Netanyahu leaves White House without any fanfare or announcements
(JTA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has left the White House after two days of meetings with the Trump administration — but without the public appearances or breakthrough announcements of his previous trips.
Instead, Netanyahu released multiple statements emphasizing his commitment to continuing the Gaza war until Hamas poses no threat to Israel — a sign that he remains less eager than President Donald Trump to reach an agreement with Hamas over ending the war.
He also said he had spoken again with Trump about their “great victory” against Iran, a day after his office released footage of him presenting the president with a mezuzah in the shape of the B-2 bombers that Trump dispatched to bomb Iranian nuclear sites last month.
Israeli media is reporting that officials there believe as much as 90% of the issues that separated Israel and Hamas over a ceasefire deal have been resolved in recent days. And Steve Witkoff, whom Trump has charged with negotiating peace, said on Tuesday that he believed 90% of the gaps had been closed and that a deal could come this week. But a plan for postwar governance — and whether Hamas could continue to play a role in any form — reportedly remains an obstacle.
Israeli murdered in Gush Etzion terrorist attack
(JNS) — Palestinian terrorists killed an Israeli man at the Gush Etzion Junction in Judea on Thursday afternoon, in a combined shooting and stabbing attack, medical authorities said.
The Magen David Adom medical emergency response group said its paramedics pronounced dead a man in his early 20s. Multiple terrorists were “neutralized” at the scene, the statement said.
“Two terrorists arrived at the scene and conducted a combined shooting and stabbing attack,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement on social media.
Israeli minister calls Schumer self-hating Jew, ‘Palestinian’
(JNS) — Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister for Diaspora affairs and combating antisemitism, on Thursday appeared to call U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) a “self-hating Jew” and a “Palestinian.”
On social media, Chikli, a prominent member of the Likud Party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, wrote that “The phenomenon of Jews who hate their own people is a well-documented and recurring pattern throughout history. It’s called a self-hating Jew.”
United resuming flights to Israel on July 21
(JNS) — United Airlines announced Tuesday that it will resume flights to Israel in two weeks, becoming the first U.S. carrier to renew service to Tel Aviv since Israel’s war with Iran.
The Chicago-based carrier said it will restart daily nonstop service from its Newark hub to Tel Aviv starting on July 21, and will operate two daily flights on the route from the next day.
“The resumption is in line with United’s longstanding commitment to serving Tel Aviv,” the airline said in a statement sent to JNS, noting that it has flown to Israel more than any other U.S. carrier even during wartime. “United service to Tel Aviv always follows a detailed assessment of operational considerations in the region and close consultation with the unions representing our flight attendants and pilots.”
United began selling flights to and from Tel Aviv on its website on Tuesday starting at less than $1,150 round trip in economy.
IDF eliminates Hamas commander who raided gas station on Oct. 7
(JNS) — The Israel Defense Forces had eliminated the Hamas terrorist who led the Oct. 7, 2023, infiltration of a gas station near Kibbutz Magen, the military said on Tuesday.
Taha Abu Ayadeh, identified as a platoon commander in Hamas’s Nukhba Force, was killed in a July 1 attack in the Khan Yunis area of southern Gaza, according to the IDF.
He “infiltrated Israeli territory during the brutal Oct. 7 massacre and led the infiltration of the gas station in Kibbutz Magen,” the military stated. “In addition, throughout the war, Abu Ayadeh advanced and led numerous terrorist attacks, including several attacks in the last few weeks against IDF troops operating in the Khan Yunis area.”
The IDF and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) “will continue to operate against all of the terrorists who took part in the brutal October 7th massacre,” the army added.
This Palestinian sheikh has a plan for peace with Israel — even if few are on board with it
(JTA) — Could the key to Middle East peace come not from military victory or White House pressure but a coterie of sheikhs in the West Bank?
Almost certainly not, according to regional experts. But that didn’t stop an unorthodox proposal this week from five prominent sheikhs in the Hebron region from stirring excitement among some in the region, particularly among those who are eager to advance peace that sidesteps the possible creation of a Palestinian state.
The sheikhs offered full recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and proposed a peaceful break from the Palestinian Authority to form an autonomous “Emirate of Hebron” aligned with the Abraham Accords. The region would partner with Israel and include “zero tolerance” for terrorism, according to a letter from Sheikh Wadee al-Jaabari, a senior figure in one of Hebron’s most influential clans, to Israel’s Economy Minister Nir Barkat. The letter was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
