The Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Committee is a group of volunteers who joined together to educate the public through symposiums, debates, dialogue and cultural exchanges about a possible mechanism for peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

Our members include Muslims, Jews and Christians from all walks of life.

We do not aim to benefit one side over the other. We have a comprehensive plan to improve relations between Israelis and Palestinians through education, engagement and dialogue. We believe that both the Israelis and the Palestinians in the United States can reduce tension and achieve more understanding through engagement.

Our board of Directors includes the following individuals:

Josef Avesar, President and Founder

Josef Avesar is an Israeli-born attorney who resides in Southern California. He has written numerous articles and commentaries, including:  “The Israeli-Palestinian Confederation”; “Why Would the Israeli and Palestinian Government Accept a Confederation?”; “An Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Creates a Fair and Balanced Mechanism to Resolve the Issues”; “Israeli and Palestinian Governments Too Busy to Make Peace”; “Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Could Have Helped Prisoner Exchange”; “An Israeli-Palestinian Confederation Could Have Saved the Violence in Gaza”; “It’s Time to Take the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict by the Horns”; and “Israeli-Palestinian Confederation 101 ”Mr. Avesar has appeared with many political and civil leaders and well-known professors from all over the world to discuss the idea of a confederation between Israelis and Palestinians.
On January 11, 2006, Mr. Avesar received a congratulatory letter from former President Bill Clinton commending him for his work on behalf of the confederation idea. Mr. Avesar believes that a joint confederation government between the Israelis and Palestinians could create a mechanism for peace and cooperation between the two nations, as do the following members and associates of the Israeli-Palestinian Confederation.

Sumner Fein, Founding Member (Treasurer of IPC) Sumner Fein is the treasurer of the Israeli-Palestinian Confederation.  He received his bachelor’s degree in economics with an emphasis in accounting from UCLA in 1969. He is a certified public accountant licensed by the state of California since 1973. Mr. Fein has been employed by several national accounting firms and has been in solo practice since 1985.

Robby Gordon Dr. Robby Gordon was born in Israel and lived there until the age of 21. He has been active in the peace movement since he was 14. In the United States, he has been involved in several peace movements for the Middle East, including Tikkun, Peace Now, and Seeds for Peace. He has been the co-chair of the Cousins Club, an organization of Palestinians, Arabs, Jews, Israelis, and others who are interested in peace in the Middle East. He is on the board of Al Amal School, which is the only school that teaches about peace in the West Bank. Dr. Gordon is the father of two children and lives in Irvine. He owns a mortgage company and is an independent financial planner.

Dan Henrickson Dan Henrickson joined the IPC board in April 2007. He became interested in its philosophy and plan and decided to help promote its activities. Mr. Henrickson is dedicated to peace and to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a fair and just manner.

Abed A. Jlelati, Founding Member Abed A. Jlelati was born in Damascus, Syria, in 1962 and arrived in the U.S. in 1983. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1989 and completed an MBA in 1997, both from California State University, Fullerton. In 1996, Mr. Jlelati started working in the skateboarding industry. He held a vice presidential post in World Industries, Inc. and various  positions with Mastermind Distribution, Inc. as CEO and CFO. Mr. Jlelati is currently consulting in the skateboarding industry. By working with the Free Muslims Coalition, he hopes to curtail the ideology that fosters terrorism.

Mohamed Awadalla, born in Egypt Dec. 25, 1967, the time I born on has some impact how I perceive the Israeli Arab issue, when I moved to the US in 2000 and I started to know people from different background, and then start to learn a lot about others in a very dynamic diverse community, I spend many years work in the Hotel Management Industry in Hilton International Egypt, I have study Hotel management in Schweizerische Hotelfachschule Luzern Switzerland (SHL),  Now Iʼm Certified Real Estate Agent, and Iʼm started to combined this with being Financial Advisor career.

Ami Magal, Founding Member
Ami Magal was born in Israel and currently resides in Los Angeles. He is the assistant editor of an Israeli newspaper in Los Angeles and is active in various peace organizations. He is dedicated to fair and balanced reporting and a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Mr. Magal is also the owner of a small business in the wireless communications industry and a teacher of journalism and reporting.

David Marcus, Esq., Founding Member
Real property attorney David Marcus is dedicated to a fair resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and his law degree from Loyola Law School. He was admitted to the State Bar of California in 1979.
  

Ferial Masry, Founding Member Ferial Masry was born in Saudi Arabia. She is politically active in numerous organizations that support democracy and social progress. In 2005, Masry was invited to the International Jeddah Economic Forum to speak about her experiences with American-style democracy as a Saudi-born woman who ran for office in her adopted country. She joined many notable public figures, including former Secretaries of State Madeleine Albright and Zbigniew Brzezinski, in recounting her fascinating experience. In 2005, she was awarded the Human Rights Award at the Ronald Reagan Library, and she was the recipient of the 2006 Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Democrat of the Year award. Masry is fluent in Arabic and English.

Aida Porteneuve, Founding Member Aida Porteneuve was born in Lebanon. She is an American citizen who has lived in the U.S. for more than 42 years. A graduate of California State University, Long Beach, Mrs. Porteneuve worked for the California State University system, from which she is now retired. She is presently an activist involved in social justice and peace issues, and she chairs the Peace in Action committee of First Congregational Church of Long Beach.

Kathleen O’Connor Wang Kathleen O’Connor Wang is a field interviewer for the U.S. Census Bureau and has worked for the federal government for some time. She is familiar with issues involving demographics and population distribution. Ms. Wang has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science.

Harvey Youngman Harvey Youngman was born in Palestine and received his education in Los Angeles. He is the owner of Deal Makers Machinery and is a broker of manufacturing machinery for aerospace companies and machine shops.

Aymen Zaben Palestinian American born and Raised in New York.  Aymen Zaben has been active in achieving Peace on a World Level, and in 2006 launched his own World Peace Campaign. Aymen Zaben joined the IPC in 2008 . He became interested in its Plan and believed that an Israeli Palestinian Confederation can solve many of the Problems in achieving Peace and giving both sides the right to exist and live Peacefully. Aymen Zaben is Dedicated to Peace, and believes the Israeli Palestinian conflict must be resolved in a fair and just manner.

Oyun Puntsagdorj Oyun Puntsagdorj was born and grew up in Mongolia.  She graduated as a mining engineer with a master’s degree in engineering science from Irkutsk Polytechnical University of Russia in 1987.  She worked as a mining project engineer in Mongolia for several years, then came to the United States in 1999.  She is currently a student assistant at the California Environmental Protection Agency and is also a law clerk. She is working on his master’s degree in structural engineering at California State University, Northridge.

Murad Salah Murad Salah is a Palestinian citizen who resides in Ramalla. Mr. Salah has a bachelor’s degree in accounting with a minor in business administration from Birzeit University. He is the financial officer for the Palestinian Businessmen Association in Ramalla, an organization with over 300 members. Mr. Salah is able to speak, read, and write Arabic, English, and Hebrew. He believes in the cooperation that a confederation can foster to assist both the Palestinian and Israelis achieve peace.