War With Iran Is a Path to Destruction

Have we learned nothing from our adventures in interventionism?

George D. O’Neill Jr.

Apr 2, 2025

https://www.theamericanconservative.com/war-with-iran-is-a-path-to-destruction/

Donald Trump rode into office—twice now—on a wave of promises to upend the Washington consensus, to drain the swamp of its self-serving mandarins and to keep America out of endless wars. His base cheered when he skewered the neoconservative architects of Iraq and Afghanistan, wars that bled our Treasury, and most importantly, many of our sons for little more than bragging rights in Beltway and Tel Aviv salons. Yet here we are, in the early days of his second term, with whispers growing louder from the usual suspects: advisors and hangers-on nudging him toward a strike on Iran, peddling the old lie that it’ll be quick, clean, and simple. History, that stern teacher we keep ignoring, tells us otherwise. Yet the hawks in the Trump administration appear to be anxious to wreck another country, which would join the long, recurring tragedy of U.S.-caused failed countries in the Middle East.

The pitch is familiar, isn’t it? A swift blow—maybe a few airstrikes on Tehran’s nuclear sites or a green light for Israel to do the dirty work—and the mullahs will crumble, the region will stabilize, and we’ll be home by Easter. It’s the same tune the warmongers hummed in 1914, when Europe’s leaders promised their boys would be back from the trenches by Christmas. These are also the same deceptions we heard in 2003, when Iraq was sold as a “cakewalk”—a war that would pay for itself with oil and gratitude. Millions of lives and trillions of dollars later, we’re still witnessing that tragedy.

The U.S. has been either directly bombing or participating in bombing the Houthis on and off since 2015. Why should we believe the war cheerleaders that this time will be more successful?

Iran is not Iraq circa 2003, nor is it some tinpot dictatorship ripe for a Predator-drone makeover. It’s a 3,000-year-old culture with a population of 85 million, rugged as the Zagros Mountains, with a military hardened by decades of sanctions, assassinations, military attacks, cyber attacks, proxy wars, and constant threats from top leaders of Israel and the U.S. to destroy their country. The Islamic Republic has spent years preparing for this very fight—dispersing its assets, fortifying its defenses, and cultivating allies from Hezbollah to the Houthis. A strike wouldn’t be a surgical snip; it’d be kicking a hornet’s nest with no apparent interest in an exit strategy. Yet the war hawk advisers circling Trump—some recycled from the Bush era, others eager to prove their toughness—seem unworried about the chaos they’d unleash. Chaos has been their game for decades.

Let’s play this out. Day one: bombs fall, targets burn, and the cable news chyrons scream victory. Day two: Iran retaliates—maybe with missiles on U.S. bases in Qatar or shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, whence a fifth of the world’s oil flows. Day three: oil prices spike, markets tank, and suddenly we’re not talking about a “limited operation” anymore. Hezbollah rains rockets on Tel Aviv, the Houthis blockade the Red Sea, and militia groups in Iraq and Syria start targeting American troops again. Before you know it, we’re waist-deep in another quagmire, with the same generals and pundits who botched the last three wars demanding more troops, more money, and more time. Sound familiar? Lyndon Johnson followed that advice, descended into infamy, and had to exit politics.

The hawks will scoff at this. Like they’ve done for decades, they’ll say Iran’s on the verge of collapse, it’s a paper tiger, that deterrence demands action, that Trump must show strength. They’ll invoke Reagan or Thatcher, forgetting that both knew when to hold fire. But strength isn’t measured by how many bombs you drop—it’s knowing when to walk away from a bad bet. Trump, at his best, gets this. He resisted the full-court press to bomb Syria into oblivion after Assad’s alleged chemical weapons stunts. He talked Kim Jong Un down from the ledge without firing a shot. He’s not a pacifist, but he’s no fool either. So why let the same clique that cheered on the Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, and Syria fiascoes steer him into this buzz saw?  

