Jewish State

Gerald Otten and others appear to have forgotten the history of the Middle East ("The United Nations created a Jewish state; it can also create a Palestinian one," May 31). The United Nations did act on Palestinian statehood in 1947; two states were created by the declaration. However, the so-called Palestinians rejected their statehood by attacking the Jewish state alongside the surrounding Arab states, and afterward by choosing to live on UN handouts in refugee camps instead of creating their own state in the territories they possessed.

"Peace is necessary, just, and it is possible," President Barack Obama told Israelis last week in Jerusalem. His visit to the region was a crucial step in the pursuit of peace. President Obama recognized the ancient Jewish connection to Israel and the necessity for a Jewish state. He understood the grave challenges threatening its survival and that responsibility for resolving the conflict will have to be shared between Palestinians, Israelis and the international community. At the same time, he made clear that the U.S. will stand with Israel as it considers the difficult compromises necessary to achieve peace.

I read with interest Rabbi Chaim Landau's comment on the possibility that the United Nations could recognize a Palestinian state in September ("Mr. Obama, don't equate Israel with its enemies," May 27). In 1948, the state of Israel was created by the United Nations; Israel had not existed for 2,000 years prior to then. Yet although land was taken from the Palestinians to create Israel, the Palestinians have never been compensated for their loss, nor have they or their descendants been granted any right of return to their ancestral homeland.

It is troubling that neither The Sun's news coverage nor its editorial regarding the United Nations' recognition of Palestine as a non-member observer state bothered to mention what Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas actually said in his speech to the General Assembly preceding the vote. President Abbas could have used the U.N. forum to confirm Palestine's commitment to peaceful coexistence with Israel and to underscore how its enhanced U.N. status will further that goal. Instead, Mr. Abbas defamed Israel by repeating the scurrilous lies and distortions that are common parlance in the Arab world.

Raanana, ISRAEL -- For anyone who wants to know why there is so much suspicion on the part of Israelis as to the real intentions of the Palestinian people, just listen to Saeb Erekat. Mr. Erekat, who is the chief Palestinian negotiator, this week rejected Israel's position that it be recognized as a Jewish state. The newspaper Haaretz reported that in a radio interview, Mr. Erekat said, "No state in the world connects its national identity to a religious identity." No state, that is, except for the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Islamic Republic of Mauritania and a host of other Arab kingdoms, sheikdoms and republics that base their rule on Islam.

The Future of The Jews.David Vital.Harvard University.161 pages. $18.95. David Vital's book is about the Jewish people and what is to become of them. Scattered across the planet for some 19 centuries, subjected to the most relentless persecutions, the Jews, in 1948, reconstituted themselves on a territory, raised a flag and asserted themselves as a state among the other states of the world. It was Zionism's stunning triumph. To have reclaimed Palestine, the ancient home of the Jews (and in the teeth of so much opposition)

JERUSALEM -- Israel is set to celebrate its 50th anniversary Thursday with parachutists descending from the skies, schoolchildren parading in the streets and the country's top performers chronicling the Jewish state's half-century in a gala of song and dance.It's a birthday bash for a country whose founding fathers sought to keep secret the moment they would declare the new state, fearing an imminent attack by Arab countries, which came anyway. The moment of statehood arrived late on the afternoon of May 14, 1948, in a Tel Aviv museum.

WASHINGTON - Declaring that Israel's "occupation" of Palestinian territory must end, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell called yesterday for a return to a peace process aimed at finally ending the 50-year conflict and offered U.S. help to monitor a cease-fire. In his first major foreign policy address, Powell spelled out in the most comprehensive way to date how the Bush administration envisions a peace agreement taking shape in the Middle East, saying both sides need to face "some fundamental truths."

JERUSALEM -- Abba Eban, an eloquent statesman whose passionate oratory helped persuade the United Nations to approve the creation of the Jewish state 54 years ago, died yesterday at a hospital outside Tel Aviv. He was 87. The veteran diplomat made a career defending Israel in times of war and trouble, captivating audiences with his polished British accent and ability to converse fluently in 10 languages. He backed his rhetorical skills with a pragmatic willingness to compromise, giving Israel an authoritative and sophisticated voice as the state he helped found in 1948 struggled through the first three decades of its turbulent history.

