Trump says released captives in ‘horrible condition’
The US president said he has doubts about the long-term prospects of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas after watching the release of three Israeli captives from Gaza on Saturday.
“I watched the hostages come back today, and they looked like Holocaust survivors. They were in horrible condition. They were emaciated. It looked like many years ago, the Holocaust survivors, and I don’t know how much longer we can take that,” he said as he flew to the city of New Orleans to attend the National Football League Super Bowl championship.
“I know we have a deal where we’re supposed to get, they dribble in and keep dribbling in, but they are in really bad shape,” he said. “You know, at some point, we’re going to lose our patience.”
Well if you would listen to USAID's report, that agency you just closed, you would know there was deliberate starvation going in (and still going on) in Gaza as well as in Israeli prisons. But not a word about the condition (and deaths) of Palestinian prisoners.
Israeli cabinet delays decision on inquiry into October 7 attacks
Netanyahu’s cabinet has held a meeting on establishing a commission of inquiry into the Hamas-led attacks but discussions ended with the ministers deciding to hold more talks on the subject in three months, according to Israeli media.
The meeting was convened after Israel’s High Court of Justice ordered the government in December to hold a hearing on the matter within 60 days.
“Netanyahu has repeatedly ruled out the possibility of establishing any inquiry before the end of the war, and critics have alleged he seeks to establish a panel with fewer powers than a state commission, fearing it would implicate him in the disaster,” The Times of Israel reported.
Israeli opposition leader slams delay in inquiry into October 7 attacks
Benny Gantz, who heads the State Camp Party, has slammed the Israeli cabinet’s decision to postpone talks on the establishment of a commission of inquiry into the Hamas-led attacks of October 7.
In a post on X, he described the attacks as the “greatest disaster” in Israel’s history and said, “The interrogated will not choose the investigators. A state commission of inquiry, independent according to law, will be established.”
Lapid launches campaign to pressure Israeli government over October 7 state inquiry
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid has launched a petition campaign to garner signatures in an attempt to press Netanyahu’s government to establish an inquiry into the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attacks.
The fact that the Israeli cabinet decided to postpone the inquiry amounted to efforts to “bury” the inquiry, Lapid told reporters in advance of a Knesset meeting.
“They postponed it for another three months. From their perspective, no one at the political level is guilty or responsible for what happened on October 7. They don’t want us to know.”
We reported earlier how Benny Gantz, who heads the State Camp Party, also slammed the decision and said he will push for the inquiry to take place.
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