[ ]J Street[ ]
Friends,

I wanted to make sure you saw our response, below, to President Biden’s
newly announced ceasefire framework to end the Gaza war and bring hostages
home.

But first, I’d like to invite you to a virtual J Street Town Hall with
senior staff this Monday.

We’ll share our plan to engage with this proposal and our candid analysis
of the situation on the ground and in Washington – and we’ll take your
questions and feedback. I hope you can join us.

[ [link removed] ]Register for J Street’s Town Hall with Senior Staff, Monday at 12pm
Eastern >>

As Jeremy said, our deepest hope is that this announcement marks the
beginning of the end of the war in Gaza. As we said earlier this week, and
as the President said Friday: It's time for this war to stop.

Hamas has said it is examining the proposal, and immense international
pressure must now be brought to bear to press them to accept it.

But just as President Biden anticipated, right-wing elements within the
Netanyahu government have also denounced the framework and signaled strong
opposition. It’s clear that sustained US diplomacy will also be needed to
press the Israeli government, in Biden’s words, “to stand behind this
plan, no matter what pressure comes.”

Please find J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami’s full response below. I
hope to see you Monday to respond to your questions and hear your feedback
(which you are also welcome to share in a reply to this email).

[ [link removed] ]Register here for Monday’s virtual Town Hall >>

Yours in hope,

Adina Vogel Ayalon
Vice President and Chief of Staff, J Street

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FW: Biden’s Ceasefire Framework (Thank you, Mr. President)
From: Jeremy Ben-Ami, J Street

I write tonight with hope that today marked a real step toward ending the
Israel-Hamas war.

President Biden stood up, put a plan on the table with full White House
backing, and began the process of rallying international pressure on Hamas
and the Netanyahu government to agree to a comprehensive framework to halt
hostilities and hammer out a durable ceasefire.

As we reiterated earlier this week, and as President Biden said today:
It's time for this war to end.

The comprehensive ceasefire framework would reunite hostages with their
families, end the devastation in Gaza, provide guarantees for Israel’s
security, surge humanitarian aid to Palestinians, start the process of
reconstruction, and ultimately pave the way for a lasting peace agreement
to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As the President noted, the
framework is supported by Israeli officials. Hamas has since said it is
examining the plan.

As I said to the press this afternoon, this was a powerful display of
presidential leadership.

Now, immense pressure must be brought to bear on Hamas to take the deal
and end this nightmare for Israelis and Palestinians alike.

There are a few points that President Biden made which I think bear
repeating.

First, the President – a lifelong supporter of Israel and the only
president to have visited Israel in wartime – made clear that Israelis can
accept this deal with no risk to their own security. “[Israel has]
devastated Hamas forces over the past 8 months,” he said. “At this point,
Hamas is no longer capable of carrying out another October 7.”

Second, as a veteran of political debates over Iraq and Afghanistan,
President Biden made clear that the “forever war” advocated by some is a
road to ruin.

“Indefinite war in pursuit of an unidentified notion of ‘total victory’
will only bog down Israel in Gaza, draining economic, military and human
resources, and furthering Israel’s isolation in the world,” the President
said. “That will not bring hostages home. That will not bring an enduring
defeat of Hamas. That will not bring Israel lasting security.”

Third, the President directly addressed the Israeli people, calling out
right-wing leaders who now face growing criticism from hostage families,
Israeli military veterans and Israel’s own security establishment.

“I know there are those in Israel who will not agree with this plan and
will call for the war to continue indefinitely – some are even in the
government coalition,” he said. “They’ve made it clear: They want to
occupy Gaza, they want to keep fighting for years and the hostages are not
a priority. I’ve urged the Israeli government to stand behind this plan,
no matter what pressure comes.”

Friends – This is exactly the type of strong, nuanced pro-Israel
statecraft that J Street has been calling for and continues to champion.
It is our dearest hope that this effort succeeds, and we will support it
with every resource at our disposal.

As President Obama has said, no ceasefire can undo the pain and anguish of
those whose loved ones were killed or kidnapped on October 7, nor make
whole the families whose lives have been torn apart by the ensuing war.
But it can save lives, here and now.

It can lay the foundations for a path toward a better future of safety and
freedom for all, so that no future generation – Israeli or Palestinian –
has to relive such horrors.

That is the path J Street is committed to, and I thank you, sincerely, for
joining us in this work.

Yours,

Jeremy Ben-Ami
President, J Street


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