Christians Deny Israel Mistreats Arabs

(Continued from Page 1)
governments expressed concern
about the denial of access for all
• Jews, or for Christians and Mus-
lims in Israel, to their holy places
during the Jordanian administra-
tion of the Old City." The old sec-
tor of Jerusalem was under Jor-
danian control from 1949 until cap-
tured by Israel in the Six-Day War
of June 1967. During that time,
Jews, whether Israeli or not, could
not visit the historic Wailing Wall,
and no Christian pilgrim could
cross the frontier between Israel
and Jordan if his passport bore
an Israeli visa.
The statement also replied to
charges concerning an Israeli plan
to build housing units on the out-
skirts if Jerusalem. It stated:
"Our inquiry into the question
of public housing in the Old City
and environs has convinced us that
the construction of these buildings
is a legitimate effort on the part
of the Israeli government to effec-
tuate a renewal of certain slum
areas of the City, to rehouse in
new apartments Arabs from these
quarters, to provide living space
for a Jewish population increased
by immigration, and to re-intro-
duce a Jewish presence into the
Old City from which it had been
forcibly barred after the war of
1948. The development plans are
in no sense designed to oust the
Arabs, nor to 'suffocate' the Chris-
tian and Muslim population. While
we are concerned about the sacred
character of the city, we believe
that this housing is sufficiently re-
moved from the holy places to
avoid the charge of diminishing the
sanctity of ,the city."
. . .
In addition, the Christian lead-
ers refuted the charge that the
Christian. Arab population in Is-
rael was decreasing. They point-
ed out that "since the end of the
1948 Arab-Israeli war, the Chris-
tian and Muslim population of

Israel has more than doubled"
and that "in Jerusalem, the non-
Jewish total (Christian and Mus-
lim) has increased steadily in
the last three years."
Disputing the logic of internation-
alizing Jerusalem, particularly at
this time in history, the signers of
the statement pointed out that the
United Nations, which would have
to supervise such an action, "now
includes a large proportion of offici-
ally atheistic countries, or coun-
tries with no interest in or ties to
the holy places of Christianity,
Judaism or Islam."
In any case, the Christian lead-
ers declared, "internationalization
has never worked and the world
has had its fill of divided cities.
There are many other possible
formulas which would better serve
the aim of protecting the holy
places. We believe that the choice
of the best method should be left
to negotiations carried on at the
peace table between Israel and
Arab countries. At that point, the
Christian churches, synagogues and
mosques can voice their opinions
as to the particular needs of their
communities and properties in the
area."
The signators stated that they
were "encouraged by such creative
efforts as those already initiated by
Israeli officials with Christian ecu-
menical and Arab civic leaders for
special jurisdictional arrangements
over the holy places and in Arab
areas of Jerusalem."
"On the other hand," they added,
"we regret all interventions that
fail to take into account the politi-
cal rights and sovereignty of the
state of Israel."
Among the signators to the state-
ment, each of whom spoke in his
own name and not necessarily for
his organization or affiliation, were
Father John G. Donohue, Catholic-
Jewish Relations Committee of the
Archdiocese of New York; Dr.

$:

V,:

*

Charles Fritsch, professor of He-
brew and Old Testament litera-
ture, Princeton Theological Semin-
ary; Dr. Andre Lacocque, Chicago
Theological Seminary: Msgr. John
Oesterreicher, Institute of Judeo-
Christian Studies, Seton Hall Uni-
versity; Abbot Leo Rutloff, Bene-
dictine Monk; Dr. Elwyn Smith,
Temple University; Dr. George
'Williams, Harvard University.
In regard to Christians Con-
cerned for Israel, an organization
that was formed four months ago
and now numbers 300 members, Dr.
Littell declared that its primary
purpose was to "re-think the rela-
tion of the Christian Church to
the Jewish people." He stated:
"It is not possible to love a
`spiritual Israel' and hate the earth-
ly Israel. It is not possible to
honor and obey the God of Abra-
ham, Isaac and Jacob and wish
evil to the Jewish people. To lay
it on the line, it is not possible to
side with those who seek Jerusa-
lem's destruction and be numbered
a faithful Christian. It was not pos-
sible in the Germany of the Third
Reich, and it is not possible today
in America."
Quoting Dr. and Mrs. Roy Eck-
ardt, authors of "Encounter With
Israel" and members of Christians
Concerned for Israel, he declared.
"The real threat to the Christian
community's independence in the
Middle East is the alliance of Is-
lam with Arab chauvinism. By
encouraging extremist forces with-
in that alliance and by talking
up Arab aspirations, the churches
help sign their own death warrant.
The irony of the pro-Arab, anti-
Israeli effort within the churches
is that religious life and freedom
for Christians are flourishing with-
in Israel and are under repression
within a number of the very coun-
tries the churchmen seek to ap-
pease, such as Syria, Iraq and
Egypt."

