𝗛𝗮𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘇 (Israel) 𝟭 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲: "Like a Gambler Who Lost His Fortune, Israel Wants Another War" + 𝗛𝗮𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘇 (Israel) 𝟭 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲: "IDF Chief Met U.S. Leaders in Washington to Discuss Possible U.S. Strike on Iran" + 𝗛𝗮𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘇 (Israel) 𝟭 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲: "AIPAC Gears Up for Midterm Election Cycle With $95 Million War Chest"
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EMI P
Feb 1, 2026, 12:45:40 PM (4 days ago) Feb 1
to acao.az...@gmail.com, FloridaliTurkler, Özgür Gündem, paxturcica, Turkishforum
https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/2026-02-01/ty-article-opinion/.premium/israel-wants-another-war/0000019c-15d1-d473-abfe-55fb68a20000?gift=770482ccf5c747e4a78fb691dc818f84
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Like a Gambler Who Lost His Fortune, Israel Wants Another War
Smoke rises after Israeli airstrikes in the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday. Credit: Stringer/Reuters
05:10 AM • February 01 2026 IST
There was a dead horse at the site of Saturday's Israeli airstrike on Al-Mawasi, in southern Gaza. The sight was heartbreaking; its brown body was gaunt, and the bombing certainly put an end to its suffering, the suffering of a starving horse that had been put to hard labor in the Strip. When human beings groan, their beasts of burden groan even more. All around, plumes of smoke rose from the scraps of the tents where tens of thousands of miserable displaced people had found a refuge that turned out to be false. In vain, they had believed in the cease-fire; in vain, they thought they were in a safe area. On both counts, Israel deceived them.
The images from Gaza were horrific, as always: the mangled body of a woman being carried on a stretcher; a baby with a disfigured face being ventilated manually, likely in vain; bodies strewn on the ground and terrible crying in the background: a woman screaming in anguish at a corpse wrapped in a cheap, fuzzy blanket.
Already before first light Saturday, seven members of a family were killed in Muwasi, all of them terrorist infrastructure. The death toll later reached 31, including at least six children. It was one of the deadliest days of bombing since the cease-fire went into effect. Israel has killed 509 people in Gaza since the October 10 start of the cease-fire, according to the Palestinian health ministry there, which Israel now believes, officially, and this bloodbath is still not enough for it.
Neither Saturday's strikes themselves nor their timing were accidental. Israel claimed they were in response to Hamas' violation of the cease-fire. It takes extraordinary chutzpah to complain about Hamas violating the cease-fire after killing more than 500 Palestinians in Gaza and thinking that additional unrestrained killing of civilians is legitimate after a few gunmen emerged from a tunnel, but it's impossible to ignore the proximity between Saturday's killings and Sunday's planned reopening of the Rafah crossing.
A Palestinian man looks at his horse after it was killed in an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday. Credit: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
The reopening of the Gaza-Egypt border is supposed to mark a new beginning. Phase two of the American plan begins. Is that indeed the case? Israel will do all it can to sabotage it. Perhaps 30 deaths in one a day aren't enough for that, but they provide a fitting backdrop for the "peace plan." Hamas completed its part of the plan by releasing all the hostages, while Israel did not stop killing for even a single day.
It's no longer only the bloodlust and the thirst for revenge, that have not stopped since October 7. Now it's the desire to disrupt Donald Trump's plan, in order to return to war. Amos Harel reported in Haaretz Friday that the government's policy is based on the hope that the Trump plan will crash and the U.S. president will give Israel the green light to recapture Gaza. That's what Israel wants.
Mourners carry a body during the funeral of Palestinians, killed by an Israeli strike on Saturday, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Strip.
Credit: Ramadan Abed/Reuters
The return of the body of the last hostage was supposed to mark the end of the most terrible war Israel has ever waged and the emergence of new hope. It was also the most unsuccessful war, at the end of which Israel's situation was immeasurably worse than when it began. The return of the hostages and the sating of the desire for revenge were the only achievements Israel's longest war brought the country. The damage, on the other hand, has piled up. The condition of Israel today is much more severe than that of Israel in 2023. Domestically and internationally, this is a different country, and its condition is worse.
Palestinians inspect damage to a tent hit by an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday. Credit: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
Tragically, even those who understand the damage the war in Gaza has caused to Israel want more of it. Unbelievable. Like a gambler who has lost his fortune, the government wants another round. If force doesn't work, use more force. But how much more force can be exerted on the devastated Strip?
This doesn't seem to bother most Israelis. Israelis have never taken to the streets en masse in order to prevent another round of genocide. And a bit of devilry: Embedded in an Associated Press report on Saturday's killings in Gaza was an advertisement in Hebrew: "This winter's hit – a whirlpool bath, imported from the United States. A Jacuzzi and fitness in your backyard." Israel 2026.
(Excerpt from Wikipedia:
In 2021, Levy was awarded Israel's top journalism award, the Sokolow Prize. In its citation, the prize committee wrote that Levy "presents original and independent positions that do not surrender to convention or social codes, and in doing so enriches the public discourse fearlessly."
He says his sons do not share his politics and do not read anything he writes. He has received death threats.)
Comments
3Enis Pınar • 18:47
Thank you, Mr. Levy. It's heartening to know there are still brave journalists like you unafraid to speak truth to power.
2Imichael • 16:50
Thanks to G Levy -- and the commentators below. More need not be said. Question remains, whether anyone with influence, i.e. political power outside Israel, will take the points mentioned seriously -- or even be aware of them (and how can one not be aware of them?). That´s the only way to stop this madness.
