|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Huckabee Has it Right!!
Dear Editor:
The assertion that Israel is to blame for the situation that civilian Gazans are in was debunked by Ambassador Mike Huckabee on May 21 (source: npr.org/2025/05/21/nx-s1-5404970/ambassador-israel-mike-huckabee-interview). Speaking with NPR, Huckabee asserted that “The prolonged suffering for everybody is on Hamas, and I’m outraged that the U.K., Canada, [and] France — they’re blaming the wrong perpetrator.” Huckabee also said, “I’m not in the position to tell the Israelis how to conduct their war. … My family members weren’t murdered and massacred, mutilated [on October 7, 2023].”
Israel is conducting a war on terrorism with no moral difference from the war that Americans waged against Al-Qaeda after 9/11. Hamas made the deliberate choice to start this war, and Israel is acting not only in self-defense, but also to prevent future conflicts.
Let’s be clear: Hamas started this war. Refusing to hold them fully accountable only emboldens more violence.
Sincerely,
Moshe Phillips
National Chairman
Americans For A Safe Israel
New York, NY
afsi.org
Israel’s Identity as a Jewish Homeland
Dear Editor:
Fern Sidman is way off base when stating in her article about Mamdani: “a founding principle affirmed by the 1947 United Nations Partition Plan and enshrined in Israeli law.”
Firstly, the partition plan was a resolution of the General Assembly which under the UN Charter was basically meaningless. The only action authorized in UNGA Res. 181 was to create a study commission.
Secondly, it actually contravened existing law, including the UN Charter. The area that is now the State of Israel and the areas of several other states were territories of the Ottoman Empire from the 16th through 20th centuries. The Ottoman empire was defeated in WW1 and its overseas holdings became the possession of the Principal Allied Powers (US, England, France,Italy and Japan). At the San Remo Conference of 1920, the PAP determined that the area now containing Israel and Jordan should be set aside for the Jewish homeland. In 1922 the League of Nations put this intention into practice with the unanimously approved Mandate for Palestine. The Mandate allocated all of what is now Israel and Jordan for the Jewish homeland. Very soon after its ratification however the Jewish settlement provisions were suspended for the area east of the Jordan River. However all of the area west of the Jordan River remained promised to the Jews for close Jewish settlement. In the Anglo-American Convention of 1924 the United States, which was not a member of the League of Nations explicitly endorsed the Mandate for Palestine.
In 1946 when the UN was founded its Charter in Article 80 made the Mandate obligations of the League of Nations obligations of the United Nations.
The partition plan far from being a foundational document was a later document, that was in violation of the UN Charter, issued by a legally meaningless entity, the UN General Assembly as opposed to the UN Security Council and far from establishing or affirming Jewish rights, diminished those rights by proposing to cut back the already diminished territory set aside for Jewish settlement.
A correct sentence would say that Israel’s identity as a Jewish Homeland was established in international law by the United States and others in the San Remo Conference of 1920, reaffirmed by a unanimous vote of the League of Nations in 1922 and reaffirmed again by the United Nations in its charter in 1946.
Sincerely
Michael Chenkin
The DC Murders Did Not Happen in a Vacuum
Dear Editor:
The cold-blooded murder of two Israeli Embassy staffers in Washington, D.C. this week is a searing reminder of the dark tide of anti-Semitism that is rising not just abroad, but right here on American soil. This was not just a heinous act of violence—it was an unmistakable act of anti-Jewish terror, carried out against innocent emissaries of the State of Israel. The fact that such a brutal double homicide occurred just steps from the Capitol Jewish Museum, a symbol of Jewish resilience and identity in America, should shake every citizen of conscience.
Let us be clear: these murders did not happen in a vacuum. They are part of a broader climate of hostility that has metastasized in the wake of October 7 and been fueled by relentless anti-Israel rhetoric from college campuses to city streets. From cries of “globalize the intifada” to open praise for Hamas, today’s protest culture is not merely political dissent—it is becoming a breeding ground for incitement.
When demonstrators chant for “intifada”—a term synonymous with suicide bombings, stabbings, and bus massacres—they are calling not for peace, but for violence. And now, tragically, that violence has spilled over into the heart of the United States, with deadly consequences. The blood of two Israeli civil servants, Yaron Lishinsky and Sarah Milgrom, is a price we are now paying for a public discourse that too often tolerates, excuses, or even glorifies hatred in the guise of activism.
Equally disturbing are the reckless words of some Israeli leaders themselves. This week, former Deputy Chief of Staff Yair Golan claimed that Israel kills babies “as a hobby.” Not only is this statement categorically false—it is morally grotesque. It hands ammunition to Israel’s detractors, emboldens antisemites worldwide, and stains the moral credibility of a country struggling to defend itself against genocidal enemies. Golan’s words do not reflect the IDF I know, nor the nation he once served.
Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s remarks in a recent BBC interview are no less damaging. By suggesting that Israel’s expanded military operations in Gaza are “on their way to becoming war crimes,” Olmert provides an unwarranted stamp of legitimacy to those who seek to delegitimize the Jewish state at every turn.
In times like these, words matter. Lies told by those with authority are picked up by enemies who do not need more reasons to hate us. This is a time for moral clarity—not for betrayal cloaked in false virtue.
Sincerely,
Paul Ostermann
Brooklyn, NY
What Would They Have Israel Do?
Dear Editor:
Canada, the UK and France, three puny countries, burdened by excessive Islamic immigration, whose per-capita GDPs are lower than Israel’s are threatening the sovereign state of Israel, demanding it not defend itself against the terrorists bent on destroying it.
What would they have Israel do? Surrender? Did we surrender to Germany in WWII? No. We fought until the Nazis had enough and quit. Then we cut Germany in 4, tried and hung their leaders and occupied it until we felt they had expunged the evil from their society.
Did we send aid into Germany as we firebombed Dresden?
Israel was savagely attacked on Oct. 7, 2023. On Oct. 8, the Jew-haters swung into action. 40,000 dormant social media sites spewed anti-Semitic propaganda. Palestinians celebrated. Hezbollah, Iran and Houthi rebels fired into Israel.
Zionism means Jews fight back. Canada, the UK and France should work to save the hostages, not their aggressors.
Sincerely
Len Bennett, Author of ‘Unfinished Work’
Deerfield Beach, Fl.
Jews Must Fight Back!
Dear Editor:
ANTISEMITISM will only stop when Jews fight back in massive groups. We have no choice but to get physical, learn self defense, get a carry permit and attack those in a massive group who attack Jews. All this talk on the media because of what occurred with the murder of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim in Washington DC. is nothing new.
Promises by politicians and law enforcement are heard and anti-Semitism continues throughout the ages. Can you imagine what riots would be occur if this happened to a black couple. WHY WAS LAW ENFORCEMENT NOT OUTSIDE THE MUSEUM? We need to support Israel and the I.D.F. No mercy. We are at war. I have children, grandchildren and cousins facing danger. One of my cousins was recently murdered, a policeman.
We must support Israel AND THE I.D.F. During WORLD WAR II many towns were carpet bombed and yes innocent people were killed. I do not want my children, grandchildren and cousins to fight another war with Hamas in a few years. We must annihilate Hamas now,
Sincerely
Rabbi Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg
Edison, NJ