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Essay
Editorial
threat To Israel
Nuclear deal prompts Iran to hike
funding for 2 terrorist proxies.
A
nticipating substantive relief from
some of the international eco-
nomic sanctions leveled against it,
Iran is wasting no time upping its financial
support to Hamas and Hezbollah, both large
terror groups as well as regional political
players.
Israel is now compelled to step up its vigi-
lance against fortified attacks on multiple
fronts. The upped cash flow gives the Iranian
proxies an infusion of desperately needed
funds to better equip their fighting forces in
the beleaguered Middle East.
Times of Israel reported the freer flowing
cash pipeline on Sept. 21. It's exactly what
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
warned against in the wake of the July 15
signing of a U.S.-brokered nuclear deal
between Tehran and P5+1 — the U.N.
Security Council's five permanent members
(U.S, United Kingdom, Russia, China and
France) plus Germany. Heavy sanctions had
forced Tehran to focus more on domestic
issues.
Iran's leaders are banking on receiving tens
of billions of dollars, or more, as sanctions
are eased and assets are unfrozen. Leadership
of the Shiite Muslim nation couldn't wait
to increase the cash flow to Sunni Muslim
Hamas and Shiite Muslim Hezbollah.
Pressing Ahead
A sign of its brazenness, Iran wasn't about
to wait for the International Atomic Energy
Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, to deter-
mine by December if Iran complied with
terms of the nuclear deal. The
deal will be formally adopted
11111110"°'
Oct. 18, but it could take 6-12
months for actual sanctions
relief.
President Barack Obama, who
sees the deal as his presiden-
tial legacy, apparently believes
increased cash flow to Iranian
proxies is a price to pay for
Robert
delaying Iran's capability to build
Contrib
a nuclear bomb. He's wrong.
Edit
Israel will be gravely endangered
by the proxy buildup.
The Jewish state has no choice
but to ultimately accept Obama's offer of
more sophisticated weapons to add to its
defense arsenal to guard against Iran acquir-
ing intercontinental ballistic missiles or
developing an underground nuclear warhead
program.
In the case of Hamas, which had drifted
away from Iran as a proxy because of their
Shiite-Sunni differences, the renewed rela-
tionship couldn't have come at a better
time. Iran sees Hamas as a strategic pawn
24
October 1 • 2015
in the Shiite-Sunni war. For its part, Hamas
depends on Iranian support not only to
bolster its image as a caring provider for the
Palestinian people of the Gaza Strip, but also
to upgrade its weaponry in the "struggle"
against the "Zionist infidel" — Israel.
Lebanon-based Hezbollah, a Shiite
Muslim terrorist group, used the cash to buy
new armaments from Russia — the same
advanced weaponry that Moscow supplied to
Assad-led Syria, a Russian ally. Hezbollah is
fighting Al Nusra Front, Islamic State (ISIS)
and other Sunni Muslim groups on the Syria-
Lebanon border, Times of Israel reported.
Israel is now compelled
to step up its vigilance
against fortified attacks
on multiple fronts.
Syrian Connection
Emboldened by the expected lifting of sanc-
tions, Iran has joined Hezbollah and Russia
in helping delay Bashar Assad's Alawite
regime from falling to rebels — or to ISIS,
edging ever closer to Damascus and the
Alawite regions. Syria remains a tinderbox.
Iran also appears to be leading the charge
to install terror cells in areas under Assad's
control along the Syrian Golan Heights. Iran's
intent is to goad Israel and not necessarily
with Assad's blessing. Assad likely
is too preoccupied staving off ISIS
to duel with Israel. Syria controlled
the Golan before the 1973 Yom
Kippur War and has craved return
of the militarily strategic high-
lands.
Syria's preoccupation doesn't
mean Iran, via Hezbollah and sec-
ondarily the Syrian army, wouldn't
welcome turmoil along the Heights
— despite Russian leader Vladimir
Putin saying Israel shouldn't fear
yet another battlefront arising.
