🧯 Iran and Israel Reach a Ceasefire: On Tuesday, we welcomed the announcement of a much needed, US-Qatar brokered, ceasefire between Israel and Iran. This is, first and foremost, a welcome reprieve for Israeli and Iranian civilians, with millions living in fear and strikes over the 12-day war killing dozens in Israel and hundreds in Iran.

“We remain deeply concerned about the status of Iran’s enriched material and other elements of its nuclear program. It is unclear precisely what has been destroyed and what might remain, underscoring longstanding concerns about the limits of military action to verifiably and permanently set back Iran’s nuclear program,” we wrote in response.
“It is essential that this moment of de-escalation leads to renewed negotiations between Iran and the US, as the clearest path to preventing the Iranian regime from developing nuclear weapons is the pursuit of a verifiable, enforceable nuclear agreement.” Read and share our full statement >>

✍️ Tell Congress: Take Back Your War Powers. While some seek to point to tactical gains from a US strike in Iran, Trump’s choice to risk all-out war with Iran – for uncertain impact on Iran’s nuclear program, without a long-term strategy or congressional approval – is a frightening indictment of how our national security decisions are being made.

We're rallying our movement to support Senator Kaine’s bipartisan War Powers Resolution in Congress – a move which would ensure that any further military action against Iran is debated and voted on by Congress, as the Constitution requires. Add your name to our petition >>

🇮🇱 The View From Israel:

Gaza, Iran and My View From Tel Aviv: J Street Israel Executive Director Nadav Tamir writes, “There’s still broad support for Israel’s strikes on Iran, what you might call ‘rallying around the flag’ in America. We must acknowledge that the threat posed to Israel by Iran’s nuclear program, missile arsenal and support for destabilizing groups across the Middle East is a real, profound danger to Israel’s security – one that is felt by all Israelis. But among the hostage families I speak with, there’s also real distress that this has overshadowed their plight.” Read here >>

Getting Home to War-Torn Israel, By Any Means Possible: J Street Director of Israel Operations Eve Lifson describes her complex journey home from a Paris Peace conference as Israel launched strikes on Iran. “On June 12, 400 Israeli and Palestinian civil society leaders landed in Paris for a peace conference, sponsored by ALLMEP and hosted by the Paris Peace Forum, under the patronage of President Macron. I was one of them. That night, Israel launched strikes on Iran – and the entire premise of the conference began to unravel.” Read here >>
How the US Entry Into the Iran War Reshaped Israeli Perceptions – And Validated Netanyahu’s Gamble: J Street Policy Fellow Yael Patir writes, “While the public appears to appreciate the strategic risk Netanyahu has taken, there is also growing frustration with the lack of a clear exit strategy and his perceived detachment from the mounting human toll of the conflict.” Read here >>
Knesset Votes on Ousting Ayman Odeh: The Knesset held an impeachment hearing on Tuesday to oust Knesset Member Ayman Odeh of the Arab-majority Hadash-Ta'al. “[Ayman Odeh] believes in a future where both Palestinians and Israelis can live in dignity and peace – and that is something we should all support,” we wrote. “This move to expel him from the Knesset is straight out of the far right's authoritarian playbook.” Read more >>

👁️ The Situation in Gaza and the West Bank: While the world’s attention turned to Iran, the war in Gaza rages on. Hostages are still held captive by Hamas as hundreds of starving Gazan civilians have been killed while trying to reach distribution centers managed by the Trump and Netanyahu backed ‘Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.’

We Cannot Tolerate Repeated Killings As Families Try To Reach Humanitarian Aid: Every week the same headlines. Starving Palestinians are shot and killed while trying to collect aid. This is a painful violation of our values and a searing indictment of the so-called ‘Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.’ ✍️ Tell Netanyahu to stop blocking aid >>

An Endless, Directionless Quagmire: On Wednesday, 7 Israeli soldiers were killed by explosives in Gaza – more horrific casualties as the Netanyahu government continues to send young soldiers to the front lines of a war with no clear aims, which should have ended long ago.

Hostage Families Call for Diplomacy to Save Their Loved Ones: Kobi Ohel, whose 24-year-old son Alon was taken hostage from the Nova music festival, sends a message to Prime Minister Netanyahu. "I'm demanding, requesting and begging the Israeli prime minister: We need to save Alon's life and the lives of the other hostages today. They'll be saved through diplomacy. I know that it's only through an agreement that Alon will be returned." Read more >>.

Israeli Settlers Rampage Through the West Bank: On Wednesday, dozens of settlers set fire to property in a West Bank village and threw stones at residents. Read more >>

Dig Deeper: The J Street Policy Center released an explainer on the West Bank Violence Prevention Act (H.R. 3045) – legislation designed to inhibit and punish violent Israeli settlers and Palestinian terrorist groups for actions that undermine peace and the viability of a two-state solution. Read here >>

💡 Don’t Miss Out on Substack

Substack Live: On this week’s Substack Live, Jeremy and Ilan discussed the aftermath of the Israel-Iran war and the NY mayor's race. Catch Substack live every Wednesday at 4pm Eastern / 1pm Pacific and subscribe to get notified. Watch the recording >>

Coffee with Contrarians: Jeremy Ben-Ami joined Jennifer Rubin and Norman Eisen to discuss Trump’s decision to strike Iran and why diplomacy remains the only way to block Iran’s path to a bomb. Watch now >>

Now What? Jeremy writes, “Some advocates of military force may – I fear – have been conceiving of this as a video game in which the US simply needed to push a button and destroy Fordo and a big ‘game over’ sign would start flashing, with Iran permanently neutralized and peace breaking out across the Middle East. Rather than ‘Game Over,’ the American strike only means the game moves to the next level.” Read the full Word on the Street Substack >>

📖 This Week’s Must-Reads:

Israel Has Proved Its Military Might. It’s Not Enough (🎁 Gift Link), Ami Ayalon writes, "The Israeli strategist Yehoshafat Harkabi once observed that in military doctrine, the enemy is a target to destroy, but in statesmanship, the enemy is a political entity to engage. Israel’s tragedy today is that its leaders see only targets. Statesmanship – the work of building a future beyond the battlefield – has all but disappeared."
Maybe It is Time for Israel to Mature, J Street Israel Executive Director Nadav Tamir writes, "Trump’s approach is no longer about unconditional support. If Israel wants the full backing of the US, it must be willing to shoulder more of the burden, whether in the form of military investments or of diplomatic concessions."
'It's a Killing Field': IDF Soldiers Ordered to Shoot Deliberately at Unarmed Gazans Waiting for Humanitarian Aid (🎁 Gift Link), "’It's a killing field,’ one soldier said. ‘Where I was stationed, between one and five people were killed every day. They're treated like a hostile force – no crowd-control measures, no tear gas – just live fire with everything imaginable: heavy machine guns, grenade launchers, mortars. Then, once the center opens, the shooting stops, and they know they can approach. Our form of communication is gunfire.’"

🗳️ Our Pro-Democracy To-Do List:

Tell Congress: take back your war powers >>

Tell Netanyahu to stop blocking aid >>

Call your Member of Congress and tell them you oppose the Gaza war >>

Host a vigil for immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers with HIAS >>

Find pro-Israel, pro-democracy, pro-peace candidates at JStreetPAC.org >>

Sign up for J Street’s 2026 National Convention >>

Until July 11, use code INDEPENDENCE for 20% off any General Admission level ticket.

Check out and share the regularly updated Pro-Democracy To-Do List on our website >>

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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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