In Middle East, Trump Marginalizes Israel Without Helping Gaza, The Washington Post
“‘For Netanyahu, who used to have his settler allies drive policy in Trump’s first term, Trump 2.0 must present a shock,’ Ilan Goldenberg, senior vice president and chief policy officer at J Street, a liberal pro-Israel organization in Washington, wrote in an email memo. ‘As for Trump, his friends in the Gulf are showering him with deals and wins – when he looks at Benjamin Netanyahu’s and [far-right leader] Itamar Ben Gvir’s Israel he sees only headaches.’”
11 Experts on What Might End the Gaza War, JTA
Jeremy Ben-Ami said, “This week’s freeing of Edan Alexander from Hamas captivity demonstrates that diplomacy is the only path forward to end the war and guarantee the safe release of all remaining hostages held in Gaza. The Israeli government and Hamas should reach an immediate agreement to end the fighting, release the hostages and surge aid into Gaza. Then, Israel needs to agree to a plan for post-war governance, security and redevelopment with its Arab neighbors that paves the way to full regional normalization, long-term security and Palestinian statehood.”
A Moral and Strategic Tragedy for Israel, J Street
“As Jews and as Americans, we know there can be no moral or strategic justification for blocking humanitarian supplies from millions of desperate civilians. Our people’s history and our values compel us to speak out. This cannot be what the Jewish State comes to stand for in the 21st century.”
Israeli Strikes Kill More Than 100 in Gaza, Officials Say, As Trump Wraps Up Middle East Tour, NBC News
“Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip have killed an estimated 250 people in the last 36 hours, according to local health officials, as President Donald Trump tours the Middle East with few remarks on Israel’s intensifying war on the enclave. The US would no longer give ‘lectures on how to live’ to the Middle East, Trump said, as he focused instead on speeches about American glory, luxury jets and handshakes with billionaires.”
Witkoff Told Mediators US Not Planning to Force Israel to End Gaza War, Officials Say, The Times of Israel
“Since hostage talks between Israel and Hamas resumed in Doha on Wednesday, US special envoy to the Mideast Steve Witkoff has told other mediators that Washington doesn’t plan to force Israel to end the war in Gaza amid Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s staunch refusal to do so, two Arab officials told The Times of Israel on Thursday.”
Once Outliers, Now Indistinguishable: How Netanyahu Brought Kahanist Politics Into Israel’s Mainstream, Haaretz
“Otzma Yehudit, headed by Itamar Ben-Gvir, is an ideological heir to Meir Kahane’s outlawed Kach movement, once shunned across the political spectrum, has seen its views increasingly legitimized in public discourse. By 2025, the differences between the two parties have become difficult to identify – from shared candidates and extreme rhetoric to joint support for racist legislation. […] Netanyahu’s leadership has accelerated this radicalization by prioritizing personal loyalty over ideological moderation.”
Hamas Celebrates Shooting That Killed Israeli Mother en Route to Deliver Baby, The New York Times
“The baby boy survived after being delivered in an emergency cesarean section, Israeli health officials said, and remained in ‘serious but stable’ condition. No Palestinian militant group took responsibility for the attack, but a Hamas spokesman praised the shooting in a statement.”
No Progress in Gaza Cease-fire Talks, Israeli Source Says, Haaretz
“Despite Israel’s intensified military pressure, including an apparent assassination attempt on senior Hamas figure Mohammed Sinwar, Hamas has not softened its stance or agreed to the so-called Witkoff plan, the only proposal currently accepted by Israel. Meanwhile, an Israeli source told Haaretz that operations in Gaza are expanding, including ‘preparatory strikes.’”
US ‘Troubled’ by Humanitarian Situation in Gaza, Rubio Tells BBC, BBC
“Asked by the BBC if the Trump Administration remained fully behind the nature of Israel’s military action given the scale of the recent Israeli attacks and its bombing of hospitals, he once again called on Hamas to surrender and release hostages and said there could be no peace so long as the group exists.”
Syrians Rejoice After Trump Pledge to Lift Crippling Sanctions, The Washington Post
“Within an hour of Trump’s surprise announcement in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the exchange rate of the Syrian pound against the dollar had tumbled. ‘It was 10,000, now it’s 9,000,’ a street seller in the capital’s Bab Touma district called out at passing cars; many honked back in delight. By midnight, it was even lower. There were fireworks over Damascus, and people danced in the street.”
Gazans Once Escaped To Rafah. Now Israel Is Razing It, The New York Times
Samuel Granados, Aric Toler and Aaron Boxerman write, “Last year, a million Palestinians fled to Rafah, the southernmost city in the Gaza Strip, to escape the brunt of Israel’s bombardment in its war against Hamas. When Israeli forces later invaded Rafah itself, they flattened areas along the border with Egypt, but many neighborhoods were largely spared the worst of the war. That is no longer the case. […] Satellite images analyzed by The New York Times show that the Israeli military has flattened large areas in and around the city of Rafah and built new military infrastructure in the last two months.”
Does the Israeli Army Chief Truly Believe Hamas Can Be Defeated Solely Through Military Means?, Haaretz
Omer Bar-Lev, former Minister of Public Security, writes, “No enemy – especially Hamas – can be defeated solely through military means aimed at ending the war. The messianists leading Israel’s government seem invested in an unending, apocalyptic war. But what about the Chief of Staff, whose job is to assess, professionally and operationally, the feasibility of destroying Hamas? I am asking you, Eyal Zamir. Is it reasonable to believe that what was unattainable for the previous Chief of Staff and for all the brigade commanders who fought bravely in Gaza is suddenly within reach for Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir? After all, the government is the same.”
The War Against DEI and Us, New Jersey Jewish News
J Street leader Mark Lurinsky writes, “In declaring a national culture war against diversity, equity, and inclusion, the Trump Administration has turned US life upside down, and in doing so, turned the lives of Jewish Americans into chaos. Trump’s drive to remove funding from the US Department of Education and then abolish it threatens the continuation of its office for civil rights, the very body that has been the main vehicle to investigate and resolve complaints about antisemitism on college campuses.”