A pair of senators and a House lawmaker will introduce bipartisan, bicameral legislation on Thursday aimed at boosting U.S.-Israeli cooperation on bilateral defense programs.

The United States-Israel Framework for Upgraded Technologies, Unified Research, and Enhanced Security Act of 2026, abbreviated to the United States-Israel FUTURES Act, will be introduced in the Senate by Sens. Ted Budd (R-NC) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and in the House by Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX). The bill establishes a cooperative initiative focused on accelerating and expanding bilateral defense technology research, development, testing and evaluation projects, as well as supporting industrial cooperation. 

The U.S. and Israel have worked together for years on bilateral defense and technology programs, most notably U.S.-Israel cooperative missile-defense programs — including Iron Dome, which offers protection against drones and short-range surface-to-surface rockets; David’s Sling, which can intercept short-to-medium- and medium-to-long-range surface-to-surface missiles fired from 62 to 124 miles away; and the Arrow-2 and Arrow-3 systems, which can intercept longer-range ballistic missiles. Another is the anti-tunneling and counter-unmanned aerial systems programs.

“The U.S. has a long history of working with our ally Israel on defense programs to counter unmanned aerial systems from our adversaries, strengthen missile defense, and detect and neutralize underground tunnels threatening the security of our two respective countries,” Budd told Jewish Insider in a statement on the bill. 

“The U.S.-Israel FUTURES Act offers an opportunity to strengthen existing bilateral programs by advancing joint investments such as emerging technologies, defense industrial base cooperation, artificial intelligence, and biotechnology initiatives,” his statement continued. “I am proud to be working with Sen. Gillibrand to advance regional security in the Middle East and strengthen U.S. and Israeli defense.”

Gillibrand told JI, “This bipartisan initiative will enable long-term collaboration on shared security goals between the United States and our vital democratic ally Israel. We must strengthen our military and technological capabilities to counter continued and future threats in the region.”

Jackson told JI that the bill “secures America’s competitive edge in defense technology and reinforces our alliance with Israel, our greatest partner in the Middle East, to deter evolving global threats.” 

“Under President Trump’s leadership, we are ensuring the technological supremacy of our military and delivering the unmatched capabilities our warfighters need to dominate the battlefield and protect the American people,” Jackson said. 

A bipartisan group of 23 senators introduced a resolution on Wednesday condemning the Iranian government for its crackdown on protesters and attempts to cut off internet access across the country.

The resolution highlights the massive scope of the crackdown, which some reports indicate has included more than 30,000 deaths and more than 40,000 arrests. It puts ultimate responsibility for these actions on Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and notes that the regime has a long-standing pattern of such crackdowns against protesters and other dissidents, as well as religious minorities.

“Iranian civilians’ unprecedented nationwide protests and bravery, confronted with the regime’s unprecedented widespread extrajudicial killing of thousands and disruption of all electronic communication, have profoundly destabilized the country and constitute changed conditions in Iran,” the resolution reads, highlighting that the regime’s suppression and killing of protesters continues.

The resolution “strongly condemns” the Iranian government massacres, as well as its violations of Iranians’ human rights, and “commends the courage of the Iranian people.”

It calls on the Iranian government to hold open elections and “supports the calls of the Iranian people to bring human rights violators to justice.”

The resolution is led by Sens. James Lankford (R-OK) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and co-sponsored by Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), John Boozman (R-AR), Katie Britt (R-AL), Ted Budd (R-NC), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), John Hoeven (R-ND), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Andy Kim (D-NJ) and Dick Durbin (D-IL)

Support for the resolution, which includes lawmakers from a wide political and ideological spectrum, highlights the widespread outrage on Capitol Hill at the Iranian government’s actions against Iranian civilians.

“The Iranian regime has a long record of threatening Americans and our allies while denying its own people the most basic freedoms,” Lankford said in a statement. “For weeks, security forces have fired live rounds into crowds, overwhelmed hospitals and morgues, and carried out mass arrests as Iranians gathered to assemble peacefully in protest. Innocent civilians, including children and bystanders, have been killed in the streets. The United States stands with the Iranian people in their pursuit of freedom and will continue to condemn the regime for its ongoing human rights abuses against its own citizens.”

