Issues
Palestine
Gaza: 1.5 Million People Trapped in Despair
From International Committee of the Red Cross
Posted on Sunday June 28, 2009
A new report issued by the International Committee of the Red Cross, Gaza: 1.5 Million People Trapped in Despair, outlines the conditions on the ground six months after Israel launched its three week military operation in Gaza. The report calls for immediate humanitarian actions to give the people of Gaza their right to a “normal and dignified life”.
Summer travel plans? Read this!
From AAI
Posted on Sunday June 28, 2009
If you plan to travel to Israel or the Occupied Territories this summer, please report any instance of denied entry to the Department of State. The Arab American Institute maintains contact with State and senior officials in the office of American Citizens Services about this and other, relevant issues. ACS continues to encourage U.S. citizens to report instances of denied entry.
At an April 24th meeting held by the White House for Arab American leaders, Michele Bond reiterated her desire to hear about any difficulties American citizens face when traveling to the Occupied Territories. During a May 28th conference call with several organizations, including the AAI, Michele Bond again reiterated the need for American citizens travelling to the Occupied Territories to notify the Bureau of Consular Affairs of any problems they face, be it denial of entry or unnecessary delays and harassment at the border crossings.
United For The Two State Solution
Posted on Tuesday June 16, 2009
On Monday, June 15th pollsters from both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict came together to present “United for the Two-State Solution: The Popular Mandate for Israeli-Palestinian Peace”. The event was cosponsored by OneVoice Movement, J Street , Americans for Peace Now, American Task Force on Palestine, Arab American Institute, Brit Tzedek v’Shalom, Churches for Middle East Peace, and Israel Policy Forum.
To watch a video of the panel, click below.
Full text of Netanyahu's foreign policy speech at Bar Ilan
From www.haaretz.com
Posted on Sunday June 14, 2009
Honored guests, citizens of Israel.
Peace was always the desire of our people. Our prophets had a vision of peace, we greet each other with peace, our prayers end with the word peace. This evening we are in the center named for two leaders who were groundbreakers for peace -Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat – and we share their vision.
Why Obama Should Keep the Heat on Israel...
From TIME
Posted on Thursday June 11, 2009
The big question about Barack Obama has always been this: Is he a risk taker? Domestically, he answered it months ago with his massive stimulus package. On foreign policy, we only just learned the answer. By taking on the Israeli government over the issue of settlement growth, Obama is showing that he’s a gambler overseas as well. Despite the conventional wisdom that an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal is impossible anytime soon, he seems hell-bent on pursuing one. And if he breaks china in the process, so be it.
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT OBAMA
Posted on Wednesday June 3, 2009
On May 28th, the President held a one-on-one meeting, and then an expanded meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, read the President’s opening remarks when they spoke to the press together afterwards
Final update on the Boustany-Carnahan-Cohen Letter
From AAI
Posted on Tuesday June 2, 2009
U.S. House of Representatives Members Charles Boustany (D-LA), Russ Carnahan (D-MO), and Steve Cohen (D-TN) circulated a letter recently that supports President Obama’s policies in the Middle East and his intention to provide strong American leadership to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The letter closed Tuesday, June 2nd with a total of 85 signatories and gained one additional co-sponsor, Gerry Connolly (D-VA).
U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Briefing The Middle East: The Road to Peace
Posted on Thursday May 28, 2009
Senator John Kerry (D-MA) hosted a briefing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the current road to peace for the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. The briefing featured former British Prime Minister and current Middle East Quartet Envoy Tony Blair, and was attended by members of the committee, government staffers, and various representatives from local non-profits and international NGOs.
From Belfast to Jerusalem
Posted on Wednesday March 25, 2009
Washington D.C. – The Arab American Institute (AAI) hosted a panel discussion on Capitol Hill last week entitled “From Belfast to Jerusalem: Lessons from Northern Ireland for Israeli-Palestinian Peace,” where leading experts on the Northern Ireland peace process and Middle Eastern affairs compared and contrasted the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with the Northern Ireland “Troubles.”
AAI to Co-sponsor the ALLMEP Summit on March 4th
Posted on Monday March 2, 2009
REELING FROM A FRESH WAVE OF VIOLENCE, Israelis and Palestinians look to the U.S. and the world for a broad, new strategic approach to an old conflict. Join us on March 4, 2009 in Washington, DC to be a part of the solution, as we develop a broad new strategy to build peace not only from the top-down but also from the bottom-up – engaging ordinary citizens in the struggle for peace.
The Summit will focus on dramatically expanding current cooperation between tens of thousands of Israelis and Palestinians, who work together daily in business, education, medicine, the environment, sports, interfaith dialogue, culture, and other areas of everyday life. Sessions will also focus on developing and launching ALLMEP’s initiative to establish an International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace.
REPORT: Guidelines for Israel's Investigation into 'Operation Cast Lead'
Posted on Sunday February 22, 2009
Summary: The objective of this document is to lay out the principal questions that arise regarding the military’s conduct during “Operation Cast Lead”, and to outline the primary directions that Israel must investigate regarding its conduct. B’Tselem continues to research specific events that took place during the operation and will publish its findings when this research is completed.
Updates on the Issues: Gaza's Human Factor
Posted on Wednesday February 4, 2009
The path to peace is paved with good intentions, beginning with healing Gaza’s wounds. What are our representatives on the Hill doing to begin that process? What does the international community think this week? And what of the children living in the Gaza Strip?
And what can YOU DO?
Plenty. Read on.
Gaza Crisis: Selected Statements from Members of Congress
Posted on Wednesday February 4, 2009
Selected Statements from Members of Congress, updated January 8, 2009
One state, two state, no state, or...?
Posted on Wednesday January 28, 2009
Rumblings from the Arab world recently indicated that a solution for peace would not remain on the table for ever. Bob Simon reports in a 60 Minutes segment on the questions whether peace is possible.
Watch the Video:
Daily update on Gaza: the crisis continues after the bombs stop
Posted on Sunday January 25, 2009
Simply surviving is still priority number one for Gazans. The bombs have stopped, but there are no supplies with which to rebuild. Although Israel is letting more trucks in now than during the 22 day “Operation Cast Lead”, the number of trucks getting into Gaza is still insufficient to the needs of the 1.5 million people living behind the wall.
