The Canadian-Jewish Ncvys.Thursday. Octi)ber 16, 19^6-Page 3
Panelists at UJ A Day, sponsored by Jewish Women's Federation United Jewish App^l Campaign Division, are shown with chairman of the day^ Joan Stevens (centre). They are (from left) Shira Herzog Bessin j Dr. Ari Kruglahski, Ann Medina and Dr. Yonati Alexander. (Graphic Artiste
Expansion of fanaticism
: ■■:By:. r PAUL LUNGEN
TORONTO -
Low lever terrorist warfare against Israel arid the . Jewish people may be with us "at least for the next century."
Terror networks are expanding, new groups are arising and there is an exr pahsi'on of religious. fanaticism all harkening back to the lawlessness,of the Middle Ages, according to a researcher on \Xorld terrorism.
Dr; Yohah, Alexander, director of the Institute for Studies in Inte'rnational , Terrorism at the State
■ University of New York, pa i n t ed ,a n a dm i 11 e d 1 y ""ver>': bleak" picture of what is in store for Israel and the Western democracies. Speaking' to 400 members of the Jewish.. Women's Federation. Campaign Division - of the , United Jewish Appeal. . Alexander warned against adopting the "'Munich
■ complex ■■ when dealing .with terror — referring.to the capitulation of Western states in the 193bs to the ' demands of,Nazi Germans.
While the "state system" has been targeted by t e r ro r i s hi. t h e. " g 0 o d news" is that Western nations have begun to take stronger actions to counter the terrorist threat! ;
Alexander pointed out that much PLO terrorism was directed. ■ at other Palestinia^ns leading to 500 deaths, including women and children. Some were targeted because they supported attempts to advance peace, Alexander said., citing the case of a former mayor of Gaza who is •number 1 on the mainstream Fatah hit list.
Dr. Arie Kruglanski. who al6ng with CBC television reporter Ann Medink and Alexander roijnded out the panel of speakers, examined the 1,800 casualties (including 272 dead) suffered in Israel from terrorism between ^967-78, and noted that auto accidents and criminal violence ciaimed more lives.
American statistics are proportionately even lower, he stated, adding '"the likelihood of an average person being killed by terror is the same as being killed by a cork frorn. a champagne .bottle."
Kruglajiski, a professor of social psychology-at the Tel Aviv University now teaching at the University of Wisconsin, said the often irrational fear instilled by terror does not always correspond to the actual danger it poses; .The fear arises becaluse the incidents are "vivid" and often "sensationaliz-. ed" by the media reporting them.
The rriedia '•magnify fear"" and can lerid legit-" iniacy to terror leaders such as. PLO chairman Yasser Arafat;
Kruglanski. quoting British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, said the media, provide the "o.x-ygen of publicit) " to ter-, rorists. and .suggested they • use restraint, when reporting terrorist events, . . Medina, who as cor-' /respondent with CBC"s The Journal covered the 1982 Lebanoniwar, acknowledged the media sen-: sationalizes some te;rrorisf incidents, pointing to the TWA hijacking in Lebanon, which was covered ''live, ■
But she said the media are often "a handy target" for those who feel "frustrated" by the inability of governments "to do something" about terrorism. $elf-imposed restrictions on what the media report is not the answer to stopping yiplence, she said.
Medina warned against the threat of governments which wish to control the news in the interests of some higher goal. If the media were to cover stories with that ''God syndrome" in mind they could find themselves playing along ■ with goyemrrient officials and becoming part of a "lynchmob psychology."
Medina pointed to recent revelations in the United States about an administra- ^ tidn"disinformation"
campaign aimed at painting Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafias"thebad guy," a .campaign that many in the media went along with..
In the case of the Rome and Vienna airport attacks last summer, the U.S. at first claimed the terrorists were trained in Libya: and later said they may have come from; Syria.. On another occasion, during the TWA crisis, a White House spokesman announced the hostages were released when in fact they were still held captive.
Under those sorts of circumstances, the media must not follow goyern-meht reports blindly, Medina said.
interchangeably.'.'
The media should "call a spade a sfwde."
Medina: agreed there is ' 'Confusion-' in the words used to describe terroristis, and said care should be taken when covering terrorists.
She hearkened back to her theme of opposing a "news blackout,'' to which Kruglanski replied '!Np one wants a blackout." But "the media should realize that reporters have inherent biases" arid that it assists terrorists by amplifying fear and making their deeds accessible to the public. These concerns should not be brushed aside ''in the name of (searching for) truth;" he said.
