Earlier this week, a private lawyer hired by the most right-wing government in Israel's history defended the new "Expropriation Law" before Israel's High Court of Justice. His defense of the law – which allows for the legalization of hundreds of illegal West Bank settlement outposts built in part on privately-owned Palestinian land – was that it would actually benefit the Palestinians.

Yes, you read that correctly. No wonder that the government’s Attorney General refused to defend the law before the Court.

The title of this PeaceCast episode is Major Departure – with a question mark.

Episode 22 is a major departure from our typical modus operandi.

Unlike past episodes, this one is a round-table discussion by APN staff.

The topic of our discussion is whether the Trump administration's failure to endorse the two-state solution is a major departure from what has been a tenet of US foreign policy for the past fifteen years: a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

APN"s Aaron Mann in the Times of Israel: August 25, 2017
"The right kind of 'bias'"

The Forward: August 24, 2017
"Left-Wing Groups Slam Trump For Refusing To Promote Two-State Solution," APN among progressive pro-Israel groups blasting Trump for failing to endorse two-state solution.

Haaretz: August 24, 2017
"J Street Blasts Trump's 'Dangerous Ignorance' for Not Endorsing Two-state Solution," APN among progressive pro-Israel groups blasting Trump for not endorsing two state solution.

Haaretz: August 22, 2017
"New Israeli law could ‘legalize’ 3,455 illegal buildings in West Bank," Civil Administration data confirms Peace Now numbers regarding West Bank settlement homes built illegally on private Palestinian land.

Ma'an News: August 22, 2017
"Israeli state argues that confiscation of occupied land benefits Palestinians," Peace Now blasts Israeli government position submitted to Supreme Court re law allowing confiscation of Palestinian land for settlements.

Times of Israel: August 22, 2017
"State says outpost Legalization Law protects Palestinians," Peace Now rejects government's position in suit against law that allows seizing private Palestinian land for settlements.

Jerusalem Post: August 21, 2017
"Israel: Law seizing Palestinian property fits international standards," Peace Now rejects state's position at Supreme Court regarding law allowing seizing of Palestinian-owned land.

Xinhua: August 19, 2017
"China's creative thinking to help advance Israeli-Palestinian peace process: Israeli peace activist," Peace Now's Avi Buskila welcomes China's venturing into Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking.

Times of Israel: August 17, 2017
"High Court freezes controversial outpost legalization law," High Court postpones decision on petition by Peace Now and others regarding the Legalization Law.

AJC Poll Affirms: APN's Positions Reflect the Opinion of Most American Jews
APN Outraged by Trump Administration's Backtracking on Two-State Solution
APN's Aaron Mann in Times of Israel blog: The right kind of ‘bias’
PeaceCast#22: Major Departure? Trump and the Two State Solution
The Extremists Already Agree... (image)
Jared Kushner Just Made A Huge Blunder On Peace In The Middle East

By refusing to publicly endorse a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and suggesting that doing so would "bias one side over the other" regarding possible outcomes, the Trump Administration yesterday dropped a dangerous and unacceptable bombshell. The Administration turned its back on a core bipartisan foreign policy principle, thumbed its nose at an international consensus regarding the way to resolve the conflict, and handed a gift to extremists on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian divide.