Judea Magazine, No. 5.4
Hebron Etzion
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"Rebuilding Jewish Life in Judea, Israel"
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JUDEA ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE Vol.5, No.4 Tammuz-Av 5757/Jul-Aug 1997
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Contents:
Jewish Heroes: They Ran into the Flames to Save their Comrades
A Sea of Lights Inside the Mountain: Tisha B'Av on Herodion
Morag -- New Frontier or Jewish Ghetto?
The Peace Process:
* Hear What's Happening on Radio Palestine
* A Wedding in Shechem
* Falistin Belongs to the Muslims Alone
* Will There be War?
Interview with MK Hanan Porat
Moskowitz's General
Population Increase in the Benjamin Region
Art and Music at Tekoa's School
NEW - Photos on our Website: www.na01online.com/judea
Inside Herodion - Tekoa Canyon - PA Recruiting Poster
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Jewish Heroes:
THEY RAN INTO THE FLAMES TO SAVE THEIR COMRADES
On 27 Aug 97, 4 soldiers from the Golani brigade of the Israel
Defense Forces were killed and 6 wounded in a freak accident during a
battle with Hizbollah terrorists in Lebanon. The IDF force had killed 4
terrorists and were pursuing the rest when supporting artillery started a
brush fire. A sudden change of wind sent the fire rushing toward the IDF
unit, which ran to escape the flames.
"Those who had reached safety ran back into the flames to save their
burning comrades. There were many instances of bravery. One soldier saw
a unit opposite him running in the wrong direction toward the fire. He
ran through the flames and saved five of his friends."
(_Maariv_, 28 Aug 97, p. 2)
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A Sea of Lights Inside the Mountain
TISHA B'AV ON HERODION
On Tisha B'Av (the Ninth of Av; this year in August) many hundreds
of Jewish worshippers assembled at the ancient synagogue inside the
mountain fortress of Herodion in Judea, braving fierce winds after
sundown to read the Book of Lamentations by flashlight. Herodion, today
a National Monument, was used as a synagogue at the time of the
destruction of the Temple and by the Jewish rebels in the Great Revolt
against Rome in 70 AD. The custom of prayer at Herodion was begun 17
years ago by Jews from Alon Shvut in the heart of the Etzion Bloc. Among
those present this year were MK Hanan Porat from Kfar Etzion and Minister
of Immigrant Absorption Yuli Edelstein of Alon Shvut.
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MORAG -- NEW FRONTIER OR JEWISH GHETTO?
There are those who say that everyone should visit Auschwitz and
Treblinka in order to understand the horrors of the Holocaust and to
learn from this experience the importance of a strong Israel, so that
never again will Jews be led like sheep to the slaughter. There is yet
another place that people should see and learn from -- the community of
Morag in Gush Katif (Gaza).
Morag, a moshav of 25 families, was in the news after a PLO-incited
mob took over land belonging to this Jewish village, following its
erection of a protective security fence. The Arabs claimed that the
fence blocked access to a nearby Arab house, but since an alternate route
was given to that family, the Arab claim was baseless. In June the
grassroots group Women for Israel's Tomorrow -- "Women In Green"
(www.womeningreen.org) -- chartered an armored bus and travelled to Morag
to plant a tree in the disputed area and to offer moral support.
At the crossing point into Gaza, we were joined by two armored jeeps
of the Israeli army, one in front of our bus and one at the rear. At the
first junction we came to, the forward jeep stopped traffic coming from
the right while the second jeep drove between us and cars from the left.
Just after we turned, the second jeep quickly drove in front of the bus
and to the right of it to get between us and an Arab driving a wagon.
All of this was to protect the bus from a possible car bomb, of which
there have been many in the Gush Katif area. Just a few months ago
terrorists tried to blow up two busloads of Jewish children on their way
to school -- the bombs went off prematurely and no damage or loss of life
occurred. Of course if there is a bomb, our soldiers in their jeeps are
the ones who will be injured. There is something wrong with this scene.
This is not how a free and strong Jewish people should be living in their
land.
The Oslo agreement left the Jewish communities in place in Gaza, but
there is not one access road to these villages that does not pass through
PLO autonomous areas. PLO gunmen are in evidence everywhere, dressed in
the uniforms of Arafat's army, complete with rifles and jeeps. There is
no feeling of peace here in this strip of the Mediterranean seashore,
rather it is more like entering an armed camp -- one that is ready to go
to war at a moment's notice.
Morag is officially linked to the other Jewish towns in Gush Katif,
but it is actually a small island in a sea of Arab hostility. The
residents of Morag make their living, for the most part, from organic
farming. There is no store, kindergarten or school, and so by the age of
three, the children are bussed to another community for classes. No one
is allowed to drive out of Morag without a military escort because the
road into Gush Katif proper passes through land given to the Arabs as a
result of the Oslo "Peace" accords. In addition to the regular security
fence surrounding Morag, the army has also made huge earth ramparts to
protect the residents from sniper fire.
