Daily Kickoff
Good Wednesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we look at the fallout from the IDF’s strike on a humanitarian convoy in Gaza and the reactions in Jerusalem and Washington, and report on a bipartisan push on Capitol Hill to condemn the Houthis’ human rights abuses. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Sarah Elfreth, Pouria Zeraati and Shari Redstone.
President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he was “outraged and heartbroken” following an Israeli strike on a World Central Kitchen convoy that killed seven humanitarian workers, including several foreign nationals and an American citizen. The strike, which occurred overnight Monday, has garnered international condemnation and raised concerns over how and whether aid can safely be delivered in the enclave. Israel, Biden said, “has not done enough to protect aid workers trying to deliver desperately needed help to civilians.”
“Incidents like yesterday’s simply should not happen,” Biden continued. “Israel has also not done enough to protect civilians. The United States has repeatedly urged Israel to deconflict their military operations against Hamas with humanitarian operations, in order to avoid civilian casualties.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took responsibility yesterday for the incident, which he called a “tragic event in which our forces unintentionally harmed non-combatants in the Gaza Strip.” IDF Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, Israel’s military chief, said early Wednesday that the results of a preliminary investigation found that the incident was caused by a “misidentification.” Israeli President Isaac Herzog apologized by phone to World Central Kitchen founder José Andrés yesterday, in a conversation in which Herzog also “reiterated Israel’s commitment to ensuring a thorough investigation of the tragedy, which occurred amidst the ongoing war against the terrorist organization Hamas” and “affirmed Israel’s commitment to delivering and upgrading humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, and said that efforts must continue to bring about the immediate release of all the hostages held by Hamas,” according to a readout from the call.
At the White House, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby addressed the strike and the Israeli response. “Israelis have already admitted that this was a mistake that they made,” Kirby said at a White House briefing. “They’re doing an investigation, they’ll get to the bottom of this. Let’s not get ahead of that.” Read more about Washington’s reaction to the strike here.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant laid out a series of steps the defense establishment will take in the aftermath of the attack that includes establishing “a professional team that will immediately investigate the circumstances,” “[p]romptly open a joint situation room … that enables coordination between the IDF’s Southern Command and international organizations” and regular briefings for “international organizations and partners on the details of the incident and subsequent actions being taken.”
The strike comes days after a meeting between leaders from the Jewish Federations of North America and top administration officials. In the meeting, The Wall Street Journal reported, the Jewish leaders raised concerns that the administration’s increasingly critical tone toward Israel is putting Jewish Americans’ safety at risk. Administration officials in the meeting, according to the WSJ, replied that the mounting Palestinian casualty count was complicating the White House’s support for Israeli operations in Gaza.
In an op-ed published in both the Israeli Ynet and The New York Times, Andrés cited his organization’s efforts to provide food for Israelis who have been displaced from the country’s north and south since the fall. Andres called for a top-down investigation into the convoy strike. Israel, he wrote, “needs to start the long journey to peace today.” The United Arab Emirates, which had supplied ships and aid, is pausing its cooperation with the Gaza maritime aid corridor pending a full investigation and assurances from Israel regarding the safety of humanitarian workers, according to Axios.
Stateside, Democratic Majority for Israel PAC is throwing its support behind two Democrats challenging embattled far-left lawmakers in primary elections this year, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch has learned. The center-left pro-Israel PAC has endorsed Wesley Bell, the prosecuting attorney of St. Louis County who is challenging Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), and George Latimer, the Westchester County executive who is taking on Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) — the first time the group has thrown its support behind primary challengers to incumbents.
DMFI PAC’s endorsement offers further evidence that Jewish Democrats view Bush and Bowman — both of whom have faced pushback among Jewish voters in their district over their hostility toward Israel after the Oct. 7 terror attack — as vulnerable. Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA) also endorsed Bell and Latimer last week, similarly breaking with a tradition of avoiding primary challengers.
