Washington DC, Dec. 3 -- The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) along with Americans for Peace Now and the Foundation for Middle East Peace hosted a discussion about the newly launched Geneva Accords at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace on Wednesday December 3rd.

The two former cabinet ministers from the Palestinian and Israeli governments who initiated the accords participated in a panel discussion in front of a standing room only crowd. Dr. Yossi Beilin, a former member of the Israeli Knesset discussed how this, “virtual peace agreement” has put the discussion of a peaceful settlement back into Israel’s national dialog. Yasser Abed Rabbo, a former minister in the Palestinian Authority and member of the PLO Executive Committee said that, “unlike other initiatives, this agreement is the first time we have a peaceful solution emanating from the ground up.”

This initiative carries on the work from past peace agreements in which both Beilin and Abed Rabbo participated and it addresses questions which involve the final status of the two-state solution. The agreement also demonstrates to the Israeli and Palestinian people that there is still hope for a peaceful settlement.

The pair will be meeting with Secretary of State Colin Powell on Friday morning at the U.S. Department of State. The Geneva Accord has received statements of support from Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, former South African President Nelson Mandela, a total of seven Nobel Peace Prize winners as well as an additional sixty former world leaders.