News Roundup for October 18, 2024

October 18, 2024
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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.

J Street In the News

J Street Statement on the Killing of Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar, J Street
“The challenge now – for the US, Israel and regional actors – is to turn the battlefield victories of today into strategic opportunities for a better tomorrow. Let today be the day that we turn the page on this horrific war and begin to move toward the long-sought ‘day after’ when we bring the hostages home, surge aid, and end Hamas’ grip on the Palestinian people of Gaza,” shared J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami.

Pro-Israel Experts Hoping Sinwar’s Death Could Lead to Hostages’ Release, Haaretz
J Street President Jeremy Ben Ami said it was “such a significant moment for all of us hoping to see Sinwar meet justice. This can be the moment to end this awful war and bring the hostages home. Israel, the U.S. and the region must seize the moment for a new and urgent push for a cease-fire and hostage release deal.”

J Street’s Nadav Tamir: Israel Must Reconnect With Liberal American Jews [Audio], Al-Monitor
Ben Caspit speaks this with ambassador Nadav Tamir, the executive director of J Street Israel. Tamir argues that J Street is very much in sync with the new administration and said that, “In order for Israel to be the homeland of the Jewish people, it must be able to connect with liberal and progressive Jews — a big majority of the most important Jewish diaspora in north America.”

Top News and Analysis

Israel Confirms Hamas Leader Sinwar Killed by IDF, Axios
Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant spoke on the phone with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin shortly before the IDF statement was published and told him a DNA test identified the body was Sinwar, Israeli officials said.

Following Death of Hamas Leader, Harris Says It’s ‘Time for the Day After to Begin’ in Gaza, AP
Kamala Harris said Thursday that Israel’s killing of Hamas’ top leader offers “an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza,” talking plainly about next steps even as the pro-Palestinian demonstrators who gathered outside her campaign event underscored the complicated politics at play.

Netanyahu Promises More War, Dashing Peace Hopes After Hamas Leader Killed, Reuters
“The war, my dear ones, is not yet over,” Netanyahu told Israelis, saying fighting would continue until hostages held by Hamas are released. “We have before us a great opportunity to stop the axis of evil and create a different future,” he added, referring to Iran and its militant allies across the region in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

News

At Least 28 Dead in Gaza Strike, Which Israel Says Targeted Gunmen, Reuters
At least 28 Palestinians including children were killed on Thursday in an Israeli strike on a shelter in the northern Gaza Strip, a Gaza health ministry official said, while Israel said the attack targeted tens of militants at the site.

U.S. Officials Welcome Sinwar’s Elimination, Urge Israel to Seize Opportunity for Cease-Fire, Haaretz
Biden lauded Sinwar’s death, saying “this is a good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world.” Noting Sinwar’s responsibility for the deadly October 7 attack, Biden noted how he directed U.S. special operations and intelligence personnel to work side-by-side with their Israeli counterparts to help locate and track Sinwar and other Hamas leaders hiding in Gaza.

In Northern Gaza, Hunger Looms Over Daily Existence, The New York Times
The United Nation has warned of catastrophic living conditions and the risk of famine for some 400,000 civilians in northern Gaza amid a renewed Israeli offensive this month in the enclave. The U.N. and humanitarian groups say the lack of desperately needed aid is the result of aid crossings into Gaza being closed by Israel.

Israel Sends More Troops Into North Gaza, Deepens Raid, Reuters
The Israeli military said on Friday it sent another army unit to support its forces operating in Jabalia, the largest of Gaza’s eight historic refugee camps, where residents said tanks blew up roads and houses as they thrust further into the territory.

5 Soldiers Killed, Several More Hurt Amid Fighting With Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon, The Times of Israel
Five soldiers from the Golani Brigade’s reconnaissance unit were killed amid the ground offensive in southern Lebanon, the military announced Thursday, as Hezbollah threatened to escalate attacks against Israel.

Israel Stops Processing Key Commercial Food Imports to Gaza, Sources Say, Reuters
Israel has stopped processing requests from traders to import food to Gaza, according to 12 people involved in the trade, choking off a track that for the past six months supplied more than half of the besieged Palestinian territory’s provisions.

Opinion and Analysis

The United States Can’t Just Stand by as Israel Starves Northern Gaza, The Washington Post
Josh Rogin shares, “The Biden administration created a moral hazard by threatening a cutoff of military assistance in April but then not following through when Israel didn’t comply. By setting a new 30-day deadline, the Biden team is kicking the can down the road until after the presidential election, after which Joe Biden will be under even less domestic pressure to get tough with Netanyahu.”

Israel Killed Hamas’s Leader. What Happens Next?, Vox
Joshua Keating writes, “This wouldn’t be the first time the White House — and Netanyahu’s Israeli critics — have hoped the prime minister would ‘take the win’ in Gaza. In a White House statement back in May, Biden assured Israelis that ‘Hamas no longer is capable of carrying out another October 7’ and that the pursuit of ‘total victory’ would not bring the hostages home or ‘bring Israel lasting security.’”