In an article May 22 containing information supplied by the Associated Press, The Sun erroneously reported that Arabs who live outside Israel cannot own land anywhere in the Jewish state -- even if it was once their property.Israel does allow foreigners, including Arabs, to purchase private land in Israel for building purposes.The Sun regrets the error.Pub Date: 6/06/97

Until this year, the world would have been looking at the intensifying armed confrontation between Israel and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip with a sense of deja vu all over again. But this is 2012, and the political map of the Middle East has changed dramatically in ways that make the Israel-Gaza confrontation far more dangerous for every country in the region, especially those that border Israel and Palestine. Great danger also exists for the United States and Europe in the latest confrontation.

I was appalled that The Sun would publish the ad entitled, "A Jewish State," in its Sunday, Dec. 4 edition. Clearly, Rajesh Srinivasa Raghavan's argument that the Jewish state should be removed from the Middle East and established in Germany is not a legitimate advertisement. The only appropriate location in the newspaper for an opinion such as this is on the Maryland Voices page as a column or letter to the editor. As published, with its fancy border with Stars of David in the corners and its apparent position against anti-Semitism, the "ad" is intended to mislead readers.

Since my family's move a year ago from Baltimore to a kibbutz in northern Israel, driving by the growing Arab villages and towns that dot the roads of the Galilee has given me an uneasy feeling. I have so little contact with this ever-increasing population. Who are these non-Jewish neighbors of ours? What do they think about us? Can they accept the notion of a Jewish state as long as their political and human rights are protected? As I drive past their homes and communities, I want to go talk to them and ask them how they feel.

Pat Byrnes wishes he could tell you what he's doing this summer. But giving details about work isn't an option for the Loyola rising senior lacrosse player, who has an internship with the Secret Service. "I can't really tell you what I do on a day-to-day basis," said Byrnes, whose father, Gerry, was in the Secret Service for more than 20 years. "My supervisor didn't allow me. " Byrnes, who works mostly in the Inner Harbor, loosely described his duties as "whatever they want me to do. " He would not elaborate further.

Gerald Otten and others appear to have forgotten the history of the Middle East ("The United Nations created a Jewish state; it can also create a Palestinian one," May 31). The United Nations did act on Palestinian statehood in 1947; two states were created by the declaration. However, the so-called Palestinians rejected their statehood by attacking the Jewish state alongside the surrounding Arab states, and afterward by choosing to live on UN handouts in refugee camps instead of creating their own state in the territories they possessed.

I read with interest Rabbi Chaim Landau's comment on the possibility that the United Nations could recognize a Palestinian state in September ("Mr. Obama, don't equate Israel with its enemies," May 27). In 1948, the state of Israel was created by the United Nations; Israel had not existed for 2,000 years prior to then. Yet although land was taken from the Palestinians to create Israel, the Palestinians have never been compensated for their loss, nor have they or their descendants been granted any right of return to their ancestral homeland.

Shlomo Zalman Shragai, 96, a former mayor of Jerusalem and top immigration official during the early years of Israel's statehood, died Saturday.He was born into an ultra-Orthodox family in Gorzkowice, Poland in 1899, but became active in the religious Zionist movement. He settled in Palestine in 1924 and was active in the pre-state leadership.Israel became independent in 1948, and he was elected Jerusalem's second mayor in 1950. He held the post for two years.Over the next decade, he headed the Jewish Agency's immigration department during a time of massive immigration from Islamic countries to the Jewish state.

I was appalled that The Sun would publish the ad entitled, "A Jewish State," in its Sunday, Dec. 4 edition. Clearly, Rajesh Srinivasa Raghavan's argument that the Jewish state should be removed from the Middle East and established in Germany is not a legitimate advertisement. The only appropriate location in the newspaper for an opinion such as this is on the Maryland Voices page as a column or letter to the editor. As published, with its fancy border with Stars of David in the corners and its apparent position against anti-Semitism, the "ad" is intended to mislead readers.

It's unlikely Obama will ever "sell out" Israel. However, he is doing some much-needed consciousness-raising. The American people have been brainwashed for over half a century about the facts surrounding the creation of the state of Israel and its current expansionist policies, such as the settlement push, that have infuriated the country's neighbors. Frankly, I have tired of the Middle East altogether and just wish my tax dollars could be spent elsewhere. I've watched the U.S. shell out trillions to countries halfway around the world when the entire region would have been better off without our meddling.

The article in The Baltimore Sun, "For Israel, change could be unsettling" (Feb. 5), accurately describes the trepidation the only democracy in the Middle East feels, in light of the recent tumultuous uprisings that have surrounded it. However, part of the reason for that "unsettling" feeling might be because while most of the world heard about Tunisia's revolution, few are aware, as The Jerusalem Post reported, that unidentified assailants set...