Israel-Palestine

Dave Chappelle has angered many in the Jewish community after his remarks on Israel -- but one group advocating for them is extending an olive branch if he's willing to chat.

American Jewish Committee spokesperson Richard Hirschhaut tells TMZ ... they'd love to have a sit-down with Dave to help him understand why so many people were upset, and how he can better navigate this topic next time around.

The AJC, a global advocacy organization, says Dave's first attempt to discuss Israel-Palestine -- during his Boston show last week -- missed the mark and adds ... "Dave Chappelle prides himself on precision of language and moral clarity. His comments uttered during last Friday's show at TD Garden failed on both counts."

They tell us his initial condemnation of Hamas was great -- but that he should have stopped there. AJC continues, "By criticizing Israel's retaliatory strikes and accusing the US of aiding the slaughter of innocent people, Chappelle turns truth on its head. Make no mistake, the slaughter of innocents is precisely what Hamas did on October 7th."

Of course, there've been innocent Palestinians who've been killed in the aftermath of all this as well -- upwards of 4,300, in fact, depending on which tallies you look at. The original Hamas attack claimed around 1,400 or so innocent Israeli lives.

In any case, the AJC thinks DC needs to be more precise with his language -- and they also believe he should know better at such a volatile time. According to them, his encouraging of people to shout "Free Palestine" creates a hostile and dangerous environment for Jewish people, and they say if that happens again, it's incumbent on him to ask what that means.

In their mind, the answer is obvious ... Free Palestine boils down to eliminating Israel.

Still, Richard says his org "would welcome an opportunity to meet with Chappelle and his team in an effort to help deepen his understanding of the current situation and enable him to be a source of more light than heat going forward."

Based on Dave's track record with other controversies ... the AJC probably shouldn't hold its collective breath. He doesn't tend to apologize, nor does he often feel the need to sit down with anyone after something like this.

Los comentarios de Dave Chappelle sobre Israel/Palestina provocaron que algunos miembros del público se marcharan luego de decir que Israel está equivocado en este conflicto.

El comediante hizo los comentarios inflamatorios jueves durante un show en Boston (donde los teléfonos celulares fueron confiscados) y de acuerdo con el Wall Street Journal, se metió en el tema de Oriente Medio hacia el final de su set, donde parecía mayormente del lado de Palestina.

Según personas que estaban presentes, Dave empezó diciendo que los estudiantes que apoyan públicamente a Palestina no deberían perder sus ofertas de trabajo (algo que ha estado ocurriendo últimamente), lo que le llevó a abordar de lleno la lucha que está teniendo lugar en el extranjero.

Al parecer, condenó el ataque terrorista contra Israel que fue llevado a cabo por Hamás, pero luego dijo que la respuesta a los palestinos en Gaza ha sido desproporcionada, acusando a Israel de cometer crímenes de guerra con su campaña de bombardeos e incluso afirmando que los EE.UU. era responsable de ayudar e instigar "la matanza de civiles inocentes".

En medio de estos comentarios, alguien del público le dijo que se callara, lo que al parecer le molestó y le hizo responder, aunque no está claro lo que dijo exactamente.

Sin embargo, Lo que WSJ dice que se comunicó, fue que Dave estaba enojado por que Israel cortó el agua y la electricidad en Gaza al mismo tiempo que atacaba con explosivos.

Como resultado de esto, dividió a la audiencia, algunos aplaudieron "Free Palestine" y otros se opusieron con preguntas sobre Hamás. Al final, algunas personas se levantaron y se fueron. Dave, mientras tanto, supuestamente terminó diciendo que dos errores no hacen un acierto.

Dave Chappelle's comments on Israel-Palestine caused some attendees of a recent comedy show of his to walk out -- and it's because he said Israel is in the wrong in this conflict.

The comedian made the inflammatory remarks Thursday during a show in Boston -- where cell phones were confiscated -- and according to the Wall Street Journal ... he got into the Middle East topic toward the end of his set, where he seemed to mostly side with Palestine.

Per people who were apparently in attendance, DC launched in on this by first saying students who are publicly supporting Palestine shouldn't lose job offers -- which has been a thing lately -- which then led him to fully address the fighting going on overseas.

He reportedly condemned the terrorist attack on Israel that was carried out by Hamas, but then said the response/retaliation to Palestinians in Gaza has been disproportionate -- accusing Israel of committing war crimes with their bombing campaign ... and even claiming the U.S. was responsible for aiding and abetting "the slaughter of innocent civilians."

