“Israel is not prepared to sacrifice its commitment to the Zionist principles of development and growth even to please Egypt’s Foreign Minister,” declared Mrs. Charlotte Jacobson, chairman of the World Zionist Organization-American Section, in response to Ismail Fahmy’s statement that Israel can buy peace only if she agrees to “freeze” her population at its present level and halt all immigration for the next 50 years.
Calling the latest Egyptian demands “an outrage against common sense and common decency,” Mrs. Jacobson pointed out that the very raison d’etre of Israel and the Zionist movement is free and unlimited immigration, adding that the whole thrust of Zionist activity today is to stimulate even greater numbers of young people, particularly from the free world, to make their homes in Israel.
“Fahmy calls for Israel’s acceptance of the 1947 partition plan,” Mrs. Jacobson said, “but he seems to have forgotten that Israel did accept that plan when it was offered, and it was Egypt and the rest of the Arabs who rejected it. Indeed, it was their rejection–in word and bloody deed–which has kept the Middle East in turmoil ever since. The alternative which he offers–acceptance of Arafat’s proposal for a ‘secular Palestine state’–is simply another name for the same goal: the disappearance of Israel from the world scene.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
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.
