What leaders said about Dr. Ziad Asali and ATFP
President Barack Obama (October 29, 2013)
"Pleased to have a partner" in ATFP in the "vision for peace…the Palestinian people must have a right to govern themselves and reach their full potential in a sovereign state of their own."
President George W. Bush (October 17, 2007)
"I appreciate the American Task Force on Palestine and its members for your dedicated efforts to support peace in the Middle East. By working together, we can build a brighter future for the Palestinian people and a more peaceful world for our children and grandchildren."
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (October 15, 2009)
"It is my sincere pleasure to congratulate you on the achievements and successes that your organization has made during the short period since its establishment. As an American Palestinian organization that promotes the fundamental values and ideals of the American people, you have been instrumental in advocating the just cause of peace and freedom for your Palestinian brethren. The work you are undertaking to support a peaceful resolution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict based on a two-state solution is highly commended and appreciate it."
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton (October 20, 2010)
"Thank you very much, Ziad, for that introduction and for your leadership of this important organization, and for you and the steadfast support that ATFP has given to the cause of peace."
"We meet at a time when we rightly can join together to celebrate the achievements and the mission of the American Task Force on Palestine and the four extraordinary Palestinian Americans that are being honored tonight. A soldier, a poet, a playwright and a builder – each story is unique but together they represent the talent and dynamism of the Palestinian American community and the Palestinian Diaspora around the world. In big cities and small towns across America, Palestinian Americans are contributing to the richness of our culture, the strength of our economy, and the liveliness of our democracy.”
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (Oct. 11, 2006)
"I would first like to thank Dr. Ziad Asali for that wonderful introduction. But more importantly, I would like to thank you for your leadership and for your commitment to this very important cause, and for your friendship and counsel over my time as Secretary of State. Thank you very much for all that you do.
I know the commitment of the Palestinian people to a better future. I know firsthand the commitment of President Abbas and moderate Palestinians to that future. And I know the commitment of the people in this room and of the American Task Force on Palestine that one day indeed there will be a Palestinian state living side by side in peace with Israel.”
National Security Advisor Gen. James L. Jones (October 15, 2009)
"As Ziad mentioned, we first met in 2007 when I was appointed Special Envoy for Middle East Security and we also worked together on the US-Palestinian Partnership. Ziad has been a great friend ever since, and he has served this body as President with distinction. May ask you to join me in recognizing his record of service to this organization and the cause of peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Ziad, thank you.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am deeply honored to represent President Obama at the Fourth Annual Gala of the American Task Force on Palestine. For six years, ATFP has been an independent and influential voice in promoting an end to the conflict in the Middle East through a negotiated agreement for two states, Israel and Palestine. ATFP has taken a clear stand against violence, no matter what the cause, and no matter the victims or the perpetrators. It has partnered with USAID and other US agencies, NGOs and think tanks to help improve life in the West Bank and Gaza in very, very concrete and meaningful ways. It has worked to bring the Palestinians closer to fulfilling their legitimate aspirations for statehood, and to unleash the extraordinary potential of the Palestinian people."
House Committee on Foreign Affairs Chair, Rep. Howard L. Berman (October 15, 2009)
"I want you to know how much I, as Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, value my association with you and your colleagues at ATFP. Your integrity, your knowledge of the issues, and your unswervingly principled stand on behalf of peace and fairness -- as well as your deep commitment both to the land of your birth, Palestine, and your adopted homeland, America -- have all had a powerfully positive impact on discourse in Washington about the Middle East. You and your colleagues have also been an important influence on my own thinking about Middle East peacemaking and that of many of my colleagues in the Congress."
Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, Amb. R. Nicholas Burns (October 17, 2007)
"I want to thank, Ziad Asali, and the American Task Force on Palestine for your leadership. Thank you for your support for our efforts to achieve a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians and to see the establishment, at long last, of an independent Palestinian State. You have truly been a voice for moderation and peace."
Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs James K. Glassman (October 12, 2008)
"I want to compliment you, Ziad, and the American Task Force on Palestine, for the tremendous work that you are doing to advance peace in the Middle East through the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state living in peace alongside Israel. I also want to applaud you for the establishment of the American Charities for Palestine and for your service as co-chair of the US-Palestinian Partnership, a critical public-private initiative to promote educational and economic opportunity for the Palestinian people."
Senior American military officer and professor Dr. Peter Mansoor (October 20, 2010)
"What I learned from this experience is that genuine progress in difficult conflicts requires finding willing partners in the quest for peace. When extremists control the agenda, then politics become frozen. And that in a nutshell is the purpose of groups like the American Task Force on Palestine – a moderate voice for Palestinian-Americans and a willing partner in the search for a lasting peace in the Middle East. May God bless the voices of moderation in that endeavor."
Award-winning poet Ms. Naomi Shihab Nye (October 20, 2010)
"Deepest thanks to Naila and Ziad Asali for your gracious consideration and your advocacy for Palestine and peace."
Executive VP, Booz Allen Hamilton, Mr. Ghassan Salameh, (October 20, 2010)
“Six years ago, after 32 years in this country and only after I made Sr. Partner, I finally got the courage to publicly admit that I am Palestinian American. The fear of being labeled of being stereotyped, the fear for my kids, and the fear for my job stopped me from coming out - and for years I was tormented by it. I want to thank Ziad and the work he and many of you are doing to give people like me the courage to be unafraid, to be proud to be Palestinian American, to be able to openly speak about the suffering of Palestinians, and at the same time be a loyal U.S citizen who cares deeply about this great country.”
Anne Selden Annab (April 5, 2010)
“ATFP's website is a treasure trove of up to date, highly relevant information, news and opinion concerning Palestine. They don't use cheap tricks- they use hard work, careful analysis and diplomacy to do what they can to help end the contentious Israel/Palestine conflict...for every one's sake. They are Golden Rule people through and through: By wisely nurturing a totally civilized, reasonable and sustainable conversation they are creating real respect for a real Palestinian state.”
Amb. Robert Pelletreau (October 15, 2009)
"All of us who are supporters of peace... must be actively engaged in speaking out, as the Task Force is speaking out, and continue to speak out and never give up, and never give up, and never give up!"
USAID Administrator Henrietta H. Fore (October 12, 2008)
"I first want to offer my congratulations to Dr. Ziad Asali and the American Task Force on Palestine for their impressive achievements over the last five years. In addition to the dollars raised for noteworthy causes such as the Palestinian health institutions, Dr. Asali has been deeply involved in the support of the Palestinian Investment Conference in Bethlehem this past May, and the Palestinian Business Investment Forum on October 14th. ATFP’s work in developing lines of communication among the United States, the Palestinian Territories, Israel, and regional communities continues to make an important difference."
Dr. Adnan M. M. Mjalli(October 12, 2008)
“I want to thank you and thank Dr. Ziad Asali for finally, and his team, Naila and the ATFP team, to really bring the things that we have been looking for for a long time as Palestinians who came to this country. It is about time that Palestinians will start to think and act like Americans, and this is really the gist of the American Task Force on Palestine.
It is so important that Palestinians in this country think and act as Americans and appreciate the American system, the American way of doing things. After all, we are Americans. This country has provided us and given us the opportunity that was not given to us by any other country in the world. So, for that, that is why I do really appreciate the message, the depth of the message, that the American Task Force on Palestine has to send, and is sending and will send for the future to come.”
President of AMIDEAST, Amb. Theodore Kattouf (October 17, 2007)
"Dr. Ziad Asali and his dedicated staff are making significant sacrifices to promote what everyone here understands what is needed: a two-state solution based on justice, mutual security, and peaceful coexistence."
Renowned physician Dr. Theodore Baramki (October 17, 2007)
“This is a wonderful mission and Dr. Asali and his colleagues ought to be congratulated for the efforts that they have put forward. I'm proud of the mission that you are accomplishing. And let us continue to go forward.”
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