CENTCOM published a post in Hebrew on its X account, referencing a previous joint drill with Israel. The image attached to it showed Israeli and American fighter jets, with the phrase “All units ready”—a clear reference to the popular song titled “Harbu Darbu“—Arabic slang for “War and Pain”—by Israeli hip hop musicians Ness and Stilla (Read more at JNS).
The former Arkansas governor and two-time presidential candidate was tapped by President Donald Trump for the post just after the November election. He has never previously worked in a diplomatic or national security role for any U.S. administration (Read more at Politico).
Democrats are still more likely than Republicans to express a negative opinion of Israel by 69 percent to 37 percent, respectively. But the number of Republicans who hold negative opinions on Israel has increased 10 percentage points since 2022 (Read more at Middle East Eye).
1. Trump said the U.S. would hold direct talks starting Saturday with Iran over its nuclear weapons programs. 2. Trump said the U.S. is working to get hostages released by Hamas and put in place a new ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. 3. Trump appeared to raise U.S. military assistance to Israel as potential leverage amid trade negotiations. 4. Trump said to Netanyahu, “Any problem that you have with Turkey, I think I can solve. I mean, as long as you’re reasonable, you have to be reasonable. We have to be reasonable.” (Read more at The Hill)
Two U.S. House committee chairs want to know if American taxpayers helped fund the massive protests against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s 2023 judicial reform. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Foreign Relations Chair Brian Mast (R-Fla.) asked six organizations for all relevant documents and communications regarding any funding from the U.S. State Department or through the U.S. Agency for International Development (Read more at JNS)
Israel is in “serious talks with several countries” to relocate large numbers of people out of the Gaza Strip, a senior diplomatic source told JNS and other media outlets during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Hungary (Read more at JNS).
Trump said he spoke by phone with Netanyahu on Thursday and that after the call, he believes the Israeli leader is "going to be coming to our country sometime in the not so distant future -- maybe next week.” Netanyahu currently faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity carried out by his forces in Gaza (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
The State Department sent a notification to Congress on March 6 of the $24-million US sale of the Colt Carbine 5.56 mm calibre fully automatic rifles, saying the end user would be the Israeli National Police, according to the document (Read more at CBC).
As part of a sweeping new tariff policy announced by Trump, unspecified Israeli goods exports to the United States face a 17% tariff. The U.S. is Israel's closest ally and largest single trading partner. Netanyahu raised the issue in his phone call with Trump on Thursday, the Israeli officials said, while on a visit to Hungary. "Most of it can be solved," one of the senior officials said (Read more at Yahoo Finance).
Citi economist, Michel Nies, estimated a potential hit to Israel’s economy of as much as $3 billion, or 0.6 per cent of GDP. Ron Tomer, president of Israel’s Manufacturers’ Association, said the tariffs could harm Israel’s economic stability, deter foreign investments, weaken the competitiveness of Israeli companies in the US market and set back trade and investment relations between the countries (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
Sanders forced votes on two resolutions on Thursday, the first to block the sale of 35,000 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, worth $2 billion, and the second on the sale of tens of thousands of other bombs and JDAMs, worth $6.75 billion. Both resolutions failed with overwhelming bipartisan opposition, by a vote of 15 in favor and 82 against the first vote and 83 against for the second. Similar votes on Joint Resolutions of Disapproval brought by Sanders in November, to block $1 billion of tank rounds, mortar rounds, and JDAMs, failed but with smaller margins; several Democrats flipped their votes, despite the sales being pushed by the Trump administration this time around (Read more at Truthout).
“Cancelling the tariffs on American goods is another step in the policy led by my governments for over a decade to open the market to competition, introduce diversity into the economy, and reduce the cost of living," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said (Read more at bne intellinews).
He said the tactic would pave the way for Israel to take control of Gaza and implement “the Trump plan" to evict Palestinians from the enclave. Mr Netanyahu's remarks, along with the move to appoint an official to lead a newly created body aimed at advancing the “voluntary” displacement of Gazans, suggest his government is pursuing Mr Trump's proposals for the enclave (Read more at The National).
The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly rejected a pair of anti-Israel amendments to a bill to scrutinize foreign funding at American universities. The Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act, which the House passed on Thursday without the two amendments, lowers the threshold at which colleges and universities have to report foreign contracts and gifts from $250,000 to $50,000. It also bars schools from contracts with China, Iran, North Korea and Russia (Read more at JNS).
US Senator Bernie Sanders said he would force votes next week on resolutions that would block $8.8 billion in arms sales to Israel, citing the human rights crisis faced by Palestinians in Gaza after Israel's bombardment of the enclave and its blocking of aid deliveries. "Netanyahu has clearly violated U.S. and international law in this brutal war, and we must end our complicity in the carnage," Sanders said in a statement announcing his plan (Read more at New Arab).
A bipartisan group of 15 members of Congress endorsed the Hostages and Missing Families Forum for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize in a letter to the selection committee. “Through unfathomable anguish and heartbreak, these families have become the conscience of the world,” the letter to the Nobel Committee stated (Read more at JNS).
Nobody seriously believes that the U.S. Senate will reject President Donald Trump’s nomination of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Republicans managed to get far more controversial nominees. However, the political arm of Reform Judaism is publicly opposing Huckabee. So too are the left-wing lobby J Street and the Jewish Democratic Council of America. The Jewish Council for Public Affairs, an umbrella group of Jewish community relations councils around the country, didn’t condemn the nomination outright but made clear its disdain for him with comments deprecating him as a “Christian nationalist.” (Read more at JNS)
Ilan Goldenberg, a former senior adviser of Vice President Harris who served as director for Jewish outreach during her 2024 presidential campaign, is joining liberal pro-Israel Jewish organization J Street (Read more at Axios).
The White House has singled out Saudi Arabia as a possible participant in the accords, although the Saudis have qualms about Israel due to the Gaza war (Read more at MSN).
”This has nothing to do with my scholarship or teaching,” he writes. “It is a political hit job over my support for Palestine and for trying to protect our student protesters last year from physical attack, by nonviolently subjecting my own body to assault by the Northwestern Police instead of our students.” (Read more at Campus Reform)
The lawsuit, filed on Monday in Manhattan federal court, names Khalil as one of the heads of the anti-Israel protests that engulfed the Morningside Heights campus last year, which the families claimed effectively helped to spread Hamas’ hateful rhetoric (Read more at NYPost).
Morgan Ortagus told Fox News that Biden had made Israel 'fight with one hand tied behind their back' by limiting arms exports. The US is the biggest arms supplier to Israel, accounting for 66 percent of the country's weapons imports between 2020 and 2024, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). In January 2025, weeks before Biden was set to leave office, Washington approved the sale of $20bn in military equipment, including air-to-air missiles, Hellfire missiles, artillery shells and bombs, to Israel. In March, the Trump administration bypassed a normal congressional review to approve a nearly $3bn arms sale to Israel (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday night directed his negotiating team to prepare for renewed hostage-ceasefire talks based on U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff’s proposal that seeks the immediate release of 11 living captives and half of the bodies still being held by Hamas in Gaza. The decision was made following a ministerial meeting in Jerusalem, and amid an apparent impasse in negotiations in Doha (Read more at JNS).
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and National Security Council official Eric Tager presented the proposal in Qatar. The proposal calls for Hamas to continue releasing hostages in exchange for prisoners based on a previously established formula. It also extends the phase-1 ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid to Gaza (Read more at Business Standard).
