CEP Senior Advisor Edmund Fitton-Brown writes: "Iran’s 45-year trajectory from the Khomeini revolution to its current challenge to Israel, the West, and the Rules-Based International System (RBIS) led to developing and solidifying its “Axis of Resistance.” Tehran supports and coordinates this group of regional proxies, including Yemen’s Houthis, Hamas, and Lebanese Hezbollah, to challenge its enemies in various theaters. A key Iranian proxy is found among the Iraqi Shia, who have a history with Iran that goes back to the Saddam Hussein era but whose full value to Tehran only started to be realized after the 2003 US invasion made Iraq’s largest community dominant in that nation’s politics."

“Qatar's prime minister announces that a Gaza truce deal between Israel and Hamas has been agreed. Thousands of Gazans reacted to the news with jubilation. The deal will go into effect as of January 19. Phase 1 of the deal entails 33 hostages being released by Hamas over a six-week period. Israel says some issues are to be resolved with a vote expected on Thursday. Here are the latest developments from Israel, Gaza and the wider Middle Eastfrom January 15 into January 16… While the first phase of the ceasefire deal is not "a problem," the second one will be "tough," counterterrorism analyst Hans-Jakob Schindler told DW. "Because when you are in the second phase, you have to think about the third phase, that is sustainable ceasefire, the rebuilding of the Gaza strip," he said.”
 

CEP non-resident fellow Ari Heistein writes: "Yemen’s Houthis may be on a high from their success in keeping Israelis awake at night with their sporadic missile launches targeting the country’s center of gravity. Dealing with this threat will present considerable dilemmas and challenges to Israel. However, Israeli journalists’ defeatism is overwrought; in fact, less than one year and a half after their grand entrance onto the international stage, the Houthis strategic options are looking considerably worse than they were in October 2023. "

“Quiet, safe and surrounded by greenery. And a view of a gas chamber. The house where Rudolf Höss, commandant of the Auschwitz death camp, lived with his family will soon be open to visitors. The building, located just outside the camp, was made famous by the Oscar-winning film The Zone of Interest, directed by Jonathan Glazer. Until now it has been a private home. For the past 42 years, Grazyna Jurczak, now 62, has lived there with her husband, before he died, and their two children: 'It was a great place to raise the children', thanks to its proximity to nature and the river, and the absence of chaos. But after the release of Glazer's film, the decision to sell the house was reinforced by the streams of people who walked around the building, looking at it and remembering its connection to the tragedies of the Holocaust.”

“... The home in Oswiecim, Poland, was purchased in October by the NY-based Counter Extremism Project, which plans to open it to the public for the first time. Counter Extremism Project CEO Mark Wallace says the house and an adjacent property will ultimately become the newly formed Auschwitz Research Center on Hate, Extremism, and Radicalization, which will focus on combating modern-day extremism. "This house has been closed for 80 years. It was out of reach to the victims and their families. Finally, we can open it to honor survivors and show that this place of incredible evil is now open to all," Wallace said.”

“A house once owned by Rudolf Höss, the notorious commandant of the Nazi German Auschwitz concentration camp, has been purchased by the Counter Extremism Project (CEP), a US-based non-governmental organisation, and will soon open to visitors. Located at 88 Legionów Street in the southern Polish city of Oświęcim, the house sits near the former camp’s perimeter fence. The property became the focus of public attention after last year’s release of The Zone of Interest, a British-Polish-American film that depicted the domestic life of Höss and his family living in the shadow of Auschwitz from 1941 to 1944.”
 

“Last summer, Grazyna Jurczak, a 62-year-old Polish widow, decided to sell the house where she had lived for more than forty years with her husband and two children to the non-governmental organization Counter Extremism Project. Among the reasons that led her to sell it was that for a few months, more and more people had been wandering around the house: they were visitors to the Auschwitz concentration camp, a few meters away, and who had seen the film The Zone of Interest , directed by Jonathan Glazer, released in 2023 and set in her house.”

“As reported by Polish Radio, a centre for combating hatred will be established in the villa of the Auschwitz commandant. The villa where Rudolf Höß, the first commandant of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp, lived, has been sold by its private owner to the New York-based foundation Counter Extremism Project. The building will serve as the Center for the Study of Hate, Extremism and Radicalization. The facility, located next to the former camp, is to become a center for education and prevention against hate speech and extremism. Piotr Cywiński, director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, emphasized in an interview with Radio Kraków that this is an innovative idea that can play a key role in the fight against hate and radicalization. The center will operate independently of the museum, becoming an important point on the educational map.”

"The American non-governmental organization Counter Extremism Project acquired the house of the commandant of the German Auschwitz-Birkenau camp, Rudolf Hoess, in the summer. As reported by the New York Times, the property will be open to visitors on January 27, 2025, on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the camp. The director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, Piotr Cywiński, does not rule out cooperation with the new institution. The film "Zero interest" about the Höss family attracted many people interested in the history of the house to the property in Oświęcim. This convinced its resident, Grażyna Jurczak, to sell it. The transaction, which amounted to over $120,000, was finalized in October.”

“The American non-governmental organization Counter Extremism Project purchased the house of the commandant of the German Auschwitz-Birkenau camp, Rudolf Höss, in the summer and will open it to visitors on January 27, the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the camp, The New York Times reported. The director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum, Piotr Cywiński, did not rule out cooperation with the new institution. The film “Zero interes,” which tells the story of the Hoess family, has led to strangers entering the property in Oświęcim, interested in the history of the house. This has prompted Grażyna Jurczak, who lives there, to sell it. The sale of the house and the adjacent post-war building was finalized in October. The Counter Extremism Project and Ms. Jurczak have not disclosed the amount of the transaction, but as the NYT writes on Wednesday, it is more than $120,000.”