Volume 11, Issue 3
Washington, D.C - Americans for Peace Now (APN) praised President
Obama's comments regarding Iran's construction of a covert uranium
enrichment facility near the city of Qum.
1. Bills and Resolutions
2. More Criticism of the Goldstone Report (and the UN in General)
3. On the Record - Republican Reps Suggest that Obama Missile Defense Decision Will Leave Israel No Choice but to Attack Iran
4. On the Record - Rep. Gohmert (R-TX) argues that if the US gets Utah (etc), Israel gets West Bank
Today's top story is of course the news about Iran. The bad news is that Iran's nuclear program clearly is continuing apace, with all of the threats that program poses to US national security interests and, of course, to Israel. The good news is that where in the past this development would have elicited a predictably one-dimensional response from the US -- outrage, denunciations, threats, saber-rattling, and statements that "Iran knows what it has to do, or else," (and perhaps even a rush to rash military action) -- President Obama has adopted a different course. President Obama today is sending a message to Iran -- and to the Iranian people -- that this issue must be resolved, and that there is before them a real and credible opportunity to resolve it through negotiations and engagement. To be sure, President Obama is not taking any options off the table, but by emphasizing the potential for engagement rather than for confrontation, he is adopting what APN has long argued is the most effective strategy for actually resolving the nuclear issue.
President Obama's statement, along with those of President Sarkozy and Prime Minister Brown, is as follows:
"Peace Now claims that the entire outpost is built on private Palestinian land"
JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST
Touring the Netiv Ha'avot outpost in Gush Etzion along with other members of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Wednesday, MK Yuli Tamir (Labor) confronted the settlers and reprimanded them for what she said was their illegal presence at the site.
After Obama calls to 'restrain' settlement activity, Ynet learns defense minister authorized additional construction in Karnei Shomron. Peace Now: Barak has become settlers' contractor
by Efrat Weiss
Defense Minister Ehud Barak has authorized the construction of 37 additional housing units in the West Bank settlement of Karnei Shomron, Ynet learned on Wednesday.
THE WHITE HOUSE - Office of the Press Secretary
______________________________________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 23, 2009
Remarks of President Barack Obama - As Prepared for Delivery
"Responsibility for our Common Future" - Address to the United Nations General Assembly September 23, 2009
Mr. President, Mr. Secretary-General, fellow delegates, ladies and gentleman: it is my honor to address you for the first time as the forty-fourth President of the United States. I come before you humbled by the responsibility that the American people have placed upon me; mindful of the enormous challenges of our moment in history; and determined to act boldly and collectively on behalf of justice and prosperity at home and abroad.
I have been in office for just nine months, though some days it seems a lot longer. I am well aware of the expectations that accompany my presidency around the world. These expectations are not about me. Rather, they are rooted - I believe - in a discontent with a status quo that has allowed us to be increasingly defined by our differences, and outpaced by our problems. But they are also rooted in hope - the hope that real change is possible, and the hope that America will be a leader in bringing about such change.
**September 22, 2009** - _Ha'aretz_'s Chief Political Columnist compares Obama's trilateral peace summit to the challenges that President George W. Bush faced in 1992. He notes the urgency for meaningful progress to ensure Israel's future.
Listen to the audio
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
September 22, 2009
PRESS BRIEFING BY
U.N. SPECIAL ENVOY FOR MIDDLE EAST PEACE GEORGE MITCHELL,
ON THE PRESIDENT'S TRILATERAL MEETING
WITH PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU OF ISRAEL
AND PRESIDENT ABBAS OF THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY
Press Filing Center
Waldorf Astoria
New York, New York
2:24 P.M. EDT
MR. GIBBS: Good afternoon. Sorry we're running a little bit late today. We will do a statement from, and take some questions -- our Special Envoy for Middle East Peace, former Senator George Mitchell.
SENATOR MITCHELL: Thank you, Robert. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I'll make a brief statement, and then I'll be pleased to respond to your questions.
