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.
If There Is a Future for Zionism, It’s the Path of Rabin, Not Netanyahu, Word on the Street
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami writes, “As one of Israel’s greatest soldiers, Rabin knew that true strength comes not from the trigger finger but from the outstretched hand. In pursuit of peace, he did something unimaginably difficult: he shook the hand of the man he once fought – not because he trusted him, but because he knew the alternative was endless war.”
With Gaza War Over, Jewish Democrats Work to Repair Frayed Ties With Their Party, Jewish Insider
“The ‘million-dollar question,’ according to Ilan Goldenberg, J Street’s vice president of policy, is whether lawmakers’ support for conditioning military assistance to Israel will continue after the war, when they have to vote to approve the annual $3.8 billion security package to Israel.”
J Street Calls Out Fear-Mongering in NYC Mayor’s Race, J Street
Jeremy Ben-Ami writes, “While we may disagree with Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani and other candidates on issues related to Israel and Palestine, there is one point on which we are united: Laughing along as a Muslim candidate is smeared as a potential terrorist sympathizer fuels fear, division and Islamophobia. Jewish leaders and public figures should be condemning such bigotry, not amplifying it.”
A New Dynamic in the Trump-Netanyahu Relationship, New York Times
“The parade of Trump administration officials to Jerusalem over the past week to ensure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sticks to the cease-fire in Gaza drew a catchy shorthand in the Israeli news media, playing on the prime minister’s nickname: ‘Bibi-sitting’.”
Netanyahu Says Israel Will Decide Which International Forces Are ‘Unacceptable’ in Gaza, NBC
“During a visit to Israel, Rubio said Friday that the force would have to be made up of countries that Israel is “comfortable with,” adding that any potential role for the Palestinian Authority has yet to be determined.”
Europe Fights to Avoid Being Sidelined by Trump’s World-Shaping Plans, Associated Press
“It was a telling image. European governments have struggled to play a significant role in diplomacy over the Gaza war, while the ‘America First’ leader has played a central one, pushing longtime allies in Europe toward the sidelines.”
Conflicting Accounts Emerge After UN Peacekeepers Shoot Down Israeli Drone, Washington Post
“The incident took place as Israeli strikes over Lebanon intensify amid scrambles to hold a tense ceasefire that ended Israel’s war with Hezbollah last November, and mounting pressure on the Lebanese government to disarm the powerful group.”
Freed Hostage Bar Kuperstein: Captors Beat Us and ‘Said It Was Because of Ben Gvir’, Times of Israel
“In a snippet aired Sunday of a full interview that will be broadcast by the Kan public broadcaster on Tuesday, Kuperstein said he resented how the ultranationalist Ben Gvir touted the Palestinian prisoners’ worsened living conditions, as the minister’s bragging had made life harder for the hostages.”
The Liberal Camp Should Embrace The Arab Parties, Times of Israel
Nadav Tamir writes, “Every time the center and left exclude Arab representatives, they weaken themselves and strengthen the very forces they claim to oppose.”
The Only Thing That Can Keep the Peace in Gaza, New York Times
James Rubin writes, “A durable peace is still possible, but it will require the Trump administration to begin a serious, high-level diplomatic initiative right away. Occasional visits by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, each with his own entourage and particular interests, is not good enough.”
Trump’s Men Come to Israel With Plenty to Say. But They’re Silent on Any Real Future for Gaza, The Guardian
Roy Schwartz writes, “Yet in more than one sense, the Trump administration seems more focused on maintaining the current, uneasy phase of the ceasefire than on progressing to the next: the rehabilitation of Gaza. When it comes to that, it appears the US may have ambitions but no concrete plans.”
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