• President Donald Trump will attend the dignified transfer this morning at Dover Air Force Base of the remains of four U.S. service members killed last week as a result of Iranian strikes in Iraq and Jordan. Three of the soldiers were killed when an Iranian ballistic missile struck a housing facility at a U.S. base in southern Jordan, while a fourth was killed detonating an Iranian ordnance in Iraq. The Defense Department, which had identified three of the service members over the weekend, identified overnight the fourth after his remains were found on the base.
• Iran launched another volley of ballistic missiles at Jordan this morning, triggering sirens in the southern port city of Aqaba. The latest attacks come amid concerns that the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen are preparing to enter the conflict, following an alert issued last night by the Joint Maritime Information Center, the global body monitoring naval security, warning that the Houthis “have completed preparations to attack shipping, including the deployment of missiles and drones.” The Yemeni terror group, which has threatened to block transit through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, on Tuesday forced a Chinese vessel bound for Saudi Arabia to turn back.
• A deal that could see the U.S. allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium could be announced as soon as today, according to the Associated Press, with Trump reportedly having already signed off on the agreement that would give Riyadh the green light to enrich for civilian purposes.
• The House could vote on the National Defense Authorization Act as soon as today, after a procedural vote yesterday to advance the bill passed 214-211.
• U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz and Jeff Bartos, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. for management and reform, will testify this morning before the House Foreign Affairs Committee in a hearing focused on accountability and reform within the U.N. In the afternoon, HFAC’s Middle East subcommittee will hold a hearing on the future of the Abraham Accords with former U.S. Ambassadors to Israel David Friedman and Dan Shapiro, as well as Asher Fredman, the executive director of the Misgav Institute for National Security.
• The House Ways and Means Committee is slated to mark up several bills today, including the Foreign Funding Transparency Act, which would make nonprofits disclose foreign donors; the Fiscal Sponsorship Transparency Act, which would force charities to report the groups they fund; and the Fair Treatment of Religious Organizations Act, which would shield religious groups’ tax-exempt status.
• We’re keeping an eye on primary results in Arizona, where Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) was declared the winner of the GOP gubernatorial race over Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ). Biggs will face off against Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, in November. In the state’s 1st Congressional District, Jay Feely, who had been backed by Trump, won the nomination for Schweikert’s House seat, a top target for Democrats that was narrowly won by Trump in 2024. A winner in the district’s Democratic primary has not been named, though former state Rep. Amish Shah leads Marlene Galan Woods 43-33% with about three-quarters of ballots counted.

• President Donald Trump is slated to meet with Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC) today at 9:30 a.m. ET in the Oval Office, two days after she was sworn in to her late brother’s seat. Tonight, Trump will give a prime-time address at 9 p.m. that is expected to include allegations that China meddled in the 2020 elections.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not planning to travel to Washington next week, following reports that Lindsey Graham‘s funeral, which had been rumored to be scheduled for Tuesday, will take place later in July. The Prime Minister’s Office said that Netanyahu will now travel to Washington at the end of the month.
• This morning at the Aspen Security Forum, Jordanian Foreign Affairs Minister Ayman Safadi is slated to sit for a fireside chat with NBC’s Andrea Mitchell.
• Following their conversation, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), American Global Strategies’ Rob Greenway and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Karim Sadjadpour will join a panel on Iran, followed by a panel on Israel featuring American Jewish Committee CEO Ted Deutch, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro and Israeli pollster Dahlia Scheindlin.
• The forum’s afternoon sessions will focus on geopolitics and emerging technologies, with Andreessen Horowitz partner Anne Neuberger, who served as the deputy national security advisor for cyber and emerging technology in the Biden administration, set to join a panel on AI’s impact on national security.
• Immediately after, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel — newly returned from his trip to Israel last week — will speak on a panel on the Indo-Pacific. Focus then shifts to the Middle East, with former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad joining a panel on finding middle ground in the region.
• The American Federation of Teachers’ biennial convention kicks off this morning in Washington.
• In Maine, local news outlet News Center Maine is hosting a debate for eight of the Democrats seeking to replace former Senate candidate Graham Platner on the ballot following his withdrawal from the race. The debate comes as Maine Democrats find themselves split over whom to support at the party’s nominating convention later this month, in which hundreds of yet-to-be-selected state party delegates will choose a candidate to replace Platner, who withdrew earlier this month after a former romantic partner accused him of rape.

A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S Marc rOD

More than 100 House Democrats — just under half of the party’s caucus — voted to cut off all U.S. aid to Israel on Wednesday, marking another flashpoint in the party’s growing disillusionment with the Jewish state. It’s a result that would have been almost unimaginable even a year ago.

The fact that the number of anti-Israel votes included several longtime pro-Israel Democrats who had previously been endorsed by AIPAC — like Reps. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Glenn Ivey (D-MD), Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) and Pat Ryan (D-NY) — is a sign that even some members in the mainstream wing of the party are running scared of a potential primary threat from the left. 

Combined with the Senate vote earlier this year in which 40 Democrats voted for a measure led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to block shipments of some weapons to the Jewish state, the message is clear: Israel can no longer count on reliable support from the Democratic Party.

And voting for the equivalent of a wrecking ball to the U.S.-Israel relationship — an amendment that even vocal critics of Israel described as flawed and a calculated political stunt by Republicans — is no longer a nonstarter for congressional Democrats. With a more carefully crafted amendment presented by a member without Rep. Thomas Massie’s (R-KY) baggage, the margin in support could have been greater.

Despite the significance of the Democratic defections on Israel, it’s also notable that nearly all of the Democrats in swing districts or running in closely watched battleground Senate races stood by their support of Israel and voted against the amendment.

Only two of the 16 House Democrats facing the most competitive races — districts the Cook Political Report rates as “Lean Democratic,” “Toss Up” or favoring Republicans — voted for the Massie amendment.

Read the rest of ‘What You Should Know’ here.

Hungary For Change: The Financial Times’ Ben Hall and Marton Dunai look at how Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar, who defeated Viktor Orbán earlier this year, and his Tisza party are rapidly enacting an array of legislative and governing changes since coming to power. “It is strengthening anti-corruption bodies, reinforcing judicial independence, dismantling agencies and foundations controlled by the Fidesz party and removing Orbán-era appointees from state energy companies, banks and regulators. The new administration is also turning around Hungary’s foreign policy by restoring co-operation with Brussels after years of obstructionism, mending relations with Ukraine and no longer doing Moscow’s bidding.” [FT]

Brother’s Keeper?: The New York Times’ Andrew Zucker explores the role that WME Group CEO Ari Emanuel — and his Rolodex — could play in the 2028 presidential bid being teased by his brother, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel. “There is no guarantee that Ari Emanuel would tip anything in the direction of his brother if he does in fact run for president, which, of course, he has not said he is. Plus, multiple likely Democratic candidates have existing ties to podcasters and influencers, and the bro vote could stay largely in the Republican camp. But with plenty of 2028 hopefuls jockeying for cultural cachet, names in Ari Emanuel’s blue checkmark-filled network will be in high demand.” [NYTimes]

Klee’s Craft: Puck’s Marion Maneker spotlights an exhibition of artist Paul Klee’s work — including pieces inspired by the rise of Nazism across Europe during Klee’s final years — at New York’s Jewish Museum. “The Jewish Museum’s show is a rare opportunity to see the sweep of Klee’s varied, inventive, and nearly indescribable output as an artist, even though the exhibition focuses on the artist’s late work as he struggled with increasing persecution. … Central to the show is a rarely seen suite of drawings that Klee made in direct response to the rise of the Nazis in German life. The stark, delicate, and vulnerable drawings lack the colorful ingenuity and coded criticism of Klee’s best work — but they are, in many ways, the reason for the show.” [Puck]

A larger selection of Worthy Reads is available in our Live Briefing.

President Donald Trump announced that Iran freed dual U.S.-Iranian citizen Dena Karari, who had been forbidden to leave the Islamic Republic since December 2024, as a goodwill gesture…

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz spoke overnight about American military activity in Iran and Israeli military actions in Syria, Gaza and Lebanon, according to a readout from Katz’s office…

The leadership of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations met with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on Wednesday in Washington; the Israeli diplomat also met with Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee…

A State Department official said that U.S.-brokered Israel-Lebanon talks in Rome ended after two days of “productive and positive discussions” during which the parties “agreed on the structure and guidelines for the pilot zone process, to be finalized and implemented in the coming days” as officials move to technical talks…

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, who is in Washington this week and met with Trump on Tuesday, reportedly rebuffed pressure from Iranian officials last week — while the Iraqi leader was in Iran attending the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — not to make the U.S. his first overseas trip as prime minister… 

The New York Times reports that Immigration and Customs Enforcement, before and during the recent war with Tehran, provided Iranian officials in Washington with information about Iranian detainees in ICE custody who were slated for deportation to the Islamic Republic; the Department of Homeland Security denied the allegations, which were laid out in a lawsuit filed this week by the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund…

Iran signaled that it was considering pressuring its Houthi proxies in Yemen to shutter the Bab el-Mandeb waterway that connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden as a second pressure point amid Tehran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz…

An Iranian national living in Hawaii pleaded guilty to having sent more than $100,000 to Iranians in violation of U.S. sanctions…

Former President Joe Biden announced the upcoming release, slated for Nov. 17, of Promise Me, America, about his time in the White House; Biden had previously teased the memoir during a book event for his wife, who released her own memoir earlier this year…

Former senior White House official Brett McGurk, who during the Biden administration played a key role in efforts to secure the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza, will release a book about his time in the administration a day before the third anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks; in the book, McGurk will reveal details about pre-Oct. 7 normalization efforts between Israel and Saudi Arabia, as well as his working relationship with White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff as McGurk handed over the portfolio at the end of Biden’s term…

The House Budget Committee released its blueprint for a third reconciliation bill, including $73 billion for defense and Iran-related matters; the move suggests that congressional Republicans aim to incorporate the Iran-related defense supplemental into the reconciliation package and may let the administration’s request for a separate, additional $330 billion in defense funding go by the wayside…

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) wrote to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging him against efforts to remove Israel from the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, following reports that Saudi officials are seeking to cut Israel out of the arrangement…

A GOP-aligned super PAC is boosting Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist, ahead of next month’s primary in the Badger State; read more about Hong’s recent appearances with far-left commentators who have espoused antisemitic rhetoric here…

The New York Republican Party is launching a campaign to pull in disaffected Jewish Democrats in the state, accusing the Democratic Party of “spiral[ing] into that ugliest and oldest hatred, anti-Semitism” and citing New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s recent comments in which he referred to AIPAC as “monsters”…

The New York Yankees are in advanced talks with Marc Rowan’s Apollo Global Management that would see the baseball team receive some $3 billion in financing, some of which would go to refinance existing debt…

More than two dozen Jewish camps will be auctioned off after Simad Holdings, which owns or co-owns 30 across the East Coast, declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy, eJewishPhilanthropy’s Jay Deitcher reports…

A new poll commissioned by the Council for a Secure America found that a majority of Israelis support normalization agreements with Saudi Arabia (78%), Lebanon (74%) and Syria (62%); the survey, conducted last month, found 81% support among Israelis for the Abraham Accords…

Israeli NeuroAI company Hemispheric, founded by Hagai Lalazar and Gidi Littwin, emerged from six years of stealth with $52 million as it launches its new medical AI model Descartes…

20VC founder Harry Stebbings announced the London firm’s first lead investment in an Israeli company, saying that 20VC acquired a 15% ownership stake in the unnamed company that Stebbings said was led by “two of Israel’s greatest operators”…

Town & Country spotlights the nuptials of Julia Allison and Noah Feldman, who first held a small ceremony at Harvard University, where he works, followed by a five-day celebration in Bali; Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) co-officiated the ceremony alongside Rabbi Jessica Kate Meyer…

Jamie Kirchick is joining The Atlantic as a contributing writer…

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) spoke on Wednesday morning at a fireside chat with the Hudson Institute’s Joel Rayburn focused on the future of American strategy in the Middle East.

