Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking

As the White House continues to promote the memorandum of understanding that will end the war with Iran and start negotiations between Washington and Tehran, Vice President JD Vance is out with a message that sounds strikingly familiar — at least to anyone who followed former President Barack Obama’s pitch on the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.

“If you think this is a bad deal, what is your alternative?” Vance said in an interview this week with New York Times columnist Ross Douthat. 

Obama used nearly identical phrasing at a 2015 White House press conference: “I’m hearing a lot of talking points being repeated about ‘this is a bad deal,’” he said. “What I haven’t heard is, what is your preferred alternative?”

Watch a side-by-side look at Vance and Obama here…

Vance also delivered a tough message to Israeli officials who have criticized the MOU, telling reporters on Thursday that Israel’s government should be careful not to alienate the only friend it has left: President Donald Trump, JI’s Emily Jacobs reports.

“Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time and he happens to be the head of state of the world’s superpower. If I was in the Cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world,” said Vance…

Trump also had a word of caution for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, two days after he said Netanyahu was too “vicious” in his approach to fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon. Asked by a reporter for Israel’s Kan News if he will support Netanyahu in this year’s Israeli elections, Trump said he most likely would, but did not commit.

“I’ll have to look at who’s running, but I like Bibi very much. I would be most likely to endorse him,” said Trump. “He’s doing a very good job, he’s got to be a little bit more rational”…

United Against Nuclear Iran, an advocacy group that rallied opposition to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, said on Thursday that it “cannot endorse the MoU in its current form”…

AIPAC released a policy memo on Thursday that said the MOU “raises significant questions,” and called on Congress to “play a critical role in ensuring a final deal meets President Trump’s stated objectives for the war”…

In a Thursday speech at the FII Priority summit in Rome, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama blamed Iran for “ruthless” cyberattacks against the country, claiming that Tehran has sought to sow unrest about a preliminarily approved luxury development project in the country from Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, Trump’s daughter and son-in-law, JI’s Matthew Shea reports…

Janeese Lewis George defeated Kenyan McDuffie in the Democratic primary for mayor of Washington, D.C., with the Associated Press calling the race on Thursday afternoon. Democratic socialist Lewis George leads McDuffie 53% to 36%…

American Priorities, a super PAC created as a progressive counterweight to AIPAC, has received $250,000 from a tech executive whose firm is developing AI data centers in New York State — while boosting two democratic socialist House candidates who oppose efforts to expand data centers, JI’s Matthew Kassel reports…

Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ), who has been absent from Congress since March due to an unexplained personal health issue, plans to return to Washington on June 30…

Israel and Syria are expected to resume direct talks soon due to pressure from the U.S., the Israeli network Kan reports…

The FBI announced that it charged San Diego resident Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi with conspiring to provide material support to Hamas after he allegedly raised approximately $600,000 through fraudulent charitable campaigns and funneled a portion to the terrorist organization…

Former Presidents Joe Biden, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton attended the grand opening of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago on Thursday afternoon.

Guests included a litany of ex-Obama administration staffers, including former White House liaison to the Jewish community Matt Nosanchuk and former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro, who was spotted chatting with Obama…

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 Republicans are feeling about the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding that was signed this week. 

Vice President JD Vance plans to travel to Switzerland this weekend for talks with Iran, though the plans are not yet finalized, he told reporters on Thursday. 

Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, will become the acting director of national intelligence on Friday after the confirmation of DNI nominee Jay Clayton was delayed this week at President Donald Trump’s request. 

We’ll be monitoring the final days of the heated congressional primary campaigns in New York, where Israel and Gaza remain hot topics for progressive candidates. 

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

• President Donald Trump is back in Washington today after three days in France for the G7, where the U.S.‘ memorandum of understanding with Iran was a major topic of conversation both on the summit’s sidelines and in the president’s public comments. Last night, Trump, sitting alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, signed the MOU in Versailles, though a formal ceremony in Switzerland, with Vice President JD Vance in attendance, had initially been planned for Friday. More below.
• In Washington, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) is slated to speak this morning at the Hudson Institute about defense spending, debt and diplomacy.
• Elsewhere in Washington, votes are still being counted in the district’s mayoral and City Council races. Mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George, currently a member of the City Council, continues to maintain a sizable lead over former D.C. Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie.
• In New York, thousands of people are expected to visit the Ohel in Queens today to mark the yahrtzeit of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson, at his burial site.

A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S MELISSA WEISS

Vice President JD Vance is increasingly becoming the face of Washington’s negotiations with Iran — setting him up to claim victory if the agreement is successful, or to take the fall if talks with the historically intransigent adversary collapse.

