15 May
Israel, Jewish Politics & Power, Latest

Ceasefire in Gaza, Mixed Messages in DC

Jewish Politics & Power is published every other week. Sign up for our newsletter for updates. 1. Another Round of Fighting in Gaza, Another Round of Responses from Washington Saturday marked the end of the latest bloody round in the seemingly endless conflict between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza. This time, it was the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a relatively small faction, that was responsible for the barrage of rocket and missile attacks against Israel. Hamas, the larger group controlling the Gaza Strip, sat this round (and the previous round) out. But apart from the slightly different players, everything else was depressingly familiar: the inevitable escalation, the loss of life on both sides (35 in Gaza, 2 in Israel), the eventual negotiated ceasefire and the clear understanding—on both sides—that another round of fighting is not a question of if, but of...

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03 Apr
Israel, Jewish Politics & Power, Latest

Drama in Israel Makes for New Partnerships in America

Jewish Politics & Power is published every other week. Sign up for our newsletter for updates. 1. Tough Times Help Forge New Coalitions It’s been a tumultuous couple of weeks in Israel, and in Israeli-American relations. Well, that’s probably an understatement. Israel reached what seems to be the apex of its internal battle over the future of the nation, with tens of thousands spontaneously pouring into the streets last week following Benjamin Netanyahu’s abrupt firing of his defense minister Yoav Gallant. Meanwhile in the United States, President Biden did away with niceties and diplomatic decorum, telling Netanyahu that he better change course if he ever wants to see the inside of the White House again. Mounting pressure led Netanyahu to announce a temporary suspension of his judicial overhaul legislation, and he agree to enter talks with opposition leaders under the...

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13 Apr
Latest

"Give Bibi A Chance" Menachem Rosensaft Op-Ed

By Benjamin Schuman-Stoler In case you haven't seen Menachem Rosensaft's Op-Ed in last week's Jerusalem Post, it was republished today (with some slight changes) at Huffington Post. It is interesting to see the long time peace supporter Rosensaft refusing to join in what he sees as premature admonition of hawkish new Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin (Bibi) Netanyahu. Some select excerpts (but really, the piece is worth reading in its entirety): Even before Netanyahu's new government was sworn in, skeptics and pundits warned that he would both isolate Israel internationally and refuse to engage in good-faith negotiations with the Palestinians or Israel's other neighbors.... Still, it was hardly a foregone conclusion that Rabin -- who, as Defense Minister during the first Intifada of 1988-89 ordered Israeli soldiers to "break the bones" of Palestinian demonstrators -- would shake Yasser Arafat's hand on...

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