Donald Trump’s Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, is at it again. This time, in an interview with an Israeli Orthodox newspaper, he is threatening the Palestinians with regime change and indicating that the Trump Administration will not intercede to prevent the Israeli government from annexing parts of the West Bank.
The following joint statement was issued on March 28, 2018 by Ameinu, Americans for Peace Now, J Street, National Council of Jewish Women, the New Israel Fund and T’ruah:
“As American Jewish organizations and strong supporters of Israel, we are deeply alarmed by the appointment of John Bolton to serve as President Trump’s National Security Advisor. His long record shows him to be a fierce advocate for belligerent policies that would endanger the national security of the US, Israel and our allies around the world.
Peace Now's annual report on settlement construction in 2017 in the West Bank (excluding Jerusalem) reveals 17% more building than the yearly average over the better part of the past decade. Of the new construction, 78% took place in isolated settlements beyond the Geneva Initiative border, a slight increase from 2016. Tenders published in 2017 reached a two-decade record high, while the new settlement of Amihai (for the Amona evictees) and three outposts were founded.
The steady pace of construction and building deep in the West Bank attest to Prime Minister Netanyahu's steadfast abetting of the settlement enterprise. It is also apparent that the new U.S. presidency in 2017 had no marginal deterrent effect on these Israeli unilateral moves, which continue to inflict severe damage on Palestinians' way of life and on prospects for a two-state solution.
Large numbers of Palestinians are expected to participate in “The Great March of Return” this Friday, which is
Palestinian Land Day and coincidentally also the start of the Jewish holiday of Passover. While protests are also
planned for the West Bank and by Palestinian citizens of Israel, Gaza is the focal point for Land Day activity, as
well as a key flashpoint given the mounting tensions there since President Trump’s December announcement regarding
Jerusalem. Friday’s events are planned to kick off a series of similar marches and rallies in coming weeks, leading
to May 15, the day after Israel’s 70th anniversary of independence which is marked as Nakba Day by
Palestinians.
APN's daily news review from Israel
Wednesday March 28, 2018
Quote of the day:
“It means a lot to us that Israelis, who have changed their way of thinking, stand together with us –
the people of Hebron and the Palestinian people.”
— Izzat Adel, a spokesman for the Palestinian group ‘Youth Against Settlements,’ said ahead of the large-scale "Freedom Seder" on April 4th, it is jointly organizing in Hebron with ‘All That’s Left: Anti-Occupation Collective,’ with the goal of reaffirming the “commitment to liberation” and protesting “the dispossession and violence of the occupation.” This year’s Passover holiday is more significant, said the organizers, because it marks 50 years since the first settlers got military permission to enter Hebron to celebrate the week-long religious holiday in 1968 - and then they never left.*
— Izzat Adel, a spokesman for the Palestinian group ‘Youth Against Settlements,’ said ahead of the large-scale "Freedom Seder" on April 4th, it is jointly organizing in Hebron with ‘All That’s Left: Anti-Occupation Collective,’ with the goal of reaffirming the “commitment to liberation” and protesting “the dispossession and violence of the occupation.” This year’s Passover holiday is more significant, said the organizers, because it marks 50 years since the first settlers got military permission to enter Hebron to celebrate the week-long religious holiday in 1968 - and then they never left.*
Another in a series of episodes drawing on Ori Nir's experience in Israel and the West Bank in February with APN's Study Tour and with the Encounter program.
This episode is based on a conversation that members of APN's Board of Directors had with with Khalil Shikaki, who has previously been featured on PeaceCast.
We met at his Ramallah office where he analyzed his most recent polling data and spoke about Palestinian politics. This edited-down version focuses on Shikaki's characterization and analysis of the decline of Palestinian secular nationalism. Shikaki's talk follows a short introduction by Ori and Stephanie Breitsman, who manages APN's programming.
Each year at the Seder, Jews read this line in the Passover Haggadah, "In every generation, a person is obligated to see themselves as if they had left Egypt." This concept reminds us that each year we must approach the haggada with a fresh eye. It demands that we not merely read the words, but understand them afresh. We must have both empathy for what our forefathers and mothers have suffered, and – more importantly – be aware that change is possible, that we are masters of our fate, and that with determination and courage we can accomplish liberation. In our generation, liberating Israelis and Palestinians from the yoke of the occupation, which is subjugating both societies, is imperative. And it is within our reach.
This year, you can add flavor to your seder by sharing this thoughtful reflection by Rabbi Rachael Bregman. Rabbi Bregman has graciously contributed our 18th haggadah insert. In it, she asks us to reflect upon what questions we want to ask this year, offers questions for the table - to be asked when we reach the explanation of the three symbols of Passover: pesach (the offering), matzah and maror.
Since 2001, Americans for Peace Now has asked rabbis from the extended APN family to contribute reflections on the haggadah: that story which has for centuries been understood as the archetype of liberation. Many of us have made these reflections a permanent part of our seder - we hope you will, too. You can find them here.
May we all enjoy a sweet and liberating Passover,
Debra DeLee
President and CEO,
Americans for Peace Now
Submitted by Rabbi Rachael Bregman (2018)
To be read before the three symbols of Passover.
APN's daily news review from Israel
Tuesday March 27, 2018
Quote of the day:
"The vision of an Arab prime minister, which at present seems like a delusional idea, is drawing near.
And then this will be an equal and democratic country, and not a Jewish and democratic one.”
—Arab MK Ahmad Tibi said after new statistics showed that an equal number of Jews and Arabs live between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, or possibly more Arabs.*
Number of the day:
17.
Percentage that settlement growth has surged from the annual average since Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu took office in 2009, according to Peace Now report.**
—Arab MK Ahmad Tibi said after new statistics showed that an equal number of Jews and Arabs live between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, or possibly more Arabs.*
Number of the day:
17.
Percentage that settlement growth has surged from the annual average since Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu took office in 2009, according to Peace Now report.**
As Passover approaches, our thoughts turn to liberation. An
increasing number of American Jews are making the connection between the release of the Jews from bondage in
Egypt and our collective responsibility to push for an end to the 50-year-old Occupation -- so that Palestinians
and Israelis may be free.
US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman has something else in mind.
When he says "Hashana haba'ah b'yerusalayim" ("Next year in Jerusalem"), he'll be reflecting on his gratitude to President Trump.
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 Israel’s 2007 bombing of a weapons-grade reactor under construction in Syria; the fact that the North Korean reactor was under construction in Syria for four or five years before it was discovered by Israel; why Mahmoud Abbas seems to be systematically burning his bridges with everyone; and Ronald Lauder's criticism of Israeli government policies regarding the two-state solution and Jewish pluralism.