Jerusalem, January 9, 2008 ... The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) strongly criticized a call by some Israeli Arab organizations to boycott meetings with a task force set up specifically aimed at addressing the problems the Arab communities face in Israeli society.

The Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli Arab Issues is made up of some 70 Jewish organizations and philanthropies in North America. It is working with Israeli Arab organizations to improve the lives of Israel's Arab citizens.

Yet organizations such as Ittijah, which describes itself as a union of Arab-based organizations, have called for Arab groups to boycott the endeavor because organizations in the task force support the Jewish character of the State of Israel.

ADL's Israel Office issued the following statement:

The Anti-Defamation League is a member of the Executive Committee of the Interagency Task Force because we believe reaching full equality for the Arab citizens of Israel is vital on a practical and moral level.

The basis of the Task Force's work is that Israel is a democratic and Jewish state. When Israeli Arab groups such as Ittijah reject these concepts it reinforces barriers to achieving the goal of equality.

Ultimately, the effort to attain full equality for Israeli Arabs should not become a vehicle to reject the Jewishness of the State of Israel.

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.