But while Bush and Bowman are not the only Squad-aligned members to face primaries, political groups have deemed these two races competitive, likely because Bush and Bowman also face blowback for scandals unrelated to their support for Israel. Other primary challenges to hard-left lawmakers face a steep uphill battle, and pro-Israel PACs have avoided getting involved so far — including the primary against Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA) in Pittsburgh. More on that below.
Today in Washington, the Orthodox Union will hand-deliver tens of thousands of signed letters to the White House. The letters call on the Biden administration to fight antisemitism and continue to work to secure the release of the remaining 134 hostages who have been held in Gaza for 180 days.
summer days
Pro-Israel groups holding their fire against Pa.’s Summer Lee
Days before the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks in Israel, a near-unknown Democrat announced that she was taking on Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA), a far-left lawmaker who has clashed with Pittsburgh’s Jewish community since she ran to represent the 12th Congressional District in 2022. Pro-Israel activists in Pittsburgh were still smarting from Lee’s razor-thin victory over attorney Steve Irwin in the 2022 Democratic primary. As Lee has taken a hostile posture toward Israel after the attacks and during Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, a sizable constituency in Pittsburgh’s Jewish community has coalesced around her opponent, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch writes. But while other embattled Squad-affiliated lawmakers like Reps. Cori Bush (D-MO) and Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) look vulnerable in primaries, Lee is in better political shape with less than one month before the Pennsylvania primary.
Antisemitic alienation: Bhavini Patel, a 30-year-old council member from a small Allegheny County town called Edgewood, has spent the past six months making the case against Lee. In the process, she’s earned the backing of many Jewish Democrats who have been alienated by Lee’s anti-Israel record — and association with antisemitic individuals.
Holding back: While Irwin earned the endorsement and heavy financial support of major pro-Israel organizations such as AIPAC in 2022, national groups have largely stayed out of the race this year, a signal of how the landscape has shifted in the past two years. Where Lee was an insurgent state representative seeking a national platform in 2022, now she’s an incumbent member of Congress with the backing of prominent Democrats in Pennsylvania and in Washington.
Mail-in mobilizing: Patel’s backers face a double-pronged challenge: They have to convince voters who don’t rank the war in the Middle East as a top issue that Lee is also out of step with Democrats on other issues. And within the district’s sizable Jewish community, they have to mount an unprecedented mail-in ballot mobilization, since this year’s primary is the only one in the nation to fall on April 23 — the first day of Passover. “Our campaign is teaming up with leaders of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community to educate voters about what makes this primary different from all others: my strong support for our Jewish community, and that Election Day is also the first day of Passover,” a Patel spokesperson said, with a line hinting at the Four Questions recited at the Passover Seder.
Liberal support: Lee still has the backing of some liberal Jews, including J Street. The group’s president, Jeremy Ben-Ami, told JI the group sticks by its endorsement of her but declined to comment on her views on Israel. “Her positions on the West Bank and Gaza are based on her support of all marginalized peoples everywhere, and align with progressive Jewish organizations, many of which are supporting her reelection,” said Ritchie Tabachnik, a J Street activist who lives in Western Pennsylvania and supports Lee.
pac-ing a punch
Harry Dunn is pushing back hard against AIPAC’s super PAC. But the pro-Israel PAC says it’s not concerned about his candidacy
Harry Dunn, the ex-Capitol Police officer who rose to national prominence in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and is now running for Congress in Maryland, sharply criticized the United Democracy Project, the AIPAC-affiliated super PAC, after the group launched a $600,000 ad buy supporting one of his opponents this week, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. But UDP, while backing state Sen. Sarah Elfreth, says that it doesn’t have any concerns about Dunn’s positions on Israel. Elfreth is seen as another leading candidate, alongside Dunn, among the more than 20 Democrats in the race.
