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Dear A.,
At 10 a.m.
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yesterday in Israel, sirens sounded and the country came to a standstill to mark Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day.
It is one of the most powerful moments in Israel each year, as the entire nation stops and stands as one to honor the memories of those who perished.
A special commemoration took place 1,500 miles away where a group of survivors, former hostages, and bereaved families draped in Israeli flags marched with 12,000 people from around the world from the gates of Auschwitz to the Birkenau camp.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Polish President Andrzej Duda
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spoke together at the march.
"Today, we mark Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day on the soil of Auschwitz – soil soaked with the blood of our murdered sisters and brothers," Herzog said.
"Yet even today, 80 years since the Holocaust, the Jewish people and the Jewish state of Israel continue to endure attacks on multiple fronts—attacks funded and commanded by the Iranian web of hate and terror. We must broaden our circle of partnership against this axis of evil. Iran threatens not only Israel but global stability, and the nations of the world must cooperate to halt its advance."
In a profound showcase of defiance and resilience, the survivors and former hostages stood together inside the Auschwitz crematorium to sing Hatikvah.
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Freed hostage Agam Berger, and Daniel Weiss – who survived October 7 and whose parents were murdered – performed a song together at Birkenau. The violin played by Agam is 130 years old and survived the Holocaust.
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Eli Sharabi, who also survived unimaginable torment and trauma at the hands of Hamas, encapsulated the moment: "This is the Jewish spirit of triumph. It is a reminder that the Jewish nation will exist for all eternity."
Am Yisrael Chai!
Continue to
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follow AIPAC on social media for the latest updates.
Cory Meyer
Director of Communications
House Democratic Leader Jeffries leads bipartisan delegation to Israel
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and a bipartisan congressional delegation were in Israel yesterday, where they met with Prime Minister Netanyahu and participated in Holocaust Remembrance Day observance.
The delegation included Reps. Ann Wagner (R-MO), Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Madeleine Dean (D-PA), Marilyn Strickland (D-WA), Greg Landsman (D-OH) and Laura Friedman (D-CA).
The group "expressed unequivocal bipartisan support for the State of Israel and its actions against the terrorist organizations and the Iranian axis," the prime minister
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said .
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ICC panel reverses lower court ruling against Israel
Yesterday, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC)
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reversed a ruling of the ICC's lower court and allowed an Israeli appeal of the court's ruling against the Jewish state to proceed.
The Chamber ruled, "Israel’s challenge to the jurisdiction of the Court pursuant to article 19(2) of the Statute should not have been dismissed as premature."
Israel, like the United States, is not a member of the ICC, so the court has no jurisdiction over it.
The ICC lower court's ruling against Israel in November 2024 paved the way for the baseless and outrageous arrest warrants against Prime Minister Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar
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said , "We said it from the start: The International Criminal Court in The Hague (ICC) doesn't have, and never had jurisdiction to issue arrest warrants against Israel's Prime Minister and its former Minister of Defense... On this topic, there is only one correct answer: the Court has no jurisdiction over Israel. The warrants were issued unlawfully. They are null and void."
Iran negotiations continue with technical talks in Oman
Negotiations between the United States and Iran over the regime's nuclear program are continuing, with
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technical talks to take place in Oman this weekend ahead of another round of negotiations in Rome.
The Trump administration has appointed senior State Department official Michael Anton to lead the U.S. technical team.
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.
Department of Justice says UNRWA not entitled to immunity
The Department of Justice ruled that UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinians whose employees participated in the October 7 attack, is not entitled to immunity from lawsuits in the U.S.
The new opinion was submitted as part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by families of victims of October 7 seeking damages from UNRWA, saying that it aided Hamas' attack.
The lawsuit alleges that UNRWA let Hamas use its facilities to store weapons, allowed terror tunnels and command centers to be built under its sites, and financed Hamas.
The Justice Department said that, "previously, the Government expressed the view that certain immunities shielded UNRWA from having to answer" to its "heinous offenses" on October 7, but has "since reevaluated that position, and now concludes UNRWA is not immune from this litigation."
AIPAC has lobbied to end funding for UNRWA. Congress suspended funding last April and President Trump issued an executive order in February defunding the agency. Congress must now work to make the funding ban permanent.
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566 days. Tamir Nimrodi is still held hostage by Hamas. Share his story. #FreeThemAll🎗️
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Atlanta-based Jewish community leader: J Street is many things, but it's not pro-Israel.
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Gital Koifman and Irene Shashar survived the Holocaust. Agam Berger and Ori Megidish survived Hamas captivity. On Holocaust Remembrance Day, they embraced outside of Auschwitz.
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Hamas is still holding 59 hostages, including 5 Americans, in horrific conditions in Gaza. Hamas can end the war in Gaza today by surrendering and freeing them all.
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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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