14 . Friday, August 21, 1982
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Summation of Accumulated Villifying Condemnations
(Continued from Page 1)
Middle East the demon-
strators were free to speak
their minds, to assail their
own government, to speak
more bitterly about the in-
vasion of Lebanon than
their nation's severest cri-
tics.
While Israel was being
accused of "genocide," her
soldiers were ordered never
to submit to the tempting
desire to abuse the enemy,
always to be the humane
even if one's own life was in
peril.
Israel was at war, but her
own parliamentarians did
not hesitate to challenge
their government and to be
in opposition to the action
taken to go into a neighbor-
ing country in a campaign
to eliminate the terror that
had begun to gain interna-
tional approval under the
three-lettered title of PLO.
Example:
Former Foreign Minis-
ter Abba Eban, now an
opposition member of the
Knesset, wrote in the
Jerusalem Post defining
his government's action
in Lebanon as "A Nega-
tive Balance," and re-
sorted to this criticism:
"For Israelis the most ur-
gent task is to say good-bye
to Beirut. We have nothing
good to do or to expect there.
It is foreign soil, haunted by
dark memories. Mr. Begin
`invited' the Prime Minister
of Australia 'to visit Israel
and Lebanon.' He has no
right to 'invite' anybody to
Lebanon because Lebanon
is not his home.
"There is an embarras-
sing vulgarity_ in holding
UJA fund-raising appeals in
the Beaufort stronghold.
Lebanon's future, its in-
stitutions, its communal
schisms and rivalries, its
restaurants and night-
clubs, its view of the world
and of its own place within
it, are none of our business.
"Israelis should be
brought home as soon as the
safety of the 40 kilometer
zone is permanently as-
sured. To impose a Phalan-
gist regime upon the
Lebanese people underwrit-
ten by Israeli guns would
compound the damage in-
flicted by the shells and
bombs. To be drawn into the
contentiousness of
Lebanese politics, to linger
among the ghostly facades
of its smoking, gutted build-
ings, to indulge the tutelary
instincts of a 'paramount'
power, to repeat the grotes-
queries of Mr. Meridor's re-
lief program, would be the
greatest folly.
"We should wish the
people of Lebanon well
and assure them that for
many Israelis who could
not come to expression
they are not merely of
their proximity to a few
thousand terrorists. They
are a value in their own
right.
"We should wish them
well and leave them free to
decide their own future, in-
cluding the future of their
relationship to Israel and to
the Arab world of which
they are inherently a part."
With strong endorsement
from Abba Eban, American
Friends for Peace Now are
proceeding with a campaign
to justify their position. It is
one of the evidencing ele-
ments in the truth that in
Jewish ranks there is free-
dom to speak and to act on
the basis of differing on im-
portant issues.
But there are the de-
structive factors and they
have their challengers and
opponents.
Israel Chastised,
Begin a Scapegoat
The emphasis on the
libertarian Israeli prin-
ciples as indicated in the
Eban position might have
received a jolt from an
embittered opposition.
The latter is in evidence
in Village Voice where
Nat Hentof keeps firing
at Israel. His basis is the
accumulated indictment
of Israel from the first
distortions in full-page
advertisements, in which
the Jewish state was
charged with mass mur-
der and victimizations.
Hentof has become a
compiler of lists of rabbis
who are chastising Israel.
The scapegoat is Menahem
Begin and on this score an-
other eminent name is to be
reckoned with. Morris B.
Abram, a former president
of the American Jewish
Committee, who was U.S.
representative on the
Commission on Human
Rights from 1965 to 1968, in
appealing under the title,
"Don't Blame Israel, Don't
Forget Its Value," (New
York Times Op-Ed Page,
Aug. 24), tackled anti-
Beginism, declaring:
"It is true that Menahem
Begin is not David Ben-
Gurion, who was not Golda
Meir. Neither is Ronald Re-
agan a George Washington
or a Thomas Jefferson. Yet,
who doubts that Mr. Begin
and Mr. Reagan were duly
elected, obey the orders of
an independent judiciary
and will leave office when
their mandates expire? No
such orderly transition
takes place in any other
Middle Eastern country.
"And who can doubt that
Mr. Ben-Gurion and Mrs.
Meir would have done
whatever was necessary to
protect their nation against
its enemies?
`The fighting in Leba-
non was truly regret-
table. Yet it would never
have- occurred if the Arab
states, including some of
the wealthiest, which
now shed crocodile tears,
had offered a home or
even minimal settlement
assistance to their 'Pales-
tinian brothers' during
the last 34 years. West Be-
irut would have been
spared its agony weeks
ago if other Arabs had
been willing to take some
of the guerrillas — or if
Mr. Arafat had laid down
his arms.
