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Israel not responsible for viewpoint writer's bias

On Feb. 5, several letters were published expressing anger over an article that had appeared a week earlier titled, 'Israel a lonely champion of democracy,' (1/24/96). Two of the three letters accurately criticized the author's portrayal of the Arab world. Joe Roche, the author of the original piece, made blanket statements regarding women in Arab countries among other items, which were either untrue, or misleading. Additionally, he was unfairly judging the Middle East by Western standards and morals.

However, in the third letter, Rami Kishek portrayed Israel as responsible for the untruths in the article, rather than the author of the article. Kishek attempted to refute the lies in Roche's article with lies and half-truths of his own.

For example, Kishek cites three wars, in 1956, 1967 and 1979-81, as proof that Israel is not a "champion of peace." In each of these cases Israel is portrayed as the aggressor. Let me remind Kishek that in 1956 Egypt blockaded the Suez Canal, in direct contradiction to the U.N. Security Council's resolution of Sept. 1, 1951, forbidding them to do so. In 1967, Israel's pre-emptive attack, was necessitated by the massing of troops on the Egyptian, Syrian and Jordanian borders, as well as a war pact signed between Egypt and Jordan. Egypt went as far as to ask the United Nations to remove their peacekeeping forces, lest they should be involved in the impending conflict. In 1981, the "lonely Lebanese villages," housed PLO and Hizbullah terrorists who continually shelled northern Israeli towns, as they still do today. (Though it should be noted and commended that the PLO has stopped using terror as their means of negotiation!)

Mr. Kishek conveniently forgot to mention the 1973 surprise attack on Israel by its Arab neighbors on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar.

As for his claim that Israel came to existence by "driving out" thousands of Arabs, he once again forgets to mention that Israel's existence was mandated by the United Nations in 1947, in the partition plan. A plan that divided the land into two states, one Arab and one Jewish. Israel accepted the plan; the Arabs did not, and proceeded to attack the infant state from every direction the very day that she declared her independence.

Roche's article falsely accuses Arab countries of practices that they are not guilty of. However, Israel is not responsible for Roche's bias. Kishek, a Rackam student, should learn from Haytham Bahoora and Amer Zahr, undergraduates, that it is one thing to criticize an author's bias and prejudice and another to fight lies with more deception.

DANIEL MESSINGER

RC SOPHOMORE