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February 26, 2008

Israel Office

• British Parliamentarian Urges Countries across Europe to Adopt NIF Campaign in Tackling Anti-Semitism in Soccer
• Social Change Profile: Amen Renawi Inspired by Everett Fellowship

Weekly Message

Washington is a foreign policy wonk’s dream. Interesting and well-informed visitors pass through the city regularly, appearing often as guest speakers at various think-tanks and in other settings. Occasionally, in addition to hearing them in a public forum, I have the opportunity to meet them in a more private setting.

This past week, Alon Liel visited Washington. Liel is a former senior Israeli diplomat, having served as Israeli Ambassador to Turkey and South Africa, and is a former Director-General of the Israeli Foreign Ministry. (Most important, albeit irrelevant to this message, is that he is married to Rachel Liel, familiar to most of our readers as the beloved Director of SHATIL). The purpose of Liel’s visit was to describe the series of secret meetings that occurred in Europe during the period of September 2004- July 2006 between himself and individuals representing the Syrian government.

Liel’s message, which has previously been reported in the media, is that his discussions with the Syrians were quite productive and resulted in a series of principles that could form the basis of an Israel-Syria peace treaty. (For more details, click here). As an experienced diplomat, Liel appreciates the challenges of translating these discussions into a lasting treaty. Within Israel, the idea of withdrawing from the Golan will require both political mobilization and astute political leadership; for this reason, Liel and several colleagues have formed a new Israeli NGO, the Israel-Syria Peace Society (www.is-peace.org), whose aim is “the renewal of peace negotiation between Israel and Syria that will culminate in an enduring peace agreement between the two nations.”

The biggest obstacle, however, lies neither in Damascus nor Jerusalem. The Bush Administration, seeking to isolate Syria, has discouraged the Israeli government from pursuing contacts, much less negotiations, with the current Syrian regime. Before sitting down with the Syrians, the Administration wants Syria to transform its relationships with Iran, Hezbelloh and Hamas. Syria believes these matters, as well as other issues relating to an on-going UN investigation into Syrian responsibility for the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Hariri, should be part of the agenda for discussions involving the US, Israel and Syria.

The failure to break this logjam represents a specific example of why so many who care about the future of the Middle East are so exasperated by this Administration’s policies, even as the Administration has seemingly adopted a more proactive role with respect to the Palestinians. And, this leads to the tales told by another recent Washington visitor, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.

In various public presentations, Fayyad described his post-Annapolis and post-Bush Middle East visit frustrations with both the Israelis and the United States (for a transcript of one of Fayyad’s Washington presentations, click here). Fayyad expressed appreciation for the positive reception he received from Israeli and US officials, including President Bush. Nonetheless, he is looking for the US to play a proactive role in ensuring that both sides live up to their road map commitments, as the President promised.

Fayyad maintains that the Palestinians have made significant progress on security and governance reforms in the West Bank, and is certainly willing to subject his efforts to external monitoring. [For an excellent analysis of the current state of play within the Palestinian Authority, see Nathan Brown’s recent monograph, The Road Out of Gaza.] However, Fayyad desperately needs Israel to fulfill commitments regarding the following matters: freezing settlements; easing of restrictions on movement in the West Bank through the elimination of unnecessary checkpoints; release of prisoners not convicted of crimes and not posing an immediate threat; and improve the quality of life among Palestinians. Despite the President’s and Secretary RIce’s travel plans, Fayyad fears that the Palestinian issue is no longer a Washington priority.

Unlike many of my friends in Washington, I have long believed that peace between Israel and its neighbors requires bold leadership among the countries in the region. The US can and should play an important facilitative and, at times, mediating role, but the initiatives must come from the region. However, even with such a perspective, it is disappointing to hear that US is blocking in the case of Syria potential opportunities to transform the region and is failing to act resolutely in the case of Palestine despite the bold rhetoric. Hopefully, a new administration, Republican or Democrat, will see things differently.

In this week’s NIF News, we feature a new report on anti-Semitism in European soccer, which praises NIF’s campaign to combat racism in soccer as “good practice.” John Mann, the British MP who co-authored the report, recommends that countries across Europe adopt NIF’s campaign in order to decrease anti-Semitism and racism in soccer. SHATIL highlights Amen Renawi, an Everett Fellowship alum.