Exclusive: U.S. Intel Warns of “Enduring” Gaza Outrage
Intelligence report on Jewish museum shooting says what Washington won't
Moments after the murder of two Israeli Embassy aides in Washington, virtually every political leader from Donald Trump to Alexandria Ocasio Cortez blamed the attack on antisemitism, a charge echoed by the media and law enforcement.
But a new intelligence report I’ve obtained from the Department of Homeland Security sees things differently — so much so that I was honestly shocked reading it.
Extraordinary in its candor, the report says what our leaders would not: that the attack was “motivated by the Israel-HAMAS conflict.”
Obvious as that conclusion may seem, it’s a point that no one in the administration, or really anyone in power, has acknowledged. The entire political establishment seems oblivious to the endless stream of nightmarish videos from Gaza spilling across the social media feeds of millions of Americans, with no end in sight.
For Washington, it’s been more than a year of deflection and deception: urging Israel to show restraint while arming it to the teeth, lamenting civilian casualties while casting doubt on the accuracy of the numbers and who is responsible, telling us about their “tireless efforts” to secure a ceasefire that never materialized. It is yet another endless war that achieves little more than trauma for those involved and anguish for those aware.
As much as Washington would like to move on from the issue, the public has not. Just today, congressman Ritchie Torres of New York was interrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters while speaking at the “WelcomeFest” event. Public activism isn’t going anywhere. And the Intelligence and Analysis folks at homeland security know it (or at least the authors of the assessment.)
The intelligence report acknowledges the simmering rage, warning of the “enduring resonance of these grievances” — another obvious point, but one you won’t see on the news or from officialdom.
Produced on May 23, the internal assessment was pried loose by a Freedom of Information Act request by Ryan Shapiro of the transparency nonprofit Property of the People, which provided me with an exclusive copy.
The assessment, which makes no mention of antisemitism, notes that the murder of the two Israeli aides in Washington “follows eight previous [Hamas] conflict-inspired US attacks or plots,” going on to cite the arson attack on Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s house as an example.
“The alleged perpetrator,” the report says, “referenced his support for the Palestinian people as rationale for the attack.”
Elias Rodriguez explicitly cited the war in Gaza as his alleged motive in his manifesto that I previously published. (Major media still won’t touch the text but the intelligence community clearly takes it seriously, saying Rodriguez “detailed his anger at Israel and the United States in a manifesto circulating online…”).
The report also notes how Rodriguez says in his manifesto that protests and political rhetoric surrounding the conflict had “not amounted to much,” a crucial point. It’s not just outrage about Gaza that precipitates these acts of violence, but the belief that our political system isn’t capable of addressing such grievances. And that belief is increasingly widespread, as the previous attacks mentioned by the report suggest — not to mention other recent ones, like the murder of the UnitedHealthcare CEO in Manhattan.
It should go without saying that no amount of outrage justifies violence or murder. Clearly, however, not everyone agrees with me; and some are willing to act on it. Perhaps if our elected leaders would even acknowledge a problem exists, people could see that the system was at least capable of that first step.
But I guess that would mean admitting they are the problem.
— Edited by William M. Arkin
Mind-boggling that this even needs to be reported, but obviously it does. And important to note that in the same way our rulers were assuring us Joe Biden was Sharp As A Tack(™) while fully aware of his alarming senescence, the same people who blamed this attack on anti-semitism are fully aware of what’s really behind it.
It’s not even new—just a remake of the “They hate us for our freedoms, not for our policies” propaganda that followed 9/11.
There will be much more blowback for America’s funding and fueling of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. And our rulers will continue to gaslight us that antisemitism, and not the genocide, is what’s causing the blowback.
A couple of days ago I was on the street with my vigil as usual but with a new sign. This one urges the synagogue before which I was stand, to stand with Jewish Voice for Peace and against ethnic cleansing Zionism.
A teenager came up to me in a rage, shaking with it. He began denouncing me, sticking his phone/camera in my face. I replied in my usual way by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and "liberty and justice for all". To liberty and justice for all he added "except for Jews!" I suspect that he was motivated by the Boulder attack and, as a Zionist, unable to see the slaughter in Gaza as in any way to be compared to an isolated attack in the US.
He left for a bit then reappeared with a teenage girl to renew the attack. Failing to have an impact on me, they retreated to call 911 with a false report that I had spit on them. The police arrived and knowing of my 7 months of doing this vigil briefly asked me what had happened and then went to the two Zionists and explained that I was not doing anything wrong, that they could not tell me to leave. Disappointed, my assailants left. The police asked me if I wanted to make a report. I didn't.
The antisemitism in America alarm continues to amaze me, obviously a red herring put out for the sake of distracting from the slaughter in Gaza.
The 1st Amendment is real, people. Americans can lawfully and responsibly stand for liberty and justice for all right out in public. The tide is slowly turning. Please get out and help it along.