Alex Kane

Newsletter

The Other Movement to Divest from Israel

Experts on anti-BDS laws say the statutes could ensnare companies that pull out of Israel over the planned judicial overhaul.

Alex Kane March 21, 2023

Report

ADL Staffers Dissented After CEO Compared Palestinian Rights Groups to Right-Wing Extremists, Leaked Audio Reveals

A special meeting called to answer internal critics shows that the ADL’s vocal opposition to the anti-Zionist left is controversial even within the organization.

Mari Cohen and Alex Kane March 8, 2023

Newsletter

Israel’s Raids on Palestinian Cities: An Explainer

A closer look at the IDF operations that are intensifying violence in Israel/Palestine.

Alex Kane February 28, 2023

Newsletter

Civil Rights Complaint Details an Anti-Palestinian Climate at GW

Palestinian students ask the Department of Education to crack down on discrimination at George Washington University.

Alex Kane February 14, 2023

Report

J Street’s Balancing Act Comes Under Pressure

The liberal Zionist organization is proving too critical of Israel for the mainstream Democratic establishment it courts—and not critical enough for its own constituency.

Alex Kane February 1, 2023

Newsletter

Planting a Palestinian Flag at Israel’s Anti-Government Protests

A group of activists are pushing weekly pro-democracy protesters to stop ignoring the occupation.

Alex Kane January 31, 2023

Newsletter

Biden’s Education Department Delays Defining Campus Antisemitism

To the relief of Palestinian-rights advocates, the department’s Office for Civil Rights did not adopt the controversial IHRA definition of antisemitism this past December.

Alex Kane January 24, 2023

Newsletter

The International Court of Last Resort

Human rights groups are pressuring the International Criminal Court to prosecute war crimes in Israel/Palestine.

Alex Kane January 4, 2023

Report

Palestine Is a Proxy Fight in a Fractious DSA

With a sizable gap between the left’s demand for Palestinian liberation and the pro-Israel tack of national politics, Palestine takes center stage in arguments about discipline and electoralism.

Alex Kane December 15, 2022

Newsletter

What the FBI’s Investigation of Shireen Abu Akleh’s Killing Won’t Resolve

The probe is the first by a US agency into the death of the Palestinian American journalist.

Alex Kane November 29, 2022

Newsletter

AIPAC Spent Big to Defeat Progressives This Election Cycle

The lobbying group’s $28.5 million blitz could make Democrats think twice about criticizing Israel.

Alex Kane November 15, 2022

Newsletter

Four Takeaways From the 2022 Midterms

What do election results mean for Israel/Palestine policy, youth politics, policing, and reproductive justice?

Alex Kane, Matthew Miles Goodrich, Akela Lacy, and Amy Littlefield November 10, 2022

Newsletter

ACLU Asks Supreme Court to Take Up Right to Boycott

If the top court does hear the case, it would lead to an unprecedented ruling on whether anti-boycott laws violate the First Amendment.

Alex Kane November 1, 2022

Newsletter

When Is Violence “Terrorism”?

The use of the term to condemn Palestinian armed struggle raises questions about who gets to define it.

Alex Kane October 25, 2022

Report

In Internal Memo, American Jewish Committee Blasts Op-Ed on “Jewish-Free Zones” at Berkeley Law

The group’s disavowal of an article written by Israel advocate Kenneth Marcus revealed tension over the best strategy to combat campus Palestine activism.

Mari Cohen and Alex Kane October 14, 2022

Newsletter

The PA’s Faltering Authority

Palestinian opposition to the PA’s security coordination with Israel has risen to a level of intensity unseen since the Second Intifada.

Alex Kane October 11, 2022

Newsletter

How Social Media Companies Silence Palestinians

A new report shows how Facebook and Instagram harm Palestinian freedom of expression—but leaves out the role of Israel’s Cyber Unit.

Alex Kane October 4, 2022

Newsletter

Israel’s Repressive Toolkit Ensnares a Palestinian Human Rights Lawyer

Salah Hammouri has been jailed without trial for six months. If he’s ever released, he also faces deportation.

Alex Kane September 20, 2022

Newsletter

How the IDF Ignores Its Own Rules of Engagement

Experts say revising the IDF’s open-fire regulations may accomplish little in a context where soldiers often ignore existing limits.

Alex Kane September 13, 2022

Newsletter

As Israel Raids Palestinian Human Rights Groups, US Response Is Muted

Advocates say the State Department’s lack of condemnation emboldened Israel to launch unprecedented assaults on civil society organizations.

