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I'd call this a stunning admission from the @AP that they naively treated casualty data from the Gaza Ministry of Health as trustworthy. Let me explain with (a 🧵): 1/ apnews.com/article/israel-pa…
NYT's Bret Stephens: "It’s difficult to take Israel’s inveterate critics seriously when they demand a “Free Palestine” without registering the slightest audible objection to the tyrannies in Ramallah and Gaza." nytimes.com/2026/10/27/opini…
David Adesnik retweeted
India is an extraordinary country and a vital partner to Israel.
But India has no veto at the UN Security Council—even though it deserves a permanent seat—and cannot block anti-Israel resolutions.
India doesn’t control the U.S. dollar and cannot shield Israel from American sanctions.
Indian banks cannot give Israel access to the U.S.-dominated global financial system if Washington decides to cut it off.
India cannot replace the American F-35s, F-16s, and F-15s on which Israel’s air superiority depends.
India is an indispensable partner. But it is no substitute for the United States.
Breaking: For the first time, Prime Minister Netanyahu openly acknowledges the possibility of a breakdown in the U.S.–Israel alliance and suggests forging alternative alliances, including with India.
“In two years, a president - man or woman -who is extremely hostile to Israel could come to power. How will you deal with that? How will you operate vis-à-vis the United States? And beyond that, what are the necessary solutions?”
Netanyahu, who did not assume responsibility for the current state of relations with the United States, continued:
“First of all, we must do everything in our power during these two years, and in the two years that follow, to engage with the American arena, through good times and bad. The second thing is to forge other alliances. That is what I am working on now with many countries in our region, as well as countries outside our region. India is no small country, and there are many other countries as well....“There is a major shift taking place in Latin America, and there may be an enormous change in Brazil in just a few days. We must expand our network of alliances and develop capabilities that make us a valuable asset to everyone.”
David Adesnik retweeted
Winning a war in Syria does not mean knowing how to fight one in Yemen. foreignpolicy.com/2026/10/16…
David Adesnik retweeted
"Illicit cash has permeated the United States because anyone, from criminals to foreign countries, can use America’s opaque corporate structures to set up anonymous US entities for front companies and money-laundering operations, with no identification required."
More from Tyler Stapleton & @FDD_CEFP's Josh Birenbaum in @TheNatlInterest:
bit.ly/4yV0pbm
David Adesnik retweeted
Buried under yesterday's @USTreasury Iran sanctions is something not done before.
This is the first time khums (the one-fifth levy observant muslims pay on surplus income) is named as a channel the Islamic Republic exploits for sanctions evasion and terror finance.
The alert publish by FinCEN didn't hold back saying some collectors act "on behalf of prominent Iranian ayatollahs with ties to the regime or on behalf of the Supreme Leader himself." The U.S. government is asking banks to be on the look out for these flows and report them.
In 2024 two men in Texas pleaded guilty to collecting khums on Khamenei's behalf, carrying cash out in amounts under $10,000 to evade detection, and once used 25 pilgrims bound for Iraq to hand-deliver dollars to Iran.
David Adesnik retweeted
In September, when @SecScottBessent teased a "large bank," I noted the place to watch was Iraq's banking sector and pointed to Bank Melli's Iraqi footprint. Today @USTreasury designated Iraq's International Development Bank (IDB), the country's self-described largest private bank, under E.O. 13902 for operating in Iran's financial sector.
Treasury says IDB was set up by Iranian companies to supply Tehran with dollars, abused its access to Iraq's dollar wire auction, passed through the hands of an IRGC-QF financier, and still sends its profits to Iran in dollars every month.
The detail that matters most: Treasury says Bank Melli's Iraq operation, located next door to IDB, closed under sanctions and transferred its capital to IDB. Sanctioned Iranian capital did not leave Iraq but basically moved next door.
In July, Baghdad listed IDB among 7 restricted banks cleared to start rebuilding correspondent ties. 3 months later it is an SDN, with a wind-down license that expires October 30.
Warning by @SecScottBessent that a “large bank” is next should put Iraq’s financial sector in focus.
For years, Iran and the IRGC have treated Iraq as one of Tehran’s most permissive foreign banking environments and a gateway to dollars, nested correspondent access and sanctions evasion.
Since 2023, 27 Iraqi banks have lost dollar access in three waves: 14, eight and five. @USTreasury says IRGC-controlled Al-Huda Bank used forged documents for at least $6 billion in outbound wires and accessed dollars through accounts at six foreign banks. Iraq's al-Bilad Bank was sanctioned for moving millions for the IRGC-QF to Hezbollah.
Meanwhile, sanctioned Bank Melli still lists three Iraqi branches: Baghdad, Basra and Najaf. Iraq’s banking overlap with Tehran deserves close attention.
.@peterbeinart: US should not just push for Palestinian elections, but insist that Hamas be allowed to run!
No requirement that Hamas lay down its arms or repudiate attacks on civilians. So it earned the right on Oct. 7 to be a terrorist organization and a political party?
David Adesnik retweeted
The critically wounded victim of the terrorist attack is Neriah Leiter, the son of Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. Another of the ambassador’s sons, Moshe Leiter, was killed in Gaza at the beginning of the war.
The ambassador has been briefed and is monitoring the situation remotely.
.@wsjopinion: "Mr. Trump has shifted from annihilation to peace in our time, back and forth, so many times that exhausted Americans don’t know what to believe." wsj.com/opinion/donald-trump…
David Adesnik retweeted
A simple truth that millions of people – from rappers to streamers to college students – find it impossible to understand.
Zionism: The Jewish people deserve a state in their historic homeland.
Anti-Zionism: Only Palestinians deserve a state in that land.
The rest is details.
The @WashPost doesn't seem to get it, nor do some Jews. washingtonpost.com/religion/…
Here's a tariff to put on China: Want your leader to visit the US? Release 100 political prisoners: washingtonpost.com/opinions/…
Zionism: The Jewish people deserve a state in their historic homeland.
Anti-Zionism: Only Palestinians deserve a state in that land.
The rest is details.
The @WashPost doesn't seem to get it, nor do some Jews. washingtonpost.com/religion/…
Top Pentagon cyber defender: AI exposing vulnerability of our networks washingtonpost.com/technolog…
Biden AI envoy: China is not remotely serious about cooperating on safety. They just want an edge: nytimes.com/2026/09/16/opini…
