President Barack Obama met with twenty-three Jewish leaders, including Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center,in the Roosevelt Room of the White House for almost an hour and a half yesterday to discuss his forthcoming trip to Israel. Among the critical issues discussed was Iran and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
On Iran, the President made it clear that the United States policy was to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon and hesaid they understood that very well.
On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Rabbi Hier said to the President, “Everybody is for a two-state solution, but what wehave on the ground now is a three-state solution with two competing Palestinian entities – one in Ramallah and the other in Gaza, who are in conflict with eachother. It doesn’t make a difference, Mr. President, whether the Prime Minister of Israel is from the Likud Party or the Labor Party. Both would be on the samepage of making no concessions until the Palestinians speak with one voice and recognize the existence of the State of Israel. Mr. President, you should deliverthat message to the Palestinian leaders during your trip.”
The President concurred, and in a lengthy reply, said this was precisely the problem and that he intended to deliver that messagedirectly to President Mahmoud Abbas when he meets with him in Ramallah.