We walked from the houses of Morag -- little more than mobile homes
-- to the area under siege by the Arabs. There we were met by a unit of
Israeli soldiers whose commander asked us to wait a few minutes while
they prepared for our visit. Soon we continued, accompanied now by
soldiers in full battle gear. When we arrived, several of the soldiers
sprawled on the ground, their guns at the ready, as they took up
positions opposite the Arab mob. The Arabs facing us, some of them
armed, had been bussed in by the PLO to participate in the encounter. We
planted our tree without incident and proceeded on to the village's
greenhouses to pick some delicious red organic tomatoes.
Morag and all the other Jewish communities in Gaza have been turned
into ghettoes by the Oslo accords. Daily life has been greatly
complicated by Oslo, even though the purpose of Oslo was purportedly to
bring peace to the region. The fate of Morag is the fate that awaits the
Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria and eventually all of Israel, if
Oslo is implemented. The lessons of the Holocaust and of Morag must be
learned by all Jews before it is too late. -- Y.A.
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The Peace Process:
HEAR WHAT'S HAPPENING ON RADIO PALESTINE
Nadav Haetzni
The overall package offered today by Radio Palestine is hardly
different from that presented by the PLO when they broadcasted from
various Arab states before Oslo. The atmosphere is one of war, the
message is one of full mobilization against the Tel Aviv government and
its bloodthirsty forces of occupation.
The accompanying music also contributes, from songs of longing for
conquered El Kuds [Jerusalem], to the military anthems of the various PLO
component groups.
The Palestinian press, largely controlled by the Palestinian
Authority, prints a message that completes the picture, with headlines
such as "We are ready for all the wars and to sacrifice ourselves in
defense of the homeland" (Palestinian Minister of Information Yasser Abed
Rabo).
Another example is the announcement published on 12 June 97 by the
Director of the Hebron office of the Palestinian Ministry of Health that
Palestinian security forces had confiscated 200 tons of chewing gum in
Hebron containing the substance "prostegron," which arouses women
sexually. The Director charged that the Israeli security service, the
Shabak, was distributing the gum in order to turn Palestinian women into
prostitutes and thereby make them easy targets for recruitment into the
ranks of the Shabak. This is not a joke. The story was accompanied by a
picture showing Palestinian soldiers confiscating great quantities of the
suspect chewing gum.
The newspaper _El Quds_ further reported earlier this month on the
charge by the head of the Criminal Division of the Palestinian Police in
Shechem that the Israeli security services operated a ring of AIDS-
infected Israeli prostitutes sent to infect the Palestinian people.
A third story blames the discovery of spoiled food sold in the
territories on a plot by the security services and the settlers to poison
the Palestinian people.
(_Maariv_ Shabbat, 27 June 1997, p. 19)
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A WEDDING IN SHECHEM
Nadav Haetzni
During the past six months, those in Hamas and Islamic Jihad have
become very close to the Palestinian Authority. When their terrorists
are killed, they are given a state funeral -- complete with an honor
guard firing a salute -- and they are declared holy martyrs. The
Palestinian administration has begun to participate more and more in
Hamas and Jihad events, and to grant legitimacy to their message.
One recent example occurred in the central square of Shechem (in
Samaria), where a crowd of 20,000 gathered to participate in a wedding of
15 couples, sponsored by Hamas. On the dais sat the governor of Shechem
as well as the mayor. Opposite them the crowd cried the name of Ez a-Din
el-Kasam, the name of the military wing of Hamas, while the Hamas
spokesman declared: "Just as we burn the Israeli flag here, so we will
burn Israel." Many uniformed Palestinian police could be seen among the
crowd, shouting anti-Israel slogans with the rest. The newlyweds
received special gifts from the Palestinian Welfare Ministry, whose head
is Um Jihad [mother of Holy War].
(_Maariv_ Shabbat, 1 Aug 97, p. 8)
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FALISTIN BELONGS TO THE MUSLIMS ALONE
Eli Bohanda
Interview with Dr. Abed el-Aziz el-Rantisi, Hamas leader in Gaza:
Q: Do you think there can be any basis for negotiations between Hamas and
any Israeli group?
A: Hamas does not recognize the State of Israel. It can accept no
dialogue. The [anti-Zionist, ultra-Orthodox] Neturei Carta already
accept that the State of Israel has no right to exist on the land of
Falistin. Falistin is for the Palestinian people and Muslims alone.
(_Maariv_ Shabbat, 8 Aug 97, pp. 14-15)
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WILL THERE BE WAR?