The nuclear deal may bring a
short-term delay in Iran's development of
a bomb. But the Persian state, whose cler-
ics seem deadset on destroying Israel, will
remain a nuclear threshold state and a mis-
sile-producing factory.
Before its formal adoption and any sanc-
tions relief, the fledgling nuclear deal already
has heightened regional instability and cre-
ated the potential for reopening a terrorist
battlefront to the north — with Israel at the
epicenter.
❑
Time To Strengthen
Black-Jewish Bonds
ocal Jews have initiated join- dialogue.
ing Martin Luther King Jr.
Thompson is host of the weekly
commemorations, reading
public affairs radio show Redline
with Bankole Thompson on WDET-
to Detroit school kids, teaming
up with largely black churches
FM. For nine years, he was edi-
on programming and hosting
tor of the Michigan Chronicle, a
small intercultural missions to
black-owned newspaper. There,
Israel. Jewish Ensemble Theatre's
he helped grow New Michigan
regional student outreach
Media, a partnership of ethnic and
includes some predomi-
minority newspapers that
nantly black schools.
contributes to the narrative
Black initiatives
about Detroit and Southeast
toward Jews have been
Michigan. This summer, he
far fewer as the black
moved to the Detroit News
community has grappled
as a columnist.
with the urban-centered
In 2011, Thompson, a
issues of crime, drugs,
Christian, worked closely
schools and joblessness.
with Detroit Jewish News
Bankole
Journalist Bankole
Publisher Arthur Horwitz in
Thompson
Thompson, a Gambia
developing the first Black/
native who is passionate about
Jewish Forum, held at Temple
Detroit, hopes to widen the focus
Beth El in Bloomfield Township.
beyond those high-profile issues.
Rabbi Daniel Syme long has
He has become a pivotal player
pushed for stronger black-Jewish
in promoting more dynamic ties
ties. Thompson and Horwitz
between our black and Jewish
pointed to their friendship as the
communities.
catalyst toward revisiting the his-
He's also a
torical bonds between blacks and
student of the
Jews in a way that could elevate
teachings of
the civil rights conversation.
Abraham Joshua
Heschel, one of
Dreaming Big
the most trans-
In accepting the JCRC honor,
formational rab-
Thompson said, "The bottom line
bis of the 20th
is that we should all strive to
Rabbi Heschel
century.
emulate the example of Abraham
Through the force of his mes-
Joshua Heschel. Like Heschel, we
sage, Rabbi Heschel, who died in
should always defend what is in
1972 at age 65, helped shatter
the interest of the public good."
racial barriers. In 1965, Heschel
Thompson's ultimate dream
marched arm in arm with Dr.
is to establish a new frontier for
Martin Luther King Jr. on the
intergroup collaboration, particu-
Selma-to-Montgomery Voting
larly black-Jewish collaboration –
Rights March. Heschel's legacy
and build on it across America.
continues to inspire social justice.
The dream isn't fantasy.
At its Sept.10 annual meeting,
Thompson gets what it means
our Jewish Community Relations
for the largely non-Jewish black
Council (JCRC) recognized
community to partner with
Thompson's social justice leader-
Jewish Detroit in pursuit of edgy
ship and gave him a tzedakah box
ways to shape a new engagement
– reflective of the shared commit-
model for the benefit of not just
ment by the black and Jewish com- the two communities, but also of
munities to repair of the world.
Detroit, its suburbs and beyond.
But he needs more support.
Building Bridges
The cause requires additional
Thompson, 36, has worked to
leadership in the black and
raise the bar on intercultural
Jewish communities – at all
relations – black to white, Latino
levels – in order to go beyond
to Asian, Christian to Jewish to
waxing nostalgic about the Civil
Muslim. As a result of walking
Rights Movement of the 1950s
comfortably in so many different
and 1960s and ultimately create
communities, he sometimes has
a contemporary model that reig-
stirred contentious reaction but
nites the black/Jewish alliance in
always has sought progressive
the fight against injustice. ❑