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Knesset Proposal: Peace Talks Must Include Jewish Refugee DemandsThe Knesset has passed an initial reading of a proposal stipulating that negotiations on Arab refugees must include demands for compensation of Jewish refugees from Arab countries. Hundreds of thousands of Jews from Arab countries made Aliyah [immigration] to Israel in its early years after being banished and forced to leave behind property andassets worth billions of dollars.click Israel Matters! 32 to read the complete issue.

House of Representatives Condemns “Biased” United Nations Report on Gaza Fighting The US House of Representatives has condemned the UN Goldstone report as unfairly accusing Israel of committing war crimes in its 22-day war against militants in Gaza. By a margin of 344-36, lawmakers approved a non-binding resolution that calls the report “irredeemably biased and unworthy of further consideration or legitimacy.” click Israel Matters! 31 to read the complete issue.

Israel Hits Back at Gaza War Crimes Report Israeli leaders united in condemnation of a “biased” UN report that severely criticized their invasion of Gaza last winter and rejected the central recommendation that Israel should hold an independent investigation into the offensive.click Israel Matters! 30 to read the complete issue.

Israel and Sweden At Odds Over “Blood Libel” Accusation of IDF Organ Thefts

Israel has urged the Swedish government to condemn an article recently published in a Swedish newspaper that accused the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) of harvesting organs from Palestinians wounded or killed by soldiers. (more…)

Israelis Quietly Question U.S. Resolve Against Iran

Israel is encouraged by U.S. vows to curb Iran’s nuclear program, but still questions whether the Obama administration is willing to make good on the pledge “no matter what,” an Israeli official said recently. The timeline and tenor of Washington’s bid to talk Tehran into abandoning atomic projects with bomb-making potential have stirred concern in Israel, which backs the diplomacy but has also hinted at a last-resort, pre-emptive strikes against its foe.

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Netanyahu Endorses “Two-State” Solution

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu uttered the words “Palestinian state” in a mid-June speech that mixed tough Zionist statements with talk of peace and conciliation. “I turn to you, our Palestinian neighbors,” he said, “let us start negotiations for peace immediately.

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Israel Picks Michael Oren as Ambassador to U.S.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed the appointment of Michael Oren, a New York-born and Princeton-educated historian and commentator on Middle East affairs, as the country’s new ambassador to the US.

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Israel Army: No charges in Gaza Probe

The Israeli army has closed an investigation into alleged killings of civilians during its offensive in the Gaza Strip, saying soldiers’ testimonies were based on hearsay, “purposely exaggerated” and not supported by facts. Allegations of wrongful shootings emerged from some soldiers speaking in a closed-door meeting at a military prep school. Their accounts, along with their reports of vandalism in Palestinian homes, had been published by Israeli media. (more…)

Netanyahu Picked to Form New Israeli Government

After the failure of his last-ditch effort to muster Kadima leader Tzipi Livni’s support for a unity government, President Shimon Peres formally entrusted Likud chairman Benjamin (“Bibi”) Netanyahu with the task of building a national coalition government. The right-wing Netanyahu was given 42 days to put together a coalition that might draw on Labor and Kadima, though he also spoke favorably of including the ultranationalist Yisrael Beiteinu party, which made substantial gains in the national election. (more…)

Israeli Election Produces No Clear Winner

Both Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni’s Kadima party and Benjamin Netanyahu’s opposition Likud styled themselves the winners of Israel’s elections, after it became apparent that Kadima had won the most seats in the new Knesset, but the Likud-led right-wing would constitute the larger bloc. (more…)