Greg Casar

In the competitive March 1 primary for an Austin, Texas-area congressional seat, Austin City Councilmember Greg Casar is running to the left of primary challenger Eddie Rodriguez, a Democratic state representative. Early voting for the race in the state’s 35th Congressional District begins on Feb. 14. But Casar, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), appears to be charting his own path on Israel, according to a letter he wrote to a local rabbi that was obtained by Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch and Marc Rod. In the letter, Casar pledged to support American military assistance to Israel, stated his opposition to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and expressed a desire to travel to Israel and the West Bank.

At odds: DSA opposes all U.S. military aid to Israel, supports BDS and asks candidates to commit to not visiting the Jewish state. The national DSA organization has not yet made an endorsement in the race, while DSA’s local Austin chapter is supporting Casar. A spokesperson for Casar declined to comment and he does not appear to have publicly commented on Israel or the Palestinians in the past.

Democracy first: Describing his foreign policy ideology as rooted in “justice and democracy,” Casar wrote to Rabbi Alan Freedman, a rabbi at the Temple Beth Shalom Reform congregation in Austin, “I believe in the right of Israelis to live in their own democratic state. I also believe in the right of Israelis to live in peace.”

Conversation topic: In an interview with JI last week, prior to JI obtaining Casar’s letter, Freedman told JI that Casar “firmly, completely supports the existence of Israel as a Jewish state” and believes the councilman is “anxious to understand the situation better.” Freedman said the two had previously spoken at length about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Necessary defenses: Casar pledged to “support the continued federal aid for self defense of Israel,” including “the systems necessary for defense against rocket attacks that could harm civilians.” In September, Congress voted 420-9 to approve $1 billion in supplemental funding for Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense system. Eight Democrats voted against the bill.

Two-state supporter: ​​“I also believe in the right of the Palestinian people to live in peace, security, and democracy. These are fundamental rights,” Casar stated in the letter. “The clearest path” to “safety and sovereignty for all,” he wrote, “is a two state solution that will win the peace.”

Making the list: Casar has racked up an impressive slate of progressive endorsements. National figures such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) have pledged their support for Casar, as has Justice Democrats, a progressive political action committee known for backing insurgent candidates.

Read the full story and see Casar’s entire letter here.

Instant feedback: Following the publication of the aforementioned article, DSA Austin’s co-chair, Leah Bannon, called the revelations “very disappointing.”

An elderly Yemeni Jew arrives at an immigration center in the Israeli city of Beersheba on March 21, 2016, following a secret rescue operation to evacuate a group of 19 Jews from war-torn Yemen to Israel.

A new United Nations report on Yemen released last week documents extensive abuses against minority communities in the country, the procurement of weapons from Europe and Asia by Houthi rebel forces and the use of thousands of child soldiers in parts of the war-torn country, Jewish Insider’s Melissa Weiss reports.

Community concern: The 300-page annual report, compiled by a four-member panel of regional experts and sent to the U.N. Security Council, “documented the systematic persecution of Jews in Houthi-controlled areas,” finding that “[m]ost of [the] Jewish population left Yemen after several years of persecution, which started under former President Ali Abdullah Saleh but intensified under the Houthis.”

Still there: The report also acknowledged “seven Jewish individuals still in Yemen, including one who remains detained despite an order to release him issued in July 2019,” referring to Levi Marhabi, who has been imprisoned by Houthi rebels since 2016. Marhabi was arrested for his role in allegedly smuggling an artifact out of the country, after he assisted a group of Yemeni Jews who brought an 800-year-old Torah to Israel.

Weapons worry: The report also found that the Houthis employed “a complex network of intermediaries” to obtain weapons from across Europe and Asia. Houthi forces have launched attacks against Saudi Arabia and, more recently, the United Arab Emirates. A drone attack in Abu Dhabi last month killed three civilians and injured six others. Earlier this week, Emirati forces intercepted a Houthi missile attack while Israeli President Isaac Herzog was on his inaugural visit to the UAE.

Read more here.

Elsewhere: Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) told JI yesterday that the Biden administration’s decision to rescind the Houthis’ designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization should be “reevaluated” in light of the Iranian-backed militia group’s attacks on the United Arab Emirates, which Cardin called “clearly terrorism.” The Maryland senator noted, however, that “there’s a couple of issues involved, including humanitarian access.” The U.S. told the UAE on Tuesday that it would send fighter jets and a guided-missile destroyer to assist the country in the face of Houthi attacks.

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ)

Speaking for nearly an hour on the Senate floor on Tuesday evening, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) warned that Iran is dangerously close to acquiring a nuclear weapon and argued that current talks to reenter the 2015 Iran nuclear deal are ineffectual and insufficient, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.

‘Dangerous and rapidly escalating’: The senator, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, referred to “Iran’s dangerously and rapidly escalating nuclear program that has put it on the brink of having enough material for a nuclear weapon,” pointing to estimates that Iran is three to four weeks away from amassing enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon, and four months away from having enough material for a second bomb. Menendez questioned the utility of reentering the Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action given that some of the sunset provisions involved in the original agreement are set to expire next year and the arms embargo on Iran has already expired.

What’s the point?: The New Jersey senator, who opposed the 2015 agreement, argued that many of his concerns about the original deal have come to pass, with Iran preserving most of its nuclear infrastructure, blocking international inspections of its nuclear program and continuing to advance other malign activities in the Middle East. “I ask why we would try to simply go back to the JCPOA — a deal that was not sufficient in the first place — and still doesn’t address some of the most serious national security concerns we have?” he said.

Read more here.

Sudanese demonstrators burn tires during a protest demanding civilian rule.

Israeli-Sudanese normalization efforts initiated in late 2020 have been on pause since Sudan’s military coup three months ago, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Mary Catherine Phee told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.

Coup review: Sudan’s military took control of the country’s government in late October 2021. A year prior, the previous civilian government had agreed to normalize relations with Israel, although the exact contours of that agreement were never fully fleshed out and Sudan did not appear to agree to full diplomatic relations.

Pause button: “The normalization efforts that were underway were part of a negotiation with a civilian-led government. Now that that government is no longer in place, we don’t feel it’s appropriate to push forward at this time,” Phee told the Senate committee. “But that’s something we’re keeping a close eye on for an opportunity to resume.”

On the ground: The U.S. is continuing to engage with Israel on issues regarding Khartoum. Phee said that Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa David Satterfield will be in Israel on Wednesday to discuss Israel’s “concerns and interests in the region, including Sudan.” She continued, “It would be helpful if Israel could use its influence to encourage the transition [to democratic government] to go forward so that we can move forward on other important objectives like the Abraham Accords.”

Read the full story here.