Brit Tzedek v'Shalom
Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace
Action Alert
Action Alert – Completed 8/8/03
[POSTED: August 3rd, 2003]
Road Map Blocked by "Security Wall" and Settlement Construction
PLEASE ACT NOW: Fax or call President Bush and Secretary of State Powell by Friday, August 8th, urging them to insist that Prime Minister Sharon stop construction of the Security Wall on West Bank territory and immediately freeze all settlement expansion.
Dear Brit Tzedek members and supporters,
We echo and support President Bush's concerns regarding the so-called "Security Wall/Fence," and Israel's plans for new construction inside settlements on the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli government continues to construct this wall, which threatens the collapse of the Road Map in the near term. The implications of this wall in unilaterally redrawing the borders of Israel, and in further curtailing Palestinian freedom of movement within the West Bank, harm the credibility of Israeli intentions to pursue the Road Map to Peace.
The "wall," as so far constructed, extends beyond the Green Line (the 1949 internationally-recognized border of Israel). Thus far only 1/3 constructed, it cuts off 12,000 Palestinians in 15 villages from the remainder of the West Bank, thus dangerously limiting their access to social and medical services, and even to their own farmlands.
Particularly disturbing is the fact that the wall entirely surrounds the city of Qalqilia, with over 40,000 inhabitants. According to the New York Times, on the western side of the city there is now a 25-foot high concrete wall, while the other three sides of the city are fenced in with barbed wire and deep trenches. There is only a single opening for passage into and out of Qalqilia, in the form of an armed checkpoint that is most often closed. This development in Qalqilia is particularly disturbing in that it may be the first of a series of Palestinian enclaves on the West Bank that the Israeli government would like to see as constituting the interim Palestinian state.
In a June 3 press conference, Secretary of State Powell said that a future Palestinian state "can't be chopped in so many ways in some form of Bantustan. ... it would not really be as an honest effort to provide a state for the Palestinian people."
The stated purpose for building the Security Wall is to protect Israeli citizens. However, the current rerouting of the Wall beyond the Green Line into the West Bank, by poisoning the peace process, will actually make Israelis more unsafe.
We are also concerned about Israel's announced construction of new housing units in the Gaza Strip, a direct violation of the Road Map. We must support the vehement objection by the U.S. State Department to this new settlement expansion. The Road Map agreed to by Israel calls for a complete settlement freeze, including "natural growth."
We urge you to write to President Bush and Secretary of State Powell supporting their call for an immediate halt to construction of the Wall beyond Israel's Green Line borders, and for an immediate and complete settlement freeze.
A sample letter for faxing and talking points for a telephone call can be found below; the contact numbers are also provided below. (Please note: due to a change in White House email policy, emailing is currently not effective as a means of communication for action alerts.)
We also ask you to circulate this Action Alert as widely as possible--please send it to your family, friends, and colleagues, and repost it to any relevant listservs. President Bush must know that this is an issue among American Jews.
Please let us know that you have responded to this action alert by sending us an email at advocacy@btvshalom.org so that we can gauge the impact of our action alerts.
L'Shalom,
Diane Balser and Steve Masters
Chair and Co-Chair of the Advocacy/Public Policy Committee
Suggested Talking Points for Phone Call
White House Comment Line: 202-456-1111
State Department Bureau of Public Affairs Comment Line: 202-647-6575
- You are a Jewish American.
- You share President Bush's concern about the continued construction of the so-called Security Wall by the Israeli government beyond Israel's Green Line borders, and about new construction within the settlements despite this being in direct violation of the Road Map.
- You ask the President to insist that the Israeli government immediately halt construction of the Wall beyond the Green Line and completely halt all construction and expansion of settlements in the Occupied Territories.
- You believe that this is in the best interests of Israel, in the best interests of peace, and therefore also in the best interests of the United States.
Sample Fax Message
Below is a brief sample message you can send; feel free and encouraged to personalize it.
| President George W. Bush The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 Fax: 202-456-6218 (Office of Public Liaison) |
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Mr. President: As a Jewish American, I very much support your efforts to date to bring an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the Road Map. I share your concern that the Israeli government's continued construction of the Security Wall beyond Israel's Green Line borders is harmful to the peace process, and that its continuing construction in West Bank and Gaza Strip settlements is in direct violation of the Road Map. I respectfully request that you insist that the Israeli government immediately halt construction of the Wall beyond the Green Line and all construction in its settlements, in accordance with the Road Map. Your continued leadership towards finding a peaceful resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the Road Map process is vital. If the Road Map fails, this will be a tragedy for both the Israeli and Palestinian peoples. sincerely, [SIGN YOUR NAME] cc: Secretary of State Colin Powell U.S. Department of State 2201 C Street NW Washington, DC 20520 Fax: 202-261-8577 |
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Background
Information on the "wall" can be found at the Israeli web sites of B'Tselem and Gush Shalom:
www.btselem.org
www.gush-shalom.org
www.gush-shalom.org
Resources on the Road Map can be found on the Brit Tzedek v'Shalom website:
www.btvshalom/resources/road_map
To read and sign Brit Tzedek v'Shalom's Call to Bring the Settlers Home to Israel:
www.bringthemhome.btvshalom.org