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The Arab Peace Initiative and the Statement from British Friends of Peace Now
Last uploaded : Sunday 31st Mar 2002 at 00:30
Contributed by : The Editor

 

News As we observe Passover ('celebrate' is not the word this year), we read about the flight from Egypt and of the many trials of our ancestors in the very same lands in which so much blood has again been shed. Set against this tableau is the extraordinary gathering in equally ancient Lebanon, where the complicated issues involve not just Israel but oil, Iraq and al Qaeda.

One issue on which Jewishcomment is troubled is that of the return of Palestinian refugees: Israel has suffered enough in war after war and massacre after massacre, generated by decades of Arab hositlity. Jews in Arab lands were rescued by the Jewish Agency and other bodies; recently the last Jew in Libya died -- many other Muslim countries have Judenrein -- they welcome no Jews.

The Jewish people were on the receiving end of one of the most profound manifestations of human cruelty in the history of mankind from 1933 to 1945, and were afforded an opportunity for a homeland for their remnant. This traumatised, wounded and exhausted people was greeted by war and terror, and did not deliberately set out to 'massacre and expel' scores of Arabs.

Return of Palestinians to their 1948 homes is, sadly, untenable and it is hoped that the concept of compensation and repatriation in other Arab lands will be the alternative.

During the past forty-eight hours the British and CNN coverage of the events in Israel have been overwhelmingly slanted in favour of the Palestinians, with endless streams of Arab spokesmen referring to the beleaguered Israeli police and army as the 'Israeli terorrist army and police force.'

JewishComment deplores the fact that thousands of Jews cannot enjoy Passover because they have to patrol the streets, and we are aggrieved that on First Seder night, an observance as sacred as the inception of Ramadan or Eid, not one Jew in Israel or the worldwide Diaspora was able to enjoy the event but instead was glued to Tv and telephone once again worried about relatives and friends in Israel. This thanks to carefully targetted cruelty stage-managed by the forces of terror.

Not one member of the Israeli security services or of the government, Left or Right-wing, was able to complete his or her Seder -- to us nothing short of a sacrilege -- because of the actions of the Palestinians. On TV in Britain there is no remorse shown, only a string of Arab spokesmen referring to Jews as 'terrorists' just as our sacred religious observance gets underway. Do the Arabs think that Jews want to start a 'terror war' when they are trying to concentrate on getting rid of chometz and planning the Seder meals for their children and elderly kin?

This on the same day that some 300 eminent British Jews signed and published a peace commitment in 'The Jewish Chronicle' newspaper, associating themselves with a worthy and eloquent statement composed by British Friends of Peace Now that reflects the very best in Jewish ethical belief and asking for a just, non-violent solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The statement asks for a full Israeli withdrawal and for dismantling of settlements.

The reason why Jewish Comment was reluctant to sign such a statement -- though fully supporting its essence and spirit -- is because we do not believe Jews should be forced to vacate their homes any more than we would ask Arabs to leave greater Israel. Nor would we force Arab settlers who have moved into the millions of homes from which Jews fled or were expelledemen, Syria, Libya, Iraq and Iran, to vacate their dwellings.

Except for Baruch Goldstein, no settler has ever deliberately caused the havoc that suicide bombers cause; yes, the Palestinians are 'under occupation' according to the majority of the world and the settlers are not, but massacres of Jews happened long before the State was even founded and during Oslo, and we fear this 'longest hatred' has little to do with there being settlers or no settlers.

How nice it would be to hear Palestinian spokesmen making similar declarations to that by Peace Now, instead of insulting Jews after 22 of them have not been able to sit down to Seder but instead end up in pieces. The pools of blood pictured from the Malon Netanya Park are unbearably evocative of the scenes in our sacred Haggadot.

Those of us at JewishComment who are secular or Liberal feel as connected to our most religious of brethren and sisters at this time as at any time in recent history, and we do not regard any one of these brethren -- including the settlers for whom British media and politicians have an obsessive hatred -- as 'terrorists' at this holy time of the Jewish year.