Amid these remarks, somebody in the audience told him to shut it ... which apparently ticked him off and caused him to lash out -- although what exactly he said isn't clear.

What WSJ says was communicated, generally, though was that Dave was angry about Israel cutting off water and electricity to Gaza ... while continuing to pound them with explosives.

As a result of this, it divided the audience ... some cheered "Free Palestine" and others pushed back with questions about Hamas. Eventually, some people straight up got up and left. Dave, meanwhile, supposedly ended by saying that two wrongs don't make a right.

The sounds of Hamas hostage-taking came to life in horrifying focus, when the father of two of the victims played audio of the moment his children were taken.

CNN's Erin Burnett spoke with Ilan Regev, who had recorded a call he had with his 21-year-old daughter, Maya, just as Hamas terrorists zeroed in on them during the October 7th attack.

Maya and her 18-year-old brother, were at the music festival when gunfire erupted. You hear her scream, "Dad, they shot me. They shot me. He is killing us. Dad, he is killing us."

Ilan tells his daughter to hide, assuring her that he's coming to get her. He jumped in his car, but when he arrived on scene, he was prohibited from entering.

Los sonidos de la toma de rehenes por Hamás cobraron vida en un espeluznante momento, cuando el padre de dos de las víctimas reprodujo el audio del momento en que sus hijos fueron secuestrados.

Erin Burnett, de CNN, habló con Ilan Regev, que había grabado una llamada que mantuvo con su hija de 21 años, Maya, justo en el momento en que los terroristas de Hamás les apuntaban durante el ataque del 7 de octubre.

Maya y su hermano de 18 años, estaban en el festival de música cuando estalló el tiroteo. Se le oye gritar: "Papá, me han disparado. Me han disparado. Nos están matando. Papá, nos están matando".

Ilan le dice a su hija que se esconda, asegurándole que viene a buscarla. Saltó en su coche, pero cuando llegó a la escena, se le prohibió la entrada.

A man known in social justice circles has claimed to have helped with the release of two American hostages amid the Israel-Hamas conflict -- but the family's calling BS.

Shaun King has been trending all weekend over a post he threw up Friday -- which seemed to be him taking credit, at least in part, for the safe return of Judith Raanan and her teenage daughter, Natalie Raanan.

King said he was grateful Natalie and her mother had been freed, adding ... "As I said last week, Natalie and her family have been supporters of mine and have protested police violence in America alongside us."

He continued, "I am also thankful for the Qatari government for helping to negotiate this. Dozens of us worked frantically behind the scenes to help make this possible."

King finished by saying ... "I spoke to Natalie's family this afternoon and they are anxiously awaiting more updates."

Well, his version of events apparently doesn't quite align with what the Raanan family's aware of -- 'cause they're saying they straight up don't know this guy. The family released a statement, saying ... "Today we came across bizarre posts on the Instagram page of one Shaun King, who turns out to have millions of followers, who claims that our relative Natalie Raanan supports the anti-Israeli messages he uploads to his page."

The family goes on ... "First and foremost, we make it clear that he is lying! Our family does not and did not have anything to do with him, neither directly nor indirectly. Not to him and not to anything he claims to represent." They go on to say Natalie has never met Shaun, and she first learned about him today amid all the speculation ... of which there's been much.

The Raanan family says folks shouldn't buy what King's selling ... and that his claims amount to misinformation -- which they say is spreading like wildfire. They also note they have more family members and loved ones in captivity that they're working to have released.

Now, as for King ... he's already defending himself by now sharing who exactly he spoke with -- and as it turns out, he says it was a brother of Natalie's ... going to post receipts of conversations he says he had with the guy, detailing his efforts to have her freed.

He also claims he just spoke to the Raanan family -- presumably the same people who released this blistering statement -- and insists they're being forced to distance themselves from him. So, at this point ... there seems to be conflicting accounts over what's going on.

Dee Snider is cool with politicians on both sides using his band's anthem on the campaign trail ... but he's drawing a line when it comes to anyone spewing QAnon conspiracies.

We got the Twisted Sister frontman at LAX and our photog asked him where he stands on politicians playing "We're Not Gonna Take It" ... now that campaign season is about to heat up.

Dee says Republicans and Democrats have his blessing to play the song at rallies, appearances and in ads ... but says the same does not hold true for any candidates who go full QAnon.

