At Work Around the World

Israel and The Palestinian Territories

In November 1983, the first Middle East Consultation was held at The Carter Center, co-chaired by former U.S. Presidents Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford.

Middle East Dialog

As part of the Carter Center's ongoing effort to support peace, democracy, and human rights in the Middle East, Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter led a mission April 13-21, 2008, to Israel, the West Bank, Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan.

The goal of the mission was to consult with all major actors in the conflicts between Israel and its Arab neighbors, probe for possible reconciliation, and make a report outlining the options available for others to make tangible moves toward peace agreements.  Participants also included former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, son Jeffrey Carter, former U.S. Congressman Stephen Solarz, senior Carter Center advisor Dr. Robert Pastor, and director of the Center's Conflict Resolution Program Hrair Balian.

Read more:

April 22, 2008:  Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan: April 13-22, 2008 >

Sept. 30, 2008:  Q&A on Middle East by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter >

Public Reporting

Following 2006 elections, The Carter Center opened a field office in Ramallah. In 2008, two additional offices will open in Jerusalem and Gaza. 

A core activity of the Center's field presence is to provide ongoing monitoring of the political situation and key issues in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, including peace efforts, human rights issues, and electoral developments.  Drawing on information and analysis from the Center's senior field representative and contacts with local organizations, the Center will capitalize on its unique ability to work at both the grassroots level as well as at the upper echelons of government. 

The monitoring and analysis will form the basis of periodic public reports issued by the Center to draw international attention to critical issues of democratic development in the Territories and to identify opportunities to promote peace and justice.  The reports will be directed primarily at the U.S. public as well as Israeli and other Western publics, and will focus on issues of obstacles to peace such as:

• The need for an inclusive process that brings the most influential Palestinian parties into governing structure and the peace process;
• The construction of the wall and settlements and implications for the viability of a two-state solution;
• Restrictions on freedom of access and movement on Palestinians;
• Restrictions on the right to enter for Palestinian Americans, especially businessmen and women trying to invest in the economy;
• Arrests of Palestinian public officials and targeted assassinations by Israeli Defense Forces;  
• The emergence of the Arab Peace Initiative and other efforts toward peaceful resolution of Arab – Israeli conflict.
  

Waging Peace

Monitoring Elections

In January 2006, The Carter Center deployed an 86-person election-monitoring delegation to the Palestinian territories to observe the Palestinian parliamentary elections, in partnership with the National Democratic Institute.

The delegation of observers in the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem was led by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, former Albanian President Rexhep Meidani, former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, and former Spanish Foreign Minister Ana Palacio.

The delegation found the elections to be peaceful, competitive, and genuinely democratic. Islamist group Hamas captured 74 of 132 parliamentary seats, much better than had been predicted by most analysts.

Hamas has created a network of social welfare programs throughout the West Bank and Gaza, which has contributed to its popular support. Hamas candidates also were seen as a change from the corruption-riddled ruling Fatah party, according to many Palestinians.

Palestinians living in East Jerusalem again faced difficulties in voting, a situation that has occurred in all three elections observed by The Carter Center.

"Because of the competing claims of sovereignty over East Jerusalem, the Israeli government has allowed only a tiny fraction of the Palestinians living in East Jerusalem to vote there," said Dr. David Carroll, director of the Center's Democracy Program. "Balloting had to take place in post offices set up as centers for 'absentee ballots' to be returned to Palestinian election officials in Ramallah."

Despite the difficult circumstances of the ongoing conflict and Israeli occupation, Palestinian voters turned out in large numbers in a strong expression of their desire to choose representatives through open and competitive elections. The enthusiasm of Palestinians for the election process was evident throughout the voting districts and was reinforced by the professional and impartial performance of election officials.

The Center also monitored the Palestinian Authority elections in January 2005, which saw Mahmoud Abbas elected as president of the Palestinian Authority. The Carter Center and its partner, NDI, found the election to be administered smoothly and without significant problems.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter led the delegation, with former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman and former Prime Minister of Sweden Carl Bildt. The 80-member multinational delegation included electoral and human rights experts, regional specialists, and political and civic leaders from 15 countries in North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. NDI and the Center previously organized a delegation co-led by President Carter for the 1996 elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council and president of the Palestinian Authority.

During the morning of the election, voters in East Jerusalem found themselves unable to vote. It became apparent that the voting lists used in the six post offices in East Jerusalem bore no correlation to the voters who were seeking to vote. In one location, by 11 a.m., not one voter of some 45 who had shown up appeared on the voter list. These six post office sites were selected as a result of a political compromise between the Palestinians and the Israelis. There were many Palestinians living in East Jerusalem who wished to vote. For the Israelis, having the voting take place at post offices allowed them to consider the votes as similar to casting 'absentee ballots.' These post office polling sites were of particular concern to us because there were problems in such sites in 1996, and earlier this year the Israelis shut down registration there.

President Carter decided to go to Ramallah and take the matter up with the Central Election Commission. He recommended that all registered voters who were supposed to vote in East Jerusalem should be able to in any of the six designated post offices.

The Palestinians were interested in the proposal, but since Israeli postal officials were responsible for administering the vote at these locations, they had to negotiate the terms for doing so with the Israeli government. This process took hours, and ultimately, the Palestinians and Israelis agreed that voters who could show they were Jerusalem residents and who had proper registration documents could vote even if they were not on a particular voter list, as long as they provided their names to foreign observers selected by the Palestinians.

