AJC Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer Jason Isaacson breaks down what Israel’s recently-enacted judicial reform means for the future of the only democracy in the Middle East.
Everything You Need to Know About Israel
American Jewish Committee (AJC) works to set the record straight on Israel, calling out fact from fiction and standing up to those seeking to tear down and discriminate against the region’s only democratic nation and world’s only Jewish state.
AJC works every day, in the United States and around the world, to advocate for Israel through global diplomacy, political advocacy, coalition building, and strategic communications.
The resources below include facts and key insights into Israel-related topics, including the U.S.-Israel relationship, the Abraham Accords, Israel-diaspora relations, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a two state solution, Israeli democracy, the UN’s anti-Israel bias, Israeli Arabs, the connection between antisemitism and anti-Zionism, Hamas, Hezbollah, Gaza, the West Bank, Palestinians, and more.
To find answers to your questions about Israel use the search bar below and check boxes on the left to view articles, videos, podcasts, columns, eBooks, and more. Don’t see an answer to your question about Israel? Click here to let us know.
Israel’s Reasonableness Law: What it Means for Israel’s Democracy and Security
'Signed, Sealed, Delivered?': Exploring Israel's Declaration of Independence with People of the Pod and Israel Story
Two of the Jewish world’s leading podcasts, People of the Pod and Israel Story, are teaming up to bring you inside the making of ‘Signed, Sealed, Delivered?’ – the latest series from Israel Story that explores the lives of the signatories of Israel’s Declaration of Independence and their descendants.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Conversation with AJC CEO Ted Deutch
At AJC Global Forum 2023 in Tel Aviv, Israeli President Isaac Herzog sat down with AJC CEO Ted Deutch to discuss key issues, including judicial reform, Israel-Diaspora relations, and the importance of the Abraham Accords.
Noa Tishby on the Abraham Accords: The Middle East Realizes Israel is Not the Enemy
Noa Tishby, Israel’s first special envoy for combating antisemitism and the delegitimization of Israel, joins us to discuss the impact of the Abraham Accords two years on, how she’s raising her son to love Israel, and why she doesn’t view antisemitism as a “problem to solve.”
Walter Russell Mead: Debunking Myths and Misconceptions About the U.S.-Israel Relationship
Walter Russell Mead, Fellow in Strategy and Statesmanship at the Hudson Institute and columnist for The Wall Street Journal, joins us to discuss his latest book, “The Arc of a Covenant: The United States, Israel, and the Fate of the Jewish People," and to delve into what fuels America and Israel’s alliance, debunk myths about the relationship, including antisemitic tropes and memes
Building on the Abraham Accords: President Biden’s Trip to the Middle East, and Its Implications for Israeli-Saudi Relations
This week, retired U.S. Ambassador Marc Sievers, Director of American Jewish Committee’s office in Abu Dhabi: The Sidney Lerner Center for Arab-Jewish Understanding, joins us to discuss President Joe Biden's visit to the Middle East on a tour that included Israel, the West Bank, and Saudi Arabia.
What is the BDS Mapping Project and Why Should All Jews Be Concerned?
A map published online earlier this month by BDS activists claims to list organizations and institutions in the Boston area that they say are responsible for harm against Palestinians. In actuality, the project is targeting and threatening the Jewish community. AJC New England Director Rob Leikind joins us to explain what’s being done to raise awareness and counter the project, and why it’s not just the Jewish community that’s in danger.
Yossi Klein Halevi on the Convergence of Politics and Religion at Jerusalem’s Temple Mount
This week, we hear from journalist and author Yossi Klein Halevi on the triumph of the Six-Day War, the current wave of terrorist attacks in Israel, the tensions on the Temple Mount, and the trauma that continues to shape Israel’s spiritual and political life.
Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch on How Support for Israel is Key to the Future of Reform Judaism
As the senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City, Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch believes Zionism is a core value of Judaism. He sat down with Laura Shaw Frank, AJC's Director of Contemporary Jewish Life, to discuss the danger of waning commitment to Israel among some Reform Jews, a recent delegation to the Poland-Ukraine border, and how being #JewishAndProud is as important to him as breathing.
How to Tell Fact from Fiction About the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Amid rising tensions in Israel, Canadian-Israeli journalist Matti Friedman shares candid advice for all who are trying to understand the complex situation that is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Friedman takes listeners behind the scenes of media reporting on Israel to demonstrate the sometimes corrosive impact that news outlets have when they attempt to oversimplify the conflict.
People of the Pod: Solving the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: A New Perspective
When it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the pathway to peace has typically been presented as a choice between a one-state or a two-state solution. Guest host Jason Isaacson, AJC’s Chief Policy and Political Affairs Officer, speaks with Avi Melamed, Israeli intelligence and strategic affairs analyst and author of Inside the Middle East: Entering a New Era, about possible other solutions, the impact of the Abraham Accords on the region, and why the story of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not separate from the story of the Middle East.
People of the Pod: Setting the Record Straight on Israel’s Support for Ukraine
A false narrative has emerged about Israel’s alleged neutrality over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Lahav Harkov, senior diplomatic correspondent for The Jerusalem Post and co-host of their weekly podcast, joins us to set the record straight. Harkov explains how Israel is supporting Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, while avoiding provoking Syrian-based Russian troops on the democratic nation’s northern border.
