On February 22nd 2017, APN hosted Peace Now’s Anat Ben Nun for a briefing call on the challenges that Israel’s Peace movement is facing. She addressed the political situation following the Trump-Netanyahu meeting in Washington, issues relating to West Bank settlements, anti-democratic Knesset legislation, and more.
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 mixed messages from the Trump-Netanyahu press statements last week in Washington - two-state solution or one-state solution, direct bilateral negotiations or broader Arab involvement; what Netanyahu's increasingly powerful right-wing supporters want; "the regional approach"; and the nuances of the one-state proposition.
Americans for Peace Now (APN) issued this following statement following today's joint press conference by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump in the White House:
President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu's press conference today presented an opportunity for the two leaders to signal to Israelis, Palestinians, Americans and the world a clear commitment to peace. It was an opportunity to signal that they can chart a constructive way forward for U.S.-Israel relations and for Israel's future, for its security and its well-being as a democracy and a Jewish state.
Netanyahu and Trump squandered this opportunity.
Please join APN on Wednesday, February 22nd, 11am, for a briefing call with Peace Now's Anat Ben-Nun. She will be discussing "Current Challenges to the Israeli Peace Movement"
Anat Ben Nun is Peace Now's Director of Development and External relations. She is responsible for Peace Now's international advocacy efforts which focus on preventing settlement expansion. Prior to her work with Peace Now, Anat worked at the Palestinian Israeli Peace NGO Forum, a platform for cooperation and capacity building for 80 NGOs, and took part in a variety of initiatives promoting dialogue and understanding. Anat has a Master's degree in International Affairs from the American University in Washington and a Bachelor's degree from Brandeis University.
Washington, DC – Americans for Peace Now (APN) today issued this following statement on the eve of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's first meeting with Donald Trump since Trump was inaugurated as president of the United States:
This past weekend, before leaving for Washington, Prime Minister Netanyahu told his Cabinet: 'I have navigated Israeli-U.S. relations in a prudent manner, and I will continue to do so now.'
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:
P.S. Please forward this to your friends and urge them to call.
APN previously issued the following petition:
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 updates on the agenda for the Trump-Netanyahu summit scheduled for later this week; new developments that could conceivably disrupt US-Israel relations in the near term beyond issues regarding the settlements, Iran, and Syria; potential Israeli responses to future Hamas attacks; Not labeling the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group; and the report that Trump also wants to designate the Iranian Revolutionary Guards a terrorist organization.
Trump recently said that advancing settlement construction is unhelpful for peace, but which settlements exactly he was referring to is open for interpretation.
Judy Maltz
If his latest statements are any indication, U.S. President Donald Trump may be having second thoughts about how unharmful Israel’s West Bank settlement project is to the peace process.
In an interview published on Friday with the Israeli daily Israel Hayom, Trump described himself as “not someone who believes that advancing settlements is good for peace,” and urged the government to “act reasonably.”
“There is limited remaining territory,” Trump said. “Every time you take land for a settlement, less territory
remains.”
In a statement issued through the White House a week earlier, he said that although settlements per se were not an
impediment to peace, “the construction of new settlements or the expansion of existing settlements beyond their
current borders may not be helpful in achieving that goal.”
America’s unpredictable new president may be a bit more forthcoming about where he draws the line when he meets
with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday. Meanwhile, his statements have been interpreted as a green
light for Israel to continue building within the settlement blocs, though not beyond them.
Settlement blocs refer to the larger Jewish population centers located in the West Bank, many of which are close to
the Green Line, or the borders of the 1949 armistice agreement. Many of them fall on the Israeli side of the
incomplete separation barrier Israel began building nearly 15 years ago during the second Palestinian
uprising.
Today marks 34 years to the murder of Emil Grunzweig, one of the movement's leaders, at an anti-war rally in Jerusalem.
Grunzweig, a scholar, a teacher and a leading peace activist, was at the front row (fourth from the left) of young
Israelis who marched toward the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on February 10, 1983, demanding that the
findings of a state commission of inquiry regarding the government's conduct during the 1982 Lebanon War be
implemented.
The murdered was Yona Avrushmi, a young Jerusalemite who later confessed to being brainwashed by extremist
right-wing propaganda. He threw a hand grenade into the crowd of pro-peace demonstrators, killing Grunzweig and
injuring nine others.
Avrushmi was released from prison in 2011 after serving 27 years of a life sentence.
