Israel-US Bilateral Relations

The warm and friendly relations of President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu throughout the visit demonstrated the unbreakable ties and strategic relationship between the two nations that fully reflects their common values and shared interests.

By: Melanie Goldberg, February 10, 2013

I was made aware of the SJP event, “Judith Butler & Omar Barghouti – BDS Movement for Palestinian Rights,” in early January. I was appalled that Brooklyn College’s Political Science Department was co-sponsoring the event, because I did not feel that a publicly funded academic institution should endorse such hateful and anti-Semitic views. However, since, I was away in England at the time, Kohanteb, me and the rest of the members of the Israel Clubs had agreed to keep this quiet, and address the matter directly with the Political Science department and the Brooklyn College administration when we returned from vacation.

By: Alan Levine

Israel has been criticized for approving the construction of Jewish neighborhoods, or “settlements” in the suburbs of Jerusalem. This weekend, the Israeli cabinet approved construction in the E1 corridor, Maale Adumim, and East Jerusalem.  All are considered disputed territory, as they are beyond the “green line,” which marks the armistice line that separated Israel and Jordan from 1949 to 1967.

By: Alan Levine

The Palestinian Authority will attempt Thursday to gain “non-member state observer status” at the United Nations General Assembly. The strategy--known as Unilateral Declaration of Independene (UDI)--would help efforts to delegitimize Israel and would further distance the parties from peace negotiations.

By: Alan Levine, Managing Director

Rocket attacks, missile defense, targeted airstrikes, and public executions are all hot topics of the recent Hamas-Israel conflict. But they all focus on the tactics of the recent fighting and not the reasons for the war. The ceasefire gives us a chance to discuss that question with more context.

By: Melanie Goldberg, Hasbara Fellow

Most Israel advocacy groups tell you that your aim is to reach the “ninety-percent” of people-because five-percent are already on your side and the other five-percent you’ll never convince. Sadly, I realize now I should’ve listened to this advice. 

By: Natalie Menaged

Election day has come and gone, and whether or not your presidential candidate won, hopefully you were galvanized to show your support for Israel during the US election season.

Now that the elections are over, how can you continue to show your support for Israel?

By: Rabbi Elliot Mathias

Headlines about a study just released by the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise imply that anti-Israel activity and sentiment on college campuses is at a minimal level, which seemingly contradicts the argument that campuses are “on fire” against Israel.

A secular, liberal woman from the Galilee, Boshra Khalaila leaves passionate critics of Israel open-mouthed simply by describing the rights and freedoms she routinely enjoys

By IRWIN COTLER

The Iranian president, who should be in the dock of the accused, will instead be given a podium.

When Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrives in New York to address the UN General Assembly, a man who should be in the dock of the accused will instead be given an international podium – a cruel parody of law and justice that will put us on the wrong side of history.

Forty years after 11 athletes were murdered in Munich, Israel still mourns alone.

By: Rabbi Shraga Simmons

I was 11 years old and a fanatical sports fan. I could stay glued to the TV and radio for hours on end, rooting for my hometown teams. The pinnacle sporting event was the Olympics, providing not only a panoply of world-class athletics, but a once-in-four-year opportunity to root for my “special Jewish home team”: Israel.

The following article was written by Hasbara Fellow Geoffrey Aharon, who will be a senior at York University.  This article won first place in the 2012 Hasbara Fellowships Op-Ed Ultimate Challenge, and has been featured on The Prince Arthur Herald.

I am running for Prime Minister of Canada, this is my platform:

1) There are no homosexuals in Canada, nor have there ever been, or will there be. The Satanic choice of homosexuality is not one that good Canadians make.

2) I will secretly seek nuclear weapons, despite Canada being a part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

3) I will wipe a specific nearby country off the map as those people have no right to their own country.

The following article was written by Hasbara Fellow Leah Karchmer, who will be a sophomore at DePaul University.  This article placed second in the Hasbara Fellowships Op-Ed Ultimate Challenge, and has been featured on PolicyMic.

At the 2005 World Economic Forum, Israeli entrepreneur Shai Agassi was posed with the prompting question: What will you do to make the world a better place by 2020?