People of the Pod: The Fight for Religious Equality at the Western Wall Just Got Tougher
When Israel’s coalition government took shape last summer, all signs pointed to progress on an expanded egalitarian prayer site at Jerusalem's Western Wall. But now that plan appears to be stalled, due to tensions within that coalition. We are joined by Dr. Laura Shaw Frank, AJC’s Director of William Petschek Contemporary Jewish Life, who shares the special connection she has to the Western Wall (Kotel), why its egalitarian prayer site has become a flashpoint within the Israeli government, and the deep meaning it has to diaspora Jews.
A New Middle East: The Historic Israel-UAE Meeting; How to Help Victims of Deadly Kentucky Tornadoes
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett made history this past week when he became the first Israeli premier to be officially welcomed to the United Arab Emirates. Retired U.S. Ambassador Marc Sievers, inaugural Director of AJC Abu Dhabi: The Sidney Lerner Center for Arab-Jewish Understanding, joins us to discuss the importance of this visit and what it holds for the future of the region.
Martin Indyk on his New Book: Master of the Game: Henry Kissinger and the Art of Middle East Diplomacy
Ambassador Martin Indyk gives listeners a behind-the-scenes look at one of the most consequential figures in modern Middle East diplomacy: former United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger. In this riveting conversation with guest co-host Jason Isaacson, AJC’s chief policy and political affairs officer, Indyk discusses his just-released book about Kissinger, Master of the Game: Henry Kissinger and the Art of Middle East Diplomacy, highlighting the veteran diplomat’s lessons for Arab-Israeli stability and the antisemitism that he faced in his career. Indyk himself is no stranger to Middle East diplomacy, having served twice as the U.S. Ambassador to Israel and the Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs during the Clinton Administration, and as America’s special Middle East envoy for renewed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority during the Obama administration.
People of the Pod: Iron Dome Debate: What to Make of “the Squad’s” Anti-Israel Efforts
When the U.S. House of Representatives voted last week 420-9-2 to replenish Israel’s Iron Dome defense system, it ended debate about America’s short-term support for the program and simultaneously sparked a conversation about the future of bipartisan support for the U.S.-Israel relationship. Mark Mellman, President and CEO of Democratic Majority for Israel, joins us to address that topic and more, including whether Democratic support for Israel is shifting and trends in attitudes towards Israel on both sides of the aisle. Julie Rayman, AJC’s Managing Director, Policy and Political Affairs, guest hosts this week’s episode.
Exclusive AJC eBook – Israel and the Arab-Israel Conflict: A Brief Guide for the Perplexed
Israel and the Arab-Israeli Conflict, written by former AJC CEO David Harris, provides a clear and concise picture of Israel’s ongoing struggle for peace and security in a tumultuous region that all too often has denied the very legitimacy of a Jewish state.
People of the Pod: How the Abraham Accords Has Changed Hearts and Minds: A Sit-Down with Israel’s Top Official in the UAE
This week marks the one-year anniversary of normalized relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. This historic agreement, known as the Abraham Accords, would soon grow to include Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. In one fell swoop, the number of Arab countries Israel had formal relations with tripled from two (Egypt and Jordan) to six. With us to discuss this pivotal moment and the future of Israeli-Arab engagement is Ambassador Eitan Na’eh, head of mission at the Israeli Embassy in Abu Dhabi - formally dedicated just six weeks ago.
People of the Pod: Israel’s Diaspora Minister on Surfside Visit and the Israel-Diaspora Relationship
Joining us for a second time on People of Pod is Nachman Shai, Israel’s Minister of Diaspora Affairs, to discuss his new role and his critical work supporting Jews around the world, including a recent visit to Surfside, Florida, following the tragic collapse of Champlain Towers South.
People of the Pod: What You Need to Know About Israel’s Diverse New Government; The Mainstreaming of Antisemitism
For the first time since 2009, Israel has a new prime minister, Naftali Bennett. The Jerusalem Post Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Lahav Harkov joins us this week to shed some light on the new prime minister and help us understand what we can expect from Israel’s new government. Then, we bring you one of the most-discussed sessions from AJC Virtual Global Forum 2021. Bret Stephens, op-ed columnist for The New York Times, Bari Weiss, journalist and author of How to Fight Antisemitism, and Simone Rodan-Benzaquen, Director of AJC Europe, discuss rising Jew-hatred in a session titled “The Mainstreaming of Antisemitism: How Should We Respond?”
Featured Content:
- What Hamas is Hiding
- AJC's Tough Questions Series
- Timeline: Key Events In The Israel-Arab And Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
- Tough Questions About Gaza Answered
- Setting the Record Straight on Hezbollah: Full Report
- 10 Basic Facts About the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
- What You Need To Know About Israel’s Judicial Reforms
- The Abraham Accords, Explained
- Israel: A Nation Reborn
- 5 Things You Need to Know About Israel’s Iron Dome Defense System
- 8 Ways Some Anti-Israel Protests Have Spread Antisemitism
- 15 Israel-related Whoppers
- Tough Questions About Gaza Answered
