Jerusalem, May 25, 1997

His Excellency Muhammad Hosni Mubarak
President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Abedine Palace
Cairo, Egypt

Dear President Mubarak,

In preparing for your forthcoming meeting with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, we hope you will give some attention to this letter.

As is well known, the present crisis in the peace process started with the Israeli government's unilateral decision to start building activity at Har Homa/Jebl Abu Ghneim in East Jerusalem.

We offer a possible compromise solution as follows:

1. All expropriations of land at Har Homa/Jebl Abu Ghneim will be abolished and the land restored to the respectful owners, Arab and Jewish;
2. These Arab and Jewish owners will be free to build on their respective plots without interference from the Israeli or Palestinian authorities.
3. Anyone purchasing housing constructed on the site will have to sign a document acknowledging their awareness that the final political status of the site is to be defined in the framework of the general "final status" talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

A compromise of this kind was discussed between Rabbi Menachem Froman of the settlement Tekoa and Faisal Husseini, Palestinian minister in charge of Jerusalem issues ("Kol HaYir newspaper 3/14/97). This compromise overcomes the differences between both parties and considers the following positions:

1. Mr. Arafat, whose people are feeling increasingly frustrated by unilateral Israeli actions, cannot afford to accept the Israeli confiscation of Palestinian land on Jebl Abu Ghneim and its use for constructing a neighborhood for Jewish Israelis. Expropriations of land in East Jerusalem were declared invalid in a long series of U.N. Security Council and Camp David agreement (see enclosed). Any lenience on this point would expose Mr. Arafat to accusations by the Palestinian opposition of having "sold out" Jerusalem and Palestine.
2. Mr. Netanyahu, who won the elections by accusing his predecessor, Mr. Peres, of ,"intending to divide Jerusalem" cannot afford to declare that he is stopping construction on Har Homa and face the collapse of his government.

We urge President Mubarak to support a compromise along the lines that have been discussed between Rabbi Menachem Froman and Faisal Husseini, as mentioned above.

Mr. Netanyahu can not reject this offer since it allows building in East Jerusalem while protecting human rights.

Mr. Arafat can not refuse this offer since it cancels the expropriations according to the U.N. Security Council resolutions.

If the Oslo agreement prohibits construction in East Jerusalem, as interpreted by the Palestinian Authority, then no one will be allowed to build in East Jerusalem and this hurts the Palestinian citizens. This is the reason that it's important to distinguish between governmental construction, that effects the status of East Jerusalem and construction by the owners, since they agree that the control of this area will be determined in the permanent agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.

Respectfully,

David Myr,
General Manager