Israeli government used fake websites and social media to promote pro-Israel, anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim content

 

Israel News, Wednesday, 05.06.2024     View in browser

PM Netanyahu said Israel is 'prepared for very powerful action' on its northern front with Lebanon's Hezbollah. The Israeli government is set to vote on authorizing the IDF to raise the number of reservists in active duty to 350,000 by the end of August. The Israeli government is behind a large-scale influence campaign primarily targeting Black lawmakers and young progressives in North America that used fake websites and social media to promote pro-Israel, anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim content. An armed man opened fire at the U.S. Embassy near Beirut. Reconciliation talks between Hamas and Palestinian President Abbas' Fatah party will take place in China in mid-June. Here's what you need to know 243 days into the war     What happened today     ■ HOSTAGES/CEASE-FIRE: Hamas will deal "seriously and positively" with any cease-fire agreement based on the total halt of war, complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and hostage-Palestinian prisoners swap deal, Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh said in a statement, Reuters reported. U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said "we are waiting for a response from Hamas" through the Qatari mediators, Sullivan said, adding that CIA Director Bill Burns will be in Doha to consult with Qatari mediators on the deal. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said that "all negotiations with Hamas will be conducted under fire." Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's Otzma Yehudit party said that it won't commit to voting with the government in the Knesset until PM Netanyahu "stops hiding the draft agreement with Hamas" from the minister. "If Israel's leaders need polls to know that saving the hostages is a moral imperative, not to mention ending the war, then Israel's leaders, Netanyahu and all other architects of this war, must have lost their minds, and their hearts" – Dahlia Scheindlin ■ LEBANON: Eleven people were wounded, one critically, when a Hezbollah drone hit the northern Israeli town of Hurfeish. During a tour of northern Israel, IDF chief Herzl Halevi said that the IDF is ready to transition to an offensive in Lebanon and that the country is approaching "the point where a decision will have to be made" on the matter. The IDF said that the Air Force struck Hezbollah targets overnight into Wednesday across south Lebanon. Human Rights Watch accused Israel of using white phosphorus incendiary shells on residential buildings in at least five towns and villages in southern Lebanon, possibly harming civilians and violating international law. The HRW report said that there was no evidence of burn injuries due to white phosphorus in Lebanon, but that researchers had "heard accounts indicating possible respiratory damage." An armed man opened fire at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut. Soldiers from the Lebanese army returned fire and arrested the shooter, a Syrian national who was wounded and evacuated to a hospital. U.S. National Security Advisor Sullivan told NBC that one Lebanese soldier was wounded and that the U.S. is "working closely with local authorities…to ensure there is no continuing threat." ■ ISRAEL-LEBANON: PM Netanyahu visited the northern Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona after fires triggered by rockets from Lebanon caused extensive damage over the past few days. During the visit, Netanyahu said "yesterday the ground was set alight here, but it was also set alight in Lebanon. We are prepared for very powerful action in the north." Kiryat Shmona Mayor Avichai Stern, who was not invited to meet the PM during his visit, accused Netanyahu of engaging in "cheap politics during wartime" and that "everything's a show for this government." The decision not to meet with Stern was also criticized by Interior Minister Moshe Arbel, saying it "indicates poor judgement and a lack of statesmanship during wartime." "An all-out war with Hezbollah would once again delay a hostage deal and sideline engagement with the hostage issue, just as happened in the days immediately before and after Iran's missile attack on Israel in April, but even more so. Such a war would reshuffle the deck" – Ravit Hecht ■ GAZA: It is possible that famine is underway in northern Gaza, but that the war and restrictions on humanitarian access have impeded the data collection to prove it, an independent group of experts known as the Famine Early Warning Systems Network said. According to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry in Gaza, at least 36,586 Palestinians have been killed and 83,074 wounded since the start of the war. ■ ISRAEL: Haaretz journalist Nir Hasson was attacked by far-right Jewish youth taking part in Jerusalem's Flag Parade. Several assailants knocked Hasson to the ground and kicked him before Border Police officers intervened. Hours before the parade officially launched, hundreds of young men streamed through the Old City's Muslim Quarter, chanting "Death to Arabs" and violently attacking Palestinians, journalists and peace activists. Some also vandalized Palestinian shops. The Israeli government is set to vote on authorizing the IDF to raise the number of reservists in active duty to 350,000 by the end of August.