This move comes after a media blitz in which Boehler referred to Hamas as “nice guys” and said he didn’t “really care about” the concerns of Ron Dermer, Israel’s strategic affairs minister. He also stated that the United States was “not an agent of Israel.” A senior U.S. official said Adam Boehler will still work on other Mideast-related matters with Steve Witkoff, U.S. special envoy to the Middle East (Read more at JNS).
The Council on American Islamic Relations said it recorded the highest number of anti-Muslim and anti-Arab complaints, 8,658, in 2024, since it began publishing data in 1996. Most complaints were in the categories of employment discrimination (15.4 percent), immigration and asylum (14.8 percent), education discrimination (9.8 percent) and hate crimes (7.5 percent). (Read more at New Arab)
The Proportion of Americans who sympathise with the Palestinians is at its highest since Gallup started collecting data. Only 46 percent of Americans polled said their sympathies are with the Israelis rather than the Palestinians during Israel’s current assault on Gaza. The second lowest approval rating was 51 percent in 2001, a year after the Second Intifada (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Israel's concerns over the Trump administration's secret negotiations with Hamas erupted in a contentious call Tuesday between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-hand man and the U.S. official leading the talks. When Trump aides sounded out Israeli officials in early February about the possibility of engaging directly with Hamas, the Israelis advised them not to do it — particularly not without preconditions. Israel found out through other channels that the U.S. was moving ahead anyway (Read more at Axios).
U.S. President Donald Trump has invited Eli Sharabi and other Israeli freed hostages to a meeting at the White House after viewing portions of Sharabi’s testimony regarding his time in captivity. The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday. Sharabi, 52, who was released by Hamas on Feb. 8 after 491 days in captivity in Gaza, has become a leading voice among the freed hostages. His emotional account of his time in captivity has gained international attention (Read more at JNS).
Israel has agreed to a new U.S. proposal to extend the first phase of the ceasefire in Gaza in exchange for the release of about half of the remaining hostages — both living and dead — but Hamas has so far refused to accept it, the Prime Minister's Office claimed in a statement. Hamas has in recent days said the original agreement needs to be implemented. According to the deal, the ceasefire would continue as long as negotiations on the second phase of the deal were taking place. But there are currently no active negotiations and the fighting in Gaza could resume as soon as Sunday (Read more at Axios).
They accused the United States of blocking a solution. Despite winning top prizes in Europe and the United States, the film has yet to reach a deal for U.S. distribution, Abraham told Deadline last month. Asked why he thought U.S. distributors had passed on the film, Abraham told Deadline: “I believe it’s clear that it’s for political reasons. I hope that it will change." He said they decided not to wait on the theatrical release and released it in almost 100 theaters independently (Read more at USNews).
The US State Department told Congress on Friday that it plans to sell nearly $3 billion in weapons to Israel, including thousands of bombs and $295 million worth of armored bulldozers that had been held up by the previous administration over human rights concerns that US President Donald Trump has largely eschewed. The prospective weapons sales were notified to US Congress on an emergency basis, meaning they will not be subject to review by the House and Senate’s foreign relations committees (Read more at Times of Israel).
Israel works to counter Turkey's growing influence in Syria by lobbying the United States to keep it weak and decentralised, including by letting Russia keep its military bases in the country. Syria's new leadership is in talks with Russia over the fate of the military bases. Some experts say that the new U.S. President Donald Trump could be more open to Russia staying in Syria than his predecessor, Joe Biden. According to the report, Biden's administration considered offering to ease the sanctions on Syria in exchange for closing Russia's two military bases (Read more at Kyivindipendent).
Smotrich was invited by Bessent in a call two weeks ago. It would mark the first in-person talks between Smotrich, a fervent settler advocate at the helm of Israel’s settlement planning apparatus, and a Trump administration official — and it could have major implications for U.S. policy toward the settlements, which the international community largely considers illegal (Read more at ABC News).
On 23 January, faculty and staff from the City University of New York’s Professional Staff Congress (PSC) union voted 73-70 in favour of a resolution to divest from Israeli companies and government bonds and recommended the teachers’ pension divest $100m from Israeli companies and bonds. However, less than a month after the resolution passed, union leadership organised a re-vote on the divestment resolution - which led to a 113-63 vote against it on 20 February (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The United States and Israel also shared the company of North Korea, Belarus and Eritrea. The General Assembly adopted a European Union-backed resolution, which calls for de-escalation of the Russia-Ukraine war, an early cessation of hostilities and a peaceful resolution. The vote was 93-18 with 65 abstentions (Read more at JNS).
A US-based human rights group has formally submitted a referral at the International Criminal Court (ICC) against former US President Joe Biden and members of his administration for their complicity in Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. In a statement on Monday, Democracy for the Arab World Now (Dawn) called for a formal investigation into the actions of Biden, former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, former Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, and other US officials (Read more at Middle East Eye).
US National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said Sunday that the White House supports Israel's decision to delay releasing 620 Palestinian prisoners as part of a ceasefire agreement with Hamas. President Donald Trump is prepared to support Israel in "whatever course of action it chooses regarding Hamas," Hughes said (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
The three-stage ceasefire which came into effect on January 19 is now nearing the end of its first phase. "We have to get an extension of phase one. I'll be going to the region this week, probably Wednesday, to negotiate that and we are hopeful that we have the proper time to begin phase two and finish it off and get more hostages released," President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said (Read more at Reuters).
The embassy stated, “Following the February 20 explosions on public buses, and out of an abundance of caution, the US Embassy is temporarily prohibiting US government employees and their family members from using public buses and the light rail across Israel for 14 days... the security environment is complex and can change quickly.” (Read more at Shafaq)
A group of American Christian leaders are publicly reaffirming the Jewish people’s right to the biblical heartland of Israel, ahead of a key U.S. decision on Israeli sovereignty over the territory. The declaration will be made public at the annual National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Dallas (Read more at JNS).
Attorney General Pam Bondi said anti-Israel student protesters who are in the United States on visas and threatening American students "need to be kicked out of the country." "All of our students deserve to be safe," Bondi said on Thursday at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) near Washington, D.C., while joining the stage with Republican Sen. Ted Cruz (Read more at AOL).
Gilad Erdan, the former Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations, called on U.S. President Donald Trump to pressure Qatar to take in all the residents of the Gaza Strip, instead of Jordan and Egypt (Read more at JNS).
Attendees at the CPAC conference heard U.S. Vice President JD Vance tell hostage families that “our message is that President Trump loves you. He hasn’t forgotten your loved ones.” (Read more at JNS)
In an arrest report, police alleged that Brafman had “spontaneously stated that while he was driving his truck, he saw two Palestinians and shot and killed both” (Read more at Aljazeera).
"Trump's plan regarding Gaza is the only one that can guarantee security for the residents of the south and the State of Israel after the lessons learned from the events of Oct. 7," said the Israeli defense minister (Read more at JNS).
In the wake of the U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to the Jewish state this week, Netanyahu noted that he had cultivated his ties with Republican leaders not in a partisan way, but in “a Zionist way.” (Read more at JNS)
Israel and the United States are both determined to thwart Iran’s nuclear ambitions and its “aggression” in the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Feb 16 following a meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (Read more at Strait Times).
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Palestinians should be given the choice to leave Gaza. Speaking to Jewish American organisations gathered in Jerusalem, Netanyahu again praised US President Donald Trump's plan to forcibly displace Palestinians from Gaza. "Give them a choice. Not forcible eviction. Not ethnic cleansing," he said (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The Department of Defense announced that the State Department had approved a package for Israel worth an estimated $6.75 billion that included munitions, guidance kits and fuses with Boeing Co among the principal contractors. Democratic lawmakers requested that the sale be paused until he received more information (Read more at Ammon News).
