The aftermath of Israeli airstrikes in Syria earlier this week are shining a light on the growing divide between the United States and Israel over how to approach Damascus’ government and its relationship with Turkey.

Israel said it struck Syria’s Abu al-Duhur air base in the country’s northwest on Monday based on intelligence that Turkey was preparing to deploy forces there, arguing that such a move would threaten Israeli security. Turkey and Syria denied any involvement from Ankara at the base, though the Syrian foreign minister said a Turkish military delegation had visited it shortly before the strikes. 

Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) touted his early support for efforts to block certain U.S. arms sales to Israel during a Senate debate on Thursday with Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA), who is challenging the Massachusetts senator for his seat.

“Trump had Netanyahu’s back in his unbelievably unconscionable war against Gaza. And that’s why Bernie Sanders and I and Elizabeth Warren, we were [some] of the first 11 who voted against these 1,000-pound bombs going in against Gaza,” Markey said. “The man has no conscience. He has no wisdom whatsoever. He is endangering the United States, our national security, our standing in the world every single day that he’s allowed to sit in that Oval Office.”

Alaska’s closely watched Senate race, which will help determine the balance of power in the Senate, is set to pit a consistent — if rarely prominent — Democratic supporter of Israel against a prominent Republican national security hawk. Unlike in some other battleground races, the issue of Israel has rarely come up in the campaign. 

Peltola was not a leader on Middle East policy issues during her time in the House and did not highlight it as a priority, but was generally a reliable vote in support of Israel, breaking on numerous occasions with the majority of her party on the issue.

Aisha Wahab, a progressive California state senator, narrowly defeated former local mayor Melissa Hernandez in a special election in California’s 14th Congressional District, and will replace former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) in the House.

Hernandez was backed by more than $2.5 million in spending from the AIPAC-linked United Democracy Project super PAC, among other outside groups, which helped her draw closer to Wahab in the final count than some observers had initially expected.

Stefany Shaheen, the daughter of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and a candidate for New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District, launched a TV ad this week hitting her opponent for receiving  support from pro-Israel donors.

The ad claims Maura Sullivan, a military veteran, has taken $300,000 in donations “bundled from AIPAC donors,” in addition to support from Jeff Bezos and a contractor for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The attacks come even as Sullivan has shifted left on Israel policy issues during the campaign.

As Israel and the Trump administration negotiate the next U.S.-Israel memorandum of understanding, a new report from the Jewish Institute for National Security of America demonstrates how even among hawkish experts in Washington, the question is increasingly not how to preserve the traditional military aid model, but what should replace it.

The report, titled “Shifting the Center of Gravity: Transforming the U.S.-Israel Security Partnership,” recommends that the two countries sign one final 10-year MOU — a sea change for Israel supporters who previously wouldn’t have dreamt to advocate for the end of these kinds of agreements between Jerusalem and Washington, though they largely hope for it to be replaced with cooperative and enduring programs. 

A Turkish-tied organization that launched in 2023 with an alleged straw-donor fundraiser for former New York City Mayor Eric Adams has spent recent weeks selling tickets for a Sept. 20 gathering listing Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT) as a “featured speaker ” — even as Zinke’s office insists he’s not attending the event.

The CEO Club New York and Turkish-American Business Association have posted materials online and created a listing on Eventbrite advertising the “World Business Summit New York & Award Ceremony 2026,” to take place at a venue inside The New York Times building during the U.N. General Assembly next month. Prominently displayed is the name and photo of the retiring Montana congressman, who served as secretary of the interior during the first Trump administration.

Sen. Darline Graham’s (R-SC) stumbling performance at the final GOP primary debate on Tuesday has prompted questions among Republicans in Washington about her prospects in next week’s runoff against Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC).

Graham’s debate performance has been widely panned for her response to a question about Taiwan and the South China Sea, during which she admitted that she is “not that informed on national security.” The moment prompted national Republican operatives to question her qualifications to replace her late brother, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and led to an avalanche of attacks from critics about her lack of policy experience.