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.

Live from Chicago and against the backdrop of the Democratic National Convention, join J Street and the Forward for a conversation diving deep into the challenges facing Democrats amid the Israel-Hamas war. J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami will moderate the discussion featuring pollster and Jim Gerstein, the Forward’s editor-in-chief Jodi Rudoren and a Member of Congress to be announced soon. Register here to join us on Tuesday, August 20 at 9am Pacific / 11am Central / 12pm Eastern >>

US, Qatar and Egypt Invite Israel and Hamas for Summit to Finalize Gaza Deal, Axios
“It is time, immediately, to put an end to the long-standing suffering of the people of the Gaza Strip, as well as the hostages and their families. It is time to finalize a ceasefire agreement and release the hostages and detainees,” Biden, Sheikh Tamim and al-Sisi said in the statement. The three leaders said there is a framework agreement on the table and only its implementation details need to be finalized. “No more time should be wasted, and there should be no excuses by any party for further postponement,” they said.

Harris Rejects Claims She Would Support Israel Arms Embargo, BBC
In a post on Twitter/X, Biden administration official Phil Gordon said Ms Harris “has been clear: she will always ensure Israel is able to defend itself against Iran and Iran-backed terrorist groups.” The statement came after leaders of the Uncommitted movement – which has urged Democrats to boycott the election over US support for Israel – said Harris had “expressed an openness” to meeting with them to discuss an arms embargo. Gordon seemed to dispute that report. He added that Harris “will continue to work to protect civilians in Gaza and to uphold international humanitarian law.”

Israel Kills 40 Palestinians in Gaza Airstrikes Amid Fears of Wider War, Reuters
Israeli airstrikes hit a cluster of houses in central Gaza’s Al-Bureij camp, killing at least 15 people, and the nearby Al-Nuseirat camp, killed four, medics said. Nuseirat and Bureij are among the densely populated enclave’s eight historic camps and seen by Israel as strongholds of armed militants.

Uncommitted Voters Respond to Harris-Walz Ticket With Hope and Reservations, The Guardian
Elianne Farhat, a senior adviser for the Uncommitted national campaign, said in a statement on Tuesday: “Governor Walz has demonstrated a remarkable ability to evolve as a public leader, uniting Democrats diverse coalition to achieve significant milestones for Minnesota families of all backgrounds.”

Residents of a Frontline Israeli City Feel Hezbollah’s War ‘Getting Closer’, CNN
Nahariya has declared a state of emergency, according to an official at the city’s municipality. Residents can hear everything from outgoing artillery fire over the border to rockets that land nearby on a daily basis, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Israel’s Western Allies Slam Israeli Minister’s Remark That Gaza Starvation May Be Justified, AP
Smotrich, a key partner in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition, supports the reoccupation of Gaza, the rebuilding of Jewish settlements that were removed in 2005, and what he describes as the voluntary migration of large numbers of Palestinians out of the territory. The European Union on Wednesday condemned his remarks, noting that the “deliberate starvation of civilians is a war crime.”

‘Left Without a Roof Over Their Heads’: Thousands of Gazans Flee Khan Yunis, Haaretz
The IDF has previously called on residents of Khan Yunis to evacuate, with thousands following the advice. Those who have evacuated to Mawasi have said the conditions in the so-called safe zone are dire, with basic humanitarian equipment lacking.

US Official Warns of ‘Quite Significant Consequences’ if Iran Attacks Israel, The Times of Israel
The senior Biden administration official says the US is prepared for any contingency. “We have moved an awful lot of military force into the region, including F-22s that arrived today… We’re doing all we can to deter such an attack, to defeat an attack if it comes, and also to demonstrate to Iran that there’s a better path forward here than a military attack.”

International Criminal Court Judges Mulling Arrest Warrants Consider Legal Arguments on Jurisdiction, AP
Most of the legal arguments focus largely on the issue of whether the court’s power to issue warrants for Israeli leaders is overruled by a provision of the 1993 Oslo Accords peace deal. As part of the deal, the Palestinians agreed that they don’t have criminal jurisdiction over Israeli nationals.

Hamas Said Demanding Release of Marwan Barghouti in First Stage of Hostage Deal, The Times of Israel
Citing unnamed sources, Sky News Arabia reported that Hamas has demanded Barghouti’s release as the terror group knows it cannot return to power in the Gaza Strip and sees the former head of Fatah’s Tanzim terrorist faction as a useful ally it could trust to run the Strip according to its liking.

Trump – Offering No Evidence – Claims Surge in Jewish Support Amid Declining Numbers Against Harris, The Forward
Trump claimed without evidence that his support among American Jews is “way up” in recent weeks. The most recent public polls of Jewish voters nationally showed Trump securing about 24% of the vote against President Joe Biden. In 2020 against Biden, Trump garnered 21%, according to an exit poll commissioned for J Street, while a Republican Jewish Coalition-sponsored poll showed him with 30%.

Faded Photos of Dead Young Israelis and Dust Everywhere: A Visit to the Nova Site, Haaretz
Moshe Gilad reports, “It’s an endless war. The dust covers everything. Ten months after the Nova Festival exploded into thousands of pieces of shrapnel, a thick layer of dust covers the memorial stones, the pictures, the signs, the texts that explain what happened in the short lives of the young people murdered here. The yellowish dust creates the impression that a long time has passed since that day.”

Protesters Over the Gaza War Will Keep Interrupting Kamala Harris. Here’s How She Should Handle It, Slate
Emily Tamkin writes, “Harris can’t, at present, stop the war, and she can’t make protests stop or go away. But, at the risk of sounding like a political Pollyanna, she can try to take these moments when they happen—which, again, they will—to keep her campaign on message: to keep it about freedom, joy, human dignity, and empathy.”

Violence, Antisemitism and Politics, New Jersey Jewish Journal
J Street leader Mark Lurinsky shares, “One would like to think that perhaps, as Trump runs for the presidency again, he has at long last learned some appropriate lesson from his multiple toxic associations with the violent and antisemitic far-right movement and is actually trying to become the ‘uniter’ he claimed to be during the recent Republican convention. But the people he continues to surround himself tell a different story.”

Americans Couldn’t Pronounce My Hebrew Name – It Felt Like a Personal Attack, Newsweek
J Street U National Board Member Meirav Solomon writes, “Now, we stand to elect the first Black, Indian, woman president of the United States. Yet, too many of her opponents, politicians and media personalities fail to say her name correctly. To be clear, there is far more at stake in this election. People’s lives are on the line. But how many young Americans will be discouraged from getting involved in electoral politics because they know that their name will be butchered on live TV?”

Know someone who may be interested in receiving this newsletter? Did a friend forward you this email and you want to subscribe? Sign up for the J Street News Roundup here.