Sharon and Arafat Should Both Resign

I believe Chairman Yasser Arafat and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon should resign their offices. Arafat should voluntarily go to another country where he is welcome. Before leaving, he should address the Palestinian people and terrorists and tell them to stop their suicide bombings immediately and seek statehood with sincere, conciliatory negotiations.

Sharon should address his people and advise them to seek a genuine, peaceful solution to the reprehensible war that is killing innocents on both sides. The blaming and killings must stop. It is possible that peaceful negotiations will be easier to achieve once both Sharon and Arafat leave office. They must do this to preserve the lives of all their people.

Sheila Surkes Scotti

West Hollywood

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Neither Arafat nor Sharon has the ability to bring peace to the region because they can’t see beyond the gun. They both should step down and let someone else rule who can put aside the religious hate and work toward a peaceful solution to this madness. Taking down the World Trade Center and all the other terrorist acts aimed at the U.S. around the world have a cord leading back to Israel and Palestine. Peace between Israel and Palestine will sever that cord to the terrorist cells, and then we could exterminate the rats one by one without taking on the whole world.

It is very hard to shake hands with someone while holding a gun.

Ted Pearson

Valencia

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Finally, after all the blather that President Bush is responsible for the deteriorating conditions in the Middle East, Robert Satloff (Commentary, April 3) sets the record straight. Presidents from Jimmy Carter on have made sincere efforts to achieve peace between Israel and the Palestinians. All failed. Why? Because there is such intense hatred of the Israelis by the Palestinians and the whole Muslim world that they will only be reasonably satisfied when Israel is destroyed, which is their stated goal. Arafat was offered 95% of what he wanted and turned it down. He does not want a resolution of the conflict. Bush is supposed to overcome that? Hopeless.

Howard Lockwood

Lake View Terrace

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Re “Drop Peace Effort, Right Urges Bush,” April 3: The right, as in the same folks who oppose abortion as murder and feel that we need prayer in our schools, now feels that we should not engage in pressing for peace in Palestine? I guess this reveals the fundamental hypocrisy of the movement--unwanted children in this country are sacred, but the lives of the Palestinians and Israelis are not. Maybe it’s because they are not good Christians who vote in our elections? This is not a conservative position, nor is it a right position. It is mean-spirited, shortsighted and directly against the interests of the U.S.

William Noble

Santa Monica

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It must cause great consternation to the traditionally liberal Jewish American community to watch the extreme liberal left abandon Israel in its time of need. One knows that the left has lost its way when “peace activists” attempt to protect Arafat by rushing to serve as his human shield. These extremists have become apologists for this thug and his suicide bombers. Their natural loathing for America has been transferred to the undercutting of Israel’s security. While Israel has its faults, America must never forsake its democratic ally.

Leland P. Hammerschmitt

Ojai

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Each year the U.S. gives Israel $3 billion in foreign aid. Israel uses this money to finance its horrific assault on the Palestinians. The heartbreaking scenes that we see on TV are your tax dollars at work. Bush could put an end to this assault by issuing an ultimatum to Israel to stop the attack and to evacuate the West Bank, with the proviso that failure to instantly comply will result in termination of aid.

Richard Herman

Costa Mesa