By Joseph Farah, April 7, 2002
Please look at the photo accompanying this column.
Stare at it. View it carefully. Study the image.
This is the face of Yasser Arafat’s terror. This is what it looks like. This is how
he remains in power. This is why we continue to deal with this murdering fiend
after more than 30 years.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. This one may be worth many
more.
The story behind this photo is simple. It’s not unique. The victim is called a
“collaborator” by Arafat’s “police force.” He was one of
Arafat’s terrorists who was suspected of working with Israel in some way.
The important thing to understand about this photo is that this is how Arafat
rules his own people – by sheer terror, by brute force, by barbaric
tactics that would be unimaginable to most in the West.
Yet, we continue to deal with him. We continue to support him financially with
U.S. taxpayer dollars. We continue to give him credence as an international
peacemaker.
If you care to know more details, the victim was eviscerated after this picture
was taken. I have photos of that, too. I will spare you the more gruesome
images.
You should also know that Arafat has ordered the murders of dozens of other
Arabs – perhaps hundreds – who are suspected of collaborating
with Israel. Collaboration, by the way, means disagreeing with Arafat on
anything from tactics to goals. He maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward
even the mildest forms of dissent.
And this is how he will continue to rule if he is ever granted his precious
Palestinian state.
For more than 30 years, Arafat has resorted to assassination of Arabs who
even suggested that peace with Israel was achievable – even while he
himself was supposedly negotiating peace in good faith.
Duly elected Arab mayors in the West Bank have been systematically
murdered if they cooperated with Israeli officials in any way – even for
the betterment of their own people.
But here we have a record of the way it works. Most of the killings take place
with much less fanfare, in secret, quietly, without the show.
Nevertheless, the message is always the same: Question Arafat and die.
Work with Jews and die. Live in peace with your neighbors and die.
Again, U.S. taxpayer dollars subsidize this wanton slaughter. U.S. diplomats
encourage it every time they insist Israel go back to the negotiating table.
In other words, we as Americans all have some culpability here. If we’re
not speaking out, if we’re not demanding Congress end the subsidies, we share
in the guilt. We’re part of the problem, not the solution.
We don’t need another police state in the Mideast. That’s what it means when
we advocate the creation of a Palestinian state under the leadership of Arafat. It
means a continuation of this kind of lynching, a continuation of terror against
Israelis and Americans. It means a death sentence to any Arab who dares to
contradict Arafat or is perceived to disagree with his methods of goals.
Do you want to be a part of that?
Right now, buried news reports suggest a major upturn in persecution against
Christians by Arafat’s police forces. It’s happening in Ramallah. It’s happening
in Bethlehem. It’s happening in Nazareth.
Even though Arafat claims to represent the interests of Arab Christians
in his territories, the truth is that religious cleansing is under way. Christian
civilians and shopkeepers are being targeted with vandalism and worse.
Why on earth would we in the United States want to be a part of that kind of
criminal behavior? Why do we insist that Arafat is the only hope for peace in
the Mideast? Where is the evidence for such a conclusion?
If myopic and suicidal officials in Israel want to continue to talk to Arafat, that
is their choice. But let’s make sure they are not doing so at our insistence. Let’s
make certain we are not buying the rope that will someday be used to hang us.