Shira Heriog ■ Bessin acted as moderator of the
She called for resort to tried and thie Journalistic criteria, such as striving for objectivity, obtaining 2-hour program at the Beth verification anid reporting Tikvah Synagogue. Judy the facts without Scheininger thanked the comment. . panel, which was introduc-
Tuming again to allega- . ed by. Joan Sjeyens. tiphs of media sensa- chairperson of the tionalism., she adrnitted it. program. wa!i a problem. ; but reminded the audience it was they who bought the newspapers and .watched.
-By:
RON CSILLAG
TORONTO -
The target of terrorism today is no longer just Israel but all of the West, agree two authorities on the subject.
Dr. Joyce Starr and Dr. Yoram Peri told the start of a 1 '/i-day conference on terrorism, held at the Beth Tikvah Synagogue by the Business and Professional Women's Network of United Jewish Appeal that because Israel has been so.. successful in preventing terrorist acts, the focus of terrorists today has shifted to encompass all of the Western world, including Israel.
Starr, the director of Near Ea.stern Studies at Georgetown University and a. former advisor to Presideint Jimmy Carter, told the 400 women that "all we have"" to combat terrorism are "rhundane methods;,'" like increased security, international law, intelligence gathering and, as a last re.sort, the use of force.
"We cannot understand terrorism,"" Starr said. ' 'There is no rhyme dr reason or rationale to it. .
"But there are general themes: either to bring down a government or to achieve a government."
Starr said the bombing of Libya by the United States last summer "did no good,"' becau.se acts of terrorism show no sign of abating. . , ' r
From I969tb 1986. terrorist acts increased threefold,- while in April of this year, there were i 16 separate acts of terror in the world, .she noted, with almost half occurring, in .Europe..
"We are living inan increasingly hopeless world, similar to the Dark Ages."';.
As for the terrorist, he or she is typically young and raised in an environmeht
"where there is no hope. They feel no remorse and no regret. He may be pathological to you and me, but to him, he's without hope."
Starr said terrorism in Chile or Argentina is different because it isn't exported, whereas Palestinian terrorism usually is.
She said Palestinian terrorism may increase in the future because of low oil prices, which contribute to the impoverishment of the region and heighten a sense of frusti;atioh among the populace. Add to that the coming population explosions in Egypt and Syria and we have a volatile mix for the coming years.
Yoram Peri, a professor of political science at Tel Aviv University, said solving the Palestinian problem won't end terrorism.
Modern terrorism is different than from pre-World War I days, he exr plained. Prior to World War I, an act of political violence consisted of assassinating a leader.
After 1918, targets became more and more symbolic. Today, Peri said, terrorism is more vicious, more widespread and affects more people. Targets are usually picked and killed at random.
But Israel, he noted, has been successful in preempting nine out of 10 acts; of terrorism within . its borders. From 1965 to 1985, 650 Israelis were killed by terrorists, a relatively small number, he .said. The figure is the same, he pointed out, as the annual amount of car crash fatalities in Israel.
Because Palestinian terrorists have not been able to strike in Israel, they have moved elsewhere and have banded together with other groups like the IRA, the Red Brigade and the Baader-Meinhof gang. Peri said.
Peri agreed with Starr that all the West has to combat terrorism are better security arrangements, retaliation "in a surgical way," and, as a last resort, a pre-emptive strike; ..
Discount
Korans in appreciation
the reports they criticized as sensational, thus providing a market for that .JERUSALEM (JCNS) — sort, of reporting. Expensive editions of the
A question posed to the Koran are .owned by a panelists following, their .number of Israeli doctors, remarks noted that questions of objectivity do not concern terrorists; They were simply interested, in having their deeds
reported.
Alexander replied by noting the absence of agreement in branding terrorists for what they are and not "using freedom fighters, commandos, guerillas and terrorists
-No; they are not considering becoming converts to Islam: The books have been given to them as gifts by patients who have come secretly frorn Arab countries to consult them and have shown their appreciation in this way.
These Arab patients include men, women and children from Saudi
Arabia. Kuwait. Abu Dhabi and Jordan.
The trend began after the .Six Day War in 1967, when Israel's medical advisor in : Gaza began referring complicated cases to Ashkelon Hospital. Word of the excellent treatment there .spread from relatives, to friends.
Despite the danger to them if it becomes known that'they are traveling to Israel, more and more Arabs arc arriving for medical treatment:
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