News Roundup for November 13, 2025
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.
Israeli Settler Terrorism and American Indifference, Times of Israel
J Street Israel Director Nadav Tamir writes, “These events continued with full force into November, and so, on the days we commemorate the 87th anniversary of Kristallnacht, there are Israeli citizens who are carrying out pogrom-like attacks against Palestinians – burning homes and cars, beating Palestinians and Jewish solidarity activists, killing sheep and dogs, and even murdering people.”
[Watch] Democrats Are Winning – But Are They Learning?, Word on the Street
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami and Chief Policy Officer Ilan Goldenberg sat down with political strategist Michael Podhorzer to unpack what last week’s election results really tell us about the state of American politics.
We Have to Talk About Israel – And So Much More, Times of Israel
J Street National Director of Communal Relations Sam Berkman writes, “We have seen Israel become a wedge issue in American society and increasingly in liberal and progressive circles. Yet we are in a pivotal moment for our country with our democracy itself being severely tested. Division is the strategy of authoritarian forces in America, and it is taking hold.”
Israel’s President Says ‘Shocking’ Settler Violence Against Palestinians Must End, AP
“President Isaac Herzog described the attacks as ‘shocking and serious,’ adding a rare and powerful voice to what has been muted criticism by top Israeli officials of the settler violence”
Palestinian Teenager Dies in West Bank After Month-long Coma From IDF Tear Gas Inhalation, Haaretz
“The incident took place on October 11, a day after a vicious settler attack on Palestinians picking olives. According to Palestinian medical sources, the youth lay comatose in the hospital since the incident and until his death.”
The Fate of Dozens of Trapped Hamas Fighters Is Hindering Trump’s Gaza Plan, Washington Post
“The disagreement over the fighters, who became stranded behind Israeli lines in Rafah after a ceasefire was announced last month, has underscored the broader potential pitfalls of the deal – including the thorny issue of disarming Hamas and growing Israeli frustration over what some officials see as U.S. interference in the country’s national security.”
Rubio Says ‘There’s Some Concern’ West Bank Violence Could Undermine Gaza Ceasefire, Times of Israel
“Though he avoided an outright condemnation, Rubio’s comments marked a rare instance in which US President Donald Trump’s administration weighed in on the issue of settler violence.”
UN Watchdog Hasn’t Been Able to Verify Iran’s Stockpile of Near-Weapons Grade Uranium in Months, AP
“The agency warned that it ‘lost continuity of knowledge in relation to the previously declared inventories of nuclear material in Iran’ at facilities affected by the war and stressed that this issue must be ‘urgently addressed.'”
Israel Seeks 20-Year Military Aid Deal With US With ‘America First’ Tweaks, Axios
“While the past agreement promised Israel around $4 billion per year in military aid, and Israel is likely to seek at least that much going forward, passing such a deal will now be more complicated because of growing frustrations with Israel, including within Trump’s MAGA base.”
It’s Not a ‘Hasbara Failure’ to Seek Justice for Palestinian Detainees Sexually Abused by IDF Soldiers, Haaretz
Margo Hughes-Robinson writes, “The central issue here is not a whistleblowing scandal, and I’m going to speak frankly: The issue is rape.”
