We, the undersigned Jewish faculty members at the University of Maine, are writing to express our deep concern with the ongoing violence between Israel and Palestine. We believe this conflict can only be solved through a political agreement between the two sides.

We strongly support Israel’s right to exist in safety and the need for its recognition by the Arab states. We also find the Palestinian attacks on Israeli citizens unacceptable and deplorable. At the same time we strongly oppose the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, which denies the Palestinians the right of national self-determination and perpetrates human rights abuses against them. We believe that Israel must withdraw to the 1967 borders, dismantle all the Jewish settlements in the Occupied Territories, and enable the Palestinians to establish their own state there.

Negotiations to this end have come to a complete halt, yet the need for a just solution has never been greater. We call upon the Bush administration and our elected officials to pursue such a solution without delay.

Doug Allen, Philosophy; Francois Amar, Chemistry; Steven Barkan, Sociology; Sandra Berkowitz, Communication; Emanuel Boss, Oceanography; Jay Bregman, History; Tony Brinkley, English; Steve Cohn, Sociology; Ben Friedlander, English; Nathan Godfried, History; Alex Grab, History; Harvey Kail, English; Irv Kornfield, Zoology; Stephen Marks, Sociology; Jerry Nadelhaft, Emeritus; Ruth Nadelhaft, Emerita; Laurie Osher, Plant, Soil and Environmental Sciences; Alan Rosenwasser, Psychology; Charlie Slavin, Honors Program; Marlie F. Weiner, History