Israel took a chance for peace. We let thousands of armed
terrorists in through our borders because government leaders wanted to
give peace a chance. Today we have terrorist bases along the length of
Israel, from Hebron to Shechem. The Arabs don't hate us any less today
than they did before. They still teach their children that we stole
their land and that we will disappear just like the Crusaders; that a Jew
out alone on the road is a free target for attack. We who live here hear
the voices of the Arabs loud and clear. They never made peace. There
was at best a ceasefire.
Will it all break apart any time soon? There are two schools of
thought. According to the first, the Arabs will follow their own
rhetoric and widespread violence will begin. The second says that the
Arabs are not stupid and know they will lose what they had achieved in
the way of self-rule if they start shooting before they are ready -- and
they're not ready yet. The Jews stopped handing over territory once it
became apparent that we got no peace in return for the land we gave up.
-- M.A.
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INTERVIEW WITH MK HANAN PORAT
National Religious Party
Yair Lapid
There was one matter I had to clarify with him before anything else,
before I could listen to him.
Q: On the day of the massacre by Baruch Goldstein, you appeared on
television and the only thing you said to the camera was "Happy Purim."
How could you?
A: With everything that has happened to me, never did I undergo such a
terrible experience as with this story. When Rina Matzliah, the
reporter, asked me for my reaction to the tragedy, I told her in the
strongest terms that we had no hand in this horrible act. This was
taped. It exists and should be in the archives. Later on I also said
"Happy Purim" [it was the Purim holiday] like people say "Good Shabbes"
[on the Sabbath] -- but in the end, this was all that was broadcast.
Q: Then you weren't rejoicing, even a little?
A: Certainly not. The fact that this is even asked hurts me every time.
To me, the act was totally unacceptable. I am horrified by it to the
depths of my soul. To murder innocent people, and people at prayer --
Goldstein's act is the complete opposite of the Jewish world view.
Hanan Porat was a paratrooper. He was wounded lightly in the Six-
Day War and wounded seriously in the Yom Kippur War. His son serves in a
paratroop reconnaissance unit. Another son had been an officer. He has
11 children. He was one of the refugees from the Etzion Bloc, which was
overrun during the War of Independence, who returned to rebuild it after
1967.
Q: You people in Gush Emunim [the movement to settle in Judea, Samaria,
and Gaza] turned our senseless right to some public toilet in Shechem
[Joseph's Tomb} into one of the principles of belief.
A: Do you really believe in what you asked?
Q: Yes.
A: To me, the question isn't why Judea and Samaria or why Shechem and
Hebron. The question is: is the Land of Israel only a place of refuge --
and then we could have gone to Uganda -- or, is there a clear world view
behind the decision to come especially to the Land of Israel?
We envision a Zionism of redemption. There is a process here of
return to Zion, of coming home, to our home, both in terms of the land
and of the content of Jewish life that is unique to us. It's a process
with a positive aspect, with a direction.
* * *
A: The map that hangs on the wall in the Palestinian Authority is not
something we can live with. For them, it's not a dream but a very
practical goal. They don't want what you're ready to give them. They
want Jerusalem, the Galilee, and Tel Aviv. The Hizbollah don't attack
because of Judea and Samaria, and the scuds of Saddam Hussein didn't fall
here because of Hebron. It's a general war with a clear goal, because we
are a thorn in the side of the Arab world.
The main question here is the strength of will for continued Jewish
existence.
* * *
A: To the Arab population we should say: "Gentlemen, this is the
situation. We are here. Whoever wants to live with us will have it
good, very good, with a serious effort to close down the refugee camps
but without any element of pressure on their residents.
I believe it is possible to come to an agreement. They will accept
the fact of our existence between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan
River under two conditions: 1) When they realize that they have no chance
of changing this reality, and 2) when the Arab population living here
recognizes that they have it good. This acceptance (as happened with the
Arabs in the Galilee and the Negev) won't happen overnight. It's a
process that could take decades.
Q: How many wars will there be during that time?
A: If they understand that they will lose everything, there won't be even
one war. They are not stupid. They have a lot to lose.
(_Maariv_ Weekend, 18 July 97, pp. 16-20)
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MOSKOWITZ'S GENERAL
Shalom Yerushalmi
Mati Dan is Director-General of the Ateret Cohanim organization, the
general in the field for millionaire Irving Moskowitz, purchaser of land
and buildings in eastern Jerusalem and the most important figure in the
push to build at the Mt. of Olives (Ras al-Amud). At the end of November
1996, Dan was driving to Psagot with Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Shmuel
Meir (see JM5.1) when their car was hit by a UN truck traveling at high
speed. Meir was killed but Dan survived.
