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.

US-Israel Relationship

Orthodox Jewish woman named cybersecurity chief for US spy agency

An Orthodox Jewish woman whose parents were among the hostages rescued by Israeli commandos from Entebbe Airport has been tapped to head the United States National Security Agency’s new Cybersecurity Directorate.

Anne Neuberger of Baltimore has worked at the NSA for the past decade. She helped establish the US Cyber Command and worked as chief...

Syria

IDF on high alert along northern border following Syria strikes

IDF forces deployed along the nation's northern border were on high alert Thursday following airstrikes in southern Syria overnight Tuesday.

According to the Syrian state news agency's report, the country's air-defense systems were activated against "hostile missiles" launched from the Israeli Golan Heights and Israeli aircraft west of Damascus....

Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS)

House passes resolution condemning global boycott targeting Israel

The House on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed a measure condemning efforts to boycott and economically isolate Israel over its policies toward Palestinians, an explosive global issue that exposed fissures inside the Democratic ranks.

The 398-to-17 vote comes after months of turmoil centering on Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.),...

Hezbollah

‘The Port of Beirut has become the Port of Hezbollah’

(July 24, 2019 / Israel Hayom) Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon on Tuesday presented new evidence to the U.N. Security Council showing how Iran is using civilian transport routes to arm Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah.

Speaking at the United Nations headquarters just days after Iran seized a British oil tanker and amid...

Iran

Shin Bet: Iranian-led network tried to recruit operatives in Israel

A Syrian-based terrorist network that tried to recruit Israelis and Palestinians on behalf of the Iranian intelligence was uncovered recently, the Shin Bet security agency said on Wednesday.

The network was run by a Syrian figure called Abu Jihad, who together with Iranian officials used fake Facebook profiles to make initial contact with...

Palestinian Authority

Greenblatt: Palestinians have aspiration, not right, to East Jerusalem capital

The forthcoming US peace plan will not be based on “fictions of international consensus” or on international law, the Trump administration’s Middle East peace envoy Jason Greenblatt said Tuesday.

Greenblatt also said that while the Palestinians may aspire to a capital in Jerusalem, they do not have a right to one. “It is true that the PLO and the...

Archeology

Israel: Large staircase of 3,500 year-old Canaanite palace discovered in Upper Galilee

According to the bible, the biggest Canaanite settlement was razed to the ground by Joshua's Israelites

A large, impressive ancient staircase from 3,500 years ago was recently discovered in Israel's Upper Galilee region at an excavation site at Tel Hazor, believed to have been part of the Canaanite kingdom ruled by Hazor, according to the Old...

Antisemitism

US special envoy Elan Carr: ‘Anti-Semitism is evil, regardless of where it comes from’

Elan Carr, a Jew of Iraqi descent, was appointed Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, a senior diplomatic post that had been vacant for two years until he assumed it in February.

Carr is a well-known pro-Israel figure in California, having served as the Los Angeles deputy district attorney before making an unsuccessful 2014 bid on...

Antisemitism

What to do after ‘slaughter the Jews’ is spray-painted in Arabic on part of the Western Wall?

A young Arab girl and her older teenage sister spray-painted the words “slaughter the Jews” in Arabic on Friday on the Kotel HaKatan (“little wall” in Hebrew), a portion of the Western Wall on the Temple Mount about 650 feet south of the Western Wall Plaza and next to the Iron Gate entrance to the Old City.

“Last Friday, I was going to pray,...

US-Israel Relationship

Netanyahu and Perry discuss US-Israel cooperation achievements

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of Energy Rick Perry discussed the achievements of US-Israel cooperation in a meeting on Tuesday.

Netanyahu took the opportunity to thank US President Donald Trump for recognizing Israel's sovereignty over Jerusalem and the Golan Heights and for his strong action against Iran, including...

Hamas

Netanyahu to Arab journalist: Israel prevents collapse of Middle East

The Middle East would fall into the hands of either Sunni or Shia extremists if Israel were not in the region, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a delegation of Arab journalists on Tuesday.

Netanyahu spoke of this meeting during comments he made with US Energy Secretary Rick Perry before their meeting in the Prime Minister's Office, saying...

Antisemitism

Israeli FM warns of ‘alarming rise in anti-Semitism worldwide’

Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz warned this week that there is an “alarming rise” in anti-Semitism around the world.

Speaking at the second annual Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom conference in Washington, DC, Katz said, “Anti-Semites will always find a reason to hate the Jewish people. The world is also facing the threat of radical...

Holocaust

‘Those who sought shelter in our country after the Holocaust deserve better assistance’

 

US Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) introduced on Thursday legislation that would prioritize health care and nutrition services for Holocaust survivors, increasing the likelihood they could continue to live in their own homes rather than be forced into nursing homes or assisted-living facilities.

The...

Talking Points

Talking Points:Iranian Piracy and Terror

On Friday, in the Straits of Hormuz, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard seized the Stena Impero, a British flagged oil tanker as well as a second tanker that was later released.  Charts have shown that the ship was undoubtedly in Omani waters, making the seizure by Iranian forces a clear violation of international law.  Iran’s seizure and detention...

Iran

Iran says it dismantled CIA spy ring, arrests 17, sentences some to death: report

President Trump on Monday dismissed as "more lies and propaganda" claims out of Iran alleging authorities there had disrupted a CIA spy ring and sentenced several of the plotters to death -- a development that threatened to further inflame an already precarious staredown between the Islamic Republic and the United States.
Trump's tweet, which also...

Iran

Marking 25 years since Jewish center bombing, Argentina blacklists Hezbollah

Argentina’s government on Thursday branded Hezbollah a terrorist organization and froze its assets, 25 years to the day after a bombing blamed on the Iran-backed group destroyed a Jewish community center in Argentina’s capital, killing 85 people.

The nation’s Financial Information Unit took the action a day after Argentinian President Mauricio...

Iran

In Tehran, Hamas deputy chief says on ‘same path’ as Iran in fighting Israel

Hamas deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri said in Tehran on Sunday that Hamas and Iran stand on “the same path” in fighting Israel, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported.

Arouri made the comment during a meeting with Kamal Kharazi, the head of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, the Fars report stated.

“We are on the same path as...

Iran

Iran-backed terrorist cells ‘ready to strike’ UK as tension escalates over seized oil tanker

Iran-backed terrorist cells could be deployed to launch attacks in the UK if the crisis between London and Tehran deepens, intelligence sources have warned.

Among senior intelligence officers, Iran ranks behind only Russia and China as the nation state posing the greatest threat to Britain’s national security and the seizure of the UK-flagged oil...

Iran

What to Know about the British-Flagged Oil Tanker Seized by Iran Amid Escalating Tensions

Iranian forces on Friday seized the British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero in the Strait of Hormuz, a geopolitically vital sea route connecting the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. The move has escalated tensions even further amid already strained relations between Tehran and Western powers, which took a nosedive after the U.S. withdrew from the...

United Nations (UN)

UN showcases Israel’s innovations in water, agriculture, technology and more

(July 19, 2019 / JNS) An event at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on Wednesday highlighted six Israeli innovative solutions to critical problems around the world.

Hosted by the Israeli Mission to the United Nations, it allowed members of Israeli business community to connect with governments and senior officials from the...