Israel's ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, launched a sharp attack Monday night on J Street, calling it "a cancer within the Jewish community." The remarks were made during a gathering of the National Task Force on Combating Antisemitism at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, according to a report by JNS. The Israeli Embassy confirmed the details.
Leiter said, "The worst thing about J Street is it's duplicitous." He referred to a policy document the organization published in April, in which it called for a gradual removal of the direct financial assistance the US provides to Israel – including funding for missile defense systems – while continuing to support the sale of systems such as Iron Dome, David's Sling, and Arrow. "How can you be pro-Israel and advocate for an arms embargo on a state that's fighting a seven-front war against Iranian proxies?" he asked.
The ambassador added that the organization's slogans were incompatible with its opposition to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and its support for members of Congress who had opposed arms deals with Israel. "If they said that they were pro-Palestinian, I wouldn't have a problem meeting with them," he said. According to Leiter, the problem lay in the organization's self-presentation as a supporter of Israel and democracy while opposing the policies of a democratically elected government. "You don't like Netanyahu, make aliyah, vote in the next election, and express yourself. Don't say you're 'pro-democracy' and decry and defy the position of the democratic government of Israel," he added.
J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami rejected the remarks in a conversation with JNS, calling on the ambassador to engage in dialogue rather than "call us names." He said the organization represents "a large and growing segment of the American Jewish community that supports and cares deeply about Israel but opposes policies we believe are making it less secure and more isolated," Ben-Ami added that the role of Israel's ambassador requires engaging with disagreements – not questioning the patriotism of fellow Jews.
In his speech, Leiter accused groups like J Street of hiding behind their Jewish identity. He also alluded to Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont in connection with his initiatives to block arms sales to Israel, saying, "Don't be fooled by the fact that they appear to be Jewish... The sponsor is not a Jew. The sponsor is a Communist who may have Jewish pedigree. That doesn't make him a Jew." He added, "I like to play tennis once or twice over the summer. That doesn't make me a tennis player."
Leiter also addressed a trend among some legislators to distance themselves from AIPAC donations, and called on supporters of Israel to create the opposite dynamic with respect to J Street. "You've got to create an atmosphere where there's going to be competition among candidates who say, 'I don't have anything to do with J Street,' and have competition among candidates who say, 'I'm proudly affiliated with AIPAC," he said.
