FBI Cuts Ties With Southern Poverty Law Center After Elon Musk Attacks

Mediaite
Fri, October 3, 2025


Kash Patel

FBI Director Kash Patel announced on Friday that the agency has cut ties with the Southern Poverty Law Center. The announcement came just days after the FBI also severed its connections to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

“The Southern Poverty Law Center long ago abandoned civil rights work and turned into a partisan smear machine,” Patel wrote on X about the civil rights watchdog group. “Their so-called ‘hate map’ has been used to defame mainstream Americans and even inspired violence. That disgraceful record makes them unfit for any FBI partnership.”

The connection between the group and the FBI is “officially terminated,” Patel made clear.

“In April, during our Anti-Christian Bias Panel, I made it clear that the FBI will never rely on politicized or agenda-driven intelligence from outside groups — and certainly not from the SPLC,” he wrote. “Under this FBI, all ties with the SPLC have officially been terminated.”



Patel accusing the SPLC of having “inspired violence” came just a day after X owner and MAGA-friendly billionaire Elon Musk accused the group of inciting the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk after he was included in a “hate watch” newsletter.

Patel announced earlier this week that the FBI had cut ties with the ADL — which Musk is also highly critical of — following the group receiving backlash over Kirk’s Turning Point USA being included in a 2017 report on a Glossary of Extremism and Hate that the group has since taken down. Musk threatened to sue the ADL in the past, claiming the group’s reports of anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial on his platform hurt his ad revenue.

Former FBI Director James Comey had in the past described the FBI as “in love” with the ADL.



“James Comey wrote ‘love letters’ to the ADL and embedded FBI agents with them – a group that ran disgraceful ops spying on Americans,” Patel announced. “That era is OVER. This FBI won’t partner with political fronts masquerading as watchdogs.”

FBI cuts ties with civil rights group Southern Poverty Law Center

Reuters
Fri, October 3, 2025 

FILE PHOTO: FBI Director Kash Patel gestures as he testifies before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., September 16, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File PhotoMore

(Reuters) -The FBI has cut ties with the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights organization that tracks extremist groups, after conservatives criticized the nonprofit for including slain right-wing activist Charlie Kirk's organization on its list of hate groups.

In a post on X on Friday, FBI Director Kash Patel accused the SPLC of turning into a "partisan smear machine" rather than a civil rights advocate and said his agency had severed all ties.

"Their so-called 'hate map' has been used to defame mainstream Americans and even inspired violence," Patel said, without offering details.

The SPLC did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The FBI also did not immediately respond to a request for more details, including Patel's specific allegations, but a Justice Department official who was unauthorized to speak on the record said the working relationship had already been winding down for months.

The SPLC's "Hate Map" lists nearly 1,400 groups, including Kirk's Arizona-based Turning Point USA. The SPLC describes the conservative youth organization as an "anti-government" group.

Patel's decision came two days after he announced that the FBI would end all partnerships with the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish organization that tracks antisemitism. The ADL had included Turning Point in a "Glossary of Extremism and Hate" before deleting the entire list from its website after criticism from billionaire Elon Musk and other conservatives.

Kirk was assassinated last month during an appearance at a Utah college campus, deepening fears about rising U.S. political violence and prompting President Donald Trump to escalate his rhetoric against what he calls the "radical left."

The 22-year-old suspect in the case, Tyler Robinson, told a roommate he acted due to Kirk's "hatred," prosecutors have said. Authorities have said they believe Robinson acted alone.

In a post on X on Thursday noting that Kirk was briefly mentioned in an SPLC newsletter the day before his death, Musk accused SPLC of being "guilty" of inciting Kirk's murder, without providing evidence.

'Lunacy!': Ex-FBI Official Rips Kash Patel For Firing Agent Trainee Over Pride Flag Display
Ben Blanchet

Fri, October 3, 2025 

A former FBI official slammed FBI Director Kash Patel on Friday for reportedly firing an agent trainee who displayed a gay pride flag on his desk.

“This is insane on so many levels,” said Michael Feinberg, a former assistant special agent in charge, in an interview with MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace.

Patel — who notified the agent in training of his immediate termination in a letter dated Oct. 1 — cited the agent trainee’s “poor judgement” for placing “an inappropriate display of political signage” on his desk while assigned to the Los Angeles field office under Joe Biden’s administration, according to MSNBC.

The letter didn’t explicitly refer to the pride flag. CNN was first to report the firing.

The agent trainee — a longtime employee with the FBI — was the recipient of multiple awards for service, was a field office diversity program coordinator and displayed a pride flag at his workstation, per CNN. Two agency veterans told the network that such a display doesn’t violate the FBI’s past policies.

Wednesday’s firing arrives less than a week after reports surfaced on the FBI terminating more than a dozen agents who were pictured kneeling during a 2020 racial justice protest in Washington, D.C., following the murder of George Floyd.

Trump — when asked by Real America’s Voice reporter Brian Glenn last month about “a lot of people” feeling “threatened” by the Progress Pride flag, which includes elements of the transgender flag — said he would have “no problem” banning its display if the First Amendment didn’t get in the way

HuffPost has reached out to the FBI for comment.

FBI Director Kash Patel testifies before the House Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 17. Win McNamee via Getty Images

Feinberg, in his interview with Wallace, noted that there are considerations under the Hatch Act that prohibit certain types of “political advocacy” by federal employees. However, a pride flag “implicates none of those.”


He added that every FBI field office and Justice Department building would fly the pride flag outside of their facilities in June when he worked for the FBI.

Politics: Kristi Noem Says Only 'Law-Abiding Americans' Should Go To Super Bowl

“So what this employee was doing was not at all out of line, out of the norm or at all inappropriate,” Feinberg said. “It’s absolute madness, and the fact that Kash Patel would go after this individual is lunacy.”

Feinberg claimed that the agent trainee — whom he didn’t name — won an Attorney General’s Award, the DOJ’s highest award for investigative or prosecutorial accomplishments.

