"...Peace Now’s 'fringe' ideas became the 'mainstream' of the Israeli media and eventually government policy."

Baruch Gordon, founder and former manager/news director of the Israeli Arutz Sheva website, details the success of Peace Now as a way to demonstrate that his opposite goal of preventing a two-state solution is possible.

Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

October 31, 2016 - Egypt, Lebanon: the wages of chaos on Israel’s borders

Q. Developments in both Egypt and Lebanon, two of Israel’s Arab neighbors, appear to reflect a steady expanse of the regional influence of Russia, Syria and Iran, based on their military progress in Syria. How is this unfolding? What does it mean for Israel and the US?

A. Essentially, in both Cairo and Beirut the political establishment seems to have come around to the assessment that extremist Sunni Salafist violence of the sort sponsored by ISIS is a bigger threat than the non-Sunni Muslim forces...

Q. Why is this significant for Israel?

A. Because it draws Russia and possibly Iran closer to Israel’s neighbors...

Q. Let’s start with Egypt. Why the tilt toward Assad?

A. It begins with developments on the home front, where the Sisi regime faces twin threats...

Q. And in Lebanon?

A. ...the Lebanese parliament is set to break an extended political logjam and elect General Michel Aoun to the presidency...

Q. Who gains strategically from all this?

A. Ostensibly, Russia, Iran and Syria gain greater influence in Egypt and Lebanon and the Assad regime in Damascus is strengthened. But this may be a short-lived equation...

Q. Where does all this leave Israel?

A. Israel has good reason to be concerned about the direction of events in Egypt...

Help our ad campaign go national! Help us keep Rabin's vision alive.

Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin: "I would like Israel to be a Jewish state, and therefore not to annex over 2 million Palestinians..."

Coinciding with his yahrzeit (anniversary of his death), APN features Yitzhak Rabin in its ad series that has been running in two east coast Jewish newspapers – with great success.

Help us keep alive Rabin’s vision and the hope for peace. Your contribution of $25 or more will help APN go national with ads like the one above.

TAKE ACTION

Go HERE for more on APN's Rabin ad and the ad campaign.

The Times of Israel: "Is the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) Legitimizing Settlements? "

JFNA’s decision – on the eve of the 50th anniversary of the occupation – to formally open the door to taking visitors to settlements understandably sets off alarm bells.

The American Prospect: "Polls From a Distant Land: Israelis and Palestinians Despair, But Shouldn't "

If each side understood what the other wants, they'd have more hope for peace. If a responsible U.S. president pays attention, she should jack up the pressure.

Coverage of The Knesset's winter session opening

Yesterday's News Nosh provided an overview of the session which faced three big questions: the fate of the public broadcasting corporation, the fate of the settlement outpost 'Regulation Bill' and the political fate of Likud MK Oren Hazan, whom a court found had pimped, used drugs and ran a casino.

Go HERE to read and subscribe to APN's daily news review from Israel

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

"I've come to know that the work that organizations like B'Tselem and Peace Now do protects me. In working for the rights of Palestinians, they are defending the future of democracy for all Israelis. But who, now, in this place of incitement, will protect them?"

Ha'aretz Columnist Bradley Burston from his October 25 Opinion piece.

Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

October 26, 2016 - Lieberman and Shaked define crucial right wing government strategies

Q. Last week, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman gave an unusual interview to a Palestinian daily. Is there anything really new here?

A. Two dimensions of the interview are new and warrant attention...

Q. Let's start with Gaza.

A. Lieberman put Hamas on notice that while Israel will not initiate aggression, if Hamas starts another war this will be its last...

Q. And Abbas?

A. “Abbas is not interested in a solution for the Palestinian people..."

Q. Finally, Lieberman’s peace formula...

A. "The correct principle is the exchange of territories and populations rather than of land for peace."

Q. Was there anything significant Lieberman did not say?

A. He made no mention of the bodies of two IDF soldiers Hamas has held since the summer 2014 war...

Q. Turning to the right-wing establishment's designs regarding the Jewish character of Israel, Justice Minister Shaked reportedly made a significant statement a few weeks ago...

