ATFP Hosts Initiators of Geneva Accords for Extraordinary Week of Events

Washington DC, Dec. 10 -- The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) hosted the initiators of the Geneva Accords for a week of events in Washington and New York ending Sunday December 7,2003.

The delegation consisted of former Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo, Dr. Nabil Kassis, Dr. Samih Al Abed, and Governor of Bethlehem Zuhair Al Manasreh from the Palestinian side; and former Israeli Justice Minister Yossi Beilin, Shaul Arieli, Daniel Levy, and General Amnon Lipkin-Shahak from the Israeli side.

The two dozen engagements in which the delegates participated included meetings with Secretary of State Colin Powell, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Lincoln Chafee and Congressman Nick Rahall as well as informal meetings with former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Madeline Albright.

Panel discussions were held at the Brookings Institute, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Council on Foreign Relations, as well as for American Jewish groups and Arab American organizations.

Media events included segments on CNN International, The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, the Charlie Rose Show, Viewpoint with Jim Zogby, CNN Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer and This Week with George Stephanopoulos in addition to Editorial Board meetings with the Washington Post and Time Magazine.

This capped a week of extraordinary events which began in Geneva, Switzerland with the symbolic signing of the Accords on Monday December 1, 2003. ATFP President Dr. Asali remarked, “Those who are interested in achieving peace in our lifetime through establishing a state of Palestine alongside Israel can look at the Geneva Accords as a template for a genuine and lasting peace.”