J Street works to promote an open, honest and rigorous conversation about Israel. The opinions reflected in articles posted in the News Roundup do not necessarily reflect J Street’s positions, and their posting does not constitute an endorsement from J Street.
J Street Horrified By Recent Terror Attacks Against Israelis, J Street
“J Street is horrified by today’s terror attack in Bnei Brak, in which a Palestinian gunman from the West Bank killed five Israelis and wounded several more. This attack follows a number of other recent acts of terror, including the shooting of two Israeli border policemen on Sunday in the city of Hadera, and a knife attack last week in Beersheva that left four Israelis dead and two wounded. The two previous attacks are now thought to have been committed by Arab citizens of Israel who supported the Islamic State.”
Palestinian Gunman Kills 5 in Israel’s Fifth Attack in Recent Days, The New York Times
A Palestinian gunman killed at least four people in an ultra-Orthodox neighborhood outside of Tel Aviv on Tuesday night, the latest in a surge of attacks in Israel this month. The shooting was the fifth attack in less than two weeks, and heightened fears of a wave of violence over the next month, when the rare convergence of Ramadan, Passover and Easter is expected to raises tensions further between Israelis and Palestinians.
Israel Defense Chief, Jordan’s King Discuss Ramadan Calm, The Washington Post
Israel’s defense minister met with Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Amman on Tuesday in what both sides said was an effort to maintain calm in Jerusalem ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Defense Minister Benny Gantz’s meeting with Abdullah was his second this year, and is part of a broader effort by the new Israeli government to cultivate closer relations with its neighbor after years of neglect.
Former U.S. Envoy to Israel Quits Biden’s Iran Team Amid Criticism Over Nuke Talks, Haaretz
Dan Shapiro, who served as U.S. ambassador to Israel under the Obama administration, has departed the Biden administration’s team on Iran after seven months as a special government employee and part-time senior adviser. Shapiro tweeted on Tuesday that he “joined the State Department last August for a 6-month consultancy because I supported the Biden Administration’s policy on ensuring Iran never possesses a nuclear weapon. I still support it today as I embrace a great new opportunity.”
Israel Reportedly Working on Air Defense Pact With Regional Allies, The Times of Israel
Israel and its regional allies are working on developing a joint defense system to protect against the threat of Iranian drones and missiles, according to Tuesday reports. Jerusalem may soon sign the prospective alliance with its Middle East partners, and the countries have also recently developed joint systems for detecting missile and drone threats, Hebrew media reported, following an off-record briefing with Israeli Air Force officials.
Israeli Cities Halt Some Work That Relies on Arab Labor, Hate Crimes Reported After Terror Attack, Haaretz
A number of municipalities in Israel ordered the construction and gardening work at its schools – work largely undertaken by Arab and West Bank Palestinian laborers – be suspended, in light of the terror attack in Bnei Brak Tuesday that left five people dead.
Senate Committee Advances Deborah Lipstadt as Antisemitism Monitor, JTA
Two Republicans joined the Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in approving Holocaust scholar Deborah Lipstadt to be the State Department’s next antisemitism monitor on Tuesday, paving the way for her likely confirmation by the full Senate.
AIPAC’s Insurrectionists for Israel, +972 Mag
Mitchell Plitnick argues, “The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) has long prided itself on being a “single issue” organization. Now, however, it is making it clear to what extent it will go to advance that issue: by dismissing violent antisemitism, racism, and even the promotion of the overthrow of the U.S. government, so long as they are packaged alongside unconditional support of Israeli policies.”
Normalization Won’t Make Palestinians Disappear, Haaretz
Noa Landau notes, “The enhanced normalization between Arab countries and Israel doesn’t mean we can now ignore the Palestinians, but rather, that the burden of finding a solution now weighs on us more than ever.