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Threats … And Hope
Jewish prospects in France worsen — but Israeli ties with Egypt improve.
T
40 February 25 • 2016
Times of Israel
American Jewish
leader Malcolm
Hoenlein at the Times
of Israel offices in
Jerusalem
Times of Israel
he Jews of France should prepare
plans to leave the country, a prom-
inent American Jewish leader said.
“They shouldn’t flee. But they should
have orderly plans in place,” said Malcolm
Hoenlein, the executive vice president of the
Conference of Presidents of Major American
Jewish Organizations.
“People who want to leave should be able
to leave,” he said of the half-million-strong
community. “Things here [in Israel] should
be prepared. The licensing process for law-
yers, doctors, etc., should be facilitated in
order to integrate them quickly.”
Jewish immigrants from France arrive in Tel Aviv, July 28, 2015.
There are “whole areas in France” today,
Hoenlein noted bleakly in a wide-ranging
Unlike some leaders of democracies,
interviewee, forever throwing out tantalizing
interview, “where the police don’t venture
Hoenlein
said, “dictators tell the truth,” and
tidbits
of
information
about
meetings
with
and where Jews and Christians don’t go.”
Iran’
s
leader
has made no secret of his ambi-
presidents
and
prime
ministers
and
security
While the French government has allocat-
tions.
“Khamenei
has told us all along what
chiefs
and
kings.
ed considerable resources to the fight against
he
intends
to
do,
what
Iran’s goals are and
He
seems
to
have
met
most
everyone
Islamist terrorism there, Hoenlein elaborat-
what
they
want
to
impose.
When they say
—
including
Syria’
s
Bashar
Assad
—
and
ed, the head of France’s main security agency
they
want
to
destroy
Israel.
When they say
been
most
everywhere
—
though
not
Iran.
recently told him he lacked the manpower
they
want
to
establish
hegemony.
When they
If
Benjamin
Netanyahu
is
Time
magazine’
s
to adequately monitor the threat posed by
say
they
want
to
spread
the
Iranian
influ-
king
of
Israel,
then
Hoenlein
is,
at
the
very
French citizens returning from fighting with
ence.
All
those
things
they
mean,
and
they’re
least,
Mr.
American
Jewry,
arguably
the
most
the Islamic State and other Islamist groups in
doing
much
of
it
today,
”
he
said.
influential
American
Jew
in
the
world.
the Middle East.
Hoenlein also linked the Iranian leader’s
He’s a key bridge between Israel and the
This security chief, who Hoenlein did not
threats
against Israel with the ongoing wave
American
Jewish
leadership;
he’
s
also
been
name, told him that Cherif and Said Kouachi,
of
Palestinian
knifings of Israelis. “Look what
a
central
player
in
relations
between
U.S.
the Paris-born brothers who received mili-
Khamenei
said
on Palestine: He wrote a book
administrations
and
Israel.
He’
s
able
to
meet
tary training in Yemen and who killed 12
in
August
called
Palestina, and he said, ‘We’re
with
world
leaders
who
have
no
ties
with
people in an attack on the Charlie Hebdo
going
to
make
life
intolerable …’ What do
Israel,
some
of
whom
doubtless
see
him,
too,
satirical magazine on Jan. 7, 2015, had been
you
think
these
knifings
are? It’s exactly a
as
an
entree
to
American
corridors
of
power.
closely monitored by French security until
manifestation
of
what
he
said in the book.
days before the killings.
IRANIAN
THREAT
I’m
not
saying
that
Iran
dictated
all of these
“He said that they had guys watching the
Hoenlein,
who
spoke
with
the
Times
of
Israel
attacks.
But
is
this
such
a
coincidence?”
Charlie Hebdo people up until the Friday
in Jerusalem last week, also issued a series
before the attack, but he had to switch them
of warnings about the Iranian regime and its TURKEY AND EGYPT
to [watch] somebody else,” Hoenlein said.
ambitions. He said the regime was sure to
Prior to his organization’s weeklong confer-
“They didn’t have enough people to allocate
violate its nuclear deal with the world powers ence in Jerusalem last week, Hoenlein and
to [monitor] all the [potentially dangerous]
— “You know that they’re not going to keep
more than 30 American Jewish leadership
people all the time … He had a more imme-
the
agreement. Ask any of the serious people colleagues visited Turkey, where they met with
diate case. He shifted them to something
at the IAEA, as we have,” he said.
President Erdogan, and Egypt, where they
else. And bingo, you end up under attack.”
He also charged that Tehran has 30-40,000 were hosted by President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.
Hoenlein has presided over the Conference
agents active in South America, that it con-
Hoenlein described Erdogan, and his
for the past 30 years and is its executive vice
stitutes a direct threat to the United States,
stance on Israel, as an enigma, and cau-
chairman. A fast-talking, Orthodox, no-
and that it ultimately seeks world domina-
tioned, “I don’t think we should look for
nonsense Philadelphia native, former Soviet
tion. “Read what Khamenei says and writes,” instant solutions in Israel-Turkish relations.”
Jewry activist and self-styled “activist execu-
urged Hoenlein. “He is clear about it.”
Still, he said he appreciated how much time
tive,” Hoenlein is an endlessly fascinating
Jewish Agency for Israel/Zed Films/Times of Israel
David Horovitz | Times of Israel
Erdogan spent with group and thought it sig-
nificant that the president chose to publicize
the visit, and even issued a group photograph
of their meeting.
The U.S. Jewish leader enthused about
Sissi and noted that the Muslim Brotherhood
in Egypt had criticized the president for
meeting with the Conference group.
“He said when Sadat [made peace with
Israel] 40 years ago, no one could have imag-
ined that the current level of engagement
and cooperation with Israel would exist,”
Hoenlein said.
“He said to me earlier: ‘If 30 years ago I
would have said to you that 1,000 Egyptian
war tanks would enter the Sinai, and
Egyptian war planes would fly every day
along the Israeli border, and nobody has to
worry about a stray bullet, would you have
believed me?’ He made this point several
ways during the discussion about the level of
[Egyptian-Israeli] cooperation, how it works
and why it’s so important.”
In contrast to Erdogan, Sissi “gets Hamas,”
Hoenlein continued. “He gets the threat and
the need to address it.”
Hoenlein urged the U.S. and the West to
help boost the Egyptian economy, including
via a return of tourism — “if he can provide
the stability.”
Apropos stability and security, Hoenlein
revealed, some of the intended participants
on the group’s trip to the region “didn’t come
because of concern about security in Turkey
and in Egypt.”
More than that, he added, some par-
ticipants dropped out because of fears over
security in Israel, where the trip culminated
in a weeklong conference in Jerusalem that
was addressed by many of Israel’s most
prominent leaders, including the president
and the prime minister.
“We had people who didn’t come,”
Hoenlein said. “There are a few spouses of
leaders of organizations who didn’t want
to participate here — I’m talking about the
Israel part.”
*
For the text of Hoenlein’s interview, visit www.
timesofisrael.com/malcolm-in-the-middle.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan, left, meets with a del-
egation of the Conference of
Presidents of Major American
Jewish Organizations, led by
Stephen M. Greenberg, right,
and Malcolm Hoenlein, center,
in Ankara, Turkey.