Alex Kane August 23, 2022

Newsletter

What a Bureaucratic Pentagon Decision Says About Biden’s Palestine Policy

By keeping the US Security Coordinator’s military rank the same, Biden doubled down on the pre-Trump status quo: supporting the Palestinian Authority, but doing little to end Israel’s occupation.

Alex Kane August 16, 2022

Newsletter

Israel’s Gaza Offensive: An Explainer

A closer look at an operation that killed dozens of Palestinians.

Alex Kane and Mari Cohen August 9, 2022

Newsletter

Republicans Are Helping New York Democrats Target the Left’s Israel Criticism

The New York Solidarity Network is the latest example of a national trend: members of both parties joining together to squash progressive scrutiny of Israel.

Alex Kane August 2, 2022

Newsletter

Ben & Jerry’s Path to Boycotting Israeli Settlements

The president of the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation speaks about the impact of visits to the occupied territories.

Alex Kane July 26, 2022

Newsletter

“We Want Accountability”

As Biden visits Israel, the slain Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh’s family pushes for justice.

Alex Kane July 12, 2022

Report

Progressives Introduce Amendment to Force US Investigation into Israel’s Killing of Shireen Abu Akleh

The amendment comes after the State Department released a waffling statement on the death of the Palestinian American journalist.

Alex Kane July 6, 2022

Newsletter

Ben & Jerry’s Clashes With Unilever Over BDS

The ice cream maker is suing its parent company for selling off its business interests in Israel to a local company that plans to sell in West Bank settlements.

Alex Kane July 5, 2022

Report

What the Fossil Fuel Industry Learned from Anti-BDS Laws

Attacks on Israel’s critics have become the template for efforts to suppress climate activism, gun control advocacy, and other progressive movements.

Alex Kane April 4, 2022

Newsletter

How the War in Ukraine Is Changing Israel’s Refugee Policies

Rules are changing in a hurry for non-Jewish Ukrainian refugees, but refugees from other regions haven’t yet benefited.

Alex Kane March 29, 2022

Report

Internal ADL Memo Recommended Ending Police Delegations to Israel Amid Backlash

The controversial program, now on pause, was characterized by senior staff as high cost and low reward.

Alex Kane and Sam Levin March 17, 2022

Newsletter

Knesset Renews Permanent Residency Ban for Palestinian Spouses of Israeli Citizens

The controversial law is intended to protect a Jewish demographic majority.

Alex Kane March 16, 2022

Newsletter

A Progressive Foreign Policy Response to the War in Ukraine

An interview with Matt Duss, Bernie Sanders’s foreign policy adviser, on Russia’s invasion.

Alex Kane March 1, 2022

Newsletter

How the Seattle Jewish Federation Blocked a Donation to B’Tselem

Donor-advised funds have legal discretion to deny gifts to groups that criticize Israel.

Alex Kane February 23, 2022

Newsletter

Deutsche Welle Firings Set Chilling Precedent for Free Speech in Germany

Seven Arab and Muslim journalists have lost their jobs for the alleged “antisemitism” of criticizing Israel.

Alex Kane February 16, 2022

Report

Jamaal Bowman Withdraws Co-Sponsorship of Bill Backing Israel’s Abraham Accords

Bowman’s reversal on the Israel Relations Normalization Act points toward growing opposition to the diplomatic agreements within the broader progressive movement.

Alex Kane February 15, 2022

Report

Why Liberal Zionist Groups Won’t Say “Apartheid”

Pressed for specific disagreements with the use of the term, leaders of several prominent Jewish organizations focused on how its application might alienate their constituencies.

Mari Cohen and Alex Kane February 10, 2022

Newsletter

The Amnesty Report on Israeli Apartheid: An Explainer

Responses to common questions about the human rights organization’s decision to recognize the nature of the occupation.

Alex Kane February 9, 2022

Newsletter

No Justice for a Palestinian American Who Died in IDF Custody

The soldiers responsible for Omar Assad’s death at 78 have faced no meaningful consequences.

Alex Kane February 2, 2022

Conversation

Activestills and the Making of a Decolonial Archive

Members of the Israel/Palestine-based photo collective explain their approach to their work.

Alex Kane January 28, 2022

Newsletter

A Brooklyn Rally Against Antisemitism Offers Right-Wing Solutions

After a Jewish man was attacked for wearing an IDF hoodie, demonstrators responded with calls for more cops.

