July 13, 2012
The Honorable Benjamin Netanyahu
Prime Minister of the State of IsraelDear Mr. Prime Minister:
As strong advocates for Israel’s security and well-being as a Jewish and democratic state, we are deeply concerned about the recent findings of the government commission led by Supreme Court Jurist (Ret.) Edmund Levy. We fear that if approved, this report will place the two-state solution, and the prestige of Israel as a democratic member of the international community, in peril.
As you boldly stated in your address to the United States Congress last May, “I recognize that in a genuine peace, we’ll be required to give up parts of the ancestral Jewish homeland.” As you said clearly, doing so is not easy. While the Jewish people indeed share a biblical connection to the lands of Judea and Samaria, you told Congress, “there is another truth: The Palestinians share this small land with us. We seek a peace in which they’ll be neither Israel’s subjects nor its citizens. They should enjoy a national life of dignity as a free, viable and independent people living in their own state.”
Securing Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state requires diplomatic and political leadership, not legal maneuverings. We recognize and regret that the Palestinian Authority has abdicated leadership by not returning to the negotiating table. Nonetheless, our great fear is that the Levy Report will not strengthen Israel's position in this conflict, but rather add fuel to those who seek to delegitimize Israel’s right to exist. At this moment, it is more critical than ever that Israel strengthen its claim in the international community that it is committed to a two-state vision, which is, in turn, central to Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state.
We are confident that with your deep understanding of the gravity of this situation, and your unprecedented political strength, you will ensure that adoption of this report does not take place.Sincerely,
Karen R. Adler
Jack C. Bendheim
Michael Berenbaum
Howard M. Bernstein
Charles R. Bronfman
Steven M. Cohen
Rabbi Marion Lev Cohen
Lester Crown
Thomas A. Dine
Rabbi David Ellenson
Edith Everett
Susie Gelman
E. Robert Goodkind
Stanley P. Gold
Rabbi Daniel Gordis
David A. Halperin
Harold R. Handler
Alan S. Jaffe
Peter A. Joseph
Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky
Peter S. Kolevzon
Steven C. Koppel
Burton Lehman
Marvin Lender
Geoffrey H. Lewis
Deborah Lipstadt
Rabbi J. Rolando Matalon
Harriet Mouchly-Weiss
Burt Neuborne
Bernard Nussbaum
Richard Pearlstone
Marcia Riklis
Rabbi Jennie Rosenn
David Sable
Rabbi David Saperstein
Jeffrey R. Solomon
Joel D. Tauber
Melvyn I. Weiss
Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie
Michael D. Young
Lawrence Zicklin
Affiliations provided below for identification purposes only
Karen R. Adler (New York, NY) – Chair, Executive Committee of the Jewish Communal Fund
Jack C. Bendheim (New York, NY) – President & Chairman, Phibro Animal Health Corp.; former Chairman, IPF
Michael Berenbaum (Los Angeles, CA) – Director of the Sigi Ziering Institute: Exploring the Ethical and Religious Implications of the Holocaust at the American Jewish University; former Project Director of the US Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC
Howard M. Bernstein (Los Angeles, CA) – Emeritus Member of Board of Governors of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion; Honorary Board Member, Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Charles R. Bronfman (New York, NY; Montreal) – Chairman, Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies
Rabbi Marion Lev Cohen (New York, NY) – Board Member, Israel Policy Forum; Director of Adult Engagement, Central Synagogue
Steven M. Cohen (New York, NY) – Director of the Berman Jewish Policy Archive at New York University
Lester Crown (Chicago, IL) – Chairman of Henry Crown & Co.; Crown Family Philanthropies
Thomas A. Dine (Washington, DC) – Former Executive Director of AIPAC
Rabbi David Ellenson (New York, NY) – President, Hebrew Union College –Jewish Institute of Religion
Edith Everett (New York, NY) Co-founder and President, Everett Family Foundation
Susie Gelman (Washington, DC) – Immediate Past President, Jewish Federation of Greater Washington
Stanley P. Gold (Los Angeles, CA) – Chairman Emeritus, Jewish Federation of LA; President and CEO, Shamrock Holdings
E. Robert Goodkind (New York, NY) – Partner, Pryor Cashman LLP; former President, American Jewish Committee (’04-’07)
Rabbi Daniel Gordis (Jerusalem) – Senior Vice President and the Koret Distinguished Fellow at the Shalem Center in Jerusalem
David A. Halperin (New York, NY) – Executive Director, Israel Policy Forum
Harold R. Handler (New York, NY) – Former President, JCC in Manhattan; Former Chairman, Jewish Communal Fund; Board Member, Israel Policy Forum
Alan S. Jaffe (New York, NY) – President, Jewish Community Relations Council-NY; former President, UJA-Federation-NY; former Chairman, Proskauer
Peter A. Joseph (New York, NY) – Chairman, Israel Policy Forum
Rabbi Jeremy Kalmanofsky (New York, NY) – Temple Ansche Chesed
Peter S. Kolevzon (New York, NY) – Founding Chair and Past President, JCC in Manhattan
Steven C. Koppel (New York, NY) – Partner, JonesDay; Member, International Board of Governors, The Peres Center for Peace
Burton Lehman (New York, NY) – Former Chair and Member of the Board of Governors of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute Religion
Marvin Lender (Connecticut) – Former National Chairman, UJA
Geoffrey H. Lewis (Boston, MA) – Board Member, Israel Policy Forum
Deborah Lipstadt (Atlanta, GA) – Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish History and Holocaust Studies at Emory University
Rabbi J. Rolando Matalon (New York, NY) – Congregation Bnai Jeshurun
Harriet Mouchly-Weiss (New York, NY) – Board Member, Israel Policy Forum
Burt Neuborne (New York, NY) – Professor of Law, NYU
Bernard Nussbaum (New York, NY) – Former White House Counsel (’94); Partner, Wachtell Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Richard Pearlstone (Aspen, CO) – Former Chairman, Jewish Agency
Marcia Riklis (New York, NY) – Board member, Israel Policy Forum; General Campaign Co-Chair, UJA Federation-NY
Rabbi Jennie Rosenn (New York, NY) – Program Director, Jewish Life and Values, Nathan Cummings Foundation
David Sable (New York, NY) – Former Executive Board Member, UJA Federation-NY
Rabbi David Saperstein (Washington, DC) – Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism
Jeffrey R. Solomon (New York, NY) – President, Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies
Joel D. Tauber (Southfield, MI) – Former Chairman, National UJA; former National Chairman of Tel Aviv University: American Council
Melvyn I. Weiss (New York, NY) – Board Member, Israel Policy Forum
Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie (New York, NY) – President Emeritus, Union for Reform Judaism
Michael D. Young (New York, NY) – Board Member, Israel Policy Forum
Lawrence Zicklin (New York, NY) – Former President, UJA Federation-NY
Source: Israel Policy forum
