[Video] Live on Substack with Brad Lander and Trump-Bibi Analysis, J Street
On Wednesday, Brad Lander – New York City’s Comptroller, long-time friend of J Street and ally of Zohran Mamdani – joined J Street president Jeremy Ben-Ami and J Street Chief Policy Officer Ilan Goldenberg to discuss the complexities of holding nuanced and compassionate conversations about Israel-Palestine and sustaining alliances between the progressive and Jewish communities.
Sixteen Gazans, Including 10 Children, Killed by IDF While Waiting for Aid, Medics Say, Haaretz
“Medical sources in the Gaza Strip reported that 16 Palestinians were killed, including ten children and three women, while waiting in line to receive nutritional supplements for children in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza on Thursday.”
Hamas Agrees to Release 10 Hostages as Part of Gaza Ceasefire Talks, NBC
“Hamas said it would release 10 hostages held in Gaza in a bid to reach a ceasefire deal to end 21 months of war in the Palestinian enclave, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu conducted high-level talks in Washington.”
Israel Insists on Keeping Troops in Gaza. That Complicates Truce Talks With Hamas, AP
“As Israel and Hamas move closer to a ceasefire agreement, Israel says it wants to maintain troops in a southern corridor of the Gaza Strip — a condition that could derail the talks. An Israeli official said an outstanding issue in the negotiations was Israel’s desire to keep forces in the territory during a 60-day truce.”
Senior Israeli Official: Our Intel Shows Iran Had Not Removed Enriched Uranium From Sites Targeted by US and Israel, The Times of Israel
“A senior Israeli official says Israeli intelligence shows that Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium was not removed from the three nuclear sites at Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan before they were struck by the US last month amid Israel’s 12-day war with Iran, and has not been moved since.”
Israel Launches New Ground Incursion in Lebanon, Raising Fears for Truce, The New York Times
“Israel announced on Wednesday its first ground incursions in months into parts of southern Lebanon, an escalation aimed at further weakening Hezbollah as the Iran-backed militant group faces mounting pressure to disarm and avoid another potentially devastating war.”
DHS Used Anonymous Pro-Israel Site to Target Activists for Deportation, Agency Says in Court, NBC
“During day three of the proceedings in Boston, Peter Hatch, a senior DHS investigations official, said most of the names of student protesters who were flagged to the agency for analysis came from Canary Mission. The anonymous group has published a detailed database of students, professors and others who it says have shared anti-Israel and antisemitic viewpoints.”
Loving Israel Means Calling to End the War in Gaza, Substack
Esther Sperber writes, “I wanted to share again an Op Ed I had written in January when I felt that American Jews could no longer stay silent. Those who love and care for Israel and its future must demand an end to the war, the return of all the hostages and an emergency humanitarian plan to address the horrific situation in which for the people of Gaza are in. There are many reasons to call for an end to the war – any one of them would be sufficient!”
The War on Gaza’s Children, The New Yorker
Isaac Chotiner interviews James Elder, UNICEF’s global spokesperson, and discusses “the wounded children he spoke to in Gaza, the risks people are now willing to take in order to find food, and how parents are trying to cope with unimaginable loss.”
‘Like a Video Game’: Israel Enforcing Gaza Evacuations With Grenade-Firing Drones, +972
Yuval Abraham writes, “Soldiers testified that these drone strikes are often carried out against anyone entering an area the army has determined is off-limits to Palestinians […] ‘There were many incidents of dropping grenades from drones,’ said H., a soldier who served in the Nuseirat area in central Gaza. ‘Were they aimed at armed militants? Definitely not. Once a commander defines an imaginary red line that no one is allowed to cross, anyone who does is marked for death,’ even just for ‘walking in the street.’”