About Us

The Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Committee is a group of volunteers who joined together to educate the public through symposiums, debates, dialogue and cultural exchanges about a possible mechanism for peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

Our members include Muslims, Jews and Christians from all walks of life.

We do not aim to benefit one side over the other. We have a comprehensive plan to improve relations between Israelis and Palestinians through education, engagement and dialogue. We believe that both the Israelis and the Palestinians in the United States can reduce tension and achieve more understanding through engagement.

Josef Avesar, President and Founder
Josef Avesar is an Israeli-born attorney who resides in Southern California. He has written numerous articles and commentaries, including: “The Israeli-Palestinian Confederation”; “Why Would the Israeli and Palestinian Government Accept a Confederation?”; “An Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Creates a Fair and Balanced Mechanism to Resolve the Issues”; “Israeli and Palestinian Governments Too Busy to Make Peace”; “Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Could Have Helped Prisoner Exchange”; “An Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Could Have Saved the Violence in Gaza”; “It’s Time to Take the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict by the Horns”; and “Israeli-Palestinian Confederation 101. He is the author of the book “ Peace, A Case for an Israeli Palestinian Confederation.”
Email: josefavesar@gmail.com

SUPPORTERS

Prof. Dr. Ouriel ZOHAR
Dr. Ouriel Zohar is the director of the Technion Theatre in Haifa Israel and a Visiting Professor at the Universities of Paris. He has also a theatre group in Paris, and in 2012 they will present a play by Balzac in the “Maison de Balzac”. Prof Zohar wrote many theatre plays, 150 articles and essays in scientific reviews, poems, on the subject of the unity of humanity and our urgent need for Peace. He has directed major projects relating to the issues of Jewish Muslim and Christian co-existence in Israel. He worked many times with Palestinian theaters, directors and actors. He sees real and beautiful love between Israelis and Palestinians not only as a dream but also as a reality. He sees the Israelis Palestinian Confederation as a tool to enhance such corroboration to accommodate the needs of all people in this part of the world.

Sumner Fein
Received his bachelor’s degree in economics with an emphasis in accounting from UCLA in 1969. He is a certified public accountant licensed by the state of California since 1973. Mr. Fein has been employed by several national accounting firms and has been in solo practice since 1985.

Mohamed Awadalla
Born in Egypt Dec. 25, 1967, the time I born on has some impact how I perceive the Israeli Arab issue, when I moved to the US in 2000 and I started to know people from different background, and then start to learn a lot about others in a very dynamic diverse community, I spend many years work in the Hotel Management Industry in Hilton International Egypt, I have study Hotel management in Schweizerische Hotelfachschule Luzern Switzerland (SHL), Now Iʼm Certified Real Estate Agent, and Iʼm started to combined this with being Financial Advisor career.

David Marcus, Esq.
Real property attorney David Marcus is dedicated to a fair resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and his law degree from Loyola Law School. He was admitted to the State Bar of California in 1979.

Kathleen O’Connor Wang
Kathleen O’Connor Wang is a field interviewer for the U.S. Bureau of the Census. Ms. Wang has a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science.Her interest in the Israeli Palestinian issue began in 2000 as the 2nd intifada brought Israel and Palestine more attention and concern. Subsequently Kathleen became involved in peace activism and appreciates IPC as a vehicle for peace and understanding between people.In August 2008 she became a volunteer passenger for freegaza.org and traveled with others on a 2 boat “flotilla” to Gaza.The 44 passengers were welcomed as the first foreign boats to land in Gaza’s Seaport in 41 years.The culmination of that voyage included all being honored with Palestinian citizenship and Palestinian passport.

Aymen Zaben
Aymen Zaben is an accountant and entrepreneur born and raised in New York. Aymen believes that the solution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict must be dealth with in a fair and just manner. Aymen believes that in the absence of addressing the concerns on both sides and proposing a solution that is viable, fair and just, the conflict will continue to impact not only Palestinians and Israelis but the entire region as well as future generations on both sides and beyond. A just and viable solution will achieve peace, prosperity and stabilization for all.

