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.

Iran’s Guardian Council Approves Law on Hardening Nuclear Stance, Halting UN Inspections

12/03/2020

Iran‘s Guardian Council watchdog body approved a law on Wednesday that obliges the government to halt UN inspections of its nuclear sites and step up uranium enrichment beyond the limit set under Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal if sanctions are not eased in two months.

In retaliation for the killing last week of Iran‘s top nuclear...

In The News

Czech Republic To Open ‘Diplomatic Office’ In Jerusalem

12/02/2020

The Czech Republic plans to boost the status of its mission in Jerusalem without moving its embassy, Prague announced on Wednesday.

The Czech Foreign Ministry said the new office will be part of “efforts to further strengthen Czech-Israeli relations,” but emphasized that “this is not about opening a new embassy.”

The diplomatic...

Hezbollah Drone Crosses Into Israel Amid IDF Drill: Report

12/03/2020
Lebanese media claim Hezbollah managed to fly UAV into Israel on second day of drill in the north

An unmanned aerial aircraft operated by the Lebanese Hezbollah recently managed to cross into Israel's north, Lebanese media linked with the group reported Thursday.
According to the reports, the infiltration took place on the second...

In The News

Bahraini Minister: We Will Make Peace With Israel A Success Story

12/01/2020

Israel and Bahrain are working to quickly bring the normalization of their ties to fruition, Bahraini Industry, Commerce and Tourism Minister Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani said in Jerusalem on Wednesday.

Al Zayani said “the whole world is watching, and we are determined to make this a success story and a case study for others.”
...

In The News

Israel FM Announces New Bilateral Agreements With Visiting Bahrain Official

12/02/2020
The bilateral agreements aim to bolster tourism, culture, science and technology between both nations

Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi welcomed Bahrain's Commerce and Tourism Minister Zayed R. Alzayani to Jerusalem on Wednesday.
The two senior government officials announced that their countries have reached a number of...

In The News

After Flying Over Saudi Arabia, 1st Israeli Commercial Flight Lands In Dubai

12/01/2020

The first Israeli commercial flight to the United Arab Emirates touched down in Dubai on Tuesday, passing over Saudi Arabia after receiving last-minute overflight permission from the kingdom.

The Israir flight took just over three hours, less than half the time it would take if the plan had to fly around Saudi Arabia, and marked a...

Iran MPs Advance Bill To Stop UN Nuclear Inspections, Step Up Enrichment

12/01/2020

Iran’s parliament on Tuesday advanced a bill that would end UN inspections of its nuclear facilities and require the government to boost its uranium enrichment if European signatories to the 2015 nuclear deal do not provide relief from oil and banking sanctions.

The vote to debate the bill, which would need to pass through several...

In The News

Dubai Commodities Center Opens Office In Tel Aviv To Boost Israeli Trade Through UAE

12/01/2020
New office to support Israeli companies of all sizes and sectors set up in Dubai

The Dubai Multi Commodities Center Authority (DMCC) has opened a representative office in Ramat Gan - a suburb of Tel Aviv - inside the Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE).
The new office will support Israeli businesses, from all industries and sectors,...

In The News

Second Bahraini Minister In Two Weeks Arrives In Israel To Expand Trade Ties

12/01/2020

The second ministerial delegation from Bahrain in two weeks landed in Israel Tuesday morning with hopes of deepening the two countries’ budding economic ties.

During his three-day stay, Bahraini Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism Zayed R. Alzayani, who arrived with a delegation of about 40 businesspeople, is scheduled to...

On The Iran Nuclear Deal, Israel Gets A Vote

12/01/2020

When asked when the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan might end, retired General David Petraeus would deploy a useful quip. “The enemy gets a vote,” he would say, meaning that both sides need to agree to stop fighting.

There is a corollary to Petraeus’s adage that is relevant not to war but to peace agreements: The allies get a vote,...

In The News

Jewish Astronaut Jessica Meir Wants To Be The First Woman On The Moon

12/01/2020

Since astronaut Jessica Meir returned to Earth in April from the International Space Station, she — like all of us — has spent a lot of time indoors and cooped up.

While many of us have spent our confinement dreaming of future trips, Meir is working on her own travel plans to a singular destination: She wants to walk on the moon....

In The News

IDF Chief: We Will Continue to Act Against Iranian Presence in Syria

11/30/2020

Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi on Sunday visited the Northern Command. The military said that while the visit was a routine inspection of the northern borders, commanders held a security situation assessment in the wake of the Iranian threats following the Friday assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, head...

Iranian Revolutionary Guards Commander Reported Killed In Drone Strike

11/30/2020

A senior commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard was killed in an apparent drone strike along the Syrian-Iraqi border, according to widely circulated reports in Arabic-language media Monday.

Iraqi security sources told Saudi-based al-Arabiya News that a drone killed Muslim Shahdan, a senior commander in the Islamic Revolutionary...

Hezbollah

Slovenia Declares All Of Hezbollah A ‘Criminal And Terrorist Organization’

11/30/2020

Slovenia on Monday designated Hezbollah in its entirety a terrorist organization, joining a growing number of European states who have taken similar steps in recent weeks to end differentiation between the group’s political and armed wings.

In a statement, the small Central European state’s government said that it will henceforth...

In The News

Saudi Arabia Officially Approves Israeli Flights Over Its Airspace

11/30/2020

Saudi Arabia announced on Monday evening that it has officially given approval for Israeli airlines to fly over the country's airspace, dramatically shortening flying times to the east and finally allowing Israeli airlines to offer direct flights to Dubai, Israeli media reported.

Saudi Arabia's announcement means that an Israir...

In The News

Netanyahu Preparing For An Official Visit To Egypt – Report

11/30/2020

The thawing of relations with the Arab world is also occurring in Egypt, political sources have told Maariv, sister publication of The Jerusalem Post. Following the normalization agreements between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, which will focus mostly on the economy, Jerusalem is beginning to also work on...

Iranian Newspaper Urges Striking Israel In Retaliation For Fakhrizadeh Killing

11/29/2020

An opinion piece published by a hardline Iranian newspaper on Sunday suggested Iran should attack the Israeli port city of Haifa if Israel was responsible for the killing of the scientist who allegedly masterminded its military nuclear program.

Though the Kayhan newspaper has long argued for aggressive retaliation for operations...

In The News

An Israeli Soldier Gives His All for Lonely Senior Citizens

11/25/2020

“Between 11th and 12th grade, after a tough fencing session, I saw a television report about all these elderly people and Holocaust survivors and their difficulties and loneliness. It really shocked me and I was really, really sad and depressed for a couple of days,” recounts Yakov Pizenberg. “I told myself that being sad won’t help...

In The News

Bahrain Trade Delegation To Visit Israel Next Week

11/29/2020

Bahraini Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism Zayed R. Alzayani is set to visit Israel next week, the Foreign Ministry confirmed on Sunday.

Alzayani will be accompanied by a 40-person trade delegation, the first-ever from his country to Israel, meant to encourage Israeli investments in Bahrain.

The minister is expected to...

In The News

Report: 19 Iran-Backed Militants Killed In Syria

11/26/2020
Airstrikes allegedly killed at least 19 pro-Iran militia fighters in war-torn eastern Syria, a monitor reported on Thursday, attributing the attack to the Israel Air Force.
The strikes, carried out early on Thursday, targeted the positions of Iran-backed militias outside the town of Albu Kamal in Deir Ezzor province, killing "mostly...