Israel's former public security minister and far-right politician Itamar Ben Gvir said in a post on X that "encouraging" Gazans to migrate from the enclave was the only correct strategy at the end of the war in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. He urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to adopt that policy "immediately". (Read more at AOL)
The US Justice Department formed a multi-agency task force on Feb 3 to fight anti-Semitism, with its first priority “rooting out” anti-Semitic harassment in schools and universities. The Department of Education said it was investigating five universities for allegations of anti-Semitic harassment (Read more at Strait Times).
The planned weapons sales include 4,700 1,000-pound bombs, worth more than $700 million, and armored bulldozers built by Caterpillar, worth more than $300 million (Read more at MSN).
During his trip, Netanyahu is expected to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday to discuss the situation in Gaza, hostages held by Hamas, and the confrontation with Iran and its regional allies (Read more at MSN).
The decision comes as negotiations on the second phase of the deal set to begin Monday. Additionally, Netanyahu reportedly canceled a planned meeting with Mossad chief David Barnea, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar and other senior negotiators, instead sending his military secretary, Roman Gofman, to inform them of the delay (Read more at Anadolu Agency).
The release includes U.S. and Israeli dual citizen Keith Siegel, 65, Yarden Bibas, 35, and Ofer Kalderon, 54. Kalderon also holds French citizenship. The three men were handed over Saturday morning to representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Gaza, who transferred them to Israeli troops for the drive across the border into Israel. Bibas and Kalderon were handed over in Khan Younis, in Gaza's south; Seigel in Gaza City in the enclave's north (Read more at NPR).
US president's sanctions reversals, arms shipments and appointment of hawks will likely undermine the ceasefire and empower Israel's hardliners. Figures such as the Christian Zionist extremist and new ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee; new Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth; and nominee for Ambassador to the United Nations, Elise Stefanik, will be pleased to see this largesse extended to their Israeli allies (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to become the first foreign leader to meet with President Donald Trump during his second term. “I look forward to discussing how we can bring peace to Israel and its neighbors, and efforts to counter our shared adversaries,” Trump wrote in a letter to Netanyahu (Read more at NBC News).
The U.S. military transferred around 90 Patriot air defense interceptors from storage in Israel to Poland this week in order to deliver them to Ukraine. This is the most significant delivery of weapons from Israel to Ukraine since the Russian invasion almost three years ago (Read more at Axios).
Democrats in the United States Senate have blocked the passage of a bill. The vote on Tuesday saw the bill gain 54 votes in favour and 45 opposed, falling short of the 60 votes needed to advance to a final vote. But many of the Democrats who voted against the measure still accused the court of taking unfair actions against Israel by issuing warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant (Read more at Aljazeera).
The US envoy to the UN has said that they support Israel’s “sovereign decision” to shutter UNRWA in Jerusalem and that the agency is “exaggerating” the impact of an Israeli ban that experts and UN officials have said would have catastrophic impacts on humanitarian support for Palestinians (Source: MTV).
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday he had had a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss bilateral matters. "We also discussed maintaining close contact with partners, particularly the United States and President Trump," he said on X (Source: Yahoo News).
The Harvard Management Company reinvested $150 million in Booking Holdings Inc., a company under fire for its operation in Israeli settlements in the West Bank. In 2018, Human Rights Watch found that Booking.com connects travelers to rental properties in the Palestinian territories and alleged the company is complicit in human rights abuses against Palestinians. The student governments of at least three graduate schools — Harvard Law School, Harvard Divinity School, and the Harvard Graduate School of Design — passed resolutions urging the HMC to divest from institutions and companies that “aid the ongoing illegal occupation of Palestine.” (Read more at Crimson)
A Pentagon readout states that the two men “discussed the importance of advancing mutual security interests and priorities, especially in the face of persistent threats.” Hegseth stressed that the United States “is fully committed, under President Trump’s leadership, to ensuring that Israel has the capabilities it needs to defend itself. “ (Read more at JNS)
“Thank you President Trump for keeping your promise to give Israel the tools it needs to defend itself, to confront our common enemies and to secure a future of peace and prosperity,” the premier said in a video message (Read more at JNS).
“We released them. We released them today. And they’ll have them. They paid for them and they’ve been waiting for them for a long time. They’ve been in storage,” Trump told reporters (Read more at Guardian).
Washington “celebrates the release of the four Israeli hostages held in captivity for 477 days. It is critical that the ceasefire implementation continues and that all of the hostages are freed from Hamas captivity and safely returned to their families,” according to a statement from the State Department (Read more at JNS).
The Lockheed Martin company will integrate mission systems and equipment designed according to IAF specifications and build a separate production line exclusively for modifying each aircraft. Sikorsky is currently assembling the CH-53K fleet at its Stratford, Connecticut, headquarters as part of Israel’s $2-billion foreign military sales order from the US in 2021 to replace its CH-53 Yas’ur helicopters, which have been operational since 1969 (Read more at Defense Post).
On his first day in office this week, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order which reinstated an earlier executive order that could serve as a legal basis for future sanctions against the ICC and its personnel. No specific sanctions have been announced yet. In a statement, the ICC’s governing body said that sanctions against the Court and its personnel – and anyone assisting them – could severely hamper ongoing investigations (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
The stakes for Netanyahu are high -- keeping his coalition government on the one hand and on the other, satisfying U.S. President Donald Trump who wants to use the ceasefire momentum to expand Israel's diplomatic ties in the Middle East (Read more at MSN).
Rubio underscored that “maintaining the United States’ steadfast support for Israel is a top priority for Trump,” the State Department said in a statement. The Secretary also conveyed that he looks forward to addressing the threats posed by Iran and pursuing opportunities for peace,” the State Department said (Read more at The Print).
US President Donald Trump has rescinded sanctions on far-right Israeli settler groups and people accused of being involved in violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, the new White House administration said (Read more at The National).
U.S. President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden have provided Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with an official missive confirming that “the State of Israel will be able to return to the war on day 43” if talks fail during the 42-day first phase of the agreement, Smotrich said, speaking at a meeting of his Religious Zionism Party in the Knesset in Jerusalem (Read more at JNS).
The pro-settler Smotrich, in a message to Trump on Tuesday, called the move an “expression of your deep connection to the Jewish people and our historical right to our land.” (Read more at Arabnews)
“It’s not our war. It is their war. I am not confident. But I think they’re very weakened on the other side,” he said in response to a question in the Oval Office while signing orders in the first hours of his presidency. Asked about the future governance of the Gaza Strip, the president said he believed “you certainly can’t have the people that were there,” in an apparent reference to the Iranian-backed Hamas terror organization. “Most of them are dead, by the way, right?” continued Trump. “But they didn’t exactly run it well. Run viciously and badly. You can’t have that.” (Read more at New York Post)
“This week, I met with an Israeli hostage family who had been released from Gaza,” tweeted Cruz. “The beautiful children drew pictures for President Trump, and they asked me to deliver them.” (Read more at JNS)
B’nai B’rith International cited collaborating on “combating antisemitism, safeguarding Jewish communities, ensuring Israel’s security, strengthening the vital U.S.-Israel alliance and other key policy priorities.” AIPAC stated that it looks forward to working with Trump to “strengthen and expand the U.S.-Israel relationship.” The Republican Jewish Coalition wrote that “America’s new Golden Age begins now. America is back.” (Read more at JNS)
Some 25% of Democrats and 19% of Republicans favor Islamists over the Jewish state and 82% back the ceasefire. The 25-34 age group showed the highest support for Hamas, with nearly a third favouring the organisation over Israel (Read more at Middle East Eye).