The issue with QAnon for Dee ... it's all a bunch of lies and BS, and he feels there's already enough of that in the world.

Dee's made his feelings on QAnon well-known on social media over the years ... and he's doubling down here.

We also asked Dee how he feels about the U.S. military using the song as a battle cry now that another war has erupted ... and he explains why the armed forces are more than welcome to rock out to Twisted Sister.

We're getting a first look at the American mother and daughter hostages just released by Hamas terrorists -- both looking alive and well -- escorted by members of Israel's armed forces.

Judith Raanan and her teenage daughter, Natalie, can be seen in a new photo shared by the Israel Defense Forces, while holding the hands of a man in a flak jacket.

As we reported, Judith and Natalie were visiting Israel from Chicago earlier this month to celebrate a family member's birthday and the Jewish holiday season when Hamas attacked.

Hamas said in a statement they released the mother and daughter for "humanitarian reasons" ... claiming it was done to prove to the world that "claims made by Biden and his fascist administration are false and baseless."

An American mother and daughter who were taken hostage by Hamas terrorists have now been released.

Hamas aggressors say they've released the U.S. citizens "for humanitarian reasons," according to a statement given to The Times of Israel ... in an alleged effort to "prove to the American people and the world that the claims made by Biden and his fascist administration are false and baseless."

The American mother and daughter believed to have been taken hostage in Israel are Judith Raanan and her 18-year-old daughter, Natalie -- who went missing after Hamas attacked Kibbutz Nahal Oz over 2 weeks ago.

The 2 traveled to Israel from a Chicago suburb to celebrate a relative's birthday and the Jewish holiday season when they went radio silent ... and as you know, what followed was days of death, destruction, and terror happening in the Middle East.

Judith and Natalie's family have reportedly been informed about the release, and according to CNN, they were handed over to the Red Cross and are allegedly "on their way out," citing sources familiar with the negotiations.

Una madre e hija estadounidenses que habían sido tomadas como rehenes por terroristas de Hamás han sido liberadas, según funcionarios del grupo armado.

Los agresores de Hamás dicen que han liberado a las ciudadanas estadounidenses "por razones humanitarias", según una declaración dada a The Times of Israel, en un supuesto esfuerzo por "demostrar al pueblo estadounidense y al mundo que las afirmaciones hechas por Biden y su administración fascista son falsas y sin fundamento".

Se cree que la madre e hija que fueron tomadas como rehenes en Israel son Judith Raanan y su hija de 18 años, Natalie, quienes desaparecieron después de que Hamás atacara el kibutz Nahal Oz hace más de dos semanas.

Las dos viajaron a Israel desde un suburbio en Chicago para celebrar el cumpleaños de un pariente y las fiestas religiosas cuando no se supo más de ellas, y como bien saben, lo que vino a continuación fueron días de muerte, destrucción y terror en el Medio Oriente

Scores of Israeli citizens who were kidnapped by Hamas terrorists during their deadly terrorist attack are still alive, according to the Israeli military.

As many as 200+ people were kidnapped by Hamas in the October 7 attack. More than 20 of those captured are under the age of 18, while another 10 to 20 hostages are over 60.

Israeli military officials would not say precisely how many they believe are still alive -- only that a majority have survived over the past 2 weeks.

At least 2 hostages have been confirmed dead ... a 13-year-old Israeli girl, and her 80-year-old grandmother.

President Biden is urging Americans to support the war efforts in the Middle East and Ukraine ... he says we all have to come together to help defeat terrorists and tyrants.

The Prez just made his case for Congress to approve billions more in military aid to help Israel fight Hamas and Ukraine fight Vladimir Putin ... selling Americans on the battle between good and evil.

In a rare speech Thursday from the Oval Office, Biden says Americans must put their petty differences aside and unite against the bad guys ... he says if the U.S. gives up the fight in Gaza and Ukraine, it will only embolden our enemies across the globe.

POTUS says he's going to ask Congress to approve more military aid to help fight wars overseas ... while reiterating he won't send American troops to fight Russia.

We haven't seen a lot of rah-rah speeches from Biden in office ... and he's pretty animated here, at least by his standards.

The Prez says it's all part of keeping up with America's calling as a global leader ... and he says the world is watching and counting on us to save the day.

