One Step Forward And Two Steps Back

Over a month ago, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced that he found the way to fight terrorism. This bombshell of a statement graced the headlines of the front pages of the two largest newspapers. The day before he went to Washington in order to continue suggesting dubious deals whose goal was to transfer land to our enemies, Sharon announced again, before a committee of lawyers, that he found the way to fight terrorism. Shortly afterwards, there were three more terrorist bombings in Israel’s central cities.

The interesting thing is that along with his announcement that he had found the way to fight terrorism, he did not forget to talk about a Palestinian state, about concessions, about evacuating settlements for peace, about capitulation and withdrawal.

It’s fascinating. You can’t help comparing Sharon’s approach now to his situation 23 years ago, except that then Sharon was still new to his job and he made mistakes. Now, after much experience, he is not allowed those mistakes.

Mr. Sharon, you received two messages from the Rebbe Melech HaMoshiach. These were precise instructions, and had you followed them, they would have helped you find the way to fight terrorism and even eradicate it!

The Rebbe’s messages are relevant even today no less than at the time they were said - perhaps even more so. For some reason, those messages you received - one when you were a general in command, the other when you served as Defense Minister - were not carried out and were not mentioned as part of your new way of fighting terrorism. This is very likely the reason why you haven’t yet found the way, despite your announcements. It’s true that sometimes you see progress of one step forward; however, this is immediately followed by taking two steps backward.

On 12 Elul 5728 (1967) (Igros Kodesh, Vol. 25, p. 169), you received a letter of military strategy on how to fight terrorism. The Rebbe raised very pointed questions regarding Israel’s situation and its political conduct - questions that are just as strong today. In this unusual, shocking letter, the Rebbe writes "...on the other hand, enemies surround [Eretz Yisroel], and from day to day we see more points of weakness in the approach towards them on the part of the government in our Holy Land, for in their opinion [the Arabs] need to be handled with kid gloves and extreme care. If there’s an argument between an Arab and an Israeli, the first thing to be done is to ascertain what they will say in some capitol city or another and make a decision in accordance with that. And so from time to time [the Arabs] continue to allow themselves more latitude in matters of rioting, and even more so in [creating] disturbances, and rioting leads to terrorism, etc..."

I don’t think there’s anything clearer than that paragraph discussing precisely how to deal with terrorism. The Rebbe says that when we run from capitol to capitol to explain, ch’v, why we don’t want to liquidate Arafat, and all we ask is that he "follow the program," in exchange for which (along with seven days of quiet, of course) Israel is ready to give Arafat a Palestinian state, we know the results ahead of time…

There was another time the Rebbe told you how to fight terrorism. This was when you fought Arafat in the war in Lebanon. You served as Israel’s Defense Minister and you fought the Fatah land-grab led by Arafat, in which he carried out non-stop attacks on the Jewish residents of northern Israel.

At a certain point you decided to go to war, in which you were fully justified. You took one of the most critical steps. But your problem then was exactly what it is today: one step forward and two steps back.

You were frightened by the demonstrations of Shalom Achshav, and you listened to what the nations would say. In the middle of the war you stopped, thereby turning the war (which had begun with great success) into the worst and most difficult war, which Israel eventually left in ignominy.

Just one month after the war in Lebanon began, the Rebbe cried about the need to finish off the job as quickly as possible. "Instead of finishing the job, they’re busy with meetings, sending emissaries, sending telegrams and letters, and discovering the opinions of all the ‘advisors,’ and until now they still haven’t finished the job. This is despite the fact that (as long as the job isn’t finished) there are more wounded daily, and sometimes worse, r’l..."

Mr. Sharon! I think today’s situation is exactly the same as in "b’yamim ha’heim" (those days), except that this time, bi’zman ha’zeh, you are repeating the same terrible mistakes which lost you the position of Defense Minister for many years.

Mr. Sharon, if you repeat the same mistake again and do not get rid of Arafat, and continue with these or other connivings, there will be more tragedy, ch’v. Only when you finish the job - and it might not be pleasant for a day or two, and the world, including the traitorous Left, might scream - will peace and quiet reign again in the streets of Eretz Yisroel.

The problem is that you look left while squinting right, and are afraid of the Left’s de-legitimizing you. "Like in those day, in this time," they fight you, frighten you, scare you from completing the job. They make sure you don’t forget Sabra and Shatilla, and certain people among us made sure that the B.B.C. of London broadcast it, and got the Belgian court to take it on. We can understand you, but you know good and well what bitter results these policies will lead to.

In a heartbreaking farbrengen, the Rebbe begged you to finish the war. Like in a film script, amazing in its precision, the Rebbe described the results if the war in Lebanon wasn’t finished properly. And it happened just as the Rebbe said it would.

You must not reckon with the opinions of the timid and faint-hearted. You have to do everything to rid us of this grave danger and situation of pikuach nefesh.

There’s an interesting point that is repeating itself in the present situation, too. In recent months we heard about the debate between the military leadership and the political leadership, Sharon and Puad Ben Eliezer, a debate (for example) concerning the military position which was supposed to conquer the hills of Abu Senina. The politicians were against it. Even when it became unbearable and the army entered the neighborhood, the general decided unequivocally against leaving, and for that you sharply criticized him.

