J Street Statement Following Israeli Attack on Iran, J Street
“We are deeply concerned about the damage and devastation a cycle of retaliation and escalation could cause in the coming days and weeks, not to mention the long-term incentive this action may provide to Iran to double down much more aggressively and pursue a nuclear weapon.”
Diplomacy – Not War – Remains the Way to Address the Threat of a Nuclear Iran, Substack
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami writes, “In the days and months ahead, there’s a good chance that Iran weathers these strikes, continues to retaliate with serious cost to Israel, and then sets about reconstituting its nuclear program in ever more deeply buried and secure locales. In a matter of months or years, it will likely restart enrichment, possibly with intent it had not previously demonstrated to weaponize – and without any monitoring from international inspectors.”
[Briefing] Israel Attacks Iran, J Street
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami was joined by J Street Chief of Policy, Ilan Goldenberg – who has spent much of his public service career focused on diplomacy with Iran – along with J Street Policy Fellows Jen Gavito and Frank Lowenstein, and Kelsey Davenport, Director for Nonproliferation Policy at the Arms Control Association, to discuss the implications of Israel’s strikes on Iran, the Iranian response and what comes next.
CBC Speaks to the Former Iran Team Chief at the U.S Department of Defence, CBC
Ilan Goldenberg, J Street Senior Vice President and Chief Policy Officer, and former Iran Team Chief at the US Department of Defense, shares his analysis of Israel’s attack and Iranian retaliation.
Israel Hits More Iranian Military Targets, Iran Retaliates on Fourth Day of Conflict, NPR
“Iran’s Health Ministry says more than 200 people have been killed since the start of Israel’s offensive, including many women and children, and more than 1,000 people have been injured. At least 24 people have been killed by Iran’s retaliatory strikes against Israel, and nearly 600 injured.”
Israeli Fire and Strikes Kill 41 Across Gaza Strip, Medics Say, Haaretz
“Israeli gunfire and airstrikes killed at least 41 Palestinians across Gaza on Sunday, local health authorities said, five of them near two aid sites operated by the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).”
US Aids in Israel’s Defense, as Trump and Tehran Exchange Threats, The Forward
“From the get-go, the Trump administration sought to frame Israel’s strikes Thursday as a unilateral step, with no direct U.S. involvement — and has reportedly warned Iran not to attack U.S. forces, while also calling for a return to negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program that President Trump says could end the fighting.”
Trump Vetoed Israeli Plan to Kill Iran’s Supreme Leader, US Official Tells AP, AP
“President Donald Trump rejected a plan presented by Israel to the U.S. to kill Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter.”
Iranian Strikes Expose Bomb Shelter Shortage for Palestinian Towns Inside Israel, CNN
“Only 40% of Tamra’s 37,000 residents have either a safe room or a functioning shelter, the town’s mayor Musa Abu Rumi told CNN. And there are no bunkers or public shelters which are otherwise ubiquitous across most Israeli towns and cities.”
Netanyahu Is Counting on Trump to Finish What Israel Started in Iran, Haaretz
Amir Tibon writes, “Israel’s strategy seems to rely on the belief that Trump will agree to join the war and send American B-52 bombers to Iran, specifically to the underground Fordow nuclear site. As one of Iran’s two uranium enrichment facilities, Fordow was built deep inside a mountain to provide subterranean protection to the subterfuges.”
No War With Iran Will Erase Israel’s Crimes in Gaza. Don’t Get Distracted, Haaretz
Israeli human rights lawyer Michael Sfard writes, “There is now a great risk that the government will fully press the criminal pedal in Gaza. That while all eyes are on the war between Mideast’s only nuclear power (according to foreign sources) and its second most populous country, Israel will race to realize the Smotrich/Ben-Gvir fantasy of obliterating what remains of Palestinian Gaza.”