The main problem is the company he keeps. The swamp didn’t drain—it got a new guest list. Some of these advisers see Iran as a trophy, a chance to flex America’s muscles and settle old scores. Others are tethered to foreign capitals—Riyadh, Jerusalem—that would love to see us do their bidding and wreck Iran. 

America has followed the neoconservative Zionists’ foreign policy desires for decades. Every one of their wars ends up killing, wounding, and starving hundreds of thousands of innocent people. Millions are homeless. The target countries become dysfunctional, creating generations of new enemies. The narrative is the same: They say a leader is hurting his people. He is worse than Hitler and he must go. But the warmongers are unapologetic about the disastrous results such as warlords running Libya and Afghanistan, and the chaos and destruction in Iraq. Now that the “horrible” Assad is gone, a dressed-up Al Qaeda is running Syria. How is that not alarming? Our government enabled and supported that destruction for years.

The Christian Zionists are not crying out about the two-millennia-old Christian communities, which are being driven out of Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Israel as a result of the wars they have supported. No apologies here either.

Is it possible that the warmongers calling for the attacks on Iran would be perfectly satisfied leaving a mess like the other countries they have caused us to attack? How is that in America's interest?

They’re not thinking about the young Americans who will bear the brunt when the “cakewalk” turns into a slog. They’re thinking about their political masters, not Americans in the flyover country.  

Conservatives used to understand this. They were the ones who questioned the hubris of nation-building, who saw war as a last resort, not a first reflex. Robert Taft and Dwight Eisenhower didn’t fetishize military overreach; they knew it bankrupted nations and eroded liberty. Along the way, we let the neocons and their ilk hijack the movement, turning “peace through strength” into “war for applause.” President Trump’s first term hinted at a return to that older wisdom. His second could cement it—or squander it on Iran’s altar.  

The president should listen to his gut, not his courtiers. He’s a dealmaker, not a warlord. He knows the art of the bluff, and the power of walking away. Iran is no angel—its ambitions troubling—but it’s not an existential threat to America requiring a preemptive strike. Diplomacy worked with the Soviets; it can work here. War, though? War is the wildcard that breaks everything.  

So here’s the request, Mr. President: don’t buy the dishonest hype. Don’t let the warmongers’ desire to wreck another country be your guide. You ran against the forever wars—don’t start another one. America wants jobs, borders, sanity—not body bags and budget deficits. History is littered with failed leaders who thought war was simple. It never is, particularly when it is fomented by people who do not prioritize American interests. You know them by their fruits.

 

It's the end of the world's economic order as we know it

• Courtenay Brown,
• Neil Irwin

https://www.axios.com/2025/04/03/trump-tariffs-canada-europe-allies?

The world economic order is shifting beneath our feet, as historic allies look to America-proof their economies. President Trump's latest tariff announcement will accelerate the shift.

Why it matters: Global leaders and corporate executives alike are trying to figure out how to rejigger their economies to be less reliant on the U.S. in the longer run, even as they contemplate near-term retaliatory measures in hopes of lessening the tariff pain.

• Any economic delinking won't happen overnight. But the sense in Canada, Europe, and beyond is that their relationship with the U.S. has irreparably changed for the worse.

What they're saying: "Investors will be shocked how much things are going to move away from the US in standards, networks, and infrastructure — as well as services — in coming years," said Adam Posen, the president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics and a former Bank of England official.

• "The breach of trust and evident short-sighted self-dealing by the Trump Administration with regard to NATO and to trade reinforce each other," Posen, who just returned from a trip to Ottawa and has been speaking with European officials, added.
• "They make it more likely that Europe and the US will increasingly diverge in coming years economically as well as in security."

Driving the news: Top European Union official Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc was in the process of finalizing retaliatory measures for steel and aluminum tariffs.

• Next comes a potential response to the 20% across-the-board tariffs on European goods.
• "We are now preparing for further countermeasures, to protect our interests and our businesses if negotiations fail," von der Leyen said.

