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Steny Hoyer, longtime pro-Israel Democrat, steps down from House leadership role
(JTA) — Steny Hoyer, the longtime No. 2 leader of Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives who was known for decades for his closeness to AIPAC, is stepping down from his leadership position.
Hoyer, 83, the current majority leader, has been close for decades to Maryland’s Jewish community. He announced his departure Thursday, the same day that Nancy Pelosi, the House Speaker, also said she would leave the leadership. Both were reelected to Congress this month and will serve out their terms. (Both also served together as interns in 1963 in the office of late Maryland Sen. Daniel Brewster.)
Hoyer and Pelosi are stepping down after Democrats narrowly lost the House to Republicans in Nov. 8 midterm elections.
Hoyer for years led a show of a solidarity at the annual conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, appearing with a counterpart in the Republican leadership, in which both would say they disagreed on plenty, but they both agreed on support for Israel. They would often use the occasion to announce bipartisan pro-Israel legislation or initiatives.
He also led for years a tour of Democratic freshmen to Israel. In recent years, his staunch pro-Israel views lost favor among some progressive Democrats who are more critical of Israel, and in 2019, Michigan’s Rashida Tlaib said she would lead a competing trip to the Palestinian areas. She was stymied when then-Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heeded a demand from then-President Donald Trump not to allow her into the country.
Hoyer did not always hew to AIPAC’s line. In 2015 he opposed the group’s signature agenda item that year, which was to kill the Iran nuclear deal advanced by Democratic President Barack Obama.
In his letter announcing his resignation, Hoyer endorsed as Democratic leader New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, who is also close to AIPAC.
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The post Steny Hoyer, longtime pro-Israel Democrat, steps down from House leadership role appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Exclusive: Israeli Officials Harshly Critical of Steve Witkoff’s Influence on US Policy on Gaza, Iran, i24NEWS Told
US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
i24 News – Amid growing disagreements with the Trump administration over the composition of the Board of Peace for Gaza and the question of a strike on Iran, officials in Israel point to a key figure behind decisions seen as running counter to Israeli interests: Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
The officials mention sustained dissatisfaction with Witkoff. Sources close to the PM Netanyahu told i24NEWS on Saturday evening: “For several months now, the feeling has been that envoy Steve Witkoff has strong ties, for his own reasons, across the Middle East, and that at times the Israeli interest does not truly prevail in his decision-making.”
This criticism relates both to the proposed inclusion of Turkey and Qatar in Gaza’s governing bodies and to the Iranian threat. A senior Israeli official put it bluntly: “If it turns out that he is among those blocking a strike on Iran, that is far more than a coincidence.”
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EU Warns of Downward Spiral After Trump Threatens Tariffs Over Greenland
European Union flags flutter outside the EU Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on June 17, 2022. Photo: Reuters/Yves Herman
European Union leaders on Saturday warned of a “dangerous downward spiral” over US President Donald Trump‘s vow to implement increasing tariffs on European allies until the US is allowed to buy Greenland.
“Tariffs would undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. Europe will remain united, coordinated, and committed to upholding its sovereignty,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council President Antonio Costa said in posts on X.
The bloc’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said tariffs would hurt prosperity on both sides of the Atlantic, while distracting the EU from its “core task” of ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“China and Russia must be having a field day. They are the ones who benefit from divisions among allies,” Kallas said on X.
“Tariffs risk making Europe and the United States poorer and undermine our shared prosperity. If Greenland’s security is at risk, we can address this inside NATO.”
Ambassadors from the European Union’s 27 countries will convene on Sunday for an emergency meeting to discuss their response to the tariff threat.
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Israel Says US Gaza Executive Board Composition Against Its Policy
FILE PHOTO: Displaced Palestinians shelter at a tent camp in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, January 14, 2026. REUTERS/Haseeb Alwazeer/File Photo
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Saturday that this week’s Trump administration announcement on the composition of a Gaza executive board was not coordinated with Israel and ran counter to government policy.
It said Foreign Minister Gideon Saar would raise the issue with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The statement did not specify what part of the board’s composition contradicted Israeli policy. An Israeli government spokesperson declined to comment.
The board, unveiled by the White House on Friday, includes Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. Israel has repeatedly opposed any Turkish role in Gaza.
Other members of the executive board include Sigrid Kaag, the U.N. special coordinator for the Middle East peace process; an Israeli‑Cypriot billionaire; and a minister from the United Arab Emirates, which established relations with Israel in 2020.
Washington this week also announced the start of the second phase of President Donald Trump’s plan, announced in September, to end the war in Gaza. This includes creating a transitional technocratic Palestinian administration in the enclave.
The first members of the so-called Board of Peace – to be chaired by Trump and tasked with supervising Gaza’s temporary governance – were also named. Members include Rubio, billionaire developer Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.