US blocks UN resolution calling for immediate cease-fire in Gaza

With the current war in Israel resulting in the cancellation of many planned tours and pilgrimages to the Holy Land, the Magdala Tourist Center in the biblical town of Magdala is offering a "virtual pilgrimage" during Advent to help bring the Holy Land to those who cannot get there in person.

Dubbed the "Star of Wonder Advent Pilgrimage of Peace," the free virtual pilgrimage began on Sunday, Dec. 3, the first Sunday of Advent. Videos are available on the center's YouTube page.

The pilgrimage consists of videos from different locations throughout Israel and Palestine, all of which are significant to the story of Jesus' birth. A different video will be released each Sunday, the Magdala Tourist Center told Fox News Digital.

In addition to Magdala, believed to be the birthplace and hometown of Mary Magdalene, "stops" on the pilgrimage include the Church of the Visitation in Ein Karem; Nazareth; and Bethlehem, the location of the birth of Christ.

The Church of the Visitation is built on the traditional location of the meeting between Mary and her cousin Elizabeth as told in the Gospel of Luke.

Overseen by Kathleen Nichols, director of Magdala Media's English team, the pilgrimage videos will also include reflections on the biblical meaning of peace, said a press release from Magdala Media.

"Kathleen and her small team made the journey into Palestine to film the now-empty sites connected with Christ's birth, hoping that virtual pilgrims can fill them with prayers for peace from all over the world," said the release.

Fox News' Christine Rousselle contributed to this report.

Hamas terrorists fired rockets into central Israel as the war in the Middle East continues.

Adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, Mark Regev, said during an appearance Sunday on "FOX News Live" that Israel is "progressing" in the fighting, saying Hamas terrorists are "surrendering in greater numbers" every day.

Far-left Democrats who voted against condemning Hamas' attacks – or downplayed the group's actions – have showered dozens of candidates with thousands of dollars in campaign cash, according to a Fox News Digital review of federal filings.

Several progressive lawmakers have faced heat over their actions following Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on innocent Israeli civilians that left more than 1,200 dead and hundreds taken hostage.

Most recently, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., made controversial remarks during a CNN interview by declaring people should be "balanced about bringing in the outrages against Palestinians" when asked why progressive groups remained silent over Hamas' use of rape as a weapon of war.

During the interview, Jayapal, who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, claimed she condemned Hamas' treatment of women and quickly pivoted the conversation back to Israel.

"With respect, I was just asking about the women, and you turned it back to Israel," Dana Bash, the host, shot back. "I'm asking you about Hamas."

Jayapal countered by saying she had already answered the question, adding, "We have to be balanced about bringing in the outrages against Palestinians. Fifteen thousand Palestinians have been killed in Israeli air strikes, three-quarters of whom are women and children."

Before Jayapal, a group of House Democrats primarily consisting of far-left "Squad" members voted against a resolution condemning Hamas' invasion in October.

The resolution, H.R. 771, which reaffirmed America's support for Israel as it responded to the attack, received overwhelming bipartisan support and passed by a vote of 412-10, with six members voting present.

Fox News' Joe Schoffstall contributed to this report.

Israel Defense Forces says it has eliminated Emad Krikae, the commander of Hamas’ Shejaiya Battalion.

According to IDF, Krikae was previously responsible for the anti-tank missile training in the Gaza City Brigade.

Krikae temporarily assumed the position of battalion commander after the elimination of the previous commander during the war. Per IDF, Krikae was part of anti-tank missile fire and terrorist raids carried out inside Israeli territory.  

A man in Beverly Hills has been arrested for allegedly attacking an elderly man on Saturday morning while yelling antisemitic comments at him, according to the Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD).

Officers said that Jarris Jay Silagi, 44, of Los Angeles was caught after fleeing the scene and arrested for the alleged attack. 

Shortly after 9:00 a.m., officers were dispatched to the area of North Rexford Drive and North Santa Monica Boulevard for reports of a person who had been assaulted with a deadly weapon. 

Antisemitic incidents have proliferated nationwide amid Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas in response to the militant group’s deadly attack on Oct. 7. 

Read the full article on the Beverly Hills arrest by Stepheny Price

Sarah Netanyahu, wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, met with IDF Lookout Ori Megidish in Kiryat Gat on Sunday. Megidish was rescued in a “special operation” in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip in late October.

Megidish was captured in Nahal Oz along the border with the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu quoted Megidish as saying throughout her being held hostage: “I will not allow anyone to defeat me” and “Even when I was there, I was not afraid of them.”

Megidish told Mrs. Netanyahu that “her physical and mental health were excellent, and that she already aspires to return to full military service.” 

Employees of a California coffee shop caught on video blocking a Jewish woman from a bathroom while making anti-Israel comments have been fired.

Their firing comes after Farley’s East, the Oakland-based coffee house, apologized for the employees’ behavior on Friday.

