The Times of Israel is liveblogging Wednesday’s events as they happen.
‘There is life after death,’ freed hostage Romi Gonen writes in first social media post since release
Freed hostage Romi Gonen shares a first post on her Instagram account since she was freed Sunday from Hamas captivity in Gaza, writing that “there is life after death.”
The post includes a photo of Gonen and her mother embracing after her return to Israel, which she says “I can’t believe I’m screenshotting right now… sometimes dreams come true.”
“I wanted to stop a moment and say thanks to the people of Israel, my family and friends. The prayers and strength you sent accompanied us the entire way and helped us believe this nightmare will ultimately end.”
“It will take more time to process and thank you all. It must be remembered that there are 94 more hostages in Gaza who are dying for us to save them. The people of Israel live and with the help of God we’ll continue to receive good news in the coming weeks.”
Trump considering Mideast visit but ‘not yet,’ again claims credit for hostage deal
US President Donald Trump says he’s thinking about visiting the Middle East but indicates the trip won’t take place in the immediate future.
“We’re thinking about going to the Middle East — not yet,” Trump says in remarks to reporters.
His Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, though, confirmed Monday that he’s planning to travel to Gaza in order to see through the implementation of the hostage deal.
“We have a thing called ‘the hostages are coming back’ going on right now,” Trump adds.
He laments that some of the hostages are not in good condition and references Emily Damari, who was released on Sunday but had two of her fingers amputated after being shot during the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, onslaught.
“If I weren’t here, that they wouldn’t be back ever,” Trump says of the hostages.
Indeed, Arab diplomats speaking to The Times of Israel have credited Trump and Witkoff for helping bring the deal across the finish line, particularly by pressuring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Biden couldn’t get it done, and it was only the imposition that I put on as a deadline that they got it done,” Trump says.
Last month, Trump threatened “all hell to pay” in the Mideast if the hostages weren’t released by his January 20 inauguration.
Israeli Columbia prof targeted by protesters: I invited them to join the class, they just shouted
An Israeli historian targeted by anti-Zionist protesters says he invited the activists to join the class, but was shouted down.
Avi Shilon, an Israeli historian, was teaching a class on the history of modern Israel on Tuesday, the first day of the semester, when three anti-Israel activists barged in to read a speech and throw anti-Israel fliers at the students.
Shilon tells The Times of Israel he was teaching about the conflicting Israeli and Palestinian narratives surrounding Israel’s 1948 War of Independence at the time of the disruption by the protesters, whose faces were covered in keffiyehs.
“I was trying to be unbiased as I’m used to being and then they knock on the door and for me, as an Israeli, they looked like mehablim,” he says, using the Hebrew word for terrorists.
He says he was surprised, but mostly concerned for the students in his class.
“I didn’t know how to react because if you would be aggressive they can claim that you pushed them or something, and if you’re going to be more calm they can continue, so I suggested to them to join the class and to learn about the conflict,” he says. “They just shouted ‘genocide,’ ‘criminals,’ and didn’t reply.”
Shilon, a Mizrahi Jew whose family came to Israel from Baghdad, tried speaking with the protesters in Arabic.
“They didn’t understand Arabic, of course. They don’t understand the conflict,” he says.
Columbia’s administration sent security shortly after the protesters left, and Shilon’s department head called him immediately. Campus security will likely guard the class going forward, he says.
Other courses on Israel and Zionism at Columbia are taught by harsh critics of Israel who are not Israeli. Shilon believes the administration hired him, the only Israeli historian teaching at the university, to provide some balance. He was a visiting professor at New York University from 2019 to 2022 and taught one course at Columbia during that time.
Columbia President Katrina Armstrong condemned the disruption to Shilon’s class and vowed a swift investigation.
Police: Officers shoot three Palestinians hurling stones at them in Shu’afat refugee camp
Border Police officers have shot three Palestinians who were hurling stones at them in the Shu’afat refugee camp near Jerusalem.
According to police, dozens of Palestinians began to riot during an operation in Shu’afat.
Undercover officers “who felt their lives were in danger,” opened fire on three and hit them, police say in a statement.
Their conditions are not immediately known.