A large delegation representing the Yesha Council has been invited to attend Trump's inauguration. Moreover, the Yesha Council umbrella group of Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria launched a campaign in Times Square on Sunday to celebrate President-elect Donald Trump’s support of the biblical heartland (Read more at JNS).
Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of Israel's strongest allies, says Saudi Arabia and the UAE "want Hamas gone at least as much as you do." In response to a question about what course Trump should take regarding Iran, Graham was unequivocal. “While I don’t speak for the administration, I believe we face an unprecedented opportunity to diminish Iran’s power in a way I’ve never witnessed before,” he said. “Israel and Trump’s America must act decisively to eliminate Iran’s nuclear facilities permanently.” (Read more at JNS)
Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, prior to attending President Donald Trump’s inauguration “We are very excited today ... He’s a friend of Israel.” The members of the Trump administration with whom Danon met told him that “we are here to support Israel. Be strong.” Danon thinks that the new White House will focus largely on domestic issues in its opening days and weeks. But he believes that Trump understands what’s happening in Israel’s neighborhood and will be responsive (Read more at JNS).
President Biden's decision to halt the delivery of one shipment of 2,000-pound bombs last May triggered one of the biggest crises the U.S-Israel relationship has faced during the 15-month war in Gaza. Israel expects President Trump to lift the Biden administration's hold on the supply of 2,000-pound bombs in his first days in office, outgoing Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Mike Herzog said (Read more at Axios).
As part of ceasefire agreement, the U.S. began to partially lift the arms embargo it had imposed on Israel; As part of this, 70 D9 bulldozers will leave the United States for Israel in the coming days. These heavy engineering tools play a critical role on the battlefield, as they can open traffic routes, pave roads for the fighting forces, and expose explosives (Read more at JFeed).
Both President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump have given Israel full backing to resume the war in Gaza if Israel concludes that talks with Hamas on the second phase of the ceasefire agreement prove “futile,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday night. “As soon as he was elected, President Trump joined the mission of freeing the hostages. He talked to me on Wednesday night. He praised the agreement and rightly emphasized that the first step of the agreement is a temporary ceasefire. This is what he said—‘a temporary ceasefire,’” the prime minister continued (Read more at JNS).
Mr. Biden spoke with the MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell in his last television interview while in office and said, in the days after the war in Gaza began, He pushed Netanyahu to prevent civilian deaths during the Gaza war. He also defended his steadfast support for Israel (Read more at New York Times).
Israel wants to annex the occupied West Bank and further weaken Iran, but Trump's other priorities may hold those back. Trump’s “stick” to keep Netanyahu in the deal is the same one Biden refused to use during 15 months of war: withholding arms transfers (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Biden’s last day as president, on 19 January, is also the first day of the planned Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal that was reportedly pushed to the finish line by the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump. This has raised more significant criticism of Biden’s role in Israel’s bombing campaign on Gaza, with the US providing $17.9bn in military aid since 7 October 2023 (Read more at Middle East Eye).
In the wake of November’s election, the Trump and Biden teams began working together. “I think a lot of progress has been made. The fact that you have an outgoing and an incoming administration that have worked hand in hand to make the case for urgency, I think, has been noticed by all parties,” the ambassador said (Read more at The Hill).
Trump had dispatched his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, to join the negotiations in Doha, and Witkoff was there for the last 96 hours of talks leading up to the deal. A senior Biden administration official, in a briefing with reporters, credited Witkoff with helping deliver the deal, working alongside Biden's envoy, Brett McGurk, who has been in Doha since 5 Jan (Read more at Business Standard).
Joe Biden will hand over to Trump. U.S. State Department officials have identified hundreds of potential incidents of civilian harm during Israel's military operations in Gaza involving U.S.-furnished weapons, but have not taken further action on them. the State Department spokesperson said, "But I can tell you that the obligation that the State Department has to investigate potential violations of international humanitarian law through the use of U.S. weapons are not obligations that expire on Jan. 20th. They are obligations that carry over from this administration into the next administration." (Read more at USNews)
Chuck Schumer: “It couldn’t have happened without steadfast diplomacy and until the potency of Hamas was radically reduced.” John Barrasso: “I think that the world is seeing Donald Trump coming into power in the United States, and we're seeing changes around the world to reflect a new strength in America." Hakeem Jeffries: “This long-overdue agreement will secure the release of many of those hostages, set the stage for others to come home.” Bernie Sanders: “Both sides must honor the deal and implement it as quickly as possible… The United Nations and other aid organizations must finally be allowed unfettered access to all areas of the Gaza.” Claudia Tenney: "After Biden's repeated failure to free the Israeli & American hostages being held by Hamas, President Trump has already negotiated a deal to release the hostages, & he hasn't even been sworn in yet. The world is a safer place with President Trump as America's Leader." (Read more at USNews)
Biden said. “I’ve worked on foreign policy for decades. This was one of the toughest negotiations I’ve ever experienced. We reached this point because to the pressure Israel built on Hamas, backed by the United States.” (Read more at The Hill)
Trump, who repeatedly threatened there would be "hell to pay" if hostages were not released ahead of his Jan. 20 inauguration, said he was "thrilled American and Israeli hostages will be returning home". "With this deal in place, my National Security team, through the efforts of Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, will continue to work closely with Israel and our Allies to make sure Gaza NEVER again becomes a terrorist safe haven," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform (Read more at AOL).
Member of the Knesset Benny Gantz, the former Israeli military chief of staff, and former defense minister praised President-elect Trump’s strategic approach to global challenges, expressing confidence in his leadership. “Now, President Trump has a very full metastrategic plate … but I know he will succeed. Why? Because he naturally differs between what’s good and what’s bad and he will choose the good.” (Read more at Media Line)
Outgoing ambassador to Israel, Jack Lew says US public's pro-Israel views could change in coming years, with Israel facing a 'generational' problem. American public opinion “is still largely pro-Israel” but that could shift in the next decades as a result of the war in Gaza (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and US President Joe Biden emphasized Tuesday the importance of overcoming obstacles and showing flexibility to secure a cease-fire agreement in Gaza. The remarks were made during a phone call between the two leaders (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said there’s a “distinct possibility” that Israel and Hamas will be able to reach a ceasefire deal before President Joe Biden leaves office in a week. “The pressure is building for Hamas to come to yes,” (Watch more at Bloomberg).
Netanyahu updated Biden on progress in the talks and on the mandate he has given his top-level security delegation now in Doha in order to advance a hostage deal. During their call, Netanyahu also thanked Biden for his lifelong support of Israel and "the extraordinary support from the United States for Israel’s security and national defense" (Read more at Reuters).
“We are very hopeful that the incoming [U.S.] administration will put an end to the lack of accountability and lawlessness that the Iraqi government is allowed to get away with,” Emma Tsurkov told JNS on Saturday. Emma’s sister Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Princeton University researcher, has been held captive in Iraq by Shi’ite militia Kata’ib Hezbollah since 2023 (Read more at JNS).
