Answering Ezra Klein’s Challenge: Can Zionism and Liberalism Be Reconciled?, Substack
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami writes, “Jews all over the world – in Israel, the US and globally – will determine whether liberalism and Zionism are ultimately reconcilable. It’s on us to ensure that Bibi-ism, Ben Gvir-ism and Smotrich-ism do not define Zionism or – god forbid – 21st century Jewish identity.”
Israel Begins Daily Pause in Fighting in 3 Gaza Areas to Allow Entry of ‘Minimal’ Aid, PBS
“The Israeli military on Sunday began a limited pause in fighting in three populated areas of Gaza for 10 hours a day, part of measures including airdrops as concerns grow over surging hunger and as Israel faces international criticism over its conduct in the 21-month war. […] ‘Whichever path we choose, we will have to continue to allow the entry of minimal humanitarian supplies,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.’”
No Proof Hamas Routinely Stole U.N. Aid, Israeli Military Officials Say, The New York Times
“For nearly two years, Israel has accused Hamas of stealing aid provided by the United Nations and other international organizations. The government has used that claim as its main rationale for restricting food from entering Gaza. But the Israeli military never found proof that the Palestinian militant group had systematically stolen aid from the United Nations, the biggest supplier of emergency assistance to Gaza for most of the war, according to two senior Israeli military officials and two other Israelis involved in the matter.”
Israeli Strikes Kill at Least 36 People in Gaza, Officials Say, as Some Aid Restrictions Are Eased, AP
“Israeli strikes killed at least 36 Palestinians in multiple locations across Gaza on Monday, local health officials said, a day after Israel eased aid restrictions in the face of a worsening humanitarian crisis in the territory. The dead included a newborn who was delivered in a complex surgery after his mother, who was seven months pregnant, was killed in a strike, according to the Nasser Hospital.”
Houthis Say They’ll Target All Ships Linked to Firms Dealing With Israeli Ports, The Times of Israel
“Yemen’s Houthi terror group said on Sunday it would target any ships belonging to companies that do business with Israeli ports, regardless of their nationalities, as part of what it called the fourth phase of its military operations against Israel.”
US Will Skip UN Conference on 2-State Solution for Israel, Palestine, The Hill
“The U.S. will skip the upcoming United Nations conference aimed at bolstering efforts to reach a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestine slated for next week, according to the State Department. […] The conference is co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and France. Summit participants will work to outline a framework for a Palestinian state.”
In a First, Leading Israeli Rights Groups Accuse Israel of Gaza Genocide, The New York Times
“Two of Israel’s best-known human rights groups said Monday that Israel was committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, adding fuel to a passionately fought international debate over whether the death and destruction there have crossed a moral red line. The two groups were B’Tselem, a rights monitor that documents the effects of Israeli policies on Palestinians, and Physicians for Human Rights — Israel.”
Trump: Israel Will ‘Have to Make Decision’ on Gaza War, Images of Starvation ‘Terrible’, The Times of Israel
“Trump, who is on a four-day visit to Scotland, was asked by a reporter about the images that have been coming out of Gaza of starving children, which he said he thought were ‘terrible.’ But he promptly pivoted to say, ‘They’re stealing the food,’ without specifying who he was talking about, although he was likely alluding to Hamas, which Israel has regularly accused of stealing aid for its own benefit.”
‘Revenge Is Not a Policy’: Israelis Voice Dissent Against the War in Gaza, The New York Times
“A growing number of Israelis are speaking out against what they describe as atrocities carried out in their name in the Palestinian enclave. Israeli protesters are holding aloft portraits of Palestinian children killed in Gaza. Academics and authors, politicians and retired military leaders are accusing the Israeli government of indiscriminate killing and war crimes.”
Israel’s Conscription Crisis – The Debate Over the Ultra-Orthodox Draft Law, J Street Policy Center
J Street Policy Fellow Yael Patir writes, “Last week, Israel’s ultra-Orthodox parties withdrew from Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government, triggering a deep coalition crisis. UTJ pulled its ministers and Knesset members in protest of the government’s failure to pass a law protecting yeshiva students. The crisis escalated when Shas followed suit just days later, with its ministers also resigning from the government, but not the coalition. Their departure left Netanyahu’s coalition with only 50 of 120 members in the Knesset – far short of a governing majority.”
When the Police Serve Politics, Not the Public, Haaretz
The Haaretz Editorial Board writes, “The police are brutal in dealing with demonstrations opposed to the position of the minister in charge of them and the government he serves in, but when it comes to demonstrations by people affiliated with the boss’ electoral base, they turn a blind eye.”
The Dam of Gaza Genocide Denial Has Broken, New Lines Magazine
Martin Shaw writes, “To me, as someone who studies genocide, Hamas had committed ‘genocidal massacres,’ killings which, because of the group’s capabilities, were necessarily localized and limited. But Israel, a powerful state backed by the most powerful state in the world, was carrying out genocide on a vastly greater scale, with no end in sight. Its leaders clearly proclaimed their intention to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza, not just Hamas, and the pattern of conduct of Israeli forces — including mass displacement and the deliberate destruction of the infrastructure of life as well as killing and wounding — also indicated this intention, the very essence of genocide.”