President Donald Trump said as much yesterday in France: “If it works out, I’m going to take the credit. If it doesn’t work out, I’m blaming JD,” Trump quipped on the sidelines of the G7 summit, hours before signing the agreement alongside French President Emmanuel Macron in Versailles.

Trump is far from the only Republican in Washington to tie Vance to the deal. Some GOP legislators swiftly moved to tie Vance to the MOU — hours after it was announced. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who has long advocated for military pressure against Iran, was one of the first, saying Sunday that it was “imperative that the architect of the deal, Vice President Vance and his negotiating partners, be part of the process in presenting the final deal to Congress.”

But the pressure on Vance quickly has spread through the party. On Wednesday, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), a longtime backer of the president who is largely aligned with the GOP’s isolationist wing (where Vance has also found his political home), told reporters, “I wish the VP all the best of luck.” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), without mentioning Vance by name, said that in moving forward with the MOU, “the president, unfortunately, is receiving bad advice once again.”

The criticism of Vance over the agreement with Iran extends beyond the capital. Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro said on Fox News on Wednesday that the MOU “appears to be, just from the text, a disaster that does not achieve any of the actual signal goals that were set by the administration at the beginning.” Directly addressing Vance’s role, Shapiro said, “The vice president of the United States, the chief negotiator on this particular project, has not well served the president.” Read more here on Shapiro’s comments.

Vance’s high-profile presence around the Iran negotiations draws attention to other senior members of the Trump administration — including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth — who have been notably absent from the White House’s public efforts to talk up the MOU.

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

The Name of the Game: The Atlantic’s Shane Harris looks at the outsized role Qatar has played in the war with Iran and other conflicts, as it seeks to portray itself as a neutral interlocutor despite its stakes in regional conflicts. “Qatar’s regional rivals have long seen Doha as a political and financial enabler of Iran-backed extremism throughout the Middle East. Qatar characterizes its ties to Tehran as a relationship of necessity, based on geography and shared economic interests, but its neighbors see something far more cynical and sinister. What Doha calls neutrality in its foreign policy, they call hedging bets and buying influence, particularly through lobbying spending in Washington that is out of proportion for a country of only about 300,000 citizens.” [TheAtlantic]

Slipping Through My Fingers: The New York Times’ David French considers the missteps made by President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in their handling of the war with Iran. “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel had too much confidence in his ability to persuade Trump. For his part, Trump had too much confidence in his ability to bully Iran. And so it turned out that the ‘dumb presidents’ understood reality far better than Trump. There are no shortcuts. If you’re going to destroy your opponent, you’re going to have to use immense force. If you’re going to compromise with your opponent, it’s best not to lose a war (or blink in the face of adversity) as a prelude.” [NYTimes]

He Is Your Brother: The Financial Times’ Michael Stott, Andres Schipani and James Shotter look at the deepening relationship between Israel and India. “Once a leading light in the Non-Aligned Movement of developing nations, which resisted cold war superpower alliances, embraced the Palestinian cause and criticised Israel, India now leans much more closely towards the Jewish state. … Israel’s closeness to India is also viewed in the Middle East as part of a deepening alignment between both countries and the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi is doubling down on its relations with Israel and India, while Saudi Arabia has become more closely aligned with Pakistan, signing a defence pact with Islamabad last year.” [FT]

When All Is Said and Done: The Wall Street Journal’s Sadanand Dhume posits that Pakistan, which served as a mediator between Washington and Tehran, has emerged from the U.S.-Iran talks with greater global standing. “Other countries may end up studying Pakistan’s playbook to understand how to cozy up to the White House. For Islamabad, the benefits are obvious. Mr. Trump has repeatedly praised Pakistan’s leaders in public — he refers to the country’s de facto ruler, army chief Asim Munir, as his “favorite field marshal.” And the U.S.-Iran talks held in Islamabad in April gave Pakistan a rare opportunity to bask in favorable international media coverage.” [WSJ]

Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman and JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon were among the high-profile invitees at a dinner in France on Wednesday during which President Donald Trump signed the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran…

At a markup on Wednesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved the Eastern Mediterranean Gateway Act, to promote the IMEC corridor and other security and economic partnerships in the Eastern Mediterranean; a bill repealing additional sanctions on Syria; a bill to promote Iranian internet access and address human rights abuses; and legislation requiring the administration to assess whether both sides of the Sudanese civil war meet the conditions for designation as terrorist groups…

