on a very positive path .” The reality on the ground seems quite different, with the  Lebanese National News Agency reporting  that Israeli ground troops have conducted new incursions into multiple southern towns, including Taybeh and Maroun al-Ras. Israel first invaded Taybeh two weeks ago,  burning a number of civilian homes  and then “withdrawing.” Today the troops and bulldozers returned, firing machine guns in multip...

Among the dead are 21 children and 25 women by Dave DeCamp   January 16, 2025 at 2:07 pm ET   Categories News Tags Gaza ,  Israel Israeli strikes on Gaza have been relentless since it was announced on Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had reached a ceasefire deal, which is expected to take effect on Sunday. Al Jazeera  reported that as of Thursday night in Gaza,  at least 87 Palestinians had been killed  since the ceasefire was announced, including 21 children and 25 women. At least 40 of the dead were killed since dawn on Thursday. Mourners stand near the bodies of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes ahead of a ceasefire set to take effect on Sunday, in Gaza City, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas Israeli attacks on Thursday included heavy bombing in northern Gaza. In Jabalia,  at least 20 Palestinians  were killed by Israeli strikes. Israeli strikes also pounded Gaza City, including an attack that hit a school-turned-shelter and  ...

There was perhaps no worse president than Genocide Joe and no worse foreign secretary than Antony Blinken in the history of the USA. They were meant for each other. Both war criminals and should belong to the Hague. Simply worst of the SOFs/SOBs or bastards, in pure English. They are a disgrace to their faith and entire humanity. May they die in sufferings and pains and rot in hell. This is how their victims feel about them. See the report below on Blinken's last press conference. ==========   Chaos erupted at Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s final press conference Thursday after an announced  Israel-Hamas cease-fire and hostage deal , with State Department employees forcibly removing reporters who accused the cabinet official of allowing a “genocide” in Gaza. State Department aides escorted Grayzone News journalist Max Blumenthal from the briefing room, while security guards dragged independent journalist Sam Husseini away, as Blinken was hailing the cease-fire a...