Israel lobby in America: how AIPAC became an immovable colossus on the US political stage – Part 2 👉 Part 1

What has made the Israel lobby in US so powerful and how AIPAC influences elections?

▪️AIPAC receives financing from major corporations, tech industry moguls, political megadonors (Republican and Democrat alike), millions of grassroots members, and allegedly, even from the state of Israel itself – resulting in a twisted cycle of lawmakers approving billions in aid for Tel Aviv, and the Israeli government sending money back to Washington to secure further funding, with US taxpayers left footing the bill.

Why is AIPAC so powerful?

Like the National Endowment for Democracy, USAID, George Soros’ Open Society Foundations and other instruments of US soft power, AIPAC is able to secure lifelong allies by focusing on getting American ‘leaders of tomorrow’ on their side while they’re still in high school or college. AIPAC’s sister organization, the American Israel Educational Foundation, provides generous “political leadership training” courses at universities, and sponsors an annual high school summit with select schools, synagogues, national youth groups and teen leadership organizations each October.

For older acolytes, AIPAC’s pocket foundation funds all-expenses paid trips to Israel by lawmakers, influencers and opinion-makers.

How did AIPAC come about?

▪️Formed in 1954 in response to a cooling in US-Israeli relations after Israel’s massacre of Palestinians at Qibya in October 1953, AIPAC was originally known as the American Zionist Committee for Public Affairs. The group got its current name in 1959.

▪️AIPAC’s status as one of the most influential lobbying groups in Washington emerged in the 1980s and 1990s, with the best showcase of its might coming from its ability to bring sitting presidents and top candidates to its annual summits.

Bill Clinton was the first sitting president to address an AIPAC conference, with George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden following suit.

▪️Clinton likely learned from the bitter lesson AIPAC taught his predecessor, George H.W. Bush, whose opposition to Israeli use of $10 bln in US aid for illegal settlement construction in 1991 widely assumed to have helped cost him the 1992 election.

President Ronald Reagan similarly stepped back from showing deep support for AIPAC and its agenda during his second term, but only after the Justice Department launched a probe investigating the lobbyist for espionage and the theft of US government property.

Part 1

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Yahya Sinwar’s death weakens Hamas but not enough to stop Palestinian resistance to Israeli occupation

The demise of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has become a serious blow for Hamas, says Dr. Ohannes Geukjian, associate professor of political studies and conflict resolution at the American University of Beirut.

“Certainly without Sinwar, Hamas is weakened further at both the organizational and leadership levels. He knew Hebrew and had studied Israeli society from inside very well. In addition, he was a charismatic leader," he explains.

Dr. Tamer Qarmout, associate professor in public policy at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, offers a similar take on the subject, noting that Sinwar’s death “is going to present a great challenge for Hamas” because “he has shaped the trajectory of the movement, his leadership style over the last 10 or 15 years.”

Despite that, Sinwar’s death is unlikely to help facilitate the release of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas last year.

“On the contrary, the death of Sinwar could become an additional cause for seeking revenge. In addition, what will they get in return of releasing the hostages? This is the question that should be raised. Israel has been repeatedly emphasizing that it will pursue Hamas fighters no matter where they shelter themselves,” says Dr. Geukjian.

“If Hamas has hundreds of thousands of affiliates or supporters, I'm sure there will be many people who will follow the Sinwar doctrine or the Sinwar legacy and will continue on the same path,” explains. Dr. Qarmout, adding that, even if Hamas were to be wiped out, other Palestinian “political parties or ideologies” would emerge to challenge Israel “as long as [Israeli] occupation continues to exist.”

As for who exactly may become Sinwar’s replacement, it was not immediately clear. Dr. Geukjian mentioned Khaled Mashal as a possible option while Dr. Qarmout mentioned rumors about Sinwar’s brother, who “has this symbolic weight in the military wing” of Hamas, being alive.

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How was Hamas leader killed?

Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, was killed by a gunshot wound to the head, CNN reported, citing pathologist, Chen Kugel, who conducted Sinwar's autopsy.

“The cause of death is (a) gunshot wound in the head. He has a bullet in his head and there’s a severe traumatic brain injury,” Kugel said.

Earlier, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told Sputnik that Sinwar was eliminated as a result of tank fire. He had been discovered by the Israeli military, which resulted in a firefight.

The pathologist also noted that other wounds were found on Sinwar's body, including those from a tank shell or rocket.

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📹'We didn't give the enemy a chance'

The Russian Sever assault units of the Marine Corps continue to successfully dislodge Ukrainian militants from settlements in the border areas of the Russian Kursk region, destroying enemy equipment and manpower.

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🔸How was Hamas leader Sinwar killed?

🔸What does Sinwar’s death mean to Hamas movement?

🔸WATCH: Ninety-five Russian soldiers returned from Ukrainian captivity

🔸Major power outage in Cuba leaves millions of people without electricity

🔸VIDEO: Russian forces successfully oust Ukrainian militants from border areas near Kursk region

🔸What is AIPAC and how it managed to embed itself into US political life?

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💬Russia will remain an opponent, if not an enemy, to Washington, regardless of the outcome of the upcoming presidential election in the United States, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Russian media.

He added that Biden's statements about the readiness of the United States to negotiate with Russia on reducing nuclear weapons stemmed from a desire to earn election points for Harris.

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❗️Russian troops have liberated the settlement of Zoryanoye in the Donetsk People's Republic, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

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🇷🇺🪖 Key statements from the Russian Ministry of Defense's daily briefing on the situation in the Kursk region:

🔸 The Russian Zapad Battlegroup repelled three Ukrainian counterattacks during the day. The enemy lost more than 350 militants;

🔸 The losses of the Ukrainian armed forces in the zone of responsibility of the Russian Vostok combat group amounted to 115 soldiers;

🔸 The Russian Tsentr Battlegroup defeated six Ukrainian brigades; losses amounted to 460 militants;

🔸 Ukrainian forces lost up to 830 servicemen and two Enclave-N electronic warfare stations in the zone of responsibility of the Russian Yug combat group;

🔸 Ukrainian losses amounted to 55 soldiers in the area of responsibility of the Russian Sever Battlegroup;

🔸 The Russian Air Defense forces shot down three HIMARS MLRS shells and 31 Ukrainian drones during the day.

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Metropolitan Theodosius of Cherkassy was diagnosed with concussion and burns after being assaulted by attackers at the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the diocese informed.

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Danish witness to Nord Stream sabotage gagged while West accuses Russia of disinformation

On September 26, a group of Danish journalists published an investigation into the causes of the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosions, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, recalled.

The article quotes the captain of the port of Christianso, John Anker Nielsen, who bluntly states that for the last two years, he has been forced to remain silent about what he saw on the eve of the explosion, Zakharova added.

She quotes the article, saying "In the early days, the captain of the port was 'not allowed to say a thing.' But today, Nielsen may well report that US Navy vessels with transponders switched off were operating near the Nord Stream pipelines, shortly before the explosions that crippled the connectors in the Baltic Sea. When the rescue mission approached them, the command ordered them to turn back."

"Think about it: less than a week before the explosion, the American navy secretly (with transponders turned off) operated in the exclusive economic zone of Denmark. And all this time, the unfortunate captain of a small Danish port knew about it, but he was gagged for many years," the Russian FM spokeswoman stressed. 

The Danish investigation went largely unnoticed. However, as soon as the Russian media retold the matter, it was immediately accused of spreading disinformation and propaganda, Zakharova concluded.

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