Statement by the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA)
September 11, 2001
We express our heartfelt condolences to the families of those who were
murdered in these barbaric terrorist attacks and wish a speedy recovery to the
many who were wounded.
For years, many Western governments have tried to appease terrorist groups by
negotiating with them, treating their leaders as international statesmen, and
making concessions to them. This appeasement policy, which the U.S. State
Department continues to advocate, is morally wrong and has encouraged
terrorists to learn that terrorism pays–that terrorism will result in gaining
political and territorial concessions.
Examples of this appeasement policy include:
* Pressuring Israel not to hit terrorists:
The State Department pressures Israel to refrain from military action
against Palestinian Arab terrorists;
— refuses to place the Palestinian Authority or Fatah on the U.S.
list of terror-sponsors;
— never condemns Yasir Arafat for sponsoring the violence; for
failing to outlaw and dismantle the terrorist groups in his territory; or
for failing to confiscate the terrorists’ tens of thousands of weapons;
— the U.S. Consulate in Israel invited the field commander of the
violence, Marwan Barghouti, to its July 4 celebration;
— the U.S. government continues to give the Palestinian Arabs
$100-million each year despite the PA’s terrorist activity.
* Trade relations with terror-sponsors:
Many Western governments maintain extensive trade relations with
terror-sponsoring regimes such as Libya, Iran, and Syria. Our own State
Department has repeatedly suggested that it wants to provide U.S. aid to Syria
and has pressured Israel to make concessions to Syria. The U.S. provides over
$2-billion in aid to Egypt each year even though the Egyptian government
openly praises Palestinian Arab terrorism against Israel and has sheltered
Palestinian Arab terror leader Abu Nidal, who has murdered numerous
Americans and Israelis.
* No action against Palestinian Arab killers of Americans:
The State Department has refused to take any serious steps against
Palestinian Arab killers of Americans. It has never asked Arafat to surrender
killers of Americans for prosecution in the U.S., and it has never offered
rewards for information leading to the capture of the killers.
The State Department does not even issue timely reports on Palestinian
Arab terrorism against Americans — although it is legally obligated to issue such
reports, it routinely releases them many months late (for example, the report
due by May 29, 2001 has still not been issued), giving the impression that it is
not serious about fighting terrorism.
* Refusing to move Embassy to Jerusalem due to terrorist threats:
The U.S. has refused to implement the law requiring moving its embassy
to Jerusalem, because of threats by Palestinian Arab terrorists. This has sent
a message to the terrorists that they can successfully blackmail the West.
* White House invitations for terror apologists:
Organizations that have praised terrorist groups such as Hezbollah and
Hamas have been granted meetings with presidential candidates and even
invited to the White House — including the American Muslim Council, the
Muslim Public Affairs Council, the Council on American Islamic Relations, the
American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, and James Zogby’s Arab
American Institute.
* Urging surrender to Hezbollah:
Instead of supporting Israel’s anti-terror actions against Hezbollah in
Lebanon, the Clinton administration pressured Israel to unilaterally retreat.
* Implicitly justifying terrorism:
During the Clinton administration, National Security Adviser Sandy
Berger said that Palestinian Arab terrorism against Israel was not merely a curse
but also a “blessing” because it might hasten the negotiating process; and the
then-U.S. ambassador to Lebanon, David Satterfield, described Hezbollah
attacks on Israelis as legitimate “resistance.”
These kinds of statements gave terrorists the impression that the U.S.
did not seriously oppose them.
* Media coddling terrorists:
Some segments of the American media have minimized Arab terrorism or
even in effect justified terrorism by “explaining” it as a response to Israeli
policies. Earlier this month, C-Span gave extensive air time to a conference by
‘American Muslims for Jerusalem’ in which speakers justified Palestinian Arab
suicide bombings.
* Taking DFLP Off the terror list:
The Clinton administration in 1999 removed the Democratic Front for the
Liberation of Palestine from the official U.S. list of terrorist groups, despite the
absence of evidence that the DFLP has really given up terrorism.