What to watch: In Europe and Canada — two of America's largest trading partners — officials have been blunt about the realities of a global system where the United States is less prominent.

• Germany has ditched its debt-averse mindset and ramped up borrowing for mega-investments in its defense sector in the wake of U.S. threats to back out of NATO.
• Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said last week that the country's U.S. relationship "based on deepening integration of our economies and tight security and military cooperation is over."
• He added that Canada would "fundamentally reimagine our economy" in a way that might make it less reliant on America.

That sentiment was echoed in a recent conversation with one of Canada's leading business trade groups.

• "A lot of Canadians feel hurt and upset," Doug Griffiths, head of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, tells Axios. "We are looking at investments that make us less dependent on the U.S.," he added. "I think we will ultimately be stronger, but I worry about you guys."

The intrigue: The value of the U.S. dollar has fallen sharply against other major currencies in the last 24 hours — in contrast to economic theory that predicts higher tariffs would drive a currency up.

• Analysts attribute the move to a sense that the U.S. may no longer serve its unique role in the global economy.
• Thierry Wizman, a foreign exchange strategist at Macquarie, writes that the role of the dollar as a safe haven "was already attenuating" in the first quarter, amid a "loss of American exceptionalism under the push for a more 'autarkic" trade regime."

The bottom line: In the short term, economists anticipate higher global inflation and slower world economic growth from Trump's tariff suite.

• But the potential economic delinking that plays out alongside those conditions might be more daunting.

The United States Has Become a Two-Tier Country

What has happened to the Constitutional Republic where all are equal under law?

Philip Giraldi • April 3, 2025

https://www.unz.com/pgiraldi/the-united-states-has-become-a-two-tier-country/

I recently read an article by investigative historian Eric Zuesse, author of America’s Empire of Evil, that began “One of the core features of nazism (not the German political Party but its core ideology) is racism, which allows some ethnicities (or “races”) to be advantaged by law, and other ethnicities to be discriminated against by the law — it is, at its very core, AGAINST equal rights under law.” Well, I was intrigued by what was packed into one long sentence due to recent developments in the United States and I am sure that none of my regular readers will be surprised by my view that a lot of what has gone wrong in the United States and elsewhere has been due to a racist Israel and its powerful lobbies. Consider for a moment some initiatives undertaken by presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump that Americans who love their country should rightly find to be appalling, to include the enabling of the Jewish state’s genocide in Gaza and the elevation of “antisemitism” to the status of the number one “crime” that the Department of Justice is willing to investigate and prosecute, up to and including deportation of legal residents who dare to question what is taking place in Palestine.

When I refer to America becoming two-tier I am particularly thinking of US foreign policy, most particularly as it relates to the Middle East, and the operational imperatives of the Department of Justice and the Office of the Attorney General. And when I say two-tier I am suggesting that there are specific policies that are purely the product of political and economic corruption in that they do not serve any US interest – indeed, I would point out how they are contrary to American interests and designed to favor Israel and the groups and billionaires that make up the Israel Lobby over other American citizens and legal residents. In practice this has meant supporting everything the state of Israel does, no matter how atrocious, while also funding, equipping and providing political cover for the slaughter of possibly as many as two-to-four hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and the deportation of three million more.