A bipartisan group of 82 House lawmakers wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Thursday urging her to roll back new conditions placed on applications for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program amid rising antisemitic attacks.

The bipartisan support for the letter is particularly notable given that, while Democrats have been raising concerns about the conditions for months, Republicans have, publicly, been comparatively quiet.

“We are writing to you today to express our desire to ensure that the NSGP is adequately funded and unimpeded by new requirements that are unrelated to the security of grant recipients and their communities,” the letter, led by Reps. Max Miller (R-OH), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Michael McCaul (R-TX), reads. “Insufficient funding or unnecessary obstacles to obtaining grants could undermine the right of every religious community to freely and peacefully worship and congregate without fear.”

The letter states that new conditions issued by DHS in April 2025 “create new compliance requirements for recipients that will divert limited funds and restrict the religious conscience of synagogues, schools, and other institutions pivotal to our communities.”

The new conditions may compel religious institutions to cooperate with immigration enforcement activities and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

“We encourage DHS to work to make compliance with NSGP requirements as simple and streamlined as possible. We also request that DHS ensures NSGP remains a program designed to protect the security of houses of worship, not to reinforce other policy priorities,” the lawmakers wrote. “In this time of rising antisemitic terror attacks and violence against diverse faith-based institutions, we believe it is crucial that NSGP remains a critical resource for all who seek to worship in safety and free from partisan politicization.”

They called on Noem to issue new guidance that “waives any terms and conditions that do not directly relate to the grant’s purpose, which is to help qualified institutions improve their security against increasing threats.”

The lawmakers emphasized the clear need for and lifesaving impact of NSGP funds in a time of increased hate-motivated violence. They also thanked Noem for her “ongoing support” for the program.

DHS has not yet awarded grants from the 2025 grant cycle, and lawmakers have accused the administration of withholding critical information about which institutions have received funding under separate grant rounds. Democrats have alleged the department is mismanaging the program.

Funding for the grants in 2026 — thought to be finalized just weeks ago — was again thrown into question last week when lawmakers agreed to reopen negotiations over the Department of Homeland Security funding package for the year following the deadly shootings by immigration agents of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis.

“The Nonprofit Security Grant Program is one of the most vital programs protecting the Jewish community. We continue to encourage every Jewish institution with heightened security needs to apply for these funds,” Jewish Federations of North America CEO Eric Fingerhut said. “We have also heard from our community that the current terms and conditions have had the unintended effect of deterring some organizations from applying, which is why we believe they should be updated appropriately.”

“At a time of rising violence and hatred targeting houses of worship, NSGP is an essential lifeline for synagogues and other faith-based institutions seeking to protect their congregants,” said Lauren Wolman, ADL’s senior director of government relations and strategy. “We are grateful for the bipartisan effort to ensure DHS requirements remain clear, consistent, and focused on what matters most — helping at-risk nonprofits protect themselves from threats. Organizations must be able to access these resources quickly, with confidence, and without unnecessary delays.”

“Jewish and other communities facing violent threats deserve to know that the government is prioritizing their safety, not politicizing it,” Amy Spitalnick, the CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said. “Yet the chaos created by these new terms and conditions has only created more vulnerability for communities, who are worried that they’ll be forced to choose between their core religious beliefs and their basic security — a concern we’ve been raising for months.” 

“We appreciate Reps. Miller and Gottheimer for helping lead this important bipartisan call to clarify that NSGP should not be used for anything other than the security of our communities,” Spitalnick continued.

A bipartisan group of senators wrote to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday urging him to “surge resources to quickly enable critical internet freedom support” to protesters in Iran, pointing to funding cuts that have stretched resources for such programs.

“Today, many of the NGOs and technology providers that maintain these tools are facing closure due to funding cuts and more importantly, fewer Iranian citizens can share their videos and messages with the world and each other,” the letter warns. “Without the continuous operation of internet freedom programming carried out by the State Department and Open Technology Fund, millions of Iranians will lose their last secure window and voice to the outside world.”