Feinberg, who spent a portion of his career at the FBI in the same office as the agent trainee, said his old colleagues stressed the importance of the employee’s involvement in the agency.

Angry Democratic lawmakers slam ‘despicable’ Kash Patel for firing FBI agent over LGBTQ+ Pride flag

Christopher Wiggins
Fri, October 3, 2025 

THE ADVOCATE


Kash Patel fired FBI agent for displaying LGBTQ+ Pride flag during Biden administration

On Wednesday, the first day of the federal government shutdown, FBI Director Kash Patel dismissed a trainee agent after learning that the person had displayed a rainbow Pride flag at their desk during a prior assignment in Los Angeles during the Biden administration.

The move, first reported by MSNBC’s Carol Leonnig, a multiple Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist with deep law enforcement sourcing, highlights what civil-rights advocates describe as a sweeping campaign by the Trump administration to purge LGBTQ+ employees and dismantle decades of inclusion efforts in federal service.

In a letter dated October 1, Patel invoked President Donald Trump’s claimed Article II powers to fire career personnel without the traditional due process.

Related: FBI tells employees not to celebrate Pride Month in official capacity or on bureau time

Patel informed the trainee: “You are being summarily dismissed from your position as a New Agent Trainee at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and removed from the federal service.” The letter, obtained by MSNBC and delivered on the first day of a nationwide government shutdown that had already created job uncertainty across the federal workforce, accused the employee of poor judgment.

“After reviewing the facts and circumstances and considering your probationary status, I have determined that you exercised poor judgment with an inappropriate display of political signage in your work area during your previous assignment in the Los Angeles Field Office,” Patel wrote, without directly referencing the flag itself.

The signage referenced in the letter, according to people familiar with the case, was a small Pride flag, MSNBC reports.

The dismissal stunned many within the Bureau, particularly because the trainee was a decorated employee who had coordinated diversity programming in a field office and received awards for service, including the Attorney General’s Award in 2022.

Out in National Security responds

Luke Schleusener, CEO of Out in National Security, condemned the decision, calling it “a clear act of bias and a warning to public servants and allies who believe they should be free to show support for LGBTQIA+ Americans at work.” He told The Advocate that “in a free society, government employees should never fear retaliation for such a simple act of solidarity and pride.”

Schleusener added that the firing was not an isolated incident. Federal employees have already been targeted for Pride lanyards and flags, and contractors and staff working on LGBTQ+ issues have been dismissed across multiple agencies. He pointed to the Department of Veterans Affairs’ recent restrictions on Pride displays at its clinics as part of what he described as a “Second Lavender Scare … in which LGBTQIA+ public servants and their allies are singled out and silenced.”

“History is clear: prejudice is not strength but weakness,” Schleusener said. “It does not make America safer or stronger. It corrodes trust and undermines the values of fairness and freedom that our national security depends on.”

What federal law says

Patel’s justification also appears to conflict with federal workplace rules. In July 2023, the Office of Personnel Management issued guidance reminding agencies that employees may display personal religious or secular symbols at their desks, provided that these rules are applied neutrally and without favoritism. According to the memo, if an agency permits a Bible, rosary, or crucifix, it cannot simultaneously forbid a Pride flag or another identity-affirming symbol.

“That same protection extends to secular expressions, such as flags representing LGBTQ+ identity, disability awareness, or ethnic heritage,” The Mindful Federal Employee blog reported.

The Human Rights Campaign responded to the firing on social media, writing, If true, this is the latest example of Donald Trump, Kash Patel, and the entire administration weaponizing the federal government to silence speech and deny our LGBTQ+ community’s existence. Plus, it’s illegal."

The group added, "Federal employees do not lose basic 1st Amendment protections. If you can be targeted for your expression, no one is safe."

Congressional Democrats weigh in

Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which has direct oversight of the FBI, sharply criticized Patel’s action. “LGBTQ+ should be able to serve their country openly and proudly,” Josh Sorbe, spokesperson for Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats, told The Advocate. “Rather than policing desk displays, Kash Patel should focus on keeping our nation safe. Senate Judiciary Democrats will continue to hold the Trump-Patel FBI accountable as this FBI Director tragically deprofessionalizes and weaponizes the world’s strongest law enforcement agency.”

Gay California U.S. Rep. Mark Takano, Chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, went further, charging that the firing fits into a broader purge. “Trump and his Administration have been obsessively trying to purge our community from the federal workforce since they took power. This firing is just their next attack,” Takano told The Advocate in a statement. He pointed to agencies rolling back nondiscrimination protections, disbanding LGBTQI+ employee resource groups, and censoring Pride celebrations. “It’s not just censorship, they’re also firing people for simply being LGBTQI+ or doing work that supports the LGBTQI+ community. These despicable acts are just another example of how commonplace anti-LGBTQI+ discrimination is in this Administration.”

U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois, the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, also condemned the firing.

“President Trump is attacking free speech and trying to quash any expression that he feels threatened by. Director Patel just further confirmed he’s willing to do his bidding,” Durbin said in a statement provided to The Advocate. “If you’re an LGBTQ+ person who wants to help protect our country at the FBI, you should be able to do so openly and with pride.

 We’re all on the same team—America’s team."

He added, “Director Patel’s tenure has left America less safe, less free, and less secure. I will continue to fight to keep our FBI strong and hold this Administration accountable.”
Patel’s contentious tenure

The firing also comes just weeks after Patel faced more than four hours of bruising testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, where Democrats accused him of politicizing the Bureau and carrying out loyalty purges. Lawmakers pressed Patel about a string of high-profile controversies, including his confusing public statements after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, his management of Jeffrey Epstein–related files, and the ouster of FBI officials tied to investigations involving Trump.

In one exchange, Durbin, the committee’s top Democrat, called Patel “arguably the most partisan FBI director ever” and accused him of directing a purge of senior officials even before his confirmation. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey told Patel he was “not long for [his] job,” while California Sen. Adam Schiff, in a heated clash, branded Patel “an internet troll” after Patel called him “a political buffoon.”

