Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC)
One-sided UN Resolution Harms Prospects for Peace
Late last Friday afternoon, we were deeply disappointed to learn about the U.S. abstention at the UN Security Council that allowed an anti-Israel resolution to pass. Immediately following the news, the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) along with many other national advocacy organizations released statements criticizing the abstension. The JFNA statement can be read here. Over the days that followed, the JCRC executive committee engaged in conversations about the issue and whether or not to speak up on this issue. After some consideration, we determined that based on our commitment to ensuring the safety and security of Israel and our continued commitment to the idea of a two-state solution, we felt that we could not remain silent. While the resolution has been framed as anti-settlement, our real concern is that the resolution might create a barrier to future peace negotiations. Therefore, in consultation with national partners, the executive committee worked to craft a statement which was then shared with the JCRC board. With engagement from the diverse and well-informed board, a consensus was reached to release the statement below. In addition to this statement being shared with our community, we will also send it to our elected officials to clarify our support for a negotiated two-state solution.
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Cincinnati
One-sided UN Resolution Harms Prospects for Peace
The Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati is deeply disappointed by the Obama Administration’s decision to abstain from voting on a resolution at the United Nations Security Council, which allowed a blatantly one-sided anti-Israel resolution to pass. This resolution will be difficult to undo by any future U.S. administration and could create a barrier to bringing Palestinians and Israelis together for meaningful peace negotiations.
This resolution, originally circulated by Egypt, and then introduced by New Zealand, Malaysia, Venezuela, and Senegal, is one-sided and erroneously lays a majority of the blame for the present impasse in the peace process on Israeli settlements without holding the Palestinians directly accountable for how their refusal to come to the table and the extreme violence and incitement perpetrated against Israeli civilians over the past decade has contributed to the current reality.
During past peace talks in 2000-01 and again in 2008, Israel offered to withdraw from significant portions of the West Bank, with a land swap for the small part that would be retained, only to be rebuffed by the Palestinian leadership.
Additionally, the resolution treats all Jewish Israeli presence east of the 1967 border, including in and around Judaism’s holiest sites in East Jerusalem, on equal terms, making the resolution impractical and narrowing the scope of future peace negotiations. This has significant meaning for the Jewish people, as there has been a continuous presence of Jewish residents in Jerusalem from King David’s time (except for the periods when Jews were barred from living in the city). The most recent exile from East Jerusalem came in 1948 when it was controlled by the Jordanian Army and Jews were unable to step foot there again until Israel prevailed in the 1967 defensive war.
For years, the JCRC has stated its unwavering commitment to a two-state solution. Our values statement says that “we are hopeful that eventually there will be two states between the Mediterranean Sea and Jordan River living side-by-side in peace, one Jewish and democratic and the other Palestinian Arab and democratic. While others can assist, this must be directly negotiated by representatives of the two peoples.” The United States has also stood firmly by this principle, asserting that unilateral moves will not bring peace. This abstention at the UN marks a departure from that principle for the first time since the Oslo Accords.
In 2005, Israel learned firsthand that unilateral moves will not create peace when they unilaterally pulled out of the Gaza strip by evacuating 8,000 Israelis, with the hope of peace and security. While Israel left the 21 settlements intact for the Palestinians living in the Gaza strip, they were immediately dismantled. With a leadership vacuum, Hamas came to power, and now Palestinians living in the Gaza strip are isolated and experience horrific poverty, while Hamas has waged terror against Israel, firing 11,000 rockets aimed at civilian centers.
The United Nations has been known for double standards on Israel and has a record of anti-Israel resolutions. Just days ago, outgoing Secretary General of the UN Ban Ki-moon, decried the UN’s obsession with anti-Israel resolutions. Ban stated that “decades of political maneuverings have created a disproportionate volume of resolutions, reports and conferences criticizing Israel. In many cases, rather than helping the Palestinian cause, this reality has hampered the ability of the UN to fulfill its role effectively.” The JCRC believes this imposition of a double standard on the world’s only Jewish nation-state is a form of antisemitism, and should be opposed and rejected.
The Obama administration ignored the advice of 88 members of the U.S. Senate who urged the President in September to reject such resolutions. The JCRC urges its representatives and senators to continue speaking up against these types of one-sided anti-Israel resolutions and not allow this to become future U.S. policy. For decades, there has been a bipartisan consensus that a strong U.S.-Israel relationship is mutually beneficial. We call on current and future lawmakers to work together to maintain this mutually beneficial relationship with our strongest and most reliable ally in the volatile Middle East.
The JCRC is committed to standing with Israel when it is singularly attacked unfairly and fight all those who seek to delegitimize Israel, at the United Nations and through the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) Movement or by any other way.
The JCRC welcomes 2017 as it brings us new opportunities to advocate for Israel’s security, dignity, and to right to exist, and to move toward achieving the goal of a two-state solution through which both the Jewish and Palestinian people can prosper and live in peace.
About the JCRC
The Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) is the arm of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati that focuses on public affairs and community relations. Its mission is to protect Jewish security, recognizing that Jewish security depends on a just society for all. To achieve this mission, it works on a broad range of local, national and international issues, concentrating its efforts in three principal areas: Community & Government Relations, Israel Advocacy & Jewish Security and Education Resource. For more information, please visithttp://www.jewishcincinnati.org/jcrc.aspx.
