J Street launches campaign in support of tough U.S. stand on Israel

[Cees Binkhorst]

REPLY TO: D66 at nic.surfnet.nl

Het is belangrijk om te weten dat niet alle Amerikaanse mensen van
Joodse afkomst het eens zijn met het beleid van de Israelische én
Amerikaanse regering ten opzichte van de Palestijnen, Gaza en de West-Oever.

Groet / Cees

J Street launches campaign in support of tough U.S. stand on Israel
[ 18 Mar 2010 01:51 ]
http://en.apa.az/news.php?id=118182

Baku – APA. J Street has launched a campaign in support of Washington’s
firm stance on Israel’s latest approved building plan in East Jerusalem,
the dovish U.S. pro-Israel lobby announced on Tuesday, APA reports
quoting haaretz.com web-page.

Israel’s announcement of plans to build 1,600 housing units in East
Jerusalem strained ties with the U.S., which has said it regarded last
week’s decision - made public while U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was in
Israel - as an insult.

Recent U.S.-Israel tensions were used by "hawkish pro-Israel activists,"
according to the announcement posted on J Street’s website, "to attack
the Obama Administration over Israel, urging the Administration to slow
down and back off."
In response to this, the left-leaning lobby said, "the pro-Israel,
pro-peace movement is stepping up strong."

"Earlier this week, J Street leadership delivered over 18,000 signatures
to White House officials demonstrating that large numbers of pro-Israel,
pro-peace Americans agree with the Vice President when he says
’sometimes only a friend can deliver the hardest truth,’ and urging the
Administration to turn this crisis into an opportunity for progress on
two states," the group’s announcement said.

The statement added that "the Obama Administration can turn this crisis
into an opportunity to tackle a core issue at the heart of the conflict
between Israel and the Palestinians - the need to establish a border
between Israel and the future Palestinian state."

"Too much time has already been lost in getting the two sides into
negotiations," J Street said, adding: "We cannot let any single
provocative Israeli announcement of construction in East Jerusalem, no
matter how infuriating, delay progress towards a two-state solution.
Bold American leadership is needed now to turn this crisis into a real
opportunity to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

On Monday, the leftist pro-Israel group released a statement Monday
supporting the Obama administration’s statements in the wake of Israel’s
approval of 1,600 new East Jerusalem housing units.

"Bold American leadership is needed now to turn this crisis into a real
opportunity to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which is a
fundamental American national security interest," he said.

Abraham Foxman, who heads the Anti-Defamation League, told Haaretz,
however, that he believed U.S. President Barack Obama was a friend of
Israel.

"But I think it’s a mistaken and counterproductive strategy and flawed
analysis of what is in the best interest of the U.S.," Foxman said.
"Support of Israel has served the U.S. interests more than supporting
anyone else in the world.

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