Overall, Carter Center observers concluded the Palestinian people were able to express their political will without serious hindrance. Yasser Arafat's death provided an opportunity for a new era of democratic leadership and governance for the Palestinian people. While the 1996 elections, which The Carter Center also observed, were a milestone in moving toward democracy, the 2005 election took place in a dramatically different context. The field of candidates was competitive, and the elections provided Palestinians with an opportunity to select new leaders who they intend to hold accountable on a range of concerns.


Mediating Conflict

The Camp David Accords of 1978 were a major achievement of the Carter administration. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has continued his deep interest in Middle East peace since leaving the White House. In November 1983, the first Middle East Consultation was held at The Carter Center, Co-chaired by President Carter and former U.S. President Gerald Ford.

In March 1987, President Carter traveled throughout the Middle East, meeting with heads of state. On the basis of this trip, President Carter hosted in November 1987 an unprecedented Middle East Consultation attended by representatives from Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Syria, and the Palestinian community as well as officials from the five permanent members of the U. N. Security Council.

In March 1990, President and Mrs. Carter returned to the region, meeting with heads of state and leading political figures in Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel, and the West Bank to discuss the Middle East peace process. Carter Center experts continue to follow events in the region.

To mark the 25th anniversary of the Camp David Accords in 2003, U.S., Israeli, and Egyptian negotiators from the Camp David meetings met once with President Carter in Washington, D.C. The leaders discussed lessons learned for peacemaking and how they can be applied to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict today. Matthew Hodes, Carter Center Conflict Resolution Program director, felt the precedent set by the accords continues to have resonance in the region: "The Camp David Accords represent a major diplomatic success in the history of the overall Arab-Israeli conflict. The challenge now is to address the other part of the Camp David promise - the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."
In 2002 and 2003, Hodes assisted the Israeli and Palestinian negotiators of a process designed to result in a comprehensive model agreement to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The process generated what has become known as the Geneva Accord. President Carter delivered the keynote speech at the formal unveiling of the agreement.

President Carter has also led election-monitoring missions to the Palestinian territories in 2005 and 2006, meeting various officials including Ariel Sharon, Mahmoud Abbas, and Ehud Olmert on those trips to discuss the situation in the region.

President Carter and the Conflict Resolution Program continue to work with our Israeli and Palestinian partners from the Geneva process to promote two-state solutions to the conflict.

Read more about the Carter Center's Conflict Resolution Program.



Honoring Human Rights

The Carter-Menil Human Rights Prize was awarded in 1989 to two groups in different communities working toward the common goal of protecting human rights in Israel and the Occupied Territories: Al-Haq and B'Tselem. Al-Haq (Law in the Service of Man) is a Palestinian organization that has documented human rights violations in the West Bank since 1979. B'Tselem (The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories) was founded in 1989 to collect information on human rights violations in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

President Carter and the late Dominique de Menil established the $100,000 prize to promote the protection of human rights. It has been awarded to individuals or organizations for their outstanding efforts on behalf of human rights, often at great personal sacrifice. The award enabled human rights activists to continue their work and focused global attention on their struggles for justice.

Read more about the Carter Center's human rights initiatives.

Updated Octoer 2008


Carter Center Urges Israel To Maintain Energy Supplies in Gaza
The Carter Center urges the government of Israel to cease consideration of a proposal to cut energy supplies in Gaza. On Sept. 19, 2007, Israel threatened to declare the Gaza Strip a "hostile territory" and cut off provision of essential services such as electricity and fuel to the civilian population as retaliation for rocket attacks being launched from the territory. 

Israeli Actions in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank: Prospects Dim for Middle East Peace 
In a statement issued today: The Carter Center deplores the decision taken Wednesday by Israel to declare the Gaza Strip a hostile territory and its threat to cut off provision of essential services such as electricity and fuel to the civilian population.


Election Reports

Preliminary Statement of the NDI/Carter Center International Observer Delegation to the Palestinian Legislative Council Elections
This preliminary statement on the Jan. 25, 2006, Palestinian Legislative Council elections is offered by the international observer delegation organized by the National Democratic Institute in partnership with The Carter Center. 

Palestinian Legislative Council Elections: Pre-election Assessment Statement of The Carter Center/National Democratic Institute (PDF)
An assessment by The Carter Center and the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs of the pre-election environment, including technical preparations and the political context, ahead of the Palestinian Legislative Council elections scheduled for Jan. 25.

National Democratic Institute Final Report on the Palestinian Presidential Election, Jan. 9, 2005 (PDF)
The final National Democratic Institute report on the Palestinian presidential election held Jan. 9, 2005. The Carter Center participated with NDI in their election observations. 

Preliminary Statement of the NDI and Carter Center International Election Observer Delegation to the Jan. 9, 2005, Palestinian Presidential Election, Jan. 10, 2005 (PDF)
The preliminary statement of the NDI and Carter Center international election observer delegation to the Jan. 9, 2005, Palestinian presidential election, released Jan. 10, 2005.

Statement of the National Democratic Institute Pre-election Assessment Mission to the 2005 Palestinian Presidential Elections (PDF)
This statement has been prepared by a pre-election assessment team organized by the National Democratic Institute in partnership with The Carter Center. The delegation examined technical preparations and the political environment leading up to the presidential election in the West Bank and Gaza, currently scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 9, 2005.

Final Report: Observing the 1996 Palestine Elections (PDF), released March 1, 1997
A 41-member international delegation, organized by the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) and The Carter Center, observed the January 20, 1996, elections in all 16 constituencies of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.