J STREET GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS NEWS DIGEST | January 17, 2025

January 17, 2025

Government Affairs News Digest

I hope you are doing well. This week, our community was overjoyed by the news of a ceasefire agreement to release many hostages held by Hamas and surge humanitarian aid into Gaza. You can read J Street’s statement here.

I also wanted to share several other updates from this week regarding Israel, Gaza, the West Bank and the broader Middle East, including Trump’s invitation to Israeli settlers to attend his inauguration, Israel’s strategic plans for its ongoing operation in the Syrian border area, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s speech, in which he outlined a comprehensive framework for post-war reconstruction and governance in Gaza.

As always, please feel free to reach out to your J Street Public Affairs Staff with any questions.

All the best,
Lily


Lily Adelstein
She/Her
Deputy Director of Government Affairs, J Street
Cell: 202-699-2701
J Street’s Congressional Resource Page

This week on j street

ALT

STATEMENT

J Street Welcomes News of Agreement for Gaza Ceasefire and Release of Hostages

Read more →
ALT

POLICY CENTER ANALYSIS

THE HARD ROAD AHEAD IN GAZA

Read more →
ALT

WEBINAR

Emergency Briefing: Gaza Ceasefire and Hostage Deal

Watch →
ALT

BLOG

Overwhelming Relief. Determined Resolve.

Read more →

What we’re reading

Israeli security cabinet approves ceasefire and hostage deal

Israeli President Isaac Herzog applauded the Israeli security cabinet’s approval of a ceasefire and hostage agreement Friday, repeating his call to “bring all of our hostages back home.” “I harbor no illusions — the deal will bring with it great challenges and painful, agonizing moments that we will need to overcome and face together,” he said in a post on X. “With all my heart, I embrace the families of the hostages, especially those who know that their loved ones will not return in the first stage. We must bring everyone back. Everyone! We will not rest or relent until this happens.” The Israeli security cabinet voted to approve the deal earlier Friday, the Prime Minister’s Office said. The 33-member Israeli cabinet is due to convene shortly to approve the agreement.
read more

Settler leaders say they will attend Trump inauguration after receiving invite

The Yesha settlement council says it will send an official delegation to the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump in Washington next week after receiving an invitation, as it seeks to hit the ground running with the potentially settlement-friendly leader. The umbrella group representing Israel’s more than 120 West Bank settlements makes the announcement on Facebook, where it also asks supporters to sign a Hebrew-language letter it says it intends to deliver to the administration thanking Trump for “redeeming” Jerusalem and recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights… “The invitation we received from the government is an expression of the values Israel and the settlement movement share with the US as a light of Biblical values,” Gantz says in a statement carried by the outlet, which has close ties to the settler movement.
read more

Blinken makes the case for post-war reconstruction, security and governance of Gaza

Blinken said the plan, which he has referenced in the past, envisions the Palestinian Authority inviting “international partners” to stand up an interim governing authority to run critical services and oversee the territory. Other partners, notably Arab states, would provide forces to ensure security in the short term, he said. That security mission would depend on a pathway to an independent Palestinian state unifying Gaza and the West Bank and would be tasked with creating “a secure environment for humanitarian and reconstruction efforts and ensuring border security,” Blinken said. A Palestinian state, which Israel has refused, has been a sticking point. At the same time, the U.S. would lead a new initiative to train, equip and vet a Palestinian-led security force for Gaza to focus on law and order that would take over from the interim mission, he said.
read more

Israel’s hostage families react to ceasefire deal with relief and fear

The families of Israeli hostages held by Hamas welcomed the ceasefire deal announced Wednesday with mixed emotions, expressing relief that their loved ones could be released after 15 months of captivity in Gaza but also fearing that the agreement could break down before all of them return home. Under the terms of the deal, 33 hostages will be released gradually over the next seven weeks, with others to be freed in a subsequent phase. The ceasefire agreement is “just the beginning,” said Yehuda Cohen, whose son, Nimrod, is among about 100 hostages held in Gaza. There is still a “long way … to go,” he said Wednesday evening as the news broke.
read more

Hardline Israeli minister Ben-Gvir threatens to quit over Gaza deal

Israel’s hardline National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said on Thursday he would resign from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government if it ratifies the ceasefire deal in Gaza, which he has strongly opposed. Israeli media outlets reported earlier that the cabinet was expected to vote to ratify the agreement on Friday, but there has been no confirmation from the prime minister’s office. “The deal that is taking shape is a reckless deal,” Ben-Gvir said in a televised statement, saying it would “erase the achievements of the war” by releasing hundreds of Palestinian militants and withdrawing from strategic areas in Gaza, leaving Hamas undefeated.
read more

Israel’s Campaign in Syrian Border Area Prompts Fears It Plans to Stay

The stunning downfall of Syria’s longtime leader, Bashar al-Assad, closed a chapter in the country’s decade-long civil war. But it also marked the start of an Israeli incursion into the border region, which Israel has called a temporary defensive move to protect its own security. Thousands of Syrians now live in areas at least partly controlled by Israeli forces, leaving many anxious over how long the campaign will last. Israeli troops have detained some residents and opened fire during at least two protests against the raids, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an independent monitor. At least some Syrians now say they fear the Israeli presence could become a prolonged military occupation.
read more

Analysis | How Many Hostages Remain in Gaza, and When Could They Be Released?

When Hamas led the Oct. 7, 2023, raids into Israel, killing about 1,200 people, about 250 people were taken into Gaza as hostages, including citizens of Israel, the United States, Britain, Mexico, Thailand and other countries. Among the captives were the bodies of 37 people killed in the attack, Israeli officials said. Now, about 100 hostages, living and dead, are still being held in the enclave, officials say. The cease-fire deal announced on Wednesday between Israel and Hamas would begin with an initial phase lasting six weeks, and involve the release of 33 hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. The agreement requires Hamas to release three female hostages on Day 1, four more on Day 7 and 26 more over the next five weeks, according to a copy of the document obtained by The New York Times.
read more

Analysis | Cease-fire Deal: Netanyahu Hopes Hamas Will Rescue Him From His Own Web of Lies

“[Netanyahu’s] best hope is that Hamas will provide him with an easy way out of his own web of lies. He will try to help bring it about, with deceptive leaks that could encourage the organization’s leadership to break the terms of the deal. Then, he will be able to give Smotrich the renewal of the war and his government will live another day, while Trump and the hostage families will have to deal with his explanation that “It’s all Hamas’ fault.” The biggest question is whether Trump will accept this. The incoming U.S. president has taken pride in securing the cease-fire and hostage release deal, and is dreaming of a Nobel Peace Prize for the Israeli-Saudi agreement. He has the greatest interest, apart from the hostage families, in seeing phase two of the deal come to fruition. To get it done, a confrontation with the “senior Israeli official” trying to derail the deal may be unavoidable.”
read more