Purely Commentary
By Philip
Knesset OKs Delay of Rabbinate
Vote; Labor Party Accused of 'Fix'
Slomcwitz
American Involvement in the New Russian- Egyptian Complications .. .
Secret Diplomacy May Lead to Newly Embittered Political Disputes
It is no wonder that Israel wasn't and could not possibly be jubilant over the initial reports about
the "expulsion" of the Russian military forces from Egypt. It was puzzling in the first sensational an-
nounrement, it is becoming more confusing as time goes on, and from all new indications there is greater
dat:ger to Israel from a limitation of Russian interest and participation in Middle Eastern military devel-
opim (its than if the Kremlin had retained its foothold in Cairo.
There is no doubt that Egyptians have been disillusioned with the Russians. The Kremlin's repre-
sentatives had not hidden their contempt for those they were teaching
guns aimed at
Israel The army of Sadat wanted full control and not to be understudies.
At the same time, it has become apparent that Russia has been pressing on the military brakes to
disc Isra e
l, thereby to prevent a new war. Communist organs kept attacking Israel,
but all of the Soviet tactics were part of a cold war. Whether or not there was an understanding between
he United States and Russia for a cooling of tempers and prevention of active warfare, no one is in
position to reveal as long as secret diplomacy dominates the world scene.
RoT
e now have a new cause for concern:
the contention that an end to Russian military support
for Egypt will be accompanied by a prime intention of Israel's enemies: to utilize such a condition as
way of demanding an end to
American aid for Israel. If this should develop into a serious obstacle to
a continuing positive American-Israel friendship, there is certain to emerge a new need for vigilance
anainst betrayals of trust and the emergence of irresponsible animosities against Israel in our govern-
:vent ranks.
Greatest cause for concern emerged in the revealing report from Beirut that at his meeting
in Washington last month, with Prince Sultan ibri Abdel Ariz, defense minister of Saudi Arabia, Presi-
dent Nixon gave an assurance that if Russia withdrew her troops from Egypt the United States
would he prepared to resume active work towards implementation of the Security Council resolu-
tion calling for withdrawal of Israeli troops from territories that were occupied by Israel in 1967.
While the report from Beirut also indicated that the U.S.. under such conditions, would recommend
secure and recognized borders, the insinuation is one of damage to Israel from the Nixon-Saudi
Arabian talks.
The entire Beirut report, with its verbatim account of the Nixon-Aziz talks, does net add comfort to
kraehs position. It shocks the sensibuities of American Jewry whose confidence in the present admin-
istration in Washington has been on a high level ..of optimism.
The vitriolic Sadat speech on Monday attacking President Johnson, Arthur Goldberg and many
other Americans, in a sense negates this report, but the confusion is far from ameliorative.
There are two basic obligations that may evolve upon American Jewry.
It is important that these socio-political duties should be recognized in critical times when Jewish
unity may he vitally needed to retain the friendship of both houses of Congress—and we have shown that
it is a friendly Congress that gives assurance of a friendly administration for Israel.
These are related matters. A crisis for Israel could become a political crisis in America. Russian-
F:gv ptian complications might affect an established Israel-U.S. friendship. American Jews, friends of Is-
rael. philo-Semites are seriously obligated to protect the Jewish position in the Middle East. Therefore
the need alw ays exists to be on the alert—and always to be fortified with the news so that we should not
be
buried under an avalanche of secret diplomacy in diplomatic ranks and ignorance in our own households.
The Russian Anti-Jewish Attitudes: Are They Legacies From Yevsektsia?
Perhaps the difficulties encountered the Jews in the USSR are traceable more to the Jews who retain
an influence in the Soviet regime than to the non-Jews. Is the current situation comparable to the actions
of the Yevsektsia. the Jewish section of the Communist party
. , in the early years of Soviet rule, when
Jewish cultural functions, Zionism and the Hebrew language were suppressed due to the group of Jew-
ish antagonists^
Perhaps the answer will be found in the monthly Yiddish Communist organ, Sovietish Heimland.
Note the poem, reproduced here, by its editor, Aron Vergelis, in the current issue. Yiddish readers will
he puzzled by the spelling. It will amuse Hebraists. Every effort is made to avoid recognition of Hebrew
and the commonly used Hebrew terms are Yiddishized, yet the meaning is there and the Hebrew terms
are unavoidably used
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The debate that preceded the
vote was relatively tame. Sev-
eral Mks charged that the chief
rabbinate elections were "fixed"
by the Labor Party in order to
assure the election of Tel Aviv's
Chief Rabbi Shlomo Goren who
is challenging the incumbent
Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi, Isser
Yehuda Unterman.
Rabbi Kalman Kahana of the
Poalei Agudat Israel said it was
a serious error to have appointed
Labor MK Mordechai Surkis as
chairman of the elections commit.
tee because Surkis was "a political
personality who makes no pre-
tension of being (religiously) ob-
servant."
Surkis, who took the rostrum to
defend his appointment, noted that
the chairman's position was purely
administrative and bereft of an y
power to influence the elections.
Boris Smolar's
'Between You
.. and Me
Editor in.Chlef
Emeritus, JTA
UJA PLANNING: It is now only the middle of summer 1972. But
the leadership of the
United Jewish Appeal is already deeply engaged
in mapping plans for the UJA campaign for 1973. In fact, it has already
received substantial commitments for the 1973 drive.
The first commitments were made at a weekend "retreat" last
month of the members of the UJA national executive. Every mem-
ber of the executive who was present pledged — after listening
to "inside reports" on Israel's needs—to contribute more than he
did to the 1972 campaign.