The lawmakers, Sens. James Lankford (R-OK), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Cory Booker (D-NJ), warned that if U.S. programs fully lapse, regime-controlled programs and state media will step into the gap, “giving the regime near-total control over the digital space and putting users at far greater risk.”

“As we watch brave Iranians take to the streets, it is clear that supporting the Iranian people’s access to information is not a partisan issue but a matter of national security, as well as meeting legislative requirements for a strategy for promoting internet freedom in Iran,” the lawmakers said, pointing to existing legislation mandating the State Department to expand internet access in Iran. “The United States must pair its maximum pressure on the regime with maximum support for the Iranian people.”

The letter comes at a time when Congress has offered few of its own strategies to respond to the wave of protests around Iran — which, according to Rubio, have now largely been put down by the regime.

Such efforts to promote free internet access to the Iranian people, amid efforts by the regime to impose an internet blackout, have emerged as a key area of bipartisan agreement.

Much of the U.S.’ global communications programming, including funding for promoting internet access, was slashed last year amid cutbacks to various foreign aid programs. Some prominent Republicans have criticized the administration, saying that government-sponsored news programming and communications assistance have failed to meet the moment in Iran.

The letter emphasizes the “long-standing and bipartisan commitment” to supporting internet freedom programs, which are “more important than ever as the people of Iran protest against the regime in record numbers.” The legislators noted that prior administrations have, for two decades, supported various anti-censorship and internet freedom tools in Iran, and that Congress passed legislation in 2024 supporting such programs.

“Without U.S. leadership, an entire generation of Iranians would have remained in the dark — and the most powerful source of pressure against the Islamic Republic, the Iranian people themselves, would have been neutralized,” the letter reads.

It notes that the existing U.S. programs allowing a small number of Iranians to remain online had “proved decisive” during the Israel-Iran war last summer to demonstrate the division between the Iranian people and the regime, and said that expanded internet access now “would put a spotlight on the increasingly securitized atmosphere that is cracking down on dissent.”

A bipartisan pair of House lawmakers will reintroduce legislation on Wednesday to address the threat of killer drone strikes by the Iranian regime and other foreign adversaries through increased cooperation between the U.S. and Israel, Jewish Insider has learned.

Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Andrew Garbarino (R-NY) are the lead sponsors of the U.S.-Israel Anti-Killer Drone Act, which the duo first introduced together back in 2023. That bill proposed increasing annual funding caps for existing U.S.-Israel counter-drone programs from $40 million to $55 million. 

This latest iteration of the legislation increases that annual funding cap to $100 million. It also now includes all unmanned drone systems rather than solely covering aerial drones. The updates to the legislation mirror the expansion of the existing U.S.-Israel counter-drone program to address various types of drones — not only airborne ones — in the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act.

The joint counter-drone program is currently set to be funded at $75 million for 2026, based on the appropriations legislation introduced on Tuesday.

The Gottheimer-Garbarino bill states that it is the sense of Congress that the U.S. and Israel should continue to collaborate and expand their ongoing work in counter-drone technology, increases the proposed funding — though any actual funding allocations would have to be finalized separately — and directs the Department of Defense to report to Congress annually on the program.

The legislation comes as Israeli leaders look to shift the future of U.S. aid to the Jewish state, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announcing that he wants to wind down direct U.S. financial support in the next decade.

Analysts and experts have predicted that the next U.S.-Israel memorandum of understanding, and the future of U.S. aid and cooperation with Israel, could focus more heavily on these sorts of jointly funded cooperative programs, which are appropriated through the Department of Defense and aim to benefit both countries, rather than direct financial assistance to Israel.

The bill’s text runs through a litany of incidents of Iranian and Iranian proxy drone attacks and attempted attacks on Israeli and U.S. targets throughout the region; the expansion and advancement of Iran’s drone production capacity; and Iran’s provision of drones to Russia.

Both Gottheimer and Garbarino cited the Iranian drone threat as reason for promoting the legislation back in 2023.