He met with President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, in what was described as a “surprise visit” to discuss the multilateral negotiations with Hamas for the release of Israeli hostages and a ceasefire in Gaza. Channel 12 cited a “senior Israeli” saying that Trump has been personally involved in the matter over the last couple of days, expressing his desire to urgently cement a deal before he enters office on Jan. 20 (Read more at JNS).
Legislators in the lower chamber of the US Congress passed the “Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act” by an overwhelming margin, 243 to 140, on Thursday in a signal of strong support for Israel. 45 Democrats joined 198 Republicans in backing the bill. No Republicans voted against it. The legislation proposes sanctions for any foreigner who helps the ICC in its attempts to investigate, detain or prosecute a US citizen or citizen of an allied country that does not recognise the authority of the court. The bill now heads to the Senate, where a Republican majority was sworn in earlier this month (Read more at Aljazeera).
“Well, I think we’re making a lot of progress, and I don’t want to say too much because I think they’re doing a really good job back in Doha,” Witkoff said at a Trump press conference in Palm Beach, Florida (Read more at Arabnews).
Hochstein’s statement on Monday came as Israel was withdrawing its forces from Naqoura in the western sector of the border, with the Lebanese army deploying in the area. However, the US official did not specify a timetable for the Israeli withdrawal (Read more at Aljazeera).
The US supplied 78% of Israel's arms from 2019 to 2023, with deliveries totaling 50,000 tons of weapons by August 2024 (Read more at Anadolu Agency).
“In recent years I had the pleasure of calling him and thanking him for his historic efforts to bring together two great leaders, [Menachem] Begin and [Anwar] Sadat, and forging a peace between Israel and Egypt that remains an anchor of stability throughout the Middle East and North Africa many decades later,” wrote Herzog on X (Read more at JNS).
According to the US paper of record, Israel never intended to ‘erase the Gaza Strip from the face of Earth’ – it simply ‘weakened its [nonexistent] system of safeguards meant to protect civilians (Read more at Aljazeera).
With the Camp David Accords, the late US president set in motion the gradual abandonment of the Palestinian cause by Arab states (Read more at Aljazeera).
Rostislav Panev, 51, was arrested in Israel in August and is awaiting extradition to the United States. Panev was a developer at Lockbit from its inception some time in 2019 through to at least February 2024, during which time the group grew into "what was, at times, the most active and destructive ransomware group in the world," the U.S. Department of Justice said (Read more at Reuters).
Over the past week, Israeli news outlets reported that Paragon, which was founded by former Israeli intelligence officers and backed by ex-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, had been bought by AE, an investment group focused on national security-related businesses (Read more at Reuters).
U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in Oakland, California, ruled on Friday in favor of Meta Platforms' (META.O), opens a new tab WhatsApp in a lawsuit accusing Israel's NSO Group of exploiting a bug in the messaging app to install spy software allowing unauthorized surveillance (Read more at Reuters).
US official: ‘When it comes to a determination of something like genocide, the legal standard is just incredibly high, and so the finding in this scenario we just disagree with ... That does not take away from the fact that there is a dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza’. (Read more at Arab News)
The FBI has arrested an 18-year-old student from George Mason University (GMU), accusing him of being involved in a plot to attack the Israeli consulate in New York, in a case involving an undercover informant or agent who helped the teenager come up with the plan. Abdullah Ezzeldin Taha Mohamed Hassan, a first-year student and an Egyptian national, has been charged with one count of distributing information related to explosives that could be used to murder internationally protected persons (Read more at Middle East Eye).
“Now the opportunity is there, and I know this is something that the president (Trump) will be focused on, to broaden that out with the Saudis,” Blinken said (Read more at Arab Weekly).
In the beginning of the current administration’s tenure, Lloyd Austin, the U.S. defense secretary, had regular access to U.S. President Joe Biden. But over the past two years, “a period when the wars in Ukraine and Gaza demanded the president’s attention,” Austin was rarely invited for scheduled briefings (Read more at JNS).
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised the mother of U.S. journalist Austin Tice that the IDF isn't conducting airstrikes in areas in Syria where he might be located (Read more at Axios).
Burns is due to meet Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, in Doha (Read more at Dohanews).
The letter comes after the Biden administration concluded Israel made efforts to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, despite record-low aid deliveries. A group of 20 US members of Congress led by Congressman Greg Casar signed the letter (Read more Middle East Eye).
Mike Casey, one of only two people explicitly focused on Gaza, left over inaction and doing ‘what the Israelis want’. Mike Casey arrived in Jerusalem in 2020. “The more informed you become on this issue, you can’t avoid realizing how bad it is,” Casey said. Casey resigned in July after four years at the job, discreetly leaving the post unlike other recent high-profile government departures. Now Casey reflected on how, as one of only two people in the entire US government explicitly focused on Gaza, he became an unwilling chronicler of a humanitarian catastrophe (Read more at Guardian).
"I know this year's Hanukkah falls on the hearts that are still very heavy. It's the second Hanukkah since the horrors of Oct. 7. Over 1,000 slaughtered, hundreds taken hostage, unspeakable sexual violence and so much more. The trauma of that day and its aftermath is still raw and ongoing," Biden said (Read more at ABCNews).
Adam Boehler is visiting Israel this week amid ongoing negotiations to secure the release of the remaining Hamas captives in Gaza. He also discreetly met with Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana. Trump said Monday he is working to secure the release of the hostages in Gaza, who number 100, according to the latest Israeli estimates. Thirty-six have been declared dead (Read more at New York Post).
He said they discussed the need to complete Israel’s victory. A Trump spokesperson on Sunday declined to give further details about the call (Read more at Guradian).
"What Israel is doing is trying to identify potential threats, both conventional and weapons of mass destruction, that could threaten Israel, and, frankly threaten others as well," Sullivan told a press conference in Tel Aviv following a meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Read more at Reuters).
“We’re now looking to close a hostage release deal and a cease-fire, which would stop the war and reunite hostages with their families,” Sullivan said. “Just over one year ago, we reached a deal that brought 78 hostages out of Gaza and home to their families. It’s time to finish the job and bring all of the hostages home.” Sullivan will travel to Doha and Cairo from Jerusalem to advance these negotiations (Read more at Media Line).
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz told his US counterpart Lloyd Austin in a phone call, "We are hoping for the release of all the hostages, including US citizens." (Read more at Barrons)
Trump said Mr Boehler was a lead negotiator for him on his team that worked the Abraham Accords in 2020, a series of normalisation agreements between Israel and Arab nations. “He has negotiated with some of the toughest people in the World, including the Taliban, but Adam knows that NO ONE is tougher than the United States of America, at least when President Trump is its Leader (Read more at Strait Times).
Waltz and Dermer are expected to discuss the efforts to reach a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal and the Iranian threat. The meeting comes just weeks before Trump takes office on Jan. 20 following campaign promises to end the wars in the Middle East and elsewhere, though he has offered scant details on how he plans to proceed (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The reaction in Gaza was less enthusiastic. Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and many of his ministers publicly thanked Trump for his hard-hitting words. Writing on Truth Social, and without naming any group, Trump said the hostages had to be freed by the time he was sworn in. If his demand was not met, he said: “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America.” (Read more at Middle East Monitor)
The United States on Monday welcomed Israel's one-year extension of a lifeline to Palestinian banks, after threats by the far-right finance minister to sever the connection amid the Gaza war. The United States had pressed Israel to maintain the waiver which allows Israeli banks to work with Palestinian ones, fearing otherwise that the comparatively stable West Bank would descend into economic havoc (Read more at Barron's).