This piece was originally published by the New Jersey Jewish News.

by: Tzvi Raviv

June 5, 2012

Words count. They create perceptions and can even shape reality. Descriptive words, when used in a specific context, are like brands. They conjure up situations, emotions, facts, and falsehoods well beyond their dictionary definitions and, when used carelessly, can have a devastating impact.

The following article was written by Daley Epstein, who will be a junior at the University of Texas at Austion.  This article placed third in the Hasbara Fellowships Op-Ed Ultimate Challenge, and has been featured on PolicyMic.

Institutions of higher learning need dialogue and discussion, honest intellectual discourse, and open-minded problem solving. What they don’t need is BDS.

By: Rabbi Adam Jacobs

Tal Ben Shahar's class in positive psychology was one of the most popular in the history of Harvard University. Yet despite his pedagogical success, four best-selling books, a consulting practice with Fortune 500 companies and sundry television appearances, he decided it was time to move home ... to Israel. How he reached this decision and its implications are beautifully presented in an unusual film entitled "Israel Inside: How a Small Nation Makes a Big Difference."

This piece was originally published by the Leadership Action Network.

Last week, as the P5+1 (the five permanent Security Council members - the United States, France, Britain, China, Russia plus Germany)  brought proposals to talks with Iran to contain its nuclear program,  Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was speaking to the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps cadets in Tehran.  According to the Fars News Agency, when referring to the Western countries he said, “The front of oppression, arrogance and bullying is weakening and on the verge of demise despite its apparent hue and cry.”  The Supreme Leader called on the Iranian elites and youths to “rely on their talents and double their efforts to accelerate the country’s scientific progress.”

By: Galia Nurko

The exchange of letters between the PA and Israel is only a baby step in the path towards restarting negotiations, it only indicates communication between one of the Palestinian factions.  Hamas and the PA have different agendas  concerning diplomacy and/or peace talks with Israel. Therefore for true peace negotiations to succeed, the Palestinian political factions will have to choose to represent the Palestinian people under one flag.

By: Melanie Goldberg

The P5+1 (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, U.S., Britain, France, China, Russia plus Germany) have found now the most opportune time to propose a restart of negotiations with the Iranian Regime. Their hopes are that, after all these sanctions, maybe, just maybe, Tehran will listen to the concerns of the west and stop their nuclear proliferation program once and for all.

By: Daniel Cohen

“Pharoah, let my people go.”

The words Moses spoke so long ago to the leader of the Egyptians still ring with relevance today.  As Jews worldwide prepare to celebrate the holiday of Passover commemorating their exodus, Egypt is beginning to taste some freedom of its own.

By: Alan Levine

According to a Reuters report this week, the Iranian regime is investing quite a bit in helping Bashar al-Assad put down the revolts in Syria.  According to various officials, Iran is supplying the Assad regime with advanced surveillance technology, guns, ammunition, and perhaps even drones.  According to another report, Iran is apparently also helping Syria avoid Western sanctions by facilitating Syrian oils exports to China.

By: Jesse Shore

The sympathetic reactions to the tragedy that the Jewish community in Toulouse, France has undergone is unsettling.

BY: Hashem Hamdy

Hasbara's own Hashem Hamdy discusses the game-changing deployment of the Iron Dome missile defence system in the midst of the worst wave of rocket attacks since 2008.

BY: Hashem Hamdy

2012 has already been an eventful year for Israel. Hasbara Fellowships' own Hashem Hamdy gives us the scoop on what's going on in the Middle East today.

This article was originally published in the New Jersey Jewish News.

By: Elliot Mathias

Spring semester on North American campuses is well known to have an elevated level of anti-Israel activity. Between the annual Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) Conference which occurred this month at the University of Pennsylvania; Israel Apartheid Week, coming to campuses Feb. 26-March 3; and the “Al-Naqba” demonstrations marking the “catastrophe” of Israel Independence Day, we are about to see a wide range of anti-Israel activities on university campuses.

This article was originally published in the Jewish Telegraphic Agency news.

