Lawmakers urge spending on dialogue

Thirty-five members of the U.S. Congress urged appropriators to set aside $10 million for Arab-Israeli dialogue. “We urge the subcommittee to dedicate $10 million to a new Middle East People-to-People Coexistence Program focused exclusively on the Arab-Israeli conflict,” said the letter to Reps. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Frank Wolf (R-Va.), the top Democrat and Republican on the U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee for foreign operations appropriations. “We can help lay the groundwork for peace by helping Israelis and Palestinians of good will reach across conflict lines through ‘people-to-people’ coexistence NGOs.” The letter, to be sent this week, is signed by Jewish, Christian, Arab-American and Muslim lawmakers from both parties. It is the result of lobbying by the Alliance for Middle East Peace, a coalition of dialogue groups.