One in five Israeli seniors is living without proper home heating due to financial constraints, a phenomenon exacerbated by the Hamas war's effects on the economy, a survey released on Sunday finds.
The findings of the Geocartography survey prompted the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews to allocate an additional 10 million shekels ($2.76 million) of funding to help 27,000 households across Israel.
The seniors most heavily impacted economically by the war, now in its fifth month, were those between the ages of 65 and 69, 23% of whom said the war had forced them to adjust or limit spending as a result of the current financial climate.
Seniors in the Israeli Arab sector were especially hard hit financially in the wake of the Hamas attack, the polling found.
“Every winter presents major challenges for Israel’s elderly, but there is no doubt the war in Israel has caused greater financial constraints on this already vulnerable community,” said IFCJ President Yael Eckstein.
“With the help of our hundreds of thousands of friends and supporters around the world, the Fellowship is blessed to increase our ongoing support of Israel’s elderly, through practical and financial assistance to help them during these challenging winter months,” she said.
The survey, which was conducted in mid-January among 400 Israelis aged 65 and up, had a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points.
Washington is “closely monitoring events in Syria, supports a peaceful and inclusive political transition, and will continue the mission to prevent ISIS from re-establishing a safe haven on Syrian territory,” U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told his Israeli counterpart Israel Katz in a phone call on Wednesday.
The Pentagon chief stressed the importance of “close consultation” between the two allies on events in Syria, according to the Pentagon readout of the call provided by Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder.
Austin also highlighted the potential of the Nov. 26 Israel-Lebanon ceasefire to foster conditions for "lasting calm" and enable residents on both sides of the border to safely return to their homes.
Austin reaffirmed that the United States is working closely with international partners to support the agreement's implementation.
He also reiterated Washington’s commitment to securing the release of all hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, including Americans captured during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Additionally, he encouraged the Israeli government to continue efforts to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
The defense secretary concluded by reaffirming the United States’ “ironclad commitment to Israel’s security.”
The Israeli Air Force attacked two groups of Hamas gunmen in southern Gaza overnight Wednesday. The terrorists were planning to hijack trucks carrying humanitarian aid, the military said.
The intelligence-based precision strikes were conducted at two meeting points where the Hamas members were operating along the humanitarian corridor. According to the Israel Defense Forces, the strikes were intended to ensure the safe delivery of aid to civilians in the Gaza Strip.
"All of the terrorists who were eliminated were members of Hamas and planned to violently hijack humanitarian aid trucks and transfer them to Hamas in support of continuing terrorist activity, preventing them from reaching Gazan civilians, as was done in previous cases," the IDF said.
The IDF emphasized that it does not target aid trucks and that the humanitarian corridor remains open and active. The army also stressed that measures are taken to prevent harm to civilians and that, alongside the Defense Ministry's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) unit, it will continue to act in accordance with international law to facilitate the transfer of humanitarian aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip.
On Wednesday, the World Central Kitchen (WCK) NGO dismissed 62 of its local staff members in the Gaza Strip—more than 10% of its workforce—after Israel said they had links to terrorist groups.
The dismissals came a week after the Israeli Air Force killed terrorist Ahed Azmi Qadi, who participated in the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre. Qadi was employed by WCK, but he was driving an unmarked vehicle at the time of the strike and was not on a designated aid route.
Immediately following the airstrike, WCK denied knowing that any of the vehicle’s occupants were linked to the Oct. 7 attacks and announced a pause in its Gaza operations as a result of the incident.
“We are heartbroken to share that a vehicle carrying World Central Kitchen colleagues was hit by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza. At this time, we are working with incomplete information and are urgently seeking more details,” the Washington-based NGO wrote on X.
“Our hearts are with our colleagues and their families in this unimaginable moment,” the organization tweeted.
Some 6,000 terrorists from Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Fatah, as well as unaffiliated Palestinian civilians, infiltrated the Jewish state on Oct. 7, 2023, murdering some 1,200 people, wounding thousands and kidnapping 250. There are currently one hundred hostages being held in Gaza, including four who were abducted before Oct. 7.
