J Street Calls on Congress to Join in Pressing for Biden Administration Action on Israel-Palestine in Remaining Months, J Street
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami said, “President Biden remains Commander in Chief and has tremendous international influence. There are real steps he can take right now to set precedents for future US policy and to strengthen the international community’s response to multiple ongoing crises in Israel-Palestine and the broader region. Steps taken today will have a real impact months and years from now.”
Where We Go From Here [Video], J Street
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami sat down with pollster and public opinion expert Jim Gerstein to discuss the results of J Street’s poll of Jewish voters, share an overview of the impact we made through JStreetPAC this cycle, present our upcoming legislative and transition agenda and outline the role of our movement in the time ahead.
Why American Jews Didn’t Join the Trump Wave, Haaretz
Dov Waxman reports, “The most important issues for Jewish voters, regardless of their age, were the future of democracy and abortion rights in the United States (in J Street’s survey, 53 percent cited democracy and 38 percent abortion). Though they certainly care about Israel, especially since 10/7, most American Jews still prioritize domestic issues when voting. And on these issues, their policy preferences continue to align with the positions of the Democratic Party.”
Aid Groups Say Israel Misses US Deadline To Boost Humanitarian Help for Gaza, AP
The Biden administration last month called on Israel to “surge” more food and other emergency aid into the Palestinian territory, giving it a 30-day deadline that expires Tuesday. The administration warned that failure to comply could trigger U.S. laws requiring it to scale back military support as Israel wages offensives against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Biden To Host Israel’s President at the White House Amid Peace Push, ABC News
President Joe Biden will host Israeli President Isaac Herzog at the White House on Tuesday as the outgoing administration seeks cease-fire progress in Gaza and Lebanon before President-elect Donald Trump takes power in January.
Eyeing Trump Support, Israeli Minister Pushes for West Bank Settlement Annexation, CNN
The Prime Minister’s Office is yet to comment on Smotrich’s order. However, earlier Monday, Gideon Sa’ar, Israel’s new foreign minister, told a press briefing that the government had made no decision on the issue of annexation as yet, but noted it had been discussed during Donald Trump’s first term as US president and added that “if it will be relevant it will be discussed again with our friends in Washington.”
Israeli Strikes Set Off Explosions in Beirut Suburbs and Kill 14 Palestinians in Gaza, Medics Say, AP
Israeli airstrikes hit a cafeteria and a home in Gaza, killing at least 14 people, medical officials said. In Lebanon, warplanes struck the capital Beirut’s southern suburbs on Tuesday after the military ordered a number of houses there to evacuate.
Israeli Strikes Kill 37 As Attacks Intensify in Central and Southern Gaza, Medics Say, Reuters
Israeli forces sent tanks into the western side of Gaza’s Nuseirat camp on Monday in a new incursion into the enclave’s central area, and Palestinian medics said Israeli military strikes had killed at least 30 people since Sunday night.
Trump and Netanyahu Envoy Met About Middle East Wars, Axios
An Israeli official said the meeting was aimed at passing messages from Netanyahu to Trump and briefing the President-elect on Israel’s plans in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran for the next two months before Trump takes office.
President-elect Trump Taps Pro-Israel Conspiracy Theorist Rep. Elise Stefanik for U.S. Ambassador to UN, Haaretz
She was also among the House Republicans who refused to certify the results of the 2020 election, and has propagated antisemitic conspiracy theories related to population control that have been cited by white supremacists committing significant hate crimes.
Saudi Crown Prince Accuses Israel of Committing ‘Collective Genocide’ in Gaza, CNN
During a gathering of leaders of Islamic nations hosted by Saudi Arabia in Riyadh on Monday, the country’s de facto leader said: “The Kingdom reiterates its condemnation and absolute refusal of the collective genocide committed by Israel against the brotherly Palestinian people.”
Israeli Airstrikes Pound Beirut Suburb, No Sign of Ceasefire, Reuters
The Israeli military pounded Beirut’s southern suburbs with airstrikes on Tuesday, mounting one of its heaviest daytime attacks yet on the Hezbollah-controlled area after the defence minister ruled out a ceasefire until Israeli goals were met.
If Israel Doesn’t Help Gaza’s Civilians, Biden Has To Stop Supplying Weapons, The Washington Post
David Ignatius shares, “Biden has demanded Israeli action and set a timetable for Netanyahu to deliver. Words don’t matter anymore. It’s a last test for the outgoing president. If Israel doesn’t take immediate measures to protect civilians in Gaza, the United States is legally bound to stop supplying weapons for a war that should have ended months ago.”
‘Deja Vu All Over Again’: HIAS Stares Down 4 More Years Under Trump, a President Hostile to the Immigrants It Aids, The Forward
Ron Kampeas reports, “Donald Trump, who reviles much of what the group does and stands for, had just been elected president. Trump’s actions during his first administration had severely curtailed HIAS’ work by dismantling the refugee resettlement program in which HIAS partnered with the federal government.”
Trump’s Election Proves It: The Idea of an ‘American Jewish Community’ Is a Myth, The Forward
Eric Alterman writes, “The sympathy that so many ultra-rich funders have for Trump explains the otherwise shocking silence of Jewish organizations in the wake of Trump’s Nazi-style pre-election hatefest at Madison Square Garden. ‘There’s no question about it: For the American Jewish Committee, the ADL, Conference of Presidents, the federations, all these institutes,’ Foxman said, ‘if this happened six months ago, they would be out there condemning racism and antisemitism and hate speech.’ But today they were hedging their bets.”