News Roundup for August 25, 2022

August 24, 2022
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J Street works to promote an open, honest and rigorous conversation about Israel. The opinions reflected in articles posted in the News Roundup do not necessarily reflect J Street’s positions, and their posting does not constitute an endorsement from J Street.


J Street In the News

The 2022 Primaries, J Street
Jeremy Ben-Ami writes, “Thanks to the support of our pro-Israel, pro-peace movement, we scored some really important victories this primary season.”

Pro-Israel Organizations Urge Secretary Blinken to Address Israel’s Persecution of Palestinian Civil Society Organizations, Progressive Israel Network
Members of the Progressive Israel Network wrote to Secretary Blinken to express our deep concern with the latest escalation of the Israeli government’s campaign of suppression against six Palestinian nongovernmental organizations engaged in human rights and civil society work that the Defense Ministry designated as “terrorist organizations” in October of last year.

Top News and Analysis

U.S. Presses Israel to Keep Promise on Border Crossing, Axios
The U.S. has been pressing the Israeli government to uphold a commitment it made to President Biden to ease travel delays for Palestinians across the main border crossing between the occupied West Bank and Jordan, three senior Israeli officials tell Axios.

Israeli Army Suspends Soldiers Caught on Camera Beating Palestinians, Haaretz
The Israeli Army suspended four soldiers on Wednesday who were recorded on video beating Palestinians near Ramallah. Earlier this August, soldiers from the Kfir Brigade’s ultra-Orthodox Netzah Yehuda Battalion allegedly stopped a vehicle and beat the driver and another passenger. The suspension followed an investigation into the incident by the Military Police.

US Confirms It Has Sent Response to EU on Proposal to Salvage the Iran Nuclear Deal, CNN
The United States has sent its response to the European Union on a proposal to try to save the Iran nuclear deal, the US State Department confirmed Wednesday.

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News

US Airstrikes Target Bunkers Used by Iran-linked Militias in Syria, Al-Monitor
The US military said it carried out precision airstrikes against a bunker complex used by Iran-backed militias in eastern Syria early on Wednesday. US President Joe Biden authorized the strikes on Tuesday in response to the recent targeting of two US bases in Syria with rockets and armed drones. US military officials said groups tied to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were behind those attacks, but have not specified which.

Polls Show Far-Right Ben Gvir on Rise as Religious Zionism Flirts with Threshold, The Times of Israel
Polls published Wednesday showed far-right MK Itamar Ben Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit party soaring to become one of the nation’s largest parties, even if the extremist firebrand resists pressure to again merge Knesset slates with fellow right-wing faction Religious Zionism.

Israel Reprimands Ambassador for Intervening in Bosnian Politics, Haaretz
Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday reprimanded its ambassador to Albania, who is also responsible for Bosnia-Herzegovina, over his intervention in the Balkan country’s domestic affairs. The reprimand came two weeks after the emergence of a leaked memo in which the ambassador endorsed a controversial election reform plan opposed by the local government and supported by nationalist parties.

Opinion and Analysis

Denying the Green Line, Haaretz
The Haaretz editorial board writes, “Other municipalities must adopt Tel Aviv’s initiative and hang the map in schools in their cities in order to promote an open discussion about Israel, the country’s borders and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, including the millions of Palestinians lacking rights living over the Green Line.”

Israel Must Become the State for All Its Citizens, The Jerusalem Post
Gershon Baskin argues, “The Zionist movement achieved its ultimate goal on May 15, 1948, founding a homeland for the Jewish people who after the Holocaust had nowhere else to call home. Israel was established and now, 74 years later, Israel should fulfill its second main goal – to be a state like all other states and to be a light unto the nations. To achieve those goals Israel must become the state of all of its citizens.”

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