It Can Be Lonely to Have a Middle-of-the Road Opinion on the Middle East, The New York Times
“At George Washington University, Celia Little, a junior, helped restart a campus chapter of J Street U, the college wing of a liberal pro-Israel organization. She hopes to give Jewish students who are devastated by the war a space to process and learn, ‘not in an abrasive way, but just teaching about it and having an open discussion.’ ‘As a progressive, sometimes it’s difficult to be in some Jewish spaces,’ she said, ‘and as someone who really cares about Israel, it’s hard to be in more progressive spaces. My goal has been that there can be a space where having nuance is important and valued.’”
Courage Is In Short Supply Among Democrats And The Media, The Washington Post
“It’s hard to overstate the impact of the second gentleman’s leadership on the attention generated and the sensitivity injected into the administration’s work on antisemitism,” said Jeremy Ben-Ami, president of progressive J Street. “His personal involvement could always generate attention to the issue and to the solutions being proposed in the administration’s comprehensive strategy.”
Trump May Surprise and Turn Out To Be a Boon Peace, The Times of Israel
J Street Israel Director Nadav Tamir writes, “If Trump demands an agreement, Netanyahu will find it difficult to resist, especially when the choice is between advancing regional normalization or facing a public confrontation with a president known for ‘turning’ on those around him and using undiplomatic language toward Netanyahu.”
A Travel Diary in Jewish Communities After the US Presidential Election, The Jerusalem Post
J Street Israel Director Nadav Tamir writes, “They are concerned about the future of the Zionist vision under our right-wing government with the backing of Trump’s American Right. They are concerned about the rise in antisemitic incidents in the US – those that some MAGA Republicans around Trump are promoting as well as the antisemitic voices in left-wing protests.”
Meaningful Security Requires More Than Living By the Sword, Substack
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami writes, “Meaningful, sustainable security for Israel will only come when the Palestinian people have freedom. Equally true, of course: the Palestinian people will only achieve freedom and self-determination when Israelis feel secure.”
Palestinian Authority, Seeking Gaza Role, Takes On West Bank Militants, The Washington Post
In Jenin, the authority, which is backed by the West, has launched its largest and most heavily armed operation in its three decades to thwart a growing West Bank insurgency against the Palestinian leadership and Israeli occupation. It’s trying to prove it can manage security in the limited areas of the West Bank it controls as it seeks to also govern a postwar Gaza Strip.
Some Gaps Have Narrowed in Elusive Gaza Ceasefire Deal, Sides Say, Reuters
A Palestinian official familiar with the talks said while some sticking points had been resolved, the identity of some of the Palestinian prisoners to be released by Israel in return for hostages had yet to be agreed, along with the precise deployment of Israeli troops in Gaza. His remarks corresponded with comments by the Israeli diaspora minister, Amichai Chikli, who said both issues were still being negotiated. Nonetheless, he said, the sides were far closer to reaching agreement than they have been for months.
Hamas Has Given Signs of Life for a Few Hostages, Israeli Official Says, As Talks Go On, The Times of Israel
As working groups continued their efforts in Qatar to hammer out a hostage and ceasefire deal in the Gaza Strip, an Israeli official told The Times of Israel on Sunday that Hamas has provided signs of life for several captives. Israel knows the whereabouts of most of the hostages, the official said, declining to say whether the Palestinian terror group has provided a list of living hostages it is holding.
North Gaza Hospital Under ‘Unprecedented’ Attack, Health Officials Say, The Washington Post
Hospital Director Hussam Abu Safiya said in a video message Saturday night that the facility was being hit by shelling, sniper fire and drones, while Gaza’s Health Ministry said on Telegram that the facility was under fire from tanks and explosives.
Israeli Airstrikes on Gaza Kill at Least 20 People, Palestinian Medics Say, AP
One of the strikes hit a tent camp in the Muwasi area, an Israel-declared humanitarian zone, killing eight people, including two children, according to Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis, which received the bodies.
Netanyahu’s Defense’s Plan to Exhaust the Judges Is Working, Haaretz
The prime minister’s legal team has successfully stretched the proceedings, forcing an irregular hearing to examine key questions about Netanyahu’s awareness of alleged bribery in media coverage demands.
Treasury Officials Warn Ultra-Orthodox Draft Exemption Law Will Cost Israel Dearly, The Times of Israel
Treasury officials have formally come out against a proposed bill championed by the government regulating ultra-Orthodox military draft exemptions, saying it would “result in far-reaching negative economic effects” for the country, according to a position paper obtained by The Times of Israel.
‘We Want Them to Feel Vulnerable’: Mossad Agents Detail Explosive Hezbollah Pagers Plot, Haaretz
The Mossad further created fake advertisements for pagers, sold through a Taiwanese company called Gold Apollo which had “zero clue” it was selling the Mossad-manufactured pagers through a Mossad-manufactured Hungarian shell company.
Under Biden, a Generational Shift in US Views of Israel, The Washington Post
Yasmeen Abutaleb writes, “Almost overnight, Gaza had become a defining cause for progressives, who viewed the Palestinians as a marginalized group and Israel as a colonial power, a stark reversal from its onetime image among many Americans as the rebirth of a persecuted people. And even as many Jewish leaders stood by Israel, others increasingly spoke out against Netanyahu’s government, from liberal rabbis to politicians like Sanders and Schumer.”
Trump and Biden, Make the Hostages Your Priority, The New York Times
Keren Munder shares, “President Biden, throughout this past year you have supported the families of the hostages. You met with us and worked to secure a deal that would end this nightmare. We heard messages from you and the national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, over the radio when we were in Gaza. As you enter your final weeks in office, I stand with the families of all 96 hostages in urging you: Please don’t give up on them.”
‘When You Leave Israel and Enter Gaza, You Are God’: Inside the Minds of IDF Soldiers Who Commit War Crimes, Haaretz
Yoel Elizur, mental health officer in reserve, writes, “It is difficult to face the violence of callous soldiers and the brutalization of ordinary soldiers. Therefore, I am not reassured when my grandson says: ‘Don’t worry, Grandpa, I will refuse an illegal order.’ I want to protect him and all others who are risking their body and mind when they serve in the IDF. I want them to know how difficult it is to stand up to a callous commander and to resist peer pressure encouraging brutality. I want them to know about the slippery slope of brutalization and get educated about the moral dilemmas they will face during wartime.”