Friends,

It’s been a painful week.

A grotesque ceremony from Hamas releasing the bodies of two infant Israeli hostages – Kfir and Ariel Bibas – as well as the body of 84-year-old Israeli peace advocate Oded Lifshitz. Adding to our horror was the misidentification of Shiri Bibas’s body, whose remains are, at the time of writing, unaccounted for.

Terror has struck near Tel Aviv and we’re seeing the growing threat of escalation in the West Bank, with settler violence and increased military operations displacing families from their homes.

Meanwhile, at home, we’re witnessing a direct assault on our democratic institutions, from the courts to the media to the separation of powers.

For more, find our weekly recap below.

Nate Wolfson
Director of Communications Operations

🎗️ Bring Them All Home: The pain of Thursday’s release of hostages who were killed while in captivity – including two young children – is a reminder of how urgent it is to continue to press for this ceasefire to hold as we work to get all hostages home.

Our Response: “The undignified public spectacle of Hamas’ handover ‘ceremony’ was grotesque and enraging. This is a tragic, painful day for our community. All those who have been fighting for the hostages are in mourning,” J Street Vice President Adina Vogel Ayalon said. Read our statement here >>

Getting to Phase II: With so many lives at stake, J Street Policy Center Fellow Yael Patir digs into what it will take to reach Phase II of the deal and get every hostage home. Read the full memo here >>

💰 Trump and Musk Freeze Life-Saving Aid: Warehouses overflowing with spoiling food. HIV treatment programs shut down worldwide. Anti-extremism programs halted. Trump and Musk’s decision to put a hold on America’s aid and security commitments has devastated families across the globe – and it’s threatening two fragile ceasefires in the Middle East.

J Street Briefing: Former Gaza and West Bank USAID Mission Director Larry Garber and Israeli-based peace advocate Dr. Yael Braudo-Bahat joined J Street to give a ground-level view of the impact of this chaos – and what it means for Israelis, Palestinians and the broader Middle East. Watch the briefing here >>

Palestinian Authority Security Freeze: As part of the Trump/Musk rampage on foreign assistance, the US has stopped funding the Palestinian Authority security forces, whose daily coordination with Israel is essential to combating terror in the West Bank. The move is a recipe for disaster and a danger for Israelis and Palestinians alike.

📋 Our Policy Priorities Under Trump: While Trump spent the last month wreaking havoc at home and abroad, we’ve taken time to map out our plan for the next four years.

Our Guiding Principles:

When Trump violates our values and takes actions opposed to US interests, we will speak out clearly and firmly.
Where we find areas for cooperation – such as ensuring this ceasefire holds – we will press the administration to do the right thing in the most effective way possible.
There will be a “day after” this presidency. We must ensure pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-democracy leaders learn the right lessons and are ready to lead with confidence and compassion going forward.

Digging Deeper: Our top priority is permanently ending the war, bringing the hostages home and reaching a sustainable day after for Gaza. We’re also focused on opposing settlements and annexation, realizing a 23 state solution, preventing a weakened Iran from getting a nuclear bomb, combating antisemitism, defending Israeli and US democracy, and more. Read our full policy agenda here >>

🇺🇸 A Presidents' Day Like No Other: This Presidents’ Day, J Street’s own president Jeremy Ben-Ami wrote of how infuriating it is to see the power of the presidency being used and abused by billionaires to enrich themselves and their friends at the expense of those they claim to fight for.

Key Quote: “Behind every leader there has been a movement of people driven by their values who have made it possible – from the abolitionists to the suffragists, Freedom Riders to Stonewall rioters, anti-war activists to labor unions,” Jeremy wrote. “We will lock arms with the broad coalition needed to fight back – inside and outside of Congress – with urgency and clarity.” Read Jeremy’s piece here >>

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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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