Britannia Radio

Weekly Commentary: The True Jewish State Issue – Vested Interest of World Jewry
Dr. Aaron Lerner

Date: 14 July 2011

Does a Jew from Boston, Buenos Aires or Bombay have the right to step off
the plane at Ben Gurion Airport and become an Israeli citizen simply because
he is a Jew?

He does today, under the Law of Return.

When PA leader Mahmoud Abbas categorically refuses to accept Israel as a
"Jewish state" within the framework of a final status agreement , what he is
really saying is that he wants to ultimately force Israel to repeal the Law
of Return.

Again.

It isn’t that our national anthem, Hatikvah, has a reference to a “Jewish
soul”.

And it isn’t that our country closes down for Jewish holidays or that our
day off is Saturday.

It even isn’t that we have various national ceremonies that include Jewish
prayers.

Mahmoud Abbas rejects the right of all Jews from the Diaspora to become
citizens of Israel.

And this is absolutely not a philosophical discussion.

Mahmoud Abbas, and the rest of the “moderate” Fatah – along with other
Palestinian leadership - have every intention to lobby at every possible
forum to have Israel condemned for the “racist” Law of Return. Their goal
is to ultimately create a situation in which Israel will feel it has no
choice but to repeal the law.

Now this won’t happen overnight.

But it’s out there.

And it won’t matter if the Palestinians have every last centimeter of the
West Bank – including the Old City of Jerusalem.

The Palestinians still intend to do everything in their power to strip the
Jews of the Diaspora of their right to citizenship in Israel.

The dispute today between Israel and the Palestinians on terming Israel the
“Jewish State” is anything but academic.

It is an issue that world Jewry should embrace.

Because it is an issue that bears directly on this very essential right that
the Jews of the Diaspora have.

And given how basic and fundamental this right is, one would expect a
wall-to-wall response from Diaspora Jewry calling on Mahmoud Abbas and the
rest of the Palestinian leadership to back down on this critical issue.

Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director IMRA (Independent Media Review & Analysis)
(Mail POB 982 Kfar Sava)
Tel 972-9-7604719/Fax 972-3-7255730
INTERNET ADDRESS: imra@netvision.net.il
Website: http://www.imra.org.il