J Street is the political
home for pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-democracy Americans who want Israel to
be secure, democratic and the national home of the Jewish people. Working
in American politics and the Jewish community, we advocate policies that
advance shared US and Israeli interests as well as Jewish and democratic
values, leading to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict.



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[2]Street Talk: J Street's Monthly Newsletter

In this month's Street Talk: A Call for Urgent Diplomacy | Biden Sends A Message
to the Settlement Movement | Our ICJ Judgment Response | Warnings over War with
Iran | Congressional Advocacy Update | Fighting Trump’s MAGA Movement | Must
Read Reporting

Friends,

The pain is intolerable.

In Israel, distraught families of hostages have endured months of agony.
Over 200,000 Israelis remain displaced. Daily reports add to the growing
list of young Israelis killed in a war with no clear end-point.

In Gaza, more than 27,000 Palestinians have been killed, the majority of
whom are civilians, including an unfathomable 11,500 children. Doctors
operate without proper access to anesthetics and antibiotics. The
humanitarian situation becomes more dire each day, without enough aid to
reach almost 2 million people forced to flee their homes. Hamas continues
to resist calls to release hostages, a step which could significantly
de-escalate this catastrophe.

In Jerusalem, doubts abound over Netanyahu’s willingness to trade hostage
releases for a temporary humanitarian ceasefire, a step which may splinter
his far-right coalition. Meanwhile, nearly one-third of his cabinet
attended a Gaza settlement conference last weekend and hundreds of
protesters continue efforts to block humanitarian aid trucks from entering
Gaza through Israel.

In the face of this catastrophe, J Street continues to press the Biden
Administration to immediately and effectively use all US leverage to
release hostages, protect civilians, end the humanitarian crisis, and
bring about a negotiated halt to the fighting.

For more on our work at this moment, see our full Street Talk recap below.
As always, we welcome your thoughts and feedback as we seek to navigate
this impossibly difficult time.

Yours,

Adina Vogel Ayalon
Chief of Staff, J Street

AROUND J STREET

J Street Issues Major Statement Calling for Negotiated Halt to Hostilities

[1]Gaza, October 2023

Last Monday, J Street released a major statement calling for an urgent
diplomatic solution to free remaining hostages, end the ongoing
devastation and allow for a surge of humanitarian assistance to address
intolerable levels of pain and suffering.

It’s a call which aligns with statements made by prominent Israelis.

Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert [ [link removed] ]has said “I think that this is the
time to stop.” Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak [ [link removed] ]has said that if
Netanyahu “continues to reject” an exit strategy, Israel risks “sinking
into the Gazan mud for years to come.” Former IDF Chief and member of the
War Cabinet Gen. Gadi Eisenkot [ [link removed] ]has said it is important to “bravely”
say that “it’s not possible to return the hostages, alive, in the near
term, without a deal.”

The Biden Administration continues to intensify efforts to push both sides
toward a deal to free the hostages and put a stop to the fighting,
including deploying CIA Director William J. Burns to push negotiations
forward. [ [link removed] ]In our statement welcoming this decision, we said “It’s past
time to recognize that this war, as it is being pursued by the Netanyahu
government, is not achieving its stated aims. It’s time to lead with
diplomacy.”

[ [link removed] ]Read and Share J Street’s Statement

J Street Issues Response and Analysis Following ICJ Genocide Preliminary
Ruling

[7]President Biden

Last Friday, the International Court of Justice issued interim orders in
South Africa’s case against Israel for breaches of the Genocide
Convention. The court declined South Africa’s request for a unilateral
ceasefire, but also held there was a “plausible” risk of breaches to the
Convention, ordering the Israeli government to take “immediate and
effective” action to reduce casualties, deliver aid, and prevent and
punish extremist anti-Palestinian incitement.

In its ruling – delivered by ICJ President and former Obama official Judge
Joan Donoghue – the court rightly recognized the horrific scale of the
October 7 attack, called on all parties to abide by international law and
called for the “immediate and unconditional release” of hostages.

In response, J Street reiterated our rejection of the charge of genocide
against Israel alongside our unwavering commitment to the importance of
upholding international law.