Israeli former professional tennis player, in 2003 she was ranked 15th in the world, Anna Smashnova turns 50… 

One of the three co-founders of Comcast Corporation, he served as its chief financial officer and vice chairman, Julian A. Brodsky turns 93… Senior U.S. district court judge for the Southern District of New York, Judge Sidney H. Stein turns 81… World-renowned violinist, violist and conductor, Pinchas Zukerman turns 78… President of an eponymous communications firm, public speaker and coach, Betsy R. Sheerr… Co-creator of the first-ever spreadsheet program (VisiCalc), he currently serves as the chief technology officer of Alpha Software, Daniel Singer “Dan” Bricklin turns 75… Former high-ranking civilian official in the Pentagon during the Bush 43 administration, now a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, Douglas J. Feith turns 73… Senior rabbi since 1997 at Temple Beth Avodah in Newton Centre, Mass., Rabbi Keith Stern… Los Angeles-based attorney, she is the president emerita of the LA chapter of the Jewish National Fund, Alyse Golden Berkley… Past vice chair of the board of trustees of the Jewish Federations of North America, Cynthia D. Shapira… British solicitor, he represented Princess Diana in her divorce and Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt in a libel case, Anthony Julius turns 70… Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony Award-winning playwright and screenwriter, Tony Kushner turns 70… U.S. ambassador to the EU in the Trump 45 administration, Gordon David Sondland turns 69… Former airline executive at Northwest and Delta, Andrea Fischer Newman… Former president of Viacom Music and Entertainment Group, Douglas Alan Herzog turns 67… Businessman and philanthropist, owner of interests in many Israeli firms including IKEA Israel, Matthew Bronfman turns 67… Canadian journalist, he worked for CNN International for 30 years, Jonathan Mann turns 66… Former Israeli minister of science and technology, now a venture capitalist, Yizhar Nitzan Shai turns 63… Chief of staff of the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago, Jim Rosenberg… Chicago-based entrepreneur and philanthropist, Victoria Rivka Zell… Former NFL offensive lineman, Ariel Mace Solomon turns 58… Senior scholar at the Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center Yeshiva, Rabbi Joshua Kulp turns 56… Founder of Pinkitzel, a cupcake cafe, candy boutique and gift store, Jonathan Jantz… U.S. senator (R-IN), Jim Banks turns 47… National political correspondent for The New York Times, Shane Goldmacher… Co-founder of Los Angeles-based Meteorite and Health Action Alliance, Steven Max Levine… White House liaison to the Jewish community in the Bush 43 administration, now managing partner at Arogeti Endeavors, Scott Raymond Arogeti… Features reporter for Jewish Insider, Matthew Kassel… Founder and managing partner at Vine Ventures, Eric M. Reiner… Registered nurse and an internationally board-certified lactation consultant, Chantal Low Katz… Executive producer of “Blind Spot,” a documentary on campus antisemitism, Leonard Gold… 

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

A woman who dated Maine Senate nominee Graham Platner alleged in a series of interviews with Politico that the Democrat sexually assaulted her in 2021, an account the outlet backed up with her correspondence and other interviews.The woman, Jenny Racicot, said Platner came into her home uninvited while intoxicated and forced himself on her despite her repeated objections.

In a video statement, Platner denied the accusation outright but said he’s “mindful of the political reality it will inflict” and would be “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward for the state that I love,” a different tone than Platner has struck in the aftermath of his previous controversies. The Maine Democratic Party can only choose a replacement nominee for the general election ballot if Platner voluntarily withdraws by July 13…

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced opposition today to the Trump administration’s sale of jet engines and potential sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, hours before President Donald Trump was set to depart for the NATO summit in Ankara, Jewish Insider’s Christina Sher reports.

Netanyahu suggested on “Fox & Friends” that such moves “will upset the power balance in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority” and U.S. posture in the region. Axios reports that Netanyahu relayed the same message directly to Trump in a phone call last week and asked him to help address Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan‘s escalating anti-Israel rhetoric…

The percentage of Jewish Israelis who believe Israel’s security is a central consideration for Trump has reached a record low of 26%, according to a new survey from the Israel Democracy Institute, JI’s Matthew Shea reports. The figure marks a 15-point decrease from a month ago, during which time the Trump administration signed its memorandum of understanding with Iran…

Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem announced at a press conference in Gaza today that the terror group’s Emergency Committee — the administrative body that has governed the enclave for more than two decades — is dissolving and that its civil servants, who will remain in their roles, stand ready to work under the new technocratic government established by the Board of Peace.

The BoP expressed skepticism about the announcement, JI’s Emily Jacobs and Matthew Shea report, saying its “assessment will be guided by actions, not promises” and calling for a “genuine transfer of authority” and for Hamas to disarm. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar dismissed the move outright, calling it a “trick … designed to prevent [Hamas’] own disarmament”…

Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said both Israel and Lebanon see the agreement signed between Jerusalem, Beirut and Washington earlier this month as “superseding” the first clause of the U.S.-Iran MOU, which calls for the end of hostilities on all fronts. “Whether or not the United States does, you’ll have to ask an administration spokesman,” Leiter said at an event with the Council on Foreign Relations.

Leiter also said he “can’t imagine that any ultimate agreement with Iran would be absent a clause limiting the development of ballistic missiles,” though the MOU did not mention Iran’s ballistic missile program…

In a preview obtained by Politico of the speech former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel is set to deliver at Tel Aviv University on Wednesday, the prospective 2028 presidential candidate is set to say that the U.S. has spent too long “averting its eyes” from what he views as Israel’s misadventures, calling for “significant changes and a new direction” in the bilateral relationship.

“Going forward, Emanuel plans to say, Israelis should regard U.S. support as expressly contingent: On reviving a serious commitment to Palestinian sovereignty; On rejecting dreams of asserting dominion beyond official borders in pursuit of ‘Greater Israel’; On abandoning a security strategy that emphasizes brutally effective military force with scant attention to diplomacy or credible what-next plans in Gaza and Iran,” the outlet reported…

French President Emmanuel Macron became the first major Western head of state to visit Syria since the fall of dictator Bashar al-Assad in 2024, landing in Damascus today for meetings with Syrian leaders. Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa is also expected to meet with Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey this week…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

The two-day NATO summit begins in Turkey tomorrow with leaders of all 32 NATO countries expected to attend, as well as a congressional delegation comprised of Sens. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) and Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH). At the top of the agenda are increasing defense investments, as Trump continues to press NATO allies to shoulder a greater share of the alliance’s defense burden and threatens to draw down U.S. troops from Europe, and continuing to support Ukraine in its war with Russia.

Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) and Abdul El-Sayed, now the only remaining candidates in Michigan’s Democratic U.S. Senate primary, will participate in a televised debate on local news tomorrow night, their first head-to-head matchup since state Sen. Mallory McMorrow suspended her campaign yesterday.

The annual Contemporary Antisemitism conference, which bills itself as the largest annual academic conference on contemporary antisemitism, will kick off tomorrow at the University of Haifa. The three-day summit will feature hundreds of academics and experts, with a keynote speech tomorrow from former State Department antisemitism envoy Deborah Lipstadt and a lifetime achievement award presented to Tel Aviv University professor emerita Dina Porat.

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

In their indirect talks in Doha this week, the U.S. offered Iran access to some of its$100 billion in frozen funds in exchange for Tehran not instituting a toll on the Strait of Hormuz, but Iranian officials have continued to signal they plan to proceed with the move. Continued fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon also caused tension during the discussions, The Wall Street Journal reports…

U.S. officials told The New York Times that Washington believed Israel was plotting to assassinate Iran’s top negotiators — Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf — as they were engaged in recent talks with the U.S. over the memorandum of understanding…

Arizona Jewish and pro-Israel leaders told Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel that they feel misled by Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ), whom they supported in her contested 2024 primary but who has since turned away from the pro-Israel views she espoused during the campaign — including now rejecting support from Democratic Majority for Israel, which backed her with a surge of spending in 2024…

The AIPAC-linked United Democracy Project super PAC is up with its first negative ad against far-left Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, JI’s Marc Rod reports, hitting the Democrat in the initial $2 million ad buy for his “long history of disrespecting women.” Meanwhile, El-Sayed picked up a high-profile endorsement today from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), her first in a contested Senate race this cycle.

UDP also made $400,000 in advertising reservations to support Rep. Wesley Bell (D-MO) as he faces a comeback primary challenge from former Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), whom UDP helped Bell defeat in 2024…

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, the Democratic nominee for governor, criticized his party’s socialist congressional nominee, Melat Kiros, for her refusal to describe the deadly firebombing of a Boulder, Colo., hostage awareness march last year as an act of antisemitism, JI’s Marc Rod reports…

New York City congressional nominee Brad Lander published a response to Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove’s letter earlier this week in which Cosgrove predicted that Lander’s hostility to Israel would not be enough to protect him from being targeted by the far left. Lander argued in his response that criticism of Israel — including describing its war in Gaza as a genocide — is consistent with Jewish values and that excluding anti-Zionist Jews weakens the Jewish community…

New polling data shows that a sizable majority of Jewish voters disapprove of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s job performance and fear he is pushing the Democratic Party too far to the left, in contrast with non-Jewish voters who hold a largely favorable view of the democratic socialist, JI’s Matthew Kassel reports…

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers, led by Reps. Mike Lawler (R-NY) and Brad Sherman (D-CA), wrote to President Donald Trump today to “express deep concern about any effort” to sell F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, JI’s Marc Rod reports, after Trump and Vice President JD Vance indicated they were looking into it last week…

Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), the founder of the Republican Israel Caucus and a reliable ally of the Jewish state, called Israel’s “continuing aggressive operations” in Syria “deeply disturbing,” “counterproductive” and “irresponsible.” Wilson accused Israel of “taking Syrian land and attacking Syrian cities,” saying the operations “need to end immediately”…

Wilson, along with Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), also sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging the administration to remove Syriafrom the State Sponsor of Terrorism list…

Israel marked 1,000 days today since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks, with memorials and protests taking place around the country…

Far-right commentator Tucker Carlson told the Columbia Journalism Review that he plans to help start a new political party — after saying last month he was renouncing the Republican Party — but does not plan to run as a candidate. He repeatedly railed against Israel in the interview and accused it of “taking over my political system and destroying my country”…

Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin hosted his annual White Party at his Hamptons estate yesterday featuring a host of high-profile attendees, including Ivanka Trump, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, former quarterback Tom Brady, actor Leonardo di Caprio and more…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s (D-FL) contentious primary race in Florida’s 20th Congressional District.

Fourth of July celebrations in the nation’s capital are kicking off with a bang (literally — the fireworks show on the National Mall could break world records). President Donald Trump is slated to give a speech on the Mall ahead of the fireworks show on Saturday night, followed by a military flyover debuting the new Qatari-gifted Air Force One jet.

Iran is slated to hold a massive, dayslong funeral procession for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei beginning on Saturday in Tehran and including cities across Iran and Iraq. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a top mediator between the U.S. and Iran, will attend the memorial, alongside officials from dozens of other countries.

Christians United for Israel’s annual summit in Washington will begin on Sunday. Speakers over the three-day confab include State Department antisemitism envoy Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun; former Auburn University basketball coach Bruce Pearl; Malcolm Hoenlein, vice chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; Georgia state Rep. Esther Panitch; and former Israeli hostage Yair Horn.

We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat shalom and happy Fourth of July weekend!

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

Talks in Doha about the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding have concluded, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi announced, with the countries agreeing to create a communication channel “by tomorrow” in order to address MOU violations.

