APN’s director of communications and public engagement, Ori Nir, spoke at Virginia’s Christopher
Newport University On March 30. He delivered the annual Borgenicht Fellowship Prize Lecture, sponsored by CNU’s
Reiff Center for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution. His talk focused on shifting attitudes toward
Israeli-Palestinian peace among the Israeli and Palestinian publics.
Why did the Jews wander in the desert for 40 years before reaching their homeland? The Talmud teaches,
“There is a long way which is short and a short way which is long.” What does that mean? Sometimes one sees
what seems to be a better way — “the short way” — but it turns out to that, in reality, the way which seems
easier is wrong. The shortcut taken ends up forcing one to go back and do what seemed at the outset to be
harder, but was, in truth, the only legitimate way. It was from that seemingly tortuous, lengthy, journey that
the Israelites learned to leave behind their slave mentality and do what was right, rather than what was easy
or tempting. The Israelites’ journey turned out to be one in which there were important lessons to be
learned.
If 40 years in the desert was to teach us a lesson, what are the lessons we’re to learn from 50 years of occupation (10 years longer than the Jews wandered in the desert!)?
The lesson certainly can’t be that occupation brings security for Israel. Israel’s security establishment overwhelmingly believes that without bold political leadership, the occupation will lead to Israel’s destruction. Those tasked with Israel’s security — Mossad, Shin Bet, and officers in the IDF — overwhelmingly believe that occupation does not bring security, but does just the opposite.
Yossi Alpher is an independent security analyst. He is the former director of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University, a former senior official with the Mossad, and a former IDF intelligence officer. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.
This week, Alpher discusses the settlement construction restrictions that Netanyahu just imposed upon his government in deference to the Trump peace effort; the lack of substance in the self-imposed restrictions; whether Netanyahu is pulling the wool over Trump’s and Greenblatt’s eyes; the likelihood that Trump and Greenblatt will soon put a peace proposal on the table; and changing US military and diplomatic behavior in the Arab world.
It's been a good couple weeks for supporters of West Bank settlements. On March 22, it was reported that new construction in settlements had risen by 40% in 2016. The next day, the U.S. Senate confirmed David Friedman – a staunch supporter of settlements – as U.S. ambassador to Israel.
It didn't end there.
On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that a new settlement would be established – in the heart of the West Bank – for evacuees from the illegal settlement outpost of Amona. In effect, Netanyahu rewarded them for breaking Israeli law, which outlaws these outposts, by breaking international law under which all settlements are illegal.
The “Entry Law,” adopted by the Israeli Knesset on March 6, 2017, bans entry to Israel of
foreign national who support or publicly engage in boycotts of either Israel or West Bank settlements, whether
they do it individually or are affiliated with organizations that endorse such practices. This law uniquely
affects APN, a Zionist, pro-Israel organization that advocates for boycotts of the settlements and the
occupation while strongly rejecting boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) targeting Israel.
APN's President and CEO Debra DeLee said: “This new draconian law is a severe blow to Israeli democracy. It is aimed at a basic civil liberty, the freedom of expression, and will severely harm Israel by keeping out some of its greatest supporters, including Americans for Peace Now…We are a Zionist, pro-Israel organization, which cares about Israel's future as a democracy and a Jewish state. As such, we oppose the occupation and the settlements and call on our supporters to express this view by boycotting settlements. It would be absurd for the government of Israel to block us from visiting the country we love and care so much about because we chose to express a legitimate view in a legitimate way.”
News from Peace Now:
Israeli media reports that yesterday’s government decision included not only operative steps to expand the
settlements (i.e, establish a new settlement, publish tenders for 1,992 housing units, and declare 977 dunams as
state land for the retroactive legalisation of 3 illegal outposts) but rather also a new government policy towards
the building of settlement units. The new policy would enable continuous expansion of all settlements, without any
limitations, contrary to how the government is trying to frame this.
Americans for Peace Now (APN) joins its Israeli sister organization Peace Now (Shalom Achshav) in condemning the Israeli government's decision to establish a new settlement in the West Bank, to publish tenders for some 2,000 new homes in West Bank settlements and to take measures that would allow for the retroactive legalization of three outposts built illegally, without initial government approval, in the West Bank.
APN also joins Peace Now's condemnation of the Israeli Cabinet's new policy of so-called "restraint," which in practice would allow it to continue with its unhindered expansion anywhere in the West Bank, including settlements adjacent to the Green Line ("settlement blocs"), more distant settlements, and East Jerusalem.
Trump the peacemaker? Peace Now activist ponders the possibility
A Jewish American group struggling to keep alive the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict hopes to get a boost from an unlikely source — Donald Trump. In February, the president publicly disavowed it as the best solution to Mideast peace and also appointed a staunch opponent of the plan as the U.S. ambassador to Israel.
Debra DeLee, president and CEO of Americans for Peace Now, who still sees the two-state solution as the only viable way for Israel to survive as an independent and democratic nation, said Trump’s reputation as a non-ideological dealmaker could be a “terrible detriment or it could be a very small, possible ray of hope.”
After seventeen years at Americans for Peace Now, our longtime director of policy and government
relations, Lara Friedman, is moving on to become the president of the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP),
an important member in the community of Washington-based groups striving for peace and security for Israelis and
Palestinians.
Over the past two decades, Lara – perhaps more than anyone else – has defined APN, its footprint in DC and beyond, its mission and its role. Today, she is one of the leading US experts on all things relating to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and is recognized as such worldwide.
Thankfully, we are not losing Lara. As she likes to point out, she is moving only several city blocks away. She will still post her invaluable weekly Legislative Roundups on our web site and keep sending them to her long list of subscribers. We are confident that Lara will further tighten the already robust cooperation between APN and FMEP.
This week, Lara sent out a heartfelt message to our Board of Directors, saying: "(…) it has been an honor, a privilege, and a joy to be part of APN these many years. I am immeasurably proud of this organization and its work. And while leave-taking is bittersweet, I take comfort in knowing that APN will continue to be the most principled, powerful American Jewish voice working for peace and security for a democratic, progressive Israel."
We are very proud of Lara. We’re deeply grateful for all she has done for APN and for our cause.
In recognition of Lara’s immense accomplishments, with APN and for APN, please make a tax-deductible donation for Americans for Peace Now.
One of the things I like the most about “The Moth,” the radio/podcast
storytelling program, is how successful it is at cutting through the cynicism and snark that characterize our
discourse, particularly here in DC, and touching one’s heart.
In pursuit of Israeli-Palestinian peace, too, we could use less scorn, less debate and vitriol, and more listening, more empathy, more heart-to-heart interaction.
This is the impetus behind "The Dove: Stories Amidst Conflict." Presented by Americans for Peace Now, The Dove is a storytelling event about Israeli-Palestinian peace, in which storytellers focus on hope and prospects for reconciliation. On Thursday, April 6th in Washington, DC, The Dove will feature myself and others, who as journalists have experienced and covered this relationship on the ground – both the good and the bad – and who will accentuate hope for peace through their stories.
We have no illusions. We know that stories told live in DC have little impact on actions taken – or not taken – on the eastern side of the Mediterranean. But we also know that relations between Jews and Arabs can be different, and that empathetic interaction between people can contribute to change.
I hope you will join us for an insightful, inspiring evening. And who knows, maybe sooner rather than later, a Middle Eastern dove may flap its wings in Jerusalem, where Israelis and Palestinians could sit down together to tell stories that bring them closer to mutual understanding, reconciliation, and peace.