Dunn’s reaction: Dunn has offered a furious response to the news of UDP’s spending, in which he has echoed talking points about UDP common among far-left AIPAC opponents, without directly addressing UDP’s role as a pro-Israel group. “A SuperPAC funded by MAGA extremist donors who also gave to Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and Lauren Boebert just dropped $500k in our race. They want to buy this election. They will fail,” Dunn said on X. “We can’t l[e]t MAGA buy this election.”
UDP responds: Despite his quick and fiery response to its spending, UDP says it’s not worried about Dunn. “While we appreciate Harry Dunn’s support for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship, Sarah Elfreth’s leadership on abortion rights, climate change, and domestic violence makes her a stronger candidate for the voters of Howard, Anne Arundel and Carroll counties,” UDP spokesperson Patrick Dorton said. “There [are] some serious anti-Israel candidates in this race, who are not Harry Dunn, and we need to make sure that they don’t make it to Congress.”
Elfreth’s stance: Elfreth, for her part, is taking a largely pro-Israel stance, but is not fully hewing to AIPAC’s positions on the war in the Middle East. She told JI that she doesn’t support placing conditions on U.S. aid to Israel. She said that she would support a permanent cease-fire conditioned on the return of the hostages and the provision of additional humanitarian aid, adding that it must be the first step on a long path to a two-state solution.
hospital havoc
How Gaza hospitals have become the front line in Israel’s war against Hamas
Weapons caches, heavy artillery and hundreds of armed terrorists, including some of Israel’s most wanted – these were just some of what the IDF uncovered during an intense two-week operation inside Gaza’s largest medical complex, Al-Shifa Hospital, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the IDF spokesman, said this week as the army prepared to withdraw from the area. While the battles in and around Al-Shifa Hospital have drawn the most attention – and heavy international condemnation of Israel – it is not the only controversial site where battles between the IDF and terror groups have taken place. Since the Israeli army launched its ground offensive into the Palestinian enclave at the end of October – following the mass Hamas-led terror attack on southern Israel – dozens of hospitals across the territory became the front lines of the war as thousands of terrorists hid among patients and staff, both inside hospital buildings and in bunkers beneath them, Jewish Insider’s Ruth Marks Eglash reports.
Hamas’ assumption: Throughout the past six months, the IDF has shared information on military operations in hospitals such as Al-Amal in Khan Younis, Al-Nasser in Gaza City, Al-Aqsa Martyrs in Deir al-Balah and the Al-Ahli Hospital in central Gaza. The working assumption of the terror groups in Gaza is that the Israeli military will not enter a medical facility because it would contravene international humanitarian law, which dictates that hospitals, medical units and ambulances not be considered legitimate military targets.
Legal argument: However, legal and medical experts point out that the law does not categorically prohibit such attacks and that under some circumstances hospitals can lose their special protection, especially if they are being used for acts considered harmful to the enemy. “Since it took over Gaza, Hamas has been using the population as human shields and civilian facilities as military centers to hide their missiles, launchers and rockets,” Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, president of Shurat HaDin, the Israel Law Center, told JI.
campus criteria
Hillel survey showing college priorities shifting post-Oct. 7
As Jewish parents and their high school seniors finish making decisions together about what college their soon-to-be-graduates will attend in the fall, more parents have identified safety and security as a “critical factor” in choosing a university than academic reputation, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch writes.
Safety first: That’s according to a new national survey conducted by Hillel International, the first to ask parents of Jewish teens how their attitudes toward U.S. colleges and universities have changed in the wake of the dramatic rise in antisemitism that followed the Oct. 7 terror attacks in Israel. Fifty-seven percent of the Jewish parents surveyed identified safety and security as a critical concern, compared to 44% who said the same for academic reputation. The vast majority of Jewish parents — 80% — said they are now considering safety and security more strongly than they had been prior to October.
Core concern: The results paint an alarming picture of the ways in which skyrocketing antisemitism on U.S. campuses could impact the educational choices of Jewish teens. Seventy-two percent of the parents surveyed said they are “extremely concerned” about the rise in antisemitism on campuses after Oct. 7. That said, the results come from a population predisposed to care about these issues; the pollster who conducted the survey identified respondents by using a Hillel database of high school parents and a previous nationally representative study that had asked parents to opt in to future communications. They also don’t offer a full understanding of the choices actually made by high school students, whose preferences may diverge from those of their parents.