Biden and Trump have given Netanyahu the green light to turning what was once Palestine into an Eretz (Greater) Israel. That implies stealing Palestinian homes and land and eradicating their culture and religion before destroying their livelihoods as first steps in the neo-colonial process. And domestically our recent presidents have made American Jews a protected species, coddled and privileged by the government and media beyond all reason, making them a special group that cannot be criticized or held accountable no matter what they do. Few Americans know that the Department of Homeland Security’s discretionary funding grants to enhance security goes more than 90% to Jewish groups and sites, to the tune of well over $400 million, and that does not include taxpayer funding of the proliferating so-called holocaust museums. And recent steps to suppress social media, most notably TikTok, came about after extremist Jewish groups like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) began whining about negative coverage of the atrocities being committed by Israel, to include exposes of Israeli corruption of US Congressmen. Indeed, “antisemitism,” the symptoms of which deliberately include criticism of Israel, is the only crime that the Justice Department is willing to pursue with a Task Force, which may have Israeli intelligence officers accompanying, currently traveling throughout the nation and confronting universities with non-negotiable demands that they modify their teachings and take steps to stamp out any negative characterizations of Jews or the Jewish state.

And what is behind the shift of US strategic forces to exert “Maximum Pressure” on Iran and maybe even to prepare for the destruction of that nation to benefit Benjamin Netanyahu? Yes, of course, the Persians theoretically “threaten” Israel, which has its own completely illegal nuclear arsenal obtained through theft and deception from the United States, but nobody in the US government is allowed to mention that. And no one is permitted to enforce American laws if they impact on Israel, like the Leahy Law which forbids military assistance to any country that violates human rights “with impunity.” Israel clearly is qualified to be sanctioned by that standard, but no US Administration has dared to enforce the law for fear that the powerful Israel Lobby will retaliate.

Professor Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University has described the current Donald Trump regime as an “Israel First Administration” packed with Zionists at all levels. The State Department Press Secretary Tammy Bruce has already said that “Anyone who tries to touch Israel will wind up in hell.” Interestingly, most independent observers would agree that Israel is all-powerful in Washington though they would probably limit that influence to Middle Eastern foreign policy, but that is not necessarily so. Netanyahu tells Trump exactly what to do and Pete Heghseth is already an American “rapture freak” brand of alleged Christian which means he is 100% Zionist. His first proclamation at being selected by Trump for Secretary of Defense was that he was going to eliminate “antisemitism” from the military. Apparently Pete never noticed the whole time he was on active duty how few Jews actually wind up in the military since they prefer that non-Jewish Americans do the dying for them. Beyond that, during the whole of Pete’s life in the US there was no “antisemitism” until the recently as a response to the highly visible genocide on the Gaza Strip. 22,000 children alone have been killed by some estimates. Meanwhile some Rabbis in Israel preach Jewish superiority, that non-Jews are subhuman, deserving to be killed or enslaved.

In spite of such viewpoints openly expressed by senior representatives of the Israeli government, a prime objective of the new Trump administration is to protect Israel and Jews in all their various manifestations and there is absolutely no mandate to protect Palestinians or ordinary Americans who become victims in the violent counterattacks on peace encampments staged by local Jews and, reportedly, including some Israeli army veterans. Have any violent Israelis been arrested or deported? No? Apparently, the US “justice system” is focused on serving Israel at the expense of the US Constitution’s protection of free speech and free association.

And what is the “Justice” Department (sic) doing about the Jewish hate organizations like Betar US and Canary Mission that are helping the Trump Administration round up suspected “antisemites, terrorists, and anti-Americans” who turn out to be mostly people who are only opposed to genocide. These extremist pro-Israel groups have a history of support for terror and ethnic cleansing and they are now working closely with the Trump administration, preparing lists and dossiers of thousands of Palestine supporters it wants to see deported from the United States.

Betar US describes itself as a “loud, proud, aggressive and unapologetically Zionist” movement “dedicated to defending Israel’s legitimacy and strengthening the Jewish connection to the land of Israel.” This includes “taking action where others won’t.” Its executive director Ross Glick, has, for example, met with senior government officials both under Biden and Trump and has claimed credit for the arrest and detention of Mahmoud Khalil, who was a leader of the anti-Israel demonstrations held at Columbia University last year. Lawmakers who met with Betar US leadership include Democratic Senator John Fetterman and staff aides to Republican Senators Ted Cruz and James Lankford in discussions to rid the country of thousands of “terror supporters.”

