From: bdm@cs.anu.edu.au (Brendan McKay)
Newsgroups: talk.politics.mideast
Subject: Re: Israeli soldiers kill Palestinian boy
Date: 15 Dec 1992 01:08:10 GMT
Organization: Australian National University
Distribution: world
Reply-To: bdm@cs.anu.edu.au
NNTP-Posting-Host: 150.203.23.70

In article 15510@cs.brown.edu, hm@cs.brown.edu (Harry Mamaysky) writes:

>Israel recognizes that the PLO exists. Israel simply does not want
>to negotiate with what it considers to be a terrorist organization.
>Israel has always had a policy of not negotiating with terrorists. So
>this is nothing new. However, there has been talk in the Knesset about
>getting rid of the laws which do not allow direct communiaction with
>the PLO. Actually, this change is expected to take place quite
>shortly.

Israel is negotiating with the PLO right now, and they know it.
Ashrawi is quite open about the fact that her team clears every
new initiative with the PLO leadership.  I have an television
interview where she calls this the "world's worst kept secret".
I don't know why she wants to rub Israel's nose in it; I thought
it would be more productive to allow Israel to pretend that it
doesn't know this "secret".  
 
>Begin was not a terrorist. Hew was a freedom fighter and a very great
>man. Arafat is neither. I will even admit that perhaps Arafat does
>care about the Palestinian people. However, Begin never even dreamed
>of using the methods which Arafat has coined. The Irgun Zvai Leumi
>concentrated its attack on the Brittish military establishment. Never,
>never, did the Irgun attack innocent civilians intentionally. Of
>course, as in all other conflicts, the innocent did die. But generally
>the Irgun had FAR more respect for Brittish and Arab lives than the
>PLO has for Jewish lives. Its actions reflected this belief. On
>countless occasions the Irgun would announce to Arab civilians in an
>area targeted for attack that they should leave that area - often
>this cost the Irgun the element of surprise. I can not ever recollect
>the PLO caring very much about saving the lives of innocent Israelis -
>probably because innocent Israelis are most often the targets of PLO
>"freedom fighters". Everything that was noble in Begin is found warped
>and twisted in Yasser Arafat. To even compare the two men is to do a
>grave injustice to the memory of Menachem Begin.

Both the PLO and the Irgun changed over time.  During the worst period
of its history (1936-9) the Irgun was just as bad as the PLO at its
worst.  It was responsible for many acts of pure terrorism, such as
setting off bombs in Arab marketplaces which killed dozens.  The
leader at that time was David Raziel; Begin was still in Poland.

(Incidentally, I don't know why this remarkable story is so little
known:  In 1941 the British sent Raziel to Iraq on a mission to
kill the Mufti of Jerusalem.  Raziel died in the attempt.)

During Begin's "revolt" against the British, 1944-8, the primary
emphasis was on British rather than Arab targets (some exceptions).
However, you are quite wrong to say that only the British military
establishment was attacked.  The civil administration was also attacked; 
witness the blowing up of buildings like the immigration department 
and the taxation department. 

I'm going away until Dec 27; please e-mail a copy of any responses.

>Harry.

Brendan.