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights is investigating the American Psychological Association following complaints from Jewish and Israeli members over the association’s handling — and in some cases promotion — of anti-Israel activism by some members in its affinity groups; read JI’s deep dive into the APA’s challenges to confront antisemitism in its ranks here…

A new bill introduced by the House Abraham Accords Caucus instructs the administration to work to expand the Abraham Accords to include nations in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports…

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) grilled a Trump administration nominee on Wednesday at a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee about a seemingly antisemitic cover and article published by a student newspaper under his leadership in college. Also during the hearing, Cameron Hamilton, the nominee to be the FEMA administrator, said he plans to offer recommendations on reforms and additional funding for the NSGP in his first 30 days in office, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports…

Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) wrote a letter to IRS CEO Frank Bisignano calling on the Trump administration to rescind CodePink’s 501(c)(3) status over the far-left activist group’s connections to China…

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), said in a NOTUS podcast released on Thursday that he was “kicking the tires” on a possible 2028 presidential run…

The New York Times looks at the degree to which the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has become an “inescapable issue” in the Democratic primary between Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) and former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander in New York’s 10th Congressional District…

The Wall Street Journal spotlights the Democratic primary in Florida’s redrawn 20th District, a majority-minority district that favors the Democrats, where longtime Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) is mounting a bid amid opposition from local Black leaders who have thus far failed to coalesce around a single candidate that could win a primary against the former DNC chair… 

A former chair of Michigan’s Democratic Party said that five of the eight individuals indicted by federal prosecutors last week on charges of intimidating University of Michigan officials seen as being pro-Israel were members of the party, and called for the party’s leadership to investigate their actions…

Israeli-British designer Ron Arad was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, an honor given in recognition of contributions to British society and culture…

Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, a major shareholder in Volkswagen, is complicating talks between the German automaker and the Israeli state-owned defense company Rafael over Rafael’s intention to buy a plant from Volkswagen to manufacture components for Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense systems…

A new report from Germany’s Federal Association of Departments for Research and Information on Antisemitism found more than 8,700 reported cases of antisemitism in the country in 2025, roughly equivalent to the number of reported instances the prior year…

Thani Al Zeyoudi, the United Arab Emirates’ minister of foreign trade, said that the Gulf state was “moving toward having zero Hormuz dependency” even after the waterway is fully reopened, as it plans to expand its existing ports, build at least one new one and further develop its rail and road networks…

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said he was severing “all contact” with the E.U.’s Kaja Kallas over her recent comments comparing the situation in the West Bank to apartheid South Africa…

Somaliland Defense Minister Mohamed Yusuf Ali, who traveled to Israel this week with the African nation’s president, dismissed reports that Israel has a base in Somaliland, but said that Israel was training the country’s police and military forces…

Austin-based tech entrepreneur Joshua Baer, 50, was killed in a plane crash near Laredo, Texas…

Italian author Carlo Ginzburg died at 87…

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte, accompanied President Donald Trump as he departed following a dinner held at the Château de Versailles on Wednesday, where Trump signed the memorandum of understanding with Iran.

Former music business mogul, he previously owned multiple record labels and represented musical artists including Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, Scott Samuel “Scooter” Braun turns 45… 

Chicago-based attorney, he is the first ordained rabbi to have served as an alderman on the Chicago City Council, Solomon Gutstein turns 92… Former Washington Post editor, reporter and London bureau chief, Fred Barbash turns 81… Retired IT management advisor at Next Stage, Steven Shlomo Nezer… Croatian entrepreneur, he was previously the minister of economy, labour and entrepreneurship in the Croatian government, Davor Stern turns 79… Rebecca Diamond… Best-selling author and journalist, she was editor-in-chief of USA Today, Joanne Lipman turns 65… Retired professor of English at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, she was on the editorial board of Shofar, a peer-reviewed academic journal of Jewish studies, Helene Meyers… Executive of the William Pears Group, a large U.K. real estate firm founded by his father and grandfather, Sir Trevor Steven Pears (family name was Schleicher) turns 62… White House senior aide during the first Trump administration, he is a principal of Cordish Companies, a real estate and gaming empire, Reed Saunders Cordish turns 52… Film director and screenwriter, Jonathan A. Levine turns 50… Actor, comedian, satirist and writer, known professionally as Ben Gleib, Ben Nathan Gleiberman turns 48… Television producer and writer, Jeremy Bronson turns 46… Baseball pitcher for Team Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics, he is now assistant general manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Jeremy Bleich turns 39… Of counsel at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Esther Lifshitz… Israeli musician, producer, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by his stage name Dennis Lloyd, Nir Tibor turns 33… Director at Silver Point Capital, Jacob E. Best… Rachel Hazan…

