A debate with Yaacov Lozowick (Israeli historian) and Ralf Fücks (Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation).

Thursday, May 12, 2011, 7.00 - 9.30 pm.

Robert-Koch-Saal, Dorotheenstr. 96, 10117 Berlin. (Map)

Followed by a reception. Contribution: 3€. Please register at info(at)mideastfreedomforum(dot)org Please invite your friends via facebook! This event will be in German language. While Israel, faced with the unpredictable effects of the upheavals in the region, the policy and the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic of Iran or the armament of Hamas and Hezbollah, sees itself in a situation of uncertainty and existential danger, the pressure on Israel is growing from Germany and Europe. The Israeli settlement activities are seen as the main obstacle on the road to peace. At the same time, demands for an end of the Gaza blockade or for negotiations with Hamas are getting louder, and many campaigns engage in the delegitimization of Israel as a Jewish state. The Palestinian plans for recognition of a State in the 1967 borders through the UN General Assembly in September 2011 could mean the blockade of a two state solution through negotiations, as it has been internationally demanded and supported for years. In the West Bank, a Jewish family was brutally murdered in March 2011, shortly afterwards a bomb exploded in Jerusalem and the people of Southern Israel were under constant rocket fire from Gaza, a school bus was deliberately targeted and attacked. The Israeli defense and deterrence measures in the densely inhabited Gaza Strip cause also civilian deaths and are portrayed as “massacres”. At the one hand, another military escalation seems to get more likely, and the radical anti-Israeli camp around Iran sees itself strengthened and emboldened by the developments in the Near East. On the other hand, the uprisings in the region are mainly against unfreedom, corruption, lack of perspectives and other problems in their own countries, while the Israeli-Palestinian conflict does not at all play the central role that Western experts and Arab propaganda claimed for years. But a clear Israeli strategy how to use the democratic aspirations in the Arab world for improving the Israeli-Arab relations has not emerged yet. The international community is increasingly pressing for a fast and final solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. However, which possible solutions are available in this situation, and what are the biggest obstacles? Has the PA abandoned the longtime “land for peace” solution through negotiations by following unilateral actions? Which role can and should the EU play? What does Germany’s “special responsibility” for Israel mean in practice? Two senior experts at the Berlin Middle East Talks (BEMET) will discuss these and other questions. We cordially invite you to join us for an intense debate! Yaacov Lozowick is an Israeli historian and publicist. He lives in Jerusalem and was for many years archive director at Yad Vashem. He is author of “Right to Exist: a Moral Defense of Israel's Wars” (2004), and on his much-noticed blog he writes about Israel and the region (http://yaacovlozowick.blogspot.com). Ralf Fücks is director of the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation and co-author of the program of the Green Party. He publishes in many media, among others he repeatedly wrote about Israel, Palestine and Europe in Der Spiegel. He regularly travels to Israel for meetings and events. Moderation: Michael Spaney, board member of the Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin (MFFB). An event by Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME) and the Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin (MFFB).

May 12, 2011, Berlin: Debate with Yaacov Lozowick and Ralf Fücks (Heinrich-Böll-Foundation, Green Party) about "Escalation or solution through negotiations: The Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the light of the recent developments“. Venue: Robert-Koch-Saal, Dorotheenstr. 96, 10117 Berlin. Time: 6.30 – 9.00 pm. Registration: info@mideastfreedomforum.org. More information: www.mideastfreedomforum.org May 14, 2011, Erfurt: „Israels fight to exist and the 'new' Near East“ – Panel discussion with Yaacov Lozowick and MP Bodo Ramelow (Left Party). Moderation: Secretary of State Professor Dr. Dietmar Herz. Venue: Begegnungsstätte Kleine Synagoge, An der Stadtmünze 5. Time: 8.30 pm. More Information: www.dig-erfurt.de May 15, 2011, Bremen: Lecture by Yaacov Lozowick about „Jerusalem. Where lies the future of the city?“ Venue: Galerie Rabus, Plantage 13. Time: 4.00 pm. More Information: www.dig-bremen.de May 16, 2011, Hamburg: Lecture by Yaacov Lozowick about „Democracy, Moral and Freedom - 63 Years of Israel“. Venue: Talmud Tora Schule, Grindelhof 30. Time: 7.00 pm. More Information: http://hamburgfuerisrael.wordpress.com May 17, 2011, Weiden: VLecture by Yaacov Lozowick about „Europes view on Israel: Prejudices - Facts - Perspectives“. Venue: Regionalbibliothek Weiden, Scheibenstr. 7. Time: 7.00 pm. More Information: www.weiden-ist-bunt.de May 18, 2011, Freiburg i.Brsg.: Lecture by Yaacov Lozowick about „Israels Security Interests in the Context of the Arab Uprisings“. Venue: University Freiburg, Room 1009. Time: 8.00 pm. More Information: www.deutsch-israelische-gesellschaft-freiburg.de