Donald Trump was also briefed on the issue and signed an executive order titled “Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism” that promises “the removal of resident aliens who violate our laws,” to “quell pro-Hamas vandalism and intimidation” and to “investigate and punish anti-Jewish racism in leftist, anti-American colleges and universities.” He subsequently wrote on Truth Social: “We know there are more students at Columbia and other Universities across the country who have engaged in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity, and the Trump administration will not tolerate it.”

One might ask “What might Betar get up to that would interest the Department of Justice?” Well, here it is: in late March, Betar may have even organized an assassination attempt on Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories and a leading critic of Israeli behavior. “Join us to give Francesca a [pager emoji] in London on Tuesday,” it posted online, referring to the September pager attack on Lebanon carried out by the Israeli military that killed dozens of people and injured thousands more. The killing by pager was widely condemned as an act of international terrorism. In addition, Betar routinely threatens violence against gatherings protesting Israeli crimes. At such an event at UCLA, Betar publicly stated, “We demand police remove these thugs now and if not we will be forced to organize groups of Jews to do so.” Betar has formally adopted the far-right slogan “Every Jew, a .22.”

And there’s more from the Zionist side, without any pushback from the Department of Justice. On March 24, an Israel-based and mostly US funded group called Canary Mission posted a new feature on its website, “Uncovering Foreign Nationals,” as part of its mission to identify those who harbor “hatred of the USA, Israel and Jews on North American college campuses.” The feature listed the names of seven students and instructors, including three current and former professors at Columbia University, are among thousands of people whose pictures have been posted on Canary’s website since its creation ten years ago — all are accused of anti-Israeli activism.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is boasting of how his Immigration and Customs Enforcer (ICE) thugs have detained and canceled their visas on more than 300 international students who participated in demonstrations or even only spoke up or wrote letters in support of the Palestinians. ICE is also reportedly searching through social media to identify more “troublemakers.” That is not how rule of law is supposed to work, particularly as the supporters of Palestine have not been given a hearing, as the law requires, before being rounded up, stripped of their rights, and prepared for deportation. Clearly Israelis and Jews occupy the top tier in the reckoning of the US government, with the rest of us falling in place somewhere below, a formula reminiscent of police states all through history.

Nobody should be surprised at what Israel is allowed to get away with vis-s-vis the United States as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu believes, perhaps correctly, that he owns Congress and the White House. In the eyes of the Trump Administration, just like Joe Biden that preceded it, Israel is by definition always blame-free and above reproach, even though our system of checks and balances and rule of law is being trashed due to the Israeli parasitical relationship with its host victim the United States. As is often the case, Australian journalist Caitlin Johnstone nails the dark side of the latest atrocity as described by State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce. Per Johnstone, “It’s clear that [Bruce] has been instructed to respond to any and all questions about Israeli atrocities in Gaza by blaming everything on Hamas, without even pretending to care whether the allegations are true. For some background, Israel has just been caught perpetrating an atrocity so monstrous and so abundantly well-evidenced that even the mainstream western press have felt obligated to report on it. Outlets like the Guardian and the BBC are covering the story of how 15 medical workers for the Red Cross, Civil Defense, and the UN were apparently handcuffed and executed one by one by Israeli forces in Rafah before being buried in a mass grave. According to Palestinian Civil Defense spokesman Mahmoud Basal, they were each shot more than 20 times.”

It is hard to believe, but based on the first ten weeks in power, the Trump administration has actually made things worse for Americans than under Biden due to the continuous threats to occupy other countries, to levy heavy tariffs on imported goods, and to punish nations like Russia and Iran if they do not agree to the conditions that the new president is laying down. As Trump and his advisers have one thing in common beyond their Zionism, that being their total ignorance on most subjects as revealed by the recent Signal chat, it is difficult to imagine what the way to avoid the clearly coming American decline and fall might be.