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will testify on Capitol Hill today for the first time since the start of the Iran war when they appear before the House Armed Services Committee for a Pentagon budget hearing.
• Hegseth’s appearance comes a day after Democrats on the Senate Armed Services Committee sent a letter to the defense secretary inquiring about the injuries and deaths of U.S. servicemembers in Kuwait in Iranian counterattacks in the early days of the war. According to prewritten remarks obtained by Punchbowl News, Hegseth is expected to accuse U.S. allies of not having done enough to back Washington in its fight against Iran, while Caine is expected to say that the Iranians “are weaker and less capable than they have been in decades.”
• President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has reportedly told aides to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran as talks with the Islamic Republic remain at an impasse.
• Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) is holding a closed-door roundtable meeting with members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions and Education Secretary Linda McMahon to discuss the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the department — and has taken the unusual step of inviting press to attend. McMahon, for her part, claimed yesterday at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing that she’s trying to rebuild and expand the department’s Office for Civil Rights. Read more here.
• The American Enterprise Institute’s Brett Schaefer and Advancing American Freedom’s Eugene Kontorovich are among the witnesses slated to testify at the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s Oversight and Intelligence subcommittee hearing on U.S. accountability at the United Nations.
• The full House Appropriations Committee is meeting for its State Department markup today.
• The House Education & the Workforce’s subcommittee on higher education is holding a hearing on the First Amendment in higher education.
• In Philadelphia, public broadcaster WHYY is holding a debate this afternoon for the Democrats running in the open primary in Pennsylvania’s 3rd Congressional District to succeed retiring Rep. Dwight Evans (D-PA), where progressive heavyweights have in recent months thrown their support behind state Rep. Chris Rabb, a critic of Israel, over more moderate candidates including state Sen. Sharif Street and Dr. Ala Stanford. Read our deep dive into the race to represent the bluest district in the country.

A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S LAHAV HARKOV

The near-consensus among Israeli political pundits is that the merger of the parties led by former Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid is a huge moment in the campaign ahead of the next Knesset election, scheduled for Oct. 27. 

However, judging by polls published by six major Hebrew-language media outlets after the merger on Sunday, not much has changed since the announcement that Bennett and Lapid were joining forces. 

The newly formed “Together” opposition party polled around 24 seats — nearly the same number of seats as the two parties combined before the merger. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party is, according to the average of the latest polls, still the largest party at 29. 

According to the latest polling, it would be difficult for either side to build a governing coalition. The opposition Zionist parties did not get a 61-seat majority in any of the six polls. The most favorable poll for the opposition showed the anti-Netanyahu Zionist parties at 60 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, while the current coalition received over 61 seats in two polls (from those commissioned by Channel 14 and I24NEWS, which are more sympathetic to Netanyahu than the other media outlets).

To be sure, polls taken within 24 hours of an event are not the most reliable, and much can change in the six months until the election. 

The key question after the Bennett and Lapid merger is whether they are fighting other opposition candidates for dominance within their bloc – in which case, Bennett has likely solidified his status as Netanyahu’s main competition for the premiership – or to broaden the bloc’s appeal to win a majority in the Knesset.

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

Mitch’s Pitch on Ukraine: In The Washington Post, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) raises concerns about the status of U.S. aid to Ukraine that was approved by Congress months ago but has not moved beyond the Pentagon. “When Senate appropriators have sought an explanation from the department’s policy shop, led by Undersecretary Elbridge Colby, they’ve been stonewalled. … If we’re serious about ‘drone dominance,’ we shouldn’t sandbag a relationship with the world’s foremost drone experts. And if we’re keen on remaining the world’s preeminent superpower, we shouldn’t let unelected defense officials undermine U.S. leadership and obstruct deepening ties with Ukraine’s innovative military and industrial base.” [WashPost]

Manifesto Destiny: The New York Times’ Bret Stephens posits that the growing acceptance of violent political rhetoric across broad swaths of society is creating a breeding ground for extremism. “In short, it’s the philosophy of people who believe that democracy is actually despotism, provided they don’t like its results; that the laws of such a democracy are an oppressive sham that must be actively resisted; that the way to bring about change isn’t through political participation and elections but rather through multiple homicides. On the right, this is called fascism. On the left, communism. They are functionally almost interchangeable.” [NYTimes]