By the numbers: Nearly half (49%) of those surveyed said there are schools their child chose not to apply to because of antisemitism, and 15% said there are schools their child got into but chose not to attend because of antisemitism. Thirty-six percent said antisemitism will not have an impact on where their child goes to college.
across the pond
Stabbing of prominent Tehran critic in London met with silence from White House, Capitol Hill
The Biden administration and congressional lawmakers have been reticent to speak out about the stabbing of Iranian journalist Pouria Zeraati in London last week as U.K. counterterrorism officials investigate who was behind the attack, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports.
The investigation: While the motive for the stabbing remains unknown, the attack comes three months after Britain imposed sanctions on Iranian government officials over their alleged involvement in efforts to kill journalists on U.K. soil. Mehdi Hosseini Matin, Iran’s charge d’affaires in Britain, said on Saturday that Tehran “denies any link” to the knifing despite Iran designating Zeraati’s television station as a “terrorist entity.”
The reaction (or lack thereof): President Joe Biden has yet to speak publicly about Zeraati as of Tuesday afternoon, nor have any members of Congress. The White House did not respond to JI’s request for comment on the matter. Both Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) declined to comment on the situation. “Nobody wants to end up with egg on their face on the off chance this guy had enemies outside of Iran,” one senior Senate GOP source told JI of the hesitation to connect Tehran to the Zeraati stabbing.
Awaiting probe results: “This horrific attack is still under investigation, and I will be monitoring the situation for more information,” Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) told JI. “While we should wait for the investigation to conclude before drawing conclusions, Iran has targeted and threatened dissidents and journalists across the world, including here in the U.S., and unfortunately it would not be a surprise if they were indeed behind this attack.” Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) encouraged law enforcement to look into the matter in a statement, though he similarly declined to point the finger at Tehran. “Journalists should be safe and free of persecution no matter where they are or what they cover,” Van Hollen told JI.
scoop
Lawmakers call on U.N. to condemn Houthi human rights abuses
A bipartisan group of lawmakers, in a letter to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, called on the U.N. to condemn the Houthis’ human rights abuses, particularly highlighting the Houthis’ treatment of LGBTQ+ people in Yemen, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Condemnation needed: “The United Nations’ continued silence in the face of gruesome crucifixion, stoning, and flogging sends a disturbing signal that LGBTQ+ individuals can be persecuted without consequence,” the letter reads. “Your delay in condemning these horrific actions by the Houthis also endangers the lives of LGBTQ+ people elsewhere, as other terrorist organizations watch the Houthis act with impunity.”
Signatories: The letter was signed by Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Chris Pappas (D-NH), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Angie Craig (D-MN), Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY), Haley Stevens (D-MI) and Jonathan Jackson (D-IL).
