Steve Malzberg
Friday, April 12, 2002

Keep reading. You are going to want to mark this episode of "Ari Fleischer Holds Court" as one of the most important episodes of the 16-month series to date.

The president's press secretary made two statements that should grab the headlines of the morning papers around the world, but don't look for them there.

Instead, we will probably be force-fed some headline about poor Yasser Arafat and his band of merry terrorists holed up in his headquarters for yet another day.

What you SHOULD see in bold print is what Ari Fleischer said about Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. "The president believes that Ariel Sharon is a man of peace," said Fleischer. He didn't just say it once, he repeated it.

Of course, the significance of this is that it flies in the face of all the bull the media would love you to believe about the Israeli leader.

The media here and abroad, along with just about every single Palestinian spokesman and sympathizer, will tell you that "Sharon is a war criminal. He hates Arafat. He doesn't want peace. He wants to exterminate the Palestinians," etc.

For Fleischer to make this perfectly unambiguous statement about Bush's thoughts on Sharon's intentions, as Sharon gets set to meet with Powell, is nothing short of stunning. Bravo to the president.

But Fleischer wasn't finished. While addressing the issue of suicide bombings, Fleischer stopped himself and said: "They are not suicide bombings. They should be called homicide bombings."

Boy, did he hit it on the head with that one! Of course these brainwashed bombers are nothing more than mass murderers.

For too long they have been glorified by their families, friends, leaders and the media, both here and abroad. Now the president's spokesman comes along and says what every decent human being knows to be true, that these are criminals committing murder.

More importantly, he gave it a media-friendly name, homicide bombings. Let's see if the media pick up on that one. Do you want to bet?

Here's another one to be on the lookout for, possibly squeezed in somewhere as you are subjected to more and more Palestinian propaganda throughout the media.

Would you believe that Saudi-run television held a telethon to raise money for those who commit these acts of murder and their families? The Saudi royal family reportedly gave millions of dollars to get things started. I kid you not.

Where is the outrage? Where are the decent Arab-Americans and those Arabs who live in the region speaking out against this blatant support of those who kill Jews because they are Jews?

My friends, if it's true that those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it, then I fear for what lies ahead for us.

Not only has the entire Arab world, with the exceptions of Bosnia and Malaysia, condoned the acts of the homicide bombers, the killing of Jews in Israel, but also Jews are now coming under physical attack all over Europe and in Africa and the United States. Taking the news just from today's wires is enough to send chills up and down one's spine.

Let's start on Tunisia's Djerba Island. A fuel tanker exploded just outside Africa's oldest synagogue, after it crashed into the perimeter wall of the building. At least eight people were killed, including four German tourists, in what Israeli officials believe was a truck bomb.

From Africa, let's move to Europe. France, to be specific. There, the nation's 700,000-strong Jewish community is being subjected to a near-daily series of anti-Semitic attacks. The problem seems to be that there are some 5 million Muslims who also call that country home, and that mixture has turned ugly.

On Wednesday a masked gang wielding metal bars and shouting anti-Jewish remarks attacked a group of Jewish soccer players from a Jewish club in the Paris suburb of Bondy.

On the same day, a bus carrying kindergarten kids from a Jewish school in the eastern district of Paris was attacked by stone throwers. One of the rocks shattered a window on the bus, resulting in facial injuries to a little girl.

Unfortunately, these are but two examples of what is becoming commonplace in France: the destruction of a synagogue in Marseilles, anti-Semitic graffiti, attacks against a Jewish family by a group of Arab men in a Paris suburb, and several incidents of Molotov cocktails being thrown at Jewish schools and cultural centers. Reportedly, at least 39 people have been arrested in connection with attacks on Jewish people and Jewish property.

Now let's move closer to home, Sacramento, Calif. There, a Jewish man wearing a yarmulke was out walking his dog in a Sacramento County park when he was approached by a man wearing a headdress. The man asked him if he supported Israel. He said he did.

The man in the headdress then said that he supported Palestine and pulled out an electric stun gun. The two men struggled over the gun. Soon another man joined in the attack. He was yelling statements about Palestinian children being attacked. The scuffle was broken up and the attackers escaped.

Where do we go from here? It depends. So long as both our media and the foreign press continue to portray Israel's actions of self-defense as violent aggression against civilians, I think things will only get worse. Already we have many Palestinians and their mouthpieces claiming genocide and massacres committed by the Israeli defense forces.

I warned that this would be the case in Jenin. Several days ago I learned that the Palestinians would not let the bodies of their dead be taken out of the refugee camp there, so that when the soldiers were finished, the Palestinians would pile up the bodies for the TV cameras and claim massacre.

Wait, the worst is yet to come. This is why Colin Powell's scheduled meeting with the mother of all terrorists, Yasser Arafat, is a dangerous mistake. All it will do is further legitimize terror, homicide bombings and attacks on Jews and Jewish property all over the world, and give Arafat the rat yet another life. I thought it was only cats that had nine lives.

Yes, Ari Fleischer went a long way toward putting everything in its proper perspective, and now Colin Powell is going to twist it all right back again. It's a shame.

Until next time, stay safe.

Please note that my WABC Radio shows can be heard live on the Internet at www.wabcradio.com: Monday-Friday, 6-8 p.m. Eastern time with Richard Bey on "The Buzz" and my Sunday morning show from 9-11 a.m.

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
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