Mahmoud Abbas. Image by Getty Images

A substantial bipartisan majority of members of the U.S. House of Representatives signed a letter to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas urging him to end incitement.

“There have been some efforts to curb the violence and protect the peace,” said the letter sent Thursday, alluding to Abbas’ cooperation with Israel in containing the recent spate of deadly Palestinian attacks on Israelis.

“But statements made by you, other political figures, clerics and official P.A. media have undoubtedly served to inflame the current situation,” said the letter, signed by 369 House members out of 435.

The letter noted claims by Abbas and others that Israel plans to change the status quo on the Temple Mount, the Jerusalem site also known as Haram al-Sharif and holy to Muslims and Jews, as well as Abbas’ false allegation that Israeli forces had executed a teenager who stabbed Israelis.

“The stakes are high,” said the letter, initiated by Reps. Ed Royce, R-Calif., and Eliot Engel, D-N.Y,, respectively the chairman and top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “Now is the time for responsible and sustained leadership on these critical issues.”

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee backed the letter.

Earlier this week, the House passed a non-binding resolution condemning Palestinian incitement. Similar resolutions are under consideration in the Senate, the Daily Caller reported.

Why I became the Forward’s editor-in-chief

You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.

And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.

That’s where you come in. Gifts of any size keep the Forward free and accessible to everyone and ensure we have the resources we need to power the Forward at this critical time for American Jews.

Don't just read the Forward - invest in it. Will you support our work today?

— Alyssa Katz, editor-in-chief

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$120 $180 $360 OTHER AMOUNT