Elsewhere on the Hill: A bipartisan group of House members on Tuesday introduced a bill proposing to nearly double U.S. funding for cooperative anti-tunneling programs with Israel, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
Worthy Reads
Tale of Two Strikes: The Washington Post’s David Ignatius looks at the differences between Israel’s two strikes earlier this week — one that surgically eliminated a number of Iranian generals in Syria, and the other that killed seven humanitarian workers in Gaza. “The Damascus operation illustrated what Israel’s military and intelligence services do most efficiently: strike their enemies in what amount to precise assassination plans. … Nations make terrible mistakes in war. Even so, the World Central Kitchen tragedy is part of a much larger pattern of Israel refusing to plan adequately for coordination of humanitarian assistance in Gaza — to make the safety of noncombatants a priority along with its effort to destroy Hamas. Why is Israel only now, in the aftermath of this disaster, agreeing to a joint coordination center to plan humanitarian relief? When Biden administration officials argue that Netanyahu doesn’t have a strategy for ending the Gaza war and stabilizing the region, they are thinking about this lack of foresight and planning. It isn’t simply that Palestinians need a safe and stable Gaza but that it’s essential in the long run for Israel, too. Israel has a righteous cause in combating Hamas and its paymasters in Iran. But Monday’s events should remind us that enduring security doesn’t come through force of arms alone.” [WashPost]
Taking Responsibility: The Wall Street Journal’s Matthew Hennessey reflects on the dichotomy between Israel taking responsibility for this week’s strike on an aid convoy, and Hamas’ refusal to take accountability for Palestinian deaths in Gaza. “War is hell. Everyone knows that. Bullets don’t discriminate. No bomb is smarter than the person who dispatches it. When the skies are full of lead, accidents are bound to happen, and when they do, political spinmeisters step forward to deny, deflect, delay and distract. Not here. Israel has taken responsibility. What a concept. And what a contrast with its adversary. The only thing Hamas takes responsibility for is doing what it loves: spreading terror and delivering death. When a bomb goes off in a marketplace, it claims responsibility. When a crazed maniac knifes random people on a bus, it claims responsibility. But when the subject is its failure to give Gazans a better life, Hamas throws up its arms. It didn’t take responsibility for the lies it told about the misfired terrorist rocket that hit Gaza City’s Al-Shifa hospital in October, or for that matter for using the hospital as a command center. It doesn’t take responsibility for the human calamity it has unleashed on its people with the unspeakable atrocities of Oct. 7.” [WSJ]
Civil Society: The New York Times’ Bret Stephens considers the malevolent aims of many anti-Israel protesters. “It isn’t enough for them to speak out; they must shut other voices down. It isn’t enough for them to make a strong or clear argument; they also aim to instill a palpable sense of fear in their opponents. American civil libertarians of the past once understood that inherent in the right to protest was the obligation to respect the right of people with differing views to protest as well. That understanding seems to be wholly absent from the people who think that, say, heckling [Rep. Jamie] Raskin into silence is also a form of democracy. In this sense, critics of Israel who claim that American Jews must choose between Zionism and liberalism have it backward. The illiberals aren’t the people defending the right of an imperfect but embattled democracy to defend its territory and save its hostages.” [NYTimes]
Going on Offense: In Tablet, Rabbi Diana Fersko suggests that American Jews take a less defensive approach to addressing antisemitism. “Jewish Americans around the country are doing a similarly defensive dance: defending a war, defending a state, defending Zionism, defending Jewish existence in universities, on boards, in justice work, and in civil society. Defending the existence of Jews itself. All this defense leads me to a core philosophical question: What would it look like if American Jews decided to play philosophical offense? The conspiracy theories of antisemitism aren’t true; rather they are a series of boundaryless lies. But we will also never be able to prove they are wholly false because they are not driven by rationale or reason. So, what if instead of defensively saying what we aren’t, we took a different approach and we chose to assertively say what we are?” [Tablet]
Campus Beat: In The Wall Street Journal, Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier explains his university’s approach to the recent anti-Israel activity on campus. “Critics have claimed that Vanderbilt has abandoned its long-held commitment to free expression. They are wrong. Vanderbilt supports, teaches and defends free expression — but to do so, we must safeguard the environment for it. Students can advocate BDS. That is freedom of expression. But they can’t disrupt university operations during classes, in libraries or on construction sites. The university won’t adopt BDS principles. That’s institutional neutrality. As a community, we should always remember to treat each other with respect and rely on the force of the better argument. That’s civil discourse. Teaching students the importance of upholding rules for free expression doesn’t squelch their right to voice their opinion — it protects it. In these difficult times, each university will be tested. And each university will follow its own path. Our approach is clear: We clearly state the principles and rules that support our mission as a university. Then we enforce them.” [WSJ]
Around the Web
Trump on Top: A new Wall Street Journal poll found former President Donald Trump leading President Joe Biden in six of the seven most competitive states in the country.
