Friday, April 9, 2021, 1:00 pm (ET)

Antisemitism: Competing Definitions

A conversation with Rabbi Jill Jacobs and Lara Friedman, moderated by Hadar Susskind

The definition of antisemitism, which many consider to be intuitive, has recently become controversial. Now, there are three definitions trending. In addition to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) “working definition of antisemitism,” there is the new Nexus definition, and the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism (JDA), which offer different perspectives and help generate a deeper, more complex discussion on the nature of antisemitism and proper ways of confronting it.     

This discussion was jointly sponsored by Americans for Peace Now and T’ruah, The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights. It featured Rabbi Jill Jacobs, the Executive Director of T’ruah, and Lara Friedman, the President of the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP), and was moderated by Hadar Susskind, the president and CEO of Americans for Peace Now.

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Thursday, March 25, 2021, 11:00 am (ET)

Dr. Dahlia Scheindlin

Political Analyst, Pollster, Fellow at the Century Foundation

Following an election campaign that pundits depict as the sleepiest in Israel’s history, Israelis went to the polls for the fourth time in two years. Election fatigue notwithstanding, the results of this round could be more consequential than the past three. Will Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc win the coveted 61 MK majority for him to form a coalition? Will the opposition gain enough votes to foil such a government? Will the Kahanist extremists cross the threshold to make it into the Knesset? Will Meretz? And how are the Arab parties going to fair?

Dr. Scheindlin is a public opinion expert and an international political and strategic consultant, as well as a scholar and a writer. She has advised and conducted research on seven national campaigns in Israel over the past twenty years, and has provided research and advising for elections, referendums, and civil society campaigns in fifteen different countries.

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Thursday, March 4, 2021, 12:00 pm (ET)

The Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Model - with Bernard Avishai and Sam Bahour

Co-authors of the recent New York Times article, "Want Israeli-Palestinian Peace? Try Confederation"

As physical separation between Israel and a future Palestinian state seems increasingly difficult to accomplish, the confederation model is gaining momentum among scholars. Co-authors of a recent New York Times article on the topic, Bernard Avishai and Sam Bahour, discussed the confederation idea on an APN webinar on March 4th, in a conversation with APN Board member Geoffrey Lewis.

Sam Bahour is an American-Palestinian writer and management consultant living in Ramallah. Bernard Avishai is an American-Israeli university professor, author and business consultant living in Jerusalem.

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Thursday, February 25, 2021, 12:00 pm (ET)

MK Merav Michaeli

Knesset Member

Israeli citizens will go to the polls in a month to elect a new Knesset. It’s the fourth round in two years, but it’s not déjà vu. There are several new developments. One of them is Merav Michaeli’s fresh leadership at the Labor Party. As the newly elected chair of a party, Michaeli is working to revive it and remake it as a relevant, powerful force in Israeli politics.

What do these elections mean for Israel’s left? What alliances is Israel’s Zionist left willing to create to deny Benjamin Netanyahu another term in office? Can Israeli-Palestinian peace be on the electoral agenda when the elections are first and foremost a referendum on Netanyahu? What are the prospects of a stronger alliance between Israel’s Zionist left and the Arab minority?

Knesset Member Michaeli addressed these and other questions on our briefing call, in conversation with APN Board member Jo Ann Mort and APN President and CEO Hadar Susskind. The webinar, another in a series on the coming elections took place on Thursday, February 25th, at 12:00 noon (EST)

In her nine years in Israeli politics, following a successful career in television and print journalism, MK Michaeli has established herself as a clear, courageous progressive voice, focusing on peace, social justice, women’s rights, and LGBT rights. One of Israel’s leading feminists, Michaeli has been socially active since the late 1990s, when she established a lobbying organization to assist and promote sexual violence victim centers across Israel. As a Knesset member, she consistently speaks out against the occupation and against the Israeli government’s inaction in pursuit of an end to the occupation.

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Michael Sfard

International Human Rights Activist, Lawyer

The international Criminal Court (ICC) recently ruled that it has jurisdiction over the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip — territories under Israeli occupation since 1967. This opens the path for the ICC to launch formal investigations against war crimes suspects, whether Israelis or Palestinians.