Despite the withering criticism, Patel insisted his personnel decisions were “based on merit and qualification.” But the firing of a trainee over a Pride flag raises new questions about whether those firings are rooted in bias rather than performance.
A Broader campaign

The firing also comes after earlier restrictions on LGBTQ+ visibility inside the bureau. In May, The Advocate reported that FBI leadership barred any official Pride Month observances, instructing agents that there should be “no official FBI actions, events, or messaging regarding Pride Month.” An internal email from Assistant Director for Public Affairs Ben Williamson told employees they could only celebrate “in their personal capacity” and on their own time. That directive rolled back policies from the Biden era, when the bureau not only flew the Pride flag at its Washington, D.C., headquarters but also encouraged agents to participate in local Pride events as part of outreach to LGBTQ+ communities.

This week’s dismissal did not occur in isolation. AL.com reports that Patel previously fired about 20 agents who had been photographed kneeling during racial-justice protests after the 2020 killing of George Floyd.

The episode also coincides with Patel’s move, reported by The Washington Post, to sever the Bureau’s decades-long partnership with the Anti-Defamation League. That relationship, which had included mandatory hate-crimes and Holocaust-education workshops for new agents, was dismantled after Patel denounced the ADL as a “political front.”

Echoes of the Lavender Scare

The last time federal agencies terminated LGBTQ+ people for their identity was during the Lavender Scare of the 1950s, when thousands of government employees lost their jobs simply for being suspected of homosexuality. That campaign of mass firings, which paralleled the Red Scare targeting suspected communists, devastated careers and forced many into secrecy.

The trauma of that era was dramatized in Fellow Travelers, the Showtime series that followed two men caught in the intersection of politics, McCarthyism, and anti-gay witch hunts. The show illustrated not only the personal toll of those purges but also the corrosive impact on democracy when loyalty tests are tied to identity.

For critics of Patel’s decision, the parallels are unmistakable.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with additional reporting.

If you’re an LGBTQ+ federal employee who’s felt pressured to hide your identity — whether by removing Pride flags, photos of your partner, or other measures — we want to hear from you. You can email Advocate senior national reporter Christopher Wiggins at christopher.wiggins@equalpride.com or reach out securely on Signal (cwdc.98). You may remain anonymous.

Kristi Noem Says ICE Will Be ‘All Over’ Bad Bunny Super Bowl Halftime Show: The NFL ‘Sucks and We’ll Win and God Will Bless Us’

All Puerto Rican citizens are also American citizens, and it is impossible for them to enter the U.S. illegally because Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory.

Jack Dunn
Sat, October 4, 2025

 Variety


The Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is doubling down on the threat of ICE at the 2026 Super Bowl.

During a recent appearance on Benny Johnson’s podcast, she said that ICE will be “all over that place” and has every intention to “enforce the law” at the NFL championship, which will feature Bad Bunny as the halftime performer.

Bad Bunny Is Redefining Pop Culture and Taking Over the Super Bowl - Will the Grammys Keep Up?

Trump Advisor Says ICE Agents Will Be at Super Bowl for Bad Bunny's Halftime Show: 'It's So Shameful They Picked Someone Who Seems to Hate America'

“I have the responsibility for making sure that everybody [who] goes to the Super Bowl has the opportunity to enjoy it and to leave. And that’s what America is about,” she said.

Noem went on to say that the only people who should come to the Super Bowl are “law-abiding Americans who love this country.”

Johnson, who suggested the NFL was trying to “send a message” to Donald Trump by booking Bad Bunny for the halftime show, asked Noem if she had a response to the sports organization.

“They suck and we’ll win and God will bless us,” Noem said. “We’ll stand and be proud of ourselves at the end of the day, and they won’t be able to sleep at night because they don’t know what they believe and they’re so weak. We’ll fix it.”

Trump’s former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, was the first to announce ICE would be in attendance at the Super Bowl. Also on Johnson’s podcast, he said, “There is nowhere you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you and apprehend you and put you in a detention facility and deport you. Know that is a very real situation under this administration, which is contrary to how it used to be.”

In an interview with I-D in September, Bad Bunny said his Puerto Rico residency will not be stopping in the U.S. because “fucking ICE could be outside [my concert]. And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”

“There were many reasons why I didn’t show up in the U.S., and none of them were out of hate — I’ve performed there many times,” he added. “All of [the shows] have been successful. All of them have been magnificent. I’ve enjoyed connecting with Latinos who have been living in the U.S. But specifically, for a residency here in Puerto Rico, when we are an unincorporated territory of the U.S. … People from the U.S. could come here to see the show.”

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem says ICE will be at Bad Bunny Super Bowl show, NFL 'won't be able to sleep at night'

"They suck and we'll win and God will bless us," the Homeland Security head said, "We'll fix it.""

Wesley Stenzel
Sat, October 4, 2025 

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY


Barry Williams / New York Daily News via Getty; John Nacion/Variety via GettyDepartment of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in New York City on July 21, 2025; Bad Bunny at the 'Caught Stealing' New York City premiere on Aug. 26, 2025

Key points

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says she will send ICE to the Super Bowl.


Noem sent a harsh message to the NFL: "They suck and we'll win and God will bless us."


Bad Bunny, who is performing at the Super Bowl halftime show, declined to tour in the U.S. because he feared ICE would target his concerts.

Kristi Noem has confirmed that ICE will be present at the 2026 Super Bowl.

The Department of Homeland Security Secretary says Immigration and Customs Enforcement will monitor the final game of the NFL postseason in February, which will feature Bad Bunny as its halftime show performer.

"There will be, because the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for keeping it safe," she told The Benny Show's Benny Johnson when asked if ICE will have a presence at the event, which will take place at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. "I have the responsibility for making sure that everybody [who] goes to the Super Bowl has the opportunity to enjoy it and to leave. And that's what America is about."