A. ...Shaked published what appears to be her credo as justice minister...

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

Thank the Obama Administration for standing up for Israel at UNESCO

UNESCO ignored the Jewish - and Christian - ties to Jerusalem in a shocking resolution that refers to the Holy Basin only by its Muslim title, does not mention the Temple Mount the way Jews refer to the site, and uses quotation marks for the Western Wall Plaza but not for its Muslim name.

TAKE ACTION and thank President Obama and his administration for rejecting the anti-Israel bias of UNESCO's resolution.

Peace Now Director Avi Buskila profiled in YNet

Peace Now's Avi Buskila: "When citizens get up in the morning and send their kids to school, we want them to ask themselves if they want their children to grow in a country at war all their lives..."

The Israeli Hebrew-language daily Yedioth Ahronoth published a comprehensive interview and profile of Avi Buskila, Peace Now's new executive director.

Go HERE to read translated excerpts and a link to the full interview.

New Illegal Outpost in the Northern Jordan Valley / Nearby Palestinian Structures Demolished

On October 25, Israeli settlers moved their illegal outpost from private Palestinian lands near Al-Khaimah to a nearby hill. This comes a month after the Palestinian structures in Al-Khaimah were demolished by the Israeli Civil Administration, which Peace Now has reason to believes is related to the outpost.

Ha'aretz: "My UN Speech Reflected Love for Israel, Truth About Settlements"

...If there was ever a time to speak the truth about the settlements, it's now.

"We are grateful for the efforts of non-governmental organizations both in the US and in Israel, and that includes Peace Now in the US, and B’tselem, which continue to inform us about the fundamental issues that occur on the ground, including the settlements enterprise."

US State Department Spokesperson Edgar Vasquez in a statement to Yedioth Ahronoth.

Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

October 19, 2016 - The UN, the US and the Palestinian issue

Q. Last week's UN Security Council discussion of the settlements has generated angry criticism from the Netanyahu government. What in particular angered the prime minister?

A. A host of issues...

Q. Hold on. APN's Lara Friedman also testified before the Council on the settlements issue.

A. ...Friedman concentrated on what Peace Now does so well: chronicling the spread of settlements and the damage this does to the prospects for a viable two-state solution...

Q. And at the broadest strategic level, what does the Security Council discussion contribute toward a two-state solution?

A. Friedman was right in arguing before the Council last week that Israel's settlement policies "reflect a deliberate strategy designed to prevent the emergence of a viable, contiguous Palestinian state."...

Q. Last week, leaked US presidential campaign correspondence quoted democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton suggesting, immediately after Israel’s March 2015 elections, that a "Potemkin" Israeli-Palestinian peace process would be better than none at all. Do you agree?

A. No. The entire Israeli-Palestinian complex has careened so far beyond a peace process that a peace initiative emanating from parties who know it has no chance of success would do more damage than good...

Q. Examples?

A. ...Secretary of State John Kerry's initiative of 2013-2014...Prime Minister Netanyahu's May 2016 initiative to recruit Egyptian support...

Please note that the APN offices will be closed next Monday, October 24 and Tuesday, October 25, in observance of the Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah holidays.

APN's Lara Friedman Addresses the United Nations Security Council on Settlements

APN's director of policy and government relations spoke on Friday, October 14 before the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) at a special session organized to examine the issue of "Illegal Israeli Settlements: An Obstacle to Peace and a Threat to the Two-State Solution."

Go HERE for a transcript of APN's testimony delivered by Lara Friedman.

"Haaretz: Speech Made by Americans for Peace Now at the UN Reflects Love for Israel" by Lara Friedman

We are proud to have spoken at the Security Council, and we will continue to speak out, wherever and whenever we believe it can make a difference, until Israeli policies cease to prioritize settlements over peace, security, democracy and Israel’s place in the community of nations.

Go HERE for a resource page with links to videos from the UN Security Council and the Press Conference, news coverage, and more.

"Deluded" - Because we dared

In response to APN's measured, fact-based analysis of the damage that West Bank settlements inflict on Israel’s national security, Prime Minister Netanyahu took to Facebook to hurl false accusations and saying that APN was part of a "slander campaign."

Listen to the post-UNSC Hearing Briefing Call with APN's Lara Friedman and Israeli legal expert Michael Sfard

These two experts discussed the United National Security Council special session on "Illegal Israeli Settlements: An Obstacle to Peace and a Threat to the Two-State Solution."