OPEC’s Obit: The Financial Times’ Verity Ratcliffe and Malcolm Moore look at the impact of the United Arab Emirates’ withdrawal from OPEC. “‘This is the beginning of the end of Opec,’ said Saul Kavonic, an energy analyst at MST Financial. ‘Saudi Arabia will struggle to keep the rest of Opec together. We could see other members follow suit, including Venezuela.’ … Meanwhile, markets have become increasingly attuned to statements from the U.S., including President Donald Trump’s social media accounts. ‘The Iran war has shown that the U.S. can have as much, if not more, influence over global oil flows than Opec,’ said Kavonic.” [FT]

Power to Wage War: The Wall Street Journal’s William Galston suggests that President Donald Trump is unlikely to be constrained by war powers resolutions, which have proven in recent decades to be ineffective. “Congress would gain leverage over Mr. Trump only when the Defense Department runs out of discretionary funds and the president is forced to request a supplementary appropriation to continue the war. Until that happens (and no one knows for sure when it will), the president holds the cards. The post-World War II emergence of the U.S. as a superpower with global reach and responsibilities has changed the constitutional balance between the executive and legislative branches, especially regarding the power to take the nation to war.” [WSJ]

Former Rep. Mark Walker (R-NC) departed his role as the State Department’s principal advisor for global religious freedom, three months after the position was created for him after he fell short of the Senate support necessary to be confirmed as ambassador-at-large for religious freedom, which he was initially nominated for last year…

The Treasury Department announced sanctions on nearly three dozen companies and individuals associated with Iran’s shadow banking system, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said “serves as a critical financial lifeline for its armed forces, enabling activities that disrupt global trade and fuel violence across the Middle East”…

The Financial Times reports on remarks made in February by U.K. Ambassador to the U.S. Christian Turner, who said he considered the term “special relationship” — a phrase commonly used to describe ties between London and Washington — to be outdated, adding, “I think there is probably one country that has a special relationship with the United States — and that is probably Israel”…

During a meeting on the 2027 funding bill for the State Department, several Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee pushed, ultimately unsuccessfully, for the committee to adopt new conditions on the $3.3 billion in U.S. military aid allocated for Israel annually in the bill, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports…

Former Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), who championed liberal causes during his decades-long tenure in the House, is releasing a book excoriating Democrats for having “embraced an agenda that goes beyond what’s politically acceptable” as he enters hospice care…

A Los Angeles megamansion built on property purchased in 2010 for $35 million by an entity tied to Qatar’s Al-Thani family was put on the market for $400 million, becoming the most expensive home listed for sale in the country; Colony Capital, which was previously led by now-U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, played a key role in the property’s development…

An active-duty soldier stationed at a Louisiana base was arrested after posting on Discord that his “goal in life” was to go to a synagogue armed with a weapon and “kill every single Jew I know”…

Duke University reinstated the school’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine after the group was suspended for having posted on social media an image of a pig holding a staff with the Star of David that had previously been used in Black Panthers imagery in the 1970s…

California’s secretary of state said the office is considering making changes to the state’s elections code after the statewide distribution of a voter guide that included antisemitic conspiracy theories from a fringe gubernatorial candidate…

The Wall Street Journal interviews B.J. Novak about his childhood and career trajectory ahead of the release of “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” which stars the former “The Office” actor… 

Israeli chef Eyal Shani opened his fourth South Florida restaurant, Naked Tomato, in the South Beach Moxy Hotel…

Israeli kosher burger chain Ruben is opening its first outpost in the U.S.; the restaurant is expected to open in Cooper City, Fla., next month…

The U.K.’s Foreign Office summoned Iran’s ambassador to London after a statement posted to the embassy’s social media that called on Iranians living in the U.K. to “all stand together, ready to sacrifice our lives, for it is better than surrendering our country to the enemy”…

Two Haredi men were reportedly stabbed outside a synagogue in the heavily Jewish London suburb of Golders Green…

The New York Times spotlights the British Navy’s Maritime Trade Operations Centre, an around-the-clock agency monitoring shipping routes in the Gulf and serving as an emergency service for vessels under attack…

Newly released correspondence between J.D. Salinger and his editor indicates that the Catcher in the Rye author wanted references to his Jewish-Irish background removed from the book’s jacket, saying he would “end up being expected to wear a Star of David and a Shamrock on the back of my sweatshirt”…

A Sydney, Australia, benefit concert meant to spotlight unity and benefit the Bondi Beach Jewish community following a deadly terror attack at a Hanukkah party in December was canceled after members of the Australian Hellenic Choir voted to withdraw from the event, where they were set to perform alongside the Sydney Jewish Choral Society…

The jury of the Venice Biennale said it will not consider submissions from “those countries whose leaders are currently charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court,” putting both Israeli and Russian entrants out of contention; Israel’s Foreign Ministry said the move “transformed the Biennale from an open artistic space of free, boundless ideas into a spectacle of false, anti-Israeli political indoctrination”…

Former Washington Post reporter Rachel Siegel is joining CNN as a reporter for CNN Business, working out of the network’s Washington bureau…

Simon Amiel is joining Birthright Israel as executive vice president for North America…

Pennsylvania Gov. Shapiro spoke to a group of more than 200 Jewish day school students at the State Capitol in Harrisburg on Tuesday during Teach PA’s annual Advocacy Day.