"On Sunday, we fell short of this vision. What began as a civil dialogue between our staff and a Jewish customer escalated into a situation that was shocking and unacceptable,” the owners of Farley's posted on social media. 

“Events like these strike fear in the Jewish community and perpetuate the rise of anti-Semitism in our community and around the world.”

The owners continued by saying that acts of hate would not be tolerated in their business.

"We do not tolerate any behavior at Farley's that makes people feel unwelcome or unsafe. Because this act was not aligned with our values, the employees involved in the incident are no longer employed by Farley's.”

Read the full article on the employees’ firing by Stepheny Price. 

Republican South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace called out House colleagues who have not condemned the sexual violence of Israeli women at the hands of Hamas.

"Where are the women's groups who profess to be fighting for women around the world who've been dead silent on this issue? And then look at my colleagues in the House. Where are they?" Mace said on "Fox News Sunday."

Videos and photos on social media, as well as Israeli police accounts, have detailed that Israeli women have faced violent rape crimes after Hamas launched attacks on the nation on Oct. 7.

Read the full article on Mace's comments by Emma Colton.

The Iran-backed terrorist organization Hamas warned on Sunday that no hostage will leave the Gaza Strip alive unless demands like additional aid for Gaza are met, according to reports.

"Neither the fascist enemy and its arrogant leadership… nor its supporters… can take their prisoners alive without an exchange and negotiation and meeting the demands of the resistance," Abu Obeida, a spokesman for Hamas’s armed wing, said in a televised broadcast reported on by the Israeli Times.

Israel and Hamas reached a temporary cease-fire agreement deal that took effect on Nov. 24, during which 110 hostages were freed by the terrorist group in exchange for some 240 Palestinian prisoners. The truce ended and fighting resumed on Nov. 30 after both sides accused the other of violating its terms.

Read the full article on Hamas’ warnings by Greg Wehner.  

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday the evidence of sexual violence committed by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7 is "beyond anything that I've seen." 

Appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," Blinken was asked by host Jake Tapper why he thinks the United Nations and the international community have been so slow to condemn the atrocities, despite evidence mounting in Israel of rapes and sex crimes committed by Hamas against women and girls, and maybe even against men on Oct. 7. 

"I've heard antisemitism hypothesized as a reason why the U.N. and the international community might be so slow to acknowledge this. What do you think?" Tapper asked. 

Read the full article on Blinken's comments by Danielle Wallace

Israel Defense Forces says the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah launched several rockets towards Israel Saturday night – including from a point near a United Nations compound in southern Lebanon. Additional launches have been made from the area toward Israel in recent days, IDF says.

“By continuing to fire from near a U.N. compound, Hezbollah endangers the lives of (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) personnel and continues to systematically violate UNSC Resolution 1701,” IDF tweeted. “UNIFIL Head of Mission and Force Commanders @aroldo_lazaro was notified of the incident.” 

Billboard trucks demanding Harvard’s President Claudine Gay be fired were deployed to the New England campus on Sunday, Fox News Digital learned, just days after her controversial remarks to Congress regarding whether calls for the genocide of Jews breaks the school's code of conduct.

"FIRE GAY," the privately-funded trucks read, accompanied by photos of Gay while she appeared before Congress last Tuesday.

One of the trucks is circling the campus, while the other is positioned at the school's main gate and blaring Gay's exchange with Republican New York Rep. Elise Stefanik on Tuesday. The private funder running the billboard box truck campaign will also deploy a plane over campus this week with a banner reading, "HARVARD — STOP JEW HATRED," Fox News Digital learned. 

Read the full article about the truck billboards at Harvard by Emma Colton

Thousands marched in the capitals of Belgium and Germany Sunday to protest soaring antisemitism that has swept Europe since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war.

In Brussels, protesters held signs reading "You don't have to be Jewish to march against antisemitism," and "antisemitism kills," among other slogans. Police said at least 4,000 people attended.

Several thousand people demonstrated against antisemitism in Berlin as Germany deals with a large increase in anti-Jewish incidents following the Oct. 7 attack.

Police estimated that around 3,200 people gathered in the rain, while organizers put the figure at 10,000.

With antisemitism sweeping the nation, New York City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov showed solidarity with Israel in an audacious way Saturday night. The Republican councilwoman was seen attending the annual New York Young Republican Club gala in Manhattan wearing an evening gown emblazoned with the Israeli flag.

Vernikov, who was born in Ukraine, said the gown was put together in 24 hours by designer Irina Shabayeva.

“So many Jewish New Yorkers & Jewish college students are all over our country are afraid to display their Jewish identity,” she said in a tweet.

“We cannot remain silent. Be Jewish. Be loud. Be proud. This is where we live and we will not be intimidated.”

She also took shots at Ivy League campuses, like Harvard and UPenn, calling them the “laughing stock” for “abandoning every moral and ethical principle when it comes to protecting the Jewish students and the Jewish people.” 

