My letter to the NYTimes RE Who Will Stand Up for the Christians? By Ronald S. Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress

NYTimes illustration for "Who Will Stand Up for the Christians?" by Edel Rodriguez

RE: Who Will Stand Up for the Christians?  By RONALD S. LAUDER, president of the World Jewish Congress
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/20/opinion/ronald-lauder-who-will-stand-up-for-the-christians.html?ref=opinion&_r=0

Dear Editor,

I appreciated Ronald S. Lauder's "Who Will Stand Up for the Christians?" Being for Palestine should not be all about ignoring or excusing Islamists crimes, nor should being for Palestine be all about automatically rejecting everything a pro-Israel Jewish leader says.  Furthermore Lauder is not the first concerned person, nor will he be the last, warning people that ISIL is a serious problem.  

Hussein Ibish of the American Task Force on Palestine has been writing many riveting articles warning about the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Ibish points out in a recent column Baghdadi Denial Syndrome that "One of the most alarming features of Arab responses to the rise of the Islamic State (IS) in Syria and Iraq is a persistent pattern of neurotic denial in the form of conspiracy theories and other escapist fantasies. But running away from the truth will only complicate the ability of Arab states and societies to comprehend where the IS came from, how it has unexpectedly managed to surge into so much power so quickly, and how it can be effectively countered."

I think it is obvious that stopping the Israel-Palestine conflict, once and for all, with a carefully negotiated fully secular two state solution based on true respect for international law and universal human rights, will provide reasonable people and good ideas the chance to help lead the Middle East away from escalating religious extremism, sectarian strife, and endless refugee crises. 

Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab

NOTES
George Galloway and Israeli embassy accused of creating 'disharmony'  "A Muslim community leader in Bradford has accused the local MP, George Galloway, and the Israeli embassy of creating "disharmony" in the city after they became embroiled in a public spat following Galloway's declaration of Bradford as an "Israel-free zone".... Zulfi Karim, secretary of the Bradford Council of Mosques "called on Galloway and Taub to stop using the city for their own political ends, saying: "This is to Mr Galloway and the ambassador: please do not bring your politics on to the streets of Bradford to create disharmony among our communities"."

The Real Middle East Crisis Is Economic "While Western observers focus on political issues in the Middle East, people in the region are themselves preoccupied with economic matters"

 STAY CONNECTED... Given the U.S. commitment to religious freedom, and to the international covenants that guarantee it as the inalienable right of every human being, the United States seeks to: Promote freedom of religion and conscience throughout the world as a fundamental human right and as a source of stability for all countries

Palestinian Refugees (1948-NOW) refused their right to return... and their right to live in peace free from religious bigotry and injustice.

NYTimes: Resisting Nazis, He Saw Need for Israel. Now He Is Its Critic.

Dean Obeidallah in The Daily Beast: Searching for a Palestinian Dr. King

There Are Clues

Where is the Palestinian Gandhi?

Zogby:  What we found was that there has been a continued erosion in the favorable ratings Americans have of both Arabs and Muslims, posing a threat to the civil rights and political inclusion of both Arab Americans and American Muslims.

"This is a time of national crisis, I will be honest with you, that does require commitment to non-violence of the kind that would give everyone the time needed to rebuild, to unify, but at the same time to agree with Israel and the world on a date certain for ending the occupation." Palestine's Salam Fayyad

ATFP Calls for De-Escalation between Israel and the Palestinians - See more at: http://www.americantaskforce.org/in_media/pr/2014/07/08/1404792000#sthash.591SYEYV.dpuf

ATFP Calls for De-Escalation between Israel and the Palestinians - See more at: http://www.americantaskforce.org/in_media/pr/2014/07/08/1404792000#sthash.591SYEYV.dpuf

ATFP Calls for De-Escalation between Israel and the Palestinians - See more at: http://www.americantaskforce.org/in_media/pr/2014/07/08/1404792000#sthash.591SYEYV.dpuf

ATFP Calls for De-Escalation between Israel and the Palestinians - See more at: http://www.americantaskforce.org/in_media/pr/2014/07/08/1404792000#sthash.591SYEYV.dpuf

ATFP Calls for De-Escalation between Israel and the Palestinians

UPDATE: American Task Force on Palestine Advocacy Efforts During the Ongoing Tragic Hostilities : As tragic and appalling hostilities erupted again between Israelis and Palestinians, the American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) engaged in intensive advocacy efforts to call for an immediate cease-fire to save lives and spare the innocent. On July 8th, ATFP issued a formal press release calling for de-escalation between Israel and the Palestinians...READ MORE

UNITED NATIONS: International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People 2014 

Normalizing Intelligent Conversations, Diplomatic Support, and Hope for Palestine: American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) Panel on Israeli-Palestinian War in a New Regional Landscape... & a firm call for an immediate ceasefire

To honor a tragic history, we must work for peace : "The only way to honor our tragic histories is to create a future for our children free of man-made tragedy. This means making peace fully, completely and without reservation, between Israel and Palestine." Ziad Asali

In Growing Gardens for Palestine... A poem Dedicated to Abu Yusuf

THE Arab Peace Initiative

Emanating from the conviction of the Arab countries that a military solution to the conflict will not achieve peace or provide security for the parties, the council:

1. Requests Israel to reconsider its policies and declare that a just peace is its strategic option as well.

2. Further calls upon Israel to affirm:

I- Full Israeli withdrawal from all the territories occupied since 1967, including the Syrian Golan Heights, to the June 4, 1967 lines as well as the remaining occupied Lebanese territories in the south of Lebanon.

II- Achievement of a just solution to the Palestinian refugee problem to be agreed upon in accordance with U.N. General Assembly Resolution 194.

III- The acceptance of the establishment of a sovereign independent Palestinian state on the Palestinian territories occupied since June 4, 1967 in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

3. Consequently, the Arab countries affirm the following:

I- Consider the Arab-Israeli conflict ended, and enter into a peace agreement with Israel, and provide security for all the states of the region.

II- Establish normal relations with Israel in the context of this comprehensive peace.

Side by Side: Parallel Histories of Israel-Palestine... "An eye-opening—and inspiring—new approach to thinking about one of the world’s most deeply entrenched conflicts"

"I have yet to meet a refugee who wanted to be a refugee and even less so, who wished to remain a refugee. Palestine refugees are no different. Their call for a just and lasting solution to their plight must be heard." UNWRA's Pierre Krähenbühl on World Refugee Day

America/Israel/Palestine 1776

America/Israel/Palestine 1948: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

The Golden Rule... Do unto others as you would have them do unto you