Last week, any remaining pretense of US leadership in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was dealt a serious blow when State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert declined to recommit the United States to a two-state solution to the conflict. Strikingly, Nauert rejected the vision articulated by successive US administrations since 2002, Republican and Democratic, by suggesting that endorsing a two-state solution would "bias one side over the other."

Two members of Congress, David Price (D-NC) and Gerald E. Connolly (D-VA), released a statement in response calling on the Trump Administration to "stop equivocating on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict" and imploring it to "reaffirm the United State' support for a viable, lasting, and mutually-agreed upon two-state solution and to make this support clear in public and private statements."

President Trump is again sending his two Middle East envoys, Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt, together with Deputy National Security Adviser Dina Powell, to the region.

The three will meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to explore prospects for resuming peace talks.

In past meetings, Trump and his aides reportedly criticized Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his government for hate speech and incitement. He also asked Prime Minister Netanyahu to “hold back on settlements,” but seems to have done very little to get Netanyahu to restrain West Bank settlement activity and other anti-peace actions. Indeed, Netanyahu and his right-wing coalition have scoffed at Trump’s call and plowed ahead with the settlement enterprise.

If the Trump Administration is serious about facilitating peace, it must call out Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government for their share in hindering peace efforts. 

Click here to tell Trump to Demand that Netanyahu’s Government Stop Actions that Hinder Peace Efforts.

The House of Representatives and the Senate are considering the “Anti-Israel Boycott Act,” measures that would criminalize boycotts, divestments and sanctions (BDS) targeting Israel and its occupation of the West Bank.

Americans for Peace Now (APN) opposes BDS targeting Israel.

This legislation, however, intentionally blurs the distinction between Israel and the occupation. It clearly states that under this bill, measures targeting West Bank settlements and the occupation would be regarded as targeting Israel. APN opposes the occupation and supports boycotting West Bank settlements, the most visible physical manifestation of the occupation.

While opposing BDS, APN believes that boycotts are a legitimate non-violent expression of protest, which should not be criminalized.

These measures do just that: they criminalize free speech, as pointed out by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

For the Senate version of the bill see here. For the House version see here.

S.720 and H.1697, if passed, will set a terrible precedent. They must be opposed.

Click here to send your Representative and Senators a letter urging them to oppose these bills.

Israel's "Entry Law" Turns Israel into The Jewish Homeland...for Some

The Israeli Knesset passed legislation known as the "Entry Law" on March 6, 2017, which will ban entry to Israel of foreigners who support or publicly engage in a blanket boycott of Israel, or who support or engage in boycotts targeting West Bank settlements.

Below are "testimonials" from people linked to APN highlighting their deep connection to and support of Israel, and how despite that, Israel would deny their entry.

Tell US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman: "American Jews Need Your Help to Repeal Israel's anti-Democratic 'Entry Law'"

(Click on a picture to jump to that testimonial or scroll down for all of them)

The Israeli Knesset passed legislation known as the "Entry Law" on March 6, 2017, which will ban entry to Israel of foreigners who support or publicly engage in a blanket boycott of Israel, or who support or engage in boycotts targeting West Bank settlements.

*** APN's statement condemning passage of the law is here and APN's Resource page on the bill is here.

Donald Trump is preparing for his visit to Israel on May 22nd, his first trip overseas as president.

On several occasions, President Trump has announced his commitment to brokering a peace deal between Israelis and Palestinians, the “ultimate deal,” as he called it.

We take the president at his words. And as we stated in a recent press release, if Trump takes serious action to pursue a viable Israeli-Palestinian peace deal, APN will leverage its influence and experience to support him.

In order to be an effective, credible broker, President Trump will have to push both sides – Israelis and Palestinians – to take actions that build trust and that don’t slam the door on a future peace deal.

Send a letter to President Trump urging him to take Israeli-Palestinian deal-making seriously.

David Friedman is a friend of the settlement movement who backs unlimited settlement expansion, has accused President Obama of being an anti-Semite and says that liberal Zionists are "worse than kapos." Tell your Senators to reject his nomination to be the next US ambassador to Israel.