1Eike • 06:46
"This doesn't seem to bother most Israelis." They have proven themselves to be a sick people. Repulsive. The worst criminal hypocrites on earth. The whole country is deranged and cruelly perpetrating incredible crimes. Just fills me with disgust.
Third DayEike • 07:42
That's how I feel too. There does not seem to be a limit to the Israeli payback but irrespective of how the ISF spins the rational, starving people are being executed in what can only be described as a large scale version of The Hunger Games. That should concern the world but it does not. This also fills me with disgust.
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IDF Chief Met U.S. Leaders in Washington to Discuss Possible U.S. Strike on Iran
Iran's Supreme Leader Warns of Regional Conflict if U.S. Attacks After IDF Chief Visits Washington
'The Americans should know that if they start a war, it will be a regional war,' Khamenei reportedly said, after IDF chief Eyal Zamir met top U.S. military officials in Washington to coordinate defense plans ahead of a possible U.S. strike on Iran
February 01, 2026 Updated:02:30 PM IST
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that if the U.S. attacked Iran, it would become a regional conflict, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday.
"The Americans should know that if they start a war, this time it will be a regional war," Khamenei added. "We are not the instigators and we do not seek to attack any country. But the Iranian nation will deliver a firm blow to anyone who attacks or harasses it."
Meanwhile, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir spent two days in Washington over the weekend, holding talks with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine and other senior U.S. military officials. The meetings focused on coordinating defense arrangements between Israel and the United States ahead of a possible American attack on the regime in Tehran.
Among other issues, Zamir discussed potential scenarios stemming from tensions between the United States and Iran, as well as their regional and operational implications.
Last week, Military Intelligence chief Shlomi Binder also visited Washington for similar reasons.
Ali Shamkhani, a senior adviser to Khamenei, issued a similar warning on Wednesday, saying any U.S. military action against Iran would lead to harm to Israel.
"A limited strike is an illusion. Any military action from America, of any origin and at any level, will be considered the start of war, and the response will be immediate, all-out, and unprecedented," Shamkhani wrote, saying Iran would "target the heart of Tel Aviv."
However, Iran's national security council chief Ali Larijani said Saturday that progress has been made toward establishing a framework for negotiations between Iran and the United States.
In a post on X, Larijani said that "despite war-mongering media, frameworks for negotiations with the U.S. are advancing."
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters aboard Air Force One as he travels from Joint Base Andrews,
to West Palm Beach, Fla., Saturday. Credit: Mark Schiefelbein/AP
U.S. President Donald Trump said that the Iranians "are talking to us ... we'll see what happens."
In an interview with Fox News aired Saturday, Trump said the talks were not yet producing an agreement. "The last time they negotiated, we had to take out their nuclear. Didn't work, you know. Then we took it out a different way, and we'll see what happens," Trump said.
He also reiterated that the U.S. has "a big fleet heading out there, bigger than we had – and still have, actually – in Venezuela."
Qatar's Foreign Ministry said the country's prime minister met with Larijani in Tehran in "an attempt to ease tensions in the region."
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AIPAC Gears Up for Midterm Election Cycle With $95 Million War Chest
The pro-Israel group's Super PAC has the most cash on hand since its establishment ahead of the 2022 midterms, and has already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars ahead of next week's New Jersey Democratic primary
Candidates in Texas' Democratic primary, Rep. James Talarico and Rep. Jasmine Crockett, debate last month
ahead of the party's primary elections on March 3. Credit: Bob Daemmrich/AP
Ben SamuelsWashington
03:53 AM • February 01 2026 ISTWASHINGTON - American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC)'s United Democracy Project Super PAC reported Friday having more than $95 million cash on hand ahead of the 2026 midterm primary election cycle, after raising $62 million in the latter half of 2025.
A super PAC is a political action committee that is allowed raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to campaign independently for candidates for federal office.
It is the most cash on hand the Super PAC has had heading into an election cycle since its establishment ahead of the 2022 midterms.
According to federal filings, AIPAC itself contributed $30 million to the Super PAC. Two individual donors gave more than $1 million each.
Republican megadonor Paul Singer, whose contributions to the organization have drawn Democratic ire for several election cycles, donated $2.5 million. Democratic megadonor Haim Saban contributed $1 million.
Saban recently made rare public remarks about the influence of pro-Israel megadonors on the U.S. political system while appearing alongside GOP donor Miriam Adelson at the Israel American Council's annual conference. "Those who give more have more access, and those who give less have less access – it's simple math," he said.
The United Democracy Project AIPAC SuperPAC has already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on attack ads in a New Jersey Democratic primary scheduled for next Thursday, targeting former Rep. Tom Malinowski, a center-left lawmaker who was a leading voice on international human rights during his time in Congress.
Although AIPAC has said the campaign is driven by Malinowski's critical stance on Israel, the ads make no mention of Israel. Instead, they portray him negatively to Democratic voters by accusing him of supporting Trump's anti-immigration efforts and that he "cannot be trusted."
Democrats have become increasingly irate over AIPAC's Republican-funded attack ads influencing Democratic primaries, with internal critics of the party's status quo approach often citing AIPAC's support as potentially disqualifying for candidates.
Liberal pro-Israel group J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami recently decried AIPAC's "five-year pattern of deploying vast financial resources – primarily raised from Republican donors – to intimidate, punish or defeat Democrats AIPAC deems insufficiently pro-Israel.
"With tens of millions of dollars in the bank, the implicit threat to sitting members of Congress and candidates alike is hard to ignore."
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