JNS
AIPAC denies overlooking congressional criticism of planned Israeli annexation of West Bank areas
by Jackson Richman
June 12, 2020

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the top pro-Israel lobby, has denied a report that it gave permission to U.S. lawmakers to criticize Israel ahead of the Jewish state’s expected move to apply sovereignty to parts of the West Bank, also known as Judea and Samaria, where Jewish settlements are situated. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency cited both a congressional aide and an AIPAC donor this week that the lobby told members of Congress, via Zoom meetings and phone calls, that it won’t stand in their way if they choose to criticize Israel’s plans to annex parts of the West Bank by July 1. This was apparently contingent, according to the JTA report, on these legislators not linking their criticism to or making it conditional on U.S. aid to Israel. READ MORE