PIPES from page 33 SARNER from page 33 one wonder: In a country whose nationals are close to 100 percent Muslim, did Abdel-Hafiz continue his prac- tice of not investigating anyone who is Muslim? Apparently he did continue, for there is now a special inspection under way into the Riyadh embassy's failure to actively pursue counter-terrorism leads. In addition, the FBI just days ago returned Abdel-Hafiz to the United States, put him on administrative leave, and (according to Fox News) asked the Justice Department's much-feared Office of Professional Responsibility to review his conduct. (Among other . things, that office investigates "allegations of misconduct by law enforce- ment personnel.") Special Agent Abdel-Hafiz's actions raise some urgent and important questions: • What was the true reason for his alleged unwillingness to record conversations with fellow-Muslims — a misguid- ed sense of religious solidarity - or a real fear for his life? • Does Abdel-Hafiz sympathize with or support militant Islam? • Is he the FBI's only Muslim employee whose religious bonds apparently trump his oath of office? • Did the FBI ignore Abdel-Hafiz's rank breach of oath? • Did the FBI reward misbehavior with a plum assignment? • Did the FBI bureaucracy lie to cover up its mistakes? If so, does this fit a more general pattern? • Is the FBI punishing Robert Wright, its whistleblower who bravely went public with this story? • And when will the FBI permit Wright to speak freely about these matters? Until FBI Director Robert Mueller fully answers these questions, Americans cannot rest assured that his agency is doing all possible to protect them. for the Jan. 28 Knesset elections. The most ambitious was a plan by an Islamic Jihad cell in Jenin to detonate four booby- trapped cars at different locations simultaneously inside Israel. A week earlier, Border Police aborted a similar bombing attempt near Wadi Ara when they captured a jeep laden with 400 kilograms of explosives that the Jihad had dis- patched for a massive attack. ❑ Svengali theory discounts the same views by many more powerful officials — staring with President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. And while some of these Jewish offi- cials believe deposing Saddam will help Israel, that is not the core reason they are so committed to starting what they believe will be a democratic domino effect across the region. Nor is Israel somehow pulling the Bush administration's strings: No doubt Israel's leaders would be delighted to see Saddam deposed and a more moderate regime installed in Baghdad. But for many, Syria and a nuclear-armed Iran are much more immediate threats. Israeli officials also have good reason to fear the potential for an Iraqi attack against their coun- try in the wake of the expected U.S. action. And Israel's enthusiasm for a U.S. umplestiltskin And On And On In December, three east Jerusalem members of the Islamic Jihad were charged with planning to launch a missile at a helicopter arriving at the Knesset and set off a bomb near the prime minister's residence across town. The same week, security sources said a terrorist cell had planned to assassinate former Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert and to carry out a suicide bombing at the city's central bus station. A few days ago, Jerusalem Police Chief Mickey Levy said that in 2002, there were 41 terror attacks in the city including 17 suicide bombings, plus 11 attempted suicide attacks that police thwarted. The week before, National Police Commissioner Shlomo Aharonishky released figures for 2002 showing that police foiled 45 terror attacks and prevented the explosion of 236 bombs inside Israel in some 530 counter-terrorist activities. In the ongoing battle against Palestinian terrorism, it is a thin line between success and failure. Nearly 30- months into this war, as bad as the situation is, Israelis shudder to think what it would be if not for the country's security services and their ability to foil so many attacks. Unfortunately, they did not manage to abort Hamas' dia- bolical plan for Haifa last week. ❑ war is tempered by questions about whether the United States will stick around long enough to finish the job by building a pro-Western Iraq. If it doesn't, Israel could be more vulnera- ble than ever. The Anti-Jewish Lef t In 1991, it was the political right, led by columnist Pat Buchanan, that sought to portray the war in Iraq as the doing of Israel and its "amen cor- ner" in Washington. But since then the anti-globalization left has become almost indistinguish- able from the Buchanan right. And they have found another point of com- monality: the malevolent role of Israel in world affairs. The fierce reaction against Rep. Jim Moran didn't occur in a vacuum; it took place in the context of a growing link- age between opposition to what could be a very unpopular and divisive war and finger pointing directed at Jews. It occurred as conspiracy theories about Jewish machinations — about the war in Iraq, about the space shuttle Columbia tragedy, about the Sept. 11 terror attacks — proliferate around the world. It occurred as frightened Jewish lib- erals fight both the impending war and an anti-war movement that increasingly tolerates overt anti- Semitism and vehement criticisms of Israel's very existence. It occurred as President Bush pur- sues a war against Iraq without inter- national support and with very shallow backing by the American people — a prescription for bitter divisions at home and anger abroad. History suggests that in times of great polarization, many people will turn to their favorite villains: the Jews. Rep. Moran may not be an anti- Semite, but his statement — reckless at best, deeply offensive at worst — suggests that the process is already beginning. ❑ Skyline & The Back Street Horns Simone Vitale Band Hot Ice • Cassens Murphy • Rave • JoyRide Nightline • Radio City Higher Ground • Persuasion • L'USA Cheers • Intrigue Nouveaute Sun Messengers Teen Angels The Jerry Ross Band' for a free consultation Lorio Ross Entertainmentmc Call (248) 398-9711 505 S. Lafayette • Royal Oak www.1orioross.com 3/14 2003 35