She continued, "Yeah, we'll be all over that place. And I can't— we're going to enforce the law."

Noem added that football fans must be patriotic in order to attend the Super Bowl. "I think people should not be coming to the Super Bowl unless they're law-abiding Americans who love this country," she said.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in July 2025

Johnson then asked Noem if she has any words for the NFL, and suggested that the organization was attempting to "send a message" to the Trump administration by hiring Bad Bunny as its headliner.

"They suck and we'll win and God will bless us," Noem responded, "and we'll stand and be proud of ourselves at the end of the day, and they won't be able to sleep at night because they don't know what they believe and they're so weak. We'll fix it."

Representatives for the NFL and Bad Bunny did not immediately respond to Entertainment Weekly's requests for comment.

Bad Bunny, who boasted the third-most streams globally on Spotify in 2024 despite not releasing an album that year, was officially announced as the halftime show performer on Sunday. The artist reacted to landing the slot in a statement.

"What I'm feeling goes beyond myself," the musician, born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, said. "It's for those who came before me and ran countless yards so I could come in and score a touchdown… this is for my people, my culture, and our history. Ve y dile a tu abuela, que seremos el halftime show del Super Bowl."

The Super Bowl will mark Bad Bunny's only performance in the continental U.S. to promote his latest album, Debí Tirar Más Fotos, opting to avoid the area in favor of a residency in his native Puerto Rico (which is a U.S. territory) and a world tour in Latin America, Australia, and Europe.

Kevin Mazur/GettyBad Bunny performing in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on July 11, 2025

Last month, Bad Bunny revealed that he declined the opportunity to bring his tour to the continental U.S. because he feared ICE would target concertgoers. "I've enjoyed connecting with Latinos who have been living in the U.S.," he told i-D. "But there was the issue of — like, f---ing ICE could be outside [my concert]. And it's something that we were talking about and very concerned about."

Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.

Corey Lewandowski, a former campaign manager for Donald Trump who now serves as Noem's informal advisor, confirmed Ocasio's fears when he threatened that DHS would send ICE to the Super Bowl on Wednesday.

"There is nowhere you can provide safe haven to people who are in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else," Lewandowski said on The Benny Show. "We will find you and apprehend you and put you in a detention facility and deport you."


Kristi Noem Says Only 'Law-Abiding Americans' Should Go To Super Bowl
HuffPost427


All Puerto Rican citizens are also American citizens, and it is impossible for them to enter the U.S. illegally because Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory. Still, Lewandowski claimed, "If there are illegal aliens, I don't care if it's a concert for Johnny Smith or Bad Bunny or anybody else. We're going to do enforcement everywhere. We are going to make Americans safe. That is a directive from the president. If you're in this country illegally, go home."

Noem: NFL ‘won’t be able to sleep at night’ over Bad Bunny Super Bowl performance

Filip Timotija
Sat, October 4, 2025
THE HILL

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the NFL will not be “able to sleep at night” over its decision to pick Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny as the 2026 halftime performer.

“Well, they suck, and we’ll win, and God will bless us, and we’ll stand and be proud of ourselves at the end of the day, and they won’t be able to sleep at night because they don’t know what they believe, and they’re so weak, we’ll fix it,” Noem told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson on Friday.

Noem reaffirmed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will be at the Super Bowl, scheduled to take place in February in Santa Clara, Calif.

“There will be because the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is responsible for keeping it safe, so I have the responsibility for making sure everybody goes to the Super Bowl, has the opportunity to enjoy it and to leave, and that’s what America is about,” Noem said on Friday.

“So yeah, we’ll be all over that place, and I can. We’re going to enforce the law,” DHS chief added. “So I think people should not be coming to the Super Bowl unless there are law-abiding Americans who love this country.”

The NFL has faced blowback from conservative commentators and MAGA influencers over its decision to select Bad Bunny as the halftime headliner. The Puerto Rican artist said in an interview with i-D Magazine that he would not perform in mainland U.S. over concerns his concerts could be the target of ICE raids.

Earlier on Friday, the White House said there was “no tangible plan” to deploy ICE officers to the Super Bowl.

“As far as ICE being at the Super Bowl, as far as I’m aware there’s no tangible plan for that in store right now,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. “However, of course this administration is always going to arrest and deport illegal immigrants when we find them if they are criminals. We’re going to do the right thing by our country.”

Corey Lewandowski, an adviser at DHS, indicated on Wednesday, while on “The Benny Show” that ICE raids will not be absent from the Super Bowl

“There is nowhere that you can provide safe haven to people in this country illegally. Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else,” Lewandowski said.


Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. 



Bad Bunny confirmed as 2026 Super Bowl halftime show headliner

The Latin superstar will take the stage at Levi’s Stadium on February 9

.

Alesandra Dubin
Creator•Follow
Updated Sun, September 28, 2025 



Bad Bunny will headline the 2026 Super Bowl halftime show.(NFL/Instagram)

Bad Bunny is officially going from the concert stage to one of the biggest stages in the world: the Super Bowl halftime show.

The NFL announced Sunday, September 28, that the 31-year-old Puerto Rican rapper will headline the halftime performance at Super Bowl LX, set for February 8, 2026, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. The news dropped during halftime of the Dallas Cowboys vs. Green Bay Packers game in the Sunday Night Football slot, after the league teased the reveal on social media.

The Instagram announcement, co-posted by five participating entities including Bad Bunny, the NFL, Sunday Night Football, Roc Nation, and Apple Music — had nearly 1 million likes in the first half hour.

This marks another history-making moment for Bad Bunny, who has become a global cultural force. His “Most Wanted” and “El Último Tour Del Mundo” runs sold out stadiums worldwide, and he’s frequently ranked among the most streamed artists on Spotify year after year.