War, Doublethink, and the Struggle for Survival: Geopolitics of the Gaza Genocide

by Ramzy Baroud Posted on April 02, 2025

https://original.antiwar.com/ramzy-baroud/2025/04/01/war-doublethink-and-the-struggle-for-survival-geopolitics-of-the-gaza-genocide/

In a genocidal war that has spiraled into a struggle for political survival, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition and the global powers supporting him continue to sacrifice Palestinian lives for political gain.

The sordid career of Israel’s extremist National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, epitomizes this tragic reality.

Ben-Gvir joined Netanyahu’s government coalition following the December 2022 elections. He remained in the coalition after the October 7 2023 war and genocide, with the understanding that any ceasefire in Gaza would force his departure.

As long as the killing of Palestinians and the destruction of their cities continued as long as Ben-Gvir stayed on board – though neither he nor Netanyahu had any real ‘next-day’ plan, other than to carry out some of the most heinous massacres against a civilian population in recent history.

On January 19, Ben-Gvir left the government immediately following a ceasefire agreement, which many argued would not last. Netanyahu’s untrustworthiness, along with the collapse of his government if the war ended completely, made the ceasefire unfeasible.

Ben-Gvir returned when the genocide resumed on March 18. “We are back, with all our might and power!”  he wrote In a tweet on the day of his return.

Israel lacks a clear plan because it cannot defeat the Palestinians. While the Israeli army has inflicted suffering on the Palestinian people like no other force has against a civilian population in modern history, the war endures because the Palestinians refuse to surrender.

Yet, Israel’s military planners know that a military victory is no longer possible. Former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon recently added his voice to the growing chorus, stating during an interview on March 15 that “revenge is not a war plan”.

The Americans, who supported Netanyahu’s violation of the ceasefire – thus resuming the killings – also understand that the war is almost entirely a political struggle, designed to keep figures like Ben-Gvir and extremist Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in Netanyahu’s coalition.

Though “war is the continuation of politics by other means,” as Prussian General Carl von Clausewitz once surmised, in Israel’s case, the ‘politics’ behind the war is not about Israel as a state but about Netanyahu’s own political survival. He is sacrificing Palestinian children to stay in power, while his extremist ministers do the same to expand their support among right-wing, religious, and ultra-nationalist constituencies.

This logic – that Israel’s war on Gaza reflects internal politics, ideological warfare, and class infighting – extends to other political players as well.

The Trump administration supports Israel as payback for the financial backing it received from Netanyahu’s supporters in the US during the last elections. On the other hand, Britain remains steadfast in its commitment to Tel Aviv, despite the political shifts in Westminster, thus continuing to align with US-Israeli interests while disregarding the wishes of its own population. Meanwhile, Germany, it’s said, is driven by the guilt of its past crimes, while other Western governments pay lip service to human rights, all the while acting in ways that contradict their stated foreign policies.

This mirrors the dystopian world of George Orwell’s ‘1984’, where perpetual war is waged based on cynical and false assumptions, where “war is peace… freedom is slavery… and ignorance is strength.”

Indeed, these elements are reflected in today’s equally dystopian reality. However, Israel substitutes ‘peace’ with ‘security,’ the US is motivated by dominance and ‘stability,’ and Europe continues to speak of ‘democracy.’

Another key difference is that Palestinians do not belong to any of these ‘superstates.’ They are treated as mere pawns, their deaths and enduring injustice used to create the illusion of ‘conflict’ and to justify the ongoing prolongation of the war.

The deaths of Palestinians – now numbering over 50,000 – are widely reported by mainstream media outlets, yet rarely do they mention that this is not a war in the traditional sense, but a genocide, carried out, financed, and defended by Israel and Western powers for domestic political reasons. Palestinians continue to resist because it is their only option in the face of utter destruction and extermination.

