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February 2008 Archives

Political sociologist Brym of the University of Toronto found the main motivation is revenge, not religious zeal, sheer madness or a grand strategic scheme.
Political Scientist and Peace Activitist Klein, the author of "A Possible Peace Between Israel and Palestine"
Despite Israel's claims of a freeze on settlements, new homes - and tensions - continue to rise
At a time when the government of Israel is dragging its feet and essentially dissolving all efforts to reach a permanent agreement with the Palestinians, in international public opinion the idea of the division of the land into two states is becoming irrelevant. In its place is the vision of a bi-national state, which in practice would mean the end of Zionism.

"2008: A Turning Point for Israeli-Palestinian Peace?

March 9th - Discussion with Ghaith al-Omari, Former Senior Advisor to Abbas, and Steve Masters, President of Brit Tzedek v'Shalom

"2008: A Turning Point for Israeli-Palestinian Peace?

Discussion with Ghaith al-Omari, Former Senior Advisor to Abbas, and Steve Masters, President of Brit Tzedek v'Shalom

Christian Zionism

Once upon a time - in 1946, to be more precise - American Christian support for Zionism was expressed through an organization called the American Christian Palestine Committee. Its membership was drawn principally from liberal churches, and in the run-up to the establishment of Israel it played an important role. Some years later (1967), Dr. Franklin Littell founded "Christians Concerned for Israel," again drawing mostly on mainline churches, and in 1978 CCI grew into the National Christian Leadership Conference for Israel.

So "Christian Zionism" has roots in this country.

...for each building permit given to Palestinians 55 demolition orders were issued...according to a report by the settler watchdog group Peace Now.

Independent (UK): "Israel's refuseniks: The wild frontier"

Next month, Peace Now will go to the Supreme Court seeking the demolition instruction which the court judged unnecessary in 2006 because the state assured it evacuation was imminent.
The March 15th program featured Dr. Gershon Baskin & Hanna Siniora, leaders of the Israel / Palestine Center for Research and Information
Program features Dr. Gershon Baskin & Hanna Siniora, leaders of the Israel / Palestine Center for Research and Information
Program features top experts on Jerusalem and Middle East affairs Danny Seidemann, Nazmi Jubeh, and Gregory Khalil
Featured speaker is Paul Scham from the Middle East Institute in Washington and senior editor of "Shared Histories: A Palestinian-Israeli Dialogue"
Featured speaker is Paul Scham from the Middle East Institute in Washington and senior editor of "Shared Histories: A Palestinian-Israeli Dialogue"
OPENING NIGHT RECEPTION - SAT., MARCH 1 - Features photographs and video testimonials, led by guided tours by former Israeli soldiers.
Q's are on understanding the strategies of PM Ehud Olmert's and the Palestinian issue, and President Mahmoud Abbas' strategy and Hamas in Gaza. Are these realistic strategies?

February 25, 2008 - Vol. 9, Issue 25

This Land is My Land; No Monopoly over Jerusalem; What Makes a Suicide Bomber Tick;

Mapping The Conflict Borders - Powerpoint Presentation

CLEVELAND - "An Evening For Peace: APN Honors Al Stern"

APN is pleased to be honoring the long-time leader and activist on behalf of peace
For each building permit Civil Administration gives Palestinians, its issues 55 demolition orders

Peace Now presses Olmert on his settlement commitments

Peace Now issued two reports this week on settlements, bringing the issue of Israel's unmet responsibility to freeze settlement construction to the fore.
If there is ever going to be peace in Israel, and if Israel is going to remain a Jewish democratic state, it must be willing to share Jerusalem with the Palestinians, says Yariv Oppenheimer, director general of Peace Now.

AP: "Palestinian aide suggests Kosovo a model"

...the Peace Now organization, an anti-settlement group, reported that 27 new mobile homes were being assembled in the West Bank settlement of Eli.
According to Hagit Ofran, who heads the monitoring of settlement activity for Peace Now, the trailers were set up on privately owned Palestinian land.

Ma'ariv: "In the Name of the Son"

Yariv Oppenheimer, the secretary-general of Peace Now, commented yesterday, "Our logic is very clear: without compromise in Jerusalem there will be no agreement, nor will there be a solution of two states for two peoples.

Support APN through "Working Assets"

APN was selected by Working Assets as one of the 50 non-profit organizations they will support -- your vote will increase that support!
Since the peace conference in Annapolis, Md., young Israelis have set up or expanded nine outposts, according to Peace Now, an Israeli advocacy group critical of the settlements.
Two articles based on the data discovered by Peace Now
Israeli writer Gorenberg is the author of "The Accidental Empire: Israel and the Birth of the Settlements, 1967-1977"

February 18, 2008 - Vol. 9, Issue 24

Amnesty Program a Qualified Success; Rethinking Roadblocks; Settling Outside the Law; Exit Strategy Needed; Tunnel Vision;
Q's on ramifications of the assassination of Hezbollah operations chief Imad Mughniyeh; Progress of Annapolis-launched peace negotiations; Fateh's corruption and inefficiency in anticipation of new elections?
Details on new building in Jerusalem, the Prime Minister's position, and more...