Omer and Ella Berger’s planned family reunion in Sydney became a diplomatic incident when Australian authorities delayed their visa applications, citing their Israel Defense Forces military service as grounds for additional scrutiny. This ultimately prevented them from entering the country to join their relatives.
Six family members applied for visitor visas about two months before their scheduled flight to celebrate their grandmother Julan Berger’s centennial birthday. While four applications were quickly approved, Omer, serving in the academic reserve program, and Ella, a member of the IDF's Intelligence Corps, had to complete extensive 13-page declarations typically reserved for foreign fighters and government officials. The questionnaire asked pointed questions about participation in prisoner abuse, detention center operations, and potential involvement in war crimes or genocide.
Despite submitting the comprehensive documentation, authorities did not respond before their departure date. The siblings stayed in Thailand awaiting authorization until Ella had to return to Israel when her military leave expired.
Speaking to The Nightly, family representative Aaron Berger condemned the delays and attributed them to what he described as the government’s increasingly hostile stance toward Israel as the war continues. “Why are we subjecting friendly allies to war crimes investigations?” he asked.
The emotional impact hit particularly hard, Berger noted, because this might have been their final opportunity to see their grandmother. “We simply need a clear yes or no answer,” he emphasized.
The incident follows a similar case three weeks ago involving former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, who Australian officials denied a visa to, citing concerns that her presence might offend certain communities.
Forced to cancel her appearance at an Australian Jewish organization’s conference, Shaked issued a sharp rebuke: “The current Australian government has taken an anti-Israeli and extreme pro-Palestinian position, with elements of antisemitism. These are dark days for Australian democracy – they have chosen to stand on the wrong side of history.”
Australia’s Department of Home Affairs stated that no new visa policies had been implemented for Israeli citizens in response to the conflict, noting that 11,000 Israelis had received visas over the past year. A department spokesperson added, “Following standard procedures, authorities may require applicants to complete supplementary documentation when they need additional information for specific cases.”
The visa controversies come amid escalating antisemitic incidents across Australia. Someone torched a vehicle and spray-painted anti-Israel slogans on buildings in Sydney’s Woollahra neighborhood, home to a significant Jewish population, just two days ago. This follows last week’s arson attack on Melbourne’s Adass Israel synagogue, which Israeli and Australian officials widely condemned.
The world owes Israel “a debt of eternal gratitude” for leading the fight against Islamic extremism, American actress Patricia Heaton said on Wednesday, pressing ahead with her public backing for Israel at war.
Heaton spoke at a Miami gala where the American Friends of Israel's Magen David Adom rescue services honored the devout Catholic actress for her outspoken support for the Jewish state since last year’s Hamas massacre. Most of the American entertainment industry, including prominent Jews, has maintained silent neutrality on the conflict.
“The world owes an eternal debt of gratitude to Israel for being the tip of the spear in this fight and for the fearlessness and courage of their heroic sons and daughters who are heading into battle, often sacrificing their lives not only for Israel but for the whole world,” Heaton said. “I have grown so much from the example of the Israeli people and the Jewish people, who insist on living fully, insist on reaching across the aisle, and refuse to be bitter or hateful but always live in hope of peace."
Heaton, who is best known for her roles in television sitcoms “Everybody Loves Raymond” and "The Middle," had never been to Israel before last year’s Hamas attack.
She told JNS that she was “outraged” by both the Hamas bodycam images from Oct. 7, 2023, as well as the silence that followed in churches and among many in the entertainment industry, prompting her to become an outspoken advocate for Israel and to reach out to the Jewish community in Nashville, Tenn., where she lives.
American Friends of Magen David Adom honor Patricia Heaton as a "Champion of Israel," Dec. 11, 2024. Credit: Carlos Chattah.
Heaton made headlines with a recent initiative for non-Jews to show solidarity with Jews and Israel by hanging mezuzot on their doorposts, and will spearhead a Christian and Jewish women’s conference in Israel in May through the organization she set up for interfaith outreach, the October 7th Coalition.
