Boston Area Jewish Students Reflect on Trump’s Fight Against Antisemitism, GBH News
“Meirav Solomon was torn about whether to join Gaza War protests on her campus at Tufts University a year ago. She says never shied from activism but she found herself ‘with a foot in both camps.’ Both her parents are rabbis and she has personal connections to Israelis and Palestinians. She heard antisemitic chants from protesters including friends and felt they ‘maybe didn’t understand what they were saying.’ […] ‘The Trump administration’s policies right now are doing nothing to make me feel safer, make my friends feel safer, Jewish, non-Jewish, Muslim, Arab,’ said [Meirav] Solomon, a student leader with the progressive group J Street U. ‘This is a time when we need to be building coalitions and not excluding people.’”
Gaza Ceasefire Talks in Cairo Near ‘Significant Breakthrough,’ Two Security Sources Say, Reuters
“Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Sunday that a recent meeting in Doha in efforts to reach a ceasefire made some progress, but noted there was no agreement on how to end the war yet. He said the militant group is willing to return all remaining Israeli hostages if Israel ends the war in Gaza. But Israel wants Hamas to release the remaining hostages without offering a clear vision on ending the war, he added.”
Far-right Ben-Gvir Says He Met Four GOP Members of Congress, Clashed With Protesters at U.S. Capitol, Haaretz
“On the last day of his first visit to the United States while in office, Itamar Ben-Gvir made it to the halls of Congress. The far-right Israeli national security minister announced that he met with four Republican members of Congress on Monday, capping a weeklong trip that otherwise largely stuck to right-wing Jewish groups and communities, and included multiple cancellations amid backlash.”
World Court Opens Hearings on Israel’s Aid Obligations to Palestinians, The Washington Post
“The United Nations’ top court held oral arguments Monday to determine whether Israel is required to allow the U.N. and other agencies to provide unhindered aid to Palestinian civilians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. […] Israel, however, refused to appear before the court at The Hague, which Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said has a political bias against the Jewish state. At a news conference in Jerusalem on Monday, he likened the hearings to a ‘circus’ and said that ‘it is not Israel that should be on trial.’”
After Pro-Israel Crowd Assaults Woman, Protesters Rally in Brooklyn, The New York Times
“A small group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators, shadowed by a heavy police presence, rallied in Brooklyn on Monday night to condemn the actions of a crowd of pro-Israel counterprotesters who verbally and physically assaulted a woman there last week. […] The police filled the streets, with some officers blocking off cross streets by standing in a line while holding bicycles. When the crowd began to drift into the street, a police recording directed protesters to get back on the sidewalk or face arrest.”
Israeli Forces Detain Prominent Palestinian Journalist in Early Morning West Bank Raid, CNN
“Israeli forces detained prominent Palestinian journalist Ali Samoudi in an early morning raid on his son’s home in the occupied West Bank. The raid occurred in the city of Jenin, where Samoudi’s son told CNN the Israeli military came in at 5 a.m. and took the 58-year-old journalist to an undisclosed location. Samoudi ‘underwent a field interrogation’ by Israeli forces for 30 minutes, Mohammad Samoudi told CNN, saying they had searched the house and destroyed some of its contents.”
Shin Bet Chief Defiantly Quits, Leaving Netanyahu’s Battle Over Its Fate to Israel’s High Court, Haaretz
“The announcement Monday evening by Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar that he would step down was not a concession in his standoff with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. From the start of their confrontation, Bar made it clear he did not intend to cling indefinitely to his post. Unlike Netanyahu, Bar accepted full responsibility for his considerable role in the catastrophic failure that led to the October 7 massacre – and did not, despite Netanyahu’s claims, seek to hold onto power at any cost. […] Although Bar set his resignation for June 15, the final outcome still hinges on the High Court of Justice. In theory, the three senior justices overseeing the case now have an easier path to avoid ruling on the explosive dispute.”
An Alternative Memorial Day Ceremony Marks Its 20th Year. Participants Say It’s the Future, The Times of Israel
“The joint memorial ceremony is held in Tel Aviv, and a public broadcast in the village of Beit Jala, near Bethlehem, serves as the central event for Palestinians who can’t enter Israel. Despite the challenges of the last 19 months, organizers report a rise in participation and viewership. Last year’s ceremony, the first held after October 7 and the outbreak of war, drew the largest crowd ever — 15,000 participants. In recent years, about 200,000 people have watched the ceremony online.”
‘Unacceptable’: France Blasts Israel for Banning French Delegations From Entering Country, Haaretz
“In a statement on Monday, Israel’s embassy said it would not allow any individual or delegation associated with the Decentralised Cooperation Network for Palestine or the France-Palestine Solidarity Association (AFPS) to enter the country because they were linked to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. […] France’s foreign ministry said the decision by Israel to revoke the travel authorisations for the two delegations, which included elected French officials, was regrettable, counterproductive, and damaging to Franco-Israeli relations.”
I Can’t Believe Anyone Thinks Trump Actually Cares About Antisemitism, The New York Times
Michelle Goldberg writes: “It seems clear to me that if your presuppositions about Israel lead you to sanctify Trump, they bear rethinking. But even Jews who continue to delight in Trump’s animosity toward the Palestinians should be aware of the bargain they’re making. In the right-wing nationalist movement that Trump leads, gutter antisemitism is often considered a cheeky transgression and a sign of in-group belonging. ”
I Used To Run Israel’s Security Agency – Now I’m Sounding the Alarm About Our Extremist Government, The Guardian
Ret. Commander-in-chief of the Israeli Navy, Former Shin Bet Director and MK Ami Ayalon writes: “The truth is that our hostages in Gaza have been abandoned in favour of the government’s messianic ideology and by a prime minister in Benjamin Netanyahu who is desperate to cling to power for his own personal gain. Our government is undermining the democratic functions of the state to shore up and protect its own power. It is forcing us into a perpetual war with no achievable military objectives and which can only result in more loss of life and hatred.”
Fighting for Israel While Fighting its Government, The Jewish Chronicle
The Jewish Chronicle interviewed reservist IDF spokesperson Peter Lerner. Lerner “accused prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu of not showing sufficient leadership when it comes to instilling message discipline in his ministers, which he claims is detrimental to Israel’s international reputation: ‘You can’t have a minister say this, and you need to call him in and say, ‘This is wrong. This doesn’t help us. It undermines us.’ Lerner was exasperated by Netanyahu’s latest embrace of Trumpian rhetoric – talking about a ‘deep state’ of officials apparently out to thwart the government – which the trade unionist described as a ‘ridiculous statement… designed to serve his political interests’.”
I Was a West Bank Settler. This Is Why I Refused to Serve in the IDF, Haaretz
Former West Bank settler and IDF soldier Aharon Dardik writes: “Memorial Day is this week. In the future when we remember this time, how will we memorialize it? Imagine speaking to your grandchildren in 60 years. When they ask you about today, just before Israel’s 77th birthday, when Netanyahu tried to condemn the Israeli hostages and all of the people of Gaza, imagine what you’ll want to say. Grief can allow anger or apathy to consume us, enabling or assisting more destruction, adding more dead to memorialize. Alternatively, grief can make you resolute and strong, able to stand up even to your countrymen and put an end to further suffering.”