The U.S. and Iran also agreed to “keep things quiet for the coming week,” a U.S. official told Axios, while Washington is reportedly continuing to press Tehran to abandon its plan to charge tolls in the Strait of Hormuz and “think bigger” on a nuclear deal. The sums Iran could generate from freely selling oil without sanctions under such a deal “would be 100 times more valuable to them,” the official said…

New York Times/Siena polls of the six Senate battleground states — Alaska, Iowa, Maine, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas — found that Democrats have a path, albeit an uphill one, to retake the chamber in November. All of the races are within the margin of error except in North Carolina, where former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper leads Michael Whatley, former chair of the Republican National Committee, with the largest margin of seven points…

Poetica Coffee, the Brooklyn cafe that banned Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) last week over his support of Israel, claimed in an Instagram post today that Goldman intentionally “smear[ed]” the business in talking about his experience “possibly for election-eve media exposure”…

Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, told CNN yesterday that some democratic socialist candidates have views that are “vastly more radical” than where the “Democratic coalition” stands, saying their support for communism, open borders and defunding the police represents “a fundamental attack on America itself”…

Asked about Republicans viewing him as easier to beat in a general election than his more-moderate primary opponents, far-left Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed told Semafor, “The number of times I’m gonna define and redefine Mike Rogers!” referring to the GOP Senate front-runner and former Michigan representative. “By the time I’m done, his best friends are gonna look at him and think what I think, say what I say. I’m gonna define him into eternity”…

The National Education Association adopted new policies ahead of its convening this weekend in Denver after its Jewish Affairs Caucus and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs advocated for such changes, JCPA said, in response to last year’s assembly which grew contentious over antisemitism issues. The new changes include stronger conduct enforcement for delegates, electronic voting to reduce shouting on the floor during resolution votes, de-escalation training for NEA staff and repeated public reminders of the rules…

Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji was sentenced to one year in jail and two years of probation yesterday after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter and battery in the death of Paul Kessler, a 69-year-old Jewish man who died after Alnaji struck him with a megaphone at a protest in California shortly after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks. The Anti-Defamation League’s California regional offices decried the sentence as “little more than a slap on the wrist” and expressed concern at the judge’s dismissive demeanor during sentencing…

A New York woman was arrested yesterday by the FBI for allegedly providing material support to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, including over $30,000 in cryptocurrency. The woman is a leader of an extremist organization called the Direct Action Movement for Palestinian Liberation, according to the FBI, and had communicated with a person claiming to be a PIJ fighter in Gaza, whom she told she “wish[es] every day were October 7th”…

Speaking at the Herzliya Conference in Israel, Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram, director general of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, addressed Israeli public criticism of the U.S.’ foreign policy, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports: “What some in Israel perceive as weakness or folly, an apparent disregard for every warning sign on the ground, is viewed in Washington as cold, calculated and clear-eyed risk management in an era of shifting global attention.”

“For us, Iran is an existential threat; for the United States, it is a chronic regional challenge,” Baram said of the countries’ differing priorities. “We think Tehran, they think Taiwan”…

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar held a ceremony to sign the lease for the permanent new complex of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem; Huckabee handed Sa’ar a $1 bill as symbolic payment for the 99-year lease…

The New York Times looks at President Donald Trump’s insistence that Syria take over fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon from Israel, an idea that has been shot down by Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa and raised alarm across the Middle East…

CENTCOM hosted a regional security dialogue alongside the Bahrain Defense Force with participation from Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the UAE and Yemen — “the first time military leaders from Syria and Lebanon participated in a regional defense conference led by the United States,” CENTCOM said…

The U.S. Navy is searching for a missing aircrew member after a Sea Hawk helicopter made an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea, with three of the four crew members rescued in stable condition. There’s no indication any hostile action was involved, the Navy’s 5th Fleet said…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how Jewish leaders are approaching America’s 250th birthday — and why many see the milestone, coming at a fraught moment, as a chance to reaffirm both their Jewish identity and their faith in the American experiment.

The Maccabiah Games, which kicked off today in Jerusalem with a grand opening ceremony, begin in earnest tomorrow as about 5,000 athletes — including 900 from the U.S. — compete in more than 30 sports over the next two weeks.

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

Nearly all House Democrats voted in favor of a war powers resolution this afternoon that aimed to block U.S. support for Israeli operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports, though the legislation failed to secure a House majority, with nearly all Republicans and 22 Democrats voting against the measure…

White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are in Doha, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari confirmed, where they were set to meet with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and other mediators, but did not hold talks with Iranian officials. It’s a step back from the direct negotiations that took place in Switzerland just a week ago…

Al-Ansari said further that the $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets has not yet been released to Tehran. “Whether the funds are transferred depends on the agreement of both parties and the progress of negotiations, which has not yet occurred,” he announced at a press briefing today…

Meanwhile, Oman has submitted a proposal to the U.S. for Muscat and Tehran to collect service fees from shipping companies seeking to transit the Strait of Hormuz, The New York Times reports. One of Iran’s deputy foreign ministers, Kazem Gharibabadi, said yesterday if Iran was unable to come to an arrangement with Oman it would move forward on its own…

A small group of House Republicans, led by Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE), is threatening not to support the Trump administration’s $88 billion Iran war supplemental funding request unless the White House replaces more than 4,000 U.S. troops who were pulled out of Poland last month, Politico reports. The effort could hold up the supplemental, already expected to face a tough fight, given the GOP’s razor-thin majority in the chamber…

A 20-year-old U.S. citizen living in Jerusalem is set to be charged by Israeli prosecutors for spying on Iran’s behalf. The suspect, arrested earlier this month, was allegedly paid to take pictures and videos of “sensitive sites” in Israel over several months…

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Iraqi leaders in Baghdad today as both countries prepare for a “mass funeral” for the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Araghchi said, after Khamenei was killed in February in a joint U.S.-Israeli operation…

The Israeli Ministry of Defense and defense manufacturer Rafael completed a successful test integrating the Iron Beam laser system into the Iron Dome missile-defense array, marking a “major breakthrough,” Rafael announced…

Ellie Cohanim, who served as deputy special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism in President Donald Trump’s first term, recently joined his administration as a senior policy advisor to U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz, Waltz announced today…

A New York Times/Siena poll of the race for U.S. Senate in Texas found Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in a dead heat, 47-47%, among likely voters. The seat, once considered a long shot for Democrats in the deep-red state, has emerged as a top-tier pickup opportunity, given Paxton’s ethical and legal baggage…

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin — the first Jewish person to hold her role — slammed a newly elected Brooklyn Democrat’s promotion of antisemitic conspiracy theories, but declined to call her commentary disqualifying, JI’s Will Bredderman reports…

After a monthslong unexplained absence from Congress, Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ) returned to the House floor today to disclose that he had been hospitalized for depression. Kean faces a competitive reelection race against Democratic nominee Rebecca Bennett in a key battleground district in Democrats’ bid to retake the House…

Prominent pro-Israel activist Arsen Ostrovsky, who was injured in the Bondi Beach Hanukkah shooting in Sydney last year, testified before Australia’s Royal Commission on Antisemitism about how he faced “relentless” and “vicious” harassment online after the attack, including AI-altered images of his injuries and accusations that he was a crisis actor…

In a series of high-profiledecisions today, the Supreme Court sided with Vice President JD Vance in a case he brought as a Senate candidate, along with other plaintiffs, and lifted federal limits on coordinated spending between political parties and candidates.

The court also struck down Trump’s attempt to end birthright citizenship — a move that garnered praise from Jewish groups including the American Jewish Committee, the Union for Reform Judaism and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at Democrats’ ongoing divisions over an effort to cut aid to Israel led by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY).

Technical delegations from the U.S. and Iran are expected to meet separately with Qatari and Pakistani mediators in Doha — still with no direct talks planned.

Hard-line Republicans upended business on the House floor for the second week in a row, blocking the procedural measure that would have teed up consideration of the 2027 State Department funding bill and the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act. After a final vote this evening, the House will head to recess early, until July 13.

The Herzliya Conference continues in Israel: Among the many top national security and political officials speaking are former Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid; former Israeli Ambassadors to the U.S. Danny Ayalon and Michael Herzog; former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro; EU Ambassador to Israel Michael Mann; Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot; Yisrael Beiteinu party leader Avigdor Liberman; Democrats party leader Yair Golan; Ra’am party leader Mansour Abbas; and Nadav Tamir, executive director of J Street Israel.

President Donald Trump is set to take his first trip on the jumbo jet gifted to him by Qatar as he travels to an event in North Dakota.

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

The U.S. and Iran offered conflicting reports about whether talks will be heldthis week as the countries attempt to deescalate after a weekend exchange of military strikes: President Donald Trump claimed today that Iran had requested a meeting that would take place in Qatar on Tuesday, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports, while Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei denied any scheduled meetings with the U.S…

White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed Congress this afternoon on the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran earlier this month, in the first member-wide update on the agreement…

CENTCOM head Adm. Brad Cooper met with Lebanese Armed Forces chief Gen. Rodolphe Haykal in Beirut today to discuss “implementing the security annex” to the Israel–Lebanon framework agreement signed on Friday, the LAF said in a statement. CENTCOM said Cooper also met with “senior civilian and military leaders” in Israel…

White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles joined Vice President JD Vance in initially voicing skepticism to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pitch to Trump in February 2025 that the U.S. join Israel in striking Iran’s nuclear facilities, according to a new book by New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan. Wiles feared that any involvement from the U.S. military could “spiral into an Israeli regime-change war,” the authors write…

The IDF’s Military Intelligence Directorate and Southern Command told Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the IDF chief of staff, that Hamas is reconstitutingin order to resume war against Israel, according to Israeli media. The report indicates the IDF is urging a return to its campaign against the terror group, but the U.S. is opposed as it seeks to move forward with Trump’s Board of Peace…

Nika Soon-Shiong, the publisher of the Hamas-sympathetic outlet Drop Site News, claimed she was removed from the board of the Committee to Protect Journalists, sharing a letter she had written to the board objecting to CPJ’s announcement that it would audit its database of members of the media killed during the Israel-Hamas war. The move was undertaken after Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad identified individuals CPJ listed as journalists as members of the terrorist groups…

In the lead-up to this summer’s primary elections, endorsement season is in full swing: In its first-ever endorsement, Jewish Voice for Peace Action, the political arm of the anti-Israel advocacy group, is backing far-left Abdul El-Sayed in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Michigan. The Detroit Free Press, Michigan’s largest newspaper, endorsed one of his opponents, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow.

In Minnesota, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey is backing Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN) for U.S. Senate against her more-progressive primary opponent, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, and in Massachusetts, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) endorsed Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) as he fends off a generational primary challenge from Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA)…

A new New York Times/Portland Press Herald/Siena poll shows Democratic candidate Graham Platner and Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a statistical tie, 49-47%, among likely voters in the Maine Senate race. The close margin reflects Platner’s struggles to consolidate Democratic support — 10% of voters who say they want Democrats to control the Senate indicated they plan to vote for Collins anyway.

Platner and the Democratic National Committee sent a joint fundraising email today, after Democratic leadership had hesitated to support him during the primary…

New York state Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs acknowledged to The New York Post that the “Israel-Palestinian issue had an impact” in the state’s recent primary elections, where several socialist candidates prevailed. “It hurt establishment Democrats,” he said, including “people who may have voted against [Democratic incumbent Reps. Adriano] Espaillat and [Dan] Goldman because of it”…

Yair Rosenberg, a longtime journalist and commentator on American Jewry, is joining The New York Timesas a reporter covering Jewish American life, the Times announced today, amid criticism over the outlet’s alleged bias in covering antisemitism and Israel.

In the latest such incident, noted by Gabe Stutman, the former editor of J. The Jewish News of Northern California, the Times’ reporting on antisemitic harassment targeting California state Sen. Scott Wiener failed to mention Wiener is Jewish…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how California politicians are responding to the repeated harassment targeting Wiener, who is running to replace retiring Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in Congress.

Witkoff and Jared Kushner are headed to Qatar in order to represent the U.S. in talks with Iran, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told Fox News, as the status of the negotiations remains unclear.

The technical talks on the memorandum of understanding meant to be taking place separately are also up in the air — Iran’s Baghaei said an Iranian technical delegation will be in Doha this week but will not be meeting with American officials.

Colorado voters will head to the polls in tomorrow’s Democratic primaries, where moderate incumbents are fearing a far-left sweep similar to that of New York City’s primaries earlier this month. Internal polling from the campaigns of longtime state Democratic leaders Sen. Michael Bennet — who is running for governor — and Rep. Diana DeGette shows much tighter races than expected for the established politicians.

Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, will testify before the House Appropriations Committee where he is expected to address the White House’s $88 billion supplemental funding request for the war with Iran and FY2027 budget request.

The Israeli Embassy in Washington will hold a “Zionist LGBTQ+ celebration” on the last day of Pride Month in memory of slain embassy staffer Sarah Milgrim’s allyship.

