Lahav Harkov šŸŽ—ļø Profile picture
Senior Political Correspondent @j_insider covering Israeli politics & diplomacy. @MisgavINSen Fellow. Proud Jew & Zionist. עם הנצח לא מפחד מד×Øך א×Øוכה šŸ‡®šŸ‡±
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Feb 4 ā€¢ 14 tweets ā€¢ 2 min read
Trump said his meeting with Netanyahu was ā€œwonderfulā€ and that the friendship between the US and Israel is unbreakable. Image On the Abraham Accords Trump said heā€™s sure ā€œmany countries will be joining this peace and economic development transaction.ā€
Sep 1, 2024 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 2 min read
Netanyahu:

This is a difficult day. The entire nationā€™s hearts are broken. I and all of Israel were shocked to the depths of my soul at the terrible murder in cold blood of six of our hostagesā€¦

I say to the Hamas terroristsā€¦we will not rest. We will hunt you down, we will reach you and you will pay the price.

We are fighting on all fronts against a cruel enemy who wants to murder us all. Just this morning they killed 3 police officers in Hebronā€¦

The fact that Hamas continues to commit atrocities like on Oct. 7 requires us to do everything to ensure they canā€™t commit those atrocities again. Netanyahu on hostage negotiations:

Since December, Hamas refuses to really negotiate. 3 months ago Israel agreed to a deal to free the hostages fully backed by the US. Hamas refused even after the US updated the deal on August 16 ā€” we agreed, Hamas refused againā€¦Hamas continues to refuse every offer. Even worse, at the same time they murdered six of our hostages.

*Whoever murders hostages doesnā€™t want a deal.*

We wonā€™t give up. The govt of Israel is committed and I personally commit to continuing to work towards a deal that will bring back all our hostages and ensure our security and our existence.
Jul 24, 2024 ā€¢ 57 tweets ā€¢ 8 min read
Some of the guests for Netanyahuā€™s speech who Iā€™ve spotted so far:
Rivka Kidron
@lightstonea
@DouglasKMurray
Rabbi Levi Shemtov
@JGreenblattADL
Sander Gerber
@NDiament
Falic family
Daniel Bonner
Eric Fingerhut
Rabbi Abraham Cooper
Pastor Hagee
Richard and Phyllis Heidemen Also in the audience: Former Netanyahu spokesman David Keyes who was forced to resign over sexual misconduct allegations.
May 5, 2024 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
#BREAKING Israel's cabinet voted unanimously to shut down Al Jazeera in Israel This proposal was raised repeatedly since Oct. 7 in light of Al Jazeera reporters' membership in Hamas, giving away IDF positions, etc - but it was delayed again and again, in part bc Qatar, which owns Al Jazeera, is the mediator in hostage negotiations.
Apr 16, 2024 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
This is what Israeli Health Ministry representative Gilad Bodenheimer said at the same Knesset meeting: "We know of only a few cases of suicide. We must be cautious with numbers that could do public damage." I don't necessarily take the government at its word, but I also question how the survivor would know about 50 cases. (I'm not attributing malice to the survivor, to be clear.)
Mar 25, 2024 ā€¢ 5 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
#BREAKING Netanyahu announces that if the US doesn't veto the UN Security Council resolution for a ceasefire today, he's canceling Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi's White House meetings. Dermer and Hanegbi's trip to Washington came after Biden asked Netanyahu on the phone last week to send a delegation to discuss alternatives to a major IDF operation in Rafah.
Feb 7, 2024 ā€¢ 6 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
Blinken: ā€œWhile there are some clear nonstarters in Hamasā€™ response, we do think it creates spaceā€ to negotiate a hostage release deal.

