Conrad on Expulsions

What do the biblical figures Mary and Joseph have in common with 383 members of a radical Islamic fundamentalist group? Very little. Yet, that is presumably the analogy made by political cartoonist Paul Conrad (Dec. 23) in his cartoon condemning the recent Israeli deportation of 383 members of the Hamas terrorist organization.

Traveling through the desert, Conrad depicts Mary and Joseph being met by a long line of people traveling in the opposite direction. They tell the couple, “There’s no room in the inn . . . or in the country!” The implication that members of Hamas are innocent, peaceful individuals being persecuted for no apparent reason is not only misleading, it’s outrageous.

Financed primarily by Iran and Saudi Arabia, Hamas is committed to the destruction of Israel. The group is opposed to the Arab-Israeli peace process, and is considered responsible for most of the recent armed attacks on Israeli civilians and military personnel, including the kidnaping and brutal murder of an Israeli border policeman. Hamas leaders have since declared such attacks on Israelis in all parts of Israel to now be Hamas policy, and they have promised more kidnapings.

The decision to deport these people was not taken lightly by the Israeli government. Deportation is one of Israel’s most serious punishments and is considered only when other measures have failed to stop violent and hostile activity. But all governments are entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring the safety and security of its citizens. Israel is no different.

There has always been “room in the inn” for the Palestinians. Israel has always expressed its willingness to sit at the negotiating table with those Palestinians who are sincerely committed to achieving peace.

But let’s be clear. The members of Hamas are not, like Mary and Joseph, seeking a “room in the inn.” Rather, they seek to destroy the inn and the country along with it.

CHERYL CUTLER AZAIR

Associate Director

Anti-Defamation League

Los Angeles