DEFENDING page 7 ilated or interfaith families who make sure to light can- dku. each night of Chanukah ever wonder what their fate would have been in the hands of a Judah Maccabee? We don't want to think about such things. It's far more popular to spin dreidels, eat potato latkes and ex- change gifts on Chanukah than to explore the holiday's theme of combatting assimi- lation (literally) and preserv- ing Judaism at all cost. 4 They're very friendly and convenient for me. They're open Saturdays. . . 9 9 Franklin Bank continues to win friends, with features people tell us are important to them. Like caring financial professionals who take the time to understand your needs. Banking hours that work with your schedule. And commercial checking with the lowest fees in metropolitan Detroit. JOE MACHIORLATTI Mr. Joe's Bar Southfield When you're a small business or practice, you appreciate the importance of personal service and attention to customer needs. So do we. 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But in a society consumed with con- cern about Jewish survival, we cannot afford to ignore the significance of why a victory by Jewish zealots many cen- turies ago was elevated to the status of a religious holiday still celebrated today. Chanukah marks the preservation of Jewish life, the spark of the Divine that kindled and spread. Its light, and its message, still burns today — in modern Israel and in the borough of Brook- lyn, and wherever Jewish lives must be defended and Judaism sustained. The methods may change with the times, but the need to protect our brothers and sisters, and ourselves, does not. Even in the darkness of racial conflict or world con- demnation, Chanukah re- minds us that the flame of Jewish survival burns bright- est when we act to uphold our interests. The criticism will always be there, but we do not seek the world's love, just its respect. The Maccabees fought to save Judaism, not destroy others, and that is why we still honor them today. News An Australian Court Rejects Nazi's Appeal Sydney, Australia (JTA) — An Australian court has re- jected the last appeal by accused Nazi Ivan Polyukhovich, paving the way for him to stand trial for war crimes. Mr. Polyukhov.ich is accused of a role in the deaths of 850 Jewish people in the Ukraine between August and September 1942. He was charged under Australia's War Crimes Act with 24 counts of murder. His lawyer told the Adelaide court that a trial would be an abuse of process, due partly to allegedly "unreliable" witnesses and partly because of the long time which elapsed between the alleged crimes and the filing of charges. All evidence and argument during the last hearing was suppressed on the grounds that it might affect a jury in the criminal trial. Australia has a judicial process in which an accused first stands before a judge in a committal hearing to see if there is probable cause for a jury trial. The committal hearing can be as long as the regular trial and hear the same evidence. Mr. Polyukhovich's com- mittal hearing opened in Oc- tober 1991 after months of delay. The judge at this latest hearing accepted the defense's appeal relating to a charge that Polyukhovich murdered two Jewish youths. He also ruled that a charge that Polyukhovich murdered three other Jewish adults should be dealt with at a different trial than the one considering the mass murder and other charges. Justice Brian Cox criticized the quality of interpretation of evidence at Mr. Polyukhovich's com- mittal hearing, but accepted that the accused had still to answer charges on the mass killing and six individual murders. Meanwhile, the former head of Australia's Nazi war crimes investigatory unit has accused the government of "treacherous nonsense" in its decision not to complete a case against a former Lat- vian officer alleged to have headed a murder squad. "The historical importance (of this case) was potentially enormous because, just like economic sanctions, criminal sanctions have got a role in international politics," he said. The case, which was-- almost completed, would have involved far more vic- tims than that involving the two men whose cases have successfully reached the courts, he added.