AJC Condemns Suicide Bombing In Tel Aviv; Arafat's Two-Faced Policy Must End

American Jewish Committee
Friday, 21 March 1997

The American Jewish Committee condemns in the strongest possible terms today's suicide bombing in Tel Aviv which left three innocent people dead and more than forty others injured, several of them children celebrating the Jewish festival of Purim. It is with deepest compassion, sorrow and solidarity that we send our condolences to the families of the victims and to all our brothers and sisters in Israel who face yet another period of mourning.

This attack comes just eight days after the killing of seven Israeli schoolgirls by a Jordanian soldier and exactly one year after the series of tragic bombings in Israel by Palestinians that took such a heavy toll.

Yasser Arafat's public condemnation of this most recent attack, for which Hamas has claimed responsibility, is totally inadequate and unconvincing. It has become clear that the two-faced Chairman Arafat -- by his actions and inactions, by statements made and statements not made, and by his recent release from jail of as many as 130 Hamas activists -- has sent another signal to his people that such terrorism perpetrated against Israel is a permissible means to achieve their ends. In fact, the Israeli government had warned several days ago that such a terrorist attack was likely and was being given a "green light" by Chairman Arafat. This ominous prediction has become yet another painful reality for Israelis.

Moreover, the suggestion by Palestinian spokesmen, including Hanan Ashrawi, that Israel is "responsible" for creating the atmosphere in which such murderous attacks occur, is outrageous. Israel and the Palestinian Authority agreed to settle their differences at the negotiating table; that was the intended achievement of first Madrid, then Oslo. But the resort to violence and terrorism by Palestinians, each and every time there is a policy disagreement with Israel, casts a long shadow on that achievement.

If Mr. Arafat is ever to become a trusted partner for peace, he must once and for all and unequivocally not only condemn terrorism, at every turn and from wherever it originates, but unconditionally join in the battle against those who would explode nail-studded bombs into a crowd of children dressed in holiday costumes or blow up buses of commuters on their way to work and school.

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