A PERIOD OF GRACE Ruth King The election of Bibi Netanyahu has elicited euphoria among opponents of Oslo I & II. Even the most cynical among us feels that suicidal initiatives have been derailed, and there is the undeniable satisfaction in observing the discomfort of American "peace" groupies, and the dour adieus of Israel's Ambassador Rabinovitch, and Consul General Colette Avital. The celebration, however, is short-lived when one contemplates the dangers which are the legacy of the Rabin-Peres policies of appeasement and surrender. To begin with, since September of 1993, thousands of terrorists have been released from detention in Israel's jails. Furthermore, many of these murderous thugs have become "policemen" in Gaza, and Judea and Samaria. It is estimated that by now there are 40,000 armed Arabs in the areas of "autonomy." Armed, one should hasten to add, by the outgoing Labor government. There is also no way to really estimate how many hidden stockpiles of ammunition and weapons exist within Arab civilian enclaves. Formerly, pro-Israel Arab agents gathered intelligence on these terrorist cells, but they were betrayed by Peres and are now, understandably, reluctant to cooperate with Israel's government. Hamas was nurtured and thrived under the PLO authority, while Rabin and Peres avoided all manner of harsh response -- fueling the delusions of ultimate victory that make murderers into local heroes. The intifada (though no longer called that) never subsided -- stonings and stabbings occurred almost daily. Now young thugs have access to machine guns instead of rocks. While Israel's security was crumbling, the Labor government's envoys in America were involved in their own mischief. They created expectations for "peace" which were unreasonable. They propped up support for surrender of the Golan, funding for Arafat, Arab sovereignty in Gaza, Judea and Samaria. They minimized terrorism, and put a rosy spin on all PLO violations--exhibiting empathy for Arafat which they would deny to all victims of Arab rampages. They courted the most anti-Israel journalists, disparaged all individuals and organizations who criticized the Rabin-Peres initiatives, and engaged in surreptitious efforts to discredit all opposition, including members and employees of the Presidents Conference. Bringing order and discipline to Israel's duplicitous foreign service is a daunting task for any Prime Minister. The foregoing is only a fraction of the problems facing Bibi Netanyahu. All Israel's elected officials have faced difficulties, but this is the first time that Israel's Prime Minister must confront a serious loss of security perpetrated by the ruinous policies of the previous government. He deserves a period of grace, and a pledge of support and respect from all of us. Ruth King is a member of the executive committee of Americans for A Safe Israel.

HE'S FINISHED (Continued from p.10) Arafat at the Erez checkpoint in 1994. The Jerusalem Post (International Edition, June 1, 1996) reports that Peres threatened Arafat that he might blow the whistle on his lack of compliance if Arafat did not stop writing complaining letters. "If you write, we shall have to answer...We shall say 'you didn't hand over to us the prisoners, you didn't do this and that,' which will kill the Palestinian story in the American Congress....And you know we are working today for the Palestinian cause in the American Congress more than you are. We are now working extemely hard to get approval of the $500 million, to approve the loan." On May 4, 1994, at the signing of the Gaza-Jericho Accord in Cairo, Peres declared: "Today we declare that the confict is over. Today we have agreed to promise mothers and children, Arab and Jewish, that no finger will pull a trigger to endanger the lives or to affect the dignity or happiness of their children." When the bombings and murders continued, culminating in the disastrous sequence of suicide bombings in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem early in 1996, Peres's response was not to say he had been wrong but, "We are a quarter of an hour from the

peace, and that is the most dangerous quarter hour." Peace always remained, just on the horizon, only a few more territorial concessions away. Like the delusions of the sufferer from schizophrenia, Peres's belief in peace was incapable of being disproved. For those who believe there is indeed something to learn from history, the lesson from Israel's experience may be that a silly madman can wreak as much damage on his people as the evil mad leaders to whom we are more accustomed. Alas, it remains to be seen if Israel can recover from the disastrous course on which its people were led by their Pied Piper of Peace. Dr. Rael Jean Isaac, a member of the executive committee of Americans for a Safe Israel, is author of Israel Divided and Parties and Politics of Israel, among other books.

June 1996               - 11 -               Outpost