This Week: Why Smotrich Will Ultimately Fail 🚜 | Ro Khanna on Gaza, Palestinian Statehood and the Democratic Party 🎙️| Netanyahu’s Expansion of the Gaza War 🔍 | A Powerful Show of Dissent in Israel 🇮🇱 | Help José Andrés Serve 1 Million Daily Meals in Gaza 🌍 | This Week’s Must-Reads 📖 | Our Pro-Democracy To-Do List 🗳️ | And much more.
🚜 Why Smotrich Will Ultimately Fail: This week, Israeli authorities rubber-stamped Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s request to build 3,400 homes in the long-delayed E-1 settlement project in the heart of the West Bank. It’s a deliberate, calculated move – as Smotrich openly admitted – to split the West Bank in two and “bury a Palestinian state.”
- This Will Not Stop Palestinian Statehood: “Bulldozers, concrete and settlements can’t bury a people’s hopes and dreams for freedom and self-determination. As Jews, it’s a truth we know intimately: 2,000 years of oppression and persecution never destroyed our dream of being a free people in our own land,” J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami writes. Read more >>
- ✍️ In addition to rallying opposition to E-1 and continued settlement growth, J Street is continuing to build support for the West Bank Violence Prevention Act to sanction and defund violent settlers and the groups that support them. Join us in calling on Congress to take action >>
🎙️ Ro Khanna on Gaza, Palestinian Statehood and the Democratic Party: In the latest installment of Word on the Street Live, Jeremy and J Street Chief Policy Officer Ilan Goldenberg held a wide-ranging conversation with Congressman Ro Khanna. They discussed his new letter supporting US recognition of Palestinian statehood and the choices facing the Democratic Party. Watch here >>
🔍 Netanyahu’s Expansion of the Gaza War: What You Need to Know. In the face of strong opposition from the IDF, the Israeli cabinet greenlit Netanyahu’s plan to take over Gaza city on August 8. On August 18, Hamas reportedly accepted a proposal from Egypt and Qatar for a temporary ceasefire. Despite initially dismissing it, the Israeli government is reportedly considering the current proposal even as it continues to ramp up for a major new offensive.
- Forced Relocation and Annexation: “As Netanyahu himself has admitted, his long-term ambition is the forced relocation of some 2 million Gazans to southern Gaza,” J Street Policy Fellow Frank Lowenstein and J Street Policy Analyst Liam Hamama wrote. “This is part of a parallel effort in the West Bank that includes violently expelling Palestinians from Area C while dramatically increasing settlement growth... Taken together, it becomes clear that Netanyahu and his extremist coalition are implementing a comprehensive plan to advance their messianic vision of creating a Greater Israel." Read the full analysis >>
- ✍️ Add your name to oppose Netanyahu’s Gaza Occupation Plan. It’s not ‘pro-Israel’ to stay silent in the face of Netanyahu’s pursuit of endless war. American leaders need to wake up and recognize that the only way to end this war and get hostages home is to exert immense pressure on Netanyahu. Sign here >>
🇮🇱 A Powerful Show of Dissent in Israel: On Sunday, hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets to demand a war-ending hostage deal. J Streeters across the country showed their support, posting messages of solidarity on social media and rallying in front of the White House and across the country to demand an end to this madness.
- Jeremy’s Reflections: In his Word on the Street Substack, Jeremy voiced his support for the Israeli protests and shared reflections and resources on issues he’s recently discussed: genocide, the disastrous Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, and the skewed picture Members of Congress receive on AIPAC trips to Israel. Read here >>
🌍 Help José Andrés Serve 1 Million Daily Meals in Gaza: World Central Kitchen Founder Chef José Andrés visited Gaza and Israel last week to call for an immediate increase in humanitarian aid to Palestinians to stave off starvation. World Central Kitchen is working on expanding its operations, building more field kitchens, securing more aid, and we can help.
📖 This Week’s Must-Reads/Listens:
- Trump Will Not Save Israel from Netanyahu
Ilan Goldenberg writes for The Contrarian, “Trump was never going to be the ‘Nixon goes to China’ peacemaker. What we are seeing instead is a blank-check policy for Netanyahu and his most extreme allies. The results are clear: a strategic catastrophe for Israel, a humanitarian tragedy for Palestinians, and a further erosion of U.S. credibility.”
- The West Bank Is Sliding Toward a Crisis (Gift Article 🎁)
Jon Finer writes for the Atlantic, “I spent the past week traveling across Israel and the West Bank, meeting with officials from the Israeli government, military, and opposition, as well as Palestinian political leaders and activists. I left believing that Israel is closer to triggering a second war with West Bank Palestinians than it is to ending the disastrous conflict in Gaza.”
- Why Israel – And Trump – Should Support Palestinian Statehood
Ami Ayalon, Gilead Sher and Orni Petruschka write for Time, "Recognizing Palestine as a state presents a peaceful and realistic pathway that undermines the narrative of violent resistance and gives hope to Palestinians seeking a diplomatic solution."
- Israel's Largest Protest in Over a Year Was a Clear Warning to Netanyahu. Will It Matter?
Amir Tibon writes in Haaretz, "This decision, if executed despite the military's initial objections, will lead to a 're-run' of the Rafah incident from last year, and cost the lives of hostages like my neighbor Omri Miran from Kibbutz Nahal Oz, who can still be saved if a deal to end the war is achieved."
- Netanyahu Declares War on the World, Dragging Israel and Global Jewry Toward the Abyss
The Haaretz Editorial Board writes, "There are two options: either Israel finally pulls into its defensible and normal borders, or the circles of condemnation will widen, culminating in the inclusion of all Israelis in the maligned group, indiscriminately."
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