OTHER VIEWS

From Jerusalem, With Solidarity

Jerusalem

Iff

onday, a day after three
suicide bombers blew
themselves up all over
Israel, killing five more
innocent Israeli civilians, I sat writ-
ing how I longed for America.
From my home in Jerusalem,
America shone in the distance, a bea-
con of stability and safety, its shores
so secure and inviting. Can it be that
only 24 hours later my birthplace,
the city of New York — the place
that educated and nurtured me with
its thrilling diversity and endless
promise; the place where my brothers
and their families still live — is now
a graveyard of thousands of innocent
people cut down by the same mur-
derers that have been bloodying the
streets of my spiritual birthplace,
Jerusalem?
"Vicious, cowardly terrorists," is

Naomi Ragen is the-author Jephte's
Daughter, Sotah, The Sacrifice of
Tamar, The Ghost of Hannah
Mendes, and Chains Around the
Grass. The Brooklyn native has lived
in Jerusalem since 1972. Her e-mail
address is naomi@naomiRagen.com

Looking Into Hell

Washington

T

he horror of Israel's daily war
against terrorism was
brought tragically home for
Americans on a scale never
before witnessed on Tuesday when the
World Trade Center in New York was
destroyed by terrorists and the Pentagon
badly damaged. It was a day that will
forever change the way Americans live
and look at the world.
There must be three lessons, at least,
from this tragedy if these thousands of
innocents are not to have died in vain.
They are the need for accountability,
understanding and prudence.
At this writing, it is unknown who is
responsible, but U.S. intelligence offi-
cials have been quoted as saying they are

Douglas M. Bloomfield, a former
executive director of the American
Israel Public Affairs Committee
(AIPAC), is a writer and analyst in
Washington. His e-mail address is
drnb@his.com

JA
9/14

2001

44

in Israel, the BBC reported:
how Mayor Rudolph
"Eight died in Mideast vio-
Giuliani described them,
lence." And this is what
"attacking innocent men,
they meant: Three suicide
women and children going
bombers and their five
about their lives. An attack
Israeli victims who were
on freedom and our way of
murdered in cold blood. I
life."
imagine
they won't be
And British Prime
counting
the suicide pilots
Minister Tony Blair, who
in
the
body
count of the
NAOMI RAGEN
rose to the occasion, talked
American
victims,
or say
about this being an attack
Special
that
they
died
in
a
continu-
on the Free World, on
Commentary
ing cycle of violence. Not
democracy.
now, when Britain itself
How we in Jerusalem,
feels that the ground beneath its own
who have been under attack by the
feet is suddenly less solid then
same terrorists for months, have
before.
thirsted to hear these words!
Why do we have to learn these les-
In east Jerusalem, the Palestinian
sons of history again and again: that
celebrations, the joy of the man —
tolerance for anti-Semitism and the
and woman— in the street at this
murder of Jews inevitably leads to a
savage act of barbarism, is now
hundred-fold number of casualties
broadcast by CNN and the BBC,
among innocent people of all races
which has been wallowing in sympa-
and religions all over the world? That
thy for Palestinian suicide bombers
evil and immorality and racism
for months, interviewing their par-
always chooses the Jews as its first
ents; examining their delicate sensi-
target, but never its last?
bilities, their noble motives. How, I
If the attack is tolerated, it grows
wonder, do these networks feel now?
in strength and begins to devour the
Are they embarrassed? Are they
rest of the world. Appeasement,
enlightened? I'd really like to know.
Churchill said, is feeding a crocodile
Just the other day in reporting
in the hope that he will eat you last.
Sunday's multiple suicide bombings

in American history.
When acts of terrorism
"90 percent certain" it is
were committed against
Osama bin Laden.
Israelis — at a Tel Aviv
The wealthy Saudi-born ter-
disco, a Jerusalem pizzeria or
rorist, according to an Arab
Naharia train station — they
journalist, recently warned of
expressed understanding —
"an unprecedented attack" on
of the bombers, not the vic-
American interests in retribu-
tims.
tion for supporting Israel. But
Palestinian spokeswoman
DOUGLAS M.
his Taliban hosts quickly issued
Hannan
Ashrawi and
a denial on his behalf, knowing BLOOMFIELD Palestinian Authority Foreign
Special
they will be ground zero for
Minister Nabil Shaath have
Commentary
massive American retaliation if
repeatedly justified suicide
their guest terrorist was
bomb attacks on Israelis by
involved.
blaming the policies of Prime Minister
American credibility depends on
Ariel Sharon. Such irresponsible charges
President George W Bush carrying out
must not be tolerated, and the people
his threat to "hunt down and punish
who make them must be held responsi-
those responsible for these cowardly
ble for encouraging murder by their
acts" — and that means something
rhetoric.
more than a handful of cruise missiles
PA leader Yasser Arafat, who made his
lobbed from a safe distance.
own debut on the world scene as the
commander of skyjackers, has sung the
praises of suicide bombers and assorted
Terror's Apologists
terrorists whose only achievement in ife
There was a distinctly hollow ring to
was killing Jews.
the declarations of Palestinian leaders,
Arafat was scheduled to go to Syria
Arab terrorist groups and their apolo-
this week to resume ties with that state
gists who rushed to deny responsibility
sponsor of terrorism. Several terrorist
and condemn the worst act of terrorism
groups have offices in Damascus and

It doesn't work. And now, just days
after the debacle in Durban, which
unleashed the most vicious racism of
modern times, comes the physical
attack on the people of America.
I feel no satisfaction that the
world, which has been so blind, so
wrongheaded, in its abandonment of
the Jews of Israel, feeding us to the
crocodiles, must now experience the
horrors we have been living with on
a daily basis for months -, even years.
But it is my hope, as I wearily type
these words, that a new light will
come out of the billowing evil smoke
of destruction and darkness that has
claimed so many innocent lives,
destroyed so many, many innocent
families. A light of determination and
clear-headed moral thinking that will
allow all the good people of the world
to gird their loins and join forces to
defeat the embodiment of evil —
fanaticism and the disregard for
human life dressed in the religious
clothing of Muslim fundamentalism.
I am so sorry enlightenment had to
come at such a terrible price. Let it
be the last we pay.
My prayers are with my fellow
Americans. May God bless you and
watch over you all. ❑

training camps in Syrian-controlled
areas of Lebanon. If they are linked to
this attack, Syria must be held directly
accountable.
Palestinians in Lebanon celebrated the
American attacks with "jubilant gunfire,
dancing and cheering," Reuters report-
ed. Many were quoted saying pretty
much what one gunman said: "This is
the result of American policy. America
and Israel are one."
Arab-Americans scrambled to
denounce the bombings to escape any
possible backlash if it turns out they
were the work of Arabs, but their credi-
bility is strained by past expressions of
understanding for the bombers when
the victims of similar attacks were
Israelis. These same groups have aggres-
sively fought congressional anti-terror-
ism legislation.
Congress must immediately look into
the massive intelligence failure that
allowed preparations for this efficient,
coordinated attack to apparently go
undetected. It was not a spontaneous
act; it took a long time to plan to infil-
trate airports and airline crews, to
recruit local operatives, to secure skilled
pilots able to fly these big jetliners and
willing to sacrifice their lives.

