Sierra Club Reverses Decision to Cancel Trips to Israel

Sierra Club Reverses Decision to Cancel Trips to Israel
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Sierra Club Reverses Decision to Cancel Trips to Israel

Sierra Club Reverses Decision to Cancel Trips to Israel

The Sierra Club reversed its decision to cancel trips to Israel, saying it was "hastily" made and did not accord with the conservation group's mission.

"Recently, the Sierra Club hastily made a decision, without consulting a robust set of stakeholders, to postpone two planned outings to Israel," said the Club.

Earlier, the organization announced it was canceling environmental-tourism trips to Israel because of its actions against the Palestinians.

In a Tuesday statement, the Club confirmed new Israel trips would be announced later this year, saying earlier decision to cancel tours was made in ways that created "confusion, anger, and frustration."

The head of Sierra Club's National Outings, Mary Owens, confirmed in a previous mass email to hundreds of volunteers and members that trips were canceled saying the decision came after activists alleged the foundation was "greenwashing the conflict" and "providing legitimacy to the Israeli state, which is engaged in apartheid against the Palestinian people."

"Greenwashing" is a term used by anti-Israel activists that accuse the Jewish state of using environmental causes to disguise alleged human rights violations.

The Sierra Club Foundation, founded by John Muir in 1892, is a charitable foundation concerned with nature, with over 750,000 members and an annual budget for the current year of more than $97 million.

Its first trip to Israel began in 1960 to explore biodiversity, bird migrations, desert landscapes, and ancient monuments. Last year's trip was called "Natural and Historical Highlights of Israel," offered for two weeks in March for about $5,000 per person.

More than 250 upcoming trips are listed on Sierra Club's website, including more than 200 to sites in the US and others to places like Malaysia, Nepal, and Antarctica.

The email sent from Owens stated that the Club's decision was taken after a campaign an advocacy push from one "Jewish American activist" and a host of both progressive and anti-Zionist groups, including the pro-Palestinian Adalah Justice Project, the Indigenous rights group the NDN Collective, the Campaign for the Boycott of Israel, Jewish Voice for Peace, the Sunrise Movement and the Movement for Black Lives.

An employee confirmed he was aware of his organization's efforts but was not authorized to say more. A request for comment from JVP, the Jewish anti-Zionist group, went unanswered.

The decision sparked outrage in Israel, particularly against Jewish Voice for Peace, which has been working in the United States since 1996.



Chief of Staff: Israel Ready ‘to Return Immediately and Forcefully’ to Fighting on All Fronts

Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir speaks during the funeral of Lieutenant Hadar Goldin who was killed during the six-week 2014 war in Gaza, in a military cemetery in Kfar Saba on November 11, 2025. (Photo by Abir SULTAN / POOL / AFP)
Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir speaks during the funeral of Lieutenant Hadar Goldin who was killed during the six-week 2014 war in Gaza, in a military cemetery in Kfar Saba on November 11, 2025. (Photo by Abir SULTAN / POOL / AFP)
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Chief of Staff: Israel Ready ‘to Return Immediately and Forcefully’ to Fighting on All Fronts

Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir speaks during the funeral of Lieutenant Hadar Goldin who was killed during the six-week 2014 war in Gaza, in a military cemetery in Kfar Saba on November 11, 2025. (Photo by Abir SULTAN / POOL / AFP)
Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir speaks during the funeral of Lieutenant Hadar Goldin who was killed during the six-week 2014 war in Gaza, in a military cemetery in Kfar Saba on November 11, 2025. (Photo by Abir SULTAN / POOL / AFP)

Israeli Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said Wednesday that the military remained on high alert and was ready to return to fighting on all fronts, amid the fragile truces in Iran and Lebanon.

“Since the inferno of October 7, we have been working to reestablish our military strength through continuous fighting,” Zamir said while addressing soldiers honored at an Independence Day ceremony at the President’s Residence.