In Miami on Wednesday, American actor Liev Schreiber presented Heaton with a Champion of Israel award. The gala also spotlighted medics from Israel’s frontlines including Adham Safadi, a resident of the Druze village of Majdal Shams on the Golan Heights whose daughter Finis was among the 12 children killed by a Hezbollah rocket in July while playing soccer.
Heaton said that Magen David Adom, with its multi-faith team of 3,000 employees and 32,000 volunteers across the country, exemplified the "spirit of generosity and heart of love” that she felt on her wartime solidarity trip to Israel.
“Organizations like Magen David Adom don’t care what your religion is what your ethnicity is: If you need help, you will get it, no questions asked,” she said. “To be honored by Magen David Adom, whose whole raison d'être is service of people in need and people in trauma ... is an honor to get us all back to a place where we can have peace for everybody.”
Israeli troops positioned inside the buffer zone along the Syrian border are there as a temporary measure to prevent terrorists from committing an Oct. 7-style attack, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday.
"The collapse of the Syrian regime created a vacuum on Israel’s border and in the buffer zone established by the 1974 Separation of Forces Agreement," his office stated.
"Israel will not permit jihadi groups to fill that vacuum and threaten Israeli communities on the Golan Heights with October 7-style attacks. That is why Israeli forces entered the buffer zone and took control of strategic sites near Israel’s border," the statement continued.
"This deployment is temporary until a force that is committed to the 1974 agreement can be established and security on our border can be guaranteed."
France on Wednesday called on Jerusalem to pull its forces out of the zone separating Syria from the Israeli side of the Golan Heights, saying that “any military deployment in the separation zone between Israel and Syria is a violation of the disengagement agreement of 1974.
“France calls on Israel to withdraw from the zone and to respect Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
Russia, an ally of Bashar Assad that has granted him and his family asylum, also accused Israel of violating the 1974 agreement, while expressing concern about Israeli airstrikes.
Germany and Spain also urged Jerusalem to show restraint during the transition period.
Israel's Foreign Ministry pushed back, saying on Thursday that "in light of violations of the disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria from May 1974, the entry of armed militants into the buffer zone in contravention of the agreement, and even attacks on UNDOF (United Nations Disengagement Forces) positions in the area, Israeli action was required."
The ministry echoed the PMO's statement that the troop deployment is a temporary and limited defensive measure to prevent an Oct. 7-style attack.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar discussed the matter earlier this week with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, emphasizing that "Israel will continue to act to defend itself and ensure the security of its citizens as needed."
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told his Israeli counterpart Israel Katz in a phone call on Wednesday that Washington is "closely monitoring events in Syria, supports a peaceful and inclusive political transition, and will continue the mission to prevent ISIS from re-establishing a safe haven on Syrian territory."
The Pentagon chief stressed the importance of "close consultation" between the two allies on events in Syria, according to the Pentagon readout of the call provided by Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder.
To keep out 'armed personnel'
IDF soldiers deployed to the demilitarized zone on Sunday as rebel groups took control of Damascus, bringing down the regime of President Assad.
The IDF said the move, which followed a situational assessment, was taken to avoid a scenario of “armed personnel” entering the buffer zone established by the 1974 agreement that ended the Yom Kippur War.
The 155-mile-long buffer zone is in Syrian territory and United Nations UNDOF personnel have patrolled it since 1974. U.N. Security Council Resolution 350 adopted the May 31, 1974, Israeli-Syrian agreement signed by Israel and Syria. Resolution 350 established the Alpha Line on Israel’s side of the marked U.N. buffer zone and the Bravo Line on Syria’s side.
Troops were deployed “to ensure the safety of the communities of the Golan Heights and the citizens of Israel,” the army stressed. “We emphasize that the IDF is not interfering with the internal events in Syria. The IDF will continue to operate as long as necessary in order to preserve the buffer zone and defend Israel and its civilians.”
The Israeli Air Force has attacked most of Syria’s strategic weapons arsenal since the ouster of Assad, the IDF announced on Tuesday night, preventing them from falling into the hands of Islamic terrorists.