A second important move in the direction of the 1973 campaign
is the "Prime Minister's Mission." This is a mission of UJA leaders
invited to Israel by Prime Minister Golda 11•Ieir in which about 200
of the most important UJA
donors will participate. The members of
the Mission will spend only two days in Israel but these will be
crowded days, of
most intimate briefing by Mrs. Meir and members
of her Cabinet on problems Israel will face in 1973. The mission will
leave for Israel in August. It will be followed by a larger group of
about 400 community leaders in October.
Meanwhile, a private meeting is being prepared for givers who
each contributed a million dollar or more donation to the 1972 cam-
paign. There were 17 such gifts in 1972. The belief exists that there
will be more than 17 such donors for the 1973 drive.
All these events are only part of the programs now in preparation
for the 1973 drive. The campaign will officially open at a national
conference in New York in December. However, as far as the top
leadership of the UJA is concerned, the 1973 campaign has already
started.
UNPRECEDENTED SUCCESS: With the 1972 campaign now al-
ready in the background, UJA leaders talk with pride of its achieve-
ments. It yielded the largest results ever in the UJA history.
Although the year hasn't ended. the UJA raised in 1972 the im-
pressive sum of 5270,000,000. This is about 525,000,000 more than in
1971,
when UJA raised the largest sum in its history, larger than the
total raised in 1967, the year of the Six-Day War.
Especially proud of the 1972 achievements is Paul Zucker-
man, the Detroit Jewish leader who has been for
many years among
the most active UJA leaders. The year 1972 was his first year as
general chairman of the UJA and he
spared no effort to make it
the greatest year of giving to the UJA. Energetic and warm-hearted,
he won people to his point of view on the ever growing needs of
Israel. Now he is full of hope that the 1973 campaign—as It is
being mapped under his leadership — will produce even greater
results.
n1:1
Ntr
to the extension bill. Gahal ab-
stained.
(Copyright 1972, JTA Inc,t
In the first place, in the event of a letdown in American support for Israel, the concerned citizens
of all faiths will be obligated to exert all their energies to provide the necessary help for the small state
always to be in position to resist attacks from the 1,00,000,000 enemies who surround her. If it should
ever come to a point of Israel being threatened with deprivation of the basic defense areas that have
been made available after the Six-Day War, it will be a calamity. Such threats must be averted even
if our government has to be challenged on every step of diplomatic activities.
Then there is the matter of the Middle East as it is judged politically. We have advocated, again and
again and again, editorially and in this column, that the Israel and the Zionist issue be considered on a
nun partisan basis. There are panic-stricken, jittery, tension-affected people who have read our news
reports as if they were advocating political ideas. We report the news, unbiased, with an obligation to
keep our readers fully informed. We also invite their recognition of cur position that we support non-
partisanship in major foreign affairs that call for support of the American position in the Middle East and
therefore of Israel's security. We can not afford fright based on a lack of knowledge or a lack of recog-
nition of meritorious news reports.
p9nls
JERUSALEM (JTA) — A bill
postponing the forthcoming chief
rabbinate elections from Aug. 11
to Aug. 31 passed its first reading
in the Knesset.
The measure which asks the
government to extend the terms of
the incumbent chief rabbis for an
additional 20 days was submitted
. by Dr. Zerach Warhaftig, the
minister for religious affairs, who
' said the measure was necessitated
solely for technical reasons be-
cause the elections committee ,
could not complete its preparations
in time for the Aug. 11 election
date.
The fact that Dr. Warhaftig is
ill with the flu and came to the
Knesset from his sick bed appar-
ently saved him from much of the
bitter criticism leveled by opposi-
tion parties at his administration
of religious affairs.
Only Uri Avneri of the Haolam
Hazeh faction voted in opposition
KZ Inn 11701.1:C:V irt;1
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The text: Aron Vergelis, poet, editor of Sovietish Heimland, in
the quoted
terness: "[eh vet zei nit areinlozed zurick!'• ("I won't permit them
to return!"). It
those who seek refuge from the Communist indignities by settling
in Israel. "Avek
'Exile" shouts the angry inheritor of Yevsektsia prejudices. •'un arein in Coles,"
his derision.
poem, writes with bit-
is an invective against
fun 'Goles,"• ("Out of
("back into Exile") is
Also optimistic with regard to the 1973 campaign is Irving
Bern-
stein, the executive vice chairman
of the UJA. The year of 1972 was
his first year in the position of executive
vice chairman. That he made
good can be seen from the outstanding results of the 1972 drive, At
52, he is the youngest top executive in major Jewish organizational life.
•
•
•
1973 INCENTIVES: In mapping plans for the 1973 campaign, UJA
leadership is preparing to link the campaign with the 25th anniversary
of Israel's independence.
This will definitely stimulate American Jews to greater giving.
Every Jew who ever made a contribution to the UJA will in this anni-
versary year have the feeling that he personally helped in the quarter-
of-a-century existence and development of Israel under most difficult
circumstances, in the face of a war unprecedented in its length in con-
temporary history. No war in this century has gone
on for 25 years.
Yet, the 1973 campaign will not be built on the theme of Israel's
war needs. It is
the positive achievements of Israel that will be the
While the Yiddish is intolerable, the anger becomes understandable in the light of anti Jewish leit-mot
ifof the campaign—the economic development, the fact that
reactions to Jews by Communist Jews. Perhaps the secret of the confusing attitudes by the USSR towards
even under war circumstances Israel has become the greatest cul-
those seeking through normal—albeit expensive —methods to be granted the right to emigrate is ex- t ural center in the entire Middle East; Israel's absorption of more
plained by the action of Jews who are
anti
Jewish.
• than 2,000,000 Jews most of them from
countries where they were
ppressed; and the settlement of thousands of Jews from the Soviet
2—Friday, July 28, 1972
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Union who are still continuing to come at the rate of about 10 a day.
I