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

Lebanon’s Top Christian Cleric Criticizes Hezbollah in Leaked Video

04/01/2021

Those dragging Lebanon into regional conflicts were not acting in its best interests, the country’s top Christian cleric said, in unusually direct comments that appeared to refer to Hezbollah.

“I want to tell them … Do you want to force (Lebanon) to go to war? Are you asking before you go to war? Before you go to Syria? … You’re...

In The News

Tesla opens its first ‘Supercharging’ station in Tel Aviv

04/02/2021
esla also has more than 6,000 Superchargers across Europe

Tesla first fast-charging station for electric vehicles opened at the Azrieli shopping center in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, business website Globes reported.
The company plans to open three more so-called "Supercharger" stations in 2021, for the exclusive use of Tesla customers,...

In The News

US says joining upcoming Vienna talks on Iran deal, ‘open’ to direct negotiations

04/01/2021
State Department says not expecting 'immediate breakthrough,' hails 'healthy step forward'

The US confirmed on Friday that it will be part of the upcoming meeting in Vienna next week, which will focus on the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
The State Department also announced that Washington was "open" to direct negotiations with...

In The News

Bahrain appoints its first ambassador to Israel

03/28/2021

Bahrain has announced its appointment of the country’s first-ever ambassador to Israel, following the establishment of formal relations in September as part of the Abraham Accords.

Khalid Al Jalahma will head the Gulf country’s diplomatic mission to Israel, the state news agency BNA reported on Tuesday. Al Jalahma serves as...

Antisemitism

Vandals Deface Monument to Holocaust Victims With Nazi Symbols in Poland

04/01/2021

Unknown vandals on Sunday night defaced a monument to the three million Jews murdered in Poland during World War II with Nazi symbols and slogans.

The monument in the city of Częstochowa, in southern Poland, commemorated the final liquidation of the Jewish ghetto in June 1943. That followed a heroic uprising orchestrated by the...

US-Israel Relationship

Marking 2 Years Since the US Recognized Israeli Sovereignty Over the Golan Heights

04/01/2021
CUFI Coffee Break
March 25th marked the two-year anniversary of US recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which followed just one week after CUFI released a statement backing associated legislation and after a month-long advocacy campaign. This courageous and historic proclamation has significant implications for...

Iran

Iran adds advanced machines enriching underground at Natanz

04/01/2021

Iran has started enriching uranium with a fourth cascade, or cluster, of advanced IR-2m machines at its underground Natanz plant, a report by the U.N. atomic watchdog obtained by Reuters on Thursday showed, in a further breach of Iran's nuclear deal.

"On 31 March 2021, the Agency verified at FEP that: Iran had begun feeding...

In The News

Biden Administration to Allocate $90 Million in Aid to Palestinians

04/01/2021

The Biden administration has allocated $90 million in aid to the Palestinians, with only a portion of the money being publicly announced, according to a report by the Associated Press.

The United States announced last week that it would give $15 million in coronavirus relief to the Palestinians. However, the Biden administration...

In The News

Israel and Bahrain Sign $3 Million ‘First-of-Its-Kind’ Deal to Share Knowledge on Water Technology

03/31/2021

Israel’s state-owned water company Mekorot has inked a $3 million deal to provide Bahrain’s Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) with consulting services on water projects and to share knowledge on technologies, in what marks the first “significant” agreement between the Jewish state and the Gulf emirate since the Abraham Accords.
...

In The News

Holocaust survivors who died in Israel’s wars to be honored in ceremony

03/31/2021

A special ceremony commemorating Holocaust survivors will be held at the Ghetto Fighters House Museum near Acre in northern Israel. 

The ceremony, held this year under the title of "Last Survivors," will honor Holocaust survivors who made aliyah after losing their families in WWII, and later died during one of Israel's military...

In The News

Kosovo’s top diplomat calls opening of Jerusalem embassy ‘a done deal’

03/31/2021

Kosovo’s new foreign minister says she considers the opening of the country’s embassy in Jerusalem to be “a done deal.”

Foreign Minister Donika Gervalla is asked during an interview about the pressure Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has put on Kosovo’s new government to reconsider the Balkan nation’s recent opening of an...

In The News

Congressional Republicans blast ‘outrageous’ Biden admin offer to roll back Iran sanctions

03/30/2021

Congressional Republicans are calling the Biden administration’s reported plan to roll back sanctions on Iran before it commits to renewed diplomatic talks an unacceptable concession that will only embolden the hardline regime and reward its bad behavior.

As Iran continues to balk at U.S. proposals for direct negotiations on a...

US-Israel Relationship

US report reaffirms support for Jerusalem as Israel’s capital

03/30/2021

The annual United States report on global human rights practices affirmed that Jerusalem was the capital of Israel, but reintroduced language that spoke of Israeli occupation of territory, two-states and gave a nod in the direction of Palestinian Authority rights to sections of Jerusalem.

The annual Country Reports on Human Rights...

Iran

EU set to sanction more Iranians for human rights abuses, first since 2013, diplomats say

03/31/2021
The European Union is set to agree to sanction several Iranian individuals on Wednesday for human rights abuses, the first such measures since 2013, three EU diplomats said.

EU envoys are expected to agree to impose travel bans and asset freezes on the individuals, the diplomats said, and their names would be published next week,...

Iran

Iran’s new missile corvette could reshape naval doctrine

03/31/2021

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGC-N) is building a new class of warships, as first reported in Naval News last week based on satellite imagery. The catamaran design appears relatively large, modern and capable compared to existing IRGC commercial-based designs.

The sectarian arm of the Iranian military’s move to...

In The News

US to offer Iran new nuclear deal, sanctions relief this week – report

03/30/2021

The United States is trying to break the nuclear deadlock with Iran and is planning a new proposal that would include some sanctions relief for the Islamic Republic, according to a report in Politico.

Biden administration officials plan to put forth a new proposal to restart nuclear talks between Washington and Tehran as soon as...

In The News

Palestinian terrorists issue death threat on American as Biden admin seeks closer ties

03/29/2021

After more than a week of silence in the face of questions, the State Department said it is concerned about the safety of a prominent pro-democracy Palestinian-American who recently received death threats from a terror organization affiliated with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas.

Fadi Elsalameen, a human-rights and...

Iran

Iran rejects US offer to open nuclear talks amid offer to lift sanctions

03/30/2021

Iran has rejected a US offer – revealed in Politico on Tuesday – to launch negotiations over a new nuclear deal in exchange for the lifting of some American sanctions.

Iran said that it will not stop its 20% uranium enrichment before the US lifts all sanctions, Iranian state TV quoted an unnamed official as saying in reaction to...

In The News

Oldest surviving ‘Righteous Among Nations,’ who saved Jewish boy, dies age 101

03/30/2021

The oldest surviving person to bear the title of Righteous Among the Nations, Anna Kozminska, died last week at the age of 101, Poland’s Institute for Remembrance has said.

She was to be buried on Tuesday at the Powązki Cemetery in Warsaw.

Kozminska was believed to be the be oldest living person recognized by...

In The News

Bahrain appoints first-ever ambassador to Israel

03/30/2021

Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi approved Bahrain’s first-ever ambassador to Israel on Tuesday, ahead of the Gulf state opening its embassy in the coming weeks.

Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani appointed Khaled Yousif al-Jalahama to the position on Sunday. Jalahama is the Director of Operations at Bahrain’s...