Representatives of Arab, Muslim americans meet chair of commission on international religious freedom
Regional-USA, Religion, 1/8/2001

A delegation of representatives from major Arab-American and American Muslim organizations met with Elliott Abrams, Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, and other senior Commission officials.

According to the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the meeting focused on the commission's recent letter to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright on effects of the recent violence in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel.

The delegation pointed to Israel's denial of access to Muslim and Christian holy places in Al-Quds (Jerusalem) to Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza and its imposition of minimum age limits on worshipers it allowed access. The Commission's letter in effect supported Israel's move in denying much of the Palestinian population of the West Bank access to their holy places in Occupied East Jerusalem, implying that the Israeli decision to impose "closure" was a necessary response to "security concerns."

The delegation said the letter which implicitly supported Israeli measures endorses the abrogation of religious freedom and a political judgment far beyond the scope of the Commission's mandate.

Delegates also raised the issue of lack of support for Christian and Muslim holy sites in Israel and the Occupied Territories and lack of maintenance of many of these sites. They pointed out that Israel's ministry of religious affairs allocates only 1.5% of its budget to Christian and Muslim religious activities and infrastructure, although Palestinian Christians and Muslims make up almost 20% of the Israeli population. They also provided numerous instances of the expropriation of Mosques and Churches in Israel and the occupied territories, which have been converted to synagogues, museums, stables among other alterations.

The delegation appreciated the sensitivity of the Commission officials' response to the concerns they expressed, and called for further exchange and dialogue. The organizations represented undertook to provide the Commission with input for future investigations, and other relevant information.

The groups represented included the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the American Committee on Jerusalem, the American Muslim Council, American Muslims for Jerusalem, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation, the Muslim Public Affairs Council and the National Council of Churches.

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