Netanyahu’s war, however, is not sustainable in the Orwellian sense, either. For it to be sustainable, it would need infinite economic resources, which Israel, despite US generosity, cannot afford. It would also need an endless supply of soldiers, but reports indicate that at least half of Israel’s reserves are not rejoining the army.

Furthermore, Netanyahu does not merely seek to sustain the war; he aims to expand it. This could shift regional and international dynamics in ways that neither Israeli leaders nor their allies fully understand.

Aware of this, Arab leaders met in Cairo on March 4 to propose an alternative to Netanyahu-Trump’s plan to ethnically cleanse Palestinians from Gaza. However, they have yet to take meaningful action to hold Israel accountable if it continues to defy international and humanitarian laws – as it has since the Arab summit.

The Arab world must escalate beyond mere statements, or the Middle East may endure further war, all to prolong Netanyahu’s coalition of extremists a little longer.

As for the West, the crisis lies in its moral contradictions. The situation in Gaza embodies Orwell’s concept of “doublethink” – the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously and accepting both. Western powers claim to support human rights while simultaneously backing genocide. Until this dilemma is resolved, the Middle East will continue to endure suffering for years to come.

Israeli army killed over 1,400 medical staff in Gaza since start of genocide: Officials

Fifteen Palestinian humanitarian workers, including civil defense teams, Red Crescent medics, and an UNRWA employee, were recently executed by the Israeli army during rescue operations

News Desk

MAR 31, 2025

https://thecradle.co/articles/israeli-army-killed-over-1400-medical-staff-in-gaza-since-start-of-genocide-officials

The Israeli army has killed at least 1,402 medical personnel and 111 civil defense personnel in the Gaza Strip since the start of the US-backed genocide, according to a statement released by Gaza's Government Media Office on 31 March.

Moreover, 362 health workers and 26 civil defense staff have been arrested since 7 October 2023, including three doctors tortured to death in Israeli detention centers.

Israeli forces have also bombed 34 hospitals, 80 health centers, 162 health institutions, 15 civil defense headquarters, 142 ambulances, and 54 fire trucks across the besieged enclave.

The announcement by the Government Media Office came hours after the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) retrieved the bodies of 14 rescue workers killed by Israeli forces while under siege in Rafah's Tal al-Sultan neighborhood.

“Field evidence and testimonies confirm that some of the victims were physically executed while handcuffed and were shot in fatal areas of the head and chest by the occupation forces, which proves that this was not a random act of violence, but rather a deliberate execution sanctioned by the Israeli army,” the Government Media Office announced on Monday morning.

Those executed by Israeli troops include eight PRCS paramedics, six members of the Palestinian Civil Defense teams, and an employee of the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). They were killed while they were “carrying out a humanitarian mission to evacuate the wounded in Rafah Governorate (southern Gaza Strip) in response to an urgent distress call.”

On Saturday, the Israeli military acknowledged attacking ambulances and fire trucks in the Tal al-Sultan neighborhood of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, claiming occupation troops initially opened fire “toward Hamas vehicles.” 

“After an initial inquiry, it was determined that some of the suspicious vehicles … were ambulances and fire trucks,” the statement added.

Israel has killed over 1,000 Palestinians in Gaza since the full resumption of its genocidal war on the strip, about half of whom are women and children.

Iran Rejects Direct Talks with U.S. Following Trump's Letter

https://www.pressrundown.com/top-news/iran-rejects-direct-talks-with-us-following-trumps-letter?

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian announced on Sunday that the Islamic Republic has rejected direct negotiations with the United States regarding its nuclear program. This statement came in response to a letter from President Donald Trump addressed to Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. While Iran is open to the possibility of indirect talks, progress has stalled since the U.S. withdrew from the nuclear agreement in 2018.

Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran does not shy away from discussions but expressed concerns over the breach of promises that have led to mistrust. The Iranian government has faced increased economic difficulties and regional tensions since the U.S. adopted a "maximum pressure" strategy against Tehran. Following this policy shift, Iran's currency has significantly depreciated.