Washington has backed up Paris’s assertions that Israel is violating the terms of last week’s ceasefire agreement with Lebanon, that formally ended 14 months of hostilities with the Hezbollah terrorist group. U.S. presidential envoy Amos Hochstein, who played a pivotal role in brokering the deal, conveyed a message to officials in Jerusalem that they are not abiding by the truce terms (Read more at JNS).
Speaking at an event at the Brookings Institution, Adm. Samuel Paparo, the navy’s top commander in the Indo-Pacific, explained that transferring advanced weapons from US stockpiles is impacting Washington’s worldwide “high-end capability.” (Read more at Defense Post)
The Dutch Supreme Court has been advised to uphold an eight-month-old ban on the export of F-35 fighter jet components to Israel from a critical regional warehouse in the Netherlands. In February, the Hague Court of Appeal ordered the government to block the exports over concerns Israel was using them to violate international law in its war on Gaza, a decision the government appealed (Read more at Middle East Eye).
However, while ending the fighting was necessary to “start the peace” in the region, he added, “I am hopeful but not naïve. The difficulty of achieving normalization after Oct. 7 is extraordinary.” (Read more at JNS)
Israel has said it will appeal the ICC decision. Israeli Foreign Minister, Gideon Sa’ar, said, “I tend to believe that in Washington, legislation is going to take place very shortly against the ICC and whoever cooperates with it” (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
The sale includes thousands of Joint Direct Attack Munition kits (JDAMs) and hundreds of small-diameter bombs. This comes just a day after a US-brokered cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon took effect. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently emphasized the importance of replenishing weapons stockpiles as part of the cease-fire rationale. “It is no secret that there have been big delays in weapons and munitions deliveries. These delays will be resolved soon,” Netanyahu said Tuesday night (Read more at Media Line).
It includes Halt to hostilities, Israeli troops withdrawing, Hezbollah pulling north, Lebanese army deploys, a monitoring mechanism, and unilateral Israeli strikes(Read more at Reuters).
The world's top investment banks are on track to post the highest revenue in five years from trading Israel's bonds and currency thanks to the volatility caused by the 14-month long war in the Middle East. Banks are expected to post $475 million in fixed-income, currencies and commodities trading (FICC) revenue linked to Israel in 2024, a more than 10% increase from 2023 (Read more at MSN).
Biden, who made remarks at the White House shortly after Israel's security cabinet approved the agreement in a 10-1 vote, said he had spoken to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati. Fighting would end on Wednesday at 4 a.m. local time (0200 GMT), he said (Read more at USNews).
Republican US Sen. Lindsey Graham threatened to sanction US allies if they enforce International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrants on Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant. "To any ally, Canada, Britain, Germany, France, if you try to help the ICC, we’re going to sanction you," Graham told Fox News in an interview late Friday (Read more at IRNA).
The West Bank has been transformed by the rapid growth of Jewish settlements since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned at the head of a far-right nationalist coalition two years ago. During that time, an explosion in settler violence that has led to US sanctions. In recent weeks, Israeli flags have sprouted on hilltops claimed by some settlers in the West Bank’s Jordan Valley, adding to worries among many local Palestinians of greater control of those areas. Some settlers prayed for Trump’s victory before the election (Read more at Arabnews).
Senate votes defeating three resolutions show strong bipartisan support for Israel. Opponents cite threats to Israel from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran. Senator Sanders argues military aid violates U.S. law on human rights (Read more at Reuters).
"The United States has been clear that the ICC does not have jurisdiction over this matter. In coordination with partners, including Israel, we are discussing next steps." a National Security Council spokesperson (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı)
The Joint Resolutions of Disapproval, co-sponsored by Senators Bernie Sanders, Peter Welch, Jeff Merkley and Brian Schatz, target six arms deals involving missiles, tank rounds, mortars, tactical vehicles and F-15 jets, with a vote expected Wednesday. Although the measures are unlikely to pass due to strong bipartisan support for Israel, the push highlights growing divisions within the Democratic Party, following recent elections where Republicans gained control of the White House and Congress. According to The Times of Israel, officials from the White House, State Department, and Pentagon have reached out to undecided Senators, urging them to oppose the legislation (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
Hochstein arrived in Beirut on Tuesday, seeking to clinch a ceasefire agreement after the Lebanese government and Hezbollah agreed to a U.S. ceasefire proposal, although with some comments. Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said the group had given its own feedback on the truce draft and that it was shared with Hochstein. He said whether a ceasefire was reached now depended on Israel and whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was serious about one. Hezbollah stood ready to keep on fighting for a long time, he added (Read more at Yahoo News).
A statement by the group said the sanctions "result from baseless slander directed at Amana by hostile and extremist elements". "Had the US administration bothered to verify the claims... it would have found them to be factually unfounded and refrained from taking action against us," the statement said (Read more at France 24).
Ahead of the Senate vote on Bernie Sanders’ resolution to block a shipment of US arms transfers to Israel, Scott Paul, Director of Peace and Security at Oxfam America, said: “We welcome Senator Sanders’ efforts to bring accountability to the Biden administration’s indefensible ongoing military support for the humanitarian nightmare unfolding in Gaza. President Biden has been unwilling to follow US law in order to save Palestinian lives, so we are depending on the Senate to do it with their vote on Wednesday (Read more at Oxfam America).
United States senators will vote Wednesday on whether the U.S. should halt $20 billion of arms sales to Israel. Bernie Sanders introduced the Joint Resolutions of Disapproval as the Biden administration has continued to violate U.S. laws that prohibit the transfer of weapons to governments committing human rights violations. Six senators have publicly backed the resolutions thus far: Jeff Merkley, Brian Schatz, Elizabeth Warren, Peter Welch, Chris Van Hollen, and Bernie Sanders (Read more at Democracy Now).
"We have scheduled a meeting between senior officials here at the department and senior officials in the Israeli government in early December. It'll be the first meeting of that new channel," spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
The Amana settler group “a key part of the Israeli extremist settlement movement and maintains ties to various persons previously sanctioned by the U.S. government and its partners for perpetrating violence in the West Bank,” the Treasury Department said in a statement announcing the sanctions. The sanctions block Americans from any transactions with Amana and freeze its U.S.-held assets. The United Kingdom and Canada have also imposed sanctions on Amana (Read more at NBCNews).
Trump's Middle East envoy epitomises the president-elect's disdain for policy wonks and international relations experts. With Trump saying he will use the hostage deal to expand the 2020 Abraham Accord agreements, Witkoff is likely set to delve deeper into the world of Gulf politics and the Israel-Palestine conflict (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The Republican lawmaker said that he has never been more worried about an Iranian nuclear breakout than right now. “It is in America’s interest to ensure the Iranian regime does not possess a nuclear weapon,” he said (Read more at JNS).
While pro-Israel views are common in US politics, Trump’s picks signal support for far-right Israeli aspirations. During the final weeks of the 2024 United States presidential race, former President Donald Trump spoke with sympathy to Arab American and Muslim voters enraged by the country’s support for Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon. But following a thumping victory at the polls, Trump is preparing to return to the White House with a coterie of some of the Republican Party’s most vehemently pro-Israel figures (Read more at Aljazeera).
Hassan Abdel Salam, a former professor at the University of Minnesota said Trump’s staffing plans were not surprising, but had proven even more extreme that he had feared (Read more at Arabnews).