At the Liberal Jewish Synagogue Seder this year, the tables were aflow with Israeli wine. Although its rabbis have made their negative views clear about the Sharon government's policy, solidarity with Israel was nevertheless expressed in tbis way. We suggest the Arab world read the Hagaddah and learn about 5,000 years of Jewish history before referring to our brave army -- many the grandchildren of Belsen and Auschwitz survivors --as 'terrorists.'

Chag Sameach.
****************************
Text of the "Arab Peace Initiative" ratified at the Beirut summit yesterday:

"The Council of the League of Arab States at the Summit Level, at its 14th Ordinary Session;

Reaffirming the resolution taken in June 1996 at the Cairo Extraordinary Arab Summit that a just and comprehensive peace in the Middle East is the strategic option of the Arab Countries, to be achieved in accordance with International Legality, and which would require a comparable commitment on the part of the Israeli Government.

Having listened to the statement made by His Royal Highness Prince Abdullah Bin Abdullaziz, the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in which his Highness presented his Initiative, calling for full Israeli withdrawal from all the Arab territories occupied since June 1967, in implementation of Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, reaffirmed by the Madrid Conference of 1991 and the land for peace principle, and Israel's acceptance of an independent Palestinian State, with East Jerusalem as its capital, in return for the establishment of normal relations in the context of a comprehensive peace with Israel.

Emanating from the conviction of the Arab countries that a military solution to the conflict will not achieve peace or provide security for the parties, the council:

1. Requests Israel to reconsider its policies and declare that a just peace is its strategic option as well.

2. Further calls upon Israel to affirm:

a. Full Israeli withdrawal from all the territories occupied since 1967, including the Syrian Golan Heights to the lines of June 4, 1967 as well as the remaining occupied Lebanese territories in the south of Lebanon.

b. Achievement of a just solution to the Palestinian Refugee problem to be agreed upon in accordance with UN General Assembly Resolution 194.

c. The acceptance of the establishment of a Sovereign Independent Palestinian State on the Palestinian territories occupied since the 4th of June 1967 in the West Bank and Gaza strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

3. Consequently, the Arab Countries affirm the following:

a. Consider the Arab-Israeli conflict ended, and enter into a peace agreement with Israel, and provide security for all the states of the region.

b. Establish normal relations with Israel in the context of this comprehensive peace.

4. Assures the rejection of all forms of Palestinian patriation which conflict with the special circumstances of the Arab host countries.

5. Calls upon the Government of Israel and all Israelis to accept this initiative in order to safeguard the prospects for peace and stop the further shedding of blood, enabling the Arab Countries and Israel to live in peace and good neighborliness and provide future generations with security, stability, and prosperity.

6. Invites the International Community and all countries and Organizations to support this initiative.

7. Requests the Chairman of the Summit to form a special committee composed of some of its concerned member states and the Secretary General of the League of Arab States to pursue the necessary contacts to gain support for this initiative at all levels, particularly from the United Nations, the Security Council, the United States of America, the Russian Federation, the Muslim States and the European Union."

**********************
Statement by British Friends of Peace Now:
text:
REAFFIRMATION OF THE MESSAGE OF PESACH
GET OUT OF THE TERRITORIES, GET BACK TO OURSELVES

On March 27 we celebrate the first night of our ancient festival of national liberation. Every year we relive the story of the Exodus in order to remind ourselves that we were once slaves and that at the heart of our religion and national identity is the message of freedom. This story has been throughout history an inspiration to all oppressed and enslaved peoples. It is a tragic irony that we should now be in the position of occupiers and oppressors.

We condemn the use of terror by extremist Palestinian groups. Nevertheless, this terror should not blind us to the deeper issues posed by Israel's occupation of and current behaviour in the Palestinian territories. It is in recognition of these issues that voices are being raised in Israel to point out that the moral foundation of the Jewish State is being destroyed by the occupation.