“Orders from the ICJ are binding under international law,” [ [link removed] ]we wrote.
“In light of today’s ruling, we call on the Israeli government to comply
in full with the letter and spirit of the ICJ’s ruling. We continue to
note Hamas’ blatant, ongoing violations of international law – including
hostage taking and indiscriminate rocket fire – and urge the international
community to continue efforts to pursue justice and accountability.”

[ [link removed] ]Read and Share Our Full Response

Biden Sends Clear Message to West Bank Extremists: There Will Be Consequences

[10]Burned cars in Huwara, Febraury 2023

On Thursday, J Street welcomed a major Executive Order imposing sanctions
against those who have engaged in acts of violence, intimidation, property
destruction or forced displacement against civilians in the West Bank. The
order applies to both Israelis and Palestinians. Notably, sanctions may be
applied to government officials – sending a clear message to extremists in
the Netanyahu coalition.

As we said in our statement, we agree with President Biden that the “high
levels of extremist settler violence, forced displacement of people and
villages, and property destruction has reached intolerable levels and
constitutes a serious threat to the peace, security, and stability of the
West Bank and Gaza, Israel, and the broader Middle East region.”

“This significant Executive Order provides American officials with
powerful tools to deter further violence and extremism, prevent escalation
and better ensure the safety of everyone living in both Israel and the
West Bank,” said J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami. “The situation on the
West Bank cries out for justice and accountability, and this is a major
step in the right direction.”

[ [link removed] ]Read and Share Our Full Response

Sharing our Thoughts on Holocaust Remembrance Day

[12]Holocaust Rememberance Day in Warsaw, Poland

Last Saturday, January 27, is designated as International Holocaust
Remembrance Day by the United Nations. Around the world, it’s an important
day of learning, understanding and recommitting to fighting antisemitism
and injustice. For many within our community, it’s a day to reflect on far
more personal tales of death, flight and resilience within our own
families.

For many J Streeters, the Holocaust is an integral part of what informs
our values, our commitment to justice, and indeed our engagement on the
very issues J Street is focused on. Frankly, it’s another reason why the
invocation of the Genocide Convention in the context of Israel strikes
such a sensitive nerve, particularly with a ruling issued the day before.

All of our work is personal, but in this context, our response to the ICJ
decision, the horrific October 7 attack, and the devastation wrought by
the war in Gaza is perhaps even more so. All of us at J Street recognize
that our values and our history call us to think carefully and speak
courageously, even as we may feel the tug of history pull us in different
directions.

Together, we have worked carefully to calibrate a response that honors our
shared history and our commitment to a better future – and which
represents the community of proud, resilient, compassionate and thoughtful
Jewish Americans we bring together.

Capitol Hill Priorities: Accountability, Diplomacy and Aid

[13]Humanitarian aid in Gaza

J Street’s Government Affairs team continues to work closely with Members
of Congress to provide policy advice and clear information, and to press
for urgent action.

The team is currently supporting a range of letters, amendments and
legislative efforts designed to support diplomatic efforts to release
hostages and halt the conflict; protect civilians by bolstering oversight
of military aid; address deep concerns of growing antisemitism; and to
increase access to urgently needed humanitarian aid.

J Street is closely engaged with J Street champion Senator Chris Van
Hollen in building support for the Arms Accountability Amendment, now
backed by 18 senators, which would significantly increase transparency of
military aid delivered to US allies. We’re also working to build support
for an amendment by Senator Tim Kaine, which would remove a provision from
the latest supplemental funding request that waives congressional review
requirements for Foreign Military Financing to Israel, aligning oversight
mechanisms with those for other nations.

For a full list of the dozens of letters, resolutions and congressional
actions J Street is engaged on, [ [link removed] ]visit our continuously updated crisis
response page here.

[ [link removed] ]Sign our Petition Supporting the Arms Accountability Amendment

J Street Urges Biden Administration to Move Swiftly in UNRWA Review

[16]Gazans recieve UNRWA aid

J Street is deeply alarmed by allegations that approximately twelve of
UNRWA’s 13,000 employees in Gaza may have been involved in the October 7
attacks. Given the serious nature of the allegations – and UNRWA’s
essential role in addressing the catastrophe engulfing Gaza – we welcome
the agency’s immediate termination of employment contracts and the launch
of a high-level investigation.

