The Boycott and the Palestinians

AJC Letter in Financial Times

Sir, While commendably rejecting the boycott call against Israel by the British University and College Union, you still manage to take some serious shots at Israel (editorial, May 31). Nowhere, however, amid charges aplenty against Israel, the "pro-Israel lobby in the US" and "Israel's irredentist right" is there a single reference to the challenges Israel faces in seeking a peace accord with the Palestinians. It is as if the only hurdle to achieving peaceful conflict resolution is Israel's "self-defeating" policy.

Speaking of self-defeating policies, what is to be made of the chaos, anarchy and violence in Gaza since Israel's total withdrawal in 2005? Or the smuggling in of weapons, the building of tunnels and the firing of thousands of Qassam rockets at southern Israel? Or Hamas rule, which is committed to Israel's annihilation and replacement by a Sharia-based Islamic state?

Polls in Israel consistently reveal support for a two-state solution with the Palestinians. But those strong desires alone will not yield an accord unless the self-defeating policies of the Palestinians come to an end.
David A. Harris
Executive Director
American Jewish Committee