EDITORIAL

The War After The War
Starts In Middle East

In Israel, the current U.S. diplomatic
push in the Mideast is being referred to as
"the war after the war." It's not that
Israelis are opposed to the prospect of peace
with their Arab neighbors. Far from it. It's
just that after more than four decades of
constant hostility and hatred from the
Arab world, they view Secretary of State
James Baker's current mission with a
healthy dose of skepticism.
The differences between Arab words of
moderation and true commitment to peace
— and accepting the reality of a Jewish
state in their midst — has never been
bridged. Instead, we witness terrorist at-
tacks like the fatal stabbing of four Jewish
women in Jerusalem last Sunday as yet
another tragic reminder of the bitter
hatred for Israel among Arabs. And while
the murderous deed was perpetrated by
only one individual, one strains to hear the
act condemned in the Arab world. Where,
indeed, are the voices of compassion and
compromise?
The violence was intended to inhibit the
prospects for peace between Arabs and

Jews — all the more reason to redouble the
efforts to bring about stability in the re-
gion. But to date, the Arabs insist on ac-
commodations for the Palestinians while
skirting the issue of recognizing Israel's
right to exist.
Mr. Baker is wise to pursue a dual track
in dealing with the Arab-Israeli conflict:
direct talks between the Arab states and
Israel, as well as negotiations between
Israel and the Palestinians. The lower the
rhetoric — and expectations — the more
promising the results.
Trust, commitment and compromise
cannot be achieved through coercion, but
rather through a gradual process of con-
fidence building, with the U.S. acting as an
intermediary and ally. Israelis yearn for
peace but not at the price of suicide.
As long as Jewish men, women and chil-
dren are attacked — by missiles or armed
terrorists or knife-wielding zealots — and
as long as Arab leaders refuse to condemn
such actions, the world should understand
Israel's reluctance to embrace the U.S.
peace plan.

Word War Resumes
On The Home Front

The war in the Persian Gulf has entered
its second phase. In Iraq, Saddam loyalists
and rebels — divided along religious lines
— are contending for the future of their
bomb-ravaged country. Meanwhile, the
rest of the Middle East speaks of the
future, with heavy emphasis on the Arab-
Israeli conflict and a homeland for the Pa-
lestinians.
Sound familiar? Real problems such as
Arab nationalism, Muslim factionalism,
democratization and sharing of oil wealth

The United Nations coalition
did not buy Saddam's
argument that he invaded
Kuwait in order to create
a Palestinian homeland out
of Israel.

are swept behind the age-old facade — ex-
ploited by Saddam Hussein during his oc-
cupation of Kuwait — that the major prob-
lems of the region would be solved if Israel
would just .. .
The United Nations coalition did not buy
Saddam's argument that he invaded
Kuwait in order to create a Palestinian
homeland out of Israel. We didn't buy the
argument then, so why are we buying it
now?
Item: Mort Crim on Channel 4, 11 p.m.
Monday: "In Israel today, six Palestinians

6

FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 1991

were killed by Israeli soldiers and four
Jewish women were stabbed, allegedly by a
Palestinian." Mr. Crim failed to mention
that the six heavily-armed terrorists were
killed after a two-hour firefight with
Israeli troops just a mile from an Israeli
kibbutz near the Jordanian border. He
didn't even allege it.
Item: Free Press staffer William J. Mit-
chell, writing from Jordan about Palestin-
ians being kicked out of Kuwait: "They ask
why the United States was so quick to en-
force United Nations resolutions protec-
ting Kuwait but so patient with Israel's
failure to comply with the U.N.'s 1967
resolutions ordering it to withdraw from
Palestinian territory."
The U.S. patience might be linked to the
second part of U.N. Resolution 242, which
calls for termination of belligerency, ac-
knowledgement of sovereignty, political
independence, "and the right to live in
peace within secure and recognized boun-
daries free from threats or acts of force" for
every state in the area.
To our way of thinking, that includes
Israel. And until both parts of U.N. Resolu-
tion 242 are complied with, neither the Pa-
lestinians, the Free Press nor Mort Crim
should expect Israel to act unilaterally. For
40 years Israel has said that she is willing
to negotiate with her neighbors. Now, it
appears, some of her neighbors may be
willing to negotiate with her.
Until that happens, we should not so eas-
ily sweep away history or forget the recent
lessons of Operation Desert Storm.

Dry Bones

Au) Furui

WU, tuEAR

CEREKoN)(AL
GAS MASKS

qicatcrICNS
OF Jecwc

Ak)i) SIT
SEACAD

Ra)I4S

LETTERS

Lobbyist For
For
Federation

Thank you for the cover
story, "JWF to Hire Lansing
Lobbyist," in your March 8
edition.
Most of the article was cor-
rect. However, I wish to point
out that the lobbyist being
considered by the Jewish
Welfare Federation will not
be employed by the Michigan
Jewish Conference but by
Federation with several of its
agencies.
I wish to clarify that the
lobbyist will focus on securing
funds for our local social ser-
vices, whereas the Michigan
Jewish Conference will be
concerned with the political
and community relations
needs of its 12 member
communities.
There will, of course, be
communication and coordina-
tion between the two efforts.

Robert P. Aronson,
Executive vice president,
Jewish Welfare Federation

Depriving
Victory

German militarism started
World War I and lost on the
battlefield. There was, how-
ever, no defeat emotionally or
politically in Germany. Ger-
mans felt themselves robbed
of victory by the "stab in the
back" theory and victimized
by the Versailles treaty. The

Allies won the war but lost
the peace by their failure to
occupy Germany .. .
The brilliant political and
military campaign against
Iraq incorporated the impor-
tant lessons of World War II
and the Vietnam War. It fails
to recognize the lessons of
World War I — the signifi-
cance of occupation as a mind-
altering intervention.
Saddam Hussein and his
Baath Party can claim partial
victory, or at leat lack of
defeat, because the Allied
troops did not enter Baghdad.
By staying in power after the
cease fire, Saddam Hussein
symbolizes the continued
viability of the Baath revo-
lution.

Dr. Emanuel Tanay
Detroit

Jonathan Pollard
And Iraqi Threat

In view of our current con-
frontation with Iraq, a letter
by Jonathan Pollard that ap-
peared recently in the Wall
Street Journal reveals signifi-
cant reasons for his actions on
behalf of Israel.
Through a shameful, vin-
dictive miscarriage of justice,
Pollard, sentenced to life im-
prisonment without parole,
began his sixth year in
solitary confinement on
Thanksgiving Day, 1990 .. .
Pollard points out that by
turning over satellite photos

Continued on Page 12