“Iran’s arsenal of killer drones has only grown in recent years, and attacks across the Middle East have killed and wounded Americans — showing once again why the threat of terrorism remains so pervasive,” Gottheimer said at the time. “We continue to see Iran-backed terrorist groups target innocent civilians which is why we must take concrete action to counter their deadly drone capabilities.”

“Time and again, the Iranian regime has used unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to continue its destabilizing behavior, threatening not only the broader Middle East region, but also American troops, interests, and our greatest ally in the region, Israel,” Garbarino said. 

A bipartisan group of 59 House lawmakers sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday urging the State Department to continue condemning Iran’s crackdown on protesters across the country. 

The letter, led by Rep. Randy Weber (R-TX), encourages the Trump administration to remain vocally supportive of the protesters amid “the Iranian regime’s ongoing violent suppression of protests across Iran.” The lawmakers urged Rubio to continue speaking out and ensure “whole-of-government support” from the U.S. is presented publicly to Iranians.

“The Iranian people have made clear their demand for a secular, democratic, non-nuclear republic grounded in political pluralism and respect for human dignity,” the letter reads. “Protesters have also explicitly rejected all forms of authoritarian rule, whether Iran’s former monarchy dictatorship or its current theocratic system, and seek the right to determine their own future. Recent international reactions against the regime’s brutalities underscore the urgent global concern over continued violence against civilians and abuses of power in Iran.”

“We urge the Department of State to continue publicly condemning the Iranian regime’s violent repression of protesters, including attacks on hospitals and medical facilities,” it continues. “At this critical juncture, whole-of-government support is essential to reaffirm the United States’ commitment to universal human rights and solidarity with the Iranian people.”

The lawmakers also noted their “deep concern” about the ongoing crackdown against protesters.

“Credible reports indicate the use of lethal force, mass arrests, and intimidation against civilians exercising their fundamental rights,” they wrote. “We are particularly alarmed by reports that Iranian authorities have targeted civilian sites, including hospitals and medical facilities, denying injured protesters access to urgent medical care. Such actions constitute violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.”

Weber’s letter was cosigned by Reps. Don Bacon (R-NE), Andy Barr (R-KY), Austin Scott (R-GA), Nancy Mace (R-SC), Brian Babin (R-TX), James Walkinshaw (D-VA), Beth Van Duyne (R-TX), William Timmons (R-SC), Tom Tiffany (R-WI), Glenn Thompson (R-PA), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Marlin Stutzman (R-IN), Pete Stauber (R-MN), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Maria Salazar (R-FL), John Rutherford (R-FL), Raul Ruiz (D-CA), Zach Nunn (R-IA), Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), John Moolenaar (R-MI), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), Carol Miller (R-WV), Tom McClintock (R-CA), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Laurel Lee (R-FL), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Nick Langworthy (R-NY), Nick LaLota (R-NY), Tom Kean (R-NJ), Jeff Hurd (R-CO), Val Hoyle (D-OR), Andy Harris (R-MD), Brett Guthrie (R-KY), Michael Guest (R-MS), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Carlos Gimenez (R-FL), Laura Friedman (D-CA), Scott Franklin (R-FL), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI), Randy Fine (R-FL), Randy Feenstra (R-IA), Jake Ellzey (R-TX), Danny Davis (D-IL), Jeff Crank (R-CO), Joe Courtney (D-CT), Herbert Conaway (D-NJ), Mike Carey (R-OH), Brendan Boyle (D-PA), Mike Bost (R-IL), Sanford Bishop (D-GA), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Aaron Bean (R-FL), Troy Balderson (R-OH), Mark Amodei (R-NV) and Rick Allen (R-GA).

“The Iranian people have made it unmistakably clear that they reject this regime and the system of repression it has imposed on them,” Weber said in a statement on the letter. “From mass arrests to targeting hospitals, the regime has shown it will use any means to silence political dissent. The United States must continue to condemn these abuses and stand with the Iranian people as they demand the right to determine their own future.”

One of Washington’s few remaining bipartisan traditions is the annual clamoring for a ticket to the White House Hanukkah party — an affair that was smaller than usual this year after the Trump administration tore down the East Wing, prompting disappointment even from some Republican allies who did not score an invite. If you’re a member of the opposing political party, forget about it.  

