The foreign assistance bill under consideration in the U.S. Senate recommends millions of dollars in assistance for Arab-Israeli dialogue.
The report accompanying the foreign operations appropriations bill passed July 10 by the Appropriations Committee and due for consideration by the full Senate recommends $8 million for the “Israeli-Palestinian Peace, Reconciliation, and Democracy Fund” and includes five Arab-Israeli reconciliation programs in a separate $20 million for reconciliation programs.
Including the recommendations in the report instead of the bill means the funding is not guaranteed, but the recommendations carry considerable weight when U.S. agencies consider grant applications.
Earlier this year, the Alliance for Middle East Peace, a coalition of dialogue groups, lobbied for at least $8 million in funds.
