Coffee with The Contrarians, Substack
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami has a wide ranging discussion with Jennifer Rubin on everything from the government shutdown and the Supreme Court’s latest Voting Rights Act case, to the return of hostages and the dangerous rhetoric coming from the right.
The End of “Managing the Conflict”, Substack
J Street Chief Policy Officer Ilan Goldenberg writes, “Israel now faces a choice. It can double down on occupation and an increasingly militarized approach to the Palestinians that leaves Israel internationally isolated – a path Netanyahu recently described as a ‘super Sparta.’ The alternative is to use this moment to begin building a pathway towards a different future that we at J Street call the 23-state solution.”
Peace in Gaza Won’t Last if Netanyahu Stays in Office, Vox
Zack Beauchamp writes, “While serving as a high-ranking Biden administration official on the Israel-Palestine desk, [Ilan] Goldenberg pushed unsuccessfully for the White House to pressure the Israelis more aggressively in pursuit of a ceasefire. Now that the Trump administration has done so and secured an agreement for their efforts, he sees possibilities for change in Israel’s deeper approach to the conflict — either for the better or for the worse.”
WATCH: Rep. Adam Smith on What Must Come After the Ceasefire, Substack
This week on Word on the Street Live, Jeremy Ben-Ami spoke and Ilan Goldenberg spoke with Congressman Adam Smith – Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee and one of the most thoughtful foreign policy voices in DC – about what comes next after the ceasefire.
The Gaza Ceasefire Won’t Win Back Young Americans for Israel, Bloomberg
“Jeremy Ben-Ami, the president of J Street, a lobby that is pro-Zionist and pro-peace, uses the same metaphor. ‘There will no longer be a blank check,’ he told me; if Israel ‘continues to make itself into a pariah nation, then it is going to lose support,’ including that US cover in the Security Council.”
Israel Receives Bodies of Hostages Inbar Haiman, Muhammad El-Atrash; Hamas Says It Has No Others, The Times of Israel
“Hamas transferred two caskets containing the remains of two slain Israeli hostages, Inbar Haiman and Muhammad el-Atrash, on Wednesday night, as it claimed to have recovered the bodies of all the deceased captives ‘that it was able to reach.’ The bodies of 19 slain hostages have yet to be returned.”
US Remains Optimistic on Gaza Deal as Israel Quickly Turns Impatient, Politico
“’This is a very delicate situation after two years of war, and a lot could still occur,’ the U.S. adviser said in a call with reporters. ‘But right now, the intention is to keep working with both parties, getting them both to show restraint and creating the right conditions for a demilitarization of Gaza to occur.’”
US Denies Hamas Violating Deal, Is Aiming To Set up Safe Zone for Gazans Fleeing Group, The Times of Israel
“The United States denied on Wednesday that Hamas is violating the ceasefire deal with Israel, insisting that a dragged-out process to return the bodies of hostages held in Gaza was expected, given the difficult conditions on the ground.”
Hamas Shoots Opponents in Gaza Unimpeded as IDF’s Hands Tied by Lack of Gaza Cease-fire Details, Haaretz
“According to one officer whose combat troops withdrew from Gaza over the past several days, the soldiers can see from observation posts that armed Hamas members are shooting at Palestinians who have tried to resist them – or who are suspected of assisting Israel – but they have been instructed not to intervene.”
Israel Keeps Gaza Border Crossing Closed While Reducing Aid Deliveries, NPR
“Israel on Wednesday kept closed a crucial border crossing from Egypt to Gaza and cut in half the amount of aid allowed to enter in retaliation for what it says are delays in the handover of bodies of dead hostages by the militant group Hamas.”
Israel Says Preparations To Open Rafah Crossing Underway With Egypt, Date To Be Announced Later, Reuters
“Israel’s military aid agency COGAT said on Thursday preparations are ongoing with Egypt to open the major Rafah border crossing with Gaza for the movement of people, with the date to be announced at a later stage.”
Prominent Palestinian Prisoner Marwan Barghouti Attacked by Guards, Family Says, BBC
“The most prominent Palestinian prisoner, Marwan Barghouti, was beaten unconscious by Israeli prison guards on 14 September, his family has said. The 66-year-old – serving life for planning deadly attacks against Israelis – was allegedly assaulted by eight guards during a transfer between Ganot and Megiddo prisons.”
The Only Path to Healing Is for Israel to Acknowledge What It Has Done to Gaza, Haaretz
Roy Schwartz writes, “Despite everything that has happened, the wall of denial is still standing. Even after tens of thousands of Palestinians were killed, many of them unarmed, even after the reports, the articles and the testimonies of their suffering – too many people in Israel find it difficult to see what happened in Gaza. They deny it.”
Gaza’s Broken Politics, The New Yorker
Mohammed R. Mhawish writes, “Reconstruction that restores roads but not representation will only re-create dependency. The next phase of Gaza’s life must be shaped by those who have lived through its collapse. If the world tries to govern Gaza from abroad, Palestinians must insist on governing themselves from within. The rubble is already being cleared for a new administration. The question is whether Palestinians can transform the ruins of a political order into the foundation of another that belongs to them.”
Netanyahu Continues on Warpath Against Israeli Judiciary, Haaretz
The Haaretz Editorial Board writes, “The tears of joy over the hostages’ return have not yet dried, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is already resuming his war on the judiciary. In his view, ending the war in Gaza and bringing home the hostages are nothing but an opportunity to resume the battle on the domestic front. After all, how will he unite the pro-Netanyahu bloc before the next election without a common enemy?”