LISTEN >

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

"We strongly condemn the Israeli government's recent decision... Proceeding with this new settlement is another step towards cementing a one-state reality of perpetual occupation that is fundamentally inconsistent with Israel's future as a Jewish and democratic state."

State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner, in a statement responding to Israel's plan for a new settlement to relocate residents of the illegal outpost of Amona.

Yossi Alpher is an independent Israeli security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

Due to the holiday, there is no Hard Questions, Tough Answers this week.

Go HERE for previous editions, including last week's Outgoing Year, 5776.

APN's News Nosh - Daily News Summary from Israel

From today's News Nosh: Hebrew newspapers (with the usual exception of Israel Hayom) highlighted the unusually harsh statement that the US released against Israel for the latter’s latest settlement construction plans, (Israel rejected the criticism, blaming Palestinians for the lack of peace)...

Go HERE for more of today's headlines and news summary from Israel, and HERE to receive APN News Nosh as a daily email.

APN Legislative Round-Up: September 30, 2016

1. Bills, Resolutions, and Letters
2. Hearings II
3. On the Record III

APN wishes all a sweet and peaceful New Year

APN volunteer Barbara Green begins her Rosh Hashana thoughts with: This is an awkward time of the year for some secular Jews like me.

APN Condemns New Israeli Settlement Plan

Highlighted red circle above shows the area for the newly planned Israeli settlement in the West Bank, which will add to already existing settlements in the vicinity (shown in blue).

APN President and CEO Debra DeLee: "...the Netanyahu government is sending a message to settlers that it is an eager partner and collaborator in activities that are illegal under Israeli law...(and) a message to the Palestinians and the world that its rhetorical commitment to peace and a two-state solution is at best a cynical political cover."

Go HERE for more on plans for a new West Bank settlement plus an industrial zone.

Go HERE for the joint Peace Now and Ir Amim report "Broken Trust: State Involvement in Private Settlement in Batan Al-Hawa, Silwan"

APN's 6th Annual Professor Gerald B. Bubis Lecture in Southern California - Wednesday evening, November 30

The annual APN event, done in partnership with Valley Beth Shalom, will feature Daniel Levy, President of the US/Middle East Partnership, an internationally known expert on Israeli affairs. More information to come.

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

"A solution of two national states -- a Jewish state -- Israel; an Arab state -- Palestine. The Palestinians are our closest neighbors. I believe they may become our closest friends."

Shimon Peres, Former Israeli Prime Minister, President, and Nobel Peace Prize recipient (pictured receiving the prize), who passed away today at the age of 93.

Yossi Alpher is an independent Israeli security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

September 26, 2016 - The outgoing year, 5776

Q. Where did Israel position itself in the Middle East during the outgoing year?

A. From the standpoint of its own self-interest, Israel moved in two distinct and essentially contradictory directions......

Q. The Israel-US relationship appears to have suffered.

A. Definitely. Here too, the prism of two distinct strategic directions helps us understand what has happened......

Q. How did events in the surrounding Middle East affect the mood of Israelis?

A. Overall, Israelis seemed more frightened by the very visible Islamist onslaught in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Libya, coupled with the Assad regime's barbarism and Iran's machinations in the region, than encouraged by the behind-the-scenes Israel-Arab cooperation this has engendered......

Q. And the so-called "lone wolf intifada"? How did it affect Israelis?

A. The effect of Palestinian knifings and car-rammings of the past year appears to have meshed with the overall negative Israeli reaction to the surrounding Islamist revolutions and contributed to the country's increasingly jingoistic and at times messianic mood...

Q. What in your view are the prospects for progress between Israel and the Palestinians in the year ahead?

A. All other things being equal, both Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas will remain in office and neither will evince a serious interest in the renewal of meaningful negotiations...

Q. To sum up the outgoing year?

A. On balance, and despite some bright spots of strategic achievement, 5776 was bad for Israeli interests and for US interests in the Middle East...

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

APN Mourns the Death of Shimon Peres

Shimon Peres was an icon of Israel's founding generation, a visionary of peace and security for Israel, a dedicated leader who led Israel through wars and in the quest for peace. APN President and CEO Debra DeLee: "Shimon Peres' memory and legacy are a blessing to anyone who cares about Israel and its well being as a democracy that is guided by progressive values."