He follows a lineup of major halftime performers in recent years: Kendrick Lamar in 2025, Usher in 2024, and Rihanna in 2023. Lamar’s show, which featured appearances from SZA, Samuel L. Jackson, Serena Williams, and DJ Mustard, went down as the most-viewed halftime show of all time.

The halftime slot is curated through the NFL’s partnership with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, which has overseen the performances since 2019.

As for those much-discussed Taylor Swift rumors? Well, Swifties can officially put that idea to bed... for now. But Commissioner Roger Goodell recently hinted that Taylor Swift would be welcome to headline “at any time."

Tomi Lahren Ridiculed In Own Comment Section After Calling Puerto Rican Bad Bunny 'Not American'

Pocharapon Neammanee
Fri, October 3, 2025 
HUFFPOST

Conservative influencer Tomi Lahren was brutally mocked in her own comment section after a progressive guest reminded her that people born in Puerto Rico are U.S citizens during a tense debate that aired Tuesday.

“Tomi, I’m not going to sugarcoat this. You got humiliated,” read one comment with over 2,000 likes.

News: Bari Weiss Will Soon Take Top Role At CBS News: Report

Lahren invited “Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar” host Krystal Ball on her show to debate recent news events, including the announcement that Bad Bunny would be performing at the Super Bowl 2026 halftime show.

Some MAGA conservatives were outraged by the announcement, complaining that the Latin artist’s songs are not in English and taking issue with his critiques of ICE and President Donald Trump.

 

Latin artist Bad Bunny is set to perform at the 2026 Super Bowl Halftime Show. Rosalind O'Connor/NBC via Getty Images

The multi-award-winning singer said last month he was not going to tour the U.S. out of concern that immigration enforcement could show up at his concerts, where many of his fans are Hispanic.

Seemingly proving the singer’s point, Department of Homeland Security adviser Corey Lewandowski threatened to have ICE agents at the Super Bowl.

Towards the end of her show, Lahren asked Ball if she believes Bad Bunny is a “good choice for the Super Bowl.”

Ball confessed she’s not “that knowledgeable” about Bad Bunny, but said he “seems like a great American artist, so sure.”

“He’s not an American artist, but—” Lahren said.

Buzz: Bad Bunny Ribs Fox News Over Super Bowl Outrage During 'SNL'

“He’s Puerto Rican,” Ball reminded the conservative host. “That’s part of America, dear.”

Bad Bunny would also not be the only Super Bowl halftime performer not born in a U.S. state. Rihanna, who performed in 2023, was born in Barbados; The Weeknd, who performed in 2021, is Canadian; and 2020 headliner Shakira is from Colombia.

The full debate, which was posted on Lahren’s YouTube channel, received thousands of comments, with those at the top slamming the right-wing podcaster.

Tomi Lahren received some mockery in after saying Bad Bunny is not American. Jason Kempin via Getty Images

“Tomi didn’t know Puerto Rico is part of the USA! You can’t make this up hahahaha,” one comment top comment with over 2,000 likes read.

“This feels like a 7th grader debating their teacher,” said another.

“Crazy how this is Tomi’s channel and her own comments section seems to unanimously agree that she lost the debate,” another top comment read.

The interaction also went viral on TikTok, with several users stitching the interaction and making their own edits at Lahren’s expense.

Lahren did not argue after her guest noted Bad Bunny is an American, but moved on to slam the artist’s critique of ICE. However, Ball countered that “America agrees with him on that.”

“I mean, a majority of Americans think ICE has gone too far,” Ball said. “They’ve watched videos of, like, 79-year old-business owners being slammed to the ground and their ribs broken by ICE. So I think the American people are probably on board with that message at this point, Tomi.”

A number of polls conducted over the summer suggested that Trump’s immigration policies are incredibly unpopular amongst adult U.S citizens.

Despite the data, Lahren denied Ball’s assertion, telling her, “Well, whoever you’re talking to, I’m sure is, I’m not so sure the rest of the country is.”

US judge dismisses lawsuit accusing UN agency of aiding Hamas attack on Israel

ZIONIST PROPAGANDA EXPOSED!

By Jonathan Stempel
Fri, October 3, 2025 

A Palestinian man carries an aid box distributed by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), amid the Israel-Hamas conflict, in Deir Al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, November 4, 2024. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed

By Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) -A U.S. judge dismissed a lawsuit by dozens of Israelis who accused the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees of funneling more than $1 billion that aided Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres in Manhattan said the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) had "absolute immunity" from the lawsuit because it is a subsidiary of the United Nations, which has immunity from such lawsuits.

In her decision made public on Wednesday, Torres also rejected an argument that UNRWA was merely a "specialized agency" not entitled to immunity.

She cited U.N. lawyers who said subsidiaries such as UNRWA that have considerable autonomy are not "completely independent" because their parent entities can change their structures or close them.

Gavriel Mairone, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said on Friday his clients plan to appeal.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini and several current and former agency officials were also defendants. Their lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Hamas' attack on Israel killed about 1,200 people.

The plaintiffs included more than 100 people who survived the attack or had relatives who were killed.

They accused UNRWA of spending more than a decade helping Hamas build "terror infrastructure," including by funneling the $1 billion from a Manhattan bank account.

Several countries including the U.S. halted UNRWA funding after Israel alleged that staff members were involved in the attack.

The Biden administration said last October the lawsuit should be dismissed because UNRWA deserved immunity.

On April 24, the Trump administration reversed that position, and said the defendants "must answer these allegations in American courts."

Both administrations said Hamas committed "atrocious" crimes.

Established in 1949, UNRWA provides schooling, healthcare and humanitarian aid in Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. It is funded almost entirely by U.N. member states.

The case is Estate of Kedem et al v United Nations Relief and Works Agency et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 24-04765.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

Biden Officials Who Quit Over Gaza Call Out Enablers Who've Changed Their Tone

Sanjana Karanth
Fri, October 3, 2025 

HUFFPOST

With the growing wave of world leaders and diplomats publicly supporting Palestinian rights, Biden appointees who resigned from the administration over its Gaza policy want to ensure that those who they say used their power in office to enable Israel’s destruction of the enclave don’t get a cushy landing without accountability.