The military confirmed earlier reports that the Air Force conducted more than 350 strikes, with hundreds of hours of flight time logged over Syrian airspace. The targets included anti-aircraft batteries, Syrian Air Force airfields and dozens of weapons production sites in Damascus, Homs, Tartus, Latakia and Palmyra. Strategic weapons were neutralized, including Scud tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, surface-to-sea, surface-to-air and surface-to-surface missiles, drones, fighter jets, attack helicopters, radar systems, tanks and hangars.
On Monday night, Israeli Navy missile ships attacked two Syrian Navy facilities simultaneously: Al-Bayda Port and Latakia Port, where 15 Syrian naval vessels were docked. During the operation, dozens of enemy sea-to-sea missiles with ranges of 80 to 190 kilometers (50 to 120 miles) and carrying heavy explosive payloads were destroyed.
In addition, the IDF Northern Command’s Fire Control Center conducted airstrikes against 130 enemy assets in Syria, including weapons depots, military structures, launchers and firing positions.
The hundreds of strikes marked the heaviest air campaign against Syria since the Yom Kippur War.
Jerusalem is fortifying the border zone and neutralizing Assad's military arsenal out of concern for terrorist elements among the rebel groups in Syria attacking Israel.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which spearheaded the assault that led to Assad’s downfall, has historic ties to al-Qaeda. Syrian rebel leader Abu Muhammad al-Julani had a $10 million bounty placed on his head by the U.S. government for a series of terrorist attacks and kidnappings in the Middle Eastern country.
Hamas on Monday congratulated Syrian rebel forces for toppling the Assad regime after five decades of rule.
In a statement posted to Telegram, the Sunni terrorist organization stressed its “commitment to Syria’s unity, the integrity of its territories, and respect for the Syrian people’s will, independence and political choices.
“We also emphasize the importance of Syria continuing its historical and pivotal role in supporting the Palestinian people and their resistance to achieve the goals of their just cause, while solidifying Syria’s leadership role on the Arab and Islamic fronts, as well as regionally and internationally,” the statement continued.
Hamas concluded by condemning Israel, saying it “rejects any Zionist ambitions or schemes targeting brotherly Syria, its land and its people.”
On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas led a mass invasion from Gaza of the northwestern Negev, murdering some 1,200 people, wounding thousands more and kidnapping 250. There are currently one hundred hostages being held in Gaza, including four who were abducted before Oct. 7. Sixty-two of the Oct. 7 captives are believed to be alive.
The famous Harvard University law-school professor and lawyer Alan Dershowitz once said, “Hypocrisy is not a way of getting back to the moral high ground. Pretending you’re moral, saying you’re moral is not the same as acting morally.” If one objectively evaluates French President Emmanuel Macron’s policies from Ukraine to Iran and beyond, one will find that France pursues hypocritical policies that make a laughingstock out of the Macron government.
On the one hand, Macron met with President-elect Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and tried to shore up support for the war-torn country, even though Trump is someone who has promised to end the war in Ukraine. On the other hand, Macron had previously said U.S. President Joe Biden made “a good decision” in allowing Ukraine to use weapons manufactured by the United States to strike inside Russia. Earlier this year, Macron said he was in favor of allowing Ukraine to strike military targets inside Russia, given Moscow was taking advantage of Western limitations on the use of donated missiles. France and the United Kingdom will support Ukraine for as long as necessary "to thwart Russia’s war of aggression,” Macron and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer have said.
Yet France’s economic interests tell a very different story. According to a recent report in Bloomberg, France imported a record amount of natural gas from Russia in 2024. This means while Macron supports Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Russia in theory—and while he stands beside Zelenskyy and Trump during a meeting in Paris—he doesn’t carry out such threats against Russia in practice. After all, Russian gas can be sold all over the world from French markets, thus making Macron’s rhetoric against Putin rather meaningless. The reality on the French market makes a laughingstock out of Macron.
