WASHINGTON, April 17, 2010 (WAFA)- Debra DeLee, president and CEO of Americans for Peace Now, said, today, that Holocaust survivor and Nobel laureate Elie Wiesel’s “ad in the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal brought tears to my eyes, for more than one reason.'

In her statement published in response to Wiesel’s ad, DeLee said one cannot be unmoved by his style, but that that the ad also saddened her, 'Because to follow your advice - to indefinitely postpone Israeli-Palestinian negotiations over Jerusalem - amounts to a future of blood and tears for Israelis and Palestinians alike. It is not a prescription for trust and hope, but for perpetual strife.'

DeLee, who served in the past as chairwoman of the US democratic party, added, 'Mr. Wiesel, I am attaching to this letter a map of east Jerusalem and of the West Bank, produced by our Israeli sister organization, Peace Now. Please look at it. Come to terms with the reality that to continue this status quo means death and destruction. I know that is not what you want.'

In conclusion, she wrote: 'Next time you visit Jerusalem, Mr. Wiesel, I invite you to tour East Jerusalem with one of Peace Now's experts. I guarantee that it would give you a new perspective on Jerusalem.'

Weisel, amid tensions between the US administration and the Netanyahu government over construction in Jerusalem, published a full page ad in the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal titled: 'For Jerusalem,” in which he said that Jerusalem must remain the spiritual capital of the world's Jews, and should serve as a symbol of faith and hope – not as a symbol of sorrow and bitterness.

Following the American demand to halt construction in Jerusalem, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu contacted Elie Wiesel, one of the most respected authors in the United States, to help him appeal to US President Barack Obama.

Wiesel was summoned for a meeting at the White House, but despite the high esteem President Obama holds for the Holocaust survivor, who he invited to join him on a tour of the Buchenwald death camp last June, it is unlikely Wiesel will be able to persuade Obama to change his policies, Ynet news published on its website.