"The pain of west Beirut
was caused by the grip of the
guerrillas who held it hos-
tage. Mr. Arafat and com-
pany are on the way out; the
world should have de-
manded such an exit
months ago.
"The Palestinian issue
must now urgently be ad-
dressed as the United
States, Egypt and Israel
agreed in the Camp David
accords, which Mr. Begin, in
a letter to the dated July 6,
stated would be 'fulfilled
completely . . . under the
Israel-Egyptian peace
treaty.' "
There are many voices
and they are heard in demo-
cratic countries like Israel
and the United States.
Hopefully they will lead to
peace. Factually, the world
must become aware of the
truth that while Jews differ
among themselves their
motto is peace.
Arafat and his followers
keep repeating "No Peace."
It is on this score that Is-
rael's hands are being up-
held by knowledgeable
Christians like Franklin
Littell, by concerned Jews
who will not subscribe to
any policies that spell the
destruction of Israel.
-
* * *
Varying Views
on Israel Role
The differing views
must be taken fully into
account.
New Jewish Agenda
makes use of a joint state-
ment by Nahum Goldmann,
Phillip Klutznick and
Pierre Mendes-France, in
which they condemn Is-
rael's actions.
But the World Jewish
Congress, whence these
prominent Jews stem, at its
meeting in Paris at the time
these eminent personalities
issued their derogatory
statement, repudiated
them. The World Jewish
Congress unanimously
adopted this resolution:
"The World Jewish Con-
gress, representing or-
ganized Jewish com-
munities in 60 countries of
the world, expresses total
solidarity with the state and
people of Israel in their
struggle to attain peace and
security for their country.
The Jews of the world rec-
ognize that Israel's current
military operations in
Lebanon are not in pursuit
of conquests but are an
exercise of the right of self-
defense in the face of con-
tinued attacks against its
citizens with the heavy toll
of life, and to remove the
further threat to the coun-
try's existence.
"The former peaceful,
prosperous and inde-
pendent state of Lebanon
has forces which turned
the country into a
battleground, a haven for
terrorists and an armed
camp in which the most
sophisticated weapons of
destruction were amas-
sed in huge quantities far
beyond defensive needs
and clearly intended for
use against Israel. The
bulk of the Lebanese
people, both Christian
and Moslem, were the
tragic victims of this oc-
cupation of their home-
land. The build-up of
these forces on its fron-
tier, dedicated to and in-
tended for Israel's de-
struction, could no'
longer be tolerated by Is-
rael. We stand squarely
behind Israel in this
legitimate struggle for
survival, peace and secu-
rity.
"The World Jewish Con-
gress expresses its strong
indignation at the wide-
spread distortions of Israel's
objectives and of the facts of
the military operation,
propagated and promoted
by governments and media
on the suffering of Lebanese
'of all faiths, in recent years.
"Jews throughout the
world feel deep sorrow at
the human sacrifices in
Lebanon, Israeli and Arab
alike. It must be noted,
however, that Lebanese
civilian casualties largely
result from the deliberate
policy of the PLO placing its
military installatiops and
forces in the midst of civi-
lian quarters. We welcome
the clear policy of the gov-
ernment of Israel to assist in
restoring full sovereignty to
Lebanon and to make possi-
ble the restoration of nor-
mal civilian life in that
country and the establish-
ment of peaceful relations
between Israel and Leba-
non_
"We hope that out of all
this suffering the world will
now seize the opportunity
and give its full support to
the search for a solution of
the problems of the Middle
East which will. not only
provide for the peace and se-
curity of Israel but for the
realization of the legitimate
rights of the Palestinian
people.
"It has now been
demonstrated, alas with
much suffering, that vio-
lence and the destruction
of Israel are not the route
to the realization of these
goals but rather to con-
tinued cycle of catas-
trophes. We reaffirm our
support for the Camp
David agreements as the
path to achieving a last-
ing and just peace in the
Middle East."
Judging Israel
whose fratricide kills
more people each day
than were lost in the
entire invasion of Leba-
non? •
"Who weeps for the
thousands of Syrians mas-
sacred by their own gov-
ernment in Hama? Who
condemns the cynical
Saudis for bankrolling the
mind-boggling PLO arms
cache that is supplied by the
Soviet Union? ,
"Where is the Christian
conscience on the PLO's
savaging of Lebanese
Christians? Why do the
news media largely neglect
the clear evidence that PLO
thugs raped and destroyed
the Lebanese people and
state that had, before the
PLO's influx, co-existed in
peace with Israel?