In a joint statement first obtained by HuffPost, the 10 former U.S. officials said that the Biden administration’s initial “acquiescence to Israel’s political and military objectives over international and U.S. law” essentially gave Israeli forces the green light to deny both Palestinians and the hostages enough food, shelter, medicine and safety in Gaza without consequences.

“While the Trump administration is equally responsible for ignoring these laws, if the Biden administration had adhered to U.S. law and stopped weapons transfers to Israel when these violations began, they could have changed the tempo and trajectory of what has now been declared a genocide and makes the return of the hostages only more remote,” said the statement, signed by resignees Lily Greenberg Call, Stacy Gilbert, Maj. Riley Livermore, Tariq Habash, Mike Casey, Maj. Harrison Mann, Lt. Cmdr. Hani Nofal, Alexander Smith, Annelle Sheline and Josh Paul.

A pro-Palestinian protester carries a banner that says ''war criminal'' while chanting slogans during Secretary of State Antony Blinken's speech before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington D.C., on May 21, 2024. "Blinken, you will be remembered as the butcher of Gaza," one protester yelled as Capitol police removed him. Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty ImagesMore

The Biden administration had and continues to face scrutiny over its unconditional military and diplomatic support for Israel, choosing to send billions in bombs that Israeli forces would use on Palestinians — in violation of international humanitarian law — while claiming such attacks were simply in self-defense. Reporters would be told that the U.S. trusts Israel to investigate itself when there were reports of killing an American, with rare public follow-ups.

“Really what it came down to, for me in the end, was when we were just actively going to go with whatever the Israelis wanted to do in terms of the future of Gaza,” said Casey, a former State Department officer who quit in protest after spending four years in Jerusalem documenting Gaza.

Casey told HuffPost that he and his colleagues would present thorough reports and propose strategies for a post-ceasefire Gaza, only for the National Security Council and the State Department to ignore them for Israel’s suggestions. It was also a point of frustration, he continued, that U.S. officials would publicly claim the administration supports a two-state solution while doing very little to make tangible changes toward that goal.

Some former senior officials who led the charge in Biden’s approach to Israel and Gaza have recently either softened or changed their tone on the offensive, joining the global wave of criticism toward Israel. Most of the shifts — either through opinion pieces, podcasts or on panels — range from acknowledging they tried their best to admitting they should have done more.

“They had all the information available to them and all the recommendations, and they chose this path that was just taking the Israeli narrative over anything else, continuing to provide weapons, accepting reports that Israel was not blocking humanitarian aid, which was not true,” Casey said. “Just pushing things forward against all recommendations and advice. They weren’t just silent and complicit, they actively made it happen.”

Former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, nicknamed “The Butcher of Gaza” by pro-Palestinian protesters, is now calling for the enforcement of international laws and norms. Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew and former Middle East envoy David Satterfield wrote a piece in Foreign Affairs last month about stopping the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Politics: Treasury May Mint $1 Trump Coin Despite It Possibly Being Illegal

Former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told The Bulwark podcast that he supports withholding weapons for use in Gaza. However, he still stood by his original decision not to withhold armaments while under the Biden administration, as he believed Israel was still facing threats. His deputy, Jon Finer, called for conditioning aid to Israel in Politico last week. And former State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller now says he believes Israel has committed war crimes.

Most of those officials now hold positions at universities and policy think tanks — some are even professors or fellows. The resignees implied that the officials are changing their tone in order to remain in Democratic circles, where support for Israel has plummeted.

State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller speaks to reporters during the daily press briefing in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 7, 2024. Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images

“We cannot let U.S. officials who downplayed, dismissed or denied Israeli war crimes, whether they are Democrats or Republicans, to ever return to power,” the statement said, while also calling out Biden officials who remain silent on Gaza.

Blinken, Lew, Satterfield and Miller did not respond to requests for comment. Finer and Sullivan declined to comment.

“The timing of this letter is telling. While the whole world is focused like a laser on whether the recent flurry of diplomatic activity will bring an end to the war in Gaza, these people are focused like a laser on scoring points against fellow Democrats,” a former NSC staffer who worked with some of the officials told HuffPost. “It shows where their priorities are.”

  International journalists visit Gaza City under the supervision of Israel's army

SAM MEDNICK
Sat, October 4, 2025


This picture taken during a media tour organised by the Israeli army shows war-damaged and destroyed buildings in the vicinity of the Jordanian Field Hospital in Gaza City, Friday, Oct. 3, 2025. (Jack Guez/Pool Photo via AP)


GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — An Israeli army vehicle rumbles through the empty streets of a shattered neighborhood in Gaza City, and with help from a video camera, a soldier spots people standing inside a blasted out nearby building. The armored personal carrier revs its engine and moves on.

A little further along, the vehicle stops near an empty hospital formerly overseen by the Jordanian government. A senior official speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military rules says soldiers recently found a tunnel used by Hamas adjacent to the hospital.

On Friday, the Israeli military escorted international journalists through Gaza City, the focus of a new offensive to root out Hamas, offering a rare – and limited -- glimpse into the territory devastated by nearly two years of war and where tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed.

In August, international experts said the city was in a famine and warned that Israel's offensive and mass displacement of people would exacerbate the humanitarian crisis.

The soldiers escorting the journalists through Gaza City portrayed their military operations as deliberate, to minimize harm to civilians – yet justified, to eliminate a militant group that has been severely weakened but remains dug in, capable of carrying out attacks and still in possession of 48 hostages.

Israel has for two years banned international journalists from entering Gaza, except for rare, brief visits supervised by the military, such as this one.

A city under siege

The drive into and out of Gaza City was through the Netzarim corridor, which separates northern and southern Gaza and is used as a military zone. The route was littered with destroyed buildings and mounds of concrete. Few signs of life were seen during the tour, which lasted several hours.