But even as power changes hands in Washington, one person is a fixture at Republican and Democratic White House Hanukkah parties, as well as Hanukkah gatherings all across the Beltway, from the Pentagon to the Justice Department to the Capitol. That’s Rabbi Levi Shemtov, the executive vice president of American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad), the Washington arm of the global Chabad movement, and Washington’s unofficial menorah-lighter-in-chief.

“I was raised during the Bicentennial, and I got a very patriotic education in our day school. I felt very American, and I thought this was a strong public expression of a deep Jewish pride that I was able to enjoy,” Shemtov said during Hanukkah last week. “I come from grandfathers on both sides of my family who were arrested and imprisoned, tortured and exiled for being Jews and for practicing Judaism and for leading Jewish communities. So I wasn’t going to let the freedom we are so fortunate to have here just pass without my active participation in it.”

In an interview with Jewish Insider, Shemtov reflected on the importance of spreading a Hanukkah message of light in a region where that’s often missing: the halls of power in Washington. 

During Hanukkah this year Shemtov attended as many as four events in a day, shuttling between government institutions and reciting the blessings in front of dignitaries including President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Attorney General Pam Bondi. He led a bipartisan menorah lighting on Capitol Hill with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). 

“The menorah itself is a symbol of bipartisanship, in my opinion, because you almost always have four branches on one side, four branches on the other, and a shamash in the middle,” Shemtov reflected. “In the time of the Temple, we are told that the flames used to point towards the center from either side, and the center flame used to point towards heaven. And that was the connection of divinity with this world.”

“When we point towards the center,” Shemtov continued, “we bring more sensibility and, therefore, divinity to our existence across the board. That’s why, especially when we do this with the two leaders, the speaker and the minority leader together, I think it sends a very powerful message to whoever sees it that there’s hope for togetherness, even in a time of divisiveness.” 

It was Shemtov’s father, Rabbi Abraham Shemtov, who is most responsible for bringing public observances of Hanukkah to Washington. In 1979, Abraham Shemtov participated in the first National Menorah Lighting with President Jimmy Carter, a tradition that his son now leads on the Ellipse, outside the White House, each year. 

But this year’s National Menorah Lighting would be different than the usual large, boisterous affair. Shemtov knew that as soon as he woke up. 

“I was able to tell that it was going to be a very cold day, but that was a small problem compared to what I saw was an unprecedented vicious terrorist attack on a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, Australia. Sydney is very close to me,” Shemtov said. His wife Nechama is from Sydney and lived down the street from Bondi Beach, where 15 people were killed on the first day of the holiday by terrorists who reportedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. 

But the brutality of that day, which sent his wife’s family huddling together for safety, did not keep Shemtov from spreading the message of Hanukkah around Washington. “I think that it’s an important opportunity to bring a message of life, unity, warmth and positivity in a way which might otherwise not even be possible,” Shemtov said. 

It’s no longer a surprise to arrive at the White House or the Naval Observatory and find kosher brisket, freshly made latkes and sufganiyot in a variety of flavors. But the White House Hanukkah party is a relatively recent invention. The first one took place in 2001, hosted by President George W. Bush. It would be a few more years before the event was certified kosher — by Rabbi Shemtov, of course. It’s a responsibility he oversees regardless of who is president.

“They say about the White House, etc., that the moment you don’t feel it’s special to walk into these places — the White House, the Capitol, VPR [the vice president’s residence] — you should stop working there,” said Shemtov. “Access, acceptance and prominence within these hallowed and rarefied quarters of society is something our forebears can only have dreamed of in an ambitious fantasy, and here we are, able to live it. We just have to want to be proud enough to do so, and that’s why, of course, it’s always an honor to be invited, involved, participating and particularly in helping organize such respectable recognitions of our faith.” 

Shemtov’s job is to drive for hours around the Beltway, helping Jews in positions of power practice their faith proudly and publicly. This year, he made it a priority to also be home in time to light his own menorah. 