The President had direct and constructive meetings with both Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas, and then he held his first trilateral meeting with the two leaders. As the President said, this was an important moment. Let me first give you some brief details.
Each of the three meetings was about 40 minutes long. The tone was positive and determined. The President made clear his commitment to moving forward, and the leaders shared their commitment. In the meetings with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas, the President was joined by Secretary Clinton, General Jones, Tom Donilon and myself. For the trilateral meeting, the President was joined by Secretary Clinton, General Jones and myself.
The Chief Political Columnist for Ha'aretz discusses the impending "trilateral" meeting with President Obama, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and President Abbas, scheduled for New York on Wednesday, September 23.
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release September 22, 2009
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT BEGINNING OF TRILATERAL MEETING
WITH ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU AND
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY PRESIDENT ABBAS
Waldorf Astoria Hotel
New York, New York
12:26 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Please be seated, members of the delegations.
I have just concluded frank and productive bilateral meetings with both Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas. And I want to thank them both for appearing here today. I am now looking forward to this opportunity to hold the first meeting among the three of us since we took office.
As I said throughout my campaign and at the beginning of my administration, the United States is committed to a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in the Middle East. That includes a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that results in two states, Israel and Palestine, in which both the Israeli people and the Palestinian people can live in peace and security and realize their aspirations for a better life for their children.
That is why my Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and my Special Envoy George Mitchell have worked tirelessly to create the context for permanent status negotiations. And we have made progress since I took office in January and since Israelis -- Israel's government took office in April. But we still have much further to go.
APN's president and CEO Debra DeLee today joined a group of American Jewish, Christian and Muslim community leaders who signed an open letter supporting President Obama's Middle East policy.
Here is the full text:
Letter in Support of a Comprehensive Middle East Peace:
An American National Interest Imperative
We come from varied ethnic backgrounds and religious faiths that are diverse. We are Democrats and Republicans. We are veterans of war and of the struggle for peace. Together, we are all Americans.
"It's not normal or natural growth, it's a dramatic expansion for a new kind of population," says Hagit Ofran, of the Israeli group Peace Now, which campaigns against settlements.
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As Israeli, Palestinian and US leaders meet again in the long-running saga of Middle East peace talks, the BBC's Martin Asser examines one of the thorniest issues on the agenda. In the first of two articles, he visits an Israeli settlement in the West Bank undergoing a major expansion.
A
Three-Way Summit; Call My Bluff; Hoping
for a Diplomatic Solution; Peres
and the Russian Deal; Checkpoint
Removal; Unfriendly
Fire
"The difference is in using a magnifying glass to look at this situation in a more detailed, nuanced, studied fashion," said APN spokesman Ori Nir of the group's Iran policy
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HILARY LEILA KRIEGER, jpost correspondent in Washington
When Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad enters the United Nations to give his General Assembly address in New York this week, he will face an unprecedented coalition of Jewish, Iranian, labor, African-American and other activists demonstrating against his regime.
By Kevin Peraino | NEWSWEEK
From the magazine issue dated Sep 28, 2009
Washington and Jerusalem look closer today to a deal on freezing Israel's West Bank settlement construction than they've been in years. Last week, George Mitchell, the U.S. envoy, suggested that an agreement was imminent, and most observers expect at least a nine-month hiatus to start soon. Even the Israeli government's recent decision to approve 455 new housing units may be a sign that it knows a deal is coming and wants to get a few more buildings in before the deadline.
The Days of Awe have not yet started, but I am already repenting. I regret that I will not spend Rosh Hashana with my parents in Jerusalem and that I will probably not have a chance to cook the traditional dishes for the Rosh Hashana "blessings." It's a charming (and delicious) Sephardi tradition. Before the festive holiday meal, Sephardi families serve a collection of appetizers, tapas of sorts, and bless over each one.
APN's CEO and President Debra DeLee said that "now is the time to look for ways to signal positive U.S. support for the Iranian people, not to create suffering in order to use that suffering as a weapon against the Iranian leadership."