Comedian, actor, writer, producer and director, he is best known for playing a semi-fictional version of himself in the sitcom “Seinfeld,” Jerry Seinfeld turns 72… Nobel Prize-winning economist, professor emeritus at MIT, known for his analysis of Social Security policy, Peter Diamond turns 86… Co-founder of the NYSE-traded homebuilding company Toll Brothers, Bruce E. Toll turns 83… Retired U.S. senator (D-MI), she completed her 24 years in the Senate in 2025, Debbie Stabenow turns 76… Marcy Smith… London-born actor with three Academy Awards for best actor, knighted at Buckingham Palace in 2014, Sir Daniel Day-Lewis turns 69… Sportscaster, best known as the radio and television play-by-play announcer for MLB’s New York Mets, Gary Cohen turns 68… Co-founder and first CEO of Netflix, Marc Bernays Randolph turns 68… Israeli diplomat, she was Israel’s ambassador to Latvia and then to Ireland, Lironne Bar Sadeh turns 67… Former NYC comptroller, he ran for mayor unsuccessfully in 2021 and 2025, Scott M. Stringer turns 66… CEO and chairman of 20th Century Fox until its acquisition by Disney, Stacey Snider turns 65… CEO of the United Democracy Project, Rob Bassin… Professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University, he is the author of many books including Predictably Irrational, Dan Ariely turns 59… NY-based award-winning artist who works with sound, kinetics, optics, magnetism and other materials to make sculptures and photographs, Julianne Swartz turns 59… Film and television actor, Paul Adelstein turns 57… Israeli-born, NYC resident, stand-up comedian, actor and sometimes chazzan, Modi Rosenfeld turns 56… Executive at a NYC-based investment management firm, Bennett J. Schachter turns 51… Former minister of environmental protection in Israel, Tamar “Tami” Zandberg turns 50… SVP of the Leon Levine Foundation and director of operations for the Levine family office, Justin Steinschriber… Israeli model and actress, she has appeared in many American movies, TV shows and advertisements, Bar Paly turns 44… Director of the office of government relations at the Smithsonian Institution, Anne Brachman… Commercial, industrial and residential real estate developer in the Mid-Atlantic region, Samuel A. Neuberger… Leader of public affairs for New York at Success Academy Charter Schools, Daniel Mitzner… Baseball pitcher for Team Israel at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Jonathan de Marte turns 33… Surfer, she represented Israel at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics, Anat Lelior turns 26…

• President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social site minutes ago that the U.S. will postpone — for five days — strikes targeting Iranian energy infrastructure over Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, about 12 hours before his 48-hour deadline to the Islamic Republic was set to expire. The president cited “very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East,” which he said will continue over the course of the week.
• A final vote on Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s (R-OK) nomination to be secretary of homeland security is likely to take place today or tomorrow. Mullin is expected to be confirmed with support from at least two Democrats: Sens. John Fetterman (D-PA) and Martin Heinrich (D-NM), the latter of whom cited his “very honest and constructive working relationship” with the Oklahoma Republican in explaining his vote.
• The House and Senate are both expected to vote on war powers resolutions this week.
• Sara Netanyahu is slated to travel to Washington this week for a two-day summit being convened by First Lady Melania Trump for women — many who, like Netanyahu, are the spouses of heads of state — and technology companies focused on children’s empowerment. The summit kicks off on Tuesday at the State Department.
• Mrs. Netanyahu will be among a small number of people able to fly out of Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport after Israeli authorities on Sunday cut the maximum number of passengers allowed per flight from 150 to 50, amid ongoing missile fire from Iran.
• Senior Trump administration officials are heading to Houston this week for the annual CERAWeek conference, which kicks off today.
• Conservative radio host Mark Levin, a frequent critic of Tucker Carlson and other far-right figures, is slated to interview Joe Kent, who resigned last week as the head of the National Counterterrorism Center, on his program tonight. 
• In New York tonight, author Matti Friedman will sit in conversation with Abigail Pogrebin at 92NY to discuss his new book, Out of the Sky: Heroism and Rebirth in Nazi Europe, a look at the young Jews from then-Mandatory Palestine who parachuted into Nazi Europe in an effort to assist Allied forces and rescue Jews.
• The Leffell Foundation’s fourth annual “Zionism: A New Conversation” conference is taking place in Florida today and tomorrow. Read more here.