Reichman University’s Herzliya Conference kicks off in Israel, focusing this year on national security and national resilience. Israeli President Isaac Herzog will address the confab, as well as U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee; Amos Hochstein, who served as a Middle East envoy under former President Joe Biden; former Mossad chief Tamir Pardo; former Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi; journalist Barak Ravid; and Aliyah Minister Ofir Sofer.

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

Vice President JD Vance said in an interview released todaythat U.S. military officials are going to “hang out” with representatives of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a U.S.-designated terror organization, in Qatar in an effort to establish a conflict-reduction mechanism, Jewish Insider’s Danielle Cohen-Kanik reports.

“[Iran was] like, ‘OK, fine, we’ll send somebody from the IRGC to go hang out in Doha with somebody from CENTCOM,’ and that’s how we’re going to settle a lot of these disputes,” Vance said. He added that officials from the UAE — “by far the most hawkish, by far the most pro-Israel country in the [Gulf Cooperation Council]” — are also in touch directly with the IRGC…

Meanwhile, the IRGC reportedly attacked a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz today after issuing a warning to commercial vessels “to strictly refrain from any movement outside the designated routes.”

Iranian officials are further considering a plan to charge for security and environmental services in the strait that would generate $40 billion a year, sources told The Wall Street Journal. Tehran is seeking buy-in from other countries bordering the waterway and offering to share the revenue…

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to reporters in Bahrain as he wrapped up his Middle East tour today, said that U.S., Israeli and Lebanese representatives meeting for their last day of negotiations in Washington were “very close in our hopes of getting a commitment of intent” — a formal document typically used to outline preliminary terms between parties…

Rubio also spoke at a meeting of GCC foreign ministers where he vowed that Washington would not strike a deal with Iran that undermines “the security, the stability or the prosperity of any of our partners in the Gulf region”…

Iranian parliament speaker and top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf denied President Donald Trump’s claim that the funds received by Iran under the memorandum of understanding will be used to buy American agricultural products. “The only crop we’re harvesting is what you planted: decades of mistrust,” Ghalibaf wrote on X, adding, “apparently the US only exports GMO soybeans, broken promises and trash talks”…

A new Quinnipiac University poll released yesterday found 48% of American voters say the U.S. is too supportive of Israel — the highest level since the survey started posing the question in 2017 — including 66% of Democrats and 20% of Republicans.

Fifty-nine percent of voters said they are “not so confident” or “not confident at all” that Trump’s deal with Iran will work, while 37% said they are “very” or “somewhat” confident…

The New York Times reports on a February meeting between Carl Heastie, speaker of the New York State Assembly, and officials from the New York City Democratic Socialists of America chapter, where Heastie reiterated his request that the group stop targeting incumbent Democrats.

“We told him then, and we’ll tell him now: That’s not something we can do. We have to continue to grow our numbers and grow our influence, and that means challenging incumbents,” recalled Grace Mausser, an NYC-DSA co-chair…

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the long-shot GOP candidate for New York governor, lashed out at congressional candidate Brad Lander on Wednesday night, telling Newsmax that the Jewish nominee is “antisemitic” and “would be a camp guard in the concentration camp if he could.” Blakeman, who is also Jewish, dialed back his remarks somewhat in a subsequent statement, saying, “Maybe camp guard was too strong, but certainly collaborator.”

Lander responded, “We named our son after Marek Edelman, a leader of the Warsaw ghetto uprising. That’s how seriously I take the legacy of Jews who fought Nazis”…

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) became the second senator to endorsefar-left Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed today, after Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) became an early backer of the physician’s campaign. El-Sayed, who has drawn criticism for his heated anti-Israel rhetoric and campaigning with antisemitic streamer Hasan Piker, has previously advocated for Van Hollen to replace Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) as the Democratic leader in the Senate, due to Schumer’s continued support for U.S. aid to Israel…

Andy Burnham, the presumptive next prime minister of the U.K., has tapped as his chief of staff James Purnell, a former member of Parliament and lobbying executive who previously served as head of Labour Friends of Israel more than 20 years ago. Purnell also served as a Cabinet minister under former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is now leading efforts on the Board of Peace for Gaza…

MIT professor Yossi Sheffi talks to the NYT about his forthcoming book on antisemitism at the elite school in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks: Unsafe at M.I.T.: A Chronicle of a Campus War on the Jews. Sheffi said his book takes the place of an official study and report on campus antisemitism, which many universities undertook after the disruptive student protests of 2023-2024, but MIT did not…

Some Texas Jewish leaders are objecting to proposals under consideration by the State Board of Education that would require public school students to read Bible passages in class, saying they misrepresent Jewish tradition, despite their supporters touting the promotion of “Judeo-Christian” values…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for an interview with David Harris, the longtime former CEO of the American Jewish Committee, about his book, Antisemitism: What Everyone Needs to Know.

Harris’ view: “Every Jewish organization looking for a Democrat from Washington lines up to invite Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA). If he’s not available, they’re all baffled as to who else to invite from the contingent of Democrats in the U.S. Senate.”

Amid gridlock on the House floor driven by some Republicans’ frustration with the Senate’s failure to pass President Donald Trump’s signature voter ID bill, the House canceled many of its expected votes this week, including those on the 2027 State Department budget and an effort to cut U.S. aid to Israel. The chamber will return next week with plans to work on the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act.

The Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado continues, including a session on higher education with Princeton University President Chris Eisgruber and a live recording of “The Long Game” with former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his deputy Jon Finer, the podcast’s co-hosts, with Brookings senior fellow Robert Kagan.

We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!

• Jewish and Israeli aid and rescue organizations are preparing to send teams to Venezuela after the poverty-stricken South American country was hit by massive back-to-back earthquakes on Wednesday night, representatives of the groups told eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judah Ari Gross. At least 164 people have been pronounced dead so far, and the number is expected to rise considerably as search efforts get underway, with some projections putting the death toll into the tens of thousands. Read more here.
• Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg is hosting the State Department’s two-day Pax Silica Summit at the U.S. Institute of Peace. Attendees include representatives from the signatory countries to the strategic initiative — which include Israel, Qatar, the UAE, India, Germany and the U.K., among others — and senior business executives. 
• On the Hill, acting Pentagon Comptroller Jules W. Hurst III will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee for his confirmation hearing to be permanently appointed to the role — Hurst is likely to face questions about the Trump administration’s $88 billion supplemental funding request, largely to cover the cost of the Iran war, sent to Congress on Wednesday. 
• The House Committee on Education and Workforce will mark up the No Antisemitism in Education Act, and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin is slated to testify at an oversight hearing in the House Appropriations Committee.
• The Alliance for Responsible Citizenship‘s third annual conference wraps up in London today. Speakers at the summit, which focused on the future of Western civilization at the 250th anniversary of the United States, included House Speaker Mike Johnson; Energy Secretary Chris Wright; former Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin; Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers; and Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner.
• The Texas Democratic State Convention begins today: The three-day event will feature remarks from Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin. Activists are set to consider close to 20 resolutions critical of Israel.
• The annual Aspen Ideas Festival, which brings together leading figures from politics, business, media and academia, kicks off in Colorado with an opening session featuring Aspen Institute leaders and journalists Fareed Zakaria and David Brooks.

A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S JOSH KRAUSHAAR

There’s little doubt that socialism is on the march within the Democratic Party after the latest  primaries, with extreme candidates who would have been dismissed as nonviable prevailing in numerous congressional primaries and mayoral contests from coast to coast. 

Factor in the political resilience of far-left Maine Senate nominee Graham Platner despite numerous scandals and the momentum of anti-Israel Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed in a contested Michigan primary despite facing well-funded opposition, and there’s the potential of radicals toppling mainstream candidates well outside the deep-blue confines of major urban centers. 

Ultimately, that’s a major question looming for the Democratic Party’s future — and the health of our democracy. Is the rise of socialism primarily a product of urban angst and college-age naivete, or does it have staying power beyond the most-progressive precincts in the country?  Can left-wing candidates prevail in swing districts, far away from the urban progressive centers that make up its base? Or will they end up being more of a noisy but powerless faction in Congress?

Either way, socialist candidates have gone from a curiosity that rarely won any congressional seats to riding a Democratic Socialists of America-organized grassroots wave that now has to be reckoned with. You could count the number of Squad members on one hand when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-NY) and her like-minded allies were first elected in 2018 and 2020. Now their representation is poised to double from its previous peak — and AOC now counts as downright pragmatic, compared to several of her soon-to-be-colleagues.

Read the rest of ‘What You Should Know’ here.

Radical Shift: Reason’s senior editor Robby Soave examines Democratic congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier’s record as she is set to become what he calls Congress’ “first campus radical.” “In 2019, when I published my first book, Panic Attack: Young Radicals in the Age of Trump, I predicted that the era’s campus protesters would not shed their radicalism when they graduated college and moved out into the so-called real world — rather, they would force the world to conform to their quixotic expectations. This would be particularly felt in the areas of American life most susceptible to their influence: education, media, entertainment, and eventually, politics. Now that day has finally arrived. Welcome, congresswoman.” [Reason]

The Socratic AI Method: The Economist examines the rise in philosophers being hired by AI firms. “Some of the lessons that philosophy can offer AI researchers are ancient. The Socratic method — as described by Plato, an ancient Greek philosopher — uses feigned ignorance and sequential questioning to clarify meanings, spot contradictions and reveal ramifications. Many current AI systems tend towards sycophancy. Models trained in the Socratic method, says Jörg Noller, an expert on philosophy and AI at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, are less keen on people-pleasing and more willing to pursue the truth.” [Economist]

House Majority Math: Joel Wanger, DMFI PAC’s chief political officer, breaks down the results from Tuesday night’s primary elections. “Here’s the thing about House Majority math, and it’s something I’ve said before: it isn’t won in New York City or San Francisco. It’s won in places like San Diego and South Texas — and that’s exactly where pro-Israel Democrats had some of their best nights this cycle, nominating strong general-election candidates in competitive seats. … The pattern I’ve tracked all cycle keeps repeating: pro-Israel Democrats win decisively when they take primary challenges seriously and early, build broad coalitions rather than narrow ones, and talk about the kitchen-table issues — affordability, economic anxiety — that are actually driving voters right now. Where that didn’t happen, races were close. Where it did, they weren’t.” [Substack]

No Socialist Takeover: The Atlantic’s Adam Serwer argues that the Democratic Party is not being taken over by democratic socialists as a unified national force, but rather is becoming more ideologically diverse and locally shaped. “The modern Democratic Party, by virtue of its class and ethnic diversity, has always been ideologically heterodox. An approach that works for a Zohran Mamdani or a Janeese Lewis George will not necessarily work for a James Talarico in Texas or a Mary Peltola in Alaska. Many people outside of the democratic socialists’ cities and districts will focus on whether the candidates’ stances on Israel and Palestinian rights reflect a shift within the party (and they do) and the fact that they differ from more centrist Democrats (also correct). But whether they succeed as leaders and politicians will depend on much more local concerns — matters such as jobs, public safety, and affordability.” [Atlantic]

Israeli and Lebanese officials have reportedly denied a claim by a State Department official, cited by Reuters, who said that Israel had withdrawn from some of the southern Lebanese territory it has held during its war against Hezbollah…

Saudi Arabia is planning to host reconciliation talks between Gulf countries and Iran, a diplomat with knowledge of the arrangements told Agence France Presse. The summit, aimed at mending ties between Gulf nations, Iran and possibly other regional neighbors in the aftermath of the war, will be independent of ongoing U.S.-Iran talks, the diplomat said…

Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday; pictured sitting next to the secretary of state in a working lunch with MBZ was Michael Boulos, Trump’s son-in-law, whose father serves as a senior advisor to the president on the Middle East…

Bahraini National Security Advisor Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa met separately with Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Lindsey Graham(R-SC) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Rep. Brian Mast(R-FL) during a visit to Washington…

FBI Director Kash Patel hosted Qatari Interior Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani in Washington…

CENTCOM announced that the U.S. killed senior ISIS leader Ali Husayn al-‘Ulaywi in an airstrike in northwest Syria last Friday…

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) introduced a resolution to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Americans and relief organizations involved in saving Jewish Holocaust refugees…

An intelligence report obtained by journalists from the Israeli public broadcaster Kan details how Qatar became a central channel of economic and military strength for Iran, helping it to circumvent sanctions after the 2018 cancellation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and also after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel…

A Kuwaiti air-defense officer shared a firsthand account of the opening moments of Iran’s missile and drone attacks on the Gulf country, describing at a conference in London the frantic five minutes as ballistic missiles filled the sky and the air-defense network scrambled to respond…

Vice President JD Vance and his allies are embracing his role as the public face of President Donald Trump’s Iran deal, Semafor reports, arguing that backing an end to the conflict distinguishes him from the GOP’s neoconservative wing and strengthens his standing with the MAGA base ahead of a potential 2028 presidential run…

The New York Times traces a generational and ideological shift on the American right toward viewing Iran as a pragmatic country the U.S. can learn to live with — a pivot led by Trump but driven by other factors that include younger Republicans’ war fatigue and waning support for Israel…

New Lines Magazine spotlights the unrest surrounding a resort project in Albania’s Vjosa-Narta protected area by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump that has sparked unprecedented mass protests in the country; the demonstrations have evolved from an environmental campaign to a broad expression of frustration with long-serving Prime Minister Edi Rama…

Ari Emanuel, TKO CEO and Mari Group founder, is in advanced talks to buy theater group ATG for $6 billion…

Morris Dancyger, a child survivor of Auschwitz who built a successful pharmacy and real estate career and co-founded the first modern art gallery in Calgary, Canada, died at 86…

Haredi demonstrators blocked major highways in Israel on Wednesday, causing massive traffic disruptions, in a nationwide protest against the imprisonment of yeshiva students who fail to comply with military draft orders.

