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Dear A.,
The United States is set to engage in direct talks with Iran tomorrow over the regime's nuclear program, Secretary of State Marco Rubio
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confirmed yesterday.
The negotiations will take place in Muscat, Oman, and the U.S. delegation will be led by White House envoy Steve Witkoff.
New
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reporting in The New York Times sheds light on the Iranian regime's decision to engage in these talks. A group of Iran's senior-most leaders met with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei to deliver a message: "Allow Tehran to negotiate with Washington, even directly if necessary, because otherwise the Islamic Republic's rule could be toppled."
"The country was already dealing with an economy in shambles, a currency plunging against the dollar and shortages of gas, electricity and water. The threat of war with the United States and Israel was extremely serious, the officials warned. If Iran refused talks or if the negotiations failed, the officials told Mr. Khamenei, military strikes on Iran's two main nuclear sites, Natanz and Fordow, would be inevitable," The New York Times reports.
"Iran would then be forced to retaliate, risking a wider war, a scenario that could further damage the economy and spark domestic unrest, including protests and strikes, the officials said. Fighting on two fronts posed an existential threat to the regime, they added."
As negotiations are set to commence, the administration is continuing to increase the economic and military pressure on Iran, issuing additional sanctions and expanding America's military presence in the region.
Yesterday, the Treasury Department
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issued new sanctions targeting Iran's illicit oil smuggling network.
AIPAC supports time-bound talks to achieve the Trump administration’s stated goal of verifiably and permanently dismantling Iran’s nuclear program. To be effective, these talks must continue to be coupled with the implementation of maximum pressure and a credible threat of military force.
Continue to follow AIPAC on
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social media for the latest updates.
Wishing all who celebrate a happy and meaningful Passover.
Shabbat Shalom,
Jake Braunstein
Director of Policy Communications
"I chose the path of faith and with the path of faith I have returned," freed hostage writes
Agam Berger, one of the female IDF solders kidnapped by Hamas on October 7 and freed in the most recent hostage release deal,
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published a new op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, reflecting on her time in captivity and calling for the release of the remaining 59 hostages still held in Gaza. She writes:
"Having survived the massacre—when babies, children, women and elderly men were killed simply because they were Jews—I knew I had been chosen by God for something, and that he would protect me...
"I learned, as my forebears did, that imprisonment can’t overwhelm the inner spiritual life. Our faith and covenant with God, the story we remember on Passover, is more powerful than any cruel captor. Even as Hamas tried to coerce me into converting to Islam—at times, forcing a hijab on my head—they couldn’t take away my soul...
"My fellow scout Liri Albag and I marked Passover together last year. Held in a small room with no natural light, we did what we could to set the holiday mood. We cleaned our room and adorned the table with napkins and other small 'decorations' made from scraps of paper. As a surprise, Liri wrote me a makeshift Passover Haggadah, the text that recounts our ancestors’ journey out of slavery...
"'In every generation,' the Haggadah tells us, 'a man must see himself as though he himself left Egypt.' My faith tells me that God liberated us more than 3,000 years ago from slavery to freedom and chose us to fulfill a unique role in the world. That is the same God waiting for us to choose him today. As I left Gaza on Jan. 30, I wrote in Hebrew the words that stayed with me for my entire captivity: 'I chose the path of faith and with the path of faith I have returned.' Even as a hostage I believed I would return home the same person as I was when I was taken against my will.
"While I will celebrate this holiday with my family, it won’t yet be full. There are 59 hostages still held in Gaza, 24 of whom are believed to be alive. This is their second Passover in chains of iron. We can’t allow a third."
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Read the full piece here.
Hamas terrorist worked for AP, terror tunnel located under kindergarten
A
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lawsuit filed in a U.S. court against The Associated Press by victims of Hamas' October 7 attack states that the news agency "knew, or at the very least should have known, through simple due diligence, that the people they were paying were longstanding Hamas affiliates, propagandists, and full participants in the terrorist attack that they were also documenting."
The suit highlights the case of Hassan Eslaiah, a Gaza-based 'journalist' the AP purchased photos from, who was targeted and wounded in an Israeli airstrike this week. The IDF said he was a Hamas member.
Eslaiah was among the Palestinians that entered Israel during the October 7 attack and took photographs as terrorists stormed Kibbutz Nir Oz, torturing and murdering Israeli civilians. Eslaiah celebrated the October 7 attack on social media, and previously
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posed for a photo embracing now-dead Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar.
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Meanwhile, IDF troops operating in Rafah in southern Gaza
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located and dismantled a booby-trapped tunnel built underneath a kindergarten.
"The Hamas terrorist organization systematically violates international law, cynically exploiting civilian institutions and the population as human shields for terrorist activities. The IDF will continue to operate with strength and determination against terrorist organizations," the IDF said.
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Hamas launched 10 rockets from Gaza on Monday night. One rocket made impact in Ashkelon, injuring a man in his 30s who was taken to the hospital with shrapnel injuries, and several others.
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The IDF located a Hamas tunnel shaft within a compound that had served as a kindergarten, and just 100 meters from another compound that had previously served as a civilian school.
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1 year and 6 months since October 7. Hamas can end the war in Gaza today by surrendering and freeing all 59 hostages.
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550+ days. 59 hostages still held captive by Hamas, including 5 Americans.
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Support our work to keep Israel safe.
The mission of AIPAC is to encourage and persuade the U.S. government to enact specific policies that create a strong, enduring and mutually beneficial relationship with our ally Israel.
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