Congressman Alan Lowenthal (CA-47) today issued the following statement regarding a House of Representatives vote on House Resolution 11:

"I believe an ultimate and lasting peace will come through direct negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians.  I also believe a one-sided placement of blame isn’t constructive.  I urged President Obama to veto the U.N. Security Council Resolution because it was a one-sided attempt to place all of the blame on Israel for a lack of progress toward a two-state solution and peace in the Middle East.

"The reality is that violence, terrorism, and continued Palestinian incitement to violence is a major impediment to peace.  It is also true that continued expansion of Israeli settlements prevents the two sides from coming together to negotiate a lasting peace.

"Unfortunately, House Resolution 11, is one-sided and unbalanced much like the U.N. Resolution.  My position is clear: both the Israelis and the Palestinians must work together to remove these roadblocks to peace—violence, incitement, and the expansion of settlements.  Both sides must come together in productive two-party talks.  Regrettably, both the U.N. Security Council Resolution and the resolution we passed today are distractions from that core aim and therefore I voted against H.Res. 11.

"However, I support and I am a cosponsor of, a proposed alternative, House Resolution 23, which is balanced and addresses the concerns I have about the deficiencies of both the U.N. and House resolutions.  Unfortunately, the House Republican leadership blocked multiple efforts to include these critical changes in the resolution which passed the House today.  I will continue to advocate for both the Israelis and Palestinians to engage in meaningful two-party negotiations—the only real path to peace.  Any solution must be balanced and cannot be imposed by external entities—it must come through direct cooperation between Israelis and Palestinians."