Another example of France’s hypocritical position is the close ties between Tehran and Paris. In recent days, Macron has been highly critical of Iran’s missile program. Ahead of the ceasefire signed between Hezbollah and Israel, the French president called upon the Iranian leadership to urge its proxies to support a ceasefire. “I condemn in the strongest terms the unprecedented attack launched by Iran against Israel, which threatens to destabilize the region,” Macron said on X after Iran had attacked Israel earlier in the year.
And, as we speak, the European Union, of which France is a member, is beefing up sanctions against Iran because of its nefarious activities in the Middle East.
Despite all of France’s rhetoric against the mullahs, there is extensive cooperation between France and Iran via Armenia. This cooperation was even highlighted in a meeting between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Macron, where the French leader gave Armenian contemporary implicit instructions on how to relay messages to Iran. In other words, while the E.U. implements more sanctions on Iran, Macron is engaging in secret talks with Iran via Armenia.
France’s Iran and Ukraine policies are not the only instances where French politicians implemented duplicity. From the beginning of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia in 2020, France displayed a biased position that contradicted its leadership role in the MINSK Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, where it was supposed to be an impartial negotiator. Working with the MINSK Group, France did everything necessary to block a resolution to the Karabakh conflict.
At the same time, Paris has also pursued a colonial policy towards Corsica and other overseas territories, thousands of miles away from its borders. For the French, human rights seem nothing more than a battle cry to expand its own imperial interests. Thus, Azerbaijan does not have the right to Karabakh, but the French have the right to colonize other countries and expand their imperial sphere of influence. This hypocritical position is just one more instance that makes a laughingstock out of Macron.
Three Tel Aviv University researchers received a $1 million prize in statistics last week, with the award ceremony held at a Belgian university despite calls for an academic boycott of Israel.
The King Baudouin Foundation awarded the prestigious Rousseeuw Prize for Statistics to professors Yoav Benjamini, Daniel Yekutieli and Ruth Heller from the Department of Statistics and Operations Research at TAU for their pioneering work on the False Discovery Rate (FDR).
TAU noted in its Wednesday press release that the biannual award is Belgium's equivalent of the Nobel Prize for statistics.
Outside the building on the campus of the Catholic University of Leuven on Dec. 3, students distributed flyers calling for a comprehensive boycott of Israeli universities, part of an ongoing campaign to isolate the Jewish state led by faculty and students.
Since the war in Gaza initiated by the Hamas massacre on Oct. 7, 2023, academics and students at Belgian universities have called for a boycott, while Ghent University, the University of Antwerp and Université Libre de Bruxelles and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel have severed ties with Israeli research institutions.
Benjamini spoke at the ceremony, highlighting the role of science as a bridge connecting societies. He urged the preservation of scientific collaborations, the rejection of boycotts, and the safeguarding of science from political influence.
He recounted the story of Carmel Gat, a family friend who was kidnapped on Oct, 7 and subsequently murdered in Gaza. Benjamini noted the ongoing protests in Israel advocating for a deal to secure the release of hostages and bring an end to the war.
"The idea of the FDR originated from the need of medical researchers to examine numerous factors indicating treatment success. However, in statistics, once a new method is established in one research area, its impact can expand to others," he said.
"Indeed, FDR methods are now widely applied in diverse fields such as: genomics—where relations between tens of thousands of genetic markers of a specific disease are examined; neuroscience—testing which regions in the brain are activated when a certain task, such as face recognition, is performed; agriculture; economics; behavioral sciences; astronomy; and more," Benjamini said.
"What these fields share is the need to scan massive amounts of possible results within mountains of data to identify significant discoveries," he said.
U.S. talk-radio giant Clay Travis, whose weekday show with co-host Buck Sexton, (“The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show”) reaches more than eight million monthly listeners on nearly 500 stations across the United States, along with digital platforms, is currently in Israel, broadcasting his show live from the JNS studios in Jerusalem.
Travis is in Israel as a guest of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) as part of their latest campaign, aimed at partnering with “influencers” in the Christian community. These influencers are given the tools to highlight Israel’s legitimate rights and combat antisemitic messaging.
When Travis is not on-air he's traveling all over the country, to understand the challenges Israel is facing in light of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre and subsequent war, in order to share what he learns with his vast audience back home.
