Last year, as the Israel-Hamas war unfolded, pro-Palestinian protests, encampments, building occupations, and votes on Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) resolutions spread across hundreds of US university campuses. Over the last several weeks, three major studies timed for the start of the academic year provide the first systematic evidence of the breadth and impact of the protest movement. Protesters achieved some, but not all, of their aims and created an environment that many Jewish students perceived as hostile. Still, the...
When Prime Minister Netanyahu addresses a joint session of Congress on July 24, he will also be addressing the American Jewish community. This article describes American Jewish attitudes about the Israel-Hamas war, the Israeli government and the upcoming US elections. It shows that although American Jews strongly supported Israel throughout the war, they had many serious criticisms of the “full right” government prior to October 7. It also shows that most will support the Democratic nominee in the US presidential election in...
On April 23, the US Congress approved the foreign aid package presented by President Biden, amounting to $95 billion for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. The vote reflected deep trends in the US Congress and among both parties regarding American foreign policy in general and the State of Israel in particular. The distribution of votes within both parties concerning aid to Israel and other issues included in the package, as well as according to ideological camps within both parties, is examined using data collected by the Data Analytics...
US President Joe Biden’s decision to present the “Israeli plan” for a hostage deal and a ceasefire between the IDF and Hamas appears to have been motivated by an assessment that Israel’s military campaign had run its course. Despite the administration’s view that Hamas is responsible for the delay in reaching a hostage deal, Biden clearly believed that revealing the Israeli proposal would encourage Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make a decision—notwithstanding the bitter domestic arguments in Israel between those who support...
Joe Biden is reportedly one of only two US presidents to have given serious consideration to a defense treaty with Israel. A number of Israeli premiers have weighed a defense treaty over the years, primarily as a means of offsetting security concerns and public qualms regarding concessions in peace talks. Counterintuitively, perhaps, Israel’s defense establishment has long been opposed.
This study analyzes the pros and cons of a bilateral defense treaty from both the Israeli and American perspectives and proposes ways of addressing...
Relations between the American administration and the Israeli government are in crisis, as is clearly evident by the United States abstaining from the UN resolution on a ceasefire and the critical remarks made by senior government figures. Israel is also facing political pressure from other allies, including European countries, which involves restrictions on arms supplies to Israel and considerations of other constrictions. In addition, for the first time in recent years, Israel has been subjected to personal sanctions against its...
Israel’s plan to launch a military offensive in Rafah is at the center of the growing disagreement between the United States and Israel. The Biden administration is pressuring Israel to avoid such an operation, stating that Israel can achieve its objectives through other means. This adds to the existing differences between the two countries, including the US demand for Israel to establish a clear post-war strategy and address the humanitarian situation in Gaza. These topics, along with a possible hostage deal in exchange for a...
The Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) concluded its quarterly meeting held on March 4–8, and once again no resolution was adopted against Iran. This is despite the IAEA report leaving no doubt that Iran is vigorously advancing its nuclear program and preventing the agency from exercising its oversight responsibilities. The United States and European countries reacted strongly to the report but refrained from demanding that the Board of Governors take practical action against Iran; however, they...
The American stance supporting Israel in the “Swords of Iron” war has been unprecedented, except perhaps in the Yom Kippur War. The United States shares the goal of destroying Hamas and creating a new security situation in the Gaza Strip and the border region. In practice, there has been an informal division of labor between the countries, with Israel targeting Hamas and the United States deterring Iran and its proxies from escalating to the point of a regional conflagration. But alongside this, the administration has set limitations...
The October 7th massacre and Israel’s subsequent military response in the Gaza Strip provoked significant protests throughout the West, opposing Israel’s military operation. Israel has received the full backing of the Biden administration, on both the military and diplomatic fronts, yet public opinion among the American public, while still supportive, has decreased as Israel’s ground operation in Gaza has continued and Palestinian casualties have mounted. Recent public opinion polling in the United States has underscored the...
For the past several years—and even more so since the start of the “judicial overhaul”—we have been warning about an impending crisis in relations between the United States and Israel. The war postponed these tensions, which had grown in the months before October 7, but now, following a period of unprecedented strategic cooperation, the gaps are widening around Israel’s handling of the war and “the day after.” The Biden administration is increasingly skeptical that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) can achieve its military goals and is...