Time is short and your Senators need to hear from you TODAY. If you don’t know who your Senators are, you can look them up here. Then call the US Capitol switchboard – (202) 224-3121 – and ask to be connected to each of your Senator’s offices. Tell the person who answers the phone in each office:

• I am a constituent and I care about Israel and Israeli-Palestinian peace
• That is why I strongly oppose Donald Trump's choice to be the next US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, and urge Senator XXX to reject him.
• Mr. Friedman poses a threat to longstanding US policies in the Middle East that have been supported by Democratic and Republican presidents alike.
• He is hostile to the two-state solution - the only way to ensure Israel’s future as the democratic homeland of the Jewish people.
• He is a friend of the settlement movement and an avid supporter of further settlement expansion.
• The contempt Mr. Friedman has shown toward liberal American Jews - labeling them worse than Nazi collaborators - makes him a horrible choice to be our representative in Israel.
• I urge Senator XXX to reject Mr. Friedman's nomination to be the next US ambassador to Israel.

P.S. Please forward this to your friends and urge them to call.

APN previously issued the following petition:

Sign the Petition

The Israeli Knesset is poised to vote on legislation that would legalize Israeli settlement construction that is illegal under Israeli law and located on land that even the Israeli government recognizes as privately owned by Palestinians. APN’s backgrounder on the bill is here. Key points to understand:

• This legislation removes even the façade that Israel as a nation respects the “rule of law” when it comes to the activities of settlers.
• Passage of this legislation will send a message to the settlers that there are literally no limits on what they can do in terms of construction in the occupied territories.
• Passage of this legislation will send a message to the Israeli public and the world that Israel no longer respects the “rule of law” – a cornerstone of democracy, under which laws apply equally to all – but instead ascribes openly to “rule by law” – the foundation of authoritarianism, under which laws are imposed selectively and tailored to serve the interests and limit the rights of specific groups.

American Jews who support Israel – not merely its existence but its existence as a democracy that reflects the progressive Jewish values articulated by its founders in its Declaration of Independence – should be appalled at the prospect of Israel adopting this brazenly undemocratic legislation.

***UPDATE: The Knesset passed this bill into law on March 6, 2017*** APN's statement condemning passage of the law is here.

The Israeli Knesset is poised to vote on on March 6, 2017 passed legislation that would will ban entry to Israel of foreigners who support or publicly engage in boycotts of either Israel or settlements.  APN’s backgrounder on the bill is here. Key points to understand:

• This legislation is aimed at a basic civil liberty: the freedom of expression. Boycotting and calling for boycotts are legitimate forms of peaceful, political expression protected in any democracy.
• Passage of this legislation will send a message to the Israeli public that legitimate political expression is verboten, further quashing dissent.
• Passage of this legislation will send a message to the world that the Israeli government is throwing out basic democratic norms in its effort to quash peaceful opposition and criticism of its policies.
• With this legislation, the Israeli government and Knesset are making common cause with the anti-democratic policies on the rise in the United States, including Trump Administration immigration policies vehemently opposed by the bulk of the U.S. Jewish community that are antithetical to progressive Jewish values.

 APN: "We fiercely reject and condemn this outrageous bill. Should it pass into law, it will be an ugly stain on Israel. It will add Israel to the club of nations that treat non-violent protest as a crime, and that irrationally believe that closing borders can prevent the spread of ideas. If this legislation passes into law, APN will challenge it."

----------------------------------------------------------------

Whether or not they support boycotts of Israel (APN does not), American Jews should be appalled at the prospect of Israel adopting a policy that would be more at home in the old Soviet Union or North Korea than in a progressive democracy.

Whether or not they support boycotts of settlements (APN does), American Jews should be outraged and heartbroken at the prospect of seeing Israel becoming a nation that bars entry to people – including Jews and other supporters of Israel – for the “crime” of peacefully opposing Israeli policies.