As the Biden Administration temporarily pauses UNRWA funding to review the
situation, it is clear they understand the important role the agency
plays. “UNRWA has provided essential humanitarian assistance to the
Palestinian people and UNRWA is the only organization on the ground that
has the capacity to continue to provide that assistance,” said UN
Ambassador Linda Thomas Greenfield. “We shouldn’t let this information,
these facts undermine the efforts that UNRWA is making to provide
lifesaving assistance.”

With UNRWA’s network of over 150 shelters across Gaza currently hosting
over 1 million displaced civilians, we urge the administration to secure
necessary guarantees and reforms urgently – and to resist calls from
extremist voices to defund UNRWA permanently.

While Prime Minister Netanyahu has waged a long-running campaign against
the organization, including successfully pushing President Trump to
withdraw funding entirely, Israeli officials have made clear that
defunding UNRWA would significantly worsen the humanitarian catastrophe on
Israel’s doorstep. “Israel is not pushing to shut down UNRWA," a senior
Israeli official [ [link removed] ]told the Times of Israel, “this would not be in
Israel’s interest and it would not be in the interest of Israel’s allies
either.”

[ [link removed] ]Read and Share J Street’s Statement

J Street Warns Against Unilateral Strikes on Iran, Notes Risk of Catastrophic
Escalation

[19]Iranian Drone

On Monday, President Biden announced the tragic news confirming the deaths
of three US soldiers, and injury to dozens of others, following a drone
strike on an American base in Jordan from militant groups operating in
Syria and Iraq. “We will hold all those responsible to account at a time
and in a manner of our choosing,” the president said.

Following this devastating attack, some have called for the Biden
Administration to launch a direct military strike on Iran – including many
of the same hawkish, right-wing voices who have long pressed the United
States to reject diplomacy in favor of war with Iran.

“President Biden must reject calls for a military strike and pursue a
diplomacy-first policy of de-escalation and deterrence, rather than risk
embroiling the United States in yet another catastrophic, unnecessary war
of choice in the Middle East,” [ [link removed] ]we said in a statement this week. “Such
a military confrontation would have disastrous, unpredictable consequences
for the United States and our allies – including Israel – and would
invariably put American soldiers and civilians at even greater risk.”

[ [link removed] ]Read and Share J Street’s Statement

J Street Committed to Defeating Trump and the MAGA Movement in 2024

[22]Trump and Biden

Following results in Iowa and New Hampshire, endorsements from former
rivals, and a series of clear polls in South Carolina, it seems all but
certain the Donald Trump – the twice-impeached, four-times indicted and
endlessly disgraced former president – will head to the Republican
National Convention with the overwhelming majority of delegates.

J Street and our political arm, JStreetPAC, are determined to once again
defeat Donald Trump and his extremist, anti-democratic, conspiracy-ridden
MAGA movement at the ballot box this November. With every rally, town hall
or ‘Truth Social’ post it, becomes clearer and clearer that, as intensely
painful and challenging the last few months have been, the situation would
be immeasurably worse with President Trump in the White House.

With polls showing an extremely tight race in key battleground states, J
Street is proud to endorse Joe Biden for re-election and to commit to
defeating MAGA extremists up and down the ballot. Together, we’re helping
propel pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-democracy candidates to victory across
the country. We couldn’t do it without your support.

[ [link removed] ]Learn more about how JStreetPAC can amplify your political impact and
help you support your priority candidates – all with lower fees and
overhead charges than ActBlue.

Must Reads

* [ [link removed] ]The Moment We Are In, The Future We Pray For, Union for Reform
Judaism

* [ [link removed] ]Choosing Rebirth Over Revenge After My Release From Gaza, New York
Times

* [ [link removed] ]A Pediatrician’s Two Weeks Inside a Hospital in Gaza, New Yorker

* [ [link removed] ]A Biden Doctrine for the Middle East Is Forming. And It’s Big, New
York Times

* [ [link removed] ]Striking Iran Shouldn’t be on The Table, Newsweek

Must Watch

* [ [link removed] ]A Third Narrative: Palestinian Citizens of Israel on a Way Forward


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© 2024 J Street | [ [link removed] ]www.jstreet.org | [email protected]

J Street is the political home for pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-democracy
Americans who want Israel to be secure, democratic and the national home of the
Jewish people. Working in American politics and the Jewish community, we
advocate policies that advance shared US and Israeli interests as well as Jewish
and democratic values, leading to a two-state solution to the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict.



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