Ruth Ish-Horowicz

Retired Public Diplomacy Specialist, U.S. Embassy, Tel Aviv

[Mario Nawfal @MarioNawfal]

A Muslim saying to a Jew: "I’m sorry for everything that happened in Sydney."

The only labels that matter are GOOD vs EVIL.

[Fania Oz-Salzberger 🇮🇱🕊️🟣 פניה עוז-זלצברגר @faniaoz]

My new piece in @FT, The battle for the soul of Israel.
“Here’s a truth to reckon with: neither Israelis nor Palestinians are going to disappear any time soon. No one can destroy their respective claims to a sovereign state in their ancestral homeland, which happens to be the same land. Barring a cataclysmic event, there will be no river-to-sea Palestine and no Greater Israel. This is a conflict that can only be solved by territorial and political compromise.”
https://t.co/iLYkvK1t4L via @ft

[Ruth Ish-Horowicz @ruthish11]

@orionbooks @Beathhigh Great news! Looking forward to reading it.

[Ruth Ish-Horowicz @ruthish11]

"They were waiting for us in an alley." Kan 11 News Team facing pro-Palestinians rioters on Saturday night - they were then escorted by police to their hotel. #AmsterdamAttack

[כאן חדשות @kann_news]

"חיכו לנו בסמטה": צוות כאן 11 אוים על ידי פרו-פלסטינים באמסטרדם - ופונה בידי שוטרים
@michalresh

[כאן חדשות @kann_news]

"חיכו לנו בסמטה": צוות כאן 11 אוים על ידי פרו-פלסטינים באמסטרדם - ופונה בידי שוטרים
@michalresh

[Fania Oz-Salzberger 🇮🇱🕊️🟣 פניה עוז-זלצברגר @faniaoz]

Shir’el Golan, who survived the Nova festival massacre, took her own life today, her 22nd birthday. The number of post-Nova suicides is growing. Her family says Shir’el was murdered twice: by Hamas in 7/10, and then by the state authorities, who did not give survivors the support they desperately needed.

[Hen Mazzig @HenMazzig]

Never forget that Yahya Sinwar earned the nickname ‘Butcher of Khan Younis’ for massacring Palestinians, not Israelis.

[Hillel Neuer @HillelNeuer]

Hamas terror chief Sinwar had sacks of UNRWA humanitarian aid funded by Western taxpayers.

Hamas terror chief in Lebanon Fathi Sharif headed the UNRWA Teacher Union.

Hamas kept their espionage computer servers in a terror tunnel right below UNRWA HQ.

⚡️ https://t.co/NK2XE1MHNI

[Hillel Neuer @HillelNeuer]

The Taliban banned women's faces & voices.

I took the floor at the UN and asked: “What is the UN and this Human Rights Council doing to help Afghan women? Why no agenda item on the Taliban's crimes? Why is there been no special session for their victims?”

UN Response: Silence.

[UN Watch @UNWatch]

'We were totally subject to Hezbollah,' reveals former UN peacekeeper

By Jotam Confino

https://t.co/Hd9rjnzkdO

Already from 10 years ago it was completely crazy. Hezbollah controlled which areas the UN soldiers in South Lebanon were allowed to visit, and in certain areas they could neither enter nor take pictures.

This is what a former Danish UN soldier says, who for the first time in his more than 25-year career has chosen to tell his story to @BTDK.

Michael, who has asked not to have his surname revealed for private reasons, was himself deployed to South Lebanon 10 years ago as part of the UN mission UNTSO  (United Nations Truce Supervision Organization).

UNTSO, the UN's oldest and longest-running mission, works closely with UNIFIL in South Lebanon, where they often share the same bases.

Their task is to observe and report violations of UN Security Council Resolution 1701 of 2006, which calls for all of southern Lebanon to be Hezbollah-free and for the terrorist group to be disarmed.

When Michael looks back on his secondment, he has no doubts about how to describe the UN:

"We were totally subject to Hezbollah. We clearly had limited freedom of movement. For example, we never operated after dark for fear of Hezbollah. So they had free time in the evening and night hours,' says Michael, who emphasizes that he is speaking as a private person and not on behalf of the Danish military.

And when Michael and his colleagues from either UNTSO or UNIFIL drove around the various cities, they were often stopped by suspected Hezbollah members when they tried to enter the areas where they believed the terrorist group could operate.

"They simply blocked the road. They were not visibly armed, but aggressive, and it was quite clear that they were members of Hezbollah - we knew very well who decided things, especially in the Shiite cities. They didn't want us to see what they were doing,' says Michael.

"When we patrolled the Blue Line, we often saw 'civilians' very close to the Israeli military installations taking pictures. When that happened, we withdrew and observed from a distance – we were simply instructed to do so,' he adds, referring to the 'blue line' that demarcates Israel and Lebanon.

