Escalation in Gaza: After nearly 19 months of war, Israel is ramping up its military campaign in the Gaza Strip, calling up reserve forces across the country in preparation, our Andrew Tobin and Eliana Johnson report. The aim is to put enough pressure on Hamas to secure another ceasefire-for-hostage deal, which Hamas has rejected since Israel reentered the war-torn strip in March after the collapse of a Trump-brokered ceasefire agreement.
The forthcoming military action represents an escalation of the fighting in Gaza but not yet a full-scale invasion, according to Amir Avivi, a former Israeli brigadier general who has advised Israel’s government and military during the war. That could change if Hamas continues to reject a temporary deal or if calls among Israelis to end the war intensify. More than 30 percent of reservists “do not believe in [Israel’s] ability to defeat Hamas and see no purpose in continuing the war,” according to a recent survey from Bitchonistim, a hawkish think tank that Avivi leads.
“Israel’s moves to escalate the fighting in Gaza come as the war effort puts increasing strain on Israeli society,” write Tobin and Johnson. “That includes particularly reservists, many of whom have left behind families and jobs to serve hundreds of days in the past year and a half, and several hostage families, who are publicly calling on the prime minister to strike a deal that ends the war in exchange for a return of all the hostages—a bargain they believe he should at least try to strike, though national security experts have voiced skepticism that Hamas will, under any circumstances, hand over all remaining hostages.”
READ MORE: Israel To Surge Troops in Expansion of War on Hamas
The role of the conservative spouse: “For the mainstream media, questioning the role of women in the workplace is alright as long as they’re c-words—conservatives, that is.” That’s our editors’ take on the mainstream media scrutiny of Jennifer Hegseth, the wife of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and a former Fox News producer who apparently advises her husband on media interviews, and who is evidently featured in “jumbo photographs” displayed in his office. The horror!
“This sort of coverage is hardly unique,” our editors write. “During President Donald Trump’s first term, Politico’s Nahal Toosi produced in-depth reports raising questions about the role of then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s wife, Susan. Why did she accompany him on overseas trips? ‘Her close involvement in his career has attracted unwelcome scrutiny,’ Politico reported. Sure—from Politico.”
“What didn’t merit scrutiny from the mainstream press was the role DOCTOR Jill Biden played in the previous administration. First lady runs a cabinet meeting? Nothing to see here. (Now we know that in the Biden White House, her word ‘carried the most sway.’)” On Thursday, Joe Biden will sit for his first interview when leaving the White House, and Jill will be right there beside him.
READ MORE: The Mainstream Media vs. the Conservative Spouse
When suspension becomes vacation: Columbia medical student Gabrielle Wimer was arrested and suspended for storming Barnard College’s library in March. While the university didn’t say how long that suspension would last, it appears to have been a brief one: Sources tell our Jessica Costescu that Wimer is back in class and “appears to be on course to graduate later this month.”
One student speculated that, in allowing Wimer to return to the classroom, Columbia bent its rules. Medical students like Wimer must pass a “Ready 4 Residency” class before graduating. They’re required to attend seven sessions each week to do so and are allowed just four absences. “Wimer didn’t start coming to class until mid-April,” classmates said, “putting her well over the number of permitted absences.” Still, Wimer has been spotted attending the course as if nothing happened.
“The response to this situation undermines the integrity of the medical profession and disregards the commitment of countless students and physicians who have upheld the standards faithfully,” said one witness. “For the institution, what is being labeled a ‘suspension’ effectively is an extended vacation, rather than a serious academic or professional sanction.”
READ MORE: Columbia Med Students Condemn University After Classmate Who Stormed Library Returns to Campus
Away from the Beacon:
- Top aides to Joe Biden considered having him take a cognitive test during his reelection campaign but decided “that the mere fact of his taking one would raise new questions about his mental abilities,” according to a new excerpt from the upcoming book 2024: How Trump Retook the White House and the Democrats Lost America. Because those questions were notably muted without one.
- Speaking of old Joe, Jen Psaki identified the first time she realized her former boss was in decline: the first presidential debate, when he short-circuited in front of the entire nation. Even more absurd than Psaki’s claim is the Daily Beast‘s assertion that the former White House press secretary “shared the truth” when making it.
- Iranian terrorism reared its head over the weekend, first in London, where police arrested four Iranian nationals for plotting a terror attack, and then in Tel Aviv, where a Houthi missile landed near Ben Gurion Airport. Israel is coordinating a response with the United States—and Donald Trump has pledged to hold Iran responsible for future attacks.
- The president said in an interview with Meet the Press that any nuclear deal with Iran must include the “full dismantlement” of the country’s nuclear program. We’ll see if Steve Witkoff was watching.
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