Arab American lobbyists urge Obama to cut aid to Israel

President Barack Obama has been urged by Arab and Muslim organizations to suspend US military aid to Israel, according to the World Tribune newspaper. Arab and Muslim lobbyists invited to discuss Obama s forthcoming visit to Israel and Jordan urged the president to reduce US support for Israel during his second term. The lobbyists said the focus should be on slashing some of the $3 billion in annual military aid to the Jewish state. This is something that is necessary for long-term security in the Middle East, the lobbyists said in a statement after the meeting. The lobbyists came from the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee, the American Task Force for Palestine, Arab American Institute and the American Federation of Ramallah Palestine. Representatives said the groups proposed a review of US aid to Israel, a freeze on Jewish construction in the West Bank and helping the Hamas regime in the Gaza Strip. Raed Jarrar, spokesman for the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee said the visit marked the launch of a dialogue with the White House regarding US policies in the Middle East. Jarrar said the lobbyists were unhappy over the lack of progress in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Obama plans to arrive in Israel on March 20 for a three-day visit to Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan. Palestinian groups have announced a campaign to disrupt the president s visit to the West Bank. We thank President Obama for engaging Arab American leaders in this critical dialogue, and we look forward to using this meeting as a springboard for robust on-going conversations on US policy in the Middle East, the lobbyist statement said. Our meeting underscored the president s recognition of the importance of our community s contributions to discussions of policy in the region.