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I’m writing to share important updates from the region as well as J Street’s statements and resources from the past week. This week, the J Street community was devastated by the antisemitic murder of Israeli Embassy employees Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky outside the Capital Jewish Museum. You can read our statement here.
In the region, aid deliveries finally reached Gazans after prolonged delays, while aid agencies warned the flow was still insufficient to meet the need. Prime Minister Netanyahu announced that implementation of a US-backed “Trump plan” for mass Gaza emigration would be a condition for ending the war. And as Trump continued nuclear talks with Iran, Israeli defense officials prepared for the possibility of rapid military action should those talks fail.
You can find more on each of these developments and others below, along with our most recent statements here.
Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
All the best,
Lily
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Lily Adelstein
She/Her
Deputy Director of Government Affairs, J Street
Cell: 202-699-2701
J Street’s Congressional Resource Page
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This week on j street
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J Street Condemns Horrific Anti-Israel, Antisemitic Attack in Washington DC, Mourns Two Victims
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Statement on the Passing of Congressman Gerry Connolly, a Champion of Justice
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Netanyahu’s Gaza Escalation Risks Catastrophic, Endless War
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What we’re reading
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Aid Deliveries Begin to Reach Gazans After Days of Delays
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| About 90 truckloads of aid had entered Gaza by Thursday, according to the United Nations, the first major influx of food that Israel has allowed in after a two-month blockade that deepened the humanitarian crisis in the territory. The U.N. humanitarian affairs office and the Israeli military both confirmed that the aid deliveries were reaching warehouses and other points inside Gaza after days of delays. But aid officials said the shipment was a tiny fraction of what was needed. “Desperately needed aid is finally trickling in — but the pace is far too slow. We need more aid trucks coming in daily,” the World Food Program, one of the main U.N. agencies operating in Gaza, wrote on social media. |
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Israel preparing to strike Iran fast if Trump’s nuclear talks break down
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| Israel is making preparations to swiftly strike Iran’s nuclear facilities if negotiations between the U.S. and Iran collapse, two Israeli sources with knowledge of the discussions tell Axios… The Israeli intelligence community has shifted just in the past few days from believing a nuclear deal was close to thinking talks could soon break down, the sources say. One source said the Israeli military thinks its operational window to conduct a successful strike could close soon, so Israel will have to move fast if talks fail. The source declined to say why the military believes a strike would be less effective later. |
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An embattled Netanyahu says ‘Trump plan’ for Gaza emigration is a condition for ending war
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| Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel is taking complete control of Gaza and that he would not end the war there without the implementation of what he called the “Trump plan” to encourage voluntary migration from the territory. In his first press conference in months, the Israeli prime minister also said for the second time this week that Israel would allow aid to enter Gaza in order to avert a humanitarian crisis. But he rebuffed calls to end the war, to step down or to take responsibility for failing to prevent Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack… He said the “Trump plan” was “such a correct plan — and so revolutionary. It says something simple: Residents of Gaza who want to leave can leave.” |
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What to Know About Israel’s Expanding Offensive in Gaza
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| Israel declared this week that it was expanding its ground offensive in Gaza, vowing to seize large areas of the enclave in an effort to force the surrender of Hamas after more than 19 months of war. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said this week that Israeli troops could effectively take control of all of Gaza as part of the offensive, which could take place gradually and in stages. Nearly a week after the Israeli announcement, the offensive was still mostly limited to deadly airstrikes, with slow ground maneuvers. |
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UK suspends free trade talks with Israel and announces sanctions over West Bank settlers
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| The U.K. suspended free trade talks with Israel on Tuesday and hit West Bank settlers with sanctions, less than a day after vowing “concrete actions” if Israel didn’t stop its new military offensive in Gaza. Pressure from close allies is mounting on Israel following a nearly three-month blockade of supplies into Gaza that led to famine warnings. Even the United States, a staunch ally, has voiced concerns over the hunger crisis. British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the government couldn’t continue talks on upgrading its existing trade agreement with an Israeli government pursuing what he called egregious policies in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. “History will judge them,” Lammy said. “Blocking aid. Expanding the war. Dismissing the concerns of your friends and partners. This is indefensible. And it must stop.” |
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Slaying Outside D.C. Jewish Museum Is Part of Global Surge in Antisemitism
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| The slaying of two Israeli Embassy aides on Wednesday outside a Jewish museum in Washington was an extreme example of what law enforcement officials and others call a global surge in antisemitic incidents that emerged after Hamas terrorists killed more than 1,200 people and seized 250 hostages on Oct. 7, 2023. Across the world, offenses against Jewish people and property have doubled or even tripled since the Hamas attacks and have remained at historically high levels as Israel has waged a 19-month bombing campaign and aid blockade that the Gaza Health Ministry says has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians. |
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Opinion | We are Jewish students from universities Trump is targeting. He’s not protecting us
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| “Each of us is a Jewish student at one of the universities the administration named in its announcement, including Ivy League schools like Harvard University and Columbia University, and flagship public institutions like University of California, Berkeley and the University of Minnesota. While it is true that each school has been rocked by antisemitic incidents, Trump’s plans offer us no comfort. If his goal was to undermine academic freedom and defund lifesaving research, Trump’s plan is a smashing success. But when it comes to protecting Jewish students like us, it’s an abject failure.” |
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Opinion | Gaza, Israel and the world are crying out for opposition to Netanyahu – now there are rays of hope
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| “The other hope is new leadership. The rising opposition star is former prime minister Bennett, a rightwinger who appeals to disappointed Netanyahu voters. Sensing the public shift to the right, and trying to overcome his previous weak point, he announced that his future coalition would not include an Arab party. From the other end, Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats party, former IDF general and 7 October hero, has united the Zionist left. He has been calling to stop the war, announcing his support for a two-state solution (albeit “not now”) and his willingness to partner with an Arab party.” |
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