Obama and Netanyahu will both address the leading pro-Israel lobbying group, the American-Israel Political Affairs Committee (AIPAC), two days after Netanyahu publicly rebuked Obama's peace plans for the Middle East from inside the Oval Office. Such is the controversy aroused by Mr Obama's stance that AIPAC's leader, Lee Rosenberg, has been forced to write to members begging them not to boo the president when he addresses them Obama's clash with Netanyahu, who accused his host of wanting a "peace based on illusions", has sent a sharp divide down American, Israeli and international opinion.
Netanyahu objected to Obama's demand in a speech on Thursday for a Palestinian state based on borders from before the 1967 Six Day War, with revisions to take into consideration security concerns and some of Israel's settlements. Obama was immediately backed by the Middle East "Quartet", the mediation body comprising the United States, the United Nations, Russia and the European Union. It issued a statement expressing its "strong support".
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