On the Rise: A new poll from Pew found that the number of Americans who think there is discrimination against Jews doubled between 2021 and this year, from 20% to 40%.
Booming Business: Politicolooks at how increased scrutiny of universities and administrations is driving up demand for lobbyists and crisis communications firms that specialize in the higher education sector.
Sooner Schooling: Oklahoma’s Supreme Court is poised to weigh in on whether the state can fund a religious charter school, the first case of its kind in the country.
Paramount Purchase: Shari Redstone’s Paramount is moving toward entering exclusive talks with David Ellison’s Skydance over a potential deal in which Skydance would acquire the major studio.
Private Play: Ari Emanuel’s Endeavor plans to go private, with Endeavor investor Silver Lake planning to buy the shares in the sports and entertainment company that it doesn’t own.
School Blues: A former employee of the Donda Academy, the school owned by Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, filed a lawsuit alleging “severe discrimination, harassment, and retaliation” by the artist, accusing him of espousing antisemitic conspiracy theories in front of students.
Art Attack:The New York Timesreports on the increasing pressure that museums and other cultural institutions are facing from anti-Israel activists.
Us Against the World: Bloomberglooks at how Israeli society has coalesced around a feeling of isolation in the wake of mounting international pressure and the recent U.N. Security Council ruling.
Tokyo Drift: Japan will restore funding to UNRWA funding months after the embattled U.N. agency was found to have employed members of Palestinian terror groups, including some individuals who participated in the Oct. 7 terror attacks.
Podcast Playback: The Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Mark Dubowitz talked to Israeli national security reporter Ilana Dayan about Iran’s advancing nuclear weapons program.
Remembering: Iraqi-Israeli author Sami Michael, the longtime former president of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, died at 97.
Song of the Day
Jeryko’s newest song, “Stand Tall,” the video for which was filmed with an IDF reservist unit.
Birthdays
NYC-based independent filmmaker, who, together with his younger brother Benjamin, directed and wrote the 2019 film “Uncut Gems” starring Adam Sandler, Joshua Safdie turns 40…
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author, he was also executive editor of The New York Times, Max Frankel turns 94… Democratic political strategist and founder of GenderAvenger, Gina Glantz turns 81… Member of the Los Angeles City Council until 2022, he was previously a three-term member of the California State Assembly, Paul Koretz turns 69… Dean at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies of the Johns Hopkins University and a contributing editor of The Atlantic, Eliot A. Cohen turns 68… Singer, songwriter and music producer, Craig Reid Taubman turns 66… Jazz pianist, arranger and composer, James Gelfand turns 65… Rabbi, author, speaker and VP at the American Jewish University in Los Angeles, Bradley Shavit Artson turns 65… CEO of Phase 2 Media, he is the former chairman of the Fox Television Entertainment Group, Sandy Grushow turns 64… President and CEO of MLB’s Toronto Blue Jays, Mark Shapiro turns 57… Defense attorney and CNN commentator, he has represented five U.S. governors facing impeachment proceedings, Ross H. Garber turns 57… Associate justice of the Washington State Supreme Court, Raquel Montoya-Lewis turns 56… Member of the Knesset for the National Unity party, Ze’ev Elkin turns 53… Executive director of public affairs at Jewish United Fund – Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, Daniel Goldwin… Washington correspondent for Israel’s public broadcasting corporation, Nathan Guttman… Award-winning Israeli classical pianist who currently lives in NYC, Ran Dank turns 42… Israeli screen, stage and television actress, Dana Ivgy turns 42… Retired television and film actress, Amanda Bynes turns 38… Actress, comedian and writer, Rachel Bloom turns 37… Professional tennis player currently on the WTA Tour, Madison Brengle turns 34… Product marketing, developer experience at Square, Eva Sasson… Harry Zieve Cohen… Freelance director and journalist, Daniel Lombroso turns 31… Senior at Emory, Zach Pearlstone…
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