APN Legislative Round-Up - February 15, 2008

I. Death of Congressman Tom Lantos (D-CA); II. Bills and Resolutions; III. Key Provision in FY08 Foreign Ops House Report Language; IV. Rice to Congress on the Saudi Arms Sale; V. Ackerman on the Record on Lebanon

"Back to the Future" - A Five-Year-Old Essay with Relevance for Today

Recently, in yet another effort to clean up old files, I stumbled on an essay I wrote five years ago and had entirely forgotten. Some things have changed since then; more have stayed pretty much the same.

I do not know whether I any longer agree with myself, but much of the analysis strikes me as on the mark. Make of the conclusions what you will; the heart of it is the analysis, not the prescription.

Oh yes: It's long. Here goes:

---------

October 8, 2003

"We fed our heart on fantasies
Our heart's grown brutal on the fare."
-- Ted Hughes

Does the breach in the wall mean that siege of Gaza has come to an end? Not at all.

Yedioth Ahronoth OpEd: "A Dignified Way Out" by Giora Eiland

A solution to the problem of the Kassam rocket fire from Gaza requires making three assumptions. Ignoring them or some of them will lead to erroneous decisions.

Ynet: "Dichter: Sderot is a battered and empty city"

'As I entered Sderot I saw desolated streets. People are shutting themselves in their houses,' he says

Ynet: "Olmert on Sderot: Anger is not an action plan"

"...residents' anger is 'understandable and natural, but what is needed is systematic and organized action over time."
"Israel must not fall into the trap that Hamas is laying for us and march into Gaza."
The Chairman of APN, Franklin Fisher, concurred, saying, "Congressman Lantos was a devoted supporter of Israel, a supporter of peace, and a committed American public servant."
Go HERE to see the Program as it appeared on C-SPAN Americans for Peace Now, the Foundation for Middle East Peace & Brit Tzedek V'Shalom presented this program held on Monday, February 11, 2008, 12:00-1:30 p.m., at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Washington, D.C. Breaking the Silence is an organization of Israeli soldiers whose mission is to give public witness to the impact of military service in the West Bank and Gaza on Israeli society. Through testimony and ...

Peace Now's "Alternative" Jerusalem Day

Q. ...a multinational force in the Gaza Strip. How feasible is this? Q. Is Moscow preparing to host a follow-up conference to Annapolis?

APN Mourns the Death of Congressman Tom Lantos

"Congressman Lantos was a devoted supporter of Israel, a supporter of peace, and a committed American public servant"
Leading experts provde perspectives on Israeli, Palestinian, Egyptian, U.S. and U.N. policy

Legislative Round-Up - February 8, 2008

I. FY09 Foreign Affairs Budget Request; II. Bills and Resolutions; III. APN Cosponsors Hill Event Feb. 12, 2008; IV. Obama on Lebanon

February 11, 2008 - Vol. 9, Issue 23

Letting Hamas Lead; Dead End; A Little Help From Our Friends; A Failed Policy; Crossing Lines; Good Fences

APN Op-Eds Drive Home Urgent Need for Negotiations

Washington Jewish Week: "Israel's military leaders have it right: Get out" & JTA: "Two-state solution key to avoiding Israel=apartheid
It's time for American Jews to not only confront the false charges that Israel practices "apartheid" but also to labor so that Israel does not face that fate.
The High Court of Justice is due on Wednesday to hold a hearing on a petition by Peace Now and Palestinian landowners demanding that the state dismantle the illegal outpost of Migron.
This exhibit features over 100 photographs and video testimonials, led by guided tours by former Israeli soldiers.
last week's Winograd Commission report documents the security toll that ruling over and policing an occupied hostile civilian population takes on the Israeli military.

"Clear Ambiguity" - Olmert, Settlements, & East Jerusalem

What to make of current Israeli policy regarding settlement construction?

On the one hand, we have Ehud Olmert's solemn commitment at Annapolis: No new settlements, no settlement expansion. And on that same hand, more or less (perhaps minus one or two fingers), we have the PM's explicit letter Of December 31, instructing the ministers of defense, housing and agriculture to refrain from authorizing any construction in the West Bank without his and Defense Minister Ehud Barak's prior approval. Specifically, "construction, new building, expansion, preparation of plans, publication of residency tenders and confiscation of land stemming from other settlement activities in the (West Bank) area will not go forward and will not be implemented without requesting and receiving in advance approval by the defense minister and the prime minister."

Clear, yes? Unambiguous, yes?

Q. How do you assess the Winograd commission final report issued on Wednesday, January 30?
Q. Israel has initiated a "civic service" as an alternative for ultra-orthodox & Arab youth rejected or exempted from the military. Is this working?
"It proves that there is no intention to evict them," said Hagit Ofran, who heads Peace Now's Settlement Watch.

February 4, 2008 - Vol. 9, Issue 22

Popularity Contest; Fixing the IDF; Bordering on Chaos

Ha'aretz: "Splitting the left"

Peace Now Leader Janet Aviad: "(Olmert's) speech at the Herzliya Conference was a Peace Now speech."
Yehuda Shaul, founder of Breaking the Silence will be speaking
Washington, D.C. program with Klein, a professor at Bar Ilan University, author, and peace activist

Ha'aretz Editorial: "Fall on the right sword"

If there is any realpolitik justification for Olmert's continued tenure, it lies in the faint hope that if the prime minister is already fated to fall, he will at least choose to fall on the sword of peace efforts rather than the sword of a failed war.