US Jewish groups refuse to back Israel’s ‘defensive actions’ against Iran

A number of progressive Jewish organisations have refused to endorse a joint statement by the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organisations (CoP) that expressed support for Israel’s unprovoked attack on Iran and offered praise to US President Donald Trump. The refusal signals growing ideological divisions within American Jewish leadership on questions of militarism, diplomacy and the role of US foreign policy in the Middle East.

According to Haaretz, while nearly 50 national groups signed the CoP’s statement, several high-profile organisations, including the National Council of Jewish Women, HIAS (formerly Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society), and the New Jewish Narrative coalition, withheld their endorsement. The New Jewish Narrative is a recently formed alliance between Americans for Peace Now and Ameinu, a group historically linked to Israel’s Labour Party.

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The CoP, which brands itself as a “consensus-based” umbrella group representing the American Jewish community across the political spectrum, had drafted the statement as a show of unified support for Israel’s escalation against Iran, framed as “defensive actions against nuclear and military infrastructure.” However, internal disagreements over the framing of the statement, particularly its hawkish tone and explicit praise for Trump, proved too divisive for many progressive members.

“The actions taken by President Donald J. Trump and his administration during this crisis help protect civilian lives, bolster deterrence, and reinforce Israel’s ability to confront one of the most serious threats it has ever faced,” the CoP statement read. It went on to demand international action against Iran, accusing the country of “incitement of antisemitism, fostering terrorism” and a “declared intent to wipe Israel off the map.”

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Notably, the rabbinical body of the Reform movement, the Central Conference of American Rabbis, also declined to sign, despite the statement’s endorsement by the Union for Reform Judaism.

Hadar Susskind, president of the New Jewish Narrative, explained his organisation’s refusal, saying, “We disagree with much of what was included. Where we do agree is that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons. But a military strike can, at best, delay that. And more likely it will only build support for hardliners in Iran… Diplomacy, not bombs, is what has proven successful.”

The development comes amid a broader reckoning within Jewish communities in the US, many of whom are increasingly disillusioned with Israel’s far-right government and its conduct in Gaza, Lebanon and now Iran. 

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