Once in Gaza City’s Sabra neighborhood, the army took journalists to a lookout point several hundred meters away from the deserted Jordanian hospital. The army said Hamas had been making weapons in a room beneath the hospital while the Jordanians were aboveground, in control of the health care facility — one of many struggling to operate in recent weeks as Israeli attacks intensified.

Surrounded by destruction and collapsed buildings, the hospital shut down about two weeks ago. What appeared to be a tube extended from one of its buildings into a mound of dirt in front of it, which soldiers said was where the tunnel was located. A few hundred feet away, excavators moved piles of sand, as the sound of gunfire and artillery reverberated in the background.

Of Gaza’s 36 hospitals, 22 are no longer operational and the remaining 14 are only partially functional, according to the World Health Organization.

Israel accuses Hamas of using health facilities as command centers and for military purposes, putting civilians in harm’s way, though it has presented little evidence. Hamas security personnel have been seen in hospitals and have kept some areas inaccessible.

A soldier showed journalists videos taken from a drone that flew through the 1.5 km (1 mile) long tunnel. The video showed narrow tunnels that led to rooms, one which showed explosives lined against the wall.

A Jordanian official speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter denied that its hospital was being used by Hamas. The AP could not independently verify the Israeli army’s claims.

A few hundred meters from the Jordanian hospital, soldiers with the 36th division were positioned in a house they say had previously been used by Hamas. Shards of glass and concrete blanketed the floor, wires hung from the ceiling and on the walls were handwritten instructions in Hebrew about being on duty.

Soldiers warned journalists not to stand too close to the windows because of snipers. A day earlier, the building beside the house was hit by sniper fire, one soldier said.

The fate of Gaza City

On the eve of the war, Gaza City was home to roughly 1 million people. Throughout the conflict, it has been the focus of regular Israeli bombardment and ground operations. Several neighborhoods have been almost completely destroyed. Hundreds of thousands fled under Israeli evacuation orders at the start of the war but many returned during a ceasefire earlier this year.

Before their latest campaign in Gaza City began last month, Israel warned Palestinians to evacuate south. Earlier this week, Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz said people had one last chance to go, and that anyone left behind would be considered a Hamas supporter.

The senior army official leading the journalists' through Gaza City on Friday was more measured, however.

“We’re trying every day to explain how much safer it is to go down to the south,” the senior official said. “And when we get closer to areas with a lot of population, we stop and we try with other means to get them out of this area.”

While hundreds of thousands have left, many have remained, some unable to afford to move, others too weak to leave or not wanting to be displaced once again.

Trump's proposed deal to end the war

After Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and abducting 251, Israel launched a retaliatory offensive that has killed more than 67, 000 Palestinians. That number is according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were civilians or combatants. It says women and children make up around half the dead.

The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the U.N. and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.

Israel’s army said Saturday that it would advance preparations for the first phase of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war and return all the remaining hostages, after Hamas said it accepted parts of the deal and that others still needed to be negotiated.

The army will move to a defensive position rather than an offensive one, according to an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media on the record.

Still, it’s unclear how that will affect people in Gaza City. On Saturday, the army warned Palestinians in the rest of Gaza from returning there, calling it a dangerous combat zone.

___

Associated Press reporters Omar Akour in Amman, Jordan, and Samy Magdy in Cairo, Egypt, contributed.

Factbox-Comparing Hamas response with Trump's Gaza plan

By Kanishka Singh
Fri, October 3, 2025 


Palestinians inspect the site of an evacuated house, after it was hit by an Israeli air strike, in Gaza City, September 12, 2025. REUTERS/Ebrahim Hajjaj


By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Hamas responded on Friday to President Donald Trump's plan for Gaza's future, including ending Israel's war in the enclave.

The Palestinian militant group accepted certain key parts of the Trump plan, including ending the war, Israel's withdrawal, the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian captives, aid and recovery efforts, and an opposition to Palestinian expulsion from the territory.

There were apparent differences in Hamas' statement and Trump's plan on the future of Gaza's governance and Hamas' own involvement in the territory's future. Hamas said it sought further talks.

A comparison of Hamas' statement with Trump's plan is below:

WHAT DOES HAMAS SAY IT IS OPEN TO ACCEPTING IN TRUMP'S PLAN?

Release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian captives:

Hamas said it would release Israeli hostages in Gaza both living and dead "according to the exchange formula contained in President Trump's proposal, with the necessary field conditions for implementing the exchange."

It did not specify what it meant by "necessary field conditions." The militant group said it was ready to immediately have talks through mediators to discuss further details.

The Trump plan says all hostages will be returned by Hamas "within 72 hours of Israel publicly accepting this agreement."

Trump's proposal said that thereafter, Israel will free 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences, plus 1,700 Gazans arrested since October 7, 2023, including all women and children. For every Israeli hostage whose remains are released, Israel will release the remains of 15 dead Gazans, the Trump plan says.

Ceasefire, end of war and Israeli withdrawal:

Hamas said it accepted the framework of an end to the war and Israel's "full withdrawal" from the enclave. Hamas' statement did not note any different stages of Israel's withdrawal and said it rejected Israeli occupation.

The Trump plan said "Israeli forces will withdraw to the agreed upon line to prepare for a hostage release." It said that during that time, Israel's military assault, including aerial and artillery bombardment, will be suspended, and "battle lines will remain frozen until conditions are met for the complete staged withdrawal."

Aid, recovery and no Palestinian expulsion:

Hamas welcomed that Trump's plan urged a surge in aid into Gaza while not calling for Palestinians to be expelled from the territory.

The Trump plan said aid will be immediately sent into Gaza in quantities consistent with a January 19 agreement. It would also involve rehabilitation of infrastructure, hospitals and bakeries, and entry of necessary equipment to remove rubble and open roads. Aid will proceed through the United Nations, the Red Crescent and other international institutions under the plan.