Prominent American Intellectuals Echo APN on Settlement Boycotts

The letter from more than 70 American intellectuals includes APN Board members Michael Walzer and Edward Witten.

APN warmly welcomes and endorses the open letter published in the New York Review of Books from more than 70 American intellectuals, whose message echoes and validates APN's position on the boycott of Israeli settlement goods.

Go HERE for more on APN's position and record on this issue.

APN Ad Series features Major General (res.) Gadi Shamni on the necessity of ending the occupation

The former military secretary to Israeli Prime Ministers Sharon and Olmert, military attache to the US, and top commander of IDF forces in the West Bank, recently said: "We have elevated the occupation to an art form...Every step we take should stem from one strategic goal - separation from the Palestinians."

Go HERE to see the entire ad.

Peace Parsha for the New Year

APN volunteer Barbara Green begins her Rosh Hashana thoughts with: This is an awkward time of the year for some secular Jews like me.

"Israelis and Palestinians will be better off if Palestinians reject incitement and recognize the legitimacy of Israel, (and if) Israel recognizes that it cannot permanently occupy and settle Palestinian land."

President Barack Obama, speaking Tuesday before the General Assembly of the United Nations.

Yossi Alpher is an independent Israeli security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

September 19, 2016 - SPECIAL EDITION: Books of note

Q. The past five years of Middle East turmoil must have produced some interesting expert writing. What's the best book you’ve read lately on the Arab revolutionary wave?

A. Probably Jean-Pierre Filiu's From Deep State to Islamic State: the Arab Counter-Revolution and its Jihad Legacy...

Q. Books which analyze additional causes for the current chaos in the Arab world...

A. Emma Sky's The Unravelling: High Hopes and Missed Opportunities in Iraq, a riveting and entertaining hands-on description of the failure of the 2003 US/UK invasion of Iraq and subsequent occupation...US military role historical depth is offered by Andrew Bacevich in America's War for the Greater Middle East: A Military History...

Q. And books on the Arab revolutions that add a more human dimension?

A. Another panoramic view, this time of the entire geography of the Arab Middle East, is provided by Robert F. Worth, a distinguished NY Times correspondent, in A Rage for Order: The Middle East in Turmoil, from Tahrir square to ISIS...

Q. Anything else to recommend on the US role in the Middle East before the Arab revolutions?

A. Bruce Riedel's What We Won: America's Secret War in Afghanistan 1979-89...

Q. To round off the list, something on Israel and the Palestinians?

A. Something quite unique: Zionism in Arab Discourses, by Uriya Shavit and Ophir Winter, both of Tel Aviv University...

The Jewish People's Dual Narrative: Parshat Ki Tavo

Rabbi Susan P. Fendrick, editor, writer, teacher, and spiritual director, writes ...We carry the memory of victimization, which should keep us vigilant, and of eons of wandering, which should stoke our empathy.

Words Matter, Actions Matter More

Aviva Meyer, APN Vice Chair, has written the publication "Words Matter, Actions Matter More" which reflects the realities and opportunities that would, could, and should make a difference.

See a reproduction of the publication HERE

Thank you to the thousands of you who took action so far!

APN's Stephanie Breitsman delivers a stack of your letters to a State Department official urging a stronger response to settlement activities in Hebron and Amona.

The emails and letters you sent, and continue to send, have had a demonstrative impact. As an example, the Anti-Defamation League has now publicly renounced Prime Minister Netanyahu "ethnic cleansing" comments, and re-tweeted APN's support of them.

Urge America's Jewish organizations to repudiate Netanyahu's "ethnic cleansing" comments.

Sign our Petition: Tell Israel - Stop the land grabs, stop the settlement expansion. 

Save the West Bank Palestinian village of Sussya.

APN's Ori Nir in J Weekly: "American Jewish progressives must act to defend their values in Israel"

...it's hard to argue that real tolerance and open-mindedness are not an Israeli national security interest.

40% Increase in Construction Starts in the Settlements in the First Half of 2016

Data from the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics shows that 1,195 housing units started to be constructed in the settlements in the first six months of 2016. Peace Now: Investments in the settlements do not only come on the expense of the Negev, the Galilee and the rest of Israel but also lead towards a one state reality.

