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NIF News October 26, 2008

Israel Office

• NIF Weighs In on Akko Riots
• Jerusalem High-Rise Towers Scrapped After Greens Protest

SHATIL

• SHATIL Disabilities Trainings Result in Society-Changing Initiatives

Weekly Message

Between the Jewish holidays and the preoccupation with the US Presidential election, we have not had the opportunity to provide updates on several significant developments.  In Israel, the most recent headline involves the failure of Kadima party leader Tzipi Livni to form a new government.   New elections will now be scheduled, probably in mid- to late February.  Prime Minister Olmert, who tendered his resignation amidst several corruption investigations, will remain in office until a new government is formed.

We will soon mark the one-year anniversary of the Annapolis conference convened by President Bush to revive Palestinian-Israeli peace talks.  Despite frequent visits to the region by Secretary Rice, the prospects of an agreement emerging in the last few weeks of the Bush presidency are unlikely.  The question is whether the discussions that have been underway now for almost a year provide a positive jumping off point when a new US administration is installed, a new Israeli government is formed and the Palestinians have addressed their internal divides.

Despite the caretaker nature of the current Israeli government, many important issues remain on the Israeli political agenda, including several where NIF is directly engaged.  The outbreak of violence in the Northern Israeli city of Akko during and after Yom Kippur reminded Israelis of the fragility of relations between Jews and Arabs in the mixed cities of Israel.   The shattering of the prevailing, albeit uneasy, calm resulted in the burning of Arab homes and the vandalizing of Jewish businesses.  Fortunately, no one was killed as a result of the violence and, for the most part, the national leaders acted responsibly in calling for calm and avoiding an escalation.

The tensions, however, remain.  Consequently, NIF is urging the Olmert Government  to initiate immediately a “national project to strengthen joint living in the mixed cities.”   This national project would build upon NIF/SHATIL’s efforts, through the Mixed Cities project established in 2003, to promote equality in the areas of housing, infrastructure and planning for the Arab population living in Jaffa, Ramle, Lod, Haifa and Akko.

The other major headline issue, in Israel and around the world, concerns the unprecedented economic meltdown that began in the United States.   We do not yet know the full dimensions of this crisis, but from our perch as the lead funder of many Israeli social change organizations we are worried about the consequences on the many organizations that rely on philanthropy to sustain their operations and programs.   To minimize the impact, NIF/SHATIL will launch a new initiative to assist civil society organizations who are in danger of going out of business.

In these challenging times, we also call upon our supporters to renew your contribution quickly and, if you are in a position to do so, make an additional gift to make up for some of the contributions we anticipate not receiving this year.  The stakes are high and Israel cannot afford backsliding during this transition period.  At a time of both hope and danger for the cohesion and progress of Israel society, the work of the New Israel Fund has never been more necessary.