“I have to have a Jewish home as well, not just a Jewish expression to the outside world. And to do that takes effort because scheduling is so crazy,” said Shemtov. “We have to remember it’s like an airplane. You have to put your own oxygen mask on, or else you won’t be able to help anyone at all.”

A bipartisan group of House members is re-introducing the Protecting Students on Campus Act on Thursday, legislation that aims to assist students facing discrimination in filing federal civil rights complaints and requiring greater transparency from colleges about complaints they receive.

The legislation was re-introduced earlier this year in the Senate by Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and John Fetterman (D-PA), and has five additional cosponsors. In the previous Congress, the bill picked up 16 cosponsors in the House.

The latest version of the bill in the House is being led by Reps. Lois Frankel (D-FL), Don Bacon (R-NE), Lucy McBath (D-GA), Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) and Haley Stevens (D-MI).

Formulated as a response to antisemitism on campus, the legislation would require colleges to prominently display on their homepages a link to the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights page where students can file Title VI discrimination complaints, and to display informational materials in high-traffic locations on campus.

Any schools receiving federal funding would also be required to report annually to the Department of Education’s inspector general about the number of Title VI complaints they received in the previous year and the actions taken by the school.

Schools in the top five percent of total complaints filed, proportional to their student population, would be subject to an audit by the inspector general.

The legislation requires the Office for Civil Rights to brief Congress monthly, for one year, on the complaints it has received in the prior month, how the office plans to address those complaints and how long complaints remain open.

It also requires the Department of Education to conduct a public awareness campaign to make students aware of their rights to file civil rights complaints under Title VI.

The legislation has yet to move forward in either chamber.

“Antisemitism and hate are surging on college campuses and around the world, and the consequences are deadly — as we saw in the vile attack in Bondi Beach,” Frankel said in a statement. “Students cannot learn if they do not feel safe. The Protecting Students on Campus Act gives students clear pathways to report antisemitism and discrimination, strengthens accountability for colleges, and helps ensure campuses are places where hate is not tolerated.”

Highlighting data that more than a third of Jewish students faced antisemitism on campus in 2024 and that nearly half felt unsafe expressing or hid their views or Jewish identity on campus, American Jewish Committee CEO Ted Deutch said in a statement that the legislation “empowers students … while providing critical accountability to ensure the U.S. Department of Education responds appropriately to federal complaints.”

Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said that “Jewish students deserve better than empty promises when antisemitism erupts on campus.”

Greenblatt said the bill “transforms rhetoric into action by requiring real transparency and giving students the tools to hold their universities accountable,” and that the bill “couldn’t come at a more urgent time” after the terror attack at a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, Australia last weekend.

The Jewish Federations of North America and Jewish Council for Public Affairs also support the legislation.

A bipartisan group of House members is introducing a resolution that sets out recommendations for tackling the spread of antisemitism through artificial intelligence models and highlights the ways those programs have been used to spread a variety of forms of anti-Jewish hate.

The resolution, led by Reps. Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Don Bacon (R-NE), Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) and Laura Friedman (D-CA), highlights that AI models can “generate, amplify, or normalize antisemitic content, deepfakes, synthetic media, and deeply anti-Jewish bias, and can be weaponized to target Jewish individuals and institutions, as well as American institutions, normalizing antisemitism and anti-Jewish bias en masse.” It also notes that there is an extensive history of AI models espousing antisemitic attitudes, dating back to at least 2016.

The resolution states that combating antisemitism is a national priority and that technology companies have a “responsibility to implement robust safeguards,” including transparency measures, working with antisemitism experts and taking steps to prevent the spread of antisemitism or violent content targeting Jewish people.

Jacobs told Jewish Insider this week that AI is accelerating conditions of rising antisemitism and danger for the Jewish people “with the rapid creation, spread and amplification of antisemitic content that makes us actively less safe.”

She emphasized that the public is increasingly turning to AI as an information tool with “no checks” to the antisemitic content AI is spreading.

The resolution encourages tech companies to implement standards to prevent antisemitism including “supporting enforcement technology, red teaming methodologies, and datasets to guide risk identification, measurement, mitigation, and governance of AI systems,” as well as expanded data data sharing and access for researchers to study antisemitic content and assess potential responses.

