Produced by the Foundation for Middle East Peace. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

In 1902, Herzl wrote 'im tirtzu, ein zo agada; if you will it, it is no dream' (ok, so he wrote it in German and Nachum Sokolov translated it into Hebrew). When he wrote these words, the idea that he was contemplating, a national home for the Jewish people, was considered by most to be fantastical, impossible, or downright ridiculous. And yet, even in the face of being told repeatedly that what he was working toward was unachievable, Herzl did not give up. The power of this quote is not in saying that you should dream big. It is in the fact that it requires you to will your dreams into existence. The second part is quoted far less often, but its lesson is no less important: ve'im lo tirtzu, agada hi ve'agada tisha'er'; and if you do not will it, a dream it is and a dream it shall remain.

Herzl’s dream of a Jewish homeland was realized with the creation of the modern state of Israel in 1948. And today we dream of a homeland for the Jewish people and a homeland for the Palestinian people. We dream of peace. We dream of a better future where Israeli children and Palestinian children do not grow up in conflict and are not taught hatred, but rather live and flourish together. 

By Naomi Paiss

On Monday night, thousands of activists and ordinary people converged on a sports arena in Tel Aviv to reconsecrate their liberal, democratic values. Jews and Palestinians, secular and religious, old and young streamed through the doors as supporters of two dozen organizations working for peace and equality in Israel, including Peace Now.

There were no speeches by professional NGO directors nor were there long policy prescriptions. There were few specific references even to the current government, or to the latest controversies about drafting the ultra-Orthodox or plans for new West Bank settlements.

Instead, with the exception of some professional musicians (god bless Noa and Mira Awad!), it was mostly ordinary people with a personal stake in Israel’s dreadful present who spoke with sorrow but hope about the future. Early on, nine people lined up on stage: one survived October 7 but lost his parents and uncle. A Palestinian’s mother is trapped in Gaza. A hostage who returned in November. Six more who have suffered terror and loss and fear for their closest relatives. They ended their segment with a prayer, blessed be he who redeems and bypasses revenge.

Produced by the Foundation for Middle East Peace. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

1. Bills & Resolutions

2. Letters

3. Hearings & Markups

4. Israel/Palestine in 2024 Elex/Politics

5. Selected Media & Press releases/statements

This week’s round-up was guest-written by Haydn Welch and Sheridan Cole, advocacy officers at the Middle East Democracy Center, with contributions by Lara Friedman.

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.

June 28, 2024- Americans for Peace Now is pleased to welcome Lisa Greer to the organization’s Board of Directors.

Lisa Greer is a philanthropist, nonprofit advisor, and convener. She is the author of the bestselling Philanthropy Revolution and the newly released The Essential Fundraiser's Handbook. Currently, Lisa serves as commissioner of the California State Commission on the Status of Women and Girls, where she sits on the Executive Committee. She also serves on the international board of the New Israel Fund as well as the Executive Committee of the Cedars-Sinai Board of Governors. Earlier in her career, Lisa was a studio executive at NBC and Universal Studios, and she founded and led several companies including a management consulting and strategic advisory firm specializing in digital media and entertainment businesses.

Hadar Susskind, President and CEO of APN, said: “I am thrilled to welcome Lisa to our board and to continue working with her in this new capacity. I know she will make a great addition to our group of devoted, conscientious board members, especially as we move ahead with our merger with Ameinu and the launch of the new organization.”

Produced by the Foundation for Middle East Peace. Views and positions expressed here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent APN's views and policy positions.

Dr. Dahlia Scheindlin, a scholar and writer, is an international political and strategic consultant. She has advised and conducted research on nine national campaigns in Israel over the past twenty years, and has provided research and advising for elections, referendums, and civil society campaigns in fifteen different countries. She is the author of The Crooked Timber of Democracy in Israel. 

June 24, 2024- As the New York Times reports, Israeli Finance Minister and settler leader Bezalel Smotrich is well on his way to achieving his goal: annexation of the West Bank. On May 29, the IDF’s website noted that enforcement of several key laws governing the West Bank had been transferred from military to civilian authority, under Smotrich’s direction in his other role as a senior official in the Defense Ministry. He has proposed four new West Bank settlements and attempted to impose sanctions on the Palestinian Authority, all in retaliation for other nations’ formal recognition of Palestine. APN’s sister organization in Israel, Peace Now, was responsible for making a recording of Smotrich’s remarks available to the media.

Americans for Peace Now warns that annexation of the West Bank is no longer a settler pipe dream, but a reality occurring while the world’s attention is focused on the war in Gaza.  Transferring powers from the military to civilian control amounts to legal annexation under international law, and makes a mockery of American policy supporting a two-state solution. Smotrich makes no secret of his intentions to “change the system’s DNA” and smash any possibility of Palestinian autonomy or statehood in the West Bank for once and for all.