At the previously mentioned farbrengen, when the Rebbe spoke from the depths of his heart, the Rebbe also dealt with the following point very sharply: "They do all they can to impose their views on the military, and to prevent them from doing their job faithfully, when the military’s view is 100% clear that the only way for true security (and beyond that - true peace) is to finish the war in Lebanon! We see that all the concessions and withdrawals in the past were a preparation for the war to follow!"

Reading this is chilling. The obvious question is: Why are we repeating the same mistake? Why are we trying to impose political considerations upon military matters?

Today, all security officials say we must liquidate Arafat and dismantle the Palestinian Authority. This is said in all forums and on all levels. Even senior people who in the past stood at the top of the security pyramid think that the Arafat era has come to an end. But our Prime Minister announced that he will not eradicate Arafat. And we believe him, because the inner political machinations, the fear of what people will say and what they will do, will not allow Sharon to do the most important thing to ensure our security.

So if you, Mr. Sharon, are still looking for the way to fight terrorism, you have it all ready-made, in amazing letters the Rebbe wrote to you personally.

We keep on getting polished interviews with the one who was "good for the Jews," Binyanim Netanyahu. He tries to explain that while he was Prime Minister there were no attacks because Arafat was simply afraid of him.

Today, in the era of the electronic media, it’s possible to transform every dream into reality by means of a digital screen. You can also sell us on the idea that Arafat simply trembled in fear of Bibi.

Mr. Netanyahu, you have all the visual talents as far as the media and television go. Just the other week you gave fifty interviews to the American media, and you explained what a danger Arafat is to peace in the region, but all that can’t change the reality of what took place when you served as Prime Minister.

You were the one who continued the policies of Oslo. You kept Arafat quiet by giving him large sections of Eretz Yisroel, thus bringing us to the terrible state we are in now. We haven’t yet been stricken with amnesia, and we remember how after the tunnel incident, when Arafat’s security forces killed 16 soldiers, you were afraid to enter Area C and wipe out Arafat along with his security forces, despite the fact that you had all the right in the world. Instead you ran to Washington to meet with Arafat and Clinton. Over there you announced that you found Arafat to be "a real friend and partner."

Three months later, you gave 85% of Chevron to the murderer Arafat. So it’s not surprising that it was quiet. Until now your words reverberate at the press conference you called after giving away the hills of Abu Senina to terrorists. You said that these areas would be accorded the highest security, that from then on there would only be peace and security in Chevron.

It was from those hills that the infant Shalhevet Pass was killed. It was from those areas that bloodthirsty terrorists entered the home of Rabbi Shlomo Raanan in Tel Romeida and killed him.

If that weren’t enough, less than two years after giving away Chevron you went to the Wye Plantation in order to give Arafat 13 percent more, all with the political consideration that this would help you get elected. At that meeting you signed documents giving away land that today are focal points of terror.

You’re a great explainer, but to come and criticize, and especially to pervert history and tell us what a hero you were against Arafat!

And another thing, Mr. Netanyahu. When you served as Prime Minister, after every security failure you blamed the previous government, and claimed that this was the inheritance you received from them. So if we make a simple calculation, the terrible situation we are in now is an inheritance from your government, which did not annihilate Arafat.

The week after the bloody massacres, we received the Egyptian envoy, their Foreign Minister Ahmed Moher, who came to try and bring quiet to the region. Naturally, in his honor, military actions were suspended. The explainers trumpeted and explained that the cessation of military action was because of the weather.

We can’t help but think of those Camp David Accords, when the Rebbe warned that those agreements wouldn’t stop with Sinai, but the concessions would continue endlessly. Egypt sends a peace envoy, but everybody knows that Egypt is readying itself for war. It has been preparing its army for war for years, and it has armed itself with the most advanced weaponry. It stands on Arafat’s right side against Israel, but Israel’s leaders pretend not to see this. All red lights have been lit for a long time now, but we continue to see Egypt as a suitable mediator.

It’s a joke. Tzvi Hendel, member of Ichud Leumi, the extremist, turned to the Mafdal party and asked it to join the government. Yes, the party whose only principle for years was to hang onto its seats at all costs, is on the outside, while Hendel in the eternal opposition is on the inside.

If you expected that a party that was supposed to represent the Ichud Leumi of Israel would not sit in a government responsible for bloodshed, look again - this week they announced a great achievement and victory - that the government announced that the P.A. is an "entity that supports terrorism." How sad.

You would think that after all the terrible attacks everything is back to normal, and even those in the Ichud Leumi seem tranquil. The Right is calmed by the bombing of Arafat’s helicopter and by the pronouncement that the P.A. is a terrorism-supporting entity, and the members of Ichud Leumi can continue to sit and enjoy their positions. What a chutzpa for Hendel to call on Mafdal to join the government. This is in the category of sinning and causing others to sin. If you, Mr. Hendel, know that you are giving a hechsher to this government and you have pangs of conscience as a result, the time has come to leave the government and fight it from without. But to call on another party in the opposition - which at least is not a partner, as you are, to bloodshed - to join the government, too? That’s too much.

We saw your glee as well as that of your friend, Benny Eilon, after the government’s announcement that the P.A. is an entity that supports terrorism. It was obvious that your joy was because you would retain your seats. The truth is that this announcement is a charade to enable you to remain in the government.

Minister Benny Eilon, asked repeatedly why he didn’t leave the government, said: "Why should I leave? Let Peres leave!"