In The News

October 21: Israel's justice minister said rabbis who call on religious soldiers to refuse to evacuate settlers could face legal action. Jewish groups blasted a Presbyterian Church delegation for meeting with Hezbollah leaders. Iran said it had improved a missile capable of reaching Israel. Israeli troops killed two armed Palestinians who tried to cross from the Gaza Strip into Israel. October 22: Israel assassinated a Hamas master bombmaker in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli army reportedly plans to call up 10,000 reservists to help implement a planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. France's president told a Jewish group Friday that Holocaust denial should be punished with the greatest rigor. Israel's Foreign Ministry canceled a meeting with a delegation from the American Presbyterian Church because it had met with Hezbollah. October 25: Egypt said it arrested five men for the bombing of Red Sea resorts frequented by Israelis. An Israeli settler who killed a Palestinian driver was charged with manslaughter. October 26: Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's deputy said Israeli political parties that oppose his "disengagement plan" have no place in a future government coalition. Almost two in three Israelis support the planned withdrawals from the Gaza Strip and West Bank, a survey found. President Bush's national security adviser said world leaders should push for Yasser Arafat to step aside once Israel withdraws from the Gaza Strip. October 27: Ariel Sharon rejected calls by four Israeli Cabinet ministers for a referendum on his Gaza withdrawal plan. The European Union welcomed Knesset approval of Ariel Sharon's withdrawal plan. October 28: Israeli forces were put on high alert for Palestinian riots should Yasser Arafat die. Benjamin Netanyahu said he was ready to challenge Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for the leadership of Israel's ruling Likud Party. Six Israelis were wounded in a combined Palestinian shooting and mortar attack in the Gaza Strip. The United States welcomed the vote in Israel's Parliament authorizing an Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

Myths and Facts about Israel: Free Access to Holy Sites

FACTS: (1) Since 1967, hundreds of thousands of Muslims and Christians — many from Arab countries that remain in a state of war with Israel — have come to Jerusalem to see their holy places. Arab leaders are free to visit Jerusalem to pray if they wish to, just as Egyptian President Anwar Sadat did at the al-Aksa mosque. For security reasons, restrictions are sometimes imposed on the Temple Mount temporarily, but the right to worship is not abridged and other mosques remain accessible even in times of high tension. In October 2004, for example, despite high alerts for terrorism and the ongoing Palestinian uprising, an estimated 140,000 Muslim worshipers attended Ramadan prayers on the Temple Mount. (2) According to Islam, the prophet Muhammad was miraculously transported from Mecca to Jerusalem, and it was from there that he made his ascent to heaven.Although it is the holiest site in Judaism, Israel has left the Temple Mount under the control of Muslim religious authorities. (3) For Christians, Jerusalem is the place where Jesus lived, preached, died and was resurrected. While it is the heavenly rather than the earthly Jerusalem that is emphasized by the Church, places mentioned in the New Testament as the sites of Jesus' ministry have drawn pilgrims and devoted worshipers for centuries. The rights of the various Christian churches to custody of the Christian holy places in Jerusalem were defined in the course of the nineteenth century, and these rights are are still upheld today in 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 A Team’s next meeting is Sunday October 31 at 9:45 am in the CBI Atrium. Please join us and make a difference for Israel! For more information, email A Team Chairmen Jay Epstein (jhe@tampabay.rr.com) or Sheldon Scheinert (Sheldo123@aol.com), or call the CBI office at 381-4900

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