"We write to express our deep concern about the rise in settler violence, settlement expansion, and measures adopted to weaken the Palestinian Authority and otherwise destabilise the West Bank," Nearly 90 Democratic lawmakers say in a letter to Biden. The letter, signed by 17 senators and 71 House members, said Israeli settlers have carried out over 1,270 recorded attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank, averaging more than three violent attacks per day (Read more at TRTWorld).
Energy Minister Eli Cohen, in an interview with Reuters said it will create an opportunity for more peace deals with Arab neighbors. Cohen said that incoming U.S. President Donald Trump has been appointing senior staff who "certainly support determined action against Iran" (Read more at AOL)
A delegation of former hostages and hostages’ relatives were visiting Rome for meetings including with the local Jewish community and Pope Francis. During a press conference, they told reporters a deal was swiftly needed to bring back all the captives and said Biden and Trump should work together (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
This strategic maneuver, approved by the Security Cabinet, reflects growing pressure on Israel, particularly as tensions rise over its military operations. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly cautioned his colleagues about potential repercussions from President Biden's administration. His warnings highlighted the possibility of Biden taking steps against Israel during his last months in office, which fueled the urgency of these diplomatic outreach efforts to shore up support from the U.S. (Read more at Pinnacle Gazette).
The United States wants real and extended pauses in fighting in Gaza so assistance can get to people who need it, but the best way to help people would be to end the war, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday. “Israel, by the standards it set itself, has accomplished the goals that it set for itself,” Blinken told reporters during a visit to Brussels. “This should be a time to end the war.” (Read more at NBCNews)
With two months left until President-elect Trump's inauguration, some Israelis are worried that President Joe Biden will replicate President Barack Obama’s actions before leaving office. Before leaving office at the end of his second term, Obama allowed the passage of U.N. Resolution 2334 declaring Judaism’s holiest site “occupied Palestinian territory” (Read more at JNS).
Asif William Rahman is charged with two counts of wilfully transmitting classified information. The indictment does not provide details about the nature of the leak, but does say it occurred on or about October 17, Reuters reported. That was around the time that a pro-Iranian Telegram account called Middle East Spectator published what appeared to be a pair of documents produced by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency that shared information about Israel's preparations for an attack on Iran. The intelligence in the documents was based on satellite imagery from October 15-16 (Read more at The National).
Tuesday's report, authored by eight international aid organizations, listed 19 measures of compliance with the U.S. demands. It said that Israel had failed to comply with 15 and only partially complied with four (Read more at Time).
In a statement congratulating Huckabee, the Republican Jewish Coalition praised him as "a long-time friend" of the group, focusing on his "abounding love of Israel" and promising his appointment would "strengthen the US-Israel relationship to even greater heights." (Read more at NBC News)
The outgoing Israeli ambassador in Washington told JNS that he is “deeply grateful” to the senator, who has “unwavering dedication” to the U.S.-Israeli bond. Herzog assumed the role in Washington in November 2021 under then-Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett (Read more at JNS).
Ofir Akunis, the consul general of Israel in New York said “We will not be in Gaza once the hostages are released and once we are sure that there are no more terrorists or arsenal of terrorists.” (Read more at JNS)
There’s not enough acknowledgment that having American hostages in Gaza and having American citizens murdered in Israel … is a national security threat for the United States. Family members of those who have been held captive in the Gaza Strip since the Hamas terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, told a gathering of largely American Jews on Monday that “the most Jewish thing you can do” is speak out on the need for a hostage deal (Read more at JNS).
There are a number of things that remain under discussion and they touch on safety issues. Among the US demands that Israel appears to have refused is allowing the entry of 50 to 100 commercial trucks a day. Restrictions on the entry of closed containers would also not be lifted due to security risks. Other demands, including the opening of a fifth crossing into Gaza, have been implemented (Read more at Strait Times).
Isaac Herzog thanked Joe Biden for Washington's "steadfast support from the very beginning of the war." Biden spoke briefly, stressing that his administration’s “commitment to Israel is ironclad, and we share a deep friendship.” (Read more at JNS)
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reviewed the steps that Jerusalem has taken to improve the “humanitarian situation inside Gaza.” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken seemed to indicate that the requirements had been met (Read more at JNS).
Israel's far-right Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, announced on Monday that he hopes to push for Israeli sovereignty over the occupied West Bank by 2025, believing US President-elect Donald Trump would back this move (Read more at Al Ahram).
Rep. Elissa Slotkin has always been very popular in the Jewish community because of her strong support for Israel, her background in intelligence services and because she shares the values of the Jewish community on many different issues (Read more at JNS).
Axios reported that Dermer passed messages from Netanyahu to Trump. He also briefed Trump on Israel's plans for Gaza, Lebanon and Iran for the next two months before Trump takes office (Read more at USNews).
President Joe Biden's administration told Israel in an Oct. 13 letter signed by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that the longtime U.S. ally must take steps within 30 days on a series of measures or risk restrictions on American military aid. The United States this week will decide whether Israel has made progress toward improving the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and how Washington will respond, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said (Read more at AOL).
"We see eye-to-eye on the Iranian threat in all its aspects, and on the dangers they reflect. We also see the great opportunities facing Israel, in the area of peace and its expansion, and in other areas," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu added (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Mr Austin wrote to Israeli officials in October demanding concrete measures to address the worsening situation in the Palestinian enclave. Failure to do so could impact US policy, the letter said (Read more at Straits Times).
He said it echoes dark moments in history when Jews were persecuted. The president said he has been in touch with Israeli and Dutch officials and that he appreciates “Dutch authorities’ commitment to holding the perpetrators accountable (Read more at The Hill).
Netanyahu tapped U.S.-born Yechiel Leiter to succeed Michael Herzog as its next ambassador in Washington. The move follows President-elect Trump’s decisive victory in the U.S. presidential election earlier this week. He got his Ph.D. in political philosophy from the University of Haifa. Leiter’s son, Maj. Moshe Yedidya Leiter, was killed last year during the Israel-Hamas war (Read more at The Hill).
The deal was widely expected and has been in the process of finalization throughout the year as Israel has been fighting a multi-front war against Iran-backed proxies in Gaza, Lebanon and Yemen. Israel used F-15s in its long-range strike on Yemen in July. The US has also deployed F-15s to the region amid Israel-Iran tensions, illustrating how the Boeing-made plane, which first flew in the 1970s, is increasingly relevant today (Read more at Breaking Defense).
The Pentagon said on Tuesday that Yoav Gallant, whom Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired as defense minister on Tuesday, has been a "trusted partner," and said it will continue to work closely with Israel's next defense minister (Read more at AOL).
Two thirds of Israelis think Trump better for Israel than Harris. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his supporters celebrated Donald Trump's election as president, hailing what a leader of the Israeli settler movement called an ally who would support them "unconditionally" (Read more at Reuters).
France's foreign minister will travel to Israel and the Palestinian territories on Wednesday seeking to press Israel to engage diplomatically to end the conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon after the U.S. presidential election is over. "The United States plays an essential role in ending the Israeli-Arab conflict," Jean-Noel Barrot said on France 2 television when asked whether a win for former President Donald Trump could boost Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Read more at AOL).
The political breakdown among Jewish respondents in Israel revealed that 90% of right-wing voters and 52% of centrists believe Trump would be more beneficial for Israel, while the left favors Harris over Trump, 42% versus 29% (Read more at JNS).
