Letter to The Washington Post
From: mberenhaus@comcast.net
To: ombudsman@washpost.com
CC: letters@washpost.com
Subject: Arab Lands?
Date: Tuesday, October 21, 2008 11:40:07 AM
Dear Editor, Why does The Washington Post insist on calling the West Bank - "Arab lands"? [Old Saudi Peace Plan Considered, Barak Says Oct. 20, 2008]. The Turks (who are not Arabs) controlled the region from 1517 to 1917. The British (who are not Arabs) controlled the region from 1917 to 1948. From 1948 to 1967, the West Bank territory was illegally occupied by Jordan. Israel won it after being attacked by Jordan in the Six Day war in 1967 and it has been in their control ever since. It is no coincidence that the West Bank was known for thousands of years as Judea and Samaria. And if you want to go back even further: Abraham, the first Jew, and patriarch to the major religions was buried in the West Bank - no one disputes this. The territory is not "Arab land", and saying it is does not make it so. Please reconsider this usage since I know you cherish your objectivity. Call it "disputed" territory.
Thank you,
Michael Berenhaus
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Note: Abraham was buried in Canaan – but I wanted to simplify for the letter.
Michael
Friday, October 3, 2008
Letter to The Washington Post
From: mberenhaus@comcast.net
To: letters@washpost.com
Subject: letter to the editor
Date: Friday, October 03, 2008 1:53:24 AM
Dear Editor,
What more needs to be said about an op-ed written by an author who wrote a book about Israel, a country the size of New Jersey, and called it "The Accidental Empire"? Yes Gershom Gorenberg [Failure Written in West Bank Stone Sept. 30, 2008] has an agenda - given a platform for his view for the fourth time in less than three years in the Post – and he has been wrong each time. Israel won the West Bank - not from the Palestinians – but from an occupying power Jordan. In Gorenberg calling Israel an occupier, can he answer how can one occupy an occupier?
Jordan had been launching devastating attacks against Israel for years culminating in a massive attack which failed miserably during the Six Day War of 1967. Israel merely took the land from which they had been continuously attacked - is that such a crime? And as the holder of the land, it is Israel’s right to do with it as it chooses. It chose to give a majority of it to the Palestinian inhabitants of the area. No credit was given to Israel for this – only endless condemnation by the likes of the UN, the European Union, and Pro-Arabists like Gorenberg – all with anti-Israel pasts – for it not being enough.
The Palestinians, bear in mind, were on the side of Jordan during the war – the losers. They have made more demands as losers of a war than ever recorded. And with each passing day, they deserve to get less and less – perhaps it will spur them on to do something that they sorely need to do if they hope to have a state of their own – compromise – and be grateful that they are getting anything.
Michael Berenhaus
From: mberenhaus@comcast.net
To: letters@washpost.com
Subject: letter to the editor
Date: Friday, October 03, 2008 1:53:24 AM
Dear Editor,
What more needs to be said about an op-ed written by an author who wrote a book about Israel, a country the size of New Jersey, and called it "The Accidental Empire"? Yes Gershom Gorenberg [Failure Written in West Bank Stone Sept. 30, 2008] has an agenda - given a platform for his view for the fourth time in less than three years in the Post – and he has been wrong each time. Israel won the West Bank - not from the Palestinians – but from an occupying power Jordan. In Gorenberg calling Israel an occupier, can he answer how can one occupy an occupier?
Jordan had been launching devastating attacks against Israel for years culminating in a massive attack which failed miserably during the Six Day War of 1967. Israel merely took the land from which they had been continuously attacked - is that such a crime? And as the holder of the land, it is Israel’s right to do with it as it chooses. It chose to give a majority of it to the Palestinian inhabitants of the area. No credit was given to Israel for this – only endless condemnation by the likes of the UN, the European Union, and Pro-Arabists like Gorenberg – all with anti-Israel pasts – for it not being enough.
The Palestinians, bear in mind, were on the side of Jordan during the war – the losers. They have made more demands as losers of a war than ever recorded. And with each passing day, they deserve to get less and less – perhaps it will spur them on to do something that they sorely need to do if they hope to have a state of their own – compromise – and be grateful that they are getting anything.
Michael Berenhaus
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