Not In My Name (NIMN), a predominantly Jewish peace organization based in Chicago, condemns President George W. Bush’s April 14th letter to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon which gives approval to Israel’s continued illegal Occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

In the letter, Bush states that “it would be unrealistic” for a final status negotiation with the Palestinians to expect Israeli to give up what he calls, “already existing major Israeli population centers,” but which are actually illegal settlements.

In response to Sharon’s plan to dismantle Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip, Bush gives Sharon approval of any and all methods used to prevent terror, including tacit approval of the “Separation Wall,” without regard to its effect on Palestinians.  And while reiterating support for the establishment of a Palestinian state, Bush offers reassurance to Sharon that Palestinian refugees would only be expected to settle in that state, thus attempting to take the “right of return” issue off the negotiating table.

This letter represents the first official US denunciation of rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a confirmation of Israel’s claim of immunity from the IV Geneva Conventions and a renunciation of UN Resolutions pertaining to the Occupation and the ultimate resolution of the conflict.

Furthermore, this process endangers the lives of both Palestinians and Israelis by precluding the participation of the Palestinian people in deciding their own fate.  By intentionally bypassing any Palestinian representation in this process, the U.S. has declared that Israel alone may decide the future of the Palestinian people.  Without a legitimate political and diplomatic process, there will not be a move toward a peaceful and just resolution. 

NIMN denounces this Bush-Sharon plan in the strongest possible terms.