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Arkansas legislature names ‘Judea and Samaria’ as ‘Israel’s biblical heartland’ in resolution
(JTA) — The Arkansas House off Representatives approved a resolution encouraging trade with Israel that specifically mentions “Judea and Samaria,” the biblical name for the West Bank favored by Israel’s government.
The resolution, approved last month by the Republican-led chamber, declares that “the State of Arkansas, which lies in America’s heartland, has a special kinship with Judea and Samaria, Israel’s biblical heartland” and notes that “cities across Arkansas bear the names of biblical cities throughout Judea and Samaria, such as Bethel, Hebron, Shiloh, Salem, and numerous others.”
The resolution, which is non-binding, is the latest instance of Republican support for Israeli territorial claims in the West Bank, following a period during which the leadership of both parties supported the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
In 2019, the Trump administration said it would change U.S. policy, and no longer consider Israeli settlements illegal. Speaking in Jerusalem last month, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who like Donald Trump is running for president, referred to the territory as “the Biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria,” and said it was disputed rather than occupied. The Biden Administration does not recognize Israel’s claims to the territory.
Ahead of an anticipated Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank in 2020 (which did not end up happening), the national chairman of the Republican Jewish Coalition, former Sen. Norm Coleman, said in a statement, “it is time for Israelis in the Jewish communities of Judea and Samaria and the Jordan Valley to have the same full rights and status as their fellow citizens in Tel Aviv and Haifa.”
The Arkansas resolution encourages the state government to build on a memorandum of understanding signed last year between Arkansas and Israel that promotes technical and scientific cooperation, and to “explore additional strategic partnerships” in the fields of “education, history, religion, archeology, agriculture, and innovation.”
State Rep. Mindy McAlindon, the Republican who sponsored the resolution, said it was one of the first to formally recognize the name Judea and Samaria, and that her aim was to help codify U.S. recognition of the territory as Israel’s. McAlindon consulted on the resolution with Yossi Dagan, the head of the Samaria Regional Council.
“I wanted to address not only the legal status of the settlements in Judea and Samaria, which is self-evident, but to focus on our special connection with Judea and Samaria that so many citizens of Arkansas recognize from the Bible,” McAlindon said, according to the Jewish Press.
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The post Arkansas legislature names ‘Judea and Samaria’ as ‘Israel’s biblical heartland’ in resolution 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.