Progressive US Jewish Organizations Oppose Controversial Antisemitism Bill, The Times of Israel
“We are witnessing the co-opting of the fight against antisemitism to pursue unrelated, authoritarian goals by the Trump administration, and the so-called Antisemitism Awareness Act will give them another tool,” said Jeremy Ben-Ami, J Street’s president, in a press release. “Antisemitism is a serious problem and addressing it requires a multi-faceted strategy, but this legislation combined with the current administration’s actions aren’t making Jewish Americans any safer.”
Israel Redraws Gaza Map, Limiting Palestinians to a Third of the Enclave, The Washington Post
“In the six weeks since Israel resumed its war in Gaza, Israeli forces have dramatically altered its map, declaring about 70 percent of the enclave either a military ‘red zone’ or under evacuation, according to the United Nations, and pushing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians into ever-shrinking pockets. […] Israeli officials have signaled they do not intend to relinquish this territory. These areas, where the military has deployed, are considered ‘no-go zones’ and Palestinians risk being shot if they approach.”
The U.S. Backs Israel’s Ban on the U.N.’s Palestinian Aid Agency at the World Court, NPR
“The United States told the International Court of Justice Wednesday that Israel must provide aid to Gaza, but the country does not have to work with the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees. ‘In sum, there is no legal requirement that an occupying power permit a specific third state or international organization to conduct activity in occupied territory that would compromise its security interests,’ Josh Simmons, a legal advisor from the State Department, told The Hague-based court.”
Israeli Reservists Speak Out Against Gaza War As Pressure on Netanyahu Grows, BBC
“In recent weeks, thousands of Israeli reservists – from all branches of the military – have signed letters demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government stop the fighting and concentrate instead on reaching a deal to bring back the remaining 59 hostages being held by Hamas. […] ‘We came to the conclusion that Israel is going to a very bad place,’ Danny Yatom, a former head of the spy agency Mossad told me.”
Israel Scrambles to Extinguish Wildfires Near Jerusalem for 2nd Day, The New York Times
“Firefighters battled wildfires on the outskirts of Jerusalem for a second consecutive day, hoping to extinguish some of the worst blazes in the country in recent years before an expected uptick in winds later on Thursday. […] The exact cause of the fires was unclear, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel said that 18 people had been detained on suspicion of arson, including one who he said was caught in the act. […] The Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has also offered to help, according to Hussein al-Sheikh, a senior Palestinian official. But Ms. Volovitch suggested they would not be joining the firefighting efforts.”
A Palestinian Student at Columbia Is Freed After His Arrest at a Citizenship Interview, AP
“Immigration authorities have arrested and detained college students from around the country since the first days of the Trump administration, many of whom participated in campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war, which has killed more than 52,000 Palestinians. Mohsen Mahdawi is among the first of those students to win his freedom after challenging an arrest. He walked out of a Vermont courthouse Wednesday.”
Hostages Families Forum Says PM’s Stance Is Against That of Most Israelis, The Times of Israel
“After Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that ‘victory’ was a more important goal than returning the hostages, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum reacts in fury. ‘Prime minister, returning the hostages is not ‘less important,’ it is the supreme goal that should guide the Israeli government,’ the group says in a statement. The organization says it is alarmed that Netanyahu appears to be aligning himself with far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, ‘in opposition to the overwhelming majority of the Israeli public who want the return of the hostages above all else.’”
The Palestinians and Jews in Jerusalem Insisting on Remaining Friends During Wartime, Haaretz
“There is a large range of locations where Jews and Arabs meet in the city. At the Hebrew University, the Middle Meets initiative began during the war, bringing together Israeli and Palestinian students. ‘Academia has become a place where it’s impossible to talk and here we’re creating a space for talking,’ explained the project’s founder, Prof. Elitzur Bar Asher Siegal. ‘The idea is to hold a series of meetings, each time about a different topic – genocide, colonialism, collective memory. Sometimes they yell at each other, but they have become close friends.’”
I Am Hostage Itay Chen’s Father. This Israeli Independence Day Is the Hardest of My Life, Haaretz
Ruby Chen, parent of Itay Chen, an American-Israeli citizen held in Gaza by Hamas writes: “This challenging week, our pain and the pain of all hostages’ and bereaved families is not ours alone. This week’s pain, for those who joined the circle of mourning over the last year, is not just my pain or my family’s pain alone. It is a national pain. It is the pain felt by anyone who understands what stands at the heart of the Jewish nation, what leadership is, what responsibility is. The Israeli government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has once again proved that they lack these attributes.”