Jan. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Fourteen advisers to former U.S. President Jimmy Carter's center for human rights resigned today, citing his stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Former Presidential adviser S. Stephen Selig III and Caribou Coffee Co. Chief Executive Officer Michael Coles were among the resigning members of the Board of Councilors to the Carter Center.

They quit the Atlanta-based organization in reaction to Carter's book, ``Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid,'' as well as his statements since its publication last year. Carter portrays the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as a ``purely one-sided affair,'' with Israel holding all of the responsibility for resolving it, they say.

``You have clearly abandoned your historic role of broker in favor of becoming an advocate for one side,'' the group wrote in a letter, a copy of which was obtained by Bloomberg News. ``Your book has confused opinion with fact, subjectivity with objectivity and force for change with partisan advocacy.''

Selig, who was Carter's liaison to the business community during his administration and runs an Atlanta real-estate firm, declined to comment beyond the letter. Coles didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

200 Members

The Carter Center said in a statement that it was ``grateful'' for the service of the resigning members.

``They are not engaged in implementing the work of the Center and are not a governing board,'' executive director John Hardman said in the statement sent via e-mail.

The center has an annual operating budget of $36 million, from donations by individuals, foundations and corporations, according to its Web site. It has monitored the Palestinian elections in 1996, 2005 and 2006.

A 21-member Board of Trustees oversees the center's property and assets, and sets its mission, according to its Web site.

The Board of Councilors, from which the 14 resigned, meets quarterly for briefings on the center's work, and to serve as liaisons to the business community. It includes more than 200 members, mostly drawn from Atlanta's business community, who act in an advisory role. Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin and Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue are ex-officio members, according to the Center's Web site.

`Digging His Heels In'

``It's a painful and difficult decision,'' said Jeff Levy, the CEO of PurDigital Media Inc., an Atlanta-based technology company, who was among the letter's signers. ``He appears to me to be intransigent on this issue. He's digging his heels in.''

Levy said in an interview he decided to resign after reading the book and attending the most recent meeting of the Board of Councilors late last year. Liane Levetan, the former chief executive officer of DeKalb County just outside Atlanta, also resigned and signed the letter. She said she has worked with former first lady Rosalynn Carter on mental health issues.

``Some people wanted to make it a little stronger,'' said Levetan, who was born in Vienna and fled that country in 1939, in an interview. ``Being Jewish and an immigrant and an American by choice, you just can't sit back and let something like this go by.''

Other Atlantans haven't decided how to respond to the controversy, including Arthur Blank, founder of Home Depot Inc. and owner of the Atlanta Falcons football team. Blank is a member of the Center's board of trustees, its main governing body.

``The book and the tone of the interviews that I have seen since its publication distress me and many others whose views I respect,'' Blank said in the statement, which was e-mailed to Bloomberg News. ``I'm not prepared to discuss what, if any, actions I might take related to President Carter's book or the public reactions to it.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Jason Kelly in Atlanta at jkelly14@bloomberg.netMary Jane Credeur in Atlanta at mcredeur@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: January 11, 2007 19:30 EST