The Silence of the Guilty

The Silence of the GuiltyJuly 1, 2001

On June 26th, writing in Ha'aretz newspaper, Ari Shavit writes, and I quote
the first paragraph of his article,

"It will be difficult to forget this silence. For several months now, on
almost a daily basis, Israeli citizens who live beyond the Green Line are
being murdered by the historic allies of the Israeli peace movement, yet
that movement is silent. Here and there its members might mumble a word or
two expressing their condolences. Here and there they might make a
weak-kneed appeal to Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. However,
essentially, they are silent. In the deepest sense, they are silent. They
see their allies shooting at point-blank range at Israelis and yet they are
silent."

The question is, why the silence? Shavit himself offers a solution:

"However, what is most disturbing is that this silence prompts many to
suspect that the silence of the silent ones is no coincidence, to suspect
that their silence is somehow linked to the fact that it is their secret
political dream to see the Settler Other simply evaporate. To get up one
morning and to discover that the hated Settler Other has quite simply
vanished."

Little does Ari Shavit know just how correct he is.

Please, listen to this carefully, because otherwise you will not believe
what you hear.

The date is Friday, July 14, 1995 several months before the assassination
of then Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Rabin's Foreign Minister was none
other than the present Foreign Minister, Shimon Peres.

I was in the middle of writing an article when I heard an interview on Kol
Yisrael radio with Rabbi Nahum Rabinovitch, from Ma'ale Adumim. Rabbi
Rabinovitch had spoken to a reporter who interviewed Peres a short time
before. The reporter asked Peres, "aren't your worried about what will
happen to the 'settlers' in Judea and Samaria after the army pulls out?"
Peres' answer was, and I quote from that 1995 article 'I have no problem
with what will happen in Yesha. We will withdraw the army and then let's
see what happens. They (the Jews) will either run away immediately, or the
Arabs will massacre some, and then we'll see what happens."

You are undoubtedly asking yourselves, "what did he say?"
So, I repeat, and again, please listen carefully. Shimon Peres: 'I have no
problem with what will happen in Yesha. We will withdraw the army and then
let's see what happens. They (the Jews) will either run away immediately,
or the Arabs will massacre some, and then we'll see what happens."

That was Foreign minister Shimon Peres of 1995. And what of Foreign
Minister Shimon Peres in 2001, almost exactly six years later? On Friday
night Peres met with murderer Arafat in Lisbon, had a sumptuous meal with
him, and is pictured smiling, standing next to him, hands on hands. Peres
was quoted as saying that the discussion had been positive, with the
terrorist calling Peres "our partner in peace." Truly an idyllic moment.
Peace at last, just around the corner.

The next day, speaking at the Conference of the Council of the Socialist
International in Lisbon, killer Arafat viciously attacked Israel, saying,
"Palestine and my Palestinian people are exposed to the aggressive military
campaign waged by the Government of Israel, its army and settlers for the
ninth consecutive month, etc. etc. etc.

What was Shimon's response? "Give us security, and you'll get freedom." He
added, "we don't understand why you rejected proposals offered by Ehud
Barak and instead chose to launch a violent intifada."

Shimon Peres doesn't understand why Arafat chose war? Why shouldn't he
choose war, with a man like Shimon Peres standing at the helm. After all,
it was Peres himself who predicted, as far back as 1995, 'let's see what
happens to the Jews when the Arabs start killing them.'

Friends, it is time to understand the fundamental objective of Oslo.
When Shimon Peres launched his deadly initiative, his goal was not only to
rid the State of Israel of Yesha. His aim was much broader. Peres wanted
to break the back of what is called in Israel the "Religious nationalist
movement" many of whom are followers of Rav Kook and who initiated the
return to Yesha post Six-Day war. By destroying communities in Judea,
Samaria and Gazza, with many of their residents being massacred by
Arafat's armed forces, Peres hoped to bring the survivors to their knees,
crushing their ideology and their dreams. Following this victory, Peres
intended on destroying the rest of Israel's religious world, concentrating
on what is called the "Haredi" movement, eventually leaving them with
little or no political power. Then Shimon Peres would be able to realize
his grand dream: The secular State of Israel, a state with Jews living
here, but not a Jewish state. Rather, a secular western state, styled after
a combination of the United States and Sweden. (Remember, after receiving
the Nobel peace prize Peres told the King of Sweden, "We see you as a model
for our own state.")

Peres then, in 1995, and Peres today, 2001. The same instincts, the same
actions, the same results. Jews die while he has cake and coffee with the
murderers. This is why Peres and his friends remain silent in the face of
continued murder.

But, just as in 1995 we did not flee, so too today, we are spoiling Peres'
plans by standing strong, refusing to capitulate to Arafat-ordered terror.
Peres then, as today, made one major error. He forgot that Jews, above all,
have faith, faith in what we learn, faith in what we do, faith in our land,
faith in our G-d. That is why we cannot , and why we will not, lose.