0 Ilion
Editorials are posted and archived on JN Online:
www.cletroitjewishnews.com
Dry Bones
Questions For The Quartet
T
he last three weeks have seen the effective
shredding of the Mideast peace road map
that was put together by the international
Quartet of the United States, Russia, the
European Union and the United Nations. The
renewal of Palestinian terrorism and of a strong
Israeli military response may taper off in the coming
weeks, but the road map itself seems unlikely to
remain as even a tentative guide to a less-violent
future.
That failure should encourage the Quartet mem-
bers to think a bit more deeply about why the plan
has come apart at its seams and what portion of
blame they should assume. To help with that process,
here are a few questions that each entity
could profitably mull:
• Does President Vladimir Putin still
think Russia did the right thing in staying
so totally silent about the fate of the plan that it nom-
inally helped to draft? Could it have leaned more
heavily on its nominal allies such as Egypt to play an
active role in criticizing the Palestinian terrorists?
What lessons has Russia learned from its own inabili-
ty to cope with its Chechen terrorists and how would
it apply those lessons to Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the
Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades? Why, in fact, is Russia so
supportive of a separate state for the Palestinians, but
not for the Chechen minority?
• On this side of the Atlantic, how does the State
Department assess the 21 deaths in the Aug. 19
bombing of a Jerusalem bus, and does it now under-
stand how correct Israel has been in its warnings that
the terror groups were simply using the cease-fire
period to re-arm? Why does President George W.
Bush think that freezing the trivially small assets in
America of some Hamas leaders and supporting
groups is anything more than a symbolic slap on the
wrist that is likely to provoke more jeers rather than
compliance with the pledge to end the violence? Is
there any realization that Washington should with-
draw all support for Palestinian statehood until after
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat dis-
SOUNDS LIKE
arms and imprisons the terrorist
Is
cadres?
coNDUCTIQG
• And in the capitals of Europe,
NeGaTi AliogS
who will now acknowledge that they
have been foolish in their continued
coddling of a corrupt and ineffective
v\ODPA ?.
Palestinian leadership? Is the
European Union ready to admit that
No
its embrace of the anti-Zionists is
RuDNA!
effectively an endorsement of the con-
tinent's long and bloody history of
anti-Semitism? Will any European
leader make a real effort to crack
down on the flow of mil-
lions of dollars that goes to
rACTUAbbY
bomb and rocket factories
ritfl.
rather than to the
HE'S POTTING
REAL WIN13C-g'.
Palestinian needy? Or will they con-
0 A PUPPET
FoputAR
tinue to wait until the suicide
bombers murder children in Paris and
Zurich and Amsterdam?
• The toughest questions, however,
should be asked of and at the United
Nations, which lost 23 of its employ-
ees to a suicide truck bomber in
Baghdad on the same day as the bus
0
attack in Jerusalem. No entity has
done more than the U.N. to allow the
)CLAP
Arab states to prolong the violence in
CLAPCt,ttP
the Middle East. Its decision to treat
Palestinians as a special class of
refugees — encouraged to remain in
last three years? Could the U.N. now acknowledge
limbo rather than being absorbed into Lebanon and
that its "Zionism is racism" resolution and all its
Syria and Jordan and Egypt as other groups of
spawn
are lunacy that encourage Arab resentment of
refugees have been absorbed into other countries after
Israel's legitimacy and undercut any permanent peace?
a war — has caused incalculable misery on both sides
Until the Quartet members face up honestly to the
of the Green Line.
questions about themselves, they will never be able to
Can Secretary-General Kofi Annan explain why ter-
understand why their road map points to a dead-end
rorism against his workers is different from and more
rather than a safe destination. ❑
reprehensible than the kind aimed at Israel over the
Embracing Israel
the land of our forebears in other meaningful ways.
Others, however, accept the challenge of reaching
out by going there when Israelis need us most.
So it is that at least 536 metro Detroiters have felt
the urge and have signed up for Federation's
Michigan Miracle Mission 4 to Israel, April 18-28,
2004. The Michigan Board of Rabbis and the
Detroit Jewish News are co-sponsoring the Jewish
Federation of Metropolitan Detroit-organized mis-
sion.
We know the risk, but we know the intense pre-
cautions being taken and that security
won't be compromised.
And we're ready to begin orientation
sessions that will culminate in our coming
together overlooking Yerushalayim — the City of
Peace (Ir Shalom) that King David proclaimed the
eternal capital of Israel 3,000 years ago.
During the mission, we'll embrace our brethren
and let them know how much we respect their put-
ting their lives on the line to keep Israel from falling
E 6.0
EDIT ORIAL
e hear a lot about how Israelis need us,
Jews of the diaspora, during this espe-
cially trying time in their tumultuous
55-year history.
And they do.
They need our companionship, our emotional
support and the lift we can bring to a once-thriving
economy devastated by 35 months of Palestinian
terror. It's hard to describe the immense
personal connection they feel when Jews
from elsewhere put their commitment to
the Jewish state before safety concerns.
Terrorism has claimed at least 848 Israeli and for-
eign lives since this latest round began nearly three
years ago. Jews in the diaspora know that. Some
choose not to go to Israel as a result, but support
Smoui
EDIT ORIAL
Learn about mission recruitment: page 14
oVER - n- k
woRidD
ALL
into Arab control, the ultimate goal of those aligned
with terror mastermind Yasser Arafat, the
Palestinian leader.
But make no mistake: We need Israel as much as
Israelis need us. The richly Jewish moments we
enjoy in our homes and synagogues can't possibly be
the same as engaging in praying or just breathing
the air in the land we as a people were exiled from
almost 1,900 years ago.
We need Israel to re-energize us and to teach us
— and to let us know, in a very personal way, that
it's ours for yet another day.
Against the backdrop of Mideast unrest and oh-
so-shaky peace talks, this fourth Miracle Mission
will be like no other. It may well prove to be the
most important — and most compelling.
Take it from mission director Sally Krugel: "We
are committed to this mission. We know people
have been waiting too long. It is time. Our pitch is,
`It's a go.' For all those with whom this resonates,
we are planning the best trip ever." ❑
8/29
2003
25