In a brief but comprehensive survey of the state of Arabic-language broadcasting, Alberto Miguel Fernandez explains how Turkey has become a center for Arab Islamist television, the relationship between state and private channels, and the anti-Semitic, anti-Christian, and anti-Western “poison” that fills programming even on stations “influenced or controlled by countries that are ostensibly allies of the United States.” He also notes the notorious Al-Jazeera network’s role in promoting the narrative that the 2006 Lebanon war was a Hizballah victory. (Video, 27 minutes.)

Israel’s goals of freeing the hostages and defeating Hamas (the latter necessary to prevent further hostage taking) are to some extent contradictory, since Yahya Sinwar, the ruler of the Gaza Strip, will only turn over hostages in exchange for concessions. But Jacob Nagel remains convinced that Jerusalem should continue to pursue both goals:

Only consistent military pressure on Hamas can lead to the hostages’ release, either through negotiation or military operation. There’s little chance of reaching a deal with Hamas using current approaches, including the latest Egyptian proposal. Israeli concessions would only encourage further pressure from Hamas.

There is no incentive for Hamas to agree to a deal, especially since it believes it can achieve its full objectives without one. Unfortunately, many contribute to this belief, mainly from outside of Israel, but also from within.

Recent months saw Israel mistakenly refraining from entering Rafah for several reasons. Initially, the main [reason was to try] to negotiate a deal with Hamas. However, as it became clear that Hamas was uninterested, and its only goal was to return to its situation before October 7—where Hamas and its leadership control Gaza, Israeli forces are out, and there are no changes in the borders—the deal didn’t mature.