US organization urges U.S. to stop giving taxpayer money to Israel

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee called the US administration not to yield in to Israeli government's request for an additional $12 billion from Washington, including $4 billion in direct military assistance.

The grass-roots association says giving Israelis an additional $12 billion to pay for military assistance and U.S. loan guarantees at this time makes bad economic sense for all Americans.

The association also argued that on the foreign policy level, the requested new funding fails to account for the long-term political and strategic implications for U.S. national interests if the U.S. appears to be supporting hard-line Israeli policies in the Arab states.

ADC issued the statement as a high-ranking Israeli delegation arrived in Washington on Monday for talks with Bush Administration officials regarding Israel's request for substantial additional U.S. military assistance and loan guarantees.

ADC says the U.S. already provides a total of $2.848 billion (2001 estimate according to the Congressional Research Service) in military and economic assistance to Israel each year. In addition, Israel is slated to receive an additional $200 million in fiscal year 2003 to help that country "combat terrorism."