Hamas said it rejected Palestinian displacement from Gaza. The Trump plan said that "no one will be forced to leave" and those who wish to leave will be free to return. The Trump plan encouraged Palestinians to stay in Gaza.

WHERE DOES HAMAS APPEAR TO BE AT ODDS WITH TRUMP PLAN?

Foreign involvement in Gaza's interim governance:

The Trump plan said "Gaza will be governed under the temporary transitional governance of a technocratic, apolitical Palestinian committee," though it does not identify any Palestinian individual or group by name as being involved in the transition.

The Trump plan says the panel would be supervised by a new international transitional body that Trump would head and which would include other members, including former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Hamas said it would agree to hand over Gaza's administration "to a Palestinian body of independents (technocrats) based on Palestinian national consensus and supported by Arab and Islamic backing." Hamas has previously offered to hand over Gaza's administration to a different body.

Hamas did not comment on the proposed deployment of a "temporary International Stabilisation Force" in Gaza under the Trump plan for which the U.S. will work with Arab partners.

Hamas having no role in Gaza's future:

The Trump plan said Hamas will "agree to not have any role in the governance of Gaza, directly, indirectly, or in any form." The plan also said there will be a "process of demilitarisation of Gaza."

Hamas maintained in its response that the militant group sees itself as part of a "comprehensive Palestinian national framework." Its Friday statement did not comment on demilitarizing. It has previously rejected such calls.

"This is tied to a collective national position and in accordance with relevant international laws and resolutions, to be discussed within a comprehensive Palestinian national framework, in which Hamas will be included and will contribute with full responsibility," Hamas said on Friday.

The Hamas statement did not comment on the proposal in the Trump plan to give amnesty and safe passage to other countries for Hamas members who "decommission" their weapons.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington)

Israel pounds Gaza, killing 70, despite Trump’s call for it to halt bombing

Al Jazeera
Sat, October 4, 2025


An explosion is seen following an Israeli attack on Gaza City's Omar al-Mukhtar Street [Saeed Jaras/Anadolu]
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Israeli attacks across the besieged Gaza Strip have killed at least 70 Palestinians, medical sources said, despite calls from United States President Donald Trump for Israel to stop its bombardment after Hamas said it had accepted some elements of Trump’s 20-point plan to end Israel’s war.

At least 45 of the victims killed in bombardments and air strikes on Saturday were in the famine-struck Gaza City, where the Israeli army has been pressing an offensive in recent weeks, forcing some one million residents to flee to the overcrowded south.

Eighteen people were killed and several others wounded in an Israeli strike on a residential home in the Tuffah neighbourhood in Gaza City, medics said. The attack also damaged several buildings nearby.

In a statement shared on Telegram, Gaza’s civil defence agency said seven children between the ages of two months and eight years old were among those killed.\

Israeli forces also targeted a displacement camp in al-Mawasi in southern Gaza, killing two children and wounding at least eight others.

Al-Mawasi is a so-called safe humanitarian zone that the Israeli army has been ordering Palestinian families to evacuate to. But the area has been repeatedly targeted over the last few weeks and months.

There have also been air raids on other areas, including in Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary, reporting from az-Zawayda.

“Hospitals are unable to treat all of these Palestinians,” she said, referring to the handful of battered medical facilities that remain functional in the north amid a severe fuel shortage.

“What is happening on the ground doesn’t show that there is any type of ceasefire,” she said.
Trump demands urgency

On Saturday, Trump urged Hamas to move quickly to release captives and finalise negotiations over his plan to end the war, “or else all bets will be off”.

“I will not tolerate delay, which many think will happen, or any outcome where Gaza poses a threat again. Let’s get this done, FAST. Everyone will be treated fairly!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

In a separate post later on Saturday, Trump said Israel had agreed to an initial “withdrawal line” and that it was also shared with Hamas.

“When Hamas confirms, the Ceasefire will be IMMEDIATELY effective, the Hostages and Prisoner Exchange will begin, and we will create the conditions for the next phase of withdrawal,” he wrote.

Hamas had agreed to certain key parts of Trump’s 20-point proposal, including Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and the release of Israeli captives and Palestinian prisoners. But the group has left some questions unanswered, such as whether it would be willing to disarm.

Trump will be sending his envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, to Egypt to finalise the technical details of the captive release and discuss a lasting peace deal, according to a White House official. Egypt will also host delegations from Israel and Hamas on Monday to discuss things further, the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

The first phase of Trump’s proposal includes the return of all captives, dead and alive, in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.

Speaking to reporters from Jerusalem, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed negotiators will be working on a timeline for the release of the remaining captives under Trump’s Gaza plan in Egypt.

He also reiterated that the US proposal includes the demilitarisation of Hamas.

That will be achieved either through Trump’s proposal or through Israeli military action, he said. He added he hoped to announce the return of the captives, all while the Israeli military remained deep in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Hamas has decried Israel’s ongoing attacks on the enclave, saying they are proof of “Netanyahu’s lies” about ceasing its offensive in the enclave after Trump’s call.

“The Zionist occupation army continues to commit its horrific crimes and massacres against our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip,” Hamas said in a statement.

The group called on the international community, including Islamic and Arab states, to take “urgent action to protect and provide relief to our people”.

Adnan Hayajneh, a professor of international relations and US foreign policy at Qatar University, said Hamas wants guarantees that if it releases the Israeli captives, there will be implementation of the rest of Trump’s 20-point plan. This includes a clear picture of what the future governance of Gaza will look like.

“There’ll be a long negotiation, and Hamas will take part in it,” Hayajneh told Al Jazeera.

Arab leaders also aired some reservations about the plan to Trump, “but most of the reservations were not taken into consideration regarding the governance of Gaza, the military forces … the future of arms,” said the professor.

“If you look at the plan, it’s almost a surrender for Hamas,” he added. “I think they’re leaving that bargaining chip, which is very important, the hostages, for the last minute.”

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 67,000 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and experts believe the actual toll could be as much as three times higher.