Washington, DC - Americans for Peace Now (APN) urges the leaders of Israel and the Palestinians to focus on peacemaking rather than on point scoring, and urges world leaders to help broker Israeli-Palestinian peace. 

As hostilities flare up in the West Bank today, APN expresses deep concern over a possible escalation and calls on Israelis and Palestinians to avoid violence. APN calls on Palestinians to use nonviolent means to express their grievances, and urges Israel to exercise restraint.

Washington, DC - Americans for Peace Now (APN) reacted with disappointment to President Obama's speech today at the United Nations General Assembly. APN President and CEO Debra DeLee commented:

"Today President Obama offered the world strong American support for the right of people across the Middle East to freedom, democracy, self-determination, security and economic opportunity. His words reflect core American values and offer hope and encouragement to millions. Regrettably, the President's words offered very little in the way of hope to Israelis and Palestinians."

Washington, DC - Americans for Peace Now (APN) today sharply criticized a reprehensible full-page ad, published in the New York Times, lambasting President Obama's record on Israel. 

The ad, published by an organization headed by Weekly Standard editor William Kristol and Christian conservative Gary Bauer, a former presidential candidate, is headlined "Tell President Obama: Enough. It's time to stand with Israel." Among other things, the ad appallingly states that the President "has pressured Israel to apologize to terrorists." 

Washington, DC - In the context of the approaching start of the United Nations General Assembly session, APN President and CEO Debra DeLee today issued the following statement:

 

"It has long been known that come September, there could be a major crisis at the UN over the issue of Palestine.  Unfortunately, that knowledge hasn't yet translated into serious efforts to avert the impending crisis.  Instead, while settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem continue to expand, efforts over the past months have focused exclusively on pushing the Palestinians to return to a negotiating process that long ago lost all credibility. 

Washington, DC - Americans for Peace Now (APN) is alarmed by the crisis in Israel's relations with Egypt and by the deep deterioration in Israel's relations with Turkey.

 

APN is calling on the Obama administration to persist and redouble its efforts to address these crises, and to take action to prevent further deterioration in Israel's regional and international relations  caused by the Palestinian diplomatic initiative in the United Nations.