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

"Like the term 'genocide,' the term 'ethnic cleansing' should be restricted to actually describing the atrocity it suggests - rather than distorted to suit political ends."

Jonathan A. Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, in Foreign Policy: Sorry Bibi, the Palestinians Are Not 'Ethnic Cleansing' Jewish Settlers

Yossi Alpher is an independent Israeli security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

September 12, 2016 - New two-state peace initiatives coming up?

Q. The informed press and academia are rife with discussion of three new Israeli-Palestinian peace initiatives that are reportedly being incubated: a set of "Obama principles", a Moscow summit, and an Israeli referendum. Can you discuss each in terms of potential content and advantages and disadvantages?

A. I first heard about the idea of President Obama presenting his own outline for Israeli-Palestinian peace about two years ago...

Q. Still, suppose Obama is determined to leave behind his own peace formula as part of his legacy. What would you recommend it contain? What should the concept be?

A. I would strongly counsel against another set of "Clinton parameters" presented in a presidential speech...

Q. PM Netanyahu seems to be contemplating steps to dissuade Obama from moving in this or any other direction, including a possible Moscow summit with Palestinian leader Abbas...

A. Netanyahu apparently genuinely fears an international initiative that attempts to dictate concessions he cannot or will not make...

>Q. You have an intelligence background. What do you make of these allegations (Mahmoud Abbas is somehow too intimate with the Russians)?

A. If the report is based solely on a document in Russian with two lines, as the Israeli scholars allege, I'm inclined to doubt its veracity...

Q. And the third initiative?

A. ..."Decision at 50" is a dynamic and intriguing idea...

"Decision at 50" Initiative launched by Peace Now with other Israeli organizations

In the 50th year of the occupation, the initiative demands a referendum on the future of Israel's rule over the West Bank and on peace with the Palestinians.

Go HERE to learn more about Decision at 50 and to sign up for updates.

Go HERE for APN's call to all Americans to support the referendum.

APN Board Members Steven Kaplan and Sandy Weiner Oped in L.A. Jewish Journal "Governor Brown should veto flawed BDS law"

The BDS controversy is best left to those who can educate, persuade and influence. This is an issue for public discourse, not confusing and muddled legislation.

Repudiate Netanyahu, Stop Israel land grabs and settlement expansion, Save a Palestinian village

Urge America's Jewish organizations to repudiate Netanyahu's "ethnic cleansing" comments

American Jewish organizations must condemn Prime Minister Netanyahu's outrageous comments for what they are: Cheap demagoguery, which exploits and minimizes horrible tragedies that Jews and others have suffered throughout history.

Sign our Petition: Tell Israel - Stop the land grabs, stop the settlement expansion.

Add your name to the message being sent to world leaders.

Save the Palestinian village of Sussya

This West Bank Palestinian village is on land long coveted by Israeli settlers and is slated for destruction.

APN's Lara Friedman in The Times of Israel: Bibi, Settlements and the "Ethnic Cleansing" Canard

It seems there is no line Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu won't cross to defend settlements.

APN on the fallacy of settlement removal being ethnic cleansing

APN's online publication succinctly covers why removing Israeli settlers from occupied territory is not ethnic cleansing, but rather a necessary step for the Jewish State of Israel.

President Jimmy Carter, Convener of the Camp David Peace Agreement, 38 years ago this week

The Israel-Egypt peace agreement was signed on September 17, 1978, and without President Jimmy Carter, Israel's first and most crucial peace agreement would not have been secured.

Go HERE for President Carter's quote on his personal commitment to peace in the Holy Land

APN Mourns the Passing of Stanley Sheinbaum, Board Member and Liberal Activist

"For a while, I was the most hated Jew in America ... by other Jews anyway. (But,) I didn't waste time agonizing." -- Stanley Sheinbaum

APN President and CEO Debra DeLee: "Stanley broke barriers in so many arenas, particularly as relates to Middle East peace...he led a delegation of American Jews, most of them members of the APN family, to open the first discussions with the PLO. We owe much to his leadership and to his bold and fearless pursuit of peace. It will be hard to imagine this world and peace activism without him."

Go HERE to read the Jewish Journal's article about Stanley's remarkable life and accomplishments.

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

"We have elevated the occupation to an art form ... And I'm asking, is this what we want to be? Every step we take should stem from one strategic goal - separation from the Palestinians."