By: Natalie Menaged

NEW YORK (JTA) -- Next week, Israel haters again will launch the misinformed and misinforming movement known as Israel Apartheid Week at universities and in communities throughout the world. The good news is that while Israel Apartheid Week claims to be growing, its execution on North American campuses is limited to a handful, and even on those campuses the organizers do not reach many undecided students.

This piece was originally published by the Leadership Action Network.

Events in the Middle East are dramatically impacting the Region's Christian populations. Much of the media coverage on the subject ignores the core issues while being unfairly critical of Israel. This Leadership Action Network Alert provides perspective regarding this important subject.

By: Michael Snow

OP-ED Challenge Winner!

The following article was published originally on September 16, 2011 in the Binghamton University student newspaper, Pipe Dream.  The author is a Hasbara Fellow who competed in Hasbara Fellowships' semester-long op-ed challenge.  Students from around the country submitted pro-Israel op-eds for the chance to win the challenge.  Out of dozens of entries and 10 finalists, this article won the first place prize. Congratulations to Michael Snow!

By: Jessica Ost

The following article was published originally on October 20, 2011 in the University of Illinois student newspaper, The Daily Illini.  The author is a Hasbara Fellow who competed in Hasbara Fellowships' semester-long op-ed challenge.  Students from around the country submitted pro-Israel op-eds for the chance to win the challenge.  Out of dozens of entries and 10 finalists, this article won the second place prize. The first place op-ed will be posted here at the Angle on Thursday.

By: Jonah Remz & Aaron Leven

The following article was published originally on September 23 in the Emory University student newspaper, the Emory Wheel.  The authors are Hasbara Fellows who competed in Hasbara Fellowships' semester-long op-ed challenge.  Students from around the country submitted pro-Israel op-eds for the chance to win the challenge.  Out of dozens of entries and 10 finalists, this article won the third place prize. The second and first place op-eds will be posted here at the Angle next week.

By: Elliot Mathias

From a public relations perspective, defending Israel from criticism can sometimes be counterproductive.Take, for example, a recent op-ed in The New York Times by Justice Richard Goldstone, titled “Israel and the Apartheid Slander.” As Goldstone writes, describing Israel as a proponent of apartheid “is an unfair and inaccurate slander against Israel, calculated to retard rather than advance peace negotiations.”

By: Daniel Cohen

As the fall semester rolls on towards Thanksgiving Break and the winter holidays, there is another clock ticking, buried deep beneath reinforced bunkers in Bushehr, Iran.  The world’s leading sponsor of terrorist activities – a rogue nation that has repeatedly called for the destruction of another UN state – is well on its way towards acquiring a nuclear weapon.

By: Jesse Shore

The challenge here is ensuring that the Palestinian Authority and Hamas are held to account and their corruption exposed.

By: Elliot Mathias
(Originally published on New Jersey Jewish News)

The Palestinian initiative to seek statehood at the United Nations has very little to do with actually seeking statehood. The Palestinians are quite aware that the UN process of accepting new states must go through the Security Council, the only body in the UN with the power to create binding actions. The United States is one of five countries in the Security Council that have veto power, and President Obama has said in no uncertain terms that the U.S. will veto any Palestinian attempt to seek approval of statehood.

By: Natalie Menaged (Originaly published on ynetnews.com)

Palestinian statehood bid an opportunity for Israel advocates to make their case

Few supporters of Israel would argue that the impending UN vote on Palestinian statehood is a positive development. But unless you are a diplomat, is there anything you can do about it?

The battle for Israel's image is not one between nuanced and 'simplistic' narratives. It is a battle between truth and lies.

by: Natalie Menaged (originally published in the Jerusalem Post)

In his August 29 article, Ilan Bloch posits that not every young adult "needs to, or should be" an activist for Israel, and that hasbara (public diplomacy) training should not be "an integral part of an Israel program," nor should students be educated in a manner that lends itself to positive conclusions about Israel.

By: Elliot Mathias

The difficult incidents of the last couple of weeks, including the terror attack near Eilat and the subsequent barrage of rockets from Gaza into Israeli cities and towns, inform us of two things. First, Israel’s enemies continue their commitment to attack and target Israeli civilians in a variety of ways; and, second, when Israel rightly defends itself and responds to these attacks, it will suffer from criticism and a public image dilemma.