A petition signed by (currently) 358 reserve combat officers and soldiers of the Israel Defence Forces recently stated: "the price of occupation is the loss of the IDF's human character and the corruption of the entire Israeli society...We shall not continue to fight beyond the 1967 borders in order to dominate, expel, starve and humiliate an entire people."

The Peace Coalition – Peace Now, Meretz, the Labour Doves, the Kibbutz Movement, The Democratic Choice Party, Hashomer Hatzair, Netivot Shalom, the Bereaved Families Forum and "The Green Line - Students for a Border” – recently launched a new campaign which asserts "If we seek a future at all, we must recognise the fact that the occupation undermines and corrupts the foundations of Israel as a state and as a society. We must bring the occupation to an end and return to negotiations, in order to save the state. This is the imperative of the hour if we wish to end the war and return to ourselves."

Peace Now and the Peace Coalition call on the Israeli government:

(a) to announce its intention to end the occupation

(b) to declare its willingness to conduct negotiations with the Palestinians

(c) to take certain unilateral steps immediately including dismantling the settlements in Gaza and in the heart of the Palestinian population in the West Bank.

The Jewish State's betrayal of its moral foundation affects the whole Jewish people. When we suppress the Palestinian people's aspirations for justice, freedom, dignity, equality and self-determination, we deny our own self-image and heritage as a nation. In order to save both the Jewish state and the spirit of the Jewish people, we all have a duty to speak out against the occupation.

We Jews living in the UK endorse the call of Peace Now and the Peace Coalition to the Israeli government to take the initial steps set out above. And we declare our support for those in Israel who remain loyal to the true meaning of the Jewish State and the Jewish people and who are reaffirming the ancient message of Pesach.

REAFFIRMATION OF THE MESSAGE OF PESACH
GET OUT OF THE TERRITORIES, GET BACK TO OURSELVES

On March 27, we celebrate the first night of our ancient festival of national liberation. Every year we relive the story of the Exodus in order to remind ourselves that we were once slaves and that at the heart of our religion and national identity is the message of freedom. This story has been throughout history an inspiration to all oppressed and enslaved peoples. It is a tragic irony that we should now be in the position of occupiers and oppressors.

We condemn the use of terror by extremist Palestinian groups. Nevertheless, this terror should not blind us to the deeper issues posed by Israel's occupation of and current behaviour in the Palestinian territories. It is in recognition of these issues that voices are being raised in Israel to point out that the moral foundation of the Jewish State is being destroyed by the occupation.

A petition signed by (currently) 358 reserve combat officers and soldiers of the Israel Defence Forces stated: “the price of occupation is the loss of the IDF's human character and the corruption of the entire Israeli society... We shall not continue to fight beyond the 1967 borders in order to dominate, expel, starve and humiliate an entire people.”

The Peace Coalition – Peace Now, Meretz, the Labour Doves, the Kibbutz Movement, The Democratic Choice Party, Hashomer Hatzair, Netivot Shalom, the Bereaved Families Forum and “The Green Line - Students for a Border” – recently launched a new campaign which asserts “If we seek a future at all, we must recognise the fact that the occupation undermines and corrupts the foundations of Israel as a state and as a society. We must bring the occupation to an end and return to negotiations, in order to save the state. This is the imperative of the hour if we wish to end the war and return to ourselves.”

Peace Now and the Peace Coalition call on the Israeli government:
(a) to announce its intention to end the occupation
(b) to declare its willingness to conduct negotiations with the Palestinians
(c) to take certain unilateral steps immediately including dismantling the settlements in Gaza and in the heart of the Palestinian population in the West Bank.

The Jewish State's betrayal of its moral foundation affects the whole Jewish people. When we suppress the Palestinian people's aspirations for justice, freedom, dignity, equality and self-determination, we deny our own self-image and heritage as a nation. In order to save both the Jewish state and the spirit of the Jewish people, we all have a duty to speak out against the occupation.