"Yes, Israel should be
judged; it is not immune to
criticism. But world opinion
has been so intoxicated by
the 'romance' of the PLO
and the allure of Saudi Pet-
rodollars that it has never
lifted a finger to counteract
the PLO's cancerous threat
against the Lebanese people
and Israel's basic right to
exist . . .
"My second reason is that
I must wonder: Where are
the dissenters of conscience
in the Arab world? Where
are our counterparts?
"It is profoundly sig-
nificant that the only
large-scale demonstra-
tion against Israel's
policies took place in Tel
Aviv in the middle of the
war. That demonstration
was the ultimate tribute
to Israel's demodratic
and moral values, just as
American dissent during
the Vietnam War' re-
deemed the greatness of
the United States.
"It is not easy for Jews
who, like myself, are joined
— fused — emotionally and
spiritually to the people of
Israel, to dump on Israel in a
world in which Arab rejec-
tionism, United Nations
lynch mobs, Western lust
for Petrodollars, Soviet
malevolence and constant
thrashing by the media re-
present profound dangers to
Israel's long-range survi-
val."
Taking all aspects of the
case into account, is there
Detroit Columnist
justification for the charge
Presents the Facts
that Jews are in the main
panicked into silence, that
Fortunately, he is not
they adopt an attitude that alone. George Cantor, the
Israel can't be wrong, that Detroit News columnist,
there is a victimization of approaching the issue con-
Jewry?
trary to the bias often
Albert Vorspan, vice spread editoriA'lly by his
president of the Union of newspaper, on Sunday
American Hebrew Congre- wrote a column "To Those
gations and director of the Who Accuse Israel of
Commission on Social Ac- Genocide in Beirut, Some
tion of Reform Judaism, ac- Facts . . ."
cepted the challenge. He
Cantor listed numerous
wrote on "Why Jews Were incidents within the last
Silent" (New York Times 1,000 years, including two
Op-Ed Page, Aug. 22). He by the Allied forces during
says that many Jews have World War II, in which
been silent because "Israel large civilian populations
has failed to live up to its were brutally wiped out
own- highest Jewish during warfare.
standards."
" 'Yet we are told re-
Thereupon he outlined peatedly that Israeli shel-
the grievances:
ling of west Beirut is a
"But is Israel alone to holocaust, genocidal,' he
be measured by severe said. In the words of a
moral standards? Who Grosse Ile woman, one of
judges Iran and Iraq, several such letters ap-
pearing in the Detroit
papers this week, it is
'without parallel in its in-
discriminate bombing of
the civilian population.'
"It is, unfortunately, with
plenty of parallel. It is hor-
rible, beyond the bounds of
decency, savage. But hardly
without parallel. It is the
story of warfare, as old as
the human race. It is
dwarfed by attacks on civi-
lians in wars that are still
fresh in the memory of most
living people.
"But only now, suddent
in this instance, is it re
garded as an atrocity be-
yond any comparison in his-
tory. I wonder why?
"We are assured that
none of this hatred of Israel
should be construed as
anti-Semitism. This, of
course, explains why bombs
went off last week in a
Guatemala synagogue, in a
French synagogue, in a
Jewish-owned (not an
Israeli-owned) restaurant
in Paris; and why the Nazis,
all nine of them, turned up •
in Oak Park to spew" anti-
Jewish (not anti-Israeli)
hatred.
"No anti-Semitism here,
chief. Uh-uh."
Why the repetition of
insisting on the facts, of
calling for an under-
standing of the issues, of
inviting friends of Israel
not to submit to the pres-
sures that are accom-
panied by lies and distor-
tions?
Because it is so vital that
the White House should not
be misled, that the State
Department should be just,
that members of Congress
should join the battle
against terrorists, remain-
ing supporters of the embat-
tled state of Israel.
It is tragic to hear mem-
bers of Congress advocating
a combined effort of blacks
and Arabs against Israel, at
a time when the Jewish
communities, especially
this one, has only one de-
sire: to be peacefully
neighborly with -both, with
humanism dominating good
citizenship.
The picture is not all
black. As long as there is a
Franklin Littell, so eminent
a Christian, who leads more
like him in a battle for jus-
tice, there is hope for de-
cency and truth.
The time is approaching
for a genuine peace. It must
not be polluted with lies and
hatreds. Therefore, the
painful task of reminding
all, Jews who must never
bend their back to villifying
threats, Christians who will
not grant action to bigotry.
--AP,'
Different Stroke‘4"
. JERUSALEM — Some 65
percent of the Sheraton
Hotel service staff in Is-
rael is composed of students
who work flexible hours ac-
cording to study needs.
Meanwhile, Hilton is
proudly promoting the fact
that all of its personnel are
professionals, many with
the hotel since its opening
16 years ago.