With tensions in Jerusalem and beyond rising to a boiling point, Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu and members of his cabinet have initiated a series of highly inflammatory steps and have been using incendiary language in recent days.
Americans for Peace Now (APN) is angered and alarmed at the brazenness of Prime Minister Netanyahu's recent provocative moves, and joins the Obama administration in warning the Israeli government of the potential consequences of these measures.
APN's President and CEO Debra DeLee said: "During the past few days, in the midst of a violent flare-up of demonstrations in East Jerusalem – one of the longest and most violent waves of riots in recent history – Netanyahu seems to be eager to fuel the fire rather than extinguish it.
This week, Alpher discusses the differences between Washington’s approach to combating IS and that of Israel; why was Yaalon (reportedly) shunned by most of the Obama administration, in a rare display of dissatisfaction; Why Egypt just closed its border with Gaza and postponed convening Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks by a month, and what this means for a stable ceasefire; and whether there are emerging parallels between Israeli-Jordanian and Israeli-Egyptian security cooperation.
Jay Michaelson has it wrong. AIPAC is not, as he argues, anti-Israel.
Most of what the lobby does is focused on strengthening the bond between the United States and Israel — various aspects of this relationship, including the U.S.-Israel security cooperation — which is undisputedly pro-Israel.
But not only AIPAC. All American Jewish organizations that focus on Israel, including the ones on the extreme right, are pro-Israel. They support Israel, and they do so wholeheartedly. They care deeply about Israel, and they are deeply concerned about its future.
There can be no two-state solution without a compromise in Jerusalem. The latest moves to expand Israel’s presence in the eastern part of the city will make such a compromise impossible.
by Lior Amihai
After the Six-Day War, Israel unilaterally annexed East Jerusalem and another approximately 29 Palestinian villages around it. Other countries and the Palestinians never recognized this annexation and the demand to establish the capital of the Palestinian state in East Jerusalem still stands. And so it is clear that a two-state solution cannot come about without a compromise over Jerusalem.