A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S MELISSA WEISS

Iran’s launch over the weekend of two ballistic missiles targeting the joint U.S.-U.K. Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean — hours after London said it would allow the U.S. to use the base to launch strikes on Iranian missile sites — deepened concerns that the Islamic Republic had not been forthcoming in the past about its weapons capabilities and set off alarms in Europe that the continent could find itself on the receiving end of Tehran’s long-range missiles.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said last month that the Islamic Republic only had ballistic missiles with the capacity to hit targets within a 2,000-km radius (approximately 1,200 miles) with the country’s state-run media quoting the diplomat as saying “We are not developing long-range missiles … we have limited the range below 2,000 kilometers.”

Diego Garcia is some 2,400 miles from Iran, twice as far as the distance Iran’s top diplomat had claimed the country’s missiles could reach. It’s further from Tehran than most major European capitals — meaning that the bulk of the European continent is potentially within striking range of Iran. (And, critically, without the types of air defenses and civilian protective measures that have been deployed multiple times a day in Israel for the last month.)

The discrepancy didn’t go unnoticed by current and former U.S. officials. Brett McGurk, who served as a senior national security official in the Biden administration, noted Araghchi’s February claim alongside a map showing Diego Garcia’s distance from Iran, saying that Araghchi’s blatant falsehood “speaks for itself.” In a rare show of agreement between the Trump administration and its predecessor, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the White House’s rapid-response account shared McGurk’s post.

Though neither missile reached the Chagos Island base — one fell short and one was intercepted — the weekend launches have elevated concerns that Tehran has developed the capacity to strike deep inside Europe — most of which is much closer to the Islamic Republic than the Diego Garcia base in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

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

Aiding the Revolution: The Free Press’ Eli Lake looks at Israel’s efforts to align with Iranian opposition efforts. “The Iranian people have voted against the Islamic Republic with their feet since the first student uprisings at Tehran University in 1999. In 2009, Iranians protested a stolen presidential election. Since 2017, uprisings have sprouted throughout the country every few years, only to be crushed by the Basij and Revolutionary Guards. Israel is evening the odds for a revolution by putting its air force in the service of Iran’s dissidents. At least that’s the dream.” [FreePress]

U.K. Concern: In The Guardian, Jonathan Freedland raises concerns about attacks on Jewish institutions conducted under the guise of criticism of Israel. “Every minority faces discrimination – note Tory frontbencher Nick Timothy’s appalling attack on Muslim prayer this week – but next to no other diaspora community goes through this. People can’t stand Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, but Russian Orthodox churches don’t require round-the-clock protection. People loathe Donald Trump and his bombing of Iran, but U.S.-branded stores on UK high streets are not smashed and daubed. As for British businesses with investment links to the U.S., including to U.S. security firms, those remain untouched. Israel and Jews are the exception.” [TheGuardian]

Police in London are investigating a series of overnight fires that damaged four Hatzola Northwest emergency vehicles in Golders Green, one of the city’s most heavily Jewish suburbs; the U.K.-based Community Security Trust said that the Iran-linked Ashab al-Yamin, which said it was behind recent attacks in the Netherlands and Belgium, claimed responsibility for the string of arsons…

The Treasury Department announced sanctions on 10 individuals in Lebanon, Syria, Poland, Slovenia, Qatar and Canada accused of laundering more than $100 million in money, arms and telecommunications equipment to Hezbollah…

The U.S. reportedly rejected a proposal from Russia in which Moscow would end its intelligence sharing with Iran on the condition that Washington cease giving intelligence to Ukraine regarding Russia… 

Axios looks at efforts by the CIA, Mossad and other intelligence agencies to assess the status of Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since he was named his father’s successor earlier this month and is believed to have been injured in the strikes last month that killed the elder Khamenei…

One person was killed and another injured in Israel over the weekend, after two cars caught fire in the Upper Galilee from errant IDF shells that fell inside Israel, rather than Lebanon, an investigation by the military found on Monday. Over 100 people were injured in missile strikes from Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon between Saturday night and Sunday morning, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports…