It additionally recommends periodic public reporting by technology companies on antisemitic content on AI platforms and how the platforms are responding.

It urges governments, civil society, academia and the business community to develop “effective interventions” against antisemitic content and harassment, including plans for responding to threats of violence.

The legislation also calls for efforts to improve education and digital literacy among young people to recognize and resist antisemitic narratives and AI-generated hatred.

“Corporations need to step up and maintain standards and safeguards for AI systems that protect human rights and the safety of all people, including the Jewish community,” Jacobs said. “I think there’s a lot more they could be doing, and that’s why we need a whole of society approach to antisemitism, which is what we call for in this resolution.”

Jacobs said that the resolution is a “first step” to highlight bipartisan consensus on the issue, and noted that while it’s nonbinding, it does set out specific standards and recommendations for the industry.

A bipartisan group of 18 House members is urging the State Department to pressure Colombia’s government to change course on what the lawmakers described as a dangerous pattern of antisemitic rhetoric and policies by government officials, including the country’s president.

“As U.S.-Colombia relations continue to be strained by numerous issues, including the increasingly troubling antisemitic rhetoric and discriminatory policies from Colombian President Gustavo Petro, which are directly threatening the safety and well-being of Colombia’s Jewish community, we write to urge the administration to consider even stronger actions, including leveraging U.S. assistance to push for meaningful change in President Petro and his government,” the lawmakers, led by Reps. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) and Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), said in a letter sent on Monday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The lawmakers said that Petro’s antisemitic comments on social media and anti-Israel posture “have contributed to an increasingly hostile environment for Colombian Jews,” raising particular concern about the appointment of Richard Gamboa, “a self-proclaimed ‘rabbi’ with anti-Zionist views and dubious credentials who lacks ties with Colombia’s Jewish institutions,” to be the Ministry of Interior’s director of religious affairs.

The letter characterizes Gamboa’s appointment as “a deliberate provocation aimed at legitimizing antisemitic perspectives within government institutions” and a “calculated effort by President Petro to normalize anti-Jewish hatred for political gains.”

“There is genuine concern that Mr. Gamboa will continue to accelerate the deteriorating situation facing Colombian Jewry,” the letter continues.

Gamboa, the lawmakers, noted, has gone on antisemitic “tirades” on social media, writing, “Zionists ARE NOT JEWS,” “true rabbis are not Zionists,” and “The full weight of the law should fall upon … defenders of a genocidal regime that usurps and profanes the name of Judaism.”

They also pointed to media reports that indicate that the government may seek to use Gamboa as its official liaison to the Jewish community, sidelining the Confederation of Jewish Communities of Colombia.

The letter was co-signed by Reps. Laura Gillen (D-NY), Buddy Carter (R-GA), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Gary Palmer (R-AL), Mike Lawler (R-NY), Pat Harrigan (R-NC), Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Pete Stauber (R-MN), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), Don Bacon (R-NE), Lois Frankel (D-FL), Haley Stevens (D-MI), Ted Lieu (D-CA) and Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ). 

Carter and Stevens are running for the Senate in Georgia and Michigan, respectively.

The American Jewish Committee supported the effort and “remains deeply concerned by the antisemitic rhetoric and discriminatory policies emanating from Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his Administration, which poses a direct threat to the safety and well-being of Colombia’s Jewish community,” Dina Siegel Vann, the director of AJC’s Arthur and Rochelle Belfer Institute for Latino and Latin American Affairs, said in a statement.

“These actions by the highest levels of government in Colombia must not become normalized,” Siegel Vann continued. “We commend Representatives Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) and María Salazar (R-FL) for their principled leadership in urging Secretary of State Marco Rubio to make clear to President Petro that his government’s continued provocations and embrace of antisemitic rhetoric and policies are inconsistent with our shared values and interests.”

Petro has a long history of anti-Israel and antisemitic comments and accused the Jewish state of genocide, severing ties last year. He declined to condemn the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel, instead comparing Israel to the Nazi regime — something he has done for years, including prior to his time in office.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) championed a U.S. defense agreement with Lebanon during a bipartisan congressional delegation to Beirut on Tuesday, saying it would be the “biggest change in the history of Lebanon.”