Dan has been working for 7 years to build the neighborhood at Ras
al-Amud. Dan: "Look around, there's no Arab population here. Below is
the police station. Behind us is the French hotel. Opposite is the Mt.
of Olives cemetery. Are the dead allowed to be here but the living
forbidden?
Dan's job is to search out ideological investors to support the
purchase of land and buildings in Jerusalem in which to settle Jews. He
knows every stone and family in the Moslem Quarter as well as the other
quarters.
According to one story, there was an Arab grocery store owner who
would sometimes sell spoiled milk products to the yeshiva students. When
they asked Mati Dan what to do, he is reported to have replied: "Buy the
spoiled milk, it's worth it. He who sells you milk today will in the end
sell you his house."
Acquiring Arab property has always been problematic and that is why
Dan avoids the press, but according to investigations, Dan and his
associates have used 3 methods to gain control of property. The first is
the simple business transaction. Property for sale is identified and the
sellers are approached by buyers fronting for Ateret Cohanim. Three
years ago an Armenian sold his rights as a protected tenant at St. Johns
hospice to a Panamanian company set up by Ateret Cohanim.
The second method involves locating the heirs to Jewish property in
eastern Jerusalem. As was done in Silwan (City of David), the Arab
squatters are sued for back rent, which encourages them to leave.
The third method involves government assistance, which was
especially forthcoming during the days when Arik Sharon was Minister of
Housing. Between 1988 and 1992, the government transferred to Ateret
Cohanim and other organizations control of property then under the
authority of the Custodian of Unclaimed Property, and assisted in its
renovation.
(_Maariv_ Shabbat, 1 Aug 97, p. 10-11)
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POPULATION INCREASE IN THE BENJAMIN REGION
Shuki Levanon
Pinchas Wallerstein heads the Benjamin Regional Council. (The Tribe
of Benjamin was located on Jerusalem's northern border, between Samaria
to the north and Judea to the south.) His office window in Psagot looks
out on Ramallah. "A few years ago you would have had to come through
Arab El-Bireh to get here. Now we've opened a direct road that connects
to Jerusalem without going through any Arab town. You travel freely on
roads under Israeli control. We've opened such roads to connect many
Jewish villages."
From May 1993 until today in the Benjamin Region, the population has
grown by 59.5% to 19,588 by July 1997. Growth since the signing of Oslo
has been 15% per year. "People come because the quality of life in the
Jewish villages here is among the highest in the country."
(_Makor Rishon_ Weekend, 8 Aug 97, p. 29)
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ART AND MUSIC AT TEKOA'S SCHOOL
The Art and Music department at the Tekoa elementary school has been
dedicated in memory of Irv Kline -- a devoted friend and supporter of the
State of Israel, a member of Betar in England, and one of our most
faithful advocates in that country. Irv Kline was also an artist, and
when his wife, Berl, was looking for a fitting way to perpetuate his
memory, she felt that donating to the art and music education of the
children of Tekoa was ideal. Her generous donation has been used to
purchase an Encyclopedia of Art, special art books and supplies too
expensive for the regular budget, and equipment for the music room. In
addition, Berl donated two of her husband's paintings to the school. In
this way, the spirit of Irv Kline continues to play a part in the renewal
of Jewish creativity in Judea.
The Tekoa school's art program teaches children art history, as well
as how to recognize the styles of famous artists. They even try their
hand at making their own creations in the style of a particular artist.
Once a month the art teachers consult with the classroom teachers about
what the children have been studying, whether it be in Torah, science,
history or geography, and then do a project with the children relating to
one of these subjects. For instance, they might do a collage on the
Israelites' escape from Egypt through the Red Sea, or build a model of
Petach Tikva (one of Israel's first settlements and today a major city)
as it looked in its pioneering days.
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JUDEA MAGAZINE WEBSITE PHOTOS
See the first experimental photos on the Judea Magazine Website:
Inside the Herodion Fortress / Tekoa Canyon (our back yard)
and a Palestinian Police Recruiting Poster that tells the
story of their true objective. Accessible after 1 Oct 97
at http://www.na01online.com/judea.
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*** BACK ISSUES ***
1993 - Vol. 1: Issues 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6
1994 - Vol. 2: Issues 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6
1995 - Vol. 3: Issues 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6
1996 - Vol. 4: Issues 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6
1997 - Vol. 5: Issues 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4
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JUDEA Magazine is a bi-monthly electronic magazine produced and
transmitted from Judea, Israel, specializing in stories about the rebirth
of Jewish life in a tiny and unique corner of civilization. Mail
address: Judea Magazine, Yael and Mark Ami-El, Editors; Tekoa; D.N. North
Judea, Israel, Fax: 972-2-9964588. JUDEA Magazine is offered without
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