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US Jewish federations delegation lobbies in Israel against Netanyahu’s planned judiciary overhaul
(JTA) — A delegation of U.S. Jewish federation leaders is lobbying in Israel against the government’s planned overhaul of the judiciary, a rare step that underscores the degree to which the proposed changes have rattled the U.S. Jewish establishment.
The delegation came to Israel for 24 hours between Tuesday and Wednesday, and includes representatives of more than 30 U.S. Jewish communities. The delegation met with lawmakers from the governing coalition as well as the parliamentary opposition. Their main focus was on a proposal that would allow a simple majority of the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, to override Supreme Court rulings.
A statement from the Jewish Federations of North America, which is organizing the trip, singled out “the threats this proposal could have on Israel’s checks and balances and in safeguarding minority rights.” The delegation, the statement said, “also voiced concerns over the implications that this reform may have on government support for Israel in North America.”
Israel’s Supreme Court has acted as a bulwark safeguarding the rights of vulnerable populations — including women, LGBTQ Israelis and Arab Israelis. The proposal to sap the courts of much of their power and independence has drawn sharp criticism from a range of establishment American Jewish organizations and public figures with reputations as defenders of Israel, as well as Democrats in the United States, including President Joe Biden. Protests against the proposed changes have, for months, brought hundreds of thousands of people to the streets across Israel.
Defenders of the proposed changes say the courts have been afforded the unwarranted power to overturn laws passed by the Knesset, and that the reform will allow the country’s government to better reflect the will of Israel’s right-wing majority.
The trip is notable because the federation system — whose local branches aim to act as representatives of their local Jewish communities — has historically avoided criticism of Israeli government actions. Last month, the federations’ umbrella organization took the extraordinary step of writing to Israeli political leaders to oppose the override legislation and to urge compromise.
A federation official speaking on background said one concern is that the organized Jewish community in the United States is at the forefront of defending rights for LGBTQ people, ethnic and religious minorities and women. Critics say the proposed reforms threaten to erode those rights in Israel.
The delegation comprised representatives from the federations’ national leadership as well as from large and small communities. Metropolitan areas and states that were represented include New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Colorado, Cleveland, San Francisco, Rochester, New York, Chicago, Boston, Detroit, Hartford, Connecticut, Nashville, Madison, Wisconsin and Minneapolis.
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The post US Jewish federations delegation lobbies in Israel against Netanyahu’s planned judiciary overhaul appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Pete Hegseth Pledges Retribution After Islamist Gunmen in Syria Kills 2 US Soldiers and Civilian, Injuring 3
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attends a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on US President Donald Trump’s budget request for the Department of Defense, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, US, June 11, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
i24 News – Two US Army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed in an Islamic State attack on Saturday in Palmyra, Syria, where they were supporting counterterrorism operations, the Pentagon said.
Three others were wounded, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the attacker was killed by partner forces.
The Syrian Interior Ministry said that shooter in the deadly attack in Palmyra was a “member of the Syrian security forces who was influence by extremist ideology.”
President Donald Trump posted that “We mourn the loss of three Great American Patriots in Syria, two soldiers, and one Civilian Interpreter. Likewise, we pray for the three injured soldiers who, it has just been confirmed, are doing well.”
“This was an ISIS attack against the US, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them. The President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack. There will be very serious retaliation. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
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Israel Says It Kills Senior Hamas Commander Raed Saed in Gaza
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on a car in Gaza City, December 13, 2025.REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
The Israeli military said it killed senior Hamas commander Raed Saed, one of the architects of the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel, in a strike on a car in Gaza City on Saturday.
It was the highest-profile assassination of a senior Hamas figure since a Gaza ceasefire deal came into effect in October.
In a joint statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said Saed was targeted in response to an attack by Hamas in which an explosive device injured two soldiers earlier on Saturday.
The attack on the car in Gaza City killed five people and wounded at least 25 others, according to Gaza health authorities. There was no immediate confirmation from Hamas or medics that Saed was among the dead.
HAMAS SAYS ATTACK VIOLATES CEASEFIRE AGREEMENT
An Israeli military official described Saed as a high-ranked Hamas member who helped establish and advance the group’s weapons production network.
“In recent months, he operated to reestablish Hamas’ capabilities and weapons manufacturing, a blatant violation of the ceasefire,” the official said.
Hamas sources have also described him as the second-in-command of the group’s armed wing, after Izz eldeen Al-Hadad.
Saed used to head Hamas’ Gaza City battalion, one of the group’s largest and best-equipped, those sources said.
Hamas, in a statement, condemned the attack as a violation of the ceasefire agreement but did not say whether Saed was hurt and stopped short of threatening retaliation.
The October 10 ceasefire has enabled hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to return to Gaza City’s ruins. Israel has pulled troops back from city positions, and aid flows have increased.
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Hezbollah Chief: Disarmament Would Be ‘Death Sentence’ for Lebanon
Lebanon’s Hezbollah Chief Naim Qassem gives a televised speech from an unknown location, July 30, 2025, in this screen grab from video. Photo: Al Manar TV/REUTERS TV/via REUTERS
i24 News – Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said on Saturday that it was not the responsibility of the Shiite terror group “to prevent aggression,” but rather the Lebanese state’s, and it is the responsibility of Hezbollah to engage “when the state and army fail to do so.”
In a recorded televised statement, Qassem sarcastically posed the question whether it was not Hezbollah that should be demanding the Lebanese Army’s disarmament if the latter fails to stop “Israel’s ongoing aggression.”
On the issue of disarming Hezbollah, Qassem said that disarming it in the manner currently proposed is a death sentence for Lebanon.
“Even if the sky falls, we will not be disarmed, not even if the entire world unites against Lebanon. We will not allow this and it will not happen,” Qassem said.