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‘Hamas will be washed away’: Top congressional leaders pledge support for Israel
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The top four congressional leaders told Jewish officials from around the country they were committed to backing Israel’s war with Hamas until the terrorist organization is wiped out.
The comments came Tuesday at a rally of 350 Jewish leaders from around the country organized by the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations and the Jewish Federations of North America. It drew the Senate majority and minority leader and the U.S. House of Representatives majority and minority leader. There is no Speaker in the House currently.
The top-level turnout was a testament the degree to which the pro-Israel community has galvanized the political class since Hamas invaded Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,400 people, most of them civilians, and how the support for Israel has not abated even as it mounts a massive counterattack by air and has announced plans for a ground invasion.
Each speaker expressed unstinting support for Israel’s war aim, to destroy Hamas. President Joe Biden, who is flying to Israel on Wednesday, has also said that Hamas must be eliminated.
New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat and the minority leader in the House, cited the week’s Torah portion to justify the removal of Hamas from the earth.
“Noah was the only righteous man in the world consumed by violence, corruption and evil, this land filled with evil — it was described in Hebrew as Eretz Hamas,” he said, repeating “Hamas” for effect.
“The Torah portion ends with a flood that eradicates this evil and an ark that saves Noah from it,” Jeffries said. “These verses remind us of the role that Israel must now play in eradicating evil.”
Like other Democrats speaking, he distinguished between Hamas and the 2 million Palestinian civilians in Gaza. “International law is the law with respect to Palestinian civilians who have been callously put in harm’s way by terrorists,” he said. “However, this is a moment for accountability and Hamas will be washed away.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Jewish New York Democrat who is the majority leader, said he would push through assistance for Israel in the Senate and find a way to get the House to approve it, although that body can barely function while its Republican majority tussles over who should be speaker.
“I will lead the effort of the United States Senate to provide Israel with the support needed to fully defend itself from this monstrous attack,” Schumer said.
Schumer also described meetings he had on a two-day bipartisan visit to Israel this week, when the delegation at one point had to rush to a safe room because of a rocket warning. “We sat down with Israeli leaders. They asked us, they had a list of what they needed — so many things like JDAMs and Iron Dome.” JDAMs convert bombs into guided missiles, and the Iron Dome is Israel’s missile defense system.
“We will not just talk about waiting for the House, we will move aid through the Senate as quickly as possible, and I do believe that we’ll get a strong bipartisan vote in the Senate,” he said. “It will force the House in whatever way they decide,” Schumer said to laughter.
Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise, who as majority leader is the most senior Republican while the House awaits the next speaker, said a pro-Israel resolution, with the backing of 423 of the 434 House members, was ready to move as soon as a speaker is in place.
The Biden Administration wants to attach emergency assistance for Israel to a request for assistance to Ukraine, which an increasing number of Republicans oppose — including Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, who is vying for the speakership. Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, the minority leader, is among the Republicans who favor assistance to Ukraine and to U.S. allies in the region of China and suggested that he would back coupling the requests.
“This is what I’ll be fighting for in the coming week as the Senate considers the resources we must put into our defense and the additional assistance we need for Israel and other democracies in Europe and the Pacific,” McConnell said.
Schumer also said he would push for greater assistance for security for Jewish institutions. The grant program for vulnerable nonprofits currently stands at $360 million. Jewish groups want it to go up to $500 million.
Jeffries, who is the first Black major party leader in Congress, said the Jewish community could count on significant support. “You have friends in the African American community, all throughout the country too numerous to mention,” he said.
Alejandro Mayorkas, the Homeland Security secretary, outlined the outreach his department has made in recent days to Jewish communities fearful of a spike in antisemitism because of the war.
“The grief will not subside soon, the hurt will pass from generation to generation,” said Mayorkas, who is Jewish. “So will our resolve, our faith, the practice of it and the values that we have that bind us together. This Department of Homeland Security is here for you. We are here with you.”
