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December 13, 2002
Menace worse than terrorism
Israel's ambassador warns of the mounting threat of attacks by
Hezbollah.
PAT JOHNSON SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
Terrorism is a threat to Israel, but it does not threaten Israel's
existence as much as other regional issues that get less attention.
That was one of the messages brought to a Vancouver audience Sunday
night by Israel's ambassador to Canada.
The ambassador, Haim Divon, was speaking at the fifth Townhall meeting,
an ongoing series of public events sponsored by the Israel Action
Committee and aimed at rallying local support for Israel.
Divon said terrorism, such as homicide bombings are devastating
to Israeli civilian life, but stand no chance of destroying the
Jewish state. In fact, he said, the continuing attacks have not
even managed to destroy the spirit and optimism of Israeli society.
The violence is tragic and wrenching but, in the larger scheme,
there are clouds on the horizon that could be much more threatening,
he warned.
"Terror is a menace, but terror is not an existential threat,"
said Divon.
Israelis and their friends who fear for the future of the Jewish
state should be more concerned with the fact that, according to
Israeli sources, between 8,000 and 10,000 Katyusha rockets are aimed
at Israeli targets from Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon, said Divon.
The rockets, which could be exponentially more devastating to Israel
than individual terrorist acts, could be used to destabilize the
region in the event of a war involving Iraq. If the Americans and
their allies attack Iraq, Hezbollah could unleash its rockets on
Israel, precipitating a retaliation from the Israelis, which would
alter the tenuous balance of allegiances the Americans are carefully
attempting to create in the region, Divon said.
In addition to the open hostility of some neighboring countries,
Israel is also challenged by the growing intolerance of erstwhile
neutral neighbors, like Egypt, and the equivocations of friends
like Canada and some European nations, he continued. While Divon
diplomatically sidestepped controversy swirling in the Jewish community
here over Canada's foreign policy, the irony was clear to most people
in the room that, while Israel was nervously eyeing Hezbollah Katyushas,
Canadian leaders were hesitating to declare Hezbollah a banned terrorist
organization.
Divon spoke of the "crazy, impossible neighborhood" Israel
lives in and reminded Vancouverites that, 25 years after the historic
visit of Egypt's president Anwar Sadat to Israel, relations between
the two countries continue to deteriorate. Egyptian television is
currently running a mini-series based on extreme anti-Semitic mythology,
he said. Divon also noted that, as Israel was marking that 25th
anniversary with nostalgia, Egypt was withdrawing from the one bilateral
program the two countries shared: an agricultural exchange that
Divon is deeply familiar with, having been responsible for it before
being appointed ambassador to Canada.
And while Israel struggles with the intifada, the country remains
subject to the whims of international economics as well. The burst
of the high-tech bubble has had as big an impact on Israel's economy
as the loss of peace and stability, he said.
Though much of the news was bad, Divon insisted there was reason
for optimism in the coming year.
"It's a year of threats, risks, but also of opportunities,"
he said.
A change of regime in Iraq could have a positive impact on the entire
region, he said. Israeli unemployment remains relatively low, despite
all, and Israel's gross domestic product remains high, he reminded
the audience of about 300 at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater
Vancouver.
Divon also credited his homeland for maintaining strict adherence
to democratic principles even in the face of insurrection.
"No other country in the world living under these circumstances
could maintain a democracy," he said. The media in Israel is
among the most tenaciously investigative and the society is a model
of intellectual freedom, he said.
Audience members spoke of ways to show support for Israel, including
actively seeking out Israeli-made products to buy and encouraging
more volunteers and visitors to go to Israel.
The crowd was diverse, including Jewish leaders from across the
religious and political spectrum, as well as a contingent of Christian
activists who are bridging the Jewish and Christian communities
to build support for what some Christians – like some Jews
– believe to be a divinely ordained right of the Jews to possess
eretz Yisrael.
The audience reacted enthusiastically to a suggestion by one audience
member, who asked if Israel is considering opening a consulate in
Vancouver or Seattle.
Divon noted that such a plan isn't in the cards and, in fact, consuls
and embassies have been closing around the world, including a consul
in Sydney, Australia, and embassies in New Zealand and Panama.
"These are the ramifications of the problems we are going through,"
said Divon. Asked further if local activists could fund such an
office, Divon said there is more need for donations to Israeli causes
than to fund a consulate here, but he added that he hoped such a
proposal would be more feasible in five or six years.
The ambassador also reported that Israelis living abroad are not
allowed to vote in the upcoming elections, but said there is a possibility
that the rules could change in future elections.
Pat Johnson is a native Vancouverite, a journalist and
commentator.
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