Alex Kane January 5, 2022

Newsletter

Desmond Tutu’s Lifelong Struggle Against Apartheid

South Africa’s moral leader frequently clashed with Israel and the American Jewish establishment.

Alex Kane December 29, 2021

Newsletter

AIPAC’s New PACs Signal a Strategic Shift

Washington’s flagship Israel lobby is turning to a more explicit fundraising model.

Alex Kane December 22, 2021

Newsletter

Middle East Studies Association Votes to Consider Endorsing BDS

An endorsement of the BDS movement would be another indicator of just how much Israel’s apartheid system disquiets academia in the US.

Alex Kane December 9, 2021

Report

Jamaal Bowman’s Trip to Israel Sparks Debate in DSA Over Electoral Strategy

The congressman’s divergence from DSA’s line on Israel/Palestine has led the socialist group to reexamine its approach to endorsements.

Alex Kane December 7, 2021

Report

George Washington University Employees Offered Support to Palestinian Students. Now They Say They’re Paying the Price.

After criticizing “Israeli apartheid” and offering a processing space to Palestinian students in June, a campus office has been prevented from serving its regular functions, according to a civil rights complaint.

Alex Kane November 16, 2021

Conversation

“I Campaigned on Right, Not on Fear”

If he loses due to his support for BDS, Florida congressional candidate Omari Hardy says his “conscience will be clear.”

Alex Kane October 25, 2021

Feature

Ritchie Torres Is the Future of “Pro-Israel” Politics

While lawmakers of color have challenged the Democratic consensus on Israel, the Bronx congressman has become a powerful voice for upholding the status quo.

Alex Kane October 18, 2021

Report

Philanthropist Michael Leven Donated to Canary Mission Blacklist

The revelation makes him the third major American Jewish funder associated with the project.

Abby Seitz and Alex Kane October 14, 2021

Report

Sanders Pushes Gaza Aid in Exchange for “Yes” Vote on Iron Dome Funds

The Senate’s most prominent Israel critic will join the rest of the Democratic caucus in voting for aid for the anti-missile system.

Alex Kane October 7, 2021

Analysis

A Guide to the Fight Over Iron Dome Funding

We answer readers’ questions about the vote to fund Israel’s anti-missile system that has exposed sharp divisions among Democrats.

Alex Kane September 28, 2021

Report

House Progressives Renew Effort to Block Bomb Deliveries to Israel

An exclusive report on a long-shot push—led by Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib, and Pocan—to stop the export of US-made weapons.

Alex Kane September 14, 2021

Report

Days Before Approving Humanitarian Aid to Gaza, State Department Agreed to Contentious Bomb Sale to Israel

Days after progressive legislators attempted to block the sale, the administration quietly granted the export license.

Alex Kane May 25, 2021

Report

Progressive Legislators to Introduce Resolution Blocking Bomb Sale to Israel

The resolution is a rebuke of the Biden administration’s Middle East policy, and a stark signal of progressive Democrats’ anger over Israel’s punishing assault on Gaza.

Alex Kane May 19, 2021

Newsletter

“They Have Never Lived One Day of Freedom”

An interview with Rep. Betty McCollum, author of a bill that would restrict US military aid in support of the occupation.

Alex Kane May 14, 2021

Analysis

A Guide to the Current Crisis in Israel/Palestine

We asked our readers what they needed to know about the situation in Israel/Palestine. Our staff is compiling a developing set of answers to the most commonly asked questions.

Mari Cohen, Joshua Leifer, and Alex Kane May 13, 2021

Report

Former AIPAC Senior Operative Launches Group to Cultivate Democratic Support for Israel

Jonathan Kessler wants to offer progressives “a channel for their dissatisfaction that’s not disruptive of the US-Israel alliance.”

Alex Kane March 18, 2021

Report

How the ADL’s Israel Advocacy Undermines Its Civil Rights Work

Interviews with eight former ADL employees found that CEO Jonathan Greenblatt has repeatedly chosen to support crackdowns on criticism of Israel over protecting civil liberties, putting him in conflict with his own civil rights office.

Alex Kane and Jacob Hutt February 8, 2021

Report

The Settlers’ Man in Florida

The Republican Party in the era of Trump has become the party of the Israeli settler right, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis its most devoted champion.

Alex Kane July 30, 2020

Conversation

From Bad to Worse

Ghada Majadle of Physicians for Human Rights fears that Israel’s restrictive policies could exacerbate the effects of a coronavirus outbreak in the West Bank and Gaza.

Alex Kane March 20, 2020