Israel and the War Updates

Former Israeli hostage Shoshan Haran, abducted during the Hamas terror attack on October 7, 2023, shares her harrowing story of survival and resilience. Shoshan was abducted from her home in Kibbutz Be’eri alongside her family, including her son-in-law Tal Shoham, her daughter, and her young grandchildren. While she and the other women and children were released after 50 days in November 2023, Tal remained in Gaza for 505 days and was released in February 2025.

AJC Welcomes Trump Affirmation of U.S.-Israel Alliance; Expresses Concern over Proposal for Gaza

As we begin the 119th Congress and President Trump’s second term, I urge everyone to recognize the bipartisan work displayed between senior officials in the outgoing Biden Administration and the then-incoming Trump Administration to make a breakthrough in an agreement to secure the release of 33 of the remaining hostages brutally abducted from Israel during Hamas’ attack on October 7, 2023. We cannot take for granted the unique power of senior officials from the Biden and Trump administrations working together.

The January 2025 Israel-Hamas hostage agreement resulted in the release of multiple Israeli hostages after over 470 days of brutal captivity in Gaza, where they endured extreme conditions such as isolation, malnutrition, and untreated injuries. Survivors like Emily Damari, Doron Steinbrecher, and Romi Gonen shared shocking accounts of their time in Hamas tunnels, while recently freed soldiers Karina Ariev and Daniella Gilboa faced forced labor and severe psychological trauma. As Israel works to secure the return of the remaining hostages, global attention is focused on the ongoing humanitarian and geopolitical crisis in Gaza.

After 471 harrowing days in Gaza, Israeli hostages Emily Damari, Romi Gonen, and Doron Steinbrecher are finally reunited with their families. Julie Fishman Rayman, AJC’s Managing Director of Policy and Political Affairs, discusses the emotional impact of these reunions, the high-stakes prisoner exchange deal, and the collaboration between the outgoing Biden administration and newly inaugurated President Donald Trump.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, welcomes reports that the first stage of an agreement has been reached that will facilitate the release of 33 of the remaining hostages brutally abducted from Israel during Hamas’ attack on October 7, 2023. It also outlines a path forward to secure the release of all remaining hostages held in inhumane conditions in Gaza and potentially end more than 15 months of war and suffering for Israelis and Gazans.

Since Hamas’ brutal attack on October 7, American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, has been advocating side-by-side with more than 50 hostage families to keep their stories front of mind for officials at the highest levels of leadership across society.

“Listen to me, Edan. I'm here. I'm with you. I love you. Just protect yourself. Just be safe.” These were the last words Yael Alexander spoke to her then-19 year old son, Edan, on the morning of October 7, 2023. Edan was later taken hostage by Hamas terrorists. Yael joins us from her New Jersey home to tell her story.

On November 26, Israel’s security cabinet approved a U.S.-brokered 60-day ceasefire agreement that involves the Iranian-backed terror proxy Hezbollah that will go into effect on November 27 at 10 a.m. local time, marking a temporary halt to over a year of violent conflict. Here is what you need to know.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, welcomes today’s announcement of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah, and hopes its enforcement can lead to enduring security for both the Israeli and Lebanese people.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, is appalled by the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Pre-Trial Chamber to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. This reckless, irresponsible decision is a gross distortion of international law that harms the Court’s credibility, completely undermines its core mandate, and emboldens enemies of democracy around the world.

The violent attacks on Israeli and Jewish fans of the Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer team in Amsterdam marks the latest chapter of how “Globalize the Intifada” is a dangerous call for violence against the Jewish people and what happens when antisemitism goes unchecked. This modern-day pogrom—rooted in anti-Jewish and anti-Israel vitriol—is why American Jewish Committee (AJC), the global advocacy organization for the Jewish people, will continue to stand up for Jews everywhere and demand that European leaders protect its Jewish communities.

The U.S. Treasury Department and Canadian government sanctioned Samidoun, a nonprofit posing as a Palestinian rights charity, for financially supporting the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a designated terrorist group involved in Hamas' October 7 attacks. Cofounded in 2011 by American Charlotte Kates and her husband, PFLP member Khaled Barakat, Samidoun has also backed pro-Hamas protests on college campuses including at Columbia University; Kates was recently arrested in Canada for praising the October 7 massacre and traveled to Iran to accept a "human rights award" from the Iranian regime.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that Hamas terrorists remaining in the southern Gaza city of Rafah will be the next objective of the war. As long as Hamas operates from Rafah, Israelis are in danger of rocket fire and a reoccurrence of October 7.

Shlomo Mantzur, 86—the oldest hostage held by Hamas terrorists—is a loving husband and grandfather who escaped the antisemitic, 1941 Iraqi Farhud massacre and emigrated to Israel, only to face another pogrom 82 years later in the Jewish state.

Naama Levy, just 20 years old, has been held hostage by Hamas terrorists for more than a year.

On October 1, Iran launched over 180 ballistic missiles at Israel, marking the largest-ever single ballistic missile attack. Israel, with the help of the U.S. and its allies, intercepted most of the missiles using its multi-layered air defense system, but some hit central Israel, resulting in casualties. The attack, which Iran claims was in retaliation for Israel's assassination of key Hezbollah and Hamas leaders, is part of Iran’s long-standing campaign against Israel, which it seeks to eliminate. In response, Israel is preparing for further action, with global allies condemning the attack and offering support.

Who is Ta-Nehisi Coates? And what is Ta-Nehisi Coates famous for? A celebrated writer and public intellectual known for his works on race in America, he has recently stirred controversy with his new book, The Message.

AJC Statement on the Death of Hamas Head Yahya Sinwar

There is a renewed interest in the 18-year-old United Nations Resolution 1701, which was intended to demilitarize the border between Israel and Lebanon, but faces one critical obstacle: Hezbollah and its state sponsor Iran.