Tensions in the region have escalated, particularly following the recent Israel-Hamas conflict and ongoing U.S. airstrikes against Iranian-backed groups. Iranian officials have issued warnings about the risks of military confrontation should U.S. actions threaten Iran's sovereignty, citing their missile capabilities as a deterrent.

Trump's letter, which called for negotiations to avoid military conflict, echoed his previous communications with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, though no significant agreements resulted from those interactions. The U.S. and Israel have consistently asserted that Iran must not acquire nuclear weapon capabilities, raising concerns about potential military action as Iran advances its uranium enrichment efforts.

Despite the hardline stance taken by Iranian leadership, mixed signals have emerged from the country regarding its position on negotiations, with public demonstrations recently focusing on anti-Israel sentiments while less emphasis was placed on anti-American rhetoric. As developments unfold, the international community remains watchful of the situation.

Israel seeks to erase refugee camps from Jenin and Tulkarm

Israeli military has started implementing plans to change architectural structure of camps

By Fayha Shalash in Ramallah, Palestine

Published date: 30 March 2025

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-seeks-erase-refugee-camps-jenin-and-tulkarm

"So far, three streets have been opened, and they've begun opening horizontal roads. Residents whose houses are set to be demolished and confiscated are informed of a decision issued by the Israeli courts. This means the residents no longer even have the land to rebuild on," he said.

The demolition of homes doesn't just concern those directly impacted. When one house is demolished, all neighbouring buildings are affected due to the structural layout of the camps, where space is limited.

"When we are notified of the intention to demolish 30 homes, it actually means demolishing at least 100, because all the homes are built vertically. Similarly, when they tell us they will demolish 10 homes, they end up demolishing 40, without accounting for the significant damage to the neighbouring homes," Zuhairi added.

So far, at least 500 homes in the camp have been completely levelled, along with hundreds more partially damaged. The camp's 13,000 residents were all forced to leave, and everyone in the surrounding area was displaced.

Turning camps uninhabitable

The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth revealed that the Israeli army's broader plan in the Palestinian camps is to ensure freedom of activity and create a new security reality.

A large number of homes have been searched for allegedly being used as operation rooms by Palestinians for "the preparation of explosive devices."

According to the newspaper, 200 homes were demolished in the Jenin camp, and roads spanning five kilometres were constructed. In Nur Shams camp, around 30 homes were demolished, and roads half a kilometre long were built. In Tulkarm, 15 homes were demolished, and a 200-metre long road was paved, all to facilitate access for Israeli forces when necessary.

In response, an Israeli security source confirmed that the demolitions were fully carried out after receiving approval from the Central Command and legal advice. A ban was then issued on the reconstruction of the demolished buildings and roads.

Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the army has prepared similar plans for the remaining 18 camps in the West Bank but that they will not be implemented unless these camps follow the example of Jenin camp in hosting armed groups.

The newspaper said the army's intention is to destroy the refugee narrative that the camps perpetuate.

The Israeli military also said it conducted a tour of Jenin camp for the heads of Israeli authorities in the West Bank, including settler leader Yossi Dagan, head of the Northern West Bank Settlement Council. The tour highlighted how the army’s activities in the area is creating a new reality where the camp is no longer used as a base for launching attacks.

In Tulkarm camp, the situation is not much different. Many homes were demolished to open up and widen roads to allow easier access for Israeli military vehicles.

Faisal Salama, the coordinator of the camp's popular committee, told MEE that the Israeli army demolished entire blocks and residential units, removed the debris from the demolitions and altering the camp's architectural structure.

"They are expanding streets, roads, and internal entrances in the centre of the camp to facilitate the entry of military vehicles and change the geographical and demographic landscape," he said.

Salama said that another goal Israel seeks to achieve is reducing the population by demolishing homes and displacing residents, creating a hostile environment until the camp becomes uninhabitable.