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By Nathan Guttman
Washington -- As world leaders converge on New York for the annual opening of the United Nations' new session, advocates and Jewish groups are seeking to broaden the coalition that has in years past protested the Tehran regime to include many additional groups that share grievances against Iran.
To readers of the Round-Up, wishing you a Shana Tova -- Happy New Year.
May this year be a year of peace.
Read this week's Round-up for information on:
1. New Bills and Resolutions
2. Early Reactions to Goldstone Report
APN serves as a resource for many in the media. Journalists
know that we and our friends at Israel's
Peace Now movement are the experts on West Bank
settlements.
Earlier this summer, Newsweek asked us to help construct a
map of the settlements and outposts, and attach a short glossary of
settlements-related terminology.
The result is on page 14 of this week's Newsweek. Check it
out.
Key lawyer working on behalf of Peace Now named one of the "Israelis of the year"
by Dan Izenberg , THE JERUSALEM POST
On a recent roots trip to Poland, from where his parents immigrated in 1968, Michael Sfard found a lithograph which summed up in one picture what his professional life as a human rights lawyer is all about."Crippling sanctions" could give "the Iranian authorities a pretext to discredit and further persecute critics and protesters," APN warned, "and make the lives of the Iranian people more difficult."
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Day of unity yields lawmakers' pledges on Iran sanction
by Robert Wiener, NJJN Staff Writer
Local Jewish leaders joined an intense lobbying effort in Washington last week, joining some 300 colleagues in winning bipartisan congressional support for strengthening sanctions against Iran.
"...Americans of Peace Now (has) criticized the sanctions strategy, saying it would undermine the Obama administration's diplomatic efforts."
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By Eric Fingerhut ยท September 15, 2009
WASHINGTON (JTA) -- As they prepare to protest the appearance of Iran's president at the United Nations General Assembly, Jewish groups are working to decipher the impact of the Obama administration's decision to hold talks with the Islamic Republic.
Unless something happens soon, Israelis, Palestinians and other Arabs may squander the best chance for Middle East peace in nearly a decade. President Obama is committed to serious negotiations and, for now, there is a lull in regional violence. But all of the region's major players are refusing to do what is needed to keep their own people safe and move the peace process forward.
The Israeli Peace Now movement today released the three finalists from its video competition. These videos were made by Peace Now activists.
Volume 11, Issue 1
When Will Israeli-Palestinian Talks Renew?; The Fierce Urgency of Peace; Settler Campaign Falls Flat; Who is a Sucker?; What to Make of the Iranian Proposal?; Did Netanyahu Agree to Withdraw from the Golan Heights?
Alpher responds to question on where the broader Obama plan for the Middle East stands, and the level of unrest anticipated if West Bank Settlers are evacuated.
Americans for Peace Now joins the Ramon family and the state of Israel in mourning the death of Assaf Ramon, an IDF fighter pilot and the son of Israel's first Astronaut and decorated fighter pilot, Ilan Ramon, who was killed in 2003 aboard the Columbia Space Shuttle.
Captain Assaf Ramon was killed yesterday when an F-16 fighter-jet he was piloting crashed during training.
"This is a terrible tragedy for the Ramon family and for Israelis who followed with pride and awe as Assaf followed in his father's footsteps," said Debra DeLee, APN's president and CEO. "We salute the memory of Ilan and Assaf Ramon," DeLee said.
APN takes this opportunity to wish all Israelis and their neighbors a year with no sorrow, a year of emerging peace.
To Israel's Muslim citizens and to Muslims across the region, APN wishes a peaceful Id al-Fitr. May this holiday mark new beginnings of peace, security and stability for the Middle East.