Sitting down with JNS on Tuesday just minutes before one of his broadcasts, Travis said he was in Israel to bear witness to what happened on Oct. 7, and to help set the record straight on the differences between good and evil.
"I think we have to stand proudly as Americans and support others who are advancing Western civilization, and I think Israel is certainly one of those allies," he said.
"There is an unwillingness to acknowledge evil in the world. To me Oct. 7 represents true evil. One reason that I think it's important to be here is because I wanted to see with my own eyes what took place in southern Israel, and what's taken place on the northern border,” he told JNS.
“For most of us, we grew up discussing the Holocaust a great deal. And the idea that there is a right and wrong side of history," he continued. "I think most people would acknowledge the wrong side of history was what Hitler and the Nazis did in World War II—yet [on Oct. 7] we had the deadliest day for Jewish people since World War II."
If the aftermath of the massacre, "We had many American college kids out supporting Hamas and Palestine, including [at] my alma mater, George Washington University. The idea that a place like GW or UCLA or Columbia would ever be supporting in any way what Hamas did is evidence of the profound sickness that has undertaken much of America,” said Travis.
“This is one area where [X owner and businessman] Elon Musk has completely nailed it when he refers to the spread of the 'woke mind virus.' One of the things that it creates is the inability to distinguish between good and evil—and to me Israel is profoundly on the side of good and Hamas and everything they represent is on the side of evil,” he added.
Clay Travis surveys destruction in northern Israel following 13 months of war with Lebanese terror group Hezbollah. Photo by Ancho Gosh/IFCJ.
Travis, who is also well-known for his top-ranked sports webcast “Outkick the Show with Clay Travis,” used a sports reference when describing the moral state of global affairs.
"I think good and evil are real. And I love sports, but ultimately who wins the Super Bowl doesn't really change the trajectory of the world by and large," he said. "As I've gotten older, and I have three boys, I think a lot more about the world we're leaving behind. When I see the trajectory that some of the world is moving in, it troubles me. If we don't aggressively exercise freedom of speech and call out what we see that is right and what we see is wrong, I'm worried that western civilization itself is at stake."
Travis also touched on “identity politics,” what he once called “the root cancer of American political life.” Identity politics is defined as the political or social activity by or on behalf of racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, or other group who tends to promote their own specific interests or concerns without regard to the interests or concerns of any larger political group.
Through the identity politics lens, the Israeli-Arab conflict is framed as a struggle between the Israeli “oppressor” and the Arab “oppressed.”
Travis called this a "fundamental failure," adding, "It is also illustrative of why American college kids don’t have an ability to have rational decisions on issues like this [Israel], because they see Jewish people as 'white.' But that’s not true here."
Speaking with the proprietor of a falafel shop outside an IFCJ bomb shelter in southern Israel. Photo by Ancho Gosh/IFCJ.
Despite Israel's diversity in terms of skin color, "They see Israel as the oppressor, as the colonizer, therefore they lack the ability to recognize that Hamas is the villain. Because they can’t turn off 'white is bad and brown is good.' When you allow identity to overwhelm your ability to analyze fact, you’re headed for a disaster. That’s why the 'woke mind virus' that’s taken over much of the United States has to be beaten,” he said.
Travis's schedule in Israel has been jam-packed, taking in trips to view the damage caused by Hezbollah on the northern border, meeting survivors of the Oct. 7 massacre, spending time with bereaved families and visiting wounded soldiers in the hospital. However, he said his most profound experiences took place in the south.
“The site of the Nova [festival] stood out the most, along with seeing the kibbutzim in the south. Walking around and seeing those physical locations was incredibly moving. It's almost like going back in time," he told JNS.
Clay Travis visits the site of the Nova festival massacre near Kibbutz Re'im in southern Israel. Photo by Mishel Amzaleg/IFCJ.
