US Foreign Policy Objectives for Palestine

1. End Israel’s military occupation of Palestine in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions 242 and 338;
2. Open and connect Gaza to the West Bank and the rest of the world and support efforts to rehabilitate the land, natural resources, and people, and rebuild the infrastructure and economy;
3. Dismantle Israel’s dual legal system, constituting a regime of apartheid that discriminates between Israeli Jewish citizens and settlers on the one hand and Palestinians living as citizens in Israel and as an occupied population in the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza on the other; and
4. Remove restrictions on and facilitate support for Palestinian civil society organizations so that they may advocate and serve their community, receive financial assistance from abroad, and promote democratic freedoms including elections. 

Policy Positions

Policy Position 1– Immediate Action On Gaza

We call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the entry of food, water, fuel, medicines and other essential supplies at scale, and the resumption of essential services, including telecommunications, water, and electricity. All states should respect international humanitarian law at all times without exception. We call on the United States to provide unrestricted humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian population in Gaza and to make substantial efforts to end the 16-year Israeli siege and blockade of Gaza. 

Policy Position 2– On the US Policy Approach to Palestine and Palestinians

We call for the adoption of an approach to US foreign policy that centers the rights, security, and well-being of all people in the region and lives up to the US National Security Strategy (2023), which prioritizes values and normative behavior in international affairs and conflict resolution.

Policy Position 3–Recalibrate US Policy Consistent with International Law

We call for the US administration to:

1. Roll back actions taken by previous administrations that legitimize Israeli settlements on  Palestinian land, and reaffirm US adherence to State Department legal opinions concluding that Israeli settlement of the occupied territories is illegitimate;
2. Ensure that all federal assistance and programs are implemented consistent with international law, including UN Security Council Resolution 2334, and US policy, and do not facilitate Israel’s settlement enterprise in the occupied West Bank; and
3. Relocate the US Embassy from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv.

Policy Position 4–Reestablish US-Palestinian Bilateral Relations

We call for the administration to:

1. Reopen the US Consulate in Jerusalem which had served as the de facto mission to Palestinians;
2. Support Palestinian elections by taking action to remove obstacles associated with Palestinians running in or voting, canvassing, or campaigning in occupied East Jerusalem;
3. Ensure that Palestinian-Americans benefit from US programs, including the US Visa Waiver Program, equal to and no different from all other American citizens and nationals, and revoke privileges to any country that would discriminate against Americans based on their nationality, ethnicity, religion, gender or any other illegitimate basis prohibited under US law; 
4. Support Palestine’s efforts to access fora in order to seek legal redress, reparations, and accountability for violations of the laws of war, and diplomatic initiatives for the pacific settlement of international disputes including Palestine’s effort to be admitted to the UN as a full member state. 

Policy Position 5–Ending Israel’s Occupation Of Arab Land

We demand an end to the 56-year-old Israeli military occupation of Palestinian land. US support for Arab normalization with Israel should be conditioned on Israel fully withdrawing from occupied lands and its restoration of Palestinian rights, including the right of refugees to return and reparations consistent with the Arab Peace Initiative (2002). 

Policy Position 6–Restricting US Weapons to Israel

We call for all weapons transferred to Israel to comply with relevant US laws and statutes including the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act. The United States should investigate all potential violations of these laws and suspend the sale and delivery of weapons used to commit human rights abuses. We support the creation of mechanisms for tracking and tracing US weapons transferred to Israel to enable the enforcement of the Leahy Law which prohibits units or individuals known to have committed human rights abuses from receiving US weapons or training.

We oppose long-term taxpayer commitments of security assistance as embodied in the ten-year memoranda of understanding between the US and Israel which leaves the United States without leverage to compel Israel’s compliance with US statutes and international law and allows Israel to redirect its budget toward support for illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied territories. We also oppose the use of US weapons or technology transfers as an inducement for Arab normalization with Israel which only accelerates an arms race in the Middle East. 

Policy Position 7–Protecting First Amendment Freedoms

We support the right of all Americans to freely exercise their First Amendment rights including the right to boycott. We reject the conflation of legitimate criticism of Israeli policies or political Zionism with anti-Jewish or antisemitic sentiment or incitement.