Dr. Saleem H. Ali
Dr. Saleem H. Ali is Professor of Environmental Studies at the University of Vermont’s Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources and the Director of the Institute for Environmental Diplomacy and Security at UVM’s James Jeffords Center for Policy Research. He is also on the adjunct faculty of Brown University’s Watson Institute for International Studies and the visiting faculty for the United Nations mandated University for Peace (Costa Rica).Dr. Ali’s research focuses on the causes and consequences of environmental conflicts and how ecological factors can promote peace. Much of his empirical research has focused on environmental conflicts in the mineral sector. His most recent book is titled Treasures of the Earth: Need, Greed and a Sustainable Future (Yale University Press). Dr. Ali is also involved in numerous nonprofit organizations to promote environmental peace-building and serves on the board of The DMZ Forum for Peace and Nature Conservation and International Peace Park Expeditions. Dr. Ali is a strong supporter of the Israeli Palestinian Confederation since 2005 when he participated in its first symposium at UCLA.

Natalie Hanna
Natalie is a registered nurse and human rights advocate for the oppressed. Her mother was born in Ramallah, Palestine with family still residing there to this day. Her family came to the United States as a result of the occupation. Natalie was born in Chicago and currently lives in Southern California where she spends time hiking, traveling and helping those in need. She believes with implementation of the IPC with global support there could be hope for the future for the Palestinians people.

Jill Davis
Jill Davis has a Bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies with an emphasis in Film Studies and Film Production and a minor in International Relations. Her interest in film and human rights lead her down the path towards political documentaries, which lead her to the Arab/Israeli conflict. She has made 2 student documentary films about the conflict. She has a Masters degree in Political Science, has obtained her Film Certificate and is currently working on her Religious Studies Certificate. She currently works at a law firm as a legal assistant. She has studied many aspects of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict through research, writing, activism and film; she is dedicated to resolving the conflict in a fair, humane and peaceful manner.

Dr. Mahmoud Haj
Dr. Mahmoud Haj, was born 8 years before the establishment of Israel state. He has studied medicine at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and graduated in 1970. He was trained and continued to work as a qualified general surgeon at the Nahariy Government hospital until he has retired in 2008. His patients were Arabs and Jews, residents of the western Galilee in the north of Israel. During his life he was politically inactive but discussed his ideas of peace with his numerous Arab and Jewish friends. He believes in peaceful talks to solve problems of any kind. He is aware of the need of Arabs and Jews for living peacefully with mutual respect, neighborly and dignity. At the end of 2011, he decided to join the Israeli-Palestinian confederation as the suitable attitude for creating good environment for future peace resolutions.

Dr. Natan Ophir
Rabbi Dr. Natan Ophir received his MA (1988) and PhD (1993) in Jewish Philosophy from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where he served as Rabbi of the University for 16 years until 1998. Natan was born in Philadelphia and completed his BA at Yeshiva University. He came on aliyah to Jerusalem in 1974, spending 7 years at the Universal Yeshiva of Rav Kook where he received rabbinical ordination from the Chief Rabbinate of Israel. Dr. Ophir has taught Jewish Meditation for several decades as keys to peace and understanding with a unique emphasis on “Activating Mirror Neurons in Empathy Healing” and NataYoga (a new form of Yoga that Natan invented). Natan has 5 married children and 23 grandchildren. Currently, he lives in Maaleh Adumim near his grandchildren.

Hanna Siniora
Hanna Siniora was born in Jerusalem . He is a pharmacist by education . He was the editor of the Arabic and English paper Al Fair for many years. He was the chairman of the European Palestinians Chamber of commerce . An early proponent of dialogue and negotiations with Israel, Siniora has a long history of involvement in pro-peace activities. For his lifetime commitment to working towards Palestinian-Israeli peace, he was awarded the order of the Knights of Malta.