Volume 3 * Issue 116 August 13, 2004

The Week’s News in Review

August 2: The secular Israeli party Shinui said it would be willing to sit in a government with a fervently Orthodox party. August 3: Three Palestinians died when a bomb they planted to hit Israeli troops exploded prematurely. Hamas gunmen attacked suspected Palestinian "collaborators" in a Gaza Strip jail and hospital. August 5: Israeli forces pulled back from a Gaza Strip town used to launch rocket attacks on Israel. Israeli port workers ended a strike that cost the country more than $1.5 billion. Israel plans to link Jerusalem to the biggest West Bank settlement, despite U.S. censure. Palestinian terrorists fired five Qassam rockets into the western Negev today. August 6: Israel's Supreme Court ordered the government to accredit Palestinian journalists. Israeli troops killed two Palestinians on Friday, including one attempting to attack a Gaza Strip settlement The North American Jewish federation system has received $1.7 million for Israel advocacy efforts. August 9: Hamas reportedly pledged not to challenge the Palestinian Authority in the Gaza Strip after an Israeli withdrawal. August 10: Israel backed away from its plan to allow armed Palestinian Authority police. The threat of a missile attack on Israel was one reason justifying a pre-emptive strike against Iraq, Gen. Tommy Franks said. Ariel Sharon vowed Israel would crack down on illegal West Bank settlement outposts. August 11: A Palestinian car bomber killed at least one person at an Israeli checkpoint outside Jerusalem. Immigration to Israel is down by 7 percent in the first half of 2004.

Myths and Facts in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

MYTH "Anyone who defends settlements is rationalizing the perpetual occupation of the Palestinian people and their land." FACTS: While making a strong case for its right to the territories, the Israeli government also acknowledges that Palestinians have legitimate claims to the area and that a compromise can be reached through negotiations. In fact, in the 2000 negotiations at Camp David and the White House, Prime Minister Barak reportedly offered to dismantle at least 63 settlements (Temporary International Presence in Hebron). The Palestinians rejected the proposal. In 2004, Ariel Sharon proposed a plan to disengage from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. That proposal also would lead to the removal of a number of settlements. At the same time, Sharon has made clear that large settlement blocs will remain intact. An estimated 80 percent of the settlers live in what are in effect suburbs of major Israeli cities such as Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Virtually the entire Jewish population believes Israel must retain these areas to ensure its security, and that they could be brought within Israel's borders with minor modifications of the 1967 border. Sharon singled out four specific settlement blocs that, by consensus, will ultimately be incorporated into Israel, and it is evident why when you take into account their populations: Ariel (16,000 in 2001 and now closer to 30,000 when surrounding communities are included), Maale Adumim (25,800 in 2001 and now closer to 40,000), Givat Zeev (10,500 in 2001), and the Etzion Bloc (15 communities with an approximate population of 20,000). These four blocs include more than 40 percent of the total Jewish population of the West Bank. It is inconceivable that Israel would evacuate such large cities, even after a peace agreement with the Palestinians, and Yasser Arafat grudgingly accepted at Camp David the idea that the large settlement blocs would be part of Israel. Source: Myths & Facts Online -- A Guide to the Arab-Israeli Conflict by Mitchell G. Bard, http://www.JewishVirtualLibrary.org. 

Advocacy for Israel Committee Information

The Advocacy for Israel Committee was formed in September of 2001 to organize pro-Israeli activities and to rally support in the form of Hasbara. The next A Team meeting is Sunday September 19 in the CBI Library at 9:45. Make a difference for Israel! Questions? Ideas? Contact A Team Chairmen Jay Epstein (jhe@tampabay.rr.com) or Sheldon Scheinert (Sheldo123@aol.com). Check out our Mizrach-Israel Board in the hallway leading to the Atrium, near the Bridal Suite. Get involved!

Speaking out for Israel so that "Never Again" shall Jewish silence lead to an indifferent world