Israeli Maj. General (res.) Gadi Shamni, former top IDF commander in the West Bank, at a conference at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya.

Yossi Alpher is an independent Israeli security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

September 6, 2016 - The totally non-credible verbal war over settlements. The increasingly complex shooting war in northern Syria

Q. In late August a UN envoy called Israeli settlement construction an impediment to peace. A Netanyahu spokesperson retorted that the envoy was “distorting history and international law”. Is there anything new we can learn from this exchange?

A. ...there is indeed something to learn from this exchange...

Q. Turkey has invaded northern Syria and the US has given its blessing. Who are the winners and losers in this round of the seemingly endless Syrian civil war? What is the strategic significance?

A. The winners are the easiest to identify...

Q. But does Washington win or lose? Where does this leave US and Israeli strategic interests regarding the Syria issue and its regional and international ramifications?

A. It will now be harder for the US to achieve its declared objective of dislodging both Assad and his primary enemy in Syria, ISIS...

Settlement Watch: Major Victory for Peace Now

Israeli High Court orders evacuation of 17 structures in the illegal outpost of Derech Ha'Avot

+972 Magazine: "The metamorphosis of a Jewish supremacist"

David Mizrahi, once a vocal anti-Arab hatemonger, makes amends in a heartfelt Facebook post, and begins preaching tolerance and acceptance.

"Decision at 50" Initiative launched by Peace Now with other Israeli organizations

"After 50 years of Israeli control of the Palestinian Territories, the time has come to decide: a bi-national state or two states, annexation or a negotiated agreement, 50 more years of military rule or a diplomatic resolution."

In the 50th year of the occupation, the initiative demands a referendum on the future of Israel's rule over the West Bank and on peace with the Palestinians.

Go HERE for the Decision at 50 press release.

Go HERE to learn more about Decision at 50 and to sign up for updates.

Help fight against the Israel Government actions that are Fanning the Flames

The policies and actions of the current Israeli government are actively fanning the flames of violence, further entrenching and expanding occupation, and killing the two-state solution.

Go HERE to learn more about the latest outrages and what you can do to take action, including signing the APN petition to:

"Stop the land grabs, stop the settlement expansion"

Letter to the New York Times from APN's Jim Klutznick and Debra DeLee

In response to "Israel Quietly Legalizes Pirate Outposts in the West Bank", a letter to the editor from the APN leaders was published, and included: It is time for our government to put action behind its words, before settlements and the occupation nullify prospects for a two-state solution.

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

"Build and we will sort it out retroactively."

Hagit Ofran, Peace Now Settlement Watch Director, in the New York Times' Israel Quietly Legalizes Pirate Outposts in the West Bank, depicting the message that the Israeli government has been sending to settlers regarding illegal outposts.

Yossi Alpher is an independent Israeli security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

August 29, 2016 - Netanyahu's delusional campaigns: selling Orthodox Zionism to US Jews; expanding international ties while stripping MFA; offering carrots and sticks to Palestinians while peace process dies

Q. The Israel Ministry of Diaspora Affairs has unveiled its new program for outreach among Jewish university students, involving cooperation with Hillel, Chabad and Olami Worldwide. What does the choice of Diaspora partners tell us?

A. ...two of the three global partners are somewhere between orthodox and ultra-orthodox in their Jewish orientation...

Q. The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs leaked to the press last week that Director General Dore Gold had paid a brief secret visit to a Muslim country in Africa with which Israel has no diplomatic relations. How significant is this?

A. ...Gold's dramatic and secret visits to African countries present a hollow spectacle...

Q. Last week you mentioned Defense Minister Lieberman's new "carrot and stick" policy toward the Palestinians. Surely there are some redeeming qualities in at least this project.

A. I can’t find many...

Plans Promoted for 463 Housing Units in the Settlements

Peace Now: The Netanyahu government continues to plan and build all over the West Bank, while also giving settlers the message that any construction done without planning will be retroactively legalized...This policy contradicts the very essential interests of the state of Israel.

Jerusalem Post: "NGO says the government advanced plans for 1,531 new settler homes in the last year"

Peace Now: Prime Minister Netanyahu has abetted illegal settler building by allowing Israeli officials to work on retroactively legalizing 756 such homes in the West Bank this year...