The Wall Street Journal reports on concerns that the Houthis in Yemen could join the conflict, as the Iran-backed terror group, whose previous attacks on naval vessels in the Red Sea, ramps up its threatening rhetoric, including a warning from a senior Houthi official last week that “Yemen joining the conflict is only a matter of time”… 

Nine Senate Democrats and more than 30 House Democrats wrote to the administration defending Columbia University protest leader Mahmoud Khalil, describing the protests in which he was involved as “overwhelmingly non-violent expressions of views in opposition to the conduct of the Israeli government in Gaza”…

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) was honored over the weekend at Chabad of Stamford, Conn., with the group’s inaugural Eishet Chayil Award…

The Wall Street Journal looks at frustrations among some progressive Senate Democrats — a group of eight legislators known as the “Fight Club” over Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) approach to the midterms as they mull a potential challenge to his leadership…

The Hill explores Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s vocal support for Israel in recent interviews as he mulls a 2028 presidential bid…

President Donald Trump, who spent the weekend in Florida, dropped into the anniversary party being hosted for Gary and Terri Schottenstein over the weekend at Mar-a-Lago…

The New York Times reviews Michael Kimmel’s “Playmakers,” as the distant relative of teddy bear inventors Morris and Rose Michtom looks at the major contributions of Jewish immigrants to the American toy industry…

A Reuters deep dive into decades-old Manhattan police records confirmed the identity of the graffiti artist Banksy… 

Former Mossad head Yossi Cohen and Israel Canada controlling shareholders Barak Rosen and Asaf Touchmair are investing in the Israel-based UAV company Aerodrome Group…

Molecular biologist David Botstein, whose research laid the groundwork for the field of gene-mapping, died at 83…

Israeli judoka Raz Hershko won the gold medal at the women’s over 78 kg final at the Grand Slam judo tournament on Sunday in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Former NFL referee for 23 seasons, he is the only NFL head referee to officiate four Super Bowl games (1983, 1987, 1992 and 1995), Jerry Markbreit turns 91…

Actor, film director, television director and producer, Mark Rydell turns 97… Together with her husband, Theodore, she pledged $25 million to BBYO in 2019, Harriette Perlman turns 86… Mandolinist and composer of acoustic, instrumental, bluegrass and newgrass music, David Grisman turns 81… Writer and producer of television series, creator of “Deadwood” and co-creator of “NYPD Blue,” David Milch turns 81… Tel Aviv native, she has been a professor of music at the Juilliard School since 1993, Yoheved “Veda” Kaplinsky turns 79… Los Angeles-based psychologist and author, her first book is The Blessings of a Skinned Knee: Using Jewish Teachings to Raise Self-Reliant Children, Wendy Mogel turns 75… Designer of men’s and women’s footwear, clothing and accessories, Kenneth D. Cole turns 72… Former mayor of Austin, Texas, first elected in 2014 and reelected in 2018, Stephen Ira Adler turns 70… Former director of business development at Fannie Mae, she was also the president of the Jewish Federation of Howard County (Md.), Beth Millstein… Investor, author, financial commentator and radio personality, Peter Schiff turns 63… Russian-American businessman with holdings in oil, he is also a winemaker, Eugene Shvidler turns 62… Senior writer for “The Daily Show,” he is also the creator of 2018’s television series “Liberty Crossing,” Daniel Radosh turns 57… Managing partner of D.C.-based Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner, Jonathan Missner turns 57… French actress who has appeared in more than 30 films, her Holocaust survivor grandparents changed their name from Goldreich, Judith Godrèche turns 54… Client partner at Meta/Facebook working with the financial services and real estate industry verticals, Scott Shapiro… Member of the Maryland General Assembly since 2011, initially as a delegate and since 2016 as a state senator, Craig Zucker turns 51… Israeli actress, comedian and television host, Adi Ashkenazi turns 51… Three-time Grammy Award-winning record producer, audio engineer and songwriter, Ariel Rechtshaid turns 47… Writer and teacher in Los Angeles, Yehuda Martin Hausman… Staff reporter for The New York Times, Sarah Maslin Nir… Israeli singer-songwriter, actress and musician, she performs in Hebrew, French and Arabic, Riff Cohen turns 42… Chief of staff for the Commonwealth’s attorney in Fairfax County, Va., Benjamin Shnider… Former tennis coach at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia, as a player she won five singles and four doubles titles on the ITF Women’s Circuit, Julia Cohen turns 37… Former member of the National Israeli Rhythmic Gymnastics Team, she competed in the 2012 Olympic Games, Moran Buzovski turns 34… Television and film actress, Victoria Pedretti turns 31…