By: Alan Levine

The UN’s report on the Gaza flotilla of May 2010 was due to be released this week. The report release date, however, has now been delayed until August 20 in order to allow Israel and Turkey to come to an understanding over the incident and to right the course of the two countries’ bilateral relationship.

By: Abram Shanedling (Published in The Diplomatic Courier)

There’s been little cause for optimism lately with Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Yet from a small patch of desert this past month may have bubbled a ray of hope.

A ray of sun that is.

By: Daniel Cohen

Israel is in the midst of a trifecta of political attacks this summer—the Gaza flotilla, the “flytilla” from across Europe, and the looming unilateral Palestinian declaration of statehood in the United Nations.  At this point in the summer—with two of the threats appearing to have been averted—we can observe one thing that all three issues have in common.

By: Abram Shanedling

A senior Palestinian affairs correspondent shares his personal opinion on Palestinian-Israeli relations and the on-going conflict in the region.

By: Abram Shanedling

The Executive Director of the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group explains why he sees little progress in Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.

By Channah Barkhordari

No one who values human life needs to be convinced that Osama bin Laden was an inexpressibly horrific category of terrorist. No one who understands the basic right of all to live in safety questions the fact that the mastermind behind the deaths of 3,000 innocent victims on the morning of September 11, 2001 needed to be brought to justice.

By: Abram Shanedling

To his followers, he was an icon of resistance. To others, he was a Sheikh. But during his last hour, the notorious, grey-bearded, terrorist mastermind was in the crosshairs of an elite operation that would finally serve him justice.

By: Abram Shanedling

Judge Richard Goldstone has publicly admitted that his 2009 UN report was wrong in accusing Israel of targeting civilians. But even with this important acknowledgement, Israel still faces new diplomatic challenges in the UN.

By: Alan Levine

We know the usual answers of why Israel is under attack: Islamist radicalism, anti-Semitism, incitement, and hate.

But why now?  Wednesday’s bus bombing was the first major bomb attack in Jerusalem since 2004. It was preceded by the murder of the Fogel family in Itamar, one of the most brutal attacks in Israeli history. Meanwhile, the number of Hamas rockets and mortars fired into Israel from Gaza is at its worst since the Israel-Hamas war of winter 2008-2009.

By: Abram Shanedling

The Palestinian Authority has failed to fully condemn the murder of five Israeli family members in Itamar. If the PA wishes to be viewed as a credible peace partner, directly or indirectly promoting violence cannot be tolerated.

By: Natalie Menaged, National Director of Hasbara Fellowships
(From YnetNews.com)

Passing through many North American campuses this month - from New York and Boston to Chicago and Los Angeles - students are likely to draw the conclusion that Israel is a brutally oppressive regime, worthy of global boycotts and sanctions. 

By Channah Barkhordari

In a mere two months, the wave of protests erupting across the Middle East has furthered one very simple truth to Americans: the United States requires a true, democratic friend and ally in the region. Amid rapid revolutions sweeping over country after country, the US-Israel relationship is vital.

By: Alan Levine

With political unrest spreading across the Middle East, especially in Egypt, Lebanon and Tunisia, pundits and talking heads are trying to make sense of the chaos. The opposition groups in many of these countries have all been extremely diverse - democrats, Marxists, Islamists, and others are joining to demand reform and regime change. However the most important question in every revolutionary movement is: who will take power if the revolution succeeds?

By Abram Shanedling

As most expected, recent talks between Iran and six world powers, including the U.S., collapsed quicker than they started. The two-day meeting in Istanbul last weekend stalled when Iranian negotiators demanded a halt to sanctions and refused to address the country’s nuclear development. This latest failed dialogue comes amid reports that Tehran has experienced several “setbacks” in its weapons program due to tougher economic sanctions, covert cyber viruses, assassinations and disappearances of Iranian nuclear scientists.

By: Alan Levine

I feel like I’ve seen this movie before. Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations are in many ways like cheesy chick flicks. Each round of talks may have different characters and interesting story lines, but we always know the ending—the main character will find her prince charming and live happily ever after. Likewise, Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations will always find a way to fail.

