Jeremy Ben-Ami has a straightforward explanation of the Balfour Declaration: “The British in the course of fighting World War 1 were looking for the support domestically in the U.K. of the Jewish community and there was a desire to offer and to promise to that community something that they wanted.”
Bruce Robbins on why he made a documentary about Shlomo Sand: “If everyone knew what Sand has discovered about the construction of the Jewish story of exile and return, beautiful but false, they would be a little shaken… I hope that American Jews who tend to be liberal will transfer their democratic values to Israel. Let’s be democratic across the board.”
US media critical of Russian interference in the 2016 election should be reporting an FBI affidavit suggesting Israeli effort to interfere at the highest level.
Former Obama ambassador Daniel Shapiro explains a very reasonable Palestinian position: “if two states is impossible, Here’s an alternative, where everyone would have the right to vote and representation in a parliament, one democratic state between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River.” But that’s a huge threat to the Zionist vision!
Before the smartphone, elites promoted Israel’s message, says former ambassador Ido Aharoni. “Israel was… communicated to the world through the eyes of people like Tom Friedman and Dennis Ross and of course the political leadership. And they were great people.”
The Conference of Presidents, a powerful Jewish organization, caves to Islamophobic rightwing campaign on its leadership choice and liberal constituent groups dont walk away. Americans for Peace Now and Ameinu have stuck with the pro-settler organization for years, out of pro-Israel solidarity.
The Israel Policy Forum in a report bearing Ambassador Dan Shapiro’s name says Palestinian birth rate “jeopardizes” Israel’s Jewish character. This explicitly racial argument is also put forward by the American Jewish Committee. Shouldn’t they be ashamed?
The biggest impediment to annexation by Israel is a threat that the country will lose the support of the Democratic Party and American Jews, J Street says. The Israel lobby group called on Joe Biden to oppose annexation more emphatically than he already has.
The news that Israel’s new government plans to begin annexing the West Bank in July has been greeted with outrage– and resignation. Even some peace processors seem to accept that the two-state moment is passed. Former White House aide Dennis Ross says, “1 state for 2 peoples is more likely.”
Palestinian lawmakers decry the political deal in Israel. Aida Touma-Sliman calls new Netanyahu-Gantz government “dangerous” and vows to fight its plan too annex portions of the occupied West Bank.