Israel & Community
Israel Today

Israel Is Now America's Closest Ally Full Article   Michael B. Oren
Israel is the only Middle Eastern country where the American flag is rarely (if ever) burned in protest - indeed, some Israelis fly that flag on their own independence day. Arguably, there is no alliance in the world today more durable and multifaceted than that between the U.S. and Israel. Yet America has never recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital - imagine if Israel refused to recognize Washington. Most fundamentally, though, is the amity between the two countries' peoples. The admiration which the U.S. inspires among Israelis is overwhelmingly reciprocated by Americans, more than 70% of whom, according to recent polls, favor robust ties with the Jewish state. The writer is a senior fellow at the Shalem Center in Jerusalem. (Wall Street Journal)

Israel's 60-Year Test Full Article
Bret Stephens
A considerable segment of world opinion thinks that Israel is the world's foremost abuser of human rights. Between January 2003 and March 2008, Israel was condemned by the UN no fewer than 635 times. The runners-up were Sudan at 280, the Democratic Republic of the Congo at 209, and Burma at 183. I would argue the opposite: that no other country has been so circumspect in using force against the provocations of its enemies. Nor has any so consistently preserved the civil liberties of its own citizens. (Wall Street Journal)

President Truman's Decision to Recognize Israel Full Article
Clark Clifford with Richard Holbrooke
The charge that domestic politics determined our policy on Palestine angered President Truman for the rest of his life. In fact, the President's policy rested on the realities of the situation in the region, on America's moral, ethical, and humanitarian values, on the costs and risks inherent in any other course, and on America's national interests. (Institute for Contemporary Affairs-Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs)

Washington's Battle Over Israel's Birth Full Article  
Richard Holbrooke
Israel was going to come into existence whether or not Washington recognized it. But without American support from the very beginning, Israel's survival would have been at even greater risk. Truman's decision, although opposed by almost the entire foreign policy establishment, was the right one - and despite complicated consequences that continue to this day, it is a decision all Americans should recognize and admire. (Washington Post)

"I Was at Israel's Founding"
Arieh Handler, 93, a member of the Zionist General Council [the governing body of the Jewish people in Palestine], recounts that historic day of 14 May 1948 when the State of Israel was declared. "I still have the original invitation. It reads: 'From the Administration of the Nation, Tel Aviv, 13 May 1948. We are honored to send to you this invitation to the session of the declaration of independence.'" After the state was declared, "Egyptian planes were already bombing Tel Aviv, and Glubb Pasha [the British commander of the army of Transjordan] was leading an Arab army." "Despite all these troubles, there was tremendous excitement. People were dancing in the streets, day and night, even as the planes were bombing." (BBC News)

No Alternative to Jewish Sovereignty   -  Gerald M. Steinberg
In the modern world, the Jewish people could only survive, both physically and culturally, by regaining and maintaining national independence. Yet for the Arab and Muslem "rejectionists" (including the Iranians, who are claiming leadership of this group), the idea of Jewish sovereignty in the "Muslem Middle East" remains unacceptable. This fundamental conflict, and not differences over borders, post-1967 settlements and occupation, is the core of the conflict and has led to the wars of aggression and mass terror attacks against Israel. Progress towards the acceptance of Jewish sovereignty among the nations of the world is painfully slow, and the struggle will continue to be exhausting. But there are no better choices - there are no alternatives for Israel and the Jewish people. The writer is the Executive Director of NGO Monitor and chairman of the Political Studies Department at Bar-Ilan University. (Jerusalem Post)

Israel's Gift to the World   -  Alan  M. Dershowitz
As Israel celebrates its 60th birthday, the world should recognize the enormous gifts the Jewish state has given the world. Israel has exported more lifesaving medical technology to the far-flung corners of the earth than any nation of comparable size. It has done more to protect the environment, to promote literature, music, the arts and sciences, to spread agricultural advances and to fight terrorism within the rule of law. Yet despite these disproportionate contributions to the world, Israel has proportionally more enemies than any nation on earth. Moreover, the intensity of the enmity directed against the Mideast's only democracy is unexplainable on any rational basis. (New York Post) 

Few Nations Can Claim the Same Legitimacy as Israel   - David Brumer
For some in academia, the media and even the UN, Israel's very "Right to Exist" is considered a subject for legitimate debate. It's ironic, since few nations can claim the kind of historic legitimacy and connection to a place as can the Jewish people. For more than 3,000 years, Jews have been spiritually as well as corporeally bonded to the Land of Israel. In 1921, Winston Churchill proclaimed, "It is manifestly right that the Jews, who are scattered all over the world, should have a national center and a national home. And where else could that be but in this land of Palestine, with which for more than 3,000 years they have been intimately and profoundly associated?"
    Israel has said yes to virtually every partition plan put forth in modern times while the Palestinians have said no. In 2000 Israel offered the Palestinians more than 96% of the West Bank and all of Gaza; the Palestinian response was a terror war unleashed against the Jewish state. The world might better applaud the miracle of Israel's rebirth in its tiny ancestral land as a model of decency, tolerance and intellectual vibrancy, for these are the true criteria of legitimacy. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)  

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