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Overnight, members of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), and the Special Police Unit took part in a joint operation against the Lions’ Den terror group in the heart of the West Bank city of Nablus.
During the operation, Israeli forces raided an apartment that was being used by the Lions’ Den as both a headquarters and explosives facility, with the bomb lab ultimately being destroyed.
As the raid was ongoing, armed members of the Lions’ Den engaged the Israeli forces in a heavy gunfight, which left several people dead and at least 20 wounded.
Sources identified one of the killed Lions’ Den members as Wadee Al-Houh, a leading member of the organization.
Al-Houh is the latest Nablus-based terror leader to be killed in recent days, following the bombing death of Tamer Kilani on Saturday night. The Lions’ Den holds Israel responsible for Kilani’s death.
The Lions’ Den is a budding terror group based in the Nablus region that is composed of members of internationally recognized terror organizations, including the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
In the last few weeks, the group has claimed responsibility for a number of attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians, including the shooting death of an Israeli soldier as well as a shooting attack on a taxi and bus.
The Lions' Den leader Wadi al-Houh was killed tonight during an Israeli forces' operation in Nablus. pic.twitter.com/6nkvuOKOeR
— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) October 25, 2022
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Syrian media reported that Israel recently conducted a rare daytime bombing raid on military sites near Damascus and al-Dimas.
According to the report, one soldier was wounded and some material was destroyed during the airstrikes.
The report also alleged that some Israeli missiles were intercepted by Syrian air defenses.
This raid follows an earlier Israeli airstrike on Damascus airport that is alleged to have destroyed a Syrian military radar station.
Over the past decade, Israel is believed to have conducted hundreds of airstrikes in Syria in order to weaken Iran’s grip on the wartorn country, as well as to block the shipment of arms between the Islamic Republic and the Lebanon-based terror organization, Hezbollah.
In most instances, Israel does not confirm its involvement in the airstrikes.
Reports out of Syria of a rare daytime strike by Israel near the capital of Damascus. This would be the second strike in under a week, after a month-long lull
— Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim) October 24, 2022
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The German sportswear company Adidas is set to sever its ties with Kanye West (also known as “Ye”) following a public outcry over the American rapper’s recent antisemitic statements.
West has come under fire over the past month for debuting a line of “White Lives Matter” shirts at a Paris fashion show, tweeting that he is going to go “death con 3 on Jewish people,” claiming that Jared Kushner helped arrange the Abraham Accords “to make money” and referencing a “Jewish underground media mafia.”
Following his antisemitic remarks, a number of organizations have cut ties with West, including the fashion brands Gap and Balenciaga, MRC studi,o and the CAA talent agency.
Additionally, West’s ex-wife Kim Kardashian publicly condemned his antisemitism and voiced her support for the Jewish community.
Hate speech is never OK or excusable. I stand together with the Jewish community and call on the terrible violence and hateful rhetoric towards them to come to an immediate end.
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) October 24, 2022
In a recent interview with Piers Morgan, Kanye West defended his statements but apologized for the pain he has caused to some.
By ending its connection with Kanye, Adidas is letting go of one of its most profitable brands. Last year, West’s brand brought in approximately $2 billion for the athletic apparel giant.
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As part of his visit to Washington D.C. this week, Israeli President Isaac Herzog is set to meet with American government officials as well as Jewish community leaders.
During the two-day trip, Herzog is scheduled to sit down with US President Joe Biden (who invited him to visit the American capital), Secretary of State Antony Blinken, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and congressional leaders.
The Israeli president is planning to discuss the Iranian threat to the region, the Abraham Accords, and the maritime gas deal with Lebanon. He will also work on strengthening the connection between Israel and American Jewry.
Prior to his flight, Herzog issued a statement, saying that “The United States is Israel’s greatest ally, and our strategic partnership is both enduring and unshakable.”
He further commented that “This visit comes during elections, both in Israel and the United States, and it is an opportunity to reaffirm that the powerful friendship and partnership between our nations is above all disagreements, and above any political or party divisions.”
Departing tonight to the United States for an official visit at the invitation of my friend, President @JoeBiden. The United States is Israel's greatest ally and our strategic partnership is both enduring and unshakable.🇮🇱🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/1Xs8lo6PgK
— יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog) October 24, 2022
Recommended Reading
- New British PM Has Called Jerusalem Israel’s ‘Historic Capital,’ Vowed to Fight BDS (Times of Israel)
- Germans Increasingly Less Committed to Israel, Study Shows (Yogev Israeli, Ynet News)
- Recognizing That Western Jerusalem is Israel’s Capital Should Not Be Controversial (Dr. Eric R. Mandel, Jewish News Syndicate)
- In a First, EU Invites Jews and Muslims to Stand Up For Kosher and Halal Slaughter Amid Local Bans (Cnaan Lipshiz, Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
- Israeli Researchers Say Magnetic Fields Provide Way to Securely Date Biblical Events (Amanda Borschel-Dan, Times of Israel)
- Who was Wadee al-Houh, the Lions’ Den gunman killed in Nablus? (Khaled Abu Toameh, Jerusalem Post)
