Barbara Ferguson • Arab News Correspondent

WASHINGTON, 3 August 2003 — Upon returning to Israel after his visit to the White House this week, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced the construction of 22 new settlements in the occupied territories, despite the fact the Bush Administration has called for a cessation of the illegal settlements.

It seems Americans with the most interest in the region — Arab-Americans and Jewish-Americans — agree with the president. According to a survey of Arab-Americans and Jewish-Americans regarding the Bush Administration’s Middle East policies and Israeli-Palestinian peace process issues, the poll found strong support in both communities for a freeze on Israeli settlement expansion in the occupied territories, support for the road map to Middle East peace; a two-state solution; and an end to Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. This is the second poll jointly conducted by the Arab American Institute (AAI) and Americans for Peace Now (APN). This survey reveals increased support for President Bush’s handling of the Arab-Israeli conflict, as well as more backing for the type of peace proposal outlined at the Taba negotiations.

A more complete version of the poll can be found at: www.aaiusa.org.

The poll revealed that both communities expressed strong support for the right of Palestinians to live in a secure and independent state of their own. The majority of Jewish-Americans, 82 percent, supported the idea of Palestinian state. In the Arab-American community, 92.7 percent agreed with the right of a state for Palestinians.

Compared with the response to this question in the AAI/APN poll held October 2002, there was a 6.8 percent increase in the number of Jewish-Americans who disagree with the right of Palestinians to an independent state, which the pollsters say draws “about equally from those who earlier agreed or were not sure.”

The poll found that both sides strongly believe Israelis have the right to live “in a secure and independent state of their own.”

When asked about the Israeli settlement expansion in the West Bank and Gaza, a significant majority of Jewish-Americans, 70.6 percent, support settlement expansion freeze. Only 20.8 percent oppose a settlement freeze. Arab-Americans strongly support a settlement freeze by 80.2 percent

When asked about Israel ending its occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, a majority of American Jews, 58.5 percent, said they support an end to the occupation; 29.1 percent said they oppose ending it.