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The Canadian Jewish News, Thursday, September 30,1982 - Page 5;
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By J. B. SALSBERG
Ever since the shocking ney/s of the inhuman and indiscriminate slaughter of civilians in two refugee camps in Beirut I could not show my face anywhere without being asked what I thought of the tragic event.
People evidently thought that I was privy to special sources of information that were unavailable to them.
The truth is that I possess ho siiph special sources of intelligence except, perhaps, that I was more concentrated on every form of the media and the commentaries, local and foreign; than was the average person. That may or may not have given me some edge on what the average person garnered from his more limited sources.
But all of us — the more or the lesser informed — shared the same shocked and. painful reaction to the grim details that unfolded. I speak, of course, of what I call a typical Jewish response to the mass slaughter that had taken place. ;
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J. B. Salsberg
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Non-Jews were no less shocked and disturbed by the monumental tragedy that was enacted so bloodily in the two camps; But I believe that there was a difference between the universal Shock and the specific Jiewish response; That difference was ai spiecial concern to me. . „
The difference, in my eyes at least, cast a warm, human light on all of us.
Jews here and elsewhere were overcome by sorrow at ."the sight of so much human suffering, the fact that the victims in the camps were supporters of the FLO seemed not to have affected our emotional grief a:nd pur humane sympathy. And few, if any of us, were , calmed by the suggestiohs that the unarmed men, women and children who were wantonly slaughtered were only victims of a cycle of
mutually destructive revenge wars between the Christian Lebanese and the Palestinians and their local Moslem allies.
Of course such fratricidal butcheries took place in the past between the PLO forces and the Lebanese Christian militias, but that undeniable fact can not justify the latest horrible blood-letting that we and the whole world witnessed in recent days.
An awesome crime was committed and who, more tlian Jews, can identify with the victims? The sight of om-people's humane and civilized reaction to the not-to-be-rationalized crime warmed my heart and I wanted to embrace many of them, especially those with tear-filled eyes when they spoke of the horrendous carnage.
Another thing that troubled our people was whether the high command of the Israeli Defence Force was in any way, even remotely, responsible for the inhuman events in the . camps.. ■
It was pathetic to look into the searching eyes of those who asked for assurance that "we" were in no wiay responsible for what had taken place. Jews who know something of pogroms, Jews who still feel thie pains of the Holocaust, couldri't conceive that "we" could, in any shape or form, be associated with the atrocity.
Such a reaction was, in my eyes, the epitome of Jewish morality; the reaction to be expected from an ancient people that bore the lacerations of inhuman treatment for the major portion of its painful hiistory,   ; . I
That is why I; was so pleased to read the statement issued by the national officers of the Canadian Jewish Congreiss (president Irwin Cotler and chairman of the national executive, Sam Filer) relative to the trajgic happening in the Beirut refugee camps. That statement correctly says that' 'Canadian Jewry is shocked and deeply grieved" by what has occufed.
I believe that the leaders of Congress spoke for all of lis: when they asked for an independent commission of enquiry to be established in Israel "so the true facts can be known and justice be done." The Canada-Israel Committee has made a similar proposal in the public statement that it has issued.
The last words on that tragic eyent have not yet been uttered. The lessons of the entire Lebanon war and the repercussions of the emotional experiences of the past week will occupy a central place in the thinking of the people in Israel, as it will in the worldwide Jewish community.
The soul-searing acts of brataiity actually occurred during the last day or two of the old year, according to the Jewish calendar. The year might have ended on a less disturbing fashion. But it ended the way it did and we are, Vm -sure, united in the expression of hope that such gruesome experiences be never repeated and that peace between Israel and its neighbors and between the warring factions in/slde the ^^b camps will be achieved hi the new year.
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1 By I     WESLEY GOLDSTEIN
~    MONTREAL —
Prime Minister Begin has sent a personal envoy to North American Jewish community leaders to gain support for the ideological movement, Beyahad.
The envoy, Sam Ben-Shitrit, who is chairman of the movement, is on a month-long mission, having met so far with a number of U.S. leaders and in Canada with Ray Wolfe, Jack Rose and Phil Granovsky in Toronto and Manny Bat-shaw, representing Charles Bronfman, in Montreal.
To each he has delivered a personal letter from the Prime Minister which asks them to * 'promote inter-community understanding, and to build in love and brotherhood one nation, free and brave."
This, says Begin, is the aim of the movement, which is endorsed by many leaders including Israel's President, opposition leader, the two Chief Rabbis and the presidents of the World Sephardi Federation, the World Jewish Congress and World Zionist Organization.
Beyahad, whi c h means together, was founded three years ago by 250 North African community leaders in Israel. Their platform described their task as "developing a monument that would think through the problems facing North African aliya in Israel," and then act on them.
According to Ben-Shitrit,   Beyahad was
formed to change the image of North African Jews and to build bridges between Sephar-dic and Ashkenazi communities both in Israel and the Diaspora.
' 'Our'maIn objective is to work towards unifyhig Jewish people," he says. "We beUeve the variety of our backgrounds should enrich, not separate us."
He explains that each year, Beyahad devotes itself to a special theme which culminates in a traditional annual grand celebration for the Mi-mouna, the seventh day of Passover.
This year's Mimouna festivities, on the theme "Beyahad Shiytei — One Israel," will be celebrated in Jerusalem and .around the country from March 30-April 6. It will be attended by political and religious leaders from both communities.
With the co-operation of the Canadian Zionist Federation, Ben-Shitrit \yill be distributing the movement's constitution and ideological platform through schools and synagogues. He says he hopes to attract new members to the movement, and visitors to the Mimouna festivities.
Report from Ampal: net income, assets up
TORONTO —
Ampal American Israel Corporation reports net income for the first half of 1982 of $7,638,000, an increase of 149% over the same period in 1981.
Net income for the quarter ended June 30 of this year was $4,569,000, an increase of 151% over the same quarter a year ago.
Total assets as of June 30. 1982 were $736,00.7,-000 as compared to $584,189,000 at June 30, 1981, an increase of 26%. .
Shareholders equity at June 30, 1982 was $55,-074,000 as compared to $49,143,000 at Dec. 31, 1981.   an   increase of
12%. ;
Fully-diluted earnings per class A Share amoiinted to 36 cents for the first half of 1982
Ampal-American Israel Corporation is a New York based corporation principally engaged in financing and investingin industrial, financial and agricultural enterprises in Israel. There are of-, fices in Toronto and Montreal.
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