The Times of Israel quoted Zamir as saying that in Gaza, the Israeli military “prevailed in the fight against Hamas.”

“At this very moment, we are conducting intense fighting in Lebanon to strengthen the defense of the northern communities,” he stated.

“So too in the fighting against Iran in Rising Lion and Roaring Lion,” he said, referring to the June 2025 war with Iran and the latest 40-day conflict with Iran.

The Israeli military is on high alert and “prepared to return immediately and forcefully to combat in all sectors,” Zamir added.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called on Lebanon to work with Israel to disarm the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah ahead of negotiations in Washington on Thursday.

The meeting follows a similar gathering last week in Washington, and is the first time in decades the two countries are speaking directly.


NATO ‘Will Always Defend’ Türkiye, Says Rutte

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Defense Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler (R) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte (L) shaking hands during a meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 21 April 2026. (EPA/Turkish Defense Ministry/Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Defense Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler (R) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte (L) shaking hands during a meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 21 April 2026. (EPA/Turkish Defense Ministry/Handout)
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NATO ‘Will Always Defend’ Türkiye, Says Rutte

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Defense Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler (R) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte (L) shaking hands during a meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 21 April 2026. (EPA/Turkish Defense Ministry/Handout)
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Defense Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler (R) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Mark Rutte (L) shaking hands during a meeting in Ankara, Türkiye, 21 April 2026. (EPA/Turkish Defense Ministry/Handout)

NATO chief Mark Rutte said on Wednesday the alliance would do "what's necessary to defend" its members including Türkiye after intercepting four missiles fired from Iran and head into Turkish air space over the past weeks.

A member of the US-led defense alliance, Türkiye, which borders Iran, has been largely spared the sort of retaliation from Tehran suffered by countries in the Middle East before the ceasefire.

NATO forces had shot down ballistic missiles fired from Iran for four times, prompting the alliance to deploy a new Patriot missile battery at Incirlik air base in southern Türkiye.

"Iran is spreading terror and chaos, and you feel this prominently here in Türkiye," Rutte told journalists on a visit to Türkiye’s largest defense electronics company Aselsan.

"In recent weeks, NATO has successfully intercepted ballistic missiles heading to Türkiye from Iran on four separate occasions," he said.

"NATO is prepared for such threats and will always do what is necessary to defend Türkiye and all others. And we cannot do it alone," he added.

Rutte's visit comes ahead of a July summit by NATO leaders to be held in Ankara.

Praising the progress made by Türkiye in the defense field, Rutte said: "We can learn a lot from what Türkiye is doing here".

"This is needed because we live in a more dangerous world... and that means we need strong defenses to protect our security".

Rutte said: "Türkiye has gone through a defense industrial revolution. I could really say it's a revolution in recent years."

The NATO chief is due to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.


China Warns Middle East at ‘Critical Juncture’ After Trump Extends Ceasefire

 13 April 2026, China, Beijing: Guo Jiakun, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, speaks to journalists. (dpa)
13 April 2026, China, Beijing: Guo Jiakun, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, speaks to journalists. (dpa)
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China Warns Middle East at ‘Critical Juncture’ After Trump Extends Ceasefire

 13 April 2026, China, Beijing: Guo Jiakun, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, speaks to journalists. (dpa)
13 April 2026, China, Beijing: Guo Jiakun, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, speaks to journalists. (dpa)

China warned on Wednesday that the situation in the Middle East was at a "critical juncture" after US President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire to allow Iran more time to negotiate.

Trump indefinitely pushed back the end of the two-week truce on Tuesday with Tehran yet to respond but he said a US blockade of Iran's ports would continue.

"The current regional situation stands at a critical juncture transitioning between war and peace; the paramount priority remains to make every effort to prevent a resumption of hostilities," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a news briefing.

Guo did not comment directly on the ceasefire when asked about it, adding only that Beijing would continue to play a "constructive" role.