*

*

8—Friday, June 18, 1971

Israel Busts Ring of 'Bra Bombers'

TEL AVIV—Israeli Airport po-
lice have come up with • a new
problem: the Bra Bomb.
Three women were arrested in
two days at Lydda Airport with
time bombs concealed in their
bras.
Being held for trial are a total
of five young women, including
Nadia Bardali, 16, and her sister
Marlene, 24, of Casablanca.
The girls said that they had fal-
len in love with two Arab guer-
rillas and that they were being
paid by a guerrilla ring.
The next day, after their arrest,
Evelyn Bahr, 26, of Germany, was

According to its chairman, Prof.
Erich Isaac of City College of
New York, the organization con-
siders current American Middle
Eastern policy dangerous both to
long-term American interests and
to the survival of Israel.
Further, "it seeks to educate the
American public and its repre-
sentatives in Washington in the
meaning of Middle Eastern geo-
graphic and power relationships
for American vital interests. The
Senate Foreign Relations Commit-
tee, under the leadership of Sena-

for Fulbright, has not merely
failed in this task but has grossly
distorted the realities of the situa-
tion, converting basic threats to
the United States into alleged
shadow plays of status-seeking by
otherwise 'harmless' powers like
the USSR!"
"Americans for a Secure Israel"
sees the Middle East as the crucial
region in which peace must be
established if future world conflict
is to be avoided.
According to the group's execu-
tive secretary, Rabbi Nathan N.
Schorr of Yeshiva University, Is-
raeli withdrawal from Sinai would
leave the Russians, their role in
Egypt now confirmed by a 15-year
treaty, in full control of the Suez,
the geographical hinge between
Asia and Africa.
The initiating committee of the
organization includes Prof. Milton

NYC Labor Council Backs Bond Strike

NEW YORK (JTA) — The New
York Central Labor Council, rep-
resenting 1,200,000 workers in the
city, has expressed support for
Local 1707 of the Community and
Social Agency Employes Union,
AFL-CIO, which has been striking
the Israel Bond Organiaztion for
32 days.

In a letter to its members signed
by Harry Van Arsdale, president;
Morris Lushewitz, secretary; and
William H. Bowe, treasurer, the
Central Labor Council stated that
"all efforts" by the union to settle
the contract dispute have been
"fruitless" because of manage-
ment's insistence on a plan that

"would effectively destroy the bar-
gaining power of the union."
Such a plan, the statement con-
tinued, "cannot be accepted" be-
cause the union "will not consent
to its own destruction."
The Labor Council urged its
members not to buy Israel Bonds
or participate in Bond Organiza-
tion functions until the strike is
settled. It also asked them to con-
tribute to the strike fund of the
500 professional and clerical work-
ers who walked out on May 15 and
to express their support of the
strikers to Leo Bernstein, execu-
tive vice president of the Israel
Bond Organization.

arrested for the same offense.
She admitted that she had smug-
gled weapons for the guerrilla
gang which had hijacked four jets
last September.

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`Americans for a Secure Israel' Established
to Inform Public About U.S. Mid East Policy

NEW YORK—A new organization
which proposes to alert the public
to the need for changing American
policy in the Middle East, "Ameri-
cans for a Secure Israel," has been
established with headquarters in
New York City and branches in
Chicago, Cleveland and Washing-
ton, D.C.

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