World
ROUNDUP
Palin To Obama
Washington/JTA — Sarah Palin called on
the Obama administration to hit the reset
button with Israel.
In a statement critical
of the Obama admin-
istration's outreach to
countries with which
the United States has
strained relations, the
former Republican vice
presidential candidate
Sarah Palin
and Alaska governor
wrote, "In the midst of all this embrac-
ing of enemies, where does the Obama
administration choose to escalate a minor
incident into a major diplomatic confron-
tation? With Iran, Cuba, Sudan, North
Korea or Burma? No. With our treasured
ally, Israel!'
Palin criticized Obama for making uni-
lateral demands of Israel while not requir-
ing Arab leaders to make equally demand-
ing concessions for the sake of peace.
"Vice President Biden was actually
right when he said, before the construc-
tion announcement, that 'one necessary
precondition for progress is that the rest of
the world knows ... there is absolutely no
space between the United States and Israel
when it comes to security:" she said.
"Right now, thanks to the Obama
administration, there is a chasm. Its time
for President Obama to push the reset but-
ton on our relations with our ally Israel."
Brazilian At Arafat's Grave
Ramallah/JTA — Brazil's president laid a
wreath at Yasser Arafat's grave after refus-
ing to visit the grave of Theodor Herzl.
President Luiz Ignacio Lula da Silva met
with Palestinian Authority leaders in
Ramallah on March 17.
"I dream of an independent and free
Palestine living in peace in the Middle
East:' Silva said while in the West Bank.
"I believe the Palestinians and Israelis
are going to share the land of their fore-
fathers."
Israel had criticized Lula's plan to visit
the grave of the PLO's Arafat prior to the
visit. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor
Lieberman boycotted Lula's address to the
Knesset on March 15 to protest his refusal
to visit the grave of Herzl, the founder of
modern Zionism.
Pair Of Dems Blame Israel
Washington/JTA — Two Democrats with
solidly pro-Israel records are blaming Israel
for the heightened U.S.-Israeli tensions.
In an exclusive interview with JTA,
the chairman of the U.S. House Foreign
Affairs Committee, Rep. Howard Berman,
D-Calif., said that Israel deserved much of
the criticism it has been receiving over the
announcement during Vice President Joe
Biden's visit to Israel of plans to construct
1,600 housing units in a Jewish neighbor-
hood of eastern Jerusalem.
"The administration had, I think, real
justification for being upset because a pro-
cess was supposed to be in place that would
keep it from being blindsided, and that
process failed and once again the U.S. was
blindsided and the Israelis have to get this
right:' said Berman, who has taken the lead
in the push for new, tougher Iran sanctions.
He is considered a staunch supporter of
Israel and has strong ties to the American
Israel Public Affairs Committee.
Another Democrat with a solidly pro-
Israel record, Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Maryland,
issued a statement criticizing Jerusalem
for the tensions with Washington while
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stressing that he felt Israel's prime minister
had taken an important step in expressing
regret over the incident.
For their part, Republican congressional
leaders criticized the Obama adminis-
tration for coming down hard on Israel.
House Minority Leader John Boehner,
R-Ohio, House Minority Whip Eric Cantor,
R-Va., and Rep. Illeana Ros-Lehtinen, R-
Fla., the ranking Republican on the House
Foreign Affairs Committee, all issued
statements criticizing the Obama admin-
istration.
A handful of Jewish Democratic
House members from New York — Reps.
Eliot Engel, Nita Lowey, Steve Israel and
Anthony Weiner — also have said that the
Obama administration went too far with
its criticism of Israel. They were joined
by a fellow New York Democrat, U.S. Sen.
Kirsten Gillibrand, who is facing a tough
re-election fight.
P.M.'s Son Is Bible Maven
Jerusalem/JTA — Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu's youngest son won
Israel's National Bible Contest.
Avner Netanyahu, 15, will represent
Israel in the International Bible Contest,
which is held annually in Jerusalem on
Israel's Independence Day.
The prime minister and his wife attend-
ed the March 16 national finals in Kiryat
Shemona.
Some 12,000 Israeli students partici-
pated in Bible contests this year leading up
to the national finals.
Sara Netanyahu's three older brothers
have won the national Bible quiz and her
father is an expert in Bible study.
Honoring
Senator Carl Levin
and
Representative Sander Levin
Sunday, April 18, 2010
2:00 PM
Congregation Shaarey Zedek, Southfield
Couvert $80 per person
For reservations or information about the Tribute Journal
call the JTS office
(248) 258-0055
or register on line at
http://www.jtsa.edu/detroitgala2010
The Jewish
j urs Theological
Seminary
32
March 25 • 2010
Answering
Israel's Critics
The Charge
United Nations Secretary General Ban
Ki Moon called on Israel last week to
end its near blockade of Gaza, saying
it undercuts moderates and empowers
extremists.
The Answer
Israel's border restrictions on Gaza
work to protect Israel's southern com-
munities from attack by denying the
Hamas terrorists material to rebuild
their military infrastructure and by
pressuring them to renounce violence.
- Allan Gale
Jewish Community Relations Council
of Metropolitan Detroit
© Jewish Renaissance Media, March 25, 2010