Items for the week ending
September 11, 2009:
1. Iran-Sanctions Lobby Effort on the Hill
2. APN on Iran Lobby Effort and Policy
3. Another Shameless Plug for the APN blog (post on Iranian response to invitation to talks)
Americans for Peace Now (APN), for instance, issued a statement
arguing that "arbitrary deadlines are a mistake" and that "pursuing
sanctions that target the Iranian people, rather than their leaders, is
a morally and strategically perilous path that the Obama Administration
must reject".
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by Daniel Luban and Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON, Sep 11 (IPS) - As nuclear negotiations between Iran and the West continue to move slowly, U.S. President Barack Obama is coming under growing pressure from what appears to be a concerted lobbying and media campaign urging him to act more aggressively to stop Iran's nuclear programme.
President George W. Bush adopted a strategy toward Iran based on trying to threaten, browbeat and sanction Iran into submission. This strategy failed to stop Iran's nuclear program or end its reckless meddling in the region.
President Barack Obama came to office promising to change course and engage Iran. He was right. Serious, sustained, direct U.S. engagement with Iran is now needed to address the full range of issues on the U.S.-Iran agenda.
Unfortunately, many are now calling for a deadline to end engagement efforts and new "crippling sanctions" that target the Iranian people.
In the video below, APN's Lara Friedman and Ori Nir clarify these issues.
Click here to write Congress. Ask them to support Obama's approach to Iran.
We look forward to your questions and comments.
APN President and CEO Debra DeLee: "...additional sanctions aimed squarely at the ruling regime and its members may make sense, but that the US must not make the mistake of pursuing sanctions that target the Iranian people - like the 'crippling' sanctions currently under consideration."
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HILARY LEILA KRIEGER, jpost correspondent in washington , THE JERUSALEM POST
Several hundred Jewish leaders and activists are planning to arrive here Thursday to urge top Obama administration officials and US congressmen to take action on Iran.
Did Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, during his first term
as prime minister in the late 1990s, agree to a full Israeli withdrawal from
the Golan Heights in exchange for a peace agreement with
Some, who were involved in the secret communications between
Netanyahu and Hafez al-Assad, who was then the president of
"Protesters from Peace Now and the right-wing Hatikva party demonstrated outside the event. Peace Now activists handed out ice pops to celebrate the settlement freeze."
by Gil Hoffman , THE JERUSALEM POST
Washington, D.C - Americans for Peace Now (APN) today released new policy language that opposes efforts by many Jewish organizations to promote new sanctions to "cripple" Iran's economy as well as a mid-September deadline on US engagement
For those who believe in Mideast peace, Iran remains an issue of central importance, and our policy on Iran represents the only effective approach for dealing with Iran - one that looks soberly at the current situation and offers the most pragmatic, constructive, and effective way forward.
JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Hundreds of activists attended a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony for a new neighborhood connecting the West Bank city of Maaleh Adumim with Jerusalem.
A government minister from each of the Likud, Yisrael Beiteinu and Habayit Hayehudi parties attended Monday's ceremony in the controversial E-1 area, the Jerusalem Post reported.
Hundreds of people, including ministers, MKs and Yesha Council heads attend symbolic groundbreaking ceremony for 'Mevaseret Adumim' neighborhood in disputed area outside Jerusalem. 'We won't be the world's sucker anymore,' Deputy Minister Porush says, 'This is our answer to international pressure on settlements'
Aides to Binyamin Netanyahu told the media on September 3rd that the Israeli prime minister will approve building hundreds of new homes in West Bank settlements before he considers a settlement freeze. Early the next day, the White House issued a stern message telling Bibi that he cannot have the cake and eat it too.Earlier this summer, I had a thorny exchange with Zalman Shoval, a political advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and formerly Israel's ambassador to Washington.
The founder of APN, professor of history at Queens College and its Director of the Jewish Studies Program, penned a letter for the upcoming Jewish New Year about redicating ourselves to the cause of APN, which begins:
All of us who believe in Israel and in peace wonder sometimes if enough progress is being made toward our goals. There has been progress, and friends of Americans for Peace Now can take a lot of the credit.