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., on Sunday went against “Squad” Democrats who called for a permanent cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, noting it would be impossible since Hamas has repeatedly said it wants Israel destroyed.

“I don’t know how you can have a permanent cease-fire with Hamas, who has said before Oct. 7 and after Oct. 7 that they want to destroy Israel, they want a permanent war. I don’t know how you have a permanent cease-fire with an attitude like that,” Sanders said during an appearance on CBS “Face the Nation.”

Reps. Cori Bush, D-Mo., Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., gathered on Capitol Hill Thursday to call for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza, doubling down on accusations that Israel is targeting civilians and committing "genocide."

"When we hear genocidal rhetoric, when we witness devastation and mass murder, when we finance the bombs being dropped, when we intentionally disregard the suffering, we allow the people we represent to be complicit in mass atrocities," Bush said at the time.

"And let me be clear about what's happening: These are war crimes. The targeting of civilians is a war crime; the targeting of medical facilities is a war crime, the starvation and withholding of water and electricity is a war crime; the collective punishment of 2.3 million people is a war crime, and we refuse to be silent," she added as Omar and Tlaib nodded in agreement.

Sanders, however, defended Israel’s right to defend itself and take the fight to Hamas.

“I think Israel has the right to defend itself and go after Hamas, not the Palestinian people," Sanders said.

Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday called for Hamas fighters to surrender, declaring it the “beginning of the end” for the terrorist group.

"In recent days dozens of Hamas terrorists have been surrendering to our forces,” Netanyahu said in an on-camera statement while speaking in Hebrew. “They are laying down their weapons and handing themselves over to our heroic fighters.”

“It will take more time, the war is in full swing, but this is the beginning of the end for Hamas,” the prime minister continued. “I say to the Hamas terrorists: it is over. Don't die for Sinwar. Surrender - now."

Video circulating online shows footage showing dozens of detainees stripped to their underwear, hands in the air. Several held assault rifles above their heads, and one man walked forward and placed a gun on the ground.

While Israel has not commented on the lastest video, Israeli government spokesman Eylon Levy said that “increasing numbers” of Hamas fighters were surrendering.

Heavy fighting raged Sunday across Gaza, including in the devastated north, as Israel pressed ahead with its offensive after the U.S. blocked the latest international push for a cease-fire and rushed more munitions to its close ally.

Fox News’ Dana Karni and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

An Israeli PhD student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology gave an emotional rebuke on campus of the university president's testimony before Congress last week, in which she said it would depend on "context" whether calls for an intifada or the genocide of Jews would violate the prestigious university's code of conduct or rules against bullying or harassment. 

Speaking through a microphone outside the New England Holocaust memorial in Boston, Liyam Chitayat, a doctoral student in computational and systems biology at MIT, cited how MIT President Sally Kornbluth testified that calls for the genocide of Jews would only violate the university's code of conduct "if targeted at individuals, not making public statements."

This comes as MIT and Harvard are facing mounting pressure to remove their presidents after University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill resigned Saturday. 

Chitayat demanded the school answer for its "obsession with context." 

"I want someone to tell me, when is the right context to come and urinate on the window of the prayer room of MIT Hillel in front of the Jewish praying students inside there?" Chitayat said. "Tell me, when is the right context to respond to reports of students facing blatant antisemitism by telling them, well, you can try talking to the police, you can go to therapy or you can go back to where you came from? I want to know when a dozen students are allowed to storm in and harass individual staff members that work or are Jewish and are Israeli." 

"On top of your excellent, excellent moral compass, your choice to defend terrorist sympathizers will never be forgotten," Chitayat said of Kornbluth and Harvard University President Claudine Gay.

Read the full article about Liyam Chitayat by Danielle Wallace

Rabbi David Wolpe, a visiting scholar at Harvard, on Sunday told “FOX & Friends Weekend” why he chose to step down from Harvard’s antisemitism committee after the university’s president gave testimony on Capitol Hill last week. 

“I stepped down, basically, because it became clear to me that we were going to be unable to make the changes that needed to be made, at least in the short term,” Wolpe said. “And I suppose my message to President Gay would be that this is a five-alarm fire.” 

Harvard President Dr. Claudine Gay was among university leaders called to testify in a hearing addressing the growing antisemitism that has taken place on college campuses since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks against Israel. Gay, along with her counterparts at UPenn and MIT, failed to say whether calling for "intifada" or the genocide of Jews is against Harvard's code of conduct.  

Wolpe said that universities are not completely to blame, pointing to the “deep-seated culture that has been growing now for years,” not only on campuses, but in cities and businesses. 

“This culture is much deeper than the campus, but the campus ought to lead the way,” Wolpe said. “It ought to be able to express to America as universities traditionally did, ‘this is how educated, thoughtfully, morally serious people respond to this.' Unfortunately, we’re not seeing this.”

Fox News’ Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.