Free agent center fielder, formerly in the San Francisco Giants organization, he was the 10th overall pick in the 2019 MLB draft, Hunter David Bishop turns 28…

Music publicist in the 1970s and 1980s for Prince, Billy Joel and Styx, later an author on human behavior, Howard Bloom turns 83… Founder and CEO of Bel Air Partners, a financial advisory firm for automotive retailers, Sheldon J. Sandler turns 82… Real estate developer in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Las Vegas and Miami and founder of The Continuum Company, Ian Bruce Eichner turns 81… Florida resident, Joseph C. Goldberg… Southern California-based mentor, coach and consultant for business executives through Vistage International, Gary Brennglass… Associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Justice Sonia Sotomayor turns 72… Former member of the Knesset for the Meretz party, Michal Rozin turns 57… Founder and CEO of The Agency, a high-end real estate brokerage, Mauricio Umansky turns 56… Managing director of A-Street, an investment fund focused on seeding and scaling innovative K-12 student learning, Mora Segal… Senior media and PR specialist at Hadassah, Helen Chernikoff… Israeli philosopher, writer and publicist, he teaches at Yeshivat Har Etzion and Midreshet Lindenbaum, Rabbi Chaim Navon turns 53… Founder and director of The Biblical Museum of Natural History in Beit Shemesh, Israel, popularly known as the “Zoo Rabbi,” Natan Slifkin turns 51… Former fashion model and television presenter, Michele Merkin turns 51… Deputy director of government relations at Bread for the World, Zachary Silberman… President of Gratz College in Melrose Park, Pa., Zev Eleff turns 41… One-half of the husband-and-wife duo known for their YouTube channel h3h3Productions with more than 1.3 billion views, Ethan Edward Klein turns 41… Organizational change management specialist at CACI International, Isaac Snyder… VP of strategy at Saint Paul Commodities and co-founder of Veriflux, Daniel “Dani” Charles turns 39… Family Medicine Residency Faculty at Jefferson Einstein Hospital in Philadelphia, Pa., Avital Mintz-Morgenthau, MD… Senior reporter and writer covering the White House for CNN, Betsy Klein…

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

Moderate House Democrats were shaken by the success of several Democratic Socialists of America-backed candidates in New York City primaries last night, and particularly the ouster of two incumbents by their left-wing challengers. “People who do not support the DSA wring their hands at cocktail parties, while the DSA is organizing,” Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) told Axios. “You can’t win with these guys by playing patty cake,” another centrist House Democrat said…

Jewish leaders also expressed dismay at the election results: Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch of the Reform Stephen Wise Free Synagogue, an outspoken critic of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, told The New York Times that “a lot of American Jews” woke up today to “a sense of sadness, a sense that we’re losing something important.”

Rabbi Andy Bachman, a former rabbi at Congregation Beth Elohim in Brooklyn, said the “most disturbing” thing about the election results was that “if you declare genocide in Gaza, despite a distinct lack of experience compared to people that you’re running against, it can win you an election”…

Fresh off his election night victories, Mamdani announced today he would be meeting with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports.

Jeffries said earlier that he and Mamdani “agree to strongly disagree about some of his endorsements,” after the mayor helped unseat two New York City Democrats: Reps. Dan Goldman and Adriano Espaillat. “He’s got work to do in terms of the conversations that he’s going to have with members of Congress moving forward,” Jeffries said of Mamdani…

After blindsiding lawmakers today when he abruptly canceled a bill signing for a widely supported bipartisan housing bill, President Donald Trump attended a tense GOP Senate luncheon where he railed against the Senate’s passage of an Iran war powers resolution yesterday and got into a shouting match with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who voted in favor.

When Trump asked why any Republican would have supported the measure, Cassidy, who was recently defeated by a Trump-backed challenger, recalled, “I stood and said, ‘You have not told the American people what’s going on’”…

Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed in Abu Dhabi this morning, where Rubio said he “thanked the UAE leadership for their unparalleled support, praised their courage and resilience in the face of Iran’s attacks, and reaffirmed our commitment to Emirati security”…

Pictured sitting next to the secretary of state in a working lunch with MBZ was Michael Boulos, Trump’s son-in-law whose father serves as a senior advisor to the president on the Middle East. Rubio said later that his “good friend” Boulos was not involved in the policy discussions…

Rubio then traveled to Kuwait, where he told reporters that technical talks with Iran are slated to resume next week and dismissed speculation that Israel is attempting to undermine the memorandum of understanding: “The Israelis exactly know what we’re working on. All of our partners in the region know what we’re working on”…

Yesterday’s discussions between Israeli and Lebanese representatives for their fifth round of negotiations at the State Department ended without progress and at some points became “ugly,” Axios reports, as military officials from both countries presented conflicting plans for the IDF’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon.

Rubio told reporters that Jerusalem and Beirut are still working to establish pilot zones under the control of the Lebanese Armed Forces where the IDF will pull back, saying, “The more of that area that the LAF is able to secure, the less of it is in Hezbollah’s control, the less Israel will be in Lebanon.” But Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated today that the IDF will not withdraw from southern Lebanon “even if there is an American demand”…

Rubio also presided over the official reopening of the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait City after it was shuttered for security reasons several months ago amid the Iran war…

Iranian parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called the agreement signed with the U.S. “a declaration of America’s defeat,” saying at a conference in Azerbaijan that it was reached as a “result of the resistance and authority” of Iran…

The Trump administration is planning to approve the sale of dozens of jet engines worth more than $700 million to Turkey, according to Reuters, ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara next month. The move comes despite reported security concerns from Congress…

FBI Director Kash Patel met with Qatari Interior Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al-Thani in Washington…

CENTCOM announced that the U.S. killed senior ISIS leader Ali Husayn al-‘Ulaywi in an airstrike in northwest Syria on Friday…

Iranian negotiators are consulting Trump’s book, The Art of the Deal, and psychologists in order to navigate the president’s shifting tone in negotiations, sources told The Wall Street Journal…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) avoided a similar fate to his pro-Israel House colleagues who were ousted from their seats as he overwhelmingly defeated a left-wing challenger who made Torres’ support for Israel central to his attacks.

The House Committee on Education and Workforce will mark up Rep. Randy Fine’s (R-FL) No Antisemitism in Education Act.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin will testify at an oversight hearing in the House Appropriations Committee.

The State Department will begin its two-day Pax Silica Summit at the U.S. Institute of Peace, hosted by Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg, focused on strengthening cooperation in AI supply chains, critical minerals, energy and more. The event will be attended by representatives from the Pax Silica signatory countries — which include Israel, Qatar, the UAE, India, Germany and the U.K., among others — and senior business executives.

The Texas Democratic State Convention begins tomorrow, featuring remarks over the three-day event from Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin. Activists will consider close to 20 resolutions critical of Israel — some of which condemn AIPAC and DMFI — introduced by seven individuals at a party convention in June.

The annual Aspen Ideas Festival will kick off in Colorado, bringing together leading figures from politics, business, media and academia for a week of discussions on global challenges including AI, economic policy and national security.

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a heated phone call on Tuesday where they discussed a potential peace deal with Iran that was drafted by Qatar, Pakistan and other mediators, Axios reports, with Netanyahu pushing for a return to war.

Responding to reports that Netanyahu favors continuing strikes, Trump said on Wednesday that the Israeli leader “will do whatever I want him to do”…

Trump said the U.S. and Iran are “right on the borderline” of either securing a deal or resuming the war, telling reporters the process “could go very quickly, or could be a few days.” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, meanwhile, threatened to strike “beyond the region” should military operations continue…

The Jewish Democratic Council of America announced a dual endorsement today of Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow in Michigan’s three-way Senate Democratic primary, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports, saying, “There are two candidates who stand with our community on issues of importance to Jewish voters, and there is one who does not.”

While JDCA CEO Halie Soifer acknowledged concerns that Stevens and McMorrow could end up splitting the more-moderate vote and inadvertently propelling the far-left Abdul El-Sayed to the nomination, she told JI the dual endorsement was meant to reflect JDCA’s broader assessment of the stakes of the race…

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin is backing a new buffer zone bill for schools that aims to avoid another veto from Mayor Zohran Mamdani, JI’s Will Bredderman reports; the revised legislation narrows the language to early childhood facilities and K-12 schools and carves out other educational facilities, addressing concerns from the mayor and other councilmembers…

A new poll from the independent Pan Atlantic Research firm found presumptive Maine Senate Democratic nominee Graham Platner leading incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) 48-41% among likely voters. There was a stark educational divide: Platner led Collins by 20 points among those with a four-year college degree or higher, while the candidates were neck-and-neck among those without…

Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) vowed that if Maureen Galindo, the antisemitic conspiracy theorist running in the Democratic primary for Texas’ 35th District, is elected to Congress, “we will force a vote to expel her every single day we are here.”

All Jewish Democratic members of Congress also joined to condemn Galindo’s “vile, bigoted, and antisemitic views,” calling her “desperate and unhinged”…

Yesterday’s primary elections saw Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) secure the GOP nomination for retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) Senate seat, while in Georgia, former Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) and former football coach Derek Dooley will head to a runoff next month after neither received 50% in the race to take on Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA)…

Former Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), who represented the Boston area in Congress for more than three decades and was the first openly gay member of Congress, died on Tuesday, JI’s Gabby Deutch reports. He was 86.

In the final weeks of his life, Frank did a series of interviews to promote his forthcoming book, even as he anticipated not making it to the release date. In a May 8 interview with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Frank said he believed Democrats should reject far-left litmus tests, but said Israel policy is “180 degrees” different and that Democrats need to make clear their opposition to Netanyahu…

Netanyahu, along with other Israeli officials, issued a sharp condemnation of far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir after he released a video showing himself taunting detained flotilla activists, JI’s Matthew Shea reports.

In the video, Ben-Gvir waves a large Israeli flag over blindfolded activists kneeling on the ground and shouts, “Welcome to Israel, we are the masters.” Netanyahu said the way his Cabinet minister “dealt with the flotilla activists is not in line with Israel’s values and norms”…

James Murdoch, the son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, is purchasing, through his media holding company Lupa Systems, New York magazine, the Vox Media Podcast Network and Vox.com from Vox Media. Murdoch’s other business ventures include an investment firm, Bodhi Tree, founded in 2022 with $1.5 billion from the Qatar Investment Authority. His expanded holdings in American media mark a homecoming of sorts — his father owned New York magazine from 1977-1991…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for an interview with the two Republican candidates running for the University of Michigan Board of Regents, as they see an opening to pitch themselves to voters over Amir Makled, an anti-Israel Democratic nominee.

The Capital Jewish Museum in Washington will open to the public to mark the one-year anniversary of the shooting that killed Israeli Embassy staffers Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim.