By: Zach Paikin

The European Union (EU) is set to resume negotiations with Iran on its nuclear program, despite Iran’s repeated refusal to commit to a peaceful deal. Indeed, this summer, Iran shunned France in favor of dealing with Turkey’s Islamist government regarding its uranium enrichment.

By: Abram Shanedling

It’s down to a last ditch effort.

After Palestinian negotiators again walked out of peace talks in September, the Israeli government is now poised to accept a U.S. request for a 90-day extension of the West Bank settlement freeze in exchange for several military and diplomatic guarantees. But the previous 10-month construction moratorium only ushered in Palestinian demands for yet another three month freeze and no concessions. Needless to say, major questions still loom.

By: Lydia Aisenberg

Lydia Aisenberg is an Israeli journalist and writer. She currently serves as the director of Givat Haviva, an institute in Israel that seeks to "bridge the gaps in the fields of Jewish-Arab relations and promote greater understanding between different groups in Israeli society." She has been a friend of Hasbara Fellowships from the very beginning, as Givat Haviva has become a must-do visit for every Hasbara Fellowships student activism training seminar in Israel.

By: Alan Levine

This week, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) re-classified two Jewish historical sites in Israel as “Palestinian.”  The UNESCO board declared the Cave of the Patriarchs and Rachel’s Tomb to be “an integral part of the occupied Palestinian territories.”  Furthermore, "any unilateral action by the Israeli authorities is to be considered a violation of international law . . ." The UN has not been friendly to Israel since 1947, but UNESCO has now taken UN discrimination against Israel to an unprecedented level.

by: Zach Paikin

What a difference four years makes. Four years ago, Lebanon’s government was clearly pro-Western and most certainly anti-Islamist, anti-Syria and anti-Iran. The country has now tragically been absorbed into the anti-Western, revolutionary Islamist supporting Iran-Syria axis.

By: Abram Shanedling

Many world leaders, governments, and statements have been involved with the now stalled peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians. But for some reason, the Vatican thought it should join the fray this past week, unsurprisingly holding Israel to a double standard and unfairly blaming the country for the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict.

By: Alan Levine

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened the winter session of Israel’s Knesset with a speech this past Monday, in which he focused on the necessity of Palestinian recognition of Israel for any peace process to succeed.  Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., Michael Oren, echoed this call in the New York Times on Thursday.  Netanyahu offered the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, a renewal of a freeze on building in the Israeli neighborhoods of the disputed territories in exchange for Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish State.

By: Zach Paikin

“Going back to the two-state solution, besides having passed its expiry date, it was never a moral solution to start with.” -Omar Barghouti (Founder, Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel)

By: Alan Levine

This summer, I had the chance to drive from the Croatian-Bosnian border to the Bosnian city of Mostar.  After crossing the border into Bosnia-Herzegovina, I was taken aback.  I saw Croatian flags, Croatian war memorials, and Croat Catholic churches almost the entire way to Mostar.  The flags were on homes and sometimes hung on street lights in an almost official looking manner.

By: Abram Shanedling

This week, the major news from the Middle East peace talks is the expiration of the Israeli government’s 10-month, self-imposed ban on settlement construction in the West Bank. Many worry this could bring the past month of negotiations to an end, as the Palestinians are threatening to quit the direct talks over the Israeli government's decision not to extend the freeze.

However, if historical context is any indication, and regardless if one agrees or not with settlements, the real issue is Palestinian intransigence and the use of settlements merely as an excuse not to compromise.

By: Alan Levine

Next week, world leaders will gather in New York for the UN General Assembly.  Unfair criticism of Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations promise to make headlines during the meetings.  But they will only be distracting from the most important Middle Eastern storyline at the meetings; the visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.   He has regularly attended the UN summit in September since his election in 2005 and is scheduled to speak on Thursday.

By Abram Shanedling

I normally can’t stand clichés. However looking this past week at Time magazine’s latest cover story, “Why Israel Doesn’t Care About Peace,” (September 13, 2010 print edition) I couldn’t help but judge a magazine by its cover.

By Alan Levine

After Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton launched direct peace talks last week, the parties reportedly agreed to work on a framework agreement and meet again in mid-September.