We Jews living in the UK endorse the call of Peace Now and the Peace Coalition to the Israeli government to take the initial steps set out above. And we declare our support for those in Israel who remain loyal to the true meaning of the Jewish State and the Jewish people and who are reaffirming the ancient message of Pesach.

Signed by:
Hetty Abramson, Roy Ackerman, Tess and Keith Ackerman, Lionel Acton, Eva and Ken Alberman, Z Alexander, Nigel Allon, Deborah Altman, Janet Altman, Mr E and Mrs P Altman, Sandy Amber, Dr Geoffrey Asherson, Dr Judith and Basil Bara, Haidee Becker, Sir Jeremy and Lady Beecham, Angela Behrend, Dr Joanna Benjamin, Dave Cohen and Miriam Bindman, Geoffrey Bindman, Jo Bird, Rica Bird, Dr Martin Birnstingl FRCS, Janet and Dan Bleicher, Elizabeth Block, Jean Bonner, Dr Jeffrey Boss, Helen and Eric Bramsted, Laurence Brass, Lali Broido, Stephen and Gaby Brown, David Buckner, Liesel Buckner, Jon and Janet Burden, Mary Burnard, Jackie and David Tresman Caminer OBE, Prof Michael Chanan, Esta Charkham, Dr Bryan Cheyette, Lord Clinton-Davis, Barry Cohen, Deborah Cohen, Ken Cohen, Carol Conrich, Hanna Cooper, Rabbi Howard Cooper, Irene and Cyril Copitch, Alan Corduna, Dr Ruth Davis, Tamar de Vries Winter, Varda Derwig, Hannah Eady, Daniel Ehrlich, Dr David Ehrlich, Susan Einzig, Judith and Geoffrey Elkan, Prof Gertrude Falk, Nina and Moris Farhi MBE, Ilsa Fatt, Prof Paul Fatt FRS, Beatrice Feder, Prof Stephan Feuchtwang, Zena Flax, David Frank, Helen Frank, Dr John Frank, Judith Frank, Sheila Franks, The Rt Hon Reginald Freeson, Berta Freistadt, Rivkie Fried, Dr Edie Friedman, Susie Gilbert, Denis and Danya Glaser, Rabbi Dr David Goldberg, Linda and Mark Goldberg, Marcia Goodman, Robert Gould, Jeffrey and Ofra Graham, Linda Grant, Jacqueline Gryn, Naomi Gryn, Peter Guter, Martine and Peter Halban, Cindi Halloren, Fabian Hamilton MP, Ivor Harris, Jack Harris, Philip Harris, Ruby and Jos Harris, Naomi Hartree, Lady Carole Haskel, Hazel Henochsberg, Stephen and Judi Herman, Nelly Hewspear, Benita Hide, Prof Pamela Howard, Bruce Hyman, Prof H Ikeda, Judy Ironside, Prof Arieh and Dganit Iserles, Inbali Iserles, Adam Jackson, Prof Bernard Jackson, Michael and Judy Jackson, Bernard and Hazel Jacobs, H G Jacobs, June Jacobs, Dr Susie Jacobs, Malcolm Joels, Lawrence Joffe, Ann Jungmann, Judy and Harold Kelner, Dr Menachem and Rivka Klein, Celia Kleinman, Sir