The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington will hold candidate forums with D.C. mayoral hopefuls Janeese Lewis George and Kenyan McDuffie.

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and James Lankford (R-OK) introduced the Jewish American Security Act today, a broad new effort to address antisemitism across multiple sectors of American society, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.

The bill — launched at a Jewish Federations of North America press conference on Capitol Hill — aims to combat antisemitism on campus and online, as well as streamline and provide $1 billion in funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, and has broad support among Jewish community groups and across all major religious denominations.

William Daroff, CEO of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, told JI it was “deeply encouraging to see this bill come together with bipartisan, bicameral support at a time when that kind of consensus is all too rare”…

President Donald Trump endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) ahead of the state’s heated GOP primary runoff next Tuesday, JI’s Emily Jacobs reports. Trump, who has repeatedly praised both candidates, claimed Cornyn “is a good man … but he was not supportive of me when times were tough.”

If Paxton wins the May 26 runoff, Democrats plan to invest millions behind their nominee, state Rep. James Talarico, who is trying to become the first Democrat to win a Senate seat in Texas since 1988. General election polling indicates that a matchup between Talarico and Paxton — who carries significant legal and ethical baggage — would be highly competitive…

Activist Maureen Galindo, a candidate for the Democratic nomination in Texas’ 35th Congressional District who has continuously trafficked in antisemitic conspiracy theories, pledged in an Instagram post last week to turn an immigrant detention center in south Texas into a “prison for American Zionists.” “It will also be a castration processing center for pedophiles which will probably be most of the Zionists,” she continued.

Jewish and Democratic groups, including Democratic Majority for Israel, are backing Galindo’s opponent, Bexar County sheriff’s deputy Johnny Garcia. In a statement about Galindo’s comments, DMFI accused Republicans of funding her campaign and “deliberately elevating one of the most grotesque antisemites in America”…

Trump blasted Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) for sending a campaign text to voters, as election day is underway in Kentucky, with a statement from Trump endorsing Massie — from 2022. Trump has endorsed Massie’s opponent, Ed Gallrein, in today’s Republican primary.

“Horrible Congressman Thomas Massie put out an old Endorsement, from many years ago, of him by me long before I found out that he was the Worst Congressman in the History of our Country,” Trump wrote on X — his first post on the platform in months…

New polling from the campaign of Navy veteran Rebecca Bennett shows her with a 20-point lead in the Democratic primary for New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District, the seat held by Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ) — who is drawing increasing scrutiny for his monthslong unexplained absence from Congress. Bennett, who is leading the pack in fundraising, polled at 35% among likely primary voters, while Tina Shah came in second at 15%…

After abruptly scrapping a strike on Iran planned for today, Trump gave a vague timeline for renewed diplomacy, saying Tehran has only “a limited period of time” to return to the negotiating table. “Two or three days. Maybe Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Maybe early next week,” he told reporters today.

Hours after calling off the strike yesterday evening, Trump met with his national security team to discuss military options in Iran, Axios reports, suggesting resumed strikes are still on the table…

Speaking at the No Money for Terror Conference in Paris, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called on U.S. allies to “step up” and join Washington in taking aggressive economic action against Iran and its broader terrorism financing networks, JI’s Matthew Shea reports.

Bessent’s comments came as the Treasury Department announced sanctions against four individuals associated with the pro-Hamas flotilla traveling towards Gaza, as well as a suite of sanctions against Iranian shadow banking operations and 19 regime-linked vessels…

The Emirati Defense Ministry said that drone attacks that caused a fire at the UAE’s nuclear power plant over the weekend were launched from Iraqi territory, where several Iran-backed militias are based…

Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of U.S. Central Command, told members of the House Armed Services Committee that reports that Iran had managed to reconstitute many of its drone and missile sites struck during U.S. operations were inaccurate…

Twenty-five Republican senators led by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) wrote a letter to Trump urging him to “fully dismantle” the U.N. Relief and Works Agency and remove it from the U.N. budget, citing the agency’s “systemic infiltration by Hamas and other U.S.-designated terrorist organizations”…

The Oklahoman, a local daily newspaper, pulled down an opinion article published on Monday comparing the Oklahoma City Thunder NBA team to Israel — an “underdog that has become hated.” The article, written by a pro-Israel Jewish Oklahoman, was “mistakenly published,” the paper’s executive editor said, and “did not align with our opinion standards”…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a readout from the Center for American Progress’ IDEAS Conference, where more than a dozen Democrats, several with national ambitions, shared their policy visions today in Washington.

The Jewish Federations of North America, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Combat Antisemitism Movement and Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History will host a breakfast with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month, with a keynote speech from Sam Salz, believed to be the first and only Orthodox Jew to play Division I college football.

The Senate will begin consideration on the reconciliation bill to fund immigration enforcement, as well as security for the new White House ballroom, during which Senate Democrats could force votes on a range of issues, including the war in Iran.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a budget hearing on State Department-adjacent entities, with testimony from former lawmaker and diplomat Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), National Endowment for Democracy President Damon Wilson and Inter-American Foundation CEO Sara Aviel.

The House Committee on Education & Workforce will hold a hearing on antisemitism in healthcare settings. Witnesses will include Deena Margolies, an attorney from the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law; Jamie Beran, CEO of the progressive Jewish organization Bend the Arc; Eveline Shekhman, CEO of the American Jewish Medical Association; and Dr. Jacob Agronin from Temple University Hospital.

Sarah Rogers, the under secretary of state for public diplomacy, will speak at the Hudson Institute about the U.S.’ public diplomacy strategy abroad, with opening remarks from Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO).

• It’s primary day in Kentucky and Pennsylvania. More below on the races we’re watching.
• The Senate is slated to vote today on a war powers resolution, the eighth attempt by Senate Democrats to move forward on efforts to constrain the Trump administration’s military activities targeting Iran.
• The effort comes a day after President Donald Trump called off what he said was a strike on Iran planned for today. The president said the decision came at the request of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, which encouraged the administration to allow peace talks to continue. Read more here.
• The Senate Appropriations Committee is holding a series of budget hearings today, including one this morning for the Justice Department’s budget for 2027.
• CENTCOM head Adm. Brad Cooper is set to testify this morning before the House Armed Services Committee about security challenges in the Middle East.
• Elsewhere on the Hill, the Jewish Federations of North America will hold a press conference this afternoon to call for increased security funding, days after House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) called for $1 billion to be allocated for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program — $700 million more than Congress allocated in last month’s Homeland Security funding bill.
• The Center for American Progress is hosting its annual IDEAS Conference in Washington. Speakers include Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Jeffries; Democratic Govs. Wes Moore, Gavin Newsom, Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherril; and former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield in addition to a number of Democratic legislators.
• The Middle East Forum’s three-day policy conference kicks off today in Washington. Keynote speakers include senior White House official Seb Gorka, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter and Morgan Ortagus, a former deputy U.S. special envoy to the Middle East.
• The Nationals will host Jewish Community Day as the baseball team takes on the New York Mets at Nats Park.
• In New York, the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue is holding its spring benefit, where the congregation will honor Proskauer Rose’s Ira Bogner and former State Department antisemitism envoy Deborah Lipstadt.

A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S JOSH KRAUSHAAR

Today’s primaries in Kentucky and Pennsylvania may well serve as an early test over which party is more effectively dealing with its own antisemitism problems. 

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), one of the few remaining anti-Israel Republicans in Congress, has been spewing antisemitic tropes in the closing days of the campaign, portraying Congress as Israel-occupied territory and caricaturing wealthy Jewish donors as the fuel behind his opponent’s support, as he tries to fend off a serious challenge from Ed Gallrein, who is endorsed by President Donald Trump.

Meanwhile in Philadelphia, state Rep. Chris Rabb — who shared a post on his Instagram account promoting a conspiracy theory that the Bondi Beach terror attack in Sydney in which 14 Jews were killed was a false-flag operation perpetuating Israeli interests — holds the late momentum in an open Democratic congressional primary to succeed retiring Rep. Dwight Evans (D-PA). (Rabb’s campaign blamed a former campaign staffer for the offending post.)

A parade of progressive stars, from Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) to Jamie Raskin (D-MD), have traveled to Philadelphia to campaign with the Democratic Socialists of America-backed Rabb. Antisemitic streamer Hasan Piker likewise rallied with Rabb and held a fundraiser with him where attendees chanted: “Free Palestine!”

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), representing the more mainstream wing of the Democratic Party, held a rally on Monday to boost one of Rabb’s leading challengers, state Sen. Sharif Street. 

Gallrein and Rabb both appear to hold latemomentum in their respective races. If the two end up winning, the conventional wisdom — and corresponding coverage — will rightly conclude that a Massie defeat came as a result of Trump’s outspoken opposition to the congressman and that a Rabb victory will be the result of progressives’ ascendance within the Democratic Party. 

But that will only tell part of the story. If Republicans end up ousting a lawmaker trafficking in some of the ugliest bigotry, while Democrats anoint a future lawmaker pushing extremist antisemitic conspiracy theories, it’s a sign of the direction both parties are headed.

Read the rest of ‘What You Should Know’ here.

Buffer Zone Bitterness: In The Washington Post, Rabbi Binyamin Krauss, the principal of Bronx Jewish day school SAR, criticized the decision by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to veto legislation that would have established buffer zones around schools. “As the head of a Jewish school in the Bronx, I’ve had to make difficult decisions to create a more secure environment in and around my school as the menace of antisemitism has surged in New York and across the country in recent years. We have been forced to divert educational resources and increase our security budget to safeguard students and staff as a precaution when the threat of violence against Jews has become common in the city.” [WashPost]

Good Taste Comes to Tech: The Wall Street Journal spotlights Sam Lessin’s VC firm Slow Ventures and its “etiquette classes” — hours-long gatherings teaching the “finer points of hosting, fundraising, wine pairing” to tech founders. “Sam Lessin, a dry-humored founding partner at Slow Ventures and a former vice president of product at Facebook, noted that AI has made coding ‘super commoditized.’ In the vast majority of cases, he said, instilling trust in customers is now more important than being able to show off technical genius. He added that, in the AI era, if you’re entering a meeting saying ‘Hey, I need access to your critical data,’ you need to win people over with a respectful demeanor and a low heart-rate.” [WSJ]

Con Job: In Tablet, Highline Capital founder Jacob Doft does a deep dive into an elaborate scheme he found himself a part of after being drawn into what he believed to be a cutting-edge Israeli startup. “And that, more or less, is how I entered a two-year relationship with a fraudulent AI company, a fake fighter pilot, a brilliant professor who was being conned by her own CEO, and a chatbot that was doing most of the work. It is, on balance, the strangest thing that has happened to me. And I spent 30 years on Wall Street, where strange things happen before lunch.” [Tablet]

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who is retiring at the end of the year, endorsed San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan as her successor in the Bay Area congressional district…

Reps. Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Brad Sherman (D-CA) and Mike Lawler (R-NY) led a bipartisan group of lawmakers in urging the U.K. to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist group…

Axios reports on the “explosion” of “direct, explicit and shockingly casual” antisemitism that “has become a part of day-to-day life for Jewish politicians in the run-up to the midterms…

Two of New York City’s leading mainstream Jewish organizations skipped a pre-Shavuot gathering at Gracie Mansion on Monday evening — with one directly pointing to a controversial video Mayor Zohran Mamdani posted to his official social media channels on Friday as the reason for refusing to participate, JI’s Will Bredderman reports…

Northwestern University’s Jewish community is celebrating the appointment of Mung Chiang as the school’s new president, optimistic that the supportive environment he fostered for Jewish students during his tenure as president of Purdue University will help combat the antisemitism seen at Northwestern in recent years, JI’s Haley Cohen reports…

Harvard is petitioning a federal judge to drop the Justice Department’s lawsuit against the school, arguing that the details of the complaint are out of date and don’t take into consideration steps the school has made in addressing antisemitism on campus…

The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington is leading an effort to establish and promote Scholarship Granting Organizations in the capital region in an effort to maximize the benefits of a new federal tax-credit initiative, eJewishPhilanthropy’s Jay Deitcher reports…

Puck reports that CBS executives are reportedly discussing the possibility of shifting Bari Weiss’ management of the network’s major programs as the company mulls a takeover of CNN that “would give her less control over the linear product,” adjusting “her focus to the news division’s digital growth while maintaining broad editorial influence across all the company’s platforms”…

