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I hope you are doing well.
I’m writing to share a few significant developments over the past week, including the anniversary of October 7, ongoing efforts to prevent an all-out regional war in the Middle East, and growing concerns over the sharp decline in Gaza’s food supply.
As always, please feel free to reach out with 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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STATEMENT |
J Street Marks Painful Anniversary of October 7
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WEBINAR |
One Year After October 7: Impact on Palestinians and the Wider Middle East
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WEBINAR |
Remembering October 7: A Shared Journey of Grief and Hope
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STATEMENT |
J Street Condemns Iranian Missile Attack, Jaffa Terror Attack – Calls for Immediate De-Escalation
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What we’re reading
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US and Arab states reportedly in talks with Iran for ceasefire on all war fronts
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The United States and Arab states have launched covert talks with Iran for a comprehensive ceasefire aimed at calming all war fronts at once, according to an Israeli television report Tuesday. Channel 12 news reported that Israel is not currently involved in the initiative, but that senior Israeli officials have been informed about it. The network noted that it was not clear how the efforts would affect the Gaza Strip, which is more complex than the rest of the fronts due to Israel’s desire to continue fighting even after a potential hostage deal, in order to ensure Hamas can never again constitute a threat, and the terror group’s demand for a full Israeli withdrawal in any deal. |
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US calls out Israel at UN for ‘catastrophic conditions’ in Gaza
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Israel needs to address urgently “catastrophic conditions” among Palestinian civilians in the besieged Gaza Strip and stop “intensifying suffering” by limiting aid deliveries, its ally the United States told the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday. Referring to reports of squalid conditions in south and central Gaza, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said: “These catastrophic conditions were predicted months ago, and yet, have still not been addressed. That must change, and now.”…Reuters reported last week that food supplies to Gaza have fallen sharply in recent weeks because Israeli authorities have introduced a new customs rule on some humanitarian aid and are separately scaling down deliveries organized by businesses. |
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Biden and Netanyahu closer to consensus on Israel’s plans to attack Iran
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President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu moved closer to an understanding on the scope of Israel’s planned retaliation against Iran during their call on Wednesday, three U.S. and Israeli officials tell Axios… The Biden administration accepts that Israel will soon launch a major attack on Iran, but it fears that strikes on certain targets could dramatically escalate the regional war. The current plans are still a bit more aggressive than the White House would like, a senior Israeli official said. However, after the Biden-Netanyahu call, a U.S. official said, “We are moving in the right direction.” Another U.S. official said the administration was a little less nervous about Israel’s plans after the call. The senior Israeli official also said the gaps between the U.S. and Israel on the nature and scope of the attack had narrowed. |
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Netanyahu warns Lebanon of ‘destruction like Gaza’
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During a video address directed at the people of Lebanon, Netanyahu said: “You have an opportunity to save Lebanon before it falls into the abyss of a long war that will lead to destruction and suffering like we see in Gaza. “I say to you, the people of Lebanon: Free your country from Hezbollah so that this war can end.” Netanyahu also claimed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had killed the successor to Hezbollah’s late leader, Hassan Nasrallah. “We have degraded Hezbollah’s capabilities; we took out thousands of terrorists, including Nasrallah himself, and Nasrallah’s replacement, and the replacement of his replacement,” he said. |
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Hezbollah claims deadly barrage on Kiryat Shmona; fatalities said to be couple walking their dogs
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Hezbollah takes responsibility for the rocket fire that killed a man and a woman in Kiryat Shmona, with the terror group claiming to have targeted a “gathering of Israeli enemy forces” in the mostly evacuated border city. However, Hebrew media reports indicate that those killed were a couple out on a walk with their dogs. The Fire and Rescue Service says the impacts have started fires in several buildings in the city, with five teams working to put them out. |
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France, U.S. push at UN for stronger Lebanese army
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Strengthening Lebanon’s army will be crucial to implementing a key United Nations Security Council resolution that aims to keep peace on the country’s border with Israel, the United States and France said on Thursday. Deputy U.S. Ambassador Robert Wood told a meeting of the 15-member Security Council that the international community must focus its efforts on strengthening Lebanese state institutions. “The solution to this crisis is a not a weaker Lebanon. It’s a strong and truly sovereign Lebanon, protected by a legitimate security force, embodied in the Lebanese Armed Forces,” he said. A U.N. peacekeeping mission – known as UNIFIL – is mandated by resolution 1701, adopted in 2006, to help the Lebanese army keep its southern border area with Israel free of weapons or armed personnel other than those of the Lebanese state. That has sparked friction with the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah. |
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US still believes Iran has not decided to build a nuclear weapon, US officials say
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The United States still believes that Iran has not decided to build a nuclear weapon despite Tehran’s recent strategic setbacks, including Israel’s killing of Hezbollah leaders and two largely unsuccessful attempts to attack Israel, two U.S. officials told Reuters…The intelligence assessment could help explain U.S. opposition to any Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear program in retaliation for a ballistic missile attack that Tehran carried out last week…U.S. officials have long acknowledged that an attempt to destroy Iran’s nuclear weapons program might only delay the country’s efforts to develop a nuclear bomb and could even strengthen Tehran’s resolve to do so. |
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Opinion | Former Israeli and Palestinian ministers: A way out of this endless war
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We begin with the basics: The war in Gaza must end. The Israeli hostages held by Hamas must be returned to their families. And Israel will have to release the agreed number of Palestinian prisoners. Israel must also withdraw from Gaza. And the Palestinians must create a new, responsible and legitimate ruling entity in Gaza that is not composed of politicians from any of the Palestinian factions — a governmental structure that would be organically linked to the Palestinian Authority but independent enough to gain the acceptance of the Palestinian people, the Arab neighbors and the international community. |
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