It was also not allowed for Michael and his colleagues to document what was happening in other parts of the cities.

"It was forbidden to film and take pictures. And if we did, we could end up with the locals confiscating our cameras. It happened to my colleagues in UNIFIL and UNTSO.'

Hezbollah's control of South Lebanon was already massive then, says Michael.

"The civilians who did not care about Hezbollah, especially the Christians, were afraid to speak out against them. There was a widespread fear of them. But at the same time we experienced cooperation with the Shia Muslims. For example, we had a number of interpreters who were indoctrinated into Hezbollah. I ended up throwing one of them out of my car once while he was praising Hassan Nasrallah. I simply didn't want to listen to it,' says Michael.

The most frustrating part of the work, however, was the total absence of action and consequences for the flagrant violations of the resolution Michael and his colleagues were there to observe.

"We reported daily violations of resolution 1701 to our superiors, including in particular restrictions on our freedom of movement, and we were instructed to report all violations regardless of number. But nothing ever happened,' says Michael and adds:

"We did not hear back from them and nothing was initiated. It was wildly frustrating and it only confirmed to me what I had experienced in other countries I was posted to; The UN is incompetent,' he states.

According to Michael, however, most of the thousands of UN observers and soldiers had their hearts in the right place.

"We were there for a reason, after all. Even if several of us had to realize that we couldn't do anything. But of course there were also some who were fervently anti-Israeli. I especially remember one of them from Ireland.'

However, it is beyond Michael how extensive Hezbollah's infrastructure has become since he was there 10 years ago. Especially the tunnels, which BT has documented , are about 100 meters from a UNIFIL base, surprises him.

"We didn't hear or see any digging or tunnel construction when I was there - I would never hide that. On the other hand, several civilian houses and probably also a 'chicken farm' appeared close to the Blue Line while I was there, which of course we could not/were not allowed to inspect. I remember, on the other hand, that the Israelis had a really good handle on where Hezbollah was. We often visited the IDF on the Israeli side of the border to get their presentation of the situation. And they could pinpoint exactly where they had spotted Hezbollah on the other side of the border,' he says.

Israel's firing on UNIFIL bases has created a huge debate worldwide. The UN and a number of countries, including Israel's allies, have strongly condemned Israeli actions.
Israel itself says that it defends itself against Hezbollah, and that Hezbollah uses UNIFIL as human shields.

BT has reached out to UNIFIL and UNTSO for comment.

UNTSO referred us to UNIFIL who has not yet replied.

@mrconfino

[Dr. Eli David @DrEliDavid]

Sinwar's wife on October 6, hours before the massacre, walking in the tunnels with a $32,000 Hermes bag 👇

European aid money put to good use.
_

[נועה מגיד | Noa magid @NoaMagid]

My heart is broken💔

Shirel Golan, who survived the Nova Party massacre ended her life today in her apartment, on her 22nd birthday.

[Ruth Ish-Horowicz @ruthish11]

“… and a UNRWA employee ID …” - the irony of UNRWA being nominated for the Nobel peace prize #UNRWA #NobelPeacePrize #HamasTerrorism

[Amit Segal @AmitSegal]

Mentos, money, an AK-47, a lighter, and a UNRWA employee ID: this is what was found on the body of the arch-terrorist Yahya Sinwar.

[Amit Segal @AmitSegal]

Mentos, money, an AK-47, a lighter, and a UNRWA employee ID: this is what was found on the body of the arch-terrorist Yahya Sinwar.

[Ruth Ish-Horowicz @ruthish11]

The .@guardian is #shameless. It's really outdone itself this time. #Hamasisraelconflict #Guardianbias #bias

[Lahav Harkov @LahavHarkov]

So sad when killers and looters are portrayed as killers and looters.

[Ruth Ish-Horowicz @ruthish11]

Powerful #VictorOrban #corruption

[Moritz Körner @moritzkoerner]

I told Viktor Orbán that he is the useful idiot of Russia and China. He was not amused:

[Moritz Körner @moritzkoerner]

I told Viktor Orbán that he is the useful idiot of Russia and China. He was not amused:

[Lahav Harkov @LahavHarkov]

So sad when killers and looters are portrayed as killers and looters.

[New York Times Opinion @nytopinion]

Anita Ford planned the death of her abusive husband — and then went to prison for life. For women like Ford, "killing their way out of a relationship was an act of salvation — for themselves, for their children," writes @RLSWrites.

Read: https://t.co/346TneEVp3

[Fania Oz-Salzberger 🇮🇱🕊️🟣 פניה עוז-זלצברגר @faniaoz]

Red for murdered, black for kidnapped.
Mailboxes, Kibbutz Nir Oz.