Premier Menachem Begin, appearing before enthusiastically approving Jewish audiences here, passionately defended Israel’s invasion of Lebanon and claimed that its twin goals of “Peace for Galilee” and the destruction of the Palestine Liberation Organization had been achieved through the brilliance of Israel’s defense forces.
Begin spoke Thursday night at a meeting of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations attended by 400 persons at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel and later at a United Jewish Appeal dinner at the Pierre Hotel attended by 500 guests.
At the UJA dinner it was announced that in the previous four days, $4 million was raised in an emergency fund for Israel. Sums of $1.5 million and of $500,000 and $400,000 in large contributions were announced at the dinner. It was also announced that the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies was making a loan of $10 million, to be available this Monday, to Israel. It is part of a $25 million commitment in emergency funds for Israel made by the UJA-Federation Campaign.
The Premier also addressed more than 2,000 Jewish leaders at an Israel Bond Organization luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria on Friday. He was presented with $35 million in cash purchases of Israel Bonds. It was described as the single biggest Israel Bonds cash day since the Yom Kippur War.
Begin told the Jewish leaders that when he meets President Reagan tomorrow he would tell the President, who he called “a devoted friend of Israel,” of the American Jewish community’s support for Israel as well as the support of many Christian Americans. (By Yitzhak Rabi)
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
