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With the 50th anniversary of the occupation upon us, the hope for a two-state solution is
dying. If there was ever a time to speak the truth about the settlements, it’s now.
With the 50th anniversary of the occupation upon us, the hope for a two-state solution is
dying. If there was ever a time to speak the truth about the settlements, it’s now.
Last Friday, the UN Security Council held a meeting organized under the title “Illegal Israeli
Settlements: A Threat to Peace and the Two-State Solution.” Americans for Peace Now proudly took part in that
event, offering testimony grounded in love for Israel and expressing an unwavering commitment to Israel’s
security and its survival as a democracy and a state rooted in the Jewish values expressed in its Declaration of
Independence. Of course, that testimony also dealt with the settlements, explaining why they are detrimental to
the cause of Israeli-Palestinian peace and therefore to Israel’s national security interests.
Many people, both inside and outside Israel, were happy to see a pro-Israel, pro-two-state organization delivering
a nuanced, fact-based presentation at this event. Others were less enthused, most notably Israel’s ambassador to
the United Nations, Danny Danon, who accused APN of participating in “diplomatic terror” against Israel. Likewise,
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to social media to call APN’s arguments “deluded.” And now, in this
newspaper, the former head of the Union of Reform Judaism, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, criticized APN’s testimony as a
“mistake” – not for the facts it conveyed or its tone, but for the timing and location of its delivery.
Quote of the day:
--Wikileaks reveals email written by Paul Begala, an experienced Democratic American political adviser, who worked for the Zionist Union party and advised party chairman and candidate for prime minister, Isaac Herzog.*
--In an interview with Maariv, Gen. (res.) Yoram Yair, who headed the team to form the IDF’s ethical code, discusses the extrajudicial execution by IDF soldier Elor Azariya, who is on trial.*
Washington, DC – Americans for Peace Now (APN) denounces a resolution adopted last week by the United Nations’ Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and ratified this week by the body’s Executive Board.
APN agrees with critics of the language used by UNESCO’s resolution, which refers to the Holy Basin in Jerusalem’s Old City only by its Muslim title, the Haram al-Sharif (the Nobel Sanctuary), does not mention the Temple Mount, the way Jews refer to the site, mentions the Western Wall Plaza in quotation marks while using its Muslim name, Al-Buraq Plaza, without quotation marks, and uses other inflammatory language.
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 what in particular in last week’s UN Security Council discussion of the settlements angered the prime minister; B'tselem's Hagai El-Ad's and APN’s Lara Friedman's testimony before the Council on the settlements issue; at the broadest strategic level, what the Security Council discussion contributes toward a two-state solution; and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's suggestion that a “Potemkin” Israeli-Palestinian peace process would be better than none at all.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu loves to use social media as a tool to settle accounts with those who dare to challenge his policies, often in demagoguery that panders to the online mob both in content and style.
On Sukkot Eve, it was us, Americans for Peace Now, who were the target of Netanyahu’s
bluster. Why? Because we dared to highlight his West Bank settlement policy at a special United Nations
Security Council session.
At the gathering, APN’s Lara Friedman delivered a measured, fact-based analysis of the damage that West Bank settlements inflict on Israel’s national security. We are proud of Lara’s performance at the security Council and gratified to have been given the opportunity to share with the world our deep concerns about the direction in which Netanyahu’s policies are leading our Jewish homeland.
Netanyahu, in a misleading Facebook post, falsely accused us of alleging that the settlements are the cause of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We never make this argument.
--Arab-Israeli rapper Tamer Nafer told right-wing hecklers at his concert supporting Arab-Jewish coexistence in Haifa last night.**
In the October 14, 2016 briefing call with APN's Lara Friedman and Israeli Legal Expert Michael
Sfard on the UNSC Session on Israeli Settlements, they discussed the threat to Israel's security and the
two-state solution posed by settlements, the dangers of unilateral withdrawal, and the possibility of further
action at the UN.
Times of Israel: October 14
“B’Tselem
under fire for planned UN presentation on settlements,” discusses the criticism that the testifying
organizations and their representatives, such as APN’s Lara Friedman, are receiving.
Israel National News: October 14
“MK Kish: Time to Disconnect from B’Tselem and
Peace Now,” Knesset Member Yoav Kisch (Likud) spoke out against B’Tselem and Peace Now for being invited to the
UN Security Council Session, “Israeli settlements as an obstacle to peace and the two-state solution.”
San Francisco Chronicle: October 14
“Palestinians
push for UN membership and against settlements,” discusses Palestinian initiatives at the UN in the context of
the UN Security Council session on Israeli settlements, which APN will participate in.
Haaretz: October 13
“Israeli NGOs to Address Special UN Security Council
Session on Settlements,” APN will address the UN Security Council on West Bank settlements after Peace Now
decided not to.”
Jerusalem Post: October 13
“B’Tselem,
Peace Now to speak to UNSC against settlements,” APN’s Lara Friedman to address the UN Security Council
regarding settlements.
The Jewish Week: October 13
“’Here To Stay’ in Shilo,” quotes Hagit
Ofran, director of Peace Now’s Settlement Watch program, saying the new housing proposed for land near Shilo,
including 41 apartments earmarked for residents of Amona, an unauthorized outpost slated for destruction by Dec.
31, would be the start of a new settlement, not an expansion of an existing settlement.
Daily News (AFP story): October 9
“Netanyahu
speaks to Kerry to calm US over settler plan,” Peace Now says new construction in the West Bank amounts to the
establishment of a new settlement.