Aaron Klug OM FRS, Dr David Klug, Liebe Klug, Dr Teresa Kohen, Bernard and Erica Kops, Shirley Korner, Pat Kremer, Jocelyn Krivine, Michael Kustow, Clifford Lawton, Pauline Levis, The Lady Gilda Levy, Juliet Levy, C Lew, Keren Lewin, Peter and Milly Lewy, Vivien Lichtenstein, Sandy Lieberson, Prof Peter and Dr Diana Lipton, Heinz Lubasz, Greta Lunn, Roger Lunn, Deborah Maccoby, Miriam Margolyes, Paul Marmot, Nicola Menashe, Joan Mendel, Meretz UK, David Merron, Philip W Michaelson, Marilyn Milgrom, Paul Miller, Adele Mittwoch, Ursula Mittwoch, Michael Mitzman, Alan Montefiore, Paul Morrison, Larry Nathan, Lawrie Nerva, Cllr Neil Nerva, Anne and Lutz Noack, Roger and Mary Noble, Steffi Noble-Rose, Susie Orbach, Dr Bernard and Annabel Pagel, Stewart Permutt, G C Perutz, David and Juliet Pick, Alison Prager, Peter and Sylvia Prager, Stanley Price, Renate Prince, Prof Shula Ramon, Profs Joan and Julian Raphael-Leff, Alan Rawel, Esther Rantzen, Rabbi John Rayner, Prof Robert Reiner, Toby Reiner, Paul and Penni Rochman, Marion and Jeff Rodin, Sarah Rodin, Marian Roiser, Frances Rolnick, Leonard Rolnick, June Rose, Adele Rosen, Judith Rosen-Berry, Ruth Rosenthal, Ruth and David Roth, Anthony Rudolf, Lena Sackin, Tony and Nicky Samuel, Raphael Scharf, Prof Philip Schlesinger, David Schneerson, Rachel Schneerson, Dr Joseph Schwartz, Phil Sedler, Jeffrey Segal, Drs Joanna and Anthony Seldon, Nomi Sharron, E Shepherd, Dr Peter and Deborah Sheridan, Martin Sherman, Oded Shomroni, Rabbi Sheila Shulman, Gloria and Alan Silver, Barbara Simon, Clive Sinclair, Seth Sinclair, Prof Ken and Yvonne Singer, Betty Pinto Skolnick, Natalie Slier, Rabbi Frank Dabba Smith, Rabbi Mark Solomon, Dr Gordon and Shoshana Squires, Basil Stein, Gus Stern, Prof Barry and Sonia Supple, Susan Sutcliffe, Dot and Alan Swarc, Clive Swift, David and Paula Swift, Rabbi Jacqueline Tabick, Rabbi Larry Tabick, Tanya and Tony Tankel, Jon Taylor, Cathy Tikvah Burnstone, Rabbi Elizabeth Tikvah Sarah, Maxine Toff, Shirley Toulson, Dr Nigel and Inge Trott, Frank Tutnauer, Lesley Urbach, Gillian and Colin van Gelder, Daniel Vulkan, Rabbi Erlene Wahlhaus, Sandra and Cliff Walker, Elizabeth Waring, Alyson Warner, Ursula Warner, Carla Wartenberg, Anne Webber, Dr Daniel Weinbren, Dr Pnina Werbner, Arnold Wesker, Dusty Wesker, Derek Wilkes, Mani and Uri Winterstein, Misha Wolf, Walter J Wolfgang, Anne Woolf, Dr Leon Yudkin