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

New York Times: "Israel Quietly Legalizes Pirate Outposts in the West Bank"

Unauthorized settlements dot hilltops in the West Bank, and anti-settlement groups and Palestinians say retroactively legalizing them is a methodical effort to change the region's map.

Article includes time-lapsed displays of settlement expansion using Peace Now's aerial photos.

APN's new ad features Ezer Weizman, former Israeli President and Minister of Defense

Ezer Weizman: "It must be recalled that, when one talks about the final status of the Palestinian issue, one is also talking about the permanent status of the state of Israel."

The Times of Israel: "Netanyahu's Mixed Messages on Temple Mount Incitement" by APN's Lara Friedman

...Netanyahu has regularly argued that Palestinian Authority incitement over the Temple Mount is a chief cause of violence...

Your help still needed for the campaign to save the Palestinian village of Sussya

The Israeli government is poised to make a final decision on whether to raze almost half of this Palestinian village located on land in the West Bank long coveted by settlers. Add you voice to the efforts by human rights activists:

Send a message to Secretary of State John Kerry.

Send a message to Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer.

"He who established 28 housing units in the heart of Hevron wants to perpetuate the conflict and fan the flames in the most sensitive and explosive area of the West Bank."

From Peace Now's publicity campaign against Jewish construction in Hebron. The pro-settler Arutz 7 news covered this in an article entitled: "Peace Now 'slanders' activists over Hevron construction."

Yossi Alpher is an independent Israeli security analyst. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

August 22, 2016 - Russian-Iranian strategic cooperation and its ramifications

Q. Last week you discussed the Russian-Turkish rapprochement. Now Russia is bombing Syria from a base in Iran. Are we on the cusp of a major Middle East power reorientation?

A. It’s too early to say how far this may or may not go...

Q. Let's break this down. Why would Iran, where the Islamic Republic has always insisted on "Neither East nor West", allow Russian bombers to use the Hamadan air base to launch bomber strikes against anti-regime targets in Syria?

A. ...The most obvious motive is Iran's determination to do whatever is necessary to maintain the Assad regime in Syria...

Q. And Russia's motive?

A. More power and influence in the Middle East, more ways to keep the Assad regime in power in Damascus, more blows against the Sunni Islamist movements...

Q. How are Moscow's power plays in Turkey and Iran, neither necessarily a friend of the Arabs, expanding its influence elsewhere in the Middle East?

A. Here are three examples from recent days...

Q. How does all this affect Israel?

A. Israel continues to maintain close operational coordination with Russian air units in Syrian air space...

Q. Indeed, how do you assess the US response to greater Russian penetration of the region?

A. There are two ways to view the response, or relative lack thereof, of the Obama administration...

Q. Earlier you mentioned talk of a Netanyahu-Abbas summit, perhaps in Moscow. Is this likely?

A. No...

The APN Weekly Update can be
Shared on Facebook and Tweeted!

Join the campaign to save the Palestinian village of Sussya

The Israeli government is poised to make a final decision on whether to raze almost half of this Palestinian village located on land in the West Bank long coveted by settlers. Add you voice to the efforts by human rights activists:

Send a message to Secretary of State John Kerry.

Send a message to Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer.

More Information Revealed on Establishing a New Settlement in Hebron

Peace Now: The government invests massive efforts into establishing a settlement in Hebron, the city where the daily reality of the occupation is the harshest and the most disgraceful...The government can still prevent the establishment of this new settlement...

There is no better legacy than peacemaker

Professor David N. Myers, leading Jewish historian, writes about his close friend Rabbi Leonard Beerman (z"l) and the book Zionism: The Birth and Transformation of an Ideal that author Milton Viorst dedicates to Rabbi Beerman and the other peacemakers, "the greatest of the Zionists."

APN extends an offer to send you the book for a donation of $90 or more.

Natalie Portman film based on Amos Oz memoir hits theaters nationwide

A Tale of Love and Darkness, based on the memoir by Peace Now founder and renowned Israeli author Amos Oz, is playing in Los Angeles and New York, and opens this Friday in more Southern California and New York locations, plus the metropolitan areas of Chicago, Boston, Washington DC, Philadelphia, New Jersey, San Francisco, Denver, Phoenix, Minneapolis, and various Florida locales.