‘Time is Running Out’: A Hostage Family’s Desperate Plea
After her 23-year-old daughter was abducted from the Nova music festival by Hamas militants on October 7, Meirav Gonen’s world was torn apart.
J Street organizes pro-Israel, pro-peace Americans to promote US policies that embody our deeply held Jewish and democratic values and that help secure the State of Israel as a democratic homeland for the Jewish people. We believe that only a negotiated resolution agreed to by Israelis and Palestinians can meet the legitimate needs and national aspirations of both peoples.
Working in the American political system, in the Jewish community and with others with whom we share core values, we advocate for diplomacy-first American leadership and policies that advance justice, equality, peace, and democracy in Israel, in the wider region and in the United States as well.
In a moment of crisis and war for Israelis and Palestinians, and with events on the ground and in Washington moving fast, it is extremely important for J Street to be clear about where we stand, what we are advocating for, and what we are encouraging the Biden Administration and Members of Congress to do.
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To truly protect Jews on campus and across the country, Congress must implement a collaborative and nuanced antisemitism strategy that centers Jewish safety above political gamesmanship.
We urge senators to continue to make the safe return of the hostages a high-priority issue in all meetings with the Biden administration and other interlocutors, and to strongly consider the impact that any US policies and actions may have on the safety of hostages.
After her 23-year-old daughter was abducted from the Nova music festival by Hamas militants on October 7, Meirav Gonen’s world was torn apart.
While it must be said that Palestinians will never gain their freedom through terror, it is equally true that Israelis will never gain security through military force alone.
Not knowing the fate of the person you love the most is a particularly cruel form of torture.
Progressive values should demand that we see this conflict beyond picking a "side" and recognize the shared suffering of both peoples.
Blinken Presses Hamas to Seal Cease-Fire with Israel, Says ‘The Time Is Now’ for a Deal, AP
Blinken said Israel has made “very important” compromises in cease-fire efforts and it is now up to Hamas to get the deal done. “There’s no time for further haggling. The deal is there,” Blinken said, shortly before he was to leave Israel. Earlier in the day, he said in talks with Israel’s ceremonial President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv that Hamas would bear the blame for any failure to get a deal. “No delays, no excuses. The time is now,” he said.
Hamas Indicates It Will Snub Latest Hostage Deal Offer, but Says Talks to Continue, The Times of Israel
Hamas’s opposition to the latest offer stems from its belief that the proposal doesn’t go far enough in guaranteeing an end to the war, an Arab diplomat told The Times of Israel. Instead, it envisions the sides holding during the first, six-week phase on a permanent ceasefire.