El presidente Biden está instando a los estadounidenses a apoyar los esfuerzos de guerra en el Medio Oriente y Ucrania, argumentando que todos tenemos que unirnos para ayudar a derrotar a los terroristas y los tiranos.

El Presidente acaba de hacer su caso frente al Congreso para aprobar miles de millones de dólares en ayuda militar para apoyar la lucha de Israel contra Hamás y de Ucrania contra Vladimir Putin, poniendo a los estadounidenses en una batalla entre el bien y el mal.

En un raro discurso pronunciado el jueves desde el Despacho Oval, Biden dijo que los estadounidenses deben dejar sus mezquinas diferencias de lado y unirse contra los malos ... dijo que si Estados Unidos renuncia a la lucha en Gaza y Ucrania, solo envalentonará a sus enemigos en todo el mundo.

El Presidente añadió que va a pedir al Congreso que apruebe más ayuda militar para apoyar los combates en el extranjero, al mismo tiempo que reiteró que no enviará tropas estadounidenses para luchar contra Rusia.

No hemos visto muchos discursos entusiastas de Biden en el cargo, pero estuvo bastante animado en esta oportunidad, al menos para sus estándares.

El Presidente dijo que todo es parte de mantenerse con la vocación de Estados Unidos como un líder mundial y agregó que el mundo está mirando y contando con ellos para proporcionar una solución.

Historian Peter Kuznick fears for the fate of humanity ... warning of a third world war and a nuclear winter if conflicts across the globe continue to escalate.

The author and American University professor joined us on "TMZ Live" Thursday, and we asked him just how close we are to World War III, given the war in the Middle East.

Peter says things were already trending towards a doomsday scenario as a result of the war between Ukraine and Russia and the situation in Taiwan ... and he fears recent developments in Gaza may push things over the edge.

The way Peter sees a nightmare situation unfolding -- Israel invades Palestine, forcing Hezbollah to join the war -- and then other countries are drawn into battle.

From there, Peter says it's an all-out world war ... and it's pretty much guaranteed nuclear warheads will be used.

Peter explains how even a small number of nukes would create a nuclear winter capable of killing 2 billion people across the globe ... telling us it would be worse than ever imagined.

El historiador Peter Kuznick teme por el destino de la humanidad, advirtiendo sobre la posibilidad de una tercera guerra mundial y un invierno de armas nucleares si los conflictos en todo el mundo siguen escalando.

El autor y profesor se unió a nosotros en "TMZ Live" este jueves, donde le preguntamos qué tan cerca estamos de la Tercera Guerra Mundial, dada la situación en el Medio Oriente.

Peter dice que las cosas ya estaban tendiendo hacia un escenario apocalíptico como resultado de la guerra entre Ucrania y Rusia y la situación en Taiwán, pero teme que los recientes acontecimientos en Gaza pueden empujar las cosas aún más allá.

Desde la perspectiva de Peter se podría desplegar un escenario de pesadilla, en el que Israel invade Palestina, obligando a Hezbollah a unirse a la guerra y luego arrastrando a otros países a unirse al conflicto también.

A partir de ahí, Peter dice que se vendría una guerra mundial total y que es más o menos seguro que se utilizarían armas nucleares.

El historiador explica cómo incluso un pequeño número de armas nucleares crearía un invierno capaz de matar a 2 mil millones de personas en todo el mundo, diciéndonos que sería peor de lo que hemos incluso imaginado.

Ian Kinsler wasn't repping the Rangers or Astros last night, the former MLB star had a bigger cause on his mind than the ALCS ... the 4x All-Star, who is Jewish, threw out the first pitch wearing a Team Israel jersey.

Kinsler is a special assistant to the Rangers general manager ... and the organization invited him to kick off Game 3 of the American League Championship Series at Globe Life Field in Arlington, TX with the ceremonial first pitch.

IK was born in America but obtained Israeli citizenship (dual citizenship w/ U.S.) a few years back when he wanted to play for Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Ian then went on to serve as the manager for the Israeli team at the World Baseball Classic in 2023.

Since the horrific attack two-and-a-half weeks ago, Kinsler says he's been following the situation on the ground closely.

Kinsler is just one of many star athletes and celebs who have spoken out since October 7 ... 1,400 Israelis have been killed since the incursion began.

Perhaps none have done more than Floyd Mayweather, who sent his plane full of supplies to Tel Aviv over the weekend. He also FaceTimed IDF special forces soldiers and walked in a pro-Israeli march in Los Angeles.