Speaking at a press conference alongside Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), Graham asked, “How many nations have a defense agreement with the United States? Very few. … The number of nations that America is willing to go to war for is very few. Why do I mention Lebanon being in that group? You have one thing going for you that is very valuable to me: religious diversity.”

“Christianity is under siege in the Mideast. Christians are being slaughtered and run out of all over, all over the region, except here. And so what I am going to tell my colleagues is, ‘Why don’t we invest in defending religious diversity in the Mideast? Why don’t we have a relationship with Lebanon where we would actually defend what you’re doing?’” he continued. 

“I think it’s in America’s interest to defend religious diversity, whether you’re Druze or Alawite or a Christian or whatever. The idea that America may one day have a defense agreement with Lebanon changes Lebanon unlike any single thing I could think of,” Graham said.

During their visit, the delegation, joined by U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, diplomat Morgan Ortagus and U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Lisa Johnson, met with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and head of the Lebanese Armed Forces Gen. Rodolph Haykal.

During the press conference, the lawmakers conveyed their encouragement over the progress that Lebanon has made in military, financial and democratic reforms and their hope that the government would be able to execute the changes fully. 

“We all see Lebanon is at a point of change. We’re here to tell you that we’re buying into that change, that we support what you’re trying to do. That if you do make an effort to disarm Hezbollah, we’ll be there trying to help. We’ll try to help your military, we’ll try to help your economy. We think that’s the right thing for you to do, and it benefits the entire region,” Graham said.

“If you’re able to pull this off, Saudi Arabia will look at you differently. If you’re able to pull it off, Israel will look at you differently. If you’re able to pull this off, there’ll be a groundswell of support in Washington to help your economy and to help your military,” he continued.

“Congress is looking at Lebanon differently because you’re behaving differently. If you continue to go down this road, I think you have a wonderful opportunity to secure your nation, economically, militarily, like anything I’ve seen since I’ve been coming to the region with [the late Sen.] John McCain (R-AZ). It all depends on what happens with the Hezbollah file and the Palestinian file.”

Wilson compared recent changes in Lebanon and in Syria with the fall of dictator Bashar al-Assad to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. “There’s such an opportunity for stability, security, for economic prosperity, for everyone,” he said.

Graham also emphasized the potential for improved relations between Israel and Lebanon if Hezbollah was contained. “If I were the Israeli prime minister, I would be looking at Lebanon differently after Hezbollah was disarmed by the Lebanese people,” he said.

Pressed by reporters on what steps Israel is taking to disarm Hezbollah and de-escalate conflict, Graham answered, “Why do you need Israel to tell you to disarm Hezbollah? That’s not Israel’s decision. That’s yours. Whether [the IDF] withdraw[s from southern Lebanon] or not, it depends on what you do. So don’t tell me anymore, ‘We’re not going to disarm Hezbollah until Israel does something.’ If that’s the model, you’re going to fail.” 

“The reason you disarm Hezbollah is because it’s best for you. This country is going backward, not forward, if you don’t follow through with disarming the Palestinians and Hezbollah and making the Lebanese army the central repository of arms for the nation. If you don’t do that, you’re going nowhere,” the South Carolina senator said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement yesterday that he “acknowledges the significant step taken by the Lebanese Government” and that “in light of this important development, Israel stands ready to support Lebanon in its efforts to disarm Hezbollah and to work together towards a more secure and stable future for both nations.”

Netanyahu pledged that if the Lebanese Armed Forces “take the necessary steps to implement the disarmament of Hezbollah, Israel will engage in reciprocal measures.”

Shaheen and Graham, both of whom serve on the Senate Appropriations Committee, also spoke about their support for supplying U.S. funding for the LAF and Lebanon’s financial recovery.

Shaheen called the steps Lebanon’s government has pledged to make in military and banking reforms “critical” and said the lawmakers will “continue to press for support, through legislation and through the appropriations process, support for the avenue that Lebanon has chosen for your future.”