Also talks about negotiations to get Hezbollah off the northern border so Israelis can return to their homes. Blinken spends much more time talking about humanitarian aid to Gaza and the toll of the war on civilians than about everything else combined. Calls on Israel to open the Erez crossing to northern Gaza, improve coordination w aid providers, stop anyone from blocking aid.
Nov 28, 2023 ā€¢ 26 tweets ā€¢ 9 min read
Iā€™m going to make a thread of ways this Sky News take is egregious
Image Elma Abraham, 84, not given any of the life-saving medicine she needed and returning to Israel straight to hospital where sheā€™s in critical condition
Nov 26, 2023 ā€¢ 5 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
Hamas trying to move the goalposts. Senior Hamas terrorist in Beirut says that they won't release hostages today unless Israel allows 300 trucks into Gaza and releases prisoners in order of how long they're in prison "as promised."
Except that was never what Israel agreed to. Unfortunately, I would expect another nerve-wracking night.
Nov 8, 2023 ā€¢ 8 tweets ā€¢ 2 min read
I was wondering about this. Btw did you notice the caption of the photo of Shani Louk thrown in the back of a pickup truck calls her an Israeli soldier?
Oct 23, 2023 ā€¢ 6 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
Red Cross, Hamas say 2 more hostages have been released. Per Hamas, their names are Nurit Yitzhak & Yehudit Lifshitz, chosen for ā€œhealth reasons.ā€
Lest you think Hamas are humanitarians, remember they are still holding another 220 civilians hostage, including children. Yitzhak is 85, Lifshitz is 79 and volunteered with her husband for years to take Palestinians to Israeli hospitals for treatment.
Oct 22, 2023 ā€¢ 5 tweets ā€¢ 2 min read
When American Jewish intellectuals publicly debated earlier this year
whether US military aid is good for Israel or not, Israelis largely ignored it. Now, Israelis are finding the debate very relevant - and realizing they may be having it too late. 1/ I wrote about the start of this public discussion in Israel last week 2/jewishinsider.com/2023/10/u-s-isā€¦
Oct 14, 2023 ā€¢ 7 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
Briefing reporters, Israel's new point man on hostages and captives Gal Hirsch said the authorities are still working on getting a clear picture of who Hamas killed, who they took hostage and whose status is unknown. 126 families have been contacted. Asked about negotiations for their release, Hirsch would not comment other than to say "we are talking about a bitter enemy." This is soon after Hanegbi said "we don't have a way currently to negotiate with an enemy that we want to erase from the earth."
Oct 9, 2023 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 2 min read
The EU, the biggest donor to the Palestinians, is suspending all aid In July, the EU representative to the Palestinians was...wait for it...paragliding in Gaza. facebook.com/EUandPalestiniā€¦
Aug 14, 2023 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
The coverage of FM Eli Cohenā€™s statement about no Saudi consulate in Jerusalem is driving me nuts. It has been so misleading. There was no announcement and no veto of a Saudi request. A day and a half after the Saudis announced their envoy, to the Palestinians, Cohen was asked 1/ on the radio if the step was coordinated with Israel. He said no, and that they donā€™t have to. In other words - the Saudis didnā€™t ask at all, let alone for a consulate in Jerusalem. Then Cohen was asked if Israel will allow a consulate in Jerusalem if asked, and Cohen said 2/
Jul 25, 2023 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
Channel 13 poll

National Camp (Gantz) 30
Likud 25
Yesh Atid 17
Shas 10
UTJ 7
Yisrael Beytenu 6
Raam 6
Religious Zionism 5
Otzma 5
Hadash-Ta'al 5
Meretz 4

Opposition 63
Coalition 52 54% concerned about Israel's security following the new law
37% not worried

56% worried there will be civil war
35% not worried

54% Netanyahu doesn't want to compromise
33% He does

55% Gantz and Lapid should return to talks about the judicial reform
26% they shouldn't
Jul 25, 2023 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
It was very striking to see these and other newspapers with this cover - the text days "a black day for Israeli democracy" - but, as it turns out, it's an ad! Image The hi-tech protest group paid for the ads
Jul 18, 2023 ā€¢ 8 tweets ā€¢ 2 min read
Biden and Herzog in the Oval Office.

Biden: Our commitment to Israel is ironclad

Article to come Image jpost.com/breaking-news/ā€¦
Jun 14, 2023 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
The vote for judicial selection committee members, like any secret ballot in the Knesset, is always kind of a circus because MKs can use it to settle scores without anyone knowing. As always, the hypocrisy/ignorance in how itā€™s discussed is what drives me nuts. 1/ Opposition MK is a custom, not the law, but the custom is not sacrosanct either. Gantz+Bibiā€™s coalition deal in 2020 said there would be 2 coalition MKs - and now Gantz is making threats if thereā€™s no opposition MK. Circumstances are different so itā€™s legit IMO, but funny. 2/
May 1, 2023 ā€¢ 31 tweets ā€¢ 5 min read
.@AmirOhana in English to @SpeakerMcCarthy: I would like to thank youā€¦for your deep & longstanding friendship w Israel. From the beginning of your career you worked tirelessly to deepen tiesā€¦I am certain that the relationship btwn Knesset & congress will be stronger than ever. Ohana quotes McCarthy as saying the US is a better country bc of its friendship w Israel. Ohana thanks McCarthy for standing w Israel in good times and bad and says Israel will do the same for the US.
Mar 9, 2023 ā€¢ 4 tweets ā€¢ 1 min read
I have a meeting near Azrieli and I left the house an hour early because of the protests andā€¦This is not the mob scene it was made out to be. The streets are blocked but not full. Idk the exact numbers but I am very early to my meeting and had no trouble getting around. ImageImage Sushi and a protest, how very Tel Avivi Image