The following is the May 14th statement of Ameinu (The Third Narrative’s sponsor) on the new Netanyahu-Gantz coalition government, and the statement of J-Link, the International Progressive Jewish Network to which Ameinu is a constituent member:
Ameinu Says No to Annexation, Calls on Labor Ministers to Oppose
With the formation of a new government of Israel, Ameinu expresses its fervent hope that this government will uphold Israel’s international and moral obligations and commit to seeking a just and mutually agreeable end to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
However, as progressive Zionists, we are deeply troubled by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pledge to extend Israeli sovereignty over parts of the West Bank. The coalition agreement that allows Israel to do so after July 1 does not portend well for Israel’s future. Annexation will weaken relations between Israel and Jews around the world for whom human rights, equality and democracy are essential principles. We also share the objections of many Israeli military leaders to annexation, which they believe will jeopardize the national security and future of the Jewish state.
Ameinu, as a member organization of the World Labor Zionist Alliance, calls on Labor Party members and new government ministers, Amir Peretz and Itzik Shmuli, to fight from inside the government on behalf of a two-state solution and to oppose the ongoing occupation, settlement expansion and unilateral annexation of the West Bank. From David Ben-Gurion to Yitzhak Rabin, Israel’s Labor Party has a rich heritage of visionary leaders who made painful but necessary compromises in the pursuit of peace. We urge current Labor leaders to build upon this legacy.