This advertisement was organised by British Friends of Peace Now
P O Box 16579, London NW6 3ZE e-mail: info@peacenow-uk.org

******************************
Press Release from British Friends of Peace Now
27 March 2002


JEWS IN BRITAIN SIGN PASSOVER PEACE APPEAL
"We must get out of the territories and get back to ourselves"

Reaffirming the message of Passover, almost 300 supporters of British Friends of Peace Now (BFPN) have signed an advertisement appearing in today’s Jewish Chronicle (page 13). It features prominently on the newspaper’s front page and editorial (page 20).

With the State of Israel in deep crisis, BFPN says that the horrors of the occupation have penetrated and deeply affected Israeli society, undermining basic civic and ethical values. The present Israeli government, elected in order to bring peace and security, has no strategy to end the crisis. Their only policy, based on a short-sighted and distorted vision, is the use of force. This force only perpetuates the cycle of violence.

BFPN endorses Peace Now’s and the Peace Coalition’s call for a political initiative that will break through the long war of attrition and open the window of hope. The 297 signatories of the Pesach advertisement include politicians, rabbis, academics, writers, actors and Jewish community activists

"Israel's betrayal of its moral foundation affects all Jewish people," said Dr Menachem Klein, an Orthodox Israeli Jew resident this year at St. Antony's College, Oxford. "We have a duty to speak out against the occupation."

Dr. Klein proposes a new Exodus: "Based on our historical experience, Exodus must now become a commitment. The Palestinian people have a right to establish its state on 1967 territories alongside Israel. We must get out of the territories and get back to ourselves."

While the advert condemns the use of terror by extremist Palestinian groups, it demands recognition of the deeper issues posed by Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories. BFPN endorses Peace Now’s and the Peace Coalition’s call on the Israeli government to:

(a) announce its intention to end the occupation
(b) declare its willingness to conduct negotiations with the Palestinians
(c) to take certain unilateral steps immediately including dismantling the settlements in Gaza and in the heart of the Palestinian population in the West Bank.

Actor Miriam Margolyes: "I hope that all British Jews will clearly indicate their revulsion at Sharon's betrayal of Jewish ideals of decency and compassion. I urge an immediate and unconditional withdrawal from the settlements."

Rabbi Dr. Goldberg: "Even in darkest times, Passover has always been a festival of hope. We all hope that this Passover will see the beginning of a negotiated peace between Israel and its neighbours. We look forward to the day when all nations in the region can live together in freedom."


Signatories include:

Academics: Dr Joanna Benjamin, Prof Michael Chanan, Dr Bryan Cheyette, Dr Ruth Davis, Prof Gertrude Falk, Prof Paul Fatt FRS, Prof Stephan Feuchtwang, Prof Pamela Howard, Prof Arieh Iserles, Prof Bernard Jackson, Dr Susie Jacobs, Dr Menachem Klein, Dr David Klug, Prof Peter and Dr Diana Lipton, Prof Ursula Mittwoch, Dr Bernard Pagel, Prof Shula Ramon, Profs Joan and Julian Raphael-Leff, Prof Robert Reiner, Prof Philip Schlesinger, Phil Sedler, Prof Ken Singer, Dr Gordon and Shoshana Squires, Prof Barry Supple, Dr Pnina Werbner, Dr Leon Yudkin

Academic and Nobel Laureate: Sir Aaron Klug OM FRS

Academic and Poale Zion: Dr Judith Bara

Actors: Alan Corduna, Miriam Margolyes, Stewart Permutt, David Swift

Producer: Bruce Hyman

Well-known lawyers: Geoffrey Bindman, Laurence Brass

Politicians: Sir Jeremy Beecham, Lord Clinton-Davis, The Rt Hon Reginald Freeson, Fabian Hamilton MP, Cllr Neil Nerva

Rabbis: Howard Cooper, Dr David Goldberg, John Rayner, Sheila Shulman, Frank Dabba Smith, Mark Solomon, Jacqueline Tabick, Larry Tabick, Elizabeth Tikvah Sarah, Erlene Wahlhaus

Writers: Moris Farhi MBE, Linda Grant, Naomi Gryn, Lawrence Joffe, Bernard Kops, Michael Kustow, Paul Morrison, Stanley Price, Anthony Rudolf, Clive Sinclair, Arnold Wesker,

Publishers: Martine and Peter Halban

Others: Susie Gilbert, Jacqueline Gryn, Susie Orbach, Esther Rantzen

From Jewish organisations: Dr Edie Friedman (JCORE), Benita Hide (Neve Shalom/Wahat-al-Salaam), June Jacobs, Pauline Levis (Meretz), Lawrie Nerva (Poale Zion), Jeff Rodin (Poale Zion)

******************************************
Available for interviews:
Dr Menachem Klein

For further information, contact:
Vivien Lichtenstein
vivien@peacenow-uk.org

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