A young woman who only used her first name, Noa, described surviving the massive Hamas attack on an outdoor concert, lying under bodies, hearing her friends shot and discovering afterwards that her best friend had been killed.
Fifty of the Jewish leaders were set to travel Tuesday evening to Israel in a solidarity visit. Every seat had a blue ribbon with a pin, a symbol of the demand for the return of some 200 hostages Hamas took during its raid.
Shortly after the rally, which took place at the historic Sixth and I synagogue in downtown Washington, ended, Hamas officials said Israel hit a hospital, killing hundreds. Israel blamed Palestinian Islamic Jihad, saying one of the terror group’s rockets fell short.
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The post ‘Hamas will be washed away’: Top congressional leaders pledge support for Israel appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Some Progress in Hostage Talks But Major Issues Remain, Source tells i24NEWS
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – A source familiar with the ongoing negotiations for a hostage deal confirmed to i24NEWS on Friday that some progress has been made in talks, currently taking place with Egypt, including the exchange of draft proposals. However, it remains unclear whether Hamas will ultimately accept the emerging framework. According to the source, discussions are presently focused on reaching a cohesive outline with Cairo.
A delegation of senior Hamas officials is expected to arrive in Cairo tomorrow. While there is still no finalized draft, even Arab sources acknowledge revisions to Egypt’s original proposal, reportedly including a degree of flexibility in the number of hostages Hamas is willing to release.
The source noted that Hamas’ latest proposal to release five living hostages is unacceptable to Israel, which continues to adhere to the “Witkoff framework.” At the core of this framework is the release of a significant number of hostages, alongside a prolonged ceasefire period—Israel insists on 40 days, while Hamas is demanding more. The plan avoids intermittent pauses or distractions, aiming instead for uninterrupted discussions on post-war arrangements.
As previously reported, Israel is also demanding comprehensive medical and nutritional reports on all living hostages as an early condition of the deal.
“For now,” the source told i24NEWS, “Hamas is still putting up obstacles. We are not at the point of a done deal.” Israeli officials emphasize that sustained military and logistical pressure on Hamas is yielding results, pointing to Hamas’ shift from offering one hostage to five in its most recent agreement.
Negotiators also assert that Israel’s demands are fully backed by the United States. Ultimately, Israeli officials are adamant: no negotiations on the “day after” will take place until the hostage issue is resolved—a message directed not only at Hamas, but also at mediators.
The post Some Progress in Hostage Talks But Major Issues Remain, Source tells i24NEWS first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Trump’s Envoy Witkoff Meets with Putin in Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Photo: Reuters/Maxim Shemetov
i24 News – Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met for talks in St. Petersburg on Friday.
Witkoff flew to Russia on Friday morning for talks with President Vladimir Putin about the search for a peace deal on Ukraine, the Kremlin said, saying the two men might also discuss a Trump-Putin meeting.
Witkoff has emerged as a key figure in the on-off rapprochement between Moscow and Washington amid talk on the Russian side of potential joint investments in the Arctic and in Russian rare earth minerals.
Putin was also in St Petersburg on Friday to hold what the Kremlin called an “extraordinarily important” meeting about the development of the Russian Navy, which is in the throes of a major modernization and expansion drive.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov played down the planned Witkoff-Putin meeting, telling Russian state media the US envoy’s visit would not be “momentous” and that no breakthroughs were expected.
The meeting will be their third this year and comes at a time when US tensions with Iran and China – two countries with which Russia has close ties – are severely strained over Tehran’s nuclear program and a burgeoning trade war with Beijing.
Witkoff is due in Oman on Saturday for talks with Iran over its nuclear program after Trump threatened Tehran with military action if it does not agree to a deal. Moscow has repeatedly offered its help in trying to clinch a diplomatic settlement.
Putin and Trump have spoken by phone but have yet to meet face-to-face since the US leader returned to the White House in January for a second four-year term.
Trump, who has shown signs of losing patience, has spoken of imposing secondary sanctions on countries that buy Russian oil if he feels Moscow is dragging its feet on a Ukrainian deal.