What does the ICC’s decision mean for Israel? How is it going to conduct investigations? Are charges against the Israeli individual Israelis imminent? What is the nature of the judicial procedure? Is the threat of ICC proceedings likely to influencing the conduct of the IDF in the occupied territories, or the Israeli government’s West Bank settlement policy? Is it likely to encourage Israel to engage diplomatically with the Palestinians?

Israeli human rights lawyer Michael Sfard addressed these and other questions in this webinar on Tuesday, February 23rd.

Sfard is an Israeli attorney who represents various Israeli and Palestinian human rights and peace organizations, movements, and activists, including Israel’s Peace Now movement. He is an expert in international humanitarian law and international human rights law. He was educated at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and at University College in London.

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Monday, February 8, 2021, 1:00 pm (ET)

Dahlia Scheindlin

Political Analyst, Pollster, Fellow at the Century Foundation

Israelis are going to the polls. Again. For the fourth time in two years.

How is this election round different from others? What is it about? Are there new players on the scene? Who are they and do they have a chance of denying Prime Minister Netanyahu another term in office? How is the traditional left faring? What about the Arab vote and the prospects for a shared Jewish Arab party?

Political analyst and pollster Dahlia Scheindlin will discuss these and other questions on this APN webinar, another in our series on Israel’s March 23rd elections.

Dahlia Scheindlin is a public opinion expert and an international political and strategic consultant, as well as a scholar and a writer. She has advised and conducted research on seven national campaigns in Israel over the past twenty years, and has provided research and advising for elections, referendums, and civil society campaigns in fifteen different countries.

LISTEN TO RECORDING

Wednesday, February 3, 2021, 1:00 pm (ET)

Zaha Hassan

Human Rights Lawyer, Visiting Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Her research focus is on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the use of international legal mechanisms by political movements, and U.S. foreign policy in the region. Previously, she was the coordinator and senior legal advisor to the Palestinian negotiating team during the PLO’s bid for United Nations membership, and was a member of the Palestinian delegation to Quartet-sponsored exploratory talks between 2011 and 2012.

Her talk will focus on current Palestinian politics, including efforts to advance political reform, unity talks between Fatah and Hamas, plans for elections (both presidential, parliamentary and PLO plenary elections), and current Palestinian efforts to reestablish bilateral relations with the incoming Biden administration.

REGISTER HERE

Wednesday, December 9, 2020, 10:30 am (EST)

Dr. Hanan Ashrawi

Palestinian leader, legislator, activist, and scholar

Dr. Ashrawi will discuss the Palestinian perspective on the transition, and examine the state of US-Palestinian relations after Donald Trump’s four years in the White House, the Palestinian leadership’s efforts to push the reset button on the relationship as President-elect Biden prepares to enter the Oval Office next month, and the Palestinian expectations from the Biden administration. Dr. Ashrawi will also talk about the Palestinian leadership’s overall foreign policy, beyond the relationship with Washington.

REGISTER HERE

Currently a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Dr. Ashrawi has held official positions with the Palestinian Authority, was a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, and founded the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights (MIFTAH). She is considered one of the most compelling spokespeople for the Palestinian national cause.

TODAY, Monday, December 7, 2020, 3:00 pm (EST)

Hagit Ofran

Peace Now’s Settlement Watch Project

Hagit will discuss the Trump administration’s legacy regarding settlements and what the Biden administration will need to do to reverse Trump’s radical shift from America’s traditional policy on this issue. She will also address current developments in East Jerusalem, illegal outposts, Area C of the West Bank, and other Israeli efforts – backed by the outgoing Trump administration – to normalize settlements and to advance West Bank annexation.

REGISTER HERE

Wednesday, December 9, 2020, 10:30 am (EST)

Dr. Hanan Ashrawi

Palestinian leader, legislator, activist, and scholar

Dr. Ashrawi will discuss the Palestinian perspective on the transition, and examine the state of US-Palestinian relations after Donald Trump’s four years in the White House, the Palestinian leadership’s efforts to push the reset button on the relationship as President-elect Biden prepares to enter the Oval Office next month, and the Palestinian expectations from the Biden administration. Dr. Ashrawi will also talk about the Palestinian leadership’s overall foreign policy, beyond the relationship with Washington.

REGISTER HERE

Currently a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Dr. Ashrawi has held official positions with the Palestinian Authority, was a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, and founded the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights (MIFTAH). She is considered one of the most compelling spokespeople for the Palestinian national cause.