Arc.

44'

7+F'

Washington Watch

Once
there was nothing ..

And now,
there is somethin
special.

Join us as we celebrate
the Jewish Academy of
Metropolitan Detroit's
first year.

Special Guest Speaker

Bruce J. Powell, Ph.D.

An instrumental force in founding
college preparatory high schools.

Tuesday, May 15, 2001
7:30 p.m.

Marion and David Handleman Hall,
D. Dan and Betty Kahn Building of the
Jewish Community Center on the
Eugene and Marcia Applebaum
Jewish Community Campus
West Bloomfield

Dessert Reception
following our guest speaker and
honorary awards presentation.

Valet Parking

5/11
2001

24

For information call (248) 592-5263

Settlements And Aid

Unsettling criticism; boosting aid;
vouchers and choice stall.

JAMES D. BESSER

Wzshirwton Correspondent

ewish leaders this week braced
themselves for what could
become a new battle between
Washington and Jerusalem
over Jewish settlements in Gaza and
the West Bank.
Several developments in the region
have come together to produce an
explosive mix, including the Egyptian-
Jordanian cease-fire plan, which
included a demand for a settlements
freeze, and last weeks report by the
international panel investigating the
causes of the ongoing violence.
The report by former Sen. George
Mitchell and his commission recom-
mended both a crackdown on terror-
ism by the Palestinian Authority and a
freeze on settlements by Israel.
The Sharon government quickly
rejected that demand; to punctuate
that message, Prime Minister Ariel
Sharon on Tuesday visited Ma'aleh
Adumim, a settlement near Jerusalem.
At the same time, Israeli newspapers
revealed that the Sharon government
will propose an extra $350 million for
settlements — which Israeli officials
insist is just for "natural growth," not
for new settlement development.
But Palestinians say Israel continues
to expand settlements far beyond
demand for new housing units. And
Washington isn't buying the argument
from Jerusalem, either.
On Tuesday, State Department
spokesman Philip Reeker blasted the
Israeli government, saying, "We ques-
tion why Israel would be allocating
more money for settlements at this
time. This activity risks further inflam-
ing the already volatile situation in the
region and is provocative."
The administration has not formally
accepted the recommendations of the
Mitchell Commission, but it is expect-
ed to use them as the basis of any new
U.S. effort to end the 8-month-old
war; Sharon's actions, Washington
experts say, will inevitably push the
administration into a more confronta-
tional stance.
American Jewish leaders continue to
try to keep the administration's atten-
tion focused on Palestinian provoca-
tions, not on settlements.

"Our community will not declare
war with this administration over set-
tlements," said Thomas Smerling,
Washington director for the Israel
Policy Forum, a pro-peace process
group. "No Israeli government has
ever been able to mobilize American
Jews on behalf of settlement expan-
sion; settlements aren't even popular in
Israel, as recent polls show."

Boosting Aid

With the continued downward spiral
in the Middle East and hopes for an
Israeli-Palestinian cease fire apparently
on the back burner, Israeli officials and
their friends in Washington are turn-
ing up the heat under the issue of sup-
plementary military aid.
Congress, which took a bye on the
issue last year, is waiting for the Bush
administration to tip its hand on extra
aid. Last week, Secretary of State
Colin Powell, testifying before the
Senate Appropriations Committee,
hinted that he might be getting closer
to doing so.
Asked by Sen. Barbara Mikulski,
D-Md., if the administration was
considering new aid to boost Israel's
military, he said that the issue is
"under consideration." That produced
an instant outcry from Arab-
American groups, which mounted an
effort to block any additional aid.
This week, Israeli Finance Minister
Silvan Shalom was in Washington for
meetings with administration and con-
gressional officials; aid was also on his
agenda, Israeli sources say.
Shalom discussed supplementary aid
and other topics with National
Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice,
Treasury Secretary Paul H. O'Neill
and Rep. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., chair of
the Foreign Operations appropriations
subcommittee.
Shalom got the message that sup-
port will be strong on Capitol Hill,
but that lawmakers are waiting for the
administration to propose the extra
aid. The administration does not want
to push any additional spending pro-
posals until the high-stakes battles over
U.S. tax cuts and education spending
are resolved.
Shalom told officials that the con-
tinuing violence has forced Israel to