In phone call with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Blinken "reviewed actions Israel has taken to date and urged further actions to substantially increase and sustain humanitarian aid – including food, medicine and other essential supplies – to civilians across all of Gaza.” Asked what consequences Israel might face if it does not meet the 30-day requirements, Miller declined to speculate, saying: "I do not know what the factual situation that we will face in that period will be." (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı)
The strikes followed a renewed but as yet fruitless bout of US-led diplomacy aimed at getting a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon to stop over a year of fighting between Israel and Iran-backed groups Hamas and Hezbollah (Read more at New York Post).
The elections are already making a difference in Israel’s calculations. Senior Biden administration officials have stepped up efforts in recent days to resolve the conflicts in Lebanon and Gaza — which would bring a boost to Vice President Harris in her election bid — but Israeli analysts say Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is waiting to see who is voted into the White House. If Palestinians and Israelis do not really make a headway on it, it's very difficult to imagine that there will be a U.S. administration that would come to fix things for both sides. But Harris would pursue a “smarter conflict management kind of policy. In Gaza and Lebanon, Israeli analysts predict Trump would give Netanyahu a freer hand, while Israel would need to make more compromises under Harris (Read more at NPR).
As much of the world's attention has focused on the war in Gaza, growing violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank and land grabs in the occupied territory have raised concern among some of Israel's Western allies. Washington and others have imposed asset freezes and banking restrictions on violent settlers, outposts and groups and urged Israel to do more to stop attacks they say undermine efforts to end the conflict (Read more at Irish Examiner).
A new poll reveals deep partisan divisions among American voters regarding responsibility for the escalation of the Middle East conflict. About 60% of voters attribute “a lot” of responsibility for the war’s escalation to Hamas, Iran’s government and Hezbollah. Partisan differences emerge regarding Israel’s role, with approximately 60% of Democrats saying the Israeli government bears “a lot” of responsibility, compared to only about one-quarter of Republicans (Read more at JNS).
U.S. President Joe Biden dispatched Special Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa Brett McGurk and Amos Hochstein, deputy assistant to the president and senior adviser for energy and investment. Senior Israeli and American officials said that an agreement could be reached within weeks (Read more at JNS).
The United States on Wednesday urged Israel to protect civilian lives and cultural sites in Lebanon after Israel began heavy airstrikes on the historic city of Baalbek and surrounding villages in the eastern Bekaa region. “We have made clear that the campaign they are conducting in Lebanon should not, cannot, must not look like the campaign that they have conducted in Gaza. We do not want to see that type of widespread damage,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said (Read more at Swissinfo).
State Department officials gathered the incidents from public and non-public sources, including media reporting, civil society groups and foreign government contacts. The mechanism, which was established in August 2023 to be applied to all countries that receive US arms, has three stages: incident analysis, policy impact assessment, and coordinated department action. None of the Gaza cases had yet reached the third stage of action. Options, the former official explained, could range from working with Israel’s government to help mitigate harm, to suspending existing arms export licences or withholding future approvals (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
In a phone call with Gallant, Austin "reiterated the US commitment to a diplomatic arrangement in Lebanon that allows both Lebanese and Israeli civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the border, as well as a hostage release and cease-fire deal in Gaza," said spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder in a statement. Austin also reaffirmed Washington’s "ironclad support" for the defense of Israel and said the US is "well postured" to defend US personnel, allies and partners against attacks from Iran and Iranian-backed partners and proxies, Ryder added (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
The United States has asked Israel to explain a “horrifying” strike in northern Gaza, State Department spokesperson, Matthew Miller, said on Tuesday, an attack on a residential building in which at least 93 Palestinians were killed or missing. Miller said he could not speak to the specific death toll, but the US was seeking more information. He said it was a “horrifying incident with a horrifying result.” Washington contacted Israeli officials and “made clear we want to know exactly what happened, how you could have a result that produces, according to reports, dozens of children dead, and we don’t yet know the answer to that question,” Miller said (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
The first move by Biden's administration was to acknowledge that Iran would have to pay for the Oct. 1 attack, officials say. U.S. officials worked to present an alternative option that included a set of different measures: Washington worked to impose oil sanctions targeting Iran's so-called "Ghost Fleet" to offer an alternative measure to the Israelis who wanted to damage Iran's oil revenues with a kinetic strike. Moreover, the United States worked to bolster Israel's air defenses ahead of its Saturday strike on Iran. Before deploying the system, the United States wanted to know Israel's attack plans (Read more at USNews).
“No,” Harris said when asked if talks between Trump and Netanyahu could undermine what the current U.S. government is trying to achieve. “I do believe that it is critically important that we as the United States of America be an active participant in encouraging one, that this war ends, that we get the hostages out but also that there is a real commitment among nations to a two-state solution and the ‘day after’ (in Gaza),” Harris told reporters (Read more at Swissinfo).
The official added there was no U.S. involvement in the Israeli operation (Read more at Swissinfo).
The Biden administration believes Sinwar was the main obstacle to an agreement, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to the region this week hoping to achieve a breakthrough. Among the options is an Egyptian proposal for a two-week cease-fire in exchange for the release of six hostages. Still, it is not immediately clear who would be the decision-maker for any proposal brought forward to Hamas, which has yet to choose Sinwar’s successor (Read more at NBC News).
Blinken said Israel had succeeded in ensuring there could be no repeat of last year’s Oct. 7 assault and it should be looking to bring home the remaining 101 Israeli and foreign hostages and end the fighting. “Now is the time to turn those successes into an enduring strategic success,” he told reporters as he prepared to leave for Riyadh on the next stage of his visit to the Middle East. Blinken repeated that the US rejected any Israeli occupation of Gaza and said he had been assured by Netanyahu that Israel had no such plans. “It’s been US policy, it will remain US policy, and it’s also, to the best of my understanding, the policy of the Israeli government, that I heard from the prime minister, who is the authoritative word on these things,” he said (Read more at Taipei Times).
In each call, US Defence Secretary, Lloyd Austin said he cites the need for Israel to be more precise during military operations against Palestinian group, Hamas, to limit civilian casualties, and cites the need to get humanitarian assistance to the civilian population. “Failure to do that will create a generation of Palestinians that really will continue to resist cooperating with Israel in the future. So you’re actually increasing the numbers of insurgents … if you fail to do that,” Austin said. “It’s a strategic imperative in my view.” (Read more at Middle East Monitor)
Smoke, apparently from an intercepted projectile, could be seen in the sky above the hotel where Blinken was staying. A loudspeaker inside the building told everyone to stay inside. A second administration official said the rocket had been fired by the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group. The all clear from the citywide alert came approximately 10 minutes after the sirens started (Read more at NBC News).
Austin declined to say whether the system was operational, but added: “We have the ability to put it into operation very quickly and we’re on pace with our expectations.” “At the end of the day, that’s an Israeli decision, and whether or not the Israelis believe it’s proportional and how the Iranians perceive it, I mean those may be two different things,” he said (Read more at Arab Weekly)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, said there was a need for a security and political change in Lebanon that would allow displaced Israelis to return safely to their homes. Netanyahu met with Blinken for 2-1/2 hours on Tuesday and the meeting was friendly and productive, according to a statement from the prime minister's office (Read more at MSN).
Nine members of Force 100 investigated over allegations of sexual assaulting prisoner at Sde Teiman detention camp that could lead to it being barred from receiving assistance. The investigation – a rare occurrence on the part of the US with regard to Israel – could result in the unit being penalised under a landmark peace of legislation known as the Leahy law, which prohibits the state and defence departments from rendering assistance to foreign security force units facing credible accusations of human rights abuses (Read more at Guardian).