The post Trump’s Envoy Witkoff Meets with Putin in Russia first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran, US End High-Level Talks in Oman, Agree to Resume ‘Next Week’, Tehran Says
Atomic symbol and USA and Iranian flags are seen in this illustration taken, September 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Iran and the US held talks in Oman on Saturday and agreed to reconvene next week, the Iranian side said, a dialogue meant to address Tehran’s escalating nuclear program with President Donald Trump threatening military action if there is no deal.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi posted on his Telegram channel that his delegation had a brief encounter with its US counterpart, headed by Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, after they exited the indirect talks mediated by Oman.
“After the end of more than 2-1/2 hours of indirect talks, the heads of the Iranian and American delegations spoke for a few minutes in the presence of the Omani foreign minister as they left the talks,” Araqchi said.
He said the talks – a first between Iran and a Trump administration, including his first term in 2017-21 – took place in a “productive and positive atmosphere.”
“Both sides have agreed to continue the talks next week,” Araqchi wrote, without elaborating about the venue and date.
There was no immediate US comment on the talks.
Underlining the profound rift between the US and Iran, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei earlier said on X that each delegation had its separate room and would exchange messages via Oman’s foreign minister.
“The current focus of the talks will be de-escalating regional tensions, prisoner exchanges and limited agreements to ease sanctions (against Iran) in exchange for controlling Iran’s nuclear program,” an Omani source told Reuters. Baghaei denied this account but did not specify what was false.
Oman has long been an intermediary between Western powers and Iran, having brokered the release of several foreign citizens and dual nationals held by the Islamic Republic.
Tehran approached the talks warily, skeptical they could yield a deal and suspicious of Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to bomb Iran if it does not halt its accelerating uranium enrichment program – regarded by the West as a possible pathway to nuclear weapons.
While each side has talked up the chances of some progress, they remain far apart on a dispute that has rumbled on for more than two decades. Iran has long denied seeking nuclear weapons capability, but Western countries and Israel believe it is covertly trying to develop the means to build an atomic bomb.
Saturday’s exchanges appeared indirect, as Iran had wanted, rather than face-to-face, as Trump had demanded.
“This is a beginning. So it is normal at this stage for the two sides to present to each other their fundamental positions through the Omani intermediary,” Baghaei said.
Signs of progress could help cool tensions in a region aflame since 2023 with wars in Gaza and Lebanon, missile fire between Iran and Israel, Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping and the overthrow of the government in Syria.
HIGH STAKES
However, failure would aggravate fears of a wider conflagration across a region that exports much of the world’s oil. Tehran has cautioned neighboring countries that have US bases that they would face “severe consequences” if they were involved in any US military attack on Iran.
“There is a chance for initial understanding on further negotiations if the other party (U.S.) enters the talks with an equal stance,” Araqchi told Iranian TV.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on key state matters, has given Araqchi “full authority” for the talks, an Iranian official told Reuters.
Iran has ruled out negotiating its defense capabilities such as its ballistic missile program.
Western nations say Iran’s enrichment of uranium, a nuclear fuel source, has gone far beyond the requirements of a civilian energy program and has produced stocks at a level of fissile purity close to those required in warheads.
Trump, who has restored a “maximum pressure” campaign on Tehran since February, ditched a 2015 nuclear pact between Iran and six world powers in 2018 during his first term and reimposed crippling sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Since then, Iran’s nuclear program has leaped forward, including by enriching uranium to 60% fissile purity, a technical step from the levels needed for a bomb.
Israel, Washington’s closest Middle East ally, regards Iran’s nuclear program as an existential threat and has long threatened to attack Iran if diplomacy fails to curb its nuclear ambitions.
Tehran’s influence throughout the Middle East has been severely weakened over the past 18 months, with its regional allies – known as the “Axis of Resistance” – either dismantled or badly damaged since the start of the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza and the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria in December.
The post Iran, US End High-Level Talks in Oman, Agree to Resume ‘Next Week’, Tehran Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.