J Street Mourns, Honors Lives of Judith Weinstein-Haggai and Gadi Haggai, Urges Ceasefire to Free Remaining Hostages, J Street
J Street Vice President and Chief of Staff Adina Vogel-Ayalon said, “We stand with the family of Judi and Gadi, who said today, ‘Our hearts will not be whole until all hostages return.’ There are still 56 hostages in Hamas captivity in Gaza, and each and every one’s family is enduring unbearable grief as they fight tirelessly to embrace their children or give their loved ones a proper burial. There is one way to end the suffering and bring the hostages home: A ceasefire and hostage release deal that ends the war.”
J Street Rejects Trump Administration’s Travel Ban 2.0 and Ongoing Efforts to Demonize Immigrants, J Street
J Street Director of Government Affairs Hannah Morris said, “Following two extremely painful weeks for the Jewish community, it is also infuriating and hurtful that President Trump is once again seeking to use antisemitism as a pretext to pursue this longstanding illiberal, anti-immigrant agenda. […] In the face of this administration’s xenophobic and exclusionary vision of the United States, our community is determined to continue to fight for a strong, pluralistic, inclusive country worthy of the values that have defined our nation at its best.”
Videos Show Chaos Around Israeli-Backed Gaza Food Sites, The New York Times
“Near one aid site, almost 50 people were killed in two large-scale shootings within the space of just three days, according to health officials in Gaza. In both cases, the Israeli military said its soldiers had opened fire nearby. While very few videos captured the violence itself, an analysis of videos and satellite imagery by The New York Times showed the chaos that preceded as desperate Gazans sought aid. In one video, taken at the crack of dawn as one site opened, Palestinians can be seen racing for food boxes before they run out.”
America and Israel Follow the Same Old Script, Foreign Affairs
Aluf Benn writes, “Where Israel has gotten carte blanche from Washington is with regard to the Palestinians. No US president, not even the most liberal of them, has forced Israel to stop building settlements or to end its occupation of the Palestinian territories. And here, Trump is in keeping both with his first term and with decades of US policy. Trump is allowing Netanyahu to prosecute the war in Gaza with American consent. He has only occasionally put pressure on Israel to let in aid.”
US Hits International Criminal Court Judges with Sanctions Over Investigation into Israel, AP
“The Trump administration is slapping sanctions on four judges at the International Criminal Court over the tribunal’s investigation into alleged war crimes by Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza and in the West Bank. The State Department said Thursday that it would freeze any assets that the ICC judges, who come from Benin, Peru, Slovenia and Uganda, have in US jurisdictions. The move is just the latest step that the administration has taken to punish the ICC and its officials for investigations undertaken against Israel and the United States.”
‘Dear Girl, Get Out!’: A Young Palestinian Escapes an Israeli Strike [Video], The New York Times
“Video of a child escaping a burning building after an Israeli airstrike garnered widespread attention online. [New York Times reporters] found her in a hospital in Gaza and pieced together what had happened.”
16 Palestinians Killed in Israeli Strikes on Gaza, Health Officials Say, Reuters
“Witnesses and medics told Reuters that Israeli planes and tanks had intensified strikes on Jabalia and nearby Beit Hanoun since the early hours. […] The US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation told Reuters by email it had delivered aid on Friday, despite earlier announcing on its official Facebook page that its distribution sites were closed until further notice and that people should stay away from the sites ‘for their safety’ after a series of deadly shootings.”
Israel Assured US it Won’t Strike Iran Unless Talks Fail, Axios
“‘We calmed the Americans and told them there is no logic in launching an attack if a good diplomatic solution can be found. This is why we are going to give it a chance and wait with any military action until it is clear that negotiations were exhausted and [White House envoy] Steve Witkoff has given up,’ a second Israeli official said.”
Israel Strikes Southern Beirut on Eve of Religious Holiday, BBC
“The attack on Thursday night, the eve of Eid Al Adha, one of the most important celebrations in Islam, followed evacuation warnings for several buildings in the area, where Hezbollah is based in the capital. There were no initial reports of injuries.”
Netanyahu Says Israel has ‘Activated’ Some Palestinian Clans Opposed to Hamas, AP
“[Netanyahu’s] comments on social media were the first public acknowledgment of Israel’s backing of armed Palestinian groups within Gaza, based around powerful clans or extended families. Such clans often wield some control in corners of Gaza, and some have had clashes or tensions with Hamas in the past. Palestinians and aid workers have accused clans of carrying out criminal attacks and stealing aid from trucks.”
A Leaked Tape Revealed Netanyahu’s True Wartime Priorities, Haaretz
Amos Harel writes, “In a tape released on Israel’s Channel 13 News, Netanyahu told a senior ultra-Orthodox rabbi that he fired former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and pushed for the resignation of the IDF Chief of Staff Herzl Halevi, just because they were an obstacle in ratifying a draft dodging bill which would exempt ultra-Orthodox youth from serving in the IDF. Not because he viewed the two as responsible for the scandals of October 7, or because they were preventing him from total victory and the dismantling of Hamas, but rather so that he could pass the bill that is currently endangering his coalition.”
Don’t Be Grateful Two Hostages’ Bodies Were Recovered. Be Furious, The Forward
Dan Perry writes, “Israel failed the couple in its inept response to the attack that killed them; in the inexcusable security failures that led to that attack taking place in the first place; and by refusing to take actions that would have helped their loved ones be able to mourn their deaths long ago. Instead, as the war in Gaza dragged on, and the government appeared to deprioritize the cause of returning the hostages, those who loved Judi and Gadi were left in limbo – by an enemy without a heart, and a government without a soul.”
Amid Gaza Outrage, Europe Reaches a Turning Point on Israel, The Washington Post
Ishaan Tharoor writes, “The French president is pushing to revitalize the long-moribund project of a ‘two-state solution’ – the goal of separate Israeli and Palestinian states that has been effectively abandoned by President Donald Trump and Republicans and has little support among Israelis. France is planning on co-chairing a conference with Saudi Arabia later this month on the future of Gaza that aims to help restore the process toward the two-state solution. There are indications that Macron may use the moment to formally recognize a Palestinian state, a symbolic gesture already made by several other countries in a bid to put diplomatic pressure on Israel.”