Clinton says she opposes boycott effort against Israel — ThaiVisa News

Clinton said in the letter released Monday that she agreed on the need to make countering the Boycott, Divestment and Sanction movement, or BDS movement, a priority.

In her letter, Clinton reiterated her belief that BDS “seeks to punish Israel” and expressed concern over BDS activists’ comparisons of Israel to apartheid-era South Africa.

The ex- secretary of state has pushed foreign policy to the backburner so far in her presidential campaign, focusing instead on domestic economic issues.

“Reasonable people can talk about what the best way to bring about a two-state solution but there will be no peace so long as the other side doesn’t recognize Israel’s fundamental right to exist”.

Rivlin emphasized building trust between the Arab and Jewish communities in Israel. “Israel is a vibrant democracy in a region dominated by autocracy, and it faces existential threats to its survival”, she wrote.

“While it’s true that the majority of Israel’s population is ethnically Jewish, most Jews in the world are not Israeli citizens”, he says.

Malcolm Hoenlein, who chairs the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, said at a briefing to The Jerusalem Post editorial staff on Sunday that he was not sure the French will go ahead with their plans if they feel the United States will veto it, or if the Palestinians will not be satisfied with a “watered down” resolution the Americans might be willing accept.

Saban recently gave $2 million to a pro-Clinton super PAC and hosted a fundraiser at his home for the Democratic candidate earlier this spring. In condemning the BDS movement, Clinton noted a rising tide of anti-Semitism in Europe. The Jewish state is a modern-day miracle – a vibrant bloom in the middle of the desert.

She ends the letter, printed on campaign letterhead, with a hand-written note to Saban – “look forward to working with you on this”. She promised to them that Israel-US relations, which have deteriorated under the leaderships of Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and USA President Barack Obama, will improve, saying that the personal relationship between the two countries was of utmost importance within the wider field of diplomacy.

A campaign aide said Clinton was motivated to write the letter after hearing from a number of people on the issue over the past few months.