"The kindergartens in Nir Oz, they're frozen in time from what happened on Oct. 7. You see a trampoline that kids jumped on with cobwebs on it. A basketball hoop that hasn't been touched. I see things sometimes through the prism of sports. There are kids’ soccer balls on the porches of those homes that haven't been touched. That is incredibly moving to see but also important to see,” he said.
In terms of the Nova site specifically, Travis added, "I'm already thinking ahead into the future, after we're all gone [deceased]. That location is going to be historic and powerful for hundreds of years if we do a good job of explaining it."
Hopefully, he continued, it will be a place of contemplation "where people will look back from what I hope is a more peaceful future and recognize the cost that that freedom required ... I would hope those people there did not die in vain, and they will not have died in vain if we take the correct lesson, which is that we cannot allow evil and hate to win.”
Travis said he was grateful to the IFCJ for bringing him to Israel, and for all of their work in rebuilding lives following Oct. 7.
“What they do is so important. We’ve been traveling all over Israel seeing the impact that they have. Whether it’s providing protective vehicles for people who might have been killed when these attacks happened, whether it’s helping soldiers to rehabilitate, whether it’s helping young kids to deal with emotional psychological trauma...they do so much incredible work.”
Travis recalled that one of the people he had spoken with at Nir Oz had told him he viewed the kibbutz as "the front edge of western civilization."
"And the reason why he wanted to go back and rebuild better than before was because he wanted the people from Gaza to look over and see the community they tried to destroy is not just still there, it’s bigger, better and stronger than it has ever been before. That’s a message that the IFCJ illustrates and illuminates every single day. The work they do is profoundly important, I’m happy to be able to collaborate with them,” he added.
Yael Eckstein, president and CEO of IFCJ, told JNS, “Especially at this time, with rampant global antisemitism, it is important not to lose the friends we have invested in over the past few years, particularly Christian evangelicals, who include 80-100 million Americans.”
These Americans' support "is not a given, but comes through educational engagement and steps taken by the IFCJ toward building this historic relationship between Jews and Christians,” she said.
“If we aren’t engaging in the conversation about antisemitism, the other side is, and we could lose these people. That is why we are looking to equip influential people including Clay Travis with the information they need to engage in Israel and partner with us in the fight against antisemitism as they spread it with their many followers,” she continued.
Travis hopes to return to Israel soon, when things calm down a bit, with his wife and children.
“I told my kids that with my platform, speaking to millions of people every day, it was important to share with my audience in America exactly what I see. America's ability to impact what happens here is substantial, and the audience needs to know what the truth is here.”
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Thursday amid a last-ditch effort by the Biden administration to forge a hostages-for-ceasefire-and-terrorists deal between Jerusalem and Hamas.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is set to assume office on Jan. 20.
According to Netanyahu's office, Thursday's meeting also focused on "regional developments, with an emphasis on the events in Syria."
Netanyahu told Sullivan that Israel "will do whatever is necessary to protect its security from any threat, and therefore ordered the IDF to temporarily take control of the buffer zone in Syria until an effective force is established to enforce the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement," according to the PMO readout of the meeting.
Netanyahu said he stressed the need to prevent terrorism from Syrian territory against Israel, as well as to protect minorities in the country.
The Israeli side was represented in the meeting by Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog, National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, Mossad Director David Barnea and Shin Bet director Ronen Bar.
IDF Brig. Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch, the government's point man on missing and kidnapped citizens, also participated.
In addition to Sullivan, the Biden administration was represented by U.S. Special Coordinator for the Middle East Brett McGurk and Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew.
The U.S. national security advisor in set to also visit Egypt and Qatar, which have mediated the hostage talks in conjunction with Washington.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Hamas has agreed to two of Israel’s key conditions for a ceasefire in Gaza, raising hopes for a deal within days.
Hamas for the first time agreed to accept the presence of Israeli forces in Gaza during a 60-day truce, the newspaper quoted unnamed Arab mediators as saying. The sources also confirmed to the paper reports from earlier in the week that Hamas had submitted a list of hostages, including U.S. citizens, whom it would release.
The purported breakthrough follows a threat on Dec. 3 by Trump that there would be “hell to pay” unless the hostages are freed before his inauguration.
