HISTORY IN A NUTSHELL
For nearly 2,000 years, Jews and Arabs coexisted peacefully in the region known as Palestine. For most of that period, Jews were a small minority of the population. In the late 1800's, an international Jewish Zionist movement arose and sought a homeland for the Jews. The Zionists called Palestine "a land with no people" and asserted a historic claim to the land for the Jews, "a people with no land." In fact, the land was inhabited, and the inhabitants were overwhelmingly (98%) Arab. In 1947, in the aftermath of WWII, the United Nations General Assembly agreed to establish a Jewish state in Palestine. Although Jews owned less than 6% of the land at that time, the UN proposed Resolution 181which partitioned Palestine into a Jewish state on 57% of the land and an Arab state on 43% of the land. In 1948, because Arabs rejected the imbalanced division, Israeli terrorist gangs drove 750,000 Arabs from their homes and land. When hostilities ceased, Israelis controlled 78% of Palestine. Recognizing that Arab Palestinians had had no role in persecution of Jews in Europe, U.N. Resolution 194 provided for the right of displaced Arabs to return to their ancestral homes in the newly formed state of Israel and to claim compensation for their displacement. In 1967, Israel attacked Egypt, starting the 6Day War. As a result, Israel established military control (occupation) in the territory remaining to the Palestinians -- Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. In response, the U.N. Security Council passed Resolution 242 which required the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces and reiterated the need for a just resolution of the refugee problem as outlined in Resolution 194. Israel defied both U.N. resolutions. The 1993 Oslo Accords, intended to resolve longstanding issues between Arabs and Jews of the region, denied Arabs autonomy and offered them wretched compromises which only increased their sense of desperation and despair. During the entire period of occupation, Israel has continued to establish illegal settlements in Palestinian territory. At the heart of all conflict in the region is the failure of Israel to honor provisions of more than 69 UN resolutions and international agreements intended to restore property and human rights to Palestinian Arabs. Over $95 billion in U.S. military and economic aid to Israel has made and continues, at nearly $5billion per year, to make this injustice possible.

HISTORY IN THE MAKING
Apartheid and racism, once the shame of South Africa, are alive and well in Israel. Despite its claims to be a democracy, Israel does not behave like a democracy. Jews and Arabs have glaringly separate and unequal lives. Physicians for Human Rights, International Committee of Jurists, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and International Red Cross are among organizations which consistently condemn Israel's treatment of Palestinian Arabs. The U.N. has passed 69 resolutions censuring Israel's racist practices against Palestinians, including I restriction of movement I illegal detention I deportation I excessive use of force I torture I assassination I destruction of homes, schools, businesses, public buildings, mosques, churches, wells, and orchards I seizure of personal property I attacks on journalists I attacks on hospitals, ambulances, and medical personnel I school closures I bans on political activity I denial of access to legal remedies I failure to prosecute Israeli civilians, police, and military who violate human rights I non-recognition of displaced persons I denial of right of return or compensation I establishment of illegal settlements on Arab land I land confiscation I monopoly of water and natural resources I denial of public services -- building permits, road repair, etc. I failure to permit international observers and peace keepers

U.S. ROLE
Without the economic and moral support of the U.S., Israel could not continue such practices. Israel receives more than 30% of all U.S. foreign aid. AIPAC, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, is the second most powerful lobby in the U.S. congress, and Israel retains several national public relations firms to "sell" Israel to the American public. The U.S. provides $5 billion annual direct aid to Israel with 5.8 million people, more than it provides for the whole of sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America combined with over 1 billion people. Israel uses much of the aid to purchase military equipment from the U.S. Much of it is used in violation of the U.S. Arms Export Control Act. In addition, the U.S. provides military support for Israel through deployments in the Gulf and Mediterranean and maintenance of strategic U.S. Air Force bases. In the U.N., the U.S. has blocked more than twenty resolutions condemning Israel and/or calling for international observers.

THE CALL TO JUSTICE
Despite the atrocities and injustices visited on them, Palestinian Arabs have consistently proposed a reasonable and non-retaliatory settlement with Israel: I establishment of a separate, sovereign state of Palestine within pre-1967 borders I shared sovereignty of Jerusalem I right of return and/or compensation for refugees and deportees I withdrawal of Israelis from all occupied territories ­ West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem I reversion of settlements within the Occupied Territories to Palestinian control I nondiscrimination against any ethnic or religious group in either state As the Palestinian Arab cause has gained sympathizers even among Jews within Israel, the Israeli state has stepped up its campaign of repression. The Israeli and American press have consistently publicized the desperate acts of desperate individuals as threats to the state of Israel. These acts have been answered with collective punishment of Palestinians with the full force of the Israeli military and its U.S. backers. Justice in the Middle East will not be served until U.S. taxpayers understand the Palestinian cause and withdraw support for Israel.

WHAT YOU CAN DO
Be informed. Visit websites which provide information not presented through the established media. Read books presenting "the other side" of the story.
WEBSITES:

REPRESENTATIVES:

www.auphr.org www.palestinemonitor.org www.pmwatch.org www.miftah.org www.indymedia.org www.washington_report.org www.phrmg.org www.arij.org www.electronicintifada.net
BOOKS:

David Wu, (503) 326-2901 www.house.gov/wu Earl Blumenauer, (503) 231-2300 www.house.gov/blumenauer Peter DeFazio, (541) 465-6732 www.house.gov/defazio Darlene Hooley, (503) 588-9100 www.house.gov/hooley Greg Walden, (541) 776-4646 www.house.gov/walden Write letters to the editor and opinion pieces in response to letters, editorials, articles, and columns.
The Oregonian, (503) 221-8100, letters@news.oregonian.com Portland Tribune, (503) 226-6397, letters@portlandtribune.com Willamette Week, (503) 243-2122, mzusman@wweek.com

A PRIMER ON

PALESTINE

The Arabs and Israel for Beginners, Ron David The End of the Peace Process, Edward Said Perceptions of Palestine, Kathleen Christison Warriors at Suez, Donald Neff This Side of Peace, Hanan Ashrawi Blaming the Victim, Edward Said and Christopher Hitchens The Fateful Triangle, Noam Chomsky Righteous Victims, Benny Morris Sleeping on the Wire, David Grossman and Haim Watzman Write or call your political representatives and ask that they not vote appropriations for Israel. President George W. Bush (202) 456-1414 president@whitehouse.gov Secretary of State Colin Powell (202) 647-6575 secretary@state.gov
CONGRESSIONAL SWITCHBOARD:

Write and call television and radio stations to request balanced coverage and to thank them for fair coverage of the Palestinian perspective.
TV:

KATU/Channel 2 (503) 231-4222 KOIN/Channel 6 (503) 464-0600 KGW/Channel 8 (503) 226-5000 KOPB/Channel 10 (503) 244-9900 KPTV/Channel 12 (503) 230-1200
RADIO:

(202) 225-3121
SENATORS:

Ron Wyden, (503) 326-7525 senator@wyden.senate.gov or http://wyden.senategov Gordon Smith, (503) 326-3386 oregon@gsmith.senate.gov

KBOO/FM 90.7 (503) 231-8032 or 231-8187 KOPB/FM 91.5 and AM 550 (503) 293-1905 KEX/AM 1190 (503) 225-1190 KPAM/AM 860 (503) 223-4321 KXL/AM 750 (503) 417-0375 or 417-7630 Volunteer to make a difference through a local organization dedicated to establishing a just peace in Palestine. Americans United for Palestinian Human Rights, (503) 287-1885, www.auphr.org
Prepared by Americans United for Palestinian Human Rights www.auphr.org 503.287.1885