We Believe in Israel November Update

Dear Renaud, Since my last email I have been away in Israel leading our first ever delegation of local councillors and political activists on a study tour so that they have firsthand knowledge of Israel if confronted with boycott proposals or other local anti-Israel activity. You can read more about the visit in the JC here:http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/112784/councillors-shown-real-israel. I’m hoping that next year we will be able to take similar groups to Israel from each of the main political parties.   Now that I’m back, there are a number of events and issues I wanted to bring to your attention: Update on the Peace Process Israeli media reports suggest substantive issues, which are key to brokering a final status agreement; including Jerusalem and borders are being discussed at peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian Authority (PA) officials.   Representatives from both sides are thought to have met on at least fifteen occasions since peace talks resumed in July. Although few details of the negotiations have been made public, both Yediot Ahronot newspaper and Israel Radio news this morning claim Jerusalem and borders have been discussed.   Apparently, Israeli representatives have suggested that the West Bank security barrier should be the basis for borders of a future Palestinian state, with Beit El, Nokdim and Psagot connected to major settlement blocs which would remain in Israeli hands. Palestinian negotiators want to see the pre-1967 borders with some land swaps as the starting point for discussion. The reports claim that there was talk of establishing an area of Jerusalem “in which there would be open access to both sides”, the extent of this area was apparently a point of disagreement between Israel’s two lead negotiators Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and Yitzhak Molcho. However, the Justice Ministry would only say that “We cannot address the contents of the meetings” and clarified that “Minister Livni and Attorney Molcho work with full cooperation and coordination.” The Prime Minister’s Office claimed the Yediot Ahronot report was without basis.   Meanwhile, the Haaretz and Maariv newspapers both claim that US Secretary of State John Kerry is drafting a blueprint for a peace agreement if little progress is made in peace talks during the coming months. Haaretz says Kerry’s plan would be based on the Clinton parameters of 2000 which suggested a demilitarized Palestinian state in the West Bank, following land swaps in which major settlement blocs would remain under Israeli control. Kerry will arrive in Israel later today for separate talks with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and PA President Mahmoud Abbas. BICOM Briefing: Israeli Policy on the Negev Bedouin Anti-Israel organisations in the UK are devoting a lot of effort to campaigning on the issue of the Begin plan, an Israeli plan regarding the Negev Bedouin communities. This BICOM briefing issued today sets out the facts about Israeli policy regarding the Negev Bedouin: http://www.bicom.org.uk/analysis-article/17080/   If you prefer graphics, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs has produced this infographic: http://gallery.mailchimp.com/4f205ffabc02c1048c024eebe/files/BedouinInNegev.pdf Tom Segev at the London Jewish Cultural Centre: Hatred and Togetherness in Israeli Politics: The Case of David Ben-Gurion and Menachem Begin Sunday 10th November 2013, 8pm, £10 in advance (£12 on the door) Book online at www.ljcc.org.uk or call 020 8457 5000 Ivy House, 94-96 North End Road, London NW11 7SX   For decades David Ben-Gurion and Menachem Begin fought each other in a bitter and at times violent ideological and political conflict. And they hated each other. Ben-Gurion repeatedly compared Begin with Hitler; Begin compared Ben-Gurion with Stalin. Then, rather suddenly, it was all over. Begin asked Ben-Gurion to resume the office of PM, Ben-Gurion recounted that his late wife Paula had always liked Begin. Tom Segev will argue that their common belief in Zionism was stronger than their political, ideological and personal differences. Following over 30 years as a columnist for Haaretz, Israel’s most prestigious daily newspaper, Segev has recently retired to write a biography of Ben-Gurion. Segev is the author of several award winning books on the history of Israel, which have been published in 14 languages, including One Palestine Complete – Jews and Arabs under the British Mandate; 1967 – Israel, the War and the Year that Transformed the Middle East; and The Seventh Million – The Israelis and the Holocaust. Joint Event: SpiroArk with StandWithUs UK: Israel's Asylum Seekers - An International Perspective November 24 2013 in the evening at a Central London venue Registration: http://www.spiroark.org/events, or phone 0207 289 6321 no later than Wednesday November 20 £1 booking fee +£10 per person, £5 for students Details of time and venue will be sent to all those registered, the day after registration closes   This event will explore the challenges many countries face, in relation to asylum seekers, and review Israel’s societal and governmental responses, in an international context.  How do other countries respond? In what ways is Israel the same or different and why?     Speaker: Lucy Newman - presenting her research on the African Refugees in South Tel Aviv   Panel of experts: ·         Rony Yedidia- Clein, Director of Public Diplomacy at the Israeli Embassy in London ·         Rachel Zaltzman from René Cassin, a UK based human rights organisation that promotes and protects universal human rights, drawing on Jewish experience and values. ·         John Speyer, Director of Music for Detention, a UK charity that works with immigration detainees and local communities Best wishes, Luke Akehurst Director, We Believe in Israel