ISSUES

At CUFI, we are focused on several key issues with the goal of defending Israel’s strength, security, and sovereignty.

If you want to keep up with all things Israel, sign up for CUFI’s Daily Briefing – our daily news roundup created exclusively for CUFI members. Every morning, Monday through Friday, receive an email with some of the top headlines in the news so you are always informed and ready to debunk lies with the truth.

In The News

NASA names two asteroids after Israeli student who discovered them

04/13/2021

NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, is naming two recently discovered asteroids after an Israeli student who found them during an asteroid-hunting project, it was announced on Friday.

Aseel Nama, a biomedical engineering student at the Technion–-Israel Institute of Technology, grew up in the Arab town of Deir...

Iran

Iran capable of enriching uranium to weapon-grade level, Rouhani warns

04/15/2021
Rouhani asserts that Iran not aiming to create nukes, vows to slash enrichment to 2015 threshold if US rejoins

Tehran could begin enriching uranium to weapons-grade level, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani warned Thursday in his remarks on state TV, as cited by the Russian TASS agency.
He stressed, however, that creating nuclear...

In The News

Israel resumes its Independence Day flyover in full force

04/15/2021
Israelis flock to parks and nature reserves to hold the traditional holiday barbecues

Israel Air Force fighter jets traversed the skies of the Jewish state on Thursday to celebrate its 73rd Independence Day after the annual flyover was limited the previous year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
This time around Israelis were be...

In The News

Israel celebrates nearly coronavirus-free Independence Day

04/14/2021

As Israel concluded its Remembrance Day for Fallen Soldiers and Terror Victims, a day of sadness and introspection, the country’s citizens have prepared for a shift in mood, with the start of Independence Day celebrations at sunset on Wednesday, in a nearly coronavirus-free environment.

After a year of lockdowns and limitations,...

In The News

Memorial Day: Israel comes to a standstill to honor 23,928 of its fallen soldiers

04/14/2021
Israel came to a standstill at 11 am on Wednesday as a two-minute siren sounded across the country to commemorate 23,928 of its fallen soldiers and 4,176 civilians slain in terrorist attacks on Memorial Day.
At the main state ceremony held in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “We are marking 73 years of resurrection,...

In The News

Over 40 years of peace between Israel and Egypt

04/14/2021
CUFI Coffee Break
During the Six Day War of 1967, Egyptian President Nasser lost sovereignty over the Sinai Peninsula. His successor, President Anwar Sadat, was determined to regain it. In an effort to negotiate with Israel, he flew to Jerusalem and met with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin. The negotiations looked promising, but...

In The News

Biden decides to advance sale of F-35 fighter jets to UAE

04/14/2021

US President Joe Biden's administration has told Congress it is proceeding with more than $23 billion in weapons sales to the United Arab Emirates, including advanced F-35 aircraft, armed drones and other equipment, congressional aides said on Tuesday.

A State Department spokesperson said the administration would move forward with...

In The News

Netanyahu to US defense secretary: We won’t let Iran obtain nukes

04/12/2021

Hosting US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at his office in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Israel and the US agree on never allowing Iran to obtain nuclear weapons.

“As you know, the US-Israel defense partnership has continually expanded over successive administrations and our cooperation is crucial...

In The News

First Sudanese delegation to visit Israel in coming week: report

04/13/2021
Khartoum's intelligence and security officials said set to visit Jewish state soon

Sudan's first delegation to the Jewish state since the historic normalization is expected to visit Israel in the coming days, Israel media reported on Tuesday.
According to reports from the Jerusalem Post and Kan public broadcaster, the visit is...

In The News

Iran fires missile at Israeli-owned ship near UAE – report

04/13/2021

An Israeli ship called the Hyperion and owned by an Israeli company was attacked near the shores of the Fujairah emirate in the United Arab Emirateson Tuesday, according to reports in Lebanon. The attack came a day after Iran vowed to avenge the explosion at its Natanz nuclear facility, which it blamed on Israel. 

Data available...

In The News

EU sanctions elite Iran commander, seven others over 2019 protests

04/12/2021

The European Union has imposed sanctions on eight Iranian militia commanders and police chiefs, including the head of the elite Revolutionary Guards, over a deadly crackdown in November 2019, the bloc said in its Official Journal on Monday.
The travel bans and asset freezes are the first EU sanctions on Iran for human rights abuses...

In The News

Israel, UAE close to reaching tax treaty

04/11/2021
A taxation treaty that would boost investment ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates is in the works and could be finalized within the coming weeks.

The treaty is expected to help facilitate more than $2 billion in annual bilateral trade in the coming years and could grow to as much as $6.5b. a year within the coming...

Iran

America’s Middle East allies unite against Iran

04/12/2021

The renewal of indirect talks last week between the United States and Iran to revive the 2015 nuclear deal—the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)—appears to have escalated tensions in the Middle East, as Israel makes it clear to its ally that it will not accept Iranian nuclear capability.

Israeli media reported on Sunday...

Iran

Iran has begun 60% uranium enrichment – Chief nuclear negotiator

04/13/2021

In a potentially unprecedented escalation, Iran's top nuclear negotiator Abbas Araqchi announced on Tuesday that the Islamic Republic has begun 60% uranium enrichment, according to state media, Reuters reported.

In order for uranium to be weaponized, it must be enriched to 90%.

Under the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran had to stay...

In The News

Iran vows ‘revenge against Zionists’

08/12/2021

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif accused Israel on Monday of being behind the electrical “incident” at the Natanz uranium-enrichment facility the previous day.

Iranian state television quoted Zarif as saying, “The Zionists want to take revenge because of our progress on the way to lift sanctions … they have publicly...

In The News

Israeli hospital signs ‘breakthrough’ deal to provide diabetic care in UAE

04/12/2021

Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer has signed a “breakthrough” agreement to provide treatment to diabetics in Dubai, The Jerusalem Post has confirmed.

The deal, the first of its kind signed under the “Sheba BEYOND” program, was closed on Monday in Dubai with the Al Tadawi Healthcare group. The medical centers had agreed on a...

In The News

‘Israel will continue to defend itself from Iran’s aggression,’ Netanyahu vows

04/12/2021
PM affirms importance of US-Israeli ties at joint presser with Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin

"Israel will continue to defend itself from Iran's aggression," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Monday's joint press conference with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
The Israeli PM lashed out at the "fanatical regime in Iran,"...

Iran

Iran accuses Israel of attack on Natanz nuclear facility, vows ‘to take revenge’

04/12/2021
Iranian authorities described the incident a day earlier as an act of 'nuclear terrorism'

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif openly accused Israel on Monday of launching an attack on the Natanz nuclear facility, where a power failure occurred on Sunday, and vowed "to take revenge," state TV quoted him as saying on...

Iran

‘Battling Iran is a colossal mission,’ Netanyahu says following blackout at Iranian nuclear plant

04/11/2021
The shadow war against Iran has seen Israel become a global power, Netanyahu says

Battling Iran is a colossal mission, yet one that saw Israel grow in stature into a global power, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday amid reports that the Mossad intelligence agency was behind the blackout at an Iranian nuclear plant....

US-Israel Relationship

U.S. Secretary of Defense arrives in Israel amid Iran tensions

04/11/2021

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin touched down in Israel on Sunday for his first official visit to the country. The visit comes in the shadow of growing military tensions between Israel and Iran, and amid attempts by Washington to engage Tehran in negotiations over its nuclear program.

At a joint press conference following a...