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DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
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editorial
Arthur M. Horwitz
Publisher / Executive Editor
ahorwitz@renmedia.us
Distinguish Between Hamas And People Of Gaza
I
t would be easy for the U.S. and Israel
to justify cutting off any communica-
tion with or assistance to the Gaza
Strip, ruled defiantly by Hamas, a terrorist
organization to the core.
But the U.S. and Israel distinguish
between Hamas leaders in Gaza City and
the people of Gaza, who number 1.8 mil-
lion, according to the Palestinian Central
Bureau of Statistics.
Granted, Hamas has indoctrinated many
people into so-called resistance fighters, a
euphemism for terrorists. But that doesn’t
mean all Palestinians are driven to terror.
The U.S. and Israel recognize that.
The U.S., for example, is routing new
humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza
via the U.S. Agency for International
Development in partnership with Catholic
Relief Services.
The $50 million assistance program is
dubbed Envision Gaza 2020. The five-year
program will include staples like food,
bedding, cleaning supplies and school uni-
forms. The aid package also will help cre-
ate jobs in an economically depressed ter-
ritory where joblessness tops 40 percent.
The U.S. provides upwards of $500 mil-
lion a year in aid to the West Bank-based
Palestinian Authority and other agencies
serving the Palestinian people, but bars
direct assistance to Hamas, sworn by char-
ter to Israel’s destruction.
ISRAEL’S TURN
For its humanitarian part, Israel, while
keeping a strong security grip, last year
permitted into Gaza almost 140,000 trucks
carrying construction materials, medical
equipment and other civilian goods — a
100 percent increase in truck passage from
the previous year despite evidence Hamas
is redirecting cement provided by the
international community to the building
of terrorist tunnels. Israel also coordinated
the crossing of more than 250 Gaza stu-
dents seeking to study abroad.
In announcing Envision Gaza 2020,
Donald Blome, the U.S. consul in
Jerusalem, implied Israel’s security mea-
sures imposed on getting goods in and out
of Gaza were excessive. At a time when
Hamas has reinforced its commitment to
firing missiles into Israel and digging tun-
nels of terror, Blome should pivot his rag-
ging on Israel toward denouncing Hamas.
TESTY MATTER
In May, Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security
service disclosed that a Gaza teen arrested
by Israeli forces a month earlier had tried,
at Hamas’ behest, to infiltrate Israel via the
resurrected tunnel network. It’s tough to
overlook such barbarity.
Still, representatives of the Israeli and
Palestinian ministries of agriculture
attended the May 9 announcement of
Envision Gaza 2020, underscoring Israel is
willing to test cooperative waters.
Even as it monitors movement entering
and exiting the lawless coastal enclave,
Israel cannot, and clearly is not, ignoring
the plight of ordinary Gazans, who are
oblivious to the quality of life enjoyed by
Israeli Arabs.
The people of Gaza are condemned to
dire conditions by the Hamas terrorists
patrolling the corridors of leadership in
Gaza City and by the flailing P.A. officials
clinging to the seat of government in
Ramallah.
The people's plight is not a result of the
defensive mechanisms invoked by Israel to
repel anti-Zionist aggression in a gravely
volatile region.
*
F. Kevin Browett
Chief Operating Officer
kbrowett@renmedia.us
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letters
Hospice Network
Lauds ‘LifeLinks’
On behalf of the Jewish Hospice and
Chaplaincy Network (JHCN), I want to
thank you for bringing to light our new
LifeLinks program under the leadership of
Rabbis Joseph Krakoff and E.B. “Bunny”
Freedman.
The JN article “LifeLinks” (May 12, page
10) will be invaluable in educating our
community of this option, which has been
a need we have recognized, but needed
the proper team in place to ensure that we
could continue to deliver the best care to the
patient and families we serve. Rabbi Krakoff,
as your piece so clearly stated, was the miss-
ing “link” of LifeLinks.
I would be remiss if I did not pay tribute
to the entire Jewish Hospice team who wel-
comed Rabbi Krakoff with open arms and
have ensured that once we made the medical
community aware of Lifelinks we were able
to fulfill our vision of this vital program.
When speaking to families about Jewish
Hospice and Chaplaincy Network, I would
ask, “Are there any comments I could take
back to our board or team?”
Often times I was told, “I wish we could
have made contact earlier in the process.” We
listened, we responded, and LifeLinks will
6 May 26 • 2016
be able to assist families from early diagnosis
instead of our involvement beginning in a
patient’s final days.
I am often asked, in light of JHCN not
charging any family for services, how are we
able to sustain the organiza-
tion. The answer is always
the same, “We live in an
extraordinary community,
and from Day One, family
and friends have expressed
their appreciation by sup-
porting Jewish Hospice and
Chaplaincy Network with
their generosity ensuring
that we are able to continue
our sacred mission of ‘No
Jew is Ever Alone.’”
We must also recognize
the crucial role of the early
and constant support of
the Jewish Fund, who saw
a need and provided seed
money before any programs
were in place.
It is no coincidence
that Jewish Hospice and
Chaplaincy Network is the
only program of its kind in
the country. We, as a com-
munity, can be thankful that
the legacy of philanthropy
has been passed l’dor v’dor, from generation
to generation.
Our predecessors would proudly look
continued on page 8
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