A California man is facing federal hate crime charges for allegedly assaulting a Jewish man outside a real estate event in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Pico-Robertson in 2024; the alleged assailant, who later boasted in a text message to a friend that he “whooped 2 zios,” faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison… 

Police in London are investigating as a hate crime an attack on a Jewish man overnight in the heavily Jewish suburb of Golders Green…

The Guardian does a deep dive into Iranian efforts to recruit proxies, some of whom have no loyalties or ties to the Islamic Republic, to attack Jewish and Israeli targets around the world, following the arrest last week of an Iran-backed Iraqi militia leader tied to more than a dozen plots around the world…

Australia’s public broadcasters said they won’t use the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism in their coverage, and will instead use their own internal guidance to maintain editorial independence…

Pakistan has deployed some 8,000 troops, as well as fighter jets, drones and an air-defense system, to Saudi Arabia, seven months after signing a mutual defense agreement with Riyadh…

Israeli forces boarded boats participating in the latest Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza that were traveling in international waters off the coast of Cyprus; Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the troops were “effectively neutralizing a malicious plan designed to break the isolation we have imposed on Hamas terrorists in Gaza”.…

San Francisco-based software startup Decart, which was founded by Israelis Dean Leitersdorf, Orian Leitersdorf and Moshe Shalev and produces software that helps AI companies switch more easily between chips, is raising $300 million in a funding round led by Radical Ventures, with additional backing from Nvidia and Disney CEO Michael Eisner…

Amnon Shashua’s AI21 laid off approximately 60% of its employees as it refocuses the company on AI agent optimization technology associated with its Maestro platform; the move comes after the collapse of acquisition talks with AI cloud platform Nebius…

Hamas named Mohammed Ouda, who served as the group’s head of military intelligence during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, as the new head of its military division, days after Israel killed Izz ad-Din al-Haddad in a targeted strike in Gaza on Friday…

Stacey Bosworth is joining the Forward as vice president of development…

Yael Shamouilian is joining the Anti-Defamation League as director of media relations…

Ofer Bronchtein, who served as a senior advisor to French President Emmanuel Macron on Israeli-Palestinian issues, died at 69…

Director Joe Sedelmaier, the brains behind Wendy’s famous “Where’s the beef?” ad, died at 92…

Israeli President Isaac Herzog (right) received the credentials of Somaliland Ambassador to Israel Mohamed Hagi on Monday at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem, five months after Israel first recognized the East African nation’s sovereignty.

Author of 28 novels, four of which have been adapted into Lifetime Original Movies, Jodi Picoult turns 60… 

Retired senior counsel in the D.C. office of Blank Rome, Harvey Sherzer turns 82… Retired chief judge of the New York Court of Appeals, now of counsel in the NYC office of Latham & Watkins, Jonathan Lippman turns 81… Clinical psychologist, author, teacher, public speaker and ordained rabbi, Dennis G. Shulman turns 76… Former member of the California state Senate, she was also a member of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus, Hannah-Beth Jackson turns 76… Israeli novelist and former journalist, Edna Shemesh turns 73… Nurse and former member of the Wisconsin State Assembly (2009-2015), Sandra “Sandy” Pasch turns 72… Retired chief of the general staff of the IDF, now leader of the Yashar party, Gadi Eizenkot turns 66… Chabad-Lubavitch rabbi, born in Milan, now chief rabbi of Russia, Rabbi Berel Lazar turns 62… Journalist, teacher and playwright, now editor-in-chief of Streetsblog NYC, Gersh Kuntzman turns 61… Born in Moscow, he is a professor of mathematics at the University of Chicago, Alex Eskin turns 61… Business manager and spokesperson for NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan, Estee Portnoy turns 59… Former CEO of Bend the Arc, a Jewish partnership for justice, Stosh Cotler turns 58… Israeli-born chef, owner of multiple NYC restaurants, she is a cookbook author and comedian, Einat Admony turns 55… Israeli actor and fashion designer, Dorit Bar Or turns 51… Canadian food writer and cookbook author, she is a judge on Bravo’s “Top Chef,” Gail Simmons turns 50… Member of the Knesset for the Likud party since 2019, Ofir Katz turns 46… Nonprofit manager and consultant, Alex Shapero… Pitcher for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic and is now pitching coach for the UC Davis Aggies, Zachary “Zack” James Thornton turns 38… Activist, advocacy educator, engagement strategist and TED speaker, Natalie Warne… Ice hockey free agent, Brendan Leipsic turns 32… 

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

President Donald Trump announced that, at the request of Qatari, Saudi and Emirati leaders, he was calling off an attack on Iran he said was planned for tomorrow, after the heads of state assured him Iran would agree to a deal that “will include, importantly, NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS FOR IRAN!”

Trump said he had instructed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine to “be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached”…

A new New York Times/Siena poll found 35% of respondents said they sympathize more with Israelis, while 37% said they sympathize more with Palestinians. There was a stark partisan divide: Among Republicans, 66% said they sympathize more with Israelis, while just 17% of Democrats said the same.

Meanwhile, the poll found nearly two-thirds of respondents overall said they disapprove of the Iran war, including 91% of Democrats and 23% of Republicans. Eighty-one percent of Democrats said the costs of the Iran war would not be worth the benefits; 50% of Republicans said they thought it would be worth it, but 32% were unsure…

Several New York City Jewish leaders — including JCRC CEO Mark Treyger, the UJA-Federation of New York and Rabbi Joseph Potasanik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis — plan to skip Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Shavuot event taking place this evening at Gracie Mansion, the New York Post reports, after the mayor released a video on Friday for “Nakba Day” that sparked outrage among the Jewish community.

Asked about the backlash, Mamdani claimed his “door is always open” for Jewish leaders “beyond just this evening’s event,” while doubling down on his decision to post the video, saying he was “proud to commemorate Nakba Day” because there are “many Nakba survivors in New York City”…

Two dozen Jewish lawmakers and candidates from both parties shared with Axios a stream of antisemitic voicemails and messages they’ve received, including repeated death threats and praise of Nazis. “It’s no longer a Republican and a Democrat [issue],” said Rep. Max Miller (R-OH). “Both ends of our parties are wackadoos who hate Jews”…

Ahead of tomorrow’s primary elections in Kentucky, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) is going out with an antisemitic bang: He accused his opponent, Trump-backed Navy veteran Ed Gallrein, of being the “puppet” of the Republican Jewish Coalition, which has spent nearly $4 million opposing Massie. The congressman further claimed “a coalition of Israel’s lobbyists and donors” is executing a “blatant attempt to buy a KY congressional seat” and that the RJC is “running [Gallrein’s] race.”

Gallrein, meanwhile, got a boost from Hegseth, who appeared today in Hebron, Ky., to urge voters to turn out for the GOP challenger. Hegseth — who claimed he was there in his personal capacity, as his appearance broke a longstanding tradition of defense secretaries who typically avoid engaging in electoral politics — praised Gallrein as a military leader who would remain loyal to Trump…

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) endorsed Rep. Julia Letlow (R-LA) in her runoff for U.S. Senate, after she finished in first place in the Louisiana primary held over the weekend, ousting Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA). Letlow, who is already endorsed by Trump, is expected to prevail over state Treasurer John Fleming…

A man named Zaid Gitesatani was arrested today on a hate crime charge for assaulting a Jewish man in June 2024 in the heavily Orthodox Pico-Robertson neighborhood of Los Angeles, as the victim was walking his dog near a synagogue that was hosting an Israeli real estate event.

In the days following the assault, Gitesatani posted screenshots of a video of the incident to his Instagram account with the caption, “The Chosen People sometimes need a good smack to wake up” and claimed he “whopped 2 zios,” among other comments, according to the Justice Department…

The three leading Democratic candidates in the race for executive of Montgomery County, Md., — Councilmembers Andrew Friedson, Evan Glass and Will Jawando — pledged to address the rise of antisemitism within the local school system in a discussion today with the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports.

Jawando, the most progressive Democrat in the race, said, “I am disappointed that MCPS has not accepted” the training recommended by the JCRC earlier this month. “I will continue to urge them to do so”…

Rahm Emanuel, the former Chicago mayor and prospective 2028 presidential candidate, is slated to discuss the future of U.S.-Israel relations at Tel Aviv University on July 8, according to an announcement from the school today, JI’s Matthew Kassel reports…

Israeli-founded AI startup Decart raised $300 million at a nearly $4 billion valuation for software that helps AI companies switch more easily between chips from Nvidia, which invested in the company, and its rivals…

Police said they “neutralized” a threat during an active shooter situation today at the Islamic Center of San Diego, the largest mosque in the county. Local news reported two suspects are dead, and the mosque’s chairman said a security guard had been killed…

An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead

Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a preview of tomorrow’s primaries in Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper will testify before the House Armed Services Committee.

The Senate Appropriations Committee will hold a budget hearing on the Department of Justice.

The Jewish Federations of North America will hold a press conference on the Hill with House and Senate lawmakers and hundreds of community leaders on the need for increased funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program.

The Center for American Progress will hold its 2026 IDEAS Conference in Washington with speakers including Govs. Gavin Newsom, Wes Moore, Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and columnist Ezra Klein.

The Middle East Forum will begin its three-day policy conference in Washington, with keynote speeches from White House official Seb Gorka, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter and Deputy Special Presidential Envoy Morgan Ortagus.

The Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in Manhattan will hold its spring benefit where it will honor Amb. Deborah Lipstadt, the former State Department antisemitism envoy, with its Light of Freedom Award, and synagogue lay leader and attorney Ira Bogner with its Shem Tov Award.

Tomorrow is Jewish Community Day at Nationals Park in Washington as the team faces off against the New York Mets.

• In Washington, we’re expecting fresh votes this week on Iran war powers resolutions in both the House and the Senate. The House is also expected to hold a war powers vote, introduced by Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), to block U.S. involvement — including support for Israel — in Lebanon. Read more here.
• The National Task Force to Combat Antisemitism will meet today at the Museum of the Bible in Washington. Speakers include the Justice Department’s Leo Terrell, Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), Reps. Randy Fine (R-FL), Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and Kat Cammack (R-FL).
• New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is hosting a Shavuot celebration today at Gracie Mansion, days after drawing the ire of Jewish communal leaders in the city for posting a video, featuring a translator of Bosnian descent whom the mayor referred to as a “New Yorker and a Nakba survivor.” More below.
• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is campaigning today with Republican Ed Gallrein, the challenger to anti-Israel Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), in the run-up to Tuesday’s closely watched primary in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District. Hegseth and Gallrein are scheduled to appear together at an America First Works event in Hebron, Ky., at 1 p.m. ET.
• The International Smart Mobility Summit kicks off today in Tel Aviv. Postponed from March due to the war with Iran, the event featured live televised remarks from Elon Musk, who had planned to come to the conference prior to its postponement. “My hat is off to Israel for just how much incredible innovation … I’d say innovation per capita, Israel must be No. 1 by far in the world,” Musk told the gathering. Read more about Musk’s remarks here.
• Ambassador Daniel Meron, Israel’s envoy to the U.N. in Geneva, is slated to speak today at the World Health Organization’s annual assembly, where he’ll call for reform of the WHO’s system for tracking attacks on health in conflict zones. Meron’s address comes days after the release of a report by Israel’s Center for Medical Integrity that found that the WHO’s surveillance system has hampered efforts to provide assistance to health workers in conflict zones.

A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S MELISSA WEISS

For the last two weeks, a resumption of hostilities with Iran seemed unlikely, with the U.S. uninterested in sparking renewed fighting against the Islamic Republic in advance of President Donald Trump’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping — whose country is a key trade partner of Iran. 

But with the president back in Washington, the administration appears to be reopening military options — even as Iran continues to drag out tensions by offering what U.S. officials have said were unacceptable proposals to end the war. That extends to Congress, where Democrats on both sides of Capitol Hill are expected to introduce new war powers resolutions this week in an attempt to constrain the administration’s actions in the Middle East.

Trump told Axios on Sunday that “the clock is ticking” for Iran and the U.S. to reach an agreement to end the war. After rejecting Iran’s previous response to a U.S. proposal, Trump said that Tehran has to get to “where we want them to be,” or else “they are going to get hit much harder.” 

