There is a story in the Talmud of a man who was walking along a road, and came upon an elderly man planting a carob tree. Seeing how old the gardener was, he asked him, "How long does this tree take to bear fruit?" The old man said, "70 years." The first man asked the gardener if he expected to live that long, and the man replied, "What I am planting, I am planting for my children, just as others planted for me."
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2014 starts with major promise for peace in the Middle East: An American outline of an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement, which Secretary of State John Kerry is reportedly discussing today with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.
If leaders on both sides seriously engage with Secretary Kerry's initiative, the countdown at Times Square could be the beginning of a countdown to an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement.
On December 30th, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni said, "The settlements are not part of Israel's security, they are hurting it."
APN and Peace Now in Israel need your help to continue the fight against settlements. Please support this work.
I recently joined APN's board as I feel strongly that this is a pivotal moment for the peace movement in Israel and for Israel's future. As we usher in 2014, we are halfway through the time allotted for this round of peace negotiations. Soon we will know if President Obama and Secretary Kerry were successful in getting Israeli and Palestinian negotiators to agree on the outlines for a future peace deal.
We at APN know a thing or two about Christmas. We know it is the holiday that celebrates peace, and as you know, "peace" is our middle name. On this Christmas day, Americans for Peace Now embraces our Christian supporters and sends them our warm wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, a year of peace and light.
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Last Friday, Peace Now hosted its annual Conference of the Israeli Progressive Peace Camp. The evening before the conference, my team and I were very concerned. The forecast predicted the worst storm in a century, and we were afraid not many people would brave the weather and attend. However, by 8:30 the next morning, hundreds of people had already arrived, surpassing even our most optimistic estimates. The large auditorium quickly filled, and we had to argue with the ushers to get more people inside the room. Despite the weather, we happily welcomed over 700 people and 70 speakers who had awakened early to travel through snow, rain and cold, to take their place with the peace camp.
The stakes are high. While many persist in comparing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to a schoolyard brawl, Israelis and Palestinians are struggling with matters of life and death. The question of the possibility of peace holds existential ramifications.
The broad strokes of a negotiated settlement between Israel and the Palestinians have been well known for decades - two states, Israel and Palestine, side by side, broadly based on the pre-1967 lines with agreed-upon land swaps. Israel's security needs will be addressed and anchored in a treaty and safeguarded by a powerful IDF.
There was pushing and shoving, physical confrontations, and cruel epithets directed at people like Yael Dayan, then a member of the Israeli Knesset and daughter of iconic Israeli leader Moshe Dayan. Also verbally abused were author Irving Howe, feminist leader Betty Friedan, and actor-activist Richard Dreyfus. The Los Angeles Times called it "a near riot."
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