Dear President Biden and Secretary Blinken,

We write to you with deep concern regarding the rapidly escalating violence in the occupied Palestinian West Bank and the alarming actions of the new extreme right-wing Israeli government. We urge immediate action to prevent the further loss of Israeli and Palestinian lives. At this inflection point, we ask your administration to undertake a shift in U.S. policy in recognition of the worsening violence, further annexation of land, and denial of Palestinian rights. Only by protecting democracy, human rights, and self-determination for all Palestinians and Israelis can we achieve a lasting peace.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government includes far-right, anti-Palestinian individuals and parties. Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir openly encourages and praises violence against Palestinians. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich responded to the recent Israeli settler attacks on the Palestinian town of Huwara in the occupied West Bank by declaring that the whole town should be “wiped out.”^[1] Their presence in the government has made this the most far-right, illiberal government in Israel’s history. True to their records, these figures are pushing repressive, anti-democratic policies and escalating violence towards the Palestinian population.

Israel is at an inflection point.

Over the last twelve weeks, Israelis have taken to the streets protesting Netanyahu’s attack on the Judiciary. In his compromise with Ben Gvir, Netanayahu has announced a delay in the process, but we know that the fight for Israel’s democracy did not begin with the judiciary nor will it end there. The source of this poison is and always has been the Occupation.

The Occupation has nurtured and fomented these illiberal and oppressive tendencies among Israel’s right wing. It is no surprise that these antidemocratic practices are spreading beyond the Occupied Territories.

While the protests against domestic reforms have been making the top headlines, this far right government has continued to further entrench the Occupation. The march towards annexation has accelerated, with the government further intensifying Israel's systematic violation of Palestinian rights, inciting and committing violence against Palestinians and ramping up settlement announcements despite ongoing promises made to the United States. Just last week, Israel broke yet another agreement with the United States on settlements –this time by rescinding a 2005 law reflecting a commitment made to President Bush.

It’s clear that the United States can no longer sit back and rely on diplomatic promises from Prime Minister Netanyahu. At a minimum, we must take steps to ensure that our aid is not being used to violate human rights.

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Americans for Peace Now (APN) is deeply concerned by the current developments in Israel, including Prime Minister Netanyahu’s statement today that he intends to continue pushing his government’s anti-democratic initiative to weaken the state’s judiciary, his support for the establishment of a “national guard” that will report directly to Itamar Ben Gvir, and his continued scorched earth practices both domestically and internationally.

Netanyahu and his government have brought Israel to the brink of dictatorship. And the Prime Minister’s speech today failed to pull the country back from the brink. By stating in his speech today that “one way or another, we will bring about a reform” of the judiciary, Netanyahu made clear that he is not backing down from the government’s push to eviscerate Israel’s Supreme Court, he’s simply buying time.

This government’s so-called “judicial reform” is not an effort to streamline Israel’s judiciary but rather an aggressive, anti-democratic coup, intended to change the very nature of Israel’s government, away from a liberal democracy and toward a dictatorship of the corrupt.

Produced by the Foundation for Middle East Peace in cooperation with Americans for Peace Now, where the Legislative Round-Up was conceived.

Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. He is the former director of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University, a former senior official with the Mossad, and a former IDF intelligence officer. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

Americans for Peace Now (APN) strongly condemns comments by Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who in a speech in France absurdly asserted that “there’s no such thing as Palestinians because there’s no such thing as a Palestinian people.” APN calls on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to condemn Smotrich’s outrageous statement and urges the Biden administration to do the same.

Smotrich said that there is no such thing as a Palestinian people, Palestinian culture or Palestinian history, and added that this “truth” should be heard “at the Elysee Palace and the White House." To make things worse, Smotrich’s lectern carried a schematic map of so-called “Greater Israel,” which included the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

Smotrich’s speech triggered justifiable fury among both Palestinians and Jordanians, including a statement by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, noting that the map constitutes a violation of Jordan’s US-brokered peace agreement with Israel.

Produced by the Foundation for Middle East Peace in cooperation with Americans for Peace Now, where the Legislative Round-Up was conceived.

Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. He is the former director of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University, a former senior official with the Mossad, and a former IDF intelligence officer. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.