A decision on whether to return to active fighting could come as soon as Tuesday, when Trump is set to hold a Situation Room meeting to discuss options. After returning from Beijing, the president met on Sunday with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.

In Israel, preparations are being made for a possible return to war. Channel 12 quoted a senior Israeli official on Friday saying that the country is “preparing for days to weeks” of renewed fighting.

Even as the tenuous ceasefire has held, the United Arab Emirates — which during the active hostilities took the brunt of Iran’s attacks — has continued to face drone attacks. Emirati officials are investigating a fire near Abu Dhabi’s Barakah Nuclear Power Plant that broke out on Sunday after a drone entered the UAE from its western border and struck a generator near the facility.

Read the rest of ‘What You Should Know’ here.

Hakeem’s Highest Hurdle: The New Yorker’s Jason Zengerle looks at House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ (D-NY) challenging path to retake the House. “Ironically, one of the few issues that Jeffries is identified with is the very topic that now most threatens to divide the Democratic Party. From his earliest days in politics, Jeffries has been a strong supporter of Israel, taking his first trip there when he was in the State Assembly and visiting five more times with AIPAC as a member of Congress… For most of Jeffries’s career, his pro-Israel position was in line with mainstream Democratic sentiment… last summer, he skipped the annual trip to Israel for first-term House Democrats, which is sponsored by AIPAC; two years earlier, he’d helped lead it.” [NewYorker]

Kristof Crisis: Puck News’ Dylan Byers looks at the debate in The New York Times’ newsroom over columnist Nicholas Kristof’s recent opinion piece alleging sadistic human rights violations targeting Palestinian prisoners in Israel. “Nevertheless, many Times journalists told me they remain suspicious of Nick’s sourcing for the most incendiary allegations, skeptical that those sources would have cleared the standards of the newsroom rather than Opinion, and mildly miffed at the Pulitzer-eager columnist for bringing scrutiny on the paper in a piece that should have been in their jurisdiction. Above all else, many seemed exasperated by what they viewed as another instance of the Times brand being undercut by the actions of another department that, they feel, is not held to the same standards.” [Puck]

Overwhelming Force: In The Wall Street Journal, Seth Cropsey considers how the U.S. should approach renewed warfare against Iran. “Mr. Trump has a narrow window in which to end this crisis favorably, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and ensure an economic rebound while securing American interests and prestige. But that requires deploying the full spectrum of American power. … Mr. Trump’s objective shouldn’t be to bluff the Iranians out. Instead it should be to demonstrate that if push comes to shove, the U.S. will commit to an overwhelming confrontation that breaks the Iranian state economically and politically.” [WSJ]

Dumont’s Bet: Bloomberg’s Randall Williams and Christopher Beam spotlight Las Vegas Sands CEO Patrick Dumont, the son-in-law of Dr. Miriam Adelson who, with the Adelson family, purchased a 73% stake in the Dallas Mavericks from Marc Cuban in 2023, and who is seeking to turn Dallas into a sports and gambling hub. “Dumont, who lives in Las Vegas with his wife and seven children, says he’s not a gambler. On the other hand, thanks to his Sands job, “technically I’m on the other side of every single bet.” When it comes to achieving his vision in Texas, he has the money, the connections and the will. All he needs is local buy-in. And, of course, a bit of luck.” [Bloomberg]

Holding Bibi Back: In Air Mail, Yossi Melman profiles Israeli Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, whom he describes as the “thorn” in the side of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “Critics liken [Netanyahu] to Recep Erdoğan, the president of Turkey; Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s outgoing prime minister; and other populist world leaders. Over his many years in power, they argue, he has sought to dominate the media, weaken law enforcement, and bend the judiciary to political ends. Standing in his way is Baharav-Miara, whose dual role is unusual by international standards. As law professor Yaniv Roznai explains, Israel’s attorney general serves both as the government’s head prosecutor and its legal adviser.” [AirMail]

Pictures at a Roundup: In The New York Times, Jean-Marc Dreyfus reflects on the discovery of dozens of photographs of roundups of Parisian Jews during World War II that were taken to be used as Nazi propaganda and are newly on display at the city’s Holocaust memorial. “They remind us that the past is never entirely buried, and that images can unexpectedly return to challenge the void of memory and representation. They function today not as propaganda, the purpose for which they were originally produced, but as fragments of truth — painful, incomplete and indispensable — that allow us to better understand the way the roundup was organized and conducted and also to get a glimpse of the victims’ shock, fear and pain.” [NYTimes]

U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack met on Sunday with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud in Riyadh…

The New York Times reports on a second Israeli military outpost in the Iraqi desert that was used during combat against Iran, shortly after The Wall Street Journal reported on the existence of an initial base… 

The IDF killed Izz al-Din al-Haddad, the most senior remaining Hamas commander in the enclave, in a Friday strike, according to a joint statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports…

Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) endorsed Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) in the hotly contested Michigan Senate Democratic primary… 

Reps. Delia Ramirez (D-IL), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Yvette Clarke (D-NY) introduced a resolution, “recognizing, from Chicago to Palestine to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Puerto Rico, that the pain, violence, and oppression the global majority experiences are interconnected, acknowledges that the future must be self-determined, and affirms our humanity and dignity through a renewed mandate for human rights.” The resolution calls for a grab bag of far-left academic and policy priorities, ranging from  defunding the Department of Defense to ending “carceral punishment”…

Federal authorities have charged an Iran-backed militia commander with plotting to attack Jewish sites in New York City and Los Angeles, JI’s Haley Cohen reports…

Federal prosecutors in Washington will seek the death penalty against the Illinois man accused of killing two Israeli Embassy staffers outside the Capital Jewish Museum last May…

The Yeshiva World does a deep dive into the White House’s celebration of Shabbat over the weekend, coinciding with Rededicate 250 celebrations that took place over the weekend…

The Rededicate 250 events included an hours-long Christian prayer rally on the National Mall, which included remarks from Rabbi Meir Soloveichik…

Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican who has often criticized the evolution of his party, announced the launch of an eponymous leadership Institute at Maryland’s Washington College aimed at fixing what he called a “broken” two-party system after vowing not to seek elected office again…

Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico, who will face the winner of next week’s GOP Senate primary in Texas in November, said he will not campaign with Maureen Galindo, a Democratic House candidate who has leaned heavily into antisemitic conspiracy theories as she mounts her campaign for the state’s 35th Congressional District…

The New York Times spotlights the New York state Assembly race for the seat being vacated by Micah Lasher as he mounts a congressional bid; the race pits Rabbi Stephanie Ruskay against public defender Eli Northrup, with the Times noting that both candidates have “cited their faith as drivers of their political ambitions, pointing to Judaism’s teachings and their own unique backgrounds”…

Jewish groups in the U.K., including Community Security Trust and the Jewish Leadership Council, are calling on the government to bar far-left streamer Hasan Piker, who has events scheduled in London next month, from entering the country over his past antisemitic rhetoric…

The U.K. group Parents Against Antisemitism released a report detailing how Jewish students are “routinely bullied” by classmates, describing incidents including praise for Adolf Hitler, threats of violence and Nazi graffiti on school buildings…

Authorities in London arrested 20 people at a pair of dueling rallies on Saturday, one organized by far-right figure Tommy Robinson, and the other organized by far-left activists that included anti-Israel elements…

The New York Times looks at how the war with Iran and Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz have collectively dealt a severe economic blow to Qatar, which since February has been unable to move gas, the Gulf nation’s primary export, out of the country…

The Financial Times spotlights the role of Islamist forces bolstering the Sudanese Armed Forces as the U.S., Israel and the United Arab Emirates prioritize ending the “residual Iranian influence and weapons flows” to the African nation…

Somaliland’s ambassador to Israel, Mohamed Hagi, presented his credentials to Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Monday…

Israel is moving forward with plans to create a museum, IDF enlistment office and offices for the defense ministry on the site that was previously home to the east Jerusalem headquarters of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, which was banned by Israel last year…

Computer science researcher Peter Neumann died at 93…

Israeli singer Noam Bettan, performing “Michelle,” finished second behind Bulgaria at the 70th Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night in Vienna. Bettan amassed 123 points from the juries from participating countries, and an additional 220 in the televote, but still fell short of Bulgarian singer Dara’s “Bangaranga,” which garnered 516 votes.

Pioneer of the corporate investigations industry, he is now chairman and co-founder of K2 Integrity and Kroll Bond Rating Agency, Jules B. Kroll turns 85…

Leader and rebbe of the Hasidic dynasty of Ger since 1996, Rabbi Yaakov Aryeh Alter turns 87… Best-selling author of nine spy thriller novels, he has served in both the U.S. and the Israeli armies, Andrew Gary Kaplan turns 85… Widow of Bernard “Bernie” Madoff, Ruth Madoff turns 85… Retired New York Times columnist and editorial writer, he was the NYT’s Jerusalem correspondent for four years in the early 1990s, Clyde Haberman turns 81… President of Everest Management and trustee of the Cheetah Conservation Fund, Gary Kopff turns 81… Los Angeles-based attorney, board member of American Friends of Nishmat, past president of Westwood Village Synagogue, Linda Goldenberg Mayman… Longtime Washington correspondent for Newsweek, now writing for SpyTalk, Jonathan Broder turns 78… Longest-serving member of the Maryland General Assembly, starting in 1983, Samuel I. “Sandy” Rosenberg turns 76… Chair of the executive of the Jewish Agency for Israel, a former IDF major general and leading activist for the disability community, Doron Almog turns 75… Senior advisor at Moelis & Company, a former IDF major general, then CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Shlomo Yanai turns 74… Director of nutrition and hospitality at Philadelphia’s Temple University Hospital, Nancy Baumann… Attorney in Atlanta, he was the director of congregational engagement at the Union for Reform Judaism for nine years, Alan Kitey… Film producer and CEO of Miramax, Jonathan Glickman turns 57… Venture capitalist and author of a book on business principles derived from the Book of Genesis, Michael A. Eisenberg turns 55… CEO at Waze from 2009 to 2021, Noam Bardin… VP for communications strategy at Strategic Marketing Innovations (SMI), Bryan Bender turns 54… Former head of development at NYC charter school system Uncommon Schools, Sarah Danzig… Author of Substack-based newsletter and blog “Slow Boring,” he was a co-founder of Vox, Matthew Yglesias turns 45… Founder of London-based Tech With Intention, Eliza Krigman… Staffer for the Senate Armed Services Committee, Eric Trager… Founder of Satori Global Media, Joshua Lederman… Former acting under secretary of defense for intelligence and security, then a member of the National Archives Public Interest Declassification Board, Ezra Asa Cohen turns 40… Tech entrepreneur in the AI and gaming space, Dan Garon… Co-founder of Rebel (formerly known as Rebelmail), then acquired by Salesforce, Joe Teplow… Managing associate in the D.C. office of Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, Lauren DePinto Bomberger… Journalist and podcast producer, Netanel “Tani” Levitt… Director of strategic partnerships at Anduril Industries, Sofia Rose Gross Haft… Five-time member of the U.S. Women’s National Gymnastics Team, now a business manager in the office of the CIO at Citadel, Samantha “Sami” Shapiro turns 33… Chief development officer at TAMID Group, Rachel Philipson Marsh… 

Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

UJA-Federation of New York has tapped longtime Jewish educator Michael Kay as its next CEO, the country’s largest Jewish federation shared exclusively with Nira Dayanim for Jewish Insider, marking a generational change that signals the growing importance of day schools on the Jewish communal agenda.

Kay, 46, currently serves as head of school at The Leffell School in Westchester County, N.Y., and will step into his new role on Oct. 5, succeeding Eric Goldstein, 66, a former Wall Street lawyer who will step down after 12 years in the role…

President Donald Trump continued to hedge today on resuming military action in Iran while keeping open diplomatic options: “We’re either going to make a deal or they’re going to be decimated,” he said of Iran while departing for his state visit to China. “So one way or the other, we win.”

Earlier in the day, Trump told the “Sid & Friends in the Morning” radio show that he’s anticipating Iran’s economic collapse due to the U.S. blockade of its ports. “It’s just a question of time, we don’t have to rush anything,” the president said…